4 ms·
I didn't think the question was so bad ... but the guess of cronyism is only one of half a dozen you could pick. As part of that list, it is in fact a possibil
by smoyer 10y ago
I didn't think the question was so bad ... but the guess of cronyism is only one of half a dozen you could pick. As part of that list, it is in fact a possibility but to immediately jump to only that was a bit of a slight.
I'm also interested in the other half of the question - what made the MIT selection committee willing to promote an uncredentialed candidate - that's a gutsy move in a university environment as faculty are very protective of the status of their group.
- mathattack 10y agoIf someone is talented enough, schools will bend the rules on credentials. You can't do it "on the way up", you have to be "already there." I suspect that a school out there would be willing to triple his salary, and Mr. Ito could walk with faculty and corporate contracts and rebuild the Media Lab somewhere else. This is a small price to pay to keep him. This is perhaps also made a little easier based on the field. In the arts, faculty members do get by without Phds a little more often than in science. Sometimes an MFA is enough.
- dang 10y agoIf he had written it in the same spirit as your excellent comment, of course it wouldn't have been a problem. Indeed you've done a fine job of turning it into something interesting (but note that you did it by depersonalizing). But what he actually posted was a snarky drive-by smear. This doesn't strike me as a difficult distinction.
- smoyer 10y agoI wasn't faulting your reaction ... but I was looking for the best in his/her question rather than assuming it was a baseless attack. I like to play devil's advocate but even without personal attacks, that can be dangerous around here. When your handle is "untilHellbanned" people might perceive you to be trolling by default.