Self-Publishing Reinvents the Novel
The novel is about novelty. Self-publishing is just the latest option for authors. Some argue that it’s reinventing literature.
Wikipedia on Drugs
Wikipedia is a reference that is accurate but incomplete. How does it fare as a drug resource? A recent study finds an interesting trend.
A Journal Feeds Wikipedia
A journal begins requiring authors to submit peer-reviewed pages to Wikipedia. Is this a great idea?
Funding UK Research
The Research Assessment Exercise is slow and expensive. Abandoning peer-review for quantitative assessment may lead to excessive gaming and corrupt the indicators of quality.
Peer-Review Scandal Shakes French Geologists
The abuse of editorial power and favoritism leads to a national scandal in France.
Banking on Peer Review
Scholarly publishers risk following the newspaper industry if they don’t value peer-review.
The Market for Scholarly Articles
Why the market for scholarly articles looks a lot like the market for used cars.
Is Science Being Distorted?
A recent PLoS Medicine article claims that information economics distort science. But maybe it’s an obsession with journals distorting the views of the authors.
48 Hours on Wikipedia
Lies inserted into Wikipedia get corrected quickly, a small study finds.
Apomediation: Word of the Day
Disintermediation presupposes the intermediation is the only choice. Maybe apomediation is the destination.
Google Launches Knols
Google Knols launched with a lot of splash, but is it a small fish?
Citations & the Missing Link
A paper examines faulty citations, but the authors are on shaky ground.
Reputation Matters
A new (and flawed) study reveals that reputation matters. In fact, it’s core to scientific expression.
Bulk Publishing Keeps PLoS Afloat
PLoS sees bulk, low-cost publishing as way to financial independence
The “h-index”: An Objective Mismeasure?
A “mystical belief” in simple math and hard numbers like the h-index can mislead smart people.