Well done Sue

I know what you mean.. I tried to be organised at the end of last year by leaving notes on all my samples and stuff.. but unfortunately it didnt really work and i have had to decipher everything.. and I can't be bothered.. although I have managed to get a few bits done today which is a start!

Well my partner is doing a PhD too and so understands it is hard work. The problem I have is that we do totally different subjects, I am doing microbiology and he is doing law. So the whole approach to the PhD is different which can cause problems. But my advice is to make sure you communicate properly and if needs be talk through what you do, what your daily routine is so your partner realises exactly what is involved.

LOL! Nope I am a boy.. or at least I was last time I checked!

Who said that it is a chicken egg? For it to be a chicken egg the chicken must have come first to have been laid by a chicken. But if it was any egg then it could have been a dinosaur egg which would have come before the chicken.

Alternatively on a pro-life theory the egg is a chicken therefore they both came at the same time.

However the best theory has to be the egg McMuffin vs McChicken sandwich! I like it

My Dears.. Please give generously; either money or time to help run a sanctuary for runaway Turkeys who believe that a Turkey is for life not just for Christmas dinner.

When I was applying I had a few 'informal chats' with professors and then full blown interviews with a panel of people. This sounds like he just wants to get a feel of what you are like, what your motivations are etc. I wore a suit to all of my meetings with potential supervisors. You are never going to be make a bad impression in a suit to an interview, and you can always take your tie or jacket off to dress down. My partner did a masters at cambridge and I got the impression that as a university they love pomp and ceremony, so a suit wouldn't look out of place!

The weather in this country is typical for this part of Europe and the fact we are an island with lots of hills just adds to it. Things have moved on from the times of Charles Dickens and we have houses with gas and electricity now so you can be sure of warmth..

Trips abroad are what you make of them, you have to go in with an open mind. Of course you are going to miss home; everyone does when they go out of their comfort zone. My lab has very mixed nationalities and it appears to me that if you come with a negative attitute then you will hate it here. One girl I work with is forever complaining about how bad things are compared to her country and she is forever miserable. Whereas another guy, from the same country, loves it here and is making the most of the experience.

I agree that alot of things are expensive but that is not really a unique feature of the UK. Getting a part time job would be good as it would help prevent boredom and give you chance to meet more people.

There is a PhD student in my group with blonde hair.. maybe it is dyed.. I will find out

Go for it if you want one.. I can see the attraction!

Oooo yeah the Bourne Ultimatum was a great film.. I like the whole trilogy, its a great example where all the films in the trilogy are great.

Pan's labyrinth is a good film too.. very dark and twisted though

Haha well I have to admit, I have brown hair too lol!

Mmm I'm not sure I would class myself as either an extrovert or an introvert really.. I flit between the two dependant on my mood really

Mmm I dont think you can make a sweeping generalisation really.. Its like saying do people who do PhD's have brown hair.. its depends on the person.. But perhaps you could ask whether doing a PhD makes you more introverted over the 3/4 year period?

In the sciences a masters is not essential. I went straight from undergrad to PhD. At the end of the day lab skills can be picked up pretty quickly

I would have thought that in this particular field that on the job experience would be much more valuble than spending 3-4 years in academia doing a PhD.