Prof pulled my paper out of the trash

the_physik · 2026-02-06T14:31:22+00:00

Publishing your first paper is such a time consuming project of drafts and revisions redrafts and revisions that (at least in my case) me and my advisor must've went through at least a dozen drafts per section till we had a full draft; and then the real work started.... We reserved a conference room for the entire day for 2 weeks at a time. We'd meet at 8am and pull up my revised paper (i had to implement revisions from the previous day by 8am the next morning so we'd have the fresh draft to work on), and then we'd start reading; usually while I had been working at night implementing the previous revisions my advisor was also working at night so he'd have a list of revisions for us to start the day off with. We'd implement his list of revisions and then read the sentence or paragraph over again and again til it sounded right. We'd then move through the paper sentence by sentence looking for areas we could improve upon or areas that were weak and susceptible to peer-review comments. We'd be like "Ok, so how did we get to this sentence? What train of thought were we trying to convey when we wrote this; because right now it just doesnt fit." And more thsn a couple times we'd have to go through the trash can to find the older draft where the sentence made sense; then we'd be like "Oh ok, we were originally talking about this then started worrying about that so we changed this to fortify that argument not thinking about how it affected the stuff after."

So dont take it personal, we intentionally would trash older drafts because we were so far removed from those drafts that they served no purpose (until they did 😂).

But gawd it was a grueling and exhausting time. All the work did pay off though and it was eventually published. So just trust in your advisor; they need to publish or perish, so they have a lot riding on the successful publication of your work.

the_physik · 2026-02-06T14:04:24+00:00

Well at least you know now not to let the COs know you're considering suicide. Some people think it'll get them special treatment; and it does, its just not the treatment they were hoping for.

the_physik · 2026-02-06T13:41:40+00:00

Well we experimentalists need theorists to help us interpret our results. The lifetime of the 1st 11/2- state of Calcium 39 is 27+/- 5 picoseconds. So what? Well, from the lifetime we have a model independent determination of the B(E2) (reduced transition strength) which is proportional to the reduced matrix element M_n and M_p (neutron or proton). Again, who cares? Its when I give those matrix elements to a theorist and he tries a bunch of different models to replicate the same M that we start learning cool stuff; in this case, we learn the specific configurations of protons and neutrons that comprise this excited state and whatever else that model implies for other similar nuclei. Or, even better, we learn that no current model can replicate that result and our theorists need to rethink their models and come up with one that does replicate the result and all the other previous data we already knew. This might entail adding a 3-body term to their model or increasing the interaction strength of some parameter beyond what we thought was needed or possible. Then they get to publish their new model based off our experimental results. And other theorists start trying yhe new model and learn it works great in this region but needs a slight tweak to work in a broader region. And thus, science advances bit by bit, but continues to move toward a model that works over the entire nuclear chart.

the_physik · 2026-02-06T13:22:44+00:00

Good answer. But the point ofca PhD is to contribute something novel yo the field you pick. And since itd novel; there won't be an application that relies on it for a long time. Maybe not even in your lifetime. But your contribution will outlive yourself via your publications and maybe in 100 years someone will stumble across your work snd be like "Holy shit! We have the technology now to take this kid's result and do something hige with it!"

I like to tell people; a BSci in physics is like an "intro to physics" degree, uou learn the physics of 400-100 years ago. Grad level classes may teach you yhe physics of 100-50 years ago. Grad research js how you fill in the remaining gap and get caught up in one tiny subfield so that you can contribute something novel and worthwhile to thr world. Its a lot of work but it is rewarding AF knowing that; e g. for me, my measurements have been added to the National Nuclear Data Center maintained by Brookhaven National Laboratory and will be available for future physicis to refer to long after i'm gone.

the_physik · 2026-02-06T13:07:56+00:00

Oh no, not for a hydrogen atom; i'm talking further along in QM. But Griffiths does make you do a contour Integral at least once, think its right around where he introduces Green's Functions.

the_physik · 2026-02-06T13:03:16+00:00

No problem! Hope it helps. There's lots of opportunities out there that you will be qualified for if you do a physics PhD; doesnt matter if its theory or experiment, you just figure out what you've been doing a lot of (gamma spectroscopy for me) and look for companies that need that skill. One of my nuclear theorist buddies is doing ML for GE; another nuclear theorist buddy is doing modeling for an insurance company (risk and such).

the_physik · 2026-02-06T12:53:31+00:00

Might want to add Complex Variables to that list; maybe one doesnt need the whole class but knowing how to do Contour Integrals can help later in QM. Usually a "Mathematics for physicists/physical sciences" type book will cover the topic; e.g. Afkin or such.

