Hi Sneaks! it's a nightmare isn't it trying to find the best way of putting things?! I think I might take the risk and go for the one big chapter actually...there are 3 ways I can split it, and they all mean I'll have to quite extensively cross reference between 2 chapters, I'll have to re-introduce the study and methods again and the discussion is very difficult to split between the two. Plus when reading one chapter, personally I know I'd be saying 'what about this and that?', which is all in the following chapter, so it might be too much of a split...
I just spent an hour on the phone to my mum talking her through the results as if it was all one big chapter. I figured if I can explain it so she understands it, then I can explain it so my examiners can understand it! Bless her, she sat and did her best to keep up and said it all seems logical to keep it together, she could get the jist of it ok, so I think I might just take the risk and do it that way...it's quite exciting really! How pathetic! :-) I figure, if I can reasonably justify why I've done it that way then it should be ok, otherwise if the examiners really want me to change it, I can do it after the viva, the results and the findings will still be the same.

Hi everyone

I'm currently beating myself up about how to structure my thesis, with 1/2 chapters in particular causing the main issue. Basically, I have carried out 2 quite data-intensive surveys as the main focus of my research. I seem to have done too much work for my project as there are 7 other chapters, with intro, method development (hardcore chemistry..), preliminary survey, preliminary toxin work, a study of two sites, PCR chapter and discussion.
The other data chapters will be relatively short, 10-20odd pages, but the issue is in whether to divide the main survey into 2 chapters. I tried it one way, my sups said it was quite hard to read and follow, although in their wisdom they started with the second one so the ground work was all in the previous chapter...I am currently trying to split it in another way, but it's really difficult. Whatever way I split it I will have to cross reference between chapters a lot and I end up repeating myself quite a bit. I think it would be easiest to read if it was all in one big chapter, even if it is a bit more complex, however this will be a 50-60 pages chapter, with a lot of results and tables, including several different statistical tests that require a lot of discussion and interpretation.

So I guess the question is, what do you think examiners would prefer? Will a huge complex chapter be ok or look a bit silly in the middle of several relatively small chapters? OR should I split it and run the risk of irritating examiners with lots of cross referencing and repeating things in an attempt to simplify it a bit? And I'm meant to submit in 3/4 weeks... :$

Whoo Fm you're up early!! Good luck with your results! I'm doing results today myself, I have to sort out tables, and merge the results of 2 chapters together, and take out one of the newly merged section of results...ugh. It's just reformatting and restructuring the chapter but I always find that really difficult to do, I'd almost prefer starting from scratch!

So goal 1 - sort tables :)
goal 2 - fix correlations section, describe and interpret
goal 3 - pca section

Have a great day everyone!

I hope you got on ok there Star shaped.

I've got 18 tomatoes done for today, and well shattered. Off to bed, I've got a lovely set of tables to battle with in the morning awaiting me!

Awww I LOVED, seriously LOVED Roald Dahl when I was growing up, so that's a great call Eska!! I also had a bit of a thing for Enid Blyton and spent my free time running around in fields pretending I was a spy or had been kidnapped or was part of a gang of friends who discovered all sorts of mysterious goings-on... :-)

Whoo ok, chapter is done, fixed, redone, re fixed and re done again. I have finally sent it off. 7 tomatoes down, although I worked through the 5 minute breaks, so it's more like 8. Just had lunch, now it's restructuring the next 2 chapters.
Welcome to the club Eska! Good luck for your book finding, I always loved that bit! And don't panic to much Star shaped, I'm sure you'll get everything sorted, hopefully your sup bucks up tho!

Well my day off was lovely, I did take a few hours in the middle to finish some graphs for my appendix and was totally shattered by 10pm! Today I'm proof reading my chapter one last time (I'm actually afraid to send it off and procrastinating terribly...) then moving onto restructuring and rewriting the next 2 chapters...

Tomato 1 here we go!

Yea I agree with Vaibabe here, mine have all been around the 250-350 word mark. Never as much as 3 sides, so you've got plenty of space. Think of it as prep for your thesis abstract, you will have to be able to distill the key points of your PhD into a few sentences at the end anyway! Just put down the key reasons your research is necessary, what the methods used were, your main results and the implications of these. And it's just the most important and interesting information you want to include, especially if it's for a presentation abstract.

whooo! What did I miss on my "day off"?!

