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10,470 | <p>I've just written my first mathematical research paper. It proves some new results, which while not ground-breaking are (according to an expert in the field) at least somewhat interesting and surprising. At the moment however, I spend more of the paper developing the background material (giving standard definitions and constructions, proving standard lemmas) than proving the main theorems. </p>
<p>Is this a problem? The way I see it, there are several arguments for and against:</p>
<p><strong>For:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li><p>The background material is "standard" in the sense that anyone who works on this class of problems would know the definitions or results in some form. However, this is at most a few hundred people, while if I include the background material my paper should be comprehensible to an advanced undergraduate.</p></li>
<li><p>Some of the background results are part of the folklore of the field, and I've never been able to find a proof of them in literature. While they are believable and not hard to prove, I feel someone should bother doing it. More selfishly, this is one more reason for people to cite my paper.</p></li>
<li><p>I don't know of any one reference which states <em>all</em> the background material I need, so if I don't include it my readers have to chase down multiple sources and I have to use conflicting notations.</p></li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Against:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li><p>It may be annoying to an expert in the field, although they could skip much of it and mainly refer to the background section for notation.</p></li>
<li><p>It makes the paper longer, although even with the background the paper is not long (13 pages).</p></li>
<li><p>From what I've heard, it is generally considered bad practice to restate definitions and constructions states elsewhere and to reprove theorems available in literature. In part this is because it gives the impression that I haven't read the literature. This is exacerbated by the fact that I only cite ~5 previous works, mostly for further reading or alternative presentations of some of the background.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>I'd like advice on this from someone with experience writing such papers.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10471,
"author": "Suresh",
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"text": "<p>It's not entirely clear whether the background material is just background, or is needed as scaffolding for the results you prove. Also, if certain lemmas are \"standard\" why are you proving them ? surely there's some text or other paper that proves these lemmas, and which you can cite ? </p>\n\n<p>In general, in a paper you provide the scaffolding needed to prove your results. It's not necessary to provide other atmospherics unless its part of a larger discussion of related work. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10472,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As you rightly perceive, there are conflicting desiderata for \"formal papers\". The main tradition for refereed-journal publications is to assume one is writing for the experts, not for anyone who'd need much background or context. Yes, this makes reading such papers needlessly difficult for non-experts. Yes, the necessary background is likely scattered among several prior papers, and some occurs \"nowhere\", in the sense of being apocryphal... lost in the mists of time? :)\nNevertheless, the highest-status refereed journals would probably want more-discursive broader explanations edited out... and the referees and editors might interpret your inclusion of such things as \"amateurish\" (\"It's just not done...\"), to your detriment.</p>\n\n<p>But the expectations or standards of refereed-journals is certainly not the only criterion, and is manifestly antithetical to the obviously desirable outcome of wider dissemination of ideas, collection and organization of otherwise-chaotic literature, and so on. Some people will tell you that somehow it's not ok to \"mix\" \"research\" and \"exposition\"... but this is silly, even if traditional. But, then, given the traditional predilection of refereed-journals, if you want a more discursive version of your write-up, you may have to reconcile yourself to having two versions, one for referees, one for exposition/wider-dissemination.</p>\n\n<p>The for-referees version should probably <em>not</em> cite the discursive version, but, instead, do the quasi-unhelpful bit of citing the disparate standard sources. The discursive version could cite the for-referees version, as well as the standard sources, and still include your own updated presentation, bringing apocrypha to the light of day, and so on.</p>\n\n<p>But, I fear no single refereed-journal-publishable version could meet the nicer-exposition requirements you (completely reasonably) would like to impose.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10473,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If there are proofs in the literature for some of your background materials, it is better you do not prove them in your paper unless your proofs are much simpler or they use a method which will be used again in your other proofs (I have seen both instances in papers written by well known mathematicians). However if you cannot find a proof for some of the easy (or well known) results in the literature, it is a great help for your readers to add your proofs. About introducing your notation and/or definitions, you can be even more generous to your readers. Although there is a downside for including lots of backgrounds, not including some of them can delay the referee process of your paper. Do not hesitate to cite more references if they help to find some of the background materials. And finally, I suggest you devote some paragraphs to explain the motivation of your work. </p>\n\n<p>Good luck with your paper!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10475,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I'd recommend putting in as much explanation, context, and background as you reasonably can. In principle you could certainly put in too much, but in practice I don't think I've ever seen a mathematics paper I thought actually did have too much. If you structure your writing so experts can easily skim things they already know, then I don't see why extra explanation should trouble anyone. Tradition requires being concise, but that tradition was based on the economics of publishing. Space in printed journals used to be a scarce resource, and if you spent it on unnecessary exposition you were keeping someone else from publishing at all. Publishing still isn't free (and readers have only so much patience, as well), so you shouldn't include enormous amounts of unnecessary background, but traditional writing styles should be adjusted to account for the greater availability of space.</p>\n\n<p>It's possible that a referee or editor will object that they don't like your style. You may be able to resist making any changes (it depends on how exciting your paper is and how high your own status is within the community), and if you do make changes you can still keep a lot of explanation.</p>\n\n<p>If necessary, it's worth having two versions as Paul Garrett suggests. If you do, then you should make it very clear which is which and what the differences are, to avoid serious confusion if someone refers to the paper without realizing they need to specify which version.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>The background material is \"standard\" in the sense that anyone who works on this class of problems would know the definitions or results in some form. However, this is at most a few hundred people, while if I include the background material my paper should be comprehensible to an advanced undergraduate.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>One reason to be generous with explanation is that it's easy to overestimate how much people know. Aiming at advanced undergrads is a good way to make sure grad students really can read the paper. If you aim at experts, you may write a paper only your own collaborators can comfortably read.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Some of the background results are part of the folklore of the field, and I've never been able to find a proof of them in literature. While they are believable and not hard to prove, I feel someone should bother doing it.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This is a great reason to include a proof, although it's important to consult with experts to confirm that there really isn't an accessible proof in the literature.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>It makes the paper longer, although even with the background the paper is not long (13 pages).</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>You should make sure it doesn't look like padding, say with just a few pages of original content among the 13 pages.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>From what I've heard, it is generally considered bad practice to restate definitions and constructions states elsewhere and to reprove theorems available in literature. In part this is because it gives the impression that I haven't read the literature. This is exacerbated by the fact that I only cite ~5 previous works, mostly for further reading or alternative presentations of some of the background.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This does seem like a worry, and five references is not very many, even for a 13-page paper. You might not strictly need any more, but I'd recommend tracking down additional references for background. As a general rule it's best to cite generously, giving plenty of credit to other authors and offering many resources to readers.</p>\n\n<p>Regarding giving the impression that you haven't read the literature, it's important to be clear about what's background from the literature (with a citation), what's folklore, and what's your own contribution. If you reprove something you say is known but don't give a citation for, it can look like you were too lazy to track it down.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10535,
"author": "David Harris",
"author_id": 7558,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7558",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One factor to add is that in many mathematics papers, there are many different definitions and notations for a subject. Some of these approaches may make your results seem more or less natural. Even someone who is familiar with the subject may become confused by the way in which you present things.</p>\n\n<p>One good reason for a background section is so that you can \"set the scene\" using the presentation that you think is best. Sometimes just setting things up in a coherent way is more valuable than the new results themselves.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 44557,
"author": "Blaisorblade",
"author_id": 8966,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8966",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Warning: I have experience with \"mathematical\" papers in the Computer Science community. In our field, papers are supposed to be (to some extent) self-contained; moreover, it's more the writer's responsibility to make stuff clear, than the reader's responsibility to study the stuff (this generally helps to get more readers and make your research have impact; also, readers don't have time to read all papers they'd want to, so be gentle to them).</p>\n\n<p>I'd optimize background for skippability. In fact, optimize all sections for that, but especially such background.</p>\n\n<p>For concreteness, I'll give an instance of what is reasonable/can be recommended in our field.</p>\n\n<pre><code>\\section{Background}\nIn this section, to make this paper self-contained and to fix notation,\nwe summarize\nthe theory of representable functors % don't be as vague as\n% \"background on X\"\nwhich we'll use later in the rest of the paper/in Sec. YYY. % Help readers figure out\n% whether they actually need this background,\n% if it's only needed for part of the paper.\n\n\\subsection{Standard definitions}\nIn this subsection, we summarize background which is available in the\nliterature, though spread across different references~\\citep{1, 2, 3}.\n% Don't order the material necessarily by reference, but by how they\n% are best presented.\n\n% ...\n\n\\subsection{Folklore theorems}\nIn this subsection, we present some basic results. Although they appear to be\nfolklore/almost obvious/believable % what you prefer\nfor experts, we found no proof in the literature, so\nwe include the proofs for completeness.\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>You can include something that is part of the literature; to show you know the literature, you just need to also add a citation — doing otherwise can be bad practice (if it's very clear the result is not yours), and might be taken for unethical by somebody who misunderstand what you claim.</p>\n\n<p>But you should decide whether to re-include the proofs though — can you lift the statement directly, adapting the notation? Or is the setting different enough that you need to adapt the proof? Or is it important that a reader knows the proof to get your paper, because you reuse similar proof ideas?</p>\n\n<p>However, things in mathematics might be different; advice still should have similar consequences, but conventions are different. Let me say that the habits of mathematicians are quite frustrating to e.g. computer scientists. I've seen at least one respected computer scientist define some standard references (in mathematical style) \"unreadable\" or \"write-only\".</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10470",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/541/"
]
|
10,474 | <p>I recently tried submitting a paper to a journal. It was mandatory to suggest three reviewers. Is this a norm in journal submissions? If yes, how should one choose reviewers if I do not personally know any experts in the field? I have been submitting papers to conferences and never found such conditions there.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10477,
"author": "Anthony Labarre",
"author_id": 26,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/26",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I was asked to do that several times by an editor after being told (s)he couldn't find referees for my submission (to the point that I now spontaneously tell the editor upon submission that I can suggest referees if need be), but I don't know of any journal (or conference) for which this is <em>required</em>. </p>\n\n<p>Anyway, you don't need to know experts personally: you are <em>suggesting</em> referees, not <em>forcing</em> them on the editor (or your work on them), and whether or not you actually know them should be irrelevant (it's even better if you don't). Read your bibliography, see which authors come up most often, or whose work form the most important basis for your submission, or who would be the most interested in reading it based on their own work, and I'm sure you'll have plenty of names to suggest. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10478,
"author": "silvado",
"author_id": 3890,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3890",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Some journals explicitly ask about suggestions for reviewers with a submission, some will consider any suggestions that you make in the cover letter, and others (probably) will just ignore any such suggestion.</p>\n\n<p>There are in fact scientific studies about the comparison between reviewers suggested by the authors, and those selected by the editor, for example <a href=\"http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7015/4/13/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">this article in BMC Medicine</a>. The overall conclusion seems to be that reviewers suggested by authors provide reviews of equal quality than those selected by the editor. While they are more likely to suggest acceptance in the initial review, at later stages these suggestions seem to equalize. </p>\n\n<p>As an author, you should have a high interest in getting over that initial review, and if you do it well, suggesting reviewers is a very good opportunity for that. I'd always suggest to make use of such an opportunity, since you probably can judge best which potential reviewers <strong>will look favorably</strong> at your paper. And that's of course what you want.</p>\n\n<p>If you know an expert personally, that's usually a good option. It has to be handled with care though. When you're too close to a suggested reviewer, the editor will give significantly less weight to the recommendation of that reviewer if he knows about personal ties. But if you go to conferences and talk to people about your research, you could suggest them as reviewers afterwards if they have similar interests. Or look at your reference list, as suggested in the answer by Anthony Labarre.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10483,
"author": "Dikran Marsupial",
"author_id": 2827,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2827",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In my opinion, this is a practice that should be strongly discouraged. While on average reviewers selected by the author give fair, high quality reviews, that doesn't mean that the unscrupulous can't exploit this opportunity to select reviewers that share opinions that are far from the scientific mainstream in order to get dubious arguments into the peer-reviewed literature. This is especially the case where the paper is on a contentious topic that is only tangentially relevant to the journal, so the action editor may not be able to easily find adequate reviewers from within their own field. </p>\n\n<p>As an example, there are numerous papers published on climate related issues in energy, astronomy or general physics journals, which can easily be shown to be fundamentally flawed. Where the journal asks for the author to recommend reviewers, it does raise the question of how much this contributed to the evident failure of the review process. It seems to me to be better to avoid the problem ever arising.</p>\n\n<p>Ultimately if the action editors cannot identify satisfactory reviewers by themselves, the work probably doesn't belong in the journal in the first place.</p>\n\n<p>Being able to specify people who <em>shouldn't</em> be used as reviewers is, of course, another matter entirely. </p>\n\n<p>To answer the question directly, suggests the names of reviewers that you consider to have the required expertise in your field and who can give you a rigorous, but constructive review. Don't choose people you know personally if there is someone equally well qualified that you don't know. I recall reading that when you receive reviews you are getting advice for free from experts who's time you couldn't afford to buy, so why not attempt to get the most value from it as you possibly can?</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10484,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Being editor of a journal where authors can provide preferred and non-preferred reviewers, I can provide some \"inside\" thoughts on the subject based on what has happened in \"my\" journal. Note that it is possible to suggest names for review but also provide names which are not preferred. The latter can be because of a scientific disagreement, personal issues or whatever. Such suggestions appear but not often and we usually follow the suggestions (not that we have to!). </p>\n\n<p>When it comes to the preferred or suggested reviewers, I have been tempted to use such reviewers on occasion when it has been hard to identify reviewers directly. Sometimes because the topic is local and where it would make sense to have local input. In these cases, I cannot remember a single reasonable review that has come out of such reviewers. This can be for several reasons but most often the review is a close colleague who might have an incentive to help the author. In some cases the preferred names have been very senior scientists who, I am afraid, has lost touch with the subject and provide poor and in some cases almost non-existent reviews. Out of all immediate \"Accept\" review recommendations I get, the vast majority have come from these reviewers. So, I not longer trust these names and avoid them at all costs unless I personally know or know of the reviewer and his or her good reputation. </p>\n\n<p>In addition to what I just describe, I also must state that it is often the weakest manuscripts that have listed several suggestions. This can be identified by the disparate review results, sometimes one accept (by the suggested reviewer) and one reject. </p>\n\n<p>Now, in principle, there is nothing wrong with suggesting reviewers, I have done so myself when being requested. I have then as a principle gone for established and well renowned names in the community. The problem lies in suggesting names for a purpose other than to get a fair and objective review.</p>\n\n<p>It is clear that the system can and is abused and since I became Editor-in-Chief, I have come to rely less and less on these suggestions and now mostly look upon them with suspicion and make selections from my own understanding of the field and investigations into the subject literature. The best suggestion, I can provide is to not avoid mentioning names but pick names that in your opinion can provide good constructive critique on your work (and not just favorable). A note on why you have selected names as preferred or non-preferred would greatly help as well since it puts your choice in a perspective.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/06 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10474",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2823/"
]
|
10,479 | <p>Considering the ethical and professional implications of self plagiarism, it is very useful to check new manuscript against old ones (which are under review and not yet published) to decrease self plagiarism. In a white paper by ithenticate (download from <a href="http://www.ithenticate.com/self-plagiarism-free-white-paper" rel="nofollow">http://www.ithenticate.com/self-plagiarism-free-white-paper</a>), one way to avoid self plagiarism is to significantly paraphrase those text which are need to be used in new article. However, I have difficulties in identifying the similarity percentage of my current work against yet-unpublished works. Online tools (that I know) check the manuscript against published works. I have 3 journal papers, 1 is published, 1 is under review, and 1 is under preparation. Now, I need to check the third one to see the similarity score. Any suggestion? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10480,
"author": "Anthony Labarre",
"author_id": 26,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/26",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Sourceforge offers a few free tools aimed at detecting plagiarism (see <a href=\"http://sourceforge.net/directory/os:linux/freshness:recently-updated/?q=plagiarism\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://sourceforge.net/directory/os:linux/freshness:recently-updated/?q=plagiarism</a>) for various platforms.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10482,
"author": "Samuel Russell",
"author_id": 4429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4429",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Does the paper make an original disciplinary contribution to scholarly knowledge?\nHas any reused material been rewritten from scratch?\nHas the reused material been cited in relation to the paper under review?</p>\n\n<p>If so, it should be fine. The first one is the big one, I assume that people with a doctorate in their discipline should know whether this has been achieved. One nostrum I use is meeting at least one of the three: new evidence set, new theoretical tools, new analysis. </p>\n\n<p>As an example of this nostrum: Case A organisation demonstrating with Marxist class analysis concept Q.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Case B with Marxism demonstrating Q is novel</li>\n<li>Case A with Patriarchy analysis demonstrating Q is novel</li>\n<li>Case A with Marxism demonstrating R is novel</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10485,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><em>First suggestion</em>: Never copy-paste material from earlier works, always write everything from scratch.</p>\n\n<p>This prevents you from moving critical passages from one paper to the other. It is of course still possible to end up with a similar or even identical sentence by accident, particularly if you describe a method or something similar. If you end up using the same method for several papers it is also possible to simply reference your original description in subsequent papers. The <a href=\"http://www.ithenticate.com/Portals/92785/media/ith-selfplagiarism-whitepaper.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow\">Ithenticate white paper</a> mentioned by you provides good advice. Yuo can slso visit the <a href=\"http://publicationethics.org/\" rel=\"nofollow\">COPE (Committee On Publication Ethics)</a> web site and search for self-plagiarism.</p>\n\n<p><em>Second suggestion</em>: Use the softwares such as <em>iThenticate</em>, <em>turnitin</em> or the like depending what you are looking for. But, I would not blindly just look at percentages of overlap but focus on where the overlaps occur. If it is in the methods section describing a series of steps ina process it is clearly not as critical as if it is in the discussion or conclusions. If you find overlap and you can identify what it is, then go to my first suggestion and critically review if you need to say it again.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/06 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10479",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6393/"
]
|
10,481 | <p>My university is on a drive to unify its corporate identity (it makes me sick just typing that). This drive includes branding our lecture slides, research talks, and research posters. The branding templates are not released under an open license and utilize a copyrighted logo and proprietary fonts. I think this prevents me from releasing my talks and posters under a free and open license (e.g., <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">CC BY</a>) which is one of the tenets of <a href="http://www.rrplanet.com/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Reproducible Research</a>.</p>
<p>Apart from creating two versions of everything, is there any way to reconcile this apparent incompatibility?</p>
<p>Is my understanding of licenses like <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">CC BY</a> wrong? Can I release something (e.g., a research talk or poster) with a copyrighted logo that I don't hold the copyright on under a free and open license?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10498,
"author": "Chris Gregg",
"author_id": 4461,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4461",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My suggestion is to follow your school's guidance as much as you have to, but figure out a way to remove (by script, macro, by hand, or otherwise) the branding for distribution. Have both versions available on your website. If you have a presentation that you may want to distribute, put a note at the bottom of the title slide, or at the end:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>A freely distributable version of this presentation is available here: [web address].</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>If your branding mechanism is a master/template slide, it is trivial to remove this for a non-branded version. I have a hard time believing that printing issues (for posters or handouts) should be a big concern for redistribution -- if it isn't digital, very few people are going to scan/copy for redistribution anyway.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10499,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>My university has had enforced its \"corporate identity\" since the 1990s. It is described in details on a web site and available in a series of templates. Although I get a sense of tiredness when I read the material surrounding the \"identity\" I can also see benefits, to recognize the university \"products\" (sorry) among other materials at a congress etc. But, the question was about reproducing material. </p>\n\n<p>As I see it I would want to have the logo on material such as posters or presentations so that people can identify my affiliation. I am free to post presentations and posters or other materials on my university site with the logos on them. If I want to put some material out that is mine I simply would not use a unversity logo. An example: I have written several hopefully useful booklets on scientific writing to be used by students. This material is my initiative and is not the result of the university asking for it. These booklets are distributed for free using our web-page and I would gladly distribute them more widely if there was demand. So from this perspective I can see two different \"products\" where one benefits from the logo and one where I do not want it.</p>\n\n<p>Now the rules of my university says the logo is copyrighted which means others cannot use it. this still means I can post material with the logo in public places. The problem arises if someone takes my, say, presentation and uses it as their own. Then they break the copyright and make themselves guilty of a kind of fraud by associating themselves with an organisation to which they do not belong. I still have done nothing wrong, posting material is fine and even encouraged. The copyright also prevents people from the taking the university logo and adding it to their own \"product\" fo rexample showing it on their web-page or using it for commercial uses.</p>\n\n<p>So now, the content. You seem to indicate that you will be prevented from displaying your work without the branding. I do not think this is correct. The laws on copyright and particulary intellectual ownership in my country is very clear. If you have created something it is yours. In a commercial company you may end up sign off this right by becoming employed so that the things your develop within that company belongs to them, not you. That is how research in pharmaceutical companies work, for example. My university system has made attempts to gain rights to lectures etc. but this has so far failed miserably due to the strong laws. You need to check these laws that apply to you since I do not know how they may vary internationally; I would expect them to look fairly similar.</p>\n\n<p>You mention \"proprietary fonts\". This means the university has selected fonts and bought them from a font foundry so that you can use and copy them for free within the university system. This does not mean other cannot use them, they must simply buy them first so providing copies to persons outside of your university would be illegal. Since fonts are not included in Office templates or in pedfs resulting from your templates there is nothing illegal about distributing such documents. If you were to take the fonts and produce a product that you were to sell for your won personal gain, you will, however, break the law.</p>\n\n<p>The bottom line, then, is that you can put your material in the creative commons as long as you avoid the logo (ater all who would want to use a figure with somebody elses logo in it?). I cannot see the university preventing you from doing this unless they explicitly ask you to waive your rights. Material with logo has its place when you want to make sure your afficilaition is clear. If you do not want that, then I believe you are free to post things in another style. </p>\n\n<p>Finally awareness of the laws and regulations concerning intellectual rights are important and I strongly believe it is good to carefully look at whatever applies in each of our cases so that we can react if someone tries to infringe on such rights.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/06 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10481",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929/"
]
|
10,486 | <p>Doing a systematic review, either quantitative or qualitative, requires developing a well-defined protocol as a method of conducting it. This includes defining the search methods used in the identification of eligible articles, which include two methods:</p>
<ol>
<li><em>database search</em> using <em>search queries</em> (a main method)</li>
<li>searching in the references and cited-by sections of the selected articles (which are already retrieved by the first method)</li>
</ol>
<p>Let's assume that an author (of a large review) does their best to formulate the <em>search queries</em> to better represent the review question, but later they realized that <strong>considerable amount (e.g. 50% or more)</strong> of the relevant articles are found <em>only by using the second method</em> (searching in articles);</p>
<p>Is the second method less 'systematic' than the first one? Does it compromise how much 'systematic' the resulting review is?</p>
<p>If so, does the above scenario affect the validity of the <em>search queries</em> used (i.e. should they be reformulated to increase the recall of search and retrieve more of relevant articles)?</p>
<p><strong>Edit:</strong> More extremely: If 90 out of selected 100 articles are found only by using the second method, how much does this affect the quality of the systematic review?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10487,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Databases are not complete and published articles do not necessarily reference all pertinent literature so it seems unlikely that one would necessarily capture everything relevant by using just one method. </p>\n\n<p>Databases are probably relatively complete when regarding more recent publications. I would not like to define \"recent\" however but I see it as mostly post-1990's. But my guess is that databases are centered around more widespread journals and more local journals may not be well-represented. This means that depending on the search area they may be more or less complete. Going back in time more and more will likely not be found in databases so if the topic has a vital history then database searches will cover the \"recent\".</p>\n\n<p>Reference lists may pick up more older material but that is of course dependent on the authors willingness to research literature. It is possible one might pick up more esoteric references this way but I fear the selection will be fairly random and not comprehensive.</p>\n\n<p>So to use both methods seem like the safest way forward to me. Depending on the subject matter, having deeper understanding for where and when things might have been published in the past may be vital in order to capture most relevant literature on the subject. To venture so far as to say everything will be found is difficult. Particularly during the cold war much was published in for example Russian journals that never reached the west. Many discoveries published in the west were therefore missing out on the eastern counterparts and may not even have been first. Much has thus been lost by lacking translation and that goes for many if not most languages. One must also remember that the publication scene as we see it today was not utilized earlier, when internal reports and local journals may have taken up much research. To rely on just one of the two parts for methodology may therefore be inadequate.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10491,
"author": "Thomas",
"author_id": 6984,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6984",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would add to the other answer(s) that you could validate the first approach using the second approach. If your search criteria systematically miss relevant articles <em>in the journals covered by the database</em>, then that's a clear sign you need to reformulate your search criteria because they're clearly not sufficient.</p>\n\n<p>The second thing to add is that any search should also try to find unpublished articles. These are definitely not going to be in databases, but may be cited in papers (thus the importance, at least in my view, of the second approach). It might be worth adding a third approach that involves search conference abstracts, where unpublished (especially recent) work is likely to be found.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/06 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10486",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4018/"
]
|
10,493 | <p>Knowing that there are some members of hiring committees here, I am hoping for some insights.</p>
<p>Having read <a href="http://chronicle.com/article/Rise-of-Altmetrics-Revives/139557/?cid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Rise of Altmetrics</a>, I started to wonder what would be the best way to measure the impact on my publications. I do care for many reasons but one of the reasons is to impress others enough to be able to get a job/promotion/tenure.</p>
<p>So, my question is, do hiring committees take alternative metrics (Facebook likes, mentions in blog posts, etc.) seriously when trying to measure the impact of someone's work or are other issues like impact factor more important?</p>
<p><a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/1020/what-is-a-fair-metric-for-assessing-the-citation-impact-of-journals-across-disci">This question</a> is related but is more about measuring the impact of a journal but my concern is measuring the impact of my own work (which might be in several journals).</p>
<p><a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/4965/are-academic-indicators-h-index-impact-factor-etc-really-adopted-by-institut/4966#4966">This question</a> is also related by asking how impact measurements affect job prospects and has some excellent answers but my question is specifically about 'unofficial' metrics like tweets, downloads on SlideShare, etc.</p>
<p><a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/1206/how-many-people-read-an-individual-journal-article">This question</a> is also related asking how to measure readership of journal articles but my question is whether alternative measures are taking into serious consideration but those making hiring/tenure decisions.</p>
<p>I know there is the h-index (with its own flaws) but that seems to measure my publications as one unit (all publications taken together, therefore measuring me overall). I'm more interested in measuring the impact publication by publication in order to show an improving trend.</p>
<p>On a side note, it seems that there is a general feeling that a publication in a high impact factor journal equals a high impact publication. This feels a little off to me since one might convince the editor their work is important while at the same time fail to convince their academic community of the same.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10514,
"author": "Anonymous",
"author_id": 6110,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6110",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I served on a hiring committee in mathematics at a research university in the United States, and I don't believe that any of us paid attention to the sort of metrics you describe. </p>\n\n<p>My personal inclination is that I would not recommend listing any of this information unless it is unusually notable, e.g., if someone particularly well known blogged extensively about your work. However, different countries, universities, and departments might operate differently.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 47714,
"author": "zircon",
"author_id": 36231,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/36231",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If altmetrics such as the number of Facebook likes, the number of mentions in blog posts, etc. would be considered as a measure of impact and rewarded by hiring committees, then scientists would have significant incentives to increase their altmetrics. Such altmetrics are very easily manipulable (e.g., by creating fake Facebook accounts, fake blog posts, automating downloads), so once they will start to be artificially increased their relevance for estimating impact would disappear.</p>\n\n<p>I have not heard about altmetrics being taken seriously by hiring committees, and given the argument above it is likely that it will not happen in the future, neither.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10493",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692/"
]
|
10,494 | <p>I have been working on an idea for last 2 years almost independently along with other research works. My advisor did not believe in my work much initilally, so I did not get an RA for two years even after requesting. Recently, I am getting encouraging results with some specific examples and scenarios with good hope for success to solve a complex problem using that idea. I have not published the work yet. Initially, my advisor was not interested in the idea partly because the work is not his area of expertise and insisted that I spend my time in other research projects with a senior colleague. I pursued it with my interest in spite of RA support, but with new results and potential benefits of the approach my advisor became extremely interested and even described the work as the next big idea in our lab meetings. I am happy about it or maybe he says it to make me happy.
However, recently I encountered a situation which was difficult for me to comprehend. I found my advisor present a perspective paper along with many other renowned experts in the field, proposing and highlighting the approach I have been working on as the future direction and visionary in the field along with other important developments in a conference. Even though I was not a co-author in that paper and my work was not cited or even acknowledged, I consoled myself as my advisor was alluding me that he was promoting the idea; it was an advertisement of the work (of course with out any acknowledgement). </p>
<p>As he was not the first author of the perspective paper and there is a possibility that first/other authors can make claim of it, he asked me to file an updated technical report in the department before the paper is published. It looked to me like he wanted to promote himself among his colleagues with that idea with out acknowledging it to me before the audience and greater scientific public where it matters. </p>
<p>I happened to attend the conference as a PhD student, and found that the presenter of the perspective paper (whom I don't know) presented more than half of his talk on my idea with my slides that I shared with my advisor, and there was no acknowledgement or mention of my report or work. It was even worse to see that some of the terminology that I planed to use, was disclosed and few misinterpreted while explaining. </p>
<p>Even then, people really seemed to liked the idea and the approach and many are convinced that the idea is going to impact the field. While I saw a very drastic change in the way my advisor treated me recently, but what really made me sad was when my advisor asked me to refer to this perspective paper (to which I was not a co-author) in my impending submission (on the idea). </p>
<p>I feel like it was unfair but I don't know if research is done this way in academia or if it is perfectly legit to do something like that. I decided not to cite the perspective paper with possible consequences. I just wanted to know how other students handle such situations effectively and if such a thing is a common practice.</p>
<p>Edit: I do have all email traces and even a previous publication explaining part of the idea and a recent technical report submitted to the department with the complete idea.</p>
<p>UPDATES </p>
<p>June 2014:
I have continued with the situation I described above honestly because as a student I hardly have any options and as suggested by many that it would be an academic suicide. But, it had impacted me severely, mostly because I believe that any good idea I will bring to the table will be stolen or misrepresented and there will be cleaver manipulations to take ownership of them. I will take two steps forward and three steps backward. I could hardly perform in my potential. I will let you know my ordeal soon and many thanks for your kind help and support.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10496,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Check the policies of your university when it comes to intellectual property, specifically for the faculty you are studying under. Make sure you fully understand the guidelines, and I mean absolutely certain.</p>\n\n<p><strong>If</strong> you find that there is a discrepancy, meaning that this is frowned upon, then you have your original presentation (although, to be honest, I am not sure how credible this would be as evidence).</p>\n\n<p>Perhaps, you cold speak to your supervisor about completing a co-authored paper on the topic to be peer-reviewed published in a journal (This is what my supervisor and I do).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10504,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The only way you're really going to be able to establish some sort of claim to recognition is if:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Your advisors did not independently come up with the idea, and choose to change their stance and give you credit for the idea; or</li>\n<li>You can establish conclusively that this was <em>your</em> idea, and not your advisors'. </li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The best way to do this is if you have a <em>verifiable</em> documentation trail supporting your claim. This means that you have conclusive records showing that the work exists. This would include things like emails, <em>verified</em> laboratory notebooks, and other documents that can be dated and that demonstrate that you came up with the idea. The challenge, of course, will be showing that you came up with it <em>independently</em> of your advisors (which would require that you have documented proof showing that they discouraged you from working on it.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10506,
"author": "Shion",
"author_id": 1429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1429",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>While the other answers are good, I have an alternative approach for you. </p>\n\n<p>Have you actually gone and spoken to your advisers about this? A <em>perspective</em> paper is just that. It talks about concepts and the <strong><em>next big thing</em></strong> - which very well may be your work.</p>\n\n<p>I suggest that you have a nice, sit down, frank discussion with your advisers about this and make clear what future directions and expectations are regarding publications, collaborations and co-authorships. That would clear the air quite a bit, which frankly now, is rather hazy.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10507,
"author": "Benoît Kloeckner",
"author_id": 946,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/946",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As far as I understand the situation, it seems to me that your advisors' behavior is borderline, even if likely on the wrong side of the border. Since it does not look like a very clear and frank misbehavior, even if you are perfectly right it would be tremendously difficult to prove it beyond doubt. In case of doubt, you could end up being seen more as the trouble maker than as the one who came up with that great idea; the surrounding people to whom you could complain (department head, etc.) would hesitate <em>a lot</em> to go against tenured faculty when the misbehavior is not crystal clear, etc.</p>\n\n<p>With this in mind, I would strongly advise you not to confront to wildly with your advisors. You can (and should, as advised by Shion) discuss with them the fact that you are uncomfortable with the way they presented things, with the use without permission of your slides, and so on; but <strong>always let them a way to discuss it calmly</strong>. If they feel cornered, there will be little chance of the situation not degenerating into a conflict, and it would be very difficult for you to survive professionally a conflict with your advisors.</p>\n\n<p>You could cite their perspective paper in a way that friendly makes explicit that the idea is yours. Your aim should be to get decent credit for your idea, even at the cost of letting your advisors benefit from it: think about what you have to gain or loose first, rather than about what they have to unduly gain or what you can cost them.</p>\n\n<p>If everything goes smoothly, you can get into a good position to build on your idea, and be on track for your career. \nOnce you're a respected tenured faculty, you should remember this episode and be supportive of young researchers.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10527,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I was in a similar situation before (in biology) about 5 years ago (and this was an ivy league school on the East coast of US) – I had paper A published and paper B (following from A) in the works, when the advisor tries to work on paper C (following from A, borderline with B). The deal is that neither B nor C would've been possible without A, and one of B or C was necessary to show the full impact and worth of A (think detailed theory paper A vs lab experiments B and C). For other reasons, it couldn't be written as a larger A+B or A+C paper, but that's besides the point. The problem here was that the advisor, being faster at churning out a paper, finished C before I finished B despite starting later and then he insisted that we focus on polishing and submitting C before returning to B (I was 2nd author). Indeed that's what happened and we cited C in B when B was also eventually published (thus changing the \"science order\" from how it was). Note: I was not actually worried about publishing C, just its appearance before B.</p>\n\n<p>My issues were:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>A was my idea, my work.</li>\n<li>The idea for C was also mine (leading from A), but was shelved (by me) until I had the time to run the experiments for those (the assays and lab experiments weren't a small deal).</li>\n<li>I'm the student needing advising, not poaching of ideas.</li>\n<li>publishing order of C before B looks like it was the advisor's bright idea, when it was not (no, really... this didn't start with the \"here, work on my old unfinished idea\")</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The advisor's view was:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>A is already published, so it's \"out there\" for everyone including him.</li>\n<li>B and C are not exactly the same, so what's the big deal?</li>\n<li>In the long run, precedence differences of O(weeks) won't matter, period.</li>\n<li>I'm also an author and I now have 3 papers instead of 2.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>In the end, I came to terms with it and in hind sight (after 5 yrs), should not have made such a fuss because</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>I got 3 papers instead of 2 </li>\n<li>It was a fresh change of roles (he did do the work, and I was in an advisory role)</li>\n<li>In the long run, precedence differences of O(weeks) didn't matter (might be different in other fields), and since I continued publishing in the same field, it now looks like I'm the man behind the plan.</li>\n<li>Resentment never did anyone any good.</li>\n<li>The dude is a hell of a supportive advisor in all other ways, so this wasn't worth burning bridges. Maybe he genuinely didn't see things from my PoV and didn't intend to poach.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The bottom line is – what you're describing, while borderline, might not be uncommon. Especially, using graduate students' results in a presentation to a funding agency, but passing it off as their \"project\" is very common, because despite what you might want to think, a lot of times, it's the reputation of the PI that brings in the money than the merit of the idea itself (i.e., a mediocre idea from a rock star PI has more chances of getting funded than a rock star idea from an unknown researcher). </p>\n\n<p>However, it was absolutely wrong of them to have not included your name or acknowledged your contribution (which has never happened with me). You might want to bring that up, but you should think if you really want to burn bridges for a \"small\" reason. I say \"small\" in quotes because while yes, from a strict ethical PoV, they might be in the wrong, you're justified in your anger and is <em>not</em> a small issue for you, in the long run, the objective function of life is a multivariable function. Don't just fixate on one and make a decision (that you might come to regret) based on a local minimum that you're stuck in now.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10494",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4340/"
]
|
10,497 | <p>I am using Mendeley to keep track of my papers. It allows me to group the papers in folders, and I can easily export BiBTeX for a folder which I can include in a paper I am writing. </p>
<p>However, almost always I need to fill in all the details when I add a new paper to my library. "Search by Title" feature does not do a great job.</p>
<p>I think everyone around the world is creating their BiBTeX (or any other format) entries by hand. Is there a community driven (wikipedia like) website/service that unifies this process?</p>
<p>What I have in my mind is something like this: People add article meta information (title, authors, year etc.) to this public DB, if they see a mistake they correct it, if they see duplicates they prevent it by deleting one. And one can export entries as BiBTeX, etc.</p>
<p>The closest thing I saw is <a href="http://scholar.google.com/">Google Scholar</a>. But because it tries to automate nearly the whole process there are still lots of mistakes.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10500,
"author": "Thomas",
"author_id": 6984,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6984",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>JSTOR and many publishers include BiBTeX format for articles on their webpages:</p>\n\n<p>Example from Cambridge University Press (click \"How to Cite This Article\"): <a href=\"http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=92189\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=92189</a></p>\n\n<p>Example from JSTOR (click \"Export Citation\"): <a href=\"http://www.jstor.org/stable/2585925\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.jstor.org/stable/2585925</a></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10555,
"author": "rmounce",
"author_id": 651,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/651",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Sadly, not yet...</p>\n\n<p>Many publishers view their bibliographic metadata as commercial property and hold-on to it fairly tightly.</p>\n\n<p>Mendeley will release little bits of the article data they have accumulated from all their users, but they will not let anyone download <em>all</em> of it - it's valuable property that they want to keep 'in-house'.</p>\n\n<p>There are a few truly community-driven projects trying to change this e.g. <a href=\"http://opencitations.net/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">Open Citations</a> & <a href=\"https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/19047x2Awo_H5Gkx79i68eQ6FunUeBVGV5_9pBK-A8eU/edit#slide=id.gd13c835f_0142\" rel=\"noreferrer\">Open Citagora</a>.</p>\n\n<p>These projects aim to build truly public & open databases for <em>anyone</em> to build upon & annotate. The other tools mentioned in the question aren't really public or fully open.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10559,
"author": "Aru Ray",
"author_id": 948,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/948",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><em>This applies only to mathematics.</em></p>\n\n<p>Personally I get most of my bibtex entries from <a href=\"http://www.ams.org/mathscinet/index.html\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Mathscinet</a> where one can search for a particular article and then ask for bibtex. Here is <a href=\"https://mathoverflow.net/questions/20551/sources-for-bibtex-entries\">a related question on MathOverflow</a>; some of the answers there seem transferable to other fields. </p>\n\n<p>[I agree that these are not community-driven resources, but address the related question of where to obtain bibtex entries.]</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10560,
"author": "cbeleites unhappy with SX",
"author_id": 725,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/725",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I find that Jabref's import from pubmed (pubmed search -> display list of pubmed ids -> copy to Jabref) does a very good job for the bio/medical fields.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10561,
"author": "Memming",
"author_id": 386,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/386",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I use <a href=\"http://www.citeulike.org/\" rel=\"nofollow\">citeulike</a>. Their smart bookmark lets me create an entry automatically from most articles on the web. Once it is in your library, you can easily export it as BibTex (1 click). I almost never have to type in BibTeX entries anymore.</p>\n\n<p>Although, a number of journals which do not have DOI support, and conference proceedings, unfortunately it comes down to editing the BibTeX entry myself. (Sometimes someone else who uses citeulike would have already done that and you can search for the entry and copy it to your library.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 87958,
"author": "Jeromy Anglim",
"author_id": 62,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/62",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You might want to check out the \"Initiative for Open Citations\"</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://i4oc.org/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">https://i4oc.org/</a></p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>The Initiative for Open Citations I4OC is a collaboration between\n scholarly publishers, researchers, and other interested parties to\n promote the unrestricted availability of scholarly citation data.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>It seems to be growing in coverage. It could form the basis for more open search tools.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10497",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/59/"
]
|
10,510 | <p>I've just read a paper that cited the same reference in two successive sentences:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>This is the first sentence (xxxx 2013). This is the second sentence
(xxxx 2013).</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Up until now, I would have cited the reference just once, like this:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>This is the first sentence. This is the second sentence (xxxx 2013).</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Which method is correct?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10511,
"author": "Samuel Russell",
"author_id": 4429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4429",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Neither is correct, it is a matter of style.</p>\n\n<p>Refer to the style guide of the journal, publishing house or conference that you're writing for.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10513,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In general terms, the reference should be made where the cited information occurs. If you cite in the second it is not clear from where the information in the first originates. A similar problem occurs if you cite an entire paragraph by adding a reference at the end of a paragraph ass \"(Xxxx, 2013)\" (I am fully aware that this is the norm in some fields).</p>\n\n<p>Citing the same reference in two sentences is clearly wrong. The solution as I see it is to write the sentences so that it is clear they belong together. There are several ways to do this. One way is to avoid the passive, parenthetical, reference and use the active reference where only the year is in parenthesis. As an example, you can start the first sentence by stating \"Xxx (2013) states ...\" and then in the second say \"They furthermore ...\". In this example we provide a bridge between the two sentences so that it is very clear it is the same reference that applies. Instead of \"They\" you can also use \"Xxxx\".</p>\n\n<p>There are clearly numerous ways to bridge sentences so the form depends on what you need to say. As a result I would recommend putting the reference in the first sentence, not the second.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 34270,
"author": "carsten",
"author_id": 11937,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11937",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is exactly what the abbreviation \"Ibid.\" is used for:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>This is the first sentence (Xxxx, 2013). This is the second sentence (Ibid.).</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>It derives from the latin word \"ibidem\", which means \"in the same place\".</p>\n\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibid\" rel=\"nofollow\">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibid</a>.</p>\n\n<h1>Edit: Disclaimer</h1>\n\n<p>Following the comment discussion below this answer, I would like to state clearly that the usage of \"Ibid.\" is highly dependent on the field of study and the general citation style you are using. If you have never encountered this abbreviation before in your field of study, you should probably not start using it.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 74883,
"author": "Fred.A",
"author_id": 60108,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/60108",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think if you are writing something that refers to several sources repeatedly maybe you should use a different referencing system. Maybe use superscript numbers like the Vancouver referencing system.</p>\n\n<p>I assume this is a problem more likely to be faced when writing a cohort / review paper.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 88166,
"author": "einpoklum",
"author_id": 7319,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7319",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>What I would do in this case depends on whether you're citing two different claims/results or just two pieces of text within that paper related to the same claim/idea/point.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>If it's <strong>two different results</strong>, definitely cite them separately, regardless of whether the citations are closeby or not; and I would make an effort to indicate, with each citation, the exact location of the specific claim/point, so it would be <em>clear to the reader</em> that these are two distinct claims. (If you're using LaTeX, it would look something like<code>\\cite[\\S 1.2]{ThatXXXPaper}</code> and <code>\\cite[Appendix B]{ThatXXXPaper}</code>.)</li>\n<li><p>If it's <strong>the same result/claim/point</strong>, and you're just citing the continuation of the text, take the advice in other answers, i.e.:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>It may depend on the stylistic conventions in your field</li>\n<li>It may depend on the stylistic conventions of the conference/journal to which you're submitting the paper, or your university's regulations if it's a thesis</li>\n<li>You might want to use \"ibid.\" (ibidem) instead of repeating the citation</li>\n<li>You might be able to cite just once at the end of a paragraph (assuming that doesn't create ambiguity)</li>\n<li>You might want to avoid the second citation by appropriate rephrasing as @PeterJanson <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/10513/7319\">suggests</a>.</li>\n</ul></li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 129868,
"author": "Alejandro",
"author_id": 108273,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/108273",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>APA - Documentation does not need to be repeated for every idea within a single paragraph. For example, if you retrieved information for three consecutive sentences from the same source, you can put the information after the third sentence.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10510",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7159/"
]
|
10,512 | <p>I've degrees in International Economics and Business Administration.</p>
<p>I consider myself an entrepreneur, certainly my past degree did give me perspective but I feel it lacked solid practical knowledge, so in my entrepreneurial career it didn't help me much.</p>
<p>I was thinking to go for computer science degree. But having bachelors degree in Economics/BA it will be hard for me to go directly for masters? (even though I've fairly good knowledge of the subject). Restarting bachelors degree in a completely different field could be a total waste of time for 26 years old.</p>
<p>Also I'm aware that allot of students do it the other way around, first they get science degree and than they do masters in business administration. Do you think my way will be harder and more intense? as master in computer science can be much challenging than masters in business administration or computer science bachelors?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10515,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can think of a couple of options off the top of my head:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Apply for a Masters in CS anyway and see how you go, you <em>might</em> get credit for your experience.</li>\n<li>perhaps do a postgraduate certificate/diploma in CS (if available) and use that as a stepping stone to the Masters degree that you desire.</li>\n<li>Perhaps consider a MBA that has a strong focus on CS (as a major).</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>It would also depend if you are intending to pursue your proposed Masters by coursework, research or as a mix of the two.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10516,
"author": "superuser0",
"author_id": 6690,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6690",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Another option is going for a <strong>masters degree in business informatics</strong>, a lot of european universities would admit you in it. I do not know if this kind of discipline is big where you live, but it is one of the biggest disciplines in a lot of universities in germany and austria. A study from the university of vienna has shown that graduands from business informatics earn the most in the industry and have the least problems to get jobs out of all graduands.</p>\n\n<p>You would have to take roughly one semester worth of courses in algorithms, software development etc. extra, but that should neither be an intellectual problem, since you already know a lot about it, nor a practical problem, because you will get a more academic and thus systematic idea of what matters in computer science.</p>\n\n<p>Even if you got into a computer science master right away, well how would that help you? You seem to have many practical skills from CS, but you would likely end up doing it just for the degree, because the students who have a bachelors in CS will most likely be much better prepared for doing the necessary methods for a masters program in that field. If you want the pure CS, you are likely much better off just starting with a bachelor, maybe aside working if you are already really good at CS.</p>\n\n<p>If you care about how <em>hard</em> a master will be, well that can't be answered right away. But you have to keep in mind, that economics is a social science and thus not as exact as a technical science.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10533,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As a serious question: <strong>what do you hope to gain from the additional degree</strong>?</p>\n\n<p>You haven't really indicated <em>why</em> you want to get a master's degree in computer science, other than \"it's the next step.\" You also haven't indicated why you think you'd be able to get into a master's degree program (do you have enough CS courses to convince a committee?). </p>\n\n<p>But, most importantly, the question to ask yourself is whether or not there is anything really to gain from the two years or so spent earning a master's degree that you can't obtain via another route. If you can do that, then it's probably worth trying. If, on the other hand, it's just to improve programming skills, there are <em>lots</em> of better ways to do that than to spend two years in CS (which doesn't really do much in that regard). </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10512",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
10,518 | <p>This past year I was accepted into two mid range phd programs in mathematics without funding. Here's what my profile looked like:</p>
<p>Domestic White Male
Unknown state school in the midwest
Majors: Mathematics and Philosophy
GPA: 3.93
GRE:
Q: 168 (97)
V: 167 (97)
W: 5.0 (92)
M: not taken</p>
<p>Interests: Analysis, Medical Imaging/Modeling, Mathematical Physics</p>
<p>Major Coursework:
Complex Analysis, Discrete Structures, Applied Math (survey course mostly in Fourier methods and PDEs), Mathematical Statistics.</p>
<p>Recommendations:
One from a top applied mathematician who was very late in sending them out, one from a professor from the previous year who is well regarded but has not had much contact with me and one from a young professor who was fresh out of post doc.</p>
<p>Other:
I'm 30 years old. Some former work experience as a co-op student in engineering at a national lab, dean's list, normal stuff like that. I had only completed two semesters at my current school, though. About 6 years ago I was an engineering student at a different institution with poor grades and I did not finish my degree. Also mid to high level (lots of national, some international competition) as an athletic coach working with kids, teens and adults. Some international experience as an athlete as well. I also speak basic German.</p>
<p>Here's how my profile has changed:</p>
<p>Current GPA: 3.94 (.01 difference! However, this does mean 6 more As and 1 more A- to counterbalance my poor record from the early-mid 2000s.)</p>
<p>GRE Subject Score: 660 (52)</p>
<p>Additional Coursework: Formal Logic, Real Analysis, Advanced Linear Algebra, Intro to Abstract Algebra. This summer I am doing a course in number theory and an independent study in Galois theory.</p>
<p>Recommendations: I am going to give the late professor a much longer lead time this time around. He has said that he wants to help me but is always extremely busy. I will also be asking (and almost certainly receiving) a rec from the professor I am doing my independent study with.</p>
<p>Interests in pure math have shifted away from analysis, more into algebra. In applied, medical applications (organ/system modeling and imaging more than bioinformatics) have taken the lead over mathematical physics.</p>
<p>Other changes: Medalist in school's math competition, math tutor in our honors college and privately. Taking a Spanish immersion course so I can list basic spanish on there as well.</p>
<p>I'll be taking the GRE subject again in October and am using saylor.org and MIT's opencourseware to review older subjects. I graduate in August and will be working for a year. I'm thinking about applying to teach at a high school or community college for that time. I also plan on taking one or two graduate courses per semester.</p>
<p>I plan on applying all over the place (>15 apps) compared to the 8 from last time. I would prefer to go to the west coast. Can anyone let me know if the mid level UCs (Irvine, Santa Barbara, Davis) are reasonable with what I've got now, especially since when I worked at that national lab I was technically a UC employee? Any other recommendations on schools or anything I can do over the next year to boost this?</p>
<p>One other thing: I have no REUs, but is a good independent study with a strong recommendation from it a decent substitute?</p>
<p>Thanks for taking the time to read my post.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10515,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can think of a couple of options off the top of my head:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Apply for a Masters in CS anyway and see how you go, you <em>might</em> get credit for your experience.</li>\n<li>perhaps do a postgraduate certificate/diploma in CS (if available) and use that as a stepping stone to the Masters degree that you desire.</li>\n<li>Perhaps consider a MBA that has a strong focus on CS (as a major).</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>It would also depend if you are intending to pursue your proposed Masters by coursework, research or as a mix of the two.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10516,
"author": "superuser0",
"author_id": 6690,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6690",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Another option is going for a <strong>masters degree in business informatics</strong>, a lot of european universities would admit you in it. I do not know if this kind of discipline is big where you live, but it is one of the biggest disciplines in a lot of universities in germany and austria. A study from the university of vienna has shown that graduands from business informatics earn the most in the industry and have the least problems to get jobs out of all graduands.</p>\n\n<p>You would have to take roughly one semester worth of courses in algorithms, software development etc. extra, but that should neither be an intellectual problem, since you already know a lot about it, nor a practical problem, because you will get a more academic and thus systematic idea of what matters in computer science.</p>\n\n<p>Even if you got into a computer science master right away, well how would that help you? You seem to have many practical skills from CS, but you would likely end up doing it just for the degree, because the students who have a bachelors in CS will most likely be much better prepared for doing the necessary methods for a masters program in that field. If you want the pure CS, you are likely much better off just starting with a bachelor, maybe aside working if you are already really good at CS.</p>\n\n<p>If you care about how <em>hard</em> a master will be, well that can't be answered right away. But you have to keep in mind, that economics is a social science and thus not as exact as a technical science.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10533,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As a serious question: <strong>what do you hope to gain from the additional degree</strong>?</p>\n\n<p>You haven't really indicated <em>why</em> you want to get a master's degree in computer science, other than \"it's the next step.\" You also haven't indicated why you think you'd be able to get into a master's degree program (do you have enough CS courses to convince a committee?). </p>\n\n<p>But, most importantly, the question to ask yourself is whether or not there is anything really to gain from the two years or so spent earning a master's degree that you can't obtain via another route. If you can do that, then it's probably worth trying. If, on the other hand, it's just to improve programming skills, there are <em>lots</em> of better ways to do that than to spend two years in CS (which doesn't really do much in that regard). </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10518",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7379/"
]
|
10,519 | <p>This might sound like a silly question, but I am not a native speaker of English, so I find it sometimes difficult to write my first draft in that language. What I usually do is write my first draft in Italian, my mother tongue, and then translate it into English. Once I went to a short course on writing in English, where the lecturer advised us that it is better to write the first draft in English, even though it can be very difficult for some people.</p>
<p>What would be your advice in this case? Should I still stick with writing my first draft in my mother tongue and then translate it into English? I feel more productive in that way, but any advice would be helpful.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10520,
"author": "superuser0",
"author_id": 6690,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6690",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>Personal opinion from a non-native english speaker:</strong></p>\n\n<p>You should write it as much as possible in <em>english</em>. Start working with bullet points of your ideas and then transfer them to full sentences after you are done. Since most academic papers are in english, it has already been mentioned on this platform a ton of times, that you should get used to the language, i.e. the vocabularies and the way people reason, in your field.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10524,
"author": "Paul Hiemstra",
"author_id": 4091,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4091",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>For better or worse, the lingua-franca of science nowadays is English. If you plan on staying in science, you can use all the English training you can get. So, I would advice writing everything in English. Do try and get feedback from someone who is good at English, preferably a native speaker, to point any language errors you might not see yourself.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10526,
"author": "user7381",
"author_id": 7381,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7381",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think I understand how you're more comfortable drafting in Italian first then translating it to English, however I believe this is a mistake. Many terms and ideas don't translate properly from your mother tongue and it often shows. </p>\n\n<p>Go ahead and draft it in your best English and if you have trouble expressing some ideas then make the note in Italian and you can go back and work those into your most colorful English with your final draft. </p>\n\n<p>It turns out that English has a vast variety of words at your fingertips when writing and this allows you to be very unique while maintaining creativity and genuineness, that's why most books now are written in English.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10528,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Not only I suggest you write everything (research related) in English, but I also suggest you use English in your personal research notes, or even in your thinking process. In this way you skip the unnecessary step of translation and therefore you can read, learn, speak and write faster and easier. In fact when I started reading English books in my undergraduate, I realized it is better I skip translation and try to understand everything in English and try to solve problems in English. Since then, all my practices and my personal notes have been in English. When I am thinking about a problem or a statement I automatically switch to English and avoid my mother tongue. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10531,
"author": "Ana",
"author_id": 322,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/322",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>On the one hand, writing in English is better because the phrases and sentence structures you will end up using will sound more natural to the reader. On the other hand, if you are writing the first draft before having a crystal clear idea how your argumentation will flow (i.e. if, for you, writing is also a tool for <em>thinking</em>), then writing in English might take take away from this process because it's difficult. </p>\n\n<p>I would certainly agree with everyone else that using English for the first draft is a good idea. But when I write, I also write an outline of the draft in a separate document. This outline summarizes each paragraph I plan to write, usually in a single sentence, so that it gives me a good overview of the structure the manuscript is going to have. I use it to combine the points I want to make with other findings I think are important to mention (usually I find that these don't match up very well on the first try!), and then I shuffle things around, add and remove items, until I have a story that will flow naturally from the questions I ask to the conclusions I make. And only then do I start writing the draft. And this outline, I would recommend writing in your native tongue. It should be easier to switch to English afterwards, when you begin writing the draft, because you'll already have a clear idea of what you want to say.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10519",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6144/"
]
|
10,522 | <p><strong>TL;DR</strong>: I'm a pure math graduate student who doesn't like research mathematics. Should I continue and get the PhD because I suspect I might like teaching at a 4-year liberal arts college?</p>
<hr>
<p>I am currently in a pure math PhD program at a fairly good university. I just finished my second year there, and after passing qualifying exams have been awarded a Master's.</p>
