Researcher (senior)

Scholars are ignorant of many aspects of peer review, and part of the problem is that researching it is a bit like kicking the hornet’s nest, says Martin Eve

From the Victorian slum-dwellers whose lives were transformed after they found a warbling rodent, to the jazz-like sound of mouse music, Richard Sugg says that if you take strange stories seriously, you may find something beautiful

Economists’ stock plummeted with the financial crash. The authors of a new book suggest that reading novels could sharpen their insights, while four academics consider how the field might need to change

On International Women in Engineering Day, Alice Larkin decries the slow progress on improving gender balance in her discipline

Texas-born scholar Angelia Wilson talks to Matthew Reisz about the changing face of political studies, Trump and the Christian Right, and a Bible Belt road trip

Glen Wright on the lighter side of scholarly collaboration

Hong Kong, Netherlands and Malaysia also score highly in British Council research analysing policy environments in 38 countries 

Are scholars really so out of touch with the real world or do we need to look again at this tired narrative that doesn’t reflect the reality of modern academia, asks James Georgalakis

But research organisations say proposed directive does not go far enough and could hinder links with companies

European Parliament calls for start of proceedings that could strip Hungary of EU voting rights

Overseas members and evaluators excluded in what critics claim is a power grab

As talks begin on Horizon 2020 successor, advisory body says level of competition prevents open data sharing

New president keen to support Paris institution’s ‘agility’, according to its leader

One in three scholars in field ‘deeply concerned’ about future research career prospects

Academics should get out of their bubbles and engage, not deride, says Rachel Carey

Polls show ebbing support for ruling Fidesz party after move against Central European University

UK universities rely on international researchers, say Susan Guthrie and Catie Lichten, but is the pressure on researchers to be mobile too great?

Jessa Rogers looks at the disappointing picture for Indigenous scholars in the academy

Prizes of £80,000 in unrestricted funding up for grabs for best junior principal investigators

Susan Michie calls for a radical upgrade in the use of social science to tackle poor public health

Larissa Shamseer and David Moher have taken a close look at what it is that sets dodgy journals apart from the rest

Military might and border walls are of more importance than compassion in Trump’s America, says John Fea

Discussion of research excellence framework reform has overlooked the role of research itself, argues Kevin Hetherington

Car carrying Charles Murray attacked at Middlebury College, reports say

Universities cannot wash their hands of responsibility for who is booked to speak on their premises, says Michael Marshall

Charity says Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford is ‘naive’ to hire out its premises for event

‘Conditioning’ is partly to blame when junior researchers tone down their work, says Ciaran Gillespie

Game-playing, ‘spurious precision’ of league tables and heavy workloads also highlighted by insiders from 2014 audit

Traditional defences of the discipline are based on unsound reasoning, writes James Nikopoulos

Researchers on large-scale projects would receive less credit under proposed scheme

Stern Review steering group member says unclear whether assessment still drives up quality

The UK-US research relationship post-Brexit must work for both countries, says Darragh Murnane

John Walley on how healthcare research must bring practical benefits, not just scholarly pride

Study finds a stronger correlation for women between success and being central to a network 

Lack of opportunities and local hiring practices have stopped many French scientists from returning to their homeland, a new study says

Thousands of France’s most educated minds are now based abroad – luring them back could be a boon for its ambitious plans for higher education, Jack Grove writes

Existing model of outreach that seeks to inform an ‘ignorant’ public is broken, say experts

New journal sets out ideas on how to involve non-academics in research – but warns area is still a ‘work in progress’

Proportion of Royal Society scientists associated with Oxbridge is lower than expected, researcher says

Publisher takes decision despite still having no deal agreed with German universities

Survey of students across 10 countries suggests handwriting and printed books have advantages over digital materials

Charity commits more than £70 million to research projects that approach ambitious, unresolved challenges in cancer research

Anna Piela asks what Trump may mean for scholars of the Islamic faith

Editors of journals should face ‘negligence’ investigations over extensive delays, suggests a new paper

Poor monitoring in ‘second-tier’ institutions is also part of the problem, research indicates

Researchers in South Africa say focus instead on developing ‘globally competent graduates’ 

The new CEO of UKRI, Sir Mark Walport, says a shake-up of UK research funding is needed if the country is to remain internationally competitive

Nobel laureate Sir Angus Deaton on why he signed an anti-Trump petition, and why universities are partly to blame for Trump’s rise

University founded by Christian evangelicals sends delegation to US hoping for assistance 

New approach calls research crucial to raising productivity, but there is a shift in focus to industrial challenges

First transnational study of how university dropouts fare in the labour market suggests any exposure to higher education is better than none

Bid to test key cancer findings uses a strict method to avoid bias, but this means some outcomes have proved inconclusive

Theresa May has hinted she wants to continue research links, but it is unclear why the EU would agree to maintain the UK’s current deal

Some universities in Germany are using extra cash to create elite flagship courses, says study

Scholars are ‘doing as much as they can’ to promote critical thinking among students despite suppression of liberal thought, study claims

UN plan to eradicate gender inequality misses larger problem of low access rates linked to poverty, University of Cambridge experts warn

Fears about the consequences of Brexit are widespread, says Sally Hunt