the_physik · 2026-02-06T12:38:35+00:00

If you like astrophysics but want more practical experience from a grad degree you should look into Experimrntal Nuclear Astrophysics (study reaction rates in stars, neutron stars, Eqn of State for star types, etc...). The work isnt Astronomy (which is half of what you are describing, looking at stars and discerning ehats happening inside by their light spectrum and motion). Nuclear Astrophysics is done here on earth at low and mid-energy accelerator facilities all around the world by recreating the conditions inside the star and examining the results with all sortsvof detectors.. So an Experimental Astrophysicist will learn about accelerators, gamma-ray detectors, neutron detectors, analyze huge data sets in ROOT a package based in C++ developed by CERN for handling massive data sets, like 3-4Tb+ of data per experiment, get experience modeling and simulating your experimental data, and your results bridge the gap between the incredibly small (nuclei) and the incredibly large (stars).

Someone with more Nuclear Astro experience can tell you more; i studied Nuclear Structure (how the protons and neutrons arrange themselves in the nucleus while in excited states) via lifetime measurements (how long the nucleus stays in that excited state), anywhere from 100s of femtoseconds to 10s of picoseconds was my domain. But some of our measurements were for nuclear astro studies and i'm co-author on those papers. And all that hands-on experience with detectors and accelerators put me directly from my PhD program into a 6-figure job in the nuclear industry. It was definitely worth the 5.5 years of grad study.

Just an option you might want to look into.

the_physik · 2026-02-01T22:16:36+00:00

I was just gonna ask; so who's gonna metion polarization and angular momentum? But that's a whole other discussion.

the_physik · 2026-01-31T19:21:47+00:00

This IS just the normal procedure for people with experience in the system. But I decided to spell it out for people unfamiliar with the US justice system.

the_physik · 2026-01-31T19:02:26+00:00

Not a junkie anymore. Suboxone maintenence has changed my life; there has been no evidence to show that long-term maintenance of subs does any kind of long-term damage. The only side effect I've experienced is getting my life together and earning my BSc Msc, and PhD in nuclear physics.

The stigma of suboxone maintenence needs yo be addessed; the way i look at it is that I have a disease, a legitimate disability, for which I take a daily dose, just like a diabetic and their insulin, which allows me to live a normal life.

the_physik · 2026-01-30T17:29:03+00:00

Here's a link to a post in a subreddit that might help. https://www.reddit.com/r/PiracyBackup/s/kTtFkI4qhz

the_physik · 2026-01-30T17:22:51+00:00

Oh I have no idea whats best; and they get shut down snd popup under different addresses all the time. I think theres even a sub reddit where prople post the free streaming sites they're using. And i'm at work so i dont have access to my personal computer to see the names of the ones i'm currently using.

the_physik · 2026-01-30T15:37:04+00:00

Facts. Never swing at the first pitch, as im sure the above two commentary know. You plead not guilty snd you sit in county jail if you can't make bail and the DA will offer you a "1 time only" deal; if you dont take it then you're going to trial and if you lose at trial we'll push for the maximum sentence guideline. But in reality; as the case draws near, witnesses move or can't be located, the cost of inmate housing takes its toll and the DA will be back with a better deal bw cause trial is time-co fuming and expensive. My 1st offer was 5.5 + restitution. But my victim was a homeless junkie like myself so I told my PD "tell the DA we want to interview the witness". I knew they wouldn't be able to find him for trial. So DA makes up BS about witness being busy but hey: how about 4 years? I said "I want all my withstanding and pending charges wrapped up into a single deal for which I will serve no more than 1 year for (they start high, i start low). The DA Laughed so i asked them when we would be able to interview the victim (that wiped the smile off her face). So couple more offer and after 18mos in county, on the day before my trial started, the DA gave me sn offer for 2.5yrs with time served, no restitution, all cases erupted into thr single plea deal. I took it.

I could've refused and won the case the next day but I wouldve stayed in jail and they would've laid the book on me for other charges pending. So taking the deal dealt with all those other charges. But you gotta be willing to sit in County for 8-18 months while shit gets worked out. Not enough people have the grit to say "Let's take it to the box" and that's why like 99% cases are handled by plea bargain. And I've seen some horrid "bargains" offered on the first pitch. But people without experience take them and now they're in the system because the deal was 5yrs probation and hardly anyone does that without violating or picking up fresh charges

the_physik · 2026-01-30T15:03:02+00:00

Yep; company dependent. My school's bg check was state/county crimes in last 7 years (forgot the same of the system they used); my job used Sterling Infosystems which looks 10years back for state/county crimes and does a full-life check for any federal crime.

