Collaborations in Science

BMS 644 Responsible Conduct of Research

"It is the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed."

- Charles Darwin

Why should collaborative research be encouraged?

The Politics of Collaboration

"The secret is to gang up on the problem, rather than each other."

- Thomas Stallkamp

"Politeness is the poison of collaboration." - Edwin Land

Are there any drawbacks to collaborative research? What problems can they raise?

Sources of Problems Associated with Collaborations

Increasingly complex roles and relationships

Common, but not necessarily identical interests

Management requirements

Cultural differences

Areas to Address Within a Collaboration

Overall goals

Who will do what?

Authorship and credit

Contingencies and communicating

Overall Goals

What hypothesis is being addressed?

What is the goal?

What will the outcomes be?

When is the project over?

When should research collaborations be formalized?

Who Will Do What?

Everyone’s role

Progress reports and final reports

Supervision and personnel oversight

Data management

Authorship and Credit

Authorship and credit

Institutional credit

Public relations

Intellectual property

Contingencies and Communicating

Mechanism for routine communications

How do you steer the ship?

Development of new associated projects?

Changes in personnel and ramifications

Which country’s rules should be used in collaborative projects that are carried out in different countries?

What steps should be taken when a collaborative project comes to an end or a collaboration is dissolved?

Formal Agreements

Material transfer agreements are one example of a formal agreement associated with collaborations. These will specify:

Who owns the materials

The use to which they can be put

Proper acknowledgment of the source

Material Transfer Agreements

The [supplied] MATERIAL is the property of the PROVIDER and is made available as a service to the research community.THIS MATERIAL IS NOT FOR USE IN HUMAN SUBJECTS.The MATERIAL will be used for teaching or not-for-profit research purposes only.The MATERIAL will not be further distributed to others without the PROVIDER’s written consent.…Any MATERIAL delivered pursuant to this Agreement is understood to be experimental in nature and may have hazardous properties.…The RECIPIENT agrees to use the MATERIAL in compliance with all applicable statutes and regulations.The MATERIAL is provided at no cost, or with an optional transmittal fee solely to reimburse the PROVIDER for its preparation and distribution costs. If a fee is requested, the amount will be indicated here: [insert fee]