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SRBmagAnInterdisciplinaryOpenAccessJournal http://www.srbmag.

org ISSN:09750754 Volume1,Issue1,Pages36,2009

Article AResearchersPerspective

K.J.Thomas,Member,SRB DepartmentofElectronicandElectricalEngineering,SungkyunkwanUniversity,Suwon440746, RepublicofKorea Email:kalarikad@skku.edu


This article is based on a seminar I gave in the Sungkyunkwan University to graduate students who are venturing into a research career. I do not claim this is complete or indisputable. The contents are based on my own experience as a researcher as well as by watching other researchers around me. Some of them were quite successful and some ran into difficult situationsduetoonereasonoranother.Ihopethiswillbejustareadablearticletoanyonewho wishestodoaPh.D.

Broadlyspeaking,anyeducationalsystemhasapyramidalstructure.Fromthedayweareborn,weareinpursuit of knowledge. Primary education lays the foundation of our education, which broadens in the secondary, from thereonitdeepens.Finally,whenitreachestheresearchlevel,youwillhavechosenafineraspectofabroadarea underasubjectfield. There are several topics in research one can talk about. We can have a discussion on basic research, applied research,modernresearch,orresearchinmedievaldays.Butmyplanhereistotalkfrommyownperspectiveasa researchersomeyearsback,anddiscusswhatisinstoreforaresearchstudentinthepresentworld.Sothisisnot forexperiencedresearchers,andIamnottryingtodefineamethodology. It is difficult to say when the seed of research is laid in you. As we progress through our years of school and universityeducation,sometimesomehowyoudevelopavagueinterestinsomething.Inthislongperiod,atopicor a broad area has kindled some preferential interest in you, which grows and eventually leads us to take a finer aspectofthatfieldandcarryoutadetailedstudy.Theseallsoundgood,butwhatmayactuallyhappenisoncewe havechosenabroadarea,youmayencounterdifficultyinchoosingtheactualtopicofresearch.Thisisbecause,in modern days,a student joins a particulargroup in adepartment, where there are sometimes limited choice, or maybeaskedtodoaworkwhichyouhavenotactuallythoughtabout.Ishallreturntosuchissueslaterinthis article,forthetimebeing,letusbeginassuminganidealcase. Oncewehavecomeacrossatopicofinterestwithanurgetodofurtherstudies,lifeismucheasier.Ifresearchisa passion,thenyouwillnotfeeltheburdenofit,ifnotIwouldnotrecommendanyonetotakeupresearch.WhatI meanis,ifthemotivationiscleartoyouthingsareeasier.Aresearchdegreebringsinlotofrespectandpositionin a society. Butif the motivations to do research are these aspects,then your research career wouldnot be very enjoyable. Because nowyou are looking forward to thefuture, meansthe life after Ph. D., whereas if youhave genuinecuriosityandpassiontodoresearch,youwillhaveanenjoyable34years,andwhatevercomesafterthat willbejustabonus!

