Misinterpretation of ‘slow science’ and ‘academic productivism’ may obstruct science in developing countries

Thomaz, Sidinei Magela; Mormul, Roger Paulo

doi:10.1590/1519-6984.03013

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 7 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Our region has many young graduates who enthusiastically wish to make a career in science. Senior scientists must guide and stimulate these younger scientists to increase the depth of their scientific inquiries (Thomaz and Mormul 2014) and encourage them to contribute to the improvement of science in their home countries. The Latin American society has got used to expecting new science and technological developments to come from developed countries rather than from their own scientists.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although Latin American institutions have high expectations for their investigators and require them to publish in high impact journals (Thomaz and Mormul 2014), the financial support for research is inadequate to meet these high standards. Most grants in Latin America are provided by governmental institutions and are insufficient for the needs of a competitive research enterprise.…”

Section: Research Funding In Latin Americamentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The reality of scientific research in Latin America; an insider’s perspective

Ciocca

Delgado

2017

Cell Stress and Chaperones

159

111

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

There is tremendous disparity in scientific productivity among nations, particularly in Latin America. At first sight, this could be linked to the relative economic health of the different countries of the region, but even large and relatively rich Latin American countries do not produce a good level of science. Although Latin America has increased the number of its scientists and research institutions in recent years, the gap between developed countries and Latin American countries is startling. The prime importance of science and technology to the development of a nation remains unacknowledged. The major factors contributing to low scientific productivity are the limited access to grant opportunities, inadequate budgets, substandard levels of laboratory infrastructure and equipment, the high cost and limited supply of reagents, and inadequate salaries and personal insecurity of scientists. The political and economic instability in several Latin America countries results in a lack of long-term goals that are essential to the development of science. In Latin America, science is not an engine of the economy. Most equipment and supplies are imported, and national industries are not given the incentives to produce these goods at home. It is a pity that Latin American society has become accustomed to expect new science and technological developments to come from developed countries rather than from their own scientists. In this article, we present a critical view of the Latin American investigator's daily life, particularly in the area of biomedicine. Too many bright young minds continue to leave Latin America for developed countries, where they are very successful. However, we still have many enthusiastic young graduates who want to make a career in science and contribute to society. Governments need to improve the status of science for the sake of these young graduates who represent the intellectual and economic future of their countries.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Research Funding In Latin Americamentioning

confidence: 99%

The reality of scientific research in Latin America; an insider’s perspective

Ciocca

Delgado

2017

Cell Stress and Chaperones

159

111

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Constatou-se que a maioria dos periódicos nos quais os artigos foram publicados tem alto fator de impacto, o que confere elevada qualidade às informações publicadas sobre o assunto. Apesar de ser uma medida questionável (Padial et al 2010, Thomaz & Mormul 2014, o fator de impacto dos periódicos é uma métrica que ainda pode ser utilizada como indicativo da qualidade das publicações (Strehl 2005, Thomaz & Martens 2009.…”

Section: Discussionunclassified

Peixes Exploradores De Fundo: Uma Abordagem Cienciométrica Sobre Guildas Tróficas

Zanatta¹,

Manetta²,

Benedto³

2016

Oecol. Austr.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A classificação das espécies em guildas tróficas tem sido amplamente utilizada em estudos sobre interações ecológicas. No entanto, o grande número de definições utilizado e a sobreposição de termos têm dificultado a padronização das mesmas para peixes exploradores de fundo. Neste contexto, o presente estudo objetivou quantificar, cienciometricamente, a produção científica envolvendo espécies de peixes exploradores de fundo e as guildas tróficas nas quais elas são classificadas, discutindo, ainda, as definições empregadas. Para tanto, utilizou-se as bases Web of Knowledge e Scopus na análise de publicações quanto a guilda trófica, ano de publicação, país de origem do autor, clima, periódico de publicação, abordagem utilizada, assunto tratado e as definições para as referidas guildas. Constatou incremento no número de publicações a partir de 1990. As regiões com maior número de publicações foram as de clima Tropical e Temperado, com destaque para Estados Unidos, Brasil e Holanda em número de trabalhos publicados. As investigações, principalmente observacionais, foram desenvolvidas, em ambientes de água doce, com foco aos estudos de dieta. Evidenciou-se a ocorrência de diferentes definições para as guildas tróficas dos peixes exploradores de fundo, sendo que os critérios de classificação se basearam, principalmente, no item alimentar e local de alimentação. Em relação aos invertívoros e bentófagos, muitas publicações trazem apenas um dos termos, e o critério de classificação e a descrição dos itens alimentares em ambas as guildas muitas vezes se sobrepõe. O uso da expressão "explorador de fundo" pode ser utilizado quando o objetivo for apenas descrever o local de alimentação dos peixes. Enquanto os termos detritívoro, bentófago, iliófago, invertívoro e comedor de sedimento devem ser utilizados quando referem se especificamente a dieta dos peixes. Palavras-chave: bentófagos; classificação trófica; detritívoros; iliófagos; invertívoros.

show abstract

“…The developing world has growing investments in science, technology, and innovation in many areas [ 4 – 6 ], including computational biology [ 7 ]. These investments have produced positive results in scientific quality in developing countries [ 8 ]. Although this is remarkably positive, the emergence of high-level research groups creates a highly competitive environment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%