Amogh
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Posts posted by Amogh
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Well, Computer Science is partly an Engineering discipline so I'll take a crack at answering your question.
If your peers are anything like mine, they couldn't care less if you are gay or straight. You should just act normal and mention it at some point in conversation like some of the other posters said. Personal relationships are mostly a thing that only come up during the occasional social events so most people don't bother sharing most of the time. -
I watched it last Friday. I thought it was pretty interesting. More of a "this is what we think the state of the system is, make your own decisions kind of thing". Didn't do any favors to MOOCs or Udacity, not that I'm complaining.
There really needs to be a movie on Grad school though. Ivory Tower should really have been about grad school. Or they should have named it differently. -
Online rates are very unreliable, don't count on them. They are either way too high because they don't consider a lot of discounts you might qualify for, or way too low because they assume you get all of the discounts. When I first started looking at online rates, I saw quotes that were as low as $50 per month to some that were $300+ per month!
To get a realistic rate, you should actually go to an insurance agent (either in person or phone) and give them your actual details. There is a lot of stuff that comes into the calculation of your insurance rate, but the major factors that impact the basic coverage rates are
1. The value of the car you own
2. Your driving experience (sorry to say, you really should have gotten that US driver's license the moment you were able to because that adds years of driving experience and reduces rates). However experience on an international license might count (and would require further proof that might not show up on an online rate). I had to get a letter from the Canadian version of the DMV to my insurance company.
3. Your past claims history (you should be okay here)
4. The usage rating (commute? pleasure only? how many miles/year)
5. Your age, gender, and marital status
My spouse and I pay $120 per month for our 2012 Honda Civic but we have a lot of additional coverage on it (some of it is required by the car loan we got). Our rates have decreased by about $5/month each year as the car's value goes down and our driving experience goes up (although I think I am going to max it out soon--I'm currently at 9 years).
I know some people who go as low as $40 per month if they just get minimal coverage, but I think this is very risky. We got rear-ended once (not our fault, so no insurance rate increase) and just a light bump with very little exterior damage (but lots inside) cost over $3000 just to repair plus they us additional compensation for lost wages etc (well worth the extra $0.25/month for that coverage), and no one was even seriously injured. I can't imagine how much I would have to pay if a bad accident ever happens in my life, so I would much prefer to pay an extra $600-$1000 per year in additional coverage instead of being hit with a 10+ thousand dollar bill at some unknown time in the future.
Anyways, if you are serious about buying a car, you should get that license right away and also talk to several insurance agents to get quotes for various types of cars. They will ask you a bunch of questions to set up your profile and after you do that, they basically can just swap out the type of car you want to buy and tell you that car's rates. You can then determine what you can afford etc. They can also let you know what you can do to reduce your rate and get additional discounts!
Wow that's a lot of very useful info. Thanks a lot! I should get down to doing that.
Good luck riding a motorcycle during NY winters. My father has a BMW R1200R and when he lived in NY (which he did for 50 years), it didn't come out most of the year.
That's true, the only reason I haven't got one till now. However, I'm tempted to say screw it and get one to ride on any day there isn't ice on the road (essentially that means putting it in storage from Dec to April).
that's why you move south son
ye ye ye yeauh
Lol, I wish it was possible to relocate the school.
Nice.. That M4 exhaust probably means your ear drums are going to burst, though. Never understood why people change exhausts but to each his own...
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How much do you guys pay for insurance!
I'm 23 and I will have to get a local license before I buy my car (NY allows me to rent cars on my indian license for like forever so I didn't bother till now). Got some quotes online and boy were did they burst my bubble!
I'm being quoted idiotic rates, $200+ p.m. on any kind of car I put in, be it Mazda Mazda3, Nissan Altima etc or a BMW 325ci!I don't see how anyone can afford to pay for that and the car..
Looks like no car for me till I turn 25 then.. Heck motorbike insurance is $20 p.m. in comparison.
