Why interdisciplinary research is music to the ear

Sarah Angliss has always been reluctant to be pigeon-holed - even during childhood, when she would build mini cable cars across her garden and produce accompanying soundtracks on a portable cassette recorder.

Forging collaborations

As established as she is, Sarah concedes that interdisciplinary research continues to bring challenges - not least, gaining credibility.

"You do feel like you're viewed as some kind of cowboy, a Jack of All Trades who doesn't really know much about anything."

So much so that Sarah has on occasion forged collaborations - not only for the extra knowledge and support but also for the credibility that the 'experts' have brought.

"It's true that you can never be on top of every subject all the time. But then, I am a natural collaborator.

"While most people feel comfortable when they know more about a subject than anyone else in the room, I actually relish situations where I know less - because then there's an opportunity to learn.

"I've always found that people are only too happy to collaborate. The key is to be focused about the help you are actually seeking, rather than just saying - 'tell me everything you know.'

Blue skies thinking

Sarah is convinced that Britain's businesses house many creative people desperate to be given permission to experiment.

"For artists, it's acceptable to indulge in blue skies thinking. But engineers must always justify their approach with an end result," she says. "We need to give them more rope, more respect.

"After all, Michael Faraday would have found it difficult to justify much of his research initially. In the end, of course, his results were to change our world!

Generalist versus specialist

"Specialists are crucial, to build the pillars of understanding and to move a subject forward. But as a generalist, it's fascinating to find often quite unexpected threads which connect different disciplines.

"And because I take a broader approach, I think perhaps it's easier to communicate issues to the public in a way in which they find interesting and accessible."

The devil's in the detail

Sarah admits that straddling disciplines to turn creative ideas into business is not easy.

"For me, it's about the satisfaction of bringing topics together. Anyone can come up with an idea, but I also get to execute mine. I am in total control."

But Sarah is the first to admit that such an approach makes conventional career progression difficult.

"There's no obvious place on the academic career ladder for people like me. That's OK. My goal is to make my own work, which gets ever more sophisticated, ever more delightful."

That said, she is keen to see a more enlightened approach to make interdisciplinary research easier - and more attractive - for a next generation who, like her, can never fit into a conventional box.

Sarah Angliss spoke at NESTA's Crucible Lab, which brought together bright early-career researchers to help them to see the 'bigger picture'.