SciSpace has become much more than a tool for chatting with PDFs. In this episode of the PhD Toolkit, we put it through a real research workflow to find out whether it actually deserves a place in your research toolkit.

We test how well it helps with literature discovery, understanding papers, note-taking, writing and overall workflow before scoring it on our PhD Toolkit leaderboard.

⭐ Try SciSpace

This video isn't sponsored, but we do use affiliate links. If you decide SciSpace is right for you, using our link helps support the channel at no extra cost.

🔗 Affiliate link:

https://thestrugglingscientists.com/Scispace

🎁 Discount codes:

JNSS20 = 20% off monthly plans

JNSS40 = 40% off annual plans, best for heavy users or systematic reviews

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Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:10 Setting up the test

01:51 Finding papers

04:56 Understanding papers

05:38 Saving ideas

10:23 Writing

14:32 Research Impact

15:37 Ease of Use

16:31 Value for Money

17:30 Workflow Integration

18:35 Would we recommend it?

19:09 Leaderboard update

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📚 Watch the rest of the PhD Toolkit here:

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz6aXl5V5V77ziE8Leh9IuMB4yY4m0Yjq&si=OaQLB5nKrTQdyNwJ

Learn how to apply the core ideas from Deep Work by Cal Newport to your life as a PhD student, postdoc, or early-career researcher.

In this episode, we break down what Deep Work actually is, why shallow work can take over your best energy, and how to use the four Deep Work methods: monastic, bimodal, rhythmic, and journalistic.

If you want to protect more focused time for writing, reading, analysis, or research thinking, this episode will help you choose the Deep Work method that fits your academic life best.

🎓 About our channel

We are The Struggling Scientists. We make honest videos about PhD life, academia, and how to make your research journey a little bit easier.

If that sounds helpful, consider subscribing.

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👉 We’ve created a free AI prompt to help you apply the Deep Work methods to your own research:

https://thestrugglingscientists.com/deepwork

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👉 We also created a full AI Tools for Academics Masterclass, where we walk through how to use AI ethically and effectively throughout the research process:

https://thestrugglingscientists.com/MasterclassAI

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⏰ TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction

01:22 What is Deep work

03:37 Four methods of Deep work

04:26 Monastic method

06:22 Bimodal method

08:18 Rhythmic method

10:22 Journalistic method

13:43 Conclusion

15:08 AI prompt for Deep work

17:02 Final thoughts

📱 Follow us for more content

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#academia #phdlife #research #scientificresearch #gradschool #academiclife #deepwork

AI is already being used in academic research, and some of it is going very wrong.

In this video, we break down real cases where the misuse of AI led to serious problems in published scientific papers. This includes fake references, copy pasted AI text, and completely incorrect AI generated figures that somehow made it through peer review.

From a hospital librarian discovering that most references in a paper did not even exist, to a viral paper with biologically impossible AI images, these examples highlight a growing issue in modern science.

But this is not just about researchers using AI incorrectly. It also raises bigger questions about peer review, journal responsibility, and how these mistakes are slipping through the system.

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👉 We are The Struggling Scientists, a channel for all struggling scientists out there.

We share honest experiences, practical advice, and real stories to help make your life in academia just a little bit less of a struggle.

🎓 Want to learn how to use AI properly in your research?

We created a full AI for Academics Masterclass where we show you how to use AI tools ethically and effectively, without risking your work or credibility:

https://thestrugglingscientists.com/MasterclassAI

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⏰ TIME STAMPS

00:00 AI is already breaking research

00:50 Copy pasted ChatGPT in a published paper

02:55Fake references discovered by a librarian

04:40 AI generated figures that make no sense

6:55 What this means for science

7:50 Final thoughts

📱 Follow us for more content

https://thestrugglingscientists.com/newsletter

https://www.instagram.com/thestrugglingscientistspodcast/

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-struggling-scientists-podcast/

https://bsky.app/profile/thestrugglings4.bsky.social

https://www.tiktok.com/@struggling.scientists

https://www.threads.com/@thestrugglingscientistspodcast

#academia #phdlife #research #ai #chatgpt #scientificresearch #gradschool #academiclife #researchintegrity