How to be creative, productive, and happy as a researcher. Advice and reflections from a working scientist in machine learning.
Several years ago, I moved into a house with a garden. My PhD was in computer science, so it did not have much to do with gardens, or plants, or even sunlight. It still helped me in the garden. Here's how.
I’ve written before about Joseph Pistone, an undercover FBI agent who tricked his way into joining the U.S. mafia in the 1970s, and how his account of the mafia reminds me of my experience of doing research. Here’s another connection between the underworld and the research world. Brasco tells this story about his boss, Sonny, who has just come back from a meeting with the big boss of another…
It’s hard to remember what machine learning conferences were like in person, but I think that I liked them a lot better when the field was smaller. It was easier to meet new people, to talk about new ideas in small groups of talented people who were really excited by them. The culture of the field has changed from back then, in intellectual ways that you know already, but the social ways are worth…
(or: How I learned to stop worrying and love virtual conferencing.)
I got a question the other day about how to start a career in machine learning. I gave the best answer that I could, but I’m not sure that my best was very good. Can you help? If so, join the discussion on social media (or send me a note privately):
If you’re reading this blog, then you already know about PhD Comics. If you really haven’t seen them before, click the link and read them now. They are more insightful and funnier than anything in this blog.
I’m a sucker for New Year’s resolutions. Every year I make up a half dozen resolutions, usually the same ones each year, and carefully track my progress for at least two or three months before I get busy and forget all about them. And in all seriousness, I’m happy about this, because sometimes, for maybe one resolution in four, I’m still able to make a lasting change in my habits. That’s more than…
A lot of scientific communication happens at poster sessions. It’s a great way to learn about the field, and to meet new people with similar research interests. It’s also a great way to be noticed in a crowded research field. Presenting a poster is just as important, and requires as much specialized skill, as giving a 25-minute talk. Way back when, before this blog became what it is, I wrote…
A natural way to end this serious of posts would be to talk about impostor syndrome. Instead, let me say something more personal about how I experience self-doubt.
I really should know better. Twice now, I’ve done this to myself. I was a social event with one of my PhD students, like a party during a conference, where I was introducing them to a colleague. Feeling relaxed after a beer or two, I attempted an ill-judged joke, “So-and-so has the misfortune of being one of my students.”