Let's get critical: Sep 2013 Site Self-Evaluation

Question

We all love Academia Stack Exchange, but there is a whole world of people out there who need answers to their questions and don't even know that this site exists. When they arrive from Google, what will their first impression be? Let's try to look at this site through the eyes of someone who's never seen it before, and see how we stack up against the rest of the 'Net.

The Site Self-Evaluation review queue is open and populated with 10 questions that were asked and answered in the last quarter. Run a few Google searches to see how easy they are to find and compare the answers we have with the information available on other sites.

Rating the questions is only a part of the puzzle, though. Do you see a pattern of questions that should have been closed but are not? Questions or answers that could use an edit? Anything that's going really well? Post an answer below to share your thoughts and discuss these questions and the site's health with your fellow users!

Answer 1

I think it's time the site came out of beta ! it's a very healthy and thriving community.

Answer 2

I think we are doing very well, with a very good quantity and quality of contributions from many people from many different backgrounds. Of particular note are the amount and quality of answers provided and the general comfortable and friendly nature of this site.

Answer 3

I'll also add a fresh plot of Academia traffic (red symbols) as a function of time:

Notice how a 7th order polynomial fit (in blue) to the recent data highlights that the site is literally taking off.

Answer 4

Final Results

• What does a plus sign mean in journal abbreviations?

  Net Score: 8 (Excellent: 8, Satisfactory: 6, Needs Improvement: 0)

• How much vacation time is typical during a PhD in the United States?

  Net Score: 10 (Excellent: 10, Satisfactory: 3, Needs Improvement: 0)

• Advisor dies suddenly, advice needed for research students

  Net Score: 10 (Excellent: 10, Satisfactory: 3, Needs Improvement: 0)

• How long is reasonable to wait for reply from an editor?

  Net Score: 3 (Excellent: 5, Satisfactory: 5, Needs Improvement: 2)

• How strict are listed minimum requirements for admission to a graduate degree program?

  Net Score: 8 (Excellent: 8, Satisfactory: 4, Needs Improvement: 0)

• How do PhD admissions committees view double majors?

  Net Score: 6 (Excellent: 6, Satisfactory: 6, Needs Improvement: 0)

• How does one go about starting a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC)?

  Net Score: 0 (Excellent: 5, Satisfactory: 2, Needs Improvement: 5)

• Repositories of funded research projects in different countries?

  Net Score: 1 (Excellent: 3, Satisfactory: 7, Needs Improvement: 2)

• Are tuition subsidies taxables for research staff?

  Net Score: 3 (Excellent: 3, Satisfactory: 8, Needs Improvement: 0)

• MOOC / video integration into classroom schedule

  Net Score: 4 (Excellent: 4, Satisfactory: 6, Needs Improvement: 0)