We are pleased to announce the winner of Agronomy 2023 Outstanding Reviewer Award—Dr. Dariusz Gozdowski.

Name: Dr. Dariusz Gozdowski

Affiliation: Department of Biometry, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Warsaw, Poland

We would like to thank the award committee for selecting one winner from a large number of exceptional candidates, Dr. Dariusz Gozdowski. We will continue to reward scholars with the Outstanding Reviewer Award to express our acknowledgment of their support for our journal Agronomy (ISSN: 2073-4395). We wish them every success in their careers.

The following is a short interview with Dr. Dariusz Gozdowski:

1. How did you become interested in your current area of research?

In 1999, I graduated in agronomical studies, obtaining an M.Sc. in agronomy at Warsaw University of Life Sciences (Poland), and I decided to continue my education and begin my research as a Ph.D. student at the same university. I was always interested in research, not only in relation to agronomy but also in terms of data analysis. Curiosity about the world and the need to gain knowledge and learn new things caused me to engage in scientific research. Due to the fact that I come from a farm located in a small village, studying agronomy was a natural choice for me. In addition, I have always had developed mathematical abilities, which in turn meant that data analysis has always played a large role in my scientific development.

One of the struggles I faced as an early career researcher was the very low scholarship salary during my Ph.D. studies. In general, a scientific career is usually very slow because it demands long-lasting experiments, especially in agronomical studies. Achieving scientific degrees and positions usually takes much more time in comparison to other types of jobs.

3. Could you describe any particularly interesting or unexpected results that you have discovered in your research so far?

One of the most interesting results I have observed is the detection of strong relationships between winter crop condition at early growth stages, in very early spring or even in late autumn, with grain yield. This was observed based on satellite-derived vegetation indices at a regional level for central Europe.

4. What is the most valuable lesson you have learned so far in your career?

A scientist should have limited trust in many things, including the experimental data they themselves have collected, as well as the results of other scientists—even those published in reputable journals. This allows for a critical approach to research and helps to avoid errors, including the repetition of previous errors, which sometimes happens in scientific research.

5. What is your motivation for research?

My motivation comes from developing my own knowledge and skills, developing my scientific career, and participating in interesting scientific projects which make my professional work more interesting and satisfying.

6. We hope that the Outstanding Reviewer Award will open new opportunities for you. How does an award like this one help to support the career of a researcher such as yourself?

This award provides motivation for greater involvement in the preparation of peer-reviewed scientific articles and shows an appreciation of one’s involvement in such work in the past. It increases researchers’ motivation to participate in scientific work, including in the peer-review processes.

7. As a successful researcher, what advice would you give to early career researchers who are just beginning their careers?

Scientific work requires patience because scientific development is usually slow and takes a lot of time. You should not expect to reach a very high scientific level in one or two years. It requires many small steps, but after many years the effects will be visible. It is important not to give up after various setbacks; for example, the rejection of a manuscript by a scientific journal or rejection of a scientific project application. Success will come sooner or later if we constantly strive for it and do not give up.

8. What qualities do you think young scientists need?

Most scientific activities require many skills and increasingly broad knowledge. For example, in the case of agronomic research, these may not only be things related to plant cultivation, plant physiology, and soil science, but also a range of skills related to data analysis and statistical analysis. In my case, knowledge of geographic information systems and the ability to analyze remote sensing data have also proven helpful. Recently, data analysis has become increasingly complex, often necessitating the use of AI techniques, and it is necessary to keep up with this.

9. What are your plans for the future, and how do you hope to build upon your current work?

A large part of my scientific work has always been statistical data analysis. Currently, increasingly advanced methods are being used for this purpose, including machine learning. This requires acquiring more and more knowledge and applying it in scientific research. It is difficult to precisely determine in what direction the development of AI in agronomy will go. It will probably include the use of AI to classify various plant pathogens, weeds, diseases and pests. Precision agriculture, which has been a significant research focus for many years, will become even more precise and will probably include diagnostics regarding plant conditions and very precise protection strategies. I think that my future research goals may be related to the increasing use of various AI techniques in data analysis and classification.

10. As the winner of this award, would you like to take a moment to share your thoughts with our readers, or express gratitude towards those who have played a significant role in your research accomplishments?

Scientific work has long required the cooperation of multidisciplinary teams. In my case, this is particularly relevant, as I work with many teams analyzing different data. Of course, each person from each team is very important, and on this occasion, I would like to thank everyone for their conflict-free and effective cooperation.