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Researchers: Show World Leaders How to Behave in a Crisis
Scientists are teaming up to fight COVID-19. Presidents and prime ministers should, too.
Boosting the Signal in Scientific Talks
A few modest adjustments to the planning and delivery of talks can help scientists share ideas with their peers more effectively, say Scott St. George and Michael White.
How to Defend a PhD Remotely
Alyssa Frederick defended her thesis remotely before the coronavirus outbreak began. Here's how.
Synchronized Editing: the Future of Collaborative Writing
A growing suite of tools allows teams of researchers to work collectively to edit scientific documents.
How Blood from Coronavirus Survivors Might Save Lives
New York City researchers hope antibody-rich plasma can keep people out of intensive care.
What's Wrong with the H-Index, According to Its Inventor
Love it or hate it, the H-index has become one of the most widely used metrics in academia for measuring the productivity and impact of researchers. But when Jorge Hirsch proposed it as an objective measure of scientific achievement in 2005, he didn’t think it would be used outside theoretical physics.
Coronavirus: Three Things All Governments and Their Science Advisers Must Do Now
Coronavirus: Three Things All Governments and Their Science Advisers Must Do Now
Follow World Health Organization advice, end secrecy in decision-making and cooperate globally.
Hundreds of Scientists Have Peer-Reviewed for Predatory Journals
Many of these titles have some editorial oversight - but the quality of reviews is in question.
Coronavirus Crisis Hits Ice-locked Arctic Research Expedition
A team member on the huge project has tested positive for the virus, delaying the air mission.
Why It Took Me Eight Years and Three Postdoc Jobs to Describe Myself As a Scientist
Why It Took Me Eight Years and Three Postdoc Jobs to Describe Myself As a Scientist
Research and reading helped Shipra Jain to gain confidence in her abilities.
Want to Do Better Science? Admit You're Not Objective
When science is viewed in isolation from the past and politics, it's easier for those with bad intentions to revive dangerous and discredited ideas.
The Busy Lives of Academics Have Hidden Costs - and Universities Must Take Better Care of Their Faculty Members
The Busy Lives of Academics Have Hidden Costs - and Universities Must Take Better Care of Their Faculty Members
Hilal A. Lashuel's experiences have taught him that maintaining good mental health and balancing life and work is a struggle everywhere in academia.
Open Peer-Review Platform for COVID-19 Preprints
Open Peer-Review Platform for COVID-19 Preprints
The public call for rapid sharing of research data relevant to the COVID-19 outbreak is driving an unprecedented surge in (unrefereed) preprints. To help pinpoint the most important research, Nature launched Outbreak Science Rapid PREreview, an open-source platform for rapid review of preprints related to emerging outbreaks.
Moving for Research
An example of finding the balance between personal and professional lives during moves overseas and in and out of academia.
Coronavirus Fears Cancel World's Biggest Physics Meeting
Physicists who were set to attend the American Physical Society's Denver conference are using virtual platforms to share their talks.
China Bans Cash Rewards for Publishing Papers
New policy tackles perverse incentives that drive 'publish or perish' culture and might be encouraging questionable research practices.
Free Lists of Grants and Fellowships Around the World Available Online
Free Lists of Grants and Fellowships Around the World Available Online
Three searchable databases provide information on global opportunities for graduate students, postdocs and junior faculty members.
In Praise of Replication Studies and Null Results
More funders and publishers must support such work and emphasize its value to the research community.
Invest 5% of Research Funds in Ensuring Data Are Reusable
This article argues it is irresponsible to support research but not data stewardship.
Four Ways I Adapted to Lab Life in Mexico
Four Ways I Adapted to Lab Life in Mexico
A move from Germany taught Deb Raj Aryal how to acclimatize to a new research culture.
Biologist Exits Prestigious Post Years After Violating Sexual-harassment Policy
Biologist Exits Prestigious Post Years After Violating Sexual-harassment Policy
The incident raises important questions about how institutions handle accusations of harassment that occurred at different universities - particularly in the #MeToo era.
Unlock Ways to Share Data on Peer Review
Journals, funders and scholars must work together to create an infrastructure to study peer review.
"TOP Factor" Rates Journals on Transparency, Openness
A new tool, created by the advocacy organization Center for Open Science, seeks to change editorial practices. Journals are scored based on ten different criteria, including availability of data and policies on preregistration.
Powerful Antibiotics Discovered Using AI
Machine learning spots molecules that work even against 'untreatable' strains of bacteria.
Stop Making Graduate Students Pay Up Front for Conferences
John Malloy shares his experiences of risking debt to travel - and discusses what to do about it.
What to Do when Your Grant is Rejected
What to Do when Your Grant is Rejected
Failed funding applications are inevitable, but perseverance can pay dividends.
Comparing Meta-analyses and Preregistered Multiple-laboratory Replication Projects
Comparing Meta-analyses and Preregistered Multiple-laboratory Replication Projects
Kvarven, Strømland and Johannesson compare meta-analyses to multiple-laboratory replication projects and find that meta-analyses overestimate effect sizes by a factor of almost three. Commonly used methods of adjusting for publication bias do not substantively improve results.
Popular Preprint Servers Face Closure Because of Money Troubles
Repositories like INA-Rxiv and IndiaRxiv boost regional science, but finding cash to run them is proving difficult.