Yeah, it seems a bit reactionary to jump to the "mediocre worker drone" thing. I mean, in a world where most people would rather order something from Amazon than ... oh, Idk, take a shower and go the store ... any store, anywhere ... it's not hard to see that academics are just like anyone else. Like, what if you're one of those people who constantly spits when they talk ... or has those little white globs at the corners of your mouth? Or you have to decide where to meet? [sigh] That's a whole process, with all the little signals entailed.
Or, maybe your in the middle of a separation with your SO and need to spend more time with the kid so they're more likely to say they want to live with you than that evil person you once thought you loved? Can I make time for this rando who doesn't like Zoom? Or maybe you're trying like hell to get back into your restricted time eating program and being at the coffee shop, with all those *delicious* smells of muffins or whatever is just too much to resist? Or any of a billion other things. Why choose "mediocre worker drone"? >8^D On 9/20/26 11:44 AM, Jon Zingale wrote:
Last week I reached out to a few professors and researchers at UNM in an attempt to find people interested in Laplacian spectral problems. Only one professor responded, and I think I weirded him out by wanting to meet in person rather than on Zoom. I am of two minds: 1. There is the hurt little X-er in me that interprets the sad lack of response as continued evidence of an academic legitimation crisis, further support for the thesis that our academic institutions are mostly full of dispassionate and mediocre worker drones. Being risk tolerant isn't how one gets or keeps an academic position. 2. Cold-calling is difficult no matter what, and perseverance is as important as ever. People are busy and emails get lost. So, continue reaching out, mobilize my retired-professor friends to advocate on my behalf, show up with hair trimmed and shirt tucked in. Thoughts, advice?
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