I have read it again and on re-reading it still strikes me as an
extraordinarily tendentious press release.
This paragraph is particularly unfortunate:
--------
...However, the Society believes that the approach of some organisations
to the 'open access debate' is threatening to hinder rather than promote
the exchange of knowledge between researchers. This is partly because
some participants in the debate appear to be trying to pursue another
aim, namely to stop commercial publishers from making profits from the
publication of research that has been funded from the public purse. While
some companies do appear to be making excessive profits from the
publication of researchers' papers, this should not be the primary factor
guiding future developments in the exchange of knowledge between
researchers.
--------
I do wonder what fair-minded and open-minded Fellows of the Royal Society
think of this representation of the argument of the proponents of Open
Access? I know of no proponent of OA who thinks that the primary factor
driving the OA movement is a concern to rectify a situation in which some
publishers are making excessive profits (if this is true, and whatever it
means).
If the Royal Society is open-minded on OA it should make a fair
representation of the case on both sides. If it is against OA it should
explain why, and with less appeal to prevarication, uncertainty and
muddle.
Adam
Adam Hodgkin
On 11/24/05, Ward, Bob <Bob.Ward_at_royalsoc.ac.uk> wrote:
Forum members who would rather read the text of the Royal
Society's
statement themselves, rather than relying on Stevan Harnad's
misrepresentation of it, can do so at:
http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk/page.asp?id=3882
Bob Ward
Senior Manager
Policy Communication
Royal Society
6-9 Carlton House Terrace
London
SW1Y 5AG
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7451 2516
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7451 2615
Mobile: +44 (0) 7811 320346
-----Original Message-----
From: Stevan Harnad [mailto:harnad_at_ecs.soton.ac.uk]
Sent: Thursday, November 24, 2005 04:14
To: AmSci Forum
Cc: Watson, Tim
Subject: Not a Proud Day in the Annals of the Royal Society
NOT A PROUD DAY IN THE ANNALS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY
Stevan Harnad
The Royal Society's statement (below, with comments) is not
only
ill-informed, failing even to grasp what either Open Access
or the
proposed RCUK policy is about and for, but it is a statement
for which
the Royal Society (RS), a venerable and distinguished
institution, will
have profound reason to be ashamed in coming years.
The RCUK proposed to require RCUK-funded -- i.e.,
publicly-funded,
tax-payer-funded -- research journal articles to be made
freely
available online to all those would-be users world-wide who
cannot
afford access to the journal in which they were published.
This is
called Open Access (OA) self-archiving; it is a supplement to
-- not a
substitute for -- the existing peer-reviewed journal
publishing system.
And it has already been practised, and has co-existed
peacefully, with
the journal system for over a decade and half now (for
researchers have
been self-archiving their articles for at least that long),
even in
certain areas -- notably some branches of physics -- in which
100% of
the articles are being self-archived immediately upon
publication or
even earlier, and have been for years. The physics publishers
-- the
American Physical Society and Institute of Physics Publishing
-- have
both reported publicly that they have detected no
subscription decline
at all as a result of self-archiving.
"we asked the American Physical Society (APS) and the
Institute of
Physics Publishing Ltd (IOPP) what their experiences have
been over
the 14 years that arXiv has been in existence. How many
subscriptions
have been lost as a result of arXiv? Both societies said
they could
not identify any losses of subscriptions for this reason
and that
they do not view arXiv as a threat to their business
(rather the
opposite -- in fact the APS helped establish an arXiv
mirror site
at the Brookhaven National Laboratory)." [IOPP has since
established
one too.]
http://eprints.ecs.soton.ac.uk/10999/
So why is the RS objecting? Because they are mixing up what
the RCUK
*is* proposing to mandate -- which is Open Access (OA)
self-archiving of
articles published in conventional, non-OA journals -- with
what it is
*not* proposing to mandate, which is publishing in OA
journals. (RCUK is
merely offering to help cover author costs for publishing in
OA journals
if they wish to publish in OA journals.)
