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Tuesday, September 14, 2021

Online mentoring fills a gap for young researchers

14 September, 2021

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Hello Nature Index readers,

Many summer research internships are being cancelled due to the pandemic, but the online alternatives can be just as good - if not better - for certain students, according to a study we report on this week. It says virtual research programmes are proving their worth as another pathway to research careers for those who might be marginalized in lab or fieldwork settings. Also this week, how a UK funder intends to drive innovation through new opportunities.

THE LATEST

Online mentoring fills a gap for young researchers

Study finds that virtual programmes offer a useful pathway for careers in science.

NATURE INDEX | 6 minute read

Pressure on ARIA to juggle risk in the pursuit of breakthroughs

To elicit the most impact from science spending, the new UK funder will need to experiment judiciously.

NATURE INDEX | 7 minute read

FEATURED VISUALIZATION

Women in science are less likely to win prestigious awards, such as the Nobel Prize and Fields Medal, despite gains in professorships, as shown in the graph below. A new study by information scientist Lokman Meho analysed 141 top prizes awarded over the past two decades and found that the gender gap is greatest in disciplines including life sciences, computer science and mathematics.

"Although the study did not examine causes of gender bias, [Meho] argues that women are not receiving fewer awards because of the quality or quantity of their research," Nature reports. "Instead, he puts it down to implicit bias, coupled with a lack of proactive efforts to address inequities in science."

FROM THE ARCHIVE

11 up-and-coming researchers in the natural sciences

These newcomers are making their mark in science across the disciplines.

NATURE INDEX | 16 minute read

WHAT WE'RE READING

What's not to love about the analysis of "hot streaks" in a researcher's career? A hot streak is a burst of high-impact work that most people experience at least once, but just when – early, middle or late in a career - is anybody's guess, the doyen of "hot streaks", Dashun Wang of the Center for Science and Innovation at Northwestern University, Illinois told Nature Index back in 2018.

Now, after looking further into the question for artists and film directors as well as scientists, Wang and colleagues conclude in a just-published Nature Communications paper that the onset of a "hot streak" is characterised by a "particular sequence" of diverse exploration and experimentation followed by exploitation - where individuals "go deep", sticking to a narrower topic. The Guardian has a take on it here.

RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR PARTNERS

Nanodiamonds used to measure heat flow inside cells

Nanoscale diamonds reveal the thermal properties of cancer cells.

Osaka University

Seeking strength in diversity

High-entropy, two-dimensional materials combine the best of two research.

ShanghaiTech University

GABA helps plants endure droughts

By narrowing pores in plant leaves, GABA makes plants more drought hardy.

University of Adelaide

For more research highlights, click here.

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Tuesday, September 7, 2021

This new toolbox aims to help institutions curb shoddy research practices

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7 September, 2021

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Hello Nature Index readers,

How can the UK regain its edge as a science superpower? Universities have a major role to play, and could benefit from lessons learned by their American counterparts. They also need greater freedoms and more equity, according to institutional leadership. Also this week, a potential new strategy for curbing research misconduct and the AI funding heavyweights of the world.

THE LATEST

How can institutions and funders help police questionable research practices?

A new toolkit is being trialled as a way to bring clarity to issues of research misconduct and dishonest practices.

NATURE INDEX | 5 minute read

Universities define four conditions for the UK to become a science superpower

If British science is to rival the United States and China, research spending must be matched by freedom of movement, equitable distribution and less red tape.

NATURE INDEX | 6 minute read

FEATURED VISUALIZATION

Artificial-intelligence R&D projects have been given a major boost by governments around the world, with funding increasing from US$207 million in 2001 to nearly $3.6 billion in 2019, according to a recent report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation in the US and the EU's framework research programme are the largest funders for AI R&D, as can be seen in the graph below.

The field of artificial intelligence has undergone a rapid expansion over the past two decades, as global competition between the United States, China and Europe heats up.

