3 ms·

> In plain English: stronger people live longer. You'll never get follow-up funding with a title like that.

by jpdoctor 14y ago

jkuria 14y ago
Why not? Do you need to say something confusing stated in esoteric medical terms?
- mhurron 14y ago
  You do when you're looking for funding. "If you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit" If you present your paper "Healthy men who engage in a well rounded exercise regimen live longer, healthier lives" everyone is just going to go "well duh."
  - pekk 14y ago
    People in this literature will not have any problem understanding the jargon used here, and it's all meaningful, so this isn't at all a case of "baffle them with bullshit." You almost certainly use some kinds of technical jargon at your job, there is no need for this weird anger about research scientists using jargon in the same way. "Well duh" does not count as evidence for a claim, and the claim wasn't about a well-rounded exercise regimen but was rather more specific.
- stefantalpalaru 14y ago
  You do. Using a language that only other scientists like yourself understand is a way to prove that you belong to that community and that the unwashed masses need to fund your research further because it's obviously serious stuff that mere mortals can not begin to comprehend.
  - pekk 14y ago
    The people from whom you would get funding would understand the technical jargon of the field. Nobody is getting funded just for being so confusing that nobody can understand.
    - stefantalpalaru 14y ago
      Look above the grant committee that decides how the allocated funds will be distributed and you'll find clueless people[1][2]. [1] http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-204_162-57577567/obama-brain-initiative-may-uncover-ways-to-prevent-diseases-and-trauma-researchers-hope/ http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-204_162-57577567/obama-brain-ini... [2] http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-13-54_en.htm http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-13-54_en.htm
- hyperpape 14y ago
  Have you ever read an explanation of a compiler or concurrency using only the 1000 most common English words? It can be done (and I wish I could find the link), but there's a reason we don't talk like that, and neither should scientists.
  - ISL 14y ago
    Sometimes scientists can, and we should. Simple precision is good.
    - hyperpape 14y ago
      I think it's a great exercise--you will learn something if you try it. But you lose so much precision, and you wouldn't want to make that your normal way of speaking.
  - Someone 14y ago
    Not a compiler, but more or less the same idea: Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity/In Words of Four Letters or Less: http://www.muppetlabs.com/~breadbox/txt/al.html http://www.muppetlabs.com/~breadbox/txt/al.html
deleted 14y ago
[deleted]

> In plain English: stronger people live longer. You'll never get follow-up funding with a title like that.

jkuria 14y ago

Why not? Do you need to say something confusing stated in esoteric medical terms?

mhurron 14y ago
You do when you're looking for funding. "If you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit" If you present your paper "Healthy men who engage in a well rounded exercise regimen live longer, healthier lives" everyone is just going to go "well duh."
- pekk 14y ago
  People in this literature will not have any problem understanding the jargon used here, and it's all meaningful, so this isn't at all a case of "baffle them with bullshit." You almost certainly use some kinds of technical jargon at your job, there is no need for this weird anger about research scientists using jargon in the same way. "Well duh" does not count as evidence for a claim, and the claim wasn't about a well-rounded exercise regimen but was rather more specific.
stefantalpalaru 14y ago
You do. Using a language that only other scientists like yourself understand is a way to prove that you belong to that community and that the unwashed masses need to fund your research further because it's obviously serious stuff that mere mortals can not begin to comprehend.
- pekk 14y ago
  The people from whom you would get funding would understand the technical jargon of the field. Nobody is getting funded just for being so confusing that nobody can understand.
  - stefantalpalaru 14y ago
    Look above the grant committee that decides how the allocated funds will be distributed and you'll find clueless people[1][2]. [1] http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-204_162-57577567/obama-brain-initiative-may-uncover-ways-to-prevent-diseases-and-trauma-researchers-hope/ http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-204_162-57577567/obama-brain-ini... [2] http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-13-54_en.htm http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-13-54_en.htm
hyperpape 14y ago
Have you ever read an explanation of a compiler or concurrency using only the 1000 most common English words? It can be done (and I wish I could find the link), but there's a reason we don't talk like that, and neither should scientists.
- ISL 14y ago
  Sometimes scientists can, and we should. Simple precision is good.
  - hyperpape 14y ago
    I think it's a great exercise--you will learn something if you try it. But you lose so much precision, and you wouldn't want to make that your normal way of speaking.
- Someone 14y ago
  Not a compiler, but more or less the same idea: Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity/In Words of Four Letters or Less: http://www.muppetlabs.com/~breadbox/txt/al.html http://www.muppetlabs.com/~breadbox/txt/al.html

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]