Dr Lisa Nivison-Smith
@LNivisonSmith
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NHMRC Research fellow at @UNSWoptomvsci 🇦🇺 studying the retina & macular degeneration #WomeninSTEM 👩🔬 Mother 👩👧👦 #scicomm enthusiast 📣 Cake lover 😋
Sydney, New South Wales
Joined August 2017
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Pinned Tweet
During my PhD, I got alot of unhelpful advice
Now I'm a PhD supervisor, I know 💯 what I needed to hear
4 things every PhD student should know 🧵
#phdchat
@thoughtsofaphd
@PhD_Genie
@thephdstory
@HaPhDsupervisor
@Dissertating
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As a PhD student, my supervisor never answered my emails.
Then I became a PhD supervisor and realised why
A thread🧵 of my mistakes and how to avoid them
#phdchat
#AcademicTwitter
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Is the paper you need stuck behind a paywall?
Five websites every researcher should know to access any research paper for free
@AcademicChatter
@OpenAcademics
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18K
Are you 'Excited to share my new paper!'
Harsh truth:
Most people don't care
5 tips on how to tweet about your new paper to get real engagement
@OpenAcademics
@PhD_Genie
@PhDVoice
@AcademicChatter
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As a PhD student, all I focused on was getting a PhD.
As a PhD supervisor, I focus on training students on the long-term process that leads to getting a PhD.
Here's some examples🧵
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On paper, the best academics have
▫️publications 📕📗📘
▫️funding 💰💰💰
▫️students 👨🎓👩🎓🧑🎓
In reality, the best academics have
▫️kindness 🤗
▫️open mindedness 🧐
▫️vulnerability 😳
Here's why 👇🧵
@AcademicChatter
@OpenAcademics
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TL/DR
Email mistakes of PhD students
1. Not specifying what you need
2. Not providing adequate context
3. Not being concise
4. Not following up
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Grants 😞
Manuscripts 😣
Course evaluations 😫
Rejection is everywhere in academia.
But we keep it quiet.
Only stories of success get told.
So heres a story on rejection:
"The potato, the egg and tea bag"
@AcademicChatter
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Happy Monday
to everyone who has a folder called "Papers to read" that they completely ignore
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As a PhD supervisor, my motto is
“A healthy and supported student is a successful student”
Four simple ways I check in on my student's mental well-being
@OpenAcademics
@CouragePhD
@PhD_Genie
@AcademicChatter
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TL/DR
Advice for PhD students
▫️Don't judge yourself too hard
▫️Your work ethic is 🔥, channel it
▫️Learn what to do and not to do
▫️Take time to reflect
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This year, I've written 5 papers, 4 grants, started 3 new collabs and won 2 awards
I also helped 1 post-doc apply for promotion
Today, she told me she was successful & this honestly far outweighs everything else
Academia is a positive sum game
Help someone win
You win too 🏆
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1. You're judging yourself way harder than others
People around you may be master writers, thinkers, communicators, teachers
But this was not always the case
There's no secret, no shortcut, no hidden talent. For most, its years of practice.
You can do the same
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Want to seriously improve your academic writing? 🙋♂️
Start tweeting
I'm not kidding
Here's 4 reasons why tweeting everyday will make your writing 🔥🔥🔥
@AcademicChatter
@PhD_Genie
@thephdstory
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🔹️Not being specific
Many of my emails didn't clearly state what I wanted my supervisor to do or the timeline. So he assumed the email was an FYI.
Now I use actionable email subjects
❌️"Re: Revised grant"
✅️ "Re: Revised grant: approve by COB"
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2. Its normal to feel you're getting nowhere
What's important is how to deal with it
Working harder is usually not the answer
I've never meet a PhD student with a poor work ethic. Just take time to step back and ensure you channel your effort into the right things
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3. Figuring out what not to do is as important as figuring out what to do
Taking up every 'opportunity' maxs out your energy quickly.
Dont be afraid to say no to things. It can lead to saying yes to the right thing
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4. Enjoy the ride
A PhD is not just a qualification, its a journey
Take time to reflect so you can see your progress. If you always look forward it will seem like you've never achieved anything
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🔹️TMI
I often wrote long emails and so my supervisor either wasted time reading unnecessary details or skimmed and missed the point.
