RE: Free Money For Someone Else's Work - The Scandal of Journals Behind Paywalls
I couldn't agree more. I think that the internet has the power to make scientific research accelerate at an unprecedented rate if it were used toward initiatives like making scientific articles available to to very taxpayers who fund the research. This is why I've been posting my original research on Steemit... I'm trying to feel out alternative methods of funding and publishing research that bypasses the traditional venues since they are overpriced (and thus not accessible to the average citizen) and don't contribute to the research itself (i.e., funding, neither before nor after as authors never receive royalties or payment of any sort).
Of course on the internets there will have to be a vetting process or peer review process that ensures quality content. It's not there yet but a practical solution for that, too, must be right around the corner.
the blockchain offers the perfect environment for peer review
that way when someone claims that their research model didnt work because all the global warming dissappeared into the ocean, we can laugh at them for not including that in their methodology.
sorry buddy,you don't get to change your story b/c your hypothesis failed
Well yes, and the blockchain has real potential to track original content and ensure academic honesty as well. For instance, researchers are sometimes (often?) worried about their work or ideas being stolen (which is another whole discussion in itself, re: sharing). Referring to my Steemit posts, my peers have asked me "what if someone steals your ideas." Well, that can happen anyway in print but at least by putting it out there on the blockchain, under an immutable date and time the origin of the information is always chronologically accurate as is its authorship.
Thanks for commenting. I think one potential means of peer review is to use the same people that do peer review for the "prestigious" journals but it is a chicken and egg situation. The journals get the best peer reviewers for free because of their prestige. Therefore they get more prestige. To get those same people on online open journals will require the same prestige but that won't happen without good peer review.