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15,048 | <p>I am a first year undergraduate student pursuing a B.S. in Chemistry (I'm very much interested in Biology too), and I am new to this world of Academia. It would be very helpful if someone could answer my questions.</p>
<p>What exactly does one do in a PhD? I know that in the first year, you take a lot of advanced courses on your specific field of study, and then you decide on a topic and start researching. But when do you stop? I see that there is no definite time limit for completing a PhD. It can be anywhere from two years to... is there an upper limit? Do you complete a PhD when you have discovered something new and published a paper on it?</p>
<p>I realise a lot of what I'm saying might be my own ideas of what happens. Please feel free to correct me. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15049,
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"text": "<p>To answer some of your questions, a lot of this will vary from university to university, and vary by location.</p>\n\n<p>One major aspect is to determine your research focus as early as possible and plan long and medium term objectives, and how these objectives are to be met at the beginning, in consultation with your advisors (that is the advice I was given).</p>\n\n<p><strong>Duration</strong> </p>\n\n<p>There is usually an upper limit of how long a student can take to complete the dissertation, and it is generally expected that the research, experiments, dissertation write up is performed within the time frame dictated by the university. Note, the length of time taken to complete the PhD is not necessarily a measure of how credible it is. (I completed my PhD in Physics in 2.5 years).</p>\n\n<p>Papers are often published in consultation between you and your advisor(s). But, during my PhD I was advised that it is a good idea to get some publications completed while you are studying (I completed 4 while completing the research).</p>\n\n<p><strong>Courses</strong></p>\n\n<p>This varies between universities and places, for example, I was not required to take any courses whatsoever - just pure research. That is something you will need to check with any university you apply to.</p>\n\n<p>I did my PhD while working full time in an unrelated field, so I arranged regular (fortnightly) Skype meetings with my advisors, where short term goals were set and the medium and long term goals checked up on.</p>\n\n<p>As you are doing sciences by the looks of it, it will involve a considerable amount of experimentation (potentially) - some of it can be tedious, make sure you plan and get into that as soon as possible, while ensuring you get the most accurate possible data in a safe and efficient manner.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Completion</strong></p>\n\n<p>You complete your research when you have met your objectives and have, through research and experimentation, 'answered' your research focus.</p>\n\n<p>What happens then varies between universities, some you will be expected to defend your thesis, and some, as in my case, your thesis is peer-reviewed. Once all that is done and your advisors and the university are satisfied, you will be told that you have passed (in my case, I received a letter stating as such).</p>\n\n<p>But, the research never really ends, once you have that passion for that topic - you may find that the research continues, but now to be published as papers (this also has been my experience). Find a topic that ignites the fire in you and you'll find that the PhD is just the start of the journey.</p>\n\n<p>Finally and critically, make sure what you are doing is something that you find fascinating, something that you won't mind putting in many hours of research and work into. Choose something that is either your passion or something related to it. Get ready to challenge yourself on a regular basis.</p>\n\n<p>I hope this helps.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15082,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
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"text": "<p>First, it may be important to remember the purpose of graduate school and a research education. When you receive a PhD, it signifies that you have reached the pinnacle of the education system (some compare this to a pyramid where the Phd education is at the top; there is no higher way of organized education). You have reached a level where you should be able to learn on your own without supervision or advise. More specifically, you should also have reached a level of critical and creative thinking where you can successfully function as a researcher, coming up with new ideas, applying and receiving research grants, be considered an expert in your field, able to teach and advise PhD students. These are all overarching goals with a PhD education. As you can see it is partly a deep understanding of your field but also deep understanding of general academic skills.</p>\n\n<p>Phd programs are different in terms of length and content. Some will have up to two years of courses (such as math programs in my country) and some may not have any course requirements (sometimes defined by an individual study plan defined by the student and his/her advisor). The course work is there to provide necessary background for the project done within a PhD. In most cases, I would argue that the exact courses taken during a PhD are of little formal value, the PhD thesis is what counts in the end. In general, the course work should provide you with whatever basic skills you need. My own experience in graduate school was, however, that I found that I did not need all the courses I planned for when I started. I simply felt that courses became inefficient ways of learning, that I could do it on my own faster. This, for me was a revelation, but, I believe, a natural development. So the amount of course work is individual and depends on the field/topic you are studying.</p>\n\n<p>The length of a PhD project will vary from, for example, 3 year as is the case in the UK to maybe 6-7 years in other academic cultures. Around four years seems to be a fairly normal period. What is achieved within this period is defined by the results but not in terms of excellence of the results. There is of course nothing wrong if you come up with ground-breaking results, but that is not something that can be ordered. Instead the importance lies in the skills you display in terms of the scientific investigations (techniques, analysis) through the conclusions you draw from your work and to how well you write up your findings in a thesis (be it a monograph or a collection of papers). Your advisor should be there to coach you to take the necessary steps towards reaching these goals.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/25 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15048",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10240/"
]
|
15,052 | <p>I am at the beginning of my PhD studies. Although that is a bit too early to plan one's carrier after thesis defence, one should still have some long-term goals in mind. Hence the question - what can one do during one's PhD (mainly as far as long-term activities are concerned) to maximise the chances of getting accepted for such a position?</p>
<p>Few things that come to mind:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>High quality research published in high reputation journals (obviously).</p></li>
<li><p>Creating a contact network at conferences, research visits and through scientific collaborations. One might get to know one's potential postdoc supervisor or recommendation letters from established researchers.</p></li>
<li><p>Online visibility through blogging, social networking etc.</p></li>
<li><p>Good teaching experience. PhD students often have to teach but some might try to get on with the necessary minimum. Having a good record (e.g., from student evaluations) can be advantageous.</p></li>
<li><p>Experience with grant administration - helping one's supervisor with grant proposals, reports for grant committees etc.</p></li>
<li><p>Maybe some experience with paper reviews (towards the end of the PhD). Or is it still early for that?</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Are there any other things I missed? I am looking specifically for the situation in theoretical physics and PhD without coursework but experiences of others might be relevant and interesting as well.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15056,
"author": "Espanta",
"author_id": 6393,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6393",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I am also in your current situation and look for the same. Here is something I have learnt so far which are important to get postdoc job in good quality institutes. Here is the list without order:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Publish in under-spot conferences and seminars </li>\n<li>Reference letter from pioneers of the domain (if you can liaise)</li>\n<li>International collaboration, research, and publication</li>\n<li>Face-to-face visit. If possible try to make an appointment with potential postdoc supervisors and visit them in person. It helps both of you to better evaluate and decide.</li>\n<li>Search among friends of your friends for an open position. I use Microsoft Academic portal \"<a href=\"http://academic.research.microsoft.com/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">http://academic.research.microsoft.com/</a>\" to search co-authors of my supervisor or academician friends of mine to see if there is any potential postdoc supervisor in their network. So you can give a try and if found, ask your supervisor or your academician friends to play a role and introduce you to potential boss. I think it should work well.</li>\n<li>Upload your papers everywhere you can (take care of copyright issues) and try to increase their visibility and citation; the higher citation, the better chance. </li>\n<li>Make your professional account in Google Scholar and keep that up to date. </li>\n<li>Enroll in academic organizations like IEEE and get membership. It gives lots of benefits and is like a mark of attachment and care to the society.</li>\n<li>Collaboration invitation. Try to prepare a paper and get in touch with potential postdoc supervisors to invite them collaborate. This can be a venue to exchange couple of emails and get to know each other more. You can later use this opportunity to request for position.</li>\n<li>Try to get chance to visit potential labs as visiting scholar. some institutes welcome visiting PhD students under different schemas like student exchange or international collaboration.- Volunteer job in varied community; not necessarily academic environment. Try to show your passion to work independently in every workplace regardless of the details.</li>\n<li>Online Connectivity. Active participation in online networks like Linkedin, Researchgate, stackexchange(here), and so on.</li>\n<li>Patent is also important since institutes are increasing concern about patents and desire their postdocs to produce patent beside publication. It also enhance your industrial career too. </li>\n<li>Keep sending application for advertised positions and don't get disappointed.</li>\n<li>Keep sending email and follow up to potential postdoc supervisors with potential postdoc projects (it depends on your field) even if they have no current position. Your messages may impress them and motivate them to hire you to work on a project you define. If yes they can apply for funds (I know one of my friends in CS got offer in this way).</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>I hope these points help you better hunt a good postdoc in good research group.</p>\n\n<p><strong>EDIT:</strong> Patent is modified to address some concerns on wording.\n<strong>EDIT2:</strong> Some change in the order to better highlight their importance.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15314,
"author": "Benoît Kloeckner",
"author_id": 946,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/946",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My feeling, in the limited context of mathematics in France, is that the research record is by far the most important thing. Of course, one should do its teaching duty carefully (<strong>edit</strong> because it is one's duty, but also because being known as a very sloppy teacher <em>can</em> close some doors), but all other aspects are tertiary.</p>\n\n<p><strong>[Paragraph edited upon further reflexion]</strong> I would only mitigate this in favor of the <em>visibility</em> issue: good research needs to be shown in order to give you benefit, so you should have an up-to-date web page, post your preprints on the arXiv, give talks whenever given the opportunity, and in some circumstances propose one. Also some networking may be needed, in particular if you advisor does not network for you. This means for example seizing the opportunities to collaborate with more advanced researchers, send by e-mail your best work to a few people who you think might be interested, etc. Don't overdo it though.</p>\n\n<p>I would definitely advise against spending time on administrative things as grant funding and the like. Participate in a collective grant if offered, but that's not a PhD job to do the paperwork.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15324,
"author": "Irwin",
"author_id": 5944,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5944",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In addition to the points already made, something that hasn't been explicitly mentioned yet is to <em>let your colleagues know that you are looking for a job</em>. Everyone in your immediate lab group and advisory committee should know your name, what your specific research interests are, and that you're looking for a job. Most immediate department members should be aware of your general research area and that you're looking for a job. When you network, you should specifically mention that you are looking for a job and to \"keep an eye out for any positions\". Your personal web space should state that you are looking for an academic job and to contact you.</p>\n\n<p>This might be rather obvious in the context of the question but I thought it was worth repeating since this is a very concrete and specific thing you can do to improve your visibility. Many people say \"network\" or \"visit departments\" or \"publish papers\" and these are essential to getting a job in the long term, but if you don't mention to all of these people that you're looking then they're not going to keep you in mind when they do see a position.</p>\n\n<p>Summary: if you network, tell people \"I am looking for a job\" and then ask them to \"send along opportunities that may be interesting\".</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16021,
"author": "nagniemerg",
"author_id": 11084,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11084",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My own thoughts after finishing a math ph.d. this year and being on the market.</p>\n\n<p>0 -- stay in the program!</p>\n\n<p>1 -- publish. Do not only publish with your advisor. Work with other people in the department who may have overlapping interests. Try to stay as broad as possible.</p>\n\n<p>2 -- outreach. There will be a wide-variety of opportunities to help out in local high school events. Take charge and be a leader, i.e. leading a session for 7th graders on the joys of Pascal's Triangle and how cool it is (for example).</p>\n\n<p>3 -- conferences. Go to conferences. Talk at them. Do poster sessions. You'll meet many potential collaborators this way.</p>\n\n<p>4 -- network. See above.</p>\n\n<p>5 -- professional organizations. join these!</p>\n\n<p>6 -- apply fro the nsfgrfp, or any other graduate fellowships.</p>\n\n<p>7 -- help in undergraduate research (hard to do but possible for very approachable types of problems)</p>\n\n<p>8 -- be congenial and get to know people in your field and outside of it. try to think of potential ways that there are overlaps between disciplines.</p>\n\n<p>9 -- read lots of papers for your background.</p>\n\n<p>10 -- in your case, as a theoretical physicist, learn the maths that are associated to your area, i.e. algebraic geometry and probably gauge theory.</p>\n\n<p>11 -- and finally . . . don't panic!</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/25 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15052",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8164/"
]
|
15,064 | <p>I would like to be able to sell my text book to my students in e-book format. I know there is the kindle store that takes 65% of the sales price, which is in my eyes too much. Are there any e-book stores for teachers and professors that provide their service for a fair price?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15093,
"author": "rfle500",
"author_id": 4503,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4503",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The rate charged by the vendor depends on the price: the 65% rate usually applies to books costing more than $15 or so. Below the threshold amazon charges 30%. Apple's iBooks charge 30% for all prices, and so provides a cheaper option with a similar service, as long as everyone uses the apple's proprietary hardware.</p>\n\n<p>Personally I would reconsider your pricing to a more reasonable level. As self publisher you get a much larger slice of the profits, and in my opinion academic textbooks are priced excessively. If you cannot give the book away as others have suggested, then the other factor is that a low price would encourage more students to buy outright rather than share, and you also remove the second hand market, thus having many more actual sales. With this model students pay less to learn and you probably earn more money, and in a sense everybody wins.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15113,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Fairness is a difficult question to answer. You need to ask fair to who: the publisher, the author, or the students. Publishers provide a number of services (e.g., editing, typesetting, printing, and marketing). It is fair for them to get paid for their efforts. Obviously it is fair for authors to get paid for writing. It is also fair to expect students to pay for high quality learning materials.</p>\n\n<p>The question then becomes what is a fair price to charge students and how much of that should go to the publisher. The fees charged by many publishers depend on the number of copies sold since they have some fixed costs that they need to recoup and some costs that scale with the number of copies sold. If you think the service being offered by the publisher is unfair, you can always self-publish and do the editing and marketing yourself.</p>\n\n<p>As for the selling price, this really depends on the quality of the book relative to other similar books. That said, in my opinion selling your book to students in your class is unethical since the students are already paying for the teaching material indirectly through tuition and fees. I don't think of it as being different from selling lecture slides, notes, and exam keys and in the limit if you just want to make money from your students you could just sell grades.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15965,
"author": "Bugra Balci",
"author_id": 10781,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10781",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I recommend <strong>Amazon</strong> for you. I <strong>wrote 4 books</strong> which are on Amazon and also have e-book versions of them. On Amazon, you can choose the price/royalties for each book as well.</p>\n\n<p>You can use <strong>Calibre</strong> to make your PDF, ePub files. Then you can just upload all in a very quick way.</p>\n\n<p>Hope it helps </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16017,
"author": "Peteris",
"author_id": 10730,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10730",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>How about avoiding technology and web-stores - you probably have a very local bookstore selling textbooks, maybe even an in-house store of your university. Go to them and ask them to sell your book; they know how to do that, students are used to them, and they don't charge 65%.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15064",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10258/"
]
|
15,066 | <p>I am planning to apply for postdoc positions in computer science (CS) departments, preferably in the US or Europe. I have searched several computer science departments/research groups at different universities to see the current projects and Postdoc researchers. I saw that most current postdocs are men. So, the following questions came into my mind:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Is it because either women did not apply for the position, or were the women's applications unsatisfactory to get the position?</p></li>
<li><p>Is it true that women do not have much interest and hence success in CS than men? or lets say are men <em>in general</em> better in CS than women?</p></li>
<li><p>Although it is unethical, is it true to assume that the CS members have tendency to hire men more than women in reality? </p></li>
<li><p>If answer to Q3 is "yes," what would be the most effective motivations to encourage
the hiring of women postdocs in CS?</p></li>
<li><p>For women who have recently finished their PhD's, is it better to apply for academic research fellows or industry research positions?</p></li>
</ol>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15070,
"author": "xLeitix",
"author_id": 10094,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10094",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can only answer for Europe, but I assume JeffE is going to provide high-quality info for the US anyway.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I saw the most of current postdocs are men.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>With some exceptions, this is unfortunately very true across Europe. And not only post-docs. It gets worse the higher \"up\" you go in hierarchy.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>1- Is it because either the women did not apply for postdoc or women's applications couldn't make the CS community or individual faculty members satisfied?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>In Vienna, where I did my PhD, we simply received basically no female applications. It was not a question of my professor not being satisfied with the female candidates - in the majority of cases, there simply were none.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>2- Is it true that women do not have much interest and hence success in CS than men? or lets say are men -in general- better in CS than women?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I am sure that women are able to do CS just fine. We just \"lose\" them some time during school. How this happens is a question of reasonably heated debate (gender studies etc.), and I do not feel qualified to answer it competently. </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>3- Although it is not ethically feasible, is it true to assume that the CS members have tendency to hire men more than women in reality?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This will surely be true for some individuals, but by and large the official university policy in most places is that \"equally qualified\" female candidates should be hired over male ones, and this actually seems to be the case. In general, as most universities are pretty desperate to increase their quota of females in higher positions, being a top female researcher will actually make it easier for you to get a strong postdoc or junior faculty position in Europe. <strong>Edit:</strong> I should make clear that the last sentence is based on personal opinion and anecdotal evidence more than anything else.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>5- For the women who newly finished PhD, is better to apply for academic research fellows or industry research positions?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Follow your heart. I don't feel gender should play into this decision. Anyway, in Europe there are preciously little <em>industry research positions</em>, so for the most part it's either academic research or industrial practice over here.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15071,
"author": "Stephen Tierney",
"author_id": 4360,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4360",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>Is it due to lack of applications or lack of qualifications?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I am sure it is mostly due to the lack of applications due to the extremely small number of women studying computer science. Listen to <a href=\"http://blog.stackoverflow.com/2013/11/podcast-54-the-one-with-all-the-anachronisms/\">episode 54 of the stack overflow podcast</a> where they discuss how few applications they receive from women. If you consider women are a very small minority of people who have CS bachelors degrees (qualified for SO position) then we can assume that only a tiny percentage of those will continue studying for a PhD.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Is it true that women aren't as interested in CS? Or are they not as good at it?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>It is obvious it is the former, women are not as drawn to the profession. Although they are as good as men at CS, if not better. There are societal pressures and influences that may subconsciously guide women to work in a profession that is considered more feminine (humanities, nursing and teaching for example). In this way women are more attracted to other areas because of social influence and simultaneously pushed away from CS. I feel that most of the time these are not conscious decisions. However it may be a conscious decision but women don't like explicitly stating social pressure as the reason for their career choice.</p>\n\n<p>There is also the case where women would like to work in the profession but are repelled by the idea of working alongside mostly men as they feel they won't fit in with the group. They may also feel that they would be discriminated against in the hiring process and career progression. There are many reasons why women are not as interested in CS but not being as good as men is not one of those reasons.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Do some members of the CS community favour men over women?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Some, but only a small minority of people favour men over women. In fact many organisations encourage the hiring of women.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Should a woman apply for an academic institution or for an industry position?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This is up to the specific person and you cannot simply generalise by gender in this situation.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15092,
"author": "Jonathan E. Landrum",
"author_id": 7134,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7134",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Something to consider is the atmosphere at a particular institution. Where I attend, about 20% of our CS staff are female. That is, unfortunately, quite high for a CS department. But the problem is not unique to Computer Science. This disproportion exists across many of the sciences. Try to find an institute where the number of women---both faculty and students---is high. That department will be one that is already proactively hiring females. If the tables were turned, I would be more comfortable in that setting, anyway, but that may be my personality.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15066",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10259/"
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|
15,067 | <p>I'm wondering whether dismissal / withdrawal from a PhD program should be listed as disciplinary action on subsequent applications. A Master's program application usually asks questions like:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Have you ever been found responsible for a disciplinary violation at any post-secondary institution you have attended, whether related to academic misconduct or behavioral misconduct, that resulted in a disciplinary action?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>I was academically dismissed from a PhD program after four semesters for not being able to maintain the minimum GPA. I plan to fully include this information in my application (e.g. through transcripts from the institution from which I was dismissed), and address why I was dismissed (and what steps I have taken to address academic concerns) in my Statement of Purpose. </p>
<p><strong>Q</strong>: However, I am not sure if my dismissal counts as one that is due to "disciplinary violation" related to "academic misconduct or behavioral misconduct". I was simply dismissed due to not being able to maintain the required grades. Should I answer the above question in the negative?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15069,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I believe that failing to meet the grade standards do not constitute an academic misconduct or a behavioral misconduct. In my opinion, those refer to cheating, sabotaging others' research projects etc. So I would answer that in the negative. Actually, I would want to be more sure than a random StackExchange answer in answering that question, so I would contact the department to ask, or ask one of my professors from undergrad/grad school.</p>\n\n<p>By the way, as a word of advice, many schools have a separate section (\"other circumstances\" etc) for explaining that awful thing on your application. If I were you, I would save my SOP for actually talking about the research that I am interested in, and not make that a place where I make excuses. You have to give them a reason to be excited about you. By explaining your circumstances in the SOP, you lose your best shot, and they would at most feel mediocre about you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15095,
"author": "Steely Dan",
"author_id": 10275,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10275",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>\"Academic misconduct\" is not the same as \"Lack of academic performance.\" \"Academic misconduct\" is things like claiming undue credit, fabrication of research or sources, outright plagiarism, etc. Simply not making the grades might reflect on your academic aptitude, but (unlike academic misconduct) does not necessarily reflect upon your character.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15067",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10260/"
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|
15,068 | <p>I would like to pursue a PhD in CS (in Europe). I have ended my master's degree like two years ago (also in Europe) and I have 4 publications in the area. Actually I am working in the industry so I have left the academic world. The question that I have is how to address a potential supervisor (which in most cases I have not known in person): </p>
<ul>
<li><p>Should I sent him/her my CV straightforward and ask for possible open research topics in which he/she needs PhD students?</p></li>
<li><p>Should I ask him/her some assignment or task to prove that I have the enough background to fit into his research group?</p></li>
</ul>
<p>I am actually very worried about how to manage this situation, it is not so easy in this time to get PhD positions in some countries.</p>
<p>Any advice?</p>
| [
{
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"text": "<p>While answer to your question needs more detail, but in general the answer looks like this:</p>\n<p>Starting PhD is different at different universities. At many universities, faculty members receive applications from the PhD applicants and evaluate individually. However, at other universities mostly in the US, the application is evaluated by a committee.</p>\n<p>In the first case, certainly, the best way to start is to initiate a communication with potential PhD supervisors by sending an email -as you said- along with your CV, academic history, SoP, and research proposal (proposal is not needed in US, but should not be a problem if you send). However, I think it may not really work if you ask them for assignment (maybe it works in some universities that I don't know).</p>\n<p>One thing I noticed when I was searching for my PhD is that many supervisors write some notes on their pages and provide instructions for potential students to follow. If you simply don't follow them you won't be able to get position from them. Try to read their pages as carefully as you can.</p>\n<p>I admit that there is tension in getting a PhD position. But it is all right and should be okay. Some guidelines may help you figure it our.</p>\n<p>In general, to successfully secure a PhD position, you need certain qualifications and certificates listed as following:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Bachelor degree in relevant course with high GPA/CGPA (this is must)</li>\n<li>Master degree in relevant course with high GPA/CPGA (This is not really a MUST-have requirement, since many universities offer PhD without having Master).</li>\n<li>English Proficiency certificate (for English speaking countries) if you English is not your native language.</li>\n<li>2/3 reference letters in your favor (no wonder).</li>\n<li>GRE for US-based universities.</li>\n<li>Money to pay tuition fee (supervisors consider this as well. If you need financial assistance you should be really good compare to others).</li>\n</ul>\n<p>That's all REQUIREMENTS. But, they are not sufficient to convince a potential academician to offer you a position, especially paid positions which are very competitive. If you want to enhance your chance, I think in CS you need the following qualifications:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Good quality publication(s) in good publishing venues (top ranked conference and journals)</li>\n<li>Research experience (It may be true that Master by research graduates have better chance here).</li>\n<li>Working experience in relevant areas</li>\n<li>Teaching experience</li>\n<li>Professional certificates from well-known organizations like Microsoft, and Oracle.</li>\n<li>Volunteer jobs in the society (I heard a lot about it)</li>\n<li>Academic or professional Awards like best student, best thesis, and best paper award.</li>\n<li>GRE and SAT certificates</li>\n<li>Intellectual properties (patents)</li>\n</ul>\n<p>But, I think the most important thing is the first impression that you make using your first email, CV, SoP, statement of research and so on. If they look professional and neat, it attracts potential supervisor's attention and will evaluate your application optimistically.</p>\n<p>Don't give up. You have to find the RIGHT supervisor, at the RIGHT university, at the RIGHT time, using the RIGHT channel. Keep trying and you will succeed.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 181203,
"author": "SeF",
"author_id": 86944,
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"text": "<p>Look for a supervisor!</p>\n<p>If you already have published papers, you may have an idea of the specific problems you want to work on. So you may know which are the big names out there in the field, and who authored publications that you liked.</p>\n<p>Jot down a list of names, read about their work, then ask them for a meeting to present yours and to ask for opportunities. They will be able to indicate the way forward better than anyone else.\nAlso, you will know if you have found someone you want to work with for the next 3/4 years, or if you would rather continue what you are doing.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/12/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15068",
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|
15,080 | <p>I have read several articles about literature reviews. At the same time I found some guides about literature <em>surveys</em>. I am confused... how is a literature survey different from a literature review? What is the standard procedure to conduct a literature survey without making it a literature review?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15127,
"author": "aeismail",
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"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Reviewing the literature relevant to a given field is a standard part of doing research, as this serves to put your work into the context of the larger discipline in which you are working.</p>\n\n<p>If there is an actual difference between the \"literature survey\" and the \"literature review,\" it's that the latter can serve as a paper in and of itself, and is much more extensive than a literature survey, which is typically a major part of the introduction of a research paper. </p>\n\n<p>The literature review as a standalone article could be compared to a \"curated\" overview of the literature in the field—who has done what, how do papers relate to one another, and what are the most important present and (possibly) future directions of work in such a field. Such papers can also be considerably longer than a traditional research paper, and some reviews might cite as many as a thousand references!</p>\n\n<p>In comparison, the literature survey of a standard research article is usually much shorter (1-2 journal pages), and will not cite nearly as many papers (anywhere from 10 to 100, depending on the topic and the amount of relevant literature available). </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15130,
"author": "Espanta",
"author_id": 6393,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6393",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Well, I have written couple of survery/review articles published in prestigious journals <a href=\"http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/search/searchresult.jsp?newsearch=true&queryText=Heterogeneity%20in%20mobile%20cloud%20computing:%20Taxonomy%20and%20open%20challenges&x=12&y=12\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>, <a href=\"http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?tp=&arnumber=6563280&searchWithin=p_Authors:.QT.Abolfazli,%20S..QT.\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>, and <a href=\"https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDcQFjAA&url=http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1084804513001975&ei=ace9UtvtMYONrQe9joCYDQ&usg=AFQjCNF74joocee4060mK_VbwJLBRztjMQ&sig2=7LLVFBEmWVD8ZyNQZRPl8A\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a> and hence I think I can give you some hint on this question.</p>\n<p><em>First View:</em> One of the most important things to consider is that, these terms have been used differently in varied academic disciplines and even in some cases they are used interchangeably with negligible differences. Even in CS (my field), the way image processing scholars look at these terms may be different from networking researchers (I once experienced the comments I received from experts in image processing and realize how different they look at the works). So it might not be wrong if consider <em>insignificant differences</em> between these two terms.</p>\n<p>What I describe here may be more applicable to CS.\nThere are two different views at these terms that I describe here</p>\n<p>Technically a feasible description around these two terms is that in survey works you should review the published papers and analyze, summarize, organize, and present findings in a novel way that can generate an original view to a certain aspect of the domain. For example, if researchers review the available research findings and conclude that electrical cars are emission-free vehicles, another researcher can review the same results and present an argument that building batteries themselves produce huge emission. The second contribution opens door for new research around emission-free production of car batteries.\nIf we consider that survey paper is the result of literature survey, we can use the following definitions from CS journals.</p>\n<ul>\n<li>According to the definition of survey paper provided by IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials journal (one of the best CS journals), "<strong>The term survey, as applied here, is defined to mean a survey of the literature. A survey article should provide a comprehensive review of developments in a selected area</strong>".</li>\n<li>In ACM Computing Survey (another prestigious CS journal), survey paper is described as “A paper that summarizes and organizes recent research results in a novel way that integrates and adds understanding to work in the field. A survey article emphasizes the classification of the existing literature, developing a perspective on the area, and evaluating trends.”</li>\n<li>In Elsevier journal of Computer Science Review, you will see here<a href=\"http://www.journals.elsevier.com/computer-science-review/http://www.journals.elsevier.com/computer-science-review/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">4</a> that “Critical review of the relevant literature“ is required a component of every typical survey paper.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>To summarize, these two terms can be distinguished using following notes (or maybe definitions)</p>\n<p><strong>Literature Survey:</strong> Is the process of analyzing, summarizing, organizing, and presenting novel conclusions from the results of technical review of large number of recently published scholarly articles. The results of the literature survey can contribute to the body of knowledge when peer-reviewed and published as survey articles</p>\n<p><strong>Literature Review:</strong> Is the process of technically and critically reviewing published papers to extract technical and scientific metadata from the presented contents. The metadata are usually used during literature survey to technically compare different but relevant works and draw conclusions on weaknesses and strengths of the works.</p>\n<p><em>Second View:</em> The second view over literature survey and review is that in survey, researchers usually utilize the author-provided contents available in the published works to qualitatively analyze and compare them with other related works. While in the former, you should not perform qualitative analysis. Rather it should be quantitative meaning that every research work under study should be implemented and benchmarked under certain criteria. The results of this benchmarking study can be used to compare them together and criticize or appreciate the works.</p>\n<p>So basically you can look at current literature and find which approach is dominating in your field. Hope it helps. I try to revise it if I came a cross other points or useful comments here.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/12/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15080",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10267/"
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|
15,081 | <p>I think the title is quite clear.</p>
<p>If the author of an article is unknwon, should one refer to the title of the article, or to the magazine itself? The same goes for electronic sources.</p>
<p>Let's say this is my source.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“An Interview with Susan Bassnett.” <em>Channel View Publications Blog</em>.
Channel View Publications. n.d. Web. 5 dec. 2013.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Would I refer (inline) like so:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Bassnet states that ... ("An Interview with Susan Bassnett").</p>
</blockquote>
<p>or like so </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Bassnett states that ... (<em>Channel View Publications Blog</em>).</p>
</blockquote>
| [
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"author": "aeismail",
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"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Reviewing the literature relevant to a given field is a standard part of doing research, as this serves to put your work into the context of the larger discipline in which you are working.</p>\n\n<p>If there is an actual difference between the \"literature survey\" and the \"literature review,\" it's that the latter can serve as a paper in and of itself, and is much more extensive than a literature survey, which is typically a major part of the introduction of a research paper. </p>\n\n<p>The literature review as a standalone article could be compared to a \"curated\" overview of the literature in the field—who has done what, how do papers relate to one another, and what are the most important present and (possibly) future directions of work in such a field. Such papers can also be considerably longer than a traditional research paper, and some reviews might cite as many as a thousand references!</p>\n\n<p>In comparison, the literature survey of a standard research article is usually much shorter (1-2 journal pages), and will not cite nearly as many papers (anywhere from 10 to 100, depending on the topic and the amount of relevant literature available). </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15130,
"author": "Espanta",
"author_id": 6393,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6393",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Well, I have written couple of survery/review articles published in prestigious journals <a href=\"http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/search/searchresult.jsp?newsearch=true&queryText=Heterogeneity%20in%20mobile%20cloud%20computing:%20Taxonomy%20and%20open%20challenges&x=12&y=12\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>, <a href=\"http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?tp=&arnumber=6563280&searchWithin=p_Authors:.QT.Abolfazli,%20S..QT.\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>, and <a href=\"https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDcQFjAA&url=http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1084804513001975&ei=ace9UtvtMYONrQe9joCYDQ&usg=AFQjCNF74joocee4060mK_VbwJLBRztjMQ&sig2=7LLVFBEmWVD8ZyNQZRPl8A\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a> and hence I think I can give you some hint on this question.</p>\n<p><em>First View:</em> One of the most important things to consider is that, these terms have been used differently in varied academic disciplines and even in some cases they are used interchangeably with negligible differences. Even in CS (my field), the way image processing scholars look at these terms may be different from networking researchers (I once experienced the comments I received from experts in image processing and realize how different they look at the works). So it might not be wrong if consider <em>insignificant differences</em> between these two terms.</p>\n<p>What I describe here may be more applicable to CS.\nThere are two different views at these terms that I describe here</p>\n<p>Technically a feasible description around these two terms is that in survey works you should review the published papers and analyze, summarize, organize, and present findings in a novel way that can generate an original view to a certain aspect of the domain. For example, if researchers review the available research findings and conclude that electrical cars are emission-free vehicles, another researcher can review the same results and present an argument that building batteries themselves produce huge emission. The second contribution opens door for new research around emission-free production of car batteries.\nIf we consider that survey paper is the result of literature survey, we can use the following definitions from CS journals.</p>\n<ul>\n<li>According to the definition of survey paper provided by IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials journal (one of the best CS journals), "<strong>The term survey, as applied here, is defined to mean a survey of the literature. A survey article should provide a comprehensive review of developments in a selected area</strong>".</li>\n<li>In ACM Computing Survey (another prestigious CS journal), survey paper is described as “A paper that summarizes and organizes recent research results in a novel way that integrates and adds understanding to work in the field. A survey article emphasizes the classification of the existing literature, developing a perspective on the area, and evaluating trends.”</li>\n<li>In Elsevier journal of Computer Science Review, you will see here<a href=\"http://www.journals.elsevier.com/computer-science-review/http://www.journals.elsevier.com/computer-science-review/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">4</a> that “Critical review of the relevant literature“ is required a component of every typical survey paper.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>To summarize, these two terms can be distinguished using following notes (or maybe definitions)</p>\n<p><strong>Literature Survey:</strong> Is the process of analyzing, summarizing, organizing, and presenting novel conclusions from the results of technical review of large number of recently published scholarly articles. The results of the literature survey can contribute to the body of knowledge when peer-reviewed and published as survey articles</p>\n<p><strong>Literature Review:</strong> Is the process of technically and critically reviewing published papers to extract technical and scientific metadata from the presented contents. The metadata are usually used during literature survey to technically compare different but relevant works and draw conclusions on weaknesses and strengths of the works.</p>\n<p><em>Second View:</em> The second view over literature survey and review is that in survey, researchers usually utilize the author-provided contents available in the published works to qualitatively analyze and compare them with other related works. While in the former, you should not perform qualitative analysis. Rather it should be quantitative meaning that every research work under study should be implemented and benchmarked under certain criteria. The results of this benchmarking study can be used to compare them together and criticize or appreciate the works.</p>\n<p>So basically you can look at current literature and find which approach is dominating in your field. Hope it helps. I try to revise it if I came a cross other points or useful comments here.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/26 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15081",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7121/"
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|
15,098 | <p>My professor sometimes asks me to referee papers for him.
Should I list the corresponding journals in the professionals activity section of my CV?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15100,
"author": "BSteinhurst",
"author_id": 7561,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Yes. It is the very prototype of service to the professional community that you want to show that you are willing to perform. </p>\n\n<p>The question that Scrooge linked to has good advice for how to do so.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15148,
"author": "guido",
"author_id": 10305,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10305",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Yes, if your professor explicitly lists you as a reviewer or sub-reviewer with the program committee of the conference/journal; no if your review is then edited by your professor before submission. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15098",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
15,105 | <h1>Question</h1>
<p>Should issues about past academic performance be addressed in the Statement of Purpose or a separate letter to the admissions committee.</p>
<h1>Background</h1>
<p>I had originally posted about my situation here: <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15067/listing-academic-dismissal-from-phd-in-graduate-application">Should a dismissal from PhD in graduate application be listed as academic misconduct?</a></p>
<p>One of the answers to that question suggested that instead of using my statement of purpose to address academic concerns, I write a separate letter addressing the issue. However, others have suggested that colleges are unlikely to read such materials with the application. I have written a short (500 word) explaining the circumstances under which I received my bad grades and what I have done so this doesn't happen in the future. I have also written a short (500 word) statement of purpose that does not address my academic performance at all. Should I rework my SOP to incorporate the academic issue, and skip the additional letter?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15412,
"author": "Steely Dan",
"author_id": 10275,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10275",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You should definitely explain it--it <em>is</em> going to catch some attention, after all. Admissions committees recognize that people grow, develop, and change over time; they just need to know that you have. It doesn't need to be much, but it definitely deserves a paragraph just to acknowledge the issue and briefly outline why it's not necessarily reflective of your current self.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15428,
"author": "Nick Stauner",
"author_id": 10518,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10518",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Some web-based application forms have dedicated fields for comments on grades or academic hardships. I would first of all take advantage of these if possible, and second, read the fine print if not: some application guidelines will forbid submission of additional materials. This doesn't have to stop you, but I would contact the admissions staff either way if there isn't a dedicated field. It should be as simple as asking, \"May I enclose a brief additional letter explaining an issue in my academic history?\"</p>\n\n<p>In my opinion, that's what you should do however you can, unless admissions expressly forbids it, or if the issue at hand somehow affected your academic purpose. The statement of purpose is a fairly important and somewhat haphazardly scrutinized document, so anything tangential that interrupts your flow or the optimism and enthusiasm you express for your present and future work is likely to detract from the cohesiveness your message, the consistency and positivity of your tone, and the room you have to go into detail and cover other important information. You never really know what your readers are going to pay attention to in your writing, so it's best not to take any chances and leave it as flawless as can be, while conveying important but unexpected information through other channels if possible.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/12/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15105",
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|
15,116 | <p>Is it possible to pursue PhD with only BE degree and 16+ years of Software Industry experience? I know that most of the institutes expect a Masters degree to pursue PhD. Do they consider Industry experience to relax this criteria?</p>
<p>And, then the big question - Is it worth it to pursue a research/academic career after 16 years in Software Industry? Has anyone done this? what are your experiences like?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15118,
"author": "Jonathan E. Landrum",
"author_id": 7134,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7134",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Your assumption depends on your location. If you are interested in obtaining a PhD in Computer Science at a school in the US, then in fact many programs do <em>not</em> expect you to have a Master's degree prior to beginning your doctoral studies. However, if you've been in industry for 16 years, it may be difficult to secure the letters of recommendation required for entry. Certainly letters from employers are accepted, especially in your case, but if they do not show a strong desire and aptitude for research, they will not be worth as much. However, don't let that dissuade you. Apply anyway, if that's what you want to do.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15140,
"author": "Luta V",
"author_id": 10303,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10303",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>From my experience, even in the US, the situation apply to specific subjects of study. I would suggest you do a masters degree because it will help you and open up your ability to do a wider range of research. If the PhD subject your want to study has a coursework before research then the best way go about it is to do a masters degree because in most PhD coursework exams, you're required to know most of the things done at undergraduate and masters level. The best thing about doing a masters before doing a PhD is that studying masters degree takes only one year in most universities around the world. You can manage one year.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/12/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15116",
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|
15,117 | <p>I find it strange that most US departments have so little transparency in tenure-track jobs searches. In the UK the system is a little cleaner. Jobs are generally announced in one place (jobs.ac.uk) and the interview date is often set in advance. In the US there is no central list of jobs and it is difficult to determine where in the process the search is. Why don't search committees set a date for the short list to be decided at the outset and make it publicly available? Even for searches that move sequentially through the short list inviting candidates one at a time for interviews, could still send out a notification. It seems it would reduce the stress of the search for many applicants and not be too much work for the search committee.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15120,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In math, jobs in the US are announced on mathjobs.org, and you apply centrally through this website as well. Although you don't always get notified on the status of your application, we have a place called \"mathjobs wiki\", where people post \"rumors\" (in reality, since the TT interviews are announced on the department websites, it's not really a rumor) on the status of the job search. I am told that several other disciplines have something like this.</p>\n\n<p>I would have thought European searches have less transparency; it seems to me that many European (mathematics) departments hire based on who you know, and their jobs are much less advertised.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15121,
"author": "BSteinhurst",
"author_id": 7561,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7561",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I will tackle the ``Jobs are generally announced in one place (jobs.ac.uk)'' part. As user14449 mentioned in his(her?)(its?) answer some disciplines have society run central job boards. The AMS and MLA are the particularly effective ones from my experience but even they do not attract all the jobs in their fields. Then each state university will post all of its jobs to their own Human Resources job board. But there will never be a centralized site like jobs.ac.uk because the US system is not a single system. many of the colleges and universities are privately run, the rest are run by the state governments, and four run by the military. There is no central authority that can determine how hiring is done beyond anti-discrimination and equal opportunity laws. So any such website would have to start off as a third party endeavor. And since the job ads in the Chronicle of Higher Education already service this purpose but do not cover the entire market it is hard to say that there would be promise for any new one. </p>\n\n<p>Just a side note on the scale of the US job market from Wiki there are ``4,495 Title IV-eligible'' colleges and universities. Title IV-eligible means students at those institutions are eligible for federally backed student loans. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15126,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>There are several factors at work here:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Remember that there are several thousand colleges and universities in the United States. A central database of such jobs would be significantly harder to publicize and organize.</p></li>\n<li><p>Most universities in the US are private. They are under no such compulsion to post their jobs on any particular web site, unless constrained to do so by the funding sources that are supporting a particular position, or legal requirements to do so. (To my knowledge, there is no such requirement.)</p></li>\n<li><p>The more deadlines and constraints you build into the cycle, the more pressure you put everyone under—applicants, recommendation writers, support staff, and departmental faculty involved in the search.</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>So I think there are multiple reasons not to publicize the results of a search, and I think most hiring committees would be reluctant to do so. There could be a better job done of <em>announcing</em> searches, certainly, and that would make things easier (but again, the places that currently advertise would likely complain about losing their business to a central source!).</p>\n"
}
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]
|
15,119 | <p>As the question implies, I have two main research interests in the natural language processing and computational genomics domains. While I have a preference for the former, I am also very interested in the latter. I ask because I am not sure if it would look like I am too unfocused for a PhD. Many professors seem to have multiple areas of interests, some of which are not too related, but nonetheless I want to make sure that mentioning multiple interests will not hurt me. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15123,
"author": "J. Zimmerman",
"author_id": 7921,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7921",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>If you can convey your enthusiasm for the <strong>overlap</strong> of these two somewhat distinct areas, you will be ahead of the game. A PhD candidate is expected to extend the limit of human knowledge, and one of the better ways to do so is to research within the overlap of two (or more) disciplines. I would tend to see having more than one area of interest as being an advantage rather than a disadvantage. Of course, as your question implies, a multiplicity of interests can backfire by causing a candidate to appear unfocused. Focus on the overlap, and make your application shine!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15167,
"author": "User",
"author_id": 10319,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10319",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The answer depends on you, the professor and when and how you communicate, .</p>\n\n<p><strong>Mention Both</strong></p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Better mention both than fear. Until you handle the fear to stand for both interests it will not go away. When you are clear about what you fear you may know the answer already.</p></li>\n<li><p>Showing that you have a broad interest means that you are open to change.</p></li>\n<li><p>You may get angry at yourself for not having mentioned the other interest. Especially because professors know other professors to redirect to.</p></li>\n<li><p>If you <em>write</em> you can make sure that it is clearly understood that you have two interest. Such as by choosing a headline for each. The professor may then choose what to focus on.</p></li>\n<li><p>If you <em>talk</em> to the professor you get responses what (s)he likes most. Then you can focus on that.</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p><strong>Mention One</strong></p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>When there is not enough time for both topics it could be bad to mention both. </p></li>\n<li><p>Mentioning both can mean that the professor does not choose you because (s)he only takes in people with one interest who can be put under more presure because they can not choose to go somewhere else.</p></li>\n<li><p>Sometimes professors are really proud of themselves because nobody ever tells them they are wrong. You may have to adjust what you say so they do not fear your intelligence in a field they do not know.</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>I come from a computer science background. There may be different cultural influences in other professions.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15173,
"author": "yo'",
"author_id": 1471,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1471",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Your PhD should be somewhat focused, but before that, you're not in general supposed to have real scientific results. I would surely mention both, unless you feel that one of them is significantly unsignificant.</p>\n\n<p>If you managed to have multiple results as a master student, that makes you a very good candidate for a PhD, because not many people have that!</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15119",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8022/"
]
|
15,132 | <p>My question is simple: If you have a paper that got rejected two or three times (border-line* rejects every time) from top-tier conferences, would you polish it and resubmit it again to similar or another high rank conference or would you try some lower rank venues ?</p>
<p>* Border-line reject: every time got 2 good reviews and 1 bad review.</p>
<p>P.S. Every time the paper got vague suggestions like: compare with this or that. And the first and second time we DID in fact address all concerns, but another concern showed up next time.</p>
<p>P.P.S. I am concerned with CS conferences.</p>
<p>Thank you.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15133,
"author": "JeffE",
"author_id": 65,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/65",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would not continue submitting the same paper to top-tier conferences after three rejections. The Universe Has Spoken. Move On.</p>\n\n<p>Many of my colleagues do submit such papers to lower-tier conferences, but I usually just send my papers directly to journals after two conference rejections.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15134,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is only so long any paper, whether it be for a conference or for a journal, should be held up in the review process. While it is stuck in review, other people may be able to publish similar (or stronger) results, at which your work loses the \"novelty\" factor, which will make it less competitive in the future.</p>\n\n<p>At a certain point, you have to cut your losses and move on. Where that point of diminishing returns for presenting in a top-tier conference is depends upon your risk tolerance. But I'd much rather get my paper presented or published somewhere within a year in a second-tier conference than wait for two years to present at a top conference. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 100927,
"author": "h22",
"author_id": 10920,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10920",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is a very common practice to start from submitting the paper to the high end journals but then submit to lower level journals if rejected for not being \"flashy\" enough. If the paper is further rejected, it may be converted into poster and presented in some conference. If it does not make into top tier conference, then still might be good enough for a small local conference.</p>\n\n<p>A good professor can tell at glance where in this scale the work stands and is it possible to improve it and get higher. However professors mostly gain this experience from the known accepted and rejected submissions.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 164239,
"author": "Harper",
"author_id": 135177,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/135177",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Do you make any fundamental improvements after being rejected? If no, resubmitting it too many times can only reduce your chance of being accepted.</p>\n<p>This happens to me as a reviewer. I reviewed a paper in 18 and rejected it. Then I was invited to review the same paper in 19 at a different conference. The authors changed the title but not the content. I compared it against the old manuscript in my mailbox. When I noticed the authors did not make anything new out of it, I simply gave it another rejection.</p>\n<p>The group of people working on your topic can be surprisingly small and you are very likely to encounter the same reviewer when you submit to top-tier conferences again and again. I believe they will do the same thing as I did.</p>\n<p>But if you follow the reviewers' suggestions to improve it and/or add new content to the paper after being rejected it will be a different story. I would think of it as a new paper, and will definitely resubmit it to top-tiers if I think the paper deserves it.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/27 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15132",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10297/"
]
|
15,135 | <p>Online PhD application systems usually ask for relation between the recommender and the applicant.</p>
<p>The applicant was in a PhD program and the recommender was a professor in the department. The applicant approached him for some research opportunities at first, and later did some research in one of the recommender's projects, directly mentored by an assistant research professor. There was no formal title of "research adviser" for the recommender to the applicant, or for the research assistant professor to the applicant, as the student was still in the process of finalizing research direction and adviser. The student then didn't finish the PhD, and later applied to PhD programs in other universities.</p>
<p>Can the relation between the recommender and the applicant be "research adviser" in PhD application? What is best to describe that relation?
