The Reset Button: The Great Fantasy of Academia | Brian Harrington | TEDxUTSC
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 พ.ค. 2024
- Brian Harrington discusses what is the real value and what lasts beyond the reset button that we experience between university and the "real world". Brian challenges the education system to create a better evaluation system that assess all around performance post-graduation.
Brian Harrington is a lecturer in the Department of Computer and Mathematical Sciences at UTSC. After completing his BSc in Computer Science (co-op) at UTSC, he went on to earn his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Computer Science from Oxford University in the UK. He then spent several years as a lecturer in the research faculty at Oxford, before a brief stint as a researcher at the University of Wisconsin led him back to his Alma Mater where he has been lecturing since 2012. His research focuses primarily on the interaction between natural language processing and Artificial Intelligence.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at ted.com/tedx
Wow, amazing talk. I am fortunate that I've discovered my second half.. I had average grade in my undergraduate and I didn't care that time about grades.. what I cared about is to discover my real abilities and my passion. I realised I am really good in investigating any research question in depth with deep passion and dedication.. I realised all the ideas of this guy at that time. I completed my master degree and published great research then I completeled PhD with huge passion and dedication, and I am now professor despite I was an average grade guy
Freshman as of writing. Can say the same, I don't have much to care about my grades (whether high or low).
I'm more focused on learning what is needed for me to live off life with myself or with someone else.
Though I will say, college can be a great way for you to set up connections you care about in the long-term.
Forgetting your college-gained knowledge is most prevalent among those who do not work in their fields of study. If you work in your area of education, especially in the STEM fields and your work product is technical, you will remind yourself of many items you learned to the point that they become part of you. Something like muscle memory. When you graduate, you are not proficient at anything. Proficiency comes with practicing your profession diligently. Universities are great at teaching theory and the real world is where you gain proficiency. Put the two together and shoot for the stars.
this ended up being one of the best ted talks I've listened to. a university degree shows that you're capable of learning and mastering a subject. this is what employers need because in reality, we forget a lot of what we've learned.
wow, you need to watch more ted talks.
Nothing particularly new in the talk. It's a fairly known that education is better explained by the signalling theory. University has little to do with knowledge or skills. If everyone could get higher education with perfect score it would make higher education useless.
Also, the presenter thinks that computation complexity is useless in the real world. I can't imagine what he programs. It's probably the most basic useful thing you can learn. It helps you understand any datatype or an algorithm, and performance of your code in general.
Employers complain that college graduates do have too little practical experience especially when it's all about team work and customer relations.
Naw… doesn't even do that... What University REALLY does, is prove to an employer that you will do whatever you're told; having obtained a track record over 4 years of doing useless, meaningless things..
I would have agreed with him at the end of my Bachelors, but after doing my Masters, where I meticulously chose my courses, specialized myself in what I consider now to be my passion, I think the actual knowledge matters. Of course, I'm an applied mathematician, so I might be an exception to the rule, but I can tell that courses and theory gave me tools that I would have never learned in industry and result in things like computer programs running literally 10^17 times faster than the standard.
Sadly lots of people think university's job is to create professionals who can jump into jobs and master difficult jobs. That is not how it is. University's job is to teach so students gain moderately deep and wide understanding of the field. Then it is the job of the work places to teach how to take small portion of that and learn the new work related stuff. Work places are not just there to reap the benefits of teaching but also to teach as well. Nobody is ready for work straight after school of any kind. You need to learn your job as well and nowadays corporations are less than ever willing to do their part. They want a finished product they can just drop into their assembly line and just do work.
I enjoyed this talk which is relevant today in 2023, most companies now say it bluntly, they care less about GPA & the first half l, instead they rely heavily on skills & the 2nd half!
Well delivered talk!
