<story><title>Undergraduate Math Student Pushes Frontier of Graph Theory</title><url>https://www.quantamagazine.org/mit-undergraduate-math-student-pushes-frontier-of-graph-theory-20201130/</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>bigdict</author><text>This sort of news is always like a splash of cold water to the face to me.&lt;p&gt;I haven&amp;#x27;t produced any breakthrough research as an undergraduate. Have I accomplished enough? Am I too complacent? Should I be doing more, working more, studying more?&lt;p&gt;I always remember that the best way to achievement is to stick to areas that are personally exciting to me, and keep cranking at the best pace I can.&lt;p&gt;Others&amp;#x27; success shouldn&amp;#x27;t make you anxious. Instead, let it motivate you to move faster along your own groove.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>lordnacho</author><text>I think you need a confluence of fortuitous circumstances to get things like this done:&lt;p&gt;- You need to have your own psychology in order. A lot of people have things going on in their lives that make it impossible to concentrate on this sort of thing.&lt;p&gt;- You need to be close enough, background wise. No prereqs -&amp;gt; can&amp;#x27;t learn this subject.&lt;p&gt;- You need to be aware of where the low hanging fruit is. This might be some random comment by a lecturer or a line in a paper that makes you investigate something.&lt;p&gt;- You need access to resources. Anything from a sparring partner to a hadron collider might be needed.&lt;p&gt;- Timing. Bunch of stuff coming together, might happen 10 years before you or 10 years after.&lt;p&gt;So there&amp;#x27;s reasons why undergrads don&amp;#x27;t always come up with groundbreaking things. Not to worry. You can still try to understand stuff after someone else has found it.</text></comment>
<story><title>Undergraduate Math Student Pushes Frontier of Graph Theory</title><url>https://www.quantamagazine.org/mit-undergraduate-math-student-pushes-frontier-of-graph-theory-20201130/</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>bigdict</author><text>This sort of news is always like a splash of cold water to the face to me.&lt;p&gt;I haven&amp;#x27;t produced any breakthrough research as an undergraduate. Have I accomplished enough? Am I too complacent? Should I be doing more, working more, studying more?&lt;p&gt;I always remember that the best way to achievement is to stick to areas that are personally exciting to me, and keep cranking at the best pace I can.&lt;p&gt;Others&amp;#x27; success shouldn&amp;#x27;t make you anxious. Instead, let it motivate you to move faster along your own groove.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>throwaway201103</author><text>Most post-graduate researchers don&amp;#x27;t produce any breakthrough research. The produce incremental improvements, moderately interesting findings, etc. Or often, inconclusive results. Breakthroughs are rare.</text></comment>