Statement of Research  Philosophy 


	Research is to a professor what homework is to a student: it 
allows both of them to grow intellectually. One learns new things, new 
and more efficient ways to do old things. And one interacts with others 
that are undergoing through similar circumstances. It is also a teaching 
tool, a source of money for the institution and a link with the real world.

	It is a professional growth tool, because one is forced to read 
and reread, to keep abreast. It provides the necessary incentive to do so. 
One can see how instructors that do not engage in research become "dead 
wood" in just a few years. It is the best antidote for such a "slow" 
intellectual death.

	It allows one to see the playing field, to direct the research  
of graduate students to areas where they can develop successful doctoral
topics. It allows graduate students to advance, as research assistants, 
in their last stages of their doctoral work, when only reading courses, 
on state-of-the-art topics, will do the job.

	Education is an expensive endeavor. And research brings in moneys 
to acquire equipment and pay for salaries and student support that could 
not be obtained via tuition or endowment only. It also provides a link
with reality -sometimes academe, isolated in its ivory tower, forgets that 
there is a real world out there where many practical problems still remain 
unresolved. And through this link it provides jobs, internships and other 
practical opportunities for our graduates.

	Finally, research is a source of personal and professional pride 
and fulfillment. It is the singular attribute of the true academician; 
this desire to inquire always a little more, just for the satisfaction 
of knowing what is on the other side...