California Institute of Technology, located in Pasadena, the northern suburb of Los Angeles, USA, is a small private research university, mainly focusing on science and engineering. So far, 365,438+0 alumni and in-service professors of California Institute of Technology have won 32 Nobel Prizes.
In 1930s, Qian Xuesen came to California Institute of Technology to study. He not only felt that his brain suddenly opened wide, but also was deeply infected by the innovative style of study overflowing on campus. Surprisingly, after more than half a century, when students who graduated from domestic universities went to California Institute of Technology for further study, their feelings and ideas about this "pocket" college were surprisingly consistent with those of Qian Lao.
After years of reform and personnel turnover, California Institute of Technology has always been able to maintain a free academic atmosphere on campus that can stimulate students' innovation like a "sealed jar". Maybe that's her real charm.
1994 I have the honor to study for a doctorate in the Department of Electronic Engineering of California Institute of Technology, and I am proud to be a member of this unique family of California Institute of Technology. The campus of Caltech is quiet and beautiful, but what impresses me more is the strong and free academic atmosphere on campus.
The characteristic of California Institute of Technology is that there are few but excellent professors in our department of electronics and similar computer departments. The scientific setting does not cover every related field, but everyone is a top scholar in their respective fields, although it is difficult to see from their approachable appearance.
Dr. Bob McEliece, our dean at that time, was an authority in the field of error correction coding. The theorem named after him appears in any textbook of error correction coding. It is a pleasure to listen to him teach the course of error correction coding, not only because the profound coding theory is easily analyzed by him, but also because of the classroom atmosphere of free discussion, which is obviously different from the educational model of our university at that time.
In the year when I attended his class, he arranged an unsolved classic math problem in his homework as usual. As a result, a few days later, he told us excitedly in class that the problem was solved by a math student in his class, although he didn't fully understand the result himself. Then Dr. McEliece immediately invited the classmate to the podium to explain, and he listened and asked questions like us until he fully understood. What impressed me even more was that the students of this math department didn't do very well after class, and so did other senior students. Just ask, although this kind of thing doesn't happen in every class, neither does Caltech.
In class, we not only learned the known knowledge, but also learned the unknown truth. In academic research, Caltech pays attention to exploring basic scientific truth, focusing on topics that will have a long-term far-reaching and fundamental impact, rather than pursuing the number of articles published at one time. The whole college focuses its academic attention on ten years later, twenty years later, or even longer. The doctoral degree of California Institute of Technology requires a minimum number of papers that have never been published, and there is no minimum number of papers published by professors for promotion evaluation. Because the college pursues achievements that have a long-term and profound impact on the discipline, it cultivates talents with independent thinking, constant exploration of scientific truth, courage to innovate and create, and systematic and comprehensive ability.
During my five years in California Institute of Technology, I met more and more practical and persistent scholars. From students to professors, they all love their own research and academics, and sincerely hope to gain and improve their understanding of nature and create and enrich human knowledge wealth. Their achievements are the result of hard work, not a temporary opportunism. Every laboratory in the college is still busy after midnight, including not only doctoral students and other researchers, but also professors with tenure. Libraries in colleges and departments are open all day and nobody is on duty after midnight. People can register to borrow books themselves and return them voluntarily after use.
Another feature of California Institute of Technology is universal interdisciplinary communication and cooperation, which is of course inseparable from the "smallness" of the college, but more related to the eager desire of scholars to pursue knowledge. When students from different majors and departments chat together, they often introduce and discuss the problems and achievements they are studying. As far as my research group is concerned, every doctoral student not only discusses research topics with his tutor individually every week, but also holds group meetings. At the meeting, everyone reported their newly discovered achievements and problems this week, and others, including the tutor, enthusiastically asked questions and criticized them. At this time, students and professors from other groups often participate. As a result of this discussion, some difficult problems were solved on the spot.
Everyone is equal in academic discussion, and a famous professor will never use his fame and position to oppress others. When doctoral students give academic lectures, professors listen carefully, take notes and ask questions actively. The problem often begins like this: I don't know much about this problem, and you must know more than me. Can you explain it again? If you are there, you can feel that this is not a false ceremony, but a sincere desire for knowledge. Most tutors and students have such a cooperative relationship, not a superior-subordinate relationship. Only this kind of sincere cooperation can give full play to1+1> The role of 2.
In fact, including Caltech, half of the good students in the top universities of science and engineering in the United States are China students. But what China urgently needs now is his own "California Institute of Technology". I believe that when universities in China establish a perfect system, ensure an active and free academic atmosphere, ensure that professors can really teach scientific research instead of being busy with unrelated business such as administration and commerce, and ensure that students can really learn and innovate, China will definitely become a powerful country in science and technology and a real world power.