A New Two-Day Course for UD Grad Students and Postdocs!

Responsible Conduct of Research

February 4 – 5, 2008
Trabant University Center

THIS CLASS IS FULL. Register only if you wish to be placed on a waiting list.

Click here to register online
For more information, contact UD Research & Graduate Studies

This two-day course for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows will explore current issues in the responsible conduct of research. Participants may register for the entire seminar or for individual modules. Each module will have a separate non-credit course number, and participation will be noted on a student's transcript. Students completing all four of the half-day modules will receive a certificate of completion. 

Module 1: Research Ethics: Guides and Regulation
This module explores professional codes of ethics across research disciplines with discussion of the commonalities and differences between different areas. Institutional policies for research as well as pertinent federal regulations will be discussed. We also will discuss conflicts of Interest, how they can influence behavior in research settings, and how they can be managed effectively.
Guest Faculty: Tom Powers, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Philosophy; Science, Ethics, and Public Policy Program, Delaware Biotechnology Institute; and Principal Investigator, NSF-RAISE (Research and Integrity in Science and Engineering) Project

Module 2: Research Misconduct: What Is It, and How Do We Deal with It?
What is research misconduct? We will explore the major issues in research misconduct: fabrication, falsification, and plagiarism. What are the pressures that lead to research misconduct? How do we avoid or manage them? How is a formal research misconduct allegation made, and how does the process work?
Guest Faculty: Bill Ullman, Ph.D., Professor of Marine and Earth Studies
Guest Speaker: Steve Bunting, Assistant Director of Public Safety, and computer forensics expert, will discuss the use of computer forensics in misconduct investigations.

Module 3: Conducting and Presenting Research
Best practices for data management will be discussed. Is there one size that fits all? What are the challenges and opportunities that come with working in collaborative environments? Does the size of the lab or research group matter?  Does mentoring matter? How is authorship determined?
Guest Faculty: Arild Hestvik, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Cognitive Science; Adam Marsh, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Marine and Earth Studies; Steven Stanhope, Ph.D., Professor of Health, Nutrition, and Exercise Sciences, and Mechanical Engineering; Guest Researcher (conducting clinical research), National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health.

Module 4: Peer Review
This will be an opportunity for participants to hear about the peer review process for both grants and publications. Faculty panels will include members who serve as editors and reviewers for publications, as well as members who serve in the peer review process for major federal funding agencies.
Editor Panel: Thomas Buchanan, Ph.D., Professor & Chair of Mechanical Engineering, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Applied Biomechanics; Daniel Carson, Ph.D., Chair & Trustees Distinguished Professor of Biological Sciences
Peer Review Panel: Thomas E. Hanson, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Marine Biosciences, College of Marine and Earth Studies and the Delaware Biotechnology Institute; reviewer for DOE, NSF, and EPA; Douglas Taber, Ph.D., Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry; Veronica Rempusheski, Ph.D., Jeanne K. Buxbaum Professor, School of Nursing.

Continental breakfast and lunch will be provided each day. There will be a dinner for participants and their research sponsors on February 4. Proposed schedule: Breakfast 8:30 – 9:00 a.m., morning session 9:00 – 12:00, Lunch 12:00 – 1:00 p.m., afternoon session 1:30 – 4:30 p.m.

Reception & Dinner: February 4 at 5:30 p.m.
The dinner speaker will be Dr. Richard W. Bianco, Associate Vice President for Regulatory Affairs, University of Minnesota Academic Health Center.