Category: academic life

This category covers information about the life of researchers in general. Relevant news about the publishing industry, impact factors, PhD programs and research results can be found here.

Meet Dr. Abinaya Sekar, our newest Advisor of the Month

Susan Jenkins

Abinaya Sekar at the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi, India

Mendeley Advisors can be found not only in university settings but also at research institutes, government departments, and working in private industry. We were excited to meet Dr. Abinaya Sekar, a Senior Research Associate at India’s Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi, visiting faculty at School of Planning and Architecture Delhi, and a Mendeley Advisor since 2021.

Abinaya’s research focuses on policy related to air quality and human health. She holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering Technology from National Institute of Technology Calicut, a Post Graduate Diploma in Environmental Law from the National Law School of India University, Bangalore, a Masters in Environmental Engineering and Management and an undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering from Thiagarajar College of Engineering.

How did you become interested in your field?

During my undergraduate study, my professor, Dr. Chandran, raised a question that stuck with me forever: “How to control the water hyacinth invasion in water bodies in Madurai.” It was then that I realized I wanted to work for the environment and especially pollution. The paradox that the level of water is increasing, but we do not have water that we can consume, is hard-hitting. For both my undergraduate and master’s thesis, I studied the invasive and beneficial characteristics of water hyacinth. Later, for my Ph.D., I went on to study the challenging discourse of air pollution and gained expertise in exposure assessment, human health risk assessment, and air pollution science.

What attracted you to working at the Centre for Policy Research?

Since my Ph.D. I was interested in working with Delhi’s air quality crisis. I preferred working with the organization because CPR has been a consistent voice in the public discourse regarding the air pollution situation in Delhi. Working with CPR’s scholars, who are from the world’s finest universities, is a truly rewarding experience.

Where do you work the best? What kind of environment suits you?

I function best when it is peaceful. I cannot work around chaos. The Environment Engineering Laboratory at NIT Calicut is one such place. During my Ph.D. days, I would spend most of my time in the lab, carrying out my research. Often, days turned into nights and I often lost track of time while working. It was one place where I was disconnected from the other world and it was me, the instruments and my research. That is the kind of environment I thrive in.

How long have you been using Mendeley?

I was first introduced to Mendeley by professor Dr. Arun Kumar from NIT Calicut in 2017. I’ve been using it since then.

What were you using prior to Mendeley?

Before getting introduced to Mendeley, I was using the very difficult and tedious referencing method in Microsoft Word. After getting familiar with Mendeley, there was no looking back. Not only did it make referencing easier, but it also saved so much time. It was actually a life-changing decision.

Why did you decide to become an Advisor?

For the simple reason that more people should be familiar with such an easy to use and time saving referencing tool.

Is there a researcher you admire (dead or alive) that you would like to work with or meet?

Dr. George K. Varghese, my PhD supervisor, is someone I like and look up to. In India, Prof. Varghese is a pioneer in the field of Environmental Forensics. The questions he highlighted throughout our research discussions influenced the way I thought and approached my research questions. In addition to research skills, I’ve learned how to respond to people despite a hectic schedule, how to be approachable, and how to avoid procrastinating on work. I also deeply admire the work of Ms. Sunita Narin, Director General of the Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi. I would like to meet her.

What are you reading or listening to at the moment ?

This week I listened to the episode “Breathing the air in Lebanon: E-cigarettes, water pipes, and beyond” featuring Prof. Najat Saliba, professor at the American University of Beirut (Lebanon), hosted by Atmospheric Tales, a podcast that focuses on stories from around the world related to air pollution and climate change.

What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned this week?

The fact that globally, 40% of the secondary organic aerosols are formed from ammonia. In addition to the health effects associated with ammonia, its secondary particle formation potential makes it an important pollutant to regularly monitor. It may be a well-established fact; however, I came across it only this week.

I also picked up some skills in making chicken biryani as well. This week I made it for my husband’s birthday party, and it was a huge hit.

What is the best part about working in research?

The best part of research is searching. Every time I dig for something I end up finding some other newer related thing and the tabs in my browsers keep increasing.

And the most challenging part about working in research?

The challenging part about research is also attributed to the researching part of it. The fact that to be good at it, one has to go into such depths, can often be mentally draining. I am often tired by the end of the day. Also, there are many repetitive corrections, which require a lot of consistency and commitment.