Now I edit emails ruthlessly.
The shorter, the better
❌️"Sorry for the long email"
✅️<edited to be a short email>
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Did you just join
#AcademicTwitter
?
Congratulations! 👏🏿 Did tou know there are 385,000 other academics here? 🤯
Here's 7 academic accounts to follow 👌
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🔹️Not following up
I didn't realise my supervisor recieved 50+ emails a day and therefore emails could be unopened or unanswered for days
Now I send reminders to ensure emails return to the top of the inbox
❌️<no action>
✅️Re: Revised grant (gentle reminder from Mon)
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🔹️No context
My emails assumed my supervisor remembered all my project details. He didn't, leading to mamy back & forths
Now I give enough context to remind of the last interaction
❌️Revised grant attached
✅️ Revised grant attached with your feedback from the meeting
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If you enjoyed this thread, please RT the first tweet.
And follow me
@LNivisonSmith
if you are interested in
- macular degeneration research
-
#WomeninSTEM
-
#scicomm
- general musings from a mother trying to survive a career in
#academia
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What a week! 😯
On Sunday I gave birth to a baby boy 🤱 & today I can announce I recieved a highly competitive
#NHMRC
Investigator Grant!👩🔬
After years of hard work, its wonderful to have so much to celebrate in my personal and professional life.
#womeninSTEM
#momlife
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Good academic writing
❌️ use complex language to sound educated
✅️ use clear language to educate the reader
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This week I tweeted about my new successful grant 🎉🎉
But you know what else happened this week?
I failed....A.L.O.T. 🤦♀️🤦♀️
A thread 🧵of everything I wasn't excited to share with
@AcademicChatter
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TL;DR
How to access papers for free
1. Sci-Hub
2. Unpaywall
3. Open Access Button
4. Paper Panda
5. 12ft ladder
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Underrated skills in academia
▫️simplify complex topics
▫️prioritising finished over perfect
▫️being kind
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Did you spend 4 days worrying about a task that took 4 minutes to complete?
Welcome to academia
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TL;DR
How to tweet about your new paper
1. Use Numbers
2. Use open ended questions
3. Avoid jargon
4. Use poetry techniques
5. Focus on first and last words
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I've visited the profiles of all my 9000+ followers and learned one important thing
No one teaches academics how to write a Twitter bio
5 simple ways to improve your bio so your first impression counts 👀
🧵
@AcademicChatter
@OpenAcademics
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This thread was about good writing tips for emails
Ironically my poor writing makes it appear that I blame PhD students for poor supervision (100% do not!)
Thanks Twitterverse for calling me out. Will be more responsible with my words next time
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As a PhD student, I thought the best supervisors had the most papers or the biggest lab
As a supervisor, I realise that's absolutely not true
4 ways to actually find a good PhD supervisor
#AcademicTwitter
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I GOT PROMOTED! 🥳🥳🥳🥳
It took
29 papers 📃 2 grants 💰
2 career breaks for bubs 👩👧👦
1 pandemic 😷
6 yrs of
#impostersyndrome
😔
A slow 🐢 but big achievement 🙆♀️ for me. Shoutout to all who helped me with my application ❤💙💛
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Grants 💰
Job applications 📝
Award nominations 🏅
They can all hinge on a great recommendation letter
But no one tells you how to write one
Writing a winning recommendation letter, a thread 🧵
@AcademicChatter
@OpenAcademics
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The student wants to publish alot
Instead of chasing papers, I recommend we work to become the kind of researcher that has a writing system: read thoroughly, develop writing habits, seek feedback and maintain consistency.
Good papers start with good writing systems
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In academia, its easy to only focus on the next deadline. ⏰️
If you make it, you just rush to the next one. Its non-stop. Its exhausting.
A story to help you break this cycle:
The Banker 👨💼 and Fisherman 🎣
@AcademicChatter
@PhDVoice
@PostdocVoice
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Academic talks
❌️ sound smart to the audience
✅️ make the audience smarter after listening to you
#phdchat
@Academicchatter
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A paper I've been working on for 2 years has just been accepted without revisions!!! 😮😁
Its my academic unicorn 🦄🦄🦄
#Academicchatter
#HardWorkPaysOff
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Did you just tweet about your new paper? 🥳
Does it feel like no-one heard you? 😞
How to use the Twitter algorithm to maximise the reach of your tweets 😎
@AcademicChatter
@OpenAcademics
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Why did I write this?
