November 2008 Archives

1) Research Interests

Before coming to Penn State, I just wanted to have expertise in artificial intelligence. I didn't have much idea on what specific research area might be a good choice for me, because I was interested in too many disciplines. Now, it has been more than three months since I came here and began my Ph.D. studies. I have spent a lot of my time participating in social network analysis study group as my advisor encouraged me to do so. Now, it is obvious that I am interested in finding a way to associate the social network analysis with traditional A.I. concepts, which my advisor is also interested in. In this sense, following figure makes sense.

 
Jorge Cham ©2008, Source: PHD Comics (Jan. 21, 2008)

2) Life Ambition

I am not interested in winning Nobel Prize, though I will happily take it if given to me. Revolutionizing my field seems to be an interesting thing, though I don't think it is one of my goals. What I hope is to be a faculty member at a university. Ironically, I need to revolutionize my field and have a dream to win Nobel Prize to work at a prestigious institution. Will my ambition change into working at a community college at the end? Actually, it does not matter because my focus is giving basic knowledge to as many people as possible. So I am still eligible to say "World, here I come!"

 
Jorge Cham ©2008, Source: PHD Comics (May 5, 2008)

 
(Source: Wikipedia Commons)

We are now experiencing the worst economic crisis ever since the Great Depression. Following is a brief summary on what is going on in big companies.

First, DHL, a German logistics conglomerate, gives up on its American dream. On November 10, DHL announced that it would shut down its express-delivery service within the United States, with the loss of 9,500 jobs [1]. The loss of 7,000 jobs from Wilmington, OH, a town of just 12,000 people, has scared a lot of people to death [2].

Second, Big Three Detroit automakers (Ford, General Motors and Chrysler) are seeking big bailout. U.S. Congress is currently debating whether to pass a $25 billion loan package aimed at keeping the struggling Big Three afloat [3]. As Senator Dorgan, Democrat of North Dakota, said on FOX News Sunday with Chris Wallace of Nov. 16, 2008: "This is not just about an industry of three companies. This is about jobs — 350,000 direct, probably as much as 3 to 5 million jobs in total reflecting that industry. [4]"

Last but not least, these kinds of hardships are also happening in the IT industry. On Nov. 14, 2008, Sun Microsystems announced that it would lay off as many as 6,000 employees, or 18 percent of its work force, for a broad restructuring to survive [5]. Hewlett Packard plans to cut 24,600 employees, or 7 percent of its work force over the next three years for decreasing costs in light of the recent acquisition of Electronic Data Systems (EDS) [6]. Dell layoffs planned this year are estimated at 8,900 [6]. eBay is readying layoffs that could affect about 1,500 employees, or 10 percent of its whole employees [6]. There's no exception at Yahoo and Amazon either though there's no exact numbers of layoffs announced yet; they already announced layoffs at the beginning of 2008. A relatively happy feature of the misfortune is that there will be no such mass layoffs at Intel, Microsoft and nVidia, at least in the near future.

One Sentence Conclusion:

Current job market is like Iceland.

References

[1] "Failure to deliver: DHL gives up on its American dream", The Economist (Nov. 13, 2008), http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12607051

[2] "Ohio town devastated by layoffs by German firm DHL", Reuters (Nov. 11, 2008),

http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE4AA85Y20081111

[3] "Congress debates auto industry bailout", San Francisco Chronicle (Nov. 16, 2008)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/16/MNAE145HUQ.DTL&tsp=1

[4] "Transcript: Sens. Dorgan, Kyl on FOX News Sunday", FOX News (Nov. 16, 2008),

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,452812,00.html

[5] "Tech Companies, Long Insulated, Now Feel Slump", The New York Times (Nov. 15, 2008),

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/15/technology/15tech.html

[6] "California IT Layoffs Inspire California Overtime Pay Lawsuits", Press Release Newswire

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/11/prweb1620594.htm

"Being a graduate student is like becoming all of the Seven Dwarves. In the beginning you're Dopey and Bashful. In the middle, you are usually sick (Sneezy), tired (Sleepy), and irritable (Grumpy). But at the end, they call you Doc, and then you're Happy." [1]

The Seven Dwarfs

Though I have been acclimating myself to a new academic environment well so far, I know I will have to get over a lot of hardships before getting my Ph.D. It is often said that pursuing doctoral studies requires a rock-solid reason for doing so. It may be very difficult to stay in graduate school for many years; most graduate students lean on a small amount of stipend for living. I decided to be a Ph.D. student as one of the goals of my life is to settle down in academia, which requires me to have a Ph.D. degree. To make such a dream come true, it is important to understand the ecosystem of graduate schools.

