whatisresearch-cityuniversityofhongkong-Research.ppt

Research Philosophy and Research Methodology Prof. Rudolf Wu Biology Chemistry Department City University of Hong Kong Outline What is research and what is good research? Different types of research Key processes in conducting research General principles in experimental design Quiz: What is “philosophy? Philosophy “Study of the truths and principles of the universe, life, and morals, and of human understanding of these” (Oxford dictionary) Quiz: What is research? What is research? Collection of data Analysis of data Interpretation of data What is research? Is the conduct of polling survey “research”? Quiz:What is GOOD research? Good research: Novelty and Originality Never done before Advance our knowledge and understanding Good research: Generalization DNA structure (James Watson Francis Crick, Nobel Laureate 1962) Genetic code for all living organisms Explain replication and protein synthesis Good research: Prediction Chemical bonding and forces between molecules (Linus Pauling, Chemistry Nobel Laureate 1954) Predict molecular interactions and chemical reactions Good research: Wide application Polymerase Chain Reaction (Kary Mullis, Nobel Laureate in chemistry 1993 ) Make 1 million copies of DNA within hours Wide application in medicine, forensic sciences, molecular biology, genetics, biotechnology Form the basis of paleobiology Good research: Wide application Fiber optics (Charles Kao and George Hockham, 1967) Light loss in glass fiber due to scattering and absorption of impurities Lead to the development of silica fiber of sufficient purity to carry IR for 100 km, speeding up transmission of signals and lowering energy requirements Good research: Wide application Microsoft Windows Search engines (e.g. Google) Vital elements of good research Originality Novelty Able to make generalization Able to make prediction Wide application Types of Research Types of Research Discovery Technique development Hypothesis testing Types of research Discov