it is clear that APCs cover both the direct processing costs, and the indirect costs of running the entire publishing business. Therefore, the term APC is itself misleading.
UNESCO: A new momentum is emerging in the dissemination of scientific knowledge worldwide.
Bernard Rentier's insight:
I am thrilled. For several years now, I have been claiming that the salvation of scholarly communication lies in a proposal by an international public body controlling one or more publication platforms. Could this be the announcement of the realization of the dream...?
Un tribunal français a obligé les fournisseurs d’accès à Internet à bloquer le site Sci-hub qui permet un accès libre aux publications scientifiques. Qu’est-ce que cela veut dire ?
Bernard Rentier's insight:
The two conclusion paragraphs are very wise ! Although Sci-hub's initiative is generous in principle, it is still piracy. On the one hand, this does not challenge the traditional model and on the other hand it hinders the development of legal alternatives.
The progress of science depends on how we preserve and share what we know.
Bernard Rentier's insight:
« Sustaining the knowledge we have gained is hard. As stakeholders, we have to take knowledge seriously. We have to value it, preserve it and pass it down like our future depends on it. Because it does. » Kay Dickinsin
Much like the millions of consumers who have chosen to “cut the cord”, a growing number of libraries are electing to critically appraise “big deals” by assessing their collections, the value for money they are receiving from these packages, and how they might more strategically spend their finite collections resources.
Blending the traditional manuscript with live code, data and interactive figures, we showcase a new way for researchers to tell their full story.
Bernard Rentier's insight:
One of the first structured attempts to change not only the publication procedure but really the way to put research in shape for a thorough and meaningful communication. The way to go.
This Perspective article asserts that the most prestigious journals publish the least reliable science, and asks how long we can afford to reward scientists for publishing there.
Bernard Rentier's insight:
« Replacing the legacy journals with a modern information infrastructure that is governed by scholars ».
This presentation introduces Open Access publishing and describes why it may be of particular interest to researchers at the beginning of their careers. Text...
My previous blog post triggered a lot of interpretations on the actual content, extend and meaning of the amendments to the Belgian copyright law. The best response is the actual text, translated here. Art. 29. In article XI.196 [of the Code of economic law], inserted by the law of 19 April 2014, a paragraph 2/1…
This article was borne out of my frustration, admittedly with both my own practice and that of my colleagues, in asking students to produce work only to have it locked away for a limited audience, mostly the marker but occasionally small groups of fellow students. We have the technical capabilities and infrastructure to push student work into the world
CARTE BLANCHE par Bernard Rentier, Recteur honoraire de l’Université de Liège, membre de l’Académie royale de Belgique. « L’accès à la connaissance est un droit humain fondamental, en tant que corollaire du droit à l’éducation reconnu par le Pacte international relatif aux droits économiques, sociaux et culturels (PIDESC) adopté par l’Assemblée générale de l’ONU le 16 décembre 1966. Ce pacte international, vieux de plus de 50 ans mettait en application l’article 26 de la Déclaration universelle des droits de l’homme. Ceci étant établi, il est évident qu’aucune barrière, ni technique ni financière, ne peut priver quiconque de cet accès au savoir. »
Webinar #2 of the Eurodoc Open Science Ambassador Training with Bernard Rentier (University of Liège) and Gareth O'Neill (Eurodoc) on Open Access on 21 March...
Times Higher Education just published an article about the latest in the ongoing ‘Elsevier versus everyone else’ saga. It contains a quote from me, so I decided to post my full unedited response to Ellie, the writer, here for full transparency (with permission). Her questions are in italics, and my responses in normal text.
“Make no mistake: The prices of scientific journals now are so high that not a single university in the U.S. — not the University of California, not Harvard, no institution — can afford to subscribe to them all,”
When you decide to publish an article in a peer-reviewed journal, you own the full copyrights to that article. If you publish in an open access journal, you retain your full copyrights. However, if you choose to publish in a traditional subscription access journal, you will be required to sign a form transferring some – or all – of your copyrights to that publisher. That doesn’t have to be the end of the story. When you sign a copyright transfer form, you can decide which rights you want to keep, and which you want to give away. Understanding the effect of fully exercising the rights you have as an author can help you make educated choices about the publishing outlets you choose to submit work to. SPARC provides a full set of resources to help you learn more about your rights as an author, and the tools that are available to help you effectively manage your copyrights.
This Perspective article proposes new practices for scientific publishing that align better with today's digital environment than do legacy practices.
Bernard Rentier's insight:
The time has come to propose concrete, constructive and operational solutions that respond in an innovative way to the real needs of the research community.
Following in the footsteps of linguistics journal Lingua, the editorial board of the Elsevier-owned Journal of Informetrics has resigned and launched a rival journal that will be free for all to read.
Bernard Rentier's insight:
After Lingua->Glossa, now J. Informetrics->Quantitative Science Studies. Here is another constructive boycott motivated by the refusal to open up, a conservative stance that will soon become a rearguard fight. In their response, Elsevier said that they offer unrestricted access to some journal data, but they are not willing to make journal article reference lists available for free.
it is clear that APCs cover both the direct processing costs, and the indirect costs of running the entire publishing business. Therefore, the term APC is itself misleading.
Le Plan S n'est pas une loi. Et encore moins une directive européenne en attente de transposition en droit national ou fédéral. Le Plan S est un engagement pris par et parmi des bailleurs de fonds réunis au sein d'un groupe appelé cOAlition S, afin d'harmoniser les critères qu'ils veulent utiliser pour…
Having been released at the same time as the first announcement of Plan S, a very important modification of the Belgian copyright law has gone somewhat unnoticed and it should not have! It is indeed a major groundbreaker in the open access to public research communication. The law now allows authors of publicly funded research…
Qu’est-ce que la « science ouverte » ? En quoi la science actuelle est elle « fermée » et que recouvre l’expression « ouvrir la science » comme l’indique le slogan des journées ?
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