BOOKS & MEDIA UPDATE

April 2004 55

How to get that grant!Thomas R. Blackburn’s experience of funding programs comes to the fore inhis guide to writing grant proposals, which offers excellent advice to scientists,reviewers, and funding agencies alike, says Sean McCarthy.

This is an excellent book, written by someone who has

considerable experience as a scientific proposal writer,

reviewer, and funding program manager. It is not

designed to help scientists with bad ideas win

contracts. It is designed to help scientists

communicate good ideas to funding agencies.

Documents and guidelines from funding agencies are

typically written using jargon and in a style that

borders on boring. Getting Science Grants is written in

a very lively style and is totally lacking in jargon. In

fact, it is written like a thriller. There is a murder in the

very first sentence: a proposal is killed. The book then

examines the motivation for the killing (review

criteria) and identifies the different individuals who

had the opportunity to kill it

(reviewers, panels, and program

managers). The book also

describes why other proposals

were not killed and went on to

become successful projects.

Blackburn describes his book as a

general introduction to scientific

proposal writing. He uses US

science funding programs as his

model. Despite this, the

description of the process is a

very good introduction to the

European Union’s funding

program and, indeed, to the

science programs of most

European countries.

In many instances, Blackburn suggests that, when

problems arise, the scientist should simply phone the

relevant program manager in the funding agency. This

is not as easy as it sounds. For beginners, or for

experienced scientists dealing with a new funding

agency, the process of establishing contacts with

program managers can take time. The key message,

however, is that these personal contacts are an

essential part of the whole process of proposal writing.

Blackburn states that his book is designed to help

scientists improve their skills in writing proposals. This

is true, but it is far more important than this. For

beginners, the book is an excellent introduction to the

world of competitive science. It describes proposal

writing, the review process, and the responsibilities of

the scientist when a contract is awarded. For

experienced scientists, there is an important section

that explains the difference between a ‘very good’

proposal and one that is ranked ‘excellent and

recommended for funding’. This is original and could

only be gleaned from the author’s detailed

involvement in all phases of the process. Finally, for

reviewers of scientific proposals, this book should be

listed as recommended reading.

The best and most stimulating point is hidden in the

depths of the book (page 104 of 160). Blackburn states

that, even when a proposal is rejected, the scientist

would “still be better off for having written the

proposal”.

The author advises scientists that

“the substantial effort of all the

preparatory work and through the

mental discipline of organizing

your thoughts… you advance and

deepen the command of your

field”. He then makes a very

important statement. “It is

arguable that the US has become

the scientific leader of the world

as much through the institution of

competitive, peer-reviewed

funding as through any other

single factor,” he writes. “Writing

proposals would be good policy

even if everyone had all the

money they needed. When you

have written a well-crafted and competitive proposal,

you have created something important and grown in

sophistication because of it. That is never a waste of

time.”

This is an important message for the scientist but

more important for the funding agency. It stresses the

need for joint efforts by agencies and scientists to

advance science. It also highlights the importance of

program design, proposal review, and the professional

execution of contracts.

Sean McCarthy of Hyperion Ltd. advises scientists on

how to write competitive proposals for the European

Union’s Sixth Framework Programme.

Thomas R. BlackburnGetting Science Grants: Effective Strategies for Funding Success

John Wiley & Sons (2003), 160 pp., ISBN: 0-7879-6746-7

$30 / £18.95 / �26.10

Diffraction Analysis ofthe Microstructure ofMaterials

E. J. Mittemeijer and P. Scardi (eds.)

Springer-Verlag (2004), 552 pp.

ISBN: 3-540-40519-4

$169 / £100 / �139.05

An overview of X-ray and neutron

scattering methods for

microstructure analysis of materials

is presented in this book. It details

techniques for determining crystallite

size and atomic-scale strain. Methods

for the analysis of residual stress are

also covered.

Nano andMicrostructural Designof Advanced Materials

Marc Meyers, et al. (eds.)

Elsevier (2003), 300 pp.

ISBN: 0-08-044373-7

$150 / �150

This book contains a series of articles

on the characterization, analysis, and

design of materials at the micro- and

nano-scales. A number of structural

and functional materials systems are

covered, but the emphasis on

tailoring structure-property

relationships is clear throughout. The

book celebrates the 70th birthday of

Gareth Thomas of the University of

California, Berkeley, who has been a

pioneer in this field.

NondestructiveMaterialsCharacterization

Norbert G. H. Meyendorf,

et al. (eds.)

Springer-Verlag (2004), 416 pp.

ISBN: 3-540-40517-8

$129 / £77 / �106.95

Nondestructive characterization

techniques for detecting and

quantifying degradation processes,

such as corrosion and fatigue, are

described. The book emphasizes the

application of these methods to

aircraft materials, especially Al and

Ti alloys. It introduces X-ray,

ultrasonic, optical, and thermal

techniques.

Expert

Graduate

Undergraduate

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