projects - how to write

How to Write Good ScientificHowtoWriteGoodScientificProjectProposals:

AComprehensiveGuide

Rui PedroPaiva,PhDResearcher@Proyecto Prometeo,EcuadorProfessor @ University of Coimbra, PortugalProfessor@UniversityofCoimbra,Portugal

January2013

Outline

IntroductionIntroduction PreliminaryWork Structure of a Project Proposal StructureofaProjectProposal AboutCollaborativeWritingF th I f ti FurtherInformation

Submission Notification DisseminationofResults

2

Outline

Conclusions and Future WorkConclusionsandFutureWork Acknowledgments

b h h AbouttheAuthor Bibliography

3

Introduction

MotivationandScope ObjectivesandApproaches MainContributions Overview:Whatmakesagoodprojectproposal?

Note:thissectionhassomeoverlapwiththeintroductorysectionon[Paiva,2013]HowtoWriteGoodScientificPapers:AComprehensiveGuide,forthesakeofcompletenessandtomakeitsufficientlyselfcontained

Introduction

Motivation and ScopeMotivationandScopeWhatisascientificprojectproposal?

A request for financialArequestforfinancialassistance toimplementascientificproject (inspiredf [B l i 2012])from[Belmain,2012])

5

From http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/r/research_funding.asp

Introduction

Motivation and Scope MotivationandScopeWhywriteproposals?

Write proposals so that you havemoney to do research Write proposals so that you havemoney to do researchand give your contribution to understanding the world(Scientific career: should be centered in the creation ofknowledge) Fundequipment andlaboratoryfacilities Fundstudents (bothunder orpostgraduate)( p g ) Givesyouindependencetoattendingmeetings

E.g.,collaborate withotherscientists,gotoconferences,etcetc.

6

Introduction

Motivation and ScopeMotivationandScopeWhywriteproposals?

Important indicator of external approval of youractivities Raise your academic prestige

Increase the number of scientific publicationsIncrease the number of scientific publications May benefit your evaluation

Grantgetters and people who publish more (always favoringquality over quantity) are ranked higherquality over quantity) are ranked higher

May benefit your university/research institutionfinancially through overheads

7

Introduction

Proposalwritingrequiresconsiderableknowledgeinmanydisciplinesy p

Asanyskill,canbelearnedbutrequirespractice

8

Introduction

Motivation and ScopeMotivationandScopeWhat to investigate in a project?

A new idea e g a first solution to an impactingAnewidea,e.g.,afirstsolutiontoanimpactingproblem

Abettersolution toaknownproblem E.g.,abetterperformingalgorithm(accuracy,speed,etc.)

MultidisciplinaryideasK l d Knowledgegaps

9

Introduction

ObjectivesandApproachesj pp Thepurposeofthisdocumentistosummarizeanumberofgeneralguidelines forproducingcompetitive scientific project proposalscompetitivescientificprojectproposals Theseguidelinesdonotsubstitutethepricelessvalueofexperience

Asalways,thesearegeneralrulesofthumby , ge e a u es o u b Particularcasesmightrequireparticularapproaches

Iresorttobothaliteraturereview onthethemeandmy personal experiencemypersonalexperience Otherpeoplemightdisagreewithsomeofmyperspectives

Illustrativeexamples areusedextensively

10

Introduction

Main ContributionsMainContributions Aclear,comprehensiveandintegratedoverviewof the main issues pertaining to the production ofofthemainissues pertainingtotheproductionofgoodscientificprojectproposals Informationaboutthetopicisscatteredacrossseveralsources

Lessonslearned frommypersonalexperiencewritingscientificproposals Enrichedwithseveralrejectedproposals

11

Introduction

Overview: What makes a good scientificOverview:Whatmakesagoodscientificprojectproposal? Anoriginal,impactingideag , p g

Demonstratingscientific,economic,andsocialimpactoftheproposedresearch

It d t f di i t Itsadequacytofundingagencyrequirementsand programcriteria Idea is strategic for the donorIdeaisstrategicforthedonor Fundingmaybetargettospecificfields,e.g.,energy,orprofiles,e.g.,researchersundersomeage

12

Introduction

Overview:Whatmakesagoodscientificprojectg p jproposal? Thewayyoucommunicate it

Effectiveness of communication and clarity of presentation Effectivenessofcommunicationandclarityofpresentationarekey

Agoodcritical coverageofrelatedliteratureA i i th d l Aconvincingmethodology

Convincingteambackground andabilitytosucceed Theprojectcoordinatorandteamscurriculummustconvincetheevaluatorsthattheprojecthasahighprobabilityofsuccess E.g.,pastworkonrelatedtopics,preliminaryresearch

13

Introduction

Overview:Whatmakesagoodscientificprojectg p jproposal? Adequatemanagement,monitoring andevaluationplans

Management str ct re planned deli erables milestones etc Managementstructure,planneddeliverables,milestones,etc. Realisticbudget

Demonstrateneedforfinancialassistance(resources:equipment,d h l hi f )studentscholarships,conferences,etc.)

Exitstrategy:demonstrationofthe sustainabilityoftheprojectsoutputs Whichprojectsoutputsshouldliveonaftertheprojectends,whowillwantthem,andwhy?

E.g.,softwarecommercializationplans,patents,newknowledge,bettertrained peopletrainedpeople

14

Introduction

Overview:WhatmakesagoodscientificprojectO e e : at a es a good sc e t c p ojectproposal? Keyquestions (adaptedandextendedfrom[Cardoso,2012] Istheresearchnew? Is the research significant to the field of research?Istheresearchsignificanttothefieldofresearch? Doesitclearlymotivateandclearlyformulatetheresearchquestion?

Does it outline the current knowledge of the problem Doesitoutlinethecurrentknowledgeoftheproblemdomain,aswellasthestateofexistingsolutions?

Doesitpresentclearlyanypreliminaryideas,theproposedapproach and the results achieved so far?approachandtheresultsachievedsofar?

15

Introduction

Overview:Whatmakesagoodscientificprojectproposal? Keyquestions (adaptedandextendedfrom[Cardoso,2012] Doesitsketchtheresearchmethodologythatwillbeapplied? Doesitpointoutthecontributionsoftheapplicanttotheproblemsolution?D it t t i h t t th t d l ti ill b Doesitstateinwhataspectsthesuggestedsolutionwillbedifferent,neworbetterascomparedtoexistingapproachestotheproblem?

Doesitstatehowtheexpectedresultswillbeevaluatedorpcomparedtoexistingapproachestotheproblem?

Doesitstatehowandbywhomtheexpectedresultscanbeapplied?

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Introduction

Overview:Whatmakesagoodscientificprojectproposal? Keyquestions (adaptedandextendedfrom[Cardoso,2012] Istheteamsbackground(andparticularly,theprojectcoordinators)adequatetoconvincetheevaluatorsthattheprojectwillsucceed?

Does it state how the project evolution will be monitored and Doesitstatehowtheprojectevolutionwillbemonitoredandevaluated?

Isthebudgetrealistic?Istoolowortoohigh?Aretheplannedequipment,scholarships,missions,consumables,etc.adequate?

Doesitdemonstratethesustainabilityoftheprojectsoutputs?Whichprojectsoutputsshouldliveonaftertheprojectends,whowillwantthem,andwhy?

