I meant I did 9 hours per week.

When I was doing my Ph.D. I did about 9 hours of labs and a few hours of marking - often just a weekend day for marking. In my first year and second years about 3-4 of us Ph.D. students would deliver the Java programming labs which were originally a full 5-hour single session with the whole of the undergraduate Computer Science students. I and another student helped deliver the M.Sc Data science labs (large-scale computing stuff, distributed computing, bigdata etc..), designed and marked the coursework. It didn't negatively impact on my own work, but I stopped all teaching during my write-up at which point I recall just marking for just two modules.

Sounds very normal to me, academia is very busy at this time of year. It's very likely that you've got the place. All the best.

Agree with rewt --- maybe this question isn't even justified ;-)

Looks good. I like the plain hyperlinked html format.

Indeed they do AmlTAA. According to the clinical research literature, it has reasonably good results when patients haven't responded to various antidepressants. However, a common side-effect is memory loss, and so it's usually reserved for more serious/recalcitrant cases.

That's just pm133s personal "opinion", and is quite a ridiculous statement.

One just has to look at the achievments in the history of the UKs top universities. Some are really astonishing. That's not to say other lesser well-ranked universities haven't made breakthroughs.

I've been cautious too. Pretty much only going for walks in the local park, food shopping and tennis.

However, that said, I've thrown caution into the wind and started taking advantage of the governments "Eat out to Pig out" aherm, I mean "help out" scheme.

Thanks for the links.

At the end, he rushed over to the medicine cabinet and said "Alright Pharmacy boy....let's test your knowledge". He pulled out some Dantrolene and asked me "wots this for then" as he threw me a BNF across the room to look it up from. I already knew the answer. It's a medicine most pharmacists won't have much contact with, other than perhaps looking up the dosage, as it's used in surgical emergencies. I replied "Dantrolene. Used to treat malignant hyperthermia, and is contra-indicated for patients receiving calcium channel blockers". He replied, "OK, very good". Afterwards we had some normal and somewhat politer academic discussion about the proposed mechanisms of ECT and particularly about it increasing neurotransmitter receptor up-regulation.

I learned a few days later when he didn't turn up to the ward round that he had a motorbike accident, and despite our hostile encounter, hoped he wasn't seriously hurt.

Not to mention at the time, at the hospital I was training in, I had a tutor who worked in Medicines Information and answered the phone like hyacinth bucket from the British TV series "Keeping up appearances": "Helloow....Medicines InforrrrmaaaaAAAYYYYshiiiooon". Oh dear, it was Egotistical characters like this, and the repetitious aspect of a good portion of the job, that led me to escape the profession and pursue my doctorate for which I got an offer shortly after this event.

Oh, that interview sounds like luxury (said as one of the business men in the famous Four Yorkshiremen Monty Python sketch)...

A few years back, when I was training as a hospital pharmacist, I was on clinical rotations and had to observe patients receiving ECT (Electro-Convulsive Therapy) at a Psychiatric hospital.

I arrived early morning, smartly dressed and was sitting in the waiting room reading some related literature. In storms this angry giant wearing scruffy jeans and an old shirt. He looked like one of the Hairy Bikers. I'm 6ft but was sitting, and he looks down at me giving me the dirtiest, angriest look (can't figure out why, other than he thinks I'm a med/pharm student). I then found out he was the consultant in charge of the procedure for the patients that morning!

A bit later I get sent into the operating theatre to meet this consultant and the anaesthetist and male nurse. I step forwards to shake the aforementioned consultants hand and he gets irritated that he already has a coffee cup in his right hand. He steps back and looks at me head to toe and says in a cockney accent "that's a bit fuckin' formal" - reminiscent of a scene from one of those British gangster heist movies. I was gobsmacked, and automatically replied "Not really, handhakes are a convention during introductions in this kind of setting". I then observed the procedures and patients and kept reading related parts of the BNF (British-National Formulary) aka the "Pharmacist's Bible".

The whole thing was surreal enough as it was without his behaviour - the procedure is that they anaesthetise the patients using milk of amnesia (Propofol - a white fluid anaesthetic that was inappropriately prescribed to Michael Jackson), attach electrodes to half or both sides of the patients brain and delivery controlled shocks to precipitate an epileptic fit. They had old fashioned analogue voltmeters and ammeters (with a moving needle). All we needed to set the scene was some lightning bolts, a rumble of thunder, and this psychiatrist weirdo to let out an evil laugh.

I think you should go for it! Mechanical engineering is a good foundation for the area you want to pursue research in. Of course, you'll have to learn other areas that you may not already be familiar with, but that goes with the territory.

All the best,
Jamie

In my fields, I've mostly seen single-blind reviews and usually see the authors. It doesn't influence me, I just focus on the material at hand. Although, sometimes, on viewing a profile after I've done the review it can be surprising that experienced researchers can miss obvious things.

Hi Tudor,

Yes, started playing as soon as the government allowed for tennis to be played. It was under special measure at the club, but now it's almost back to normal. Was playing last night from 7 until 10pm. Back from Kent now - just had a mini break.

Did you find a suitable checklist? For review papers, they shouldn't just be a simple literature review or listing of papers, but rather highlight developments in the area, particularly impactful ones.

Hi Tudor (from a sunny Kent coast),

I've reviewed a few papers. To be fair, I found a Peer Review checklist which I use as a guide - I review papers in two main fields, but I apply it to everything I review:

https: //www.elsevier.com/connect/how-to-review-manuscripts-your-ultimate-checklist

despoxcam, sorry to hear of your situation. abababa has given some really good advice. I would add that I recommend you find your own examiners, and do not let your supervisor pick them. If you suggest appropriate examiners with justification, then I would find it hard to see the university not accept it. I would try and do this formally, i.e. by emailing the suggestion of chosen examiners to the examinations department, but keeping your supervisor CC'd in.

Tudor, I can't believe your supervisor commented on your appearance, that's just plain wrong.