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Proposals

Proposals. Steven A. Jones Biomedical Engineering Louisiana Tech University Created for Louisiana Tech’s NSF-Funded Research Experiences in Micro/Nano Engineering Program. Disclaimer.

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Proposals

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  1. Proposals • Steven A. Jones • Biomedical Engineering • Louisiana Tech University • Created for Louisiana Tech’s NSF-Funded • Research Experiences in Micro/Nano Engineering • Program

  2. Disclaimer • It is recognized that certain aspects of proposal writing are a matter of taste. Some statements in this presentation are opinions of the author and not necessarily those of Louisiana Tech University or the National Science Foundation.

  3. Exercise • Write a brief letter to a friend asking him/her to send you $100. • Why do you need the money? • How important is it? • How far along are you toward your goal? • What will you do with the money? • What will he/she get out of it?

  4. Proposal Formats • NIH Format (Our Graduate School) • Summary (Project Summary) • Specific Aims (Objectives) • Background (Related Research; Research Need) • Preliminary Results (-) • Research Plan (Methodology and Research Plan)

  5. Proposal Formats • Summary – Will have elements of 2-5 • Specific Aims – Questions you want to answer and how you intend to do so. • Background – Make an argument that what you are doing is important. • Preliminary Results – Show that you know what you are doing & that it should work. • Research Plan – Details of your proposed work.

  6. Specific Aims • Identify the general problem you are trying to solve. • State what specific hypotheses or research questions you are trying to answer. • State each objective or experiment that you intend to carry out to answer your hypotheses. It is highly recommended that if you have 3 hypotheses, you should have 3 objectives, each of which matches up with a stated hypothesis. • State in what way the accomplishments of the objectives will address the hypotheses. • State what impact the results of each hypothesis will have on the general problem.

  7. Background & Significance • Purposes: • Educate the reviewer. • Establish the importance of the problem. • Demonstrate need. • Demonstrate that the problem has not yet been solved. • Show that the direction you propose is the next logical step in the evolution of the solution. • Do not give information to impress. A clear concise argument is far more effective in demonstrating your mastery of the literature.

  8. Background & Significance • Background: Tell the reader what he/she needs to know to understand the rest of the proposal. • Analysis of Need: State the problem. State why an answer is needed. Identify progress toward an answer. Discuss papers that have raised the question. • Current Status: Discuss work that is closest to what you propose. Show that your question has not been answered. • Research Need: Give a statement of the problem you intend to solve.

  9. Question • If I ask: • Is chondroitin sulfate biocompatible? • You will respond with … Say what?

  10. Research Pyramid Diabetes Cure Diagnosis Insulin Pumps Genetic Engineering Finger Prick Chemical Optical Artificial Pancreas Eye Spectroscopy Sub-Cutaneous Chondroitin Sulfate: Good optical properties, good diffusion properties, etc.

  11. Preliminary Results • Results that you personally produced or • Results that your lab has produced • Generally have not yet been published • Demonstrate: • Probability of success • Ability to do the experiments

  12. Methods/Research Plan • Detailed design: • Experimental apparatus. • Protocols to be used. • Positive controls • Negative controls • Data Analysis: • Underlying theory. • Modeling. • Comparison of theory and experiment. • Statistical analysis. • Organizational Structure and Schedule: Roles of different personnel. Time table of specific landmarks

  13. Most references will be cited in: Background Preliminary Results Methods

  14. Miscellaneous • Include the date on all drafts of your proposal. • Use good grammar, spelling and organization. • Make tables and figures as complete as possible. • Do not make the reviewer flip back to the text to find out what “Alternative 1” is, or what a particular abbreviation stands for. • Do not say simply: “Figure 3: Number of Diabetics vs. Time.” Say: “Figure 3: Number of Diabetics vs. Time. This figure shows that the number of diabetics have increased exponentially in the past 10 years.” • Number all pages.

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