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Measuring Business Excellence

ISSN : 1368-3047

Article publication date: 1 December 2005

The purpose of this paper is to introduce and discuss a process for specifying project scope and success criteria more completely – in terms of expected project outcomes, benefits and outputs.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper reports on the third in a series of five action research case studies along with a validation exercise conducted at an Australian state police force senior management conference.

The findings confirmed that project stakeholders are able to identify, prioritise and define intangible project outcomes when provided with a process for doing so. The process described in this paper provides project stakeholders with the means to cross‐reference hitherto inexplicit intangible outcomes to explicit tangible outputs. Results indicate strong support for the process as a planning/review tool for projects required to deliver a combination of tangible and intangible outcomes.

Research limitations/implications

The series of five action research case studies was drawn from the public sector. Nevertheless, the authors propose that the approach can be applied more generally to projects which require the delivery of intangible project outcomes. The validation exercise conducted at an Australian state police force senior management conference collected workshop attendees' responses to brief pre‐ and post‐workshop surveys. Whilst encouraging, the results should be treated with caution because survey responses were only collected from people responsible for delivering project outcomes, not receiving them.

Originality/value

The key breakthrough contribution of the process described in this paper is the use of outcome profiles to cross‐reference intangible outcomes to tangible outputs; making the intangible tangible.

  • Project evaluation
  • Performance measures
  • Project management

Nogeste, K. and Walker, D.H.T. (2005), "Project outcomes and outputs: making the intangible tangible", Measuring Business Excellence , Vol. 9 No. 4, pp. 55-68. https://doi.org/10.1108/13683040510634844

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Copyright © 2005, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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Research Impact : Outputs and Activities

  • Outputs and Activities
  • Establishing Your Author Name and Presence
  • Enhancing Your Impact
  • Tracking Your Work
  • Telling Your Story
  • Impact Frameworks

What are Scholarly Outputs and Activities?

Scholarly/research outputs and activities represent the various outputs and activities created or executed by scholars and investigators in the course of their academic and/or research efforts.

One common output is in the form of scholarly publications which are defined by Washington University as:

". . . articles, abstracts, presentations at professional meetings and grant applications, [that] provide the main vehicle to disseminate findings, thoughts, and analysis to the scientific, academic, and lay communities. For academic activities to contribute to the advancement of knowledge, they must be published in sufficient detail and accuracy to enable others to understand and elaborate the results. For the authors of such work, successful publication improves opportunities for academic funding and promotion while enhancing scientific and scholarly achievement and repute."

Examples of activities include: editorial board memberships, leadership in professional societies, meeting organizer, consultative efforts, contributions to successful grant applications, invited talks and presentations, admininstrative roles, contribution of service to a clinical laboratory program, to name a few. For more examples of activities, see Washington University School of Medicine Appointments & Promotions Guidelines and Requirements or the "Examples of Outputs and Activities" box below. Also of interest is Table 1 in the " Research impact: We need negative metrics too " work.

Tracking your research outputs and activities is key to being able to document the impact of your research. One starting point for telling a story about your research impact is your publications. Advances in digital technology afford numerous avenues for scholars to not only disseminate research findings but also to document the diffusion of their research. The capacity to measure and report tangible outcomes can be used for a variety of purposes and tailored for various audiences ranging from the layperson, physicians, investigators, organizations, and funding agencies. Publication data can be used to craft a compelling narrative about your impact. See Quantifying the Impact of My Publications for examples of how to tell a story using publication data.

Another tip is to utilize various means of disseminating your research. See Strategies for Enhancing Research Impact for more information.

Examples of Outputs and Activities

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October 30, 2023

Tangible Impact: Unveiling the Power of Research in Making a Difference

tangible output in research

Welcome back to our ongoing exploration of research impact! In our previous blog posts, we discussed the significance and reach of research impact. Today, we turn our attention to another crucial characteristic: “ Tangibility .”

Sean Newell

3: Tangibility

Tangibility refers to the concrete and measurable outcomes or changes that result from research. Join us as we delve into the importance of tangible impact and how it showcases the real-world value of research endeavours. 

