texts: What should I do if I discover a typo in the title of my MS thesis after submission

texts:
After I submitted my thesis recently, I discovered that I made a very silly mistake in typing the title of my thesis; I missed one letter. Instead of implementation I typed "implemenation". The thesis is now printed and submitted.

I was very cautious but still, this typo slipped my attention, probably due to some technical issues that I had with my LaTeX editor and using separate files for title and body. Now the typos is there and I want to fix it. I found similar questions (here and  there) but it looks like my problem is different. Do you have any suggestions? For example, can I submit an erratum?


texts: Changing phd university (and country): issues with adviser, no funds, and so on

texts:
I joined a phD program in my home country (third world) earlier this year, after finishing a Ms in a top-5 university in the US. My country's government required me to come back to my country after the Master's, so I didn't even consider applying for a phD outside.

The situation now is as follows: my research received zero funding so far, mostly due to my research field being non-existent in my current university, even though it's the field I listed in my phD application. I spent the last 7 months on a personal project and managed to publish a paper, however my relationship with my adviser deteriorated once he "found out" that I didn't list him as co-author (it didn't even cross my mind since I've met him less than a dozen times during the whole year and he didn't know what the project was about). I also had to use my own money to do such project.

I'm now decided to quit the phD and apply for a top-5 university in US. I've read that a strong recommendation letter from my original adviser is almost a requirement to change phD programs - not having that would make the department I'm applying to to see me as a quitter. Obviously I don't think I can get such letter.

Is there any way for me to save my academic career? I got straight A's (GPA 4.0) during my Master's, the last thing I want is to bury my academic career now.


texts: Should I send professors money for illegally downloading their books?

texts:
I illegally download almost all the books I need for my studies. While I'm more than happy to give a middle finger to the publisher mafia, it does of course mean that the author of the book is not appropriately compensated for their work.

But: it is well-known that professors do not make substantial amounts of money for each copy sold of their textbook. Perhaps 5–15 % of the sales price of each unit sold. This usually corresponds to roughly 5–10 dollars.

With that in mind, would it be appropriate to simply send those odd 10 dollars to the author of the book that I am illegally downloading? If you are a professor who authored a book, how would you feel about this?


texts:
It is quite common (in some areas) to see the reference to the paper, which is cited as "to appear" or "in prepapation" but never actually appeared. Such citations are treated in the same way as references to unpublished results, conference talks, etc.

However, this approach doesn`t really work for references to preprints. The results are published. The problem is that old preprints (say, from 1985) are now inaccessible, they are often not digitized.

So, it is not clear how to treat such old preprints and papers based on results from them: should I believe the authors citing it or consider it as non-existent?


texts: Should I tell other interviewers where else I've interviewed?

texts:
I am currently travelling for faculty interviews. Some professors and other interviewers have asked me where else I have interviewed. Should I tell interviewers where else I've interviewed?

Intuitively I would like to give them less information, but I also don't want to appear guarded and defensive as a person, either.


texts: I've been on a couple of research projects with a few professors and have had some success recently and plan to do more collaborative work through the end of this calendar year.  One student is constantly leeching off of me and imposing himself, such as wanting specifics about my work, specifics about private meetings between me and my research advisors, wanting to come to lab while I am there to do some work. (he is not part of the lab.)  How do I tell this person to back off and do his own work, establish his own connections and stop creeping on me and stalking my every move in hopes of leapfrogging me, just because I've had some recent success?  Do I have to continually say, "this is private and ongoing research that isn't published yet"?


texts: Accidentally finding the solution to an exercise

texts:
I was given an assignment for a graduate course a few days ago, and I had to do some background reading in order to understand what one question was asking. In the process of doing this reading, I discovered a paper that contained the exact question I was working on, but phrased as a statement. A proof of this statement was also included, meaning the solution was now laid out in front of me.

I'm not sure how to approach this situation. I can't simply reference this paper, since telling the instructor "the solution may be found here" misses the point of the exercise. On the other hand, I can't write my solution without providing a citation, since that would be academic dishonesty. What should I do in this situation?


texts: How to ensure I will stay first author of my paper?

texts:
Some time ago i clumsily wrote a paper about an algorithm.Since i had no experience in scientific writing i gave the paper to a professor with the hope that he would help me improve the presentation.The professor rewrote the paper making some very minor changes in proofs without my consent but allowed me to be "first author" on the paper.Recently i discovered that he put himself as first author in the first author field(that was intended for those who made the greatest contribution) of the  of the journal's form.I feel a bit cheated by this and i am not sure how to proceed to change it if it is possible.I have already sent an email to the professor who agreed to change his "mistake" but i don't trust him at all since he lied to me repeatedly in the past for other matters.
Is it fair to pressure him to add my name as first author(he said he will but did nothing yet) on the submission form if its possible since he rewrote my paper(without my consent) but really added nothing new to my algorithm and its proofs ?
Since the professor is a bit dishonest how can i be sure that he does it without deceiving me in some way?


texts: Do I have to tip the bartenders and hotel staff, when a U.S. University hosts an event for researchers?

texts:
Prior to the COVID-19 lockdown, I attended a generously-funded research meeting that included a hotel stay, free dinners and bar drinks.  There was a dedicated bar section just for us.

I always wondered: At these funded events, should I tip the bartenders and hotel staff, or can I assume that the University takes care of not only the bill but also the gratuity that is expected by the service staff?

I landed up tipping on most times, but the few times that I did not, it felt a bit awkward -- walking away with a beer without tipping the bartender seemed rude


texts: Transitioning between two advisors who work in the same department

texts:
A PhD student has been working with Prof A. However, after a year, the student decided that he doesn't like the field and wants to change his advisor to Prof B, who works in the same department with Prof A.

Would there be any potential adverse effects on relationships if the student changes PhD advisor from Prof A to Prof B within same department, especially when the student has strong previous connections with Prof B?

Can Prof A advise Prof B not to take the student in such a case? Has anybody experienced cases like these and what the results were?

Assume Prof A is tenured and Prof B is not .and Prof A was against co advising from beginning.


texts: As a Master Thesis supervisor, how should I assist students with poor fundamental skills (e.g., problem solving)?

texts:
I am currently working as a research assistant at a University and one of my tasks is to supervise the Master Thesis projects of students in our lab. Most of the projects I manage are related to Embedded Systems and Automation applications.
As part of my supervision, normally I dedicate an hour or two per week for supervision to discuss the development of their project and current issues. Most of the time their issues are related to a lack of technical experience on a subject (which was part of their Master's Course).
As sometimes, the problems are small I will dedicate part of my time to solve it with them. But from my experience, it seems that these issues keep upcoming due to poor research and problem-solving skills. As I am relatively new to supervising Master Students, I would like to know what are some of the key elements to assist them with these type of problems and up to what extent should I help them?


texts: contacting post-doc in a lab to join his research instead of his mentor

texts:
This question is unrelated to the previous one I asked earlier this week.
There's a post-doc in a lab at my school who exactly fits my research interests-- as in, he is working in the exact subfield of the subfield I like, and he is using the exact techniques I would like to gain experience in.
Is it appropriate to just contact him instead of the professor who manages his group? (I guess, instead of contacting his mentor)
I know there's a question of funding, but frankly for several reasons I'm willing to not be paid, at least for the first few months (and I'll mention this in my email to him).
edit: I know there's some instability with postdocs in someone else's lab (they might just yeet to another lab), but if I get a year with him, I would still love the opportunity.
edit: I'm second-year


texts: Is it acceptable to change affiliation to new employer when submitting an updated manuscript when old employer provided limited research support?

texts:
Background: I have published a paper with no co-authors in a CS workshop a few months ago. I have put as my affiliation the place in which I was lecturing at that time, say university X. The work was made by myself, with no use of resources from my previous place of work. I applied for some financial help to cover the expenses that I suffered (registration for the workshop, tickets and accommodation), but they agreed only to give at most the 10% of the expenses roughly. This amount has not yet been paid.

I now work at a new university that is research oriented; and there is the opportunity to submit the research paper that I was doing to a journal, after some modifications. So I was wondering:

Is it acceptable to change my affiliation from my old university to the new university when submitting an updated manuscript?

This is mainly because the former one did not bring any kind of support for this research activity.


texts: CS PhD Addmission: Contacting prof about unpublished work

texts:
I have applied to PhD programs in US in the area of TCS for FALL 13. I have two unpublished work in the area of theory which was part of my master thesis. I have other published work but they are not in theory. Also it appears that these univ have started contacting their successful candidates.

Recently one of the unpublished work has been upload on arxiv however the other work is still not there. I can't put it on arxiv as I am not the sole author. Should I mail these two papers as pdf attachments to my potential list of advisors? (3-6 per univ) What should be done? I have mentioned the titles of my work and their contributions in my cv : e.g. this paper improves on paper X and gives 3 approx algorithm using technique Y. However why should anyone believe me if it is unpublished. Or how to gauge the amount of research done/involved in that work.

