What are we doing here? A FAQ

I probably should have done this a year ago, I have thought about it on several occasions but I never took the time. However, it has become apparent that many people, including my family, don’t really know what I am doing in Denmark. So I thought I would try to write up a FAQ to answer some of the questions. I know this is kind of boring so I will add some pictures to break up the monotony.

FAQ

Q. What are you studying?

A. Insect Pathology. Also acceptable answers might include: Agricultural ecology, Mycology, Microbiology, Entomology, or Biological pest management; inaccurate answers include: Doctor (given by my kids) or Nutraceuticals (given by my Dad).

Me checking a field for grasshopper abundance 2010

Q. What is Insect pathology?

A. Insect pathology is the study of diseases that afflict insect and other invertebrates (spider, ticks, nematodes, worms, etc.).

Unlike most pathologists (e.g., human pathologist) whom study diseases in an effort to cure or protect the host from the pathogen; most insect pathologists studies disease with the intention of utilizing it to infect, control and/or kill the host (in that since perhaps a more apt name might be “insect bio-terrorist”)

Mormon cricket infected with Metarhazium

Q. What are you working on?

A. I work with several species of fungi in the genus Metarhizium - a genus of fungi that infect and kill insects naturally; and have been used successfully as a bio-pesticide.  Recently it has been observed that this group of fungi can also interact with plants (for example, a recent publication in Science noted how Nitrogen was transported from an insect to a plant via the fungus). My project aims to clarify how Metarhizium interact with plant roots and with insects associated with these roots.

Root length variation I observed between fungal and non-fungal treatments

I was lucky enough to meet with a Professor from Cornell University shortly after starting my project and she gave me a very practical perspective on a PhD degree. She told me that while it was important that I became an expert in my area of study, at the same time I did not need to win a Nobel Prize or solve all the world’s problems. One of the main purposes of PhD candidacy is that I demonstrate that I can independently take a concept from the initial stage of being a question and follow it through the process of discovery; showing that I can design ways to validate my ideas and analyze my results and in the end produce a product that can be peer reviewed and perhaps beneficial to other scientists in the same field. That ability would likely be far more useful professionally than the research I produced because it would show that I could do that same thing for topics outside my area of expertise.

Infected Larvae

Q. Why is what you’re studying important?

A. This is a tough question to answer simply. I feel like I should give some background justification before I give the sales pitch, but since FAQs should generally be succinct I added a footnote to this section for those interested in my background thoughts¹. So here is the sales pitch:

Both given the same fugal treatment, the one on the left, after being treated was exposed to UV radiation

Anybody that has flown across the United States and looked out the window knows that vast majority of what you see is farmland. Agriculture in the US is a $181 billion industry, and worldwide 1/3 of all workers are employed in the agricultural industry. Currently it has been estimated that crop production may be reduced as much as 21% each year just due to insect pests – in 2000 to 2001 more than $3 billion was spent on pesticides in the US alone (I know that is a lot of numbers with no citation to check the facts, the point though is agriculture is an big important industry and insect pest cause serious problems). The situation is further complicated by the fact that the pesticides we currently use are constantly becoming either ineffective against insects or unusable due to health and environmental concerns. There is no single best answer for dealing with pest insects; the solution lays in a variety of option that can be easily implemented and tailored to the circumstances. In the pest management industry, biological control (which is what I work with) is a rapidly expanding market and is becoming a very important answer to many of the “environmental/health concerns”.

In 2010, working with the USDA, we sprayed a field with insect pathogenic Fungi to control grasshoppers. 

Q. Why Denmark?

A. After completing my Masters degree my plan was to get an industry job and be done with school, however after a year of fruitless searching I felt very stuck. I was more educated than was necessary for a lab technician but not educated enough to be given my own research projects.  A professional friend of mine found out about the PhD position in Denmark and suggested I apply.

I was never really opposed to doing a PhD, as a scientist it is the only way to really advance professionally, it was just not realistic while trying to support a family. The main advantages for me to do my PhD in Denmark are: first they view PhD students as employees and as such we are give a decent salary and very good benefits (although a decent salary doesn't go too far in Denmark); and second, the program is designed so that I can complete it in 3 years.

