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Professor Pedantic 教授的考究學問
【學術專欄】
TPS的編輯教授在此歡迎關於學術文章的所有詢問，當然，其實他並沒有足夠的時間給你。他擁有終身教職的教授身份，也是著名的學術巨作作者。即便如此，他仍大方地接受你們的詢問。將關於學術方面的詢問寫在下方，你將獲得教授的親自指導，陶冶對學術的探索與啟發。
The professor awaits your query on academic writing, though in all honesty, he doesn’t have a lot of time for you. He is a tenured full professor and working on yet another magnificent academic tome. Even so, he has graciously consented to entertain your question. Submit it and prepare to be edified.
QUESTION: I submitted a paper on the integrity of Oedipus. My professor gave it a low grade, saying it lacked “rigor.” I know what “rigor” means, but the professor evidently has a different definition. What characterizes academic rigor?
我的報告「伊底帕思的健全性」成績很低，老師的評語是不夠「嚴謹」。我知道嚴謹是什麼意思，不過想必老師所謂的嚴謹並不同於我的認知，究竟在學術論文的領域中，如何做到寫作的「嚴謹」呢？
The “integrity of Oedipus” reminds me of an old joke about the congeniality of kumquats, but I won’t regale you. You didn’t ask me a question just to get a chuckle. That’s why we have teaching assistants. What characterizes academic rigor? I’ll give you a Dickensian answer: great expectations. University faculty members expect to work in a rarified environment of intellectual activity and curiosity. They expect their students to contribute to this community of intellect, or at the very least to reflect it.
說到「伊底帕思的健全性」，讓我聯想到關於金桔的老笑話，不過，我可不是來說笑話的，我相信你向我請教這個問題也不期望有什麼好笑的答案，不然你會去找助教，不會來找我。學術所定義的「嚴謹」是什麼？狄更斯式的回答是：高度的期望。大學教職老師一向期許能創造充滿豐富知識與好奇心的環境，並期待學生對這樣無形的知識環境貢獻自己的所學與研究，或是至少表現出對學術探索的積極態度。
Consequently, standards are high for any products that emerge from this intellectual hothouse, including academic papers. Standards not only are high, they are rather inflexible. After all, rigor is characterized by exactness and unvarying quality. It follows that thinking and writing are expected to be uniformly stimulating. Classroom discussions are expected to prick previously untouched nodes of the brain. Ideally, constructive criticism will awaken slumbering geniuses and produce a flowering of original thought.
因此，像這樣產出豐富知識的學術溫床與環境，自然必須採用更高的標準才能撰寫出一篇傑出的學術論文。這些標準不僅嚴格，也很難任意改變。畢竟，所謂「嚴謹」，就是精確的表達與穩定的品質，這樣的觀念不論是用在思考或是寫作方面，都必須引以為鑑。藉由課堂討論的方式，可激發腦中從未探索過的思緒與環結，像這樣具有積極建設性的評論與溝通，可望喚醒沈睡中的天才，引導創造出源源不絕的獨創想法。
This is the theory, anyway, behind “academic rigor.” By pushing and pushing, it is hoped that brains become fully engaged, enhancing the climate of thought on a campus. In reality, sometimes the only result is people with headaches. Still, the hope endures that students, such as you, can be persuaded to turn in papers marked by intellectual rigor. The greater hope is that you will become so conditioned to thinking rigorously that deep thought, thorough research, and clear expression will develop into lifelong habits.
以上見解，是「學術嚴謹」存在的背後理論，主要希望學生在不斷督促之下可更加積極思考，推廣校園的學術風氣。當然，在現實生活中，這樣的督促往往讓學生更加頭痛而有苦難言。但是，我仍希望所有的學生，包括您自己，都能夠寫出堪稱嚴謹的論文。我更加期許大家應以嚴謹思考的方式自律，養成終身學習的好習慣，包括：深入的思考、透徹的研究以及清晰的表達。
The professor awaits your query on academic writing, though in all honesty, he doesn’t have a lot of time for you. He is a tenured full professor and working on yet another magnificent academic tome. Even so, he has graciously consented to entertain your question. Submit it and prepare to be edified.
QUESTION: I submitted a paper on the integrity of Oedipus. My professor gave it a low grade, saying it lacked “rigor.” I know what “rigor” means, but the professor evidently has a different definition. What characterizes academic rigor?
我的報告「伊底帕思的健全性」成績很低，老師的評語是不夠「嚴謹」。我知道嚴謹是什麼意思，不過想必老師所謂的嚴謹並不同於我的認知，究竟在學術論文的領域中，如何做到寫作的「嚴謹」呢？
The “integrity of Oedipus” reminds me of an old joke about the congeniality of kumquats, but I won’t regale you. You didn’t ask me a question just to get a chuckle. That’s why we have teaching assistants. What characterizes academic rigor? I’ll give you a Dickensian answer: great expectations. University faculty members expect to work in a rarified environment of intellectual activity and curiosity. They expect their students to contribute to this community of intellect, or at the very least to reflect it.
說到「伊底帕思的健全性」，讓我聯想到關於金桔的老笑話，不過，我可不是來說笑話的，我相信你向我請教這個問題也不期望有什麼好笑的答案，不然你會去找助教，不會來找我。學術所定義的「嚴謹」是什麼？狄更斯式的回答是：高度的期望。大學教職老師一向期許能創造充滿豐富知識與好奇心的環境，並期待學生對這樣無形的知識環境貢獻自己的所學與研究，或是至少表現出對學術探索的積極態度。
Consequently, standards are high for any products that emerge from this intellectual hothouse, including academic papers. Standards not only are high, they are rather inflexible. After all, rigor is characterized by exactness and unvarying quality. It follows that thinking and writing are expected to be uniformly stimulating. Classroom discussions are expected to prick previously untouched nodes of the brain. Ideally, constructive criticism will awaken slumbering geniuses and produce a flowering of original thought.
因此，像這樣產出豐富知識的學術溫床與環境，自然必須採用更高的標準才能撰寫出一篇傑出的學術論文。這些標準不僅嚴格，也很難任意改變。畢竟，所謂「嚴謹」，就是精確的表達與穩定的品質，這樣的觀念不論是用在思考或是寫作方面，都必須引以為鑑。藉由課堂討論的方式，可激發腦中從未探索過的思緒與環結，像這樣具有積極建設性的評論與溝通，可望喚醒沈睡中的天才，引導創造出源源不絕的獨創想法。
This is the theory, anyway, behind “academic rigor.” By pushing and pushing, it is hoped that brains become fully engaged, enhancing the climate of thought on a campus. In reality, sometimes the only result is people with headaches. Still, the hope endures that students, such as you, can be persuaded to turn in papers marked by intellectual rigor. The greater hope is that you will become so conditioned to thinking rigorously that deep thought, thorough research, and clear expression will develop into lifelong habits.
以上見解，是「學術嚴謹」存在的背後理論，主要希望學生在不斷督促之下可更加積極思考，推廣校園的學術風氣。當然，在現實生活中，這樣的督促往往讓學生更加頭痛而有苦難言。但是，我仍希望所有的學生，包括您自己，都能夠寫出堪稱嚴謹的論文。我更加期許大家應以嚴謹思考的方式自律，養成終身學習的好習慣，包括：深入的思考、透徹的研究以及清晰的表達。