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From: jer@peora.UUCP (J. Eric Roskos)
Newsgroups: net.singles
Subject: Re: Effects of career-location on interpersonal coherence
Message-ID: <2053@peora.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 27-Mar-86 15:48:37 EST
Article-I.D.: peora.2053
Posted: Thu Mar 27 15:48:37 1986
Date-Received: Fri, 28-Mar-86 02:54:27 EST
References: <496@ssc-bee.UUCP> <2038@peora.UUCP> <734@rti-sel.UUCP>
Distribution: na
Organization: Concurrent Computer Corporation, Orlando, Fl
Lines: 47
Keywords: LDRs, careers, intelligent SOs

> You don't have to live in a state of constant intellectual stimulation
> to be happy.

Change that "you don't" to a "one doesn't," Mr. Ingogly!  Speak for
yourself!

> Many 'intellectual' people I've known have lived large parts of their
> lives in the hothouse atmosphere of universities, and have been narrow
> specialists who knew little and cared less about intellectual pursuits
> outside their disciplines. This applies to people I've known in the
> hard sciences, soft sciences, and the humanities; it's a narrowness of
> vision and a pettiness of spirit that's sometimes bred in academia. I
> don't enjoy spending time with people like this.

I don't either, but that is pompous pseudointellectualism, the sort of
situation in which the term "intellect" is used in the present day.
Unfortunately since I spend much of my time reading writings of the past,
I sometimes use words that are not so well suited to the modern day
connotations.  (Actually, I do enjoy spending time with someone who is
truly devoted to his or her interests, since such people usually have
an unusual enthusiasm for life, and for the orderly nature of things,
and there is much to learn from them.)

Nevertheless, I find this narrowmindedness much more common among the less
well-educated individuals.  Personally, I find that whenever I express a
strong interest in some area, people always assume that I am "specialized"
in that area.  This tends to be a problem, for example, if the interest
you happen to have expressed is outside the area you work in.  For
example, if people at work thought I was highly interested in systematic
botany, they would, I've found, tend to think, "he can't be a very good
computer scientist, because he's *really* a systematic botanist."

Strangely, however, when you achieve a certain level of education, people
all of a sudden assume you know all kinds of things.  This is not so
good either.  It is better to be interested in myriad things, and realize
that you are ignorant of even more things than you are interested in.

The problem, as I've alluded to several times, is the fact that the majority
of people, when they have carved out a safe niche for themselves, sit
down and stagnate away.  They cease to learn, cease to be curious, and
cease to be inspired by the things around them.  This is "what happened"
to the row of people on the subway with the scowling faces who I mentioned
a few months back.
-- 
E. Roskos

"It's Halley's comet!"