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The developing world needs basic research too

The developing world needs basic research too

The establishment of an agency in Indonesia that will support 'frontier research' is a welcome development, argues Dyna Rochmyaningsih.

The Natural Selection of Bad Science

The Natural Selection of Bad Science

The persistence of poor methods results partly from incentives that favor them, leading to the natural selection of bad science. This dynamic requires no conscious strategizing - no deliberate cheating nor loafing - by scientists, only that publication is a principle factor for career advancement.

Why aren’t there more women in science? The industry structure is sexist

Why aren’t there more women in science? The industry structure is sexist

Women outnumber men in a raft of science courses – but when they start their careers, they find many insurmountable barriers.

Why is scientific sexism so intractably resistant to reform?

Why is scientific sexism so intractably resistant to reform?

Harassment drove me out of physics 30 years ago and little has changed. Why is scientific sexism so intractable?

Sci-Hub: What It Is and Why It Matters

Sci-Hub: What It Is and Why It Matters

The controversies surrounding Sci-Hub touch on many hot-button topics in librarianship. This primer lays out multiple perspectives on the issues.

Does mobility boost early scientific careers?

Does mobility boost early scientific careers?

Young scientists are expected to change country and jobs every few years on average to get a chance to progress their academic career. Mobility in science stems from a long tradition. It is favoured for bringing very enriching experiences. But post docs and their scientific work do not always benefit from mobility. Here, EuroScientist looks into how being on the move every few years affects the life of researchers and looks at ways of enhancing work/life balance.

Most scientists believe there is a crisis in reproducibility

Most scientists believe there is a crisis in reproducibility

Placing trust in science can be easier when findings are confirmed, but a new survey finds that most scientists believe there is a reproducibility "crisis."

Why ‘context’ is important for research

Why ‘context’ is important for research

Discovery is the pathway to context. Context of an article is all about how research fits into increasingly complex domains, and using structured networks to decipher its value. With the power of the internet at our disposal, putting research in context should be of key importance in a world where there is ever more research being published that is impossible to manually filter.

Switzerland does well in competitiveness ranking

Switzerland does well in competitiveness ranking

Switzerland has come in second in the annual competitiveness ranking published by the IMD World Competitiveness Center in Lausanne.

Sci-Hub: What It Is and Why It Matters

Sci-Hub: What It Is and Why It Matters

The controversies surrounding Sci-Hub touch on many hot-button topics in librarianship. This primer lays out multiple perspectives on the issues.

Digital forensics: from the crime lab to the library

Digital forensics: from the crime lab to the library

Archivists are borrowing and adapting techniques used in criminal investigations to access data and files created in now-obsolete systems.

Organised crime against the academic peer review system

Organised crime against the academic peer review system

Editorials are generally about what we did right in our journal and we do not often publish about our failures. Yet, in this Editorial we feel we have to convey the full story of how we went entirely off track with the publication of a paper.

The ecstasy and the agony of the altmetric score

The ecstasy and the agony of the altmetric score

Altmetrics have gained momentum and are meant to overcome the shortcomings of citation-based metrics. In this regard some light is shed on the dangers associated with the new “all-in-one” indicator altmetric score.

All European scientific articles to be freely accessible by 2020

All European scientific articles to be freely accessible by 2020

All scientific articles in Europe must be freely accessible as of 2020. EU member states want to achieve optimal reuse of research data. They are also looking into a European visa for foreign start-up founders.

Why research for the pure sake of knowing is good enough

Why research for the pure sake of knowing is good enough

Duke University biologist Sheila Patek has faced criticism from lawmakers over her research into mantis shrimp and trap-jaw ants, with some calling her government-funded studies a waste of taxpayer money. But according to Patek, not only do her findings have important practical applications, but scientific inquiry is most fruitful when knowledge is sought for its own sake, not to justify budgets.

The SciHub Data Part 2: Academic Pirates

The SciHub Data Part 2: Academic Pirates

How many people are actually using Sci-Hub to download publications while they are in universities?

The NASW and the Looming Rift in Science Journalism

The NASW and the Looming Rift in Science Journalism

A report suggests that internal discord may tear apart the National Association of Science Writers, a near century-old professional journalism organization.

ACS and Dutch universities aim for 100% open access

ACS and Dutch universities aim for 100% open access

From 2017 onward, any new articles accepted for publication within ACS peer-reviewed journals that are submitted by a Corresponding Author affiliated with a Dutch university or other participating research institution will be published open access, without extra fees to the author.

A peerless review? Automating methodological and statistical review

A peerless review? Automating methodological and statistical review

Peer review is the primary mechanism for ensuring the integrity of the published literature; however, it is a human system with all of a human's fallibilities. Here Daniel Shanahan asks whether we could use text mining to automate some aspects of the peer review process to address some of its limitations, and introduces a new pilot to evaluate the software.