Handbook of Scientific Proposal Writing

230 Pages·2012·7.896 MB·English

by  A. Yavuz Oruc

Handbook of Scientific
Proposal Writing

Handbook of Scientific
Proposal Writing
A. Yavuz Oruç
University of Maryland
College Park, USA
CRC Press
Taylor & Francis Group
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Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742
© 2012 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
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Version Date: 2011913
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Dedication
To my friends who inspired me to write this book

Contents
Preface..................................................................................................................xi
Acknowledgments............................................................................................xv
Author..............................................................................................................xvii
Chapter 1 Scientific research: The fountain of progress .......................1
1.1. A.brief.history.and.origins.of.scientific.exploration............................2
1.2. What.is.scientific.research?.....................................................................7
1.3. What.makes.a.research.activity.more.significant.
than others?.............................................................................................14
1.4. The.scientific.integrity.and.intellectual.merit.of.a.
research activity......................................................................................21
1.5. The.scientific.method:.Common.denominator.of.all.
scientific research...................................................................................22
1.5.1. Observation.and.experimentation.phase..............................23
1.5.2. Modeling.phase........................................................................26
1.5.3. Prediction.phase.......................................................................28
1.5.4. Verification.phase.....................................................................29
1.6. Empirical,.experimental,.and.theoretical.research............................30
1.7. Interplay.between.basic.and.applied.research...................................32
1.8. Role.of.technology.in.scientific.research.............................................35
1.9. Summary.................................................................................................40
1.10. Bibliographical.notes..............................................................................40
1.11. Questions.................................................................................................41

