#Dissertation

[shitacademicswrite]

[gwenpools-aesthetic]

Hey you! Yes, you!

Would you like your creation on display in a museum?

Would you like to help a super awesome PhD candidate complete her dissertation?

Would you like a great excuse to further procrastinate that thing you've been procrastinating?

All of these and more are great reasons to participate in Affirmation/Transformation: Fandom Created, an exhibition at Marquette University's Haggerty Museum of Art. (You do NOT need to be an artist, or even someone who creates art to participate!) Write a story, write a song, design a cosplay, create a fancy manicure, make a meme, make a stop-motion video, choreograph a dance, make a SuperWhoLock gif fic, or anything else your heart can dream up.

Your creation must follow only one rule: It must be inspired by a fusion of 1. any fandom of your choice, and 2. one of the featured Haggerty pieces (click the link to see them!)

Completed works are due July 1, 2024. The exhibition will run August 23rd-December 22nd, 2024, and will be available to view in person and online.

To see the Haggerty pieces, and to sign up to receive email reminders about the fan event, visit https://epublications.marquette.edu/fandom/Affirmationtransformation

[mpchev]

Update on fanbinding dissertation: binding the dissertation itself!

After many days and nights of writing and wrangling footnotes and proofreading (where I couldn't convince my laptop that yes, I meant textualisation, not sexualisation), 'twas time to bind the beasts! In three copies, no less! Which I approached with way too much confidence from my one fanbind experience, and came with many fun little surprises due to the format guidelines I had to follow 🤡

This is going to be a long one, so here's my happy unfocused mug to confirm that it all ends well:

First pickle: The typesetting. I absolutely loved typesetting fanfic, but the dissertation had to be A4 (way less fun, boo-hoo), one-sided, with every page numbered. Did you know that LibreOffice won't let you add blank pages and only number the non-blank ones, without skipping numbers? In order to print signatures I could fold into one-sided pages, only numbered on the right-hand pages, I ended up switching to landscape orientation and including the equivalent of a blank page in the left margin.

Second pickle: The imposing, which I couldn't figure out using the amazing bookbinder with my weird landscape 2-page layout. I finally gave in and rearranged all the pages manually, which looked like p. 1 on the recto / p. 10 on the verso, then p2/p9, p3/p8, p4/p7, p5/p8, p6/p7. And because there was no way I was paying print-in-colour prices for all of this, I further split the manually imposed pages into two files, one for the greyscale printer (cheaper) and one for the colour printer (highway robbery). Still came up to ~£70, just for printing.

Very glad I went in chunks of 10 for the signatures, it made both the math and the folding using sheets from two different piles much easier, highly recommend (if for some absurd reason you also want to bind one-sided numbered pages in folded signatures).

Third pickle: Linear time. Had planned on having so much time to print and bind this thing, but kept writing and rewriting and proofing and oops! It was due in less than 24 hours and it was still not out of the laptop. So.

22/09/24, 6pm: Got to the library, started printing.

6.45pm: Found another printer where all the paper was the same shade of white, started printing again 🤦‍♂️ (kept the the misprints to use as scrap paper when glueing)

7.30pm: Started folding the 150 sheets of paper (3 x 100-page dissertation, 2 pages per sheet). Went from the last episode of The Magnus Protocol, to an episode of Welcome to Night Vale, to deciding restart The Magnus Archive, which felt almost poetic.

9pm: Headed back home, trimmed the edges (with a borrowed guillotine), folded the endpapers, stabbed everything. Lack of pictures to be blamed on my inability to mess with linear time, and the eventual sleep deprivation.

10.30pm, I think? Started sewing the signatures together, again with Supernatural (which I started rewatching when I submitted my first dissertation assignment in mid-May, and finished 2 days after submitting the dissertation itself, again, such poetry).

2am, probably? Tipped the endpapers and glued cheesecloth over the spines. Somehow figured out where to set the three textblocks to dry (I don't have a press). Sadly gave up on sewing on (or glueing) headbands, because time.

3am-ish: Cut the missing cover pieces out of millboard (had already cut 4 of 6 covers, since I knew it had to be A4), measured the spines of the three textblocks and cut those as well.

???am: Did some math, because sure, that's the right time for that. Cut the bookcloth to size, glued the cover pieces on the bookcloth. Remarkably only messed up the measurements on one of them! That means one of the copies has a millimetre of millboard showing in the inside corners of the back cover, but not enough time/bookcloth/millboard to redo it, onward we go!