What advice would you give to young researchers? 

My advice for young researchers is to read, re-read and read again. With that, write and jot down your ideas. Writing is an acquired skill which one acquires from writing a lot.

What is the most important thing that people should know about Mendeley?

Taking notes within the app is the most useful feature for me. It makes Mendeley a useful platform for literature review in addition to referencing.

You can read more about Abinaya and her work on these sites:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abinaya-sekar-phd-82097b70
Centre for Policy Research Staff pages: https://cprindia.org/people/abinaya-sekar/

Interested in the Mendeley Advisor program? Visit https://www.mendeley.com/advisor-community to learn more.

Advisor of the Month: Meet Andrii Kyrylchuk, Chemist and 10-year Mendeley user!

Susan Jenkins
person facing the camera with desk and computer in the background

Andrii Kyrylchuk in his office at University of California, San Francisco, USA

We’ve noticed that some Mendeley Advisors’ research takes them places around the globe. One Advisor whose career exemplifies this is Andrii Kyrylchuk. Initially graduating from the National Technical University of Ukraine in Kyiv with a Master’s in Organic Chemistry and Chemical Technology of Organic Substances, Andrii has spent the first decade of his career as a visiting researcher in Finland, Italy, and now as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) in the United States.

What attracted you to working at UCSF?

 UCSF is one of the world leading institutions in medicinal chemistry and life sciences. Shoichet’s lab, where I am currently working, is among the top research groups that specialize in virtual drug discovery.

How did you become interested in your field?

I’ve been passionate about chemistry since my early childhood. I had my small laboratory at the balcony of the ordinary soviet-style apartment. My bookshelf was full of high-school and university chemical textbooks. I was hunting for new books and glassware across the small city where I lived. So, it was really easy to choose what I want to do with my life.

I studied industrial organic chemistry for my master’s, then did organic chemistry in my PhD years, and then transitioned to computational organic chemistry. In addition to the research in organic chemistry, I worked on carbon membranes during my Fulbright Fellowship. In 2020 I got interested in medicinal chemistry and drug discovery, and spent some time working in the leading Ukrainian chemical company Enamine Ltd. This year I joined UCSF and my key focus is virtual screening and early drug discovery.

Where do you work the best? What kind of environment suits you?

Surprisingly, I often find inspiration strikes in rather unusual places: a coffee shop, a train ride or on a flight. I also enjoy working outside. But the best place is always where my colleagues are!

How long have you been using Mendeley?

My journey into science with Mendeley started on May 13, 2012. Oh, I had a 10th anniversary this year!

What were you using prior to Mendeley?

I was using MS Word’s own endnotes for citing, and organized my PDF files in simple folders on my PC. That was dreadful.

Why did you decide to become an Advisor?

When I started using Mendeley, I saw how much easier my life became with it, so naturally I wanted to share this joy with others. Many fellow scientists didn’t know much about reference managers at the time, so encouraging them to use Mendeley was difficult sometimes.

Andrii and a llama friend

What book are you reading at the moment and why?

“A Brief History of Time” by Stephen Hawking. My goal is to present my findings in the same engaging and exciting manner this book is written in.

What is the best part about working in research?

The joy of discovering something new, that no one have seen before. Connection through the generations of scientists. And the things you do vary a lot: a bit of programming, wet lab work, paper writing, conferences and so on. Overall, research is the most exciting job one can have!

And the most challenging part about working in research?

For me it is time management and expectation management. Starting a new project, one doesn’t know if the main problem can be solved at all, let alone what means are necessary to solve it. And often it takes much more time and effort thanexpected, and the result is far from the expected.

What advice would you give to young researchers? 

My advice would be not to be afraid to change your field! All science is interdisciplinary, so every researcher must know lots of trades. Entering a new field is scary sometimes, but it’s also fun.

What is the most important thing that people should know about Mendeley?

If you make Mendeley a key point in your everyday research, things will become much simpler. People tend to think of reference managers as of tools for writing papers, but Mendeley is much more. When I start a new project, I add all the papers I find to a new folder in Mendeley so that it’s easier to keep all information in one place. A new paper is out from a group I follow? Adding it to Mendeley. Learning new methods or tools? The papers go to a specific subfolder in “Methods” directory. And don’t forget to highlight and make notes while reading!

