Could Distributed Peer Review Better Decide Grant Funding?
The landscape of academic grant funding is notoriously competitive and plagued by lengthy, bureaucratic processes, exacerbated by difficulties in finding willing reviewers. Distributed […]
New Administration Stokes Old Fears for Social Scientists
Given the historic antipathy that a few members of the Republican Party have had for social and behavioral science, researchers are just a bit anxious about what the new administration may bring – and with reason, according to one observer.
Common Rule Reform – A Botched Job
The rush to publish a revised Common Rule for federally funded human research in the United States has created a flawed regulatory regime, says Robert Dingwall., Time to tear the whole edifice down and start over, he suggests.
Who Will Challenge the Predators Now That Beall’s List is Gone?
University librarian Jeffrey Beall used to write a blog that identified by name what he saw as predatory publishers of academic journals. Since he suddenly shut down the site earlier this month, will –or even should — someone else pick up the baton?
Civic (Dis)Engagement
Failures to participate in expected commitments, such as not turning up for doctors’ appointments or not taking up benefits like free school meals or welfare payments, are aspects of what Robin G. Milne designates as ‘civic disengagement.’
Book Review: Anthropologists in the Stock Exchange: A Financial History of Victorian Science
In Anthropologists in the Stock Exchange: A Financial History of Victorian Science, Marc Flandreau traces the interwoven development of anthropology, global finance and scientific study, placing all three at the heart of late-19th-century British imperialism.
Looking for Impact? Seek Feedback — Especially From Friends in High Places
Co-Pierre Georg and Michael E. Rose report on their recent study confirming that seeking out feedback and constructive criticism improves academic research and increases its impact, especially when that feedback is offered by well-connected colleagues.
The Voice of Results Night: Anthony King, 1934-2017
Anthony King, a political scientist whose career ranged from the most serious of scholarship to popular explanation on the BBC, has died at 82.
Five Considerations for Any Policy to Measure Research Impact
An Australian directive to measure the engagement with and impact of academic research can itself by improved by applying new research.