Definition and Explanation

Tangibility, as a characteristic of research impact, focuses on the tangible and demonstrable changes, improvements, or benefits that can be attributed to research outcomes. It involves identifying and measuring the actual impact on individuals, communities, organizations, or society as a whole. Tangible impact provides tangible evidence of how research contributes to positive transformations and makes a meaningful difference in various domains. 

Examples that illustrate the tangible impact of research: 

1. Health Tangibility: Medical research that leads to the development of new treatments or therapies can have tangible impacts on patient outcomes. For instance, a study that introduces a more effective treatment for a specific disease, resulting in improved survival rates or enhanced quality of life, demonstrates the tangible benefits of research in the healthcare field. 

2. Social Tangibility: Research on social interventions aimed at reducing poverty can yield tangible impacts on individuals and communities. For example, a study evaluating the effectiveness of a microfinance program in empowering women and lifting them out of poverty provides tangible evidence of the positive social changes brought about by research. 

3. Environmental Tangibility: Research on sustainable agricultural practices can have tangible impacts on food security and environmental conservation. For instance, a study that introduces innovative farming techniques leading to increased crop yield, reduced resource consumption, and improved soil health demonstrates the tangible benefits of research in promoting sustainable agriculture. 

4. Economic Tangibility: Research on entrepreneurship and innovation can have tangible impacts on economic growth and job creation. For instance, a study that examines the impact of start-up incubators on local economies, demonstrating increased entrepreneurial activity and job opportunities, showcases the tangible economic benefits of research.

tangible output in research

Challenges and Considerations

Measuring tangible impact can present challenges: 

  • Identifying the causal link between research and specific outcomes requires careful analysis and consideration of external factors. 
  • The time lag between research outcomes and the manifestation of tangible impacts can make it challenging to attribute causality solely to research efforts. 
  • Ensuring the sustainability and long-term effects of tangible impact can be complex, particularly in rapidly changing or dynamic environments.

Enhancing Tangibility

To enhance the tangibility of research impact, researchers and funders can consider the following strategies: 

  • Develop robust evaluation frameworks to measure and document tangible outcomes.
  • Engage stakeholders and end-users throughout the research process to ensure the relevance and applicability of research findings.
  • Foster partnerships with organizations and practitioners who can help translate research into tangible actions and outcomes.

Tangible impact is a vital characteristic that showcases the real-world value of research. By identifying and measuring the concrete outcomes and changes resulting from research, we can demonstrate the transformative power of research endeavours.  

Join us in the next blog post, where we will explore yet another characteristic of research impact: “ Novelty .” 

Other blog posts in this series

  • Introduction. Unveiling the Power of Research Characteristics: Unlocking the Potential for Impactful Discoveries.
  • 1: Significance. Unveiling the Significance of Research Impact: Driving Change and Advancements
  • 2: Reach. Reaching Far and Wide: Exploring the Reach of Research 
  • 4: Unleashing Novelty: Exploring the Power of Originality in Research Impact
  • 5: Sustaining Impact: Exploring the Durability of Research Impact
  • 6: Collaborative Synergy: Unleashing the Power of Collaboration in Research Impact
  • 7: Transferring Knowledge: Exploring the Transferability of Research Impact
  • 8: Engaging for Impact: The Power of Stakeholder Engagement in Research
  • 9: Driving Change: The Crucial Role of Policy Relevance in Research Impact

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  • Research Outputs

Original Research Article: 

An article published in an academic journal can go by several names: original research, an article, a scholarly article, or a peer reviewed article. This format is an important output for many fields and disciplines. Original research articles are written by one or a number of authors who typically advance a new argument or idea to their field.

Short Reports or Letters:

Short reports or letters, sometimes also referred to as brief communications, are summaries of original research that are significantly less lengthy than academic articles. This format is often intended to quickly keep researchers and scholars abreast of current practices in a field. Short reports may also be a preview for more extensive research that is published later.

Review Articles: 

A review article summarizes the state of research within a field or about a certain topic. This type of article often cites large numbers of scholars to establish a broad overview, and can inform readers about issues such as active debates in a field, noteworthy contributors or scholars, gaps in understanding, or it may predict the direction a field will go into the future.

Case Studies:

Case studies are in depth investigations of a particular person, place, group, or situation during a specified time period. The purpose of case studies is to explore and explain the underlying concepts, causal links, and impacts a case subject has in its real-life context. Case studies are common in social sciences and sciences.