Way past dawn: Took a break for food while the covers somewhat dried. Cased the three textblocks in the three covers, with the endpapers bubbling, which took me by surprise since it was the same paper and same glue I had used for the fanbind without any problem. I'm now thinking that bigger book = more time needed to apply the glue = endpapers getting warped, but I was so exhausted by this point that who knows. Again, no time to redo it!

9.30am: Stacked the dissertations under the heavy reference books I used to write the dissertation. Toute est dans toute hein. Went to bed while they (mostly) dried.

2.30pm: Woken up by my neighbour's dj set. Eventually put all that hard work in a tote and walked to school to hand it in at 4.30pm.

Fourth and last pickle: The titling. Couldn't find paper long enough to do a half-dust jacket like I did last time. Had big cutout plans, ran out of time and couldn't finish testing those. Also had some thicker textured paper I thought of cutting and glueing to the cover as a title card, but it turned out too thin and was warping. Finally resigned myself to submitting it with a blank cover, but one of my teachers asked if I would mind adding the title on with metallic markers to make it easier to identify (one copy will eventually be on the shelf at the Institute), and I'm SO HAPPY with how it turned out. Metallic markers. Why didn't I think of that. (I did, however, think about dressing appropriately for the occasion.)

So, is it possible to print and bind 3 books in less than 24 hours? Yes! Am I glad I did it? Also yes, very satisfying, love being extra! Would I do it again? God no, I've been sleeping for two weeks and I still haven't recovered. Can't wait to start binding something else though, so I guess it wasn't that bad.

That's it! That's over! Aaaaaah! Now waiting for the grade and comments, and hopefully soon I'll be able to share the content as well.

I'll also try to post some more about the research/writing process itself, somewhere between the late nights reading international treaties on income tax and the early mornings spent figuring out how to apply for a phd next.

Thank you so much to everyone who followed along, this was way more fun than I ever could have hoped!

[in-tua-deep]

Researchers from the University of Indianapolis are investigating the experiences of queer individuals and their usage of social media, specifically the ways in which people use social media to facilitate identity development. If you are an adult (18 years or older) who are questioning their gender or sexual identity or who identify with a gender or sexuality that is non-cisgender or non-heterosexual, you are invited to take our survey! You can skip questions or exit the survey at any point, and it won’t cost you anything besides your time. There are no direct benefits to you, but your participation will help up is our research. In appreciation, you will be given the option to enter a drawing for one of four $20 Amazon gift cards. Participation is voluntary, and all responses will be kept confidential. If you choose to enter the drawing for a gift card, your email will be separated from your responses and will not be used for any other purpose.

If you are interested in participating, please follow the link to complete the survey.

Questions can be directed to Principal Investigator, Dr. Erin Fekete, at feketee@uindy.edu.

This research project has been approved by the University of Indianapolis Institutional Review Board (IRB). Approval date 09/27/2024; Approval number 02118.

[penandpaper-love]

July 11th, 2024

It's hard to focus, especially as I have an allergic reaction in my eyes... However, the end is near. Two days left!

[aquietplacetostudy]

days of october 🍂

aka coffee, daily walks and never-ending thesis work

[copticcowgirl]

Thesis-style bind: Roosting Ecology of Rafinesque's Big-Eared Bat and Southeastern Myotis in the Coastal Plain of Georgia

I wanted to do something special for my husband's birthday this year, so I spent the last month working on binding his 2011 Ph.D. dissertation.

Using DAS’s YouTube and Patreon videos, I vowed to attempt everything in his “Thesis Binding with Supported French Groove” YouTube video, and wow. I learned so much!

I’ve been bookbinding for a little over a year now, so I felt pretty confident I could pull off this bind.

There were many firsts: Split boards (I LOVE this!), Oxford hollow (I STRUGGLED with the head/tail turn-ins), quarter binding, actual bookcloth (why does it attract so much glue?!), heat quill pen by hand, French/Harrison groove, and a slipcase.

For the slipcase, I used the Hollander's book “Introduction to Bookbinding and Custom Cases,” and I highly recommend it for anyone new or even a year+ into binding.

And if you’re looking to really improve as a binder and don’t have access to in-person classes, DAS’s Patreon is THE BEST at any tier level. He recently has been uploading slow versions of his videos, with everything done in real time, and following along has made a massive difference in my binds.

It feels like I’m attending a workshop, except that I can rewind. Which I do. A LOT.

If you've made it this far, you know what's next. Bind details below and BTS (incl my 😵‍💫 face) below!