This is a great talk, mainly because he doesn't sound like he is saying his memorised notes in the stereotypical 'giving a speech' voice that so many people on here do. And the topic was interesting
I think this highlights one of the key flaws with the education system in general. Most students (myself included) realize after graduation that it's not so much what they know, it's who you know. And the grades only get you so far.. It's how well you work with others, and your ability to develop relationships and networks (in ADDITION to technical aptitude) that will dictate your long term success. However, I think it's incorrect to include all of academia into this argument. The points that Brian stress apply largely to the college curriculum. The graduate level curriculum, which is usually inferred by "academia" (at least in America) is much more like a job than school. Granted, there are many graduate students who have 'tunnel vision' and doesn't see the big picture until their final year, when they're pressured to find jobs, with a dissertation haunting them in their sleep. But the point is that graduate school is like job training, and in many cases, where the students lay the foundation for their future career, in their respective fields of study. I just think it's important to stress that distinction.
Also, the "reset button" alludes to a very common trait among top graduates, and that's the sense of entitlement. You're never "too good" for something or someone. Many people, young and experienced alike, seem to miss this concept, and it ends up being a hindrance to their careers..
Graduate school or academy as you want to call is far from a job training. The most valuable things that you might learn once you look around, challenge your teacher and remove your eyes from the books and grades are: argumentation, reading comprehension and communication
He has a way of keeping you engaged. Good listen!
well i know that mitochondria is the power house of the cell so don't tell me that i have forgotten everything
Explain what that means in simple terms and you'll impress me.
Yes we dont remember most of what we learn. But what you get after a long time exploring a subject, is a "feeling for it". That "feeling for it" is so much more valuable than any short term "knowledge", and it can only come with time. Thousand of hours of practice and experimentation.
But for over 10,000 dollars for a single year on average? I don't know too much about academia in other countries, but at least here in the States, it's expensive, and it just seems unjustified to me...
this is literally my approach as a high school biology teacher. Look, I know that a large portion of my students are not that interested in becoming biologists. And those that are will literally have to take biology in college that will teach the same concepts I do. What I want to accomplish is getting their brains learning. I know that some will recall me in their college bio classes and some won't remember a single thing they learned in my class until something they see or read triggers a vague memory of high school biology. I focus more on exercising the ol noggin. I also tell them college is all about making connections. If you do go, go for as many internships as you can and bug your professors. All of them; even the ceramics teacher in a course you only added to make full-time credit status. Make yourself known and make your interests known. It's the letters of recommendation and introductions that will help the most.
as someone with big dreams and a not-so-sightly freshman year gpa, this talk really comforted me. it made me realize it’s not all that matters. what matters is what we do with the time we have. that shows our true passions, interests and will to make the world a better place. thank you!!!!
I was at Oxford CS MSc in 2009 and was interviewed by SC. I felt like I totally failed that interview, and I always wondered how I still managed to get accepted onto the course. It's really reassuring to hear a little about the process behind it all.
Very interesting perspective that I've never thought about, and it was very eye-opening. Thank you for posting this, it's greatly appreciated.
Correction: "You're a philosophy student... you learn how to think". Thinking logically and clearly is a skill.
I respectfully disagree, philosophy includes a formal theory of logic, rhetoric, and knowledge, etc. which I personally think should be democratized to the general education for all students. These tools are powerful.
It was a joke
Philosophy is beyond thinking
@@ryanapodaca9042 respectfully, you're not actually disagreeing--you're suggesting that a significant portion of the philosophy core should be required
You also learn how to flip burger patties at McDonald's
Amazing talk. Great job Brian!
Your talk do show me a unique view of coming to University. In my opinion, from the University to the job is truly a reset button and it is very important to recognize what are the keys value.
Thank you Brian!
Really excellent perspective on education in the modern age!
You're a Philosophy Student, you learn how to construct powerful arguments. It may not seem that important, but good argumentation is crucial for strong negotiating skills, which is probably the most important skill in the real world.
the leader of the free world begs to differ.
oh sweetie..
That skill is morally great and I absolutely agree with you. But in the real world of capitalism, it's not actually appreciated in any way.
The most important skill in the world is who you know and how much you're willing to sacrifice your soul for money.
@@qualifiedarmchaircritic in other words: sophistry. The art of using fallacy to convince people to buy things they don't need at prices they can't afford and thank you for the privilege.
