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[sciencephd]

Still no one has confronted me on the issue of whether or not reputation is the main thing that matters in academic life.

In the world of real people, reputation matters.  In fact, much of one's professional identity can probably be summed up by the term "reputation".   This is true in any field or venue.

But is it the bottom line?  Do you value your acadmic reputation more than your ideas or your students?  Is there a conflict of interest when the public is paying for your job, but most of your effort goes towards playing ego games?

My reputation derives from my ideas and students.  Do you understand the meaning of the word "derives" ?  

Of course, if my students are stoners or nutjobs, I tend to kick their ass out (note that this point follows from the premise in sentence #1).

Hehe, you're asking someone who has mastered the calculus if he knows what derive means.  Don't be silly.

Why aren't you answering any of my questions?

It actually answers all of your questions.  It links together the entire thread.  You've distilled down your entire failed experience in grad school to an abstract issue of "reputation".  You've incorrectly decided that this abstraction is an entity in and of itself.  You've determined that this was the motivation for why you were "wronged" and you later determined that this is the fundamental problem with academia.

You've determined instead to smoke pot all day, study the link between mathematics and esotericisism, and come here and blow smoke out of your ass.

[kedves]

Hi everyone. I'm new to this board and have enjoyed reading the posts here.

I have been out of graduate school for a year and a half.  I was three years into a 6-year PhD program, and left with an MA.  This was in mathematics. 
...

What kind of work are you doing now?  

[sciencephd]

Hi everyone. I'm new to this board and have enjoyed reading the posts here.

I have been out of graduate school for a year and a half.  I was three years into a 6-year PhD program, and left with an MA.  This was in mathematics. 
...

What kind of work are you doing now?  

He's in IT.

[t_r_b]

I don't give a damn 'bout my reputation
You're living in the past it's a new generation
A girl can do what she wants to do and that's
What I'm gonna do
An' I don't give a damn ' bout my bad reputation
Oh no not me

-Joan Jett

This warrants a YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RAQXg0IdfI

[symbolicsorcery]

Still no one has confronted me on the issue of whether or not reputation is the main thing that matters in academic life.

In the world of real people, reputation matters.  In fact, much of one's professional identity can probably be summed up by the term "reputation".   This is true in any field or venue.

But is it the bottom line?  Do you value your acadmic reputation more than your ideas or your students?  Is there a conflict of interest when the public is paying for your job, but most of your effort goes towards playing ego games?

My reputation derives from my ideas and students.  Do you understand the meaning of the word "derives" ?  

Of course, if my students are stoners or nutjobs, I tend to kick their ass out (note that this point follows from the premise in sentence #1).

Hehe, you're asking someone who has mastered the calculus if he knows what derive means.  Don't be silly.

Why aren't you answering any of my questions?

It actually answers all of your questions.  It links together the entire thread.  You've distilled down your entire failed experience in grad school to an abstract issue of "reputation".  You've incorrectly decided that this abstraction is an entity in and of itself.  You've determined that this was the motivation for why you were "wronged" and you later determined that this is the fundamental problem with academia.

You've determined instead to smoke pot all day, study the link between mathematics and esotericisism, and come here and blow smoke out of your ass.

Is this the standard of discourse in your own academic affairs?  How do you claim to answer any of my questions without addressing a single issue with them.

I was not "wronged" by academia, I learned the truth about its most important function.  I saw this function are corrupting, and left because I did not want it to corrupt me.

Please answer my question once and for all:  Do you value your reputation more than your ideas or students?

[european]

You've determined instead to smoke pot all day, study the link between mathematics and esotericisism, and come here and blow smoke out of your ass.

I wonder if this warrants a referal to Pythagoras' rather ... remarkable attitude towards beans.

[sciencephd]

Please answer my question once and for all:  Do you value your reputation more than your ideas or students?

I'll answer this when you provide evidence for your assertions.

[kedves]

Hi everyone. I'm new to this board and have enjoyed reading the posts here.