Conference Presentations or Proceedings:

Conferences are organized events, usually centered on one field or topic, where researchers gather to present and discuss their work. Typically, presenters submit abstracts, or short summaries of their work, before a conference, and a group of organizers select a number of researchers who will present. Conference presentations are frequently transcribed and published in written form after they are given.

Chapter: 

Books are often composed of a collection of chapters, each written by a unique author. Usually, these kinds of books are organized by theme, with each author's chapter presenting a unique argument or perspective. Books with uniquely authored chapters are often curated and organized by one or more editors, who may contribute a chapter or foreward themselves.  

Often, when researchers perform their work, they will produce or work with large amounts of data, which they compile into datasets. Datasets can contain information about a wide variety of topics, from genetic code to demographic information. These datasets can then be published either independently, or as an accompaniment to another scholarly output, such as an article. Many scientific grants and journals now require researchers to publish datasets.  

For some scholars, artwork is a primary research output. Scholars’ artwork can come in diverse forms and media, such as paintings, sculptures, musical performances, choreography, or literary works like poems.

Reports can come in many forms and may serve many functions. They can be authored by one or a number of people, and are frequently commissioned by government or private agencies. Some examples of reports are market reports, which analyze and predict a sector of an economy, technical reports, which can explain to researchers or clients how to complete a complex task, or white papers, which can inform or persuade an audience about a wide range of complex issues.

Digital Scholarship:

Digital scholarship is a research output that significantly incorporates or relies on digital methodologies, authoring, presentation, and presentation. Digital scholarship often complements and adds to more traditional research outputs, and may be presented in a multimedia format. Some examples include mapping projects; multimodal projects that may be composed of text, visual, and audio elements; or digital, interactive archives.

Books: 

Researchers from every field and discipline produce books as a research output. Because of this, books can vary widely in content, length, form, and style, but often provide a broad overview of a topic compared to research outputs that are more limited in length, such as articles or conference proceedings. Books may be written by one or many authors, and researchers may contribute to a book in a number of ways: they could author an entire book, write a forward, or collect and organize existing works in an anthology, among others.

Interview: 

Scholars may be called upon by media outlets to share their knowledge about the topic they study. Interviews can provide an opportunity for researchers to teach a more general audience about the work that they perform.

Article in a Newspaper or Magazine: 

While a significant amount of researchers’ work is intended for a scholarly audience, occasionally researchers will publish in popular newspapers or magazines. Articles in these popular genres can be intended to inform a general audience of an issue in which the researcher is an expert, or they may be intended to persuade an audience about an issue.

Blog: 

In addition to other scholarly outputs, many researchers also compose blogs about the work they do. Unlike books or articles, blogs are often shorter, more general, and more conversational, which makes them accessible to a wider audience. Blogs, again unlike other formats, can be published almost in real time, which can allow scholars to share current developments of their work. 

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2024 JISEA Annual Meeting Convenes Diverse Clean Energy Voices To Address Emerging Challenges

Crosscutting event brings together leaders from research, industry, universities, and nonprofits.

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Attendees gather at the 2024 JISEA Annual Meeting. Photo by Daniella Frank, NREL

Tackling clean energy challenges means bringing diverse voices to the table, and that is exactly what happened at the 2024 JISEA Annual Meeting (JAM24). The Joint Institute for Strategic Energy Analysis (JISEA) convened more than 120 clean energy leaders from across research, industry, universities, and nonprofits for its 13th annual meeting to identify emerging clean energy transition opportunities and challenges.

“A successful transition is one that includes everyone,” JISEA Director Elizabeth Doris said. “So this year we prioritized engaging diverse organizations and building discussion-based sessions to create a venue for crosscutting collaboration.”

JISEA is an institute at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) focused on building expertise and capabilities around emerging multidisciplinary clean energy challenges through network development, seed research investments, and innovative prize mechanisms. Having played a pivotal role in the early development of research domains at NREL, including supply chain resilience and agrivoltaics, the institute is now looking to the next wave of clean energy challenges and convening clean energy experts to help lead the charge.

