Research on Research Radar for technology and standard operating procedures

A concept that we frequently talk about in our Research on Research group but never really write about is the idea of a Research on Research radar. So, here are the central ideas:

1. There are operational and system research problems that happen across disciplines. An example of one such problem is how to train novice researchers to better communicate their ideas and findings. This problem occurs in specialized research areas as diverse as Metabolomics and Surgery. This commonality occurs because these problems are not inherent to the scientific questions asked by that field, but to the way research is actually conducted, which in this case is common between them. Another example, now at the research policy level, is how to optimize funding allocation for research projects. The same problem is faced by foundations funding basic research at the molecular level as well as governments funding community-based research.
   
2. Because these problems are common, their solution should probably be centralized in a single field, and our proposal is to call this field Research on Research. More than that, several of these solutions rely on a mix of technology and standard operating procedures (SOPs). For example, one could enhance scientific writing by creating on-line communities of novice researchers that will support each other and, using some standard educational SOPs, get them through the task.
3. Finding these technologies and common SOPs is the idea behind the RoR Radar group, which searches for applied solutions to common research problems posed by our researchers, ultimately creating economies of scale.
   

To understand where the economies of scale come from in the context of the RoR radar, let's make an analogy between the research problems we are trying to solve and the diseases treated by a clinician. Many possible treatments are available for a given disease, but out of the many possibilities, one is probably more adequate to a specific patient. For example, treatment will depend on the severity of disease, social factors associated with the patient, co-existing conditions, among many other possibilities.

The same is true in the case of RoR. A problem such as trying to enhance the way novice researchers learn how to communicate their scientific ideas and findings can be accomplished in multiple ways, some more or less effective than others. By having a group that tests multiple procedures and constantly looks at what other researchers are doing, the efficiency of the problem-solving process tends to improve.

Notice that I used the word "tends" rather than "does." Like treatments in their early history, RoR is attempting multiple methods, some of which will fail. But then, not giving up and always searching for improvement is the fun part of our job.