Universities in the United States and Canada have agreed to test out a new research evaluation tool from Thomson Reuters, the company that runs the ever-popular Web of Science citation database. (Full disclosure: The Web of Science was the brainchild of Eugene Garfield, who also launched The Scientist more than 25 years ago.) According to Thomson Reuters, InCites is a set of indicators that is actually built from Web of Science journal citation data that will help researchers at Harvard University, Emory University, and a slew of Canadian institutions measure their research productivity and impact, comparing their output to peers at individual, departmental, and global levels.

"North American universities are increasingly recognizing the growing need to assess their performance by demonstrating and promoting the impact of their research," said Keith MacGregor, executive vice president of Thomson Reuters, in a statement. "InCites assists universities with these challenges by providing...

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