Why Are You Still Here? A Curious Question

[Frigus]

Hello everyone,

I recently revisited Physics Forums after a long hiatus (about 4-5 years) and started catching up on the recent discussions.

What immediately struck me—and what inspired this thread—is seeing so many of the exact same user names in the "Latest Posts" section who were just as active when I was last here!

To the dedicated, long-term, and continuously active members of this community:

• What keeps you coming back and contributing regularly after all this time?
• Is it the joy of teaching/helping others with their physics questions?
• Is it the intellectual stimulation of specific sub-forums or topics?
• Do you view it as a form of continuing education or a hobby?
• Or is it simply the community and the friendships you've built here?

 

[JT Smith]

I enjoy pedantically correcting minor errors of virtual strangers I will never meet in person.

For example, your first bullet item should really be the header for the subsequent bullet items.

 

[Borek]

I am asking myself the same question.

 

[Borg]

For me, resistance would be futile.

 

[DaveC426913]

What keeps you coming back and contributing regularly after all this time?

• Is it the joy of teaching/helping others with their physics questions?
• Is it the intellectual stimulation of specific sub-forums or topics?
• Do you view it as a form of continuing education or a hobby?
• Or is it simply the community and the friendships you've built here?

Yes.

 

[256bits]

Doctor's orders.
He recommended 3 Likes a day, giving or receiving,

PS Kinda Like that Did You Hug a Random Stranger thing that comes around every so often.

 

[Hornbein]

Politics, spam, and silly beliefs are banned and rudeness is discouraged. These rules are diligently enforced. Such service is rare on a free site.

Mostly the same topics come up over and over but every now and then I learn something.

 

[weirdoguy]

I like seeing crackpots banned. Especially when stupidity is triumphing in real life.

 

[Astronuc]

• Is it the joy of teaching/helping others with their physics questions?
• Is it the intellectual stimulation of specific sub-forums or topics?
• Do you view it as a form of continuing education or a hobby?
• Or is it simply the community and the friendships you've built here?

As Greg has mentioned in the past, caring and sharing with the community, as well as the intellectual stimulation, and learning (continuous education). I believe that the members of the community are likewise curious, are interested in learning and are committed to sharing accurate information.

 

[pinball1970]

• Is it the joy of teaching/helping others with their physics questions?
• Is it the intellectual stimulation of specific sub-forums or topics?
• Do you view it as a form of continuing education or a hobby?
• Or is it simply the community and the friendships you've built here?

For me, mostly reading posts, threads then following up where I can on references given by the experts.

All your above points also to different degrees.

The system Greg has set up and the way it has developed with the mentors over the years is what sets it apart for me.
The site has also attracted top notch posters who have stayed around luckily.

Even music threads will get the treatment, evidence, citations, links please or claims are empty, hammering home critical thinking and evidence- based arguments.

 

[SredniVashtar]

"Use it or lose it"

 

[gleem]

I remain here because it is one of the few places where I can engage with others whose knowledge, opinions, and insights I respect.

 

[difalcojr]

Every reply above to the OP question is excellent, I think, this last one especially for me. I have only been reading posts on this website for a short time, but, in strictly scientific terms, I think physicsforums.com is a real GEMSTONE.
It is a full library of math and physical knowledge, historical and current, contained in Insights and threads in many individual forums, old and new. Math, physics, every engineering discipline, medicine.

It is a source of current industry updates and events, such as Earth and Space events, medicines, nuclear topics, computer science, etc. There are industry and operational insights in many, many threads from those who have worked and are working in specific industries. It is the greatest source of science knowledge I have found in one place online, a collection of industry experts and teachers.

For a HS or college student, it is a supplementary source of inquiry and problem-solving advice, a valuable, additional online textbook.
Also, it a show-and-tell type of website, where I see long-term members publishing all different kinds of various interesting things: their own studies, personal and other-worldly, space photos, links to current science topics, etc.
It is like a daily newspaper too for current science events. It even has a leisure section with comics, word puzzles, odds-and-ends, Dear Abby, music reviews, etc.

Lastly, it is not a place for science conjectures, speculations, hypotheses, or theories without full math or physical proof to back up any ideas discussed. If you indeed have proof, give your idea a try, put your work up for critical review. This is a good learning process in any regard for anyone, be it good or bad.

 

[Hornbein]

I remain here because it is one of the few places where I can engage with others whose knowledge, opinions, and insights I respect.

Back in the post-AOL days of Usenet about 99.9% of political posts were vulgar insults. It gave me a new perspective on the human race. Usenet still exists but you have to pay to access it. Why anyone would pay for that is beyond me.

