scholarly journals Too Much Academic Research Is Being Published

2018 ◽  
pp. 2-3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip G. Altbach ◽  
Hans De Wit

There is a crisis in academic publishing and in the global knowledge-distribution system in general—there is too much pressure on top journals, there are too many books and articles of marginal quality, predatory journals are on the rise, and there is a tremendous pressure on academics worldwide to publish. We propose recognizing that most universities and most academics, globally, focus on teaching, and that the large majority of universities acknowledge their important roles as teaching-focused and do not seek to become research-intensive institutions. We call for quality, but also for control of what quality is, by the academic community instead of by nonacademic rankers, publishers, and citation and impact measurers. Quality—not quantity—should be the objective, in combination with an effort to bring quality control back into the academic community—while making sure that that control is not dominated by small groups in research universities in the rich countries. 

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan M. Allen

PurposeThe academic community has warned that predatory journals may attempt to capitalize on the confusion caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to further publish low quality academic work, eroding the credibility of scholarly publishing.Design/methodology/approachThis article first chronicles the risks of predatory publishing, especially related to misinformation surrounding health research. Next, the author offers an empirical investigation of how predatory publishing has engaged with COVID-19, with an emphasis on journals related to virology, immunology and epidemiology as identified through Cabells' Predatory Reports, through a content analysis of publishers' websites and a comparison to a sample from DOAJ.FindingsThe empirical findings show that there were 162 titles related to these critical areas from journals listed on Cabells with a range of infractions, but most were defunct and only 39 had published on the pandemic. Compared to a DOAJ comparison group, the predatory journal websites were less likely to mention slowdowns to the peer review process related to the pandemic. Furthermore, another 284 predatory journals with COVID-19 engagement were uncovered from the initial exploration. These uncovered journals mostly centered on medical or biological science fields, while 42 titles came from other broader fields in social science, other STEM or humanities.Originality/valueThis study does not prove that predatory publications have released misinformation pertaining to COVID-19, but rather it exemplifies the potential within a complex academic publishing space. As these outlets have proven to be vectors of misleading science, libraries and the broader educational community need to stay vigilant as information intermediaries of online research.


This book addresses the central challenge facing rich countries: how to ensure that ordinary working families see their living standards and the prospects for their children improve rather than stagnate over time. It presents the findings from a comprehensive analysis of performance over recent decades across the rich countries of the OECD, in terms of real income growth around and below the middle. It relates this performance to overall economic growth, exploring why these often diverge substantially, and to the different models of capitalism or economic growth embedded in different countries. In-depth comparative and UK-focused analyses also focus on wages and the labour market and on the role of redistribution. Going beyond income, other indicators and aspects of living standards are also incorporated including non-monetary indicators of deprivation and financial strain, wealth and its distribution, and intergenerational mobility. By looking across this broad canvas, the book teases out how ordinary households have fared in recent decades in these critically important respects, and how that should inform the quest for inclusive growth and prosperity.


Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1163
Author(s):  
Mengning Qiu ◽  
Avi Ostfeld

Steady-state demand-driven water distribution system (WDS) solution is the bedrock for much research conducted in the field related to WDSs. WDSs are modeled using the Darcy–Weisbach equation with the Swamee–Jain equation. However, the Swamee–Jain equation approximates the Colebrook–White equation, errors of which are within 1% for ϵ/D∈[10−6,10−2] and Re∈[5000,108]. A formulation is presented for the solution of WDSs using the Colebrook–White equation. The correctness and efficacy of the head formulation have been demonstrated by applying it to six WDSs with the number of pipes ranges from 454 to 157,044 and the number of nodes ranges from 443 to 150,630. The addition of a physically and fundamentally more accurate WDS solution method can improve the quality of the results achieved in both academic research and industrial application, such as contamination source identification, water hammer analysis, WDS network calibration, sensor placement, and least-cost design and operation of WDSs.


2021 ◽  
pp. 000313482110233
Author(s):  
Shinho T. Kang ◽  
Ryan Moran ◽  
Lala Hussain ◽  
Hamza Guend ◽  
Erik M. Dunki-Jacobs ◽  
...  

Treatment of metastatic colon cancer has evolved over time. More evidence has been emerging in recent years supporting metastasectomy in selected patients. We sought to elucidate whether the type of institution—community, comprehensive community, academic/research, and integrated cancer network—would have an effect on patient outcome, specifically those colon cancer patients with isolated liver metastasis. This retrospective cohort study queried the National Cancer Database (NCDB) from 2010 to 2014 for patients who were 18 years of age or older with stage IVA colon cancer with isolated liver metastasis. We then performed uni- and multivariate analyses comparing patients based on such factors as age, tumor characteristics, primary tumor location, rate of chemotherapy, and type of treating institution. Patients who came from regions of higher income, receiving chemotherapy, and presenting to an academic/research hospital were more likely to undergo metastasectomy. Median survival was longest at academic/community hospitals at 22.4 months, 6 to 7 months longer than the other three types of institutions. Factors positively affecting survival included receiving chemotherapy, presenting to an academic/research institution, and undergoing metastasectomy, all at P < .05. In our study, the rate of metastasectomy was more than double at academic/research institutions for those with stage IVA colon cancer with isolated liver metastasis. Prior studies have quoted a mere 4.1% synchronous colon resection and metastasectomy. Our findings suggest that we should maintain multidisciplinary approach to this complex disease process and that perhaps it is time for us to consider regionalization of care in treating metastatic colon cancer.


