Most Popular
1500 questions
45
votes
2 answers
As a reviewer, is it inappropriate to make unsolicited comments on another reviewer's comments?
I'm reviewing a paper after minor revisions, and can partially see another reviewer's comments in the response letter.
The other reviewer asks the authors to do X, but the authors argue that it's not worthwhile doing X. I've done things like X…
Rebecca J. Stones
- 9,941
- 6
- 44
- 49
45
votes
5 answers
As a referee, is it okay to ask for references to be removed?
Say I received a paper for review. Afterwards I discover that there are cited references that are not related to the discussed subject, or there are elements in the bibliography that are not referenced in the manuscript.
As a referee, is it ok to…
pancho
- 1,304
- 1
- 13
- 17
45
votes
6 answers
Nervous about submitting a paper - what if I made a mistake?
I'm an undergraduate and I've taken part in a summer internship. Part of the internship was writing a paper based on a model we developed, which we're hoping to submit.
The paper is "finished" now, and so we're ready to send it off for peer review.…
user1150512
- 789
- 1
- 7
- 14
45
votes
3 answers
What should I do now when this conference first sends me an "accept", then a "reject"?
A little while back I had sent one of my works to an ACM conference -just a National level conference. I knew my work was not one of the best they were going to receive, but given the quality of the papers published in the conference in the previous…
pnp
- 2,036
- 2
- 18
- 27
45
votes
4 answers
Should I inform authorities of someone falsely claiming a non-existing PhD?
I know a person who falsely claims having a PhD in computer science.
His name card reads as "Name, PhD" and he has long been working in a high profile and remunerative position for a semi-government company.
However, he does not have a PhD!
He had…
mnm
- 549
- 1
- 4
- 12
45
votes
10 answers
UK Postdoc - Is salary negotiation even possible?
I have an interview later this week and the advertisement goes something like:
Grade 7: £31,604 - £38,833 p.a.
While talking to a postdoc at my own department, she told me that the scale wouldn't actually matter, that I'll always be placed on the…
Veronica29402
- 443
- 1
- 4
- 5
45
votes
2 answers
Health aspects of White board vs black board
I am wondering about the health aspects of black boards and white boards.
Black boards have now been around for centuries. Their only detrimental health effect is the chalk dust. Some senior colleagues tell me that they are having breathing issues…
Ambicion
- 5,541
- 5
- 31
- 53
45
votes
9 answers
The use of words such as "clearly", "obviously" etc. in a technical paper
Is there any hidden rule for using the words "clearly", "obviously" or similar ones in a technical paper? It can be offensive to the readers in many cases (especially in mathematical proofs), since the reader may not find it "clear" or "obvious".…
AJed
- 3,410
- 3
- 22
- 27
45
votes
4 answers
"Academic time": why is 110 minutes called two hours?
I found an exam online from the MIT that states:
You have two hours (academic time, 110 minutes) to complete the exam.
What is this academic time unit and where does it come from?
Jules Lamur
- 553
- 1
- 4
- 5
45
votes
12 answers
How to resolve grading dispute between TA and Lecturer?
On a math exam recently, the students were asked to use the definition of a limit of a sequence to prove that the sequence given by 3n/(3n+5) converges to 1. Given a positive number Ɛ, the definition requires proving the existence of some number N…
The Substitute
- 607
- 6
- 10
44
votes
4 answers
Why do universities tolerate uploading papers on their websites?
Lots of professors provide their full papers published by scholarly journals on their personal website (in the university official domain). PDF files of their final papers published by different publishers are available online. However, this is…
Googlebot
- 7,657
- 11
- 44
- 76
44
votes
10 answers
What email to use for corresponding author on publications when institution is not permanent?
What is the best email to use as corresponding author when publishing academic papers as a graduate student, postdoc, pre-tenured faculty or other potentially non-permanent position where your email address may change in the next few years? I know…
Dandan
- 735
- 1
- 5
- 9
44
votes
7 answers
Are course grade distributions supposed to be bell shaped?
I just got done teaching my first course, and my grades are heavily skewed:
I consider my assessments to be fair and have had them vetted by more experienced faculty. Also, the course averages are usually high in this course (mine was 83.5 or so).…
Michael Stachowsky
- 9,768
- 5
- 36
- 45
44
votes
5 answers
Keeping your throat comfortable after hours of lecturing
After lecturing for 3-4 hours my throat is often quite sore. Some days, I must lecturer for 6 hours (in past semesters, I've had some days which require lecturing for 8 hours). The problem is that for my later classes I have difficulty speaking…
earthling
- 23,114
- 6
- 70
- 155
44
votes
11 answers
Is asking an author I'm reviewing to cite me a conflict of interest?
I'm reviewing a paper whose work is quite related to some of my early PhD work, that was about 2 years ago. I have a paper published in a Journal that proved that method A had good solutions for the problem X.
Now I'm asked to review a paper that…
Leon palafox
- 11,976
- 9
- 40
- 75