Laboratory for Systems and Signals

Department for Electronic Systems and Signal ProcessingFaculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing

University of Zagreb

True Science Publishing

Predrag Pale

Scholarly Publishing in the Context of Open Science

24-25 September 2015Zadar, Croatia

The purpose of scientific publishing

1. to facilitate scientific research

2. to measure output of a scientist or a group or an institution

The Metrics

• attempt to measure output of a scientist’s work

• for the purpose of deciding1. resource allocation

how much resources the scientist deserves

2. which other activities scientist should be trusted with teaching management of scientific projects and institutions evaluating, planning, …

3. for awarding as a marketing tool for promotion of science

What sponsors actually need

• sponsors (resource owners) are allocating resources in order to: foster production of scientific results boost their own image (as sponsors)

• they need/require results

true, reliable, verified by multiple reviewers,

continuously

competent, reputable teams not lonely, mystic stars cooperation

Openess

Continuity

How do you feel about ….

Science

Scientific publishingA B C D E

The True Science … a reminder

• the joy of discovery

• the happiness of creation

• what it really looks and feels like? telling everybody about my research idea everybody looking into my work, while it is going on

and helping me with their ideas, data, tools criticism, challenging, healthy competing …

everything we all do is semantically interlinked nothing we all do is ever lost scientists (and their data) are independent from anybody

publishers, sponsors, authorities …

AHA !!!

The True Science … needs

• needs reliable input data, theories, tools scrutinized process brainstormed conclusions

and continuous discussion

• requires cooperation from the very inception of research idea throughout the whole research process and long after “final” results are published

Current problems

• “Publish or perish” causes competition instead of cooperation hiding of research data and processes slow and crippled information exchange

• which leads to fear of criticism lack of self-criticism avoiding mistakes and risky projects avoiding long term projects

• all the way to forged data cryptic and obscured processes plagiarism deliberate obstruction of communication

CORRUPTED

SCIENCE

True Science publishing needs…

• input data to be available to everybody to be verified and amended

• research data to be available to everybody to be verified to be used in other research

• processes to be scrutinized by the community

• results to be repeated by many to be verified

• results to be discussed/brainstormed by many

• “live” work -> continuously modified according to changes in: input data processes new discussions

New publishing technologies … basis

• are based on “unlimited” data storage

privately owned high speed communication

omnipresent global reach

unknown, new peers and others

cloud technologies data and processes become mobile independent from physical resources –> “immortal”

visualization new ways of presentation and interpretation new meanings, view, audiences, peers

community networks peer to peer but also “broadcasting” to other communities independence from “hubs” & “authorities”

New publishing technologies … enable

• they enable the researcher to: do “own” publishing

controlling access publish and exchange input & research data

in early stages of research publish procedures and tools

in order to improve them and to foster similar research

open, remote access to physical labs verification of research cheaper research

continuous discussion among peers refining previous research spawning new research creating partnerships

hyperlinks to other research finished, ongoing and planned semantically linked

IPR and priority

• to protect IPR and get credit for priority

• global public archive(s) are required

• authority that stores and keeps (forever) original documents data collections tools

• verifies integrity, authenticity, authorship and guarantees the timestamp

Conclusion

• technology is available to completely change the attitude and practice towards opening up the research process and information

• reasons to NOT do so lie completely in the domain of provision of resources for scientific work and metrics used by sponsors

• the crucial question is:should scientists sit and wait

for sponsors to change somethingor …

Laboratory for Systems and Signals

Department for Electronic Systems and Signal ProcessingFaculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing

University of Zagreb

www.LSS.hr

Predrag.Pale@FER.hr