2007年7月6日星期五
postdoc写research proposal的经验
作者: phyco 发布日期: 2005-12-12 查看数:
2666 出自: http://emuch.net
看到楼下有兄弟咨询如何在应聘postdoc的时候写research proposal，下面我根据自己的情况介绍一下写Proposal的经验。我在联系 oxford univeristy postdoctoral position的时候，也曾应对方要求写过research proposal。对方的要求是根据自己的研究背景并结合对方的情况，写一份研究报告。呵呵，结果我是20多个应聘者中写得最好的：）（对方在回信时如此说的"... Your CV and proposal look very good. Indeed the proposal is the best that I have recieved from a prospective student...."）我认为你首先要明确对方向你要proposal的目的是什么？对方首先是想通过你的研究计划看你发现问题，分析问题以及提出解决方法的能力。这里面牵涉到的问题很多：1、你的proposal是否具有创新性，你对当前国际最新的研究进展是否熟悉，你有无自己的思路？2、你提的计划是否结合你自己和对方的背景知识，是否具有可行性？3、你的计划是否充分完备，是否提供备用方案，也就是说你是否充分估计了你计划实施的困难？呵呵，上面说的三条看起来有些空洞。但是写作组织起来并不复杂。第一段，背景介绍，充分阅读相关最新的文献（04、05年的），提出科学问题；第二段，简要分析你的主要思路及意义；第三——？段，制定相关研究计划，不需要具体的每步的细节，但是你的论述应该让对方认为你对该细节有着充分了解和认知，并非天马行空似的漫谈；最后一部分，分析你的Proposal中潜在问题，并进一步提出潜在方案。我想如果对方发现你的思路如此明确，即使方案在他看来还比较naive或者premature，他也会对你另眼相看的。不管写的proposal涉及到什么方向，我想上述的结构都值得借鉴，这也是我前段时间申请的经验总结，盼各位同仁批评指正。多谢！
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How to Write a Research Proposal
Most students and beginning researchers do not fully understand what a research proposal means, nor do they understand its importance. To put it bluntly, one's research is only as a good as one's proposal. An ill-conceived proposal dooms the project even if it somehow gets through the Thesis Supervisory Committee. A high quality proposal, on the other hand, not only promises success for the project, but also impresses your Thesis Committee about your potential as a researcher.
A research proposal is intended to convince others that you have a worthwhile research project and that you have the competence and the work-plan to complete it. Generally, a research proposal should contain all the key elements involved in the research process and include sufficient information for the readers to evaluate the proposed study.
Regardless of your research area and the methodology you choose, all research proposals must address the following questions: What you plan to accomplish, why you want to do it and how you are going to do it.
The proposal should have sufficient information to convince your readers that you have an important research idea, that you have a good grasp of the relevant literature and the major issues, and that your methodology is sound.
The quality of your research proposal depends not only on the quality of your proposed project, but also on the quality of your proposal writing. A good research project may run the risk of rejection simply because the proposal is poorly written. Therefore, it pays if your writing is coherent, clear and compelling.
This paper focuses on proposal writing rather than on the development of research ideas.
It should be concise and descriptive. For example, the phrase, "An investigation of . . ." could be omitted. Often titles are stated in terms of a functional relationship, because such titles clearly indicate the independent and dependent variables. However, if possible, think of an informative but catchy title. An effective title not only pricks the reader's interest, but also predisposes him/her favourably towards the proposal. "
It is a brief summary of approximately 300 words. It should include the research question, the rationale for the study, the hypothesis (if any), the method and the main findings. Descriptions of the method may include the design, procedures, the sample and any instruments that will be used.
The main purpose of the introduction is to provide the necessary background or context for your research problem. How to frame the research problem is perhaps the biggest problem in proposal writing.
If the research problem is framed in the context of a general, rambling literature review, then the research question may appear trivial and uninteresting. However, if the same question is placed in the context of a very focused and current research area, its significance will become evident.
Unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules on how to frame your research question just as there is no prescription on how to write an interesting and informative opening paragraph. A lot depends on your creativity, your ability to think clearly and the depth of your understanding of problem areas.
