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56. Why Is Academic Writing So Bad?
2021/6/13
No Stupid Questions
A
Angela Duckworth
D
David Bowling
S
Stephen Dubner
以《怪诞经济学》系列著名的美国作家、记者和广播电视人物。
Angela Duckworth：学术写作质量差可能源于激励机制的扭曲，奖励冗长复杂的写作而非清晰简洁的表达。此外，许多学者专注于专业研究，而忽略了写作技能的提升。高质量写作虽然越来越受重视，但并非科学家的首要任务。她认为，科学研究能力与沟通能力之间没有强烈的相关性，许多重要的科学发现因为糟糕的写作而未能被世人知晓。她建议，为了改进写作，应朗读自己的作品，避免使用过长的句子和专业术语，并设身处地为普通读者考虑。
Stephen Dubner：他认为现代学术写作普遍糟糕，令人震惊，甚至科学家们自己也承认这一点。学术写作糟糕的原因可能是因为学术研究人员专注于专业领域，而写作技能并非其首要关注点。他认为，需要区分学术写作面向同行和面向大众的不同情况。面向同行的写作可以使用同行之间能够理解的特定语言和词汇，而面向大众的写作则需要更清晰简洁的表达。他认为，清晰简洁的写作可能会导致过度简化，忽略研究的细微之处。他个人认为，与其让物理学家成为优秀的作家，不如让他们成为伟大的物理学家。
David Bowling：他认为学术写作糟糕是因为激励机制扭曲，奖励晦涩难懂的写作，而非清晰简洁的表达。
Angela Duckworth: The poor quality of academic writing may stem from distorted incentive mechanisms that reward lengthy and complex writing rather than clear and concise expression. In addition, many scholars focus on professional research while neglecting the improvement of writing skills. Although high-quality writing is increasingly valued, it is not the primary task of scientists. She believes that there is no strong correlation between scientific research ability and communication ability, and many important scientific discoveries have not been known to the world because of poor writing. She suggests that in order to improve writing, one should read one's own work aloud, avoid using overly long sentences and professional jargon, and put oneself in the shoes of ordinary readers.
Stephen Dubner: He believes that modern academic writing is generally poor and shocking, and even scientists themselves admit this. The reason why academic writing is poor may be that academic researchers focus on professional fields, while writing skills are not their primary concern. He believes that it is necessary to distinguish between academic writing for peers and academic writing for the public. Writing for peers can use specific language and vocabulary that peers can understand, while writing for the public requires clearer and more concise expression. He believes that clear and concise writing may lead to oversimplification and neglect of the nuances of research. He personally believes that it is better to let physicists be great physicists than to let them be good writers.
David Bowling: He believes that academic writing is poor because the incentive mechanism is distorted, rewarding obscure and difficult-to-understand writing rather than clear and concise expression.
Deep Dive
The discussion explores why academic writing is often criticized for being dense and difficult to understand, examining the incentives and motivations behind such writing styles.
Shownotes Transcript
Also: what does your perfect day look like?