how to do research dan simon cleveland state university october 2003
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How to do research
Dan Simon
Cleveland State University
October 2003
The key is balance
• You can study too much, or not enough
• Gain / bandwidth can be too high, or too low
Solve the right problem
• Find a problem that is interesting and challenging
• Find a problem that is solvable
• Balance challenge with solvability
• Experience helps with balance
Solve the right problem in the right way
• Look for problem-driven solutions, not solution-driven problems
Achievability and Payoff
• Attack a problem that you can solve
• Attack a problem that has a payoff
Lik
ely
Pay
off
Difficulty
• Use the best tool to solve the problem
• Use available resources– Seminars– Books / Journals– Colleagues– Internet– Library
Collect a repertoire of tools
Generalize and specialize
• Balance breadth and depth
• A generalist knows nothing about everything
• A specialist knows everything about nothing
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar (1910-1995)Nobel Prize, 1983A new topic every seven years
Have a plan of attack
• Follow your blueprint
• Be flexible enough to deviate from your blueprint
Simplify / complicate your work
• Simplify your work– Solve your problem one step at a time– Apply the theory to a simple problem
• Generalize the theory– F = ma– Eastern mysiticism and
Zadeh’s fuzzy set theory
Isaac Newton1642 - 1727
Example211
22
1cossin1ln
0
22
n
n
xxe
0
22 2cossinlnn
nxxe
ezyy
zz
)/11(lim
1tanh1cosh 2
n
n
zz
yy
xxz
2tanh1cosh
cossin)/11(limln
0
2
22
However,
Therefore,
Furthermore,
Finally,
Work!
• A necessary and sufficient condition
• Genius is 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration
Thomas Edison1847-1931
Persist
• Sometimes months of workpays off in a single day
• Know when to change your approach
= 3.14159265358979323846264338327…
Don’t be afraid to fail
• “I have not failed. I have merely found 10,000 ways that did not work.”
• Admit your mistakes (so you can learn from them)
• Petroski, To Engineer Is Human: The Role of Failure in Successful Design
Faith and doubt
• Believe that your ideas will eventually work
• Healthy skepticism – don’t take someone else’s word for it, convince yourself
Communicate
• Read and write
• Speak
• Write and speak with authority
Progress is cumulative
• Build on others’ work
• Allow others to build on your work
Isaac Newton
1642 – 1727
John Donne
1572-1631
Independence / cooperation
• Researchers need to be able to work independently
• Researchers need to be able to work as part of a team
Find balance in your life
• Relationships, spirituality, hobbies, rest
• Sabbath
James Watson
1928 -
Conclusion
• It all boils down to balance
References• http://academic.csuohio.edu/simond/courses
• C. Loehle, A guide to increased creativity in research – inspiration or perspiration? BioScience 40(2), pp.123-129, February 1990
• D. Bernstein, A student’s guide to research, IEEE Control Systems, pp. 102-108, February 1999
• R. Hamming, You and your research, IEEE Potentials, pp.37-40, October 1993
• V. Li, Hints on writing technical papers and making presentations, IEEE Transactions on Education 42(2), pp.134-137, May 1999