<p>Ever since I arrived in grad school, I have been fairly dissatisfied. I went to grad school because math in undergrad felt relevant, and I loved the feeling of leaping from logical lily-pad to logical lily-pad en route to proving something. In grad school, though, these feelings have become fewer and far between. I feel like things have become more mechanical and more like banging my head against a wall. For the most part, I find it very difficult to motivate myself to do my work; I never look forward to getting started in the morning. I have finished required courses and qualifying exams, but the difficulty continues as I do a reading course in preparation for work with an advisor.</p>
<p>Overall, I have realized that research math is not for me. I have quite enjoyed my teaching experiences, which so far consist of leading recitation sessions, tutoring, and the first week of teaching a summer course. Because of the heavy emphasis on "teaching to the test" in secondary education, among other things, I suspect I would enjoy teaching at, say, a liberal arts college more than teaching at a secondary school. However, I feel pretty inexperienced in teaching, and so I don't feel certain by any means about these feelings. This is now the only reason I would want to stay in graduate school. Is this enough reason to continue for the next 3-4 years to the PhD?</p>
<p>According to my advisor, I would be in graduate school another 3-3.5 years for the PhD. I would love to work at a liberal arts institution in the US, but ideally one where the research load is minimal/nonexistent. The impression I got from skimming MathJobs recently was that such positions were relatively rare compared to research-intensive positions. Do you feel like I would be very likely to find such a job if I stayed for the PhD?</p>
<p>Any advice is much appreciated! Thank you, everyone.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10523,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I know of people who have completed PhDs at prestigious institutions (in computer science) just so that they could teach at a liberal arts college. It certainly seems to be one way into that profession, and an admirable profession it is indeed. </p>\n\n<p>Doing a PhD requires a lot of motivation and hard work, even if you are not aiming for a high profile research career. The question you need to ask yourself is \"Are the benefits of finishing the PhD worth the effort? Will you be motivated enough to complete if you are not interested in research?\" </p>\n\n<p>Consider also doing some pedagogic studies, so that you know the theory of how to teach and, more importantly, how to help students learn.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10525,
"author": "Benoît Kloeckner",
"author_id": 946,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/946",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Notably given the especially difficult employment market in academia (in France but I guess it is the same everywhere), I always advise: do a PhD for the years doing research themselves, not for what you expect to gain from the title. As Dave Clarke stresses, doing a PhD requires a lot of motivation and hard work; but if you do not like the good times enough, it can be really wasted years. If you think you won't enjoy the years of your PhD, you should consider seriously all other opportunities you have.</p>\n\n<p>By the way, I think the same applies to postdoc positions.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10534,
"author": "Nate Eldredge",
"author_id": 1010,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1010",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>You should know that these days, most 4-year liberal arts colleges in the US expect their tenure-track mathematics faculty to do research. </p>\n\n<p>Colleges want to be able to offer their students the opportunity to be taught by experts who are contributing to their field. There is also increasing interest in getting undergraduates involved in research, which means the faculty have to have research programs to get them involved in.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, there is a wide spectrum of expectations. At the most selective liberal arts colleges, research expectations can approach those of a mid-level research university, demanding a regular output of papers published in good journals. Elsewhere there can be more flexibility, replacing a specific requirement for \"research\" with the broader term \"scholarship\"; they might require only occasional publications, and they could be projects with students, or articles about teaching.</p>\n\n<p>But in general, if you want an academic job in mathematics that doesn't require you to do any research at all, you're going to restrict yourself to the least selective tiers of liberal arts colleges, or to non-tenure-track positions (and often liberal arts colleges tend to have relatively few such positions, compared to large universities).</p>\n\n<p>You might have a look at <a href=\"http://mathjobs.org\">MathJobs</a> to get a sense of what jobs are out there, and what they expect. Note that there are not so many listings in summer, since this hiring cycle is mostly finished; many more will appear in the fall.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10556,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Although it is generally a good rule to think that one oughtn't commit to things one doesn't want to do... and the other answers reflect this in several good ways... sometimes there <em>is</em> an \"entry fee\" that is unpleasant to pay.</p>\n\n<p>Yes, it is true that there is an ever-greater pretense that all faculty in colleges and universities \"do research\", but, as one might imagine, not quite all of this is cutting-edge... In fact, the requirements of completing a PhD at most \"good\" places are a bit more strenuous than the \"research\" required at little colleges. In particular, as I gather from substantial anecdotal evidence, it is possible to be much saner/human in \"small\" situations, about pretension-to-research. True, it may not be wise to be \"too honest\", as in many professional/human situations.</p>\n\n<p>That is, you might try to view \"the PhD\" as simply a college teaching license. Certainly if you do <em>not</em> have it you'll be at an extreme disadvantage forever... One might view it as a prolonged licensure ordeal?</p>\n\n<p>And, at the same time, it is quite excellent that you have realized so clearly that you don't want to \"be a researcher\". This is much better than the self-conflicted delusional versions of the story. But what remains is to gain the credentials. \"Cred\".</p>\n\n<p>This is not necessarily a recommendation to stay in your PhD program, especially since your recoil has been fairly strong (though one doesn't know how to interpret printed words' intensity...) But, sure, no one likes to take \"drivers' training\", and many other things. But it can be done, routinely.</p>\n\n<p>The last adverb is a significant point: unless you're at an elite place, and unless you are truly severely allergic to \"higher math\", ... \"it's not that hard\" to finish the PhD. The fact that you've already done the qualifiers and such shows that it is easily within your power... if you so choose.</p>\n\n<p>So, srsly, the question is about what you want your appearance to be for the rest of your life. Not that being PhD'd makes anyone a better person! But, it adds something to the ol' resume, undeniably.</p>\n\n<p>And, again-at-the-end, being \"too honest\" about one's disinclinations is not necessarily a good thing.</p>\n\n<p>Good luck, ... in figuring out complicated things.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 14218,
"author": "hunse",
"author_id": 9558,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9558",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can't comment on the US, but in Canada there are a number of \"lecturer\" positions, even at research universities. Lecturers only teach; they don't do any research, and it is not necessary to get a PhD to be a lecturer (though I'm sure it doesn't hurt, and some positions do request a PhD). It seems that these positions are becoming more common, especially because the current Canadian government likes to cut costs, so funding is harder to come by. I would suggest searching for these types of positions, and hopefully that will give you an idea of what is out there, how many positions are available, and how many require PhDs.</p>\n\n<p>Here's <a href=\"http://www.psychology.uwaterloo.ca/positions/lecturer.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">one example</a> at my university that does require a PhD (in Psychology, not math, sorry).</p>\n\n<p>EDIT: Having said all that, I don't think it's worth continuing your PhD if you're not enjoying it. If you don't like what you're doing, it's going to be very difficult to put the time and energy into completing your thesis. If the area of research is a problem (you're not interested in your research project, or you simply feel stuck), perhaps you can ask your supervisor for a different project, or switch supervisors, or even switch to another department, program, or university.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10522",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7380/"
]
|
10,529 | <p>I have 2 months where I should write the literature review for my PhD thesis. However, I don't know how to write one.</p>
<p>In general terms, what would be a good way to start the literature review? For instance, how can I organize the reading and divide it in topics?</p>
<p>I would appreciate any helpful ideas, books, or articles.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10530,
"author": "Layla",
"author_id": 6144,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6144",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Depending on your topic, I recommend that you start taking the basics from books. After that you can get more specialized information from articles or journals. Do not forget to keep a list of the references that you are obtaining, maybe with a little summary of each of one.\nAnother advice is that you start writing about the information that you get, then cluster your information by similar sub topics, so you avoid the formation of information islands.\nGood luck!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10563,
"author": "Ellie",
"author_id": 7407,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7407",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Since you don't say what field you are in, this may not work for you - but I'll describe how I do a literature review in the biomedical sciences. I've tried to be general, so it could apply to other fields, but if you're not in science at all it might not work for you.</p>\n\n<p>The first step to writing a literature review is defining your topic. What is the key question/ concept you are trying to explain or summarize? This can be difficult if you are really starting from zero on a topic, and will probably need to be refined as you work on your review. But it's important to define this at least in draft form before you start.</p>\n\n<p>The second step is coming up with search terms. Begin by searching your question/ concept on Google Scholar or another large database - if it's a biomedical topic, Cochrane Reviews is a good place to start. I'm not sure if there are similar review databases for other fields. Look for a few key papers in the area, read those, and look at their reference lists. Also, record their 'key terms' (usually below the abstract) - these will help you define search terms. Pull relevant papers from their reference lists and repeat. Once you've gone through ~ 10 papers you will probably have a good sense of the type of key words that are important for your topic. Use these terms to build an improved literature search.</p>\n\n<p>Third, you need to actually do the literature search. Your field probably has a database of journals - use this and your search terms to identify all relevant papers over whatever time frame you are interested. You'll probably need to refine as you go, so you don't get swamped with papers. I prefer to go use a systematic search strategy, even if I'm not doing a systematic review, since this removes some subjectivity. This means going through all results, and reading any papers which have titles or abstracts that suggest they may be relevant to your question. </p>\n\n<p>Fourth, you need to read and take notes. Make sure your notes are indexed by paper, so that you always have the citation of the original paper with whatever facts you note down. I find OneNote is a great way to do this, but there are other tools I'm sure. </p>\n\n<p>For me, once I've read 20 or so papers, I usually have a pretty good idea of what the answer to my question/topic is, and what the nuances are. Then it's just a matter of organizing the notes that I've already taken into a rough outline of what I want to say (remembering to keep label all the facts/opinions with their citations). After that, you're ready to start writing, and it's not too difficult since you've already got a good sense of what to write as well as a rough draft in the form of notes. </p>\n\n<p>One important caveat is that you should always re-write all your notes in your own words as you go through the outline converting it into a paper. This way, if you occasionally just copied the original author's text when taking notes, you won't end up with their words in your paper (which would be plagiarizing). </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10529",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7382/"
]
|
10,536 | <p>In a literature review, we look at recent publications and put what other researchers have said in this context. However, how can I develop my own argument? Should I write it with my own words or should the argument be based in what others have said?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10539,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The literature review is just that, a review of the published literature - synthesised and analysed. Developing your own arguments should occur after this review as you then have something to refer back to when developing your stance.</p>\n\n<p>A study technique I use, is as I am reviewing the literature for this chapter, I keep a notepad near by and jot down parts of my argument as I proceed.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10543,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Damien Igoe's answer is very accurate, however, I would add that I think it is possible to interpret what someone wrote in a different way than others have previously interpreted. However, your arguments should not be confused with the other authors' arguments.</p>\n\n<p>Originality in analysis is often welcomed. However, originality in structure should be done very carefully. Common structures exist for a reason. In my field, it is common to switch between the reviewed author's points and your own:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Jones (1991) claimed that the primary motivator for workers was public\n recognition while Smith (2004) believed that workers were more\n concerned with monetary compensation. I will show that both were\n correct by showing that workers really care most about their\n compensation being publicly higher than the average for their\n position.</p>\n</blockquote>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10545,
"author": "Thomas",
"author_id": 6984,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6984",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would offer a slightly different answer from either of the others, both of which are excellent. Each of these answers and my own are probably (at least somewhat) discipline-specific.</p>\n\n<p>Rarely, in my view, should a literature review be just that - a simple review. Instead, the best structure for papers in my field is an introduction, followed by a single section that provides theory and specific hypotheses derived from that theory, followed by empirics, etc. There is no \"literature review\" per se.</p>\n\n<p>Instead, literature that is relevant for establishing a problem is cited in the introduction and literature relevant for building new theory, elaborating existing theory, and/or challenging existing evidence/arguments is cited in the course of making one's theoretical argument. From that argument come testable hypotheses, all of this being stated in one section (possibly with subsections, depending on the scope of the paper) between introduction and research design.</p>\n\n<p>In this way, relevant literature is reviewed in the course of constructing arguments, with quotes and references both bringing credibility to your arguments and being used to demonstrate weaknesses in extant work. Thus, your review should be your own argument largely in your own words, with others' work cited and sparingly quoted where it helps you.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/09 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10536",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7382/"
]
|
10,537 | <p>At my university, we are informed of our yearly raise with a letter mid-summer. There is no scheduled meetings with the chair or anyone else to discuss performance or the raise -- as far as I can tell, we just wait and see what it is. It tends to be a small cost-of-living raise in the range of 3%. </p>
<p>Should a pre-tenure assistant professor actively seek to meet with the chair and ask/negotiate for a larger raise, or is this not done in academia? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10542,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My feeling is that it should not hurt to ask, as long as you ask in the right way.</p>\n\n<p>Negotiations are always tricky but having an open conversation with 'the boss' should always be a choice. </p>\n\n<p>You might want to meet the chair with another issue and bring up the salary question as an additional point, as opposed to the main reason for the meeting. Also, approaching it as a question: You're looking to better understand school norms and who better than the chair to explain them to you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10544,
"author": "JeffE",
"author_id": 65,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/65",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>Should a pre-tenure assistant professor actively seek to meet with the chair </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<h2><strong>Yes!</strong></h2>\n\n<p>You should <em>insist</em> on meeting with your department chair at least once a year, if not once a semester, to discuss strengths and weaknesses in your evolving tenure case. Make no mistake—your tenure case started evolving the moment you signed your offer letter. If you are doing the right things to get tenure, you need to hear that. If you are missing something important, you need to hear that as well. Symmetrically, if you think things are going well, your chair needs to hear that, and if you think things are going badly, especially if something in the department is proving to be a burden, your chair needs to hear that, too.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>and ask/negotiate for a larger raise</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Oh, I suppose, if you have good pitch. You're not going to get a bigger raise just because you ask for it.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10546,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As in most fields, you only have so many negotiating \"chips\". You can spend these chips on whatever you want, but some things cost more chips than others. For example, a raise probably requires your chair to get approval from the dean and is therefore \"expensive\". Asking for some extra research/travel money is \"cheap\", especially if it is at the end of the fiscal year and there is extra money in the budget, since the chair likely controls that pot of money. Teaching load is often controlled by the chair, but does require someone else to pick up the slack so do cost some \"chips\". Basically you have to decide what you want and if you are willing to spend the chips to get it. What makes it difficult is knowing exactly how many chips something will cost.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10553,
"author": "StasK",
"author_id": 739,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/739",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It only makes real sense when you have a competing offer, which means you have been on the market this year, which means you are considering leaving, which means that the chair either knows this or will get to know this when you come to talk to them. It is unlikely that the chair will be excited to give a raise to the person who is going to leave, anyway. On top of that, as Daniel Shub put it, negotiating a salary increase means going at least one level up to ask for the extra money for the chair, and there should be a very good reason for this. Even if you just got the NSF Career award, the chair will just say, \"Great, you now have the research money to support yourself -- congratulations! No salary increase, though\".</p>\n\n<p>Most likely, if you are going to complain about your pay being too low, you will hear a story about salary inversion, i.e., the tenured faculty in your department making less than you do, which is only justified a small fraction of the time for the deadwood faculty. So the priority will be to raise the non-deadwood inverted salaries -- these guys are here to stay -- and then address your concerns -- you are not here to stay yet, sorry -- subject to any remaining money. Having heard you complaining is not likely to make the chair want you to stay, either.</p>\n\n<p>In a very rare event, you can come up with a scheme in which you bring the department more money, and then your request to see an extra cut of the pie may be legit. This could mean creating a new program/degree/track that is going to be the nations first program in interdisciplinary bubble sort or bean scouting or some other BS, but then it means that you are committing to a teaching track rather than a research track. If your research is stellar, and you want to diversify into teaching, that's probably OK; but most of the time proposals like that from a junior faculty will look weird and awkward.</p>\n\n<p>As JeffE said, you MUST talk to your chair once in a while, and the annual review time is one of the best opportunities to do so. Your case was reviewed by the faculty not so long ago, so the memories of your file are reasonably fresh in the chair's head; it would be easier for them to connect the dots than it would be say in September when the new semester starts, with new students and new courses and all other hectic stuff happening in the department.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/09 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10537",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7393/"
]
|
10,548 | <p>Is it illegal to share students' grades with somebody else (e.g their parents) without their consent in the US? What are the most common penalties for such a violation of privacy? Is jail time possible as a punishment?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10551,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In the US the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) protects the privacy of students. This \"act\" is not a law (on further reading it is a law), but rather a stipulation by the Department of Education that universities must obey in order to receive funding. As such, I do not believe that violations are classed as a criminal offense and hence cannot lead to jail time. Universities which violate the FERPA can lose their funding and likely have grounds to dismiss employees who violate the act. The university might even be able to seek damages against those individuals, but again, not jail time.</p>\n\n<p>I would suggest that you not violate FERPA. If you intend to, or have done so (accidentally or otherwise), I suggest that you seek legal advice.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10562,
"author": "mako",
"author_id": 5962,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5962",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>A number of people have mentioned <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FERPA\" rel=\"noreferrer\">FERPA</a>. Looking at <a href=\"http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/20/1232g\" rel=\"noreferrer\">the text of FERPA</a> and at <a href=\"http://www.registrar.clemson.edu/FERPA/violation.htm\" rel=\"noreferrer\">this University web page</a> suggests what some others have said: violations of FERPA can result, ultimately, in withholding funding from the university but the law does not list criminal sanctions for either individuals or institutions for violation. That is also my understanding.</p>\n\n<p>That said, there other privacy laws or other kinds of laws that might be violated by disclosure of educational records. There are a variety of other state, local, and federal laws — plus plenty of common law tort law, that could take effect. And besides, people sue for all kinds of things including things that aren't even in violation of a law.</p>\n\n<p>To be clear: I am not a lawyer nor a legal expert and this is not legal advice. But, as a non-lawyer that likes to believe that world has certain common-sense limits, it seems <em>insane</em> to suggest that telling a parent a grade could result in jail time. If you're worried and need a \"real\" answer, you should find a lawyer and ask.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10564,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is not legal advice... If only people giving mathematical or dietary advice without credentials could be sued for failing to make a similar disclaimer! :)</p>\n\n<p>There are two parts to this issue. First, is it ok to tell people students' grades? In the U.S., almost entirely \"no\", if the student is 18 or older. FERPA. It doesn't matter whether or not the student's parents are paying the tuition, the student's grades are privileged personal information.</p>\n\n<p>It <em>is</em> acceptable use to disclose student grades for (e.g.) intra-math-departmental function, such as advising, admission committee work, and other \"privileged\" use.</p>\n\n<p>A traditional practice that is no longer ok is posting grades on instructors' doors, for example.</p>\n\n<p>For \"old\" people, the idea that one is not in fact legally entitled to know the grades of the student whose tuition you're paying will seem strange. Indeed, decades ago, the grades were sent to the parents directly, in paper mail.</p>\n\n<p>But, now, 18-or-over people are essentially legal adults in the U.S., and their school records (and medical records) are not automatically open to their parents.</p>\n\n<p>Thus, despite intuition to the contrary, simply do not give grades to parents, ... without seeking legal advice about extenuating circumstances, such as emergencies.</p>\n\n<p>Edit: but, then, \"jail time\"? Who knows? But maybe monetary damages if someone sues you for violation of their privacy rights. Apart from the risk of this, if we think it through, maybe kids' grades (if they're \"adults\") should not be divulged to anyone... So don't do it?</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10548",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7396/"
]
|
10,569 | <p>I am in the second year of a research degree, and with one more year I could finish my PhD. However, I got a very good job offer at a leading company in the field, which would mean I'd have to finish my degree now (which would then be an MPhil) and start working.</p>
<p>I am hard pressed to make a decision, but I find it very hard to judge: what are the benefits of finishing a PhD over taking a job at a good company? Often people do a PhD to get into such a company, but what if that is not the case? Also, I feel that at this point, a job would be more challenging than a third year of a PhD, which would just be a continuation of the same thing I've been doing for two years now.</p>
<p>On the other hand, people tell me it would be silly to quit now that I am so close, because "a PhD is worth so much more." I would very much like some extra input on this: is a PhD 'worth more' in the end? And what are other things that I'd have to take into account to make an informed decision? </p>
<p>I'm only 23 years old, so I could even do a PhD later, but I'd have to start from the beginning again. Would it be an advantage or a disadvantage to have worked for a couple of years, when applying for a PhD again later?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10571,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Well, firstly, congratulations on the job offer - you must have seriously impressed them to be offered a position before the completion of the PhD.</p>\n\n<p>So, we come to the crux of the issue, the main thing is (and you have no doubt heard this before), but the decision is up to you, and by that, I mean totally up to you. But, to be a bit more helpful let's look at the information you provided.</p>\n\n<p>You are young and in later years, should you choose to pursue the PhD, it <em>could</em> be likely that you will be able to have some credits towards a future PhD (this would depend on the college). If I understand you correctly, you'll be able to get a MPhil? that will help with the first point (credits towards a PhD) and certainly is recognition of the study you have done so far.</p>\n\n<p>So a couple of key questions you have to ask yourself are:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Which of the job or the PhD will lead you to your goals quicker and in a more enriching way?</p></li>\n<li><p>How much would working at this company mean to you?</p></li>\n<li><p>and related to the question above, will that opportunity resurface upon completion of your PhD?</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Another option, once again depending on the policies of your university is to defer the final year of your PhD or complete it part time, while you work (which is what I am doing).</p>\n\n<ul>\n- \n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10575,
"author": "Vlad Preda",
"author_id": 7413,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7413",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I would say that it depends a LOT on the field you work in.</p>\n\n<p>I can tell you my personal experience in my field: programming (although it was with the Masters degree, not with a PhD).</p>\n\n<p>I started working during college, and by the time I finished it, I already had a bit of experience, and was able to get good jobs, although this kept me from finishing the Masters. So far, I had no issues at any interviews with this, I got some certifications and made some specialization courses in my free time, I learned what I wanted, and this helped me a lot.</p>\n\n<p>I also have a few years of experience ahead of my former colleagues that didn't do what I did and finished their studies, but I don't regret my decision.</p>\n\n<p>On the other hand, some of my colleagues managed to get great internships after finishing their studies at very big, picky companies, where I could potentially go in a year or so, but not as an intern (and a good job).</p>\n\n<p>There are a few things you need to ask yourself:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Are you doing the PhD to get a job similar to what you have been offered, or to get a much better job in a few more years, and how big is that difference between what you have been offered now, and what you can find after the PhD ?</strong></li>\n<li>How important is the experience in your field of work ? In more theoretical fields, your PhD can greatly outweigh the experience you can get.</li>\n<li>Do you think that money will ever be an issue (since doing the PhD probably doesn't pay), and unfortunately you have to think of this as well.</li>\n<li>If you don't do the PhD now - how likely are you to resume it in let's say 5 years.</li>\n<li>How well is the university rated in your country ? (check <a href=\"http://www.arwu.org/\">http://www.arwu.org/</a> )</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Also, you can go ask your professor at the university and see what he has to say, he probably saw both scenarios (people who quit to get jobs, and people who didn't) - and he/she will probably have some advice for you.</p>\n\n<p>This is as much as anyone can say, after all, it's your life, and your decisions.</p>\n\n<p>PS: I'm 25, so not much older than you :)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10576,
"author": "mako",
"author_id": 5962,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5962",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Is your goal to go into industry after finishing your PhD? If the answer is \"yes\" and the current job is perfect, my advice will usually be to go. If you goal is to go into academia and to become a professor, the job is a distraction and you should pass on it and finish the PhD.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, things vary by field but my general advice, which I believe is true in most (but not all) fields, is that you need a PhD if you want to be a professor but that it is not critical for doing most other jobs. And because PhDs take up time that you could be sending getting work experience and promotions, it may even be harmful for these other pursuits.</p>\n\n<p>Potential students make the wrong comparison when they judge whether or not a PhD is helpful to their career goals. It is common for people to compare themselves without a PhD <em>now</em> to themselves with a PhD <em>now</em>. Obviously, the PhD will provide a leg up.</p>\n\n<p>But that's not the accurate comparison because there are opportunity costs to doing a doctorate. The true comparison is between (a) yourself with 4-6 years of experience in industry and no PhD and (b) you with 4-6 years work in a PhD program, no industry experience, and a PhD. In <em>most</em> fields, (a) is better, or at least not usually worse, than (b).</p>\n\n<p>Doing a PhD includes a lot of effort that goes into navigating and succeeding in an academic environment. If you are going to be a professor, this is important training. If you are not, you are likely better off doing the things you want to end up doing somewhere more appropriate.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10584,
"author": "Nobody",
"author_id": 546,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/546",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The question is basically, Academia or industry?</p>\n\n<p>I don't think doing both is a good idea at this moment.</p>\n\n<p>Given that you are 23 years old, you probably never have a real industry job before. You will have to devote yourself to the new job if you accept the offer. You probably have to work 50+ hours a week in the first year. It's very hard to do both at the same time if not impossible.</p>\n\n<p>You need to ask yourself a question. What was your reason to study for PhD in the first place? Were you interested in research? Or you wanted to have a PhD in order to have a better industry job?</p>\n\n<p>If your ultimate goal was to have a good industry job, then you just got one. Grab it.</p>\n\n<p>If you wanted to do research, being a retiree from industry, I can tell you that you are not going to have much freedom to do the research you want to do. You'll have to do whatever your employer wants you to do. You'll become a money maker.</p>\n\n<p>So, we are back to the basic question. What was your career plan? If you did not know the answer when you started the PhD program, now is the time to make that decision. If you still don't know the answer after pondering over for a while, then you need to think about Lev Reyzin's suggestion, that is, take leave of absence from Academia. This is not a true good idea, just a temporary solution. It delays your decision. Your attitude will be like going there to test water. Chances are, you'll not devote yourself to your new job. I am not too sure you'll succeed the industry job that way.</p>\n\n<p>My suggestion for you, figure out where you want to be 10 years from now. If the answer is Academia, continue your PhD. If it's industry, take the offer. You don’t need to have PhD to be a successful business person after all.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11752,
"author": "Chandra",
"author_id": 8094,
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"text": "<p>I am in my last year of a PhD program but decided to take up job now. To be clear and frank about my view towards a doctoral degree, I never enrolled in the PhD program to have Dr. in front of my name. I enrolled as I liked the project would I will be working on and the skills I would be learning from it. Also this would be my main opportunity gain new skills and test my research interest and skills.</p>\n\n<p>I always wanted to work in industry, I worked before my MSc one year in industry. Now I got the opportunity to start working with the current market rate pay with my current work experience. I don't have any regrets if I can't complete my PhD while working at the new job. I can say as most of PhD students in this situation are thinking what others going to say, guilt of living in middle. But I can say that something new to start, something should end. If you think the opportunity is great then go for it. You're the one who will live with your decision, don't worry what others are going to say. If you become successfully in future with your current decision then same people who ridiculed you, will come to you and will ask your help. </p>\n\n<p>I am lucky as my supervisor is realistic and his opinion is that it will be up to me whether I get PhD or not, as working your normal job and completing remaining PhD stuff is tough task to do. So he gave me full freedom to choose as its my life and my career and I will decide which direction it will go. </p>\n\n<p>I am considering taking up job before finishing PhD not just because of job offer. I have a family situation where I need to have job soon and I think this is right choice for me and my family. At the end of journey if I get PhD its all well and good but only if the knowledge skill learned will stay with me always. </p>\n\n<p>Regarding PhD will help you in industry to get job, its too tricky. It depends upon your PhD research area. as not all industry want to have PhD students. and with my interview experiences I realized very few companies prefer PhD students more then someone with a BSc or MSc. Companies are worried about PhD students as how the student after 3 years of research work will fit in industrial world? If not, then company will loose all investment on PhD students when he resigns job as he unable to adjust to the industrial world.</p>\n\n<p>My opinion is Focus on what your rational brain decides and also listen to what your heart wants. When both are same, then go for it. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10569",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7410/"
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|
10,578 | <p>In each research paper, there are a lot of things that I want to highlight for later use such as definitions, explanations and concepts... While most of them focus on the topic of the paper, there are some relating to a different or broader topics, e.g. a paper about investigating performance of a specific system may introduce different benchmarks and metrics for performance evaluation and explain why those approaches are applicable for this specific situation.</p>
<p>Normally, I just highlight all of them, put some notes directly into the paper or using <a href="http://evernote.com/">Evernote</a>. However, when I want to look for all highlights and notes about one specific topic, I find it difficult as they scatter in different papers and documents. So, are there any tools or techniques to affectively highlighting important points and group them by topic while reading research paper?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10616,
"author": "cartonn",
"author_id": 5613,
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"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>This probably isn't an ideal solution; but I still find it to be the most effective in the long run:</p>\n\n<p>I simply keep a log of what I read, and I specifically do this using tex. That way, you will have a searchable document for any words that you may be looking for in your notes. You can also use the <code>makeidx</code> package to add an index to your text document, which lets you \"tag\" sections of your documents with various keywords. I also make sure to cite what I read, even if it is for my own purposes. This is especially useful when you are writing a paper, since most of your references will be ready in <code>bibtex</code> format.</p>\n\n<p>It took me a while to get used to, but I find it very nice to have a well organized research log.</p>\n\n<p>Since requested in the comments, given below is what the log looks like. I don't want it to become a full latex document, but it should be sufficient enough to give you an idea. Note the index markers, which are basically \"tags\" that don't show up in the text.</p>\n\n<pre><code>\\section{Paper #1 Name, Authors, Date, \\cite{...}}\nMy summary of the motivation and findings of the paper, or whatever I find interesting/useful.\nMay be as short as a few sentences or as long as a page, depending on how relevant it is. \n\\index{an important word}\n\n\\section{Paper #2 Name, Authors, Date, \\cite{...}}\nSame thing here.. \\index{another important word or two}\n\n\\section{Paper #3 Name, Authors, Date, \\cite{...}}\nand so on..\n\n\\printindex\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>Then you can look up your page numbers in the index, which is included at the end of the document. For more information about the package, see <a href=\"https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&ved=0CDYQFjAB&url=http://www.ctan.org/pkg/makeidx&ei=rkS_UfmyE9LB4AOUqoDQBw&usg=AFQjCNFSKosvPcHUnkeA1dsO9RiBlBZ5QQ&bvm=bv.47883778,d.dmg\">CTAN</a> and <a href=\"http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/LaTeX/Indexing\">Wiki</a>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 54567,
"author": "nathanielng",
"author_id": 23382,
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"text": "<p>I currently use the software called <a href=\"http://papersapp.com\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Papers</a>. You can use tags to arrange PDFs according to topic. Another alternative is to use \"collections\" since a single PDF can be placed in more than one collection.</p>\n\n<p>Next, filter PDFs that match a certain \"tag\"/\"keyword\". In the example below, it's \"hydrogen embrittlement\":</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/ZWhe1.png\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/ZWhe1.png\" alt=\"hydrogen embrittlement\"></a></p>\n\n<p>Lastly, for each PDF, you can get a list of all highlighted text (summarised in the right column) as follows:</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/grUvp.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/grUvp.jpg\" alt=\"highlighted text in a PDF\"></a></p>\n\n<p>The page numbers in the right column are clickable, so its easy to jump to the relevant place in the article.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/06/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10578",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,579 | <p>Well, I don't know how to confirm to myself that the words which I'm writing are my own words. Now, maybe those words are based on what I have read recently because if not there won't be anything to say. Should I for example just comment in what other researchers say which I'm paraphrasing what they wrote or can I also write as if I was talking (words which are based on what I have read)?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10580,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
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"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I don't know what the purpose of your writing is, so the answer really depends on that. It sounds like you're writing some kind of review of prior work (either as a survey or as part of a paper) ? In that case, the goal here is not to regurgitate (in your words or via paraphrase) what others say. Rather, you should be reading what they say and thinking about it (and seeing if you're convinced by it). </p>\n\n<p>Only after that should you even attempt to describe the work. And when you do so, put all reference material away. If you can't describe someone else's work without referring to it, then you don't really understand it yet. In this way you'll ensure that you use your own ideas/thoughts to express what's gone before. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10582,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I second @Suresh's remarks, but/and the situation is truly more complicated, as your explanation of your question correctly indicates.</p>\n\n<p>For example, complicated, sophisticated things are often so easy to mis-represent that it seems as though there's almost a unique path, a unique narrative, that is correct. And it may be non-trivial to learn what this path is. Thus, in effect, the phrasing of a high authority is not only \"burned into one's retinas\", but, also, seems the only correct thing to say.</p>\n\n<p>So, first, do <em>not</em> try to \"say something else\", just for the sake of avoiding \"quoting\", because that seeming paraphrase may be wrong, or deficient, or ... </p>\n\n<p>But, at the same time, extended passages should not be quoted, unless put in quotation marks. It's best to internalize ideas well enough to give \"the standard definition\" and such things, even if that ends up sounding very similar to other sources. Similarity is inevitable in many cases.</p>\n\n<p>As in many scenarios, honesty is a clarifying criterion. That is, is what you write coming out of your own head, even if it resembles other sources, or are you quite literally copying? The latter is not so good.</p>\n"
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| 2013/06/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10579",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,588 | <p>Some sexism is obvious, blatant, and/or deliberate. Fortunately, my understanding is that this kind of sexism is <em>mostly</em> a thing of the past.</p>
<p>However, female colleagues have told me that more "benign", but still harmful, sexism is still very prevalent in academia. In particular, I've heard that implicit assumptions that women are less capable, or more inclined to be teachers than researchers, are distressingly common. As a mathematician, the results are distressingly obvious: most math departments are overwhelmingly male.</p>
<p>What are some ways in which sexism is unknowingly perpetrated by well-meaning people, in academia in particular? And how can those of us who are well-meaning make sure to avoid doing so?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10596,
"author": "Irwin",
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"text": "<p><a href=\"http://www.ncwit.org\">NCWIT (National Center for Women & Information Technology)</a> has an article specifically about <a href=\"http://www.ncwit.org/resources/how-do-stereotype-threats-affect-retention-better-approaches-well-intentioned-harmful\">stereotype threat in computing</a>.</p>\n\n<p>While that resource is student-oriented, it illustrates some examples of how even well-intentioned comments are indications of stereotyping.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10598,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 7,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>And how can those of us who are well-meaning make sure to avoid doing so?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p><strong>If you see something, say something.</strong></p>\n\n<p>You're correct that blatant sexism is mostly gone. I'm a female computer engineer, and I have never been told that I can't do the job because I'm female. What remains is \"death by a thousand paper cuts\" sexism. For example, I was recently at a conference, and the small group I was in was discussing one of the presentations. An older professor in the group remarked that the presentation was particularly good because the presenter was beautiful and wearing tight clothes. Nobody called him on it: after all, he was trying to give her a compliment, mentioning it would be rude, he's older and things were different then, and so on. And it's hard to blame them, because if that were the only sexist comment I heard that day, it wouldn't be such a big deal. But shortly after that, someone jokingly said I should marry my PhD supervisor. Then someone said a new tool is so user friendly that \"even your mother could use it\".</p>\n\n<p>Each of these incidents on its own is fairly mild: most people probably don't even realize they're saying something exclusionary. Unfortunately, if you're a woman, each one reminds you that you <em>don't belong</em>, so the cumulative effect is very discouraging. However, if you correct every person who says something mildly sexist, you get a reputation as a bra-burning feminazi. As a result, most women keep quiet, or only point out the particularly insensitive comments. It would make an enormous difference if <em>other men</em> would call out the ones who make inappropriate comments. You don't have to be dramatic or rude about it, but a quiet \"I don't think that's appropriate\" would take a lot of the burden off women. And naturally, you can try to be more aware of the things <em>you</em> say to make sure you aren't accidentally discouraging women. A lot of sexist ideas are so deeply ingrained that otherwise fair and open minded people will say them without a second thought (like the \"even your mother\" comment).</p>\n\n<p>I don't want to downplay the other valuable things you can do, such as volunteering at math/science camps for girls, but if enough men followed this rule -- even part time -- 80% of the sexism I encounter would disappear. To modify Edmund Burke's quote a bit,</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>All that is necessary for sexism to triumph is for good men to do nothing.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>June 27, 2014: After a year of comment trolls, I think it's time to add a point about men's rights activists. The key mistake that MRAs make is treating rights as a zero-sum game. The fact is, gender stereotypes hurt everyone. They hurt women who want to be engineers; they hurt men who want to be nurses. They hurt women who don't want to have children; they hurt men who want to be stay-at-home dads. </p>\n\n<p>Sometimes, these stereotypes result in a disadvantage for men. For example, Doug Spoonwood points out that American men have to register with the selective service system to get student loans, while American women do not. MRAs point to these cases and try to claim that feminism oppresses men. This is, at best, willfully ignorant: all these inequalities come from the same outdated beliefs and stereotypes, which feminism opposes by definition. The fact that these cases exist just indicates that gender equality is not a solved problem. (Women in the American military were not <em>allowed</em> to be in units tasked with direct combat until 2013.)</p>\n\n<p>My answer discusses a woman's point of view because that's what I know and that's what the question asked about. I would be thrilled if a man in a predominantly female field added an answer discussing his experience.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10599,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
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"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>What are some ways in which sexism is unknowingly perpetrated by\n well-meaning people, in academia in particular?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I'm not qualified to answer this question myself, but I'll point you to some excellent blogs that detail this, and a tumblr that explores the more general idea of 'mansplaining' (not limited to academia alone)</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://science-professor.blogspot.com/\">Female Science Professor</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://ilaba.wordpress.com/\">The Accidental Mathematician</a> (in particular, her post about <a href=\"http://ilaba.wordpress.com/2011/03/28/why-im-not-on-mathoverflow/\">why she doesn't participate in Mathoverflow</a> is quite interesting)</li>\n<li><a href=\"http://mansplained.tumblr.com/\">Academic Men Explain Things to Me</a></li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10602,
"author": "Doug Spoonwood",
"author_id": 7158,
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"text": "<p>Sexism can get perpetuated unknowingly in all sorts of was via the law. I suggest studying the book Legalizing Misandry by Katherine Young and Paul Nathanson to see how this can happen. The law also has all sorts of effects on what happens on college campuses and how sexism either gets continued or abated.</p>\n\n<p>We know that at present there exist programs for woman to get ahead in academia, because of their gender, but extremely few, if any, in comparison for men. Have you ever heard of a scholarship program that specifically targets boys in the humanities where they are a minority now and have historically come as a minority also?</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men%27s_colleges_in_the_United_States\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">There exist</a> only three non-religious male colleges in the U. S. <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_colleges_in_the_United_States\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">There exist</a> many more women's colleges.</p>\n\n<p>There exist women's studies programs, but male studies programs have trouble getting a foothold in academia. Ryerson <a href=\"http://theeyeopener.com/2013/03/rsu-rejects-mens-group-on-campus/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">makes</a> for an interesting example. Sexism, in the form of misandry, has popped up before when a men's <a href=\"http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2012/05/20/robyn-urback-on-shocking-anti-male-hatred-on-the-sfu-campus/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">group</a> formed. </p>\n\n<p>Women <a href=\"http://www.prb.org/Publications/Articles/2011/gender-gap-in-education.aspx\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">make up</a> the majority of graduates in the U. S. in terms of high school degrees, associates degrees, bachelors degrees, masters degrees, and doctoral degrees. Trends also <a href=\"http://i0.wp.com/www.avoiceformalestudents.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Four-Graduation-Rates-Degrees-Associates-Bachelors-Masters-Doctorate-by-Sex-and-Percentage-United-States.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">come</a> as revealing.</p>\n\n<p>Also, some campuses have a standard of \"preponderance of the evidence\" for rape cases, which in effect eliminates due process mostly for men, but not for women, and such a standard thus effectively consists of a sexist policy against men. Some other policies can unintentionally end up sexist against men as a study of Daphne Patai's Heterophobia makes clear.</p>\n\n<p>Male sports teams getting cut also comes as another way in which a policy has ended up <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/02/sports/02gender.html?_r=1&\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">sexist</a> <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUvuLuLarr0\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">unknowingly</a>.</p>\n\n<p>If you want to avoid sexism in academia and elsewhere you need to care about men in general just as much as you care about women in general.</p>\n\n<p>Sexism can perpetrated by people by having policies that require different standards for people of different sexes.</p>\n\n<p>In order for a male to get student loans in the United States he has to register with the selective service system (which is still a real entity). No female has such a requirement placed upon them in order to obtain such a loan.</p>\n\n<p>Sexism can get unknowingly perpetrated by believing that an educational equity for one sex can qualify as sufficient for both sexes. The <a href=\"http://www2.ed.gov/programs/equity/index.html\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Women's Educational Equity Act</a> is one example of this.</p>\n\n<p>Lifestyle, knowledge of one's educational opportunities, and health in general can all effect academic achievement as well as one's ability to achieve academically. I can't speak to the extent of things here, but one person had the <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/rogereolson/2013/02/discrimination-against-boys-in-education-and-elsewhere/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">following</a> to say:</p>\n\n<p>\"As I have said here before, I have worked in higher education for thirty-one years and have never seen a poster or service announcement on any campus aimed at promoting positive lifestyles, health, educational opportunities, etc., for boys and young men. I have seen numerous ones for girls and young women.\"</p>\n\n<p>Sexism can also get perpetrated in academia via \"equity hiring\" as Janice Fiamengo <a href=\"http://pjmedia.com/blog/academic-hiring-and-the-diversity-mandate/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">makes</a> clear...</p>\n\n<p>\"Next came the creation of a shortlist of three or four candidates for interview; some members of the department were keen to stack the list with members of the diversity groups. To this end, there was much sophistry about why a (white) male candidate’s book with a prestigious university press was really no better than — was actually perhaps a bit inferior to — a female candidate’s single article with an academic journal of no repute; or about why a (white) male candidate’s expertise in highly competitive Shakespeare studies was no better than — was actually far less original than — a female candidate’s untested, largely speculative work on an obscure seventeenth-century woman playwright. Thus were well-qualified white men kept out of the competition. Moments of levity occasionally occurred when we were forced into elaborate interpretative dances to determine if a male candidate might be black or Asian or gay, though usually the savvy candidate made that clear in his cover letter.</p>\n\n<p>At the hiring stage, there was the same special pleading. Poor presentations by women candidates were praised as “provocatively unorthodox” or “strategically unconventional” while polished ones by men were criticized as “safe” or “unoriginal.” Women’s mistakes could be overlooked or seen as strengths (“I like that she was courageous enough to present on material that she is still working through”) while men’s mistakes were definitive (“I’m shocked that he could be finishing a PhD and still not know that [minor detail”]). One male candidate who had given the best demonstration class I’d ever seen was criticized by our leading feminist professor — presumably because she could find no other faults — for having never visited England to do archival work, a criticism the poverty-conscious lady would almost certainly never have made of a struggling single-mother candidate. That a man might have life circumstances preventing him from travel seemed not to have occurred to her.\"</p>\n\n<p>That hiring practices may more often than not, favor the hiring of female candidates over male candidates gets further suggested by <a href=\"http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2015/04/08/1418878112\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">this</a> experimental research. </p>\n\n<p>The number of answers which only address sexism against women here, without also addressing sexism against men makes it very clear that you can NOT eliminate or reduce sexism by focusing exclusively on the needs or interests of just one sex. In fact, that comes as a way to perpetuate sexism.</p>\n\n<p>This <a href=\"http://scholarlycommons.law.wlu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1381&context=crsj\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">document</a> starting at about 532 suggests things goes even deeper than this answer has merely outlined. </p>\n\n<p>The University of York recently withdrew it's intention to mark <a href=\"http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/nov/17/row-after-university-of-york-cancels-international-mens-day-event\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">International Men's Day</a>.</p>\n\n<p>The key to avoiding sexism lies in fully understanding the plight of all sexes and acting accordingly.</p>\n\n<p>And no discussion of sexism in academia is complete without at least some indication of the issues of <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/19/magazine/when-women-become-men-at-wellesley-college.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpSum&module=second-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">trans-people</a> in academia.</p>\n"
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"author": "StasK",
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"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is a shaky ground, as a bizzare negative rating of <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/10602/739\">Doug Spoonwood's answer</a> shows. A entirely positive (in the sense of only trying to come up with a meaningful psychological theory; an economics term here) <a href=\"http://web.archive.org/web/20080130023006/http://www.president.harvard.edu/speeches/2005/nber.html\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">speech by Larry Summers</a>, then President of Harvard, at NBER conference that promoted gender equality, costed him his presidency... not because he was biased, but simply because the bloody journalists highlighting the event had no clue about math. His argument was very simple: if we look at IQ curves, we see that females have an average IQ about the same or higher than males, and about 20% lower standard deviation. Mother Nature plays conservatively with females while experimenting on males throwing their abilities around. Whichever of these experimental traits the females find attractive in males are worth retaining through natural selection. So if we look at IQ>80 or IQ>100, we see more females; but at top 5% of the IQ distribution (115 or 120-ish on IQ scale), the ratio is roughly 2 males : 1 female. University professors are likely to be even higher on the IQ scales, probably circa 140+, at which point the ratio may be 5:1 (although of course the quality of the normal approximation in the tails becomes VERY questionable). Other examples Summers gave were underrepresentation of Jews in farming and agriculture, and of whites in the National Basketball Association (which may have to do with biological differences in genetic makeup for height, as well as how the proteins are being processed and muscles are built, between races).</p>\n\n<p>In all likelihood, conditional on having received a Ph.D. (probability theory term here), there is little difference between males and females in ability to produce meaningful research. Success in academia is dictated by <a href=\"http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19070437\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">other personal traits</a>. They are <a href=\"http://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=gender+and+personality+traits\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">correlated with gender</a>, although again conditioning on high IQ/having finished a Ph.D. may change that correlation structure a lot.</p>\n\n<p>Economists argue for distinguishing between the equality of outcomes and equality of opportunities. Do Nordic countries show greater equality of income because they redistribute more, or because they provide better equality of opportunities? <a href=\"http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-4991.2008.00289.x/abstract\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Read here</a>. Is stunning income inequality in Brazil the result of discrimination, differential \"circumstances\", or what? <a href=\"http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=497242\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Read here</a>. Academia, as any other walk of life, should strive to create equality of opportunities; equality of outcomes may or may not follow, depending on whether the individual traits are correlated with whatever we are trying to equate (gender, hair color, height, language spoken at home, etc.). Forcing equality of outcomes will aggravate those who have benign better abilities and make people of lesser abilities lose incentives to strive to do better. (Been there in the Soviet Union, done that, trust me.)</p>\n\n<p>If one claims that \"women are better teachers than researchers\", just ask: \"Hm. That's an interesting observation. We are both scientists; can you give me some references to any peer-reviewed literature on this?\" (note that I gave mine above :) ). If they can't, that's a biased accusation you can go with to your superiors (chair, dean, university president). Just like drivers found guilty driving under influence, and undergoing humiliating driving clinics, whoever makes such claims should be made to go the literature on the cross of psychology, sociology, gender studies and labor markets to dig into the issue -- who cares if they are good in math, if they have big mouth, they should learn to control it. Join your local committee on women in faculty, or whatever the name of that could be in your university to make sure you know the ways that the university can protect you against sexism, and make good use of what you learn there.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10957,
"author": "Benoît Kloeckner",
"author_id": 946,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/946",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One of the first thing to do is to realize how we are biased, even when we don't know it. See in particular <a href=\"http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2012/09/14/1211286109\">this reference</a>; the abstract alone is informative:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Despite efforts to recruit and retain more women, a stark gender\n disparity persists within academic science. Abundant research has\n demonstrated gender bias in many demographic groups, but has yet to\n experimentally investigate whether science faculty exhibit a bias\n against female students that could contribute to the gender disparity\n in academic science. In a randomized double-blind study (n = 127),\n science faculty from research-intensive universities rated the\n application materials of a student—who was randomly assigned either a\n male or female name—for a laboratory manager position. Faculty\n participants rated the male applicant as significantly more competent\n and hireable than the (identical) female applicant. These participants\n also selected a higher starting salary and offered more career\n mentoring to the male applicant. The gender of the faculty\n participants did not affect responses, such that female and male\n faculty were equally likely to exhibit bias against the female\n student. Mediation analyses indicated that the female student was less\n likely to be hired because she was viewed as less competent. We also\n assessed faculty participants’ preexisting subtle bias against women\n using a standard instrument and found that preexisting subtle bias\n against women played a moderating role, such that subtle bias against\n women was associated with less support for the female student, but was\n unrelated to reactions to the male student. These results suggest that\n interventions addressing faculty gender bias might advance the goal of\n increasing the participation of women in science.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Moss-Racusin et al., 2012 Science faculty’s subtle gender biases favor male students PNAS 2012 109 (41) 16474-16479; published ahead of print September 17, 2012, doi:10.1073/pnas.1211286109</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 12954,
"author": "Nate Eldredge",
"author_id": 1010,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1010",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One issue I've often heard cited involves having a family.</p>\n\n<p>For students on a traditional timeline in academia, the years from age 22 to 36 or so are critical: you go to grad school, get a PhD, perhaps do a postdoc or two, search for and land a permanent job, and finally get tenure. You have to be constantly advancing and publishing your research, traveling to conferences and seminars, and generally impressing the community in your field. Odds are you'll have to make at least one long-distance or international move, perhaps several. Any delay or gap during this time could permanently derail your career.</p>\n\n<p>Coincidentally, the years from age 22 to 36 are also the best time (biologically) for a woman to have children (assuming she wants to do so, and most do). And bearing and raising a child can certainly put a major crimp in your ability to keep doing the things listed above.</p>\n\n<p>It's pretty clear that this system was designed for men: men with wives who didn't work and could take care of children full-time. It's very hard on anyone who wants to be an involved parent, and doubly so for the woman: pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and so on can't very well be delegated or shared!</p>\n\n<p>Universities do tend to have standard-to-generous maternity and family leave policies, which certainly help with this in the immediate term. What's less clear is whether (possibly male or male-dominated) advisors, hiring committees, chairs, deans, and tenure committees are as understanding in the long run. If a candidate has a six-month or one-year gap in her research output, and then a slow period afterward as she gets back up to speed and learns to balance her work and family, it's hard to imagine that won't hurt her career, no matter what explanation is attached in her file. And God forbid she should want to have <em>two</em> children!</p>\n\n<p>So this is a kind of sexism that's not based on any one person's behavior, but on the structure and norms of the community.</p>\n\n<p>(Disclaimer: I am a childless man and have no personal experience with this issue, but I thought someone should mention it.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 27738,
"author": "Thomas",
"author_id": 20342,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/20342",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'm in a Computer Science program at a school that has a heavy focus on engineering fields. There are only a couple of girls in the program, but they are both excellent students. I've spent a bit of time studying with both of them, and one in particular has been able to help me with understanding some difficult concepts.</p>\n\n<p>In a programming class that we took, the professor noted that she was an excellent student. When she went to his office after a test to discuss her grade, he began to preach on women in computer science. He told her how supportive he was, and relayed a story about sexism, which he condemned.</p>\n\n<p>She expressed to me how uncomfortable it made her to be singled out like that. She has told me several times that the professors want her to be a \"poster-child\" and \"become a leader\". This is all well meaning, but she simply wants to be a (very good) student, and fit in with the rest.</p>\n\n<p>I am of the opinion that when a woman is in a mostly male field of study, she can have undue pressure put on her by well-meaning staff and peers. It's almost as if they are told that if they are not a leader, then they are letting other women in their field down.</p>\n\n<p>Until we stop treating women like a rarity in certain fields (even if they are), they will not feel comfortable there.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 34881,
"author": "Jessica B",
"author_id": 20036,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/20036",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can't spot a link to this article posted yet:</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2014/12/09/gender_bias_in_student_evaluations_professors_of_online_courses_who_present.html\">http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2014/12/09/gender_bias_in_student_evaluations_professors_of_online_courses_who_present.html</a></p>\n\n<p>Someone else showed me the article, but I think the point is worth mentioning here. The original paper is available <a href=\"http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10755-014-9313-4\">here</a>, but the report gives the gist:</p>\n\n<p><strong>Students gave significantly lower ratings to the same people</strong> (in online teaching where their identity was entirely concealed) <strong>where the only distinction was the gender they told the students.</strong></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 114443,
"author": "John Slegers",
"author_id": 37939,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/37939",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is a bias — against men — in the recruitment process for tenure-tracked positions.</p>\n\n<p>From <a href=\"http://www.pnas.org/content/112/17/5360.abstract\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">a 2015 study</a> :</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Men and women faculty members from all four fields preferred female\n applicants 2:1 over identically qualified males with matching\n lifestyles (single, married, divorced), with the exception of male\n economists, who showed no gender preference. Comparing different\n lifestyles revealed that women preferred divorced mothers to married\n fathers and that men preferred mothers who took parental leaves to\n mothers who did not. Our findings, supported by real-world academic\n hiring data, suggest advantages for women launching academic science\n careers.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>More details on this study, <a href=\"https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2015/04/18/the-unfairer-sex\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">from The Economist</a> :</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p><a href=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/T8kIj.png\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/T8kIj.png\" alt=\"enter image description here\"></a></p>\n \n <p>Dr Williams and Dr Ceci conjured up trios of hypothetical candidates\n for tenure-track jobs in various fields. In each case two of the three\n were fantastically qualified and one, there to act as a foil, slightly\n less so. They sent the three candidates’ CVs, together with mocked-up\n interview comments about them, to 873 high-level academics in the\n departments of biology, economics, engineering and psychology at 371\n American universities. They tweaked the particulars of each trio to\n match the relevant discipline, and randomised which of the two\n outstanding candidates was referred to as “he” and which as “she”.\n Respondents were asked simply to pick the best of the three.</p>\n \n <p>As the chart shows, professors of biology, engineering and psychology\n all chose female candidates over equally qualified male ones, and did\n so by an overwhelming margin (as high as three to one in the case of\n psychology). Moreover, they made this choice regardless of whether\n they, themselves, were men or women. The sole exception to this\n pattern was economics. In this discipline male professors showed a\n slight preference for men, though females had a strong one for women.</p>\n \n <p>When Dr Williams and Dr Ceci carried out further experiments, looking\n in more detail, they found that the pattern they had discovered held\n up regardless of whether or not hypothetical candidates were married,\n had children or had taken a period of parental leave. These factors,\n often cited as damaging to women’s academic careers, seemed to weigh\n little with the professors in question.</p>\n \n <p>A criticism of the researchers’ method is that the professors knew\n they were involved in an experiment (though they did not know its\n purpose). They may therefore have chosen the female applicant simply\n because they knew they were being scrutinised and wanted to show their\n feminist credentials, knowing that they would not have to live with\n the consequences. To control for this possibility, Dr Williams and Dr\n Ceci also sent out 127 identical CVs—half purporting to be of women\n and half of men—to 127 other academics, asking them simply to rate the\n candidate. Their idea was that an absence of applicants for comparison\n would reduce any pressure to be politically correct.</p>\n \n <p>In this case, too, the women triumphed. Notional female candidates\n scored a full point higher than male ones on a ten-point scale.\n Presented with identical track-records, respondents seemed simply to\n think more highly of women.</p>\n</blockquote>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 114445,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Laure Saint-Raymond, professor at ENS Lyon and member of the French Academy of Sciences, recently gave a speech on science and research in general (<a href=\"https://www.rnbm.org/la-science-dont-je-reve-par-laure-saint-raymond/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">available here, in French, includes a video and a retranscription</a>), on the occasion of the election of new members of the Academy. Here is part of what she said, translated by myself, with some context added for people not familiar with some French-specific terminology:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Creativity is stimulated by diversity. [...]</p>\n<p>The only true efforts currently made to expand horizons are those in favor of parity [between men and women], and it must be said that they are not always successful. First among "not so good ideas" is the imposition of quotas in all [recruitment] committees (an immediate corollary being that women are called upon much more often for administrative tasks) and the ever increasing pressure for recruitment. Within our own [French Academy of Science], incentives to elect women are numerous. It is fortunate that we do not know what debates preceded our election, but for women, the doubt of having been chosen to improve statistics remains... The balance between genders, like social diversity, cannot be decreed. We must gently get rid of prejudices (still shared by part of the scientific community), recruit people through alternative paths for <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classe_pr%C3%A9paratoire_aux_grandes_%C3%A9coles\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><em>classes prépas</em></a> and competitions, and maybe change our evaluation criteria: privileging originality and esthetics over quantity and technical brute force.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>(The last sentence is more of an echo to what she had previously said in her speech. I found the whole speech very interesting and I can only recommend everyone to listen or read it, if you can speak French. I am not brave enough to translate everything – please forgive me.)</p>\n<p>One of the key points in what I translated above is the "not so good ideas". In French we say "<em>fausse bonne idée</em>", "false good idea", to mean an idea that looks good on the surface, but is actually not so good, or even harmful, when you actually think about it. I wasn't sure how to translate it, so I hope it's clear now.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10588",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6110/"
]
|
10,590 | <p>Just as the title says: do you spell out Thm., Prop., Eq., Ch. and comparable abbreviations in a mathematical paper?</p>
<p>I suppose that, if in doubt, it is always best to stay consistent (in whatever way) throughout ones writing for the least. Do journals have (different) policies on this, or is there a prefered style when in doubt?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10591,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>It is a matter of style. I would say <strong>yes</strong>, expand them. In my opinion, authors tend to over-abbreviate making documents harder to read. For instance, I can't work out what you mean by Ch. (<b>C</b>onjec<b>h</b>ure?) </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10593,
"author": "Nate Eldredge",
"author_id": 1010,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1010",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In my experience, authors almost always spell out words like \"Theorem\", \"Proposition\", and so on. I expect that journal styles will generally require this. I can't remember the last time I saw a published paper that abbreviated them. </p>\n\n<p>But if you're writing a paper, you must have read a lot of other people's published papers. Surely by now you've formed your own opinion of the consensus?</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10594,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>To expand on Dave's answer slightly, abbreviations should follow the guidelines of the specific venue to which you are sending a paper. If they expect no abbreviations, don't use them. If they have standard ones specified, use those as appropriate. Typically, I would only use something like \"Prop.\" for \"proposition\" when it's referring to something with a specific number, <em>and</em> that's what the style guide calls for. </p>\n\n<p>Other abbreviations should be used to improve readability: for instance writing out \"fast Fourier transform\" one hundred times during a paper can start to get more tedious than using \"FFT\" as an abbreviation. But shortening individual words should only be done if it makes reading the paper easier, <em>not</em> simply to shorten it.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10608,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One heuristic is to write things as you would read them out loud. In other words, don't try to save space in print unless you would use the same abbreviation in speech.</p>\n\n<p>For example, I'm happy to say \"i.e.\" or \"e.g.\" orally in certain situations, so those abbreviations can be fine (indeed, it would sound really weird if you wrote \"id est\" or \"exempli gratia\"), but I would never refer to \"Sec. 5\" or \"Eq. 3\" when speaking. Trying to pronounce \"Ch. 2\" as written would be even worse. By this standard, abbreviations like NASA or FFT are OK, although they can of course be overused and they may be more cryptic than the writer intends.</p>\n\n<p>This principle extends beyond abbreviations: try not to write anything that would be awkward to read aloud. (For example, mathematicians sometimes violate this by juxtaposing formulas with no words in between them.) Of course this is not an absolute rule, but following it will generally make your papers easier and more pleasant to read. The effects are admittedly small, but if you are explaining complicated or subtle ideas, you shouldn't add to the difficulties with clumsy writing.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 96148,
"author": "yo'",
"author_id": 1471,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1471",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Well, yes, you in general spell out these words. However, there are basically three types of their usage and you can draw the line between Abbr./Spell-out any where between them.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p><strong>In-text usage at the beginning of a sentence.</strong> Theorem 3.5 clearly shows that Foo is actually a Bar of chocolate. Equation 3.17 confirms this. Equation (3.18) is irrelevant.</p></li>\n<li><p><strong>In-text usage in the middle of a sentence.</strong> We see in Thm. 3.5 that Foo is actually a Bar of chocolate, which is confirmed by Eq. (3.17), noting that (3.18) is irrelevant.</p></li>\n<li><p><strong>Parenthesized usage.</strong> We see that Foo is actually a Bar of chocolate (Thm. 3.5).</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>(I personally prefer no abbreviation for any references, and omitting the word \"Equation\" whenever possible, but that's not the point.) The point is that you should draw the line somewhere and be consistent throughout your document, and especially be consistent with \"Fig.\" vs. \"Table\" etc. The exceptional things are:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Equations</strong> with 5 (five!!!) possible styles: Equation (3.18), Equation 3.18, Eq. (3.18), Eq. 3.18, (3.18).</li>\n<li><strong>Bibliographic citations</strong> which usually have a prescribed style and you should only be consistent in whether they can be a grammatical object in the sentence or not.</li>\n<li><strong>Chapters/sections</strong>, where: first you don't need to follow the LaTeX's terminology, and second you can use the sign \"§\" for them.</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 156203,
"author": "Thomas Brown",
"author_id": 130219,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/130219",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In a mathematics paper, Prop can only mean Proposition, unless it's something strange about the mathematics of plays or more likely propellers, in which case "prop 3" might mean the third stage prop or propeller. Same for Fig unless it's something strange about the mathematics of fruits, or Def unless it's a statistical analysis of larg-intestinal flora. But Theorem is short enough already. Significantly shorter seems OK unless it's atypical or otherwise ambiguous!</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10590",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6222/"
]
|
10,595 | <p>Some journals and conferences charge money before/after paper acceptance, similarly there are some which don't (like Open Access Journals). Does money matter in judging such journals/conferences before sending paper ? Unfortunately my organization is on a cost cutting and isn't funding for any such activities. Is there a list of journals which do not charge fees or charge modest fees, so that I can publish there on my own ?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10609,
"author": "silvado",
"author_id": 3890,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3890",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Generally speaking, whether a journal charges money for publication or not should <strong>not be a criterium</strong> for judging the quality of one journal compared to another one. Use other means for that, for example checking where good papers are published, the academic reputation of the editorial board, opinions of colleagues, and, yes, even numeric factors such as the impact factor of the journal.</p>\n\n<p>There are very high-quality open access journals, for example the <a href=\"http://www.plos.org\" rel=\"nofollow\">PLoS</a> series of life science journals, but also no-quality open access journals, for example the ones produced by most of the publishers on <a href=\"http://scholarlyoa.com/publishers/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Beall's list</a>. Some very high-quality non-open access journals ask for page fees (or even submission fees, as I learnt recently), others don't.</p>\n\n<p>I am not sure whether there is a specific list of journals which don't require paying fees, or an overview listing publication fees for a range of journals. There is the quite well-known <a href=\"http://www.sherpa.ac.uk/romeo/search.php\" rel=\"nofollow\">SHERPA/Romeo</a> list, which distinguishes between different levels of self-archiving. I guess most of the green journals (highest self-archiving rating) listed there will be open-access journals and ask for publishing fees, so you could go and check the other journals in more detail, by looking at their instructions for authors.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10620,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I must disagree with the CS folks in the comments<sup>†</sup>. Whether a journal charges or not is immaterial to the quality of the journal. You can only gauge its quality by being an active researcher in that field, not by silly metrics (this is an order of magnitude worse than impact factor).</p>\n\n<p>Different journals from the same publishing house might also charge different rates for publications. For instance, AIP publishes both the Phys. Rev. series (+ PRL) and the J. Acoustical Society of America. While there are no charges for the former set, JASA has \"voluntary\" charges for publishing.</p>\n\n<p>Such \"voluntary\" charges are very common (some flagship and top-of-the-line IEEE journals come to mind) and serves primarily as an opt-out for researchers from low income countries in Asia/Africa/S. America. Researchers in N. America, Europe and Australia/NZ are <em>expected</em> to pay the publishing charges, since with the way grants are structured in these countries, there is almost always a specific budget earmarked for publishing costs. Of course, if a researcher has no budget or is publishing in his spare time or as a secondary interest, then they're also welcome to not pay the charges, but I've never seen anyone that's on a grant decline to pay charges.</p>\n\n<p><sub>† Opinions on this site seem to be overrun by CS folks, who generally state them as facts of life. From my years of experience in a variety of fields, I've found their customs to be more of an outlier than the norm (perhaps only mathematics has something in common).</sub> </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10595",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2823/"
]
|
10,600 | <p>Going into college I had a great record, 3.65 GPA and a 30 on the ACT and about 18 AP and concurrent credits in statistics, calculus, literature, and Spanish. However, trying to balance religious callings and duties during my first year of college left me very unbalanced academically, and as such I failed two major classes, one of which being college, a class that I had already passed in high school and was simply taking to help acclimate myself to the college environment.</p>
<p>The following semester was about the same. I ended up deferring for two years to serve full time under a religious calling, I was able to do this because the university is owned and operated by my church. Going back I am resolved to do better this time, but I am wondering if there is any possible way to wipe away my record of my first year and start fresh again, maybe by applying to a new college instead of transferring, is that possible? Or could I petition on part of my ADHD and Aspergers syndrome for the first year to be overlooked?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10601,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can tell you from experience that one can recover from a bad first year, though it would be up to the university what options there are regarding your GPA. Having said that, it is very unlikely that the university would wipe the results without making you repeat the subjects.</p>\n\n<p>You would need documentary evidence for ADHD and Asperger's Syndrome to be considered as reasons for wiping the first year's grades. Even then, I am doubtful that a university would allow it.</p>\n\n<p>A major option is to learn what you can from the first year, apply those lessons as part of your resolve to do better in coming academic years.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10604,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Another big question here is in what classes those bad grades are, relative to your major. IF those are intro classes in your intended major, this is a very, very bad thing, as it will have to be explained to anyone who looks at your transcript (admissions committees or prospective employers). On the other hand, if these are classes outside of your major, while still not ideal, they can at least be viewed as temporary aberrations or difficulties in the transition from high school to university.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10606,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>If you do really well from now onwards, then a couple of poor years can be overlooked, for instance if you are going to apply for PhD studies. </p>\n\n<p>Also, it seems that the problem is not necessarily ADHD or Aspergers; it seems to be taking on too many different activities. So prioritising your time and commitments during your degree studies seems to be the solution to the problem and then working very hard, not getting the record wiped.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/14 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10600",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7425/"
]
|
10,613 | <p>I have recently graduated with Computer Science and Engineering and joined an R&D firm. During the job, I enrolled for a part time MS(Research) from the topmost institute in my country (with reputable world rank). Though the only difference from full time course is that we get 1 extra year to complete part time course.Everything else, like the courses, class timings, labs, exams and rigor remains the same. </p>
<p>I intend to join academia in future. How valuable is a part time degree with respect to joining academia and industry?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10614,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It would not make a great deal of difference at all. As you stated, everything but the time to complete it is the same. I am in the same boat and I have found that when I apply somewhere, that they are not in the slightest bit concerned about me studying part time.</p>\n\n<p>Look at it this way, once you complete your research degree, you will also have a considerable amount of practical experience, that will speak volumes in your favour.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10617,
"author": "mako",
"author_id": 5962,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5962",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p><em>The fact that you have done your degree either part or full time will not change your degree's value.</em> I have never heard of part-time degrees being treated differently from full-time degrees. In fact, it would be unusual to list a part-time or full time status on your CV so it's not clear how people would know. And I doubt many people would react differently.</p>\n\n<p>Your decision to do a degree part-time or full-time has other important implications on your long term goals but they are indirect. If you want to go into industry, choosing a part-time degree might mean you have more time to build up industry experience which might be nice. If you want to go into academia — and you can afford to go to school full time — do the full time degree because work in industry will only slow you down from the pursuit of your long term goal. Being a part-time student might also mean less attention from faculty who might think you are less serious about an academic track while you are doing the degree.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 78871,
"author": "Patricia Shanahan",
"author_id": 10220,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10220",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I got my master's degree in computer science by part time study while working full time. It was the same arrangement as in the question - same courses and other requirements as the corresponding full time program, but spread over an extra year.</p>\n\n<p>My employers treated it as a valid qualification for the rest of my industry career. After that, I was accepted into a CS PhD program. It was my only formal CS qualification. My bachelor's degree was in mathematics.</p>\n\n<p>If you look really closely at my resume, you can tell I was studying part time because of the overlap between university attendance and a job. There is nothing about my degree that makes any distinction between full or part time study.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 116396,
"author": "Moobie",
"author_id": 73867,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/73867",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>While the OP has probably graduated by now, I believe the answer to this question is culture dependent. My answer will focus on the industry part of OP's question.</p>\n\n<p>First and foremost, the accepted answer was partly incorrect as it would be quite obvious to an experienced HR, from your CV, that your employment record and your degree overlapped in time. Thus one or both of them has to be part-time. </p>\n\n<p>HRs from my Asian hometown care. Why?</p>\n\n<p>While the OP was pursuing a degree from his/her home country, other readers coming across this question might enroll in an overseas program. In this case, a full-time degree overseas would entail multicultural exposure, which is an important employment consideration for multinational companies. Depending on the country where you get your degree, it may also imply that you can speak a foreign language.</p>\n\n<p>Whereas a part-time degree from overseas would most likely imply distance learning and a lack of networking with fellow classmates in your research area. The argument stands even if the degree is from your home country, but a different city.</p>\n\n<p>It does not matter if my weak \"deduction\" above may not necessarily be correct. As long as <em>some</em> HRs think this way, those jobs are forever lost to you. (This <em>\"some\"</em> becomes <strong>\"most\"</strong> in Asia.) Even if actual researchers in the industry consider you an equal, your application will go straight to the bin before ever reaching their desk.</p>\n\n<p>Nonetheless, your experience at an R&D firm, <em>if it is of the <strong>same</strong> area as your research</em>, is much more important than whether your degree is full-time or part-time when it comes to hiring decision. The word \"same\" is stressed because, referring to the culture of my hometown again, unrelated experience is not considered working experience, at all.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/14 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10613",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2823/"
]
|
10,621 | <p>I am in the third year of my undergraduate degree now, and in the process of applying for Graduate schools and Med schools. I have a burning questions about a creepy "C" in my transcript. </p>
<p>To summarize my story: I was recovering from a biopsy operation back then. Though I was advised to take one semester off to rest physically and mentally (I was extremely paranoid waiting for the pathology report, and luckily it came back benign), I still decided to take all the courses and the heavy research that I had started before. I performed so badly that semester that I received a C. That is like the most embarrassing element in my transcript. </p>
<p>Some told me that such a bad grade is a disadvantage for admissions. Do I still have a chance to make it to top grad and med schools? With extra effort (I have managed to pull up my GPA to 3.8 now, I have been on the Dean's list for some semesters, have 3 publications, and 2 poster presentations at symposium, my GRE and MCAT are good too), can I cover that ugly spot?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10623,
"author": "krammer",
"author_id": 2823,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2823",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Your final GPA already shows that you have done well in your study and a bad grade in one of the semester or subject wouldn't matter much. Even if you are concerned about your grade affecting the admission chances, you can include in your <em>Statement of Purpose</em> why you performed badly, what did you learn from that and how did you managed to improvise upon it. Failure is also a learning experience, and if you are applying to a sane school, the admission committee are usually intelligent enough to understand it. Moreover, by describing how you improvised after a bad grade, would reflect your commitment and seriousness.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10625,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>You have shown that you have overcome great adversity and still achieved great results - this says a lot of positives about your character - of resilience and perseverance - two attributes that are critical for any graduate studies. You had a cancer scare and still passed the subject despite the medical tests and the very justified anxiety.</p>\n\n<p>Maybe, it is not an \"ugly spot\", but that C, and subsequent successes are a reminder of how much strength and tenacity you have shown.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 28503,
"author": "Tom Au",
"author_id": 755,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/755",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In your shoes, I would include a letter explaining the biopsy operation, the date of it, and its \"correlation\" with the \"creepy C.\" This letter should probably come from a professor familiar with the situation, if possible, or maybe a doctor.</p>\n\n<p>You've come a long way since then. You've got several publications/presentations, and a cumulative GPA of 3.8 that includes the C. Most schools would be happy let you in. They'd wonder about the C, but would also be looking for an \"excuse\" to overlook it.</p>\n\n<p>This is something you don't want to let \"pass\" but you also don't want to make a \"big deal\" of it. A letter or two should be just about right</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/15 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10621",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7401/"
]
|
10,629 | <p>This question is related to Physics research papers, particularly one that will be coming up for my ongoing PhD research (4th paper in all).</p>
<p>A core part of the research is developing, testing and validating relevant self-written code. So, my question is how much of the code should be included in the upcoming paper? Should it be the whole thing, or a written summary of the main components/subroutines used?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10631,
"author": "NPcompleteUser",
"author_id": 6346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6346",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would put the current version [of the code] on gist. Providing inputs and gnuplot (matplotlib/whatever) scripts for graph reproduction.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10632,
"author": "wsc",
"author_id": 6820,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6820",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would second @NPcompleteUser's answer about having the code and some sort of walkthrough for reproducing your results online. However your question about how much to include in the <em>paper</em> is very journal specific. There are a number of publications specifically for computational science with formats where large chunks of code are expected, but if it's a journal whose focus is more on the science than the techniques, I would just describe in words the tricky parts of your algorithm and give a footnote reference to the website where the code lives.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10635,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>If the goal of your paper is to show that your code solves a particular problem or performs a specific task, then it is your responsibility to prove to the reviewers that your code does what it claims to do. The easiest way to do this is to include the code as part of the supporting information for your paper. </p>\n\n<p>However, <em>reproducibility</em>—which is what you're asking about, to a certain extent—is a not-so-simple question when it comes to showing codes do what they're supposed to. For instance, a code that runs one way under one configuration may return a slightly (or perhaps _very) different result when run under another configuration. This doesn't mean that one result or the other is wrong—it just means that this behavior needs to be taken into account when evaluating the correctness of software.</p>\n\n<p>One way to help this is to provide as much information as possible on your testing environment, so that any differences between the system on wich you were working and the conditions the reviewers and future potential users of your code will have can quickly be identified. This would be included, perhaps, as a text file that accompanies the code in the supporting information.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15037,
"author": "juandesant",
"author_id": 10233,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10233",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Another option, in the field of astrophysics, is to submit your code to a repository, and register it in the Astrophysics Source Code Library (ASCL) at <a href=\"https://ascl.net\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://ascl.net</a>, which is indexed by the SAO/NASA's Astrophysics Database System (ADS), the official compilation of literature (and now source code and datasets) in astrophysics.</p>\n\n<p>If that's your case, you look at this link to find out how to submit your code to it: <a href=\"https://ascl.net/submissions\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://ascl.net/submissions</a></p>\n\n<p>The page has additional resources telling you how to cite said codes, and this is what a citation might look like:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Garrido, J. et al., 2013, AstroTaverna, Astrophysics Source Code Library, record ascl:1307.007</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>With the record being held at <a href=\"https://ascl.net/1307.007\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://ascl.net/1307.007</a>, and the ADS entry at <a href=\"http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2013ascl.soft07007G\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2013ascl.soft07007G</a></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15062,
"author": "rfle500",
"author_id": 4503,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4503",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Papers on physics which utilise code should primarily describe the algorithms and their relevance to the physical problem at hand, and not focus on nuts and bolts of the code. There are several reasons for this: the printed article is the wrong place to include code, as page space is generally limited and not suited to formatting of code; there are issues with copyright as in most cases the ownership of the code is transferred to the journal, or if open access then put in the public domain; generally the audience of a paper should be broad enough to be useful to a wider range of researchers than your specialist area.</p>\n\n<p>As others have suggested, you should release your code on GitHub or similar and apply a suitable licence, and simply refer to it in the paper. There are some exceptions to including code in a paper, generally when understanding the algorithm is essential for the reader or complicated, in which case pseudo code is acceptable since the essential information is included without any language specific distractions.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/15 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10629",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
10,636 | <p>It seems quite common for other teachers at my university (in Asia) to have students help with what are the normal duties of a teacher. Examples range from asking a student to help carry one of many stacks of books (because the teacher cannot carry all of them) to asking students to carry very small things (which the teacher could easily carry but the teacher would prefer not to carry anything at all and let the student do it) to having students complete marking sheets for graded assignments (where the teacher has already decided what the marks should be but prefers to have a student do the typing and printing).</p>
<p>It's very strange for me because I've never seen it in my own culture (which doesn't mean it doesn't happen), but I'm not Asian so perhaps I'm just not yet adjusted to the local culture.</p>
<p>Do most universities allow a teacher to put some of the teacher's regular duties on the shoulders of some students? </p>
<p>Note: This has nothing to do with teaching assistants, I'm just talking about regular students who appear willing to help (either to learn/understand more, to get in good graces with the teacher, or perhaps for other reasons I cannot see at this time).</p>
<p><strong>[EDIT]</strong> I've modified the questions slightly away from ethics towards being common due to concerns from other users feeling it was too much of a discussion / opinion question.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10637,
"author": "Nobody",
"author_id": 546,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/546",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p><a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucius\">Confucius</a> once said (in a rough translation) \"It's student's job to serve the teacher when the teacher needs help.\" (the <a href=\"http://www.dfg.cn/big5/chtwh/ssjz/33-lunyu-weizheng.htm\">source</a> in Chinese)</p>\n\n<p>I think in most places, where Confucius's principle is still being followed, helping the teacher in his normal duties is considered normal.</p>\n\n<p>However, help marking the sheets is not normal as far as I understand. At least, Confucius never graded his students. He did have comments about his students, though.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10638,
"author": "superuser0",
"author_id": 6690,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6690",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can only provide <strong>anecdotal</strong> value from the 3 european universities I attended up to this date and from what I heard from others.</p>\n\n<p>It is not common at all to do this here.</p>\n\n<p>It would however not be a problem to ask for help <em>occasionally</em> either. If a professor did this regularly, especially if it would affect the grading process, problems would arise very soon as students would not be fine with this and intervene by talking to other professors or the director etc etc.</p>\n\n<p>I believe this can only work in cases where the students massively respect or depend on the professor, right? Because if a professor was known to ask students to help them outside of the classroom, most students would probably have better things to do and find an excuse when asked.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10640,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is highly unusual for <em>students</em> to be asked to take part in teaching duties such as the ones you have ascribed. It would be unusual to ask someone to help with \"mundane\" or \"brute force\" tasks—although you could see asking anyone to help out in such circumstances, so I wouldn't think much of being asked to move books or other materials, if the individuals just happened to be standing there at the time.</p>\n\n<p>As for grading and more \"official\" tasks, I think it would be <em>highly</em> inappropriate to ask a student to prepare the list of grades, or to assist in grading, if the student is actively enrolled in the course. That is because you are then placing those students in a position of authority over their fellow students, and potentially creating a conflict of interest. Note that this does <em>not</em> preclude the use of \"graders,\" as they are not also enrolled in the class at the time. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 84107,
"author": "einpoklum",
"author_id": 7319,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7319",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You're conflating different kinds of assistance under the title of \"students helping their teacher\". Let's consider the examples:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p><strong>Carrying a stack of books to be distributed among students</strong>: This is merely an extension of each student helping her/himself to a book, just in a more organized way. It's also a one-time activity. It's an activity the teacher is almost certainly not getting paid to do (as opposed to actually teaching, writing exams, grading etc). It's not pedgogical in any way and there's no benefit in a trained/educated teacher doing it. It can be construed as a courtesy among any two people - helping someone carry a heavy physical load; and that's especially true if the teacher is older and not as strong physically and the student is not scrawny and weak :-)</p></li>\n<li><p><strong>Carrying the teacher's stack of books to his room:</strong> That is a sort of a personal service rendered to the teacher; it can be construed as a display of loyalty and even fondness, and certainly a recognition of status differences. It is something the teacher is borderline being paid to do (it depends on how you look at it I guess). It something that moves the student a bit into the 'personal space' of the teacher - you get to look at what s/he is reading right now, walk the hallways with him/her and no other people closeby, perhaps glance into his/her office, perhaps even have a chat with her/him. It's a often-repeatable activity.</p></li>\n<li><p><strong>Typing up grades</strong> is something the teacher is definitely getting paid for; or rather, either him or the teaching asistants. It's, well, assistance in teaching. It's repeatable - many sheets, many homework assignments or exams. It's a task of responsibility and confidence, as you get to see personal information about other students.</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The proprierty and the prevalence of each of these types of activities is a <em>completely different question</em>, I would say.</p>\n\n<p>From my experience, and by the order above: Requested when relevant (but not often); Extremely rarely or never requested; Never requested, and if it is that the students can sue and win easily.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/16 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10636",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692/"
]
|
10,639 | <p>I'm writing my BA thesis in computer science at a larger company and need to reference a confidential statistics report that has been made available to me in my reference list.</p>
<p>So my question is, how does one normally cite a confidential source? I assume you would somehow include the contact details of someone at the company with access to the material?</p>
<p>I'm using the Vancouver reference style by the way. Cheers!</p>
<p>Edit: I should clarify that the confidential "report" that was made available to me really isn't a report, but rather just raw data. It doesn't have an author or even a title, only site visitor statistics, thereby my confusion on how to reference it.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10641,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Before you do <em>anything</em> with the confidential data, you should have cleared its use with the company in question. Giving away the data in any form without their express permission could get you into a lot of trouble.</p>\n\n<p>That said, if the report containing the data is a internal company technical report, it should be cited as such in a bibliography. This provides enough information for a person to track it down, although you may want to state that it is not available to the general public. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10642,
"author": "Thomas",
"author_id": 6984,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6984",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It may be best to just cite the source as if it were any other reference, then include in your acknowledgements and/or a footnote more details on how you acquired the data and who to contact if it is indeed available to others.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 184477,
"author": "Oleg Lobachev",
"author_id": 46265,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/46265",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I have two answers to this.</p>\n<p>Once, as a researcher, I had the pleasure to use some unpublished data in my forecast. (My paper was about the forecast method itself.) I wrote something along <code>42. John Doe. In private communication. 1899</code>, also citing a report that was partially based on the same data. John Doe was the person, who gave me the data. (Thanks, "John"!)</p>\n<p>On the other hand, as a supervisor to some BSc-theses that are written at commercial companies, the students are conflicted with internal data all the time. It is hard to cite internal data, esp. in a public thesis. The current way of doing it is to perform an "expert interview". You <strong>talk</strong> with some higher-ups at the company, they provide you both with data and with interpretations of the data.</p>\n<p>Then you put the final interview in the appendix of the thesis, it is the primary information source, to which you can refer in other parts of your thesis.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/16 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10639",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7438/"
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|
10,643 | <p>I have made some research about a computer science topic. The initial idea seemed good, but when I implement the idea; this works in some cases and in some others it does not bring conclusive results.</p>
<p>How can I write a paper about this subject in particular? I mean, I do not want to hide the bad results. I want to include them, but I feel scared that my paper could not get accepted because of that.</p>
<p>I was thinking also to submit it in a not so prestigious conference, but also I do not see any advantage on doing so.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10644,
"author": "sr3u",
"author_id": 6448,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6448",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It would be good to dig a bit deeper and analyze why the idea works in some cases and not in some others. More than the fact that your idea seems not to work in some cases, a conference PC may be less than impressed by the fact that you have not worked out all its ramifications and clearly identified the structure of the problem for which it is good. In all CS research conferences and journals of some reasonable quality, it is the responsibility of the author(s) to present ideas as well as to work out their consequences in some depth -- it is in general not acceptable to present a bare idea (or an idea not thought through properly) with the expectation that the audience/readers will take it forward on their own.</p>\n\n<p>Presenting more analyses would also make your submission stronger by adding some other theoretical results to the paper. You could also identify future research directions for addressing the cases not covered by your current work, which could add gravitas to your current paper as well as suggest your own future direction.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10657,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It's important to remember that a paper is supposed to make some kind of contribution. It's not merely a report on \"things you did\". So if you have some good results and some inconclusive results, what's the contribution ? As sr3u says, you need to work out what's going on and come up with some answers. It's entirely possible that you fail in this endeavour and end up with NO paper. That's not fun, but it's something that you must accept as a possibility. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/16 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10643",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6144/"
]
|
10,646 | <p>My field is atmospheric physics.</p>
<p>The irony is that I have been a school teacher for over a decade, but soon, I'll be giving a presentation of some of my findings at a conference. I think that the nerves stem from speaking about my own research in front of my peers - something that I have not done to a large audience.</p>
<p>The questions that will no doubt be ask fill me with anticipation in both positive and negative ways.</p>
<p>Asides from being prepared, making sure the presentation is seamless and that I have a good night's sleep beforehand and 'knowing my stuff' inside and out. What are some strategies to anticipate the type of questions that would likely arise from a conference presentation?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10647,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>There are a few obvious questions to ask yourself in planning for questions:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>What are the inherent weaknesses in the current work? (Almost no research is completely \"airtight,\" so figuring out where the weak spots are will make a difference.)</p></li>\n<li><p>What are the ramifications of whatever assumptions I have made? Are they logical? What happens if I strengthen, relax, or eliminate some of those assumptions? Will everything still work in the more general (or more restricted) case?</p></li>\n<li><p>How would I apply this work to other problems? How will it help others in the field?</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>And then, with respect to the presentation:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Have I left anything out in the interests of time that would potentially interest the user? Is the research methodology clear? </li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>If there's anything in the last point, you may want to plan on having additional \"backup\" slides which highlight that info, but that aren't part of the \"main\" talk.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10648,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One strategy to adopt when answering questions is to first repeat back the essence of the question to the questioner:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>If I understand correctly, you are asking ....</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This will have two effects. Firstly, it ensures that you are actually answering the correct question. Secondly, it will buy you a little bit of time to gather your thoughts and think a bit about an answer.</p>\n\n<p>Take your time when answering questions, rather than rushing to the first answer that pops into your head. In the end, it is okay to say, \"I don't know\" or to ask to discuss the question off-line, but the latter can seem like a bit of a cop-out. Try to answer the question, but only if the message is not getting through can you suggest to take it off-line.</p>\n\n<p>But the real key is to practice your presentation extensively. If you deliver a good presentation and you know it, you will feel great and thus comfortable to answer questions.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10654,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In addition to strategies for anticipating questions, I thought it would be helpful to suggest how to cope with the nerves. I find that it sometimes helps to remind yourself a couple of things:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Remember that you have been working and thinking about your specific question probably more than most people hearing the talk - they are just hearing about your work for the first time. Even if there are important and smart people in the audience, <strong>you are the expert on your work</strong>.</li>\n<li>Personally, I find that I am similarly anxious before giving talks regarding my work. However, it somehow always plays out fine - the atmosphere is usually relaxed and the questions tend to be either simple clarifications or interesting discussions. I suspect I am not the only person who experiences this.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10672,
"author": "user168715",
"author_id": 5596,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5596",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Most of the questions you'll receive will either 1) ask for clarification about your methodology/results, or 2) suggest avenues of future work. Questions of the first kind are usually very easy (presumably you did the research and know the answer ;) ) and the second kind can be very helpful for identifying new research directions and collaborators! If you've already thought about the proposed direction, obviously chip in any insights you might have, but if not, \"that's an interesting suggestion, and something I'd be interested in looking at in future work\" is all you really need to say.</p>\n\n<p>There are only a few realistic ways the Q&A session can go off of the rails. You might get questions like</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>\"How does your work compare to [Foo et al 2003]\" (you have no idea who Foo is or what his method does)</li>\n<li>\"Does your work account for (some factor you don't understand)?\"</li>\n<li>\"How might your work apply to (some area you know nothing about)?\"</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>You can fall into the trap of feeling that you <em>should</em> know the answer, and that admitting ignorance is embarrassing... but the worst thing you can do is to bluff or make stuff up. If people \"smell blood in the water\" and get the impression that you are being misleading, they <em>will</em> come back with even more hostile questions. Instead, remember that you are in control of the conversation, and hold the ultimate trump:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>\"Unfortunately I'm not familiar offhand with the method of Foo et al, but I'd be happy to chat with you offline about it after the session.\"</li>\n<li>\"I don't know offhand, but I'd be happy to chat more offline.\"</li>\n<li>\"Unfortunately I'm not too familiar with (area X), but I'd love to talk to you later about possible applications of my work there.\"</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10680,
"author": "Dikran Marsupial",
"author_id": 2827,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2827",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is absolutely nothing wrong with not knowing the answer to a difficult question; if we know the answers to all the questions, then by definition it isn't research. Being comfortable with not knowing the answer should help with nerves. The questions are generally asked out of genuine interest, rather than as a test, so the person asking the question is not necessarily expecting you to have a good answer anyway. User168715's suggestion (+1) of saying \"I don't know offhand, but I'd be happy to chat more off-line\" is a good one\", and is a good way of exchanging ideas with others interested in the same sorts of work as yourself.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/17 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10646",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
10,649 | <p>In the UK a portion, and in some cases all, work is "second marked" where an independent marker also marks the work. In cases where the 1st and 2nd marker disagree, a 3rd marker may be used. Finally, the entire work of each student over the course of his/her studies is evaluated by an exam board with (sometimes) 2 additional independent markers. These exam board markers tend to only consider cases that are on the border of different degree classifications.</p>
<p>From my understanding of statistics, having all of these different markers will regress marks towards the mean. As I am currently faced with the daunting task of 2nd marking a large stack of off topic papers, I am curious what are the advantages of second marking?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10650,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Double marking has many roles, but mostly it is to ensure accuracy and fairness. The main way of achieving this, and avoiding the statistical anomalies alluded to in the comments is to produce an effective marking scheme, so that academics with sufficient background can grade the exam and produce virtually the same grades. <em>Easier said than done.</em></p>\n\n<p>More details can be found on the Internet, for example, on <a href=\"http://www.swan.ac.uk/registry/academicguide/assessmentandprogress/doublemarkingpolicy/\">Swansea University's website</a>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10651,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I will provide some little experience I have had. I am sure details will differ depending on how the system of two graders are set up. </p>\n\n<p>In the system I experienced it is a custom to have the course responsible plus someone external (in my case even from a different country) do the grading. The grading was completed by having a discussion between the two graders about possible deviations. In the system grades are given as a number between one and six in steps of 0.1, so very detailed. </p>\n\n<p>My experience was actually quite remarkable; it concerned a masters/PhD level course. We were most often within 0.2 of each other except in one case (answer) where one had given a 1 and the other a 6. In that case it turned out the question was ambiguous and could be interpreted in different ways. The grades were basically calculated as the average of both but only after we had discussed the problems/deviations. This is, for example, how we discovered the ambiguous question formulation.</p>\n\n<p>From this, albeit miniscule, experience, I felt that the benefit of having two persons grading is that ambiguities in terms of questions and answers can be sorted out. It is also possible to discuss the apropriateness of the interpretations of answers given by students. The method also provides what I can call \"legal certainty\" since the grades will be based on two persons view rather than one. Of course the degree to which it is certian depends on the transparency of the process and to what extent the two gradings become official. The point in \"my\" case is that both graders have to agree so it is not signed by just one person. </p>\n\n<p>As a grader I also appreciated the possibility to discuss the grading and the corrections jointly made were fair and made the process worth while. I would personally like ot see the system used more, but fear it will be difficult from a financial point of view in many universities (-y systems).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10662,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Like the other answers, I don't think it is an issue of regression to the mean (in the sense that the mean is the mean of all the students in the module). It is an issue of finding the true quality of the student's work.</p>\n\n<p>In my current university we do sampling in that one marker will check maybe 1/3 of another marker's work. The point here is clearly not to catch every mistake a marker might make but rather to check for signs of abuse of power. Because everyone marking knows that <em>some</em> of their marks will be checked by another is supposed to keep the original marker from giving inappropriately high or low grades to any students, since the marker does not know which of the marks will be checked (admins actually do the selection of the sample).</p>\n\n<p>I've worked at other universities where all work is double marked and in this case my experience is similar to Peter Jansson's.</p>\n\n<p>Again, as I see it, the purpose of double marking (whether full or sampling) is to simply make sure that the student is getting marked fairly. Unfair marks can happen with intent (bad marker) or on accident (marker interpreting an ambiguous question differently from the student).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/17 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10649",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929/"
]
|
10,652 | <p>Working on a cross-disciplinary project, in an increasingly cross-disciplinary field, I often find myself wondering whether or not I am developing skills in multiple different areas of my work. I intend this question to be as general as possible, but for the sake of clarity I will give my case as an example:</p>
<p>I have a MSc in applied mathematics, and have been working with biomedical research for three years now. Being branded as a <em>bioinformatician</em> I feel very appreciated on one hand, and absolutely disregarded on the other. In many cases I am expected to learn more of the biology and develop an understanding of "the real science" while all the tools and analysis should just work. I mean many of the seniors have absolutely no idea of the time and effort it takes to develop at software tool, maintain and further develop it. It appears as all that is given once and for all in the engineering school, after all programming is just programming... (please note the sarcasm here)</p>
<p>Be as it may, I have been trying to improve my knowledge and experience in the technical aspects of the work on my own; learning new algorithms, new languages, new tools... It is surprisingly hard to get accustomed to these when you are not in the university anymore. Consequently, I have given up on learning Maven for my Java projects, or Perl for speeding up my day-to-day scripting. </p>
<p>So my question is; what are good methods for learning or developing techniques that are not immediately in the scope of your project but is still very relevant in your development as a scientist?</p>
<p>Follow up question: am I mistaken in thinking that I should develop a broad set of skills in order to become as efficient and competent as possible? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10653,
"author": "grauwulf",
"author_id": 5760,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5760",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>My goodness, but this is a tough one. We all learn and maintain our skills in our own unique way. Especially in industry or when operating independently, so it's difficult to say what would work for you. I'm in a similar situation except that I'm a developer first and I've been tasked with 'just making security happen'. Much like with you and bio-med, there is an awful lot that is changing in the landscape of info-sec and staying sharp in both domains is a real challenge. </p>\n\n<p>That said; your mileage will vary but here are some techniques that work for me. </p>\n\n<p><strong>Find overlapping areas:</strong>\nWhen I started to move toward developing a new aspect of my skill set I looked for areas where the old and the new overlap. Luckily for me; this was a pretty easy thing to do with infosec and software development. The benefit here is that it allows you to leverage your existing skills in a new area. If can can find areas where you can turn two jobs into one you can ease your way into it, rather than just sitting down one weekend and deciding \"I'm going to learn X.\".</p>\n\n<p><strong>Sit down one weekend and decide \"I'm going to learn X.\":</strong>\nSometimes there is no easy overlap to ease your way into a new tech or topic. In those cases I've found that a couple of days in power study mode can be a real benefit. Strap on the headphones, coffee up it that's your thing, and just read the literature & work problems. If it's tech then do tutorials. If it's topic then vacuum up as much as you can. </p>\n\n<p><strong>Find mentors:</strong> Maybe you can't find the all encompassing guru of everything you want to do, but that's OK. Someday that guru will be you. In the meantime find people with expertise in your subject areas to help you fill in the gaps. </p>\n\n<p><strong>Keep it fun:</strong>\nIf at all possible and whenever possible. If you hate what you're doing then you're not going to do it well. At least that has been my experience. </p>\n\n<p><strong>Don't give in to the temptation to 'dumb it down':</strong> You're a smart person. You've taken the time to learn a new skill. You've actually read the materials. You work hard to develop and maintain a system that crosses a number of subject matter domains. Don't let people off easy when they ask hard questions; give them hard answers. My approach is to ask them 'do you want an answer or a response?' If all they want is a response that's OK. I give them a short and succinct response. If they want an answer then I do my best to provide the most exhaustive and thorough explanation of what I do, that I can. When I work hard to learn a new skill I don't need to show it off but I won't let it be taken for granted either. </p>\n\n<p>Well, that's what I've got. All the best to you in your endeavors. If you ever need Java help feel free to grab me on chat and I'll get you an email address. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10655,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Some methods I have found:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Taking courses in the field you want to learn.</li>\n<li>Learning from books in the field you want to learn. Best done in a learning group of people with a similar background.</li>\n<li>Working with experts in the field you want to learn.</li>\n<li>Taking on research projects in the field you want to learn.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Remember that your PhD is the best time to gain this knowledge - later you will be much more busy with other things.</p>\n\n<p>Finally, bioinformatics and computational biology is a bit of an odd field because you need to know math, biology, chemistry, physics and computer science (I won't detail all the subfields, but there are dozens). My point is that this is a HUGE field - don't expect to be an expert in every possible aspect. Instead, it is better to find a niche which you enjoy and become an expert there - but always keep your mind open to learning new things.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10656,
"author": "StasK",
"author_id": 739,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/739",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My understanding from \"I am not in the uni anymore\" phrase is that you work in some of sort of industry or semi-academic environment. If that is indeed the case, you are probably filling in time sheets for you work; if that is the case, you should be telling your superiors, \"<em>This feature that you requested requires 10 hours of immediate development, and another 20 hours to test it properly. How high do you want me to put it on the priority list?</em>\" It is unfortunately a little late for you to start talking like that, as you have been used as an ultimate programmer-who-can-code-anything-without-any-problem for three years now. But you can also bring it up in the sense that \"<em>I am getting a variety of requests that I must process one by one</em>\", and then put the feature value-vs-development time trade-off.</p>\n\n<p>What you are asking, actually, is even more advanced: you need to reneg for some 5-10% of your time to be spent on professional development so that you can continue improving as the applied mathematician on the job. Again, you can say that this process will eventually pay off as you will do things on the projects faster. That's a tough sell given that your time is needed for actual research.</p>\n\n<p>You might want to ask something like that on the \"main\" StackOverflow website: how people continue training themselves on the job. In an academic setting, you as a student could just commit yourself to write your next thing (be that a research publication or a term paper) using the new tool. In a production environment, you don't have that luxury of being able to make some errors and give yourself some time to recover from them. So once again, that's tough.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10664,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Am in a very much similar situation as you, doing a PhD in physics - however, there is strong connections to biology, photography and signal processing - but very specific topics therein.</p>\n\n<p>A couple of methods that I use on top of what has been mentioned are:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Join stack exchanges, forums and discussion groups of similar topics</p></li>\n<li><p>Set myself challenges to determine something new, partly relevant to my studies, but also to build my skills in that topic.</p></li>\n<li><p>Attending conferences, workshops and seminars (as many as time and funds allow).</p></li>\n<li><p>But one main method that seems to work particularly well is setting up 'Google alerts' of specific topics - I always have a great reading list.</p></li>\n</ol>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/17 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10652",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5674/"
]
|
10,658 | <p>I am going to be a senior undergraduate and am looking to really find the area of research that I would like to be engaged in during graduate-school/senior year. I have submitted one conference paper as a collaborating author (currently waiting for the reviewers) in the area of Social Network Analysis (mathematical modeling) and am currently working on a conference paper in Graph Algorithms. </p>
<p>As you might guess, I am double majoring in Math and Computer Science and would like to pursue a graduate degree in applied math. So far (I haven't taken all the undergrad courses yet!) I have enjoyed Algorithms, Real Analysis, Graph Theory and Differential Equations. In the future I am curious to learn more about Stochastic Modeling, Mathematical Logic, Artificial Intelligence, Complex Analysis, Fractals and Abstract Algebra.</p>
<ol>
<li>Where can I find current research journals about both the topics I have enjoyed and the topics I am curious to learn more about?</li>
<li>Do any journals have mobile apps (IOS, Android, or Windows) in which they can be viewed?</li>
<li>Where can I find unbiased information about the quality and related-data about journals?</li>
</ol>
<p><strong>EDIT:</strong> Do any journals "stream" (RSS feed) to GNU Emacs? or is there any type of package manager that will automatically download the latest publications? For example, I just found this <a href="http://www.emacswiki.org/emacs/MitAiMemos">"package/program"</a> available in GNU Emacs. It is a list of AI publications from MIT up until 2005 (why would they stop then?)</p>
<p>Thanks for all the help! I am at least looking for a copy of a physical journal so I can take my eyes off the computer for a little bit! :)</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10691,
"author": "willwest",
"author_id": 7474,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7474",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would agree that you should mostly be ignoring journals and focusing on conferences, as they publish the majority of new computer science research.</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://academic.research.microsoft.com/?SearchDomain=2&entitytype=3\" rel=\"nofollow\">Microsoft Academic Search</a> is a good place to go to get an <em>approximate</em> listing of the top conferences for each sub-field of computer science. Other fields other than Computer Science are listed there too.</p>\n\n<p>Use your school's network to access the <a href=\"http://dl.acm.org/\" rel=\"nofollow\">ACM Digital Library</a> (this should be free through your school's library), and download the proceedings for the conferences in the past year or two. Find the papers that look interesting to you and then search for them on Google Scholar. You can print them out if you prefer hard copies.</p>\n\n<p>Hope this helps!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10716,
"author": "David Ketcheson",
"author_id": 81,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/81",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>@willwest has answered regarding CS. I will answer regarding math.</p>\n\n<p>I would start with the journals <a href=\"http://www.ams.org/journals\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">of the AMS (pure math)</a> and <a href=\"http://siam.org/journals/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">of SIAM (applied math)</a>. These are the pre-eminent professional societies in their fields and virtually all of their journals are top tier. In particular, you might start by browsing <a href=\"http://www.ams.org/publications/journals/journalsframework/jams\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">the Journal of the AMS</a> and the <a href=\"http://siam.org/journals/sirev.php\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">SIAM Review</a>, the most selective journals from each society.</p>\n\n<p>The journal that a paper gets published in is becoming less and less important, since most researchers find articles through search engines or social media rather than by browsing journals. The best way to keep up with new research in a particular subfield of math or CS is to subscribe to the appropriate arXiv RSS feed; for instance, for numerical analysis this is <a href=\"http://arxiv.org/rss/math.NA\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">http://arxiv.org/rss/math.NA</a>. This is how I usually learn about relevant new research.</p>\n\n<p>Note that few mathematical conferences have proceedings, and none that I know of are considered prestigious (in CS, the situation is roughly the opposite). If you want to know which journals are the most highly regarded, talk to faculty in the field.</p>\n\n<p>Journal articles are PDFs, so you can view them with any mobile app that understands PDFs. If you want to read a hard copy, either print the paper or go to your campus library.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 32196,
"author": "Andrew Lazarus",
"author_id": 24134,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/24134",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Let me put in a vote for <em>Mathematical Reviews</em> (online <a href=\"http://www.ams.org/mr-database\" rel=\"nofollow\">version</A>). They're a few months behind the actual publication of the article, but someone who knows the field is giving you a two-paragraph (plus-or-minus) synopsis. Even low-quality papers get reviewed, and the authors-should-have-read-X comments of the reviewer are well worth it.</p>\n\n<p>Your department can arrange a login for you. For that matter, just go join the American Mathematical Society; dues for grad students are trivial.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 41835,
"author": "William Entriken",
"author_id": 4016,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4016",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Here are some journals: </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-combinatorial-theory-series-a/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Journal of Combinatorial Theory</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.journals.elsevier.com/discrete-mathematics/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Discrete Mathematics</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.journals.elsevier.com/discrete-applied-mathematics/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Discrete Applied Mathematics</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.combinatorics.org/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Electronic Journal of Combinatorics</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.journals.elsevier.com/advances-in-applied-mathematics/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Advances in Applied Mathematics</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://jacm.acm.org/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Journal of the ACM</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://epubs.siam.org/journal/sjdmec\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">SIAM Journal on Discrete Mathematics</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.maa.org/publications/periodicals/american-mathematical-monthly\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">MAA Monthly</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"https://www.springer.com/engineering/computational+intelligence+and+complexity/journal/11831\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Computational Methods in Engineering</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"https://www.springer.com/mathematics/journal/12532\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Computational Intelligence and Complexity</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.scimagojr.com/journalsearch.php?q=26422&tip=sid&clean=0\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">SIAM Journal on Optimization</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.siam.org/journals/sicomp.php\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">SIAM Journal on Computing</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>But you can search the list yourself for a more relevant journal:</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=top_venues\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=top_venues</a></p>\n\n<p>This sorts them by citations.</p>\n\n<p><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/YL6ZF.png\" alt=\"enter image description here\"></p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/18 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10658",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7450/"
]
|
10,660 | <p>I encounter this term "principled approach" in some <a href="http://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=principled+approach&hl=en&btnG=Search&as_sdt=1%2C5&as_sdtp=on">papers</a> of computer science. Since I' m not a native speaker, I don' t quite understand what this means. And I didn' t find any results online.</p>
<p>I' m not sure if this site is appropriate for such questions. Please let me know if I posted at the wrong place.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10667,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>(I am in mathematics, but similar language is used roughly similarly, I believe.) As a place-holder answer: a \"principled\" approach in science is at least <em>opposite</em> to a quick-and-dirty, or <em>ad</em> _hoc_, or \"kludge-y\" approach, the latter three synonymous expressions meaning that the priority is getting <em>some</em> result out, perhaps even finding some rationalization for the conclusion one <em>wants</em>. Obviously a non-principled approach more lends itself to corrupted (but also quick, desired, easy) results.</p>\n\n<p>The \"principled\" approach \"takes the high road\", does not bias conclusions, does not rationalize-away weaknesses or flaws in methodology or information.</p>\n\n<p>That is, one could hope that a \"principled\" approach involves <em>no</em> conflict of interest for the parties involved, and could be trusted. At its worst, \"unprincipled\" approaches (which no one would ever admit to, except perhaps as a mildly perverse claim to fresh unorthodoxy) produce completely untrustworthy outcomes, because those outcomes are chosen in advance, and whatever results are obtained are \"interpreted\" to support the original premise.</p>\n\n<p>A hilarious example I witnessed was a computer science M.S. (details elided to protect privacy), on which I was an \"outside examiner\", in which \"the goal\" was to prove that two bunches of events were correlated, thus proving that the people who were promoting the one as \"cause\" of the other were right, and people should invest in their product. (Nevermind that correlation is not causality.) The guy failed to find any correlation in any of the first twenty or so statistical tests he applied... but he kept at it, until he found a statistical test that <em>did</em> seem to assert a slight correlation.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, what he had <em>really</em> proven was that there was apparently no correlation... but, taking an \"unprincipled\" approach, claimed the opposite of what his own evidence showed, etc.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10668,
"author": "grauwulf",
"author_id": 5760,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5760",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>A 'principled approach', at least the way that I've been exposed to this term, implies due care and diligence with regards to the rigor and discipline used in the materials context. A paper that describes a principled approach would be one that is presenting a procedure for the execution or evaluation of a given subject matter. For example, if I picked up a paper titled 'A principled approach to algorithm selection and implementation' then I would expect the contents of that paper to clearly enumerate a system of algorithm analysis, with exhaustive supporting documentation.</p>\n\n<p>Conversely, a paper which uses a principled approach would be one that follows such a detailed and rigorous methodology that the data collected from its research may be considered to be functionally with out bias and with a low probability of corruption or inaccuracy. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/18 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10660",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7237/"
]
|
10,671 | <p>I've read at least one career advice essay that calls out asking your PhD students to call you by your first name as unprofessional.</p>
<p>My coworkers and I always called our PhD advisor by his first name, and a graduate student calling <em>any</em> professor by their last name, much less their own advisor, strikes my sensibilities as quaint and old-fashioned (undergraduates are a different story, of course).</p>
<p>What is the standard practice for this?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10677,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I always have my students call me by my first (given) name. Currently, I'm teaching in Asia and the students have the local custom of calling everyone as Mr. Givenname or Miss Givenname (yes, even if she is married - strange, I know). This is completely different from my native culture but I bring my culture with me...for a reason.</p>\n\n<p>I have no desire to introduce the formality of calling me in any sort of official way. I feel it distracts from the importance of focusing on the matter of education. As long as my students do not refer to me in a rude way, I'm quite flexible. I do, however, encourage (without insisting) them to use simply my first name, without any title, rank, or any other identifier. This is true not only for my graduate students but for my undergraduate students as well.</p>\n\n<p>Others in my departments, most notably Asian teachers, do prefer to have the greater level of formality. To each their own. It really does come back to culture. For me, I allow my students to follow which ever culture they prefer, but I do let them I know I don't want formalities to interfere with the educational process in any way.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10678,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is definitely a local practice. Here in Germany, it is not standard that <em>colleagues</em> call each other by their first names without specific invitation to do so. However, in other institutes, it is now standard policy that everybody refers to each other by their first name. So what is considered acceptable varies very much from location to location and group to group. </p>\n\n<p>Within my own group, my undergraduate students tend to call me \"Professor,\" while the graduate students and postdocs call me by my first name. This seems to me to be a reasonable balance—but I wouldn't really have a problem if an undergraduate who's worked for me for a while calls me by my first name.</p>\n\n<p>A graduate student who isn't in my group, however, should not automatically expect to call me by my first name in an initial email. That would be rather presumptuous.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10679,
"author": "Dikran Marsupial",
"author_id": 2827,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2827",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Yes, a PhD is essentially an apprenticeship in academic research, so they should be treated as a colleague in potential (it seems normal practice for an RA to refer to their supervisor by their first name). Also I think it is a bad idea for researchers to be overly formal and deferential towards their supervisors; if you ware working at the cutting edge of your subject, not all of your ideas will be good ones, and the PhD student should feel comfortable pointing out where they feel this is the case. This sort of self-skepticism (being comfortable with the idea of being wrong occasionally) is a key component of being a good scientist, and it seems to me to be difficult to communicate this by example if the student is constantly reminded of their place in the hierarchy by making them call me \"Dr Marsupial\".</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10681,
"author": "PatW",
"author_id": 7357,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7357",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I recall a teacher of mine saying : \"Dealing with different cultures is dealing with different expectations\", and calling someone by his title or his first name is definitely related to customs. </p>\n\n<p>Being a French (from Chinese parents) student myself, I have never called my teachers/professors by their first names, but things tend to change just as customs evolve. Maybe it is because of my chinese backgrounds, which implies a strong use of titles (even for family members) that is explained by the importance of respect for the elders in the society.</p>\n\n<p>Then I got to study in Oslo for a few months, and people explicitly asked me to call them by their first names, which I did later. However, it still feels akward for me to call someone by his first name when he is \"much\" more older than me.</p>\n\n<p>Now what I do is that I say \"Monsieur\" or \"Madame\", and use the first name if I am invited to do so.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 62339,
"author": "RoboKaren",
"author_id": 14885,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/14885",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In Japan, graduate students generally address their professors as <em>Lastname-sensei</em> or just <em>sensei</em>. Using the first-name would be unheard of. Even faculty do not address each other with their given names (unless they are foreigners).</p>\n\n<p>Faculty generally address students by <em>lastname-kun</em> or <em>lastname-san.</em></p>\n\n<p>Use of given names in Japan is generally restricted to genuinely close friends and family in private situations.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 62353,
"author": "Laurent Duval",
"author_id": 38057,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/38057",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This question is to me about: "how to behave professionally". As a teacher and a supervisor, I chose an intermediate way. I play with three items: first or last name, Mrs./Ms./Mr. or casual, and you and thou (a distinction that still exists in several languages; in French <strong>tu</strong> and <strong>vous</strong>). My aim is to show both respect and equality of treatment. <strong>I dislike professional situations where someone calls a colleague by the first name without reciprocity</strong>. So (as an advisor):</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Up to the Master of Science level, I call students with Ms (or Mrs)/Mr. and their last name, and I expect the students to do the same.</li>\n<li>I propose my PhD students (during their PhD time) to call them by their first name, and to call me with my first name as well (equal footing). Yet, in French, we have a difference between "tu" and "vous" (<a href=\"http://www.french-linguistics.co.uk/grammar/tu_and_vous.shtml\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">see "Tu and Vous"</a>), with shades related to "you" and "<a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thou\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">thou</a>"; "vous" is regarded as more polite, and we use the "tu" to talk in everyday life.</li>\n<li>When they get their thesis, I generally propose we switch to the more casual "tu", and I leave them the choice to use it, and first names as well. I am not anymore in a "supervising position" to impose them choices anymore.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>And honestly, sometimes, I use "vous" and the last name when I meet students I have not met for a long time. <strong>Parental education.</strong></p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/19 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10671",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5596/"
]
|
10,688 | <p>I'm an undergrad student who is interested in pursuing a Masters degree in complexity science/complex systems in the U.S. I know some schools put this program under physics, math or computer science departments. </p>
<p>I'd like to know which schools that provide such a program. Unlike physics, maths or cs programs, it is not straight-forward to find out such a list. Any recommendations on how to get a complete list of schools that provide a masters degree in complexity science/complex systems?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10689,
"author": "Piotr Migdal",
"author_id": 49,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/49",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Try looking at speakers from conferences dealing with complex systems, e.g.:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.eccs13.eu/\" rel=\"nofollow\">European Conference on Complex Systems</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://netsci2013.net/\" rel=\"nofollow\">NetSci</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>You can also search for other conferences (e.g. at <a href=\"http://www.conference-service.com\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.conference-service.com</a>) and then check the speakers. Furthermore, looking at affiliations from recent (say - last few years) papers you like my lead to some good trails.</p>\n\n<p>When it comes to webpages being hubs from complex systems, try looking at:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.complexssociety.eu\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.complexssociety.eu</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.network-science.org\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.network-science.org</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Some positions (including doctoral programs) and other resources are at <a href=\"http://www.barabasilab.com\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.barabasilab.com</a>.</p>\n\n<p>Also, some group websites are in my collections of links (Delicious: <a href=\"https://delicious.com/stared/complexity\" rel=\"nofollow\">complexity</a> and <a href=\"https://delicious.com/stared/networks\" rel=\"nofollow\">networks</a> or search at <a href=\"https://pinboard.in/search/u%3apmigdal\" rel=\"nofollow\">my Pinboard</a>).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10708,
"author": "user454322",
"author_id": 1353,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1353",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Though <a href=\"http://www.santafe.edu/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Santa Fe Institute</a> doesn't have a Master program, it has a <a href=\"http://tuvalu.santafe.edu/events/workshops/index.php/Complex_Systems_Summer_School_2013_%28CSSS%29\" rel=\"nofollow\">Complex System Course</a>. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/19 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10688",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6962/"