Usenet proved that all unmoderated groups will sooner or later degenerate. The decent people get disgusted and leave while the minority of nuts and jerks and cranks persist to the death.

 

[symbolipoint]

I am still here for the possibility that I may be able to help with some, at best fairly simple, mathematical skills of which questions now seldom are posted, and the slim possibility that someone will ask about some chemistry/chemical question which might come up, also only slim possibility now; and at times to "advise" on some course choices.

addition: And to on those occasions, tell people to NOT rely on being a genius.

 

[sbrothy]

As I'm obviously out of my league, I like coming here for the rare occasions where I can dig up a relevant paper for someone much smarter than myself. When something like that happens I'm beaming for days! I like contributing with the little social skills I have, making newcomers feel welcome and trying to prevent them from making the mistakes I made (still make on occasion).

This was one of my first posts:

Graduate Post in thread 'Fractal Space-Time and Microphysics: Towards a Theory of Scale Relativity'

Apr 13, 2010

"Visualizing Critical Correlations near the Metal-Insulator Transition in Ga1-xMnxAs"
---- http://arxiv.org/abs/1002.1037

"Seeing Quantum Fractals"
---- http://arxiv.org/abs/1002.1094

• sbrothy

I didn't even understand the question! Nevertheless, I seemed to be able to find something which was of use to the OP. That got me hooked! Especially after this praise:

F

Graduate Post in thread 'Fractal Space-Time and Microphysics: Towards a Theory of Scale Relativity'

Apr 13, 2010

No problem. This one also looks enticing. I only skimmed the abstract but it sure looks like it fits in here:

"Fractional Dynamics from Einstein Gravity, General Solutions, and Black Holes"
---- http://arxiv.org/abs/1004.0628

Damn, not bad for a fifth post... I have some serious reading to do. Thank you sbrothy, and welcome to PF!

• Frame Dragger

I also hang out on IRC answering questions about C/C++ and Linux in general. Helping others feels rewarding in itself.

 

[sbrothy]

Oh, and of course because I need your help but I guess that goes without saying.

 

[Gavran]

Hello everyone,

I recently revisited Physics Forums after a long hiatus (about 4-5 years) and started catching up on the recent discussions.

What immediately struck me—and what inspired this thread—is seeing so many of the exact same user names in the "Latest Posts" section who were just as active when I was last here!

To the dedicated, long-term, and continuously active members of this community:

• What keeps you coming back and contributing regularly after all this time?
• Is it the joy of teaching/helping others with their physics questions?
• Is it the intellectual stimulation of specific sub-forums or topics?
• Do you view it as a form of continuing education or a hobby?
• Or is it simply the community and the friendships you've built here?

“Dum vivimus, discimus” or “While we live, we learn”

 

[OmCheeto]

...
addition: And to on those occasions, tell people to NOT rely on being a genius.

Where were you 40 years ago......

 

[symbolipoint]

Where were you 40 years ago......

Not telling. But without any doubt I was not a genius then and not a genius now.

 

[javisot]

"Why are you still here?"

I don't know exactly.
But I'm noticing that PF and the forums in general might soon have problems with the generational shift. A generational shift that will arrive in the age of AI. It will be difficult to find new people on the forums, and it will also be difficult to find new moderators.

Greg will be forced to decide whether to preserve the human essence of PF or give in to AI.

 

[PeroK]

Where were you 40 years ago......

Looking for a job.

 

[OmCheeto]

Looking for a job.

Ditto! And where did being told I was a genius get me?
Lugging gallon jugs of urine down endless halls of a university hospital. That's where it got me...
It took me a couple of decades to realize that being a genius was worthless, in a nepotistic, holy mother of god I've really gone off topic. As always, Ok to delete infract and ban.

Ps. After high school, surrounded by people with IQ's of 100, my best buddy said he was joining the U.S. Navy and prompted me to do the same. So I did. I took their entrance exam, and aced it. The Mensa Society said that my score indicated that I was a genius. I thought that was somewhat humorous, as I graduated 204 out of 402 from high school, indicating that I was a very average person. Upon graduating from the U.S. Navy's nuclear power school, I found myself surrounded with people with above average IQ's. It was like heaven. Since then, I've sought out environments with smarter than average people. Hence, why I'm still here.

 

[Baluncore]

We cannot take our hard-won knowledge with us when we go, so we entrust it to PF, to pass on.

We leave it here so google can index it for the few others, those who actually think and ask questions.

I hope that AI might learn something useful from this forum.

 

[DaveC426913]

One more reason:

Procrastination.

I come out to my Dave Cave on the pretense of getting some writing done (and smoking a stogie) in my few hours of Dave-time.

I manage to squander at least an hour here on PF when I should be writing.