Original Research Challenges facing young African scientists in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study aimed at identifying the challenges that young African scientists face in their career development. Methods ... The research profile of Africans is relatively new, and the .... outside the country because it will support my original ideas.”.

What scientists want from their research ethics committee.

Science.gov (United States)

Keith-Spiegel, Patricia; Tabachnick, Barbara

2006-03-01

Whereas investigators have directed considerable criticism against Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), the desirable characteristics of IRBs have not previously been empirically determined. A sample of 886 experienced biomedical and social and behavioral scientists rated 45 descriptors of IRB actions and functions as to their importance. Predictions derived from organizational justice research findings in other work settings were generally borne out. Investigators place high value on the fairness and respectful consideration of their IRBs. Expected differences between biomedical and social behavioral researchers and other variables were unfounded. Recommendations are offered for educating IRBs to accord researchers greater respect and fair treatment.

Hidden concerns of sharing research data by low/middle-income country scientists.

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Bezuidenhout, Louise; Chakauya, Ereck

2018-01-01

There has considerable interest in bringing low/middle-income countries (LMIC) scientists into discussions on Open Data - both as contributors and users. The establishment of in situ data sharing practices within LMIC research institutions is vital for the development of an Open Data landscape in the Global South. Nonetheless, many LMICs have significant challenges - resource provision, research support and extra-laboratory infrastructures. These low-resourced environments shape data sharing activities, but are rarely examined within Open Data discourse. In particular, little attention is given to how these research environments shape scientists' perceptions of data sharing (dis)incentives. This paper expands on these issues of incentivizing data sharing, using data from a quantitative survey disseminated to life scientists in 13 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. This interrogated not only perceptions of data sharing amongst LMIC scientists, but also how these are connected to the research environments and daily challenges experienced by them. The paper offers a series of analysis around commonly cited (dis)incentives such as data sharing as a means of improving research visibility; sharing and funding; and online connectivity. It identifies key areas that the Open Data community need to consider if true openness in research is to be established in the Global South.

Increasing both the public health potential of basic research and the scientist satisfaction. An international survey of bio-scientists.

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Sorrentino, Carmen; Boggio, Andrea; Confalonieri, Stefano; Hemenway, David; Scita, Giorgio; Ballabeni, Andrea

2016-01-01

Basic scientific research generates knowledge that has intrinsic value which is independent of future applications. Basic research may also lead to practical benefits, such as a new drug or diagnostic method. Building on our previous study of basic biomedical and biological researchers at Harvard, we present findings from a new survey of similar scientists from three countries. The goal of this study was to design policies to enhance both the public health potential and the work satisfaction and test scientists' attitudes towards these factors. The present survey asked about the scientists' motivations, goals and perspectives along with their attitudes concerning  policies designed to increase both the practical (i.e. public health) benefits of basic research as well as their own personal satisfaction. Close to 900 basic investigators responded to the survey; results corroborate the main findings from the previous survey of Harvard scientists. In addition, we find that most bioscientists disfavor present policies that require a discussion of the public health potential of their proposals in grants but generally favor softer policies aimed at increasing the quality of work and the potential practical benefits of basic research. In particular, bioscientists are generally supportive of those policies entailing the organization of more meetings between scientists and the general public, the organization of more academic discussion about the role of scientists in the society, and the implementation of a "basic bibliography" for each new approved drug.

To Crowdfund Research, Scientists Must Build an Audience for Their Work.

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Byrnes, Jarrett E K; Ranganathan, Jai; Walker, Barbara L E; Faulkes, Zen

2014-01-01

As rates of traditional sources of scientific funding decline, scientists have become increasingly interested in crowdfunding as a means of bringing in new money for research. In fields where crowdfunding has become a major venue for fundraising such as the arts and technology, building an audience for one's work is key for successful crowdfunding. For science, to what extent does audience building, via engagement and outreach, increase a scientist's abilities to bring in money via crowdfunding? Here we report on an analysis of the #SciFund Challenge, a crowdfunding experiment in which 159 scientists attempted to crowdfund their research. Using data gathered from a survey of participants, internet metrics, and logs of project donations, we find that public engagement is the key to crowdfunding success. Building an audience or "fanbase" and actively engaging with that audience as well as seeking to broaden the reach of one's audience indirectly increases levels of funding. Audience size and effort interact to bring in more people to view a scientist's project proposal, leading to funding. We discuss how projects capable of raising levels of funds commensurate with traditional funding agencies will need to incorporate direct involvement of the public with science. We suggest that if scientists and research institutions wish to tap this new source of funds, they will need to encourage and reward activities that allow scientists to engage with the public.

Scientists' perspectives on consent in the context of biobanking research.

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Master, Zubin; Campo-Engelstein, Lisa; Caulfield, Timothy

2015-05-01

Most bioethics studies have focused on capturing the views of patients and the general public on research ethics issues related to informed consent for biobanking and only a handful of studies have examined the perceptions of scientists. Capturing the opinions of scientists is important because they are intimately involved with biobanks as collectors and users of samples and health information. In this study, we performed interviews with scientists followed by qualitative analysis to capture the diversity of perspectives on informed consent. We found that the majority of scientists in our study reported their preference for a general consent approach although they do not believe there to be a consensus on consent type. Despite their overall desire for a general consent model, many reported several concerns including donors needing some form of assurance that nothing unethical will be done with their samples and information. Finally, scientists reported mixed opinions about incorporating exclusion clauses in informed consent as a means of limiting some types of contentious research as a mechanism to assure donors that their samples and information are being handled appropriately. This study is one of the first to capture the views of scientists on informed consent in biobanking. Future studies should attempt to generalize findings on the perspectives of different scientists on informed consent for biobanking.

Research fellowship programs as a pathway for training independent clinical pharmacy scientists.

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Mueller, Eric W; Bishop, Jeffrey R; Kanaan, Abir O; Kiser, Tyree H; Phan, Hanna; Yang, Katherine Y

2015-03-01

The American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) Research Affairs Committee published a commentary in 2013 on training clinical pharmacy scientists in the context of changes in economic, professional, political, and research environments. The commentary centered on the opportunities for pharmacists in clinical/translational research including strategies for ACCP, colleges of pharmacy, and the profession to increase the number and impact of clinical pharmacy scientists. A postdoctoral fellowship is cited as a current training pathway, capable of producing independent and productive pharmacy researchers. However, a decline in the number of programs, decreased funding availability, and variability in fellowship program activities and research focus have brought into question the relevance of this research training pathway to meet demand and opportunities. In response to these points, this commentary examines the state of research fellowship training including the current ACCP research fellowship review process, the need for standardization of research fellowship programs, and strategies to strengthen and promote research fellowships as relevant researcher training pathways. © 2015 Pharmacotherapy Publications, Inc.

Values in environmental research: Citizens’ views of scientists who acknowledge values

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McCright, Aaron M.; Allen, Summer; Dietz, Thomas

2017-01-01

Scientists who perform environmental research on policy-relevant topics face challenges when communicating about how values may have influenced their research. This study examines how citizens view scientists who publicly acknowledge values. Specifically, we investigate whether it matters: if citizens share or oppose a scientist’s values, if a scientist’s conclusions seem contrary to or consistent with the scientist’s values, and if a scientist is assessing the state of the science or making a policy recommendation. We conducted two 3x2 factorial design online experiments. Experiment 1 featured a hypothetical scientist assessing the state of the science on the public-health effects of exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA), and Experiment 2 featured a scientist making a policy recommendation on use of BPA. We manipulated whether or not the scientist expressed values and whether the scientist’s conclusion appeared contrary to or consistent with the scientist’s values, and we accounted for whether or not subjects’ values aligned with the scientist’s values. We analyzed our data with ordinary least squares (OLS) regression techniques. Our results provide at least preliminary evidence that acknowledging values may reduce the perceived credibility of scientists within the general public, but this effect differs depending on whether scientists and citizens share values, whether scientists draw conclusions that run contrary to their values, and whether scientists make policy recommendations. PMID:29069087

Bridging the practitioner-scientist gap in group psychotherapy research.

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Lau, Mark A; Ogrodniczuk, John; Joyce, Anthony S; Sochting, Ingrid

2010-04-01

Bridging the practitioner-scientist gap requires a different clinical research paradigm: participatory research that encourages community agency-academic partnerships. In this context, clinicians help define priorities, determine the type of evidence that will have an impact on their practice (affecting the methods that are used to produce the evidence), and develop strategies for translating, implementing, and disseminating their findings into evidence-based practice. Within this paradigm, different roles are assumed by the partners, and sometimes these roles are blended. This paper will consider the perspectives of people who assume these different roles (clinician, researcher, and clinician-researcher) with group psychotherapy as the specific focus. Finally, the establishment of a practice-research network will be discussed as a potentially promising way to better engage group therapists in research.

Disparate foundations of scientists' policy positions on contentious biomedical research.

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Edelmann, Achim; Moody, James; Light, Ryan

2017-06-13

What drives scientists' position taking on matters where empirical answers are unavailable or contradictory? We examined the contentious debate on whether to limit experiments involving the creation of potentially pandemic pathogens. Hundreds of scientists, including Nobel laureates, have signed petitions on the debate, providing unique insights into how scientists take a public stand on important scientific policies. Using 19,257 papers published by participants, we reconstructed their collaboration networks and research specializations. Although we found significant peer associations overall, those opposing "gain-of-function" research are more sensitive to peers than are proponents. Conversely, specializing in fields directly related to gain-of-function research (immunology, virology) predicts public support better than specializing in fields related to potential pathogenic risks (such as public health) predicts opposition. These findings suggest that different social processes might drive support compared with opposition. Supporters are embedded in a tight-knit scholarly community that is likely both more familiar with and trusting of the relevant risk mitigation practices. Opponents, on the other hand, are embedded in a looser federation of widely varying academic specializations with cognate knowledge of disease and epidemics that seems to draw more heavily on peers. Understanding how scientists' social embeddedness shapes the policy actions they take is important for helping sides interpret each other's position accurately, avoiding echo-chamber effects, and protecting the role of scientific expertise in social policy.

To Crowdfund Research, Scientists Must Build an Audience for Their Work.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jarrett E K Byrnes

Full Text Available As rates of traditional sources of scientific funding decline, scientists have become increasingly interested in crowdfunding as a means of bringing in new money for research. In fields where crowdfunding has become a major venue for fundraising such as the arts and technology, building an audience for one's work is key for successful crowdfunding. For science, to what extent does audience building, via engagement and outreach, increase a scientist's abilities to bring in money via crowdfunding? Here we report on an analysis of the #SciFund Challenge, a crowdfunding experiment in which 159 scientists attempted to crowdfund their research. Using data gathered from a survey of participants, internet metrics, and logs of project donations, we find that public engagement is the key to crowdfunding success. Building an audience or "fanbase" and actively engaging with that audience as well as seeking to broaden the reach of one's audience indirectly increases levels of funding. Audience size and effort interact to bring in more people to view a scientist's project proposal, leading to funding. We discuss how projects capable of raising levels of funds commensurate with traditional funding agencies will need to incorporate direct involvement of the public with science. We suggest that if scientists and research institutions wish to tap this new source of funds, they will need to encourage and reward activities that allow scientists to engage with the public.

Indigenous Research and Academic Freedom: A View from Political Scientists

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher Alcantara

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Over the last several decades, scholars working on Indigenous topics have faced increasing pressure to engage in research that promotes social justice and results in formal partnerships with Indigenous communities. In this article, we argue that non-community-based research, in which the researcher exercises academic autonomy over the project, still has a role to play in Indigenous-focused research, depending on the research question, topic, and situation at hand. We explore this argument from the perspective of political scientists who study Indigenous–settler political relations in Canada.

Scientist-Teacher Partnerships as Professional Development: An Action Research Study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Willcuts, Meredith H. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

2009-04-01

The overall purpose of this action research study was to explore the experiences of ten middle school science teachers involved in a three-year partnership program between scientists and teachers at a Department of Energy national laboratory, including the impact of the program on their professional development, and to improve the partnership program by developing a set of recommendations based on the study’s findings. This action research study relied on qualitative data including field notes recorded at the summer academies and data from two focus groups with teachers and scientists. Additionally, the participating teachers submitted written reflections in science notebooks, participated in open-ended telephone interviews that were transcribed verbatim, and wrote journal summaries to the Department of Energy at the end of the summer academy. The analysis of the data, collaboratively examined by the teachers, the scientists, and the science education specialist acting as co-researchers on the project, revealed five elements critical to the success of the professional development of science teachers. First, scientist-teacher partnerships are a unique contribution to the professional development of teachers of science that is not replicated in other forms of teacher training. Second, the role of the science education specialist as a bridge between the scientists and teachers is a unique and vital one, impacting all aspects of the professional development. Third, there is a paradox for classroom teachers as they view the professional development experience from two different lenses – that of learner and that of teacher. Fourth, learning for science teachers must be designed to be constructivist in nature. Fifth, the principles of the nature of science must be explicitly showcased to be seen and understood by the classroom teacher.

The life-cycle research productivity of mathematicians and scientists.

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Diamond, A M

1986-07-01

Declining research productivity with age is implied by economic models of life-cycle human capital investment but is denied by some recent empirical studies. The purpose of the present study is to provide new evidence on whether a scientist's output generally declines with advancing age. A longitudinal data set has been compiled for scientists and mathematicians at six major departments, including data on age, salaries, annual citations (stock of human capital), citations to current output (flow of human capital), and quantity of current output measured both in number of articles and in number of pages. Analysis of the data indicates that salaries peak from the early to mid-60s, whereas annual citations appear to peak from age 39 to 89 for different departments with a mean age of 59 for the 6 departments. The quantity and quality of current research output appear to decline continuously with age.

Science Teachers' Views and Stereotypes of Religion, Scientists and Scientific Research: A call for scientist-science teacher partnerships to promote inquiry-based learning

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Mansour, Nasser

2015-07-01

Despite a growing consensus regarding the value of inquiry-based learning (IBL) for students' learning and engagement in the science classroom, the implementation of such practices continues to be a challenge. If science teachers are to use IBL to develop students' inquiry practices and encourage them to think and act as scientists, a better understanding of factors that influence their attitudes towards scientific research and scientists' practices is very much needed. Within this context there is a need to re-examine the science teachers' views of scientists and the cultural factors that might have an impact on teachers' views and pedagogical practices. A diverse group of Egyptian science teachers took part in a quantitative-qualitative study using a questionnaire and in-depth interviews to explore their views of scientists and scientific research, and to understand how they negotiated their views of scientists and scientific research in the classroom, and how these views informed their practices of using inquiry in the classroom. The findings highlighted how the teachers' cultural beliefs and views of scientists and scientific research had constructed idiosyncratic pedagogical views and practices. The study suggested implications for further research and argued for teacher professional development based on partnerships with scientists.

Implementing 'translational' biomedical research: convergence and divergence among clinical and basic scientists.

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Morgan, Myfanwy; Barry, Christine A; Donovan, Jenny L; Sandall, Jane; Wolfe, Charles D A; Boaz, Annette

2011-10-01

Universities are increasingly regarded as key actors in the new 'knowledge economy', with requirements to produce market-oriented knowledge and engage in commercialization. This is of particular significance in the biomedical field, reflecting the perceived gap between success in terms of scientific discoveries and its transformation into products. The dominant discourse attributes this situation to 'blocks' in the translational pathway from 'bench to bedside', leading to policies to 'reengineer' the research enterprise. This study examines a pilot initiative established by the UK's Medical Research Council (MRC). This involved employing a change agent (Research Translator) supported by a small amount of translational funding to promote the culture and practice of translational research at a university/hospital site in England. An ethnographically informed case study involving semi-structured and open exploratory interviews, observation and document review, was conducted in 2008. Analysis and interpretation were informed by Bourdieu's logic of practice applied to science. The requirements of translational research promoted by the Research Translator and its sources of capital (authority, prestige etc) were largely congruent with the 'field' of clinical science. In contrast, translational research diverged from perceptions of 'legitimate' science and requirements for capital accumulation held by the majority of basic scientists who often described this research as 'high risk' and were resistant to the Research Translator's advice. However some differences in motivations and practices were identified within groups of scientists associated with career stage, work environment and specialty. We argue that there are convergent and divergent forces that influence scientists' readiness to adopt a market-oriented translational research model and in turn facilitate or constrain the effectiveness of a knowledge broker. We also identify ways in which current structures and

Assessing the Job Satisfaction of Research Scientists: A Comparative Analysis.

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Tuttle, Waneta C.; And Others

1987-01-01

The variables and management strategies influencing the job satisfaction of research scientists are examined. Emphasis is on defining satisfaction within the job context and the implications for managing the context to enhance satisfaction. (MSE)

Proceedings of the young scientist research awardee's meet: pre-proceedings volume

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2012-01-01

Youth is the life line for the progress of any nation, be it science, academics, industry or enterpreneurship. In scientific research, it is always interesting to enumerate the ideas that are created by young minds. It is important to identify bright ideas and nurture the young scientists so that the promise shown through bright ideas will be directed towards logical execution. It is crucial for the funding agencies to be proactive to convert potential into performance. Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences (BRNS), Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), India supports extra mural research in nuclear and allied sciences, engineering and technology. With an aim to accomplish this objective, BRNS has been continuously encouraging and supporting scientists and engineers to pursue excellence in R and D programmes of interest and relevance to DAE. Papers relevant to INIS are indexed separately

Challenges facing young African scientists in their research careers ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Africa accounts for 14% of world's population, and the economies of most African countries are considered to be growing, but this is not reflected in the amount of research published by Africans. This study aimed at identifying the challenges that young African scientists face in their career development.

How Work Positions Affect the Research Activity and Information Behaviour of Laboratory Scientists in the Research Lifecycle: Applying Activity Theory

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Kwon, Nahyun

2017-01-01

Introduction: This study was conducted to investigate the characteristics of research and information activities of laboratory scientists in different work positions throughout a research lifecycle. Activity theory was applied as the conceptual and analytical framework. Method: Taking a qualitative research approach, in-depth interviews and field…

Leading US nano-scientists' perceptions about media coverage and the public communication of scientific research findings

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Corley, Elizabeth A.; Kim, Youngjae; Scheufele, Dietram A.

2011-12-01

Despite the significant increase in the use of nanotechnology in academic research and commercial products over the past decade, there have been few studies that have explored scientists' perceptions and attitudes about the technology. In this article, we use survey data from the leading U.S. nano-scientists to explore their perceptions about two issues: the public communication of research findings and media coverage of nanotechnology, which serves as one relatively rapid outlet for public communication. We find that leading U.S. nano-scientists do see an important connection between the public communication of research findings and public attitudes about science. Also, there is a connection between the scientists' perceptions about media coverage and their views on the timing of public communication; scientists with positive attitudes about the media are more likely to support immediate public communication of research findings, while others believe that communication should take place only after research findings have been published through a peer-review process. We also demonstrate that journalists might have a more challenging time getting scientists to talk with them about nanotechnology news stories because nano-scientists tend to view media coverage of nanotechnology as less credible and less accurate than general science media coverage. We conclude that leading U.S. nano-scientists do feel a sense of responsibility for communicating their research findings to the public, but attitudes about the timing and the pathway of that communication vary across the group.

Gender differentials in ICT uptake rating among research scientists ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study examined the challenge to ICT uptake rating among research scientists in the Nigerian Universities of Agriculture through gender inequality. Primary data were used for the study which was generated through the use of questionnaire. The study took a sample of 240 respondents from a population of 1758 from the ...

Outcomes from the NIH Clinical Research Training Program: A Mentored Research Experience to Enhance Career Development of Clinician–Scientists

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Ognibene, Frederick P.; Gallin, John I.; Baum, Bruce J.; Wyatt, Richard G.; Gottesman, Michael M.

2017-01-01

Purpose Clinician-scientists are considered an endangered species for many reasons, including challenges with establishing and maintaining a career pipeline. Career outcomes from year-long medical and dental students’ research enrichment programs have not been well determined. Therefore, the authors assessed career and research outcome data from a cohort of participants in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Research Training Program (CRTP). Method The CRTP provided a year-long mentored clinical or translational research opportunity for 340 medical and dental students. Of these, 135 completed their training, including fellowships, from 1997 to January 2014. Data for 130 of 135 were analyzed, including time conducting research, types of public funding (NIH grants), and publications from self-reported surveys that were verified via NIH RePORT and PUBMED. Results Nearly two-thirds (84 of 130) indicated that they were conducting research, and over half of the 84 (approximately one-third of the total cohort) spent more than 25% of time devoted to research. Of those 84, over 25% received grant support from the NIH, and those further in their careers published more scholarly manuscripts. Conclusions Data suggest that the CRTP helped foster the careers of research-oriented medical and dental students as measured by time conducting research, successful competition for federal funding, and the publication of their research. Longer follow-up is warranted to assess the impact of these mentored research experiences. Investments in mentored research programs for health professional students are invaluable to support the dwindling pipeline of biomedical researchers and clinician-scientists. PMID:27224296

Perspective: Transforming science into medicine: how clinician-scientists can build bridges across research's "valley of death".

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Roberts, Scott F; Fischhoff, Martin A; Sakowski, Stacey A; Feldman, Eva L

2012-03-01

Significant increases in National Institutes of Health (NIH) spending on medical research have not produced corresponding increases in new treatments and cures. Instead, laboratory discoveries remain in what has been termed the "valley of death," the gap between bench research and clinical application. Recently, there has been considerable discussion in the literature and scientific community about the causes of this phenomenon and how to bridge the abyss. In this article, the authors examine one possible explanation: Clinician-scientists' declining role in the medical research enterprise has had a dilatory effect on the successful translation of laboratory breakthroughs into new clinical applications. In recent decades, the percentage of MDs receiving NIH funding has drastically decreased compared with PhDs. The growing gap between the research and clinical enterprises has resulted in fewer scientists with a true understanding of clinical problems as well as scientists who are unable to or uninterested in gleaning new basic research hypotheses from failed clinical trials. The NIH and many U.S. medical schools have recognized the decline of the clinician-scientist as a major problem and adopted innovative programs to reverse the trend. However, more radical action may be required, including major changes to the NIH peer-review process, greater funding for translational research, and significantly more resources for the training, debt relief, and early career support of potential clinician-scientists. Such improvements are required for clinician-scientists to conduct translational research that bridges the valley of death and transforms biomedical research discoveries into tangible clinical treatments and technologies.

Ethical Justification of Moral Norms in Scientific Research: Scientists' External Responsibilities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehmet AKÖZER

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Scientists' moral responsibilities have become a focus for the scientific community over the postwar decades. International and regional networks of leading academic bodies have responded to a widely perceived increase in scientific fraud and the ensued loss of public trust in science during the 1980s, and initiated a discussion with a view to codifying good practice in research. While scientists' “external” responsibilities towards society and the humankind have been variously addressed, codes drafted since then mainly dwell on problems of misconduct concerning scientists' “internal” responsibilities towards science and to the scientific community. They also reflect an ethical pluralism, which declines justifying moral standards in research with reference to universal ethical principles. However, the need for such justification has been first recognized decades ago, during the Doctor's Trial in Nuremberg, where the shortcomings of the established ethos of science and the inadequacy of the Hippocratic ethics in safeguarding human rights in research had become flagrant, with the resultant Nuremberg Code of 1947 introducing a human rights perspective into Hippocratic ethics. This paper argues for the necessity of an integral ethical justification of scientists' both external and inner responsibilities, as put down or assumed by internationally acclaimed codes of conduct. Such necessity is validated by the evidence that a historical current to monopolize ethical thinking in the name of science and nullify philosophical ethics lies at the root of an anti–morality that relativized human worth and virtually legitimized human rights violations in scientific practice. Kantian ethics based on humans' absolute inner worth, and Popperian epistemology rooted in respect for truth and for humans as rational beings, pledge an ethical justification of moral norms in science so as to reinforce the latter against intrusions of anti–morality. The paper

Development of Teachers as Scientists in Research Experiences for Teachers Programs

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Faber, Courtney; Hardin, Emily; Klein-Gardner, Stacy; Benson, Lisa

2014-11-01

This study examined the teachers' development as scientists for participants in three National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Teachers. Participants included secondary science and math teachers with varying levels of education and experience who were immersed in research environments related to engineering and science topics. Teachers' functionality as scientists was assessed in terms of independence, focus, relationships with mentors, structure, and ability to create new concepts. Hierarchies developed within these constructs allowed tracking of changes in functionality throughout the 6-week programs. Themes were further identified in teachers' weekly journal entries and exit interviews through inductive coding. Increases in functionality as scientists were observed for all teachers who completed both the program and exit interview ( n = 27). Seven of the 27 teachers reached high science functionality; however, three of the teachers did not reach high functionality in any of the constructs during the program. No differences were observed in demographics or teaching experience between those who did and did not reach high functionality levels. Inductive coding revealed themes such as teachers' interactions with mentors and connections made between research and teaching, which allowed for descriptions of experiences for teachers at high and low levels of functionality. Teachers at high functionality levels adjusted to open-ended environments, transitioned from a guided experience to freedom, felt useful in the laboratory, and were self-motivated. In contrast, teachers at low functionality levels did not have a true research project, primarily focused on teaching aspects of the program, and did not display a transition of responsibilities.

Genomic research with human samples. Points of view from scientists and research subjects about disclosure of results and risks of genomic research. Ethical and empirical approach.

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Valle Mansilla, José Ignacio

2011-01-01

Biomedical researchers often now ask subjects to donate samples to be deposited in biobanks. This is not only of interest to researchers, patients and society as a whole can benefit from the improvements in diagnosis, treatment, and prevention that the advent of genomic medicine portends. However, there is a growing debate regarding the social and ethical implications of creating biobanks and using stored human tissue samples for genomic research. Our aim was to identify factors related to both scientists and patients' preferences regarding the sort of information to convey to subjects about the results of the study and the risks related to genomic research. The method used was a survey addressed to 204 scientists and 279 donors from the U.S. and Spain. In this sample, researchers had already published genomic epidemiology studies; and research subjects had actually volunteered to donate a human sample for genomic research. Concerning the results, patients supported more frequently than scientists their right to know individual results from future genomic research. These differences were statistically significant after adjusting by the opportunity to receive genetic research results from the research they had previously participated and their perception of risks regarding genetic information compared to other clinical data. A slight majority of researchers supported informing participants about individual genomic results only if the reliability and clinical validity of the information had been established. Men were more likely than women to believe that patients should be informed of research results even if these conditions were not met. Also among patients, almost half of them would always prefer to be informed about individual results from future genomic research. The three main factors associated to a higher support of a non-limited access to individual results were: being from the US, having previously been offered individual information and considering

Literature search strategies for interdisciplinary research a sourcebook for scientists and engineers

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Ackerson, Linda G

2006-01-01

The amount of published literature can be overwhelming for scientists and researchers moving from a broad disciplinary research area to a more specialized one, particularly in fields that use information from more than one discipline. Without a focused inquiry, the researcher may find too little information or may be overcome by too much. Striking the correct balance of information is the focus of Literature Search Strategies for Interdisciplinary Research. This useful reference tool studies diverse interdisciplinary areas revealing the general and individual qualities that dictate the strateg

Communication among scientists, decision makers and society: Developing policy-relevant global climate change research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernabo, J.C.

1995-01-01

Defining the research most relevant to policy is not simply a technical task that can be answered by scientists. Decision makers need and value information differently than curiosity-driven scientists. In order to link science more effectively to policy, the two communities must gain a greater mutual understanding. Decision makers must define their needs so that scientists can determine how, and by when, research can address these needs. This vital dialogue between communities typically has been more ad hoc than systematic. The complexity and urgency of the global climate change issue necessitate ongoing communication between scientists and decision makers on the information needed for policy development and what research can provide The results of relevant science policy dialogues are discussed herein. Effective communication between researchers and decision makers is a crucial ingredient for successfully addressing society's pressing environmental concerns. The increase in policy makers' demands for research that is relevant to solving societal issues highlights the communication gap between the technical and policy communities. The gap, largely caused by lack of mutual understanding, results in flawed and inadequate communication that hinders decision making and confuses the public. This paper examines the cause of this communication gap and describes the significance of recent efforts to develop more fruitful science-policy dialogues on the issue of global climate change. First, the post-Cold War shift in government priorities for research funding is described; then the underlying relationship between science and policy is explored to identify key sources of ongoing mis-communication. The paper then explains the importance of defining policy-relevant science questions that research can address. Finally, three projects are described involving the elicitation of decision makers' information needs in The United States, The Netherlands, and internationally

From Local to EXtreme Environments (FLEXE) Student-Scientist Online Forums: hypothesis-based research examining ways to involve scientists in effective science education

Science.gov (United States)

Goehring, L.; Carlsen, W.; Fisher, C. R.; Kerlin, S.; Trautmann, N.; Petersen, W.

2011-12-01

Science education reform since the mid-1990's has called for a "new way of teaching and learning about science that reflects how science itself is done, emphasizing inquiry as a way of achieving knowledge and understanding about the world" (NRC, 1996). Scientists and engineers, experts in inquiry thinking, have been called to help model these practices for students and demonstrate scientific habits of mind. The question, however, is "how best to involve these experts?" given the very real challenges of limited availability of scientists, varying experience with effective pedagogy, widespread geographic distribution of schools, and the sheer number of students involved. Technology offers partial solutions to enable Student-Scientist Interactions (SSI). The FLEXE Project has developed online FLEXE Forums to support efficient, effective SSIs, making use of web-based and database technology to facilitate communication between students and scientists. More importantly, the FLEXE project has approached this question of "how best to do this?" scientifically, combining program evaluation with hypothesis-based research explicitly testing the effects of such SSIs on student learning and attitudes towards science. FLEXE Forums are designed to showcase scientific practices and habits of mind through facilitated interaction between students and scientists. Through these Forums, students "meet" working scientists and learn about their research and the environments in which they work. Scientists provide students with intriguing "real-life" datasets and challenge students to analyze and interpret the data through guiding questions. Students submit their analyses to the Forum, and scientists provide feedback and connect the instructional activity with real-life practice, showcasing their activities in the field. In the FLEXE project, Forums are embedded within inquiry-based instructional units focused on essential learning concepts, and feature the deep-sea environment in contrast

From Research Scientist to Public Outreach: A Personal Journey

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, R.

2004-12-01

Over the past six years I have made the transition from research oceanographer to an educator and public outreach specialist. The transition has been rewarding but difficult. On the way I had to learn the vocabulary and concepts of education (e.g. authentic assessment), effective web-page styles, and the difference between science and education--they are very different. I also met many enthusiastic and caring teachers who greatly eased my transition to educator. Some lessons learned. First, partner with experts. Successful outreach is a team effort. I was luck to have the opportunity to work closely with a great professor of education, Robert James, a wonderful middle-school teacher and Presidential Awardee, Margaret Hammer, and talented students, Jon Reisch and Don Johnson, from our School of ArchitectureAƒAøAøâ_sA¬Aøâ_zAøs Visualization Laboratory, who combined art and technology. Second, if you are a scientist, realize that scientists are too critical. We look for the one right answer, and for the flaws in data and theory. Educators look for the many ways to present ideas, all equally valid, and they value the worth of all students. AƒAøAøâ_sA¬A.â_oSo radical are the differences between the worlds of science and human affairs that their demands are sometimes in conflict.AƒAøAøâ_sA¬A_A¿A 1/2 -Philander: Our Affair With El Nino, p.5. Second, the web is a very efficient way of reaching many people. Thus, web skills are essential. Third, I am learning to be humble. There is much I need to learn. The skills necessary to be a successful research scientist are not sufficient for being a successful educator. Fourth, assess, assess, and assess. DonAƒAøAøâ_sA¬Aøâ_zAøt assume that what you create serves its purpose. Get feedback from educators, students, and scientists of all levels of experience.

US and Cuban Scientists Forge Collaboration on Arbovirus Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Pérez-Ávila, Jorge; Guzmán-Tirado, Maria G; Fraga-Nodarse, Jorge; Handley, Gray; Meegan, James; Pelegrino-Martínez de la Cotera, Jose L; Fauci, Anthony S

2018-04-01

After December 17, 2014, when the US and Cuban governments announced their intent to restore relations, the two countries participated in various exchange activities in an effort to encourage cooperation in public health, health research and biomedical sciences. The conference entitled Exploring Opportunities for Arbovirus Research Collaboration, hosted at Havana's Hotel Nacional, was part of these efforts and was the first major US-Cuban scientific conference in over 50 years. Its purpose was to share information about current arbovirus research and recent findings, and to explore opportunities for future joint research. The nearly 100 participants included leading arbovirus and vector transmission experts from ten US academic institutions, NIH, CDC, FDA and the US Department of Defense. Cuban participants included researchers, clinicians and students from Cuba's Ministry of Public Health, Pedro Kourí Tropical Medicine Institute, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Center for State Control of Medicines and Medical Devices and other health research and regulatory organizations. Topics highlighted at the three-day meeting included surveillance, research and epidemiology; pathogenesis, immunology and virology; treatment and diagnosis; vector biology and control; vaccine development and clinical trials; and regulatory matters. Concurrent breakout discussions focused on novel vector control, nonvector transmission, community engagement, Zika in pregnancy, and workforce development. Following the conference, the Pedro Kourí Tropical Medicine Institute and the US National Institute of Allergic and Infectious Diseases have continued to explore ways to encourage and support scientists in Cuba and the USA who wish to pursue arbovirus research cooperation to advance scientific discovery to improve disease prevention and control. KEYWORDS Arboviruses, flavivirus, Zika virus, chikungunya virus, dengue virus, research, disease vectors, Cuba, USA.

Crocodile years: the traditional image of science and physical scientists' participation in weapons research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Crews, R.J.

1985-01-01

This thesis examines one dimension of the relationship between science and the arms race. More specifically, it develops and empirically examines a theoretical model of the relationship between the social demand for defense-related and weapons research, traditional scientific values related to the worldview of classical physics, and differential participation by physical scientists in such research. The theoretical model suggests that an antiquated traditional image of science exists, and that it may explain, in part, participation by physical scientists in defense-related or weapons research. Two major hypotheses are suggested by the model: first, that a constellation of values representing a traditional image of science obtains today among young physical scientists; and second, that those who currently engage (or are willing to engage) in defense-related or weapons research are more likely to agree with the values implicit in the traditional image of science than those who do not (or would not) engage in such research. The theoretical model is located within the sociologies of knowledge and science. This study includes chapters that provide an overview of the literature of these subdisciplines. This investigation concludes with an empirical examination of the model and hypotheses.

Earth2Class Overview: An Innovative Program Linking Classroom Educators and Research Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Passow, M.; Iturrino, G. J.; Baggio, F. D.; Assumpcao, C. M.

2005-12-01

The Earth2Class (E2C) workshops, held at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO), provide an effective model for improving knowledge, teaching, and technology skills of middle and high school science educators through ongoing interactions with research scientists and educational technology. With support from an NSF GeoEd grant, E2C has developed monthly workshops, web-based resources, and summer institutes in which classroom teachers and research scientists have produced exemplar curriculum materials about a wide variety of cutting-edge geoscience investigations suitable for dissemination to teachers and students. Some of the goals of this program are focused to address questions such as: (1) What aspects of the E2C format and educational technology most effectively connect research discoveries with classroom teachers and their students? (2) What benefits result through interactions among teachers from highly diverse districts and backgrounds with research scientists, and what benefits do the scientists gain from participation? (3) How can the E2C format serve as a model for other research institution-school district partnerships as a mechanism for broader dissemination of scientific discoveries? E2C workshops have linked LDEO scientists from diverse research specialties-seismology, marine geology, paleoclimatology, ocean drilling, dendrochronology, remote sensing, impact craters, and others-with teachers from schools in the New York metropolitan area. Through the workshops, we have trained teachers to enhance content knowledge in the Earth Sciences and develop skills to incorporate new technologies. We have made a special effort to increase the teaching competency of K-12 Earth Sciences educators serving in schools with high numbers of students from underrepresented groups, thereby providing greater role models to attract students into science and math careers. E2C sponsored Earth Science Teachers Conferences, bringing together educators from New York and New

Tribute to a frontline scientist in marine pollution research

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sarkar, A

frontline scientist in marine pollution research Anupam Sarkar Accepted: 1 February 2006 / Published online: 4 May 2006 C211 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2006 Dr. Simao Nascimento de Sousa This special issue of Ecotoxicology is dedicated to a... stream_size 2562 stream_content_type text/plain stream_name Ecotoxicology_15_329.pdf.txt stream_source_info Ecotoxicology_15_329.pdf.txt Content-Encoding UTF-8 Content-Type text/plain; charset=UTF-8 Tribute to a...

Is there a glass ceiling for highly cited scientists at the top of research universities?

Science.gov (United States)

Ioannidis, John P A

2010-12-01

University leaders aim to protect, shape, and promote the missions of their institutions. I evaluated whether top highly cited scientists are likely to occupy these positions. Of the current leaders of 96 U.S. high research activity universities, only 6 presidents or chancellors were found among the 4009 U.S. scientists listed in the ISIHighlyCited.com database. Of the current leaders of 77 UK universities, only 2 vice-chancellors were found among the 483 UK scientists listed in the same database. In a sample of 100 top-cited clinical medicine scientists and 100 top-cited biology and biochemistry scientists, only 1 and 1, respectively, had served at any time as president of a university. Among the leaders of 25 U.S. universities with the highest citation volumes, only 12 had doctoral degrees in life, natural, physical or computer sciences, and 5 of these 12 had a Hirsch citation index m < 1.0. The participation of highly cited scientists in the top leadership of universities is limited. This could have consequences for the research and overall mission of universities.

Elementary School Children Contribute to Environmental Research as Citizen Scientists

OpenAIRE

Miczajka, Victoria L.; Klein, Alexandra-Maria; Pufal, Gesine

2015-01-01

Research benefits increasingly from valuable contributions by citizen scientists. Mostly, participating adults investigate specific species, ecosystems or phenology to address conservation issues, but ecosystem functions supporting ecosystem health are rarely addressed and other demographic groups rarely involved. As part of a project investigating seed predation and dispersal as ecosystem functions along an urban-rural gradient, we tested whether elementary school children can contribute to ...

Scientists' perspectives on the ethical issues of stem cell research.

Science.gov (United States)

Longstaff, Holly; Schuppli, Catherine A; Preto, Nina; Lafrenière, Darquise; McDonald, Michael

2009-06-01

This paper describes findings from an ethics education project funded by the Canadian Stem Cell Network (SCN). The project is part of a larger research initiative entitled "The Stem Cell Research Environment: Drawing the Evidence and Experience Together". The ethics education study began with a series of focus groups with SCN researchers and trainees as part of a "needs assessment" effort. The purpose of these discussions was to identify the main ethical issues associated with stem cell (SC) research from the perspective of the stem cell community. This paper will focus on five prominent themes that emerged from the focus group data including: (1) the source of stem cells; (2) the power of stem cells; (3) working within a charged research environment; (4) the regulatory context; and (5) ethics training for scientists. Additional discussions are planned with others involved in Canadian stem cell research (e.g., research ethics board members, policy makers) to supplement initial findings. These assessment results combined with existing bioethics literature will ultimately inform a web-based ethics education module for the SCN. We believe that our efforts are important for those analyzing the ethical, legal, and social issues (ELSI) in this area because our in depth understanding of stem cell researcher perspectives will enable us to develop more relevant and effective education material, which in turn should help SC researchers address the important ethical challenges in their area.

Young Researchers Advancing Computational Science: Perspectives of the Young Scientists Conference 2015

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boukhanovsky, A.V.; Ilyin, V.A; Krzhizhanovskaya, V.V.; Athanassoulis, G.A.; Klimentov, A.A.; Sloot, P.M.A.

2015-01-01

We present an annual international Young Scientists Conference (YSC) on computational science http://ysc.escience.ifmo.ru/, which brings together renowned experts and young researchers working in high-performance computing, data-driven modeling, and simulation of large-scale complex systems. The

Research project management 101: insiders' tips from Early Career Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Cristini, Luisa; Pabortsava, Katsiaryna; Stichel, Torben

2016-04-01

From the very beginning of their career, it is important for Early Career Scientists (ECS) to develop project management skills to be able to organise their research efficiently. ECS are often in charge of specific tasks within their projects or for their teams. However, without specific training or tools, the successful completion of these assignments will depend entirely on the organisational skills of individual researchers. ECS are thus facing "sink-or-swim" situations, which can be either instructive or disastrous for their projects. Here we provide experience-based tips from fellow ECS that can help manage various project activities, including: 1. Communication with supervisors and peers 2. Lab management 3. Field trips (e.g., oceanographic campaigns) 4. Internships and collaborations with other institutions 5. Literature/background research 6. Conference convening These are potential "life buoys" for ECS, which will help them to carry out these tasks efficiently and successfully.

Impact of information on research and development activities of nuclear scientists in Ghana

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Agyeman, E.A.; Timpo, S.E.; Kisiedu, C.; Boye, M.

2004-01-01

This paper considers the relationship between nuclear information use and the professional development of nuclear scientists in Ghana with reference to some identified productivity and achievement indicators. The assumption is that, frequent use of library and information services results in higher productivity and achievement. A national survey of nuclear scientists was conducted resulting in a response rate of 92 percent. The analytical framework proposed by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) for impact studies served as an appropriate guide for the study. The results indicate that information use leads to increase in the volume and quality of work output of nuclear scientists. Evidence is also found to support the claim that information use enhances contributions of scientists to their organisations. The study concludes with recommendations aimed at improving information delivery to nuclear scientists. (author)

A gender gap in the next generation of physician-scientists: medical student interest and participation in research.

Science.gov (United States)

Guelich, Jill M; Singer, Burton H; Castro, Marcia C; Rosenberg, Leon E

2002-11-01

For 2 decades, the number of physician-scientists has not kept pace with the overall growth of the medical research community. Concomitantly, the number of women entering medical schools has increased markedly. We have explored the effect of the changing gender composition of medical schools on the present and future pipeline of young physician-scientists. We analyzed data obtained from the Association of American Medical Colleges, the National Institutes of Health, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute pertaining to the expressed research intentions or research participation of male and female medical students in the United States. A statistically significant decline in the percentage of matriculating and graduating medical students--both men and women-who expressed strong research career intentions occurred during the decade between 1987 and 1997. Moreover, matriculating and graduating women were significantly less likely than men to indicate strong research career intentions. Each of these trends has been observed for medical schools overall and for research-intensive ones. Cohort data obtained by tracking individuals from matriculation to graduation revealed that women who expressed strong research career intentions upon matriculation were more likely than men to decrease their research career intentions during medical school. Medical student participation in research supported the gender gap identified by assessing research intentions. Female medical student participation in the Medical Scientist Training Program and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute/National Institutes of Health-sponsored Cloisters Program has increased but lags far behind the growth in the female population in medical schools. Three worrisome trends in the research career intentions and participation of the nation's medical students (a decade-long decline for both men and women, a large and persistent gender gap, and a negative effect of the medical school experience for women) presage a

STRATEGIES OF COPING WITH DIFFICULTIES DURING RESEARCH PERFORMED BY YOUNG SCIENTISTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tatiana G. Bokhan

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction: young scientists engaged in creative activities face difficulties during scientific research, implementation and commercialisation of the results. The impossibility of coping with obstacles leads to the impairment of motivational and creative activity. The problem of studying the main semantic contents of difficult situations and strategies to cope with them becomes relevant as it is conducive to the process of personal development of young scientists. Materials and Methods: the authors used a questionnaire with open-ended questions for revealing the main difficulties and coping strategies in the process of research activity; COPE questionnaire adapted by E. Rasskazova, T. Gordeyeva, E. Osin; Style of Self-Regulation of Behaviour technique by V. I. Morosanova. Statistical data processing was carried out with descriptive statistics methods, analysis of frequencies, factor analysis (Varimax rotation with Kaiser normalisation, cluster analysis (furthest neighbour method and Ward’s method. Results: eight main semantic categories related to difficulties experienced in the process of performing the research work have been detected. The main ways of coping with arising difficulties have been identified. Types of respondents different in terms of coping strategies and regulatory-behavioural characteristics have been distinguished. Discussion and Conclusions: difficulties of self-organisation in time for realisation of new meanings, difficulties in structuring the research work and search for information act as psychological barriers provoking mental stress. The most efficient coping strategies in respondents are strategies Active coping and search for positive meaning and personal development. The inefficient coping strategy with difficulties complicating the process of self-development is Avoiding problems strategies.

Personality Traits Are Associated with Research Misbehavior in Dutch Scientists: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joeri K Tijdink

Full Text Available Personality influences decision making and ethical considerations. Its influence on the occurrence of research misbehavior has never been studied. This study aims to determine the association between personality traits and self-reported questionable research practices and research misconduct. We hypothesized that narcissistic, Machiavellianistic and psychopathic traits as well as self-esteem are associated with research misbehavior.Included in this cross-sectional study design were 535 Dutch biomedical scientists (response rate 65% from all hierarchical layers of 4 university medical centers in the Netherlands. We used validated personality questionnaires such as the Dark Triad (narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism, Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale, the Publication Pressure Questionnaire (PPQ, and also demographic and job-specific characteristics to investigate the association of personality traits with a composite research misbehavior severity score.Machiavellianism was positively associated (beta 1.28, CI 1.06-1.53 with self-reported research misbehavior, while narcissism, psychopathy and self-esteem were not. Exploratory analysis revealed that narcissism and research misconduct were more severe among persons in higher academic ranks (i.e., professors (p<0.01 and p<0.001, respectively, and self-esteem scores and publication pressure were lower (p<0.001 and p<0.01, respectively as compared to postgraduate PhD fellows.Machiavellianism may be a risk factor for research misbehaviour. Narcissism and research misbehaviour were more prevalent among biomedical scientists in higher academic positions. These results suggest that personality has an impact on research behavior and should be taken into account in fostering responsible conduct of research.

