The Scientific Method
Because COVID-19 is a novel coronavirus, we are continuing to learn about how it works and what effects it has on the human body. The nature of the scientific method means that as we learn more, guidance will change.
By Whatiguana - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39341560
The Research Process
- What you need to know about how coronavirus is changing scienceScientific publishing is normally a slow-moving process. In expediting access to literature, we risk using flawed research.
- Controversy on COVID-19 mask study spotlights messiness of science during a pandemicAnother article discussing the difficulties of performing scientific research during a pandemic.
- Retraction Watch: Retracted coronavirus (COVID-19) papersTracks scholarly research regarding COVID-19 that has been retracted for flawed or faulty work.
Scholarly Publishing
Scholarly publishing is often a slow process, due to the length of time the research itself may take coupled with thorough peer review. Peer review is a central part of the process because it means that experts in the field have evaluated the research and found that it merited publication, acting as a form of quality control.
- How to Read a Scientific PaperThoroughly explains the structure and components of a scientific research article.
- Understanding Health ResearchThis tool from the Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow will guide you through a series of questions to help you to review and interpret a published health research paper.
The Long Road to Publishing a Scientific Paper (Click image or title to see full-sized image.)
Comic-style infographic created by evolutionary biologist Kathryn Everson, PhD, to explain the academic publishing process. Original images are freely available for download on her Flickr page.
Text-only is available in the document below.