The big difference today is how ruthless the competition is to position yourself for a rewarding career in science. Even at a young age, you need to be setting yourself apart with <i>accomplishments</i> not just curiosity.<p>If you were to read the the autobiography of many of today&#x27;s top scientists like E.O. Wilson [0], they explicitly say that they wouldn&#x27;t be accepted into hard science program today with a childhood spent collecting bugs.<p>So the &quot;scary&quot; part of little Johnny going through an Xbox phase for a few years is that even if he comes out the other side curious about the natural world, little Suzy has already entered the Intel Science Fair, made connections at a research university, etc.<p>[0]: <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.amazon.com&#x2F;Letters-Young-Scientist-Edward-Wilson&#x2F;dp&#x2F;1491525908" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.amazon.com&#x2F;Letters-Young-Scientist-Edward-Wilson&#x2F;...</a>