Learning, teaching and researching on the internet a practical guide for social scientists

CERN Document Server

Stein, S D

2014-01-01

Learning, Teaching and Researching on the Internet: A Practical Guide for Social Scientists is directed at students and academic staff who want to be able to access Internet resources quickly and efficiently without needing to become IT experts. The emphasis throughout is on the harnessing of the large volume of potentially useful Internet resources to everyday requirements, whether these be focused on learning, teaching or research. The Internet is a significantly rich information, communication and research resource for all those involved in higher education, whether they be students, academ

IT Tools for Teachers and Scientists, Created by Undergraduate Researchers

Science.gov (United States)

Millar, A. Z.; Perry, S.

2007-12-01

Interns in the Southern California Earthquake Center/Undergraduate Studies in Earthquake Information Technology (SCEC/UseIT) program conduct computer science research for the benefit of earthquake scientists and have created products in growing use within the SCEC education and research communities. SCEC/UseIT comprises some twenty undergraduates who combine their varied talents and academic backgrounds to achieve a Grand Challenge that is formulated around needs of SCEC scientists and educators and that reflects the value SCEC places on the integration of computer science and the geosciences. In meeting the challenge, students learn to work on multidisciplinary teams and to tackle complex problems with no guaranteed solutions. Meantime, their efforts bring fresh perspectives and insight to the professionals with whom they collaborate, and consistently produces innovative, useful tools for research and education. The 2007 Grand Challenge was to design and prototype serious games to communicate important earthquake science concepts. Interns broke themselves into four game teams, the Educational Game, the Training Game, the Mitigation Game and the Decision-Making Game, and created four diverse games with topics from elementary plate tectonics to earthquake risk mitigation, with intended players ranging from elementary students to city planners. The games were designed to be versatile, to accommodate variation in the knowledge base of the player; and extensible, to accommodate future additions. The games are played on a web browser or from within SCEC-VDO (Virtual Display of Objects). SCEC-VDO, also engineered by UseIT interns, is a 4D, interactive, visualization software that enables integration and exploration of datasets and models such as faults, earthquake hypocenters and ruptures, digital elevation models, satellite imagery, global isochrons, and earthquake prediction schemes. SCEC-VDO enables the user to create animated movies during a session, and is now part

Developmental Scientist | Center for Cancer Research

Science.gov (United States)

blood diseases and conditions; parasitic infections; rheumatic and inflammatory diseases; and rare and neglected diseases. CMRP’s collaborative approach to clinical research and the expertise and dedication of staff to the continuation and success of the program’s mission has contributed to improving the overall standards of public health on a global scale. The Clinical Monitoring Research Program (CMRP) provides quality assurance and regulatory compliance support to the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI’s), Center for Cancer Research (CCR), Surgery Branch (SB). KEY ROLES/RESPONSIBILITIES - THIS POSITION IS CONTINGENT UPON FUNDING APPROVAL The Developmental Scientist will: Provide support and advisement to the development of the T Cell receptor gene therapy protocols. Establishes, implements and maintains standardized processes and assesses performance to make recommendations for improvement. Provides support and guidance to the cellular therapy or vector production facilities at the NIH Clinical Center engaged in the manufacture of patient-specific therapies. Manufactures cellular therapy products for human use. Develops and manufactures lentiviral and/or retroviral vectors. Prepares technical reports, abstracts, presentations and program correspondence concerning assigned projects through research and analysis of information relevant to government policy, regulations and other relevant data and monitor all assigned programs for compliance. Provides project management support with planning and development of project schedules and deliverables, tracking project milestones, managing timelines, preparing status reports and monitoring progress ensuring adherence to deadlines. Facilitates communication through all levels of staff by functioning as a liaison between internal departments, senior management, and the customer. Serves as a leader/mentor to administrative staff and prepares employee performance evaluations. Develops and implements procedures/programs to

Should We All be Scientists? Re-thinking Laboratory Research as a Calling.

Science.gov (United States)

Bezuidenhout, Louise; Warne, Nathaniel A

2017-07-19

In recent years there have been major shifts in how the role of science-and scientists-are understood. The critical examination of scientific expertise within the field of Science and Technology Studies (STS) are increasingly eroding notions of the "otherness" of scientists. It would seem to suggest that anyone can be a scientist-when provided with the appropriate training and access to data. In contrast, however, ethnographic evidence from the scientific community tells a different story. Scientists are quick to recognize that not everyone can-or should-be a scientist. Appealing to notions such as "good hands" or "gut feelings", scientists narrate a distinction between good and bad scientists that cannot be reduced to education, access, or opportunity. The key to good science requires scientists to express an intuitive feeling for their discipline, but also that individuals derive considerable personal satisfaction from their work. Discussing this personal joy in-and "fittingness" of-scientific occupations using the fields of STS, ethics and science policy is highly problematic. In this paper we turn to theology discourse to analyze the notion of "callings" as a means of understanding this issue. Callings highlight the identification and examination of individual talents to determine fit occupations for specific persons. Framing science as a calling represents a novel view of research that places the talents and dispositions of individuals and their relationship to the community at the center of flourishing practices.

Research at the Dairy and Functional Foods Research Unit

Science.gov (United States)

Dr. Peggy Tomasula is Research Leader of the Dairy and Functional Foods Research Unit (DFFRU), ARS, USDA, Wyndmoor, PA, a group that includes 11 Research Scientists, 4 of whom are Lead Scientists (LS), 13 support scientists, and 3 Retired Collaborators. The mission of the DFFRU is to solve critical ...

Quantifying the Burden of Writing Research Articles in a Second Language: Data from Mexican Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Hanauer, David I.; Englander, Karen

2011-01-01

This article provides quantitative data to establish the relative, perceived burden of writing research articles in English as a second language. Previous qualitative research has shown that scientists writing English in a second language face difficulties but has not established parameters for the degree of this difficulty. A total of 141…

The human fallibility of scientists : Dealing with error and bias in academic research

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Veldkamp, Coosje

2017-01-01

THE HUMAN FALLIBILITY OF SCIENTISTS Dealing with error and bias in academic research Recent studies have highlighted that not all published findings in the scientific lit¬erature are trustworthy, suggesting that currently implemented control mechanisms such as high standards for the reporting of

Modeling the Skills and Practices of Scientists through an 'All-Inclusive' Comparative Planetology Student Research Investigation

Science.gov (United States)

Graff, P. V.; Bandfield, J. L.; Stefanov, W. L.; Vanderbloemen, L.; Willis, K. J.; Runco, S.

2013-12-01

To effectively prepare the nation's future Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) workforce, students in today's classrooms need opportunities to engage in authentic experiences that model skills and practices used by STEM professionals. Relevant, real-world authentic research experiences allow students to behave as scientists as they model the process of science. This enables students to get a true sense of STEM-related professions and also allows them to develop the requisite knowledge, skills, curiosity, and creativity necessary for success in STEM careers. Providing professional development and opportunities to help teachers infuse research in the classroom is one of the primary goals of the Expedition Earth and Beyond (EEAB) program. EEAB, facilitated by the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) Directorate at the NASA Johnson Space Center, is an Earth and planetary science education program designed to inspire, engage, and educate teachers and students in grades 5-12 by getting them actively involved with exploration, discovery, and the process of science. The program combines the expertise of scientists and educators to ensure the professional development provided to classroom teachers is scientifically valid and also recognizes classroom constraints. For many teachers, facilitating research in the classroom can be challenging. In addition to addressing required academic standards and dealing with time constraints, challenges include structuring a research investigation the entire class can successfully complete. To build educator confidence, foster positive classroom research experiences, and enable teachers to help students model the skills and practices of scientists, EEAB has created an 'all-inclusive' comparative planetology research investigation activity. This activity addresses academic standards while recognizing students (and teachers) potentially lack experience with scientific practices involved in conducting

Young Researchers Advancing Computational Science: Perspectives of the Young Scientists Conference 2015

CERN Document Server

Boukhanovsky, Alexander V; Krzhizhanovskaya, Valeria V; Athanassoulis, Gerassimos A; Klimentov, Alexei A; Sloot, Peter M A

2015-01-01

We present an annual international Young Scientists Conference (YSC) on computational science http://ysc.escience.ifmo.ru/, which brings together renowned experts and young researchers working in high-performance computing, data-driven modeling, and simulation of large-scale complex systems. The first YSC event was organized in 2012 by the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands and ITMO University, Russia with the goal of opening a dialogue on the present and the future of computational science and its applications. We believe that the YSC conferences will strengthen the ties between young scientists in different countries, thus promoting future collaboration. In this paper we briefly introduce the challenges the millennial generation is facing; describe the YSC conference history and topics; and list the keynote speakers and program committee members. This volume of Procedia Computer Science presents selected papers from the 4th International Young Scientists Conference on Computational Science held on 25 ...

Young Engineers & Scientists (YES) - Engaging Teachers in Space Research

Science.gov (United States)

Boice, D. C.; Reiff, P. H.

2011-12-01

The Young Engineers and Scientists (YES) Program is a community partnership between Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) and local high schools in San Antonio. It provides talented high school juniors and seniors a bridge between classroom instruction and real world, research experiences in physical sciences, information sciences, and engineering. YES consists of two parts: 1) An intensive three-week summer workshop held at SwRI where students experience the research environment first-hand; develop skills and acquire tools for solving scientific problems, attend mini-courses and seminars on electronics, C++ programming, the Internet, careers, science ethics, social impact of technology, and other topics; and select their individual research project with their mentor (SwRI staff member) to be completed during the academic year; and 2) A collegial mentorship where students complete individual research projects under the guidance of their mentors and teachers during the academic year and earn honors credit. At the end of the school year, students publicly present and display their work, acknowledging their accomplishments and spreading career awareness to other students and teachers. YES has been highly successful during the past nineteen (19) years. A total of 258 students have completed or are currently enrolled in YES. Of these students, 38% are females and 57% are ethnic minorities, reflecting the local diversity of the San Antonio area. All YES graduates have entered college, several work or have worked for SwRI, two businesses have formed, and three scientific publications have resulted. Sixteen (16) teacher participants have attended the YES workshop and have developed classroom materials based on their experiences in research at SwRI in the past three (3) years. In recognition of its excellence, YES received the Celebrate Success in 1996 and the Outstanding Campus Partner-of-the-Year Award in 2005, both from Northside Independent School District (San Antonio

Improving adolescent and young adult health - training the next generation of physician scientists in transdisciplinary research.

Science.gov (United States)

Emans, S Jean; Austin, S Bryn; Goodman, Elizabeth; Orr, Donald P; Freeman, Robert; Stoff, David; Litt, Iris F; Schuster, Mark A; Haggerty, Robert; Granger, Robert; Irwin, Charles E

2010-02-01

To address the critical shortage of physician scientists in the field of adolescent medicine, a conference of academic leaders and representatives from foundations, National Institutes of Health, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, and the American Board of Pediatrics was convened to discuss training in transdisciplinary research, facilitators and barriers of successful career trajectories, models of training, and mentorship. The following eight recommendations were made to improve training and career development: incorporate more teaching and mentoring on adolescent health research in medical schools; explore opportunities and electives to enhance clinical and research training of residents in adolescent health; broaden educational goals for Adolescent Medicine fellowship research training and develop an intensive transdisciplinary research track; redesign the career pathway for the development of faculty physician scientists transitioning from fellowship to faculty positions; expand formal collaborations between Leadership Education in Adolescent Health/other Adolescent Medicine Fellowship Programs and federal, foundation, and institutional programs; develop research forums at national meetings and opportunities for critical feedback and mentoring across programs; educate Institutional Review Boards about special requirements for high quality adolescent health research; and address the trainee and faculty career development issues specific to women and minorities to enhance opportunities for academic success. Copyright 2010 Society for Adolescent Medicine. All rights reserved.

Engaging Students in Space Research: Young Engineers and Scientists 2008

Science.gov (United States)

Boice, D. C.; Asbell, H. E.; Reiff, P. H.

2008-12-01

Young Engineers and Scientists (YES) is a community partnership between Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), and local high schools in San Antonio, Texas (USA) during the past 16 years. The YES program provides talented high school juniors and seniors a bridge between classroom instruction and real world, research experiences in physical sciences (including space science) and engineering. YES consists of an intensive three-week summer workshop held at SwRI and a collegial mentorship where students complete individual research projects under the guidance of their professional mentors during the academic year. During the summer workshop, students experience the research environment first-hand; develop skills and acquire tools for solving scientific problems, attend mini-courses and seminars on electronics, computers and the Internet, careers, science ethics, and other topics; and select individual research projects to be completed during the academic year. At the end of the school year, students publicly present and display their work, acknowledging their accomplishments and spreading career awareness to other students and teachers. YES has developed a website for topics in space science from the perspective of high school students, including NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission (MMS) (http://yesserver.space.swri.edu). Student evaluations indicate the effectiveness of YES on their academic preparation and choice of college majors. Over the past 16 years, all YES graduates have entered college, several have worked for SwRI, one business has started, and three scientific publications have resulted. Acknowledgements. We acknowledge funding and support from the NASA MMS Mission, Texas Space Grant Consortium, Northside Independent School District, SwRI, and several local charitable foundations.

Preparing the Next Generation of Environmental Scientists to Work at the Frontier of Data-Intensive Research

Science.gov (United States)

Hampton, S. E.

2015-12-01

The science necessary to unravel complex environmental problems confronts severe computational challenges - coping with huge volumes of heterogeneous data, spanning vast spatial scales at high resolution, and requiring integration of disparate measurements from multiple disciplines. But as cyberinfrastructure advances to support such work, scientists in many fields lack sufficient computational skills to participate in interdisciplinary, data-intensive research. In response, we developed innovative training workshops for early-career scientists, in order to explore both the needs and solutions for training next-generation scientists in skills for data-intensive environmental research. In 2013 and 2014 we ran intensive 3-week training workshops for early-career researchers. One of the workshops was run concurrently in California and North Carolina, connected by virtual technologies and coordinated schedules. We attracted applicants to the workshop with the opportunity to pursue data-intensive small-group research projects that they proposed. This approach presented a realistic possibility that publishable products could result from 3 weeks of focused hands-on classroom instruction combined with self-directed group research in which instructors were present to assist trainees. Instruction addressed 1) collaboration modes and technologies, 2) data management, preservation, and sharing, 3) preparing data for analysis using scripting, 4) reproducible research, 5) sustainable software practices, 6) data analysis and modeling, and 7) communicating results to broad communities. The most dramatic improvements in technical skills were in data management, version control, and working with spatial data outside of proprietary software. In addition, participants built strong networks and collaborative skills that later resulted in a successful student-led grant proposal, published manuscripts, and participants reported that the training was a highly influential experience.

Confined to a tokenistic status: Social scientists in leadership roles in a national health research funding agency.

Science.gov (United States)

Albert, Mathieu; Laberge, Suzanne

2017-07-01

The idea of interdisciplinarity has been taken up by academic and governmental organisations around the world and enacted through science policies, funding programs and higher education institutions. In Canada, interdisciplinarity led to a major transformation in health research funding. In 2000, the federal government closed the Medical Research Council (MRC) and created the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). From the outset, CIHR's vision and goals were innovative, as it sought to include the social sciences within its purview alongside more traditional health research sectors. The extent to which it has been successful in this endeavour, however, remains unknown. The aim of our study was to examine how CIHR's intentions to foster inclusiveness and cooperation across disciplines were implemented in the agency's own organisational structure. We focused on social scientists' representation on committees and among decision-makers between 2000 and 2015, one of the key mandates of CIHR being to include the social sciences within its remit and support research in this area. We examined the composition of the Governing Council, the Institute Scientific Directors, the Chairs of the College of Reviewers, and two International Review Panels invited by CIHR. We targeted these committees and decision-makers since they hold the power to influence the field of Canadian health research through the decisions they make. Our findings show that, while CIHR was created with the mandate to support the entire spectrum of health-related research-including the social sciences-this call for inclusiveness has not yet been materialized in the agency's organisational structure. Social scientists, as well as researchers from neighbouring disciplines such as social epidemiology, health promotion and the humanities, are still confined to low levels of representation within CIHR's highest echelons. This imbalance limits social scientists' input into health research in Canada and

SpaceScience@Home: Authentic Research Projects that Use Citizen Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Méndez, B. J. H.

2008-06-01

In recent years, several space science research projects have enlisted the help of large numbers of non-professional volunteers, ``citizen scientists'', to aid in performing tasks that are critical to a project, but require more person-time (or computing time) than a small professional research team can practically perform themselves. Examples of such projects include SETI@home, which uses time from volunteers computers to process radio-telescope observation looking for signals originating from extra-terrestrial intelligences; Clickworkers, which asks volunteers to review images of the surface of Mars to identify craters; Spacewatch, which used volunteers to review astronomical telescopic images of the sky to identify streaks made by possible Near Earth Asteroids; and Stardust@home, which asks volunteers to review ``focus movies'' taken of the Stardust interstellar dust aerogel collector to search for possible impacts from interstellar dust particles. We shall describe these and other similar projects and discuss lessons learned from carrying out such projects, including the educational opportunities they create.

Promoting seismology education through collaboration between university research scientists and school teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Brunt, M. R.; Ellins, K. K.; Boyd, D.; Mote, A. S.; Pulliam, J.; Frohlich, C. A.

2012-12-01

Participation in the NSF-sponsored Texas Earth and Space Science (TXESS) Revolution teacher professional development project paved the way for several teachers to receive educational seismometers and join the IRIS Seismograph in Schools program. This, in turn, has led to secondary school teachers working with university seismologists on research projects. Examples are the NSF-EarthScope SIEDCAR (Seismic Investigation of Edge Driven Convection Associated with the Rio Grande Rift) project; field studies to compile felt-reports for Texas earthquakes, some which may have been induced by human activities; and a seismic study of the Texas Gulf Coast to investigate ocean-continent transition processes along a passive margin. Such collaborations are mutually beneficial in nature. They help scientists to accomplish their research objectives, involve teachers and their students in the authentic, inquiry-based science, promote public awareness of such projects, and open the doors to advancement opportunities for those teachers involved. In some cases, bringing together research scientists and teachers results in collaborations that produce publishable research. In order to effectively integrate seismology research into 7-12 grade education, one of us (Brunt) established the Eagle Pass Junior High Seismology Team in connection with IRIS Seismograph in Schools, station EPTX (AS-1 seismograph), to teach students about earthquakes using authentic real-time data. The concept has sparked interest among other secondary teachers, leading to the creation of two similarly organized seismology teams: WPTX (Boyd, Williams Preparatory School, Dallas) and THTX (Mote, Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders, Austin). Although the educational seismometers are basic instruments, they are effective educational tools. Seismographs in schools offer students opportunities to learn how earthquakes are recorded and how modern seismometers work, to collect and interpret seismic data, and to

Modeling the Skills and Practices of Scientists through an “All-Inclusive” Comparative Planetology Student Research Investigation

Science.gov (United States)

Graff, Paige; Bandfield, J.; Stefanov, W.; Vanderbloemen, L.; Willis, K.; Runco, S.

2013-01-01

To effectively prepare the nation's future Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) workforce, students in today's classrooms need opportunities to engage in authentic experiences that model skills and practices used by STEM professionals. Relevant, real-world authentic research experiences allow students to behave as scientists as they model the process of science. This enables students to get a true sense of STEM-related professions and also allows them to develop the requisite knowledge, skills, curiosity, and creativity necessary for success in STEM careers. Providing professional development and opportunities to help teachers infuse research in the classroom is one of the primary goals of the Expedition Earth and Beyond (EEAB) program. EEAB, facilitated by the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) Directorate at the NASA Johnson Space Center, is an Earth and planetary science education program designed to inspire, engage, and educate teachers and students in grades 5-12 by getting them actively involved with exploration, discovery, and the process of science. The program combines the expertise of scientists and educators to ensure the professional development provided to classroom teachers is scientifically valid and also recognizes classroom constraints. For many teachers, facilitating research in the classroom can be challenging. In addition to addressing required academic standards and dealing with time constraints, challenges include structuring a research investigation the entire class can successfully complete. To build educator confidence, foster positive classroom research experiences, and enable teachers to help students model the skills and practices of scientists, EEAB has created an "allinclusive" comparative planetology research investigation activity. This activity addresses academic standards while recognizing students (and teachers) potentially lack experience with scientific practices involved in conducting

Promoting an Inclusive Image of Scientists among Students: Towards Research Evidence-Based Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Cakmakci, Gultekin; Tosun, Ozge; Turgut, Sebnem; Orenler, Sefika; Sengul, Kubra; Top, Gokce

2011-01-01

This study aims at investigating the effects of a teaching intervention, the design of which is informed by evidence from educational theories and research data, on students' images of scientists. A quasi-experimental design with a non-equivalent pre-test-post-test control group (CG) was used to compare the outcomes of the intervention. The…

A trans-disciplinary review of deep learning research for water resources scientists

OpenAIRE

Shen, Chaopeng

2017-01-01

Deep learning (DL), a new-generation artificial neural network research, has made profound strides in recent years. This review paper is intended to provide water resources scientists with a simple technical overview, trans-disciplinary progress update, and potentially inspirations about DL. Effective architectures, more accessible data, advances in regularization, and new computing power enabled the success of DL. A trans-disciplinary review reveals that DL is rapidly transforming myriad sci...

Perspectives of Academic Social Scientists on Knowledge Transfer and Research Collaborations: A Cross-Sectional Survey of Australian Academics

Science.gov (United States)

Cherney, Adrian; Head, Brian; Boreham, Paul; Povey, Jenny; Ferguson, Michele

2012-01-01

This paper reports results from a survey of academic social scientists in Australian universities on their research engagement experience with industry and government partners and end-users of research. The results highlight that while academics report a range of benefits arising from research collaborations, there are also significant impediments…

Being a Scientist While Teaching Science: Implementing Undergraduate Research Opportunities for Elementary Educators

Science.gov (United States)

Hock, Emily; Sharp, Zoe

2016-03-01

Aspiring teachers and current teachers can gain insight about the scientific community through hands-on experience. As America's standards for elementary school and middle school become more advanced, future and current teachers must gain hands-on experience in the scientific community. For a teacher to be fully capable of teaching all subjects, they must be comfortable in the content areas, equipped to answer questions, and able to pass on their knowledge. Hands-on research experiences, like the Summer Astronomy Research Experience at California Polytechnic University, pair liberal studies students with a cooperative group of science students and instructors with the goal of doing research that benefits the scientific community and deepens the team members' perception of the scientific community. Teachers are then able to apply the basic research process in their classrooms, inspire students to do real life science, and understand the processes scientists' undergo in their workplace.

Many Scientists Welcome the Reluctance of Congress to Back Large Increases for "Star Wars" Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Cordes, Colleen

1987-01-01

Ronald Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) program has inspired heated debate on campuses, and many scientists have pledged not to accept federal money for SDI research, for a variety of political, economic, and scientific reasons. (MSE)

CosmoQuest - Scientist Engagement with the Public and Schools via a Virtual Research Facility

Science.gov (United States)

Noel-Storr, Jacob; Buxner, Sanlyn; Gay, Pamela L.; Grier, Jennifer A.; Lehan, Cory; CosmoQuest Team

2016-06-01

CosmoQuest is a virtual research facility where science data can be analyzed by teams of interested citizen scientists from across the world. Scientists can apply to have their data analyzed through crowdsourcing in our online observatory, which generates validated and publishable results (Robbins et al 2014). Scientists have the opportunity to provide connections to teachers in classrooms so that students can analyze original data and understand the process that astronomers go through from image to result. Scientists can also teach online classes for different audiences including formal classroom teachers, informal educators, and lifelong learners to further the broader impacts of their work and increase engagement in their scientific endeavors. We provide training, through online and in-person workshops, on how to incorporate your datasets into the observatory and how to deliver online classes through our CosmoAcademy. This work is funded in part by NASA Cooperative Agreement Notice number NNX16AC68A. For more information, visit http://cosmoquest.org/.

Earth2Class: Bringing the Earth to the Classroom-Innovative Connections between Research Scientists, Teachers, and Students

Science.gov (United States)

Passow, M. J.

2017-12-01

"Earth2Class" (E2C) is a unique program offered through the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University. It connects research scientists, classroom teachers, middle and high school students, and others in ways that foster broader outreach of cutting-edge discoveries. One key component are Saturday workshops offered during the school year. These provide investigators with a tested format for sharing research methods and results. Teachers and students learn more about "real"science than what is found in textbooks. They discover that Science is exciting, uncertain, and done by people not very different from themselves. Since 1998, we have offered more than 170 workshops, partnering with more than 90 LDEO scientists. E2C teachers establishe links with scientists that have led to participation in research projects, the LDEO Open House, and other programs. Connections developed between high school students and scientists resulted in authentic science research experiences. A second key component of the project is the E2C website, https://earth2class.org/site/. We provide archived versions of monthly workshops. The website hosts a vast array of resources geared to support learning Earth Science and other subjects. Resources created through an NSF grant to explore strategies which enhance Spatial Thinking in the NYS Regents Earth Science curriculum are found at https://earth2class.org/site/?page_id=2957. The site is well-used by K-12 Earth Science educators, averaging nearly 70k hits per month. A third component of the E2C program are week-long summer institutes offering opportunities to enhance content knowledge in weather and climate; minerals, rocks, and resources; and astronomy. These include exploration of strategies to implement NGSS-based approaches within the school curriculum. Participants can visit LDEO lab facilities and interact with scientists to learn about their research. In the past year, we have begun to create a "satellite" E2C program at UFVJM

Exploring intentions of physician-scientist trainees: factors influencing MD and MD/PhD interest in research careers.

Science.gov (United States)

Kwan, Jennifer M; Daye, Dania; Schmidt, Mary Lou; Conlon, Claudia Morrissey; Kim, Hajwa; Gaonkar, Bilwaj; Payne, Aimee S; Riddle, Megan; Madera, Sharline; Adami, Alexander J; Winter, Kate Quinn

2017-07-11

Prior studies have described the career paths of physician-scientist candidates after graduation, but the factors that influence career choices at the candidate stage remain unclear. Additionally, previous work has focused on MD/PhDs, despite many physician-scientists being MDs. This study sought to identify career sector intentions, important factors in career selection, and experienced and predicted obstacles to career success that influence the career choices of MD candidates, MD candidates with research-intense career intentions (MD-RI), and MD/PhD candidates. A 70-question survey was administered to students at 5 academic medical centers with Medical Scientist Training Programs (MSTPs) and Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) from the NIH. Data were analyzed using bivariate or multivariate analyses. More MD/PhD and MD-RI candidates anticipated or had experienced obstacles related to balancing academic and family responsibilities and to balancing clinical, research, and education responsibilities, whereas more MD candidates indicated experienced and predicted obstacles related to loan repayment. MD/PhD candidates expressed higher interest in basic and translational research compared to MD-RI candidates, who indicated more interest in clinical research. Overall, MD-RI candidates displayed a profile distinct from both MD/PhD and MD candidates. MD/PhD and MD-RI candidates experience obstacles that influence their intentions to pursue academic medical careers from the earliest training stage, obstacles which differ from those of their MD peers. The differences between the aspirations of and challenges facing MD, MD-RI and MD/PhD candidates present opportunities for training programs to target curricula and support services to ensure the career development of successful physician-scientists.

1990 National Compensation Survey of Research and Development Scientists and Engineers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1990-11-01

This report presents the results of the fourth in a new series of surveys of compensation and benefits for research and development (R D) scientists and engineers (S Es). The 1990 Survey represents the largest nationwide database of its kind, covering 104 establishments which provided data on almost 41,000 degreed researchers in the hard'' sciences. The fundamental nature of the survey has not changed: the focus is still on medium- and large-sized establishments which employ at least 100 degreed S Es in R D. The 1990 Survey contains data which cover about 18% of all establishments eligible to participate, encompassing approximately 18% of all eligible employees. As in the last three years, the survey sample constitutes a fairly good representation of the entire population of eligible establishments on the basis of business sector, geographic location, and size. Maturity-based analyses of salaries for some 34,000 nonsupervisory researchers are provided, as are job content-based analyses of more than 27,000 individual contributors and almost 5000 first level supervisors and division directors. Compensation policies and practices data are provided for 102 establishments, and benefits plans for 62 establishments are analyzed.

Engaging Scientists with the CosmoQuest Citizen Science Virtual Research Facility

Science.gov (United States)

Grier, Jennifer A.; Gay, Pamela L.; Buxner, Sanlyn; Noel-Storr, Jacob; CosmoQuest Team

2016-10-01

NASA Science Mission Directorate missions and research return more data than subject matter experts (SMEs - scientists and engineers) can effectively utilize. Citizen scientist volunteers represent a robust pool of energy and talent that SMEs can draw upon to advance projects that require the processing of large quantities of images, and other data. The CosmoQuest Virtual Research Facility has developed roles and pathways to engage SMEs in ways that advance the education of the general public while producing science results publishable in peer-reviewed journals, including through the CosmoQuest Facility Small Grants Program and CosmoAcademy. Our Facility Small Grants Program is open to SMEs to fund them to work with CosmoQuest and engage the public in analysis. Ideal projects have a specific and well-defined need for additional eyes and minds to conduct basic analysis and data collection (such as crater counting, identifying lineaments, etc.) Projects selected will undergo design and implementation as Citizen Science Portals, and citizen scientists will be recruited and trained to complete the project. Users regularly receive feedback on the quality of their data. Data returned will be analyzed by the SME and the CQ Science Team for joint publication in a peer-reviewed journal. SMEs are also invited to consider presenting virtual learning courses in the subjects of their choice in CosmoAcademy. The audience for CosmoAcademy are lifelong-learners and education professionals. Classes are capped at 10, 15, or 20 students. CosmoAcademy can also produce video material to archive seminars long-term. SMEs function as advisors in many other areas of CosmoQuest, including the Educator's Zone (curricular materials for K-12 teachers), Science Fair Projects, and programs that partner to produce material for podcasts and planetaria. Visit the CosmoQuest website at cosmoquest.org to learn more, and to investigate current opportunities to engage with us. CosmoQuest is funded

Reporting unethical research behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Wenger, N S; Korenman, S G; Berk, R; Liu, H

1999-10-01

Scientists, as professionals, have a responsibility to self-regulate. However, whistleblowing is rare. We investigated scientists' infrequent disclosure of unethical behavior by studying their responses to scenarios describing unethical research acts and compared their responses to those of research administrators. A cross-sectional survey was administered to National Science Foundation-funded principal investigators and their institutions' representatives (IRs) to the Office of Research Integrity. Both scientists and IRs proposed to respond to nearly all research behaviors that they rated as unethical. Scientists more often proposed responses limited to the research team (58% vs. 25% of cases, p unethical behavior were not. Scientists appear to perceive that they uphold their responsibility to respond to unethical behavior by disclosures within the research team, whereas administrators propose to report to externally accountable individuals, raising the question of whether scientists' behavior constitutes professional self-regulation or cover up.

Want to Inspire Science Students to Consider a Research Career? Host a Scientist in Your Classroom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patricia J. Baynham

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Most biology students have limited exposure to research since this is not a public activity and the pace of science does not lend itself to television dramatization. In contrast, medicine is the subject of numerous TV shows, and students’ experience visiting doctors may lead them to think they want to become physicians. One effective way to encourage these students to consider a research career is to invite engaging scientists to speak about their career paths and lives during class. Students are most likely to be influenced by people they consider to be like themselves. While this method is well-suited to a lecture format where the scientist can address a larger audience, the laboratory would also be appropriate.

2010 NASA-AIHEC Summer Research Experience: Students and Teachers from TCUs Engage in GIS/Remote Sensing with Researchers and Scientists--Lessons Learned

Science.gov (United States)

Rock, B. N.; Carlson, M.; Mell, V.; Maynard, N.

2010-12-01

Researchers and scientists from the University of New Hampshire (UNH) and the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde joined with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to develop and present a Summer Research Experience (SRE) that trained 21 students and 10 faculty members from 9 of the 36 Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) which comprise the American Indian Higher Education Council (AIHEC). The 10-week SRE program was an inquiry-based introduction to remote sensing, geographic information systems (GIS) and field science research methods. Teams of students and TCU faculty members developed research projects that explored climate change, energy development, contamination of water and air, fire damage in forests, and lost cultural resources on tribal lands. The UNH-Grand Ronde team presented SRE participants with an initial three-week workshop in the use of research tools and development of research projects. During the following seven weeks, the team conferred weekly with SRE participants to monitor and support their progress. Rock provided specific guidance on numerous scientific questions. Carlson coached students on writing and organization and provided laboratory analysis of foliar samples. Mell provided support on GIS technology. Eight of the SRE college teams completed substantial research projects by the end of the SRE while one other team developed a method for future research. Seventeen students completed individual research papers, oral presentations and posters. Nineteen students and all teachers maintained regular and detailed communication with the UNH-Grand Ronde mentors throughout the ten-week program. The SRE produced several significant lessons learned regarding outreach educational programs in inquiry-based science and technology applications. These include: Leadership by an active research scientist (Rock) inspired and supported students and teachers in developing their own scientific inquiries. An intensive schedule of

Is gender mainstreaming helping women scientists? Evidences from research policies in Spain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alba Alonso

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Literature has repeatedly shown that gender mainstreaming is far from being transformative and smoothly introduced. It is rather a contested strategy, leading to steady impacts on changing routines and gendering policy outcomes. However, research policies have appeared to be one of the issues areas where a gender perspective has been introduced. This is the case for Spanish research policies, which have been assessed to promote the inclusion of women in the R&D system. This article explores these emerging shifts in order to explore the problem for women in science and the solutions proposed to solve it. In addition, it seeks to examine whether these measures can potentially help women to get an equal position in science or whether they are addressing the wrong targets. To do so, this work draws on a survey of doctoral and postdoctoral researchers carried out in Spain, covering 350 respondents. It captures the necessities, wills and obstacles for women scientists, and while doing that, it allows us to assess whether gender mainstreaming is likely to be effective for bringing more women to the academia.

How many scientists fabricate and falsify research? A systematic review and meta-analysis of survey data.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniele Fanelli

Full Text Available The frequency with which scientists fabricate and falsify data, or commit other forms of scientific misconduct is a matter of controversy. Many surveys have asked scientists directly whether they have committed or know of a colleague who committed research misconduct, but their results appeared difficult to compare and synthesize. This is the first meta-analysis of these surveys. To standardize outcomes, the number of respondents who recalled at least one incident of misconduct was calculated for each question, and the analysis was limited to behaviours that distort scientific knowledge: fabrication, falsification, "cooking" of data, etc... Survey questions on plagiarism and other forms of professional misconduct were excluded. The final sample consisted of 21 surveys that were included in the systematic review, and 18 in the meta-analysis. A pooled weighted average of 1.97% (N = 7, 95%CI: 0.86-4.45 of scientists admitted to have fabricated, falsified or modified data or results at least once--a serious form of misconduct by any standard--and up to 33.7% admitted other questionable research practices. In surveys asking about the behaviour of colleagues, admission rates were 14.12% (N = 12, 95% CI: 9.91-19.72 for falsification, and up to 72% for other questionable research practices. Meta-regression showed that self reports surveys, surveys using the words "falsification" or "fabrication", and mailed surveys yielded lower percentages of misconduct. When these factors were controlled for, misconduct was reported more frequently by medical/pharmacological researchers than others. Considering that these surveys ask sensitive questions and have other limitations, it appears likely that this is a conservative estimate of the true prevalence of scientific misconduct.

How many scientists fabricate and falsify research? A systematic review and meta-analysis of survey data.

Science.gov (United States)

Fanelli, Daniele

2009-05-29

The frequency with which scientists fabricate and falsify data, or commit other forms of scientific misconduct is a matter of controversy. Many surveys have asked scientists directly whether they have committed or know of a colleague who committed research misconduct, but their results appeared difficult to compare and synthesize. This is the first meta-analysis of these surveys. To standardize outcomes, the number of respondents who recalled at least one incident of misconduct was calculated for each question, and the analysis was limited to behaviours that distort scientific knowledge: fabrication, falsification, "cooking" of data, etc... Survey questions on plagiarism and other forms of professional misconduct were excluded. The final sample consisted of 21 surveys that were included in the systematic review, and 18 in the meta-analysis. A pooled weighted average of 1.97% (N = 7, 95%CI: 0.86-4.45) of scientists admitted to have fabricated, falsified or modified data or results at least once--a serious form of misconduct by any standard--and up to 33.7% admitted other questionable research practices. In surveys asking about the behaviour of colleagues, admission rates were 14.12% (N = 12, 95% CI: 9.91-19.72) for falsification, and up to 72% for other questionable research practices. Meta-regression showed that self reports surveys, surveys using the words "falsification" or "fabrication", and mailed surveys yielded lower percentages of misconduct. When these factors were controlled for, misconduct was reported more frequently by medical/pharmacological researchers than others. Considering that these surveys ask sensitive questions and have other limitations, it appears likely that this is a conservative estimate of the true prevalence of scientific misconduct.

Engaging Scientists and Users in Climate Change Research and Results

Science.gov (United States)

Cloyd, E. T.; Reeves, K.; Shimamoto, M. M.; Zerbonne, S.

2016-12-01

The U.S. Global Change Research Program has a mandate to "consult with actual and potential users of the results of the program" in developing products that will support learning about and responding to climate change. USGCRP has sought to engage stakeholders throughout the development and dissemination of key products, such as the Third National Climate Assessment (NCA3, 2014) and the Climate and Health Assessment (CHA, 2016), in the strategic planning processes leading to the National Global Change Research Plan (2012) and Update to the Strategic Plan (2016), and through regular postings to social media that highlight research results and opportunities for engagement. Overall, USGCRP seeks to promote dialogue between scientific experts, stakeholders, and decision makers about information needs in regions or sectors, the potential impacts of climate change, and possible responses. This presentation will describe how USGCRP has implemented various stakeholder engagement measures during the planning, development, and release of products such as NCA3 and CHA. Through repeated opportunities for stakeholder input, USGCRP has promoted process transparency and inclusiveness in the framing of assessments and other products. In addition, USGCRP has supported scientists' engagement with a range of audiences and potential collaborators through a variety of mechanisms, including community-based meetings, deliberative forums, and identification of non-Federal speaking and knowledge co-production opportunities. We will discuss key lessons learned and successful approaches for engaging users as well as opportunities and challenges for future engagement.

Young Engineers and Scientists (YES) 2010 - Engaging Teachers in Space Research

Science.gov (United States)

Boice, D. C.; Reiff, P. H.

2010-12-01

During the past 18 years, Young Engineers and Scientists (YES) has been a community partnership between local high schools in San Antonio, Texas (USA), and Southwest Research Institute (SwRI). The goals of YES are to increase the number of high school students, especially those from underrepresented groups, seeking careers in science and engineering, to enhance their success in entering the college and major of their choice, and to promote teacher development in STEM fields. This is accomplished by allowing students and teachers to interact on a continuing basis with role models at SwRI in real-world research experiences in physical sciences (including space science), information sciences, and a variety of engineering fields. A total of 239 students have completed YES or are currently enrolled. Of these students, 38% are females and 56% are ethnic minorities, reflecting the local ethnic diversity, and 67% represent underserved groups. Presently, there are 21 students and 9 secondary school teachers enrolled in the YES 2010/2011 Program. YES consists of an intensive three-week summer workshop held at SwRI where students and teachers experience the research environment and a collegial mentorship where they complete individual research projects under the guidance of SwRI mentors during the academic year. YES students develop a website (yesserver.space.swri.edu) for topics in space science (this year was ESA's Rosetta Mission) and high school STEM teachers develop space-related lessons for classroom presentation. Teachers participate in an in-service workshop to share their developed classroom materials and spread awareness of space-related research. At the end of the school year, students publicly present and display their work, spreading career awareness to other students and teachers. Partnerships between research institutes, local high schools, and community foundations, like the YES Program, can positively affect students’ preparation for STEM careers via real

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Paper 28: The technical communication practices of Russian and US aerospace engineers and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Barclay, Rebecca O.; Keene, Michael L.; Flammia, Madelyn; Kennedy, John M.

1993-01-01

As part of Phase 4 of the NASA/DoD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, two studies were conducted that investigated the technical communication practices of Russian and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. Both studies had the same five objectives: first, to solicit the opinions of aerospace engineers and scientists regarding the importance of technical communication to their professions; second, to determine the use and production of technical communication by aerospace engineers and scientists; third, to seek their views about the appropriate content of the undergraduate course in technical communication; fourth, to determine aerospace engineers' and scientists' use of libraries, technical information centers, and on-line databases; and fifth, to determine the use and importance of computer and information technology to them. A self administered questionnaire was distributed to Russian aerospace engineers and scientists at the Central Aero-Hydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI) and to their U.S. counterparts at the NASA Ames Research Center and the NASA Langley Research Center. The completion rates for the Russian and U.S. surveys were 64 and 61 percent, respectively. Responses of the Russian and U.S. participants to selected questions are presented in this paper.

Becoming an International Scientist in South Korea: Ho Wang Lee’s Research Activity about Epidemic Hemorrhagic Fever

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miyoung SHIN

2017-04-01

Full Text Available In the 1960-70s, South Korea was still in the position of a science latecomer. Although the scientific research environment in South Korea at that time was insufficient, there was a scientist who achieved outcomes that could be recognized internationally while acting in South Korea. He was Ho Wang Lee(1928~ who found Hantann Virus that causes epidemic hemorrhagic fever for the first time in the world. It became a clue to identify causative viruses of hemorrhagic diseases that were scattered here and there throughout the world. In addition, these outcomes put Ho Wang Lee on the global center of research into epidemic hemorrhagic fever. This paper examines how a Korean scientist who was in the periphery of virology could go into the central area of virology. Also this article shows the process through which the virus found by Ho Wang Lee was registered with the international academia and he proceeded with follow-up research based on this progress to reach the level at which he generalized epidemic hemorrhagic fever related studies throughout the world. While he was conducting the studies, experimental methods that he had never experienced encountered him as new difficulties. He tried to solve the new difficulties faced in his changed status through devices of cooperation and connection. Ho Wang Lee’s growth as a researcher can be seen as well as a view of a researcher that grew from a regional level to an international level and could advance from the area of non-mainstream into the mainstream. This analytic tool is meaningful in that it can be another method of examining the growth process of scientists in South Korea or developing countries.

Connections, Productivity and Funding: An Examination of Factors Influencing Scientists' Perspectives on the Market Orientation of Academic Research

Science.gov (United States)

Ronning, Emily Anne

2012-01-01

This study examines scientists' perceptions of the environment in which they do their work. Specifically, this study examines how academic and professional factors such as research productivity, funding levels for science, connections to industry, type of academic appointment, and funding sources influence scientists' perceptions of the…

Creatiing a Collaborative Research Network for Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Gunn, W.

2012-12-01

This abstract proposes a discussion of how professional science communication and scientific cooperation can become more efficient through the use of modern social network technology, using the example of Mendeley. Mendeley is a research workflow and collaboration tool which crowdsources real-time research trend information and semantic annotations of research papers in a central data store, thereby creating a "social research network" that is emergent from the research data added to the platform. We describe how Mendeley's model can overcome barriers for collaboration by turning research papers into social objects, making academic data publicly available via an open API, and promoting more efficient collaboration. Central to the success of Mendeley has been the creation of a tool that works for the researcher without the requirement of being part of an explicit social network. Mendeley automatically extracts metadata from research papers, and allows a researcher to annotate, tag and organize their research collection. The tool integrates with the paper writing workflow and provides advanced collaboration options, thus significantly improving researchers' productivity. By anonymously aggregating usage data, Mendeley enables the emergence of social metrics and real-time usage stats on top of the articles' abstract metadata. In this way a social network of collaborators, and people genuinely interested in content, emerges. By building this research network around the article as the social object, a social layer of direct relevance to academia emerges. As science, particularly Earth sciences with their large shared resources, become more and more global, the management and coordination of research is more and more dependent on technology to support these distributed collaborations.

"A good personal scientific relationship": Philip Morris scientists and the Chulabhorn Research Institute, Bangkok.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ross Mackenzie

2008-12-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the efforts of consultants affiliated with Philip Morris (PM, the world's leading transnational tobacco corporation, to influence scientific research and training in Thailand via the Chulabhorn Research Institute (CRI. A leading Southeast Asian institute for environmental health science, the CRI is headed by Professor Dr. Her Royal Highness Princess Chulabhorn, the daughter of the King of Thailand, and it has assumed international significance via its designation as a World Health Organization (WHO Collaborating Centre in December 2005.This paper analyses previously confidential tobacco industry documents that were made publicly available following litigation in the United States. PM documents reveal that ostensibly independent overseas scientists, now identified as industry consultants, were able to gain access to the Thai scientific community. Most significantly, PM scientist Roger Walk has established close connections with the CRI. Documents indicate that Walk was able to use such links to influence the study and teaching of environmental toxicology in the institute and to develop relations with key officials and local scientists so as to advance the interests of PM within Thailand and across Asia. While sensitivities surrounding royal patronage of the CRI make public criticism extremely difficult, indications of ongoing involvement by tobacco industry consultants suggest the need for detailed scrutiny of such relationships.The establishment of close links with the CRI advances industry strategies to influence scientific research and debate around tobacco and health, particularly regarding secondhand smoke, to link with academic institutions, and to build relationships with national elites. Such strategies assume particular significance in the national and regional contexts presented here amid the globalisation of the tobacco pandemic. From an international perspective, particular concern is raised by the CRI's recently

"A good personal scientific relationship": Philip Morris scientists and the Chulabhorn Research Institute, Bangkok.

