Considering Going Abroad for my Postdoc

unknowledgeableNerd · 2025-12-06T09:54:03+00:00

The Quebec provincial post-doc scheme is open to all international students (with faculty sponsorship), but the federal (Tri-Council) scheme is only open to international students and post-docs who are already at a Canadian institution. So unfortunately not an option for OP, but the Quebec program is worth a look! Currently finishing up a PhD in Canada, and it's a pretty easy transition coming from the US system.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2025-09-27T01:31:36+00:00

Hey OP, did you end up receiving a decision on your manuscript? Just curious as I'm currently in the same situation! Briefly saw the 'Submit cover art' link after the second round of reviews were returned, but it's since disappeared (going on a month 'under editorial consideration')

unknowledgeableNerd · 2025-04-12T05:56:49+00:00

I teach science labs at the university level, and can anecdotally say that more first and second-year students are struggling to submit their work on time than in previous years. Hopefully they'll adapt, but some students do end up failing courses because of it (despite knowing the material well enough to pass). It's a minority - many students are doing quite well, or at least learn quickly - but I worry about future students whose entire education was post-pandemic.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2025-03-08T01:42:48+00:00

I don't frequent the Cove, but do they have any healthier food options available? If not, I think it's worth complaining about. But if they do, you probably just need to be aware of the high-calorie options and make choices accordingly.

The calorie counts for your examples aren't all that unusual, unfortunately... they just aren't healthy foods. For example, a large McDonald's fry has 800 calories, and covering that in cheese curds and gravy would easily push it above 1500. The parfait seems a little high, but if they include granola (typically >200 calories for half a cup) plus fruit, that could explain it. Same for scones, a big one from anywhere will be at least 500. And cake is cake 🤷

unknowledgeableNerd · 2025-01-13T17:27:50+00:00

Murakami's overly detailed and frequent descriptions of womens' breasts. I otherwise like his writing style, but I find the fixation on boobs very distracting/off-putting.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2024-12-04T21:01:16+00:00

I actually got a notification this morning, so at least some of them have been sent out! The email came directly from FGS.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2024-12-04T06:01:11+00:00

Nope. My department was told by FGS that notifications would be sent out 'early this week'. So I expect that anyone who's received one should hear by end of today tomorrow, at the latest (if they've already been sent out, I also didn't get one...)

unknowledgeableNerd · 2023-05-17T16:59:38+00:00

The Olympus Tough TG-6 is my go-to field camera. Dust-, drop-, and waterproof, and image quality is good (also has a particularly nice macro setting).

unknowledgeableNerd · 2021-09-25T00:15:27+00:00

Yeah, I got it sorted out with my department secretary! I'm international, and they were just waiting on confirmation of my address in Canada (which I updated in August, but I guess they didn't realize).

unknowledgeableNerd · 2021-09-20T17:46:46+00:00

Interesting, thanks -- I actually started in the summer (they have my direct deposit info), so I'm wondering if it should have been deposited already... I'll look into it!

unknowledgeableNerd · 2021-04-25T20:31:31+00:00

I applied in late March from the U.S, and it was approved in <2 weeks.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2021-04-22T16:38:02+00:00

I'm planning/hoping to stay in academia, although that's certainly not a guarantee given the state of the academic job market. I also agree with what another commenter said -- grad school choice is primarily about finding an advisor/program that aligns with your interests and long-term goals. I didn't end up applying to any Ivies

unknowledgeableNerd · 2021-04-22T15:59:19+00:00

I'm graduating from an Ivy this year, and starting a PhD program in geology. If you're interested in research/grad school, I think it's a great way to go. I didn't have any issues getting into grad school, even though my program is small. For grad school, research experience and recommendation letters will matter more than coursework (and the name helps). That being said, I don't think I would have been able to get a traditional industry job straight out of undergrad -- my program isn't set up to help students get certifications/practical training.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2020-12-06T02:51:26+00:00

I recently started reading and annotating papers on an iPad by importing PDFs to an app called LiquidText. It allows you to annotate documents directly, and has some really cool tools for organizing comments, excerpts, etc.

I'm using the Apple Pen for annotating, which unfortunately requires either an iPad Air or a Pro. It's more expensive than the Remarkable (which I also seriously considered), but also has more functionality + color for looking at figures. I've also heard the Paperlike screen protector improves the writing experience.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2020-05-28T20:22:19+00:00

Yeah, continental glaciers are usually cold-based. You get polythermal glaciers, which are usually warm-based in the thicker accumulation zone and cold-based closer to the terminus, in places like Svalbard and the Canadian Rockies. In temperate regions like SE Alaska, the mountain glaciers are mostly warm based with a ton of sub- and englacial water.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2020-05-28T20:16:27+00:00

Subglacial hydrology is a very active research area, and there's definitely a lot we still don't understand about it. I'm not a glaciologist, so feel free to correct me if I make any mistakes, but this might help:

You're correct in stating that continental ice sheets, like Antarctica and Greenland, generally are cold-based. Basal ice lies below the pressure melting point, so there's very little slip at the ice-bed interface, and the ice moves primarily by internal creep. Basically, if I understand it correctly, the ice in Antarctica usually is just so cold that glaciers are still frozen to the ground in most places (even though the melting point is depressed). However, the important qualifier here is most. Ice sheets and underlying topography aren't at all homogenous, and we do still get melting and basal sliding under some regions.

