Undergraduate network in materials science -- potential for scoop or collaboration?

[HEK-293-DDR1b]

Hi all,

I am a biochemistry premed undergraduate entering my third year in the fall. Presently, I study at the Division of Nephrology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center where I have interned for the summer (hence, inspiration for the name "HEK-293-DDR1b"; we study kidney fibrosis!😉)

Anyway, I write to address my concerns about undergraduate collaboration in science across institutions amongst other students and faculty. My undergraduate studies are at a small liberal arts college. Though, nonetheless, I have been able to write two successfully funded grant proposals within the field of wood-based translational materials science. While the lab resources are minimal (yet still effective), I am currently a one-person research group. I have acquired results for a poster presentation in the fall, but sometime within the next few years or so I would like to publish in an undergraduate journal. Obviously, I will need a few team members to help assist with that endeavor, especially as I cannot generate the research output at the institution I attend.

Here's my series of questions: Is it advisable to connect with other students, professors, and research faculty at other institutions (network via LinkedIn, etc.) to facilitate the generation of research, data analysis, and science writing? Would I make my intellectual property, so to speak, vulnerable to getting scooped? --especially as I do not have the resources to generate a mass research output as these R1 schools can? Am I being too overly protective of my work (I worked really hard to get this far, I just don't want to lose everything)?

Please let me know any thoughts or opinions. Know of any schools with an openness to collaboration? I know science is competitive, and while my "idea" is not noble prize-winning, it is genuinely a project I've worked on and I am now looking to upscale. All responses are welcome. For further discussion of the specifics of the project, please private message me.

With Gratitude,

HEK-293-DDR1b

[CharonY]

Generally speaking, a collaboration requires a certain alignment of interest and trust. Especially as an undergraduate, it might be difficult to get hold of a Prof as we generally are overcomitted, anyway. The best bet is to talk to folks you have interned with. If they are not interested, at least they make introductions to folks.

If you have funding, you could try to set up a contract, but chances are that it might be too expensive.

[studiot]

Wood based translational materials science with a medical flavour ?

Wow.

You could try the following.

There are a number of government and industry organisations that hold univeristy status and also have a publishing arm.

COFI

Council of Forest Industries | Forestry for the planet. Forest products for the world. (cofi.org)

Wellcome Trust

Home | Wellcome

 

spring to mind.

 

Also some universities with a strong materials dept also have publishing departments 

eg in the UK Exeter and UMIST

 

Also some professional bodies publish occasional papers in their field.

 

Try talking to the Technical Officers for these organisations.

I used to answer questions like yours when I was Technical Officer for the IHT  - an inappropriate body for your subject but the principle is the same.

[HEK-293-DDR1b]

Thank you all for the responses. I will certainly consider my options carefully to ensure the best route for success for my project and my developing career.

To address my involvement in the two totally different disciplines, I would say my intention is certainly medical practice and biomedical science (MD/PhD). Though, for the work-study assignment at college, I was assigned to woodworking two years ago. I was essentially a part-time craftsman generating a work-study aid toward tuition. Somewhere within the midst of it all, I discovered lignin modification in wood to engender novel functionalities in wood materials. The opportunity was brought forth to my labor supervisor and then O-chem professor and we initiated an independent study. My mentors have provided me with the training and resources, but I have executed most of the research.

What once began as a simple desire to get into the lab (I never had an opportunity in high school [pandemic], so I created one first year in college) is growing into the possibility of a design patent and/or a small, undergrad-level publication. Hopefully, it will look competitive for professional school applications, as I now have molecular biology and materials science under my belt.