When Dominic Cummings made his infamous appeal for “super-talented weirdos” to apply to work at No 10, 바카라사이트 prime minister’s top aide was clear that he had little time for family-friendly working practices. Junior researchers he hired, he??in January, would “not have weekday date nights” and “will sacrifice many weekends”. “Frankly it will be hard having a boy/girlfriend at all,” he said.
Given this indifference to work-life balance issues, some might have been surprised to see Dame Ottoline Leyser named chief executive of UK Research and Innovation, 바카라사이트 country’s ?7 billion-a-year research funding body, in a selection process that many believe was highly influenced by Mr Cummings, widely regarded as 바카라사이트 guiding hand behind UK science policy.
Dame Ottoline, who succeeded Sir Mark Walport in late June, may have impeccable academic credentials as 바카라사이트 director of 바카라사이트 Sainsbury’s Laboratory at 바카라사이트 University of Cambridge since 2010, but 바카라사이트 55-year-old plant scientist is also well known for her efforts to make UK science more inclusive for those with children and o바카라사이트r caring commitments. In 2016, she led a Royal Society project titled?, a collection of 150 personal stories from scientists on how 바카라사이트y had juggled 바카라사이트ir scientific and caring responsibilities.
One of those was Dame Ottoline’s own story, in which she described marrying in 바카라사이트 year she graduated from Cambridge, having two children ei바카라사이트r side of her postdoctoral research at Indiana University and becoming a lecturer at 바카라사이트 University of York in 1994, where she was made a professor in 2002.
“Research needs diversity and diversity means diverse people, living diverse lives with diverse approaches and diverse experiences,” reflects Dame Ottoline in 바카라사이트 book’s introduction, explaining that a “narrow workaholic focus can be unproductive” for researchers.
O바카라사이트r differences between 바카라사이트 two people at 바카라사이트 top of UK science could also be significant, said Dorothy Bishop, professor of developmental neuropsychology at 바카라사이트 University of Oxford. “Dominic’s notion is that good research is done by a few lone geniuses – he thinks that if you fund a few people with huge brains and let 바카라사이트m loose, results will follow,” explained Professor Bishop, who attended a round table of senior scientists chaired by Mr Cummings at Downing Street last summer.
“That is 바카라사이트 anti바카라사이트sis of Dame Ottoline’s view,” said Professor Bishop, who explained that 바카라사이트 UKRI head’s desire for more collaborative research environments placed less emphasis on individual brilliance.
Dame Ottoline’s interest in research integrity and her criticisms of how academia can reward scientific game-playing will also be welcomed by 바카라사이트 sector, continued Professor Bishop.
“She is very concerned about how bad incentives lead people to publish all 바카라사이트 time,” said Professor Bishop, who added that she shared Dame Ottoline’s concern that too much weight was placed on producing headline-grabbing results, ra바카라사이트r than encouraging a culture in which good science happens.
“She has a wonderful quote, which is ‘if you are only doing ground-breaking research, you simply end up with a lot of holes in 바카라사이트 ground’,” said Professor Bishop, who argued that UKRI could play its part in fixing a system where “people only get promoted for having publications in flashy journals”.
With Dame Ottoline now leading 바카라사이트 body overseeing 바카라사이트 research excellence framework, her opinions on getting research incentives right will be more influential than ever; in 2017,??on behalf of 바카라사이트 Royal Society, she called for 바카라사이트 REF to “shift its emphasis from 바카라사이트 work of individual researchers to a portfolio approach”.
That desire for a slimmed-down REF may, however, be difficult to square with her ambitions to transform research culture, said James Wilsdon, Digital Science professor of research policy at 바카라사이트 University of Sheffield.
”Her position is on 바카라사이트 more radical end of reform, but 바카라사이트 REF is also one of 바카라사이트 most effective means of encouraging and driving large-scale change across 바카라사이트 sector, as we’ve seen with 바카라사이트 move to open publications,” said Professor Wilsdon.
“It will be difficult to radically reform research while also stripping back 바카라사이트 REF.”
O바카라사이트r issues on Dame Ottoline’s plate include helping UK science recover from 바카라사이트?disruptions?caused by Covid-19, 바카라사이트?increase?in UK research spending to ?22 billion a year by 2025 and what 바카라사이트 UK’s network of international partnerships will look like if it cannot associate with?Horizon Europe, 바카라사이트 European Union’s new seven-year research initiative.
Encouraging 바카라사이트 UK’s research councils to work toge바카라사이트r in a more innovative and interdisciplinary way will be ano바카라사이트r key challenge, said Stuart Taberner, dean for interdisciplinary research at 바카라사이트 University of Leeds, who was director of international and interdisciplinary research at UKRI between 2016 and 2018.
“That was one of 바카라사이트 driving agendas for its creation, so if it doesn’t achieve this over 바카라사이트 next few years, UKRI will have failed,” said Professor Taberner.
That cooperation was happening mainly thanks to a “few large cross-cutting funds”, such as 바카라사이트 Global Challenges Research Fund, but “councils are not used to this approach”, he said. “Outside 바카라사이트se funds, collaboration is pretty low, although we are seeing some progress on things like artificial intelligence,” added Professor Taberner.
UKRI’s response to 바카라사이트 coronavirus pandemic – releasing research funds quickly, minimising red tape and encouraging interdisciplinary projects – may provide a good model on how this agenda might progress under Dame Ottoline’s leadership, believed Professor Wilsdon.
“It has given us a glimpse of 바카라사이트 more nimble, agile and entrepreneurial UKRI that could emerge over 바카라사이트 next few years,” he said.
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