• Sep 19 - Lament of Academia

Modern-day academia has done an excellent job of removing the author's beliefs, personality, and emotion from papers in pursuit of objectivity. In doing so, it has erased the very elements that originally guided the author's thought process and led to the paper's conclusions.

To illustrate, consider the pitiful state of research in the analytical sciences. Scientists like Richard Feynman often approached problem-solving with a meditative, almost exploratory mindset—akin to a walk in the garden. Yet, when this process produces a valid result that is later published, the final product becomes a sterile artifact, stripped of the personal journey, insights, and reflections that shaped it. All that remains is the outcome, devoid of the author's human imprint.

This leads people to believe that science is merely a collection of dogmatic, unquestionable axioms—nonsense.

If this continues unchallenged, intellectual stagnation will follow.

School Has Failed Me

A letter I wrote to my academic advisor: It seems as though university has long lost its mission and that the greatest human achievements are occurring outside of the academic sphere—Elon, Jobs, Bezos, etc., etc.

Here is a quote from Einstein:

“School failed me, and I failed the school.
It bored me. The teachers behaved like sergeants. I wanted to learn what I wanted to know, but they wanted me to learn for the exam. What I hated most was the competitive system there, and especially sports. Because of this, I wasn’t worth anything, and several times they suggested I leave. I felt that my thirst for knowledge was being strangled by my teachers; grades were the only measurement. How can a teacher understand youth with such a system? From the age of twelve, I began to suspect authority and distrust teachers.”

I have been posing a simple question to myself for a while now: Do I believe that my time and energy could be channeled more effectively, efficiently, intelligently, and impactfully if my learning were self-directed and autodidactic?

My answer—a resounding and unequivocal yes in all circumstances.

MIT OCW, Harvard Online, EdX, etc.—there are so many free and phenomenal resources at one's disposal to engage in even the most esoteric studies at a full and complete level.

I showed my physics professor my Feynman Lectures on Physics book. He pointed to it and said that if he were allowed to, it would be the primary textbook for this course. He is not allowed to use it due to copyright restrictions. Instead, they have to use open-source or in-house materials that often lack the human discovery aspect of science. What's left is a dull, uninspired textbook filled with axiomatic statements.

The lectures consist merely of a recapitulation of these subpar materials. I am assigned enormous swaths of busy work, and it appears that the focal point of my education is centered around passing an exam.

To what end, I ask?

The answer everyone gives is, "To get a degree."

Why?

"To show that you are qualified."

So I am to spend four years of the prime of my life in pursuit of a piece of paper that shows an employer I am "proficient" in a particular area?

I would rather let my works speak for me.

In addition to that, I want to be an entrepreneur, so the value proposition of a degree fades into the abyss rather quickly.

An argument of auxiliary utility can be made, as you have brought up, about being in an environment of similarly aged individuals. I agree. However, I consider myself rather gregarious, and all of the people I have met who have even half a sense of direction, I have met outside of and adjacent to my university.

So, what are my options?

Option 1: Drop out and fully and freely pursue my ideals.

Option 2: Seek out an institution that actually lives up to its promises.

That brings me to UATX.

It appears to be everything I have been looking for in an institution—centered around innovation, impact, etc., and is also aligned with the advice you gave me during our lunch:

"Don't get siloed"

—with its STEM-focused liberal arts program.

That would provide a fantastic general background while affording me the freedom to openly explore my areas of interest via the aforementioned resources.

At UATX, the first two years are spent on "intellectual foundations," i.e., a Great Books education coupled with some technical classes like multivariable calculus, physics, etc., with the junior and senior years dedicated to a series of electives and the development of a moonshot project—applying what I have learned.

Due to its connections with Palantir and its location in Austin, there is also a massive networking and fundraising opportunity for any projects I might have.

Additionally, it also addresses the point you brought up about being in an environment of similarly aged youth—except here, I expect a higher concentration of ambitious people.