Any suggestions?


texts: PhD student I am working with as an undergrad may pursue something similar to what my senior thesis is on, is this a conflict of interest?

texts:
I began researching for my thesis on subject X several months ago, and the thesis program is starting in a few weeks.
I did not tell the grad student at the old uni about this yet - because originally we were working on different things, his idea seemed cool, and naturally, I want my name on as many papers as possible. However, my adviser told me that my research idea may be enough to be considered a significant contribution in the field. A lot of people in research are interested in how X can be applied to different areas right now, but my idea on how to apply it is completely my own and unique.
I feel I should either only work on my thesis at my new uni, or email the grad student at my old one, let him know I am researching X right now, and that if he involves X in his research, that might not look good for me.
How should I go about this? I feel bad because the grad student invested time into teaching me for the last 4 weeks and getting me caught up, but I also want to do what's best for me - which is 100% pursuing my research idea.
The fact that my adviser thinks it is publishable and may make an impact in the field is rare enough in undergrad, while the grad student I am working with is not sure what exactly he's researching yet - and I fear that he will look into using X now, which might cross with my research.


texts: Research publications for Masters by Research

texts:
I do have little research experience on "Web Security" and I made some inventions in that. I have patented my inventions and now when I was trying to apply for Masters by Research in Information Technology in some X University they are asking for Research Publications. I never came across them in my past and I don't know its importance. May anyone tell me

Its role to the admissions committee.
How important they are as compared to patents.
How and where can I release my Research Publications?


texts: Is it necessary to apply spaced repetition when reading research papers?

texts:
I'm an undergraduate who is going to be a Ph.D candidate this fall. After reading papers extensively for writing the literature review, I realize details in some papers, though I totally understand them at the moment I read them, are almost forgotten when I try to cite these papers.
I wonder what's your habit to keep track of the papers you've read (for long-term retrieval).


texts: Is it fine to post my paper's preprint both on my blog and on arXiv?

texts:
There is no particular reason that I want my preprint paper both on my blog and on arXiv, but I just thought it would look nice on my blog. If I were to do this, will arXiv mark my paper as plagiarized, because there is another copy on my blog? If so, how do I prevent this (is there an option to fill-in alternate links to the same paper)?

The following concerns me:

I have heard that arXiv have their own moderators, so that lead me to assume they might have a plagiarism test done on submitted papers. If my paper is already on my blog, isn't it more likely to be flagged as plagiarized by any average plagiarism software?
I have been surfing the web to understand about arXiv: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAcademia/comments/5dq2jx/what_does_it_mean_to_have_your_paper_rejected_by/ There have been evidences of proper articles being rejected. This being the case, how does it ensure security?
The reason we post our papers first on arXiv is to prevent the content from being stolen by some anonymous person, who first rejects our paper upon submission and unlawfully uses the content elsewhere. How is arXiv different in this aspect?

I haven't used arXiv before, and this is going to be my first time and I apologize if my question is very basic, I don't have much experience with these stuff.


texts: I recently started working for a professor as the statistician on the project. I cleaned the data, performed the data management, statistical analysis, and reported the results (with explanations of how to interpret the results). A poster was submitted and I was not asked to review it and provide feedback, but I was given an acknowledgement. In previous jobs I would have been included as an author so I found this lack of author-level attribution demotivating (it was a lot of work and it was complicated). Should I have been asked to be an author here? If so, how to raise it with the professor? Thank you.


texts: What should I do if I want to withdraw my paper from a journal but they ignore my request?

texts: I submitted my paper seven months ago and it is still under review. I sent several emails to the handling editor but I didn't get any response except every time I sent an email the status date was changed. So I decided to withdraw my paper from journal and I have written a letter to the editor-in-chief  but he didn't reply except the status date was changed again! What should I do now?


texts: Cultivating relationships with professors beyond your advisor

texts:
I am a PhD student and I'm interested in pursuing a career as a professor upon graduation.

I am interested in cultivating relationships with professors beyond my advisor so I can actually have other people to write recommendation letters for me when I go on the job market.

How can I best go about with this? That is, what are good pretexts for me to approach other professors?


texts: How and where can I seek help regarding research outside of my university?

texts:
I'm so glad to finally have found this avenue where I can seek some advice related to my Phd. I wonder why it took me so long to stumble on this.

Let me give a brief of my situation:

I'm a Phd student in management Science discipline (My research area is  - Management Information System & Decision Making )  well into 4th year with little progress to speak of. The thing is, I made 2 biggest blunders at the outset about which I cannot do anything at this point:

Getting into an University without considering whether it's suitable for the topic I'm interested in
Not changing my topic even after figuring out that my supervisor and the whole faculty aren't really comfortable with it.

I plead guilty.

I'm the first scholar assigned to my supervisor. So, he doesn't have any experience guiding research.
He is also not knowledgeable about my research area. As such, I have received nothing from him in terms of suggestions, guidance or direction in all these years.
The other faculty are also not very helpful either regarding the topic or the research in general.
I'm only looking for some intellectual discussions and guidance related to how to perform the research.

Nevertheless, I finally came up with the research proposal, which finally (after 2 years) "seemed" to satisfy all the faculty. I'm not entirely happy with how it turned out because I believe that with good guidance, it could have been way better.

All these years, I continuously tried to contact other people for help - academicians, practitioners and the like for support with only meager results.

Due to personal reasons, I moved to a different country a few months back (USA) and I have deregistered from the university. But I still want to finish my phd and get the degree. The system works like this: I can work on my own and when I think I'm almost done I can re-register (before a stipulated time) and submit my thesis within an year of re-registration.

So, now I'm completely cut-off. Not that I fared any better while I was with the University.

I did some literature survey (not sure it's exhaustive), identified some variables, started working designing questionnaire, but still am stuck on how to address one of the research objectives.

My question:

I am looking for people researching in the related field ( Phd students,  academicians) , with whom I can discuss ideas/bottlenecks. And I'm seriously in need of advice    regarding survey design and analysis. How can I find and approach
   such people? Where do I need to look for support? (I tried reaching several professors, researchers with no avail. No friends of mine are knowledgeable about MIS/Research) Anyone on this forum who can help me? What should be my strategy now?

I'm really passionate about my research. Given my constraints, I want to do as decent a work as possible.


texts: I am a 16 years old high school student. I want to publish a new piece of work. Writing a research paper is quite difficult for me. If some body has any idea about how to do that then help me.


texts: What to do when research leads to poor results?

texts:
I am an MSc graduate and work as an independent researcher. I spent 10 months on a paper. I wrote many scripts in Matlab to implement four other comparative methods as well as a new method that my MSc professor had proposed. Each of these methods was so difficult to implement.

Unfortunately, the method that I was going to propose does not work well compared to the comparative methods, which were introduced already 3-4 years ago.

What should I do now?


texts: What category in my C.V. should I put papers where I've contributed but was not listed as an author, nor in acknowledgments?

texts:
I performed a small set of experiments for a few published papers. The authors of these papers decided that my work was not significant enough to warrant my name on the papers. I am not mentioned in the acknowledgement section either, so my name isn't anywhere on the papers. (I left the group due to a lack of funding before they published the papers.)

I'm currently updating my CV and I'm wondering what category I should include these papers under. It should probably be separate from the "Publications" section where I am authors of those papers.

The field is in Biology and Biochemistry. Everything is done in the U.S., in a nationally-recognized lab.

Update: Thanks for all the answers and discussion. I am planning to just describe the experiments I did under "Work Experience" and add an author of the papers as a reference, in case there is a need for verification.


texts: Post physics PhD, how could I go about working in ecology, environmental science or earth sciences?

texts:
I am approaching the end of a PhD in experimental physics. My work involves building and operating experimental equipment, primarily optics, with some electronics. I also have a significant data analysis and theoretical component. I majored in physics at the same school (a pretty well known one) and graduated near the top of my class.

However, despite what might look like a solid set of credentials proving that I really want to build a quantum computer and the obvious next step being a post doc or industry position researching the same field, I have realized that my reasons for pursuing this line of research for so long were primarily to earn prestige and respect and not because I personally care about what I am doing (although it is wonderful that others do!). In doing this I have always enjoyed the process of science and the combination of thought and creativity with the practicality of lab work, however due to my lack of enthusiasm or motivation for the actual topic of research I have often been unhappy.

I am trying to remember what exactly it was that motivated me to be a scientist and what I used to enjoy. My undergraduate degree combined a broad span of sciences and I worked on lab biology projects during vacation. However, I am quite sure that my real lifelong passion lies somewhere in the direction of ecology, earth science or environmental science, with maybe a preference towards plant sciences or broader scale ecology.

I am really aware of how vague and naive that might sound. I grew up outdoors but I never took seriously the things I care about as a possible option I would be allowed to consider in my adult life. Following a few personal revelations I now know that this is the way to madness, and you are never going to be a successful researcher in a field you don't care about anyway!

There are many things I don't know right now, but I do know that I remain a scientist and I am very much not afraid of a great deal of hard work.

Given all this my questions are:

How likely is it that I could make such a large career shift?
How do I go about finding out more about what research is out there and what I might like specifically, given the very large quantity of research that exists??
Does anyone know of any examples of people who have made similar shifts? (Partly just because right now I need the inspiration and belief I am not trapped!)
What sort of things might I do directly after my PhD to build experience/learn more? Is trying to get field experience a good idea? Should I start to consider Master's programs?
Am I completely as doomed as I think I could be?? :)


texts: Applying ABD: mentioning defense date and thesis committee, but still waiting on a publication

texts:
The job description (UK) says I need a doctorate.
I have a paper under review that I think has a 90% chance of acceptance based on the reviews.
If my paper is accepted, I'll be able to graduate before the start date.
If it's not, I may have to withdraw my candidacy (this would be before the interview date).

