Hi Sheena, I'm the same!!!
Want to be done by Dec. Have had a dry spell of 2.5 weeks. Feeling a bit better, and wrote a little yesterday. Today is going to be better for both of us, let me know how you get on.

can anyone answer these questions?
1. Word creates a list of figures based on your captions. But, should your list of figures include the entire caption, the title of the chart/image, or something different?
2. when referring to my own chapters should there be a C or a c?
3. Is it ok to include a table more than once? For instance I have tables in my methodology chapter, and I'm considering including them again in the results so that the reader doesnt have to flip back to understand the results.
Thanks!

Hi, if you think that this is an administrative problem and that the orders could be processed faster if some links in the ordering chain were more efficient then it might be worth mentioning that the orders are urgent. I had a problem (that was not entirely similar - basically I was waiting for funds so that I could complete fieldwork) that was fixed by sending an email to the person in charge of the paperwork saying that my submission would be delayed if they didnt process it swiftly. I cc'd in my supervisor and the head of research too, et voila - funding fast.

I got postdoc, which is fantastic, but the euphoria of getting the post has slowly been overshadowed by the feeling that I have had since masters - that I am fooling people and eventually someone is going to realise. Evryone else seemsso self confident and assured about their work, but most of the time I feel timid and stupid. Anyone else have these feelings?

hey Gingersnaps, is your name after the movie?

Hi Sleepyhead, me too! I developed this weird twitchy thing that makes me blink and or wrinkle my nose. I've found that its worst on days where I spend hours on end at the computer, or in stressful situations (e.g. teaching a new class). I have also had the eye twitch but that seems to be linked to lack of sleep and is involuntary. If I concentrate on relaxing the muscles in my face it goes away - so I'm hoping that post submission it will disappear. You are not alone :-)

I'm guilty of daftness too and it used to make me really nervous (seriously, sweaty palms and all) until I realised a) my sup is fallible and I should be more irreverent and b) pretending not to be an idiot made me seem more like one - now if I don't know/understand etc I don't care who knows. It also means I can ask questions in lectures without the beating heart thing!

Hello everyone, thought I'd update you. I got some of the comments from the reviewer - and its not as bad as the first email implied. Its mainly to do with style (strangely enough encouragment to be less formal :-/) and described as good work. Not great but better than I thought!

thanks guys, it really helps to know I'm not alone. I've had a bit of a cry and I feel slightly better. I'll have to wait to know exactly what was wrong with it, but you're right, I should be pleased to get feedback before it goes to print.
Thank you :-)

Hi everyone, just wanted to post because I'm having a pretty awful day. My first publication is out for peer review and I just got an email (not directly but to a shared email) saying it needs substantial revision and that she will need more time to complete comments. I'm totally humiliated as the two peer reviewers are people whose opinion I care about and one is a potential external. I'm also really confused as the paper was readby two colleagues and a third in a slightly different field. My supervisor said it was an excellent paper and an important contribution to the knowledge of the field. He has also been checking my thesis chapters and says they are all good - but if he misjudged this article so vastly how can I trust him on my thesis. Really want to quit right now :-(

hiya, I've been looking at applyig for lectureships in US/Canada and most ask for student recommendations. Can anyone advise on the format of these? should they be a collection of wriiten recommendations? or just students that have agreed to give a reference? Should they be on university headed paper for instance?
Thanks!

:-) I was just wondering whether I was too honest telling sup about certain things. But I feel dishonest if I don't disclose fully, or like I'm being shifty if I try to keep some distance with certain things (nothing serious I assure you!).

Is anyone entirely honest with their supervisor?

wow - I'm a bit confused. My studentship gives me £13,000, I thought that was standard from research councils, all postdocs I've seen pay £25,000 plus. Dont want to sound too much like I spent my formative years down the mine, but if I get a postdoc I will be extremely wealthy compared to my school mates. Having spent many years in hellish minimum wage (and less than minimum wage) jobs I for one am grateful that not only will I have enough money to support myself and my family, I will also be doing something I love. Job enjoyment is unheard of for people of my background. I certainly count myself lucky. Maybe its different in other disciplines, but in mine the jump from phd to postdoc is huge.

Yikes Jojo! thats almost a thesis in some disciplines! Can you put the theoretical stuff into the previous chapter to make things more coherent, then do an entirely separate meth chapter? Then that must leave you with some things left over but without knowing whats in it I dont know what to suggest (maybe chapter 4. Misc. - that was a joke, although thinking about it...)
:-)