Notwithstanding the fact that many research misconduct has been reported so far, I think that the one that I am going to blog on is one of the major one because it gave hope to so many paralyzed people around the world. Although so many paralyzed people are totally capable of regular routines and live their lives as regular people, they will continue to hold out hope that they will be healed. Hwang Woo-Suk played with their heart.

Hwang Woo-Suk, a south Korean scientist who was a professor of biotechnology and theriogenology at Seoul National University, had been considered one of the pioneer experts in the field. In 2004 and 2005, he published two articles in Science journal and claimed to create human embryonic stem cells by cloning. The results of this research spread hope to millions who were paralyzed or know someone who was paralyzed. It was not far after when it came out of shadow that his results were are all based on falsified data! He was charged with embezzlement and bioethics law violations, released from his position at University, and sentenced to a two year suspended prison sentence.

1. http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/rio/research_misconduct_examples.htm#woo

2. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/10/science/10clone.html?_r=2&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1208885616-O3zsrqSTadwpnwni5G+Fqg&

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hwang_Woo-Suk

As a VP of events for IDR interdisciplinary honor society, I would like to dedicate this post to the beauty and importance of interdisciplinary researches. First thing first though, “our honor society is accepting applications for membership from Monday, September 2 through midnight on Sunday, September 22, 2013. IDR was founded at Virginia Tech in 2011 by graduate students promoting interdisciplinary cooperation and research at Virginia Tech and all other colleges and universities.  We have two levels of membership – Full and Associate.  We accept both graduate and undergraduate members.  Our membership application, requirements for membership, and information about our society can be found at http://www.idrsociety.org/membership/application/.  Any questions about our memberships, the application package, or assistance with your application can be directed to our VP of Membership, Tammy Parece, at tammyep@vt.edu.”

Disciplines are more than just knowledge about a certain science, a few courses that teachers teach and students learn. Each field teaches students a certain method of thinking. After graduating from college an engineer does not see the world around the same way that an artist does. An engineer sees the world from the engineering window and an artist from the art window. If a group of people are asked about a familiar object, for instance a bicycle they all would say “it is a bicycle” but if they were asked to explain it in one unique sentence, each individual will define it differently. An engineer sees it as a machine that converts energy. An artist would see it as a combination of lights and colors. All of that is because we are all tough to see differently, which is the beauty of science. And it gets more interesting and more useful when all of these methods of thinking come together and solve a complicated problem. This is called the Interdisciplinary research that has caught more attention in the last decade. An interdisciplinary research is defined as integrating knowledge of various disciplines and tackle a complicated research that cannot be studied otherwise. Although the definition is complete, but I think there is more in this type of researches. It brings different methods of thinking together!

Getting a PhD is not just getting a degree. Some of the students that choose this path in their lives are who just simply enjoy learning. Notwithstanding all the data that was presented in the piece called “PhD factory” in scholar website, I believe that simply counting the number of PhD graduates is not the correct way to deal with this degree of knowledge. How many of you know someone is going back to school to just win back the active life of learning. Personally, I know at least 5 of them. This group already have good jobs and good life and do not expect back anything out of their new degree. To have a more precise paper, I believe, the writer should run a statistical study to find the percentage of this group and phase it out of his/her study.

By the time I graduated from Shiraz University, Iran with my undergraduate degree, I was admitted into two US universities: University of Kentucky and University of Tennessee. I picked university of Kentucky and graduated with my Master of Science in 2010. University of Kentucky and University of Tennessee are both public universities established in 1865 and 1794, respectively. The mission statements for both universities are presented here:

“University of Kentucky, Lexington: The University of Kentucky is a public, land grant university dedicated to improving people’s lives through excellence in education, research and creative work, service, and health care. As Kentucky’s flagship institution, the University plays a critical leadership role by promoting diversity, inclusion, economic development, and human well-being.” 

“University of Tennessee, Knoxville: The University of Tennessee System, through its multiple campuses and institutes, serves the people of Tennessee and beyond through the discovery, communication and application of knowledge. The System is committed to providing undergraduate, graduate and professional education programs in a diverse learning environment that prepares students to be leaders in a global society. The UT System’s delivery of education, discovery, outreach and public service contributes to the economic, social and environmental well-being of all Tennesseans.” 

Although both mission statements and, in general, all mission statements yield obvious similarities, there are some subtle differences that can have huge effects on new potential students especially one who has no other sources to know the university and its atmosphere.

In the case of comparison between University of Kentucky and University of Tennessee mission statements, although both emphasis on well-being and welfare of people, University of Kentucky statement has more general tone that catches my eyes as an international student. Furthermore, there are some choices of words, which made me lean more toward University of Kentucky, e.g. “creative work” and “health care”. “Creative work” ,I believe, is the key to all successes that an accredit university is looking for and knowing that a university put effort and energy into discovering and nurturing creativity brings up the best in students. Putting emphasis on “health care” also gives new students peace of mind.

By the time I graduated from Shiraz University, Iran with my undergraduate degree, I was admitted into two US universities: University of Kentucky and University of Tennessee. I picked university of Kentucky and graduated with my Master of Science in 2010. University of Kentucky and University of Tennessee are both public universities established in 1865 and 1794, respectively. The mission statements for both universities are presented here:

“University of Kentucky, Lexington: The University of Kentucky is a public, land grant university dedicated to improving people’s lives through excellence in education, research and creative work, service, and health care. As Kentucky’s flagship institution, the University plays a critical leadership role by promoting diversity, inclusion, economic development, and human well-being.” 

“University of Tennessee, Knoxville: The University of Tennessee System, through its multiple campuses and institutes, serves the people of Tennessee and beyond through the discovery, communication and application of knowledge. The System is committed to providing undergraduate, graduate and professional education programs in a diverse learning environment that prepares students to be leaders in a global society. The UT System’s delivery of education, discovery, outreach and public service contributes to the economic, social and environmental well-being of all Tennesseans.” 

Although both mission statements and, in general, all mission statements yield obvious similarities, there are some subtle differences that can have huge effects on new potential students especially one who has no other sources to know the university and its atmosphere.

In the case of comparison between University of Kentucky and University of Tennessee mission statements, although both emphasis on well-being and welfare of people, University of Kentucky statement has more general tone that catches my eyes as an international student. Furthermore, there are some choices of words, which made me lean more toward University of Kentucky, e.g. “creative work” and “health care”. “Creative work” ,I believe, is the key to all successes that an accredit university is looking for and knowing that a university put effort and energy into discovering and nurturing creativity brings up the best in students. Putting emphasis on “health care” also gives new students peace of mind.

It is a Test.