🔹bind style: quarter cloth bind, rounded & backed, sewn endpapers, split boards, Oxford hollow, French/Harrison groove 🔹endpapers: Jemma Lewis marbled papers 🔹fabric: Verona bookcloth, sapphire, from Hollanders 🔹edge decoration: diluted Liquitex acrylic ink in gold, applied in multiple layers for subtle shine 🔹endbands: 3 color bead on front, DIY rectangular leather lace core, Japanese silk thread 🔹slipcase: bookboard (.090), chipboard (.030), Jemma Lewis marbled papers, cream-colored cardstock for interior color, Verona sapphire bookcloth, Jade PVA “thick” used to glue pieces together, heat foil quill with gold foil for title.

[sinister-flower]

Hopefully someday I will stop being afraid of my own thoughts and opinions and I will finish my masters dissertation.

[magpiecollectingknowledge]

Dissertation prep is scary but exciting! I can’t believe I’m already having to start this; it feels like I started uni yesterday.

[paintedpigeon1]

Are you an adult with ADHD and/or autism?

I’m currently doing a Master's dissertation about how to improve access to public library services for adults with ADHD and/or autism, and I need your input!

If you are over 18, have ADHD and/or autism (edit for clarity: no matter where you live), and would like to help with this, please fill in the survey below by midnight on 8 August 2024.

For more information please contact me on ruth.collard-stayte@city.ac.uk

Even if you're not eligible, please share this post so I can receive as many responses as possible!

(Also you don't want to disappoint the cute brain on the flyer do you?)

[shitacademicswrite]

[haleghest]

Hi!

I'm an undergraduate student writing a dissertation about the relation between autism, autism representation and the Star Trek fandom. I would appreciate if you could fill out my questionnaire.

I appreciate any help I can get, feel free to share it with others!

Wersja polska (Polish version): https://forms.gle/Kw2JgEVuFXQGUAF69

English version: https://forms.gle/cuFAy21fDPcU4nZ98

EDIT: the questionnaire is now closed!

[mpchev]

Dissertation on Fanfiction Bookbinding — Looking for participants! [EDIT: Thank you so much, participants found!!!]

[Edit continued: I'm still sorting through emails and setting up meetings, will reply to everyone very soon, I can't even begin to thank everyone enough for the visibility that's been given to this 💜 I'll keep the updates coming as I work on the dissertation (and learn how to bookbind), in case anyone would like to follow along. For any questions about the research or comments/suggestions/resources about ficbinding, my asks are wide open. Thank you thank you thank you!!!]

Hi! My name is Marie Chevrier, I’m currently doing my postgraduate dissertation on fanfiction bookbinding, and I’m looking for people to talk to about it!

If you’ve ever taken a fanfic from somewhere online and turned it into a physical copy, either for yourself or as a gift, I’d love to know more. From printer paper stapled together to typesetting and painted edges, nothing is too simple or too complex — I’m interested in the whole process, what motivates readers or authors to bring the story to a different format, and how it’s one more way to interact with stories actively and creatively. This will be the final project of my MLitt in Folklore and Ethnology with the Elphinstone Institute (University of Aberdeen, Scotland).

What to Expect

To participate, you must be 18 or older and speak English. I’ll give you more details and answer any questions you might have via email, and will then set up individual video calls with participants (if you happen to be in North-East Scotland, we could also meet at an agreed public location). I’ll tell you more about the dissertation and explain how what you share will be used, which depends entirely on what you agree to, including if you would prefer your contribution to be credited or anonymised. I will ask you about your experience with fanfiction bookbinding and if you have some examples to show me, I would love to see them! Meetings will last approximately 45–90 minutes and take place in June 2024. You have the right to withdraw your participation at any time.

Contact Information

If you’d like to participate or have any questions, please send me an email at m.chevrier.23@abdn.ac.uk

To know more about the Elphinstone Institute, please visit https://www.abdn.ac.uk/elphinstone/

To know more about me, here's an intro post for you.

If for any reason you don’t wish to participate but still have comments/suggestions/resources/musings you’d like to send my way, please do!

[therepublicofletters]

Well now that the term is over, I can go back to my real work: my actual PhD dissertation in depth examination of Renaissance-style majestas papalis in modern media

[penandpaper-love]

June 25th, 2024

Yesterday I made some progress with my preparations for the exam. I still find it hard to concentrate and to be really present. I find myself distracted easily and I really wish I could take a real break.