Timeline for Is it immoral to advise PhD students in non-industry-relevant topics in middle-lower ranked universities?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
9 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Feb 5, 2021 at 16:16 | comment | added | user104446 | @hfontanez The context gives us the answer to that question of how wrong: potentially a waste of 3 years work with little end use, perhaps even longer to correct it. But you seem to be ignoring what Joyce called the "agenbite of inwit" by separating ethics from morality as a convenience to profesional dilemmas, then subjectivising morality, diluting it through a graduation of impact and a debate on compensatory redress. I think that the OP had in mind some consensus on discouraging the practice as some victims will be seriously put out by it, maybe even be Shanghaied by its impact. | |
| Feb 5, 2021 at 15:31 | comment | added | hfontanez | @Trunk And even when we agree in principle that something is wrong (immoral), we might not necessarily agree on how wrong something is. For example, stealing. I am sure that you and I can agree that stealing is wrong. But, do you think that taking a pen from work is stealing? You may say yes and I might say no or vice versa. Why? Because it is subjective. Do I need to continue proving this point to you? | |
| Feb 5, 2021 at 15:25 | comment | added | hfontanez | @Trunk I knew it was you because the downvote corresponded with the timing of your comment. It doesn't take a genius to put two and two together. And, if you are implying that morality is objective, there is nothing to discuss here ("as you seem to imply that morality was an entirely subjective thing"). Morality is 100% subjective. Do you need an example? The Jehovah Witness religion deems blood transfusions sinful while most of the nation think it is immoral to deny a loved one this procedure to the point there have been cases taken to court. I can keep on quoting examples. | |
| Feb 5, 2021 at 14:19 | comment | added | user104446 | I downvoted your answer (BTW how'd you know it was me ? I didn't know SE provided such detail) as you seem to imply that morality was an entirely subjective thing. I would assert that it has a significant objective component - and that's the bit we all argue about. OP's original point was not purely about Ivy League tech universities - it was also about hiring practices among the major industrial companies who are biased towards MIT et alia. The two factors combined add up to a hard hand to play for a PhD from a minor uni. | |
| Feb 5, 2021 at 8:57 | comment | added | Taladris | The distinction between moral and ethics would be acceptable if we were on Philosophy.SE, but these notions are often conflated in daily conversation. For example, Oxford dictionary define "unethical" as "not morally correct" (google.com/… meaning of the question is quite clear. | |
| Feb 4, 2021 at 22:47 | comment | added | hfontanez | @Trunk and you downvoted my answer because my definition of morality differs from yours. Where's the morality or ethics in that? Nothing I stated is factually false. Yet, that didn't stop you. | |
| Feb 4, 2021 at 22:45 | comment | added | hfontanez | I think you are arguing a point contrary of what the OP is suggesting. The OP opened with "Currently, the situation in academia is that graduating from a top PhD program is almost a requirement for landing an R1 tenure-track job" - This is a fact. There is a HUGE difference in graduating with a PhD from MIT than with a PhD from "Hector Fontanez University". And because of that, research from MIT tend to be more relevant that research done by smaller schools. But this is not the point. The point is attributing malice to the intent to "advice" someone. You assume there's malice involved. I don't | |
| Feb 4, 2021 at 22:14 | comment | added | user104446 | Too much sophistry here, I think. Morality is simpler than that. Basically, how would you like it if you were misled into deciding to undertake a 3-year research program after trusting a professor's view of what industrial employers would like ? When it's your own case, right and wrong are very clear. | |
| Feb 4, 2021 at 21:06 | history | answered | hfontanez | CC BY-SA 4.0 |