texts: Would it be rude to ask a famous professor who doesn't know me personally for a recommendation letter if I have published in a high ranking journal?

texts:
Would it be rude to email a famous professor asking for a recommendation letter to Dphil, if I had published in a high or moderately high ranking journal in her/his field and just have letters from foreign unknown professors?

The professor does not know me apart from the published paper. Information about whether the professor knows the paper, or knows me due to the paper, might be edited in later. I was thinking to add my grades (the lowest is an A-), curriculum, and send to professors that work in my subject (it is a very small field). But if it is rude doing this, I don't think it could improve my case.


texts: When to follow up with a potential supervisor after sending referral contact details

texts:
I have recently contacted a professor for an advertised phd position and we had a meeting to discuss the details. After this meeting, which went reasonably well, he asked me to send two referral contacts which he will directly call. Two weeks have passed since I have sent them.

I think it is not too long since it might take some time for him to call both of them (since he and also the referrals are quite busy all the time). However, I'm a bit unsure if I should send a reminder or follow-up e-mail soon to ask the status.

What is the appropriate waiting time for that?


texts: Math Undergrad Wants to do Master's of Statistics

texts:
BACKGROUND

I am a Canadian who is just finishing my undergraduate studies in mathematics. I enjoy mathematics, but I have recently realized that I would rather study statistics in graduate school, and I am excited by the idea of working as a professional statistician. I really did not take very much related to statistics in my undergrad (intro to probability, intro to statistics, intro to stochastic processes, advanced probability). I did however do very well in my undergraduate math, so I have solid grounding in analysis, and other kinds of math used in statistics. I also have some research experience through an NSERC USRA (canadian undergrad research award).

Those in charge of the stats masters programs at my school said that we could make it work, and encouraged me to apply (and essentially told me I would be admitted). However, while my school is solid comprehensive research university, I do not think that its stats department is all that amazing. But, seeing as I would be a little behind, it is sort of a positive for me that the program is not super-elite. It is late for my to apply elsewhere for stats this year.

GOAL

My short term goal is to have a good experience as a master's student in statistics - I want to be exposed to both theoretic and applied stats and probability. My longer term goal is to work as a professional statistician. However I do not want to rule out research.

OPTIONS

Current School offers an 8-month coursework-only Master's, including decent financial support though a TA-ship. I like this because it is short, and what I am looking for in the short term: learning statistics. While I expressed some doubt about the stats department, I have no doubts that the courses will be of high quality.
Current School offers a 16-month Master's with Thesis, with good funding. This seems better and more comprehensive, however that is an extra 8 months during which I could be gaining work experience. Also, because I do not think my current school's statistics department is so great, I am less inclined to commit to research here.
Take some time, take some extra undergrad courses in stats, apply next year to a wider range of stats schools. I am not a huge fan of this option, as I have grown a little tired of being an undergrad and would like to gain some other sort of experience. It is also makes more financial sense here to study as a graduate student.
See below:

QUESTIONS

Is it possible/advisable to use the coursework [masters] at the current school as a way to learn statistics, and possibly pursue graduate studies elsewhere, perhaps after a period of working? Is a non-research masters an asset at all from the point of view of admissions to other graduate programs?
Because (1) seems convoluted, what are further pros/cons of the above three options that I may not see?

(On a meta note: I think in many ways this question could be applied to any field, I am not asking a whole lot about Stats specifically. So I hope it is considered appropriate, I am not so familiar with SE Academia.)


texts: How do I convince professors about my research interests?

texts:
I'm applying to a coursework + thesis masters programme and am wondering how specific do I have to be when mentioning my research interests in my email to a potential advisor. I have applied to another programme before and I think I was too specific when I spoke to the prof. He rejected me immediately because he thinks that our interests do not fit.
As an undergrad applying into a masters course, do I also need to have a research topic ready when contacting the prof? I have trouble refining my research topic as I'm applying into a specialization I've no experience in.
I understand that especially for coursework, there is a chance that our research interest (or topic) might change over time, and in some schools/faculty, masters students aren't really given the full autonomy to decide on their research topics.
How can I convince the prof without sounding like I'm trying to fit into the lab's interests or without deviating too much from his interests?
Thank you.


texts: What are good periodic color scales for density plots of angle-like function values?

texts:
I am writing several papers that require density plots of complex-valued functions of two variables f:R^2→C, where I'm primarily interested in the complex argument arg(f(x,y)) as a function of the input variables, but I wish to emphasize only the regions where the modulus |f(x,y)| is high.

Because of this, my approach thus far has been to produce density plots where the phase arg(f(x,y)) is encoded as the hue, and the modulus |f(x,y)| is encoded as a HSV chroma blend from white (where the modulus is zero, and arg(f(x,y)) is meaningless) to fully-saturated color at maximal modulus, where the phase is a meaningful variable.

However, this scheme suffers from being "non-orthogonal", in that some hue values (notably yellow and cyan) are much lighter than the baseline set by e.g. red or blue. I am looking for a combination that fixes these shortcomings, by providing:

A periodic color scale for the angle-like function value that passes through as many different colors as possible (i.e. at least some six distinct values, with a premium on contrast between them) while still maintaining a constant visual 'strength' throughout that traverse. I care primarily about subjective strength, but lightness is probably a good stand-in.
A conjugate color scale that goes from white to fully-'saturated' color that is as 'orthogonal' as possible to the angle variable.

As an example of what I'm looking for, this is a plot of the function f(x,y) = (x+iy)^2 exp(-(x^2+y^2)) using my current plotting conventions:

Mathematica source via Import["http://halirutan.github.io/Mathematica-SE-Tools/decode.m"]["http://i.stack.imgur.com/NFhW1.png"]

Note in particular how you can immediately read the ^2 exponent from the fact that over a round-trip around the origin you do a red→green→blue→back-to-red loop twice, while still being able to clearly tell that the function is concentrated at a ring around the origin between radii ~0.5 and ~1.5. However, there are still perceived 'intensity' gradients azimuthally within this ring (notably the perceived 'lobes' around the blue areas), which I would like to avoid. I would also, if nothing else, like to smoothen the visual contrast around the sharp ray-like features at yellow, cyan and, to a slightly lesser extent, magenta.

A few final notes:

This problem arises because I'm attempting the ambitious goal of plotting two-dimensional values on a single density plot. I know that this is an ambitious goal and that it may be impossible to fulfill completely. Nevertheless, I think it is still worth doing as good as possible with it.
I have indeed considered other formats to present the same information; you can assume that I've explored them thoroughly and found that they are too cumbersome or otherwise unclear.
This approach will obviously only work when printed out in color, and grayscale printing (either on the print journal or when readers print it out at home) will leave most of this information out. You can assume that I've weighed the pros and cons of this and decided that it's still worth including.
This is also an accessibility problem for readers with color vision deficiency. This is, I feel, an unfortunate necessity of plotting two-dimensional values on a density plot, and I feel the added clarity for non-CVD readers is a worthwhile tradeoff once the information loss for CVD readers is mitigated via other means.

So, with that said: are there better options for dealing with this problem than the hue-chroma combination I'm currently using?


texts: Do I have a better chance for a PhD in a field I have research experience in or one I have had better courses on?

texts:
I'm applying for PhD programs in Computer Science, which allow a year of rotation and courses, before the student officially joins a lab for their thesis. I've had research experience in Computational Biology, but being a Math major, I've had a relatively (relative to average CS graduates) large number of courses on (or related to) Theory CS (I took quite a few advanced courses on topics closely related to Theory CS).

I have two questions:

1 - Do admissions committee generally view an applicant in my situation more qualified for doing a PhD in Theory, or in Comp bio?

2 - Assuming I'm considered more qualified for Comp Bio, is it a bad idea to express interest in working in CompBio, and claim I want to work with an advisor in that area, while I actually plan to do my PhD in TCS? I mean, given that once I get in I'll have the freedom to choose my advisor and I'll have enough time and opportunities to even gain research experience in a different area, could there be any negative consequences in expressing interest in CompBio (and even introduce some vague research ideas), and then if admitted, try to work on TCS?
(moral issues with doing this are of course a different story)


texts: What questions to prepare for PhD defense?

texts:
I will soon defend my PhD in social science in Sweden. I want to ask what questions the evaluation committee will ask me during the defense?
If they ask me some questions outside my thesis, what shall I do? Is it enough only know well my own research?
What quality I need to successfully defend my PhD?


texts: Visit to a different university - is it OK to bring my girlfriend along?

texts:
I am a PhD student, and I was recently invited to visit a university which happens to be at a very attractive touristic location.

It goes without saying that the purpose of the visit is purely scientific, and any other matters are  tangential. On the other hand, it has occurred to me and my long-time girlfriend that it would be a perfect opportunity for her to see this touristically attractive place. Now, I am wondering how best to make the arrangements, so as to maximize both research and personal benefits (and not offend the host as a by-product).

To state the obvious, at the time when I am supposed to be doing research I will be doing research, and not get distracted by the presence of my partner. The place is interesting enough to keep her entertained through the day, and to keep us both entertained during the evenings. I would not expect the host to have much interest in how I spend my free time if I want to be left to my own devices, so if me and my girlfriend make totally separate arrangements and only spend the evenings together, this should not cause any problems.

