Science and democracy: a peculiarly British disease?
Two recent programmes on BBC Radio 4 highlight a worrying anti-democratic bias in discussions of science and technology.
opinion articles
Send us a link
Two recent programmes on BBC Radio 4 highlight a worrying anti-democratic bias in discussions of science and technology.
Drawing comparisons to Edward Snowden, a graduate student from Kazakhstan named Alexandra Elbakyan is believed to be hiding out in Russia after illegally leaking millions of documents.
New York Times columnist and science writer Carl Zimmer discusses the challenges of effectively communicating with the public about science.
With citation indexes being routinely questioned, ‘alternative metrics’ could gain ground as a new indicator of research success. But can they be trusted?
Understanding what an ad’s language really means will help you optimize your job search results.
Some researchers think science should be small again.
The make-up of a lab is crucial to success in publishing its research — and now, scientists are exploring how to compose the best research group possible.
The fascinating story of the discovery of nuclear fission began with an error that earned Enrico Fermi (see picture) a Nobel Prize for the apparent but incorrect discovery of the transuranic elements. Careful repetition and extension of the experiments finally led to the correct interpretation by Hahn, Meitner, Strassmann, Frisch, and Bohr as an effect from nuclear fission of the “small impurity” of (0.7 %) contained in natural uranium.
When presenting evidence to policymakers, scientists and other experts need to engage with the policy process that exists, not the one we wish existed.
Where once scientists used to be solitary creatures, today science is a highly collaborative affair, and the latest research in ecology is no exception.
Jesse Singal argues that the critique by Gilbert et al on the Reproducibility Project isn’t as muscular as it appears at first glance.
Science self-regulation allows detecting more quickly and accurately methodological flaws, fraudulent results and conflicts of interest that may affect the credibility of the discovery. However, it also opens room for disproportionate reactions.
Tianhui Michael Li and Allison Bishop write about the overemphasis on calculus in high school and college math courses. Statistics, linear algebra and algorithmic thinking are more valuable in the digital age.
Ben Goldacre on why a ban on researchers speaking to politicians and policymakers fails the taxpayers who fund them
New startups like this one are trying to disrupt traditional academic publishing.
Reanalysis of last year's enormous replication study argues that there is no need to be so pessimistic.
The psychology establishment is fighting back against an attack on its reliability. But it might be letting emotion get in the way.
Universities need to expand international engagement to remain competitive, according to a report by Digital Science.
Reflecting on the plight of the early career scholar prompts Xenia Schmalz to draw up a research manifesto.
Deutschland hat keine Rohstoffe, daher braucht es das beste Wissenschaftssystem. Gleich nach der Wahl müssen wichtige Entscheidungen getroffen werden.
The effects of federal budget cuts provide an opportunity to revisit the funding structure of the National Institutes of Health.
European collaboration is not far behind that in the United States, but there is still work to be done on cross-border funding and financial inequalities, says Paul Boyle.
The main factors determining the success of crowdfunding campaigns, and a comparison with the use of traditional funding sources.
Efforts to promote interdisciplinary research that addresses complex interactions between humans and their environment have become commonplace in recent years, but success is often elusive.