]
|
10,692 | <p>I would like to have a section titled 'Awards/Honors' in my CV and I am confused about how much detail to include for the items in this section. Here are some formats and levels of detail I am considering: </p>
<ol>
<li>Harry Potter scholarship.</li>
<li>Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter scholarship.</li>
<li>Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter scholarship: awarded to one student every year for demonstrated excellence in horcrux-gathering.</li>
</ol>
<p>For certain things, I feel like the first does not include enough context, beyond some very well-known things (such as a Fulbright or Goldwater, neither of which I have received). For some particular names I have in mind the second looks pretty clunky and does not always fit on a single line. The third option is even clunkier, and might be perceived as an attempt to add fluff to inflate the CV. I am personally leaning towards the second option, but I don't know that it adds much value beyond the first option. </p>
<p>Is there an accepted way to list awards/scholarships? Should I even be listing them at all?</p>
<p><strong>Some context.</strong> I am a PhD student in Mathematics and I will be on the academic job market this coming year. I am currently based in the US and intend to apply to jobs here as well as internationally if I find any that are interesting. I am wondering both about the CV I keep that lives on my professional website and the one I hope to send as part of my job applications.</p>
<hr>
<p><strong>Edited to add</strong>: The first couple of answers suggest that one might choose the format/level of detail based on the type/prestige of award. If I were reading a CV and came across inconsistent formatting within a section, I would find it quite jarring. Is this something that only worries someone mildly-OCD such as myself (I notice things like en-dashes and em-dashes) and therefore perhaps to not be worried about, or should I be careful about such things (e.g. consistency of formatting) when creating a CV? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10694,
"author": "Dan C",
"author_id": 1069,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1069",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The <strong>amount of detail</strong> you give should be <strong>proportional to the award's prestige</strong>. So for example, </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>If you were recognized as an \"excellent\" teacher, among a list of 100s at your university, that's worth mentioning, but it gets formatted as option 1. </li>\n<li>If you won a best student paper award, that probably gets option 2. </li>\n<li>If you won \"best PhD thesis in your department\" from a department with more than say 10 graduates each year, that might merit option 3, although it's likely to fit easily in format 2.</li>\n<li>If you won a prize from a professional society (awarded to very few each year), that might merit option 3.</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10698,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I will disagree with Dan C's answer above and state that you should only be choosing between options 2 and 3. At the very minimum, you want to indicate <strong>who</strong> gave you the award. Otherwise, it's not all that valuable to the reviewer of your CV, as they may not know whether an award is a big deal or not. If it's a major award, I'd default to option 3 if it's \"non-obvious\" how it works. </p>\n\n<p>So, in general, I'd opt for option number 2, unless there's some specific information that needs to be shared, in which case I'd go for number 3.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10699,
"author": "user168715",
"author_id": 5596,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5596",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would go so far as to give the opposite of Dan C's advice: the more prestigious the award, the less detail you need to provide.</p>\n\n<p>If you won the NSF fellowship or the Hertz, or got best paper at your national conference, everyone will understand what the award is and its significance, and belaboring the point has the risk of looking desperate or inexperienced.</p>\n\n<p>On the other had, if you won your department's annual [famous former faculty] Memorial Award for Excellence in Teaching, the award is still worth listing and you should include at least that much information on the CV. Assume nobody is going to take the time to Google your awards.</p>\n\n<p>I would say, as my rule of thumb, that each award should fit on one line. If explaining an award's significance requires more than one line, that is a red flag that perhaps the award is not pulling its weight. Understating your accomplishments and aggressive mediocrity will both kill your chances in the job market, but in my opinion the latter is the most dangerous of the two.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10702,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You got good answers. I just want to add that it is usually a good idea to list the relevant year(s). I typically use this format:</p>\n\n<p>Mickey Mouse Prize. Institute of Advanced Cartoons. 2010. Extra comments if needed.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/20 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10692",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,700 | <p>Assume that I publish many papers in many journals and someday I changed the family name (my last name). How can I edit that where my papers have been published? and is it easy process?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10701,
"author": "Federico Poloni",
"author_id": 958,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/958",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am afraid that you can't easily change the name on a published article. Publishing is (at least theoretically) still done on print, so there is simply no way to change the physical journal once it has been sent to university libraries all over the world. Even for more important issues such as plagiarism or factually incorrect data, only an errata is issued, or the paper is marked as \"retracted\".</p>\n\n<p>What you can do instead is advertising the double name on your webpage and CV, and ensuring that the academic databases (such as Web of Science and Scopus) correctly recognize and handle your name change, marking all of your papers as written by a single author. You will probably need to notify them using the \"contact us\" functions on their websites.</p>\n\n<p>Several authors in the same situation choose to keep the old name also on new papers; this makes it simpler for other researchers to recognize you, at the price of using a name that you might have disowned and now consider a relic from the past. In practice, there is no requirement that your academical <em>nom de plume</em> coincides with the one that is written on your ID and that you use on legal papers, so you are free to sign your papers using a different version of it. Once you choose this route, however, it will be more practical if you consistently use the old name also when attending conferences.</p>\n\n<p>If you are simply getting married, then signing your papers with both surnames is probably the easiest option. (I realize that probably you have already considered and discarded this option, but I thought it more appropriate to include it in my answer anyway.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 18834,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As others have pointed out, there is almost certainly no way to change your name in already published papers. In line with the previous answer, I would like to call your attention to initiatives like <a href=\"http://orcid.org/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">ORCID</a> and <a href=\"http://www.researcherid.com/Home.action?returnCode=ROUTER.Unauthorized&SrcApp=CR&Init=Yes\" rel=\"noreferrer\">ResearcherID</a> that aim at creating unique identifications for each researcher, so you can collect all your scientific output under a single ID, more or less independently of a particular name or spelling.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 94110,
"author": "lukeg",
"author_id": 71698,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/71698",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are two strategies that I have heard of that people with renowned accomplishments tend to employ when they get married (what is, I think, the most common situation when a person changes last name). It certainly depends on your legal system, but in my country they either: stay by the old name or use composite last name. The latter meaning that if a person's name was Smith and nupturient's name is Brown, then they change the name to Smith-Brown.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/20 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10700",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,710 | <p>I apologize if this is too long a post, but I could really do with a few
pointers about my current situation.</p>
<p>I am 25 years old and I will complete <strong>4 years</strong> of my PhD in a computational applied mathematics program in the US in August 2013.</p>
<p>My bachelors was in pure mathematics. I had gotten interested in numerical analysis in that time and so I had applied to my current PhD program. I have been under my adviser for 3 years now (the first year at my university is spent in coursework). A PhD at my university is usually 5 years long. </p>
<p>Right now, I have <strong>almost nothing</strong> to report in the way of research, and consequently no publications , no conference submissions. I am getting increasingly nervous and frustrated about whether or not I will make it, <strong>even</strong> if I give myself an extra year by funding myself. </p>
<p>My adviser has consistently been making me work on uninteresting stuff, where most of the work involved is purely technical like writing brain-dead code, with almost zero chance for innovation. </p>
<p><strong><em>BREAKDOWN OF MY PHD</em></strong> </p>
<p>After monkeying around reading research papers, in the <strong>first year</strong> under my adviser, he got very confident about getting an industrial project and got me working on that, in anticipation that the contract would go through. At the end of the year we found out that we did not get the project. </p>
<p>In the <strong>second year</strong>, he said he wanted to get into GPU parallel computing
and to implement a few fluid dynamics algorithms. I slogged over many manuals, spent months and months writing and debugging code, all the time thinking that
this would be used to do some simulations he was interested in and get them published. But at the end of the second year my professor completely lost interest in these numerical techniques he was making my implement. </p>
<p>Seeing his capricious attitude, I almost wanted to quit then and there itself. But I decided to just stick it out, thinking it might be 'just a phase'. Due to funding issues, he once more got me working in the <strong>third year</strong> on another project which essentially involved writing a lot of stupid code, and running endless benchmark tests. </p>
<p>I have basically ended up trying to do a PhD in mathematics without any mathematics in this PhD. </p>
<p>Finally, a couple of weeks back, I told him that I had had enough, and to give me some actual
problems/material to work with. After about an hour of discussion, and informing him that I was ready to fund my self if required, he finally gave me a couple of possible starting points for what I hope would actually turn out to be worthwhile research.</p>
<p><strong><em>MY QUESTIONS</em></strong></p>
<ul>
<li><p>I do realize it was <em>extremely</em> foolish waiting for so long before putting my foot down, and not having the courage to speak up before. My adviser is well-regarded by colleagues in his field, and maybe I was subconsciously scared of
contradicting his handling of my PhD for pissing him off. </p>
<p>But even though he has now suggested problems which do seem interesting, after having had so many negative experiences I am very skeptical about the future. How should I proceed, and what are the factors I should consider ? </p>
<p>Frankly, I am feeling very burned out. In the way of future plans, I have been toying with the idea of dropping out, getting a break for a few months and then sitting for some entrance exams for a Masters in Economics in some good universities back in my home country. I always found economics very interesting through my undergrad and more so these past few-months while studying it has a hobby.</p></li>
<li><p>Continuing would require me to stay on for an extra year till August 2015,
which leaves me <strong>about 17 months tops</strong> from now, before I start hunting in academic job market. This includes about 2-3 months I will have to spend doing literature review on the proposed topics and learning the requisite mathematical tools. </p>
<p>So if I decide to stay on, how should I re-structure my study/research time and the relationship with my adviser in these 17 months so that I can make some head-way.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Maybe 17 months is too short a time? Any suggestions would be really helpful !!</p>
| [
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"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Firstly, no apology needed, your question is thorough and easy to read and understand. It sounds like you are in quite an unpleasant situation.</p>\n\n<p>Don't take any advice I may give as gospel, but in answer to your questions:</p>\n\n<p>You are most certainly <strong>not</strong> foolish to wait until now to stand up to your advisor, you have had several leads and have given many chances for the project to kick into gear. You have every right and reason to feel skeptical about the current promises and project direction.</p>\n\n<p>Ultimately, how you proceed is up to you (you're probably understandably sick of hearing that), but look at the following considerations (no doubt many other members will add to this):</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>The new direction could well be a winner, leading to papers, conferences and most of all, fulfillment. It could also be a good one as now, you have made your feelings clear to your supervisor.</li>\n<li>Could this be just another academic 'false positive'?</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Perhaps outline a couple of potential papers and present them to your advisor (this is something I do). This could be an ongoing thing, alongside your research - outline potential papers.</p>\n\n<p>As for the timeframe, 17 months - I would not be too worried about that - I have been able to get three papers published in less than ten months, with a 4th on the way and the 5th planned (I finish my Ph.D. at the end of the year).</p>\n\n<p>I hope this helps, and I hope it all gets sorted out for you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 14730,
"author": "gordon",
"author_id": 9978,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9978",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It really helps if you take some time off and get a job in your field if you can. That way it serves to rejuvenate your mind and gives you a breather. By doing so you can hit three birds with one stone: 1) you take a break and feel better 2) you have some money to use 3) you become more interested in other subjects you never thought you would have liked, such as technology, fashion, the business world, different languages and culture, etc. I didn't say to quit, I said to take some time off and \"find yourself, to rediscover yourself\". Will it help? Maybe or maybe not. Perhaps if you look at yourself in comparison to the rest of the world. You're doing a PhD which is one of the most prestigious and most sought after degree in the world. Not many people are able to do that let alone get a bachelor degree. Be grateful. Some people don't even have enough money to afford a days meal or a roof over their head. Hell be lucky you're not in combat or war. Sometimes it helps to appreciate with what you have. That may give you motivation to keep going. Maybe PhD isn't for you. Maybe it is for you. maybe you're meant to become the next Bill Gates or the next president. Who knows. My point is no matter what happens always keep your head up, stay confident, and don't ever give up. Take a break. But don't give up. No don't worry you are not alone. The fact that you made it this far shows you are a winner (Charlie Sheen haha just kidding). Don't give up doc.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 24546,
"author": "Koldito",
"author_id": 12314,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/12314",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One thing that you need to consider is the way quitting is going to look in your CV. If I was a prospective employer and I saw that you spent 4 years in a PhD program without getting a PhD (or even publications, for the matter), that would be a huge red flag. I'd wonder if you spent those years doodling on facebook and hanging out in cafes. I could even reason that perhaps you are just not as bright as you claim to be. Either way, that's not the kind of person I would want in my company. If you quit now, you should really find a way to preempt this kind of concerns.</p>\n\n<p>With respect to time, I can tell you from experience that 17 months is more than enough provided that (i) you have a clearly defined dissertation topic; (ii) you work hard (and here we are talking about 60-to-70 hours/week; one of the guys in my cohort wrote his entire dissertation in 12 months and his girlfriend complained that, during those 12 months it was almost like she didn't have a boyfriend at all); and (iii) you have a good supporting network of peers and mentors to keep you going in the right direction. I'd say that, at this stage, (i) and (iii) are the most important points. If you can produce a proof-of-concept paper within the next couple of months and a couple of more experienced people agree that it is a worthy project, then you've overcome the largest obstacle.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 37459,
"author": "Hair of Slytherin",
"author_id": 28342,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/28342",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I just wanted to share my experience with you as I am going through <em>almost</em> the exact same situation.</p>\n\n<p>After a promising two year start and killing my physics classwork and getting my Masters in physics, I picked an adviser and took over a project that a graduate student, who was graduating as I was joining the group, had been working on. Like you, I spent almost all my time coding (a good deal of it CUDA programming) or dealing with certain mathematical problems. I've spent approximately 5-10% of my time on physics and feel that I've done more reproduction of others research, albeit in a more innovative and optimized way, than answering new questions.</p>\n\n<p>I chose to use my time guiding these different projects to learn job-market relevant skills. I use my status as a student to take advantage of school-specific career fairs and professional development. What I've found is that there is quite a demand for physicists (and <em>even more so</em> computational applied mathematicians) out there. It also opened my mind to the types of skills the job market is looking for.</p>\n\n<p>As a result, I've found my anxiety concerning lack of research results has dropped off dramatically! The burnt out feeling I had dissipated considerably as I started seeing that the skills I was learning directly contributed to my future success. I'd highly recommend you start the job search <em>now</em> and try and pick a project that <em>you</em> enjoy that would make you even more attractive to an employer you'd enjoy working for. Also, as for restructuring your relationship, I agree with you that you should indeed take more of a lead in your own research topics. Find projects that force you to learn modern, in-demand techniques and methods, especially those YOU find interesting. It'll help you from feeling burnt out. </p>\n\n<p>Don't worry about quitting the Ph.D. Contrary to other answers, none of the employers I interviewed with cared about me quitting the Ph.D. In fact, they were specifically trying to hire Masters or below. I guess if you have your heart set on academia, then quitting the Ph.D. is an issue. In summary, I'd just say start your job search now and tailor your studies towards employment : it'll help your motivation stay high, produce solid results and allow you to seamlessly hit the job market when you finish!</p>\n\n<p>Another possibility : get an internship. It'll help you get your foot in the door somewhere, give you some much needed professional experience on your resume and a much needed change of scenery. I find that when I take a break and come back to a project, I can hit it all the harder and get over some of the bad humps.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 37472,
"author": "cao cao",
"author_id": 28360,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/28360",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I had far more worse situations in my life than leaving a Ph.D, all were hard decisions. When something does not work, it is like trying to support a building severely hit by earthquake using temporary solutions. The problem is that you can never build a skyscraper and will always got stuck with a few floor tall building all over your life.</p>\n\n<p>If you demolish your useless building, in the future you can build a strong skyscraper. Off course you will be homeless for some time, but you are still very young with many options. So if you can get a Master's degree instead of Ph.D definitely leave it. I think your advisor will also look this favoroubly. Even he can write good recommendation letters for you.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/22 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10710",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7489/"
]
|
10,712 | <p>I would like to know, if given both options, which of the options, would officials at the american universities follow?</p>
<p>By internal evaluation, my GPA at some of the universities is translated/scored as 2.87/4.00. Disbarring me from all of their programs.</p>
<p>By WES evaluation, my GPA is translated/scored as 3.25/4.00. This option allows me to run/apply for all the programs at the said universities.</p>
<p>Which of these evaluations would the university use?</p>
<p>Does WES's evaluation hold any weight?</p>
<p>Wouldn't this be a problem for those who are not aware of such services?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10718,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As far as I know, American universities do not rely on \"transcript evaluation services\"; they ask you to convert your GPA to whatever system they happen to use, since there are so many of them out there (5-point versus 4-point systems, A+/A/A- versus A/B/C, and so on).</p>\n\n<p>You could of course provide the results of such an evaluation service, but I would <strong>not</strong> expect it to carry any weight with admissions committees, who can accept or ignore it as they please.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10721,
"author": "user168715",
"author_id": 5596,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5596",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Every school does admissions in a different way, so it's hard to say, but I've never heard of <em>anyone</em> using any external services to evaluate transcripts. I'd say send in your application, and let the chips fall where they may.</p>\n\n<p>Although quantities like GPA, GRE scores, etc. might be used as a filter to narrow the applicant pool, what will really get you accepted are 1) strong letters, 2) successful undergrad research projects, and 3) direct contact with a potential advisor at the university. If a professor knows about you and your work and wants you as a student, that will go an incredible way towards getting you admitted no matter what your GPA.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10722,
"author": "davidlowryduda",
"author_id": 127,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/127",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My experience differs from the others. Although I am American, my wife is Polish and she applied to a slew (by which I mean 9) of grad schools for computational linguistics. Of them, three wanted the external transcript evaluation, and they even recommended which service to use.</p>\n\n<p>But they also asked for a copy of the original transcript.</p>\n\n<p>I don't know what impact it had, but she ended up going to a school that didn't require such an evaluation. But there is funny story here: no where on her transcript did it say that she actually finished her degree program. So when her chosen graduate school requested her \"final transcript\" (even though my wife graduated a year and a half ago, so they already had her final transcript), she ended up sending them an extra copy of the evaluation along with her explanation that she had, in fact, graduated.</p>\n\n<p>From my point of view, the whole external evaluation process seemed overly expensive and annoying. I would advise that you just ask whatever graduate program that you're interested in whether they want applicants to have them (they don't bite, really), and hope that they don't.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 38252,
"author": "O.M.Y.",
"author_id": 28864,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/28864",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Many smaller (and even some larger) academic institutions may not have resources dedicated to being familiar with all the various methods of grading and evaluation used by foreign schools. In these cases they will require the applying student to incur the added effort and expense of having an expert in such matters review the transcripts and then translate the material into a report that the institute can comprehend. They probably have a criteria for what kind of expert they will consider acceptable -- perhaps some kind of certification ? -- but it is always in the student's best interest to carefully select an expert that not only meets the criteria but who really understands the way that the foreign school did business (including any common cultural practices such as defacto lower grades for female students). </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/22 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10712",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3983/"
]
|
10,713 | <p>I am a second year grad student who is trying to find advisors in two people (quite brilliant scientists!) who are going to join my grad school as faculty. They are going to be in campus only rarely now but will be full-time here from the next year. </p>
<ul>
<li><p>Does this situation sound very bad or scary or depressing or something wrong? </p></li>
<li><p>Am I late into the game? </p></li>
</ul>
<p>So I have done studies and have written up research drafts in areas related to these scientists and have been trying to get into discussions with them over emails. Both sounded quite interested in me - one of them met me for a few hours of discussion while in campus about a month ago - and the other one said "we should keep in touch and meet when I am there the next time" etc. </p>
<ul>
<li>But I get very scared and nervous when I don't get replies from them after even a week from the last email (stating my progress in their respective subjects)- I am always thinking if they struck me off from their mind - did they just forget me - did they decide I am not worth it etc. etc. </li>
</ul>
<p>[...I am getting sick of just the unbearable tension of the fear of having been dropped...]</p>
<p>Anyway is the implicit expectation that I am going to read up all current papers in their fields and be able to come up with a paper on my own? (...thats what I am trying to do but clearly thats not easy!...) I don't know how "advising" is supposed to work with so little contact (...may be there is a culture conflict because in my previous institute one met one's professors daily and even multiple times a day at times...) </p>
<p>[just a side information - may be irrelevant but still for completeness of information - I think I am way ahead of my peers in terms of depth and breadth of knowledge and speed of learning new papers and my grad school grades are all at the top..] </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10717,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I personally would be a little <em>too</em> concerned about a graduate student who keeps trying to \"hard sell\" themselves <em>before I arrived.</em> Partially this is because, if I were just starting a new position, I'd be worried about a million things, including winding down my previous employment situation, preparing for a move, figuring out all the different things that have to be done in the new position, and so on. Others may very well be different, though!</p>\n\n<p>Note that I don't think it's wrong to be active when you sense a good opportunity, such as working with a scientist you hold in high regard as an advisor. However, being too aggressive may be just as damaging as being too passive. Steer clear of both extremes. For instance, have the advisors in question <em>asked</em> you to send them weekly updates? Have you asked them to schedule a phone or Skype chat? Do you know if they are even \"at home\" or if they're on travel when they're not responding?</p>\n\n<p>Advisors have their own personal styles, and your style should mesh with theirs. If it doesn't, it will likely be an unproductive and unhappy situation for both of you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10720,
"author": "user168715",
"author_id": 5596,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5596",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Understand that faculty, even junior faculty, can get over a hundred emails a day, and even dealing with only the most urgent of these, such as</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Bureaucracy from the department chair / funding agency program director / etc.</li>\n<li>Requests from existing students and collaborators</li>\n<li>Reminders about late paper reviews</li>\n<li>Conference and travel logistics</li>\n<li>Letter of reference requests</li>\n<li>Complaints about grades from undergrads</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>takes up a huge chunk of their time. Recruiting good students is also usually a high priority... but if you've already agreed to work together next year, and have established an outline of what you can be doing until then to prepare yourself, I wouldn't read too much into a slow response to your follow-up emails, especially if they are in the form of long reports.</p>\n\n<p>The best approach is probably the direct one: ask them what you can do between now and the fall to get a head start on the research project, and what kind of updates, if any, they would like from you between now and then.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/22 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10713",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6683/"
]
|
10,714 | <p>Some journals like to abbreviate journal names in the papers they publish, and the AMS maintains <a href="http://www.ams.org/msnhtml/serials.pdf%20bgb" rel="nofollow">a list of abbreviated journal names</a> for those who need them. Is there a similar resource for conferences (in computer science)?</p>
<p>EDIT: to clarify, I'm not looking for acronyms (SODA, STOC, ICALP), but rather for something like "Proc. 6th Ann. ACM-SIAM Symp. Discrete Algorithms".</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10715,
"author": "seteropere",
"author_id": 532,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/532",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am not aware of any <em>comprehensive</em> list of abbreviations for CS conferences. One way to see many abbreviations is through CS conference listings and ranking. For example, <a href=\"http://core.edu.au/cms/images/downloads/conference/08sort%20acronymERA2010_conference_list.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow\">here</a> and <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_computer_science_conferences\" rel=\"nofollow\">here</a>. The most obvious way is googling the name of the conference then checking the conference website. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10719,
"author": "Jukka Suomela",
"author_id": 351,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/351",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>AFAIK, there is no such resource, and even if it existed, it would not be very useful.</p>\n\n<p>In general, people do not know the full names of the conference, only their acronyms. The full names tend to change slightly every now and then, while the acronyms are much more stable.</p>\n\n<p>You can safely write pretty much anything that resembles the correct name, as long as you include the acronym. You can often save some space by removing useless words such as \"Annual\", \"International\", \"ACM\", \"IEEE\", etc.</p>\n\n<p>For example, <em>\"Proc. 6th Symposium on Discrete Algorithms (SODA)\"</em> would be perfectly fine and unambiguous.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/22 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10714",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/26/"
]
|
10,725 | <p>I am interested in the statistics of early college graduation, or more generally, the statistics of extreme ages in academic settings (highschool, college, grad school, etc.). For instance, how many students who earn a college degree graduate one, two, three, or more years earlier than the typical age of 22 or so? I am willing for any statistics to qualified in any way (percentages in country W, at university X, in state Y, or from year Z). A quick Google search does not easily reveal this information.</p>
<p>I estimate that less than 5% of the population graduates college two years earlier than normal based on my acquaintances, but this is likely biased as I am a graduate student and it may be smaller.</p>
<p>EDIT: It occurs to me that my question does not ask for any opinions on whether early graduation is good, neutral, or bad. Perhaps it would be interesting to expand the question and have those who experienced graduating early give their stories or opinions.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10732,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>At least in the USA, the number is probably <em>much</em> smaller than 5 percent. </p>\n\n<p>The reason for this is that there are generally fixed lengths for education, and minimum enrollment ages at which the process can start (at least for publicly educated students, who are still the majority).</p>\n\n<p>Finishing two or more years ahead of schedule means that you probably have had at least two events that belong to the following categories:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Started education a year earlier than \"normal\" (perhaps because of birthday-limited enrollments)</li>\n<li>Skipped a grade during primary or secondary (high-school) education</li>\n<li>\"Accelerated\" college studies by reducing the expected enrollment time by either a semester or a full year (through early accumulation of credits via work in high school, or taking college placement exams, credit overloading, and other methods)</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The first is the most common, but still only applies to about one-third of the population. The others are much less frequent, with the second probably pertaining to only about 1 percent of students (if that many). The third also probably is not that common, but I don't have hard numbers (but again, probably less than 5 percent of college students finish in three years or less!).</p>\n\n<p>Now remember that you have to have at least <em>two</em> such events, and you can start to see why the odds are stacked against a 5 percent rate. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10765,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In the UK this number is likely to be extremely small. Within our department we circulate a list of all students under the age of 18 at the beginning of the year. This includes both our students as well as students sitting in on our classes. For this sample size of about 500 per year the number under 18 is typically about 1%. Of these, the vast majority turn 18 there first year. Further there is either a bug in our software, possible, or the remainder turn 18 during the summer since I have never been told about a 2nd year student being under 18. The sample size for 2nd year students is about half as big since we do not get drop ins to our second year classes.</p>\n\n<p>Obviously this could be biased by our department or university not attracting these students.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11090,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Specifically addressing the edit to to the question regarding experiences as a younger student:</p>\n\n<p>Aside from what I've already posted in my comment, I guess the only social aspect that I felt I missed out on was getting into university-sponsored senior class events where alcohol was served (I was under 21 at a US school). Most of the time, my age was not an issue socially. I was also an RA (residential advisor), so my age was not assumed to correlate with lack of leadership ability. Academically, it might have even helped me get certain positions, because I was seen as a \"driven\" individual with prior academic success, and all of those positions helped me get into graduate school. </p>\n\n<p>Now that I'm in graduate school, the only thing I really miss is not having interesting stories to tell about cool things I did during my gap year(s). That problem is common to a lot of people in my class, though, regardless of them being a few years older than me. I don't have people that are my age in my year, but I don't think it's affected my academic success here: I've had four years of high school, four years of undergrad, and three summers of undergraduate research, like (or better than) many of my peers.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/23 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10725",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7493/"
]
|
10,727 | <p>All of the following takes place in a UK university.</p>
<p>I have a BSc in Physics and an MSc in Computer Science. My thesis was on applying various machine learning/statistical techniques to biological datasets. I wanted to do something similar for my PhD, however my supervisor left the university. </p>
<p>I am now in the first year of my PhD in Computer Science, specifically Computational Biology. My work focuses on comparing different techniques (physical/statistical/machine learning) in single cell simulations. I am finding it hard to incorporate machine learning techniques into my work as there aren't many datasets for the kind of thing my supervisor wants me to do and so the machine learning approach is proving tricky.</p>
<p>I desperately want a job/postdoc in a machine learning/stats environment. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Lots of post docs I know switched field after their PhD e.g. Astro-physics to machine learning, dependable systems to machine learning, Biophysics to compiler design. In my case would anyone in the ML community take me seriously? (I thought my Msc would help me out...) </p></li>
<li><p>I have taught myself a fair bit of ML and stats, is there anything else I should do to increase the likelihood of getting an ML/stats postdoc?</p></li>
<li><p>Would anyone in a stats department take me seriously as I have no maths degree?</p></li>
<li><p>Do people that change career areas have successful careers or is this normally a red flag? </p></li>
</ol>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10729,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Some thoughts on your questions (please don't take any of this as gospel, I am in the final stages of my PhD and are looking for a Postdoc also).</p>\n\n<p>Your ML MSc would more than likely benefit you in any postdoc application (to what extent would depend on the institution). Something to consider, is it possible to build/include ML principles in your current research?</p>\n\n<p>One major way to get noticed in the fields that you are interested in is to get published in peer-reviewed journals and present at relevant conferences. Speak to academics involved in your field of interest, speak to your supervisor/advisor - perhaps inquire if there would be a chance of collaborative papers/conference presentations.</p>\n\n<p>As for changing career paths, this is increasingly the norm - my own example is a switch from economic geology, through teaching to atmospheric physics. One major thing about this aspect is to focus on the skills that you have developed, particularly in research.</p>\n\n<p>I hope this helps.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10734,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My answer is based more on experience from computational biology, but I think it is relevant for other fields:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Changing fields is very common in academia, especially at the PhD/postdoc transition. In many cases it is actually considered an advantage, since you can import your skills, expertise and a certain thought-process into a field in which many people do not have those skills. For example, many physicists, computer scientists and mathematicians have migrated to biology and have made significant contributions. In fact, there are even postdoctoral fellowships that specifically fund this type of field-change.</p></li>\n<li><p>Regarding your \"will they take me seriously\" questions: Since you are aiming mostly at applied ML/stats, I don't think you should be too concerned if the ML/stats theoretical community take you seriously. Many theorists tend to look down on applied science - don't worry about it, you can still have a significant impact without advancing any theory. It sounds like in the future you will either belong to the department in which you want to apply the techniques (e.g. a biology department) or will work very closely with people in those departments. In this case, you will usually be considered the ML/stats expert.</p></li>\n<li><p>Having said all that, of course it is your job to become an expert. Teaching yourself the theory is important, but if you are going for applied science, especially applied ML/stats, it would be a big advantage to get actual experience in using them. There is a huge difference between learning about these methods and actually implementing and using them. You will see that during your PhD you can often expand your research in directions you are more interested in. It shouldn't be too difficult to use some ML/stats creatively in some sub-projects (which could later be expanded).</p></li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 19897,
"author": "sam",
"author_id": 14619,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/14619",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It depends strongly on what you want to do after pursing a PhD degree. More precisely, if you want to work as a technical staff then yes. It affects your career chances because it doesn't help a company that you are an expert, and therefore they have to pay you more than the average, in a different area and you don't have a <em>proven</em> solid background in the area where they want to be hired. </p>\n\n<p>However, if you decided for working as a manager, sale, marketing or administration (e.g. signing applications) then it doesn't matter in which field do you have your PhD. In some positions, it is required to have a PhD title, no more. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/23 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10727",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7494/"
]
|
10,728 | <p>I would like to follow PhD studies in my field of Computer Science. The problem is that I have to work in my native country. I have read that this university, UNISA, is known because of their online Master and Doctoral studies.</p>
<p>The question that I have is because I see different comments from people from United States or Europe that wanted to enter into this online degrees. Does anybody have experiences or know if that university is worldwide recognized? Or would it be only a waste of money and time? In case of the latter, which institution of quality offers online PhD degrees in CS?</p>
<p>Consider that this question is not focused locally, because as I mentioned in the aforementioned paragraph; there are people from all over the world that want to take those UNISA degrees.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10790,
"author": "Googlebot",
"author_id": 406,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/406",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I do not have a direct experience with UNISA, but this kind of universities (having massive number of students) does not have international reputation usually. They normally address the local needs for graduating professionals, but what pushes a university among top ones is interactive connection of the staff and students, which is almost impossible to be conducted in a university with 5,000 staff and 300,000 students (even in the digital world).</p>\n\n<p>Thus, if you do care about your education and reputation of your PhD degree, it is more reasonable to choose a university with international standards.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 17081,
"author": "Arno",
"author_id": 12047,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/12047",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'm a postdoc at the Computer Laboratory at the University of Cambridge, and do collaborate with some researchers at UNISA. However, this is with the Department of Decision Sciences, rather than Computer Science - I don't know the latter.</p>\n\n<p>When it comes to PhD studies, generally the advisor plays a large role, too, compared to the university. I'd recommend to look at what and where the potential advisors for you publish, where their co-authors are from etc to get a vague impression how connected and well-regarded they'll be in your chosen discipline.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 17387,
"author": "ff524",
"author_id": 11365,
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"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I offer the following evidence from credible and official sources <strong>against</strong> doing a PhD in Computer Science at UNISA:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Low graduation rates</strong>: 17 doctoral students graduated from the College of Science, Engineering, and Techonology (which includes the PhD in Computer Science degree) in 2010, 2011, and 2012 combined. Compare this to the 99 doctoral student enrollments five years earlier in 2005, 2006, and 2007 (combined). Graduation rates are expected to be somewhat low for distance learning students, but rates this low are a bad sign. (<a href=\"http://osprey.unisa.ac.za/pg/req.pdf\">PDF source</a>)</li>\n<li><strong>Inadequate supervisory capacity</strong>: The school admits that \"many [research] areas in the School of Computing have reached supervisory capacity\" and says that \"long waiting lists started forming due to lack of supervisors,\" which is another worrying sign. (<a href=\"http://osprey.unisa.ac.za/pg/req.pdf\">Same source</a>)</li>\n<li><strong>Very, very low research output</strong>: Research output is arguably the most important indicator of a reputable PhD program. On <a href=\"http://osprey.unisa.ac.za/supervisors.php\">this page</a>, 6 professors in the School of Computing (which offers the PhD in Computer Science degree) are listed as having openings for PhD students. I looked up the Google Scholar and/or DBLP profiles of these 6 (for those that had them) and consulted personal pages of the rest to get a sense of their research productivity. \n<ul>\n<li>Averages across two years (2012 and 2013), the number of publications per person per year was 0.58 on average (range of 0-1.5)</li>\n<li>Of the 7 publications I found for these professors in 2012 and 2013, 3 were in conferences or journals with the name \"Africa\" in the title (i.e., not international venues). So the average publication rate per person per year in non-local venues was 0.33.</li>\n</ul></li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 35276,
"author": "Inacio Lote GIMO",
"author_id": 27402,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/27402",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>UNISA is internationally recognized. The small numbers of students passing, shows by itself that it is not a piece of cake.\nI did my Bsc Computer Science and believe me I had to work hard to pass and graduate.\nOnce you are there, the work load, assignments, deadlines etc, makes you forget that you are at a distance learning institution. It felt the same as when I was at a residential school.\nI am currently doing my Msc Electronic Eng in the UK. It was the same UNISA credentials that took me there.\nSo no worries, please go with UNISA and you shall not regret.</p>\n\n<p>Inacio Lote GIMO</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/23 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10728",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6144/"
]
|
10,733 | <p>Here's a not so hypothetical situation. International student x is very talented but comes from a background where technical writing is not taught or understood very well. She writes a great thesis with a good literature review and nice results. However, the results are based on two key papers from previous students in the group. She decides to give credit to the papers in a special chapter, which she starts by saying "I need to give credit to this and that paper" and proceeds with copying paragraphs wholesale to describe what those other students did. </p>
<p>This was a few years back; X is now faculty at a good school and she contacts me (past advisor) in teary-terrified voice to let me know that she plagiarized in her thesis. I am now in a panic as well. How could I miss those? And how could she do that?? We both risk losing our jobs, and she is at risk of losing her degree as well (which, by the way, was a very strong thesis with a good number of top journal publications). </p>
<p>As far as I know there's no process for revising a thesis after it's been submitted and I don't know what else to do short of turning ourselves in - which I feel morally obligated to do.</p>
<p>Please advise. </p>
<p><em>Edit</em>
Thanks all for weighing in on this. I spent the night going through the thesis and there appear to be three more sources that are suspect of being plagiarized, all in the same wretched chapter; one is a thesis of a colleague, the other is a textbook and the third is a book I wrote a while back. So this is more serious than I thought. </p>
<p>She has unfortunately not used quotes for the material, i.e., instead of saying "[paper i] says ," she just went on with "[paper i] says this and that."</p>
<p>She has <em>not</em> been accused of plagiarism by anybody. I am guessing that she has finally come to grips with good writing standards and upon looking through her thesis she realized that her "summary" was actually plagiarism. I have every reason to believe that she did what she did in good faith (she has proven her honesty on many occasions). </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10736,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Take what I say below as a perspective, I am by no means an expert in how to deal with plagiarism.</p>\n\n<p>I will say (as someone who has been plagiarised before), detecting and preventing plagiarism is the responsibility of all involved. But, having said that, we are human and we make mistakes - is it just that special chapter that has the plagiarism? How much did she copy?</p>\n\n<p>I think being open and upfront is the best (and most probably, the <em>only</em>) course of action, as it would be far worse for both of you if it was detected by another academic, or worse still - the authors of the papers plagiarised. It may be best to be <em>honest</em> about both of your <em>mistake</em>, rather than being <em>perceived</em> in trying to cover it up.</p>\n\n<p>Perhaps, find out what options are available in terms of resubmitting the thesis, or even the chapter in question. The original research in your former student's papers may also be in both of your favour in that it would show no malicious intent.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10738,
"author": "Layla",
"author_id": 6144,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6144",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Well, here is the responsability of two persons: the advisor and the student, but the amount of responsability is somehow lesser for the advisor. I am pretty sure that your past student has signed a non-plagiarism form or put an statement that she was not plagiarizing anything in her thesis work, so she was doing that on purpose. It seems harsh my opinion, but it seems that way.</p>\n\n<p>The only solution is to tell the truth to the Dean and for what I know, the penalty will come sooner or later. According to what you reply, that person plagiarized about 10 pages and also parts of the appendix, so in that case the only way out is to inform about the accident.</p>\n\n<p>I do not think that she will lose her degree, remember the scandal that happened in Germany a few months ago?. The worse thing that could happen is that she get somehow \"banned\" from the journals that she has been cited, but only for a certain amount of time. About your case, I think that is not so probable that you will get into trouble.</p>\n\n<p>Wish you the best.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10739,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Did any of the plagiarized material make it into journal papers, or was it all literature review that was never published outside of the thesis?</p>\n\n<p>If some of it made it into papers, then it's important to contact the journals and publish corrections. This is more straightforward and predictable than dealing with the thesis itself. If the plagiarism is confined to background material, then I don't think retracting the papers would be necessary. Instead, I expect it would be possible to publish a correction that indicates the plagiarized portions and provides citations. This would be embarrassing and would hurt her reputation a little, but it would solve the problem as far as the papers were concerned. It would also strengthen the student's case for dealing with the thesis if she can say she voluntarily corrected the publications and did not need to retract any of them.</p>\n\n<p>If none of the plagiarized material was published elsewhere, then it's trickier. Once all the original results are published in research papers, I doubt anyone will read the thesis and discover the plagiarism. Even if they do, they might take pity on the student and ignore the plagiarism. (I once ignored some mild plagiarism of my writing in the background sections of a thesis at another university. The student had already graduated, and I found no evidence of plagiarism in any of his research papers. If I knew for sure he could just file a correction to the thesis, then that would make sense, but I wouldn't want to potentially destroy his career over this mistake.) So she might well get away with it if she doesn't say anything. Still, I'd advise her to officially confess to the university. Turning herself in is likely to lead to a <em>much</em> better outcome than being caught by someone else. Plus it's the right thing to do, and it will save her from years of worrying about getting caught.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>We both risk losing our jobs, and she is at risk of losing her degree as well (which, by the way, was a very strong thesis with a good number of top journal publications). </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Unless your university is extraordinarily strict, I don't think your job is in jeopardy. On the other hand, the student's degree or job might be, depending on how the university handles the situation. Based on your description, I think it would be unfair for her career to be ruined, but I can't predict what will actually happen. I hope your administration's sense of fairness is the same as mine, in which case a correction will suffice.</p>\n\n<p>The hardest situation will be if she decides to remain silent. In that case you probably have an obligation to turn her in, and it would look terrible if anyone found out that you knew but didn't say anything. On the other hand, turning her in would be a tough decision. Much better for her to turn herself in voluntarily.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10740,
"author": "joseph f. johnson",
"author_id": 7503,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7503",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Um, I'm not sure it is worth bothering about. She gave credit for the results,\nit was in the context of describing other people's work, it seems to only involve\nthe language. This is not a literary topic, so I would tell her to not worry about\nit but learn how to write.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10743,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>First off, just to make it clear, this is plagiarism. Providing a reference and then long string of text implies that the text is YOUR description of ideas of someone ELSE. To give full credit to someone else requires some sort of formatting distinction (typically block indentation or quotation makes). Potentially the plagiarism was accidental, but it is still plagiarism.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Supervisor</strong></p>\n\n<p>A doctoral dissertation is generally a single author piece of independent work. Plagiarism in a dissertation should have little direct impact on the career of the supervisor. It might have some indirect consequences like people questioning how you can be so unfamiliar with your students work that you do not catch plagiarism, but I think most people would be pretty understanding about this. If the thesis was not single author or if the work was published with your name on it, that is a different story since co-authorship implies you have BOTH plagiarized.</p>\n\n<p>Failure to report academic misconducted (whether it is your student or not) can impact your career. At my university we do not classify failure of a student to report academic misconducted of another student as academic misconducted. I don't know the disciplinary process when faculty are involved. Personally, I would say that we all have a responsibility to the scientific process to report ALL cases of academic misconduct that we are aware of.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Student</strong></p>\n\n<p>At my University, the penalty for plagiarism by a current student is zero on the piece of work. This would mean the student would have failed her dissertation. As a department we would deem this penalty too severe and push that she would be able to re-submit a new dissertation that reuses the non-plagiarized material. The University would push back and ask for a completely independent dissertation. I have never experienced this with a PhD student, but this occurs regularly with our final year undergraduates and about 70% of the time the student is allowed to reuse the non-plagiarized material.</p>\n\n<p>I don't know what would happen if the plagiarism was found after the degree was given. My guess is the University would have to retract the dissertation from the library and any electronic database. They may revoke the degree, but they could also look at other work and count those towards the dissertation.</p>\n\n<p>The current university may try and fire or penalize her, but this seems harsh compared to the typical penalty of plagiarism in a dissertation of not getting/delaying a degree.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/24 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10733",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7502/"
]
|
10,745 | <p>I'm seaarching the literature at the moment to write a literature review but I don't know when should I stop searching and start writing? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10746,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
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"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You should develop an outline, in consultation with your advisor, of what is to be included in the literature review - this should be based on the research foci and priorities of your research.</p>\n\n<p>What I do when writing a literature review, is to actually write the review at the same time as doing the research.</p>\n\n<p>When should you stop? when you have covered each of the foci and priorities to the point when you (and your advisor) are satisfied that you have synthesised the scope of each of the foci and priorities.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10754,
"author": "seteropere",
"author_id": 532,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/532",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You need to be very productive in terms of knowing your area. <strong><em>knowing</em></strong> what is happening is different from <strong><em>understanding</em></strong> it. This includes utilising every available tool which makes it easier to keep updated with what is published. An easy way , in Computer Science, is setting alerts (both on Arxiv and Google Scholar) and following pioneers in your area. </p>\n\n<p>As a personal experience, I spent plenty of time gathering, reading and understanding related papers/books. I came across many interesting ideas. But finally, I found some of my ideas are published in others papers. Some were exactly the same! This is the curse of PhD. Try to publish before others as long as you have the required knowledge and a clear contribution. The literature is then translated to the cumulative process of publishing different papers related to your thesis problem. You stop when you do the defence (assuming you will change the area thereafter).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10756,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>The facile answer is <strong>you don't stop searching the literature</strong>. Even as the review evolves, you should be including new references <em>if</em> they are noteworthy in addressing questions within the field. This process should continue as long as you are working in the field of the problem.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, from a practical standpoint, you do need to select a cutoff. There should be a reasonable point in time in which you've set the outline of the review, and decided on the main topics and questions to be discussed. At that point, it would be fair to set aside adding more references, and stick to what's been published. However, you should continue to monitor the field, and if further revisions or updates of the text are necessary, then you should include the papers published in the interim as part of your updates.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10757,
"author": "silvado",
"author_id": 3890,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3890",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<ol>\n<li><p>Start writing the review <strong>before</strong> (or at the same time) as you start searching the literature.</p>\n\n<p>I'd suggest to determine the scope of the review before you start searching the literature, and <strong>already write it down</strong>. This would answer questions like <em>Which problem am I looking at?</em> or <em>Why is this problem relevant now?</em> Answers to these questions will also guide your literature search.</p></li>\n<li><p>Stop searching the literature when you stop writing.</p>\n\n<p>Writing is not a linear process - it is going from a rough outline to a focussed text. As you go into focus, you will need to research more and more specific references. While you define your questions, search for literature dealing with these questions, and when you develop an argument, search for literature that would support (or contradict!) that argument.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>My key suggestion would be to not view the literature search as shopping around randomly, but more like a visit to the grocery store with the shopping list in your hand.</p>\n\n<p>Note that these suggestions apply to writing a literature review. <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/7615/how-to-stay-on-top-of-recent-literature\">Staying on top of recent literature</a> or reading to get into a new field would be a different story.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/24 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10745",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7382/"
]
|
10,747 | <p>I am simply looking for a rough estimate on how many PhD applicants typically apply having published a peer-reviewed paper (or papers).</p>
<p>Particularly, I am interested in Computer Science (or STEM fields in general).</p>
<p>Also, it would be interesting to know the same percentage for the admitted students.</p>
<p>These questions can likely only be answered by those on (or previously on) admissions committees, but all responses are welcomed!</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10749,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I'm in a CS department at a mid-ranked school in the US, and have reviewed applications for Ph.D programs in CS for the last 6 years. I didn't compile detailed numbers, but my sense is that the number of candidates with \"actual\" publications (as opposed to fluff pubs) is of the order of 5%. I suspect this number is higher for the top-ranked school. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10752,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In mathematics, at a 10-20 ranked place in mathematics, essentially <em>no</em> grad-program applicants have an <em>real</em> publications.</p>\n\n<p>About 1/3 may have some (as Suresh put it) \"fluff-pubs\" as spin-offs from summer REU programs. These are not <em>bad</em> things, by any measure, but are more indicative of the socio-economic class of the applicant than their talent or potential. For that matter, it is sometimes quite awkward to explain to novices that their \"publication\" is a fluff-pub, not real. </p>\n\n<p>Thus, in fact, there is an actual negative to fluff-pubs on an application, since it suggests a possible unfortunate rigidity or over-confidence.</p>\n\n<p>(Once again, in mathematics, if it were possible to do wonderful research in a few weeks over the summer, why does it take 5 years to earn a PhD? There is a misunderstanding... though, yes, it is good to cultivate enthusiasm among talented beginners! Let's just not lie to them.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10755,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In countries where it is common to do a MSc, many PhD applicants have either published papers or prepared/submitted manuscripts, since a MSc would include a research thesis. The level of the publication can vary, and this can also vary by field (experimental projects typically take longer so probability of publication is smaller).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10855,
"author": "D.W.",
"author_id": 705,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/705",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In computer science at a top-ranked US university, I'd estimate that about half of admitted Ph.D. students have a publication while they were an undergraduate.</p>\n\n<p>So, having a (good) publication is really helpful, but not an absolute necessity. What matters most is research potential, i.e., the potential to be a successful researcher. Showing that you have done good research that led to a publication is one powerful way to show that you have good research potential, but there are other ways (e.g., by doing research, getting strong letters of recommendation from folks you have worked with, excelling in academic work, doing independent work).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/24 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10747",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5658/"
]
|
10,748 | <p>I have often seen in review papers in which the author mentions that there are more than # number of publications in the subject, to highlight the importance of the subject.</p>
<p>How are such numbers determined? While searching for certain keywords in websites such as Scopus or ScienceDirect may be useful, it does not necessarily give an accurate number, as some publications may mention the keywords but not actually deal with the subject, while others may use synonyms of the keywords.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10750,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>First, I would argue that a precise number would be virtually impossible to obtain. This is because there is a large grey-zone between work published in established journals and work \"published\" in more \"questionable\" sources. Obviously the way to obtain a number would be to use search services such as Web of Science, Scopus etc. or reference data bases. But, for example, Web of Science only covers works published in ISI listed journals or papers referenced by ISI listed papers and on top of that only back in time for as long as journals have submitted reference information. This means such searches will be incomplete. Hence to arrive at a number may require quite a bit of work unless one would state the limitations imposed on a search sich as limting it to Web of science.</p>\n\n<p>The choice of key word(s) will also be important and it is not certain keywords are systematically applied between sources or over time. </p>\n\n<p>A claim to have found \"all\" literature is very questionable and I would argue that when one makes such a claim one must provide a picture of the limitations of the search because there will certainly always be such limitations.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10751,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In medical/life sciences, the situation is slightly better than in other fields since indexing in PubMed is the standard for a manuscript to be considered a \"real\" publication. I suspect that in life sciences, stating that there are more than <em>x</em> publications on a subject means counting the number of hits found when searching for that term on PubMed.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10753,
"author": "seteropere",
"author_id": 532,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/532",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I agree with @Peter answer.<br>\nMoreover, I really doubt this relation of <strong>more publications = more importance.</strong><br>\nActually, I see it very weird information in my field (Computer Science) regardless of its source.</p>\n\n<p>To show the importance of a subject, refer to some main papers/findings in that subject, show how and why its important to the general audience of your field. For example, in Computer Science, this can be done through listing some applications/real world scenarios of the subject. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10775,
"author": "David Harris",
"author_id": 7558,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7558",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In my field (mathematics) this can become even more questionable because there are papers that consider related problems, papers that consider problems that are essentially equivalent with a different terminology, and so on. The issue of different terminology is especially troublesome because you cannot search for consistent keywords. </p>\n\n<p>Nevertheless this is an important metric. In mathematics you typically cannot point to real-world applications (any way, that is not the kind of importance you necessarily want for your paper). But it can provide context that the problem you are studying has been analyzed before, it gives you some other results that you can compare your paper to, and so on. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/24 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10748",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,759 | <p>Nowadays most journals use electronic forms for the referees to submit their recommendations to the editor. </p>
<p>However, if that's not the case, how should the letter to the editor be structured?</p>
<p>In the referee report I have already mentioned some points I consider should be revised. But, do I have to explicitly state these points in the letter? or should I just say that the points mentioned in the referee report should be considered before publication?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10750,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>First, I would argue that a precise number would be virtually impossible to obtain. This is because there is a large grey-zone between work published in established journals and work \"published\" in more \"questionable\" sources. Obviously the way to obtain a number would be to use search services such as Web of Science, Scopus etc. or reference data bases. But, for example, Web of Science only covers works published in ISI listed journals or papers referenced by ISI listed papers and on top of that only back in time for as long as journals have submitted reference information. This means such searches will be incomplete. Hence to arrive at a number may require quite a bit of work unless one would state the limitations imposed on a search sich as limting it to Web of science.</p>\n\n<p>The choice of key word(s) will also be important and it is not certain keywords are systematically applied between sources or over time. </p>\n\n<p>A claim to have found \"all\" literature is very questionable and I would argue that when one makes such a claim one must provide a picture of the limitations of the search because there will certainly always be such limitations.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10751,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In medical/life sciences, the situation is slightly better than in other fields since indexing in PubMed is the standard for a manuscript to be considered a \"real\" publication. I suspect that in life sciences, stating that there are more than <em>x</em> publications on a subject means counting the number of hits found when searching for that term on PubMed.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10753,
"author": "seteropere",
"author_id": 532,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/532",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I agree with @Peter answer.<br>\nMoreover, I really doubt this relation of <strong>more publications = more importance.</strong><br>\nActually, I see it very weird information in my field (Computer Science) regardless of its source.</p>\n\n<p>To show the importance of a subject, refer to some main papers/findings in that subject, show how and why its important to the general audience of your field. For example, in Computer Science, this can be done through listing some applications/real world scenarios of the subject. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10775,
"author": "David Harris",
"author_id": 7558,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7558",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In my field (mathematics) this can become even more questionable because there are papers that consider related problems, papers that consider problems that are essentially equivalent with a different terminology, and so on. The issue of different terminology is especially troublesome because you cannot search for consistent keywords. </p>\n\n<p>Nevertheless this is an important metric. In mathematics you typically cannot point to real-world applications (any way, that is not the kind of importance you necessarily want for your paper). But it can provide context that the problem you are studying has been analyzed before, it gives you some other results that you can compare your paper to, and so on. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/25 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10759",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5894/"
]
|
10,766 | <p>A version of the lecturer review website Rate Your Lecturer recently became active in the UK.</p>
<p>Do you know of any studies which consider to what extent students use this or any other review websites to guide their choice of university?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10783,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is necessarily incomplete, but I do recall a few studies on the correlation between ratemyprofessor.com rankings and student evaluations. Two such studies are:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2006/05/08/rateprof\">Hotness and Quality</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/06/05/rmp\">Student evaluations and RMP</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>These are disappointingly old though (2006/2007)</p>\n\n<p>There's a more recent study from 2011:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://chronicle.com/article/Researchers-Rate/129820/\">Researchers and RMP</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>As for other studies, your google is as good as mine :)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10785,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Not confirmed by genuine research, but a very strong hunch based on some decades experience: I'd anticipate that having a few crank-negative reviews among mostly-positive is tremendously beneficial, for more than one reason. First, your \"supervisors\" (dept head, dean, etc) are often not so naive as to think that there'd be no complaints, so it's harmless. Even better, and more significantly for your day-to-day life, the rants of a few cranks may significantly inhibit other cranks from signing up for your courses. \"For the wrong reasons\", but to your benefit, etc.</p>\n\n<p>This would apply currently to top-50-research-schools in the U.S., I think, and I'd imagine to most other places in the U.S., since most have not committed to any quasi-automated officially validated anonymous rating system, or any other rating system for faculty teaching.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10766",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1424/"
]
|
10,769 | <p>Having personally contacted a professor about the possibility of a Ph.D., he asked me to send him a cv and a copy of my M.Sc. in order to evaluate.<br>
Instead, in the online application form of "other" Ph.D. programmes, I have found that I need to include a cv, among the other things, but there is no possibility to attach a copy of the thesis. So, preparing the cv, I thought to imbed an hyperlink to the thesis.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I would ask you: if it is acceptable, or is counter-productive?</p>
</blockquote>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10770,
"author": "superuser0",
"author_id": 6690,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6690",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would advise to add the links, because I don't see what you could possibly lose by doing so instead of not doing so.</p>\n\n<p>You can add links in <code>LaTeX</code> using</p>\n\n<pre><code> \\href{link.to.thesis}{My MSc thesis title}\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>In my opinion, this is a nice way to link to everything relevant that can not be properly adressed nor otherwise included in your CV. You can for example provide references such as the homepage of your advisor, your department, your other software projects etc. - all just by putting links behind their names.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10771,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Send an admissions office the information they ask for. If they give you the option to provide additional information as a text field, then you could list a link to a version of your thesis on Dropbox or on a university web site (or similar) as part of your \"additional statement.\"</p>\n\n<p>However, given the number of applications that a centralized admissions committee might receive, they are probably reluctant to get copies of master's theses and publications—it would be too much extra work to read them all.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10773,
"author": "Nicholas",
"author_id": 1424,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1424",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Fill out the application form as far as possible. You could choose to include in your application a link to an online copy your MSc thesis, as you and others have suggested.</p>\n\n<p>However, <strong>as your potential professor has explicitly asked you for it</strong>, I would send him a copy of your MSc thesis directly, as an email attachment if possible.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10769",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7551/"
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|
10,774 | <p>I have completed my BSc in physics and now doing my MS in my country(Bangladesh), but I want to do PHD/PHD+MS in USA with decent funding (RA or TA).
I know In a PHD level, funding may be available, but what about MS?
I'm saying this because I want to apply in this fall-2014 and during application I may not get my MS results .</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10779,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Whether a US university would accept you into a PhD program would depend on the University itself - you'll need to contact them and ask them directly.</p>\n\n<p>Having said that, do you have semester results in your MS, in your application you could state these and say that the final results are pending. Ask the universities you apply to if it is alright to submit your final transcript a little bit later.</p>\n\n<p>In the meantime, gather all your academic credentials that may help in your application - published papers, conference presentations (if any), references etc</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10780,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In the US, you can apply to PhD programs without having a master's degree; this is actually the case in many fields. However, you will have to successfully complete the requirements for candidacy to a PhD program before being admitted to the doctoral phase of the program.</p>\n\n<p>Funding for PhD-level programs at reputable departments (at least in science and engineering) should normally be guaranteed for some fixed term, provided you are making adequate progress and satisfy all program requirements. (What you have to do for such funding—whether it be research or TA—may vary, but that the funding will come from somewhere should be stated in advance.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10781,
"author": "Shion",
"author_id": 1429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1429",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>In most cases, you do not have to be a MS <em>graduate</em> in order to apply for a PhD. I was a MS <em>candidate</em> when I applied for PhD about 4 years ago. I could only show 2 semesters worth of results from my MS program. It works.</p>\n\n<p>Also, in <em>most</em> programs around the HCI/information science space (and if I might venture to propose, also in computer science), there is very <em>limited</em> funding for MS only programs. Things might be different in physics. I will leave it to the folks who know physics better to comment.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10774",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
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|
10,777 | <p>This is something I have been pondering for a while. I am currently in my second year at University and my program comes with mandatory Co-op throughout the 4 years of study. I have completed 3 Co-op terms already and those have covered my expenses and tuition for each term at the university. I understand that not every Co-op will provide enough compensation every time but my parents are ready to support me where and when needed. </p>
<p>OSAP is a government program which funds students doing their post-secondary education in Ontario, more <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ontario_Student_Assistance_Program" rel="nofollow">here</a>. The loans are interests free until the student has completed his education. Then the interest rate is as follows:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>On the provincial part of your OSAP loan, the rate is the prime rate
of interest plus 1%. On the federal portion interest rate can be the
prime rate of interest plus 2.5%.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So my question is, should I apply for OSAP and receive their funding and save what I earn from Co-op? Or is it better to not receive any OSAP funding?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10778,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is entirely up to you, but, having said that - a few things to consider:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>How long would you have the OSAP debt for? Meaning, how long will it take you to pay it off? If you do get it, are their any penalties for early repayment? (just in case you get enough in your Co-op to repay).</li>\n<li>Look at how much savings you have and how much, if any, debts you may already have, alongside all your other expenses - how much would you have to sacrifice to make the repayments.</li>\n<li>You mention that your parents are ready to help if needed (very kind of them). Perhaps look at seeing how much you earn in your co-op - and seeing your parents to cover the balance.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>I am in Australia, and, if eligible, we had HECS (now called <a href=\"http://studyassist.gov.au/sites/studyassist/helppayingmyfees/fee-help/\" rel=\"nofollow\">FEE-HELP</a>), where our tuition is paid by the government and we repay the balance as a portion of tax. It is a good system, but I am still paying mine off over a decade later.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10782,
"author": "John Doucette",
"author_id": 1125,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1125",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I also considered doing this, though I didn't (more from sloth than anything else).</p>\n\n<p>As I understand it, from other students in Ontario, you can pay back the entire OSAP loan in a lump sum at any time. Since the loan is interest free, a rational investor would take out the maximum amount allowed, put it in a risk free asset, and pay it back as late as possible, pocketing the interest. </p>\n\n<p>Now, interest rates are low right now, and OSAP needs a lot of paper work. Being in debt can also be stressful for some people. If you are sure that you won't need any OSAP money, then perhaps the $100 or so you'd make per year in interest is not worth your time.</p>\n\n<p>Also, note that borrowing money now, and then paying it back early will often cause the provincial government to lower your future OSAP payments - since you clearly didn't need the whole amount. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10777",
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|
10,787 | <p>For the purpose of curiosity, I was wondering what set of courses undergraduate math students take if they're on the track to apply for a PhD in Pure Mathematics vs. Applied Mathematics? Let me try to elaborate as best as I can. I mean at my current university, I've known several people who have gone through the track of going for a PhD in Pure Math and they have taken lots of Grad level Math courses and gotten into top US universities for a PhD in Pure Math where research experience in relevant fields is a plus (I think). </p>
<p>But my question is for undergraduate students trying to prepare for a PhD in Applied Math. What sort of coursework do they go through? I mean research experience (I believe) becomes important and taking graduate courses in Pure Mathematics is not so. I do not know much people who went for a PhD in applied math at my school. </p>
<p>I would appreciate it if anyone who can comment on the relevance of pure math grad courses for such students who aspire or strive in applying for a PhD in applied math. Any other comments pertaining to this is welcomed ;) </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10788,
"author": "posdef",
"author_id": 5674,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It might be somewhat controversial for some here, but I don't think there is any one course that you should take in order to get in a particular graduate program. The reason behind my statement is that I believe the logic presented in the OP is rather backwards; one usually pursues graduate studies in a particular field that s/he is knowledgeable and interested in. In other words, you get your undergrad and Masters, and based on what you know and like, you apply to PhD programs in fields where you are competent. The other way around (deciding on a PhD program without have the undergrad and masters done, and choosing courses based on the desired PhD program) does not make much sense, in my humble opinion. </p>\n\n<p>Also consider that \"a PhD in pure/applied maths\" is really ill-defined. I can think of a hundred different projects that would have different requirements, with regards to previous courses. I would recommend deciding on a specific subject that you find interesting e.g. \"elliptic curve cryptography\" or \"convex optimization\" etc (not just pure/applied math).. then look for announced PhD programs based on projects focused on these subjects of interest. </p>\n\n<p>All that being said; I would think advanced level courses in matrix theory (decompositions etc), functional and complex analysis, as well as optimization theory would be useful in many different graduate programs at most maths departments.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10814,
"author": "davidlowryduda",
"author_id": 127,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/127",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I agree with many things in posdef's answer, except that you might just get your bachelor's and apply straight to a PhD in the US (instead of getting an undergrad and master's, and then applying to a PhD). I should also say that any required course-work will vary from university to university. Many universities have some sort of 'qual' process, where you need to know certain things and pass certain tests at the start/end of your first/second (varying by university) year. </p>\n\n<p>I'm a Brown PhD math student, and we have to pass our quals by the end of the first year, essentially; whereas I have a few friends at places like UChicago or Berkeley, where quals can be more immediate. From what I can tell, the subjects are almost always a subset of real analysis (and probability for applied math), complex analysis, algebra, topology, manifolds, and differential equations. I mention this because the subjects and level of testing can be very high and advanced, and if you did not do a sufficient amount of coursework in these areas, then you would probably have a very hard time passing the quals. (Really, the admissions process would probably take that into consideration, and would be less warm in the admissions process).</p>\n\n<p>This is to say that there is a certain \"core material\" that many PhD programs seem to care about (although the exact material might vary from school to school). I would say that you absolutely must take coursework in analysis, topology, and complex analysis. But I suspect these are required courses in your studies.</p>\n\n<p>But other than that, you should take classes that interest you, and apply to schools that have good programs in what you're interested in.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/06/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10787",
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|
10,791 | <p>Some people do not list references/referees at the end of their CV, and simply quote <code>references are available on request</code>. This is more convenient to me for two reasons:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Normally, no reference is contacted without permission, so, it is not necessary to be included in the CV.</p></li>
<li><p>Depending on the purpose (application, proposal), you may want to introduce other references (more relevant to that application). This is the reason that some job applications need separate list of references.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>On the other hand, including famous persons as references shows your connections and background. In addition, the audience might be suspicious why hiding possible references!</p>
<p>Which one is preferred and more reasonable?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10793,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>In my opinion references are transient. I would expect anybody asking for my reference to do so for each time the reference is requested. the reason is that I would want to know for what I am providing reference and also because I am keen to make the decision to be a reference under my own control.</p>\n\n<p>Hence, i see no reason to provide references in a CV in some permanent way. For each occassion the CV will be used it will of course be possible to add names to the CV but then only for one-time use. It is after all not complicated to edit the CV.</p>\n\n<p>To add a line \"references are available on request\" would be a big no-no for me (this applies to all aspects of, for example, an application, not just the CV). If you have an application, it should be complete and provide all material and information you want in support unless the application makes it clear some information should be added upon request.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10796,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I agree with both points you made and with the points made by Peter Jansson.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>I would not allow my name to be used as a reference without permission - primarily to avoid getting a surprise call/email that I am not prepared for, and when I am not prepared I sound like a blubbering buffoon (which would potentially jeopardise the candidate's chances).</p></li>\n<li><p>This is how my CV is organised, I only include referees that are relevant to what I am applying for (with their expressed permission).</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>As for famous people, for me, it would be only if they are relevant.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10899,
"author": "ThomasH",
"author_id": 4125,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4125",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If you keep a generic CV on your personal website or a job search website profile, then it can make sense to add the notice about references, though if you don't have it and you get contacted by a prospective employer, they'll still ask you anyway. I doubt they are not going to hire you because they were to shy to ask for references themselves ;-) </p>\n\n<p>The main reason not to add specific references to a generic CV is that you can't tailor them. If you go for a teaching position, you might want to give the name of the dean at that private college where you lectured for a summer as a reference, whereas if you go for a research position, you want your Ph.D. supervisor as a reference as well as that important guy in some other university that you briefly collaborated with, etc.</p>\n\n<p>Also, when you name references for a specific application, it gives you a chance to let your references know to who to potentially expect a call from. It will help your references (and thereby you) to talk about aspects of you that are relevant to the job you're applying for.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/06/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10791",
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|
10,797 | <p>Is there any hidden rule for using the words "clearly", "obviously" or similar ones in a technical paper? It can be offensive to the readers in many cases (especially in mathematical proofs), since the reader may not find it "clear" or "obvious". But does that mean that we should completely avoid the use of these words? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10799,
"author": "posdef",
"author_id": 5674,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>We touched this particular subject in a \"Technical Writing\" course; the simple answer is that it's a power-stance. In other words, if you are a big-name professor in your field, you can use it without offending someone. Alternatively if you are a petty PhD candidate, then you are better off avoiding not only these two words but also other forms of bold statements when you are drawing conclusions. </p>\n\n<p>As I said this is rather the short answer, I am sure those who are more into linguistics etc might have more insight into the matter.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10800,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Seconding posdef's appraisal, but being a little more blunt: if one is in a position to get away with bullying or intimidating people by implying that it's <em>their</em> problem if one has not explained well enough ... well, I'd say it's still a jerk-y thing to do. If one is in a lower-status position, such words will often be red flags.</p>\n\n<p>Or, coming to functionality versus rhetoric versus \"formal proof\": at best these words are functionless filler. That is, <em>saying</em> something is clear is not what makes it clear: if it is clear after these words, it was clear before. <em>Conceivably</em> a thing is clear _once_noted_, and thus deserves \"Observe that...\". But this, too, can be abused if used outside situations where one is noting that something is \"a-fortiori\" true, that is, is weaker than what the argument has already demonstrated... but presumably suffices for the issues at hand.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10802,
"author": "Nate Eldredge",
"author_id": 1010,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1010",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I don't think there is a clear consensus on how to use these words.</p>\n\n<p>As mentioned in some other answers, some people find them annoying or obnoxious. Others think they are a perfectly acceptable way to mention a fact for which you believe a detailed explanation is not necessary. Certainly they are quite common in published writing.</p>\n\n<p>I think it is a choice that you make as part of developing your own personal writing style, and your feelings may change over time.</p>\n\n<p>My only advice is: when you write that something is \"obvious\", make absolutely sure it is <em>true</em>! I've been embarrassed this way before.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10803,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I don't think there is a very clear rule for using such words. One possible reason for my claim is that some authors don't even use words \"clearly\" or \"obviously\", but they simply say \"it follows ...\". In mathematics the level of details of a mathematical proof mostly depends on the writer's kindness to her/his readers. I have encountered with many not-so-obvious claims in papers written by experts, where needed several pages of explanations and perhaps some proofs, and several years later, I have found the proofs of those claims in newer papers written by other authors. </p>\n\n<p>Unfortunately, there is an adage which says \"brevity is a sign of genius\" and it seems some people strongly believe in this adage and try to impress others by leaving not-so-obvious gaps in their works. </p>\n\n<p>Personally I apply the following rules for using these words:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>If the claim follows from previously mentioned materials by applying well known techniques in 5 minutes or so.</p></li>\n<li><p>If it can be obtained by a few lines of computations again by applying well known techniques. Then I use the word \"straightforward\". </p></li>\n<li><p>If it easily follows from a well known type of mathematical proofs, like induction, Zorn's lemma. </p></li>\n<li><p>The proof is similar to a previous proof in the paper or in the literature. In this case I mention the resource. </p></li>\n<li><p>I expect a PhD student in the field can prove it easily. </p></li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10818,
"author": "Andy W",
"author_id": 3,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>More broadly then in regards to mathematical proofs, a mark of good writing is to avoid the <em>superfluous</em>. Whether something is clear or obvious comes from the content, not the writer labelling it as such. Trimming unneeded adjectives and adverbs like those you describe should be a regular step in a proof-reading stage. See Strunk and White's <a href=\"http://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/020530902X\"><em>Elements of Style</em></a> for a more detailed treatment. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10820,
"author": "Deruijter",
"author_id": 6661,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6661",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>By reading the comments and answers here, <em>the conclusion is</em>, that it is usually not a good idea to use these terms. Keep in mind that it might not always be the case that something is obvious to your reader. That being said, the reason you want to use such words is probably because you want to point out/conclude/summarize your findings to the reader. </p>\n\n<p>The bottom line is not to tell your readers what (you find) is obvious, but to tell them what the obvious thing is (conclude/summarize). This way they will either:</p>\n\n<p>A. Confirm their own observation<br/>\nor <br/>\nB. Let them know they haven't fully understood yet (they might re-read your article now)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10829,
"author": "seteropere",
"author_id": 532,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/532",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I might go against most of the answers here and say <strong>why not?</strong>.<br>\nI am going to this right now. I am writing a paper proposing a solution for problem X by adopting well known mathematical model Y. Now Y has clear axioms and definitions (for instance, the set of considered elements has to form a commutative semigroup under combination). I defined X then defined the combination operator. Should I go further and proof it is commutative semigroup? I believe it is clear that X form a commutative semigroup <em>within my framework</em>. Yes It is obvious.. </p>\n\n<p>Now whether the author of these words is a student or professor, I believe it doesn't make difference. At the end, there is minimum knowledge required to understand any given paper, if its clear then it's clear and you better utilize the paper limited space in something not clear enough.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10832,
"author": "Tobias Kienzler",
"author_id": 442,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/442",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I propose <em>never</em> using these words unless your goal is to trick the reader into thoroughly checking your claim, or in an exam's trick question where you set a false premise (though these words are give-aways if not overused). If something <em>is</em> obvious there wouldn't be a need to even state it. And if you need to state something, it is <em>not</em> obvious.</p>\n\n<p><em>If</em> you think some non-trivial<sup>1</sup> steps should be omitted so your 5 page paper doesn't bloat up to a 30 pager, then please have the decency to either briefly state the trickiest tool involved (be that induction or some specific part of <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiles%27s_proof_of_Fermat%27s_Last_Theorem\" rel=\"nofollow\">Wile's proof of Fermat's Last Theorem</a>) or - even better - put the detail which you <em>should</em> have done anyway into the appendix / online supplement and refer to it.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p><sup>1</sup>Trivial is also one of these words.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10836,
"author": "calum_b",
"author_id": 5737,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5737",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I was always taught that if you had something to say that was \"clear\" or \"obvious\" to your intended readership, then it wasn't really worth saying at all. Made a lot of sense to me, and I've never used those words in any of my technical or academic writing since.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10797",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4472/"
]
|
10,798 | <p>Back when my older brother started his PhD degree I asked him what it meant to be a doctor in something other than medicine. I don't recall the exact wording he used, but the idea he portrayed was that you take a field, a narrow and specific field, and you specialise in it to a level at which when you are done, you have become <em>one of the ultimate experts in that very specific field</em>. </p>
<p>For instance if you are working with combustion physics, you might be one of the leading experts in efficient 2 cylinder, ultra-light engines made out of refined aluminium... Alternatively if you are into neuroscience you might be an expert on a particular neurotransmitter re-absorption in a particular zone of the brain following heavy exercise (or whatever, hopefully you get the point). It might be an opinionated view of a PhD but I feel it's a common way to look at a PhD degree; <strong><em>a certification of expertise</em></strong>. </p>
<p>Fast-forward 15 years... I am about half-way in my PhD studies in the highly interdisciplinary field of bioinformatics, where statistics, mathematical modeling, physics, molecular chemistry and programming boil together with cell biology, to top it all you typically have a theme spice, which in my case is cancer biology. I have a growing feeling that I am getting stretched thinner and thinner by the day, instead of becoming increasingly competent in a specific field, I become semi-competent in increasingly many fields. </p>
<p>That being the case I am not sure I (or others like myself) will fit the "definition" above. I would appreciate some perspective as to how one should be seeing highly interdisciplinary PhD studies and the development (as a scientist and a professional) that graduate studies entitles. Subsequently, how should one go about to profile him/her-self to future employers, seeing as there is no one natural field to pursue, but rather many different ones. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10801,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This may not be a complete answer, but I can empathise with you, as I am in a similar boat.</p>\n\n<p>My field is an academic puree of atmospheric physics, photobiology, optics, photography, oncology, opthamology, programming and a dash of education, public information and community safety.</p>\n\n<p>The steps that I take are:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Identify the main focus/foci - this/these are the overarching main goals of your project (eg for mine, it is Atmospheric Physics and Photobiology).</li>\n<li>Which fields are where the applications/potential applications of your research come from? (eg for mine, they are programming, optics and community safety/education)</li>\n<li>Look at where you can contribute to (the remainder of the list are mine).</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>That last point is something my supervisor suggested I remember in times that I felt I was being academically-spaghettified - look at the disciplines not so much as fields of study, but as areas that you can and are making a contribution.</p>\n\n<p>I hope this helps.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10806,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I completely understand your feeling. I can tell you that many other people in this field feel the same. This has nothing to do with how smart or how good they are. This issue also bugged me a lot, but I can offer some insights:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Bioinformatics/computational biology is really huge and you cannot be an expert in all aspects. Even if you look at senior scientists in this field, I do not think there is someone who is an expert in all subfields. You simply can't master all the physics, math, CS, chemistry and biology at an expert level - even in a much longer time than a PhD.</li>\n<li>You can still have a huge impact without being a super-expert in every subfield. Just look at some of the research published in top journals. The reason is that you will have knowledge and a way of thinking that people restricted to a single field may not have. From personal experience, I can say that this is a significant advantage for asking certain types of questions and coming up with certain ideas that single-field specialists won't come up with.</li>\n<li>After a while you will realize that you actually are an expert. Maybe not in the sense that you know everything about everything, but you will see that you can give good advice to other people, foresee potential problems, and so on. In addition to knowing a lot about computational biology, you will become an expert in things such as quantitative modelling, applied machine learning and \"big data\" analysis (I hate that term), skills which are very useful in a wide range of fields.</li>\n<li>The fact that you cannot become an expert in everything doesn't mean you should neglect learning. On the contrary, you should constantly try to expand your knowledge in all related fields. And yes, it can be more difficult than learning only one subject.</li>\n<li>Finally, in the end you will be working on a specific problem in a given biological problem with a given set of tools. That problem is what you really need to be an expert on.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10808,
"author": "gerrit",
"author_id": 1033,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1033",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In my opinion, a PhD is much more than a deep expertise in a particular field. A PhD is a certificate of <em>the ability to do science</em>. That's why your PhD is more broadly applicable than in your particular expertise and that's why some people can change topics dramatically after their PhD: from particle physics to atmospheric science, from space science to ornithology¹. In a German <em>Habilitation</em>, which is I think a step on becoming a professor, one has to write a review of a field that is not ones own.</p>\n<p>The other day, I came accross a job advertisement from the British Met Office that had the following requirements:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>· Proven ability to conduct scientific research, displaying initiative, independence and analytical skills.</p>\n<p>· Evidence of the motivation and drive to overcome obstacles in order to solve scientific problems.</p>\n<p>· Evidence of the ability to write software to address scientific questions.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>A PhD in any natural science proves exactly that; in any case the first two points, and in many cases the third point, too. Of course, domain-specific knowledge is a plus, but it may not be a necessity. Therefore, I think you should profile yourself as <em>a scientist</em>.</p>\n<p>¹<sup>Scientists performing stratospheric radar measurements discovered an odd diurnal pattern in their measurements near the Antarctic coast. It turns out a flock of birds was flying through the radar beam. One persons noise is another persons signal; said scientist is now cooperating in ornithological research.</sup></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10809,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>As I commented on another board just this morning, the goal of all higher education is ultimately <strong>to learn how to learn.</strong> As a PhD-level scientist, you need to be able to understand, master, and solve problems in fields which you may have never seen before you started to work in them. This means that you need to have a well-developed process for assimilating information, synthesizing it, and analyzing it. You need to be able to evaluate what is useful or not, what is correct or not, and what might work and what might not. </p>\n\n<p>In an interdisciplinary field, your challenge is even harder, as you are trying to assimilate potentially disparate fields of knowledge and combine them into something more than the sum of the parts. This requires learning different jargons, different attitudes, and different approaches to problem-solving and understanding the world. This will actually be even more useful, because this means that you can be pretty good at a lot of different things—which gives you an edge over someone who's outstanding at one thing, but only one thing.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10798",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5674/"
]
|
10,804 | <p>Would it be out of the ordinary to get a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering and then go for a Masters in something like Civil or Structural Engineering?</p>
<p>I don't know a lot about how transitioning to a Masters program works.. Do people usually continue on in the same field, or is branching out common?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10807,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>This depends on where you are. In the US, this would generally not be too difficult, particularly if one uses elective courses at the bachelor's level to take some of the courses in the \"new\" field. </p>\n\n<p>Here in Germany, it would actually be almost <strong>impossible</strong> to switch as you've suggested. The reason for this is that the \"prerequisite\" for enrolling as master's student in a particular field is usually taken to be the <em>bachelor's degree in the same field as taught at the university!</em> This is known as a \"consecutive\" degree requirement, and makes life very difficult for people coming from outside Germany. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 43199,
"author": "N. Overton-Katz",
"author_id": 32845,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/32845",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I know it is defintly possible. My father is a civil engineer and a couple of his coworkers have gone that route. I also know if you are trying to go into civil, many civil engineering companies like to hire a few mechanical engineers.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 43202,
"author": "marcman",
"author_id": 11819,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11819",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>At least in the US, that is very common. Obviously, it's not as common as getting a Masters in the same area as your Bachelors, but it's still pretty run-of-the-mill. This is especially true when there's some sort of overlap in the two fields, as there is between Mechanical and Civil/Structural Engineering.</p>\n\n<p>A lot of top schools accept applicants into engineering Masters programs who lack engineering undergraduate degrees and even discuss this on their websites (<a href=\"http://www.ce.berkeley.edu/grad/admissions/requirements\" rel=\"nofollow\">Berkeley</a>, <a href=\"https://engineering.purdue.edu/ABE/Academics/Grad/no_engineering_degree.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">Purdue</a>, etc; I know those particular links are not for civil engineering, but they should at least highlight that it's pretty common for students to tweak their interests between undergrad and grad school). A simple Google search will bring up even more examples.</p>\n\n<p>There are even programs out there specifically designed for people to make these sorts of switches (and even bigger ones). <a href=\"http://www.bu.edu/eng/academics/special-programs/leap/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Boston University's LEAP</a> is one example where students can have majored in just about anything and convert to engineering at the Masters level.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 43225,
"author": "kgrafton",
"author_id": 32871,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/32871",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It's pretty common, at least in the US. I, personally, have an undergrad degree in Anthropology, and am studying Management Information Systems/IT Project Management in grad school. I just had to take a few prerequisites before I could start my master's classes. The way it worked for me is I was granted \"conditional acceptance\" to my master's program, with the condition that I had to complete all the prereqs (3 classes, in my case) within a year. Talk to the advisers in the master's program you want to do, they should have all the information you need.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10804",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7562/"
]
|
10,812 | <p>By the time I apply for a PhD, I will have almost a year of experience as a Research Assistant, but I doubt I will have a paper published till then. The project is still in the data analysis stage, and it will most probably be in the review stage when I apply. Other than this job, I have no other research experience/papers/projects that are much relevant. Though I have 1.5 years of corporate experience in IT.
I think the above might be a common cause for concern, especially for people looking to switch fields, and thus hope the question is qualified enough for a general audience.</p>
<p>As for my particular case, I am looking for PhD programs at the intersection of Neuroscience and Computer Science (e.g. Cog Sci, Computational Neuroscience, Neural Engineering etc). I have a bachelors in Computer Science, but my grades are bad. My GRE score is quite good however, and I'm from a well-known college in my country.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10813,
"author": "Shion",
"author_id": 1429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1429",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is a difficult question to answer and I know little about the intersection of CS and neuroscience. I do know a <em>little bit</em> about the intersection of CS and social sciences (i.e. HCI/information sciences) so I will write about that. In addition, I am the student representative on the admissions committee of our department so I have <em>some limited</em> experience with that process as well.</p>\n\n<p>You do not <strong>need</strong> a publication to apply for PhD in the US. For other countries, it might be different and I do not have that information. <em>Potentially,</em> you will be more competitive if you have a publication. But remember, that all publications are not created equal. If you have a first author paper (or otherwise depending upon the publication standards in your field) in a top ranked journal/conference in your field, then you are competitive (<strong>assuming that other parts of your application pass muster</strong>).</p>\n\n<p>If that publication is in a lesser known journal/conference, you still have displayed some knowledge about how to conduct and publish research - which in the end is better than nothing.</p>\n\n<p>However, in my experience, I have seen that <strong>detailed</strong> letters of recommendation from authors known to members of the admissions committee are usually given way more weight than any published research.</p>\n\n<p>Also, take my words with a pinch of salt. Everything varies from field to field and from year to year.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10815,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can only answer from my experience as well, as I am in Australia and studying a physics PhD - my supervisor advised me that it is always good to have some publications under your belt before graduation - makes it a bit easier to defend the thesis/pass examination (we don't do thesis defence in Australia, or at least, at my university).</p>\n\n<p>The reason why it is beneficial is because as you have had part(s) of your research published, it has already been reviewed and accepted in the scientific community.</p>\n\n<p>However, having said that, I was not published at all in my MSc and I had very little difficulty. You do have experience in research with your job and significant IT experience, as well as a very strong letter of recommendation (what got me over the line). You may want to contact the admissions officers of where you are intending to apply to discuss these concerns.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10830,
"author": "Rabbit",
"author_id": 7219,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7219",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am a PhD student of neuroinformatics in UK and my background is computer science. I think I know a bit about the intersection of neuroscience and CS.</p>\n\n<p>Theoretical/computational neuroscience is a growing field and as far as I am aware people with physics/CS background are very much needed. Experimentalists have a whole wealth of data but they usually don't have skills or time to analyse the data, create models, run simulations and obtain predictions. </p>\n\n<p>You don't need publications to be accepted to a PhD programme. There are actually some PhD students who didn't publish a paper during their programme at all... Having good grades and recommendation letters helps but I would risk to say that primarily you need to show a genuine interest in the field, show that you want to find answers to certain questions etc. You already have an experience as a Research Assistant and definitely it is your strength. Focus on what skills you already have and not what you are lacking. If, for example, you are a brilliant programmer in a couple of languages and handle huge databases well, try to sell that. There must be some labs where your skills are on high demand.</p>\n\n<p>Another thing is what university/lab you would like to aim at. If you want to work for top researchers in the field, it might get very competitive and not having good grades and publications works against you. But of course there is a number of less known labs that work on interesting projects and have various collaborators around the world.</p>\n\n<p>Finally, as already mentioned in comments - get in touch with the professors, find out about their research, read their papers, raise some questions. And remember that some labs might be interested in working with you but cannot offer you any funding. In that case it still might work OK as there is various ways to obtain individual grants.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/28 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10812",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6803/"
]
|
10,821 | <p>I have a B.Tech (Bachelors of Technology) from IIT Madras (class of 2000) and looking to change tracks from my current job in the software industry. In university, I specialized in computer science and engineering.</p>
<p>I want to know if I can get paid as a faculty for teaching at university level either in private or public universities. I’m also interested to learn what possible salary ranges I should expect.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10827,
"author": "Chris Gregg",
"author_id": 4461,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4461",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>(U.S. answer follows)</p>\n\n<p>It is virtually impossible to get a teaching job at the college or university level without an advanced degree at the Master's or PhD (or terminal professional degree) level. Most faculty have a terminal degree. The opportunities for teaching with a Master's are limited, especially because competition is high and even collegiate level positions that are open to Master's holders still attract PhDs. Master's degree holders are normally limited to non-tenure track teaching positions and adjunct teaching positions.</p>\n\n<p>If you really do want to be a teacher without an advanced degree, there are opportunities at secondary schools, although most public schools will expect you to start working toward your Master's degree in either Education or your specific field within a few years after you begin. Private secondary schools are less strict in this regard, but these days you'll find that most teachers will work towards their Master's even in private schools. With a computer science / engineering degree, you should be competitive for teaching positions in mathematics, physics, computer science/technology, and possibly other sciences. When I started teaching high school physics, my undergraduate degree was in electrical engineering (but I also finished a Master's in education).</p>\n\n<p>There are obviously exceptions to the above -- Bill Gates could get a job teaching at virtually any school in the country, and he doesn't even have a bachelor's degree. But, unless you are in a unique category like that, you should be prepared to get an advanced degree of some sort if you want to teach at the college or university level.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10841,
"author": "Herkenham",
"author_id": 7582,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7582",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You may be able to get classes as an adjunct instructor at a community college. I currently have a bachelor's degree in computer science, with no graduate degrees. I have taught courses as an adjunct instructor in computer science and in developmental mathematics at community colleges in different states.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 14541,
"author": "Kevin",
"author_id": 9832,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9832",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My Japanese teacher needed to go back to college for a Masters degree, or be forced to leave Santa Barbara community college. Being from Japan gave no leeway in teaching Japanese to beginners. Hence the strictness in the US for a Masters degree to teach at any college level.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 14545,
"author": "Dylan Meeus",
"author_id": 9570,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9570",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You will need a masters degree (at least) to teach university courses. With a bachelor degree however, you might be able to score a position at a highschool considering you've already worked in the industry.Though, if you're really dead-set on giving lectures at university, your best shot would be to pursue a master degree. There are possibilities to study a masters whilst working. You might even be able to teach a bit in highschool whilst studying for your master degree, see what that is like.</p>\n\n<p>Though you might be able to become an assistant instructor, like Herkenham said. Which (here) means that you get to correct students work, give practical lectures (practical coding instead of theory based courses). Once again, having worked in the industry might play to your advantage.</p>\n\n<p>I honestly think having worked in the industry increases your odds, but they are still against you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 30330,
"author": "user23170",
"author_id": 23170,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/23170",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>very bad info here. ive been teaching for years with no pressure to get a masters. there's a nationwide shortage for teachers, so why would a masters be necessary? also you can teach at the college level if the courses are considered prerequisite or remedial/college prep classes. HS teachers are preferred for these classes as they are acclimated to the type of clientele you can expect in those type's of classes.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 37133,
"author": "Geremia",
"author_id": 9425,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9425",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Yes, it's sometimes possible to teach at a community college, for example, without a master's degree. I know of one community college that prefers to hire those with a master's degree, but they also accept those with bachelor's degrees + 20 hours of grad-level coursework.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 107599,
"author": "user90900",
"author_id": 90900,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/90900",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I go to a decently ranked university and some of the lecturers for the first year computer science classes only have bachelor degrees.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/28 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10821",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7570/"
]
|
10,822 | <p>Common sense dictates that any and all work/research/drafts/etc that we do in our journal-research and PhD ought to be backed up and backed up again. Most of the time, this is constrained to laptop/desktop, USB memory and perhaps a copy in your own email - one disaster could wipe all that out (almost happened to my MSc research - got caught up in a severe natural disaster).</p>
<p>My question is, is there a more secure and 'safe' means to save/backup our PhD and/or journal-research work? Do universities offer such services, or is it up to individual researchers to find their own solutions?</p>
<p>I should note that I have no illusions of any system being completely 100% safe and secure, but are looking at ways that are more secure than the 'traditional' methods listed before in the first paragraph (2nd sentence) of this question.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10825,
"author": "Faheem Mitha",
"author_id": 285,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/285",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is not really a research-related question at all, but I can tell you what I do. I put everything (excluding large data sets) under distributed version control (Mercurial) and push to remote repositories frequently. \nNB: You can easily automate the pushing if you desire; this has positive and negative aspects. </p>\n\n<p>Of course, the two leading DVCS are Git and Mercurial, so either of these would work. Free hosting for Git is available at Github and Bitbucket, free hosting for Mercurial is available on Bitbucket. There are many other places you can put your repositories, of course, including remote servers your organization owns.</p>\n\n<p>Note: large data sets require special handling, so I'm not sure about that, but they are often not original work, and can be retrieved from other places if necessary.</p>\n\n<p>I strongly recommend doing this in conjunction with some sane method for saving \"scratch\" work (i.e. work in progress that is not yet suitable for a fully formed commit), so you don't have significant unsaved work lying on your hard disk. The important point here is to have a workflow by which you can sanely push commits at frequent intervals - I try to make commits every 1/2 hr or less. I use <a href=\"http://stevelosh.com/blog/2010/08/a-git-users-guide-to-mercurial-queues\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Mercurial queues</a>. There is also a brand new thing called the <a href=\"http://mercurial.selenic.com/wiki/EvolveExtension\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Evolve Extension</a>, but I have not tried \nthat yet. Git has similar software available. See for example, the Stack Overflow question <a href=\"https://stackoverflow.com/q/952651/350713\">git equivalent to hg mq?</a> and <a href=\"https://stackoverflow.com/q/5016862/350713\">What's the Git approach to publish a patch queue?</a>. NB: If you do use a patch queue, you need of course to version it, otherwise you can't push it.</p>\n\n<p>These methods can appear complex if you are not used to version control. However, I can attest this approach works well. My workstation died three times in the last 3 1/2 years, and each time I was able to switch to a different machine and carry on working without interruption, without access to the machine I had just been using.</p>\n\n<p>See also <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/5277/285\">Why use version control systems for writing a paper</a>, particularly <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/5519/285\">user244795's answer</a>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10826,
"author": "Shion",
"author_id": 1429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1429",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Backups, short-term and long-term storage of research material is actually something we have to address whenever we apply for a IRB for a research study or an IRB exemption. We have to spell everything out in great detail including when we are going to destroy or get rid of the acquired research materials (since they usually contain personal identifiers like name, address, email etc.)</p>\n\n<p>This is our approach:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>We have our own encrypted lab server on a <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAID\">RAID configuration</a>. Access to the server is restricted to myself and my adviser.</p></li>\n<li><p>We store generalized, public versions of our scripts on <a href=\"http://www.github.com/\">github</a>. The previous answer has very good specifics on github so I will not go into the details here.</p></li>\n<li><p>Periodically, we backup our lab server to another externally hosted server (not physically located in the US). This backup script is encrypted and password protected.</p></li>\n<li><p>Physical interview questionnaires, survey instruments, interview transcripts are stored in a locked file cabinet with access to my adviser and myself in our lab. Entry to our lab is through keycard only.</p></li>\n<li><p>Interview recordings, videos and audios are also stored and backed-up according to the procedures in <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAID\">1</a> and [3].</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>This approach seems to have worked so far.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10831,
"author": "xgdgsc",
"author_id": 7237,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7237",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>For most cases, using git or hg is too much for research that don' t include much code.</p>\n\n<p>For a concise answer: </p>\n\n<p>Put everything in a web service like dropbox that provides function of version control. Dropbox is easy and straightforward to use and don' t bother you with complex version control commands, while it provides file version system for last 30 days. The free space is usually enough for current work.</p>\n\n<p>For code, you can put at bitbucket.org, since it offers nice unlimited plan for academic use, which offers you private repos and unlimited team member. Of course you can open source your code at github.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10848,
"author": "Simon",
"author_id": 7584,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7584",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Because no-one's mentioned it yet, I use and love CrashPlan (<a href=\"http://crashplan.com\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://crashplan.com</a>). It's cheap, everything is backed up and encrypted to \"the cloud\" and it's always running. A nice complement to full disk cloning and git/mercurial.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10864,
"author": "cbeleites unhappy with SX",
"author_id": 725,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/725",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>To add a slightly less \"public\" view (my institute is a non-university research institute which would be counted either as academic or industrial depending on whom you ask). We mainly work with original data we measure ourselves. The major concern of our administration seems to be that original data does not inadvertently end up becoming public, destroyed/lost data seems to be less of a concern (but there are backed up servers, see below).</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Default policy is that data and code (and paper drafts) stay inside the institute (though we may take them home, as working from home office is a valid and frequently used option) and within the collaborating groups, respectively. </p></li>\n<li><p>Basically this has not only the obvious consequence of no google docs, no public github or the like (unless specified for the particular project) but also e.g. no private github plan. </p></li>\n<li><p>Instead of private github plan (or the like) we have our own git server. The main purpose of the server is not backup (it is located in the main server room, so e.g. a fire killing the file server would most likely kill the git server as well), but collaboration. However, having collaboration with a DCVS automatically means backups that are distributed as far away as the collaborators are.</p></li>\n<li><p>OTOH, our computer services provides a file server which is automatically backed up. </p></li>\n<li><p>Once a publication is out, original data, source code and the paper are backed up in a publication data base as well.</p></li>\n<li><p>Due to home office, I have an external hard disk that I carry hence and forth (particularly for data that is too big to be conveniently exchanged via internet with the git server). Which means that unless the big disaster happens when the external hard disk, my laptop, my desktop, and the file server with the backups are all destroyed (what is the probability that I'm well and up to work after such an event?), there will be some copies surviving. </p></li>\n<li><p>At a university where I worked before, the central computer administration did backup services for specified computers of the institutes. We once needed that after a fire in our institute's server room. </p></li>\n<li><p>I may add that from my perspective of a scientist who is also doing measurements on physical (in fact, biological) samples, I've experienced much more trouble due to physically destroyed or spoiled samples than with computer failures.<br>\nSure, we have our share of instrument computers dying (big issue, as it can be difficult to find parts that are compatible particularly with older instrument hardware - but no data loss issue: measurements are usually immediately transferred to file server, office computers, external hard disk). Office computers seldom die without warning symptoms beforehand. There also was that fire in the server room (university computation center back-up did work).<br>\nIn the same time, we've had 3 failures of deep-freezers where our tissue samples are stored. Plus other accidents (tissues thawed by inexperienced student, lots of tissues never frozen correctly by collaborating surgeons, ...).</p>\n\n<p>So even without a \"proper\" data backup plan like automatic backup of all computers, physical loss of delicate samples seems to be the more pressing problem than loss of data. </p></li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 60530,
"author": "D.Salo",
"author_id": 12438,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/12438",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The classic digital-preservationist mnemonic for this is \"3-2-1.\"</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>THREE copies of everything, on at least</li>\n<li>TWO different types of storage medium, with</li>\n<li>ONE offsite.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The storage-medium thing is so that you don't get bitten by (e.g.) a bad batch of one manufacturer's hard drives (cough cough Seagate) or a general weakness in a particular medium (such as USB drives' propensity to get lost or break). Offsite is so that a building fire or earthquake or tornado doesn't do you in.</p>\n\n<p>The lowest-stress way to handle this is typically a backup-designated hard drive in your office with automated backup scheduling, plus cloud storage -- though be wary of cloud-storage that syncs but does not keep deleted files (DROPBOX), because you might delete a file, have the deletion synced, realize you NEED the file, and then be unable to get it back from the cloud.</p>\n\n<p>If your data need heightened security and your campus doesn't have any suitable storage offerings (unfortunately common), look for a \"zero-knowledge\" cloud-storage provider such as SpiderOak or Tresorit. DO NOT half-ass your security measures! Leaking personally identifiable information has ended research careers (look up \"Yankaskas\" for the horror story I use in my classes).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/28 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10822",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
10,823 | <p>When you are asked to list what continual professional development (CPD) you have completed in the previous 12 months, where do you draw the line on what gets included?</p>
<ul>
<li>I would think attending a seminar on teaching skills should be included.</li>
<li>A new degree, diploma, certificate, etc. would certainly be included</li>
<li>I would think that participating on this or any other website (Academia.se) would not be included.</li>
<li>I would think that discussions, no matter how long or involved, would not be included.</li>
<li>How about reading books?</li>
<li>How about watching a video series specific to the position?</li>
<li>How about audio books?</li>
<li>How about reading articles?</li>
<li>How about research for writing articles on the subject of teaching (if you are a teacher)?</li>
</ul>
<p>I would also think as a general rule that things done to improve a teacher's teaching or subject knowledge would count.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10824,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This depends on the authority that you have to report your CPD to.</p>\n\n<p>However, here in Queensland, most of what they decree as being CPD is on your list. Speaking to a rep, reading articles can and often do count towards CPD - and most certainly writing articles and courses, as <em>long as they relate to your subject areas.</em></p>\n\n<p>You are quite correct in that things done to improve the teacher's skills in all aspects of teaching and knowledge that would relate to the teaching area are, for here in any case, considered as CPD.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10835,
"author": "Ben Norris",
"author_id": 924,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/924",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Seconding Damien's answer - it depends on who you are reporting to, and it depends on what they want. <strong>Ask for guidelines.</strong></p>\n\n<p>I report to a committee of peers in my department who forward my report with recommendations to the dean. I am judged in several categories. Explicit guidelines on what counts (and what does not) in each category are provided. I would earn credit somewhere for everything on your list. Each category is weighted differently, so I do not received equal credit for all activities. I have taken your list of activities and placed them into the categories for which I would receive credit, and added some of my own.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Instructional Design and Development - Activities to improve the courses that I teach and the methods by which I teach them.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Attending a seminar on teaching skills</li>\n<li>Video or webinar series on the position</li>\n<li>Experimentation in teaching methodology</li>\n<li>Developing new materials that better suit the needs of the course</li>\n</ul>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Teaching Performance and Feedback to Students - Activities that improve my interacting with students in and out of the classroom.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Nothing from your list fits here</li>\n<li>Reflecting on student evaluations and using them to improve your instruction</li>\n<li>Faithfully keeping office hours and responding to students in a timely fashion</li>\n<li>Advising students and writing letters of recommendation for them</li>\n</ul>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Scholarly Activity / Professional Development - Activities to improve my knowledge of my discipline and which improve the discipline as a whole</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<ul>\n<li>A new degree, diploma, or certificate</li>\n<li>Reading books, articles, letters, reviews, etc. in your field</li>\n<li>Conducting research in your field, even if specific to education in your field</li>\n<li>Attending, and especially presenting at, conferences</li>\n<li>Submitting grant requests, and especially receiving grants</li>\n</ul>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Service - Activities which forward the mission and goals of the department, the institution, the profession, or the community.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Participating in Stack Exchange</li>\n<li>Serving on committees at the department and institution level</li>\n<li>Serving as department chair</li>\n<li>Being active (and especially holding an officer position) in professional organizations</li>\n<li>Educational outreach to the community </li>\n</ul>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Collegiality - Activities that improve my relationship with my colleagues and improves my colleagues' abilities to perform their jobs. </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Discussions with colleagues focusing on best practices</li>\n<li>Sharing of teaching materials with colleagues</li>\n<li>Mentoring younger colleagues </li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Again, the specific answer to your question is held by the authority to whom you are responsible - your supervisor, department, department chair, dean, provost, vice president, etc. <strong>Ask for guidelines.</strong> If your supervisor wants you to be productive in the desirable way, you should receive guidelines.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/28 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10823",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692/"
]
|
10,833 | <p>I'm currently 2 units into my MSc degree (6 units over 2 semesters left).I know this is rather early, But I would like to start work on my dissertation as soon as I can, to give myself enough time and preparation to do "distinction level" work. </p>
<p>How do I come up with a topic I'll stick with? I've had tons of advise from different sources telling me to choose from an area of interest. Considering I still have the bulk of my degree work ahead, this wasn't too useful for me. Do I read all areas ahead of the units to "<em>fast forward</em>" the process?. Any advice is welcome. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10834,
"author": "Chris Gregg",
"author_id": 4461,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4461",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>This is a classic example where talking to your advisor is of the utmost importance. Some advisors want their students to choose a topic as early as possible, and others don't mind if their students take their time. As for the topic, hopefully, your advisor should be able to point you in a direction if you don't already have one.</p>\n\n<p>While I understand the rush to get started on something concrete, you really don't want to do a lot of work on a topic that ends up being (1) uninteresting, and (2) unfruitful. Talk to as many other faculty and students as you'd like, and there isn't anything wrong with reading ahead, with the exception that you might not understand something well enough to make a good decision about whether you should do research in the subject.</p>\n\n<p>My bottom-line suggestion is to take your time picking a topic, because you really do want it to be a good one.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10840,
"author": "bill s",
"author_id": 6308,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6308",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Whether you have a formal advisor or not, you can approach faculty for advice and for suggestions. It is almost impossible for a novice to pick a really good Ph.D. topic (while working alone in a vacuum). Go by various professor's office hours and talk with them about their work. Tell them you are seeking good problems to work on. Ask good questions, and engage them intellectually. Something good is bound to happen. Talk with other grad students who are further along in their program. Try collaborating with other students: this is a great way to get hands on experience with problems, and if things work out, you may get a publication out of it.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/29 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10833",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7576/"
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|
10,842 | <p>I just saw that one of my research articles was the most-read paper in one of the top journals in my field in February of this year. What is the appropriate way, if any, to list this on a vita? It's not an "Award", strictly speaking, so would it be best to just list it as a comment next to the paper?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10844,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>First of all, congratulations!</p>\n\n<p>Secondly, whether or not to include this in your CV depends what you are applying for - if you are applying for positions that involve research, then yes, add it as a comment next to the paper. Then again, it probably would not hurt just to have a comment about it in there anyway.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10847,
"author": "Shion",
"author_id": 1429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1429",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Great work ! The way I do it is under the Publications section of my CV. The following citation is formatted in the ACM style. You can modify it for your own citation styles.</p>\n\n<p><strong>J1</strong>. Smith, J. 2013. \"The best paper ever\". <em>ACM Transactions of Awesomeness</em>, 1 (4). ACM Press, NY, USA. (<strong>most read article in March 2013</strong>)</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/29 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10842",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7583/"
]
|
10,843 | <p>Should I use software for managing my references? What is the benefit of it? I can write down the references by myself, so I'm not sure what the benefit is.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10845,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There a few advantages:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>If anything, your references listed in the manager can at the very least be a back up for your written copy.</li>\n<li>It is a good time management technique to list the references as you go, handwritten is fine, but with the reference manager, it is ready to be copied onto your completed manuscript - in order, with all the formatting set.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Essentially, it will save you quite a bit of time later on in your research.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10846,
"author": "Shion",
"author_id": 1429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1429",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>You do not <strong>need</strong> to use reference managers. However, if you use some reference managers like Mendeley then, some of the benefits are obvious:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>The pdf of your article is linked to the reference itself.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can organize references into logical groups (areas, subjects, disciplines, sub-disciplines) by utilizing folders and tags.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can one-click save articles and organize them from your browser. This is invaluable in saving time on organizing.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can sync across multiple devices like desktops, laptops and tablets. For instance, Mendeley has an iOS app which does this for you. I use Android so I workaround using Droideley or Scholarley.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can read your articles inside the reference manager and then do useful things like highlighting and annotations which can then be saved as notes for future reference.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can export to specific citation styles. This is very useful for someone doing interdisciplinary work. For instance, I have to constantly use the same or similar bibliography using APA style, ACM style, IEEE style.</p></li>\n<li><p>They are very useful for multiple collaborative platforms. For instance, when collaborating with some computer science colleagues, I generally use LaTeX and Mendeley does a brilliant one-click job of exporting to BibTeX. When I work with social scientists, I generally use MS Word and there is a MS Word plugin for Mendeley which dynamically adds references in-line as well as the full bibliography at the end of the document.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>I hope this has been partially useful to you. This is a little Mendeley focused and I am in no certain terms claiming that it is the best or the most useful. However, for me, it certainly has its advantages.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11586,
"author": "user8005",
"author_id": 8005,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8005",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This provides a good overview of the articles you've read. Furthermore it is easy to change the format of your references (for example from APA to Harvard).</p>\n\n<p>If you write different articles, it is easy to use the references that you used before.</p>\n\n<p>On a sidenote: Google Docs has a pretty neat feature called 'research' where you can just search for the title and the reference shows up. In that way you do not have to use a reference manager.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 12455,
"author": "Chris H",
"author_id": 8494,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8494",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Personally, I would say not unless it suits you. </p>\n\n<p>I'm happier with a flat .bib (i.e. bibTex, for use with LaTeX) file, just managed in notepad++. You can use the url field of a .bib to point to a local file, but I don't. Instead, what I've recently started doing is to save a pdf of the reference with a filename based on (but generally longer than) the key I use in my .bib file. I wish I'd done this sooner though! That way I can copy a file and a folder to another machine, on another OS, with no internet connection (e.g. when travelling) and everything just plain works.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 63934,
"author": "pahi",
"author_id": 49704,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/49704",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It depends. If you only want to write course assignments and then maybe a master's thesis and then leave academia, you might not need a reference management solution which will be most useful when you write multiple papers and books. </p>\n\n<p>On the other hand, there is one reference management solution which is used not only (mostly) by researchers. It is being developped by a Swiss software company (I work for them) and it is hugely successful in Germany and other European countries. The first version of Citavi came out 10 years ago, but it is not yet known in the US. Citavi allows you to not only save the bibliographic information of titles you want to use in your publications, but it lets you save the quotations, your comments, summaries, and your own ideas, too. You can then organize them into the structure of your paper before you actually start writing.</p>\n\n<p>The video \"<a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3vbWIcljDQ\" rel=\"nofollow\">Citavi 5 in a nutshell</a>\" shows how it all fits together, and how Citavi can help you to be more efficient while doing research and writing. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 64035,
"author": "KrOstir",
"author_id": 46575,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/46575",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think using a reference manager is an absolute must if you have more than a couple of references and if you plan writing more than one paper/work. It is true that you can generate a reference list by yourself and insert the citations manually, but this will introduce error sooner or later. You will immediately see the benefit of a reference manager if you decide/are forced to change the reference style. A good reference manager with an appropriate Word/LibreOffice plugin will reformat the document automagically.</p>\n\n<p>Collecting references, managing all the information about a publication, including abstract, your notes, keywords and tags are other options where reference managers shine. Most of them can be used as document readers and can collect comments and highlights. And all decent ones sync everything via cloud, have versions for Windows, Mac, iOS and Android.</p>\n\n<p>There are several excellent options available. You can try <a href=\"https://www.mendeley.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Mendeley</a> or <a href=\"https://www.mendeley.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Zotero</a> and you will see the benefits immediately by yourself. Don't be afraid if you change your mind later, the reference databases can be rather easily transferred between them.</p>\n\n<p>I am using a reference manager more than a decade and could not live without it. I started with BibTeX, moved to Zotero and later to Mendeley.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/29 | [
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"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,849 | <p>I am completing my masters in chemical engineering. I have completed my first two semesters but was unable to find a research thesis topic to work upon. Will it be bad to complete my masters degree without a thesis, if I don't get a better option?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10845,
"author": "Community",
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"text": "<p>There a few advantages:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>If anything, your references listed in the manager can at the very least be a back up for your written copy.</li>\n<li>It is a good time management technique to list the references as you go, handwritten is fine, but with the reference manager, it is ready to be copied onto your completed manuscript - in order, with all the formatting set.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Essentially, it will save you quite a bit of time later on in your research.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10846,
"author": "Shion",
"author_id": 1429,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1429",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>You do not <strong>need</strong> to use reference managers. However, if you use some reference managers like Mendeley then, some of the benefits are obvious:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>The pdf of your article is linked to the reference itself.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can organize references into logical groups (areas, subjects, disciplines, sub-disciplines) by utilizing folders and tags.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can one-click save articles and organize them from your browser. This is invaluable in saving time on organizing.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can sync across multiple devices like desktops, laptops and tablets. For instance, Mendeley has an iOS app which does this for you. I use Android so I workaround using Droideley or Scholarley.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can read your articles inside the reference manager and then do useful things like highlighting and annotations which can then be saved as notes for future reference.</p></li>\n<li><p>You can export to specific citation styles. This is very useful for someone doing interdisciplinary work. For instance, I have to constantly use the same or similar bibliography using APA style, ACM style, IEEE style.</p></li>\n<li><p>They are very useful for multiple collaborative platforms. For instance, when collaborating with some computer science colleagues, I generally use LaTeX and Mendeley does a brilliant one-click job of exporting to BibTeX. When I work with social scientists, I generally use MS Word and there is a MS Word plugin for Mendeley which dynamically adds references in-line as well as the full bibliography at the end of the document.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>I hope this has been partially useful to you. This is a little Mendeley focused and I am in no certain terms claiming that it is the best or the most useful. However, for me, it certainly has its advantages.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11586,
"author": "user8005",
"author_id": 8005,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8005",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This provides a good overview of the articles you've read. Furthermore it is easy to change the format of your references (for example from APA to Harvard).</p>\n\n<p>If you write different articles, it is easy to use the references that you used before.</p>\n\n<p>On a sidenote: Google Docs has a pretty neat feature called 'research' where you can just search for the title and the reference shows up. In that way you do not have to use a reference manager.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 12455,
"author": "Chris H",
"author_id": 8494,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8494",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Personally, I would say not unless it suits you. </p>\n\n<p>I'm happier with a flat .bib (i.e. bibTex, for use with LaTeX) file, just managed in notepad++. You can use the url field of a .bib to point to a local file, but I don't. Instead, what I've recently started doing is to save a pdf of the reference with a filename based on (but generally longer than) the key I use in my .bib file. I wish I'd done this sooner though! That way I can copy a file and a folder to another machine, on another OS, with no internet connection (e.g. when travelling) and everything just plain works.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 63934,
"author": "pahi",
"author_id": 49704,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/49704",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It depends. If you only want to write course assignments and then maybe a master's thesis and then leave academia, you might not need a reference management solution which will be most useful when you write multiple papers and books. </p>\n\n<p>On the other hand, there is one reference management solution which is used not only (mostly) by researchers. It is being developped by a Swiss software company (I work for them) and it is hugely successful in Germany and other European countries. The first version of Citavi came out 10 years ago, but it is not yet known in the US. Citavi allows you to not only save the bibliographic information of titles you want to use in your publications, but it lets you save the quotations, your comments, summaries, and your own ideas, too. You can then organize them into the structure of your paper before you actually start writing.</p>\n\n<p>The video \"<a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3vbWIcljDQ\" rel=\"nofollow\">Citavi 5 in a nutshell</a>\" shows how it all fits together, and how Citavi can help you to be more efficient while doing research and writing. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 64035,
"author": "KrOstir",
"author_id": 46575,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/46575",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think using a reference manager is an absolute must if you have more than a couple of references and if you plan writing more than one paper/work. It is true that you can generate a reference list by yourself and insert the citations manually, but this will introduce error sooner or later. You will immediately see the benefit of a reference manager if you decide/are forced to change the reference style. A good reference manager with an appropriate Word/LibreOffice plugin will reformat the document automagically.</p>\n\n<p>Collecting references, managing all the information about a publication, including abstract, your notes, keywords and tags are other options where reference managers shine. Most of them can be used as document readers and can collect comments and highlights. And all decent ones sync everything via cloud, have versions for Windows, Mac, iOS and Android.</p>\n\n<p>There are several excellent options available. You can try <a href=\"https://www.mendeley.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Mendeley</a> or <a href=\"https://www.mendeley.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Zotero</a> and you will see the benefits immediately by yourself. Don't be afraid if you change your mind later, the reference databases can be rather easily transferred between them.</p>\n\n<p>I am using a reference manager more than a decade and could not live without it. I started with BibTeX, moved to Zotero and later to Mendeley.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10849",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7585/"
]
|
10,850 | <p>From what I know, every Phd student needs to choose a supervisor in the first year. For someone who is entering a Phd with a broad interest in a field, this might be difficult since they don't immediately know what they want to work on. How do they go about choosing a supervisor in that case?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10852,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>When searching for a supervisor, look at their research profile (usually on a university website), paying particular attention to their fields of expertise/interests - look at and read any papers that they have had published and the nature of the PhD projects that they have already/are currently supervising.</p>\n\n<p>Discuss what options there are with members of the Faculty that whose general fields you are interested in. Ask what projects are upcoming.</p>\n\n<p>Hope this helps.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10853,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Most research groups have seminars or weekly meetings. If you're not sure about a particular supervisor, but have a set of interests, try attending research group meetings for faculty in those areas. Faculty are quite used to this and will usually welcome the attendance (but do check with them first)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10874,
"author": "JeffE",
"author_id": 65,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/65",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Pick someone at random. (Use your research interests and experience, and the available faculty's research interests and experience, to bias your probability distribution.) Work with them for a semester. If you both like the work that you're doing together, and they're willing to take you on as a student, you're done. Otherwise, repeat.</p>\n\n<p>No, I'm not joking.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10877,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As it happens, your case was similar to mine—I didn't have a clue about exactly what I wanted to do, other than being interested in simulations rather than experiment. And, unlike JeffE's advice, in my field (chemical engineering), we don't get the option of working with multiple advisors for extended periods of time, because of the way project funding works.</p>\n\n<p>What makes things easier for us? All of the faculty give presentations to the first-year graduate students, and all of the first-year students were required to meet with a number of potential advisors before ranking our preferences. This makes it easier, because we had to be active in seeking out advisors. Talking with graduate students in the group was also very helpful, because it allowed me to learn more about the advisors' styles, as well as the people that are in the groups. (Some of the groups were very cordial, others were not nearly so civil in their interactions—made a <em>big</em> difference in making my decision.) </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10878,
"author": "penelope",
"author_id": 4249,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4249",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My advice will be similar to aeisimail's, and though I have not actually done exactly what I am suggesting, the main points are still based on personal experience.</p>\n<p>(Also note that I come from the European setting (PhD in France currently) so the levels of education when you actually start looking for an adviser might differ, but I'll try to do my best to be general.)</p>\n<p>In my opinion, there's <strong>three almost equally important parts</strong> to choosing what to do for PhD:</p>\n<ul>\n<li><p>the <strong>subject</strong> (narrow field of focus, project you're taking on)</p>\n<p>Even if you are not sure what exactly you want to do, if you don't see yourself getting at least a little bit excited about the subject, you will not be able to do it <em>and enjoy it</em> for the whole PhD duration. It also helps if you see the adviser being fascinated by what he does.</p>\n</li>\n<li><p>the <strong>adviser</strong> -- on <em>both personal and professional level</em></p>\n<p>Of course, you should read something about his previous works. Read some of his publications, something about ongoing projects. Ask around for information from other students. But also, if you have a chance, try and talk to the potential adviser, <em>in person</em>. Maybe some people can get a feel for an adviser from e-mail or other indirect communication, but for me, <em>if I can hold an easy conversation with someone for 5-10 minutes, I'll probably be okay working with them</em>.</p>\n</li>\n<li><p>the <strong>environment</strong> -- both for working and for living</p>\n<p>If you can, try and get a feel for the research group and the lab you would potentially belong to. Depending on the type of person you are, you will prefer different environments. But, a friendly atmosphere is beneficial to everybody. Also, take a look at where you'll have to live (if you're moving for you PhD): a very extrovert person might suffer after moving to a small, quiet town. A big bustling town might overwhelm a shy and introvert person. Make sure <em>you can be comfortable outside your PhD/job</em>, because as much as you can't do a PhD if you don't love what you do, you won't be able to do it well if you don't like what your life is outside of that.</p>\n</li>\n</ul>\n<p>It might seem right now that you can survive with a good topic and adviser, in a bad environment, or some other way around, but think about it: those three things will be with you through the whole PhD. You can't do a PhD properly if you don't love what you do, who you do it with and where you are. <em>All three of them are very important</em>.</p>\n<hr />\n<p>And some more specific advice that I collected over the years, which is probably not applicable in all the situations but is worth taking under consideration:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>young advisers at the start of their career are more likely to pay more attention to their students. If you want to work <em>with</em> your adviser, it will probably be harder with somebody who's already made a name for themselves: you're more likely to end up just working <em>under</em> them.</li>\n<li>the longer the people are in academia, the more they do <em>administration</em> instead of <em>research</em>. Know how to <em>take advantage of what you have</em>. If you end up with an adviser over his head in administration, keep research questions rare and to the point, when you need them. But know that these kind of people will be able to resolve some administrative problems for you that others might not be able to.</li>\n<li>no matter what type of adviser you get, in the end it is your own PhD topic. The adviser does not hold the absolute truth, and does not have all the answers. He's good for directing you and helping you focus, sometimes discussing problems, but towards the end of your PhD, you are the one that will become the foremost expert on the topic. Prepare for that, so you don't end up disappointed the first time you see your adviser guessing and struggling around your problem just like you.</li>\n<li>find what fascinated you about your own (potential) topic. Don't get all starry-eyed about what the output should be when looking for at a subject. If the output is all neat and useful and pretty, think about weather it has, for example, too much maths for you to be enjoying working on it. It's not just about what you are <em>capable</em> of doing, it's about what you <em>enjoy</em> doing.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Sorry for the short novel, I hope you find something that helps you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 108431,
"author": "Joeran",
"author_id": 91673,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/91673",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The ideal PhD supervisor has/provides:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>A good track record of successful PhD students</p></li>\n<li><p>Expert Knowledge and High Reputation</p></li>\n<li><p>Sufficient Time for your PhD supervision</p></li>\n<li><p>Opportunities for collaborations</p></li>\n<li><p>A permanent and stable position</p></li>\n<li><p>Sufficient, Secure, and Flexible Funding</p></li>\n<li><p>Good office space</p></li>\n<li><p>A position at a reputable university</p></li>\n<li><p>Additional Mentorship Skills</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>More in my blog: <a href=\"https://www.scss.tcd.ie/joeran.beel/blog/2018/03/20/how-to-find-a-good-phd-supervisor-for-recommender-systems-and-machine-learning-research/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://www.scss.tcd.ie/joeran.beel/blog/2018/03/20/how-to-find-a-good-phd-supervisor-for-recommender-systems-and-machine-learning-research/</a></p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10850",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6803/"
]
|
10,857 | <p>When someone is just starting out, they can be overwhelmed with the number of journal articles published each month. Reading everything published seems impossible due to time constraints.</p>
<p>After someone has enough experience, they naturally watch for articles which are impressive, see where these are published and where the articles it cites are published but when someone is just starting out, it's not clear where to begin.</p>
<p>How does one go about identifying the best journals to keep up on when they have no experience reading any particular journal?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10861,
"author": "BSteinhurst",
"author_id": 7561,
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"pm_score": 3,
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"text": "<p>This depends on your field. In mathematics, physics, and a few related areas there is arXiv.org. From which you get rss feeds or e-mail announcements for individual research areas. This is particularly helpful because there are a huge amount a journals in mathematics and physics and you could never keep up with all of them. </p>\n\n<p>The added benefit is that most of what you run across on arXiv hasn't made it to a journal yet so it is relatively new and free. Then after you find useful and interesting articles you can keep track of them and find out where they were eventually published. </p>\n\n<p>Another set of tools that can be useful is a good indexing service that lets you trace backwards and forwards the references from a paper that you know is important. This lets you see not only what the important paper references but also who has referenced it and where they did so. </p>\n\n<p>Because of the fact that my research field does not yet have a single journal dedicated to my field these are the tools that I use most to find new literature and see what is going on. Of course if you are still looking around for a research field to get into there are the big general topic journals in each area which are a good place to start if you want a big picture. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10862,
"author": "Memming",
"author_id": 386,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/386",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>Ask your peers and mentors</strong>. There are plenty of low quality journals, and you would not benefit from reading from those journals especially when you are just entering the field. I currently subscribe to the table of contents of 4~6 top journals in my field via RSS or email. It took me years to identify and settle in this list. I got to appreciate those journals for their high impact in the community. Before I entered grad school, I often read random articles with cool titles that I would find via search engines, but they were not too helpful in the long run.</p>\n\n<p>Also, reading one article carefully is often more valuable than skimming through five articles. You may feel that you are falling behind since there is a constant stream of \"exciting\" articles, but in the grand scheme of things, only a few will survive the sand of time. Alternatively to reading journals, another good way of keeping up with exciting research frontend is to go to academic conferences and talks (in person or virtually via e.g., <a href=\"http://videolectures.net\">videolectures.net</a>).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 23488,
"author": "Not Quite An Outsider",
"author_id": 10390,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10390",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As has been mentioned in comments to other answers, one has to slog through things. A similar process is accumulating a list of restaurants (food vendors, grocery stores) from which you prefer to get food. You can stay within a comfort zone of, say, Mexican and Thai restaurants to make sure you always get something satisfying, but then you miss out on the possible delights found in fusion restaurants.</p>\n\n<p>You can go by reviews of experienced critics, but their notion of best may not be yours. The only sense in which time is \"wasted\" is through your own judgment. Even if you get a bad experience from reading a particular article, you need such feedback in order to develop your sense of what is best. It is not always rewarding to copy other's idea of best and hope it works for you.</p>\n\n<p>There are strategies for forming a list to try, but you still have to test the list. In particular, if you know a good starting point, search by author, subject, or title to find similar articles. If you know a bad starting point, do the same kind of search, but ignore (filter out) the corresponding author or subject or title.</p>\n\n<p>For a list of potential starting points, check out articles that have received awards for exposition. They can be a guide to quality. In mathematics, two such prizes are the Steele and Polya prizes; search to see what is available in your field.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 23489,
"author": "I Like to Code",
"author_id": 8802,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8802",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I agree with Memming's excellent answer\nthat you should leverage the informed opinions of your mentors and peers\nto decide what articles are of interest.</p>\n\n<p>I would advise you to\n<strong>attend talks/presentations at conferences or at your university.</strong></p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Attending a talk requires a relatively small time investment\n(20 minutes to an hour),\nso you get a quick overview of a research project\nwithout having to spend hours reading the article.\nIf the speaker is any good,\nyou should have gotten the main points from his/her talk.</li>\n<li>During a talk, other researchers like to ask questions\nor even in some cases argue with the presenter.\nBy hearing the types of questions that people raise in public,\nand talking to people in private to see how they assess other people's work,\nyou understand better how other people perceive the research project.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Although each person has his/her own opinion about a research project,\nnevertheless, people in a particular scientific community\ntend to have opinions that fall within a particular spectrum.\nBy interacting with people and asking them what they think of a particular project,\nyou will learn how to calibrate your opinions\nwith the opinions of other researchers in your field.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 23513,
"author": "Dmitry Savostyanov",
"author_id": 17418,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/17418",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Although there are brilliant and highly respectable journals and articles in basically every field of study, I think the concept of \"best articles to read\" is not well defined. There are, in my opinion, three important questions to answer.</p>\n\n<p><b>Who</b> is reading the article. This refers both to your <i>position</i> (a MSc student, a PhD student, a senior researcher) and your current <i>role</i>, or <i>task</i> (to prepare an overview, to write down a solid intro for your own paper, to fill the Bibliography section in your theses, to serve as a referee, to discover new breakthrough ideas). In my opinion, one can rarely read articles just \"for their own fun\", unless they are at a very senior level. </p>\n\n<p>Answer to the first question will help you to narrow down the search space. For example, new ideas -> arXiv, classical results -> textbooks, etc.</p>\n\n<p><b>What</b> are you going to get from the article. \"To understand it all\" is probably too generic answer, and in my experience, very rarely it is really necessary to get <i>all</i> details from the paper. Do you want to understand the role of this paper in a big study? (maybe it is sufficient to read through Intro and Conclusion). Do you want to understand if their method / approach is better than yours? (maybe you should focus on Discussion or Comparison sections).</p>\n\n<p>Answer to this question can dramatically reduce the time spent on each paper, and ultimately increase the number of papers you can explore.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 23517,
"author": "sean",
"author_id": 15501,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/15501",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I find <a href=\"http://scholar.google.co.uk/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Google Scholar</a> (GS) extremely useful for me. For example, if I start to learn \"<em>model checking</em>\", GS will show me <a href=\"http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&q=model+checking&btnG=&as_sdt=1%2C5&as_sdtp=\" rel=\"nofollow\">this result</a>, which shows a paper of KL McMillan with 4633 citations, and a book of EM Clark with 9438 citations. They are the first people I need to follow.</p>\n\n<p>I then go to the homepages of the authors, to check which papers they published in which conference in the recent years? big names work on the main stream, and publish papers in top conferences.</p>\n\n<p>Mircrosoft Academic Search (MAS) is also useful. For example, as model checking is a subfield of software engineering, I check the <a href=\"http://academic.research.microsoft.com/RankList?entitytype=3&topDomainID=2&subDomainID=4&last=0&start=1&end=100\" rel=\"nofollow\">conference ranking in MAS</a>, which tells me the top are ICSE, ITC, CAV... This confirms my guess, as both EM Clark and KL McMillan published > 20 papers in CAV. So this conference is first in the list I need to follow.</p>\n\n<p>Google Scholar also recommends papers for you based on your published papers.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 23555,
"author": "MrMeritology",
"author_id": 17564,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/17564",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Great answers so far. I'll suggest another approach similar to <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowball_sampling\" rel=\"nofollow\">\"snowball sampling\"</a> in social science.</p>\n\n<p>Basically, you let really good/important articles (and journals) lead you to other really good/important articles (and journals).</p>\n\n<p>Start with a few articles that stand out to you (or your adviser or mentor). They might be survey articles that assess the state of research and future directions, or they might be seminal articles that spawned new lines of research.</p>\n\n<p>Then look at the editorial policies and editorial boards for the journals that published these papers. Are there any patterns that seem to tie these particular journals to these particular articles? </p>\n\n<p>Now look at the articles that are cited in these initial papers, especially those that are described as \"seminal\" or \"pioneering\", etc. Repeat the process of looking at the journal editorial policies and editorial boards for these articles.</p>\n\n<p>Also, using Google Scholar, look at the articles that cite your original set. Which journals seemed to publish the most follow-up articles, and promote debate or contrary research? Were there Special Issues of journals devote to the ideas or methods in the original set?</p>\n\n<p>Rinse and repeat :-).</p>\n\n<p>Through this procedure, you will usually settle on a set of 2 to 5 journals in a field (or sub-field) that are considered \"important\" for the type of research you are most interested in.</p>\n\n<p>The advantage of this method is that you will home in on the journals that are important for <em>your</em> interests and focus, not just what everyone else (worldwide) might think is important.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 23580,
"author": "LucasY",
"author_id": 17573,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/17573",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The first thing is to identify the keywords/topics you are interested in. Then \"google scholar\" or \"web of science\" them. Find the top cited articles and identify which journals these articles were from. The other way to identify the top journals is checking the impact factors of these journals. Then find journals with higher impact factors. Go through the journals to identify the articles/topics you are interested in.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/06/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10857",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,869 | <p>I am a Master's student in math who is doing pretty well so far.
I aced my first two classes (real analysis)
and my summer session in probability theory is going well, too.
Even before my Master's study, I already thought of a PhD.
Nonetheless, there are concerns:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>My good grades were the result of grit, not brain,
meaning that I had to spend time to understand what the book is telling me.
Furthermore, a lot of times during exam and homework,
I had to try and fail a few times before arriving at the solution.</p></li>
<li><p>I did not study math during undergrad. Before my Master's study,
I gulped down three semesters of calculus, plus LA and DE in one year.
So compared to other students, I am already behind.
In the next two months, I will learn complex numbers on my own
and review my linear algebra.</p></li>
<li><p>I am a professional in a field that has nothing to do with math or research.
After the holiday, I will speak to my advisor about taking a thesis class.
It's not an insurmountable obstacle,
but, in an unrelated field, I do have less time to concentrate on math.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>At the end, how big is the jump from Master's to Phd?
Especially after what I said in (1), I do worry that it is beyond my ability.
I do not hold anyone responsible for my decision.
So, please kindly offer your best assessment of my situation.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10876,
"author": "Community",
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"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As Austin Mohr, pointed out, it is unlikely a stranger on the net fully answer this for you, but what you are experiencing is similar to what I experienced, so I can tell you how it was from my perspective.</p>\n\n<p>Given what JeffE commented, studying through true 'grit', does involve 'brains' as you are developing and applying problem solving skills and stategies - which has clearly been effective, as you mention, you have good grades. So, it seems you have developed effective study techniques.</p>\n\n<p>Point 2 is pretty much not an issue, based on the skills and strategies you developed in point 1.</p>\n\n<p>If you do an unrelated thesis, as you mentioned in point 3 - look at this way, you'll be developing the research and synthesis skills needed for a PhD.</p>\n\n<p>What I found about the transition between the Masters and PhD, was that it wasn't so much of a leap, but a case of using the skills developed a lot more thoroughly.</p>\n\n<p>I hope this helps.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10879,
"author": "anon",
"author_id": 7597,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7597",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are a few different things going on in this question, I'll try and address them separately.</p>\n\n<p>First of all, heed JeffE's words about the impostor syndrome. The idea that some people are effortly geniuses (which is inevitably followed by \"but not me\") is untrue and distinctly unhelpful.</p>\n\n<p>Moreover trying and failing a few (or many!) times before coming to a solution is the very <em>definition</em> of doing research! The important question you should ask yourself is if you enjoy the challenge of struggling against a problem; if so, then research would be a great fit.</p>\n\n<p>As for your background, you seem to have a plan to address the gaps in your background, and if you're doing well in your master's programme, I wouldn't worry too much about being behind the other students. Another challenge may be if you have a full-time job; doing a Ph.D. with a fulltime job is by no means impossible, but requires a some great time management skills. Anyway there's plenty of resources on this forum to help with this issue.</p>\n\n<p>Finally, as for the question in the title, I would say it depends the most on what you plan to do with your Ph.D. after you graduate. I'm a recent graduate (in math) from a well-known North American school, and the quality of the Ph.D's varied greatly. I think it really depends on what you want to do with the degree. If getting a Ph.D. is the farthest one wants to go in academia, the standards for graduating are pretty low, and I think can be achieved not too strenuously. If one wants to be competitive in the academic research job market, the bar is quite a bit higher.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10952,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'll answer your title question and sub-questions in three words (then add to that): <strong><em>Difficulty is relative.</em></strong> </p>\n\n<p>Noam Elkies finished his PhD in math at the age of 20. The average graduate student would probably take anywhere from 4 - 5 years. That doesn't mean Noam was a god among graduate students when he was a graduate student, and that's the reason he was able to finish his thesis faster than Joe Schmoe (though he <em>is</em> quite exceptional) and Joe Schmoe should just give up. Far from it. The fact that you're doing well in your master's courses is a good indicator you're well qualified for the coursework part. Working on a PhD thesis means producing original research. Producing original research means dealing with not so cut-and-neat problems like ones you'd encounter in your homework or textbooks. It means working with problems that you're not sure are close-ended, open-ended, or neither. In other words, different skill sets are needed for research in addition to the problem-solving heuristics which you've already acquired from your coursework. </p>\n\n<p>Since you've never wet your foot it seems to me you have <em>no indication</em> of your ability to do research . So what do you do? Just go for it! You only live once as far as we know, and it seems to me that your real problem is your self-imposed doubt. Get that out of your head. Research is about staring and thinking about a problem long enough then coming up with an answer which turns out to be completely wrong and in that, the process repeats until you get your \"Eureka!\" moment. </p>\n\n<p>You should also stop worrying about others being ahead of you. There'll always be someone faster and better than you (unless your name is John Von Neumann :-) especially in academia. A good algebraic geometer from UGA by the name of Roy Smith didn't get his start in advanced mathematics until his late 20's, after working in industry as a meat lugger. He received his PhD at 35. Over 30 years later, he's still going strong. What you should learn from him is if passion calls for it, then there should be no stopping you. If you fail at a career, then that's that. It's not the end of the world. But if you never bother to even try, then you'll never know and you'll always have a \"What if?\" moment. </p>\n\n<p><strong>So just to sum all of this up</strong>: Apply to a PhD program and see what happens.</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://mathoverflow.net/questions/7120/too-old-for-advanced-mathematics/45644#45644\">https://mathoverflow.net/questions/7120/too-old-for-advanced-mathematics/45644#45644</a> (if you're interested in Roy's post)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 26661,
"author": "Tom Au",
"author_id": 755,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/755",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In your shoes, if I were applying for a PhD program, I might be thinking in terms of an \"ABD\" (All but dissertation.)</p>\n\n<p>From the sound of it, \"grit not brain\" will get you through your PhD courses. You likely will pass the \"comprehensive\" examination. And then the fear is that you will \"freeze up\" when it comes time to write the dissertation because you are behindhand in \"natural\" (as opposed to synthetic), talent compared to others.</p>\n\n<p>You will have to balance these real concerns against the benefits of \"taking courses\" and getting as far as you can, before possibly running up against a brick wall with your thesis.</p>\n\n<p>This was basically my story (some decades ago). I was \"counseled out\" of a PhD program by a dean who observed that I had the preparation and the brains for the program, but lacked the \"spark,\" \"thirst,\" or drive that would see others through, but maybe not me. </p>\n\n<p>What's worse, as a history undergraduate with mostly As, I had trouble finding a senior thesis topic, and spent the first part of my senior year wondering if I would be able to graduate, and thinking about writing a \"trivial\" paper that would earn a C. In the middle of the first semester, I stumbled on a viable topic that earned me departmental honors.</p>\n\n<p>I can see one of three outcomes for you. 1) A \"light bulb\" will go off in your head at some point before you approach the end of the PhD program. If this happens, you're fine. 2) You will somehow squeak through, not quite knowing how you did it, and come out of the process a bit shell-shocked. 3) Neither of the above will happen, as you feared, in which case you might \"bail out\" as an \"ABD.\"</p>\n\n<p>I can't predict the outcome for you, but am sharing my experience. Just understand what the risks are, take into account your circumstances, and (hopefully) make the best decision for you.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10869",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
10,870 | <p>I will be undertaking my first teaching position as a graduate student in the fall - I will be leading two of the discussion sections for an undergraduate biology course.</p>
<p>What sorts of things should I expect to teach in a discussion section for a science course and how should I teach them? </p>
<p>When I was an undergraduate and took the same course (same material, different university), the graduate students had to re-teach the lectures in our equivalent of discussion sections, as if it was brand new material because the professor was not a very good lecturer. I know the professors for whom I will be teaching these sections are rather good lecturers, so I do not expect to have to re-teach everything to the same extent. I have several concerns, though:</p>
<ul>
<li>These sections are about twice the size of those at my undergraduate university, and I would like to encourage regular class participation of some sort, to make sure students stay engaged.</li>
<li>The material is undoubtedly challenging so I am wary of bringing in too much new material, such as discussion of scientific papers, which is the first kind of discussion that springs to mind. (Also, someone will inevitably ask "is that going to be on the exam?")</li>
</ul>
<p>Because the material is challenging, I could probably do with some review. But how to I keep a large number of students engaged (and participating) through repetition of lecture material? Ostensibly, the reason for having discussion sections is so that there is actual discussion.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11372,
"author": "Amory",
"author_id": 7886,
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"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I can say with 100% confidence that it will depend on the professor(s). That being said, you should expect to:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Reteach all content. You won't actually have to, but you should of course be able to. Students often use discussion sections to ask questions they don't want to ask the prof for fear of \"looking dumb.\"</li>\n<li>Give meaningful practice problems and explanations the students should familiarize themselves with for an exam.</li>\n<li>For some classes, actually lead a discussion of topics.</li>\n<li>Just use it for office hours.</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11373,
"author": "Anonymous",
"author_id": 6110,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6110",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>When I taught discussion sections (for calculus, at a large U.S. state university), the students always appreciated it when I worked homework problems at the board for them. (The homework sets were large enough so that we didn't get through nearly all the homework.)</p>\n\n<p>My experience is that with discussion sections there is a little bit of a good-cop/bad-cop game going on; the professor is the bad cop and you are the good cop -- embrace and enjoy the role. Help them with their homework. If appropriate, look up the professor's old exams, find out what they are like, and work out similar problems in discussion.</p>\n\n<p>In short, help your students get through the course.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/07/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10870",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,872 | <p>I would like to distribute some of the materials related to my paper (such as source code) available online. I have the option of uploading them to my personal website or to a server in my institution, (or any better ways you suggest?) </p>
<p>I am concerned that if I upload it on the institution personal space, after graduating I won't have access to the server anymore or my page might be closed.
and I don't want to disappoint my readers by providing a link which may expire in a few years.</p>
<p>Personal website seems a good option so I fully have control over the materials. </p>
<p>I would like to know if there is any better option or online services recognized especially for hosting academic materials (here my code) which I can link them in my paper?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10873,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
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"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Try something like <a href=\"http://www.github.com\">github</a> which will provide not only a public place for storing your code, but also will give you version control.</p>\n\n<p>Other similar sites exist such as GoogleDocs, FlipDrive, DropBox, ...</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10882,
"author": "kwah",
"author_id": 6791,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6791",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would suggest that if you are able to keep them up-to-date, a personal website containing a guide/summary of your works with GitHub (or similar) repositories to host code. </p>\n\n<p>The benefit of this is that it allows you the best of both worlds. I would suggest that your personal site would be the \"professional\" portal to your academic papers etc, with blurbs / 'about me' etc while the source code and documentation being managed on GitHub (or similar). </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10908,
"author": "fileunderwater",
"author_id": 7223,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7223",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would also recommend a combination, with e.g. the personal page pointing to other resources where source code, slides, presentations, pdfs are stored. Beside github (or other options where you can have both private and public repositories) I would also recommend <a href=\"http://figshare.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\">figshare</a>, where you can upload many forms of research output (data files, figures, manuscripts, source code etc). Each item will also get a doi, which makes them easy to cite.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10914,
"author": "Piotr Migdal",
"author_id": 49,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/49",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>For hosting - anything which looks decent and has no adverts will be fine. For me there is little difference if it is hosted on institute's server or not (I know many serious academic sites with personal domains, or on some page farms). But there is a big difference if:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>it is clean and complete (good interface, you can easily reach to publications, affiliation, e-mail etc),</li>\n<li>it is up-to-date,</li>\n<li>it stays there (and don't end as a deadlink in a few years; if you move make it explicit; I hate guessing \"which e-mail for which page seems to be the current one\").</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Beware that even if you host your server, it may became dead (as some setting change, or you forget to pay for the domain).</p>\n\n<p>For code use things which are suitable for code storage, reuse and discovery. <a href=\"https://github.com/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">GitHub</a> and similar ones (e.g. <a href=\"https://github.com/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">BitBucket</a>) are the best places.</p>\n\n<p>Also, for hosting you can use <code>gh-pages</code> (free, stable and relatively easy to use... when you already can use git). Then for example you can have your page in <a href=\"http://jekyllrb.com/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Jekyll</a> (<a href=\"http://ivanzuzak.info/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">an example</a>, and <a href=\"https://stackoverflow.com/questions/10987992/using-mathjax-with-jekyll\">on using LaTeX there</a>).</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/07/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10872",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7595/"
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|
10,881 | <p>I'm writing my master thesis at the moment in the area of cyber/computer security.
