Why the Moon Landing Could Not Have Been a Hoax — It Wasn't Technologically Possible to Fake It
A great analysis of why it was technologically impossible to fake the 1969 moon landing.
PubReader — Obscuring Journal Branding for the Sake of Repository Branding
A new way to view journal content in PubMed Central casts journal branding aside for a uniform PMC approach.
Finch Acknowledges Open Access Could Harm Learned Societies
Dame Janet Finch admits OA will cause problems for learned societies. What does that portend, especially when viewed alongside more backlash?
Post-Publication Peer-Review Already Exists, Already Has Incentives, and Is Already Robust
A recent exhortation to support post-publication peer-review with awards shines a light on the holes in both ideas.
Is the Home Page Dead?
As traffic continues to come in through side doors, what is the function of the home page?
Leaked Data Policy Raises Monster STM Data Issues
A new proposal regarding federally funded data is leaked. What might a broad policy for public access mean?
PubMed and F1000 Research — Unclear Standards Applied Unevenly
F1000 Research has confusing review and publication practices, and doesn’t call itself a journal, yet is now going to be indexed by PubMed — further eroding the PubMed brand.
Online Reviews of Doctors — Scant, Volatile, and Overwhelmingly Positive
When trusting the wisdom of the crowds, it’s important to understand what is meant by “crowd.”
The Historians Are Revolting — Leading History Journal Editors Take on the Research Councils UK
A group of history editors in the UK publish an open letter stating they will not comply with aspects of the RCUK mandates for OA. What can we learn from this?
Dancing with Myself — The Principal Impediment to Change and Innovation
The principal impediment to changing or developing an organization is the view of the management that they already are doing a good job. Thus all new initiatives are measured in terms of past successes.
Gun Violence and the Politics of Research Funding — Suppressed Research and Tragic Outcomes
The shootings in Connecticut last year can be, to some extent, blamed on research funding cuts and political intrusions into public health research.
The Best Mistakes — and Corrections — of 2012
In a year of mistakes, some corrections stand head and shoulders above others. Let us celebrate the honest and witty souls behind them.
How Much of the Literature Goes Uncited?
Making sense of non-events (citation, circulation, and publication) requires context and a tolerance for uncertainty.
What’s In a (Journal) Name?
The name of a journal extends far beyond what it publishes. United brands (Nature, JAMA, Cell, Science, IEEE, PLoS) create powerful signals in the marketplace. They can also be overextended.
Gaming Google Scholar Citations, Made Simple and Easy
A new paper demonstrates how easy it is to game Google Scholar citations, and how the system resists correction.