However, try to place your research question in the context of either a current "hot" area, or an older area that remains viable. Secondly, you need to provide a brief but appropriate historical backdrop. Thirdly, provide the contemporary context in which your proposed research question occupies the central stage. Finally, identify "key players" and refer to the most relevant and representative publications. In short, try to paint your research question in broad brushes and at the same time bring out its significance.
The introduction typically begins with a general statement of the problem area, with a focus on a specific research problem, to be followed by the rational or justification for the proposed study. The introduction generally covers the following elements:
State the research problem, which is often referred to as the purpose of the study. Provide the context and set the stage for your research question in such a way as to show its necessity and importance. Present the rationale of your proposed study and clearly indicate why it is worth doing. Briefly describe the major issues and sub-problems to be addressed by your research. Identify the key independent and dependent variables of your experiment. Alternatively, specify the phenomenon you want to study. State your hypothesis or theory, if any. For exploratory or phenomenological research, you may not have any hypotheses. (Please do not confuse the hypothesis with the statistical null hypothesis.Set the delimitation or boundaries of your proposed research in order to provide a clear focus. Provide definitions of key concepts. (This is optional.)
Sometimes the literature review is incorporated into the introduction section. However, most professors prefer a separate section, which allows a more thorough review of the literature.
The literature review serves several important functions: Ensures that you are not "reinventing the wheel". Gives credits to those who have laid the groundwork for your research. Demonstrates your knowledge of the research problem. Demonstrates your understanding of the theoretical and research issues related to your research question. Shows your ability to critically evaluate relevant literature information. Indicates your ability to integrate and synthesize the existing literature. Provides new theoretical insights or develops a new model as the conceptual framework for your research. Convinces your reader that your proposed research will make a significant and substantial contribution to the literature (i.e., resolving an important theoretical issue or filling a major gap in the literature). Most students' literature reviews suffer from the following problems: Lacking organization and structure; Lacking focus, unity and coherence ;Being repetitive and verbose ;Failing to cite influential papers ;Failing to keep up with recent developments;Failing to critically evaluate cited papers;Citing irrelevant or trivial references ?"Depending too much on secondary sources. Your scholarship and research competence will be questioned if any of the above applies to your proposal. There are different ways to organize your literature review. Make use of subheadings to bring order and coherence to your review. For example, having established the importance of your research area and its current state of development, you may devote several subsections on related issues as: theoretical models, measuring instruments, cross-cultural and gender differences, etc. It is also helpful to keep in mind that you are telling a story to an audience. Try to tell it in a stimulating and engaging manner. Do not bore them, because it may lead to rejection of your worthy proposal. (Remember: Professors and scientists are human beings too.)
Methods:
The Method section is very important because it tells your Research Committee how you plan to tackle your research problem. It will provide your work plan and describe the activities necessary for the completion of your project. The guiding principle for writing the Method section is that it should contain sufficient information for the reader to determine whether methodology is sound. Some even argue that a good proposal should contain sufficient details for another qualified researcher to implement the study. You need to demonstrate your knowledge of alternative methods and make the case that your approach is the most appropriate and most valid way to address your research question. Please note that your research question may be best answered by qualitative research. However, since most mainstream psychologists are still biased against qualitative research, especially the phenomenological variety, you may need to justify your qualitative method. Furthermore, since there are no well-established and widely accepted canons in qualitative analysis, your method section needs to be more elaborate than what is required for traditional quantitative research. More importantly, the data collection process in qualitative research has a far greater impact on the results as compared to quantitative research. That is another reason for greater care in describing how you will collect and analyze your data. (How to write the Method section for qualitative research is a topic for another paper. For quantitative studies, the method section typically consists of the following sections:
Design -Is it a questionnaire study or a laboratory experiment? What kind of design do you choose? Subjects or participants - Who will take part in your study ? What kind of sampling procedure do you use? Instruments - What kind of measuring instruments or questionnaires do you use? Why do you choose them? Are they valid and reliable? Procedure - How do you plan to carry out your study? What activities are involved? How long does it take? Results: Obviously you do not have results at the proposal stage. However, you need to have some idea about what kind of data you will be collecting, and what statistical procedures will be used in order to answer your research question or test you hypothesis. Discussion: It is important to convince your reader of the potential impact of your proposed research. You need to communicate a sense of enthusiasm and confidence without exaggerating the merits of your proposal. That is why you also need to mention the limitations and weaknesses of the proposed research, which may be justified by time and financial constraints as well as by the early developmental stage of your research area. Common Mistakes in Proposal Writing: Failure to provide the proper context to frame the research question. Failure to delimit the boundary conditions for your research. Failure to cite landmark studies. Failure to accurately present the theoretical and empirical contributions by other researchers. Failure to stay focused on the research question. Failure to develop a coherent and persuasive argument for the proposed research. Too much detail on minor issues, but not enough detail on major issues. Too much rambling -- going "all over the map" without a clear sense of direction. (The best proposals move forward with ease and grace like a seamless river.) Too many citation lapses and incorrect references. Too long or too short. Failing to follow the APA style. American Psychological Association Slopping writing.
