What's the difference between laziness and maximizing efficiency?

You’re lazy, and you’re not completing the task.

You don’t know what important information—perhaps vital information—that puts the discussions or data into context you’re missing. If you were efficient, you would just read faster.

If you know how to do it so that you get all the vital info, I’d say the shortcut is efficient. Why waste time reading a bunch of non-essential text when you can scan it, and pay attention the the important stuff?

I am, of course, referring only to scientific articles. In the case of a novel, for example, scanning/sparknotes = lazy.

I agree mostly with pete. But I think what’s also important is why you are reading the article. Is it just so you can discuss it in class or have a general idea of what’s going on? Or is it because you plan on doing a similar experiment? In the case of the former, of course, it’s a better option to just mmm look @ the important stuff. For the latter, better to read it all. Either way though, I don’t think it’s being lazy. Lazy would be not reading it at all, just getting drunk and showing up the next day trying to cheat off of someone else.

Also, how can you not find dynamin interesting. I mean, come on, dynamin and clathrin form such an awesome tag team when it comes to cell phys, AMIRITE!!

edit – @ pete – love the new avatar!

I’d say the difference is in the final product or result. If you take shortcuts and the final result is the same (or the goal met) then you’ve been efficient. If the final result (product, goal, etc) suffers because of your shortcuts, you’ve been lazy.

It gets fuzzy when you start changing the goal in order to be lazy.

I disagree asmonet. I’ve read thousands of scientific papers, and these days, I interpret the figures, skim the results and read the discussion all in the interest of time. Reading the whole paper faster wouldn’t be better. I’ve come to realize that the abstract and intro are of little use, and have read enough papers to be able to interpret figures without the need to have someone else tell me their interpretation (the results). So, I agree with nikipedia, that over time, you can become more efficient and lazy at the same time.

Well, yeah maybe if you’re very familiar with that type of material. I dunno it depends on what it is and who you are. Reading a long ‘boring’ article ain’t no thang to me, I read exceedingly fast. I generally just read whatever I’m told to in class because it doesn’t take that much time. And in the long run I feel like I’ve done a better job.

Dunno, it wouldn’t sit well with me if I did it. I know I’d eventually run back and read the whole thing over again, using up more time than before. But again, that’s me.

While efficiency cuts down amount of time and effort spent
without cutting down the quality of work;
laziness just cuts down amount of time and effort spent,
without much regard about quality of work.

I have happened to see a nikipedia before, in the wild. I can say that they are creatures of extreme laz.

This has nothing to do with efficiency. Instead it has to do with getting from point A to B as fast as possible with a minimal amount of effort to minimise the time spent in less desirable activities.

The main goal is to leave as much room for more desirable activities (drinking, greys anatomy, hanging out with the coolest guy in the universe). You get the idea.

@mjoyce – You wouldn’t happen to be “the coolest guy in the universe”, would you?

I am with Nimis and the others that echoed the same sentiment.

I’d like to bring in a different example: someone making dinner for their family. Perhaps this person chooses to use a quick and easy recipe rather than a long, complex one. Is this person lazy or merely efficient?

I argue that if everyone is getting their nutrients and enjoying their food, then that person is efficient.

mm grey’s anatomy :)

@shadling21 that is for a nikipedia to decide!

You do what you need to do. You do what you want to do. After a while, all this jumping through hoops is seen as fairly gratuitous.

At a certain point in life, I realized that other people were making me run around for little purpose. Now I see my kids doing the same thing, and it burns me up. I mean, memorizing dates in history? How to kill a kid’s interest, if you ask me.

ANyway, at my age, you only do something if you enjoy it. Obviously that’s not the case all the time, but I do have it as a goal to enjoy what I am doing, and to do things I can enjoy. This works well, except when I’m depressed.

So, as to the article. If you enjoy it and you like the process of reading it, then by all means, read it. And if it doesn’t float your boat, skim it, and do what you need to get the grade or pass the exam or get published, or whatever the hell it is you want. Capisce?