RE: A WASTE OF TIME?

["Jerry D. Harris" <102354.2222@compuserve.com>]

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Message text written by INTERNET:jclavin@microsoft.com

"I can't make up my mind whether this is disingenuous, or simply naive.
Most people on this list will have a fair idea of how the academic world
works - sure you might not get rewarded for publishing papers now. But if
you don't publish, you won't get recognised, and you won't get a real
research job. Time and effort spent publishing at Grad student level is an
investment in the future. Kinda like serving an apprenticeship!
George's salient point is that he already has a job - he doesn't need to
impress anybody by getting his stuff into peer reviewed journals."


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        Excuse you, but I must vehemently disagree on most of these points.
 Not only did I _not_ publish while a graduate student (so that I might
devote full time to learning and understanding what I was supposed to learn
in class as well as do my best at being a teaching assistant, which was the
extraordinarily meager source of all monetary income), but I am in no way,
shape, or form paid currently for doing research; I still do it all on my
own time, much to the chagrin of my girlfriend (and other aspects of my
social life).  An investment for the future?  Most certainly, but there
have been far too many times in which I seriously examined means of getting
out of paleontology altogether just so I could have a larger income and
more free time to pursue other things important to me (and, if all options
eventually fail, and I do get out of paleo, odds are good I won't come
back).  It's probably even axiomatic that many people get out of paleo (and
other sciences) just for this very reason:  the stress and strain on both
the wallet and the soul imposed by extensive graduate education and, in
paleo in particular, most subsequent career posts, is too great.  I have no
idea what your own personal educational and professional background is, but
I'm fairly certain that a job at Microsoft pays far more than any
paleontologist is making, and probably has fewer publication requirements
for reputation.

        George may have a full time job already, and I certainly empathize
with what kind of time and committment that demands on a person.  However,
a graduate student is equally swamped with courses, TAing, studying, etc.
_as_well_as_ trying to construct some sort of professional reputation
(read:  publishing and presenting).  This is the _only_ way a scientist can
achieve respectability in _any_ scientific community -- trial by fire, to
be sure.  Some are rewarded, ultimately, with jobs in which they can
research and publish on work time, but many are not, but both must still do
the research and do the publications.  Bottom line:  regardless of what
else you do, if you want the scientific credibility, you've gotta do the
work.

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                     Jerry D. Harris
                 Fossil Preparation Lab
          New Mexico Museum of Natural History
                   1801 Mountain Rd NW
               Albuquerque  NM  87104-1375
                 Phone:  (505) 899-2809
                  Fax:  (505) 841-2866
               102354.2222@compuserve.com