I want to form my thesis committee and set a date for the defense to reassure them, in my application, that I will be graduating before the start date.  On the other hand, there's still something like a 10% chance that I might not be able to, although I suspect I might be allowed to graduate without this publication if I had the job offer in hand and it was all that was holding me back.

(How) can I get what I want here without burning any bridges?


texts: Should you let the editor of a paper under review know when you post preprints of additional papers that build on the paper under review?

texts:
Let's say that one author has a paper under review, and continues on subsequent works based on the paper under review.

When the author puts preprints of subsequent works available online, should the author let the editor of the first paper know about those subsequent works?


texts: Scientifically meaningful sources of bibliometrics

texts:
Whether we like it or not, modern academia is increasingly being measured, in some vain attempt to get objective measures.  Although it is unwise to fight 'being measured', it is at least possible to steer the measures away from meaningless ones, backed by peer-reviewed research that establishes this unrefutably.

There are a lot of different metrics that have been defined - I am not looking for those.  What I want is pointers to the research behind the scientific validity of those metrics.

So the question is: where should I look for scientific assessments of bibliometrics?


texts: Contacting a paper author: best way to address an engineer

texts:
I would like to send an email to a paper author, but I'm not sure how to address them.

The author is not a professor,
their google+ profile says "Network Engineer" (in an important network company BBTW).
As far as I know has a degree and has several publications like articles, conference papers, RFC's.

I'm a Master degree student.

What form of address should I use?


texts: Am I allowed to submit a paper that is currently in the works of being published to my school's graduate research symposium?

texts: I want to present my research at my school's yearly graduate research symposium. I got accepted and will be submitting a paper and a pre-recorded presentation. I am excited and happy to be acknowledged by my school for the research I have done. For context, the same work got accepted into a great conference as well. I was wondering if it was bad practice to submit the paper with minor edits to my school's graduate research symposium?


texts: How to decide whether to publish your paper in conference proceedings, as a journal article, or as a book chapter?

texts:
I thought that this simple question has been already asked here on Academia, but it seems to that it did not happen (or, I was not able to find it).
So, I will ask it.

You have accomplished some good results in your scientific project, and you want to publish a paper about it.
How do you decide you would like it to be published into some conference proceedings, or as a journal article, or as a book chapter?

I am considering that all these three options envisage peer review, and are all top-A destination for your paper.

I work on computer science so any particular advice and opinion in this area are strongly appreciated.


texts: How to import the citation of arxiv papers to Mendeley that could produce the accurate citation format?

texts:
I am using Mendeley to save my reference. And I find it seems that Mendeley does know the format of arxiv format.

I find many papers use a format like this:

Andrew Howard, Mark Sandler, Grace Chu, Liang-Chieh Chen, Bo Chen, Mingxing Tan, Weijun
Wang, Yukun Zhu, Ruoming Pang, Vijay Vasudevan, et al. Searching for mobilenetv3. arXiv
preprint arXiv:1905.02244, 2019.

Here is the link for the paper: https://arxiv.org/abs/1905.02244

I wonder how can I get it to Mendeley?

Thanks.


texts: How can I quickly and easily index my hand-written notes?

texts:
Research indicates that taking notes by hand is better than using a computer, for long-term comprehension (source). As an engineering grad student, I also find that using pencil and paper for graphs, diagrams, and tables is much quicker and easier than keyboard/mouse (or even stylus).

To circumvent the issue of losing my notes, I take them on loose sheets of letter paper, then drop the stack in a feed scanner every week or so, and the file to a backed up folder on my laptop.

But here is my issue: later on, when looking for specific items in my notes, it is hard to find things without scrolling through the whole PDF. Even if OCR was reliable with handwriting, it would be little use or circuits, diagrams, complex equations, etc.

So, is there a quick and easy way to index these notes, perhaps adding something like bookmarks or an index?


texts:
I am attempting to apply for a PhD but made rather a mess of my masters. Advice from anyone involved in the process is appreciated.

I am applying in the UK, and have a good bachelor's, which is all that is necesary for funding. I worked for 2 years before doing a master's. My field is computer science or bioinformatics.

The master's went wrong - I failed about half of my modules, although I passed them on retake. I produced a good project, but did not impress my supervisor. He doesn't dislike me, I just just ended up looking flaky. Regarding what went wrong, on the one hand, my cohort had an exceptionally high failure rate, but on the other I didn't work hard enough, and got quite depressed after failing some of the first set of exams.

There is a reasonable question over whether I would be suited for a PhD, but you could say that about anything hard that I try and do next.

I need a bounce-back plan. What can I do to mitigate the damage? How bad is the damage? Do you accept candidates with less than ideal transcripts and so-so references, given a good work history and supportive references from earlier supervisors?


texts: Code of conduct when proposing to open a new lab in a field new at the University

texts:
I have no idea what is code of conduct when proposing a new lab and hope you can help me out.
I am looking for a Tenure Track, just finishing my PostDoc, having a good track in an emerging field and looking forward to opening a new group.
I know that at University X there is a program dedicated to opening a new labs and hiring good PIs for that, however, at this University my field is not present at all. I would love to set up a new group there, but have no idea how to approach them and propose it?
Technically the program works like they open a position from time to time, yet then it is already specified, the field, requirements, keywords, etc. Just casual job offer.
So I need to approach them before they open a position, but what is a proper way to do that?
Colleague of mine benefited from the same program, yet he contacted a senior researcher from similar field, who advocated internally for the new lab. I do not have such option, since my field is not even close to the ones already at the Uni (However it would strongly synergise with other Labs and for sure is a prospective and active field).
Shall I already contact with a CV, or first with idea for a lab?
Shall I be transparent and first convince them for a lab before proposing myself as a candidate?
Shall I first call, or mail?
I do not want a faux-pas or being misunderstood, how would you take it?


texts: Is that proper to get messages about your work from your lab head at the early dawn?

texts: Is that proper to get messages about your work (almost critique no constructive feedback) at the early dawn, I freaked out from my sleepings not the first time to expose that besides the high pressure to get results as soon as possible. I feel my body is exhausted and sick and sometimes crying, is this behavior normal in academia?


texts:
I started work on my project in January right off the back of losing a very close family member, which didn't give me a very good mindset to begin with.
I had an initial doubt in my mind that the project wasn't for me but I suppressed it, thinking that over the coming months it would die down as my experience increased.
4 months later and the feelings are still there, it's at the point now where I dread the thought of having to work on my project and I feel myself staring at the clock almost obsessively. I'm still not allowed back on campus and have very limited contact with the faculty (to make matters worse I'm the only PhD student in the group) so I'm almost totally cut off in that respect.
Moreover, my motivation and interest simply aren't there any more and there's no point in me lying - I'm simply really unhappy and don't know what to do.
I haven't told my parents or supervisor because I really don't know what to say other than "I'm extremely unhappy and don't know what to do".
I recently had to sit some exams as part of the training I'm doing and they were almost impossible for me to answer which pushed me further into this way of thinking. I truly am very unhappy and don't know what to do. I'm only in my first year so I suppose it isn't too late.


texts: How do I add a little bit of personality to my SOP without turning it into another "trembling steps" narrative?

texts:
I wrote my SOP very closely to JeffE's answer here: Choosing research ideas to include in a statement of purpose Just a very straightforward, all research no BS statement.

My 3 letter writers liked it quite a bit and said it was very well written and "ambitious". However, I received a comment saying that, while the technical aspect is very solid, I should "say something more about myself as a person". He said I should elaborate on "what drives me and my interests, and what is it about my research that makes it so rewarding." I asked him for clarification but didn't get a very clear answer so I thought I'd ask some academics what they think.

I'm very passionate about my research (as is expected of anyone applying for a PhD, nothing new here), and after 3 years of research experience in multiple areas of physics, and 4 semesters of TA'ing, there's honestly nothing else I imagine myself doing. It's very simple, I really have no other explanation. Research is rewarding because I enjoy discovering and learning new stuff, period. I don't want to make the world a better place (would that I could), and I haven't been passionate about solid state physics since I was in diapers. I'm not one for cliches.

My introduction currently discusses: a) my general research interests in two sentences b) my goal to work in academia.

How should I add a flavor of personality, as my professor suggests?


texts: Involving additional staff members in PhD supervision (beyond co-supervisors)

texts:
Is it possible that a staff member (Asst. Prof.) offers their help to a PhD student even they are not their co-supervisor ?
How involved (if solicited) could Lab members (mostly Asst. Prof.) be in the research of PhD students.
Thanks for the clarification.


texts: How would someone go about creating something like the Pew Research Center?

texts:
I live in India. I've found that analyzing any sociopolitical issue objectively is almost impossible given the lack of data. If I wanted to close this knowledge gap by starting something like the Pew Research Center, what would it take? I am currently a Statistics undergrad in my final year. Would I require a PhD?

Thanks in advance for the replies.


texts: What does my colleagues' question really mean?

texts:
I have been a tenured faculty member at a math department in the US for a few years. Recently two colleagues of mine asked (apparently independently) why I do not have PhD students. I honestly explained my reasons to each of them. Also I added that despite that, if it is necessary I CAN take students. Neither of them commented my answer.