Keeping things entirely separate feels a little impractical though, so I have some questions about issues that I do not see as so clear-cut. My host will be booking accommodation for me and paying for it. Is it impolite to suggest that he book a double room, and we pay half of the price from our own pocket? It is probable that I will be invited to some social gatherings - maybe beer after a seminar, maybe dinner. Is it polite to bring my partner along/resign from joining? Would it be OK to streach the visit for an extra weekend after the research is done (paying for the hotel, of course, but hopefully still getting the return flight refunded)?

I would also be grateful for input on any issues that I have not yet thought of.

A few details, just in case they are relevant: My field is (pure) mathematics. The university is in Europe, at the Mediterranean coast. The visit is about a week long. We are in a long-distance relationship, so a extra week together does make a difference. The host strikes me as rather easy-going, but I don't know him that well.


texts: Copyright of reproduced figure which is based on data from other sources

texts:
I'd like to include a figure in an open-source journal, which looks very similar to a figure already published in another paper (paper 1). My question is if I need to obtain the permission to reprint the figure, or, if a "based on paper 1" in the figure legend is sufficient for including the figure in my manuscript.

The figure is based on experimental data from another source (Example et al. 2018; see the example plot) and a line which shows the results with their code (code 1).

My figure uses the same experimental data, but another code (code 2), which makes use of data in the original paper (paper 1) and therefore has the exact same curve as code 1.

Example plot

Thanks in advance!


texts: How to contact EiC when his emails seems like auto computer generated reply

texts: One of my article is under review in reputable IEEE journal. The average time of first decision for this journal is 3 months. However, my article is under review for 6.5 months and upon my inquiry I always get same email from EiC (editor-in-chief), which looks like an auto generated email, stating we appreciate your patience and we are trying to complete the process ASAP. According to journal policy, I cannot know who is the handling Associate Editor and all inquiries should go to EiC. In the given situation how can I invoke editorial board to expedite the process? Is it fine to make a call to EiC on his personal contact number?


texts: Teach in a university with a master degree

texts:
I don't know if here is the best place to ask that but I'm finishing my master degree in pure mathematics and I would like to travel and know another countries before enter into a doctorate school. In my country with a master degree you can teach in a private university or even in a public university with tenure in small villages or in public universities with 2-years contract in bigger cities.

I would like to know if in your own home country is easy to work in a temporary job as a "professor" or be a permanent professor with tenure in smaller areas with a master degree.

Remark

I know that is impossible to teach pure mathematics with only a master degree, but there are a lot of faculties of civil and food engineer, actuarial sciences, computer sciences, etc... which have logic, calculus, linear algebra, etc... courses, i.e., simpler courses with doesn't necessarily need a PHD professor to teach it.

Thanks a lot


texts: What are some of the starting phrases that I can use while responding to Ph.D examination committee questions during my defence?

texts:
I am appearing my Ph.D defence in a few weeks. I am in need of some starting phrases or words which I can use while responding to the questions from the examiners. There could be difficult questions which are beyond the objective of my thesis, the examiner could point out a better methodology or I might have missed some of the most important papers in the field and so on.

I need a list of some starting phrases for responding the examiner's question.

I am clear about my objectives and the contents of my thesis. Just need some speaking tips.


texts: Is there any value in self-publishing a book as an academic?

texts:
Recently, I contacted a publisher about the draft of a book that I wrote about a year ago. I found their advertisement over the net. This is a scientific book that I have worked on for about two or three years and have revised it more than four times.

The publisher proposed that if I pay a certain amount of money that they can publish my book in a month or two.

Does this kind of pay-to-publish or self-publishing of books confer any reputation in academia? What are the advantages and disadvantages to doing so?


texts: What sources provide a list of all academic topics?

texts:
I'm an STS student, so bear with me; I'm happy to provide clarification but I want to leave the specific application unspecified:

What sources would you consult if you were trying to generate a huge "list of all academic topics"?

I'm thinking it would include all the 'ologies', the 'isms', the 'X studies', all the historical "movements", all the 'subjects' of journals and papers, all the 'big questions' of any given "field".

What other sources, whether vague (like above) or specific (like a URL with some good list items), would you suggest in compiling this list?


texts: Software tools for orgainising education lab appointments

texts:
Due to the Coronavirus situation it is required to adapt teaching activities to reduce risk of infection. Several courses have laboratory assignments that require physical presence. It is therefore necessary to reduce the number of students present by utilising all room availability. Due to the increased number of student groups and fragmented time slots it quickly becomes challenging to organise lab appointment times.
Are there any software tools for orgainising education lab appointments available?


texts: Should I change “colour” to “color” when incorporating a Canadian article into an American book?

texts: I’m working on a book, written in American English for an American market. I’ve asked a Canadian author to contribute an article which will be included in its entirety in the book and attributed to her. She uses the colour spelling, while the rest of the book uses color – should I change the spelling throughout her article to color to conform to the house style or leave it as is?


texts:
I have seen websites with links to specific Google Scholar entries, i.e. for this publication here.

How can you link to a specific entry? It seems like when I click the title of a paper, it either follows the link to the publication or opens a pop-up window with more (and editable) information.


texts: Postdoc/academic position in astronomy/astrophysics in New Zealand

texts: Is there any New Zealand site for postdoc/academic job announcements? I know of course https://jobregister.aas.org/ which is an international agglomerate (which at the moment doesn't have any New Zealand offers), but maybe there's something more specific?


texts:
Does anyone know where I can find a correct Harvard reference format to upload on Mendeley Desktop and use it with the Mendeley Word plug-in?

It seems that the ones available are not correct.

Thanks


texts: Submiting a two page paper to a math journal

texts:
I recently posted my two-page paper to arxiv and sent it to the editor of a good journal. The editor responded:

  "Your result is not substantial enough" and so it was rejected."

I cannot say that I totally disagree with the editor, the paper does not make any significant progress on number theory but I can't say that my paper is totally without value. It is the first time I have tried to publish a paper, and I am confused:

Was my paper rejected because it is too short?
Should I submit it to another journal?

I would really appreciate if someone gave me some advice on how to proceed.


texts: How to correctly cite ASCII (Public table)? Do I need to cite it?

texts:
I have included ASCII table in my paper research, but I'm not sure how can I correctly cite it. I have seen many papers not including any citation while others mention any random website that has the table.

Any help is appreciated


texts: A group run by my advisor's former student keeps scooping my work. Is my advisor sabotaging me?

texts:
I'm worried that my advisor is sabotaging me either knowingly or unknowingly. I'm entering the 5th year of my PhD in a hard science.  I had prior publications, but I have yet to publish any papers with my advisor -- because I get scooped whenever I get close to submitting one. The group that keeps scooping me is led by a professor who is an ex-student of my advisor.
For the past 3 years, my advisor has gone on sabbatical to visit with this group 2-3 times a year for anywhere between 2 weeks and 6 months. During one of his first visits, my advisor asked me if it would be okay if he presented some of my research during a group meeting. I didn't see a problem with that.  However, about a year later, this group published a paper having done basically the same experiments I had done. I was stunned and asked my advisor what was up with this. He shrugged it off and said 'this happens, we'll get you another project.'
This other group had not published anything in the area of my first project in the last decade.  I figured really bad luck.
Fast forward another year.  I've started a new project in a different area of my field.  My advisor again asks if he can share my new research with this group. I said I didn't want to share it this time.  I thought this was very understandable given what had already happened, but my advisor got upset at being told 'no.'
At the time my advisor was visiting them, I was struggling to justify why I was getting a low value for a value I was trying to determine experimentally. Some time after my advisor returned home, I realized I had made a mistake in my analysis which, after correction, put the value where it should be.
Several months after my advisor's visit, the group came out with a paper on exactly what I was working on. Bizarrely, the paper they published included the low value / result that I initially got before realizing my mistake, they offered very little explanation for this low value. Their own theoretical calculations suggested it should be higher.  But it's the number I had when my advisor visited them.
This other group had never before published anything in the area of my second project. When this professor was a student with my advisor they worked on a different area of my field than I am working on now.
It feels like my advisor is trying to get me scooped, or doesn't know any better. My advisor visits so often it seems unlikely he isn't aware this group is working on what I'm working on. If that's the case, shouldn't he warn me? How do I proceed with future projects / my advisor?
My advisor also has tried to abandon each project after I get scooped, but that doesn't make sense to me, either. The other group only does a single experimental run, while I do several. I also think they've made significant mistakes, which my work can correct. I think my work still merits publication.  Any advice on how to handle this situation would be much appreciated.


texts: IEEE transactions specific: Is it necessary to number unreferred equations?

texts: Question: since the equation number is mainly a tag for referencing, I usually omit the equation number whenever an equation is not referred throughout the paper. Is this in violation of any standards, in particular those of IEEE transactions?


texts: Impacts of "professional advisors" for undergraduates

texts:
In my department (math, US, medium-sized public university), the current practice is that undergraduate students declare a major when they enter, and are assigned a faculty advisor. The advisor is always a full-time faculty member, and will normally continue to advise them until they graduate.  The student meets with their advisor at least once per semester to discuss what courses they should take in the next term; the advisor is also available to help with degree planning, academic difficulties, bureaucratic problems, advice about careers and grad school, etc.

There is a proposal from our administration to change this by hiring a "professional advisor," a staff member whose full-time job would be to fill this role for each student's first 1-2 years.  (After three semester, they would be assigned a faculty advisor as before.)  The hope is that this will somehow help with "student success", i.e. retention and graduation rates, which are lower than we would like.

