tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post5472143249755985872..comments2024-03-18T17:27:11.613-05:00Comments on Computational Complexity: Turning down a Fields Medal is eccentric, turning down the Millennium Prize is INSANE!Lance Fortnowhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06752030912874378610noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-40786433067655958392010-11-23T06:12:15.883-06:002010-11-23T06:12:15.883-06:00I have become a great fan of GP. A true ideal for ...I have become a great fan of GP. A true ideal for which mathematics stands for i.e If you play just for winning you cannot enjoy playing.Do Mathematics for the sake of mathematics.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-74084468857248068542010-08-05T09:53:17.880-05:002010-08-05T09:53:17.880-05:00It may not be the money Grigori Perelman rejected,...It may not be the money Grigori Perelman rejected, but the poverty of ethics in academia!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-7271262392196157962010-08-05T09:39:53.220-05:002010-08-05T09:39:53.220-05:00Grigori Perelman is a Mama's Boy!
http://en.w...Grigori Perelman is a Mama's Boy!<br /><br />http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mama%27s_Boy_%28film%29Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-44926500396604690282010-08-05T09:39:33.681-05:002010-08-05T09:39:33.681-05:00Grigori Perelman is a little Jewish Mama's Boy...Grigori Perelman is a little Jewish Mama's Boy!<br /><br />http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mama%27s_Boy_%28film%29Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-76410811956640503922010-04-07T13:51:37.772-05:002010-04-07T13:51:37.772-05:00"Turing down the Fields Medal ($15,000) is ec..."Turing down the Fields Medal ($15,000) is eccentric. Turing down the Millennium prize ($1,000,000) is insane."<br /><br />Did you intentionally write "Turing" or have you lost the middle "n" along the way? :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-26638133198309141392010-04-02T11:51:37.920-05:002010-04-02T11:51:37.920-05:00Indeed, Edward, he was of course *promoted*: "...Indeed, Edward, he was of course *promoted*: "leading scientist" is the highest position in the institute, as I know. Sorry. My English seems to be worse than than my Russian ...Stasysnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-23036335121264385732010-04-02T00:26:27.131-05:002010-04-02T00:26:27.131-05:00Stasys, some corrections:
(4) "was fired&quo...Stasys, some corrections:<br /><br />(4) "was fired" - probably you meant "was promoted";<br /><br />(6) he says that things will be that bad "*if*" this bibliometry wins. <br /><br />In Russia "harshness of laws is compensated by slack execution". We can still find a workaround if needed :)edwardahirschhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18094179693219521111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-11644181771675657712010-04-01T15:40:40.584-05:002010-04-01T15:40:40.584-05:00Thanks, Edward, for the link. (I can read Russian,...Thanks, Edward, for the link. (I can read Russian, very well. I've spent several years in Moscow when working on my PhD. These were the best years! Perhaps because I was so young then, or maybe because the "russian sole" has something magic?)<br /><br />On the letter of the director of PDMI (Petersburg Division of Steklov Math Institute):<br /><br />(1) He confirms that GP was *not* fired from the institute;<br /><br />(2) GP has decided to leave it by himself (on 2004);<br /><br />(3) GP hasn't written a PhD; he doesn't published his results as "all of us" in journals.<br /> He published them online.<br /><br />(4) He was fired to the "leading scientific researcher." And still he left the institute.<br /><br />(5) The director of the institute (PDMI) says at the end that it is very bad that we are estimated by some "impact factors" etc., etc.<br /><br />(6) And he adds that after all this "estimation madness", it is hard to expect yet another of these 7 problems (P-NP perhaps?) being solved in Russia ...<br /><br />All in all, it seems like people in Petersburg are trying to tell us the truth. The truth about all this happening. And I am tending to believe them. Many things go in Russia differently. (As also Geoff said.) U.S. success measures do no apply there! Spiritual people (like G.P.) do not play our game. And when media people come then to "tell us the truth" -- then God save our soles ... <br /><br />B.t.w. Edward, it could perhaps make sense to make an official statement of the PDMI on all this happening? Before the "other truth" will establish it?Stasyshttp://www.thi.informatik.uni-frankfurt.de/~jukna/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-36508064026867404982010-04-01T10:58:06.956-05:002010-04-01T10:58:06.956-05:00If I recall correctly, after learning he had been ...If I recall correctly, after learning he had been awarded a Nobel Prize, Richard Feynman's first thought was to turn it down, to avoid all the hassle of accepting it, and only after consulting someone else, and realizing that turning it down would be a much larger hassle than simply accepting it, did he accept it. <br /><br />I might be mistaken though, memory is always suspect.codyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11407919985914326282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-7928902778335960972010-04-01T02:17:45.806-05:002010-04-01T02:17:45.806-05:00Stasys, if you read Russian (I heard you do), here...Stasys, if you read Russian (I heard you do), here is a recent comment from the institute's director:<br />http://trv-science.ru/2010/03/30/o-prichinax-uxoda-g-perelmana-iz-pomi/edwardahirschhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18094179693219521111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-79395409551431684562010-03-30T11:32:45.132-05:002010-03-30T11:32:45.132-05:00Of course, GP is a true hero.