You can read more about Andrii and his work on these sites:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyrylchuk/
University website: https://profiles.ucsf.edu/andrii.kyrylchuk
Own website: https://kyrylch.uk/

Interested in the Mendeley Advisor program? Visit https://www.mendeley.com/advisor-community to learn more.

Advisor of the Month: Andi Anto Patak

Rachel Brennesholtz

What is your name and job title?

My name is Andi Anto Patak and I am a senior lecturer at Universitas Negeri Makassar in Indonesia.

How did you enter your field and what is your research focus?

I completed my Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in English Education at Universitas Negeri Makassar, then went on to a Ph.D. in Measurement and Evaluation at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.

The development of extensive literacy and research has interested me for many years. I have published several Mendeley-themed papers in Scopus-indexed journals as well as two books about Mendeley, which both came out in 2012. My first was also the first ever Indonesian-language book about Mendeley (*editor’s note: maybe even the first book about Mendeley!*). It had a print run of 1,000: 300 copies were sold and 700 were distributed free to students and lecturers.

My second book was also in Indonesian and also had a print run of 1,000. With this book, 500 copies were sold and the remaining 500 were distributed free. Digital versions of both books are available online and for free.

Here are links to my books:

Mendeley: Citation & PDF Reference Manager plus Jejaring Sosial by Andi Anto Patak, Erwin Akib – Books on Google Play (published in 2012).

Hindari Plagiat dengan Mendeley by Andi Anto Patak, Erwin Akib – Books on Google Play (Published in 2015)

I hope that everyone who has a passion for writing can have easy access to Mendeley. My current research is focused on developing a Mendeley-based thesis submission model that helps to avoid plagiarism.

What is your history with Mendeley?

I have used Mendeley for more than eight years. In the first year of my PhD, I used EndNote. For a short while after I discovered Mendeley, I used the two solutions together. Then I found that reference management was simpler with Mendeley — it was more user friendly for writing dissertations and papers too. So I switched full time to Mendeley.

Why did you decide to become an Advisor?

Because I find Mendeley easy to use, I decided to become a Mendeley Advisor. I’m able to invite fellow international students in Malaysia and my colleagues in Indonesia to jointly use Mendeley for writing dissertations, articles, research papers and other publications.

What academics, researchers or librarians would you like to work with or meet?

Professor Wendy Sutherland Smith of Deakin University, Australia, who pioneered research on plagiarism.

What is the best part of working in research?

The best part of being a researcher is finding the gaps in knowledge where we can research. Also, I like when we can find the full text of all the relevant references for a research project!

And the most challenging part?

The most challenging part is trying to work with participants who do not honestly respond to data collection.

What is one thing that you want people to know about Mendeley?

I created a Facebook group to let people know about Mendeley events in Indonesia and get feedback from Indonesian Mendeley users. You can find it here: Indonesian Mendeley Community.

Find out more about Andi by viewing his Mendeley profile.

Interested in becoming a Mendeley Advisor yourself? Find out more about the Advisor Community here.

Advisor of the Month: Juliana Soares Lima

Rachel Brennesholtz

What is your name and job title?

My name is Juliana Soares Lima. I am a Reference Librarian at the Human Sciences Library of the Federal University of Ceará, located in the Northeast region of Brazil. I have graduated in Librarianship and completed my master’s degree in Information Science at the same institution that I work.

How did you get into your field?

I’ve always enjoyed reading and I love researching many things. I was also very happy to help other people get the information they needed, especially to exercise their rights and citizenship, so it’s not hard to deduce that this ‘curiosity’ would lead me to Librarianship and Information Science. From the day I discovered that I could work with books, information and knowledge to help and support in academic/scientific research, and somehow make a difference in people’s lives, then I decided that I wanted to be a librarian.

Where do you do work the best?

I feel fortunate to work in the Humanities area, as it is a field that is usually related to other areas of knowledge. So, I work better in an environment that allows me to live with the diversity of knowledge and people, that is, an environment in which open access to scientific knowledge is discussed; or about technology but without leaving aside what makes us human; and discuss politics and progress without forgetting the poverty and social problems that afflict Brazil and other countries.

How long have you been using Mendeley? 

I’ve been using Mendeley for 6 years. Since 2017 I have been a Mendeley Advisor.

Which solutions were you using prior to Mendeley?

