5 September 2014

Journal poems

Whilst browsing the contents of a recent issue of the Journal of Natural Resources Policy Research (funtimes!) I came across an article entitled "Poem: On Sustainability". Assuming it wouldn't be an actual poem, I clicked on it. Turns out the Journal of Natural Resources Policy Research publishes poems. Or at least this one:
Sustainability, an age-old concept,
A complex, daunting puzzle;
Many questions beg for answers -
Sustainable for whom? For how long?
At what rate?
Static or dynamic?
Economy, environment, population,
Taste and preferences, the resource base -
All undergo change;
Science, innovation, new thinking
Sprout, spread, proliferate, march on;
As the poet put it, 'Old order changeth
Yielding place to new' -
Change is the only constant!
Take GNP for instance -
At some point, secular stagnation sets in.
Sustainability, like derived demand, is
A function of exogenous factors,
Not a stand-alone;
Ceteris Paribus, but other things
Seldom remain the same!
Sustainability, in reality
Is tantalizing, though elusive -
A noble goal, nonetheless,
Always worth pursuing!
Chennat Gopalakrishnan 
There was some disagreement on Twitter over whether this could actually be considered a poem or not. But people also argue about whether a cow in formaldehyde or a messy bed is really "art". So...

Anyway, this conversation brought to light a few other examples, so should anyone wish to delve into the strange world of journal poetry, here are some links. Knock yourself out.

Comparative mobility of halogens in reactions of dihalobenzenes with potassium amide in ammonia by Joseph F. Bunnett and Francis J. Kearley Jr.

The detection of shocked CO emission from G333.6-0.2 by J.W.V. Storey

CT Scan by Elaine Greensmith Jordan (and other gems from CHEST Journal's Pectoriloquy section)

The Public Health Call by Gabriel Scally (written as a folk song, but works as a poem)

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