An Abstraction of a Hypothetical Life after Real Reincarnation
I left the "real" corporate life and took a new avataar as a researcher in the academic life.More than 3 years after this reincarnation,I have no tangible output to justify my decision to take a "second life".
Welcome to the abstact world of academics.Everything as an academician, seems to be intangible.However the world outside the research world, strongly believes in tangible results like return on their investment,cash inflows and so on.While we in academic community take more pride in students' teaching feedback, research papers published in leading academic journals(some of which have an average readership of 2.5), intellectual ideas and brainstorming activities within and outside the classrooms, where we teach and learn.
Innumerable debates and discussions have failed to bridge this chasm successfully.So there continues to exist an unsurmountable divide between the "real world" people who struggle to stay alive,making both ends meet,or even playing dumb charades on the trading floors of the most happening of the world's stock markets only to see their fortunes play the fiddle the next day, and the "academic world" people, for whom only ideas matter; the only heirarchy that makes sense is that of that the heirarchy of ideas(in terms of their relative superiority),and not that of people who generated these ideas, hypothesis is the most important thing in their lives and careers,and decides whether truth exists in the world,whether the paper gets published,whether others in their ilk stand up to listen to them,and respect them.
There is a world of difference,a difference which no one cares for. Or may be it doesn't matter.Or are they only two perspectives,or paradigms,best left irreconciled and left to live their own useful lives...the answer to this may depend on whom you are asking for.
If you want an academic answer,it may never be possible to get one,because the answer may not be ever able to get out of the epistemological-ontological debate,of whether the answer exists on its own or is created by the person answering it.
But if you want a quick real world answer,then it probably depends on creating a scalable,sustainable and viable business model that successfully monetizes a win-win solution for customers with a sustainable value proposition,with low investments,and least breakeven period,using cutting edge technological interfaces,and in the process builds competence for the firm that are long term, sustainable, and creates high entry barriers for competitors.
Academics says all models are wrong,yet some are useful for the real world.Those who built the models spend their lifetime to improvise it,yet it takes a smart kid in some corner of the online world to use it for making a fortune.
Is this fortune real? Well don't ask me.If you still do,all I can say is,"it depends...
Welcome to the abstact world of academics.Everything as an academician, seems to be intangible.However the world outside the research world, strongly believes in tangible results like return on their investment,cash inflows and so on.While we in academic community take more pride in students' teaching feedback, research papers published in leading academic journals(some of which have an average readership of 2.5), intellectual ideas and brainstorming activities within and outside the classrooms, where we teach and learn.
Innumerable debates and discussions have failed to bridge this chasm successfully.So there continues to exist an unsurmountable divide between the "real world" people who struggle to stay alive,making both ends meet,or even playing dumb charades on the trading floors of the most happening of the world's stock markets only to see their fortunes play the fiddle the next day, and the "academic world" people, for whom only ideas matter; the only heirarchy that makes sense is that of that the heirarchy of ideas(in terms of their relative superiority),and not that of people who generated these ideas, hypothesis is the most important thing in their lives and careers,and decides whether truth exists in the world,whether the paper gets published,whether others in their ilk stand up to listen to them,and respect them.
There is a world of difference,a difference which no one cares for. Or may be it doesn't matter.Or are they only two perspectives,or paradigms,best left irreconciled and left to live their own useful lives...the answer to this may depend on whom you are asking for.
If you want an academic answer,it may never be possible to get one,because the answer may not be ever able to get out of the epistemological-ontological debate,of whether the answer exists on its own or is created by the person answering it.
But if you want a quick real world answer,then it probably depends on creating a scalable,sustainable and viable business model that successfully monetizes a win-win solution for customers with a sustainable value proposition,with low investments,and least breakeven period,using cutting edge technological interfaces,and in the process builds competence for the firm that are long term, sustainable, and creates high entry barriers for competitors.
Academics says all models are wrong,yet some are useful for the real world.Those who built the models spend their lifetime to improvise it,yet it takes a smart kid in some corner of the online world to use it for making a fortune.
Is this fortune real? Well don't ask me.If you still do,all I can say is,"it depends...
posted by Prof Ramendra Singh | 9:45 PM
|
3 comments
