University Research Explained

Science, like politics, can elicit polarizing opinions. But with an ever-expanding body of knowledge — and the especially dizzying flurry of findings during the pandemic — is it fair to say that views on science are becoming more extreme? Measuring the polarization “A standard way of measuring polarization in the U.S. is asking Democrats and Republicans how warmly they … [Read more...] about Flushing Out Absolutism in Science

A 17% drop in proposals over the past decade to the National Science Foundation (NSF) may be a mixed blessing. A consistently rising budget – and this is in billions of dollars – is the preferred method of keeping the number of funded proposals ever higher. But a dip in the number of proposals submitted in the first place can have a similar effect of increasing the number of … [Read more...] about Drop in NSF Proposals: More Proposals Funded?

Alternative metrics, or “altmetrics,” refers to the use of non-traditional methods for judging a researcher’s reach and impact. Being published in a peer-reviewed journal is surely a great feat. It’s the typical way professors get their research out there. But the tools established to measure this output might end up giving the skewed impression about an author’s impact in … [Read more...] about Expanding The Story of Your Research with Altmetrics

Is it necessary to share ALL your data? Is transparency a good thing or does it make researchers “vulnerable,” as author Nathan Schneider suggests in the Chronicle of Higher Education article, “Why Researchers Shouldn’t Share All Their Data.” Dark Data Defined Dark data is defined as the universe of information an organization collects, processes and stores – oftentimes … [Read more...] about Dark Data

We have all needed scholarly articles to cite in our academic careers. Now, there is a place where researchers can get millions of them, all on one site.   Named after the Library of Alexandria, OpenAlex is an index of over 200 million scientific documents including publication sources, author information and research topics that can be used to conduct studies and … [Read more...] about New Open Index of Scholarly Articles Helps Researchers Connect

Fresh on the heels of an Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) integrity overhaul, its leader, Eric Lander resigned in early February. This doesn’t look particularly good for the OSTP, an office trying to quell fraud and increase scientific accountability in society. For instance, the White House OSTP stated: “Violations of scientific integrity should be considered on … [Read more...] about Eric Lander Resigns from OSTP Among Accusations of Disrespectful Behavior

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is rolling out five principles of scientific integrity. This ambitious plan will attempt to repair the reputation of science in society, which may prove tricky. Allow for Dissent Scientific dissent is healthy. It leads to questioning. While hypotheses are necessary for true scientific research, sometimes the … [Read more...] about OSTP’s Science Integrity Overhaul

All research is valuable, but research at the University of Houston that informs policy translates to a qualitative improvement in the lives of Houstonians. For instance, Andrew Stearns, a graduate student, used millions of dollars’ worth of commercially collected LiDAR data to study the erosion and deposition of sediment caused by floodwaters from Hurricane Harvey. What he … [Read more...] about On Research Informing Policy

In 1917, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Jones-Shafroth Act that extended Puerto Ricans citizenship in the United States. The first large wave of immigrants from Puerto Rico arrived soon after but were hardly welcomed with open arms by those in the U.S. In fact, they were treated as second-class citizens. Puerto Rican writers have endured colonialist practices, including … [Read more...] about On Giving Underserved Communities a Voice

Most principal investigators spend many hours laboring over proposals to fund their research programs – and for good reason. While competing for funding is the big business for researchers, some have opted to fund their programs in other ways, like building a research consortium. The word “consortium” means a group of individuals, companies or governments that work together … [Read more...] about How to Build a Research Consortium

Being mindful of inclusive language practices is more important than ever. Education is growing rapidly on this important topic to help writers – in fact, anyone writing words – avoid potentially harmful language. Universities are growing pockets of diversity, often representing faculty, staff and students from different backgrounds who have varying life experiences. … [Read more...] about Using Inclusive Language at Your University

Balancing your research checkbook is like managing your personal finances. However, it's much less common these days to do so with a paper bank statement and check register, as many people now use digital resources to follow their money. Regardless of how you do it, managing your income and expenses is important if you want to keep your finances healthy. Reconciling research … [Read more...] about Balancing Your Research Checkbook

One might not expect the game of checkers to have anything to do with Artificial Intelligence, but the game really marked the beginning of machine learning in 1959. Pioneered by an MIT professor named Arthur Lee Samuel, it was discovered that teaching a simple strategy game to a computer is not so simple when every move needs to be anticipated. Smart machines Additionally, … [Read more...] about Opening Moves: Expanding Research in Machine Learning