17

Introduction

Forbeginners:findarolemodel Followthemodelofagoodscientificprojectproposal ofthe kind you are writing in your research fieldthekindyouarewriting,inyourresearchfield

Startwritingthedayyoudecidetostudytheproblemg y y y p Evensimple,short,unstructurednoteswillhelpyou

Helpyoustayingfocused Accelerate the production of the final manuscriptAcceleratetheproductionofthefinalmanuscript

Writedownideasthatcometoyourmind Dontwaitforamonthbeforethedeadlinetostartwriting

18

Introduction

Thinkaboutpossiblefundingsourcesearly

Check proposal calls and deadlinesCheckproposalcalls anddeadlines

Contactpossiblepartnersasearlyaspossible

Becomeaproposalreviewer It will help you to both read and write betterItwillhelpyoutobothreadandwritebetter How?

Approachfundingsources Get funding! They may invite you later to become a reviewerGetfunding!Theymayinviteyoulatertobecomeareviewer

19

Introduction

20

From http://ec.europa.eu/research/evaluations/pdf/archive/fp7_monitoring_reports/fourth_fp7_monitoring_report.pdf

Introduction

Further readingFurtherreading

A.Yavuz Oruc (2011).HandbookofScientificProposal( ) pWriting,Chapman andHall/CRC

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Preliminary Work:PreliminaryWork:Whatyoushoulddo

beforewritingtheproposal

Goodresearchideas Fundingsources

Callassessment Basicdraft

Partners Taskscheduling

PreliminaryWork

GoalGoal Planyourproposalbeforewritingit

How? How?

Haveanidea Findaboutfundingi i

Assesssuitableness ofopportunities suitablenessofresearchcall

Contactprospectivepartners

Writebasicdraftandsharewith

partners

Scheduleandassigntasksto

partners

23Adapted from [Belmain, 2012]

PreliminaryWork AGoodIdea

GoalGoal Goodresearchideakey for a good proposalkeyforagoodproposal Althoughnotsufficient

Fromhttp://en.paperblog.com/threerulestop p p gstresstestyourgreatidea351375/

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Researchideasandscopep Pureresearch (=basicresearch=fundamentalresearch) Increase understanding of fundamental principles: explainIncreaseunderstandingoffundamentalprinciples:explainhowtheworldworks,refuteexistingtheories

Generateprinciplesandtheories Typicallynotintendedtogeneratecommercialbenefitsintheyp y gsortterm

Examples Physics:findtheHibbs bosonE l i h ld i i i Economy:explaintheworldeconomiccrisis

Sociology:understandsocialchanges Computerscience:analyzealgorithmcomplexity

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Research ideas and scopeResearchideasandscope Appliedresearch

Practicalapplicationofscience:useofaccumulatedknowledgetoaddresscomplexrealworldproblems,withpossiblecommercialbenefits

ExamplesExamples Economy:usemachinelearningandeconomictheoriestopredicteconomicbehavior

Computerscience:createnewprogramminglanguagessuitedCo pute sc e ce: c eate e p og a g a guages su tedforspecificgoalsandtasks

Business:applydataminingtoenterprisedatatodiscoverrelationsamongcustomers,products,etc.

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Research ideas and scopeResearchideasandscope Hybridresearch

Usually amix of the twoUsually,amixofthetwo Examples

Computerscience:understandhowmusicsignalsencodeemotionsandusemachinelearningtechniquestobuildemotionbasedretrievaltools

Medicine:understandthehumansenseoftouchandapplycuttingedgeknowledgeaboutroboticsandcommunicationtechnologiestoperformtelesurgerywithusersensoryfeedback

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What makes a good research idea?Whatmakesagoodresearchidea? Originality

The idea should be originalTheideashouldbe original Relevantandpreviouslyunaddressedproblem Bettermethodology toapreviouslyaddressedbutunsolvedt i ( t lt ith f i t)topic (currentresultswithroomforimprovement)

Bettermethodology toaproblemwithknownsolution E.g.,muchmoreefficient solution

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What makes a good research idea?Whatmakesagoodresearchidea? Impact

The idea should have a significant impact to scienceTheideashouldhaveasignificantimpacttoscienceand/ortosociety Scientific,social,economic,culturalimpact

Riskiness Topicshouldbecomplex,withsomeassociatedriskand

bitiambition

29


How?How?

From http://archive sciencewatch com/dr/erf/2011/11decerf/

FromBTexact TechnologiesadivisionofBritishTelecommunicationsplc

From http://archive.sciencewatch.com/dr/erf/2011/11decerf/

30


How?o ? Yourownbackground,experienceandintuition

Openissuesfromyourpastprojectsandpapers, Yourcolleagues (inyourinstitutionornetwork)

CollaborationisinspiringResearch agendas from reference research labs Researchagendasfromreferenceresearchlabs

Strategicresearchagendas (e.g.,Garnter,Forrester,etc.)

Researchreportsfromsciencewatchdogs E.g.,EssentialScienceIndicators(ThomsonReuters),ScienceWatchWatch

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How? Visionsbyleadingresearchers TopicsinworldclassconferencesI ti th F t t InventingtheFuturetypepapers Revisionsandtrends,knowledgegaps,etc.in

ConclusionsandFutureWorksectionsofrecentgoodpapers Suggestionsforfuturework

Information eventsInformationevents Somefundingagenciesorganizeprogramsdedicatedtotheexchangeofideas E.g.,FP7InfoDay

32


Fromhttp://www.gartner.com/technology/research/maverick/

33


Structure your ideaStructureyouridea Divideandconquer approach

Define hierarchy of tasks and subtasks to tackle theDefinehierarchyoftasks andsubtaskstotackletheproblem

Usefultoidentifyareaswhereyouneedtolookforexpertise somewhereelse(i.e.,findpartners)

34


Getoutofthebox!Exploreotherfields ManygreatideasaremultidisciplinaryE h id i h ll f h fi ld Exchangeideaswith colleaguesfromotherfields

Readjournalsoutsideofyourusualthemes Engineering:journalsandmagazineslikeIEEESpectrummightbeagoodsourceofinspiration

Ask the question: Are there any studies that alreadyAskthequestion:Arethereanystudies thatalreadyanswer thequestionyouareasking?

Oneofthepurposesoftheliteraturereview(seelater)

35


Remember,youneedtimetoreflect!!!

Besidesagoodidea,havepreliminaryresults Most successful proposals are based on preliminaryMostsuccessfulproposals arebasedonpreliminary

results(prospectiveexperiments,yourandyourpartnerspastwork,etc.)

Theystrengthen yourproposal:usefulfordemonstratingfeasibilityandcapabilities

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PreliminaryWork FundingSources

Thepurposeofscienceistogetpaidfordoingfunstuff Nominally science involves discoveringstuff.Nominally,scienceinvolvesdiscoveringsomethingnewabouttheUniverse,butthisisn'treallynecessary.What is reallynecessaryisagrant.[Schulman,1996]

37


GoalGoal Findoutaboutfundingopportunities (programs,areas,fundingamounts,etc.)

