Scientists are already self-selected outliers, eg 0.46% of undergraduate degrees are awarded in physics. So if you’re talking about a physicist, you’re talking

Scientists are already self-selected outliers, eg 0.46% of undergraduate degrees are awarded in physics. So if you’re talking about a physicist, you’re talking about a tiny fraction. If you start talking about those who complete graduate studies, and the 1 in 100 of them who generates truly groundbreaking work… you’re talking about 1 in 50,000 or rarer. https://www.aip.org/statistics/reports/physics-bachelors-degrees-2018 https://www.aip.org/statistics/reports/physics-bachelors-deg...