Cutting NSF Is Like Liquidating Your Finest Investment
Look closely at your mobile phone or tablet. Touch-screen technology, speech recognition, digital sound recording and the internet were all developed using […]
Extreme Polarization Is Bad But Need Not Be Inevitable
Are Americans now stuck in animosity and anger that will undermine democracy, or can the nation pull out of it? Here, Jennifer McCoy shares some of the findings of a collaborative research project she led that examined political polarization in 11 countries, including the United States. Their research shows that the most democratic of actions – participating in elections – is exactly the thing to do to help reduce polarization.
Pro-Truth Pledge: Social Science Attacks Fake News From the Demand Side
Gleb Tsipursky is addressing fake news, but not by trying to educate consumers about the viper already in their newsfeed. He harnessed his own skills as a behavioral scientist and is asking newsmakers themselves to not speak or spread fake news in the first place.
Even Self-Identified Independents are Partisan in America
According to the Gallup polling firm, writes Christopher Devine, the identity that people choose most often is actually “independent” – not Democratic or Republican. In 2017, 42 percent of Americans chose this label – up from the low 30s just 14 years ago, in 2004. However, three-quarters of these “independents” admit, when asked, that they lean toward favoring the Democratic or Republican Party.
Economist Paul Johnson Says the Known Knowns Are Killing Us
Paul Johnson had one key theme in his SAGE Publishing lecture for the Campaign for Social Science: Long-term policy needs to be developed across government based on a broad understanding of the social and economic trends. And there is little evidence that this lesson is being heeded.
Citizen Social Scientists Edit Day’s News with New Tool
Sociologist Nick Adams’ TagWorks methodology is being used to rate — and in turn improve — the most shared news stories of the day via a new tool called PublicEditor.
#MeToo: Tackling Harassment in Academic Publishing
The #MeToo movement has slowly spread across to other sectors as people begin to come forward with their own stories of sexual harassment and bullying. In academic publishing, this conversation was in part started in February by Alison’s Mudditt’s powerful post on The Scholarly Kitchen. Muddit chaired a recent panel looking at sexual harassment, and ways to combat it, at the annual ALPSP conference.
Open Peer Review Not Always Welcomed With Open Arms
It’s hoped open peer review could improve the speed and quality of reviews, but, not all academics are comfortable with open peer review and remain fearful of their comments and views being subject to public scrutiny. Jaime A. Teixeira da Silva argues this may prevent the open review system from being truly inclusive.
Collaboration Imbues SSRC’s ‘To Secure Knowledge’ Report
In launching its first-ever task force report on Monday, the 95-year-old Social Science Research Council made clear it gets by with a little help from its friends. Collaboration, said sociologist Alondra Nelson Nelson, the president of the SSRC, is the byword of the report, To Secure Knowledge: Social Science Partnerships for the Common Good.
