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B – Trends in Middle Eastern countries’ science production6 October 2011Habibzadeh F. Geopolitical changes and trends in Middle Eastern countries’ contributions to world science over the past three decades. Archives of Iranian Medicine 2011;14(5):310-311 It is not possible to study the Middle East science growth without considering its geopolitical changes. Despite a nearly constant tension over the past 3 decades, science production of this region […]
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B – Impact Factor and other metrics for evaluating science6 October 2011Solimini AG, Solimini R. Impact Factor and other metrics for evaluating science: essentials for public health practitioners. Italian Journal of Public Health 2011;8(1):96-103 The article reviews the most widely used metrics, highlighting the pros and cons of each of them. The rigide application of quantitative metrics to judge the quality of a journal, of a […]
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B – Do we need eMinence-based bioethics?30 September 2011Petrini C. Pardon my asking: do we need eMinence-based bioethics? Annali dell’Istituto Superiore di Sanità 2011;47(3):243-244(doi: 10.4415/ANN_ 11_03_01) What kind of ethics is useful for researchers? Nowadays the proliferation of bioethic experts and the success of practical guidelines are a fact from which the author of this editorial draws the following conclusions: people find bioethics […]
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B – Impact of conflicts of interest on perceived credibility of research29 September 2011Lacasse JR, Leo J. Knowledge of ghostwriting anf financial conflicts-of-interest reduces the perceived credibility of biomedical research. BMC Research Notes 2011;4:27(doi: 10.1186/1756-0500-4-27) This study provides information on how practicing clinicians perceive research in which multiple conflicts of interest (COI) are disclosed. The authors developed two research vignettes presenting a fictional antidepressant medication study, one in […]
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B – Legal remedies for medical ghostwriting28 September 2011Stern S, Lemmens T. Legal remedies for medical ghostwriting: imposing fraud liability on guest authors of ghostwritten articles. PLoS Med 2011;8(8):e1001070(doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001070) The article focuses on ghostwriting and guest authorship in industry-controlled research: several examples have revealed the use of ghostwriters to insert concealed marketing messages favourable to a company’s product, and the recruitment of […]
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B – Innovation needs novel thinking22 September 2011Leshner AI. Innovation needs novel thinking. Science 2011;332(6033):1009(doi: 10.1126/science.1208330) Science, technology and innovation are critical drivers of economic growth and national well-being of a country. Investing in them has become a hope for many countries, both rich and poor. But innovation demands that novel ideas are pursued, and to attract them some long-held traditions and […]
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B – Publishing cycle of biomedical journals22 September 2011Tagler J. Biomedical Publishing 101: an overview from the Chicago Collaborative. The Serials Librarian 2011; 60(1-4):114-123 The challenges and opportunities posed by the migration from print to digital were addressed. The author explored the role of publishers in the scholarly communication process, and the various roles and responsibilities of other different players in the scientific […]
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B – Statistical and research design problems in psychology journals21 September 2011Harris A, Reeder R, Hyun J. Survey of editors and reviewers of high-impact psychology journals: statistical and research design problems in submitted manuscripts. The Journal of Psychology 2011;145(3):195-209 The authors surveyed 21 editors and reviewers from major psychology journals to identify and describe the statistical and design errors they encounter most often and to get […]
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B – APS redifines length21 September 2011Sprouse G. Editorial: Redefining length. Physical Review Special Topics-Physics Education Research 2011;7(020001)(doi: 10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.7.020001) Authors often work hard to maximize the material presented within the constraints of the printed page, and this leads to frustration especially during the proof stage and, much important, to compromises that can be detrimental to the research itself. The APS Editor […]
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B – Ethics authors don’t follow guidelines21 September 2011Tarnow E. Ethics authors don’t follow guidelines. APS News 2011;20(7):4 Ethics training at least in medical publication seems to lead to worse behaviour. Young researchers find out just how they are expected to behave, which turns out to be…unethically. Thanks to John Glen
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B – Online gamers solve a longstanding scientific problem21 September 2011Khatib F, DiMaio F, Cooper S et al. Crystal structure of a monomeric retroviral protease solved by protein folding game players. Nature Structural & Molecular Biology 2011;online publ. September 18(doi: 10.1038/nsmb.2119) Fold.it is a multiplayer online game that allows players worldwide to solve complex protein-structure prediction problems. A 15-year-old AIDS problem was recently solved in […]
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B – Retracted science and retracted index20 September 2011Fang FC, Casadevall A. Retracted science and the retraction index. Infection and Immunity 2011;79(10)(doi: 10.1128/IAI.05661-11) Overall, manuscript retraction appears to be occurring more frequently, although it is uncertain whether this is a result of increasing misconduct or simply increasing detection due to enhanced vigilance. The authors developed a novel measure, the “retraction index”, by dividing […]