How? Lookinthetypicalsources

Governmentfundingagencies CharitablefoundationsB i Businesses

Individuals

38


How?How? Haveadatabaseoffundingsources,programsanddeadlines Aboutgeneraltopics ClosetoyourresearchideaCh k t i l f di t j t Checktypicalfundingamount perproject

Checkevaluationtime Mean time between submission and notification Meantimebetweensubmissionandnotification

Promptandhelpfulrevision?3months,1year? Mightberelevantdependingonyourneeds

39


ExamplesExamples EuropeanUnionFrameworkPrograms17International Foundation for Science Sweden InternationalFoundationforScience,Sweden

ScienceFoundationsfromindividualcountries E g Portugal E.g.,Portugal

Governmentagencies:Fundao para aCincia eTecnologia Governmentcooperationprograms:MITPortugal Charitablefoundations:Fundao Calouste Gulbenkian Business:PTInovao

I i d h i i i h d i i i40

Itisgoodwhenyourinstitutionhasadministrativestaff dedicatedtothistask.


From http://ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/understanding/fp7inbrief/structure_en.html

41


42From http://ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/understanding/fp7inbrief/structure_en.html


IPl i j

STREPS ifi h jLargescaleIntegrationProject

Minimumof3partnersfrom3differentcountries

3to5yearsB d f M

SpecificTargetResearchProject Minimumof3partnersfrom

3differentcountries 2to3years

B d d 2 M

43Adapted from http://ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/understanding/fp7inbrief/fundingschemes_en.html

Budget:tensofM Budget:around2M


44From www.efpconsulting.com/tools (Mr. M. Morrons FP7 Book)


The Good NewsTheGoodNews Investmentinscienceisgrowingglobally

Nearly doubled since the beginning of the 21st centuryNearlydoubledsincethebeginningofthe21 century

From [Royal Society 2011 p 16]

45

From [Royal Society, 2011, p. 16]


From [Royal Society, 2011,p. 42]

46

p ]


The Bad NewsTheBadNewsWorldcrisis affectsresearchbudgetsinseveralcountriescountries

Lowproposalacceptancerates Many funding sources around 1015%Manyfundingsourcesaround10 15%

orless,dependingonthetopic

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PreliminaryWork CallAssessment

GoalGoal Gettoknowindetail thenatureoftheresearchcallscalls Adonormighthaveseveralprograms,eachwithitsownrules(e.g.,EuropeanCommissionFP7)

Evaluate whetheryourresearchideasfit Selectonecall

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How?How? Suitableness

Does the research call match your research ideas andDoestheresearchcallmatchyourresearchideasandresearchscope?

Ifnot,youcanbe Reactive

Adaptyourideastofitanexistingprogram ProactiveProactive

Proposeyourownideastoaprogram Sometimesonlyinspecificmoments,e.g.,publiccallsforideasideas

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How?How? Eligibility

Are you eligible to apply?Areyoueligibletoapply? Age

Youngresearchers,experiencedresearchers Theme

Startinggrants,excellencegrants,teamformationgrants,grantstoreturntoyouroriginalcountry,

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How?How? Deadline

What is the submission deadline?Whatisthesubmissiondeadline? Doyouhaveenoughtimetowriteawinningproposal?

Acceptance rateAcceptancerate Forprogramswithlowacceptancerate,howconfidentareyou?

Whattradeoffsaretherebetweenprovidedfundingandacceptancerate?

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Read thecalldocumentindetail

Avoidrunningagainsttheclock Many potentially good proposals fail because ofManypotentiallygoodproposalsfailbecauseof

insufficientpreparationtime:badwriting,deficientstateoftheartreview,badplanning,notimetoreview,tetc.

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From http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/page/cooperation?callIdentifier=FP7ICT201310#wlp_call_FP7

PreliminaryWork Partners

GoalGoal Findresearchsynergies

Excellence demandscollaboration Thewhole ismorethanthesumoftheparts

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How?How? Identifyexternalneeds

Basedonthepreviousstructuration ofyourresearchideap y Contactprospectivepartners

Stateyourresearchidea andvisions Clarifywhatcontributionsyourpartnerscangive

Oftenmorethanwhatyouexpectedinitially

Attend collaboration events Attendcollaborationevents Someprogramshaveeventsdedicatedtofindingpartnersfortheircalls

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Haveadatabaseofpossiblepartners Frompastprojectsorpapers,scientificcontacts,authorsyouve read aboutyou vereadabout,

Have Industrypartnersy p Dependingonthenatureofyourproject,theymightbekeyforlaterexploitationofprojectresults

Contactpeopleyouveneverworkedwithbefore Itisusuallyrewarding

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Usepartnersearchtools E.g.,FP7CORDISpartnersearchtool

Formtheconsortiumearlierthenthecall Atleastthecoreteam

Optimizetheconsortiumsize Nottoolarge,nottoosmall Dependsontheprojectsize

IP:around15 STREP:around5

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58From https://cordis.europa.eu/partners/web/guest/home


Collaboration is a growing trendCollaborationisagrowingtrend

From [Glnzel and Schubert,2004]

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Whycollaborate? Toshareknowledge,experienceandskills

Promoteexcellence To take advantage of specialization you dont haveTotakeadvantageofspecialization youdon thave

Delegatetasks Tosustainmotivation viainteraction To have/provide access to costly equipment data etcTohave/provideaccesstocostlyequipment,data,etc.

E.g.,clinicalpartner:costlyhospitalequipmentanddata,enterprisepartner:costumerdata

Tostrengthenconnections (andfosterfuturecollaborationg ( virtuouscircle)

Topromote increasednumberofpublications andcitations

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Levels of collaborationLevelsofcollaboration Intrainstitutional

Among researchers inside the same research institutionAmongresearchersinsidethesameresearchinstitution Why?

Closepartnership,dailydiscussions,seedofgoodideas Typically,happensnaturally peoplewithsimilarintereststendtogrouptogether

Accessto intrainstitutionalfunding toexploitsynergiesg p y ginsidetheinstitution

Exchangeideaswithcolleaguesfarfromyourfield

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g g y Remembergoodideas areoftenmultidisciplinary


Anexampleofasmallcoauthorshipt k d i ti ll b tinetworkdepictingcollaborations

amongscientistsataprivateresearchinstitution.

Nodesinthenetworkrepresentscientists,andalinebetweentwoofthemindicatestheycoauthoredapaper during the period of study Thispaperduringtheperiodofstudy.Thisparticularnetworkappearstodivideintoanumberofsubcommunities,asindicatedbytheshapesofthenodes,andthesesubcommunities correspondroughlytotopicsofresearch.

From [Newman 2004]

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From [Newman, 2004]


Levels of collaborationLevelsofcollaboration National/Regional

Among researchers from different research institutionsAmongresearchersfromdifferentresearchinstitutionsinthesamecountry/regionorneighborcountries

Why? Accesstonational/regionalfundingtostimulatenationalnetworks,addressspecificcountry/regionneeds

Cultural,environmentalandgeographicproximityg g p p y E.g.,IberoAmericannetworks,EuropeanUnionFP7,etc.

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Levelsofcollaboration International

Amongresearchersfromdiversecountries Why? Why?

AccesstoInternationalfundedprojects tostimulateinternationalnetworks E.g.,IBSAinitiative(India,BrazilandSouthAfrica),EuropeanU i FP7 ( EU ll d i h ifiUnionFP7(nonEUpartnersallowed,withspecificconditions)

Highestpotential:theworldisthelimit Highestlevelofavailablespecializationg p Highestrewardpossibilities:numberofpapers,citations,budget,,etc.)

