Men Who Earn Less

[Gigabitch]

"Why, yes, I think Osambu was quite the standup guy. His family and students loved him. Too bad he's blown to bits now..."

:cackle:

What I'd like to know is whether those 'studies' were done with the intent of making us feel even *less sorry* for those crazy, deformed, middle eastern ****s who want nothing more than to blow us to kingdom come.

I don't know, and I've been puzzling about it all day. Does being disabled in some way alter the fact that they've driven a car with a bomb in it into a schoolyard full of children? Make it more understandable, somehow? Most of these bombings are carried out against other middle-easterners with idealogical disagreements, not against us. I simply can't wrap my head around the idea. Apparently, I'm very close-minded because I cannot bring myself to see things from that perspective. I can't really understand zealotry of any kind.

I'm zeal-disabled.

[gartlas]

I wouldnt care if I was unemployed and the girl I was with earned a 100 times more than me.The amount of money I get isnt that important to me,as long as I have enough for a comfortable life I am fine.too many ppl put stock by trivial matters like this.

[CAM]

Yeah no shit everything is curved. In fact it is curved to an 80 in most of my classes, which is a B-. And no, they actually continually remind us just how ****ing stupid we are. Grad inflation is not a problem here. Kids who had easy 5s on their APs are now stuck with Cs in classes because the curve is such a bitch

Trust me, there is no pretending to have learned material. I'm a biochemistry major and all the classes keep it real. Calc, multivariable calc, linear algebra (not the easy shit linear algebra), quantum mechanics, etc are all mandatory, aka the basics. Classes where you can't bullshit your way out of stuff. Chemistry classes, physics classes, biology classes. So the stuff is by NO MEANS just an appearance to be learning. You said it happens less often in math, chem and physics... Actually, it doesn't happen at ALL in those subjects here

And there was some talk about professors being dumb... All of my professors are freaking smart as hell. My chemistry lecture on Tuesday (and I think until the end of the semester?) is being given by Gerhard Ertl, who was the only recipient of the Nobel Prize in chemistry less than 2 weeks ago. I have a lot of respect for my professors, the research they do and you read about in your textbooks isn't pulled out of their ass



Are you saying people aren't depressed in other countries? Do me a favor, take 200mg of ecstasy for 10 days in a row. And then understand the chemical basis for depression.

Maybe if your head wasn't so far up your ass you would have seen that suicide rates are much higher in many, many other countries. Of course this wouldn't reflect depression, would it?

Who could argue with Teutonic logic.

[IndiReloaded]

Who could argue with Teutonic logic.

Noone can. Its verboten, ya?

Lucky little shit. Max-Plank...

[CAM]

My best friend's uncle went there for physics. You sound envious, Indi.

I'm not envious. I would say that I admire his/hers (honestly don't know the gender of the individual) intellect and his/her capability. But, not envious.

We all have our level of intellect and we do the best we can with it. I'm happy with mine. I admire yours (Indi). Higher education and research...a good life. The Max Planck student...he/she will be the one developing the big theories. Folks like me, we do the "normal science," testing their major theoretical developments and seeing how far we can go with it. Different roles. Thank goodness for the supergeniuses. Also, thank goodness for the day-in-day-out basic research folks, too. We all play our roles and it all contributes to knowledge.

[IndiReloaded]

My best friend's uncle went there for physics. You sound envious, Indi.

Not at all. I had a good education (tho I wouldn't have minded Urp for a study exchange). Actually, a colleague of my husband's was there (academia is so small). Left for a while, but looks like they'll be heading back. So mbe we'll get a visit there in the next couple years.

I meant it literally, DM: you *are* lucky to have access to such a great education. It sounds as if you are making the most of it & I hope you are. It really is a privilege to be able to study at a top-tier research institution. My only advice: seek out interesting profs & *go talk to them*. Most students are too shy & insecure to do this, but the smartest ones realize this is the *real* value to being in such a place. The books & papers can be got anywhere these days, but the people and their ideas & conversation less so. If there is anything I miss about Boston, its that.

[CAM]

I went into academia by accident. I publish a lot of good research, but I do not have an academic temperament. I can engage in the dialogue and win debates about theory and such...but underneath it all, I'd prefer a good fist-fight in front the university to settle things once and for all One of my colleagues says that he and I are the only guys that actually shoveled shit for a living before being in academia. Probably true. The rest of em haven't broken a sweat. I'm a harder worker, I don't know if I'm a smarter worker. I make things work because I get frustrated with re-hashing papers and ideas ad nauseam. Some folks will work and idea over for a decade and then publish it in "the" top journal. I will make it work and publish it in six months in "a" top journal...the cream of the crop, but not the cream of the cream of the crop. Ultimately, I don't believe in what I do. To me, its a game pure and simple...a publication game. I like it. Its fun. It makes the days go by pleasantly. It keeps me away from everyday life. Neither good not bad...just not by nature an academic personality.

[IndiReloaded]

I went into academia by accident. I publish a lot of good research, but I do not have an academic temperament. I can engage in the dialogue and win debates about theory and such...but underneath it all, I'd prefer a good fist-fight in front the university to settle things once and for all

This may sound strange, but I don't view that as at all negative. You've adapted w/o being completely domesticated. A great balance in a man, IMO.

Hell, you're not the only one avoiding work tho, I see, lol.

[CAM]

This may sound strange, but I don't view that as at all negative. You've adapted w/o being completely domesticated. A great balance in a man, IMO.

