[Insight-developers] BARRIERS to OPEN SCIENCE

[Luis Ibanez]

http://opensource.com/business/10/8/barriers-open-science-big-business-watson-and-crick

Science can only advance when discoveries are shared, but scientists often
have a disincentive to disclose their research. So says a group of
researchers from Georgia Institute of Technology in their recent article on
voxEU.org, Do academic scientists share information with their colleagues?
Not necessarily <http://www.voxeu.org/index.php?q=node/4264>. In fact,
scientists often make complex, calculated decisions when asked to share
data...

....

Open science must be partnered with a strong accountability system, perhaps
more formal than the “Internet-as-public-record” variety used to establish
reputation in open source software development communities.

...

In addition, the Georgia Tech researchers have found that
competition<http://www.voxeu.org/index.php?q=node/4264>,
especially where the commercial and intellectual value of prizes is
significant, actually stifles the practice of open science. So much the same
for patents and consulting opportunities. But when increased government
funding relaxes the competition in a field, scientists are far more willing
to share their research with each other.

....

Beyond professional expectations for sharing, centralized data repositories
must be created and maintained, then standards for entering data
established, which is more difficult for some disciplines than others.

...


Full article at
http://opensource.com/business/10/8/barriers-open-science-big-business-watson-and-crick
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