A research proposal is intended to convince others that you have a worthwhile research project and that you have the competence and the work-plan to complete it. Generally, a research proposal should contain all the key elements involved in the research process and include sufficient information for the readers to evaluate the proposed study.
Regardless of your research area and the methodology you choose, all research proposals must address the following questions: What you plan to accomplish, why you want to do it and how you are going to do it.
The proposal should have sufficient information to convince your readers that you have an important research idea, that you have a good grasp of the relevant literature and the major issues, and that your methodology is sound.
The quality of your research proposal depends not only on the quality of your proposed project, but also on the quality of your proposal writing. A good research project may run the risk of rejection simply because the proposal is poorly written. Therefore, it pays if your writing is coherent, clear and compelling.
This paper focuses on proposal writing rather than on the development of research ideas.
It should be concise and descriptive. For example, the phrase, "An investigation of . . ." could be omitted. Often titles are stated in terms of a functional relationship, because such titles clearly indicate the independent and dependent variables. However, if possible, think of an informative but catchy title. An effective title not only pricks the reader's interest, but also predisposes him/her favourably towards the proposal. "
It is a brief summary of approximately 300 words. It should include the research question, the rationale for the study, the hypothesis (if any), the method and the main findings. Descriptions of the method may include the design, procedures, the sample and any instruments that will be used.
The main purpose of the introduction is to provide the necessary background or context for your research problem. How to frame the research problem is perhaps the biggest problem in proposal writing.
If the research problem is framed in the context of a general, rambling literature review, then the research question may appear trivial and uninteresting. However, if the same question is placed in the context of a very focused and current research area, its significance will become evident.
Unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules on how to frame your research question just as there is no prescription on how to write an interesting and informative opening paragraph. A lot depends on your creativity, your ability to think clearly and the depth of your understanding of problem areas.
However, try to place your research question in the context of either a current "hot" area, or an older area that remains viable. Secondly, you need to provide a brief but appropriate historical backdrop. Thirdly, provide the contemporary context in which your proposed research question occupies the central stage. Finally, identify "key players" and refer to the most relevant and representative publications. In short, try to paint your research question in broad brushes and at the same time bring out its significance.
The introduction typically begins with a general statement of the problem area, with a focus on a specific research problem, to be followed by the rational or justification for the proposed study. The introduction generally covers the following elements:
State the research problem, which is often referred to as the purpose of the study. Provide the context and set the stage for your research question in such a way as to show its necessity and importance. Present the rationale of your proposed study and clearly indicate why it is worth doing. Briefly describe the major issues and sub-problems to be addressed by your research. Identify the key independent and dependent variables of your experiment. Alternatively, specify the phenomenon you want to study. State your hypothesis or theory, if any. For exploratory or phenomenological research, you may not have any hypotheses. (Please do not confuse the hypothesis with the statistical null hypothesis.Set the delimitation or boundaries of your proposed research in order to provide a clear focus. Provide definitions of key concepts. (This is optional.)
Sometimes the literature review is incorporated into the introduction section. However, most professors prefer a separate section, which allows a more thorough review of the literature.