By the way, the recommender was also an instructor to the applicant in some courses. But a relation besides "instructor" was preferred, if possible.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15137,
"author": "Espanta",
"author_id": 6393,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6393",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You may consider two roles for the students in previous institute; one as a PhD student looking for topic and the other is a short-term research collaborator. As the recommender was not engaged in your PhD job, he cannot be PhD advisor. </p>\n\n<p>However, since the recommender was primary investigator (or head) of the project student worked in, the relationship is <strong>research collaborator</strong> or more focused, <strong>primary investigator in a collaborative research</strong>. Your output of the collaborative research with him as technical report, conference paper, or journal article would prove the relationship.</p>\n\n<p>But I think student needs to convince the new graduate school that why did he fail/dismiss previous PhD.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15143,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This seems fairly clear to me that this person is a \"colleague\" to you. The terms \"supervisor/advisor\" are reserved for the person who supervises your PhD thesis, for which you do not qualify for. Everyone else can be labeled as a colleague.</p>\n\n<p>I strongly recommend that you do NOT label him as a research supervisor, as the letters from your supervisor tend to get read more closely than your other letters; you are confusing the hiring committee (and lowering your chances of getting hired) by labeling him as your supervisor.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15145,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There's a certain level of hairsplitting here.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p><strong>PhD advisor</strong> or <strong>thesis advisor</strong> should definitely be reserved for the person advising a student completing her thesis research.</p></li>\n<li><p>A <strong>research supervisor</strong> can be much broader in scope. For instance, someone performing a bachelor's or master's thesis needs a supervisor, as well as students doing summer research projects within your research group.</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>However, the important thing is to make clear <strong>in the letter</strong> the exact relationship between the referee and the applicant. Then no confusion is likely to ensue.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/28 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15135",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/218/"
]
|
15,136 | <p>This question was suggested to me by <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15064/how-can-i-sell-my-text-book-to-my-students-in-e-book-format">How can I sell my text book to my students in e-book format?</a> which asked about the practicalities but attracted many comments about the ethics. So this question is to ask about the ethics directly.</p>
<p>Suppose I have written and published a textbook, and I want to use it as the text for a course I am teaching. I receive royalties from each copy of my book that is sold, so if my students are required to buy my textbook for the course, I will make some money. <strong>Is it ethical to do so?</strong></p>
<p>Well-reasoned opinions would be useful answers, but even more useful would be pointers to institutional policies, professional codes of ethics, etc, that address this issue.</p>
<p>Of course, there are many ways to avoid profiting from the sale of my book to my students. If my contract with my publisher allows it, I could distribute PDFs to my students, or have the university bookstore print out copies and sell them at cost. Another approach I've heard of is to compute how much I earn in royalties on each copy and refund that amount from my pocket to each student who buys a copy. Or, use my royalty earnings to buy pizza for the class. Certainly, these are nice gestures, but I would like opinions on whether they are ethically required.</p>
<ul>
<li><p>This question is hypothetical. I haven't published any textbooks myself and have no immediate plans to do so. In any case, my personal preference would be to make the book available to students for free, if at all possible. So I've phrased this question in the first person for rhetorical convenience only.</p>
</li>
<li><p>I had intended the question to be only about the potential financial conflict of interest that could arise if I make money by assigning my own book. Some of the answers feel that it is improper for me to assign my own textbook at all, whether I make money or not, but I don't think this point of view is prevalent within the academic community. If it happens that my book (as a pithy but now-deleted comment put it) "blows", I think most would agree that my decision to assign it is pedagogically unfortunate, but not unethical.</p>
</li>
<li><p>I don't literally mean that students would be <em>required to buy</em> the book, only that they'd be expected to have it. I might assign readings or homework problems from the book so that the student needs access to the book in order to do them, but they could certainly achieve this by getting a used copy or borrowing from a friend. But probably most students would buy new copies anyway since that is the most convenient way.</p>
</li>
</ul>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15141,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This comes down to potentially conflicting principles. Academic freedom requires that professors should be able to choose the most appropriate references for their courses, and of course the professor's own book will often be a perfect fit for the course that inspired it. On the other hand, it's important to avoid even the appearance of assigning one's own book in order to make a profit: that would be offensive at any university, and often illegal at public universities (violating conflict of interest laws for government employees). The <a href=\"http://www.aaup.org/report/professors-assigning-their-own-texts-students\">American Association of University Professors statement</a> on this subject elaborates on both of these issues, but doesn't find a good way of resolving the tension.</p>\n\n<p>University policies are often more specific. In many cases assigning one's own book either requires administrative permission or giving any royalties earned to the university. See, for example, <a href=\"http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~natalieb/textbooks2.htm\">this report</a> for a survey of the policies at eighteen public universities in the U.S. My impression is that private universities are more likely to be flexible about this issue, but that's not based on a lot of data.</p>\n\n<p>In practice, I doubt anyone cares very much unless the textbook is particularly expensive or the class is large, but in those cases I would strongly recommend donating the royalties to the department even if it is not required. After all, you're then no worse off than you would have been if you had assigned someone else's book. If you're not willing to do this, then it suggests that the royalties are attractive after all and may have played some role in the choice of text.</p>\n\n<p>One special case is when you have self-published the book (or own the publishing company). That looks terrible, because there you have full control over pricing and may be earning far more than typical royalties. This is one of the few cases where I believe a strict rule is appropriate: if you are legally authorized to offer free or at-cost copies of your book to your students, then you should do so. Anything less is clearly taking advantage of your students.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15142,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In many top-tier universities, many professors use their own textbooks. This is not only because they are familiar with what they have written, but also because they are the most-respected researchers in their field. In my experience, no one has objected to this, and in fact, most students are excited to take a course from the author of the most famous book in the field.</p>\n\n<p>Since others have already commented on the university policy, I want to offer my own personal view.</p>\n\n<p>Personally, I see why you can't use your own textbook. For undergraduate curriculum (and even the beginning-years of graduate school), most things that are covered are standard, and any textbook should be able to cover these topics. As an added bonus, YOU wrote the book, and it will very closely follow what you will cover in class.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, it is often helpful to have read that book that serves as <strong>the</strong> reference in the field, so unless you have a good reason for wanting to substitute your own textbook, I think that sticking to the standard textbook is a good idea. And hopefully, no ulterior motives (especially in the financial sense) are involved in the decision-making process.</p>\n\n<p>In my experience, many professors who choose to use their own textbooks are able to distribute either the preprints of their textbooks, or they photocopy certain sections of their books and distribute them to the students for free. Especially if the textbook is required in doing the homework etc, they have always made the portions that are absolutely necessary for the work freely available.</p>\n\n<p>I had not thought very hard about this back then, but this is possibly their way of coping with this question of ethics.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15149,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This is an interesting question but it involves much more than just ethics and financial considerations. It is also a matter of tradition <em>versus</em> more modern thinking about free material.</p>\n\n<p>I am currently writing a custom \"book\" (not to be published anytime soon) for a new course since no existing book will fit. It will be free of charge, as developmental material, until it becomes published (which will happen if I think it is any good in the end). My old advisor used his lecture notes developed over years to produce a commercial book that can be used by many but is tailored to his (in this case) course. To write materials for your own course or on your research field is quite natural. For obvious reasons such books will suit their purpose best.</p>\n\n<p>I think many would dream of having tailored reading materials in their courses; few have the opportunity to spend the time writing it. In many, if not most, university systems no-one will pay you for writing it so it will be done on your free time. Such books benefit the students by covering more or less exactly what the course is about. As teachers, we have probably been involved in (endless) discussions about the pros and cons of books: \"this covers this material, that book covers that, but not none is perfect. So which one to chose.\". The small amount of royalty from own students is not enough to make anyone rich. From this perspective, and assuming the book (and the course) is any good, I think making the issue a matter of ethics is petty. </p>\n\n<p>The choice is obviously to provide a book material as, for example, free pdf material or try to have it printed (which is expensive) as a regular book or as print on demand. If one want others to use the material, publishing a book puts the material \"on the map\". A book also carries with it prestige, not only for the author but for the department and the university. It may also signal to the student that the teacher is a \"name\" in the field. So there are many reasons for choosing a book but not many will first look at it as a source for revenue.</p>\n\n<p>So in the end, I cannot see anything wrong with using a book and receiving royalty as long as the book is good, the course is good, so that the students get the best opportunity to learn the material the course should provide.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15150,
"author": "Max",
"author_id": 2744,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2744",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As a student, I feel that it's ethical if you can, honestly and impartially, say that it is the best book to teach the material, and the price you are charging is reasonable.</p>\n\n<p>If you are charging a finished-book price for a draft riddled with typos and errors, then it is definitely not ethical.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15152,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One arrangement with the publisher of my two \"text\"-books was that the price be reduced by the amount of the otherwise-royalty for any books sold through the university bookstore, so that, in effect, I was not collecting royalties from students at this university (whether or not I was the instructor).</p>\n\n<p>Another aspect is making printouts from PDFs available at-cost to students at this university, which is what my contract with the publisher specifically allowed in one case.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15153,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As an example of what's done in other countries, in many German universities, professors publish their lecture notes in printed form for the students to purchase. While the students pay for these notes, the profits do not go to the professor, but to the research group of the instructor. This money can then be used for various purposes, including paying for undergraduate tutors who assist students in learning the material.</p>\n\n<p>I believe this is a reasonable compromise: nobody personally profits, yet the purchasing of the notes does actually leads to community benefits (in the sense that the money is used to help support students at the university).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15154,
"author": "NickNo",
"author_id": 10308,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10308",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Yes,</p>\n\n<p>It is not only completely ethical but should be mandatory. Your ultimate goal is to pass on your knowledge to your students, and what better way to do that than by using the textbook you wrote just for that specific purpose. </p>\n\n<p>There must have been a reason why you wrote it in the first place - something was missing, or was glossed over, or poorly explained so you decided that you can contribute something to create a better product for students to use. </p>\n\n<p>The student benefits twice as much since if there are questions or something isn't clear, bamm, here is the author in front of them to clarify some point. You also get valuable feedback so that your next edition will be of even greater use to the student.</p>\n\n<p>Clearup: </p>\n\n<p>It would only be unethical if the professor asks the students to buy directly from them , or force the student to purchase from a specific website using an affiliate code. As long as the student is given freedom of choice as to where the textbook is purchased new or used, it would be ethical to force students to buy a textbook written by the professor teaching the class. </p>\n\n<p>It would only be unethical for a professor who strongly believes in some derivative of the teachings of Socialism. If the walls in the professor's office are adored with autographed photos of every former member of the politburo or they spend half the class defending the economic theories of Karl Marx (even though the subject they teach is Chemistry), then it would be unethical for them to charge their students for a textbook while preaching the spirit of camaraderie and international brotherhood of the proletariat. </p>\n\n<p>Otherwise its perfectly ethical for a professor to profit from a textbook they created for the benefit of both the professor and the student. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15155,
"author": "Carl Witthoft",
"author_id": 10309,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10309",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I've run across this problem from the student side several times (and I was a college student in the prehistoric 1970s). Profit motive aside, I generally observed that professors who used someone else's book were more likely to comment on weaknesses in the text and alternative proofs or derivations. It's one of those internal bias things, in that no matter how good a teacher and writer you are, you're going to be unlikely to recognize defects in your own work or style.</p>\n\n<p>So my recommendation would be to make your book available but make sure to have at least one other text incorporated into the class.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15158,
"author": "jrminter",
"author_id": 10313,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10313",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In the dark ages when I was in school, several professors used lecture notes that they sold to students for the cost of duplication. I'm guessing it would be difficult to get the publisher to supply them to the bookstore at a price without royalties, so I think your idea of pizza for the class is a good way to remove the appearance of a conflict of interest. You could also offer an \"error bounty\" to students.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15169,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The answers so far have one or both of the following problems: (1) they ignore the existence of the internet, and (2) they seem to assume that profiting from the book goes hand in hand with assigning the book.</p>\n\n<p>Today, there is a very simple and obvious solution for any professor in this situation with a shred of ethical fiber. The professor writes the book on a computer. Therefore the book is on a computer in machine-readable form and can be distributed electronically to the professor's own students, for free. There is no excuse for not doing so.</p>\n\n<p>Typically the professor starts by writing lecture notes and distributing to the students. As time goes on, the lecture notes start looking like a book. At this point the professor has various options, some of which are: (a) simply continue to use the book internally; (b) make the book publicly available in digital form only, for free; (c) look for a publisher.</p>\n\n<p>In case c, the publisher is going to sink a certain amount of money into the book. For example, they may need to pay a professional illustrator, and they will certainly do some editorial work. The publisher will also ask for an exclusive contract. In the negotiations leading up to signing a contract, it's the professor's responsibility to negotiate something that allows the book to be distributed to the professor's own students free of charge. Often publishers will allow this, but they will only allow it on the version of the ms that was purely the professor's work. In fact, the publisher may have paid photo services to use stock photos, which are licensed under conditions that require the service to be paid a certain royalty per copy. The end result of this scenario is then typically that the professor continues to distribute a bare-bones version for free (possibly just to the professor's own students, possibly to the world at large).</p>\n\n<p>Here are a couple of real-world examples:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Carroll, Lecture Notes on General Relativity. His bare-bones version is publicly available here: <a href=\"http://ned.ipac.caltech.edu/level5/March01/Carroll3/Carroll_contents.html\" rel=\"noreferrer\">http://ned.ipac.caltech.edu/level5/March01/Carroll3/Carroll_contents.html</a></p></li>\n<li><p>Steane, Relativity Made Relatively Easy. His bare-bones version is available on a public university server, but is not linked to from his faculty web page. Presumably he tells his students the URL.</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The publisher is motivated only by profit. Some publishers may refuse to negotiate this kind of deal; the ethical author then has to look for another publisher. The publisher wants to make sure the book earns out their investment in it, and one way they have of doing that is to make sure there will be some significant number of sales at the author's institution. The author has to say, \"OK, but for ethical reasons we still need to give my students the free digital option.\" Finally, the publisher will want to price the book at the price that exactly optimizes their profits. This price will typically be extremely exploitative, e.g., $150 for a book used for one semester, or $200 for a book used in a multi-semester sequence. The author may or may not have any say in pricing. (JeffE's comment indicates that it can be negotiated in some cases.) The publisher's nefarious calculation of the optimally profitable price is predicated on the assumption that they can force the students to pay that price. Any competing option (used books, a free bare-bones version, ...) reduces the probability that a given student will pay the suggested retail price. Again, the author has to push back, and say, \"Yes, I know it may cut into profits a little, but for ethical reasons I need to make the bare-bones available for free, at least to my own students.\"</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15170,
"author": "Luta V",
"author_id": 10303,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10303",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>Unethical</strong></p>\n\n<p>I think it is unethical to profit by having students buy your textbook because you're their lecturer and they expect you to inform them and provide them with some useful resources for learning. The students also usually get a bad feeling when you keep recommending your book unless it was vote one of the best to use in tackling the given subject. I don't know/understand how you may be able to provide other books to your students at no cost while you provide your book at a cost. It looks fishy. If you feel that you can't give each student a copy of the book then you can recommend the university to buy the books so as to restock the library or you can offer your own copy or a single donated copy strictly for class use. This depends on the number of students you're dealing with and how often they have to use the book.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Ethical</strong></p>\n\n<p>In a case where you had published the book before meeting the students, you're allowed to sell the book to them at the market price or you may subsidize it for your students. </p>\n\n<p><strong>Logic</strong></p>\n\n<p>Its always difficult to teach using your book especially when you reach a point where there are few discrepancy from other books. In the process of defending your ideas from the book, you may end up being seen as superior, dictator, rigid etc.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15172,
"author": "bobobobo",
"author_id": 2745,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2745",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is only unethical to force your students to buy your text if you believe your text to be suboptimal, subpar, and inferior quality to other textbooks that are available. In short, if you look at your text and say \"well, we really should use <em>that</em> one\", then yes it is unethical to force your students to buy what you believe to be an inferior learning tool, just because you wrote it.</p>\n\n<p>If however, you think your text is the bee's knees, it is the shiznet, and you are the best author and authority to ever cover the subject, <strong><em>then it would be unethical not to use your text.</em></strong> You can't go around giving free copies, that is cheating the publisher. And why in hell else did you write it, if not to be used by precisely your students for <em>your</em> class?</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16026,
"author": "cbeleites unhappy with SX",
"author_id": 725,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/725",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Short answer: I think it is neither ethical nor good (in terms of education, independent of ethics) to force students to use your textbook.</p>\n\n<p>(Assuming that we are talking about a \"normal\" lecture, as opposed to a workshop about your book.)</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>Long answer: I see 3 different (but connected) difficulties here. None of them needs to be a problem, but together, they can trap the students. </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p><strong>requiring a particular textbook</strong>: to me this is less of an ethical problem if it doesn't boil down to forcing the students to buy that particular book.<br>\nNevertheless, I think it preferable from an education point of view to teach students that they left the kind of school where exactly one solution exists, and now they are in a world with lots of sensible alternatives. Giving recommendations* (plural!), IMHO it is a most important point to make that the library holds even more useful books [also on that topic].</p></li>\n<li><p>more or less <strong>forcing students to buy a textbook</strong> </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>(Recall that the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lecture#History\">origin of \"lecture\" is that a (text)book was <em>read</em> to the students</a>. So historically, the lecture was a solution to the problem that books were too expensive for students to buy.)</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>I don't see why buying the textbook is necessary. Even if book and lecture are (naturally) close. </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I might assign readings or homework problems from the book, so that the student needs access to the book in order to do them</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Why would that be:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Is is that difficult to prepare a slide of the homework problem which is displayed at the end of the lecture or a pdf that can be downloaded?</li>\n<li>Reading: I have to say that at university I've never experienced assigned reading from a textbook. So my question to you is: is it really necessary to assign reading chapter 7.4 as opposed to assign preparing the principles of pH electrodes? Also, I've seen reading materials for download.</li>\n<li><p>Making small parts of the book available to the students is probably possible even if the contract with the publisher doesn't let you distribute pdfs to the students. At least, e.g. in Germany, it is even possible to hand small parts from any book (not only yours!) to the class for teaching purposes.</p></li>\n<li><p>For the self-study aspect of the textbook, there is the textbook collection of the library. The university libraries I know have sensible numbers of the important textbooks to be borrowed by the students plus a number of copies that stay in the library so they are always accessible. Are the books there really not sufficient? If so, why not? Why are the important books not there? How can books be bought?\n(How to get <em>your</em> book into the collection is part of the next point:)</p></li>\n</ul></li>\n<li><p><strong>Possible conflict of interest because it is <em>your own</em> textbook</strong>.\nThis is the interesting part. But, if you take care of the first two problems, there is already <em>much</em> less space for an actual conflict of interest (≈ a real problem for the students) here.<br>\nOr, taking another point of view, I perceive taking unfair advantage of the position*** as a <em>symptom</em> of (un)ethical behaviour which is closely bound to the whole character. In that I perceive it less of a single problem that is solved or not by a particular line of action on this point but rather a problem that appears with some people and not with others.<br>\nIn yet other words, people who take advantage of their position tend to do that in more ways than just this (e.g. in the combination of my three points - at which point @JeffE probably recommends to run). The formal action of not requiring their own textbook doesn't help much. Students will conclude from the general reputation/perception of taking unfair advantage that the book is required - whether it is stated openly or not. </p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>I guess it is one of the topics where those who do worry whether what they do is ethical are the ones who don't need to <em>worry</em> (because they do act ethically) - it would be far more important that those who don't would start to worry...</p>\n\n<p>Whether to donate copies of your own textbook to the library, \nmake a donation that reimburses the library for your royalties, or \nconvince the library to buy it like any other book, and/or \nwhether and how you want to reimburse students \nis IMHO unanswerable as a general question.\nI think valid points can be made for and against** each of the options here.</p>\n\n<p>Good and sensible decisions will depend a lot on the particular circumstances and even more on the personality of the professor.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>Side note: </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Or, use my royalty earnings to buy pizza for the class.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I object to this option on the following ethical grounds: If my problem is that I'm too poor to buy textbooks, I don't want to spend money on pizza but would rather like to save that money towards the next textbook. </p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>* A professor <em>not</em> recommending his own textbook sounds about as convincing to me as a vegetarian running a sausage factory. </p>\n\n<p>** Here's the advocatus diaboli against each of the points:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Donating books to the library? Someone is buying fame!</li>\n<li>Reimbursing the royalties - same as above, but more greedy (or the one above was more desperate for fame...)</li>\n<li>Convinced some committee to buy the books? Surely there is a textbook-buying circle emerging: You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. </li>\n<li>reimbursing students who buy the book: that's an obvious attempt to whitewash the reputation</li>\n<li>and so on</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>*** As long as you do not take advantage of your situation, the conflict of interest is at most <em>your</em> problem (i.e. you are worried). If you take unfair advantage, the students have a problem.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 52713,
"author": "Raphael",
"author_id": 1419,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1419",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I want to add a few options that make selling your book and making your students use it entirely fair.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Make sure your books will sell for a good price ($30, not $150).</li>\n<li>Give a decent amount of author copies to your local library.</li>\n<li>Make sure that the ebook version is available for free via your local library (this may be easy if your library has a subscription of your publisher).</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Pick at least two.</p>\n\n<p>Stronger options that may or may not be possible for you with your chosen publisher (arguably, you should find a suitable one):</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Retain the right to electronic publication, and offer a free version for download.</li>\n<li>Sell students prints of your book (maybe chapter by chapter) at cost.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 96565,
"author": "Fomite",
"author_id": 118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/118",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Since this is a hypothetical, I'll note that I had a professor who included in his contract for the book an agreement for 15 copies of the book every other year (he taught a small upper-level undergraduate class) that were given to his enrolled students to avoid this problem.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 178313,
"author": "Scott Seidman",
"author_id": 20457,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/20457",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I don't think this is unethical, but there certainly is a conflict of interest. As with any other conflict of interest, it should be disclosed and managed. My recommendation for such a situation would be to take it to your chair, let them know you would like to come up with a management plan for a conflict of interest, and the the chair drive from that point on.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/28 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15136",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1010/"
]
|
15,159 | <p>About a month ago, when the deadlines for applying for postdoc positions at math at the US were approaching, I applied for several research universities via mathjobs.</p>
<p>In the time that passed since, I made a new discovery, and am now in the last stages of writing a paper about it.</p>
<p>Obviously, once the paper will be uploaded to the arXiv, my application will be improved.</p>
<p>However, for that to happen, I must update my c.v and my publication list, to include the new paper.</p>
<p>To do this in mathjobs, I will need to "reapply". Given that deadlines passed, will this be a good idea? Can reapplying now with my new c.v and my new publication list harm my application because of deadline issues?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15161,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
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"selected": true,
"text": "<p>As I understand it, \"reapply\" is merely a technical term in mathjobs and this should cause no problems. See, for example, the statement \"Update (re-apply) applications as many times as you like, or whenever you have new info to add\" in <a href=\"http://www.mathjobs.org/help/mathjobs/misc/flow.html\">MathJobs Workflow & Features</a>. I don't know why mathjobs uses the term \"reapply,\" which certainly has the potential to cause confusion. I can't guarantee that nobody will hold it against you, but I'd be very surprised if anyone did (and I think it would be a big mistake on their part).</p>\n\n<p>Updating your application may not be enough if it has already been read. I'd recommend also e-mailing key people you would like to work with to let them know about your new paper once it is on the arXiv. Of course you shouldn't spam large numbers of people, but sending out an announcement is perfectly appropriate if you restrict it to people who would genuinely like to hear about the paper for mathematical reasons, and not just as an advertisement for hiring you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16019,
"author": "nagniemerg",
"author_id": 11084,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11084",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I have had several of my pre-prints be submitted in the flurry of activity between job application and the last few months. I haven't decided if it's still reasonable to re-submit or not . . . </p>\n\n<p>I do know, or at least, this has been my own experience, that there is something funky going on in the mathjobs database on 'submission' dates and 'updated' dates.</p>\n\n<p>I've had one application that I know that I had sent in by the deadline (I have an email from mathjobs indicating that all my material had been submitted) on such and such a date, but then when I highlight the little info image next to the job on the status page, it is several days afterwards.</p>\n\n<p>I know that I did not un-apply for the position (as it was one of my top 5 post doc choices ), but I did do an update of the application, at some point (change some of the preprints to submitted).</p>\n\n<p>I've only heard from two places so far (post-doc wise) on interviews. I'm really not going to start sweating until a bit after the coordinated deadline, but it's not fun when it's all up in the air and you have no idea.</p>\n\n<p>Actually, quick q and I'll probably run this by my advisor, but would it be appropriate to indicate the mathjobs fubar in the database to the school of interest? I just don't want that to be the deciding factor for a position to be submission of materials on time or not, especially considering the mathjobs system is just plain wrong (and I can prove it)!</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/28 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15159",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9656/"
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|
15,162 | <p>So we are all fans of some professor at some stage of academia. </p>
<p>If I see one in an upcoming conference/workshop, <strong>should I ask them to sign a paper that they wrote as it's also one of my favorite papers?</strong> (I'm sure I'm not the only one who brings a paper that someone else wrote when I know they will come for the conference/workshop).</p>
<p><strong>How would you respond if you were the Prof asked to sign the paper?</strong></p>
<p><strong>Has anyone done the same before?</strong></p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15163,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Just ask! In the past, before electronic publishing, one had to ask for physical reprints from authors. They usually signed them with a nice greeting, sometimes a signature, and occasionally nothing. I have sent reprints to other upon request and always with a signed greeting because I appreciate the request. I have a hard time seeing anyone being offended by it although an eyebrow may be raised by the request since it is now quite unusual. But it is a good way to strike up a conversation and contact the person. Personally I would try to approach the person away from an \"audience\" in order to not interrupt and have a real chance to state why you admire the work (person). I am sure some might say no but I would not be offended if someone asked me, not that I see it happening to me any-time soon.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 20207,
"author": "Jhz832",
"author_id": 14804,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/14804",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would do that. It's no harm and most professors would be happy to sign it for you. But if you could go with his most representative book as well, that would be perfect. After all, signing a published book is quite normal and formal activity than signing on a self-printed paper.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 20227,
"author": "Anonymous",
"author_id": 11565,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11565",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I knew a friend who approached Dr. X, the author of a notoriously challenging math book with a huge number of difficult exercises. He asked Dr. X to sign his copy of the book.</p>\n\n<p>Dr. X took and inspected the copy. The spine was undamaged, the pages were pristine, the book was in like new condition. Dr. X smiled and returned the book. \"Read it first, then come ask me again!\"</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 20293,
"author": "Ri49",
"author_id": 12609,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/12609",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Should you go and ask, you probably don't run a big risk of anything really unpleasant happening, as other answers point out (except in the context of @Anonymous' answer!). </p>\n\n<p>However, I would feel uncomfortable asking such a thing and here is why. By asking for an autograph, you are in effect behaving as a fanboy/fangirl <em>rather than a peer (a colleague and possible coworker)</em>. I don't see that this is the way you want to bring your existence to light to an admired professor. </p>\n\n<p>So, sure, if your goal is to get a professor to sign her name on a paper, go ahead and ask. But if you considered this mostly as an opportunity to establish contact with the said professor, I'm sure there are other ways which do not involve humbling yourself before someone you would likely rather impress.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 20296,
"author": "Ben Webster",
"author_id": 13,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/13",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>While I think @Ri49 mostly hit the nail on the head, I just wanted to add: I think I would find it a little discomfiting to be on the receiving end of such a request. Maybe the prof in question has gotten used to being a celebrity, but if you don't know him or her, then it will be hard to judge how such a request will seem to them. When you set up an interaction in this way, not only are you not engaging with them as a professional, you're making it harder for them to engage with you as a professional. I think it would be much better to tell them that you've learned a lot from their work, and ask an intelligent followup question, or say something about how your work has followed up on theirs.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 67204,
"author": "Mark Joshi",
"author_id": 29181,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/29181",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I have signed a lot of copies of my books to the point some of colleagues used to joke about \"having rare unsigned copies.\" If someone has bothered to buy a copy, why not sign it? This is particularly so now that illegal downloads are widely available. </p>\n\n<p>I have never been asked to sign a copy of my one of my papers and I would think it a bit odd. </p>\n\n<p>I was asked just for an autograph and I just said \"no, I don't do autographs.\" I thought it strange. </p>\n\n<p>(for context, I am well-known in financial mathematics but not outside of it.)</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/28 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15162",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5809/"
]
|
15,175 | <p>I will be a postdoc in the coming academic year. While I have not decided on where I will be in September, it seems likely that I will be a research postdoc at a decent research university.</p>
<p>An aspect of a life as a postdoc that I had never considered before is the following: what is your social life outside of academia like as a postdoc?</p>
<p>As a PhD student, I had a very tight group of friends; we were friends from day 1 in graduate school, and that friendship continued throughout. Our friendship strengthened by going through many difficult classes together, staying up all night finishing homework, and studying for quals together, not to mention talking about how much it blows to be a PhD student, and worrying about the job market.</p>
<p>I feel that I will not have this privilege as a postdoc. We are all there to do our jobs (i.e. research), and I do not see building the same kind of camaraderie amongst the newly-hired postdocs, for these reasons:</p>
<ul>
<li>there are no excuses to spend a ton of time with one another (no homework, no quals to study for, etc.)</li>
<li>we will likely have different research areas, and possibly have nothing in common to talk about in terms of academics.</li>
<li>there are way fewer postdocs than there are graduate students. I would be lucky to have maybe three or four other postdocs hired with me by my department. Maybe we would get along, maybe we would not. I do not have the luxury of choosing the people that I like anymore.</li>
<li>at least some postdocs must have family. I have found that married people are less likely to yearn for a close friendship. This narrows down the possibilities for friends even more (not that I would discriminate against married people, but they often dissociate themselves from, say, a late-night out of fun).</li>
</ul>
<p>I would love to hear from the people who hold (or held) research postdoc positions from PhD granting institutions. I feel that teaching postdocs would give different answers, as you would meet more often to discuss teaching.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15181,
"author": "Faheem Mitha",
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"text": "<p>My limited experience of postdoc life is that there can be plenty of camaraderie; it just depends. I certainly hung out with the other postdocs, got invited to their homes, met their families, at least to a limited extent. So, yes, there is some bonding</p>\n\n<p>In some ways it is not that different from grad student life. While a postdoc is more like a regular job, and I think everyone likes the fact that you are not as dirt poor as a grad student, you also spend time commiserating with each other about the crappiness of the job and worrying about the job market. Depending on who you are working for, you may also spend time complaining about the boss (or bosses). Since postdocs on average last a shorter time, one is liable to see people come and go even more frequently than in grad school, which does make it more difficult to have longer term friendships.</p>\n\n<p>Having said all this, it is probably a good idea to find other people besides those you work with to hang out with. This is true of any job, of course. One suggestion - go dancing!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15182,
"author": "xLeitix",
"author_id": 10094,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10094",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>The <em>special</em> thing for you coming out of (what seems) a pretty demanding grad school time is that being a postdoc is not so special at all. In most ways, being a postdoc is not unlike any other time-demanding job. You come to work in the morning, spend most of your day there, and, in the evening (whenever that is, time-wise), you will more often than not go back to your home and stay there to relax a bit. You bond with your co-workers, but usually more in an \"acquaintance\" than in a \"friends-for-life\" way.</p>\n\n<p>Anyway, it seems to me that you are thinking that you can only hang out with people on your academic \"level\". This has never been my personal experience at all. In all my work places, grad students often hang out privately with the postdocs that they work with, and many of the younger faculty staff often join in for ad-hoc parties as well. I guess it is all a question of how you want to appear towards your junior work mates. There are people that see fit to construct an image of aloofness towards their students, and others like to mingle. Nothing wrong with either, of course, as long as your work relationship stays reasonably professional.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15297,
"author": "penelope",
"author_id": 4249,
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"text": "<p>Great answers here. Looks like all the answers are US-based (from what little I know about US academia)... so let me add how it looks like from a perspective of a <em>European research lab</em>.</p>\n\n<p>Note that I say <em>research lab</em> because the association to the Uni is really very loose, mostly meaning rarely who is attending classes at the uni. It is a fairly big lab, and very transitional (not many people stay long). It comprises people that are:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>PhD students (some of whom have a class or two to TA) staying for 3-4 years</li>\n<li>Master interns (staying for 4-6 months) and PhD exchanges (staying up to at most a year)</li>\n<li>postdocs (staying for a year, to at most two)</li>\n<li>engineers (staying for anywhere between 6 months and 2 years)</li>\n<li>permanent positions (researchers + professors)</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>None of us have classes together, there is many areas of computer science in the lab so most of us don't even share deadlines. As I mentioned, it's a transition place where a lot of people come and go very fast. Still <em>the social life is quite fine</em>. We <strong>meet on smoke breaks, coffee breaks, through officemates, through friends, ex uni buddies, cause somebody hears the accent of his nationality...</strong> I have a pretty active social life, at any point the group of friends I go out with is between 5 and 10 people. Some postdocs, some PhD students (both in their last years and just starting), an odd Master student on an internship, some engineers. Some people have teams that are much more involved, so they have team-nights-out, and I've heard of young supervisors inviting their students to social dinners.</p>\n\n<p>One of the hardest parts for me is the fast pace of change: the group of people I went out a year ago has hardly anybody in common with right now. It doesn't mean that there weren't some nice friendships, but it's so easy to lose contact. Still, I also feel that I made some friends-for-life as well. A lot of different ways also exist for meeting people outside of work, such as dancing, language classes, evenings organized in town for foreign \"students\"...</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 88239,
"author": "Fomite",
"author_id": 118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/118",
"pm_score": 2,
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"text": "<p>I think you're making some unfounded assumptions in your question.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>what is your social life outside of academia like as a postdoc?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>When you ask this question, you then immediately turned <em>back</em> to academia. Your social life as a postdoc is, in many ways, whatever you want it to be. For example, a great deal of <em>my</em> social life outside of academia was a local group devoted to my hobby.</p>\n\n<p>To address a few other points you make:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>There may be fewer postdocs, but there is no reason your social life is restricted to this \"tier\". As I mentioned above, most of my social life was with non-academics, or at least non-academics in my particular lab/institute. I made friends with some of the faculty. With a few of the graduate students. With the research staff. There is no clubhouse with \"Postdocs Only!\" written in Sharpie that you need to rely on.</li>\n<li>\"There are no excuses to spend a ton of time with one another\" - You're assuming this is true, but it's not necessarily true. I will say that, in my own personal experience, the most intensive time I spent in contact with other researchers was indeed during my postdoc, and there were some friendships formed \"in the trenches\".</li>\n<li>\"possibly have nothing in common to talk about in terms of academics.\" There is the commonality of <em>being</em> an academic. Insane PIs. Funding lines being universally horrible. Anxiety about finding a job afterward. Reviewer #2's asinine comments...</li>\n<li>\"I do not have the luxury of choosing the people that I like anymore.\" Yes, you do. It's called making friends. They just don't have to be postdocs.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Literally the most social I have ever been in my life was as a postdoc.</p>\n"
}
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| 2013/12/29 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15175",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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]
|
15,185 | <p>I've just started reading papers about speech recognition and algorithms on medium sized graphs (~800,000 nodes and 4,400,000 edges with some connected text data). I think a problem of these papers is quite often, that it is difficult to check the experimental results. It is difficult to check them because of two reasons:</p>
<ol>
<li>The source code that was used to generate the results is not (publicly) available</li>
<li>The data is either not at all available or it is not clear which version of the data was used</li>
</ol>
<p>When I start writing papers, I would like to make it easier to check the results. </p>
<p>The first problem is easy to solve: I can simply provide the source code (e.g. on GitHub or my personal web space).</p>
<p>The second problem seems to be much harder to solve. The data is often quite big (speech recognition: several GB; graphs: about 2GB). This is too much to upload it on my personal webspace / GitHub.</p>
<p>How can I show which data I'm using in my paper? (Currently I give a link to the data source and note the data when I've downloaded it. Additionally, I note the date/version of the source if possible.)</p>
<p>Are there projects that try to solve this issue? (e.g. by providing space for important / interesting projects like <a href="http://dblp.uni-trier.de/">dblp</a>, a version history and good download speeds)</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15181,
"author": "Faheem Mitha",
"author_id": 285,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/285",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My limited experience of postdoc life is that there can be plenty of camaraderie; it just depends. I certainly hung out with the other postdocs, got invited to their homes, met their families, at least to a limited extent. So, yes, there is some bonding</p>\n\n<p>In some ways it is not that different from grad student life. While a postdoc is more like a regular job, and I think everyone likes the fact that you are not as dirt poor as a grad student, you also spend time commiserating with each other about the crappiness of the job and worrying about the job market. Depending on who you are working for, you may also spend time complaining about the boss (or bosses). Since postdocs on average last a shorter time, one is liable to see people come and go even more frequently than in grad school, which does make it more difficult to have longer term friendships.</p>\n\n<p>Having said all this, it is probably a good idea to find other people besides those you work with to hang out with. This is true of any job, of course. One suggestion - go dancing!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15182,
"author": "xLeitix",
"author_id": 10094,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10094",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>The <em>special</em> thing for you coming out of (what seems) a pretty demanding grad school time is that being a postdoc is not so special at all. In most ways, being a postdoc is not unlike any other time-demanding job. You come to work in the morning, spend most of your day there, and, in the evening (whenever that is, time-wise), you will more often than not go back to your home and stay there to relax a bit. You bond with your co-workers, but usually more in an \"acquaintance\" than in a \"friends-for-life\" way.</p>\n\n<p>Anyway, it seems to me that you are thinking that you can only hang out with people on your academic \"level\". This has never been my personal experience at all. In all my work places, grad students often hang out privately with the postdocs that they work with, and many of the younger faculty staff often join in for ad-hoc parties as well. I guess it is all a question of how you want to appear towards your junior work mates. There are people that see fit to construct an image of aloofness towards their students, and others like to mingle. Nothing wrong with either, of course, as long as your work relationship stays reasonably professional.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15297,
"author": "penelope",
"author_id": 4249,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4249",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Great answers here. Looks like all the answers are US-based (from what little I know about US academia)... so let me add how it looks like from a perspective of a <em>European research lab</em>.</p>\n\n<p>Note that I say <em>research lab</em> because the association to the Uni is really very loose, mostly meaning rarely who is attending classes at the uni. It is a fairly big lab, and very transitional (not many people stay long). It comprises people that are:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>PhD students (some of whom have a class or two to TA) staying for 3-4 years</li>\n<li>Master interns (staying for 4-6 months) and PhD exchanges (staying up to at most a year)</li>\n<li>postdocs (staying for a year, to at most two)</li>\n<li>engineers (staying for anywhere between 6 months and 2 years)</li>\n<li>permanent positions (researchers + professors)</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>None of us have classes together, there is many areas of computer science in the lab so most of us don't even share deadlines. As I mentioned, it's a transition place where a lot of people come and go very fast. Still <em>the social life is quite fine</em>. We <strong>meet on smoke breaks, coffee breaks, through officemates, through friends, ex uni buddies, cause somebody hears the accent of his nationality...</strong> I have a pretty active social life, at any point the group of friends I go out with is between 5 and 10 people. Some postdocs, some PhD students (both in their last years and just starting), an odd Master student on an internship, some engineers. Some people have teams that are much more involved, so they have team-nights-out, and I've heard of young supervisors inviting their students to social dinners.</p>\n\n<p>One of the hardest parts for me is the fast pace of change: the group of people I went out a year ago has hardly anybody in common with right now. It doesn't mean that there weren't some nice friendships, but it's so easy to lose contact. Still, I also feel that I made some friends-for-life as well. A lot of different ways also exist for meeting people outside of work, such as dancing, language classes, evenings organized in town for foreign \"students\"...</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 88239,
"author": "Fomite",
"author_id": 118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/118",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think you're making some unfounded assumptions in your question.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>what is your social life outside of academia like as a postdoc?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>When you ask this question, you then immediately turned <em>back</em> to academia. Your social life as a postdoc is, in many ways, whatever you want it to be. For example, a great deal of <em>my</em> social life outside of academia was a local group devoted to my hobby.</p>\n\n<p>To address a few other points you make:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>There may be fewer postdocs, but there is no reason your social life is restricted to this \"tier\". As I mentioned above, most of my social life was with non-academics, or at least non-academics in my particular lab/institute. I made friends with some of the faculty. With a few of the graduate students. With the research staff. There is no clubhouse with \"Postdocs Only!\" written in Sharpie that you need to rely on.</li>\n<li>\"There are no excuses to spend a ton of time with one another\" - You're assuming this is true, but it's not necessarily true. I will say that, in my own personal experience, the most intensive time I spent in contact with other researchers was indeed during my postdoc, and there were some friendships formed \"in the trenches\".</li>\n<li>\"possibly have nothing in common to talk about in terms of academics.\" There is the commonality of <em>being</em> an academic. Insane PIs. Funding lines being universally horrible. Anxiety about finding a job afterward. Reviewer #2's asinine comments...</li>\n<li>\"I do not have the luxury of choosing the people that I like anymore.\" Yes, you do. It's called making friends. They just don't have to be postdocs.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Literally the most social I have ever been in my life was as a postdoc.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/29 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15185",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4092/"
]
|
15,193 | <p>Dr. A came to Dr. B asking for research ideas. Dr. B gave him a thesis, explained its value, why it's plausible, and how to test it. Dr. A liked this, got Student C to do the work, and managed the work.</p>
<p>Now, it's time to publish their results. How should they determine the lead authorship?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15194,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is no easy answer. Providing an idea is certainly a good part of research but performing experiments, interpreting results and writing up the paper (discussion) are equally important (by equal I do not mean they are worth exactly the same, just important). There are several ways in which one can discuss the order based on evaluating the value of each component of the research process and then evaluate each persons contribution on each of these components. There have been a few posts (not necessarily in their entirety relevant to your question) here that discusses <em>contributorship</em> which I will not reiterate here. Please check the following (particularly links in the answers):</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/13946/4394\">Paper contributions and first authorship</a></p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/12264/4394\">How should a student defend his 1st authorship in front of his advisor politely and effectively?</a></p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/14428/4394\">Authorship for paper based on my thesis</a></p>\n\n<p>The point here is that none of the different aspects are alone enough for first authorship so one must weigh all components involved in the research process. It is of course harder to accomplish this \"after the fact\" but if all involved agree to try I am sure you can come up with a good author order.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15195,
"author": "order",
"author_id": 10365,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10365",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Dr. A was a wise man, a negotiated such things when asking for the research ideas? :-)</p>\n\n<p>Well, if B is more senior than A, then in most fields the order would be C, A, B. First authorship goes to the student, who did the most work. Last authorship goes to the most senior researcher. Then, the only position left for A is the second authorship. (Assuming for example that C is a grad student, A is a post-doc or something, and B is a professor).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15198,
"author": "Trylks",
"author_id": 7571,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7571",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The description is quite vague.</p>\n\n<p>If I read the paper and I have questions about it, who should I ask?</p>\n\n<p>That should be the first author and in most cases this will fit with the description of C.</p>\n\n<p>The ideas of B are indeed important, but in most cases this is overlooked and underestimated. If B didn't publish his ideas or did anything about them, then A could claim he had the same ideas, and B only stated the evident (I have seen this many times). More often than not, the role of B is to appear in the acknowledgements of the paper, or not to appear at all, because the conversation between A and B may be considered either:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>as a personal favor</li>\n<li>an informal or non-profesional conversation</li>\n<li>some mentoring or help that is to be thanked but not part of the paper</li>\n<li>a combination of several of the above or other gray areas of not-real involvement in the paper and the \"real work\".</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Basically B gave his advice as a gift to A, and now A has to decide whether this gift is to be returned or not. If it is returned then probably B will be the second author, if it is not returned, then B will not be an author. This basically depends on how A sees B, he may be an ally, an asset, a friend, a superior, a rival, an enemy, an annoyance...</p>\n\n<p>I have discarded the option of B being the third author because I'm assuming A is more senior than B, if B is more senior than A then B should be the third and not the second author, this would also mean that B has more chances to appear as a coauthor. The reason is that the order from first to last author means the involvement in the work and the paper, but also on low-level work, while the last author is in the highest-level work, most abstract, theoretical, general, long-term-visioned, etc. Therefore the most senior is set to the last (even if someone else was less involved but involved enough to appear) to avoid suspicion on a less senior researcher (aka lesser being) giving high-level advice to a more senior researcher.</p>\n\n<p>Most of the time the focus, the stress and the effort is not on how things are, but how do they look like. At least this is what I have seen up until now.</p>\n\n<p>BTW: When I put examples I like to speak about Alex, Bernie, Cory, etc. I think this is easier to follow and I do also think that @order made a mistake between A and B. By your description, A seems to be more senior than B, the kind of senior researcher that manages human resources, that can pay C and that can tell C what to do. If that is the case, I doubt as well about the involvement of A in the paper and the work, while B and A can </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15199,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The lead author should be the person who carries out the bulk of the research work—including the planning, execution, and writing. </p>\n\n<p>If the student C is the one responsible for carrying out the experiments <em>and</em> writing the paper, then C should be considered the primary agent of the paper. </p>\n\n<p>Who should be the \"final\" author is a different matter. I would suspect that this really should be professor B, who had the original idea. The role of doctor A is only as research manager, so his role is nominally weaker than that of either B or C in this process. So, ultimately, barring other negotiations and arrangements to the contrary, it should be:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Student C, Doctor A, Professor B.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>If there is some other distribution of roles beyond what is laid out above, it would need to be negotiated between everybody involved.</p>\n\n<p><em>Note</em>: In fields where lexicographic order is not used, the final author position also carries weight. It usually is the head of the research group or team that originated the project. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15313,
"author": "cbeleites unhappy with SX",
"author_id": 725,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/725",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In addition, there is the possibility of having a paragraph \"Contributions\". Some journals actually ask for such a statement. </p>\n\n<p>If the discussion about the order of authors becomes difficult, this can calm down the discussion, also because writing down who did what often points out the order the authors should have.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/29 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15193",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8075/"
]
|
15,196 | <p>It seems as though everyone in academia is trying to publish <em>stuff</em>, regardless of whether they actually have something meaningful to say. The journals generate more <em>noise</em> every year.
I understand that papers count for promotion and review, they mostly get counted but... There is room to question the actual motivation to publish. </p>
<p><strong>What is your primary reason for publishing?</strong> How much of it is related to making a meaningful contribution to science/knowledge/understanding, and how much is for other reasons/purposes (tenure, CV, fame, pressure, etc.)?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15197,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In the words of Lichtfouse (2013) <em>a research article is above all a communication tool and its purpose is to transfer scientific information from one individual to other individuals</em>.</p>\n\n<p>Publishing a paper is for me the way to show that I am doing research and sharing it with others. But, it is clear that I also am pressured into publishing because promotions and the ability to attract funding relies on publications as a primary evaluation tool. So although I do not publish with the expressed intent of attracting more funding or my own promotions, I am well aware of the spiralling development that is ongoing. I do want to mention that publishing something primarily gives me personally a sense of achievement, that my research is good enough to pass the scrutiny of peers etc. As with, I surmise, mostly everyone else, I thrive from doing a good job and getting a sense of accomplishment. Publishing does that for me.</p>\n\n<p>Whether or not people read my research can be answered by yes and no. Everyone does not read my papers but some who do not should and some who reference my work, really ought to read it, again. On the whole, I think papers get the attention they deserve, some get more and some get less attention than I think is fair. But, since my work gets referenced reasonably often, I think over and under referenced papers average out.</p>\n\n<p>The \"pressure to publish\" is definitely there and I believe that universities and funding agencies should try to improve the way they evaluate research so as to avoid \"salami slicing\" and other types of publishing effects. But, how such a system should look is difficult to say although many indices such as the <em>h-index</em> can be used. Since there are no perfect systems, it is perhaps more important to look at the ethical aspects of publishing and make awareness of and discssion on publishing issues better.</p>\n\n<p>Lichtfouse, E., 2013. Scientific writing for impact factor journals. Nova Publishers, New York.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15200,
"author": "Trylks",
"author_id": 7571,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7571",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>The <strong>first question</strong> is a relatively simple problem.</p>\n\n<p>Researchers have the <strong>utility</strong> of:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>some research being published in some rated venue: which will award them points according to some criteria.</li>\n<li>some research being cited, which will award also points according to some other criteria.</li>\n<li>some research being purchased: which will award some sweet additional income.</li>\n<li>some research being read: which doesn't award any points per se, but helps to create some buzz around it, get cites, funding, etc. This requires the research to be published before.</li>\n<li>\"making a meaningful contribution to science/knowledge/understanding\".</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Look at the last bullet point, the rewards come from the inside of the researchers in that case, no raise, no money, no external reward. This means that if people focus on that too much they may not make any progress in their careers and they may actually fail in the search for funding or even a job. Therefore, successful people will have a strong interest/utility on the other points, the last one may or may not be important for them, but definitively secondary. They may say it's the primary goal, but they won't act like that, or they will fail. I'm an introvert and this sucks, but that is how the system is, it's mathematical.</p>\n\n<p>The points and external rewards are very important. They may be important to finish a MSc or a PhD, to get a post-doc position, a job in industry, a tenured position, a raise, a project, funding, etc. But we are not done yet. They do also have <strong>resources</strong> to get some attention:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>social networks (twitter, linkedIn, etc.)</li>\n<li>blogs</li>\n<li>conferences</li>\n<li>journals</li>\n<li>books</li>\n<li>etc.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Do you remember the last point?, blogs seem to be perfectly suitable to making this kind of contribution, but they are not peer reviewed and they don't award any points, therefore, they are used like twitter. Get buzz, get attention, then link the paper so that people can read it. You can even summarize the paper in the blog so that people can cite it without actually reading it, which is wrong on so many levels that actually some of them cancel each other and happens to be right in some levels, at least IMHO.</p>\n\n<p>Finally have some pieces of <strong>research</strong> that they can split like salami or maybe put together as a compilation to create a book, or they can even try to split, publish in conferences, then put together as a journal, then join with even more stuff and write a book.</p>\n\n<p>So basically in the end researchers try to publish the research using the resources available trying to maximize the utility of their research, effort, time, publications, etc. Those who do it right (not focusing on the last point of the utility) get to do more and more research, and so the academia system works, and so it is driven.</p>\n\n<p>Basically this is a problem of cybernetics. This is an emergent information system that is mostly driven in that way, with those dynamics and that convergence. Maybe we would have a better system if it was explicitly engineered and not emergent, but as usual, the ones that have the most power to change it are the ones that are most favored by the current system. There is always some strength in the stability of the status quo.</p>\n\n<p>About the <strong>second question</strong>, the answer for me is \"no\". I guess that's why I'm here writing with a pseudonym.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15214,
"author": "J.R.",
"author_id": 780,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/780",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Yes, promotion-and-tenure motivations are strong, but it would be misguided to think that such cachet is the sole impetus for publishing. Even if relatively few people read the final result, there's a lot to be said for the publication process: comments from referrees, questions from conference attendees – these provide valuable feedback that can lead to new insights or help you gauge how much your overall research efforts are of interest and use to others in the field. </p>\n\n<p>It's one thing to have a hunch that your research is signficant; it's another to have that verified by selection committees and the peers in your field. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15938,
"author": "h22",
"author_id": 10920,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10920",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>A list of <em>recent</em> publications is the most serious document to prove the competence in science. And, very often, no competence - no job.</p>\n\n<p>A professor that has no publications for several years may at the end lose the position. This is a reasonable requirement, as it forces to stay up to date with the knowledge. Otherwise the quality of teaching would drop because alternative ways of discarding low competence professor (like group of students requiring to replace him) are way more difficult and problematic.</p>\n\n<p>Also, publication is a normal, usual way to recognize the PhD work. It may be possible to get PhD without publications but this is usually understood as a sign of unsuccessful work that puts shadow on both student and supervisor. Nobody wants.</p>\n\n<p>Finally, some systems like European may require a scientist to change the institution periodically, providing mostly temporary positions as long as you are not a professor yet. If you have finished a two year post doctoral position without a paper published, that is the end of you scientific carrier - you will not get the next one. </p>\n\n<p>Unfortunately this also means that scientists try to publish something often even when they could generally work for several more years to make a better publication instead.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15196",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10318/"
]
|
15,203 | <p>What would you call the temporary advisor assigned to a PhD student upon enrolment, who is in charge of the student until the student finds his/her research advisor? "temporary advisor", or "course advisor", or ...? Thanks!</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15206,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
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"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In the program where I currently work, we call such advisors \"academic advisors,\" which makes the distinction with the \"research advisor\" or \"thesis advisor\" fairly obvious.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15207,
"author": "BrenBarn",
"author_id": 9041,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9041",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'd imagine the particular terminology varies from one department to another. I've heard that called a \"provisional\" advisor. In my department you start with a \"provisional committee\" of two people. The provisional advisor is assigned based on the student's research interests, so often they wind up being the \"real\" advisor too, later on.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15208,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The term when I was a first-year PhD student was a \"temporary advisor\". There isn't a huge difference on how you call this person; people on the admission committee have been through graduate school too, and they'll get it. Don't worry on the details too much, and spend more time on the SOP.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15203",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/218/"
]
|
15,210 | <p>This question is for those of you who have been on the hiring committee.</p>
<p>I am wondering if the following scenario could happen.</p>
<p>Applicant X applies to University Y; University Y looks at applicant X's profile, and says "applicant X has very strong records. There is no way University Y is the best applicant X can do; hence we will not offer Applicant X a position (postdoctoral, or TT)"</p>
<p>This seems worrying, because:</p>
<ul>
<li>perhaps applicant X is just so mediocre, that he falls through the crack; University Y turns him down, but universities slightly better than University Y might think that applicant X is not up to their standards.</li>
<li>what if applicant X actually really wanted to go to University Y for personal reasons? Of course, maybe applicant X was hoping for something slightly better than University Y, so maybe he did not contact the department (in case he decides not to go to University Y).</li>
<li>even from the university's perspective, this is fairly complicated: University Y could take a chance and hope that applicant X will accept their offer, but perhaps it is more advantageous to extend the offer to the applicant next on the list instead of applicant X. There is no way of knowing which is the better choice, though.</li>
</ul>
<p>In particular, if such scenario happens, and if I want to prevent the first point, what do I need to do? I am wary of contacting the departments, because should the department be excited about me, and should someone push for my being hired in the hiring committee meeting, then I would feel obligated (to some degree) to accept that offer (even if a better offer comes along), since that someone has advocated on my behalf, on my request.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15213,
"author": "J.R.",
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think the scenario, as you described it, is unlikely to occur. </p>\n\n<p>If a hiring committee felt a candidate could get a job at a more prestigious institution, then I think the candidate would simply be asked up front: \"It seems like you could get hired at a more prestigious institution – why are you applying here?\" Then, the candidate would have a chance to provide an explanation. </p>\n\n<p>If the explanation seemed satisfactory (such as, \"I've always wanted to live in this city,\" or, \"My brother and my nephews live in a nearby town, and I was tired of getting on an airplane every time I wanted to visit,\" for example) then the committee would probably be glad for a chance to hire someone with strong qualifications. </p>\n\n<p>The one time where this may count against the candidate, though, is if the committee suspects this job is being used as a mere \"stepping stone,\" and the committee is hoping to hire someone who will stay for more than a few years. So, if the answer to the question is, \"I eventually want to apply to an Ivy League school, but I felt like a few years here might bolster my chances,\" then I could imagine a committee choosing another qualified candidate with plans to remain on faculty for a longer time. </p>\n\n<p>So, I'd be careful of what you said, and how you worded it, but I'd also advise you to be honest and up front about your motives and intentions.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15225,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>This happens all the time and everywhere. Strategic decisions about who to interview or make offers to are based not just on perceived quality or market value, but also broader considerations of fit. It's an unavoidable part of the job market, and I'm not convinced it's even a bad thing overall, since it makes the job market work much more smoothly and efficiently.</p>\n\n<p>This is a tough issue to resolve as an applicant. There are several reasons why it can be ineffective just to tell the department that you really want to go there:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>They may not believe you. They may suspect you of deliberately exaggerating your likelihood of accepting just in order to get an offer, perhaps so you can use it to help negotiate a better offer elsewhere. (The academic job market is exactly the sort of high stress, high stakes environment that brings out some people's worst sides.) Even if they're convinced you're completely honest, they may feel you'll change your mind once you learn more about your other options, or that if you come you'll end up feeling like you made a mistake and they'll have a bitter, resentful colleague who wants to leave. An applicant who suffers from imposter syndrome may say \"Wow, I'd be thrilled to get an offer from University X, which is the best job I can imagine getting\" but might not remain as thrilled after getting offers from A, B, and C as well.</p></li>\n<li><p>Many reasons you could give may be viewed as kind of insulting. If you explain that you really like the city or want to live near relatives, then it can come across like you are saying \"Sure, your department would otherwise be beneath me, but I'm willing to put up with you for non-academic reasons.\" The department might be willing to hire you even if they think you feel superior, but they won't be happy about it. In order for this to work, you have to be very careful about tone. Two-body problems are widely accepted as an understandable reason, and of course academic reasons can be highly effective, but anything else has the potential for giving a bad impression if you aren't careful.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>So announcing your preferences may not always work. Still, it's really your only option, so it's not worth worrying too much about how it might fail. To put things more positively:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Try to emphasize aspects of the department that excite you, and not just side benefits such as location.</p></li>\n<li><p>It's often more effective if you or a mentor convey this information through personal contacts, rather than just talking with the search committee chair. In particular, hearing from someone senior can add credibility: there have been a number of times I've reassured a department that a student genuinely wanted to work there (and wasn't just confused or suffering from imposter syndrome).</p></li>\n<li><p>If you already have an ostensibly more impressive offer and can say \"I would very likely turn down my offer from University A in favor of a compelling offer from you,\" it carries a lot of weight. At the very least, it eliminates the fear that you don't understand your options. (But say this only if you are quite sure! If there's even a small chance you would choose A after all, then you should make it clear that you have not made a final decision and might change your mind. It's unethical to try to manipulate anyone.)</p></li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15231,
"author": "JeffE",
"author_id": 65,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/65",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>In particular, if such scenario happens, and if I want to prevent the first point, what do I need to do? </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Don't be mediocre.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I am wary of contacting the departments, because should the department be excited about me, and should someone push for my being hired in the hiring committee meeting, then I would feel obligated (to some degree) to accept that offer (even if a better offer comes along), since that someone has advocated on my behalf, on my request.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Good! You <em>should</em> feel obligated.</p>\n\n<p>The most important thing to maintain in this situation is honesty. It's perfectly fine to keep your precise preferences confidential, but <strong>DO. NOT. LIE.</strong> Do not approach faculty to say that you are interested in their department unless you are <em>genuinely</em> interested in their department. Do not ask them to believe you would accept their offer over an offer from MIT or Harvard unless you would <em>actually</em> accept their offer over an offer from MIT or Harvard. Do not tell thirty different departments that you would consider their offer first. Expect that the faculty you contact will also contact your advisor and/or other references and ask for a frank assessment of your priorities. Expect faculty to be distrustful, because they have been burned many times in the past.</p>\n\n<p>Job applications are supposedly confidential, but stories of dishonest behavior do get around, and they follow their perpetrators for <em>years</em>.</p>\n\n<p>On the other hand, being interested in a job is not the same as committing to accepting an offer. If you are genuinely interested, then it is definitely a good idea to communicate your interest to your colleagues in the target department. (Note: not \"contact the <em>department</em>\", but \"contact your <em>colleagues</em>\".) Corner your colleagues at conferences and ask intelligent questions about their department, just as you would in an interview. If you can do so on your own (or your advisor's) dime, offer to visit and give a talk at a research seminar. Don't just <em>say</em> you're interested; <em>act</em> interested.</p>\n\n<p>But do not lie.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15247,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Hiring committees often try and make an offer to a candidates they think will not only accept the job, but stay long term. You also need to remember that for tenure track academic positions, the undergraduate ranking of a university really has little to do with the desirability of the position. It has some affect on the quality of students, but desirability is really about the start up package, teaching load, and benefits (both financial and personal). Ideally your teaching and research statements and cover letter would explain what it is about the department that makes you interested in them.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15210",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
15,212 | <p>Lets assume your GPA is very high, say 3.95 or higher, at both your undergrad and graduate school institutions. I have always included it while applying to summer research programs and internships while still in my PhD program. But this is probably inappropriate on the postdoc market right?</p>
<p><sub>Perhaps this question is somewhat subjective, but, after checking out some other questions on this exchange, I didn't think it was overly subjective.</sub></p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15222,
"author": "Mark Meckes",
"author_id": 101,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/101",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>No (to the question in the title), and yes (to the question in the post). For postdocs no one cares about your grades. They're only interested in the quality of your research.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15224,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Mark Meckes's answer only considers <em>academic</em> postdoctoral positions. In such cases, he is correct: undergraduate and graduate GPA's do not matter.</p>\n\n<p>If you are applying for <strong>non-academic</strong> postdocs, however, the situation is very different. At large research centers—particularly those managed by corporations, such as essentially the entire US Department of Energy laboratory system—hiring is done by corporate employees, and must be approved by several layers of management. Several of the national laboratories even have strict GPA cutoffs for their employees, regardless of the length of time they've been working post-graduation!</p>\n\n<p>Consequently, if you're applying for positions only in academia, then there's no need to include GPA. However, for anything outside of an academic setting, it can actually help to do so.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15212",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8101/"
]
|
15,219 | <p>I am a theoretical computer science PhD student. My childhood friend (my present roommate) is in the 3rd year of his pure mathematics PhD program. Very recently we both worked on a problem on combinatorial geometry and got some interesting results to publish. However both of our dissertation topics are way different from this work, so we don't want to involve our advisors in this matter. This was kind of our joint fun project.
We don't know whether it's academically unethical to publish paper(s) as PhD students without including our advisor(s).</p>
<p>(Note: We have nothing to lose even if they reject our paper right away, but we don't want the editor of the journal to mail the chair about this matter. Maybe I'm thinking too much because I've never done this kind of thing before.) </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15221,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 7,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>There is nothing unethical about publishing something like what you suggest. Personally I would be happy and encourage a student of mine if that happened. So from a formal side you need not to worry. I can add that authorship, or contributorship, does not include adding names to a paper if they have not contributed anything (or enough; see posts on authorship on this, Academia.sx, site). I would, however, be open about it with your advisor. I assume you have a good working relationship with him/her? The only thing that could complicate things would be if you are in a bad working relationship with your advisor or if your system is very hierarchical and not open to initiatives. Clearly only you can assess this. But, I do not want you to over-emphasize these \"risks\". If you get stuff published on your own and in a field that is not directly within your topic, it will only be viewed as a positive in your resume when applying for, for example, post-doctoral positions.</p>\n\n<p>As for risking rejection, I suggest you have someone whose views you trust to read and comment on the paper. Having someone independent look at the work is always good to work out details that can otherwise distract reviewers. This is always a good idea so it is not unique to your case.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15230,
"author": "Irwin",
"author_id": 5944,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5944",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The answer is \"yes\", but many advisors may respond differently to this. I think it depends much more on the advisor than on any established \"academic norm\":</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Advisor might not be happy that you are using up your time for \"trivial pursuits\" on the advisor's grant money when you should be doing \"real work toward your thesis\". (For the record, I would consider this as a bad reason to be unhappy with your students). Often, if you can ensure that the side project doesn't take up that much time, you can mitigate this risk a little.</p></li>\n<li><p>Advisor might be happy that you are independently pursuing projects.</p></li>\n<li><p>Advisor might not want a part of this paper simply because of lack of time/energy but otherwise be happy that you're doing it. This is pretty common, for example, in the case of class projects in which you end up with something that's actually pretty significant and the class professor would like you to help publish it.</p></li>\n<li><p>Advisor might not want you to \"spread yourself out too thin\" later in your PhD career. I've been advised to be careful about coming up and getting involved with too many \"one-shot\" ideas that will never get developed and don't help your overall image. So, for example, if you're in the area of \"program analysis and testing\" (for example), publishing a one-off paper in a venue (maybe \"distributed computing\") that you don't keep up with and won't be remembered in will result in a forgettable, low-impact paper. I think this is more of a risk when students are thinking \"of things to work on\" and aren't really focused or don't have a good idea of a research thread to develop. This is also more of a risk if your academic profile isn't very focused. For example, if you have a bunch of disconnected topics you're more in danger than if you have only one or two side projects in a whole field of papers on your main interest.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>As a note beneath this one, I think most advisors are mostly concerned that their students are \"too distracted\". It's easy to do that as a Ph.D (\"I can explore anything I want!\") - so advisors by nature of their jobs need to make sure that the thesis ends up having focus. Having ideas is a good thing, but putting those ideas into papers is a lot of work. Just to help put a bit of perspective here.</li>\n</ul></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>I am generally in favor though of at least letting your advisor know of \"side projects\" that you're involved in, even class projects, because often they will want to find ways of integrating that into some research work that you can be doing. A good advisor might see a connection between your combinatorial geometry \"side project\" and your main thesis research, for instance. It's also a good idea, in general, to have a tiny amount of breadth across one or more areas as well. It not only generates good ideas, but helps you keep perspective.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15234,
"author": "thkala",
"author_id": 1101,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1101",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Rather than repeat what others have mentioned in their answers, I'd rather touch upon another related issue:</p>\n\n<p><em>In some cases not involving your supervisor also means not involving the institute that you are part of.</em></p>\n\n<p>Apart from the issue of attribution, depending on the specifics this may have legal ramifications, especially if you are receiving funds from a grant. Theoretically, if you have used any resources supplied by your institute, including existing ideas, computing power or your own paid work hours, you may not have sole ownership of the resulting IP. Things may get even more complicated if your co-author is colaborating with a different entity.</p>\n\n<p>You may not need to do anything, you may need to get a waiver of IP rights from your institute or you may have to add something along the lines of a <em>\"This work was supported by...\"</em> snippet. If I were you, I would discuss this with my supervisor, even if only to clarify any such issues...</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 18530,
"author": "user13439",
"author_id": 13439,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/13439",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Is your advisor supporting you, e.g. as an RA? If so, he might be perturbed that you are spending time and energy on something \"way different\" from what you are paid to do. Along the same lines, he may also be intent on your completion of your degree program in a timely manner so that he can free up resources, say for another student to enter the group after you graduate. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 18544,
"author": "Fomite",
"author_id": 118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/118",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The answer is <strong>Yes</strong>, because I did this, and was actively encouraged to do so.</p>\n\n<p>Your supervisor does not own you. If you did some outside work, and you think it's publishable, and your supervisor wasn't involved, the work wasn't building off their lab's work or using their equipment, there's no reason they need to be involved.</p>\n\n<p>Now, you might <em>want</em> to involve them, to get their input, keep them aware of other things you are doing so they can say nice things about the terribly clever projects their students are up to, etc.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 91372,
"author": "WoJ",
"author_id": 15446,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/15446",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I published a few papers in my area and outside this area, while doing my PhD - without my supervisor's name on them.</p>\n\n<p>In the articles in my research area, one was done with some hints from my supervisor and I gave it to him for review (once it was written), with his name as a co-author. He stroke out his name from it and told me </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Do not let your work be diluted by adding people because \"this is expected\". I have my share of papers and do not need one more. You will need this one, and it is your work - not mine.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>As you can imagine, after that the \"thank you\" section sounded like I was announcing our engagement.</p>\n\n<p>In other cases (whether in my field or not), when I was the one thinking it out (or working with otherwise unrelated friends), I/we published under our names without asking anyone.</p>\n\n<p>As a side note - one of the reasons I left the academic world (which is per se wonderful and I have fantastic memories) is the feudal relationship I witnessed, together with the idea that people are slave to \"recommendation letters\". This is certainly a specific case but do not let yourself, at that stage, become obsessed with political correctness.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 185915,
"author": "Deipatrous",
"author_id": 119911,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/119911",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Yes, you can, by all means.</p>\n<p>The thing you both need to discuss with respectively supervisors is the time you spent on this, and convince them that this will not adversely affect your "proper" work with them.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15219",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10373/"
]
|
15,226 | <p>I received three letters of recommendation for applications to this spring semester, but I chose to decline admission for personal/financial reasons. I am now applying for fall admission, and I would like to ask the same professors for letters of recommendation again.</p>
<p>Is it appropriate to request additional letters of recommendations from professors to new universities for the second time? With no other prospects, I need their recommendations in order to be accepted. Should that desperation be included or excluded in the request?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15227,
"author": "Paul Pearson",
"author_id": 6478,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6478",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Writing a letter of recommendation is very time consuming. Submitting or sending a small number of recommendation letters is not very time consuming. If your letter writers still have your letter on file and if minimal changes would need to be made to the letters, then asking them to submit letters on your behalf a second time is a very reasonable request. You should explain to them why you are asking them for another letter, but you do not need to convey desperation. Most recommendation writers are happy to help people in your situation.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15228,
"author": "JeffE",
"author_id": 65,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/65",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<h2>Yes.</h2>\n\n<p>Writing recommendation letters is part of our job as professors. It is perfectly ethical to request that we do our job. </p>\n\n<p>Conveying desperation in your request is neither necessary nor productive. You have nothing to be ashamed of or to apologize for.</p>\n\n<p>On the other hand, anyone can (and should!) turn down your request in good conscience if they feel that they cannot write you a strong recommendation letter. If someone says that they can't write you a strong letter, <em>believe them</em> and ask someone else. You <em>really</em> don't want a weak letter in your file.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/30 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15226",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1252/"
]
|
15,236 | <p>I am still in the process of choosing which major in the SEAS of my school I should pursue.</p>
<p>I want to go into an applied math PhD program after undegrad, so must I choose applied mathematics as my major? Or can I pursue electrical engineering or mechanical engineering? A double major isn't an option.</p>
<p>Any thoughts?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15241,
"author": "JeffE",
"author_id": 65,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/65",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Whatever.</p>\n\n<p>Your major won't matter as much as your demonstrated potential for research in applied mathematics, which you can develop in almost(?) any engineering discipline.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>Note that I did not say that you <em>will automatically</em> develop that potential in any engineering major; I said you <em>can</em>. <strong>Research potential is only incidentally related to your required classes.</strong> But it's considerably easier in engineering than in, say, English literature.</p>\n\n<p>(Off the top of my head, I can think of applied mathematicians with degrees in computer science, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, pure mathematics, statistics, ....)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15243,
"author": "TSGM",
"author_id": 10393,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10393",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I don't mean to be rude but JeffE's answer (which I cannot comment on-site as I don't have the necessary reputation) </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Whatever.\n Your major won't matter as much as your demonstrated potential for research in applied mathematics, which you can develop in almost(?) any engineering discipline.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>is so off-base, it's like saying that majoring in English gives you license to do a PhD in any field that involves writing in the English language.</p>\n\n<p>Engineering is certainly not a substitute for applied mathematics, and the transition can be very harsh. </p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>First of all, you need to localize yourself. Applied mathematics in the US is different from applied mathematics in the UK, which is different from applied mathematics in France. Similarly, applied mathematics at Harvard (which would <em>not</em> be with mathematics, but SEAS) would be different from applied mathematics at Courant at NYU or in the Mathematics department at Princeton (who don't have an applied mathematics department, but rather a <em>Program</em>)</p></li>\n<li><p>In any case, you will be expected to know all the core mathematics curriculum that pure mathematicians take in their first two years. From here, it will depend on what subfield of applied mathematics you're interested in. For example, if you are applying to a subfield that involves the classical mathematical physics (like solid or fluid mechanics), then you would need classes on those. </p></li>\n<li><p>Engineering classes are vastly different from mathematics classes in almost all the mathematical topics. There might be some overlap in terms of, for example, fluid mechanics, but even then there is a big distinction between engineering fluid mechanics and mathematical fluid mechanics. For instance, mathematical fluid mechanics would involve more rigorous reductions and derivations of the Navier-Stokes equations (exploring techniques in asymptotic analysis, for instance). </p></li>\n<li><p>There is <em>some</em> possibility of jumping from an engineering degree to an applied mathematics PhD, but again, this would depend on the country and the university and the department. If you want to examine the difference, look at the applied mathematics department at Cambridge University and compare to the applied mathematics group at the Courant Institute in NYU. Also, examine the PhDs of current faculty. </p></li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15254,
"author": "David Ketcheson",
"author_id": 81,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/81",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Almost none of the applied math PhDs in the USA have BS degrees in applied math, because undergraduate degree programs in applied math are very rare (more commonly, one may have a \"mathematics\" degree but with an emphasis on applied math courses). A large proportion of applied math professors in the USA do not have a Ph.D. in applied math, because most of the applied math doctoral programs only came into existence in the last generation. For instance, my advisor's doctorate is in computer science, but his thesis was in numerical analysis. So <strong>the name of the degree program is not key</strong>.</p>\n\n<p>I know people who have earned an applied math Ph.D. in the USA with undergraduate majors in <strong>engineering, physics, chemistry, computer science, and pure math</strong>. The non-math majors were from programs at very good schools with a heavy mathematical emphasis. As a professor at a university that is modelled after US universities, I have supervised successful students and postdocs whose backgrounds are in all those areas, as well as others in mechatronics and operations research. The transition for some was \"quite harsh\", but they persevered.</p>\n\n<p>I think <strong>the quality and rigor of the program is an essential factor</strong>. A physics BS from a top school usually knows more mathematics (and can reason better in mathematical terms) than a math BS from a lower-tier school. Some computer science programs are, in fact, applied math programs; others involve very little math. And some engineering programs at lesser schools are virtually devoid of mathematics.</p>\n\n<p>So <strong>the bottom line is that you need to know much more about a program than its name in order to determine if it will prepare you well</strong>.</p>\n\n<p>I should add that I myself double majored in Physics/Astronomy and Math as an undergrad, then got Applied Math MS and PhD degrees.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15358,
"author": "Matt Brenneman",
"author_id": 10491,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10491",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Difficult question, as so much depends on the individual. However, here are 2 questions you might want to ask yourself.</p>\n\n<p>Q1: Are you exceptionally good at math? </p>\n\n<p>If yes, you could <em>consider</em> doing a Master's in an engineering discipline. But if you are not first rate at math, I would suggest doing the Master's in math. Prelims are no joke, and if I knew I wanted to specialize in applied math, then I would take care to learn the basics of real analysis, topology, abstract algebra, and numerical analysis <em>very</em> well. You can always pick up the applications later (or as my advisor who was a mathematician working in biology told me, \"It's easier to go down\") I worked as a mathematician for EEs for many years and by far, the rate limiting step is always math.</p>\n\n<p>Q2: Do you want to work in industry or academics?</p>\n\n<p>If the latter, then you definitely don't want to do your MS in engineering. If the former, it could be a plus. One the of the biggest obstacles math PhDs face is that they find they often need a secondary field or skill.</p>\n\n<p>The safe bet (for many may reasons) would be to do your Master's in math. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/31 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15236",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10384/"
]
|
15,239 | <p>The current system of producing knowledge in academia, think-tanks, research laboratories funded by large organizations, and similar has the benefits that there is usually some oversight, the people involved have been trained on how to conduct and contribute to research, and how to communicate their results to the literate portion of the society they are supposed to aid. (The above is subject to debate, but I prefer to assume it for the purpose of the question below.)</p>
<p>How can a person with no contacts to any of these contribute, or learn how to contribute, to the production of research, in spite of lack of oversight, funding, and training? As examples, a person who finds an alternate and faster method of DNA replication, or finds influences of Jane Austen among current bloggers that suggest a certain societal trend, or has a new way of analyzing large portions of astronomical data, or finds a way of speeding up numerical simulations of models of biological systems involving capillary blood flow. How does such a person present such an idea or method?</p>
<p>One can write to authors on the appropriate area; how likely is this to succeed? One could look at an appropriate journal, attempt to copy the style, formatting, and phraseology of the articles and then submit their write-up to that journal, but without affiliation; with what result? One might attempt to use the Internet to strike up conversations with like-minded individuals and find a willing ear and eye; are there enough willing ears and eyes? One could start a blog or just put up a web page announcing the work; I have done that, but I have too many connections to be considered a complete outsider to academia, and I want to pose the question for those who are so outside. Further, how could someone searching an index find that page among many that are computer generated using similar phrases?</p>
<p>There are several spins one can put on this. Let us further assume that the primary goal is to present the idea/form of knowledge, and receive little or no more than the recognition of making the contribution and the satisfaction of seeing it used. In particular, potential degrees, awards, or jobs are not part of the scenario or motivation. In this day and age, would blogging be enough? Also, for fun and to make answers less trivial, assume the outsider is not and is not likely to enroll in a university.</p>
<p>Added: To address a comment, enrolling in a university would likely provide many of the desired contacts, but with some cost. The outsider may have had a university education, but this question makes the assumption that contacts there are stale or otherwise not accessible or appropriate, making this person more of an outsider.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15260,
"author": "Nobody",
"author_id": 546,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/546",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Most of our audience here are academics and the OP is <em>Not Quite An Outsider</em>, I think I don't need to explain how important <strong>peer review</strong> is to research results. If the outsider needs the explanation, please use the <a href=\"/questions/tagged/peer-review\" class=\"post-tag\" title=\"show questions tagged 'peer-review'\" rel=\"tag\">peer-review</a> to read related Q&A.</p>\n\n<p>Obviously, the outsider has at least two options: submit the manuscript to journals and/or having blog posts of his own.</p>\n\n<p>One of the effective ways to get your paper to be peer reviewed is to send the paper to journals. It is true that some journals tend to ignore papers written by authors without affiliation. I personally have this experience. I am retired and am not associated with any institute. I do have experience that my manuscript was rejected without any explanation. However, the quality of the paper makes the difference. If it is indeed a very good paper, some journals would take it and send to referees. I personally have that experience, too.</p>\n\n<p>The second option for an outsider is to have blog posts. I occasionally come cross blog posts when I search on the Internet (I am a retiree, I have plenty of time). My personal experience is that more than often good blogs are written by good scholars who are insiders. I bumped into many poor quality stuff written by outsiders quite often. They just don't make sense to me at all. I usually read the first couple of paragraphs to determine if I want to continue to read them. Unfortunately, most of them written by outsiders are of extremely poor quality.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, the outsider has another option - arXiv. I think it does not make too much difference with regard to your question.</p>\n\n<p>To me, the key issue is the contents. If you do have something very good, publish it. Somehow, somewhere, your article will be read by others. However, if you never receive college education, I seriously doubt your stuff is good. <strong>You do need at least basic level knowledge to do research.</strong></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15319,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I want to add to Scaahu's answer, with which I of course agree. Basically anyone could in theory contribute to academic knowledge (I read that as research). But, it is easy to underestimate the amount of knowledge and experience that goes into successful research and publication thereof. The less you know about these required skills the more yo are likely to underestimate what is needed. Key is definitely to have a sound and up-tot-date view of research in the field or sub-field where the own interests lie. Add to that the skill to write up the science well, which includes not just writing well but understanding the format for writing well and knowing what is required and where to publish such work. i am not convinced blogs would work in all fields, I do not know of any such forums of any weight in my own field.</p>\n\n<p>Since research educations are there to allow you to pick up the necessary skills for research, it should be clear that you need to have gained similar insights to be able to manage the entire research process well. I would guess that you may lack some of these skills; which, is of course unclear. Much can be learned by studying other's studies and at he same time pick up a god reference on the research process from idea to publication (write-up). Establishing a contact with a researcher in the field may provide additional help. We had such a person affiliated with our general research group while I was a graduate student and that person produced good contributions but probably would not have been able to without the support from the group.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/31 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15239",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10390/"
]
|
15,242 | <p>Different journals have different standards regarding author names - some mention only the first name (i.e. "William Webb"), some mention also an initial of the middle name ("William A. Webb"), some mention only initials ("W. A. Webb"), etc.</p>
<p>So, when I copy BibTeX records of papers to my bibliography manager, the names are copied in different styles, and also appear in different styles in my bibliographic listing.</p>
<p>My question is: is this a problem? Should I go over all my bibliography, each time I write a paper, and make sure all names have the same format?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15244,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If you're using BibTeX, then this should automatically be taken care of through choice of the <code>bibliographystyle</code>. </p>\n\n<p>If you are not using BibTeX or a similar package, then you should go over your references to make sure they're consistent with the papers you've cited. However, you're under no obligation to find the full names of authors if they've published the papers with their initials instead.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15245,
"author": "Federico Poloni",
"author_id": 958,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/958",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>No</strong>, you shouldn't change your bibtex database every time. Bibtex converts automatically from its native format \"Surname, Firstname I. and Other, Author\" to whatever the journal style is (for instance: F Surname, A Other), as long as you have full names in the database. Name formatting is something that people often get wrong at first when they have little experience with bibtex.</p>\n\n<p>So you should aim for having full names in the database, at least for those papers that you need to cite with an unabbreviated first name. Everything would be easier if all journals used initials, but it's a tough world.</p>\n\n<p>I suggest initials for theses, preprints and submissions, and only switch to full names after the article is accepted in a journal that demands them (and after being asked by a copy-editor that demands them). This is the solution that minimizes the workload on the author. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15246,
"author": "Chris H",
"author_id": 8494,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8494",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The issue here is surely more that journals' bibtex export styles are highly inconsistent. Many output the names in a similar format to what they would print. So if you want full names and have only got initials, you're in for a few hours of tedious hunting and retyping. In other words you'd have to <em>really</em> want full names. If you have control over the format, pick a style with initials only, I suggest. The journals I have published in use initials (and don't even print the paper titles or give clickable links) in the references, so having a mixture of formats isn't an issue</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15248,
"author": "Dirk",
"author_id": 529,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/529",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Let me cite Donald Knuth (from <a href=\"http://www-cs-faculty.stanford.edu/~knuth/help.html\">this webpage</a>):</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p><strong>Do you know any of these people?</strong></p>\n \n <p>[...] I try to make the indexes to my books as complete as possible, or at least to give the illusion of completeness. Therefore I have adopted a policy of listing full names of everyone who is cited. For example, the index to Volume 1 of The Art of Computer Programming says \"Hoare, Charles Antony Richard\" and \"Jordan, Marie Ennemond Camille\" instead of just \"Hoare, C. A. R.\" and \"Jordan, Camille.\" </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I also think that a database with complete names is the way to go. The more complete the names are, the less ambiguous (consider all the different \"A. Smith's\", \"X. Zhang's\" or \"H. Kim's\"…).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15270,
"author": "user10408",
"author_id": 10408,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10408",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would personally just leave the formats as is, because</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Some people feel strongly about having their names displayed in a certain way. </li>\n<li>It would be a huge hassle to find full names of all the authors that you cite.</li>\n</ol>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/31 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15242",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/787/"
]
|
15,252 | <p>I've wasted about an hour trying to figure out how I'm supposed to categorise an ACM article using the <a href="http://www.acm.org/about/class/2012">new 2012 taxonomy here</a>, and how I'm supposed to represent those categories in my article.</p>
<p>On the plus side, the 2012 taxonomy has some perfectly apt categories for my paper (unlike the previous 1998 version).</p>
<p>On the minus side, the instructions are abysmal with respect to how it should be used, it seems to be completely incompatible with the standard TeX macros provided with standard <code>sig-*</code> templates, and not only do the TeX macros provided by <a href="http://dl.acm.org/ccs_flat.cfm">this interactive system</a> not work (<code>\begin{CCSXML}</code> and <code>\ccsdesc</code>), they don't even seem to even exist (at least Google turns up little if anything).</p>
<p>Is anyone actually using this new 2012 taxonomy and if so, is there any good guide on how to use it with a standard LaTeX <code>sig-*</code> template?</p>
<p>(Otherwise I think I'll just go back to the 1998 version ... as weird and archaic and seemingly useless as it is, at least it's a straightforward way to fill in those pointlessly mandatory category fields. Grrr.) </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 26334,
"author": "Thomas Nyman",
"author_id": 19956,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/19956",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The only piece of official information I've been able to find regarding the status of the taxonomy is this notice at the bottom of <a href=\"http://www.acm.org/about/class\" rel=\"nofollow\">ACM Computing Classification System toc</a> [Retrieved 2014-07-24]:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Tools to help authors apply the 2012 CCS categories and concepts are being built. A new set of instructions will be issued in early 2013. Until then, authors please continue using the 1998 categories, following these instructions on how to classify your work: <a href=\"http://www.acm.org/about/class/how-to-use\" rel=\"nofollow\">How to Classify Works Using ACM's Computing Classification System</a>.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>So it seems that the tools mentioned were long overdue already a little over a half a year ago when this question was asked. Not much of an answer, but as at the time writing Google turns up this question as one of the top results when searching for the 2012 CCS taxonomy, so I'm documenting what I was able to find out here. </p>\n\n<p>The <a href=\"http://dl.acm.org/\" rel=\"nofollow\">ACM Digital Library</a> has shows both the 1998 and 2012 terms on the Citation Pages of all indexed articles, but this seems to be the result of the old scheme being mapped to the new one. I haven't seen any of the additional categories in the new taxonomy showing up.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 42064,
"author": "ayman",
"author_id": 32033,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/32033",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>So it seems some rather recent documentation and code has been posted to the ACM site. </p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://www.acm.org/publications/article-templates\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.acm.org/publications/article-templates</a></p>\n\n<p>Has all the needed code in the <code>cls</code> file to generate the CCS macros (so actually use that more recent <code>sig-alternative.cls</code> file from <a href=\"http://www.acm.org/publications/article-templates/sig-alternate.cls/view\" rel=\"nofollow\">December 2014</a>). And the document:</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://www.acm.org/publications/article-templates/CCS-HOWTO-v6-12Jan2015.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.acm.org/publications/article-templates/CCS-HOWTO-v6-12Jan2015.pdf</a></p>\n\n<p>Discusses how to include it in LaTeX and in Word. The SIGCHI template is being updated soon to reflect these changes as well.</p>\n\n<p>For LaTeX, this document omits the code that is needed to generate visible output--it is <code>\\printccsdesc</code>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 46627,
"author": "Bob Briscoe",
"author_id": 35465,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/35465",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>If you're using <code>sig-alternate.cls</code>, this <a href=\"http://www.acm.org/publications/article-templates/sig-alternate-sample.tex\">sample TeX file</a> seems to have been silently updated in May 2015 to give an example of how to do this. Here's a precis:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Download <a href=\"http://www.acm.org/publications/article-templates/sig-alternate-05-2015.cls\">sig-alternate-05-2015.cls</a> into your local TeX tree (or temporarily into the same directory as your project) </li>\n<li><p>Edit the first line of your LaTeX source to use it:</p>\n\n<pre><code>\\documentclass{sig-alternate-05-2015}\n</code></pre></li>\n<li><p>Further down your LaTeX source, within the document enviroment (usually after your abstract), paste in the code that <a href=\"http://dl.acm.org/ccs.cfm\">the 2012 ACM Computing Classification System</a> gives you once you have chosen your categories, for example:</p>\n\n<pre><code>\\begin{CCSXML}\n<ccs2012>\n...\n</ccs2012> \n\\end{CCSXML}\n\n\\ccsdesc{Computer systems organization~Robotics}\n\\ccsdesc[100]{Networks~Network reliability}\n</code></pre></li>\n<li><p>Follow this with the line to print out your classification section:</p>\n\n<pre><code>\\printccsdesc\n</code></pre></li>\n<li><p>And finally, add your own keywords:</p>\n\n<pre><code>\\keywords{ACM proceedings; \\LaTeX; text tagging}\n</code></pre></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>I say this was added 'silently', because internally, the sample.tex file still says it was last updated April 2013, and it says <code>This file should be compiled with V2.5 of \"sig-alternate.cls\" May 2012</code>, whereas it actually compiles with \"sig-alternate-05-2015.cls\", which claims internally to have last been updated in Aug 2013, despite the date in its filename! No wonder everyone is confused.</p>\n\n<p>Thanks to ayman's answer above, which has become broken, but pointed me in the right direction. (Could someone edit the broken link in ayman's answer to the <code>sig-alternative.cls</code> file from December 2014? --- I'm a newbie caught in the reputation catch-22 where I can't comment answers).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2013/12/31 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15252",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7746/"
]
|
15,256 | <p>I am a young student checking pupils homeworks.