This crucial distinction is completely clouded over in the RS
statement,
and the self-archiving mandate keeps being treated as if it
were an OA
publishing mandate. The result is a large number of rather
shrill and
intemperate non sequiturs that do the RS no credit, and will
be recorded
to its shame in the same annals of scientific publishing that
saw the
second scientific journal emerge from the same institution
about 350
years ago. (France's Journal des Scavans was earlier, and
the French,
to their credit, are not casting a shadow on its noble
origins: The
CNRS, INSERM, INRA and INRIA are all supporting
self-archiving -- but
perhaps they are closer to being the counterparts of the RCUK
than the
RS, which seems here to have lost contact completely with the
primary
raison d'etre of a learned society, which is to foster
learned research.
RCUK, CNRS and the rest have seen clearly that maximising
research
access in the online age maximises research progress,
productivity and
impact. The Royal Society seems to be able to do nothing but
worry about
something for which there exists no evidence whatsoever (and
it is not
clear whether it would be a bad thing even if there were
evidence for
it), namely, that self-archiving is tantamount to, or leads
to, a
transition to OA publishing.
Re: UK Select Committee Inquiry into Scientific
Publication (Mar
2004)
http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/3618.html
"The Royal Society's contribution will, I believe, prove
to be a bit
of a historic embarrassment for that venerable
institution, the
first
of the scientific journal publishers (along with the
French [Journal
des Scavans]). The RS's testimony is alas rather
short-sighted and
not
very well-informed, and repeats many of the familiar
canards about
OA:
http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk/templates/statements/StatementDetails.cfm?stat
ementid=252
http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk/templates/press/showpresspage.cfm?file=510.txt
The RCUK policy proposal is about research, and what is
optimal for
research and researchers. The Royal Society seems to feel its
first
allegiance is to publishers, and what is optimal for them.
And so strong
is this allegiance, that the RS does not even realise that it
is
drubbing Peter (self-archiving) to pox Paul (OA publishing),
even though
Paul is not what the RCUK is proposing to mandate.
In this misinterpretation (whether wilful or merely woolly, I
cannot
presume to say) the RS is not alone. It makes common cause
with other
publisher lobbies (such as ALPSP and STM) as well as the UK
Science
Minister, Lord Sainsbury:
"Drubbing Peter to pox Paul"
Thursday December 2, 2004
Guardian Education
http://education.guardian.co.uk/higherfeedback/story/0,11056,1364556,00.
html
http://openaccess.eprints.org/index.php?/archives/43-guid.html
"The Royal Society and Open Access"
http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/4196.html
> From: "Watson, Tim" < Tim.Watson_at_royalsoc.ac.uk> NOT FOR
PUBLICATION OR
> BROADCAST BEFORE 00.01 GMT THURSDAY 24 NOVEMBER 2005 Royal
Society
> warns hasty open access moves may damage science
>
> Funders may be forcing scientific researchers to change the
way they
> publish scientific papers so quickly that disastrous
consequences
> could result, the Royal Society warns today (Thursday 24
November
2005).
The RCUK self-archiving mandate has absolutely nothing to do
with the
way researchers publish. They publish exactly as they always
did. They
merely maximise access to their publications, by
self-archiving them, to
maximise their usage and impact.
> In a position statement on the open access debate, the
Royal Society
> welcomes advances in technology where the aim is to improve
the
> exchange of knowledge between researchers and with wider
society . But
> it calls for funders to undertake a proper study before
making
> researchers deposit papers about their work in open access
journals,
> archives and repositories.
In conflating into what it is that RCUK is "making"
researchers do "open
access journals, archives and repositories," the RS
effectively obscures
what the mandate is about and for.
What is being mandated is the deposit, in the fundee's
institutional or
central web archive/repository, articles published in
*conventional* journals. There is no mandate to publish in an
OA journal
(and one does not "deposit" in journals).
It is only this common-grave conflation that is giving even
the
appearance that the RS is making a coherent, let alone
justifiable, case
for its opposition to either Open Access or the RCUK
proposal.
> The statement concludes: Careful forethought, informed by
proper
> investigation of the costs and benefits, is required before
> introducing new models that amount to the biggest change in
the way
> that knowledge is exchanged since the invention of the
peer-reviewed
> scientific journal 340 years ago. Otherwise the exchange of
knowledge
> could be severely disrupted, and researchers and wider
society will
> suffer the resulting consequences.
