An open letter to the Indian Scientist
At the moment, we are bowing too deeply at the altar of western science, and thereby turning the pursuit of science into dogma.
English
Publications of IAS made available on the internet
Thanks to a collaboration with Carl Malamud and the Public Resource organization, fifty-three books published by the IASc are now available in high-end digital format as an ‘Indian Academy of Sciences Collection’ on the Internet Archive, and more will be added soon. These digitized versions will soon also be available on the IASc website.
Peer Community In: A free recommendation process of unpublished scientific papers based on peer reviews
The current publication model for scientific papers is riddled with problems. But what can be an alternative? Thomas Guillemaud, Benoit Facon, François Massol and Denis Bourguet describe the pros and cons of the recently started PCI initiative that can potentially avoid some of the pitfalls of the present system.
Curiosity as a Career
What is the motivation for a scientist to pursue scientific research? Career? Fame? Doing something useful for the society? Or can there be something beyond?
Science meets journalism: from balled fists to handshakes to high fives
In the spirit of collaboration, lets work together to improve science communication and journalism. The quality of the product can only improve by co-opting one of the paradigms in science that is worthwhile – the notion of review.
List of Science Communicators of India
Public list of science communicators of India
National Institutional Ranking and Institutions of Eminence
The National Institutional Ranking Framework of the Ministry of Human Resource Development shows that institutions funded by the Central Government occupy the pride of place in the higher education sector in India, followed by state universities and then by private universities. Autonomy, internal democracy, emphasis on merit in appointments and admissions, flexibility in administration, ability of faculty to attract research grants etc. are pre-requisites for eminence. These attributes, which are worth fighting for, exist to different extents in centrally funded institutions. It is unfair to treat public and private institutions as two separate categories of equal importance for identifying Institutions of Eminence. Private universities need to be encouraged, but not at the expense of publicly funded institutions which have done the nation proud and are acclaimed in India and abroad.
Visualizing cellular and molecular science for science communication
Most science communication workshops for scientists often focus on only the writing component. The visuals that are used alongside have not received similar attention with respect to their legibility.
Research fund crunch, real or created, is hitting India’s academia on the wrong side
In real terms, the per capita funds available for R&D activities have not increased but, in fact, may be less.
Issues across Science, Journalism and Media: Plagiarism, Scientists and the Media
The fact of plagiarism itself is easy to establish in most cases and the willingness of scientists to come on record to say so would show that the science enterprise in India is robust and well.