Interdisciplinary Training

There has been some discussion lately, particularly among the Education Coordinators and the Academic Programs Office, about raising the visibility of "interdisciplinary science" on our web sites.  Apparently, the possibility of "interdisciplinary" research is an important factor for many applicants to the Joint Program who are deciding between graduate schools. 

As someone with a Ph.D. in applied mathematics, working as a tenured scientist in a biology department, I always thought I had a pretty good understanding of "inter-", "cross-", "multi-", and even "trans-disciplinary" science.  And frankly, I've always been skeptical about the wisdom of formal training of graduate students in any area that needs a hyphen.  I've worried that students need to find jobs and that, except for at a few places like WHOI, interdisciplinary training puts them at a disadvantage.  

But, after reading this fun little editorial piece by Sean Eddy, I'm beginning to reconsider. Maybe we need to train students in "ante-disciplinary" science, "the science that precedes the organization of new disciplines, the Wild West frontier stage that comes before the law arrives." But how would we do that? Any ideas?