All Things SciComm

In the final part of their conversation, Nikesh Gosalia and Mark Hahnel talk about open science, but this time with an emphasis on the future. They discuss carrot-and-stick incentives that can encourage researchers to participate in open science. Mark shares his views on future developments in academic publishing, specifically on how machine interpretation of data can help detect publishing fraud and make scientific findings more understandable to the general public. Mark also shares his...

Nikesh Gosalia and Mark Hahnel continue their discussion on making scientific data public, talking about the idea of publishing negative data and the unequal explosion of gold vs. green open access. Mark makes a strong case for keeping all data openly available in time-sensitive research fields such as COVID-19. He also discusses how open access could propel research to the next level: if all research data is available online, AI technologies could sift through it and detect trends that...

Join host Nikesh Gosalia as he chats with Mark Hahnel from Figshare about the creation of the Figshare platform. Mark talks about his background in genomics and how a gap year spent travelling eventually led him to do a PhD in stem cell biology. As a PhD student, he experienced struggles while trying to publish his research findings, and this inspired him to build his own publishing platform, which is now known as Figshare. For Figshare’s 10th anniversary, Mark reflects on Figshare’s...

This is a special episode for Peer Review Week 2022 featuring research integrity specialist, Jigisha Patel! Hosts Nikesh Gosalia and Jayashree Rajagopalan talk to Jigisha about her career journey from being a medical doctor to a journal editor. She shares her observations on common research integrity dilemmas in publishing, from plagiarism to authorship disputes, and discusses an overview of industry efforts to overcome these problems and the possibility of using AI-based solutions. Jigisha...

Is remote learning here to stay? In the second part of their conversation, Nikesh Gosalia and Phil Baty discuss changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic and various other issues related to higher education. They start with the Research Excellence Framework, and Phil shares his thoughts on the importance of such frameworks and the controversy of universities gaming the system. They also explore the long-term impact of the pandemic on higher education — according to Phil, remote learning will be...

In today's episode, Nikesh Gosalia speaks to Times Higher Education (THE) Chief Knowledge Officer Phil Baty about university rankings. Phil talks about THE’s origins and his personal history within the company and delves into the THE World University Rankings and shares insider info on the inner workings of the rankings — he covers everything from performance indicators to the incorporation of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. Phil addresses some controversies about ranking tools and...

Will research articles exist in the future? Nikesh Gosalia and Gareth O'Neill continue their discussion, talking about the evolution of nanopublications and the role of commercial publishers in open science. To illustrate the global emergence of the open science cloud, Gareth provides an overview of the open science efforts in different countries. He talks about making research accessible to everyone, using metadata to break down language barriers. Nikesh and Gareth also discuss impact in...

Gareth O'Neill and Nikesh Gosalia continue their discussion on all things open science, starting with the case of Diederik Stapel, a cautionary tale on the dangers of closed data. Gareth shares his insider knowledge on upcoming open science developments, including FAIR, European Open Science Cloud (EOSC), and the use of AI algorithms to find dataset correlations, as well as his observations on how stakeholders and researchers are responding to these developments. He also talks about...

In today’s episode, Nikesh Gosalia and Gareth O’Neill chat about the recent shift toward open science. They start by discussing Gareth's early days as a linguistic lecturer, his foray into open access, and his activism on behalf of researchers at the European Union, as well as his work with open science projects Eurodoc, FOSTER, and DRC. Gareth shares his observations on the stalled progress toward open access in recent decades and the factors that affect this, including different business...

Nikesh Gosalia and Lisa Cuevas Shaw discuss open science and its major challenges in depth, covering AI tech to research funding. Lisa shares her thoughts on the funder’s role in driving change and addresses the unique issues that currently affect research funding. They tackle another very relevant topic for researchers — the use of AI-based tools in research. According to Lisa, the foundation of AI tech lies in the judicious use of tools to make processes easier. She also talks about the...

