The Expert
The intersection of vague business plans and practical implementation is often a frustrating process.
Altmetrics: Mistaking the Means for the End
Should attention metrics play any role whatsoever in researcher assessment?
Balloons, Cleveland and Chaos
A visual treat for your Friday, plus a cautionary tale regarding unintended consequences.
You Are Old: Kids React to a Walkman
Who knew the changing face of technology could be so painful…
Open Access in the Humanities and Social Sciences: An Interview with Chris Wickham
Earlier today, the British Academy released a research project report, Open access journals in Humanities and Social Science. The project was funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), and was meant to address practical issues that may […]
Stephen Fry on Language and Grammar Pedantry
“For me, it is a cause of some upset that more Anglophones don’t enjoy language…”
This Is a Generic Brand Video, Now With Video
The perfect brand video comes to life.
+1 Deer: The Latest Trend in Social Media via The Onion
The Onion’s ever-entertaining fake news service offers up this perfect explanation of the current state of social media, as the established companies scramble to remain relevant.
Reproducible Research: A Cautionary Tale
Public access to research data offers clear benefits for reproducibility in some fields. But in the world of cancer cell biology, complexity reigns, and replicating results is not so easy a process.
PLOS' Bold Data Policy
PLOS has set a new policy, requiring authors to make all data behind their published results publicly available. This has been met with a great deal of controversy from the research community. Thoughts on why this policy and why now…
The Joy of Conference Calls
A video translates the odd behaviors of the conference call into real life.
The UK Government Looks to Double Dip to Pay For its Open Access Policy
A recent announcement from the UK government highlights the unanswered economic questions behind its open access policy.
Is Google Glass Part of the Laboratory of the Future?
A new concept video puts Google Glass at the heart of a research laboratory. But is there really anything here that couldn’t be done just as easily with existing devices?
The Problem With Facebook
A look at how Facebook increasingly filters the content you see, and how its business model is at odds with the needs of its users.
New US Public Access Legislation Included in Government Funding Bill
The US government’s new appropriations bill contains a public access mandate for research articles funded by some agencies.