Anyone want to be a University Eccentric??

I Just found a rather tongue-in-cheek item on the back of a recent copy of Times Higher Education, it creased me up! It's regarding the deficiency of 'crazy professor' types in universities nowadays. Entitled 'We are all crazy now', here are some quotes lifted from the item:

'" Very shortly", he told our reporter, Keith Ponting (30), "we will be advertising a new post of University Eccentric". This will be open to all those with a proven record of intelligent craziness'.

' Targett further confirmed that the successful candidate would be housed in a purpose-built sealed office fitted with an observation gallery "so as to allow other academics to witness their eccentric behaviour".'

'"it was not operationally feasible "to have eccentrics running wild on campus" where they could readily jeopardise the university's hard-earned reputation as a "community of dullards".'

Now....anyone who has worked with and around academics for even as long as I have has met a couple of characters who would fit that bill to a 'T'. This article conjours up the best mental images in the world, of kindly, but socially vacant old men with crazy white hair puttering around in their perspex office....oblivious to world outside.


And you know what?...they'd be quite happy..

http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=405868