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Spotlights

  • Crunching numbers until you see stars

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: Why the relationship between experimenters and statisticians is so strained. (In German)

  • AI in medicine: hubris, hype, semi-science

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: AI has the potential to revolutionize medicine. However, at least three things stand in the way of truly evidence-based AI. (In German)

  • Why do we actually trust science?

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: Science provides plenty of reasons why we should not blindly trust it. The key to improvement lies in open science and a reform of the academic performance evaluation system. (In German)

  • Cool bosses, steep hierarchies

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: How abuse of power thrives in science. The combination of steep hierarchies and "dark traits" in management personnel creates a perfect breeding ground for the abuse of power in science. (In German)

  • Healing in reverse gear

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: When proven therapies are suddenly harmful. (In German)

  • Glossy studies and bitter truths

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: How research scandals shake trust in science and reveal systemic deficits. (In German)

  • How to find out whether (clinical) studies are/were any good

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: How can you tell whether the money that funding bodies invest in clinical trials is well spent? The German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) obviously don't know. (In German)

  • Academic freedom as a license for bad research?

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: Academic freedom also demands responsibility for competent, transparent and relevant research - as a kind of debt to be discharged. (In German)

  • Correlation, causality and other calamities

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: How a little-known method can help to understand cause-and-effect relationships in observational studies - and consequently to better plan and analyze experiments. (In German)

  • Can copying be a sin?

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: Foolish thoughts on the reuse of standard formulations as well as own and AI-generated text in scientific publishing. (In German)

  • Misunderstood abbreviations

    A "Laborjournal" article by Andrea Pitzschke: Shortcut citations in the methods section of papers often lead to a dead end. A consortium has drawn up simple rules for dealing with them responsibly. (In German)

  • Trust, look who - ...

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: How do I recognize overselling, spin and other oddities in scientific articles? The "Wissenschaftsnarr" presents a not-so-foolish checklist. (In German)

  • Woke science: brake or accelerator of quality and innovation?

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: Why is Germany lagging so far behind in increasing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in science? It has long been shown that research benefits from this. (In German)

  • No DEALs with our papers!

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: The Open Access contract with the publishing giant Elsevier does not achieve much, but it cements the unfortunate status quo of academic publishing. (In German)

  • The "case T.-L."

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: It is absolutely clear that in our current scientific system, scandals like the one surrounding Marc Tessier-Lavigne are bound to happen. (In German)

  • Zen und die Kunst, Forschungsqualität zu bewerten

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: "Research quality" is the main criterion in the assessment of science. Consequently, it essentially determines the weal and woe of applications, publications and careers. But how do you define research quality? (In German)

  • Involving patients in research

    Dr. Sarah Weschke trains scientists on how they can involve patients in their research. In the interview, she talks about hurdles and reservations (from p. 18, in German).

  • Mit NARRativen läuft das Leben besser

    "Wissenschaftsnarr" column from the "Laborjournal" by Uli Dirnagl: The classic format of the academic curriculum vitae is fading. And there is indeed a whiff of scientific content assessment wafting through the alternatives. (In German)

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