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The cynic in me couldn't resist paraphrasing the intro in my mind into something truly horrible, so here it is in full exaggerated glory for HN's amusement: >
by tpoacher 4y ago
The cynic in me couldn't resist paraphrasing the intro in my mind into something truly horrible, so here it is in full exaggerated glory for HN's amusement:
> Julie, an organic chemist, was doing drug research at a lab. Her boss, Gordon, was a well-regarded scientist but also a known shauvinist with a huge ego.
> One day she walked into Gordon’s office to ask for his feedback on the draft of a research paper they were "co-" authoring but which was basically her own independent work. Gordon told her that it was the “worst piece of rubbish” he’d ever seen, and "that's the problem with letting women in research".
> Julie realised that if she wanted to get published she'd have to suck up to Gordon and make him feel in charge again, so she did. “Gordon you magnificent beast, your word is gospel, and I'm just a lowly piece of skirt, vying in a man's world. Lend me your ineffable wisdom, oh exalted one, so that I may get published under your wing, and praise thy name forward unto the ages, amen".
> Gordon’s mood seemed to instantly improve. He looked the paper over, pointing out "problems" to be addressed and offering generic ideas on the spot, completely ignoring months of literature review and careful experimentation which warned against them.
> Julie went on to publish the paper in a top journal because it had Gordon's name on it, and Gordon is also friends with the editor. She even received a major award for it.
> (This is a retelling of a true story from the writings of the preeminent psychotherapist Dr. David Burns, whom Julie had to visit many, many times.)
P.S. I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm so sorry.
- Kaibeezy 4y agoChauvinism (Wikipedia) - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chauvinism https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chauvinism Way more interesting short article than I expected. Started out as a descriptor for a type of extreme nationalism, only much later applied to gender roles.
- cntainer 4y agoI don't want to admit it but I'm guessing this scenario happens more often in the real world. And I'm sure most Gordons would approve this behavior much more readily than the one described in the article. Is this some kind of leadership? Or is it just the survival of the fittest? :)
- DeathArrow 4y agoI don't get why when they have to fabricate examples, article authors choose males for the villain roles and females for the heroes roles. Is somewhat socially reprehensible to have whites, males and heterosexuals in positive roles when you are writing a narrative?
- darkerside 4y agoBeware confirmation bias
- tpoacher 4y agoYou reminded me of Eddie Izzard's popular skit on why the bad guys in american movies always have british accents: https://youtu.be/3GCoVVSkmJw https://youtu.be/3GCoVVSkmJw
- TremendousJudge 4y agoI interpreted it the same way as you. I don't think you have to apologize for this interpretation. I know the standards in academia for treating subordinates like people are very, very low, but saying to somebody that their work is "rubbish" is not something that you should ever do, and especially not to somebody you have a lot of power over. The professor is very much in the wrong here, and the fact that the young chemist managed to keep her cool and not tell him to "go learn some fucking professional etiquette", while admirable, should not be a cause to celebrate the entire situation.
- kwhitefoot 4y agoThe original was truly horrible too!