Top ten longest titles of research papers

And now for something completely different…

Top ten longest titles of research papers
[ from Trevor’s Bike Shed ]

Citavi - coming soon?

I’m impressed by the interface and capabilities of reference manager Citavi, but for the moment it’s only available in German. However, they do apparently have plans to release an English language version.

I’m tempted to download the free version, even if it is in German, just to see how it all works together. Too bad it’s not French– I could handle working in French. But I know absolutely no German whatsoever.

Citavi [ via The Efficient Academic Google Group ]

More Bibliographical Management Tools

After my last post, two helpful commenters suggested some further tools to consider for managing references.

Michael Dunn suggested JabRef, a bibliography reference manager that works with BibTeX format.

Rick suggested wikindx, a bibliographic and quotations/notes management system that can be used for either the single-user or for collaborative efforts.

While investigating these leads, I also came upon the Bibliophile Initiative, whose goal it is to “promote collaboration between developers and end-users of bibliographic databases.” They maintain a list of bibliographic database applications and utilities which I found to be a useful tool.

A big thank you to Michael and Rick for your help and suggestions.

Web 2.0 Bibliographical Management roundup

Since I use multiple computers, my dream is to manage my bibliographical information online. I haven’t yet found a Web 2.0 (as in a central online solution) to successfully manage all of my bibliographical information. But I haven’t yet given up hope!

These are the various solutions I’ve found thus far. Perhaps they may be of help to others:

CiteULike
Connotea
Easy Bib (they also offer the more powerful paid MyBib Pro, which I’m considering)
RefWorks

Any other suggestions?

Web 2.0 Database

Like most grad students, I work on multiple computers: home, work, library, archives. I’m all in favour of any Web 2.0 apps that can help me centralize my files.

Keeping track of all the solutions that pop up on a daily basis can be difficult. I know there are other Web 2.0 databases, but this one does a good job of organizing all the apps that can replace the Office suite.

Office 2.0 Database
[ from ITRedux.com ]

Get the Most out of your Research Conference Experience

If you’re considering going to a research conference or (joy of joys!) you already have some funding in place to attend one, these twenty tips in PDF format (geared towards new grad students) will help.

Twenty Tips for Getting the Most out of your Research Conference Experience
[ from the Southwest Educational Research Association ]

Giving an Academic Talk

Jonathan Shewchuk, a computer scientist from Berkeley, offers some practical advice on preparing to give an academic lecture/presentation. His tips on successfully using (the much-abused) PowerPoint are particularly helpful.

Giving an Academic Talk
[ from Jonathan Shewchuk ]

Never Check Your Email First Or Last

Email by Evan G

I admit it– I’m breaking this rule right now. But after reading this article, maybe it’ll be my last time. Glen Stansberry of LifeDev makes some excellent points, including this insightful remark: “I was staying up much later than I planned. Email is great at distracting you, mainly because you can open it up and anything can be waiting for you inside… Before you know it, you’ll have spent an hour ‘checking your email’, and you hadn’t really gotten anything done.” And I thought I was the only one!

Never Check Your Email First or Last
[ from LifeDev ]

18 Ways to Stay Focused at Work

As the academic year begins once more, it can be difficult to get back into the grind. Dave Cheong offers 18 ways to stay focused at work. Though he’s writing from the perspective of a software engineer and entrepreneur, I think that many of these suggestions are highly applicable to academic life.

18 Ways to Stay Focused at Work
[ from Dave Cheong ]