Something is rotte...Of course, GP is a true hero. <br /><br />Something is rotten in Academia.<br />We all know about that.<br /><br />GP just doesnt want anything to do with all that corruption. <br />You bet he endures a number of humiliations during all of his academic years while trying to do some serious research.<br />What he called being a pet.<br />Getting dissed all the time by whacky carreerist paper pissers and journal editors "for the friends".<br /><br />And now that his talent cannot be denied, he stays true to his ideal. <br />Of course, he is a hero. <br /><br />Failing to recognize this shows the poor state of Academia. When a true genius surfaces, the only one able to solve one of the greatest problem of the time, rather than <br /><br />On a side note, not all professors have the required skills to be hired by the industry: dont believe the lore they tell their students to justify their taxes-funded wages. <br /><br />On another side note, I may sound a little bit overcritical ... I guess it compensates the total lack ofAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-31481395393462963982010-03-29T09:55:58.100-05:002010-03-29T09:55:58.100-05:00I'm with anon1. I've read much Russian li...I'm with anon1. I've read much Russian literature: now I see a representative figure of a great Russian in real life. I spent time in Russia in the 80s and 90s. Perelman to me is a figure of fantastic mathematical ability who is deeply spiritual or individualistic (or both). Many of the finest Russian thinkers in history have been non-materialists. I have deep respect for Perelman, period.Geoff Knauthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12025560607512616605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-84503085383706238772010-03-28T21:41:30.044-05:002010-03-28T21:41:30.044-05:00Some comment asked what my opinion is so I will gi...Some comment asked what my opinion is so I will give it, though it will likely be lost among the side topic of professors going to industry.<br /><br />When I first wrote this post I thought that he was crazy to not take the money. But reading the intelligent comments defending him raise some very good points. Even to say ``he can give it to charity'' is work and hassle. Keeping it could be even more of a hassle. So, while I would certainly take the money<br />(I have to now- Lance tweeted that I would :-) ) I can somewhat understand his viewpoints, and respect it, and I would not call him crazy based on his refusal of<br />the Fields Medal OR of the Millennium Prize.GASARCHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-79658805539564947492010-03-28T19:34:16.916-05:002010-03-28T19:34:16.916-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Semihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17159946370871787967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-32551988379963804662010-03-28T17:33:10.776-05:002010-03-28T17:33:10.776-05:00Can't we just say that he is slightly insane b...Can't we just say that he is slightly insane but still a mathematical genius? He would not be alone in that rank...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-27179247107296967722010-03-28T17:05:18.209-05:002010-03-28T17:05:18.209-05:00You can readily get $250K if the match is right......<em>You can readily get $250K if the match is right...<br /><br />The last five colleagues who left for ... industry ... got deals ranging from 1.5x annual salary and lots of stock options to 3x annual salary and small number of options ...</em><br /><br />I (and others) would love to know what companies you are talking about.<br /><br />To the best of my knowledge, average salary at research labs (even for senior people, but not for exceptional cases) is $150-175K. Google is in the same ballpark (for technical hires, even senior ones). Jobs in finance (if you can get them anymore) pay around the same, but offer potentially huge bonuses. Technical consulting jobs also pay the same. So what companies, exactly, are offering 3 x $133K ~ $400K/year salaries?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-49021495264707675902010-03-28T15:17:35.631-05:002010-03-28T15:17:35.631-05:00"An average US professor's 12-month start..."An average US professor's 12-month starting salary is in the ballpark of $110K."<br /><br />You are kidding, right? Perhaps in Computer Science. Certainly not in mathematics- my field- and most certainly not at my university (a public one, which has a top 15 math department).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-5341084172452325332010-03-28T13:28:02.301-05:002010-03-28T13:28:02.301-05:00Except for high-profile names, I doubt any industr...<i>Except for high-profile names, I doubt any industry job pays 100% more than that. Even 50% more seems unlikely to me.</i><br /><br />To introduce data here, a certain large software company is hiring our bright PhDs students fresh out of grad school at ~$110K. Once you consider that, $180-190K for a full professor (12 years out of PhD) doesn't sound like such a big number anymore. <br /><br />You can readily get $250K if the match is right. This is the most common case for senior hires: if they want out of academia, they make contact with the one company that needs their knowledge and command the big bucks. <br /><br />The last five colleagues who left for the greener pastures of industry in the last seven years got deals ranging from 1.5x annual salary and lots of stock options to 3x annual salary and small number of options in a large corporation with non-rising share price. The average and median offer was around 2x annual salary with a modest share plan.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-73075392894482805882010-03-28T07:49:48.152-05:002010-03-28T07:49:48.152-05:00ur figures seem to be pulled out of ur .... head.