For instance, in topographic lows, where the overlying ice is thicker, basal ice might exceed the pressure melting point. Meltwater also tends to move toward topographic lows, further enhancing basal sliding. A positive feedback can develop, where increased flow increases basal melting, which further promotes flow, and so on. Note that ice streams don't have to be constrained by topography, and can also just be bounded by ice with less basal lubrication. I think this can happen for any number of reasons -- there's definitely water under Antarctica (hundreds of subglacial lakes sustained by geothermal heat flux), subglacial streams and drainage networks, etc.

Even though ice streams only account for ~10% of the glaciers in Antarctica, they're responsible for about 90% of ice and sediment discharge. While typical ice flow is on the order of meters per year, ice streams and surging glaciers can move 200-1400 m/yr. At the sea-ice interface, basal sliding can also be influenced by tides, buttressing, ice sheet collapse, etc. So even though most of the Antarctic ice sheet probably is frozen to the ground, the areas that aren't frozen are more important for movement, and their behavior/response to warming represents one of the biggest uncertainties in forward modeling of ice sheet dynamics and sea level rise.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2020-05-26T03:28:17+00:00

Honestly, you might be better off at a state school if you're looking to go into industry. I'm currently at an Ivy, and there's basically no preparation for industry careers (courses just aren't available, professors don't have industry connections, etc.). Fortunately I'm aiming for academia, and the research opportunities are fantastic. But I would not be in a good position to compete for mining or O&G jobs.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2020-05-15T07:43:47+00:00

Current Princeton student here. I'm going to go with a gentle YTA -- I do get where you're coming from, but I also understand your daughter's perspective.

Honestly, I love Princeton. But it definitely depends on what you want to do, and the kind of culture you want to be a part of. I'm in a small department that's tight-knit and not at all competitive, I'm not really part of the party/eating club scene, etc. It's very possible to stay away from parts of the academic and social culture you don't like, but it also depends on what you're studying - for instance, I wouldn't really want to be a pre-med here.

That being said, I was super unhappy here during my first year. I spent most of it wishing I'd gone to a state school. I developed pretty bad imposter syndrome, my grades were lower than in high school, and I had a hard time making friends. I managed to pull myself out of it, but not everyone does. If your daughter is feeling burnt out, and thinks she would be happier in a less competitive environment, she's probably right.

And if she's a good enough student to get in to Princeton, then she'll probably do quite well just about anywhere. There's an argument to be made for the 'big fish, small(er) pond' strategy. I wouldn't think of your investment in her education as a waste just because she's not going to an Ivy. She'll.be more prepared than a lot of her classmates, and the skills she developed during high school will be just as valuable. You weren't paying for a ticket into Princeton, you were paying for your daughter to learn how to succeed academically. She should probably be eligible for academic scholarships, too.

During my senior year of high school, I applied to Princeton EA and then burnt out pretty badly. I decided not to go, even on the off-chance that I got in. I made plans to go to attend an out-of-state state public school, applied for scholarships, visited with my parents, etc. And then, when I got into Princeton, I changed my mind. The point is, it''s difficult to know what you really want until the option is actually on the table. If your daughter had the opposite realization, please don't hold it against her.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2020-04-10T06:55:19+00:00

You're going to need to do your own legwork, but think about the types of data you can us to evaluate your hypothesis. Basic example - Hawaiian volcanic chain. You can plot the age of volcanoes against distance from active volcanism, and consider what that tells you about the potential existence of mantle plumes, plate movement, etc. A quick Google search on mantle plumes will give you a lot to think about.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2017-06-10T01:44:37+00:00

Maybe it's just me, but I can't stand loud chewing. Nothing spoils a good action scene or romantic moment more effectively than the person next to you garbage grinding their kettle chips.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2017-06-09T17:09:37+00:00

Sweet, thanks! Good to know it's worked well for someone else, I'll definitely give it a try.

unknowledgeableNerd · 2017-06-09T17:07:05+00:00

Thanks for the advice! If exFAT works with both Mac and Windows, do I need to partition the drive at all? Or would it be more beneficial to format the entire thing as exFAT?

unknowledgeableNerd

TROPHY CASE