Multidisciplinary Meeting of Minds

This year’s event was divided into four working sessions, each focused on the upcoming priorities in JISEA’s four focus areas: hard-to-decarbonize industries, technology-society interface, climate adaptation and clean energy, and workforce for the future. Participants heard from context-setting speakers and diverse panels and then collaborated on activities organized around specific outputs, working to convert the insights from the meeting into tangible analyses that can guide future projects and partnerships. By the end of the meeting, participants had initiated the development of a database of clean energy workforce development programs across the country, gathered insights for a publication on climate adaptation, and more.

“Just as important as all these individual fields of research is being able to see the connections between them—finding opportunities to integrate them for maximum impact,” NREL Director Martin Keller said at the meeting. “This is where JISEA excels—where they have great potential to truly make a difference.”

Four people stand together in front of presentation screen

From left: Dan Reicher, Liz Doris, Shalaya Morissette, and Bill Ritter led a lively lunch panel on the challenges and successes of the clean energy transition. Photo by Daniella Frank, NREL

In each session, discussions were led by clean energy experts from both inside and outside of NREL. In addition, featured guests Dan Reicher, former assistant secretary of energy for energy efficiency and renewable energy, and Bill Ritter, former governor of Colorado, participated in a lunch panel hosted by Shalaya Morissette, chief of the Minority Business and Workforce Division of the new DOE Office of Energy Justice and Equity, on the challenges they have faced and the opportunities they foresee in the clean energy transition.

Emerging Themes for the Future

Though the topics at the meeting ranged from methane production from cows to artificial intelligence in clean energy, several common themes emerged. One consistent theme was the maturation of the energy equity space and the need to articulate ways to meaningfully integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion into science and technology research and development. This led to discussions around the importance of place-based innovation and tactical collaboration from diverse practitioners at a variety of scales. 

Group of people sit around table having a discussion

JAM24 attendees discuss the impact of siting in the adoption of clean energy technologies. Photo by Daniella Frank, NREL

The themes from the meeting were shared at the JAM24 Synthesis webinar, an annual follow-up to the annual meeting where the JISEA team reports on insights from the meeting and opportunities for further collaboration. Following the meeting, the institute is channeling these insights into its efforts, including informing the newly launched Sustainable Agriculture Catalyzer, a comprehensive workforce development study, and new partnerships with attendee organizations around shared priorities.

Preparing for the 2025 JISEA Annual Meeting

As JISEA prepares for the 2025 JISEA Annual Meeting (JAM25), the institute plans to expand the event to increase participant engagement with NREL and broaden the slate of topics covered. JAM25 will take place on Feb. 26–27, 2025, as the featured event in the first-ever JISEA Institute Week. Throughout the week, JISEA will host tours, meetings, and educational tracks to connect participants with NREL’s latest innovations.

“NREL is at the forefront of the clean energy transition, and our annual meeting attendees want to engage with the progress we are making,” Doris said. “By extending the meeting, we’re expanding the opportunity for information exchange between the laboratory and our multidisciplinary attendees.”

JISEA is collaborating with partners to develop the agenda and seeking active participants in the form of planning committee members and sponsors. If your organization is interested, reach out to Director Elizabeth Doris.

Visit the JISEA Annual Meeting webpage to view presentation slides and the recording of the JAM24 Synthesis webinar .

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SCIENCE & ENGINEERING INDICATORS

Publications output: u.s. trends and international comparisons.

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Executive Summary

Key takeaways:

  • The United States remains a highly influential nation in science and engineering (S&E) research, as measured by the volume of peer-reviewed scholarly publications and the rate of citations to those publications.
  • In 2022, China remained the largest producer of publications, followed by the United States, then by India. China’s top scientific field in terms of number of articles produced was engineering (25% of all publications), whereas the top field in the United States was health sciences (37%), and India’s top field was computer and information sciences (21%).
  • Analysis of funding acknowledgments shows that from 2018 to 2022, the scientific fields most frequently acknowledging federal funding are chemistry, biological and biomedical sciences, astronomy and astrophysics, and physics.
  • The United States, the European Union (EU-27), and China currently produce a high number of highly cited articles, relative to their overall production.
  • Open access (OA) has become an increasingly important feature of the publication landscape, in terms of output and impact, as shown by the growth of fully OA articles.
  • International collaborations with U.S. authors of S&E publications have increased over the last 15 years, and China is the most frequent U.S. partner.
  • International collaboration in the fast-growing field of artificial intelligence helps show an important research network and the most important collaborations in terms of absolute and relative size.

