I was critical earlier this week in a post of what I perceived to be the over-the-top reaction to the whole Higgs Boson situation and press fest. I went so far as to call it “hysteria” or one could say “Higgstery“. In turn, I was criticized for that blog post for being too critical and spoiling people’s […]
I’m discussing the seamier side of science in a seven part series on what I call scientific sinning or the “seven sins of scientists”. The first four pieces in this series really stoked a great deal of interest and debate, covering Failure to Cite, Paper or grant killing, Need for Speed, and hype. Today in the fifth installment
Seven sins of scientists part 5: snobbery Read More »
What scares scientists? What fears keep them up at night worrying? What makes them scream (if only in their heads)? As part of my elephant in the lab series tackling difficult but important topics for scientists, today I am talking fear! Earlier posts in this series included taboo topics about iPS cells, the dirty dozen
Fears of academic scientists: elephant in the lab series Read More »
Taxpayer supported government grants + scientists’ work = closed access publisher profits (derived from payments from taxpayers + scientists) This simple equation embodies all that is wrong with today’s predominant system of publishing. In fact, it is an indictment of closed access publishers. The profits of closed access publishers come at the expense of science
The case for open access publishing embodied in a single equation Read More »
Scientists have special ways of using words to insult each other and believe me it can be vicious even if almost uninterpretable to those not fluent in that language. These insults are sometimes brutal or fatal career-wise, but also sometimes ironic and telling of our scientific culture. They are often also not talked about because
The scientist’s guide to insulting other scientists: elephant in the lab series Read More »
Two articles in today’s New York Times got me thinking about how science can be pursued privately or publicly. I believe that getting that mix of public and private science right will directly determine the fate of humanity. In a pop-science NYT piece, James Gorman writes about how people may in the not so distant
Lessons from The Hunger Games about balancing science: public versus private Read More »
Regenerative Sciences, Inc. just announced in a press release (PR) that John C. Malone (pictured above in their PR), Ph.D. has “joined the Regenexx Team”. Malone has infused the restive stem cell company with millions in cash. Regenerative Sciences is the adult stem cell company run by Dr. Chris Centeno of the Centeno/Schultz Clinic that is locked in
It is currently legal for the federal government in the U.S. to fund human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research. However, that funding is in serious jeopardy. Someone today described it to me as “hanging by a thread”. A 3-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court is currently holding arguments on whether such funding should be
How will Federal Court Rule on Funding of hESC research? Take our poll Read More »
I am currently researching an article on the “discovery” of stem cells and the earliest stem cell research. Stay tuned for that. As I’ve been educating myself on the early history of stem cells I became familiar with a scientist that I had not previously heard of during my career who played a key role
Dr. Florence Sabin, Great American Scientist and Trailblazer for Women in Science Read More »
If you ever had a really bad day, March 13, 2012 might have been just such a bad day for one Dr. Steven Victor, aka “Dr LookGood”, because he received an official warning letter from the FDA. Why? Dr. Victor, who reportedly greets each patient with the catch phrase “You look so much more beautiful than your picture”, is
Dr Lookgood, dermatologist to the stars, gets FDA warning letter Read More »