When I was moving between jobs at Pitt, I took a part-time consulting position with Penn State. I worked on several projects for the Penn State Center - Pittsburgh and the School of Engineering in College Park. In total, these projects ended up raising $19 Million for the University.
I don't know why we were so successful. I know I worked so very, very hard on each one. The power of the pen is amazing. Friday, I found out Penn State had received $5 Million in ARRA money for a $10 Million project I worked on.
I think it must be fluke and yet it keeps happening. I just wouldn't want to bet my career on it. I'd rather hold down a steady job and make extra money on top of that. I've already lived the life of an entrepreneur. It can be unbelievably hard.
Anyway, I imagine how I might be able to successfully write grants in the informatics world. Just take the skills I have gained and apply them to my current position and my own research as I continue to grow in academic skills. Synergy again!
The Internet and Heath Informatics class that has lead me to blogging has been great. I really like all the ideas and media that I have been introduced to.
Thanks to Elizabeth Larue!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Cataloging Abbreviations in Scientific Articles and Edward Tufte Workshop
As part of my Informatics Journal Club, it was my turn to summarize a chapter in our text. This particular chapter dealt with the use of abbreviations and I had to analyze two scientific articles based on what it covered. I decided to identify, catalog and count all of the abbreviations found in each article. I don't know why I like doing this kind of obsessive/compulsive thing but I do.
First, I captured every abbreviation with a yellow highlighter. Next, I created a small chart in the lower left-hand corner of each page to list all abbreviations found on that page. After that, I counted how many occurrences there were of each abbreviation. I built an Excel spreadsheet to capture all this information and created a scoring system for rating how well the abbreviation was used.
Unfortunately, I found I had to stop at that point. While I might be good at gathering data, I am not good at making mathematically significant meaning of what I gather. I see Statistics Classes looming large in my future!
So, I turned in this assignment electronically because I had signed up for the Edward Tufte workshop, downtown at the Westin Hotel, that was occuring oon the same day my class meets. At the workshop, listened to tips and tricks for making data and information accessible through the use of graphics. It was an interesting learning experience and I spent most of the time multi-tasking on my computer.
We got 4 beautiful hardcover books as part of our registration. It is really wild how important graphics can factor into the presentation of research results and the general transferring of information. One example of a supergraphic, as he calls them, was an illustration of the number of Napoleon's troops entering Russia, and making their way to Moscow, compared to the number of troops who actually made it out of Russia alive. The losses were staggering. They endured temperatures below -20 and -30. Crazy! Another reason NOT to go to war.
Check Professor Tufte out if you get a chance!
First, I captured every abbreviation with a yellow highlighter. Next, I created a small chart in the lower left-hand corner of each page to list all abbreviations found on that page. After that, I counted how many occurrences there were of each abbreviation. I built an Excel spreadsheet to capture all this information and created a scoring system for rating how well the abbreviation was used.
Unfortunately, I found I had to stop at that point. While I might be good at gathering data, I am not good at making mathematically significant meaning of what I gather. I see Statistics Classes looming large in my future!
So, I turned in this assignment electronically because I had signed up for the Edward Tufte workshop, downtown at the Westin Hotel, that was occuring oon the same day my class meets. At the workshop, listened to tips and tricks for making data and information accessible through the use of graphics. It was an interesting learning experience and I spent most of the time multi-tasking on my computer.
We got 4 beautiful hardcover books as part of our registration. It is really wild how important graphics can factor into the presentation of research results and the general transferring of information. One example of a supergraphic, as he calls them, was an illustration of the number of Napoleon's troops entering Russia, and making their way to Moscow, compared to the number of troops who actually made it out of Russia alive. The losses were staggering. They endured temperatures below -20 and -30. Crazy! Another reason NOT to go to war.
Check Professor Tufte out if you get a chance!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Pearls of Knowledge - MBA to PhD and Beyond
I am always looking for synergy between things. My ongoing fantasy is that I can somehow weave all aspects of my being into one discipline. I would like to bring my emotional, psychological, creative, scientific, business, physical and spiritual selves together into a purposefully cohesive whole.
My youngest daughter is 16 years old and I have 6 1/2 more years to help shepard her through two educational systems: high school and college. This gives me ample time to accomplish my own educational goals.
In my Decision Making in Complex Environments class, we are learning to do decision modeling using the professor's software program. Since I work in the area of Biomedical Informatics, I have been tossing around the idea that I could focus on how to improve significant decisions being made in the area of medicine.
This has lead me to considering the concept of getting both an MBA and a PhD in Biomedical Informatics. Business is really the discipline of considering all real-world aspects of a venture: benefits, opportunities, costs and risks. Informatics is a field that is so broad and comprehensive, like the universe, I haven't yet discovered even the edges. This provides me with the sensation that the door is wide open for exploration.
When the world becomes your oyster, it is easy to feel like a pearl!
My youngest daughter is 16 years old and I have 6 1/2 more years to help shepard her through two educational systems: high school and college. This gives me ample time to accomplish my own educational goals.
In my Decision Making in Complex Environments class, we are learning to do decision modeling using the professor's software program. Since I work in the area of Biomedical Informatics, I have been tossing around the idea that I could focus on how to improve significant decisions being made in the area of medicine.
This has lead me to considering the concept of getting both an MBA and a PhD in Biomedical Informatics. Business is really the discipline of considering all real-world aspects of a venture: benefits, opportunities, costs and risks. Informatics is a field that is so broad and comprehensive, like the universe, I haven't yet discovered even the edges. This provides me with the sensation that the door is wide open for exploration.
When the world becomes your oyster, it is easy to feel like a pearl!
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