I am curious about the pros and cons of this approach.  I assume this has been tried at other institutions, and it would be interesting to know what effects were observed (either anecdotally or backed by research).

Possible pros and cons that we have identified:

Pros

Saves faculty time
Students may be too "intimidated" to approach a faculty advisor with their problems.  A professional advisor might be easier for students to work with.
A professional advisor could come in with special training or education on advising students, and common student issues.  Faculty advisors usually just have to pick it up as they go along.

Cons

Students will not work with their faculty advisor for as long (about 2.5 years instead of 4).  This will reduce the strength of their academic relationship.
Math faculty may be better qualified to help address academic difficulties in math classes, which are frequently encountered by first- and second-year students.
The professional advisor would not only advise math students, but also those in other areas of science.  There are concerns that the advisor could unduly influence students to change their majors away from math, which is considered a "difficult" major, if they start to struggle academically.  There are even concerns that implicit bias on the advisor's part could lead them to do this disproportionately on the basis of gender, minority status, etc.
Math faculty are involved in designing the requirements of the math major, and so are best qualified to advise students on how to satisfy those requirements.  Also, since they actually teach math courses, they would be better able to help students decide which courses would best fit their interests.

I wonder how these work out in practice, and if there are other issues we haven't thought of.


texts: Writing thesis that rebuts advisor's theory

texts:
A potential masters thesis advisor became pretty famous (in his field) for the development of a certain theory in behavioral economics. However, I find that his theory is relatively unexplainable, and I feel that I have come up with an alternative theory that would explain the exact same phenomena, but in a more justifiable way.
Knowing very little about how thesis advisors view their students' work or the dominance of their own theories, I see two possibilities:
First, my theory might not be very good and my professor will either point out the flaw, or encourage me to continue developing the flawed theory because it's better than nothing.
Second, my theory may actually be pretty good and my professor may view it with hostility, consciously or subconsciously. Is it unreasonable for me to consider this a possibility? Is it a possibility? How likely is it?


texts: Spent time between two campuses, one isn't degree granting. How do I list this on my CV/Application?

texts:
First of all, I'm sorry if this is off topic, I wasn't sure if I should post or not and couldn't decide based on the guidelines.

My situation is a bit unique. I go to a large state university (X) that is relatively well known in my field. It has its main campus in city A in the U.S., and a small branch campus abroad in country B. I spent 5 semesters in branch B, and have been at main campus (A) for a semester, a summer term, as well as this ongoing semester. I am currently applying to PhD programs in the U.S.

Here are the facts:

My degree doesn't specify campus. Branch B is not degree granting, and my degree just says X university.
I have only one transcript and one GPA. My transcript looks like this:

Fall 2013 - Campus A
Fall 2016 - Campus B

My last 3 journal publications since I came to the U.S. bear a double affiliation with both campuses.
2/3 of my letter writers are from main campus in the U.S.
Most importantly, I have no idea where I will spend my next (and last) semester. I might stay at A in the U.S., or I might have to go back to B abroad. Either way, it doesn't change my degree or anything else, just where I'll physically attend classes.

I'm quite concerned and confused about how to treat this situation on my PhD applications. Naturally, I'd enter both and upload same transcript twice:

a. X University (Campus B): Fall 2013 - Fall 2015

b. X University: Spring 2016 - Present

However, I do not know how to approach this since I'm technically and officially just a student of X university with my degree from there. More importantly, I have no idea where I'll be next semester! I also technically still have affiliation with campus B since I haven't internally transferred to the U.S., they're just letting me stay as long as I need for research. For my CV, I did this:

X University .... City A, State

X University (Campus B) .... City, Country B

Degree, Thesis, GPA, etc.

I don't want to get admitted somewhere only for them to realize I spent my last semester at B and revoke my offer for fraud or something like that. Most of my professors here in the U.S. said I just list X University, but I guess that's just because they fully understand my situation and how the whole branch campus thing works.

How do I make sure that this information is transmitted honestly and clearly to the admissions committee?


texts: Does one have the right or just the privilege to extend the PhD study period due to parental leave?

texts:
Assuming somebody is employed as a PhD student, I found several references to PhD study period and parental leave, but the wording is rather weak.

  The study period may only be extended if there are special reasons for it. Such grounds may be due to illness, leave for military service, work for trade unions and student organizations or parental leave. Ordinance (2010:1064). [automatically translated, highlights mine]

Notice may instead of must.

The Regulations for doctoral studies at Umeå University states:

  5.4.  Parental    leave

  ● Parental leave shall always be reported to the employer in accordance with applicable law and agreements.

  ● When
  parental leave is cited as a special reason for extension of a
  doctoral studentship or term of a doctoral grant, the period of
  parental leave is counted from the day it is validated.

  The Dean makes the decisions on these matters.
  [highlights mine]

Notice that the Dean has the final word.

The PhD Student FAQ from the Stockholm University Student Union uses stronger wording:

  This means that you have the right to get prolongation for the time that you are on parental leave so that you don’t lose out of any time for your research.

Can anybody point me to a regulation, a legal precedent or anything similar clarifying whether prolongation of PhD study period is a right or a privilege?


texts: How to reference a PDF document found on a website

texts:
I want to use this website in my report but I do not see the produced year of the following pdf https://www.astm.org/BOOKSTORE/DS68/pg41.pdf

How can I do the reference of that pdf ?

Is this correct : ASTM international, "Ultrasonic Testing," ASTM international,. [Online]. Available: https://www.astm.org/BOOKSTORE/DS68/pg41.pdf. [Accessed September 2016].


texts: Is it typical to use an uncertain affiliation within a paper?

texts:
I am an international graduate student, recently-admitted to a Canadian university. My admission has been finalized and I am just within the visa processing to acquire required study permit.

Now, I am going to submit a proceeding paper and feel myself in a dilemma to determine my affiliation within that, appropriately. As a matter of fact, my preference has been focused on utilization of my position
in the new university, instead of my undergraduate affiliation. But one might, realistically, imagine the situation that I use my favorite affiliation for the target paper, but (for any reason) I will be rejected by Canadian embassy to acquire the study permit. In this case (I hate even thinking about it!), I not only lose that position, supposedly, but that applied affiliation onto the paper will, also, be invalid, actually.

Now, technically:

Is it ethical to do something like that in academia, or I must bite the bullet for stabilization of my expecting affiliation to be applicable,
formally?
What are the potential consequences for me and my paper, if above scenario would be happened?


texts: How to have a competitive research group in a school doesn't have graduate program?

texts:
I'm applying to assistant professor positions and my research plan is based on three main projects. My initial idea is having 2 PhD students and one postdoc working on each project. However, there is an opening in a new school that doesn't have a graduate program yet. I'm planning to apply to this school but don't know how to explain the need of grad students to my research plan. I'm almost sure I won't have sufficient start-up to hire 3 postdocs. I really want to have undergraduates researchers, as I'm a product of undergraduate research, but I believe the research output of my 5 initial years is way too important to have only undergrads and, say, 1-2 postdocs as my researcher assistants.

EDITED:

The importance of my productivity is related mainly to my research ambitions. At the same, this school attracted very much because it's new. I think my voice will be much more heard in a new school. Do you think it's a good idea to search for potential collaborators in other departments of this school that have a graduate program and stated this desire in my cover letter?


texts: Where can/should I, as a high schooler, publish a paper regarding the derivation of a formula?

texts:
For a high school engineering project, a friend and I have found ourselves deriving an equation for how to most efficiently configure a system.

We found an equation that, given a few parameters about the system, equates the amount of material added (and thus weight), to the amount of energy this system will gain. Along the way, we needed to find an equation that, given an amount of material, would describe how to most efficiently use the material.

We were thinking we'd write this up in a nice paper, and publish it somewhere. (For resume building, college applications, etc.).

Where/how could we do this (if anywhere), and how long would it take?

I posted this on Physics StackExchange and it was recommended that I post it here as well.


texts: Is it possible for me to seek a Ph.D. position in the future?

texts:
Currently, I am a M.S. student in Applied Mathematics division, and I will graduate in the coming Dec, 2014.
But I want to apply to a PhD. program to continue my study. But I have a complicated situation:

I had a bachelor's degree in software engineering outside US with GPA 3.7. But I'm pursing a M.S. degree in Applied Mathematics in a US college with GPA 3.6, the reason I am doing this is because I want to improve my mathematical background, and prepare for research oriented program in the future.
My native language is non-English, and my English skills are not that strong. I didn't have a competitive GRE test.
But I had some research experiences, both in and outside US. And almost all the research is either direct with national research labs or collaborate with them. However, I have no academic publications yet.

Is it possible for me to seek PhD in the future? I would like to go for it, but it seems more and more professors and universities focus on someone with higher scores and better publication record.


texts:
Suppose I have a paper with the following text:

  Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet, and so are you [3],[4].

As one can see, the author got the information from two other references.
If I want to add this information in my thesis, do I also have to reference [3] and [4] or can I just reference this particular paper, I got the information from?


texts: Re-entering teaching after working in the industry (in Europe)

texts:
I have finished my PhD a while ago and have since worked at the university as lecturer. Now the contract is coming to an end and I am weighing two options: (1) Teach at the university (I am much more interested in teaching than in research) or (2) work in industry.