Should I take these two questions at face value? Or did the colleagues try to let me know in an indirect way that I am expected to have students? Is there a way to make sure whether my department is unhappy that I have no PhD students?


texts: Modern replacement for slides in presentations?

texts:
In academia we do a lot of presentations, it is the way we show our work to colleages. (I am a PhD in physics.) This is usually done with the help of slides (PDF, PowerPoint, etc). A slides presentation is basically a collection of images. Sometimes there are fancy animations (like the case of Prezi or its open source version Sozi, or even with PowerPoint) but in the end the concept of a slide is tied to an image. After the animation has passed, you end up in a static image to show to the audience and explain your stuff. And this, in fact, goes against a continuum and natural presentation, you are obliged to split your talk in slides which are discrete. (Maybe this is why slides have not replaced the even more old-school blackboard.)
I feel that this is an archaic way of presenting our work based on what our ancestors did on the past century using projectors, for example, because technology allowed to do that. Nowadays our slides are made and projected 99.99999 % of the times in a computer and, instead of exploiting all they can do, we are replicating an old fashioned way of presenting stuff using slides.
So, consider for example this plot which is interactive, you can zoom in, pan, see the values on hover the mouse, show/hide traces, etc. You cannot embed this plot in a typical slides presentation in PDF format. If you go to PowerPoint or something like this, you may have a chance (I doubt) but the result is barely portable between different platforms (Windows, Linux, Mac, Android, etc). Even if you make it, all these solutions still have the concept of a slide as a building block which, as I said, breaks the continuity and introduces a complication.
Furthermore, try to see slides on a cell phone, it is a pain!
So my question is: What is out there to replace the old-school slides?
I think that something with the format of a website that is self contained in a single HTML file would be the perfect next step, because it is super cross platform and as far as I know you can embed almost whatever you want (text, equations, images, videos, audios, interactive stuff, etc), you can open it with any browser in any device, you can put it online, etc. The plot in this link is an example of what I say, it is a single HTML file that you can open with any (modern) browser, and can be easily embedded in websites. And the size adapts to the screen so you can see it nicely on your cellphone too.
My inspiration for this question came after seeing this presentation by a guy which made a website instead of slides. As you can see, the plots are all interactive, for example. The pros: It can do all I want, the cons: It is not a single HTML file that you can download and save/share, you need hosting, etc. Is there an easy way to build something like this and end up with a single and self-contained HTML file?


texts: What to expect from a Skype PhD interview in physics?

texts:
I have a Skype interview for a physics PhD in Austria, and was wondering what level the questions are likely pitched at. While I have a Master's degree, it is from the UK and I am aware that students from mainland Europe tend to have done longer degrees with a heavier research component. For example, I skimmed a few of the Master's dissertations from students in the department I am applying to, and they all seem much more advanced and longer than my dissertation project.

Does anyone here know how the central-Europe PhD recruitment process works, ideally in physics (but also related fields)?

For example, are they more likely to focus on "soft questions" (why this group, why this university, etc) or are they likely to ask technical questions which require having read several papers by the prospective supervisor?
Does the format tend to be informal, with lots of questions and answers and chat, or is it the norm for applicants to prepare a verbal presentation on their thesis topic?
How much should I expect to be asked about my Master's dissertation, versus the project I'm applying to? My dissertation was in the same field as the PhD, but a very different project topic.
Are there any other "academic etiquette" things I should be aware of for such an interview? For example, would it be considered rude to ask about other opportunities for collaboration outside the department?

Thanks for any help.


texts: How to handle citing duplicate publications?

texts:
I am writing a review article and have come across a number of references which were published verbatim in their entirety in more than one place (same author(s) and the same content; Duplicate Publications). All of the publications in question are before 1970 and may be divided into two classes: those that have an instance with a statement that the content has been published or presented elsewhere (which references the duplicate) and those lacking such a statement.

For those with a statement, I am inclined to cite the earliest instance and omit the later. However, the approach is unclear for those where precedence is not apparent.

I am looking for any recommendations (best practices, examples) on how citing duplicate publications should be handled in general. I have not come across an example in my literature review and have been unable to find any guidance (most search results are related to preventing duplicate publications rather than coping with their aftermath decades later).

Options I see at the moment (some of which are more palatable than others):

Don't explicitly acknowledge the duplication, but cite both variants in the text and bibliography (i.e., a parenthetical or textual citation with both instances each and every time I want to reference its/their content).
Pick one (randomly if precedence cannot be determined) and ignore the other.
Pick one (randomly if precedence cannot be determined) and include a footnote at the first use indicating that another instance exists (the alternative instance would be cited there with the full citation included in the cited references section).
Pick one (randomly if precedence cannot be determined) and modify the full citation in the cited references section to indicate that another instance exists and provide the full citation of the alternative.

Some additional, possibly relevant information:

Subsequent publications are inconsistent in which instance is cited (i.e., both are cited and precedence is often ignored).
The field is environmental biotechnology.

Edit: To clarify in response to BioGeo's answer, I cannot determine absolute precedence for instances lacking a statement because the submission dates are not included (apparently the practice was not yet common, at least in this field). Unless there is a "standard approach" of which I am unaware, the published date cannot be relied on as a general solution either, given the differing precision in reported dates. For example, consider a duplicate publication where one instance is a book chapter published in 1943 and another instance is an article in the June issue of a journal published the same year. Which came first?


texts: My professor has left the university and his official email ID is no longer active

texts: I will be applying for MS in Computer Science in the United States and I want to ask for a letter of recommendation from one of my professors, with whom I share a strong relationship. He has left the university and won't be able to write the letter with the university's letterhead. He will have to send it from his personal email ID, since his official email ID has been deactivated. Will this put a dent on the authenticity of the letter? Are the admission committee members willing to contact my professor in case of any doubt or discrepancy?


texts:
I've applied to several graduate (MSc) programs overseas, and I've received several acceptance letters. Now I have the problem to select one of those programs. How should I do it? What should I look into each program?

No program offers funding, and some programs are elegible for a local scholarship.
I can fund some programs with my own money.


texts: Can you change the Ph. D. supervisor but continue with the same job, regardless of the opinion of the previous supervisor?

texts:
Can you change the supervisor (advisor) but continue with the same job, that is, without changing research direction, regardless of the opinion of the previous supervisor, or can a job only continue with another supervisor, if the previous supervisor accepts that the next supervisor continues to guide the work?

The main question is whether the previous supervisor has ownership over the continuity of doctoral work in the legal sense.


texts: How to publish a simple machine-learning approach that cannot compete with the state of the art?

texts: I am proposing an approach which is simpler than current approaches, but does not come close to the state of the art on benchmark metrics. But, I think my approach is still cool and much simpler in implementation. I want to avoid comparing my approach to the state of the art in the research paper I am writing. How do I go about this situation?


texts:
I am starting a new postdoc position with a professor who's retiring soon (<5 yrs, judging from the grad intake).

I am interested in pursuing an academic job and it worries me that I would not be able to count on him during my career, for support after he retires.
Am I overly worried and exaggerating the benefit of having a senior scientist interested in your work in the early stage of your academic career?

Right now, I am thinking of doing as much work as I can and using his connections to do a second postdoc with younger and active PI.

Any advice would be appreciated!


texts: Is it ok to record a conversation with a professor without their knowledge and can it be used as evidence?

texts:
If a student is being harassed or expecting to be harassed, can the student record the meeting with the professor without the professor’s knowledge?
Additionally, could this recording be used to create a case or as evidence against or the professor for misconduct either at the college/university level or beyond (e.g. in court)?


texts: Is it possible to go through registration without a passport and a visa?

texts: I lost my passport with a F1 Visa today, 1 week before registration at SUNY Buffalo (I am attending as a PhD student), will it prevent me from being registered if I don't have a passport with the stamped visa by the time I arrive (I am already in the U.S)? I can't contact the university staff since it's Saturday and I am freaking out with no clue on how to proceed.


texts: Supervisor wants me to add my name on someone else's paper to be published

texts:
I have a particularly unusual problem that puts me in a bind. I am a first year Masters student at my faculty, and recently my supervisor have pushed me to "update" her previous student's unpublished paper (few years old, so need to find newer papers to cite inside and format it properly for submission), add my name onto it as co-author and publish it to IET. I feel it's unethical, although my supervisor has assured me permission will be obtained from the original author. Feeling uncomfortable with this practice, I delayed doing that paper.

What are the implications if I proceed with it? Would it pose any problems to me in the future? I'm inclined towards not doing it, though, but I want to hear expert opinions on this kind of practice. Thanks.


texts: How Does Statement of Purpose Play a Role in Graduate Admission?

texts:
I'm applying for MSc. in Computer Science.

