These Rare Photos Show 21 Famous Scientists More Chilled Out Than You've Ever Seen Them

Do scientists work too hard? The answer to that question is a big fat "yes," at least if you believe the findings of a study published recently in the journal Biological Conservation. It showed that conservation biologists--and, by extension, scientists in general--tend to devote lots of nights and weekends to their work.

"Scientists do work very hard," study author Dr. Richard Primack, a Boston University biologist, told The Huffington Post in an email. "They work hard because they really enjoy what they are doing, and they may also feel under pressure to produce results in terms of published papers and successful grant proposals. "

Of course, even high-achieving scientists make time to take their noses from the grindstone. Just take a look below at our collection of photos showing 21 scientific luminaries catching some downtime--whether it's famous physicists frolicking on the beach, astronauts getting wet... or America's most famous inventor getting some well-deserved ZZZZs.