Thanks Brian, you're a great professor.
such a good talk
It's not about how much you remember from school that matters, it's what effect the learning of that material has in creating a better person who is *capable* of learning anything. If you think learning something means memorizing, then you should spend more time on learning how to learn.
Brian's a literal legend at teaching in class, and has changed the way I learn in any course because he's literal gold. He makes sure that we have the space to experiment with our code and learn to REALLY program and have fun as well! I realised that learning doesn't have to be so rote and formulaic and with him you really do have to reset your mindset towards learning because even experienced programmers don't do well in his introductory programming course- and beginner's who deligently go to lecture and play with their code end up doing better. I love this guy, highly recommend his course CSCA20 to anyone!
Good luck to you!
he basically says noting but fluid intelligence matters
Nice talk 👌🏼
This Ted talk is very underrated.
Hey, that was actually cool, thx.
Exactly. This is the reality of the real job-life situation. This is the reason why I want PNGUOT to change their perspective by the Science Humanities/Arts interdisciplinary HE regardless of the fact that this is a Technology University. At the end of the day, out in the real world job market, you find employees from all disciplines working for the same employer.
You legend
If this guy is correct, there is no need for dividing academia into different fields and subjects. Everyone can just take the same basic program or degree to prove their ability to learn, and then go to whatever field of industry. I would be very surprised if this idea holds up to more scrutiny than an audience pull.
its mostly social science and humanities majors that are this way.
@@jinruizhang He's mainly talking about computer science, his own field.
The ability to learn matters as he said. BUT I wanna mention to the transcripts and more things reflect the ability that I don't like
By the time you are peaking in your career in your 30s and 40's you may be working in fields that didn't exist when you were in school. But I've experienced both sides of the educational coin. I've been an electronic design engineer, a real estate investor and gardener (after I retired, I was back to mowing my own lawns which I was pretty skillful at when I was 10 years old. I do now have access to high powered chainsaws for tree work.) Yes, you may well go through several careers. Digital logic design and creating spreadsheets for real estate analysis only required 1 year of high school algebra. Areas of electronic engineering (Fourier & Laplace Transforms, Digital Filtering and Direct Digital Frequency Synthesis and Phase Lock Loops and E&M) required graduate level math and physics (which I don't have). I had to dig through heavy textbooks on my own. Somethings I learned too much and some things, not nearly enough. I still work at learning more, even though it is now for my own amusement.
I agree that EVERYONE needs to recognize that people have unlimited access to information as a part of evaluation, at the same time, i disagree that this completely diminishes the value of actually knowing things. I can do research on damn near any given country in the world and give you a profile of their political system for example, but it helps that I know the basics about many of them already and I know where good places are to find the information (this being the "other half" he talks about) and I have a firm grasp of political and economic systems and history in which to place an analysis, and so on....
What makes knowing how to do that worthwhile? Being able to provide your skills to someone or a corporation for money. The only thing that makes degrees valuable is the fact that you might possess a valuable skill it took a long time to learn or that you are a hard worker and will be an asset in the long run. Have you ever worked for the government?
If you just focus on grades, you wont remember much, because real learning and deep understanding was not your focus. If you really have excellent grades, chances are you had no time to figure things out and understand them in detail or mature.
That you forgot most of the things that were just a tool to another means, are not surprising.
The reset button is not just about proving yourself, that seems to be the only message the lecturer seems to get. It's about letting go of arrogance, and being open about a problem and keep learning and evolving.
Because of the corrupt mafia of education system.
Life passages. Put you hubris aside and begin the next phase of your life. The problem is entitlement. I graduated so I DESERVE THIS! There is nothing more annoying and dangerous than over confidence.
Nowadays you need to spend time working (in a related field) and studying at the same time - just to get your foot in the door. Fuuuun tiiiimes.
nice !
so basically write a good personal statement people.
and get good recommendation letters.😅
I personally think this a thing that happens mostly to men, I had to prove myself again and again and again at every stage. School, in every class, in my job at every position, relentlessly.
