In its first year, the Biden administration launched a fast-track Scientific Integrity Task Force, intended to “lift up the voices of Federal scientists of many perspectives and backgrounds” and put … Continue reading “So Now the Feds Will Monitor Research Integrity?”
Some North Carolina public universities hope to leverage revisions to higher education’s preeminent classification methodology to achieve game-changing status reserved presently for a small handful of state schools. If they … Continue reading “UNC-System Schools and the “R1” Wars”
Once a rarity, research fraud is on the rise at some of the nation’s most prestigious universities. What is most disturbing is that the fraud in question too often involves … Continue reading “Why Research Fraud Is Getting Worse”
The latest fresh hell is citational justice. Which is quotas for footnotes. Now we’re supposed to track the group identity of the authors we cite and make sure there are … Continue reading “The Strange World of “Citational Justice””
No matter where one falls politically, one must admit that the pandemic brought to the foreground the importance of scientific research. A new report from The Economist’s think-tank spinoff, Economist … Continue reading “Do Academics Still Trust Research?”
Science is not supposed to be filtered through a belief system. It’s supposed to go wherever the facts lead. But the human brain doesn’t work that way. Our brains zoom … Continue reading “The Politicization of Social Science”
Recently, one of the departments on my campus invited an academic “expert,” who, among other specializations, “advise[s] on the ethical aspects of telescope siting,” to give a talk entitled “How … Continue reading “Social-Justice Restrictions on Research Harm All of Us”
Economists call someone who gets paid more than necessary to produce a good or service a “rent-seeker.” Arguably the preeminent rent-seeker in higher education, Terry Hartle, announced his retirement recently … Continue reading “Wanted: A Successful Collegiate Rent-Seeker”
Two years ago, the Great Awokening came for blind auditions in America’s top orchestras. Any educational or cultural differences were insufficient explanations for the disparities between white and black players … Continue reading “The Strange Attack on Blind Reviewing”
In September 2022, three researchers published the provocatively titled article, “Do Introductory Courses Disproportionately Drive Minoritized Students Out of STEM Pathways?” That article got loads of social media publicity for … Continue reading “Why the Left Relies on Statistical Illiteracy”