Measuring co-authorship and networking-adjusted scientific impact

Appraisal of the scientific impact of researchers, teams and institutions with productivity and citation metrics has major repercussions. Funding and promotion of individuals and survival of teams and institutions depend on publications and citations. In this competitive environment, the number of authors per paper is increasing and apparently some co-authors don't satisfy authorship criteria. Listing of individual contributions is still sporadic and also open to manipulation. Metrics are needed to measure the networking intensity for a single scientist or group of scientists accounting for patterns of co-authorship. Here, I define I1 for a single scientist as the number of authors who appear in at least I1 papers of the specific scientist. For a group of scientists or institution, In is defined as the number of authors who appear in at least In papers that bear the affiliation of the group or institution. I1 depends on the number of papers authored Np. The power exponent R of the relationship between I1 and Np categorizes scientists as solitary (R>2.5), nuclear (R=2.25-2.5), networked (R=2-2.25), extensively networked (R=1.75-2) or collaborators (R<1.75). R may be used to adjust for co-authorship networking the citation impact of a scientist. In similarly provides a simple measure of the effective networking size to adjust the citation impact of groups or institutions. Empirical data are provided for single scientists and institutions for the proposed metrics. Cautious adoption of adjustments for co-authorship and networking in scientific appraisals may offer incentives for more accountable co-authorship behaviour in published articles.Comment: 25 pages, 5 figure

Versatile Coordination of Cyclopentadienyl-Arene Ligands and Its Role in Titanium-Catalyzed Ethylene Trimerization

Cationic titanium(IV) complexes with ansa-(η5-cyclopentadienyl,η6-arene) ligands were synthesized and characterized by X-ray crystallography. The strength of the metal-arene interaction in these systems was studied by variable-temperature NMR spectroscopy. Complexes with a C1 bridge between the cyclopentadienyl and arene moieties feature hemilabile coordination behavior of the ligand and consequently are active ethylene trimerization catalysts. Reaction of the titanium(IV) dimethyl cations with CO results in conversion to the analogous cationic titanium(II) dicarbonyl species. Metal-to-ligand backdonation in these formally low-valent complexes gives rise to a strongly bonded, partially reduced arene moiety. In contrast to the η6-arene coordination mode observed for titanium, the more electron-rich vanadium(V) cations [cyclopentadienyl-arene]V(NiPr2)(NC6H4-4-Me)+ feature η1-arene binding, as determined by a crystallographic study. The three different metal-arene coordination modes that we experimentally observed model intermediates in the cycle for titanium-catalyzed ethylene trimerization. The nature of the metal-arene interaction in these systems was studied by DFT calculations.

Taste processing in Drosophila larvae.

The sense of taste allows animals to detect chemical substances in their environment to initiate appropriate behaviors: to find food or a mate, to avoid hostile environments and predators. Drosophila larvae are a promising model organism to study gustation. Their simple nervous system triggers stereotypic behavioral responses, and the coding of taste can be studied by genetic tools at the single cell level. This review briefly summarizes recent progress on how taste information is sensed and processed by larval cephalic and pharyngeal sense organs. The focus lies on several studies, which revealed cellular and molecular mechanisms required to process sugar, salt, and bitter substances