You are in the wrong forum. But from what I know, and I don't know much, neurosurgery residencies sometimes have a built in research year. General surgery is also like this at certain institutions. The bottom line is that it depends on the program.
I'm not sure if any residencies specifically require research. However, research is definitely a good plus to have for all of them, especially for the more competitive specialties. That being said, I'll move this to Rotations and Residencies for you.
