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Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

brown.edu

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Re: Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

#71

Post by cg30e »

This is very inspiring. I too am young and been in the work force for several years, but unlike the other comments in this thread I am not settled down as an older student returning to school.

I am willing to give up a high paying salary to return back to school as a PhD student and I am not tied down with a mortgage or anything else.

I find mathematics simply too interesting to not learn at the highest level. Working in industry will simply not teach me the material I want to learn. I’m considering going back for either a PhD in Math or a math heavy PhD in CS. I read math textbooks for fun and worked with tutors to ensure my proofs are done correctly. I can do this for hours on end without external motivation. I taught myself a lot of math and can see myself doing this as a career. I want to do research.

Most people my age say the same things in the comment sections in this thread (tied down to a mortgage, make too much money to return). I’m glad generalizations like these don’t apply to me and can’t wait to get back to school

Re: Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

#72

Post by tomrod »

grayclhn wrote: post #50
soheil wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What about working harder than your peers? If you're 2x harder working than the avg phd student shouldn't you be able to dedicate half or a third of that time to work and still finish the phd in 5 years?

IME (US) the typical successful phd student works 60-80 hours a week, so… good luck working twice that hard for 5 years.

Often more than that. During the dissertation phase 16 hour days almost every day can be common.

It is brutal. It can be worth it, but it is brutal.

Re: Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

#73

Post by carrolldunham »

wheelinsupial wrote: post #66
carrolldunham wrote: post #23

A PhD is research training. Is he doing to do research now, or is this just, like everyone seems to be treating it - a big trophy? Does anyone ever stop to question their credentialist mindset? I heard a character in a video game say indignantly "Excuse me, I have a PhD", and I thought, well, that's not realistic dialog because a PhDs is something you have done, not something that you 'have'. But then people here are…

The title is more accurately described as “Former Brown Professor of Medicine Returns to Brown to earn his Third Doctorate“ He had an MD, received a PhD from MIT, then went on to have a career as a researcher at Brown before taking up physics undergrad classes, and then continuing on to grad school. He is quoted in the article as saying he will continue to work on physics research.

I was commenting on the responses though, of "I'm so inspired". People are treating it as if the person has pulled off deathbed salvation, thankfully earning access to the eternal status of "PhD haver" in time.

Re: Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

#74

Post by jwilber »

throaway1990 wrote: post #56
tombert wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which I find weird; are European/British PhDs generally considered less valuable than American? I didn’t think they were but there’s a lot I don’t know about this.

European PhDs have better structure and rigid filters to weed out the unworthy dweebs. And the students take far less courses and generally work harder. US PhD system is slow and often leads to counter-intuitive, interesting or just weird results, which may or mayn't pan out in the long run. US PhD system has to be longer because i) US undergraduate system is absolute trash (like worse than 3rd world 12th grader at t…

Sorry you got rejected from all the US programs you applied for? Lol

Re: Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

#76

Post by axiom92 »

cg30e wrote: post #71

This is very inspiring. I too am young and been in the work force for several years, but unlike the other comments in this thread I am not settled down as an older student returning to school. I am willing to give up a high paying salary to return back to school as a PhD student and I am not tied down with a mortgage or anything else. I find mathematics simply too interesting to not learn at the highest level. Workin…

PhD or not is one of those questions where if you find yourself asking it repeatedly (especially to others around you), the answer is no.

You are exactly the kind of person who should be doing it!

Good luck!

Re: Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

#78

Post by wanderingmind »

For all the fantasy here, let me remind you doing a PhD at an early age is one of the worst things you can do to your financial security (CS Ph.D being a major exception). It does not teach any employable skills, leads to a very high level of depression/anxiety compared to regular jobs and creates a huge opportunity cost where you miss out saving money early that has true compounding capability. The 2019 Nature survey has more information

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-03459-7

Re: Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

#79

Post by eric4smith »

Very inspiring story indeed. But the first question resonating in my mind is...

Why??

While what the student did is good. It serves as bad inspiration for too many people going to college these days just because they want to. And not because of a reason.

If the cost of education was low, then I would not be opposed to it. But we all know stories of people who say they are "going back to school" for very minimal benefits later.

So... at that age, we can see it as just an aspirational thing. But for younger people, it mostly (not all the time) sends the wrong message.

Re: Physics Student Earns PhD at Age 89

#80

Post by cg30e »

axiom92 wrote: post #76
cg30e wrote: post #71

This is very inspiring. I too am young and been in the work force for several years, but unlike the other comments in this thread I am not settled down as an older student returning to school. I am willing to give up a high paying salary to return back to school as a PhD student and I am not tied down with a mortgage or anything else. I find mathematics simply too interesting to not learn at the highest level. Workin…

PhD or not is one of those questions where if you find yourself asking it repeatedly (especially to others around you), the answer is no. You are exactly the kind of person who should be doing it! Good luck!

Thank you!
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