Because survivorship bias is rampant in academia.
When only success is visible, we assume this is the norm. That other researchers are achieving things easily without failure.
We can combat this by not just posting
#AcademicTwitter
wins but also losses
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TLDR
Guiding PhD students
1. Make a writing system
2. Learn transferable skills
3. See the big picture
4. Create healthy work habits
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2.
@unpaywall
A browser extension which finds paper PDFs legally by searching various online repositories
✅️Pros
▫️Legal
▫️Extension automatically searches for paper in your browser
❌️Cons
▫️Only on Firefox and chrome desktop browsers
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Manuscript drafts 📝
Peer reviews 📑
Emails 📧
Academia is notorious for being late
How to stick to a writing deadline
A thread🧵
@AcademicChatter
@PhD_Genie
@OpenAcademics
10
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If you enjoyed this thread, please RT the first tweet.
And follow me
@LNivisonSmith
if you are interested in
- macular degeneration research
-
#WomeninSTEM
-
#scicomm
- general musings from a mother trying to survive a career in
#academia
21
45
647
1.
@SciHubUpdated
Online library created from downloading papers through institute logins to Scihub's own server.
✅️Pros
▫️Claims to have 99% all papers
❌️Cons
▫️questionable legality
▫️blocked in some countries
▫️no papers added since 2021
10
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568
The student wants to be an expert on everything
Instead of endless lit searches, I recommend we work to be a researcher who sees the big picture: meet stakeholders, build multi skills, practice inquiry
Experts don't know the right answers, they know the right questions
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⚠️MEGA THREAD ALERT ⚠️
A step-by-step guide to
#AcademicTwitter
- how to write a bio
- who to follow
- how to find new research
- how to tweet your research
- why Twitter isn't a waste of time
Bookmark this 🧵!
@AcademicChatter
@PhDVoice
@OpenAcademics
@ThePhDPlace
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Happy Monday to every academic who read literature for 3 hours to write one sentence in their manuscript
#AcademicTwitter
#acwri
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Happy Monday to every researcher who spent 3 hours reading literature and now feel like they know less about the topic
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Academia is full of people who are book smart
Take the time to find those who are
people smart
self smart
life smart
This type of intelligence is invaluable
@academicchatter
@openacademics
12
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533
The student wants to join a 'famous' lab
Instead of chasing the lab head, I recommend we work to be the kind of researcher others want to work with: critical thinking, verbal communication, ability to work autonomously and in a team.
Good labs seek out those with valued skills
2
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The student wants to finish as quickly as possible
Instead of chasing short-term projects, I recommend we work to be a researcher who has healthy work habits: create boundaries, practice reflection, have support network & work life balance
Healthy people are productive people
7
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Academia is considered structured, logical, analytical, rigid....
It's also full of paradoxes 🔄
4 paradoxes to overcome to level up your academic career 🧵
@AcademicChatter
@OpenAcademics
@PhD_Genie
@ThePhDPlace
3
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5 Excel hacks that save hours of research time
(spoiler alert, no.5 is a game changer 🙀)
@AcademicChatter
@msexcel
7
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Research should be objective, rational and unbiased
But researchers are humans
And humans suck at being objective, rational and unbiased
4 cognitive biases to overcome to be a better researcher
@AcademicChatter
@PhDVoice
@thephdstory
4
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I've spent years trying to figure out how to be a great academic writer
It comes down to one thing
A story for every academic who wants the cheat code to better writing 🧵
@AcademicChatter
@CouragePhD
@hapyresearchers
@ThePhDPlace
@thephdstory
#acwri
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Happy Monday
to every academic who has 47 tabs open in their browser with "interesting" papers
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1. Writing concisely
With 280 characters, every tweet I've written is a lesson in getting straight to the point in as few words possible.
Its the ultimate writing skill.
Every grant, manuscript, letter, even email I now write is better because I can say more with less.
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🔸️Kindness🔸️
"I suffered so you should suffer"
This mentality is toxic.