However, I'm having real trouble in keeping a good structure in the thesis.</p>
<p>What I mean with structure is that my supervisor has commented on several occasions that the order of subjects should be changed and that some parts should be switched or explained in less/more detail.</p>
<p>Although my supervisor has been incredibly helpful and has provided good pointers, I was wondering if the community here could give some ideas on:</p>
<p><strong>How to keep the structure of a thesis in line and what mistakes to look out for?</strong></p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10883,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Have a look at good masters theses and good PhD theses in your area to get an indication of the structure. Borrow a book from the library on structuring a thesis. In any case, the structure will look something like the following (with variation possible):</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>title page </li>\n<li>abstract </li>\n<li>acknowledgements </li>\n<li>contents page(s) </li>\n<li>introduction</li>\n<li>literature review </li>\n<li>materials/sources and methods (or this can be part\nof every chapter if these are different per chapter) </li>\n<li>themed topic chapters</li>\n<li>results </li>\n<li>discussion or findings </li>\n<li>conclusions </li>\n<li>references</li>\n<li>appendices.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://www.vitae.ac.uk/researchers/1256/Structuring-your-thesis.html\">Source</a></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10884,
"author": "Nicholas",
"author_id": 1424,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1424",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Folk might have their own opinions on their favourite wording of the following sections, but here is a basic outline of the structure of a significant technical work, such as a thesis.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Abstract</li>\n<li>Introduction / Literature review</li>\n<li>Aims and Objectives</li>\n<li>Methodology</li>\n<li>Results and Data analysis</li>\n<li>Discussion </li>\n<li>Further work</li>\n<li>Conclusion</li>\n<li>Appendicies</li>\n<li>References</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>I'm not going to express what the content of each section should be, because that will extend this answer too far. </p>\n\n<p>My guidance for you is as follows: <strong>try to tell the story of your research</strong>. Lead the reader through your thought process. You could try posing your research as the <strong>solution</strong> to a <strong>problem</strong>, for example. Let's see how this works in practice. </p>\n\n<p>You do some background reading - your literature review. You discover that there is an existing problem that no-one has answered, or their answer is lacking in some way. You express this in your introduction or literature review. You refine what you intend to do as a set of aims and objectives. You set out how you are going to achieve your aims and objectives in your methodology. You execute your method and report the results. You discuss your results and consider how you could improve your work. Then you draw your conclusions.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 18077,
"author": "Max",
"author_id": 2744,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2744",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Other answers have suggested outlines, but even with such an outline it's not always clear what is the best order to discuss everything (whether it's the choice of section or ordering within a section).</p>\n\n<p>One approach I have seen used is to print out the whole document, cut out each paragraph, and pin them on a pinboard. Then it's easy to adjust the order of the whole document until the whole thing is coherent. You'll probably want to have a pencil on hand while doing this, because you'll need to adjust the text a bit to fit the order.</p>\n\n<p><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/oLgWd.jpg\" alt=\"cut and paste\"></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 24529,
"author": "mhwombat",
"author_id": 10529,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10529",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As you've discovered, everyone has a slightly different suggestion. I found this really confusing when I did my MSc thesis. As I wrote more of my thesis, my supervisors kept tweaking the structure. The changes they made were definitely for the better, and I was satisfied with the end result. But I felt like I should have (somehow) known the right structure to use.</p>\n\n<p>So...when I started working on my PhD, I did a bit of research into thesis structure. I really wanted to understand \"the rules\" -- not so I would follow them slavishly -- but so that when I did deviate from them, I would do so knowingly and for good reasons. I started by reading the guidelines from lots of major universities. I found some suggested outlines, but they were all just different enough (in the terminology they used and the order they recommended) to be really confusing.</p>\n\n<p>Finally I found <a href=\"http://www.scribd.com/doc/193023424/Introduction-to-Thesis-Writing-pdf\">this article</a>, which discusses different ways of structuring a thesis: <em>Thesis and dissertation writing: an examination of published advice and actual practice Brian Paltridge. English for Specific Purposes 21(2):125 - 143 (2002)</em>.</p>\n\n<p>From that article, and from other sources, I finally realised that there isn't \"one thesis structure to rule them all\". (It's not like the 5-paragraph essay that we learned to write in school!) Not only does it depend on your discipline, but <em>it depends on your particular research project</em>. Until all the bits are written, it won't be obvious what order they should go in. Even if you were an expert thesis-writer, you would probably need someone else's help to organise it so that it tells a coherent story. You're just too close to the project. (That's one reason why book authors have editors.) </p>\n\n<p>So my advice is: Focus on writing, not on structure for now. You have a pretty good idea what you need to write, even if you're not sure where the bits you write will actually go. When your supervisor suggests a different order, realise that it's not because you \"made a mistake\". <em>Expect</em> that the structure of the thesis will evolve over time, as you write more of it.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/07/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10881",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6332/"
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|
10,885 | <p>Reading <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10652/ways-of-developing-non-core-skills-during-phd-studies">this question and its answers got me thinking</a>, once non-core PhD skills are learned and perhaps mastered, how can we make these achievements clear on a CV when applying for academic positions?</p>
<p>For example, my PhD majors in atmospheric physics and photobiology, but a significant part of it is in Android programming (the basis of the 3 published papers so far) and a few other skills not directly related to the major disciplines, but important nonetheless.</p>
<p>Related, would having peer reviewed published papers be considered as proficiency in the non core subjects without taking away the focus from the major disciplines?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10887,
"author": "Chris Gregg",
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"text": "<p>What you put on your CV should be tailored explicitly towards the type of job you're applying for. If you're applying for a faculty position at a research university, putting Android programming would be a waste of time, but putting a significant grant you won would be appropriate. Likewise if you're applying to a position where teaching is going to be a large part of your workload, put as much about your teaching experience as you can. If you are applying for a quant position on Wall Street, you need to beef up the programming skills.</p>\n\n<p>So really, the answer is, <em>tailor your CV to the job you are applying for,</em> and given that you are applying for academic positions, you should probably leave off the non-core skills altogether. That's not to say they aren't important, but they aren't important enough to list on your CV. If the situation presents itself during an interview, that's probably the place to mention it.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Related, would having peer reviewed published papers be considered as proficiency in the non core subjects without taking away the focus from the major disciplines?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I'm not 100% sure what you're really asking here, but peer-reviewed research should be listed on your CV unless it is in a completely unrelated field than the one you're applying for. Don't list the paper you happened to get published in the English Literature Journal if you're applying for positions in photobiology<sup>*</sup>.</p>\n\n<p><sub>*Unless you happen to have written a piece on the writing of 18th Century biologists and how it affects current photobiology trends.</sub></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10895,
"author": "bill s",
"author_id": 6308,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6308",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I see no reason at all to leave any reasonable skill or ability off of your CV. Play a musical instrument? Won some medals in a sporting event? Program an android app? Have a black belt in a martial art? Add a section called \"Other skills\" or \"Personal Information\" and <em>briefly</em> list these skills. There are two reasons for this. First, it can help a potential employer think of you as a real person, perhaps someone they would like to know. Second, many skills can take years of dedicated practice to master; if you can master one such skill, then there is a good chance you can master whatever new skills may be required in the new job. </p>\n\n<p>Here is an example from my life. Many years ago I programmed a video game (one of the old \"text adventure\" style games. I placed this on my CV, not thinking much about it. It turned out that one of the elder faculty conducting the interview had played that game and remembered it fondly. This alone certainly did not \"get me the job,\" but anything that can smooth the way can be helpful.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/07/01 | [
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|
10,889 | <p>Context: I intend to study mathematics and do research as a career. I am studying analysis and abstract algebra now and I shall begin my undergraduate studies shortly.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Should I opt for physics as minor for better mathematical intuition?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>I have been told my friend that physics may lend one intuition into a few mathematical structures though I am not sure. I can only think of differential equations as an example. In particular, please tell me if physics can serve as a source of motivation and if it is crucial enough.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10890,
"author": "StasK",
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There's a range of applications for mathematics around many disciplines. In the XX century, physics was definitely the biggest consumer of mathematics, from the photoelectric effect and the black body spectrum in the early century through nuclear bombs and space exploration of the second half. The XXI century looks to shape around biology and life sciences.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Physics leans heavily on PDE, real and complex analysis. Some areas may require abstract algebra, but they could turn out to be somewhat exotic (quantum Hall effect and other solid state physics stuff), and you would need to study physics for about 5 years to get to understand what it is if you are starting from ground zero. (School physics IS ground zero, in my books.) Until you know what Green's function is, there may be little point approaching physics for you.</li>\n<li>Economics leans heavily on real analysis and optimization. There's some use of abstract algebra, although again to get to the areas where it is really needed (welfare economics, may be some very abstract macro), you need to get very deep into grad school in economics.</li>\n<li>There's quantitative biology, in which separate fields may require way separate math tools: ecology uses some PDEs, while protein structure is computation that could be using abstract algebra, too, to describe the spatial structures (where it overlaps somewhat with material science).</li>\n<li>Computer science is another big obvious consumer of mathematics, and abstract algebra is very immediately used in various codes. If you want to have an immediate gratification from having learned simple groups, you can go ahead and figure out how the PGP algorithm works.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10897,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>While essentially seconding StasK's points, I'd be inclined to make a stronger claim about the utility of looking at not-so-elementary physics. That is, in addition to all the \"mechanics\" applications of the 18th and 19th centuries, and Maxwell's late-19th century electromagnetism (which provided a huge impetus to ideas about vectors!), many aspects of quantum theory focused attention on differential equations which have proven to be important examples of mathematical phenomena, in addition to applications to physics. This important-example-intensely-studied phenomenon continued with Bargmann's and Wigner's studies on representation-theory of specific Lie groups, which provided the backdrop for Harish-Chandra's vast program. This specificity was in marked contrast to the \"generalism\" that mathematicians of the time were embracing, e.g., Weil, Godement.</p>\n\n<p>I think it continues to be the case that physical considerations suggest very-specific examples meriting intense study... which provide test cases for \"purely\" mathematical ideas. </p>\n\n<p>Witten's (and others') relatively recent \"physics\" programmes have had a large impact on algebraic geometry (moduli problems, mirror symmetry).</p>\n\n<p>Although I'm also fond of the crypto application/motivations of algorithmic number theory, the breadth and depth seems not as great as the math-phys connection, although of course the elapsed time is much less than for math-phys.</p>\n\n<p>(The optimization and math econ, and comp sci and category theory applications/connections are less familiar to me.)</p>\n\n<p>Still, I must confess that I dropped an undergrad physics minor while studying mathematics, because it seemed dreary to me at the time. Partly this was due to my inability to see the <em>physics</em> ideas underlying the tricks to evaluate integrals, but perhaps partly due to the accidentally-dumbed-down viewpoint promulgated in the physics courses ... presumably aiming at \"accessibility\".</p>\n\n<p>And, yes, there is a similar common risk/disappointment in mathematics courses that give up ideas for the sake of \"tractability\". The risk is that it gives the wrong impression.</p>\n\n<p>(Yet, yes, sometimes I've been told that what seems to me insanely fussy detail-mongering is the very essence of mathematics, and that perhaps I insufficiently appreciate \"proof\".)</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10889",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7586/"
]
|
10,893 | <p>I want to write something along the lines of:</p>
<pre><code>For this I shall be using the foo library
</code></pre>
<p>And I wish to insert a link to said library, but I am confused as how to properly write the link. Do I insert it as a citation, a footnote, or just leave it there in the text?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10894,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I prefer footnote or in text. Others would also consider using a citation. Check your local style guide. Here is one possibility (<a href=\"http://lib.westfield.ma.edu/webapa.htm\">http://lib.westfield.ma.edu/webapa.htm</a>)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10901,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In my area (management), links belong in the references section (whether on a separate references page or footnote depends on the citation format) but generally you should not put links in your text.</p>\n\n<p>If there are referencing system which use in-text links, I have yet to see them.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10955,
"author": "Ilmari Karonen",
"author_id": 496,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/496",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>If the library is important enough to be mentioned in the body of the article, I would definitely cite it. (If it's only mentioned in a technical appendix, I <em>might</em> consider a footnote sufficient.)</p>\n<p>Indeed, many software libraries or packages aimed at scientific use may carry a request that you do so, typically accompanied by an example citation, like this one from the <a href=\"http://cran.r-project.org/doc/FAQ/R-FAQ.html#Citing-R\" rel=\"noreferrer\">R programming language FAQ</a>:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>"To cite R in publications, use</p>\n<pre><code>@Manual{,\n title = {R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing},\n author = {{R Core Team}},\n organization = {R Foundation for Statistical Computing},\n address = {Vienna, Austria},\n year = 2013,\n url = {http://www.R-project.org}\n}\n</code></pre>\n<p>Citation strings (or BibTeX entries) for R and R packages can also be obtained by <code>citation()</code>."</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>If no example citation format has been provided for your software library, I'd suggest citing the library web page in the same general fashion, e.g. as in:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<ul>\n<li>The Foo Project. (2013). <em>The Foo Scientific Library</em>. v. 3.14.15. <a href=\"http://foo.org/fsl/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">http://foo.org/fsl/</a></li>\n</ul>\n</blockquote>\n<p>or as in:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<ul>\n<li>Smith, J. (2011). "A fast frobnication routine for Intel CPUs". <a href=\"http://example.edu/%7Ejsmith/frob/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">http://example.edu/~jsmith/frob/</a></li>\n</ul>\n</blockquote>\n<p>If the library has been formally described in a published article or technical report, it may also be appropriate to cite the article or report instead. In such cases, though, I would <em>usually</em> expect the library documentation to say so.</p>\n<p>Ps. Here are a few earlier questions on the same or similar topics:</p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/5482/how-do-i-reference-the-python-programming-language-in-a-thesis-or-a-paper\">How do I reference the Python programming language in a thesis or a paper?</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/9617/how-to-cite-software-documentation\">How to cite software documentation?</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/8098/how-to-cite-a-website-url\">How to cite a website URL?</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/8948/how-to-cite-a-product\">How to cite a “product”?</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10001/how-can-i-ensure-that-my-software-is-correctly-cited\">How can I ensure that my software is correctly cited?</a></li>\n</ul>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10893",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7598/"
]
|
10,898 | <p>Based on @JeffE's suggestion <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10658/how-can-a-senior-undergraduate-find-academic-journals-in-math-and-computer-scien#comment19585_10658">here</a>, I see many CS researchers care mostly about conferences deadlines. Even when they want to read papers, usually they check the recent proceedings of different conferences. </p>
<p>Having a paper in IJCAI or AAAI for example, worth more than publishing in many ISI indexed journals with good reputation. I have no hard evidence for this but being in touch with CS research, I see little discussion about journal publications. why is that? is it <em>good</em> for the spirit of research in the CS field? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10900,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>There's a reason CS folks cite when we obsess about conferences. The claim is that the field moves so quickly that conferences are more effective than journal for fast turn-around, and so better reflect the speed of developments. </p>\n\n<p>I think this statement is partly true (conferences do have faster turnaround than CS journals) but misses the point entirely (there's no reason journals CAN'T have faster turn around time). </p>\n\n<p>The real reason is the usual one. We got used to having conferences be the primary source of dissemination, and have no pressing reason to change. Having said that, the arxiv is more and more becoming the first choice of reading material and \"hot off the presses\" material, so I suspect that your question will become more and more moot as time goes on.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10903,
"author": "penelope",
"author_id": 4249,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4249",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Just to add some points to @Suresh's answer which already lists the most important reasons (at least in my opinion).</p>\n\n<p>While it is true that brand new results are usually published in conferences due to their speed compared to journals (there's no reasons that journals couldn't be faster, but, as things currently stand, they simply <em>aren't</em>), there are still valuable papers to be found in journals.</p>\n\n<p>The first type of papers I usually read from journals are <strong>extended versions of conference papers</strong>: once the author gets his idea published <em>fast</em> in a conference, if it is a Really Important Thing, there is nothing stopping him/her to take some time and publish a detailed version in a journal.</p>\n\n<p>The other type is <strong>overview papers</strong> whose value is not in a vast number of new contributions, but usually are the first ones systematically putting a chunk of knowledge in the same place, and possibly giving a new view of already existing techniques/structures/whatever.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10898",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/532/"
]
|
10,902 | <p>I'm looking into applying to present at a conference for undergraduates in mathematics this summer. When I apply, I have to either apply to give a talk (~20 minutes) or present a poster.</p>
<p>From what I've read on this site, it seems posters are often looked down on relative to talks, especially in mathematics. However, one advantage of a poster session is that I can have a back-and-forth discussion which is impossible in a talk. I think this is especially important for my research, since the computations in the subject are notoriously tricky and will trip up even experts if they aren't paying close attention to the details.</p>
<p>What are the relative advantages/disadvantages of each format? Which is a better way to advertise my research and network with other researchers in my field?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10904,
"author": "J.R.",
"author_id": 780,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/780",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>It depends on what you want to do. If you feel like at this point in your research it would be more beneficial to <em>converse</em> than to <em>present</em>, then I'd say that a poster session is the right venue for you. It's true that talks are considered a bit more prestigious than poster sessions, but you really should go with what you think will be more valuable for you, and for the conference attendees.</p>\n\n<p>It's worth noting that you could always do a poster presentation this year, get the feedback that you covet, and then return next year to do a talk, and let everyone know how your research went over the subsequent year. That kind of progression is not a bad thing.</p>\n\n<p>Also, if you are in the early stages of your research, it might not be ready for a talk. When I attend a conference talk, I'm expecting there to be some significant findings. Sure, talks might be more \"prestigious,\" but, if there are some holes in your research, you could end up discrediting yourself. People aren't expecting the same level of maturity in the research during a poster session. So, as I said before, forget the prestige aspect, and choose what is more fitting based on your goals, and on what you have to share at this point in your research.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10906,
"author": "gerrit",
"author_id": 1033,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1033",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Space (time) for talks is often much more limited than space for posters. At the conferences where I've been (geophysics/atmospheric science), almost all on-topic posters were accepted (note that abstracts were not peer-reviewed) as is. For people applying for an oral presentation, either they were accepted as an oral presentation, or they were assigned to do a poster instead. It may be similar in your field; so try for an oral presentation, and if you don't get it, you may still be able to do a poster.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10907,
"author": "Piotr Migdal",
"author_id": 49,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/49",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>From my experience impact of posters is way, way lower than of a talk. If you can get a single person listening to you for 20 min with a poster, it is much. Plus, usually, people are distracted (noise, people moving around). And before they can ask questions, they need time to learn what you are presenting anyway. So if you have a <em>choice</em> between talk and poster, the first is always a better option.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 19989,
"author": "decvalts",
"author_id": 14700,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/14700",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Leaving aside the prestige issue for a moment, I get a lot more out of poster sessions than talks, both as a presenter and viewer. For the viewer, they can take in the information presented at their own pace, and ask for clarification if needed. If your audience gets lost during a talk, there is little chance anyone will interrupt as the talks run to a strict schedule. Good luck trying to regain your train of thought from the question session at the end. Talks are far too linear in my opinion. The discussions you have with poster presenters lead to a much better level of understanding I find, and there is a lot less inhibition in discussing the results.</p>\n\n<p>All research should always be at a point for discussion. There is no scientific theory or research that should not need further discussion, at the level you get in a poster session. I have seen posters that present quite mature and significant research. </p>\n\n<p>I regret to say that I have to agree that most researchers will see talks as the 'prestige' option, with posters a poor second. But this does not mean talks are necessarily better for advertising your research or networking.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 45031,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In the fore-seeable future, in mathematics the critical activity is giving talks, not posters. Thus, practicing giving talks, all the more if your subject has delicate technicalities, is critical. This is not at all any sort of argument against the communication aspects of posters versus talks, but a comment on professional expectations, for better or for worse.</p>\n\n<p>E.g., gritty/volatile/delicate details need portrayal in more conceptual terms, ... or not at all. Even in talks, people often try to use overheads of some sort to zip through ghastly wastelands of unassimilable details... Don't do this. It just alienates and disenchants your audience.</p>\n\n<p>In particular, I strongly think that the \"in the moment\" aspects of a talk are very, very good exercise for anyone thinking how to portray their work. The extreme case of a \"chalk talk\" is the best exercise of all, for mathematics, in my opinion, but it does tax performance and organizational, as well as conceptualizing, talents. But dodging the whole issue by the pseudo-resolution of \"poster\" only delays encounter with the genuine problem-to-be-solved, and doesn't add anything to a CV.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 94516,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>Talks</strong> can be a way for you to reach out to a more senior audience, as many professors or senior figures may be present at a talk. However, your opportunity to actually interact with these figures is severely limited in the scope of the talk itself. <em>Sometimes</em> if a listener is interested in your talk, they may come up to you afterwards; alternatively, you can introduce yourself to a listener more easily if they heard your talk beforehand.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Posters</strong> are a better platform for you to reach out to a more junior audience, which includes under/grad students and postdocs, through professors can be present as well. Networking comes more naturally here as the nature of presentation is going to be one-to-one or one-to-few, and generally will leave a deeper impact on the listener (an uninterested listener will probably not come up to you in the first place). </p>\n\n<p>If possible, <strong>do both.</strong> That way you can have the best coverage in terms of audience.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/02 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10902",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/541/"
]
|
10,919 | <p>There is an argument in my institute that ISI journal publication incentive (in ISI journals only) should be omitted. However, the opposition, including me, believe that such monetary incentive would motivate young researchers who are low paid researchers to publish their work in ISI journals. I checked some of the international universities and found similar discussions tend to agree that incentive is necessary for young publishers and researchers. </p>
<p>What is the status in your institutes and to what extent do you think payment for ISI journal publication encourages researchers to work more seriously?</p>
<p>NOTEs:
1- Please consider that the focus is on legitimate peer reviewed ISI journal publication ONLY, not any other publications such as conference or predatory open access journals. </p>
<p>2- FYI, in Computer Science, publishing in a legitimate peer reviewed ISI journal takes from 6 months to 2 years. If a novice researcher can publish in 6 months, he/she is considered very lucky and brilliant.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10920,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is one incentive: <strong>publish or perish</strong>. </p>\n\n<p>Without publishing, young researchers will have a limited chance of a good career in academia. Without good publications, obtaining grant money will be difficult. Without grant money, you will be given more teaching duties and less chance to research. Without publications, you will not be granted tenure. You may end up with a teaching position, which is fine if that's what you want, but the chances of doing research will diminish.</p>\n\n<p>Telling a long term story is perhaps a good way of motivating students.</p>\n\n<p>We certainly don't pay them to publish, though they do get the opportunity to go to conferences to present their work, but only if they have work to present.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10925,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>What is the status in your institutes and to what extent do you think payment for publication encourage researchers to work more seriously?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I've never worked in an environment with payment for publication, so my impressions are based on observing it from the outside. I'm sure it encourages publishing more papers, but publishing more papers is different from working more seriously:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Publication payments encourage mediocre submissions, since success is defined by having a paper in a certain type of journal, regardless of how good or bad the paper is. In many cases the optimal strategy is not to work hard on writing a few excellent papers, but rather to write as many mediocre papers as possible and then submit them repeatedly in a search for lenient editors and reviewers.</p></li>\n<li><p>In addition to the quality issue, payments per paper create an incentive to break work up into <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Least_publishable_unit\">least publishable units</a>.</p></li>\n<li><p>Publication payments complicate coauthorship decisions, based on how the money is awarded. If every coauthor receives a fixed amount, then it creates a financial incentive to add honorary authors. On the other hand, if a fixed amount of money is divided among all the authors, then it creates an incentive to remove less important but legitimate authors. (And if it's just the \"first author,\" then that magnifies the importance of who that author is.) Either way, authorship is being decided based partly on financial pressure, rather than intellectual contributions.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Of course, all these issues are already serious problems in academia, with or without publication payments, but adding direct financial incentives just makes them worse. In addition, using a fixed formula heightens the tension by removing ambiguity. With hiring, one might worry that hiring committees will count papers instead of judging their quality, but at least some of them will prefer two great papers to five mediocre ones. By contrast, the incentives with publication payments are unambiguous, which strengthens their effects.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10919",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6393/"
]
|
10,926 | <p>Since I've been using Mendeley to manage and extract metadata from my PDFs, I've come to notice that authors are sometimes denoted with all their initials and sometimes with just one. I assume this has to do with different journal's rules on denoting author's names. However, this makes a mess in my author list in Mendeley, as the same person may be known under two or even more names (e.g.: "Last, F."; "Last, First"; "Last, First M,"; "Last, First Middle"). </p>
<p>If, for completeness' and tidyness' sake, I edit the author fields to always have the most complete name of the author available to me regardless the journal the author published in, I inevitably will change the way I cite them. For example, an article from a certain journal only uses the first initial:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Last, F. <em>Article Title</em>, Journal name, <strong>x</strong>:y (YYYY), pp. xxx-xxx </p>
</blockquote>
<p>After I have "updated" my authors, it is possible my citation includes also the second initial, i.e.:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Last, F.M., <em>Article Title</em>, Journal name, <strong>x</strong>:y (YYYY), pp. xxx-xxx</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So my question is: am I incorrectly citing the article when I include more complete information about the author's name than is given by the journal article itself?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10927,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I can see your problem but I am afraid you will have to live with the mess. The reason is that a publication must be referenced exactly the way it is published. The exception is that it is permissible to abbreviate first names to initials to adhere to the standard of the publication in which you intend to publish. It is, however, not allowed to remove middle names (initials) if they are part of the original publication, nor to add initials if they were not part of the original. I know many authors who have published under one and two initials randomly, but there is not much one can do about it.</p>\n\n<p>Now, if you do it in your reference program, there is nothing wrong with that, but you need to make sure your changes do not migrate into published work that you write.</p>\n\n<p>Just an example, <a href=\"http://www.icmje.org/manuscript_1prepare.html\">Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals:\nManuscript Preparation and Submission: Preparing a Manuscript for Submission to a Biomedical Journal</a> states:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Some but not all journals check the accuracy of all reference\n citations; thus, citation errors sometimes appear in the published\n version of articles. To minimize such errors, references should be\n verified using either an electronic bibliographic source, such as\n PubMed or print copies from original sources. [The text then goes on to discuss retracted articles.]</p>\n</blockquote>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10940,
"author": "Atilla Ozgur",
"author_id": 333,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/333",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I disagree with the statement of \"a publication must be referenced exactly the way it is published.\"</p>\n\n<p>From <a href=\"http://jmlr.org/reviewing-papers/knuth_mathematical_writing.pdf\">Knuth's Mathematical Writing</a></p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>In his bibliography Knuth has tried to keep his citations true to the original sources. The bibliography contains mathematical formulas, full name spellings (even alternative spellings when common), and completely spelled-out source journal names. (This last may be unusual enough that some members of a field may be surprised to see the full journal name written out, but it’s a big help to novices who want to find it in the library.)</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This means that you can change reference, give full name of authors, give full name of journals. It may be unusual but it can be done and it is DONE. It is done by one of the most respected authors in the academy. </p>\n\n<p>To answer your question:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>So my question is: am I incorrectly citing the article when I include more complete information about the author's name than is given by the journal article itself?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>When you include more complete information, you are not doing anything wrong. Actually according to Knuth, you are doing very good job.</p>\n\n<p>Therefore if your target journal does not have any rule about same reference rule, you should be perfectly alright.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 26008,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You should not add an initial that was not present in the original publication or expand initials into full names if the author used initials. One reason is the one Peter Jansson gives, namely that the bibliography should reflect what was actually published. However, there's another reason I find even more compelling: respect for the author's choice of name.</p>\n\n<p>Editing another person's name is presumptuous. Like many people, I have deliberately chosen the version of my name I use in papers, and I care about this aspect of my professional identity. What my passport says or what I'm called in person are irrelevant, and I would not be happy to have citations edited to use what someone else thinks is a better (or more formal, or more complete) version of my name than the one I chose to publish under. If my paper says Alice P. Liddell, then nobody has any business deciding I should be called Alice Pleasance Liddell instead.</p>\n\n<p>In particular, your desire for completeness or consistency should not outweigh the author's autonomy to choose their own professional name, and you should not overrule a deliberate choice. Of course, some people aren't picky about what they're called, and they may publish using several random variants of their name. It can be tempting to standardize the name for the sake of consistency, but you should avoid doing so unless you know the author wouldn't mind. If you don't know the author personally, it's hard to distinguish between an author who doesn't care and one whose preferences have changed over time, and it's not reasonable to rely on your own guess as to how to handle this. (For example, if someone adds an initial due to marriage, they might be displeased to see it retroactively applied as if it had always been their name.)</p>\n\n<p>There can also be political aspects of naming. For example, some women publish under initials to avoid drawing attention to their gender. I'm not convinced this makes a difference, but who am I to unilaterally undo it by replacing the initials with identifiably female names?</p>\n\n<p>To summarize, names can be a sensitive subject. Every paper comes with the names chosen by the authors at the time of publication. If you're going to modify these names, you'd better have a good reason.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 78035,
"author": "Pr0methean",
"author_id": 63032,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/63032",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The problem is that authors may have legitimate reasons for wanting to use only initials. Maybe because of a clerical error, the same author is John Smith according to his birth certificate and Jon Smith, without the H, on his naturalization certificate. Maybe his name was misprinted as Jonas Smith on a widely-cited previous paper. Or maybe he intends to eventually be Jane Smith.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 86920,
"author": "Tom Kelly",
"author_id": 58300,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/58300",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would be very careful altering the form of the author names given in a publication. As others have stated, it is easier to trace citations if they match those given by the journal. It is also concern for consistency, especially for common names, it would be laborious to authenticate that these are indeed the same authors and not those with the same initials working in related fields across your entire reference library or bibliography.</p>\n\n<p>It is also difficult to deduce \"journal rules\" from looking at a few articles as many cultures also do not have the custom of middles names. Although I have heard of Japanese authors also taking advantage of this to use their nickname as a middle initial to distinguish themselves from an existing author with a similar name (such as <a href=\"https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=oPHobJUAAAAJ&hl=ja\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Watal \"Metal\" Iwasaki</a>). Similarly, some people have geniune cultural reasons for changing their legal or pen name.</p>\n\n<p>Another consideration is that authors may be <em>very deliberate</em> reasons for including their name or initials they way they have in a publication. Some people (including myself) are known by their middle name but publish under their full legal name (e.g., S. Thomas Kelly). These do occur in prominent papers, such as <a href=\"http://science.sciencemag.org/content/291/5507/1304\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">J. Craig Venter</a> who sequenced one of the first genomes. Removing the middle initial may be problematic when attributing such people as it is important for their identity and to show that their work has been cited later.</p>\n\n<p>If it is really relevant to your argument to link publications, I'd recommend mentioning that the articles are from the same author or research group when citing in text. It's far easier to remain consistent with citations exported from a reference manager and will demonstrate your critical engagement with the literature if you compare articles in this way.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10926",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7623/"
]
|
10,928 | <p>I'm about to start my PhD. I feel I should try to plan my academic career; or set some general goals at least. The time line could be something like 5-15 years. The first years are easy to plan: study this, study that, publish a few papers etc. It gets more difficult to make plans beyond receiving the PhD. I think that if I don't know where I want to go with my degree, it becomes difficult to make decisions during the coming years: when to say <em>yes</em>, and when to say <em>no</em>. I know I don't want to just end up <em>somewhere</em> doing what other people think I should be doing.</p>
<p>How do you plan your career? How frequently do you update your plan and/or check have you progressed as you planned?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10929,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>What I tell my students starting out is to make sure that they have <em>realizable</em> goals. Saying \"I want to be a postdoc in field X in five years\" is realizable. Saying \"I want to work for Professor X at University Y on project Z in five years\" is probably not realizable. Making sure you have a plausible goal in mind, and the ability to work toward it is incredibly important.</p>\n\n<p>However, it's important to realize that goals and opportunities change over time. What you think you want to do now may not be what you want to do a year from now. So that's why it's important not to have goals that are too narrowly defined—otherwise, it makes it harder to change your mind later and still be satisfied with the way things turn out.</p>\n\n<p>How often do you reassess goals? As often as you feel you need to. But you should also distinguish between the different ranges of priorities—short-range, mid-range, and long-range. Short- and mid-range should be reviewed on a very regular basis (weekly to monthly); the longer-range stuff at least a few times a year. But these are guidelines that work for me; you need to find a system that works for you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10951,
"author": "Benoît Kloeckner",
"author_id": 946,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/946",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Here is an advice I give a lot lately: given the state of affairs, make sure each you take a position (start a PhD, start a postdoc, etc.) that you want <em>it</em>, and not that you want what you expect to get <em>after it</em>. For example, if you take a postdoc that you don't really want because you hope to get a tenure track afterward, you have a great chance of regretting that choice a few years later. If you follow my advice, the worst that should happen is that you have fun with research for some years and end up frustrated not to be able to continue.</p>\n\n<p>This advice is probably not that good for PhD in countries where it is a valuable diploma in the employment market; in France, outside academia you do little more with a PhD than without, and the advice stands (I know a few people that ended up high school teachers after a PhD they did not enjoy, that seems quite a waste).</p>\n\n<p>That said, it means you should reevaluate your plans at least at each opportunity (starting PhD, end of PhD, next postdoc, etc.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10954,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Some universities can help you plan your career, by describing what career paths are available to you, and what steps you should take to follow the path you want. I know this is particularly true in the UK, for instance Birmingham university has the following <a href=\"https://intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/hr/documents/public/career-pathways.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow\">career pathways</a> (there is something similar at my university, but it does not seem to be publicly available). </p>\n\n<p>For instance, some of the main paths are (in parentheses are only <em>some</em> examples are points that can be particularly useful to show): </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>research-focused (where, for instance, showing that you can get some funding can be quite important)</li>\n<li>teaching-focused (where, for instance, showing that you can teach and supervise can be quite important)</li>\n<li>technician-focused (where, for instance, showing that you are very skilled in using your lab equipment can be quite important)</li>\n<li>admin-focused (where, for instance, showing that you can work with academics and manage them can be quite important)</li>\n<li>industry-focused (where, for instance, showing that you can address \"real-life\" problems can be quite important)</li>\n<li>others (where anything can be quite important!). </li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>In my current university, you can have an official, annual meeting with your boss to talk about your objectives with respect to your desired path, and you can get support from a staff development unit. There is also a mentoring program, where you can discuss about your career with a senior staff member, usually not in your department, to avoid any \"conflict of interest\". </p>\n"
}
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| 2013/07/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10928",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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]
|
10,931 | <p>I am a second year under-graduate student in mathematics. My school (3 years under-grad) has a great history of sending its under-graduates to top graduate level math programs of the US universities. However, I do not know to what extent top universities expect an under-graduate to have done graduate level courses. </p>
<p>The math courses I will have done in my under-grad are: Calculus I-II-III, Analysis I, Analysis II, Linear Algebra I, Linear Algebra II, Complex Analysis, Real Analysis, Intro to Algebra, Discrete Math, Introductory PDE, Stochastic Processes. I do not know if I will have done Topology and Number Theory as they are not offered in a regular basis. </p>
<p>So, my question to those who are studying or working in graduate level math departments is: Are there any specific (number or name of) graduate level courses that a student should have done to be accepted in top math schools for PhD? I know that many things other than the transcript would be considered by admission committee. But just looking at the transcript of an undergraduate, which graduate level math courses would the committee like to see in applicant's transcript?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10941,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: This is all vicarious based on professional mathematicians' advice (from MathOverflow and the like). Take these words with a grain of salt. . .</p>\n\n<p>Graduate schools (especially the \"top-tier\" ones) judge more based on your ability to do research rather than your ability to get an \"A\" in a class or the quantitative aspect of your CV (referring to how many graduate-level classes you took). In other words, what matters most is your potential ability to become a producer of mathematics, rather than a consumer. After all, your PhD thesis won't come out from that (necessarily). So here's what I think you should be focusing on at the moment, for your final year (not in order of importance):</p>\n\n<p>1) <strong>Getting glowing letters of recommendation (at most 3) from professors who know you well. They'll probably be able to accurately asses your research potential assuming you've done some type of research project with them. If you have not, get to it. The key is to develop a close relationship with someone (or a couple of people) in your department who'll be able to get a good word for your potential as a research mathematician.</strong> Try to look for someone whose area of research coincides with your potential speciality in grad school.</p>\n\n<p>2) <strong>Start on a research project (independently or otherwise) if you have not already ASAP. Something like a senior thesis. Research that result in publications look awesome but are definitely not necessary (I don't think anybody expects much out of undergrads). As long as admission officers can say \"Hey, this guy/gal is motivated enough to do research on their own, and hey look at that work they're doing, there might be hope for them yet.\"</strong></p>\n\n<p>3) <strong>If you're planning to apply to places like Princeton, high GRE scores are preferred (shoot for the 90th percentile and above).</strong> I hate to think of the admission process as a bureaucracy but just put up with it. Just remember, these exams are definitely important, but they are only one part of your application to be considered.</p>\n\n<p>4) <strong>Challenge yourself</strong>, and keep your <strong>GPA optimized</strong> (I do <em>not</em> mean taking \"easy\" courses that just fluff up your GPA. Try to take the relevant math, which probably means at the upper or graduate-level). Though coursework at this point should not be your main concern (research should be), if you think you can handle it, and you think you'll have time for it, take a few graduate-level courses. Also, fill in the topology gap. Graduate admissions will look for a solid undergraduate background in mathematics (real analysis, abstract algebra, and topology are probably the \"Big 3\" for an undergrad to take, in addition to other classes). <strong>note</strong>: the fourth point seems repetitive now that I'm re-reading but I'll keep it like this for now for informative purposes. </p>\n\n<p>Other qualities that'll help (more tongue-in-cheek than actual advice) is the ability to persevere and have genuine curiosity for whatever field you're going in when writing your personal statement. Do not puff up your application with courses just to \"look good\". General knowledge helps, but this is something you can do on your own time. Focus on optimizing your GPA and standarized test scores (GRE); most importantly, focus on establishing a professional relationship with a professor (letters of recommendation) and research. Other than that, good luck to you.</p>\n\n<p>You may also want to browse these threads. I've pretty much reiterated most of the points, but you should still see their different points of view.</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://mathoverflow.net/questions/15848/what-to-look-for-in-applicants-to-graduate-programs-in-mathematics\">https://mathoverflow.net/questions/15848/what-to-look-for-in-applicants-to-graduate-programs-in-mathematics</a></p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://mathoverflow.net/questions/27299/on-starting-graduate-school-and-common-pitfalls\">https://mathoverflow.net/questions/27299/on-starting-graduate-school-and-common-pitfalls</a></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 12605,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 8585,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8585",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am a professor in a top ten math dept. in the US. I have sat on admissions committees for many years, and talked to colleagues at other top tier institutions about admissions.</p>\n\n<p>First: admissions is not done by a \"bureacracy\", or \"officers\". It is done by some subset of the math dept. faculty, who read the applications, including the letters, the GRE scores, the transcripts, and the essay, and then rank order them.</p>\n\n<p>Second: To get to a top institution, high GRE scores are essential. These don't guarantee admission by any means, but if someone can't get high scores on this exam, it calls into question their understanding of all the basic undergrad math they've learnt. It's true that different schools (and different faculty members, even at a given school) place different weights on this exam, but doing well on it is something you have some control over in the admissions process (by preparing well), so it makes sense to do so.</p>\n\n<p>Your GPA in your math courses is also very important. Presumably you are doing your best in your courses, and getting as high a GPA as possible. So there is no real magic to this; you just have to work hard at learning math.</p>\n\n<p>Third: Assuming that your GPA and GRE scores put you in the ball-park of being a credible candidate for admission, people will read your letters carefully. So you want to get letter writers who can write about your achievements and abilities in as much detail as possible. </p>\n\n<p>Fourth: No-one expects undergrads to have done real research; REU experience certainly helps, but one main reason for this is that it provides a way to meet professors who may get to know you quite well, and so can (hopefully) write a strong letter for you.</p>\n\n<p>Fifth: Graduate courses certainly help, if your grade in them is good and meaningful. It is often the case that undergrads in grad courses will be given somewhat inflated grades out of sympathy on the part of the instructor. This makes sense from the point of view of not destroying someone's GPA because they took a challenging class, but an admissions committee will look for evidence that the undergrad really did master the material in the grad classes they have taken. One way to show this is to have the instructor of the graduate class write a (hopefully positive) letter.</p>\n\n<p>Again, different schools have different expectations about what incoming students will know. At the absolute top places (Harvard, Princeton) essentially all the incoming students will know essentially all the material in basic graduate courses (measure theory and functional analysis, basic algebraic topology, basic commutative algebra, and so on). At other places this is not the case, but most incoming students at most top schools will be familiar with a reasonable percentage of what would be regarded as basic graduate math.</p>\n\n<p>Sixth:\nIn terms of preparation for grad school, writing a senior thesis is great. It teaches you about a topic in much more depth than you would normally investigate it, normally leads to learning some grad level math, and also again builds a closer connection with a professor (your advisor) who can then hopefully write a good letter for you. And at a more fundamental level, since mathematicians spend most of their time writing about mathematics, this is pretty good preparation for that. </p>\n\n<p>As far as applications to grad school go (rather than as preparation for succeeding in graduate school, where as I've said it's great), my sense is that the real pay-off for writing a senior thesis is the letter from the advisor.</p>\n\n<p>Since this is a bit harder to quantify than entries on a transcript, often students are advised to take grad classes rather than write a senior thesis (if this option exists). I can see why this advice is given, but I do think writing a senior thesis (if you put your heart into it) is an invaluable mathematical experience.</p>\n\n<p>A related option is to do independent study on a topic with a faculty member. Again, from the pragmatic point of view this doesn't do much for your transcript, but the benefits for your mathematical education are similar to those of writing a senior thesis, if you have a good advisor and take the independent study seriously.</p>\n\n<p>Finally: Remember that there are lots graduate schools in mathematics. What I've written above more-or-less reflects admissions experience at top ten institutions, but obviously there are many more very good math programs out there, and they are not all as competitive as the top ten. </p>\n\n<p>So overall, the most sensible thing to do is to work on learning as much math as you can as well as you can, and interacting with your professors enough that they know what you're learning and can write about it. I think the only things that are really worth thinking about in terms of \"gaming\" the admissions process are attending an REU or doing independent study or writing a senior thesis, something that gives you a chance to interact with a professor, and a specific topic, in more depth; and making sure you study well for the GRE before you take it.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/07/03 | [
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|
10,932 | <p>Nowadays, since (almost) all of the submitted works are usually available in an electronic format (e.g. PDF or Word) besides the printed version, is it recommended to add an index to a PhD thesis in order to facilitate search within the printed version? Was it required in the past?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10934,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>You may if you want to, but it is not generally required. Of course, check your local regulations. It is recommended to plan on having an index or not when you start, rather than adding it later. </p>\n\n<p>Indexes were not required in the past, though check historical local regulations.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10950,
"author": "Benoît Kloeckner",
"author_id": 946,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/946",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Ideally, I recommend having an index with hyperlinks (both from keywords on the text to the index, and the other way round). The difference with in-text search is that you select the most relevant occurrences of the selected words; this is especially useful with terms that you use at all pages, e.g. to point out where they are defined.</p>\n\n<p>If you think it ahead, it is not that much work to do (at least with LaTeX and the right packages). Otherwise... I remember a few hours spend with two other people on this question for a PhD thesis in biology, where the index contained both abbreviations and complete names of a lot of molecules.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 12506,
"author": "J. Zimmerman",
"author_id": 7921,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7921",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Whether its required is probably field/institution dependent. However, just for the sake of those who (we hope!) will be reading your thesis, <strong>include an index</strong>. Even in electronic versions, an index is a useful tool for the reader; it allows them to see what the author(s) thought important enough to index, if nothing else! And if your PhD thesis turns out to be good enough to be printed and bought by university libraries, you will definitely increase the ease of use for those who access the print version (and yes, some people, myself included, do still wander the physical stacks when researching!See <a href=\"http://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/0618958428\" rel=\"nofollow\">this book</a> for reasons why this is a good idea).</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/07/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10932",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
10,935 | <p>What's the best method to understand the real concept that a paper is trying to explain?</p>
<p>Should one go through the paper as it is presented, from first page to last page? Is there a specific walk-through to understand it faster, such as first reading the result section, followed by the concept section, and then discussion/conclusion section? Is there a best practice to be followed?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10936,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>If the paper is well written, then the abstract should tell you most of the story at a high level. Then the introduction should give more technical coverage again of the whole story – you should then know the problem and the results obtained, though not all the details. The remainder of the paper then will contain just the details.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, most papers do not do that, so you may also need to read the conclusion, the discussion section, and perhaps any other introductory sections. In the end, you may need to read the whole paper before you get what it is about. </p>\n\n<p>However, to really understand the paper, you will need to go through it very slowly, with pen and paper at hand, and try to replicate the reasoning/ideas given in the paper, filling in the gaps – possibly with the help of additional literature.</p>\n\n<p>Not all papers need to be read so deeply. Reading just the abstract and maybe the introduction and conclusion should help you decide how deep to read the paper.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10962,
"author": "Rene Duchamp",
"author_id": 7589,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7589",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>NEVER READ A SCIENTIFIC PAPER COMPLETELY FROM START LINE TO FINISH LINE.</p>\n<p>Idea is to get an understanding of what concept is presented in the paper</p>\n<p>Open powerpoint/paper</p>\n<ol>\n<li><p>Read abstract - Tells us briefly WHAT experiment WAS DONE and WHAT WAS FOUND. What specific results are mentioned - are they relevant to your research.</p>\n</li>\n<li><p>Discussion - Summary of important results and gives reasons based on conclusions and assumptions - Do you agree with the logic of the conclusions and are those useful to you</p>\n</li>\n<li><p>Introduction - Motivation and importance of the research and tries to sell the paper to the maximum. Provides some background information.</p>\n</li>\n<li><p>Results - Provides some raw data which can be related to your own research. Figures and Tables provide data in a compact format for easy understanding.</p>\n<p>In figures - does the graphs make sense ? , what are the axis's used and does it mean anything ? Check the units used.</p>\n</li>\n<li><p>FINISH - I have a brief understanding of the paper and I have tried my best to cover all the relevant attributes of a scientific journal.</p>\n</li>\n<li><p>Check the references and see if they are related to the main concept of the paper in hand. Follow through.</p>\n</li>\n</ol>\n<p>Manage a reference library like <a href=\"http://www.mendeley.com/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">mendeley</a> to keep an updated list of the literature you reviewed.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/07/03 | [
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|
10,937 | <p>Three papers on a new technique came out at almost the same time. They are all similar and introduce a new method that I use in my research by providing a range of examples of that technique. </p>
<p>Below are the dates the journals record it as received, accepted, first available online, and then the year of the official citation.</p>
<pre><code> Paper# Received Accepted Available Citation Yr.
