Essay:Academic Side Effects

A "side effect" is an undesirable by-product. The term is often used in connection with medication, but it can apply equally well to academic or mental pursuits:

Politics and Government

Advantages include:

• a recognition of the impact of politics and government on culture, morality, and even faith

Side effects include:

• a tendency to accept and even embrace the illogical and even things that cause a great deal of harm
• a tendency to become obsessed with the media, or what other (often less intelligent) people are saying
• an acceptance of unproductive and even counterproductive behavior
• an embrace of, and even delight in, deceit

Engineering

Advantages include:

• acceptance of full accountability
• rejection of deceit
• recognition of the value of redundancy to guard against failure

Side effects include:

• overemphasis on materialism
• unwillingness to get involved politically

Mathematics

Advantages include:

• acceptance of logic

Disadvantages include:

• lack of meaningful accountability
• lack of recognition of the adversarial nature of life

Law

Advantages include:

• Appreciation of the value of dissent

Disadvantages include:

• Lack of appreciation of limits on judicial authority

History

Advantages include:

• Recognize the historical progression towards greater Christianity and conservatism, and the ever-changing competitors to both

Disadvantages include:

• Under-appreciation of logic, and how not all beliefs are equal
• Preoccupation with status and positions, rather than achievement