09/3/08 PHD comic: 'Significant results'

[Greg Bernhardt]

Piled Higher & Deeper by Jorge Cham www.phdcomics.com
http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive/phd090308s.gif title: "Significant results" - originally published 9/3/2008 For the latest news in PHD Comics, CLICK HERE! (http://www.phdcomics.com/comics.php)




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[Math Is Hard]

:rofl: Is this ever dear to my heart right now. I learned a new term this summer: "marginally significant". :biggrin:

[jimmysnyder]

When I got my first result, I was aware of how insignificant it was. I brought it to my professor just the same in order to show that I was not simply taking up space. I assumed that he would say "That's nice Jimmy, but it's not good enough." Instead he said "That's nice Jimmy, but it's not enough." As if he thought I thought I was finished. But the message I took away was that while quality is definitely what is wanted, in its absence, quantity will do.

[George Jones]

When I was in grad school, my friend's advisor would ask my friend (who worked in theoretical physics) every few hours if he had any new results.