There is no such thing as total novelty.
One primary reason aspiring researchers become frustrated is the worry that his work might not be unique (enough).
Eureka! Remember that time when just after you realize your research topic interest, you get saddened after reading related literatures and realize, ‘Aww, this has been done’. Not by one, but more than a dozen published research, perhaps.
You get the urge to change topic. But mind you, it’s too early to enter the trap.
Dig deeper. All research is but an offspring of previous researches and knowledge-guided insights of the researcher. That’s you!
The novelty in your research is your integration and consolidation of previously known facts and current knowledge. This may include your primary assessment of the problem, primary hypothesis and even primary results.
Dig deeper into the topic first, understand and work on a few initial experiments and simulations. Document your findings — ugly and promising results. Only then that you will realize that there’s much more to work on, more research questions arise, more research opportunities… novelty comes in when you start creating your own specific research questions… after you dig-in deeper.
Let me this post with this: You cannot show the uniqueness of your work if you first can’t show it exists.
Always remember, Idowi Koyenikan once said: “If you quit on the process, you quit on the result”.
10 April 2020. 1414 HRS.
SAMPAGUITA 