Some Poor grad student pressing on the flanks of a hamster and out comes a doctorate on the other side
Interpretation
Success often comes from persistent effort and creative problem-solving, even in the most unexpected situations.
This quote humorously illustrates the often arduous journey of academic pursuit, likening it to the whimsical notion of pressing on the flanks of a hamster to yield a doctoral degree. It highlights the challenges and absurdities faced by graduate students, suggesting that through determination and innovative approaches, they can achieve significant accomplishments, even if the path seems bizarre or unlikely.
In practice
This quote can be used at a graduation ceremony to inspire students about the unexpected paths to success.
I love science, and it pains me to think that so many are terrified of the subject or feel that choosing science means you cannot also choose compassion, or the arts, or be awed by nature. Science is not meant to cure us of mystery, but to reinvent and reinvigorate it.
We live well enough to have the luxury to get ourselves sick with purely social, psychological stress.
Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books, history is silent.
The biggest thing I noticed growing up when I was doing BMX racing or playing rugby through to secondary school level, was seeing the parents who were so desperate to see their kids do well that they were almost living their lives through their kids and putting huge pressure on them to the point they weren't enjoying it.
Typically, when you read, you have more time to think. Reading gives you a unique pause button for comprehension and insight. By and large, with oral language - when you watch a film or listen to a tape - you don't press pause.
Introducing a spelling test to a student by saying, 'Let's see how many words you know,' is different from saying, 'Let's see how many words you know already.' It is only one word, but the already suggests that any words the child knows are ahead of expectation and, most important, that there is nothing permanent about what is known and not known.
Experience is an author's most valuable asset; experience is the thing that puts the muscle and the breath and the warm blood into the book he writes.
English usage is sometimes more than mere taste, judgment and education - sometimes it's sheer luck, like getting across the street.
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