The basic format for SOP would be (at least in the university which I'm applying to):

State your research interests and career goals
Outline your previous research experiences / contributions (if any)
Name the faculty members you would like to work with

Does competitiveness of research areas (that are stated in SOP) affect your chance of graduate admission? I'm talking about a master program, not a PhD. If two people are both applying for MSc. in Computer Science, does the applicant (who showed interest in less competitive field) have a better chance of getting accepted? I guess the answer is obvious for a PhD admission because the decision is made by professors, but graduate admission is decided by graduate committees.


texts: Can version control systems, like Git, be used to establish priority date of a paper?

texts: Are systems like Git robust enough so that if questions arises about a paper's priority, it would prove or substantiate a claim to have a VCS log?


texts: Is a math bachelor the right choice for me?

texts:
I am currently a student in high school, who plans on going to university.
As of now, I am planning to pursue my bachelors degree in mathematics in the UK and then go on to do a PhD in computer science in the states.
As long as I have been alive I have always loved doing maths and physics. But during the last couple of years, I have really gotten into computer science and can picture myself working in the field.
However, whenever I think about just doing a bachelor in computer science, I end up feeling like I am betraying my principles and throwing away the chance to acquire a proper mathematical education (Not to mention my disappointment in myself for not pursuing a career in theoretical physics (which just doesn't seem like it will pay the bills)).
As to my question, is it advisable for me to go through a math degree before pursuing a PhD in compsci? Or should I just get a degree in compsci in the first place and take some math classes on the side?
(In the case that it matters, I would also like to someday work outside of academia, perhaps pursuing a research or development job in the industry.)
Thank you for your answers in advance. I am really looking forward to reading them.


texts: Open university and admissions into a US Masters

texts: Can a student with a bachelor's in engineering with very little chemistry take some courses in chemistry to get into a chemistry masters? How do US masters view courses taken from Open University, particularly in chemistry?


texts: How to select between letters of recommendation

texts:
It's application season again. I've been a postdoc for two years and that is wrapping up soon. I'm applying for both permanent and postdoctoral positions, mainly through mathjobs.org. Many position advertisements ask for specifically three or four letters of recommendation, often specifying that one letter address teaching. My question is: what should be the pecking order if I must choose a subset of the letters I have?

I have five letters of recommendation on hand:

My thesis advisor
My current postdoc supervisor
A letter addressing teaching (an instructor at my graduate school department; I taught a stand-alone course that this person was the coordinator for)
A well-known, senior mathematician in the field from a prestigious university (this person knows me personally less well than the others)
A mid-career but well-respected mathematician at another university who I've visited

I assume all the letters are quite positive, although there might be some uncertainty for letter (4). If there are other factors that could tip things one way or the other, what are they? (Since this is a public forum, I can't be too specific about things here.)

Another approach could be to simply submit all the letters of recommendation and let the hiring committee decide what to do with them. Is this a reasonable idea?


texts: Can I use informal sources (particularly online sources)?

texts:
I know that typically, unpublished references (i.e. references not published in some journal, especially online resources) are highly discouraged. I'm working on a paper regarding Bluetooth LE implementations, and most of the materials relevant to my paper are either online (i.e. on mailing lists discussing implementation of Bluetooth LE on Linux, or manufacturers documenting limitations of their Bluetooth LE chips) or in the Bluetooth 4.0 standard itself.

Is it appropriate to use these online references? They're pretty much my only source of information, as my paper is mostly on real-world implementations of Bluetooth LE.


texts: What needs to be done if an editor requires "very thorough editing"?

texts:
The Editor's and the reviewers' comments are as follows:

  [...]

  Eic

  a very thorough editing is  a must

What does the last line mean? What kinds of things do I need to do?

I think I need to check the whole manuscript for finding language problem.


texts: How to address an Editor if I have new proof techniques of old results?

texts:
I read an article published in a High Impact Factor journal and on reading I find that almost all of the proofs could have been done in an easy way.

I devised easy techniques myself and I find that the results obtained in that paper match mine.

Shall I publish my easy techniques stating in my paper that I have found easy proof techniques for the paper already published?
Is it publishable?

How shall I address the Editor and let him/her know that I have obtained the same results but using much easier techniques?

How should I give a title for my manuscript?


texts: Can a person taking their undergraduate degree in humanities, apply for a masters in scientific fields?

texts: can humanities students apply for masters in the sciences or must they take a second undergraduate degree in the sciences if they choose to study in a different field?


texts: Found error in published article where to submit a correspondence?

texts:
I have found an error in a published article. The error lies within the method section.

I would like then to write a correspondence to let people know about this issue and to explain what could have been done correctly.

I tried to look into the journal webpage but it seems they do not publish correspondences. Where can I then submit my ‘correction’?

My field is applied physical science.

Thanks


texts: How to obtain the files created by previous university researchers, both legally and physically?

texts:
I'm a post doc at a U.S. University.  I need the files of a grad student research assistant who has left the lab.  The student was a funded  RA.  The student created files (data, codes, simulations, etc) for a few contracts the lab had, which funded him.

This student has been very difficult to contact, and stubborn to send the files.  Compounding my problems, the student did his work on 2 computers: (1) his personal laptop, and (2) a lab computer which has had its hard drive wiped.  It is important to note that the student used the university internet server the entire time (it's the only way he could use university licensed software).  At this point, I have given up on him sending the files.

Questions

1) What legal maneuvers (in the US) do I have to get the files from this ex-research assistant?  I understand that he would own some of the intellectual rights of the files, but the lab and sponsor would also have some ownership.

2) Could the files still exist within the university somehow? This RA wiped his company computer's hard drive before leaving (a relatively common practice for any exiting employee).  Since the student used the University internet server, the files could have been monitored and even obtained legally (I think).  In the US it's legal for an employer to monitor an employee if they're using company property (Internet server, computer, etc). Is it common for a major research university to obtain backup files of all the researchers' work through the Internet server?  Are the files of grad student research assistants typically obtainable within a research university (not the published dissertations but the actually files, codes, data)?  Or are the files forever gone (at least  from a practical point of view)?  I've talked to IT people but have not reached a knowledgeable person yet.

3) If you were a researcher who left your company, would you expect (and be okay with) future employees scouring your company computer, or possibly obtaining your personal laptop files via the company Internet server (don't know if this is even possible?) ?

4). What are the ethics of this situation? What are the formalities of these situations?

Any information would help, this is really holding back the progress of the lab and my required deliverables.  The grad student left spontaneously after the semester  - otherwise the professor and lab director would have obtained the files from him.


texts: MPhys Physics to Theoretical Quantum Gravity/Particle physics PhD

texts:
Do universities accept Physics graduates in theoretical PhD positions? I will finish my masters this year and I want to proceed in a theoretical physics phd. I'm not sure yet as to the exact subject but I want to do theoretical research in either Quantum Gravity(LQG/String Theory).

Do I have decent chances in being accept in a purely theoretical position?


texts: Independent Publishing as a University Affiliate

texts:
What are some things to keep in mind while publishing as a university affiliate? By this I mean positions that allow credentials like for being a third party instructor, counseling etc. Is it ethical to use university credentials in those cases?

Also what kind of a difference does funding make in this case, provided the affiliation does not include any terms on intellectual property? This is assuming it is not completely unethical to use credentials that were provided for a specific purpose, even if not explicitly.


texts:
I want to submit my CV/Resume to universities for MS in CS. I have learnt web designing and development along with other programming languages learnt in undergraduation.

I used to prepare 2 resumes, one for web development companies and other for software companies and I would submit suitable one.

Now can I do something creative and submit a CV that looks something like this? http://www.smashingmagazine.com/images/design-cv-resume/sarah_parmenter.pdf

Will the universities not consider if I do something like this? or do I need to submit normal 2 page resume?


texts: Expectation of perfection vs. the never ending list of 'to do's'

texts:
I am wondering if anyone has experienced conflicting feelings of failure associated with their work? Essentially, I am struggling to continue my students and maintain a proactive attitude while continually facing an ever growing list of tasks.

I find myself struggling to even start the list in the morning, and when I do I either fixate on one particular task or rush it (which I later chastise myself for). Throughout my undergraduate degree I worked hard and made great progress, however upon reflection I find that unless I am sure my work is ‘perfect’ I am very reluctant to submit it, and will later feel guilty about it.

I guess most of these behaviors are associated with the fear of failure and/or self belief, or something such like. But I wonder if anyone else has experienced them in their work and if you have discovered any strategies/advice you think would be beneficial.


texts: What are the steps and resources I can use to publish a math paper?

texts:
I've spent years writing a math paper I call "A study of Pythagorean Triples" and I would like to publish. I've written and re-written for accuracy and clarity and I ported it from Word to TexShop after having found that most publications require that format.  My paper is currently 14 pages long including 8 [ small ] graphic Exhibits in .png format.

How do I begin to get peer review as a total amateur and how do I proceed from there?

Update: My work was original to me but comments have led me to links showing that some of it has been done by others. The only distinction my work still has is in showing how this or that function was developed and how it works. I should rename my paper something along those lines and reflect that in my abstract.


texts: When do recommenders get asked for references? How do they get asked?

texts:
I have decided to apply to a few faculty jobs, and all of my faculty references have agreed some time ago to support me (my masters and PhD advisors who I talked to a year ago).

I have submitted 5 applications so far and plan on submitting another 5 this season. But I am not sure when I should contact and ask my references to submit their reference letter.

Does the application system request their reference letter as soon as I apply? I have no idea if they've been notified of my applications. Is it okay to just apply first and then ask them for specific letters once the application gets reviewed (I'm sure that not all my applications will make it past the review stage)?

