The Association of American Universities, a group of more than 60 North American research universities has issued a flyer explaining the usefulness of mocked research done up in a National Enquirer lookalike style.
A researcher accused of misconduct by a fired colleague was given the all-clear by her institution this week. Nina Bhardwaj (right), a New York University School of Medicine vaccine researcher, co-authored a paper with David O’Neill, who was later dismissed from NYU for “unprofessional behavior.” O’Neill is claiming in a lawsuit that he was fired in retaliation for resisting when Bhardwaj allegedly wanted to “spin” the results of that paper by selecting a more favourable statistical analysis. The paper found that a new ‘dendritic cell’ vaccine, which O’Neill argues Bhardwaj also has a financial stake in, is no better that older, cheap vaccine technology. Read more
Should the University of Kentucky have hired a qualified astronomer to lead their new observatory, despite his strong religious views and his public doubts about evolution? Or was their decision to pass him over discrimination? Read more
Fear the Asian carp. The fish jump several feet into the air. And they are big—up to 80 pounds. They’ll slap a fisherman in the face with their tails, and leave him with a black eye…if he’s lucky. They’ve been known to break jaws. But it isn’t for their man-slapping prowess that Great Lakes ecologists fear the Asian carp. They are more worried that the fish will out-compete native fish and destroy economies based on commercial and recreational fishing. (No one much likes the taste of the Asian carp in the United States, except this guy.) In their fervor to … Read more
Does it matter what you think about the history of life on earth if your job is looking at the stars? According to the Louisville, Kentucky Courier-Journal, astronomer Martin Gaskell was a shoo-in to be the first director of a new observatory at the University of Kentucky back in 2007. Until, that is, the University got wind of his lectures on the biblical creation story and his belief that there are “major scientific problems in evolutionary theory.” The University figured this wouldn’t do for the head of an observatory that counted public understanding of science as among their missions. Gaskell sued, claiming that he was the victim of religious discrimination. The University asked the courts to dismiss the case, but their prayers—ahem—weren’t granted. Gaskell will have his day in court: 8 February, to be precise. Read more
UCLA neuroscientist David Jentsch got an unwelcome surprise at his home this month. Animal rights activists had mailed him razor blades and a “threatening note,” according to a news release from the university. Read more
Asia’s vultures are in trouble, but Cambodia has become a haven for the scavengers. An annual census shows some of the most endangered species are increasing slightly there. Read more
The UCLA School of Public Health is trying to get rid of epidemiologist James Enstrom, and the media is taking notice. Enstrom has made news before. In 2003, Enstrom co-authored a paper, which looked at a 100,000-person cohort over almost 40 years and concluded that second hand smoke was no big deal (British Medical Journal, 326, 1057 – 1061, 2003). The study was partly funded by the tobacco industry and roundly pooh-poohed by the British Medical Association (which publishes the BMJ) and the American Cancer Society. [See our story from 2003]. Read more
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The report produced by the investigators does not say so explicitly, probably out of fear of prejudicing future criminal/civil inquiries,… ... Read more
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