As I wrote in my very first post, research is not like making homework. In fact, even though a PhD is the third cycle of higher education (especially when taking coursework), there is large difference between studying and doing research.…
For the past two years, I haven't had much opportunities to work from home as I have been very busy with my experiments in the lab. I do have the habit to squeeze in some hours during the weekend, but…
Today, during lunch, I attended a presentation on the diversity policy of TU Delft, and here's a quick overview of what struck me most:- Even though the Netherlands is one of the most progressive and developed countries around, it has…
Most of the time, I present in English, but every now and then I gt to talk in my native language. It's a strange sensation that talking about my research in my mother tongue takes me slightly more effort than…
Some time ago, I was asked why I decided to pursue a PhD, and how I got an idea of what a PhD candidate's work life looks like. In fact, I had always liked to idea of simply keeping on…
Yesterday was PhD talk's first birthday. One year since my first blog post, and I must say it has been a great experience.I started off this blog to keep track of how I am doing with my resolutions (stay focused…
There are a few websites I regularly check to see if there's an interesting conference coming up to which I should submit an abstract. These are:ACI: International conferencesfib eventsASCE ConferencesAfter attending a few conferences, I now also receive calls for…
In today's sea of information, I selected a few websites which are part of my daily toolbox.1. RescuetimeTogether with ManicTime (which does not depend on internet connection), these timetracking software tools have greatly increased not only my productivity, but also…
Today, I'm exactly halfway the time it is supposed to take me to finish my PhD. Looking back at the past two years, and thinking of what still needs to be done, I find it hard to tell if I…
I spend most of my time in the laboratory to destroy slabs - but before doing so, we first have to make our specimens.The slabs I'm testing are reinforced concrete slabs, which are cast in timber formwork in the laboratory…
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