The primary method of disseminating research findings is through publication of peer-reviewed journal articles and conference proceedings (i.e., publication output ). Data on publication output indicate a continued increase in global research activity, a growth in the proliferation and impact of some categories of OA research, and an internationally connected research ecosystem.

Global publication output reached 3.3 million articles in 2022, based on data from the Scopus database of S&E publications. The regions, countries, or economies with the largest volume of S&E publications in 2022 were China, with 27% of global output, and the United States, with 14%. From 2012 to 2022, the global yearly publication total grew by 59%. In terms of growth for these two largest producers, China and the United States had noticeably different expansion in their levels of overall production (growing by 173% and 6%, respectively).

Beyond differences at the level of region, country, or economy, the number of OA publications has increased dramatically in the last 10 years. In 2022, nearly 1.6 million articles were OA (classified in one of four OA categories), compared with about 1.5 million traditional closed-access journal articles. Just 10 years prior, OA articles accounted for around a third of all articles with a known access status. This growth is also clear with respect to impact, where OA research as a whole has a higher proportion of highly cited articles relative to the size of OA scholarship.

When an article is cited by a high number of subsequent articles by other authors, it is deemed to have exceptional scientific impact. Analyzing the distribution of highly cited articles based on the authors’ locations, the United States has a long-standing record of producing a disproportionate share of such articles, although its share has decreased in recent years. China’s share of those articles grew consistently over the past 20 years, and its scientific impact is on par with that of the EU-27. That impact varies by scientific discipline. In 2020, publications by authors in the United States in materials science, geosciences, and physics had relatively higher scientific impact than those in other fields. For publications by authors in China for the same year, those in the social sciences tended to have higher scientific impact than those in any other field.

International collaborations continue to grow in their share of global scientific publications. From 2012 to 2022, the share of articles from authors affiliated with institutions in multiple regions, countries, or economies increased by 19%. In 2022, the United States was involved in a high number of international collaborations (40% of U.S. articles produced included an international coauthor). Other top producers like China (19%), India (24%), and the United Kingdom (67%) varied in the concentration of international collaborations among their respective total outputs.

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Sandia collaboration produces improved microneedle technology

BY KENNY VIGIL

THURSDAY, MAY 2, 2024

Tiny needles yielding big results

Image of microneedles

Microneedles measure only two to three times the diameter of human hair and about a millimeter long. But their impact is significant, from helping U.S. service members in the field diagnose infections earlier, to helping individuals monitor their own health. Sandia is at the forefront of microneedle research. A microneedle is a minimally invasive way to sample interstitial fluid from under the skin. Interstitial fluid shares many similarities with blood, but there is still much to learn about it.

“When we started work in this field in 2011, our goal was to develop microneedles as a wearable sensor, as an alternate to blood samples,” said Ronen Polsky, who has led Sandia’s work in microneedles. Microneedles can access interstitial fluid for real-time and continuous measurements of circulating biomarkers.

Image of innovation-logo

“People wear continuous glucose monitors for blood sugar measurements. We want to expand this to a whole range of other conditions to take advantage of this minimally invasive sampling using microneedles,” Ronen said.

A collaboration between Sandia and an external partner has helped speed up interstitial fluid extractions. That could help get microneedle sensors to the market quicker for other uses including viral detection and electrolyte levels. Sandia recently received a  patent  for a microneedle sensor that Ronen and his team are trying to commercialize.

“We basically will bring the diagnostic lab to the patient in the form of a wearable device,” Ronen said.

Sandia has current partnerships with SRI, Adaptyx Biosciences and the University of California, Berkeley, to expand microneedle work.

Faster extraction

One of the projects with SRI, an independent nonprofit research institute, has significantly improved the extraction of interstitial fluid. “The previous technique was highly variable. It took one to two hours to get enough fluid to do the analysis,” Ronen said.

Image of microneedles2

That technique involved using four or five arrays of needles, each with five needles.

