Reports that teams led by two Chinese mainland professors have each been awarded 1 million yuan ($138,000) for publishing papers in Nature, a leading international science journal, have sparked heated discussion in academic circles. While some said universities have the right to reward scholars in any way they want, others questioned whether the practice goes against government efforts to move away from an overemphasis on the publication of papers in academic evaluation.
Tian Wentao, a PhD candidate at a university in Hunan province, said he knows how hard it is to get papers published in top journals like Nature, as they only publish innovative and influential papers that require a massive amount of time-consuming work. However, the researchers are generally not rewarded enough for their contributions, at least financially, which results in a lack of motivation to work on arduous but pioneering problems, he said.
Xiong Bingqi, director of 21st Century Education Research, said he disagrees with the universities' practice. Medical universities and hospitals are notorious for placing too great an emphasis on the publication of academic papers, he said, and many paper retractions and frauds in recent years have happened in the medical sector. That is why people should not equate academic achievements with publishing papers, Xiong added.
More: https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202406/24/WS6678d7a6a31095c51c50a71e.html
