Myths die hard-Why?
The author defines a myth as a falsehood perpetuated by a population that chooses not to investigate the underlying truth. He points out that the myth that aerospace engineers are nonproductive in nondefense work hurts the profession. He examines the mechanism used in promoting myths and finds that some myth perpetuators, including the ones that perpetuated the aerospace-engineer myth, are well-compensated for their services. Substantial financial rewards are also seen to be available to those who can correctly recognize the falsehood in myths.<<ETX>>