Observer

March 2002
Volume 15, Number 3

1. Sitting in Judgment: Myths and Realities of Peer Review
By Richard Hébert
It's the scientific community's version of civic responsibility. Part jury duty, part public service, peer review is valued by scientists and non-scientists as the way to make the best possible decisions about whose work to fund. Psychology researchers talk about how the system works at NIH and NSF, and what service on peer review panels means to them. (News)
 
2. NIH Helps Pay Student Loans for Clinical Researchers in Psychology
A new program offers help to clinical scientists who may be faced with choosing between staying in research or going into practice to pay off student loans. (News)
 
3. Nakamura Named Acting Director of NIMH
By Alan G. Kraut
APS Fellow and Charter Member Richard Nakamura speaks about his vision for the institute. (News)
 
4. A New Age of Exploration
By Rita R. Colwell
NSF Director Rita R. Colwell calls for a "renaissance in the study of humankind" to help people cope with some of the unintended consequences of advanced technology. (Presidential Column)
 
5. Lab Courses for Undergrads: An Invitation to Comment
By Michael Toglia
(Commentary)
 
6. In Defense of Self Reports
By Rebecca Norwick, Y. Susan Choi, Tal Ben-Shachar
Three graduate students address the use of adjective scale data, noting it's not whether these data are useful, but rather, it's a matter of how and when they are used. (Commentary)
 
7. Self Reports and Across-Group Comparisons: A Way Out of the Box
By Linda Bartoshuk
Linda Bartoshuk underscores her support for these research techniques and offers a number of ideas to ensure their validity. (Commentary)
 
8. A Dissident View: How Can One Budget for a Discovery?
By Maciej Henneberg
Maciej Henneberg asks "How Can One Budget for a Discovery?" (Commentary)
 
9. Paperless Peers
By Marlene Behrmann
Grant programs strive to eliminate the "dreaded boxes." (Commentary)
 
10. Peerless?
By Constance Atwell
Are research proposals really reviewed by a true "peer?" (Commentary)
 
11. Peering into the Past
Milestones in the early history of NIH peer review. (Commentary)
 
12. Reviewer's Review
By Denise Park
Insights into what it is like to be a reviewer from two veterans. (Commentary)
 
13. The Reviewers and the Reviewed
Comments on peer review from both sides of the process. (Commentary)
 
14. Parting Ways-Ending Your Course
By Tami J. Eggleston, Gabie E. Smith
Much emphasis has been placed on the use of activities at the begin-ning of a course to provide opportunities for introductions, begin to create a comfortable classroom atmosphere to encourage discussion and learning, or develop a sense of community and group identity. Much less attention has been given to the equally important task of providing closure at the end of a course or seminar. (Teaching Tips)
 
15. State University of New York at New Paltz
The Department is dedicated to teaching, research, and public service. Instruction in the methods and content of the field of psychology is provided within the liberal arts and sciences' tradition of encouraging intellectual and personal development. (Department Profile)
 
16. Teaching Psychology: Graduate Student Shares His Lessons Learned from a Summer Teaching Undergraduate Statistics
By Steven A. Miller
Teaching an advanced undergraduate level statistics course this past semester has been one of the most time consuming and demanding aspects of my graduate school career. Through the wisdom given to me by many excellent teachers as well as through my own trial and error, I have learned some valuable lessons for graduate student instructors. (Student Notebook)