Research

The Cambridge Analytica controversy flags up the ethical perils of research with Big Data – especially when it has commercial potential, says John Holmwood 

Academic gatherings may be fun, but they do little to advance knowledge. To justify the public spending that supports them, such events must do more to provide benefits to those who don’t attend, argues Nicholas Rowe

Stanford's Londa Schiebinger warns that failure to account for differing impact of interventions on men and women is costing lives

But male researchers with small children get a boost, study of academics at Italian university finds

Broad Institute and other US-based research centres lead in cutting-edge genomics topic

Universities will need to think hard about how they will respond to the growing popularity of the qualification, says Elizabeth Miller

A newcomer in the Oxford-Cambridge innovation corridor will reshape our understanding of what higher education is for, says Lynette Ryals

Expansion of US carrier associated with increase in partnerships of more than 30 per cent

The mere mention of fairies in academic circles can bring derision. Yet the field is a rich one that has much to offer open-minded, multidisciplinary scholars, writes Simon Young

If elements of society feel they have no stake in humanities and social science research, their support for it will evaporate, warns Musa al-Gharbi

Analysis of data on current research networks suggests that subjects where expensive kit is shared could be vulnerable

But observers warn that open data initiative is progressing too slowly and researchers lack incentives to join up

Following individuals’ paths in and out of different institutions shows that most students eventually graduate, say Ross Finnie, Richard E. Mueller and Arthur Sweetman

Scientists reject the ‘crisis narrative’ as an inflammatory distraction from bigger issues

Large worldwide survey suggests scholars in continental Europe more readily provide data alongside results

Professional doctorates offer a more useful, less stressful but no less rigorous alternative to the moribund PhD, says Richard Willis

Psychologist Michal Kosinski’s work shows how digital footprints can predict a person’s sexual orientation, political views and more. Is it a danger or a warning about threats to privacy? John Morgan reports from California

Will the current blockade on Qatar harm its higher education system? Simon Baker investigates whether the need to find common scientific ground among Gulf states could win out

University of Waterloo president says modern universities must combine research and creativity 

US-based ARTiFACTS system is claimed to be first ‘fully functional’ blockchain-based system for recording research process

Lancaster University's vice-chancellor Mark E. Smith and Nicola Owen argue that a new composite ranking offers a more nuanced view of institutional excellence

Social scientists’ scepticism about research oversight also relates to the curiously bad press it gets in Western literature, writes Katarzyna Kaczmarska 

The reawakening of political activism within academia sparked by the pensions strike will reinvigorate scholarship, says Jana Bacevic

Scholarship scheme set up from funds raised by the campaign aims to promote future generations of women in research

Introducing a ‘consumer-style ratings system’ for degrees has the potential to cause terrible damage to universities and society in general, argues Cathy Shrank

Female junior academics are also gaining research prestige, says study

Report from African Academy of Sciences also claims that scientific research in continent must better align with sustainable development goals

New schemes will provide grants to master’s and PhD students and postdoctoral researchers

Higher education institutions make a loss when they invest in international partnerships, but the wider community reaps a windfall, says New Zealand report

Mathematicians – and, indeed, other scholars – who cooperate with intelligence agencies face a moral dilemma knowing that their research could well be applied in unethical ways, says Michael Harris

Parochialism makes sense from a career point of view, but is disastrous for public discourse, say Cynthia Miller-Idriss and Mitchell L. Stevens

There are very few outlets for women to work together against unhelpful concepts that hold back female progression in academia, says Elisabeth Julie Vargo

Despite some progress, researchers are still reluctant to switch journals because of fears it could hinder their careers

Sam Gyimah has been criticised for failing to commit to associate membership of Framework Programme 9

Accusations are a ‘cruel and empty provocation against dedicated scientist’, say sector leaders

Toulouse and Cornell come out on top in analysis of second most trending science topic on SciVal

New university network will see institutions pool resources to cope with impact of hurricanes and tropical cyclones

The university strikes are a militant campaign that attacks the very heart of learning as the union propaganda makes clear, says John Marenbon

With state intervention back in vogue, and publishers’ profit margins still sky-high, journals could be the next monopoly to come under scrutiny

Radical ideas required to cut research grant waste

New centres mark new phase of collaboration between traditionally separate universities and research institutes

Academics celebrate major increase in basic research funding, but pledges fall short of recommendations in Naylor report

New generation of scientists powering country’s development, says head of science funding agency

Ahead of University Mental Health Day on 1 March, Robin Brinkworth argues that institutions must become far more open and accountable on how they are handling student problems

Minister says he will ‘fight’ to ensure scientists can move freely post-Brexit

European universities, despite public dismay about Brexit, also privately see it as an opportunity to poach UK-based academics

The prime minister’s review of higher education is an exercise in self-harm that will also inflict damage on universities, says Patrick McGhee

Twenty North American institutions using ‘moon shots’ to help focus and attract support for their scientific endeavours

Could the Commonwealth be a viable source of research networks should the UK fail to secure access to the EU’s research programmes post-Brexit? Simon Baker reports

Rare disciplines face a multitude of threats but are key to the biodiversity of academia, advocates say

The ‘leaky pipeline’ metaphor for the lack of women at senior levels of academia can demotivate those whose professional paths meander, says Aileen Fyfe

Survey finds that most research organisations do not have a policy on use of metrics

Academics routinely offer praise and encouragement to their students. Why are they so reluctant to offer it to each other? asks Terri Apter

The former Soviet state’s National Academy of Sciences is too focused on its own survival to improve its research performance, says Ararat Osipian

Books offer an experience, evidence trail and egalitarianism that could never be digitised, say Al Martinich and Tom Palaima

New injection of cash for San Francisco Declaration on responsible metrics hopes to move initiative from words to action

In the first of a regular series looking at who is producing highly cited research in different areas, THE explores a subject currently deemed the ‘most prominent’ by Elsevier metrics 

Fiona Watt promises that there will be no ‘ransacking of a well-structured organisation’ in shift to new umbrella body

Although Finland and South Korea have agreed deals with the publisher, European sectors are looking to take a harder line

In an increasingly competitive publishing environment, responding effectively to criticism is key to getting published, says Robert MacIntosh