Colour

For a moment, K suspects the document is not written in English. But, in no time he knows he is wrong. He recognizes each and every word, but, all the same, he does not know what it means.

"You've got to submit the report next Monday." L says, in a matter-of-fact tone.

"My god, how could I? Em... who could be sure what to work on or what would happen 5 years down the road? The world of research is changing so quickly!" K replies.

"Well, maybe this one could help you." The chairman smiles a little. He peeps into his drawer again and takes out another folder. "Submit it by next Monday also." He adds.

K looks at the cover. On it are the words Review of Research Performance.

He sighs and turns to the first page. It begins like this: List of publications for the last 10 years, in chronological order, with citation number and impact factor. Please highlight in red the names of staff members from your own division, in orange for members from the same department, and in yellow for those from the same faculty. If the first or corresponding author of the paper from your division is a contract staff, please highlight that paper in red. If the publication is supported by a public grant, please highlight in green. For projects supported by personal grants and donations, highlight in blue and purple respectively.

The young lecturer believes the final report would be a lovely rainbow.