As a scientist and scientific writer, do you feel you do your best work in science in a competitive or non-competitive environment?
Contemporary science appreciates cooperativeness than competitiveness. Scientific articles today have more authors from different fields than what they used to be single authors or two.
Dear Dennis,
It is now very much in vogue to say that we live in a competitive world and this seems to be the case. Even so, I do my best thinking in science in a non-competitive environment. In a competitive environment it matters more how much you publish than the quality of what you publish. Therefore, I do not agree with the publish or perish policy. This policy is highly responsible for many distortions, artificial fractures, dispensable publications, and the like. I use to say that I like competing with myself not with my colleagues. By its very nature, science requires a multidisciplinary approach. However such an approach is much more consistent with cooperativeness than competitiveness. A competitive environment often gives rise to stress and anxiety, both of which are at odds with deep, creative, and original thinking. I aslo think that only cooperativeness can save societies and even individuals from possible collapse, be it violent or gradual. Of course, cooperativenss is costly, but it is far less costly then its alternative, competition.
Best regards,
Orlando
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