FestivusMiracle

The problem is that plagiarism has such a strong negative connotation, and therefore its use should be more restricted than other words. Although not as severe, misusing the word plagiarism is kinda like misusing the word rape. Given the significance of someone accused of either plagiarism or rape, it is important to be precise when considering using these words. I'm OK with the notion of word evolution most of the time, but some words should maintain a relatively fixed meaning, and plagiarism is one of those words.

How do you all feel about this site? Is it detestable and immoral, or something to keep an open-mind about? Personally I think it's ethically atrocious, but as a website business I think the idea is genius.

I loved video games growing up, started out with an N64, to PS2, to PS3, and now I think I may not buy this generation of consoles. I guess I'm kinda growing up? With that said, I still love video games, especially old school nostalgic games. I will kick anyone's ass at the following: Super Mario Brothers 3 for NES N64 Mario Kart in Battle mode (and, of course, Block Fort as the level) COD4: Modern Warfare. The original! The online mode in this game does not get old. IMO this game is as close to perfection as you could probably hope for in a 21st century video game.

Oh and I also find myself constantly annoyed at stupid shit people say. I think there are basically 2 types of stupid people: nice, naive stupid people, and racist, bigoted stupid people. Avoid the second type at all costs, even if you have been friends since childhood. But the first type you just have to have a sense of humor about when they say dumb things, and don't get too worked up over it. I have a lot of friends who i would consider to be of the first type, and my life would be much worse if I chose to abandon them because they aren't very smart. Just do your best to find stuff you have in common, and try to avoid fruitless arguments. Being friends with all different types of people should help you maintain perspective and avoid becoming a pompous jackass like some professors I know...

I think I can at least partially relate to your situation. I only know grad students in my school's city, and I feel like I could not be more different from them. I also feel like hanging out with them has made me worse-off as a human being, because gossiping about other grad students is pretty much the only conversation not related to classwork. Then I come home and I kinda feel like I'm losing touch with all my hometown / undergrad friends. For me, I think the solution is leaving grad school a year early (I'm in a master's program) and joining the real world (AKA job). I'm a big believer in knowing when to quit, and this seems to be one of those times.

Do you keep it classy and tame since, you know, you're an adult now? Or do you get blackout drunk like the undergrads? How do you celebrate completing another (or your first) year of grad school?

Lol on this post. My parents basically just told me to do good in school and that was that. They were the complete opposite of helicopter parents, which I think really helped me become very independent from an early age. I wound up making mostly As in high school and having a 4.0 in undergrad. I think the spelling bee should be done away with, because it causes a lot of kids to waste time on stupid shit. Who cares if you can spell words no one ever heard of? Why not spend your time doing something productive or enjoyable? I mean, should we really be glorifying this absurd spectacle that has become the national spelling bee?

I want to transfer to this department!

How dare you not agree with me! Ha jk nobody agrees with me on this topic, despite the fact that I'm right. Are you a huge Seinfeld fan like me?

I feel like applying plagiarism to this case results in this word losing its original intent. Maybe the word has been hijacked by individuals who don't understand the importance of meaning, but it's still no excuse. I think someone on gradcafe should come up with an alternative word that describes 'plagiarism' that occurs in the absence of one trying to take credit for another's ideas. I'm too burnt out from final papers to come up with one.

Am I the only one who occasionally reads journal articles off a laptop while I'm in the bathroom? I mean, the bathroom is a natural thinking zone for males, and has been since the dawn of time (or bathrooms). Is it such a crime to allow one's laptop to accompany his presence on the throne? Full disclosure: My roommate thinks I take my laptop in the bathroom with me to look at porn. Which is ridiculous, because I use my iPhone for that.

You'll have to excuse my taste for petty debates. But I'm afraid that you cited the dictionary way out of context, which is quite ironic given the current topic of discussion. If you had simply posted the entire definition, it would not have supported your argument, since clearly the definition relies on the 'representation of the author's own' phrase which you cunningly omitted. Check and mate sir, check and mate. Meow.

http://m.dictionary.com/definition/plagiarism I still think the plagiarism word is being thrown around loosely here, especially now that I looked the definition up.

Is it just me, or is this not plagiarism? It's definitely laziness, but plagiarism? Plagiarism to me is blatantly stealing others' ideas and, importantly, claiming them for your own. The OP claimed them for someone else which, while wrong, doesn't seem like that huge of an offense. I've done something similar to this a few times, so I can relate. I always cite the right source, though, but occasionally I have guessed on page numbers. It's not really a problem in grad school, though, since most of my citations don't require page numbers.