Comments on: Academia’s Function

By: Robin Hanson on academia « Mike Kenny

Robin Hanson on academia « Mike Kenny — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 12:01:08 +0000

[...] Robin Hanson on academia. The gist is students want to associate with high status teachers rather than learn what they have to say. I comment there: [...]

By: Quote: On Academic Bravery | Opentheory.net

Quote: On Academic Bravery | Opentheory.net — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 08:15:38 +0000

[...] of a byproduct. I can’t do justice to his development of that thesis in a few words (keywords: hanson academia prestige) but the key point I want to take away is that if you work on a famous problem that lots of other [...]

By: Richard H. Serlin

Richard H. Serlin — Mon, 02 May 2011 02:51:00 +0000

From a Wired magazine interview/article on the great growth economist Paul Romer:

“At the same time, he [Romer] believes it’s vital that government supports basic research, the birthplace of ideas.

Romer suggests concentrating funds on universities, both to stimulate basic research and to create cadres of highly educated people who will fan out into the economy and generate new technologies.”

At: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/4.06/romer_pr.html

I also really like this quote from Romer, “There is a real world out there, and I want to get the right answers.”

By: Richard H. Serlin

Richard H. Serlin — Sun, 01 May 2011 20:44:12 +0000

“In fact, academic research contributes little to overall economic innovation and growth.”

Do you mean for a specific country, as opposed to the world, given the difficulty of charging for its use?

Otherwise, it would be hard understand how we could have advanced so much and so fast in wealth and health without basic scientific research. Computers and DNA work crucially depend on basic work in physics and mathematics. And economics, although flawed and wasteful, has contributed nonetheless greatly to efficiency and advancement over the last two-hundred-fifty years, with the work of Smith, Ricardo, Keynes, Solow,

By: Richard H. Serlin

Richard H. Serlin — Sun, 01 May 2011 20:32:14 +0000

“In fact, academic research contributes little to overall economic innovation and growth.”

Maybe in the short run, but in the long run?? Discovery of DNA, invention of the computer, discovery of penicillin,…

By: Richard H. Serlin

Richard H. Serlin — Sun, 01 May 2011 20:23:20 +0000

“Patrons of research similarly pay lots more attention the prestige of a researcher and his institution than to how much his research could plausibly benefit the world or uncover important deep truths.”

A big part of the problem is just (gigantic) asymmetric information. It’s very hard for a layperson to know the expected value of a chunk of research.

But look let’s keep in mind that as much as academics and students and donors are prestige and credential driven, academia has still come up with advances that have doubled lifespan, gigantically increased food supply, virtually eradicated smallpox and polio,…It is by no stretch of the imagination all show and no go.

By: John Baez interviews Eliezer Yudkowsky « Annoying Precision

John Baez interviews Eliezer Yudkowsky « Annoying Precision — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 21:09:21 +0000

[...] of a byproduct. I can’t do justice to his development of that thesis in a few words (keywords: hansom academia prestige) but the key point I want to take away is that if you work on a famous problem that lots of other [...]

By: This Week’s Finds (Week 311) « Azimuth

This Week’s Finds (Week 311) « Azimuth — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 02:15:35 +0000

[...] a byproduct. I can’t do justice to his development of that thesis in a few words (keywords: hanson academia prestige) but the key point I want to take away is that if you work on a famous problem that lots of other [...]

By: Overcoming Bias : This is the Dream Time

Overcoming Bias : This is the Dream Time — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 02:48:17 +0000

[...] were built to be influenced by the rhetoric, eloquence, difficulty, drama, and repetition of arguments, not just their logic. Perhaps this once helped us to ally us [...]

By: proaonuiq

proaonuiq — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 23:30:10 +0000

1. Knowledge is the set of truths (can we let the explanation of what is truth for other day?).
2. In every society the functions of the knowledge cycle are to generate knowledge (trought research), to mantain or memorize it (canonizing, i.e. writing handbooks and other academic genres), to transmit it (by teaching) and to transfer it (transforming knowledge in usefull actions). In our societies all these functions are developped (not exclusivelly) by academia.
3. Academics are the agents wich realize these important functions (truth generators, keepers, transmiters and…¿transferers?).
4. Generate, mantain, transmit and transfer are all dificult tasks, so society is interested that the best ones occupies academic positions. 5. In general the best way to select the best ones is trough fair competitions. Those who win the competitions occupies the positions. It is fair, ins´t it ?
6. The impression society in general and some of its agents in particular (college students, patrons of research, citizens, reporters and others) has that academics are intelectually impressive and prestigious is a byproduct of having won a competition, not the function of academia.
7. Now, beeing an academic is also a responsability. Society want truth keepers to no let a lie inside the canon and no truth outside, no matter where the truth or lie comes from. This forces Academia to be both open and conservative at the same time and academics to be reluctant to the science-business model. New web mechanisms are appearing so that the conditions for the realisation of the second half of this mandate are fulfilled (i.e. Rejecta Mathematica, Virax)…but competition winners read its content ? On the other hand i see no mechanism yet so that academic hype is controlled and the first half remains unfulfilled.

P.D: Hi John…trough Nielsen´s, right ?