I used to make references manually. Then I discovered some reference builders online and started using them, but I missed something that would allow me to go beyond building references, I wanted to manage them using some software. As a librarian, I usually use and research these tools and after a long search I found the reference managers Endnote, Mendeley, Zotero and others. I usually offer training in all three (Endnote, Mendeley, Zotero), but Mendeley is quite successful during training sessions because of the variety of functions and resources, as well as storage space has been an essential factor when comparing three software.

Why did you decide to become an Advisor?

First, the nature of my work in the reference service, I usually teach, organize courses and other training courses that help the institution’s researchers to be successful in their research in databases and in the use of resources offered by the library, as well as the reference managers.

From the huge acceptance and the increase in the use of Mendeley in the institution, I decided to become Mendeley Advisor to always be aware of the news about the software and to be able to better assist the public served in the library. So that this objective could be reached, at the time, I led a series of actions to expand Mendeley’s reach at the Federal University of Ceará. I invited two more librarian colleagues (Edvander Pires and Izabel Lima) from the institution to help promote Mendeley in each Campus and increase the number of training and users. Together, we held face-to-face training sessions on Mendeley and then we developed tutorials that were posted on the library’s institutional website. During all the courses I also created a badge for students who want to help promote Mendeley to use it in their photos on Facebook or Twitter profiles. After that, we decided to create video classes and I did some tests before using Google Classroom to teach people how to use Mendeley. Each of us recorded the lessons and I edited them. All video lessons are available on YouTube.

Currently, during the month of May and June 2020,  I am teaching Mendeley for two classes in the Google Classroom, each class there are 250 students.

Video lessons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSaJUgnz0jg&list=PLOhWAljyF7ro5h0nMSA38Jj9en04JO3X6

Twibbon #ILoveMendeley: https://twibbon.com/support/ilovemendeley

What researcher would you like to work with or meet, dead or alive?

Dead: 1) Shiyali Ramamrita Ranganathan, (born August 9, 1892, Madras, India — died September 27, 1972, Bangalore), Indian librarian and educator who was considered the father of Library Science in India and whose contributions had worldwide influence; 2) Aaron Swartz, he was an American computer programmer, entrepreneur, writer, political organizer, and Internet hacktivist. He was involved in the development of the web feed format RSS, the Markdown publishing format and the Creative Commons Licenses.

Alive: I am lucky to know and have worked with my advisor in the master’s degree, Professor Giovanna Guedes, but there are still so many good people that I wanted to meet in person! Antonio Agenor Briquet de Lemos (Retired professor at the University of Brasília); Professor Murilo Bastos, Michael Buckland, Tim Berners-Lee, Alice Meadows (NISO’s Director of Community Engagement), Christine Borgman (Distinguished Research Professor Information Studies University of California, Los Angeles), Luciano Floridi (Professor of Philosophy and Ethics of Information at the University of Oxford), Peter Suber, Lawrence Lessig.

What book are you reading at the moment?

Habibi, authored by Craig Thompson. It is a graphic novel set in a fictional landscape of Islamic fairy tales that describes the relationship between two slave children on the run.

What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned this week?

In Brazil, we are going through a difficult period in which we have to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic and with government conflicts. It has been difficult; I can say that every week I learn something new even working from home. I have more and more faith and certainty that the sharing of information, scientific knowledge and the intense work of researchers can bring a global solution in the fight against COVID-19. Meanwhile, during this week, I am learning to balance household chores and work activities better than the previous month. Also, this week I’m learning to be resilient.

What is the best part about working in research?

There are many wonderful things in the development of research. I believe that there is no single best part, as it is a set of steps that complement each other: a) from the conception of the idea of a study; b) the search for scientific literature that supports the study; c) experiences from field research; d) the surprises that occur during the research; e) the discovery and exploitation of results, etc.

And the most challenging part about working in research?

There is no easy search! This is the good and the bad part at the same time.

What is the one thing you want people to know about Mendeley?

I want users to know how they can take advantage of Mendeley and explore all the available functions: managing references, building a profile on Mendeley online, depositing research data in Mendeley Data, using Mendeley to make systematic reviews and more.

Do you have any advice for young researchers? 

My advice is to keep studying and updating, especially nowadays when everything changes very quickly and we need to be prepared to obtain new knowledge and skills that we didn’t have before. Always adapt, renew and reinvent yourself. Don’t settle. Life is movement and we need to keep up with trends, however, without ever forgetting to value the classic and universal knowledge that remains current even after so many years. Be curious. Research and try to be critical: not everything written in a book, article or other material represents an absolute truth because in all knowledge there is a limit, a strength and a weakness.