The best academics are consistently kind. They prioritise good relationships. They genuinely want others to succeed.
People succeed because of them, not in spite of them.
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In academia, rejection is our boiling water.
Most default to the potato. Rejection shakes confidence.
Some are the egg.
Rejection builds resilience.
The tea bag reminds us rejection is an experience we have, not a reflection of who we are.
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Underrated skills in academia
Empathy 🫂
If you can't put yourself in someone's shoes, you'll only ever think of yourself
Consistency 🏃♀️
It's not how much you start, its how much you maintain
Authenticity 🎯
If you don't own your mistakes, those around you won't either
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5. 12ftladder
Finds the cached, unpaywalled version of a site seen by Google search
✅️Pros
▫️No extension needed, just add before URL of a paywalled page
❌️Cons
▫️Mostly for news sites
▫️Has been disabled for some sites
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Enjoyed this🧵?
Please RT the first tweet.
And follow me
@LNivisonSmith
if you are interested in
- macular degeneration research
-
#WomeninSTEM
-
#scicomm
- musings from a mother trying to survive
#academia
10
16
379
3. Open Access Button
Similar to Unpaywall but if it canot find a PDF, the tool offers to email the authors to ask for the paper
✅️Pros
▫️Legal
▫️More chance to find paper by asking authors
❌️Cons
▫️Need to press button everytime to search for a paper
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332
Mentoring...
❌️telling someone what to do
✅️helping someone weigh up all the options so they decide what's best for them
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TL;DR
Simple ways to promote student well-being
1. Weekly check-in
2. Schedule breaks not just milestones
3. Ask if they need help
4. Remind them to be kind to themselves
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Pro tip
When making a scientific talk, prepare like you only have 80% of the time you were assigned.
No-one has issues with talks finishing early.
Everyone has issues with talks running over time.
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4.
@PaperPandaHQ
A Chrome extension that finds the DOI of the paper from the current webpage, then searches for it from various repositories
✅️Pros
▫️Can set search to include your institution's library
❌️Cons
▫️Not clear if all databases searched are legal
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🔸️Vulnerability🔸️
Academia associates vulnerability with failure.
But the most successful people I know can say "I don't know" or "I'm not ok". And they empowering others to do the same.
They show embracing weakness can be your greatest strength.
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Hey academia
Your friendly reminder that capability is not the same as capacity
Just because you have the capability to do the extra task, doesn’t mean you have the capacity.
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Want advice on how to improve your academic writing?
Try listening to non-academics
5 writing threads from non-academics that are 🔥🔥🔥
@AcademicChatter
@PhDVoice
@PhD_Genie
@PostdocVoice
@ThePhDPlace
#acwri
2
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Enjoyed this🧵?
Please RT the first tweet.
And follow me
@LNivisonSmith
if you are interested in
- macular degeneration research
-
#WomeninSTEM
-
#scicomm
- musings from a mother trying to survive
#academia
13
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🔸️Open mindedness🔸️
"We have always done it this way"
The best academics check their own biases. When challenged, they don't run, they stop and listen. They can change their mind.
They choose weak attachment to strong ideas > strong attachment to weak ones
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1. Use Numbers
Numbers attract attention because -they stand out against words
-add credibility
-make info easier to visualise
❌️ Our study shows this new method is highly efficient
✅️ Our study shows this method reduced waste by 87%
3
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273
In theory, To Do lists improve productivity
In reality, 41% of tasks on a To Do list are never completed
7 simple steps to ensure your To Do list gets done ✅️
#phdtips
#productivity
@AcademicChatter
@OpenAcademics
@PhDVoice
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2. Use questions
Open ended questions engage readers by causing them to stop and think.
❌️ Our systematic review on vitamin water is out!
✅️ Is vitamin water a gimmick? Check out our systematic review
4
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I read alot about grant writing & one critical section is rarely discussed
Career disruption statements
7 ways to help reviewers understand career disruptions to review fairly
🧵
@AcademicMomLife
@Momademia
@AcademicChatter
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266
4. Use poetry techniques
Poetry makes writing flow and fun to read. Use rhyme, repetition and alliteration to make it memorable.
