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Created: October 10, 2003
Latest Update: October 10, 2003
jeannecurran@habermas.org
takata@uwp.edu

Answerability and the Nobel Prize

Site Copyright: Jeanne Curran and Susan R. Takata and Individual Authors, October 2003.
"Fair use" encouraged.

In this piece we are looking at the relation between achievement and awards. Alfie Kohn long ago complained about giving students A's in school as rewards for performance. Eventually this led to work for the A instead of for the learning. We went through this with problems when mothers in the 50's or 60's tried toilet training children with M & M's.

Rewards are a problem. This year's hassle over the Nobel Prize for the MRI in medicine has brought up all these issues. I'll get up more questions tomorrow, but figured you might like to start reading. This topic would be a good substitute topic for the MidTerm if it interests you. jeanne

Discussion Questions

1. How does the explosion in knowledge complicate the issue of rewards?

   Consider how many more people are educated and entering the intellectual debates.

2. How does globalization complicate the issue of rewards?

   Consider the additional privileges that those of wealthy developed countries can bring to support their candidates.

3. How does the idea of a reward for a discovery become more complicated today?

   Consider the complexity of every discovery. And consider that there are many ways to skin a cat, so to speak.

4. What does this issue suggest to you about the writing of history?

   Consdier whether having your name go down in history is a prize. Consider also the remark in background articles for this issue that someone says you could write the history of science from the list of Nobel Prize nominees, or something to that effect.

5. How does this issue compare to the concept of the Western Cannon?

   Is getting your art or music or writning into the Western Cannon a prize? Is there an infrastructure you could approach to do so? Anything like the Nobel Prize Committee? Are we talking responsibility here? Are we talking answerability here?