This is basically correct - in mathematics (my field) referees and academic editors work for free. However, the journals do provide services: coordination, typesetting, and archiving come to mind. How much these services are worth is another story. The fact that high quality, low cost journals can spring into existence (eg Geometry and Topology) suggests that journals are overpriced.
"Dust"? Paper, as a means of communication, is more stable than any digital formats. I can read books published in the 1980's. I can't read any of those 5 1/4 inch floppies (or the 3 1/2 inch ones, or the zip drives...). Digital formats must be maintained regularly -- paper can be left on a shelf.
Nicholson Baker's book "Double Fold" gives a detailed analysis of this "books turning into dust" meme, as introduced by Patricia Battin, an administrator deeply in favor of microfilm and digitization.
First, I want to point out that line dancing and merge sort are clearly made for each other. Second, I just realized that bubble sort with n processors is linear time, right? It might also make for a more interesting dance, seeing all adjacent pairs do the little move at the same time... Or would that be too busy?
If the spammers create an AI that fully replicates human intelligence then hopefully the first thing the AI will do is turn their spammy creators over to the police.
I don't see Pollen as a Luddite but more as a person urging caution about the most modern of food choices, say corn syrup and twinkies. Anyway, I found him to be an interesting, accessible, writer.
Your post was interesting, but I think there is an important point lurking in your sentence "The selective breeding that was used throughout most of human history introduces changes relatively slowly".
Here "slowly" is the critical word. Human history is very long compared to the modern era (20,000 years versus 200) but not so long on an evolutionary time scale. We are omnivores and "supposed" to eat a wide range of foods. According to Jared Diamond's "Guns, germs and steel" the advent of agriculture caused a _decline_ in average height and life expectancy which we have only recently recovered from.
It is very hard to decide what a "good" diet is -- it really depends on what "good" means to you. In particular, a food (say, bread) with a 20,000 year history should not get a free pass. A food with a 20 year history (say, twinkes) should be viewed with extreme suspicion.
If you haven't read them already, let me recommend to you Michael Pollen's earlier books, especially "The Botany of Desire".
"But then students from other countries don't resort to cheating."
Oh, yes they do. I work at a university in the UK. I would estimate that at least 1/7 of essays (essays, not homework) given to me by students are substantially plagiarized.
In many countries (but only sort of in the US) the author has a moral right which is separate from the copyright. For example, you can copy a Shakespeare sonnet, but you cannot claim to have written it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_rights_(copyright_law)
I am also an academic (in mathematics). Aside from the first three or four journal articles I wrote, out of currently about 25, all the rest are in the public domain. After I explain this to the copy editor, and rewrite their copyright agreement, I usually don't have a problem. Every once and I while I have to push a bit to get my way. Only once did a journal refuse to understand (Comm Helv) and they insisted that I either
This is not the reason to cut grad programs. Rather it is a reason to broadly educate grad students. A decent Ph.D. in Italian who can't get/doesn't want an academic job should be able to get a job in the "real world".
Godel, Escher, Bach even though it has been mentioned before. Also Hofstadter's "Metamagical Themas" is easier and is a collection of columns, so can be taken in small bites.
I second this -- I actually think that Metamagical Themas is much better than GEB.
A great book. A more-or-less gentle introduction to real analysis. It may not be "different enough" from calculus class to make the proper impression, however.
I third the recommendation. This is an excellent book and, as a bonus, it is totally different from anything in the high school syllabus. A beautiful introduction to a deep part of mathematics.
Einstein/Mozart/Newton/Jobs level intelligence is 1/1,000,000,000. This means that in LA schools there is a good chance of a little Einstein there somewhere...
If the chances are one in a billion, and there are one million students in the LA schools, then you expect 1/1000th of a genius.... which is quite a bit less than unity.
I went to a public talk by Prof. Lessig (at IAS) where he quoted Einstein's law as
"E equals MC two" instead of saying "E equals MC squared." So your choice of
example is not a good one. By the way: I draw no conclusions about Lessig's
legal ability from this.
Let f(x) = x^(1/x). So g(x) = log(f) = 1/x (log(x)). So g' = f'/f = (1/x)^2 - log(x)/x^2. Find that g' (and so f') is zero exactly when log(x) = 1. That is, when x = e. Logarithmic derivatives are your friend.
Slashdot Mirror
This is basically correct - in mathematics (my field) referees and academic editors work for free. However, the journals do provide services: coordination, typesetting, and archiving come to mind. How much these services are worth is another story. The fact that high quality, low cost journals can spring into existence (eg Geometry and Topology) suggests that journals are overpriced.