Science.gov (United States)

Mackenzie, Ross; Collin, Jeff

2008-12-23

This paper examines the efforts of consultants affiliated with Philip Morris (PM), the world's leading transnational tobacco corporation, to influence scientific research and training in Thailand via the Chulabhorn Research Institute (CRI). A leading Southeast Asian institute for environmental health science, the CRI is headed by Professor Dr. Her Royal Highness Princess Chulabhorn, the daughter of the King of Thailand, and it has assumed international significance via its designation as a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre in December 2005. This paper analyses previously confidential tobacco industry documents that were made publicly available following litigation in the United States. PM documents reveal that ostensibly independent overseas scientists, now identified as industry consultants, were able to gain access to the Thai scientific community. Most significantly, PM scientist Roger Walk has established close connections with the CRI. Documents indicate that Walk was able to use such links to influence the study and teaching of environmental toxicology in the institute and to develop relations with key officials and local scientists so as to advance the interests of PM within Thailand and across Asia. While sensitivities surrounding royal patronage of the CRI make public criticism extremely difficult, indications of ongoing involvement by tobacco industry consultants suggest the need for detailed scrutiny of such relationships. The establishment of close links with the CRI advances industry strategies to influence scientific research and debate around tobacco and health, particularly regarding secondhand smoke, to link with academic institutions, and to build relationships with national elites. Such strategies assume particular significance in the national and regional contexts presented here amid the globalisation of the tobacco pandemic. From an international perspective, particular concern is raised by the CRI's recently awarded status

Connecting Alaskan Youth, Elders, and Scientists in Climate Change Research and Community Resilience

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Spellman, K.; Sparrow, E.

2017-12-01

Integrated science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) solutions and effective, relevant learning processes are required to address the challenges that a changing climate presents to many Arctic communities. Learning that can both enhance a community's understanding and generate new knowledge about climate change impacts at both local and continental scales are needed to efficiently build the capacity to navigate these changes. The Arctic and Earth STEM Integrating GLOBE and NASA (SIGNs) program is developing a learning model to engage Alaskan rural and indigenous communities in climate change learning, research and action. Youth, elders, educators, community leaders and scientists collaborate to address a pressing local climate change concern. The program trains teams of educators and long-time community members on climate change concepts and environmental observing protocols in face-to-face or online workshops together with Arctic and NASA subject matter experts. Community teams return to their community to identify local data or information needs that align with their student's interests and the observations of local elders. They deepen their understanding of the subject through culturally responsive curriculum materials, and collaborate with a scientist to develop an investigation with their students to address the identified need. Youth make observations using GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment) protocols that best fit the issue, analyze the data they have collected, and utilize indigenous or knowledge, and NASA data to address the issue. The use of GLOBE protocols allow for communities to engage in climate change research at both local and global scales, as over 110 nations worldwide are using these standardized protocols. Teams work to communicate their investigation results back to their community and other scientists, and apply their results to local stewardship action or climate adaptation projects. In this

Want to Inspire Science Students to Consider a Research Career? Host a Scientist in Your Classroom

OpenAIRE

Baynham, Patricia J.

2010-01-01

Most biology students have limited exposure to research since this is not a public activity and the pace of science does not lend itself to television dramatization. In contrast, medicine is the subject of numerous TV shows, and students’ experience visiting doctors may lead them to think they want to become physicians. One effective way to encourage these students to consider a research career is to invite engaging scientists to speak about their career paths and lives during class. S...

PREFACE: 2nd International Conference and Young Scientist School ''Magnetic resonance imaging in biomedical research''

Science.gov (United States)

Naumova, A. V.; Khodanovich, M. Y.; Yarnykh, V. L.

2016-02-01

The Second International Conference and Young Scientist School ''Magnetic resonance imaging in biomedical research'' was held on the campus of the National Research Tomsk State University (Tomsk, Russia) on September 7-9, 2015. The conference was focused on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) applications for biomedical research. The main goal was to bring together basic scientists, clinical researchers and developers of new MRI techniques to bridge the gap between clinical/research needs and advanced technological solutions. The conference fostered research and development in basic and clinical MR science and its application to health care. It also had an educational purpose to promote understanding of cutting-edge MR developments. The conference provided an opportunity for researchers and clinicians to present their recent theoretical developments, practical applications, and to discuss unsolved problems. The program of the conference was divided into three main topics. First day of the conference was devoted to educational lectures on the fundamentals of MRI physics and image acquisition/reconstruction techniques, including recent developments in quantitative MRI. The second day was focused on developments and applications of new contrast agents. Multinuclear and spectroscopic acquisitions as well as functional MRI were presented during the third day of the conference. We would like to highlight the main developments presented at the conference and introduce the prominent speakers. The keynote speaker of the conference Dr. Vasily Yarnykh (University of Washington, Seattle, USA) presented a recently developed MRI method, macromolecular proton fraction (MPF) mapping, as a unique tool for modifying image contrast and a unique tool for quantification of the myelin content in neural tissues. Professor Yury Pirogov (Lomonosov Moscow State University) described development of new fluorocarbon compounds and applications for biomedicine. Drs. Julia Velikina and Alexey

Research Staff | Photovoltaic Research | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

Research Staff Research Staff desc Greg Wilson Center Director Dr. Greg Wilson is the Director of @nrel.gov 303-384-6649 Bosco, Nicholas Staff Scientist Nick.Bosco@nrel.gov 303-384-6337 Braunecker, Wade IV-Physics Michael.Deceglie@nrel.gov 303-384-6104 Deline, Chris Staff Engineer Chris.Deline@nrel.gov

Senior Computational Scientist | Center for Cancer Research

Science.gov (United States)

The Basic Science Program (BSP) pursues independent, multidisciplinary research in basic and applied molecular biology, immunology, retrovirology, cancer biology, and human genetics. Research efforts and support are an integral part of the Center for Cancer Research (CCR) at the Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNLCR). The Cancer & Inflammation Program (CIP),

Expedition Earth and Beyond: Engaging Classrooms in Student-Led Research Using NASA Data, Access to Scientists, and Integrated Educational Strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Graff, P. V.; Stefanov, W. L.; Willis, K. J.; Runco, S.; McCollum, T.; Baker, M.; Lindgren, C.; Mailhot, M.

2011-01-01

Classroom teachers are challenged with engaging and preparing today s students for the future. Activities are driven by state required skills, education standards, and high-stakes testing. Providing educators with standards-aligned, inquiry-based activities that will help them engage their students in student-led research in the classroom will help them teach required standards, essential skills, and help inspire their students to become motivated learners. The Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) Education Program, classroom educators, and ARES scientists at the NASA Johnson Space Center created the Expedition Earth and Beyond education program to help teachers promote student-led research in their classrooms (grades 5-14) by using NASA data, providing access to scientists, and using integrated educational strategies.

A Community of Practice among Educators, Researchers and Scientists for Improving Science Teaching in Southern Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Cisneros-Cohernour, Edith J.; Lopez-Avila, Maria T.; Barrera-Bustillos, Maria E.

2007-01-01

This paper presents findings of a project aimed to improve the quality of science education in Southeast Mexico by the creation of a community of practice among scientists, researchers and teachers, involved in the design, implementation and evaluation of a professional development program for mathematics, chemistry, biology and physics secondary…

Study of interdisciplinarity in chemistry research based on the production of Puerto Rican scientists 1992-2001. Interdisciplinarity, Bibliometric indicators, Chemistry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elias Sanz-Casado

2004-01-01

Full Text Available Determining the role played by interdisciplinarity in the generation of knowledge is a very fertile line of research in which synergies among different fields of science can be identified and their impact on research efficiency ascertained. A number of methods may be used to explore interdisciplinarity, from the sociological approach to those requiring the application of bibliometric indicators. In this paper, a bibliometric analysis of the research conducted by scientists with the Chemistry Department at the University of Puerto Rico was run on the basis of the subject matter of citing and cited papers, in order to ascertain how interdisciplinarity affects certain aspects of research, such as collaboration or visibility. The data used for this paper were taken from the Science Citation Index database, which lists the most significant contributions made by these scientists, along with the respective bibliographic references. The study revealed the existence of scientific areas that are highly dependent on the knowledge generated in the specific area itself. A positive, albeit weak, correlation was also observed between research interdisciplinarity and collaboration between researchers and institutions. Interdisciplinarity was not found to have any effect, however, on the visibility of research papers or to be correlated with international collaboration.

"Who's gonna plant the trees?!?": Creating effective synergies between community and research goals in scientist-community partnerships

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Declet-Barreto, J.; Johnson, C.

2017-12-01

Harnessing science into effective, community-focused action requires ongoing partnerships that increase both understanding and trust between communities and scientists. One hurdle to overcome is that often, research questions and goals do not line up with the most pressing perceived or objective issues that a partner community faces. Another barrier is that community members often do not have a clear idea of how communities could benefit from the research, an issue that can create confusion and undermine community support for a partnership. In this session, we will discuss some of our successes and misses in developing research partnerships and actionable science for the benefit of communities. We will share stories on how we crafted effective actionable research products in partnership with Environmental Justice and other vulnerable communities.

Inspiring Students to be Scientists: Oceanographic Research Journeys of a Middle School Teacher

Science.gov (United States)

Paulishak, E.

2006-12-01

I will present my research and educational experiences with two professional development programs in which I practiced scientific research. Real world applications of scientific principles cause science to be less abstract and allow the students to be involved in genuine science in the field. Students view teachers differently as a teacher brings her/his experience and enthusiasm for learning into the classroom environment. Furthermore, by developing activities around those experiences, the teacher may permit the students to have some direct involvement with scientific research. One of the common goals of these programs is for teachers to understand the research process and the science involved with it. My goal is to remain a teacher and use these valuable experiences to inspire my students. My job, after completing the research experience and doing investigations in the field, becomes one of "translator" taking the content and process knowledge and making it understandable and authentic for the advancement of my students. It also becomes one of "mentor" when helping to develop the skills of new teachers. Both of my experiences included seagoing expeditions. The REVEL program was my first experience in the summer of 2000. It gave me an immense opportunity to become part of a research team studying the underwater volcanic environment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge in the Northeast Pacific Ocean. With the ARMADA project (2006), I learned about SONAR as we traveled via NOAA ship along the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. Using examples from both of these highly valuable programs, I will be presenting my ideas about how to prepare teachers for their research experience, how to make the transition from research experience to practical classroom application, and how these experiences play a role in retaining the best science teachers and developing new science teachers for the future. Research programs such as these, furnish me with an added sense of confidence as I facilitate

Non-native scientists, research dissemination and English neologisms: What happens in the early stages of reception and re-production?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Linder

2016-11-01

Full Text Available That the English language is the prevailing language in international scientific discourse is an undeniable fact for research professionals who are non-native speakers of English (NNSE. An exploratory, survey-based study of scientists in the experimental disciplines of neuroscience and medicine seeks to reveal, on the one hand, the habits of scientists who in their research practice come across neologisms in English and need to use them in oral and written scientific discourse in their own languages, and, on the other hand, their attitudes towards these neologisms and towards English as the language of international science. We found that all scientists write and publish their research articles (RAs in English and most submit them unrevised by native speakers of English. When first encountering a neologism in English, scientists tend to pay close attention to these new concepts, ideas or terms and very early in the reception process attempt to coin acceptable, natural-sounding Spanish equivalents for use in the laboratory and in their Spanish texts. In conjunction with the naturalized Spanish term, they often use the English neologism verbatim in a coexistent bilingual form, but they avoid using only the English term and very literal translations. These behaviors show an ambivalent attitude towards English (the language of both new knowledge reception and dissemination of their RAs and Spanish (used for local professional purposes and for popularization: while accepting to write in their acquired non-native language, they simultaneously recognize that their native language needs to preserve its specificity as a language of science.

Reflections on practitioner-researcher collaborative inquiry.

Science.gov (United States)

Stockton, Rex; Morran, Keith

2010-04-01

We offer comments regarding two articles in this issue, one titled "Bridging the Practitioner-Scientist Gap in Group Psychotherapy Research" and a complementary article providing the results of a survey, entitled "A Survey of Canadian Group Psychotherapist Association Members' Perceptions of Psychotherapy Research." We also make several recommendations for collaborative research between practitioners and scientists, such as the inclusion of clinicians on the research team, practice research networks, and improved approaches to communicating clinically relevant research findings. Also discussed are reflections and recommendations from the authors' experience as scientist-practitioners.

Creating Science Education Specialists and Scientific Literacy in Students through a Successful Partnership among Scientists, Science Teachers, and Education Researchers

Science.gov (United States)

Metoyer, S.; Prouhet, T.; Radencic, S.

2007-12-01

The nature of science and the nature of learning are often assumed to have little practical relationship to each other. Scientists conduct research and science teachers teach. Rarely do the scientist and the science teacher have an opportunity to learn from each other. Here we describe results from a program funded by NSF, the Information Technology in Science (ITS) Center for Teaching and Learning. The ITS Center provided the support and structure necessary for successful long-term collaboration among scientists, science teachers, and education researchers that has resulted in the creation of new science education specialists. These specialists are not only among the science teachers, but also include avid recruits to science education from the scientists themselves. Science teachers returned to their classrooms armed with new knowledge of content, inquiry, and ideas for technology tools that could support and enhance students' scientific literacy. Teachers developed and implemented action research plans as a means of exploring educational outcomes of their use and understanding of new technologies and inquiry applied to the classroom. In other words, they tried something different in the class related to authentic inquiry and technology. They then assessed the students' to determine if there was an impact to the students in some way. Many of the scientists, on the other hand, report that they have modified their instructional practices for undergraduate courses based on their experiences with the teachers and the ITS Center. Some joined other collaborative projects pairing scientists and educators. And, many of the scientists continue on-going communication with the science teachers serving as mentors, collaborators, and as an "expert" source for the students to ask questions to. In order to convey the success of this partnership, we illustrate and discuss four interdependent components. First, costs and benefits to the science teacher are discussed through case

FNL Scientists Introduce Concept That Could Help the Immune System Respond to Vaccines | Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research

Science.gov (United States)

Scientists have discovered an efficient and straightforward model to manipulate RNA nanoparticles, a new concept that could help trigger desirable activation of the immune system with vaccines and therapies. A multi-institutional team of researchers

Good and Bad Research Collaborations: Researchers' Views on Science and Ethics in Global Health Research.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Parker

Full Text Available There has been a dramatic rise in the scale and scope of collaborative global health research. A number of structural and scientific factors explain this growth and there has been much discussion of these in the literature. Little, if any, attention has been paid, however, to the factors identified by scientists and other research actors as important to successful research collaboration. This is surprising given that their decisions are likely to play a key role in the sustainability and effectiveness of global health research initiatives. In this paper, we report on qualitative research with leading scientists involved in major international research collaborations about their views on good and bad collaborations and the factors that inform their decision-making about joining and participating actively in research networks. We identify and discuss eight factors that researchers see as essential in judging the merits of active participation in global health research collaborations: opportunities for active involvement in cutting-edge, interesting science; effective leadership; competence of potential partners in and commitment to good scientific practice; capacity building; respect for the needs, interests and agendas of partners; opportunities for discussion and disagreement; trust and confidence; and, justice and fairness in collaboration. Our findings suggest that the sustainability and effectiveness of global health research collaborations has an important ethical or moral dimension for the research actors involved.

Good and Bad Research Collaborations: Researchers' Views on Science and Ethics in Global Health Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Parker, Michael; Kingori, Patricia

2016-01-01

There has been a dramatic rise in the scale and scope of collaborative global health research. A number of structural and scientific factors explain this growth and there has been much discussion of these in the literature. Little, if any, attention has been paid, however, to the factors identified by scientists and other research actors as important to successful research collaboration. This is surprising given that their decisions are likely to play a key role in the sustainability and effectiveness of global health research initiatives. In this paper, we report on qualitative research with leading scientists involved in major international research collaborations about their views on good and bad collaborations and the factors that inform their decision-making about joining and participating actively in research networks. We identify and discuss eight factors that researchers see as essential in judging the merits of active participation in global health research collaborations: opportunities for active involvement in cutting-edge, interesting science; effective leadership; competence of potential partners in and commitment to good scientific practice; capacity building; respect for the needs, interests and agendas of partners; opportunities for discussion and disagreement; trust and confidence; and, justice and fairness in collaboration. Our findings suggest that the sustainability and effectiveness of global health research collaborations has an important ethical or moral dimension for the research actors involved.

Young Engineers and Scientists (YES) 2009 - Engaging Students and Teachers in Space Research

Science.gov (United States)

Boice, D. C.; Reiff, P. H.

2009-12-01

During the past 17 years, Young Engineers and Scientists (YES) has been a community partnership between local high schools in San Antonio, Texas (USA), and Southwest Research Institute (SwRI). The goals of YES are to increase the number of high school students, especially those from underrepresented groups, seeking careers in science and engineering, to enhance their success in entering the college and major of their choice, and to promote teacher development in STEM fields. This is accomplished by allowing students and teachers to interact on a continuing basis with role models at SwRI in real-world research experiences in physical sciences (including space science), information sciences, and a variety of engineering fields. A total of 218 students have completed YES or are currently enrolled. Of these students, 37% are females and 56% are ethnic minorities, reflecting the local ethnic diversity, and 67% represent underserved groups. Presently, there are 20 students and 3 teachers enrolled in the YES 2009/2010 Program. YES consists of an intensive three-week summer workshop held at SwRI where students and teachers experience the research environment and a collegial mentorship where they complete individual research projects under the guidance of SwRI mentors during the academic year. At the end of the school year, students publicly present and display their work, spreading career awareness to other students and teachers. Teachers participate in an in-service workshop to share classroom materials and spread awareness of space-related research. YES students develop a website (yesserver.space.swri.edu) for topics in space science (this year was NASA's MMS Mission) and high school science teachers develop space-related lessons for classroom presentation. Partnerships between research institutes, local high schools, and community foundations, like the YES Program, can positively affect students’ preparation for STEM careers via real-world research experiences with

THEORETICAL AND APPLIED ANALYSIS OF CULTURAL POLICY IN RESEARCH OF DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN SCIENTISTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iryna Kinash

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The article analyses the cultural policies in research of domestic and foreign scientists. It was found that around the world it is a part of social policy and an important tool for development. The role of culture as a powerful means of consolidation of society, strengthening of national identity and patriotism is being determined. Implementation of cultural policy of Ukraine through the idea of national cultural revival and restoration of the unity of the state has been suggested. Keywords: cultural policy models, spirituality, society values, unity, national identity. JEL: Z 10

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Paper 41: Technical communication practices of Dutch and US aerospace engineers and scientists: International perspective on aerospace

Science.gov (United States)

Barclay, Rebecca O.; Pinelli, Thomas E.; Kennedy, John M.

1994-01-01

As part of Phase 4 of the NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, studies were conducted that investigated the technical communications practices of Dutch and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. The studies had the following objectives: (1) to solicit the opinions of aerospace engineers and scientists regarding the importance of technical communication to their professions, (2) to determine the use and production of technical communication by aerospace engineers and scientists, (3) to investigate their use of libraries and technical information centers, (4) to investigate their use of and the importance to them of computer and information technology, (5) to examine their use of electronic networks, and (6) to determine their use of foreign and domestically produced technical reports. Self-administered (mail) questionnaires were distributed to Dutch aerospace engineers and scientists at the National Aerospace Laboratory (NLR) in the Netherlands, the NASA Ames Research Center in the U.S., and the NASA Langley Research Center in the U.S. Responses of the Dutch and U.S. participants to selected questions are presented in this paper.

Teaching research ethics better: focus on excellent science, not bad scientists.

Science.gov (United States)

Yarborough, Mark; Hunter, Lawrence

2013-06-01

A recent report of the United States' Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues highlights how important it is for the research community to enjoy the "earned confidence" of the public and how creating a "culture of responsibility" can contribute to that confidence. It identifies a major role for "creative, flexible, and innovative" ethics education in creating such a culture. Other recent governmental reports from various nations similarly call for a renewed emphasis on ethics education in the sciences. We discuss why some common approaches to ethics education in the graduate sciences fail to meet the goals envisioned in the reports and we describe an approach, animated by primary attention on excellent science as opposed to bad scientists, that we have employed in our ethics teaching that we think is better suited for inspiring and sustaining responsible, trustworthy science. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Report 29: A comparison of the technical communications practices of Japanese and US aerospace engineers and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Barclay, Rebecca O.; Kennedy, John M.

1994-01-01

As part of Phase 4 of the NASA/DoD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, two studies were conducted that investigated the technical communications practices of Japanese and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. Both studies have the same seven objectives: first, to solicit the opinions of aerospace engineers and scientists regarding the importance of technical communications to their profession; second, to determine the use and production of technical communications by aerospace engineers and scientists; third; to seek their views about the appropriate content of an undergraduate course in technical communications; fourth, to determine aerospace engineers' and scientists' use of libraries, technical information centers, and on-line data bases; fifth, to determine the use and importance of computer and information technology to them; sixth, to determine their use of electronic networks; and seventh, to determine their use of foreign and domestically produced technical reports. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to aerospace engineers and scientists in Japan and at the NASA Ames Research Center and the NASA Langley Research Center. The completion rates for the Japanese and U.S. surveys were 85 and 61 percent, respectively. Responses of the Japanese and U.S. participants to selected questions are presented in this report.

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Report 17: A comparison of the technical communication practices of Dutch and US aerospace engineers and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Barclay, Rebecca O.; Pinelli, Thomas E.; Kennedy, John M.

1993-01-01

As part of Phase 4 of the NASA/DoD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, two studies were conducted that investigated the technical communications practices of Dutch and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. Both studies have the same seven objectives: first, to solicit the opinions of aerospace engineers and scientists regarding the importance of technical communications to their profession; second, to determine the use and production of technical communications by aerospace engineers and scientists; third, to seek their views about the appropriate content of an undergraduate course in technical communications; fourth, to determine aerospace engineers' and scientists' use of libraries, technical information centers, and on-line data bases; fifth, to determine the use and importance of computer and information technology to them; sixth, to determine their use of electronic networks; and seventh, to determine their use of foreign and domestically produced technical reports. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to aerospace engineers and scientists at the National Aerospace Laboratory (NLR), and NASA Ames Research Center, and the NASA Langley Research Center. The completion rates for the Dutch and U.S. surveys were 55 and 61 percent, respectively. Responses of the Dutch and U.S. participants to selected questions are presented.

Access to Research Inputs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Czarnitzki, Dirk; Grimpe, Christoph; Pellens, Maikel

2015-01-01

The viability of modern open science norms and practices depends on public disclosure of new knowledge, methods, and materials. However, increasing industry funding of research can restrict the dissemination of results and materials. We show, through a survey sample of 837 German scientists in life...... sciences, natural sciences, engineering, and social sciences, that scientists who receive industry funding are twice as likely to deny requests for research inputs as those who do not. Receiving external funding in general does not affect denying others access. Scientists who receive external funding...... of any kind are, however, 50 % more likely to be denied access to research materials by others, but this is not affected by being funded specifically by industry...

Access to Research Inputs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Czarnitzki, Dirk; Grimpe, Christoph; Pellens, Maikel

The viability of modern open science norms and practices depend on public disclosure of new knowledge, methods, and materials. However, increasing industry funding of research can restrict the dissemination of results and materials. We show, through a survey sample of 837 German scientists in life...... sciences, natural sciences, engineering, and social sciences, that scientists who receive industry funding are twice as likely to deny requests for research inputs as those who do not. Receiving external funding in general does not affect denying others access. Scientists who receive external funding...... of any kind are, however, 50% more likely to be denied access to research materials by others, but this is not affected by being funded specifically by industry....

Research Institute for Technical Careers

Science.gov (United States)

Glenn, Ronald L.

1996-01-01

The NASA research grant to Wilberforce University enabled us to establish the Research Institute for Technical Careers (RITC) in order to improve the teaching of science and engineering at Wilberforce. The major components of the research grant are infrastructure development, establishment of the Wilberforce Intensive Summer Experience (WISE), and Joint Research Collaborations with NASA Scientists. (A) Infrastructure Development. The NASA grant has enabled us to improve the standard of our chemistry laboratory and establish the electronics, design, and robotics laboratories. These laboratories have significantly improved the level of instruction at Wilberforce University. (B) Wilberforce Intensive Summer Experience (WISE). The WISE program is a science and engineering bridge program for prefreshman students. It is an intensive academic experience designed to strengthen students' knowledge in mathematics, science, engineering, computing skills, and writing. (C) Joint Collaboration. Another feature of the grant is research collaborations between NASA Scientists and Wilberforce University Scientists. These collaborations have enabled our faculty and students to conduct research at NASA Lewis during the summer and publish research findings in various journals and scientific proceedings.

Executable research compendia in geoscience research infrastructures

Science.gov (United States)

Nüst, Daniel

2017-04-01

From generation through analysis and collaboration to communication, scientific research requires the right tools. Scientists create their own software using third party libraries and platforms. Cloud computing, Open Science, public data infrastructures, and Open Source enable scientists with unprecedented opportunites, nowadays often in a field "Computational X" (e.g. computational seismology) or X-informatics (e.g. geoinformatics) [0]. This increases complexity and generates more innovation, e.g. Environmental Research Infrastructures (environmental RIs [1]). Researchers in Computational X write their software relying on both source code (e.g. from https://github.com) and binary libraries (e.g. from package managers such as APT, https://wiki.debian.org/Apt, or CRAN, https://cran.r-project.org/). They download data from domain specific (cf. https://re3data.org) or generic (e.g. https://zenodo.org) data repositories, and deploy computations remotely (e.g. European Open Science Cloud). The results themselves are archived, given persistent identifiers, connected to other works (e.g. using https://orcid.org/), and listed in metadata catalogues. A single researcher, intentionally or not, interacts with all sub-systems of RIs: data acquisition, data access, data processing, data curation, and community support [3]. To preserve computational research [3] proposes the Executable Research Compendium (ERC), a container format closing the gap of dependency preservation by encapsulating the runtime environment. ERCs and RIs can be integrated for different uses: (i) Coherence: ERC services validate completeness, integrity and results (ii) Metadata: ERCs connect the different parts of a piece of research and faciliate discovery (iii) Exchange and Preservation: ERC as usable building blocks are the shared and archived entity (iv) Self-consistency: ERCs remove dependence on ephemeral sources (v) Execution: ERC services create and execute a packaged analysis but integrate with

Stakeholder Participation in Research Design and Decisions: Scientists, Fishers, and Mercury in Saltwater Fish

Science.gov (United States)

Burger, Joanna; Gochfeld, Michael; Fote, Tom

2015-01-01

Individuals who fish and eat self-caught fish make decisions about where to fish, the type to eat, and the quantity to eat. Federal and state agencies often issue consumption advisories for some fish with high mercury (Hg) concentrations, but seldom provide either the actual metal levels to the general public, or identify the fish that have low contaminant levels. Community participatory research is of growing importance in defining, studying, and resolving complex exposure and risk issues, and this paper is at the intersection of traditional stakeholder approaches and community-based participatory research. The objective of this paper is to describe the process whereby stakeholders (fishers), were involved in directing and refining research questions to address their particular informational needs about mercury levels in fish, potential risks, and methods to maintain health, by balancing the risks and benefits of fish consumption. A range of stakeholders, mainly individual fishers, fishing organizations, and other scientists, were involved at nearly every stage. Community participants influenced many aspects of the design and implementation of the research, in the determination of which fish species to sample, in the collection of the samples, and in the final analyses and synthesis, as well as the communication of results and implications of the research through their fishing club publications, talks and gatherings. By involving the most interested and affected communities, the data and conclusions are relevant to their needs because the fish examined were those they ate and wanted information about, and directly address concerns about the risk from consuming self-caught fish. Although mercury levels in fish presumed to be high in mercury are known, little information was available to the fishermen on mercury levels in fish that were low and thus provided little risk to their families. While community participatory research is more time-consuming and expensive

Cultivating Native American scientists: an application of an Indigenous model to an undergraduate research experience

Science.gov (United States)

McMahon, Tracey R.; Griese, Emily R.; Kenyon, DenYelle Baete

2018-03-01

of a research team, developed a greater understanding and appreciation for the role of science in education and its various applications to socially relevant health issues, made more informed decisions about a career in research and the health sciences, and worked toward improving the health and well-being of others while also inspiring hope among their people back home. This study represents an extension of the application of the Circle of Courage to an undergraduate research experience and provides evidence of its ability to be used as a framework for cultivating Native scientists.

An Earth System Scientist Network for Student and Scientist Partnerships

Science.gov (United States)

Ledley, T. S.

2001-05-01

Successful student and scientist partnerships require that there is a mutual benefit from the partnership. This means that the scientist needs to be able to see the advantage of having students work on his/her project, and the students and teachers need to see that the students contribute to the project and develop the skills in inquiry and the content knowledge in the geosciences that are desired. Through the Earth System Scientist Network (ESSN) for Student and Scientist Partnerships project we are working toward developing scientific research projects for the participation of high school students. When these research projects are developed they will be posted on the ESSN web site that will appear in the Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE). In DLESE teachers and students who are interested in participating in a research program will be able to examine the criteria for each project and select the one that matches their needs and situation. In this paper we will report on how the various ESSN research projects are currently being developed to assure that both the scientist and the students benefit from the partnership. The ESSN scientists are working with a team of scientists and educators to 1) completely define the research question that the students will be addressing, 2) determine what role the students will have in the project, 3) identify the data that the students and teachers will work with, 4) map out the scientific protocols that the students will follow, and 5) determine the background and support materials needed to facilitate students successfully participating in the project. Other issues that the team is addressing include 1) identifying the selection criteria for the schools, 2) identifying rewards and recognition for the students and teacher by the scientist, and 3) identifying issues in Earth system science, relevant to the scientists data, that the students and teachers could use as a guide help develop students investigative

Think globally, research locally: paradigms and place in agroecological research.

Science.gov (United States)

Reynolds, Heather L; Smith, Alex A; Farmer, James R

2014-10-01

Conducting science for practical ends implicates scientists, whether they wish it or not, as agents in social-ecological systems, raising ethical, economic, environmental, and political issues. Considering these issues helps scientists to increase the relevance and sustainability of research outcomes. As we rise to the worthy call to connect basic research with food production, scientists have the opportunity to evaluate alternative food production paradigms and consider how our research funds and efforts are best employed. In this contribution, we review some of the problems produced by science conducted in service of industrial agriculture and its associated economic growth paradigm. We discuss whether the new concept of "ecological intensification" can rescue the industrial agriculture/growth paradigm and present an emerging alternative paradigm of decentralized, localized, biodiversity-promoting agriculture for a steady-state economy. This "custom fit" agriculture engages constructively with complex and highly localized ecosystems, and we draw from examples of published work to demonstrate how ecologists can contribute by using approaches that acknowledge local agricultural practices and draw on community participation. © 2014 Botanical Society of America, Inc.

Research goes to School: understanding the content and the procedures of Science through a new dialogue among students, teachers and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

L'Astorina, Alba; Tomasoni, Irene

2015-04-01

The Education system is increasingly interested in a more interactive dialogue with scientists in order to make science taught at school more aware of the models and the ways in which knowledge is produced, revised and discussed within the scientific community. Not always, in fact, the ministerial programs, the media, and the textbooks adopted by schools seem to be able to grasp the content and the procedures of the scientific knowledge as it is today being developed, sometimes spreading the idea of a monolithic and static science, with no reference to revisions, uncertainties, errors and disputes that, on the opposite, characterize the debate about science. On the other side, scientists, that in several surveys define students and teachers as one of the key groups that are most important to communicate with, often do not seem to be aware that scientific knowledge is continuously revised by the school and its protagonists. Science teaching, in all classes, has a highly educational role, as it offers the opportunity to value individual differences, to make students acquire specific tools and methods that enable them understand the world and critically interact with it. In this process of conscious learning, in which teachers play the role of tutors, the student participates actively bringing his tacit knowledge and beliefs. In this context, an educational proposal has recently been developed by the Italian National Research Council (CNR), aimed at starting a new dialogue between Education and Research. It's a way to encourage the technical and scientific culture among young people and a mutual exchange between the two main actors of the scientific production and promotion, considering weaknesses and strengths of the relationship between these two systems. In this proposal, students and teachers follow side by side a group of CNR scientists involved in an ongoing research project based on the use of innovative methodologies of aerospace Earth Observation (EO) for

Scientific misconduct and research integrity for the bench scientist.

Science.gov (United States)

Pascal, C B

2000-09-01

This paper describes the role of the Office of Research Integrity (ORI), a component of the Public Health Service (PHS), in defining scientific misconduct in research supported with PHS funds and in establishing standards for responding to allegations of misconduct. The principal methods by which ORI exercises its responsibilities in this area are defining what types of behaviors undertaken by research investigators constitute misconduct, overseeing institutional efforts to investigate and report misconduct, and recommending to the Assistant Secretary for Health (ASH) PHS administrative actions when misconduct is identified. ORI also takes affirmative steps to promote research integrity through education, training, and other initiatives. The role of the research institution in responding to misconduct and promoting research integrity is complementary and overlapping with ORI's efforts but, as the employer of research investigators and front-line manager of the research, the institution has a greater opportunity to promote the highest standards of integrity in the day-to-day conduct of research. Finally, legal precedent established through civil litigation has played an important role in defining the standards that apply in determining when a breach of research integrity has occurred.

The Impact of Scientist-Educator Collaborations: an early-career scientist's perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Roop, H. A.

2017-12-01

A decade ago, a forward-thinking faculty member exposed a group of aspiring scientists to the impacts and career benefits of working directly with K-12 students and educators. Ten years later, as one of those young scientists, it is clear that the relationships born out of this early experience can transform a researcher's impact and trajectory in science. Connections with programs like the NSF-funded PolarTREC program, the teacher-led Scientists in the Classroom effort, and through well-coordinated teacher training opportunities there are clear ways in which these partnerships can a) transform student learning; b) serve as a powerful and meaningful way to connect students to authentic research and researchers; and c) help researchers become more effective communicators by expanding their ability to connect their work to society. The distillation of science to K-12 students, with the expert eye of educators, makes scientists better at their work with tangible benefits to skills that matter in academia - securing funding, writing and communicating clearly and having high-value broader impacts. This invited abstract is submitted as part of this session's panel discussion and will explore in detail, with concrete examples, the mutual benefits of educator-scientist partnerships and how sustained engagement can transform the reach, connection and application of research science.

Research in adaptive management: working relations and the research process.

Science.gov (United States)

Amanda C. Graham; Linda E. Kruger

2002-01-01

This report analyzes how a small group of Forest Service scientists participating in efforts to implement adaptive management approach working relations, and how they understand and apply the research process. Nine scientists completed a questionnaire to assess their preferred mode of thinking (the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument), engaged in a facilitated...

Scientists’ perspectives on global ocean research priorities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Murray Alan Rudd

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Diverse natural and social science research is needed to support policies to recover and sustain healthy oceans. While a wide variety of expert-led prioritization initiatives have identified research themes and priorities at national and regional scale, over the past several years there has also been a surge in the number of scanning exercises that have identified important environmental research questions and issues ‘from the bottom-up’. From those questions, winnowed from thousands of contributions by scientists and policy-makers around the world who participated in terrestrial, aquatic and domain-specific horizon scanning and big question exercises, I identified 657 research questions potentially important for informing decisions regarding ocean governance and sustainability. These were distilled to a short list of 67 distinctive research questions that, in an internet survey, were ranked by 2179 scientists from 94 countries. Five of the top 10 research priorities were shared by respondents globally. Despite significant differences between physical and ecological scientists’ priorities regarding specific research questions, they shared seven common priorities among their top 10. Social scientists’ priorities were, however, much different, highlighting their research focus on managerial solutions to ocean challenges and questions regarding the role of human behavior and values in attaining ocean sustainability. The results from this survey provide a comprehensive and timely assessment of current ocean research priorities among research-active scientists but highlight potential challenges in stimulating crossdisciplinary research. As ocean and coastal research necessarily becomes more transdisciplinary to address complex ocean challenges, it will be critical for scientists and research funders to understand how scientists from different disciplines and regions might collaborate and strengthen the overall evidence base for ocean

Scientists in the public sphere: Interactions of scientists and journalists in Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Massarani, Luisa; Peters, Hans P

2016-06-07

In order to map scientists' views on media channels and explore their experiences interacting with journalists, the authors conducted a survey of about 1,000 Brazilian scientists. Results indicate that scientists have clear and high expectations about how journalists should act in reporting scientific information in the media, but such expectations, in their opinion, do not always seem to be met. Nonetheless, the results show that surveyed scientists rate their relation with the media positively: 67% say that having their research covered by media has a positive impact on their colleagues. One quarter of the respondents expressed that talking to the media can facilitate acquisition of more funds for research. Moreover, 38% of the total respondents believe that writing about an interesting topic for release on media channels can also facilitate research publication in a scientific journal. However, 15% of the respondents outright agree that research reported in the media beforehand can threaten acceptance for publication by a scientific journal. We hope that these results can foster some initiatives for improving awareness of the two cultures, scientists and journalists; increasing the access of journalists to Brazilian scientific endeavors; stimulating scientists to communicate with the public via social networks.

Ethical Evaluation of Mental Health Social Research: Agreement Between Researchers and Ethics Committees.

Science.gov (United States)

Mondragón Barrios, Liliana; Guarneros García, Tonatiuh; Jiménez Tapia, Alberto

2017-07-01

The objective of this article is to compare various ethical issues considered by social scientists and research ethics committees in the evaluation of mental health social research protocols. We contacted 47 social scientists and 10 members of ethics committees in Mexico with two electronic national surveys that requested information from both groups related to the application of ethical principles in mental health social research. The results showed no significant difference between these groups in the value placed on the ethical issues explored. Based on this finding, we make proposals to strengthen the collaboration between the two groups.

Research Natural Areas on National Forest System lands in Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah, and Western Wyoming: A guidebook for scientists, managers, and educators

Science.gov (United States)

Angela G. Evenden; Melinda Moeur; J. Stephen Shelly; Shannon F. Kimball; Charles A. Wellner

2001-01-01

This guidebook is intended to familiarize land resource managers, scientists, educators, and others with Research Natural Areas (RNAs) managed by the USDA Forest Service in the Northern Rocky Mountains and Intermountain West. This guidebook facilitates broader recognition and use of these valuable natural areas by describing the RNA network, past and current research...

FAIRNESS 2016 [4. workshop for young scientists with research interests focused on physics at FAIR (Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research), Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Germany), 14-19 Feb 2016

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2016-01-01

FAIRNESS 2016 was the fourth edition in a series of workshops designed to bring together excellent international young scientists with research interests focused on physics at FAIR (Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research) and was held on February 14-19 2016 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The topics of the workshops cover a wide range of aspects in both theoretical developments and current experimental status, concentrated around the four scientific pillars of FAIR. FAIR is a new accelerator complex with brand new experimental facilities, that is currently being built next to the existing GSI facility close to Darmstadt, Germany. The spirit of the conference is to bring together young scientists, e.g. young non-tenured scientists, postdocs and advanced PhD students to present their work, to foster active informal discussions and build up networks. Every participant in the meeting with the exception of the organizers gives an oral presentation, and all sessions are followed by an hour long discussion period. During the talks, questions are anonymously collected in a box to stimulate discussions. The broad physics program at FAIR is reflected in the wide range of topics covered by the workshop: • Atomic and plasma physics, biophysics, material sciences and applications • Nuclear structure, astrophysics and reactions • Physics of hot and dense nuclear matter, QCD phase transitions and critical point • Hadron Spectroscopy, Hadrons in matter and Hypernuclei • Experimental programs APPA, CBM, HADES, PANDA, NUSTAR, as well as BES, NICA and the RHIC beam energy scan For these different areas one invited speaker was selected to give a longer introductory presentation. The write-ups of the talks presented at FAIRNESS 2016 are the content of this issue of Journal of Physics: Conference Series and have been refereed according to the IOP standard for peer review. This issue constitutes therefore a collection of the forefront of research that is dedicated to the

Being a researcher for one night

CERN Multimedia

Roberto Cantoni

2010-01-01

On 24 September from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m., European Researchers Night will give some 100 young students from local schools the opportunity to sit side by side with scientists and operators in the LHC control rooms. At the same time, a live webcast will connect CERN with various institutes around Europe participating in the Being a European Scientist Today (BEST) project. You are all invited to take part!   Copyright Frascati Scienza The European Researchers Night is an EU initiated and funded initiative, which aims at highlighting the appeal of being a researcher. Meeting scientists in a ‘fun’ and festive context gives the public, especially the young, the opportunity to get to know the job better and be inspired to pursue a career in research. “CERN scientists already took part in last year’s event, but only through a web connection with Frascati in Italy”, explains Paola Catapano, a member of the Communication group and organiser of the activities t...

Denmark lacks coherent policy on basic research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ibba, Michael; Bentin, Thomas

1999-01-01

suggest that more critical problems exist that must be addressed immediately to ensure the long-term health of Danish science. Chief among these are a poorly funded and misdirected policy on basic research funding, and conditions of employment that restrict the research opportunities of young scientists...... unattractive, with limited long-term prospects. This situation is only alleviated by the benefaction of senior scientists and charitable foundations, and occasional directives in selected areas which allow young scientists to develop independent research. Further obstacles exist in the recruitment process: new...... positions are often focused on narrow research areas and only advertised locally (in Danish). Recent well-intentioned legislative changes have not fully addressed these problems. Such an inflexible system (which often obliges scientists to spend their entire career in the same institute) is ill...

World climate research: an (un)comfortable coexistence among science and scientists' opinion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henderson-Sellers, A.

2007-01-01

Full text: Full text: My hypothesis is that the effective global governance so urgently needed in relation to greenhouse climate change is not developing, in part, because climate research scientists are failing to communicate well. This is, I believe, because traditionally science has informed society through a sequence of steps moving from facts, through assessment, projection, risk evaluation to policy for changed governance. Any prioritisation, facilitation, and co-ordination activity (such as the World Climate Research Programme) has to be concerned about the way in which science participates in policy. The range of options encompasses: Hands off: it is the job of policy, not science to make decisions; Recognise risk: provide credible and defensible information to help deal with risk; Inform people: because the ultimate policy-maker is the public. Good global governance of common resource, the climate, uses risk management to avoid free riding. History teaches that international cooperation can be successful, e.g. protection of the ozone layer. Some international collective moves towards global carbon governance are occurring: multilateral frameworks such as the UNFCCC, Kyoto Protocol and its follow-up (endorsed by the G8 in June) and domestic mandatory goals set by the EU, UK, China, California and other US states. It is very clear that the world must move from actuarial style climate risk management strategy (history as a good predictor of future) to a dynamically-based prediction and management regime. The urgency of this includes that while mitigation costs are high, delaying action increases them (e.g. Stern 2006; IPCC 2007); that atmospheric concentration of C02 is 380 ppmv (up from the pre-industrial 270 ppmv); current emissions are already higher than the 1990s IPCC scenarios; positive feedbacks seem to predominate; and finally social and climate systems inertias of decades mean that the world is already committed to unrealised warming. Stronger and

Gummi-Bears On Fire! Bringing Students and Scientists Together at the Alaska Summer Research Academy (ASRA)

Science.gov (United States)

Drake, J.; Schamel, D.; Fisher, P.; Terschak, J. A.; Stelling, P.; Almberg, L.; Phillips, E.; Forner, M.; Gregory, D.

2002-12-01

When a gummi-bear is introduced into hot potassium chlorate there is a powerful reaction. This is analogous to the response we have seen to the Alaska Summer Research Academy (ASRA). ASRA is a residential science research camp supported by the College of Science, Engineering and Mathematics at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. The hallmark of ASRA is the opportunity for small groups of 4 or fewer students, ages 10-17, to conduct scientific research and participate in engineering design projects with university faculty and researchers as mentors. Participating scientists, engineers, faculty, graduate students, and K-12 teachers from a variety of disciplines design individual research units and guide the students through designing and constructing a project, collecting data, and synthesizing results. The week-long camp culminates with the students from each project making a formal presentation to the camp and public. In its second year ASRA is already a huge success, quadrupling in size from 21 students in 2001 to 89 students in 2002. Due to a high percentage of returning students, we anticipate there will be a waiting list next year. This presentation contains perspectives from administrators, instructors, staff, and students. Based on our experience we feel there is a large potential demand for education and public outreach (EPO) in university settings. We believe the quality and depth of the ASRA experience directly contributes to the success of a worthwhile EPO program. ASRA will be portrayed as a useful model for EPO at other institutions.

Government and research: thirty years of evolution

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Henkel, Mary; Kogan, Maurice; Hanney, Stephen

2006-01-01

... The Chief Scientist ' s Organisation and External Research Bases: the Case of the DHSS Research Units 115 9 Review of Units and Scientific Merit: Chief Scientist ' s Visits 131 10 Review of Units and Policy Relevance: the Customer Review 153 PART III EMERGING PROCESSES AND ROLES 165 11 The Functions, Process and Impact of Research Commissioning 1...

An analysis of scientific poverty line of Iranian researchers and compared with top scientists of Islamic countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Faramarz Soheili

2014-02-01

Full Text Available To study the scholarly production of Iran in the basic sciences and identify the place of the country among Islamic countries and the world, and also comparing the different disciplines in this field of knowledge, help to plan properly to provide necessary facilities for the advancement in these areas. The purpose of this study is the analysis of scientific poverty line of Iranian scientists and comparing them to the scientists of the superior Islamic countries. This is an applied research. Data were gathered and analyzed with the descriptive approach. In this study data collected from ISI during 1990 to 2011. Five disciplines of basic sciences, including mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology and earth science were studied. Yi and Xi and Sx scientometrics indicators were used. Based on the findings of this research, Iran with 35542 documents, academic ability 0.509 % and the relative performance of 0.468% is in the first place among the Islamic countries. Iran also is in the first place in physics, chemistry, earth science and mathematics and in second place in biology among the Islamic countries. Despite Iran's ranking first among Muslim countries, it is below the scientific poverty line in terms of Xi and Sx indicators. So it seems necessary to pay more attention to production and distribution of basic science especially in biology. The weaknesses and barriers also should be recognized.

