bias

Multiple prestigious US biomedical research awards have rarely or never been granted to a scientist with Asian ancestry, illustrating racial bias within American research societies and institutions, a researcher argues.

The Scientist interviewed clinical pharmacologist Clara Locher, coauthor of a new survey aimed at detecting editorial bias, regarding her team’s findings about biomedical publishing.

An analysis finds that reviewers are more likely to choose to be de-anonymized when their reviews are positive, suggesting instituting a fully open process might discourage negative feedback.

Justifying science funding through the lens of global competition risks fostering racial bias and discrimination.

Avoiding inbreeding appears to be the exception rather than the norm for animals, according to a new meta-analysis of experimental studies.

The journal Ethology is the first to adopt the guidelines, aimed at clarifying experimental design and the potential biases within.

Few peer-reviewed clinical papers on the pandemic contained original data, and many of those that did had poor experimental design.

Thomas Stoeger of Northwestern University has previously studied scientists’ limited focus on certain genes. In a new study, he shows how these same behaviors extend into the science of COVID-19.

Meet some of the people featured in the September 2020 issue of The Scientist.

The members of a new advisory board to the NIH met for the first time and will weigh in on federal funding for grants that rely on donated tissue from abortions.

Growing ranks of researchers on the spectrum are overcoming barriers—from neurotypical bias to sensory sensitivities—to shape autism science.

A new report from the National Science Board identifies changes in the US’s global R&D investment and output, as well as in the country’s science and engineering workforce in recent years.

Genes that are exceptionally long or short are overrepresented in some published reports, which can lead to misinterpreted results.

If members don’t explicitly believe gender discrimination exists, they allow implicit stereotypes to sway their decision-making, according to a new analysis of real-world hiring decisions.

Diversity programs are shifting their focus from just providing academic support to creating a learning environment that is more inclusive of people of different backgrounds.

Physician Peter Gøtzsche, a board member of the organization, has been an outspoken critic of certain vaccines and of the pharma industry in general.

The awards for comical but practical scientific discovery also include cannibalism and self-colonoscopy.

Activists are protesting imbalanced conferences, editorial boards, and other professional activities by refusing to join.

The paper’s authors say bias may nevertheless be present in other steps of the granting process.