SiSOB data extraction and codification: A tool to analyze scientific careers

AbstractThis paper describes the methodology and software tool used to build a database on the careers and productivity of academics, using public information available on the Internet, and provides a first analysis of the data collected for a sample of 360 US scientists funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and 291 UK scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). The tool’s structured outputs can be used for either econometric research or data representation for policy analysis. The methodology and software tool is validated for a sample of US and UK biomedical scientists, but can be applied to any countries where scientists’ CVs are available in English. We provide an overview of the motivations for constructing the database, and the data crawling and data mining techniques used to transform webpage-based information and CV information into a relational database. We describe the database and the effectiveness of our algorithms and provide suggestions for further improvements. The software developed is released under free software GNU General Public License; the aim is for it to be available to the community of social scientists and economists interested in analyzing scientific production and scientific careers, who it is hoped will develop this tool further

Detecting Behavioural Additionality: An Empirical Study on the Impact of Public R&D Funding on Firms' Cooperative Behaviour in Germany

Subsidising research networks has become a popular instrument in technology policies, driven mainly by expected positive spillovers. In particular, the stimulation of R&D co-operation between scientific institutions and industry is considered as most promising. In the context of policy evaluation we analyse if public R&D funding is suitable for influencing firms' collaborative behaviour in the intended way and where applicable, if a lasting change results. The empirical analysis is based on German CIS data and a supplemental telephone survey. Using a nearest-neighbour matching approach we find that R&D funding is indeed a particularly valuable tool for the linking of science into industry R&D partnerships. However, we also show in a bivariate probit analysis that newly initiated R&D co-operations with science are less likely to be continued after funding has ended compared to already existing co-operations. Therefore, the behavioural change induced by public funding is not necessarily longlived. --Public Funding,Firm Behaviour,Policy Evaluation,R&D Co-operation

Interactive guidelines:Public communication of data-based research in cities

Trilles, S., Granell, C., Degbelo, A., & Bhattacharya, D. (2020). Interactive guidelines: Public communication of data-based research in cities. PLoS ONE, 15(1), [e0228008]. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0228008Scientific research results are traditionally published as articles in peer-reviewed conference proceedings or journals. These articles often use technical jargon, which precludes the general public from consuming the results achieved. New ways to communicate scientific results are thus necessary to transfer scientific insights to non-experts, and this work proposes the concept of interactive guidelines to fill this gap. A web tool, called Interactive Guidelines Tool, was developed as a proof-of-concept for the idea. It was used in the context of the GEO-C project to communicate research outputs in smart cities scenarios to the public. A comparative analysis between the Interactive Guidelines Tool and related tools helps to highlight the progress it enables beyond the current state of the art. Interactive Guidelines Tool is available as an open-source tool and can be customised/extended by any interested researcher, in the process of making scientific knowledge and insights more accessible and understandable to a broader public.publishersversionpublishe

Detecting Behavioural Additionality: An Empirical Study on the Impact of Public R&D Funding on Firms' Cooperative Behaviour in Germany

Subsidising research networks has become a popular instrument in technology policies, driven mainly by expected positive spillovers. In particular, the stimulation of R&D co-operation between scientific institutions and industry is considered as most promising. In the context of policy evaluation we analyse if public R&D funding is suitable for influencing firms' collaborative behaviour in the intended way and where applicable, if a lasting change results. The empirical analysis is based on German CIS data and a supplemental telephone survey. Using a nearest-neighbour matching approach we find that R&D funding is indeed a particularly valuable tool for linking science into industry R&D partnerships. However, we also show in a bivariate probit analysis that newly initiated R&D co-operations with science are less likely to be continued after funding has ended compared to already existing cooperations. Therefore, the behavioural change induced by public funding is not necessarily long-lived. --Public Funding,Firm Behaviour,Policy Evaluation,R&D Co-operation

Mapping the Aurora using social media: new scientific data for nowcasting and forecasting space weather?

