what even is research
Table of contents
welcome to research.
research
-re-search
(english?): a way to improve beyond standards that exist.disclaimer: it is a grind and a heck of a lot of sweat.
A Sprinkle of Inspiration
University is a big pond. In fact, its an ocean. You can go as deep or as shallow as you’d like. No one’s gonna know. No one’s gonna care. Anyway, I like to check out the Faculty Blog. At Plymouth University, this is conveniently titled the ‘Biomedical Science Blog.’ So one day in 2014, I find a student - a final year student - a student who is now a PhD student at Cambridge. Unreal. A Plymouth undergrad - now a postgrad at Cambridge. As a bright-eyed first year biomed, I was mightily impressed.
Ask Questions
I had no idea how to pick out a supervisor or even a topic of interest. In fact, I just went for the author of the ‘Biomedical Science Blog,’ at Plymouth University. The man kindly invited me for a meeting. Knocked on his door. Ah, could you come back in 15 minutes. No worries - I’ll be back.
15 minutes go by. I’m back. Now, I can honestly tell you I cannot recall a lot in this meeting. All I remember was personalised healthcare through genomes. Here’s a load of genetic sequences and this is what might change clinical healthcare. It was mesmorising. At the end of it all, in my daze, the tutor said - ‘Look, if you don’t understand what’s going on, you need to ask more questions.’
Hard truth. But its the power of research. There’s always more questions than answers. If you don’t know what the fuck’s going on, I bet you a load of other people don’t either. So ask the question.
What is Your Question
This is probably the hardest part of the puzzle. Defining the fucking question you’re asking. I come from big data - you get the data, poke around and come up with a question. Of course, old school science says come up with the question, get the data and poke around. However you go about it, you gotta speak to others - your peers, fellow lab members and supervisors. Is what I have meaningful? Will it add to the literature? Am I best placed to answer it?
Know yo question better than yo know your wife.
The Handover
Two parts to a handover. The hand and the over. Not sure where I’m going with this. Anyway, to kickstart your work - some of the most valuable time is spent with the person already working on a similar project or the one you’re about to work on. They’ll have an awareness of problems and processes that probably no one else on earth will be aware of.
And on the opposite side, once you’ve put your research shift in - what bits can be taken on further? In other words, who’s gonna finally bring the publication(s) home and how are they gonna do it? Make a manual - a minimum level of detail so readers can understand what was done - so one can critically appraise and replicate. I’ve said some big words there. That’s enough for now.