I've got a case - 2 pupils definetely cooperated when doing homework.
Do you have tips to determine who actually solved it and who copied? Got some ideas myself (like maybe one who copied had a better handwriting) but it is better to ask.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15258,
"author": "Moriarty",
"author_id": 8562,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8562",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Here is my anecdotal experience for dealing with copiers and plagiarizers. At the end of the day, everyone should be penalized. It's just a matter of sorting out who did what, and making sure they're aware that further offending can carry severe consequences.</p>\n\n<p>If discussing problems in groups is okay and encouraged (it should be!), don't forget to reinforce this. Just stress that the solutions themselves must be individual work.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>The weaker piece of homework (i.e. less complete explanations and working, or missing parts) is likely to be written by the student who had no contribution (or a lesser contribution) to the solution.</li>\n<li>It's usually rather obvious that some copying has gone on, especially if they all make the same mistakes and lay out their working the same. Consider rounding up all the students and talking to them together to find out the full story. They've already been caught red-handed, so it's in their best interests to be honest with you!</li>\n<li>It's important to find out exactly what happened, because there are cases where someone has copied work without the other's knowledge. In this case, it's not fair to punish both parties. </li>\n<li>If the student doing the copying has accidentally written their friend's name or student number on the sheet rather than their own, that tends to be a dead give-away that it's a downright facsimile of other work (that has actually happened).</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15261,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Although I do not teach physics I do have a solution that generally works quite well.</p>\n\n<p>The main answer is: <strong>It does not matter who copied from whom - fail both.</strong></p>\n\n<p>If one student allows another to copy, then both fail. I enforce this quite strictly and there are some students (who do not pay attention to the warnings I give at the start of the semester) who do it, but they never make the same mistake twice.</p>\n\n<p>As Moriarty said, it is possible that Student B copied from Student A without Student A knowing about it. I solve this problem but calling them both in front of me (private from everyone else) and tell them they have a choice:</p>\n\n<p>Choice A: Both admit that the copying took place with consent of both, and both fail that homework/assignment/test/whatever is being assessed.</p>\n\n<p>Choice B: Student A says that Student B stole Student A's work, and Student A gets off with a warning to be more careful (but no punishment) and Student B fails the module immediately without the opportunity to recover (Student B must re-take the module from the beginning).</p>\n\n<p>I have dealt with many cases this way and only three cases where the students ended up in Choice B. In this case, the offending students admitted that they stole work.</p>\n\n<p>You should never support the student who allows another student to copy from them. That behavior is simply unacceptable and that needs to be made quite clear to everyone.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15265,
"author": "Layla",
"author_id": 6144,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6144",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I have also got in that situation with a couple of students that I was lecturing. I decided to fail both and sent an email, to both of them, saying that they were going to be penalized even with the disciplinary committee of the University to expelled them both. In a couple of hours the person that was guilty confesses his participation in this situation. I only decided to fail that person from the exam and leave the other only with a disciplinary warning.</p>\n\n<p>Long story short: Here you have only two ways, either you fail both of them which is simpler; or just look for the guilty person (which I usually do and I always discover the sinner\")</p>\n\n<p>Good luck!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15266,
"author": "Federico Poloni",
"author_id": 958,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/958",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am surprised that no one mentioned this solution yet, but it shouldn't be too difficult to find out by interrogating them: question them both on how they solved the exercises. \"So, tell me, which formula are you applying in this line? Why are the hypotheses satisfied? Show me the missing steps.\"</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15268,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>First of all, you should remember that you are a teacher, and that you are responsible for your students' intellectual growth.</p>\n\n<p>If you decide to randomly accuse one of the two students of \"copying\", and if you are wrong, then think about the effects that this accusation could have. Aside from the hurt feelings, that student could lose confidence, since your accusation shows that you think that this student is worse than the student who copied. There is no predicting how your actions could change the students' lives. Honestly, from your posts, it seems like you are almost trying to make this a bigger deal than it actually is.</p>\n\n<p>The standard way to deal with this situation is to have a meeting with both students, and to put both students through the same disciplinary action, unless one student confesses that he copied from the other student, in which case the punishment level could be adjusted.</p>\n\n<p>But the thing that shocked me the most from this post is the fact that you apparently seem comfortable with randomly accusing your own students. You should remember that you have HUGE effects on their lives, and make sure that you do not abuse it. Showing mistrust is one thing that you should never, never do to your students.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15256",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10412/"
]
|
15,262 | <p>I have some new ideas regarding a concept in computer science and have done considerable independent reasearch work.None of the faculty members in my university seem to be interested in helping an independent undergrad thesis in computer science.I have some time to complete it formally, though.</p>
<p>Could anyone please tell me the steps to get my paper published ? What should I ensure about my paper before sending it for publication ?</p>
<p>I am confused as to what to do , there are so many things- transations, journals , proceedings, conferences ..etc , How are these different and where it is the best to send a research paper ?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15258,
"author": "Moriarty",
"author_id": 8562,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8562",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Here is my anecdotal experience for dealing with copiers and plagiarizers. At the end of the day, everyone should be penalized. It's just a matter of sorting out who did what, and making sure they're aware that further offending can carry severe consequences.</p>\n\n<p>If discussing problems in groups is okay and encouraged (it should be!), don't forget to reinforce this. Just stress that the solutions themselves must be individual work.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>The weaker piece of homework (i.e. less complete explanations and working, or missing parts) is likely to be written by the student who had no contribution (or a lesser contribution) to the solution.</li>\n<li>It's usually rather obvious that some copying has gone on, especially if they all make the same mistakes and lay out their working the same. Consider rounding up all the students and talking to them together to find out the full story. They've already been caught red-handed, so it's in their best interests to be honest with you!</li>\n<li>It's important to find out exactly what happened, because there are cases where someone has copied work without the other's knowledge. In this case, it's not fair to punish both parties. </li>\n<li>If the student doing the copying has accidentally written their friend's name or student number on the sheet rather than their own, that tends to be a dead give-away that it's a downright facsimile of other work (that has actually happened).</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15261,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Although I do not teach physics I do have a solution that generally works quite well.</p>\n\n<p>The main answer is: <strong>It does not matter who copied from whom - fail both.</strong></p>\n\n<p>If one student allows another to copy, then both fail. I enforce this quite strictly and there are some students (who do not pay attention to the warnings I give at the start of the semester) who do it, but they never make the same mistake twice.</p>\n\n<p>As Moriarty said, it is possible that Student B copied from Student A without Student A knowing about it. I solve this problem but calling them both in front of me (private from everyone else) and tell them they have a choice:</p>\n\n<p>Choice A: Both admit that the copying took place with consent of both, and both fail that homework/assignment/test/whatever is being assessed.</p>\n\n<p>Choice B: Student A says that Student B stole Student A's work, and Student A gets off with a warning to be more careful (but no punishment) and Student B fails the module immediately without the opportunity to recover (Student B must re-take the module from the beginning).</p>\n\n<p>I have dealt with many cases this way and only three cases where the students ended up in Choice B. In this case, the offending students admitted that they stole work.</p>\n\n<p>You should never support the student who allows another student to copy from them. That behavior is simply unacceptable and that needs to be made quite clear to everyone.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15265,
"author": "Layla",
"author_id": 6144,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6144",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I have also got in that situation with a couple of students that I was lecturing. I decided to fail both and sent an email, to both of them, saying that they were going to be penalized even with the disciplinary committee of the University to expelled them both. In a couple of hours the person that was guilty confesses his participation in this situation. I only decided to fail that person from the exam and leave the other only with a disciplinary warning.</p>\n\n<p>Long story short: Here you have only two ways, either you fail both of them which is simpler; or just look for the guilty person (which I usually do and I always discover the sinner\")</p>\n\n<p>Good luck!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15266,
"author": "Federico Poloni",
"author_id": 958,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/958",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am surprised that no one mentioned this solution yet, but it shouldn't be too difficult to find out by interrogating them: question them both on how they solved the exercises. \"So, tell me, which formula are you applying in this line? Why are the hypotheses satisfied? Show me the missing steps.\"</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15268,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>First of all, you should remember that you are a teacher, and that you are responsible for your students' intellectual growth.</p>\n\n<p>If you decide to randomly accuse one of the two students of \"copying\", and if you are wrong, then think about the effects that this accusation could have. Aside from the hurt feelings, that student could lose confidence, since your accusation shows that you think that this student is worse than the student who copied. There is no predicting how your actions could change the students' lives. Honestly, from your posts, it seems like you are almost trying to make this a bigger deal than it actually is.</p>\n\n<p>The standard way to deal with this situation is to have a meeting with both students, and to put both students through the same disciplinary action, unless one student confesses that he copied from the other student, in which case the punishment level could be adjusted.</p>\n\n<p>But the thing that shocked me the most from this post is the fact that you apparently seem comfortable with randomly accusing your own students. You should remember that you have HUGE effects on their lives, and make sure that you do not abuse it. Showing mistrust is one thing that you should never, never do to your students.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15262",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10411/"
]
|
15,276 | <p>How does one write a strong (good) introduction into a research paper? Some introductions make me really curious about the rest of the paper while others do not. Although it is relatively easy to say which introductions are good and which are not, I find it difficult to distill what makes the difference. There is a previous question about writing introductions (<a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/12170/how-to-write-a-ph-d-thesis-introduction-chapter">How to write a Ph.D. thesis Introduction chapter?</a>) but it is about Ph.D theses.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15277,
"author": "Oldboy",
"author_id": 10422,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10422",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Some points to take into consideration (not an exhaustive list):</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Correct grammar: for obvious reasons. </li>\n<li>Proper literature review: many readers find annoying when the authors claim to be the first people attacking the problem of interest, while the reader is well aware of other relevant references.</li>\n<li>State clearly the aims and main results in the introduction. It is frustrating when you have to read the entire paper to understand its purpose.</li>\n<li>Not too long, not too short. A long introduction will make the idea of skipping this section really tempting, while a short introduction might compromise clarity or points 2 and 3.</li>\n<li>Cover points of interest for different audiences. For example, try to explain the impact of the paper or the topic in terms of both theoretical and practical issues.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15278,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 7,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p><em>This is very area specific. I'll start with the caveat that I write papers in computer science, so YMMV.</em></p>\n\n<p>The way I think about introductions (which is not to say they are GOOD introductions) is that they tell the story of the paper in brief. Every paper has a story to tell, starting with </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Here's a fascinating question</li>\n<li>Here's what people have tried to do (in brief: not a full related work section, but a high level assesment)</li>\n<li>here's the key challenge preventing further progress</li>\n<li>Voila: here's our complete/partial/intermediate/awesome solution</li>\n<li>(additionally) and here's how it works.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The intro is typically the \"hook\" to read the rest of the paper, so you have to provide a birds-eye view that draws the reader in without drowning them in details. </p>\n\n<p>The thing that separates a good intro from a bad one is knowing where that right level of detail is, so you're not either totally vacuous or mired in details. Getting this right is an art and depends on your field, your results, the problem, and your understanding of the target audience. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15294,
"author": "Andy W",
"author_id": 3,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I was recently forwarded (what I think) is a guide full of excellent advice, <a href=\"https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5e6033a4ea02d801f37e15bb/t/5eda74919c44fa5f87452697/1591374993570/phd_paper_writing.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><em>Writing Tips for Ph. D. Students</em> by John Cochrane</a>. In it, Cochrane has a brief section of advice on the introduction:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>The introduction should start with what you do in this paper, the major contribution. You must explain that contribution so that people can understand it. Don’t just state your\nconclusion: “My results show that the pecking-order theory is rejected.” Give the fact behind that result. “In a regression of x on y, controlling for z, the coefficient is q.”</p>\n<p>The first sentence is the hardest. Do not start with philosophy, “Financial economists have long wondered if markets are efficient.” Do not start with “The finance literature has\nlong been interested in x.” Your paper must be interesting on its own, and not just because lots of other people wasted space on the subject. Do not start with a long motivation of\nhow important the issue is to public policy. All of this is known to writers as “clearing your throat.” It’s a waste of space. Start with your central contribution.</p>\n<p>Three pages is a good upper limit for the introduction.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>This just reiterates the point both Oldboy and Suresh made that the introduction should clearly state what the paper is about, and also some more detailed advice about avoiding generic intro. statements. (Note the upper bound is good for social science articles that may be from 20~40 pages, it should be much lower for briefer articles in different fields or journals.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 18818,
"author": "user13717",
"author_id": 13717,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/13717",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Start writing the body paragraphs then use the basic ideas of all of them and then create an introduction and concluding paragraphs!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 115307,
"author": "Ooker",
"author_id": 14341,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/14341",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<ul>\n<li><strong>Make a concrete analogy.</strong> A concrete analogy will intertwine to the text and allow room for the readers to project their background into it. </li>\n<li><strong>Make the ideas constantly contradict each other.</strong> "Contradiction" here doesn't mean as a logical contradiction, but more about "a surprising, but still logical step of development". It introduces why the topic is important, and is the source of excitation, enlightenment, and satisfaction. Being able to solve contradictions is the reason why the ideas survive and are worth the attention. </li>\n<li><strong>Notice where the flow</strong> <strong><em>emerges and dissipates</em></strong>. This will help overcome the jargon barrier without having to oversimplify them. Imagine the article is like a heatmap, and each jargon/theorem/proof is a heat source, then the writer's job is to locate them not too hot (too dense) or too cold (too uninformative). The introduction is also the same.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>I have an article for this, you can check it out: <a href=\"http://lyminhnhat.com/2018/07/16/1-making-concrete-analogies-and-big-pictures/?utm_source=Stack%20Exchange&utm_medium=answer&utm_campaign=The%20Sphere\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Making concrete analogies and big pictures</a>. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15276",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10421/"
]
|
15,279 | <p>As written in the title, I'm thinking of applying for masters in Europe (I myself am from Serbia), but I made a mess of my undergraduate career, so I'm looking for advice how to present this in my CV and SOP.</p>
<p><strong>Here's my background:</strong></p>
<p>Back after finishing high school, I applied for a relatively well respected local electrical engineering school (University of Belgrade School of Electrical Engineering). Out of 500 students, I was 250ish. So far so good. My intent at the time was to study computer engineering.</p>
<p>Then came the first academic year. I passed a number of exams (mostly those I could pass with no studying at all, so as a result my grades were pretty bad, with my grade average being 7.0 out of 10, with 6 being passing grade), but I didn't have enough credits pass to the second year.<br>
No big deal, I thought, since statistics show that the four year program there usually lasts around seven years, with first year being the most difficult. I took some exams from the second year and tried to pass first year exams again. At the end of the year, I passed none of the first year exams, but I did pass some of the second year exams. Third time's the charm I thought, got some more second year exams and tried to pass the first year again. At the end of the year, situation was the same as last time: I passed none of the problematic first year exams, but I did pass some of the second year exams.<br>
By that time, I was pretty depressed, had gained quite a bit of weight, was having big problems with procrastination and was fed up with school politics. </p>
<p>At that point I decided that it was time to switch schools. I moved to a younger, less-respected school (Union University School of Computing) and got admitted (barely) into second year there due to exams I passed at my previous school. I moved to a telecommunications study program there. </p>
<p>In the second year, at my new school, I had around one and a half year worth of exams, but I managed to pass them. The downside was that my grades weren't all that good. They weren't bad, but nothing exceptional either. Third year went well for me. I passed all of the exams, raised my average grade to 8.0 out of 10 and became one of the best students in my (relatively small) class. In one particularly hard exam I was the only student that year to get a 9 with nobody getting a 10.</p>
<p>Right now, the exam season for the winter semester of my fourth year is approaching and I'm thinking of what I'm going to do next. I've spoken to few professors and they all believe that I should definitely continue my education. I wouldn't have any problems continuing my education at my current school, but I don't think that it's best equipped for the field in which I want to study further. The focus of my current school is computer science, while the telecommunications program seems to have taken a back seat. </p>
<p>I have read the question about getting a Ph.D. with bad transcript and fortunately for me course structure was such that just a few professors taught a large number of exams (for example six to eight hours every day for the whole semester with same professor and TA), so there are people who know me well and have a good opinion of me. </p>
<p>I don't think that I could do much to improve my average grade. Perhaps the best I could do would be around 8.3 out of 10. </p>
<p>I don't think that I would have any problems with IELTS exam and I do think that I could prepare GRE well enough. I do understand that good grades there won't help me much, but on the other hand I at least hope that they won't have a negative effect. </p>
<p>I'm thinking of applying for universities that aren't very highly ranked, for example some from the bottom of the top 200 from the Shanghai list, but I'm not sure if that's low enough. Also I'm thinking of applying for two-year masters, but I'm coming from a four-year undergraduate school, if that matters. </p>
<p><strong>Finally my question:</strong></p>
<p>What I really don't know is how to present me dropping out of my first school in my CV or SOP. I've been basically studying 6 years now, much longer than expected, with not that good grades and I really can't think of any way to present that in favorable light. I think that I matured in the meantime and my grades did improve, but on the other hand I moved a weaker school. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15281,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Definitely get a letter from the professor who taught the course where you got 9/10 with no one else getting that grade or higher.</p>\n\n<p>I am sorry to say it, but it sounds like you just chose not to study during your time in your first school, unless you forgot to mention some important piece of information. There is no way to sugarcoat the lack of effort, unless you did something else productive instead of studying for those exams.</p>\n\n<p>It is true that excuses exist for <em>some</em> people with bad grades, but it is certainly not true that <em>everyone</em> with bad grades can make their applications look good for graduate school admissions -- if such sugarcoating methods existed, it wouldn't be fair for the students who studied hard throughout their undergraduate career.</p>\n\n<p>The next best alternative is to ask yourself why you want to pursue a master's degree, when you haven't shown a lot of promise academically. If you have a good reason for wanting it, your next best bet might be to get in touch with a professor at an institution that you want to go to for your master's, and show him how good/dedicated/passionate you can be, and then have that person vouch for you in the admissions committee.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 24158,
"author": "Tom Au",
"author_id": 755,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/755",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You appear to have two sets of choices: 1) Continue a graduate program in your current school, where you are well known and liked, and 2) Start a graduate program in an <em>equivalent</em> school. </p>\n\n<p>I'm assuming that you will prefer the second choice. Find out which schools (e.g. on the list of 200) are equivalent of yours. Find out where the better students (the ones averaging 8.0) go to after they graduate. And last, find out which graduate schools your professors have the most clout with, especially the one who gave you the top grade.</p>\n\n<p>Then apply to those schools. Use your current school as a back-up if the \"equivalent\" school plan doesn't work. Good luck.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 24166,
"author": "Tim",
"author_id": 12703,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/12703",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'm in the US, so take that into consideration.</p>\n\n<p>If it were one of my classmates in a similar position, I would recommend searching for an internship or entry-level position with a top company in your field. With a year or two of work history, your application to an MSc would be evaluated in a totally different light, specifically there would be less focus on why you struggled initially and more on why you are returning (to continue to learn?)</p>\n\n<p>In addition, this would let you gain some practical skills, perhaps save some money, and figure out whether you really enjoy working in comp sci.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/01 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15279",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9653/"
]
|
15,288 | <p>Is it possible to get admission to a master's program in economics without finishing up your undergrad?</p>
<p>I have completed 105 credits so far for my BA Honours in economics and math degree, and still need 15 credits to graduate (120 required for graduation). However, a case of academic dishonesty could lead to my suspension from my current university. I know that I made a mistake at such a crucial time in my undergrad, but I can only learn from it. </p>
<p>The problem also I'm having is that some universities will not even consider my application as result of academic dishonesty. Apart from this my application is quite strong in terms of doing well in economics courses, strong letter of recommendations, and GRE score.. </p>
<p>I have already published an economics paper in an undergraduate journal and feel as if there isn't anything to learn about economics from my university. </p>
<p>I can study economics independently and work to get "food on the table" and have some real-world experience under my belt before embarking on a journey as an intellectual. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15289,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I don't think there's much room for optimism. Offers of graduate admission are generally preconditioned on actually completing the previous degree. Moreover, having your previous degree candidacy terminated on account of academic dishonesty will make you \"radioactive\"; very few graduate schools are going to want to bring in someone who got suspended for plagiarism or cheating. (Given that the entire research enterprise hinges on being able to trust reported results, why would a school want to take a chance on someone who has already clearly violated those principles?)</p>\n\n<p>[More generally, however: I do know of an economics professor whose PhD is in fact his only degree; however, the circumstances behind that are so unusual that they're unlikely to be replicated any time soon. (Basically, he followed a professor from Germany to the US while he was still an undergraduate in the days when the <em>Diplom</em> system was in full force.)]</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15295,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As others have said, no. What credibility do you think you have for your other good grades when you admit you cheated? It's entirely possible that you cheated other times as well and were simply more clever about it. </p>\n\n<p>Moreover, most low-tier universities don't suspend students for cheating if it's the first offence. You get a zero in the course and move on to take it again or take another comparable course. The fact that suspension is on the table likely means that you cheated before.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15303,
"author": "user10408",
"author_id": 10408,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10408",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I don't think this is really worth an answer but I have low reps and I can't comment yet.</p>\n\n<p>Theoretically -- if you get an offer now, some schools (I did my PhD at a top-tier institution in the US) will not bother to check that you have a bachelor's degree; mine certainly didn't. You might even get away with it, if no one bothers to check your bachelor's degree (admittedly not very important if you become a full-fledged academic).</p>\n\n<p>Realistically -- what you are asking is quite impossible, especially because you have committed an act of academic dishonesty. If someone finds out (and chances are good that they will find out, since academics like to chat and gossip at conferences), you could have your admission offer revoked, or even your degree revoked.</p>\n\n<p>Besides, your situation is somewhat unrelated to your question. Most institutions will ask for transcripts from ALL universities that you have attended, whether you received a degree from them or not. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15339,
"author": "BrenBarn",
"author_id": 9041,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9041",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Simply put, there is a small chance you could get into an MA program without a BA, and there is a small chance you could get into an MA program with the stigma of academic dishonesty on your record, but there is virtually no chance of getting into an MA program when you have no BA <em>because</em> of academic dishonesty.</p>\n\n<p>I would recommend you do what you can to make amends and get the BA. If you can say that you were suspended due to academic dishonesty but turned over a new leaf, persevered and finished the degree, then you have somewhere to start from. But if schools get the impression that you were kicked out for cheating and never bothered to go back and fix that, it will be a huge red flag that will make it nearly impossible for you to be accepted in good faith. (You could still get accepted by lying or hiding your past, but you admirably mentioned in the comments that that's not what you want to do.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 29965,
"author": "user22918",
"author_id": 22918,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/22918",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My best advice would be to take a time off and go back to complete your undergrad. Even if this is going to cost you time and money, it will pay off at the end. You might want to also consider a transfer into another institution who is willing to accept you in, with the credits you've already earned in your current institution. I personally don't know any \"accredited institution of higher education\" who doesn't require a Bachelor degree,especially in these days of higher and tougher competition. Furthermore, most graduates institution will ask a Bachelor, GRE, etc.... as part of the routine application process. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/02 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15288",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
15,290 | <p>I'm doing a PHD in physics (not in US), and I'm applying for a summer school in US (<a href="http://www.santafe.edu/gevent/detail/education/1472/" rel="noreferrer">an example</a>). I'm required to upload a statement of research interest. </p>
<p>I have searched for webpages on how to write statement of research interest for a while but found that most of them are for applying for graduate schools. So my question is, what is the difference between statement of research interest for graduate schools admission and that for summer school?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15298,
"author": "badroit",
"author_id": 7746,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7746",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>So my question is, what is the difference between statement of research interest for graduate schools admission and that for summer school?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>The way you phrase the question suggests that you see this statement of research interest as a form to fill in some details. But it's not like there's a \"<em>P27.B: Statement Of Research Interest for Summer Schools</em>\" form that's slightly different from the usual \"<em>P27.A: Statement Of Research Interest for Graduate Schools</em>\" form in Annex B. These things don't exist.</p>\n\n<p>I think you're approaching the question all wrong.</p>\n\n<p>A research statement is a letter you write to a person with a specific purpose. So a better question would be \"what is the purpose of writing a research letter for a summer school?\".</p>\n\n<p>The answer is pretty much the same, but instead of trying to demonstrate why you and your background are a good fit for a grad school, now you're trying to demonstrate why you and your background are a good fit for a summer school and that <em>you</em> will benefit greatly from <em>that</em> school.</p>\n\n<p>There's lots of tips on the Web on how to write a good research statement. Maybe some personal pointers ...</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>First and foremost you need to appreciate that it will be read by a human being, not a machine. So don't make it boring or clichéd, esp. if that human being will have to read hundreds of statements like yours. Keep it concise and interesting. Many students are too concerned with filling \"the requirements\" than communicating; the key part of such a letter is communication, not topic lists.</p>\n\n<p>Second you need to figure out what that human being is looking for from you. Such statements are not just paperwork; they have a purpose. Why are they asking you for the document? Why will they spend valuable time to read it? What is important to them?</p>\n\n<p>Third you need to frame your personal context into what they are looking for.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<ol>\n<li>If you can, try to figure out specifically who is going to read it ... what kind of technical expertise they have, what are their research interests, etc. That person will probably be a postdoc or junior professor in the area. </li>\n<li>In the research statement, they'll want to see how the student will benefit from the school ... why that student is worth the chair space. They will simply be looking for enthusiastic students with a convincing story as to why they will benefit from the summer school. <em>If</em> the school is very narrow and technical, there may also be a check to make sure that the student has sufficient background knowledge to follow the topics. If you sound too expert in a topic, that's not good either; they'll want you to learn!</li>\n<li>In the text, discuss your research interests and goals. Relate your goals to the types of topics covered by the school. Add details; perhaps a specific lecture or lecturer or topic you are especially interested in and why. Be enthusiastic but <em>not fake</em>. Don't get stuck in technical details. Try to make the letter sound personal, almost conversational, like a person wrote it ... versus someone taking a template and filling in topics. Edit and remove irrelevant statements. Get feedback from peers or an advisor.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15299,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I have attended several summer schools as a graduate student. In my experience, the primary purpose of having a research statement for summer schools is to weed out the random applications. For example, a person not actually in academia (often called \"cranks\", because most of them don't have the necessary background nor the ability to carry out real research) applies to these things; it is a waste of resources to admit this person, and having them distracts the other qualified students in the summer school.</p>\n\n<p>So you definitely don't need to put in as much effort into these research statements as the ones in graduate school, as the primary purpose of these statements is to show them that you are not a crank.</p>\n\n<p>From here, you need to judge for yourself how much effort is needed. If you attend Harvard or Princeton, or if the organizers already know you, then one or two paragraphs describing your research and naming your advisor might be enough. However, if you attend a mediocre school outside of the US (where you expect no one to have heard of the school), you had better write about your research in some detail, so that no one dismisses your application.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/02 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15290",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10431/"
]
|
15,291 | <p>I am currently a scholarship student in my sophomore year in a double major programme in theoretical physics and pure mathematics. I wish to apply for an internship, for which they have asked me for my CV. I checked traditional CVs and I couldn't find anything that is relevant to my current situation. What should I put in my CV and what must I ignore?
The following is the skill set that I have in my arsenal. The internship is for a <strong><em>physics research topic</em></strong> so what must I include? </p>
<hr>
<p>Skills (academic) : </p>
<ul>
<li><p>Physics (The courses that I have taken with my grades on them) </p></li>
<li><p>Math (The courses that I have taken with my grades on them) </p></li>
<li>Random courses in the branches of languages and arts</li>
<li>Currently involved in a theoretical research project in physics, but haven't really achieved anything in it as yet as I was headed tangentially in the topic</li>
<li>High school results (top 1% of the cohort)</li>
</ul>
<p>Skills (miscellaneous): </p>
<ul>
<li>hyperpolyglot</li>
<li>artist (professional impressionist and surrealist) </li>
<li>writer and poet (free verse)</li>
<li>active quizzer and debater </li>
<li>football striker (out of context, but you never know ;) )</li>
<li>swimmer</li>
<li>sculptor</li>
</ul>
<p>Interests: </p>
<ul>
<li>Philosophy</li>
<li>Psychology </li>
<li>Theology</li>
<li>Occult Sciences </li>
<li>Art and art history</li>
<li>Reading (I would read anything with words on it)</li>
<li>Literature </li>
<li>Languages</li>
</ul>
<hr>
<p>And a couple of other things here and there. Also, is there any particular formatting that I should adhere to? </p>
<hr>
<p>I mailed the professor I wished to work with and he replied as follows:
<em>Send me a CV and information on your coursework and results</em></p>
<hr>
<p>So what must I put in and what must I deduct? Thanks in advance :)</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15292,
"author": "Phlume",
"author_id": 10414,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>It looks like your list here is pretty comprehensive. I would focus less on the \"interests\" and more on the relevant skills and experience. interests are nice as a snapshot on your personality, but I wouldn't sweat it if the section is a bit barren or void of \"in depth\" content here.</p>\n\n<p>From my understanding, a CV is nothing more than an expanded resume. If you have an existing resume, take a few moments to expand a bit on your roles and accomplishments beyond simple bullet points.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15296,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
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"selected": false,
"text": "<p>First of all, what is the focus of the internship and is your resume focused on that? </p>\n\n<p>If they asked you for transcripts with your application, they will know what courses you took; there is no need to reproduce them on your resume. </p>\n\n<p>Nobody cares about your hobbies or non-relevant skills. If anything, to call yourself a sculptor, artist and polyglot makes you sound like an entitled pompous ahole who exaggerates. \"Occult sciences\" alone should get your resume thrown in the trash bin when you're applying for a <em>science</em> research job, not to be a Ghostbusters crew member.</p>\n\n<p>Your resume should answer the question, \"what makes me qualified for the job?\" What <em>relevant</em> courses have you taken? What <em>relevant</em> knowledge do you have? What <em>relevant</em> skills do you have that could be applied to the job?</p>\n"
}
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| 2014/01/02 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15291",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9596/"
]
|
15,306 | <p>Here is the thing. I am working in an lab under a new assistant professor of HCI and our lab itself is just two years old. We had an masters student graduating earlier and I am the second masters student from the lab to have finished my dissertation. We also have an PhD Candidate working in there. So at present we are just two GRAs in the lab.</p>
<p>To help us out with some programming, we hired two students on an hourly basis. My advisor is not into micromanagement; hiring students and asking for an update just a week before deadline and placing a heavy trust on those students and till now it has worked fine.</p>
<p>I was asked to manage this student who is severely incompetent to say the least. They had developed, with 4 other students, an undergrad project which was shown to demonstrate the necessary skills, although I highly doubt that they did any work on that project. When we asked them to program an app, they could not do it so they went to another lab and made the GRAs there develop the app for them. The code was so horrible that I had to rewrite the whole program just before the deadline. I brought this to my advisor's attention and the response was they will fire both of them and asked me to stay back for one semester to help out with transition.</p>
<p>I am pretty good at what I do and have a stellar reputation in my department. Despite multiple requests from my advisor, I said I don't want to spend one more semester in the lab since I can earn much more by getting an industry job.</p>
<p>What my advisor doesn't know is that when the new student was working, instead of developing the app on the tablet, he installed games on it and kept the tablet in his home for a month. This caused some hardships to the other new hire in the lab who could not complete the programs on time. Whenever I asked for the return of the tablet, the reply was that they came to lab but nobody was there. We were actually there in the lab during the whole time it was claimed to have attempted to return it. I was busy with interviews so I never bothered to tell my advisor about this.</p>
<p>At end of December, out of desperation she hired the student she said she would fire and sensing desperation they asked for GRA, saying they are interested in having a dissertation. My advisor agreed reluctantly. I came to know about this only last week when I called to find out what they were doing in the break. They sheepishly told me that my advisor was a fool and they were not really interested in a thesis but only in getting a free ride through college though being a GRA.</p>
<p>I am worried they will not do any work and pay other people to write programs and a dissertation for them. One bad apple can destroy the work environment in a lab. So I finally emailed my advisor and asked if they can promise me an full time job by April, I will stay back and help out in the research. I have also asked for an appointment to discuss an important matter of the new student.</p>
<p>I think my advisor has already given him the commitment, but how can I convince them to drop this student? I have worked in my lab for a year and a half. I deeply care about the lab, and I don't want that student in there. What will be best way to approach my advisor about this?</p>
<p><strong>UPDATE:</strong> </p>
<p>I spoke with my advisor yesterday and said in no uncertain terms that they are not into micromanagement and this student will screw up her lab after I leave, they will never realize it and the will pay somebody else to write their thesis and the advisor's career will be on the hook. I promised that if the advisor find me the best student from class, I will teach them how to do basics of programming so that there will be smooth transition once I leave. According to that new student, she asked them to meet and said that she has no funding and it will be difficult for them to do a thesis without funding and suggested trying other departments, and asked to meet after a further week. Kind of indirectly telling them to leave.</p>
<p>What I am not able to understand is when I asked my adviser yesterday it was said to me that it was never offered for the student to do a thesis with but I am pretty sure it was agreed to work with that student when with them before the break. The new student was super confident about the fact that he will get funding for a thesis.</p>
<p><strong>So can anybody please enlighten me as to why my advisor would lie to me here? Why would the advisor lie to me that they didn't offer a thesis when I see they pretty well did, I mean I am just an student, right? Are they embarrassed by their mistake and that's why they're not admitting it?</strong></p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15308,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
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"text": "<p>The way you can broach the subject is exactly as you've laid it out in your comment. The student mentioned that he will take on a GRA position in the group. However, you're concerned that he is not actually qualified to do the research in the group, and that will give you an opportunity to lay out the case. You should have evidence that is stronger than hearsay, however, if you want to make a convincing case. </p>\n\n<p>You might also suggest some questions that the advisor can ask the student that will prove that he is not qualified to do the research. However, if your advisor is in fact \"desperate\" for help, it may not be enough to sway your advisor's mind. If your school offers \"provisional\" contracts to new graduate students, you may want to ask her if she can make a short-term commitment before guaranteeing longer-term funding.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15309,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>OK. I'm actually surprised at the range of answers here, so I'm going to write down my take on your issue. It's possible that I'm doing things completely wrong, but I also feel like what I am about to write down is the normal graduate student response to situations like this in academia.</p>\n\n<p>I honestly feel that there is absolutely no merit to yourself to talk badly about your fellow labmate to your supervisor. From your supervisor's perspective, it is possible that your labmate is terrible, but it is also possible that you just hate this guy (it's clear from your writing that this is not the case, but as a supervisor she might not know for sure).</p>\n\n<p>If I were you, I would probably take a more passive-aggressive approach by just refusing to help your labmate beyond what is expected normally, and just let his doom take its natural course. If he is that bad, he is bound to fail at some point. Why bother myself with it, and why get worked up about it? The only time where I would be more proactive is if my advisor asked me to collaborate with him. Then I would tell her that I would prefer not working with him, because of his previous actions.</p>\n\n<p>Otherwise, telling on your labmate could be viewed as inappropriate in my opinion, as it could just be interpreted as jealousy on your part, and reflect negatively on yourself.</p>\n\n<p>Let me emphasize that I am actually unsure of whether this is the right course of action, but since everyone feels so strongly about this issue, I figured that I would chip in. This is one of those cases where academia differs from real-life jobs, and there <em>are</em> quite a bit of non-academics on this forum, so I am not sure if they are the only ones who have posted so far.</p>\n\n<p>Your academic career depends hugely on how your advisor views you, and if for some unfortunate reason she perceives you as a jealous person, that could reflect on her letters. It's different from the industry from what I've heard, where getting the job done matters more than how your direct supervisor might view you.</p>\n\n<p><strong>I would welcome comments from people, but please specify your ties (are you a grad student? professor? not in academia?) to academia in your comments. It would be interesting to hear the different opinions, and know where they come from.</strong></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15311,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I agree with user14449 above. While you may have the best intentions in outing this person's incompetence and negative attitude, it could very well backfire on you. </p>\n\n<p>I say this because I have a <em>very</em> hard time believing that the lab supervisor was just <em>so super desperate</em> that she had no choice to hire the guy she had just promised to fire. All it takes to replace an undergrad in the lab is a job posting on the campus network and within a week you have a new person. Chances are that she did have the intention of firing him but subsequently found out that the kid's parents are academics too and/or big university honchos she didn't want to anger. </p>\n\n<p>I think the only two viable options are to leave for a job in the \"real\" world or make him fall on his own sword. As user14449 said, sooner or later his incompetence will come to light. Since your supervisor already granted him funding, you can take your cue from her and give him even <em>more</em> responsibility. Include him in meetings, ask him to explain his work and ask him for suggestions of where the project should go next. (Obviously don't tell him ahead of time that you will be putting him on the spot in meetings). </p>\n\n<p>If you don't want to engage in this kind of skulduggery, just find a job elsewhere and leave. I personally can never understand why people fight tooth and nail for academic jobs in these kinds of environments. What's so great about this situation that makes this thing worthwhile? Why is this worth fighting for rather than exiting graciously? Your supervisor can promise you a job and just as easily renege on that promise like she did with the firing of the student.</p>\n\n<p>As a student who has worked both in academia and outside it, I much prefer the gloves-off approach of the real-world. No employer and/or team in the \"real\" world treated me as shabbily and exploitatively as grad students and professors. It's soured me on grad school, and if I ever do decide to apply it will be for a professional program where I don't have to deal with any of this baloney.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 48615,
"author": "smci",
"author_id": 12050,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/12050",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It's a good question touching multiple points. Most of us have had to work with incompetents in both academia and industry.</p>\n\n<p>Here is my take:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>To help us out with some programming, \"we\" hired 2 students on an hourly\n basis.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Really, you didn't hire them. Your supervisor did. She doesn't know how to manage unmotivated people requiring close attention (and even if she did she will be too busy in the tenure ratrace for the next ~7 years), so she dumped (ahem:delegated) that responsibility on you. He messed up his first assignment and you very unwisely saved his bacon by rewriting his work before the deadline (a) don't ever do that again b) document to her before you do it, that he asked you to do it, and how much time it will take, and ask should you drop your regular work).</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>My advisor is not into micromanagement. She hires the students and asks for an update just a week before deadline and places heavy trust on people working for her and till now it has worked fine.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This hands-off management style works fine with motivated competent people who show initiative. You just have to make sure that's who you're hiring.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>said she will fire both of them and asked me to stay back for one semester to help her out with transition.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>So you got what you want. (Probably you would have gotten it sooner if you hadn't rescued him. Lesson learned). It's not your business how she handles it, it doesn't matter what her style is.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>What i am not able to understand is when asked my adviser yesterday she told me that she never offered asked the guy to do thesis with her but i am pretty sure she did agree to work with that guy when she spoke to him before break.Because the new guy super confident about this part(that he will get funding and thesis).</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>The guy is a known liar and incompetent; most likely he's playing mind games with you and the other students (and everyone else in his life). Don't play his stupid games. Don't let him sow distrust between you and your supervisor, let alone fool you into accusing her of imaginary things. Don't even talk to him. Totally ignore him and get on with your own career. Lesson learned: there will always be people like that (until it's your company or you get the power to fire people).</p>\n\n<p>Lessons learned:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Always try to insist on veto power in interviewing and hiring coworkers you will work with (and managers too if possible). If not, you have little or no power.</li>\n<li>Learn to estimate the hidden cost of managing bad or mediocre people, and the corresponding process requirements (e.g. biweekly group meetings, written status reports). The worse they are, the more this will eat into your productivity. Also, it will annoy you. Try to timebox parts of your schedule to limit this (\"red time/green time\", headphones, Pomodoro, whatever).</li>\n<li>You learned something important about yourself from this, namely that it aggravates you intensely to work with dishonest incompetent untrustworthy unmotivated people. So don't ever get into a manager or supervisor position wrt such people again. Or if you must, clearly define expectations, progress tracking, deliverables, dependencies, reviews etc. Read about different management styles and identify which ones you like/ dislike/ thrive under.</li>\n<li>Surface problems with coworkers early, in a professional way. In this case, when he messed up his first task. Don't cover for them. (Don't throw them under the bus, necessarily, but definitely don't cover for them).</li>\n<li>Some people specialize in mind games, and if you react that damages your image. Avoid them and don't play their stupid games. Document what they get up to. But don't let yourself be distracted or lose your composure. People like that are smart enough to manipulate, lie and cultivate perceptions and relationships, that's how they survive so long (or get promoted).</li>\n<li>If the situation had become intolerable and she hadn't agreed to fire him, then you would have had to quit, politely explaining what he'd done (but not the stuff you merely suspect he would do) and why it was damaging her department.</li>\n<li>You keep getting hung up on a sense of unfairness (\"What if he bribes people to write his programs, dissertation?\") Put that out of your mind, you can't control it. Somewhere down the line, he will get what's coming to him - whether that's next week or in ten years - you can't control the timing - this is the Zen of Working with Incompetents. Do not let him distract your mental energies.</li>\n<li>Put him out of your mind. Eliminate all interaction with him. Don't reply to his emails or questions. Or walk out of the lab if he walks in. Buy a bottle of sparkling white wine (or whatever) and keep in the fridge. Open it after he gets fired. Shouldn't be long now. Then celebrate and get back to your work 110%.</li>\n<li>We have to assume your supervisor duly learned her lesson about cutting corners in hiring, not writing a job ad, checking references etc. You suspect she might have taken the guy as a political favor. But if you think she didn't, offer to write the job ad for her next time.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 48619,
"author": "Jan-Christoph Schlage-Puchta",
"author_id": 30965,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/30965",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>What i am not able to understand is when asked my adviser yesterday she told me that she never offered asked the guy to do thesis with her but i am pretty sure she did agree to work with that guy when she spoke to him before break.Because the new guy super confident about this part(that he will get funding and thesis).</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>It may very well be that everyone was completely honest. People never recall a conversation correctly, but an interpretation depending on their expectations, assumed context, cultural background, degree of politeness and many other things. A question like \"Can I do a Ph.D.?\" can mean a lot of different things, including \"Do you give me funding?\" or \"Do you think I am good enough?\". Also \"I will see what I can do for you\" can be anything between a polite refusal and an almost certain acceptance. </p>\n\n<p>Your labmate might be lying, and your professor might be lying, but you don't have to assume bad faith when quite common misunderstandings suffice to explain the situation. On the other even if everyone was acting in good faith you should remember that your professor might be prone to misunderstandings. You can try to reduce such situations by e.g. summarizing the content of a discussion at the end.</p>\n"
}
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| 2014/01/02 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15306",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10442/"
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|
15,315 | <p>I previously asked this question in Mathematics.SE (which is now removed from that site):</p>
<blockquote>
<p>How to be a professor and a researcher in academia if I only have a baccalauréat in maths and don't have much money?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>And one kind user from France said that I can't unless I have a PhD. (French baccalauréat is only graduation from high-school.)</p>
<p>But how to get a Doctorat in France? I search for informations about a PhD in general: like how much would it cost me?...etc</p>
<p>Also I heard of 'classe prépa', should I take them first?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15328,
"author": "Dylan Meeus",
"author_id": 9570,
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"text": "<p>If you want to get your Ph.d in france, you will first have to get a bachelor degree and a master degree. You need to get accepted for Ph.d though, though finishing your master degree in the high average of your class (honorary degrees) makes the acceptance more likely.</p>\n\n<p>The acceptance of your Ph.d varies on other factors as well, if a lot of people are applying for a spot with a better background than you, they might get it.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>On the question</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>How to be a professor and a researcher in academia if I only have a\n baccalauréat in maths and don't have much money?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>You don't neccesarily need a Ph.D to be a professor, if the AND researcher is important, than you will need one. If you just aim to lecture, they accept people with a master degree to lecture in the (professional) bachelor degrees. (Ofcourse, with a Ph.D you have more chance of getting the position)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15425,
"author": "penelope",
"author_id": 4249,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4249",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As somebody who's actually doing a PhD in France, maybe I can provide some more information.</p>\n\n<p>Firstly, as everybody says, you have to get an equivalent of a Bachelor degree (I think that's \"licence\" in France), and the a Master degree as well. I didn't do this part of my studies in France, but, some things that I overheard:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>of course, nobody is paying while you are doing that, and you most probably have to pay a yearly tuition (probably around 400eur)</li>\n<li>I think that there is some programs to get some scholarships that could help you, and you'll probably be eligible to help from <a href=\"http://www.caf.fr/\">CAF</a> for a while</li>\n<li>to supplement your income, I'm sure you can teach already in the last year of Master, and possibly (but I'm not sure), even as soon as you finish you Bachelors (aka \"licence\")</li>\n<li>other major expenses are living costs and eating costs: you can usually get a student dormitory (200-300 eur/month is plausible, but it depends on a city) and as a student, you get cheap student lunches (3-4eur/meal)</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>As I said, I didn't do this Bachelor-Master part of my education in France. But, for the PhD I can offer more information:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>a PhD in France is basically a normal <em>work contract</em> lasting for (exactly) 3 years, with a usual possibility of extending it for 3-6 months</li>\n<li>to obtain a PhD, you have to obtain a grant. Sometimes, you apply to professors for a subject that is already funded, and sometimes you apply to the professors and then you submit your grant application together (like me)</li>\n<li>you still have to pay a yearly tuition (~400eur), but you will be receiving a monthly salary where the amount depends on your grant. It's usually between 1300 and 1600eur</li>\n<li>in your first year, you are still possibly eligible for <a href=\"http://www.caf.fr/\">CAF</a></li>\n<li>there's two type of PhD contracts: research, or teaching. The teaching contracts are harder to obtain, but it is usually easier in your second year than your first. If you need/want more income per month, a teaching contract gets you an additional 300eur/month on your salary</li>\n<li>other major expenses are again lodging and food: again, sometimes dormitory housing is available, but renting a flat can be acceptable as well (around 300eur/month if your flat-sharing up to 550-600 if you're renting alone). Usually, the lab/university provides some kind of lunch discount tickets as well.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>As for some additional information about <em>how to get</em> in to a PhD programme:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>in France, it is obligatory to do at least one internship in a research lab or a company during your Masters, but two are possible</li>\n<li>if you are planning to stay in France, it is very customary for people to do their PhDs in the same lab where they did their internships, and some even just extend on their internship topics</li>\n<li>your Master supervisor and all the contacts you made during your internships will probably be most helpful, as you can ask them for advice, or even if they know of a position / professor that would suit your plans</li>\n<li>additionally, if you want to do your PhD outside of France (it always needs a Master degree), it's probably a bit harder to obtain (although your Master contacts can help you). It's a <em>paying job</em> with <em>a salary</em> in a lot of European countries (some examples includ: Germany, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland...)</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15426,
"author": "PatW",
"author_id": 7357,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Penelope's answer is already very good, I just want to give some additional details.</p>\n<p>First, a Ph.D. is required to get a position in academia. To be even clearer, there are several positions and you can learn more about what is a <em>maître de conférence</em> or a <em>professeur des universités</em> <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_rank_in_France\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>. In France, a Ph.D. is not the highest academic diploma that one can get as you can prepare yourself to get the <em>Habilitation à diriger des recherches</em> (HDR), which will allow you to supervise Ph.D. students.</p>\n<p>To be eligible for a Ph.D. program in France (or <em>doctorat</em>), having a Master's degree (or an equivalent diploma) is necessary. Now the French educational system is quite confusing if you are not familiar with it. Basically, after a french <em>baccalauréat</em>, you can either choose to go to:</p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Université</em>: where you will need three years to complete your <em>Licence</em>, then an additional two years to complete your Master.</li>\n<li><em>Classes préparatoires aux grandes écoles</em> (CPGE) and <em>Grandes écoles</em>: since you posted about mathematics, you will choose to go to a scientific CPGE, where you will attend a maths/physics intensive two-year curriculum that prepares you to take the <em>concours d'entrée aux grandes écoles</em>. These <em>grandes écoles</em> are given the right, by the government, to deliver a <em>Diplôme d'ingénieur</em> (or Engineering diploma), which is equivalent to a Master's degree.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>While they both deliver Master's degrees (i.e., you can apply to a Ph.D. after them), the <em>universités</em> are more likely to prepare you for academic research whereas the <em>CPGE</em> and <em>Grandes écoles</em> are more suited for working in the industry. However, I highly suggest you to inform yourself about these two possibilities before choosing a path.</p>\n<p>Finally, I want to emphasize on a point mentioned by Penelope: during your Ph.D., you remain a student, which means you can have access to all the privileges offered to students regarding everyday life (housing, public transports, social security, ...) while being pretty decently paid. Unless you have a family to support and if you don't have any accidents, there should be no reason to have financial difficulties.</p>\n"
}
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| 2014/01/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15315",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10453/"
]
|
15,316 | <p>I studied Social Sciences (Development Economics concentration) at one of Europe's top ranked universities and achieved excellent grades, but had to interrupt my studies just before taking two final exams, entirely due to personal reasons - thus not completing my undergraduate degree.</p>
<p>While I was at uni, I obtained grants to run a new research project in my field with sponsorship by some well-known professors. The progress of my work was published in an international journal and also a few industry magazines. I was also heavily involved in other projects around the university.
I mention these little details just to make it clear that I was not at uni just for the sake of getting a qualification, but because had a genuine intention of contributing to my field, to research and maybe become a professor.</p>
<p>While I was addressing my personal issues, I started working, first freelancing but later at a mid-sized company and have worked my way up to middle management. My job is somewhat related to what I studied and also very analytical, although it's obviously business-focused.</p>
<p>I am wondering what options I have...
- if I wanted to return to a research based position;
- especially, if returning to university might turn out to be too hard/long (might have to re-do the entire undergraduate studies while working)
- and whether it might be easier (but also possible) to try applying straight into think-tanks and development focused positions.</p>
<p>One of my concerns is that despite my good CV in business, I don't have the same quantitative-analytical and research skills of someone who studied at postgraduate level. It's one of the subjects I enjoyed most and even enjoy at work, but how can I prove myself to future employers?</p>
<p>I think my question boils down to: how much do my achievements matter, and what else do I need to do to make up for no degree?</p>
<p><strong>UPDATES / Answers to questions in comments:</strong>
I dropped out of my own, for very personal reasons. In fact, I almost disappeared without notice and had to leave to another country. I am also a bit reluctant to discuss with my university about what those personal reasons were, but trust me they were very serious.
So I would have mixed feelings about returning to the same university.
I am sure I have disappointed many people there, and they would not understand why I left...</p>
<p><strong>UPDATE 2 / Answers to rocinante's update :)</strong>
There must have been a misunderstanding. I didn't mention nor imply anywhere that I considered faking my credentials to advance my career. I started at entry level with my current employer and progressed from within, i.e. there were no academic requirements when I started, but I proved them that I had the skills required for my current level.
To be more specific, I am asking about whether there might be chances for alternative training to get into a more advanced research path. Adult learning, online courses, non-degree professional certificates.
For example, I have heard of several people getting into MBA programs after 5-7 years of work experience, but no degree.
Are there analogue routes into research?
I hope this clarifies.</p>
<p><strong>UPDATE 3 / Answers to Ben Webster and rocinante</strong>
Thanks both of you. It's true I should consider my old university; I am just very afraid that it might not work and considering what alternatives I may have should my attempts fail. I am also not belittling the value of degrees, BUT simply wondering how else I could prove myself, improve my knowledge, use a professional body route rather than academic etc. if the old university option won't succeed.
