Technocrat

Open Source Research

zogger
Thu Dec 28 19:57:21 -0800 2006
Open+Standards
manage

We have all seen what can happen with the concept of sharing and the open source model for software. So why not extend this idea to scientific research in general?


"Academic and industrial scientific research operate on powerful and complementary models, consisting of some mix of competitive funding, peer review, and limited inter-laboratory collaboration. Enormous successes have arisen from both models. Yet there are clear failures to deliver results in certain areas, such as the provision of drugs for some of the most prevalent of human diseases. Is there a mechanism of research that is not wholly dependent on funding for its operation nor on traditional peer-reviewed articles for its propagation?"...more there

Open Source Research
femto
Thu Dec 28 21:18:39 -0800 2006
 manage
The biggest problem I can see with open source research is staking a claim on results and establishing prior art so someone else cannot patent your results and prevent your work from progressing.

The best idea I have been able to come up with is to publish a "Journal of Open Source Research" (or "Journal of Free Research"?), which accepts papers from anyone (online submission, GFDL license), without peer review.  This journal would have its own international standard serial number (ISSN), and publish one paper copy in each country.  These paper copies would be deposited with each country's national library, on the basis that many national libraries are "legal deposit" libraries and by law must receive and preserve one of everything published with an ISSN in the country.  The journal would also publish an identical online edition for the general readership.  It would be published weekly or even daily, like a newspaper.

The library acts as an independent third party who can be consulted if someone tries to falsely claim results from open research.  I would presume that the deposition with the library would be admissible in court to establish prior art and "filing dates" in a patent or plagiarism case.

Such a scheme would effectively out source the the preservation job to an independent third party at no cost other than the initial production of the paper copies and the cost of an ISSN.

It's only an idea, I haven't done anything to establish such a journal.

In the online edition papers could be tagged so readers would have the option of restricting the journal to a particular subject area.  Maybe have online peer review, vaguely like slashdot's rating system, so soon after publication better work will be highlighted?

What do others think?  Would such a thing be useful?  How could it be improved?  Anyone interested in doing it?

JD
Open Source Research
AB3A
Fri Dec 29 04:30:48 -0800 2006
 manage
This is an interesting proposal.  I've been waiting for the other shoe to drop on this issue since Judson's book on Fraud in Science was published.  He was particularly interested in Internet publications of theses and experimental data. 

My concern is that such publications on the web have some permanance.  That's the trouble with scientific papers in a medium which can be deleted or altered so easily.
Open Source Research
femto
Sat Dec 30 17:26:50 -0800 2006
 manage
Following up, I know the National Library of Australia is moving into archiving digital media (Pandora Archive).  It might even be possible to avoid costs of paper copies and have the libraries archive a soft copy?  I'm not sure whether it would have the same legal weight as depositing a paper copy though.
 

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