1. Interdisciplinary Research: Opportunities and Challenges
Anne Condon
The Department of Computer Science
U. British Columbia
Nancy Amato
Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Texas A&M University

2. What I’ll talk about why consider interdisciplinary research
how to do great interdisciplinary research
how to make sure you'll get a rewarding job when you graduate

3. Why interdisciplinary research?
great ideas often transcend boundaries
computer science provides
new ways of thinking about, and seeing our world
new technologies that are fundamentally changing our world in ways we barely understand
there are incredible opportunities!

4. What are the opportunities?
you can
work on important problems
work on problems you care about
develop broad perspective and skills
have great collaborations
see relevance of your work
enrich our discipline

5. Interdisciplinary research is broad!
you have a big problem you want to solve, and want to learn enough from different disciplines to solve your problem
you have core expertise, and collaborate with people who have complementary expertise

6. Interdisciplinary research is broad!
your field/topic is novel and unexplored but "marginal"
your field/topic is "hot" with a vibrant research community

7. Interdisciplinary research is broad!
you are forging a path on your own
you are part of a large, well-positioned research group

8. Interdisciplinary research is broad!
this your main project
this is a side project

9. Example: Anne’s experiences
programming a tactile braille device for deaf- blind people
complexity theory (game theory), a little parallel computing
verification of cache coherence protocols, DNA computing
verification cont., DNA, RNA secondary structure prediction
DNA, RNA prediction and programming; combinatorial auctions

10. Example: Nancy’s Experiences
In Grad School:
Parallel algorithms for computational geometry
Since then:
Computational Science
Designing parallel algorithms and data structures for particle transport, seismic ray tracing, etc.
Simulating Molecular Motions
Outgrowth of work on motion planning, originally applied in robotics (apply same algorithm to bio problems)

12. “Colwell told the meeting that she had
major difficulties over 20 years getting funding. But, now that the success of her project was accepted, “I’ve gone from being a pariah to being a guru.”
“Her hypothesis [on cholera epidemics] was at first scorned. But it is now the basis of a global project involving space scientists, oceanographers, molecular biologists, social scientists, physicians, and high speed computing scientists.”

13. How to do great interdisciplinary research
pick a good problem
line up the resources you need
learn how to work with a team
know where to publish
make an impact and get recognition!
learn how to navigate institutional barriers
manage negative feedback

14. How to do great interdisciplinary research
pick a good problem
keep your eye on the big picture: read, listen and share ideas
know your own strengths and interests
identify a piece where you can make progress
it’s all about the data
don’t be afraid to “dive in”

15. How to do great interdisciplinary research
line up the resources you need
people, expertise
background knowledge, through courses
your thesis committee
equipment
data
funding
Student can be the catalyst, can find profs in another field to work with

16. How to do great interdisciplinary research
learn how to work with a team
identify your roles in the project; expect to have both “secondary” and “primary” roles
learn the jargon
help your team and document your contributions (e.g., organize the journal club; maintain a webpage)
have a back-up plan in case the team falls apart

17. How to do great interdisciplinary research
know where to publish
focus on quality!
assess journal quality (journal impact factors)
learn practices around listing authors
learn how to craft your writing for the audience
be aware of differences in publication strategies: highly refereed CS conferences vs journals in other disciplines

18. How to do great interdisciplinary research
make an impact and get recognition!
make your software and data available
have different versions of your talk, for different audiences
take advantage of opportunities to talk with the media

19. How to do great interdisciplinary research
learn how to navigate institutional barriers
can you take the courses you need?
do your advisor and committee know how to evaluate interdisciplinary research?

20. How to do great interdisciplinary research
manage negative feedback
reviewers miss the point of your work

21. How to do great interdisciplinary research
pick a good problem
line up the resources you need
learn how to work with a team
know where to publish
make an impact and get recognition!
learn how to navigate institutional barriers
manage negative feedback

22. Getting that job (or postdoc)....
do an environmental scan
who has recently graduated with a profile like yours?
how do you fit with job ads?
if you are looking for an academic job, will it be in CS? in an interdisciplinary unit? a joint appointment?
cultivate supporters and letter writers from multiple disciplines; educate them about your contributions
be visible in your research community
articulate why your contributions are important
TODO: add more info on measures of impact.
suggest people go to faculty recruiting talks, to learn how faculty
are evaluated.