Category Archives: Blogging the PhD

Blog posts from October 2008 to March 2013.

What are you worried about?

Posted on 16 July 2011 by Erika Cule

If you are naturally someone who worries, then being a PhD student gives you plenty of opportunities to exercise your habit. You will have research-specific concerns about experiments working and deciding which approach to take. Inherent uncertainty comes with the … Continue reading →

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Book Review – Lewis Wolpert on aging

Posted on 29 April 2011 by Erika Cule

I first came across Lewis Wolpert via his textbook Principles of Development which, to my mind, struck the right balance between seriousness and humour. “Principles of Development” captured the sense of wonder Wolpert feels for his research area, developmental biology. … Continue reading →

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What is the alternative?

Posted on 13 April 2011 by Erika Cule

Next month, a referendum will ask voters in the UK At present, the UK uses the “first past the post” system to elect MPs to the House of Commons. Should the “alternative vote” system be used instead? When our Official … Continue reading →

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The future of Imperial Science Blogging

Posted on 13 March 2011 by Erika Cule

On Wednesday I witnessed the future of Science Blogging at Imperial College, when I ran a Science Blogging Workshop for Graduate Students. I have blogged before about Imperial College Graduate Schools‘ Transferable Skills Training Programme. The Graduate Schools offer a … Continue reading →

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How to throw a pancake party

Posted on 10 March 2011 by Erika Cule

Tuesday night is not traditionally a great night for a party. Your invitees have recovered from the weekend, and who wants to go out on a school night? It is not my fault, though, that Shrove Tuesday falls midweek. Known … Continue reading →

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Harder, harder

Posted on 12 February 2011 by Erika Cule

One careers seminar offered to undergraduates during my degree discussed the pros and cons of pursuing postgraduate study. After the seminar, I spoke to the Careers Tutor responsible for undergraduates in our department. I told him that I was finding … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging the PhD, PhD | 7 Comments

Octogenarian

Posted on 28 January 2011 by Erika Cule

People your age, they often find old people…boring My great-aunt made this assertion, when I described the volunteer befriending role mentioned in my previous post. I am not absolutely sure that “boring” is the reason many young people avoid spending … Continue reading →

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Goodwill to all men

Posted on 21 December 2010 by Erika Cule

Teaching and research are not the only areas of Imperial College’s activity affected by spending cuts. Earlier this autumn, Imperial Volunteer Centre announced that due to reduced funding from a specific scheme administered by the Higher Education Funding Council for … Continue reading →

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PhDs around the world

Posted on 17 December 2010 by Erika Cule

Prompted by a couple of comments on my previous post, I started wondering about different PhD procedures around the world. Thanks in no small part to tez intech00bs, I have scientist friends in many countries, but most of the PhD … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging the PhD, PhD | Tagged | 24 Comments

Milestones

Posted on 15 December 2010 by Erika Cule

I was given a handy sheet of paper when I started my PhD. Entitled Milestones – Cule, it sets out the dates by which I must complete a number of administrative steps. After agreeing on a supervisor, subsequent milestones included … Continue reading →

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