From top student in college to scientific research powerhouse

Chapter 100: Insufficient Funding? We're Closing the Project!

In the office of theoretical research, Zhang Minghao gave a detailed explanation of the research work on the theoretical mechanism framework.

Back in the doctoral student's workspace, he sat there quietly and suddenly realized that his behavior was a bit too domineering.

"It's probably still influenced by the promotion to researcher; they shouldn't have done that."

"There's absolutely no benefit to doing this."

“Du Wei is the team leader. As a team member, I can only offer suggestions, not give orders…”

He did some self-reflection.

Being a leader has many downsides, such as having to shoulder responsibilities and deal with troublesome matters.

Take Zhu Bingkun, for example. He is the director of the laboratory and the person in charge of the project. Every year, he gets all sorts of miscellaneous tasks coming his way.

If you're just a PhD student or a group member, there won't be any troubles; you can just do your own thing every day.

In terms of research, he has enough results to make suggestions or research ideas, and others will follow suit.

"That's it……"

"One should be humble. I'm still just a PhD student, a junior PhD student..."

Zhang Minghao felt much better just thinking about it, and he even started humming a song without realizing it.

"I'm in a good mood!"

Chen Lanjun walked into the workroom, plopped down in a chair, turned around and smiled, "Congratulations! You've been promoted to researcher, and a full-fledged one at that, on par with Professor Chen and the others!"

"Thank you."

Zhang Minghao nodded, and then Chen Lanjun continued to tease him, "Now that you're a researcher, you can't forget about us junior PhD classmates!"

"We're one year apart..."

"They're classmates too, look! Our seats are next to each other."

As Chen Lanjun spoke, she moved a little closer.

Zhang Minghao felt like he was being teased. He immediately turned his chair to face Chen Lanjun and said with a smile, "Little Chen, I'm going to be a researcher from now on. Come on, call me Teacher Zhang first!"

"Teacher Zhang—" Chen Lanjun called out loudly.

"Call me Professor Zhang again!"

"Professor Zhang~~~"

Chen Lanjun even used a double-toned accent when she spoke, leaning closer and whispering, "Teacher Zhang, when do you have time to tutor me..."

"Cough cough."

Zhang Minghao pulled his arm away, stood up, and walked towards the door.

There's no bottom line!
Too familiar!
I didn't enjoy the teasing at all; instead, I became the one being teased.

He went to the back laboratory.

As I entered the corridor, I happened to run into Ma Yan, who was walking out of the door.

Ma Yan was carrying a bag of scrap materials out when he saw Zhang Minghao and immediately called out, "Brother Hao."

"You've started the experiment?"

"Yes."

Ma Yan smiled and said, "Professor Xue asked me to follow him and learn how to do experiments."

He looked down at the bag in his hand and said, "Right now, I'm just doing odd jobs."

"Take it easy."

"You'll have to teach me more in the future, so I don't make the same mistake as last time..."

His eyes held a hint of sorrow as he spoke.

Last time, when I made a mistake in the material preparation steps, Zhang Minghao not only didn't point it out, but also said that I was doing it correctly. Later, I excitedly told Xue Kun about it, and all I got in return was inexplicable encouragement.

Last week, he learned that the materials he made were helping the lab's project make progress.

This was said by Xue Kun himself, but instead of encouragement or praise, he was given a long lecture.

Of course, there is also good news.

The lab gave him an extra 10,000 yuan bonus and also allowed him to receive a project allowance, so he could earn more than 4,000 yuan more each month.

Now that I'm learning to do experiments from Xue Kun, I'm finally on the right track.

Zhang Minghao chatted with Ma Yan for a few minutes before heading to the main laboratory.

Zhu Bingkun and Xue Kun were both in the laboratory.

There are two other associate researchers, Xu Haiwang and Wang Xing.

Many experimental studies have been conducted recently, focusing on the materials used in the Zhang phenomenon.

The project team wants to solve the problem of non-reusable materials through experiments, that is, to study the differences between materials that have been used in experiments and those that have not been used.

"There has been absolutely no progress."

Zhu Bingkun frowned and said, "We've done every test we could think of."

"Now we want to refine the used materials, extract the nickel and aluminum, and then test the properties of the two elements to see if there are any differences from the original."

"If that doesn't work, we can use the refined metal elements as raw materials to manufacture nickel/alumina metal ceramics step by step, and see if the ZXZ phenomenon can be observed."

Zhang Minghao didn't know if it would work.

The biggest limitation of "Correct Perception" is that it cannot predict future events.

