The need for increased productivity in scientific research is generally recognized. Mounting costs of research require constantly greater output "just to stay even," while at the same time the potential leverage which research can give to profits beckons toward even greater commitment to it. Many researchers, old and young, have not learned to apply good techniques.

This book is seeks specific answers to the HOW questions:
How does one do what one ought to do?
How does one assemble facts?
How does one arrange them in an orderly fashion?
How can creativity be improved?


This is, in a sense, a "do-it-yourself" manual for self-improvement in the selection of problems and in solving them. The examples are largely taken from the chemical industry, but the principles are broadly applicable to all types of problems. The first part of the book is concerned primarily with the problem of solving problems; the second part is directed to problems of research management.