Have you ever falsified data, threw scientific shadows on other scientists, published a mountains of articles that have received a huge amount of quotations? Cynics could call these steps necessary to achieve academic success.

You are also the goals of the players of the new card game 'publish or go down'-a game that for Researchers who try to assert themselves in the often labyrinth-like and ruthless area of ​​science. The name refers to the common description of science as A system that rewards the researcher who publish their results in respected scientific magazines and those who do not do so.

The game is the spiritual child of Max Bai, an independent political social psychologist from Minnetonka, Minnesota. Bai has published a 'beta' version of the game, which was tested by several researchers. The concept has been well received by scientists on social media, some of which took the opportunity to pre -order the game before the official publication.

with fake manuscript titles from "Unpack the aerodynamics of flying pigs" to "Why dogs follow them into the bathroom: insights into the dependency behavior of dogs", the game aims at the "absurdity" of what it takes to build up a successful scientific career, says Bai.

obvious

The players compete with to publish articles and put on quotes . The player with The highest number of quotations wins at the end of the game. To publish a manuscript, the players must collect 'research cards' that represent every component of publication - ideas, writing, data, theory and references.

Publish or go down a card from the board game.

if it were just so easy! Your colleagues can sabotage you by playing cards that require a review of your work by an institutional review body, report a citation error or point out that your "ingenious new theory" has already been discovered and named. Players can be confronted with several of these cards, some of which reduce their quotes and prevent them from publishing new manuscripts, "just as in real life", as the rules of the game say.

To deal with these setbacks, players can use cards that enable them to do dubious practices such as Plagiat and to let in a kind of statistical manipulation called p -Wert-hacking . These cards enable players to confront their opponents with scientific trivia issues. Not all cards are negative: As in real life, some cards are rewarded for Collaborations and visiting workshops.

possible collaborations are probably short -lived, since sneaky compliments and unconstructive criticism are not only encouraged, but are also rewarded with additional quotations. At the end of the game, the players have to keep a spontaneous 'defense' of the ridiculous papers that they published in the course of the game. The player with the best presentation receives a few additional quotes.

a break from the laboratory

The game was developed to revise Doctoralands who experience record-Burnout rates to offer a good laugh, says Bai. The game plays on "the difficulty of dealing with the assessment process, getting a job, finding his [consultant], securing funds, nepotism - the full program," says Bai.

Publish or go down on a table from the board game".

The game is a "possibility to socialize the collective trauma that people experience in academic life," he adds. "I don't see that people have a good way to reduce it upset. I wanted to create a way out for people."

In the next few months, Bai plans to start the game on the Kickstarter crowdfunding platform, where it is offered for purchase.