Who Isn’t Profiting Off the Backs of Researchers?
Academia.edu, ResearchGate and private publishers all have something in common.
Why We Find And Expose Bad Science
Bad research just doesn’t affect the people in the area around it, the people who might spend years trying to take a dodgy result and extend it.
Arguments over European Open-access Plan Heat Up
Biochemist Lynn Kamerlin tells Nature why she has coordinated an open letter - signed by more than 950 scientists - objecting to Plan S.
Zaharieva Urges More EU-US Science Collaboration
An unhealthy obsession with p-values is ruining science
A new study shows that p-values have become more popular — and more meaningless — over time.
Why the Open Access Movement in Agriculture Matters
From fungal networks sharing information and resources connecting all living things to the open source paradigm: Agroecology needs Open Access.
Long-lost Ancient Mural Rediscovered in Northern Peru After More Than a Century
Long-lost Ancient Mural Rediscovered in Northern Peru After More Than a Century
Student archaeologists unearth Huaca Pintada, described as 'the most exciting and important find of recent years'
Authorial and Institutional Stratification in Open Access Publishing: the Case of Global Health Research
Authorial and Institutional Stratification in Open Access Publishing: the Case of Global Health Research
New axes of stratification are emerging in academic publishing, adding to the already complex tapestry of inequality in science. Authors working at lower-ranked universities are more likely to publish in closed/paywalled outlets, and less likely to choose outlets that involve some sort of Article Processing Charge (APCs; gold or hybrid OA).
Why ‘Disruption’ Isn’t What You Really Mean
Feeling a bit queasy these days? Small wonder. We are awash in disruption. Clearly, the d-word has long since become a trend in its own right.
Brexit Threatens Reputation for Scientific Research
Leadership is ‘sorely lacking’ in key areas such as robotics and climate change, parliament’s spending monitor warns.
Grand openings
Changes that will bring scientific discovery more freely into the public domain are happening.
Writing a Page-Turner: How to Tell a Story in Your Scientific Paper
Storytelling is easy to implement in your manuscript provided you know how. Think of the six plot elements - character, setting, tension, action, climax, resolution - and the three other story essentials - main theme, chronology, purpose. You’ll soon outline the backbone of your narrative and be ready to write a paper that is concise, compelling, and easy to understand.
Why (almost) Everything We Know About Citations is Wrong: Evidence from Authors
Why (almost) Everything We Know About Citations is Wrong: Evidence from Authors
Although citations and related metrics like the H-index are widely used in academia to evaluate research and allocate resources, the referencing decisions on which they are based are poorly understood. This paper investigates whether authors reference works that influenced them most or those they believe the readers will value most.
Trump's Executive Orders Seek to Erase Scientific Truth
By denying the realities of sex, gender, and race, the White House's statements worsen inequity and cause harm.
McGill Neurology Will No Longer Patent Researchers' Findings, Instead Everything Will Be Open Access
McGill Neurology Will No Longer Patent Researchers' Findings, Instead Everything Will Be Open Access
McGill's Neurological Institute open science agenda includes open access publication of all research data and findings, and an end to the practice of patenting the university's findings.
Unnecessary Research Bureaucracy is Killing Academic Productivity, But It IS Fixable
Unnecessary Research Bureaucracy is Killing Academic Productivity, But It IS Fixable
Research bureaucracy and administrative burden has become so overpowering that many researchers are reporting that they don't have time to do any research anymore. Phill Jones argues that technology in the form of PIDs will go a long way to fixing this.
Why CERN Wants to Build a Giant Particle Collider
What is Fog Data Science? Why is the Surveillance Company So Dangerous?
An Electronic Frontier Foundation investigation of public records acquired from dozens of state and local law enforcement agencies has uncovered a widely-used mass surveillance technology.
Why Sorbonne Pulled out of University Ranking
Sorbonne University plans to leave the Times Higher Education Rankings. According to its president, most of these rankings are "black boxes" whose methods raise ethical questions.
Hate journal impact factors? New study gives you one more reason
Analysis finds citation rankings can be very misleading.
How to Stop Rogue Gene-Editing of Human Embryos?
Some U.S. researchers knew of a Chinese scientist's intentions to implant edited embryos but were unable to stop him. Now scientific institutions are trying to devise global safeguards.
The Scientific Events That Shaped the Decade
The 2010s have seen breakthroughs in frontiers from gene editing to gravitational waves. The coming one must focus on climate change.