The HIV and Drug Abuse Prevention Research Ethics Training Institute: Training Early-Career Scientists to Conduct Research on Research Ethics

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, Celia B.; Yuko, Elizabeth

2018-01-01

The responsible conduct of HIV/drug abuse prevention research requires investigators with both the knowledge of and ability to generate empirical data that can enhance global ethical practices and policies. This article describes a multidisciplinary program offering early-career professionals a 2-year intensive summer curriculum along with funding to conduct a mentored research study on a wide variety of HIV/drug abuse research ethics topics. Now in its fifth year, the program has admitted 29 trainees who have to date demonstrated increased knowledge of research ethics, produced 17 peer-reviewed publications, 46 professional presentations, and submitted or been awarded five related federal grants. The institute also hosts a global information platform providing general and HIV/drug abuse relevant research ethics educational and research resources that have had more than 38,800 unique visitors from more than 150 countries. PMID:26564944

Scientists as writers

Science.gov (United States)

Yore, Larry D.; Hand, Brian M.; Prain, Vaughan

2002-09-01

This study attempted to establish an image of a science writer based on a synthesis of writing theory, models, and research literature on academic writing in science and other disciplines and to contrast this image with an actual prototypical image of scientists as writers of science. The synthesis was used to develop a questionnaire to assess scientists' writing habits, beliefs, strategies, and perceptions about print-based language. The questionnaire was administered to 17 scientists from science and applied science departments of a large Midwestern land grant university. Each respondent was interviewed following the completion of the questionnaire with a custom-designed semistructured protocol to elaborate, probe, and extend their written responses. These data were analyzed in a stepwise fashion using the questionnaire responses to establish tentative assertions about the three major foci (type of writing done, criteria of good science writing, writing strategies used) and the interview responses to verify these assertions. Two illustrative cases (a very experienced, male physical scientist and a less experienced, female applied biological scientist) were used to highlight diversity in the sample. Generally, these 17 scientists are driven by the academy's priority of publishing their research results in refereed, peer-reviewed journals. They write their research reports in isolation or as a member of a large research team, target their writing to a few journals that they also read regularly, use writing in their teaching and scholarship to inform and persuade science students and other scientists, but do little border crossing into other discourse communities. The prototypical science writer found in this study did not match the image based on a synthesis of the writing literature in that these scientists perceived writing as knowledge telling not knowledge building, their metacognition of written discourse was tacit, and they used a narrow array of genre

Cold fusion research in Italy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scaramuzzi, F.

1993-01-01

This paper summarizes cold fusion (CF) research in Italy. In Italy, many Agencies and Universities are moderately funding research in CF, and the scientists have made a few attempts to coordinate each other, organizing meetings and conferences. However, the activity has been mostly the fruit of the scientists' initiative, and never a coordinated proposal of Agencies and Universities. No position on the scientific validity of the subject has been officially taken and the funds for CF have been rather modest. The investments in Italy on CF, the figure referring to 1992 amounts to about 0.5 million dollars, not including expenses for personnel. A number of about 70 scientists, mostly working part-time, is committed all around the Country in research on CF. The lack of offical commitment and effective support by the Research Agencies and the Universities has not prevented scientists from being quite active in performing research. On the other side, it has to be acknowledged that no formal vetoes have been interposed to the free initiative of scientists in this field: on the contrary, some of the Agencies and Universities have moderately funded such an effort. The quality of the experiments in Italy has been increasingly good, and the results obtained are rather out standing in the general panorama of CF. But it is time to perform a more coordinated effort, keeping in mind that material science aspects, such as the characteristics of the materials used, play a very important role in the development of this topic. Thus, a much more intense effort is required to obtain a more substantial progress in the field. The increasingly convincing results obtained by the whole CF community, and the example of the Japanese Government and Industry, which appear to be determined to promoting CF research, have changed the panorama of CF. These are now signs that also the Italian scientific authorities could consider favouring research in this field in the near future. (J.P.N.)

Entrepreneurship for Creative Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Parker, Dawood; Raghu, Surya; Brooks, Richard

2018-05-01

Through patenting and commercialization, scientists today can develop their work beyond a publication in a learned journal. Indeed, universities and governments are encouraging today's scientists and engineers to break their research out of the laboratory and into the commercial world. However, doing so is complicated and can be daunting for those more used to a research seminar than a board room. This book, written by experienced scientists and entrepreneurs, deals with businesses started by scientists based on innovation and sets out to clarify for scientists and engineers the steps necessary to take an idea along the path to commercialization and maximise the potential for success, regardless of the path taken.

The HIV and Drug Abuse Prevention Research Ethics Training Institute: Training Early-Career Scientists to Conduct Research on Research Ethics.

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, Celia B; Yuko, Elizabeth

2015-12-01

The responsible conduct of HIV/drug abuse prevention research requires investigators with both the knowledge of and ability to generate empirical data that can enhance global ethical practices and policies. This article describes a multidisciplinary program offering early-career professionals a 2-year intensive summer curriculum along with funding to conduct a mentored research study on a wide variety of HIV/drug abuse research ethics topics. Now in its fifth year, the program has admitted 29 trainees who have to date demonstrated increased knowledge of research ethics, produced 17 peer-reviewed publications, 46 professional presentations, and submitted or been awarded five related federal grants. The institute also hosts a global information platform providing general and HIV/drug abuse relevant research ethics educational and research resources that have had more than 38,800 unique visitors from more than 150 countries. © The Author(s) 2015.

Researching Student Motivation

Science.gov (United States)

Alkaabi, Sultan Ali R.; Alkaabi, Warda; Vyver, Glen

2017-01-01

Motivation has been studied by different scientists in different fields of knowledge such as biology, psychology, and education for a long period, which has cultivated a wealth of knowledge in these disciplines. The richness in motivation theories poses complexity in motivation research. Due to these complexities, many researchers focus on using a…

Biofuels Research at EPA - slides

Science.gov (United States)

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Research and Development supports the Agency’s mission to protect human health and the environment through its research programs. ORD scientists and engineers lead research efforts designed to be credible, relevant and timely ...

Isotopic research in Antarctica

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schuetze, H.

1983-01-01

Since 1978 scientists of the Central Institute of Isotope- and Radiation Research of the Academy of Sciences of the GDR have participated in antarctic research. Substantial results have been achieved in research on isotope ratios, on the dynamics of water resources, on concentration of deuterium in lichens, and on age determination of a mummified seal and a penguin colony

Research Schools: Grounding Research in Educational Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Hinton, Christina; Fischer, Kurt W.

2008-01-01

Education lacks a strong infrastructure for connecting research with educational practice and policy. The need for this linkage grows as findings in cognitive science and biology become ever more relevant to education. Teachers often lack the background knowledge needed to interpret scientific results, whereas scientists often lack an…

The talent process of successful academic women scientists at elite research universities in New York state

Science.gov (United States)

Kaenzig, Lisa M.

women scientists at elite research universities in New York. A criterion sample (n=94) was selected resulting in forty-one successful academic women scientists as the study participants, representing a response rate of 43.6%. Findings include the important roles of parents, teachers, mentors and collaborators on the talent development process of the participants. The perception of the study participants was that there were multiple facilitators to their talent development process, while few barriers were acknowledged. The most important barriers cited by participants were perceptions of institutional culture and sexism. Implications for practice in both gifted and higher education are suggested, based on the findings of the study. For gifted education, these suggestions include the need to provide parental education programs emphasizing the importance of intellectual engagement at home, providing dedicated time for science in primary education, and fostering science and mathematics opportunities, particularly for girls and young women. Stressing the importance of hard work, persistence and intelligent risk-taking are also important for encouraging girls in science. For higher education, the study provides models of success of academic women scientists, outlines the importance of mentors and collaborators, and emphasizes the critical role that institutions and departments play in facilitating or impeding women's career development as academics. The current study suggests several areas for further research to continue the exploration of the talent development influences on academic women scientists. Based on the findings of this study, recommended studies include examining the differences of generational cohorts; probing the roles of collaborators/mentor colleagues; exploring differences for women from various ethnic and racial backgrounds; replicating the current study with larger populations of women scientists; investigating the role of facilitative school environments

Conducting research in risk communication that is both beneficial for stakeholders and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Charrière, Marie; Bogaard, Thom; Junier, Sandra; Malet, Jean-Philippe; Mostert, Erik

2015-04-01

the lead in advertising the activity, gathering participants and they helped designing the scientific survey. The benefits of this exhibition for the community included triggering memories, encouraging exchanges, especially inter-generational, reinforcing stakeholders-to-stakeholders relationships and promote further communication on the topic. The scientific benefits are that we have an experiment that allows us to measure the impact of a communication effort, not in a laboratory setting but in real life. But more importantly this research highlights the responsibility of scientists that are researching in the disaster risk reduction field to involve the stakeholders in order to produce results that not only improve scientific knowledge but also have a social impact in the case studies they choose.

The effects of conducting authentic field-geology research on high school students' understanding of the nature of science, and their views of themselves as research scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Millette, Patricia M.

Authentic field geology research is a inquiry method that encourages students to interact more with their local environment, and by solving genuine puzzles, begin to increase their intuitive understanding of the nature and processes of science. The goal of the current study was to determine if conducting authentic field research and giving high school students the opportunity to present findings to adult audiences outside of the school setting 1) enhances students' understanding of the nature of science, and 2) affects students views of themselves as researchers. To accomplish this, ninth-grade students from a public school in northern New England engaged in a community-initiated glacial geology problem, completed a field research investigation, and presented their findings at several professional conferences. Following the completion of this student-centered field research, I investigated its effects by using a mixed methods approach consisting of qualitative and quantitative data from two sources. These included selected questions from an open-response survey (VNOS-c), and interviews that were conducted with fifteen of the students of different ages and genders. Findings show that conducting original field research seems to have a positive influence on these students' understanding of the NOS as well as the processes of science. Many of the students reported feelings of accomplishment, acceptance of responsibility for the investigation, a sense of their authentic contribution to the body of scientific knowledge in the world, and becoming scientists. This type of authentic field investigation is significant because recent reforms in earth-science education stress the importance of students learning about the nature and processes of scientific knowledge along with science content.

The Cosmic Ray Observatory Project: Results of a Summer High-School Student, Teacher, University Scientist Partnership Using a Capstone Research Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Shell, Duane F.; Snow, Gregory R.; Claes, Daniel R.

2011-01-01

This paper reports results from evaluation of the Cosmic Ray Observatory Project (CROP), a student, teacher, scientist partnership to engage high-school students and teachers in school based cosmic ray research. Specifically, this study examined whether an intensive summer workshop experience could effectively prepare teacher-student teams to…

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Report No. 36: The Technical Communications Practices of US Aerospace Engineers and Scientists: Results of the Phase 1 NASA Langley Research Center Mail Survey

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Barclay, Rebecca O.; Kennedy, John M.

1995-01-01

The U.S. government technical report is a primary means by which the results of federally funded research and development (R&D) are transferred to the U.S. aerospace industry. However, little is known about this information product in terms of its actual use, importance, and value in the transfer of federally funded R&D. To help establish a body of knowledge, the U.S. government technical report is being investigated as part of the NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. In this report, we summarize the literature on technical reports and provide a model that depicts the transfer of federally funded aerospace R&D via the U.S. government technical report. We present results from our investigation of aerospace knowledge diffusion vis-a-vis the U.S. government technical report, and present the results of research that investigated aerospace knowledge diffusion vis-a-vis the technical communications practices of U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists who were assigned to the Research and Technology Group (RTG) at the NASA Langley Research Center in September 1995.

Robust Scientists

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gorm Hansen, Birgitte

their core i nterests, 2) developing a selfsupply of industry interests by becoming entrepreneurs and thus creating their own compliant industry partner and 3) balancing resources within a larger collective of researchers, thus countering changes in the influx of funding caused by shifts in political...... knowledge", Danish research policy seems to have helped develop politically and economically "robust scientists". Scientific robustness is acquired by way of three strategies: 1) tasting and discriminating between resources so as to avoid funding that erodes academic profiles and push scientists away from...

Otto Hahn - Research and responsibility. Conflicts of a scientist

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoffmann, K.

2005-01-01

The life of Otto Hahn is documented and the time where science started in the mysterious field of radioactivity. The main steps: Youth, studies, first practical experiences, research at Berlin university, first world war, success for atomic researchers, national socialism - night over Germany, fission of uranium atom, menace with the atomic bomb of Hitler, the American super explosive U235, hunting on atomic researchers, diplomacy with atomic bombs, in conflict with conscience and policy, against nuclear arm tests and atomic arm race. (GL)

Ames Research Center Research and Technology 2000

Science.gov (United States)

2002-01-01

This report highlights the challenging work accomplished during fiscal year 2000 by Ames research scientists,engineers, and technologists. It discusses research and technologies that enable the Information Age, that expand the frontiers of knowledge for aeronautics and space, and that help to maintain U.S. leadership in aeronautics and space research and technology development. The accomplishments are grouped into four categories based on four of NASA's Strategic Enterprises: Aerospace Technology, Space Science, Biological and Physical Research, and Earth Science. The primary purpose of this report is to communicate knowledge-to inform our stakeholders, customer, and partners, and the people of the United States about the scope and diversity of Ames' mission,the nature of Ames' research and technolog) activities,and the stimulating challenges ahead. The accomplishments cited illustrate the contributions that Ames is willing to improve the quality of life for our citizens and the economic position of the United States in the world marketplace.

A survey of big data research

Science.gov (United States)

Fang, Hua; Zhang, Zhaoyang; Wang, Chanpaul Jin; Daneshmand, Mahmoud; Wang, Chonggang; Wang, Honggang

2015-01-01

Big data create values for business and research, but pose significant challenges in terms of networking, storage, management, analytics and ethics. Multidisciplinary collaborations from engineers, computer scientists, statisticians and social scientists are needed to tackle, discover and understand big data. This survey presents an overview of big data initiatives, technologies and research in industries and academia, and discusses challenges and potential solutions. PMID:26504265

How do scientists perceive the current publication culture? A qualitative focus group interview study among Dutch biomedical researchers.

Science.gov (United States)

Tijdink, J K; Schipper, K; Bouter, L M; Maclaine Pont, P; de Jonge, J; Smulders, Y M

2016-02-17

To investigate the biomedical scientist's perception of the prevailing publication culture. Qualitative focus group interview study. Four university medical centres in the Netherlands. Three randomly selected groups of biomedical scientists (PhD, postdoctoral staff members and full professors). Main themes for discussion were selected by participants. Frequently perceived detrimental effects of contemporary publication culture were the strong focus on citation measures (like the Journal Impact Factor and the H-index), gift and ghost authorships and the order of authors, the peer review process, competition, the funding system and publication bias. These themes were generally associated with detrimental and undesirable effects on publication practices and on the validity of reported results. Furthermore, senior scientists tended to display a more cynical perception of the publication culture than their junior colleagues. However, even among the PhD students and the postdoctoral fellows, the sentiment was quite negative. Positive perceptions of specific features of contemporary scientific and publication culture were rare. Our findings suggest that the current publication culture leads to negative sentiments, counterproductive stress levels and, most importantly, to questionable research practices among junior and senior biomedical scientists. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Bioenergy Research and Strategic Planning: The Need for both Proactive and Reactive research

Science.gov (United States)

Public policy typically refers to governmental actions such as laws, regulatory measures, and funding decisions for a specified issue. As scientists, we should strive to provide unbiased, research information on which strategic planning and long-term goals can be based. However, research can contrib...

The Oratorical Scientist: A Guide for Speechcraft and Presentation for Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Lau, G. E.

2015-12-01

Public speaking organizations are highly valuable for individuals seeking to improve their skills in speech development and delivery. The methodology of such groups usually focuses on repetitive, guided practice. Toastmasters International, for instance, uses a curriculum based on topical manuals that guide their members through some number of prepared speeches with specific goals for each speech. I have similarly developed a public speaking manual for scientists with the intention of guiding scientists through the development and presentation of speeches that will help them hone their abilities as public speakers. I call this guide The Oratorical Scientist. The Oratorical Scientist will be a free, digital publication that is meant to guide scientists through five specific types of speech that the scientist may be called upon to deliver during their career. These five speeches are: The Coffee Talk, The Educational Talk, Research Talks for General Science Audiences, Research Talks for Specific Subdiscipline Audiences, and Taking the Big Stage (talks for public engagement). Each section of the manual focuses on speech development, rehearsal, and presentation for each of these specific types of speech. The curriculum was developed primarily from my personal experiences in public engagement. Individuals who use the manual may deliver their prepared speeches to groups of their peers (e.g. within their research group) or through video sharing websites like Youtube and Vimeo. Speeches that are broadcast online can then be followed and shared through social media networks (e.g. #OratoricalScientist), allowing a larger audience to evaluate the speech and to provide criticism. I will present The Oratorical Scientist, a guide for scientists to become better public speakers. The process of guided repetitive practice of scientific talks will improve the speaking capabilities of scientists, in turn benefitting science communication and public engagement.

Education and Public Outreach for the PICASSO-CENA Satellite-Based Research Mission: K-12 Students Use Sun Photometers to Assist Scientists in Validating Atmospheric Data

Science.gov (United States)

Robinson, D. Q.

2001-05-01

Hampton University, a historically black university, is leading the Education and Public Outreach (EPO) portion of the PICASSO-CENA satellite-based research mission. Currently scheduled for launch in 2004, PICASSO-CENA will use LIDAR (LIght Detection and Ranging), to study earth's atmosphere. The PICASSO-CENA Outreach program works with scientists, teachers, and students to better understand the effects of clouds and aerosols on earth's atmosphere. This program actively involves students nationwide in NASA research by having them obtain sun photometer measurements from their schools and homes for comparison with data collected by the PICASSO-CENA mission. Students collect data from their classroom ground observations and report the data via the Internet. Scientists will use the data from the PICASSO-CENA research and the student ground-truthing observations to improve predications about climatic change. The two-band passive remote sensing sun photometer is designed for student use as a stand alone instrument to study atmospheric turbidity or in conjunction with satellite data to provide ground-truthing. The instrument will collect measurements of column optical depth from the ground level. These measurements will not only give the students an appreciation for atmospheric turbidity, but will also provide quantitative correlative information to the PICASSO-CENA mission on ground-level optical depth. Student data obtained in this manner will be sufficiently accurate for scientists to use as ground truthing. Thus, students will have the opportunity to be involved with a NASA satellite-based research mission.

Research Projects, Technical Reports and Publications

Science.gov (United States)

Oliger, Joseph

1996-01-01

The Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science (RIACS) was established by the Universities Space Research Association (USRA) at the NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) on June 6, 1983. RIACS is privately operated by USRA, a consortium of universities with research programs in the aerospace sciences, under contract with NASA. The primary mission of RIACS is to provide research and expertise in computer science and scientific computing to support the scientific missions of NASA ARC. The research carried out at RIACS must change its emphasis from year to year in response to NASA ARC's changing needs and technological opportunities. A flexible scientific staff is provided through a university faculty visitor program, a post doctoral program, and a student visitor program. Not only does this provide appropriate expertise but it also introduces scientists outside of NASA to NASA problems. A small group of core RIACS staff provides continuity and interacts with an ARC technical monitor and scientific advisory group to determine the RIACS mission. RIACS activities are reviewed and monitored by a USRA advisory council and ARC technical monitor. Research at RIACS is currently being done in the following areas: Advanced Methods for Scientific Computing High Performance Networks During this report pefiod Professor Antony Jameson of Princeton University, Professor Wei-Pai Tang of the University of Waterloo, Professor Marsha Berger of New York University, Professor Tony Chan of UCLA, Associate Professor David Zingg of University of Toronto, Canada and Assistant Professor Andrew Sohn of New Jersey Institute of Technology have been visiting RIACS. January 1, 1996 through September 30, 1996 RIACS had three staff scientists, four visiting scientists, one post-doctoral scientist, three consultants, two research associates and one research assistant. RIACS held a joint workshop with Code 1 29-30 July 1996. The workshop was held to discuss needs and opportunities in basic research in

Original Research By Young Twinkle Students(ORBYTS): When can students start performingoriginal research?

Science.gov (United States)

Sousa-Silva, Clara; ORBYTS, Twinkle Space Mission, ExoMol

2018-01-01

Involving students in state-of-the-art research from an early age eliminates the idea that science is only for the scientists and empowers young people to explore STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects. It is also a great opportunity to dispel harmful stereotypes about who is suitable for STEM careers, while leaving students feeling engaged in modern science and the scientific method. As part of the Twinkle Space Mission’s educational programme, EduTwinkle, students between the ages of 15 and 18 have been performing original research associated with the exploration of space since January 2016. The student groups have each been led by junior researchers - PhD student and post-doctoral scientists - who themselves benefit substantially from the opportunity to supervise and manage a research project. This research aims to meet a standard for publication in peer-reviewed journals. At present the research of one ORBYTS team has been published in the Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series and another submitted to JQSRT; we expect more papers to follow. Here we outline the necessary steps for a productive scientific collaboration with school children, generalising from the successes and downfalls of the pilot ORBYTS projects.

A simple model for research interest evolution patterns

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, Tao; Wang, Dashun; Szymanski, Boleslaw

Sir Isaac Newton supposedly remarked that in his scientific career he was like ``...a boy playing on the sea-shore ...finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary''. His remarkable modesty and famous understatement motivate us to seek regularities in how scientists shift their research focus as the career develops. Indeed, despite intensive investigations on how microscopic factors, such as incentives and risks, would influence a scientist's choice of research agenda, little is known on the macroscopic patterns in the research interest change undertaken by individual scientists throughout their careers. Here we make use of over 14,000 authors' publication records in physics. By quantifying statistical characteristics in the interest evolution, we model scientific research as a random walk, which reproduces patterns in individuals' careers observed empirically. Despite myriad of factors that shape and influence individual choices of research subjects, we identified regularities in this dynamical process that are well captured by a simple statistical model. The results advance our understanding of scientists' behaviors during their careers and open up avenues for future studies in the science of science.

Building Bridges. Researchers on their experiences with interdisciplinary research in the Netherlands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Boer, Y.; De Gier, A.; Verschuur, M.; De Wit, B.

2006-01-01

The central question in this booklet is: what can we learn from interdisciplinary research and individual interdisciplinary researchers? How did they deal with specific problems in the field of epistemology, methodology and organization? What kind of persons are best suited to carry out interdisciplinary research or fulfil the task of project or programme coordinator? For this purpose, a series of interviews was held with fifteen scientists in the Netherlands. Most, but not all of the researchers interviewed are engaged in environmental and climate change research. A minority of the interviewed do research on other topics like demography, social geography, nano technology and philosophy of science

Things That Scientists Don't Understand About NASA Spaceflight Research

Science.gov (United States)

Platts, S. H.; Bauer, Terri; Rogers, Shanna

2017-01-01

So you want to conduct human spaceflight research aboard the International Space Station (ISS)? Once your spaceflight research aboard the ISS is proposal is funded.... the real work begins. Because resources are so limited for ISS research, it is necessary to maximize the work being done, while at the same time, minimizing the resources spent. Astronauts may be presented with over 30 human research experiments and select, on average approximately 15 in which to participate. In order to conduct this many studies, ISSMP uses the study requirements provided by the principle investigator to integrate all of this work into the astronauts' complement. The most important thing for investigators to convey to the ISSMP team is their RESEARCH REQUIREMENTS. Requirements are captured in the Experiment document. This document is the official record of how, what, where and when data will be collected. One common mistake that investigators make is not taking this document seriously, but when push comes to shove, if a research requirement is not in this document....it will not get done. The research requirements are then integrated to form a complement of research for each astronaut. What do we mean by integration? Many experiments have overlapping requirements; blood draws, behavioral surveys, heart rate measurement. Where possible, these measures are combined to reduce redundancy and save crew time. Investigators can access these data via data sharing agreements. More examples of how ISS research is integrated will be presented. There are additional limitations commonly associated with human spaceflight research that will also be discussed. Large/heavy hardware, invasive procedures, and toxic reagents are extremely difficult to implement on the ISS. There are strict limits placed on the amount of blood that can be drawn from crew members during (and immediately after) spaceflight. These limits are based on 30-day rolling accumulations. We have recently had to start restricting

Association of Polar Early Career Scientists: a model for experiential learning in professional development for students and early career researchers

Science.gov (United States)

Bradley, A. C.; Hindshaw, R. S.; Fugmann, G.; Mariash, H.

2016-12-01

The Association of Polar Early Career Scientists was established by early career researchers during the 2007-2008 International Polar Year as an organization for early career researchers in the polar and cryospheric sciences. APECS works to promote early career researchers through soft-skills training in both research and outreach activities, through advocating for including early career researchers in all levels of the scientific process and scientific management, and through supporting a world-wide network of researchers in varied fields. APECS is lead by early career researchers; this self-driven model has proved to be an effective means for developing the leadership, management, and communication skills that are essential in the sciences, and has shown to be sustainable even in a community where frequent turn-over is inherent to the members. Since its inception, APECS has reached over 5,500 members in more than 80 countries, and we have placed more than 50 early career researchers on working groups and steering committees with organizations around the world in the last two years alone. The close partnerships that APECS has with national and international organizations exposes members to both academic and alternative career paths, including those at the science-policy interface. This paper describes APECS's approach to experiential learning in professional development and the best practices identified over our nearly ten years as an organization.

Birth of prominent scientists.

Science.gov (United States)

Reyes Gonzalez, Leonardo; González Brambila, Claudia N; Veloso, Francisco

2018-01-01

This paper analyzes the influence key scientists have in the development of a science and technology system. In particular, this work appraises the influence that star scientists have on the productivity and impact of young faculty, as well as on the likelihood that these young researchers become a leading personality in science. Our analysis confirms previous results that eminent scientist have a prime role in the development of a scientific system, especially within the context of an emerging economy like Mexico. In particular, in terms of productivity and visibility, this work shows that between 1984 and 2001 the elite group of physicists in Mexico (approximate 10% of all scientists working in physics and its related fields) published 42% of all publications, received 50% of all citations and bred 18% to 26% of new entrants. In addition our work shows that scientists that enter the system by the hand of a highly productive researcher increased their productivity on average by 28% and the ones that did it by the hand of a highly visible scientist received on average 141% more citations, vis-à-vis scholars that did not published their first manuscripts with an eminent scientist. Furthermore, scholars that enter the system by the hand of a highly productive researcher were on average 2.5 more likely to also become a star.

Birth of prominent scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Reyes Gonzalez, Leonardo; Veloso, Francisco

2018-01-01

This paper analyzes the influence key scientists have in the development of a science and technology system. In particular, this work appraises the influence that star scientists have on the productivity and impact of young faculty, as well as on the likelihood that these young researchers become a leading personality in science. Our analysis confirms previous results that eminent scientist have a prime role in the development of a scientific system, especially within the context of an emerging economy like Mexico. In particular, in terms of productivity and visibility, this work shows that between 1984 and 2001 the elite group of physicists in Mexico (approximate 10% of all scientists working in physics and its related fields) published 42% of all publications, received 50% of all citations and bred 18% to 26% of new entrants. In addition our work shows that scientists that enter the system by the hand of a highly productive researcher increased their productivity on average by 28% and the ones that did it by the hand of a highly visible scientist received on average 141% more citations, vis-à-vis scholars that did not published their first manuscripts with an eminent scientist. Furthermore, scholars that enter the system by the hand of a highly productive researcher were on average 2.5 more likely to also become a star. PMID:29543855

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Report 18: A comparison of the technical communication practices of aerospace engineers and scientists in India and the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Barclay, Rebecca O.; Kennedy, John M.

1993-01-01

As part of Phase 4 of the NASA/DoD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, two studies were conducted that investigated the technical communications practices of India and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. Both studies have the same seven objectives: first, to solicit the opinions of aerospace engineers and scientists regarding the importance of technical communications to their profession; second, to determine the use and production of technical communications by aerospace engineers and scientists; third, to seek their views about the appropriate content of an undergraduate course in technical communications; fourth, to determine aerospace engineers' and scientists' use of libraries, technical information centers, and on-line data bases; fifth, to determine the use and importance of computer and information technology to them; sixth, to determine their use of electronic networks; and seventh, to determine their use of foreign and domestically produced technical reports. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to aerospace engineers and scientists at the Indian Institute of Science and the NASA Langley Research Center. The completion rates for the India and U.S. surveys were 48 and 53 percent, respectively. Responses of the India and U.S. participants to selected questions are presented in this report.

Multi-Institutional Collaborative Astronomy Education Research

Science.gov (United States)

Slater, T. F.; Slater, S. J.

2011-09-01

ASP, AAS, APS, and AAPT advocate that scientists should be engaged and acknowledged for successfully engaging in astronomy and physics education research and the scholarship of teaching because these efforts serve to improve pedagogical techniques and the evaluation of teaching. However, scientists have had the opportunity to pursue formal training in how to meaningfully engage in astronomy education research as an important scholarly endeavor. This special interest session for college and university physics and astronomy faculty, post-docs, and graduate students provided a forum to discuss the motivations, strategies, methodology, and publication routes for improving astronomy education through conducting rigorous science education research. Topics for discussion targeted the value of various education research questions, strengths and weaknesses of several different research design methodologies, strategies to successfully obtain Institutional Review Board approval to conduct education research on human subjects, and become more aware of how education research articles are created for publication in journals such as the Astronomy Education Review.

Consultancy research as a barrier to strengthening social science research capacity in Uganda.

Science.gov (United States)

Wight, Daniel; Ahikire, Josephine; Kwesiga, Joy C

2014-09-01

There is a shortage of senior African social scientists available to lead or manage research in Africa, undermining the continent's ability to interpret and solve its socio-economic and public health problems. This is despite decades of investment to strengthen research capacity. This study investigated the role of individually commissioned consultancy research in this lack of capacity. In 2006 structured interviews (N = 95) and two group discussions (N = 16 total) were conducted with a fairly representative sample of Ugandan academic social scientists from four universities. Twenty-four senior members of 22 Ugandan and international commissioning organizations were interviewed. Eight key actors were interviewed in greater depth. Much of Ugandan social science research appears to take the form of small, individually contracted consultancy projects. Researchers perceived this to constrain their professional development and, more broadly, social science research capacity across Uganda. Conversely, most research commissioners seemed broadly satisfied with the research expertise available and felt no responsibility to contribute to strengthening research capacity. Most consultancy research does not involve institutional overheads and there seems little awareness of, or interest in, such overheads. Although inequalities in the global knowledge economy are probably perpetuated primarily by macro-level factors, in line with Dependency Theory, meso-level factors are also important. The current research market and institutional structures in Uganda appear to create career paths that seriously impede the development of high quality social science research capacity, undermining donor investments and professional effort to strengthen this capacity. These problems are probably generic to much of sub-Saharan Africa. However, both commissioning and research organizations seem ready, in principle, to establish national guidelines for institutional research consultancies. These

Research design: the methodology for interdisciplinary research framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Tobi, Hilde; Kampen, Jarl K

2018-01-01

Many of today's global scientific challenges require the joint involvement of researchers from different disciplinary backgrounds (social sciences, environmental sciences, climatology, medicine, etc.). Such interdisciplinary research teams face many challenges resulting from differences in training and scientific culture. Interdisciplinary education programs are required to train truly interdisciplinary scientists with respect to the critical factor skills and competences. For that purpose this paper presents the Methodology for Interdisciplinary Research (MIR) framework. The MIR framework was developed to help cross disciplinary borders, especially those between the natural sciences and the social sciences. The framework has been specifically constructed to facilitate the design of interdisciplinary scientific research, and can be applied in an educational program, as a reference for monitoring the phases of interdisciplinary research, and as a tool to design such research in a process approach. It is suitable for research projects of different sizes and levels of complexity, and it allows for a range of methods' combinations (case study, mixed methods, etc.). The different phases of designing interdisciplinary research in the MIR framework are described and illustrated by real-life applications in teaching and research. We further discuss the framework's utility in research design in landscape architecture, mixed methods research, and provide an outlook to the framework's potential in inclusive interdisciplinary research, and last but not least, research integrity.

The Community Mentorship Program: Providing Community-Engagement Opportunities for Early-Stage Clinical and Translational Scientists to Facilitate Research Translation.

Science.gov (United States)

Patino, Cecilia M; Kubicek, Katrina; Robles, Marisela; Kiger, Holly; Dzekov, Jeanne

2017-02-01

A goal of the Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC-CTSI) at the University of Southern California and Children's Hospital Los Angeles is to train early-stage clinical and translational scientists (CTSs) to conduct research that improves the health of diverse communities. This goal aligns well with the Institute of Medicine's recommendations emphasizing community engagement in biomedical research that facilitates research translation. The Community Mentorship Program (CMP), created to complement community-engaged research didactics, matches CTSs with community mentors who help them identify and complete community-engaged experiences that inform their research. The CMP was piloted in 2013-2015 by the SC-CTSI Workforce Development and Community Engagement cores. The CMP team matched three CTSs (assistant professors pursuing mentored career development awards) with mentors at community-based organizations (CBOs) aligned with their research interests. Each mentor-mentee pair signed a memorandum of understanding. The CMP team checked in regularly, monitoring progress and addressing challenges in CTSs' completion of their community-engaged experience. Each pair completed at least one community-engaged activity informing the CTS's research. In exit interviews, the CTSs and CBO mentors expressed satisfaction with the program and stated that they would continue to work together. The CTSs reported that the program provided opportunities to develop networks outside academia, build trust within the community, and receive feedback and learn from individuals in communities affected by their research. The CMP will be expanded to include all eligible early-career CTSs and promoted for use in similar settings outside the SC-CTSI.

Participatory Action Research Experiences for Undergraduates

Science.gov (United States)

Sample McMeeking, L. B.; Weinberg, A. E.

2013-12-01

Research experiences for undergraduates (REU) have been shown to be effective in improving undergraduate students' personal/professional development, ability to synthesize knowledge, improvement in research skills, professional advancement, and career choice. Adding to the literature on REU programs, a new conceptual model situating REU within a context of participatory action research (PAR) is presented and compared with data from a PAR-based coastal climate research experience that took place in Summer 2012. The purpose of the interdisciplinary Participatory Action Research Experiences for Undergraduates (PAREU) model is to act as an additional year to traditional, lab-based REU where undergraduate science students, social science experts, and community members collaborate to develop research with the goal of enacting change. The benefits to traditional REU's are well established and include increased content knowledge, better research skills, changes in attitudes, and greater career awareness gained by students. Additional positive outcomes are expected from undergraduate researchers (UR) who participate in PAREU, including the ability to better communicate with non-scientists. With highly politicized aspects of science, such as climate change, this becomes especially important for future scientists. Further, they will be able to articulate the relevance of science research to society, which is an important skill, especially given the funding climate where agencies require broader impacts statements. Making science relevant may also benefit URs who wish to apply their science research. Finally, URs will gain social science research skills by apprenticing in a research project that includes science and social science research components, which enables them to participate in future education and outreach. The model also positively impacts community members by elevating their voices within and outside the community, particularly in areas severely underserved

Networks of Collaboration among Scientists in a Center for Diabetes Translation Research

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Jenine K.; Wong, Roger; Thompson, Kellie; Haire-Joshu, Debra; Hipp, J. Aaron

2015-01-01

Background Transdisciplinary collaboration is essential in addressing the translation gap between scientific discovery and delivery of evidence-based interventions to prevent and treat diabetes. We examined patterns of collaboration among scientists at the Washington University Center for Diabetes Translation Research. Methods Members (n = 56) of the Washington University Center for Diabetes Translation Research were surveyed about collaboration overall and on publications, presentations, and grants; 87.5% responded (n = 49). We used traditional and network descriptive statistics and visualization to examine the networks and exponential random graph modeling to identify predictors of collaboration. Results The 56 network members represented nine disciplines. On average, network members had been affiliated with the center for 3.86 years (s.d. = 1.41). The director was by far the most central in all networks. The overall and publication networks were the densest, while the overall and grant networks were the most centralized. The grant network was the most transdisciplinary. The presentation network was the least dense, least centralized, and least transdisciplinary. For every year of center affiliation, network members were 10% more likely to collaborate (OR: 1.10; 95% CI: 1.00–1.21) and 13% more likely to write a paper together (OR: 1.13; 95% CI: 1.02–1.25). Network members in the same discipline were over twice as likely to collaborate in the overall network (OR: 2.10; 95% CI: 1.40–3.15); however, discipline was not associated with collaboration in the other networks. Rank was not associated with collaboration in any network. Conclusions As transdisciplinary centers become more common, it is important to identify structural features, such as a central leader and ongoing collaboration over time, associated with scholarly productivity and, ultimately, with advancing science and practice. PMID:26301873

Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Journal Homepage Image. We seek to encourage pharmaceutical and allied research of tropical and international relevance and to foster multidisciplinary research and collaboration among scientists, the pharmaceutical industry and the healthcare professionals. We publish articles in pharmaceutical sciences and related ...

History of acupuncture research.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhuang, Yi; Xing, Jing-jing; Li, Juan; Zeng, Bai-Yun; Liang, Fan-rong

2013-01-01

The acupuncture has been practiced in China for more than 3000 years and was spread to Europe and American from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century. The history of acupuncture research was initiated in the eighteenth century and developed rapidly since then. In the past, physicians tried hard to apply acupuncture into clinical practice, while scientists were focused on the possible characteristics of acupoints and meridians. In the modern time, scientists have strived hard to evaluate the real effectiveness of acupuncture and the underlying physiological and biological mechanisms of acupuncture. Reviewing research history from past to present, we are delighted to witness this wonderful development. Accumulated evidences that acupuncture is beneficial in various conditions significantly enhanced our understanding the mechanisms of acupuncture treatment. However, there is still no conclusive evidence in acupuncture clinical studies. The clinical research still needs great improving, while the basic research results need to be appropriately transformed into clinical outcomes. Based on current achievements, we believe that although the challenges and difficulties exist, a more collaborative, innovative, and integrated approach will help us to achieve further progress in future acupuncture research. © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science

Science.gov (United States)

Gross, Anthony R. (Technical Monitor); Leiner, Barry M.

2000-01-01

The Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science (RIACS) carries out basic research and technology development in computer science, in support of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's missions. RIACS is located at the NASA Ames Research Center. It currently operates under a multiple year grant/cooperative agreement that began on October 1, 1997 and is up for renewal in the year 2002. Ames has been designated NASA's Center of Excellence in Information Technology. In this capacity, Ames is charged with the responsibility to build an Information Technology Research Program that is preeminent within NASA. RIACS serves as a bridge between NASA Ames and the academic community, and RIACS scientists and visitors work in close collaboration with NASA scientists. RIACS has the additional goal of broadening the base of researchers in these areas of importance to the nation's space and aeronautics enterprises. RIACS research focuses on the three cornerstones of information technology research necessary to meet the future challenges of NASA missions: (1) Automated Reasoning for Autonomous Systems. Techniques are being developed enabling spacecraft that will be self-guiding and self-correcting to the extent that they will require little or no human intervention. Such craft will be equipped to independently solve problems as they arise, and fulfill their missions with minimum direction from Earth; (2) Human-Centered Computing. Many NASA missions require synergy between humans and computers, with sophisticated computational aids amplifying human cognitive and perceptual abilities; (3) High Performance Computing and Networking. Advances in the performance of computing and networking continue to have major impact on a variety of NASA endeavors, ranging from modeling and simulation to data analysis of large datasets to collaborative engineering, planning and execution. In addition, RIACS collaborates with NASA scientists to apply information technology research to a

Integrating intersectionality and biomedicine in health disparities research.

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Ursula A

2009-01-01

Persisting health disparities have lead to calls for an increase in health research to address them. Biomedical scientists call for research that stratifies individual indicators associated with health disparities, for example, ethnicity. Feminist social scientists recommend feminist intersectionality research. Intersectionality is the multiplicative effect of inequalities experienced by nondominant marginalized groups, for example, ethnic minorities, women, and the poor. The elimination of health disparities necessitates integration of both paradigms in health research. This study provides a practical application of the integration of biomedical and feminist intersectionality paradigms in nursing research, using a psychiatric intervention study with battered Latino women as an example.

The physician-scientists: rare species in Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Adefuye, Anthonio Oladele; Adeola, Henry Ademola; Bezuidenhout, Johan

2018-01-01

There is paucity of physician-scientists in Africa, resulting in overt dependence of clinical practice on research findings from advanced "first world" countries. Physician-scientists include individuals with a medical degree alone or combined with other advanced degrees (e.g. MD/MBChB and PhD) with a career path in biomedical/ translational and patient-oriented/evaluative science research. The paucity of clinically trained research scientists in Africa could result in dire consequences as exemplified in the recent Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa, where shortage of skilled clinical scientists, played a major role in disease progression and mortality. Here we contextualise the role of physician-scientist in health care management, highlight factors limiting the training of physician-scientist in Africa and proffer implementable recommendations to address these factors.

International Journal of Health Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erah

engineering fields). It seeks particularly (but not exclusively) to encourage multidisciplinary research and collaboration among scientists, the industry and the healthcare ... The journal welcomes original research papers, reviews and case reports on current topics of special .... software package version 6.1 (CDC, Atlanta,.

NCI Research Specialist Award (R50)

Science.gov (United States)

Award enables scientists to pursue stable research careers within an existing cancer research program, but not serve as independent investigators. Letter of Intent due: January 2, 2017 Application due: February 2, 2017

Do scientists trace hot topics?

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Tian; Li, Menghui; Wu, Chensheng; Yan, Xiao-Yong; Fan, Ying; Di, Zengru; Wu, Jinshan

2013-01-01

Do scientists follow hot topics in their scientific investigations? In this paper, by performing analysis to papers published in the American Physical Society (APS) Physical Review journals, it is found that papers are more likely to be attracted by hot fields, where the hotness of a field is measured by the number of papers belonging to the field. This indicates that scientists generally do follow hot topics. However, there are qualitative differences among scientists from various countries, among research works regarding different number of authors, different number of affiliations and different number of references. These observations could be valuable for policy makers when deciding research funding and also for individual researchers when searching for scientific projects.

Field-Based Teacher Research: How Teachers and Scientists Working Together Answers Questions about Turtle Nesting Ecology while Enhancing Teachers' Inquiry Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Winters, J. M.; Jungblut, D.; Catena, A. N.; Rubenstein, D. I.

2013-12-01

Providing rigorous academic supplement to a professional development program for teachers, QUEST is a fusion of Drexel University's environmental science research department with Princeton University's Program in Teacher Preparation. Completed in the summers of 2012 (in partnership with Earthwatch) and 2013 in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey, QUEST's terrapin field research program enhances K-12 teachers' ecological knowledge, develops inquiry-based thinking in the classroom, and builds citizen science engagement. With a focus on quality question development and data analysis to answer questions, teachers are coached in developing, implementing, and presenting independent research projects on diamondback terrapin nesting ecology. As a result, teachers participating in QUEST's week long program bring a realistic example of science in action into their classrooms, helping to develop their own students' critical thinking skills. For teachers, this program provides training towards educating students on how to do real and imaginative science - subsequently sending students to university better prepared to engage in their own independent research. An essential component of the collaboration through QUEST, in addition to the teacher's experience during and after the summer institute, is the research data collected which supplements that of the Principal Investigator. In 2012, by documenting terrapin nest site predators, teachers gained valuable scientific experience, while Drexel acquired important ecological data which would have not been able to be collected otherwise. In 2013, teachers helped answer important questions about terrapin nesting success post Superstorm Sandy. In fact, the 2013 QUEST teachers are the first to visualize the frighteningly increased erosion of a primary terrapin nesting site due to Sandy; showing how most terrapin nests now lie in the bay, instead of safe on shore. Teachers comment that interacting with scientists in the field, and contributing to

History and Outcomes of 50 Years of Physician-Scientist Training in Medical Scientist Training Programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Harding, Clifford V; Akabas, Myles H; Andersen, Olaf S

2017-10-01

Physician-scientists are needed to continue the great pace of recent biomedical research and translate scientific findings to clinical applications. MD-PhD programs represent one approach to train physician-scientists. MD-PhD training started in the 1950s and expanded greatly with the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP), launched in 1964 by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) at the National Institutes of Health. MD-PhD training has been influenced by substantial changes in medical education, science, and clinical fields since its inception. In 2014, NIGMS held a 50th Anniversary MSTP Symposium highlighting the program and assessing its outcomes. In 2016, there were over 90 active MD-PhD programs in the United States, of which 45 were MSTP supported, with a total of 988 trainee slots. Over 10,000 students have received MSTP support since 1964. The authors present data for the demographic characteristics and outcomes for 9,683 MSTP trainees from 1975-2014. The integration of MD and PhD training has allowed trainees to develop a rigorous foundation in research in concert with clinical training. MSTP graduates have had relative success in obtaining research grants and have become prominent leaders in many biomedical research fields. Many challenges remain, however, including the need to maintain rigorous scientific components in evolving medical curricula, to enhance research-oriented residency and fellowship opportunities in a widening scope of fields targeted by MSTP graduates, to achieve greater racial diversity and gender balance in the physician-scientist workforce, and to sustain subsequent research activities of physician-scientists.

Research Ethics with Undergraduates in Summer Research Training Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Cheung, I.; Yalcin, K.

2016-02-01

Many undergraduate research training programs incorporate research ethics into their programs and some are required. Engaging students in conversations around challenging topics such as conflict of interest, cultural and gender biases, what is science and what is normative science can difficult in newly formed student cohorts. In addition, discussing topics with more distant impacts such as science and policy, intellectual property and authorship, can be difficult for students in their first research experience that have more immediate concerns about plagiarism, data manipulation, and the student/faculty relationship. Oregon State University's Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in Ocean Sciences: From Estuaries to the Deep Sea as one model for incorporating a research ethics component into summer undergraduate research training programs. Weaved into the 10-week REU program, undergraduate interns participate in a series of conversations and a faculty mentor panel focused on research ethics. Topics discussed are in a framework for sharing myths, knowledge and personal experiences on issues in research with ethical implications. The series follows guidelines and case studies outlined from the text, On Being A Scientist: Responsible Conduct In Research Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy, National Academy of Sciences.

The culture of scientific research.