“Through our new project with SRI, we improved the technique using a single microneedle to get enough fluid for a test in about 10 minutes. The new technique works faster, and we get higher volumes of fluid,” Ronen said.

The microneedles penetrate the outer skin layer, but they don’t reach nerve endings and are hollow. Engineers made a couple of changes to improve the extraction technique, including modifying the shape of the needle holders, which are 3D-printed by year-round intern Mychal Taylor at Sandia’s Advanced Materials Laboratory.

“With microneedles, we have engineering and comfort concerns, which play into how we design them. We get feedback from participants as we’re updating the design,” said Adam Bolotsky, an engineer in Sandia’s Biological and Chemical Sensors group. “We believe we’ve found the optimal depth for collecting the most fluid with the least discomfort.”

Viral or bacterial?

Will Brubaker is the principal investigator for SRI on the microneedles project. He said improving the interstitial fluid extraction method helps potentially expand the use of microneedles.

“When we collect more samples in a shorter amount of time, we can recruit more people to these kinds of studies. The improvement in the collection method opens up a lot of doors to other applications,” Will said.

One such application involves using microneedles to distinguish between bacterial and viral infections. It’s another project that Sandia and SRI are collaborating on.

“Making a distinction as to whether an infection is bacterial or viral would help doctors make informed decisions much quicker to get you treated at the earliest possible stage,” Ronen said.

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency is funding the project.

“It’s a potentially useful diagnostic for a service member who is feeling sick and symptomatic,” Will said, adding that the test is a step toward a device that could perform continuous health monitoring using interstitial fluid. He said there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done before seeking Food and Drug Administration approval. “There’s a very clear place where this test could eventually be used for the general public,” Will said.

The current work with SRI is expected to wrap up in October.

Adaptyx Biosciences

Sandia is also working with Adaptyx Biosciences under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement. Adaptyx is hoping to get a better understanding of what biomarkers are in interstitial fluid.

“We want to broadly understand the components in interstitial fluid and how those components correlate to blood measurements. We’re leveraging Sandia’s existing technology for foundational physiological studies,” Alex Yoshikawa, co-founder of Adaptyx, said.

As part of this collaboration, Sandia is extracting interstitial fluid on-site from volunteers using the improved method developed with SRI.

“It’s much easier to recruit volunteers who only need to dedicate 15 minutes of their time versus two hours,” said Sandia’s Brittany Humphrey, who coordinates and oversees the extractions. “The extraction basically requires little to no work on their part.”

Adaptyx is analyzing the fluid collected with the goal of developing continuous monitoring devices for public use, Alex said.

Electrolyte sensors

Sandia also has a partnership with the University of California, Berkeley, to develop microneedle electrolyte sensors with professor Ana Arias and graduate student Carolyn Schwendeman.

“In this case, we are functionalizing the microneedle to be sensitive to electrolytes such as sodium, potassium or calcium,” Ronen said. Work just started on the second year of the three-year-long project. Continuous electrolyte monitoring, like a wearable glucose meter, could help manage cardiovascular functions, hydration levels and electrolyte imbalances for a variety of conditions.

“Studying interstitial fluid is not easy. Sandia has made a mark in this area, and we are known as world leaders for this work. It’s turned into this interdepartmental collaborative effort with a lot of other people,” Ronen said.

A closer look at the whys behind Sandia’s microneedle successes

Image of microneedles6

Listening to how the end-user could use microneedles is part of the reason for Sandia’s success in this field – especially in soldier defense.

“We’ve had amazing interactions with customers and sponsors,” said Ronen Polsky, who leads Sandia’s microneedle work. “We have traveled to special operation commands of the military. A Navy Seal Medic explained what kind of medical response equipment they have available, and what they need. We learned directly how the Sandia technology had to be adapted for military use in the field, as opposed to making a sensor for commercial use.”

Ronen said management has been key to those interactions and helping guide research for use-case scenarios.

Adam Bolotosky, an engineer who works closely with Ronen, said another key to success is collaboration among Sandians.

“We had quick turnarounds on printing needle fixtures so we could work on optimizing extractions of interstitial fluid,” Adam said. “Brittany Humphrey was getting volunteers and performing extractions. Then she was providing extraction output data that helped us come up with the final design of the microneedle holders. A great team effort helped us get tangible results.”

