Researcher (junior)

Whatever the truth around Mauro Ferrari’s resignation from the ERC, the affair raises an important issue, says Luca Magnani

Mauro Ferrari departed after suggesting launch of a coronavirus programme, but critics warn against abandoning blue-skies science, even in a crisis

Rolling Stone shows how improvisation in difficult circumstances can lead to memorable results, but scholars must also be honest about trade-offs caused by lockdown, say Bailey Sousa and Alexander Clark

Mauro Ferrari leaves after just four months in role following rejection of his suggestion that council launch a programme to fight Covid-19

Funding bodies should reconsider case-by-case assessments to minimise bureaucracy and student distress, say researchers

Varying personal circumstances highlight the need for accommodations that outlive the coronavirus, says Phil Emmerson

Six months of devastating and unprecedented destruction has brought home the reality of climate change to many Australians. But with time for mitigation short and some politicians still in denial, what more can universities do to save the ‘lucky country’ – and the rest of the planet? John Ross reports

As campuses and labs close amid the coronavirus crisis, Jack Grove hears how senior scientists are managing their teams and research projects

Denying legitimate authors their fair share of credit amounts to academic misconduct, says David Sanders

Slashing research will be a dangerous temptation for politicians desperate for savings, warns Jan Palmowski

Science minister announces new joint team of government departments to consider assistance for sectors

Project delays, as universities and labs shut down, prompt grant flexibility – but levels of leniency vary

As UK research laboratories close, research-intensive universities call for extra funds to cover cost of disruption to science

Colleagues’ doubts about whether he deserved a prize make Aymen Idris wish people did not see his achievement as tokenism

As labs shut, researchers in Milan fear losing months of work – and urge colleagues abroad to prepare now for similar restrictions

Many universities have begun to teach online amid concerns that traditional classes could spread the coronavirus. Yale-NUS lecturer Catherine Shea Sanger explains how it can be done quickly and effectively

Consulting citation data would ameliorate the all-too-human shortcomings of departmental review, says a Russell Group professor

But social media spats also reflect people’s desire for truth, social justice and greater openness, says Jingtai Tang

A recent posting on bioRxiv may have been erroneous, but the mistakes were picked up within hours, notes Kristen Sadler

Canada’s excess of directive funding programmes risks hobbling scientific imagination and progress, says Jim Woodgett

Mary Beard’s recent admission that she is a ‘mug’ who works 100 hours a week caused a Twitter storm. But how hard is it reasonable for academics to work? Who should decide? And should the mugs be obliged to keep quiet? Seven academics have their say

UK academics love the ERC, but selective participation in Horizon Europe is unlikely to be on the table, says John Womersley

Researchers support funder’s random allocation of research grants by a two-to-one margin, study says

Journal’s decision to publish reviewer reports shows a growing consensus on transparency, publishers claim

Proposals to mandate open access monographs from 2024 will make it harder to publish and will limit career chances, says professor

UKRI and other funders must prevent good intentions on open access from undermining good science, says Lee Cronin 

In 1920, psychologist John Watson described his infamous experiments on an infant in a bid to show that the human mind is a blank slate. A hundred years on, Antonio Melechi examines the rise and fall of behaviourism, and the utopian – or dystopian – reflexes that it conditioned

Proposals are likely to raise concerns over the future of longer-form academic publishing

Politicians, funders and university leaders all intone the mantra of interdisciplinarity. But what does the concept really mean? Will it really yield the insights it promises? And how best can it be fostered? Ellie Bothwell reports

The UK’s structures for supporting and nurturing research leaders are woefully underdeveloped, says Matthew Flinders

The award-winning junior researcher on his love for experimental projects, communicating bold ideas to the public and how universities can foster creativity

Excessive criticism reflects a dearth of research funding and space in top journals. But peers needn’t play ball, says an anonymous academic

A feudal approach to intellectual property has turned the academy into a modern police state, says Steve Fuller

The hunt for a new UK research supremo continues, apparently after the shortlisted candidates failed to pass muster

With careers riding on young scientists’ position in author lists, friction is all too common. A snowballing initiative to list authors’ contributions aims to make sure credit is always given where it is due. But will it be enough to ease the angst? Jack Grove is first author

Center for Open Science project will pass judgment on journals’ commitment to research transparency

UKRI’s decision to axe the impact sections of grant applications could hobble consideration of the process and politics of research, says Jude Fransman

Reversing the relationship between authors and publishers would ease perverse incentives that impede progress, say Hilal Lashuel and Benjamin Stecher

A growing number of data detectives are on the hunt for sloppy science and dodgy statistics. Jack Grove examines the methods they use

In an era of anti-expert populism, it is more important than ever to stand up for scientific truth. But it is also harder, coming with a high risk of personal attack. Anna McKie speaks to those who have paid a high price for their advocacy, and draws out the lessons for those who want to take up the cause

Scientific excellence is not the only relevant criterion – either morally or legally, says Alex Conway 

Anne-Kathrin Kreft tells Matthew Reisz how interviews with Colombian women’s activists left her mentally and physically exhausted – and ideologically transformed

Researchers in developing countries have often been confined to minor roles as translators and data gatherers. But there are signs that the scales are tipping. Simon Baker considers the extent and nature of collaboration between the Global North and South, while Andrew Thompson reflects on the next iteration of the UK’s Global Challenges Research Fund

The blessing of big data can be a curse without resources for analysis. But how much computerised help do we really want, asks Kristen Sadler

Critics claim that only ‘congenial’ researchers get access to ride-hailing company’s data, while academic co-authors have potential conflicts of interest

Making participant-derived data available is not a panacea but, with careful support and management, it can improve reproducibility, says Jonathan Grigg

Irina Dumitrescu’s tips for ‘upward toxicity’ was THE’s most-read article of 2019. But it doesn’t have to be this way, says John Tregoning

You have spent three years thinking your life will be perfect after you submit your thesis. But it isn’t true, says Petra Boynton

Universities UK poll shows Britons value skills rather than income level when it comes to immigration

University of Texas at Austin scholar argues that the poor state of quantitative psychology makes replication impossible

Study finds that overseas scholars in former communist countries work there not out of deliberate choice but often due to ‘happenstance’, love or to escape poor job prospects at home

Jonathan R. Goodman is wrong to blame bibliometrics for stifling academic debate, says Craig Aaen-Stockdale

Critics fear initiative could widen social inequalities

The EU’s next framework programme, Horizon Europe, is due to start in just over a year. But while its broad shape is settled, political wrangling over budget and participation rights means researchers are still unclear over their future funding prospects. David Matthews reports from Brussels

In a fraught political climate, it is even more difficult than usual for researchers to grab the attention of ministers. Diana Beech imparts her insider’s tips

Association to Horizon Europe would also be positive, but hostile mood music over immigration still reverberates 

Most postdoctoral researchers will end up working outside universities – postdoc adviser Emma Williams has some advice on the tricky business of applying for jobs in different sectors

Elsevier could sell Dutch universities a bundle of journal access rights and software, raising concerns that universities could become stuck in one publisher’s software ecosystem

More account must be taken of pregnancy, assisted fertility and miscarriage, say Christina Hellmich and Marina Della Giusta

Announcement by new government given cautious welcome by academics – although questions remain over funding and political independence