The literature review serves several important functions: Ensures that you are not "reinventing the wheel". Gives credits to those who have laid the groundwork for your research. Demonstrates your knowledge of the research problem. Demonstrates your understanding of the theoretical and research issues related to your research question. Shows your ability to critically evaluate relevant literature information. Indicates your ability to integrate and synthesize the existing literature. Provides new theoretical insights or develops a new model as the conceptual framework for your research. Convinces your reader that your proposed research will make a significant and substantial contribution to the literature (i.e., resolving an important theoretical issue or filling a major gap in the literature). Most students' literature reviews suffer from the following problems: Lacking organization and structure; Lacking focus, unity and coherence ;Being repetitive and verbose ;Failing to cite influential papers ;Failing to keep up with recent developments;Failing to critically evaluate cited papers;Citing irrelevant or trivial references ?"Depending too much on secondary sources. Your scholarship and research competence will be questioned if any of the above applies to your proposal. There are different ways to organize your literature review. Make use of subheadings to bring order and coherence to your review. For example, having established the importance of your research area and its current state of development, you may devote several subsections on related issues as: theoretical models, measuring instruments, cross-cultural and gender differences, etc. It is also helpful to keep in mind that you are telling a story to an audience. Try to tell it in a stimulating and engaging manner. Do not bore them, because it may lead to rejection of your worthy proposal. (Remember: Professors and scientists are human beings too.)
Methods:
The Method section is very important because it tells your Research Committee how you plan to tackle your research problem. It will provide your work plan and describe the activities necessary for the completion of your project. The guiding principle for writing the Method section is that it should contain sufficient information for the reader to determine whether methodology is sound. Some even argue that a good proposal should contain sufficient details for another qualified researcher to implement the study. You need to demonstrate your knowledge of alternative methods and make the case that your approach is the most appropriate and most valid way to address your research question. Please note that your research question may be best answered by qualitative research. However, since most mainstream psychologists are still biased against qualitative research, especially the phenomenological variety, you may need to justify your qualitative method. Furthermore, since there are no well-established and widely accepted canons in qualitative analysis, your method section needs to be more elaborate than what is required for traditional quantitative research. More importantly, the data collection process in qualitative research has a far greater impact on the results as compared to quantitative research. That is another reason for greater care in describing how you will collect and analyze your data. (How to write the Method section for qualitative research is a topic for another paper. For quantitative studies, the method section typically consists of the following sections:
Design -Is it a questionnaire study or a laboratory experiment? What kind of design do you choose? Subjects or participants - Who will take part in your study ? What kind of sampling procedure do you use? Instruments - What kind of measuring instruments or questionnaires do you use? Why do you choose them? Are they valid and reliable? Procedure - How do you plan to carry out your study? What activities are involved? How long does it take? Results: Obviously you do not have results at the proposal stage. However, you need to have some idea about what kind of data you will be collecting, and what statistical procedures will be used in order to answer your research question or test you hypothesis. Discussion: It is important to convince your reader of the potential impact of your proposed research. You need to communicate a sense of enthusiasm and confidence without exaggerating the merits of your proposal. That is why you also need to mention the limitations and weaknesses of the proposed research, which may be justified by time and financial constraints as well as by the early developmental stage of your research area. Common Mistakes in Proposal Writing: Failure to provide the proper context to frame the research question. Failure to delimit the boundary conditions for your research. Failure to cite landmark studies. Failure to accurately present the theoretical and empirical contributions by other researchers. Failure to stay focused on the research question. Failure to develop a coherent and persuasive argument for the proposed research. Too much detail on minor issues, but not enough detail on major issues. Too much rambling -- going "all over the map" without a clear sense of direction. (The best proposals move forward with ease and grace like a seamless river.) Too many citation lapses and incorrect references. Too long or too short. Failing to follow the APA style. American Psychological Association Slopping writing.