I know many doors will close, but I am determined and convinced that my potential, passion and skills far outweigh what's on paper.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15329,
"author": "Ben Webster",
"author_id": 13,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/13",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'm with @rocinante here: you're handicapping yourself if you can't get past whatever block is preventing you from discussing this personal issue with people from your past university. I don't know whether it's embarrassing or emotionally painful (and you don't need to tell us, we're just yahoos on the internet), but you have to be able to give some account of it:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>First of all, you should make a good faith attempt to finish your degree at your old institution. I'm sure you did burn some bridges there when you left, but if you can't get past that to try, that doesn't sound especially driven to me. Credentialism may be a little silly, but you're locking yourself out of a lot of doors if you don't finish your degree.</p></li>\n<li><p>Also, if you want to be successful getting a position in any area of research, recommendations from \"one of Europe's top ranked universities\" would be pretty helpful (for getting into a graduate program of any description, they are essential). I know less about think tanks, but in most graduate admission committees, even with a completed bachelor's, no letters from professors you had as an undergraduate and an unexplained gap in your transcript that's not explained extremely well in your personal statement would be an immediate disqualification. So, not only should you go back to your old university, you need to set up meetings with the professors you disappointed, apologize sincerely, explain your situation, and knock their socks off with where you are now.</p></li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 27093,
"author": "dmckee --- ex-moderator kitten",
"author_id": 440,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/440",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You need to establish a working relationship with of <em>some</em> kind with <em>some</em> department. Once you have that you can start working on your \"deficiencies\" (i.e. the courses you either have no record of taking or have a record of not finishing successfully).</p>\n\n<p>Once you have that relationship you can talk to the department hear. You're probably going to have to tell him or her <em>something</em> about this mysterious personal emergency. </p>\n\n<p>But here is the thing, (at least in the US) the requirement to have a Bachelor's degree to start advanced work is a gate-keeping tool: the department uses it to avoid having to filter out at lot of self-deluded know-nothings. Once they <em>know</em> that you know something the odds of them letting you simply start graduate studies go way up.</p>\n\n<p>So how do you get started? Apply as non-degree or apply as an undergrad with a lot of transfer credit (they are likely going to ask you to take at least a year's worth of course-work).</p>\n\n<p>The important step is to get a foot in the door and establish a working relationship with them.</p>\n\n<p>There is something to be said for choosing a a small-to-medium sized department for the campaign.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15316",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10454/"
]
|
15,326 | <p>Let's say I am citing a person called Emilia Di Martino. How would she go in my MLA reference list?</p>
<p>Possibilities I can think of:</p>
<pre><code>Martino, Emilia di.
Martino, Emilia Di.
Di Martino, Emilia.
</code></pre>
<p>And how would I refer to her work inline? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15327,
"author": "cabad",
"author_id": 7978,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7978",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I searched her name in Google Scholar and the first paper \"CLIL implementation in Italian schools...\" includes a footnote on how to cite it:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Di Martino, E. & Di Sabato, B. ...</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>So, in short \"Di Martino\" is the surname and cite/use it as such.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15330,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>One thing to keep in mind is that there is a substantial difference in several continental languages between uppercase and lowercase versions of a last name: it is wrong to write "de Martino" if the person's last name is normally written "De Martino." This is a historical artifact, where the use of the capital letter indicates nobility, while the lowercase letter denotes a more traditional relationship. Similar rules apply to "von" in German and "van" in Dutch, but not to "de" in French or Spanish.</p>\n<p>Therefore, when capitalized, the particle should always be treated as part of the last name. If lowercase, you can treat it as a suffix that goes after the first name. The exception are names like "de Gaulle" where "de" is followed by a one-syllable name.</p>\n<p>So, it's:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Beethoven, Ludwig van</p>\n<p>Clausewitz, Carl von</p>\n<p>de Gaulle, Charles</p>\n<p>Di Martino, Emilia</p>\n<p>Martino, Emilia di</p>\n<p>Maupassant, Guy de</p>\n<p>Van Allen, James</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>My source is the <a href=\"http://www.mlahandbook.org\" rel=\"noreferrer\">MLA Handbook</a>.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15326",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7121/"
]
|
15,331 | <p>I recently reviewed a paper and recommended Major Revision. I provided a referee report with some detailed comments on what the revision should address. I can see from the system that the Editor gave a decision of Major Revision, the authors of the paper have been notified and they already submitted a revision four months ago. However, the Editor did not invite me as a referee in the second round. I have been refereeing for over seven years and this is the first time that I experienced such a situation. I have been obsessing that the Editor found my report incompetent or not useful. But, the overall recommendation was the same (Major Revision) and the same journal asked me to review other manuscripts in the same time frame. What do you think the reason could be?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15332,
"author": "Eirik Søvik",
"author_id": 10471,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10471",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My guess would be that when the editor saw the revised manuscript and the comments from the authors, he deemed the revision to be less major than he initially thought, and decided to not send the manuscript out for review a second time.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15334,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are always difficulties second-guessing from what others actions result from. The fact you did not get re-invited, is not strange in my experience (as reviewer and editor). First, I assume you do not know what the other (I assume the journal uses more than one reviewer) reviewer provided in a second review. It may have been minor revisions and the editor could make a decision to provide a major revisions verdict but go directly to accept if he/she thought the corrections were good enough. This is an editors prerogative. </p>\n\n<p>It is always possible that an editor chooses a different reviewer for the reason you mention but given that you have done many reviews before, I sincerely doubt this is the case or reason. Another possibility is that the editor felt someone with different expertise was needed for some aspect of the manuscript, perhaps based on comments by the second reviewer. But, you will never know the details of the story and I would not think twice about the event. The fact that you keep getting requests shows your expertise is in demand.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 101563,
"author": "Allure",
"author_id": 84834,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/84834",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The most common reasons not to invite a previous reviewer for a second review are, in my experience:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>The reviewer wrote a poor review the first time (probably doesn't apply in your case).</li>\n<li>The reviewer ticked the \"I do not think it's necessary for me to check the revision\" box.</li>\n<li>The editor decided to make a decision immediately, without consulting reviewers. For example, the author's response to reviewers might be poor and the editor feels further reviewing is a waste of time.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>In your case, I'll suggest a much more benign explanation: the editor noticed that you have already been invited to review another article recently or perhaps already have an ongoing review, and decided not to invite you again for fear of taking up too much of your time.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 101574,
"author": "DBB",
"author_id": 85072,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/85072",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The editor thought your comments were sufficiently addressed in the revision and made the decision to publish.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15331",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10470/"
]
|
15,335 | <p>In <a href="http://www.quora.com/Exams-and-Tests/What-is-a-good-exam?share=1#">this answer</a> to a quora question, the answerer mentions how the 'entropy' of a set of exam results can be used to measure how well the exam differentiates between students. </p>
<p>Should I be computing the entropy of my students' exam results? How do I do it? How should I interpret the entropy information?</p>
<p>Edit: How is entropy related to standard deviation?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15337,
"author": "BSteinhurst",
"author_id": 7561,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7561",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The practicalities first. Take your list of exam scores and count for each possible value of the score how many of the exams got that score. In Excel the FREQUENCY function is useful for automating this step. To give some names call p_i the number of exams which have score i. From there you just add up -(p_i)log(p_i) over all the scores that actually happened. The base of the logarithm is not particularly important abstractly but what it does is scale your final \"entropy\" values so be consistent and only compare different classes when you are using the same base. </p>\n\n<p>So far this is just a computation to perform so what does it tell you? It tells you how much information the scores encode. A test that really differentiates between the levels of knowledge that students have will have values that are take more information to predict. That information might be that your students really know/do not know the material. Or it could be 15 of the questions are easy and 5 very hard so scores in the low-80's are going to be more common than they otherwise might be. </p>\n\n<p>What entropy will tell you is a quantified notion for how much more information is in your exam results than just randomly assigning numbers between 0 and 100. Like any attempt to summarize an entire packet of exams and the attached students with a single number, be careful to not push your data too far. The person in your link that was \"surprised how few professors compute and report entropy (or even know what it is)\" is a person who is in electrical engineering and computer sciences. Both of those fields use the notion of entropy regularly so his surprise maybe not be that surprising. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15338,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Entropy measures how much information you learn on average about each student from the exam results. For example, imagine an exam on which everyone gets a perfect score. In that case, you would learn nothing, so the entropy is zero. If half the students get one score and half get another, then you learn one <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bit\">bit</a> of information about each of them. If you want to assign meaningful grades on the usual U.S. scale, you'll need at least several bits of entropy, and the 3.5 or 4 bits mentioned in the quora answer sounds reasonable to me.</p>\n\n<p>The idea behind the answer you link to is perfectly reasonable: if your exam results have low entropy, then that basically means they are clumped together on too few possible scores, and you don't have enough ability to distinguish between students. On the other hand, I don't see much point to actually computing a mathematical measure of entropy (e.g., <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entropy_%28information_theory%29\">Shannon entropy</a>), except perhaps for fun if you enjoy that sort of thing. Instead, you can just look at the range of scores and judge how well they distinguish between students. Think about how you might assign grades, and you'll rapidly see whether you run into problems, without any need for mathematical computations.</p>\n\n<p>Furthermore, doing it by entropy is a little subtle anyway. Strictly speaking, Shannon entropy pays no attention to the distance between scores, just to whether they are exactly equal. I.e., you can have high entropy if every student gets a slightly different score, even if the scores are all very near to each other and thus not useful for distinguishing students. The quora answer obliquely refers to that (in the discussion of bins), but still this means you can't just compute a single number without thinking.</p>\n\n<p>So I'd view entropy more as a metaphor than a number most professors should compute.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 20597,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If 100% of your students mastered the material completely, then you don't want some of them to get very low scores and others very high scores. In this situation, if there is a big spread in scores, it means that your exam is bad, not good.</p>\n\n<p>You really want a whole bunch of simultaneous criteria to be satisfied:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Your exam questions have what's known as \"face validity.\" That means that an expert, reading them, agrees that they are written so that they correctly test knowledge of the topic.</p></li>\n<li><p>You want scores on your questions to correlate with one another and/or with external measures of your students' knowledge.</p></li>\n<li><p>You want the test to be reliable, in the sense that for a student with a given level of knowledge, the standard deviation of the test result is small. (E.g., you want a decent number of questions.)</p></li>\n<li><p>If student A and student B have different levels of knowledge, then you want your test to distinguish between them.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>If a test has low entropy, it <em>could</em> mean that you have a problem with #4.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/03 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15335",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10473/"
]
|
15,344 | <p>My research is in software engineering, but in a sub-field which is very close to social science. My papers normally contain sentences like "We conducted a study with 56 participants." and "Our previous study showed that [some assumptions are true]" and "We chose to use Cramer's V as the association measure, because [explanation why we thought it is better than other association measures]". </p>
<p>Now that I am close to my Ph.D. thesis, I am writing more texts alone, and the thesis is legally required to be my own work. So "we" is factually wrong. But using "I" feels immodest, and it is certainly unusual. But I don't know how to change my texts to avoid it. </p>
<p>I can't imagine how to apply the advice from that other answer to my case. "One conducted a study with 56 participants"? "The conducted study had 56 participants"? "A study was conducted, with 56 participants"? Unlike describing a mathematical proof, these sentences sound terrible. And how to explain my decision to use Cramer's V, when it is based on personal opinion? </p>
<p>Any advice how to deal with the matter outside of the world of mathematical proofs? </p>
<hr>
<p>Another example why "I" might be needed. It is not only vanity; in the not-so-exact sciences there is sometimes lots of leeway involved. Say that I code some data. This is a very subjective process, and can be error prone. It is important for the readers to know that a coding was done by a single person, as this is considered less reliable than having somebody else repeat it and discuss any differences, and also because the coder has to take responsibility for any unusual decisions or errors. </p>
<hr>
<p>There is a <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/2945/choice-of-personal-pronoun-in-single-author-papers">more general question</a> on the same topic. But the accepted and highly-upvoted answer is from the point of view of a mathematician, it says that the writing style is best constrained to declarative sentences such as "Since p, it follows that q.". </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15345,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are customs and habits that differ between disciplines, between research groups and between individuals. I would endeavour to claim that the trend is away from passive phrased (e.g. \"was made\" etc.) to active we and I but perhaps also from royal we's and expressions such as \"this author\" in favour for being to the point using \"I\". The key, however, lies in how the \"I\" is used. (in fact, \"this author\" may even be confused by the author of the latest referenced paper)</p>\n\n<p>If you write a paper you can safely use I whenever you report on things you in particular have done. In methods sections, it concerns the choices of methods you (and nobody else) has made and in the results section it concerns the results you (and nobody else) has obtained and your choice which ones to highlight. In the discussion section you can use \"I\" whenever you make a point that you stand by, you can use we in parts where you perform a discussion with the reader; we meaning you and the reader. In short, the \"I\" signals your contributions and puts you (and nobody else) on the spot for criticism. So as I see it \"I\" is not a way to brag (which seems to scare many), it is exposing the fact that you alone stand for what is written.</p>\n\n<p>I suggest you try to find good (recommended by peers) papers written in different styles and think about the styles with the aim of finding your own comfort zone. It is a matter of style, not right and wrong.</p>\n\n<p>To cap off I want to highlight a couple of books that I personally, being a non-native English speaker, have found very useful:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Glasman-Deal, H., 2012. Science research writing for non-native speakers of English. Imperial College Press, London</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>and</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Day, R.A. & Sakaduski, N., 2011. Scientific English. A guide for scientists and other professionals. Greenwood, Santa Barbara CA</p>\n</blockquote>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15346,
"author": "silvado",
"author_id": 3890,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3890",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'm not sure about the conventions in social science, but the problem seems to be very close to what natural scientists face when writing a methods section, i.e., how an experiment was performed. If you look into the publications, you will see that these sections are almost exclusively written in the passive voice. The idea behind it is to take away the focus from the subject performing the experiment, putting more emphasis on tthe process instead. So you examples would become:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>A study with 56 participants was conducted.</li>\n<li>Cramer's V was chosen as the association measure, because...</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>\"Our previous study\" is still fine, when the previous study has several authors.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16071,
"author": "user1574546",
"author_id": 11083,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11083",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am in cognitive psychology and frequently use, \"In the present investigation.\" There are sometimes workarounds you can use to avoid passive voice such as, \"56 adults participated in this study.\"</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16073,
"author": "rumtscho",
"author_id": 103,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/103",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I asked my supervisor directly. She said that she is OK with using \"I\" in the dissertation, but that it is \"uncommon\" to use it in articles. As she is always a co-author on our papers, I guess none of her students had to deal with the problem in the context of an article anyway :) And because she did not mention internal reports even though I specifically asked about them, I think that she doesn't care what I use in them. </p>\n\n<p>This is just the opinion of one professor, and the answers here show me that there doesn't seem to be a good convention. So, my take-home message from the whole problem would be: ask your professor, he will probably have a position on it and it is wise for you as a student to follow it. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16074,
"author": "Federico Poloni",
"author_id": 958,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/958",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The use of the authorial 'we' is very common in academia even for single-author papers, as argued by many and properly referenced in the other question that you mention.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Personally, I would keep 'we'</strong> also for the thesis without bothering. I doubt anyone would misunderstand, but if you wish you can include a quick remark in the introduction: something like <em>Despite the use of the 'authorial we', common in academia, this thesis is the sole work of its author</em>. In many cases you are required to state that you are the only author anyway in some boilerplate forms in the front matter.</p>\n\n<p>This looks much better to my eye than changing every sentence to a contorted passive form. Readability matters.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16087,
"author": "cbeleites unhappy with SX",
"author_id": 725,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/725",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'm facing the same problem, though in German language/natural science (conventions may vary somewhat).</p>\n\n<p>The main problem with the passive construction is that it doesn't say at all who did it. Consider:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>The algorithm was implemented.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>How can the reader be sure it was you as opposed to your colleague giving you his code (particulary, if the corresponding paper is authored by multiple coauthors)? I'm told I cannot expect the reader to look up the source where the author is explicitly stated. </p>\n\n<p>So for some (ver key points where I need to make really sure everyone gets the fact that I actually did work myself that is fairly common (e.g. in other groups in my field) to be done by colleagues, collaboration partners, students or technicians I use \"I\" even though is so uncommon that I get comments about the use of \"I\". </p>\n\n<p>Assuming that commonly studies like the one with 56 participants have someone planning it, someone (else) doing the experiments/collecting the data, and someone (yet else) analyzing the data: make sure you properly acknowledge the contributions of your collaborators in the acknowledgements. </p>\n\n<p>You can also use constructions like: </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>A study with 56 participants was conducted [ref]. This thesis focuses on [whichever part <em>you</em> did]</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Otherwise, \"This thesis shows that...\" or </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Throughout this thesis, Cramer's V is used as the association measure, because ...</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>get you a long way.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 124512,
"author": "hplieninger",
"author_id": 21216,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/21216",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I want to add two thoughts based on <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APA_style\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">APA style</a>. While the passive voice may help in some circumstances (as demonstrated in other answers), overuse of the passive is sometimes considered bad style. The Publication Manual of the APA (6th) even says on page 77:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Prefer the active voice.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Furthermore, the APA manual contains something about attribution on page 69.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Inappropriately or illogically attributing action in an effort to be objective \n can be misleading.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Thus, if you did something, it may even be misleading if this information is hidden using some stilted writing. And APA explicitly mentions the usage of <em>I</em> for single-author pieces on page 69:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>For clarity, restrict your use of <em>we</em> to refer only to yourself and your \n coauthors (use <em>I</em> if you are the sole author of the paper).</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>In summary, I think a good balance of passive and active is considered good style, and the usage of <em>I</em> (where appropriate) is slowly becoming acceptable.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 124536,
"author": "guest",
"author_id": 104133,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/104133",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<ol>\n<li><p>If any co-authors, you need to use we since the readers don't know who the I is.</p></li>\n<li><p>Use I, as needed for sole author pubs. I like I because it is a strong statement--there is a definite person to hold responsible. Don't use \"we\" if there are no co-authors (what you got a mouse in your pocket?) If you feel too hesitant about a bold I (or get static) than go to passive voice. But a \"we\" for a sole article is distracting.</p></li>\n<li><p>Do not use I when it makes more sense to make the objects of the research, the subject of the sentences. For example NOT \"I observed pitching as the stall angle was approached\", but \"the model started pitching near the listed stall angle, about 35 degrees\". The reason is not for modesty but because (a) it is tighter writing and (b) the proper attention is on the model in the wind tunnel--your observation is not the point, here.</p></li>\n<li><p>I recommend to avoid the passive voice, but some people will recommend it or expect it. Certainly if an editor requires it, just do it, don't argue. \"The reactants were combined in a boiling flask...\" Note, it does have the benefit of putting the attention on the science, not on you as an actor. </p></li>\n<li><p>Some math writing uses we because the reader is included as an observer in a derivation, \"after completing the square, we see...blabla\". </p></li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 189339,
"author": "user3352632",
"author_id": 129441,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/129441",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>We</strong> in PhD thesis typically mean: <strong>I am as an author and you as the reader</strong>. It is used in the sense that <strong>we together explore the topic</strong>. And it is just a kind of writing style to incorporate the reader.</p>\n<p>Writing "We conducted a study with 56 participants" or "our previous study" can be considered as a bad writing style. Since it has not the same meaning and could be easily transferred in passive voice.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/04 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15344",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/103/"
]
|
15,347 | <p>I submitted a paper to an IEEE conference (Computer Science). My paper was not accepted for publication but it has been accepted for poster presentation there. </p>
<p>The conference requires the authors to pay full delegate registration fees as is required for authors of published works. Is it a common practice ? </p>
<p>I was a novice student in the field when I submitted the paper, but have worked a lot in past few months in the area. And I am not looking for any specific inputs into that work anymore.</p>
<p>Is it worth doing a poster presentation in such case ?</p>
<p><strong>EDIT:</strong> (some additional information)</p>
<ul>
<li>It is not a top tier conference </li>
<li>I am self funded</li>
</ul>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15348,
"author": "Community",
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"text": "<p>Have you done these kinds of presentations before? If not, it may be good practice if you are a shy public speaker and could use the practice. Also, if you are interested in meeting the other people at the conference, it would be useful to go. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15349,
"author": "xLeitix",
"author_id": 10094,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10094",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I have some experience publishing in CS, so I'll give you my point of view.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>The conference requires the authors to pay full delegate registration fees as is required for authors of published works. Is it a common practice ?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Yes. In general, every participant is expected to pay in full, no matter what kind of contribution he/she has submitted. You are paying the conference, not your publication. One could argue that this is the main point why many (weaker) conferences even have poster and short paper tracks - to get more people to pay full registrations and attend the conference without having to accept too many papers.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I was a novice student in the field when I submitted the paper, but have worked a lot in past few months in the area. And I am not looking for any specific inputs into that work anymore.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I should comment that this is a somewhat questionable attitude. Even if you are not planning to continue a certain line of research, hearing what others think about your work will help you a lot in future research projects and papers. Also, I don't think that you can go from <em>novice</em> to <em>can't learn anything in the field anymore</em> in the timeframe of a conference paper review process, so I'll wager that some in the audience will still have reasonable input on your work.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Is it worth doing a poster presentation in such case ?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I would say this depends on practicalities. Is your advisor OK with paying your conference trip without a full paper to show? Is it far, will the travel be expensive? Is it a top conference that you want to attend for the conference's (and associated networking's) sake? Have you done many presentations, or will it at least be good training?</p>\n\n<p>That being said, from a scientific point of view, most poster presentations are not very valuable. They don't <em>count</em> a lot on your CV (except, maybe, if it really is an absolute top conference), and you will not get that much feedback, realistically.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15368,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I have very mixed feelings about poster presentations. Here is my take on this.</p>\n\n<p>Pros of poster presentations:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>You get to meet people. Sometimes (very rarely, IMO), the people that you meet through your poster session help you quite a bit through your career; invitations to seminars, eventually hiring you as their postdocs, etc.</li>\n<li>It's one more line on your CV. Always helpful.</li>\n<li>If you were going to go to that conference anyway, it's something productive.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Cons:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>In all honesty, what will happen most of the time is that you will be standing in front of your poster (quite awkward experience, I might add), and no one will be <em>really</em> interested; they might ask you a question or two, but then they will want to move on to the next poster.</li>\n<li>It's a lot of time and effort spent on making that poster. Also, poster printing is expensive.</li>\n<li>In many fields, poster presentations on CVs are not taken super seriously.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>As far as I am concerned, poster presentations are <em>something to do</em> while you are away at a conference. I personally usually opt not to present poster, because the outcome to effort ratio is quite low. As a rule of thumb, I would recommend that you present the poster if you are a graduate student of early years (if you have spoken in very few conferences), and be more selective if you are more senior in academia. For example, you might choose to present your poster if the conference is very prestigious, or if you know that someone that you would really like to know is coming to that conference. Otherwise, it doesn't make a huge difference in my opinion.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/04 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15347",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2823/"
]
|
15,361 | <p>My colleagues argue that a meta-analysis / systematic review needs at least two data collectors (or authors according to them) as a "must". I have not found any reference in the PRISMA (or any other sources about meta-analyses/systematic reviews) that confirms this claim. </p>
<p>Do you know any such protocol or consensus?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15362,
"author": "Vic",
"author_id": 6928,
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"pm_score": 2,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Answer: Although PRISMA does not require such a protocol, Cochrane Handbook does. However, it too does not \"necessitate\" it, but encourages it (at least to my understanding).</p>\n\n<p>Check out the Chapter 7 of the Part 2 of this online Handbook: <a href=\"http://handbook.cochrane.org/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://handbook.cochrane.org/</a></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15406,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is no such requirement. It is frequently helpful to have multiple authors to help sort through the vast amounts of literature being covered, but is by no means a necessity. For instance, <a href=\"http://iopscience.iop.org/1749-4699/5/1/013001\" rel=\"nofollow\">a colleague of mine</a> recently published a fairly substantial review article on his own.</p>\n\n<p>However, in medical research, a meta-review serves a rather different purpose than the usual review article in other fields: it is collecting the results of a bunch of different experimental studies, and trying to reach an overarching medical recommendation. That's a rather different research function than a review article in other fields. In medicine, you would want to have multiple people reviewing the data to make sure that it's not one person unilaterally deciding everything independently.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15435,
"author": "Fomite",
"author_id": 118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/118",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>From the perspective of an Epidemiologist, with some published meta-analysis experience:</p>\n\n<p><em>Must</em> is a very strong word. Some people have pointed to where, for example, the Cochrane Collaboration requires it, and PRISMA might not, but generally speaking I've never really encountered a situation where having a single author on a meta-analysis was a substantial barrier to publishing a review.</p>\n\n<p>On the other hand, I would say that a meta-analysis or systematic review <em>should</em> have a second person on the study team. Rarely is the literature being reviewed so clear, so well-laid out and so utterly free of ambiguity that a single person can read, digest and abstract the literature without making any judgement calls. Without having any papers where they search and simply cannot find what they're looking for. Without hitting that one paper they simply cannot make heads or tails of. There should be someone there to double-check your work, or a sample of it at least, to make sure what you described as the system in your paper and what you actually did match up. To look over those papers you've set aside in the \"Problem\" pile to see if they can see things you don't.</p>\n\n<p>I leave whether or not that person should be an author as an exercise to the reader.</p>\n\n<p>I know some colleagues who essentially begin all reviews with a parallel, blinded double-abstraction of the papers once they've been found - or even begin all the way at the search being carried out twice. I don't know that I'd go that far, but it is <em>extremely</em> helpful to have someone to double-check your decision making against. Despite being careful, reading closely and reviewing my own decisions, I have yet to work on a meta-analysis where I haven't been glad to have a second reviewer (or to be said reviewer).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15361",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6928/"
]
|
15,363 | <p>Often when I attend conferences and meetings, there are some social activities sometimes specifically for graduate students to mix with each other and get to know other students and build possible future collaborations and contacts. Once in a while I end up with a group of let's say all Chinese foreign students. I am not Chinese and I don't know any Mandarin/Cantonese. But it is a little frustrating and in my opinion quite rude when everyone carries on their conversation in Mandarin sometimes bypassing me directly and I have no clue what's going on and I stand there looking like a complete idiot.</p>
<p>If the gathering is something like a cocktail party, I would move on pretty quickly. But if it happens to be a formal dinner then I am stuck at that table and the entire evening might go by with me hardly talking to anyone. My question is, what can I do or say which will make them realize this and to consider other people around who may not know Mandarin?</p>
<p>Just to clarify, this is in the USA and the students I am talking about are all foreign students attending American universities so it isn't a question of them not knowing English. Sometimes I know a friend or two and I would jokingly tell them only English which works for a couple of minutes and then everyone reverts to Mandarin again.</p>
<p>Any ideas?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15364,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
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"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I understand your frustration. I am in a similar, though different, situation. I do find it frustrating as well, when the situation turns as you described. However, as Zhou Fang pointed out, when a group of people share a common native language, it is very difficult for them to choose a common second language, though it is clearly an option for them.</p>\n\n<p>As far as what to do, the key is for you to start driving the conversation. You should have some interesting stories or intriguing questions to bring up. When you are the center of the conversation, people will naturally want to involve you and, therefore, they will change their conversational language into English.</p>\n\n<p>This is easily said but difficult in practice. To drive a conversation takes a lot of energy and a lot of preparation (unless you have the 'gift of gab'). However, this is the only way I see to accomplish what you want.</p>\n\n<p>Of course you must be prepared for someone else to take the lead and then people start to move back to their native language but you should be able to add something to bring the attention back to you.</p>\n\n<p>All this said, you must be careful not to come off as someone who craves attention. You can accomplish this by sharing attention in a meaningful way. However, it does take a constant effort to keep yourself involved enough that others want to keep you involved by choosing English.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15367,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>My question is, what can I do or say which will make them realize this\n and to consider other people around who may not know Mandarin?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>There is no way to broach this without having them think negatively of you. Anybody who wasn't raised in a barn knows that this kind of exclusionary behavior is rude. It's no different than carrying on a conversation with inside jokes that not everyone knows or talking in depth about a topic that makes other people feel stupid (e.g. the Cantor's Completeness Hypothesis in math)</p>\n\n<p>The most polite thing you can do is to interrupt their conversation with something like, \"Excuse me, but what are you talking about? May I join in?\"</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15370,
"author": "xLeitix",
"author_id": 10094,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10094",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>This is a very relevant and interesting question. I agree with all answers so far that the problem can only be solved by being (pro)active, perhaps more than many young PhD students are comfortable with.</p>\n\n<p>Anyway, what I can add to the discussion is a bit of insight from the \"other\" side. See, I am Austrian (mother tongue is german), and in my line of research Germany is pretty well-established. Hence, when there is a conference in Europe, german speakers (Germans, Austrians, Swiss) often form about a third or so of all participants. In these conferences, random chatter (not so much technical discussion, which people are used to doing in english anyway) often starts in english when a non-german speaker is present, but usually changes to german when the non-german speaker moves away or seems to be not interested in the conversation (e.g., he/she is turning away, or does not contribute at all to the conversation). Of course this means that it is hard for a non-german speaker to join in on a conversation <strong>after it started</strong>. Usually, if a non-german approaches the group, chatter will turn to english again, but this usually does not happen unless this person is already good friends with one of the people in the group (or would you approach a group of strangers talking in an unknown language?).</p>\n\n<p>However, I don't think there is much to be done about this - it is just natural that a group of people converses in their joint language that they are all most comfortable with. People are not actively trying to be rude - but, sometimes, what comes naturally is not what is appreciated by the largest group of people in the conference.</p>\n\n<p>Some concret suggestions:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>When at a formal dinner, and you don't know anybody, try to not be seated surrounded by larger groups of people who are clearly friends or come from the same university / country. This can make for awkward dinners, even independently of language issues, but it is easy to spot already when sitting down. For networking, it is much easier to get into conversation with other people in your situation (more or less alone currently).</p></li>\n<li><p>At receptions or conference breaks, as you say yourself, I would usually just move away from people who are excluding me by speaking a different language. If you are actually interested in what they are saying, but can't contribute for language issues, rocinante's suggestion is best - just tell them.</p></li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15434,
"author": "penelope",
"author_id": 4249,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4249",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Actually, this problem does not only happen in a conference: I think there is <em>two slightly distinct situations</em> in which you can be surrounded by people speaking in a language that is foreign for you. The <em>first</em> is as you described: <strong>conferences</strong> and other <strong>short-term events</strong>. The <em>second</em> is (if studying abroad) coming to a <strong>language-homogeneous (working/research) group</strong>.</p>\n\n<p>In both, unfortunately, the only way \"out\" is to be at least slightly <strong>assertive</strong>. It is not the most pleasant, but it's <em>natural</em> for the (larger) groups that speak the same (mother) language to revert to it naturally in their conversations unless they are reminded to speak in English.</p>\n\n<p>For the conferences, I would say, it might even be easier of the two:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>in my experience, the first social event is some kind of a \"mixer\" where there is no fixed seating arrangements for the whole evening, so it's easier to identify the people open for conversations</li>\n<li>also, approaching small groups of 1-2-3 people on poster sessions and lunch breaks can be a way to meet people who want to communicate in English</li>\n<li>the \"seating\" dinner is usually a few days into the conference, so by then I just try and locate the people I talked to during the last few days</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>For the more \"permanent\" group, e.g. your team, it is a bit harder. They are an established group already most likely, and you want to get <em>in</em> as well as make them change their standard communication language. For that, you <strong>have to get noticed</strong>.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>there's always a problem of finding a balance between being present, noticed, and too aggressive</li>\n<li>establishing your presence in the group by attending team coffees, greeting people in their offices as you come to work, and similar small gestures should get you well started</li>\n<li>on the longer \"group outings\" (my team used to do that - going out together a few times a month), it's usually easier to start a conversation with just one person, and hopefully other people will join in.</li>\n<li>finally, it's okay to sometimes gently remind them that you'd like to participate in general conversation as well, as long as you don't come across as rude or judgmental. Nobody likes to be shamed in public.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>But, the bottom line is, <em>staying politely quiet won't get you far</em>. You have to get noticed, you have to be interesting to others, and you need to make them want to speak to you.</p>\n\n<p>I know that some people are not as socially comfortable as others, and <em>I know</em> that all that can be hard, demanding, sometimes exhausting, and you don't always feel like it. Unfortunately, I don't know or see any other solution.</p>\n\n<p>So, the best \"tactic\" I came up with is: when you know you will be in those kind of situations, actively mentally <em>prepare</em>. It's easier if you know you have to do it, and it gets a bit easier every time. You take a deep breath, you dive in, and try your best to be a social butterfly. <strong>When you know you are attending a conference or coming to a new working environment, be prepared to put more effort in getting noticed for the duration of the conference/next few weeks</strong>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 32654,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Here's the politically incorrect truth:</p>\n\n<p>The Chinese in particular are infamous for doing this. For other groups if you politely request that they speak in English, you should be good. But for the Chinese, there is NOTHING you can do about it. </p>\n\n<p>They are simply not aware or not taught that it might somehow be rude to entirely exclude someone in the group from the conversation.</p>\n\n<p>(Source: My anecdotal experience. I am ethnically Chinese and have hung out a lot with Chinese people while in the US, including when other non-Chinese people are present. The non-Chinese people frequently report being annoyed about this, but nothing ever changes.)</p>\n\n<p>Addendum: One answer remarks here that 'anyone who wasn't raised in a barn' knows that this is rude behavior. But notions of courtesy and etiquette are not universal. In some cultures it'd be extremely rude for you to hand a person any object with your left hand, or point your feet at a person (even inadvertently). They would not accuse you of having been raised in a barn simply because you violated their notions of courtesy. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 55299,
"author": "kllrchrd4",
"author_id": 41892,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/41892",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Such \"groups\" to me are hell and something I always avoid, but I have found with chance encounters a couple of lines of Chinese poetry (in Mandarin) are great ice-breakers, making much more sense than the usual faltering attempts at \"conversation\". We don't have the necessary depth of language, so why bother with \"my name is\" or \"I drive a red car\" etc. </p>\n"
}
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| 2014/01/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15363",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
15,373 | <p>I'm a master computer science student. I decided to leave the academia after graduation, but I'm still into research and would like to do personal research independently for like 10 years. Suppose I publish a lot of papers in valuable journals, is it possible to get a PhD after that somehow?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15380,
"author": "Tara B",
"author_id": 5955,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5955",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Some universities offer the option of a 'PhD by published works'. See <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/8502/difference-between-phd-by-published-work-vs-h-c-phd-vs-dr-hab/8512#8512\">this question</a> for more information. Is that the sort of thing you're looking for?</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15382,
"author": "Paul Hiemstra",
"author_id": 4091,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4091",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I think you can do research in your own time, but I think getting your work published is hard where you are not affiliated with a university or research institute. You have the advantage that you will not use precious resources from the institute as you will be doing the research in your own time, but you probably do not have a large amount of priority over the normal PhD's and postdocs. </p>\n\n<p>I think you should write a research plan, i.e. where do you want to go with your research. Writing such a proposal will show a supervisor you are serious and have some research skills (provided the proposal is any good). Once you have a number of publications, molding those into a PhD thesis is quite possible. In the Netherlands for example it is quite normal to bundle your papers, and write an introduction and summary as your PhD thesis.</p>\n\n<p>I do think performing research next to a normal job can be challenging, as research tends to take a lot of time. So be prepared to let your PhD take 10+ years (possibly making it obsolete), or sacrifice a lot of spare/family time.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15467,
"author": "Paul de Vrieze",
"author_id": 10183,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10183",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Technically there are ways to do this (at least in Europe, different countries are different). In practice however, doing PhD work is hard enough when doing it officially part-time with a set supervisor and approved plan. Without a supervisor, you need to be exceptionally exceptional to get a PhD thesis written (and sufficient academic papers published to satisfy expectations).</p>\n\n<p>Think about it this way, the vast majority of PhD proposals in applications are not quite good enough (to execute), so the first thing a supervisor does is change the plan.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15936,
"author": "h22",
"author_id": 10920,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10920",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>PhD studies are <em>studies</em>, same as master degree. So you need to cooperate with university or other scientific institution that has been <em>licensed</em> to grant this degree. Same as you cannot get driving license without applying to the road police (regardless how well do you drive), PhD degree also cannot \"emerge automatically\" from the number of published articles or the like.</p>\n\n<p>Some institutions may be willing to review existing publications and grant the degree on that basis but generally anyway it must be institution, supervisor and, most often, topic. Many will not allow this path so I would advice to check if you can find one, before you start.</p>\n\n<p>However it is not uncommon for the scientific institution to allow PhD studies without providing the funding (funding may be provided, for instance, by the company where PhD student currently works, or maybe PhD student have enough resources to support himself). </p>\n"
}
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| 2014/01/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15373",
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|
15,374 | <p>I've found that a few tools uses in scientific research, request that if you use them,
you add the paper they were discussed in to your bibliography.</p>
<p>For example:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://deeplearning.net/software/theano/#citing-theano">Theano</a> requests you cite: "<em>“Theano: A CPU and GPU Math Expression Compiler”</em></li>
<li><a href="http://www.scipy.org/scipylib/citing.html">Scipy</a> requests that you cite it as a misc reference.</li>
</ul>
<p>Is this common?
Is it reasonable to cite a paper (in Theano's) case, that I have never read, because I have used the tool?
Is it ethical?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15376,
"author": "xLeitix",
"author_id": 10094,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10094",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I would be pragmatic here. Citations are a <em>currency</em> in science. If the authors of a tool help your research by providing the tool to the general public, it is only fair to reference their work in the way they requested it to happen - and, certainly, citing a given reference in a paper that uses their work is not an unreasonable request. I cannot image why it would be unethical to say something like</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>We have used Theano [1] to evaluate XY (...)</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>in your paper, where</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>[1] J. Bergstra, O. Breuleux, F. Bastien, P. Lamblin, R. Pascanu, G. Desjardins, J. Turian, D. Warde-Farley and Y. Bengio. “Theano: A CPU and GPU Math Expression Compiler”. Proceedings of the Python for Scientific Computing Conference (SciPy) 2010. June 30 - July 3, Austin, TX</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>As to whether this is common, I would say <strong>yes</strong>. Most authors of well-known tools in my area specify a preference for how their work should be acknowledged.</p>\n\n<p>If you are bothered by not having read the paper you are citing, there is a simple fix for that - read the paper, and decide for yourself whether it is worth citing in that context (but, generally, the answer will be yes).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15461,
"author": "ipoga",
"author_id": 1549,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1549",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In addition to agreeing with the answer of <code>@xLeitix</code>, I would also add that in some fields and journals, it is a specific requirement that tools and software are cited appropriately.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/05 | [
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|
15,377 | <p>I'm a master student in computer science. I'm still working on my thesis and probably I will publish a paper, however I really have no idea where to look for workshops and conferences. I often hear my supervisor talking about some conferences and workshops and mentioning them, but I get no idea how he knew about them. Is there such a central website or search engine for this?</p>
<p>I'm new in research, never published a paper before.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15379,
"author": "Tara B",
"author_id": 5955,
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"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are lots of different websites and mailing lists for different subjects. Some researchers also maintain webpages of conferences in their area. I mostly learn about conferences through two mailing lists I subscribe to and two researchers' webpages, as well as emails forwarded by my mentor (I'm a postdoc).</p>\n\n<p>Probably the best thing would be to ask your supervisor how he finds conferences. He'll probably know the best sources for your research area.</p>\n\n<p>One fairly general website I know about is www.conference-service.com, but in my area it's far from complete.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15393,
"author": "user10501",
"author_id": 10501,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10501",
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"text": "<p>I found some decent ones here: <a href=\"http://www.allconferences.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.allconferences.com/</a></p>\n\n<p>I also receive a number of invitations through a number of mailing lists that I subscribe to.</p>\n\n<p>You can also find a number of them through technology publishers like O'Reilly for example: <a href=\"http://strataconf.com/strata2014/public/content/home\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://strataconf.com/strata2014/public/content/home</a></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15401,
"author": "Alexandros",
"author_id": 10042,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10042",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>A very good site for CS conferences and journals call for papers and their respective deadlines is <a href=\"http://www.wikicfp.com/cfp/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">A Wiki Calls for Papers</a>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15405,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If you are serious about publishing, try one of these <a href=\"http://webdocs.cs.ualberta.ca/~zaiane/htmldocs/ConfRanking.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">conferences</a>. These conferences are good, even at Rank 3. You also have the list divided by the area of interest.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15454,
"author": "al_b",
"author_id": 5963,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5963",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Most of the conferences in Computer Science publish proceedings with Springer, IEEE or ACM (even though there are several dozens which self-publish or publish elsewhere).\nAll three publishers have lists of upcoming conferences:</p>\n\n<p><strong>Springer</strong> </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>LNCS: <a href=\"http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-12-73665-0\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-12-73665-0</a></p></li>\n<li><p>CCIS: <a href=\"http://www.springer.com/series/7899\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.springer.com/series/7899</a></p></li>\n<li><p>LNBIP: <a href=\"http://www.springer.com/series/7911\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.springer.com/series/7911</a></p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p><strong>IEEE</strong></p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/index.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/index.html</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p><strong>ACM</strong></p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.acm.org/calendar-of-events\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.acm.org/calendar-of-events</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Other great resources are mailing lists:</p>\n\n<p><strong>Mailing lists</strong></p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>DBWorld <a href=\"https://research.cs.wisc.edu/dbworld/\" rel=\"nofollow\">https://research.cs.wisc.edu/dbworld/</a> </p></li>\n<li><p>AISWorld <a href=\"http://www.aisnet.org/AIS_Lists/publiclists.aspx\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.aisnet.org/AIS_Lists/publiclists.aspx</a></p></li>\n<li><p>ACM SIG-IR list <a href=\"http://www.sigir.org/sigirlist/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.sigir.org/sigirlist/</a></p></li>\n<li><p>ECOOP info list <a href=\"http://web.satd.uma.es/mailman/listinfo/ecoop-info\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://web.satd.uma.es/mailman/listinfo/ecoop-info</a></p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Beware of conferences which do this just for money and not for disseminating knowledge: </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://scholarlyoa.com/publishers/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://scholarlyoa.com/publishers/</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>This being said - of course the best way is to ask colleagues working on a topic related to yours - like your supervisors, post-docs from your group etc.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 30661,
"author": "MRA",
"author_id": 15830,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/15830",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I may be biased (since I am working on that project) but I would start looking in the <em>dblp computer science bibliography</em>:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://dblp.dagstuhl.de\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://dblp.dagstuhl.de</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://dblp.uni-trier.de\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://dblp.uni-trier.de</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://dblp.org\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://dblp.org</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>However, much more important than just searching for \"any\" conference and workshop in whatever repository is talking to your advisor, colleagues, etc and asking them for their opinion on which venues are most relevant for your specific topic.</p>\n\n<p>Another way of finding relevant venues is just looking at the references in the literature you are working with. If there are some conferences or journals that come up over and over again, then they are probably interesting for you to consider.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 96100,
"author": "Eran",
"author_id": 79964,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/79964",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Another very useful site is <a href=\"http://www.myhuiban.com\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Conference Partner (myhuiban)</a>. The site lists conferences by deadline, and shows useful information such as rankings by 3 different sources, years, views and so on. In each conference page, it also shows the call for papers, acceptance rate (when available), related conferences etc. Note that for some reason, full access requires (free) registration.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15377",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10497/"
]
|
15,378 | <p>I'm a master computer science student in a German university and I will be graduating soon. I'm in a situation between accepting a PhD position or leaving academia to start looking for job. This is a <em>very</em> hard decision to make so I need some advice. </p>
<p>I see <em>most</em> of the people who do a PhD leave academia afterwards and start looking for jobs (is it also the same in the US?). Very few people continue with a postdoc and remain in academia after getting the PhD.</p>
<p><em>My question is then, what is the point of doing a PhD (especially if one gets a job in industry afterwards)? <strong>What are the benefits of spending 3-5 years obtaining a PhD?</strong> What kind of goals should a person enrolling in a PhD program have?</em></p>
<p>From the point of view of <em>industry</em>, I realize that after a PhD they might start with a high position in the company. But, on the other hand, in those 5 years they could have started a small tech company and make it somehow medium or even a bit successful. Instead of doing a PhD, after 5 years of investing in their own company, they could be paid for working for themselves and not for others, having their own companies. </p>
<p>From the point of view of <em>obtaining knowledge,</em> if someone is curious about <em>knowing</em>, they could learn new things by themselves. After graduation, finding a job or starting a company, knowledge could be obtained by buying books and reading during one's free time, or following extra courses. I don't think you don't need a university for this.</p>
<p>Am I right in my analysis? Is it true most people go to the industry after the PhD (I'm especially curious about people in the US from top universities)?</p>
<p>If my analysis is at least partially right, and since there is other viable ways to become successful in industry <em>and</em> to obtain knowledge, what are the benefits of doing a PhD? Is it only a good idea for people with strong plans to continue in academia, or are there other goals one can achieve (better) by obtaining a PhD? I am afraid that doing a PhD might be a waste of time if I plan to continue in industry.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15381,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I believe the problem lies in that you view a job outside of academia as a failure, it is not. There are jobs that require a PhD in industry and elsewhere outside academia as well. What is a failure is foremost a question of the personal goals of the person in question. Industry and academia compete for the graduates to a large degree. It is obvious that how severe this competition is, depends on the subject but in technical areas it is definitely the case. In my own department it is very clear that people who finish a PhD end up in very good jobs. This, despite the fact that it is not a world were industry jobs are plenty, instead it is consulting businesses and government positions that are the norm.</p>\n\n<p>There is not room for every PhD in academia. Not everyone is interested in an academic career nor suited. In general a person with a Phd has deep understanding and skills to solve problems, disseminate results and communicate these to others. There are thus many positions that require such insights to take on positions of responsibility in organizations, be it private or public.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15383,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>most of the people who do a PhD leave the academia afterwards and start looking for jobs (is it also the same in the US?)</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Depends on how you see \"most\". In my experience, about 50% of the students in top-tier graduate schools leave academia; most students in lower-tier graduate schools leave academia. In Europe, this percentage increases quite a bit, since the Europeans generally enter a PhD program to become a professor (In the US, some people enter the program with the intention of getting a PhD, and nothing more.) You can judge for yourself where you fit, since I don't know which school you are thinking of attending.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>in those 5 years they could have started a small tech company and make it somehow medium or even a bit successful.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Sure. But in those 5 years, your tech company could have gone out of business, too! Perhaps you will say that you learn from your mistakes, so that was a valuable period of time. But you learn from doing a PhD too. I'm not necessarily talking about technical things, but the fact that you are able to learn things faster than the non-PhDs (since that's one of the basic skills that research requires.) If you do a CS PhD, depending on how you choose your research topic, it could be useful in real life too.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I mean you could definitely graduate, find a job or start a company and buy books and read all night or weekends! You don't need a university for this. </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>True. But grad students are reading all day, then all night or weekends (in theory; in reality they don't actually do this, but they still would have more time than you). You would learn slower. Not to mention that not having a mentor would make things much harder for you (you could tell your PhD supervisor about the courses that you liked, and particular ideas that you liked; from there, she could tell you about some papers that you might like. As an independent research, that's not an option).</p>\n\n<p>Last bit of advice: my father, who is also an academic, always told me not to go into academia unless I loved research. He told me that there are easier ways to obtain everything else in life; money, fame, etc. can all be obtained without being an academic, and more easily at that. And what he said was true for me. Being in academia extremely strenuous -- you'll deal with competitive peers in graduate school, maybe you won't get along with your supervisor, jealous colleagues, people who try to steal your work, thesis gone wrong, error in your paper, etc. I have encountered some of these, and each of these is enough to make you want to quit. The only reason I was able to hold on was because I found that I genuinely loved research. I knew that I couldn't have a job like this elsewhere, so I had to hold on. Any other reason will eventually drive you out of academia, though.</p>\n\n<p>FYI, I attended a top US institution.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15384,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
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"text": "<p>You state that:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Of course they might get a high position in the company, but in those 5 years they could have started a small tech company and make it somehow medium or even a bit successful. After 5 years with doing that, they are being paid by working for themselves not for others and having their own companies. </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>The big obstacle here is that people <strong>need to have a strategy and an idea</strong> in order to found a start-up. If you don't have the \"next big idea,\" what are you going to do to convince outside investors and customers to do their business with you instead of someone else? The challenge is that many people finish their bachelor's or master's degrees and <em>still</em> don't really have a strong sense of what they want to do, in part because they don't know what their options are.</p>\n\n<p>Moreover, in many fields, what kind of company can people found? What kind of company would a chemist or economist going to found after undergraduate training? In many fields, training at the PhD level is often needed in order to develop the ideas needed for bigger ideas to take root. </p>\n\n<p>Now, this isn't universally true—perhaps you have found what your big idea will be through experiences at an internship or in a bachelor's or master's thesis. If that's what motivates you, great.</p>\n\n<p>However, you also equate leaving academia as \"failure.\" There are many people who do a PhD—including some of my own students—who <strong>do not</strong> want careers in academia; however, they want the extra training to broaden their horizons and prepare themselves for a career in research and development in industry. For them, it's not a failure if they don't choose academia as a career, it's them achieving their desired objective!</p>\n\n<p>The only way the PhD is a waste of time is if recipients choose to pursue a career that does not take any advantage of what they did as a PhD student, and those are relatively few and far between (at least in fields that what we consider \"professions\" instead of \"jobs\"). The reason for this is that a PhD (at least in the sciences) recognizes the ability to learn how to solve problems in an original and independent manner. In the humanities, a PhD tends to represent the ability to synthesize and analyze information in a meaningful way. The specific thesis project is the vehicle for expressing this ability, rather than the exclusive \"goal\" of doing the PhD. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15389,
"author": "user10501",
"author_id": 10501,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10501",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are a number of subjective terms in your question so answering the overarching question if pursuing a Ph.d is a waste of time creates a few questions within itself, however, a few points:</p>\n\n<p><em>I'm in a situation between accepting a PhD position or leave the academia and start looking for job.</em> </p>\n\n<p>If the position in question pays the bills and allows you to gain work experience (assuming that you do not have any), then accepting a position for a year or two and then going out into the corporate realm may make sense. </p>\n\n<p><em>I mean they spent 5 years on it and then they left to look for a job in the industry.</em></p>\n\n<p>In the US, university professors with tenure or on the tenure track tend to see the better rates of pay and benefits -of course there are a number of caveats since some schools can be considered more elite than others and location is a factor. There are companies such as Google and IBM that pay Ph.d graduates very well to solve real world problems and to further their business objectives.</p>\n\n<p><em>in those 5 years they could have started a small tech company and make it somehow medium or even a bit successful.</em> </p>\n\n<p>Running your own business usually requires a lot of time and effort -if you wish to be successful anyway. So folks may not wish to put in that type of commitment especially after surviving 5 years of Ph.d work, a relaxing 30 - 40 hour work week with paid time off and benefits could look appealing especially if there is a family with children involved or caring for an aging parent. </p>\n\n<p><em>My other idea is that if someone is curious about knowing and getting knowledge.</em></p>\n\n<p>This depends on if there is a genuine interest in research. If one wishes to see the fruits of their labor see the light of day in a commercial sense,then going to the private sector may allows one to see their research come to life and touch the masses. Another commenter made mention of potential issues with jealous colleagues, people that try to steal your work, etc -these elements also apply in the corporate world especially if there is some sort of compensation at stake (it is not always financial by the way) so each avenue (academia vs. corporate) has its on rewards and pitfalls.</p>\n\n<p>So, I suppose it comes down to your original motivation for school. Was the plan to work in academia, private industry or a combination of the two? Either way you go, you will gain a life experience that you did not possess before so, its comes down to how you wish to make it work for yourself.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15395,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><em>standard disclaimer: my experience is with computer science, and in general I have familiarity with STEM, but I know almost nothing about Ph.D training and skills acquired in other areas</em></p>\n\n<p>There are a number of misconceptions implicit in your question that other answers have picked up on, but that I thought I'd distill out here:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Very few people continue with a postdoc and remain in academia after\n getting the PhD. My argument is that wasn't the PhD just a waste of\n time for them? I mean they spent 5 years on it and then they left to\n look for a job in the industry.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>The assumption here is that the topic you do research on is the main consequence of doing a Ph.D. In a literal sense that is true: your dissertation is on a particular topic. But as @aeismail points out, the dissertation (and a Ph.D) is a vehicle for training you in a certain way of thinking: analytical, critical, and inventive. These skills are what get you hired at jobs 'outside academia', and it's fair to say that without the training you get during a Ph.D, you will find these skills difficult to acquire (I'll never say it's impossible). </p>\n\n<p>In that respect, it's not a waste at all. You spend some number years learning how to approach ill-structured, ill-defined problems, break them down, and figure out ways to solve them by yourself with no direction. This is a very valuable job skill that employers love to have.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Of course they might get a high position in the company, but in those\n 5 years they could have started a small tech company and make it\n somehow medium or even a bit successful. After 5 years with doing\n that, they are being paid by working for themselves not for others and\n having their own companies</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>As others have pointed out, starting a company requires a different set of skills. In the tech world, having tech skills definitely helps to run a company, but there are thousands, if not millions, of people with the requisite tech skills, and very few of them become successful entrepreneurs. So it's not enough just to have some technical knowledge, and so it's not the case that you can swap out X years of a Ph.D with X years of working and expect to achieve some degree of success. Again, not impossible but certainly not guaranteed. </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>My other idea is that if someone is curious about knowing and getting\n knowledge. I mean you could definitely graduate, find a job or start a\n company and buy books and read all night or weekends! You don't need a\n university for this.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>You don't need a Ph.D for this either. If you think that a Ph.D involves learning and reading, you're very mistaken. A Ph.D involves <strong>doing</strong>. You learn to reach the cutting edge so that you can do something new and creative yourself. Reading and reading will not get you a Ph.D - it might not even get you a single creative work ! </p>\n\n<p>p.s I've worked both in industry and (now) academia after doing a Ph.D from the US.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15397,
"author": "Alexandros",
"author_id": 10042,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10042",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>When you start a PHD, you are not sure if actually doing the research required for getting that PHD, will be fun enough (you do not do it for the money anyway). After finishing it (for those who do) then you know if you really like to be in academia or not. Previous answers (mainly of user14449) already highlighted the problems associated with academia, which are only visible from INSIDE academia.</p>\n\n<p>Also a PHD does not neccessarily has to be another step in your ladder of \"success\". There are many who are doing a PHD because a) they WANT to do it b) they know it in their hearts that they CAN do it. Even if they \"waste\" 5 years of their lives (as you put it) they want to do it, regardless if they get a job in academia, get a better job or become rich. It is like playing with a rock band. If you do it for becoming a rock star you will never become one. If you like music, you might actually have a chance.</p>\n\n<p>On the other hand, only MSc students have the misconception that if they are going to create a new start-up company, they will become the new Steve Jobs and be rich beyond belief. The truth is that 99% of the start-ups actually fail (once external funding is spent) and only 1% survive. You say you are from Germany. How many CS start-ups are from Germany? Even there, most successful industries cooperate with reseach institutions like Fraunhofer or DLR which a) are connected to academia b) having a PHD certainly helps you to get a job there.</p>\n\n<p>So the real question is: What do you really WANT to do? If you like to do research regardless of money, go for the PHD. If not, go to industry. If in doubt, stick with industry. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15429,
"author": "penelope",
"author_id": 4249,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4249",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would say, for people who enter a PhD program with <em>defined and established goals</em>, and with at least some <em>understanding of what they are getting into</em>, obtaining a PhD is <strong>almost never a waste of their time</strong>. Some great advice on what is good to know before dabbling in research, take a look <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/13355/4249\">here</a>.</p>\n\n<p>The thing is, <strong>a primary goal of a PhD</strong> is not to <em>obtain knowledge</em>. I also know that from the industry point of view, it is sometimes viewed as equal to <em>X years of work experience</em>, but that's not completely correct either: a PhD is about <strong>learning how to do research <em>independently</em></strong>. While it is possible to get those skills alone, (usually by a lengthy trial-and-error process), the best way is under supervision and with advice of an experienced researcher: a thesis adviser/supervisor.</p>\n\n<p>A PhD is kind of a stepping stone for academia: you don't have to continue if you don't want to. If you have an aptitude for research, it is an valid option to explore. Research, while closely related to academia, is not only performed in academia. <strong>It is a time to taste research <em>and</em> academic life.</strong> If it is something that you are interested in, even trying and deciding you don't really enjoy it is <em>not a waste</em>.</p>\n\n<p>Finally, after obtaining a PhD, if you decide to leave academia, <strong>you will be qualified for <em>different types of jobs in industry</em></strong> than somebody with just a Master degree. Somebody with a lot of <em>knowledge</em> might know which known approach to apply to solve a well defined problem. On the other hand, when developing a new application/product, it will be the job of an <em>researcher</em> to think of a best approach to a loosely defined goal.</p>\n\n<p>Actually, as a personal side-note, when I just started my PhD my supervisors asked me if I wanted to continue in academia or go to industry afterwards. They said they could help me shape my CV and research activity so it's better suited for my choice: I told them I had no idea and had to see for myself for a while longer. A year after, I told them that unless something drastically changes, I want to stay in academia, but I'm sure they would equally accept me wanting to go to industry.</p>\n\n<p>And lastly, to comment on your \"starting a small company\"... doing a PhD, investing in a career in a company, or trying to start your own company are, in my opinion, all \"business ventures\" of the same type, and equally valid or equally a waste: if you do something you don't have an aptitude for and what you don't have motivation for, it's a waste of time. <strong>Doing a PhD is as valid for a career beginning as any other job. It's just that not everybody wants the same career.</strong></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15507,
"author": "Albert Hendriks",
"author_id": 10591,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10591",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'm not from the US, let alone from a US elite University. However, once I faced the same question. It's a decision you have to make yourself. Some notes:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>When choosing between an industry job or a PhD, there is no wrong decision.</li>\n<li>Other matters in life are way more important.</li>\n<li>I chose the industry and I'm happy with my life.</li>\n<li>I saw top-notch stock trading jobs passing by because I have no PhD. You just don't notice right now.</li>\n<li>I see peers failing their PhDs.</li>\n<li>It's about what you want to do the next years, not after that.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>EDIT in response to your question:</p>\n\n<p>From childhood on we've invested in our futures. By going for higher education, we thought in the long term. At some point we'll need to reap the rewards. Nobody ever wished he had worked more in his life when he was dying. Working should be a means (imho), not a goal. So to continue following a working strategy for life, you'll need to value the SHORT term more as you get older. Otherwise you risk never being happy with what you have and always working for something that will never come. Slowly switching from long term thinking to short term thinking may start by looking at a 5-year timespan. You don't want to be unhappy for the next 5 years in order to hopefully have a better life after that. If you can be happy with less money and more interesting work, THAT should be the reason to go for a PhD.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15581,
"author": "Alejandro",
"author_id": 10650,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10650",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Your question reminded me of the blog post linked below. See what you make of it!\nGenerally speaking, existential decisions that are based on binary alternatives can easily be wrong, since there are usually many more alternative pathways in reality. Thinking in terms of binary options is just not the best way of coping with life, I think, if you excuse my binary assertion... ;-)</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://alexandreafonso.wordpress.com/2013/11/21/how-academia-resembles-a-drug-gang/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://alexandreafonso.wordpress.com/2013/11/21/how-academia-resembles-a-drug-gang/</a></p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15378",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10497/"
]
|
15,387 | <p>This has always kind of intrigued me. I have seen many students who are good in academics (the scale I am using for this is GPA, like around 3.8–4.0) and average in PhD research. I mean, they do research, but it's just the kind you would expect from an average PhD—publish dissertation, write to one or two top journals, and then graduate.</p>
<p>I have also seen a few students who barely maintain their GPAs (they usually hang around 3.3–3.5) but are so good and focused in research that they do groundbreaking stuff, and some even have filed and received patents on their dissertation.</p>
