Academic research: musings

[A. G. Maisey]

I do not know the examples you have quoted Ariel, but in our exchanges I do not think we were debating, I viewed the entire series of exchanges as an attempt on my part to gain a clear understanding of exactly what you meant in your opening post.

I have sometimes thought that the word "research" gets used a little too freely, and my initial understanding of your opening post was that you would have liked to see more or less serious research as a component part of the ideas and opinions that form a part of much of our discussion in this Forum.

As it turns out your position appears to be pretty much the same as mine, and you are prepared to differentiate between the relaxed discussion and the ideas and opinions that are sometimes founded upon research, serious or otherwise. I can still make silly remarks, provided I do not pretend that those silly ideas are the result of serious work.

I consider that our exchanges were more of the nature of discussion, rather than debate. Debate and discussion can overlap, and in Middle English the word "debate" had the meaning of "discussion", but in today's English I think there needs to be an element of contention or dispute for a discussion to become a debate.

I cannot find this element of contention in our exchanges, I was merely trying to understand your position more clearly.