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Star Trek PhD Thesis Wins Academic Prize
An anonymous reader writes "A PhD thesis based on Star Trek has won an Australian university's top academic prize. Dr Djoymi Baker's 90,000 word dissertation 'Broadcast Space: TV Culture, Myth and Star Trek' was awarded the University of Melbourne's Chancellor's Prize for Excellence in the PhD. Dr Baker watched over 700 Star Trek episodes — more than 624 hours — to investigate the relationship between ancient mythology and today's popular culture. American academics thought her research was 'superlative' and suitable for teaching."
I'm a doctor, not an editor! Not kill I.
It's an article, CmdrTaco, but not as we know it. Ahead mod factor five.
Finally Star Trek is gaining the academic recognition it so richly deserves. Having Trekology as an official subject for a BS degree should be coming up soon at all major mail order universities. Live long and prospers.
... did she successfully pass the Kobayashi Maru exam?
But it is possible. There are (courtesy of tv.com)
79 Original Trek Episodes
178 Next Gen Episodes
176 Deep Space Nine Episodes
172 Voyager Episodes
98 Enterprise Episodes
Which totals 703 episodes. He didn't even need the 22 Animated Series episodes.
Wow.
Rhymes that keep their secrets will unfold behind the clouds.There upon the rainbow is the answer to a neverending story
Djoymi Baker watched 700 episodes - 624 hours without ads - of Star Trek and its spin-offs, dating from 1966 to 2005, in the name of research.
But for me it would be:
Anonymous Coward watched 700 episodes - 624 hours without ads - of pornography and its cum-shots, dating from 1966 to 2005, in the name of research.
Finally Star Trek is gaining the academic recognition it so richly deserves. Having Trekology as an official subject for a BS degree should be coming up soon at all major mail order universities. Live long and prospers.
Maybe some day those who embrace the Federation's Ideals can be accepted on a jury or even in public office.
stardate 2006.828 i've successfully been elected to the town school board. the squabbling is terrible and nothing ever gets done. i've never felt in need of a phaser so much in my life.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Star Wars mostly ignores science. Star Trek actively butchers it at every opportunity.
Culture is culture. If no one looks at culture of the present day, we lose a lot of valuable information. You're basically saying it's OK to abolish the study of culture at the university level. And while I am not personally interested in Star Trek, I do think that it has had an amazing influence over a large portion of the general population, and studying that effect is definitely worth the effort. And I wouldn't be surprised if someone doesn't look at the effect of the Simpsons on our civilization. Ignoring the mundane details that describe our culture means ignoring the essence of culture as a whole.
I'll form my OWN solar system! With blackjack! And hookers!
...how important intelligent communication is. While a topic like 'TV Culture, Myth and Star Trek', in my opinion, does not provide a revolutionary breakthrough in the study of humanities, the fact that she intelligently and effectively enumerates and supports her argument is enough to merit the award she received.
Faith is a willingness to accept something w/o complete proof and to act on it. Reason allows you to correct that faith.