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AsianScientist (Jul. 14, 2016) – Unless you’re a hermit who’s been hiding under an isolated rock for the past week, you must have heard the buzz about Pokémon Go, an augmented reality game just released by Nintendo and Niantic.

For the uninitiated, Pokémon are fictional critters inhabiting a rich video game world, and players take on the role of Pokémon trainers who travel far and wide to capture these creatures. Pokémon Go, in short, is the brilliant execution of a diabolical master plan to unleash these ‘Pocket Monsters’ into our world.

Instead of simply pressing buttons on a video game console, Pokémon Go players will have to navigate in real time and space using their GPS-enabled mobile phones to catch Pokémon superimposed onto real world locations.

Since its release, the game has caused all kinds of mischief in the countries where it has been made available for free download. As a Pokémon fan myself, I can’t wait for its arrival on Singapore shores, which is rumored to be soon.

But wait; am I not already living the Pokémon adventure as a PhD student?


A wild PhD student appears!

Don’t believe me? Well, read on to discover some uncanny similarities between the PhD student and the Pokémon trainer.

1. “Don’t go into the tall grass! Wild Pokémon live there.” This is your inner voice or fellow undergraduates’ reactions when you discuss pursuing a PhD after graduation. If you’re a PhD student or have a PhD, you managed to tune out those voices, for better or for worse.
2. Meeting Professor Oak/Elm/Birch, also known as your PhD supervisor. He or she will introduce you to the research directions of the lab and perhaps some project ideas that you may want to take up for your PhD.
3. Choosing your starter Pokémon is akin to picking a project for your PhD. Choose wisely! It will occupy most of your waking hours for the next four years at least.
4. Your lab notebook is your Pokédex, charting your experiment protocols, data and general progress throughout your PhD.
5. Game mom = real mom, always supporting you on your journey.
6. Just like your in-game rival, your scientific rivals (or more likely your supervisor’s) will always keep you on your toes.
7. Other PhD candidates are like fellow Pokémon trainers. You might trade protocols (some Pokémon evolve when traded, so why not your experiments too?) or otherwise just share the joys and woes of the PhD experience with each another.
8. In-game cash is grant funding in real life. Works exactly the same way as well.
9. I like to think of the Pokémon Center and Nurse Joy as any activity that helps you de-stress. It could also be your comfort food that brings you some happiness when you hit a rough patch with experiments.
10. Reagents and consumables vendors are like the Pokémart, except that sometimes there are back orders for certain items.
11. At some stage in the game you unlock running shoes and a bike. During the PhD, this might be the point when you start putting on weight from unhealthy eating habits. This is a hint to get some exercise! A healthy scientist is a happy scientist. I think.
12. The Team Rocket of your PhD candidature would probably be irresponsible lab members who use up important reagents, then blast off at the speed of light without replenishing them, thus sabotaging your experiment.
13. Technical and Hidden machines (TMs and HMs, respectively) are the equivalent of lab skills that you pick up during your PhD journey. Some are essential and can’t be unlearned, while others you just want to forget.
14. Rare candy allows Pokémon to level up without hours of arduous training. Kind of like lab hacks!
15. In the game, you throw a Pokéball at a wild Pokémon to capture it. This is like an initial manuscript submission. With luck, one throw is enough, but that’s rarely the case, is it?
16. In the game, Pokémon trainers will need to battle against strong characters called Gym Leaders to progress. Journal reviewers are the Gym Leaders of the scientific world. Brace yourself for a tough fight!
17. Once you defeat the Gym Leader you get a Gym badge. That’s your successful publication. Congratulations!
18. Pokémon trainers roam freely across diverse cities and locations. During your PhD, these are international conferences that you might attend to learn what’s cutting-edge and also to showcase your work.
19. Legendary Pokémon sometimes appear in exotic locations. These are like the elusive Nobel laureates and other prominent scientists in your field of study who sometimes appear at exclusive seminars or conferences.
20. Your final challenge as a Pokémon trainer is to defeat the Elite Four—four individuals with incredibly strong Pokémon. Similarly, the final hurdle at the end of your PhD journey is the thesis defense where you present your findings to a panel comprising three to four professors with a combined IQ of 4,000. (At least, it feels that way.)

So, if you’re convinced that the PhD experience is just like playing a game of Pokémon, you really ought to start singing “I wanna be the very best, like no one ever was.”

Until then, may you succeed in your quest to catch ’em all, whether it be for publications or grant applications, and rightfully claim the title of Pokémon Honorary Duelist.

Or maybe, just graduate with your PhD.


This article is from a monthly column called Hacking a PhD. Click here to see the other articles in this series.

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Copyright: Asian Scientist Magazine; Photo: Farley Santos/Flickr/CC.
Disclaimer: This article does not necessarily reflect the views of AsianScientist or its staff.