Letter to your Congressperson/Member in Parliment

Every now and then an issue comes along where you need to voice your opinion. A great way to do that is to write your congressperson/member of parliament. One issue that has recently surfaced that I feel the need to voice my opinion is the closure of the Experimental Lakes Area (ELA). Luckily, I didn't have to slave over writing a letter to my congressperson/member of parliament as someone already has. This particular letter I find well crafted because it is simple, includes necessary statistics, and ends with how to proceed with the next necessary action.

(, [, {, or angle bracket?

There are four generally accepted different parentheses or braces that one can use. For most uses, unless specified otherwise by author submission guidelines, the curved brackets or parentheses (...) are preferred. The square brackets [...] are used to include information from an outside source or author. The curly braces {...} are used in prose to display a list of equal choices. Angle brackets <...> are used when one would want to highlight information. Parentheses are great, just don't over use them (know what I mean). References: Scribendi, Grammar Girl

Why do a PhD?

Inevitably, the question always arises from family and friends, "Why are you doing a PhD again?" Well, now you simply have to choose a category that you fit in and tow the party line says an article from The Guardian. Are you doing your PhD because: a) You are genuinely interested in your chosen field, b) You want a higher salary and or/job advancement, or c) Prestige. Categories make things so easy.