Author(s):  
Loek Groot

In this study it is demonstrated that standard income inequality measures, such as the Lorenz curve and the Gini index, can successfully be applied to the distribution of Olympic success. Olympic success is distributed very unevenly, with the rich countries capturing a disproportionately higher share compared to their world population share, which suggests that the Olympic Games do not provide a level playing field. The actual distribution of Olympic success is compared with alternative hypothetical distributions, among which are chosen the distribution according to population shares, the welfare optimal distribution under the assumption of zero government expenditures, and the non-cooperating Nash-Cournot distribution. By way of conclusion, a device is proposed to make the distribution of Olympic success more equitable.


2014 ◽  
pp. 4-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen MacGregor

Research universities in low and middle-income countries have crucial roles to play in developing differentiated and effective academic systems and in making it possible for their countries to join the global knowledge society and compete in sophisticated knowledge economies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iryna Novikova ◽  
Alla Stepanova ◽  
Oksana Zhylinska ◽  
Oleksandr Bediukh

Innovative development of Ukraine is possible due to the introduction of an effective mechanism for the promotion of commercially attractive scientific ideas and developments, which are produced at universities, into the domestic and international markets. It is extremely difficult for research universities to negotiate the transfer of their developments due to the lack of an extensive technology transfer infrastructure where an information system would be in place to exchange technological requests and proposals. The authors demonstrate a modern toolkit for the transfer of knowledge and technology, which is actively used by the international academic community and contributes to the consideration of modern specifics in the organization of innovative marketing in research universities. In the article, the authors analyze the role of social and communication tools, namely media and online social platforms, such as Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, or YouTube, or other communication search platforms, including Enterprise Europe Network in the technological transfer of world research universities and Ukrainian university practice. The dominance of positive features in the use of media tools for technology transfer proves its viability for the Ukrainian market. Using the tools of media sector it was proposed to develop a modern strategy for commercializing the results of innovative activities of research universities. The article offers considering the process of bringing to commercially attractive results of experimental research at universities based on the methodology of network marketing and education.


Electronics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (16) ◽  
pp. 1944
Author(s):  
Akmal. Z. Arsad ◽  
Glorria Sebastian ◽  
Mahammad A. Hannan ◽  
Pin Jern Ker ◽  
M. Safwan A. Rahman ◽  
...  

Recently, the development and controls of solid-state switching have gained significant popularity over the years especially in academic research. The development of control strategies in solid state switching applications to ensure fast switching in a protected distribution system has fueled a great deal of investigation and further developments. Therefore, a critical review and analysis in the field of solid-state switching for distribution systems are provided in this article. The Scopus database is used to compile a list of the most cited published papers in the field of solid-state switching control methods based on the identified criteria. The study explores 120 of the most cited articles emphasizing six keywords such as a solid-state breaker, solid-state transfer switch, static transfer switch, automatic transfer switch, automatic protection switches, and solid-state protection switch. The analysis was conducted using the Scopus database in the fourth week of January 2021. The 120 articles were collected from 24 different journals and 27 different countries. It is reported that 78% of the published papers outline the methodology based on control and test systems whereas 22% of articles are based on review surveys. From that, 73% of articles concentrate on the protection strategy in the system. The main objective of the article is to classify and define the highly cited published articles in the field of solid-state switching control methods as well as to provide direction for future research on fast switching in the distribution system. The analysis also highlights various factors, issues, challenges, and difficulties to identify the existing limitations and research gaps. This review will serve to strengthen the development concepts of solid-state switching control methods towards achieving improved operational performance, energy-saving, economic prosperity, and enhanced power quality. The authors believe that this bibliometric evaluation will allow academic researchers to identify opportunities for growth in the solid-state switching industry.


2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 127
Author(s):  
Jan-Erik Lane

The new theme of abrupt climate change (“Hawking tipping point”) must be taken up by global coordination – the UNFCCC, IPCC and the G20. The only policy response is to reinforce the COP21 project, and start managing its quick implementation of decarbonisation. A more decisive climate change policy – no coal or charcoal, solar power parks, and possibly carbon capture – may not guarantee the goal of + 2 degrees Celsius, but it may help avoid climate chaos. Only global coordination can break through the resistance of markets in the rich countries and governments in the Third World together with vibrant civil society. The large COP21 Secretariat must become a management agency for rapid decarbonisation with support from other global bodies (WB, IMF) and the G20.


2020 ◽  
pp. 266-271
Author(s):  
Marina M. Frolova ◽  

The article discusses the history of the Society of History and Russian Antiquities (SHRA,1804–1929), highlights its academic and publishing activities in the first half of the 19th century in relation to the study of Bulgarian issues. On the basis of this material it is concluded that the SHRA aimed at increasing the prestige and development of national historical academic research and contributed to the formation of an academic community of people passionate about the ideas of knowledge and national service: a “scholarly community”. Although Bulgarian research was not dominant in Slavic scholarship which was actively developed by the SHRA members from the 1830s, its emergence testified to increasing interest in the Bulgarian people. The work of the SHRA contributed to the accumulation of knowledge about and understanding of the Bulgarian people, their history and culture.


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