The hardship of being a student

Many people, our family, (some) friends and acquaintances will probably, at some point, tell us: "C'mon, don't be like that. Those will be the best days of your life".

How wrong (or not so guaranteed to be right) those words are... I have had the chance, even if for a short amount of time, to work in my field of study, and completely apart from it. Working in my field of study has been one of the best experiences so far, and one thing I'm sure of - I certainly DO NOT MISS being evaluated, the stress of close deadlines, exams, and the frustration and demotivation of not being able to study or lacking time to do so.

It's completely wrong to think study times are easy -  it's ridiculous. Some would say I am probably just being a lazy ass, but I'm not. I have tried very hard to exceed my own expectations, push myself to focus and keep working - but it's easy said. I get tired and sick of being demanded to write about things I don't know, understand things others explain poorly, and in the end (except in rare cases) being branded with a number. From 0 to 20. Even if it is a 20, it's just a number. Which does not reflect the effect it had on you - during the work, the almost sadness of wanting to spend personal time with those you like, but you can't because you sacrifice every bit of your time towards work; and after the work is finished, the relief - even if the work was poorly done, you still have the relief, for an instant, of not being burdened by the responsibility of work.

I am tired. I surely don't miss assignments. And, on another (but not independent subject) I'd like to ask Professors and supervisors a little respect for student who enslave themselves and allow getting used for benefit of others. Why do we do it? Because science! Because it's in us and it's who we are - we want to become researchers so badly we allow ourselves to go through every little shit we are told to do.

It's hard to find motivation in all this. But hey: better times will come, right? We do this for the relief and satisfaction after submitting assigned work. We do this because in the end (and in the process) we learn something. Even if we only see a mountain, we learn at every step.

So please, fellow students and researchers: since there is no elevator to sucess, we have to take the stairs. And many people will take them along with you.

Datsun 510 appearance in Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon

I am outdated! I am a slowpoke in the Transformers series, I know. I only watched the third film a few days ago.

In a busy scenario, Sam has his life in a kind of uncertain state: he his living with his girlfriend but he does not have a job. Bumblebee is working with human military, so when his parents arrive, he goes to his garage and a 510 shows up: (at this point I was drooling over the screen)

Funnily enough, his mother mistakes his car with Bumblebee: it's also yellow with black stripes.

However, throughout the film, they refer to the car as a piece of crap, and jokingly as a "collector's piece".

Why does the USA in general have so little love for the 510? Is it because they have so many of them in there? I'd really like to have one.

The film actually gave me some styling ideas, like the Datsun sticker in the front of the car (I'd move it to the side rather than have it at the center). The wheels are Watanabe-style at the back, and I don't know the name of the ones in the front, but I've seen some 510's with them on:

I would keep the same wheels at the front or back. Particularly, the Watanabes, which look great in most Japanese retro rides.

A similar one I've really liked is this one:

It is the perfect ride, since it has a capable engine (SR20DE), 4 doors, 4 seats, roll cage and racing harnesses.
In the meanwhile I've thought of buying a Datsun Sunny/1200 or a Toyota Corolla KE20  in about one or two years, but I'll leave that to other posts.

I know I've said something about the USA showing no love for the 510, but I've seen American people with some of the sweetest Japanese retro rides ever. Don't get me wrong: even though the general opinion is not to like them, the car culture is everywhere in the world.

I hope you all enjoy your rides!

Deciding on a Career - PhD or not to PhD?

Sometime in the life of a student fascinated about science, a question will come: go for a PhD or not? You may think the time for such decision has come for me, but in fact, it hasn't: I'm still half way in my Master's, so why am I making a post about this?

Truth is, I have given this question some thinking, but only now that other people ask me what I'll do it's become more serious. Partly because the outcome of my Master's thesis will influence my choice of  "if", "where" and "with who" I will do a PhD.

Some readers probably know I am a bit (a big bit) of a petrolhead. I like cars, but more importantly, I love to learn - hence my passion for restoration and modification. That's something I still have not had time to put into. Mostly because I'm not a very time-organized person. But it's definitely something important for me.

On the other hand, I am passionate about neuroscience. Sometimes the difficulties in a project make me wonder if I should be studying this, but fortunately I've had a recent conversation with a colleague. That conversation was a life changer. Right now I truly believe I will go for a PhD. And that's the result of never getting enough of science. I thing both my passions (cars and neuroscience, with everything attached to those two) are two sides of the same coin: looking to know how thing work.

The ideal situation for me would be to do both simultaneously: restomodding a Datsun as a hobby while doing the PhD. However... The ideal country for each of them is not the same. I hope I can find balance in the future.

I am thinking too much ahead. But thinking sometimes is good. I am grateful someone made me think and realise what I want. For now, I am happy with finding what I want!