I have been out of graduate school for a year and a half.  I was three years into a 6-year PhD program, and left with an MA.  This was in mathematics. 
...

What kind of work are you doing now?  

He's in IT.

OP, in IT, do people and firms not care about their professional and personal reputations?    Is it more pure in that respect?

[symbolicsorcery]

That is good.  I'm actually glad to hear this finally.

But the question I have is: what is the bottom line? Do you work on ideas and work with students so that you can beef up your reputation?  Are you motivated to work on ideas and teaching because of how it might affect your reputation?

What is the main motivation?  Is it building a reputation, or helping make the world a better place?

How does this even matter? What is the impact of one's motivation on academic activity? Does it matter if you research out of selfish reasons or out of idealistic reasons, if the results are the same anyway?

Because the public is paying for your job.  I'm sure most people would be alarmed by the truth that academia is an institution of reputation, not the dissemination of new ideas for the benefit of all.

Maybe the public would rather support and institution that was solely devoted to the discovery and spread of truth.

[t_r_b]

Why aren't you answering any of my questions?

You have offered a sweeping and dubious generalization with no substantive argument to support it, except for a personal anecdote that reveals only that you are either an arrogant schmuck or an AHAstar-caliber troll (or both).

If you offer a well-reasoned argument, folks here will respond in kind. Keep up what you've been doing, and we'll continue to dismiss you just as Prof. Beloved did.

[european]

That is good.  I'm actually glad to hear this finally.

But the question I have is: what is the bottom line? Do you work on ideas and work with students so that you can beef up your reputation?  Are you motivated to work on ideas and teaching because of how it might affect your reputation?

What is the main motivation?  Is it building a reputation, or helping make the world a better place?

How does this even matter? What is the impact of one's motivation on academic activity? Does it matter if you research out of selfish reasons or out of idealistic reasons, if the results are the same anyway?

Because the public is paying for your job.  I'm sure most people would be alarmed by the truth that academia is an institution of reputation, not the dissemination of new ideas for the benefit of all.

Maybe the public would rather support and institution that was solely devoted to the discovery and spread of truth.

Have you actually been listening?
Academia is an institution of disseminating new ideas for the benefit of all. The motivations people in academia have for pursueing this career are nobody's concern.

[symbolicsorcery]

Please answer my question once and for all:  Do you value your reputation more than your ideas or students?

I'll answer this when you provide evidence for your assertions.

This is game-playing.  Just answer my question.

You probably don't want to leave me guessing because you know what I will guess.

I really don't want to waste more energy on you because I think it is obvious at this point that you do in fact value your reputation far more than spreading your good ideas.

[sciencephd]

Maybe the public would rather support and institution that was solely devoted to the discovery and spread of truth.

You mean these guys, right ?   http://www.rosicrucian.org/

[kedves]

OP, also, I am curious to know.  Joan Jett in the "Bad Reputation" video kindly provided by TRB serves to remind us of an eternal truth:  "Beauty is truth, truth beauty."  If people in academia are in the Truth business, does this mean we need to spend another 1/3 of our energy on hair, makeup, and wardrobe?

[symbolicsorcery]

That is good.  I'm actually glad to hear this finally.

But the question I have is: what is the bottom line? Do you work on ideas and work with students so that you can beef up your reputation?  Are you motivated to work on ideas and teaching because of how it might affect your reputation?

What is the main motivation?  Is it building a reputation, or helping make the world a better place?

How does this even matter? What is the impact of one's motivation on academic activity? Does it matter if you research out of selfish reasons or out of idealistic reasons, if the results are the same anyway?

Because the public is paying for your job.  I'm sure most people would be alarmed by the truth that academia is an institution of reputation, not the dissemination of new ideas for the benefit of all.

Maybe the public would rather support and institution that was solely devoted to the discovery and spread of truth.

Have you actually been listening?
Academia is an institution of disseminating new ideas for the benefit of all. The motivations people in academia have for pursueing this career are nobody's concern.

It certainly is.  But it pretends to be the only one, and all other points of view are invalid.

If it results in the corruption of ideas, then it does matter.