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K.J.ThomasSRBmag,Vol.1,Issue1,36(2009)
Thechoiceofplacetoconductyourresearchisimportanttoo.WhetheritisHarvardorDelhi,youwanttothink aboutwhatisthebestforyourfieldofstudy,andwhattheambienceislike.Forexample,isthereanacademic atmosphere,library,otherfacilitiesetc.,orisitinthemiddleofanindustrialestate,wherethereisnopeaceand tranquillityrequiredforcontemplation. Whatisyourlevelofcommitment?Doyouhaveotherinterestswhichdonotallow100%effortinresearch?Do youhaveanailingrelativetotakecareof,orareyouarestrugglingfinanciallytomeetbothendsinyourfamily? Thisisverycrucial,asoneshouldnotcarryanyfancynotionsaboutresearch,becauseitishardworkandafull timejob!Thestudentshouldbearinmindthatthisisnotacoursestudy,mostofthetimes,youareyourmaster! Therefore it is important to exhibit maturity and discipline, and self introspection time to time. Of course interactions with the supervisor are very important, but remember supervisor is not a person teaching you somethingthathe/shealreadyhasknown.Yoursupervisorisjustacompanioninyourresearchjourney.He/sheis apersonwhohasmoreexperiencethanyou,thereforeyoucanseekadvice.Butdonotassumeyoursupervisor hasmoreresponsibilitythanyouhave.Afterall,researchisdiscoveringyourowninventivemind,sobecreative andlavishinimaginations!Donotbelikeaschoolkid,beproactive,donotwaitforyourteachertotellyouto think.Duringinteractionswithyoursupervisororpeers,bebraveenoughtoputforwardsuggestions,evenifthey looksillyfirsttime.Expressyourideas,andlaterlookatthefollyofthem,andrevisetheideas,beopenmindedto suggestanddropthem!Thatishowyougrowintoaresearcher.Donotbealearnerstandingonthefringes,itis importanttocometothecentrestageandperformyouract. In research, one has to proceed through several stages. You will have small tasks, bigger tasks, and even bigger tasksintherunupbeforeyoucompleteyourPh.D.Everylittletaskrequiresthinking,planning,andexecution.In ordertoaccomplishanytask,bedisciplinedanddoittotheend.Oneshouldnotbetoorigid,butstillneedfirm decisions.Ifyoufindyourlineofactionnotworking,behonestandacceptit.Iftheprojectisnotprogressingwell, knowwhentodropit.Discusswithyoursupervisor,andiftheoverallplanisnotlookinggood,dropitassoonas you are convinced. One has to carefully think how practical it is to switch between projects if something is not goingwell.AfterallPh.Disnotalifelongaffair(butresearchis!),itistimebound.Sobepractical,anddonotwait untilthethirdyeartochangeyourproject! Keepingyoursupervisorinformedofanypracticaldifficultieswithyourresearchisveryimportant.Begenuineand honest, do not make stories, this is not a joke; do not waste your time and the supervisors time! If you have personal problems, discuss with someone if not your supervisor. It is important that your mind is free of preoccupations or personal problems. You cannot do good research if you are fighting with your girlfriend or boyfriend.Personaloremotionalproblemsshouldbesortedoutfirstandlatercomeback,anddoresearch. Interactionisakeyelementinresearch,discussyourresultswithyourpeers,giveatalkbeforeyourgroup,and receivefeedbacksandsuggestions.Inresearch,openyourmindtoreceivenewideas.Beopentocriticismsand feedbacks. If someone says your work lacks, think why he/she says so. Is there any genuine reason for the comments?Ifthereisroomforimprovement,takeitaspositiveandacceptthem.Evenifyoudonotacceptthem straight away, if those comments bother you, take it for granted they are useful to you, so consider them! If someoneisattackingyouallthetime,andonacampaignagainstyou,youcaneasilyspotthat.Inthiscasethebest wayistoignorethem!Ifthatdoesnotworkhaveaquietwordwiththeperson. Gettingyourworkknowntothewiderpublicisimportant.Youhaveasocialcommitment,anditalsohelpsyour work recognized by authorities. But one should learn how to judge oneself, and make amends as one progress. Selfassessyourworkperiodically.

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K.J.ThomasSRBmag,Vol.1,Issue1,36(2009)
Youmaybeanewcomertotheresearchgroup,orthedepartmentyouhaveenrolledwith.Maybeyouarefamiliar withtheplace,butonlyasanundergraduate.Nowyouhaveadifferentrole.Maybeyouarealonememberunder yoursupervisor,oroneamongmanyinagroup.Howdoyoucopewiththebeginning? Beginningisimportant,asalways.Donotgetoveranxious,orifyoucan,donotbeanxiousatall!Workyourway inslowly.Mindyourselfifyouarearrivingintoagroup,therewillalwaysbesomeinstantwelcomeandinstant rejections.Donotpaytoomuchattentiontoeitherextreme,takeyourtime.Interactionwilleasetheatmosphere. Donotmakejudgments.Talkandbereadytolearnfromthem.Youdontgainanythingbystandoffs!Acceptthat youareheretolearn,andyouacceptthatyouareignorant!Thencanyoulearn. Yourlabisyoursecondhome.Cometothelaboryourworkplaceregularly.Youlearnsomethingeveryday.Evenif thereisnoworkonaparticularday,justcomeandinteractwithyoursenior/fellowstudents,talktothem.You maythinkyouarewastingtime,butyoulearnalotbybeinginthere. Attending seminars is important too. A seminar is not like a class room lecture. You may fail to understand anythingfirsttime.Thisisnormal.Nevertheless,attendseminars,youmaygetoneidea,orapieceofinformation fromit,theeffortisworthwhile.Alltheselittleeffortshelpenhanceyourintellectualcapabilities,andwidenyour knowledgebase. Takeyourworktoaconferenceandpresentitbeforeawideraudience.Takedownnotesonyourdiscussionwith anybody.Keepalabbooktonotedownallideasandpoints.Donotthinkyouwillremembertheminthreeyears time,sowritethemdownnow! Donotjustsitdownwithloadsofpaperstoreadfirsttime.Youwontunderstandathinginthebeginning!Thisis OK,donotworry!Itwilltakesometimeforyoutounderstandthejargon.Alotofinformationisavailableonthe internet. Old style of literature survey done spending hours in a library is no more required. Data bases on the internetarequiteexhaustive.However,donotjustsurfontheinternetalwaysforreference.Gotothelibraryand readsomeoftheoldtextbooksquietlywheneveryougettime.Youwillbeamazedtofindthatwhatyoulearnt duringyourundergradyearswerereallyinteresting,andrediscoveryourinterestinatopicwhichyoudidntlike thatmuch! Itisimportantforyoutokeeptrackofthenewdevelopmentinthefield.Ifyoucannotfollowthelatest,reada recent review article. Knowing the field, do not try to start from the beginning. It wont be possible to read all historyandcometothepresent.Itmaybemorepracticaltostartwiththecurrent,andgobackwardsasrequired. Warning! Reading is important, but do not do it all day. Do some practical things, if you are a theoretical researcher,engageinconversationsonthetopic. Ifyouareaskedtodoatopicwhichyouhavenoparticularinterestin,whatdoyoudo?Oftenthesedays,youdo not choose a topic independently. As it involves investment, your supervisor or group will have an interest in a particularfield.Simpleansweris:Asfaraspossibletrytoagreeuponthebroadareabeforeyoujoin.Afteryou startyourcourse,youmaybeaskedtostudyacertainaspect,asafeasibilitystudy.Thismaybeuninterestingto youinitially.Butthereisscopeforthistoturnupintosomethingbetter.Sotakeitasanopportunity.Youare askedmeansyouarecapable!Soacceptthatasanhonour,andmakeanefforthonestly.Notopicisadeadend, there are several possibilities in it, and you will find something which will interest you! Of course if practical difficultiesareinvolved,talktoyoursupervisor,andmakechangesaccordingly.Mostofthetimes,itisamental blockandyoucanovercomethisifyoudecidetochangeyourmind!

