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Back to School: What's on the European Research and Innovation Policy Agenda This Autumn

Back to School: What's on the European Research and Innovation Policy Agenda This Autumn

After a summer of fun, the EU research and policy bubble is back in business and bracing for a busy run up to Christmas: a new research commissioner, negotiations on the EU's ambitions to be a leader in critical technologies and (hopefully) a much-anticipated final sprint for UK association to Horizon Europe.

Allow Patents on AI-generated Inventions - for the Good of Science

Allow Patents on AI-generated Inventions - for the Good of Science

The current global mishmash of rules on whether innovations made using artificial intelligence are patentable impedes AI-rich fields such as drug discovery.

Use of AI Is Seeping Academic Journals—and It’s Proving Difficult to Detect

Use of AI Is Seeping Academic Journals—and It’s Proving Difficult to Detect

Ethics watchdogs are looking out for potentially undisclosed use of generative AI in scientific writing. But there's no foolproof way to catch it all yet.

Recent Claims Cast Doubt on Legitimacy of Behavioral Science

Recent Claims Cast Doubt on Legitimacy of Behavioral Science

Assessing allegations of data manipulation in psychological studies involving a Harvard Business School professor, Paul Eccleson asks whether we can trust research on behavioral science.

Scientific Board to Advise UN on Breakthroughs in Science and Technology

Scientific Board to Advise UN on Breakthroughs in Science and Technology

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has announced the creation of a Scientific Advisory Board “to advise UN leaders on ... how to harness the benefits of these advances and mitigate potential risks.”

Shortage of Funding and Lack of Scale Are Holding Back EU Industrial Policy

Shortage of Funding and Lack of Scale Are Holding Back EU Industrial Policy

Since March 2020 the European Commission has been making moves to improve Europe’s industrial competitiveness. Experts say things are moving in the right direction, but warn there is not enough money or enough focus on scaling up.

Why Creativity in Science Matters and Three Ways to Achieve It

Why Creativity in Science Matters and Three Ways to Achieve It

Creativity is critical to the future of work. The Future of Jobs Report 2023 ranked analytical thinking and creative thinking as the first and second most important skills that workers will need to have in the future. 

Girls Have Overtaken Boys in Science Participation. In Workplaces, It's a Completely Different Story

Girls Have Overtaken Boys in Science Participation. In Workplaces, It's a Completely Different Story

Young women get better grades in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, but progress on jobs for women in these industries has been painfully slow.

Commission acts to accelerate phasing out of animal testing in response to a European Citizens' Initiative

Commission acts to accelerate phasing out of animal testing in response to a European Citizens' Initiative

The Commission is responding to the European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) ‘Save Cruelty-free Cosmetics - Commit to a Europe without Animal Testing'. The response provides a comprehensive overview of the EU's legislative and policy framework relevant to the use of animals for testing purposes. It also proposes additional actions to further reduce animal testing.

Science's Gender Gap: the Shocking Data That Reveal Its True Extent

Science's Gender Gap: the Shocking Data That Reveal Its True Extent

Analysis of which researchers publish, get credit, move around, get funding, collaborate and receive citations shows how deeply ingrained the bias against women is.

Congress weighs far-reaching disclosure rules for academics doing military research

Congress weighs far-reaching disclosure rules for academics doing military research

House defense bill would vastly expand information that must be disclosed and posted online.

EU Commission Announces Plan to Improve Working Conditions for Young Researchers

EU Commission Announces Plan to Improve Working Conditions for Young Researchers

The European Commission has announced three new measures aimed at improving career paths and working conditions for young researchers in the European Research Area (ERA). The proposal, put forward today by the Commission, includes a new European framework for research careers, a new charter for researchers and a new European competence framework for researchers.

Researching the Future: Head of the EU Research Directorate Has a Plan for Shaping the 2028 - 2034 Framework Programme 10

Researching the Future: Head of the EU Research Directorate Has a Plan for Shaping the 2028 - 2034 Framework Programme 10

Marc Lemaître, recently installed as head of the EU research directorate, is ready to lead the charge as the European Commission starts laying the foundations for the next Framework research programme. 

University Marking Boycott in the UK: What is the Impact on Students?

University Marking Boycott in the UK: What is the Impact on Students?

Some students at UK universities may not receive their grades this summer because of a marking boycott by staff, affecting exams and assessments. The boycott is part of action being taken by members of the University and College Union (UCU) at 145 UK institutions, in a dispute over pay and working conditions.

European Commission Proposes Loosening Rules for Gene-edited Plants

European Commission Proposes Loosening Rules for Gene-edited Plants

Bid to boost agricultural innovation faces skeptics in the European Parliament.

How Centuries of Sexism Excluded Women from Science - and How to Redress the Balance

How Centuries of Sexism Excluded Women from Science - and How to Redress the Balance

Physicist Athene Donald's research was dismissed as 'cookery'. Now she's written a primer on how to fight back.

Sweden's Researchers Outraged at Decision to Axe Development-Research Funding

Sweden's Researchers Outraged at Decision to Axe Development-Research Funding

Sudden move could derail collaborations that have taken decades to build, scientists say. International-development researchers in Sweden are in turmoil after the country’s government decided to cut all further public research funding for the field.

'A Huge Relief': Scientists React to Hopes of UK Rejoining EU Horizon Scheme

'A Huge Relief': Scientists React to Hopes of UK Rejoining EU Horizon Scheme

Scientists including the physicist Brian Cox have reacted with a mixture of caution, anger and relief that the UK appears set to rejoin the EU’s flagship £85bn Horizon science research programme after a protracted Brexit row.

Supreme Court Rulings Will Reduce Diversity in STEM and Set Back Scientific Progress

Supreme Court Rulings Will Reduce Diversity in STEM and Set Back Scientific Progress

The US Supreme Court's rulings last week on student loan forgiveness, LGBTQ+ discrimination, and affirmative action will have a chilling effect on diversity in STEM.