Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences
Tohoku University

FRIS Interviews #01

FRIS Interviews#01前編

  • 鈴木 真介Shinsuke Suzuki

    神経経済学Neuroeconomics

  • 大学 保一Yasukazu Daigaku

    分子遺伝学・ゲノム情報科学DNA replication, Mutagenesis

  • 吉野 大輔Daisuke Yoshino

    メカノバイオロジー・設計工学Mechanobiology,
    Design Engineering

The Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences aims to "create new values by cultivating and developing interdisciplinary research and contribute to human society". The plan that researchers belonging to the institute talk and think about the concept above is this series "Beyond the Border".

While talking about each of their research lives, they will talk about "interdisciplinary activities that each of them experienced". While highlighting the ideals and actualities of the Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences (hereinafter referred to as "FRIS"), at the same time, it is the place for the members of FRIS to consider the future of the organization through dialogue.

Why did you decide to become a researcher?

Daigaku
I was interested in becoming the scientist as an occupation during my high school days. I am currently working on the field of DNA replication, which is, I believe, the most fundamental part of genetics. At that time, I was surprised that one base mutation in genome DNA dramatically changes the nature of living things. While exposing myself to some books about biology in the bookstores, I remember vaguely having a longing for this field and entering the department of science in the university.
大学 保一Daigaku Yasukazu

Assistant Professor, Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences
He graduated from the School of Science, Tohoku University and completed the Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University. Following research as a researcher at the Cancer Research UK London Research Institute and at the Genome Damage and Stability Centre, University of Sussex in UK, he joined Overseas Research Fellowships of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. Then he has been in current position since 2015. His specialty is molecular genetics · genome informatics. In order to investigate the mechanism how mutation occurs, he is studying phenomena occurring around DNA such as DNA replication and DNA repair.

Yoshino
I was not conscious about becoming a researcher much when I entered the university. Because I was in the department of engineering, every student around me got a job at a company. I also did job hunting at the time of master's and doctoral degree program and I was not conscious of becoming a university researcher much. However, I was attracted to a point that something big work, you know, such as things like "this guy was doing this kind of things" remained and something could be left after I died.
Daigaku
There are some points where I agree with you. Papers etc. remain documented.
Yoshino
If I could leave something in my life, I thought that only researcher could actualize it, so I become a researcher.
Suzuki
I am also close to Mr. Yoshino, I entered the course related to computer science of the engineering department and went to the master’s degree program because everyone did. When I did job hunting at my master's degree program, I understood what the company was vaguely and I thought that "research is more fun" when I considered which would be fun to research at university or to go to a company and then I proceeded to the doctoral degree program. I expected that I would become a researcher if I go to a doctoral degree program because my field was close to mathematics.
Daigaku
Why did you choose that field?
Suzuki
I am from the place called Nishinomiya-city in the southeastern part of Hyogo Prefecture, and around 1998 when I thought about going to university, sciences and engineering were popular because of the reconstruction from the Great Hanshin Earthquake. In the beginning, I was interested in seismology and earthquake prediction, but when I went to the open campus, I was told that "earthquake prediction is difficult for a while".
Yoshino
I wanted to study astronomy for the first time. I thought it was fun to look at the stars. So I took the Admissions Office system entrance exam which was new at that time, but I failed the exam. I thought that "there was no potential in that since I failed", and then I thought that I wanted to study rocket because it is related to the universe and I took the entrance exam of the mechanical department. However, I also took the exams of the departments which are not related to that at all such as department of law, veterinary department. I thought that "I wonder where I can pass is the way I am going."
Daigaku
In a way, you made a good selection for yourself.
吉野 大輔Yoshino Daisuke

Assistant Professor, Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences
He completed the Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University. Ph.D. in engineering. Following research as a postdoctoral fellow at the Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, Tohoku University, an assistant professor at the Institute of Fluid Science, Tohoku University and a visiting researcher at the Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore, etc., he has been in current position since 2017. His specialty is mechanobiology and design engineering. Especially recently, he is working on validation of physiotherapy applying biological response to mechanical stimulus and development of cardiovascular medical device.

Is it active or passive?

Daigaku
I think "interdisciplinary research" is not an objective but an approach to what we have been elucidating. I think in current situation new methodologies become even more necessary to pursue own research topics, in my case, trying to understand ‘how our genome information changes’. Since our genome information is huge, to handle it we have to introduce quite sophisticated information science. Like this example, we constantly incorporate new techniques/technologies to interpret data or pictures etc. produced by experiments. ‘Interdisciplinary’ science sounds like a special word but in reality, this is an element in science. As another example, I assume microscopic observation is "interdisciplinary" in a point that it only makes sense if we understand optics and machinery, although now every biologist routinely uses microscopes. I am aware that, in any age, "interdisciplinary" things are around us as newly developed approaches.
Yoshino
In my case too, I realized I was doing it. The laboratory I belonged first was researching the gears in the automobile transmissions and machines. Among the studies, all the important influential themes that are important are taken by the seniors, and I was under pressure to choose "to experiment a super long-lived gear whether I can take data once a year or to design medical equipment". I thought that "I might not be able to graduate if I can only get the data once a year", that is the reason why I chose to design medical equipment. I thought "there is no choice but to do it" because I was forcibly abandoned in an unusual circumstance studying medical devices in a gear laboratory. I did not actively choose it.
Daigaku
You made selections here too. (haha)
鈴木 真介Suzuki Shinsuke

Assistant Professor, Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences
He completed the Graduate School of Systems and Information Engineering, University of Tsukuba. Ph.D. in socioeconomics. After working as a researcher at RIKEN, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the California Institute of Technology, etc. And then he has been in current position since 2016. His specialty is neuroscience. He is conducting research on human decision making mechanism by combining information engineering approaches such as machine learning and artificial intelligence with functional brain imaging.

Suzuki
I changed actively by saying "I will change". At the time of graduate school I was studying a simulation based on mathematics such as game theory used in economics among others. Only a handful of people think of the big theorem that really remains in the future in the world of mathematics, and I thought it is a bit difficult for me to actualize it even if I work hard for 20 to 30 years ahead when I considered what I should do after taking a degree. Another thing was that I was just getting tired of research subjects. My degree is economics, but I thought I would try a bit of neuroscience.
Daigaku
So you mean you changed your object?
Suzuki
I was doing research on modeling economic phenomena using mathematics, but I enjoyed modeling neural activities and simulating human behavior. Now I think that it was not difficult to change the target because I had a basis of mathematics.
Daigaku
A scientist like Dr. Suzuki is demanded in many scenes of science. There are lots of people experimenting in life sciences, but we just start to establish methods to predict complicated biological reactions/system mathematically or by computer simulation. I believe that such approach will advance in next few years.
Suzuki
However, after four years of changing specialty, there was a tough time when I couldn’t publish any papers.
Daigaku
I guess such changes do not necessarily guarantee a quick success.
Suzuki
Well, if it is life science, the period of four years is not too long.
Daigaku
When you changed the environment, did you move to the different laboratory too?
Suzuki
At the timing when I became a postdoctoral fellow, there was a fellowship program called Special Postdoctoral Researcher Program at RIKEN and I applied it by myself. As a result, I failed but I discussed with my boss in the process, and my boss told me that "you may come with that research theme". From that point, it was smooth until I got a job at RIKEN.
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