PhD = Piled Higher and Deeper











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For most folks, PhD means "Doctor of Philosophy".
But, for Jorge Cham, it means "Piled Higher and Deeper".
Can you explain to me the title of that comic book?



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  • 2




    I've also heard a PhD referred to as permanent head damage.
    – Vincent McNabb
    Jul 9 '11 at 7:29















up vote
5
down vote

favorite
1












For most folks, PhD means "Doctor of Philosophy".
But, for Jorge Cham, it means "Piled Higher and Deeper".
Can you explain to me the title of that comic book?



enter image description here










share|improve this question




















  • 2




    I've also heard a PhD referred to as permanent head damage.
    – Vincent McNabb
    Jul 9 '11 at 7:29













up vote
5
down vote

favorite
1









up vote
5
down vote

favorite
1






1





For most folks, PhD means "Doctor of Philosophy".
But, for Jorge Cham, it means "Piled Higher and Deeper".
Can you explain to me the title of that comic book?



enter image description here










share|improve this question















For most folks, PhD means "Doctor of Philosophy".
But, for Jorge Cham, it means "Piled Higher and Deeper".
Can you explain to me the title of that comic book?



enter image description here







expressions






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Jul 9 '11 at 6:33









Thursagen

35k38144214




35k38144214










asked Jul 9 '11 at 6:17









Marco

24321124




24321124








  • 2




    I've also heard a PhD referred to as permanent head damage.
    – Vincent McNabb
    Jul 9 '11 at 7:29














  • 2




    I've also heard a PhD referred to as permanent head damage.
    – Vincent McNabb
    Jul 9 '11 at 7:29








2




2




I've also heard a PhD referred to as permanent head damage.
– Vincent McNabb
Jul 9 '11 at 7:29




I've also heard a PhD referred to as permanent head damage.
– Vincent McNabb
Jul 9 '11 at 7:29










3 Answers
3






active

oldest

votes

















up vote
12
down vote



accepted










There's an old joke based on the common sequence of Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy:




BS: Bull Shit



MS: More of Same



PHD: Piled Higher and Deeper







share|improve this answer

















  • 2




    @mgkrebss: Just to be sure to fully understand the sense of these. It is said that BS is bullshit, MS is more of bullshit, and PHD is a big pile of bullshit. Isn't it?
    – Marco
    Jul 9 '11 at 11:58










  • @Marco: Right. In much wider contexts, of course, B.S. is a common initialism for the slang term bullshit.
    – mgkrebbs
    Jul 10 '11 at 0:12




















up vote
2
down vote













"PhD" is an abbreviation. The title of the book is playing around with this abbreviation. Although normally understood as you said to stand for Phillsophiae Doctor, the letters do not actually state this.



It's for example, BMW, usually understood to mean Bavarian Motor Works
, but it doesn't actually state "Very Important Person". Anyone could come along, and then play around with the letters and make it "Big Mouth Woman", or "Bouncing With Me."



It's a kind of pun






share|improve this answer





















  • I had a friend who rode a BMW motorcycle. On a particularly cold day, I told him BMW meant 'Brass Monkey Weather'.
    – pavium
    Jul 9 '11 at 6:50










  • That explains the repurposing of the abbreviation into an initialism quite well, and that is certainly part of the joke. However, the OP may have been asking for a more complete explanation of the what Piled Higher and Deeper means. I'd suggest Jorge was suggesting that, ah, poop is piled higher and deeper. You know, "how was your day"? "Same poop, different depth".
    – Brendon
    Jul 9 '11 at 7:15










  • @Brendon: Do people really use that as a variant of "same shit, different smell"? (Or did you just make that up?)
    – bracho monacho
    Jul 9 '11 at 8:47






  • 1




    @brachomonacho, Yep. My Brother was the first person I heard that from; he did say shit not poop though (for some reason I get all polite when talking about English language and usage). He is a truck driver in his late fifties and lives in Albany, Western Australia. He teaches me all kinds of interesting phrases.
    – Brendon
    Jul 9 '11 at 9:36




















up vote
0
down vote













In order to receive a PhD, a student must write a dissertation -a lengthy research paper on a topic aligned with their field of study. The dissertation itself is intended to contribute to the general knowledge in that field, and is judged by a panel of other higher academics to determine if the candidate deserves to be awarded their doctorate.