In today's episode, Nikesh Gosalia talks to Lisa Cuevas Shaw about open science practices and her journey in the publishing industry. Lisa unpacks her experiences, from her beginnings at Sage to her stint at McGraw Hill, before her return to Sage to help expand Corwin. She discusses the opportunities that led her to the Center for Open Science, which is championing open science practices through their tool, Open Science Framework (OSF), using a three-pronged approach of product, policy, and...

Nikesh Gosalia and Duncan MacRae continue their conversation on the current issues in the publishing industry, starting with the use of AI technology to manage the recent boom in journal submissions. They discuss the increasing importance of research promotion in recent years and the need for journals to establish a brand, particularly on social media. Duncan shares his thought on the eventual tipping point that will make research promotion a necessity for journals. Duncan also discusses the...

Plan S, an initiative for scientists to publish outside paywalls, has made waves in the publishing industry. Host Nikesh Gosalia and Duncan MacRae tackle the relevant topic of open access in scholarly publishing. Duncan talks about journals transitioning from subscription-based to open access, inefficiencies in journal workflow, and the importance of peer review in medical publishing. They also discuss how new journals have trouble being discovered, as well as the challenge of getting an...

In the second part of their conversation, Nikesh Gosalia and Charlie Rapple dive deeper into Kudos and the gaps in the system that led Kudos to extend their support to researchers directly. Kudos’ main goal is to present findings as part of a global narrative. They discuss Kudos’ foray into “showcases,” an audience-centric informal way of sharing research findings, and the publishing industry’s response to it. They also touch on Kudos’ work on climate change, from communicating climate...

In this episode, Nikesh Gosalia talks to Charlie Rapple about bringing research to a wider audience. They discuss the growing importance of public engagement, as well as the role of publishers and individuals in promoting research to a broader audience. Charlie talks about the inspiration behind Kudos, the changes she has seen in the publishing industry, and her observations of user data in Kudos. She reiterates the importance of a strategic approach to communication, and the benefits of...

In a continuation of the chat with Nikesh Gosalia, Morressier’s Sami Benchekroun shares his expertise on the inner workings of virtual conferences. He talks about the use of virtual conferencing to spur revenue generation, as part of an integrated business model that takes into account the key components of content, conference members, and sponsors or exhibitors. Nikesh and Sami tackle a valid concern among remote participants – effective networking. While Sami admits that there is no...

Join host Nikesh Gosalia in a conversation with Sami Benchekroun, co-founder of Morressier. Sami talks about the circumstances that led him to Morressier, a combination of his natural penchant for network structures and existing inefficiencies in academic conferences. Growing up with scientist parents who came from poorer countries, Sami was inspired to create Morressier to improve global accessibility to knowledge. Sami shares insights based on his experience with running Morressier (like...

In the second part of the podcast with Dr Elodie Chabrol, hosts Nikesh Gosalia and Jayashree Rajagopalan dive deeper into a discussion peppered with personal anecdotes and eye-opening metaphors. Dr Chabrol talks about the geeky scientist stereotype, overcoming these clichés through her science communication work, and how revealing scientists to be real multifaceted people could inspire a greater public interest in science. The conversation then covers Dr Chabrol’s experiences running Pint of...

An essential part of being a scientist is sharing scientific findings with the general public. But is there a way to communicate science more effectively? Join hosts Nikesh Gosalia and Jayashree Rajagopalan in a conversation with Dr Elodie Chabrol, International Director of the global science festival Pint of Science, as they discuss the fundamentals of conveying science to the public. Directionality is a core element of science communication, and Dr Chabrol addresses this by fostering...

In the second part of the conversation with Martina Ribar Hestericová, hosts Nikesh Gosalia and Jayashree Rajagopalan dive deeper into the world of science communication by exploring concepts such as inclusivity in science communication and English as the global language of science. Martina talks about her ideas for nurturing a love for science among young people by using appealing and age-appropriate language, starting early in elementary school, and teaching science as a way of life rather...