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wriggly grub! (ick)

["Scooping" & "theory wars"]

Hello, friends!

 

This is a question for MA and PhD students, professors, or anyone who's been up to their waist in anthropological & archaeological research longer than I have.

 

My (tentative) MA thesis topic is going to involve revisiting an old data set with a fresh set of theoretical eyes. The data comes from a site that's part of a well documented, thoroughly researched site with an established cultural chronology. I want to use that old raw data, or another preexisting data set, as an example of potential applications of a few main theories to bioarchaeology, with my greatest emphasis on a relatively new perspective that I feel goes perfectly hand-in-hand with it. I don't intend to discuss methodological or ethical problems within the sub-discipline; supporting the usefulness of the new theoretical perspective by way of the preexisting data set is my focus.

 

So, I've got two main questions:

How common is "scooping" in anthropology/archaeology? i.e., should I be worried about rushing to publish a new theoretical perspective as it relates an up-&-coming sub-discipline first? Does it matter? 

I intend to publish & continue refining my thesis after it's done, but I'm nervous about "theory wars" & how to respond to published critiques or criticisms. How do I find the "holes" in my arguments? How do I respond to criticisms, particularly with regard to the age of the data set & potential methodological flaws?

 

Thanks, y'all!

[Fall 2014]

I still have to research ... ASU

 

if you do end up contacting ASU, will you shoot a message my way about whom you talked with & how it went? i'm really interested in their PhD program, but i'm in an MA program right now, & i have major "nerd crushes" on a lot of their faculty, but no idea what their personalities are like. i'm intimidated & looking for some schmoozing advice.

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memory foam

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girl talk

[Research Experience Issue]

You have a few options:

 

-Apply anyway, see what happens.

-Take 2-3 years off, and work as a research associate or in some other research-related position somewhere.  That could be at a university's lab, at an industry firm, at a think tank, doesn't matter, as long as you are getting some research experience.  It would be preferable if it was in your area of interest, but it just needs to be in computer science (or a related field, like bioinformatics).

 

personally, i think both of these are good options, & i took the route that i've put in bold. i lacked field experience & had a mediocre GPA, but i intended to enter a program & field of work that require strong field skills alongside very strong academic skills, so i made up for it by working my rump off for a year & a half.

 

doing so really helped me mature in terms of time management, communication, work ethic, etc. — which have already paid off immensely — & gave me a chance to network with some mentors who wrote some of my great LoRs. if i hadn't taken the time off, i probably would've still gotten into a couple of programs, but maybe not my first choice program (where i am now), & certainly not in a mature enough state of mind to be fully equipped to tackle heavy loads of coursework, a part time job, &, y'know, having hobbies & fun.

[stretched to thin! sympathetic ear needed]

some school's health centers have on-staff nutritionists, or can at least refer you to specialists nearby; that might be a good place to start!

 

i really enjoy cooking, but i have a bad habit of being a super lazy eater, and i am perpetually mega-broke. i try to set aside 2 hours every sunday to cook 5-7 lunches for the week that i can carry in a container in my bag. that way, i know exactly what i'm getting in terms of calories & nutrients. i bulk-buy produce with my housemates through a CSA program, & i bulk-buy whole grains & dry goods (quinoa, lentils, beans, bouillon, oats) to save money. i'm a pescatarian, so for meat (fish), i just buy whatever fillets are on sale.

 

only cooking for lunches gives me more freedom for breakfast & dinner, & knowing what to expect calorie-wise means i can get lazy & buy things on campus when i'm way too busy to stop for food at home. we have sushi & salads for sale on campus, so i stick with those, especially the ones with full nutritional labels. i also try to separate my foods into portions as soon as i buy them, so i don't just measure out random stuff all willy-nilly when i'm cooking in a rush, e.g., pouring loose dry goods into 1/2 cup sized reused sandwich bags.

 

i try to switch up my ingredients weekly & find very filling foods so i can nibble on in throughout the day (instead of snarfing down one huge meal): curried lentils cooked in veggie stock, herbed roast veggie hash, broiled fish with fresh dill & lemon, homemade veggie soup, all sorts of fruit salads, & so on. i prefer to make meals that have a variety of flavors & textures so i won't get bored of grazing on it throughout the day, & i won't get painfully full right away or really hungry later, because i have a tendency to over-eat if i go from snack to snack. aiming for 4 small meals a day (an hour after i wake up, late morning, mid-afternoon, mid-evening seems to work for me) makes me feel more full than 2 big meals or grazing on very small snacks nonstop.

 

in general, i agree with the previous: nutrition & calorie tracking apps, & what you eat, rather than how much, are key. self magazine has a great app of sorts on their website that's also very helpful for figuring out what you need nutrient-wise, instead of taking a broad-spectrum multivitamin. that may help with the tiredness & cravings. also, it seems counter-intuitive, but when you're tired or exhausted from working, exercise for 15-30 minutes: run, bike, walk, do calisthenic (weights-free) circuits at home, whatever you want. you can follow up with lots of water & a shower. it's like hitting a "refresh" button on your brain & body!