Growingfaster thandomesticcollaborations

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InMarch2010,PhysicsLettersBpublishedthemostmultiauthoredresearchpapertod h hdate,when3,222researchersfrom32differentcountriescontributedtoastudyofchargedparticlemultiplicitiesg p pmeasuredwiththeATLASdetectorattheLargeHadronColliderinGeneva


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PreliminaryWork BasicDraft

GoalGoalWriteadraft(preliminaryversion)Share it among partners for discussion Share itamongpartners fordiscussion

67From http://www.ehow.com/how_7804861_writegrantproposalproject.html

PreliminaryWork BasicDraft

How?How? Employthesametemplate usedforthefinalsubmissionsubmission Titleandacronym,motivation,objectives,researchplan,managementstrategy,etc.

SeesectionStructureofaprojectproposal Orwriteashort,say,3page,document Discussitwithpartnersandnegotiatescopeandgoals

68

PreliminaryWork TaskScheduling

GoalGoal Scheduletasks

Define deadlinesDefinedeadlines Assigntasksto partners Schedule preparation meetings Schedulepreparationmeetings

Videoconference,facetoface(F2F),etc.

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How?o ? Estimatetimeneeded foreachtask

Thetotaltimedependsonthe sizeandcomplexityofthel b f t tproposal,numberofpartners,etc.

Fromseveralweeks toseveralmonths! Defineandapplydeadlines

Deadlineforthemainwritingtasks Deadlineforbudgetandjustification DeadlineforshortCVs Deadlineforfirstalmostreadyversion

Ganttchart withtasksuntilsubmission

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How?How? Assigntasks topartners,accordingtotheirbackground specialization and the previous initialbackgroundspecialization andthepreviousinitialcontact Writingtasks(literaturereview,problemstoaddress,objectives,proposedapproaches,activities),budgetandjustification,timeline,

71


Who writes what?Whowriteswhat?

Administrativepart(administrativepartner)Technicalpart

Contribution(eachpartner) Beyondstateoftheartforeachchallenge Work package content, including WP tablesWorkpackagecontent,includingWPtables

Projectmanagementstructure(coordinator) Impact(disseminationpartner) Partnerdata(eachpartner)

P t fil Partnersprofiles CVs competencies IndividualExploitation/Disseminationplan

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p p

Adapted from [TURBO, 2010]


Bearinminddelayshappen haveacushionoftime

Send remindersSendreminders

Plan to have an almostready version around 2 orPlantohavean almostready version around2or3weeksbeforethedeadline

Dependsonthesizeandcomplexityoftheproposalp p y p p

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PreliminaryWork

Negotiation isveryimportbothinthepreparationphaseandintheproposalwriting

Id d t b d t d di t t Ideasmayneedtobeadaptedaccordingtopartnersuggestion

Budgetsmayhavetobenegotiated

Theprojectcoordinator playsakeyroleinguaranteeingthat all parts are satisfied and the project keepsthatallpartsaresatisfied andtheprojectkeepscoherence

Positiveworkingatmosphereisessential

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PreliminaryWork

Furtherreading

Main A.Yavuz Oruc (2011).HandbookofScientificProposalWriting,

Chapman and Hall/CRCChapman andHall/CRC Belmain S.(2012).Howtowriteascientificproposal:Respondingto

competitivecalls,Presentation,URL:http://www.nri.org/projects/adappt/docs/McKnight/WritingGrantProposals.pdfp

Additional RoyalSociety(2011).Knowledge,NetworksandNations:Globalscientificcollaborationinthe21stcenturyTURBO (2010) How to start a successful proposal under FP7? TURBO(2010). HowtostartasuccessfulproposalunderFP7? ,Presentation,TurkishResearchandBusinessOrganizations,URL:http://www.turboppp.org/home.do;jsessionid=298565811203FFEA0FB0326BE9D8598F?ot=5&rt=10&sid=0&pid=0&cid=9429

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StructureofaProjectProposal

76


GoalsGoa s Adequatelyorganizeyourproposal,promotingclarityandobjectivity Communicateexactly

Theproblemtobeaddressed Whatyouwanttoaccomplish Theresourcesrequired Whentheactivitieswillbeperformed

Moreaboutthis See[Paiva,2013](HowtoWriteGoodScientificPapers:AComprehensiveGuide StructureofaScientificPaper)p p )

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How? Typicalstructure

Summary Title acronymTitle,acronym Projectsummary Listofparticipants

DescriptionofWorkp Problemstatement Objectivesandjustification RelevancetothecallE l i l Evaluationplan

Progressbeyondthestateoftheart Researchplan

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How? Typicalstructure

Outputs Publications,patents,prototypes,tools,

Exitstrategy Demonstrationofthesustainabilityoftheprojectsoutputs

BudgetNumbers justification of resources value for money Numbers,justificationofresources,valueformoney

Projectmanagement,monitoringandevaluation Managementstructure,etc.

Teambackground Projects,publications,CVs

Disseminationplan Channelsandtheactionstopubliclydisseminatetheprojectresults

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Structure Title

GoalsGoals Defineaprojectacronym andalonger(notlong!)title Anappealingprojectidentifier

How? Shouldbriefandrigorouslysummarizetheessenceoftheproject

Att ti bj ti i f ll d i ti i Attractive,objective,precise,fullydescriptive,conciseandcleartitle

Shouldbespecific (nottoogeneral)p ( g )

80

Structure Title

81

Structure ProjectSummary

GoalsGoals Likethetitle,shouldbebrief andrigorouslysummarize the essence of the project now with asummarizetheessenceoftheproject,nowwithafewmorewords(typically,between200and400words) Likethetitle,maybetheonlythingevaluatorsread

Ifitisnotcatchy,theproposalmaybeexcludedwithoutfurther readingfurtherreading

82

Structure ProjectSummary

How? Describeconcise,clearandobjectively:

What researchproblemtheconsortiumwilladdress Blunt,righttothepointapproach

1or2sentences Why itisimportant

1or2sentences How they will do itHow theywilldoit

3or4sentences Themaincontributions thattheprojectwilloffer

3or4sentences Theimportanceandimpact ofthecontributions

1or2sentences Thenatureoftheconsortium

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Structure ProjectSummaryEachyearCardiovascularDisease(CVD)causesover1.9milliondeathsintheEU,causingdirecthealthcostsof105 billion. Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), half of all CVD deaths, is the single most cause of death in Europe.105billion.CoronaryHeartDisease(CHD),halfofallCVDdeaths,isthesinglemostcauseofdeathinEurope.HeartFailure(HF) aCHDbeingthemostfrequentcauseofhospitalizationforpeopleover65 has10millionpatientsintheEU.CurrenttreatmentofHFentailsrecommendationsfromcliniciansonmedication,dietandlifestyle.Patientsonlyreceivefeedbackatdoctorsvisits,orwhenfacingsymptoms.Dailymonitoring,closefollowup,andhelpont t t ti i l ki N dh t th t t t i i j f b ti l li i ltreatmentroutineislacking.Nonadherencetothetreatmentregimeisamajorcauseofsuboptimalclinicalbenefit.HeartCycle willprovideaclosedloopdiseasemanagementsolutiontoservebothHFandCHDpatients,includinghypertension,diabetesandarrhythmiasaspossiblecomorbidities.Thiswillbeachievedbymultiparametricmonitoringofvitalsigns,analysing thedataandprovidingautomateddecisionsupport,toderivetherapy

