Today’s post is by Natalie Simon, Paula Saner, De Ming Chau and Joeri Tijdink. Natalie is a communications consultant specializing in higher education and research. Paula is the Research Integrity Manager at the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Office of Research Integrity (ORI).
Editor’s Note: Today’s post is by Natalie Simon, Paula Saner, De Ming Chau and Joeri Tijdink. Natalie is a communications consultant specializing in higher education and research. Paula is the Research Integrity Manager at the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Office of Research Integrity (ORI). De Ming is a molecular biologist with experience in cancer stem cell research. Joeri is a Principal Investigator at the Ethics, Law and Humanities department of the Amsterdam UMC, location VUmc the Netherlands.
“Stand on the shoulders of giants,” Google Scholar encourages users with every new search. This phrase, originating from Sir Isaac Newton’s famous words, “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants,” highlights that in the global research system, researchers build on each other’s work. Historically, this habit has been stable and grounded in agreed upon norms and values. Through these norms, researchers replicate, extend, and sometimes improve their colleagues’ work. As noted in the National Academies of Sciences Report: Fostering Integrity in Research: “When undertaken with fidelity, science becomes a cumulative exercise that produces a growing body of reliable knowledge”.