Hi Zinar,
Yes, I do have many of the same worries.
Slightly different situation, I have a wife with a part time job (not enough to support us) and some debt.
I also know I could not afford any extra time on the end.

Cashflow is also a problem for me as my stipend gets paid every three months.
This does not match the regular bills which are all monthly (rent, gas and electricity etc).

On occasions I've also been scared of my work not being interesting enough research.
For the first year and a half of my PhD I was attempting something impossible and not getting anywhere.
When I changed away from that, things started moving, but on the odd occasion I have read papers which are very similar and got scared that they exactly duplicate what I've been doing.
As it turns out, they haven't yet duplicated what I've done, and I'm in the process of writing my first paper (at the start of my 3rd year - 3 years funding).
I still get worried about if I'll fit everything in that I need to to finish on time.

There's also the issue that I want to stay in academia.
Getting a postdoc job isn't the easiest thing to do, and I'll need one within a couple of months of my funding running out.

I can't offer any advice apart from, the worrying doesn't actually help you, so try not to worry.
However, I haven't managed this so if you do find a way to stop worrying, please let me know.
Dom

Hi,
I'm 1 year in to a Physics PhD, but I still found "The Unwritten Rules of PhD Research" really interesting.
This site sent me it, and I got to keep it in return for a review:
http://www.findaphd.com/student/study/study-23.asp
If you don't feel like reading the whole review, the summary is:
It told me a lot of things that once told seemed obvious, but I hadn't thought of. It also told me a lot of things that are not obvious but very useful to know.
I recommend it, even if you just skim read the parts you're interested in.
Dom

I would say, ultimately you have to do the work to get your PhD, so it has to be on a topic you find interesting.
However, I would say most supervisors would try and sway you towards their area of research, because they would get help and collaboration, and probably a few papers if you did do their topic.
Personally I'm in the sciences and my research interests seem to be fairly close to what my supervisor is looking at. Well, jointly between his topic and the topic of another lecturer in the university, so I can't talk from experience.

Try and stick to what you want, you'll do much better if you are enjoying it. However, also try not to annoy the supervisor if you have to get on well with them for the duration of your PhD.... I know this sounds contradictory and difficult.

Good luck!

:-)

Last week I saw a program on sleep.
They were saying you need daylight (or an artificial substitute - I had a couple of biobulbs) to wake up in the morning.
Admittedly they were aiming it at people like postman who have to get up while it's still dark, but I've been opening the curtains as soon as the alarm goes off and it really does help.
You can also get special "alarm" clocks that wake you up using light and sound rather than just a loud ring.

Obviously it would depend on the type of relationship you have with the supervisor.
My first reaction would be to be polite and honest.

Say you appreciate the advice she's given, but you would really like to stick closer to your original topic because it's more interesting to you (or
whatever reasons you have). Also say about not wanting to live abroad, and about having family ties here.
Try to be tactful though, especially if the topic you're refusing is closer to her own research.

I would also have a think for your own benefit about your own reasons for doing a PhD, is it for interest, is it part of a career plan? as this might provide you with your own answers to this question.

I realise this isn't a full answer, but I hope it helps a bit.

RINK

MOAT

Sascha, get back to the game, any rude words allowed?
WITS

PITS

I really only can talk about Sheffield, as I have never been to the others, but I'm a 3rd year undergrad at University of Sheffield, and I love it here. Not only is the university excellent, but the city is a great place as well. I don't know if it's better or worse than the other places though, so what I would recommend, is visiting all of them and going round the city, not just the uni to decide.

Hi, just re-read your message, and you want 1 or 2 texts on each topic. In that case I'd say University physics (that you've already got) is the one to have, as it covers all areas of physics, the books I recommend only cover one area of physics each, but to a slightly higher level. With the exception of The Feynmann Lectures, which are different again.

I'm a 3rd year theoretical physics student, so I don't really know the maths side. However, in my first two years, I found one physics book particularly useful.

Phillips, Introduction to Quantum Mechanics, (Wiley, manchester physics series) is VERY useful on its topic. It covers QM from the very beginnings through approximately first and second year level topics.

Speaking of which, I've found the Manchester Physics Series to be good on most areas of physics (the books I looked at anyway), particularly Hook and Hall, Solid State Physics, but it does progress rather further than 2nd year.

I haven't actually read them, but lots of people have told me that the Feynmann Lectures in Physics are very good. However, they do cover the subject in a different way to normal, and I don't know if they would be good as a course book rather than a book for interest.

Hope this helps,