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Psychiatrists Call for Rollback of Policy Banning Discussion of Public Figures’ Mental Health
Psychiatrists Call for Rollback of Policy Banning Discussion of Public Figures’ Mental Health
Some of the field’s most notable thinkers call on the American Psychiatric Association to permit discussion of public figures' mental health in some cases.
Four Principles to Make Evidence Synthesis More Useful for Policy
Reward the creation of analyses for policymakers that are inclusive, rigorous, transparent and accessible.
Evidence-Informed Policymaking: Does Knowledge Brokering Work?
Sarah Quarmby takes a look inside a knowledge broker organisation, the Wales Centre for Public Policy, to see how its day-to-day workings tally with the body of knowledge about evidence use in policymaking.
New Zealand Appoints First Female Chief Scientific Adviser
Biochemist Juliet Gerrard will advise the government on key science issues when she takes up the position next month.
US EPA Science Advisers Question ‘Secret Science’ Rule on Data Transparency
US EPA Science Advisers Question ‘Secret Science’ Rule on Data Transparency
Independent board will review agency decisions to repeal or change climate regulations and rules on the use of non-public data.
China to Crack down on Fraud in Scandal-Hit Scientific Research
China to Crack down on Fraud in Scandal-Hit Scientific Research
New national guidelines spell out punishment for plagiarism, fabrication of data and research conclusions, ghostwriting and peer review manipulation.
Loss of Trust? Loss of Trustworthiness? Truth and Expertise Today
Loss of Trust? Loss of Trustworthiness? Truth and Expertise Today
A discussion of how trust in expertise is placed or refused, highlighting the affective dimension of epistemic trust, and discussing the danger of a 'context collapse' in digital communication.
Science Needs Clarity on Europe’s Data-Protection Law
As a commendable European law on personal data comes into force, the research community must not let excessive caution about data sharing, however understandable, become the default position.
Failures Are Essential to Scientific Inquiry
Reproducibility failures occur even in fields such as mathematics or computer science that do not have statistical problems or issues with experimental design. Suggested policy changes ignore a core feature of the process of scientific inquiry that occurs after reproducibility failures: the integration of conflicting observations and ideas into a coherent theory.
All Science Should Inform Policy and Regulation
In the context of a recent proposal to exclude research from consideration at the Environmental Protection Agency, John Ioannidis points out that "perceived perfection is not a characteristic of science, but of dogma" and envisions how governments can promote a standard of openness in science.
Joint Statement on EPA Proposed Rule and Public Availability of Data
Joint Statement on EPA Proposed Rule and Public Availability of Data
Response to a proposed rule announced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in a 24 April 2018 press release.
The Text and Data Mining Exception in the Proposal for a Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market: Why It Is Not What Eu Copyright Law Needs?
Recommendation on Access to and Preservation of Scientific Information
Recommendation on Access to and Preservation of Scientific Information
Commission Recommendation of 25 April 2018 on access to and preservation of scientific information.
Facebook Shuts the Gate After the Horse Has Bolted, and Hurts Real Research in the Process
Facebook Shuts the Gate After the Horse Has Bolted, and Hurts Real Research in the Process
Facebook has recently announced a substantial tightening of access restrictions to the APIs of Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms it owns. While these changes may generate some positive publicity for the company, they are likely to compound the real problem, further diminishing transparency and opportunities for independent oversight.
Science's 'Irreproducibility Crisis' Is a Public Policy Crisis Too
Congress will have to pay for some steps to ensure greater reproducibility in the sciences. In the end, those steps will save enormous amounts now spent building blind allies and mirages. What’s needed are standardized descriptions of scientific materials and procedures, standardized statistics programs, and standardized archival formats.
The Irreproducibility Crisis of Modern Science: Causes, Consequences, and the Road to Reform
The Irreproducibility Crisis of Modern Science: Causes, Consequences, and the Road to Reform
This study by the National Association of Scholars examines the different aspects of the reproducibility crisis of modern science. The report also includes a series of policy recommendations, scientific and political, for alleviating the reproducibility crisis.
SNSF Simplifies Open Access Publishing
The SNSF is strengthening publishing Open Access: as of 1 April 2018, it will be easier to publish books and journal articles that are openly accessible.
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