I have done a lot of teaching during and after my PhD and consider myself to be quite good at it. However, finding such a teaching position where I live seems very difficult at the moment. Abroad, those positions seem to be more plentiful. If it is of any matter: I live in Germany. The field is mathematics.

As I am not exactly keen on leaving the country, I would like to try working in industry. However, I worry that I might miss teaching, and wonder if, after having left academia for a year or two, it would be difficult to return. Some related questions have been asked, but I fear that my lack of interest in research might give things a different spin...

Would leaving academia now be held against me if I tried to return a few years later to teach at a (possibly foreign) university?


texts: Would a masters in maths at a much lower ranked university be a good preparation for a masters course at a very top university?

texts:
I have finished my mathematics undergraduate degree in the UK at a low ranked university. I just missed out on a 2:2.
I struggled with modules such as statistics and Operations research but excelled at pure maths and applied maths modules.

I have miraculously still been accepted by a university to study for MSc in maths.
This university is not part of the Russell group universities but does do better in the league tables than some of the universities that are part of the Russell Group.

Out of fun I was researching the masters course in maths at Cambridge.
In the handbook they mentioned something interesting.
They said that if your first degree is not up to scratch then you may take the second and third year at Cambridge to bring yourself up to the right level.

After contemplating this, I am thinking about doing a second masters in maths but with the aim of doing it at Cambridge.
Off course I will need a very high distinction to do this.

I was wondering in general, would a masters in maths at a much lower ranked university be a good preparation for a masters course at a very top university?


texts: Post tenure job search in the humantities: a waste of time?

texts:
I've searched many forums and websites and I am hoping to find a more direct answer to my question.

I am a tenured, associate professor of humanities at a SLAC (yes, I do appreciate this). My family is very unhappy where we are living. I would have gone on the job market before getting tenure but had a confluence of personal crises that went on for over a year. Anyway, I looked for a job last year but noticed that all except one or two in my field are for assistant professor.

Is it "not done"/completely a waste of time to apply for assistant professor positions?

Last year, I had one campus interview, and they said they would hire me as associate but not tenured.  Didn't get that job, obviously.  I am actually okay with moving without tenure, due to wanting to improve things for my family.  I am just a humanities prof, however -- I don't bring grants, funding, all that jazz with me.  I'm not a hotshot in publications, either.  I don't want a different job or a different university (a move up), just a different location where my family might be happier.

Am I wasting my time?


texts: Is the editor-in-chief's advice sincere?

texts:
After submitting my paper to a reputable journal, the editor-in-chief sent me the following e-mail:

I am writing to let you know that I have briefly read your paper. It appears
that your submission is better suited to (and will be better appreciated by) the
IEEE Transactions on X, or Y. I am, therefore, recommending that you submit it there.

Both recommendations are also reputable journals and since the work is inter-disciplinary, such a reply does not surprise me very much.

However, I wonder if I can interpret this also as a kind of quality evaluation for my work, because after all she recommended high-impact-factor journals?
Or am I reading to much into this and the only message is that this is off-topic for the particular journal.

In other words, is this a common type of response or do editors base their responses also on the quality of the work (e.g. recommending lower ranked journals, conferences or straight forward not to publish anywhere)?


texts: I have recently been admitted to a few PhD programs, and have to decide where to attend. One of them has a massively famous professor (over 50k citations, 'Reuters Highly Cited Researcher'). Other potential supervisors at other institutions are still quite famous (~15k citations). Could anyone share some potential differences in my experiences if I work with someone who is that famous, or not? The group sizes/number of current students are all comparable.


texts:
I went to a great college, did well enough to get into a good master's program and probably land in a good phd program at some point. But I don't know if I'm meant for this.

I'm 27 and coming out of a few personally confusing years of life. Here's what I've found after a few months of postbac studies (I'd been working for a few years):

I don't love reading as much as I used to, and I definitely don't read as well as I did a few years ago. My professors say I write really well, and I'm doing well on exams and assignments. I am not the best in my classes, but may be close to it.

I can't decide what I want to study. I thought I was set on a topic in history, even based some master's applications on it, started a paper on it. Then the election happened and now I feel like my talents and energy should be spent on something more immediately useful, like working at an organization focusing on voter turnout, racism, minorities, rights, etc. This is the hundredth time I've changed my mind about what to study. It's included psychology, psychiatry, political science, policy, history, social work. Lately, I just don't see the point anymore.

I lose steam and motivation quickly. I was super motivated at the start of the semester, only to really lose it after the election. Now, everything seems a little pointless. I'm behind on reading and some homework, and have only managed to stay on track because I'm bullying myself into it. Even then, I'm sure I'll be behind for a while. I've tried really hard to get back on track but it's a bumpy road. Yesterday was great in terms of productivity, but today is terrible.

I don't think well on the spot and under pressure. I usually think of appropriate responses and counter arguments long after the conversation is over. I come from a family that wasn't at all academic, and I think this went a long way in shaping my academic personality; I don't have opinions on everything, and even when I do, I'm not quick to share them unless I'm 100% sure they're factually sound.

Most significantly, I just don't know if I'm as good enough as my peers. I know I'm better than a significant number of my classmates, but I'm not as well-read, well-spoken, confident, or quick as some of the best. I write slowly, I don't read Spinoza for fun, heck I don't read unless I have to or remind myself that I'm not reading enough.

I care a lot about the world, I care about making a difference, I am motivated by people and results and challenges that I believe I can tackle. I know I am smart and creative, even though I am not the best student in most of my classes (this takes a lot of courage to admit).

Can anyone offer me some honest advice? Be as critical as you can. Resources would also be appreciated. Thank you!


texts: Is it unethical to access journal articles from Torrent websites?

texts:
Getting access to journal articles can be quite expensive, in particular for those not affiliated with some University (even then, it's still expensive, it's just the uni paying the cost...).

A question asked on this site Why are most scientific articles locked behind a paywall?
ponders why this is so. The answer is not convincing at all, it essentially says "that's just the way it is, pay up".

Well, if that is the way it is gonna by, then I am just going to torrent-download the articles. How could this possibly be unethical, if you guys yourselves, for no good reason and for the detriment of scientific inquiry, help support the monopoly that these journals have?


texts: Path for American to become professor in Europe

texts:
I'm an American, and I’m considering – sometime in the future – getting a PhD in computer science. My impression is that Europe is a lovely place, both in general and because of its sane work culture. If I decide I would like to become a professor in Europe, what steps should I take?

For example:

Does one need to get a PhD from Europe, rather than from the U.S., to be a professor there?
If not, does a PhD from the UK qualify one to be a professor in continental Europe?
Are classes in continental Europe generally taught in English?
If not, does one need to be a native speaker to teach them?


texts: What will help a master student more a Research or One extra subject?

texts:
Obviously a master student with some beneficial research efforts instead of an extra subject will boost up his/her confidence in future, but students sometimes want to do masters with extra subject due some reasons specific to them.
I'm asking for some motivating and appealing answers so that a master student should give extra respect to their research tasks, which will route some new directions for the humanity around the globe.


texts: What arXiv CC licenses are compatible with American Physical Society publishing?

texts:
I'm having some trouble understanding exactly what the American Physical Society (APS) transfer of copyright agreement does and does not permit, and I was wondering whether someone here may have a clearer insight or previous contact with them to know exactly what their position is. Their copyright FAQ is, I feel, not clear enough on the subject, and it's not quite clear how I should contact them about this.

The relevant paragraphs from the copyright transfer agreement are, I think

  2. The nonexclusive right, after publication by APS, to give permission to third parties to republish print versions of the Article or a translation thereof, or excerpts therefrom, without obtaining permission from APS, provided the APS-prepared version is not used for this purpose, the Article is not republished in another journal, and the third party does not charge a fee. If the APS version is used, or the third party republishes in a publication or product charging a fee for use, permission from APS must be obtained.

and

  4. The right to post and update the Article on free-access e-print servers as long as files prepared and/or formatted by APS or its vendors are not used for that purpose. Any such posting made or updated after acceptance of the Article for publication shall include a link to the online abstract in the APS journal or to the entry page of the journal. If the author wishes the APS-prepared version to be used for an online posting other than on the author(s)’ or employer’s website, APS permission is required; if permission is granted, APS will provide the Article as it was published in the journal, and use will be subject to APS terms and conditions.

The latter one looks pretty inclusive, but it does not specify whether all licensing schemes for e-print servers are acceptable or not. Similarly, in their  I am worried, in particular, by a note in the arXiv license help page:

  The Creative Commons Attribution license in particular, permits commercial reuse and thus conflicts with many journal agreements.

In particular, posting to an e-print server may be construed as overstepping the rights granted by point 2 of the agreement, since it can be used by a third party as permission to republish it in print and charge a fee for it. If that is the only objection, then choosing a CC Noncommercial-ShareAlike license would be compatible with the above.

I have two specific questions about this.

Is my reading of these publicly available documents correct? Did I miss important information either on these or other publicly available resources?
Does anyone have specific experience with them regarding this question? Is there some specific contact for these matters?

(I believe the non-exclusive license to distribute, which is the most restrictive arXiv license, is definitely compatible. This question is mostly about the Creative Commons licenses.)


texts: Is there a full-time job with variety and academic rigor but also 2+ months annual vacation? (don't care if vacation is unpaid)

texts:
I've had one full time job in my life. It was a teaching job and I got about 2.5 weeks of annual vacation. I had a great time my first year, learned a lot, and I think I improved quite a bit as a teacher. I really liked my students as well.

