Many researchers are positive about the new, burgeoning science culture, but they still hesitate to enter into an open exchange of knowledge. There are many reasons why – such as a lack of knowledge about data management and the fear of intellectual property theft. By Sven Titz
(From “Horizons” no. 110 September 2016)
Scientists disclose all their study plans and experimental designs; they write daily blogs about their progress in the lab, revealing every detail; and then they publish in open-access journals that are assessed through an open peer-review process. And their results are stored in databases that are on open access to everyone. This is the utopia of open science.
Are we about to attain such a state of transparent research? Well, things are unlikely to develop quite so straightforwardly. Sometimes it’s because there’s just not enough money. Sometimes people aren’t in a position to set up the required databases. And sometimes scientists hesitate to reveal their data because they fear that competitors could steal their ideas and publish them first…