cg g , y g p g pp , py

recommendations.Thesystemwillcontainapatientloopinteractingdirectlywiththepatienttosupportthedailytreatment.Itwillshowthehealthdevelopment,includingtreatmentadherenceandeffectiveness.Beingmotivated,compliancewillincrease,andhealthwillimprove.Thesystemwillalsocontainaprofessionalloopinvolvingmedicalprofessionals,e g alerting to revisit the care plan The patient loop is connected with hospital information systems to ensuree.g.alertingtorevisitthecareplan.Thepatientloopisconnectedwithhospitalinformationsystems,toensureoptimalandpersonalised care.Europeshealthsystemisundergoingradicalchangesduetoanagingpopulation.Itsmovingfromreactivetowardspreventativecare,andfromhospitalcaretocareathome.Tomorrowspatientswillbecomemoreempoweredtotaketheirhealthintotheirownhands.NewICTisrequiredtoenablethisparadigmshift.

84

HeartCycle,coordinatedbyPhilips leadinginelectronicsandhealthcare,includesexpertsontextiles,ICT,decisionsupportanduserinteraction.

From HeartCycle project

Structure ListofParticipants

GoalsGoals Listtheprojectpartners andtheiraffiliations


85

Structure ProblemStatement

GoalsGoals Describetheproblem youwilladdressintheproposalproposal

How?Right to the point Righttothepoint

Synthesisdiagram

86

Structure ProblemStatement

HeartCycle willprovideaclosedloopdiseasemanagement solution being able to serve both HFmanagementsolutionbeingabletoservebothHFpatientsandCHDpatients,includingpossiblecomorbiditieshypertension,diabetesandarrhythmias.Thiswillbeachievedbymultiparametricmonitoringandanalysisofvitalsignsandothermeasurements.Ad l ill b d f i diAdverseeventalarmswillbegeneratedforimmediateprofessionalattentionandanautomateddecisionsupportsystemwillderivetherapyrecommendationsfromtheinformationacquired.Vitalbodysignswillbeusedtotrackhealthstatusandtheimpactofthepcurrenttreatment,showingthepatienttheimportanceofadherencetothetreatment,motivatingimprovedtreatmentadherence,andamoreactiveroleinhiscare.Theregularmeasurementofvitalsignswillenable early diagnosis and warning of developingenableearlydiagnosisandwarningofdevelopingproblems.Furthermore,itwillallowclosermonitoringoftheeffectsofmedicationandlifestyle,makingmorepersonalised treatmentplanspossible.ThefirstthreeyearsoftheprojectarededicatedtoresearchingandFrom HeartCycle project

87

realizingthetechnicalsystemsolution,whereasyearfourispreservedfortheclinicalvalidationoftheachievedresults.


Structure Objectives

GoalsGoals Clearlystatetheobjectives oftheproposal,theircontext and justificationcontext andjustification Scientific(moregeneric) Technological(lowerlevel)g ( )

How? Right to the pointRighttothepoint Inaccordancewiththecalldocument Use a list diagram Usea list,diagram

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89From HeartCycle project


How?How? Justification

Why is the objective relevant to the field?Whyistheobjectiverelevanttothefield? Whatapplicationsdothisresearchproblemhave? Whatsthesocio,economic,cultural,etc.impactof, , , paddressingthisproblem? Use(inter)nationalstatisticalstudies,e.g.,OECD,WHO,United Nations etc prove problems identify trendUnitedNations,etc., proveproblems,identifytrend

SO1:ImproveDiseaseManagementinCardiovascularDiseaseThepopulationoftheEU,andindeedinthewesternworld,isaging.AccordingtoCharlieMcCreevy,EuropeanCommissionerforInternalMarketandServices,overthecomingdecade,Europewill

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p , g , pchangefromhavingfourpeopleofworkingageforeveryelderlycitizentoaratiooftwotoone[1][1]CharlieMcCreevy,ThefutureofEurope,toLimerickCityCouncil,24February,2006


Structure RelevancetotheCall

GoalGoal Proveadequacyoftheproposaltothecall

How HowMatching betweencallobjectives andproposalobjectivesobjectives E.g.,table

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Structure RelevancetotheCall


Structure EvaluationPlan

Goals Describehowtheresultsoftheprojectwillbeevaluated

How Validationofalgorithms Efficiencyevaluation Realworld validation Realworldvalidation

Usabilitytests Clinicalvalidation

Businessvalidation Costbenefitanalysis

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Structure ProgressbeyondSOTA

GoalsGoals Summarizethecontributions theprojectwilloffertoextendthestateoftheart

How? Summarytable

Currentapproaches Newapproachesresultingfromtheproject

h bj i Foreachobjective Literaturereview InnovationInnovation

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95


TO2:EnableVitalBodySignSensing

ThistechnologicalobjectiveisaimedatenablingmeasurementsmedicallyrelevantfortheHeartCycleapplicationusingmethodsthatareeasytousebythetargetgroupofCVDpatients.Thefollowingtechnologieswillbeinvestigated,andthosefoundtobemedicallyrelevantfortheapplication,andrealisable inaneasytouseway,willbeselectedforfurtherdevelopment.

ECG

StateoftheArtTheelectrocardiogramisakeysignalfromwhichmanyheartparameterscanbeextracted.AgoodECGrequires gel sticky electrodes which are uncomfortable their placement requires medicalknowledge andrequiresgelstickyelectrodes,whichareuncomfortable,theirplacementrequiresmedicalknowledge andtheymaycauseskinirritationonthelongterm.MyHeart proposedtextileswithembeddedelectrodes.Despiteseveralprecautions,thedevelopedtechnologyturnedtobestillsensitivetomotionartefacts.

InnovationThe motion artefacts originate from the reorganisation of the charges at the interface junction of theThemotionartefacts originatefromthereorganisation ofthechargesattheinterfacejunctionoftheelectrodewiththeelectrolyte.ItisproposedinHeartCycle toenhancetheECGsignalnotonlybymeansofsignalprocessingontheECGsignal,butalsobytakingintoaccountadditionalinformationprovidedbyothersensors,suchasaccelerometerlocatedontheelectrodeand/ordirectmeasurementofcontactimpedance.Thisrequiresdevelopingspecificelectronicsatthelocationoftheelectrode.Theelectrodesbecomesmartsensorsthatcansenseextrainformationfromtheiruseconditionssoastodeliverafully


correctedanddenoisedsignal.Ifdemonstratedaseffective,suchsmartelectrodeswouldmakeasignificantstepforwardinthetextiledryelectrodetechnology.

Structure ResearchPlan

Goal Describeinthedetailtheproposedwork andmethodologies

How? How? Divideandconquer approach

Organizeactivitiesaccordingtoworkpackages,tasks,subtasks Particularlyimportantinlarge,multidisciplinaryprojects

Describeproposedmethodologiesindetail Describerisks andcontingencyplans Definetheprojecttimeline

Gantt chartGanttchart

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How?How? Foreachactivitydescribe

Partner involvement objectives tasks outputsPartnerinvolvement,objectives,tasks,outputs,milestones,deliverables,timeline,laborinput

Relateactivities Describerisks andcontingencyplans Provefeasibility ofworkplano e eas b ty o o p a

Adequatehumanresources,preliminaryresults,equipment(availableandrequired),etc.