It's a frequent joke among some academics, however, that one can attain their PhD by simply pandering to the review board - i.e., by filling the paper with "bullshit" that has no real scholarly value but that indirectly flatters and influences the reviewers, frequently by focusing on the reviewer's papers. Since the dissertation must be quite lengthy, the bullshit thus has to be "piled higher and deeper".





share








New contributor




Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.


















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    3 Answers
    3






    active

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    3 Answers
    3






    active

    oldest

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    active

    oldest

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    active

    oldest

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    up vote
    12
    down vote



    accepted










    There's an old joke based on the common sequence of Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy:




    BS: Bull Shit



    MS: More of Same



    PHD: Piled Higher and Deeper







    share|improve this answer

















    • 2




      @mgkrebss: Just to be sure to fully understand the sense of these. It is said that BS is bullshit, MS is more of bullshit, and PHD is a big pile of bullshit. Isn't it?
      – Marco
      Jul 9 '11 at 11:58










    • @Marco: Right. In much wider contexts, of course, B.S. is a common initialism for the slang term bullshit.
      – mgkrebbs
      Jul 10 '11 at 0:12

















    up vote
    12
    down vote



    accepted










    There's an old joke based on the common sequence of Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy:




    BS: Bull Shit



    MS: More of Same



    PHD: Piled Higher and Deeper







    share|improve this answer

















    • 2




      @mgkrebss: Just to be sure to fully understand the sense of these. It is said that BS is bullshit, MS is more of bullshit, and PHD is a big pile of bullshit. Isn't it?
      – Marco
      Jul 9 '11 at 11:58










    • @Marco: Right. In much wider contexts, of course, B.S. is a common initialism for the slang term bullshit.
      – mgkrebbs
      Jul 10 '11 at 0:12















    up vote
    12
    down vote



    accepted







    up vote
    12
    down vote



    accepted






    There's an old joke based on the common sequence of Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy:




    BS: Bull Shit



    MS: More of Same



    PHD: Piled Higher and Deeper







    share|improve this answer












    There's an old joke based on the common sequence of Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy:




    BS: Bull Shit



    MS: More of Same



    PHD: Piled Higher and Deeper








    share|improve this answer












    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer










    answered Jul 9 '11 at 7:36









    mgkrebbs

    6,25712340




    6,25712340








    • 2




      @mgkrebss: Just to be sure to fully understand the sense of these. It is said that BS is bullshit, MS is more of bullshit, and PHD is a big pile of bullshit. Isn't it?
      – Marco
      Jul 9 '11 at 11:58










    • @Marco: Right. In much wider contexts, of course, B.S. is a common initialism for the slang term bullshit.
      – mgkrebbs
      Jul 10 '11 at 0:12
















    • 2




      @mgkrebss: Just to be sure to fully understand the sense of these. It is said that BS is bullshit, MS is more of bullshit, and PHD is a big pile of bullshit. Isn't it?
      – Marco
      Jul 9 '11 at 11:58










    • @Marco: Right. In much wider contexts, of course, B.S. is a common initialism for the slang term bullshit.
      – mgkrebbs
      Jul 10 '11 at 0:12










    2




    2




    @mgkrebss: Just to be sure to fully understand the sense of these. It is said that BS is bullshit, MS is more of bullshit, and PHD is a big pile of bullshit. Isn't it?
    – Marco
    Jul 9 '11 at 11:58




