Why Computers Won't Make Themselves Smarter
We fear and yearn for "the singularity." But it will probably never come.
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Collaboration, Empathy & Change: Perspectives on Leadership in Libraries and Archives in 2020
Collaboration, Empathy & Change: Perspectives on Leadership in Libraries and Archives in 2020
Students in the organizational theory and leadership course taught by Trevor Owe at the University of Maryland’s iSchool worked together to produce this book.
Meta-Research: Weak Evidence of Country- and Institution-Related Status Bias in the Peer Review of Abstracts
Meta-Research: Weak Evidence of Country- and Institution-Related Status Bias in the Peer Review of Abstracts
A preregistered survey experiment spanning six disciplines has found weak evidence of bias in favour of authors from high-status countries and institutions.
Do You Obey Public-Access Mandates? Google Scholar is Watching
Search-engine co-founder Anurag Acharya explains why it now tells authors when their papers should be made free to read.
No, It's Not The Incentives - It's You
Troubling narrative: the mere existence of perverse incentives is a valid and sufficient reason to knowingly behave in an antisocial way, just as long as one first acknowledges the existence of those perverse incentives.
Here's How We'll Know an AI Is Conscious
Zombies are supposed to be capable of asking any question about the nature of experience. It's worth wondering, though, how a person or machine devoid of experience could reflect on experience it doesn’t have.
Capitalism Won't Save Us from Covid, No Matter What Boris Johnson Might Think
Capitalism Won't Save Us from Covid, No Matter What Boris Johnson Might Think
His claim that 'greed' was the driver behind the UK's vaccine success ignores the huge role of state funding, says economics professor Mariana Mazzucato.
The Ocean's Youngest Monsters Are Ready for Glamour Shots
Divers practicing blackwater photography are helping marine scientists gain new insights into fish larvae.
We Need to Talk About the AstraZeneca Vaccine
For the moment, reports of a very rare, dangerous blood disorder among recipients cannot be ignored.
W.H.O. Inquiry on the Pandemic's Origin: What We Know
Did Covid-19 come from animal markets? It's unclear. Did it emerge from a lab? Also unclear. Here's what a new W.H.O. report says - including questions that the agency's own chief raised about the findings.
WHO Report into COVID Pandemic Origins Zeroes in on Animal Markets
Scientists say the conclusions make sense but note that supporters of the lab-leak theory are unlikely to be satisfied.
It's Time to Consider a Patent Reprieve for COVID Vaccines
The pandemic is not a competition between companies and will not end without more-equal distribution of coronavirus vaccines.
CODECHECK: an Open Science Initiative
An Open Science initiative for the independent execution of computations underlying research articles during peer review to improve reproducibility.
Why Indoor Spaces Are Still Prime COVID Hotspots
Risks shoot up when virus particles accumulate in buildings, but it's not clear how best to improve ventilation.
Light Pollution from Satellites 'poses Threat' to Astronomy
Mega-constellations could cause scientists to miss out on crucial discoveries, warn researchers.
What Constitutes Authorship in the Social Sciences?
Authorship represents a highly discussed topic in nowadays academia. The share of co-authored papers has increased substantially in recent years allowing scientists to specialize and focus on specific tasks. But what does authorship actually mean in the social sciences?
How Do We Share Data in COVID-19 Research? A Systematic Review of COVID-19 Datasets in PubMed Central Articles - PubMed
How Do We Share Data in COVID-19 Research? A Systematic Review of COVID-19 Datasets in PubMed Central Articles - PubMed
PubMed Central articles are an important source of COVID-19 datasets, but there is significant heterogeneity in the way these datasets are mentioned, shared, updated and cited.
The Absurdity of University Rankings
Rankings are artificial zero-sum games. Artificial because they force a strict hierarchy upon universities. Artificial also because it is not realistic that a university can only improve its reputation for performance exclusively at the expense of other universities’ reputations.
Britain's 'Brutal' Cuts to Overseas Aid Put African Science Projects in Peril
Lifesaving research on fighting drought and climate change at risk after snap decision to halt crucial funding.
2 Interesting Scholarly Datasets Obtained from Web Scraping - Open Editors & Open Syllabus
2 Interesting Scholarly Datasets Obtained from Web Scraping - Open Editors & Open Syllabus
"Open Editors" & "Open Syllabus" are two interesting datasets obtained from wide scale web scraping due to lack of structured , machine readable data
ELife and PREreview Partner to Promote Greater Diversity in Peer Review
The two initiatives are continuing their joint efforts to increase the diversity of voices in scholarly review.
What It Will Take to Vaccinate the World Against COVID-19
A special report outlines the challenges - from unleashing the power of mRNA vaccines, to the battle for temporary intellectual-property relief.
We Need to Talk About the Lack of Investment in Digital Research Infrastructure
We Need to Talk About the Lack of Investment in Digital Research Infrastructure
Research software infrastructure is critical for accelerating science, and yet, these digital public goods are often unsustainably funded. Solving this problem requires an appreciation of the intrinsic value of research software outputs, and greater investment of time and effort into effectively funding maintenance of software at scale.
Row Erupts over University's Use of Research Metrics in Job-cut Decisions
Critics say redundancies are being decided using unreliable measures related to funding and citations, highlighting broader unease about the use of metrics in science.
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