<p>My question is: how much of a PhD is about taking courses and excelling them, and how much of a PhD is about excelling in research, and how well are they interconnected? From what I have seen, there seems to be no precise correlation between GPA and quality of research. Is it because PhD research concentrates only on a precise problem? Or is it because of individual motivational factors?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15390,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>A PhD typically consists of a smaller portion of courses (0-50%, probably averaging 24% of time) and the rest being research (including writing and publishing). In terms of excelling on courses, I would argue it has much less value than as an undergraduate. In my system, all PhD courses are pass/fail, the idea being you should learn only what you need so you can take part of a course if you need. In the end it will be the quality of your thesis and the particularly papers you publish that determines your degree of success, not the coursework. Doing well at courses involve being able to read up on material, organizing knowledge and remembering what you read. These are of course important skills to have. Research, however, includes many additional aspects that requires additional skills so whereas good grades, in terms of reflecting some of your skills, might help, it is not the full story of a PhD. </p>\n\n<p>You mention motivation. Motivation is important. Another aspect is perseverance. Research can be tedious bordering of being dull in order to reach the goal. I have seen many who have had a rosy picture of research but who have not been able to cope with the work. Clearly motivation and fascination about your topic will help you endure the many hours you end up spending on the topic. I doubt many researchers do research without these aspects spurring them on.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15396,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>What i wanted to ask how much of PHD is about creativity and how much\n is about perserverance and how much is it about academics</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>The snarky answer is: <strong>Yes</strong>. </p>\n\n<p>A slightly more unpacked version of this in no particular order would be: </p>\n\n<p><strong>Academics</strong> (aka things you learn in courses) is important because we don't create in a vacuum. We invent new things, but also combine old things in clever ways, or modify others' ideas creatively for new purposes. Think of it as one component of the fuel for your creativity: why ignore it ?</p>\n\n<p><strong>Creativity</strong> is of course the key to doing something new, which is the most basic requirement for completing a Ph.D. </p>\n\n<p><strong>Perseverance</strong> is incredibly important, because most ideas don't come into your head fully formed and perfect. It may be that your first 10, or 100, or 200 ideas aren't quite right, but by studying them closely, and seeing what works and what doesn't, you're able to produce a genuinely interesting new piece of work. Slogging through the bucket of non-working ideas takes perseverance, and can't be replaced by anything else. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15387",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10442/"
]
|
15,398 | <p>I study undergraduate philosophy. </p>
<p>I wrote a paper (beyond the coursework) that presents a solution to one of the unsolved problems facing our conceptions of personal identity. I regard it as worth publishing, but I get that, as an undergrad, I may not have much of a sense of what qualifies a paper as "worth publishing." So I took a few precautions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I read the recently published arguments, and the arguments that preceded them. </p></li>
<li><p>I critically thought about whether the argument could contribute to the field</p></li>
<li><p>I presented the argument to some people accomplished in fields that depend on logical thinking {a physicist, a lawyer,a mathematician}. The mathematician told me of a few useful concepts in math that I should incorporate into the argument, I studied them, incorporated them, and re-presented the paper to him, and he felt it was clear and logically sound. </p></li>
<li><p>I asked some academically successful people {two medical doctors and a Harvard mathematics graduate} for their opinion on it. They agreed with me; however, none of them had much experience publishing research. </p></li>
<li>I presented it to the prof.</li>
</ol>
<p>The prof's responses seemed defensive. However, I get that I may have had a defensive bent that disposed me to regarding her criticism as her 'just responding defensively'. So I recalled the conversation to people who I believed would tell me that I had mischaracterized her responses, if they suspected that I had done so - and none of them did.</p>
<p>I also get that,</p>
<ol>
<li>most professors -like anyone- want to make the most of their time, and that</li>
<li>most people usually see what they expect to see, and that</li>
<li>most professors probably would not expect an undergraduate paper to contain much worthwhile.</li>
</ol>
<p>So, I suspect that most wouldn't want to read it, and that if a prof agreed to read it, an extra measure of prejudice would affect her assessment of it. </p>
<p>I say all of that to say that I have reason to believe I should try and publish the paper, but I didn't succeed when I tried the most obvious path to doing so (presenting it to the prof), and I don't suspect that I'd have much success asking other profs to read it. </p>
<p>So, how might I get a journal or a professor to give the paper a fair shake?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15400,
"author": "Dnuorg Spu",
"author_id": 9538,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9538",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Here's what you should do:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Find an appropriate journal with a <strong><em>double blind</em></strong> review process.</li>\n<li>Submit your paper.</li>\n<li>See what happens.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Double blind means that you do not know the identity of the reviewers, and they do not know your identity. The ostensible purpose of this setup is to encourage reviewers to evaluate the paper based on its academic merit, rather than the pedigree of the author(s).</p>\n\n<p>In reality, of course, there will <em>always</em> be politics in reviews, and many reviewers will nonetheless formulate theories about who you are and where you're from. Moreover, things like hot trends in the field can influence judgement—which is why it's important to identify a journal compatible in spirit with your chosen topic.</p>\n\n<p>You will also be judged on the <strong>style</strong> of your writing, and the visual style of your submission. Reviewers will be much more comfortable accepting a submission that looks like a published article than one with strange typography, layout, etc. E.g., don't submit a paper written in MS Word when everybody else in your field uses LaTeX. Strange as it may seem, you will look like a <em>nut job!</em> Even different linguistic tone and structure can make your reviewers think you are a quack, even if your idea is legitimately awesome. In short: be a conformist when it comes to your first few submissions. Once you understand how the game is played, you can start to break the mold (hopefully for the better!).</p>\n\n<p>Even accounting for everything above, there is an extremely good chance your submission will get rejected. Coming up with genuinely good ideas is hard; developing political/cultural/intellectual savvy in academia takes time and experience—especially as a lone undergrad. And rejection will <em>sting!</em> But the submission process will be a valuable experience nonetheless. After a few days, go back and read your reviews calmly, and think carefully about why the reviewers wrote what they did. Was the typography too bizarre? Are they protecting their political interests? Or is your idea simply not as good as you thought it was? The more papers you submit, the better you will get at answering these questions objectively and honestly. Eventually, you will master the game and can just focus on the work. I hope.</p>\n\n<p>Good luck!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15403,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One additional comment to bolster Druorg's answer: you should also take a look at <em>undergraduate journals</em>. The bar to publishing is substantially lower in such journals, and you won't have to worry about finding a faculty member to \"sponsor\" your work. </p>\n\n<p>Another avenue would be to talk to the academic advisor for undergraduates in your department. They may have some suggestions for alternative means of getting your work published, and would at least have some ideas about who else you could talk to!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15695,
"author": "silviastraka",
"author_id": 10754,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10754",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It's wonderful to see undergraduates with a desire to publish! I want to encourage you and also give a few tips that I learned when I first began publishing.</p>\n\n<p>Finding the right journal is crucial. </p>\n\n<p>First, see what journals in your field publish articles similar to yours, in terms of:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>topic area</li>\n<li>type and format of article</li>\n<li>tone and voice</li>\n<li>authors (any non-PhD authored articles?)</li>\n<li>degree of originality (some leading journals often focus on major ground-breaking articles)</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>In other words, can you see your article fitting into the journal? Look at 4-6 issues.</p>\n\n<p>You can also take the reverse approach -- find a few articles similar to yours and see where they published.</p>\n\n<p>Second, look at the journal's home page. Do they have an annual student issue? (Some do, especially those published by associations.) A few journals reach out more to new authors and indicate this on their web sites. These would be good candidates.</p>\n\n<p>Third, look closely at the author guidelines and make sure your article fits in terms of length, format, etc. You will also see guidelines on how to submit a manuscript.</p>\n\n<p>I also have some more general advice. There is a considerable process of socialization and mentorship involved. The way to get this mentorship is to build relationships with some of your professors. Talk to them after class or during office hours. Get to know who is really interested in developing students in their scholarship. Ask them for advice. I know you already tried to do this, but it sounds like a lot of the people you asked were not in your field. It's very important to get this advice from your field.</p>\n\n<p>There are also ways to approach professors that tend to more successful outcomes. Humility is important as is the ability to take constructive criticism. You clearly have put a lot of energy into this paper and it is an excellent first step on your pathway to being published. But it may be that you are not yet quite ready to contribute to the field. If not, you want to know where you need to grow and develop. This is really difficult to hear and we have all had to accept rejection in our journey with publication. Don't let rejection stop you, if that happens. Make sure you pick someone supportive and be open to the outcome, as long as the person can give you something constructive to work on. If the feedback sounds reasonable to you, go away and work on the issue identified. Keep learning. </p>\n\n<p>And good luck!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15702,
"author": "yo'",
"author_id": 1471,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1471",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I, for one, have a paper published in a reaonsable quality journal (not impact factor, still well indexed and well recognized by the community), I'm the only author and I was in 4th year of my university, at the beginning of my masters, when I submitted it.</p>\n\n<p>Don't worry too much about the fact people don't know your name. Papers get reviewed by their text, not by their authors (well, some reviewers don't follow this rule, but from my experience, these are exceptions).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/05 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15398",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9263/"
]
|
15,408 | <p>Let's say that you're a 27 year old autodidact who has gained enough knowledge in a particular field of the formal sciences - like mathematics, for instance - to be able to take the highest course number from the selection of graduate courses for math. </p>
<p>Now this autodidact wants to enter university for the first time. However, from his perspective, he thinks that it would be a waste of time to restudy what he already knows. </p>
<p>I'm personally wondering if there is a way to demonstrate that he is capable of taking graduate courses so that he could apply for a graduate degree without having to study all the courses at the undergraduate level again. </p>
<p>Also, I'd like to add that this question is really hypothetical. It's just something I pondered on my way to school today.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15410,
"author": "David Z",
"author_id": 236,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/236",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>If you're asking about graduate school in the US, probably the single most significant thing you can do is to take the <a href=\"https://www.ets.org/gre/subject/about/content/mathematics\" rel=\"nofollow\">GRE subject test for math</a> (not the math section of the general test!), and score well on it. This test covers a broad spectrum of material that is taught in a typical undergraduate math curriculum, and so if you get a good score, it strongly supports your claim that you have the level of mathematics knowledge required to enter grad school. Without that key piece of evidence (i.e. a good GRE subject score), graduate admissions committees are likely to look at your statement that you have the knowledge to take graduate courses, contrast it with your lack of an undergraduate degree, and conclude that you're full of hot air, so to speak.</p>\n\n<p>Now, of course there is more that has to be done to actually get yourself admitted. In my own field of theoretical physics, even a 990 (the top score) on the GRE isn't enough to get you into a good grad school by itself. I would imagine the same is true for the top schools in math, though perhaps at a less competitive school, it might be. But I think to be safe, you should assume that you'll have to present some other sort of evidence of accomplishment that could be viewed as equivalent to an undergraduate transcript. You'll also need recommendation letters and various sorts of essays and forms. But a lot of that can vary from school to school, and is more likely to be negotiable if you talk to someone in the department. The GRE subject score is the one thing you really need to get your foot in the door, so to speak.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15423,
"author": "Nick Stauner",
"author_id": 10518,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10518",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Many graduate programs are geared toward publishing research, much of which doesn't really require the highest-level graduate education to conduct, so if one could achieve a publication record, a history of research experience, or could secure letters of recommendation, that would probably help for certain programs. Getting to know one's potential advisors in advance might also help circumvent some of the usual hurdles (i.e., they might be able to help).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15431,
"author": "paul garrett",
"author_id": 980,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/980",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Most universities' mathematics departments have placement exams for lower-division math courses, so, for example, you could \"test out\" of two years' calculus, most likely. Testing-out of upper-division courses is rarer, so there're not going to be formal procedures in place, but if you simply talk to departmental advisors, they can get the ball rolling to have your self-education appraised. It's just that there probably won't be formal procedures in place, due to the rarity of the event. Math faculty are more-than-happy to see someone who's had the interest and motivation to read on their own.</p>\n\n<p>It's not clear that doing the GRE math subject test (nevermind the other parts) is a good avenue for everyone. I'm not such a fan of that exam as a predictor or appraisal, in any case. One aspect is that it is a very superficial exam, in the sense that it tests test-taking ability almost as much as substantitive knowledge, since it is multiple-choice. Second, it presents a very stylized picture of \"undergrad/pre-grad\" mathematics... unsurprising insofar as it has to be shoe-horned into a timed, multiple-choice exam.</p>\n\n<p>I think it's also not clear whether you should \"try to do research\" in order to \"make an impression\". _Being_interested_ and being <em>curious</em> is one thing, but the further element of presumption involved in too-easily believing that with modest preparation one has unraveled mysteries untouchable by experts... blah-blah-blah... will not make a good impression. That is, honest curiosity and drive are unqualifiedly good things, not presumptious, not silly, all too uncommon, ... and are the features the math faculty would look for.</p>\n\n<p>One last small point: it is very helpful to have in mind the <em>authors</em> of the books or notes you've read, whether they're physical books or on-line notes, if only because the titles of most such things are toooo generic, while the best authors are well-known, and the specific virtues of their books/notes similarly so.</p>\n\n<p>In summary: just talk to the math department undergrad-intake-advisors first, and they will steer you to the right people to talk to in order to have your situation appraised. Some of the people may be a little skeptical, but mostly they will be happy to encounter someone who has the interest who's taken the initiative to study and think about things on their own.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 34085,
"author": "Eric",
"author_id": 20424,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/20424",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>At my university in the Netherlands, TU Delft, there is an obscure clause that says you can just show up one day with a defensible PhD thesis, get someone to act as your superviser, have a defense and be awarded a PhD. So it theoretically would be possible for a sufficiently dedicated person to bypass all formal university education and still come out with a PhD.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 43264,
"author": "bah",
"author_id": 32910,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/32910",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>(College Level Examination Program) CLEP is the best way, however this only cover the first two years and you'll go in as a sophomore or a transfer. What i did encounter is that you cannot get a graduate degree with out first having earned an undergrad degree. \nGood Luck</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 43275,
"author": "Kimball",
"author_id": 19607,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/19607",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'd like to add a few things along the line of paulgarrett's answer, which I'm surprised no one mentioned (unless I just missed it):</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>This question seems to presuppose that the only value of an undergraduate degree is what you learn in your major courses. This is far from true.</li>\n<li>It is possible to enter undergrad and start taking advanced/grad classes right away.</li>\n<li>The curricula at top schools like Harvard or Caltech is a higher level than most people would get from studying on their own. Sometimes the text for the undergrad courses are the text for grad courses at other schools. Further, some undergrads at these top schools come in with quite a high level of background already, which makes them completely amazing when they apply for grad school.</li>\n</ol>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/06 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15408",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10513/"
]
|
15,413 | <p>The title says it all. I want to read a book chapter from a prominent Oxbridge researcher, but I don't want to shell out the cash for the entire textbook in which it's published. Is it rude to contact the professor who wrote the chapter and request an electronic version? It's for my own research purposes. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15414,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Before writing to the author, you should try to find the chapter in other ways:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Is it available online? You should make sure it's not in any obvious place (e.g., the author's home page or university web site) or findable by a web search.</p></li>\n<li><p>Do you have library access? Even if the library doesn't have the book, they can very likely get it through interlibrary loan.</p></li>\n<li><p>Do you have friends, colleagues, or teachers who might have the book?</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>It's a little rude to bother the author to ask for a copy if you could reasonably get one another way. However, if the book is unaffordable for you and you have no other options, then there's nothing wrong with asking the author. I'd phrase it as a question, to avoid sounding too demanding. The key thing to keep in mind is that you're asking for something unusual, just in case the author has an electronic copy they'd be willing to share (but haven't put on their web site). It's also worth including a sentence about things like your lack of library access. You may not get a copy, but it's worth a try.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15416,
"author": "Nick Stauner",
"author_id": 10518,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10518",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Rudeness is largely a matter of tone, IMHO. If you express appreciation for the work in question, explain your situation, and ask if the researcher can help you, I think the researcher should appreciate your interest and want to help. Whether or not that's feasible is a separate (and often legal) question, but as for rudeness, there's no intrinsic reason your email has to be bothersome. Be nice, express enthusiasm, offer constructive comments if you have any, maybe try to phrase your problem impersonally so that it's not just about you and what you want (it's also about the author's impact, and how accessible the work is for the interested audience, which should matter), and avoid common faux pas like connotating entitlement, expectation, or violating cultural norms for emotional expression. Pretty much the same issues as you'd consider when asking for anything from a relative stranger. In summary, be polite!</p>\n\n<p>To editorialize a bit, I'll add that textbook prices are sometimes ridiculous, especially given the economic realities of students, and there are far too many barriers to information access already, so on some level, a researcher who isn't especially beholden to the publisher should sympathize and want to support you!</p>\n\n<p>As per @AnonymousMathematician's answer, you might also want to explain (briefly!) what normal alternatives (such as the answer's suggestions) you've tried and why they've failed you, if you decide to go the route of explaining a problem with access that may concern others. Another common faux pas is asking a question that seems to have an obvious solution; one should at least mention that these won't work, and make very sure that they don't before claiming that there's a problem!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15436,
"author": "J.R.",
"author_id": 780,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/780",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Since one answer already mentioned the high price of textbooks, I'll add: I'm assuming you have already looked to obtain a used copy of the book, but without success. If not, though, I'd start there. I've obtained plenty of $100+ textbooks for less than 15 bucks by looking for used copies online.</p>\n\n<p>If that doesn't work though, when you make your plea, there are a few things you could do that might bolster your chances:</p>\n\n<p>1) Don't act as though you are trying to just scrounge a copy of the chapter; write the letter as though you are trying to start a research relationship. After you explain how the author's chapter will help you, offer to keep this person posted on how your research is going. Presumably there's some overlap of interests; otherwise, you wouldn't be after the material.</p>\n\n<p>2) Let the author know that you're not necessarily opposed to the idea of buying the book outright, if you really like the one chapter. In other words, instead of saying something like this (not that you'd use these exact words, but perceptive recipients of solicitations can often read between the lines):</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I'm only interested in Chapter 6; the rest of your book doesn't really interest me.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Try:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I'm primarily interested in Chapter 6, but, if that small samples proves to help me greatly, I'll be looking for a chance to obtain the entire book.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>(That need not be a lie, either. Sooner or later, some more-wealthy relative is going to ask you what you want for your birthday. This experience might help you answer that question.)</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/06 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15413",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10517/"
]
|
15,419 | <p>I am currently writing an e-mail to a member of Oxbridge staff. He is a "lecturer," full-time staff, who co-ordinates a well-known program, but does not hold a PhD, only an MA. </p>
<p>I can't call him "Dr. <strong><em></strong>," or even "Professor <strong></em></strong>," so is "Mr." sufficient? It seems too informal for someone in such a high-ranking position.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15420,
"author": "waiwai933",
"author_id": 8091,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8091",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>\"Mr\" should be fine (though note that British style drops the period from common honorifics). For example, <a href=\"http://www.trin.cam.ac.uk/index.php?pageid=321\">Trinity College Cambridge's list of fellows</a> has two \"Mr\"s and four \"Ms\"s. </p>\n\n<p>However, be very sure that the lecturer you're emailing doesn't have a doctorate. Most Oxbridge (and I believe UK) lecturers are equivalent to some sort of professor in the US system, and the title of professor is generally reserved for academics somewhere between \"regular member of teaching/research staff\" and \"department head\". Accordingly, most UK lecturers do have a PhD.</p>\n\n<p>If you're not sure, it's probably better to go with \"Dr\" rather than \"Mr\", as if you do get it wrong one way or the other, that's the one that's less likely to offend.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15422,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>While the etiquette for salutations in formal letters is pretty well established, email etiquette is less clear. While this <a href=\"https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/95604/official-e-mail\">question </a> on the English Language SE was not particularly well received, I particularly like this <a href=\"https://english.stackexchange.com/a/95689\">answer</a>. The key part of that answer is that because of the prevalence of spam you need to establish who you are and why you are contacting the person as quickly as possible and not waste the valuable first line with a redundant salutation. If you drop the salutation (which some would say is the proper etiquette), you avoid the issue of how to address the individual.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15648,
"author": "John Bentin",
"author_id": 10691,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10691",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is better to amuse your addressee than risk causing offence. A journal editor addressed me as \"Professor\" in all email correspondence, even though I (twice) told him that I was only \"Mr\". This amused me and caused no offence. But I can imagine that addressing a real Doctor or Professor as \"Mr\" would not be well taken.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 104920,
"author": "user32587",
"author_id": 88440,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/88440",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Mr. is fine. Don't worry it's not that big a deal just because they go to a famous university. They are still just regular people. Just be super polite in the tone of the email.</p>\n\n<p>Option 2 is to avoid using the term \"Mr.\", and just to write simply \"Hi\", or \"Dear Sir\"</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 131919,
"author": "JeremyC",
"author_id": 67068,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/67068",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You probably have multiple aims here:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>to be polite</li>\n<li>to avoid being considered ridiculous</li>\n<li>to get your email read</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>First of all, do your research: how is the person you wish to approach described on their institution's website? In extreme cases you might wish to consult a <strong>modern</strong> book of etiquette. For example, if you were addressing yourself to \"Professor, the Right Honourable, the Lord X\" you need to know that 'Dear Lord X' is fine and that 'My Lord' is now ridiculous.</p>\n\n<p>Secondly, do not go over the top in honorific titles. (I still giggle at once being addressed as 'Your Excellency' in an unsolicited email.)</p>\n\n<p>Thirdly avoid generic titles without a name, such as 'Dear Professor' or, even worse, 'Dear Doctor'. 'Dear Sir' might once have been OK, but these days it feels as if the writer has not done their research.</p>\n\n<p>All of the above will probably permit you to avoid offending the recipient. But remember that, in the UK at least, a doctorate is not necessarily a requirement for a senior academic position. I have known very renowned, actually world famous, academics who never proceeded beyond an undergraduate degree and also some whose published books established a reputation before they had the chance to finish a formal doctorate so they never bothered. Some of those might have been mildly offended at being addressed as 'Doctor.'</p>\n\n<p>All of this points to finding out something about the person to whom you wish to write before actually doing so.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/06 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15419",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10517/"
]
|
15,437 | <p>I am a bachelor student majoring on computer engineering and working on robotics. Last year as a part of my research, I worked together with a student and one teacher as a supervisor, so we published our article for conference together. But later we finished our research and all of us left the team. Now I am working on other research problem by myself and got some results and want to publish it. But this time I am alone, I have no supervisor on that research problem or any student partner. So I'd like to ask can I submit a paper for conference/journal by myself?
P.S. My current research project has no relationship with old one.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15438,
"author": "eoinbrazil",
"author_id": 10129,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10129",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>You definitely submit a paper by yourself and if you write a high quality submission, it will be accepted.</p>\n\n<p>When I was early in my research career I found it very helpful to have a collaborator such as a teacher/professor or a postdoc student with publishing experience to collaborate on papers. This often helps catching points or issues that you may overlook within your research as well as providing advice and guidance.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15475,
"author": "DCTLib",
"author_id": 7390,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7390",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is not uncommon for (PhD) students to publish independently of an advisor. So as eoinbrazil wrote already, if you have a submission of a high quality, you can give it a try. Many students do publish with their supervisors, however, for a couple of good reasons. Besides the obvious ones, here are some not-so-obvious ones:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Funding for conference travel: You mentioned conferences as publication venue yourself. Assuming that your paper gets accepted: do you have the funding to visit it? </p></li>\n<li><p>The scopes of conferences/journals: there is often a disagreement between a call for papers and the types of papers that conferences or journals actually want. Having experience in this area helps a lot.</p></li>\n<li><p>The community behind a conference/journal: different communities focus on different things: some want the sales pitch, some are find with just the results. Some care about experiments, for others, the theory is enough. Some have a set of standard benchmarks, some don't. These are just some examples. Again, having experience with a conference or journal helps a lot.</p></li>\n<li><p>Selection of conferences/journals: Nowadays, with spamferences and spam-journals -- probably not a big deal for you, as your have published already and at the moment it is relatively easy to tell from a call for papers if a journal or conference is of reasonable quality. For the record, this may become harder, however.</p></li>\n<li><p>Typically, you will be asked to state your institution at submission time. Does your university have rules about submissions? Some might have some reviewing process in place in order to avoid that papers are submitted that are so bad that even submitting them could harm the reputation of the university. If you publish with your advisor, she/he will make the \"internal review\".</p></li>\n</ol>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/06 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15437",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10526/"
]
|
15,453 | <p>I heard one of my lecturers says that it is always better to start the paper title with a verb. According to the lecturer, the verb leave that impression about something has been accomplished. For example, use <code>Design</code>, <code>develop</code> etc. I tried to find any supportive resources about that but I could not. The other question, is it better to use <code>verb-ing</code> or not (e.g. Developing vs. Develop)? Most of references that speak about choosing title do not pay much attention to the syntax.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15455,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Writing a good title is perhaps the hardest part of authoring. Writing a good title is not so much a matter of style as a matter of good communication. Some key points I therefore try to follow for a title can be summarized as follows</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>predict and describe the content; recapitulate the conclusion</p></li>\n<li><p>be succinct and comprise one or possibly two facts</p></li>\n<li><p>include one active verb in present tense to form subject-active verb-objective</p></li>\n<li><p>Avoid complicated wording and use no more than three modifiers for any noun</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>A pair of good sources on general science writing which includes formulation of titles:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Glasman-Deal, H., 2012. Science research writing for non-native speakers of English. Imperial College Press, London</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>and</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Day, R.A. & Sakaduski, N., 2011. Scientific English. A guide for scientists and other professionals. Greenwood, Santa Barbara CA</p>\n</blockquote>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15456,
"author": "posdef",
"author_id": 5674,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5674",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am neither a native English speaker nor a language expert but here are my two cents. I recall hearing (more than once) that it's best to start strong. In other words, what you feel your paper is really about should be the first thing you express; if it is <em>doing</em> something that wasn't possible to do previously then a word expressing an action is a good call. Ex: <em>\"Refinement of XYZ process using awesome method A\"</em>.</p>\n\n<p>Otherwise if you are doing something in a different way then it might be good to point out what's new with your way of doing that particular thing; <em>\"Multispectral analysis of bioluminesce in deep ocean habitats\"</em> (random made-up example).</p>\n\n<p>In the first example you are \"advertising\" that you are refining XYZ process and that's the cool thing with your paper, whereas in the second example you are pointing out that you are analysing things in multiple light spectra. </p>\n\n<p>In either way the first word isn't a verb, but could be a noun form of a verb; i.e. <code>to refine</code> -> <code>refinement</code>. The problem with using the \"-ing\" form is that it might give the idea of continuousness, which is out of place as the work is already done in most cases.</p>\n\n<p>Hope that makes some sense :) </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15458,
"author": "Benedikt Bauer",
"author_id": 10039,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10039",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I see two issues here. The one is the stylistic sense that some people have developed over their life and that is not necessarily always to be generalized. The other is the strictness of such \"style advice\".</p>\n\n<p>For the first issue: Everybody develops some kind of preferences about stylistic things they like or dislike and things they believe to be (or have worked) better than others. This personal preference does not necessarily coincide with what is generally considered to be good style, which means it could be true in the special environment of this person but it could also be some anecdotal experience that has no broader foundation. Therefore I would be somewhat cautious to take such advice too strict when it comes from a single person and you cannot find it anywhere else.</p>\n\n<p>For the second: Let's consider this rule exists (which I don't know and didn't check), you shouldn't take it as a strict \"law\". If you have a title that fulfils the rule and you feel good with it, then go for it. But don't try to twist your formulation just to meet this single criterion as the confusion that you create with it might outweigh the \"beauty\" that you win by starting the title with a verb.</p>\n\n<p><strong>TL;DR</strong>: Be careful with possibly subjective \"style advice\" and don't take style guides as strict \"laws\".</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15508,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>What has not been mentioned in the above answers is that the nature of a title tends also to vary significantly <strong>between disciplines.</strong></p>\n\n<p>For instance, in the biological and medical sciences, the titles of journal articles tend to be summaries of the key findings of the paper:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Overexpression of Gene A Leads to Suppression of the X-Y Pathway in Organism Z under Type A Conditions</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>In effect, the title serves as a minimalist abstract of the paper. </p>\n\n<p>In contrast to this, papers in the physical and mathematical sciences tend to have shorter titles that don't necessarily say much about the content of the article:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Technique X for Studying Y in Material Z</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>or</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>A Proof of Theorem X for Conditions Y</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Titles in the humanities can be much more creative, and use wordplay, literary quotes, and allusions:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>\"Touches of Sweet Harmony\": A Study of Organ Construction in Shakespeare's England</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Now, your title need not fit into the specific norms of your field, but in that case, you better have a solid reason for doing so.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15540,
"author": "410 gone",
"author_id": 96,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/96",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Select your target journal.</p>\n\n<p>Analyse the most recent 100 paper's titles in that journal. How many start with a verb? How many have colons? What are the median and mode number of words in a title?</p>\n\n<p>Make your title follow the most common format.</p>\n\n<p>That's the first-order effect: maximising the chance of getting published.</p>\n\n<p>The second-order effect is maximising the chance of getting cited. So repeat the above analysis, for the 100 most cited papers from the last ten years, in your target journal. Adjust citations for length of time lapsed since they were published.</p>\n\n<p>Now try to combine these findings into a happy blend that maximises both your chance of getting published, and of being cited.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15549,
"author": "WetlabStudent",
"author_id": 8101,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8101",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>A lot of people are giving the exact opposite advice I would give. Most papers go un-cited! You absolutely don't want to be too conventional. If you want to analyze titles experimentally do the following</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Get together with a bunch of postdocs, grad students and professors in your field. </p></li>\n<li><p>Pick a popular journal in your field to analyze and a date range, at least 5 years older than the current date but not too old to be ridiculously obsolete.</p></li>\n<li><p>Everyone choose 5 papers they remember being really important that received a lot of citations, 5 really important papers that received few citations and 5 middle of the road papers</p></li>\n<li><p>Look at the titles. Is there something different about the highly cited papers' titles?</p></li>\n<li><p>If the answer is yes consider going with that, if the answer is no, use your own style and creativity, and ignore most things (although you should follow some common sense).</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>This actually sounds like a fun party idea. Note the methods are probably really flawed since I just thought about this. Feel free to comment below on an improved experimental design. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15453",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6416/"
]
|
15,457 | <p>I'm a master CS student. I had so many troubles in my life. I didn't have proper schooling and were in difficult situations which led to me being not so good compared to my peers now at the graduate school. For example I had problems with math and so and when I got into my new graduate school everyone was almost far better than me. Then I started working day and nights to improve my skills and after a year of <em>really</em> hard work now I achieved almost their skills. However in that time my peers were also developing their skills and doing fancy projects and so on. Sometimes when I get to look at their success and projects I feel <em>stressed</em> and <em>discouraged</em> that I really still have way too long to achieve that. Or that I'm really putting <em>so much</em> work into myself because of the problems I went through but at the end I find myself still far. Whereas my peers are enjoying their lifes and at the same time achieving something. I know life is not fair nor I'm jealous, but sometimes I just feel sorry about myself that I work really hard but without much difference :(. This is also is leading so some self-confidence issue, that whenever I see one of my peers I get stressed and sometimes afraid to discuss a topic with them because I don't want to look bad not knowing that easy stuff for them.</p>
<p>This is always leads to a voice in my head saying: oh if only a professor in MIT or Stanford sees how hard working you are, you might be there now. But of course I won't because I will always be far from the students there because of what I went through.</p>
<p>What to do to overcome this?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15459,
"author": "posdef",
"author_id": 5674,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5674",
"pm_score": 6,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I will apologize in advance, because this answer won't give you what you are probably looking for; but it might give some perspective so I will reply anyways hoping that helps somewhat. </p>\n\n<p>First off, know this: <strong>you are not alone!</strong> It's actually pretty common to look at your peers (at the office and elsewhere worldwide) and feel shitty about the \"insignificance\" of your accomplishments compared to those of others. To further strengthen the point, I can say that I am battling with this every single day for instance, despite what I hear from others about the quality or importance of my work when I look around and see what others achieve I feel depressed... </p>\n\n<p>Secondly it's also good to try and remember that life isn't a competition. Well, some aspects of life are competitive, for sure, but you cannot go about living your day competing with others in every single aspect of your life. This is a <em>simple</em> but a <strong>very</strong> powerful insight, also very hard to digest it properly and take it to heart. </p>\n\n<p>Think of all the aspects your life, from research to parking your car, from buying groceries to whatever sport you enjoy the most... I can guarantee you that there will be several (if not more) people within your immediate surrounding that will be \"better\" than you in each one and single aspect, if you isolate them one at a time. But I can also assure you that they won't be the same people if you consider different aspects. Overall, you are the person you are and constantly comparing yourself to others in single aspects (and focusing on your shortcomings) will only drive you towards unhappiness. </p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>So does that mean you should just relax and go with the flow? Absolutely not! You have to play catch up, if you can identify your shortcomings in particular fields (like maths, or programming experience). It'll be frustration, it'll be long hours, it'll be effort... Try to focus on setting goals for yourself when you are in catch-up phase. </p>\n\n<p>I strongly recommend checking out <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMART_criteria\">S.M.A.R.T goals</a> concept which helps in getting things done and bagging that sweet feeling of accomplishment, little by little. </p>\n\n<p>Hope this answer helps to some extent and it all works out in the end! </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15460,
"author": "Nick Stauner",
"author_id": 10518,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10518",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Sounds like you're engaged in a lot of <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_comparison_theory#Upward_and_downward_social_comparisons\">upward social comparison</a>, which is bound to make you feel somewhat inadequate if you're judging yourself by the different standards of achievement that may apply to them for all the reasons you mention. Upward social comparison might be a good way to form goals, but it's not a good way to judge your progress so far. Even if you'd had the same environmental advantages as some of the people you seem to be focusing on, you'd still both be working with different personalities and aptitudes, and probably different tasks too. Too many factors differentiate individuals' performance to take observations of your peers quite so seriously as reflections on yourself.</p>\n\n<p>The ideal approach would be to judge your progress by <em>your</em> standards. You've known yourself long enough to have some sense of whether you're growing and performing at your usual rate. If you're improving steadily in these regards, I'd say that's plenty of cause for a decent amount of self-esteem. If you find yourself doing worse than usual, consider what's holding you back, and consider whether you've defined your goals realistically. I'm not saying you can't be responsible for underperforming—you should be able and willing to see fault in yourself—but you shouldn't blame yourself immediately without considering other factors that might be affecting you. This is all part of the broader matter of managing your expectations, and separating them from your hopes and aspirations.</p>\n\n<p>I probably wouldn't recommend relying too heavily on downward social comparison, but it is also an option if you need to calibrate your frame of reference with others in general, and it sounds like you might. You sound very focused on what you have had to overcome, not the fact that you've overcome it, and focused on what others have done with advantages you didn't have, rather than what others have done with the same disadvantages you had. How many of your peers had problems like yours in the past? How many people do you know with similar backgrounds who haven't made it to grad school?</p>\n\n<p>Be careful not to get caught up in depressive cycles of ruminative thought as well. You sound stressed for at least two reasons that should \"cancel each other out\" in some sense:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>You had a hard life...\n<ul>\n<li>But you still made it to grad school!</li>\n</ul></li>\n<li>You have trouble keeping up with people who haven't suffered the same disadvantages...\n<ul>\n<li>But you know you've had to deal with a lot of unusual problems outside of school!</li>\n</ul></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>That you are still in the same program as those people who had it easier should help you feel better about your life, because it's only held you back somewhat. That you have been held back by your life's circumstances somewhat should help you feel better about being behind somewhat. Nonetheless, if you focus on each source of stress separately instead of focusing on these connections, each will make you feel bad independently, and each will remind you of the other reason to feel bad. Focus on the reasons you are where you are, not just where you are, and focus on what you can do about it, not just how you feel about it (see also <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coping_%28psychology%29#Types_of_coping_strategies\">problem-focused and emotion-focused coping</a>)...and never forget how far you've come already.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15464,
"author": "Alexandros",
"author_id": 10042,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10042",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Although, it is customary to give pep talk, the truth is that life is unfair. Your friends might get all the girls of your dreams without even trying (I assume you are a guy), your siblings might be more successful than what you will ever be and even your parents might be more educated than you. You can always blame this on your \"hard\" life and naively believe that if you actually put another 10% of effort you might minimize the gap between your achievements and theirs. The problem is, that sometimes people around you are more smart, more beautiful and even more hard working. You have to accept this as a fact of life. As Clint Eastwood said \"A Man's Got to Know his Limitations\". What you can do is work within those limitations and stretch them to your absolute best. But even then, success is not linear and sometimes extraordinary smart, hard working people fall flat on their faces. </p>\n\n<p>So, although you should look to people around you for inspiration, trying to replicate their success is a dead-end. There will be always be someone more adequate, smarter, richer or luckier. So, instead focus on what you WANT TO DO instead on what you want to get. Do the best you can but mainly enjoy the process as well. Otherwise your dreams are toxic and lead you nowhere. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15468,
"author": "Victor Sergienko",
"author_id": 10561,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10561",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I totally disagree with \"Accept it\" part of answers. Well, accept it. BUT.</p>\n\n<p>The people who are getting their success easy will eventually get bored and stop. Your habit to working hard WILL get you ahead of them sooner than you might expect <em>(at least, after graduating high school. Life is not like high school, it has no target to be teaching you while you're having fun in a campus)</em>. It's like having higher speed and acceleration while starting behind: EVENTUALLY you'll get ahead.</p>\n\n<p>Persistence beats it all. It beats being smart, rich or naturally strong. </p>\n\n<p>Go strive for those fancy projects too. In the beginning, you will be doing worse, that's normal. And then...</p>\n\n<p>Second thing: trying to catch up with a someone's success is one of the best motivations I had in my life.</p>\n\n<p>Go on.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15469,
"author": "Camilla",
"author_id": 10563,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10563",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think you shouldn´t compare yourself with others all the time. We need to be better than we were yesterday... If you are doing your part, don´t worry. There will be always people you consider better than you as always there will be people considering you better than them. CS is very vast... Don´t try to be the best in every field, it´s insane... Focus in something you like.. Good luck... And sometimes we need a break, relax, have fun to study better later... The important is the path, not the final line... Life is it, we are always trying to get in a new point.. And when we get there it takes only seconds and we start another run for the next. So we need to try to be happy during the path!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15471,
"author": "L_7337",
"author_id": 10565,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10565",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>So, the question is how do I deal with the discouragement and overcome this.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Like another person said, you are NOT the only one. Actually, you'd be surprised to hear that some of the people you envy feel the same way. Even when by all measures, they seem to be so great and successful. Example: Scott Hanselman is a Senior Engineer (not sure of his title) at Microsoft and published the great posts <em><a href=\"http://www.hanselman.com/blog/TheMythOfTheRockstarProgrammer.aspx\" rel=\"nofollow\">The Myth of the Rockstar Programmer</a></em> and <em><a href=\"http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ImAPhonyAreYou.aspx\" rel=\"nofollow\">I'm a phony. Are you?</a></em>.</p></li>\n<li><p>It's all in your mindset. I will never be the next <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gates\" rel=\"nofollow\">Bill Gates</a> or <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Zuckerberg\" rel=\"nofollow\">Mark Zuckerberg</a>, but I can always be better than I am today.</p></li>\n<li><p>Work on some side projects to help you learn more and improve every day. Yes, everyone is busy and this takes time. But, no one said becoming a great developer is easy.</p></li>\n<li><p>You are a Master's student. You really haven't even started your career. My advice??? Be persistent and outwork your peers. I'll take an energetic, motivated person any day over someone with a little talent that is lazy.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Most people deal with the feelings of ineptness. Just realize it's just a feeling and not based on much reality. You see the success of others, but you have no idea how many failures they have had or how hard they worked to get there. You look at their successes, but you have no way of looking at their failures. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15476,
"author": "Russell E Glaue",
"author_id": 10572,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10572",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Hopefully I can give you a different answer, from my perspective.</p>\n\n<p>First of all, everyone's achievements are different. If they are not, they are in direct competition in their careers - so don't try to achieve what they do. You have unique stuff to offer. I have hired a lot of academically smart people, but they have no people skills or street smarts - at all. The CIO I work for said what makes a good CIO is one who naturally has great people skills and social smarts, everything else can be learned.</p>\n\n<p>Be the turtle, not the rabbit, in the race. I suggest you try to make small achievements, and document them in a vita you should keep. Try to write an article on what you do.. perhaps applying people smarts, not tech smarts. Look for a perspective you have no one else around you has, and focus on applying CS to non-CS interests you have. For example, if you like music, do a CS project with music as the subject. Then put that in your Vita.</p>\n\n<p>Volunteering is always good experience the academically smart people may not be doing. Interact with people, socialize, and help others. A good tech leader will have team building skills, personal management skills, task/project management. So perhaps you have a knack for these.. you should look into them. Being a volunteer leader and an average programmer may speak more than only being an expert programmer with no leadership experience.</p>\n\n<p>Don't worry about the tech skills as much as the know-how skills. Every job you go to you will have to learn new skills. The question the employer will have is how can you make my company better if I hire you. They want someone who has enough technical skills to do the job, and then they look for non-tech skills that fit the company's mission and ideals.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15489,
"author": "user10578",
"author_id": 10578,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10578",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Many answers here are very helpful for me, as for a long time I've had the same feelings as you do now, and still do, to a lesser extent. \nI also agree with millmoose's comment in that, while it's understandable that you are seeking for help with your situation, it'd be better if you ask people close to you, or a therapist, for aid.<br>\nHowever, because your position is very familiar to me, I'd like to give you my own answer as well, if only to deal with my own situation.</p>\n\n<p>My problems manifested themselves around the time I enrolled as a student. \nWhilst I love computer science, and especially it's theoretical implications, I felt insecure because I was weak at math and no programming background.<br>\nSo, I started and for a long time I too compared my achievements with others'. \nWithout taking my own personal difficulties into account, I set high standards for myself, in order to prove to myself that I was better than they were.<br>\nI then failed my own high expectations, and that resulted into me thinking less of myself and more of the others.<br>\nThis impacted my studies as well: I couldn't read at home, and at class I would not ask my teachers any questions (who actually expected my questions and were paid to answer them) or discuss the topic with my classmates, out of fear of how I'd come out.<br>\nTo \"amend\" the situation, I set even higher standards the next time, and so a vicious circle of expectation/disappointment ensued.<br>\nThis had a great psychological and professional impact for me, but also very valuable lessons to be learned; I hope my lessons will help you as well.</p>\n\n<p>The greatest lesson I've learned is that your mistakes are your best friends, and your best tutors. All of us started knowing nothing at all, and we all learn and get better by making mistakes. Don't be afraid to ask questions; to show that you don't know.The answers, as well as the questions themselves, will help you grow.<br>\nBut, no matter how much we learn none of us will ever get to know it all, or be perfect at anything. All the people that seem so perfect, they all have their flaws.Beneath the lines of accomplishments by great scientists lie dozens of failures (according to Wikipedia, \"Einstein was passed over for promotion [at the Swiss Patent Office] until he 'fully mastered machine technology'\".Go figure).<br>\nMe and you have flaws too. It's very natural, and it's very OK! :)</p>\n\n<p>It's also hard to get used to this, and not be afraid of mistakes. I'm still trying myself.\nWhat helps me is that there is actually no comparison to be made. We are not better or worse to each other; we are all equal, but different. And everyone of us is special in their own way.<br>\nI for instance, learned about myself that I may not be great at math, or any other field for that matter, but I'm good at discovering relations between stuff, and that matters too!</p>\n\n<p>What posdef also said helps even more: life is not all about competing, comparing and achieving stuff.Life is about the journey-the goal is just the pretext to get the journey going (see also <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_P._Cavafy#Ithaca\" rel=\"nofollow\">Ithaca</a>).<br>\nIt is about enjoying what you do, and enjoying yourself, along with others just as non-perfect as me and you are.</p>\n\n<p>To conclude: just go for it, no matter how it turns out. Get in touch with others and their work and don't be afraid of it; you will learn from their rights and wrongs, and they will certainly learn something special from you too ;)</p>\n\n<p>P.S. This fall I tried to get to <em>graduate school for a master at CS</em>, but didn't get admitted; I wasn't even called for the interview ;)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15490,
"author": "Mavin Marvin",
"author_id": 10579,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10579",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Well, sometimes we are just not that \"smart\". </p>\n\n<p>I had a class in image processing (graduate level) taught by Dr <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K._R._Rao\" rel=\"nofollow\">K. R. Rao</a> (invented <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JPEG\" rel=\"nofollow\">JPEG</a>), and I barely hung on by my fingernails and was behind all the other students. The other class members were all international students who didn't party but studied in their off time. </p>\n\n<p>They knew the subject better than me, but I got an A. It was an excellent class, I was persistent, very persistent. The point is get over the feelings and work as hard as you can, all your spare time on it (24/7 like) and see how you do.</p>\n\n<p>But \"Smart\" is only 1/2 the game. Look at the people in <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mensa_International\" rel=\"nofollow\">Mensa</a>; 1/2 are nuts, and look at PhDs in Physics; 1/2 are nuts and really out to lunch long time. </p>\n\n<p>I take a hard working normal guy over a super smart wandering type anytime. On the job, I had, as a system engineer, to coordinate and get the primadona engineers all moving in one direction and work together, about 5 guys in 3 locations and they had more than 10 patents each, one had over 50, and they were all older than me. They knew their fields far better than I. We came out with Wi-Fi. Learn to take downs with the ups, gather experience, lots of arrows in the butt, etc. There is high demand for people that can stand the pressure and survive. </p>\n\n<p>There was one guy in grad microwave class that made all 100s, the rest of us were in the Bs, and he busted the curve for us. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15511,
"author": "user10595",
"author_id": 10595,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10595",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>New Ideas, you need new ideas, new ways of doing things to achieve what you're looking for, and if it's being better than them, I think that's not a bad thing, I mean how many are they 10, 20 people. obviously that challenged you and without this you wouldn't have thought of changing your status Quo. and even better how about something you're interested in that they don't know anything about (it doesn't have to be sports) it could be in the field of CS too, but was left out for some reason, they're a limited no. of people and even if they are 100, they're not the rest of the world, so probably they are not good at something in CS, if you're interested in that thing (only if you're interested in it, passionate about and want to learn) this can be a great advantage of yours. go for it, be good at every other subject in your masters but be excellent at your newly found interest, a hint: it might be something related to business (think gates and jobs left school for a reason), this could be a killer. in my opinion frustration is the fuel for extraordinary success only if you keep at it.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15517,
"author": "WillA",
"author_id": 10598,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10598",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>WOW, There are many good responses and some good and some not so good advice.\nI am a 49 y/o System admin/Engineer with no formal IT Training and \"Some College\".\nAs far as feeling outclassed by your peers, I certainly can identify with that. I am assuming that you are in your 30's. \nI have been working in IT for 20 years and have seen some very unhappy and miserable people. Constantly clawing and trying to \"One Up\" their peers. I understand that this is a very competitive field, however understand that your job is not your life. You are an amazing individual, because you are not arrogant and do see your own flaws. Please stay humble. Do not see yourself as lessor than your peers, you are much greater.You have come a long way. So if you ever find some difficulty just remember one of the difficult times in your past and appreciate your present. Often time some say \"It is rough but at least I am doing better than ... (Fill the blank). Well, your difficult times are in that blank. \nLastly, Put you peers in your shoes and I am sure NONE of them can stand. \nLove your life, stop and and reflect, pray, meditate and most of all SMILE, laugh, and enjoy. Life really blurs by. Remember your past as a point of reference. Your peers cannot relate. ANY Employer would love to have someone with your experience, because you are an OVERCOMER, and handle difficulty under pressure, that make some of the best problem solvers\nExperience is more than academics. Good luck, and take life by the horns.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15573,
"author": "RoboticRenaissance",
"author_id": 10638,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10638",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Almost everyone feels this way to some extent. Most people have developed this issue over many years. I ran into the issue head-on in the jump from middle to high school. In primary and middle school, I was <em>literally</em> first in my class. Then I went to a better district with more rigorous studies, and I started almost failing my classes while my peers received the equivalent of a 5.0. So I had to consciously figure out how to deal with the feeling of inferiority.</p>\n\n<p>The best way to handle this issue is to keep a few things in mind:</p>\n\n<p>1 – Everyone has a different skill set. Unfortunately, society trains us to focus on our failings. Everyone has standard levels they must reach, but we're not so encouraged to advanced quickly in what we <em>are</em> good at. It's a major flaw of society to force everyone to an inflated level in things they aren't good at.</p>\n\n<p>2 – Instead, you should focus on becoming excellent in what you are good at. Then, whenever you feel inadequate in one field, just remember how good you are in another. If you focus both on improving your strengths and flaunting them, it makes you a productive and satisfied member of society, not to mention very appealing to recruiters and those in charge of promotion.</p>\n\n<p>3 – Some people say life isn't a competition. Others say you need to work hard and play catch up. You have to find your own balance between the two. If you're too far on the competitive end, people think you're a jerk when you're above them in a subject or you feel depressed when you're below others. If you're too far on the peaceful end, you lose the desire to work hard and learn more, regardless of whether or not you need it.</p>\n\n<p>4 – Find out what you like to do, find out what you're good at, and find out where the two cross.<br>\n<br></p>\n\n<p>EXAMPLES:</p>\n\n<p>Focus on fixing the bad – The underdog movies \"Turbo\" and \"Rudy\" come to mind. Rudy, the shrimp of a kid who can't run fast, wants to play college football. He spends all his time training, and gets one play in the season. He feels like a hero until the movie ends and he realizes that play doesn't get him off the bench for next season. Turbo the snail wants to win the Indy500. It takes a freak chemical spill to turn him into a snail version of a superhero. These are some of the people we look at for inspiration.</p>\n\n<p>Focus on your strengths – \"Monsters Inc.\" and \"Monsters University.\" When Mike tries to scare kids, he fails. He's simply not scary. But he knows everything about being a scarer. Sully's scary, but is horrible at memorization and logic. In the end, Mike doesn't become a scarer; he coaches Sully and plans everything. Mike does what he's good at and gets to be in the same environment he would be in if he were good at scaring. Mike and Sully each use their unique, innate skills to their advantage and come out on top.</p>\n\n<p>Let's say you're good at composition, history, and time management, but you dislike history and time management. Become excellent at composition, keep history relatively neutral, and accept the fact that time management is a requirement for everyone.<br>\nBy the way, how many people in your field are good at math? Probably a lot. How many are good at what you specialize in? If you do it right, not very many. You can't speak Mandarin, even though it's the most popular language on the planet. What do you do? Forget about it, unless you're planning on traveling to China. Why do you need it? Instead, learn a language that impresses people and is often used in your chosen field. For example, France has a lot of customers for robotic tech companies.</p>\n\n<p>Here's a huge misnomer. \"Hard Work\" is not actually what people want. Employers don't want employees to stay two hours late every day just to get their tasks done, then come to work tired because of another three hours of unpaid labor at home. Teachers don't want students to be stressed out and think of the school experience as a bunch of bad memories. \"Don't work hard; work smart.\" Use what you have at your disposal. They use the term \"Hard Work\" to indicate that you can't slack off and not do what's expected of you.<br>\nAlso, if students come from higher-class high schools, it's basically like they went to college early on financial aid. They've already gone through all these classes. Yes, you're going to have to go through the classes they've already been through.<br>\nBy the way, I'm in my first year of community college now. There were high school Juniors in my Calc II class with better grades than mine. There are also people into their third year of college failing their third bout of intermediate algebra. We have peers who can barely speak English, and we have foreigners who speak my language better than I do.</p>\n\n<p><br>\nIn the end, everything is subjective and relative. Don't beat yourself up. Try to focus on your strengths. It's not a necklace, and you are much stronger than your weakest link. If you're not good at a subject, figure out what's the highest level you need to have to be good at what you do.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15584,
"author": "Irwin",
"author_id": 5944,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5944",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If you're looking at a lot of profiles (this is common when you're doing academic job searches or literature reviews) you might have a tendency to focus on the accomplishments that other professors have, and then lump them all together into some kind of imaginary \"summation superhuman\".</p>\n\n<p>One institution hired that guy because he invented XYZ. The next hired the other because he has N papers in Science and Nature. The other one hired ABC because he got K dollars of funding. Suddenly, they're all molding together in your head and you feel like you have to invent something, get N papers in Science and Nature, and get K dollars of funding before you can even have a hope of succeeding.</p>\n\n<p>When you look at a lot of CVs and profiles they highlight all of the good things. Don't \"sum\" them up into some kind of super researcher.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15588,
"author": "compugurl",
"author_id": 10660,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10660",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>While many will tell you to step up, or forget other people and focus on yourself I think it best to do something else entirely. I'm a non-traditional student. I too had fall-backs and work considerably harder to achieve my goals than some of my peers, but what has helped immensely wasn't hoping someone notices me, but making them notice me. So I say to you, find a mentor. Find someone in your field of whom you can confide and ask questions. When you start involving yourself deeply in your field both online AND in person with others who are equally interested in your work, and with those who are willing to listen and/or give advice when necessary you will realize just how good you have it. </p>\n\n<p>We are always comparing ourselves to others, don't stop. It can drive you to be better, to be different. However, remember that you aren't the same as your peers. You don't want to have exactly the same jobs and lives as they do, so you can set your own goals. And in doing so, you will find that you can market yourself differently as well. Be different. Stand out. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15457",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10497/"
]
|
15,470 | <p>I have a friend who is considering a part time (~10hr/week) consulting gig with a large, well-established software company, doing a mixture of research and coding. However, there appears to be little quantitative data on past consulting rates for <strong>academics</strong>, i.e., professors, postdocs, and PhD students whose primary career is not consulting.</p>
<p><strong>Q: How does an <em>academic</em> determine a fair rate for consulting?</strong></p>
<p>...Assuming that a consulting gig is <em>actually compatible with their academic contract!</em> I do of course realize that in many circumstances external employment is prohibited by a contract with the university. I also realize that consulting rates are largely a function of 1. perceived expertise and 2. negotiation skill. But a key component of successful negotiation is an objective view of the facts—in this case, some kind of upper and lower bound on reasonable wages.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15473,
"author": "Fomite",
"author_id": 118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/118",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Ask around.</p>\n\n<p>This is going to vary wildly by field, by sub-field, by school, by academic rank, etc. The best way to find out is to ask colleagues what they make, more senior colleagues what they'd expect and if they think a particular rate is reasonable, etc.</p>\n\n<p>While people are occasionally hesitant about asking salary questions, I've not run into anyone whose adverse to discussing the mechanics of consulting with a colleague getting started.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15474,
"author": "ESultanik",
"author_id": 92,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/92",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>As <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/118/fomite\">Fomite</a> correctly stated, it is going to vary a lot by field and also individual circumstances.</p>\n\n<p>In my experience, if the consulting work is roughly equivalent to what a non-academic in industry might be able to perform, then the rates will roughly be equivalent, too. This happens a lot in the engineering disciplines, and especially often in computer science (<em>i.e.</em>, many computer science professors can moonlight as software engineers). In such disciplines, I have found that companies in industry often classify their engineers into five levels. These go by different names at different companies, but they usually are along the lines of: associate, full engineer, senior, lead, and principal. Associate is the level a freshly graduated undergrad would start at. Full engineer usually implies three to five years experience and/or a master's degree. That is likely the level equivalent to a Ph.D. student. A fresh Ph.D. just having defended would usually start at such a company at the senior level, so it is roughly equivalent to post-doc and junior faculty. The lead level is usually achieved 7+ years after that, so it is roughly equivalent to tenured faculty. Likewise, principal is equivalent to full professors.</p>\n\n<p>Once you have an equivalent job title in mind, you can use websites like <a href=\"http://www.glassdoor.com/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">glassdoor</a> to search for average salaries for that job title (<em>e.g.</em>, \"Senior Software Engineer\", \"Principal Electrical Engineer\", <em>etc.</em>). I find that typical hourly rates are in the range of 0.1% to 0.2% of the yearly salary of an equivalent professional, but once again this may vary by profession; my experience is in the world of software.</p>\n\n<p>I have found that some companies will allow a slightly higher-end consulting rate if you can demonstrate that your abilities are above and beyond those of a non-academic alternative. This is especially true if the nature of the consulting work is research-oriented and/or directly related to your research, or if you can reasonably argue that you could complete the task faster than a non-Ph.D or a full-time employee.</p>\n\n<p>You can usually charge a slightly higher rate for short-term work.</p>\n\n<p>Many academics I know often do consulting in the form of acting as expert witnesses at trial. Rates for that type of work seem to be more standard across disciplines, and is more of a function of how unique and qualified you are for the job. Prep work for trial is usually charged at a standard consulting rate, but then days at trial can be charged as much as two to four times that rate.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15477,
"author": "user9822",
"author_id": 10573,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10573",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In the legal arena, private practice rates for pure research start at about $40 per hour while the rates for research and writing are about $60 per hour, on average. In academics, these rates are much lower such that you typically see only law students working hourly in an academic setting. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/07 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15470",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9538/"
]
|
15,482 | <p>The question is pretty much the title. If you are an academic, is it possible to get anyone to pay you to do research in mathematical finance? </p>
<p>You can interpret the question broadly, to include mathematics or computational science that is used in finance, as long as this research has some real connection to finance as practiced today. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15484,
"author": "Suresh",
"author_id": 346,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/346",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Ignoring the somewhat tendentious statements about mathematicians and funding mathematics, the <a href=\"http://www.nsf.gov\" rel=\"noreferrer\">National Science Foundation</a> in the US is one example of an agency funding research in mathematical finance. In fact, all I did was type \"nsf mathematical finance\" into google and I got three awards listed in the top 10. I'm sure there are many more. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15647,
"author": "John Bentin",
"author_id": 10691,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10691",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_Group\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Man Group plc</a> does just that, particularly through the <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford-Man_Institute_of_Quantitative_Finance\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Oxford-Man Institute of Quantitative Finance</a>. Further information can be accessed through the Institute's <a href=\"http://www.oxford-man.ox.ac.uk\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">website</a>, which also provides contact details.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15482",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6278/"
]
|
15,486 | <p>The tag <a href="/questions/tagged/grants" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged 'grants'" rel="tag">grants</a> currently has the description "Academic grants are non-repayable funds disbursed by government, trust, foundation or a society." The tag <a href="/questions/tagged/awards" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged 'awards'" rel="tag">awards</a> currently has no description.</p>
<p>I am currently in the process of formally naming the forms of monetary support that my university's research council is providing to its employees. My question is:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Is there any formal document that describes the difference between a grant and an award?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>I'm also interested in how the terms <em>grant</em> and <em>award</em> differ from other terms such as <em>incentive</em>, <em>fellowship</em>, <em>scholarship</em>, <em>professorial chair</em>, and so on.</p>
<p>For example, I know that one who is applying for a grant submits a proposal to be able to get funding for an activity that has not yet been done. I also know that some awards require nominations (and some disallow self-nomination) and are given for work that has already been done. I know that grants usually require liquidation of the monetary support given; I am not sure if the same is true for awards. Grants sometimes have clauses where the recipient is to return the monetary support if he or she fails to submit the expected outputs; I am not sure if the same is true for awards.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15499,
"author": "BrenBarn",
"author_id": 9041,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9041",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think you basically answered your own question: grants are something where you apply and get money based on what you say you will do. Awards are something you get for work you already did. Some awards do not include any money. I doubt you'll find an authoritative document, because there's no organization that sets rules for the entire academic community. I could image a certain amount of overlap/fuzz, so there could be things that one school/organization calls a grant that somewhere else might call an award.</p>\n\n<p>A confusing additional fact is that the term \"award\" is also often used as a verb applied to the noun \"grant\", as in \"Professor X was awarded a grant for . . .\". I would not call this \"an award\" in the noun sense; it is a grant, and \"awarding a grant\" means \"giving a grant\" or \"deciding who gets a grant\". To me \"an award\" is the sort of thing described with \"Professor X won the ABC Award for . . .\"</p>\n\n<p>Here is a page talking about <a href=\"http://finance.tufts.edu/spa/what-constitutes-a-grant-vs-a-gift\">grants vs. \"gifts\"</a> that restates some of the distinctions you already mentioned, but this is just one accounting context at one university.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15672,
"author": "Argalatyr",
"author_id": 9748,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9748",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>For the United States of America's NIH and NSF, a grant is a contractual agreement for work that will be done, with payments in anticipation of the work. An award is the actual funds. This <a href=\"http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps_2012/nihgps_ch5.htm\" rel=\"noreferrer\">description of the NIH Notice of Award</a> and <a href=\"http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/manuals/gpm05_131/gpm2.jsp\" rel=\"noreferrer\">this one from NSF</a> may illustrate the distinction.</p>\n\n<p>Update: Here is an additional document from NIH entitled, \"<a href=\"http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/awardconditions.htm\" rel=\"noreferrer\">Awards Conditions and Information for NIH Grants</a>\" that underscores the distinction I've already made.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15821,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I don't think there is a distinction, and if there is, it is very subtle. Looking at the US NIH list of <a href=\"http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/funding_program.htm\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Types of Grant Programs</a> a subset of the activity codes considered "research grants" include</p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>R01 NIH Research Project Grant Program (R01)</p>\n<p>R15 NIH Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA)</p>\n<p>R21 NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Award (R21)</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>So some grants are grants and some are awards and some are both.</p>\n<p>In addition to "grants" the NIH has a line of <a href=\"http://grants.nih.gov/training/careerdevelopmentawards.htm\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">K-Awards</a>. The names of these do not ever use the term "grant, but the FOA generally says that the funding type is "Grant". For example for the <a href=\"http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-14-044.html#_Section_II._Award\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">K01</a></p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Funding Instrument - Grant: A support mechanism providing money, property, or both to an eligible entity to carry out an approved project or activity.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>Once you bring Fellowships into the game, things get even crazier. The NIH has the <a href=\"http://grants.nih.gov/training/nrsa.htm\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA)</a>. The <a href=\"http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-11-113.html\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">F32</a> is an award, fellowship, and grant while the <a href=\"http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-14-015.html\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">T32</a> is an award and a grant, but not a fellowship.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15486",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/64/"
]
|
15,492 | <p>I submitted a paper to a journal and I got extensive reviews, and the paper was rejected, but they encouraged resubmission if I successfully did a bit more science and made other drastic revisions. Note this is not the same as being conditionally accepted; I had to resubmit the paper. Well I did this and the paper was accepted the second go around with minor revisions.</p>
<p>The Journal has the policy that you may post a copy of the preprint, the draft prior to review, on your personal website with a link to the final article which is behind a paywall.</p>
<p>My question is, since they rejected the first draft of the paper, can I ethically call the second draft, the one with major revisions and extra science, the pre-peer review paper. It was the raw draft submitted prior to the second set of reviews after which they accepted the paper. Or because that paper did benefit from the first set of peer reviews, I should post the original first draft? My guess is that I am allowed to post the second draft; what do you think?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15500,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>It seems clear to me that the answer is post what you call your second draft. The first \"round\" is a closed chapter because of the reject decision. You should consider your new round as the round of relevance for the final publication; it is a new paper, the old is \"dead\". The first round draft will be so different from the final that it cannot represent the final version. If you receive a major/minor revision, it means that the submission has intrinsic values that are clear to the reviewers and editor and in such cases the early drafts carry with them enough to mirror the final product. So from this perspective the reject decision is a clear line of separation.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15526,