Does every application requires a reference letter, or do my references only get asked by the system if the application seems promising? Or should I email each of my references directly after I apply to request their recommendation letter, and if so, where do I tell them to send it?


texts: Formally asking a univerity for contact information of PhD

texts:
I'm using certain software for my research and have some questions about troubleshooting and the output it creates. All the available information (manual, website and publication) isn't very extensive and can't answer my questions. That is why I want to contact the developer (a PhD) and ask my questions directly.

The problem is that the software is a little older but is still applicable to my research (never change a winning team). That's why maintenance of the website has probably stopped and the contact information there might not be correct anymore. I tried sending an e-mail to the adress on the page but never recieved an answer. What I do know is the name of the person I'm trying to reach. A simple Google search shows that this person is working at a certain univerity.

Question: Is it acceptable to contact this univerity and ask for contact information of one of their employees? And what is a polite way to ask this person for help? I might imagine that this might seem a bit rude and this is not appriciated. There is an online questionboard which has been inactive for some time now (as in years). But if somebody tried to contact me about my research, I would find the interest in my work flattering. I'm a little divided on the matter.


texts: Is it inappropriate to explain why I really want to live where the university is located in my job talk?

texts:
I am preparing to give a job talk for
an on-campus interview for a tenure-track assistant professor position.
The university is located in city X.
I really want a job in city X
because I have many relatives living in city X,
and my parents also live a few hours by plane from city X,
and I feel that city X is a good place for my wife and I to raise our kids.

I would like to spend one slide and a minute near the end of my job talk
in order to explain why I really want to live in city X.
Would this strengthen my case,
or would this be seen by the faculty as "too much information?"


texts: Can a reference (not self) be over-cited?

texts:
I am proof-reading a student's PhD thesis and I find that the student repeatedly cites one reference, up to 40 times in one single chapter alone.
I suspect that this reference is an influential work and provides a lot of material but I feel this is too much. Apart form the obvious advise (don't cite as much), what effective strategies can one use to reduce the number of citations e.g. comment at the start of the chapter that "this chapter builds on the foundational work \cite{ref} done by Prof X..."


texts: Studying for an exam with an unprepared student

texts:
I am a student and another student asked me to study together for an exam and I agreed. But when we started studying he didn't know much about the subject, and I had to explain to him how to solve the problems and waste a lot of time in doing so.

Should I keep studying with him?


texts: I failed a written exam and I don't know how to reply to my professor

texts:
As a preface, I would like to explain that  have ADHD and anxiety issues and tend to be very slow at writing (mostly due to overthinking/over-analyzing and having OCD-like tendencies when writing).  I also made the dumb decision of not going into academic services to ask for accommodations (partly due to anxiety).

Due to the stay at home order the exam for my class was changed to have only written response questions (thankfully the professor changed it to open book). We had the whole day to work on it but then it was time to turn it in, I had only a third of the questions answered.  Yesterday  I received an email asking about why the exam was sent incomplete  and if I sent the wrong one. I had a minor anxiety attack and made a  unwise decision of avoidance. Today, I am trying to write a reply to my professor's inquiry and have no idea how to explain it. I'm worried that my professor will think that I don't care about the class and that I'm slacking off.


texts:
I have an abstract presented by my colleague at a local conference. I got an email from a company called David Publishing Company claiming that they are interested in publishing our paper in the Journal of Materials Science and Engineering A, B they had?

Things look suspicious for me and I want to know if anyone has an idea about their legitimately as a science publisher. they claim to have a peer-reviewed process but they charge money as publication fees.


texts: Pros and Cons of Enrolling in coursework units during a PhD

texts:
In my university PhDs are assessed purely on dissertation,
there is no coursework component or oral defence or anything else
(this is not unusual for Australia, as I understand).

There are no units for PhD students, but they can get into  Masters, Honours or Bachelor level units, assuming they meet the conditions or get exceptions.

However the federal government will pay for up to 4 coursework units to be completed over the first 3 years of the PhD.
They will outright pay the course fees for the units -- which is a nice change from undergraduate where the fees go into your HECs debt.

Some advisors/departments strongly advise students to take particular units (though not normally 4 as I understand it). I doubt mine will.

So I guess the purpose of these 4 "free" units is to let shore up any areas of knowledge -- particularly for students embarking on something multidisciplinary.

But what is the advantage in actually enrolling in the units?
the alternative to enrolling is to go up to the lecturer and say:
"Hi, ... I'm doing a PhD on X, and I know this course covers Y which is kind of relevant to it, do you mind if I sit in on your lectures?"

I suspect more lecturers wouldn't mind at all, so long as you didn't cause trouble  -- they are paid the same either way. If you were extra friendly (say you'ld taken some units with them before), you could probably convince them to let you have the digital course notes, and maybe even to mark a assignment so you could see how you are going.

The Advantages I am seeing to not formerly enrolling are:

No pressure to do well in exams/tests
Attend only the subset of the unit relevant to your research

The Disadvantages I can see:

'Robbing' the university of income (but also not generating any extra expense for it)
Less access to resources, like online notes
Not having the unit on your transcript

The Pros seem to outweigh the Cons, but I suspect I am missing something.
Perhaps lecturer pay is generally directly proportional to number of students?

I have gone through the (large) university policy base and have found no rule forbidding this, except if there is a shortage of seating.


texts: Is it better to publish a few papers in one journal, or one paper each in several (equally good) journals?

texts:
Suppose there are several journals with the same impact factor.
Is it better to submit my papers to one of them or each time I finished a manuscript it is better to submit to an equally good journal that I have not published in yet.

I am early in my career and I already published two papers in the same journal and I am going to finish my third paper, which potentially can be published in the same journal as my previous two papers.


texts: Query regarding permission for Indian to work as postdoc in UK

texts:
I am applying for a Postdoc in an UK University. They are asking whether I have permission to work in UK. How can I know my eligibility to work as Postdoc in UK? What type of visa issued by UK for postdocs?

Detail:

  The University of Bath is a sponsor under the Points Based System. Where there are no suitable applicants from within the EEA, we may, depending on the position, be able to issue a Certificate of Sponsorship.
  For further information, please refer to the UK Border Agency website (new window).

  Please select one of the following options*

  I am a British Citizen/EEA National.
  I am not a British Citizen/EEA National and I am not currently eligible to work in the UK.
  I am not a British Citizen/EEA National, but I am eligible to work in the UK. Please give the reason below.


texts: Attitudes towards External/ Political Motivations for Technical PhD

texts:
How would potential research advisors view someone entering graduate school because of interest in particular "real-world" problems, with the ultimate hope of leaving or changing fields if these particular issues are resolved?
I can come up with a few examples. Perhaps someone is very passionate about a particular disease for personal or family reasons, and 15-20 years later therapies have progressed to the extent that they feel the problem no longer needs their attention. Maybe someone is passionate about climate change, environmental protection or missile defense because of the challenges of their hometown, and 20 years later political circumstances change (e.g., in the last case, the Cold War ends) such that they no longer feel these issues threaten their communities.
This model of thinking about one's career, "If society is successful the problem will be solved and we can all quit our job" contrasts the life-long academic model. At the same time, I feel that's how many people are motivated to enter research, not from the perspective of "I'm interested in X technology" but "I want to help solve Y problem".
My concern is, if I interview with potential future advisors with this kind of story, even if the political problem I'm focused on has a long, 1-2 decades timeline for resolution, a future advisor might find this kind of attitude "disloyal" to a field. When advisors ask about my interests, I feel that they're looking for a response that describes intrinsic academic interest in a topic, "I think X is really interesting", rather than a framing of research as "I'm concerned about Y political problem that you might not necessarily care about or may even disagree with, it's unlikely to go away in a 10 year time-frame, and I think getting a PhD in Z is the best way for me help my community in working through this problem". Especially for a pure-academic, "I'm primarily motivated by recent, specific political circumstances" may not sound very dedicated coming from a student entering a new field for them, even if all signs point to this problem staying around for decades. And for certain issues, like defense/ security, advisors may object to training students with this motivation because of their ethical views.
What concerns would such an advisor have, and how can I respond to them?
I'm in a technical field, for reference, but am interested in answers oriented towards humanities-oriented fields as well.


texts: How should use of a preprint server be incorporated into the publishing workflow?

texts: I am a biologist and very recently there has been a movement to increase the use of preprints in publishing biological research.  This has generated a lot of discussion about preprints and their merits and has spawned a few servers (e.g., bioRxiv) but I have not gotten a good sense of how I should incorporate the preprint server into my normal publishing workflow.


texts: Can I use my first name instead of last name?

texts: I am a Korean with my first (given) name comes last and my last (family) name comes first, just like many other east asians. So, I write my name as "Aaa Bbb Ccc", where "Aaa" is my family name and "Bbb Ccc" is my given name. There are literally several millions of other Koreans who also have "Aaa" as their family name, and many of them spell it in English in the same way. Imagine citing a paper written by a Korean with family name Aaa. How can people possibly distinguish hundreds of Korean researchers with the same name working in same field? For this reason, I want to use my given name (which is still quite common, but far less common than my family name) instead of my family name. For example, I want to be cited as [Bbb Ccc, 2020] instead of [Aaa, 2020]. Is this possible to do? I don't mind to be called as "Dr Bbb Ccc", and actually I prefer that way; imagine being called as "Dr Aaa", where there are 8 other "Dr Aaa"s in the same department! Of course I have to deal with other problems, like being called as "Bbb" or "Ccc" which is just like "von" and "Neumann" instead of "von Neumann"; but I think that is less annoying than being one of those "Aaa"s. Is it possible?


texts:
I recently deleted a response on Academia.SE because many people thought my response was supporting the idea of a 'diploma mill'.  My understanding of the matter was that a diploma mill is simply a business that provides a piece of paper, and possibly some kind of shady verification service, for a fee.  That's it.  Money in, diploma out.   This does not seem to be the case for many of this community, however.

