In 2018, Australia still does not have appropriate measures in place to maintain research integrity. And recent changes to our code of research conduct have weakened our already inadequate position. In contrast, China’s recent move to crack down on academic misconductmoves it into line with more than twenty European countries, the UK, USA, Canada and others that have national offices for research integrity. […] … learn more→

The real challenge around “responsible metrics” is only partly about the metrics themselves; it is also, and perhaps more, about how people use them. First, I must repeat a mantra that I have used widely: we mean indicators, not metrics. A metric is something like a citation count; it doesn’t tell you a great deal, and […] … learn more→

Research support professionals are always on the lookout for good practice. I should know, I’m one of them. A common way to do this is to attend relevant conferences, and one of the largest of these – INORMS – took place in Edinburgh in early June. INORMS brings together well over one thousand people who work in […] … learn more→

Nowadays, research outside the mainstream, that based on unfashionable ideas and with no obvious chance of satisfying a perceived need, stands little chance of winning support. Such research, with its unpredictable outcomes, was probably always rare, but it once inspired enormous growth and led to increased prosperity. Research selection focuses on projects. Another way is […] … learn more→

Interdisciplinary research. So hot right now… or is it? To be clear – I’m a super fan of interdisciplinary work. I’m happily ‘post-disciplinary’ myself. My PhD was interdisciplinary, and my current job is transdisciplinary. I work with all kinds of research students, from physics to fine art; education to chemistry, I embrace you all! While […] … learn more→

When I’ve asked researchers about their funding streams, many want to talk about the projects they want grant money for. Drilling down a bit further, however, it becomes obvious that many of the projects aren’t actually projects…yet. Some researchers have ideas for projects, while others have started initial discussions but haven’t gotten their collaborators to […] … learn more→

Animal (or in vivo) experiments play an important role in biomedical research. They are essential to support the development of innovative medicines that can ultimately improve human and animal health. But for these studies to be scientifically valid, laboratory animals must be used appropriately by researchers. Similarly, researchers must be able to meaningfully interpret and […] … learn more→