Hell, you're not the only one avoiding work tho, I see, lol.

Not avoiding work....just in the middle of a meeting and trying not to listen while idiots try to figure out parliamentary procedure works. I have explained it several times, but they don't understand...so, I'll eat lunch, blithely listen, and respond to someone more stimulating (not titillating...just stimulating)....i.e., you, Indi

[DoesntMatter]

Who could argue with Teutonic logic.

Sorry CAM, that's a cheap cop-out, a lame attempt at having a witty one line rebuttal

It sounds like you idolize Planck to the point where he's appearing to you in wet dreams. I wouldn't be surprised if you got a raging hard-on every time you see his constant. Believe it or not, people like Planck and others who advanced quantum theory were human beings, not gods. They dedicated their lives to advancing human knowledge, but not just for the sake of "helping" humanity, but likely also for their own enjoyment (obviously speculating here). You're sounding like a little kid talking about batman or some superhero.

I think Newton said it best when he said "If I have seen far it's only because I have stood on the shoulders of giants". People like him were just as smart as Planck, Schrodinger, Heisenberg, the whole posse of quantum mechanics junkies in that their ideas were brand spanking ****ing new. Why don’t people ever mention how Einstein spent like a decade trying to (unsuccessfully) disprove the Heisenberg uncertainty principle? Because it would wreck the good story of his genius

You spend way too much time talking about people, their intellect, etc. Shouldn’t the work be more interesting to you than the people? You come across as being a poser by spending so much time just talking about the “idea” of being smart

Really, for the love of God stop harping on intellect, academia, geniuses, etc! Two kids I know here at school are amazing at physics, one got a raw score of 100 percent on his physics prelim (for engineers, which is anal) where the mean was like a 60. And guess what? Neither of these guys play these pretentious games or talk about “being smart”. They are actually COOL people who I party with on the weekends, and they enjoy all things humanly like too much beer and girls (friggin pimps by my standards). They don’t put on an act and talk about academics or “intelligence” while we are chilling playing a game of pool or whatever.

I was expecting to find a lot of arrogant kids here but was soooo pleasantly surprised that kids weren’t. Yes, I’ve met some real asshats. But the majority of kids keep it real.

And you’ve made me curious- What is it that you do for a living CAM, and what school did you come out of that made you obsessed with smartness?

And Indi- Yes, I am going to do research. I already have some ideas on what I want to get into in the way of research. Basically I’m gonna have to be somebody’s lab bitch until I have enough classes under my belt that I know what I’m doing.

[CAM]

I'm an academic. I have degrees at a top national university in the US. I do cross-over work between policy and applied science.

I look at this site as a place to think, to muse....to read the thoughts of others.

I am not obsessed with smartness, but I believe that there is a hierarchy in things and respect that. So, I complimented you earlier, but you reject the compliment which is fine, your choice.

Yes, my friend's relative (he attended the same school as yourself) is also very negative about Einstein. He recently published a piece in a leading physics journal challenging Einstein's special theory in terms of the behavior of certain types of particular wavelengths of light under certain conditions.

Since interpersonal views are important to you, I will say that I'm funny and "cool" in my interactions with others. I have withdrawn from things and have become more reclusive in recent years.

Graduate school days are great....enjoy them. You have the most interaction with others at that time. After that, unless you are in a particular academic setting, communication becomes more difficult and at times non-existent. Academia can be the greatest place or the loneliest place.

[IndiReloaded]

LOL, DM, Cam was complimenting you & you don't even realize it. The German quip was, tho you don't realize it yet, apt. There's a certain, uh, perception about German-trained scientists. The Bulldogs of Science, we affectionately call them. They do a great job organizing the computer files & lab space. Brilliance & stubborness. An awesome, if sometimes frightening combination.

Its a lot of fun being a Lab Bitch. I did it for several years. Now, I feed them when they come over to our house.

Grrr, boy.

EDIT: Oops, sorry Cam. But I'll let it stand anyway.

[IndiReloaded]

Now I'm pissed off at DB for dragging you back into Prof mode. And I'm already irritated at needing to edit this newsletter from one of my managers (she works for me). Here, play this loud in the mtg so they wonder:

"they hate if you're clever & despise a fool, till you're so ****ing crazy you can't follow their rules" - Lennon

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njG7p6CSbCU"]YouTube - Working Class Hero - John Lennon[/ame]

[IndiReloaded]

Okay, I gotta get back to work, but I just *had* to post this under the circumstances! So much for my lunch, lol:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrShK-NVMIU"]YouTube - Monty Python - International Philosophy[/ame]

[DoesntMatter]

LOL, DM, Cam was complimenting you & you don't even realize it.

Well in that case the jokes on me. My sarcasm detector has been off the last couple of days. Maybe some paranoia is getting the better of me

Even when I flame people, don't take it so seriously, it's nothing personal. In high school I would play devils advocate just to piss people off every now and then.

I don't have a bad view of Einstein, it's just that people sometimes get to worshipping such people and it irks me. Everyone ever born is human

Actually if I was stubborn at all most of it would come from my dads side, Calabrians are known to be stubborn. I'm a quarter German. I look like a generic white kid I would guess...

So yeah, don't take me too seriously

Feel free to flame me whenever (not like I need to say this), because if I can flame you and vice versa without it causing "too great" an animosity ( ), then that's good in my opinion