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Longestandmostimportantpartoftheproposal


WP1 Application Concept Design and Business DevelopmentWP1 ApplicationConceptDesignandBusinessDevelopmentWP1definesandmanagesthetwotargetapplications,heartfailureandcoronaryheartdiseaseandguaranteesthatallapplicationaspectsarebasedonclinicalexcellenceandthemedicalexpertknowledge.

WP6 ValidationThisWorkPackageaimstoprovetheeffectivenessofthesolutionofferedbyHeartCycle inimprovingg p y y p gtheadherenceofpatientstolifestyleandmedicationrecommendationsandthebenefitthattheimprovedadherencehasonthecourseofthedisease,exemplarilyforCHFand/orCHD.

WP7 KnowledgeManagementWP7willaccountforthemanagementofallknowledgerelatedtotheprojectinallaspects,includingprovidingvisibilityoftheprojecttothepublic.

WP8 ProjectManagementTheWPonProjectManagementdealswiththecoordinationandmanagementoftheprojectandtheconsortiumasawholeinallaspectsandcomprisestheimplementationofthemanagementprocesses.

WP9 Socioeconomicmonitoringandconcertation activitiesWP9willsupportthebusinessdevelopmentprocessthroughanalysesoftheclinicalandorganisationaloutcomesfromaneconomicperspective,i.e.assessmentofthesocioeconomicimpactoftheapplicationtoindividualstakeholdersandtosocietyatlarge.WP9willbecloselyrelatedtoWP1andWP6



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102



103



104



105

y p j

Structure Outputs

GoalGoal Listconcreteresults oftheactivity

How? How? Listplannedscientificpublications,databases,reports tools prototypes patentsreports, tools,prototypes,patents,methodologies,organizedmeetings,workshops,conferencesconferences

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Structure Outputs


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Structure ExitStrategy

Goal Demonstratethesustainabilityoftheprojectsoutputs

Showyouhaveplannedwhathappenswhentheprojectfinishes

H ? How? Describewhatconcreteresultswilllast aftertheprojectends Betterfacilitiesandequipment? Bettertrained,morecapablestaff? Better/newtechnology,knowledge?/ gy, g Changesinthecommonpracticesinthefield? Scientificnetwork?

Describe commercialization plansDescribecommercializationplans

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Structure ExitStrategy

The university partners have common exploitation goals in the areas of scientificTheuniversitypartnershavecommonexploitationgoalsintheareasofscientificknowledgedissemination.Inparticular,thisincludes: theproductionofnewmeasurableknowledgeevidencedaspublicationsinhigh

impact peer review journals in the general area of biomedical technologyimpactpeerreviewjournalsinthegeneralareaofbiomedicaltechnology,cardiovascularphysiologyandclinicalcardiology

thecreationofnewreferenceknowledge/informationentitiesonHFandCHDintheformofwwwapplications,annotateddatabases,andtutorialsaimedatresearchers,medical personnel and citizensmedicalpersonnelandcitizens

internationalnetworkingthroughthecollaborationwiththehighlevelpartnershipoftheprojectwiththeaimtosetupmaintainableEuropeanstructuressuchasforexamplecentres ofexcellenceintheareaofpHealth andcardiology.

connecting with leading European clinical and medical institutions in the specific fields connectingwithleadingEuropeanclinicalandmedicalinstitutionsinthespecificfieldsofcardiology,cardiovascularrehabilitation,clinicalmedicine,sleepandstress


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y p j

Structure Budget

Onceyougetthegrant,youruniversity,company,orgovernmentagencywillimmediatelytake30to70%g g y yofitsothattheycanheatthebuilding,payforInternetconnections,andpurchaselargeyachts.[Schulman,1996]

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Structure Budget

Goal Planallcosts andjustifytheneedforfunding

How? Defineneedofhumanresources

Scholarships,number,salarypermonth Missionsss o s

Conferences,meetings,visitstolabs Equipment

Computers experimentation materials Computers,experimentationmaterials, Stationery Institutionoverhead

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Structure Budget

Fundingsourcesdonotgive100% oftherequiredfunding! From50%to95% creativeaccountingisoftenacommonpractice

Checkwhatyoucanincludey Overheadscanbelimitedtolessthanwhatyourinstitution

charges Existingstaffsalarycomplementsmaybelimitedorinexistentg y p y Equipmentpurchasesmaybelimitedtoacertainamountand

kind Budgetmustberealisticg

Andshoulddemonstrateneedforfinancialassistance

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Structure ProjectManagement

GoalGoal Describeprojectmanagement,monitoringandevaluationmechanismsevaluationmechanisms Howprojectcosts,quality,schedule,andscopewillbemonitored,controlled,andcorrectedifnecessary?

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How?How? DefinethemanagementstructureDefine communication mechanisms Definecommunicationmechanisms F2Fmeetings,telcos,videoconference

Workpackage,wholeproject,etc.p g , p j ,

Planaccountingreports Progressmonitoringog ess o to g

Reports,milestones,etc. Definemeasurablegoalsg

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Accounting Recordingoffinancialinformation

Veryimportanttofundingagencies Mustbetransparentandaccurate

Qualitycontrolandevaluation Specifyprojectdeliverables,milestones,etc.asameansto evaluate the project stays on tracktoevaluatetheprojectstaysontrack Quarterly,biannualorannualreports

Milestones Significant events (check points)Significantevents (checkpoints)

Typicallydecision/evaluationpointsintheprocess:completionofcertainphasesoftheproject,evaluationofprojectprogress

Shouldbesignificant andattainable

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The General Assembly (GA) is the body consisting of representatives of all beneficiaries, with the taskTheGeneralAssembly(GA)isthebodyconsistingofrepresentativesofallbeneficiaries,withthetasktosupervisetheprojectandwillbechairedbytheProjectCoordinator.

TheProjectCoordinator isresponsibleforthemanagementoftheentireproject.TheCoordinatoroftheprojectistheofficiallinkbetweentheconsortiumandtheEuropeanCommission.TheCoordinatorh i d P j M d h i ll d P j Offi hi h h h jhasappointedaProjectManagerandhasinstalledaProjectOffice,whichtogetherruntheprojectHeartCycle.

TheProjectManagerdealswiththeoverallscientificandtechnologicalmanagementoftheproject.TheProjectManagerwillsupervisetheWorkPackageLeadersandmakessurethatcommunicationj g p gbetweenthevariousWPsproceedsassmoothlyaspossibleforasuccessfulintegrationofthevariouscomponentsoftheProject.

TheProjectOfficewillingeneralbeinvolvedinnontechnicalmattersrelatedtoprojectmanagement,i e all managerial organisational administrative and financial matters of the projecti.e.allmanagerial,organisational,administrativeandfinancialmattersoftheproject.

AWorkPackageLeader(WPL)willcoordinatetheworkcarriedoutinaspecificWorkPackageandisresponsiblefortheplanning,monitoringandtechnicalreportingoftheprogressintheWP.