But going from the second year into the third, I found the meagre amount of annual leave I got to be more and more insufficient. As a student, I had always been able to feel refreshed at the start of each school year because I got a 8 week break in the summer. I'm good at saving money, and so I desperately wanted to be able to choose to take unpaid vacation time without losing my job.

My understanding is that it's easier to get a job with said schedule flexibility at the K-12 level than at the university level. However, I'd rather teach university undergrads. The class I really liked teaching at my old school was the research class where the students had just started developing more advanced critical thinking and academic research skills.

I know a lot of university professors/lecturers must do a lot of research over all the semester breaks to keep their jobs for the next academic year, and that's not really what I want.

So I'm wondering if anyone has a uni job (FT, with some kind of health insurance) where you can choose to take a "summer vacation" (or winter one, whatever), and if so, what country you're in and how you got the job...?

I have a M.A. in Media Research/Cultural Studies and I'm getting another M.A. in Linguistics/TESL.

I'm questioning the received wisdom of "get as high a salary as you can so you can be comfortable when you retire or maybe retire early" because I'm only 30 and my health is already not great, so sometimes I wonder if I'll even make it to 65.

(I know some people will think I'm a lazy, horrible teacher for caring about vacation as much as I do, but I've done that self-flagellation for the previous two years and life is too short for any more of that.)


texts: Found an error in the title of published article (A phrase has been repeated twice)

texts: I have found an error in the title of my recently published article. A phrase has been repeated twice in the title. Considering that journal not accepted any changes what should I do about it?


texts: How to Approach Students with Different Expectations on Coding Lab Sessions as a TA

texts:
I am a TA for undergraduate Introduction to Programming class at freshman level. I usually have around 30 students per semester who have two hours of lecture earlier during the week with their professor then the applied three hours of lab hour with me. The labs start from how to compile and run code to variable assignments and arithmetic operations, flow control, arrays and very brief introduction to object oriented programming.

My problem stems from the fact that my university does not admit students into particular departments. They start as engineering students and select a diploma programme at the end of their freshman year. Furthermore, only computer science has a class for freshman year, all other departments start their department courses after students have picked their programme. This creates a bias for students who will pick other majors, such as civil engineering, mechanical engineering, even electrical engineering. I often get asked, "Why am I taking this course?"

During my lab hours, I have a quarter of the students who are eager to learn and want to discuss programming with me, mostly composed of those who will pick computer science programme. The rest feels like they don't even want to be there, will get vocal when the assignment challenges them, disrupting the entire class (they are in the majority anyway). A lot of cases of cheating happen regularly which is automatically handled and they get a zero grade, after which they find ways to cheat the similarity detection by altering the shared code. My solution, which I am not definitely happy with, is giving into their demands, spelling out or sometimes typing the solutions. While they distribute the code among themselves and alter it to avoid cheat detection, I have enough time to tend to the first portion of students who actually benefit from the lab sessions.

This is my third semester, all of which were almost identical regarding this issue
As a TA, I have very little control over the content of the course itself, I do prepare lab material but according to guidelines set by the lecturers.
The professors are aware of the issue, I have brought it up numerous times. they are not happy with the universities policy either but the problem is often brushed away
It feels like discrimination towards students, which is a concept I don't want to have in my classroom
I know what I'm doing is not ethical and I'm not happy with it, yet there doesn't seem to be a better solution.

My questions then would be: how can I approach the class and handle this issue. I really would like to reach the majority of students who think programming is not beneficial to them as well as help the minority of the students to prepare them for the upcoming (and much harder) classes.


texts: Can I post on the Internet a page which summarizes the essential technical contributions of a paywalled article?

texts: This is a follow-on to this question.  Suppose I have a collection of research articles, written by other people, and related to a specific topic.  Suppose I want to post on the Internet a page which is a bibliography of those articles together with a link to an elsewhere-posted PDF of the article, when that is available, which could be either free and open or paywalled.  When the article is paywalled or not available on the Internet, I want to post a summary of the essential technical contributions of the article.  The summary would be what I would provided as lecture notes for a class if I read the article for understanding, and then wanted to teach the article to a group of students.  Do you see anything wrong with that?


texts: What should I do when my work has been published by my supervisor without my knowledge?

texts:
I had worked on a project for my bachelor thesis in 2012 and in 2013, I moved to Germany for further study. Now when I am facing several interviews for Ph.D. and the supervisors ask if I have published my bachelor thesis or not. So I was thinking to add some computational data and publish my work in a good journal. But I noticed my supervisor with another student had already published my work in 2015 and I didn't know anything. Another student had a similar project(we worked together when we were working in the lab, we just had different solvents/medium for our samples) so he merged both projects together and published it and my supervisor was the first author. And anyone can find my thesis if they search in my university website with my name and the project name. Now my question is what steps I can take? It's my work and I worked for 1 year on this project and they didn't even mention my name anywhere or never asked me about this. Should I write to my supervisor regarding this? or should I inform the publication house?
(I did not have any contact with my supervisor after I graduated)


texts: The feeling of inferiority entering a PhD program due to one's undergraduate school rank

texts:
According to Stanford's Computer Science graduate admissions department this year:

  110 students were accepted. Nearly all accepted applicants were from Stanford (BS/MS), MIT, Berkeley, Princeton, Michigan, Texas, Washington, Tsinghua, and the other ivy leagues. About 10-20 were from non-top schools.

I am one of these 10-20. I go to a state college and our curriculum is imaginably not up to par with the elite schools.  I'm scared.  Did anyone experience the similar situation?  How would I prepare myself to hang with the smartest people in this Ph.D. process?

If you're a professor, how much does this affect you in choosing a Ph.D. student?


texts: Expected undergraduate semesters and requirements for graduate students

texts:
I have been wondering recently about how graduate schools and in general anyone who reviews my academic record views coops. By coop, I mean a semester taken off from undergraduate studies to work in a related industry. If the student takes more than 8 semesters to graduate, is it a problem? Should the student (if they can) extend their studies by an additional semester so that they graduate in the spring, or is a fall graduation equally acceptable. Do grad programs accept students to start in the spring, or only the fall?

I tried to keep the question above general pursuant to the guidelines in the FAQ, however I will appreciate anyone who is willing to review my specific case.

I am a sophomore in CS at a strong US engineering school. I have 2 summer internships, and now a coop under my belt. My problem is, I do not like any of the work I have experienced. I don't mind programming, but it is not something I can do for 40 hours a week without getting really bored. I only really enjoy the difficult math problems, which don't come up that often for most CS jobs,and I absolutely hate wires, soldering, network-admin and low-level computer work.

I want to switch to Math and pursue a graduate degree in either data science or applied math. I can graduate on time by dropping to a math major and a cs and stat double minor, or I can add a semester and get a double major in math and cs or stats, or take graduate classes. I should also mention that my GPA is currently at 3.2 largely because I have tried to alter the CS curriculum to incorporate the things that interest me (a realistic expectation is a 3.4-3.5 graduating GPA). My final consideration is that the math dept at my school is somewhat low on most academic rankings, whereas my CS dept is in the thunder-weight category trailing the likes of MIT. It would not be hard for me to find research opportunities in either department, which I intend to do either way.


texts: How can I tell who would be interested in my research?

texts:
I'm a math postdoc. On MathJobs they sometimes ask if there are any "faculty contacts," which are people I've met or who otherwise have interest in my work. But sometimes I don't know who the faculty are, I've never met them at a conference, etc.  My feeling is that if I work on something that none of the faculty are particularly interested in, that will sink my application. In other words, I think I need to get someone on the faculty to be enthusiastic about my application. But to do that I have to say something like, "What I'm doing is related to the work of [insert name of faculty member]..."

Actually some of the job descriptions explicitly say that they prefer candidates that match the interests of the department. Why would a department hire candidate X, who works in some out of left field area, when they can hire candidate Y, who works on something that interests faculty there?

It seems that it is not enough to just do good research to stand out. I have to persuade the faculty that I should be hired over everyone else.


texts: Easy way to see historical trend in keywords in publications?

texts:
Is there an easy way or existing tool to generate a historical chart with the occurrence of one or more user-specified keyword(s) (combinations) in academic publications, based on the words in the title and/or abstract of a paper?

There is a almost-what-I-was-looking-for tool called Google Scholar Trend Miner, but it seems to be not working anymore, as it reports after hitting Go: "It seems that Google found out that we are a bot and started offering its CAPTCHA. Please, wait some hours and try again"


texts: Is it possible to get a book category based on ISBN?

texts:
Libraries organize non-fiction books in category with sub-categories, using a hierarchical system, that makes it possible to find books on a specific subject.
Is there some lookup service, for example web page or database, that can provide category with sub-categories based on a books ISBN number?


texts: Letter of Recommendation Reminder (deadline tomorrow)

texts:
I asked my professor to write a letter of recommendation in late July, with the deadline of October 1st (which is tomorrow). He responded in the affirmative, and was quite happy to write my LOR. I sent him a reminder email a week ago, which he did not respond to. The deadline is tomorrow, and I still haven't received any notice that he uploaded his LOR.

