Category Archives: Uncategorized

Academia is entering uncharted territory, and many of us will find ourselves wholly unprepared for it. Working in a university is not like it used to be, and I doubt it will ever be the same again. Fifty years ago, virtually all professors were either tenure-track or tenured. This was the “golden age” of academia.Continue reading “Should All Academics Have a “Side Hustle?””

Here is my premise: the harder it is to get accepted into a university, the less value it will add to your life. Another way of stating this premise is: the easier it is to get accepted into a university, the more value it will add to your life. This may sound counterintuitive, but bearContinue reading “Elite Universities Add Little to No Value to Students’ Lives”

I am distressed by the images coming out of Afghanistan. One could, of course, make the argument that the U.S. military and its allies never should have gone into the country in the first place (a position with which I sympathize), but once in, that triggered a solemn obligation to the people of Afghanistan toContinue reading “Imagine Being a Professor or Student at the American University of Afghanistan”

A new series has recently dropped on Netflix: The Chair. It chronicles the trials and tribulations of a Korean-American female professor as she assumes leadership of the Department of English at “Pembroke College,” a small, teaching-focused liberal arts school in rural America. It’s about time a university was featured as a setting in a televisionContinue reading “Netflix’s “The Chair”: Is the Show Any Good?”

I’m at a breaking point, and I suspect I’m not the only one. Working from home (WFH, or perhaps it’s better to abbreviate as WTF) is only making matters worse. I’m talking about the never-ending flow of e-mails and the stranglehold they have over our lives. This beast must be destroyed. But how? As aContinue reading “Let’s Kill Off E-mail, Together”

I admire resilience. Truth be told, I don’t feel particularly resilient, but I suspect, comparatively speaking, that I am mostly impervious to the incessant assaults that life levels against me. Part of this is attributable to my profession. Academia is cut-throat. We write papers only for reviewers to rip them to shreds and journal editorsContinue reading “The Case Against “Trigger Warnings””

Churchill once described democracy as the worst form of government except for all other forms that have been tried. The same, I think, also applies to science as a means of understanding the world. It has severe limitations, but it is by far superior to any other epistemology of old. Nevertheless, we shouldn’t fool ourselvesContinue reading “Can Scientists (and Science) Be Trusted?”

Books are sublime. I’ve loved them ever since I was a little child. They represent new, exciting, and previously unexplored ideas and a crowning sense of achievement (both for the writer and for the reader on finishing the manuscript). They are the personification of the author. On the whiteboard in my office, I display oneContinue reading “The Key to Improving Research: More Books, Fewer Articles”

I’ve been inspired by the amazing athletes at the Tokyo 2020 (actually, 2021) Olympic games. They are truly a spectacle to behold and one can’t help but be impressed. As I watch all the running, jumping, and twisting, I am reminded that academia is like the Olympics in more ways than just one. Let meContinue reading “Academia is Just Like the Olympics”

I hope the answer to this question is “yes” because I am a Head of Department. For my part, I can say definitively that, as a Head of Department, I am indeed friends with many faculty members whose work I oversee. But there are several unique challenges to be overcome if these friendships are toContinue reading “Can Your Head of Department Ever Be Your Friend?”