Fundermentals Top 10 2019

It's been quite a year. One, I think, that we'd all rather forget. 

Well, as ever, you can trust Fundermentals to do the wrong thing. Here, with a reminder of every twist and turn of the Year that Brexit Never Was, is the top ten most popular articles on the site this year. 

• 10: Blog Roll: Obviously you never, ever need to read another research funding-related blog now that you've discovered Fundermentals, but what if you fancy a change? We've got some recommendations. 
• 9: Ps and Qs: While we were having existential crises brought on by Brexit, DG Research was doing important stuff like reshuffling its sections and renaming departments. They'll have a P please Bob.
• 8: What Lies Beneath. The National Productivity Investment Fund is the root system underlying a lot of new funding schemes. But how does it fit together, and what's it all about? 
• 7: What Wellcome Wants. The first of two 'how to..' pieces in the list. Wellcome is the second largest research charity in the world, so it's worth taking time to understand what makes them tick. 
• 6: UKRI Delivery Plan Top Trumps. When UKRI published their delivery plans in the summer, it was an opportunity for Fundermentals to compare and contrast. And what better way to do it than through the medium of Top Trumps and lookalikes?
• 5: Arc Welding. Bidding goodbye - or au revior - to my life as Deputy Director of Research Services as I move on to managing the Eastern Arc, I take a chance to look back at what I've learnt. 
• 4: Coping with Rejection. We all have to learn how to deal with it, and none more so than grant applicants. Two academics talk about their experiences, and how they survived. 
• 3: The Inside Track on Applying to Leverhulme. All you need to know when applying to the soap king.
• 2: At Home with Phil Baty. An insight into the home life of the rank-master general. Allegedly. 
• 1: Research England Launches 'Old MacDonald' Funding Suite. Over the years, the top spot seems to have swung between something sensible and something very, very stupid. This year it's the turn of stupid: the funders and their love of torturous acronyms for their schemes. Oh, and launching them with two week deadlines and million pound match funding requirements. It clearly hit a nerve.

So that's it for this year. What does next year have in store? It's going to be - in the words of Jo Johnson - 'a challenge' for researchers. I've written a piece for Research Professional scanning the horizon, and that will be available here (free) shortly after.

In the meantime if you want to find out what was top of the pops in previous years, here's the list from 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 and 2014.