Before the experiment has started, he can only judge whether the experimental design is correct, but he cannot judge the material of the real object or completely unknown factors.

However, he was not optimistic. After thinking for a moment, he said, "With so many experimental teams, there must be other teams doing the same research."

"I think routine testing is sufficient; we should avoid those tests that are unexpected or overly complex."

"If other teams make similar discoveries, we can just wait for their results to be published."

The others nodded thoughtfully.

The Zhang phenomenon has been known for a long time, and the problem of non-reusable materials was noticed by various teams immediately.

The publicly available results that exist offer many explanations for this issue, but the results all show that no difference was detected.

Xue Kun had just finished his experiment. He took off his white lab coat and put it aside, then asked, "If we don't do this, what should we do now?"

"Experiments are needed for theoretical mechanism research."

Zhang Minghao looked around and explained, "We went to the capital and finalized a collaboration with Zou Jianyong's team. The next step is to conduct experimental and theoretical research on the synergistic properties of ZXZ and high-temperature superconductivity."

The others exchanged glances, clearly not understanding what Zhang Minghao was saying.

Xue Kun asked in confusion, "Zhang Minghao, I've always wanted to ask you, what exactly is the connection between our research and high-temperature superconductivity?"

"You explained it, but it was vague, and I don't understand it either. Why is it related to high-temperature superconductivity? What are we supposed to do?"

His question also voiced what everyone else was thinking.

Zhu Bingkun also wanted to ask this question, as he also didn't understand why the Zhang phenomenon was associated with high-temperature superconductivity.

It's one thing to not understand the connection, but it's another to not know what to do next, which makes me feel very lost.

Zhang Minghao looked at Zhu Bingkun and Xue Kun, then at the other two, and remembered Du Wei's expression in the theory group office. He immediately said, "How about this, gather the others together, and I'll share my thoughts."

He can ensure the research is correct, but he also needs to make others understand exactly what is being done.

The entire project team needs to work together as one. If others don't know the direction, they will lose their motivation, which may also affect the research itself.

……

Second floor conference room.

Zhu Bingkun, Xue Kun, and Chen Shuai were all there, as were Fang Huimin and He Hui. Including other associate researchers and members of the theoretical group, there were a total of more than a dozen people.

These are the core teams in the laboratory.

The lowest-ranking among them was Liu Lei, who was just a postdoctoral researcher affiliated with the laboratory. He was only called to the meeting because he worked in the theoretical group.

The other affiliated postdocs didn't come either. They also work in the lab, but their importance is somewhat less.

Associate researcher, equivalent to associate professor, is a tenured position. Tenure signifies job security.

It's hard to say about the postdoctoral fellows who are affiliated with the lab. Some are just temporarily staying in the lab, while others want to stay but can't, and may suddenly leave one day.

Once everyone in the conference room was seated, Zhang Minghao walked to the podium.

Everyone looked over.

Zhang Minghao said earnestly, "Perhaps everyone is not very familiar with the next steps, so I'll share my thoughts here."

"Everyone can listen to this and understand what exactly needs to be done."

He wrote the symbol 'U' on the blackboard. "U represents something unknown."

"We all know that ZXZ creates an unknown field force, which is manifested in a wave-like manner. We can only study its external characteristics."

"I believe that the most fundamental mechanism for the formation of field force has an unknown source, which I denote as U. Similarly, in the high-temperature superconductivity mechanism, there is an unknown interaction that causes electrons to form Coulomb pairs."

"I believe that the unknown source U of the Zhang phenomenon and the unknown interaction in the high-temperature and ultra-high-temperature mechanism are the same thing..."

"Based on this, when certain conditions are met, microscopic matter will exhibit superconductivity under the influence of U."

"Similarly, under another special condition, the ZXZ phenomenon will occur under the influence of U."

"Two completely different phenomena, the same U, are different evolutions from the same starting point. Their formation process and microscopic theoretical mechanism must be related."

"This is what I mean by connection..."

Zhang Minghao began to explain in detail.

Starting from the same point in time, with the same U, two different phenomena have emerged, suggesting a strong correlation between their theoretical mechanisms.

Just as carbon can form graphite and diamond, two substances with completely different appearances are composed of the same elements.

They must have similar physical and chemical properties.

By placing the mechanisms of the two phenomena within the same framework, identifying the inherently correct correlation mechanism, and then conducting research in conjunction with experiments on high-temperature superconductivity and the Zhang phenomenon, we can continuously refine the theoretical mechanism.

For example, the experimental conclusions of the Zhang phenomenon, once placed within the mechanistic framework, can be verified in high-temperature superconductivity experiments.

vice versa.