 

Find out more about Juliana by viewing her Mendeley profile.

 Interested in becoming a Mendeley Advisor yourself? Find out more about the Advisor Community here.

Advisor of the month: Giscard Wilfried Koyaweda

Rachel Brennesholtz

Editor’s note: Giscard hosted our first Advisor event in the Central African Republic!

What is your name and job title?

My Name is Giscard Wilfried Koyaweda.

Job Title – Research Assistant.

Where do you work?

I work as a Research Assistant at the National Laboratory of Clinical Biology and Public Health of Bangui, Central African Republic, in the Molecular Biology Department.

How did you get into your field?

Since childhood, I have always been fascinated by biological sciences and always chose that particular line. When I got to the University in 2012, I studied the Life and Earth sciences in my 1st year, Life Science during the 2nd year and Biochemistry in the 3rd. Immediately after my Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry, I got an Internship at Institut Pasteur de Bangui in the Viral Hepatitis Laboratory. This has enabled me to develop more interest in research specifically health sciences.

In 2017, I was awarded the Pan African University scholarship to study a Master’s of science in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology. During my Master’s, I worked on molecular virology of the hepatitis B virus in the Central African Republic. After successfully finishing my Master’s degree, I joined the Scientific Team of National Laboratory of Central African Republic.

How long have you been using Mendeley? 

I started using Mendeley in 2018.

What were you using prior to Mendeley?

Before, I used to make my references manually.

Why did you decide to become an Advisor?

I have realized that Mendeley (an automated reference manager) is very helpful for research report writing and many students are not aware of this resourceful software. I attended an Advisor training session organized by the Advisor Dr. Yahaya Gavamukulya in 2018, which made me skilled in the software. As a person, I am very passionate about sharing knowledge with others in need. With that background, I have decided to become a Mendeley Advisor so that I can organize official training sessions about the usage of Mendeley to researchers and students who don’t have any knowledge in any reference manager in the Central African Republic and elsewhere.

(Editor’s note: Giscard is the first person to organize a Mendeley event in the Central African Republic! A big congratulations from Team Mendeley.)

What researcher would you like to work with or meet, dead or alive?

I would like to work with Professor Anna Kramvis, a  Research Professor and Director of the Hepatitis Virus Diversity Research Unit (HVDRU), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. I really appreciate her scientific skills and work on the hepatitis B virus. Her primary research interest is the molecular virology of the hepatitis B virus (HBV), especially of uniquely African strains of the virus, which differ from those found in other regions of the world.

What is the best part about working in research?

In research, I enjoy the part of data analysis.

And the most challenging part about working in research?

From my experience conducting research in the area of biology, sample collection is the most challenging part.

What is the one thing you want people to know about Mendeley?

I believe that Mendeley is more than a simple reference manager because it offers the Mendeley Careers and Funding Opportunities.

Do you have any advice for young researchers? 

My advice for young researchers is that doing excellent research is not enough to grow scientifically. The results need to be shared with other scientists and in the research community. That will make you grow scientifically.

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Find out more about Giscard by viewing his Mendeley profile.

Interested in becoming a Mendeley Advisor yourself? Find out more about the Advisor Community here.

 

Advisor of the Month: Emiliano Jozami

Rachel Brennesholtz

What is your name and job title?

Emiliano Jozami.
Teaching assistant and Auxiliary Researcher at the Research Council of the National University of Rosario (CIUNR) in Argentina.

Where do you work?

Parque Villarino, Zavalla
Faculty of Agricultural Sciences of the National University of Rosario, Argentina
https://fcagr.unr.edu.ar/

How did you get into your field?

As a student, I started working in research and collaboration in biology. This is a subject for first year students of Agriculture Engineering and the Bachelor of Natural Resources.

What are you currently working on?

I am researching two different lines:

  • Second generation biofuels and their sustainability using life cycle assessment methodology.
  • Climatology, teleconnections such as the El Niño Southern Oscillation, and its effects in crops yields.

How long have you been using Mendeley? 

I started using Mendeley in 2014. I was looking for a reference manager that could reduce the stressful work of organizing my bibliography. Mendeley had everything I required from a reference manager (i- easy and versatile ways of adding citations; ii- well-ordered bibliography; iii- it allows you to create your own tags along your library; iv- it allows you to find text within your files).

