Update on Dissertation Progress

While we were in Wilmington I talked to my #2 adviser by phone for two hours. He had read part of my work. Then I met with him in person in Washington DC for an hour on our way back home. By then he had read it all. He said it was a great piece of work. He also had tons of suggestions about things to include–mostly things that interest him in particular. He had a short list of things that definitely need to be changed. Still, it will be a significant amount of work.

I had already received feedback from my #3 adviser. Basically he wants me to read two books and incorporate them into the work. I read one of them during the trip to Wilmington. His overall comment was that he thinks my dissertation will be ground breaking for MTW.

When I got home the notes from my #1 adviser were waiting for me. Basically he wants me to restructure chapter 4, make the last part of chapter four into chapter 5, and make chapter 5 into chapter 6. Or something like that. I also have to add some summary sections and a few other things. Not a lot of content changes, but all in all, it’s still a lot of work. He’s still on vacation, so while I’m doing what I can, there are still a number of questions I have that I can’t get answers to until he gets back. He wants me to defend during the second or third week of September. But if he doesn’t get back from vacation until the 15th of August, and since I have to have the final version turned in a month before I defend, I’m not sure that is possible.

So some days I feel quite overwhelmed. So thanks for your prayers.