    @mgkrebss: Just to be sure to fully understand the sense of these. It is said that BS is bullshit, MS is more of bullshit, and PHD is a big pile of bullshit. Isn't it?
    – Marco
    Jul 9 '11 at 11:58












    @Marco: Right. In much wider contexts, of course, B.S. is a common initialism for the slang term bullshit.
    – mgkrebbs
    Jul 10 '11 at 0:12






    @Marco: Right. In much wider contexts, of course, B.S. is a common initialism for the slang term bullshit.
    – mgkrebbs
    Jul 10 '11 at 0:12














    up vote
    2
    down vote













    "PhD" is an abbreviation. The title of the book is playing around with this abbreviation. Although normally understood as you said to stand for Phillsophiae Doctor, the letters do not actually state this.



    It's for example, BMW, usually understood to mean Bavarian Motor Works
    , but it doesn't actually state "Very Important Person". Anyone could come along, and then play around with the letters and make it "Big Mouth Woman", or "Bouncing With Me."



    It's a kind of pun






    share|improve this answer





















    • I had a friend who rode a BMW motorcycle. On a particularly cold day, I told him BMW meant 'Brass Monkey Weather'.
      – pavium
      Jul 9 '11 at 6:50










    • That explains the repurposing of the abbreviation into an initialism quite well, and that is certainly part of the joke. However, the OP may have been asking for a more complete explanation of the what Piled Higher and Deeper means. I'd suggest Jorge was suggesting that, ah, poop is piled higher and deeper. You know, "how was your day"? "Same poop, different depth".
      – Brendon
      Jul 9 '11 at 7:15










    • @Brendon: Do people really use that as a variant of "same shit, different smell"? (Or did you just make that up?)
      – bracho monacho
      Jul 9 '11 at 8:47






    • 1




      @brachomonacho, Yep. My Brother was the first person I heard that from; he did say shit not poop though (for some reason I get all polite when talking about English language and usage). He is a truck driver in his late fifties and lives in Albany, Western Australia. He teaches me all kinds of interesting phrases.
      – Brendon
      Jul 9 '11 at 9:36

















    up vote
    2
    down vote













    "PhD" is an abbreviation. The title of the book is playing around with this abbreviation. Although normally understood as you said to stand for Phillsophiae Doctor, the letters do not actually state this.



    It's for example, BMW, usually understood to mean Bavarian Motor Works
    , but it doesn't actually state "Very Important Person". Anyone could come along, and then play around with the letters and make it "Big Mouth Woman", or "Bouncing With Me."



    It's a kind of pun






    share|improve this answer





















    • I had a friend who rode a BMW motorcycle. On a particularly cold day, I told him BMW meant 'Brass Monkey Weather'.
      – pavium
      Jul 9 '11 at 6:50










    • That explains the repurposing of the abbreviation into an initialism quite well, and that is certainly part of the joke. However, the OP may have been asking for a more complete explanation of the what Piled Higher and Deeper means. I'd suggest Jorge was suggesting that, ah, poop is piled higher and deeper. You know, "how was your day"? "Same poop, different depth".
      – Brendon
      Jul 9 '11 at 7:15










    • @Brendon: Do people really use that as a variant of "same shit, different smell"? (Or did you just make that up?)
      – bracho monacho
      Jul 9 '11 at 8:47






    • 1




      @brachomonacho, Yep. My Brother was the first person I heard that from; he did say shit not poop though (for some reason I get all polite when talking about English language and usage). He is a truck driver in his late fifties and lives in Albany, Western Australia. He teaches me all kinds of interesting phrases.
      – Brendon
      Jul 9 '11 at 9:36















    up vote
    2
    down vote










    up vote
    2
    down vote









    "PhD" is an abbreviation. The title of the book is playing around with this abbreviation. Although normally understood as you said to stand for Phillsophiae Doctor, the letters do not actually state this.