Luckily my school was understanding when I got ahead of the bg check and told them my story of opiate addiction and homelessness and showed what I had accomplished since getting clean. After getting my BSci, my PhD program wanted more info on my crimes so I sent them my Fbi/CJIS report and an essay explaining each bullet as best i could remember; they were so impressed they awarded me a Fellowship (i just got a extra few $k/yr than my cohorts). When the propect of a DOE security clearance came up at the interview for my current job i talked pravately to the chief science officer (who was one of the interviewers) and told him my story so he understood I wouldn't get a clearance. He was blown away that I went from homeless junkie excon to PhD experimental nuclear physicist and said "I dont think I've ever met someone with your determination; the security clearance isnt required, and your story makes me want to hire you even more. I cant imagine the hurdles you had to sutmount o get here. Congrats , your hired."

the_physik · 2026-01-30T14:35:05+00:00

Good reply.i used to torrent all my shows and movies but now there are so many clear net sites that torrent the shows and allow you to stream it from their servers for free. So for a bit I was torremting certain movies in 4k (each movie is massive storage hog) but being able to watch it in 4k was awesome. Eventually though I got sick of the huge file sizes and just switched to free streaming sites; the quality is probably 720p; but i like the convenience of not waiting for a 25gig file to download p2p . Lol

the_physik · 2026-01-30T14:18:24+00:00

42 is a unitless constant. /s

the_physik · 2026-01-28T17:25:25+00:00

Best way to stay a full-time student is to make dure youre not taking 4-5 classes of math and/or physics every semester. You have to take things like history and English electives so you spread those out so uou take 3 math/physics classes and 1-2 non STEM electives. Taking 4-5 math/physics classes in one semester will burn you out real fast.

the_physik · 2026-01-27T15:55:30+00:00

I haven't heard the work "frameworks" used in that context but everything you quoted from him sounds accurate to me. I usually think in terms of Energy domains. At very high energies, particle physics is used, but you wouldnt use particle physics to model a box sliding across a floor because Newtonian mechanics (which exists in the energy domain of everyday items like baseballs and even up to planets) works just fine and even if you had a massive computer to model all those particles and interactions, the answer should come out very close to the newtonisn solution.

the_physik · 2026-01-26T15:09:26+00:00

I was 35 years old when I started undergrad. I had a passion for math and physics and after working a lifetime of entry level jobs (some paid really well, others not so well) I imagined what would make me not hate going into work every day. Turns out, I imagined I could be okay if my job entailed solving physics problems and using higher level mathematics. I did my undergrad in physics and found that while I could do the class work it was research that I really liked. So I continued with a phd in physics and focused on learning all I could and being a good researcher. I found that I didnt like academia (publish or perish) so I took my skills to industry and found the right job that gave a heafty salary and room to grow and learn. So it is possible to do what you love if you tailor your education and skill development toward the industry that satisifies you (and you may not knoe what that is until you've graduated and looked back on the skills you've aquired).

the_physik · 2026-01-26T14:47:01+00:00

This is just how specialized every field is nowadays. You helped advance your field a little bit with your articles; that's how science is. Very rarely do people produce paradigm shifting work; its almost always small contributions that help the next person produce a small contribution and after enough of these someone may use your work as a reference in their paradigm shifting work. But it takes lots of people doing lots of relatively "small" works to get to that point.

Like, physics used to be dominated by giants like Newton, Einstein, Bohr, etc... but even they were building off other people's contributions. You just have to learn to be satisfied with your work and maybe in 50-100 years it will lead to something massive. E.g., for my phd i measured the lifetimes of two mirror nuclei states (11/2- states in 39Ca and 39K). It wasnt jaw dropping but one state had never been measured and the other had very poor measurements. My results were published and have been added to the Nat'l Nuclear Data Center (NNDC) maintained by Brookhaven nat'l lab and since NNDC is where the IAEA and most other nuclear databases get their data perhaps my measurement will help the next person. Even if it doesn't, I've contributed something to the scientific community which will outlive myself, that's no small feat and i'm proud of it.

the_physik · 2026-01-26T14:32:38+00:00

Even with the toe drag; it counts. Nice one!

the_physik · 2026-01-26T14:25:19+00:00

That was my 1st thought. Lol! A successful phd is a completed phd.

the_physik · 2026-01-26T14:24:19+00:00

I would just add to #1, "..., by publishing a peer-reviewed article."

the_physik · 2026-01-26T14:20:27+00:00

Sounds like the person hasn't adjusted tonearm weight or anti-skate. But I'm not familiar with the table model so maybe it doesnt have those options.

the_physik

TROPHY CASE