No "new model" is being introduced (and certainly not the OA
publishing
model); years of informed investigation have already gone on
(but the RS
appears too concerned about hypothesised risks to its
publishing
revenues to even pay attention and get it clear what is
actually being
proposed); and all evidence is that what *is* being proposed
-- which is
the self-archiving of all research journal articles resulting
from RCUK
funded research -- will bring great benefits to research,
researchers,
their institutions, their funders, and the tax-paying public
that is
funding the funders and for whom the research is being done.
The RS seems preoccupied with only one thing: A hypothetical
risk (for
which there exists no evidence) to the revenue streams of the
publishers
of that research.
> The statement points out a number of problems that could
arise from
> rushing towards untried and untested models which have not
been shown
> to be sustainable and which could force the closure of
existing
> peer-reviewed journals.
To repeat: No models are being mandated; self-archiving has
been tried
and tested for a decade and half, has already reached 100% in
several
subareas of physics years ago, and has not diminished
publishers'
revenues at all.
OA publishing and the OA publishing model are not being
mandated. This
is pure conflation, as well as counterfactual speculation
(about dire
consequences for which there exists nothing but contrary
evidence).
"Journal Publishing and Author Self-Archiving: Peaceful
Co-Existence
and Fruitful Collaboration"
http://openaccess.eprints.org/index.php?/archives/20-guid.html
"Maximising the Return on the UK's Public Investment in
Research"
http://openaccess.eprints.org/index.php?/archives/28-guid.html
> It adds: At least a third of all journals are published by
> not-for-profit organisations. The Royal Society and other
learned
> bodies currently use their publishing surpluses to fund
activities
> such as academic conferences and public lectures, which are
also
> crucial to the exchange of knowledge. A loss of income by
> not-for-profit publishers would lead to a reduction in, or
cessation
> of, these activities.
Is the RS then proposing that the activities that it funds
with its
publishing surpluses should be subsidised by researchers'
lost research
impact?
> The statement stresses that some funders want to force all
researchers
> in all disciplines to adopt the same practice, without
recognising
> crucial differences that exist across the range of
scientific
> disciplines.
The practice in question is self-archiving, not OA
publishing. And it
would be very useful if the RS were to point out which
disciplines do
*not* benefit from maximising their the usage and impact of
their
research output, and why.
> It states: Current practice in the publication of research
results
> varies from discipline to discipline and from country to
country. That
> is why publication practices vary across science and across
the world.
> A young post-doctoral researcher in mathematics at an
Ethiopian
> university has different needs and different means compared
with an
> established senior research fellow in pharmacology at a UK
company s
> laboratory. Increasing proportions of papers have authors
from more
> than one discipline or more than one country. A
one-size-fits-all
> model is unlikely to benefit everybody, and may cause
significant
problems.
This is all supremely irrelevant. None of this is touched by
RCUK's
proposed self-archiving mandate. There is no model, and
certainly not
the OA publishing model that the RS is obsessed with fending
off here.
At issue is a *practice*, a new one, born of the Web era and
the new
possibilities it has opened up for research access and usage,
and that
practice is to supplement the access that is already enjoyed
by
researchers to the publisher's proprietary version of
articles in the
journals that their institutions can afford (most
institutions can
afford only a small fraction, none can afford most or all),
with access
to the self-archived author's draft for those who cannot
afford access
to the publisher's proprietary version -- in order to
maximise research
usage and impact.
None of this knows either disciplinary or national
differences:
maximising research access by supplementary self-archiving
maximises
research impact everywhere, and in every field -- and a
wealth of
growing studies is repeatedly confirming this:
http://opcit.eprints.org/oacitation-biblio.html
> The worst-case scenario is that funders could force a
rapid change
> in practice, which encourages the introduction of new
journals,
> archives and repositories that cannot be sustained in the
long term,
> but which simultaneously forces the closure of existing
peer-reviewed
> journals that have a long-track record for gradually
evolving in
> response to the needs of the research community over the
past 340
> years. That would be disastrous for the research
community.