Why did you decide to become an Advisor?

To aid my colleagues in being more efficient in the time dedicated to the management of their library and its use in a manuscript/thesis or any type of writing that requires references.

What researcher would you like to work with or meet, dead or alive?

Dead: Charles Darwin.

Alive: C. Donald Ahrens. I love his books “Meteorology today”.

What book are you reading at the moment?

“Geopolítica y alimentos” by Juan José Borrell, a colleague from the CIUNR.

 What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned this week?

This week was particularly happy for me as I have obtained a scholarship at National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) to finish my PhD.

I have learned how to repair a leak at my bath with a brand-new sealer I have never used before.  (Editor’s note: Sounds like amazing work from Emiliano. Leaky bathtubs are terrible!)

What is the best part about working in research?

I love doing research. Since I was an undergraduate student, I have been passionate about it as well as explaining subjects to my fellow students at university. Both activities make me feel good with myself. It is really gratifying when I receive positive feedback from a student or when passing a selection processes; i.e:  obtaining a scholarship, an award, publishing an article in a prestigious journal or obtaining funding for research in high competition calls.

And the most challenging part about working in research?

Unfortunately, in Argentina, salaries are very low and the procedures to grow in this profession are not what one would expect.

What is the one thing you want people to know about Mendeley?

It really can make your work easier!! It is worth learning to use Mendeley and is really a user friendly software. It is also a great social network of researchers all over the world.

Do you have any advice for young researchers? 

Although the scenario can be adverse sometimes and things do not go always as you wish, keep trying it. Perseverance is essential to achieve your objectives.

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Find out more about Emiliano by viewing his Mendeley profile.

Interested in becoming a Mendeley Advisor yourself? Find out more about the Advisor Community here.

Explore mindfulness to improve your research–life balance

sallyransom

The human mind can be trained to cope with and relieve stress. This training is called mindfulness. By increasing awareness of thoughts and emotions in a given moment, it helps to avoid getting carried away. Mindfulness is proven to improve mental and even physical health – and now Elsevier’s Researcher Academy is bringing mindfulness to researchers in a brand-new module.

See the new Mindfulness module

Elsevier-ResearchersAcademy-August2019-1_10-v2C

Why is mindfulness important to researchers? The work of a researcher can feel overwhelming. The pressures associated with funding, competition and deadlines can affect a researcher’s wellbeing and peace of mind. In turn, this can mean a poorer work–life balance, reduced work efficiency and burnout. Mindfulness can help researchers take charge over their own lives.

The new Researcher Academy module will explore the practice of mindfulness in coping with stress as well as improving mental health and overall wellbeing. It will include an exploration of the scientific background of the practice and step-by-step guide to mindfulness in daily research routines.

The Mindfulness module will go live on 14 November at 11:00 a.m. (UTC). Register today!

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Get more career guidance from Elsevier’s Research Academy here

Find out how to unlock your research potential with Elsevier’s Researcher Academy here

Would you like to become a certified peer reviewer?

Rachel Brennesholtz

 

The process of peer reviewing is associated with certain challenges. Editors often struggle with finding reviewers for their next articles. Reviewers want to demonstrate their expertise but have no way of getting noticed. It happens that reviewers decline requests due to lack of familiarity with the subject matter, or because they think they are not competent and experienced enough to review someone else’s work. In the mission of overcoming these challenges, potential reviewers can gain ground skills on peer reviewing by participating in The Certified Peer Review course developed by Elsevier Researcher Academy. Becoming a certified peer reviewer will allow potential reviewers to publicly demonstrate their expertise as referees and contribute to the integrity of academic.

What is happening?

For the past few months, the Elsevier Researcher Academy team was working on a new crash course. The course has been specifically designed to give those who have not yet reviewed – or who feel they would like additional training in this area – the skills and confidence to accept a request to review. The course content is delivered via directed self-learning in the form of webinars, podcasts and questionnaires and can be tackled at the desired pace of the participant. Completion is recognised by a certificate. We hope that the course will help to tackle the reviewer shortage issue that so many of you and your peers face.

Why is this important?

The integrity of scholarly communications depends heavily on the peer reviewing process. 82% academics agreed “without peer review there is no control in scientific communication” and 74% agreed that reviewing significantly raises the quality of published papers (full report here). Therefore, it is crucial for science to expand the reviewer pool and to ensure that proper training is received for producing trustworthy and high-quality peer reviews.