Ronen said the interdisciplinary effort, which is often hard to find in academia and private industry, stands out to him. “This really is a cross section of chemistry, engineering and biology. Interdisciplinary collaboration is promoted within Sandia’s culture,” he said.

He added that Laboratory Directed Research and Development is another reason for innovation and optimization of microneedles.

“There’s a huge sense of satisfaction when the work we do is taken out of Sandia. You can see it in research reports around the world and when people contact us that they want to work together. We’re helping expand this work to the broader science community. It makes us extremely happy with what we’re doing,” he said.

  • Sandia’s road to Tonopah Test Range
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  • Major milestone reached for key weapons component

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COMMENTS

  1. Conceptualizing the elements of research impact: towards ...

    There are three main kinds of results from research: (i) the products and services of research, produced directly by a research program, which we refer to as outputs; (ii) changes in the agency of ...

  2. Project outcomes and outputs: making the intangible tangible

    Findings. The findings confirmed that project stakeholders are able to identify, prioritise and define intangible project outcomes when provided with a process for doing so. The process described in this paper provides project stakeholders with the means to cross‐reference hitherto inexplicit intangible outcomes to explicit tangible outputs.

  3. PDF Documenting Tangible & Intangible Outcomes: A Guide to Program

    The table below is an excerpt from a "Flow of Logic Worksheet" that was designed to help project teams document "Intangible Outcomes.". The example describes one of the intentions of a veteran's housing initiative and reports on an intangible outcome, with reference to relevant literature. Phase One. Phase Two. Phase Three.

  4. BeckerGuides: Research Impact : Outputs and Activities

    Scholarly/research outputs and activities represent the various outputs and activities created or executed by scholars and investigators in the course of their academic and/or research efforts. ... The capacity to measure and report tangible outcomes can be used for a variety of purposes and tailored for various audiences ranging from the ...

  5. Project outcomes and outputs: Making the intangible tangible

    The process described in this paper provides project stakeholders with the means to cross‐reference hitherto inexplicit intangible outcomes to explicit tangible outputs. Results indicate strong ...

  6. A Preprogram Appraisal of Factors Influencing Research Productivity

    First, RP, often determined by the number of PRPs, is a simple and well-known measure that may be used to evaluate research output.[26,27,28] PRPs as tangible outputs of research in professional journals are central to scholarly activity and recognition; however, simply counting the number of publications reveals little about the relevance of ...

  7. Tangible Impact: Unveiling the Power of Research in Making a Difference

    4. Economic Tangibility: Research on entrepreneurship and innovation can have tangible impacts on economic growth and job creation. For instance, a study that examines the impact of start-up incubators on local economies, demonstrating increased entrepreneurial activity and job opportunities, showcases the tangible economic benefits of research.

  8. Meaningfulness in a scientific career is about more than tangible outputs

    Meaningfulness in a scientific career is about more than tangible outputs. Your News feature advises scientists on how to maximize the impact of their research by translating its results to ...

  9. Outputs Versus Outcomes

    Mills-Schofield argues outcomes in contrast to outputs are the "difference made by the outputs" ( 2012, n.p.). She cites examples such as better traffic flow, shorter travel times and few accidents as outcomes of a new highway, whereby the outputs are "project design and the number of highway miles built and repaired" (Mills-Scofield ...

  10. (PDF) A Process For Improving the Definition and Alignment of

    tangible and intangible) and tan gible project outputs, which can be used as the basis for defining and assessing project success. . The process was developed iteratively through a series of ...

  11. PDF A Framework For Managing Intangible Project Outcomes ...

    tangible and intangible) and tangible project outputs, which can be used as the basis for defining and assessing project success. . The process was developed iteratively through a series of action ...

  12. Opportunities to observe and measure intangible inputs to innovation

    The activities to undertake this research require tangible (e.g., data) and intangible (e.g., knowledge) inputs that lead to tangible outputs (cost reductions due to more efficient processes, on-time delivery rates) and intangible outputs (satisfied customers who receive their shipments accurately and on time). The expectation is that the ...