Again, this is a wholesale conflation of self-archiving with
OA
publishing, and counterfactual speculation about a disaster
scenario
that all existing evidence to date contradicts.
> The statement highlights the Royal Society s concern that
the approach
> of some organisations to the open access debate is
threatening to
> hinder rather than promote the exchange of knowledge
between
researchers .
There is not the slightest hint that self-archiving in
particular, nor
those who promote it, hinder the exchange of knowledge; but
there is
plenty of face-valid evidence that blinkered efforts like the
RS's to
oppose self-archiving hinder the exchange of knowledge
between
researchers hugely.
> It continues: This is partly because some participants in
the debate
> appear to be trying to pursue another aim, namely to stop
commercial
> publishers from making profits from the publication of
research that
> has been funded from the public purse. While some companies
do appear
> to be making excessive profits from the publication of
researchers
> papers, this should not be the primary factor guiding
future
> developments in the exchange of knowledge between
researchers.
The Gaussian distribution is such that it guarantees
participation from
its extrema in any large enough population (and the OA
movement is a
large, global one): But the RCUK merely proposes to mandate
that
researchers self-archive their RCUK-funded research to
maximise its
access and impact, and the RS detects a concerted attack on
publishers'
profits.
(It is true that librarians have been making a lot of
[justifiable]
noise about the high price of journals. But self-archiving is
by and for
research and researchers and has nothing to do with attacks
on
publishers, commercial or royal!)
> The full text of the position statement follows. The Royal
Society is
> also publishing today its response to RCUK s proposals on
open access
.
>
> NOTES FOR EDITORS
>
> 1. The Royal Society is an independent academy
promoting the
> natural and applied sciences. Founded in 1660, the Society
has three
> roles, as the UK academy of science, as a learned Society,
and as a
> funding agency. It responds to individual demand with
selection by
> merit, not by field. The Society s objectives are to:
> * strengthen UK science by providing support to
excellent
individuals
> * fund excellent research to push back the frontiers of
knowledge
> * attract and retain the best scientists
> * ensure the UK engages with the best science around
the world
> * support science communication and education; and
communicate and
> encourage dialogue with the public
> * provide the best independent advice nationally and
internationally
> * promote scholarship and encourage research into the
history of
> science For further information contact:
>
> Tim Watson or Bob Ward
> Press and Public Relations
> The Royal Society, London
> Tel: 020 7451 2508/2516 Mobile: 07811 320346
>
> Royal Society position statement on open access
>
> One of the founding purposes of the Royal Society in 1660
was to
> promote the exchange of knowledge between scholars. Fellows
of the
> Royal Society introduced the practice of scientists
independently
> evaluating each other s work, a practice now known as peer
review, and
> in 1665 established the first peer-reviewed scientific
journal,
> Philosophical Transactions , which the Society still
publishes today.
>
> The Society remains as committed now as it was when it was
founded to
> promoting the exchange of knowledge,
I would say that the stance of the RS on the RCUK's proposed
self-archiving mandate belies either the RS's commitment to
promoting
the exchange of knowledge, or its own grasp of what it is
doing, why.
> not just between scholars, but with
> wider society. The Society carries this out through
lectures,
> meetings, conferences and publications, including seven
peer-reviewed
journals.
>
> Recent technological advances are leading to dramatic
changes in the
> exchange of knowledge, and particularly the publication of
journals.
> One of the most important changes is the publication of
articles and
> papers on the world wide web, rather than solely in the
form of
> printed journals. Most journals now have electronic
versions on the
> world wide web and this has increased access to scientific
papers.
Why are we being told these pious period platitudes?
And another conflation is creeping in: Virtually all the
major journals
now have both print and online editions: Is that what is
meant by
"publishing on the web"? Or does it mean online-only journals
(there are
a few)? Or OA journals? Or is it being conflated with the web
self-archiving of published journal articles (irrespective of
whether
the journals were paper-only, paper and online, as most are,
or online
only)?
This is pure equivocation, in the service of blurring the
distinction
between OA self-archiving and OA publishing.