Researchers agree that there is a general ”lack of guidance about how to perform a good review, and reviewers are expected to ‘learn on the job’” (read more here).  Therefore, 77% of reviewers would be interested in receiving specific peer reviewing training. Those who are interested are early researchers (with experience of 5 years and less) but also established career researchers.

What to expect?

The course is divided into 4 major sections.  Each section features complex subthemes to assure that every aspect of the procedure is covered, establishing skills and confidence in the process.

When is it happening?

The course will launch during Peer Review Week on 17th September. Register for free via this link: https://researcheracademy.elsevier.com/navigating-peer-review/certified-peer-reviewer-course/introduction-certified-peer-reviewer-course

Peer review week is a global event, organized to emphasize the central role peer review plays in scholarly communication. On 16-20 September 2019, individuals, institutions and organizations devoted to the mission of maintaining a high quality of science participate in this event to share research, highlight the latest innovation and advance best practices.

Advisor of the month: Ahmad Samir Alfaar

Rachel Brennesholtz

Dr. Ahmed Samir Alfaar

How did you get into your field and what is your research story?

My cousins had a home library full with science fiction stories that encouraged me to read more about science, my mother was a high school mathematics teacher that used to build models for teaching, I started to read early in biology and by the end of high school I decided to be a physician that practices medicine and does research. I entered medical school, finding no chances for practicing research for students, I decided to practice programming and by the end of medical school I decided to specialize in Ophthalmology and medical/biomedical informatics. I was called to participate in founding the research department at Children’s Cancer Hospital, Egypt in 2008. The team we built created a great environment to learn more about clinical and biomedical research, so I specialized in ophthalmic oncology research. We have gained knowledge together in many aspects and identified the areas that need development in ourselves. After three years, I have been assigned as a head of the research education unit. I have designed and organized multiple training programs for students, early graduates and hospital staff training on clinical research. After finishing my diploma of informatics, Master of science in ophthalmology and Master science of Advanced oncology, I decided to pursue my PhD in molecular medicine and integrated my informatics knowledge in that. Due to the delay in starting my PhD, I have completed another doctorate degree for physicians (Dr. med.)  and now I am conducting a second doctorate degree (MD/PhD in Neuroscience) at Charité Universtätsmedizin – Berlin and Humboldt University International Graduate School of Neuroscience. My current research focuses on the underlying mechanisms of Retinal degenerative diseases beside many other topics.

Where do you do your research? What kind of environment suits you?

I have found that the best place for production is the garden and on the train. However, I lack power supply in the garden, my laptop does not last for very long disconnected and I do not travel that often to allow myself to work on trains, so I find myself obliged to accept working at my desk.

The best environment for research, for me, is open space where I work with students, colleagues and other physicians, sharing knowledge freely, teaching and discussing clinical and biological dilemmas without limits or sensitivities. In any place I plan to work I install a big white board for describing, modelling, sharing and breeding ideas, sometimes, over years.

How long have you been using Mendeley? 

Over 10 years, since its first beta versions.

What were you using prior to Mendeley and how does Mendeley influence your research?

Before Mendeley I was using Zotero. Zotero was a great move in the field of citation management after classic ones like Endnote. However, Mendeley represented the first user-oriented, user-friendly, and of course free, software. Its learning curve was extremely steep. Before that, researchers required longer time to learn the software, build their own library, and cite within the documents. Mendeley accelerated my speed of organization, annotation and writing and submission of manuscripts. These findings were noticed also by my students and colleagues whom I taught Mendeley. Moreover, it allowed hundreds of my students to collaborate effectively on publications and scientific documents over the last 10 years. Such web 2.0 features were unique in Mendeley.

Why did you decide to become an Advisor and how are you involved with the program?

I was teaching Mendeley before being an Advisor. Being a Mendeley Advisor means I am updated about feature-releases early and supported with teaching materials. Moreover, it allowed me to be recognized by those who want to learn about the software. A more valuable reason was the storage space given to Advisors. This allowed me to build large number of groups during the big courses that I was organising, to evaluate participants’ progress, and to practice with them till the publications get published.

What researcher would you like to work with or meet, dead or alive?

From the last 100 years; Alfred G. Knudson Jr, and from the last 1000 years; Ibn Al-Haytham.

