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Are you similarly annoyed by the stupid stuff private companies you deal with spend their margins on? Of course, the government has a tax monopoly. But wait, s
by vnorilo 5y ago
Are you similarly annoyed by the stupid stuff private companies you deal with spend their margins on?
Of course, the government has a tax monopoly. But wait, several private companies look like they do too! From my perspective there are more viable countries/governments to choose from than mobile or desktop OSes or online retailers.
- buitreVirtual 5y agoAs a matter of fact, I am. It's not one or the other, it's both. It's a moral obligation to point out wrong wherever it is. Criticism of government waste shouldn't be taken as an argument against government, like some opportunists do, but as necessary accountability. In this case, the funding for this garbage research (and all paper mills, while we are at it, which are a majority of academia these days) should be reinvested in useful areas like climate change, fundamental sciences (such as physics and chemistry) and technology transfer from science to industry.
- Wistar 5y agoHow do you know a government funded these? And which government? These seem to be from institutions all over the world.
- vnorilo 5y agoI respect that. But I would contend that these people made something, learned something, and published their findings. Even if it is all goofy and of no immediate practical value, I wouldn't call it a waste.
- buitreVirtual 5y agoYes, they learn, and others might appreciate reading the papers too. But I'd rather steer creative students to solve real-world problems or build serious science, and they will learn more about what matters.
- throwawaygh 5y agoGo read the CVs of the authors. They are all working on real problems. These are goofy 1030pm fucking around in the lab projects, not the real Serious Work these students are doing.
- marcellus23 5y agoWho decides what research is garbage or not? I notice your list lacks any mention of anthropology, history, or other humanities, for example.
- buitreVirtual 5y agoIt's not so much about the area, although some areas lend themselves to more abuse. Obviously humanities are important. The problem is the bad incentive system and the irrelevance of the resulting research.