I've done a bit of research, cursory to be fair, and the most clearly defined line that I can find between a "real" school and a "fake" school is that of regional accreditation.  Beyond that it appears to be a subjective melange of opinions, ultimately boiling down to the idea of 'second class schools'.  Clearly, I am out of touch with the general consensus on this matter so I put it to you SE.

What are the defining characteristics of a 'diploma mill'?


texts: What should I do if my former advisor wants to use my research project data (including dissertation) for the current PhD student's dissertation?

texts:
I finished my dissertation about 2 years ago and currently continue for a clinical program in the same department. I collected the data from many subjects for my research project including dissertation while doing my PhD and all subjects and experimental supplies were paid from my own pocket. I am now preparing for publications. Because I am now taking a pretty demanding professional program, the writing process is pretty slow and all manuscripts are still in progress. I think that it will probably take some time to publish all of them. For this reason, I am a little bit cautious about sharing the data with someone who wants to write their dissertation using my data.
My former advisor and their current PhD student decided to use the pre-existing data for the dissertation and the student asked me for my research data including the dissertation. Even though the research question will be different and some survey data will be added (the subjects who participated in my research may need to be contacted), basically my data would work as the main data for the new dissertation in consideration of research in this field.
Additionally, my former advisor does not know about my data and whenever the PhD student has questions and needs some help with data interpretation, I am pretty sure that they will ask me for help. I will leave the school next summer and it is not easy to work with them in a remote location especially because I will be working full time. I am not sure if this is conventional and a general case. I like to get some advice so I can figure out how to deal with this.


texts: Should I use self-made animations in my scholarly presentations?

texts:
What do you think about the addition of animations to powerpoint presentations? I'm not talking about the generic animations that can be added to powerpoint slides, but the use of animated films to illustrate a concept (I'm in biology by the way).

Despite going into the sciences, I've always had a love for the visual arts, and have been teaching myself animation for the past little while. I think it can be used as a great way of communicating scientific concepts, and will also likely make me stand out in a room full of graduate students. However, I'm not sure if this could possibly back-fire and make me seem less serious about the science? The type of animation I plan on making would hopefully be on par with ones made by professional medical animators.

I'm also a little unsure of the intellectual property aspects of this process. I have made short animations for my presentations before, and although people were quite impressed, my old supervisor seem to think that she (along with everyone else in the lab) could simply start to use my animation in their presentations. I didn't have a problem with this arrangement since it was my first animation, and I definitely was not expecting to be paid for it. However, as I'm starting graduate school and entering a different lab, I would be a little hesitant to agree if it were to happen again, now with animations I've spent a considerable amount of time working on (especially if I will not be the first one presenting it since I'm a new student). I'm currently thinking about showing an animation I made to a PI that I hope to work with in the end (made specifically to illustrate her research). Although I want to impress this person who I think is a great scientist, I also don't want to be taken "advantage" of... Would it be unrealistic to be paid for some of my work during graduate school?


texts: non academic job opportunities for mid aged PhD

texts:
I am currently a masters student that is due to finish early next year. I have a scholarship which covers costs and pays me a modest wage up until and including PhD. I would like to do my PhD but I am concerned about the job opportunities that will be available to me after graduating due to my age and skill set. I would be in my mid 30's when graduating and would like to work in a non academic, non laboratory environment after graduating. At some time later in life I would like to return to academia but at least after graduating I would prefer to not do so.
How are somewhat older PhD's perceived by employers outside of academia ? Do they have a harder time being employed ? I have read PhD's are often considered over qualified or to focused in their knowledge making them not as desirable to employers, is this still the case ?


texts: How important is journal prestige when researchers publish a paper?

texts:
I know that certain journals are often lauded by academics as being highly prestigious (e.g. Nature/Science/etc).
However, how important is journal prestige really? Is it absolutely life changing? Is it the difference between being taken seriously or outright dismissed by the larger community? Or is this just a fad in certain elitist circles and doesn't really impact the reception of the research?
What has been your experience like with prestigious journals in general? Are they all that people make them out to be?


texts: What should I do if my advisor doesn't know my research field?

texts:
I have just started my PhD with the same advisor of my Master Degree. We are working in Cosmology, a new topic for my advisor who has worked for years in QFT. I owe him a lot and I learnt a lot of things from him, but now I am facing a really big problem: he is not an expert in Cosmology. He pushed me to work on ideas which I realized to be meaningless. Furthermore, I feel like we are working to publish, not to learn something. I suggested to work with a Professor of another university, a friend of my supervisor, who is a really famous master of the subject, but he didn't agree.

I don't know what to do. I really feel bad, because I don't want to waste my PhD but I don't want to argue with my advisor. What can I do?


texts: Letting grant funder know that funds no longer needed?

texts:
I am a English PhD student (focusing on literature), but this year one of my assistantships through my university has involved some grant writing for local non-profits. Recently I've been working on a small grant for a local non-profit, which will help this non-profit pay for some consultants to help it develop a strategic plan and more effective organization. (The grant is offered by a foundation that focuses on capacity-building support for non-profits in the city where I live.) Because of the impacts of COVID-19 on the non-profit sector (i.e., many of our organization's donation funds are likely to dry up), our hired consultants have generously offered to do their work pro bono.

Here's my question: what is the etiquette of letting a grant funder know their funds are no longer needed for a specific project? To clarify, I was pretty far into the grant writing process (original LOI / project proposal approved, directed to the next steps in the application process) when we learned we'd no longer need the funds for the consultation fees. (The foundation that has offered the funds is a major donor to local non-profits, so there is a good chance that we'll be applying to them again in the future--just for a different project.) Since I corresponded a lot with a representative of the foundation, I feel like I should follow up to let them know, especially as we may be applying to them again in the future ... what are others' thoughts on this issue?

(If there's a better StackExchange community for posting this question, I apologize!)


texts: How to find out where a College's Graduates are now?

texts: I am looking at graduate schools and one of the things I would like to know about the schools I'm looking at is where recent graduates are now. I realize that contacting the colleges individually would certainly work. However, there are a lot of colleges out there, and it is untenable to ask them all individually. Is there a place where this kind of thing is available online?


texts: When is it appropriate to use a university seal as a graduate student, post-doc or research scientist?

texts:
I am applying for tenure-track positions at other universities after having recently completed my PhD.  I am still technically a graduate student until my degree is conferred in a few months, and I am employed and acting as a post-doc in the meantime.

After wondering if it is acceptable to use my current school's seal on the letterhead for my research statement, statement of interest, and the like, I decided to look up general guidelines for when to use the seal, and I couldn't find much.

Another answer mentions it is unacceptable to use a school's letterhead for something totally unrelated to the university, but it does not answer the general case for when a graduate student (and above ranks) should use the seal.  In my special case, I think me going on to become a tenure-track professor in the same field is very much in the interest of my advisor and our school.

With that background in place, I think the general question is the better one to ask here: When is it appropriate to use a university seal on a letterhead?


texts: How to cite a drug name in AMA Style journal article?

texts:
In my paper, I have used a drug name called Metformin. But I received a comment from Editor to cite the drug name.
May I know how can I cite the drug name in AMA style?
There could be multiple suppliers/companies that produce/manufactures this drug from a different location
Can help me with this?


texts: How do I apply for a PhD position via email? Should I read papers written by prospective advisors beforehand and write about it?

texts:
I am a master degree student. I am keen to join a PhD program under a mathematician in a university in France or Luxembourg. I found that in the webpage it is written that I should send an email with my research interests to the faculty. I have some questions regarding those. My questions are as follows:

Do I need to read research papers of the faculty before sending the email and in the email should I include that I have read his/her paper (or some parts of it)?
How should I write the email?


texts: Can a tweet be added to graduate research proposal?

texts:
Can I add a tweet by someone famous in the field into my research proposal to show why is it important?

I am asking this because I have not seen anything like this but people do use quotes by famous people in their thesis.

If the answer is yes, then how will I be citing it?


texts: How should I handle students who ask questions that are "beyond the scope of the course" as a TA

texts:
One of the most common replies I have gotten as a student in engineering is the phrase "what you are asking is beyond the scope of this course". But I always found it a bit funny coming from the prof since he or she most reasonable have a thing or two to say about the subject. Furthermore, whether something is considered "beyond" sometimes depends on a prof's temperament, on a good day a topic that is beyond will be addressed, or a busy day that topic is hold off indefinitely.

Now I am a TA for an introductory calculus class. Often there would be a handful of students come into the class with years worth of experience in calculus. Sometimes they will ask a question that is addressed in an upper year course, sometimes the question would have to resort to complex variables, sometimes it relates to physics.

