The Toll of Short-Term Contracts
As a new French report highlights, early-career researchers face significant challenges landing permanent academic positions—but there may also be some rays of hope.
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Science Beam - Using Computer Vision to Extract PDF Data
A new project to convert PDF to XML with high accuracy by complementing existing tools with computer vision technology.
Science With No Fiction: Measuring the Veracity of Scientific Reports by Citation Analysis
Science With No Fiction: Measuring the Veracity of Scientific Reports by Citation Analysis
We propose to use an approach that yields a simple numerical measure of veracity, the R-factor, by summarizing the outcomes of already published studies that have attempted to test a claim.
Silicon Valley’s Weapon of Choice Against Women: Shoddy Science
Support for the Google ‘manifesto’ on gender difference recalls the rationale of eugenics.
A Paper on Field Theory Delivers a Wake-Up Call to Academics
Oliver Rosten believes the postdoctoral system played a role in his friend’s suicide. Disseminating that opinion in a scientific journal took perseverance.
How Can Scientists Foster Public Trust on Instagram?
U.S. adults see scientists as intelligent, but not always warm. This is a problem because people's perceptions of scientists' warmth influence their trust in scientific information. Could scientists be improving trust via social media?
A Collection of Papers that Should Never Have Been Published
A collection of thirteen papers that were intended to be unpublishable. All were submitted to predatory journals to expose non-existent peer review and exploitative practices.
Half of Papers Searched for Online Are Free to Read
Large study of open research analysed reader data from Unpaywall tool, which finds freely available versions of articles.
German Universities Take on Dutch Publishing Giant Elsevier
Consortium seeks country-wide licence for journals at reduced prices.
A Simple Proposal for the Publication of Journal Citation Distributions
Although there are differences among journals across the spectrum of JIFs, the citation distributions overlap extensively, demonstrating that the citation performance of individual papers cannot be inferred from the JIF.
Memo to Research Funders: If You Want Open Science, Try Harder
Kamila Markram, head of open science platform Frontiers, argues research funders must do much more to speed openness in science.
Who Counts as an Inventor? The Answer Could Be Worth Millions
A postdoc suing over exclusion from patents offers a lesson for anyone working on potentially lucrative research.
CRISPR Patent Battle in Europe Takes a ‘Wild’ Twist
MilliporeSigma wins a key step in its claims to “knock-in” DNA with the powerful tool.
Discredited Gene-Editing Researcher Vows to Clear His Name
A Chinese biologist whose team on Wednesday retracted a high-profile paper on a gene-editing technology has vowed to press ahead with experiments that he hopes will vindicate the potential rival to the CRISPR/Cas9 system.
Swiss Seek Full Disclosure in FP9
The European Commission should give Framework 9 applicants access to the full evaluation reports for their proposals, a Swiss position paper on the programme has said.
Funders Groan Under Growing Review Burden
The number of grant applications is going up in almost every country and field, whereas budgets are mostly flat or shrinking.
No New Einsteins to Emerge If Science Funding Snubs Curiosity
Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein would have bridled under today's research funding bureaucracy. It's time to allow scientists to indulge their curiosity again.
When the Federal Budget Funds Scientific Research, It's the Economy That Benefits
'No Deal' Between Germany and Elsevier: What Would It Mean?
German institutions and the publishing giant have still failed to agree a new deal. Could this become permanent?
Developing International Open Science Collaborations
Funder reflections on the Open Science Prize.
It Will Be Much Harder to Call New Findings 'Significant' If This Team Gets Its Way
Proposal to change widely accepted p-value threshold stirs reproducibility debate.
Jordan Stakes its Future on Science
The country wants to use a focus on research to solve its problems and build diplomatic ties in the Middle East.
What a Nerdy Debate about P-Values Shows about Science
The case for, and against, redefining "statistical significance."
Big Names in Statistics Want to Shake up Much-Maligned P Value
One of scientists’ favourite statistics — the P value — should face tougher standards, say leading researchers.
China Cracks Down After Investigation Finds Massive Peer-Review Fraud
More than 400 authors on some 100 papers from a single journal face punishments
National Academies Kicks Off Open Science Study
The National Academies has launched a new study on how to move toward an open science enterprise.
Sci-Hub’s Cache of Pirated Papers Is so Big, Subscription Journals Are Doomed
Analysis finds website can fulfill 99% of requests for scholarly papers
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