2007年4月15日星期日
读博的一点感受（转）
评：oldfly的这篇文章平淡却有深意，听上去很简单的道理要是真正放在脑子中时刻指导自己的行动，还有比较困难。oldfly说得只是李开复说的东西的子集，一个普通人淡淡的说出来的事情，似乎比大牛们更有说服力。
博士论文写完后，开始写致谢时，才发现原来一个人可贵的三年生命旅程，竟然悄然接受了那么多无私的帮助。透过密密麻麻的文字，似乎是一颗颗真诚的心灵。人生前行的过程中，有时候前行目标，是与你在实现这个目标过程中所拥有的朋友与友谊，一样重要的。我记起硕士毕业时，当我好奇问起硕士导师什么是生命中的牵引力量时（我硕士导师是文革后，国门打开后首批留美学子，后来他在美国名校拿到了博士学位，然后回国效力了），一头银发，又总是慈祥，很有学者风度的硕士导师只是淡淡而言："随遇而安，随心所欲"。我开始不是很理解这句话，若干年后，我才发现，原来这句话并不是"无为而无不为"的消极，而是将人生与奋斗融为了一体，一个很自然的过程。其实，仔细想想，我们读书，不也是这样的，本科-硕士---博士，象上楼梯似的，一步一步的，按部就班而已。但是，博士阶段的学习，又不是象上楼梯这么简单的。在这个人生不断提升的过程中，既需要有种上楼梯的平常心态，更需要有种上楼梯持之以恒的毅力。博士阶段最艰苦时候，就是一个人的去探索的时候。因为，自己研究方向的深入，不可能由人家来代替你，只能靠自己感性和理性去感受。所以，获取博士学位的过程，就是对自己心智、毅力与体力的全面挑战。以前自己写了点读博士的感受，目前博士论文已经完成，对读博士另外有了些感受，然后写下来，请大家指正。浙江大学博士生渐渐多起来，其中里面有一批是从本科直接进入博士学习阶段的，对于他们，由于没有经过研究生阶段的学习，很希望能够多了解博士阶段的学习方法，我鼓起勇气写下点感受，恳请大家交流和指正。下面是我自己感觉对读博士很重要的几点：
一是网络的重要性。在我自己的博士论文致谢部分，我感谢了Internet，因为通过Internet，可以在自己的研究领域发现一批与你研究相近和相似的研究小组。然后，就可以通过Email向这些教授或PHD学生要他们发表的论文、他们的程序代码，甚至是请教他们。如果自己不知道所钻研领域情况，可以使用"google"键入关键字，先搜寻一把，心里大概有个数。很多时候，通过Internet，自己可以很快知道目前研究方向最新进展与面临的主要问题，加快自己研究的步骤，而不是在闭门造车。一篇博士论文如果只是自己孤军奋战去完成，是难以想象的。即使身边没有可以讨论的对象，大多数时候，通过网络，从知名学校、知名研究机构或知名会议上，可以发现与自己研究有关的资料，对自己的研究产生启发性效果。
二是共同成长的重要。一般而言，博士生都会在一个包括本科生和研究生的研究小组中。如果是这样，与本科生和研究生的共同成长就很重要了。因为为了更加顺利与本科生和研究生交流，就要督促自己去看更多的资料，在方向上一直把握住。从这个角度上讲，交流是为了帮助自己的成长，与大家共同的成长，就是自己成长。并且，看到自己组里的同学能够发表文章，能够每天很投入愉快从事你工作的一部分，这是一种很快乐的感觉。
三是博士论文的重要。一般情况，读完博士后，无论留校还是去公司，很多工作是自己博士论文的继续。尤其是留校，面临课题申请（尤其是纵向课题），那么自己的博士论文里面的东西，可能就是自己要去申请的第一个课题。所以，博士论文的撰写与选题，就十分重要了。记得国外很多学校应聘时，就是要求博士来讲自己的博士论文。可以说，博士论文的选题和撰写，可能是你以后学术生涯最重要的一个资本了。读书期间，你自己所做的课题，会在你毕业时候结题或签定，因此需要用你的博士论文里面的东西去申请新的课题，用自己所研究的课题来养下一个新的课题，这是一个很自然的循环过程。因此，写博士论文需要时间的投入，需要专注。我想，每个人可以用指头来算算，自己一天、一周或一月中，花了多少时间在从事研究工作，就可以度量自己的专注程度了。