Science.gov (United States)

Joynson, Catherine; Leyser, Ottoline

2015-01-01

In 2014, the UK-based Nuffield Council on Bioethics carried out a series of engagement activities, including an online survey to which 970 people responded, and 15 discussion events at universities around the UK to explore the culture of research in the UK and its effect on ethical conduct in science and the quality of research. The findings of the project were published in December 2014 and the main points are summarised here. We found that scientists are motivated in their work to find out more about the world and to benefit society, and that they believe collaboration, multidisciplinarity, openness and creativity are important for the production of high quality science. However, in some cases, our findings suggest, the culture of research in higher education institutions does not support or encourage these goals or activities. For example, high levels of competition and perceptions about how scientists are assessed for jobs and funding are reportedly contributing to a loss of creativity in science, less collaboration and poor research practices. The project led to suggestions for action for funding bodies, research institutions, publishers and editors, professional bodies and individual researchers.

Applied regression analysis a research tool

CERN Document Server

Pantula, Sastry; Dickey, David

1998-01-01

Least squares estimation, when used appropriately, is a powerful research tool. A deeper understanding of the regression concepts is essential for achieving optimal benefits from a least squares analysis. This book builds on the fundamentals of statistical methods and provides appropriate concepts that will allow a scientist to use least squares as an effective research tool. Applied Regression Analysis is aimed at the scientist who wishes to gain a working knowledge of regression analysis. The basic purpose of this book is to develop an understanding of least squares and related statistical methods without becoming excessively mathematical. It is the outgrowth of more than 30 years of consulting experience with scientists and many years of teaching an applied regression course to graduate students. Applied Regression Analysis serves as an excellent text for a service course on regression for non-statisticians and as a reference for researchers. It also provides a bridge between a two-semester introduction to...

Preparing new Earth Science teachers via a collaborative program between Research Scientists and Educators

Science.gov (United States)

Grcevich, Jana; Pagnotta, Ashley; Mac Low, Mordecai-Mark; Shara, Michael; Flores, Kennet; Nadeau, Patricia A.; Sessa, Jocelyn; Ustunisik, Gokce; Zirakparvar, Nasser; Ebel, Denton; Harlow, George; Webster, James D.; Kinzler, Rosamond; MacDonald, Maritza B.; Contino, Julie; Cooke-Nieves, Natasha; Howes, Elaine; Zachowski, Marion

2015-01-01

The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) Program at the American Museum of Natural History is a innovative program designed to prepare participants to be world-class Earth Science teachers. New York State is experiencing a lack of qualified Earth Science teachers, leading in the short term to a reduction in students who successfully complete the Earth Science Regents examination, and in the long term potential reductions in the number of students who go on to pursue college degrees in Earth Science related disciplines. The MAT program addresses this problem via a collaboration between practicing research scientists and education faculty. The faculty consists of curators and postdoctoral researchers from the Departments of Astrophysics, Earth and Planetary Sciences, and the Division of Paleontology, as well as doctoral-level education experts. During the 15-month, full-time program, students participate in a residency program at local urban classrooms as well as taking courses and completing field work in astrophysics, geology, earth science, and paleontology. The program targets high-needs schools with diverse populations. We seek to encourage, stimulate interest, and inform the students impacted by our program, most of whom are from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds, about the rich possibilities for careers in Earth Science related disciplines and the intrinsic value of the subject. We report on the experience of the first and second cohorts, all of whom are now employed in full time teaching positions, and the majority in high needs schools in New York State.

Progress report from the Studsvik Neutron Research Laboratory 1990-91

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dahlborg, U.; Ebbsjoe, I.; Holmqvist, B.

1992-01-01

The Studsvik Neutron Research Laboratory (NFL) is the base for the research activities at the Studsvik reactors. It is administrated by the University of Uppsala and is established to facilitate reactor based research. The laboratory is intended to, in co-operation with institutes and department at universities in Sweden, develop, construct and maintain experimental equipment for this kind of research and to make it available for scientists at Swedish universities and, if possible, also to scientists outside the universities. The research at the Studsvik facilities has during 1990 and 1991 been performed by groups form Uppsala University, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Chalmers Technical University, Gothenburg, and by scientists at NFL. The research programme of the groups is divided into three main areas, scattering of thermal neutrons, nuclear chemistry/nuclear physics, and neutron capture radiography

Development and verification of remote research environment based on 'Fusion research grid'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iba, Katsuyuki; Ozeki, Takahisa; Totsuka, Toshiyuki; Suzuki, Yoshio; Oshima, Takayuki; Sakata, Shinya; Sato, Minoru; Suzuki, Mitsuhiro; Hamamatsu, Kiyotaka; Kiyono, Kimihiro

2008-01-01

'Fusion research grid' is a concept that unites scientists and let them collaborate effectively against their difference in time zone and location in a nuclear fusion research. Fundamental technologies of 'Fusion research grid' have been developed at JAEA in the VizGrid project under the e-Japan project at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). We are conscious of needs to create new systems that assist researchers with their research activities because remote collaborations have been increasing in international projects. Therefore we have developed prototype remote research environments for experiments, diagnostics, analyses and communications based on 'Fusion research grid'. All users can access these environments from anywhere because 'Fusion research grid' does not require a closed network like Super SINET to maintain security. The prototype systems were verified in experiments at JT-60U and their availability was confirmed

Scientists: Engage the Public!

OpenAIRE

Shugart, Erika C.; Racaniello, Vincent R.

2015-01-01

ABSTRACT Scientists must communicate about science with public audiences to promote an understanding of complex issues that we face in our technologically advanced society. Some scientists may be concerned about a social stigma or ?Sagan effect? associated with participating in public communication. Recent research in the social sciences indicates that public communication by scientists is not a niche activity but is widely done and can be beneficial to a scientist?s career. There are a varie...

Extramural Research Grants and Scientists’ Funding Strategies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grimpe, Christoph

2012-01-01

Although competitive funding of public research has been characterised as providing output incentives that raise efficiency and productivity, we know very little about whether the quality of a scientist’s research is in fact the primary award criterion on which funding bodies base their grant...... decision. This paper provides insights into scientists’ strategies for obtaining project-based research funding in the presence of multiple funding opportunities. It draws a distinction between four types of grants, including the Sixth Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP6......), government, foundation, and industry grants. Based on a sample of more than 800 scientists at universities and public research institutes in Germany, the results indicate that scientist productivity measured in terms of publication and patent stock is a statistically significant determinant only...

Citation analysis in research evaluation

CERN Document Server

Moed, Henk F

2005-01-01

This book is written for members of the scholarly research community, and for persons involved in research evaluation and research policy. More specifically, it is directed towards the following four main groups of readers: - All scientists and scholars who have been or will be subjected to a quantitative assessment of research performance using citation analysis. - Research policy makers and managers who wish to become conversant with the basic features of citation analysis, and about its potentialities and limitations. - Members of peer review committees and other evaluators, who consider th

Clinician-scientists in Canada: barriers to career entry and progress.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bryn Lander

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Clinician-scientists play an important role in translating between research and clinical practice. Significant concerns about a decline in their numbers have been raised. Potential barriers for career entry and progress are explored in this study. METHODS: Case-study research methods were used to identify barriers perceived by clinician-scientists and their research teams in two Canadian laboratories. These perceptions were then compared against statistical analysis of data from Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR databases on grant and award performance of clinician-scientists and non-clinical PhDs for fiscal years 2000 to 2008. RESULTS: Three main barriers were identified through qualitative analysis: research training, research salaries, and research grants. We then looked for evidence of these barriers in the Canada-wide statistical dataset for our study period. Clinician-scientists had a small but statistically significant higher mean number of degrees (3.3 than non-clinical scientists (3.2, potentially confirming the perception of longer training times. But evidence of the other two barriers was equivocal. For example, while overall growth in salary awards was minimal, awards to clinician-scientists increased by 45% compared to 6.3% for non-clinical PhDs. Similarly, in terms of research funding, awards to clinician-scientists increased by more than 25% compared with 5% for non-clinical PhDs. However, clinician-scientist-led grants funded under CIHR's Clinical thematic area decreased significantly from 61% to 51% (p-value<0.001 suggesting that clinician-scientists may be shifting their attention to other research domains. CONCLUSION: While clinician-scientists continue to perceive barriers to career entry and progress, quantitative results suggest improvements over the last decade. Clinician-scientists are awarded an increasing proportion of CIHR research grants and salary awards. Given the translational importance of

Search, access and dissemination of scientific information from scientists, social scientists and humanists

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fernando César Lima Leite

2015-05-01

Full Text Available This paper presents results of study on the characteristics of search activities, access to and use of information, and dissemination habits of researchers from scientific research institutes. From the methodological point of view, it is a mixed methods study which adopted the concurrent triangulation strategy. Data were collected through questionnaires, interviews and checklist, and then submitted to statistical and text analysis. The research sphere was consisted of researchers linked to the research units of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, and the sample basis were the researchers of the Brazilian Centre for Physics Research (CBPF and Museum of Astronomy and Related Sciences (MAST. Among other aspects, the findings shows that the safeguarded their disciplinary differences, search, access and communication activities, regardless of the knowledge area, occurring mainly in the digital environment; communication habits are stimulated by motives common to scientists and social scientists and humanists, share knowledge and visibility are the main reasons for the dissemination of research results, physicists are naturally within the open access context.

ASPIRE: Teachers and researchers working together to enhance student learning

Science.gov (United States)

Yager, P. L.; Garay, D. L.; Warburton, J.

2016-02-01

Given the impact of human activities on the ocean, involving teachers, students, and their families in scientific inquiry has never been more important. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) disciplines have become key focus areas in the education community of the United States. Newly adopted across the nation, Next Generation Science Standards require that educators embrace innovative approaches to teaching. Transforming classrooms to actively engage students through a combination of knowledge and practice develops conceptual understanding and application skills. The partnerships between researchers and educators during the Amundsen Sea Polynya International Research Expedition (ASPIRE) offer an example of how academic research can enhance K-12 student learning. In this presentation, we illustrate how ASPIRE teacher-scientist partnerships helped engage students with actual and virtual authentic scientific investigations. Scientists benefit from teacher/researcher collaborations as well, as funding for scientific research also depends on effective communication between scientists and the public. While contributing to broader impacts needed to justify federal funding, scientists also benefit by having their research explained in ways that the broader public can understand: collaborations with teachers produce classroom lessons and published work that generate interest in the scientists' research specifically and in marine science in general. Researchers can also learn from their education partners about more effective teaching strategies that can be transferred to the college level. Researchers who work with teachers in turn gain perspectives on the constraints that teachers and students face in the pre-college classroom. Crosscutting concepts of research in polar marine science can serve as intellectual tools to connect important ideas about ocean and climate science for the public good.

Research ethics and integrity for social scientists beyond regulatory compliance

CERN Document Server

Israel, Mark

2014-01-01

This book explores recent developments and debates around researching ethically and with integrity, and complying with ethical requirements, and has been updated and expanded to now cover issues relating to international, indigenous, interdisciplinary and internet research.  

Tides, Krill, Penguins, Oh My!: Scientists and Teachers Partner in Project CONVERGE to Bring Collaborative Antarctic Research, Authentic Data, and Scientific Inquiry into the Hands of NJ and NY Students

Science.gov (United States)

Hunter-thomson, K. I.; Kohut, J. T.; Florio, K.; McDonnell, J. D.; Ferraro, C.; Clark, H.; Gardner, K.; Oliver, M. J.

2016-02-01

How do you get middle and high school students excited about scientific inquiry? Have them join a collaborative research team in Antarctica! A comprehensive education program brought ocean science, marine ecology, and climate change impact research to more than 950 students in 2014-15 to increase their exposure to and excitement of current research. The program was integrated into a collaborative research project, involving five universities, that worked to characterize the connection between ocean circulation, plankton distribution, penguin foraging behavior, and climate change around Palmer Station, Antarctica. The scientists and education team co-led a weeklong workshop to expose 22 teachers to the research science, build relationships among the teachers and scientists, and refine the program to most effectively communicate the research to their students. In the fall, teachers taught NGSS-aligned, hands-on, data-focused classroom lessons to provide their students the necessary content to understand the project hypotheses using multiple science practices. Through a professional science blog and live video calls from Antarctica, students followed and discussed the science teams work while they were in the field. To apply the science practices the students had learned about, they designed, conducted, and analyzed their own ocean-related, inquiry-based research investigation as the culminating component of the program (results were presented at a Student Research Symposium attended by the science team). Of their own choosing, roughly half of the students used raw data from the CONVERGE research (including krill, CODAR, penguin, and glider data) for their investigations. This presentation will focus on the evaluation results of the education program to identify the aspects that successfully engaged teachers and students with scientific inquiry, science practices, and authentic data as well as the replicability of this integrated scientist-teacher partnership and

RCOP: Research Center for Optical Physics

Science.gov (United States)

Tabibi, Bagher M. (Principal Investigator)

1996-01-01

During the five years since its inception, Research Center for Optical Physics (RCOP) has excelled in the goals stated in the original proposal: 1) training of the scientists and engineers needed for the twenty-first century with special emphasis on underrepresented citizens and 2) research and technological development in areas of relevance to NASA. In the category of research training, there have been 16 Bachelors degrees and 9 Masters degrees awarded to African American students working in RCOP during the last five years. RCOP has also provided research experience to undergraduate and high school students through a number of outreach programs held during the summer and the academic year. RCOP has also been instrumental in the development of the Ph.D. program in physics which is in its fourth year at Hampton. There are currently over 40 graduate students in the program and 9 African American graduate students, working in RCOP, that have satisfied all of the requirements for Ph.D. candidancy and are working on their dissertation research. At least three of these students will be awarded their doctoral degrees during 1997. RCOP has also excelled in research and technological development. During the first five years of existence, RCOP researchers have generated well over $3 M in research funding that directly supports the Center. Close ties with NASA Langley and NASA Lewis have been established, and collaborations with NASA scientists, URC's and other universities as well as with industry have been developed. This success is evidenced by the rate of publishing research results in refereed journals, which now exceeds that of the goals in the original proposal (approx. 2 publications per faculty per year). Also, two patents have been awarded to RCOP scientists.

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Paper 1: The value of scientific and technical information (STI), its relationship to Research and Development (R/D), and its use by US aerospace engineers and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Barclay, Rebecca O.; Glassman, Myron; Oliu, Walter E.

1990-01-01

This paper is based on the premise that scientific and technical information (STI), its use by aerospace engineers and scientists, and the aerospace research and development (R&D) process are related. We intend to support this premise with data gathered from numerous studies concerned with STI, the relationship of STI to the performance and management of R&D activities, and the information use and seeking behavior of engineers in general and aerospace engineers and scientists in particular. We intend to develop and present a synthesized appreciation of how aerospace R&D managers can improve the efficacy of the R&D process by understanding the role and value of STI in this process.

Human Resources for Health Research in Africa | IDRC ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Human Resources for Health Research in Africa ... the management of research systems for optimal use of results;; packaging research for policymakers; ... Call for new OWSD Fellowships for Early Career Women Scientists now open.

Basic science research in urology training.

Science.gov (United States)

Eberli, D; Atala, A

2009-04-01

The role of basic science exposure during urology training is a timely topic that is relevant to urologic health and to the training of new physician scientists. Today, researchers are needed for the advancement of this specialty, and involvement in basic research will foster understanding of basic scientific concepts and the development of critical thinking skills, which will, in turn, improve clinical performance. If research education is not included in urology training, future urologists may not be as likely to contribute to scientific discoveries.Currently, only a minority of urologists in training are currently exposed to significant research experience. In addition, the number of physician-scientists in urology has been decreasing over the last two decades, as fewer physicians are willing to undertake a career in academics and perform basic research. However, to ensure that the field of urology is driving forward and bringing novel techniques to patients, it is clear that more research-trained urologists are needed. In this article we will analyse the current status of basic research in urology training and discuss the importance of and obstacles to successful addition of research into the medical training curricula. Further, we will highlight different opportunities for trainees to obtain significant research exposure in urology.

Quality assurance and quality control of geochemical data—A primer for the research scientist

Science.gov (United States)

Geboy, Nicholas J.; Engle, Mark A.

2011-01-01

Geochemistry is a constantly expanding science. More and more, scientists are employing geochemical tools to help answer questions about the Earth and earth system processes. Scientists may assume that the responsibility of examining and assessing the quality of the geochemical data they generate is not theirs but rather that of the analytical laboratories to which their samples have been submitted. This assumption may be partially based on knowledge about internal and external quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) programs in which analytical laboratories typically participate. Or there may be a perceived lack of time or resources to adequately examine data quality. Regardless of the reason, the lack of QA/QC protocols can lead to the generation and publication of erroneous data. Because the interpretations drawn from the data are primary products to U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) stakeholders, the consequences of publishing erroneous results can be significant. The principal investigator of a scientific study ultimately is responsible for the quality and interpretation of the project's findings, and thus must also play a role in the understanding, implementation, and presentation of QA/QC information about the data. Although occasionally ignored, QA/QC protocols apply not only to procedures in the laboratory but also in the initial planning of a research study and throughout the life of the project. Many of the tenets of developing a sound QA/QC program or protocols also parallel the core concepts of developing a good study: What is the main objective of the study? Will the methods selected provide data of enough resolution to answer the hypothesis? How should samples be collected? Are there known or unknown artifacts or contamination sources in the sampling and analysis methods? Assessing data quality requires communication between the scientists responsible for designing the study and those collecting samples, analyzing samples, treating data, and

Clinical Research Nursing: A Critical Resource in the National Research Enterprise

Science.gov (United States)

Hastings, Clare E.; Fisher, Cheryl A.; McCabe, Margaret A.

2012-01-01

Translational clinical research has emerged as an important priority for the national research enterprise, with a clearly stated mandate to deliver prevention strategies, treatments and cures based on scientific innovations faster to the public. Within this national effort, a lack of consensus persists concerning the need for clinical nurses with expertise and specialized training in study implementation and the delivery of care to research participants. This paper reviews efforts to define and document the role of practicing nurses in implementing studies and coordinating clinical research in a variety of clinical settings and differentiates this clinical role from the role of nurses as scientists and principal investigators. We propose an agenda for building evidence that having nurses provide and coordinate study treatments and procedures can potentially improve research efficiency, participant safety, and the quality of research data. We also provide recommendations for the development of the emerging specialty of clinical research nursing. PMID:22172370

Risk for Researchers Studying Social Deviance or Criminal Behavior

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patricia L. Brougham

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract: Researchers often encounter dangerous situations while conducting social research. The concept of risk to researchers refers to the possible harm that may occur to researchers while in the field or after leaving a research project. This study explores issues experienced by social scientists engaged in research on social deviance or criminal behavior. The goal of this research was to discover the types of risk experienced by social scientists and any mediating factors affecting the experience of risk. An online survey was conducted to gather data on issues experienced by social scientists. This study found that researchers experienced a variety of risks within the categories of physical/health, emotional, legal, and personal/professional. Each of the survey options for risk were reported by at least one respondent; however, the greatest number of risks reported were of an emotional or personal/professional nature. There were no mediating factors found to be significant in relation to the experience of risk. This was a surprising finding especially for the variable of gender as it is suggested that gender plays a role in the experience of difficulties.

Research Methodology: A Practitioner Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Sukhpal; Chana, Inderveer; Singh, Maninder

2015-01-01

The ultimate goal of scientific research is publication so as to showcase the research outcomes. Scientists, starting as graduate students, are measured primarily not by their dexterity in laboratory manipulations, not by their innate knowledge of either broad or narrow scientific subjects, and certainly not by their wit or charm; they are…

Symbolic Interaction and Applied Social Research: A FOCUS ON TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE RESEARCH1.

Science.gov (United States)

Kotarba, Joseph A

2014-08-01

In symbolic interaction, a traditional yet unfortunate and unnecessary distinction has been made between basic and applied research. The argument has been made that basic research is intended to generate new knowledge, whereas applied research is intended to apply knowledge to the solution of practical (social and organizational) problems. I will argue that the distinction between basic and applied research in symbolic interaction is outdated and dysfunctional. The masters of symbolic interactionist thought have left us a proud legacy of shaping their scholarly thinking and inquiry in response to and in light of practical issues of the day (e.g., Znaniecki, and Blumer). Current interactionist work continues this tradition in topical areas such as social justice studies. Applied research, especially in term of evaluation and needs assessment studies, can be designed to serve both basic and applied goals. Symbolic interaction provides three great resources to do this. The first is its orientation to dynamic sensitizing concepts that direct research and ask questions instead of supplying a priori and often impractical answers. The second is its orientation to qualitative methods, and appreciation for the logic of grounded theory. The third is interactionism's overall holistic approach to interfacing with the everyday life world. The primary illustrative case here is the qualitative component of the evaluation of an NIH-funded, translational medical research program. The qualitative component has provided interactionist-inspired insights into translational research, such as examining cultural change in medical research in terms of changes in the form and content of formal and informal discourse among scientists; delineating the impact of significant symbols such as "my lab" on the social organization of science; and appreciating the essence of the self-concept "scientist" on the increasingly bureaucratic and administrative identities of medical researchers. This

Therapeutic research on children in low–income countries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Whyte, Susan Reynolds

2015-01-01

-established institutions in Africa show that parents eagerly have their children ‘join’ such projects. They assess benefits and risks less in research terms and more through overall trust in care provided previously by such institutions in the community. Bioethics should go beyond concern with protecting individual......Social scientists undertaking studies in developing countries focus on ‘trial communities’: networks of funders, institutions, researchers, clinical staff, fieldworkers, and study participants. Whereas bioethicists consider universal ethical requirements, social scientists examine ethical practices...... subjects from research risks and should view clinical care and research functions as indistinguishable for many who seek sustained support for the children’s health....

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Paper 14: An analysis of the technical communications practices reported by Israeli and US aerospace engineers and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Barclay, Rebecca O.; Pinelli, Thomas E.; Elazar, David; Kennedy, John M.

1991-01-01

As part of Phase 4 of the NASA/DoD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, two pilot studies were conducted that investigated the technical communications practices of Israeli and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. Both studies had the same five objectives: first, to solicit the opinions of aerospace engineers and scientists regarding the importance of technical communications to their profession; second, to determine the use and production of technical communications by aerospace engineers and scientists; third, to seek their view about the appropriate content of an undergraduate course in technical communications; fourth, to determine aerospace engineers' and scientists' use of libraries, technical information centers, and on-line databases; and fifth, to determine the use and importance of computer and information technology to them. A self-administered questionnaire was mailed to randomly selected U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists who are working in cryogenics, adaptive walls, and magnetic suspension. A slightly modified version was sent to Israeli aerospace engineers and scientists working at Israel Aircraft Industries, LTD. Responses of the Israeli and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists to selected questions are presented in this paper.

When is a research question not a research question?

Science.gov (United States)

Mayo, Nancy E; Asano, Miho; Barbic, Skye Pamela

2013-06-01

Research is undertaken to answer important questions yet often the question is poorly expressed and lacks information on the population, the exposure or intervention, the comparison, and the outcome. An optimal research question sets out what the investigator wants to know, not what the investigator might do, nor what the results of the study might ultimately contribute. The purpose of this paper is to estimate the extent to which rehabilitation scientists optimally define their research questions. A cross-sectional survey of the rehabilitation research articles published during 2008. Two raters independently rated each question according to pre-specified criteria; a third rater adjudicated all discrepant ratings. The proportion of the 258 articles with a question formulated as methods or expected contribution and not as what knowledge was being sought was 65%; 30% of questions required reworking. The designs which most often had poorly formulated research questions were randomized trials, cross-sectional and measurement studies. Formulating the research question is not purely a semantic concern. When the question is poorly formulated, the design, analysis, sample size calculations, and presentation of results may not be optimal. The gap between research and clinical practice could be bridged by a clear, complete, and informative research question.

Ethics in research.

Science.gov (United States)

Bevan, Joan C

2007-04-01

This review will examine research ethics in the context of globalization of clinical trials and recent rapid developments in bioscience. It will focus on international ethical guidelines and the functions of research ethics review boards in research governance. Consent issues in genetic research, which must comply with privacy laws by protecting confidentiality and privacy of personal health data, will be discussed. There has been a rapid expansion of genomic and proteonomic research and biotechnology in the last decade. International ethical guidelines have been updated and the bioscience industry has developed ethics policies. At the same time, problems in academic anesthesia in the US and UK have been identified, leading to recommendations to train physician-scientists in anesthesia to stimulate research activity in the future. Anesthesiologists are joining interdisciplinary research teams and the concept of evidence-based translational research is emerging. Anesthesiologists are moving towards participation in interdisciplinary research teams. They are well placed to speed the translation of research discovery into clinical practice and provide evidence-based perioperative care. This review provides the ethical framework that anesthesiologists will need to meet the challenges of this changing pattern of practice.

Professional identity in clinician-scientists: brokers between care and science.

Science.gov (United States)

Kluijtmans, Manon; de Haan, Else; Akkerman, Sanne; van Tartwijk, Jan

2017-06-01

Despite increasing numbers of publications, science often fails to significantly improve patient care. Clinician-scientists, professionals who combine care and research activities, play an important role in helping to solve this problem. However, despite the ascribed advantages of connecting scientific knowledge and inquiry with health care, clinician-scientists are scarce, especially amongst non-physicians. The education of clinician-scientists can be complex because they must form professional identities at the intersection of care and research. The successful education of clinician-scientists requires insight into how these professionals view their professional identity and how they combine distinct practices. This study sought to investigate how recently trained nurse- and physiotherapist-scientists perceive their professional identities and experience the crossing of boundaries between care and research. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 nurse- and physiotherapist-scientists at 1 year after they had completed MSc research training. Interviews were thematically analysed using insights from the theoretical frameworks of dialogical self theory and boundary crossing. After research training, the initial professional identity, of clinician, remained important for novice clinician-scientists, whereas the scientist identity was experienced as additional and complementary. A meta-identity as broker, referred to as a 'bridge builder', seemed to mediate competing demands or tensions between the two positions. Obtaining and maintaining a dual work position were experienced as logistically demanding; nevertheless, it was considered beneficial for crossing the boundaries between care and research because it led to reflection on the health profession, knowledge integration, inquiry and innovation in care, improved data collection, and research with a focus on clinical applicability. Novice clinician-scientists experience dual professional identities as care

The Rehabilitation Medicine Scientist Training Program

Science.gov (United States)

Whyte, John; Boninger, Michael; Helkowski, Wendy; Braddom-Ritzler, Carolyn

2016-01-01

Physician scientists are seen as important in healthcare research. However, the number of physician scientists and their success in obtaining NIH funding have been declining for many years. The shortage of physician scientists in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation is particularly severe, and can be attributed to many of the same factors that affect physician scientists in general, as well as to the lack of well developed models for research training. In 1995, the Rehabilitation Medicine Scientist Training Program (RMSTP) was funded by a K12 grant from the National Center of Medical Rehabilitation Research (NCMRR), as one strategy for increasing the number of research-productive physiatrists. The RMSTP's structure was revised in 2001 to improve the level of preparation of incoming trainees, and to provide a stronger central mentorship support network. Here we describe the original and revised structure of the RMSTP and review subjective and objective data on the productivity of the trainees who have completed the program. These data suggest that RMSTP trainees are, in general, successful in obtaining and maintaining academic faculty positions and that the productivity of the cohort trained after the revision, in particular, shows impressive growth after about 3 years of training. PMID:19847126

Cooperative research and knowledge flow in the marine commons

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teresa R. Johnson

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Integration of fishers’ knowledge into scientific-based fisheries management is difficult due to a history of distrust between fishers and scientists and institutional constraints that limit management to only the best scientific information available. A recent response to the Northeast U.S. fisheries crisis has been to include fishers in scientific research. Cooperative research, where fishers and scientists collaborate to produce knowledge for fisheries management, aims improve the knowledge base of fisheries management and integrate fishers and their knowledge into the science policy process, which together is expected to generate broader acceptance of scientific-based management. Drawing on ethnographic research conducted in the Northeast U.S., this paper discusses the value of cooperative research as a tool for managing the commons. Specifically, it focuses on the flow of knowledge and expertise between fishers and scientists. The flow of knowledge from fishers to science involves a process of translation, where fishers’ knowledge is transformed (proven, verified, etc. into scientific knowledge. This process enables the flow of fishers’ knowledge into the science policy process. Knowledge and expertise also flow from scientists to fishers, where fishers gain understandings of the scientific research process. With this new expertise, fishers develop a greater capacity to participate in science and management discussions. The paper argues that 2-way knowledge flow between fishers and scientists, in particular flow that results in capacity building, can improve commons management through communication, translation, and conflict resolution. Finally, boundary spanners are identified as being critical to success in cooperative research.

Participatory Research and Development for Sustainable Agriculture ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Participatory research and development (PR&D) offers such an inclusive model. ... PR&D concepts and practices for practitioners, researchers, and academic. ... Call for new OWSD Fellowships for Early Career Women Scientists now open.

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Paper 12: The diffusion of federally funded aerospace research and development (R/D) and the information seeking behavior of US aerospace engineers and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Kennedy, John M.; Barclay, Rebecca O.

1991-01-01

In this paper, the diffusion of federally funded aerospace R&D is explored from the perspective of the information-seeking behavior of U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. The following three assumptions frame this exploration: (1) knowledge production, transfer, and utilization are equally important components of the aerospace R&D process; (2) the diffusion of knowledge resulting from federally funded aerospace R&D is indispensable for the U.S. to remain a world leader in aerospace; and (3) U.S. government technical reports, produced by NASA and DOD, play an important, but as yet undefined, role in the diffusion of federally funded aerospace R&D. A conceptual model for federally funded aerospace knowledge diffusion, one that emphasizes U.S. goverment technical reports, is presented. Data regarding three research questions concerning the information-seeking behavior of U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists are also presented.

Basic Blue Skies Research in the UK: Are we losing out?

Science.gov (United States)

Linden, Belinda

2008-02-29

The term blue skies research implies a freedom to carry out flexible, curiosity-driven research that leads to outcomes not envisaged at the outset. This research often challenges accepted thinking and introduces new fields of study. Science policy in the UK has given growing support for short-term goal-oriented scientific research projects, with pressure being applied on researchers to demonstrate the future application of their work. These policies carry the risk of restricting freedom, curbing research direction, and stifling rather than stimulating the creativity needed for scientific discovery. This study tracks the tortuous routes that led to three major discoveries in cardiology. It then investigates the constraints in current research, and opportunities that may be lost with existing funding processes, by interviewing selected scientists and fund providers for their views on curiosity-driven research and the freedom needed to allow science to flourish. The transcripts were analysed using a grounded theory approach to gather recurrent themes from the interviews. The results from these interviews suggest that scientists often cannot predict the future applications of research. Constraints such as lack of scientific freedom, and a narrow focus on relevance and accountability were believed to stifle the discovery process. Although it was acknowledged that some research projects do need a clear and measurable framework, the interviewees saw a need for inquisitive, blue skies research to be managed in a different way. They provided examples of situations where money allocated to 'safe' funding was used for more innovative research. This sample of key UK scientists and grant providers acknowledge the importance of basic blue skies research. Yet the current evaluation process often requires that scientists predict their likely findings and estimate short-term impact, which does not permit freedom of research direction. There is a vital need for prominent scientists

Freefall Research Education Outreach

Science.gov (United States)

1996-01-01

Dr. Michael Wargo, program scientist for materials science at NASA headquarters, explains the math and physics principles associated with freefall research to attendees at the arnual conference of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

Problems of research politics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luest, R.

1977-01-01

The development in the FRG is portrayed. Illustrated by a particular example, the problems of basic research and of the scientists are presented looking back, looking at the present, and into the future. (WB) [de

Establishing good collaborative research practices in the responsible conduct of research in nursing science.

Science.gov (United States)

Ulrich, Connie M; Wallen, Gwenyth R; Cui, Naixue; Chittams, Jesse; Sweet, Monica; Plemmons, Dena

2015-01-01

Team science is advocated to speed the pace of scientific discovery, yet the goals of collaborative practice in nursing science and the responsibilities of nurse stakeholders are sparse and inconclusive. The purpose of this study was to examine nurse scientists' views on collaborative research as part of a larger study on standards of scientific conduct. Web-based descriptive survey of nurse scientists randomly selected from 50 doctoral graduate programs in the United States. Nearly forty percent of nurse respondents were not able to identify good collaborative practices for the discipline; more than three quarters did not know of any published guidelines available to them. Successful research collaborations were challenged by different expectations of authorship and data ownership, lack of timeliness and communication, poorly defined roles and responsibilities, language barriers, and when they involve junior and senior faculty working together on a project. Individual and organizational standards, practices, and policies for collaborative research needs clarification within the discipline. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Association of learning styles with research self-efficacy: study of short-term research training program for medical students.

Science.gov (United States)

Dumbauld, Jill; Black, Michelle; Depp, Colin A; Daly, Rebecca; Curran, Maureen A; Winegarden, Babbi; Jeste, Dilip V

2014-12-01

With a growing need for developing future physician scientists, identifying characteristics of medical students who are likely to benefit from research training programs is important. This study assessed if specific learning styles of medical students, participating in federally funded short-term research training programs, were associated with research self-efficacy, a potential predictor of research career success. Seventy-five first-year medical students from 28 medical schools, selected to participate in two competitive NIH-supported summer programs for research training in aging, completed rating scales to evaluate learning styles at baseline, and research self-efficacy before and after training. We examined associations of individual learning styles (visual-verbal, sequential-global, sensing-intuitive, and active-reflective) with students' gender, ranking of medical school, and research self-efficacy. Research self-efficacy improved significantly following the training programs. Students with a verbal learning style reported significantly greater research self-efficacy at baseline, while visual, sequential, and intuitive learners demonstrated significantly greater increases in research self-efficacy from baseline to posttraining. No significant relationships were found between learning styles and students' gender or ranking of their medical school. Assessments of learning styles may provide useful information to guide future training endeavors aimed at developing the next generation of physician-scientists. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Research2015. A basis for prioritizing strategic research; FORSK2015. Et prioriteringsgrundlag for strategisk forskning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2008-05-15

This catalogue is based on a comprehensive mapping of the strategic research needs created by societal and business development. The mapping resulted in more than 300 contributions to strategic research themes from citizens, organizations, universities, businesses and scientists. The contributions have formed the basis for an extensive analysis and dialogue process, which has resulted in 21 proposals for strategic research themes divided among 6 general areas. Each theme consists of: 1) a significant challenge for society, 2) a research need created by the challenge, 3) Danish prerequisites for addressing the research need, and 4) long term perspectives for a potential strategic research effort in the area. (BA)

Scientist-teacher collaboration: Integration of real data from a coastal wetland into a high school life science ecology-based research project

Science.gov (United States)

Hagan, Wendy L.

Project G.R.O.W. is an ecology-based research project developed for high school biology students. The curriculum was designed based on how students learn and awareness of the nature of science and scientific practices so that students would design and carry out scientific investigations using real data from a local coastal wetland. This was a scientist-teacher collaboration between a CSULB biologist and high school biology teacher. Prior to implementing the three-week research project, students had multiple opportunities to practice building requisite skills via 55 lessons focusing on the nature of science, scientific practices, technology, Common Core State Standards of reading, writing, listening and speaking, and Next Generation Science Standards. Project G.R.O.W. culminated with student generated research papers and oral presentations. Outcomes reveal students struggle with constructing explanations and the use of Excel to create meaningful graphs. They showed gains in data organization, analysis, teamwork and aspects of the nature of science.

[Evaluation and prioritisation of the scientific research in Spain. Researchers' point of view].

Science.gov (United States)

María Martín-Moreno, José; Juan Toharia, José; Gutiérrez Fuentes, José Antonio

2008-12-01

The assessment and prioritisation of research activity are essential components of any Science, Technology and Industry System. Data on researchers' perspectives in this respect are scarce. The objective of this paper was to describe Spanish scientists' point of view on the current evaluation system in Spain and how they believe this system should be functionally structured. From the sampling frame formed by established Spanish scientists, listed in the databases of CSIC and FIS (Institute of Health Carlos III), clinical, biomedical-non clinical, and physics and chemical researchers were randomly selected. Two hundred and eleven interviews were carried out by means of a computer-assisted telephone interviewing system. Researchers expressed their acknowledgement of progress in the Spanish research field but made their wish clear to progress towards better scientific scenarios. In their assessment, they gave a score of 5.4 to scientific policy, as opposed to 9.4 when speaking about the goals, reflecting the desire for a better policy definition, with clear objectives, stable strategies and better coordination of R&D activities (the current coordination received a score of 3.9, while the desirable coordination was valued as high as 9.2). There was certain agreement regarding the need for a prioritisation criteria which preserves some degree of creativity by researchers. They also stated that they would like to see an independent research structure with social prestige and influence. The interviewed researchers believe that the evaluation of scientific activities is fundamental in formulating a sound scientific policy. Prioritisation should arise from appropriate evaluation. Strategies properly coordinated among all the stakeholders (including the private sector) should be fostered. Budget sufficiency, stability, and better organization of independent researchers should be the backbone of any strategy tailored to increase their capacity to influence future scientific

Summer research training for medical students: impact on research self-efficacy.

Science.gov (United States)

Black, Michelle L; Curran, Maureen C; Golshan, Shahrokh; Daly, Rebecca; Depp, Colin; Kelly, Carolyn; Jeste, Dilip V

2013-12-01

There is a well-documented shortage of physician researchers, and numerous training programs have been launched to facilitate development of new physician scientists. Short-term research training programs are the most practical form of research exposure for most medical students, and the summer between their first and second years of medical school is generally the longest period they can devote solely to research. The goal of short-term training programs is to whet the students' appetite for research and spark their interest in the field. Relatively little research has been done to test the effectiveness of short-term research training programs. In an effort to examine short-term effects of three different NIH-funded summer research training programs for medical students, we assessed the trainees' (N = 75) research self-efficacy prior to and after the programs using an 11-item scale. These hands-on training programs combined experiential, didactic, and mentoring elements. The students demonstrated a significant increase in their self-efficacy for research. Trainees' gender, ranking of their school, type of research, and specific content of research project did not predict improvement. Effect sizes for different types of items on the scale varied, with the largest gain seen in research methodology and communication of study findings. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Management research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berry, M.

1988-01-01

The 1988 progress report of the Management Research center (Polytechnic School, France), is presented. The Center research programs include the management of different organizations, such as industry, administrative systems, hospitals and cultural systems. The investigations performed concern the improvement and better knowledge of the new methods of analysis: the role of the speech, the logic conflicts; the crisis development, symptoms and effects; the relationship between the management practices and the prevailing ideas or theories. The approach adopted by the scientists involves the accurate analysis of the essential management activities. The investigations carried out in 1988 are summarized. The published papers, the congress communications and the thesis are listed [fr

Responsability of scientists

CERN Document Server

Harigel, G G

1997-01-01

This seminar is intended to give some practical help for CERN guides,who are confronted with questions from visitors concerning the purpose of research in general and - in paticular - of the work in our laboratory, its possible application and benefits.The dual use of scientific results will be emphasised by examples across natural sciences. Many investigations were neutral,others aimed at peaceful and beneficial use for humanity, a few were made for destructive purposes. Researchers have no or very little influence on the application of their results. The interplay between natural scientists ,social scientists,politicians,and their dependence on economic factors will be discussed.

Soviet exoatmospheric neutral particle beam research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leiss, J.E.; Abrams, R.H.; Ehlers, K.W.; Farrell, J.A.; Gillespie, G.H.; Jameson, R.A.; Keefe, D.; Parker, R.K.

1988-02-01

This technical assessment was performed by a panel of eight U.S. scientists and engineers who are familiar with Soviet research through their own research experience, their knowledge of the published scientific literature and conference proceedings, and personal contacts with Soviet scientists and other foreign colleagues. Most of the technical components of a neutral particle beam generating system including the ion source, the accelerator, the accelerator radio frequency power supply, the beam conditioning and aiming system, and the beam neutralizer system are addressed. It does not address a number of other areas important to an exoatmospheric neutral beam system

Health physics research abstracts No.14: Information on research in progress

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-01-01

The present issue No. 14 of Health Physics Research Abstracts is the continuation of a series of bulletins published by the Agency since 1967. They collect reports from Member States on Health Physics research in progress or just completed. The main aim in issuing such reports is to draw attention to work that is about to be published and to enable interested scientists to obtain further information through direct correspondence with the investigator. The present issue contains 381 reports received up to September 1988

Biomechanics: basic and applied research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bergmann, G.; Rohlmann, A.; Koelbel, R.

1987-01-01

This volume presents the state of the art in biomechanics. The most recent achievements of biomechanical research in the fields of orthopaedics, dynamics of the musculoskeletal system, hard and soft tissues, rehabilitation, sports, cardiovascular problems and research methodology have been selected and edited by a distinguished panel of reviewers. The material is such that the volume will serve as a reference for many years for bioengineers, sports scientists, clinicians and clinical researchers in rehabilitation, orthopaedics and cardiovascular surgery

Forensic scientists' conclusions: how readable are they for non-scientist report-users?

Science.gov (United States)

Howes, Loene M; Kirkbride, K Paul; Kelty, Sally F; Julian, Roberta; Kemp, Nenagh

2013-09-10

Scientists have an ethical responsibility to assist non-scientists to understand their findings and expert opinions before they are used as decision-aids within the criminal justice system. The communication of scientific expert opinion to non-scientist audiences (e.g., police, lawyers, and judges) through expert reports is an important but under-researched issue. Readability statistics were used to assess 111 conclusions from a proficiency test in forensic glass analysis. The conclusions were written using an average of 23 words per sentence, and approximately half of the conclusions were expressed using the active voice. At an average Flesch-Kincaid Grade level of university undergraduate (Grade 13), and Flesch Reading Ease score of difficult (42), the conclusions were written at a level suitable for people with some tertiary education in science, suggesting that the intended non-scientist readers would find them difficult to read. To further analyse the readability of conclusions, descriptive features of text were used: text structure; sentence structure; vocabulary; elaboration; and coherence and unity. Descriptive analysis supported the finding that texts were written at a level difficult for non-scientists to read. Specific aspects of conclusions that may pose difficulties for non-scientists were located. Suggestions are included to assist scientists to write conclusions with increased readability for non-scientist readers, while retaining scientific integrity. In the next stage of research, the readability of expert reports in their entirety is to be explored. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

2001 Gordon Research Conference on MYOGENESIS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wold, Barbara

2001-05-04

The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. Emphasis was placed on current unpublished research and discussion of the future target areas in this field.

How Scientists Can Become Entrepreneurs.

Science.gov (United States)

Thon, Jonathan N; Karlsson, Sven

2017-05-01

Translating basic research discoveries through entrepreneurship must be scientist driven and institutionally supported to be successful (not the other way around). Here, we describe why scientists should engage in entrepreneurship, where institutional support for scientist-founders falls short, and how these challenges can be overcome. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

International Journal of Health Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erah

The International Journal of Health Research is an online international journal ... disciplines (including medicine, pharmacy, nursing, biotechnology, cell and ... collaboration among scientists, the industry and the healthcare professionals.

Assessment of use of library resources on research activities of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Library resources use contribute immensely to the research output of agricultural scientists and also play significant roles in supporting agricultural development but resources are inadequately provided. The main objective of the study was to assess the use of library resources on research activities of scientists in three ...

Undergraduate Research or Research-Based Courses: Which Is Most Beneficial for Science Students?

Science.gov (United States)

Olivares-Donoso, Ruby; González, Carlos

2017-06-01

Over the last 25 years, both research literature and practice-oriented reports have claimed the need for improving the quality of undergraduate science education through linking research and teaching. Two manners of doing this are reported: undergraduate research and research-based courses. Although there are studies reporting benefits of participating in these experiences, few synthesize their findings. In this article, we present a literature review aimed at synthesizing and comparing results of the impact of participating in these research experiences to establish which approach is most beneficial for students to develop as scientists. Twenty studies on student participation in undergraduate research and research-based courses were reviewed. Results show that both types of experiences have positive effects on students. These results have implications for both practice and research. Regarding practice, we propose ideas for designing and implementing experiences that combine both types of experiences. Concerning research, we identify some methodological limitations that should be addressed in further studies.

Making Lists, Enlisting Scientists

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Casper Bruun

2011-01-01

was the indicator conceptualised? How were notions of scientific knowledge and collaboration inscribed and challenged in the process? The analysis shows a two-sided process in which scientists become engaged in making lists but which is simultaneously a way for research policy to enlist scientists. In conclusion...

Shaping the Future of Research: a perspective from junior scientists [v2; ref status: indexed, http://f1000r.es/4yc

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gary S. McDowell

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The landscape of scientific research and funding is in flux as a result of tight budgets, evolving models of both publishing and evaluation, and questions about training and workforce stability. As future leaders, junior scientists are uniquely poised to shape the culture and practice of science in response to these challenges. A group of postdocs in the Boston area who are invested in improving the scientific endeavor, planned a symposium held on October 2nd and 3rd, 2014, as a way to join the discussion about the future of US biomedical research. Here we present a report of the proceedings of participant-driven workshops and the organizers’ synthesis of the outcomes.

SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS AND ATTITUDES ABOUT SCIENTISTS

OpenAIRE

Muhammed Doğukan Balçın; Ayşegül Ergün

2018-01-01

This research was carried out to determine secondary school students’ perceptions and attitudes towards scientists. The study group consists of 53 fifth and sixth grade students receiving education in a state secondary school in Turkey. Convergent parallel design among mixed research methods was used during the research. Research data were collected using “Questionnaire on attitudes towards scientists” and “Draw A Scientist (DAS)” forms. Descriptive and inferential statistical methods and con...

