Academic ridiculousness

[lostitude]

If you don't actually belong to the elite, you can't speak like it, and this is evident right away.

At least we agree on that

[Coëmgenu]

Have you read Judith Butler extensively? Whenever she mentions "gender performativity" ("performativity" is her own career-making coinage), you can easily substitute the word "performance" and the sentence does not change in meaning, making it, IMO, a redundant, yet career-making, word-coinage.

Judith Butler wasn't even born when Austin already developed the concept of performativity.

"Gender performance" is a term we use when, for example, we compare how much a woman gets done in a unit of time, in comparison to a man doing the same type of work in the same time.
"Gender performativity" is a term we use when, for example, we point out that "boys don't cry" or when the man is expected to hold the door for the woman and not the other way around.

These things are also "the performance of gender (roles)".

[Coëmgenu]

The paper, incidentally, does on to describe the difficult-to-analyse, the "mysterious", and the spontaneous/"unplanned-seeming" musical elements present in the piece as "feminine" and anything that is specific, stated, definitive, and overtly "mathematical" as "masculine" elements in the music. How odd that self-professed advocates of gender-deconstructionism, as evidenced by this paper can occasionally descend into such sexism as to imply that men are more "innately" mathematical, logical, and passionless, and that women are "subtle", "mysterious", "passionate", and "irrational"/difficult-to-analyze.

Those are standard themes. Around here, if you want to be regarded as cultured, that's how you have to talk.
I myself never managed it (it's a mystery to me how people can say such things), hence I get labeled as a brute and plebeian.

This must be another manifestation of the cultural differences between Canadian and European (Slavic?) academic culture. If I made an assertion that men were more logical and suited for math and science, and thatwomen, on account of their weaker logical faculties, are better suited for art and writing character fiction, I would probably be asked to leave the classroom or to apologize to my female peers. If such an action was not taken, a petition calling for the professor's firing would probably be circulated, on account of their compromising of the "safety" of students and university employees. It's one extreme or the other, it seems.

[binocular]

This must be another manifestation of the cultural differences between Canadian and European (Slavic?) academic culture. If I made an assertion that men were more logical and suited for math and science, and thatwomen, on account of their weaker logical faculties, are better suited for art and writing character fiction, I would probably be asked to leave the classroom or to apologize to my female peers. If such an action was not taken, a petition calling for the professor's firing would probably be circulated, on account of their compromising of the "safety" of students and university employees. It's one extreme or the other, it seems.

I would say it's more nuanced than that, and what you can say or not say depends on your status.
If you're high up enough, you can say whatever you want. If you're just a student, you have to be extremely politically correct. The situation is really schizoid and insanely difficult to navigate.
For example, a big shot literary critic can do the whole "women are intuitive" etc. ruotine, and it's okay. But a student reporting on his work has to be extremely careful about how he represents him and may not quote the critic as saying "women are intuitive". There is an air of mystery to it all that I never managed to figure out.
(And the usual reply one gets from those high up is that we're just uncultured plebeians who don't understand art.)

A couple of years back, I saw some hotshot (Australian / New Zealand?) female author who was really young when winning some big literary prize criticize people who don't (like to) read books. She said how she's reading reviews on Amazon and how outraged she gets when people write "This book didn't make any sense" and such. She says that it's this reader who doesn't make sense, who doesn't have a clue, and so on.
She gave a reply I would expect from an European literature teacher, critic etc. from 50 years ago or more.

[Coëmgenu]

This must be another manifestation of the cultural differences between Canadian and European (Slavic?) academic culture. If I made an assertion that men were more logical and suited for math and science, and thatwomen, on account of their weaker logical faculties, are better suited for art and writing character fiction, I would probably be asked to leave the classroom or to apologize to my female peers. If such an action was not taken, a petition calling for the professor's firing would probably be circulated, on account of their compromising of the "safety" of students and university employees. It's one extreme or the other, it seems.

