The phD defense

I went to Keyvan's phD defense today. His research is on computerized interface control documents.

There were 3 internal examiners (1 supervisor included) all from our department, 1 external examiner coming from the department of architecture (there is another one who did not show up), the Dean of our department and a facilitator coming from the department of music. Some students were also there.

The defense started with a 20-minute presentation. He did well, but the presentation could have been more fun and appealing if he had added some pictures or colors instead of a lot of text. If it was me, I would just use a few words in large size to show the outline, and try to illustrate my work using graphs and charts.

Questions from committee followed. There were at least two rounds of questions (coz I left at the end of the second round). The order is External-> Internal (Peter)-> Dean-> Internal (my dynamics teacher) ->supervisor (with questions from the absent external).
Peter is very concerned about the application of the research in other areas. He asked whether this can be used in systems like engineering education, manufacturing system,  and mechanical components instead of electronic components. I remembered he, when reviewing my master thesis, also asked whether my research on value optimization can be used in other fields other than aerospace.
My dynamics teacher acted kind of aggressive as I see. His questions are more about concepts coz he did not have the same understanding of some words like "model", "interface" with the presenter. And he interrupted the presenter's explanation, like "Yeah, yeah, yeah I know that,...", to further ask his question. Keyvan told me it's because the professor did not read his thesis. He also told me that is fine and normal, the teacher did that to everyone and he's just asking questions. (The professor is probably very strict coz I remember I got a B from him. I always get A and I did well on dynamics..). One lesson should be learnt: Give clear definitions of basic concept, reach a consensus with audience on concepts.
When the presenter explained, the committee members often asked him to give examples. Thus another lesson is that you should always prepare and look for good examples to illustrate your theory.


It is a little bit sad that Keyvan is leaving the lab and research team. He is a nice gentleman and gave me suggestions on my thesis. Good wishes for him.


I am starting my phD soon. It will be a challenging and fun adventure.