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i've ridden around 5 bikes, and 4 of them were sv650s, so I'm well aware of their low end torque. I think I'll be able to handle it with practice. but you're right, this one has new tires, along with new oil, the whole deal. I actually found another bike (gs500) that's almost $1000 cheaper than the sv650, in relatively new condition. It's not the bike I think I will eventually get - sv650 is (or a ninja). but with that price, I can probably ride it through winter, and sell it for a profit in the spring, while buying a sv650 during winter at a good price. shitty thing is the guy stopped responding to my txts, after telling he'd hold the bike for me. ...... I don't think I will ever venture into the supersports though. the gsx and gsxr are pretty much the same right? why not just go for an r6?
The GSX-650F is in the same range as the GSX-R600 etc. The R is meant to mean Racing spec. Those bikes (especially the 600cc ones which is the general engine capacity most races specify) can with very little modifications (essentially safety stuff to meet the requirements) be used to race in MotoGP! Someone actually did recently, last year I think. He even finished in the top 10th.
The GSX is just a style moniker. This bike is essentially a Bandit 650 with fairing and sportier setup. So it's in the sport touring category. I'm not ready for a SuperSport. Don't think I'll ever be. They're too uncomfortable anyways.
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l've been tirelessly searching craigslist for a good bike, and I think I finally found one. 2003 sv650, fully modded for $2.1k. only thing is it's got 24k miles on it. maybe I can use that as leverage to talk it down to $2000 or 1900, after having sitting on it or test riding it first of course. But the dealer guy said the bike runs perfectly, and I believe him. it's been dropped a couple of times, but I don't really care about a cracked fairing. what do you think?
not to mention fuel injection with low 50s mpg.
road trip this year for sure
SV650 is a nice bike. I hope you have ridden quite a bit before because it does put out quite a bit of power and torque. Cracked fairing should be fine. I'm thinking of getting a gsx650f myself.
Well there are quite a few other costs (gear can set you back a cool $1000 you know, helmet, gloves, boots and a jacket)
Oh and 24k miles means new tires soon unless they were changed very recently.
Road trips... Ah, the pleasures of the open road.
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@Lifesaver, Didn't look at your profile pic while I was reading through because there were like 40 messages pending by the time I logged in. Hence I wasn't sure who mentioned the Jeep.
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I was referring more to bikes with salvage titles, not wrecked bikes. I will never have time to restore a bike unless it's for hobby. I already have enough tools from dicking around with my car, and I don't like to pile it up even more. I will never buy a bike with a bad engine, because that likely means the frame was damaged. The salvage bikes that I've seen all had to have their forks replaced. The frame was supposedly not damaged, but I'm not going to risk it. I test rode a bike yesterday. the guy said the title was lost, but I'm 80% positive he wrecked it without telling me. it handled like shit. I was scared to take my hand off the handlebars to check the front suspension stability because I felt like I was going to crash if I did. yea... not putting my life at risk save a few hundred bucks.
Fork bends are indeed risky things to call because there are many ways you can patch up a fork to hold it together but it won't be aligned and won't move freely so if you jam the front brake you can be thrown off the bike due to uneven fork action. However, having said that, if you can find one that had a fork that had a minor bend and that was hammered out, it isn't a complete deal breaker.
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bhr and rising_star, 50k for a car? No sir, you've got me wrong I'm afraid. I'm looking at ooooold cars for like 8k. Tons of them on CL from 2002 to 2006! Lol.
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That's a lot of responses.
From what I can make out the common themes here appear to be:
- Most people seem to be buying new cars
This surprised me. I expected to hear a lot more stories of how people either bought lemons or diamonds on craigslist. - Japanese cars seem to be very popular (not surprising)
- reliable
- good fuel efficiency
- More people seem to be buying on loan than cash (again not surprising if buying a new car).
- Sedans and SUVs seem to be the most popular.
