Work with Your Public Information Officer

Researchers should understand who their public information officers (PIOs) are and what their level of expertise is. This understanding includes whether they are a marketing-oriented “sales rep” PIO or a more desirable PIO/journalist. PIOs in different institutions—academic, federal laboratory, government agency, and corporate—face different issues in terms of their institutional culture. There are many ways a PIO can help scientists with their communications needs, but a researcher needs to know how to assess their PIO in order to take advantage of that help. There are specific steps a researcher can take to help their PIO be maximally effective. The specific caveats researchers should be aware of when working with their PIO are, for example, in developing news releases, feature stories, and other content. There are also cautions to be observed when working with PIOs outside one’s institution.

What’s Your STEMspiration?: Adaptation and Validation of A Survey Instrument

Millions of dollars each year are invested in intervention programs to broaden participation and improve bachelor degree graduation rates of students enrolled in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. The Virginia–North Carolina Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (VA-NC Alliance), a consortium of 11 higher education institutions and one federal laboratory funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), is one such investment., The VA-NC Alliance partners implement evidence-based STEM intervention programs (SIPs) informed by research and specifically designed to increase student retention and graduation rates in STEM majors. The VA-NC Alliance is conducting an Alliance-wide longitudinal research project based in Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) titled “What’s Your STEMspiration?” The goal of the research project is to assess the differentiated impacts and effectiveness of the Alliance’s broadening participation efforts and identify emergent patterns, adding to the field of knowledge about culturally responsive SIPs. In other words, “What’s Your STEMspiration?” explores what influences and inspires undergraduates to pursue a STEM degree and career; and how does the development of a STEM identity support students in achieving their goals. In order to complete this research, the research team developed a survey instrument to conduct the quantitative portion of the study. Two preliminary studies, statistical analysis, and cognitive interviews were used to develop and validate the survey instrument. This paper discusses the theoretical and conceptual frameworks and preliminary studies upon which the survey is built, the methodology used to validate the instrument, and the resulting final survey tool.

Invention disclosures and the slowdown of scientific knowledge

Invention disclosures are one measure of new scientific knowledge that represents and predicts the future scientific research output of a US federal laboratory. In this article, we document a negative shift in the production function for new scientific knowledge as measured by invention disclosures at one federal laboratory, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, over the first 16 years of the new millennium. We find a negative shift of the production function for new scientific knowledge, and that shift might reflect the coincidence of the information and communication technology revolution that enabled fast science, and the evaluation of research with uncritical use of citation counts that created incentives to focus on incremental research in crowded research topics.

Analysis of the prevalence of STIs in Russia according to the federal laboratory network

Background. The incidence rate of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in different countries has attracted the attention of specialists from all over the world. The official rates of STI incidence in Russia are significantly lower than those in the United States. Objective. To assess the prevalence of STIs among patients in a network of federal laboratories. Methods. The prevalence analysis of Chlamydia trachomatis, Mycoplasma genitalium, Trichomonas vaginalis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, human papillomavirus (HPV) types 16, 18 and herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1, 2 was performed on the basis of anonymous data from 40 521 patients examined for sexually transmitted pathogens by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The studied biomaterial was delivered from 656 laboratory departments located in 284 settlements of all federal districts of the Russian Federation from January 2017 to June 2019. Results. One and more of the eight pathogens were detected in 13.8% of patients, two or more pathogens simultaneously were detected in 1.4% of patients. The prevalence of viral infections was: 5.6% in HPV type 16, 1.8% in HPV type 18, 0.5% in HSV-1, and 1.6% in HSV-2. The highest percentage of patients in whom at least one infection was detected was in the age groups under 17 years (27.9%) and 1825 years (19.8%). The distribution by gender in the groups varied, inversely: women predominated in the group under 17 years old (69%), men predominated in the group over 46 years old (71%). The prevalence of pathogenic bacteria was: C. trachomatis 3.8%, M. genitalium 1.5%, N. gonorrhoeae 0.5%, T. vaginalis 0.3%. Discussion. The official incidence of STIs in Russia is significantly lower than that in the United States, which, in our opinion, may indicate not the stable situation in our country infection-wise, but inefficiency of registering STIs in Russia. Conclusion. The data from the federal network of laboratories indicate a high prevalence of STIs in the Russian Federation. The existing STIs accounting system requires modernization. Introduction of the state national program for the Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention of STIs can be useful to reduce the spread of infections, improve the reproductive health of the population, and reduce the incidence of reproductive cancer.