Borders no longer constrain the flow of capital, ideas and talent to emerging centres of excellence.

There's more than one way to do postdoctoral research, and unconventional routes can lead to international collaboration, intellectual or personal freedom and better job prospects. Kendall Powell explores the roads less travelled.

Scientists often describe themselves as a community. If this description is true, then that community has grown "nastier and nastier" in the past 30 years, according to one participant at a retreat for US National Cancer Institute postdocs last week in Ocean City, Maryland. The remark came during a workshop on scientific publishing that I took part in. The nastiness, she said, manifests itself most often in the form of hostile, disparaging remarks in referee reports during the peer-review process — usually cloaked in anonymity.

The conditions for framework funding are complex and the competition is tough, says Nora Eichinger. But many find the prize is worth the effort.

Origami expert illustrates the power of creative transformation.

If you look on short-term employment as a way of window shopping, you could get a bargain.