Economics Archives - The Scholarly Kitchen

The Scholarly Kitchen Podcast Episode 23: Jeffrey Mervis on the State of Science in the Trump Administration

The change of administrations in the United States was only 6 months ago but seems like much longer. Many things have changed in Washington with regard to science policy and the new administration’s orientation to science. Jeffrey Mervis, senior correspondent at Science magazine, talks with podcast host Michael Clarke about what has changed, what has not changed, and the implications of it all for science.

Cabell’s New Predatory Journal Blacklist: A Review

Cabell’s International has stepped into the gap left by the demise of Beall’s List, providing a new predatory journal blacklist that promises to perform the function of identifying and calling out scam publishers more consistently and transparently. How is it doing so far?

Trouble at Hand — How Mobile Devices Perpetuate Weak Business Models

The rise of mobile is cementing business model expectations and driving new monopolies, but the ethics, incentives, and consequences of these models need to be considered.

Revisiting Two Perspectives on Library-based University Presses

Point: Counterpoint — today we revisit a pair of posts from Joe Esposito and Rick Anderson looking at partnerships and collaborations between university libraries and university presses.

The Trance of Dysfunction — Why Trolls Have Come to Dominate Discourse

Trolls dominate for many reasons — economics, technology, our predilection for sordid entertainment. But they’ve chilled online discourse and damaged civil exchanges, even making some publishers reluctant to take full advantage of the potential of the Internet. Are we ready for v2.0 of commenting?

Independence Lost — Taxpayer Funding and Information Access Take a Dark Turn

We once assumed taxpayer-funding meant information availability. The new US government is now actively hiding scientific data, imperiling our understanding of the world.

Revisiting a Book Review: How Economics Shapes Science by Paula Stephan

Revisiting our review of Paula Stephan’s book after her keynote talk at the SSP Annual Meeting.

Platform Diving — Top Journals, UX, and the Lure of Harmonization

A review of top journals in 18 fields show they are on a variety of platforms, suggesting cognitive burden for users which may be driving them to aggregated options with unified user experiences.

Database Marketing and the Tragedy of the Commons

Database marketing opens up large business opportunities, but only if the data is used with restraint.

Diamond Open Access, Societies and Mission

In this article Robert Harington suggests that some society journal publishers may wish to consider moving their journal program to a Diamond open access (OA) model. Nice idea right, but easier said than done.

Detours and Diversions — Do Open Access Publishers Face New Barriers?

Open access (OA) publishing seeks to eliminate paywalls for users. It has largely succeeded, but new diversions and distractions built into the commercial Internet may create new barriers that will be harder to deal with.

Guest Post: Charles Oppenheim Asks How Big a Problem Are Articles that Should Be OA but End Up Behind Paywalls

In recent years, observers have noticed that articles for which an APC has been paid are not always made freely available. How pervasive is this problem? A Scholarly Kitchen reader investigates.

Updating Asimov — How Do We Regain Control In the Digital Age?

Algorithms behave in ways even their creators can’t understand, yet they dominate how we share and see information. Do we need a “Three Laws for Algorithms”?

When the Wolf Finally Arrives: Big Deal Cancelations in North American Libraries

For years, we in libraries have been predicting the imminent demise of the manifestly-unsustainable Big Deal — and yet it has persisted. Now that may be changing.

Decline and Fall of the Editor

Many of the finest scholarly publications can boast of exemplary editorial programs, but the advent of Gold Open Access, especially when mandated by funding agencies, may make this kind of editorial activity a thing of the past.