四是写Proposal的重要。这里的Proposal指申请课题所写得东西，这个方面我不是很擅长。但是我自己感觉，所谓课题申请，是自己研究的继续，也就是有了些研究积累，然后去申请。如果完全是一个全新的东西，自己没有相关研究经历，一般申请成功是很困难的。这也是为什么强调博士论文的重要。因为，博士论文是你学术研究生涯的第一起点，甚至对很多人而言，一辈子的研究均与此有关的。
五．导师与科研环境的重要。在导师和科研环境方面，与很多博士生相比，我觉得自己很幸运。不过，我自己刚开始读博士时，并不是在目前课题指导教授手下的。一次博士生讨论班时，授课老师给了我一篇与当时自己研究完全不相关的英文论文，让我给全班同学讲出来。可能是自己认真准备了，也查阅了不少资料，把这篇文章讲的很透彻与清楚，于是，这个教授便向我介绍了自己的研究课题。于是，在博士阶段第二个学期中叶，我从其他课题组转入了这个教授的课题组。回想这次转课题组，我觉得自己很幸运，而且萌发了人生很偶然的感叹。但是，事后想想，人生就是一场不会结束的战斗，需要自己时刻准备着，做一个主动的人，或许某天机会就来到了。好的导师一般给你很宽松的环境，一个明确的方向，然后修行看个人了。博士论文也是开始做点很小的东西，然后慢慢积累，慢慢对所研究方向越来越明确。在这个过程中，导师对你的信任，一个交流（无论是你与Internet交流，还是与课题组）的环境，是你研究顺利开展的稳定剂。选择导师前，最好还是与导师目前在带的学生有个交流，这样会得到导师的第一首资料，而不仅仅局限于招生手册上面的宣传。
六．个人的心态很重要，给别人表示的心态也很重要。读博士会遇到很多挑战、压力与困难，自己的心态要摆正。读博士不是仅仅选择了一个读书阶段，而是选择了一个人生。每当遇到挫折时，要多想想自己最适合做这样的人，而读博士是否可以为自己人生目标的实现起到促进作用。"坚定、坚韧、坚强"，去承受生活。其实，人生的很多困难，当你咬牙切齿克服，回望之后，这些困难不过是沟沟壑壑。 一个人自己的心态很重要，向别人表达的心态也很重要。在BBS上，尤其是博士生版，很多同学不经意流露出很多对现实的感叹和悲观。个人认为，这样对新来的博士生（尤其是刚刚从本科阶段直接读博士的学生）负面影响很大。我觉得给人家多讲个人思考的理由，比只是讲讲结果，要有益多，因为这样可以让别人增加选择的能力。人生不是很复杂的，"以出世的精神从事入世的工作"，如此而已。社会虽然复杂，但是自己心里有个良心的杠杆，就不太会迷失。博士阶段的生活，自己学会了很多。导师、老师和朋友，对我的影响，难以表达，虽然他们没有注意。在我即将要从事自己所喜爱的教育与科研事业之际，我写这篇感受，也很要感谢我在远方的亲爱的妻子。几年博士学习生活，她自己也在期盼与等待中，默默承受与分担我的压力。春夏秋冬，长长的铁轨与悠悠电波，是我们生活乐章的一部分。记得结婚那天，迎亲路上一直在下雨。在结婚典礼上，主持人突然让我这个最高兴的新郎讲点什么，于是，我说：应当感谢我自己生于一个崇尚正直的家庭，应该感谢岳父岳母，应当去爱护自己的家庭。末了，我很激动地对我妻子说，"风平凡，雨平凡，我对你的爱将永远不平凡"！
博士论文写完后，开始写致谢时，才发现原来一个人可贵的三年生命旅程，竟然悄然接受了那么多无私的帮助。透过密密麻麻的文字，似乎是一颗颗真诚的心灵。人生前行的过程中，有时候前行目标，是与你在实现这个目标过程中所拥有的朋友与友谊，一样重要的。我记起硕士毕业时，当我好奇问起硕士导师什么是生命中的牵引力量时（我硕士导师是文革后，国门打开后首批留美学子，后来他在美国名校拿到了博士学位，然后回国效力了），一头银发，又总是慈祥，很有学者风度的硕士导师只是淡淡而言："随遇而安，随心所欲"。我开始不是很理解这句话，若干年后，我才发现，原来这句话并不是"无为而无不为"的消极，而是将人生与奋斗融为了一体，一个很自然的过程。其实，仔细想想，我们读书，不也是这样的，本科-硕士---博士，象上楼梯似的，一步一步的，按部就班而已。但是，博士阶段的学习，又不是象上楼梯这么简单的。在这个人生不断提升的过程中，既需要有种上楼梯的平常心态，更需要有种上楼梯持之以恒的毅力。