"Dust"? Paper, as a means of communication, is more stable than any digital formats. I can read books published in the 1980's. I can't read any of those 5 1/4 inch floppies (or the 3 1/2 inch ones, or the zip drives...). Digital formats must be maintained regularly -- paper can be left on a shelf. Nicholson Baker's book "Double Fold" gives a detailed analysis of this "books turning into dust" meme, as introduced by Patricia Battin, an administrator deeply in favor of microfilm and digitization.
First, I want to point out that line dancing and merge sort are clearly made for each other. Second, I just realized that bubble sort with n processors is linear time, right? It might also make for a more interesting dance, seeing all adjacent pairs do the little move at the same time... Or would that be too busy?
there are more Muslims in the Israeli Parliament than there are in the US Congress
So, two?
More like 10 out of 120 total members. Check out http://www.knesset.gov.il/mk/eng/mkindex_current_eng.asp
If the spammers create an AI that fully replicates human intelligence then hopefully the first thing the AI will do is turn their spammy creators over to the police.
Do you have strong examples you can point to?
I don't see Pollen as a Luddite but more as a person urging caution about the most modern of food choices, say corn syrup and twinkies. Anyway, I found him to be an interesting, accessible, writer.
"We started selectively breeding crops when we started eating plants"
I'm going to disagree with this. There is a huge difference (in terms of time scale) between co-evolution and agriculture/selective breeding.
Your post was interesting, but I think there is an important point lurking in your sentence "The selective breeding that was used throughout most of human history introduces changes relatively slowly".
Here "slowly" is the critical word. Human history is very long compared to the modern era (20,000 years versus 200) but not so long on an evolutionary time scale. We are omnivores and "supposed" to eat a wide range of foods. According to Jared Diamond's "Guns, germs and steel" the advent of agriculture caused a _decline_ in average height and life expectancy which we have only recently recovered from.
It is very hard to decide what a "good" diet is -- it really depends on what "good" means to you. In particular, a food (say, bread) with a 20,000 year history should not get a free pass. A food with a 20 year history (say, twinkes) should be viewed with extreme suspicion.
If you haven't read them already, let me recommend to you Michael Pollen's earlier books, especially "The Botany of Desire".
Oh, yes they do. I work at a university in the UK. I would estimate that at least 1/7 of essays (essays, not homework) given to me by students are substantially plagiarized.
Yes - it is called Sage http://www.sagemath.org/
In many countries (but only sort of in the US) the author has a moral right which is separate from the copyright. For example, you can copy a Shakespeare sonnet, but you cannot claim to have written it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_rights_(copyright_law)
I am also an academic (in mathematics). Aside from the first three or four journal articles I wrote, out of currently about 25, all the rest are in the public domain. After I explain this to the copy editor, and rewrite their copyright agreement, I usually don't have a problem. Every once and I while I have to push a bit to get my way. Only once did a journal refuse to understand (Comm Helv) and they insisted that I either
a) give them the copyright
b) retain it for myself or
c) withdraw the paper.
I chose b, with a bit of a sigh.
This is not the reason to cut grad programs. Rather it is a reason to broadly educate grad students. A decent Ph.D. in Italian who can't get/doesn't want an academic job should be able to get a job in the "real world".
Another beautiful book. Much easier than many of the other math books mentioned above.
Godel, Escher, Bach even though it has been mentioned before. Also Hofstadter's "Metamagical Themas" is easier and is a collection of columns, so can be taken in small bites.
I second this -- I actually think that Metamagical Themas is much better than GEB.
Another excellent suggestion. Beckmann comes across as a crazy person, but in a good way. He really, really loves pi! (And hates the Romans.)
A great book. A more-or-less gentle introduction to real analysis. It may not be "different enough" from calculus class to make the proper impression, however.
I third the recommendation. This is an excellent book and, as a bonus, it is totally different from anything in the high school syllabus. A beautiful introduction to a deep part of mathematics.
Einstein/Mozart/Newton/Jobs level intelligence is 1/1,000,000,000. This means that in LA schools there is a good chance of a little Einstein there somewhere...
If the chances are one in a billion, and there are one million students in the LA schools, then you expect 1/1000th of a genius.... which is quite a bit less than unity.
Buckaroo Banzai in
"The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension"
of course.
I went to a public talk by Prof. Lessig (at IAS) where he quoted Einstein's law as "E equals MC two" instead of saying "E equals MC squared." So your choice of example is not a good one. By the way: I draw no conclusions about Lessig's legal ability from this.
Let f(x) = x^(1/x). So g(x) = log(f) = 1/x (log(x)). So g' = f'/f = (1/x)^2 - log(x)/x^2. Find that g' (and so f') is zero exactly when log(x) = 1. That is, when x = e. Logarithmic derivatives are your friend.
I learned to write macros for emacs (d'oh) which crank out the outlines of the most common LaTeX environments for me. Works pretty well.
It is possible you are currently right. What will you say when the term of patent is changed to 37 years? And then to 57? Etc.