TropicalCharlie

In addition to Google Calendar, I have found the mobile apps Astrid and Evernote useful. I use Astrid to remind me of tasks and appointments. When you have snoozed a task one too many times, Astrid will pop up with a witty and funny reminder. Evernote can be used to jot down to-do lists with reminder options, and much more. Dropbox is definitely an essential in grad school. My lab group also has Dropbox for data sharing and such. An alternative to Dropbox is Google Drive which has similar functions.

by The Neighbourhood

The Wave by Susan Casey

- Red Hot Chili Peppers

by T. Tauri

by M83

2/5 I'm doing well academically and enjoying my classes. The 2 rating is mostly for the fact that I was misled about research opportunities during recruitment. Due to this hick up, I had to change my plans entirely.

I completed my undergrad at UCSB and loved it there. Though I can't speak for the cs program as I was in marine science. UCSB has an excellent academic and research reputation, and 5 nobel laureates on faculty. It's an awesome place to live, work and play. If you have any questions about the school and/or the community, feel free to pm me.

Sorry I did not clarify in my original post. I'm referring to research notebooks where you record experiments, methods and such.

This may seem trivial to some but many researchers I've met have a strong preference for certain lab notebooks. What is your preference? Ruled/unruled? Grid format? Composition notebooks? Specific brands?

I don't have a child or depression, so I can't speak to those. For school, I think that what you really need to do first is ask yourself why you want to go grad school. Make a list if that that helps. If you are passionate about psychology and have a strong desire to pursue it, those are good reasons. Those are the things that will get you through grad school. Taking on something new can sometimes overwhelm us, but remember that it's a learning process. You'll figure what works or doesn't and learn to use time more efficiently. Self doubt is a common feeling that gets the best of us. For me, I just put on blinders, don't worry about other people, and just focus on what I can do best. As for presentations, grad school is a great platform for these as you will learn how to communicate and present info. I'm not fond of them myself but they come with the territory, and I see them as a teaching tool not only to others but more importantly for myself. The point is to view presentations as a positive aspect of grad school. While I don't have experience in depression, I would suggest that you establish a good support system whether it is through family, friends and/or therapy.

As others have said, stick it out and see it through. Everyone has or will cross paths with people like that at some point in our lives, and we can't just quit and run every time we are made to feel foolish (intentionally or not).

darthvegan - here is an article that favors animal research and justifications. It is not going to impact your philosophy on animal rights but hopefully provides you with background info and scientist perspectives. http://www.ringachla...ingach_ajms.pdf

You can bring up the publication questions in the first email but keep them specific and short. Keep in mind that these profs are super busy, so in the first email, you want to quickly introduce yourself and ask the pertinent questions. Once you establish a correspondence, you can even suggest a skype appointment where you can ask further questions.

I totally know what you are going through since I'm in a slightly similar situation. You don't want to blow off his email since he might be someone you end up collaborating with in the future. My advice is to respond to his email because he took the time to add you to his group list and invited you to the lab meeting. Thank him for the invitation and tell him that in the time that elapsed, you had joined another lab group. I don't think an explanation is needed unless he specifically asks.