博士阶段最艰苦时候，就是一个人的去探索的时候。因为，自己研究方向的深入，不可能由人家来代替你，只能靠自己感性和理性去感受。所以，获取博士学位的过程，就是对自己心智、毅力与体力的全面挑战。以前自己写了点读博士的感受，目前博士论文已经完成，对读博士另外有了些感受，然后写下来，请大家指正。浙江大学博士生渐渐多起来，其中里面有一批是从本科直接进入博士学习阶段的，对于他们，由于没有经过研究生阶段的学习，很希望能够多了解博士阶段的学习方法，我鼓起勇气写下点感受，恳请大家交流和指正。下面是我自己感觉对读博士很重要的几点：
一是网络的重要性。在我自己的博士论文致谢部分，我感谢了Internet，因为通过Internet，可以在自己的研究领域发现一批与你研究相近和相似的研究小组。然后，就可以通过Email向这些教授或PHD学生要他们发表的论文、他们的程序代码，甚至是请教他们。如果自己不知道所钻研领域情况，可以使用"google"键入关键字，先搜寻一把，心里大概有个数。很多时候，通过Internet，自己可以很快知道目前研究方向最新进展与面临的主要问题，加快自己研究的步骤，而不是在闭门造车。一篇博士论文如果只是自己孤军奋战去完成，是难以想象的。即使身边没有可以讨论的对象，大多数时候，通过网络，从知名学校、知名研究机构或知名会议上，可以发现与自己研究有关的资料，对自己的研究产生启发性效果。
二是共同成长的重要。一般而言，博士生都会在一个包括本科生和研究生的研究小组中。如果是这样，与本科生和研究生的共同成长就很重要了。因为为了更加顺利与本科生和研究生交流，就要督促自己去看更多的资料，在方向上一直把握住。从这个角度上讲，交流是为了帮助自己的成长，与大家共同的成长，就是自己成长。并且，看到自己组里的同学能够发表文章，能够每天很投入愉快从事你工作的一部分，这是一种很快乐的感觉。
三是博士论文的重要。一般情况，读完博士后，无论留校还是去公司，很多工作是自己博士论文的继续。尤其是留校，面临课题申请（尤其是纵向课题），那么自己的博士论文里面的东西，可能就是自己要去申请的第一个课题。所以，博士论文的撰写与选题，就十分重要了。记得国外很多学校应聘时，就是要求博士来讲自己的博士论文。可以说，博士论文的选题和撰写，可能是你以后学术生涯最重要的一个资本了。读书期间，你自己所做的课题，会在你毕业时候结题或签定，因此需要用你的博士论文里面的东西去申请新的课题，用自己所研究的课题来养下一个新的课题，这是一个很自然的循环过程。因此，写博士论文需要时间的投入，需要专注。我想，每个人可以用指头来算算，自己一天、一周或一月中，花了多少时间在从事研究工作，就可以度量自己的专注程度了。
四是写Proposal的重要。这里的Proposal指申请课题所写得东西，这个方面我不是很擅长。但是我自己感觉，所谓课题申请，是自己研究的继续，也就是有了些研究积累，然后去申请。如果完全是一个全新的东西，自己没有相关研究经历，一般申请成功是很困难的。这也是为什么强调博士论文的重要。因为，博士论文是你学术研究生涯的第一起点，甚至对很多人而言，一辈子的研究均与此有关的。
五．导师与科研环境的重要。在导师和科研环境方面，与很多博士生相比，我觉得自己很幸运。不过，我自己刚开始读博士时，并不是在目前课题指导教授手下的。一次博士生讨论班时，授课老师给了我一篇与当时自己研究完全不相关的英文论文，让我给全班同学讲出来。可能是自己认真准备了，也查阅了不少资料，把这篇文章讲的很透彻与清楚，于是，这个教授便向我介绍了自己的研究课题。于是，在博士阶段第二个学期中叶，我从其他课题组转入了这个教授的课题组。回想这次转课题组，我觉得自己很幸运，而且萌发了人生很偶然的感叹。但是，事后想想，人生就是一场不会结束的战斗，需要自己时刻准备着，做一个主动的人，或许某天机会就来到了。好的导师一般给你很宽松的环境，一个明确的方向，然后修行看个人了。博士论文也是开始做点很小的东西，然后慢慢积累，慢慢对所研究方向越来越明确。在这个过程中，导师对你的信任，一个交流（无论是你与Internet交流，还是与课题组）的环境，是你研究顺利开展的稳定剂。选择导师前，最好还是与导师目前在带的学生有个交流，这样会得到导师的第一首资料，而不仅仅局限于招生手册上面的宣传。