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K.J.ThomasSRBmag,Vol.1,Issue1,36(2009)
Sometimesyoumayfindyoursupervisorisnotlisteningtoyou.Maybehe/sheisquiteunreasonable.First,think whetherallwhatyouthinkabouthim/herappliestoyouaswell.Areyouunreasonable,areyoulisteningtothe supervisor?Agoodrelationshipbetweenyouandyoursupervisorisabsolutelynecessary,becauseyoubothhave toseeeachotherforthenext34years.Donotworryaboutindividualcharacteristicstoomuch.Acceptthatallare different,andtrytofindgoodelementsinothers.Youwillbeamazedtofindyourselftoneddown,youwillbeless agitated,andcalmnesswilldawnuponyoubygivingin!Andthisisagreatexperience.Youaredevelopingsome socialskills. Maintain a clean and orderly atmosphere in the lab. Be organized, but it doesnt mean you spend hours redesigningyourlabeveryotherday!Acertainamountofdisorderwillbethere,thisisfineandgood!Sleepwell, andmaintainsomehealthyroutine.Ifyouhavetospendhoursinthelaboccasionally,takeabreakandcatchup onyoursleepetc..Justkeepacommonsenseapproachalways. Writingpapers:Youarenewtothefield.Paperwritingisdifferentfromstorywriting.Presentationisimportant, butwedontneedfantasyhere!Writeadraft,anddonottakeimmediatelytoyourpeers.Yousitdownandread it!Readagainatadifferentlocationandtimeofday!Locationisimportant!Evaluateyourwriting,andbinit!Do thisseveraltimes,beforeyouhavecometoapointwhereyoucannotpossiblyimprovethewritinganymore.Then takeityourseniorstudent,orsupervisor,anddiscusswithhimyourdifficulties.Hewillgiveyouadvicesonhowto makefurtherprogress.Remember,youmaybeabletounderstandyourpaperwiththepreknowledgeofthefiner aspects of your research, but a third person reading may not have enough information there, or too much informationtheretomakeitcumbersome!Checkoutforrepetitions,trimdowntoessentialwordswhichconvey themessage.Usescientificstyleofwriting,orwhateverisappropriateinthatfieldofwork,andimportantlydonot claimnovelty!Thereisnothingnewinthisworldthatourpredecessorshaventknown!Allyoucandoisdiscover, andrediscover! Scientifichonesty:Yourresearchisonlyasegmentofachainofactivity.Ithasnotstartedwithyou;neitherwillit endwithyou!Inthislimitedtimewhatevercontributionyoumakeisrequiredtobehonest.Youwillhavetotake allpossibleprecautionsnottomisleadyoursuccessors!If,afterpublicationofadata,yourealizesomethingwas wrong,immediatelyretractthepaperfully,orpublishcorrections. Research is not always about new discoveries. It is a time bound exercise where you study a topic in some considerable depth. Maybe you will find a new result, maybe you prove an old result wrong, or you may just confirmanoldresultandaddfewmoredetailstoit.Allthesearegoodresearch,sodonotjustworryaboutresults andstartcomparingyouwithEinstein!Finally,donotexpectNobelPrize!Lettheworktakecareofitself.Havean enjoyableresearchlife!

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