Towards Beyond

14 November 2008 at 4:46 am Lasse 14 comments

| Lasse Lien |

We all know that there is an enormous amount of papers published under the title “Beyond . . . (insert whatever)” and “Towards . . . (insert whatever).” On the theory that using these words in the title almost ensures publication (I admit sampling on the dependent variable here), I have decided to take this to the limit in a series of four papers.

The first one will have the snappy title: “Towards Beyond.” The second: “Beyond Towards.” The third: “Towards Towards.” And finally, the most ambitious one: “Beyond Beyond.” I only have the titles so far, so I am interested in coauthors who can fill in the rest. But given these great titles I consider this a trivial task, and insist that I get to be first author.

Entry filed under: - Lien -, Ephemera, Jargon Watch.

A Silver Lining Group Blog of the NYU Austrian Economics Colloquium

14 Comments Add your own

1. Peter Klein | 14 November 2008 at 9:52 am

Don’t forget subtitles. E.g.: “Beyond Beyond: A Meta-Analysis” or “Towards Towards: Theory, Experience, Debate.” Or the pomo versions, like “Critical Perspectives on Towards Beyond.”
2. Shawn Ritenour | 14 November 2008 at 9:56 am

How about, “Toward the Kaleidoscopic Society: Beyond the Market Process.”
3. Lasse | 14 November 2008 at 10:01 am

Or how about this:

Beyond Subtitles: Towards a Subtitle-Free Academe
4. David Hoopes | 14 November 2008 at 2:55 pm

Nice! Very good everyone!

Can the abstract include, “In today’s ever changing environment”? Or, something referring to how humankind has NEVER faced a set of issues as complex as those we face now (of course in the U.S. alone one might consider the Civil War, the Great Depression, or WW II to be a more turbulent environment but that’s just me).
5. Cliff Grammich | 14 November 2008 at 5:05 pm

But just how many articles do you want to publish in Social Text?
6. Rafe Champion | 14 November 2008 at 5:13 pm

If it is hard to convey the complexity of your ideas in the title you can use Bill Hutt’s strategy of long subtitles. The Theory of Collective Bargaining was subtitled A critique of the argument that trade unions neutralise labour’s ‘disadvantage’ in bargaining and enhance wage-rates by the use, or threat, of strikes.
And Politically Impossible: An Essay on the Supposed Electoral Obstacles Impeding the Translation of Economic Analysis into Policy.
7. Bill | 14 November 2008 at 7:00 pm

Towards Towards: Theory, Experience, Debate.

Abstract:
The paper examines the role technology has played in advancing society to a place where we are rapidly reaching the limit of our ability to understand that we are reaching the limit of our ability to understand. We analyze how advances in data modeling have moved society towards a very high level of understanding qua understanding, and address the question of whether we can advance further towards towards, and if so, at what pace.
8. Lasse | 14 November 2008 at 7:23 pm

Excellent everyone. So we have titles, subtitles, abstract and a bit of text. But we still need something on managerial/policy implications. I think we should basically conclude with a call for increased focus on absolutely everything.
9. Rafe Champion | 14 November 2008 at 9:00 pm

While you guys are struggling to get somewhere, one area of human endeavour has achieved the ultimate! Eat your heart out, checker players.
http://mises.org/story/3198
10. Peter Klein | 14 November 2008 at 9:21 pm

Don’t forget the Five Bs of Beyond, or the Four Ts of Towards.
11. Bo | 15 November 2008 at 5:40 am

May I propose a special issue on this topic of Towards & Beyond?
12. Lasse | 15 November 2008 at 9:59 am

Bo, I think we need to think big here. How about a new journal? Those of us interested in Towards and Beyond issues are clearly discriminated against by the conservative mainstream. I have seen repeatedly seen issues of AER, SMJ, OS, MS, ASQ with only one or two (occasionally even zero) Beyond or Towards papers.
13. David Hoopes | 15 November 2008 at 11:46 pm

“Toward the Untoward Beyond: Toward Moving Forward Into the Future Beyond the Hyper Beyond Into a Future Hyper Beyond Towards Which Future Untoward Hyper Beyond Paradigm Shifts Evolve: A Research Note”
14. Positive Liberty » Beyond Beyond | 19 November 2008 at 12:34 pm

[…] This is precious. Don’t miss the comments either, including this gem: [W]e are rapidly reaching the limit of our ability to understand that we are reaching the limit of our ability to understand. We analyze how advances in data modeling have moved society towards a very high level of understanding qua understanding, and address the question of whether we can advance further towards towards, and if so, at what pace. […]