Interdisciplinary research growing

This is the first in a series of articles examining current research trends.

      

 Across the nation, universities are changing the definition of research as they incorporate their various departments in order to take an interdisciplinary approach to research, teaching and learning. At Duke, some of the nation's leading scientists and scholars are collaborating in projects that take this trend to a new extreme.

      

 Professors, scientists and administrators have taken notice of the unique qualities Duke has that have enabled its transition from traditional research within discrete departments to a more modern approach, encouraging cooperation among departments.

      

 "Duke is a young university that isn't caught in its own traditions," said Cathy Davidson, vice provost for interdisciplinary studies. "If Duke has a tradition, it is to be bold, even fearless, in trying the new, while also doing its best to appreciate and reward the tried-and-true."

      

 Duke's academic and administrative flexibility has enabled its smooth transition to more collaborative research.

      

 "We have a culture open to new initiatives--it is part of our signature--and we have been working on this for a long time," Provost Peter Lange said. "Therefore, it is definitely a sustainable program at Duke."

      

 Traditionally, departments have rigidly defined their research, but Vice Provost for Research James Siedow is confident in Duke's grasp on more cooperative work. "It is the wave of the future. Science is definitely heading in that direction, and now we just have to cross the [gaps] between departments," he said.

      

 Duke has one of the broadest and most interdisciplinary educational systems of its peer institutions. Although Stanford University, Princeton University, the University of Michigan, Washington University in St. Louis and the research power-team of neighbors Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are credible and accomplished, Duke has invested the most resources in its research program, said IGSP Director Huntington Willard.

      

 "In the long run, I bet my money on Duke for being a leader in studying science and society at large," Willard said.

      

 Other institutions are impressed by the program's structure, Davidson said. "They often need to be convinced that certain things can be achieved because, at their institutions, such would be impossible," she added.

      

 The University's interdisciplinary initiative was sparked in 1987 in a report in which Duke launched its institutional commitment to research of a more competitive caliber. Lange says the strategic planning committee hoped to build upon the academic excellence that already existed, in addition to welcoming specific bottom-up faculty initiatives.

      

 Davidson said she likes to encourage thinking on a national level by surveying other institutions as models as they continue to revise their strategic plans. "Rather than reinvent the wheel, we like to see where the tire marks are and then think about whether we want to travel that same road or veer off in a promising new direction," she said. "Often, we do the latter."

      

 Duke has implemented systematic reviews of all its interdisciplinary research programs through a process known as "sunsetting." Every five years, the unit must prove to external evaluators that its work is vital and significant in order to receive University support and funding. Otherwise, money is allocated toward other research ventures. This allows for constant replenishing of resources and revitalizing of programs to ensure that the best research teams are being rewarded.

      

 While this new approach has its near future carefully mapped out, there are still areas of the program that need further development. Administrators have discussed the possibility of offering "university courses," which would allow undergraduates, graduate students and professional students to take courses patterned after Duke's interdisciplinary programs. The extensive coordination among various deans, a central way of naming and funding the courses and other means of cooperation would be a daunting task for any university, officials said.

      

 "I think we can accomplish this here, just as we have already created 'university professors' who have similar far-ranging responsibilities," said Davidson.

      

 If scientists hope to address the large-scale problems and research questions society faces today, an interdisciplinary approach is required, because the complexity of those questions spans the expertise of an entire institution. A trademark feature of the University is its creative and unique combinations of various disciplines. While other universities might solely focus on the science, Duke researchers, for example, can combine sociology with engineering or computer science with financial policy. "We are concerned with policy and applications even in highly theoretical areas of study," Davidson said.

      

 The IGSP is one of the fastest-growing interdisciplinary centers at Duke. To realize the benefits of the completion of the Human Genome Project, it combines efforts that extend beyond the traditional scope of science--especially social science, ethics and public policy.

"Duke is superb in smoothing disconnected foci of activity to grapple with the Human Genome Project," Willard said. "Everything works hand-in-glove and an interdisciplinary approach provides a more fun, educational and inspiring environment and portal for research and teaching."

      

 Director of the Program in Integrated Toxicology Richard Di Giulio emphasized the necessity of an interdisciplinary approach in a field like environmental toxicology. To study organisms in polluted environments, different types of scientists must work together, including molecular, organismal, community and ecosystem biologists and toxicologists.

      

 The Comprehensive Cancer Center is an example of collaboration between DUMC and other departments on campus. The study of cancer genetics is at the forefront of biomedicine, and the ground-breaking breast cancer research conducted there could not have been completed without many specialists, said Kim Lyerly, the Center's director.

      

 "The research is really advanced and the techniques involved simply do not exist in one person," he said.

      

 To bridge the gaps between science, technology and understanding, geneticists and statisticians are essential. In the recent breast cancer research, scientists examined the 30,000 nucleic acid events of 300 patients. Without mathematicians, geneticists would not have been able to make sense of any of the data. This approach is quite common for cancer research since it mimics management and treatment of the disease, which always requires a team of surgeons, oncologists and radiologists. Doctors are now expanding their research methods to include their treatment practices.

      

 While faculty and administrators concur on the inevitability of interdisciplinary research, they have expressed varying levels of enthusiasm. Lange believes some professors and researchers would prefer not to become involved in the trend since they find it less intellectually interesting than department-specific research or feel individual disciplines' funding should not be cut.

      

 Other Duke faculty members recognize the issue of tenure and promotion, which becomes complicated when people are working in multiple fields. Usually, appointments are based on one's ability to demonstrate expertise and success in one area. Therefore, professors might find it safer to stick with one track, thereby avoiding distraction from their main focus that would result in diluted work. While the general requirements for tenure will not be altered, officials said, deans will need to take into consideration one's impact on an interdisciplinary research project.

      

 Additionally, the prioritization of research interests could present complications. Willard suggested that team members focus on their own priorities while working toward a common goal. Departments should focus on training, internal priorities and expanding their own areas of competence, and a director should then aid in finding the program's common endpoint, he said.

      

 "As long as faculty are truly interested in their research and in helping others, we can avoid a tight-rope walk," he said. "I think why Duke is so successful at [research] is that faculty look for this attitude, and therefore choose Duke."

      

 Funding for interdisciplinary research is received from governmental grants in a similar fashion to grants for specific disciplines. Money still goes to the University in the name of the principal investigator, but indirect costs are split between the multiple departments and institutions involved. The number of these grants nationwide has grown markedly, although the majority of grants awarded are not interdisciplinary, Siedow noted.

      

 Despite their marked progress so far, interdisciplinary centers at the University have failed to develop a model for all programs to follow in funding their administrative structure, Siedow said. "It is not insurmountable, just difficult," he added. "For now, financial coordination requires a lot of individual negotiation between deans."