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For LGBQ Scientists, Being Out Can Mean More Publications

For LGBQ Scientists, Being Out Can Mean More Publications

Papers are a key currency for academic careers. LGBQ academic scientists who don’t disclose their sexual orientation in the workplace publish fewer papers than their out or non-LGBQ peers.

Is It Time to Live with COVID-19? Some Scientists Warn of 'Endemic Delusion'

Is It Time to Live with COVID-19? Some Scientists Warn of 'Endemic Delusion'

As pandemic restrictions lift, researchers stress the need to prepare for the next variant

What’s Next for Biden’s Research Agenda After Science Adviser’s Fall From Grace?

What’s Next for Biden’s Research Agenda After Science Adviser’s Fall From Grace?

The resignation of the Science Adviser likely won’t doom president’s science initiatives, argue science policy observers

U.S. Science No Longer Leads the World. Here's How Top Advisers Say the Nation Should Respond

U.S. Science No Longer Leads the World. Here's How Top Advisers Say the Nation Should Respond

Growing competition means U.S. must decide where to excel.

Climate Change to Stir Up Global Agriculture Within Next Decade

Climate Change to Stir Up Global Agriculture Within Next Decade

New computer simulations predict deep changes in growing conditions affecting the productivity of major crops already within the next 10 years if current global warming trends continue. 

University department administrators are freaking heroes

University department administrators are freaking heroes

This month, Joan Miller retired. You probably haven’t heard of Joan. Joan was the administrator for my grad school department who, for 48 years, made sure everything ran smoothly and—stunningly—never appeared the slightest bit ruffled by the depth or breadth of these demands.

Reframing Strategic, Managed Retreat for Transformative Climate Adaptation

Reframing Strategic, Managed Retreat for Transformative Climate Adaptation

Human societies will transform to address climate change and other stressors. How they choose to transform will depend on what societal values they prioritize. Managed retreat can play a powerful role in expanding the range of possible futures that transformation could achieve and in articulating the values that shape those futures. Consideration of retreat raises tensions about what losses are unacceptable and what aspects of societies are maintained, purposefully altered, or allowed to change unaided. Here we integrate research on retreat, transformational adaptation, climate damages and losses, and design and decision support to chart a roadmap for strategic, managed retreat. At its core, this roadmap requires a fundamental reconceptualization of what it means for retreat to be strategic and managed. The questions raised are relevant to adaptation science and societies far beyond the remit of retreat.

Face Masks Effectively Limit the Probability of SARS-CoV-2 Transmission

Face Masks Effectively Limit the Probability of SARS-CoV-2 Transmission

Airborne transmission by droplets and aerosols is important for the spread of viruses. Face masks are a well-established preventive measure, but their effectiveness for mitigating SARS-CoV-2 transmission is still under debate. We show that variations in mask efficacy can be explained by different regimes of virus abundance and related to population-average infection probability and reproduction number. For SARS-CoV-2, the viral load of infectious individuals can vary by orders of magnitude. We find that most environments and contacts are under conditions of low virus abundance (virus-limited) where surgical masks are effective at preventing virus spread. More advanced masks and other protective equipment are required in potentially virus-rich indoor environments including medical centers and hospitals. Masks are particularly effective in combination with other preventive measures like ventilation and distancing.

'Superagency' May Further Politicize Indonesian Research

'Superagency' May Further Politicize Indonesian Research

Indonesia has dismantled its science ministry and created an overarching national research agency, a move some scientists worry will strengthen political control over research in a country where academic freedom is already under pressure and politics have taken an authoritarian turn.

Socioeconomic Status Determines COVID-19 Incidence and Related Mortality in Santiago de Chile

Socioeconomic Status Determines COVID-19 Incidence and Related Mortality in Santiago de Chile

The current COVID-19 pandemic has impacted cities particularly hard. Here, we provide an in-depth characterization of disease incidence and mortality, and their dependence on demographic and socioeconomic strata in Santiago, a highly segregated city and the capital of Chile. Our analyses show a strong association between socioeconomic status and both COVID-19 outcomes and public health capacity.

Model-Informed COVID-19 Vaccine Prioritization Strategies by Age and Serostatus

Model-Informed COVID-19 Vaccine Prioritization Strategies by Age and Serostatus

Limited initial supply of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine raises the question of how to prioritize available doses. The authors used a mathematical model to compare five age-stratified prioritization strategies.

Herd Immunity by Infection is Not an Option

Herd Immunity by Infection is Not an Option

Herd immunity is expected to arise when a virus cannot spread readily. However, Manaus provides a cautionary example that herd immunity is likely not achieved even at high levels of infection and that it comes with unacceptably high costs.

The Pandemic is Hitting Scientist Parents Hard, and Some Solutions May Backfire

The Pandemic is Hitting Scientist Parents Hard, and Some Solutions May Backfire

New data quantify lost work hours and productivity, but the way forward remains uncertain.

Trump 'owes Us an Apology.' Chinese Scientist at the Center of COVID-19 Origin Theories Speaks out

Trump 'owes Us an Apology.' Chinese Scientist at the Center of COVID-19 Origin Theories Speaks out

Wuhan bat virologist Shi Zhengli denies responsibility for the pandemic and calls for more international collaboration.

Open-access Science Funders Announce Price Transparency Rules for Publishers

Open-access Science Funders Announce Price Transparency Rules for Publishers

Science journals will have to disclose the costs of publishing articles by July 2022 in order for them to be paid for by a coalition of research funders pushing for open access.

"Finally, a Virus Got Me": Scientist Who Fought Ebola and HIV Reflects on Facing Death from COVID-19

"Finally, a Virus Got Me": Scientist Who Fought Ebola and HIV Reflects on Facing Death from COVID-19

Virologist Peter Piot, director of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, fell ill with COVID-19 in mid-March.

Fact-checking Judy Mikovits, the Controversial Virologist Attacking Anthony Fauci in a Viral Conspiracy Video

Fact-checking Judy Mikovits, the Controversial Virologist Attacking Anthony Fauci in a Viral Conspiracy Video

In the video Plandemic, the former chronic fatigue syndrome researcher makes countless unsubstantiated claims and accusations.