On Thu, 22 Feb 2007, Harzem Peter went:

Papers in Psychology journals, shackled by the demand to follow the
APA style, are so very, very boring.  From none of them would one
get the sense of excitement that may arise from and finding.

Hmm, compared to what?

I just went to the latest issue of the APA's _Psychological Bulletin_
and checked some titles:

"If It Goes Up, Must It Come Down? Chronic Stress and the
Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenocortical Axis in Humans."

"The Nature of Procrastination: A Meta-Analytic and Theoretical Review
of Quintessential Self-Regulatory Failure."

"Comprehending Envy."

Those didn't seem as if they'd be boring.  I clicked on "Comprehending
Envy."  Sample text from the body of the article:

"Claims for the importance of understanding envy go beyond its being a
hostile emotion. Nietzsche (1887/1967) argued that envy is the prime
cause for the egalitarian morality inherent in Christianity in which
the strong are brought down by the weak using principles of morality
sanctified by religion. Rand (1971), the ultra-conservative
philosopher, struck a similar chord with an especially vigorous
denunciation of envy, which she claimed dominated the latter part of
the 20th century. In this 'age of envy,' the impulse to begrudge the
advantages and heroic strength of the few led to 'hatred of the good
for being good' (Rand, 1971, p. 130). Envy is also a frequent theme of
philosophers who focus on the motivation for people's desire for
social equality (e.g., de la Mora, 1987; Nozick, 1974; Rawls, 1971),
and it is an inscrutable quandary in fictional attempts by novelists
to imagine utopian societies free of discord caused by inequalities
(e.g., Hartley, 1960; Lowry, 1993)."

That seems like articulate, thoughtful writing--not flashy, but also
not suggestive of any sort of stylistic shackling.  For pleasure
reading, I'll choose it over most of the research articles published
in _Science_.

--David Epstein
  [EMAIL PROTECTED]

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