The deathless persistence of the hydroxychloroquine story illustrates how hard it can be to let go of cherished beliefs. Continue reading
Recant re-can’t
Too busy to think
Scientists need to allocate time for thinking as well as for doing, and especially so right now. Continue reading
Life membership
The attempted student ban enacted by the Trump administration was wrong. Denying students their university places because they were not physically present misunderstood so much of what university membership really embodies. Continue reading
Bolton’s book and Goodhart’s law
Donald Trump’s obsession with re-election illustrates the problems caused by metrics becoming targets. Continue reading
The 9 types of academic authors
Nowadays it’s pretty standard for an academic paper to have a long list of authors – but who are those authors anyway? Continue reading
Black Lives Matter – an interview with Dr. Calvin Tiengwe
The Black Lives Matter protests have shone a light on the systemic racism present at all levels in developed countries, including in academia. TIR spoke to Dr. Calvin Tiengwe of Imperial College London to get his perspective on the protests, the problem, and possible solutions. Continue reading
Put to the test
One of the easiest and sincerest ways of flattering hosts is to observe that they’re a proud people. And the wellspring, the essence of that pride, be it in nation, region, religion, sports club or street gang, is that almost every human grouping thinks it’s the best. In-group identity naturally comes with an encoded sense of self-esteem. You take pride in your group, and you therefore want to believe it’s better than the others. Continue reading
Nuts and bolts (a short guide to writing Materials & Methods sections)
Clear Materials and Methods sections are essential for other scientists to reproduce your work. Here’s a short guide on how to write them. Continue reading
Survivor guilt, scientist guilt
What and how much must scientists do, to feel that they’ve done enough? Continue reading
Lockdown and out
The looming relaxation of coronavirus lockdown measures is exposing the public to the messy basis of scientific fact-building. Continue reading
