Augie Posted October 30, 2017 Share Posted October 30, 2017 Not even "before." At the same time. Final paper for each class, in the same semester. Given that "plagiarism" is "taking somebody else's work and passing it off as your own," none of us could make any sense out of it. Still can't, really... I guess they have higher standards than in the 4th grade? You can call it something, but that isn’t plagiarism. Bummer.... That’s life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dean Posted October 30, 2017 Share Posted October 30, 2017 I had a friend in college who submitted the same paper for two different poly-sci classes - same assignment, different classes, different professors, he figured "Why write the same paper twice?" He was nearly expelled for plagiarizing himself. Ultimately, they went easy on him and limited his punishment to being kicked out of the poly-sci program. (He changed his major to art, which probably had more real-life application.) Too bad he didn't hire some high-profile lawyer. This is one I'd love to see argued in court. Plagiarizing yourself? Gimme a break. I taught one semester at Canisius College, back in the 80s. A few of the classes I took were those of a professor out on sabbatical, that semester. She had a reputation of being a VERY easy grader, so many athletes took her classes. From day one, I made it clear I was NOT her. Not that I was a hard ass, but I didn't give everyone As and Bs. But I guess you would actually have to be in class, or talk to someone in class, to know that. I gave a take-home final. I asked questions that demanded they demonstrate some understanding of the material. I don't really care if they learned it during the semester, or crammed for a week to at least learn enough to pass the test. If they passed, they at least learned something. Anyway I got 5 (or 6) EXACT copies of the same final, all from "top" athletes. The thing was, it (not they, as there was really only one) was incomprehensibly bad. Didn't address the question, at all, and didn't show any comprehension of the material. Every paper had the same misspellings, same grammatical errors, etc. But all in different handwriting. It would have made fare more sense for these mooks to make a photocopy of the damn thing. I gave them all an F. Now, let me just say it's hard to get an F in my class. Show me you are trying, and I'll probably give you a D. But I'm not sure any of these idiots ever came to a class. And they certainly weren't trying. The Dean (not me) called me into his office to see if I'd reconsider the grade, as this was going to do "irreparable damage" to the football and basketball program. I laid out all the finals on the table, and told him to take a look. This was clear plagiarism. I also explained, whoever wrote the original piece, had absolutely no understanding of the material, so should fail, while the others should be expelled. Then I walked out. My time there was done. I had no power. They could do whatever they wanted. I never found out what happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bad Things Posted October 31, 2017 Share Posted October 31, 2017 Thermodynamics. That class was a nightmare, taught by a man who didn't give a flying Fock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augie Posted October 31, 2017 Share Posted October 31, 2017 Too bad he didn't hire some high-profile lawyer. This is one I'd love to see argued in court. Plagiarizing yourself? Gimme a break. I taught one semester at Canisius College, back in the 80s. A few of the classes I took were those of a professor out on sabbatical, that semester. She had a reputation of being a VERY easy grader, so many athletes took her classes. From day one, I made it clear I was NOT her. Not that I was a hard ass, but I didn't give everyone As and Bs. But I guess you would actually have to be in class, or talk to someone in class, to know that. I gave a take-home final. I asked questions that demanded they demonstrate some understanding of the material. I don't really care if they learned it during the semester, or crammed for a week to at least learn enough to pass the test. If they passed, they at least learned something. Anyway I got 5 (or 6) EXACT copies of the same final, all from "top" athletes. The thing was, it (not they, as there was really only one) was incomprehensibly bad. Didn't address the question, at all, and didn't show any comprehension of the material. Every paper had the same misspellings, same grammatical errors, etc. But all in different handwriting. It would have made fare more sense for these mooks to make a photocopy of the damn thing. I gave them all an F. Now, let me just say it's hard to get an F in my class. Show me you are trying, and I'll probably give you a D. But I'm not sure any of these idiots ever came to a class. And they certainly weren't trying. The Dean (not me) called me into his office to see if I'd reconsider the grade, as this was going to do "irreparable damage" to the football and basketball program. I laid out all the finals on the table, and told him to take a look. This was clear plagiarism. I also explained, whoever wrote the original piece, had absolutely no understanding of the material, so should fail, while the others should be expelled. Then I walked out. My time there was done. I had no power. They could do whatever they wanted. I never found out what happened. Maybe someone was just trying to get help on the curve? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 Thermodynamics. That class was a nightmare, taught by a man who didn't give a flying Fock. I loved that class. My professor moonlighted at IBM, working on ways to increase the purity of silicon wafers when they cooled the molten silicon columns. Not as much fun as quantum field theory, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augie Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 I loved that class. My professor moonlighted at IBM, working on ways to increase the purity of silicon wafers when they cooled the molten silicon columns. Not as much fun as quantum field theory, though. I’m sure most of us probably agree on that.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
row_33 Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 Too bad he didn't hire some high-profile lawyer. This is one I'd love to see argued in court. Plagiarizing yourself? Gimme a break. The Dean (not me) called me into his office to see if I'd reconsider the grade, as this was going to do "irreparable damage" to the football and basketball program. I laid out all the finals on the table, and told him to take a look. This was clear plagiarism. I also explained, whoever wrote the original piece, had absolutely no understanding of the material, so should fail, while the others should be expelled. Then I walked out. My time there was done. I had no power. They could do whatever they wanted. I never found out what happened. You plagiarize yourself if you sell your rights to a work to Esquire and then sell them again to another magazine or journal without permission. A few people have been burned doing that over the last few years. When I marked papers I enjoyed bringing the doubtful ones in to have a small chat about their paper and usually they confessed on the spot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dean Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 You plagiarize yourself if you sell your rights to a work to Esquire and then sell them again to another magazine or journal without permission. A few people have been burned doing that over the last few years. When I marked papers I enjoyed bringing the doubtful ones in to have a small chat about their paper and usually they confessed on the spot. Technically, I don't think that would be called plagiarism. More like a violation of contract/copyright violation, etc. Perhaps I'm wrong. I know plenty of authors reuse their early material (magazine articles, short stories, etc) and package it in a compilation book. I assume that is all done with permission, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 Technically, I don't think that would be called plagiarism. More like a violation of contract/copyright violation, etc. Perhaps I'm wrong. I know plenty of authors reuse their early material (magazine articles, short stories, etc) and package it in a compilation book. I assume that is all done with permission, though. When I've seen that done, it usually includes a list of the applicable copyrights, so I'm pretty sure it's with permission. Submitting a school paper you wrote for two different classes is not the same, though. That's not copyrighted to anyone, least of all the professors claiming it was plagiarized. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dean Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 When I've seen that done, it usually includes a list of the applicable copyrights, so I'm pretty sure it's with permission. Submitting a school paper you wrote for two different classes is not the same, though. That's not copyrighted to anyone, least of all the professors claiming it was plagiarized. Oh, I agree completely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfanmiami(oh) Posted November 2, 2017 Share Posted November 2, 2017 Thermodynamics. That class was a nightmare, taught by a man who didn't give a flying Fock. Think I got a C- in regular old physics. Probably wouldn't have made it past syllabus day in that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted November 2, 2017 Share Posted November 2, 2017 Think I got a C- in regular old physics. Probably wouldn't have made it past syllabus day in that. It's not that hard. All physics before 1910 is described by just seven equations. And even Relativity only adds an eighth, when you get down to it. It's when quantum physics is introduced that physics gets !@#$ed sideways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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