Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?
This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.
Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
Two questions about American colleges:
What are some societal roles universities are uniquely well-suited to fill but just… aren’t, for whatever reason? As someone in the arts, the committed development of new/avant-garde professional work comes to mind.
Based on your moral values, where do you draw the line of how the various strata on a university campus (student, faculty, postgrad, admin, etc) can/should get romantically involved with each other? University dating policies have become vastly more restrictive/protective (based on your value system) in the last decade, especially those between the paying customers and the staff serving them. Is it simply a question of the power dynamic? Age of consent? Moral integrity?
You know the saying "9 women can't make a baby in 1 month?" I feel like that about a lot of university research projects. They take some really tough research problem that the professor has been studying for his entire life. But then the people actually doing the research are students, who come and go. You've got undergrads doing it as a part-time job, grad students who just want to publish something so they can get their degree, and post-docs are only there 2 or 3 years max. There just isn't enough time for someone to stay, become a real expert, and become super productive in the research labs. In theory that's the professor, but more likely he's too busy teaching, supervising, and writing grant proposals to actually do hands-on research himself.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link