Usually when we think about researching we think about staring at a computer for hours upon hours in a dark room with books stacked high around us while we're on our fifth cup of coffee. It's true. But researching can also be fun and make you feel as if you're accomplishing something, even if it is only researching something as mundane as why chloryphll is green. It is like solving a puzzle or a mystery that someone hasn't solved before. Research is seeking the truth, just like Sherlock. So when we research and discover new ideas, we're putting on the hat and sticking the pipe between our teeth like Sherlock.

Here are four ways researching is like Sherlock on a murder case:

1. First, you find a topic

Commence the the checking out of library books, downloading of pie charts, and bookmarking of important documents. Before you know it, you're in your "mind palace," and nothing else will get you out unless you need to eat or sleep or do human-like things. You're excited for you're new topic and what it'll bring to the world. You feel like Sherlock about to solve a puzzle and and complete a mystery.

2. You start gathering information on your topic, which is like solving a murder

Before you know it you're already using deductive reasoning to formulate your argument. Your sources are cited and you're already imagining what it would look like to present you're argument. You've already solved your mystery.

3. Then people try to drag you away from your passion

Right before you're on the verge of a great discovery, knee high in a stack of books, someone comes and takes you away from your research paper. When people come and tell you to take a break and try to tear you away from the things you want to do, have none of it.

3. The inevitable writer's block happens when you lose your passion

You've researched it and figured out what you wanted to write about, but somehow your original topic has lost your interest and now you're staring at a computer screen- not typing. Your pie charts and academic articles look meaningless, and every other topic on the earth looks more interesting.

4. By the grace of God you overcome

Eventually the writer's block passes and you manage to finish your research paper/project. It's like Christmas, for you solved the mystery!

I'm not trying to nerd up your passions, but researching and working on a project is fun, and there is a incredible feeling accomplishment that comes when you finish your project. It's the equivalent to being Sherlock on a murder case.