getting a cephalopod-y PhD!

[esquid]

good luck.

 

[Tintenfisch]

The structure of this PhD was: conduct research for ~4 years (no classwork), write up thesis, submit for peer review (3 external reviewers) following Steve's approval. The reviewers have completed their comments but I don't get to see them until after the defense; then, based on the outcome of the defense and their comments, I make any last required amendments, submit the final bound thesis and graduate pending the university's approval.

 

[Taollan]

Congrats Kat on making it this far, and I am sure the defense will be cake for you. So are there any job or post-doc prospects yet?

 

[sorseress]

Congrats Taollan and very best of luck to Kat. I do not, however, think you will need any luck at all. You will get rave reviews!

 

[Matt H]

Looking for a phd with cephs!

Wow, this seems to be the thread for PhDs! It's frustrating, I've been wanting to go into ceph research since forever but can't find a PhD anywhere! I'm just in the last months of finishing my MSc at Bangor (UK), unfortunately not on cephs (soft corals) and really want to keep on with some research! If you know any PhDs or equivalent positions, I'd be very happy to help!

Congrats to all of you!

Matt H

 

[esquid]

what type of work were you doing with corals?

 

[Matt H]

I'm actually still going at the coral work. It started out as looking at feeding rates of Sinularia spp. with changes in photoperiod, light intensity and food type. Everything got going rather slowly because the corals went from a 400 Watt lighting system to a much weaker system so took about 6 weeks to show their polyps - this meant that my time was running out (we don't get much experimental time as MSc students), so I had to cut the project down to testing the feeding rates of 3 food types under standard lighting conditions.

It's pretty simple stuff really, but it's quite interesting. It seems that the corals eat more and more as it becomes available, but at a certain concentration, stop eating at all - presumably because the food is bumping into them and causing the polyps to retract. I've just finished testing Artemia and R. reticulata so I just need to do one more live food type and then write up.

If you know anyone in North Wales that wants any Sinularia then let me know, because I don't know what to do with it after the experiment finishes and I don't think London Zoo wants it back...