As the Research Director, you are the head of the station's scientific and technological development efforts. While you are not expected to be an expert in every niche field of research, you should possess a working knowledge of the major branches of Science, including anomalies, artifacts, robotics, research, and any other scientific disciplines present on the station. More importantly, you should know who to ask when a problem falls outside your expertise.
| A Good Research Director... | A Poor Research Director... |
|---|---|
| Enables their department to succeed | Tries to do all research personally |
| Oversees research safely | Ignores dangerous experiments |
| Supports technological advancement | Hoards technology and resources |
| Coordinates with other departments | Operates in isolation |
| Maintains oversight of anomalies and robotics | Allows reckless projects to proceed unchecked |
| Uses science to benefit the station | Pursues progress at any cost |
💡 Tip
Your job is not to be the smartest person on the station. Your job is to ensure the Science Department operates safely, efficiently, and productively.
As leader of the Science department, your primary responsibility is ensuring research operations run safely, efficiently, and productively.
Coordinate research priorities, oversee technology development, organize station-wide technology upgrades, and ensure departments receive the equipment and advancements they need to perform their duties.
Encourage cooperation between scientific personnel to maximize the department's effectiveness.
A good Research Director is not simply conducting experiments themselves, but enabling their department to succeed.
You are responsible for overseeing the station's anomalous assets.
Whether dealing with artifacts, anomalies, strange phenomena, or other unusual discoveries, it is your responsibility to ensure they are properly contained, researched, and handled according to established procedures.
Scientific progress is important, but not at the expense of station safety.
Curiosity should be encouraged, recklessness should not.
You should maintain oversight of the station's Branded Silicons.
While you are not expected to micromanage these assets, you should remain aware of major projects and intervene when necessary to prevent dangerous or irresponsible situations.
Law changes and robotics projects should be approached with care and good judgment.
You are responsible for ensuring members of the Science department are acting professionally and performing their assigned duties.
Scientists should be conducting legitimate research, roboticists should be building useful assets, and researchers should not be endangering the station through negligence or recklessness.
Encourage experimentation, discovery, and innovation, but ensure it remains within reasonable limits.
If a member of your department is inexperienced, make reasonable efforts to teach them or assign someone capable of doing so.
Do not authorize dangerous experiments, unrestricted anomaly testing, combat mech construction, or other high-risk projects without a legitimate operational reason and appropriate command approval.
Just because Science can do something does not mean Science should do it.
Consider the potential risks to the station, crew, and ongoing operations before approving unusual projects.
⚠️ Warning
Science is one of the few departments capable of accidentally creating station-ending problems. Exercise caution when approving projects that could significantly impact station safety.