I would say it's more nuanced than that, and what you can say or not say depends on your status.
If you're high up enough, you can say whatever you want. If you're just a student, you have to be extremely politically correct. The situation is really schizoid and insanely difficult to navigate.
For example, a big shot literary critic can do the whole "women are intuitive" etc. ruotine, and it's okay. But a student reporting on his work has to be extremely careful about how he represents him and may not quote the critic as saying "women are intuitive". There is an air of mystery to it all that I never managed to figure out.
(And the usual reply one gets from those high up is that we're just uncultured plebeians who don't understand art.)

A couple of years back, I saw some hotshot (Australian / New Zealand?) female author who was really young when winning some big literary prize criticize people who don't (like to) read books. She said how she's reading reviews on Amazon and how outraged she gets when people write "This book didn't make any sense" and such. She says that it's this reader who doesn't make sense, who doesn't have a clue, and so on.
She gave a reply I would expect from an European literature teacher, critic etc. from 50 years ago or more.

In my experience, professors and university administrators are for much more in danger of job insecurity if they do not support progressivist ideologies zealously enough.

[binocular]

In my experience, professors and university administrators are for much more in danger of job insecurity if they do not support progressivist ideologies zealously enough.

I'd like to think that's karmic retribution!

[Coëmgenu]

In my experience, professors and university administrators are for much more in danger of job insecurity if they do not support progressivist ideologies zealously enough.

I'd like to think that's karmic retribution!

When progressivism is progressive, I suppose, yes.

[mikenz66]

A couple of years back, I saw some hotshot (Australian / New Zealand?) female author who was really young when winning some big literary prize criticize people who don't (like to) read books. She said how she's reading reviews on Amazon and how outraged she gets when people write "This book didn't make any sense" and such. She says that it's this reader who doesn't make sense, who doesn't have a clue, and so on.
She gave a reply I would expect from an European literature teacher, critic etc. from 50 years ago or more.

Probably Elanor Catton who won the Man Booker prize for The Luminaries. See the Cattongate section of the Wikipedia article and this opinion peice: http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/bo ... -a-doorway and this interview http://www.noted.co.nz/currently/profil ... -adapting/ for some of her other strong opinions...


Mike

[retrofuturist]

Greetings,

This conversation is reminding me of this recent occurrence...

Nonsense paper written by iOS autocomplete accepted for conference
New Zealand professor asked to present his work at US event on nuclear physics despite it containing gibberish all through the copy.

Metta,
Paul.

[chownah]

Greetings,

This conversation is reminding me of this recent occurrence...

Nonsense paper written by iOS autocomplete accepted for conference
New Zealand professor asked to present his work at US event on nuclear physics despite it containing gibberish all through the copy.

Metta,
Paul.

This is funny. I checked this out and the conference was created by a professional on line conference and professional journal creating company. The "service" which they perform is just one more reason why the internet is such a wonderful thing. Their service will charge that new zealand professor $1099 (I think it is in US dollars) to present their paper at the conference. The conference is called The Second International Conference on Atomic and Nuclear Physics. Now we all know that atomic and nuclear physics has been around for many many many years....and yet this is just the second conference presented in this "series" as they call it. And get this...it is being held in Las Vegas!!!!! In the promotion it even says, "The success of the Atomic Physics 2016 has given us the prospect to bring the congregation together one more time." In other words, the first conference was a great party so let's have another one....and if you are lucky you can get your employer to pay for everything!!!!!!.....I guess....don't know for sure....
Every webpage that I saw while looking throught the organizers site looked like an advertisement promoting their various conferences and on line journals....finding the actual journal or finding out info about the conference seemed to be secondary. They have got journals and conferences for EVERYTHING you are likely to imagine....all on line of course....no need to actually publish anything......just lots of text files...
Gibberish seems to be appropriate fodder for thier mill.

chownah

[binocular]

Probably Elanor Catton who won the Man Booker prize for The Luminaries. See the Cattongate section of the Wikipedia article and this opinion peice: http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/bo ... -a-doorway and this interview http://www.noted.co.nz/currently/profil ... -adapting/ for some of her other strong opinions...

Yes, that's the one. It's because of people like her that I hate reading literature.

In his book "A history of reading," Alberto Manguel recounts Kafka's experience of his highschool literature teacher. This teacher would say to his students what a disgrace it is for him to have to read the Classics with such idiots like they are. I've had literature teachers like that too.

