They'll never make a TV comedy about graduate students. I know this because I just spent three days watching all of the second season of Scrubs — the goofy American comedy about would-be doctors doing their residency. Scrubs has three things that a show about graduate students wouldn't.
One, people actually die on Scrubs. "Professor Frank, I just don't think this E. coli is going to pull through" is unlikely to drive ratings.
Two, they have patients. The best we can offer are ideas and blips on a graph. Bloody operations are more fun to watch than percolating ideas.
Three, people have been to see doctors. They might reasonably wonder what it's like to be one. By contrast, tell someone at a party you're in science and the next question tends to be "So, how's the punch?" As grouchy Dr Cox would summarize on Scrubs: "Viewers just don't care about graduate students, Bambi."
This really is a shame. Consider me: I'm in my last year of a PhD, looking for a postdoc in a field that's fundable, not super-competitive, yet super-hot for 15 more years. I keep daydreaming about careers that society respects more, like plumbing. My mom keeps calling to tell me about my friends who have bought houses. I spend more time talking to yeast than to people. My doctor tells me I stress too much. Oh, and I need to graduate. Soon. How will all this unfold? Stay tuned. If TV executives happen to be reading this, call any time. I'll be in lab.