The other professor I asked already uploaded his LOR, so I'm just waiting on this professor. At this point, unless he uploads the LOR on the deadline, I'm afraid it will be late.

How should I send him an email to prompt him to upload his LOR? I already graduated so I can't visit him in person. Is there a chance he's backing out of writing one for me?

Thanks for any advice in advance!


texts: Question regarding post-doc salary and moving expense (US)

texts:
I'm a 2nd-year post-doc at a US university on the West coast, and I'm currently seeking my next position. I have had interviews at two universities on the East coast.  Because I received positive feedback and my interests align well with those positions, I believe that they will be offered.

Here're my question about the salary:

Do they (university and PI) usually consider the 2 years of my previous experience in my current school? Does US university faculties usually consider the previous experience?
If they do consider experience, then will my salary be calculated as for a 3rd-year postdoc?
If they don't consider experience, then how could I request a raise to 3rd-year post-doc level? Is it OK to negotiate regarding this issue?
I know that PIs (university professors) usually do not offer the moving expense for new post-docs. But is there any chance that the university might offer support with moving expenses?

I have never negotiated my salary before. There was no choice when I was Ph.D., and the first post-doc position offered to me was quite generous. So these kinds of things are totally new to me.


texts: Is it bad practice to study or reference the work of an academic who has fallen from grace?

texts:
I was recently reading a textbook, written by a professor from an elite university, which I was finding to be very informative and well-written. Excited to learn of other works or talks by this individual, I searched for him on Google, but was extremely dismayed to find the results page full of news articles about his improper personal conduct and trouble with the law that resulted in his being forced to retire from teaching.

I'm now unsure whether I should continue reading his textbooks--they appear to be correct, well-written and insightful, but I might feel embarrassed now to keep them on my bookshelf or tell someone I had studied them. Should I avoid reading and learning from his work? And, more out of curiosity, should individuals publishing work in his field avoid referencing his texts or published research?

I left out a lot of the specifics, so more general thoughts or comments about this are welcomed.


texts: How to cite conference contribution that appears later in a Journal Supplement

texts:
People from our group attended some important conferences (Annual Meeting of the Biophysical Society, etc) and sent abstracts that were accepted as posters or talks. Later, the abstract appears in a Supplement of a Journal (in this case, Biophysical Journal).

My question is, in such cases, can one cite this publication in the CV as a regular paper? Otherwise, what should be the best way to cite it?


texts: What factors determine application fees?

texts:
I have no serious need to know the answer to this question, but I'm mostly just curious (after applying for undergraduate schools 4 years ago and applying for graduate schools now).

What sorts of expenses are institutions trying to pay for when requiring application fees for the applications? Why is there a wide range of fees? (I know Stanford graduate school is $125, and Chicago is $55, and I've only applied to 5-6 schools so far.) Are the institutions just breaking even, or do some of them use their prestige to earn a little extra money?


texts: Collaborating with professors after graduation

texts:
As I mentioned in the title, I was wondering if it's possible to collaborate with professors on any research paper if I have graduated and now working in the industry?
Here are a bit more details on why am I asking this and maybe you can provide alternatives too: While in college, I wasn't very active in academics and I also changed my stream (From Chemical Engineering to Data Science) after graduation. So needless to say that I never existed as far as the professors were concerned. But now I have done a lot more work and currently aiming for an MS/Ph.D. in the Data Science field. But one thing that keeps coming back is a recommendation letter from Professors.
I believe that if I have a few publications in my name, it'll make my profile much stronger but it'll add even more value if it's in collaboration with college professors. Not only will I get a research paper, but I'll also have a good recommendation. So I was wondering if it's even possible to collaborate with them since now I'm not a student anymore? If yes, then in what capacity, do I approach the professors?
P.S. I know that I can reach out to college professors for a recommendation without collaboration but those letters will be very generic. I have much higher aspirations and I need to have a very strong recommendation letter, and the only way to do that is to work with a professor.


texts: Applying for PhD with a 3.2 GPA - Do I even stand a chance?

texts:
I just read an incredibly disheartening post on reddit about Grad School admissions in the Biological sciences. The post basically makes it sound like I have no chance of getting into a good PhD program.

I graduated from UC Berkeley with a Degree in Biochemistry in 2012. While in school I worked as an undergraduate researcher for 3.5 years. Post graduation I've been working in Biotech Research for close to 3 years now.

I graduated Berkeley with somewhere in the range of a 3.2-3.3 GPA. The average GPA for my major at Cal is a 2.8 . Does the rigor of my undergraduate institution matter? Berkeley's grade deflation is pretty notorious but will that matter?

From what I read in the post it sounds like most schools won't even look at my application. I'm starting to wonder if its worth it for me to apply at all.

I've attached a link to the thread on reddit. Your honest opinions would be much appreciated.

https://www.reddit.com/r/GradSchool/comments/25gj24/a_somewhat_notgentle_guide_to_getting_into_grad/


texts: 3.65 GPA, 1 D on Undergraduate Transcript; MBA in Top 10

texts:
Looking to apply to a top 10 MBA program in a few years.

Currently finishing up my undergraduate degree at a top 20 national university. I have a 3.65 GPA, majoring in Computer Science, and have a Business Concentration.

I got 1 D in my second semester of freshmen year in a basic CS class (Algorithms). I've done significantly better in all of my classes with a range of A+ to B across the board. The semester I received a D in one class, I took too many hours and couldn't do well on all my exams. That semester, it was that one class that I got a D in - otherwise I had all As and A+s.

I'm hoping to work in industry for a few years before applying to MBA school but would love to learn what the serious chances/challenges/implications are as I apply to a Top 10 MBA School. I just want to get a better trajectory on where my career path lies.

The dream is to be in technology management - a CTO, VP of Engineering etc.


texts: Research statement ideas got used by interviewing committee

texts:
Last year, I applied to a university which is in Europe so a research statement is a crucial part of the application. I was interviewed by two faculty members and then finally got a rejection letter.

In my research statement, I had a particular idea and described a roadmap for it, though I did not get into technical details. But the idea was there and clearly stated. Recently, I came across a publication where the title is the same as my idea (wording is a little bit different) and is co-authored by one of the members of the interview panel.

The publication has technical details which were not part of my research statement.
I believe there is no clear proof here whether my ideas got used or not.

My questions are:

Is this suspicious?
Is this valid and acceptable?


texts: Can I cross reference in a masters application?

texts:
When applying for a masters degree, you usually have to submit your CV, a covering letter and a transcript. Do I assume that these three are usually read together, or do I need to repeat certains bits of information between the three?

For example, on my transcript you will find all my grades from my undergraduate degree, and on my CV I have a short list of some of the units I have taken, but I have not written the grades for the units because they are in my transcript. Is this ok or should I also write the grades next to the units? I worry that it'll clog up my CV.


texts: Course load expectations for teaching track and how to negotiate for courses

texts:
I am a new lecturer (non-tenure track) at an American engineering university (lecturer=teaching track professor, in my case). I am on a 9 month rolling contract and am contracted to work between Sep-May of a year. I am really young in my career and will embark on my first teaching assignment as a lecturer this Summer (2015).

Our university does offer graduate and undergraduate courses in the summer and needs instructors (teaching track lecturers or research/tenure track professors) to teach them. Usually, research/tenure track professors supervise Masters or PHD students in the summer and trade teaching for that. It is incumbent on lecturers to teach summer courses.

I volunteered to teach one course in the summer (June 2015-Aug 2015) and my department chair, who is responsible for course load distribution asked if I "would be willing to teach" a second course during the same months. I politely declined and offered to teach the second course in the following Fall semester if the need arose.

June-Aug is really "off-contract" season for me and teaching a course "off-contract" is compensated on an hourly or a per-course fashion ($xx/hr or $xxxx per course).

I am unsure of whether I was tactless in my handling of this situation. How does one manage such a request from the department chair? Did I shoot my career really early in the foot by declining such a request (however offering to teach the course in a later semester) or is declining a request OK in academia? How do I improve my approach to manage such a situation for course negotiation or teaching load distribution in the future so that I am not perceived as being a slouch "who dodged extra responsibility"?


texts: As an undergraduate, how can I explore research topics that may interest me without having a background?

texts:
I'm a fourth-year undergraduate looking to apply to graduate physics program this year.

My problem is this: I don't know how to pick a study/research area for graduate school. I enjoy my undergraduate courses greatly yet I have no idea how I could develop an interest in a specific topic.

For example, I enjoyed my electromagnetism class but I know there are hundreds of research areas in that field. Moreover, there are hundreds of other research areas that I've never even been exposed to. I've tried to look at papers but many feel a bit inaccessible because they are highly technical and specialized. Often, it's hard for me to understand what's going on there.

In summary, here are the two problems that I've come up against:

The topics I've studied as an undergraduate are far-removed from the frontiers of research.
I don't have the prerequisite knowledge to understand many of the methods and results of papers that I read.

So my question is this:

Is there any method to effectively 'explore' research topics without having a background?


texts: Differences between writing a report for a company and for an academic reader

texts:
I have been hired for a small consulting gig and need to write a report. The people reading this report are not scientists, but rather process engineers and in general people with a more business-like mind set.

