Organizational politics involves trades, exchanges of favors, relationships, reprisals, obstructionism and coalition-building. This sometimes goes beyond the normal process of getting the job done and the normal interchanges with peers and colleagues.

“All sound and fury signifying nothing” pretty much sums up the scientific establishment’s take on Twitter, Facebook, and company at the dawning of social media. Given researchers’ reputation as a media-averse, socially restrained crowd, social media seemed the worst of all worlds.

University spending on research and development in all fields totaled $65.8 billion in FY 2012, according to data from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Survey.

University spending on research and development in all fields totaled $65.8 billion in FY 2012, according to data from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Survey.

Michigan State University will help improve the preparation of thousands of future professors as part of a national network focused on improving teaching in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM.

Oerlikon Leybold Vacuum, one of the leading global manufacturers of vacuum pumps and systems, signed a contract with a distributor for the Commonwealth of Independent States CIS region. This contract will be the basis for a strategic partnership with Vacuummash, the leading vacuum pump and -systems suppliers in Russia and will facilitate the access to the CIS States.

One of the hot topics on social media this holiday season is finding gifts that can help children, especially girls, develop science- and engineering-related skills.

With the downturn in the economy, many companies have cut back on training. A lot of employees view training as an expense they can’t afford and besides, if the company doesn’t pay for it, it must not be too important. This eventually hurts employees that don’t realize their talent is their best asset.

Research from North Carolina State University shows companies that screen the social media accounts of job applicants alienate potential employees – making it harder for them to attract top job candidates.