Wisdom of the Crowds at the Graduate School Christmas Party
In 1906 Francis Galton was at a country fair and there was a guess the ox competition. He took all 787 guesses and took the average. This was 1,197 pounds. The actual weight? 1.198 pounds! In effect the wisdom of the crowds gave a perfect answer. This was the start of The Wisdom of the […]
The Monty Hall Problem
You’re on a game show and the host asks you to pick one of three doors. Behind one of them is the star prize: a sports car. Behind the other two are goats. Once you have made your pick, the show host opens one of the other doors – always revealing a goat. The host […]
The future of scientific publishing: let’s make sure it’s fair as well as transparent
The future of scientific publishing: let’s make sure it’s fair as well as transparent Graham Kendall, University of Nottingham Scientific publishing has undergone a revolution in recent years – largely due to the internet. And it shows no sign of letting up as a growing number of countries attempt to ensure that research papers are […]
Should the contribution of a publication consultant be acknowledged?
This post was also posted in LinkedIn. We have just had an article accepted in Science and Engineering Ethics which questions the need for publication consultants. Or, at least, if their services are used their contribution should be recognised either by being an author on the paper or by stating what their contribution was in […]
Why do researchers not read the aims and scope of a journal?
I also published this post on LinkedIn. I am the editor-in-chief of a journal (not the journal you see here, that is a (very nice) public domain image from 1869) and, as such I see a lot of submissions. One of the biggest frustrations I face is when researchers submit papers that are simply not […]
2015 General Election Prediction: Wisdom of the Crowds
Introduction The 2015 UK General Election looks like being one of the closest, and hardest to predict, for many years. With 650 seats being contested, one party needs to win more than half the seats (326) to be able to form a government. Most, if not all, polls are predicting a hung parliament, with the […]
How can academics use Twitter effectively?
I have been using Twitter for a few years now, but it has been a while since I blogged on this topic. When I started tweeting I know that I would not be able to tweet every day, and weeks (or even months) could go by without me tweeting, and, to me, that would not […]
Can Artificial Intelligence be used in the Board Room?
Computers are knocking on the door of the company boardroom Graham Kendall, University of Nottingham While women sitting on company boards remains a much-discussed topic, there is something new waiting to take a seat at the table: artificial intelligence, computers with company voting rights. Deep Knowledge Ventures has appointed an algorithm called VITAL (Validating Investment […]
The science that makes us spend more in supermarkets, and feel good while we do it
When you walk into a supermarket, you probably want to spend as little money as possible. The supermarket wants you to spend as much money as possible. Let battle commence. As you enter the store your senses come under assault. You will often find that fresh produce (fruit, vegetables, flowers) is the first thing you […]
What is your Erdös Number?
Paul Erdös (1913-1996) is one of the most prolific mathmeticians. He wrote over 1500 papers in his lifetime and collaborated with over 500 people. As a tribute, his friends created the Erdös number, which is a tongue in cheek way of asking how well you are associated with the top mathematicians. Erdös himself has an […]