Interrogating Ourselves: Reflections on Arts-Based Health Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael J. Hodgins

2013-11-01

Full Text Available This article is deliberately unconventional in style and reflects a conversation between us—Katherine, senior scientist/principal investigator and Michael, research coordinator—as we embark on an arts-based health research study to explore the theoretical, methodological and ethical challenges faced by scientists, artists and trainees who are "doing" arts-based health research (ABHR. Our narrative is based on reflexive and observational field notes that we kept during the research process. We draw on ELLIS and BOCHNER's (2000 autoethnographic practices of writing reflexively about the ways in which the self informs one's work as a researcher. As a beginning, we each reflect upon our own perspectives on the importance of the arts in our lives. We then move to a conversation between us regarding using the arts in the process of both doing research and disseminating research that illustrates some of the key issues in the field. URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs1401106

Elements of ethics for physical scientists

CERN Document Server

Greer, Sandra C

2017-01-01

This book offers the first comprehensive guide to ethics for physical scientists and engineers who conduct research. Written by a distinguished professor of chemistry and chemical engineering, the book focuses on the everyday decisions about right and wrong faced by scientists as they do research, interact with other people, and work within society. The goal is to nurture readers’ ethical intelligence so that they know an ethical issue when they see one, and to give them a way to think about ethical problems. After introductions to the philosophy of ethics and the philosophy of science, the book discusses research integrity, with a unique emphasis on how scientists make mistakes and how they can avoid them. It goes on to cover personal interactions among scientists, including authorship, collaborators, predecessors, reviewers, grantees, mentors, and whistle-blowers. It considers underrepresented groups in science as an ethical issue that matters not only to those groups but also to the development of scien...

Scientists feature their work in Arctic-focused short videos by FrontierScientists

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, L.; O'Connell, E.

2013-12-01

Whether they're guiding an unmanned aerial vehicle into a volcanic plume to sample aerosols, or documenting core drilling at a frozen lake in Siberia formed 3.6 million years ago by a massive meteorite impact, Arctic scientists are using video to enhance and expand their science and science outreach. FrontierScientists (FS), a forum for showcasing scientific work, produces and promotes radically different video blogs featuring Arctic scientists. Three- to seven- minute multimedia vlogs help deconstruct researcher's efforts and disseminate stories, communicating scientific discoveries to our increasingly connected world. The videos cover a wide range of current field work being performed in the Arctic. All videos are freely available to view or download from the FrontierScientists.com website, accessible via any internet browser or via the FrontierScientists app. FS' filming process fosters a close collaboration between the scientist and the media maker. Film creation helps scientists reach out to the public, communicate the relevance of their scientific findings, and craft a discussion. Videos keep audience tuned in; combining field footage, pictures, audio, and graphics with a verbal explanation helps illustrate ideas, allowing one video to reach people with different learning strategies. The scientists' stories are highlighted through social media platforms online. Vlogs grant scientists a voice, letting them illustrate their own work while ensuring accuracy. Each scientific topic on FS has its own project page where easy-to-navigate videos are featured prominently. Video sets focus on different aspects of a researcher's work or follow one of their projects into the field. We help the scientist slip the answers to their five most-asked questions into the casual script in layman's terms in order to free the viewers' minds to focus on new concepts. Videos are accompanied by written blogs intended to systematically demystify related facts so the scientists can focus

A review of research activities at the Research Reactor Institute of Kyoto University in view of research publication information

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeuchi, Takayuki; Mizuma, Mitsuo; Kimura, Itsuro.

1995-01-01

A database of research publication was constructed for the purpose of grasping all of the research activities at the Research Reactor Institute, Kyoto University. The database named KURRIP collects all of the research publications of the Institute by not only its own staff but also visiting scientists. The publications are in the form of original papers, review papers, papers in proceedings, short notes and letters, synopses over 3 pages presented orally at scientific meeting, books and doctoral theses. At present, the KURRIP database contains the information on 6,210 items which have been published for 30 years since the Institute was established as an interuniversity research institute for joint use of a research reactor and other related large facilities in 1963. By utilizing the KURRIP database, the analyses have been done: (1) affiliation of the authors, (2) kind of publications, (3) classification of publishers, (4) research fields, and (5) experimental facilities. The KURRIP database is now stored in the Data Processing Center of Kyoto University and can be utilized through a computer center at one of the main national universities in Japan. (author)

The Singapore research story

CERN Document Server

Teck Seng, Low; Thampuran, Raj

2016-01-01

Ever since Singapore became independent in 1965, its leaders have invested tremendous efforts and resources to develop its economy in order to create jobs for its people and to support national development. This book describes the challenging journey of Singapore in developing a knowledge-based economy driven by research and innovation and the roles played by research institutes, universities, research manpower and appropriate collaboration between research institutes and industry. The book traces the foundations of Singapore's research story from the time of its independence in 1965 to the present day. Through interviews with the key players and research into the records, the establishment of the key institutes and the roles of a global cast of researchers, scientists and engineers in setting up the R&D infrastructure are outlined. The impact that the concerted efforts of the last 25 years to build up a credible and world-class research capability in Singapore is discussed, as are the tremendous challeng...

Publications of LASL research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977-01-01

LASL now devotes about one-half of its total effort to unclassified research exploring several peaceful applications of nuclear and other forms of energy. LASL research covers a broad spectrum, ranging from medium-energy, low-energy, and high-energy nuclear physics research to programs involving medical and biological effects of radiation and basic work in molecular and cellular biology. Major nonweapons research activities at Los Alamos involve energy research in fields such as superconducting electrical energy transmission and storage, solar and geothermal energy development, laser fusion research and laser isotope separation, and controlled thermonuclear research using magnetic confinement. Facilities used in such research at the Laboratory include specialized laboratories, a nuclear reactor designed for a variety of experiments, particle accelerators such as the 24-MeV Van de Graaff and LAMPF, Scyllac, and a central computing facility. LASL, as of 1977, employed about 6,000 persons, about one-third of whom are scientists and engineers. The total operating costs are about $250 million per year

Publications of LASL research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1977-01-01

LASL now devotes about one-half of its total effort to unclassified research exploring several peaceful applications of nuclear and other forms of energy. LASL research covers a broad spectrum, ranging from medium-energy, low-energy, and high-energy nuclear physics research to programs involving medical and biological effects of radiation and basic work in molecular and cellular biology. Major nonweapons research activities at Los Alamos involve energy research in fields such as superconducting electrical energy transmission and storage, solar and geothermal energy development, laser fusion research and laser isotope separation, and controlled thermonuclear research using magnetic confinement. Facilities used in such research at the Laboratory include specialized laboratories, a nuclear reactor designed for a variety of experiments, particle accelerators such as the 24-MeV Van de Graaff and LAMPF, Scyllac, and a central computing facility. LASL, as of 1977, employed about 6,000 persons, about one-third of whom are scientists and engineers. The total operating costs are about $250 million per year. (RWR)

The Rise of Computing Research in East Africa: The Relationship between Funding, Capacity and Research Community in a Nascent Field

Science.gov (United States)

Harsh, Matthew; Bal, Ravtosh; Wetmore, Jameson; Zachary, G. Pascal; Holden, Kerry

2018-01-01

The emergence of vibrant research communities of computer scientists in Kenya and Uganda has occurred in the context of neoliberal privatization, commercialization, and transnational capital flows from donors and corporations. We explore how this funding environment configures research culture and research practices, which are conceptualized as…

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Paper 36: Technical uncertainty as a correlate of information use by US industry-affiliated aerospace engineers and scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Glassman, Nanci A.; Affelder, Linda O.; Hecht, Laura M.; Kennedy, John M.; Barclay, Rebecca O.

1994-01-01

This paper reports the results of an exploratory study that investigated the influence of technical uncertainty on the use of information and information sources by U.S. industry-affiliated aerospace engineers and scientists in completing or solving a project, task, or problem. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire. Survey participants were U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists whose names appeared on the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) mailing list. The results support the findings of previous research and the following study assumptions. Information and information-source use differ for projects, problems, and tasks with high and low technical uncertainty. As technical uncertainty increases, information-source use changes from internal to external and from informal to formal sources. As technical uncertainty increases, so too does the use of federally funded aerospace research and development (R&D). The use of formal information sources to learn about federally funded aerospace R&D differs for projects, problems, and tasks with high and low technical uncertainty.

The policy relevance of global environmental change research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yarnal, Brent

1996-01-01

Many scientists are striving to identify and promote the policy implications of their global change research. Much basic research on global environmental change cannot advance policy directly, but new projects can determine the relevance of their research to decision makers and build policy-relevant products into the work. Similarly, many ongoing projects can alter or add to the present science design to make the research policy relevant. Thus, this paper shows scientists working on global change how to make their research policy relevant. It demonstrates how research on physical global change relates to human dimensions studies and integrated assessments. It also presents an example of how policy relevance can be fit retroactively into a global change project (in this case, SRBEX-the Susquehanna River Basin Experiment) and how that addition can enhance the project's status and science. The paper concludes that policy relevance is desirable from social and scientific perspectives

Role of online journals and peer-reviewed research

Science.gov (United States)

Robert L. Deal

2014-01-01

The recent explosion of online journals has lead some researchers, scientist and academics to reconsider their traditional venues for publishing research. These on-line journals have the potential for quickly disseminating research, but they also present lots of uncertainty, confusion, and pitfalls for researchers. Many academics search out journals with the high...

Physical protection of radioactive materials in a University Research Institute

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boeck, H.

1998-01-01

Although nuclear research centers attached to universities usually do not keep large inventories of radioactive or special nuclear material, the mentioned material has still to be under strict surveillance and safeguards if applicable. One problem in such research centers is the large and frequent fluctuation of persons - mainly students, scientists or visiting guest scientists - using such materials for basic or applied research. In the present paper an overview of protective actions in such a research institute will be given and experience of more than 36 years will be presented. (author)

Criteria for Assessing Quality in Academic Research: The Views of Biomedical Scientists, Clinical Scientists and Social Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Albert, Mathieu; Laberge, Suzanne; McGuire, Wendy

2012-01-01

This study empirically addresses the claim made by Gibbons et al ("The new production of knowledge: The dynamics of science and research in contemporary societies." Sage, Thousand Oaks, 1994) that a novel form of quality control (associated with Mode 2 knowledge production) is supplementing the "traditional" peer-review process…

NREL Scientists Model Methane-Eating Bacteria | News | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

Scientists Model Methane-Eating Bacteria News Release: NREL Scientists Model Methane-Eating Bacteria February 13, 2018 Nature is full of surprises - not to mention solutions. A research team ) recently explored the possibilities provided by the natural world by researching how the bacteria

Background paper on aquaculture research

OpenAIRE

Wenblad, Axel; Jokumsen, Alfred; Eskelinen, Unto; Torrissen, Ole

2013-01-01

The Board of MISTRA established in 2012 a Working Group (WG) on Aquaculture to provide the Board with background information for its upcoming decision on whether the foundation should invest in aquaculture research. The WG included Senior Advisor Axel Wenblad, Sweden (Chairman), Professor Ole Torrissen, Norway, Senior Advisory Scientist Unto Eskelinen, Finland and Senior Advisory Scientist Alfred Jokumsen, Denmark. The WG performed an investigation of the Swedish aquaculture sector including ...

Visions for Horizon 2020 from Copenhagen Research Forum

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brenneche, Nicolaj Tofte; Højgaard, Liselotte

2012-01-01

In January 2012, the Copenhagen Research Forum (CRF) gathered 80 European scientists to discuss the societal chal-lenges to be addressed by Horizon 2020, the next framework programme for European research and innovation, and consider how research could contribute the best solutions. This EFP brie...

Basic research needs for management and disposal of DOE wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grazis, B.M.; Schulz, W.W.

1991-04-01

This document was chartered by the Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Energy Research. It identifies and describes 87 basic research needs in support of advanced technology for management and disposal of Department of Energy radioactive, hazardous chemical, and mixed wastes. A team of scientists and engineers from several DOE laboratories and sites, from academia, and from industry identified and described the basic research needs called out in this report. Special efforts were made to ensure that basic research needs related to management and disposal of any hazardous chemical wastes generated at nonnuclear DOE sites and facilities were properly identified. It is hoped that scientists in both DOE and nongovernment laboratories and institutions will find this document useful when formulating research efforts relevant to waste management and disposal. For management and disposal of DOE radioactive and mixed wastes, basic research needs are identified in nine separate action areas. Basic research needs for management and disposal of DOE hazardous chemical wastes are identified in five action areas. Sufficient description and background information are provided in the report for each particular research need to enable qualified and imaginative scientists to conceive research efforts and programs that will meet the need. 28 refs., 7 tabs

The Local-Cosmopolitan Scientist

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Barney G. Glaser, Ph.D., Hon. Ph.D.

2011-12-01

Full Text Available In contrast to previous discussions in the literature treating cosmopolitan and local as two distinct groups of scientists, this paperi demonstrates the notion of cosmopolitan and local as a dual orientation of highly motivated scientists. This dual orientation is derived from institutional motivation, which is a determinant of both high quality basic research and accomplishment of non-research organizational activities. The dual orientation arises in a context of similarity of the institutional goal of science with the goal of the organization; the distinction between groups of locals and cosmopolitans derives from a conflict between two goals.

Rx-CADRE (Prescribed Fire Combustion-Atmospheric Dynamics Research Experiments) collaborative research in the core fire sciences

Science.gov (United States)

D. Jimenez; B. Butler; K. Hiers; R. Ottmar; M. Dickinson; R. Kremens; J. O' Brien; A. Hudak; C. Clements

2009-01-01

The Rx-CADRE project was the combination of local and national fire expertise in the field of core fire research. The project brought together approximately 30 fire scientists from six geographic regions and seven diff erent agencies. The project objectives were to demonstrate the capacity for collaborative research by bringing together individuals and teams with a...

Recipe for an Eclectic Life as Research Scientist and Mom

Science.gov (United States)

Harden, J. W.

2012-12-01

Recipe for an Eclectic Life as Research Scientist and Mom Fresh ingredients: curiosity, conviction, who knows what else Spices: equal parts ambition, humility, risk Staples: Boundless energy! This recipe requires a lot of prep time. It makes a great first meal but also "keeps on giving" as leftovers for many meals. It can be set aside and rekindled at various stages but requires frequent touch-ups to stay fresh. This recipe is especially great for large gatherings, eclectic palettes, and it includes a mix of cultural opportunities (AGU council member for example!). First, shop for a graduate department as you might for a farmers' market that has a good feel and good mix of "customers" (grad students) who share your attitude and interests. Then seek out professors and later, career mentors, who not only have great methods and recipes but whose lifestyles seem like good examples. I like my mentors and advisees alike to be approachable, supportive, and dedicated to both problem solving and whole-life choices. For the cooking part of the recipe, you'll certainly need a great partner who is hungry for science and appreciative of those pairings between new discoveries and long-awaited accomplishments. My own husband is a geologist. My professors were in their "late career" stages (one had retired 25 years before; another retired within a year of my degree) and this seemed to foster a philosophical perspective rather than a competitive one. Advice? The keys to my child-rearing recipe were efficiency and concentration: I try to organize and sequence and to save the multi-tasking for cleanups and paperwork. Don't take yourself too seriously: we all think of ourselves as frauds and know-nothings; we all are stretched between worry and guilt when it comes to child rearing. Don't give up: who is to say whether your quest for science isn't as fundamental to your goodness as your maternal drive?

Using Videoconferencing in a School-Scientist Partnership: Students' Perceptions and Scientists' Challenges

Science.gov (United States)

Falloon, Garry

2012-01-01

This research studied a series of videoconference teaching workshops and virtual labs, which formed a component of a school-scientist partnership involving a New Zealand science research institute and year 13 students at a Wellington high school. It explored students' perceptions of the effectiveness of the videoconferences as an interactive…

Alliance for NanoHealth (ANH) Training Program for the development of future generations of interdisciplinary scientists and collaborative research focused upon the advancement of nanomedicine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gorenstein, David [Univ. of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, TX (United States)

2013-12-23

The objectives of this program are to promote the mission of the Department of Energy (DOE) Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM) Program by recruiting students to science and engineering disciplines with the intent of mentoring and supporting the next generation of scientists; to foster interdisciplinary and collaborative research under the sponsorship of ANH for the discovery and design of nano-based materials and devices with novel structures, functions, and properties; and to prepare a diverse work force of scientists, engineers, and clinicians by utilizing the unique intellectual and physical resources to develop novel nanotechnology paradigms for clinical application.

Operational research as implementation science: definitions, challenges and research priorities.

Science.gov (United States)

Monks, Thomas

2016-06-06

Operational research (OR) is the discipline of using models, either quantitative or qualitative, to aid decision-making in complex implementation problems. The methods of OR have been used in healthcare since the 1950s in diverse areas such as emergency medicine and the interface between acute and community care; hospital performance; scheduling and management of patient home visits; scheduling of patient appointments; and many other complex implementation problems of an operational or logistical nature. To date, there has been limited debate about the role that operational research should take within implementation science. I detail three such roles for OR all grounded in upfront system thinking: structuring implementation problems, prospective evaluation of improvement interventions, and strategic reconfiguration. Case studies from mental health, emergency medicine, and stroke care are used to illustrate each role. I then describe the challenges for applied OR within implementation science at the organisational, interventional, and disciplinary levels. Two key challenges include the difficulty faced in achieving a position of mutual understanding between implementation scientists and research users and a stark lack of evaluation of OR interventions. To address these challenges, I propose a research agenda to evaluate applied OR through the lens of implementation science, the liberation of OR from the specialist research and consultancy environment, and co-design of models with service users. Operational research is a mature discipline that has developed a significant volume of methodology to improve health services. OR offers implementation scientists the opportunity to do more upfront system thinking before committing resources or taking risks. OR has three roles within implementation science: structuring an implementation problem, prospective evaluation of implementation problems, and a tool for strategic reconfiguration of health services. Challenges facing OR

Evaluating the High School Lunar Research Projects Program

Science.gov (United States)

Shaner, A. J.; Shupla, C.; Shipp, S.; Allen, J.; Kring, D. A.

2013-01-01

The Center for Lunar Science and Exploration (CLSE), a collaboration between the Lunar and Planetary Institute and NASA s Johnson Space Center, is one of seven member teams of the NASA Lunar Science Institute (NLSI). In addition to research and exploration activities, the CLSE team is deeply invested in education and outreach. In support of NASA s and NLSI s objective to train the next generation of scientists, CLSE s High School Lunar Research Projects program is a conduit through which high school students can actively participate in lunar science and learn about pathways into scientific careers. The objectives of the program are to enhance 1) student views of the nature of science; 2) student attitudes toward science and science careers; and 3) student knowledge of lunar science. In its first three years, approximately 168 students and 28 teachers from across the United States have participated in the program. Before beginning their research, students undertake Moon 101, a guided-inquiry activity designed to familiarize them with lunar science and exploration. Following Moon 101, and guided by a lunar scientist mentor, teams choose a research topic, ask their own research question, and design their own research approach to direct their investigation. At the conclusion of their research, teams present their results to a panel of lunar scientists. This panel selects four posters to be presented at the annual Lunar Science Forum held at NASA Ames. The top scoring team travels to the forum to present their research in person.

Student Scientific Research within Communities-of-Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Genet, Russell; Armstrong, James; Blanko, Philip; Boyce, Grady Boyce, Pat; Brewer, Mark; Buchheim, Robert; Calanog, Jae; Castaneda, Diana; Chamberlin, Rebecca; Clark, R. Kent; Collins, Dwight; Conti, Dennis Cormier, Sebastien; Fitzgerald, Michael; Estrada, Chris; Estrada, Reed; Freed, Rachel Gomez, Edward; Hardersen, Paul; Harshaw, Richard; Johnson, Jolyon Kafka, Stella; Kenney, John; Mohanan, Kakkala; Ridgely, John; Rowe, David Silliman, Mark; Stojimirovic, Irena; Tock, Kalee; Walker, Douglas; Wallen, Vera

2017-06-01

Social learning theory suggests that students who wish to become scientists will benefit by being active researchers early in their educational careers. As coauthors of published research, they identify themselves as scientists. This provides them with the inspiration, motivation, and staying power that many will need to complete the long educational process. This hypothesis was put to the test over the past decade by a one-semester astronomy research seminar where teams of students managed their own research. Well over a hundred published papers coauthored by high school and undergraduate students at a handful of schools substantiated this hypothesis. However, one could argue that this was a special case. Astronomy, after all, is supported by a large professional-amateur community-of-practice. Furthermore, the specific area of research-double star astrometry-was chosen because the observations could be quickly made, the data reduction and analysis was straight forward, and publication of the research was welcomed by the Journal of Double Star Observations. A recently initiated seminar development and expansion program-supported in part by the National Science Foundation-is testing a more general hypothesis that: (1) the seminar can be successfully adopted by many other schools; (2) research within astronomy can be extended from double star astrometry to time series photometry of variable stars, exoplanet transits, and asteroids; and (3) the seminar model can be extended to a science beyond astronomy: environmental science-specifically atmospheric science. If the more general hypothesis is also supported, seminars that similarly feature published high school and undergraduate student team research could have the potential to significantly improve science education by increasing the percentage of students who complete the education required to become professional scientists.

American Indian and Indigenous Geoscience Program: Ensuring the Evolution of Diverse STEM Scientists and Researchers in the 21st Century and Beyond

Science.gov (United States)

Bolman, J. R.

2013-05-01

Have you ever been lost? Knowing where you want to go yet unsure how to get there? In today's contemporary society you deploy the use of a navigator or navigation system. This is also one component of a cultural geoscience program in ensuring diverse students complete with excellence and success their route to research and education. The critical components of a cultural geoscience program and the role of cultural mentors are broad and the opportunity to expand one's own personal and professional success in science and society is immense. There remains a critical need and challenge to increase the representation of underrepresented people in the sciences. To address this challenge a navigational geoscience program approach was developed centered on the incorporation of traditional knowledge into modern research and education. The approach incorporates defining cultural/personal choices for a STEM vocation, developing science research with a "purpose", and refining leadership. The program model incorporates a mentor's personal oral histories and experiences in education, research and life. The goal is to ensure the next generation of scientists and researchers are more diverse, highly educated, experienced and leadership orientated by the time they complete STEM programs - then by the time they are our age, have our level of education and experience.

Increasing Access to Atmospheric Science Research at NASA Langley Research Center

Science.gov (United States)

Chambers, L. H.; Bethea, K. L.; LaPan, J. C.

2013-12-01

The Science Directorate (SD) at NASA's Langley Research Center conducts cutting edge research in fundamental atmospheric science topics including radiation and climate, air quality, active remote sensing, and upper atmospheric composition. These topics matter to the public, as they improve our understanding of our home planet. Thus, we have had ongoing efforts to improve public access to the results of our research. These efforts have accelerated with the release of the February OSTP memo. Our efforts can be grouped in two main categories: 1. Visual presentation techniques to improve science understanding: For fundamental concepts such as the Earth's energy budget, we have worked to display information in a more "digestible" way for lay audiences with more pictures and fewer words. These audiences are iPad-lovers and TV-watchers with shorter attention spans than audiences of the past. They are also educators and students who need a basic understanding of a concept delivered briefly to fit into busy classroom schedules. We seek to reach them with a quick, visual message packed with important information. This presentation will share several examples of visual techniques, such as infographics (e.g., a history of lidar at Langley and a timeline of atmospheric research, ozone garden diagrams (http://science-edu.larc.nasa.gov/ozonegarden/ozone-cycle.php); history of lidar at LaRC; DISCOVER-AQ maps. It will also share examples of animations and interactive graphics (DISCOVER-AQ); and customized presentations (e.g., to explain the energy budget or to give a general overview of research). One of the challenges we face is a required culture shift between the way scientists traditionally share knowledge with each other and the way these public audiences ingest knowledge. A cross-disciplinary communications team in SD is crucial to bridge that gap. 2. Lay research summaries to make research more accessible: Peer-reviewed publications are a primary product of the SD, with more

Scientists Shaping the Discussion

Science.gov (United States)

Abraham, J. A.; Weymann, R.; Mandia, S. A.; Ashley, M.

2011-12-01

Scientific studies which directly impact the larger society require an engagement between the scientists and the larger public. With respect to research on climate change, many third-party groups report on scientific findings and thereby serve as an intermediary between the scientist and the public. In many cases, the third-party reporting misinterprets the findings and conveys inaccurate information to the media and the public. To remedy this, many scientists are now taking a more active role in conveying their work directly to interested parties. In addition, some scientists are taking the further step of engaging with the general public to answer basic questions related to climate change - even on sub-topics which are unrelated to scientists' own research. Nevertheless, many scientists are reluctant to engage the general public or the media. The reasons for scientific reticence are varied but most commonly are related to fear of public engagement, concern about the time required to properly engage the public, or concerns about the impact to their professional reputations. However, for those scientists who are successful, these engagement activities provide many benefits. Scientists can increase the impact of their work, and they can help society make informed choices on significant issues, such as mitigating global warming. Here we provide some concrete steps that scientists can take to ensure that their public engagement is successful. These steps include: (1) cultivating relationships with reporters, (2) crafting clear, easy to understand messages that summarize their work, (3) relating science to everyday experiences, and (4) constructing arguments which appeal to a wide-ranging audience. With these steps, we show that scientists can efficiently deal with concerns that would otherwise inhibit their public engagement. Various resources will be provided that allow scientists to continue work on these key steps.

Research Article Special Issue

African Journals Online (AJOL)

pc

2018-02-01

Feb 1, 2018 ... the Russian philosophical and sociological thought. The thoughts of the Russian scientist ... Research Article. Special Issue. Journal of Fundamental and Applied Sciences is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0. International License. Libraries Resource Directory. We are ...

Research Article Special Issue

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2017-08-08

Aug 8, 2017 ... ndamental and Applied Sciences is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution ... constitutes one of the new and robust statistical methods used by researchers ... Hydrologist, engineers and environmental scientist are usually faced with a ..... This factor could be considered by chemical components of.

International Journal of Health Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erah

collaboration among scientists, the industry and the healthcare professionals. ... forum for the communication and evaluation of data, methods and findings in health ... research articles, 3,000 for technical notes, case reports, commentaries and ...

Assessing the bibliometric productivity of forest scientists in Italy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesca Giannetti

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Since 2010, the Italian Ministry of University and Research issued new evaluation protocols to select candidates for University professorships and assess the bibliometric productivity of Universities and Research Institutes based on bibliometric indicators, i.e. scientific paper and citation numbers and the h-index. Under this framework, the objective of this study was to quantify the bibliometric productivity of the Italian forest research community during the 2002-2012 period. We examined the following productivity parameters: (i the bibliometric productivity under the Forestry subject category at the global level; (ii compared the aggregated bibliometric productivity of Italian forest scientists with scientists from other countries; (iii analyzed publication and citation temporal trends of Italian forest scientists and their international collaborations; and (iv characterized productivity distribution among Italian forest scientists at different career levels. Results indicated the following: (i the UK is the most efficient country based on the ratio between Gross Domestic Spending (GDS on Research and Development (R&D and bibliometric productivity under the Forestry subject category, followed by Italy; (ii Italian forest scientist productivity exhibited a significant positive time trend, but was characterized by high inequality across authors; (iii one-half of the Italian forest scientist publications were written in collaboration with foreign scientists; (iv a strong relationship exists between bibliometric indicators calculated by WOS and SCOPUS, suggesting these two databases have the same potential to evaluate the forestry research community; and (v self-citations did not significantly affect the rank of Italian forest scientists.

Research Results

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

In situ Oxidation Study of Pt (110) and Its Interaction with CO Chinese Scientists Published a Paper on Prevention of Drug Craving and Relapse by Memory Retrieval-extinction Procedure in Science Series Papers Published in Energy Policy: Modeling Energy Use of China's Road Transport and Policy Evaluation Breakthrough in the Ambient Catalytic Destruction of Formaldehyde Novel Findings for High Altitude Adaptation from the Yak Genome Binary Colloidal Structures Assembled through Ising Interactions Reemergence of superconductivity at 48K in Compressed Iron Selenide Based Superconductors Nucleosomes Suppress Spontaneous Mutations Base-Specifically in Eukaryotes Single-Chain Fragmented Antibodies Guided SiRNA Delivery in Breast Cancer Does Yeast Suicide? China Scientists Developed Important Methodologies for Spatiotemporal Detecting and Manipulating of Cellular Activities Scorpions Inspire Chinese Scientists in Making Bionic Non-eroding Surfaces for Machinery Research on Phylogenetic Placement of Borthwickia and Description of a New Family of Angiosperms, Borthwickiaceae Plasmoid Ejection and Secondary Current Sheet Generation from Magnetic Reconnection in Laser-plasma Interaction Cotton Bollworm Adapts to Bt Cotton via Diverse Mutations A Histone Acetyltransferase Regulates Active DNA Demethylation in Arabidopsis

The SUPER Program: A Research-based Undergraduate Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Ernakovich, J. G.; Boone, R. B.; Boot, C. M.; Denef, K.; Lavallee, J. M.; Moore, J. C.; Wallenstein, M. D.

2014-12-01

Producing undergraduates capable of broad, independent thinking is one of the grand challenges in science education. Experience-based learning, specifically hands-on research, is one mechanism for increasing students' ability to think critically. With this in mind, we created a two-semester long research program called SUPER (Skills for Undergraduate Participation in Ecological Research) aimed at teaching students to think like scientists and enhancing the student research experience through instruction and active-learning about the scientific method. Our aim was for students to gain knowledge, skills, and experience, and to conduct their own research. In the first semester, we hosted active-learning workshops on "Forming Hypotheses", "Experimental Design", "Collecting and Managing Data", "Analysis of Data", "Communicating to a Scientific Audience", "Reading Literature Effectively", and "Ethical Approaches". Each lesson was taught by different scientists from one of many ecological disciplines so that students were exposed to the variation in approach that scientists have. In the second semester, students paired with a scientific mentor and began doing research. To ensure the continued growth of the undergraduate researcher, we continued the active-learning workshops and the students attended meetings with their mentors. Thus, the students gained technical and cognitive skills in parallel, enabling them to understand both "the how" and "the why" of what they were doing in their research. The program culminated with a research poster session presented by the students. The interest in the program has grown beyond our expectations, and we have now run the program successfully for two years. Many of the students have gone on to campus research jobs, internships and graduate school, and have attributed part of their success in obtaining their positions to their experience with the SUPER program. Although common in other sciences, undergraduate research experiences are

Promoting the confluence of tropical cyclone research.

Science.gov (United States)

Marler, Thomas E

2015-01-01

Contributions of biologists to tropical cyclone research may improve by integrating concepts from other disciplines. Employing accumulated cyclone energy into protocols may foster greater integration of ecology and meteorology research. Considering experienced ecosystems as antifragile instead of just resilient may improve cross-referencing among ecological and social scientists. Quantifying ecosystem capital as distinct from ecosystem services may improve integration of tropical cyclone ecology research into the expansive global climate change research community.

Does Gender Affect a Scientist's Research Output in Evolutionary Ecology?

Science.gov (United States)

Bonnet, Xavier; Shine, Richard; Lourdais, Olivier

To examine how an author's gender influences his or her research output, the authors analyzed (not simply scored) more than 900 published articles in nine leading scientific journals in the field of evolutionary ecology. Women were strongly underrepresented in all countries, but this bias is decreasing. Men and women differed significantly in their fields of research, with women preferentially conducting projects on behavior rather than evolution or ecology. Most aspects of the structure of published articles and the level of conceptual generality were unaffected by an author's gender. Because discriminatory practices by reviewers and editors can be manifested in attributes of the articles that survive the review process, the latter result suggests a lack of gender-based discrimination during the review process. Gender differences in research output presumably reflect a complex array of genetic and social influences; a clearer understanding of these causal factors may help identify (and thus reduce) gender-based discrimination.

Extending the Mertonian Norms: Scientists' Subscription to Norms of Research

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Melissa S.; Ronning, Emily A.; De Vries, Raymond; Martinson, Brian C.

2010-01-01

This analysis, based on focus groups and a national survey, assesses scientists' subscription to the Mertonian norms of science and associated counternorms. It also supports extension of these norms to governance (as opposed to administration), as a norm of decision-making, and quality (as opposed to quantity), as an evaluative norm. (Contains 1…

Research interests: their dynamics, structures and applications in unifying search and reasoning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zeng, Y.; Zhou, E.; Wang, Y.; Ren, X.; Qin, Y.; Huang, Z.; Zhong, N.

2011-01-01

Most scientific publication information, which may reflects scientists' research interests, is publicly available on the Web. Understanding the characteristics of research interests from previous publications may help to provide better services for scientists in the Web age. In this paper, we

2015 NIEHS/EPA Children's Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Research Centers Annual Meeting

Science.gov (United States)

The meeting will feature the researchers and senior scientists from the Children's Centers, the PEHSUs, scientists from federal agencies and others through interdisciplinary presentations and discussions that explore connections between research findings,

Unique life sciences research facilities at NASA Ames Research Center

Science.gov (United States)

Mulenburg, G. M.; Vasques, M.; Caldwell, W. F.; Tucker, J.

1994-01-01

The Life Science Division at NASA's Ames Research Center has a suite of specialized facilities that enable scientists to study the effects of gravity on living systems. This paper describes some of these facilities and their use in research. Seven centrifuges, each with its own unique abilities, allow testing of a variety of parameters on test subjects ranging from single cells through hardware to humans. The Vestibular Research Facility allows the study of both centrifugation and linear acceleration on animals and humans. The Biocomputation Center uses computers for 3D reconstruction of physiological systems, and interactive research tools for virtual reality modeling. Psycophysiological, cardiovascular, exercise physiology, and biomechanical studies are conducted in the 12 bed Human Research Facility and samples are analyzed in the certified Central Clinical Laboratory and other laboratories at Ames. Human bedrest, water immersion and lower body negative pressure equipment are also available to study physiological changes associated with weightlessness. These and other weightlessness models are used in specialized laboratories for the study of basic physiological mechanisms, metabolism and cell biology. Visual-motor performance, perception, and adaptation are studied using ground-based models as well as short term weightlessness experiments (parabolic flights). The unique combination of Life Science research facilities, laboratories, and equipment at Ames Research Center are described in detail in relation to their research contributions.

The Past and Future of Nursing Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Margaret M. Heitkemper, PhD, RN, FAAN

2007-06-01

Full Text Available The past three decades have witnessed a remarkable growth in nursing science development. In both Korea and the United States, nurse scientists are poised to address important issues related to the prevention and management of significant health care problems. The need for greater nursing science development in the areas of self management, genetics, geriatrics, health promotion across the lifespan, technology, and mental health are briefly highlighted. Future research efforts will be enhanced by interdisciplinary collaboration and the creation of international nursing research centers. At the same time, we need to remain cognizant of the importance of mentoring future nurse scientists.

Atmospheric Research 2014 Technical Highlights

Science.gov (United States)

Platnick, Steven

2015-01-01

Atmospheric research in the Earth Sciences Division (610) consists of research and technology development programs dedicated to advancing knowledge and understanding of the atmosphere and its interaction with the climate of Earth. The Division's goals are to improve understanding of the dynamics and physical properties of precipitation, clouds, and aerosols; atmospheric chemistry, including the role of natural and anthropogenic trace species on the ozone balance in the stratosphere and the troposphere; and radiative properties of Earth's atmosphere and the influence of solar variability on the Earth's climate. Major research activities are carried out in the Mesoscale Atmospheric Processes Laboratory, the Climate and Radiation Laboratory, the Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory, and the Wallops Field Support Office. The overall scope of the research covers an end-to-end process, starting with the identification of scientific problems, leading to observation requirements for remote-sensing platforms, technology and retrieval algorithm development; followed by flight projects and satellite missions; and eventually, resulting in data processing, analyses of measurements, and dissemination from flight projects and missions. Instrument scientists conceive, design, develop, and implement ultraviolet, infrared, optical, radar, laser, and lidar technology to remotely sense the atmosphere. Members of the various Laboratories conduct field measurements for satellite sensor calibration and data validation, and carry out numerous modeling activities. These modeling activities include climate model simulations, modeling the chemistry and transport of trace species on regional-to-global scales, cloud resolving models, and developing the next-generation Earth system models. Satellite missions, field campaigns, peer-reviewed publications, and successful proposals are essential at every stage of the research process to meeting our goals and maintaining leadership of the

Nobelist TD LEE Scientist Cooperation Network and Scientist Innovation Ability Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jin-Qing Fang

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Nobelist TD Lee scientist cooperation network (TDLSCN and their innovation ability are studied. It is found that the TDLSCN not only has the common topological properties both of scale-free and small-world for a general scientist cooperation networks, but also appears the creation multiple-peak phenomenon for number of published paper with year evolution, which become Nobelist TD Lee’s significant mark distinguished from other scientists. This new phenomenon has not been revealed in the scientist cooperation networks before. To demonstrate and explain this new finding, we propose a theoretical model for a nature scientist and his/her team innovation ability. The theoretical results are consistent with the empirical studies very well. This research demonstrates that the model has a certain universality and can be extended to estimate innovation ability for any nature scientist and his/her team. It is a better method for evaluating scientist innovation ability and his/her team for the academic profession and is of application potential.

The State of Young Scholars and Scientists in Africa | IDRC ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

... career decisions and research performance of young scientists in higher education, ... progression Researchers will examine the supporting and limiting factors. ... They will work with scientists, government agencies, and higher education ...

Research as if relevance mattered

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ziman, J.

1978-01-01

The agenda of next year's UN Conference on Science and Technology for Development (UNCSTD) is all intellectual abstractions and institutional frameworks. It has no words for the people through whom science and technology will flow. The primary resource for development is skilled engineers, doctors, agriculturalists and other technically qualified people to carry out a multitude of constructive tasks. The training and appropriate employment of such people should be a major theme of the conference. Technical training is education in what is already known, research is the generation of new knowledge. The research scientist is an indispensable person in the development process. But what exactly is his role? The introduction of advanced science into the less developed countries (LDCs) has disappointed many high hopes, especially among the scientists themselves. Not only is their research hobbled by poverty of facilities, geographical isolation, social incomprehension and political harassment, they are uneasily aware that they have a negligible influence on the welfare of their fellow countrymen, and live largely by promises of vague benefits that are unlikely to be fulfilled

Research as if relevance mattered

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ziman, J [University of Bristol (United Kingdom)

1978-12-15

The agenda of next year's UN Conference on Science and Technology for Development (UNCSTD) is all intellectual abstractions and institutional frameworks. It has no words for the people through whom science and technology will flow. The primary resource for development is skilled engineers, doctors, agriculturalists and other technically qualified people to carry out a multitude of constructive tasks. The training and appropriate employment of such people should be a major theme of the conference. Technical training is education in what is already known, research is the generation of new knowledge. The research scientist is an indispensable person in the development process. But what exactly is his role? The introduction of advanced science into the less developed countries (LDCs) has disappointed many high hopes, especially among the scientists themselves. Not only is their research hobbled by poverty of facilities, geographical isolation, social incomprehension and political harassment, they are uneasily aware that they have a negligible influence on the welfare of their fellow countrymen, and live largely by promises of vague benefits that are unlikely to be fulfilled.

Progress report from the Studsvik Neutron Research Laboratory 1987-89

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dahlborg, U.; Ebbsjoe, I.; Holmqvist, B.

1993-01-01

The present publication contains information from activities at the Studsvik Neutron Research Laboratory (NFL) and the Department of Neutron Research. NFL is the base for the research activities at the Studvik reactors. It is administrated by the University of Uppsala and is established to facilitate reactor based research. The laboratory is intended to, in co-operation with institutes and departments at universities in Sweden, develop, construct and maintain experimental equipment for this kind of research and to make it available for scientists at Swedish universitites and, if possible, also to scientists outside the universities. The research at the Studsvik facilities has during 1989 been performed by groups from Uppsala University, Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Chalmers Technical University, Gothenburg, and by scientists at NFL. The research program of the groups is divided into three main areas, scattering of thermal neutrons, nuclear chemistry and nuclear physics, and neutron capture radiography. The program for subatomic physics, especially neutron physics, at the Department for Neutron Research, Uppsala University has also staff permanently placed at NFL but they are in their research using the facilities at the The Svedberg Laboratory, Uppsala. In addition to supporting research NFL has also put substantial efforts on creating facilities for training of undergraduate students. Thus a facility for practical exercises in neutron physics, activation analysis and radiography has recently been installed at the R2-0 reactor as a collaboration between NFL, Dept. of Neutron Research, Upppsala and Department for Reactor Physics, KTH

Waste management research abstracts volume 27. Information on radioactive waste management research in progress or planned

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-10-01

This issue of the Waste Management Research Abstracts (WMRA) contains 148 abstracts that describe research in progress in the field of radioactive waste management. The research abstracts contained in Volume 27 (WMRA 27) were collected between July 1, 2001 and September 30, 2002. The abstracts present ongoing work in various countries and international organizations. Although the abstracts are indexed by country, many programmes are actually the result of co-operation among several countries. Indeed, a primary reason for providing this compilation of programmes, institutions and scientists engaged in research into radioactive waste management is to increase international co-operation and facilitate communications

Developing Capacity for Agricultural Research for Development in ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

This project will train a new group of agricultural research leaders in Francophone West and Central Africa. The number of agricultural scientists in the region has fallen at a time when high-quality research is needed to improve food security and livelihoods. Training and research opportunities A total of 20 training and ...

Conducting Research as a Visiting Scientist in a Women’s Prison

Science.gov (United States)

Byrne, Mary Woods

2006-01-01

Incarcerated populations have disparities in health risks and illness conditions meriting study, but the history of prison research is marred by unethical conduct. Ethical participation strategies are discussed in the context of studies implemented by the author in a state prison system. This study used ethnographic approaches, observed adherence to federal and institutional review board regulations and corrections department directives, and maintained continuous communication with vested interests to provide entry and long-term access for studies on female prisoners and their civilian infants. A culture clash between the punitive restrictive environment that serves the custody–control–care mission of corrections systems and the open inquiry environment needed for conduct of health research exists. Federal regulations protect prisoners as human subjects but additional vigilance and communication by researchers are required. Gaining and maintaining access to prison inmates for nursing research are leadership challenges that can be met within the caring and collaborative paradigm of nursing. PMID:16061169

The Barrett Foundation: Undergraduate Research Program for Environmental Engineers and Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Rizzo, D. M.; Paul, M.; Farmer, C.; Larson, P.; Matt, J.; Sentoff, K.; Vazquez-Spickers, I.; Pearce, A. R.

2007-12-01

A new program sponsored by The Barrett Foundation in the University of Vermont College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences (UVM) supports undergraduate students in Environmental Engineering, Earth and Environmental Sciences to pursue independent summer research projects. The Barrett Foundation, a non-profit organization started by a UVM Engineering alum, provided a grant to support undergraduate research. Students must work with at least two different faculty advisors to develop project ideas, then independently prepare a research proposal and submit it to a faculty panel for review. The program was structured as a scholarship to foster a competitive application process. In the last three years, fourteen students have participated in the program. The 2007 Barrett Scholars projects include: - Using bacteria to change the chemistry of subsurface media to encourage calcite precipitation for soil stability and pollutant sequestration - Assessing structural weaknesses in a historic post and beam barn using accelerometers and wireless data collection equipment - Using image processing filters to 1) evaluate leaf wetness, a leading indicator of disease in crops and 2) assess the movement of contaminants through building materials. - Investigating the impact of increased water temperature on cold-water fish species in two Vermont streams. - Studying the impacts of light duty vehicle tailpipe emissions on air quality This program supports applied and interdisciplinary environmental research and introduces students to real- world engineering problems. In addition, faculty from different research focuses are presented the opportunity to establish new collaborations around campus through the interdisciplinary projects. To date, there is a successful publication record from the projects involving the Barrett scholars, including students as authors. One of the objectives of this program was to provide prestigious, competitive awards to outstanding undergraduate engineers

Basic research projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-04-01

The research programs under the cognizance of the Office of Energy Research (OER) are directed toward discovery of natural laws and new knowledge, and to improved understanding of the physical and biological sciences as related to the development, use, and control of energy. The ultimate goal is to develop a scientific underlay for the overall DOE effort and the fundamental principles of natural phenomena so that these phenomena may be understood, and new principles, formulated. The DOE-OER outlay activities include three major programs: High Energy Physics, Nuclear Physics, and Basic Energy Sciences. Taken together, these programs represent some 30 percent of the Nation's Federal support of basic research in the energy sciences. The research activities of OER involve more than 6,000 scientists and engineers working in some 17 major Federal Research Centers and at more than 135 different universities and industrial firms throughout the United States. Contract holders in the areas of high-energy physics, nuclear physics, materials sciences, nuclear science, chemical sciences, engineering, mathematics geosciences, advanced energy projects, and biological energy research are listed. Funding trends for recent years are outlined

Fuel Cell Research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Weber, Peter M. [Brown University

2014-03-30

Executive Summary In conjunction with the Brown Energy Initiative, research Projects selected for the fuel cell research grant were selected on the following criteria: They should be fundamental research that has the potential to significantly impact the nation’s energy infrastructure. They should be scientifically exciting and sound. They should synthesize new materials, lead to greater insights, explore new phenomena, or design new devices or processes that are of relevance to solving the energy problems. They involve top-caliper senior scientists with a record of accomplishment, or junior faculty with outstanding promise of achievement. They should promise to yield at least preliminary results within the given funding period, which would warrant further research development. They should fit into the overall mission of the Brown Energy Initiative, and the investigators should contribute as partners to an intellectually stimulating environment focused on energy science. Based on these criteria, fourteen faculty across three disciplines (Chemistry, Physics and Engineering) and the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory were selected to participate in this effort.1 In total, there were 30 people supported, at some level, on these projects. This report highlights the findings and research outcomes of the participating researchers.

Developing Research Capabilities in Energy Biosciences

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brown, Donald D.