Academia is a very peculiar type of business. It seems to make sense. My research assistantship is from my advisor's research funds granted by external organizations. This means that I need to treat my research assistantship like a professional job; I should work on research projects, and show them that I am capable of getting work done clearly for the continual support from them. Being a highly desired research assistant is a key to success in graduate school.

Then, what is the best success in graduate school? I think receiving a Ph.D. and getting out of graduate school early is the best success. I love to be in academia, but I do not want to remain as a graduate student for a long time. I would like to take professor's roles to achieve my academic goals as soon as possible. To do so, I need to learn how to finish my dissertation quickly. It seems to be a very useful advice that doing something everyday gets it closer to being done. Writing a dissertation only when "in the mood" is not that productive in the long run. Doing part of research everyday, and writing part of my dissertation everyday will keep me going through the good times and the bad. I am sure that it is a very good way to ensure that I finish my dissertation in time or earlier.

However, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. An unexpected advice from those references below is about not being Jack. Finding a balance between work and play is not easy [2], but it is extremely important for not only studying smart (not hard), but keeping  the good relationship with those whom I love. A good balance may also improve my work productivity, and keep good mental and physical healthiness. Ph.D. degree is really important to me, but it is not worth risking such precious things. Sometime later, I will talk about time management skills making Jack a successful Ph.D. student; it is our privilege to enjoy ourselves in graduate school, but not to laze around [3].

Summary

• Ph.D. students must have rock-solid reasons for their Ph.D. degrees.
• Beware the ecosystem; academia is a business.
• Write your dissertation everyday.
• Work smart, and play!

References

[1] Ronald T. Azuma, "So long, and thanks for the Ph.D.! : Everything I wanted to know about Computer Science graduate school at the beginning but didn't learn until later.", Jan. 2003, http://www.cs.unc.edu/~azuma/hitch4.html

[2] Alice Domurat Dreger, "Grad School Survival", http://www.alicedreger.com/grad_school_survival.html

[3] Marie desJardins, "How to be a good graduate student", Mar. 1994, http://www.cs.indiana.edu/HTMLit/how.2b/how.2b.html

What is the most important thing in your current life? If someone asks me this question, I would say without hesitation that pursuing my studies is the most important. It was exactly ten years ago that I decided to study in the United States for my Ph.D. degree. I am really happy that one of my long-term plans eventually came true in Happy Valley, a nickname of State College which is a peaceful college town 6,830 miles away from my hometown in a beeline over the Pacific.

The second important thing of my life here is to have a faith. I am basically a sociable person, so I love to get to know warm people and have good relations with them. Though I did not have any religious belief before coming to Penn State, I am trying to be a Christian and attending a Sunday service at Youngkwang Korean Presbyterian Church these days where I take a rest from the chaos of my daily life. (I call it my mental relaxation.) This is my one and only social activity outside of schoolwork now.

Virtuous People of Youngkwang Korean Presbyterian Church

Honestly, my devotion to the faith is still minimal; I cannot help giving my schoolwork precedence to have my real dreams come true. Nonetheless, I like their willingness to be right, thankful and considerate, and I would love to be part of them. It is interesting that more than half of the members are Penn State students. For this reason, it is easier to share the common hardships we often face with as international students living apart from our families. For example, we have a cell meeting once a week where we cook and have dinner together at home, carefully listen to others' anguish, and pray for their goodness with all our whole hearts. Being a graduate student is very stressful by nature, and I personally believe that having such virtuous people is one of the most advisable things to pursue not only successful graduate studies but a wonderful human life. It is all thanks to them that my life in Happy Valley is really happy.

One more social activity that I hope to join in the near future is International Coffee Hour, which is hosted by International Student Services at Penn State, and is held every Thursday, from 15:30 to 17:00, in 410 Boucke Building. It is a place for students to get together and have various coffees, teas and cookies, and take a little break from busy schoolwork. The main reason for my plan to join this is to make friends from all around the world; people I meet in my church-related activities are limited to those from South Korea. If you would like to join the Coffee Hour with me, or if you have been already participating, please let me know, and I will be more than happy to be with you. 

International Coffee Hour at Penn State