  13. How do you define and measure research productivity?

    Research activity is a production process in which the inputs consist of human, tangible (scientific instruments, materials, etc.) and intangible (accumulated knowledge, social networks, economic rents, etc.) resources, and where output, the new knowledge, has a complex character of both tangible nature (publications, patents, conference ...

  14. Intangible Factors Leading to Success in Research: Strategy ...

    In implementing a research strategy, there are at least two models to consider. The first model, top-down approach, is based on defining objectives and tangible deliverables and then utilizing available resources to achieve the objectives (Fig. 2).Projects, personnel, resources, and actual experimentation are all dictated by these predefined objectives.

  15. Output Types

    For some scholars, artwork is a primary research output. Scholars' artwork can come in diverse forms and media, such as paintings, sculptures, musical performances, choreography, or literary works like poems. Reports: Reports can come in many forms and may serve many functions. They can be authored by one or a number of people, and are ...

  16. What are the effects of transdisciplinary research projects in the

    Another category of effects includes traditional, tangible outputs of research processes in the form of publications or reports for academic participants and stakeholders (Mitchell et al., 2015; Koier and Horlings, 2015; Kaufmann and Kasztler, 2009). These can be called products, and include, for example, publications or outreach material.

  17. 8 types of project deliverables (definitions and examples)

    Here are eight common types of project outputs: 1. Tangible. Tangible project outputs are physical and digital objects and products that you produce as a result of your project. For example, if you work for a software development company, your tangible project output may be a software application that your team is developing for an external client.

  18. Information Technology and Intangible Output: The Impact of IT

    Prior research concerning IT business value has established a link between firm-level IT investment and tangible returns such as output productivity. Research also suggests that IT is vital to intermediate processes such as those that produce intangible output.

  19. Tangible co‐production? Engaging and creating with fathers

    The term co‐production has two parts that seek to locate ideas about engaging with different actors and creating outputs from their inputs (see also Alford, 2014 ). While we acknowledge that practice‐based research in arts disciplines has long produced objects as the output of research, geographical and social science research has tended to ...

  20. (PDF) Research management and research output

    The factor „Tangible factors‟ predicts research output better for non-research-active academics (91.4% correct prediction rate - 0 research outputs category) than for the research-active ...

  21. Tangible Results of Research Definition

    Related to Tangible Results of Research. Project Results means all data and results of the Project.. Forensic analysis means the practice of gathering, retaining, and analyzing computer-related data for investigative purposes in a manner that maintains the integrity of the data.. Results means any information, documentation, designs, technical drawings, software (system and application ...

  22. 2024 JISEA Annual Meeting Convenes Diverse Clean Energy Voices To

    Crosscutting Event Brings Together Leaders From Research, Industry, Universities, and Nonprofits April 26, ... -setting speakers and diverse panels and then collaborated on activities organized around specific outputs, working to convert the insights from the meeting into tangible analyses that can guide future projects and partnerships. By the ...

  23. Publications Output: U.S. Trends and International Comparisons

    Data on publication output indicate a continued increase in global research activity, a growth in the proliferation and impact of some categories of OA research, and an internationally connected research ecosystem. Global publication output reached 3.3 million articles in 2022, based on data from the Scopus database of S&E publications.

  24. Measuring intangibles: Managing intangibles for tangible outcomes in

    tangible outcomes in research and innovation. Elias G. Carayannis. School of Business and Public Management, The George Washington University, 401 G Monroe Hall, 2115 G Street NW, Washington DC ...

  25. Sandia collaboration produces improved microneedle technology

    One of the projects with SRI, an independent nonprofit research institute, has significantly improved the extraction of interstitial fluid. ... Then she was providing extraction output data that helped us come up with the final design of the microneedle holders. A great team effort helped us get tangible results." ...

  26. Opportunities to observe and measure intangible inputs to ...

    The activities to undertake this research require tangible (e.g., data) and intangible (e.g., knowledge) inputs that lead to tangible outputs (cost reductions due to more efficient processes, on-time delivery rates) and intangible outputs (satisfied customers who receive their shipments accurately and on time). The expectation is that the ...

  27. Japan's Factory Output Records Weakest Quarter Since Pandemic

    Japan's factory output rebounded in March from a dismal start to the year, with the quarterly figure registering the weakest performance since the height of the pandemic in a sign the economy ...