The need to quickly increase knowledge about the corona pandemic has led to a tidal wave of new research findings, which are published without first having been reviewed by other researchers. They are known as ‘preprints’, and make it possible to quickly share and partake of results, but they also increase the risk of errors being spread.
While the corona pandemic is closing national borders, a wave of openness is moving through the world of research. Collaboration, open data, and early publication are important ways to quickly increase knowledge about the new virus, and how it can be fought.
How do you make frogs hover, or construct an excellent facemask from a bra? These are examples of research that has been awarded the Ig Nobel Prize. Research that first makes you laugh, and then think. “When you have laughed at something, then you remember it and want to tell others,” says the founder of the prize, Marc Abrahams.
Swedish higher education institutions have been given more freedom to decide how to go about employing a professor. Since 2011, they have more freedom to decide the criteria on which to base the assessment of scientific and educational skill. Curie has taken a closer look at the process at a few universities.
If the United Kingdom leaves the EU’s research collaboration, new initiatives will be needed to safeguard exchanges between Swedish and British researchers. This is the view of several experts. For Astrid von Mentzer, who is doing her post doc in Cambridge, decisions made in the near future will be of great importance.
The United Kingdom has formally left the EU, but many issues are still up in the air. After a three-and-a-half year rollercoaster ride, British researchers are now waiting for definitive answers to how the collaboration with the EU countries will work in the future. But Brexit has already affected the conditions for research in the country.
#Metoo was an eye-opener for many and the beginning of several initiatives against sexual harassment in academia. Lisa Salmonsson, who led the Swedish #akademiuppropet, thinks that it has become easier to talk about abuse in academia, but at the same time notices a fatigue. “There’s just not the same outcry anymore,” she says.
The Nordic countries have very similar attitudes and conditions when it comes to basic research. In international comparison, Denmark does best. “I think that people in Sweden, Norway and Finland are more tolerant towards mediocre research than Denmark is,” says Gunnar Öquist, who has evaluated Nordic research in various contexts.
“Undirected basic research is society’s investment in addressing future unknowns.” So says Lars Kloo, professor of applied physical chemistry. Curie has talked to three researchers about why basic researchers need more time and freedom.
The Netherlands tops the lists for several ways of measuring research success. According to Ingrid van Engelshoven, the Minister for Education, Culture and Research, the primary success factor is openness. Last week, she took part in Forskningspolitiska dagen (Research Policy Day), which was arranged by the Swedish Research Council.
