Research

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

Falling numbers of NHS-based scholars and lack of research time must be reversed, warns Academy of Medical Sciences

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

Text scans by artificial intelligence will flag inconsistent or unusual patterns in reviewer behaviour, says Wolverhampton professor

‘MIT of the North’ idea seen as ignoring imbalances in research funding that undermine regions

Latest data on income, staff and research funding show the key challenges facing UK higher education in the coming years

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

Study says comments such as ‘she should be in the kitchen, not writing papers’ affect the careers of under-represented groups

Academics able to specify areas of interest to collect imagery of

Asian academics lend their own languages and experiences to the budding field of queer studies, says ‘godmother’ of the Taiwan LGBT movement

Altmetric list of scholarship getting the most online attention shows that authenticity in science, and society more generally, is major theme of the year

Initiative to tackle issues around openness and poor incentive culture in science gains vital ‘middle’ layer in fight to boost research quality

Technicians and teachers will also receive more awards under learned society’s plan to ‘reflect how science is carried out today’

Some academics feel incentives do not reflect that motivation for research comes from ‘the pursuit of knowledge’, says researcher

Web of Science study says articles with more than 100 authors or involving dozens of countries can artificially boost citation impact

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

Research partnerships with the Asian giant keep homegrown AI innovation afloat, new report argues

The dream of robot researchers is edging closer with automated laboratory producing five years of experiments in just two weeks, experts claim

Proposals include new job classifications, a rolling back of metrics, and shorter publication lists in a bid to end excessive ‘emphasis on research performance’

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

Uta Frith says limit would force academics to focus on quality over quantity

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

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

Junior scholars have always needed to curry favour with their seniors, but quantifying research impact exacerbates the problem, says Jonathan R Goodman

Study finds that junior scholars at less prestigious universities have most to gain from co-authoring with a leading academic early in their career

Public discussion bears little resemblance to the productive relationship hidden ‘beneath the water line’

Universities are rapidly expanding their student rolls, using their increased scale to invest, compete and insulate themselves against economic uncertainty. But at what cost, asks Ellie Bothwell

Academics suggest ambitious targets for reducing air travel and introducing regional hubs for conferences

Lawmakers fret over weak response to China, but can’t say what they would do better

Don’t overlook opportunities in booming archipelago nations, Australian universities urged

Country now second to US on annual list of scholars producing multiple papers in top 1 per cent by citation 

New study of US-China co-authored papers suggests US output would have declined if collaborations were discounted

Queensland institution plots ‘visible and confident presence’ in business district as it flags ‘alternative use’ for campus in the suburbs

‘Non-prescriptive’ guidance highlights due diligence, cyber security and staff perks

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

Management academics need to be supported to bring teaching and research on global warming into the mainstream, say Amanda Goodall and Susan Hill

UK research culture likened to 1970s car industry, with individuals ignoring quality concerns

Delays in the name of political PR ‘forcing academics overseas’

‘Geo-specific access models’ will help overcome problem of different nations having different policies towards open access, European Commission expert argues

The apparent proliferation of libel challenges by scientists accused of research misconduct have led to fears that journals and others will be dissuaded from calling out wrongdoers. But is the observation accurate? And is the chilling effect reproducible? Jack Grove reports  

Study says that universities need to ‘step up’ to continue progress made by funding agencies and journals

Project hopes to better value research by allowing outside world to see how surprising research findings are to experts in field

The Australian National University’s rejection of massification will reap rich rewards for its students, says Brian Schmidt

Rise in interactions means three times more disciplines represented in references and citations per paper than 50 years ago

Conservative mistrust of the existing research funding system demands a re-examination of its uneasy compromises, says John Womersley

Geographer Maddy Thompson warns scholars against relying on social network, as Facebook deletes then reinstates account

As mistrust between the EU and UK deepens, politics could scupper British association to the next framework programme, says Jan Palmowksi

Tough sanctions on institutions that ignore research integrity rules in new concordat backed by Universities UK and research funders

Sir Konstantin Novoselov sparks debate over who should be responsible for commercialising research discoveries

Complaints about journal editors’ decisions ignore the root cause of the research assessment problem: career structure, says Richard Sever   

Steph Grohmann’s ‘revenge eviction’ gave her vivid, first-hand experience of the trials and consolations of occupying unused buildings, finds Matthew Reisz

There is a vast universe of information about people’s online behaviour. But academics say social media firms are restricting access to it, leaving us in the dark about the web

Schaffhausen Institute of Technology will work closely with industry and focus on interdisciplinary research and education

The impact agenda is often portrayed a diversion from the real activity of research, but it can also provoke new lines of enquiry, says Alix Green

New THE report on development of Chinese university system sounds warnings that continued expansion may not be a given

Social scientists argue a lack of access stops them and the public understanding online phenomena – but hope pressure from Brussels could change this

The REF is a prime example of the sort of elaborate, burdensome process that potentially adds comparatively little value

Juergen Maier calls on UK government to associate to Horizon Europe post-Brexit, but also to create British innovation fund

Esther Duflo – the youngest ever economics Nobelist – shares 2019 prize with Abhijit Banerjee and Michael Kremer

‘Overblown’ media reports focus on state control over students and perils of joint research