❌️ Excited to announce our new paper classifying high-mass stars
✅️ From lil white lights to high-mass gas, our ✨️stellar✨️ paper is out
1
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You don't need everything to be perfect before you write.
The process itself can reveal links you hadn't noticed and bring the clarity you need
Writing fuels more writing.
You just need to start 📝📝📝
#acwri
@Openacademics
@Academicchatter
@PhD_Genie
@PhdVoice
2
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In an ideal world, we always convert rejection into something positive. Like the tea bag converts boiling water into a delicious drink.
But in reality, sometimes rejection will soften us. Or harden us. And that's ok. There is no perfect response.
But it's a story you can tell
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2. Building a writing habit
To write better, you need practice
But long form writing is exhausting. It's easy to skip a day...then another...and another. No consistency = No improvement
A tweet only requires a few sentences. Even on hard days, a few sentences is manageable.
2
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245
5. Focus on first & last words
76% of people scan tweets. Focus your 'hooks' where they scan - the beginning and end
❌️ Excited to share our new study showing small class sizes increase engagement
✅️ Size matters! Our new study shows small classes have 20% higher scores
1
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TL/DR
Why tweeting improves academic writing
▫️Write concisely
▫️Builds a writing habit
▫️Instant feedback
▫️Pros far outweigh cons
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3. Avoid jargon
Complex words might sound smart but they are uncomfortable to read. Clear > clever
❌️ We ascribed abherrant functionality of neurons to receptor depletion
✅️ We found neurons function poorly due to fewer receptors
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3. Instant feedback
Traditional feedback loops of academic writing are slow. You hide drafts ffor months till they're 'ready' then send to co-authors who take 3 weeks to reply 'ok'
Tweeting means practicing your writing IN PUBLIC.
You get instant feedback on a global scale
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Firstly, a disclaimer.
I'm not saying your new paper is bad
On the contrary, it got accepted so it brings new knowledge to your field
It deserves to be read.
This thread gives you tips to achieve that with Twitter
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Are you doing a PhD? 👩🔬
Did you have a bad day? 🫠
...week? 🫠🫠 ...year?🫠🫠🫠
Me too 🤦♀️
Four simple truths to remember when *that* experiment fails (again)
#AcademicChatter
@openacademics
@PhD_Genie
@thephdstory
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4. The ups far outweigh the downs
Cons of a poorly written tweet:
▫️No-one reads it
Pros of a well-written tweet:
▫️Share ideas globally
▫️Confirm your writing 'works'
▫️Connect with like-minded ppl
Pros >>> Cons
It's an easy equation
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4 months ago I started writing threads with a simple goal
Help someone like me in academia 💞
10M views & 8K followers later, pretty sure I'm kicking this goal 🤯
So for my new friends, here are my top 8 threads and how they can help you 🤗
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This week marks 5 years since I became an academic mother.
It's been WILD 🤪😴
5 things I wish I could tell my past self
@Momademia
#WomenInSTEM
3
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As an early career researcher, I was always trying to think ahead
In reality, I was falling behind by spending too much time in my head
3 simple ways I now deal with overthinking
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TL/DR
The best academics
1. Are consistently kind
2. Keep an open mind
3. Embrace & support vulnerability
2
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200
Making slides for academic presentations
10% : Slide design
20% : Slide content
70% : Deciding if you actually need the slide
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"Why haven't you gone for promotion? You'd get it for sure!"
Because last 2 promotion rounds fell during pregnancy & mat leave and I didn't have the physical energy to submit applications
This is what
#motherhood
costs
Not invisible costs
Actual 💰
@momademia
@AcademicChatter
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4. Remind them to be kind to themselves
I openly tell my students about mistakes I've made or skills/knowledge I'm currently struggling with.
This normalises learning and growing as part of being a researcher, even at the supervisor level
1
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Enjoyed this🧵? Please RT the first tweet.
And follow me
@LNivisonSmith
if you are interested in
- macular degeneration research
- tips for using
#AcademicTwitter
- PhD advice & well-being
- musings of a mum trying to survive academia
4
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1. They deliver hard truths effectively
Every student makes mistakes. Every project hits walls.
But not every supervisor deals with these issues
Good supervisors do not shy away from hard conversations. They focus on telling truths that empower, not embarrass
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