Module 4: Expanding Your “Intellectual Range of Motion” 

🕒 7m03s

THE FULL COURSE

This video forms part of an 8-part, self-guided course for students, educators, and researchers. To learn more, view the full Table of Contents below or contact trainings@whereresearchbegins.com

  • Module 1: How to Foster a Researcher’s Mindset
  • Module 2: What Does Success Look Like (Early) in the Research Process?
  • Module 3: Brilliant Research Projects Begin with Asking “Meaningless Questions”
  • Module 4: Expanding Your “Intellectual Range of Motion” 
  • Module 5: How to “Educate Your Questions”: Moving from Meaningless Questions to a Research Project 
  • Module 6: What’s Your Problem?: How to Identify the Driving Force Behind Your Research
  • Module 7: How to “Poison Your Audience”: Maximizing Impact When Sharing Your Research
  • Module 8: Office Hours 101: How to Dramatically Improve Time-Constrained Consultations
  • “Meaningless Questions” Virtual Flashcards for Researchers

OPTIONAL FURTHER READING

Thomas S. Mullaney and Christopher Rea. Where Research Begins: Choosing a Research Project That Matters to You (and the World). Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2022. [Learn more here.]

Textbook also available in Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Japanese, Korean, Thai, Polish and Uzbek.

ABOUT TOM & CHRIS

Tom Mullaney is Professor of Chinese History at Stanford University, a Guggenheim Fellow, and the recipient of Stanford’s highest award for excellence in teaching, the Gores Award. He is the co-author of Where Research Begins (University of Chicago Press, 2022, with Christopher Rea), The Chinese Computer: A Global History of the Information Age (MIT Press, 2024), The Chinese Typewriter: A History (MIT Press 2017), and Coming to Terms with the Nation: Ethnic Classification in Modern China (UC Press, 2010), among other works. His writings have appeared in Fast Company, MIT Technology Review, Quartz, the South China Morning Post, TechCrunch, the Journal of Asian Studies, Technology & Culture, Foreign Affairs, and Foreign Policy. His work has been featured in RadioLab, The Atlantic, the BBC, and in invited lectures at Google, Microsoft, Adobe, and more. He earned his BA and MA from the Johns Hopkins University, and his PhD from Columbia University.

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Christopher Rea is Professor of Asian Studies and former Director of the Centre for Chinese Research at the University of British Columbia. A native of Berkeley, California, he earned a BA from Dartmouth College and a PhD from Columbia University, and has been a visiting fellow at Harvard University and at universities in Taiwan and Australia. His books include Where Research Begins (University of Chicago Press, 2022, with Tom Mullaney), Chinese Film Classics, 1922-1949 (2021), The Book of Swindles: Selections from a Late Ming Collection (2017, with Bruce Rusk), and The Age of Irreverence: A New History of Laughter in China (2015). He was awarded UBC’s Killam Research Prize in 2023, and Dean of Arts Mentorship Award in 2024.

Contact

For more information, contact trainings@whereresearchbegins.com

Note

These independent course modules are not affiliated with Stanford University or the University of British Columbia.