What was science like before the shift to big data technology? How did biologists learn about cells before we could do high throughput gene analysis? What we can learn about how to problem solve from those who helped get us to where we are today? In this Science Commune episode, Dr. Rik Derynck helps us answer those questions by sharing his stories as a young scientist in the “primitive” early days of cell biology. Derynck talks about his work on TGF-β and how his early pursuit of the unknown helped inspire new methodologies for problem solving that carry into his work today. Derynck looks towards the future of the field as biologists gain understanding of TGF-β’s role in cancer immunology and immunotherapy.