Tag Archives: University

My PhD Thesis

My PhD Thesis entitled “Mutual Coupling Compensation & Realization Aspects of Array Design for FMCW MIMO Radars” is available for check out from the JKU library. Here some of the steps that lead up to the completion:

PhD Thesis Step 1: Informal Submission
PhD Thesis Step 2: Collecting ECTS
PhD Thesis Step 3: A Date
PhD Thesis Step 4: Thesis Submission
PhD Thesis Step 5: All Set for the Final Date
PhD Thesis Step 6: 48 hours
PhD Thesis Step 7: The Official Decree

PhD Thesis Step 6: 48 hours

Microblog of the 48 h hours around my to my PhD defense.

15.12.2016

09:00 – Working on the PhD presentation
13:00 – Short walk to Bella Casa to order 18 Pizzas for tomorrow
14:00 – Chat with other PhD students about previous oral exams.
14:30 – Last chat with my advisor before the defense, as usual we talk about everything an nothing.
15:30 – Final edits to my presentation.
17:30 – Presentation dry run with useful feedback from Herbert
18:30 – Christmas social at the office
19:15 – Shopping for beer, champagne and snacks
19:45 – Delivering beer and snacks to the uni campus
20:30 – Last minute studying of “Microwave Engineering” by David M. Pozar
23:00 – Brushing my teeth and going to sleep
24:00 – Realizing that there won’t be much sleep tonight.

16.12.2016

07:30 – Good morning!
08:00 – Ironing a white shirt
08:20 – Final dry run before the actual thing
08:50 – Realizing that I have my black shoes at my parents place. – The dark blue will have to do
09:00 – Short walk to the university
09:20 – Connecting to the projector. Having my friend Reinhard print some last minute paperwork.
09:45 – First guests arrive
10:00 – The show starts
11:15 – Yay! You may now call me Dr. Schmid
11:45 – The party starts: Champagne, beer and pizza for everyone!
13:00 – So many people have shown up to party with me! Me, happy!
16:00 – We move to a pub
17:00 – We move to a restaurant
21:00 – I arrive back home – still, happy!
22:00 – I fall asleep.

17.12.2016

05:30 – Getting up, I have a train to catch
07:15 – Boarding the train to Flughafen Wien.
10:20 – Boarding the plane to Athens
13:45 – Landing in Athens
14:30 – Boarding the Metro
15:30 – Arrival at the hotel for the Region 8 OpCom meeting
16:00 – Joining my last IEEE Region 8 OpCom Meeting
xx:xx – Still feeling happy!

PhD Thesis Step 5: All Set for the Final Date

If there’s one thing that I have learned about my PhD advisor over the past years, it’s that he’s a last minute kind-of-person. Now that all reports are in (on the last possible day), the university has officially announced my defense!

2016_12_16

Two thoughts that keep me going:

  • In 6 days from now I’ll have officially eared my PhD.
  • In 7 days from now I’ll enjoy a cocktails with a view on the Acropolis of Athens.

PhD Thesis Step 2: Collecting ECTS

Finally I figured out which curriculum applies – they have changed it 5 times since I’ve started my PhD. Lucky as I am, the classes and ECTS that I have collected so far can still be used today. Some bureaucratic hurdles later, the university online system now says that I have completed all my ECTS duties. Yay!

image001We may now actually buy the champagne. I’ll keep you posted.

 

PhD Thesis Step 1: Informal Submission

The road to my PhD is a bumpy one. But finally I think I am at the point where it becomes realistic for me to close this nasty open loop within the next 3 months.

The first step (that I am willing to blog about) was the informal submission of my thesis today. I submitted it both to my supervisor and the second, external examiner from the University of Ulm.

phd-coverWe may want to think about shopping for champagne. I’ll keep you posted.

Left4Dead2

Some time during the last year I got myself a steam account. Originally, I just wanted to see where Linux gaming was. My verdict: The choices are limited and most games are only available for Windows. But those that are available on Linux (Half Life 2, Portal, Left4Dead, …) are just as playable on Linux as on Windows.

At any rate, during the holiday season Steam gave away Left4Dead2 for free. That’s why I and most of my steam friends at uni have it and why we meet online to play it from time to time, such as today. Guilty as charged, there’s a little video game addict in me ;)

Left4Dead2After all: you have to be prepared for the ultimate zombie apocalypse. Apart from that it’s probably a good idea to make sure you and your colleagues at work (the place where you are most likely going to be when it’s going to happen) are working like a well-oiled zombie defence machine.

Actually that justification sucks …

My Job #2

In my last post I claimed that part of my research is paid for by Infineon, the rest of the money is actually coming from public funding. That is why we have to provide an annual report about our activities once a year. Today I spent most of my time preparing the 2013 report.

The afternoon mostly went into updating my CV and preparing job application material. This week’s discussions made me understand that I should at least be able to hand in something at any given time. – You gotta be prepared ;)

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