Deborah Asbrand, The Search for Science, MIT Technology Review, December 2, 2004. Excerpt: '[Google] Scholar's broad reach, however, underscores a glaring limitation in science publishing. To access an article that appeared in the Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry, for example, users will still need to visit a research library that subscribed to the publication. Those who live near Harvard University, though, would be out of luck: the school cancelled its subscription in January as a cost-cutting measure. So did Cornell University, citing the $2,178-a-year subscription cost. Industry giant Elsevier offers a different story. The company will sell users a copy of the five-page article -- for $30...."[GS may draw attention this problem] when doctoral-level searchers find something relevant to their work and then find out that their university no longer subscribes," points out Peter Suber, open-access project director for Public Knowledge in Washington, D.C....Until now, the general population hasn't had access to most research, says Michael Eisen, a faculty member in the molecular and cell biology department at University of California at Berkeley and co-founder of the Public Library of Science, an open-access organization. With Google Scholar, anyone from medical patients to inquisitive readers can follow up on an interesting article with do-it-yourself online research.'
Posted by
Peter Suber at 12/02/2004 08:52:00 PM.
The open access movement:
Putting peer-reviewed scientific and scholarly literature
on the internet. Making it available free of charge and
free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.
Removing the barriers to serious research.