    It's for example, BMW, usually understood to mean Bavarian Motor Works
    , but it doesn't actually state "Very Important Person". Anyone could come along, and then play around with the letters and make it "Big Mouth Woman", or "Bouncing With Me."



    It's a kind of pun






    share|improve this answer












    "PhD" is an abbreviation. The title of the book is playing around with this abbreviation. Although normally understood as you said to stand for Phillsophiae Doctor, the letters do not actually state this.



    It's for example, BMW, usually understood to mean Bavarian Motor Works
    , but it doesn't actually state "Very Important Person". Anyone could come along, and then play around with the letters and make it "Big Mouth Woman", or "Bouncing With Me."



    It's a kind of pun







    share|improve this answer












    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer










    answered Jul 9 '11 at 6:33









    Thursagen

    35k38144214




    35k38144214












    • I had a friend who rode a BMW motorcycle. On a particularly cold day, I told him BMW meant 'Brass Monkey Weather'.
      – pavium
      Jul 9 '11 at 6:50










    • That explains the repurposing of the abbreviation into an initialism quite well, and that is certainly part of the joke. However, the OP may have been asking for a more complete explanation of the what Piled Higher and Deeper means. I'd suggest Jorge was suggesting that, ah, poop is piled higher and deeper. You know, "how was your day"? "Same poop, different depth".
      – Brendon
      Jul 9 '11 at 7:15










    • @Brendon: Do people really use that as a variant of "same shit, different smell"? (Or did you just make that up?)
      – bracho monacho
      Jul 9 '11 at 8:47






    • 1




      @brachomonacho, Yep. My Brother was the first person I heard that from; he did say shit not poop though (for some reason I get all polite when talking about English language and usage). He is a truck driver in his late fifties and lives in Albany, Western Australia. He teaches me all kinds of interesting phrases.
      – Brendon
      Jul 9 '11 at 9:36




















    • I had a friend who rode a BMW motorcycle. On a particularly cold day, I told him BMW meant 'Brass Monkey Weather'.
      – pavium
      Jul 9 '11 at 6:50










    • That explains the repurposing of the abbreviation into an initialism quite well, and that is certainly part of the joke. However, the OP may have been asking for a more complete explanation of the what Piled Higher and Deeper means. I'd suggest Jorge was suggesting that, ah, poop is piled higher and deeper. You know, "how was your day"? "Same poop, different depth".
      – Brendon
      Jul 9 '11 at 7:15










    • @Brendon: Do people really use that as a variant of "same shit, different smell"? (Or did you just make that up?)
      – bracho monacho
      Jul 9 '11 at 8:47






    • 1




      @brachomonacho, Yep. My Brother was the first person I heard that from; he did say shit not poop though (for some reason I get all polite when talking about English language and usage). He is a truck driver in his late fifties and lives in Albany, Western Australia. He teaches me all kinds of interesting phrases.
      – Brendon
      Jul 9 '11 at 9:36


















    I had a friend who rode a BMW motorcycle. On a particularly cold day, I told him BMW meant 'Brass Monkey Weather'.
    – pavium
    Jul 9 '11 at 6:50




    I had a friend who rode a BMW motorcycle. On a particularly cold day, I told him BMW meant 'Brass Monkey Weather'.
    – pavium
    Jul 9 '11 at 6:50












    That explains the repurposing of the abbreviation into an initialism quite well, and that is certainly part of the joke. However, the OP may have been asking for a more complete explanation of the what Piled Higher and Deeper means. I'd suggest Jorge was suggesting that, ah, poop is piled higher and deeper. You know, "how was your day"? "Same poop, different depth".
    – Brendon
    Jul 9 '11 at 7:15




    That explains the repurposing of the abbreviation into an initialism quite well, and that is certainly part of the joke. However, the OP may have been asking for a more complete explanation of the what Piled Higher and Deeper means. I'd suggest Jorge was suggesting that, ah, poop is piled higher and deeper. You know, "how was your day"? "Same poop, different depth".
    – Brendon
    Jul 9 '11 at 7:15












