Veterinary medicine and human medicine are usually considered to be “worlds apart”, but during the corona pandemic, these worlds have met. When a COVID test is analysed, it actually does not matter much whether the sample is from a human being or a cat.
Hundred per cent open publication, lower costs and a transparent pricing model. That is SUHF’s goal for the agreements between Swedish HEIs and scientific publishers that are to replace those that terminate in 2024. A newly appointed inquiry will produce the strategy for achieving this.
Why is science communication important, and what role does it play in society? Sarah Davies, who researches the area, wants to encourage all who spend time communicating science to take a step back and reflect on this question. “It’s important to look at the whole, and to realise that science communication contributes to creating a robust and democratic society.”
Six years ago, his picture of a giant virus was chosen as one of that year’s best scientific images by the journal Nature. Now, he and his colleagues have made a major breakthrough in the process of obtaining a picture of an individual protein. “Images are unbeatable when it comes to communicating things such as the structure of proteins,” says Tomas Ekeberg, a biophysicist.
Competition is fierce among researchers at the beginning of their careers, and the dream of becoming independent and leading your own projects can feel very distant. Tenacity is one of the most important characteristics for success, in the opinion of Daniella Ottosson, who has passed through the eye of the needle.
What were researchers like as children? This is the subject of the book “Forskardrömmar – Berättelser för nyfikna barn” (“Research Dreams – Stories for curious children”), which includes 60 stories of the childhoods of researchers, and their paths to research. “We want all children to know that you can research anything you like in principle, and to feel that they become researchers in the future if they want to,” says Robert Lagerström, who is one of the initiators of the book.
Swedish researchers are bad at reporting the results of clinical studies. Many results cannot be found either in databases or in articles, according to an article from the organisation Transparimed. The consequence may be that patients receive poorer care. However, a change now seems to be on the way.
Research studies are not always conducted according to the rules. They may promise too much, show relationships that do not exist, or not be replicable. Two researchers who have been involved in reviewing studies in different disciplines know this – and have discovered lots of shortcomings.
Being the author of a scientific work entails both a merit and a responsibility. But it is not self-evident who it is that deserves this merit and how the responsibility should be allocated – these are issues that attract increased focus when the author lists of scientific works become longer.
Stefan Buijsman has always thought faster than others, and received a doctorate in philosophy of mathematics at only 20 years of age. He is now considering subjects from what mathematics actually is, to how children learn mathematics, and what artificial intelligence entails for us all.