[Is this normal/appropriate?]

I don't know whether this is common practice in other fields, but in anthropology, conferences will often offer a volunteering option that will waive your attendance fees in return for no more than 8 hours of straightforward help (handing out registration packets, setting up or breaking down tables etc. in rooms, & so on). I would try getting in touch with a conference coordinator to see if they have an option like that.

[Fall 2014]

I definitely see both sides to it and I find safety in numbers just because of the statistical comfort - I really don't want to have to reapply. Another reason why I am applying to so many is because I am applying to different programs and some of the same schools, so while the school list isn't enormous, there are several programs. My boyfriend is currently doing interviews for medical school and we are trying to apply to as many overlapping cities as possible to increase our chances of being near one another. That said, The schools on my list are not only there because of geographic preference, but also because I think they would be good fits. I think if I can get it down to 10 (maybe using the coin toss method you mentioned, pears) then I will feel a bit better. 

 

the coin-toss helps! hindsight is 20/20, but in the case of my applications, i think that slaving for weeks over my personal statement & having probably 5 different people read it (2, who have both earned their PhDs, gave me fantastic, detailed feedback without removing my "voice" from it, so to speak) gave me a lot more safety than my numbers did. having very strong GRE scores to offset my crummy GPA probably helped, as did a trio of strong LoRs (2 were professional, & did an excellent job of translating my work ethic & attitude to my potential as a grad student).

 

in sum, i would say there might be more safety in "quality" than "quantity," but that's only based on my own experiences. it may differ according to your own materials & programs of choice.

[Disappointed in a class - worth bringing it up to someone in the department now?]

Talk to the professor first; going straight to the department chair may come off as backhanded. Be honest, but polite: explain you feel you're not being challenged enough, & are interested in engaging with the content more & learning as much as possible while thinking critically.

[How do I ask if I'm a strong candidate?]

Personally, I wouldn't ask professors in the program whether I'd be a strong candidate; I think it hints at some self-doubt, which might rub some people the wrong way. Instead, I'd get in touch with professors or friends from my undergrad program — or, if it makes more sense, professional coworkers & "mentors" — to get their thoughts on a CV, SoP, & LoRs. That way, you can focus on sweeping the programs off their feet & woo with your awesomeness by going into your communications knowing you're already a strong candidate.

 

I would feel a lot better about asking how well my research interests mesh with a professor's or department's than I would asking what they think of me, if that makes sense; the former is a chance to "sell yourself" at a superficial level (& pick up on other important details, like personality), while the latter is a judgment call that they'll make after you apply.

[What did you do this weekend?]

I'm not an international student, but I've been living on the opposite side of the country for most of the last 2 years, & I haven't seen my family in over a year, with the one exception of my mom visiting me when I lived in a city she likes a lot. I've gotten used to traveling solo, & I Skype + talk on the phone with my family & friends (who are all spread out across the country & the globe) often. I enjoy making new friends everywhere I go, but it's comforting to be able to easily reach my closest friends & family.

[Fall 2014]

How many schools are people applying to? I have about 12 different schools that I'm looking it (for Anthropology and MES), but it feels excessive. Thoughts?

 

12 is a lot, if only because it will cost an awful lot of money to apply. I started out with about a dozen programs when I was applying, too, but I whittled it down by making an Excel spreadsheet. That allowed me to easily visualize clear shortcomings & create "rankings" for different factors, such as financial aid, location, or the research focuses of professors I was interested in working with. I also tried the "coin toss" method with schools I was iffy about: I'm make an iffy program heads, then another random program from my list tails. If I was disappointed by getting heads no matter what the other program was, then it got nixed. That was my way of making sense of my "gut feelings" about program fit.

 

I think I got down to 7 by the end of it, & honestly, I probably could've made it 5, but I was worried that my mediocre undergrad GPA would screw me over (it didn't), so I found safety & sanity in numbers.

[Submitted a paper a month ago, no reply]

Fears of coming off as pushy & eager are easily combated with politeness & succinctness, I think. If there's a phone number listed as a point of contact for the publication, call & leave a message with your name, some contact information, & a one-liner about your reason for calling.

 

E.g.: "Good afternoon, American Journal of Derpology, this is Pears calling. I submitted a paper titled "Derpderpderp" on August 25, and was wondering whether it's moved forward in the review process at all. You can reach me at 867-5309 or pears@butts.edu. Thank you!"

 

Obviously, your own phrasing & the standard M.O. for this kind of stuff probably differs field to field, but that's how I'd do it. Calling usually yields faster answers, I find, & people don't mind answering calls if you're polite & gracious. If calling isn't an option, just write a similarly professional yet personable email.

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birthday card

[Am I Doing it all Wrong?]