"author": "Dikran Marsupial",
"author_id": 2827,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2827",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Just to add to Peters excellent answer (+1), one of the purposes of publication is to establish priority on discoveries and inventions, and this is established by the \"submitted\" date that appears on the final published paper.</p>\n\n<p>If the journal is suggesting that you could submit a revised version as a new paper, then the submission date will be the date of the revised version, so it is only fair to treat the second version of the manuscript as the first draft of that paper.</p>\n\n<p>Some journals have decided to get rid of the \"revise and resubmit\" option following review so that papers are either accepted or rejected (with the possibility of resubmission). This is done so that the journal appears to have a rapid processing time from submission to final publication. I think this is deeply unfair to authors as it is misleading and also could prevent them from getting fair priority on their discoveries. Generally it is also not actually treated as a new paper as it is sent to the same set of reviewers. The journal shouldn't be allowed to have their cake and eat it as well, either it is a new paper, or it isn't - if they reject a paper, they should have no rights over it whatsoever.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15492",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8101/"
]
|
15,504 | <p>In the desktop application for Mendeley, it's possible to import a PDF and have the bibliographic data automatically extracted (or perhaps looked up, I'm not sure). This feature is more or less reliable. However, Mendeley's code is closed source (they once promised to release the source, but then they were bought by Elsevier). <strong>I'm looking for an open source tool that takes one or more PDFs as input and returns a bibtex entry for each</strong>. </p>
<p>I've found the following, but couldn't get either of them to work:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.molspaces.com/d_cb2bib-overview.php">cb2Bib</a></li>
<li><a href="https://code.google.com/p/pdfmeat/">pdfmeat</a></li>
</ul>
<p>At present, the fastest alternative I know is to copy/paste the title into Google Scholar, and click the link to bibtex. That's very nice, but I'm wondering if there is something more automated.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15606,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I use <a href=\"http://www.zotero.org/\">Zotero</a> which in itself is a system for handling references, it comes as both a plugin to Firefox and as standalone. I use the standalone version to extract reference information from pdf and then export to, in my case, BibTeX <code>.bib</code> format. There are possibilities to export to other formats as well.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 28950,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>NB: My answer does not differentiate between open and closed sourced projects and I have not used any of the seemingly big list of solutions.</p>\n\n<p>This <a href=\"https://stackoverflow.com/a/3523416/2787723\">SO answer</a> suggests that the 2010 London Dev8D meeting, whatever that is, ran a contest for meta data extraction and resulted in <a href=\"https://code.google.com/p/pdfssa4met/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">pdfssa4met</a>. I cannot find any documentation on the meeting and anything else that came out of it. The JISC ConnectedWorks project produced a <a href=\"https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bmVV89ZozeYsboSTTebKXv3u2vUDAmY3rG2tr5IIl0I/preview\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">review document</a> that considered Zotero, Mendeley, Google Scholar, CB2BIB, Metadata Extraction Tool, pdfssa4met, pdfmeat, GNU libextractor, FITS, Apache Tika, XPDF, PDFTOHTML, pdf2xml, CiteSeerX, and Paperpile. This list seems to leave out some other solutions, although it is possible that they rely on the same underlying technology. This answers to this <a href=\"https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/42361/is-there-a-citation-manager-which-plays-nicely-with-bibtex-and-has-automatic-met\">TeX.SX question</a> suggests BibDesk and JabRef do metadata extraction. <a href=\"http://www.papersapp.com/mac/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Papers</a> also seems to do metadata extraction. This <a href=\"http://musingsaboutlibrarianship.blogspot.co.uk/2010/07/extracting-metadata-from-pdfs-comparing.html#.VCKGOuK5NFE\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">blog</a> reviews the metadata extraction performance of WizFolio. </p>\n\n<p>There is also <a href=\"http://docear.org/papers/Mr.%20dLib%20-%20A%20Machine%20Readable%20Digital%20Library%20--%20preprint.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Mr. dLib</a>, <a href=\"https://github.com/CrossRef/pdfextract\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">pdfextract</a> and <a href=\"http://www.dlib.org/dlib/july12/kern/07kern.html\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">TeamBeam</a> which seem to have scholarly papers associated with them and therefore seem to be misssed by the JISC review (or developed afterwards). I also found <a href=\"http://rossmounce.co.uk/2013/01/06/pdf-metadata-using-exiftool/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">exiftool</a>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 28951,
"author": "Joe",
"author_id": 21890,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/21890",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This doesn't answer your entire question, but may be useful (for example, you might have got the papers from a list of DOIs in the first place).</p>\n\n<p>Assuming these are PDFs with CrossRef DOIs, if you can extract the DOI from the PDF, you can get citation directly from CrossRef's API. For the DOI <code>10.5555/12345678</code>, the query:</p>\n\n<pre><code>http://api.crossref.org/works/10.5555/12345678/transform/application/x-bibtex\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>returns</p>\n\n<pre><code>@article{Carberry_2008,\n doi = {10.5555/12345678},\n url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.5555/12345678},\n year = 2008,\n month = {aug},\n publisher = {{CrossRef}},\n volume = {5},\n number = {11},\n pages = {1--3},\n author = {Josiah Carberry},\n title = {Toward a Unified Theory of High-Energy Metaphysics: Silly String Theory},\n journal = {Journal of Psychoceramics}\n}\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>You could write a very small script to scan a list of DOIs and download the citations. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 63404,
"author": "Hassan Nazeer",
"author_id": 49217,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/49217",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><a href=\"http://www.molspaces.com/d_cb2bib-overview.php\" rel=\"noreferrer\">cb2Bib</a> is a tool to extract bibtex entries from PDF files.</p>\n\n<p>The following will command extract bibtex entries from PDF file using cb2Bib command line</p>\n\n<p><code>c2bconsole --doc2bib paper2.pdf references.bib --sloppy</code></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 80764,
"author": "dash2",
"author_id": 54446,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/54446",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You might want to look at pdf-extract:\n<a href=\"https://github.com/CrossRef/pdfextract\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://github.com/CrossRef/pdfextract</a></p>\n\n<p>It doesn't seem to be very actively maintained, but promises to do what you want. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 81732,
"author": "koppor",
"author_id": 4186,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4186",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: This is a short version of an <a href=\"https://tex.stackexchange.com/a/344310/9075\">answer posted at tex.sx</a>. This solution is not perfect, but might be a good start. I am one of the authors of JabRef and like open source development.</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://www.jabref.org/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">JabRef</a> is an <a href=\"https://github.com/JabRef/jabref/blob/master/LICENSE.md\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">MIT-licensed</a> open-source BibTeX and BibLaTeX bibliographic manager actively developed on <a href=\"https://github.com/JabRef/jabref/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">GitHub</a>. It offers the functionality to import bibliographic data from PDFs.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>Create or open a .bib file.</p></li>\n<li><p>Go to \"Quality\" -> \"Find unlinked files\".\n<a href=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/JIoR9.png\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/JIoR9.png\" alt=\"menu entry for starting find linked files\"></a></p></li>\n<li><p>The \"Find unlinked files\" dialog opens.\n<a href=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/qoJMY.png\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/qoJMY.png\" alt=\"Find unlinked files dialog\"></a></p></li>\n<li><p>Choose a directory using the \"Browse\" button.</p></li>\n<li><p>Click on \"Scan directory\".</p></li>\n<li><p>In \"Select files\", the files not yet contained in the database are shown.\n<a href=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/wZTnt.png\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/wZTnt.png\" alt=\"scan result\"></a></p></li>\n<li><p>To create entries for all files, click on \"Apply\".</p></li>\n<li><p>For each file, an import dialog is shown\n<a href=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/ic07I.png\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/ic07I.png\" alt=\"metadata dialog\"></a></p>\n\n<p>The dialog shows the XMP metadata stored in the PDF in the area \"XMP-metadata\".\nIf this data fits your needs, select \"Create entry based on XMP data\".\nTypically, the XMP-metadata is not good enough.\nChoose \"Create entry based on content\".</p></li>\n<li><p>Click on \"OK\" to start the import</p></li>\n<li><p>A dialog asking for the link is opened\n<a href=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/Hcdx1.png\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\"><img src=\"https://i.stack.imgur.com/Hcdx1.png\" alt=\"Link to file dialog\"></a>\nYou can choose \"Leave file in its current directory\" to keep the file where it is. Typically, this is that what one wants.\nIn case you choose \"Move file to file directory\", you can also choose to rename the file to the generated BibTeX key.</p></li>\n<li><p>Press OK to link the file to the BibTeX entry</p></li>\n<li><p>This happens for each file. After that, the \"Find unlinked files\" dialog is shown. Just click on \"Close\" to close it.</p></li>\n</ol>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15504",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/81/"
]
|
15,505 | <p>I work in a very <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10798/interpretation-of-a-phd-degree-in-a-very-broad-interdisciplinary-field">cross-disciplinary field</a>, which has caused me some headache<sup>*</sup> over the past couple of years, partly due to the fact that my supervisor isn't very knowledgeable regarding the day to day (technical) details of my projects. He typically leaves any mathematical, or CS, aspect of the projects to me to figure out, and provides guidance when I have questions regarding the biology or biochemistry, as those are his fields of expertise. </p>
<p>From what I hear, he's similarly loose in supervision even with the other grad students who are less cross-disciplinary and more aligned with his expertise. While I see the point in the supervisor providing the freedom to the grad student to develop as he/she likes, in my experience it can be troubling at times, allow me to explain: </p>
<p>I often have extensive periods where I don't have concrete goals to work with, but only vague ideas. Similarly, since I don't get a lot of technical guidance there are often weeks-long periods where I don't "produce" anything but instead trying to dig information out on publications, CS blogs or StackOverflow, in order to solve a problem I encounter. </p>
<p>It's at times like these my daily concerns (stuff usually unrelated to work) take precedence over what I am actually trying to figure out. I find myself browsing for gadgets, or looking over my savings or reading the news etc. I have no illusions that this amounts to procrastination no matter how you look at it. Since I don't really need to report anything to my supervisor on a regular basis, these periods can be extensive which often leads to frustration. And having realised this, I would like to be more productive even when I am stuck at my project, hopefully minimise the time it takes until I come up with a solution to whatever it is that's hindering progress.</p>
<p>So my question boils down to: how can I make sure I work efficiently, i.e. I don't get distracted or succumb to procrastination, when I am stuck and only get very loose supervision?</p>
<hr>
<p><sup>*</sup> See relevant questions:</p>
<ul>
<li><p><a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/7611/is-it-possible-to-measure-evaluate-ones-progress-or-development-in-quantitative">Is it possible to measure/evaluate one's progress or development in quantitative terms?</a></p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10652/ways-of-developing-non-core-skills-during-phd-studies">Ways of developing non-core skills during PhD studies?</a></p></li>
</ul>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15509,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can't provide a definitive solution, but I can offer an example that works for me in periods when I'm feeling distracted but need to get things done. During such periods, I take advantage of what's known as the <a href=\"http://pomodorotechnique.com/\">Pomodoro technique</a>. The basic idea of this technique is that you should work in blocks of 20- to 25-minutes that are devoted to a single task: reading a paper, or writing a piece of code, or whatever else the task is to be. At the end of one such block (called a \"Pomodoro\"), you take a short 5-minute break, then begin a new unit. After four units, you take a longer break.</p>\n\n<p>Other ways to help do this are to \"block out\" other distractions: use full-screen modes that avoid distractions, warning messages, and so on. Turn off the beeps and signals on your mobile phone (except for appointment alerts!). Suppress the \"new mail\" sounds and other warnings on your computer. </p>\n\n<p>The other challenge is of course figuring out what to do in the blocks. That of course is a little trickier, but requires planning on your part. You should be thinking about this on a fairly regular basis (the frequency can vary, but at least every few weeks). Figure out what you've done recently, and what you need to work on next. Then, get it done! </p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>For the specific case of being stuck on a particular bit, it depends a lot on the nature of the problem. If the block is a structural problem (equipment not working, etc.), then you have to wait for it to be resolved and work on other parts of your project in the meanwhile. However, if the issue is that you need to figure something out, then that really depends on how you solve problems best. Some people do so by working on completely different topics for a while, letting the problem \"work itself out\" in the subconscious. Other people attack it head on. Sometimes it's helpful to think about the problem in a different way: what happens if you start at the \"solution\" you want to reach, and work your way backwards? What are the consequences of continuing your current method of solution? Does it get you somewhere you can work from? Are there related problems in other parts of your discipline, or in other disciplines? How did other people try to resolve them? Will that work in your circumstances? </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15519,
"author": "Trylks",
"author_id": 7571,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7571",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Congratulations, you have just been promoted to supervisor, you have to supervise a PhD student, set him some goals, check he doesn't procrastinate, push him to do his best, find venues to publish, topics to research, write papers to publish, etc.</p>\n\n<p>This PhD student is <em>you</em>, and since you are not very experienced on research I can guess you both will have a somewhat hard time and probably the results will not be very astounding (having a good background helps to choose topics better). But if you both work hard I'm sure you both will learn a lot, and that's what students are for, aren't they?</p>\n\n<p>On the good side of things, your new supervisor is 100% devoted to you, he watches you procrastinate, eat, sleep (kind of) and in every situation, even while in the shower. Very few people get that kind of attention.</p>\n\n<p>Good luck.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15521,
"author": "Matthew G.",
"author_id": 1165,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1165",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The Pomodoro Technique is great for when you find yourself in a cycle of procrastination. Combine with <a href=\"http://selfcontrolapp.com\" rel=\"nofollow\">self binding</a>. I've also had a lot of luck with creating minimum output requirements and tracking; <a href=\"https://www.beeminder.com\" rel=\"nofollow\">Beeminder might help</a>, at least until you've internalized the habits you want to build.</p>\n\n<p>The important thing is to set yourself up for success. </p>\n\n<p>I would suggest trying to attack the problem from many directions:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Spend some time each week renewing your coverage of the literature. As you get further along a project, you'll find you have a better grasp of where to look, and what it is you want. You may find incredibly important work for you after months of search, just because it took that long to find the right words.</li>\n<li>Simultaneously, spend some time each week <em>collating</em> the information you have; create a wiki on your topic, and keep it up to date. Build a mind-map. These exercises will help you identify links and gaps in your conception of the problem.</li>\n<li><a href=\"http://scripting.com/stories/2009/08/09/narrateYourWork.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">Narrate your work</a>: Keep a blog, a journal, that you dump every wisp of thought or spark of information into. Doing this will help you avoid loosing a spark of inspiration, while also freeing your mind to work on whatever task is actually at hand. </li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15522,
"author": "Nick Stauner",
"author_id": 10518,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10518",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This began as a comment, switched to an answer, and just kept getting longer, so I'm gonna have to split it into sections...</p>\n\n<h2>Reframing the problem</h2>\n\n<p>I disagree that it's \"procrastination no matter how you look at it,\" and I wonder how many ways you've actually tried looking at it. I say this somewhat confrontationally, but very sympathetically, as I've struggled with the sense that I'm just procrastinating throughout my free time in higher education, and ultimately rejected it. There's a lot more to life than work; this is easy to forget in grad school, and there's a lot of pressure to do so. Ask yourself whether you care about the things you spend your time on for other reasons you haven't fully acknowledged, or whether you're judging those pursuits as wasteful by someone else's value system, not your own. I see from your other questions that you have struggled (as I have) with the sense that other people judge success by the wrong criteria, and ignore opportunities for lateral growth if it doesn't follow their narrowly defined path to [_insert_short-term_work_goal_here_].</p>\n\n<p>If you sincerely think those other concerns of yours aren't valuable, ask yourself if you could stand to work instead every time you notice yourself switching your focus over to one of those concerns. If you can't, you may find that there is some necessity to the (non-work) concern at hand, and may want to reevaluate it again at that point while you're in the moment. If you still feel there's no value to it, ask yourself whether you are just looking for something else (anything, really) to do instead of working. Ask yourself if you don't want to work on some level, and if so, why that might be so.</p>\n\n<p>Given your situation (which was also my situation at times, in ways), you may be finding yourself more free from <em><a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motivation#Intrinsic_and_extrinsic_motivation\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">extrinsic motivation</a></em> (pressure, expectations, \"or-else\" negative consequences, and so on) than you have been for much of your academic career. The transition from inflexible, specific, structured deadlines (which probably begin in middle school and carry all the way through the first year or two of a Master's program) to a more diffuse sense of partly internalized pressure and guilt for not being a more diligent workaholic is a subtle transition that occurs most dramatically in grad school (or so I'd say, based on our shared experience with hands-off supervisors). As you slowly realize you're falling behind in some sense because you're taking time off from work to handle your own life, you realize you can't count on those old, structured sources of extrinsic motivation that almost feels like a fight-or-flight response to an encroaching predator (e.g., the \"cram-or-fail\" decision on the night before a final exam). Those of us who make it this far have probably mostly chosen to run into the jaws of the beast and do battle with it in our flight from abject failure, but some of us have only done this when we feel ourselves running out of time to make a choice of which it's going to be.</p>\n\n<p><em><a href=\"http://psych.athabascau.ca/html/Glossary/demo_glossary.cgi?term_id=%2233%22\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Avoidance-avoidance conflicts</a></em> like those resolve themselves (or force you to resolve them) because when the deadline comes, you <strong>have to</strong> choose. Without the climactic anxiety of the confrontation that motivates a resolution (however hard-won it may be even in these cases), conflicts can linger much longer in the post-deadlines careerscape. The emotional experience is different: the anxiety is more insidious than in-your-face, and can be tolerated much longer. You can start to feel the internalized sources of anxiety more as you worry less about others' judgment; you can become your own worst critic, and feel more guilty, depressed, or apathetic than truly anxious in the old familiar sense. This is still extrinsic motivation, but it's <em><a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-determination_theory#Extrinsic_motivation\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">introjected</a></em> in that it's <em>internalized</em>: <strong>you</strong> are now the source of your own negative self-evaluations. (This need not be exclusively true to apply.)</p>\n\n<h2>Reframing the solution</h2>\n\n<p>This kind of problem takes a different approach to resolve. You can probably find a million self-help blogs about how to be your own supervisor and boss yourself around so you can go back to the old model of operating under artificial, externalized pressure. E.g., \"I <strong>must</strong> spend one hour working everyday before breakfast,\" or, \"Whenever I read the newspaper, I <strong>must</strong> count the time I spend and put the same amount of time into [staring blankly at] my project.\" You can find a lot of similar answers to \"<a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/5786/10518\">How to avoid procrastination during the research phase of my PhD?</a>\" the second most popular question here at the moment. One of the problems with approaches like (some of) these is that they'll give you a whole new way to go to war against yourself; you'll have to take your infractions very seriously if you're going to take the system seriously at all, and you're probably not going to want to. You'll have to tell/force yourself not to do what you want to do, even when you have good reasons or special opportunities (unless you complicate your system and give yourself vacation time, <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indulgence\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">indulgences</a>, or <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulligan_%28games%29\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">mulligans</a>, which might not be a bad idea). Another problem is that when you've put in your time or satisfied whatever other requirement you've assigned yourself, you'll feel just like you always did (if you were like me in this regard too) after finishing your self-assigned \"homework\": ready to go blow off the steam however you can, which probably leads you back to those \"procrastinatory\" habits you're fighting. If it does, that's a sign that those habits might be the ones that replenish your energy, fulfill you emotionally, and help you feel more like a whole person, more like yourself, and less like a dusty, malfunctioning computer that's been cooped up in a cramped cubicle for too long.</p>\n\n<p>I think the better approach than stealing happy hours while you're off-the-clock (or stealing them from yourself while you're on) is to work more introspectively on your motives and values. I would think this—I'm a personality psychologist—but it's done me a lot of good. I still don't necessarily focus when I should (I'd probably have more publications by now if I did), but I don't feel like I'm wasting my time when I'm not focusing on work. I focus on what I'm doing instead, I enjoy and value it (or through patient introspection and experience, I gradually come to the conclusion that I don't, and I quit), and I don't beat myself up for it during or afterward. I trust that when I want to do something, there's probably a good reason, and I strive to understand it. If I can't find a good reason, I often find that I don't want to do it anymore; problem solved (usually). This has led to some extended \"vacations\" from work, during which I focus on other things I care about (e.g., a video game, or Stack Exchange!), but when I get to the bottom of what I'm after in these pursuits, and I get it, I'm enthusiastic to return to my work, and I bring new ideas to it. I integrate these diverse experiences, and I enrich my work in the process.</p>\n\n<p>What I'm describing is a shift away from judgmental devaluation of extracurricular \"distractions\" to a recognition of and reconciliation with my broader set of values, which include my career, achievement, and financial success, but don't end there. I'm my own boss now (read: unemployed :P maybe you shouldn't listen to me!), so I get to enjoy that freedom (and pay the price for it)...and I do enjoy it. I enjoy my work too! Not feeling constantly indebted to it is very important for that feeling, that <em><a href=\"http://www.selfdeterminationtheory.org/SDT/documents/2008_KoestnerOtisPowesPelletierGagnon_JOP.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">autonomous</a></em>, <em>intrinsic motivation</em> (see the same links as before) to arise. Finding joy, fascination, excitement, and the energizing yet relaxing release-through-work of <em><a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_%28psychology%29\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">the flow state</a></em> is all about letting yourself love what you do when the time is right, and knowing it's right because you've defined what you need to do on your own terms: terms of what you want to do (intrinsically), or at least what you really care about (<em>identified motivation</em>, which is often good enough; same links as before). Once you really understand what you're after, your <em><a href=\"http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/prescriptions-life/201311/helping-you-find-your-life-purpose\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">sense of purpose</a></em>, you can start organizing your projects around it and deriving natural, enduring motivation for your work. You won't want to quit and do something else so often, you'll start waking up eager to work, and if anything, you'll suffer for finding it harder to pull yourself away from your work to eat, sleep, <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJ0WpdTin4c\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">make sweet love down by the fiyah</a>, or whatever else there is to do with life that starts to seem strangely less important.</p>\n\n<h2>Acknowledgements, credentials, disclaimers...</h2>\n\n<p>I know this sounds like a new-age meditation mantra or performance-enhancing nutritional supplement commercial, but I assure you, these are at least the implications of honest-to-goodness psychological theories of motivation (which are <a href=\"http://escholarship.org/uc/item/3t34c68w\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">my area of expertise</a>), passed a few times through a thick filter of personal experience. I'm not a typical success story myself (if a success story at all so far), but I have succeeded in rediscovering my love for my work and motivation for focusing on it in a big way by introspecting on these matters of my motivation and values, and indulging my urges to do other things than work at certain points throughout my graduate career. I think I'm a much better psychologist for having \"walked the walk,\" even if I haven't talked enough talk yet to convince others with my publication record, and I know that when I publish the manuscript version of that dissertation I linked above, it's going to be a hell of a lot better for all the time I've spent delving into statistics (and <a href=\"https://stats.stackexchange.com/\">Cross Validated</a>!) over the past few months when I \"should've been\" writing instead for fear of not publishing rapidly enough. Because I allowed myself to redefine my work in terms of what I value rather than in terms of what was going to get me the most immediate recognition and paycheck (again, extrinsic motives), and because I'm lucky enough to afford the opportunity costs, I put in two months of probably the hardest and most consistent work I've ever put into refining my research, put to rest all my old insecurities about my rate of progress, and apparently can't stop raving about everything I'm learning and how much better I feel about it all now. I don't yet know how long I'm going to be able to keep this up before I start \"procrastinating\" again (one might argue I'm doing that now), but the plan is to stay this way as long as I can: self-directed, secure, deeply enthusiastic, and well-aligned with my values and overall sense of purpose. The productivity has already started flowing out of this life transition, but it would take a lot more talking to prove it, so I'll leave it at that for now.</p>\n\n<p>I should also note that there's some risk in this approach. It's a long road, you may not have the time and freedom to follow it as far as you need to for the results you might want, and it may not ultimately lead where you think you want it to right now. This is the stuff career transitions and midlife crises (not that I would really know about those first-hand just yet) are made of: confrontation with what you <strong>really</strong> want and care about, and its juxtaposition with what you're actually doing. Better to get it out of the way while you're young, I say, but maybe not when you're less than a year away from finishing your PhD, if there's some risk you won't as a result. If you can't afford to take your time, this isn't for you. It's a long-term approach that ought to pay off in the end, but there are certainly no guarantees, and it might take a very long time indeed. If you've had the patience to read this far, you just might be ready for it.</p>\n\n<p>I mainly offer this because you remind me of myself, and both of us remind me of what I study, and I'm currently my own guinea pig undergoing very informal road-testing of these theories, for which I could provide plenty more references, but which take some contextualized interpretation to apply here. It's definitely too soon to claim conclusive support for the theory from my own life, but I feel like I'm closing in on that result very rapidly now. In whatever you choose to do, I wish you the best results, and hope you'll come back to tell us what you choose and how it goes. If this self-indulgent autobiography of mine doesn't get downvoted through the pavement, I'll consider doing the same. Cheers!</p>\n\n<p><strong>P.S.</strong> In response to your comment on @aeismail's answer, I want to emphasize that part of the benefit of my approach for me has been taking my former advisor's voice out of my brain and rediscovering my own voice. Those two months of hard work (seriously almost all-day everyday studying!) were in pursuit of my own solutions to my own research problems. Because I started listening to myself better and allowing myself to direct my own research according to my priorities, I've learned probably a year's worth of statistics that helps me handle the conceptual bits of my own project in ways my graduate advisor was never going to even while I was still there. If you can give it the time, and accept that you're your own best supervisor, and avoid being or becoming your own worst critic, you can solve those problems as well as anyone can. Ask your supervisor and everyone else you can for input and guidance, but know that you're ultimately the one who has to steer the ship, and don't take your hands off the wheel for a second! But do pull over once in a while to stretch your legs and smell the roses; it's just another way of putting gas in your tank.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15523,
"author": "badroit",
"author_id": 7746,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7746",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think the more general form of the question is: (a) what do I need from my supervisor and (b) if my supervisor cannot/will not provide this, then what can I do?</p>\n\n<p>Here's a few things I think supervisors are most important for early on in graduate studies:</p>\n\n<h1>Discipline and Motivation</h1>\n\n<p>So you need to put in long hours to succeed in graduate studies and oftentimes you need to work \"blind\": you need to work on things you don't know will succeed or not, or where you have no fixed goal in mind. Discipline can thus be a major issue for any relatively normal human being. Supervisors are supposed to track your progress on a regular basis and ensure you are putting in the required levels of effort, to encourage with a carrot and to use the stick if necessary.</p>\n\n<p>If your supervisor is not tracking your progress and setting goals for you, then you need to take your own discipline into your own hands. The simplest method is to set your own goals with deadlines, focusing on achieving one thing at a time. Make TODO lists that follow a rough plan you have in mind. If a task is too broad, it will never get done: each task should be small enough and phrased in such a way that you know how it can be achieved (even if the task is just \"problem solve X for one hour\").</p>\n\n<p>Assign yourself regular hours to work. If procrastination is a problem, <em>just start</em>. Starting is the hardest part so unplug yourself from whatever you were doing, minimise the potential for distraction as much as possible, take a deep breath and start. It's that simple.</p>\n\n<h1>Experience</h1>\n\n<p>It is not enough to work hard, but you need to work smart. Inexperienced students often tend to invest more effort into unimportant minor details that they feel they can control, rather than important details where the outcome or process is uncertain. The job of the supervisor should be to provide context on the relative importance of various tasks, to stop students from getting bogged down in minor details and to keep the bigger picture in mind.</p>\n\n<p>Experience comes into play in other areas. For example, if you're starting out in publishing, or trying to publish to a venue you haven't before, experience is crucial so as to know what form the paper should take, what sort of narrative is accepted, what sort of \"boxes\" have to be ticked.</p>\n\n<p>There is no replacement for experience. However, you can find experience elsewhere than your supervisor. Are there more senior students or PostDocs you can collaborate with? Maybe there's a group outside of your institute you can collaborate with remotely? Working with other people (i.e., not having a monogamous relationship with your supervisor) is an excellent way to quickly level up your own experience and gain new perspectives!</p>\n\n<h1>Technical Expertise</h1>\n\n<p>Your supervisor is also supposed to apply his/her technical expertise to your supervision, particularly in the early days. But if they do not provide you sufficient time and effort in this regard, or if their own technical expertise does not cover your interests, or as you progress into more detail on your PhD, you will need to find sources of expertise elsewhere.</p>\n\n<p>Again, talk with other people. Try to seek out people with the skills that you require and try to develop a <em>mutually beneficial</em> working relationship with them (i.e., don't expect them to help you out of the goodness of their hearts). Perhaps you could even find a co-supervisor or a \"mentor\" who can be credited on a thesis?</p>\n\n<p>The Web is also your friend. When I was a graduate student, I learned far more from playing around and trying things and from reading (on the Web) than from anything my supervisors (or lecturers) taught me. One of the most important lessons from graduate studies is \"independent study\" ... learning how to learn. When you do a PhD you are supposed to be the world's leading expert on your chosen topic. The only way this can happen is if you develop your own technical expertise in your area beyond that of your supervisor and your other colleagues.</p>\n\n<h1>Funding</h1>\n\n<p>Presumably if you already have a supervisor then you have a fixed source of funding. However, you may need additional funding if you go over length or funding for conference travel, etc. This can be very difficult for graduate students to get involved in.</p>\n\n<p>However, there are often calls that are aimed at students and require minimal input from a supervisor. These include student travel grants for conferences, governmental scholarships, prizes for submitted work, etc. Furthermore, other senior researchers will often have funds they can provide for part-time contributions; talk to people if you are stuck.</p>\n\n<h1>Summary</h1>\n\n<p>I think some of the most important lessons that have to be learned during graduate studies are:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>How to discipline and motivate yourself and organise your own work</p></li>\n<li><p>Understand the nature of research itself, the broader research community and how your work will be viewed by them</p></li>\n<li><p>How to find, initiate and follow through on fruitful collaborations with other researchers and research groups</p></li>\n<li><p>How to find your own sources of funding</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The main goal of graduate studies is to gradually reduce your dependence on your supervisor until, by the end of your PhD, you don't need them any more. A good supervisor should understand and support you in this, particularly early on, but if this isn't working out, then you need to learn how to rely on yourself more (or find another (co-)supervisor).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15524,
"author": "user3139334",
"author_id": 10600,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10600",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>you need feedback or you will die, you are perfectly entitled to request to meet with your supervisor for an hour a week. If they are unwilling to give even that then there is usually a clause in most grad studies contracts that will allow you to nominate a \"second supervisor\" (replacement) if you are unhappy. Chemistry (of the personal type) plays a large role in the success of teams so it is important to work with someone you like.</p>\n\n<p>Following on .. if you have spare cycles and are happy with your progress see if there are others in the dept you can collaborate with - perhaps you will be credited on their publications too.</p>\n\n<p>Publications are the currency of academia, like it or not, and time needs to be spent specifically targeting publishable work. So try and figure out how what you are doing today will lead to publications. Your supervisor didn't get there by accident they know very well how to play the game by now.</p>\n\n<p>Which brings me to my final point, it sounds like perhaps there is a communication gap twixt you and your supervisor, ask yourself if you have been prickly or defensive with them at any point - if you have then throw your ego out the window, listen carefully to their suggestions and get it done. You will need their good word above all else in order to succeed.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15525,
"author": "Russell E Glaue",
"author_id": 10572,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10572",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Here is what I did to get through my research.</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>First you need to set a complete project time line, even if you feel it is not accurate, from the first day you start to the last day you finish. You list all the major parts of your research, when you plan to begin working on each section, and when you plan to complete them.</p></li>\n<li><p>Find people (other faculty) that can help you on the predominant topics of your research. Seems like you may have two: Tech, and Biology. I had three on my research: Math, Distributed Computing, and Literature/General CS. I told each professor what area of my research I wanted focus from them on. They did not touch any parts of my research I did not ask them to focus on... it worked out rather well I am happy to say.</p></li>\n<li><p>Meet with each of them. When you meet with them to discuss your research, ask them either (1) what needs improvement, or (2) how to solve your current issue.</p></li>\n<li><p>Don't leave their office until you set a time up to meet with them again about what you just discussed, to present your results or status. No more than two weeks ahead! And follow up with them in one week via e-mail to tell them your status... this also keeps them on the ball in helping you if they have some things to look at (like reading your research).</p></li>\n<li><p>Put the data from #3 and #4 into a diary, and include how it meets your time line from #1. Modify your time line as necessary. Send out a regular update report to your committee and other contributing professors with all this information, plus a copy of your current research as Draft (version your drafts). Meet with your committee 2 to 3 times per semester (Beginning, middle, ending).</p></li>\n<li><p>Meet with your Supervisor after every report you send out and ask him how you are doing. May only take 10-15 minutes during his office hours. Schedule follow-ups if your supervisor finds red flags. He has all the data now to make a determination on how you are doing.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Doing this kept me on the ball every day. I kept setting obligations with professors, and met them. I sent out reports regularly for their review to keep me accountable.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15532,
"author": "klingt.net",
"author_id": 9210,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9210",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The word you are searching for is <em>self-discipline!</em></p>\n\n<p>When I get distracted it is mostly because I lose the motivation for some topic. The next time when you get distracted from your work, take a break and/or try to work on another part of it.</p>\n\n<p>Because your supervisor doesn't set goals for you means not that you can't set them for yourself. Important is, that you don't exaggerate it and thereby set yourself too much under pressure. Always setup goals that you can achieve in the given time!</p>\n\n<p>In short:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Take regular breaks to get your head free. This is often underestimated!</li>\n<li>If you get distracted, work on another part of your topic</li>\n<li>Set goals for yourself that you can achieve in the given timespan\n\n<ul>\n<li>Daily goal: write at least x page(s)</li>\n<li>Weekly goal: finish section y</li>\n<li>Monthly goal: finish chapter z</li>\n</ul></li>\n<li>If you made progress or finished an important part reward yourself to keep up your motivation</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p><em>PS:</em></p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Don't spend too much time on stackexchange</li>\n<li>If you are on facebook, limit yourself to one visit per day!</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15534,
"author": "Matt",
"author_id": 10603,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10603",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I signed up just so I could answer this question ;-) </p>\n\n<p>I recently found myself in a similar position at a new job. Not research, but still goal oriented with lots of investigation needing to be done.</p>\n\n<p>It sounds like you're running into a problem that I still have to deal with: mistaking goals for \"that other thing I need to do.\" For me, it was easy to forget that investigating how a particular thing worked, including research on StackExchange etc. WAS progress. That WAS a thing that needed to be done, and as such <strong>it should be on your to-do list</strong>. It's easy to (as an over simplification) have a to-do list that reads \"finish research project.\" And then be overwhelmed by all the \"other\" things that have to be done in order to accomplish that goal. For me, my to-do list at one point consisted of \"automate all 37 regression tests,\" and then I got frustrated with how much time I was wasting just figuring out how the automation process worked.</p>\n\n<p>The reality was, I needed a line item for \"figure out how to RUN automatic regression tests,\" followed by a line item for \"figure out what components are needed to fully define a regression test,\" etc. Each of those things ended up needing to be broken down further, as well.</p>\n\n<p>It's easy to think that you're not making progress, but that's probably just because it's not on your to-do list, when it should be.</p>\n\n<p>EDIT: Then, if your to-do list is sufficiently granular, it will tell you \"you're goofing off, not getting stuff done\" ...and then you have to listen to it ;-)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15545,
"author": "hunse",
"author_id": 9558,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9558",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You've touched on a number of related problems, some of which are common to all grad students (anyone can procrastinate, even if they have a supervisor that requires more regular feedback), and some problems that are specific to your situation (a supervisor that is not very knowledgeable about your project).</p>\n\n<p>There's no reason that your supervisor has to be the only person who helps you with your project. There are many other professors and academics around who might be more familiar with your specific goals, so make use of them. This can include professors who you've taken courses with (choosing course projects that relate to your research is a great way to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak). But there's no reason you can't just approach a professor out of the blue, and ask them if they could meet with you for an hour to help you with a specific problem. Most professors would be very glad, and the worst that can happen is they say \"no\" and you're back to where you started. You can also contact academics around the world, for example if you've read a paper by her or him and need help figuring out the details. Most academics love to talk about their research and get their ideas out there, so they'll probably be happy to help.</p>\n\n<p>In regards to your more general problem of procrastination, that's something that I'm still struggling with. One tip that I have is to treat it like a job: Put in a solid 8 hours every day, from 9 to 5 ish, just like you would have to at a job. Then go home and relax in the evenings. When I started grad school, I was wasting a lot of time during the day, and then I'd get home and feel like I should do some work because I did nothing all day, so I'd work in the evening. That meant I didn't relax in the evening, and so I'd procrastinate more the next day. Procrastination is not really relaxing, because you always feel like you should be doing something else, so you can't switch off. If you can separate your work and the rest of your life into nice blocks, and make sure you do some really relaxing leisure activities in your off time (reading, sports, music, etc.), you'll feel a lot better (at least I did). </p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15505",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/5674/"
]
|
15,528 | <p>I'm always confused when I see a lot of PhD students looking to publish papers, even if the papers are not so good. They publish them in not so important conferences or workshops. Is that a good thing? Is it good to have a lot of papers published even in not so popular conferences? Like what is better: to have 10 papers in not so famous conferences or workshops or 1 or 2 in a very famous and good ones?</p>
<p>I have never published a paper before and new to this.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15530,
"author": "Dikran Marsupial",
"author_id": 2827,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2827",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>For the purposes of getting a PhD, the quality of the paper is more important than the venue. Quality is always better than quantity, as it will only be your best papers that end up being cited and having an influence on your field of research, so you are better off in the long run focussing on quality work and avoid wasting your time on work that will not give a true account of your ability and that will not be taken up by others in your field. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15537,
"author": "Amila",
"author_id": 9410,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9410",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are two objectives in participating for academic conference. First one would be networking. This is getting to know the other academic and industry personals that are working, studying and researching in similar field. This will open many opportunities for PhD students. Other advantage would be constructive criticisms. Experts who take part in such conference will give constructive comments for your presentation. The questions they raise may show you a new way of looking at your research question. Likewise there are many advantages a PhD student may get by taking part in conferences. A good conference is a one which is relevant to your research area, which is popular among the experts in the respective field and one which many expert and interested parties will take part. Thus in my opinion education institutes, supervisors and of course PhD student should prioritize the quality of conference before counting the number of conferences that you attend. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15539,
"author": "Alexandros",
"author_id": 10042,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10042",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>People do things for a variety of reasons. Even writing a paper for smaller workshops has some benefits for everyone (from a PHD student to a professor) </p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Good reason for the affiliation to cover expenses for the suggested trip. Usually CS workshops are co-located with important conferences and even a workshop paper may cover your expenses (not every time if you continuously abuse the system) to actually watch the entire conference. </p></li>\n<li><p>Workshops have limited attendance but may still be organized by reputable professors / scientists close to your area of interest. So, they are very good for networking. In a major conference, it is easier to get \"lost\" inside the many participants. </p></li>\n<li><p>Practise makes better. If you write 5 papers (even when some of them were for a workshop) writing your 6th paper is going to be easier, instead of trying to write your \"seminal\" paper. </p></li>\n<li><p>Reviewers have the \"strange\" habit of sometimes rejecting your paper. In this case, sending your paper to a smaller workshop (after rejection in 1-2 major conferences) where it gets accepted, lessens the sense of rejection and still \"patents\" your results on which you can expand later. </p></li>\n<li><p>Workshops sometimes have a \"best paper award\" which may even lead to journal publication, when the same paper might not had a chance in a bigger conference. In workshops the competition is smaller (usually 10-15 accepted papers), so you have something like 5-8% chance for something like that.</p></li>\n<li><p>Sometimes when you work on a specific project you might discover something that although is not good enough for a major conference or later expansion, is still a compact solid idea that may help others. So, a good workshop paper may disseminate this idea to a larger audience.</p></li>\n<li><p>Unfortunately, although quality should beat quantity, this is not the usual case. In some research projects, grants applications it is better to state that \"A is the author of more than 50 scientific papers with an h-index of ... \" than \"B is the author of 2 papers\". Same when you look at the Google Scholar / DBLP record of an author. It is better to see 50 papers (which among them are 10 really seminal papers) instead of just 10 perfect papers that usually leave a gap in the author's bibliography (blank years).</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>In this sense, even workshop papers serve their purpose if you treat them as professionally as the rest of your papers (they are well written and still scientifically solid and correct). </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15564,
"author": "Community",
"author_id": -1,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My guess is that this might vary a bit between different fields, so I'd say ask some professors in your own department for their take.</p>\n\n<p>I'll just answer from the perspective of Philosophy. It looks a lot better (in terms of impressing academic hiring committees) to have papers accepted into big meetings of the national organization because everybody understands how hard it is to get one of those accepted. It isn't clear how competitive the northwest iowa caucus of young philosophers meeting was to get into, consequently the committee won't really know how important an achievement that was. </p>\n\n<p>Also I'd say published papers > conference presentations. It isn't an either/or. give the paper at a conference first, then send it off to a journal. But try to think strategically for the semester about what to send off where and when in order to make those deadlines. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15585,
"author": "A.G.",
"author_id": 10318,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10318",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Definitely, you want refereed papers in the top 5 conferences or journals in your field. That is, if you can. I mention conferences because in some fields conferences are refereed and are equally respected as top journals, but in most fields <em>you want top-quality papers in top-quality journals</em>. Period.</p>\n\n<p>Academics (i.e. people who will look at you CV when you look for a job) know full well the huge gap between average papers and top-journal-quality (I would guess a subjective factor 2 to 5 at least). There are several reasons, besides the obvious ones, to aim high:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Tell your advisor your are aiming very high. See how (s)he reacts. (S)He will treat you accordingly (including telling you right off that he thinks you do not have what it takes if such is the case).</p></li>\n<li><p>That will oblige you to chose interesting and relevant research questions. Papers about unimportant stuff never get published in top journals.</p></li>\n<li><p>That will oblige you to make sure you advisor can coach you (is that where (s)he publishes?). If needed, you will switch advisor (or department, university) before wasting too much time.</p></li>\n<li><p>On top of purely scientific results there are many things to learn from aiming high while you are still a student. That includes countless hours of rewriting, much better structure, language, dealing with referees who know their stuff, etc. </p></li>\n<li><p>It does not make sense to go to school in a very competitive field and not try to do your absolute best.</p></li>\n<li><p>Now is the time to learn from the best while you still call yourself a <em>student</em> and ask for help.</p></li>\n<li><p>Top papers live longer, they still help you CV 10 years down the line (and accumulate citations meanwhile).</p></li>\n<li><p>Average is boring, average is everywhere, average is... average.</p></li>\n<li><p>Academia is a <em>winner-takes-all</em> game. Job openings are highly competitive. Candidate #1 gets the job, candidate #2 gets nothing more than candidate #10...</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Of course you can go to a few conferences. Write a damn-good paper first, then try to present it to the best conference you can.</p>\n\n<p>Btw, I published 4 papers out my PhD work in top-5 journals. The other two in good journals. I got a job.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15528",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10497/"
]
|
15,529 | <p>I happened to visit <a href="http://www.ijpam.eu/en/index.php/ijdea" rel="nofollow noreferrer">the website</a> of the <em>IJDEA</em> (International Journal of Differential Equations and Applications) and was wondering – how good is this journal? There was a <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11217/how-good-is-the-international-journal-of-pure-and-applied-mathematics-http-w">question here on Academia. SE</a> regarding <em>IJPAM</em> (International Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics, by the same publisher: Academic Publications Ltd.) and it seems this journal is not up to the mark. </p>
<p>However, <em>IJDEA</em>'s Editorial Board has some prominent members from reputed institutions that I just couldn't overlook. For instance:</p>
<ul>
<li>E.W. Cheney and R.E. Showalter from UT Austin, USA</li>
<li>S.N Chow from the National University of Singapore, Singapore</li>
<li>E DiBenedeto from Northwestern University, USA</li>
<li>A. Fokas from the University of Cambridge, UK</li>
<li>J. Marsden from CalTech, USA</li>
<li>(Late) P.A. Samuelson from MIT, USA </li>
<li>C.W. Shu from Brown University, USA</li>
</ul>
<p>My question is: Given the presence of such top-class scientists on its editorial board, why are <em>IJPAM</em>/<em>IJDEA</em> and Academic Publications Ltd. considered predatory by <a href="http://scholarlyoa.com/2012/12/06/bealls-list-of-predatory-publishers-2013/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Beall's list</a>?</p>
<p>P.S.: I'm assuming that the Editorial Board and quality of articles should be good enough to check the quality of the journal. Please correct me in case I'm wrong. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15536,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You've already identified part of the problem:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Deceased individuals like Paul Samuelson and Ilya Prigogine should <strong>not</strong> be listed as \"editors\" of a normal journal.</li>\n<li>The editor-in-chief of the journal should be clearly identified.</li>\n<li>They're claiming to have an Impact Factor when they're not indexed by the services that publish Impact Factors</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>You can see Beall's <a href=\"http://scholarlyoa.com/2012/11/30/criteria-for-determining-predatory-open-access-publishers-2nd-edition/\">full list of criteria</a> on his blog <a href=\"http://scholarlyoa.com\"><em>Scholarly Open Access</em></a>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15538,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The editorial board is one way that many journals (both predatory and not) try two establish themselves. I cannot find an in depth analysis by Beall of editorial boards but, in a comment to this <a href=\"http://scholarlyoa.com/2013/06/18/jscholar-a-new-oa-publisher-from-frisco-texas/\">blog post</a> on editorial board makeup Beall says</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Sometimes publishers add names to editorial boards without asking for permission. As part of my analysis, I sometimes email and ask ed board members if they really agreed to serve.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>He also has a <a href=\"http://scholarlyoa.com/2013/02/28/whats-up-with-dr-george-perry/#more-1364\">blog post</a> which looks at the editorial responsibilities (100+ journals) of a Dean in the Univ. of Texas system.</p>\n\n<p>In summary some people get put on editorial boards without their knowledge and others will agree to be on large numbers of editorial boards so you cannot use the editorial board membership as a good judge of makeup.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 101147,
"author": "Allure",
"author_id": 84834,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/84834",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This answer focuses on the question asked in the headline not the text, which is more specific to predatory publishers. </p>\n\n<p>The best judge of the quality of the journal are the papers published in it. A good journal publishes good papers. The next best judge is to see whether you're communicating with a journal employee or a member of the editorial board. If you receive invitations which are clearly written by an editorial board member, if you meet them at conferences and they talk enthusiastically about their journal, if your submission receives decisions that indicate the handling editor knows something about your field, you're dealing with a good journal.</p>\n\n<p>Composition of the editorial board isn't a good indication because some unethical publishers will add people to editorial boards without their permission, or refuse to let them resign. Even for genuine journals, board member can join, and then do nothing (as in, literally nothing - not even when assigned a paper to handle). The result is an ugly symbiosis where both the academic and the publisher derive benefits from the academic being on the editorial board, but the academic doesn't actually influence the journal in any way. This setup is unfortunately quite common, and there's no easy way to tell from the outside how involved the editorial board is with the journal.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15529",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9424/"
]
|
15,531 | <p>If I am conducting independent research (ie no university affiliation), do I need to worry about institutional review board (IRB) approval, if I am working in a field where it is normally required?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15535,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This really depends on if you are planning on publishing the research. From my understanding many in house studies in industry are not subjected to an IRB process.</p>\n\n<p>Publishing is a different story. <a href=\"http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9062330\" rel=\"nofollow\">Amdur and Biddle (1997)</a> found that 47% of biomedical journals had policies about IRB approval. While I don't have any data to support it, my guess is this number is higher now.</p>\n\n<p>The FDA <a href=\"http://www.fda.gov/regulatoryinformation/guidances/ucm126420.htm\" rel=\"nofollow\">guidelines for IRB</a> say:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>IRBs may agree to review research from affiliated or unaffiliated investigators, however, FDA does not require IRBs to assume this responsibility.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Many university and hospital IRBs will not approve studies from unaffiliated individuals since approval often limits the liability of the PI. There may be some university and hospital IRBs that approve studies from unaffiliated individuals and there are definitely private companies that specialize in this type of thing.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 19493,
"author": "ff524",
"author_id": 11365,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11365",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This issue actually got some press recently with the case of uBiome, a citizen science startup that raised over $350,000 in crowdfunding.</p>\n\n<p>This startup received a lot of negative attention for not getting IRB approval <em>before</em> raising the money. You can read some of this criticism <a href=\"http://scientopia.org/blogs/ethicsandscience/2013/02/19/a-passing-thought-about-a-certain-flavor-of-citizen-science-project/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>, <a href=\"http://freethoughtblogs.com/physioprof/2013/02/21/ubiome-has-made-a-public-statement-about-irb-compliance-of-their-human-subjects-research/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>, and <a href=\"http://scientopia.org/blogs/drugmonkey/2013/02/20/a-little-reminder-of-why-we-have-irbs-did-i-mention-it-is-still-black-history-month/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>. </p>\n\n<p>A <a href=\"http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2013/07/22/crowdfunding-and-irbs-the-case-of-ubiome/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">statement</a> from the founders of uBiome says they were advised that they don't <em>legally</em> require IRB approval if they aren't receiving federal funding, don't plan to publish, and don't plan to apply for FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) approval:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Before we started our crowdfunding campaign, we consulted with our advisors at QB3, the startup incubator at UCSF, and the lawyers they provided us. We were informed (correctly) that IRBs are only required for federally funded projects, clinical trials, and those who seek publication in peer-reviewed journals. That’s right — projects that don’t want federal money, FDA approval, or to publish in traditional journals require no ethical review at all as far as we know. (No, that doesn’t sound like a great system to us either.)</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>In the end, they went through a private IRB firm (<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UBiome\" rel=\"noreferrer\">Wikipedia</a> says it was <a href=\"http://www.eandireview.com/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">this one</a>) and got their protocols approved. The founders <a href=\"http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2013/07/22/crowdfunding-and-irbs-the-case-of-ubiome/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">say</a>: </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>This is the same institution that works with academic IRBs that need to coordinate multi-site studies, as well as private firms such as 23andme and pharmaceutical companies doing clinical trials. </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This incident raises the question of what you plan to do with your independent research (assuming the kind of research you are doing is generally subject to IRB oversight):</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>If you plan to publish your research in a traditional peer-reviewed journal, you will usually need an IRB review</li>\n<li>If you plan to develop pharmaceuticals that will require FDA approval, you will need IRB review</li>\n<li>If you plan to get federal funding for your work, you will need IRB review. If you plan to get other funding for your work, it'll be hard to get without IRB review.</li>\n<li>If you plan to create a startup around your research, you may not <em>require</em> IRB review, but not having it can engender quite a bit of criticism (as per uBiome's story)</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 101850,
"author": "John",
"author_id": 85670,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/85670",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As an independent researcher myself, who has taken a less traditional route of publication (in an open access journal versus a peer-reviewed journal), I am of the understanding that IRB approval is not required unless your study is being featured in a peer reviewed journal. With that said, I think that the participant protections that I put in place to protect my subjects are much more stringent than any IRB requirements. Mine was a case study with two participants and both agreed in writing that they felt adequately protected. They also agreed when reading the study prior to its publication that while they themselves could tell what each part represented, the nonuse of their names, the fictitious place they were said to have grown up, a couple of minor alterations to their stories, which did not change the results or themes, but furthered their anonymity made it so that they were certain that no one could identify them.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15531",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10602/"
]
|
15,541 | <p>Since I graduated from law school almost ten years ago, I have been working as a fellow for a law professor at a US law school. In that time, I have drafted over 25 articles and book chapters, but only been listed as a co-author on 8. I don't begrudge this split: The Prof has the established name and, in every instance, she has sat me down, outlined what she wants to cover, and then made comments and requested revisions on every draft I produce, but I have always done 90% or more of the actual writing. I greatly appreciate the confidence she has shown in my writing abilities and am just not sure how to convey this on my CV/job applications. My position is ending and I'm applying for new jobs that, in many cases, are looking for expertise in areas on which I've researched and written extensively, just not under my name. Is there any accepted way/format to mention publications one has drafted/contributed to without receiving formal authorship credit?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15535,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This really depends on if you are planning on publishing the research. From my understanding many in house studies in industry are not subjected to an IRB process.</p>\n\n<p>Publishing is a different story. <a href=\"http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9062330\" rel=\"nofollow\">Amdur and Biddle (1997)</a> found that 47% of biomedical journals had policies about IRB approval. While I don't have any data to support it, my guess is this number is higher now.</p>\n\n<p>The FDA <a href=\"http://www.fda.gov/regulatoryinformation/guidances/ucm126420.htm\" rel=\"nofollow\">guidelines for IRB</a> say:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>IRBs may agree to review research from affiliated or unaffiliated investigators, however, FDA does not require IRBs to assume this responsibility.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Many university and hospital IRBs will not approve studies from unaffiliated individuals since approval often limits the liability of the PI. There may be some university and hospital IRBs that approve studies from unaffiliated individuals and there are definitely private companies that specialize in this type of thing.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 19493,
"author": "ff524",
"author_id": 11365,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11365",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>This issue actually got some press recently with the case of uBiome, a citizen science startup that raised over $350,000 in crowdfunding.</p>\n\n<p>This startup received a lot of negative attention for not getting IRB approval <em>before</em> raising the money. You can read some of this criticism <a href=\"http://scientopia.org/blogs/ethicsandscience/2013/02/19/a-passing-thought-about-a-certain-flavor-of-citizen-science-project/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>, <a href=\"http://freethoughtblogs.com/physioprof/2013/02/21/ubiome-has-made-a-public-statement-about-irb-compliance-of-their-human-subjects-research/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>, and <a href=\"http://scientopia.org/blogs/drugmonkey/2013/02/20/a-little-reminder-of-why-we-have-irbs-did-i-mention-it-is-still-black-history-month/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">here</a>. </p>\n\n<p>A <a href=\"http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2013/07/22/crowdfunding-and-irbs-the-case-of-ubiome/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">statement</a> from the founders of uBiome says they were advised that they don't <em>legally</em> require IRB approval if they aren't receiving federal funding, don't plan to publish, and don't plan to apply for FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) approval:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Before we started our crowdfunding campaign, we consulted with our advisors at QB3, the startup incubator at UCSF, and the lawyers they provided us. We were informed (correctly) that IRBs are only required for federally funded projects, clinical trials, and those who seek publication in peer-reviewed journals. That’s right — projects that don’t want federal money, FDA approval, or to publish in traditional journals require no ethical review at all as far as we know. (No, that doesn’t sound like a great system to us either.)</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>In the end, they went through a private IRB firm (<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UBiome\" rel=\"noreferrer\">Wikipedia</a> says it was <a href=\"http://www.eandireview.com/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">this one</a>) and got their protocols approved. The founders <a href=\"http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2013/07/22/crowdfunding-and-irbs-the-case-of-ubiome/\" rel=\"noreferrer\">say</a>: </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>This is the same institution that works with academic IRBs that need to coordinate multi-site studies, as well as private firms such as 23andme and pharmaceutical companies doing clinical trials. </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This incident raises the question of what you plan to do with your independent research (assuming the kind of research you are doing is generally subject to IRB oversight):</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>If you plan to publish your research in a traditional peer-reviewed journal, you will usually need an IRB review</li>\n<li>If you plan to develop pharmaceuticals that will require FDA approval, you will need IRB review</li>\n<li>If you plan to get federal funding for your work, you will need IRB review. If you plan to get other funding for your work, it'll be hard to get without IRB review.</li>\n<li>If you plan to create a startup around your research, you may not <em>require</em> IRB review, but not having it can engender quite a bit of criticism (as per uBiome's story)</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 101850,
"author": "John",
"author_id": 85670,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/85670",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As an independent researcher myself, who has taken a less traditional route of publication (in an open access journal versus a peer-reviewed journal), I am of the understanding that IRB approval is not required unless your study is being featured in a peer reviewed journal. With that said, I think that the participant protections that I put in place to protect my subjects are much more stringent than any IRB requirements. Mine was a case study with two participants and both agreed in writing that they felt adequately protected. They also agreed when reading the study prior to its publication that while they themselves could tell what each part represented, the nonuse of their names, the fictitious place they were said to have grown up, a couple of minor alterations to their stories, which did not change the results or themes, but furthered their anonymity made it so that they were certain that no one could identify them.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15541",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10605/"
]
|
15,547 | <p>My advisor and his PHD Students are writing regularly to journals published by a publisher, which is on Beall’s list of Predatory Journals. I emailed Beall and he told me that the journals were advertising as non-profit but usually publish if you pay them.</p>
<p>I am in US. So recently the PHD Student and advisor published to this predatory journal’s conference taking place half way down the world and obviously it got accepted. So my advisor approved the student’s trip to that country (almost 1500 $, so it had to be approved by chair), but the chair rejected it saying it’s not worth the expense.</p>
<p>Now I want to directly email my chair and point out to him about my advisor’s publishing record. I am angry that instead of publishing to genuine journals, my advisor (who I believe is incompetent but has good political clout in the university) is publishing to these scam journals and wasting university money to achieve her tenure requirements. </p>
<p>Since I am still working in lab, I need advice on how to approach my chair so that I can keep myself safe from possible wrath of my advisor and at same time negate the contributions of these journals for his tenure.</p>
<p>Edit 1: The conference listed Google Scholar as one of its sponsors, so I emailed Google and they told me they never sponsored this journal and will order removal of their name from the sponsors list. So yeah, these are all first rate scam journals and I have all these emails, if I ever need to communicate with the chair. I have done my investigation; I just need to get my results across.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15548,
"author": "WetlabStudent",
"author_id": 8101,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8101",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Your relationship with your advisor is extremely important for you getting a PhD. I would only contact the chair if you are absolutely certain that you would be able to find a new advisor if things went bad between you and your current advisor. When her tenure comes up for review, someone on the panel will know that these are scam journals. The fact that the chair has already denied one of her expenses means there is likely a red flag in her file (metaphorically). Now if she forces you to publish in one of these journals, you should absolutely complain, but don't complain about what she is doing with other students unless you think it is worth losing your advisor completely and creating enemies in the department. You can talk to the student who actually was going to go to the conference suggest he complains, but ultimately I think that is his responsibility. So again, refer to the first point; make sure you have an escape plan so to speak, and make sure that you are OK with potentially not earning your PhD because you stood up for yourself.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15552,
"author": "drfrogsplat",
"author_id": 10620,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10620",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It sounds like the chair may already be aware of the situation, if they are not approving travel to said conference.</p>\n\n<p>Typically those in the field, especially those who've been around a few years, and especially those in positions of authority in universities, will know which journals/conferences are high quality and which are not. These are generally backed up by various metrics (e.g. impact factor), which try to quantitatively assess the quality/impact/popularity/etc.</p>\n\n<p>Academics are often measured on such metrics, rather than simply number of papers published. A single article in Nature, for example, would give significantly greater benefit to one's publication score than a dozen in the International Conference for Scamming and Profit. I would hope your university uses such metrics in some way or another, and from what I've seen, more and more universities are doing this, with a variety of standard/external and customised/internal performance metrics.</p>\n\n<p><strong>If you really feel you must make a point of it, I'd suggest simply having a discussion about the List of Predatory Publishers, rather than a specific discussion about your advisor.</strong></p>\n\n<p>You may find the chair is well aware of the list, but has their hands tied by university policy. Or they may be enlightened by the list and be able to have the tenure policy changed to exclude or reduce the benefits of such publications.</p>\n\n<p>Just remember it's not your job (and <em>is someone else's job</em>) to assess the advisor's academic performance, and you want to be careful how you come across if you try (a) tell them how to do their job, (b) make academic assessments of tenured staff as a student, (c) heavily criticise your advisor, which will likely be ignored if there's any suggestion of an existing grievance between the two of you.</p>\n\n<p>For all you know, your advisor and the chair may be close friends, or at least closer colleagues to each other than <em>\"some unqualified upstart of a masters student!\"</em> (hypothetically their words, not mine :P)</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/08 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15547",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7937/"
]
|
15,553 | <p>I am currently deciding where to do my next Postdoc. I have had many Interviews, and have two solid offers on the table. </p>
<p>The first offer is in a highly ranked private University (not Ivy League nor MIT), with a professor who seems real nice.</p>
<p>The second offer is from a somewhat lower ranked institution (State University) but I clicked way better with the professor. </p>
<p>Both opportunities seem really appealing for me but I'm wondering whether later hiring committees will look at which institution I worked rather to with whom I worked, both professors are rather young and are just starting shop, so is not a matter of a renowned professor either.</p>
<p>I'm probably just looking to see what you would do if this were your situation.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15567,
"author": "badroit",
"author_id": 7746,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7746",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is no definitive answer.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I'm probably just looking to see what would you do if this were your situation.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>My own personal experience (coming from the other side of the question): I recently accepted a tenure track position at a university. I'm very happy with the position.</p>\n\n<p>During my visa application process for the new position, the consulate gave me a letter that the university had sent them as proof of employment. The letter contained details of the hiring process. There I learned that they had offered the position to someone from Oxford before me; someone older with half the publications and one-sixth the citations I had. The letter stated that he was first choice because he had a strong research profile and he was coming from a reputable university. I was coming from a strong department in a \"provincial university\" in a small country. The other person turned down the position. I accepted.</p>\n\n<p>I was a bit stung by the letter because I read it as an implicit rejection of my background (over which I had little control).</p>\n\n<p>Someone also told me later that in the board meetings, during the hiring process, there was a professor who raised concerns about where I was coming from ... a \"provincial university\". Apparently the more bureaucratic members of the board were my most fervent supporters: I had a lot of highly-cited publications, I was sure to bring a lot more, who cares where I came from? I wasn't told the full details, but I inferred that some of the more senior professors seemed to be more attracted to the Oxford thing than raw research metrics.</p>\n\n<p>(Of course the hiring process was much more complicated than that; but this was the gist of the letter and the bits and pieces I heard afterwards.)</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>I'm not sure if that anecdote is useful to you but again there is no universal answer. It depends entirely on your situation.</p>\n\n<p>I would say that yes, in many situations, the university you do your PostDoc in makes a difference for your future career. I don't know the US system well, but I guess it would be even stronger the case there.</p>\n\n<p><strong>But you and your personal publication record are far more important</strong>.</p>\n\n<p>My general advise would simply be to pick the university where you feel you would be most productive (in a \"healthy\" way).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15577,
"author": "NeoN",
"author_id": 10297,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10297",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'd say it really depends on the person you want to work with and also the difference between the reputation of both universities.</p>\n\n<p>However, I personally think that going to a person who you \"click\" with and perhaps can establish a deeper academic relationship with would be more important than just a name of a university or the risk of being in a non-productive environment.</p>\n\n<p>Don't forget that you are building your future collaborators and that can help you alot when you are applying for tenure, etc.</p>\n\n<p>I know of a couple of people who recently did a post doc in highly reputable universities in North america and Europe but are extremely unhappy with their progresses and publication records.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15591,
"author": "BrenBarn",
"author_id": 9041,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9041",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Overall, you should go where you will be happiest. Don't be afraid to go to a school with a lower reputation if you think it is better for you.</p>\n\n<p>That said, there is more to being happy than \"clicking\" with the professor. I would just say that you should be cautious about overvaluing \"clicking\" relative to other things. There are a couple details I would consider.</p>\n\n<p>Does (or will, if he's new) the professor have a notable research profile? If he is new as you say, do you think he will build a sizable research profile quickly? When you apply for later jobs, you'll need letters of recommendation. A strong letter of rec from a prof whose research everyone knows, even if he is at a low-profile school, will serve you better than a rec from a prof whose research is not read or valued, even if that prof is at a prestigious school.</p>\n\n<p>What is the department as a whole like? And, if it's a postdoc where you'll be working on a particular project, what is that project like? Are the other people working on it good people in both a personal and professional sense? Where did they come from? If you see that the project/department attracts high-caliber people, it is a good sign. Also there is always the small chance that the professor is nice and clickable-with but has problems with practical/logistical matters that make working with him difficult.</p>\n\n<p>Of course there are many other factors, but these are ones related to the professor-vs-school issue that I think are particularly relevant. No one is going to hire you because you clicked with a professor; the reasing clicking with a professor is important that it suggests you will be productive in that environment. So, I'd say you should scope out other info that may give you an idea of how productive you would be in that environment.</p>\n\n<p>Also, my impression is that hiring committees are likely to give more weight to the <em>person</em> you worked with, and gradually less to the project, department, and school. This is especially true because of letters of rec.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/09 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15553",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2806/"
