RE: SUO: RE: Re: Extension x Comprehension
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-standard-upper-ontology@majordomo.ieee.org
> [mailto:owner-standard-upper-ontology@majordomo.ieee.org]On Behalf Of
> Bill Andersen
> Sent: Tuesday, 26 February 2002 4:49
> To: Christopher A. Welty; SUO
> Subject: Re: SUO: RE: Re: Extension x Comprehension
>
>
>
> On 2/25/02 10:06, "Christopher A. Welty" <weltyc@cs.vassar.edu> wrote:
>
> > At 10:24 PM +1100 2/24/02, Chris Lofting wrote:
>
> >> Maybe they should introduce reviews for all tenured positions every 6
> >> months - like they do with airline pilots just to make sure
> they still have
> >> the 'edge'.
> >>
> >> Chris.
>
> Wow! I missed this. But I see Chris Menzel rightly picked up on it.
> Normally at this point, I'd try to say something witty like Chris (Menzel)
> did, but instead I'll just do this:
>
> Jim Schoening - This is an issue for you. I personally would be
> happier if
> Mr. Lofting were barred from further participation. This kind of behavior
> is unacceptable.
>
I was being serious, no joke, insult etc. OTOH your words suggest fear....
does it 'concern' you bill that once you have your PHd etc you would be
required to keep it 'up to date' as many other professionals are? In US
education the PhD is 4 years and you are required to teach and that forces
being up-to-date re annual curriculum etc as part of the process.
If you go out into the private sector with a PhD and 'live' off the title of
Dr. dont you think you need to have that updated regularly? Howabout a PhD
review say every two years - if you fail the review you lose the PhD ;-)
(and private universities could 'pride' themselves on maintaining the
standards of their post graduates ;-) - jeez think of the ads!)
I know MANY people who live off their degrees of 10-15 years ago in IT and
are technically 'inept' now and that is sad; we need the skills. (That said
there are many of us over 50 who are unemployed - even though we have the
skills and countries complain of IT personel shortages etc etc.)
Getting your PhD etc does NOT mean you wont forget to take out the garbage -
it means that in a *highly* specialised area you 'know your stuff' -- but
that is only upto the time you complete the PhD. Our knowledge is growing so
quickly that you can no longer get a high degree and live off it for the
rest of your life; if you dont keep uptodate then your title becomes
'worthless' and you start talking 'approximations' rather than 'dot'
precision and so becoming unintentionally 'misleading'.
OTOH if I get a PhD in say, Egyptian Mysticism of 2001 BC (within the period
of june to september on the east side of the Nile (lets get *really*
detailed ;-)) I probably COULD live the rest of my life off that title in
that 'updates' would be few and far between and even sourced in me!
In IT, and especially any area even remotely focused on AI you cannot do
this (or you can but it will lead to 'problems' where you can build false
ideas that have to be dimantled later on. If you have the opportunity to
speak to the horse, better than speaking to the jockey -- unless the race is
'fixed' ;-))
Chris.
------------------
Chris Lofting
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