(October 9, 2022 at 1:52 pm)Macoleco Wrote:(October 9, 2022 at 11:07 am)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote: That’s been the state of science for nearly a century (the phrase ‘publish or perish’ dates from the late 1920s).
I’m surprised that you seem surprised by this.
Boru
And what shall we do about it?
Lately I’ve been thinking I don’t want to be a researcher/professor anymore.
I think nowadays the only way you can find creative freedom is art. Since you absolute control over your work (literature, painting, etc).
There is a satisfaction to publishing a good paper.
Your ability to write a good paper depends on whether you have access to sufficient equipment, and enough collaborations to get good work done. In experimental fields, one often needs help from people who run $million+ equipment. For them to help you, they need to believe that you can publish something of value. In theoretical fields, one often needs collaborators to put the pieces together.
There are a lot of hassles with the academic world. There is the constant writing of research proposals, the fight to get tenure, working with grad students, teaching, and then finding time to do research.
And yet, some people love the sense of discovery, and the peer recognition, enough to deal with it all.