P1 2011-11-29 2012-06-21 2012-08-11 2012
P2 2011-12-12 2012-11-01 2012-11-08 2013
P3 2012-01-09 2012-08-30 2012-09-05 2012
</code></pre>
<ul>
<li>By order received: P1, P2, P3</li>
<li>By order accepted: P1, P3, P2</li>
<li>By citation year: (P1 P3), P2</li>
</ul>
<p>Q: Should I cite all of them? I assume so. In which case, which order? </p>
<p>I would like to cite all three, since all are in reputable journals and their submission dates were so close that I assume all three did independent work and are deserving of a proper citation. I am not sure what order to cite them in.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10938,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Different journals have different ways of listing multiple references. I am used to see chronological order in which case P1/P3-P2 would be the order. I write P1/P3 because usually one does not keep track of chronology within a year (although it can (now) be done). It is otherwise common to put authors alphabetically within the same year. If a journal uses aplhabetical order as a basis then the order is of course different. P1-P3-P2 is of course the most straight forward way.</p>\n\n<p>I would definitely put all three in, acknowledging their work. Citing only one of them may come across as not knowing the other publications and thereby the field.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10939,
"author": "Federico Poloni",
"author_id": 958,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/958",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This could be a very delicate diplomatic issue. There might be three groups arguing over the paternity of the original idea. I strongly suggest citing all three.</p>\n\n<p>As for the order, first of all check the journal guidelines. In my field, typically citations are numbered in alphabetical order in the bibliography; if it's the same in yours, then I suggest you to cite them ordered by their citation number (thus alphabetically), i.e., put them in the same bracketed list [a,b,c], with a<b<c.</p>\n\n<p>Ordering the references like this is a good habit to adopt exactly because of these attribution issues.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10942,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You should <strong>absolutely</strong> cite all three papers, if they are all equally relevant to the work at hand. There's no logical reason to exclude one or more of them—even if there were (for instance) a flaw in the methodology, you could still say \"introduced by paper X, and an improved version by paper Y\" or something similar to that.</p>\n\n<p>As for the actual order of citations, I don't think, in the context of a <em>single</em> citation, which order you pick. You could even pick alphabetical order, if that's what you thought was most appropriate. </p>\n\n<p>Now, if all three were in development more or less simultaneously—which appears to be the case here—establishing \"true\" priority is somewhat more complicated. I would choose whichever order best fits the \"flow\" of the arguments you wish to make with these papers.</p>\n\n<p>The most important thing, as I mentioned at the top, though, is that you cite the papers; everything after that is \"author judgment,\" and is unlikely to be argued (unless one of the authors ends up reviewing your paper!).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10937",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/185/"
]
|
10,946 | <p>I gave a presentation on my PhD research at university last week, and it was criticised for lacking practical significance. A different comment suggested the presentation was not placed in context. Could somebody provide some advice on how to place research in context and convey its practical significance? How can I effectively assess who/what/where/when will see the benefits of my research?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10947,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Without knowing your actual field of research, here are some general pointers (by no means, is this an exhaustive list):</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Research and find other papers based on or is similar to your work, this will give a bit of a basis for the practical context.</p></li>\n<li><p>From reading of papers, try and define a gap where your research may help with.</p></li>\n<li><p>Ask your supervisor/advisor for advice in this, employ their help in defining the context.</p></li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10948,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Ask yourself a number of questions:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Why am I doing the research?</li>\n<li>What problem am I solving?</li>\n<li>Why should anyone else by interested in this research? </li>\n<li>How can my results help solve someone else's problem?</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The first two questions will help you understand what you are doing from your own personal perspective, as well as establishing the context of the work. The latter two will help you establish why someone else would be interested in your work. </p>\n\n<p>In short, ask <strong>What?</strong> and <strong>So what?</strong> about your work.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10949,
"author": "Benoît Kloeckner",
"author_id": 946,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/946",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Definitely, your advisor is the person who should help you most with this question, so make sure you talk to her.</p>\n\n<p>With this disclaimer, I would like to distinguish two things: the good and the bad way to justify the significance of your research. To be clear, good and bad are personal (but motivated) judgments and are not related with what will please people asking you that question, but with what is sane argument.</p>\n\n<p>Let's start with the bad way:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>this is the most important thing and most others are specialization of it: giving false but vaguely plausible reasons to study what you studied, hopping to reach other's expectations,</p></li>\n<li><p>claiming applications that are often claimed in the area, or vaguely related but at best very long term applications (e.g. \"my study of cell migration is crucial for understanding metastases, so it will help cure Cancer\"; this works with any fondamental research in cell biology),</p></li>\n<li><p>name-dropping (e.g. \"Nobel Prize Trucmuche has studied this 20 years ago, so surely that must be interesting\"),</p></li>\n<li><p>generalization for the sake of generalization -applies maybe mostly to maths, but applies a lot there- (e.g. \"Finsler geometry is a generalization of Riemannian geometry, so surely it is interesting\").</p></li>\n<li><p>lacking any clue (e.g. \"My advisor told me to do it, so I did\"). If you don't know why you are doing what you do, at some point you should find out or change subject.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Note that 1. is very, very often seen in grant application, and it might be impossible in some cases to apply successfully without resorting to this kind of argument. This does not make it a good argument; we should be as thorough in assessing the relevance of our research than we are in assessing our research result.</p>\n\n<p>Now the good way:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>this is the most important thing and all others are specialization of it: explaining the reasons why you where interested in the project, why you find it fascinating or interesting,</p></li>\n<li><p>giving perspective applications <em>that sincerely did motivate your work</em>, either from start or that you realized during the research process. This may not exist, which is not (rather, should not be) an issue, at least in fondamental research,</p></li>\n<li><p>placing your research in context: how it relates to what has been done before, to which previously raised question it answers, which previously held beliefs it contradicts,</p></li>\n<li><p>explaining how it generalizes previous work <em>to meaningful, existing examples</em> (e.g. \"My theorem on Finsler geometry explains such and such features of Hilbert geometry\"),</p></li>\n<li><p>explain the perspectives opened by your work (e.g. \"if we believe this principle applies even more generally, then we can hope to use my methods to understand such and such important phenomenons\"),</p></li>\n<li><p>explain why it is fun (e.g. \"look at this dancing corn starch: weird, huh?\")</p></li>\n</ol>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/04 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10946",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7159/"
]
|
10,966 | <p>There are some prominent summer schools in CS (ML in particular) like MLS (Machine Learning Summer School).</p>
<p>What is the impact of attending such program on academic careers? (or applying for graduate programs)</p>
<p>For example,
LxMLS (Lisbon Machine Learning School) this year has ~ 150 selected participants from all over the world. </p>
<p>The summer school offers the following things:</p>
<ul>
<li>Lectures (from basics to advanced topics)</li>
<li>Lab sessions</li>
<li>Talks</li>
<li>Poster Session (based on which the students were selected)</li>
</ul>
<p>Would it be a worthwhile investment of 1000-1200$ (Assuming I have the means to fund myself) or are such opportunities common and easily funded in US and I should be looking at not attending and saving money?</p>
<p>What else would this summer school bring forth for a recently graduated undergrad student?</p>
<p>Some of the summer schools have courses which can be treated as university credit equivalents. Is this true for all summer schools?</p>
<ul>
<li>Background: A student interested in Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing and has taken online courses in these subjects.</li>
</ul>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10967,
"author": "gerrit",
"author_id": 1033,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1033",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I'm a PhD student in my final months, I'm in a different field (geophysics), but I've been to some summer-schools that I found <em>very valuable</em>. One lecturer even stated that <em>summer schools are the best forum for scientific exchange</em>. The summer schools I've been to didn't have as many participants as yours, but still, besides from the obvious point of acquiring knowledge and skills, summer school permit you to:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Meet and talk to senior people in your field</li>\n<li>Meet other students, who may be going to be the <em>future</em> senior people in your field</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The bottom line is: <strong>A summer school is as good as its lecturers are</strong>. Look at the list of lecturers, and ask a senior scientist you know to look at the list. Are there many famous names? <em>Go for it</em>. Are those mainly lecturers who spend most of their time teaching at not so well known institutes? Then you can probably spend your time and money better elsewhere. Depending on what's included (lodging/meals/...) and on how long it takes, 1000$ is not bad, although of course it's better if you can find someone else to pay it for you ;).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10968,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>$1500 with everything included? Sounds very good value.</p>\n\n<p>Asides from the great value and the great opportunity for networking with like minded people, it is a great opportunity, through the networking and sessions, to be able to find your focused research interest(s). You never know where the contacts you make, and what you learn will lead you.</p>\n\n<p>I did something similar when I was just completing my MSc - I went to a workshop/conference in Boston - what I learnt helped me refine my PhD research topic; the people I met, I am still n contact with and have helped me when I did not quite understand some topics.</p>\n\n<p>Ultimately though, it is up to what you can afford in terms of time and money.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10993,
"author": "Piotr Migdal",
"author_id": 49,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/49",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>What is the impact of attending such program on academic careers? </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Direct - very little (unless it is very selective and prestigious <em>and</em> the committee is aware of it).</p>\n\n<p>But the biggest things are:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>how much you will actually learn and</li>\n<li>how much you will network.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The later is more important (always you can learn by yourself, and most of learning is self-learning anyway) but you cannot network by yourself. So if there are people from groups you want to apply - it will help a lot (and also: mean that the level seems to be right).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10966",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3983/"
]
|
10,969 | <p>Background - I am doing my PhD in atmospheric physics/photobiology.</p>
<p>Here is a scenario:</p>
<ul>
<li>The experiments are complete - the results are far better than expected </li>
<li>Successfully got the computer program to work properly and have developed another</li>
<li>Papers are published</li>
<li>Much of the thesis is drafted</li>
</ul>
<p>The light at the end of the tunnel is most definitely no longer an oncoming train.</p>
<p>But, at this stage, you just don't feel like working on the thesis, you do other things like cleaning, reading, watching movies - procrastination gets worse, and worse despite the submission deadline coming closer. </p>
<p>The procrastination resulting in more apathy towards the project, despite being fully aware of how much work has been put into the project, how much has been achieved and how little, comparatively, needs to be done.</p>
<p>What strategies are there to overcome this academic-apathy, particularly in this late stage of the thesis?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10970,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>My suggestion would be to set minor distinct goals for each day but not overdo them, make them manageable. Mix boring chores with more fun ones so that the fun ones become a reward. This may seem a bit vague or even wooly. The problem I think you are experiencing is that while working on a PhD you get accustomed to stress and like many (myself included) a certain stress is needed to get something, and really the best, out of oneself. This phenomena, in my case, has only gotten worse, and I simply have a hard time getting anything done unless there is some pressure that gets stress levels up. But, with certain tasks it is possible to get stuff done by breaking it down into smaller pieces because if there is no overview or goals are too nebulous then it is not easy to focus on what to do in detail.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10971,
"author": "Chris Gregg",
"author_id": 4461,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4461",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Here is what kept me motivated and got me through the last year of my PhD:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>A comment from a professor that <em>the best dissertation is the one that is written.</em></li>\n<li>My advisor kept pushing me to get her chapters. I'm not sure where you stand with your advisor, but if he/she (and your committee as a whole) wants you to finish up, that can be motivating. If you want to push this angle, send out an email to your advisor and committee with your plan to finish -- that will help keep you working!</li>\n<li>I had set a deadline for myself (as mentioned in point 2), and backed all my planning up to make sure I met the deadline. It sounds like you've gotten to the point where it is just the writing you have left, and I suggest setting up a schedule of when you will complete each chapter.</li>\n<li>My deadline revolved around the job market -- I knew I needed to be ready to start at a job in August, so I knew I needed to be completely done by then.</li>\n<li>I took breaks when I needed to. I treated myself to a day off when I got a chapter completed and sent to my advisor, and I had one weekly TV program that I watched religiously. Finishing a PhD is a lot of work, but it doesn't need to be soul-crushing (and soul-crushing work is bad for you, anyway!).</li>\n<li>I really wanted to see the finished product -- I thought it was cool to have this giant, polished document, and that kept me tinkering on it.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Good luck!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10973,
"author": "alknows",
"author_id": 7641,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7641",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Looks like a clear burnout sign. Instead of watching movies and cleaning. Get on a train and do something totally different. I think you are in this loophole and won't be getting out of it by doing the same stuff over and over (remember Einstein's quote). Normally you'll need just 3 days to reset your motivation. Things you can do:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>visit new places</li>\n<li>see new faces</li>\n<li>talk about anything else but your PhD</li>\n<li>rearrange your furniture (believe me, it helps. Your brain needs to forget old patterns)</li>\n<li>don't read, watch movies or focus on anything more than 15 minutes</li>\n<li>go shopping. Ladies do this all the time to get that confidence kick</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Good luck.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10995,
"author": "joshginges",
"author_id": 7659,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7659",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am completing my PhD in 2 months, and had my own revelation on this subject last week, which is helping me.</p>\n\n<p>My own procrastination is the result of a fear of failure and a fear of being mediocre. If I procrastinate, and don't do as well as I hope, I've then got the excuse that \"I didn't really try\". It was a revelation for me, because this is the very thing I've been telling myself most of my life after I don't do as well as I think I could do.</p>\n\n<p>I have thus been able to accept myself, and my shortcomings, more readily now... which has removed a lot of the internal pressure to perform well. As a result I have found that I am able to work steadily. I will try my best to do as well as I can without too much pressure, and whatever the result, that will be okay.</p>\n\n<p>The revelation in itself did not help so much... it was really the acceptance of myself as I am now that has allowed me to move forward.</p>\n\n<p>A side benefit to this will be better performance, but that is no longer the goal.</p>\n\n<p>If you can relate to this, then I suggest reading up on \"Fear of Failure\" on wikipedia. </p>\n\n<p>Good luck! </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10969",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
10,972 | <p>I see researchers working on their PhD calling themselves PhD Candidates, other call themselves PhD students. What's the difference between a PhD Candidate and a PhD Student? </p>
<p>According to two posters on the <a href="http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=1790323">WordReferences forums</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>This terms vary from university to university, usually a PhD student is granted the candidate status after completion of a “comprehensive examination”, which occurs sometime after the first year.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>and</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Here in the U.S., a “Ph.D. Candidate” is a student who has completed all of the academic requirements for their degree, except their dissertation.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So this works in the USA and Canada I presume, because they have structured PhD programs where you attend courses as part of your PhD. Unlike most of the universities in Europe where a PhD student starts off directly with his/her PhD thesis. (Europe does have structured programs as well, but they are not as widely spread yet).</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10974,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In Australia, (at least at my university), you start off as a 'Provisional Candidate'.</p>\n\n<p>Then you complete a Dissertation Proposal - where you present a 20 or so page preliminary report and present it as a seminar to a group of peers - once passed, you receive a 'Confirmation of Candidature' then you proceed to complete the thesis as a 'Confirmed Candidate'. </p>\n\n<p>This is usually done within the first 1-2 years of the PhD course.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10987,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>To expand on what JeffE said – \"Every department is different.\", here's an example from my university (a top UC school):</p>\n\n<p>The math department is pretty rigorous and the \"candidacy exam\" is mostly a blackboard and chalk routine. They throw a bunch of stuff at you, poke holes in your proposal, make you sweat epsilons and deltas from all your pores before declaring you a \"candidate\". </p>\n\n<p>The life/physical sciences departments require you to have a 20-30 page written proposal + a presentation on it + preliminary results (usually at least 1 journal paper) and your committee members grill you on the proposal.</p>\n\n<p>In ECE/CS (applied, not theoretical), the labs/PIs are generally quite rigorous themselves and by the time a student is ready to take the candidacy exam, they've had at least 2 first author publications and 3-4 conference publications. At this point, their course is pretty set and the committee members don't generally feel like they need to say/do much (unless if there are serious flaws hitherto unnoticed). As such, the candidacy exam is more of a formality — no 30 page proposals (who reads them anyway?); just a presentation on the papers already published + future work remaining. </p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>The bottom line from all this is — there are no standard rules/definitions/process involved in becoming a \"PhD candidate\". All it usually means is that \"This person has shown an understanding of the fundamental concepts (on the day of testing), their proposal/work done is original and has potential and they've completed all course work/other requirements except for their thesis\".</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11048,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>What's the difference between a PhD Candidate and a PhD Student?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>To someone outside your department, there is very little difference since people (i.e., prospective employers) just don't care about the terms. they want to know what you have accomplished so far.</p>\n\n<p>To someone in a finite duration PhD (e.g., a \"typical\" 3-year UK PhD program), there is very little difference. It is simpler to just list your year.</p>\n\n<p>To someone in a indeterminate length PhD (e.g., a \"typical\" US PhD program), it provides a nice milestone.</p>\n\n<p>As other have said, the requirements to achieve candidacy vary widely between countries, universities, and even departments. That said, I think it is nearly universal (and that is going out on a huge limb in academia) that candidacy implies that the next \"evaluation\" will be on your thesis and apart from time limits or extraordinary circumstances that as long as you are willing to pay your tuition and fees the department will let you be a PhD Candidate.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11053,
"author": "Jaap Eldering",
"author_id": 1605,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1605",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In some countries (e.g. The Netherlands where I obtained my PhD degree) you are not considered a student but a paid employee (staff) with the university. To discern between these, people sometimes translate their status to English using term \"PhD candidate\". Btw, this has nothing to do with the length of the program or your progress.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11086,
"author": "spbail",
"author_id": 6388,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6388",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think Jaap's reply is pretty much spot on, i.e. paid staff (as in the Netherlands, Germany...) vs. student status (as in the UK, for example).</p>\n\n<p>Personally, I prefer \"PhD candidate\" because people here are massively prejudiced against \"students\" (young, irresponsible, constantly partying...) despite the fact that I'm officially registered as a student rather than staff.</p>\n\n<p>Just to make it clear that people are not obliged to use one thing or the other.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 20087,
"author": "Ajay Chauhan",
"author_id": 14784,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/14784",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am surprised at this controversy and answers. When someone applies for a status, this person is called a candidate. If you apply for job, you may be called a job candidate. When you apply for the studentship for any PhD program, you can be called PhD candidate. Candidacy means intention of getting selected. We can have Presidency candidate, job candidate and so on. If a person applies for admission for post graduate program, the person will be called PG candidate. Any program PG or UG or PhD will have so many candidates, but all are not selected. Once selected the status becomes Student. Many universities still force PhD students to learn many aspects of PhD. After a program finishes and the student successfully passes the requirements or exams, the student gets a degree of PhD/PG/Graduation. </p>\n\n<p>So the three stages for a PhD aspirant would be;</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>to get selected as a PhD candidate (some do not qualify this stage also as they do not meet the requirements of candidature, then </li>\n<li>to get selected as a PhD student and, lastly, </li>\n<li>to pass the requirements, stages and exam (viva) and be come PhD degree holder so that you can write PhD as a title in your name.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 20094,
"author": "derelict",
"author_id": 14547,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/14547",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>At my institution (in the U.S.A.), you are considered a PhD student until you pass your qualifying exams. After passing, you are considered a PhD candidate. </p>\n\n<p>The qualifying exam is usually taken around 2 years in the program, or after you have completed any required or recommended coursework. It consists of a written exam, which can be one or more questions from each of your committee members. The written exam at my institution is left up to the committee members discretion (the major adviser in reality), it can be open or closed book, very detailed, or more theoretical, 24 hour time period or maybe 1 month, even proctored by the committee member. The oral examination can also be anything. Committee members can ask very detailed questions or more theoretical questions. Preparing for the oral exam can be difficult, especially if you have members from other departments and backgrounds. For example, I have a Soil Scientist, Biologist, Fire Ecologist, Landscape Modeler, and Remote Sensing Specialist on my committee. They all asked very different question specific to their fields. </p>\n\n<p>Three of my written exams consisted of about 8 questions and I was given 8 hours to complete. It was open book and not proctored. I took the exam from home. One exam was 12 questions and I was given a month (yes I sweated for a month!). They all asked very broad questions for the written exam to figure out which areas I had a solid understanding in, and which areas I needed improvement. The oral exam was basically 4 PhD's questioning (read interrogating!) me. They started with a few easy questions, but then asked more difficult questions from the areas I was not as knowledgeable in. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 21334,
"author": "guest",
"author_id": 15621,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/15621",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>At the university I attended in the UK, one was considered to be on provisional status until passing the viva, which was not only an oral \"interview\" but also included a thorough review of all research completed at that point, a 20,000 word critical paper, and a detailed thesis plan. After that point, the successful student was advanced to candidacy, while the unsuccessful student was awarded an M.Phil.and dismissed from the program. This procedure was standardized throughout the university graduate school regardless of department. For candidates, the only obstacle left was the defense of the thesis. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 27307,
"author": "Exit47",
"author_id": 20815,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/20815",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>PhD students should complete all the coursework before becoming PhD Candidate. After completing all the coursework, PhD students have to pass the comprehensive written exam (and comprehensive oral exam) to become PhD Candidate. The amount of rigor of comprehensive exam depends on department to department. Some department requires that you pass the comprehensive exam on all the four (or five) seminar areas plus the methods that you have taken. Others require that you declare your major area and pass the comprehensive area on only that major area plus the methods.\nDepartment may also require you to come up with a framework for your dissertation topic before they grant you the candidacy status. Again, the variation exists between department in how they grant the candidacy. \nOnce your status change from PhD Student to PhD Candidate, you are no longer required to take courseworks. However, you should be enrolled in the pre-dissertation and dissertation hours (normally 24 hrs; 6 hours per semester to maintain full-time status) to continue your dissertation. You work with your dissertation chair and committee after comprehensive exam. \nPhD candidate are also called Doctoral candidate, and ABD - All But Dissertation.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 31282,
"author": "hoi",
"author_id": 17576,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/17576",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It can be different depend on region, country, university or even department.</p>\n\n<p>In my department in a university in Taiwan, we need to finish all required credit course and submit one international journal as milestone to be qualified as PhD Candidate. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 49946,
"author": "Nick Ross",
"author_id": 38092,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/38092",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>When you see PhD CANDIDATE think he/she is a CANDIDATE for a job in their field. </p>\n\n<p>Versus PhD student they are still a student learning their field of study.</p>\n\n<p>In Texas public University you are a candidate when you pass all of your doctoral exams. Usually at this point you have already completed all of your course work. You are wrapping up your research projects, writing papers to be published, writing dissertation and looking for a job. </p>\n\n<p>-Nick, Chemistry PhD candidate</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10972",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/703/"
]
|
10,977 | <p>I am a new graduate student and I am about to start writing my first paper. Some of my adviser's other students have been working on similar topic to what I have been working on and he has been pushing us to combine our results into one paper. However, I feel my results could be a paper on their own. I want to start beefing up my CV so that I can get extra funding and, hopefully down the road, a research position but I am afraid that if I am only a coauthor on a paper it won't look as good as if I am the sole author (especially since I worked completely on my own for my section).</p>
<p>So my question is: would it be better to try and publish a paper in which I am the sole author or would it be better to try and publish a slightly better paper in which I have 2 or 3 additional coauthors? Do funding selection committees and the like give precedence to people with papers that they are sole authors over ones who have coauthors?</p>
<p>Edit: My field is math, in case this matters.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10978,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The way authorships count varies substantially between fields. You therefore need to figure out how things are in yours. Multi-author papers are commonplace in most fields today and in some (mine included) there is almost a negative to be sole author (it seems as if you do not collaborate). This view strongly depends on what kind of paper/study it is. </p>\n\n<p>Anyway, benefits with co-authorships is that your name becomes associated with others. If it is only with your fellow graduate students, the value may be somewhat limited but if you are co-authoring with someone who is well known and respected, the value is much larger.</p>\n\n<p>In your case, the way you have described it, it seems silly to put your research into another paper if it can stand alone. If the joint paper is likely to become a benchmark paper and get lots of attention, then being part of it may not be a bad idea. So you see that it really is a problem of assessing how you can optinise your gain from it as well as how much the science will gain from a colaborative paper where all parts are present. One way to resolve such issues is sometimes to write several papers where the group is present on all but where the first author varies so that your own work is accredited you but the joint effort is also acknowledged.</p>\n\n<p>These kinds of decisions are always tricky and, in my opinion, depend on how the work can be divided up without losing strength and impact. You should definitely bring this to the table and discuss the options with your peers.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10980,
"author": "bill s",
"author_id": 6308,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6308",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You should really listen to what your advisor says. \"...he has been pushing us to combine our results into one paper.\" That about says it. Your advisor knows what works and what doesn't work as a paper in your field. He also knows (presumably) about the scope of your work and how it fits into what you and the other students have been doing. </p>\n\n<p>There is little downside to this. The importance of the paper to your career has far more to do with how well received the paper is than with how many authors there are. Having more authors means the paper is stronger, means you have a network of people to help rewrite and deal with any negative reviews you may get, and (as suggested in Peter's answers) it shows you can collaborate with others. </p>\n\n<p>It would not hurt to bring this up with your advisor, make your point (ask your question), and see how the advisor reacts. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10982,
"author": "Lord Soth",
"author_id": 7648,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7648",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The relevant questions should be: What have those other people done regarding your own research? Are their contributions worth adding them as coauthors? These are the questions that you should be thinking about. From what I read from your post, it seems to me that the other people did not contribute much to your research, and you feel that you should publish the paper on your own. What confuses you is \"the dark side of the force:\"</p>\n\n<p>\"Do funding selection committees and the like give precedence to people with papers that they are sole authors over ones who have coauthors?\" </p>\n\n<p>The thoughts that surround this question are very serious issues (c.f. the current ethical standards of academia), and you should think about it. I think the answer of the paraphrased question above should never be a determining factor on whether you should publish that paper on your own or with coauthors. You have to first form your own ethics depending on what you think is true/right/just, and pursue that direction regardless of the monetary/fundetary/titletary disadvantages that it brings within.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 117760,
"author": "OKWELOGU SOMADINA",
"author_id": 98731,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/98731",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I do not subscribe to single authorship. No man is an island. I strongly believe that there is power in team work (co-authorship) than single authors. You need to bring in different reasearchers from different faculties for you to have a QUALITY ARTICLE for publication.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 137095,
"author": "Ben Aveling",
"author_id": 64331,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/64331",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is better to have a single-authored paper than a joint-authored paper. But it's better to have a joint-authored paper than nothing at all. Given the difficulty of getting papers published, joint is probably the way to go here.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10977",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7644/"
]
|
10,983 | <p>I have submitted a paper later that was reviewed by four reviewers. I submitted my revisions to all reviewers. Three accepted the review, while the last is still asking for modifications. </p>
<p>The problem is that the reviewer is asking to measure the performance of our work using performance metrics that were never taken into consideration before in the literature (and our problem is well studied - at 30 references !) .. </p>
<p>These performance metrics would require a complete Master Thesis. </p>
<p>Is it fair to judge a paper based on performance metrics that were not taken into consideration by the authors at the first hand ? (noting that none of the previous work considered these metrics) ..</p>
<p>I hate to say it, but the reviewer seems to be reading a paper about my problem for the first time ever, and some of the reviewer comments are contradicting.</p>
<p>Note: I am sorry if this have been asked before. I could not find any thing related.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 10985,
"author": "commeting",
"author_id": 7650,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7650",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Can you elaborate more how the discussion has proceeded? If I am under the correct impression, you don't have to agree with every reviewer nor do everything they suggest. Instead, you need to tell them that their comments have been <em>seriously considered</em>. You should be OK by writing the same statement that you wrote here: you disagree, your point of view is supported by previous research, and so on.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10986,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In your question, there is no mention of an editor for the journal to which you have submitted your work. If you disagree with one or more of the reviewers, there is nothing remarkable about that; it is common, a review is an educated opinion about your work, supposedly based on facts. Normally you would provide an account for how you have met the comments (as you seem to have done) and in the cases where you disagree, you provide an account based on facts and reasoning why you think your way is better than that of the reviewer. It should then be up to the editor, not the reviewer, to decide whether your revisions make the manuscript acceptable or not. In some cases the editor will request a second round of reviews, this is normal, particularly if the revisions have been so substantial that the manuscript is quite different from the original.</p>\n\n<p>This is what I see as a relatively typical way for a review process to take place. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10991,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I agree with the other comments that it is ok to not satisfy the demands of all reviewers and that in the end the editor makes the call.</p>\n\n<p>However, it is still possible that the reviewer has a good point that the other reviewers missed. It is entirely possible that common metrics in the field are problematic and that since the other reviewers are \"from the field\" (and so are you, for that matter), they just don't give it a second thought. I have encountered these kinds of situations before. Remember that <strong>ultimately, you are the one responsible for what you write in your paper - not the reviewers or the editor</strong>. Therefore, I suggest that you keep an open mind and think deeply if the reviewer has a point and how you want to address it and act accordingly.</p>\n\n<p>I am just mentioning this since it is sometimes easy to become overly defensive and dismiss reviewer comments as bad judgement.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 10992,
"author": "Pedro",
"author_id": 495,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/495",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If I may relay a piece of wisdom that was passed down to me many years ago, even if you are convinced that the reviewer is a complete idiot, it only means that your paper was obviously not completely idiot-proof.</p>\n\n<p>If somebody managed to find fault on what you considered a trivial point, then the point may not be as trivial or clear as you think. Applied to your specific case, \nyou could show, in your manuscript, that the results shown are sufficient to make whatever point you want to make, and that other specific tests, i.e. the ones suggested by the reviewer, would not contribute to the result.</p>\n\n<p>In any case, though, my first step would be to talk to the editor in charge of your manuscript. She/He will be making the final decision, so it makes more sense to discuss with her/him directly, and not engage in a lengthy -- and essentially pointless -- battle with an individual referee. In such cases the editor can usually tell you how she/he would like to see the referee's points addressed, and that will give you something to work with.</p>\n\n<p>I also echo <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/10991/495\">Bitwise</a>'s sentiment that, in the end, it's up to you. If the journal, via the referees and editor, makes demands that you cannot live with, then you can live without that particular journal.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10983",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4472/"
]
|
10,999 | <p>About 5 months ago I submitted a paper to a journal. The editors assigned a reviewer. In the meantime I sent a couple of revised versions, which did not help matters, but the editor ultimately wrote back and asked me to complete my revisions and re-submit the document. I did that within a couple of weeks. The editors did not acknowledge receipt of this submission, but I did not want to ask for one since I felt I had already been pestering them too much. A couple of weeks later, I notified the editors that I wanted to post a couple of graphs from the submitted paper on a blog, although I hoped to make it clear that only a very small component of the whole paper was being posted on the blog. The editors did not respond to this notification. More than two months went by after the re-submission, and I sent a message to the editor asking for a status update, just to be sure that the paper was still being considered and under review. It seemed to me that a very simple "yes, it is still being reviewed", or "no, we have considered your paper withdrawn and it is not being reviewed" or something like that, would suffice. About 10 more days passed with no response, and I thought I would telephone the editor with my question, on the off-chance that my emails were not getting through. I left a message for him, and another week has gone by with no response. At what point do I take the non-response from the editor as a message that my paper is no longer under review and that I should re-submit it elsewhere? The journal is otherwise a reputable journal, and I would like my paper published there, but there are many others that interest me too. I feel like I made a mess of the whole process, and am to be blamed for over-communication and confusion, but am I not owed the courtesy of a response from the editor? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11000,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This depends on the journal, as there is no set time, in general, for journal editors to publish research. No doubt you have read up on the relevant sections that pertain to timeframes on the publisher's website - those are usually a guide. I have had a paper submitted and published online within 2 months and another took 8 months.</p>\n\n<p>There has been, somewhat ironically, a research paper written about this: <a href=\"http://www.lutz-bornmann.de/icons/TimePeerReview5.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow\">\"How Long is the Peer Review Process for\nJournal Manuscripts?\nA Case Study on Angewandte Chemie\nInternational\nEdition\"</a> (Bornmann and Hans-Dieter, 2010).</p>\n\n<p>A very pertinent point is that as the editors are reviewing a lot of papers, they are under considerable pressure to reach quick publication decisions and that the majority of the time is waiting for reviewers to get back to them. This may go some of the way to explain why there is a lack of communication and the length of time.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11002,
"author": "Henry",
"author_id": 8,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are good reasons to expect communication with an editor to be slower than many other e-mail exchanges. Editors are busy, especially since editing may be a minor but time consuming part of their job. And responding to questions from authors often involves contacting referees, who may in turn be unresponsive.</p>\n\n<p>I'd say that it's reasonable to wait a couple of weeks for a response to a timely request for a status update (two months after a revision strikes me as a bit early---I'd expect it to take longer---but not unreasonably early to ask for a status update). If it gets lost (for instance, the editor is waiting for a response from the referee, and hasn't remembered to tell you that's what's happening), a polite reminder and a few days to another week or so of waiting might be appropriate. </p>\n\n<p>After that, though, you can rightly begin to worry that you aren't hearing back. If there are other editors, especially a chief editor, you can contact, I'd start there. I'd be very reluctant to unilaterally withdraw the paper, since that might cause complications if the editor returns and feels you resubmitted while it was still under consideration. Before resorting to that, I'd try to talk to one or two senior people in the field for advice about the specific paper.</p>\n\n<p>(Just to emphasize, I'm talking about communication with an editor about the status of a paper. Of course the refereeing process as a whole can take a year or more.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11003,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You are right in both that you have made a mess and that you should get a prompt reply. </p>\n\n<p>First, to see what usually happens: A paper is submitted, the editor takes a look (reads) the paper to decide if it is appropriate for the journal and if it is ok then either sends it out to reviewers directly or assigns the papers to co-editors who will send it out. This process can vary greatly in length but will be on the order of weeks to a month depending on workload. Remember that editors usually work for free or with little pay and working out of their spare time. Assigning reviewers means contacting reviewers, waiting for their reply and in some cases getting negative replies. Each request might use up 2 weeks and so if you are unlucky it might take month just to get enough reviewers to accept the chore. Reviewers usually have something like three weeks to do the review (it will vary though) but often reviewers are not on time so a month can easily go by. Upon getting the reviews back, the editor has to scrutinize the reviews and make decisions on the recommendation to send back to you. Several weeks to a month are typical times for this depending on a situation. The editor will then contact you with a \"verdict\" varying from accept to reject through revisions. During all this time you will not hear much unless the journal uses an electronic submissions system in which you can usually monitor the progress yourself.</p>\n\n<p>So, if you contact the editor with questions during the process, I would say it is fair to get a reply within at least a couple of weeks unless it is a holiday season. The fact that you for some reason submitted a manuscript which probbaly was sent into above process and then followed up by sending revised manuscripts which would have caused quite a lot of extra work for everyone concerned at the journal, was a mistake and would make me as editor really irritated. Don't send a manuscript unless it is completed. If you need to add or change anything wait until the manuscript is reviewed or withdraw it.</p>\n\n<p>Despite the problems you may have caused, you are of course still entitled to get a response on direct questions. The fact that many months transpired without contact about your manuscript is not out of the ordinary but if you ask for a status update after 4-5 months, I would think it would only be fair to get a quick reply such as you mention. As a side point, a rejection is usually communicated quite quickly so a lack of contact is usually a good sign. Now, I do of course not know why the correspondence is slow, if it is the norm with the journal or if it is just an accident. As a final point I would say that even if you messed up, it doesn't entitle the editors to treat you any worse than anybody else. It is always difficult to know if sending additional mails will help, most likely not, but at some point, give it another month, then a response should have come forth. If not then another mail is in order.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 13248,
"author": "user37009",
"author_id": 8902,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8902",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>From reading this it almost seems like the paper is not actually submitted. By submitting revisions (via email? were you uploading them? withdrawing the original? submitting via the submission systems as if they were new submissions?) AFTER the manuscript had been sent out to reviewers, you threw a wrench into the system. The editor was polite and told you to resubmit a final version of the manuscript. They probably WITHDREW your original manuscript and pulled it from review. The clock now resets for this submission. How did you do it? Via email to the editor? If you did that, it is not submitted. If you have no acknowledgement email, manuscript number, control number, it is not submitted and probably not under consideration. I would not recommend contacting the editor further and log into the manuscript submission system and check the status of the manuscript. You will probably have at least one submission withdrawn by the editor, but it is unclear to me how you submitted the unsolicited revisions and whether they will appear in the system.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10999",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7664/"
]
|
11,004 | <p>Recently two friends of mine have come back to Australia after having done 2 semesters of 3rd and 4th year subjects (about half mathematics) at different branches of the University of California.</p>
<p>They said that the tests would only ask questions directly from or similar to material covered in lectures and example sheets. If questions deviated from the lectures or example sheets very much students would complain to the lecturer. Thus, if one studied the example sheets enough they got an A relatively easily. They returned with A or A+ in all of their maths subjects, but they average about 75-80 for their maths subjects here.
In Australia, about 70% of the exam is usually like that. The rest are questions that we learned enough theory to feasibly do, but we hadn't seen that type of question before so it requires some level of cleverness to get it within the time limits of the exam.</p>
<p>My questions are</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Can anyone corroborate that the maths tests at american universities are actually like this?</p>
<p>If so, is this well known and accounted for by the people who look at grad school applications from international students?</p>
<p>How do they fairly evaluate the performance of international applications? How are Australian applicants generally viewed by them?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Edit: Chris's answer below seems to answer the first question by "not quite", which is what I expected I suppose. The other questions still stand.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11005,
"author": "Chris Gregg",
"author_id": 4461,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4461",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>The rest are questions that we learned enough theory to feasibly do, but we hadn't seen that type of question before so it requires some level of cleverness to get it within the time limits of the exam.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>The math and science classes I have taken at top tier universities in the U.S. have had these types of problems as a significant part of exams. As a caveat, those were also classes designed for math and science students. I have tutored students in non-math fields who have taken math and science classes that were less rigorous in that regard (e.g., \"Calculus for Business majors\").</p>\n\n<p>Suffice it to say that as undergraduates progress deeper into their respective field, they will generally experience more challenging material on the exams.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11009,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Repeating a bit other remarks: in the U.S., exams in upper-division courses are usually designed by the individual instructor, and vary widely.</p>\n\n<p>There <em>is</em> a tradition in top-tier places in the U.S. to \"challenge\" students on exams, and students seem to expect this, while, yes, in some local cultures students expect/demand exams that contain no surprises. </p>\n\n<p>For that matter, it is not clear to me that \"testing cleverness\" is necessarily an important goal for timed exams. I am well aware that there is a huge tradition in which quickness and cleverness are construed as fundamental skills/talents. Certainly these are important for math contests, and occasionally useful in the practice of mathematics, but I don't think our classes <em>teach</em> these things, in any case. Thus, testing for quickness and cleverness is testing for something outside the course content. Thus, in many regards it is an irrelevant challenge to the students.</p>\n\n<p>That is, substantial mathematics often has <em>genuine</em> complications and difficulties that exist despite examples and forthrightness, and it is sometimes (often?) counterproductive to create \"challenging (surprise) problems\" from material that should be straightforward.</p>\n\n<p>But, yes, people on admissions committees are well aware of such traditions and their variations, don't worry.</p>\n\n<p>For me, the letters of recommendation from math faculty are far more important than grades on the transcript, in any case. Similarly, the statement of purpose of the applicant tells much more than the transcript. And, one more time, the skill set relevant to surprise questions on timed exams becomes ever less relevant throughout grad school. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11010,
"author": "JeffE",
"author_id": 65,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/65",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>Can anyone corroborate that the maths tests at american universities are actually like this?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Some are, some aren't. Grading standards are heavily influenced by national and departmental culture, but ultimately they're entirely up to the instructor, <strong>just as they are in Australia.</strong></p>\n\n<p>But I expect that most upper-division exams in <em>strong</em> departments require enough mastery of the material (as opposed to memorization of examples) to answer a completely novel question that requires the same techniques. The key word here is <em>mastery</em>, not <em>cleverness</em>.</p>\n\n<p>(I go further than Paul Garrett. Cleverness is not only inappropriate to test on exams; it's actually a <em>dangerous</em> habit to cultivate. My most frequent advice to students in my classes is \"You're trying to be clever. Stop it. Just solve the problem, one step at a time.\")</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>If so, is this well known and accounted for by the people who look at grad school applications from international students?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Yes, admissions committees are well aware of significant differences between universities, both within the US and internationally.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>How do they fairly evaluate the performance of international applications?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Generally, by comparing them with other international applicants, preferably from the same country, if not the same university. In other words, exactly the same way we judge American applicants.</p>\n\n<p>In my department, if we get an otherwise strong application from a university we've never heard of, we try to judge by the recommendation letters. But sometimes we just have to gamble, so we admit one or two of the very best students from an unknown university just to <em>find out</em> how good it is. If they do well, we admit more from that university later; if they do badly, we don't.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>How are Australian applicants generally viewed by them?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Well, that depends on the individual applicant, doesn't it?</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11028,
"author": "StasK",
"author_id": 739,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/739",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You have two very different questions here:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>how the international applicants are being treated, and</li>\n<li>how are math courses being evaluated.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>The site would have been better off if you split them, as they are conceptually unrelated to one another. Ah well.</p>\n\n<p>JeffE gave <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/11010/739\">a good answer</a> regarding the former question. His answer seems generalizable, as I've heard of other departments doing similar things. The admissions committees usually try to identify the countrymate among the faculty of their university and ask them whether the school the applicant is coming from is a worthy one. It is more difficult to do with applicants from Kenya or Morocco than those from Australia -- most academics will know about <a href=\"http://www.go8.edu.au/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">the top AU schools</a> (and if they don't, I just gave them the link :) ).</p>\n\n<p>For your latter question, there is no good answer as there are 4000 colleges * 5-50 math instructors in each. Oversimplified hand-holding you described is typical of the intro classes where the students will bitch about the letter $\\theta$ and the sign $\\forall$ as they have never seen it before. This creates huge impediments to instructors in trying to challenge the more inspiring and better prepared students who have to be held back at the level of the rest of the crowd.</p>\n\n<p>I had a British prof in my Stat program, and he said that the British exams are usually written so that 70% completion gives you an A. I.e., the instructor reasonably expects that the top students will get 70 out of 100 on this exam. His exams were like that. As the system down under is built after the British system, you probably have the same approach.</p>\n\n<p>The silly American \"grading curve\" system is 90-100% for \"A\", the top grade; 80-90% for \"B\", the second best grade; 70-80% for \"C\", which few students want to get; 60-70% for \"D\", which is a very low pass, and often requires retaking the course. Students <a href=\"http://www.rochester.edu/College/phl/gradechange.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">want higher grades</a>, and do not hesitate to give lower evaluations to instructors who grade less generously, so the professors, especially whose main responsibility is teaching (vs. research on the tenure track), have the incentives to make the exams simple so that the students are happy. The system produces a lot of students with nominal \"A\"s who know little to nothing. Only the top 20 or so universities (arguably stronger than the Australian G8 schools) have stronger incentives to maintain the university reputation, and tell their profs to make the exams real. I would expect that the stronger campuses of the Univ of California system (Berkeley, UCLA, UCSD) would know better than just hand everybody an \"A\".</p>\n\n<p>As an artifact of the grading curve, the instructors have to populate their exams with 70% of very simple problems to let the bottom students accumulate enough credit for their \"C\"s, and can basically afford only one or two problems on a typical 90-120 minutes test to distinguish between the top \"A\" students and solid but not the top \"B\" students. This all is a matter of habit and tradition. Some instructors try to override it by making the total sum of scores in the course to be 431 or some prime number like that, so that there will be an extra step for the students to convert their 301 score to the familiar 100% range -- and most will fail without a calculator, and won't be able to tell whether getting three extra points they can squeeze for a homework would change their grade to pass from 69.93% to 70.05% into the next letter category. Professors coming from other countries may sometimes bring their own evaluation ideas (as my British prof did), and those interested in teaching and learning devise their own systems -- I described mine <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/9064/739\">here</a>.</p>\n\n<p>Best luck with your applications, rest assured that you won't have any issues with the US schools just because you say it \"todie\" instead of \"today\" :).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11004",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7665/"
]
|
11,011 | <p>I have a question particularly for the math professors here. I just finished my second year as a PhD student at a top30 University, passed all my qualifying exams, and I've begun working with an adviser in an area I'm excited about. Since the end of the Spring semester I've done a LOT of thinking, and I'm not sure academia is for me. The main issue is my perception of the time that will be required (in terms of hours per week) to get tenure. I have a wife and kids, and I just can't sacrifice the time spent with them, even if it means giving up something I love. I figure I could put in 40-45 hours a week, but then I need to be home. My first year of grad school, I put in 60-70 hours a week, and I certainly never want to go back to that. This last year, I've kept it between 40-50, and that seems about right for work/life balance.</p>
<p>So my question is this... am I correct in ruling Academia out for this reason? I had considering smaller colleges, but I'm looking to earn at least $60k and from what research I've done, I won't make that much.</p>
<p>My next question involves research outside Academia. Is there any place for research in combinatorics, asymptotics, probability, and analysis of algorithms outside of Academia, where the work-culture is a typical 40 hour workweek? I see a lot of research in other areas of mathematics that I'm not interested in (PDE's, Scientific/Engineering, Number Theory) -- but not really what I'm interested in.</p>
<p>So with all that, it seems to me that I'm not even sure why I would get a PhD anymore, other than it might open doors, but it's hard to stay motivated when there is no clear goal, or thing to work towards. My current thinking is just take some CS courses and learn some programming languages, get an internship next summer and perhaps leave with a masters after a year or so unless I can think of a very good reason to stay.</p>
<p>Any advice is appreciated!!</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11012,
"author": "Chris Gregg",
"author_id": 4461,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4461",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I've said this in another thread: if you are outstanding and <em>efficient</em>, you can do the work required in a 40-hour workweek. </p>\n\n<p>An electrical engineering professor I know got through graduate school at MIT working 9-5 days with a wife and three kids (all born during school), and he was a shoo-in for tenure (and received it). <em>But</em>, when he was at work, he was <em>at work</em>--I never once saw him out of work-mode during the regular day, and he put us graduate students to shame with his work ethic. His efficiency and focus puts him over the top. I know I couldn't be that efficient every day, but he makes it a priority to do the best he can at his job (which he loves) and also for his family, and he's figured out how to do it within the confines of a typical working week. Granted, he is also extremely smart, but I believe his efficiency is as much responsible for his success as his brains.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11013,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>First, I think it might be a slightly dangerous misconception about extra-academic research or work supposedly being neatly contained in 9-to-5.</p>\n\n<p>Second, yes, <em>efficiency</em> and <em>focus</em> matter a great deal, in any case. Perhaps harder to be efficient and focused if one's motivation or interest is compromised, e.g., by time conflicts, thus making the problem worse.</p>\n\n<p>But is it necessary or possible to \"separate\" research thinking from everything else? At least for many mathematicians of my acquaintance, it is not only possible to keep a part of one's mind working, if quietly, on an issue, but it is necessary, if not quite inescapable. Indeed, I would tend to claim that entirely putting an issue out of one's mind for 16 hours then necessitates considerable \"recover and restart\" time when one tries to re-engage. Thus, deliberately putting work out of one's mind entirely can have a further, partly un-necessary, effect, of reducing the effective workday by another hour or two, and having that unpleasant restarting to \"look forward to\" each day. Obviously this reduces one's effective competence as well as happiness if it happens.</p>\n\n<p>I might recommend thinking more how to <em>integrate</em> a work-life and family-life, rather than about how to control or contain one or the other. Conceivably it will become clearer to you that very many of the \"long\" weeks people spend in grad school are spent fairly ineffectively and needlessly unpleasantly, not just taking up time, but dragging one down psychologically, and producing a state incompatible with family-life, for example. But if/when one becomes more effective at the enterprise, it may be less unpleasant and less an obstruction to the rest of life, apart from literal hour-counting.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11011",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7672/"
]
|
11,014 | <p>When preparing my PowerPoint slides for a lecture, I often find myself wondering what to put as the final slide.</p>
<p>For presentations in industry, when not in a university setting, I often have a final slide which simply says "Thank you." The intent is to thank the audience for attending the presentation. However, this feels a little out of place in a university setting, especially where students may not have a choice of attending (well, the choice is attend or definitely fail).</p>
<p>So, I started using a final slide that says "Questions?" However, I recently read something indicating that a teacher should not ask if students have questions (the teacher should either ask a probing question to check for understanding or the teacher should simply expect the students to speak up without prompting).</p>
<p>It seems the final slide should somehow indicate that the slides are done and doing that with a content slide does not seem right either. I recently started using a final slide indicating what homework was expected of the students before the next class session (sometimes the slide simply says 'no homework'). This works several sessions into the semester once students see that every time the homework slide appears it is the final slide; however, it does not really work well at the start of the semester.</p>
<p>Returning to my question, what should I put as the last slide?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11015,
"author": "BSteinhurst",
"author_id": 7561,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7561",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Take a cue from TV. Pretty much every serial show I watch ends with \"next time on...\" It is simple, not prone to misunderstandings like trying to be funny, and actually serves a purpose of indicating what the students might look at before they come in for the next lecture. This is how I wrap up my lectures even though I do not use slides in the classroom. (I like to juggle multiple columns of coexisting text on a blackboard instead.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11016,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Following on what BSteinhurst suggested, I often have the last slide as follows:</p>\n\n<p>\"The next event is (next topic/chapter)</p>\n\n<p>Your training is (homework)\"</p>\n\n<p>I turn the last slide into an almost sporting type event. But it depends on your audience.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11021,
"author": "Nicholas",
"author_id": 1424,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1424",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You could consider making your last slide a <strong>reminder</strong> of what are the expected learning outcomes of the lecture, possibly with a link to other past, or future learning outcomes. </p>\n\n<p>e.g.</p>\n\n<p>In this seminar we looked at:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Differentiation, from <strong>first principles</strong>,</li>\n<li>A <strong>graphical representation</strong> of differentiation, and</li>\n<li>The <strong>general formula</strong> for differentiating a function f(x).</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Next time:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Differentiation of trigonometric functions.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11026,
"author": "fjdumont",
"author_id": 7678,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7678",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Usually, a '<strong>this is what you should have just learned</strong>' bullet point slide not only sums up what your audience has learned, but also reminds them about topics/questions that have come up during your presentation. This is a great way <em>for them</em> to remember <em>and for you</em> to guide questions/following Q&A session along the talk.</p>\n\n<p>Another approach that I personally like is a <strong>collection of further resources</strong> (or sources) that the audience can look up after your talk if they are interested into more details (or simply didn't have the courage to ask questions).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11056,
"author": "Andy Novobilski",
"author_id": 6417,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6417",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is a golden opportunity at the end of every presentation that begins with the words - \"if there was just one thing you should remember, it is ...\" </p>\n\n<p>By being consistent, you will (hopefully) have students waiting to hear what you think that is. Since it is a consistent closer, you'll be able to build on this time to hook your students in for getting ready for the next lecture, or provide a topic for discussion outside the class, or ...</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 17991,
"author": "gaborous",
"author_id": 3971,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3971",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'm quite stunned that no one mentioned it here, but one great way to make a final slide is to put <strong>references</strong> or <strong>further reading</strong> on it.</p>\n\n<p>Not only does it give you the opportunity to talk about an opening to a wide landscape of wonderfully interesting topics (often a lot more than the abstract material you had to present), but it also leave enough time to students to write down the references they find interesting.</p>\n\n<p>And if you don't have a lot of references, you can combine the conclusion/summary with the references on the same slide, great effect too.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 18000,
"author": "Dirk",
"author_id": 529,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/529",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would do the same things as with scientific presentations: On the last slide I put a conclusion that consists of a few bullets of complete sentences and I read then out load as they are written down. This could look as follows:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Any continuous function attains its maximum on any compact set.</li>\n<li>Any differentiable function is also continuous.</li>\n<li>The derivative of a differentiable function need not to be continuous.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>After I read the conclusion I just plainly say \"Thank you\".</p>\n\n<p>My rationale behind this is: At the end of the lecture/talk I want to carry the main points in clear words (and not some formulation which pops up in my head during lecturing). Also, I do not write but say \"Thank you\" because I want the focus on me and not on the slides with the last words. (And also I find it a bit strange to write something personal like a thanks when I could also say it…).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 18016,
"author": "Kate Gregory",
"author_id": 12693,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/12693",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I end each (3-hour, once a week) lecture with a slide that says \"next week\". I let them know what we will be covering. For those who like to read ahead, and when we have a textbook, I'll tell them what chapters they might want to read. I remind them if they'll be getting an assignment, if an assignment is due, if some deadline is coming up, and so on.</p>\n\n<p>Some of them start to pack up their stuff and make feet noises when they think the lecture is over. I actually tell them in week 1 that the lecture isn't over until they see this slide. There isn't anything important I need to say to it, so if the stampede drowns me out, those who care can read what is on the slide. And if there is no stampede, I can quickly summarize anything important on it and ask for questions.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 29537,
"author": "Peter Bloem",
"author_id": 6936,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6936",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Here's one that hasn't been mentioned yet: <strong>a call to action</strong>.</p>\n\n<p>My source for this idea is the youtube movie <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJUblvGfW6w\" rel=\"nofollow\">5 Things Every Presenter Needs To Know About People by Susan Weinschenk</a>. One of the things she mentions is that when you want your audience to do something (like give you money or vote for you), you have to spell it out really explicitly at the end of your talk.</p>\n\n<p>The way to translate this to lectures depends on what you want students to do after the lecture is over. For example, I recently gave some lectures on programming, and I really wanted the students to do some programming for themselves (so they could feel the thrill of coming up with something and creating it). I made the review slide, and the \"questions?\" slide, but then I finished up with three slides containing ideas for fun programs they could write with what they've learned so far (a games, a fractal drawing, a music program, etc).</p>\n\n<p>I wasn't super hopeful that it would work, but recently a student came up to me and told me that he'd used one of the examples and created a similar program. And even if they don't do it, putting the idea in their heads that they could, might be enough in the long run.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 134197,
"author": "pygosceles",
"author_id": 68260,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/68260",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>\"Therefore, What?\"</strong></p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Boyd K. Packer, himself a master teacher and long-time administrator\n in the Church Educational System, has a question he often asks when we\n have made a presentation or given some sort of exhortation to one\n another in the [council]. He looks up as if to say, \"Are you through?\"\n And then says to the speaker (and, by implication, to the rest of the\n group), \"Therefore, what?\"</p>\n \n <p><a href=\"https://scottwoodward.org/Talks/html/Holland,%20Jeffrey%20R/HollandJR_ThereforeWhat.html\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">\"Therefore, What?\", Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, CES Conference on the New Testament, 8 August 2000, BYU</a></p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Consistent with the \"call to action\" response, <strong>most</strong> of the learning takes place <em>after</em> a lecture or encounter in which great ideas are introduced. <em>Students should not be passive</em>; the only way they learn is by grappling with the ideas and experimenting on them on their own and putting them to work. A simple invitation to <strong>ponder</strong> until the next meeting and then to <strong>share</strong> insights at the beginning of the next class correctly places the burden of understanding on the students, and should provoke the best questions, discussion, and discoveries, and it prepares them for future encounters. It also makes the homework much more meaningful once they realize that they are in control and are <strong>responsible for their own learning</strong>.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11014",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692/"
]
|
11,017 | <p>I will be a second year math under-grad in September, and currently doing an internship at applied math research institute. However, my interest after my bachelors is to do PhD in pure math at a top math school. My question is:</p>
<p>How important would the recommendation letters from my current supervisors be while I apply to grad school? (Note: My supervisors are very active in their field of research, but are not quite famous.) </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11018,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Take what I suggest with a bucket of salt and a sprinkling of bbq sauce.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>The recommendation letters would indeed be very important, it certainly can't hurt to have the letters on hand, particularly as your supervisors are active researchers.</p></li>\n<li><p>Is hard to answer, as it depends on the university. But, having said that, I would say that the admissions people would look on any research favourably, as well as the internship.</p></li>\n<li><p>Is it possible to write or co-author a paper in analysis? Perhaps you could speak with your supervisors about how to combine the two, or to see if they can recommend another academic in that field that you may co-author with.</p></li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11088,
"author": "noumenal",
"author_id": 7711,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7711",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Recommendation letters may also represent soft skills. Hence, they are important. Your personality is independent from your field of study, so there is little point in withholding recommendation letters - indicating what kind of person you are - to future supervisors (or committees) if you are going to spend the next 3-4 years working in a team or with a supervisor on a project.</p>\n\n<p>Source: PhD Student</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11017",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7580/"
]
|
11,019 | <p>A significant number of colleagues had their thesis defense in the past year and talking to them got me thinking about my own dissertation to come in about 2 years (I am approximately half-way through my graduate studies).</p>
<p>Based on my experience, the norm appears to be so that the focus of a PhD student shifts from initial getting-used-to-things, to getting-papers-out, do your coursework/teaching (if applicable), getting-papers-out (repeat)... until you are a couple of months away from the dissertation date, and you panic your way into writing your thesis. The panic then leads to stress and errors, which I witness with many colleagues. </p>
<p>Seeing as my projects are particularly detached from one-another, it would perhaps be good to start thinking about some structure, and perhaps even start jotting down some text; not long paragraphs but at least some bullet points on the points I want to mention, statements I want to make in my thesis. </p>
<p>Seeing that I am <em>only</em> half-way in, is this a reasonable approach? ... or am I stressing way too early? Does one <em>need to</em> leave the thesis writing to the end when the stress is maxed-out, or are there smarter ways to handle the writing? I imagine one drawback of starting now, is that I do not yet have the "bigger picture" but yet again, since the projects are not built up on one another, I don't know if it's a real issue in my case. </p>
<p>Any perspective on the matter is welcome, of course.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11020,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I think it is a good idea to start writing down parts of your thesis early on. You need to consider possible structures for the thesis as well so that you know what you might need to write.</p>\n\n<p>Starting early will, however, not remove the need for significant efforts at the end because the thesis evolves and it is only when you have your last papers/experiments/equivalent done when you really know how the text will have to look. This means you should write down text early on with the clear understanding that this text will likely undergo lots of revisions. While this may seem like a waste of time, I have found it useful to have the thoughts down on paper, it also provides a sense of fulfillment, \"that you are on your way\". In some cases I have had to scrap the texts altogether and start over but I see this as part of the iterative process of scientific work. </p>\n\n<p>By going through the iterations your text will improve and the last efforts will be ever closer to a final product than were you to start from scratch at the end. I went through this myself and I have seen countless students do the same. Being prepared and realising that much awaits ahead is just a realisation that must be clear. Going blindly into the final stages without having a grasp of what is needed is what causes extra and unnecessary stress.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11022,
"author": "Nicholas",
"author_id": 1424,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1424",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>What many folk find difficult is recalling what they did at the start of their thesis work - the literature review. They come to start writing their literature review with all the experience of the in-depth, detailed analysis conducted during their research phase and have perhaps forgotten all those papers that they read, reviewed and used to fill in the background and inform their research.</p>\n\n<p>I suggest that, right from the start of your literature review reading, make short notes about each paper, perhaps at the top of the first page. e.g. \"Great introduction to the field, a bit basic though\"; \"Good for a thorough review of method X\"; \"Not relevant\" etc. </p>\n\n<p>This makes the job of sorting through your massive (!) pile of literature easier when it comes to setting out the path you took through it to come to your research idea. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11070,
"author": "Faheem Mitha",
"author_id": 285,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/285",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is not clear from your post whether your dissertation will just mostly be a collection of your papers, perhaps with some filler material added, or whether it will require a substantial amount of writing from scratch. I've heard that publishing papers as a grad student and assembling them into a thesis is done depending on one's academic discipline, and perhaps depending on the university.</p>\n\n<p>If you are just putting papers together there will be less work involved. Regardless, 2 months sounds like a very short amount of time to be writing a thesis in. Are you sure you got that right? I suggest you talk to other students who left it till late, and ask them if they regret doing so.</p>\n\n<p>I would certainly recommend getting started on a draft immediately, if you haven't already. Things to keep in mind, depending on your area, is that heavily mathematical writing is very time-consuming. Computer calculations, writing software and so on, are also very time-consuming. I would also include graphs and figures in writing software. Figures, in my opinion, are best handled by writing code, making it easy to alter after the event, and giving the best results. Actually, graphs are a good thing to try to get set up early, because they can be a pain. Even if you don't have actual data to work with, you can use dummy data, as long as you know roughly what your final structures will look like.</p>\n\n<p>If your work has significant components of either, you need to allow extra time.\nYou definitely don't want to be in the position of frantically debugging your code a month before your defense to get some important result out, for example. You should also not rely on your adviser(s) to tell you what schedule to keep. It is not their thesis on the line.</p>\n\n<p>Two months before submission is the time for reviewing the thesis for errors, hopefully with the assistance of your advisor, and getting ready to hand it over ot the thesis committee. My impression is that the norm is to allow the committee some time to read it, like a month. They may not read it, but that is considered polite.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11019",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5674/"
]
|
11,023 | <p>I've passed the disputation and am now preparing the document for the printing press and final submission. We're required to have a CV in the back matter of the dissertation, and I was wondering if it is a good idea to link to my LinkedIn profile in addition (perhaps with a QR code) because it'll be far more up to date than the CV in my dissertation.</p>
<p>Do you think this is a good idea? Are there any things I should consider when doing this?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11024,
"author": "Dave Clarke",
"author_id": 643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/643",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is a good idea, so long as it is not instead of a proper CV. </p>\n\n<p>Just remember that links go out of date and QR codes will become outdated technology. So when LinkedIn goes out of business, the link and QR codes will be just be remnants of a time gone by.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11030,
"author": "mako",
"author_id": 5962,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5962",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Your question indicates that you want to use a link to your LinkedIn profile in your CV because \"<em>it'll be far more up to date than the CV in my dissertation</em>.\" Are you suggesting that (a) you are going to include a CV that is not up to date, or that (b) your LinkedIn profile will be updated over time and that you won't be able to go back and edit your dissertation?</p>\n\n<p>If you mean (a), then <em>no</em>, you need to keep your CV up to date and a link to an online profile will not work. Your academic CV should always be kept as up to date as possible and it should <em>absolutely</em> be updated before you submit it in an application or include it in a dissertation. If you are doing your CV correctly, it will include different information than a LinkedIn profile and there is a strong expectation that every academic will have one.</p>\n\n<p>If you mean (b) and are just worried that an archival copy of your CV will be out of date, sure, add a link to LinkedIn or similar. My CV links prominently to my academic homepage on at a permanent (i.e., non-university) URL, which is kept up to date, and which includes a link to the latest version of my CV at all point. I include a date in the footer of my CV although folks will have a date in your dissertation. Personally, I think this is better than relying on a for-profit company and its URLs for posterity.</p>\n\n<p>In terms of the QR code, I'd skip it. These days, almost everybody who reads the dissertation will read a soft copy. A hyperlink will be much more useful. I suspect that a QR code will just end up make the document look dated at some point in the rather near future.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11023",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3885/"
]
|
11,033 | <p>As a future French PhD student (in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning) that legally HAS TO write his thesis in French, I am a bit concerned about the fact that less people would be able to read it and it got me thinking: why do you keep reading articles in your native language, when some ideas you find might also be published in English?</p>
<ol>
<li>To those who are not English native speakers, do you read articles in your native language?</li>
<li>If so, what is it that you find in these articles compared to English-written ones? Are you just looking for useful information for your own research or are you motivated by something else?</li>
<li>How would you cite these articles in your own English-written paper?</li>
</ol>
<p>I understand that using one's own native language can be justified for some fields such as social sciences, but here I am asking about "exact" and computer sciences.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 11034,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Your three-part question is quickly answered:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Yes I read articles in my native language</li>\n<li>Almost never because very few exist except older ones (ca. 1960s and older) and possibly bachelor or masters theses.</li>\n<li>I would definitely cite them if they contained anything useful</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Your concern is valid, regardless of preferences, using a common language ensures better spreading of the science. This does not mean non-English science is in any way uninteresting but will obviosuly be harder to find and read. It will be up to scientists in that language to bring the research to general attention. A possibility with thesis work is always to publish it or parts of it in journals and then translated. In such cases nothing is lost (except time for the complete re-writing)</p>\n\n<p>EDIT: This answer was written for the original question which subsequently has been changed, also in terms of focus.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11035,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As a native English speaker who's working abroad, I am finally at the point where I can directly read the scientific literature in the local languages. However, in the past, I haven't hesitated to cite references in French (my \"original\" second language) when it was appropriate to do so. There are no challenges to do so, really, except making sure that you have the correct abbreviation for the journal title.</p>\n\n<p>However, I would agree with the other posters that indicate that, today, scientific work needs to be in English if it is to reach the widest possible audience. Between the fact that a thesis gets nowhere near the number of \"hits\" as the papers that are derived from it, plus the fact that it's in a foreign language, and I would expect you to get very little in the way of citations for your thesis.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11038,
"author": "user760483",
"author_id": 7683,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7683",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Although this may not answer your question, I just wanted to say that I did my PhD in France and did not write my thesis in french. I just wrote a summary (about 3 pages) in french, the rest was a compilation of articles. Since a serious publication can only be written in english nowadays, translating it in french would be a waste of time.</p>\n\n<p>You should discuss with your advisor and see any way to get your thesis published in english. I do not think any legal argument holds.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11043,
"author": "Willie Wong",
"author_id": 94,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/94",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<ol>\n<li><p>I don't usually read articles in my mother tongue. But I do regularly read articles in a language that is neither English nor my mother tongue (French, to be precise). </p></li>\n<li><p>With regards to my mother tongue, the few exceptions are resources (articles, books) I received from some of my collaborators. I refer back to them purely for convenience. For French: </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>there are (at least until very recently) still active research in my area performed by researchers who publishes heavily in French; to gain access to those results sometimes it is necessary to read the original articles. </li>\n<li>there is a large corpus of useful literature from even the mid twentieth century that still hasn't been completely distilled into English language textbooks. (For mathematics, this refers most to <em>particular arguments</em> used in proofs. Quite often the same <em>result</em> would be available in English, but using a different method of attack. But there are also cases such as [from outside my field] <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89l%C3%A9ments_de_g%C3%A9om%C3%A9trie_alg%C3%A9brique\">The EGA</a>.)</li>\n<li>translations may contain \"errors\". Sometimes it is good to go back to the original source. </li>\n</ul></li>\n<li><p>I just cite them as I would any other source. Most style guides have sections on special rules for non-English and/or non-Latin-alphabet sources. Just follow them. </p></li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 11057,
"author": "cbeleites unhappy with SX",
"author_id": 725,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/725",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<ul>\n<li><p>I do read scientific literature in my mother tongue (German).<br>\nFor papers, that are mostly classics and not so recent. However, it is quite common in my field to write theses in German. And there are still serious and good scientific books as well as text books written in German, which I enjoy reading and citing as well. </p></li>\n<li><p>I'm also writing my thesis in German. </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Main reason: My old university required that (would need to ask special permission for any other language). I changed university, but I'm not going to change the language as well.</li>\n<li>The findings are/will be published also in English. So not having the thesis in English doesn't matter that much in terms of availability in English. </li>\n<li>Second main reason: the thesis is the place where things are formulated in a less condensed manner than the papers. Such theses are good for teaching students who are usually not yet that fluent in English (applies to some kinds of foreign students as well!) nor in the subject. </li>\n</ul></li>\n<li><p>The same (more detailed, elaborate, less \"it follows trivially\" jumps of thought) is often true also for technical reports, which I read for exactly this reason (any kind of language I understand). </p></li>\n<li><p>I cite literature I read in any language I understood (which not that much more than German and English, as I'm not as fluent in other languages). </p></li>\n<li><p>For the books, there is sometimes an English as well as a German version. But of course I cite the version that I acutally read.<br>\n(If I'd be concerned that the English-only reader would not get from \"Leary & Skoog: Instrumentelle Analytik\" to \"Leary & Skoog: Instrumental Analysis\", I may put a note that points to the English version)</p></li>\n<li><p>Finally, how would you read and cite e.g. DIN 38402 A 51 if not in German? </p></li>\n</ul>\n"
}
]
| 2013/07/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11033",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7357/"
]
|
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