> Further advances in technology, and the growth in the use
of the
> internet, has now prompted a wider debate about access to
research
> results. Among the issues is whether publication on the
world wide web
The equivocation again: What is this? The dual publishing
that most
journals already practice? Or OA publishing? Or OA
self-archiving (which
is *no* kind of publishing)?
> might allow even more people both within and outside the
research
> community to access research results if they were allowed
to do it
> free of charge rather than have to pay for subscriptions to
journals.
> A number of different sources of access through the world
wide web are
> currently in development, commonly referred to under the
collective
> term of open access.
It would be nice to clearly and forthrightly distinguish the
two main
ones of them: OA self-archiving (of articles published in
conventional
journals) and publishing in OA journals. Otherwise the
"collective term"
becomes a common-grave, marked "OA publishing" (conflating
Peter and
Paul).
> The Royal Society welcomes the exploration of these new
developments
> where the aim is to improve the exchange of knowledge
between
> researchers and with wider society. At present, all papers
appearing
> in Royal Society journals can be accessed free of charge 12
months
> after their publication.
That's splendid, But research progress does not wait 12
months to to
access, apply, and build upon published findings: Why should
published
findings wait 12 months to be used by those who cannot afford
access?
What is the RS's justification for this 12-month embargo on
research
access and impact? That that lost research impact is needed
to
subsidise the RS's other activities? That's a good
justification for the
RS not becoming an OA publisher, but what sort of
justification is it
for the RS's attempt to prevent (immediate) OA self-archiving
by RCUK
fundees?
> However, the Society believes that the approach of some
organisations
> to the open access debate is threatening to hinder rather
than promote
> the exchange of knowledge between researchers. This is
partly because
> some participants in the debate appear to be trying to
pursue another
> aim, namely to stop commercial publishers from making
profits from the
> publication of research that has been funded from the
public purse.
> While some companies do appear to be making excessive
profits from the
> publication of researchers papers, this should not be the
primary
> factor guiding future developments in the exchange of
knowledge
> between researchers.
As noted above, the RS is here conflating (1) the librarian
community's
struggle against high journal prices with (2) the movement
for a
transition to OA publishing as well as (3) the RCUK
self-archiving
mandate (which has nothing to do with either the librarians'
struggle to
lower journal prices (1) nor the OA publishing advocates'
efforts to
effect a transition to OA publishing (2). It is only about
maximising
the impact of RCUK-funded research (3).
> The process of disseminating research results through
peer-reviewed
> papers costs time and money. Authors must invest time in
preparation
> of the paper, and in some cases must pay journal charges
for
> typesetting and other services. Journals incur charges
through the
> process of reviewing papers and then publishing those that
are
> accepted. Journals recover these costs primarily by
charging
> subscription fees, and occasionally through sponsorship and
selling
> advertising space. Most journals make profits for
commercial
> publishers, and surpluses for academic publishers, such as
learned
> societies and professional associations, which are invested
in
science-related charitable activities.
Why are we being told this? This is not about changing
publishing
models, it is about maximising research access.
> Some of the new models for publishing papers on the world
wide web
> involve charging authors for the submission and/or
publication of
> papers, but not charging anybody for access to the papers.
Some of
> these author-pays models are in the form of open access
journals which
> still carry out the reviewing and publishing process. A
number of
> journals operating on these author-pays models have now
been launched.
And they have absolutely nothing to do with the RCUK
self-archiving
mandate.
> Other models include online repositories and archives for
electronic
> versions of papers that are deposited by authors
themselves. Not all
> of these papers have been subjected to a quality control
process, such
> as peer review and acceptance for publication by a journal.
Some
> authors choose to deposit papers in online archives and
repositories
> without submitting to journals for peer review or waiting
until they
> have completed peer review.
This too is completely irrelevant. The RCUK is mandating the
self-archiving of peer-reviewed, published journal articles.
Whatever
else researchers may or may not choose to self-archive is
none of the
RCUK's business, or the RS's. Why is it being cited here? To
conflate
journal article self-archiving with the self-archiving of
wedding photos
and vanity texts?