2008-01-01

Scientists founded the Life Sciences Research Foundation (LSRF) in 1983 as a non-profit pass through foundation that awards post doctoral fellowships in all areas of the life sciences. LSRF scientists review hundreds of applications each year from PhDs seeking support. For example this year, our 26th, we received 800 applications and our peer review committee will choose about 50 finalists who are eligible for these awards. We have no endowment so we solicit sponsors each year. The fellowships are sponsored by research oriented companies, foundations, philanthropists, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and other organizations who believe in the value of awarding fellowships to the best and the brightest young scientists. Our web site has a complete listing of all details about LSRF (http://www.lsrf.org/). In the late 1980s the Division of Bioscience in the Office of Basic Energy Science, a granting agency of the Department of Energy, joined this partnership. Bioscience's mandate was to support non-medical microbiology and plant sciences. LSRF received a series of 5 year grants from DOE to award fellowships to our top applicants in these fields of research. We began to support DOE-Energy Bioscience post doctoral fellows in 1989. From 1989 through 2004 when DOE funding ended our partnership awarded 41 DOE-Energy Bioscience Fellows of the Life Sciences Research Foundation. Each of these was a three year fellowship. DOE-Energy Biosciences was well matched with LSRF. Our extensive peer review screened applicants in all areas of the life sciences. Most LSRF sponsors are interested in supporting fellows who work on diseases. At the time that we began our partnership with DOE we had no sponsors willing to support plant biology and non medical microbiology. For 15 years DOE played a major role in the training of the very best young scientists in these important fields of research simply through its support of LSRF post doctoral fellows. Young scientists interested in

Meet EPA Physical Scientist Lukas Oudejans

Science.gov (United States)

Lukas Oudejans, Ph.D. is a physical scientist working in EPA’s National Homeland Security Research Center. His research focuses on preparing cleanup options for the agency following a disaster incident.

Translational neonatology research: transformative encounters across species and disciplines.

Science.gov (United States)

Dam, Mie S; Sangild, Per T; Svendsen, Mette N

2018-01-22

This paper explores the laborious and intimate work of turning bodies of research animals into models of human patients. Based on ethnographic research in the interdisciplinary Danish research centre NEOMUNE, we investigate collaboration across species and disciplines, in research aiming at improving survival for preterm infants. NEOMUNE experimental studies on piglets evolved as a platform on which both basic and clinical scientists exercised professional authority. Guided by the field of multi-species research, we explore the social and material agency of research animals in the production of human health. Drawing on Anna Tsing's concept of "collaborative survival", we show that sharing the responsibility of the life and death of up to twenty-five preterm piglets fostered not only a collegial solidarity between basic and clinical scientists, but also a transformative cross-fertilization across species and disciplines-a productive "contamination"-facilitating the day-to-day survival of piglets, the academic survival of scientists and the promise of survival of preterm infants. Contamination spurred intertwined identity shifts that increased the porosity between the pig laboratory and the neonatal intensive care unit. Of particular significance was the ability of the research piglets to flexibly become animal-infant-patient hybrids in need of a united effort from basic and clinical researchers. However, 'hybrid pigs' also entailed a threat to the demarcation between humans and animals that consolidates the use of animals in biomedical research, and efforts were continuously done to keep contamination within spatial limits. We conclude that contamination facilitates transformative encounters, yet needs spatial containment to materialize bench-to-bedside translation.

Scientists warn DOE of dwindling funding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1994-01-01

Fusion scientists have raised their voices to let the Department of Energy know that they are concerned about the DOE's commitment to fusion research. In a letter dated February 28, 1994, 37 scientists from 21 institutions noted that open-quotes US funding for fusion has steadily decreased: It is now roughly half its level of 1980. This peculiar and painful circumstance has forced the program to contract drastically, losing skilled technical personnel, even as it faces its most exciting opportunities.close quotes The letter was addressed to Martha Krebs, the DOE's director of the Office of Energy Research, and N. Anne Davies, associated director for fusion energy. The scientists wanted to make two points. The first was that fusion energy research, only midway between concept and commercialization, deserves major reinvestment. The second was that basic scientific knowledge in the area of fusion, not just applied engineering, must remain a priority

Antiproton radiation found effective in cancer research

CERN Multimedia

2003-01-01

"An international collaboration of scientists has completed the first ever antiproton beam experiments designed to reveal the biological effectiveness of antiproton radiation in terminating cells used for cancer research...PBar Labs assembled the collaboration at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research in Geneva) to perform the measurements" (1 page).

Researcher-library collaborations: Data repositories as a service for researchers.

Science.gov (United States)

Gordon, Andrew S; Millman, David S; Steiger, Lisa; Adolph, Karen E; Gilmore, Rick O

New interest has arisen in organizing, preserving, and sharing the raw materials-the data and metadata-that undergird the published products of research. Library and information scientists have valuable expertise to bring to bear in the effort to create larger, more diverse, and more widely used data repositories. However, for libraries to be maximally successful in providing the research data management and preservation services required of a successful data repository, librarians must work closely with researchers and learn about their data management workflows. Databrary is a data repository that is closely linked to the needs of a specific scholarly community-researchers who use video as a main source of data to study child development and learning. The project's success to date is a result of its focus on community outreach and providing services for scholarly communication, engaging institutional partners, offering services for data curation with the guidance of closely involved information professionals, and the creation of a strong technical infrastructure. Databrary plans to improve its curation tools that allow researchers to deposit their own data, enhance the user-facing feature set, increase integration with library systems, and implement strategies for long-term sustainability.

Acute stroke imaging research roadmap

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wintermark, Max; Albers, Gregory W.; Alexandrov, Andrei V.; Alger, Jeffry R.; Bammer, Roland; Baron, Jean-Claude; Davis, Stephen; Demaerschalk, Bart M.; Derdeyn, Colin P.; Donnan, Geoffrey A.; Eastwood, James D.; Fiebach, Jochen B.; Fisher, Marc; Furie, Karen L.; Goldmakher, Gregory V.; Hacke, Werner; Kidwell, Chelsea S.; Kloska, Stephan P.; Koehrmann, Martin; Koroshetz, Walter; Lee, Ting-Yim; Lees, Kennedy R.; Lev, Michael H.; Liebeskind, David S.; Ostergaard, Leif; Powers, William J.; Provenzale, James; Schellinger, Peter; Silbergleit, Robert; Sorensen, Alma Gregory; Wardlaw, Joanna; Warach, Steven

The recent "Advanced Neuroimaging for Acute Stroke Treatment" meeting on September 7 and 8, 2007 in Washington DC, brought together stroke neurologists, neuroradiologists, emergency physicians, neuroimaging research scientists, members of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Summer Undergraduate Research Program: Environmental studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McMillan, J. [ed.

1994-12-31

The purpose of the summer undergraduate internship program for research in environmental studies is to provide an opportunity for well-qualified students to undertake an original research project as an apprentice to an active research scientist in basic environmental research. The students are offered research topics at the Medical University in the scientific areas of pharmacology and toxicology, epidemiology and risk assessment, environmental microbiology, and marine sciences. Students are also afforded the opportunity to work with faculty at the University of Charleston, SC, on projects with an environmental theme. Ten well-qualified students from colleges and universities throughout the eastern United States were accepted into the program.

Toward the Development of a Sustainable Scientific Research Culture in Azerbaijan (2011-2015).

Science.gov (United States)

Aliyeva, Saida; Flanagan, Peter; Johnson, April; Strelow, Lisa

2016-01-01

This review especially describes the dangerous pathogens research program in Azerbaijan (AJ) funded by the US Defense Threat Reduction Agency under the Cooperative Biological Engagement Program (CBEP) from 2011 through 2015. The objectives of the CBEP are to prevent the proliferation of biological weapons; to consolidate and secure collections of dangerous pathogens in central repositories; to strengthen biosafety and biosecurity of laboratory facilities; and to improve partner nations' ability to detect, diagnose, report, and respond to outbreaks of disease caused by especially dangerous pathogens. One of the missions of the CBEP is therefore to increase the research skills and proficiency of partner country scientists. The program aims to fulfill this mission by sponsoring scientific research projects that exercise the modern diagnostic techniques available in the CBEP-engaged laboratories and the enhanced disease surveillance/control programs. To strengthen the local scientists' ability to develop research ideas, write grant proposals, and conduct research independently, in-country CBEP integrating contractor personnel have mentored scientists across AJ and conducted workshops to address technical gaps. As a result of CBEP engagement, seven research projects developed and led by AJ scientists have been funded, and five projects are currently in various stages of implementation. The Defense Threat Reduction Agency has also sponsored AJ scientist participation at international scientific conferences to introduce and integrate them into the global scientific community. The efforts summarized in this review represent the first steps in an ongoing process that will ultimately provide AJ scientists with the skills and resources to plan and implement research projects of local and regional relevance.

The Culture of Translational Science Research: Participants' Stories.

Science.gov (United States)

Kotarba, Joseph A; Wooten, Kevin; Freeman, Jean; Brasier, Allan R

2013-01-01

We apply a symbolic interactionist framework and a qualitative methodology to the examination of the everyday reality of translational science research (TSR). This is a growing scientific movement that aims to facilitate the efficient application of basic research to clinical service design and delivery. We describe the emerging culture of translational research at a mid-size medical center that received a Clinical and Translational Science Award from the National Institutes of Health. The stories related by scientists, clinicians, and students in interviews indicate that they make sense of the emerging inter- and cross-disciplinary, team-oriented culture of TSR through the refinement and redefinition of the significant symbols that inform their work while they attempt to master translational research by addressing the dilemmas it produces for them and their work. We see the strength, currency, adaptability, and energy of the core self-definition of "scientist" to be significant in shaping the emerging culture of translational research. We conclude by celebrating the value of interpretive ethnography for evaluation research.

Scientists and Science Education: Working at the Interface

Science.gov (United States)

DeVore, E. K.

2004-05-01

"Are we alone?" "Where did we come from?" "What is our future?" These questions lie at the juncture of astronomy and biology: astrobiology. It is intrinsically interdisciplinary in its study of the origin, evolution and future of life on Earth and beyond. The fundamental concepts of origin and evolution--of both living and non-living systems--are central to astrobiology, and provide powerful themes for unifying science teaching, learning, and appreciation in classrooms and laboratories, museums and science centers, and homes. Research scientists play a key role in communicating the nature of science and joy of scientific discovery with the public. Communicating the scientific discoveries with the public brings together diverse professionals: research scientists, graduate and undergraduate faculty, educators, journalists, media producers, web designers, publishers and others. Working with these science communicators, research scientists share their discoveries through teaching, popular articles, lectures, broadcast and print media, electronic publication, and developing materials for formal and informal education such as textbooks, museum exhibits and documentary television. There's lots of activity in science communication. Yet, the NSF and NASA have both identified science education as needing improvement. The quality of schools and the preparation of teachers receive national attention via "No Child Left Behind" requirements. The number of students headed toward careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) is not sufficient to meet national needs. How can the research community make a difference? What role can research scientists fulfill in improving STEM education? This talk will discuss the interface between research scientists and science educators to explore effective roles for scientists in science education partnerships. Astronomy and astrobiology education and outreach projects, materials, and programs will provide the context for

The United Nuclear Research Institute

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kiss, D.

1978-01-01

The UNRI, the only common institute of the socialist countries was founded in 1956 in Dubna. The scientists of small countries have the opportunity to take part in fundamental research with very expensive devices which are usually not available for them. There are six research laboratories and one department in the UNRI namely: the theoretical physical laboratory; the laboratory of high energies - there is a synchrophasotron of 1a GeV there; the laboratory of nuclear problems - there is a synchrocyclotron of 680 MeV there; the laboratory of nuclear reactions with the cyclotron U-300 which can accelerate heavy ions; the neutronphysical laboratory with the impulse reactor IBM-30; the laboratory of computation and automatization with two big computers; the department of new acceleration methods. The main results obtained by Hungarian scientist in Dubna are described. (V.N.)

Waste management research abstracts. Information on radioactive waste management research in progress or planned. Vol. 28

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2003-11-01

This issue contains 184 abstracts that describe research in progress in the field of radioactive waste management. The research abstracts contained in the Waste Management Research Abstracts Volume 28 (WMRA 28) were collected between October 1, 2002 and September 30, 2003. The abstracts reflect research in progress, or planned, in the field of radioactive waste management. They present ongoing work in various countries and international organizations. Although the abstracts are indexed by country, some programmes are actually the result of cooperation among several countries. Indeed, a primary reason for providing this compilation of programmes, institutions and scientists engaged in research into radioactive waste management is to increase international co-operation and facilitate communications

Summaries of FY 1994 engineering research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-12-01

This report documents the Basic Energy Sciences Engineering Research Program for fiscal year 1994; it provides a summary of each of the program projects in addition to a brief program overview. The report is intended to provide staff of Congressional committees, other executive departments, and other DOE offices with substantive program information so as to facilitate governmental overview and coordination of Federal research programs. Of equal importance, its availability facilitates communication of program information to interested research engineers and scientists

Summaries of FY 1994 engineering research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1994-12-01

This report documents the Basic Energy Sciences Engineering Research Program for fiscal year 1994; it provides a summary of each of the program projects in addition to a brief program overview. The report is intended to provide staff of Congressional committees, other executive departments, and other DOE offices with substantive program information so as to facilitate governmental overview and coordination of Federal research programs. Of equal importance, its availability facilitates communication of program information to interested research engineers and scientists.

Moral-social dilemmas of nuclear research and technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maier-Leibnitz, H.

1991-01-01

The contribution reports, from the point of view of a scientist on moral implications relating to the scientists work and on experiences with the public discussion where moral aspects play a big role. The following problematic areas are dealt with: To be a scientist or not? Truthfulness or academic ethics; scientific advice, i.e. participating in decisions which have to be taken by non-scientists; requests made to research; the public discussion; the influence of the public on decisions. (HSCH) [de

Community researchers conducting health disparities research: Ethical and other insights from fieldwork journaling.

Science.gov (United States)

Mosavel, Maghboeba; Ahmed, Rashid; Daniels, Doria; Simon, Christian

2011-07-01

Lay persons who are trained to conduct research in their own communities form an essential part of many research projects. However, the effects of conducting research in their own communities have not been adequately explored. This paper examines the experiences, perceptions, and challenges faced by a group of community researchers during their involvement in a research project that examined if, and how, the relationships between mothers and their adolescent daughters could be harnessed to develop a daughter-initiated cervical cancer intervention. Seven community researchers interviewed 157 mother-daughter pairs in Cape Town, South Africa. We examine the use of journaling as a tool to document the experiences of community researchers, and we consider how journaling may help the community-based researcher grapple with the research process, and, more broadly, what such journal content illustrates with respect to the nature and challenges of community-engaged health research. An analysis of the content of the journals provides a strong indication of how personal and intimate the research process can be for community researchers by virtue of the background that they bring into the process as well as the additional weight of the research process itself. The complexities of navigating dual and somewhat oppositional roles - the role of impartial scientist or researcher and the role of invested community person - has been both underestimated and insufficiently researched. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Action Research for Sustainability

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Egmose, Jonas

on urban sustainability the need to move towards sustainability at societal level is conceptualised as a democratic challenge questioning the way we live on planet earth. By understanding sustainability as an immanent and emergent ability of ecological and social life, continuously to renew itself without...... with a greater say in the future of urban sustainability research, the work shows how action research can make important methodological contributions to processes of social learning between citizens and scientists by enabling free spaces in peoples everyday life and within academia, where aspects...

Action Research for Sustainability

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Egmose, Jonas

by analysing processes of social learning. The book addresses the need to move towards sustainability at societal level as a democratic challenge questioning the way we live on planet earth. By conceptualising sustain-ability as an immanent and emergent ability of ecological and social life, continuously...... to provide local citizens with a greater say in the future of urban sustainability research, this book shows how action research can make important methodological contributions to processes of social learning between citizens and scientists by enabling free spaces in peoples everyday life and within academia...

The Radiological Research Accelerator Facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hall, E.J.; Marino, S.A.

1991-05-01

The Radiological Research Accelerator Facility (RARAF) is based on 4-MV Van de Graaff accelerator, which is used to generate a variety of well-characterized radiation beams for research in radiobiology, radiological physics, and radiation chemistry. It is part of the Center for Radiological Research (CRR) -- formerly the Radiological Research Laboratory (RRL) -- of Columbia University, and its operation is supported as a National Facility by the US Department of Energy (DOE). As such, RARAF is available to all potential users on an equal basis, and scientists outside the CRR are encouraged to submit proposals for experiments at RARAF. The operation of the Van de Graaff is supported by the DOE, but the research projects themselves must be supported separately. Brief summaries of research experiments are included. Accelerator usage is summarized and development activities are discussed. 8 refs., 8 tabs

Program of Research in Aeronautics

Science.gov (United States)

1981-01-01

A prospectus of the educational and research opportunities available at the Joint Institute for Advancement of Flight Sciences, operated at NASA Langley Research Center in conjunction with George Washington University's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences is presented. Requirements of admission to various degree programs are given as well as the course offerings in the areas of acoustics, aeronautics, environmental modelling, materials science, and structures and dynamics. Research facilities for each field of study are described. Presentations and publications (including dissertations and theses) generated by each program are listed as well as faculty members visting scientists and engineers.

The Dutch National Research Agenda in Perspective

OpenAIRE

2017-01-01

The Dutch National Research Agenda is a set of national priorities that are set by scientists working in conjunction with corporations, civil society organisations, and interested citizens. The agenda consolidates the questions that scientific research will be focused on in the coming year. This book covers the current status of the Dutch National Research Agenda and considers what changes and adjustments may need to be made to the process in order to keep Dutch national research at the top o...

Mind the Gap: Promoting Careers in Academic Research to Psychiatry Residents

Science.gov (United States)

Posporelis, Sotirios; Sawa, Akira; Smith, Gwenn S.; Stitzer, Maxine L.; Lyketsos, Constantine G.; Chisolm, Margaret S.

2014-01-01

Objective With the shift of interest in psychiatry towards patient-oriented research with clinically relevant outcomes, there is a critical need for well-trained psychiatrist-scientists. The authors report on two developmentally-tailored, longitudinal research training curricula designed to use peer mentoring to bridge the gap between physicians and scientists, and to promote careers in academic research. Methods The authors instituted two independent research training curricula, one for first-year and one for second-to-fourth year psychiatry residents, spanning two campuses of one institutional residency training program. Each curriculum’s participants included psychiatry residents and peer scientific investigators, and both were attended by senior scientists and departmental leaders. The authors developed and administered an anonymous survey at the end of the first cycle of the first-year resident curriculum to assess participant attitudes. Results The first-year and second-to-fourth-year resident curricula have been implemented for 3and 2 years respectively. The authors observed overall participant satisfaction with the first-year curricula, independent of trainee status. Furthermore, first-year psychiatry residents reported increased interest in academic research careers after exposure to the curricula. Conclusions Results suggest it is possible to encourage academic research careers using peer mentoring, an innovative approach that requires minimal funding, little disruption to the residents’ schedule, and engages the gamut of individuals involved in psychiatry care and research: psychiatrists-in-training and young non-clinician scientists-in-training. PMID:24497181

Behavioral Research Data Analysis with R

CERN Document Server

Li, Yuelin

2012-01-01

This book is written for behavioral scientists who want to consider adding R to their existing set of statistical tools, or want to switch to R as their main computation tool. The authors aim primarily to help practitioners of behavioral research make the transition to R. The focus is to provide practical advice on some of the widely-used statistical methods in behavioral research, using a set of notes and annotated examples. This book will also help beginners learn more about statistics and behavioral research. These are statistical techniques used by psychologists who do research on human su

NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. Report 34: How early career-stage US aerospace engineers and scientists produce and use information

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Barclay, Rebecca O.; Kennedy, John M.

1995-01-01

The U.S. government technical report is a primary means by which the results of federally funded research and development (R&D) are transferred to the U.S. aerospace industry. However, little is known about this information product in terms of its actual use, importance, and value in the transfer of federally funded R&D. To help establish a body of knowledge, the U.S. government technical report is being investigated as part of the NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. In this report, we summarize the literature on technical reports and provide a model that depicts the transfer of federally funded aerospace R&D via the U.S. government technical report. We present results from our investigation of aerospace knowledge diffusion vis-a-vis the U.S. government technical report, and present the results of research that investigated aerospace knowledge diffusion vis-a-vis the production and use of information by U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists who had changed their American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) membership from student to professional in the past five years.

The Australian centre for RF bioeffects research (ACRBR) - an NHMRC centre of research excellence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wood, A.; Croft, R.; Abramson, M.; Anderson, V.; Cosic, I.; Finnie, J.; McKenzie, R.

2004-01-01

Full text: The Australian Centre for Radiofrequency Bioeffects Research (ACRBR) is a newly established multi-institutional research centre which seeks to research questions pertaining to possible health effects of exposure to radiofrequency devices, such as mobile phones and which is funded under the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Centres of Research Excellence funding program. The Centre of Research Excellence in Electromagnetic Energy is combining the efforts of engineers, epidemiologists, physicists, psychophysiologists and veterinary pathologists from RMIT University, the Institute of Medical and Veterinary Science in South Australia (IMVS), Monash University, Swinburne University of Technology and Telstra Research Laboratories (TRL). The centre is funded at $2.5 M over five years and will undertake a program of research to address the issue of exposure to radiofrequency (RF) devices and health. It will also train new scientists, keep the community informed of ongoing developments and help the development of government policies in this area of considerable public concern. The 5-year program has the following components: Neurobiology: One important area where there is a perceived research gap is in the area of potential neurological effects, which will hence be a major focus of this Centre. The proposed studies range from in vitro and in vivo research studies of RF effects on neuron and neural system functioning in rodents, to that of RF effects on simple neural function, cognition and subjective report in humans. The latter series of studies have been developed to account for the consensus view that more emphasis needs to be placed on possible differences in RF population sensitivity (e.g. youth versus aged, and ' electromagnetic hypersensitives'). Epidemiological studies are an important tool in studying the impact on public health from exposure of whole populations to modern radio technologies. Cancer outcomes in this area of

The Radiological Research Accelerator Facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hall, E.J.

1992-05-01

The Radiological Research Accelerator Facility (RARAF) is based on a 4-MV Van de Graaff accelerator, which is used to generate a variety of well-characterized radiation beams for research in radiobiology, radiological physics, and radiation chemistry. It is part of the Center for Radiological Research (CRR) -- formerly the Radiological Research Laboratory (RRL) -- of Columbia University, and its operation is supported as a National Facility by the US Department of Energy (DOE). As such, RARAF is available to all potential users on an equal basis, and scientists outside the CRR are encouraged to submit proposals for experiments at RARAF. The operation of the Van de Graaff is supported by the DOE, but the research projects themselves must be supported separately. Experiments performed from May 1991--April 1992 are described

The Benefits of Being a Student of Teacher Researchers Experiences (sotre)

Science.gov (United States)

Eubanks, E.; Guinan, E.; Chiste, M.; Lavoie, A.

2016-02-01

Being a Student of Teacher Researcher Experiences (SoTRE), gets students excited for science. Eubanks brings real, current science to the classroom because of time spent in Teacher Researcher Experiences (TRE), where she works with researchers in and out of the field. She involves students in many programs including the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Polar TREC (Teachers and Researchers & Exploring & Collaboration), National Science Foundation (NSF) funded researchers, (EARTH) Education and Research: Testing Hypothesis, the RJ Dunlap Marine Conservation Program, C-DEBI (Center for Dark Energy Biosphere Investigations and (STARS) Sending Teachers Aboard Research Ships. Being in these programs gives students special privileges such as understanding unique research ideas, tracking tagged sharks, following daily journals written on location, taking part in cross-continental experiments, tracking real time data, exploring current research via posters or visiting universities. Furthermore, contacts made by a TRE give students an added set of resources. When doing experiments for class or advancing their education or career goals, Mrs. Eubanks helps students connect with scientists. This gives students a unique opportunity to learn from real scientists. Being part of these relationships with NOAA, Polar TREC, EARTH, RJ Dunlap, STARS and NSF funded scientists who are actively working, makes being SoTRE the ultimate learning experience. Many students have felt so strongly about the TRE relationship that they have presented at several local and international science conferences. Their message is to encourage scientists to partner with teachers. The benefits of participation in such conferences have included abstract writing and submission, travel, poster creation, networking and presentation, all tools that they will carry with them for a lifetime.

The Navigator: Role of the Cultural Mentor in Ensuring the Evolution of Diverse STEM Scientists and Researchers in the 21st Century and Beyond.

Science.gov (United States)

Bolman, J. R.

2012-12-01

Have you ever been lost? Knowing where you want to go yet unsure how to get there? In today's contemporary society you deploy the use of a navigator or navigation system. This is also one role of the cultural mentor in ensuring diverse students complete with excellence and success their route to research and education. The responsibilities of the cultural mentor are broad and the opportunity to expand one's own personal and professional success in science and society is immense. There remains a critical need and challenge to increase the representation of underrepresented people in the sciences. To address this challenge a navigational mentoring approach was developed centered on the incorporation of traditional knowledge into modern research and education. The approach incorporates defining cultural/personal choices for a STEM vocation, developing science research with a "purpose", and refining leadership. The model incorporates a mentor's personal oral histories and experiences in education, research and life. The goal is to ensure the next generation of scientists and researchers are more diverse, highly educated, experienced and leadership orientated by the time they complete STEM programs - then by the time they are our age, have our level of education and experience.

ARDENT ignites research careers

CERN Multimedia

Antonella Del Rosso

2013-01-01

The ARDENT (Advanced Radiation Dosimetry European Network Training) project passed its mid-term review exercise with flying colours. At the recent workshop at the Politecnico of Milan, the ARDENT researchers again took full advantage of the networking and training opportunities offered by the project.   “The EU officer and the accompanying expert from the Norwegian Research Council congratulated us on the work done and the progress we are making with the programme,” says CERN’s Marco Silari, ARDENT scientist-in-charge. “All the researchers involved in ARDENT presented their work and we were able to confirm that we are keeping on schedule and delivering the expected results. In some cases, the research programme has even been extended to include new research developments.” An example is the GEMPIX detector, a sensor for radiation detection that uses a Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) gaseous detector with a MediPix read-out system. “GEM...

Global climate change: Social and economic research issues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rice, M.; Snow, J.; Jacobson, H.

1992-05-01

This workshop was designed to bring together a group of scholars, primarily from the social sciences, to explore research that might help in dealing with global climate change. To illustrate the state of present understanding, it seemed useful to focus this workshop on three broad questions that are involved in coping with climate change. These are: (1) How can the anticipated economic costs and benefits of climate change be identified; (2) How can the impacts of climate change be adjusted to or avoided; (3) What previously studied models are available for institutional management of the global environment? The resulting discussions may (1) identify worthwhile avenues for further social science research, (2) help develop feedback for natural scientists about research information from this domain needed by social scientists, and (3) provide policymakers with the sort of relevant research information from the social science community that is currently available

Are students kidding with health research ethics? The case of HIV/AIDS research in Cameroon

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Munung Nchangwi

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Universities in Cameroon are playing an active part in HIV/AIDS research and much of this research is carried out by students, usually for the purpose of a dissertation/thesis. Student theses/dissertations present research findings in a much more comprehensive manner and have been described as the stepping-stone of a budding scientist’s potential in becoming an independent researcher. It is therefore important to verify how students handle issues of research ethics. Method Theses/dissertations on HIV/AIDS that described research studies involving the use of human research participants were screened to verify if research ethics approval and informed consent were obtained and documented. The contents of the consent forms were also qualitatively analyzed. Results Of 174 theses/dissertations on HIV, ethics approval was documented in 17 (9.77% and informed consent in 77 (47.83%. Research ethics approval was first mentioned at all in 2002 and highly reported in the year 2007. Evidence of ethics approval was found for the first time in 2005 and informed consent first observed and evidenced in 1997. Ethics approval was mostly reported by students studying for an MD (14.01% and was not reported in any Bachelors’ degree dissertation. Informed consent was also highly reported in MD theses (64.58% followed by undergraduate theses (31.58%. Voluntary participation and potential benefits of the study were some of the common aspects dealt with in most of the consent forms. The right to discontinue participation in the study and management of residual samples were scarcely ever mentioned. Conclusions Overall, and given the current state of the art of research ethics around the world, student-scientists in Cameroon would seem to be merely kidding with research ethics. It is thus essential that training in health research ethics (HRE be incorporated in the curriculum of universities in Cameroon in order that the next generation of

Student Scientific Research within Communities-of-Practice (Abstract)

Science.gov (United States)

Genet, R.; Armstrong, J.; Blanko, P.; Boyce, G. B. P.; Brewer, M.; Buchheim, R.; Calanog, J.; Castaneda, D.; Chamberlin, R.; Clark, R. K.; Collins, D.; Conti, D.; Cormier, S.; FItzgerald, M.; Estrada, C.; Estrada, R.; Freed, R.; Gomez, E.; Hardersen, P.; Harshaw, R.; Johnson, J.; Kafka, S.; Kenney, J.; Monanan, K.; Ridgely, J.; Rowe, D.; Silliman, M.; Stojimirovic, I.; Tock, K.; Walker, D.

2017-12-01

(Abstract only) Social learning theory suggests that students who wish to become scientists will benefit by being active researchers early in their educational careers. As coauthors of published research, they identify themselves as scientists. This provides them with the inspiration, motivation, and staying power that many will need to complete the long educational process. This hypothesis was put to the test over the past decade by a one-semester astronomy research seminar where teams of students managed their own research. Well over a hundred published papers coauthored by high school and undergraduate students at a handful of schools substantiated this hypothesis. However, one could argue that this was a special case. Astronomy, after all, is supported by a large professional-amateur community-of-practice. Furthermore, the specific area of research - double star astrometry - was chosen because the observations could be quickly made, the data reduction and analysis was straight forward, and publication of the research was welcomed by the Journal of Double Star Observations. A recently initiated seminar development and expansion program - supported in part by the National Science Foundation - is testing a more general hypothesis that: (1) the seminar can be successfully adopted by many other schools; (2) research within astronomy can be extended from double star astrometry to time series photometry of variable stars, exoplanet transits, and asteroids; and (3) the seminar model can be extended to a science beyond astronomy: environmental science' specifically atmospheric science. If the more general hypothesis is also supported, seminars that similarly feature published high school and undergraduate student team research could have the potential to significantly improve science education by increasing the percentage of students who complete the education required to become professional scientists.

Symbolic Interaction and Applied Social Research

Science.gov (United States)

Kotarba, Joseph A.

2014-01-01

In symbolic interaction, a traditional yet unfortunate and unnecessary distinction has been made between basic and applied research. The argument has been made that basic research is intended to generate new knowledge, whereas applied research is intended to apply knowledge to the solution of practical (social and organizational) problems. I will argue that the distinction between basic and applied research in symbolic interaction is outdated and dysfunctional. The masters of symbolic interactionist thought have left us a proud legacy of shaping their scholarly thinking and inquiry in response to and in light of practical issues of the day (e.g., Znaniecki, and Blumer). Current interactionist work continues this tradition in topical areas such as social justice studies. Applied research, especially in term of evaluation and needs assessment studies, can be designed to serve both basic and applied goals. Symbolic interaction provides three great resources to do this. The first is its orientation to dynamic sensitizing concepts that direct research and ask questions instead of supplying a priori and often impractical answers. The second is its orientation to qualitative methods, and appreciation for the logic of grounded theory. The third is interactionism’s overall holistic approach to interfacing with the everyday life world. The primary illustrative case here is the qualitative component of the evaluation of an NIH-funded, translational medical research program. The qualitative component has provided interactionist-inspired insights into translational research, such as examining cultural change in medical research in terms of changes in the form and content of formal and informal discourse among scientists; delineating the impact of significant symbols such as "my lab" on the social organization of science; and appreciating the essence of the self-concept "scientist" on the increasingly bureaucratic and administrative identities of medical researchers. This

How to Do Research on IT Design and Applications in Healthcare Science?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Kim

2014-01-01

’s ”knowledge in practice”, Boltes' concepts and requirements for the design of and application of IT and Latour’s ideas about a new scheme for research and inquiry into a number of modes to retrieve knowledge about the world. Like the realistic paradigm the points of departure of all the three scientists......How to Do Research on IT Design and Applications in Healthcare Science? Background It is of pivotal importance for an increasing number of scientists in the healthcare research community to retrieve knowledge about which IT design and applications empower the end-user to master their own life...... scientists in the field find that the dominant research paradigm (referred to as “the paradigm of evidence”) says very little about whether designs and applications fulfil the purpose. Objective Therefore, they seek new principles for research (often referred to as “the paradigm of realism”) able to find...

Data management and global change research: Technology and infrastructure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morrissey, W.A.

1993-01-01

There is a consensus among many scientists who would perform global change research that global-scale scientific data management programs and enabling policies need to be developed and implemented concomitantly with, if not in advance of, global change research programs. They are hopeful that US Federal government policies for scientific and technical data and information management will provide timely archival, analysis, and dissemination of global change research data and will enable them to share that data with colleagues, internationally. Federal data managers believe that data management technology and infrastructure requirements for global change research programs can be met through existing or planned enhancements to systems in operation used for scientific data gathering, processing, and dissemination. Scientists are concerned, however, that because of the scope and diversity of global change research programs entirely new systems and approaches to data management may need to be devised

Considerations for higher efficiency and productivity in research activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Forero, Diego A; Moore, Jason H

2016-01-01

There are several factors that are known to affect research productivity; some of them imply the need for large financial investments and others are related to work styles. There are some articles that provide suggestions for early career scientists (PhD students and postdocs) but few publications are oriented to professors about scientific leadership. As academic mentoring might be useful at all levels of experience, in this note we suggest several key considerations for higher efficiency and productivity in academic and research activities. More research is needed into the main work style features that differentiate highly productive scientists and research groups, as some of them could be innate and others could be transferable. As funding agencies, universities and research centers invest large amounts of money in order to have a better scientific productivity, a deeper understanding of these factors will be of high academic and societal impact.

Secondary Analysis: A Strategy for the Use of Knowledge from Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Barney G. Glaser, PhD

2013-12-01

Full Text Available In recent years there has been a «rapidly expanding demand for sociologists services by organizations and groups for aid in solving their operating problems (Parsons, 1959. When a prospective client approaches the social scientist with a problem and asks what research can do to help solve it, he will generally focus this question in one or two ways: 1 what research already exists that may help and/or 2 what research can be done directly in the present situation? (Likert & Lippitt, 1953. This paper will discuss on strategy for applying existing research in the hope that it may help social scientist cope more effectively with the expanding demand for applied social research.

Modern International Research Groups: Networks and Infrastructure

Science.gov (United States)

Katehi, Linda

2009-05-01

In a globalized economy, education and research are becoming increasing international in content and context. Academic and research institutions worldwide try to internationalize their programs by setting formal or informal collaborations. An education that is enhanced by international experiences leads to mobility of the science and technology workforce. Existing academic cultures and research structures are at odds with efforts to internationalize education. For the past 20-30 years, the US has recognized the need to improve the abroad experience of our scientists and technologists: however progress has been slow. Despite a number of both federally and privately supported programs, efforts to scale up the numbers of participants have not been satisfactory. The exchange is imbalanced as more foreign scientists and researchers move to the US than the other way around. There are a number of issues that contribute to this imbalance but we could consider the US academic career system, as defined by its policies and practices, as a barrier to internationalizing the early career faculty experience. Strict curricula, pre-tenure policies and financial commitments discourage students, post doctoral fellows and pre-tenure faculty from taking international leaves to participate in research abroad experiences. Specifically, achieving an international experience requires funding that is not provided by the universities. Furthermore, intellectual property requirements and constraints in pre-tenure probationary periods may discourage students and faculty from collaborations with peers across the Atlantic or Pacific or across the American continent. Environments that support early career networking are not available. This presentation will discuss the increasing need for international collaborations and will explore the need for additional programs, more integration, better conditions and improved infrastructures that can encourage and support mobility of scientists. In addition

A proposal for ethical research conduct in Madagascar

African Journals Online (AJOL)

low and adopt common principles, framing social science ap- proaches, ecological surveys .... the potential negative impacts of research are avoided or minimi- zed, while the .... experiments, applied behavioral research) should conform to established .... The changing nature of science; can scientist rise to the chal- lenge?

Teaching ethical aptitude to graduate student researchers.

Science.gov (United States)

Weyrich, Laura S; Harvill, Eric T

2013-01-01

Limited time dedicated to each training areas, irrelevant case-studies, and ethics "checklists" have resulted in bare-bones Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training for present biomedical graduate student researchers. Here, we argue that science graduate students be taught classical ethical theory, such as virtue ethics, consequentialist theory, and deontological theory, to provide a basic framework to guide researchers through ethically complex situations and examine the applicability, implications, and societal ramifications of their research. Using a relevant biomedical research example to illustrate this point, we argue that proper ethics training for graduate student researchers not only will enhance current RCR training, but train more creative, responsible scientists.

Financial support for agricultural research in Alberta

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Teklemariam, Y.; Martin, J.

1992-01-01

A summary of the objectives and operational guidelines of 'Farming for the future', Alberta Agriculture's main research funding program, is provided, with emphasis on aspects relevant to research on the effects of acid-forming emissions on livestock. The program has two main objectives: to improve farm income, and to increase the long-term viability of agriculture in Alberta. The Research Program funds agricultural research conducted by research scientists and the On-farm Demonstration Program supports testing and demonstration studies conducted by producers on their farms. The procedures for applying for funds, criteria for evaluation, and funding available for acid-forming emission research are discussed. 1 fig

H-Index of Astrophysicists at Raman Research Institute: Performance of Different Calculators

Science.gov (United States)

Meera, B. M.; Manjunath, M.

2012-08-01

H-index, a single number proposed by J. E. Hirsch in 2005 has gained popularity as an index number to measure the research performance of individuals, institutions, universities, etc. There are many calculators to derive the h-in dex number, such as Google Scholar, Web of Science, Scopus, etc. However, h-index can be calculated manually, provided we have access to a complete list of publications of a scientist and the number of citations received by them. It is observed that h-index for a given scientist at a ny given point of time differs from one calculator to the other. Here is an attempt to calculate the H-index of scientists of the Astronomy and Astrophysics Group at Raman Research Institute using Google Scholar Free calculator, Web of Science Paid calculator and The SAO/NASA As trophysics Data System manual calculation and comparison of the results. Application of this h- index phenomenon to the research output of RRI scientists in a group is done while keeping in mi nd Hirsch's systematic in vestigation to predict the position of a scientist using h-index in physics. It is believed that the higher the academic age of a scientist, the higher will be the h-index. An attempt is made to find whether this assumption is true with respect to the sample studied by including the superannuated scientists from Astronomy and Astrophysics Group at Raman Research Institute under the purview of this study.

How much would each researcher receive if competitive government research funding were distributed equally among researchers?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Krist Vaesen

Full Text Available Scientists are increasingly dissatisfied with funding systems that rely on peer assessment and, accordingly, have suggested several proposals for reform. One of these proposals is to distribute available funds equally among all qualified researchers, with no interference from peer review. Despite its numerous benefits, such egalitarian sharing faces the objection, among others, that it would lead to an unacceptable dilution of resources. The aim of the present paper is to assess this particular objection. We estimate (for the Netherlands, the U.S. and the U.K. how much researchers would receive were they to get an equal share of the government budgets that are currently allocated through competitive peer assessment. For the Netherlands, we furthermore estimate what researchers would receive were we to differentiate between researchers working in low-cost, intermediate-cost and high-cost disciplines. Given these estimates, we then determine what researchers could afford in terms of PhD students, Postdocs, travel and equipment. According to our results, researchers could, on average, maintain current PhD student and Postdoc employment levels, and still have at their disposal a moderate (the U.K. to considerable (the Netherlands, U.S. budget for travel and equipment. This suggests that the worry that egalitarian sharing leads to unacceptable dilution of resources is unjustified. Indeed, our results strongly suggest that there is room for far more egalitarian distribution of funds than happens in the highly competitive funding schemes so prevalent today.

Sexual harassment within the marine sciences and the ethical dilemmas of collaboration: a case study in the education and reportino methods available to scientists, students, and staff on board a federal research vessel

Science.gov (United States)

Ohern, J.

2016-02-01

Within the Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) disciplines, a disparity between male and female involvement persists on the order of about 3:1. While roughly 40% of men with STEM degrees go on to pursue STEM jobs, just 26% of women with STEM degrees hold jobs within the STEM field. There are a number of contributing factors to these disparities, but one pernicious factor is the issue of sexual harassment and discrimination. For the marine sciences this is an especially concerning issue because our field research frequently takes place hundreds of miles offshore. Despite education and policy initiatives, sexual harassment pervades many research vessels and is often never addressed, discouraging female involvement and limiting the opportunities available to women. Ethical dilemmas develop when administrators do not want to risk limited field schedules and funding while investigations are conducted and harassment issues resolved. Additionally, scientists and staff often collaborate between institutions, benefitting science but blurring the lines of responsibility. In one such case, administrators within a federal research office declined to report sexual harassment taking place between contracted crew members on their research vessel. The lengthy review process and lack of culpability discourages reporting of sexual harassment and allows problematic situations to occur. This case study reviews the reporting mechanisms currently in place, the barriers to reporting, and the proposed methods for more effectively resolving discriminatory workplaces. Collaboration within marine science is an absolute necessity, and our research benefits from diverse working groups. As marine scientists we have an ethical responsibility to ensure safe working environments for both the scientists and the staff who make our research possible.

Overcoming the obstacles: Life stories of scientists with learning disabilities

Science.gov (United States)

Force, Crista Marie

Scientific discovery is at the heart of solving many of the problems facing contemporary society. Scientists are retiring at rates that exceed the numbers of new scientists. Unfortunately, scientific careers still appear to be outside the reach of most individuals with learning disabilities. The purpose of this research was to better understand the methods by which successful learning disabled scientists have overcome the barriers and challenges associated with their learning disabilities in their preparation and performance as scientists. This narrative inquiry involved the researcher writing the life stories of four scientists. These life stories were generated from extensive interviews in which each of the scientists recounted their life histories. The researcher used narrative analysis to "make sense" of these learning disabled scientists' life stories. The narrative analysis required the researcher to identify and describe emergent themes characterizing each scientist's life. A cross-case analysis was then performed to uncover commonalities and differences in the lives of these four individuals. Results of the cross-case analysis revealed that all four scientists had a passion for science that emerged at an early age, which, with strong drive and determination, drove these individuals to succeed in spite of the many obstacles arising from their learning disabilities. The analysis also revealed that these scientists chose careers based on their strengths; they actively sought mentors to guide them in their preparation as scientists; and they developed coping techniques to overcome difficulties and succeed. The cross-case analysis also revealed differences in the degree to which each scientist accepted his or her learning disability. While some demonstrated inferior feelings about their successes as scientists, still other individuals revealed feelings of having superior abilities in areas such as visualization and working with people. These individuals revealed

Cost Effective Polymer Solar Cells Research and Education

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sun, Sam-Shajing [Norfolk State Univ, Norfolk, VA (United States)

2015-10-13

The technical or research objective of this project is to investigate and develop new polymers and polymer based optoelectronic devices for potentially cost effective (or cost competitive), durable, lightweight, flexible, and high efficiency solar energy conversion applications. The educational objective of this project includes training of future generation scientists, particularly young, under-represented minority scientists, working in the areas related to the emerging organic/polymer based solar energy technologies and related optoelectronic devices. Graduate and undergraduate students will be directly involved in scientific research addressing issues related to the development of polymer based solar cell technology.

2007 Research and Technology

Science.gov (United States)

Riddlebaugh, Stephen M. (Editor)

2008-01-01

The NASA Glenn Research Center is pushing the envelope of research and technology in aeronautics, space exploration, science, and space operations. Our research in aeropropulsion, structures and materials, and instrumentation and controls is enabling next-generation transportation systems that are faster, more environmentally friendly, more fuel efficient, and safer. Our research and development of space flight systems is enabling advanced power, propulsion, communications, and human health systems that will advance the exploration of our solar system. This report selectively summarizes NASA Glenn Research Center s research and technology accomplishments for fiscal year 2007. Comprising 104 short articles submitted by the staff scientists and engineers, the report is organized into six major sections: Aeropropulsion, Power and Space Propulsion, Communications, Space Processes and Experiments, Instrumentation and Controls, and Structures and Materials. It is not intended to be a comprehensive summary of all the research and technology work done over the past fiscal year; most of the work is reported in Glenn-published technical reports, journal articles, and presentations. For each article in this report, a Glenn contact person has been identified, and where possible, a reference document is listed so that additional information can be easily obtained.

Against (Design Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ferdinand Indrajaya

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The content of this article is an attempt to show that the word research in traditional sense (within the Cartesian scheme is hostile to design activity. It will reduce the process of design into a merely fix mechanical process, burying the aspect of imagination, creativity, and more importantly proposing in it that is a crucial aspect to design. This imposition might indiscipline (in a formal academic sense design as a discipline in human sciences. In order to achieve this, the article is divided in three sections. The first section will discuss what scientific research is and what traditionally presupposed in it: objective, neutral, and a-historical; simply the disinterestedness of research. As for the second, epistemological concerns on traditional scientific research from two philosophers of science will be discussed: Thomas S. Kuhn and Paul K. Feyerabend. As for the third, the closing section, an attempt to delineate design and what designers do in comparison to scientists’ will be discussed. It is how design and designers are different in their manners with traditional science and scientist. 

Risk as a target of safety research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krueger, W.

1986-01-01

Job creation is not the idea behind the demand for risk studies to be intensified in safety research. Risks are not only a target safety research should investigate, they are a subject that actually can be most adequately investigated by safety research. Assuming a neutral position between irrational fears and interest-minded problem minimization, that is the central approach and the ethics of a safety scientist. The Babylonian confusion of terminology experienced after the Chernobyl accident is a good example proving the necessity of fostering the neutral professionalism in safety research. (orig./DG) [de

The Radiological Research Accelerator Facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hall, E.J.; Marino, S.A.

