Free Resources on The Augmented Scholar

Obsidian PhD Starter Vault

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

What the Vault Looks Like

When you open this vault in Obsidian for the first time, you’ll find a clean, opinionated structure:

00-Inbox/ ← temporary landing zone for quick captures
10-Projects/ ← active research projects (thesis chapters, papers)
20-Areas/ ← ongoing responsibilities (teaching, admin, methods)
30-Resources/ ← reference material, authors, concepts
40-Archive/ ← completed or inactive notes
_Templates/ ← all templates in one place
_Queries/ ← pre-built Dataview dashboards

Setting Up in 5 Minutes

Download and unzip the vault
Open Obsidian → “Open folder as vault” → select the unzipped folder
Install the Dataview plugin (Settings → Community plugins)
Open _Queries/Research Dashboard.md to see your active projects

That’s it. Start by adding a paper you’re reading using the Literature Note template (Cmd/Ctrl+T).

Literature Note Template (Zotero + Obsidian)

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

How the Template Works

When you trigger the template in Obsidian, Templater runs a script that reads your frontmatter and optionally queries the Zotero API (if you supply the citekey). In the simplest version, you fill in the citekey manually and the template structures everything else.

Matplotlib Publication Figure Template

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

What Makes a Publication-Quality Figure

Journal requirements typically demand:

300 DPI minimum (often 600 for line art)
Figure width: 86 mm (single column) or 176 mm (double column) — exact values depend on journal
Font size: 8–10pt for axis labels, consistent with body text
No chart junk: white background, no box spines, minimal grid lines
Colour-blind friendly palettes (avoid red/green alone)

This template sets all of these automatically. A single import figure_styles at the top of a notebook applies the preset.

PhD Thesis LaTeX Template

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

How to Use It

Option A — Overleaf (recommended)

Download the ZIP
In Overleaf: New Project → Upload Project → select the ZIP
Overleaf compiles automatically. Start editing chapters/01-introduction.tex

Option B — Local Compilation

# Requires: TeX Live with biblatex and biber
pdflatex main
biber main
pdflatex main
pdflatex main

Or use latexmk for one-command compilation:

Academic Conference Poster Template

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Printing Tips

Recommended Print Settings

Setting	Value
Format	A0 portrait (841 × 1189 mm)
Resolution	150 DPI for mixed graphics; 300 DPI for line art only
Colour profile	CMYK (ask your print shop)
Bleed	Add 3mm bleed in Inkscape export if required

Exporting from Inkscape

File → Export PNG → set 150 DPI for a quick proof
File → Save a Copy → PDF with “Use exported objects size” checked for print

Common Conference Poster Sizes

This template is A0 portrait. Other common sizes: