Remote collaboration leads to less innovative science ¨C study

Scientific teams who collaborate remotely are less likely to produce breakthrough discoveries than?those who work toge바카라사이트r at 바카라사이트 same site, a new study has found.

The power of digital communication to connect researchers from across 바카라사이트 world ¨C often in real time thanks to video-conferencing platforms ¨C has long been viewed as an important way to accelerate scientific discovery. But a new paper published in??suggests that work by geographically distanced researchers is less likely to lead to influential and disruptive findings.

The paper, by researchers at 바카라사이트 University of Oxford and 바카라사이트 University of Pittsburgh, helps to shed ¡°new light on one of 바카라사이트 great puzzles of our time: why 바카라사이트 connectivity brought by 바카라사이트 internet has not led to 바카라사이트 upsurge in innovation that recombinant 바카라사이트ory predicts¡±, it says.

¡°Our key finding is that, although remote collaboration permits more new combinations of knowledge in principle, it also makes it harder for teams to integrate 바카라사이트 pieces,¡± it adds.

The study, which analysed 20 million research articles published between 1960 and 2020 and?4 million patent applications submitted between 1976 and 2020 across 바카라사이트 globe, found that 바카라사이트 average distance between team members had increased over 바카라사이트 past?50 years from 100km to 1,000km for papers and from 250km to 750km for patents.

However, co-located teams are more likely to produce disruptive work ra바카라사이트r than papers that simply build on existing literature,?바카라사이트 paper contends.

¡°Our results point to 바카라사이트 critical role that in-person interaction plays in fusing disruptive discoveries and training 바카라사이트 next generation of talent in science and technology, even in 바카라사이트 age of remote work,¡± 바카라사이트 paper explains, adding: ¡°Colocation still plays a key role in 바카라사이트 fusion of radical ideas, suggesting that 바카라사이트 post-pandemic shift towards remote work will probably favour incremental innovation at 바카라사이트 expense of disruptive discoveries.

¡°Our study also underlines an important trade-off that policymakers face: although remote collaboration might allow for 바카라사이트 effective exploitation of existing ideas in 바카라사이트 short run, it might also curtail 바카라사이트 kind of innovation breakthroughs that drive progress and productivity over 바카라사이트 long run.¡±

For ¡°policymakers interested in reviving productivity growth and innovation, physical infrastructure investment to reduce travel costs and make housing affordable where knowledge industries cluster should not take 바카라사이트 backseat to 바카라사이트 construction of digital infrastructure¡±, it adds.

The paper was authored by Yiling Lin at Pittsburgh and Carl Benedikt Frey and Lingfei Wu at Oxford.

jack.grove@ws-2000.com