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What makes you a better researcher?
What makes you a better researcher?
When I started my life as a graduate student here, what I concerned most was a working efficiency.
I think, being a graduate student means being an independent researcher. And being an independent researcher is similar with founding a start-up company. So I didn't have any standard of workflow, working space, working interface. I had to design how to make my working space and workflow for the higher efficiency.
For example, you need to choose the place where you can focus and concentrate deeply, what kinds of operating system that runs your PC or Mac, what sorts of applications or programs as a research notes, data processing, data storage, sorting to design your workflow seamlessly.
I'm using a Mac and some applications since I started my PhD course. And now most of my lab-mates are using same working interfaces what I've established. Even Window has almost 90% share here in Korea, they changed their Window PC into the Mac.
Designing this infrastructures of your research is very important, because it would not be changed that easily once it is established. Thus, it has to be systemized in the beginning of your research life.
One day I'll post about my working interface and workflows.
How many disposable cups you use a day?
How many disposable cups you use a day?
Here I recommend you to watch this documentary film. Astonishingly touching and feeling ever. Made by BBC and narrated by Sir. David Attenborough.
Once, I wanted to be a natural photographer like who is working for the national geographic or something. I love the nature and living things. So, I respect all of the personnel related to the documentary filmmaking allowing us to know and feel the earth more in detail.
Especially, I like the ecosystem of high seas. It's still unveiled, vast and unkown area. One day, I hope my research would be helpful to our planet.
A good class makes you grow way more faster
A good class makes you grow way more faster
Taking a good classes for your course work is remarkably important as grad student.
You may have thought about how you can grow in the beginning of your 1st semester of your degree. There're a lot of ways to study about your fields but here's a thing. Search good lectures (on/off-line whatever) and take those classes. If the lecturer is a good tutor, then you'll get fully digested knowledges which are readily absorbed by your sponge-like brain. Books, papers might be a good teacher to you but the most easiest way is taking a class.
As we tear down the food down to the molecular level for efficient absorption, raw knowledges that you can get from the books, papers, and videos has to be digested first. You can skip that when you take a class.
So, be picky when you choose a class to take.
What completes your research?
What completes your research?
On the journey to be a researcher What I do is a RESEARCH. This "research" includes a lot of things. The complete of research is writing a paper and communicate with other researcher about it.
For the first year of my master degree, I didn't know that what on earth consists the whole process of research. I was just doing a bunch of experiments and data collecting to analyze the unknown natural phenomena right in front of me. I was only curious about the extremely interesting things in nanocale and was interested in analyze and watch how things went on at the small scale like a baby.
On one day, my supervisor ask me "why don't you write a paper". Right. What I've done till then was infinite repeat of "experiment-measure-analysis-re-design the experiment...". What I thought was 'I'll right the paper when I finish this project (the moment I can explain about all of it)'. However, I should have noticed that the research(analyzing) itself never ends. That kinda moments never come. So, in order to "complete" my infinite cycle of research, I should build a paper about my works and projects. This was that paper (link).
I don't know my supervisor meant this, but that was a perfect moment to stop the infinite rolling of tedious trial and error. This makes me grow up as more like a researcher, not a technician. Since then, my life as a researcher is mainly focused on producing a paper, which seems more productive. And I strongly recommend this assay to everyone who starts their MS or PhD course.
"Whitesides' Group: Writing a Paper" by George M. Whitesides (link)
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