> For many of these new models, it is assumed that the
charges levied on
> authors cover the costs of reviewing and publishing, and do
not create
> a profit or surplus for the publisher. A number of
web-based open
> access journals, repositories and archives currently exist,
having
> been developed in specific disciplines. No overall survey
of their
> success has been carried out, and although some appear to
be working
> quite well (such as the arXiv archive for papers in
physics,
> mathematics, non-linear science, computer science, and
quantitative
> biology), others appear to be having trouble balancing the
books and
> their long-term survival is not ensured.
What on earth does the longevity of an archive have to do
with the
longevity of a journal, OA or otherwise? In 350 years, is the
RS going
to look back with pride on this self-interested double-talk?
> Ultimately the long-term success of any journal, repository
or archive
> will depend on whether researchers use it for publishing
and accessing
> papers, and whether it can balance the books.
The RS's self-induced and groundless anxieties about the
future of its
own account-books has made it conflate publishing expenses
and
institutional repository expenses: Does the RS wish to reckon
in web
infrastructure costs and research staff life insurance too?
> However, pressure is being applied by some funders,
particularly in
> biomedicine, who are lobbying for a substantial increase in
the pace
> at which web-based open access journals, repositories and
archives are
> being developed, with the emphasis on immediate open
access, and who
> are promoting the idea that all research results in all
fields should
> be published in this way. As a result, the Royal Society
believes that
> there is a lack of consideration of the potential impact of
the open
> access models, and there is a danger that the overall aim
of improving
> the exchange of knowledge between researchers and with
wider society
> will not be realised.
The RS is here doing battle against the advocates of OA
publishing. It
would be a good idea to leave advocates of OA self-archiving
out of
this. It's not the same battle.
> Among the potential dangers are that researchers will stop
submitting
> papers or subscribing to existing journals, particularly if
they
> choose only to deposit papers in repositories and archives.
There is zero evidence for submission loss as a result of
self-archiving, just as there is zero evidence for
subscription loss.
These are counterfactual fantasies being proposed as if all
the evidence
to the contrary from over a decade and a half of
self-archiving did not
exist to refute them.
> If many journals
> cease to exist, without any guarantee that open access
alternatives
> will offer the same range of options, for instance in terms
of serving
> all sub-disciplines, the opportunities for publishing
research results
> might diminish.
We get deeper and deeper into a counterfactual conditional
argument
here, and one not only contrary to all evidence but contrary
to logic,
in treating (1) OA publishing and (2) author OA
self-archiving of
articles published in non-OA journals as if both were OA
publishing.
> If existing journals suffer a reduction in income from
subscriptions,
> this could have a severely detrimental effect on learned
societies and
> professional associations which invest their publishing
surpluses in
> activities and services for the research community. At
least a third
> of all journals are published by not-for-profit
organisations. The
> Royal Society and other learned bodies currently use their
publishing
> surpluses to fund activities such as academic conferences
and public
> lectures, which are also crucial to the exchange of
knowledge. A loss
> of income by not-for-profit publishers would lead to a
reduction in,
> or cessation of, these activities.
First, the doomsday scenario is counterfactual speculation.
Second, does
the RS really believe that it serves the interests of
research and
researchers if it expects them to knowingly subsidise the
RS's surpluses
and activities with their own continuing impact losses?
> Few of the proposed new models for open access publishing
appear to
> have been properly assessed financially and shown to be
sustainable.
> Although many are being set up initially with grants, it is
not clear
> that they could continue to operate for any length of time.
The
> introduction and then loss of new open access publications
could
> result in an overall reduction in the opportunities for
researchers to
publish their results.
We are clearly in the midst of an attack by the RS on OA
publishing
here:
Why? Or, rather, why has OA self-archiving been dragged into
it?
> One cost, both financially and in terms of the time
invested by
> members of the research community, that will exist for any
model is
> the process of peer review. Without high quality peer
review as a
> quality control mechanism and process through which papers
are
> improved before publication, the exchange of knowledge
between
> researchers would be greatly hampered. Any viable new open
access
> model must adequately cover the costs of high quality,
independent
peer review.