1993-05-01

The Radiological Research Accelerator Facility (RARAF) is based on a 4-MV Van de Graaff accelerator, which is used to generate a variety of well-characterized radiation beams for research in radiobiology, radiological physics, and radiation chemistry. It is part of the Center for Radiological Research (CRR) - formerly the Radiological Research Laboratory of Columbia University, and its operation is supported as a National Facility by the US Department of Energy (DOE). As such, RARAF is available to all potential users on an equal basis and scientists outside the CRR are encouraged to submit proposals for experiments at RARAF. The operation of the Van de Graaff is supported by the DOE, but the research projects themselves must be supported separately. This report provides a listing and brief description of experiments performed at RARAF during the May 1, 1992 through April 30, 1993

Rocky Mountain Research Station invasive species visionary white paper

Science.gov (United States)

D. E. Pearson; M. Kim; J. Butler

2011-01-01

Invasive species represent one of the single greatest threats to natural ecosystems and the services they provide. Effectively addressing the invasive species problem requires management that is based on sound research. We provide an overview of recent and ongoing invasive species research conducted by Rocky Mountain Research Station scientists in the Intermountain...

Access to major overseas research facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bolderman, J. W.

1997-01-01

This paper will describe four schemes which have been established to permit Australian researchers access to some of the most advanced overseas research facilities. These include, access to Major Research Facilities Program, the Australian National Beamline Facility at the Photon Factory, the Australian Synchrotron Research Program and the ISIS Agreement. The details of each of these programs is discussed and the statistics on the scientific output provided. All programs are managed on behalf of the Department of Industry, Science and Tourism by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation. One hundred and thirteen senior scientists plus forty, one postgraduate, students were supported through these schemes during the 1996-1997 financial year

Fire Process Research Natural Areas: Managing research and restoration of dynamic ecosystem processes

Science.gov (United States)

Timothy Ingalsbee

2001-01-01

Since 1992 a collaborative group of fire scientists, forest conservationists, and Federal resource specialists have been developing proposals for a Research Natural Area (RNA) in the Warner Creek Fire area on the Willamette National Forest in Oregon. Inspired by these proposals, the Oregon Natural Heritage Plan created the new category of "Fire Process RNAs"...

Environmental research perspectives in South Africa

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Ecosystem Programmes

1982-12-01

Full Text Available The National Programme for Environmental Sciences is a cooperative undertaking of scientists and scientific institutions in South Africa concerned with research related to environmental problems. This annual report describes the rationale, approach...

Skype Me! Astronomers, Students, and Cutting-Edge Research

Science.gov (United States)

Hickox, Ryan C.; Gauthier, Adrienne J.

2014-06-01

A primary goal of many university science courses is to promote understanding of the process of contemporary scientific inquiry. One powerful way to achieve this is for students to explore current research and then interact directly with the leading scientist, the feasibility of which has recently increased dramatically due to free online video communication tools. We report on a program implemented at Dartmouth College in which students connect with a guest astronomer through Skype (video chat). The Skype session is wrapped in a larger activity where students explore current research articles, interact with the astronomer, and then reflect on the experience. The in-class Skype discussions require a small time commitment from scientists (20-30 minutes, with little or no need for preparation) while providing students direct access to researchers at the cutting edge of modern astronomy. We outline the procedures used to implement these discussions, and present qualitative assessments of student's understanding of the process of research, as well as feedback from the guest astronomers.

What Motivates Brazilian Academic Researchers to Transfer Technology?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lisiane Closs

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This study investigated what motivates Brazilian academic researchers to get involved in University-Industry Technology Transfer (UITT and deterrents to contributing to this process. The research relied on interviews with experienced academic scientists and managers from four universities in Brazil. Determination, persistence and entrepreneurship, related to motivational types Self-direction and Stimulation, were prominent. Hedonism, Achievement and Power - highlighting a shift in their professional identity - were also observed. Universalism type involved opening career opportunities, awakening and maintaining the interest of students. The major motivational goals were: generate resources, solve problems, professional challenge, personal gains, personal gratification, academic prestige, competition, and solving problems of society. Factors that discouraged researchers were: time required for UITT, lack of incentive, innovation environment, and fear of contravening university rules, among others. Knowledge of motivational profiles of academic scientists favors the development of incentive policies and programs for UITT, helping to attract and retain qualified researchers at Brazilian universities.

Global climate change: Social and economic research issues

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rice, M.; Snow, J.; Jacobson, H. [eds.

1992-05-01

This workshop was designed to bring together a group of scholars, primarily from the social sciences, to explore research that might help in dealing with global climate change. To illustrate the state of present understanding, it seemed useful to focus this workshop on three broad questions that are involved in coping with climate change. These are: (1) How can the anticipated economic costs and benefits of climate change be identified; (2) How can the impacts of climate change be adjusted to or avoided; (3) What previously studied models are available for institutional management of the global environment? The resulting discussions may (1) identify worthwhile avenues for further social science research, (2) help develop feedback for natural scientists about research information from this domain needed by social scientists, and (3) provide policymakers with the sort of relevant research information from the social science community that is currently available. Individual papers are processed separately for the database.

Engaging patients and stakeholders in research proposal review: the patient-centered outcomes research institute.

Science.gov (United States)

Fleurence, Rachael L; Forsythe, Laura P; Lauer, Michael; Rotter, Jason; Ioannidis, John P A; Beal, Anne; Frank, Lori; Selby, Joseph V

2014-07-15

The inaugural round of merit review for the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) in November 2012 included patients and other stakeholders, as well as scientists. This article examines relationships among scores of the 3 reviewer types, changes in scoring after in-person discussion, and the effect of inclusion of patient and stakeholder reviewers on the review process. In the first phase, 363 scientists scored 480 applications. In the second phase, 59 scientists, 21 patients, and 31 stakeholders provided a "prediscussion" score and a final "postdiscussion" score after an in-person meeting for applications. Bland-Altman plots were used to characterize levels of agreement among and within reviewer types before and after discussion. Before discussion, there was little agreement among average scores given by the 4 lead scientific reviewers and patient and stakeholder reviewers. After discussion, the 4 primary reviewers showed mild convergence in their scores, and the 21-member panel came to a much stronger agreement. Of the 25 awards with the best (and lowest) scores after phase 2, only 13 had ranked in the top 25 after the phase 1 review by scientists. Five percent of the 480 proposals submitted were funded. The authors conclude that patient and stakeholder reviewers brought different perspectives to the review process but that in-person discussion led to closer agreement among reviewer types. It is not yet known whether these conclusions are generalizable to future rounds of peer review. Future work would benefit from additional data collection for evaluation purposes and from long-term evaluation of the effect on the funded research.

Scientists and Classroom Teachers Working Together, a Win-win Scenario Demonstrated Over a Ten Year Period of Collaboration Through Arctic Research

Science.gov (United States)

Carvellas, B.; Grebmeier, J. M.; Cooper, L. W.

2016-02-01

From 2002-2012 NSF and NOAA have supported a Vermont high school biology teacher to work with Dr. Jackie Grebmeier on 8 research cruises to the Arctic. Not only was the teacher embedded in Dr. Grebmeier's research team efforts, but her students were able to follow the work on board through her daily journals and photos. Subsequently, Dr. Grebmeier traveled to Vermont for a personal visit to students in multiple classes, grades 4-12. The opportunity for teachers to be teamed with a researcher, especially over an extended period of time as we will discuss in our presentation, allows their students to share in the tremendous learning experience and gain a deeper understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of science. The result is that the students begin to understand how the content they learn in the classroom is utilized in a real world setting. We will also discuss the more subtle benefits that occurred throughout the school year through connecting academic content with personal examples of "real" science. Note that the recently released Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), when fully implemented, will change the way students learn science. Appendix A of the NGSS lists 7 Conceptual Shifts in these new standards. #1 states "K-12 Science Education Should Reflect the Interconnected Nature of Science as it is Practiced and Experienced in the Real World" and #4 calls for a "Focus on Deeper Understanding of Content as well as Application of Content." What better way to address the standards than bringing real world science research into the classroom? Many K-12 science teachers, particularly those in elementary classrooms, have never had the opportunity to pursue their own research and even fewer have experienced first hand the real world work of a research scientist. This presentation will provide insights about our successful collaboration and value-added aspects to enhance the educational experience.

PIXEL: Japanese InSAR community for crustal deformation research

Science.gov (United States)

Furuya, M.; Shimada, M.; Ozawa, T.; Fukushima, Y.; Aoki, Y.; Miyagi, Y.; Kitagawa, S.

2007-12-01

In anticipation of the launch of ALOS (Advanced Land Observation Satellite) by JAXA (Japan Aerospace eXploration Agency), and in order to expand and bolster the InSAR community for crustal deformation research in Japan, a couple of scientists established a consortium, PIXEL, in November 2005 in a completely bottom-up fashion. PIXEL stands for Palsar Interferometry Consortium to Study our Evolving Land. Formally, it is a research contract between JAXA and Earthquake Research Institute (ERI), University of Tokyo. As ERI is a shared institute of the Japanese universities and research institutes, every scientist at all Japanese universities and institutes can participate in this consortium. The activity of PIXEL includes information exchange by mailing list, tutorial workshop for InSAR software, research workshop, and PALSAR data sharing. After the launch of ALOS, we have already witnessed several earthquakes and volcanic activities using PALSAR interferometry. We will briefly show and digest some of those observation results.

Research as Art: Using figures to make science approachable

Science.gov (United States)

Rabinowitz, H. S.; Barth, A.; Russell, J. B.; Frischkorn, K.; Yehudai, M.

2017-12-01

As scientists, we spend a significant amount of time thinking about how best to express the results of our research through figures. These can range from graphs to microscope images to movies, but they all serve the purpose of communicating complicated ideas to our colleagues in the scientific community. One component of scientific data representation that is often overlooked is the aesthetic of the image. Many images produced for data communication and publication are visually engaging even to a lay audience, allowing them to serve as a point of entry to learning about scientific research for the non-specialist. To help researchers embrace this secondary goal of scientific figures, we have instituted an annual event at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University (LDEO) called Research as Art. For this event, scientists submit figures from their work that they see as artistic. These figures are displayed in a gallery-type exhibit for the community to appreciate. This year, the exhibit included movie and sculpture categories, allowing for attendees to interact with a broader range of scientific work. Each piece is accompanied by a brief, non-technical caption. Research as Art provides a gateway for scientists from a broad range of disciplines within the Earth Sciences to learn about work that is entirely unrelated to their own. After the event, attendees commented that they had never before thought about how a non-specialist would view their figures and that they would keep this in mind when making future figures. Thus, one of the biggest benefits of exhibits such as this is to teach scientists to view our work through a non-specialist's eyes. However, future plans for Research as Art include establishing a temporary exhibit at a local bar to expand the reach to a broader segment of the Columbia University area community. Our figures are art, and when we start to treat them that way, we open a world of possibilities for teaching the public about our

Researchers Find a Mechanism for Schizophrenia

Science.gov (United States)

... issue Health Capsule Researchers Find a Mechanism for Schizophrenia En español Send us your comments Scientists uncovered a mechanism behind genetic variations previously linked to schizophrenia. The findings may lead to new clinical approaches. ...

Ethical issues in research.

Science.gov (United States)

Artal, Raul; Rubenfeld, Sheldon

2017-08-01

Biomedical research is currently guided by ethical standards that have evolved over many centuries. Historical and political events, social and legal considerations, and continuous medical and technological advances have led to the prevailing research ethics and practice. Currently, patients and research subjects have complete autonomy while under medical care or when volunteering as research subjects. Enrolling volunteers in human subjects research includes a detailed and meaningful informed consent process that follows the cardinal principles of ethics: autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice. These principles were gradually adopted after World War II, primarily in response to the unethical behavior of German physicians and scientists during the Third Reich. This review emphasizes the importance of historical milestones and the essential role that ethics has in contemporary medical research. Research protocols should achieve maximum benefits for the society, have clinical and scientific value, be subject to independent review, respect human dignity, and follow the principles of informed consent, and most importantly, subjects should have complete autonomy. However, current principles and regulations cannot cover every conceivable situation, particularly in view of the new advances in science and technology. New and evolving medical technology, genetic research, therapeutic interventions, and innovations challenge society to maintain the highest moral and ethical principles. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

The Documentary Research Method – Using Documentary Sources ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Sociologists in particular and social scientists in general tend to quickly turn to social surveys to collect data for their research projects. This stems from mainstream social science research tradition that is dominated by positivist and empiricist tradition that emphasizes quantification. There is however another method of data ...

Research governance and scientific knowledge production in The Gambia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frederick U. Ozor

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Public research institutions and scientists are principal actors in the production and transfer of scientific knowledge, technologies and innovations for application in industry as well for social and economic development. Based on the relevance of science and technology actors, the aim of this study was to identify and explain factors in research governance that influence scientific knowledge production and to contribute to empirical discussions on the impact levels of different governance models and structures. These discussions appear limited and mixed in the literature, although still are ongoing. No previous study has examined the possible contribution of the scientific committee model of research governance to scientific performance at the individual level of the scientist. In this context, this study contributes to these discussions, firstly, by suggesting that scientific committee structures with significant research steering autonomy could contribute not only directly to scientific output but also indirectly through moderating effects on research practices. Secondly, it is argued that autonomous scientific committee structures tend to play a better steering role than do management-centric models and structures of research governance.

Research and Experimentation in Prisons.

Science.gov (United States)

Swan, L. Alex

1979-01-01

The author argues that the prison system is inherently coercive, and that social and behavioral scientists have been used by state agents to facilitate control of prisoners. He urges that the major objective of research in prisons be to promote the principle of human liberation. (Author/RLV)

Multifarious networks in climate change research: scientists, policy makers and the public

OpenAIRE

Delicado, Ana

2011-01-01

This paper explores the networks of collaborations that are formed in climate change research, both within the scientific community and with the political and social spheres. It draws on the case of climate change research in a particular national setting, Portugal.

Scientist's Perceptions of Uncertainty During Discussions of Global Climate

Science.gov (United States)

Romanello, S.; Fortner, R.; Dervin, B.

2003-04-01

This research examines the nature of disagreements between natural and social scientists during discussions of global climate change. In particular, it explores whether the disagreements between natural and social scientists are related to the ontological, epistemological, or methodological nature of the uncertainty of global climate change during these discussions. A purposeful sample of 30 natural and social scientists recognized as experts in global climate change by the United States Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) and National Academies Committee on Global Change were interviewed to elicit their perceptions of disagreements during their three most troublesome discussions on global climate change. A mixed-method (qualitative plus quantitative research) approach with three independent variables was used to explore nature of uncertainty as a mediating variable in the relationships between academic training, level of sureness, level of knowledge, and position on global climate change, and the nature of disagreements and bridging strategies of natural and social scientists (Patton, 1997; Frechtling et al., 1997). This dissertation posits that it is the differences in the nature of uncertainty communicated by natural and social scientists and not sureness, knowledge, and position on global climate change that causes disagreements between the groups. By describing the nature of disagreements between natural and social scientists and illuminating bridging techniques scientists use during these disagreements, it is hoped that information collected from this research will create a better dialogue between the scientists studying global climate change by providing communication strategies which will allow those versed in one particular area to speak to non-experts whether they be other scientists, media officials, or the public. These tangible strategies can then be used by government agencies to create better communications and education plans, which can

Developing and Sustaining a Career as a Transdisciplinary Nurse Scientist.

Science.gov (United States)

Hickey, Kathleen T

2018-01-01

The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of strategies to build and sustain a career as a nurse scientist. This article examines how to integrate technologies and precision approaches into clinical practice, research, and education of the next generation of nursing scholars. This article presents information for shaping a sustainable transdisciplinary career. Programs of research that utilize self-management to improve quality of life are discussed throughout the article. The ongoing National Institute of Nursing Research-funded (R01 grant) iPhone Helping Evaluate Atrial Fibrillation Rhythm through Technology (iHEART) study is the first prospective, randomized controlled trial to evaluate whether electrocardiographic monitoring with the AliveCor™ device in the real-world setting will improve the time to detection and treatment of recurrent atrial fibrillation over a 6-month period as compared to usual cardiac care. Opportunities to sustain a career as a nurse scientist and build programs of transdisciplinary research are identified. These opportunities are focused within the area of research and precision medicine. Nurse scientists have the potential and ability to shape their careers and become essential members of transdisciplinary partnerships. Exposure to clinical research, expert mentorship, and diverse training opportunities in different areas are essential to ensure that contributions to nursing science are visible through publications and presentations as well as through securing grant funding to develop and maintain programs of research. Transcending boundaries and different disciplines, nurses are essential members of many diverse teams. Nurse scientists are strengthening research approaches, clinical care, and communication and improving health outcomes while also building and shaping the next generation of nurse scientists. © 2017 Sigma Theta Tau International.

A Semantic Web-Based Methodology for Describing Scientific Research Efforts

Science.gov (United States)

Gandara, Aida

2013-01-01

Scientists produce research resources that are useful to future research and innovative efforts. In a typical scientific scenario, the results created by a collaborative team often include numerous artifacts, observations and relationships relevant to research findings, such as programs that generate data, parameters that impact outputs, workflows…

Programs of the Office of Energy Research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-09-01

The programs of the Office of Energy Research provide basic science support for energy technologies as well as advancing understanding in general science and training future scientists. Energy Research provides insights into fundamental science and associated phenomena and develops new or advanced concepts and techniques. Research of this type has been supported by the Department of Energy and its predecessors for over 40 years and includes research in the natural and physical sciences, including high energy and nuclear physics; magnetic fusion energy; biological and environmental research; and basic energy sciences research in the materials, chemical, and applied mathematical sciences, engineering and geosciences, and energy biosciences. These basic research programs help build the science and technology base that underpins energy development by Government and industry

Big Data Science Cafés: High School Students Experiencing Real Research with Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, C. E.; Pompea, S. M.

2017-12-01

The Education and Public Outreach group at the National Optical Astronomy Observatory has designed an outside-of-school education program to excite the interest of talented youth in future projects like the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) and the NOAO (archival) Data Lab - their data approaches and key science projects. Originally funded by the LSST Corporation, the program cultivates talented youth to enter STEM disciplines and serves as a model to disseminate to the 40+ institutions involved in LSST. One Saturday a month during the academic year, high school students have the opportunity to interact with expert astronomers who work with large astronomical data sets in their scientific work. Students learn about killer asteroids, the birth and death of stars, colliding galaxies, the structure of the universe, gravitational waves, dark energy, dark matter, and more. The format for the Saturday science cafés has been a short presentation, discussion (plus food), computer lab activity and more discussion. They last about 2.5 hours and have been planned by a group of interested local high school students, an undergraduate student coordinator, the presenting astronomers, the program director and an evaluator. High school youth leaders help ensure an enjoyable and successful program for fellow students. They help their fellow students with the activities and help evaluate how well the science café went. Their remarks shape the next science café and improve the program. The experience offers youth leaders ownership of the program, opportunities to take on responsibilities and learn leadership and communication skills, as well as foster their continued interests in STEM. The prototype Big Data Science Academy was implemented successfully in the Spring 2017 and engaged almost 40 teens from greater Tucson in the fundamentals of astronomy concepts and research. As with any first implementation there were bumps. However, staff, scientists, and student leaders all

Applied high-speed imaging for the icing research program at NASA Lewis Research Center

Science.gov (United States)

Slater, Howard; Owens, Jay; Shin, Jaiwon

1992-01-01

The Icing Research Tunnel at NASA Lewis Research Center provides scientists a scaled, controlled environment to simulate natural icing events. The closed-loop, low speed, refrigerated wind tunnel offers the experimental capability to test for icing certification requirements, analytical model validation and calibration techniques, cloud physics instrumentation refinement, advanced ice protection systems, and rotorcraft icing methodology development. The test procedures for these objectives all require a high degree of visual documentation, both in real-time data acquisition and post-test image processing. Information is provided to scientific, technical, and industrial imaging specialists as well as to research personnel about the high-speed and conventional imaging systems will be on the recent ice protection technology program. Various imaging examples for some of the tests are presented. Additional imaging examples are available from the NASA Lewis Research Center's Photographic and Printing Branch.

A Mixed Methods Approach to Equity and Justice Research: Insights from Research on Children's Reasoning About Economic Inequality.

Science.gov (United States)

Mistry, Rashmita S; White, Elizabeth S; Chow, Kirby A; Griffin, Katherine M; Nenadal, Lindsey

2016-01-01

Mixed methods research approaches are gaining traction across various social science disciplines, including among developmental scientists. In this chapter, we discuss the utility of a mixed methods research approach in examining issues related to equity and justice. We incorporate a brief overview of quantitative and qualitative monomethod research approaches in our larger discussion of the advantages, procedures, and considerations of employing a mixed methods design to advance developmental science from an equity and justice perspective. To better illustrate the theoretical and practical significance of a mixed methods research approach, we include examples of research conducted on children and adolescents' conceptions of economic inequality as one example of developmental science research with an equity and justice frame. © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Community-Building Framework for Collaborative Research Coordination across the Education and Biology Research Disciplines

Science.gov (United States)

Pelaez, Nancy; Anderson, Trevor R.; Gardner, Stephanie M.; Yin, Yue; Abraham, Joel K.; Barlett, Edward L.; Gormally, Cara; Hurney, Carol A.; Long, Tammy M.; Newman, Dina L.; Sirum, Karen; Stevens, Michael T.

2018-01-01

Since 2009, the U.S. National Science Foundation Directorate for Biological Sciences has funded Research Coordination Networks (RCN) aimed at collaborative efforts to improve participation, learning, and assessment in undergraduate biology education (UBE). RCN-UBE projects focus on coordination and communication among scientists and educators who…

Research in the real world: Social context and its effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Levine, Adeline G; Levine, Murray

2014-03-01

Although scientists are supposedly concerned only with the pursuit of scientific truth, it was recognized early on that they have personal and professional agendas and are subject to human fallibilities. Openness allowing the scientific community to oversee each member's work depends a great deal upon publication of scientific work. Research reports are cultural artifacts shaped by social forces. In most instances of theoretically oriented work, the roles making up the social context, the researchers, funding agencies, journal editors, publishers, critics, and consumers of research all tend to be scientists sharing common interests and assumptions. There are many actors in addition to scientists in the social context of evaluative research. The actors-sometimes called stakeholders-include people whose lives may change, politicians, government agencies, private foundations, businesspersons, taxpayers, the mass media, and advocates. These actors have varied interests in the research enterprise, are embedded in varied reference groups, and bring different assumptions and values to the task. Their interactions shape the research product at every step. In this genre of research, the contexts are diverse. To illustrate the generality of the influence of social context, the authors draw on three diverse examples spanning a century: the Love Canal industrial disaster of the late 1970s, the ultimately failed attempt in the early 1900s to transplant the Gary, Indiana, progressive school system to New York City (NYC); and some recent studies of charter school students' academic performance.

Big data science: A literature review of nursing research exemplars.

Science.gov (United States)

Westra, Bonnie L; Sylvia, Martha; Weinfurter, Elizabeth F; Pruinelli, Lisiane; Park, Jung In; Dodd, Dianna; Keenan, Gail M; Senk, Patricia; Richesson, Rachel L; Baukner, Vicki; Cruz, Christopher; Gao, Grace; Whittenburg, Luann; Delaney, Connie W

Big data and cutting-edge analytic methods in nursing research challenge nurse scientists to extend the data sources and analytic methods used for discovering and translating knowledge. The purpose of this study was to identify, analyze, and synthesize exemplars of big data nursing research applied to practice and disseminated in key nursing informatics, general biomedical informatics, and nursing research journals. A literature review of studies published between 2009 and 2015. There were 650 journal articles identified in 17 key nursing informatics, general biomedical informatics, and nursing research journals in the Web of Science database. After screening for inclusion and exclusion criteria, 17 studies published in 18 articles were identified as big data nursing research applied to practice. Nurses clearly are beginning to conduct big data research applied to practice. These studies represent multiple data sources and settings. Although numerous analytic methods were used, the fundamental issue remains to define the types of analyses consistent with big data analytic methods. There are needs to increase the visibility of big data and data science research conducted by nurse scientists, further examine the use of state of the science in data analytics, and continue to expand the availability and use of a variety of scientific, governmental, and industry data resources. A major implication of this literature review is whether nursing faculty and preparation of future scientists (PhD programs) are prepared for big data and data science. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Journal of Undergraduate Research, Volume VIII, 2008

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stiner, K. S.; Graham, S.; Khan, M.; Dilks, J.; Mayer, D.

2008-01-01

Th e Journal of Undergraduate Research (JUR) provides undergraduate interns the opportunity to publish their scientific innovation and to share their passion for education and research with fellow students and scientists. Fields in which these students worked include: Biology; Chemistry; Computer Science; Engineering; Environmental Science; General Sciences; Materials Sciences; Medical and Health Sciences; Nuclear Sciences; Physics; Science Policy; and Waste Management.

Sports-science roundtable: does sports-science research influence practice?

Science.gov (United States)

Bishop, David; Burnett, Angus; Farrow, Damian; Gabbett, Tim; Newton, Robert

2006-06-01

As sports scientists, we claim to make a significant contribution to the body of knowledge that influences athletic practice and performance. Is this the reality? At the inaugural congress of the Australian Association for Exercise and Sports Science, a panel of well-credentialed academic experts with experience in the applied environment debated the question, Does sports-science research influence practice? The first task was to define "sports-science research," and it was generally agreed that it is concerned with providing evidence that improves sports performance. When practices are equally effective, sports scientists also have a role in identifying practices that are safer, more time efficient, and more enjoyable. There were varying views on the need for sports-science research to be immediately relevant to coaches or athletes. Most agreed on the importance of communicating the results of sports-science research, not only to the academic community but also to coaches and athletes, and the need to encourage both short- and long-term research. The panelists then listed examples of sports-science research that they believe have influenced practice, as well as strategies to ensure that sports-science research better influences practice.

The globalization of health research: harnessing the scientific diaspora.

Science.gov (United States)

Anand, Nalini P; Hofman, Karen J; Glass, Roger I

2009-04-01

The scientific diaspora is a unique resource for U.S. universities. By drawing on the expertise, experience, and catalytic potential of diaspora scientists, universities can capitalize more fully on their diverse intellectual resources to make lasting contributions to global health. This article examines the unique contributions of the diaspora in international research collaborations, advantages of harnessing the diaspora and benefits to U.S. universities of fostering these collaborations, challenges faced by scientists who want to work with their home countries, examples of scientists engaging with their home countries, and specific strategies U.S. universities and donors can implement to catalyze these collaborations. The contributions of the diaspora to the United States are immense: International students enrolled in academic year 2007-2008 contributed an estimated $15 billion to the U.S. economy. As scientific research becomes increasingly global, the percentage of scientific publications with authors from foreign countries has grown from 8% in 1988 to 20% in 2005. Diaspora scientists can help build trusting relationships with scientists abroad, and international collaborations may improve the health of underserved populations at home. Although opportunities for diaspora networks are increasing, most home countries often lack enabling policies, infrastructure, and resources to effectively utilize their diaspora communities abroad. This article examines how some governments have successfully mobilized their scientific diaspora to become increasingly engaged in their national research agendas. Recommendations include specific strategies, including those that encourage U.S. universities to promote mini-sabbaticals and provide seed funding and flexible time frames.

The chilling effect: how do researchers react to controversy?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joanna Kempner

2008-11-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Can political controversy have a "chilling effect" on the production of new science? This is a timely concern, given how often American politicians are accused of undermining science for political purposes. Yet little is known about how scientists react to these kinds of controversies. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Drawing on interview (n = 30 and survey data (n = 82, this study examines the reactions of scientists whose National Institutes of Health (NIH-funded grants were implicated in a highly publicized political controversy. Critics charged that these grants were "a waste of taxpayer money." The NIH defended each grant and no funding was rescinded. Nevertheless, this study finds that many of the scientists whose grants were criticized now engage in self-censorship. About half of the sample said that they now remove potentially controversial words from their grant and a quarter reported eliminating entire topics from their research agendas. Four researchers reportedly chose to move into more secure positions entirely, either outside academia or in jobs that guaranteed salaries. About 10% of the group reported that this controversy strengthened their commitment to complete their research and disseminate it widely. CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide evidence that political controversies can shape what scientists choose to study. Debates about the politics of science usually focus on the direct suppression, distortion, and manipulation of scientific results. This study suggests that scholars must also examine how scientists may self-censor in response to political events.

The Chilling Effect: How Do Researchers React to Controversy?

Science.gov (United States)

Kempner, Joanna

2008-01-01

Background Can political controversy have a “chilling effect” on the production of new science? This is a timely concern, given how often American politicians are accused of undermining science for political purposes. Yet little is known about how scientists react to these kinds of controversies. Methods and Findings Drawing on interview (n = 30) and survey data (n = 82), this study examines the reactions of scientists whose National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded grants were implicated in a highly publicized political controversy. Critics charged that these grants were “a waste of taxpayer money.” The NIH defended each grant and no funding was rescinded. Nevertheless, this study finds that many of the scientists whose grants were criticized now engage in self-censorship. About half of the sample said that they now remove potentially controversial words from their grant and a quarter reported eliminating entire topics from their research agendas. Four researchers reportedly chose to move into more secure positions entirely, either outside academia or in jobs that guaranteed salaries. About 10% of the group reported that this controversy strengthened their commitment to complete their research and disseminate it widely. Conclusions These findings provide evidence that political controversies can shape what scientists choose to study. Debates about the politics of science usually focus on the direct suppression, distortion, and manipulation of scientific results. This study suggests that scholars must also examine how scientists may self-censor in response to political events. PMID:19018657

Meet EPA Scientist Jeff Szabo, Ph.D.

Science.gov (United States)

EPA scientist Jeff Szabo, Ph.D., has worked for the EPA’s National Homeland Security Research Center since 2005. He conducts and manages water security research projects at EPA’s Test and Evaluation facility.

Research and Technology 1996

Science.gov (United States)

1997-01-01

This report highlights the challenging work accomplished during fiscal year 1996 by Ames research scientists, engineers, and technologists. It discusses research and technologies that enable the Information Age, that expand the frontiers of knowledge for aeronautics and space, and that help to maintain U.S. leadership in aeronautics and space research and technology development. The accomplishments span the range of goals of NASA's four Strategic Enterprises: (1) Aeronautics and Space Transportation Technology, (2) Space Science, (3) Human Exploration and Development of Space, and (4) Mission to Planet Earth. The primary purpose of this report is to communicate knowledge--to inform our stakeholders, customers, and partners, and the people of the United States about the scope and diversity of Ames' mission, the nature of Ames' research and technology activities, and the stimulating challenges ahead. The accomplishments cited illustrate the contributions that Ames is making to improve the quality of life for our citizens and the economic position of the United States in the world marketplace.

Building the Next Generation of Earth Scientists: the Deep Carbon Observatory Early Career Scientist Workshops

Science.gov (United States)

Pratt, K.; Fellowes, J.; Giovannelli, D.; Stagno, V.

2016-12-01

Building a network of collaborators and colleagues is a key professional development activity for early career scientists (ECS) dealing with a challenging job market. At large conferences, young scientists often focus on interacting with senior researchers, competing for a small number of positions in leading laboratories. However, building a strong, international network amongst their peers in related disciplines is often as valuable in the long run. The Deep Carbon Observatory (DCO) began funding a series of workshops in 2014 designed to connect early career researchers within its extensive network of multidisciplinary scientists. The workshops, by design, are by and for early career scientists, thus removing any element of competition and focusing on peer-to-peer networking, collaboration, and creativity. The successful workshops, organized by committees of early career deep carbon scientists, have nucleated a lively community of like-minded individuals from around the world. Indeed, the organizers themselves often benefit greatly from the leadership experience of pulling together an international workshop on budget and on deadline. We have found that a combination of presentations from all participants in classroom sessions, professional development training such as communication and data management, and field-based relationship building and networking is a recipe for success. Small groups within the DCO ECS network have formed; publishing papers together, forging new research directions, and planning novel and ambitious field campaigns. Many DCO ECS also have come together to convene sessions at major international conferences, including the AGU Fall Meeting. Most of all, there is a broad sense of camaraderie and accessibility within the DCO ECS Community, providing the foundation for a career in the new, international, and interdisciplinary field of deep carbon science.

Access to major overseas research facilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bolderman, J. W. [Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, Lucas Heights, NSW (Australia)

1997-12-31

This paper will describe four schemes which have been established to permit Australian researchers access to some of the most advanced overseas research facilities. These include, access to Major Research Facilities Program, the Australian National Beamline Facility at the Photon Factory, the Australian Synchrotron Research Program and the ISIS Agreement. The details of each of these programs is discussed and the statistics on the scientific output provided. All programs are managed on behalf of the Department of Industry, Science and Tourism by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation. One hundred and thirteen senior scientists plus forty, one postgraduate, students were supported through these schemes during the 1996-1997 financial year. 1 fig.

What we do | Page 26 | IDRC - International Development Research ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

This multinational study analyzes the career decisions and research performance of young scientists in higher education, government, parastatal (organizations whose activities serve the state), and industrial research and development (R&D) sectors across Africa. North Of Sahara, South Of Sahara, Canada. PROJECT ...

Basic materials research programs at the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carlson, Herbert C.; Goretta, K.C.

2006-01-01

The Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) annually sponsors approximately 5000 research scientists at 1000 universities and laboratories, generating about 10,000 Ph.D. graduates per decade, all expected to publish their basic research findings in peer-reviewed journals. After a brief introduction of the nature of AFOSR's support to basic research in the U.S. and international scientific communities, work it supports at the frontiers of materials science is highlighted. One focused research theme that drives our investment is the MEANS program. It begins with the end in mind; materials are designed with practicable manufacture as an explicit initial goal. AFOSR's broad research portfolio comprises many materials. Nanotechnology efforts include optical materials that reduce distortion to the scale of the nanoparticles themselves. Advances in semiconductors include breakthroughs in Group III nitrides, some of which emanated from Asia under sponsorship from AFOSR's Asian office. Advances in structural materials include those for use at ultra-high temperatures and self-healing composites. The growing role of high-performance computing in design and study of functional, biological, and structural materials is also discussed

CGH Short Term Scientist Exchange Program (STSEP)

Science.gov (United States)

STSEP promotes collaborative research between established U.S. and foreign scientists from low, middle, and upper-middle income countries (LMICs) by supporting, in part, exchange visits of cancer researchers between U.S. and foreign laboratories.

Building capacity for sustainable research programmes for cancer in Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Adewole, Isaac; Martin, Damali N; Williams, Makeda J; Adebamowo, Clement; Bhatia, Kishor; Berling, Christine; Casper, Corey; Elshamy, Karima; Elzawawy, Ahmed; Lawlor, Rita T; Legood, Rosa; Mbulaiteye, Sam M; Odedina, Folakemi T; Olopade, Olufunmilayo I; Olopade, Christopher O; Parkin, Donald M; Rebbeck, Timothy R; Ross, Hana; Santini, Luiz A; Torode, Julie; Trimble, Edward L; Wild, Christopher P; Young, Annie M; Kerr, David J

2014-05-01

Cancer research in Africa will have a pivotal role in cancer control planning in this continent. However, environments (such as those in academic or clinical settings) with limited research infrastructure (laboratories, biorespositories, databases) coupled with inadequate funding and other resources have hampered African scientists from carrying out rigorous research. In September 2012, over 100 scientists with expertise in cancer research in Africa met in London to discuss the challenges in performing high-quality research, and to formulate the next steps for building sustainable, comprehensive and multi-disciplinary programmes relevant to Africa. This was the first meeting among five major organizations: the African Organisation for Research and Training in Africa (AORTIC), the Africa Oxford Cancer Foundation (AfrOx), and the National Cancer Institutes (NCI) of Brazil, France and the USA. This article summarizes the discussions and recommendations of this meeting, including the next steps required to create sustainable and impactful research programmes that will enable evidenced-based cancer control approaches and planning at the local, regional and national levels.

Malaysian researchers talk about the influence of culture on research misconduct in higher learning institutions.

Science.gov (United States)

Olesen, Angelina P; Amin, Latifah; Mahadi, Zurina

2017-01-01

Based on a previous survey by the Office of Research Integrity (ORI) in the USA, a considerable number of foreign research scientists have been found guilty of research misconduct. However, it remains unclear as to whether or not cultural factors really contribute to research misconduct. This study is based on a series of interviews with Malaysian researchers from the local universities regarding their own professional experiences involving working with researchers or research students from different countries or of different nationalities. Most of the researchers interviewed agreed that cultures do shape individual character, which influences the way that such individuals conduct research, their decision-making, and their style of academic writing. Our findings also showed that working culture within the institution also influences research practices, as well as faculty mentorship of the younger generation of researchers. Given the fact such misconduct might be due to a lack of understanding of research or working cultures or practices within the institution, the impact on the scientific community and on society could be destructive. Therefore, it is suggested that the institution has an important role to play in orienting foreign researchers through training, mentoring, and discussion with regard to the "does" and "don'ts" related to research, and to provide them with an awareness of the importance of ethics when it comes to conducting research.

Gender | Page 208 | IDRC - International Development Research ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

IDRC's mission is to support developing-country scientists in conducting applied, community-based research on ... Improve resource management, improve human health ... A new perspective on the links between health and ecosystems.

The aging of biomedical research in the United States.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kirstin R W Matthews

Full Text Available In the past 30 years, the average age of biomedical researchers has steadily increased. The average age of an investigator at the National Institutes of Health (NIH rose from 39 to 51 between 1980 and 2008. The aging of the biomedical workforce was even more apparent when looking at first-time NIH grantees. The average age of a new investigator was 42 in 2008, compared to 36 in 1980. To determine if the rising barriers at NIH for entry in biomedical research might impact innovative ideas and research, we analyzed the research and publications of Nobel Prize winners from 1980 to 2010 to assess the age at which their pioneering research occurred. We established that in the 30-year period, 96 scientists won the Nobel Prize in medicine or chemistry for work related to biomedicine, and that their groundbreaking research was conducted at an average age of 41-one year younger than the average age of a new investigator at NIH. Furthermore, 78% of the Nobel Prize winners conducted their research before the age of 51, the average age of an NIH principal investigator. This suggested that limited access to NIH might inhibit research potential and novel projects, and could impact biomedicine and the next generation scientists in the United States.

Progress in turbulence research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bradshaw, P.

1990-01-01

Recent developments in experiments and eddy simulations, as an introduction to a discussion of turbulence modeling for engineers is reviewed. The most important advances in the last decade rely on computers: microcomputers to control laboratory experiments, especially for multidimensional imaging, and supercomputers to simulate turbulence. These basic studies in turbulence research are leading to genuine breakthroughs in prediction methods for engineers and earth scientists. The three main branches of turbulence research: experiments, simulations (numerically-accurate three-dimensional, time-dependent solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations, with any empiricism confined to the smallest eddies), and modeling (empirical closure of time-averaged equations for turbulent flow) are discussed. 33 refs

Materials Research Department annual report 2000

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2001-01-01

, educational activities and academic activities, such as collaboration with other research institutions, committee work and a list of publications. Furthermore, the main figures outlining the funding andexpenditures of the Department are given. Lists of staff members and visiting scientists are included....

Original Research by Young Twinkle Students (ORBYTS): When Can Students Start Performing Original Research?

Science.gov (United States)

Sousa-Silva, Clara; McKemmish, Laura K.; Chubb, Katy L.; Gorman, Marie N.; Baker, Jack S.; Barton, Emma J.; Rivlin, Tom; Tennyson, Jonathan

2018-01-01

Involving students in state-of-the-art research from an early age eliminates the idea that science is only for the scientists and empowers young people to explore STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects. It is also a great opportunity to dispel harmful stereotypes about who is suitable for STEM careers, while leaving students…

Scientist Spotlight Homework Assignments Shift Students' Stereotypes of Scientists and Enhance Science Identity in a Diverse Introductory Science Class

Science.gov (United States)

Schinske, Jeffrey N.; Perkins, Heather; Snyder, Amanda; Wyer, Mary

2016-01-01

Research into science identity, stereotype threat, and possible selves suggests a lack of diverse representations of scientists could impede traditionally underserved students from persisting and succeeding in science. We evaluated a series of metacognitive homework assignments ("Scientist Spotlights") that featured counterstereotypical…

PERFORMANCE ASSESMENT OF THE RESEARCH: BIBLIOMETRICS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. O. Kolesnykova

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Purpose. Key performance indicators of the research are bibliometric ones which are a powerful informative tool to support the development of science. Therefore, nowadays in the world they are related to the obligatory elements in reporting of scientific institutions, universities, research groups and individual scientists. Based on the above stated, the purpose of the article is: 1 disclosure of concepts in bibliometrics; 2 definition the role of university libraries in the processes of University research measuring; 3 description the program Bibexel methodology for the analysis of the scientific articles metadata. Methodology. The theoretical base of the research is publications covering contemporary developments in bibliometrics and scientometrics. Practical foundation – the metadata of articles posted in: 1 Scopus database, authors are the scientists of the Dnipropetrovsk National University of Railway Transport named after Academician V. Lazaryan, 2 ScienceDirect database, dedicated to the development of railway transport. Findings. In the course of the study authors have disclosed principal bibliometric concepts. A Bibexel program method for analyzing metadata, namely analysis of the links between co-authors and keyword was described. With its help it was determined that the most «top» topics for researchers all over the world, in the field of railway transport in 2015 year are: planning a high-speed movement, the critical speed definition, computer calculation of railway bridges. It was proved that today the work of University libraries in the world with bibliometric indicators as an indicators of the science development, becomes one of the leading direction of their activity. Originality. The authors substantiated and realized the bibliometric researchability, using Bibexel program in the conditions of limited access at the university libraries in Ukraine to international full-text databases and Science Citation one. Vision about the

Nurses' use of qualitative research approaches to investigate tobacco use and control.

Science.gov (United States)

Schultz, Annette S H; Bottorff, Joan L; McKeown, Stephanie Barclay

2009-01-01

Qualitative research methods are increasingly used by nurse scientists to explore a wide variety of topics relevant to practice and/or health policy issues. The purpose of this chapter is to review the contributions of nurse scientists to the field of tobacco control through the use of qualitative research methods. A systematic literature search strategy was used to identify 51 articles published between 1980 and 2008. The majority (84%) of reviewed articles were authored by North American nurse scientists. Cessation was the most commonly (85%) studied aspect of tobacco control. Six qualitative research approaches were used: qualitative descriptive (55%), narrative analysis (8%), phenomenology (6%), grounded theory (14%), ethnography (12%), and case study (6%). Qualitative descriptive methods were primarily one-off studies to address practical problems or issues encountered in practice, and often validated current understandings related to tobacco. Researchers who used other types of qualitative methods and who conducted qualitative studies as part of programs of research were more likely to make more substantive contributions to the evolving field of tobacco control. These contributions related to how smoking intertwines with personal and social identities, the influence of social context on tobacco use, and nurses' involvement in tobacco control (both of their own tobacco use and in assisting others). Nurse scientists interested in exploring tobacco-related issues are encouraged to consider the full range of qualitative research approaches. Qualitative research methods contribute to our understanding of tobacco use arising from nursing practice, health care and policy, along with the field of tobacco control in general.

[Activities of Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science

Science.gov (United States)

Gross, Anthony R. (Technical Monitor); Leiner, Barry M.

2001-01-01

The Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science (RIACS) carries out basic research and technology development in computer science, in support of the National Aeronautics and Space Administrations missions. RIACS is located at the NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California. RIACS research focuses on the three cornerstones of IT research necessary to meet the future challenges of NASA missions: 1. Automated Reasoning for Autonomous Systems Techniques are being developed enabling spacecraft that will be self-guiding and self-correcting to the extent that they will require little or no human intervention. Such craft will be equipped to independently solve problems as they arise, and fulfill their missions with minimum direction from Earth. 2. Human-Centered Computing Many NASA missions require synergy between humans and computers, with sophisticated computational aids amplifying human cognitive and perceptual abilities. 3. High Performance Computing and Networking Advances in the performance of computing and networking continue to have major impact on a variety of NASA endeavors, ranging from modeling and simulation to analysis of large scientific datasets to collaborative engineering, planning and execution. In addition, RIACS collaborates with NASA scientists to apply IT research to a variety of NASA application domains. RIACS also engages in other activities, such as workshops, seminars, visiting scientist programs and student summer programs, designed to encourage and facilitate collaboration between the university and NASA IT research communities.

Transforming Introductory Physics for Life Scientists: Researching the consequences for students

Science.gov (United States)

Turpen, Chandra

2011-10-01

In response to policy documents calling for dramatic changes in pre-medical and biology education [1-3], the physics and biology education research groups at the University of Maryland are rethinking how to teach physics to life science majors. As an interdisciplinary team, we are drastically reconsidering the physics topics relevant for these courses. We are designing new in-class tasks to engage students in using physical principles to explain aspects of biological phenomena where the physical principles are of consequence to the biological systems. We will present examples of such tasks as well as preliminary data on how students engage in these tasks. Lastly, we will share some barriers encountered in pursuing meaningful interdisciplinary education.[4pt] Co-authors: Edward F. Redish and Julia Svaboda [4pt] [1] National Research Council, Bio2010: Transforming Undergraduate Education for Future Research Biologists (NAP, 2003).[0pt] [2] AAMC-HHMI committee, Scientific Foundations for Future Physicians (AAMC, 2009).[0pt] [3] American Association for the Advancement of Science, Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education: A Call to Action (AAAS, 2009).

Journal of Undergraduate Research, Volume IX, 2009

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stiner, K. S.; Graham, S.; Khan, M.; Dilks, J.; Mayer, D.

2009-01-01

Each year more than 600 undergraduate students are awarded paid internships at the Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Laboratories. Th ese interns are paired with research scientists who serve as mentors in authentic research projects. All participants write a research abstract and present at a poster session and/or complete a fulllength research paper. Abstracts and selected papers from our 2007–2008 interns that represent the breadth and depth of undergraduate research performed each year at our National Laboratories are published here in the Journal of Undergraduate Research. The fields in which these students worked included: Biology; Chemistry; Computer Science; Engineering; Environmental Science; General Science; Materials Science; Medical and Health Sciences; Nuclear Science; Physics; Science Policy; and Waste Management.