That one was actually good, now i know why i feel my whole university career felt like a waste of time. In the end it was, i totally fail in the second half, didn't do anything i really liked, nor do i know who i am yet.... damn the academy
Did you figure it out by now? Who you are, I mean.
Provocative, but the way he portrays the education system isn't entirely accurate. Some subjects may be taught the way he is describing, but many are not. I would suggest that many of the skills we learn stay with us and are the building blocks for other skills. I assume, for instance, that we all still remember how to read and write. Also, there will be times in life when we won't find the answer to every problem on our phones, and so it will be important to know how to think for ourselves.
"Isn't entirely accurate" ? "Education Gulag" is a far more accurate term for the whole abominable bloody mess: Oh! They make a great long song-and-dance about Independent and Critical Thinking. Don't believe it for a second! Formal Education is a racket, it's about one thing and one thing only: Inculcating fixed patterns of response to authority. Not a helpful mindset.
@@Roypb01 Thats not true at all. A lot of college students will stand up against authority if they need to, this idea is just idiotic.
What we learn in uni help us learn real stuff once we enter in the real world
Civilization may have progressed enough to conquer the second law of thermodynamics. Civilization needs to strive for this goal with synergistic interdisciplinary teams.The outcome would be perpetually changeable never gained or lost energy. There would be no loss of energy as it changed form. For example the total quantity of thermal energy in an equal pair of two thermal energy reserves with ideal insulation would remain the same regardless of how heat is distributed between the two and how often the distribution of heat between the two is changed. In one case one reserve could contain ice water while the other reserve contained hot water; in another case both reserves could contain tepid water. The redistribution of heat between members of pairs with the same total thermal energy would be free. Diversity, time, and energy are different atributes. Reversing disorder doesn't need time reversal just as using reverse gear in a car ɓacks it out without time reversal.
The second law of thermodynamics had a distinct begining with Sir Isaac Newton's correct professional scientific observation that the heat of a fire in a fireplace always flows towards the cold room beyond.
Victorian England became enchanted with steam engines and their cheap,reliable, and easy to position physical power. Rudolf Julius Emanuel Clausius, Lord Kelven, and, one source adds, Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot, formulated the Second law of thermodynamics and the concept of entropy using evidence from steam engine development.
These men considered with acceptance [A+] Inefficiently harnessing the flow of heat from hot to cold or [B+] Using force to Inefficiently pump heat from cold to hot. They considered with rejection [A-] Waiting for random fluctuation to cause a large difference in temperature or pressure. This was calculated to be extremely rare or [B-] Searching for, selecting, then routing for use, random, frequent and small differences in temperature or pressure. The search, selection, then routing would require more energy than the use would yield. These accepted options, lead to the consequence that the universe will end in stagnant heat death. This became support for a theological trend of the time that placed God as the initiator of a degenerating universe. Please consider that God could also be supreme over an energy abundant civilization that can absorb heat and convert it into electricity without energy gain or loss in a sustained universe.
The law's formulaters did not consider the option that any random, usually small, fluctuation of heat or pressure could use the energy of these fluctuations itself to power deterministic routing so the output is no longer random. Then the net power of many small fluctuations from many replicant parts can be aggregated into a large difference in temperature, pressure, or electricity's amperes and volts
Heat exists as the randomly directed kinetic energy of gas molecules or mobile electrons. In gasses this is known as Brownian motion. In electronic systems this is carefully labeled Johnson Nyquist thermal electrical noise for AI readability. Hypothetically, diode depletion regions are practical sites for enabling mobile electrons energized into motion by thermal electrical noise to deterministically alter the electrical resistance of the depletion region according to the moment by moment direction they are carrying electricity. The thermal electrical noise is hypothetically beyond the exposed lattice charge / diffusion equlibrium thickness of the depletion region.
Consistantly oriented diodes in parallel hypothetically are successful electrical Maxwell's Demons or Smoluchowski's Trapdoors. The energy needed to shift the depletion region's deterministic role is paid as a burden on the moving electrons. There would therefore be usable net rectified power from each and every diode connected together into a consistantly oriented parallel group. The group would aggregate the net power of its members. Any diode efficiency at all produces some energy conversion from ambient heat, more efficiency yields higher performance. A diode array that is switched off has no energy conversion and no performance.