六．个人的心态很重要，给别人表示的心态也很重要。读博士会遇到很多挑战、压力与困难，自己的心态要摆正。读博士不是仅仅选择了一个读书阶段，而是选择了一个人生。每当遇到挫折时，要多想想自己最适合做这样的人，而读博士是否可以为自己人生目标的实现起到促进作用。"坚定、坚韧、坚强"，去承受生活。其实，人生的很多困难，当你咬牙切齿克服，回望之后，这些困难不过是沟沟壑壑。 一个人自己的心态很重要，向别人表达的心态也很重要。在BBS上，尤其是博士生版，很多同学不经意流露出很多对现实的感叹和悲观。个人认为，这样对新来的博士生（尤其是刚刚从本科阶段直接读博士的学生）负面影响很大。我觉得给人家多讲个人思考的理由，比只是讲讲结果，要有益多，因为这样可以让别人增加选择的能力。人生不是很复杂的，"以出世的精神从事入世的工作"，如此而已。社会虽然复杂，但是自己心里有个良心的杠杆，就不太会迷失。博士阶段的生活，自己学会了很多。导师、老师和朋友，对我的影响，难以表达，虽然他们没有注意。在我即将要从事自己所喜爱的教育与科研事业之际，我写这篇感受，也很要感谢我在远方的亲爱的妻子。几年博士学习生活，她自己也在期盼与等待中，默默承受与分担我的压力。春夏秋冬，长长的铁轨与悠悠电波，是我们生活乐章的一部分。记得结婚那天，迎亲路上一直在下雨。在结婚典礼上，主持人突然让我这个最高兴的新郎讲点什么，于是，我说：应当感谢我自己生于一个崇尚正直的家庭，应该感谢岳父岳母，应当去爱护自己的家庭。末了，我很激动地对我妻子说，"风平凡，雨平凡，我对你的爱将永远不平凡"！
2007年4月14日星期六
2007年4月5日星期四
Literature Review
The literature review has several functions:
(a) it gives the background to your proposed research,
(b) it shows that you are competent in that you have an understanding of what is currently known, and
(c) it provides a reason for your research.
(a) it gives the background to your proposed research,
(b) it shows that you are competent in that you have an understanding of what is currently known, and
(c) it provides a reason for your research.
The Rabbit's Thesis
一天，一只兔子在山洞前写论文。 一只狼过来，问兔子：‘你在写什么？” 答：“论文” 狼问：“你的论文的主题是什么？” 答：“＜论兔子如何吃掉狼＞”。 狼听了哈哈大笑。 兔子说，我写的论文大部分稿子在洞里，我把道理写的很清楚。狼想看看兔子的论文是怎么写的。于是兔子把狼领进山洞。 过了一会，兔子独自走出山洞。 兔子继续在山洞前写它的论文。 一只狐狸过来，问：“你在写什么？” 答：“我在写论文”。 “论文的主题是什么？” 答：“论兔子如何吃掉狐狸”。 向来狡猾的狐狸也笑了。说：“这怎么可能呢” 兔子说：“我写的大部分稿子还在洞里，我把道理写的很清楚。” 狐狸想去看看兔子的论文是怎么写的，于是兔子把狐狸领进山洞。 过了一会儿，兔子独自一个走出山洞。 最后，在山洞里一只狮子在几堆白骨之间，满意地一边剔着牙，一边阅读兔子交给它的论文的提要：“一个动物，能力大小并不重要，关键看你的导师是谁！”
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