Very interesting article on the small but growing contingent of scientists doing their research out in the open using blogs and wikis to post current ongoing research.
Out in the open: Some scientists sharing results
"I think the tipping point will come when scientists look at someone next to them using the open system and getting more discoveries, and saying 'I want that.' "
And in a more general note the opening up of current papers to free readership for all can do nothing but help in the spreading of knowledge.
There are open access journals, such as those published by the Public Library of Science, but scientific journals usually require a paid subscription to get access. But in February, Harvard's largest division, the Faculty of Arts and Science, voted unanimously to make scholarly papers authored by faculty available free in an online repository, which will begin beta-testing this fall. The National Institutes of Health began an open-access policy this year requiring that NIH-funded research be posted online for free, within a year of publication.
Soon a growing array of research will be available to the layman to read. For a geek like me that is really cool.
The article ends with a concrete example of how this openness can accelerate discoveries.
They posted their work online, but also submitted it to a journal over a year ago to be formally presented to the world's scientific community. Meanwhile, their work was incorporated into 18 different projects by other labs. Canton was invited to workshops.
Great stuff.