28.9.2022 Andrius Penkauskas: Multidisciplinary by design
Andrius Penkauskas: Multidisciplinary by design
A Japanese saying states that “the frog in the well knows nothing of the ocean.” This phrase, in my opinion, captures the essence of a multidisciplinary perspective. I will elaborate on the significance of this proverb in greater detail later. But first, please allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Andrius Penkauskas, and I graduated from Tilburg University with a Master’s degree in Data Science and Society last year, in addition to a Master’s degree in Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence the year before. I also possess bachelor’s degrees in Applied Photography and Management & Business Administration. In addition to the previously mentioned education, I dipped my toes into studies of Social Anthropology. Aside from that, I would like to highlight some of my previous professional roles, such as non-formal education coordinator and lecturer at Vilnius College of Design, marketing executive at Frank Salt Real Estate, president of the Lithuanian Analogue Photography Association, and content creator at bSoul Cosmetici Naturaly, to name a few. Furthermore, recently, I was nominated for a Doctoral researcher’s position at the University of Eastern Finland, where I am now a part of the Neuro-Innovation project. Not only have a wide range of professional and academic experiences shaped my character and mentality, but I am also strongly influenced by the combination of various cultural contexts from Lithuania, Malta, Italy, the Netherlands, and Finland. And if you think I merely wrote this to brag, please allow me to prove you wrong.
At first sight, my life may appear to be a random wandering with no underlying structure. To be honest, if I said it was a thoroughly methodical approach, I would be lying. However, all of my experiences are deeply intertwined, and there are latent links that aid in gaining a better understanding and developing multiple new perspectives on currently investigated topics and issues.
A Japanese saying states that “the frog in the well knows nothing of the ocean.” This phrase, in my opinion, captures the essence of a multidisciplinary perspective.
I feel it is a critical moment to revisit the idea behind the proverb with which I began this blog post since it sheds light on the rationale behind the core of my behavior. In my opinion, it is critical to construct not only a depth of understanding that leads to a narrow route but also a breadth of knowledge that extends the ability to perceive a bigger picture and empowers to transfer insights and experience between domains.
In my childhood, I adopted this strategy intuitively but not consciously. Aside from school, I was involved in numerous hobbies, including music and painting, as well as several sports, martial arts, and programming classes. I engaged in over 20 different activities in total. While I did not obtain an extensive depth of competence in each, the breadth of my knowledge and skills gained from other activities allowed me to compensate and sometimes even excel. It took numerous years to develop a conscious understanding of how this strategy works, but after studying Cognitive Science, I knew I was on the right path. In general, Cognitive Science is multidisciplinary by design; it is the study of the mind that encompasses ideas and methods of psychology, linguistics, philosophy, computer science, artificial intelligence, neuroscience, and anthropology. The primary concept underlying this domain is the belief that combining multiple areas produces a synergy that would be impossible to achieve by exploring each discipline independently. The very same reasoning I use in my life.
Preceding paragraphs are not just reflections or happy coincidences of the past. The above-described attitude has a significant influence on my current career and life. I feel an urge to elaborate on the study I am conducting to illustrate how this philosophy relates to my present work. My research focuses on Idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (iNPH), a potentially treatable form of dementia. Nonetheless, treatment of iNPH necessitates a rather complicated intervention, which is why it is crucial to distinguish it from other dementias. However, diagnosing iNPH is a non-trivial task. The clinical, physiologic, and neuroimaging characteristics of iNPH are challenging to differentiate from those of other dementias such as Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies, and Parkinson’s disease. Studies that attempted to gain insights utilizing single modalities had little success and emphasized the potential of combined modalities. That is precisely the central topic of my ongoing research. The main goal is to combine, integrate, analyze, transform, and utilize medical brain imaging, genetic data, and other biomarkers. And using powerful algorithmic, machine/deep learning approaches to identify, differentiate, and predict the outcomes of iNPH.
To achieve this important, although incredibly challenging aim, I rely not just on different modalities of data but also cooperate with extraordinary professionals from several domains. Pauli Miettinen, Professor of Data Science, is my primary supervisor. Jussi Tohka, Professor of Biomedical Image Analysis, and Ville Leinonen, Professor of Neurosurgery, are also my superiors. Sharing opinions with these experts and receiving their insights helps me avoid going down the rabbit hole and provides a solid basis for addressing the issue from various angles.
Partnership with outstanding specialists, combined with a breadth of different data modalities and my multidisciplinary experience, is an excellent fit when looking for solutions outside the box. Nevertheless, at this phase, it is difficult to predict whether I will manage to bring any significant contribution to the study of iNPH because I am still in the early stages of my research. However, the experimental results, even though not conclusive, are promising. I am confident that soon I will be able to share more with you about what I managed to achieve with the assistance and supervision of this incredible team and multidisciplinary approach by design. So remain tuned, and I will write to you later.
P.S.
Do not get me wrong: a multidisciplinary approach is a highly effective strategy and mindset. However, it is not a panacea. Numerous other components of work contribute to a positive outcome, one of which is the significance of cooperation. My colleague’s blog post has a pretty excellent depiction of it. So, if you got it this far, I recommend you to take your time and read it through.