The Brave New World of Science Publishing is the most comprehensive study of scientists’ use of social media ever undertaken. This report is designed to help publishers understand what scientists expect—and prefer—as Web 2.0 capabilities become the new industry standard. Scientists and publishers rely on each other to establish the priority of discoveries, to validate the scientific process by peer review, to disseminate findings and to establish the scientific record. However, social media threatens current business practices, and publishers that do not respond to these challenges, or respond by further entrenchment of traditional positions, could find themselves becoming increasingly unnecessary and irrelevant.
... [T]he scientific publishing industry has weathered many storms. It has had to adapt rapidly to disruptive technologies, such as the emergence of the Web as a rival medium, as well as grapple with a changing business model resulting from societal and economic forces. Some scientists, especially pioneers of the Open Access moment, have prophesied the end of traditional publishing as we know it.
Now come “Web 2.0” and “social media”—two related phenomena that again present publishers with perils but also unparalleled opportunities, at least for those willing to accept new challenges. ...
From their growing use of discussion boards, blogs, wikis, video and podcasts, scientists are learning how to employ Web 2.0 and social media tools to good effect. The Brave New World of Science Publishing will help publishers keep pace with the expectations of their readers while reinforcing their positions of respect and authority.
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.
I recommend the OA tracking project (OATP) as the best way to stay on top of new OA developments. You can read the OATP feed on a blog-like web page or subscribe to it by RSS, email, or Twitter. You can also help build the feed by tagging new developments you encounter.