]
|
15,559 | <p>When I write something like</p>
<pre><code>x is a stochastic function of y:
x ~ N(2y, 3) (1),
</code></pre>
<p>how do I refer back to that... non-equation? Do I still put "see Eq. (1)" although (1) is not an equation?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15561,
"author": "Benedikt Bauer",
"author_id": 10039,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10039",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Mathematically you are true... it's not an equation. Technically I would say, that everything, that is display-style math and has a number attached for identification is called an equation in such contexts.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15563,
"author": "Nobody",
"author_id": 546,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/546",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If you absolutely don't want to use Eq. (1) for mathematical reasons (~ is not equal), I would suggest</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>See Formula (1)</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>although this is not conventional.</p>\n\n<p>Someone suggested \"See (1)\". I personally would not use it because it has some ambiguity to me. Does it mean \"See Sec. (1)\" or something else?</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15565,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It seems that the right thing to do will depend on what's conventional in your field. In pure mathematics, it's standard to refer to all displayed equations, inequalities, etc. using just numbers in parentheses (for example, \"using (2.1)\", without specifying there whether (2.1) is an equation). You could add a descriptive noun if you'd like to emphasize it (e.g., \"using equation (2.1)\"), but you don't need to. If you do add a noun, it could be considered strange to refer to anything but an actual equation as an equation. This style of referencing displays creates no ambiguity, since citations use square brackets and all other numerical references have an attached noun or symbol to indicate whether they refer to a theorem, section, etc.: [1] is a citation, (1) is an equation or other display, Lemma 1 is a lemma, Section 1 is a section, etc.</p>\n\n<p>The system described in the previous paragraph presumably doesn't apply to the author of the question, since abbreviations like \"Eq. (1)\" or \"Ineq. (1)\" are not standard in pure mathematics, which suggests he is in another field. However, it's worth keeping in mind that conventions vary between fields, so there won't be an absolute answer to this question. To know for sure what would look reasonable, it's important to know the context (i.e., the audience for the paper and where it might be published).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15704,
"author": "yo'",
"author_id": 1471,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1471",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As mentioned in some other answers, and with some addendum.\nFive examples of the same text in different styles (please, excuse my English):</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li><p>We may now apply (15) to (13). From (12) we then see that (14) is satisfied.</p></li>\n<li><p>We may now apply Eq. (15) to Eq. (13). From Eq. (12) we then see that Eq. (14) is satisfied.</p></li>\n<li><p>We may now apply Eq. 15 to Eq. 13. From Eq. 12 we then see that Eq. 14 is satisfied.</p></li>\n<li><p>We may now apply Equation (15) to Equation (13). From Equation (12) we then see that Equation (14) is satisfied.</p></li>\n<li><p>We may now apply Equation 15 to Equation 13. From Equation 12 we then see that Equation 14 is satisfied.</p></li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>(You can substitute \"Eq.\" by \"Ineq.\" etc., whatever you want.)</p>\n\n<p>Such chains of links to equations are much common than for figures or tables. Now tell me in Examples 2 and 3 where the sentences stard and end. Yes, after a while, one sees that the sentence ends after \"(13)\", but it takes a lot of time to realize that. In Examples 4 and 5, the text gets unnecessarily long.</p>\n\n<p>In my opinion, <strong>equations should be refered solely by their number in parentheses</strong>, references of course solely in brackets. For figures, enumerated lists, examples, sections, theorems etc., one should spell out the name (abbreviated or not, that's a personal taste) and add the number without any parentheses, even if it originally had some.</p>\n\n<p>So a numbered list: <em>\"(1) apple; (2) banana\"</em> is still refered as: <em>\"In Item 2 we see that banana is a banana.\"</em> If you refer items a lot, it's worth giving them a style that doesn't clash with the one for equations, like (a), (b), (c), ... or (i), (ii), (iii); then you can refer the items without the word \"Item\".</p>\n\n<p>Final example: </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Some solutions of (3) were obtained by Doe in [11]; we list them in Table 5 and they are plotted in Figure 1.</p>\n</blockquote>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/09 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15559",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10633/"
]
|
15,586 | <p>If I have already completed a master's degree, but no longer belong or have contact to the institution in which I followed my master's degree; how to approach one professor to see if he or she wants to supervise me? Actually I see lots of different areas that I would like, but I feel afraid of not having the enough background (I can only contact the potential professors by email because well I am actually in the North America area, and I would like to aim for an European university)</p>
<p>I know that some times there are some published open positions, but in those cases mostly the competition is really fierce.</p>
<p>Any advice, mostly based on experience, will be very useful.</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15587,
"author": "Dnuorg Spu",
"author_id": 9538,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9538",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<ol>\n<li>Apply to PhD programs in your area of interest.</li>\n<li>Visit the schools that accept you into their programs.</li>\n<li>During your visits, talk to professors about (a) whether they're taking students and (b) whether you share mutual interests.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>You can also try emailing professors before you apply, to get a sense of whether their school/department/research group is a good fit. But be warned that many will ignore your email unless you've already been admitted to their program. (Expert tip: pay close attention to the warnings and admonitions posted on their personal home page!)</p>\n\n<p>A much better way to make first contact is to attend conferences or workshops in your area of interest (and make a paper/poster presentation, if possible). These events let you meet many potential advisors all in one place. Plus, you get to hear about their work, and get a sense of their personality, hygiene, etc.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I feel afraid of not having enough background.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>You and me both, pal. It's called <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impostor_syndrome\">impostor syndrome</a>, and <em>everyone</em>* in academia has it.</p>\n\n<p>Good luck!</p>\n\n<p>*…except for the real jerk-Os.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15608,
"author": "xLeitix",
"author_id": 10094,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10094",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>While @Dnuorg Spu's answer is correct for the US (and Asia, afaik), it is not all that applicable for Europe. Around here, US-style PhD programmes are still more the exception than the rule. In many european universities, one applies <strong>directly with the professor</strong> before getting admitted into any sort of formal programme.</p>\n\n<p>Essentially, what most professors do when they have openings for PhD students is the following:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Talk to their own (good) master students (sidenote: a master is a minimum requirement for PhD admission in most places here)</li>\n<li>Failing that, contact friends and ask them for good master students interested in doing a PhD</li>\n<li>Failing that, write a job announcement to <a href=\"https://lists.cs.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/dbworld\">DBWorld</a> or a similar mailing list</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Step 3 usually brings in plenty of candidates. However, weeding out the bad from the good is time-consuming and error-prone, hence, most professors are not happy at all if they have to fall back to step 3.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Blind applications</strong> are usually ignored, simply because the chance that a given professor that you have applied to blindly currently has open funding <em>and</em> is looking specifically for somebody with your skill set is not very large.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I know that some times there are some published open positions, but in those cases mostly the competition is really fierce. Any advice, mostly based on experience, will be very useful.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>My advice: give applying for some posted positions a try. Competition is fierce in numbers, but not necessarily in quality. We have had cases where we received 50+ applications, and decided to not hire anybody. Your chance is certainly better than villy-nilly mailing (or even worse, <em>calling</em>) professors out of the blue.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16102,
"author": "sansuiso",
"author_id": 11141,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11141",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In Europe, usually you have to apply directly in a PhD program. </p>\n\n<p>EPFL (in Lausanne) has a special PhD admission procedure that can be good in your case. They can take you for 1+3 years:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>In the 1st year, your goal is to find a PhD advisor and a lab. You have to do two 6-month research projects, take some courses, and you're expected to find a lab for the PhD that way;</li>\n<li>At the end of the 1st year, you pass a candidacy exam where your topic and advisor get accepted, and you have 3 years to complete your research program.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Note that you get paid during the 4 years of the program.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15586",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6144/"
]
|
15,589 | <p>After reading <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/15572/2692">this answer</a>, and the subsequent comments, I found myself wondering if it is a rule for publishers to get author approval after edits before publishing a paper? I would assume so because of copyright issues but I would like to know if there are legal or ethical guidelines in the publishing industry about this.</p>
<p>In my experience, editors will make edits but they have always asked me for my approval before actually publishing the edited piece.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15592,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>In the answer you are referring to there is nothing to say that approval is not required. The issue is rather that an editor can request certain things can be removed from the paper so the author cannot demand everything written is finally printed. Editors have the right and obligation to weed out materials that are, for example, offensive just as we can flag posts that contain such phrasings on Stackexchange. Jokes, which was the point of the post you referred to, are not edited out by any means as a rule but can be misunderstood or considered offensive and might be more likely to be edited out than other material during the review and editorial process. In such a case, the author will certainly be part of the process and asked to revise or accept changes. the point here is that the editor has the final say through approval of the paper as well as a responsibility to make sure the publication is free from material that violates, for example, ethical of the publisher. As an example, in Sweden, where I reside, I as an editor am responsible by law for what is printed in \"my\" journal. This responsibility may lie with the publisher in other countries.</p>\n\n<p>So, authors will definitely be part of the revision process and sign off on final proofs, it is just that some changes may not be subject to additional discussion and will have to be accepted. Does this happen often? Not at all. In my case, I have had to deal with this in heated \"Letters to the Editor\" where authors have been in a written, published, exchange over issues in a published paper.</p>\n\n<p>Edit (to expand based on earthling's comment): Basically all changes except typos and changes to adhere to journal or publisher style are subject to an \"OK\" from the author (although it would not hurt to also get an OK on these). The publishing of a paper is a joint venture between an author and the journal, so with a functioning working relationship both parties should agree on changes. But, again, some changes are non-negotiable, which does not mean they can be imposed without the knowledge of the author who always has the option to go elsewhere to publish. </p>\n\n<p>So changes can come in three forms, (1) those that can be changed without consent (e.g. typos), (2) those that must be made without discussion (subject to ethical considerations) and (3) those that can go either way after, say, clarification (most of the normal changes). In cases 2 and 3 the author need to approve the changes it is just that for case 2 the option might be accept or withdraw the paper.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15613,
"author": "cbeleites unhappy with SX",
"author_id": 725,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/725",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In my experience, even corrected typos, grammar mistakes and changes necessary for correct typesetting are usually approved (or rejected) by the authors. Thats what the print proof is for. In my opinion that is absolutely necessary, because even changing a few letters could change the meaning of a sentence, and as an author I have the full responsibility for the whole paper.</p>\n\n<p>I've once made the weird experience that I found a paper listed in pubmed before we had received acceptance notification or print proofs. While nothing bad had happened to the paper's text, we decided never to go with that publisher again.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15703,
"author": "yo'",
"author_id": 1471,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1471",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>When I took over being the Graphics Editor / Typesetter of one journal, I realized that there used to be no proofreading stage for the articles! I of course insisted that the articels are proofread.</p>\n\n<p><em>However, we give the authors only a limited amount of time to claim any corrections, but not less than 2 weeks.</em> This is because the journal is quite small and we need to \"schedule\" the articles into the issues to make the issues reasonably equal in size.</p>\n\n<p>Even after the approval, small changes appear; the Chief Editor goes quickly through the text just before publishing to catch last small typos and mistakes: missing full stops after figures' captions, corrupted text-flow on the page (widows/orphans standing out badly etc.), wrong capilatization, and stuff like this. However, we never modify the text itself in this phase, not even by adding or removing an article (since this can change the meaning of the text).</p>\n\n<p>In general, by law, nobody is allowed to publish anything signed by your name without your approval. The reality is that this rule is violated quite often and it's difficult to do something about it. As well, remember that by submitting an article, you agree with the policy of the journal that can state for instance: <em>\"By submitting an article, you give your permission for it to be published, and you confirm that all authors have agreed to this. The Editor's Office is allowed to make modification to the text without the authors' agreement.\"</em></p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15589",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692/"
]
|
15,590 | <p>After reading <a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15575/information-about-valuation-of-postgraduate-study">this question</a>, I started wondering about students applying for graduate school and the letters of recommendation accompanying their applications.</p>
<p>Let's say Student is studying at University A and one of his lecturers is primarily working at University B (lecturer was doing some adjunct or other kind of part-time work at University A). University B is a much higher ranked school. After graduation Student asks the lecturer for a letter of recommendation so Student can attend University B. How much extra weight is the letter of recommendation given in the application process if it is from a lecturer at the university?</p>
<p>I would guess that it would depend on how that lecturer's past recommendations have turned out but I'd like to hear from the experts.</p>
<p>Does it change anything if Student wants to become a PhD and would like to have the lecturer as Student's adviser?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15830,
"author": "Mangara",
"author_id": 8185,
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"pm_score": 3,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Getting a good letter is more important than getting a letter from a professor at University B. So if the professor in question only knows you through your attendance of his course, he most likely won't be able to speak to your research potential. As that is the most important aspect of an application for graduate school, this would not work in your favour. (The points in <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/2599/8185\">this answer</a> are excellent guidelines for who to ask for reference letters.)</p>\n\n<p>If he is otherwise qualified to write a good letter for you, then the fact that he is from University B might work slightly in your favour, as admission committees tend to give greater weight to letters of recommendation from researchers that they know.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 52549,
"author": "sevensevens",
"author_id": 14754,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/14754",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You need tenure track or tenured profs to write your recommendation letters. References from TAs/Lecturers will give the impression that you did not have sufficiently good references from the faculty in your department to warrant a letter of recommendation.</p>\n\n<p>Lecturers are generally post-docs that are hired on a contract basis, and therefore do carry much (if any) weight in the department. You're much better off getting 3 great letters from faculty at your current institution.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15590",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692/"
]
|
15,595 | <p>I am pretty sure that anyone who has spent some time reading academic papers have come across quite a few "lemons" among them, with bad grammar, strange word choices and incoherent sentences. Such papers are always a chore to read, even if the topic is interesting and the research is good, and I have found myself throwing away papers just because they are so awful to read.</p>
<p>The strange thing is that these papers have been peer reviewed and are published in reputable journals. But still they are often near unreadable because of bad language. Why is this the case? Why isn't bad language picked up and corrected when peer review is done? I understand that a lot of these academics don't have English as their first language, but publishing a paper that reads like it was translated from Chinese to English with Google Translate and a thesaurus is not a good way to publish your research.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15598,
"author": "Tom-Tom",
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"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Badly written papers can still serve the interests of</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>the editors and the authors, if it concerns a hot topic (or considered as such), the article will potentially be cited by others even if they do not read it at all;</li>\n<li>the editors, if they have difficulties to find enough good papers to fill the next issue. They need to show their employers they are working;</li>\n<li>the referees, if they are cited in the references;</li>\n<li>the scientific editors, if they have conflicting interests (like being at the same time head of a university's department);</li>\n<li>the list does not stop here (please edit).</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>These are no scientific reasons, but they are dictated by the \"numbers\" and these numbers play a significant role for researchers applying to a position, a grant or a promotion. </p>\n\n<p>It can also be that the authors made a <em>really good</em> discovery, want to publish to avoid being spotted, but prefer to keep their \"advance\". So they publish intentionally in a way that is difficult to read. This reason is rare in my opinion, but I've heard of a case. In this situation, maybe it is a deal between the editor and the author.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15605,
"author": "badroit",
"author_id": 7746,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7746",
"pm_score": 7,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>I like V. Rossetto's answer (+1), but I think the level of cynicism it contains is more appropriate as an answer for why <strong>bad papers</strong> are published (to which I would add that there is now a glut of mediocre venues looking for content ... everyone wants to be editor or co-organiser of something; and I would also add that, unfortunately, authoring and peer-review is still done by humans).</p>\n\n<p>But as for <strong>badly written</strong> ... I feel a little balance is needed. In particular, I feel it's important <strong>to caution against a common hyper-sensitivity to language problems</strong> in publications. </p>\n\n<p>The phrase \"badly-written\" is subjective. Sure, the readability of the paper is an important aspect of the quality of the paper, and there is some minimum level of language quality that is a prerequisite, but that level can be artificially high for some academics. </p>\n\n<p>The majority of research is published in English by non-native speakers. Many papers are primarily authored by students in their 20's/30's who might be quite new to English and to writing scientific works. Even certain native English speakers will struggle to structure a paper in such a way that it reads well (sometimes because they are still of the belief that things have to be complicated and difficult before they can be published, so they write in a complicated and difficult way).</p>\n\n<p>As an example of hypersensitivity, I am a native English speaker and for a journal paper I was primary author of, I once had a reviewer complain that the paper was poorly written. His/her main complaint was that we were confusing the semantics of \"that\" vs. \"which\" in the paper, saying that mixing the two up is not up to the formal standard of English required for journals. Eventually I did actually manage to stop laughing, but as I picked myself up from the floor, I realised I'd have to \"correct\" it for the revision. Three hours of Ctrl+F'ing \"that/which\" in a 40 page journal paper (and even worse, fixing the resulting bad boxes and widows again) wiped the smile off my face.</p>\n\n<p>I also find that students new to reviewing, particularly non-native speakers, tend to expect a very high standard of writing. For example, I assigned a workshop review to a student once that wanted to reject the paper, primarily due to having \"several typos\". These would take 5 minutes to fix and didn't affect the paper <em>at all</em>. I asked the student if he had had any problem reading the paper? He said he hadn't. Did he learn something from the paper? Well yes, X, Y and Z. Why is he rejecting the paper? Necessary has two 's's.</p>\n\n<p>Yes, the quality of writing often sucks in published works, but I don't believe that a paper should be <em>automatically</em> rejected just because it could be labelled as \"badly written\".</p>\n\n<p>The goal is to communicate ideas with good science/maths, not to give an exposition of English grammar and phrasing. The original versions of many important publications were almost indecipherable in their writing. Even if an idea is written in such a way that you have to spend a few more hours to understand it, the idea itself might influence you and many other people in a positive way for many years. </p>\n\n<p>Yes such influential papers are rare, but there are many shades of grey in between black and white.</p>\n\n<p>And think of all the raw brain-power we will be missing out on if we perpetuate a culture that implicitly discourages non-English speakers from publishing!</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>In any case, for journals, I would tend to blame poor copy-editing and typesetting from the publishers. Most journals employ professional technical writers whose job is to avoid this situation. (I don't envy them their job, but still.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15607,
"author": "Johannes Bauer",
"author_id": 10633,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10633",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>A reviewer who receives a submission which he/she has sent back a few times on grounds of serious problems with the scientific content or superficial presentation might just be happy at least those have been corrected and not bother also correcting typos and odd choices of words.</p>\n\n<p>One more thing: a lot of reviewers aren't native speakers themselves (me, for example) and don't pick up on all the errors or have a hard time formulating what's wrong with a given word or phrase.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15609,
"author": "David Ketcheson",
"author_id": 81,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/81",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>To add something not contained in any of the existing answers: in some fields, language errors are more prone to create important misunderstanding in the mind of the reader. For instance, in mathematics, even seemingly minor grammatical changes to the statement of a theorem will often drastically change its meaning. My (purely anecdotal) sense is that in such fields, badly written papers rarely get through peer review at reputable journals. But I'm sure someone will disagree, since these terms are subjective.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, plenty of badly written mathematical papers get through peer-review in disreputable journals. The result can be complete gibberish. For example, see <a href=\"http://www.scirp.org/journal/PaperInformation.aspx?paperID=2210&#abstract\">this entertaining abstract</a>.</p>\n\n<p>Finally, I respect badroit's answer, but I still get annoyed when I'm asked to spend hours reviewing a paper and I find that the authors didn't even take a minute to run spell-check. That's rude, to say the least.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15621,
"author": "fedja",
"author_id": 6118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6118",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I can name seven reasons off hand (listed, roughly speaking, in the reverse order of the \"validity of excuse\" they offer)</p>\n\n<p>1) The stuff is so complicated that there is no way to explain everything \nwithout writing a three volume treatise.</p>\n\n<p>2) The author is pretty much \"dyslexic\" or incapable of expressing himself \nclearly for some other reason (it is amazing how many first rate mathematicians\nare like that at least occasionally) </p>\n\n<p>3) The language in which the paper is written is not the mother tongue of the author.</p>\n\n<p>4) This is the first paper of an inexperienced author (a student, say).</p>\n\n<p>5) Someone is in a hurry to set up his priority. </p>\n\n<p>6) Neither the author, nor the referee care much about style, and the editors are \ntoo busy with other stuff to take a close look.</p>\n\n<p>7) The journal is happy to get at least something that doesn't look like an outright garbage.</p>\n\n<p>and, surely, there are many more. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15625,
"author": "Joe",
"author_id": 1622,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1622",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>A few years ago, I was asked to work with folk from a specific sub-discipline of our field. I'm not a scientist, but had been doing IT support in the general discipline for 6 years at that point.</p>\n\n<p>They all spoke English well, and the majority were native English speakers -- yet their documentation had all of the same problems that you describe. So I wrote up notes about problems that I saw.</p>\n\n<p>... and they rejected every comment I gave them.</p>\n\n<p>The problem was that they had <a href=\"https://dba.stackexchange.com/q/534/51\">developed their own jargon</a>, and what I had assumed they were talking about wasn't actually it.</p>\n\n<p>The problems don't seem bad when you talk about it ... they had a 'prime key' which is somewhat related to a 'primary key', but not quite. And the 'dataset name' isn't the name of the table where the data's being stored (the 'data series name', but a serialized string for a given query. These are just subtle enough that you make assumptions when reading that they've obviously made a mistake, attempt to correct when reading it, and the whole thing just makes no sense by the time you're done.</p>\n\n<p>...</p>\n\n<p>I've heard people joke that jargon is a way for communities to keep out people who haven't yet given enough time to the community ... and I understand that sometimes different communities have <a href=\"http://virtualsolar.org/vocab\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">slightly incompatible definitions</a> ... but you really need some sort of a warning for certain cases. </p>\n\n<p>When I was in grad school, we had <a href=\"http://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/1780526547\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">a textbook that spent a full chapter defining what they meant by information</a>. I thought it was horrible. I even told the author that when I met him at a conference (he told me some of my comments would've been more useful, but they had gone to press on the 2nd edtion just weeks before). But I've since come to understand <a href=\"http://igniteshow.com/events/ignite-agu-2012\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">why he had to do it</a> -- as painful as that chapter was to read, it would've been even worse to try to read the whole book without a shared understanding of 'information'.</p>\n\n<p><strong>update</strong> : I said they didn't seem so bad on the surface, and until you actually run into these cases you probably won't appreciate just what a problem is can be. Although spelling wasn't originally called out by the question, here are a few situations where jargon can look like the problems mentioned so far:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Spelling</strong> : Some communities will use foreign words or the British spelling of words rather than an Americanized spelling to convey slightly different meaning. eg, archaelogy's <a href=\"http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/provenience\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">provenience</a> to distinguish between <a href=\"http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/provenance\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">provenance</a> as used by archives and museums.</li>\n<li><strong>Grammar</strong> : Some communities may consider the same term to be singular or plural; eg, 'data' is considered by the scientific community to be the plural of 'datum', while the computer science community considers it to be an abbreviation of 'dataset', a collective noun and therefore singular. </li>\n<li><strong>Odd word choices</strong> : Some communities, especially in the legal field, will assign specific meaning to words or phrases. eg, Bill Clinton's insistence that he did not have 'sexual relations' with Monica Lewinsky. In some cases, the specific meaning differs between communities (eg, an earth science, a 'data product' is composed of multiple 'datasets' (individual files; the relationship is reversed in solar physics). Issues also arise with metaphor in informal speach, such as the American 'kick the bucket' or the British 'Bob's your uncle'.</li>\n<li><strong>Incoherent sentences</strong> : When combined, the above issues <em>seem</em> make statements seem incoherent because we <em>think</em> we understand the message based on our incorrect assumption that we understood each of the words within the statement. It can be almost painful to read / listen to / etc. If as an American, you've never seen early episodes of Jamie Oliver's <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Chef\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">The Naked Chef</a>, you'll realize that <a href=\"https://cooking.stackexchange.com/q/784/67\">American and British cooking terms are different enough to cause significant confusion</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Even with all of those issues, I don't want to say that the above problems never appear in published papers. I peer-reviewed a paper last year that had many of the issues, and told the editor that I suspected the co-authors (American and British) had never read the paper; they didn't accept the poor spelling and grammar as evidence, but they did accept when I pointed out the co-authors' papers that hadn't been cited.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15627,
"author": "John Bentin",
"author_id": 10691,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10691",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It's simply about saving money. Until the 1990s, publishers of academic books and journals employed copy editors to put text into readable form. This, not least, was because the typesetter had to input text by hand, character by character, into the machine. Typesetters, although as capable as anyone else of making unintended errors, had high professional standards, and would find it painful to deliberately embody obvious errors into their work. Since typesetters had to read the material, it was necessary at least to correct errors that would make their life hard. Moreover, the publisher, commissioning editor, copy editor, and typesetter had a shared culture of seeking high quality for the customer who ultimately provided their living: the intended reader.</p>\n\n<p>With the advent of computerization, the expensive copy editor and typesetter could be cut out. The author is instructed to follow the style file, and the editorial job is now principally to check that this has been done---at least well enough for the output to appear at a glance to conform in style to the publisher's standards. Driving this compression, in the same period, were four other strong trends: the expansion of higher education; the increasing specialization of academic works; the establishment of English as the principal medium of publication for authors who are not native speakers of that language; and the measurement of academics' worth by the quantity of their published output. These trends all put pressure on publishers to produce a great multiplicity of titles. With money available to buy books constrained by general economic growth, and with libraries not having the highest priority in university spending, this profusion of titles could only be printed, at affordable prices for the end user, by sacrificing quality to cut costs. </p>\n\n<p>Of course, this is an oversimplified description of what has happened diversely in hundreds of publishing houses over the past 25 years or so. It applies particularly to titles with a low print run (say 500 copies), where the costs of copy-editing and typesetting are hard to recover from sales, and not so much to more popular books and journals.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15735,
"author": "yo'",
"author_id": 1471,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1471",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The role of a reviewer is clear: Review the scientific quality of the paper, no the language one, as long as the language is \"bearable\". The problem is on the other side.</p>\n\n<p>Too much is published. Journals are missing good Language Editors, but as well good Copy Editors and good Typesetters. If they have these people and they are good, they have to deal with too much work to do it well.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 193457,
"author": "Allure",
"author_id": 84834,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/84834",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>Because the authors' English is poor, the reviewers feel their job is to figure out the science and not the English, and the copyeditor does not understand the manuscript enough to make changes.</strong></p>\n<p>Try writing a paper in a language you know but are not at native level with, and you'll quickly see how difficult it is.</p>\n<p>Then try fixing the English in the manuscript you're reading. I'm sure you'll think it can be done, but it takes a lot of effort. As a reviewer, your time is precious, so you might feel that it's not worth it and you should concentrate on the science not the English. If there are a few errors, you could fix those because it's relatively easy, but if there are a lot that will involve rewriting, then you might think no.</p>\n<p>Then try fixing the English in a manuscript you do not understand. You can find examples of these in published papers. Pick a technical field you don't know well and take a random paper. For example, here's <a href=\"https://arxiv.org/pdf/1112.3502.pdf\" rel=\"noreferrer\">something</a> I found on when I did this search:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Since we saw that in the case of rigid susy, the algebra closes even on-shell on the dynamical boson (the scalar in that case), but it doesn’t on the fermion, we now require closure on the graviton, even on-shell (without the S), hoping it will work in the same way.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>This sentence reads pretty convoluted, suggesting that something should change. But if you don't understand it, can you be sure it's actually convoluted? Maybe it makes perfect sense to an expert. Furthermore, how would you change it? The only option is to make some kind of "best guess" and then ask the author, but 1) this is very time-consuming since it involves communication with the authors; if there are pages of such issues then the authors will take a long time to respond to, and 2) remember the authors' English aren't very good either.</p>\n<p>Then add in the fact that the readership of the average academic paper is <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/1206/how-many-people-read-an-individual-journal-article\">miserable</a> and some people will conclude that it's not a problem worth fixing.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15595",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10666/"
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|
15,596 | <p>This is probably not 100% on-topic here, but this site is closer to <em>appropriate</em> than others. Let me give it a try: I have collected about 50 publications relevant for a project of mine. For these publications, I have all the important information like author, title, journal, etc, but most importantly, I have the DOI for each paper. </p>
<p>I was asking myself, is it possible to retrieve the DOI of the references given in each publication through a web-service, an open database or any other service?</p>
<p>Background is that I would like to create a graph showing the connections between the selected publications. One semi-automatic approach which comes to my mind is to use <a href="http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_of_Science">Web of Science</a>, go through the stack of my publications and copy the DOI of the listed references.</p>
<p>Any better ideas? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15887,
"author": "Federico Poloni",
"author_id": 958,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/958",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>Both Scopus and Web of Knowledge contain all the information that you need and have APIs that can be used to automate access:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http://info.sciencedirect.com/scopus/scopus-in-detail/tools/api\">http://info.sciencedirect.com/scopus/scopus-in-detail/tools/api</a></li>\n<li><a href=\"http://wokinfo.com/products_tools/products/related/webservices/\">http://wokinfo.com/products_tools/products/related/webservices/</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>I have never used them personally, but I hope this kind of information can be accessed using them. Each site indexes articles with their own unique key, so you can use those instead of DOIs if you only need them as unique keys.</p>\n\n<p>Neither of them is free; you can probably access them through your university's subscription though. Be sure to check the usage limits.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16092,
"author": "Fuhrmanator",
"author_id": 3859,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/3859",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It's backwards from your proposed approach, but you could also use Google Scholar. It (apparently) has no API yet. Thus, someone created a python module to parse its output. <a href=\"http://www.icir.org/christian/scholar.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.icir.org/christian/scholar.html</a></p>\n\n<p>Google Scholar only gives you the articles that <em>cite</em> the given article. So you can build the links that are <em>to</em> the article, rather than <em>from</em> it. </p>\n\n<p><strong>Edit</strong> <a href=\"http://www.madhavajay.com/kalki/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Google Scholar Citation Visualisation Tool</a> seems to be based on this approach. However, the bookmarklet doesn't seem to work (for me in Chrome) when I browse Google Scholar as shown in the video on that page.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 96405,
"author": "aplaice",
"author_id": 65952,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/65952",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Slightly adapting <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/96403/65952\">my answer</a> to <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/3078/web-service-to-fetch-article-citations\">this earlier, very similar question</a>:</p>\n\n<p>It seems that crossref.org is beginning to roll out providing a list of citations (the works that a given work cites):</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://www.crossref.org/blog/distributing-references-via-crossref/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://www.crossref.org/blog/distributing-references-via-crossref/</a></p>\n\n<p>[See the aptly named section \"OMG! OMG! OMG! Does this mean I can get references from api.crossref.org?\"]</p>\n\n<p>Using the example doi from the above link (doi:10.7554/eLife.10288), you could obtain the list of citations in that work at: <a href=\"https://api.crossref.org/v1/works/10.7554/eLife.10288.xml\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://api.crossref.org/v1/works/10.7554/eLife.10288.xml</a> </p>\n\n<p>Alternatively, with <a href=\"https://citation.crosscite.org/docs.html\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">content negotiation</a>, you could just use:</p>\n\n<pre><code>curl -L -H \"Accept: application/vnd.crossref.unixsd+xml\" \\\n https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.10288 > data.xml\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>The citations are listed in the <code><citation_list></code> element. The list of 'doi's can be extracted with the following XPath query:</p>\n\n<pre><code>//citation_list/citation/doi/text()\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>Warning: The citation data is, according to the link above, only available in the XML, not the JSON, representation. Also, the service is not available for all works, yet.</p>\n\n<h2>Toy python implementation</h2>\n\n<pre><code>import requests\nfrom lxml import html\n\ndef list_references(doi):\n \"\"\"List an article's references, as raw DOIs. \n\nThe input also has to be just the DOI (without doi: etc.)\n\"\"\"\n headers = {'Accept' : 'application/vnd.crossref.unixsd+xml' }\n r = requests.get(\"https://data.crossref.org/\" + doi,\n headers=headers)\n tree = html.fromstring(r.content)\n return tree.xpath('//citation_list/citation/doi/text()')\n</code></pre>\n"
}
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| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15596",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4021/"
]
|
15,597 | <p>During my Ph.D. research I encountered a mathematical problem. I found solutions in some cases, but in other cases I couldn't find a solution. My advisors also could not help with this. I asked at Math.SE and MathOverflow, even offered a boundy, but got no hint.</p>
<p>Although I can proceed in my research without a solution to these cases (there are many other problems to solve anyway), they are very interesting and can contribute a lot to understanding the general problem.</p>
<p>The problem itself is very simple, such that even high-school children can understand it. So, I thought of the following idea: give the problem to talented high-school or under-graduate students that go to math olympiads, and offer a monetary bounty (in addition to co-authorship) to the first solver. Hopefully a fresh young mind can succeed where older minds have failed.</p>
<p>What do you think about this idea? Is this ethical? Useful? Done in the past?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15601,
"author": "Tom-Tom",
"author_id": 10030,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10030",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>For problem easy to formulate as this one, this may be a motivating problem for students who want to tackle with \"real research\", quite rewarding also for those who find a solution.</p>\n\n<p>I don't know if this has been done in the past, but why not, as long as you give full credit of the proof to the students who find it and in case this is published, give them authorship. I would suggest, in case you have a winner, to <a href=\"http://arxiv.org/help/endorsement\" rel=\"nofollow\">endorse</a> him or her on the <a href=\"http://arxiv.org\" rel=\"nofollow\">arXiv</a>, so the credit will be fully his or hers.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15604,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>It sounds like a great idea to publicize the problem among young people who may have a lot of time on their hands, not a lot of other research ideas, and a desire to demonstrate their abilities through something other than timed contests.</p>\n\n<p>One awkward possibility would be getting stuck in a situation in which someone can't convince you that their solution is correct, but you can't convince them it is incomplete or wrong. Of course this could happen with anyone, but it's particularly likely to occur with someone who is not an experienced researcher. If you offer a bounty, you should be clear about the conditions. (For example, that it all comes down to your judgment, and that you don't commit to spend unlimited amounts of time trying to understand a proposed solution.)</p>\n\n<p>Coauthorship is certainly mandatory if you publish a paper that depends on this solution (unless of course the students publish their solution separately and you cite it). However, you may run into tricky situations in which it's not enough just to offer coauthorship for the first solution. For example, if several people solve the problem independently and around the same time, then they should all be treated evenhandedly. Or what if someone proposes a solution you don't believe, someone else proposes a clearer solution and you offer the second person coauthorship, and then the first person convinces you their solution was correct after all? Of course these problems are not hard to solve (in the last case, you can't retract the authorship of the second person, but you should make the first an author too if you still can). But the important thing to keep in mind is that you may need to make sensible decisions that go a little beyond the \"first solver is a coauthor\" rule.</p>\n\n<p>A final observation is that if you succeed in attracting students to this problem, you will likely get lots of questions and comments from them along the way. If that appeals to you, then it's an advantage of this approach. On the other hand, if your goal is to get a solution with a minimum amount of time and attention on your part, then asking beginners might not be fruitful.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15669,
"author": "A.G.",
"author_id": 10318,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10318",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You may want to explain on MathOverflow how you ran into the problem. If solving this is key in solving an important problem in some area you may get more attention and someone whose research interests are a good fit may want to put in some time and effort.</p>\n\n<p>As for co-authorship my feeling is that the person who solves that particular problem should be the sole author (although you could be acknowledged for suggesting the problem). Then you can cite him/her in your work (as a paper of private communication).</p>\n"
}
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| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15597",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/787/"
]
|
15,600 | <p>For my bachelor thesis I needed a certain source. As it wasn't accessible neither on the net, nor in my library, I decided to ask the author directly. She was kind enough to send me a draft of the text in question, explicitly allowing me to use it for private academic purpose. </p>
<p>Now I'm in the middle of my thesis. How do I cite a draft that doesn't even have a date? If I had the published version, I'd simply cross-reference, but I don't, and adding the page number of a word document that my supervisor doesn't have seems utterly useless. Do I simply leave out the page number (it's a very short paper), or do I add the paper as an attachment? </p>
<p>I know this is something I'd normally ask my supervisor. Unfortunately, communication with her is not something I'm interested in, for personal reasons. I'm therefore looking for a reasonable advice that has nothing to do with her preferences.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15602,
"author": "Tom-Tom",
"author_id": 10030,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10030",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I know only two ways:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>you write \"<em>Author</em>, private communication\" in your references;</li>\n<li>you publish the unpublished material and add its author as an author of your paper.</li>\n</ol>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15603,
"author": "fileunderwater",
"author_id": 7223,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7223",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If it has been published, ask the author for a pdf of the published version (from your question I got the feeling that the paper has been published). This would also be easier to share with your supervisor later on. It makes no sense to cite or quote a draft version if the paper has been published. At least ask if the draft has identical content as the published version. If so, you could maybe get away with using the draft but citing the published version in your reference list (not ideal though).</p>\n\n<p>Otherwise, cite it as a working paper/draft, by including author, title, and the date when you recieved the paper, see e.g. <a href=\"http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/data/faq/topics/Documentation/faq0046.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">Chicago manual of style online</a> or <a href=\"https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/\" rel=\"nofollow\">MLA style guide</a>.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15659,
"author": "BrenBarn",
"author_id": 9041,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9041",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It's not clear from your question what the status of this \"source\" is --- i.e., whether it has been published, will be published, or may never be published.</p>\n\n<p>If it has been published, but you just didn't have access to the published version, I would cite the published version. If you have a quote where you need to cite the page number, I would go ahead and cite the page number from the draft. Although others might disagree with this practice, I've found it's not uncommon to find page-number citations that are off by a page or two due to citing different versions of a paper, different editions of a book, etc.</p>\n\n<p>If it has not been published but is \"in the pipeline\" (i.e., has been submitted to a journal), you can cite it as \"forthcoming\", or as \"to appear\" if it has been accepted.</p>\n\n<p>If it is unknown whether it will ever be published (i.e., it is just a work in progress that may or may not be submitted for publication at some later date), you can cite it as \"in prep\", \"unpublished ms.\", or \"personal communication\". Personally I tend to view \"in prep\" as meaning \"the author intends to publish this at some point but it's far enough in the future that we don't know where or when\", \"unpublished ms.\" as meaning \"there is little chance this will ever be published\", and \"personal communication\" as \"this was not even written as an article-type document but just information conveyed to me via email, conversation, etc.\".</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15600",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10669/"
]
|
15,610 | <p>I'm considering a PhD or Master's in engineering in the US, and I haven't really decided which makes the most sense for me. There are many questions and answers here that mention leaving a PhD program with a Master's and how it's not a "failure" or "dropping out", but it occurs to me: what effect does this have on a person's adviser/professors? </p>
<p>What about references, future relationships, etc? Is it taken negatively or as an insult, or cutting ties, to bow out with the lower degree?</p>
<p>What prompted this question is that a few programs that most interest me state explicitly that there is very little funding available for Masters students (so you are mostly expected to pay your own way), but full funding and additional opportunities are available for those admitted to a PhD program. The way they are worded, they seem extremely interested in good PhD candidates, and not at all interested in Masters students.</p>
<p>I'm not considering seeking a PhD solely to get a Masters/funding, because that's just outright dishonest and I wouldn't stomach such deceit. But, what might the ethics be of not being certain whether you want a PhD or a Masters, but applying for a PhD program? </p>
<p>If one's adviser and/or program and/or professors are explicitly harmed by having someone complete their Masters requirements, then I'd be much more hesitant to even consider a PhD application unless I was certain that's what I wanted. If being unsure is considered normal and the "harm" caused by bowing out of the program with a Masters not so great, then that would certainly ease things the other direction.</p>
<p>To be clear, these departments also specifically suggest you pick Masters OR PhD, and generally discourage you from applying to both. Thus my quandary!</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15653,
"author": "ryetochondria",
"author_id": 10383,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10383",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My background comes from Biology so I don't know the details of engineering graduate programs. However, a graduate student is a significant financial investment for the graduate program and advisor. For the student it is the time and emotional investment. Graduate programs that offer funding i.e. stipend and tuition waivers to PhD students do so because it will take the student 4-7 years of full-time+ work to complete their courses and dissertation work. They are typically expected to devote all of their time towards their degree and are discouraged from outside employment. Thus the stipend to cover living expenses. </p>\n\n<p>A MS program is typically 2-3 years and varies in requirements from program to program, ranging from just coursework to coursework plus thesis. </p>\n\n<p>The learning curve is steep for someone who has no previous research experience and the time and money that is spent getting the student up to a productive level is significant. In our program, PhD students typically advance to candidacy around the time that a MS student would be finishing the program. Before this time the PhD student and the MS student are working under comparable conditions. This is also the time that if a PhD student were to not be meeting minimum expectations then they would be denied candidacy and exit with a MS degree. </p>\n\n<p>There is less pressure for a PhD student to begin a project that will result in their dissertation early on because they have more time. MS students must find an advisor immediately upon entering the program and thus begin generating something meaningful if they are to complete and defend a thesis. The body of work is much smaller than a PhD student and is typically just a demonstration of their advanced breadth of knowledge in the field. </p>\n\n<p>Many advisors in my program view MS students as an extra pair of hands and receive less attention when it comes to mentoring. Their projects will often be small offshoots of a bigger project that a PhD student or post-doc is working on. You must understand that they are treated differently from the beginning not because of discrimination but because research projects take a long time to develop and often meaningful results do not come until a few years of work, which is too long for a MS student.</p>\n\n<p>For you particular situation, I would say if you are unsure about which program is right for you I would say take some extra time to figure that out. Whether that means get a job in the area you are interested or something else. Just be sure if you sign up for a PhD that you really want to do it. It is a difficult and really trying path, not for the half-hearted. Even for those who are extremely passionate about their work will question their place there and consider quitting during the bad times. Going into a graduate program with a clear focus and interest (PhD or MS) will make things go much smoother. Do not expect to show up and someone tell you what to do, or you may spend 6 months to a year just floating along trying to find your way. </p>\n\n<p>Now selfishly speaking you are right, you could enter the program as a PhD student and feel it out, but in my opinion I would discourage you from doing that. You will likely waste your time and take longer to get your MS than you would if you went in from the beginning knowing you wanted an MS. You also risk soiling relationships that you could otherwise depend on to help you later in your career. Who knows if the advisor you picked will be angry that you left the lab with a MS when they were expecting a full 5-7 years of work out of you. The people I know who quit their PhD program often quit because the tough times made them realize they liked the idea of having a PhD but didn't really understand what it was going to take to get one. Make sure you know exactly what to expect.</p>\n\n<p>Lastly, whatever you decide, pick an advisor very carefully. Advisors like bosses all have a range a personalities. Some are jerks that will call you during dinner time or saturday afternoon asking to meet with you. Some you will consider filing a missing persons report because you haven't been able to get ahold of them in 2 months. Make sure whoever you end up working with goes well with you. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15660,
"author": "BrenBarn",
"author_id": 9041,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9041",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think it's ethical to apply to a PhD program if you have a good-faith belief that you want to get a PhD. You don't have to be 100% sure, so it's okay to have some lingering doubt, but I wouldn't apply to a PhD if you're just 50/50 on the fence between MA and PhD.</p>\n\n<p>You should also research the precise nature of the programs you're applying to. I don't know how it works for engineering, but for MA/PhD in general, some programs have the MA as a clear \"milestone\" on the way to the PhD: you do coursework and write an MA thesis, and after you finish you move on to do the PhD. In this kind of program, the PhD is basically the MA plus more, so it can be easier to transition from MA-only to PhD if you later want to (since you won't have \"missed anything\" by doing the MA), and also easier to gracefully exit with an MA even if you begin by aiming for a PhD (because you won't have wasted any time on \"PhD only\" activities). In other programs, MA and PhD programs are different from the start, which makes the up-front decision more important.</p>\n\n<p>In the same vein, learning more about the specific programs may give you more information about what the differences between MA and PhD options are within each program, which may help you make your decision.</p>\n\n<p>I would ask faculty and/or students in these programs about these issues. In particular you might want to get a sense of the \"culture\" around switching between MA and PhD, which is likely to be specific to each department.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15667,
"author": "anc",
"author_id": 10738,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10738",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I have been in a situation similar to the one you are in now and am currently seeking a phd in engineering, so I hope I can provide some insight. </p>\n\n<p>To answer your question \"what effect does this have on a person's adviser/professors?\", my answer is, of course, <strong>the greatness of the effect varies by situation, but in general is significant</strong>. Different programs are different: in some programs you find an advisor immediately, in others you rotate labs for a period, and in others you do not select an advisor until sometime after your first semester. If you immediately have an advisor and begin working on research the first semester, as opposed to selecting an advisor/lab and beginning contributing to the research effort in the second year, then the effect on the advisor is greater. Depending on the project, it make take a lot of time for you to actually become useful in a lab, and this time relies <strong>heavily on resources</strong> (<strong>money spent paying you and training you on equipment, and the time of your advisor and of senior lab members getting you acquainted with the lab and the research</strong>).</p>\n\n<p>I don't think you should expect positive references from your advisor if you leave the program immediately after having earning your master's degree. However, you and your advisor may be exceptional. It is just like an other personal relationship. The relationships you have with others in your field and program may not suffer; usually, that is because they have invested less time, money, and effort into you. </p>\n\n<p>In engineering and most of the hard sciences (in the US), masters students have a stipend that at least covers the cost of tuition and phd students usually have the cost of tuition covered and additional stipend money. A program that doesn't at least cover the cost of tuition for masters students is highly suspicious to me, and in my opinion, not a place that has enough resources to best educate you. I'm now curious of what programs you're looking at... in the US? </p>\n\n<p>The work involved in gaining a phd and a masters degree may be different. Some masters students are graduated after they pass a comprehensive test based on their coursework and are not required to write a thesis and work in research, therefore they do not publish, or help any faculty obtain grants. I can see this as a reason why masters students are offered less money.</p>\n\n<p>Scholarships are available. Depending on your field of engineering: what is the value of obtaining a doctorate? </p>\n\n<p>I agree with you: seeking a PhD solely to get a Masters/funding is dishonest. It's only January, <strong>simply applying for a phd is always okay</strong> if you're not sure which degree you want. You have months to learn more about the program and its expectations, and your own goals. When it comes time to decide whether to accept a position in a phd program, you should know that, from my point of view, not being 100% sure you'll finish the phd is normal for people, even people that accept. If you are a traditional phd candidate, coming immediately from four or five years in undergrad, you may be in your early 20's. It may be difficult to make decisions and to be certain of the next 5-7 years of your life. </p>\n\n<p>With that said, working on a <strong>phd program without being nearly 100% committed may be very difficult for you</strong>. Your lack of commitment may be obvious to others that you work with. In the sciences, publishing and keeping a finger on the pulse of your field, is a time commitment many people do not expect or comprehend. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15670,
"author": "Wakem",
"author_id": 10739,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10739",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think the idea of waiting and getting a job is problematic for many fields, especially \"hard\" ones like math or physics. I just wouldn't want my mind to be all fuzzy and have forgotten what I learned throughout college. This is certainly done successfully quite often, but if you plan on at least getting a Master's, I don't see the use in waiting and atrophying/backtracking. On the ethical question, I think you have to ask that to yourself and find what your moral code is (I am a nihilist). Maybe philosophy.stackexchange could help you with this! What is unclear to me is whether someone like you who feels somewhat unsure is even less likely at all to graduate with a PhD than someone who goes in thinking R1 Tenure or death. Your waffling MIGHT even be a sign of mental health (a GOOD thing) is what I'm getting at. I'd say screw it and act rationally, take what I could. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15688,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>What effect does this have on a person's adviser/professors?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>This really depends on where the funding is coming from. For example in the UK you might get a 3 year grant for a PhD student since PhD programs are fixed at 3 years. If the student switches to a Masters the I cannot appoint another student, the grant \"fails\" and the PI (and possibly the department) may be unable to apply to that funding agency again. This can also happen in the US, but student fellowships and student duration is a little more flexible. Externally funded PhD students who do not finish are a real problem for PIs. For students who are internally funded the impact is generally less, but departments can still hold it against the PI since the money was \"wasted\".</p>\n\n<p>Apart from funding, there is also the issue of the research. Some projects have a big ramp up times/difficult data collection. For some projects the work you do during the first year might make it impossible for another student to continue on the project.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>What about references, future relationships, etc? Is it taken negatively or as an insult, or cutting ties, to bow out with the lower degree?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Yes and no. I wouldn't say it is an insult (although it matters where you go at the end), but leaving on good terms and getting a good reference can be hard since you didn't complete what you set out to do.</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>The way they are worded, they seem extremely interested in good PhD candidates, and not at all interested in Masters students.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Yes, many departments only want to fund PhD students. Of course it becomes difficult to convince applicants who want a Masters to not apply to the PhD program and get funding. Some departments offer different degrees for their Masters students (e.g., an MSc) and their PhD students who \"drop out\" (e.g., MPhil). The idea being this will dissuade students from applying for a funded PhD when all they want is a Masters. </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>I'm not considering seeking a PhD solely to get a Masters/funding, because that's just outright dishonest and I wouldn't stomach such deceit. But, what might the ethics be of not being certain whether you want a PhD or a Masters, but applying for a PhD program?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>It is highly unethical to lie/mislead people during the admissions process. One of your goals during the admissions process is to convince the department that you really want to do a PhD. While some students are unethical and lie, many students really believe they \"need\" to get a PhD and still drop out.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15610",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10672/"
]
|
15,611 | <p>I am organizing a workshop and have invited a featured speaker to give a synthetic talk. What is the appropriate term for this role?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15612,
"author": "Abe",
"author_id": 344,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/344",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I came up with this answer while asking the question:</p>\n\n<p>Both terms indicate a sort of synthesis, but <a href=\"http://www.wordnik.com/words/plenary\" rel=\"noreferrer\">plenary</a> seems to refer to being fully attended whereas <a href=\"http://www.wordnik.com/words/keynote\" rel=\"noreferrer\">keynote</a> appears to indicate setting a common theme.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15616,
"author": "user2953982",
"author_id": 10100,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10100",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>They are both used (often interchangeably in my field). A plenary is a talk which does not have anything scheduled against it. A keynote is an invited talk in a conference or session.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 67918,
"author": "Sam Chaffin",
"author_id": 53370,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53370",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Keynote; A theme by an authority person with credentials on topic and knoledge of participants and their reason for being here. Speaker offers challenges.\nPlenary; Speaker/ Facilitator with authority remarks to stimulate input and discussion by all to come to conclusion for action.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/10 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15611",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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]
|
15,629 | <p>My PhD research interest is very aligned with my advisor. However, my concern is that if I want to stay in the academia, will my advisor become my competitor in the future?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15641,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>You might end up as competitors someday. I've never felt like I was in competition with any of my former students or my own advisor, but some people are hyper-competitive, and others are unlucky enough to end up in awkward situations, so your mileage may vary.</p>\n\n<p>Even though it could happen, you shouldn't waste time in graduate school worrying about hypothetical future competition. There are more important things to think about, and you shouldn't let these worries interfere with learning as much as you can from your advisor.</p>\n\n<p>Ultimately, becoming a successful researcher means developing your own research agenda. Over time, you should drift away from your advisor as you explore your own interests. (If you don't, it's a bad sign.) In particular, as you become an established researcher your advisor will no longer play a central role in shaping your scholarly interests, and competition with your advisor will not be much more likely or worrisome than competition with other senior people in your field.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15692,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are really only two places academics \"compete\": funding and jobs. Since you are only a PhD student now, it is unlikely you will be applying for the same jobs as your advisor in the future since your advisor has such a big head start. By the time you close the gap, you will likely have made a name for yourself. As for funding, this is somewhat field dependent. For example in the US in an NIH funded field you might get a 3 year post doctoral NRSA and a 4 year k99/R00 after your PhD before you would likely be in direct competition with your advisor, and then you would have the \"new investigator\" benefit. Following this road you would be 12 years out before you are really in direct competition on \"equal\" footing. In other fields you might be competing for funding from the same pool of money earlier.</p>\n\n<p>The benefit of close ties is that you can collaborate with your advisor after you finish the PhD.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15885,
"author": "h22",
"author_id": 10920,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10920",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is a very nasty situation for the whole science system, when PhD student is already a potential competitor for the supervisor. This often leads to PhD studies lasting forever.</p>\n\n<p>However scientific systems in most countries have more than enough measures to exclude such a competition. Most important, you frequently cannot progress from PhD student to professor inside the same institution, using the benefit that \"you are already here, and everyone knows how good you are\". </p>\n\n<p>As a result, there is no reason for the supervisor to press down exactly you. Another competitor will come from the side anyway, and the supervisor will be with better chances after having good shared publications on your PhD project.</p>\n\n<p>Competition does may happen if the professor assigns say some quite junior post doc to supervise a PhD student. Such post doc may then want to take over promising project for instance, be the first between authors, etc. However if this goes too far, it is usually possible to ask the actual professor to remove such a \"supervisor\" out of head.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15910,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I think most of the other answers here have missed an important point: following your PhD, you should not be staying in the same narrow subfield as your advisor. If you are directly competing for grants with your advisor, then you've done something very wrong.</p>\n\n<p>The point of doctoral and postdoctoral training is to teach you to be an independent researcher. If you are doing only what your doctoral advisor did, then why do you have your own lab? You should be sufficiently distinct in your research profile that it's clear why \"you are your own boss.\" (And if you can't come up with enough ideas to justify your own group, then you probably aren't ready to be an independent faculty member yet!)</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/11 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15629",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10694/"
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|
15,636 | <p>I majored in information systems and I deeply regret it.. I had an internship where I ended up doing some programming assignments, and I really enjoyed them. But it was also my senior year so I didn't want to switch to CS and spend another 2-3 years..</p>
<p>So I have been trying to take the gre to get into a software engineering program (UC Irvine and San Jose State University). But it's hard studying for it now that I'm out of school. I'm constantly trying to apply for jobs and trying to study for it. I did pretty bad the first time (148 on both quant and verbal and a 4 on the writing).</p>
<p>I've always been bad at these standardized tests. So not sure if I can get better scores the next time (still in the same process of trying to apply for jobs and study).</p>
<p>I've gotten A's in the programming classes that I've taken. It's just hard to get a junior level software engineering job because companies favor CS majors. As for internships, companies only want currently enrolled students.</p>
<p>Any advice? Also consider financial situations etc when giving your input.</p>
<p>I've done a bit of googling and found that UC Irvine offers 2nd bachelors degree in CS or CSE. Anyone know of other schools?</p>
<p>As for masters programs that don't require the gre, I've only found National University here in San Diego. Not sure what those type of schools are like and if they're worth it..</p>
<p>Sorry for writing so much, just having a hard time deciding right now.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15638,
"author": "Russell E Glaue",
"author_id": 10572,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10572",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'd go for the masters degree. I went from a bachelors in music, to a masters in CS. The rewards of having a masters degree I feel is greater than a bachelors. And you have the ability to do that with the bachelors completed, so take advantage of it. You may have to take a few core CS courses which will extend your schooling a semester. Check the program you are interested in for deficiencies you will need to make up.</p>\n\n<p>One suggestion. If it is possible for you to get a job at a university with a program you like, they may pay for your classwork to obtain a masters degree. Then you can take your time to complete the degree while working full time.\nIt will take you longer to complete the degree, maybe 4 years. But you'll be working, gain experience, maybe get your tuition covered, classes could potentially be in a nearby building, and have flexibilty to take a semester off if needed as a result.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15639,
"author": "guest",
"author_id": 10703,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10703",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As a non-CS major (engineer, not electric or mechanical) it doesn't seem so impossible to get into the CS job market, but that is only given that you pursue your own personal/extracurricular coding projects and demonstrate your experience; after all, they carry out technical interviews anyways.</p>\n\n<p>I also agree with a Masters degree (with or without work support) over spending so much time on just a bachelors. Furthermore, I don't know any details, but if you have a good GPA or have other raising factors, it could make up for a subpar GRE, but you should really have a good quant score considering its level.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/11 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15636",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
15,643 | <p>I am citing a Dutch work from the late 19th century. Not surprisingly, the spelling differs from the contemporary spelling. In APA, how would I use [<em>sic</em>] in such cases of old spelling? In the guidelines it is <a href="https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/577/01/">advised</a> to "insert the term sic in italics directly after the mistake". It seems dull to me, though, to insert [<em>sic</em>] after each word that is spelt differently.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15644,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>[sic] is reserved for mistakes as you state. Old spelling is not a mistake. You could, for example use italics for the words that differ from modern to signal to the reader that something is odd. To make such signalling clear you should tell the reader early on that this is how you have chosen to deal with the problem. Alternatively you do not signal at all and simply \"warn\" the reader that old spelling of words will be included. </p>\n\n<p>If footnotes are allowed you could footnote the spelling the first time it occurs and provide some information on the word. This is more of a service and will not fit all formats for publishing so I mention it as an idea.</p>\n\n<p>So you can come up with less obtrusive ways to deal with the old spelling. Using [sic] is as far as I can see wrong in the context of what you are doing.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15645,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>[<em>sic</em>] is only used in the case of an actual error in the quote. For example:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>He said that they was [<em>sic</em>] calling him.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>However, in your case, it seems there is no error, just a change in spelling.</p>\n\n<p>I would never use it in the following example, where the quote uses a different form of English (British) from the one wrapped around it (American).</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>While my favorite color is red, she wrote to me 'my favourite colour is green.'</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Likewise, if I were quoting Old English, I would not consider it an error within a quote if the quote was written in correct Old English.</p>\n\n<p>In short, you should not use [<em>sic</em>] unless there is an actual error in the quote.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15649,
"author": "J.R.",
"author_id": 780,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/780",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Yet another possible way to handle your problem is by way of introduction. In other words, instead of merely saying:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p><em>As Vanmulken wrote: \"Though the fallen curry favor, the publick disregard it much.\"</em> </p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>you could say:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p><em>As the Dutch philosopher Vanmulken wrote in 1871: \"Though the fallen curry favor, the publick disregard it much.\"</em></p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>With a casual mention of the author's nationality and the time period of the quoted material, most readers will be able to figure out the reason for the \"olde\" spelling, without drawing special attention to it.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15652,
"author": "nxx",
"author_id": 10680,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10680",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As others have said, such usage of [<em>sic</em>] would not technically be correct, and I agree it would be distracting anyway to insert if after each and every applicable word. You could add, in square brackets at the end of the quote, something like [original spelling], similar to this type of usage:</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Do not put quotations in italics unless the material would otherwise\n call for italics, such as for emphasis and the use of non-English\n words (see the Manual of Style). Indicate whether italics were used in\n the original text or whether they were added later. For example:</p>\n \n <p>Now cracks a noble heart. Good night sweet prince: And <em>flights of\n angels</em> sing thee to thy rest! [emphasis added]</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Quotations\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Quotations</a></p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 86116,
"author": "Declan",
"author_id": 70407,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/70407",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Wikipedia states:</p>\n\n<p>To denote archaisms and dialect[edit]\nA sic may show that an uncommon or archaic expression is reported faithfully,[12] such as when quoting the U.S. Constitution: \"The House of Representatives shall chuse [sic] their Speaker ...\" Several writing guidebooks discourage its use with regard to dialect, such as in cases of American and British English spelling differences.[8][11][13] The appearance of a bracketed sic after the word analyse on a book cover led Bryan A. Garner to comment, \"... all the quoter (or overzealous editor) demonstrated was ignorance of British usage\"</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/11 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15643",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7121/"
]
|
15,646 | <p>I'm confused by what the term "research experience" actually means in a PhD application. The following examples come into my mind:</p>
<ul>
<li>working as research assistant with university professor </li>
<li>publishing research papers in conferences</li>
<li>work in R&D division of company (industry research)</li>
</ul>
<p>Do all examples of the list above count as research experience? Or which ones do? If so, what are they?</p>
<p>Which ones are more important and provide competitive advantage for getting accepted to good university?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15650,
"author": "user2979872",
"author_id": 10697,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10697",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It means during your undergraduate or after your undergraduate or in masters (if you are going for a PhD program), what did you do that counts as research.</p>\n\n<p>In PhD application, the committee is looking for whether you already have warmed up for research or not because PhD is about taking a problem and doing research which only you could have done.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15661,
"author": "BrenBarn",
"author_id": 9041,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9041",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I would say all of those count as \"research experience\". Which ones will be most valued depends on the nature of the program you're applying to, and the exact nature of the work you did. In general, though, the more independent your work was, the better, and the more generic it was, the worse. So if you were a research assistant but all you did was photocopy documents, that will not earn you many points. If you were a research assistant who, e.g., conducted experiments, did fieldwork, participated in lab meetings, whatever, those will be worth more. If you actually contributed to the writing of papers or presentation at conferences, even better.</p>\n\n<p>As a rule of thumb, the more that what you did was something other people could not have done (i.e., it required your special expertise, not just \"more hands'), the \"better\" it is.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 130453,
"author": "user48953094",
"author_id": 41661,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/41661",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Most of the applicants for PhD positions (after bachelor, different for master) don't have much research experience or have even written a paper as first author, more common would be poster at a conference. So if you have to show something here over average, list it in your application.</p>\n\n<p>As professors get sometimes over 100 applications for PhD positions, more importantly <strong>list in bullet points what you experience handling distinct scientific methods is (technical terminus and usage time, e.g. electron microscopy on biological objects for one year or matlab scripting on neural networks for 6 months)</strong>. As soon as you have worked for several weeks with a distinct technique, list it as research experience (name - object - duration)</p>\n\n<p>This profile of your expertise is in the end to my experience more important to a professor/distinct position than a higher number of posters/papers of a distinct candidate, because it depends more on your team/advisor/co-workers if you publish before PhD a lot</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/11 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15646",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10704/"
