Shortcomings of peer review in biomedical journals

Peer review is well established across most academic disciplines, and publishers, editors, and researchers devote considerable resources to it. This paper uses examples from biomedical journals to examine its shortcomings. Although mainly anecdotal, the evidence suggests that peer review is sometimes ineffective at identifying important research and even less effective at detecting fraud. Most reviewers identify only the minority of a paper's defects and they may be biased. Peer review plus other editorial processes are associated with improvements in papers between submission and publication, but published papers remain hard to read and a significant proportion contain errors or omissions. While it is hard to quantify the costs, peer review does not seem an efficient use of resources. Research into the outcomes of peer review, the establishment of sound methods for measuring the quality of the process and its outcomes, and comparisons with alternative methods are needed.     

Interpretation of image content

During the last few years we have undertaken a series of experiments and studies concerning interpretation of image content. Subjects were asked to name image contents, to describe image contents, to index image contents, to write legends, to asses image contents, to create images, to complete a story, to illustrate a story, and to produce informative materials. Results from these experiments, based on more than 62,800 verbal and visual statements from 3,100 subjects, confirm the theory of a dual stage perception process. It is suggested that different assignments cause perception and image interpretation on different cognitive levels.     

An incremental approach to implementing a web course

Conclusion Our premise, that involvement with Web-based instruction proceeds best incrementally, has been explored in a variety of examples. A range of options, as well as a strategy for dealing with them systematically, has been presented. Our four-step model, adapted from an earlier one by DeBloois & Alder (1973), has four levels: awareness, faculty support, faculty skills, and departmental effort. Practitioners in higher education in the 21st Century will need to capitalize on creative ways to build Web resources, used one at a time, into existing courses, leading to enhanced learning opportunities for students and faculty alike     

The suitability of Sanders’ model for calculation of the propulsive force generated by the hands during sculling motion

This study examined whether Sanders’ model is suitable for estimating accurately the propulsive force generated by the hands’ motion in swimming comparing the calculated force obtained using the model and the measured force during an actual propulsive action. The measured and calculated forces were obtained from 13 swimmers who, while tethered, performed a sculling motion in a prone position for the purpose of displacing the body by moving it forward. Kinematic analyses were conducted to obtain the calculated force, while the measured force was obtained via the use of a load cell. The calculated force was lower than the measured force and accounted for only a small part of the variation in the measured force. The forces could not be used interchangeably, and there were fixed and proportional differences between them. Consequently, this study indicates that Sanders’ model is not suitable for estimating accurately the propulsive force generated by the swimmer’s hands during sculling motion. However, research that integrates analyses from different approaches could result in improvements to the model that would render it applicable for estimating the propulsive forces during movements that are characterised by directional changes of the hands.     

Overcompliance and reluctance to make decisions: Exploring warning systems in support of public managers

Post-scandal effects in public management point to the occurrence of overcompliance in the work of public managers, leading to reluctance and paralysis in decision-making. This article discusses the proposition of an artifact in the form of a warning system to aid the analysis process and issuing of opinions (APIO) by public managers, providing more information and, consequently, less risk and fear. The Design Science Research method was used to exapt a scientific artifact to the context of public management. The textual structure of 178 opinions issued by public agencies was analyzed, as was the perception of 17 public managers of the characteristics of the APIO. Exaptating the artifact from a technological perspective is simple and feasible, as it involves processes with strong functional similarities. The greatest challenges to operationalize the artifact broadly and without restrictions, as occurs in scientific academia, are associated with informational behaviors.     

Effective force and economy of triathletes and cyclists

The effective force applied on the crank, the index of pedalling effectiveness, and the economy of movement at 60, 75, 90, and 105 rev/min cadences were examined in nine cyclists and eight triathletes. Tests were performed on two days. Maximal oxygen uptake was measured and the second ventilatory threshold was estimated on day 1 using a stationary bicycle. On day 2, the four different cadences were tested at about 5% below the second ventilatory threshold. A strain gauge instrumented clip-less pedal mounted on the bicycle enabled us to measure the normal and tangential forces exerted on the pedal, while the pedal and crank angles were monitored with the aid of a video system. Based on this information, the effective force and the index of pedalling effectiveness were calculated. Cyclists produced significantly more effective force and a higher index of pedalling effectiveness at 60 and 75 rev/min and were significantly more economic at all cadences than triathletes. The significant and positive correlation between effective force and economy at all cadences suggests that improvement of the effective force would reflect on economy.