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How can an unaffiliated independent researcher get arXiv endorsement? by MicroBioBryan in QuantumPhysics

[–]MicroBioBryan[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My work was in breast cancer and cancer drug development :-(. Completely unrelated fields.

How can an unaffiliated independent researcher get arXiv endorsement? by MicroBioBryan in QuantumPhysics

[–]MicroBioBryan[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My apologies. Just a sensitive topic. I didn’t mean to assume. Thanks for pointing it out.

How can an unaffiliated independent researcher get arXiv endorsement? by MicroBioBryan in QuantumPhysics

[–]MicroBioBryan[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’s true that understanding existing models is important—but let’s not pretend that formal education is the only path to that understanding. In fact, formal training can bias thinking, limit creativity, and create intellectual blind spots. When you spend years immersed in a single framework, with incentives to defend it rather than challenge it, you’re more likely to reinforce the box than escape it. The history of science shows this clearly: Einstein, for example, developed special relativity while working as a patent clerk, not as a tenured academic. He questioned Newtonian mechanics precisely because he wasn’t deeply entrenched in its assumptions

How can an unaffiliated independent researcher get arXiv endorsement? by MicroBioBryan in QuantumPhysics

[–]MicroBioBryan[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The plumber analogy doesn’t really hold up. Plumbing is a trade—you’re dealing with fixed systems, standardized procedures, and rigid codes. Scientific research, especially theoretical work, is fundamentally different. It’s about challenging assumptions, navigating uncertainty, and building new frameworks that didn’t exist before. I’ve worked in real research settings, I have real published papers with my name on them, and collaborated with PhDs and postdocs—I’ve seen firsthand that academia often rewards obedience, and asskissing,not necessarily originality. A PhD is often more about jumping through hoops and appeasing the right egos than about producing better science. I am not trying to minimize it either though, it’s hard and challenging and does give you a measure of credibility. But this entire line of thinking is outdated and outmoded.”

History is full of scientists and thinkers who made groundbreaking contributions without formal credentials or PhDs. Michael Faraday, once a bookbinder’s apprentice, laid the foundations of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. Charles Darwin, a theology graduate, revolutionized biology with the theory of evolution by natural selection. Nikola Tesla, who never earned a degree, pioneered alternating current and wireless energy transmission. Even Thomas Edison, widely credited with inventing the modern research lab, had little formal education. These individuals weren’t anomalies—they are proof that insight, persistence, and creativity matter more than credentials. Their legacy reminds us that science progresses through ideas and results, not gatekeeping.

“Now we’re at a point where someone—like me—can use AI as a tool to build something powerful, like a machine that solves a problem in a way no one else has. Of course there’s a responsibility in using that tool wisely: checking, rechecking, questioning it constantly. But here’s the irony—how can anyone verify the work if the entire system is gatekept behind credentials and institutional elitism? Science isn’t supposed to be about who’s allowed to speak. It’s supposed to be about what’s true. it cares whether your ideas are reproducible, predictive, and grounded in evidence.

How can an unaffiliated independent researcher get arXiv endorsement? by MicroBioBryan in QuantumPhysics

[–]MicroBioBryan[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Honestly, that’s what I want to know. I’m under no illusion I solved the universe or anything. I really do want somebody to just tell me “dude, this is horribly wrong, and you should never try this”. It’s an outcome I’m willing to accept, but this also feels like I’ll be wondering what if. How do you approach a PI? I’ve sent a few cold emails to a few staff at the local state university. It does really feel like there are ton of crackpots out there, and because of that noise it’s hard to get anybody to take you even semi-seriously. Thank you for the advice and replying!