]
|
15,664 | <p>I have a serious problem with HW usually submitted by students. A considerable fraction of the students are not neat with their HWs. By neat I mean respecting the guide lines I provided them to follow, such as:</p>
<ul>
<li>A4-size paper, do not use detached papers from a notebook</li>
<li>Use only pencil, so you don't scratch </li>
<li>Be organized, not sloppy </li>
<li>Write clearly, so it is readable.</li>
</ul>
<p>Things like that.</p>
<p>Unfortunately most of the students insist on not following these rules, or they will do it for some time, then they will start being sloppy again.</p>
<p>Am I the only one facing this issue? If not, how can one solve it? </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15674,
"author": "earthling",
"author_id": 2692,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2692",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It could simply be students doing the minimum in order to get by. The solution is to raise the minimum. To do that, start denying points for non-compliance.</p>\n\n<p>As Suresh wrote in his comment, electronic submission might be appropriate. In my classes I require that whatever students submit be word-processed written in a specific font. If the students do not follow the instructions then I treat them as if they never submitted at all. As you can imagine, seeing this one time in class gets everyone to pay attention.</p>\n\n<p>Basically, eliminate hand-writing if you can. Some students simply have very poor penmanship so it's best to structure things so they can use a computer. Ideally, save the paper and submit electronically.</p>\n\n<p>If you cannot eliminate hand writing them make it clear that if you cannot read (or understand) what they wrote then their score will reflect that. I have issues with some students writing in English (not their first language) and I make it very clear that I'm not here to judge their English but if I cannot understand their intention without guessing, I will simply mark it as gibberish.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15677,
"author": "Wakem",
"author_id": 10739,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10739",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As others have said, reasonable deductions should solve your problem. Be aware though that being a big stickler will make people less likely to take your classes. I did not hear about A4 paper before this post. I understand the uniformity, but from the other side of the desk its just one more thing to worry about. I am not saying your policies are right or wrong (whatever that may mean), but that aggressive application will drive away students who are not trapped into taking your classes, by simple rational choice. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15681,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If you can use a system of assessment criteria/rubrics for setting the grade of your class, you can include neatness (with a description of what is entailed) in your criteria. In academia as well as workplace, being able to follow instructions is valued highly. you can therefore build in these aspects in the assessment by pointing at the fact that clarity and other aspects is t strive for. If students realize the sloppiness affects their grade, I am sure most will take more care. </p>\n\n<p>I am currently working on revising the grading criteria for bachelor's theses in my department. I have created a \"Instruction for authors\" that details the form and format of the thesis and text. In my case, I am considering making following these \"instructions\" a prerequisite to get the thesis graded. Our system allows students to revise their work and resubmit so another aspect is to build in that failing to follow the instructions will also lower the grade by one step (on an A-F scale).</p>\n\n<p>Since grading systems and ways to handle examination varies widely, you will need to see if any of these ideas can be transferred but the main point is to make sure students understand that breaking the neatness rules set up have negative effects. And, that there is a logical reason for why neatness is a valid grading criteria regardless of the topic of the course.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15691,
"author": "WetlabStudent",
"author_id": 8101,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8101",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In my opinion you should lower your standards a bit, but make harsh deductions if they are not followed</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>No pen is a bit strict, you could exchange it for no scratch marks. If they do a rough draft and then write a final copy in pen, that should be fine. Most mathematicians do not write in pencil.</li>\n<li>A4 paper is a bit strict if you are teaching a class in the USA (since it isn't the standard size), in many countries it would be reasonable though.</li>\n<li>legible writing - all solutions that cannot be read will receive a zero, please type your solutions if you have poor penmanship</li>\n<li>I'd like to add removing points for a lack of staple. loose second pages get lost easily.</li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15723,
"author": "J. Zimmerman",
"author_id": 7921,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7921",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>As @earthling stated above, requiring word-processing (possibly also electronic submission) will eliminate the majority of the problems.This requirement gives you standard paper size, no scratches, and legible printing.<br>\nEnforcing this is relatively stright-forward, if a little harsh. Automatically deduct a set portion of the available credit for any assignment that is not typed. Make this very clear on the first day of class and <em>follow up with the promised consequences!</em></p>\n\n<p>Unfortunately, being required to type homework will not automatically improve students' ability to write in an organized manner, nor will it improve grammar and sentence structure. Strongly encourage students to utilize the writing lab/tutoring center for assistance with organization and clarity. This will probably work better when homework consists of several larger assignments rather than multiple smaller assignments. Knowing that a significant chunk of their score rests on a single assignment may motivate students to seek help. Also point out (assuming it is true at your univeristy!) that students who seek feedback on writing almost always score higher than those who do not.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15733,
"author": "Penguin_Knight",
"author_id": 6450,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6450",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>Make their choices easy by giving details and examples</strong></p>\n\n<p>For all the required materials, show the students where they can buy, what specification they should look for (2B pencil, 0.5mm mechanical pencil, etc.), and how much.</p>\n\n<p>For organization and legible writing, provide a few examples on what you consider as organized and legible. Annotate with your comments if necessary. You can then attach a <strong>learner's contract</strong> at the end, let the students sign to attest that they can produce work with comparable legibility and clear assignment of section titles, etc. This should be done once, at the beginning of the course.</p>\n\n<p>This contract and printed example are necessary. The examples allow the students to judge their work more objectively, the contract instills a sense of seriousness and responsibility.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Distribute an assignment coversheet with checklist on it</strong></p>\n\n<p>Now that the groundwork is laid, give each of them a homework cover page whenever you give an assignment. The page should at least list:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>A place for student to write down their name</li>\n<li>Course code/title</li>\n<li>Assignment title</li>\n<li>Due date/time</li>\n<li>A checklist of your requirements for student to check</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>The checklist can contain your <strong>objective</strong> or <strong>measurable</strong> criteria. After each criteria, attached a box that, if checked, would indicate the criterion is fulfilled.</p>\n\n<p>The students will have to check all these by themselves, and then staple the front page to the assignment before handing it in. In terms of how to deal with unchecked items, it's all up to you, as long as the consequences are clearly printed on this cover sheet. It can range from \"If any of these item is unchecked, your work will not be higher than a B-\" to attaching corresponding points to be taken away for each violation, then you can let them pick which to forfeit.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>Have you had someone checked the box without being organized?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Yes and no. I specify that all the assignments need to be typed so I never had the problem of self-claimed organization that actually looks messy. My checklist consists of mostly clearly yes-or-no's: \"1-inch margin,\" \"mentioned sample size in the Methods,\" \"did not report p-value as zero,\" etc.</p>\n\n<p>But your question did prompt me to think about a method we use when hiring interviewers. When we hire interviewers, we sometimes give them a sheet with numbers (0-9), some common phrases (such as \"Not application,\" \"N/A,\") and words likely causing confusion (-y vs. -g, double t, etc.) printed on them. Then, we ask the candidate to copy the numbers and words by hand. Those forms are life savers whenever we're confused by their hand writing on the data collection sheet. We have used them in a pinch when entering data, and we have used them to advise data collectors who show deteriorating handwriting quality.</p>\n\n<p>So, I guess you may modify your standard a bit. Instead of showing them some pre-existing copies of assignment, give them a couple pages of sentences and formulas and ask them to neatly copy them. Afterwards, if you're happy with the quality, they may proceed to sign the contract. Keep both writing sample and the signed contract together.</p>\n\n<p>Would this prevent students from blindly checking the box? Not entirely. But at least now you have a good sample and a bad sample from the same student on the file, and it'd be easier to point out what went wrong.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15778,
"author": "Per Alexandersson",
"author_id": 2794,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/2794",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I suggest you to write three-four examples yourself, scan and upload to your webpage, to show how is it supposed to be done.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15839,
"author": "Benoît Kloeckner",
"author_id": 946,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/946",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Many answers suggest to lower grades for unneatness. I do not like this solution becaause at least once, you will still have to grade unneat homework. Another solution is to fix the deadline earlier than you really need, and simply refuse to take any homework that does not match your guide lines. This can only work for guidelines that can be judge in a glimpse. Also, as mentioned in other answers, such harsh behavior needs you to be crystal clear about what you want, and to explain why you want it that way.</p>\n\n<p>This methods warrants you the students will care about your guidelines, and avoids you dealing with the kind of stuff you do not want to deal with.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15845,
"author": "nxx",
"author_id": 10680,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10680",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In some countries, it is not acceptable to lower grades for things like neatness; however, you could go for a cause and effect scenario: \"if you do not follow the guidelines, your paper will be returned to you to be resubmitted according to the guidelines.\" If this causes their paper to be late, assuming late submissions get a grade-deduction penalty, then hopefully the students will learn to follow the instructions to avoid having to redo their work and to avoid receiving a lateness penalty. Also, you won't have to mark the sloppy version!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15847,
"author": "A.G.",
"author_id": 10318,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10318",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There are many reasons for students not to follow guidelines. One of them is that often each professor has his own guidelines, and one HW perfect for one will be unacceptable for another (and vice-versa). Prof. X wants Times 11 on A4, Prof. Y will read nothing but Helvetica 12 on Legal, etc (increase the figures for older profs). Your guidelines should be sensible and minimal, otherwise they will just be an exercise in obedience (which students detects easily and despise).</p>\n\n<p>Departmental or faculty guidelines may help here.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15664",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9547/"
]
|
15,675 | <p>I was asked the following question by someone who was interested in pursuing a career in devops, but wanted to learn things in a more formal environment such as a masters degree. Is there / Can anyone recommend any graduate program in the US that would help prepare said person for a career in DevOps? He already has a Bachelor in Computer Science in India.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15678,
"author": "Noah",
"author_id": 10706,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10706",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Schools in the US operate on a department basis. Almost all big research institutions will offer research work in the subject field. If your friend doesn't know anything about where the subject he is trying to study is thought, I think he is wasting his time on a graduate degree. Graduate study is research intensive work that requires more commitment on the student's side then it does on the professor's or school's side. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15701,
"author": "user10501",
"author_id": 10501,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10501",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>hmmm like you stated DevOps is relatively new. I have not seen DevOps being taught as a specific discipline; usually the DevOp skill set comes from the software engineering side of the fence in the US. Is he in the US or in India? See if any of these tickle his fancy:</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://unomaha.smartcatalogiq.com/en/2013-2014/Graduate-Catalog/Graduate-Degree-Programs-Certificates-Minors/Management-Information-Systems/Management-Information-Systems-MS\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://unomaha.smartcatalogiq.com/en/2013-2014/Graduate-Catalog/Graduate-Degree-Programs-Certificates-Minors/Management-Information-Systems/Management-Information-Systems-MS</a></p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://unomaha.smartcatalogiq.com/en/2013-2014/Graduate-Catalog/Graduate-Degree-Programs-Certificates-Minors/Computer-Science/Computer-Science-Concentrations\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://unomaha.smartcatalogiq.com/en/2013-2014/Graduate-Catalog/Graduate-Degree-Programs-Certificates-Minors/Computer-Science/Computer-Science-Concentrations</a></p>\n\n<p>There's two versions of this degree, a professional one and a research one; the link below is of the research variety. This institution also has campuses in London, Brussels, Dubai, Paris and Sydney along with a few other locations:</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://www.bu.edu/eng/admissions/grad/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.bu.edu/eng/admissions/grad/</a></p>\n\n<p>The University of Illinois has a partnership with State Farm Insurance\n<a href=\"http://www.ece.illinois.edu/students/grad/overview/ms.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.ece.illinois.edu/students/grad/overview/ms.html</a></p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://www.cdm.depaul.edu/academics/Pages/MastersDegrees.aspx\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.cdm.depaul.edu/academics/Pages/MastersDegrees.aspx</a></p>\n\n<p>The University of Wisconsin has a partnership with Microsoft:</p>\n\n<p><a href=\"http://www.cs.wisc.edu/academic-programs/graduate-program\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.cs.wisc.edu/academic-programs/graduate-program</a></p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15675",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10742/"
]
|
15,685 | <p>I'm a CS master student in a German university. Here we have to do a master project in one semester and the master thesis in another semester, so in total 12 months. In the project you start in defining and exploring the problem space and so on and building a preliminary software framework that will help you more in the thesis. In the thesis you build on that to expand your work and finally summarize everything.</p>
<p>My problem started with the problem definition. My supervisor didn't have an idea of what to work on, so he just came up with a fancy idea and told me to work on without knowing if it's logical or it can be applied or not. So I started working on that problem and trying to reformulate the problem into a logical project and thesis. I spent 8 months on that and finally I built the software framework and so on. However after finishing the work, I found that continuing with the problem in the same formulation as-is won't be logical and would make everything as rubbish work. So I found a better formulation to the problem that makes it much much better and would lead to publish a paper in a conference or a workshop. However my new formulation cancels out 75% of my previous work. This way I won't have much of stuff to write in my master thesis.</p>
<p>I sent my proposal to my advisor for the thesis and I'm still looking for his opinion, but I'm very depressed with what happened to me. Having a better advisor with a far clearer idea wouldn't have led me to this point.</p>
<p>Is what I'm going through normal?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15686,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>As a researcher, you should expect to fail.</strong></p>\n\n<p>In general, you will frequently finding yourself coming up with ideas that don't pan out, results that suggest that what you did previously was wrong, or that a particular problem can't be solved yet (you need to do time-consuming step X before you can tackle interesting problem Y). Encountering these situations doesn't mean that what you've done is wrong, it means that you're doing research. (If everything you do is always successful, I'd argue you're doing development, as opposed to research.)</p>\n\n<p>Success as a research comes from learning to cope with and overcome adversity. So I'd suggest that you use this as a learning experience. Rather than be depressed about it, try to work around your problems. It will be a valuable tool that will stay with you for the rest of your career.</p>\n\n<p>Now, with respect to handle the master's thesis itself, this is something that you need to discuss with a number of people: your <em>Betreuer</em> (the person in charge of the thesis), as well as the head of the institute plus the person in charge of supervising students in your department. This is particularly important because your <em>Betreuer</em> is not normally allowed to grade your thesis, unless the <em>Betreuer</em> is a professor. Therefore, the people doing the grading may not be aware of the issues you had in the process. However, I would advise you to frame your questions in a positive way: that is, ask </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>What can I do to make sure I end up with a successful thesis?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>rather than </p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>How do I get myself out of this problem?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>The former is much more likely to result in a satisfactory resolution than the latter.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 62030,
"author": "PsyPhi",
"author_id": 47158,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/47158",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Is it possible at all to write up your masters in two main chapters? As a previous answer indicates, first method fails and you find a second way of going about it that is better (called science). So, is there any benefit to writing up the first part to show how it fails specifically, then move on to a second part showing how it succeeds/is a better way/more logical/whatever? This would also be the part you send to conferences/workshops, plus maybe a truncated version of the first part -I'm sure it would go down well to frame a presentation in terms of: Here's what I did, I failed miserably, so I did this, and it worked, huzzah!</p>\n\n<p>[Edit; to answer your last question: My own supervisors tell me that there is about a 50% rate at which Master's experiments \"work out\". But still. I wouldn't count 'finding out that something doesn't work' as not working out, it is progress.]</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15685",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10497/"
]
|
15,693 | <p>I'm a CS master student. During my early days looking for a thesis I noticed two categories of projects:</p>
<ol>
<li>Projects a about completely new idea.</li>
<li>Projects about improving an existing technical concept.</li>
</ol>
<p>By the first one I mean completely new stuff (something I'm doing now as my thesis). Such projects require intensive thinking to formulate them and put them into academic contexts and logics. While a lot of the time will be used to try and test new things as well as justyfing and putting the results into proper academic context and logic, very few time could be spent learning <em>advanced stuff</em> regarding your field.</p>
<p>In the other kinds of projects one would need to improve the running time of an algorithm or its performance. Such projects would require the student to go into very deep stuff regarding his field and become really advanced.</p>
<p>Now that I'm doing the first kinds of projects, I started to feel unconfident about myself and my skills when I see how the skills of other students who worked on the second type became. The reason behind that is I feel that my effort doesn't show up to people when they will probably read my thesis. Because they won't see advanced mathematics and algorithms as in the second type. How should I deal with this personal problem?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15694,
"author": "Matthew G.",
"author_id": 1165,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1165",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>In general, the answer is: Provide the landscape of your field, and show how the new-ground you are covering is missed by other people who passed the question by. </p>\n\n<p>If your thesis is a branch of of another topic, then show where the branching occurs, and how people on the dominant branch missed it; If your topic is truly novel, then show the problem its solving and why you found it interesting enough to spend a year or more of your life on it.</p>\n\n<p>I have a feeling that intuitively you know the answers to these questions; get them out and people will understand why your thesis has worth. </p>\n\n<p>90% of the advice from your <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15457/how-should-i-deal-with-discouragement-looking-at-others-success\">last question</a> still applies; It's incredibly difficult to do an apples to apples comparison between degrees, even under the same supervisor. </p>\n\n<p>The crux of this question in my mind, which prevents it from being a duplicate, is how to present new-ground while avoiding comparisons to other work which has a stronger theoretical background. </p>\n\n<p>A important part of the answer is almost certainly going to be 'Sit down and <strong>talk</strong> with your supervisor about this concern'. That's what they are there for. They will have a clear view of how this will fit into the landscape of the field, and will be able to help you avoid the feelings of theoretical inadequacy. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15790,
"author": "user10815",
"author_id": 10815,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10815",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The best idea (personally) is to focus on what you feel the most confident with. If you are not 100% passionate about the new idea (point #1) then you'll be much better off working on improvement of an existing idea (point #2).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15693",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10497/"
]
|
15,697 | <p>My thesis (Canadian Research Based, Computer Science), collects three separate research projects (with a tenuous connecting thread). </p>
<p>While collating these projects into a single document, I have looked into other theses coming out of my university and others in my field, and have realized that it's looking like my thesis is going to be very large. Probably twice the average length of others in my field. </p>
<p>Which makes me wonder: Did I do <strong>too much</strong> work for a thesis? Should I have pushed my supervisor, cancelled the final proposed project (#3) and graduated on the strength of the first two? </p>
<p>I'll be graduating 6 months after my target deadline, with multiple publications, and so burnt out that my initial plan to pursue a PhD has collapsed. Can't change the past, so I'm asking here mostly out of curiosity, and for other future students. </p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15699,
"author": "StrongBad",
"author_id": 929,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/929",
"pm_score": 5,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>It is not clear how to judge the \"size\" of a thesis (page length or word count is probably not very good), but one can clearly do too much research for a Masters or Doctorate. That said a factor of two difference is not really that big since there is always going to be a healthy overlap between the \"largest\" Master thesis and the \"smallest\" PhD thesis. If your Masters thesis is larger than the average PhD thesis and larger than the vast majority of Masters theses, then it is possibly too large.</p>\n\n<p>As a student you need to be asking yourself why you are getting the qualification. Most students put in much more work than that which is required to simply graduate. You should make sure you push your supervisor to help you achieve your goals.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15736,
"author": "Alexandros",
"author_id": 10042,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10042",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It is hard for me to understand some of your thinking. If your MSc thesis has already resulted in \"multiple\" publications, that means that you are actually closer to getting a PHD than most of your co-students, who have to start from scratch. A few weeks of rest, should be sufficient for you to actually recover from your \"burnout\", although it is quite unusual for students to actually refer to burnout from a MSC thesis. As multiple others (before me) have stated, the stress in a REAL job could be several orders of magnitude larger than the stress related with a bachelor or MSc degree (PHD is another case altogether). Also, the fact that a MSc thesis has provided multiple publications is also a good indicator that a) your supervisor knows what he is doing (which is a huge PLUS) b) you probably have what it takes to actually be successful in a future PHD. </p>\n\n<p>Still, if you found the work for your thesis boring, stressful or simply too much for you, perhaps a PHD is not for you (and vice-versa). So, think it over (after some weeks of rest) on what you actually want. I am sure you will make the right choice (whatever that is) for you.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15744,
"author": "J. Zimmerman",
"author_id": 7921,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7921",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p><strong>As with many questions in academia, the answer is \"It depends.\"</strong></p>\n\n<p><em>Too much</em> is a subjective term, but I think it probable that you did not put <em>too much</em> work into your thesis, in that the extra work should not cause the work to be of lesser quality, nor should you be judged negatively on the basis of having a larger than average thesis. Although there are limits as to how much extra work is beneficial and how much may be perceived as an attempt at padding; in general, having done more research will be a plus no matter what your plans for the future.</p>\n\n<p><strong>However</strong>--and this is the 'it depends' part--you have probably put too much work into the thesis if the following apply to you.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>You have lost the continuity and focus of your work. (How tenuous is the connection between your several projects? Is it a long stretch to connect them in the same work, or are they just different views/portions of the same problem?)</p></li>\n<li><p>You had to neglect other important aspects of your life to complete the third project.</p></li>\n<li><p>You have done research that would better have waited for the PhD program. (This point is debatable; the amount of work that is needed for a successful PhD thesis is a <a href=\"https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/8747/7921\">hotly debated topic</a>, and it is not clear whether it is generally an advantage to have done doctoral level research now.)</p></li>\n<li><p>You are facing a long-term burnout as a result of over-work during your Master thesis. Don't jump to this conclusion too quickly--take some time off, and give yourself permission to do absolutely nothing except be lazy and have fun. Even a week of this total vacation can do wonders to relieve the stress that we over-achievers put on ourselves!</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Ultimately only you can decide whether or not you have put in <em>too much</em> work on your Master's thesis. But before you decide that this is the case (and also before you give up on attaining a PhD), take a break, recuperate, and give yourself a chance to see the world through less-stressed eyes!</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15697",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10757/"
]
|
15,700 | <p>I'm working on a extensive paper for my study. It's about some computational stuff, has 5 chapters and will be - all in all - roughly 60 pages long. Reading some papers and theses I noticed, that often people start each chapter with some kind of an overview, describing what's going to happen next. Though on the one hand, I find this helpful sometimes, on the other hand it pulls me out off the flow of the actual work. In some papers, it seems even that certain things, which are going to come up are announced repeatedly and I feel a bit over-informed of the papers structure.</p>
<p>Therefore I'd like to know: <br><strong>Should each chapter start with such an overview and - if yes -, when and to what extent?</strong></p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15706,
"author": "aeismail",
"author_id": 53,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/53",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is no single right answer for this. A short chapter may not need a paragraph outlining the structure and content, while some chapters may have a quite complicated structure. Use the structure of the chapter to help you decide. The more sections and subsections, and the more you try to do in a chapter, the more useful an introduction should be. </p>\n\n<p>If you include such a description, it should provide the user with the key information they should be looking for as they read. What level of description that should be is up to you to decide; there is no universal standard.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15708,
"author": "Bitwise",
"author_id": 6862,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6862",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My approach is that it is almost always useful to have some form of overview, even for extremely short papers. However, this overview can range from one or more paragraphs to a single sentence.</p>\n\n<p>For example, in a short paper each paragraph usually presents one or more results. I would try then to start each paragraph with a short overview sentence regarding what the sub-question is, then present the results, and sometimes conclude with a summary sentence.</p>\n\n<p>Also, note that an overview does not necessarily have to interrupt the flow of a paper. In many cases, if the paper is constructed such that it follows a single narrative, it is possible for the overview to establish a conceptual connection between sections. In its simplest form this would be \"Given that we found X and Y, we now asked whether Z\".</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15716,
"author": "fedja",
"author_id": 6118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6118",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The last time I wrote a long paper with a multistep argument, I endowed each <strong><em>section</em></strong> (there were 15 or 16 of those and the total article length was 87 pages in the 12pt font) with the \"objective statement\" (<em>In this section we show that there exists a partition of the set $E$ into \"cells\" with the following properties ...</em>, etc.). Moreover, I italicized these objectives. The reasons I did it were</p>\n\n<p>a) some of the sections were devoted to things that are known to experts but hardly to the \"general audience\", so which sections to read and which to skip would heavily depend on the reader's general background</p>\n\n<p>b) If you read the italic font alone, you can see the general flow of the proof without computations or technical details. You may then concentrate on \"most suspicious\" or \"least known\" places first.</p>\n\n<p>I had mixed feelings about doing so too, but it looks like the readers have liked it so far. In general, the main question you should ask yourself is whether what you do will facilitate the reading. Everything else (paper economy, stylistic beauty, etc.) is secondary. If you expect 20-50 people to read what you wrote and if you can spare each of them mere 20 minutes (the minimal time needed to verify the ubiquitous phrase \"direct computations yield\"), you advance the general human progress by 7-14 hours already.</p>\n\n<p>Note that what I did was different from the \"Chapter\" approach because I put only one complete logical step into each section. Also it was not about the Lemma/Sublemma/... division, which more often than not reflects the technical convenience rather than the logical structure. Some sections contained several lemmata needed to carry out the corresponding logical step and some lemmas were done in two steps. </p>\n\n<p>The last thing I want to say is that, when reading, most people, including myself, prefer a repetition to an omission, and being over-informed to being under-informed, so few people, if any, will criticize you for being too clear or too slow.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15700",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
15,705 | <p>In EndNote, I know there's an option to automatically download PDF files for the references you have in your library. Is there any way to do the same thing in some kind of non-commercial software, like for example Mendeley or BibDesk?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15764,
"author": "Speldosa",
"author_id": 141,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/141",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>As suggested by @embert in the comments to my original question, this is possible with the help of <a href=\"http://www.citavi.com\" rel=\"nofollow\">Citavi</a>. After you've imported your references, go to \"References\" -> \"Check availability and find full text\" (the process is explained <a href=\"http://www.citavi.com/sub/manual4/en/index.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">here</a>).</p>\n\n<p>From initial testing, this feature only seems to work when you have the DOI number for the articles. However, when you do, Citavi finds and downloads the PDFs.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 108361,
"author": "Dr Krishnakumar Gopalakrishnan",
"author_id": 82777,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/82777",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>The answer here uses proprietary/paid software. I propose a FOSS solution that works reliably for this task. </p>\n\n<p>The cross-platform software <code>JabRef</code> has integrated fulltext fetchers to download the fulltext for any entry in the library. Import your bib file into Jabref and select a number of entries. Then, from the <code>Quality</code> pull-down menu, select <code>Lookup Fulltext documents</code>. However, you still have to manually confirm the download in a pop-up. But this is still just a bunch of clicking 'OK's at the same spatial location (for each pop-up that appears sequentially) with the mouse. Jabref does the heavy-lifting in the back to correctly download the PDF and link it appropriately by matching it to each relevant citation entry.</p>\n\n<p>The latest master build of Jabref is recommended, since there were some recent fixes to the IEEE Fetcher. <a href=\"https://builds.jabref.org/master/\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">https://builds.jabref.org/master/</a> (if IEEE matters to the OP)</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/12 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15705",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/141/"
]
|
15,712 | <p>When I read general recommendations on how to choose a PhD programme/advisor, it seems that many academics agree that one of the most important factors is the reputation of the advisor.</p>
<p>Next year, I may have the opportunity to undertake a PhD under the supervision of a "superstar" faculty who is considered an authority in his field. However, the professor in question recently moved to a university where the official language of instruction is one that I don't speak (though I would be allowed to write my thesis in english), and thus I would most likely not be able to gain teaching experience during this time.</p>
<p>Now, most job offers for postdoctoral or tenure-track professor positions that I see advertised online require a teaching statement and that one of the letters of recommendation address the teaching ability of the candidate.</p>
<p>In light of this, my question is the following: Is teaching experience for entry level academic jobs so important that it is always better to have a fair amount of it while completing a PhD no matter how well-reputed your potential supervisor could be?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15715,
"author": "Matt Reece",
"author_id": 6108,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6108",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Go where you can do the best research, and don't worry about teaching experience. I had no teaching experience whatsoever when I was hired as an assistant professor.</p>\n\n<p>This could depend on your field: in my field (theoretical high-energy physics), postdoc applications almost never ask for a teaching statement, and postdocs don't teach. Junior faculty jobs do require a teaching statement, but my impression is that it's one of the less important elements of the application.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15719,
"author": "WetlabStudent",
"author_id": 8101,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/8101",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Do it! If you are worrying about the teaching experience you can always spend a summer at at an outreach program teaching motivated high school students, underserved community members, ect. That kind of teaching experience can lead to a very strong teaching statement even with no college teaching experience. But anyways, you should focus on your research, while faculty positions generally do require some proof that you aren't an awful teacher, postdocs for the most part do not. Often a postdoc is a person's first time teaching.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15720,
"author": "Nate Eldredge",
"author_id": 1010,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/1010",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I'd advise caution: completing a PhD with no teaching experience is risky, as you're putting all your eggs in the \"research\" basket.</p>\n\n<p>As other answers mentioned, there certainly are jobs that don't necessarily require teaching experience. These are likely to be jobs in places where research is paramount; probably the top-tier research universities. There is massive competition for these jobs; the number of such jobs in such a year is at best a few percent of the number of new PhDs. Only the most successful researchers will have a chance at getting them, and if you don't turn out to be one of them (or discover you just don't enjoy research that much), you'll be out of luck in this arena.</p>\n\n<p>At most of the remaining institutions, teaching is more important and experience will be valued, and you'll be in competition with candidates who have substantial experience. So if you don't have any, you may be out of luck here too.</p>\n\n<p>(I don't share MHH's confidence that alternative teaching activities such as high school outreach will be viewed as similarly valuable by a search committee. Community college teaching might, but it also involves a higher level of responsibility and time commitment.)</p>\n\n<p>That would leave only the bottom of the barrel of academic jobs: those who don't care too much about research accomplishments <em>or</em> teaching experience, and just need a warm body with a PhD. These won't be nice jobs: they'll have high teaching loads, low pay, and limited instructional support; and even so there's intense competition for them. </p>\n\n<p>The remaining option would be to leave academia for industry.</p>\n\n<p>So in summary, if you aren't able to gain meaningful teaching experience, you'll be committing yourself to aiming for the most difficult jobs to get, without much of a fallback plan (within academia) if that doesn't work out.</p>\n\n<p>(Disclaimer: My experience is limited to the US, and mostly in mathematics. Things may be different elsewhere.)</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15734,
"author": "username",
"author_id": 10772,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10772",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Mathematics in many language is the same, it's not that hard to learn if the language is reasonably close to what you know (French, Italian, Spanish, German are close to English). In any case, learning how to speak Foreigner is always a good thing. </p>\n\n<p>So applies for research universities applications. If you are interested in teaching for liberal arts colleges, they really want a US teaching experience. Other countries typically have much better prepared students entering university, so your experience would be less interesting for them, because you would know how to teach more advanced students than the ones they have.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15712",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
15,722 | <p>I am a college sophomore and I am debating transferring out of my current school, Hunter college. My GPA is 3.56 and I am a CS and psychology major, concentration of behavioral neuroscience. </p>
<p>Now, I have always been interested in research but the resources in my school seems very tight and my overall experience has been very unsatisfying. My ultimate goal is to try out for MD/PhD program with a background in BCI (Brain computer interface) but my school offers no program in any close proximation. </p>
<p>So, should I transfer out or hold on until the end of my 4 years? And also is my GPA reasonable to transfer into better schools like <a href="http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/new-york-university-2785" rel="nofollow">NYU</a> or <a href="http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/wake-forest-university-2978" rel="nofollow">WakeForest University</a>? </p>
<p><em>Should I focus on graduating from my current school or plan to transfer to a more prestigious school?</em></p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15787,
"author": "user10815",
"author_id": 10815,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10815",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Don't transfer. Try to learn to make use of the available resources. Focus on <strong>hard work</strong> and <strong>your own research</strong>. Sometimes studying a difficult book is more rewarding than having access to high-tech instruments and possibly not really understanding how they work.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15792,
"author": "Argalatyr",
"author_id": 9748,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/9748",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>It's all about what you accomplish - whether you stay where you are or transfer. Yes, if you can transfer to a school with a stronger reputation and hit the ground running, that <em>may</em> put you in a better position. That said, it's not going to be easy to transfer in with only a fairly high GPA at a less-rigorous school, and you'll lose some time in making the transition/adjusting.</p>\n\n<p>A transfer can be a warning sign - is this someone with a pattern of not finishing what they start, or was this an isolated, carefully-considered, strategic choice? If the latter, no problem.</p>\n\n<p>When I consider applicants, what they do (e.g. specific field) is far less important than how they advance and accomplish, what aptitude they have demonstrated for gaining new skills and working with a team. I'm sure there are things that could be accomplished at your current school, even if the topic is not your first choice. The letters from mentors carry a lot of weight. It takes time to establish strong relationships after a transfer - keep that in mind if you already have an advocate on the faculty at your current school (and consider getting their advice on this).</p>\n\n<p>There is no <em>right</em> or <em>wrong</em> decision; regardless of whether you stay or go, the real challenge is making the most of the available resources and developing strong mentors among the faculty.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15794,
"author": "Nobody",
"author_id": 546,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/546",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am not an expert in neuroscience or BCI. However, I found <a href=\"http://www.bpendure.org/\" rel=\"nofollow\">BP-Endure program</a> where your current school Hunter College is a major partner.</p>\n\n<p>On their web page,</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <p>During the academic year students will work with a research mentor at Hunter or NYU and during the summer in one of the partnering institutions. The BP-ENDURE program selects students from both Hunter College and NYU to participate. <strong>Hunter</strong> students will receive funding in the form of tuition remission and a stipend during the academic year and will also receive summer funding.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I am not sure why you said <em>the resources in my school seems very tight</em> and <em>my school offers no program in any close proximation</em>. Are you having difficulty getting into that program?</p>\n\n<p>Transferring to another school may cost you a lot than what you'll gain. You may lose the credits you already have and retake courses you have taken plus your financial loss. However, if you have other difficulties with your current school(which you have not mentioned), then transferring may be an option for you.</p>\n\n<p>My advice for <strong>you</strong> specifically, stay there and study hard, grab any opportunity to enter into the BP-Endure program.</p>\n\n<p><strong>In general</strong>, however, if your research area requires resources you don't have in your current school, it's worth considering transferring. You need to weigh on the cost vs. gain. You can either stay in the current school acquiring fundamental knowledge and apply to a graduate school where you would have better resources after you graduate, or transfer to another undergraduate school with <strong>much better</strong> resources.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15798,
"author": "Twitch",
"author_id": 10817,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10817",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I transferred schools during undergraduate under a similar situation, but with a different academic focus. The school I ended up transferring into was far more competitive, so I got what I wanted. </p>\n\n<p>Unfortunately, I also ended up staying in the program for an additional year because the school I transferred into required that I take <em>their</em> version of the same courses. </p>\n\n<p>When I finally graduated, I was proud that I was pushed harder and learned more, but found that many of the same opportunities existed despite having gone to a better university. </p>\n\n<p>I have since completed a masters without any intentions of continuing towards a PhD, but I found that I do enjoy research, so now I am in the second year of my PhD studies. Actually, I regret having entered into the PhD program but that is beside the point. </p>\n\n<p>The lessons that I've learned from about 8 years of college at this point are that undergraduate research appointments are... well... not all they're cracked up to be. </p>\n\n<p>The better research opportunities are available for masters students, and the best for PhD students, and even that is a completely relative situation depending on a huge number of factors. I've seen two of my fellow PhD students transfer universities after their professor took a job elsewhere. I've seen PhD students in very competitive departments get stuck with a lame professor; and I've likewise seen PhD students in lame departments find an awesome professor. </p>\n\n<p>And, to make research opportunities more difficult to gauge: its commonly known amongst graduate students that the pecking order for research appointments benefits the PhDs the most, and the undergraduates the least. Often the undergraduates are used for all the crap nobody else wants to do, and while learning the basics might be good for an undergraduate, the work is usually tedious, boring and repetitive. </p>\n\n<p>Masters students are usually given more application based work, which is really good for honing skills, and the PhDs are given the more theoretical work, which even then can be a professors sloppy seconds. </p>\n\n<p>The best advice I can give you is to stay exactly where you and look for research opportunities with a professor that you really enjoy and want for mentorship. If you have a particular project in mind, then do an independent study with them. Having a solid GPA and having demonstrated an individual drive <em>can</em> speak volumes more than attaching yourself to a bunch of names (though I don't underestimate the name attachment in academia). </p>\n\n<p>EDIT: As a second thought, I can't tell you how much it sucked switching universities and becoming distant with those friendships I made. Yeah, I made new friends that were also really awesome, but starting over can be lonely.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15818,
"author": "user10834",
"author_id": 10834,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10834",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Well your GPA seems very good and i feel you can get admission in any other college. If you think you are not satisfied with the performance of your institute then there is no point of staying there because at the back of your mind you will always be thinking that you could have been to some better place. I believe that you should have been more cautious before choosing your institute because switching it is a bit difficult task. If you would have assured before admission that an institute is accredited as per standards, <a href=\"http://www.iao.org/iao/institutional-accreditation/\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.iao.org/iao/institutional-accreditation/</a>, then you would have an enhanced sense of credibility. My advice is to look for another institute which you feel is as per global standards.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15722",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10766/"
]
|
15,732 | <p>I am an independent researcher working outside of academia with no past track record so far. Is it still possible to apply for research grants anyway, and how should I go about doing so?</p>
<p>I do have a very good research plan, but the catch is, I need some funding before I can carry them out. How can I convince grant agencies to give me a chance?</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15737,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There's an enormous range of different types of grants. Some are from large government agencies that are correspondingly bureaucratic; others are from private foundations that may take an idiosyncratic approach to deciding who to fund. So the answer may depend on what sort of funding you are looking for. To a first approximation, it will be difficult to get government funding as a truly independent researcher (without some affiliation with a university, non-profit agency, think tank, industrial lab, etc.). That would be the first place I'd start, by trying to get an affiliation that would allow you to apply for grants through an established institution. If you can't convince anyone to let you do this, then your grant application is probably hopeless anyway, and if you can, then it will be a big help.</p>\n\n<p>A second issue is how literally you mean you have \"no track record\". If you have a minor track record (e.g., a degree and some publications in related areas), then it might be possible. If you literally have no track record at all (no relevant degree, no history of related work, no relevant prior accomplishments, nothing), then it will probably be impossible to get a grant. Even if you have a great idea, there would be no evidence that you are actually capable of carrying it out. Maybe it's not strictly impossible - theoretically you could present an idea so obviously great that merely coming up with the idea would itself be strong evidence of competence - but it's highly unlikely to be worth the effort of applying if you have no track record at all.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15738,
"author": "xLeitix",
"author_id": 10094,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10094",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Ok, this is going to sting a bit, but, practically, this is not going to happen, no matter how brilliant your research idea and plan is. In practice, the <strong>scientific credentials</strong> of the proposal author / proposed principal investigator are very important to project / grant acceptance. Having no affiliation with a well-reputed research institution is already a strike against you, but not having a track record is a knockout criterion for each funding agency I am aware of. To give you one concrete example, the Austrian Science Foundation (FWF) will, according to their published rules, not even scientifically review a proposal with an <em>insufficiently experienced principal investigator</em>. From what I have heard, other agencies have similar formal rules. In short: you <strong>will</strong> need a co-proposer with sufficient standing in your field, otherwise you are essentially wasting your time preparing the proposal.</p>\n\n<p>Maybe this seems unfair to you, but try to see it from the point of view of the funding agency. While <strong>you</strong> may have strong confidence in you and your project, you are a huge risk factor to the agency. You have no demonstrated experience in leading a project, maybe not even in participating in one, you are not embedded into on of the traditional research environments, you do not necessarily have the resources to even conduct the research project, and, from a legal point of view, if you just take the provided grants and run away, there is no organisation that the funding agency can sue to get their money back.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15741,
"author": "Fomite",
"author_id": 118,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/118",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Again, depending on what you mean by \"No Past Track Record\", this is going to be hard if not impossible.</p>\n\n<p>Many granting agencies, in their grant reviews, have a section on the environment/institution/etc. Essentially, this is asking \"Are you in a place that can get this research done\". And it often extends to more than just practical questions - do you have institutional support? Is there a sufficient mentorship scheme for new investigators, etc.</p>\n\n<p>For most of these, many grant reviewers will look at an entirely independent scientist and say \"No.\" Or score you rather poorly, which in today's funding environment is essentially the same as saying No.</p>\n\n<p>Depending on how much you need, there are however a number of Kickstarter-esq crowd funding platforms for science. These might be a place to make your case directly, if the amount of money you need is modest.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15732",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10776/"
]
|
15,739 | <p><a href="https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/9523/is-it-acceptable-as-referee-to-contact-an-author-on-a-paper-you-review">This is related to this question</a>, but it is more a special case of it.</p>
<p>I reviewed a manuscript, which was submitted to a reputable traditional journal. The journal has a single-blind review system. I liked the manuscript a lot, as it was closely related to my research interests. However, the authors did not do a great job in reporting the manuscript, and I provided a long review with several suggestions for improving the report. </p>
<p>I suggested major revisions, but the editor rejected the paper. That is ok for me; it is the editor's responsibility to take such decisions. What is important is that the process is now closed.</p>
<p>By re-reading my review together with the other two referee's reviews, I came up with a couple other suggestions that I truly believe would benefit to the manuscript. <strong>Would it be a bad practice to contact the authors now that the paper is no longer under review?</strong> I do not mind unveiling my identity, and I would do that only because I want to advance the research in the paper. That is, I just want to help them.</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15740,
"author": "Cape Code",
"author_id": 10643,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10643",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>It sounds like a good thing to do, <strong>since the reviewing process for this journal is over</strong>. I would certainly appreciate it if I where the author of that article (passed the frustration that generally follows article rejection).</p>\n\n<p>It's almost certain that it will be submitted somewhere else, so your (free) inputs will benefit the authors and the community.</p>\n\n<p>This is valid, of course, only if you are <strong>not reviewer again</strong> in the next submission, you should definitely decline if it happens.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15742,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Once a paper has been either accepted or rejected and is, so to speak, through the system, there is nothing that should prevent contact between author and reviewer. One problem is that it is sometimes difficult as a reviewer to know if a paper has been rejected since such decisions are not declared openly and are known only to the journal and the author(s). It is the non-appearance of the finished product that signals rejection. This is true even if you provided a suggestion for rejection since you do not know what the second (or more) reviewer suggested and how the editors decided.</p>\n\n<p>This means you should probably go through the editor therefore you contact the author to make sure you do not complicate the processing of a paper that might still be under consideration within the journal. Contacting the editor and explaining your intent will clear all such potential \"hazards\".</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15759,
"author": "Tom-Tom",
"author_id": 10030,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10030",
"pm_score": 0,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Maybe you should ask yourself the question: \"do I want to exchange or collaborate with these guys ?\" When I read things such as (I'm quoting you)</p>\n\n<blockquote>\n <ul>\n <li>it was closely related to my research interests</li>\n <li>I came out with a couple other suggestions</li>\n <li>I care for the research in the topic to advance</li>\n <li>I would like to let the authors contact me back</li>\n </ul>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>I get the feeling that you might well answer \"yes\", it really sounds like a good prospect for them and for you. In that case, you really should create a contact. </p>\n\n<p>Revealing yourself as the referee X of their freshly rejected paper is however a bit hazardous, because you don't know how they have felt the reviewing process. They might believe that you, referee X, also sent privately words to the editor suggesting rejection. You won't be able to know that until the authors know you and trust you, this is why it seems more reasonable to remain, at least for a while, under cover. If after some time exchanging with them you feel confident enough that there is no resentment, you <em>may</em> reveal yourself, but I would suggest not to do it.</p>\n\n<p>The question is therefore not solved at all: how to contact them? An idea: Read through their website, homepages, previous publications and look for keywords that you would use for a google search. Enter them in google and try to obtain some of these web pages or articles among the first google results. Then write an email starting by a short introduction of yourself and explaining (very) briefly how you found their names and stating that you are interesting in exchanging with them. Use some keywords as hooks, show enthusiasm and suggest some ideas, but do it in such a way, they don't figure out that you very much more about them. That will be an acrobatic e-mail!</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15768,
"author": "Anonymous Mathematician",
"author_id": 612,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/612",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One important consideration is whether the paper is publicly available (for example, being circulated on the web as a preprint). If it is, then it's perfectly reasonable to get in touch with the authors and offer suggestions. You don't need to address the question of how you heard about the paper if you don't want to. If you do want to reveal yourself as a reviewer, I think it's fine, but I've run across people who disagree about this.</p>\n\n<p>It's much trickier if the existence of the paper is itself confidential. If for some reason I submitted a paper without circulating it publicly, and then after rejection a referee contacted me privately with detailed suggestions for improvement, I would feel uncomfortable. It would look a little too much like an attempt to become involved in the research or writing, and I would wonder whether the referee might take offense if I just said \"thanks for the suggestions\" and didn't engage in further discussion or collaboration.</p>\n\n<p>If you have confidential knowledge about a paper, then you must not even appear to be using it for your own benefit. For example, you can't ask to start a collaboration or try to find out more about this research.</p>\n\n<p>If there's no public preprint, then it's safest to make contact through the editor, and at the very least you should ask the editor about what you intend to do (the editor may well object, and in any case you need to avoid seeming secretive about it). Even if the editor approves, you should be careful, since innocent actions may be misinterpreted.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15739",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/-1/"
]
|
15,745 | <p>I am starting a post-doc in Cognitive Neuroscience and I am interested in publishing my work in high impact journals (e.g., Nature, Science, Behavioral and Brain Science). I have already published review articles in not-so-high impact journals, and I would like to know your thoughts and tips for publishing in high-impact journals. I will be responsible for submitting these papers to these journals and I will be seeing them through to the end. Ay helpful advice and tips would be greatly appreciated!</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15748,
"author": "james234",
"author_id": 7937,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7937",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>If you are publishing in emerging fields where much research has not been done, you have good chance to get published, even though its not groundbreaking. First movers are always at an advantage. Just like patents.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15757,
"author": "Espanta",
"author_id": 6393,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/6393",
"pm_score": 7,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>High impact journals, or in other word, top ranked journals (based on IF) are those publishing the state-of-the-art research works with high percentage of novelty and originality. In my <strong>own opinion</strong> following tips are very important in getting into the high impact journals:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Select a real challenging problem whose solution/amendment significantly impacts on the domain.</li>\n<li>Formulate the problem (using mathematical modeling, visualization, or empirical experiment depending on the domain) and let peers/reviewers see the significance of the problem. </li>\n<li>Propose a solution with high degree of novelty in a way that has not been undertaken before for the same problem. </li>\n<li>Throughout the research try to follow the conventions of research in your domain in the highest possible level, especially when it comes to evaluation and validation of your work. </li>\n<li>In data collection phase, try to follow the most appropriate approaches and use accurate tools to measure/quantify. Maybe looking at similar papers can help you in this.</li>\n<li>Avoid silly mistakes. Usually reviewers do not expect to see silly mistakes in the work. If you make small obvious mistakes, how can reviewers ensure the rest of your work is error-free.</li>\n<li>Show high level of confidence in understanding and expertise over the domain. If you need to review related works in your paper, try to select those closely related to your work; not any work.</li>\n<li>Present your work nicely. Avoid English errors (no grammar and no spelling). Use professional drawing tools to draw high quality figures, draw nice tables, use proper sizing for objects in the paper, not too big, not to small.</li>\n<li>There is an approach by some young authors that leave some works to be done in revisions stage, which is not correct to me. Don't send incomplete work to any high quality journal. There will hardly be any chance to correct mistakes. The review is more to evaluate the significance of the work, the novelty, relevance to the journal, and research practice presented in the paper. Reviewers are not English proof reader and their job is not to correct you.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>There may be lot more tips that I will compile as I noticed. Hope it works.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15934,
"author": "h22",
"author_id": 10920,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10920",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Well, if \"super cool\" ... There was a history when one laboratory has published a highly impressive discovery in a very reputable journal. Then they found a mistake in they experimental setup, and applied with another paper to the same journal, just to say the previous result is wrong. This was also accepted and now they have two publications in highly reputable journal ... for nothing. </p>\n\n<p>But I believe this \"trick\" was not intentional and I am far from recommending it. </p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15964,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>There is really nothing special that causes your paper to be accepted in a high-impact journal. If we start by looking at Science and Nature, they publish material more like a newspaper would than a scientific journal ( I am not saying it is without worth, they just have different criteria for their selection). The material needs to be extraordinary by, for example, being \"sensational\" in some way, by affecting many, or by causing a change in paradigm. It is really hard to design your research to obtain such results. They may be a result of good design but also luck. So if we disregard from results that fall into the science/nature categories and focus on more normal science output the following (adapted from Lichtfouse, 2013) will be the basis for high-impact publications:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>Select your journal carefully</li>\n<li>Be careful to follow the instructions for authors</li>\n<li>Focus the article on one finding</li>\n<li>Prepare one figure that shows or illustrates the main main finding</li>\n<li>Explain your new finding in the abstract, the discussion AND the conclusions</li>\n<li>Delete any irrelevant results or those that are not explained</li>\n<li>Distinguish clearly between the results from your study and those of others</li>\n<li>Include a good dose of education and dissemination</li>\n<li>Read your article at least five times before submitting it</li>\n<li>make sure your manuscript is written in good English</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>While this may look like generic advise, it is followed by so few that it will set your manuscript apart from the majority. Some of the points also involve serious work so it is perhaps a deceptively simple list.</p>\n\n<p>Lichtfouse, E., 2013. Scientific writing for impact journals. Nova, New York.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 27772,
"author": "hplieninger",
"author_id": 21216,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/21216",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>Others have asked and tried to answer this question before. Here is an ad-hoc list of resources relevant to your question, both print and online.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>Sternberg, R. J. (Ed.). (2000). <em>Guide to publishing in psychology journals</em>. Cambridge University. (field: psychology)</p></li>\n<li><p>Bem, D. J. (2003) Writing the empirical journal article. <a href=\"http://www.psych.utoronto.ca/users/reingold/courses/resources/handouts_apa/Bem-WritingArticle.pdf\" rel=\"noreferrer\">url.</a> (field: psychology)</p></li>\n<li><p>Roediger III, H. L. (2007). Twelve tips for authors. <em>APS Observer, 20</em>. <a href=\"http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/publications/observer/2007/june-july-07/twelve-tips-for-authors.html\" rel=\"noreferrer\">url.</a> (field: psychology)</p></li>\n<li><p>King, G. (2006). Publication, publication. <em>PS: Political Science & Politics, 39</em>, 119-125. doi:10.1017/S1049096506060252 (field: political science)</p></li>\n<li><p>Senturia, S. D. (2003). Guest editorial: How to avoid the reviewer's axe: One editor's view. <em>Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems, 12</em>, 229-232. doi:10.1109/JMEMS.2003.814319 (field: mechanics)</p></li>\n<li><p><a href=\"http://www.ejcr.org/teaching-sets/teachingsets.html\" rel=\"noreferrer\">Manuscript review histories of the Journal of Consumer Research.</a> One can track the whole review history of a couple of papers including the submissions, reviews, resubmissions, etc. (field: consumers)</p></li>\n</ul>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 76386,
"author": "Lubanov",
"author_id": 61415,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/61415",
"pm_score": -1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>1) Produce good science\n2) Go to groups which already published in Science, Nature, etc. </p>\n\n<p>Both conditions are necessary (especially the second).</p>\n\n<p>Slots in journals with IF>10 are practically \"inherited\" (you can publish there sth if your PI already published there etc.) - thus you need be very selective in case of where you want to do PhD, postdoc. </p>\n\n<p>In simple words, if you are independent scientist without publication record in Science, Nature, Cell, ... Editors will reject your manuscript in one day without reading it (you will get this nice courtesy letter, that your work is nice, but does not have wide impact ble ble). Sad, but true.</p>\n\n<p>This is hard rule, I know only one exception in which one scientist broke it, but it is single case in the 20-year history of science in my country and it was celebrated almost as national holiday, but he was already established scientist, EMBO member etc).</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15745",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10780/"
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|
15,750 | <p>How many interviews does a typical good liberal arts school do at the Joint Mathematical Meetings every year?</p>
<p>Background: I'm on the math job market for the first time this year. For the most part I applied to postdocs, but I also applied to a handful of very good liberal arts places this year, any of which I would prefer to a postdoc. I assume that with my rather short publication list and teaching history I'm a long shot, but I do have a couple interviews lined up. Really I'm just trying to gauge whether I have a nonzero chance at an offer (assuming not, but it will be good practice for a few years down the road).</p>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15751,
"author": "BSteinhurst",
"author_id": 7561,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7561",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": true,
"text": "<p>The Employment Center runs for three and a half days with time increments down to 15/20 minutes. So you could physically expect three interviews an hour for about 30 hours for a physical (and totally absurd) upper bound of roughly 100. But from what I have seen going through this Employment Center three times is 30-40 is more realistic and I have seen schools do as few as 15-20. Often they also do phone/Skype interviews with interesting candidates who did not attend the Joint Meetings. This gives you a rough estimate of how long the list you find yourself on is. </p>\n\n<p>You mentioned that you have a short publication list and teaching history. If they are willing to talk to you they have already decided that you are interesting enough to spend their time with you. So be ready to tell them quickly why you are worth more of their time and why you are interested in their school (have an answer for this one). Also do not forget the thank you e-mails afterwards.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 16024,
"author": "nagniemerg",
"author_id": 11084,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/11084",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>I am on the market this year and attended the JMMs in Baltimore. After not tailoring my application whatsoever to liberal art schools (which I don't advise) since my primary goal is a research post-doc position, I had 5 different interviews (TT AP) and 1 post doc interview (which, I understand there were not many post-doc interviews anyway . . . and none at the employment center).</p>\n\n<p>Anyway, most places, (from what I know), have about 40 interviewees they talk to. The goal is to whittle this down to 2-3 candidates that they can invite to on-site interviews (and possibly more if they have more than 1 opening, i.e. they may invite 6 people for on-site interviews).</p>\n\n<p>At the JMMs, these are speed-date interviews. They want to know if they like you as a person and can foresee you spending your entire life at University X.</p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/13 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15750",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
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|
15,755 | <p>I am consistently facing this issue: NO one (<em>except some reviewers when I submit a manuscript</em>) provides me with a detailed/core criticism of my PhD work. </p>
<p>My supervisor usually gives me general advice; sometimes he tries his best to understand and propose some trial-and-error approaches for the problem (most often I have tried these approaches before he proposes them). I simply <strong>cannot find someone who will smack me on the face</strong> and tell me the truth about my research. </p>
<p>After chatting with another PhD student, I found he has the same issue. However, he told me it is because PhD students have very specialised knowledge on a particular topic that makes it very hard – even for supervisors – to comment on it in a detailed manner. Well I still can't believe that's true in general.</p>
<p>So: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>What should you do when you can't find smack-on-the.face feedback? </p>
</blockquote>
| [
{
"answer_id": 15758,
"author": "Peter Jansson",
"author_id": 4394,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/4394",
"pm_score": 4,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>My first reaction is: why do you need a smack in the face? Research education aims to educate PhD students to become independent researchers able to perform research, publish it, write applications for new research supervise new PhD students etc. Once you pass the PhD defence the only smack in the face you get is when your papers are rejected, your funding application is rejected etc. Towards the end of a PhD it is normal that your knowledge in your topic stretches farther than that of your advisor. From this perspective, a smack in the face is not the most obvious test of your progress.</p>\n\n<p>I can understand if you feel you do not receive feedback on your work. In an ideal situation you should be able to discuss your science and use such feedback to improve. Your advisor should be able to read your manuscripts and provide feedback and suggestions on how to improve it before publication (or if your write a monograph, before you defend). Now all advisor-students relationships are different since we deal with personalities. To some extent one need to adapt and find ones own way in that relationship, I know this from my own experience.</p>\n\n<p>So although your situation is perhaps not ideal, it does not sound as it is truly problematic. It sounds like you get more feedback than you can expect after your PhD. If you need specific feedback on any part of the research process, you should look around to see if any other persons can provide such. For PhD students getting papers past peer review is the hardest hurdle to cross and as such the sign of the worth of your research. Most advisors try to help students reach this level so the worst smack in the face they consider is the dreaded rejection. If you get your material past peer review, you are really doing (perhaps more than) fine.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15767,
"author": "Jeffiekins",
"author_id": 10805,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/10805",
"pm_score": 4,
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"text": "<p>In the real world (after graduation), the only time you are likely to get feedback like that is from a friend or (if you're <em>really</em> lucky) a mentor. I suggest asking yourself: \"of all the people I know, who would be the most likely to understand this after I explain it to him/her?\"</p>\n\n<p>Then, invite that person over (or out) to share beer and pizza, or whatever people sit and talk over where you are. (<em>coffee and cake?</em>) Sit and talk. Ask what (s)he's doing, be genuinely interested and express your appreciation. Then tell what you're doing. If they say \"that sounds interesting,\" ask if they'd be willing to read and tell you <em>what they really think</em> about it. If not, ask yourself the question in the previous paragraph again, and repeat.</p>\n\n<p>Don't be afraid to say \"the reason I asked you over is because I thought you'd be able to understand what I'm doing, and I just wanted to talk about it with you.\" It's true, and almost anyone would be pleased to hear that.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 15775,
"author": "badroit",
"author_id": 7746,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/7746",
"pm_score": 3,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>However, he told me it is because PhD students have very specialised knowledge in a particular topic that makes it very hard -even for supervisors- to comment on it in a detailed manner. Well I still can't believe that's true in general.</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p>Well if the implication is that your work as a PhD so specialised that nobody can give you useful feedback, I don't believe it either. If you cannot communicate your work in a manner that someone knowledgeable in the general area can understand and provide feedback, then your research should be doomed to fail since you won't be able to publish.</p>\n\n<p>What is more likely is that your supervisor is insufficiently \"incentivised\" to put the effort required into understanding your work to give you useful feedback. There are many shades of grey here too. Different supervisors approach supervision at different levels of abstraction. Some are hands-off details. Some are hands-on details. Some need little incentive. Some need lots. </p>\n\n<p>(Similarly, if you cannot interest someone enough in your research for long to engage them for feedback, I think your research is, in the longer term, also in deep water since you'll need these communication skills when applying for funding grants, to gain citations for your papers, etc.)</p>\n\n<p>In any case, if you're looking for feedback other than your supervisor or colleagues ...</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>I'm not sure about in your area, but in Computer Science, there are ample ways of getting feedback on your work at conferences and other such venues.</p>\n\n<p>Typically these conferences hold events specifically for mentoring students called a \"<em>Doctoral Symposium</em>\", \"<em>Doctoral Consortium</em>\", \"<em>Mentoring Lunches</em>\", etc. The format is different for each conference, but typically students submit a paper outlining their topic; the paper is peer-reviewed under special criteria. If accepted, the student is paired with one or two \"mentors\" (senior researchers who know something about the topic) at the event. The student presents their work to the broader symposium and afterwards gets some alone time with their mentor(s) who are typically instructed to be friendly to the student, but also to give some tough love if needed. As a bonus, many conferences publish the papers from these events in their proceedings, giving you a publication.</p>\n\n<p>Another excellent opportunity for feedback is to attend a relevant summer school. At least in some of the schools I've lectured at, in between talks, the mentors have provided ample time to talk with students about their topics and plans, where at the end of the week, each student goes away with the perspectives of three or four mentors as well as a multitude of their peers. (More interactive schools tend to be in remote locations; everyone hangs around afterwards. Less interactive schools tend to be in universities; everyone goes home afterwards.)</p>\n\n<p>Also, think about getting your PhD topic accepted for a poster session somewhere. PhD posters can be a good way to get casual feedback from a wide range of folks.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>If you don't want to go so far away, organise a talk in your school and invite people. Put a lot of effort into making the talk engaging. Try to invite as broad a range of folks as possible and try to get feedback from your supervisor on the talk itself beforehand. Present and take questions.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>The simple catch with all these methods of feedback is to think: how can I make people want to give me feedback, how can I make people comfortable to give me negative feedback, etc. @Jeffiekins suggestion of beer and pizza is a good one. Generally you should never expect feedback; you should earn feedback.</p>\n\n<p>Like in a poster session, if your poster looks unappealing and you look disinterested standing in front of it, and instead of engaging with the person, if you simply read through the text-heavy poster while they wait, then giving you feedback certainly won't be their first priority.</p>\n\n<p>Similar principles apply for your advisor (and elsewhere).</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 63243,
"author": "user49077",
"author_id": 49077,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/49077",
"pm_score": 2,
"selected": false,
"text": "<p>One thing I've found extremely helpful during my PhD and postdoc was searching out and working on collaborative research projects. The ease of doing so may be dependant on your particular field however.</p>\n\n<p>With a project partner, even if they are only focused on a smaller subset of the work, you have an already informed person you can bounce further ideas off of, who can serve as an immediate sanity check, and can help you develop your future steps. These are your co-authors or secondary authors on your publications.</p>\n\n<p>Do you have committee members yet? It sounds like you are a decent portion of the way through the PhD process, and if you are a year or two from the end you might want to start sounding people out. They don't just have to be faculty judging your work - they can be a valuable resources in determining where you are going, what you still need to accomplish, and what is lacking in order to make a complete PhD thesis.</p>\n\n<p>Take a look at the other faculty at your university as well. You may have already had a class with them - if you have, you should be able to pretty easily schedule a talk to them. You'll need to have a pretty well defined problem to bring to them though for this type of chat.</p>\n\n<p>You can ask your advisor for introductions/help with contact in general as well - they will have likely met a good number of people in their career and may have some ideas of where you could start a discussion. Even if the other professors may not help you out directly, they may have students that are interested in chatting or collaborating on something.</p>\n"
},
{
"answer_id": 63299,
"author": "Sathyam",
"author_id": 24064,
"author_profile": "https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/24064",
"pm_score": 1,
"selected": false,
"text": "<blockquote>\n <p>What should you do when you can't find smack-on-the.face feedback?</p>\n</blockquote>\n\n<p><strong>Ask for it.</strong> Chances are that you will indeed get it.\nYou may say something like,</p>\n\n<p><em>Now that I had completed so and so work, I request you to provide me your kind feedback on the work in particular and me as a candidate of science in general.</em></p>\n\n<p><strong><em>P.S.</em></strong> <em>I wish to work on my weakness, if you think any, I am ready to face the harshest of your opinions with a positive attitude.</em></p>\n\n<p>May be a bit of exaggeration, but IMO, this may be a possible option.</p>\n\n<p><strong>Side note</strong>.\nI actually asked my supervisor to have <em>no mercy</em> on me before joining the PhD. I used to get both positive and negative feedback but I cannot say for sure that it is because of my initial request. </p>\n"
}
]
| 2014/01/14 | [
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15755",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com",
"https://academia.stackexchange.com/users/532/"
]
|
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