Talk:OpenVentures/OpenResearch
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| Thread title | Replies | Last modified |
|---|---|---|
| What does open research mean for modern researchers? | 3 | 18:26, 11 July 2016 |
I believe that scientists once kept their findings secret until they were published so that other scientists would not be able to beat them to the chase. Would open access to data change all of this? I believe that it will allow for better quality research.
It is interesting to consider that the only ones who had access to journal articles were professors or those enrolled in university programs. Now research is readily available online. The world is at our fingertips.
Is this for better or for worse? Are we worried about the wrong individuals getting their hands on our data? Perhaps some information still needs to remain classified. :)
Hi Christine, glad you can join us here. I agree that opening up scientific data inherently would lead to better quality research, and also more timely research that is less redundant. I also appreciate that Open Science/Data could (does) lead to better global collaboration.
I am not so sure however, that we are yet there for opening up access to all journal articles. For Open Access journals, there are two routes that authors can take - Gold route (peer reviewed in an open online journal, ie. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning or the Green route, where researchers upload directly to an Open access repository. The UBC Open Access Repository is CIRCLE [1]A challenge too is that Open Access routes have associated costs.
Unfortunately, there are still many articles that are behind paywalls so that the the broader community does not have access. I know it is a luxury for me to be taking a UBC course with full access to the online library, my first few courses, I just lived in the online library. Now, I want all of the physical books that I don't have access to be achieved online too!!).
You bring up a great point too about data that needs to be kept classified. Personal data is one area that I need to learn more about, but I feel we give our data away whenever we sign up for any free accounts. Our Internet usage is tagged, categorized, stored and shared with people that want it.
Briar
Hi. I can certainly see the benefits of open research. I also agree that it may allow for better quality research. I can envision an opportunity of collaboration where researchers can work together with others that may provide new insight or approaches. This process could be a bonus for researchers as their work becomes more 'mainstream' (i.e., increasing visibility) and improves their ability to conduct new research (i.e., accessing funding for further studies). Are we there yet? Is Open Access necessary or an improvement? I am not sure. I can see where it makes sense in a lot of areas. Hmm. I think I need to think about that a bit more and explore the advantages and disadvantages. Thanks!
Hi Christine, great question. While reading for this weeks topic I discovered that some researchers funded by the Govt of Canada are required to share their research (once complete) in an open forum to help promote collaboration and future discoveries. It seems that in some cases, the decision may be taken out of the hands of the researchers themselves if they want public support for their work.
