March 28, 2018
Funding Connection

Authorship transparency
The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences recently published an article by the Academy president, Marcia McNutt, and several leading journal editors and publishers proposing common standards for authorship in scientific publication. An editorial in Science on March 2, 2018 by Jeremy Berg supported the proposals of the PNAS article authors.

These articles address a problem that has long been widespread in scientific publishing: the variability in authorship standards among disciplines and institutions, and the unfortunate persistence of questionable authorship practices such as “ghost,” “guest,” and “orphan” authorship, among others. Such practices can be construed as one type of research misconduct and have potential consequences. The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Research Integrity provides a variety of resources for training regarding responsible authorship.

The McNutt et al. PNAS article provides specific recommendations for journals as well as research institutions, funding agencies, and professional societies intended to reduce the incidence of questionable authorship practices and facilitate adoption and sharing of best practices. Working with our campus community to address these recommendations, the Office of the Vice President for Research will draft policies to be considered by K-State researchers. We will also conduct listening and training sessions on this topic in fall 2018. We look forward to your input. In conjunction with Faculty Senate, we are also in the process of updating Appendix O of the University Handbook, which deals with research misconduct.

—Beth Montelone, senior associate vice president for research
Events and announcements
  • A USDA records disposal freeze was announced in February. According to a recent Council on Governmental Relations update, institutions should hold all records associated with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Economic Research Service (ERS), National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Office of the Chief Economist (OCE), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), Office of Pest Management Policy (OPMP), and the Office of the Secretary (SEC). Note that the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, or NIFA, is not included.

  • Faculty who have registered as exhibitors at the 2018 K-State Research Showcase are eligible to compete for the Excellence in Innovation and Economic Engagement Award. The winner will be announced and recognized at the Showcase and will receive a $1,000 grant to advance their efforts. A brief narrative application is due April 1. Find more information about how to apply or register for the Research Showcase

  • Faculty and staff are invited to join an ongoing webinar series on creating win-win university-industry relationships. Webinars are scheduled for 12:00 noon April 4, April 18, and May 2. Recordings of webinars will be available for a limited time. Find details and links to recorded sessions (access requires a K-State eid and password).

  • The Biosecurity Research Institute is participating in K-State Open House on April 7. Hear a presentation from the director, watch a video about science in containment, and participate in interactive activities in the training lab in Pat Roberts Hall from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. Find more information. 

  • Research Administrators Council will meet April 10, 10:30 a.m. to 12 noon in Union 227. Hear "Sub-Awards: Everything You Wanted to Know but Didn't Know to Ask" presented by Laura Hohenbary, grant specialist in the College of Arts & Sciences; Adassa Roe, international contract negotiator in PreAward Services; and Roger McBride, assistant director of Sponsored Programs Accounting.

  • Kevin R. Macaluso from Louisiana State University will deliver a Biosecurity Research Fellows Lecture titled "Rickettsial Determinants for Arthropod Infection and Transmission" on April 10 at 4:00 p.m. in Pat Roberts Hall. Find more information.

  • The National Science Foundation invites entries to the 2018 Vizzies Challenge for photographs, illustrations, posters and graphics, interactives, videos, GIFs, or other visualizations from science and engineering. Entries are due April 15. Find more information

April and May training opportunities
The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs is offering several training events in April and May. Register today for these valuable sessions!

  • Recipes for Success of Young and Mid-Career Investigators, April 4, 3:30-5:00 p.m., Ice Conference Room, Engineering Hall. Learn how to ascend the ladder and hasten achievement of career milestones from Rosemarie Hunker, NIH Program Director. Registration is required.

  • Department of Defense Young Investigator Program Info Session, April 12, 3:00-5:00 p.m., Ice Conference Room, Engineering Hall. Hear about specific grant programs for young faculty along with advice on pursuing these opportunities. Registration is required.

  • Early-Concept Grants for Exploratory Research, May 2, 3:30 to 5:00 p.m., Union 207. Attend a Principal Investigators Association webinar on the National Science Foundation EAGER program to support "high risk-high payoff" research. Registration is required.

  • Broader Impacts Information Session and Exhibits, May 9, 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., Union Flint Hills Room. Learn about campus resources and programs that can help researchers meet broader impacts and outreach requirements. Registration is required.

For more information, view our events calendar or contact the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs at 532-6195.
Agency news and trending topics
Despite differences between Republicans and Democrats in Congress, government leaders agreed on $1.3 trillion omnibus bill and presented it to the President. After threatening a veto, the President signed the bill into law. See also:
  • Advocates Celebrate Funding Bump for USDA-Funded Research: Farm science advocates had some success this year in boosting federal funding for the discipline. The 2018 spending bill approved by Congress ... gives a $25 million, 6.7% increase, to $400 million, to USDA’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI).
  • Trump Wanted to Cut Arts Funding. Instead, the Spending Bill He Signed Gives It a Boost: Rejecting the Trump administration’s call to eliminate federal cultural agencies, Congress instead increased funding to three of the four agencies in the $1.3 trillion spending plan it approved early Friday.
  • U.S. Science Agencies Set to Win Big in Budget Deal: The legislation would boost funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to a historic high of $37 billion, $3 billion over the 2017 level. The National Science Foundation (NSF) would receive $7.8 billion, $295 million more than it received last year. And NASA’s budget would rise to $20.7 billion, an increase of $1.1 billion.

If current trends continue, the National Science Board expects China to pass the United States in R&D investments by the end of this year.

Bayer AG  cleared one big hurdle for its $66 billion takeover of Monsanto Co., winning European Union  approval  for the deal after agreeing to bolster BASF SE by selling vegetable seeds, pesticides and digital agriculture technology to the world’s largest chemical company.

A group of European scientists has founded an international association to discuss and provide guidance on the ethical use of genome editing, a technique with the potential to transform everything from food production and human health to science itself. Organizers launched the new Association for Responsible Research and Innovation in Genome Editing (ARRIGE)  at a kick-off meeting in Paris this past Friday .

The Environmental Protection Agency is considering a major change to the way it assesses scientific work, a move that would severely restrict the research available to it when writing environmental regulations. Under the proposed policy, the agency would no longer consider scientific research unless the underlying raw data can be made public for other scientists and industry groups to examine.

Women have a higher success rate than men, and a majority were led by students,  found scholars  who wrote the study for The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), a nonprofit group in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that supports economics studies relevant to public policy.
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