The Alan Sokal Affair

ColoradoGuy · Jan 29, 2007

After a prodding from Medievalist and with a nodding toward our own Sokal (whose choice in screen names clearly shows amusement at the whole affair), here is a link to the infamous Sokal Affair, in which a physicist hoodwinked a post-modish journal into publishing a completely silly send-up of Theory. The journal, at least at first, was not in on the joke. They were not amused.

pdr · Jan 29, 2007

Ah! Now I know.

And I'm still laughing. Heavy day's work so can't study and analyse the article but cheers for another who sees the Emperor's New Clothes!!!!

Thank you so much for so much hilarity. I wish I could translate it for my Japanese students who are serious medical researchers!

Would love to discuss it, at my basic level please, later.

Deleted member 42 · Jan 29, 2007

I take enormous pleasure, not to mention schadenfreude at some of the faculty cited in that piece. Do look at Sokal's followups as well.

robeiae · Jan 29, 2007

In Heinlein's Number of the Beast, there is some amusing background for the main character reminiscent of this.

Higgins · Jan 29, 2007

Something more in Japanese

pdr said:
And I'm still laughing. Heavy day's work so can't study and analyse the article but cheers for another who sees the Emperor's New Clothes!!!!

Thank you so much for so much hilarity. I wish I could translate it for my Japanese students who are serious medical researchers!

Would love to discuss it, at my basic level please, later.

Here's a link with Japanese sections:

http://www.math.tohoku.ac.jp/~kuroki/Sokal/

alaskamatt17 · Jan 30, 2007

That is hilarious.

pdr · Jan 30, 2007

Thank you for that.

I'll try to provoke my medicos with some thoughts about it.

The Alan Sokal Affair

ColoradoGuy

I've seen worse.

pdr

Deleted member 42

robeiae

Touch and go

Higgins

alaskamatt17

pdr