This is the research methodology.

Zhang Minghao's explanation wasn't in-depth; he only covered the general direction and research understanding, making sure everyone could understand.

Everyone else seemed to have a sudden realization.

Zhu Bingkun, Xue Kun, Chen Shuai, and Du Wei, among others, finally understood why they needed to collaborate with the high-temperature superconductivity team.

Experiments in two directions, combined with research from the theoretical group, continuously improve the theoretical mechanism framework.

Progress was made step by step.

As for whether the research is correct, most people don't consider that; they just need to know which direction the work is heading.

……

After the meeting, some people also discussed whether the research direction was correct.

The theory group office was discussing it.

Du Wei, Zhao Linwei, and Liu Lei discussed their research direction together, and they had already grasped the significance of the 'theory-mechanism correlation' research.

But the question is, is U's assumption correct?

Without a solid foundation, all research is just empty talk.

Liu Lei ended the discussion with a single sentence: "Just follow Zhang Minghao's lead."

"He's already made his assumptions, so why don't we just believe them? Otherwise, what other better research methods are there?"

"Uh~~~"

Du Wei thought about it and realized that it made sense; discussing the direction was pointless, and they could just follow along.

Zhao Linwei reiterated, "What if it's right? This time, our theoretical group is the core of the research."

"Both sides' experiments are cooperating with us, isn't that great? They're the core of the project!"

"Just thinking about it puts pressure on me..."

In any case, the research has already begun, and both theoretical and experimental studies are gradually getting on track.

Zhang Minghao is not in a hurry when it comes to research. Many of his studies are long-term endeavors, especially the study of theoretical mechanisms.

The improvement of the framework requires a lot of experiments and a lot of accumulation.

Work can be carried out step by step.

His work and life were relatively relaxed, and he even found time to write his doctoral dissertation, but he stopped after only writing the beginning.

Zhang Minghao definitely needs to think this through carefully.

I've been pursuing my doctorate at Jiangzhou University for less than a year, and I've already completed my dissertation and become a full-fledged researcher. I still need to adjust to this new status.

Now I'm a PhD student and a researcher, so it seems like there's no difference whether I graduate or not.

Thinking about it from this perspective, I lost all motivation to write the paper.

……

Soon, the end of the year will be approaching.

School is out for break.

The Applied Electromagnetism Laboratory also needed a holiday, and Zhu Bingkun generously granted everyone in the laboratory a twenty-day break.

Everyone else happily went home for the New Year.

Zhang Minghao's feelings were somewhat complicated. He packed his things slowly, thinking that he would stay for a few days and then come back as soon as possible.

A shout suddenly came from the doorway.

It's Sun Wen.

Sun Wen rushed into the workroom with a document in her hand and said, "Don't leave yet, you must take a look at this materials list."

Zhang Minghao picked up the document and looked at it, finding it to be a list of materials.

The above list shows the materials required for the experiment, which he and Sun Wen researched together based on various data indicators.

Sun Wen said, "Some materials need to be crossed out, especially these kinds."

She pointed to several materials marked with red lines.

"why?"

"The cost of materials has exceeded the budget!"

Sun Wen looked helpless and said, "The material costs are too high. Gold nanoparticles, moissanite, and optical silicon are all too expensive."

"The equipment usage fees aren't enough either. We've been experimenting for a while now, and in just a few months, we've already spent nearly two million..."

The project plan includes budgets for all expenses. The budgets don't need to be too detailed, but there should be an estimated value. If the cost of a single item exceeds the estimate in a short period of time, it is a violation.

Zhang Minghao thought for a moment and asked, "Are there proportions in the budget for each expense? That is, what percentage of the total budget do they represent?"

“Our project is like this,” Sun Wen nodded.

"So, the root cause is that they didn't provide enough funding. It was originally an eight million project, but they only gave four million, cutting it in half!"

Zhang Minghao stated his conclusion directly, then frowned and said, "If the research is to continue, not a single material on the list can be omitted."

“We must conduct detailed tests on each material. Each material has different properties and may play a role in the research.”

“But it’s against the rules…” Sun Wen frowned hesitantly.

"Violating the rules is absolutely unacceptable!"

Zhang Minghao said, "We are not violating any regulations. How about this, we will apply for project completion, and in the application report, we will say that we encountered the force majeure factor of 'insufficient funding'."

"We can't buy materials or do any further research, so we might as well just close the project."

"We're quitting!"

"Let whoever has the ability do it!"

(End of this chapter)