I'm really drawn to luxury sport cars like the Acura TL, BMW M3, Infiniti G35, etc used of course. Anyone walked this path before and have anything to contribute?
Also, we haven't touched on any American cars, other than one person talking about his/her Jeep. Buick has been getting the most reliable car title from JD Power Auto Surveys for the last 3-4 years beating the likes of Nissan and Acura. That has to mean something I guess?
Does anyone drive a pickup? Any thoughts on that? I'm sick of getting into standard cars and not being able to sit straight in the passenger's seat (the driver's seat generally has height adjustment, although the sun visor is just plain useless to me in just about all of them). I hear fuel efficiency is a major concern in this category.
- Most people seem to be buying new cars
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why come you no ride motorcycles anymore?
I am looking to get a motorcycle here too. I haven't cos I started off in an MS program and was broke till I converted to the PhD program recently. However, the car seems so much more sensible a decision because of the weather around where I live (frozen at least 5 months a year). But OMG riding again! ( goes off to a corner to drool about riding on the open road again)...
Salvage bikes...
Hmmm... It's a little hard to say mate. Bikes are much easier to work on that cars in my opinion but having said that, a poorly welded part is also putting your life on the risk more than in a car to some extent. Rebored engines are a pain in the ass because if the rebore wasn't done well or the pistons sealed properly etc you could have a block that will seize up. If you know your way around tools, or have a friend who knows bikes, you could get a salvaged bike and save a ton of money. There seem to be a ton of bikes with clean titles on CL however so might want to just consider one of those.
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I've been a motorbike guy most of my driving-age life (not here with all this snow). Looking to buy a car now.
Did some googling and I'm surprised that there isn't a single post relevant to buying a car in grad school. Tons for undergrads and new grads though but I don't feel like we are well represented by either group.
SO lets make one here.What do you guys and girls look for in a car (in grad school of course)?
How much did you spend (or are considering spending/ think you can take on comfortably)?
anything else you think is relevant.
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I'm joining a new lab. We literally got our lab space allocated to us today! My advisor was asking me what I want in the lab so I figured I'll sample what cool stuff people have in their labs and compile a list of what this room should have.
SO, What do you have in your lab? What's cool about your lab? -
Short version: Nope.
Long version: As long as you don't mind sitting in a class with people 20 years younger, no. The flip-side is that you bring experience to the table, something none of us have, so you will soon see yourself treated as a sort of a guru on all things 'work'.
. I think you should go for it if you want to but is there a really strong motivation behind this sudden decision? An MS mostly doesn't add much to your profile given (i'm assuming) you've got at least 10+ years of experience as a programmer? Most Master's degrees are academic not industry oriented so you'll find that things that you may not have used in your work for the last couple of years are suddenly the focus of study and it may or may not exactly be beneficial to you. That said if you are interested in moving to advanced development jobs, an MS may be the way to go. Think your options through and if you think it will be rewarding go for it. Age is not a determining factor at all. -
Hey Pas,
Before you read my reply, I'd like to inform you that this is all second hand information. I will start grad school this fall and can only tell you what I've seen through others.
There is no perfect graduate student. Graduate students consume copious amounts of alcohol as do quite a few professors (I can link you to a paper by a professor in a big university who wrote that the best advice she received from her advice in her first year was to buy a large bottle of vodka and use it well.
lol.). Smoking, swearing and getting laid are all personal choices. Moral grayness is a very valid school of thought, ask any philosophy student. All these things don't make or break a graduate student and there is no image of a grad student that shuns all these (I think you've been watching too much big bang theory ). Your life, you lead it as you wish.Having said that, there will be people who disapprove of your behavior but hey that's a given in life isn't it. Don't care about them. You are not alone, each year there are thousands of students entering grad programs with very varied lifestyles and that is the fun of grad school, it's a melting pot. I'm sure you'll meet many people like yourself.