How should I handle students who are interested but asks question beyond the course in the sense it requires an additional course or two to truly appreciate its importance or at least to see how the actual calculations are performed.

I could tell them the answer but sometimes it can lead a student down a rabbit hole which can be devastating given how busy first year students are.

Further, I don't want to disrupt their "natural course" by saying something that may prevent independent self discovery.

Lastly, I don't want to say something which could be misconstrued as a test topic.

At the end of the day, how should I address the questions that are deemed beyond the scope while not withhold information.


texts: Should I let a bad mark from 10 years ago discourage me from taking on a TAship?

texts:
10 years ago it was my first year in University and I bombed a course in programming. I had no programming experience and was competing with people have been programming since 10. I felt stupid and my confidence crushed back then.
Since then I have done much more programming in a variety of settings, worked in industry on software projects, and created many projects using various programming languages often under deadline.
I have now returned to school and I am deciding to TA a course on the very same subject I bombed in 10 years ago.
However, I feel discouraged given my bad performance in this course. I feel like I still don't deserve to help to teach young people. I feel that other people are much more qualified than me even though they may be much younger. Plus I am also questioning if I actually know the concepts. Logically, a lot of the things I know and done are transferable, but I can't get over my self-doubt.
In this situation, should I decide to TA this course or not?


texts: How to evaluate a book, rather than a paper, on a scientific subject?

texts:
In academia we collectively evaluate the validity, quality and significance of shorter publications - papers - with a complex system of conferences and journals. With all its flaws, you can get a typically-not-so-bad idea about those aspects of a published paper by looking at things like venue and citations.

But that's not the case with books. I don't have any experience publishing books, but obviously it's not the same process as for papers.

Now, suppose I've entered a field which I've studied through papers; and I now want to either teach from a book, offer it to someone for some concentrated self-study, or cite from it. Also suppose I have some specific books I'm considering. How would I obtain some sort of evaluation or review of them, overall or by specific criteria such as correctness of proofs, rigor, clarity, narrative flow, being up-to-date etc.?

Note: Of course you can evaluate a book pretty well by reading it, but the idea is to choose what to get and read.


texts:
TL; DR: Should I re-apply for another PhD program? What could I do instead?

Since April, I am a PhD student in mathematics after having finished my master's studies last year. Although I spent most of my attention on doing abstract algebra doing my masters, I felt like shifting towards applied topics and found myself a PhD position in topological data analysis.

However, after having started to work, my enthusiasm has dimmed significantly in the last few months. It seems to me that I am dissatisfied with the following particular aspects:

The working group is extremely small. We do not have a research seminar or any lectures that are relevant or of interest for me. There is little exchange between the few people in our group, since everybody does something unrelated to the others' work.
I am somehow disappointed by subject: I have the impression that all the papers out there gather some more or less obvious statements, or sell things as new that are known to other fields since long time. I am uncertain whether I should expect any significant theory to be developed in the future.
My supervisor does not seem to have a particular idea where he wants to lead the research of his group. When I talk to him on what to work on, he usually comes up with some half-baked ideas that barely make some occupation for a day or so. When discussing a possible problem to work on, he quickly makes the conversation get lost in unimportant details, such that eventually I have no plan what to occupy myself with.
At the moment, I am working on some specific problem neither I nor my supervisor have the expertise for. To me, our approach seems rather non-mathematical. It is not what we have agreed upon when I applied what I would be working on; however, it seems that he has no ideas where to employ my knowledge.

These points make me wonder whether I should quit and apply for a new PhD position, or try to somehow cope with what it is like now. In the last months, I have worked on an article on some ideas from my master's thesis. With the temporal distance, these topics do not seem so frightening anymore, and by now, I can manage to identify with what I worked on at the time; hence, I would try to return to abstract algebra if I quit.

Questions: However, I now that I am an uncertain and insecure person, and in particular the third point makes me wonder if I am  qualified for pursuing a PhD:

Can I expect my supervisor to provide me with problems to start working on, especially if I am new to the field?
Should I consider myself unqualified for a PhD if I am not able to identify relevant questions and work on these completely on my own?
Should I expect things to improve when I relocate?
Is newly applying for other PhD positions the right strategy to deal with the above problems?


texts: I entered a PhD program out of fear of being unemployed and regret it. How can I gracefully undo my mistake and switch fields?

texts:
I want to switch careers from PhD in chemical engineering to data scientist. How can I go about doing this without having everyone hate me?

It is one year after I started and I am feeling miserable. I really hate the lab work I am forced to do (my summer lab work was better). I didn't like any of the chemical engineering courses. I didn't like my undergraduate courses either. The courses are just dry and pointless.

I took one probability elective and I really liked it and I wish I had moved into data science or became a developer. I really like programming and I am naturally good at it.

I also have a great girlfriend for the first time. We've been dating about 8 months now. She has made me more confident and more aware of how distorted my thinking and decision making is. She is just getting a masters in chemical engineering. She is graduating in one year, so I don't mind being around her until then. I would love to move with her to Seattle post graduation and live with her up there.

I want to move away from chemical engineering and become a data scientists or C++ developer. I know I am capable of achieving these things as long as I have some motivation. At the end of the day I just want a high paying job.

How can I go about undoing my mistake of applying to graduate school and switching to a more promising career field?

Edit: Removed  personal details and added updates

UPDATES: Started my data science career!
What I did:

1) Talked to my advisers and quit.

2) Found a new adviser who allowed me to get a masters in 1 yr doing data science things related to Spectroscopy.

3) Played up research experience and coding and landed a data science internship in silicon valley (pay is 27 K for summer).

4) Took a grad level probability theory courses to improve math background

5) Continued learning data science by working on my masters thesis

6) Continued to get a free masters degree because department is short chemE TA's and by TAing my tuition is waved.

7) I no longer have an assigned office so I now work in the library, and am ultra productive.


texts: Would adding anecdotes in statement of purpose be necessary?

texts:
I am applying to phd programs in the US.

In preparing for the statement of purpose, I consulted some native speakers. I was suggested to add some anecdotes in my statement.

Nevertheless, after a moment's further thought, I found anecdotes occupy the space! And, I am under the impression that, since I am NOT applying to undergraduate programs nor master's programs, simply focusing on introducing my thoughts and research is the best policy.

So would a statement of purpose such that it is specific but it contains no anecdotes be considered less suitable (in whatsoever sense)?


texts: How do you prepare for a meeting with a potential masters thesis advisor?

texts:
I want to do a thesis masters with a specific teacher in the field of Antennas. I am supposed to meet with him to discuss about this in 2 weeks. I am undergraduate in electrical engineering graduating this May.

How can I prepare for this meeting?What to expect?

I guess I should bring my CV and transcript. Maybe personal projects.


texts: Maximum number of recommendation letters for assistant professor position

texts:
I am applying for faculty positions as assistant professor. I have two questions regarding recommendation letters.

(1) Is there is a limit for the number of references? For me, I have many research collaborators who I can ask them to write me a reference letter. Most of faculty positions ask for three reference. Is it a good indicator when more than 3 references sent their letters to the research committee?

(2) Is it okay to add one reference who is currently assistant professor and was my lab mate for two years? We also co-authored many papers together.


texts: Can I mention that I want to pursue a PhD later, in my Statement of Purpose for a Master's course?

texts: I am an international student and a certain university that I'm applying to for a Masters in Media and communication has asked me to state my career objectives in my home country. Now, I wish to pursue a PhD and continue in the same discipline after finishing my masters preferably in the same university. Should I mention that instead? The gist is that I have just finished one masters degree in my home country and have some part-time work experience but my long-term career objective is to pursue a PhD.


texts: Does previous participation in Google Summer of Code help when applying for a Master's program?

texts: Does participation in Google Summer Of Code help when applying for a Master's program ? Irrespective of the fact whether your project is directly related to the area for which you are applying or not.


texts: What kind of index of papers is behind the search functionality of web applications and services related to the scientific literature?

texts:
There are many, many websites that include a search function that returns a list of papers matching some keyword: Scirate, Shortscience, Brevy, etc.

Do all these sites run their own crawlers and build up their own index? Or is there a shared index somewhere?

For example, if you go to shortscience.org/search, and type in 'computer vision' it comes up with a list of relevant papers. Where is this data coming from?


texts: I am trying to find out what the average duration of PhD studies are in the USA. Here in Spain it used to be 4 years, but it seems that Europe is moving towards a 3-year scheme since students are expected to do their MSc before they start. What is it like in the USA? Is some kind of shortening also occurring?


texts: Practical Tips: Mathematical research and discoveries

texts:
How to behave when you have the feeling of working on something innovative? What to do if there is a chance (even the 1%) that your
  work is leading you to something original?

For example what if I don't know mathematicians I trust to ask? Is a good idea to talk about your results (even if are not real results) to someone?

  Question:

  What do you do if you have this feeling?

  I'm looking for a list (or links to related SE questions/guides/books or others)
  of practical tips to use while studying a certain subject you
  have the feeling of having found an innovative approach that can
  provide a new solution.

I am interested too in books about the mathematicians' way to research. (I think is related)

  I already asked this question on Math.SE but was closed two times. Here the link to MathematicsSE