I have experience writing academic reports, but not reports for the corporate world. At the moment I am writing the report avoiding as much technicality as possible, and assuming the reader has a limited understanding of the very detailed methodological and theoretical aspects of the work. Besides this, are there any differences in writing style that I should observe? For instance, should I cut down on the use of references and so on?


texts: What is a right way to criticize a published method in my paper?

texts:
I am writing a research paper, and am fairly new to writing. I am working on a research topic that has not been touched too much. There has only been one other paper published regarding the same topic.

In this other paper, they have a fairly strange methodological approach that almost doesn't make use of the method at hand. My paper is an improvement of their approach; I am wondering what would be the best way to criticize their approach to present my own approach.

As Bob et al. failed to notice, we can actually do this...


texts: I found that a method I was hoping to publish is already known. What would be a proper way to retract emails sent to professors asking for help?

texts:
Continuation of this post.
Basically, I emailed a publisher and two profs, asking for help on a paper I had written but not submitted. Turns out the method was not as novel as I thought, as an MSE post containing pretty much the same derivation was posted in 2016. Now, I'm trying to figure out how to break the news to them.
Off the top of my head, I considered saying "actually found it's been done before", but not sure how good that sounds. Probably this is as bad as I think it sounds, but any advice making it sound the best?


texts: Would it be alright to break down the Acknowledgements into sections?

texts:
Would it be alright to break down the acknowledgements of a thesis into a few small sections with individual section headings?
For example:

Academic and Professional Acknowledgements
Personal Acknowledgements
Funding Acknowledgements

This is because I have seen some long acknowledgements and I was wondering whether breaking down the acknowledgements in this manner would help organize the components better?
In the event that someone plans to read my thesis (such as for a potential post-doc position), I assume that they might at least skim through the acknowledgements to see the academics/researchers I have worked with and also the funding received. Therefore breaking down the acknowledgements into smaller sections might make it easier. However I have not seen this done so I was wondering whether it would be an acceptable thing to do or whether it might be frowned upon?


texts: I attended an Olympiad for student and failed. How should I write this down on my CV?

texts: When I was a freshman in the university, I was a member of my university Olympiad team to compete on the Student Physics Olympiad. And I failed to get a single medal. Although the results weren't good, the fact that I had a chance to go to the competition is one of my competitive points. How can I write that down on my CV?


texts: I feel like my mathematical competence is fading

texts:
Background:
I studied Physics and Mathematics (double major) in my Bachelor, and now I'm working in the field of (theoretical) biophysics (I'm a Master's student). I have had a fair amount of research experience so far which gave me a lot of ideas about how research is being done. Most of my contributions to such a project involved wiring a bunch of code, improving an experiment, improving the data collection process etc. but nothing mathematical.
Problem:
I have no problem reading papers, especially theoretical ones; I would describe myself as familiar with a lot of fundamental ideas employed in research. If I want to dig deep into theoretical a paper, I don't have a problem. But the issue is that I feel like my mathematical competence is eroding, both high-level and low-level. I do a lot of errors in algebraic calculations, forget how to integrate certain functions, etc. and I am internally scared from finding out I am bad at mathematics, given that I used to love mathematics.
But unfortunately, right now there is nothing that challenges and pushes my limits. Because, to my experience, physics students only use certain mathematical methods, so once you learn how to do those (all of which can be done via Mathematica), there is nothing that can push your limits, unless you are doing very mathematical research.
So, now whenever I need to calculate something, I go and put it into Mathematica because I have done the same type of calculations over and over again many times, and I don't want to do it again.
I'm afraid that if I start working on a theoretical project which requires mathematical competence, I'll fail because I haven't been practising the art of doing mathematics in a true sense for a while.
Question:
Given all these, how to keep up my game? How to push my mathematical skills even when I am not working on a theoretical project?


texts: Hot and timely research problem with a slow student

texts:
I am a postdoc and currently co-supervising a novel PhD student who works very very slow and needs to be spoon-fed most of the time (which is reasonable considering she's in early stages of her PhD). We are working on a very hot topic and have defined a research problem to work on. She has been working on it for 2 months, but I'm afraid we are going to miss out on publication due to her slow pace. I, however, can see where the work is going and can do it on my own very quickly and maybe get it published right way. This work is an incremental research on something I did before, but for the student to climb the learning curve, it will take a considerable time.

Thinking about this, I have two options:

Let her take her time and do research as any usual PhD student but
push her to be quicker (not sure how).
Do the research work myself and get it published much sooner than pursuing option 1 above, and list her as a co-author.

Now option 1 gives the student a fair-go in risk of missing out to another research group that may be doing similar research. Even under this option, I'm not sure if the student will really do a fantastic job eventually.
Option 2 seems unethical to me because a student should have his/her time to learn and experiment, but will allow her to learn the publication process and contribute to the production of the paper.

What do you think I should do?


texts: How do I cite an article with no page numbers and only a DOI number (APA format)?

texts:
I am writing an article that requires citations in APA format. As you may know, that format requires page numbers

I am pulling quite a few articles from the journal of Remote Sensing (MDPI), which publishes almost all content as open access articles online. The problem is that they publish the articles online, and do not indicate a page number. For example, an article entitled "Time-Series Multispectral Indices from Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Imagery Reveal Senescence Rate in Bread Wheat" has the following short citation:

Remote Sens. 2018, 10, 809; doi:10.3390/rs10060809

(https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/10/6/809)

From further investigating, I think the number 809 is the article in the volume, not the page number. Am I right on this? If so, how do you cite page numbers for a journal where they are not given?


texts: Can someone who works in tech industry still publish research unrelated to their main job function?

texts: It seems to be a common trend nowadays that high paying jobs in the tech industry tend to have both a combination of employees from STEM related fields and non-STEM related fields. Also, I know that companies like Google allow employees to spend 20% of their time to do tasks of their own interest. Given these two facts can an employee, say someone with a Ph.D in astrophysics who works at Google, still publish in journals such as Physical Review, Journal of Physics, etc? This would alleviate a lot of problems, since the difficulties to transition from industry to academia is quite troublesome. Thoughts?


texts:
I just started my 2nd semester of my part-time master, I was given a thesis topic last week and expected to submit an abstract this week.  Because advisor told me -> I would have not choice. However, I just wonder:
Is it normal to submit an abstract to a conference when the research is NOT completed? Or people normally completed the research then write the abstract?

I read a topic asking about how to write an abstract without having the result
How to write abstract for conference when you have no results yet?
So I have basic understanding of what I should not write in my abstract.


texts: Are practical experiences as valuable as academic research experiences?

texts:
I'm a non-U.S undergraduate Computer Science student and I want to get admission from an eminent U.S university for M.Sc./PHD.

In my experiences, there are lots of practical records. From about 10 teaching assistantships (well I call it practical in comparison to publishing papers for example) and holding programming workshops to doing valuable professional projects, for example a noticeable social networking website which is of course related to my field of study and the fields I'm interested to continue to study and do research in M.SC./PHD.

But I don't have any publications and my GPA is about 2.8/4.0 .

I'm afraid if my CV seems to be more "practical" than "academic" and maybe admission offices of eminent universities are looking for more academic prospective students.

1- Now what's your opinion about this situation and my chance to get admission from eminent U.S universities?
2- From an academic professor's point of view, which is more valuable for an undergraduate student: having publications or making such projects or teaching experiences?


texts: Where can I find the IEEE list of research topics?

texts:
I'm trying to submit to IEEE Transactions on Computers, and their web form offers an 8-line box with a list of hundreds of topics to choose from.  The web form does not identify the list, but I am sure it is published elsewhere.

Can someone link the topics list that IEEE is using?

edit: I used a regex replace to mine the list from the page source, but the link might still be helpful to others.  It has 2261 items, to be exact, and you can view 8 of them at a time.

This link has the up-to-date list as of August 2016 (and I will not be keeping it up to date): http://alejandroerickson.com/j/eggs/IEEE-Keyword-Ontology-2016-08-18.html

From IEEE:
https://www.computer.org/cms/Computer.org/peer-review/docs/taxonomy.pdf

Below are two items from the list, for identification purposes:

C.2.1.h Network topology < C.2.1 Network Architecture and Design < C.2 Communication/Networking and Information Technology < C C

G.1.7.d Differential-algebraic equations < G.1.7 Ordinary Differential Equations < G.1 Numerical Analysis < G Mathematics of Computing


texts: Relative representation of scientists and engineers on major experiments (especially particle physics)

texts:
I am interested in other academics' experiences with large experiments (especially something like the LHC). To what extent do the "engineers" who design and build the machine (solder electronics, assemble quadrupole magnets, etc) interact with "scientists" who determine the program (who might want to test their 11-dimensional model etc)? Do the two sides take an active interest in each other's work and give constructive suggestions to one another? Are the technicians all hired locally? How many in the "engineering" camp have PhDs?

(It's also possible to label the two groups "experimentalists" vs "theorists", though for the former I really mean people involved in the construction and day-to-day operations - I'm not interested in semantics here)

While the Higgs was at a sigma of ~4, I heard that postdocs and PhD students at CERN could volunteer for maintenance and similar tasks, and that those who did would have their names on the "Higgs paper" (hence the notoriously large author lists). Was this true and is it still the case?


texts: Switching university after master's to do PhD somewhere else

texts: I will get a master's degree early next year. I would like to do a PhD somewhere else than at my current university. However, since I have already a more impressive publication record than many of the second or third year PhD students at my department, my supervisors are expecting me to stay. I need their reference letters to leave, so what I should do? I think they will be extremely unhappy when I tell them I will be leaving, since they have invested a lot of time to work with me (which has resulted in the said publications).


texts: Erasmus exchange / internship after graduation?

texts:
I am a European student (from a Non-EU country) and I got my BA degree last year. I am planning to go to study for masters degree in my profession, but that will be during 2018 (next year).

