cgshep's comments

cgshep | 1 year ago | on: alphaXiv: Open research discussion on top of arXiv

Tenured prof here. Every paper of mine goes on Arxiv with no exceptions, published under CC BY-NC-ND licenses. Some of us are working hard to overcome the system (e.g. look at the IACR's efforts). Unfortunately, academics are still hindered by institutional inertia; in fact, many prefer the status quo, usually those who rely on prestige over actual quality to advance their careers.

cgshep | 1 year ago | on: alphaXiv: Open research discussion on top of arXiv

> Use HTML rather then PDF.

Tenured prof here. Academics don't use HTML, despite its obvious advantages. The incentive system is deeply broken. No big-name journal or conference will accept a well-formatted HTML over their proprietary Latex/Word format. Latex to PDF converters generally suck.

cgshep | 3 years ago | on: Elliptic Curve Cryptography: A Basic Introduction

It's important to note that most ECC is not quantum-resistant and will be obsoleted in the coming years following completion of NIST's post-quantum cryptography competition.

Indeed, OpenSSH recently enabled PQC by default (NTRU Prime over X25519) [1]. ECC has, at best, a short-to-medium term lifespan right now.

1. https://www.zdnet.com/article/openssh-now-defaults-to-protec...

cgshep | 5 years ago | on: Was a PhD necessary to solve outstanding math problems?

Sadly, this omits a hard truth that impactful research requires near-total dedication. The payoff is highly non-linear versus time invested; conducting research part-time is a recipe for underperformance, which is (partly) why research funders often contractually cap the hours one may work externally while a staff researcher or PhD student.

cgshep | 5 years ago | on: Data and graphs showing millenials' bad economic odds

This thread resonates a lot having graduated in 2013. I've worked for several years in three major European cities — London, Cambridge and Brussels — on above average salaries as a data scientist in the financial sector. I'm also a former Samsung employee; I received a good hand from life's lottery.

Yet, a modest family home is out of my reach once childcare and other bills are considered. This is in sharp contrast to my parents who school without degrees, bought a 3-bedroom house in their early 20s and who are now both retired.

What went wrong?