These people don't care about us, they don't care whether we live or die -- and yet they expect us to trust them and to hold them as authorities on what is good and right?!

[mikenz66]

Hmm, I think you're reading a lot into Elanor's motives...


Mike

[robertk]

Greetings,

This conversation is reminding me of this recent occurrence...

Nonsense paper written by iOS autocomplete accepted for conference
New Zealand professor asked to present his work at US event on nuclear physics despite it containing gibberish all through the copy.

Metta,
Paul.

This is funny. I checked this out and the conference was created by a professional on line conference and professional journal creating company. The "service" which they perform is just one more reason why the internet is such a wonderful thing. Their service will charge that new zealand professor $1099 (I think it is in US dollars) to present their paper at the conference. The conference is called The Second International Conference on Atomic and Nuclear Physics. Now we all know that atomic and nuclear physics has been around for many many many years....and yet this is just the second conference presented in this "series" as they call it. And get this...it is being held in Las Vegas!!!!! In the promotion it even says, "The success of the Atomic Physics 2016 has given us the prospect to bring the congregation together one more time." In other words, the first conference was a great party so let's have another one....and if you are lucky you can get your employer to pay for everything!!!!!!.....I guess....don't know for sure....
Every webpage that I saw while looking throught the organizers site looked like an advertisement promoting their various conferences and on line journals....finding the actual journal or finding out info about the conference seemed to be secondary. They have got journals and conferences for EVERYTHING you are likely to imagine....all on line of course....no need to actually publish anything......just lots of text files...
Gibberish seems to be appropriate fodder for thier mill.

chownah

yes, this type of conference is nothing to do with academia: it is simply a business venture (an unsavory one). I would doubt that they would get many or any bona-fide nuclear scientists attending..
Having said that I present at conferences around the world , and sometimes I am tempted to join one of these (in my field) due to an attractive location...so maybe the occasional real deal scientist might turn up.

[mikenz66]

Yes, those are just scams. Completely different issue from the issues Sokal was concerned about. I get a couple of invitations like that every day. The academic equivalent of those emails about the inheritance you didn't know you had...


Mike

[cjmacie]

...
yes, this type of conference is nothing to do with academia: it is simply a business venture (an unsavory one). I would doubt that they would get many or any bona-fide nuclear scientists attending..
Having said that I present at conferences around the world , and sometimes I am tempted to join one of these (in my field) due to an attractive location...so maybe the occasional real deal scientist might turn up.

See:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OMICS_Publishing_Group

Such endeavors have proliferated in recent years. Mostly originating overseas (out of USA), but some operate here, though large by people (maybe citizens, maybe green-card holders, maybe not) with names that are Iranian or other Eastern or Far Eastern.

Basically it has to do with some national traditions in which it's very important to have high-sounding credentials (Dr. PhD, MD, etc.), especially when trying to make it in the USA, BUT in those traditions it doesn't matter how one gets the credentials.

Examples: In recent years, high level politicians in Iran (including the past president) have been exposed as holding phony PhD-s, but it doesn't matter that much for them professionally. (In contrast, many minister-level politicians in Germany have doctorates, and in a couple of cases in recent years some have been accused of plagiarizing or other irregularities in their degrees -- and they were promptly fired, forced to resign, and/or prosecuted; higher degrees are highly valued in German culture, and closely quality-controlled.)

Big problem in my field (acupuncture, classical Chinese medicine), as those from the PRC feel impelled to have the status of "Doctor", but here (California and USA in general) that means PhD or clinical MD education and certification that has to be OK-ed by the US Dept of Education. Requirements are stiff, of course, as in many Western countries for letting foreigners in to take advantage of financially lucrative professions. Hundreds of Asian acupuncturists in California acquired scam "PhD-s" or other forms of "doctorates" from "universities", run by foreigners, out of Montana or South Dakota which don't regulate them. California regulations originally didn't honor those, but the Asians are taking-over key parts of the State and local governments, as well as the legal system here, and changed the rules to allow them to call themselves "Doctor" with essentially phony credentials.

This globalization thing, open-borders, out-sourcing, etc. presents challenges on many levels.