Pictured: Laocoon, who had some serious problems with his methodology.
I’ll bet you didn’t know that, in order to earn a Ph.D. from a major American university, you must first defeat a snake in combat. Don’t feel too bad. They almost never mention this until you’ve already begun your graduate studies. Luckily, Luke Burns has a handy FAQ over at McSweeny’s that will make sure you pass both your oral thesis defense and your mandatory snake fight with flying colors.
Q: Do I have to kill the snake?
A: University guidelines state that you have to “defeat” the snake. There are many ways to accomplish this. Lots of students choose to wrestle the snake. Some construct decoys and elaborate traps to confuse and then ensnare the snake. One student brought a flute and played a song to lull the snake to sleep. Then he threw the snake out a window.Q: Does everyone fight the same snake?
A: No. You will fight one of the many snakes that are kept on campus by the facilities department.Q: Are the snakes big?
A: We have lots of different snakes. The quality of your work determines which snake you will fight. The better your thesis is, the smaller the snake will be.
For god’s sake, read the full FAQ. You do not want to arrive at your snake fight unprepared.
Via Andrew Thaler
Image: Groupe de Laocoon, a Creative Commons Attribution (2.0) image from hailemichaelfiseha’s photostream