Chapter 2 Factors impacting outcomes of proposals ............................43
2.1. Intellectual.merit:.An.essential.ingredient.for.all.
research proposals..................................................................................43
2.1.1. The.U.S..National.Science.Foundation’s.
intellectual merit.criteria.........................................................45
2.1.2. The.European.Research.Council’s.proposal.
evaluation criteria.....................................................................49
2.2. What.is.the.broader.impact.and.why.is.it.important?.......................51
2.3. Should.every.proposal.have.a.“real-world.application?”.................53
vii
viii Contents
2.4. When.should.a.research.proposal.be.submitted?..............................54
2.5. Calibration.of.preliminary.research.ideas..........................................57
2.6. Is.every.investigator.equally.qualified.to.win.funding?...................59
2.7. Using.online.bibliometric.tools.for.self-assessment.of.
research qualifications...........................................................................60
2.8. Collaborating.with.other.researchers..................................................68
2.9. Summary.................................................................................................68
2.10. Bibliographical.notes..............................................................................69
2.11. Questions.................................................................................................69
Chapter 3 Building blocks of a winning proposal ...............................71
3.1. How.should.a.research.proposal.be.organized?................................71
3.2. Proposal.summary.templates.and.samples........................................74
3.2.1. Example:.Bottom-up.summary.style.....................................76
3.2.2. Example:.Middle-first-top-last.summary.style....................81
3.2.3. Example:.Top-down.summary.style......................................83
3.3. Commonly.used.verbs.in.proposal.summaries.................................86
3.4. How.to.organize.and.prose.an.effective.introduction......................86
3.5. Research.problems.and.proposed.work..............................................89
3.6. Approach.and.preliminary.results......................................................90
3.7. Plan.of.proposed.work...........................................................................91
3.8. Expected.contributions.and.broader.impact......................................93
3.9. Qualifications.of.researchers................................................................93
3.10. Ten.most.common.mistakes.that.make.proposals.fail......................96
3.10.1. Mistake.1:.Submitting.a.poorly.composed.
proposal summary...................................................................96
3.10.2. Mistake.2:.Avoiding.preliminary.results..............................96
3.10.3. Mistake.3:.Omitting.a.work.plan...........................................96
3.10.4. Mistake.4:.Submitting.an.inappropriate.budget..................97
3.10.5. Mistake.5:.Submitting.a.poorly.written.proposal................97
3.10.6. Mistake.6:.Marginalizing.or.downplaying.
someone’s work.........................................................................98
3.10.7. Mistake.7:.Not.acknowledging.related.work.or.
plagiarizing.it............................................................................99
3.10.8. Mistake.8:.Citing.dated.references.........................................99
3.10.9. Mistake.9:.Downplaying.the.impact.of.investigators’.
credentials................................................................................100
3.10.10.Mistake.10:.Submitting.a.work.plan.with.
infeasible resources................................................................100
3.11. What.to.do.if.your.proposal.is.declined............................................101
3.12. Summary...............................................................................................104
3.13. Bibliographical.notes............................................................................104
3.14. Questions...............................................................................................104
Contents ix
Chapter 4 Getting on with conducting a funded
research project .......................................................................107
4.1. Assembling.a.research.team...............................................................107
4.1.1. Graduate.students...................................................................107
4.1.2. Undergraduate.students........................................................109
4.1.3. Postdoctoral.researchers.and.research.scientists................110
4.2. Carrying.out.the.proposed.work........................................................111
4.2.1. Developing.a.work.plan..........................................................111
4.2.2. Using.resources.effectively....................................................113
4.2.3. Example.....................................................................................117
4.2.4. Optimal.work.flow.schedules.using.
two researchers........................................................................119
4.2.5. Example....................................................................................121
4.2.6. Optimal.work.flow.schedules.for.task.flow.trees..............122
4.2.7. Work.plan.heuristics..............................................................125
4.2.8. Logging.and.tracking.ideas..................................................126
4.3. Reaching.research.milestones.and.publicizing.results...................126
4.4. Reporting.functions.............................................................................128
4.5. Working.on.several.research.projects.at.once..................................130
4.6. Getting.ready.for.next.research.proposal.........................................131
4.7. Summary...............................................................................................132
4.8. Bibliographic.notes...............................................................................132
4.9. Questions...............................................................................................132
Chapter 5 Promoting research in universities .....................................135
5.1. Synergy.between.education.and.research........................................135
5.2. Graduate.study.and.research.programs............................................139
5.3. Measuring.faculty.contributions.and.performance........................142
5.3.1. The.raw.performance.metrics.model...................................147
5.3.2. Example....................................................................................149
5.3.3. Computing.merit.raises.........................................................152
5.3.4. Measuring.effectiveness.of.faculty.in.
conducting research...............................................................152
5.3.5. Using.citation.indices.to.measure.research.impact...........155
5.3.6. Using.online.bibliometric.tools.............................................161
5.4. Top.five.mistakes.universities.should.avoid.not.
to stifle research....................................................................................166
5.4.1. Mistake.1:.Viewing.research.as.an.ordinary.
budget item..............................................................................166
5.4.2. Mistake.2:.Failing.to.grasp.the.needs.
of a research university..........................................................166
5.4.3. Mistake.3:.Inadequate.clerical.support.
for processing proposals.........................................................167
x Contents
5.4.4. Mistake.4:.Missing.the.cue.on.how.
to reward research..................................................................168
5.4.5. Mistake.5:.Favoritism.for.research.resources.....................169
5.5. Summary...............................................................................................170
5.6. Bibliographic.notes...............................................................................170
5.7. Questions...............................................................................................170
Chapter 6 Scientific research: A funding agency perspective ..........173
6.1. A.funding.agency.model.for.scientific.research..............................173
6.2. Proposal.solicitation.and.submission.process..................................178
6.3. Classification.of.proposals..................................................................180
6.3.1. Proposal.clustering.................................................................181
6.4. Reviewer.selection.and.panel.assignment.process..........................191
6.4.1. Panel.assignments.with.capacity.and.
specialty constraints...............................................................193
6.4.2. Panel.assignments.without.specialty.constraints..............196
6.5. Proposal.review.and.evaluation.process..........................................198
6.6. Ranking.proposals...............................................................................199
6.7. Grant.management.and.measuring.effectiveness.of.funding.......203
6.8. Role.of.program.directors.in.proposal.evaluation.and.
funding.decisions.................................................................................205
6.9. Five.mistakes.funding.agencies.should.avoid.to.improve.
their impact............................................................................................207
6.9.1. Mistake.1:.Failing.to.predict.when.to.start.and.
stop funding.a.field.of.research............................................207
6.9.2. Mistake.2:.Issues.with.peer.review......................................208
6.9.3. Mistake.3:.Lack.of.calibration.in.funding.levels................208
6.9.4. Mistake.4:.Excessive.project.reporting.requirements.......209
6.9.5. Mistake.5:.Transparency.and.accountability.issues..........209
6.10. Summary...............................................................................................209
6.11. Bibliographical.notes............................................................................210
6.12. Questions...............................................................................................210