Editorials
Globalization in Research
Jean-François ROULET DDS , PhD , Dr hc , Prof hc , Professor
Editor-in-Chief
Dear Readers ,
The internet has completely changed our lifestyle . I shop using the internet , I book services through the internet , manage my banking transactions through the internet etc . When I have a question , I “ google ” it to find an answer , possibly with some bias I cannot control . The same happens in the way I conduct myself professionally . At any given time , the entire compilation of knowledge is accessible at the blink of an eye . Thus , I am much more informed than ever . But what happens in the case of research ? In this area , I behave the same way as I did 40 years ago . If I have a question for which I do not get a satisfying answer by accessing the various databases , I go to my laboratory and try to find the answer by myself . At times , if needed , I have had to design special equipment , and with the collaboration of my coworkers , we have had to design new experiments to find the answers . If you think this through , this approach is not very efficient , because very often we have to “ reinvent the wheel ”. Today , this is about to change . Approximately a year ago , Prof . Werner Geurtsen from Germany and I decided to work together on a new project in order to put together a more efficient network for dental materials research . Based on this idea , we organized a mini-symposium on dental materials at the University of Florida in Gainesville . Researchers from Brazil , Germany , Switzerland and the USA were invited to discuss novel ways and ideas on how we could cooperate on an international basis . At the end of this meeting , we came up with the following model : provided that it were possible within the University ’ s administrative rules , we would mutually be willing to accept visiting researchers from other Universities ( as well as coworkers of researchers that are part of this group ) at no cost , as long as the visiting researcher brought his / her own materials and paid for his / her own travel and living expenses . In other words , we would be opening our laboratories to our colleagues . As a first step , we started a master list of laboratory equipment available in each of the participant ’ s laboratories . Meanwhile , the group has expanded and researchers from Canada and Romania joined . This is a globalization in research effort for the benefit of everyone involved , because people can go to a particular institution and learn a method , discuss research projects and work together with researchers from other universities . I personally have had a long tradition with this type of experience and for many years have had visiting colleagues coming to my laboratory to work . It has always been a win-win situation for all participants . Furthermore , lifelong friendships have emerged from these experiences . Dear colleagues , I would like to encourage you to contact me if you are interested in joining the group . We have named it the “ International Center for Dental Biomaterials ” and I believe it is a great opportunity to expand your research endeavors .
Sincerely yours , J-F Roulet Editor-in-Chief
DOI : 10.25241 / stomaeduj . 2017.4 ( 3 ). edit . 2
158 Stoma Edu J . 2017 ; 4 ( 3 ): 158 http :// www . stomaeduj . com