Nothing is more frustrating than not being able to figure out what the paper is about until page 5. π Show a TEASER figure on the very first page highlighting the inputs/outputs/key findings.
*Figure 2: WHY did you do it?*
Motivate and justify the key insights/ideas of your work. It is often helpful to illustrate this more clearly by 1) SIMPLIFYING with a toy example and 2) CONTEXTUALIZING with prior work.
*Figure 3: HOW did you do it?*
Show an *overview* figure on how your method works. Label everything so that it provides a clear roadmap of the entire paper.
*Move figures/tables to the top*
Add "[!t]" parameter to your figure/table so that LaTeX will try placing them on the top of the page. Why?
Figures/tables are much easier to understand than reading plain texts. Moving them to the top helps readers quickly understand your work.
*Self-contained figure/table caption*
Whatever you want to say for the figure/table, say them in the caption. It's annoying to find and match the corresponding texts describing the figure/table in your paper.
Use SINGLE letters for your math notations. Examples:
β’ Color_j -> C_j
β’ Net -> F(\cdot)
All the other descriptions should be within
\mathrm
*Short titles*
Add titles (e.g., using \paragraph) to your figure/table captions and the main texts. They make your paper more structured and organized and help your readers navigate the paper with ease.
*Clean table*
Follow simple design principles for making clean a table:
β’ no \line, use \toprule, \midrule, \bottomrule
β’ no vertical lines
β’ left align text
β’ center align numbers
β’ group and remove repetition with multirow/multicol
*Avoid empty spaces*
Fill the paper into full page limit. It gives your readers a sense of a POLISHED and not RUSHED paper.
Here they use a TOY example to highlight the key issue from PRIOR WORK (wavelet transforms), i.e., the coefficients of original signal and the shifted version change dramatically.
Source: Shiftable Multiscale Transforms '92
Example "How did you do it?" figure.
This figure provides an overview of how the method work by connecting inputs and outputs and all the intermediate steps.
Doing an internship helps
β’ expand your network πΈοΈ,
β’ explore new topics π‘,
β’ learn new research skills π¬, and
β’ earn more money π°!
But how can we find good internship opportunities? π€
A thread πππ
*Find a supportive advisor*
Choose an advisor that encourages/supports/allows students doing summer internships. Some may require you to work on funded projects during the summers or delay graduation should you do internships.
Reach out to prior students and learn more!
*Stay connected*
Many internship opportunities are not broadcasted through public posting, but via emails among faculty members. Stay connected so that you get the best info (e.g., ask your friends/advisor forward relevant posting).
Getting ready to write up your very first research paper? Writing a paper could be daunting, particularly for non-native English speakers. π¬π¬π¬ How can we avoid common mistakes in technical writing?
Check out the thread below! π§΅
*Active voice*
Friends donβt let friends use passive voice!
Using passive voice hides the subject and creates ambiguous, indirect, and wordy sentences. Things don't "get done" by themselves. Take responsibility for what you do and use active voice whenever possible.
*Statements in positive form*
Tell your readers "what is" instead of "what is not".
not honest β‘οΈ dishonest
did not remember β‘οΈ forgot
did not pay any attention to β‘οΈ ignored
did not have much confidence in β‘οΈ distrusted
For the first time in five years, I have a full-time work schedule. I thought I will trivially be 3-4 times more productive, but it turns out managing time well is so damn challenging. π¬
After watching productivity videos to procrastinate, here are what I found useful. π§΅
*Eat that frog*
If you have to eat a frog, make it the very first task you do in your day. If you have to eat three frogs a day, do not start with the small one.
*Have a plan*
If you have no idea what you will be doing 2:30 PM next Wed, you are doing it wrong. It's okay to be flexible and change the plan, but make sure that you have a plan to start with.
Getting started with research but overwhelmed by THOUSANDS of papers each year? How could one stay sane keeping track of the literature? π±
Here are some tricks I found useful. π§΅
*Track the people, not the papers*
There are far fewer key people who are driving the field forward than the number of papers. Check out who the authors are when you read papers. Overtime you will recognize the important ones.
*Read papers with good related work*
A good related work section saves you so much time by providing a clear, organized view for prior work.
Side note: Please save others' time by writing a good related work
Do NOT spend too much time maximizing your GPAs (e.g., by taking easy courses) or the Greatly Ridiculous Exam (GRE) scores. Show your potential of doing good research!
Not sure if you love doing research yet? Then why are you applying?