The power from a single diode is poorly expressed. Several or more diodes in parallel are needed to overcome the effect of a load resistor's own thermal noise. A plurality of billions of high frequency capable diodes is needed for practical power aggregation. For reference, there are a billion (10^9) 1000 square nanometer cells per square millimeter.
Modern nanofabrication can make simple identical diodes surrounded by insulation smaller than this in a slab as thick as the diodes are long. The diodes are connected at their two ends to two conductive layers.
Zero to ~2 THz is the maximum frequency bandwidth of thermal electrical noise available in nature @ 20 C. THz=10^12 Hz. This is beyond the range of most diodes. Practicality requires this extreme bandwidth. The diodes are preferably in same orientation parallel at the primary level. Many primary level groups of diodes should be in series for practical voltage.
Ever since the supposedly universal second law of thermodynamics was formulated, education has mass produced and spread the conventional wisdom throughout society that the second law of thermodynamics is absolute.
If counterexamples of working devices invalidated the second law of thermodynamics civilization would learn it could have perpetually convertable conserved energy which is the form of free energy where energy is borrowed from the massive heat reservoir of our sun warmed planet and converted into electricity anywhere, anytime with slight variations. Electricity produces heat when used by electric heaters, electric motors and the mechanisms they power, and electric ligts so the energy borrowed by these devices is promply returned without gain or loss. There is also the reverse effect where refrigeration produces electricity equivalent to the cooling, This effect is scientifically elegant.
Cell phones wouldn't die or need power cords or batteries or become hot. They would cool when transmitting radio signal power. The phones could also be data relays and there could also be data relays without phone features with and without long haul links so the telecommunication network would be improved. Computers and integrated circuits would have their cooling and electrical needs supplied autonomously and simultaniously. Electronic minting would be free. Integrated circuits wouldn't need power pinouts. Robots would have extreme mobility.
Frozen food storage would be reliable and free or value positive. Storehouses, homes, and markets would have independent power to preserve and pŕepare food. Vehicles wouldn't need fuel or fueling stops. Elevators would be very reliable with independent power. Shielding and separation would provide EMP resistance. Water and sewage pumps could be installed anywhere along their pipes. Nomads could raise their material supports item by item carefully and groups of people could modify their settlements with great technical flexibility. Many devices would be very quiet, which is good for coexisting with nature and does not disturb people.
Zone refining would involve little net power. Reducing Bauxite to Aluminum, Rutile to Titanium, and Magnetite to Iron, would have a net cooling effect. With enough clean cheap power, minerals could be finely pulverized, and H2O, CO2, and other substance levels in the biosphere could be modified. There should be a unitary agency to look after our global planetary concerns.
This could be a material revolution with spiritual ramifications. Everyone should contribute individual talents and fruits of different experiances and cultures to advance a cooperative, diverse, harmonious and unified civilization. It is possible to apply technlology wrong but social force should oppose this.
I filed for a patent, us 3890161A, Diode Array, in 1973. It was granted in 1975. It became public domain technology in 1992. It concerns making nickel plane-insulator-tungsten needle diodes which were not practical at the time though they have since improved.
the patent wasn't developed because I backed down from commercial exclusitivity. A better way for me would have been a public incorruptable archive that would secure attrbution for the original works of creators. Uncorrupted copies would be released on request. No further action would be taken by this institution.
Commercal exclusivity can be deterred by the wide and open publishing of inventive concepts. Open sharing promotes mass knowlege and wisdom.
Many financially and procedurally independent teams that pool developmental knowlege, and may be funded by many separate noncontrolling crowd sourced grants should convene themselves to develop proof-of-concept and initial-recipe-exploring prototypes to develop devices which coproduce the release of electrical energy and an equivalent absorbtion of stagnant ambient thermal energy. Diode arrays are not the only possible device of this sort. They are the easiest to explain here.