What I am, however, concerned about is the fact that you aren't interested in the furthering of knowledge/intellectual pursuit. If you are enrolled in a MS program that's not an issue. If you are going for a PhD I think you should seriously sit down and reconsider it. It isn't worth it if you aren't in it for a specific reason. Judging from other posts on this forum, I think the going gets really tough at a point and you'll only persevere if you are there for a reason. I mean generally a PhD makes you overqualified for most jobs except research jobs, academic jobs and other cutting edge work. You should really think about it.
Also, grad school isn't anything like undergrad. There are no fixed schedules and all that. It is what you make of it. Academic settings needn't be sterile, they can be a lot of fun, you just have to find the right crowd that suits your definition of fun and trust me you will. The only thing is you need to figure out what you are in it for.
- comp12 and wildviolet
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Well that actually depends on the PI and how he argues his case to the new university when he decides to move. Generally speaking, I've seen that most of the time your PI takes you with him if you are quite far along with your work. They might leave behind the first years unless the said first year has made a mark on him. Hope that helps.
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I would advice you to go the MS->PhD route. It is the only option you have actually, based on my over-simplified analysis of the data you have presented about yourself.
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I want to get in a PhD program at a top 10 US school. I am now a Senior Undergraduate at Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.
Why do you want a PhD? You better have a good reason. Read this and probably this and this.
Overall GPA: 3.9, ranked 2nd in my course.
Congratulations on the rank. Also don't convert from 10 point to 4 point. Leave it in the original scale.
CS GPA: 3.86
GRE: Not given yet
Get something above 320 and then forget about it.
Internships:
- One research internship at Imperial College London.
- One internship at Google India.
Please elaborate on what you did at both these places.
Recommendations:
- One from my supervisor at ICL.
- Two good ones from professors at my university.
Hopefully, your professors can talk about your research ability and not just that you did well in class.
Research Publications: None.
PhD admissions look for this and give it a lot of weight! See if you can change this?
Many thanks for any input and your time.
Also, you need to talk to your seniors, many of whom, I am sure, have gone on to pursue a PhD after graduating.
- One research internship at Imperial College London.
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Do you guys agree that most CS departments are taking forever to give their decisions compared to last year? This might not be the case with PhD admissions but from where I sit looks like that for MS admissions. Ugh.
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newms which did you pick up? How unbearable is the weight? If
I was thinking about it yesterday and I figured that the tablet would be really pointless considering that I can't program on it only read or watch movies. Might as well buy a (much cheaper) Kindle fire.
Ok so now my question is a laptop vs a desktop. I am currently leaning towards the laptop because it is portable and powerful.
Eigen, I have no idea on how much heavy processing I will be doing on my personal computer. I probably should wait till I arrive at whichever institution I pick and then decide huh? I'm still waiting on replies from 5 universities.
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What do you guys recommend, given we are all CS majors?
1) Heavy duty Laptop say a gaming laptop like SAGER
2) Heavy duty gaming Desktop at home + Tablet to lug around
Which combination do you prefer and why?
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I'v applied there and really liked a project being carried by one of the professors and would love to go there if I'm admitted, so I was wondering what the college's reputation is like since I intend to apply for PhD after I'm done with my Master's degree.
I'v received rejects from UCSB, U Wisc-Madison, U Maryland-CP and Purdue University. Hoping to get in here.
What'r your thoughts about the place?
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Wow that is an exhaustive filing system! sorry about the nonconstructive comment but had to compliment behavioral.
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How do grad students dress?
in The Lobby
Posted
I find this interesting. Never had that issue. Most of the profs in my department wear Jeans and a shirt/tee to every event except the HoD.
Well, most of my friends are in the Hard Sciences as you call them. I'm in CS. They wear Jeans, sneakers and whatever they can scoop out of the closet for a top. Some tend to dress extra creatively, most just wear a t-shirt with a funny message or something. Most people don't care what you wear to school, as long as you don't stink. Many people don't leave the lab for days and being around their stench can be quite a challenge!