Actually, try dates: they're healthy, but they're as nice as sweets: especially the big fat Medjool dates.

True. Why are we drawn to unhealthy food?

I've heard that it's because we have evolved to stuff our faces when fatty food was available, to see us through the famine periods. But now fatty food is always available, so we instinctively want to just eat and eat.

I needed a stiff drink after opening my latest gas bill. "We have had to increase our tariffs..." - they're not wrong. Cold showers for me from now on!

Does anyone remember "Cities of Gold"? That was my favourite.

Agree with everyone: I know a few people whose final thesis was very different to what they originally envisaged.

If you want to stay, then don't leave simply because the original experiments are not working. With your supervisors, and perhaps with help from related research groups in other institutions, try to re-design your PhD.

Good to hear from you again, by the way. How did the filming work out?

My weight barometer trousers are a bit tight lately.

I know what you mean, I can eat really well for 2 weeks, then feel so chuffed with myself that I celebrate...by eating crap for the next two weeks.

I'm not sure my family even know what university I'm at, let alone what I'm doing . They insist on referring to it as "school", if they ever do mention it.

I do this when I'm tired. Can definitely relate to the cheese/cupboard situation.

Masters, I get that too (bells, in my case). They're called hypnogogic hallucinations and they're quite common when you're on the verge of sleeping, too.

Not letting you into the tea room is just petty; we're allowed into the staff and tea rooms and it never occurred to me that it would be otherwise. I'd stage a sit-in protest

Masters, I think most universities specify 3 years of work and then six months of writing up.

"Katy has launched a counter-allegation that she was being bullied by the entire team...She has also made a complaint that she recieved inadequate supervision because the PI was never around."

This is classic bully behaviour: when cornered, they will accuse others of exactly what they are guilty of. I used to have a colleague like that: she could reduce grown men and women to tears with her nastiness, yet when confronted would cry herself and claim that we'd all been ganging up on her. She also made a formal complaint about lack of supervision, but didn't get anywhere with it. But it took a long time for management to see through her.

5 weeks where I am; but like sjo4 said, hardly anyone seems to take all that.

I have underneath neighbours who live like bats. Yap yap yap yap at 3am every morning. I'm going to have their bed attached to the ceiling so they can sleep upside down.

But seriously, it is annoying. I'm useless at uni when they've kept me awake. You don't want to cause bad feeling, but you shouldn't put up with it.

It's not just ladies; lots of people ignore you. I always say "You're welcome", very LOUDLY, whenever that happens to me.

Many of the researchers here have said that they see their work as a hobby rather than a job: of course they need to pay the bills, though. Several of them are retired and working for free, though, including my second supervisor.