Integrated Multidisciplinary Research – It’s ORD’s Future

1. Integrated MultidisciplinaryResearch – It’s ORD’s Future Lawrence Reiter, Ph.D. Director NERL November 6, 2008

2. Knowledge, skills, methods within the boundary of a discipline Singular efforts within a well-defined specialization The goal is a deep understanding of a single problem or a single aspect of a problem Disciplinary Science May involve many scientists, and scope of analysis may be broad, but still employs the methods and theories of a single discipline

3. Multidisciplinary Science • Using the knowledge, understanding of more than one discipline • An additive approach that combines efforts of more than one discipline • Efforts seek to combine the results of specialized , disciplinary approaches for a broader understanding of a problem or question • Cooperation among contributors is necessary

4. Integrated Multidisciplinary Science • Using the methods, knowledge of more than one discipline concurrently • A cumulative approach that synthesizes the perspectives of the individual disciplines and integrates during all phases of the approach to a question or problem. • True collaboration, beyond mere cooperation, is essential

5. Benefits or Payoffs to Integrated Multidisciplinary Research • Its what ORD can excel at!! • Able to tackle bigger, more challenging problems • Real world problems don’t align with a single discipline • Facilitates the development of a user perspective, allowing researchers to be more aware of processes and their consequences for research • Uses a systems approach to framing problem/setting boundaries • Affects how problem gets framed • Researchers are more aware of the problem, particularly how the different components of the problem interrelate in the larger environmental/technical context

6. Put another way….. Do we want to address the problem??? Or solve it???