Google's JourKnol, an alternative for publishing in science academia

The phrase "publish or perish" makes me shudder.  In my field, you can be the hardest worker, conduct the most exciting research, but if you do not publish your findings in a high impact journal, then it is as if you did not accomplish anything.  As I near completion of my PhD studies, "publish or perish" resounds in my ears every single day.  I know that the future of my career (new positions, ability to get funding, etc.) will depend on which scientific peer-reviewed journal my four plus years of research gets published in.  In about a month, my manuscript will be written and submitted to a journal.  If I am extremely lucky, then it will be accepted and published.  The likelihood of this happening is slim and the next best case scenario is that reviewers may request additional experiments prior to publication.  The worst that can happen is that the manuscript is rejected and I may have to re-submit my manuscript to a different journal for publication.  And so this is the process that we researchers go through to simply share our research with others.  Well, actually we go through this process so that we will have the most crucial evidence of our worth as researchers, our publication(s)... in hopefully a top-tier journal, of course. This is just how it works, right? 

Well, maybe not for long because I just came across this product that Google offers called JourKnol, which may one day become an alternative to the traditional publishing forum utilized in academia. JourKnol is different because as the article JourKnol challenges the medical journals' stronghold states,

"the author simply creates the content, loads it in, and clicks “Publish” – no peer review, no rejection, no delay, and no relinquishing copyright. And, from the moment they publish their Knol, authors...could upload the information and publish it and still get peer-reviewed. 

But how would publishing in JourKnol affect your career?? Will the scientific community value your research if it is published in JourKnol? The article, JourKnol challenges the medical journals' stronghold, addresses this concern by saying that the,

"traditional journals’ enviable position as the sole arbiters of the quality and impact of an author’s work may be challenged by web-derived measures of the impact of individual “articles,” such as number of hits, number of links, and reader ratings and comments.... The point is this: peer review, that most sacred of academic rituals, might ultimately be replaced by real-time rankings by experts"

To read the complete article, click here.

A must have book for young scientists

A fellow graduate student shared a book with me that I believe is invaluable to young research scientists.  At the bench, a laboratory navigator by Kathy Barker introduces readers to the laboratory environment, complete with discussions ranging from how labs are generally organized to laboratory safety and etiquette.

At the bench also describes how to properly setup experiments, carefully maintain your laboratory notebook and how to perform some important techniques commonly used in biological research.  In my opinion, two of the key topics in this book are the chapters that detail how you should present yourself and your data to other people.

I wish I had this book earlier in my career.  At the bench is written in an easy-to-read and understand manner such that it can be utilized by scientists as young as those that are in high school.  However, even as an advanced graduate student, I find the material in At the bench extremely useful.  The material is also easily accessible as this hard cover book is spiral bound so that when I am at the bench, I can quickly flip through pages for quick reference.  This book typically costs approximately $45.00, but consider it an investment in your career. You may even find it less expensive if you purchase a used copy.  Pass on the information because it is a great resource!

Employment in the sciences: degrees earn top dollar!

Do you know which college degrees lead to the best paying salaries?  You will be pleasantly surprised to learn that people who major in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math)- related disciplines go on in their careers to earn top dollar!  To learn more about which undergraduate science majors yield the highest salaries, read the 2009 Payscale Salary Report. Happy researching!

Career evolution

I think I am experiencing a career evolution. Well, at least I observed a new role for myself within my career. Currently I am a fifth year graduate student striving toward completing a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences... and I still feel much like a student since I believe that I need more training and advice in order to become a better scientific researcher. However, within the past month, it just hit me that I have begun to mentor other students who are also seeking a career in the sciences. I did not realize that I had actually reached a point at which others sought my opinions and advice. I have always wanted to mentor students... I just did not think I would begin to do so this soon. I have no complaints, only joy! Listed below are a couple of tidbits of advice I shared with students.

Seek help when you need it...
I came from a high school that did not adequately prepare me for many college-level courses, which made me sometimes feel a bit nervous about how I would perform relative to my classmates. Since I felt nervous, I sought out help to make sure I did the best I could in those courses by signing up for on-campus tutoring. Some may think tutoring is costly. However, many campuses offer free tutoring, so

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A summer of scientific research and teaching

There has been a lot going on during summer 2008. Over the past five weeks I served as a mentor for undergraduates in a summer research program hosted by my university. In this role, I assisted a small group of students with constructing scientific research posters and offered advice about the graduate school experience.


Just this past week I finished a course that counts toward receiving a certificate in college teaching. I decided to enroll in this certificate program because

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