>
> Although much concern has been expressed about the profits
gained by
> commercial publishers from the results of publicly-funded
research
> under current practices, it is not often clear whether new
models will
> deliver better value for money. New models that rely on
public funds
> to operate open access journals or repositories could even
cost the
> public purse more overall if they operate less
cost-effectively and
> efficiently than existing alternatives.
Again, this argument against OA publishing (much of it easily
answerable
by OA publishing advocates) is being levied in the same
breath against
OA self-archiving ("or repositories"). Why? Drubbing Peter to
pox
Paul...
> Furthermore, models in which researchers are charged to
submit or
> publish papers introduce a new disincentive to the exchange
of
> knowledge. Such financial barriers will be more acute for
researchers
> with the least amount of funds, such as those at the very
early or
> late stages of their careers or in developing countries.
One
> consequence might be that the primary criterion for
publication of
> results may become whether they are produced by researchers
who can
> pay, rather than whether they are of wide interest to the
rest of the
research community.
> A move towards a system that relies mainly on ability to
pay rather
> than quality would profoundly undermine the exchange of
knowledge.
>
> Current practice in the publication of research results
varies from
> discipline to discipline and from country to country. That
is why
> publication practices vary across science and across the
world. A
> young post-doctoral researcher in mathematics at an
Ethiopian
> university has different needs and different means compared
with an
> established senior research fellow in pharmacology a UK
company s
> laboratory. Increasing proportions of papers have authors
from more
> than one discipline and more than one country. A
one-size-fits-all
> model is unlikely to benefit everybody, and may cause the
significant
problems outlined above.
Does any discipline or country differ from the rest in that
it would
*not* benefit from maximising its research access and impact?
If the
answer is no (as all evidence indicates), why, again, is this
rhetorical
question being asked -- insofar as OA self-archiving is
concerned?
> The worst-case scenario is that funders could force a rapid
change in
> practice, which encourages the introduction of new
journals, archives
> and repositories
Here goes the tireless conflation again...
> that cannot be sustained in the long term, but which
simultaneously
> forces the closure of existing peer-reviewed journals that
have a
> long-track record for gradually evolving in response to the
needs of
> the research community over the past 340 years. That would
be
> disastrous for the research community.
The counterfactual disaster scenario again: Like Pascal's
Wager: "Do it
my way, as I have conjectured apocalyptic consequences
otherwise."
(Should we not be making decisions based on objective
evidence rather
than subjective scare-mongering, at mounting decibel levels?
> In view of this, the Royal Society welcomes an open debate
between
> funders, researchers, institutions and publishers (both
commercial and
> not-for-profit) about, the likely consequences of new
models for the
> publication of research results, before they are
introduced. To inform
> discussion, the Royal Society recommends a thorough study
of proposed
> new models, including an assessment of the likely costs and
benefits
> to all. Funders should resist the temptation to act before
being
> informed by such a study, and should not introduce policies
that force
> researchers to adopt new models that are untried and
untested. In
> considering new models, funders should remember that the
primary aims
> should be to improve the exchange of knowledge between
researchers and
> wider society.
The RCUK is not forcing any new models! Models can be studied
at
everyone's leisure. What should not be held up by this is
something that
has nothing to do with it: immediately maximising research
access and
impact by mandated self-archiving. That has already been
demonstrated to
work, and to deliver the benefits promised, with no evidence
to date of
any untoward consequences for anyone, including publishers.
> Careful forethought, informed by proper investigation of
the costs and
> benefits, is required before introducing new models that
amount to the
> biggest change in the way that knowledge is exchanged since
the
> invention of the peer-reviewed scientific journal 340 years
ago.
> Otherwise the exchange of knowledge could be severely
disrupted, and
> researchers and wider society will suffer the resulting
consequences.
No new models are being proposed, hence no grounds whatsoever
have been
adduced by the RS for opposing what *is* being proposed: OA
self-archiving (Peter, not Paul).
Stevan Harnad
Professor of Cognitive Science
Department of Electronics and Computer Science
University of Southampton
Highfield, Southampton
SO17 1BJ UNITED KINGDOM
phone: +44 23-80 592-388
fax: +44 23-80 592-865
harnad_at_ecs.soton.ac.uk
http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/
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Received on Thu Nov 24 2005 - 12:59:44 GMT