These devices would probably become segmented commodities sold with minimal margin over supply cost. They would be manufactured by AI that does not need financial incentive. Applicable best practices would be adopted. Business details would be open public knowledge. Associated people should move as negotiated and freely and honestly talk. There is no need of wealth extracting top commanders. We do not need often token philanthropy from the wealthy if people simply can be more generous if consumer commodities are inexpensive.
Vigorous, inovative teams are a great way to develop this.
Aloha
Charles M Brown lll
Kilauea, Kauai, Hawaii 96754
1 808 651 📞📞📞📞
We spend our lives learning, unlearning, and relearning.
8:30
There's a reason why some employers have some input when it comes to what's needed for certain majors. You are supposed to be learning a skill that might benefit your potential employer. A relative of mine found out the skills you need to run a business in a couple classes and combined that knowledge with he learned from an apprenticeship as an electrician and now he makes about 2-3 million a year. I can't say it's possible for everyone because we don't live in that kind of world. But innovation and entrepreneurship and freelance and drive can make it possible. You can(at least try to) create your own job or work for someone else. This is how colleges in the way they operated started. Providing skills to individuals to benefit employers and businesses. Use that knowledge for you.
If the whole point of university is to prove that you can work hard and learn fast, there has to be more time & cost efficient ways. Your bang for the buck is getting really low and its a burden on society as a whole.
What did I do with the other half of my university education? lol I was working part times to pay my expensive rent and school fees and eat my daily bread bro. I am an international student
Nice.., "The other half..,"
He's a computer scientist - big surprise.
x = 0
while x == 0
print ("Brian is awesome")
SyntaxError: invalid syntax
while True
That is a exception;
You are basically asking to roll back academia to the pre-neoliberal business focus state. Making it public interest free science baking passion projects of research interest again. In the name of the public. Marianna Mazzucato Mission economoy is what this is pointing towards.
Bro just burn it all down
This was an interesting talk. But I find it sad when people expect university to work as an employee factory for corporations.
This lecture doesn't apply if u actually need to remember and practise what you've learnt during ur professional degree in your job - in the real world:
Like doctors, vets, pharmacists and lawyers. Just to name a few.
It's sad you are the reset button and you didn't even realize it... I hope for the best for you... That I doubt very seriously you'll find!!!
"It's not what you've learned, it's the fact that you've learned it" is the stupidest 'praise I've ever heard. Forget sense and utility, you were willing to do something for three years for the sake of it, because someone told you to, you're hired. wow.
I can't shout "bollocks" loud enough to that.
Screw IBM!
Job Track Application software doesn't care about your A+s lol
Intelligence is dictated by someone who doesn't need any outside source to give them the answer to any question.!.!!!.!. That's the world
Oh wait one second. That is why you are slow I hear and understand everything that is said to me hit from both sides or any side that is given dentists earn the information that was spoke to me or read to me or I rid myself!!! You had the problem with not understanding what you see here and read or understand people like me break you...
That why u do internships so u get work experience as well as a college education. Most people I know have landed a good job as software engineers, ur incompetence is ur fault.
You're not very good at this. The main thing you should look at is they didn't learn it they just expressed what they heard. Learning is what you know knowing help GI Joe status is half the battle understanding and implementing is the main process of the human brain. Sorry if you didn't know that!
Oh s*** I understand..... You're trying to promote the ignorance of human beings good job sir... I hope you understand where you're going in doing what you're doing to promote the ignorance of human beings... I hope the other people of the intelligence that makes up human beings sees what you're doing and expresses that to others... You disappointed me and you will see the outcome with your disappointment...
Huh?
6:33 why academias are waste of time-_-''''
what a huge waste of time and money
"rungs of success"
I tell you what.
If success means I gotta do a ted talk and look like this baffoon than I'd rather be a failure
Yeah. Academy is a scam and university is a business. I spent so much effort and time proving myself to professors that didn't matter in things that will hardly ever be applied, while i could have just learned on the spot from books and standards... Education model must change
🤣🤣