Units to learn practice and promote research skills

Professor of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School

Rick Born

1-hour interactive presentation. 3 scaffolding lessons teach how cognitive bias influences research. Participants learn about how masking can work to address bias and some issues that arise when attempting to mask an experiment. Spice up a lab meeting, teach a class, run a skill-building session for your team.

3-hour interactive presentation. 7 scaffolding lessons teach how confirmation bias affects every step of the research process. Participants learn strategies for addressing bias in hypothesis formation, experimental design, and data analysis. Teach one week of class, or run an intensive workshop.

Asynchronous, online reference resource. 7 chapters teach how confirmation bias affects every step of the research process. Readers learn strategies for addressing bias in hypothesis formation, experimental design, and data analysis. Learn solo, assign it as coursework, or use it as a reference.

Controls

COMING SOON

Controls

Clarity, not coincidence!

Collegiate Assistant Professor, Virginia Tech

Aparna Shah

1-hour interactive presentation. 3 lessons engagingly introduce the importance of control, challenge learners to grapple with the many meanings of "control" and support planning for fundamental types of negative control groups. Spice up a lab meeting, teach a class, run a skill-building session for your team.

3-hour interactive presentation. 8 lessons include and continue the Meeting version to address the benefits and challenges of additional types of control groups and the unique influence of expectations. Participants then synthesize their knowledge and explore ways to optimize investment in control and embrace transparency in reporting limitations. Teach one week of class, or run an intensive workshop.

Asynchronous, online reference resource. 8 chapters with built-in activities expand upon content in the Class version to support learners in exploring, reflecting, and planning experimental controls. Learn solo, assign it as coursework, or use it as a reference.

Data Visualization

COMING SOON

Data Visualization

Make meaning visible.

Clinical Assistant Professor, The Ohio State University

Sara Gombash Lampe

1-hour interactive presentation. 3 lessons introduce how data visualization communicates research and how plot choice impacts interpretation of results. Participants learn how data structure and plot choices are related: plot choice implies an expected data structure, and data structure indicates ideal plot types. Spice up a lab meeting, teach a class, or run a skill-building session for your team.

3-hour interactive presentation. 7 lessons include and continue the meeting version to build and improve publication-quality figures. Participants learn why thoughtful design choices are necessary both for accessibility and to prevent misinterpretation when communicating research. Teach one week of class, or run an intensive workshop.

Asynchronous, online reference resource. 7 chapters with built-in activities expand upon content in the class version to support learners when identifying common pitfalls in data visualization and applying best practices for fixing design errors or building their own multipanel figures. Learn solo, assign it as coursework, or use it as a reference.

Search and Research

COMING SOON

Search and Research

Search and Research to Support Rigor

Associate Professor, Duquesne University School of Pharmacy

Jordan Covvey

2-hour interactive presentation. 6 lessons include and continue the Meeting version to address the mechanics of conducting a targeted literature search, iterating on the search, and the cautious usage of LLMs to enhance learning. Teach one week of class, or run an intensive workshop.

Asynchronous, online reference resource. 6 chapters with built-in activities expand upon content in the Class version to support learners in enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of their learning and search. Learn solo, assign it as coursework, or use it as a reference.

Randomization

COMING SOON

Randomization

Randomize to know it is real.

Associate Professor Biological Sciences, Smith College

Lisa Mangiamele

1-hour interactive presentation. 3 lessons teach why we randomize, common randomization mistakes, and choosing appropriate randomization methods. Participants learn why randomization is essential for causal inference, how to identify flawed randomization procedures, and how to select suitable randomization approaches for their research. Spice up a lab meeting, teach a class, or run a skill-building session for your team.

3-hour interactive presentation. 8 lessons teach about the theory and practice of randomized allocation and randomization in your lab; how to design randomized studies that account for important covariates or environmental variables; implement simple, block, and stratified randomization; and transparently report randomization methods. Teach one week of class, or run an intensive workshop.

Asynchronous, online reference resource. 8 chapters teach the theory and practice of randomized allocation and randomization in your lab. Readers learn to recognize common randomization myths and mistakes, implement simple, block, and stratified randomization techniques, and account for important variables in experimental design. Learn solo, assign it as coursework, or use it as a reference.