Young Investigators

This bestselling book has been completely updated and expanded to help teachers use the project approach in child care centers, in preschools, and in kindergarten, 1st grade, and early childhood special education classrooms. For those new to using projects, the book introduces the approach and provides step-by-step guidance for conducting meaningful projects. Experienced teachers will find the teacher interviews, children's work, photographs (including full colour), and teacher journal entries used to document the project process in actual classrooms very useful. This popular, easy-to-use resource has been expanded to include these new features: explicit instructions and examples for incorporating standards into the topic selection and planning process; a variety of nature experiences, with examples that show how project work is an excellent way to connect children to the natural world; an update of the use of technology for both documentation and investigations, including use of the Web as well as and video and digital cameras; and more toddler projects that reflect our increased knowledge from recent mind/brain research about toddler understanding and learning.

This book brings to light trends in the support of life scientists beginning their professional careers. In 1985, 3,040 scientists under the age of 36 applied for individual investigator (R01) grants from the National Institutes of Health, and 1,002 received awards, for a "success rate" of 33%. In 1993, 1,389 scientists under the age of 36 applied for R01 grants and 302 received awards, for a success rate of 21.7%. Even when R23/R29 grant awards (both intended for new investigators) are added to the R01 awards, the number of R01 plus R23 awards made in 1985 was 1,308, and in 1993, the number of R01 plus R29 was 527. These recent trends in the funding of young biomedical research scientists, and the fact that young nonbiomedical scientists historically have had a smaller base of support to draw upon when beginning their careers, raises serious questions about the future of life science research. It is the purpose of this volume to present data about the trends and examine their implications.

This bestseller provides an introduction to the project approach with step-by-step guidance for conducting meaningful investigations. The Third Edition has been expanded to include two new chaptersHow Projects Can Connect Children with Nature and Project Investigations as STEMand to assist teachers with younger children (toddlers) and older children (2nd grade).

The Grant Writing and Crowdfunding Guide prepares you, the young investigator, to step up to the challenge of funding your own research. And what a challenge. Writing a successful grant demands much more than a first-class inquisitive scientific mind. As you will soon discover, raw talent may keep you from drowning in the new world of grants, but staying afloat and learning how to swim are two very different things. This book presents the best strategies you should adopt prior to taking the grant plunge. It will help you draft a reasonable budget plan, assemble a winning grant team, write a stellar pre-proposal, and reassure the funding agencies that the financial risk they take by investing in you will produce great returns. The book also helps you write a grant title, abstract, and a specific aims section that highlight the significance, impact, and innovativeness of your project. It presents specific tools to catch problems early and avoid rejection. It even covers a source of funding you likely have never considered: the public. Crowdfunding not only helps you collect preliminary data within weeks, but also lets you share your passion with people who want to see you succeed.New investigators are usually lost when attempting to write their first grant application. They need a compass to run through the grant maze. This book is that compass. It supplements the work of your mentor, and reviews the practices of your grantor and grant reviewers. Examples are taken from two of the largest grantors in the world, NIH and NSF, and their practices are applicable to other science funding agencies worldwide.Better to be young and funded than old and unfunded.

An anecdotal guide for the perplexed new investigator as well as a refreshing resource for the old pro, covering everything from valuable personality traits for an investigator to social factors conducive to scientific work. Santiago Ramón y Cajal was a mythic figure in science. Hailed as the father of modern anatomy and neurobiology, he was largely responsible for the modern conception of the brain. His groundbreaking works were New Ideas on the Structure of the Nervous System and Histology of the Nervous System in Man and Vertebrates. In addition to leaving a legacy of unparalleled scientific research, Cajal sought to educate the novice scientist about how science was done and how he thought it should be done. This recently rediscovered classic, first published in 1897, is an anecdotal guide for the perplexed new investigator as well as a refreshing resource for the old pro. Cajal was a pragmatist, aware of the pitfalls of being too idealistic—and he had a sense of humor, particularly evident in his diagnoses of various stereotypes of eccentric scientists. The book covers everything from valuable personality traits for an investigator to social factors conducive to scientific work.

With more than three million copies in print, John Patrick Green's goofy graphic novel series is a colossal comics hit! Join super spy alligator duo MANGO and BRASH as they surf the sewers and fight the forces of evil. With their Very Exciting Spy Technology and their tried-and-true, toilet-based travel techniques, the InvestiGators are undercover and on the case! And on their first mission together, they have not one but two mysteries to solve! Can Mango and Brash uncover the clues, crack their cases, and corral the crooks―or will the criminals wriggle out of their grasp?

"Based on the popular History Channel show, this book takes a look at history while asking the question: What if there were aliens involved?"--

The future of basic and translational research in health care depends on the ability of large, complex health science centers to educate, discover new answers to complex problems, and operate in the service of the public good. So what ingredients are required for successful research in academic health science centers (AHSCs)? This volume presents a number of compelling, international stories about personal and professional investments in research activities as well as the challenges, opportunities, and satisfactions. Each chapter explores concepts for successful research with a focus on the ways communities of practice form and sustain themselves in this complex environment. They explore questions such as creating and sustaining community, promoting innovation, transitions in leadership, and cross-generation collaboration from a personal perspective. They also present a series of portraits of scientists at work: building relationships, supporting one another, and contributing to their fields of study in unique ways. Enhancing the Professional Culture of Academic Health Science Centers offers enlightening reading for researchers, administrators, and policy makers interested in present and future research activities in AHSCs, who will be inspired by narratives of perseverance, passion, generosity, and generativity that fuel research in the centers.

Every year about half a million men, women, and children in the United States die from the effects of using nicotine, alcohol, and illegal drugs: one of every four American deaths. Yet research to solve this terrible problem is often perceived as less important than other types of biomedical investigation. Focusing on four major classes of drugs with the greatest social and economic impact--nicotine, alcohol, opioids, and stimulants--Dispelling the Myths About Addiction examines what is known about addiction and what is needed to develop a talented cadre of investigators and to educate the public about addiction research. The committee explores these areas: Economic costs of addiction. What has been learned about addiction from research into basic neurobiology and the brain, psychosocial and behavioral factors, and epidemiology. Education and training of researchers and the research infrastructure. Public perceptions and their impact on public policy in this field. This volume outlines the challenges and opportunities in addiction research today and makes recommendations to educators, treatment professionals, public and private institutions, and others for how to build support for addiction research and treatment.