Articles by Jeff Seiken

Traditionally, basic scientists have kept to their lab experiments, clinical scientists have kept to their patient studies, and neither has much traffic with the other. But the National Cancer Institute (NCI) is seeking to turn this tradition around. Last year it handed out more than $17 million to the first recipients of its Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) grants. These grants are expressly designed to support collaborative ventures--or what NCI officials like to call "tra

For years, critics have argued that the National Science Foundation's system of grant review is not receptive to novel or unorthodox ideas. But NSF has not failed to take notice of this charge. In 1989, spurred by complaints about reviewer conservatism, NSF introduced a new type of award known as Small Grants for Exploratory Research (SGER). Although still not widely known today, these grants exist expressly for the purpose of supporting speculative research endeavors that might not otherwise r

In order to stay abreast of important developments in his field, University of Pittsburgh biologist Craig Peebles used to scan the table of contents of some half-dozen different journals each week. Every time he spotted something of interest, he would make a copy of the article and then add it to one of the stacks of papers he kept in his office for ready reference. While online services with easy-to-use, menu-driven interfaces offer researchers one avenue of access into the world of database

NIH 1. Proposal arrives at NIH and is sent to appropriate study section. 2. Scientific review administrator appoints two study section members to serve as primary and secondary reviewers of the application. 3. Study section convenes. Primary and secondary reviewers present reports on proposal, followed by open discussion. Study section may vote to reject or defer action on application. Otherwise, panelists assign it a priority score. 4. Proposal proceeds to National Advisory Council (NAC) o

Publish or perish. It's a dictum drummed into the heads of scientists from the time they begin their studies. Jobs, grants, and promotions--everything of possible import to the budding academic scientist--hinge, to a great extent, on getting one's research into print. But self-advancement also goes hand-in-hand with the progress of science, for publishing papers is the prime means by which important findings are disseminated within the scientific community. To publish a paper in a journal, wher

Author: JEFF SEIKEN, p.19 This summer, when approximately 11,000 scientists from around the world gather in New England for the prestigious Gordon Research Conferences, they will be marking a special occasion: the conferences' 60th anniversary. In reaching this milestone, the conferences have managed to reverse the aging process, for, if anything, their vitality has increased with time. Over the decades, the Gordon conferences have evolved into the United States' premier scientific forum. T

Now Gasser, who joined UC-Davis' biochemistry and biophysics department in 1989 after a five-year stint at St. Louis-based Monsanto Co., faces the unenviable prospect of repeating the application process. In addition, he is struggling to settle into the still-unfamiliar role of teacher at Davis and, simultaneously, trying to jumpstart his research program and rev it into full gear. Marshaling the time and energy to manage all three demands--teaching, doing research, and applying for grants--is

David Munz, a stress researcher at St. Louis University who leads a program in stress management at Monsanto Co., recommends the following methods for coping with job pressures: Exercise regularly. Even a 10-minute bout of brisk walking will improve your frame of mind. Use positive, not negative, language to refer to your projects. After a while, the positive attitude will begin to be second nature. Take frequent mental breaks or, to use a psychological term, hypnogogic naps. Close your eyes

Sadao Mori's proposal sounded promising to Du Pont chemist Howard Barth. Mori, a researcher at Mie University in Japan, had contacted Barth, an active member of the American Chemical Society, in early 1987, seeking his assistance in setting up a conference on polymer analysis under the auspices of ACS and its Japanese counterpart. While talking over the idea with Mori, however, Barth was struck by a new notion: Why not enlarge the scope of the meeting and bring scientists studying polymer chara

While working toward his doctorate in 1973, plant geneticist Peter Gresshoff received an invitation to attend one of the meetings sponsored every summer by the Gordon Research Conferences. For Gresshoff, the mere fact that he was tapped to join the select group of 100 scientists participating in the conference constituted an honor in itself. Substantially more exciting, though, was the prospect of spending a week in close quarters with some of the top researchers in his field. The invitation c

Neurologist Frank Wilson’s first foray into music came at the age of 12, when he struggled through six months of the universal childhood ritual known as piano lessons. It wasn’t until many years later, however, while listening to his daughter rehearse for a piano recital around the time of her own 12th birthday, that his interests in music and the medical sciences converged. As she played Chopin’s “Fantasy Impromptu,” Wilson found himself for the first time rea