I'm a "cover-to-cover" reader as often as possible, but it's been easy to do this semester; I don't think I've hard such a hard time getting through a reading so far that I felt compelled to skim or skip any part. That said, my department isn't hyper-competitive, nor does it have any professors that deliberately assign a nearly-impossible amount of reading every single week to force students to learn how to skim, although I have friends in different fields & different programs who have experienced that.

 

Personally, if I want to be able to start & actively engage in as many discussions as possible (which, for me, is pretty much synonymous with academic success in this program), I find it extremely difficult to come up with thoughtful questions & answers without having read every word of the paper or as much of a book as possible. I've gotten pretty good at speed-reading, & I only skim if the reading is optional, or if I've somehow become too pressed for time to read it thoroughly at least once... & I really try to avoid the latter situation. That said, I've got a department, schedule (work, class, etc.), & personal goals that foster my approach.

 

Basically, it depends on your program, your professor(s), & what you want to achieve as a student + the necessary means for reaching those goals.

[Answering Student Questions]

Tell them to look it up themselves! It won't make them better students for your class — or any other classes — if you hand-feed them answers. I agree with the gentle reminder mass email. If you hold review sessions, try to have them answer each other's questions, too.

 

Another strategy I use is to not answer student emails after 9:00 PM or before 8:00 AM. I'm usually only asleep midnight to 7:00 AM (on good nights), but that sort of helps discourage the flood of "LOLWUT" questions the night before exams.

[What did you do this weekend?]

This weekend is my birthday, & there's a brewfest on Saturday! It's going to be an unusually busy weekend for me. Normally, though, I work a few hours on one or both days, & I try to make a point of at least biking to one of the Saturday markets in town while they're still running, & going for a longer ride after I drop my food off at home. Sundays are for laundry, cooking, & homework. In the winter, I'll probably use Saturdays for snowboarding whenever possible.

[Keep A Word Drop A Word]

country club

[What do you keep in your office space?]

home: stacks & stacks of books & journals, an all-in-one printer/scanner/copier, a pur water filter with a cup, tea mugs galore, my glasses, a corkboard full of coupons & tickets for things, cups with sentimental coozies on them for pens & pencils, general office supplies, a large double-wicked gardenia candle, a lamp with a colorful lampshade & a few animal bones + beautiful rocks i've collected here & there. above it, i've got a few beautiful little art prints.

 

TA office: mug, emergency tea rations, a dish of candy, a gallon of diet arizona iced tea, more books & a few journals; in my locker, graded things & other class materials.

 

thrilling, i know.

[Grading Dilemma (To F or not to F)]

i agree with jmu, as long as you review & mark the papers in such a way that clearly states what they did wrong. perhaps attach a copy of the assignment (i.e., the document stating the instructions) when you hand it back with the instructions they chose to ignore highlighted. you may also want to incentivize visiting you for help somehow, i.e., adding 5% to their grade on the next paper or the optional paper if they see you for guidance. go the extra mile (within reason, just this one time) to attempt to get some one-on-one face time with them.

 

if they ignore any way you choose to reach out or help, well... you can lead a slacker to water, but you can't make them think.

[Its week 2 and already feeling dumb]

Hi Sconnie! I have no Comm background myself, so starting a (rather quantitative) PhD from an anthro background, I sometimes feel like I'd better catch the hell up in a hurry...

 

i'm just starting an anthro (archaeo) MA, & one of my classes is seminar that's mega-heavy on the theory. i had, quite literally, never dealt with a single theory in a single undergrad class. the best way to compensate, i've found, is getting really good at scanning quickly through wikipedia entries & the first 5-10 google scholar results that pop up when i search for a specific theory by name. then, i do all the readings for the class with those points in mind, and if i'm confused, i read them again. even if it's all news to me, it's worth the extra bit of effort to at least have enough to say to pass it off like i know what i'm talking about with some degree of comfort & familiarity.

 

in sum: if it's all new & confusing, become an expert at semi-BSing & speed reading!

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academy award

[Motivation to keep going]

It's important to remember that most people give critiques with an overall good intention, i.e., they want to help you improve your research & writing skills. However, even the most accomplished professors are still humans (although I can think of a few of my nerd idols who may be brilliant, hyper-efficient kindly cyborgs…); we all communicate in different ways. Sometimes the professor who writes the most blunt or harsh comments is the one who wants you to succeed the most, and sometimes the reviewer who writes the least in the comments will have the most to say face to face.

 

If you can, make some face time. If a reviewer is one of the rare few who decides bullying is more important that constructive criticism, it's really hard for most people to continue being a mega-jerk for laughs in person (read: academic bullies can be very cowardly). However, it's far more likely that you may have misread their intentions, and you'll probably leave feeling better after knowing that they want you to improve & succeed.

[Personal Finance Apps]

Venmo has been very helpful for me, I've found, especially on one-on-one levels of exchange, e.g., paying a friend back for a gas top-up or a meal. My housemates & I use Splitwise for rent & utilities, but I've only used it once, so it's hard to give it a thorough review.