Besides, many people that impressed me by their art of organised depiction starting from nominal observations.

What book are you reading at the moment?

Behave, by Robert Sapolsky. It provides a perspective of a scientist on the triggers and development of human behaviour and the potential relation to other creatures.

What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned this week?

Working in research raises the threshold of signals that can be named interesting. It teaches you to doubt everything. Everything requires re-analysis even what very reputable outlets broadcast.

What is the best part about working in research?

You keep asking, diving in the space of answers, you keep mutating and breeding your questions, evaluating your question, however, no answer is satisfying, but you report your position and enjoy the game.

And the most challenging part about working in research?

To convince humans of something they cannot model (imagine) and to form holes in their conflicts of interest.

What is one Mendeley “ProTip” you have? 

Drag, drop, show me your paper

Biography 

Dr. Ahmed Samir Alfaar, is a physician (ophthalmologist), informatician, medical educator, patients’ advocate and clinical research expert. He was graduated from Cairo University Medical School in 2005. He received PPCR Clinical research certificate from Harvard University in 2009, Certificate of E-Learning Development from Inwent-GIZ in 2009, Diploma in Informatics from Helwan University in 2010,  Master of science in Ophthalmology in 2012, and Masters of Science in Advanced Oncology from Ulm University in 2014. Ahmed worked as a clinical research specialist in Retinoblastoma and Pediatric solid tumors between 2008 and 2014 in the Children’s Cancer Hospital – Egypt, and the head of research education unit between 2011 and 2014.

He moved to Berlin in 2015 to work in the experimental ophthalmology department, Charité Universtätsmedizin-Berlin and received his first doctorate degree (Dr. med.) in Ocular Oncology in 2018 and since 2017 he has been studying for MD/PhD degree in the International Graduate School of Medical Neuroscience, Humboldt University and Charité Universtätsmedizin-Berlin.

Ahmed has received multiple awards and grants for his activities in research and education.

He has been a Mendeley advisor since September 2012, one of the first advisors in Egypt, and taught referencing management using Mendeley to hundreds of students worldwide.

Further details can be found on:

Website: http://www.ahmadsamir.com/

Mendeley Profile: https://j.mp/AlfaarMEND

LinkedIn: https://j.mp/AlfaarIN

ResearchGate: https://j.mp/AlfaarRG

 

Interested in becoming a Mendeley Advisor yourself? Find out more about the Advisor Community here

Mendeley Advisors Recruit 10,000 New Users in 2019 (Wow!)

Rachel Brennesholtz

(Right photo: Yahaya Gavamukulya, Left photo: Serge Kameni Leugoue)

As of early June, Mendeley Advisors introduced a whopping 10,000 people to the power of good reference management and research workflow this year! The ever-growing Advisor Community runs around 40 events per month, averaging a combined 2,500 attendees. We’d like to give a special thanks to super star Advisors Serge Kameni Leugoue (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy and University of Dschang – Cameroon.) and Yahaya Gavamukulya (Busitema University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Kenya) for welcoming user 10,000 during one of their events!

Congratulations and a big thanks to all of our Advisors for your help and hard work on this journey.  Mendeley is so much more than a reference manager – it is a strong community of academics from all disciplines and career stages, committed to improving the way we do research, from end-to-end.

Why and How to be a Mendeley Advisor   

Mendeley Advisors are network of over 5,000 passionate Mendeley experts across the world. They are our hands on the ground, helping potential users connect with the platform. We also consult with Advisors to understand the needs of users and to beta test new features.  You’re the first group we consult when we are considering adding a new functionality to the product. But the Mendeley Advisor program isn’t just about making Mendeley famous—there are also some nice perks for you:

  • Be the Mendeley representative on your campus (a nice thing to add to your CV)
  • Get a special Mendeley Advisor account with more groups and increased storage
  • Connect with the team behind Mendeley
  • Be the first to know what we are working on and get early access to new features
  • Get access to the exclusive Mendeley Advisor forum
  • Receive free Mendeley giveaways for events
  • And most importantly: get a flashy Advisor badge for your Mendeley profile so the whole world can see you’re a Mendeley guru!

Want to learn more about Advisors?  Read our Advisor of the Month column or apply on our Mendeley Advisor webpage. Have questions?  Reach out to the Community Team at community@mendeley.com.