I Measured the Universe. I Still Felt Small

Nobody tells you that chasing the first light of the universe means you’ll spend years staring at noise, not signals. I’ve lost count of the nights I sat in the Atacama’s cold, watching the data crawl in, knowing most of it would be useless—just more static, more reminders that the universe doesn’t care if I’m tired or if my grant is running out. They called it impossible. I called it Tuesday. I learned to celebrate when the equipment didn’t break, when the numbers didn’t lie. When the paper finally got accepted, I felt nothing. Just the weight of all the nights I spent hoping the universe would whisper back. It never did. I kept listening anyway. #ScienceFatigue #LabBurnout #CosmicDoubt #Science