Why insects increase during monsoon

By Ali Abbas Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission (HEC) new weighted research policy has surely raised an eyebrow among a few academics nationwide. Before further dissecting the policy and its implications, it is pertinent to understand the role of HEC as a regulatory authority, which can help clear the air to a greater extent. As stated, “Regulatory”, it is important to accept that the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan is there to implement quality checks irrespective of the decision being popular or unpopular. So, with this lens, it is easy to understand why HEC is weighing this bold step of assigning weights to authorship and what must have been the shortcomings in the previous policy, despite the earlier policy’s apparent benefits. The new policy values first authors and corresponding authors more, acknowledging a reward for the initiators and potential stakeholders in the event that there are more than 3 authors. While HEC is not stopping co-authorship, it aims to credit researchers who have genuine contributions and are adding value as a lead or major contributor. It is entirely up to contributors to choose the number of other co-authors and their desired contribution and commitment in the research article. In fact, this should rather be seen as a measure of transparency that researchers who are expecting to get fewer marks for co-authorship will be doing less work in contrast to the first author. That can actually act as a yardstick for them to allocate their time to multiple projects to get their respective share/ count. However, not to undermine the researchers whose genuine intent surrounds a higher number of publications in less time with real contribution, it is a welcoming sign for authors who stay away from relationship-based and aided research. So, HEC, being a quality custodian of education and research practices for HEIs, has come up with a stance to curb research mills, fraudulent research, and fake authorship, where publications in friends’ journals and contributions following quid pro quo are compensated. And one never knows when these researchers who have worked as co-authors or fall last in the author list make it to the classes; their share of knowledge and impact may be a concern at times as well. The problem is even bigger, as not only papers with 20+ authors can be found, but researchers are co-authoring in different fields that may be beyond cross-domain collaboration. This is where HEC might have to respond and find this weighted policy as damage control.  Well, this research’s credibility is not Pakistan’s dilemma only, but something that is a world issue in a higher education setting. And when HEC addresses these concerns, it might act as a benchmark for other nations’ education systems, especially for the education and accreditation councils of similar demographics. Whether one favors or opposes it, HEC has devised something that raises major concerns, and that is to curb the need to distinguish between real and fake contributors. Now comes the point of demotivating international contributions from this weighted system, as raised by the affected prospective contributors. Well, though not every policy can avoid its collateral, the overall gain may be exploited as well. It is to be remembered that international collaborators are not to be linked with those weights; they can continue to collaborate at any number in the author list as they used to be, i.e., first or second or third, etc. In this case, the logic for local authors will remain the same as stated above about their respective contributions and rewards. The time and effort can then help in identifying multiple avenues as well. Again, there are always two sides to a coin, and in the current dynamics, where co-authorship has appeared to be a business deal, the side with the assigned weights policy bears more weight. Also, on the other hand, the offset can be made by allocating funds and instructing HEIs to devote funding to Gold open access, thus accelerating the pace of the first-author research. All in all, the new policy hints at increasing competitiveness and research credibility while leaving it to the test of time to see if it turns out to be a value addition for researchers by choice or by chance. About the author: Ali Abbas, PhD, works at Beaconhouse National University. He can be reached at aabbas724@gmail.com

Dogs of all sizes took to the waves at the annual World Dog Surfing Championship in the United States, impressing crowds with their surfing skills. The event was held on Saturday at the beach in Pacifica about 22 kilometers south of San Francisco California. Hundreds of spectators gathered to watch dogs from different breeds ride the waves on surfboards. The competition featured everything from small spaniels to large Labrador retrievers. Judges scored each dog based on how long it stayed on the surfboard the size of the wave, and how confidently it surfed. Now in its 10th year the championship also included a pet adoption campaign and fundraising activities to support local animal welfare groups. Wearing colorful life jackets the dogs were guided onto the waves by their human partners. As the dogs successfully surfed toward the shore the crowd cheered and applauded each ride. One participant Sophia Siedlowski from Huntington Beach said she first placed her Miniature Pinscher, Rusty, on a surfboard just to take photos when he was a puppy. To her surprise he refused to get off the board. She later let Rusty ride a small wave and he successfully surfed to shore amazing everyone and beginning his surfing journey.

Scientists at the University of Delaware in the United States are investigating whether sharks can be used to improve predictions of hurricane intensity and serve as ocean-observing systems for collecting marine data. Researchers at the University of Delaware are attaching sensors to sharks that measure ocean temperature, electrical conductivity and depth. Electrical conductivity is related to the amount of salt in the water. According to Aaron Carlisle, a professor at the university’s School of Marine Science and Policy and the lead researcher of the study, animal-mounted sensors have been successfully used in marine research for several years particularly in areas where scientific observations are limited. Researchers say sharks are suitable for this research because they are abundant, inhabit vast areas of the ocean and are relatively easier to access than many protected marine mammals. So far, shark tagging has mainly been used to study their movements and habitats. However, in this new research, scientists are selecting sharks that can collect useful data for hurricane forecasting and swim close enough to the ocean surface for their tags to transmit information via satellites. Preliminary analyses in the North Atlantic have identified shortfin mako sharks, blue sharks, smooth hammerhead sharks and juvenile great white sharks as suitable species for the research. According to Aaron Carlisle, scientists are paying particular attention to the heat in the upper layer of the ocean known as the “mixed layer.” This layer of water plays an important role in the intensity of hurricanes because a warmer mixed layer can contribute to the formation of stronger hurricanes. Caroline Wiernicki, a doctoral student at the University of Delaware said the shark-tagging process begins in early May, when several migratory shark species come closer to the coast after spending the winter in remote areas of the Atlantic Ocean. Researchers travel 50 to 65 kilometres offshore in a research vessel where they deploy baited lines and typically wait two to three hours for sharks to approach. A tag is attached to the shark’s dorsal fin. When the shark swims near the surface, the tag connects with a network of satellite receivers and transmits data. Carlisle said the tagging process is completed rapidly similar to a “pit crew” during a motor race and usually takes less than five minutes. Shark tagging is carried out under institutional animal-care oversight to minimize its impact on the animals. The tags are attached using materials that gradually dissolve and eventually detach on their own. Before each shark is released back into the ocean, its health is examined because stress or injury could affect its natural behaviour and consequently, the reliability of the data collected. Caroline Wiernicki said sharks are portrayed as extremely frightening animals in movies whereas in reality they are relatively calm creatures. According to the researchers, if the project proves successful, data collected from sharks could help improve forecasts of the intensity of hurricanes approaching the US East Coast. This information could provide more reliable forecasts to coastal communities from North Carolina to Massachusetts helping them prepare for storms and improve coastal protection. Aaron Carlisle said sharks are remarkable animals that are exceptionally well adapted to life in the ocean and there is much that humans can learn from them. If it is proven that sharks can also benefit humans, it would be a win-win situation for both.