Features in 2015

We asked four researchers who made the news in 2015 what they would change about how science gets done.

The 2015 Nature Awards for Mentoring in Science recognize Chinese scientists who have invested in the next generation.

You want a career in marine biology but your maths is weak. Relax, the basic skills can be mastered.

The art of mindfulness offers benefits not only for scientists' mental health, but also for their work performance.

Faced with a need to move lab, scientists should consider as early as possible how to effect a smooth transition.

Opportunities abound in the non-profit sector for researchers who seek to follow their passions.

Managing laboratory members as well as a research strategy can be difficult for early-career principal investigators, but help is at hand.

Conferences are great for career development, but miscalculated moves can foil future prospects.

Graduate students dream of academia but are keeping their career options open, according to a 2015 Nature survey.

Expert witnesses have a crucial role in bringing science into the legal system — but the job is not without pressure.

Digital identifiers can sort out different scientists with the same names, and create a lifelong record of their work.

As genomics migrates to the clinic, job options are emerging for genetic counsellors to explain the meaning in mutations.

The creative process of writing science-inspired fiction can be rewarding — and the untapped niche is rich in opportunities for originality.

A toxic relationship between junior scientist and adviser can quickly turn career prospects sour.

As institutions attempt to redefine the postdoctoral position, early-career researchers are joining together to wage a battle for proper benefits.

An innovative US National Institutes of Health programme aims to expose junior scientists to different career paths.

The biotherapeutics industry is burgeoning — and it needs scientists with specialized disease knowledge and technical savvy to join in the drug-discovery efforts.

With careful planning, new faculty hires can stretch their start-up funds to launch successful research programmes.

When committees come knocking, scientists need to know which requests will benefit them and which will only steal their time — and how to tell the difference.

Junior researchers have a lot to learn, but talking to others about their experiences will help to avert nasty surprises.