"Mapping and measuring this research explosion – and the funding underlying its ignition – is of prime importance to policy makers and experts, as is encouraging its further development towards the common good," the OECD report states.

FROM THE ARCHIVE

Science is getting harder to read

From obscure acronyms to unnecessary jargon, research papers are increasingly impenetrable – even for scientists.

NATURE INDEX | 5minute read

WHAT WE'RE READING

Camera off or camera on? It's a question that's come up a lot since working from home became commonplace due to the pandemic. In some opinions, keeping your camera off in a video meeting is just rude. There's also a view that people who choose not to show their faces in virtual meetings are less engaged in the discussion. It was only a matter of time before someone did a study on it, so here we have a paper in the Journal of Applied Psychology from US researchers.

Guess what they found, based on 1400+ observations of 103 people? That those with their cameras on experienced more "Zoom fatigue", and this correlated with them being less vocal and less engaged than those who were not using cameras. These effects were stronger for women and for newer employees. They concluded it was important for employees to be able to decide for themselves whether or not to have their cameras on, and suggest that others shouldn't make assumptions about their distractedness or otherwise.

RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR PARTNERS

Magnetic manipulation of neurons in freely moving mice

Specific neurons in the brains of freely moving mice can be turned off and on by remotely applying a tiny magnetic field.

Institute for Basic Science

Modelling earthquakes by mapping the movement of undersea tremors

Earthquake monitoring and modelling will benefit from a method that more accurately pinpoints the sources of weak tremors in regions containing complex geological features.

Kyushu University

Imaging curved objects using X-rays

High-resolution X-ray imaging of three-dimensional is now possible using flexible detector.

National University of Singapore

For more research highlights, click here.

Tuesday, August 31, 2021

Memo to supervisors: exploring outside career options doesn’t harm doctoral research

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31 August, 2021

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Hello Nature Index readers,

In certain fields, researchers will move between institutions, cities and even countries to gain access to the best equipment. One such sought-after apparatus is the cryo-electron microscope, which is in high demand among structural biologists. Also this week, the case for institutions and faculty members to encourage student engagement in professional development programmes.

THE LATEST

The must-have multimillion-dollar microscopy machine

Cryo-EM facilities are exponentially improving protein resolution for structural biologists. Access to this vastly expensive equipment is subject to the availability of highly skilled operators.

NATURE INDEX | 8 minute read

Pursuing outside career avenues is no impediment to doctoral goals

Professional development work can complement and improve academic outcomes, study finds.

NATURE INDEX | 7 minute read

FEATURED VISUALIZATION

From the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers have been investigating whether vitamin D can make a difference in patients, for example, by boosting their immune response. The jury is still out on that one, but there is strong evidence for benefits in other aspects of human health, as this infographic by David McCandless and Stephanie Starling from Information is Beautiful shows. See the full spread here to explore factors such as the shifting opinion on recommended dosage and how to achieve the best intake without supplements.

FROM THE ARCHIVE

What bioRxiv's first 30,000 preprints reveal about biologists

More than 1 million studies are now downloaded from the site every month, mostly in neuroscience, bioinformatics and genomics.

NATURE INDEX | 4 minute read

WHAT WE'RE READING

The pandemic has brought new urgency to the long-contested question of whether graduate research students are employees and therefore, should be allowed to unionise in the US, Science reports. The pandemic turned the desire to be collectively represented up "from kind of a small little ember into more of a pretty long-burning fire," Marcus Weinman, a molecular biology student at the University of Vermont was quoted as saying.

Many graduate researchers felt the lack of a seat at the table when decisions were made such as who should continue to attend campus and whether graduation timelines and funding could be extended. University of New Mexico graduate students are the latest to gain approval to form a union while campaigns are underway at several campuses. It may be small compensation to some that the National Institutes of Health perceives them as both trainees and employees, and therefore entitled to spend time on exploring career development options and professional training, as our story here explains.