    @Brendon: Do people really use that as a variant of "same shit, different smell"? (Or did you just make that up?)
    – bracho monacho
    Jul 9 '11 at 8:47




    @Brendon: Do people really use that as a variant of "same shit, different smell"? (Or did you just make that up?)
    – bracho monacho
    Jul 9 '11 at 8:47




    1




    1




    @brachomonacho, Yep. My Brother was the first person I heard that from; he did say shit not poop though (for some reason I get all polite when talking about English language and usage). He is a truck driver in his late fifties and lives in Albany, Western Australia. He teaches me all kinds of interesting phrases.
    – Brendon
    Jul 9 '11 at 9:36






    @brachomonacho, Yep. My Brother was the first person I heard that from; he did say shit not poop though (for some reason I get all polite when talking about English language and usage). He is a truck driver in his late fifties and lives in Albany, Western Australia. He teaches me all kinds of interesting phrases.
    – Brendon
    Jul 9 '11 at 9:36












    up vote
    0
    down vote













    In order to receive a PhD, a student must write a dissertation -a lengthy research paper on a topic aligned with their field of study. The dissertation itself is intended to contribute to the general knowledge in that field, and is judged by a panel of other higher academics to determine if the candidate deserves to be awarded their doctorate.



    It's a frequent joke among some academics, however, that one can attain their PhD by simply pandering to the review board - i.e., by filling the paper with "bullshit" that has no real scholarly value but that indirectly flatters and influences the reviewers, frequently by focusing on the reviewer's papers. Since the dissertation must be quite lengthy, the bullshit thus has to be "piled higher and deeper".





    share








    New contributor




    Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.






















      up vote
      0
      down vote













      In order to receive a PhD, a student must write a dissertation -a lengthy research paper on a topic aligned with their field of study. The dissertation itself is intended to contribute to the general knowledge in that field, and is judged by a panel of other higher academics to determine if the candidate deserves to be awarded their doctorate.



      It's a frequent joke among some academics, however, that one can attain their PhD by simply pandering to the review board - i.e., by filling the paper with "bullshit" that has no real scholarly value but that indirectly flatters and influences the reviewers, frequently by focusing on the reviewer's papers. Since the dissertation must be quite lengthy, the bullshit thus has to be "piled higher and deeper".





      share








      New contributor




      Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.




















        up vote
        0
        down vote










        up vote
        0
        down vote









        In order to receive a PhD, a student must write a dissertation -a lengthy research paper on a topic aligned with their field of study. The dissertation itself is intended to contribute to the general knowledge in that field, and is judged by a panel of other higher academics to determine if the candidate deserves to be awarded their doctorate.



        It's a frequent joke among some academics, however, that one can attain their PhD by simply pandering to the review board - i.e., by filling the paper with "bullshit" that has no real scholarly value but that indirectly flatters and influences the reviewers, frequently by focusing on the reviewer's papers. Since the dissertation must be quite lengthy, the bullshit thus has to be "piled higher and deeper".





        share








        New contributor




        Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        In order to receive a PhD, a student must write a dissertation -a lengthy research paper on a topic aligned with their field of study. The dissertation itself is intended to contribute to the general knowledge in that field, and is judged by a panel of other higher academics to determine if the candidate deserves to be awarded their doctorate.



        It's a frequent joke among some academics, however, that one can attain their PhD by simply pandering to the review board - i.e., by filling the paper with "bullshit" that has no real scholarly value but that indirectly flatters and influences the reviewers, frequently by focusing on the reviewer's papers. Since the dissertation must be quite lengthy, the bullshit thus has to be "piled higher and deeper".






        share








        New contributor




        Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.








        share


        share






        New contributor




        Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        answered 6 mins ago









        Josh DeLapp

        1




        1




        New contributor




        Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.





        New contributor





        Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.






        Josh DeLapp is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.






























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