For many students, the answer is &quot;to get a visa to move to a first-world country&quot;.<p>If you&#x27;re a smart first-worlder, there&#x27;s many careers more lucrative than scientific research, so you&#x27;d only go into it because of passion. But if you&#x27;re a smart third-worlder, a scientific career is often your best shot at emigrating to a rich country, so it becomes rational to do it whether you&#x27;re passionate or not.