How is it that Jason Bourne has so much personality without having an identity?
Indeed the human heart holds a mystery...
2007-09-30
2007-09-27
Searching digital libraries
I'm currently looking for research papers on the top scientific digital libraries. For computer science, they are ACM's and IEEE's. Also interesting are Google Scholar and CiteSeer.
My search strategy was to build a table where the rows are the search terms (ex. RFID, Auto-ID, ...) and the columns are the libraries or search engines (ex. ACM, IEEE, Google Scholar, CiteSeer, ...).
I then went through all the table cells, doing the searches and looking at the results.I read the paper's titles and abstracts and selected those more relevant for my current interests. This can be very time consuming. For a 4x4 table, I downloaded a total of 200 papers.
For all downloaded papers, I also stored bibliographic information, preferably in BibTeX format, or at least, the paper's URL location. This will be very handy when I'm writing my own papers.
I'll take note of the date when the search was performed. Then, when I want to update the search, I can then specify that I only want papers published after my last search (this option is usually available as an advanced search parameter).
Another interesting information to retrieve is to identify which conferences are more relevant to my current work, as these can be good publication targets. I put them in my Google conference calendar to keep track of the submission dates.
My search strategy was to build a table where the rows are the search terms (ex. RFID, Auto-ID, ...) and the columns are the libraries or search engines (ex. ACM, IEEE, Google Scholar, CiteSeer, ...).
I then went through all the table cells, doing the searches and looking at the results.I read the paper's titles and abstracts and selected those more relevant for my current interests. This can be very time consuming. For a 4x4 table, I downloaded a total of 200 papers.
For all downloaded papers, I also stored bibliographic information, preferably in BibTeX format, or at least, the paper's URL location. This will be very handy when I'm writing my own papers.
I'll take note of the date when the search was performed. Then, when I want to update the search, I can then specify that I only want papers published after my last search (this option is usually available as an advanced search parameter).
Another interesting information to retrieve is to identify which conferences are more relevant to my current work, as these can be good publication targets. I put them in my Google conference calendar to keep track of the submission dates.
2007-09-10
Big Picture day
At this stage of my PhD work I want to keep an open mind to new ideas, however I don't want to lose my focus...
How can I cope with both these seemingly contradictory goals?
I've tried several things in the past, but now I'm trying to have a "Big Picture day" in the week. I use this work day to keep track of the cool and interesting science and technology stuff out there: I read papers, news, mails, web sites, etc.
If I make a new connection with my work, I'll write it down and look it up later.
In the remaining days of the week I refrain from looking at stuff, to avoid distraction.
How can I cope with both these seemingly contradictory goals?
I've tried several things in the past, but now I'm trying to have a "Big Picture day" in the week. I use this work day to keep track of the cool and interesting science and technology stuff out there: I read papers, news, mails, web sites, etc.
If I make a new connection with my work, I'll write it down and look it up later.
In the remaining days of the week I refrain from looking at stuff, to avoid distraction.
2007-09-03
Back to work: PhD Prologue
I'm coming back to work after a fantastic holiday with the people I love the most.
Now I've got my "batteries" fully recharged to start a new challenge: my PhD.
Before I enroll in the actual course, I'm doing something I named PhD prologue. I've been doing it since January 2007, but now it's focusing and intensifying.
During this prologue I spoke with several researchers and senior colleagues, looking for interesting subjects for my PhD.
I'm currently directing my preliminary research to the Internet of Things, that aims to leverage the power of the Internet and of the upcoming RFID technology.
RFID stands for "Radio Frequency IDentification" and is a technology that allows contact-less reading of data tags or sensors. In a world where each object is not only classified (with a bar code), but also identified (with a RFID tag), imagine the new problems (and opportunities) that are coming just around the corner...
The goals of the PhD prologue are:
1 – Delineate the research area
2 – Identify the players (industry and academia)
3 – Identify the main problems to address
I intend to write about these in a position paper. Then, the PhD can start!
Now I've got my "batteries" fully recharged to start a new challenge: my PhD.
Before I enroll in the actual course, I'm doing something I named PhD prologue. I've been doing it since January 2007, but now it's focusing and intensifying.
During this prologue I spoke with several researchers and senior colleagues, looking for interesting subjects for my PhD.
I'm currently directing my preliminary research to the Internet of Things, that aims to leverage the power of the Internet and of the upcoming RFID technology.
RFID stands for "Radio Frequency IDentification" and is a technology that allows contact-less reading of data tags or sensors. In a world where each object is not only classified (with a bar code), but also identified (with a RFID tag), imagine the new problems (and opportunities) that are coming just around the corner...
The goals of the PhD prologue are:
1 – Delineate the research area
2 – Identify the players (industry and academia)
3 – Identify the main problems to address
I intend to write about these in a position paper. Then, the PhD can start!
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