...<em>ur figures seem to be pulled out of ur .... head.</em><br /><br />Just look at the <a href="http://www.cra.org/resources/taulbee/" rel="nofollow">Taulbee survey</a>, keeping in mind that it's now almost 2 years out of date.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-52511901957281138532010-03-28T07:11:42.389-05:002010-03-28T07:11:42.389-05:00Professors worry about career and social status? G...<i>Professors worry about career and social status? Gasp, what an unusual thing! This is totally contrary to the rest of the people who are impervious to those human foibles.</i><br /><br />Nothing wrong with that, but if one lives on $100K+ per year of taxpayers' money just for having a tenure, and then gets even more from public by receiving grants, higher moral standards are expected :). Meanwhile, it often works like <a href="http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive/phd031305s.gif" rel="nofollow">this</a>.Stashttp://www.stasbusygin.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-78526920633860591122010-03-28T01:16:03.190-05:002010-03-28T01:16:03.190-05:00ur figures seem to be pulled out of ur .... head.
...ur figures seem to be pulled out of ur .... head.<br />how much does an associate professor earn ? or even full time professor at harvard ? more like 80K ++Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-41104248559545100802010-03-27T23:35:38.571-05:002010-03-27T23:35:38.571-05:00Industry tends to hire professors at salary rates ...<em>Industry tends to hire professors at salary rates that are 50 to 100% over and above their 12 month academic salary.</em><br /><br />An average US professor's 12-month starting salary is in the ballpark of $110K. After a few years it will be $130K. Except for high-profile names, I doubt any industry job pays 100% more than that. Even 50% more seems unlikely to me.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-27413029776931460992010-03-27T21:38:32.115-05:002010-03-27T21:38:32.115-05:00You're not even in the ballpark. Easily 50% at...<i>You're not even in the ballpark. Easily 50% at a serious research university.</i><br /><br />It really depends on the field. I have never met a computer scientist who spends 50% of his/her time applying for grants, which is what the "upwards of 20%" refers to. Researchers in the natural sciences do spend upwards of 50% of their time applying for grants.<br /><br />Also beware of tales where researchers spend 50% of their time applying for grants, 30% teaching, 30% doing research and the remaining 20% doing service.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-53787035288547962512010-03-27T21:31:22.790-05:002010-03-27T21:31:22.790-05:00For the record: not true. Even ignoring the fact t...<i>For the record: not true. Even ignoring the fact that most profs would be unhirable in industry, one can easily make more in academia than in industry when you factor in consulting. </i><br /><br />You might think they are unhirable, but to use an actual data point, professors who are denied tenure and choose to get off the academic track usually land an industry job in no time. <br /><br />About consulting fees don't be fooled by the gross amount earned. Most universities have overheads and claw-backs on them.<br /><br />Industry tends to hire professors at salary rates that are 50 to 100% over and above their 12 month academic salary.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3722233.post-40982432415866271162010-03-27T20:47:28.965-05:002010-03-27T20:47:28.965-05:00come on. what is 1 millions usd nowadays truly wor...come on. what is 1 millions usd nowadays truly worth ? <br /><br />nothing really. If u think about the fact that u can't even buy a small luxurious apartment in downtown manhattan ? or that u cannot even afford buying a maserati with the intention of maintaining it hassle free, financially over the next decade ? <br /><br />what is a million usd really worth ? definitely not this amount of media attention. <br /><br />now if we were to talk about 50 million usdollars ... all these comments would be somewhat understandable.<br /><br />With 50 millions us dollars, I can definitely see someone buying out a somewhat reasonable apartment as well as somewaht decent medium for transportation and additionally not worry about how to maintain his status over the next few decades.<br /><br />but one million dollars ? haha ... it's like pocket money.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com