“How far south will the aurora borealis be seen?” is a common question asked when a geomagnetic storm forecast is issued. It is not a straightforward answer; and current projections based, for example, on Kp do not always match sighting reports received after a display. Citizen science – engaging the general public to aid scientific research - may be one way of tackling this issue. By using social media, such as Twitter, a new source of data can be mined for scientific analysis. We present a new interactive web application to gather relevant tweets about the aurora and display these on a map. This tool has been created in JavaScript using the Twitter API and a customised application template from ESRI. We use both active and passive means to gather data. We actively encourage users to tweet using a known hashtag (#BGSaurora) with their location in a prescribed format. This will geo-locate the tweet and place a marker on the map reporting the sighting. We can also passively search tweets for more general hashtags such as #aurora or #northernlights. If these are geo-tagged they again can be mapped. Other relevant data layers, such as cloud cover and geomagnetic activity levels, can also be displayed. We present the aurora sightings map and discuss the benefits of it both as an application to engage the general public, helping them to see when and where aurora are visible, and as a potential tool for gathering useful data for scientific analysis. If a better indicator of geomagnetic activity levels relevant for aurora viewing can be determined from these then this in turn will improve future predictions for aurora enthusiasts

Good clinical practice: International quality standard for clinical trials

A clinical trial is one of the most important examples of experimental studies. Clinical trials represent an indispensable tool for testing, in a rigorous scientific manner, the efficacy of new therapies. Good Clinical Practice is an international ethical and scientific quality standard for clinical trials, concerning the design, conduct, performance, monitoring auditing, recording, analysis and reporting. This is an assurance to the public that the rights, safety and well-being of trial subjects are protected, and that clinical trial data is credible. The above definitions are consistent with the principles that have their origin in the declaration of Helsinki. The objectives of Good Clinical Practice are to protect the rights of trial subjects, to enhance credibility of data and to improve the quality of science

MAGIA, a web-based tool for miRNA and Genes Integrated Analysis

MAGIA (miRNA and genes integrated analysis) is a novel web tool for the integrative analysis of target predictions, miRNA and gene expression data. MAGIA is divided into two parts: the query section allows the user to retrieve and browse updated miRNA target predictions computed with a number of different algorithms (PITA, miRanda and Target Scan) and Boolean combinations thereof. The analysis section comprises a multistep procedure for (i) direct integration through different functional measures (parametric and non-parametric correlation indexes, a variational Bayesian model, mutual information and a meta-analysis approach based on P-value combination) of mRNA and miRNA expression data, (ii) construction of bipartite regulatory network of the best miRNA and mRNA putative interactions and (iii) retrieval of information available in several public databases of genes, miRNAs and diseases and via scientific literature text-mining. MAGIA is freely available for Academic users at http://gencomp.bio.unipd.it/magia

Public-private partnership in health care - a tool for the development of public medical insitutions

Introduction. International experience accumulated over the past 25-30 years suggests that PPP is one of the main mechanisms for expanding the resource base and mobilizing reserves for economic development and improve the effectiveness of public health care. Objective: To substantiate the possibility of public-private partnership (PPP) use in healthcare as a strategic goal, a tool for its development. Materials and methods. To achieve the objective mentioned general scientific methods of analysis, synthesis, substantiation, interpretation of scientific data, as well as systemic and structural-functional approaches were used in the work presented. The information base of the study was the academic works of domestic and foreign experts in PPP and management. Results. The development of health care on the principles of PPP as the main tool for achieving sustainable development of Ukrainian health care in the long term has been analyzed. Recent years Ukrainian budget is scarce and this causes a lack of financial resources that could be used to increase the efficiency of medical services provision. The limited financial resources received by state and communal medical institutions are the reasons of their poor material and technical equipment, lack of modern technologies, decent remuneration of medical and scientific personnel. All this makes it necessary to introduce new, more effective forms of organizing the activities of state and communal healthcare institutions, including PPP principles. The article substantiates the mechanisms of PPP as a tool for the development of health care. Conclusions. Based on Ukrainian economic situation the justification of a more effective form of organizing the activities of state and communal healthcare institutions based on PPP principles, reasonably forms the strategic goals of healthcare development in this country and determines the directions for the implementation of healthcare functions in accordance with the environmental conditions