My question is, is it possible during this 'gap' period for me to apply for an Erasmus internship/grant/mobility somewhere? I am not currently enrolled in a University, so I wonder if there are cases like mine?


texts: should I put this information into the reference section or within the text?

texts:
I am making an article about Information Technology, mainly related to policies, and I have a list of some solution providers with their proposals; something like this:

Vendor1, Proposal related to...

I would like to know if the web links that are related to each proposal can be put inside the same list or should I reference them, in some cases I have only web pages and in other pdfs. So should I do this:

Vendor1, Proposal related to ... (information available at http//nosense.com
Vendor2, Proposal related to ... (information available at http//page1/document1.pdf)

or like this:

Vendor1, Proposal related to ... [1]
Vendor2, Proposal.... [2]

References
[1] ...
[2] ...

which one should be the correct way of referencing this information?


texts: How can unaffilitated individuals sign up for Web of Knowledge / Science?

texts:
I am conducting a meta-analysis of literature and several individuals recommended that I use Web of Knowledge, instead of just Google Scholar. The specific part of it I would need would be Web of Science.

I am not affiliated with any institution; I'm just an independent researcher. I don't see any option to sign up?

On the sign-in page it says:

  NOT REGISTERED?

  Take advantage of many great features when you register.

Access Web of Science from outside your institution using **roaming** capabilities
Set up citation alerts whereby you are notified by email when an article on your Alerts list has been cited

  Learn more about the benefits of registering for an account

However, when I follow the "Learn more" link I don't see any option to sign up and there are no further mentions of this "roaming" option.


texts: If I start in an area I don't feel too excited about, is it possible for me to eventually return to what I truly like?

texts:
I am a second year PhD student, and I still don't have an advisor. I chose this school because it has a ton of people working in the sub-field I am interested in (Mathematical Optimization). I tried lab rotations with three of the 'stars' here, but they didn't work out - two were busy during the quarter and didn't give me a problem to work on, the third one, though so far sufficiently satisfied by my work, has almost a year-long 'testing period' before taking on students, which is too long for me (I only got to know this mid-way through the last quarter).

So I relaxed my constraints and talked to professors working in a slightly different field (Control Theory), and they are willing to take me, but this means I might be doing something a bit different than what I had imagined when I came here.

Before coming to school, I was working in the industry for three years, earning a decent amount of money. I already had a Master's before that. I came back to grad school only because I wanted to work on Optimization problems and do algorithm analysis for them. Now I might have to do modeling of problems in Control Theory. The mathematics at the heart of the two fields is quite different, and I already spent a whole year taking hardcore Optimization and Convex Analysis classes (which I now feel will be a waste).

All this is making me depressed. Quitting is absolutely not an option for me.

My question is this - do people do one thing and then end up getting back on track doing what they really want to do? Is this even possible? Especially if what you really want to do is math-intensive.

EDIT, March 2017 : In case some other PhD student comes in reading this, I can imagine what you are going through with all your 'failed' rotations. Just wanted to say, I tried a rotation with a 'star' in my field of interest (Optimization) one last (fourth) time. And he has now agreed to be my advisor! :) :) :) :) :) :) :) I won't have to compromise after all, and I am so, so, so happy.


texts: Publishing company's reps refusing to send desk copies to my home. Any way around this?

texts: A certain popular publishing company won't send a textbook to my home, for a course I'm teaching this Fall; It's a new edition for this year. I understand they have policies, but I was expecting some kind of favor during the COVID business. It isn't easy to get the textbook if it's shipped to the campus right now, because the college is completely locked down. Has anyone found ways to convince publishers to send them out to home addresses?


texts: In a submitted manuscript, how (un)usual is a note "will be inserted in the final manuscript", or other meta-information to editor&reviewers?

texts:
I'm about to submit a manuscript describing a data product.  In the manuscript, I will advertise that the data are available for public use under the ODC Attribution license.  After submission, I will start the process to transfer the data to the World Data Center for Remote Sensing of the Atmosphere, who would like to see a manuscript before I can transfer my data.  But in the manuscript, I hope to have a persistent link, citing the actual data.  So, I have a chicken-and-egg problem.

I could solve this by writing in the submitted manuscript a note This will be adapted in the final version.  How usual or unusual is it to write such meta-information in a manuscript?  Or should I rather not make mention of it in the initial submission, and rather communicate this meta-information to the reviewers via the editor?


texts: Where do the responsibilities of an MS GRA doing a thesis actually end?

texts:
I am doing a MS thesis in an engineering lab and I am fully funded by my advisor (tuition waiver plus stipend). We are a small lab and my professor is aiming for tenure. I am ahead of schedule and almost done with my thesis.I am good at programming and completed the project in 3 weeks (my professor thought it would take at least 3 months). Now, my professor is asking me to work on other things which involve developing apps for her other projects. I have protested by saying I am an GRA and I should only be concerned with my thesis project and my work in all other large projects in the lab should be at my discretion.

My advisor replied that I am pretty lucky to work for her since other professors have graduate students who work on 5 projects simultaneously (which of course is load of crap, I have other friends working in other labs who only work on their thesis). The other time I protested, my advisor said that since I am supposed to work 40 hours a week in lab, the project should be completed within 2 weeks easily. (These projects which my advisor wants me to do require some 80 hours of programming sometimes since I first need to learn the language and then write code for it). It's not that I don't want to develop apps, but I am more interested in writing journal papers for IEEE with deadlines in November, and I need all the time I can for that endeavor. I raised this issue but my advisor said that getting accepted in IEEE is remote, so I should concentrate on writing apps since there is a very good chance for her to get funded if I develop them.

I know that even if I refuse development, my advisor might throw a fit but my GRA will be intact because no advisor fires a student who is about to complete thesis. Also, I had asked my advisor if she would be interested in helping me with getting a PhD after thesis and she flatly said no. The advisor said I should probably go back to industry and work for 3-4 years and then decide on PhD. It seemed more like an excuse to make me get out of the lab. So it's pretty obvious there is no chance of a long-term relationship with my advisor.

  I am trying to understand what are the other job responsibilities of
     an MS student doing thesis?  There is no chance of working with my
     advisor after MS, so why should i work on her projects? I can very
     well try to get some journals papers published as it might help in
     getting a PhD admit elsewhere, or should I just develop her apps
     because I work in her lab?

Edit: There are 3 people in my lab now (2 MS students and one PhD student), but I am the only programmer.


texts: Is there a website that will tell you what class number on one campus is equivalent to what other class number but on a different campus?

texts:
The Problem: I'm trying to finish up my teaching credential this semester, but one of the last classes I need isn't offered by my campus.  But they say if I can find an online version of the class offered by another CSU (California State University) campus, that I can take that.

But all the CSU Campuses have their own internal course numbers, so to find out which class is equivalent to the one I need, I've been checking the catalogs, looking at the requirements, finding the course that looks close and checking the course description for a similar one to the original.

But this takes an amazing amount of time.  Maybe this is wishful thinking, but it seems like there has to be a website with a table or lookup of equivalent courses on other campuses.

Something like Physics 4A at campus A is equivalent to Physical Science 200 at Campus B.

Does this exist?  If so where might I look?

In case someone has some very specific information I'm looking for the equivalent of CI 161 from Fresno State being offered online on a different CSU Campus.

Additional

My advisor was able to find a teaching science middle school class, class that will be equivalent enough for the teaching high school science class.  I still think a website that gave equivalent classes would be so very useful to students.  I wonder if it's out there somewhere already.


texts: Advantages/disadvantages of bundling source code from separate, related papers?

texts:
Say that you have several papers, each with a set of experiments, in which the source code overlaps appreciably. If you wish to release the code for each paper, which is better:

isolate the relevant code and release each (possibly redundant) version independently; or
keep the code bundled with clear instructions of how to reproduce the experiments from each paper (say by indicating which revision number corresponds to the code used in each paper)?

This scenario can arise, say, because each paper includes the same benchmark algorithms or the code was initially developed to be extensible (with, e.g., good memory management). It may be faster to deploy new code by extending the existing code base. One can imagine a public github repository where the software suite is continually expanded.

Some advantages for isolating the code:

Easier to understand in the context of the single paper
Clearly reproducible

Some advantages for bundling the code:

Greater visibility for all the papers
More likely that software from older papers is up-to-date and easy to run
Builds towards a comprehensive software suite
Less redundancy and less overhead (assuming this is the manner in which the code is developed)

  Is there clearly a preferable choice among these alternatives? Is there another alternative entirely? Have I enumerated the most important advantages in deciding between these alternatives?


texts:
Recently I got myself enrolled in a PhD programme.

I want to know whether there is any website where one can get registered and get access to various different sites for journals like Jstor, Science Direct etc. I can’t access these sites outside of my university, although my college ID lets me access them from the campus. I am doing this course part-time, so I can’t always be inside the campus.

If I can get a common ID by paying some fee, I am ready for that. But that common login ID should work on different sites. Please let me know if there is any method.