Re: [LINK] Mozilla Foundation lays off 30% staff, drops advocacy division

Wolfgang Agnes <wagnes@jemoni.to> wrote:

Same here.  I view the situation as a major sign of failure.  It seems
the whole world is on the same boat, though.  I don't know of any
company that has not bought into all this nonsense---they may exist (and
I hope they do), but surely I don't know the routine of every company
out there.  ``Software engineering'' in the universities are also going
in the same direction.  In fact, one thing I observe in the universities
is that the academics in ``software engineering'' are actually the
manager-types who are not (at the same time) programmers, which is a
terrible sign.  I hope I'm not offending anyone, but it's really how I
think.

Academics (as in the people called 'Professor') are actually doing day to
day management of X number of students/postdocs/etc, as well as writing
grants, writing papers, teaching, admin, etc.  Which doesn't leave a lot of
time for programming.  It's the students/postdocs/etc who are actually doing
the programming, so the professor is at best at one remove.  They may have
been programmers in the recent/distant past, but eventually all that extra
stuff crowds out the programming.

We also live a certain overconfidence in science.  There are very few
scientists doing relevant work, but there's a widespread belief that
science (and technology) will always solve everything---it's always just
a matter of time; someone will figure it out.  Ask people and you will
see---almost nobody understands anything about quantum computing or
artificial intelligence, but nearly everyone thinks that it's a matter
of a short time and all the quantum computing will be here for the next
revolution.  And I need say nothing about artificial intelligence
because everyone is well-aware about the all the hype.

I think that's 'tech', not 'science'.  'Science' is the study of the world -
I don't think we're overconfident about gravity, but techbros may be
overconfident about quantum computing.  They certainly are about AI.

On the other hand, though, I totally understand the fears: academics are
fearful of not having anything to say and managers either invent
something whatever or they have a nervous breakdown out of fear of
losing their jobs.  And some really do.  They have a deep sense of
incapacity: it seems they never find a way to put their lives to good
use.  It's a very sorry situation.

I think it's the problem a lot of organisations have that once you get
into the higher tiers you get further away from actually doing stuff, and
perhaps lose touch with how it is done.

Theo