We strongly believe in a science that is:

RIGOROUS: We are our own fiercest critic and always remain humble and honest in the face of our data. Ultimately, nature has the final say, and integrity is the cardinal value. We consider alternative explanations to our favorite hypotheses. It is normal to make mistakes and mess up important experiments. If it happens, we remain transparent and try to learn from these.

OPEN: we release our findings, construct maps, scripts, raw and processed data within the preprint ecosystem as soon as a project is complete. Doing so accelerates the pace of research world-wide, because results become accessible faster and to a larger number of scientists.

COLLABORATIVE: As a team, we are stronger than our individual contributions.
That requires putting a premium on helping each other, be it at the bench, at the terminal, or at the white board.

INCLUSIVE: solving hard problems require many different scientific viewpoints, which are informed by the sum of our experience. This requires assembling and nurturing a team where diverse expertise, experiences, background, identity, cultures, and individuals contribute.

CREATIVE: we find a balance between busy-work and idea generation. Francis Crick once remarked after moving to the US: “it is remarkable how everyone here is so busy that they don’t have time to think”. We adhere to ‘psychological safety’ (see below) to enable constructive criticism/disagreements and foster genuine interactions within our team. While we might start with some hypotheses, final products are always dictated by what we find along the way, and in the end a scientific paper really involves going from nothing to something.

REPRODUCIBLE: in the process of generating and analyzing data, we take careful notes of our procedures, scripts, and write detailed methodological sections in our published work to enable other scientists to carry out any of the steps if they want to build on our own work.

FUN: few jobs come with the rare satisfaction of learning something new about the way the natural world works. Although it is hard work, never forget that you are part of an endeavor that transcends you. Curiosity should be the main driver, always with an eye towards actionable knowledge that can generate real change down the line.

RESPECTFUL: we are not scientists doing human, but humans doing science. Everyone is going through a journey. All criticism must be constructive and non-personal. Derogatory and inappropriate comments have no place here. If you witness or experience discriminatory or otherwise inappropriate behavior, come talk to JB, or reach out to the Bureau du respect de la personne at UdeM.

Psychological safety in creative teams

In this lab, everyone can feel free to:

• Ask questions without fear of being categorized as ignorant.
• Solicit critical feedback without fear of being perceived as incompetent.
• Respectfully criticize an idea/data/plan without fear of being considered disruptive.
• Suggest improvements without fear of being labelled negative.

Adapted from Edmondson et al, 1999.