tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post4249738478339245543..comments2024-03-22T05:27:51.908-07:00Comments on CHANS Lab Views: A Publication Milestone … and a Puzzle to MindKai Chanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16799332629186682511noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post-64269374268434709142017-09-01T11:56:14.630-07:002017-09-01T11:56:14.630-07:00Great to think about this important topic Kai! Ano...Great to think about this important topic Kai! Another strategy is to find ways to make our papers useful to our partners. Academia does carry a lot of weight and NGOs and government agencies or other partners often don't have the resources to conduct research and certainly not the connections to publish it. But a published paper that highlights their efforts and struggles can help them to win grants or partnerships or to attract needed attention. I also feel that the process of doing the research it self can be useful, if we really work with on the ground partners. What we (the as yet established generation) could really use from those already established is help shifting the metrics by which we will be judged such that the work we put into making our research relevant will be valued by those that pay for that research and that might hire us. I feel that so many of my fellow students are doing amazing and useful work that is highly collaborative with on the ground partners. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01813954330789343176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post-5251185146325176202017-08-25T07:38:36.760-07:002017-08-25T07:38:36.760-07:00Great post, Kai! I definitely struggle with this e...Great post, Kai! I definitely struggle with this every day, particularly being at the point in my career (without a permanent position) where choosing to strive for the academic route involves an almost single-minded pursuit of publications, and yet with enough experience to know that there is very little clear value for real-world improvement from each paper that goes out. This probably already exists, but it would be interesting to map out the theoretical ideal flow of problem-science-solution-publication-implementation, and then see if there is any evidence that it truly is working this way. In any case, it's always reassuring to know that you're not alone in feeling unsure about this stuff! <br /><br />-Andrés Cisneros-MontemayorAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08911968858057609687noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post-7662784163375023282017-08-24T20:39:35.186-07:002017-08-24T20:39:35.186-07:00Thank you so much for this, Leah. I think you'...Thank you so much for this, Leah. I think you're right about the Leopold training, and it's great to know that several of us are struggling with the same issues. Your center at ASU is truly inspiring!Kai Chanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16799332629186682511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post-8227507940008545962017-08-24T20:38:00.197-07:002017-08-24T20:38:00.197-07:00Super to hear about the journal, Jennifer--what...Super to hear about the journal, Jennifer--what's the name? An excellent endeavour.Kai Chanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16799332629186682511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post-36158060405367972132017-08-24T20:37:08.511-07:002017-08-24T20:37:08.511-07:00Thank you so much for this thoughtful comment, And...Thank you so much for this thoughtful comment, Andy! I'd forgotten that great anecdote from DPS. Great to be reminded of it.Kai Chanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16799332629186682511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post-72044727486416458452017-08-24T08:54:32.977-07:002017-08-24T08:54:32.977-07:00Hi Kai, I feel for you. I crossed the same junctur...Hi Kai, I feel for you. I crossed the same juncture with my 100th paper a few years ago, which invoked the same self-reflection (maybe this is a consequence of our Leopold training?!). It was this reflection that motivated me to pivot from running a lab and writing papers to something new and unknown - launching a University Center that seeks to make our knowledge useful and relevant in conservation practice. My publication rate has definitely taken a hit since launching the Center, but I am ok with that. Once over the 100 paper mark, I feel liberated about this metric, and motivated only to publish my very best work. I admit that there is a small part of me that yearns to remain at the "cutting edge" of my field, but for the most part, my efforts and energies have shifted to the scholarship of figuring out what works in conservation. It sounds like you are on to something similarly exciting with CoSphere. Wishing you well in this and other new endeavors! Thanks for the thoughtful and provocative post.<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00126243127973521024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post-42395900859617164352017-08-23T17:45:02.046-07:002017-08-23T17:45:02.046-07:00Hi Kai,
From this side, I am not that interested ...Hi Kai, <br />From this side, I am not that interested in publishing scientific stuff per se, but to communicate it, in an understandable way. Science is important (from my perspective) if it can be communicated...as knowledge, in general. In my case, my personal commitment is to communicate what I am doing or what others are doing (in the fields that I am knowledgeable). I am the editor of a journal on native forests, that tells in simple words why those are important, what research is going on and what are the implications in the policy realm. As in life...everything in balance!Jennifer Romero Valpredahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02057229007458669407noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010015445969299314.post-50021054913111788182017-08-23T14:53:23.832-07:002017-08-23T14:53:23.832-07:00Thank you Kai. Well stated. Your ambivalence mir...Thank you Kai. Well stated. Your ambivalence mirrors a struggle of my own. I want the measure of my work to be captured in changes in how we think about and treat the natural world, not citation counts and h-indices. I tell my students to stay focused on impact and that will give them satisfaction at the end of their careers. And yet, I know that promotion and tenure is built on the maximizing of these metrics. And as I grow older and more experienced, I see the pursuit of publication-motivated research as a force that sucks us all in, becoming the end unto itself. It reminds me of the scene in Dead Poets Society where Robin Williams tells his students to rip the introduction of a poetry book out because it advocates an mathematical equation (the Pritchard scale by Dr. J. Evans Pritchard, Ph.D.) for measuring the quality of a poem. In the same way, we are increasingly striving for numerical measures for the quality of knowledge, and ultimately the quality of our life's work; my h-index is bigger than yours. And I watch as awards, accolades, raises and prestige are given out for success in attaining these metrics. Worse, I find that many of my peers and colleagues have developed sharp elbows in their quest for those accolades, often attained by knocking others down. I have no answer other than to strive to live the life you seek and remain true and authentic to yourself and your life's purpose. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17350132194180863909noreply@blogger.com