Structure Partners

Goal Demonstratetheconsortiumsqualityandability toconducttheproposedresearchplan

How? How? PresenttheshortCV ofallpartners

Significantprojects,publications, awards Inthelightoftheproject,tohelpdemonstratethefeasibilityoftheworkplan

TheprincipalinvestigatorsCVis particularlysignificantD ib th fil f h i tit ti Describetheprofile ofeachinstitution Howtheirmissionandvision fitthecall Theirreputation iscrucial

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Structure Partners

The University of Coimbra Portugal founded in the year 1290 comprises eight Faculties moreTheUniversityofCoimbra,Portugal,foundedintheyear1290compriseseightFaculties,morethan2000teachersand22000students.TheparticipationintheproposedprojectiscarriedoutthroughtheAdaptiveComputationGroupoftheDepartmentofInformaticsEngineering(DEI),whichisoneofthe14departmentsoftheFacultyofSciencesandTechnology(FCTUC)andintegratesoneofits42researchunits.FCTUCoffersalargearrayofdifferentundergraduateandpostgraduatedegrees(MScandPhD)inEngineering,LifeSciences,ExactSciences,ArchitectureandAnthropology.TheDepartmentofInformaticsEngineeringoftheFCTUCcomprisesmorethan100researchers,ofwhich40holdPh.D.degrees.InsideDEI,thegroupinvolvedinthecurrentprojectistheAdaptiveComputationGroup(ACG).Themaincore

f h d f ll d lexpertiseoftheAdaptiveComputationGroupconcernsR&Dforintelligentdataanalysis,modelling andcomplexsystemsintegratingdatadrivenaswellasknowledgedrivenapproaches.Thegrouphasavastexperienceinfundamentalandappliedresearchononlinesystemidentificationandcontrol,nonlinearmodelling andprediction,biosignal processing,imageprocessing pattern recognition and Medical Informatics In the last few years the group hasprocessing,patternrecognitionandMedicalInformatics.Inthelastfewyearsthegrouphaspublishedmorethan200papersininternationalconferencesandmagazines,andhasbeeninvolvedinseveralR&DprojectsatnationalandEuropeanlevels,suchasMyHeart (IST2002507816),COSYControlofComplexSystem,Eunite EUropean NetworkonIntelligentTechnologiesforSmartAdaptive


Co p e Syste , u te U opea et o o te ge t ec o og es o S a t dapt eSystems.

Structure Partners

Provethatpartnersareperfecttoaccomplishthedefined tasksdefinedtasks

Expertise,background,reputation

Provetheneedforcollaboration E.g.,complex,multidisciplinaryworkg , co p e , u t d sc p a y o Lackofinhouseexpertise

119

Structure DisseminationPlan

Goal Channelsandtheactionstopubliclydisseminatetheprojectresults

How?How? Projectidentity

ForallpubliccommunicationInternet Internet Projecthomepage

ScientificpublicationsandeventsP l Pressreleases Attainedresults

Demoinstallations

120

Structure DisseminationPlan

121


Furtherreading

Main A.Yavuz Oruc (2011).HandbookofScientificProposalWriting,

Chapman and Hall/CRCChapman andHall/CRC FP7(2012).TemplateforDescriptionofWork,MicrosoftWord

document Additional

B l i S (2012) H t it i tifi l R di t Belmain S.(2012).Howtowriteascientificproposal:Respondingtocompetitivecalls,Presentation,URL:http://www.nri.org/projects/adappt/docs/McKnight/WritingGrantProposals.pdfTURBO (2010) How to start a successful proposal under FP7? TURBO(2010). HowtostartasuccessfulproposalunderFP7? ,Presentation,TurkishResearchandBusinessOrganizations,URL:http://www.turboppp.org/home.do;jsessionid=298565811203FFEA0FB0326BE9D8598F?ot=5&rt=10&sid=0&pid=0&cid=9429

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AboutCollaborativeWriting


Yourproposalwillbemoreappealingifyoualloweach partner to freely express his/her creativityeachpartnertofreelyexpresshis/hercreativity.

124


Goal Promoteuniform andconsistent writingstyle Guaranteesufficient and balanceddepthH ? How? Agreeonterminologyand style Make sure all partners follow the proposals templateMakesureallpartnersfollowtheproposal stemplate Eliminateredundancies Makesuretheproposaldoesntdivergetoadifferentdi ti th th ddirectionthantheoneagreed

Makesuredifferenttaskshaveadequate(maybebalanced)depth

125


Projectcoordinator warrantofqualityincollaborativewritingg

Responsibleforresolvingallthementionedissues

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Further readingFurtherreading

LowryP.B.,CurtisA.andLowryM.R.(2004).Buildingy , y ( ) gaTaxonomyandNomenclatureofCollaborativeWritingtoImproveInterdisciplinaryResearchandPractice,Journal of Business Communication Vol 41 No 1 ppJournalofBusinessCommunication,Vol.41,No.1,pp6699.

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Submission

Submission

Ifyoucantsubmitontime,theresponsibleisobviously the systemobviouslythesystem

Thesubmissionsitecantevenhandleafewthousandsofsimultaneoussubmissions!Whatapoorscalability!

Yourelectricitycompanyalwaysfailswhenyoumostneed itneedit

YourharddiskMeanTimeBetweenFailuredecidedtoproveitisanurbanmyth

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Submission

GoalGoal PrepareyoursubmissioninadvanceSubmit your proposal on time Submit yourproposalontime

Dontoverlookthistask! Often,itisnotassimpleasitseems

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Submission

How?How? Collect allneededinformationinadvance

Data about partners institutions etcDataaboutpartnersinstitutions,etc. PIC:ParticipantInformationCode CVs

Sometimes,itisnecessarytomanuallycopy fromyourdocumenttoonlineformfields Surprisesmayhappen

YouhavetoomanycharactersinaspecificfieldF fi ld d t t d t ti k Formfielddoesntacceptedquotationmarks

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Submission

How?How? Dontwait untilthelastminute!

Not even the last dayNoteventhelastday Rememberhumannature

Submissionpeaksbythedeadline

Submissiondatesandtimes areusuallystricty Ifthesystemscloses,itdoesntmatterifyoumisseditforjustoneminute

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j

Submission

133Fromhttp://alfa.fct.mctes.pt/images/LacragensProjectos.pngIllustrationofdailysealedsubmissionsinacallbytheScienceandTechnologyFoundation(FCT,Portugal).

Notification

Notification

GoalsGoals Toinformtheauthorsaboutthedecision resultingfromtheproposalreview process Acceptance Rejection

H ? How? Externalreviewerssendtheircomments aboutthe paperthepaper

Fundingagencysendsthedecision accordingtothe reviewsthereviews

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Notification

Notification resultsNotificationresults Acceptance

Theproposalisaccepted However,maybenotasyouproposed

Budgetmay(isoften)cutabit Human resources equipment number of missions may be cutHumanresources,equipment,numberofmissionsmaybecutabit

Inaddition,reviewersmayaddsuggestionsLiterature references problems to address Literaturereferences,problemstoaddress

Rejection Theproposalisrejectedp p j

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Notification

R d d f F diRecommendedforFundingOverallRating: OutstandingComments:ThisisawellmotivatedproposalinvolvingimportantinnovationineHealth.Thi i hi hl t d t ith t i l tThisisahighlyratedteamwithstrongpapersinrelevantareas.[]

RecommendedforFundingOverallRating: 86Comments:Overallitisaninterestingproposal.ThePanelwouldrecommendtolookatthefollowingpapers:[]OnePhDstudentsufficestoconducttheproposedwork.Thusthebudgethasbeenreduced.

