[-empyre-] transdisciplinarity and transnetworks

[christopher sullivan]

I agree, but are you saying, they do it, we should do it too?
introspection, and distrust of the hand that feeds you is I think 
an idea that should be in all aspects of social evolution. 
    do you remember in the seventies when people were worried about over
population? that discussion has disappeared in academia, because of fear of
passing judgment on others. being self critical is good for everyone. 
In academia over population is never mentioned in issues of social upheaval,
war, hunger. because it is too awkward in discussion of a global utopia.
perhaps you might notice woman's rights becoming optional amongst esteemed
intellectuals like ourselves as well. 
     I know we are a drop in the moral fabric of education, but one can still be
a model, of what one believes in. for me that is to never stop turning over the
stones, Chris.

P.S.one distinction that is not fluid, is that professors are paid a pretty
penny (my penny not as pretty as many, prettier than some, 400& prettier than
my part time colleagues) for there activities, and students are paying a pretty
penny, very concrete.


Quoting nicholas knouf <nak44 at cornell.edu>:

> I just want to add that in addition to the sectors mentioned below,
> engineering students, both undergraduate and graduate, are also highly
> prized by financial firms; their jobs are to develop and implement the
> complicated financial instruments that were one major component of the
> recent collapse in the financial markets.  Again, such practices are not
> questioned amongst most students and faculty; it's "simply" a "job".
> 
> nick
> 
> 
> 
> nicholas knouf wrote:
> > christopher sullivan wrote:
> >>       Tactical Media, does raise question for me in terms of how deeply
> ones
> >> students should be involved in faculty work, political or otherwise. Don't
> know
> >> where I stand, but it is often problematic to me. My best wishes for
> everyone
> >> who is in legal danger from this situation. Chris.
> > 
> > This cuts many ways, however.  In my program, Information Science,
> > students are encouraged by their advisors to work for companies like
> > Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Facebook, and others.  They're encouraged to
> > work with datasets from these companies that require them to sign
> > non-disclosure agreements.  They're encouraged to develop iPhone
> > applications that they are then encouraged to develop into startups.
> > 
> > And up the street, on the Engineering quad, students are encouraged to
> > work on DARPA challenges, to work with professors involved in DoD
> > cyber-security initiatives, to take all manner of Defense Department
> > monies without question...it's just money, right?
> > 
> > While I think Christopher raises an interesting point, which is what is
> > the nature of the pedagogical relationship that would make the
> > involvement of students consensual and not based on the pre-existing
> > power relationship between professor and student (and understanding the
> > fluidity of those distinctions), I think the coercive (in terms of
> > personal and structural factors) elements within engineering culture in
> > general are much more heinous.
> > 
> > nick
> > 
> > 
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Christopher Sullivan
Dept. of Film/Video/New Media
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
112 so michigan
Chicago Ill 60603
csulli at saic.edu
312-345-3802