tl;dr - we learn how to get by with less... Thanks Nature, I'm glad that the main value you see in our spending 4+ years in advanced scientific study amounts t

tl;dr - we learn how to get by with less... Thanks Nature, I'm glad that the main value you see in our spending 4+ years in advanced scientific study amounts to building a healthy respect for free food. In pure economic terms, yes, the PhD seems almost always the wrong option. I'm curious about other factors such as general wellbeing and quality of life. Though chasing nonexistent tenure track positions while hopping from postdoc to postdoc probably isn't all that great.. Straight to industry for me.