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Notification

N t R d d f F diNotRecommendedforFundingInfaceofhighcompetitionforfunding,thisproposaldidnotreachapositiontobefunded.OverallRating: GoodOverallComments: Themainvalueoftheprojectisthatithassomepracticalimplications.Theeakness is perhaps that it does not offer an thing significantl neweaknessisperhapsthatitdoesnotofferanythingsignificantlynew.

Comments:Theproposallacksdetailabouthow[]aregoingtobeimplementedandhowthedifferent.OnlyParticipantX hasastrongbackground.Theteamlackscommonpublicationsinthepast.The expected publications are too few Only # journals from # researchers in 2 years are quite fewTheexpectedpublicationsaretoofew.Only#journalsfrom#researchersin2yearsarequitefew.

Overall Rating: ExcellentOverallRating:ExcellentOverallComments:Strengths:Theteamhashighqualityresearchresults,thenoveltyofthethemeoftheproposal,themultidisciplinarypointofviewWeakness:Thereisnocleardefinitionofthedevelopment,theproposaldoesnotclarifytheimprovements in the research fieldimprovementsintheresearchfield

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Notification

Typicalrejectioncauses Irrelevanttopic Worknotsufficientlyoriginalorwithinsufficientsocial,economic,scientificimpact, p

Lowacceptancerate ThemedoesntfitthefundingprogramProposed methodology is not convincing Proposedmethodologyisnotconvincing Lackofdetail,onlylistofgeneralideas

Unconvincingoutput Does not significantly advance the state of the art Doesnotsignificantlyadvancethestateoftheart Unrealisticnumberofpublications,lackofrelevanceofselectedpublications,etc.

Shallow uncritical literature reviewShallow,uncriticalliteraturereview

139

Notification

Typicalrejectioncauses Unconvincingcollaborationstrategy

Inadequateteambackground Lackofpastrelatedpublications,weakteammembers

Failuretoproveneedforcollaboration E.g.,youhaveallneedskillsinhouse

Inadequatemanagement,monitoringandevaluationplans Unrealisticbudget

Eithertohighortoolow Lackordeficientdemonstrationofthesustainabilityofthe

j projectsoutputs Unclearmarket,poorcommercializationplans

Badwritingqualityandpresentation

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Notification

Nowit'stimefortheactualresearch.Youwillquickly find out that (a) your project is not as simplequicklyfindoutthat(a)yourprojectisnotassimpleasyouthoughtitwouldbeand(b)youcan'tactuallysolvetheproblem.However andthisisveryimportant youmustpublishanyway.[Schulman,1996]

141

FurtherInformation

FurtherInformation

Further information onFurtherinformationon StructureWriting SequenceWritingSequence

WritingStyleR i i d t Reviewingyourdocument

S [P i 2013] (H W i G d S i ifiSee[Paiva,2013](HowtoWriteGoodScientificPapers:AComprehensiveGuide)

143

ConclusionsandFutureWork


ConclusionsConclusions Thisdocumentsummarizedanumberofgeneralguidelines for producing good scientific projectguidelines forproducinggoodscientificprojectproposals Theseguidelinesaregeneralrulesofthumb basedonliteraturereview onthethemeandmypersonalexperience

145


Future WorkFutureWork Improvements tothecurrentdocumentHow to evaluate scientific papers Howtoevaluatescientificpapers

Howtoevaluatescientificproposals

146

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

Proyecto Prometeo,Ecuador

E l P lit i N i lEscuela Politcnica Nacional,Quito,Ecuador

Universidade deCoimbra,Portugal

148

AbouttheAuthor

AbouttheAuthor

More info at http://rppaiva dei uc pt/Moreinfoathttp://rppaiva.dei.uc.pt/

150

Bibliography

Bibliography

MainMainYavuz Oruc (2011).HandbookofScientificProposalWriting,Chapman andHall/CRC

FP7(2012).TemplateforDescriptionofWork,Mi ft W d d tMicrosoftWorddocument

152

Bibliography

AdditionalBartle P (2007) Proposals for F nding Ho to get mone o t of donor organi ations TechnicalBartleP.(2007).ProposalsforFunding:Howtogetmoneyoutofdonororganizations.Technical

Report,URL:http://cec.vcn.bc.ca/cmp/modules/resprp.htm

Belmain S.(2012).Howtowriteascientificproposal:Respondingtocompetitivecalls,Presentation,URL:h // i / j / d /d /M K i h /W i i G P l dfhttp://www.nri.org/projects/adappt/docs/McKnight/WritingGrantProposals.pdf

CardosoJ.(2012).Thepointsyourpapershouldaddress,TechnicalNotes,URL:http://http://eden.dei.uc.pt/~jcardoso/ForStudents/students.html

Glnzel W.andSchubertA.(2004).AnalyzingScientificNetworksthroughCoauthorship.InHandbookofQuantitativeScienceandTechnologyResearch,H.F.Moed etal.(eds.),257276.

JonesS.P.andBundyA.(2006).Writingagoodgrantproposal,TechnicalReport,URL:http://research microsof t com/en us/um/people/simonpj/papers/Proposal htmlhttp://research.microsof t.com/enus/um/people/simonpj/papers/Proposal.html

LowryP.B.,CurtisA.andLowryM.R.(2004).BuildingaTaxonomyandNomenclatureofCollaborativeWritingtoImproveInterdisciplinaryResearchandPractice,JournalofBusinessCommunication,Vol.41,No.1,pp6699.

153

Bibliography

AdditionalNe man M (2004) Coa thorship net orks and patterns of scientific collaboration ProceedingsNewmanM.(2004).Coauthorship networksandpatternsofscientificcollaboration,Proceedings

oftheNationalAcademyofSciencesoftheUnitedStatesofAmerica,Vol.101,pp.52005205

Paiva R.P.(2013).HowtoWriteGoodScientificPapers:AComprehensiveGuide,Tutorial:http://rppaiva.dei.uc.pt/publications/Tutorials/goodPapers.pdf

RollHansen N.(2009).Whythedistinctionbetweenbasic(theoretical)andapplied(practical)researchisimportantinthepoliticsofscience,Technical Report

Royal Society (2011) Knowledge Networks and Nations: Global scientific collaboration in theRoyalSociety(2011). Knowledge,NetworksandNations:Globalscientificcollaborationinthe21stcentury

SchulmanE.R.(1996).HowtoWriteaScientificPaper,AnnalsofImprobableResearch, Vol.2,No.5,pg.8,URL:http://members.verizon.net/~vze3fs8i/air/airpaper.html

TURBO(2010).HowtostartasuccessfulproposalunderFP7?,Presentation,TurkishResearchandBusinessOrganizations,URL:http://www.turboppp.org/home.do;jsessionid=298565811203FFEA0FB0326BE9D8598F?ot=5&rt=10&sid=0&pid=0&cid=9429

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projects - how to write

Documents

main issues

inspiredf b

new idea e g

proyecto prometeo

acomprehensiv pedropaiva

university of coimbra

academic prestige

evaluation grantgetters