Science & Society

Open Access Doesn't Lead To More Citations, Says Study

The value of open access is an on-going debate, at least in the science community, with some stating that it leads to greater citations and others concerned that it leads to less rigorous research outside free internet sources. A new Cornell study says tha ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 31 2008 - 4:36pm

The Death Of An Accused Scientist- The Reporting on Bruce Ivins and It's Use of The Mad Scientist Stereotype

The mad scientist stereotype seems to be alive and well.  This time it is emerging in a disturbing way.   A US Army scientist, Bruce E. Ivins, committed suicide at the age of 62.  He has been implicated in the Anthrax case from 2001.  You remember those l ...

Blog Post - Hontas Farmer - Jan 28 2009 - 9:04am

Cliodynamics, A Science Of History?

My colleague  Peter Turchin  over at the University of Connecticut (my Alma Mater) has recently published an intriguing short article in Nature (3 July 2008) on what he termed “cliodynamics,” the possibility of turning history into a science. The word com ...

Article - Massimo Pigliucci - Aug 4 2008 - 12:29pm

Blogs by scientists

In case you aren't reading them yet, take a minute to check out these relatively new blogs by scientists: BdellaNea A blog about leeches-- Mark Siddall (American Museum of Natural History) Evolutionary Novelties A blog about evolution, with a soft spo ...

Blog Post - T. Ryan Gregory - Oct 23 2008 - 12:05am

Beer Down, Wine Up: Overall U.S. Alcohol Consumption Declining

Overall alcohol use—particularly consumption of beer—is declining in the US, according to a new study published in the August 2008 issue of The American Journal of Medicine. Researchers examined 50 years of data and found several changes in alcohol intake ...

Article - News Staff - Aug 6 2008 - 8:36am

Should Well-Educated People Know Math and Science?

A physics professor, writing in Inside Higher Ed, asks why intellectuals think it's ok to be ignorant of math and science, but not of art, music and literature. When among intellectual company, humanities professors can confess, without a trace of sha ...

Blog Post - Michael White - Oct 23 2008 - 12:04am

Women Nurture And Men Assert In Negotiations? Just A Stereotype

It's often assumed that men are more aggressive and women are more emotional. Even in negotiations, we are often told that men will be more assertive and women better at fostering relationships. A new study published in Negotiation and Conflict Manag ...

Article - News Staff - Aug 7 2008 - 10:17am

TravelBlogue, or How to live vicariously through one's student.

The first post at Genomicron was called " My grad student made me do it ", and explained that a then-newly-arrived PhD student in my lab was a blogger and got me interested in blogging. He is still a blog author, and most recently has posted a ve ...

Blog Post - T. Ryan Gregory - Oct 23 2008 - 12:04am

John Hawks on Why Scientists Should Blog

Science blogger and University of Wisconsin scientist John Hawks recently demonstrated that it really is possible to blog and get tenure. Continuing this discussion, he now explains why scientists should take the time to blog. It will help you make an impa ...

Blog Post - Michael White - Oct 22 2008 - 11:11pm

Large Hadron Collider Date Now September 10

A beam will finally be circulated. The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) will now be ready to go in September, according to CERN's latest estimate. The LHC is the world's most powerful particle accelerator, producing beams seven times more energetic th ...

Article - News Staff - Sep 8 2008 - 12:36am