Science, Search and the Public
Abstract
As
with almost every modern human activity, the way science is done is
being dramatically changed by the internet. Further
changes, including:
- Search engines seeking to become Google 2.0,
- shared public resources like PubMed,
- wide-spread changes in the costs of publishing,
- Web 2.0 mechanisms forming online social communities
guarantee
the scientific process is bound to change even more in the near future.
This lecture will provide a brief introduction to these dynamics,
and then address several questions, including:
- How do search engines change how prior science is found, and how new science is performed?
- What does "Open Source" offer as models for collaborative work?
- What should a democratic citizen expect of science,
- What role should government funding play?
References
- Open Access? Bob Campell and Harold Varmus debate with Edward Stourton, Today Programme, BBC Radio 4, March 10, 2004
- Information Liberation Daniel Akst: Wall Street Journal March 7, 2008; Page W13
- What’s the Genome Worth? Steven Shapin: Review of A Life Decoded: My Genome: My Life by Craig Venter. London Review of Books Vol. 30 No. 6 · 20 March 2008
- The last lecture of Randy Pausch, 18 Sept 07, ETC.CMU.EDU also via YouTube