Podcast
Marginally Significant
Hosted by Andrew Smith, Twila Wingrove, Andrew Monroe, and Chris Holden · EN
Marginally Significant is a podcast discussing life in academia, issues with scientific research, and current events. Marginally Significant is hosted by Andrew Smith, Twila Wingrove, Andrew Monroe, and Chris Holden. These four psychologists were all trained at research-focused institutions, but now teach at a comprehensive university. Their unique experiences and shifting roles within their university allow them to see academic life from a particular perspective—a perspective that, although shared by many researchers, teachers, and academics, is often not represented by academics from elite universities. Listen to Marginally Significant to hear their opinions and insights, let them know when you agree or disagree, and contribute to the diversity of perspectives about scientific research and teaching in higher education.
10episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Is our research important?
May 4, 202001:28:35Tap to summarizeTwitter post: https://twitter.com/wgervais/status/1251319948581892096?s=20 Baumeister paper: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S002210311600007X Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).
Transcribe →Quarantine in Academia
Apr 7, 202001:06:41Tap to summarizeMarginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).
Transcribe →Should we clean out the file drawer?
Jan 31, 202001:05:42Tap to summarizeDo you have a file drawer? Cleaning out the file drawer is an idea that has been floating around on twitter, but is it feasible? What does it mean for past studies? Is there a way in which we could get a sense of how many studies are in file drawers? Also, we discuss writing letters of recommendation and how we evaluate the ones we read. Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).
Transcribe →On the Market
Nov 14, 201901:14:57Tap to summarizeAre you on the academic job market? In this episode, we discuss our experiences being on the market, tips for success at a wide variety of universities, and our thoughts now that we've been on hiring committees. Most people won't be hired at an R1 university. Understanding what other types of universities are looking for can increase the likelihood of getting an academic job. Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).
Transcribe →Judging People
Oct 16, 201901:06:43Tap to summarizeWe are required to judge people, whether it is students applying for graduate programs or faculty members going up for tenure. A number of graduate programs have dropped the GRE as a requirement for applications. Many of these programs cite potential biases in the GRE as a reason for removing the requirement. Proponents of the GRE state that, while possibly biased, the GRE is likely to be less biased than alternatives (e.g., letters of recommendation, personal statements). Another biased evaluation is student evaluations of teaching. Numerous studies have shown that they are affected by the teacher's gender and race, but can there still be value in the evaluations? In this episode we discuss whether these biased evaluations should still be used. Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).Links:A wave of graduate programs drops the GRE application requirement Brown eliminates GRE test requirement for 24 doctoral programs Should We Throw Out the GRE? Course Evaluations: Concerns with Gender and Racial Bias — Thanks to Dr. Conry-Murry (@cconrymurray) for sending this list to us. Meta-analysis of faculty's teaching effectiveness: Student evaluation of teaching ratings and student learning are not related Availability of cookies during an academic course session affects evaluation of teaching — The provision of chocolate cookies had a significant effect on course evaluation. These findings question the validity of SETs and their use in making widespread decisions within a faculty. A new intervention could help reduce bias against women college instructors in course evaluations.
Transcribe →Are Grants Worth It?
Sep 26, 201901:00:04Tap to summarizeIs it worth the time and effort to apply for grants when only a small percentage are funded? A recent paper by Kevin Gross and Carl Bergstrom (2019) suggests grant competitions in their corrent form are not worth it. We weigh in on our thoughts about the paper as well as grant funding, in general. We also briefly talk about the aspect of our jobs that motivate us to keep working. Spoiler alert: it is not applying for grants. Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).Links:Contest models highlight inherent inefficiencies of scientific funding competitions - Gross & Bergstrom, 2019 — "We find that the effort researchers waste in writing proposals may be comparable to the total scientific value of the research that the funding supports, especially when only a few proposals can be funded. Moreover, when professional pressures motivate investigators to seek funding for reasons that extend beyond the value of the proposed science (e.g., promotion, prestige), the entire program can actually hamper scientific progress when the number of awards is small." The inherent inefficiency of grant proposal competitions and the possible benefits of lotteries in allocating research funding
Transcribe →Diversity in Open Science
Aug 31, 201901:13:03Tap to summarizeIs open science open to everyone? Are there potential costs to engaging in open science practices? Should diversity be a core value of open science? In this episode we attempt to tackle these potentially polarizing questions. Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).Links:Will This Time Be Different - Sanjay Srivastava Open Science Isn't Always Open to All Scientists
Transcribe →We Need More Power
Aug 10, 201901:02:37Tap to summarizeThe call to use larger sample sizes in psychological research has been around for decades, but only relatively recently have researchers substantially increased the number of people in their studies. Although this change is certainly a good thing, it is quite possible that the emphasis on large sample sizes impacts certainly people (e.g., researchers with limited funding and access to no or small participant pools) and research areas (e.g., programs of research aimed at hard-to-recruit samples) more than others. In this episode, we discuss whether this is an issue for the field. We also talk about whether we've gone far enough to increase the sample sizes in our research. Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).Links:Research in Social Psychology Changed Between 2011 and 2016: Larger Sample Sizes, More Self-Report Measures, and More Online Studies Everything Hertz: 85: GWAS big teeth you have, grandmother (with Kevin Mitchell) StudySwap: A platform for interlab replication, collaboration, and research resource exchange Psychological Science Accelerator: A distributed laboratory network
Transcribe →Who are Conferences Good For?
Jul 24, 201901:01:52Tap to summarizeMost academics go to conferences, but who are they good for? Are there disparities in who can attend and who benefits from conferences? In this episode, we talk about one potential factor contributing to disparities--differences in travel funding available at different universities. We also talk about our own experiences with what we've gotten out of conferences with respect to our research, teaching, and mentoring of students. Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).
Transcribe →Let's Collaborate
Jul 7, 201901:01:41Tap to summarizeCollaborations are the norm, but can sometimes be a challenge. In this episode, we discuss issues we've had and ways we've dealt with collaborating with faculty members, students, and previous advisors. Marginally Significant is hosted by: Andrew Smith @andrewrsmith Twila Wingrove @twilawingrove Andrew Monroe @monroeandrew Chris Holden @profcjholden You can contact Marginally Significant on Twitter (@marginallysig), through email (marginallysig@gmail.com), or on the web (marginallysignificant.fireside.fm/contact).
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