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> modern science is synonymous with open source software. Another problem with reproducibility is the openness of the underlying data. Many academics are terri

> modern science is synonymous with open source software. Another problem with reproducibility is the openness of the underlying data. Many academics are terrified of giving away the golden goose and the software is often useless without the data. However many scientists do work openly, e.g. The Journal of Open Source Software: https://joss.theoj.org/ https://joss.theoj.org/

setopt 7d ago
JOSS is great, I’ve both published with and reviewed for them, and enjoyed it more than traditional journals. The process felt more constructive than destructive, in a sense. I believe they’re always looking for new volunteers to review papers, so please do volunteer if you are able.
jegp 7d ago
I've seen quite a few academics wrangling with patents. What should come first? Proliferation of the sciences or (potential) profit? Your point about the golden goose is pretty interesting and others in this thread has pointed to the misaligned incentive structure in academia. I'm curious, do you think things like JOSS could help open up data and "the golden goose"? I'm not sure the funding bodies I'm interacting with would respect this kind of initiative, but maybe it's just a matter of time.
- willtemperley 6d ago
  My experience in academia was that data management is not well respected. Universities often see data as part of the library system which leads to a disconnect between data and research. I’d suggest data management needs to be a well paid career in academia, with senior level influence to enable long term open access to data. I was on a grant from the Wellcome Trust putting an epidemiology database online. This remained available until the PI moved on and their successor was decidedly less public spirited, so sadly it’s not available anymore. What can I do about that when I’m seen as a technician? I have over 8000 citations from my database work but there’s really no career in academia for me.

setopt 7d ago

JOSS is great, I’ve both published with and reviewed for them, and enjoyed it more than traditional journals. The process felt more constructive than destructive, in a sense. I believe they’re always looking for new volunteers to review papers, so please do volunteer if you are able.

jegp 7d ago

I've seen quite a few academics wrangling with patents. What should come first? Proliferation of the sciences or (potential) profit? Your point about the golden goose is pretty interesting and others in this thread has pointed to the misaligned incentive structure in academia. I'm curious, do you think things like JOSS could help open up data and "the golden goose"? I'm not sure the funding bodies I'm interacting with would respect this kind of initiative, but maybe it's just a matter of time.

willtemperley 6d ago
My experience in academia was that data management is not well respected. Universities often see data as part of the library system which leads to a disconnect between data and research. I’d suggest data management needs to be a well paid career in academia, with senior level influence to enable long term open access to data. I was on a grant from the Wellcome Trust putting an epidemiology database online. This remained available until the PI moved on and their successor was decidedly less public spirited, so sadly it’s not available anymore. What can I do about that when I’m seen as a technician? I have over 8000 citations from my database work but there’s really no career in academia for me.