AL, your supervisor is a complete fool. I think you should email him to say that this is your final week for being able to receive and do corrections, and you would really appreciate his feedback on this final results and discussion section. Copy in your second supervisor too so there's a trail. Then if he doesn't get back to you by next week you are ok for emailing both and saying that you are approaching your deadline and you will have to print and submit if you don't hear anything else. I know it's far from ideal but I'm sure what else you can do by now. He's probably just in a huff about something and taking it out on you like a big child. As for proofreading, If you've got it done now, I'd leave it for a day or two, then go back fresh as you will see things differently after a break. If you have to wait for corrections, take the day or two off to get some rest before the next onslaught of work! Good luck!!

I'm almost finished rewriting a chapter for my sups, it's late coming in but I'm past caring by this stage, if they want it done right it will take as long as it takes. I'm thinking I can trick myself into believing this so I won't panic too much as it seems stress is coming through in my writing, so although I'm still aiming for my submission date, I'm trying not to worry too much about deadlines...confused?! :)

Submission submission! As in I've got my viva date and I REALLY don't want to have to change it so I must submit by 23rd of September....gah!!
Got my chapter finished last night though, and I'm going to proof read it this morning, then send it, before taking what is the first day off in about 4 months I think...I'm off to a BBQ! fun! although might take my laptop and squeeze in some referencing during the quiet moments, may as well use time efficiently and all that! :D

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God I've been so bold this evening...I started a bit late this morning, seems I burned up my motivation yesterday so I finally got down to it about 11am...I was plodding along ok all day, the section I'm writing is one I'm so so bored with so it's not even interesting to me anymore, I'm just doing it so I can get rid of it. However I thought I was nearly finished just before tucking into a late dinner, and decided to watch a movie to spend some quality time with my boyf...cue it's almost 11pm here and I'm still working away with more to do than I realised! But I WILL get this done tonight!!!

But good work on getting into work Ev, 5 tomatoes is good for only coming back to it after taking some time off so kudos! Usually takes me 2/3 days to get back into the swing of things!

And Slizor: it's amazing what you can do when you've got a submission deadline looming less than a month away!! ;-)

Brilliant news Claudia!! Just what I needed to hear today, so thanks for posting! I hope you get a much needed rest now and good luck for your viva!!

ah ok, I started counting tomatoes just before lunch and have managed to clock up 15 for today so I'm feeling ok with that, got to bump it up tomorrow though. Time for bed methinks!

Hi Cheekybint! I save on my laptop and USB at the end of each day, and save all the sent mails with the chapters I've been sending to my sups. I also save on my external hard drive when I remember, and I have a copy of everything saved on my mum and dads computer and external hard drive at home. I also have a copy of everything saved on my computer at work. Plus I have scanned copies of all my lab notebooks so I have all the raw data that's not on computer backed up too.

Bit of an overkill now that I think about it, but you never know! :-)

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Hi Rick

It is positive yes, in that the data is there, and there is enough for a PhD and I'm pretty sure it will stand up to a viva ok. The issue is that my 2nd sup has absolutely no concept of people interactions, and give feedback in such as way as to make me want to throw myself off the nearest bridge. It's all negative, he often reads things wrong and takes mistakes where there aren't any, and for some reason my main sup didn't stand up for me at all during the meeting even though my 2nd was being unreasonable and just plain wrong at times. Well except for once which was a minor thing. It was only after when I met with him alone that he was understanding of how stressed I was. I'm just seeing the end of this PhD as the opportunity to never have to work with my 2nd sup ever again. The extra chapter isn't much of an issue although I'm reluctant to make some of the changes he has suggested as I don't think I could justify them myself when it comes to viva - I don't think "because my sup said so" counts as a valid reason! I'm a bit concerned about it as he is asking me to write and structure things in a way that is different to what most people would expect to see, and I know a few academics who think some of the changes he has suggested are ridiculous...I guess I just don't want to accept everything he says blindly and then have 2 frustrated examiners in the viva who don't agree with how it's been done.
And my aunt is doing better as far as I know, thanks!