I see that you have a book about this, but if this error is egregious enough, why not submit papers to that effect? Surely one can only demonstrate that Software Engineering is diseased is if, once the community have read your claims, they refuse to react?
Fair point, but I feel like you’ve dodged the substance of my post. Why have you chosen to not submit a paper on this subject so that the community’s mind can be changed (assuming you have/are not).
As far as “official” academic publishing is concerned, I’ve been in touch with the editors of IEEE Software’s “Voice of Evidence” column for about a year now, though on an earlier topic—the so-called “10x programmers” studies. The response was positive—i.e. “yes, we’re interested in publishing this”. So far, however, we haven’t managed to hash out a publication schedule.
You’ve said so yourself, I’m making these observations publicly—though on a self-published basis as far as the book is concerned. I’m not sure what more would be accomplished by submitting a publication—but I’m certainly not opposed to that.
It’s a lot more difficult, as has been noted previously on Less Wrong, to publish “negative” results in academic fora than to publish “positive” ones—one of the failures of science-in-general, not unique to software engineering.
I see that you have a book about this, but if this error is egregious enough, why not submit papers to that effect? Surely one can only demonstrate that Software Engineering is diseased is if, once the community have read your claims, they refuse to react?
You don’t call a person diseased because they fail to respond to a cure: you call them diseased because they show certain symptoms.
This disease is widespread in the community, and has even been shown to cross the layman-scientist barrier.
Fair point, but I feel like you’ve dodged the substance of my post. Why have you chosen to not submit a paper on this subject so that the community’s mind can be changed (assuming you have/are not).
What makes you think I haven’t?
As far as “official” academic publishing is concerned, I’ve been in touch with the editors of IEEE Software’s “Voice of Evidence” column for about a year now, though on an earlier topic—the so-called “10x programmers” studies. The response was positive—i.e. “yes, we’re interested in publishing this”. So far, however, we haven’t managed to hash out a publication schedule.
You’ve said so yourself, I’m making these observations publicly—though on a self-published basis as far as the book is concerned. I’m not sure what more would be accomplished by submitting a publication—but I’m certainly not opposed to that.
It’s a lot more difficult, as has been noted previously on Less Wrong, to publish “negative” results in academic fora than to publish “positive” ones—one of the failures of science-in-general, not unique to software engineering.
Then any objection withdrawn!
I commend you for pushing this, and Software is a decently high-impact venue.
Um. It might have been intentional, in which case disregard this, but Unfortunate Implication warning: laymen have brains too.