Also, the lab I am working in is very highly respected in my field, in fact the head of my section and working group is also the president of the scientific society most relevant for my discipline (basically everyone in insect pathology knows that lab I work in and it is respected for producing very high quality research, I have already made several highly important contacts that I hope will lead to a job when I am done). Also, the University of Copenhagen is one of the top European Universities. (Plus we get to live in a European country and go see castles, churches and museums every week, who wouldn't want to do that?)

Work excursion with everyone in my research section

Q. What will you do when you’re done?

A. Basically I have 4 career options when I finish: 1. Become a professor at a University, 2. Look for a job doing research in industry, 3. Look for job doing government research, or 4. Team up with my wife and start a bakery out of our house (this is my oldest daughters plan for us, she has assigned me the job of washing dishes and taking out the trash).

I am mostly interested in either the second or third option. I really like the idea of taking my research to the next level and finding a way to make it economically practical. For this option Denmark was also a good choice as the only Metarhizium based product in the US is owned by a Danish company (which has several facilities in the US). As a master student I also had the opportunity to work with several USDA scientists and found the experience to be very enjoyable and was impressed with their projects and I'd like to pursue this further. While I enjoy research and teaching, I haven’t been to keen on pursuing the academic professorship path. It would require me to first become a Post Doc at a University (maybe two) and then hopefully find a school hiring someone with my background and try to work my way up the ladder all the while begging for grant money each year, which I could do but not as a first choice. But at the same time I like to keep all my doors open so I am not saying NO to the bakery suggestion either.  

Q. What should I tell people you are doing?
A. This is tough, it is not as easy as saying I am an accountant or lepidopterologist. It just took me over 1500 words to give a brief overview of what I am doing. Most people asking this question are looking for the 140 character Twitter answer. Usually when asked I say "I am completing a PhD in Biology". If they are interested enough to ask a follow up question like "what are you researching?" I will reply "I work with Fungi that kill insects and am looking in to how they can be used as a bio-pesticide". This is enough to satisfy most people, and if they are really interested then I am more then happy to go into greater detail.

To conclude, I am one year into my 3 year program. Some aspects have gone very well while others have hit stumbling blocks - this is normal. I enjoy the lab I work in, I enjoy my project and the challenges it presents, and I work with a great group of people. There have been lots of unexpected challenges with moving a family to an new country, but my work experiences are not one of them. I am working hard and moving forward daily. My hair is falling out at an increased rate(I can't be sure if that is stress related or genetic), and I feel that I am being stretched and becoming better able to handle greater responsibility. My project is difficult, but that is good, if it wasn't I would probably not gain as much from doing it. Most importantly, I feel like what I am doing is worth while, and I hope that others can also recognize that and even if you don't know how to explain what I do, at least support me in doing it. We are enjoying life, and looking forward to the opportunities this experience will create.

Footnotes

¹Research is often divided into two types: fundamental (basic) and applied; although where you draw the line is often unclear. Fundamental research is sometimes described as “curiosity driven” and is basically just trying to understand how the world works. Applied research on the other hand has a more direct goal of developing something of economic value. In general I think that fundamental research is often view as less important, but I think this stems for a lack of understanding. There are of course countless examples of basic research interests leading to unforeseen world altering discoveries (e.g., Television and radio technology is only possible because some guys 150 years ago found electromagnetic wave interesting and took the time to research them, they of course did not foresee the practical application). In reality basic and applied research are inseparable; all applied research is based on basic research (and in some case applied projects have failed or floundered because the basic understanding was neglected). At the same time funding for fundamental research is often justified by the realization that increased knowledge enables increased innovation, and while the end product might not be obvious there is hope that something useful with come out of it.

Defining what type of research I am doing is somewhat difficult. If I were to describe the specific experiments I am currently working on, because I am working on a rather new area of biocontrol research without much prior work from others to lean on, you would probably concluded that my research falls in the area of fundamental research. However, the larger end application and justification for my work is highly obvious and I have already collaborated with industry contacts on developing my objectives, so with that respect in is more applied.

A cow picture because it looks cool!