Comment in 2013

Measures to give women a fair chance in science should be based on evidence, warns Isabelle Vernos, or they could make matters worse.

Eight experts give their prescriptions for measures that will help to close the gender gap in nations from China to Sweden.

The US National Academy of Sciences has to become more nimble and responsive if it is to survive another 150 years, says Marjory S. Blumenthal.

Neuroscientists should help to develop compelling video games that boost brain function and improve well-being, say Daphne Bavelier and Richard J. Davidson.

The production of shale gas and oil in the United States is overhyped and the costs are underestimated, says J. David Hughes.

Researchers are divided over the wisdom of using estimates of the amount of fish hauled in each year to assess the health of fisheries.

Policies for managing plastic debris are outdated and threaten the health of people and wildlife, say Chelsea M. Rochman, Mark Anthony Browne and colleagues.

Governments must offer incentives to drive a switch to biofuels and other renewables, argues Heinz Kopetz.

Understanding the molecular behaviour of frozen water is essential for predicting the future of our planet, says Thorsten Bartels-Rausch.

Dean Keith Simonton fears that surprising originality in the natural sciences is a thing of the past, as vast teams finesse knowledge rather than create disciplines.

Funding agencies may be paying out duplicate grants, according to an analysis by Harold R. Garner, Lauren J. McIver and Michael B. Waitzkin.

Increasing energy efficiency brings emissions savings. Claims that it backfires are a distraction, say Kenneth Gillingham and colleagues.

To get the best out of big data, funding agencies should develop shared tools for optimizing discovery and train a new breed of researchers, says Chris A. Mattmann.

To help transform our understanding of the biosphere, ecologists — like climate scientists — should simulate whole ecosystems, argue Drew Purves and colleagues.

Sally Rockey, deputy director for extramural research at the US National Institutes of Health, reflects on the second anniversary of her precedent-setting blog.

A new funding policy by the US National Science Foundation represents a sea-change in how researchers are evaluated, says Heather Piwowar.

Truly generic signals warning of tipping points are unlikely to exist, warn Carl Boettiger and Alan Hastings, so researchers should study transitions specific to real systems.

Global prediction partnerships would cost little and reduce the regional carnage caused by floods, droughts and tropical cyclones, argues Peter J. Webster.

We must preserve the interactions of contemporary researchers for future scholars, urges Georgina Ferry.