[GOAL] Re: Open data

Tue May 8 16:06:12 BST 2012

Regarding open data, the European Commission has been involved in this
kind of issue for over a year now, if not more. In effect, the UK
government is simply beginning to act seriously on a concern that the EC
has been expressing for a long while now. The EC report "Riding the
wave", published in October 2010, already mentioned the desirability of
open data and open data infrastructures.

Jean-Claude Guédon

-- 
Jean-Claude Guédon
Professeur titulaire
Littérature comparée
Université de Montréal

Le mardi 08 mai 2012 à 15:01 +0100, Richard Poynder a écrit :

> [SH] PM-R keeps reiterating that Gratis OA is not enough,  but he
> takes no practical account of the fact that we don't even have Gratis
> OA, that Gratis OA is within reach, via mandates, and that more than
> Gratis OA is not within reach.
> 
>  
> 
> >> 
> 
>  
> 
> One of the points I take away from David Willetts’ speech to the
> Publishers Association last week is that, whether one welcomes it or
> not, the UK government has decided that scientific open data is an
> issue that it needs to take an interest in, and to facilitate. 
> 
>  
> 
>  As Willetts put it, “Data mining is becoming an important part of
> scientific advance, with computer scientists working collaboratively
> with researchers and publishers to develop the necessary tools and
> technologies. With well over a million academic articles every year,
> researchers wanting to keep abreast of developments in their field are
> going to need analytic tools just to know where to start. There are
> proven benefits for humankind from text and data mining, such as the
> discovery of new treatments for Alzheimer’s. So we are considering how
> to advance UK capability in data mining in the light of the
> recommendations on intellectual property from Ian Hargreaves.” 
> 
>  
> 
> This suggests to me that effective text and data mining could be
> within reach, and the UK government seems intent on providing a ladder
> to allow researchers reach it. 
> 
>  
> 
> I think it is probably also fair to assume that other governments, and
> funders, will begin to take a similar position.  
> 
>  
> 
> As always, the danger is that governments might misunderstand the
> issues, and provide the wrong type of ladder. For that reason, the
> more clearly the research community understands exactly what it needs,
> and articulates those needs, the more likely it is that any ladder
> that governments provide will prove fit for purpose.
> 
>  
> 
> Richard Poynder
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On 08/05/2012 11:50, Stevan Harnad wrote: 
> 
> > For the perplexed reader: 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 1. Peter Murray-Rust is a dedicated advocate for certain text-mining
> > and
> > re-use rights that are very important and very fruitful in certain
> > fields
> > of research (but not all, and probably not many).
> > 
> > 
> > 2. One of the necessary conditions for the kind of text-mining and
> > re-use rights PM-R seeks is free online access to the articles
> > (Gratis OA).
> > 
> > 
> > 3. We do not yet have Gratis OA, because authors are not providing
> > it, partly out of sluggishness and partly out of fear (see Keith
> > Jeffery's posting on publisher FUD), even though virtually all
> > authors 
> > want Gratis OA and even though the majority of journals (including 
> > almost all the top journals in almost all fields) already endorse
> > their 
> > authors providing immediate Gratis OA by self-archiving their
> > refereed
> > final drafts in their institutional repository (Green Gratis OA).
> > 
> > 
> > 4. Only about 20% of articles are being made Gratis OA (because
> > of author sluggishness and fear of FUD) even though over 60% 
> > of journals endorse immediate Green Gratis OA, 90% endorse it 
> > after an embargo, and user needs during the embargo can be
> > fulfilled 
> > via "Almost-OA" using the institutional repositories'
> > semi-automatic 
> > email-eprint-request Button.
> > 
> > 
> > 5. Research institutions and funders are in a position to
> > mandate (require) Green Gratis OA, as the remedy for author
> > sluggishness and fear of FUD, which would immediately
> > generate at least 60% immediate Green Gratis OA, plus 40%
> > embargoed OA and Almost-OA.
> > 
> > 
> > PM-R keeps reiterating that Gratis OA is not enough, 
> > but he takes no practical account of the fact that we don't 
> > even have Gratis OA, that Gratis OA is within reach, via 
> > mandates, and that more than Gratis OAis not within reach.
> > 
> > 
> > We would be at an OA impasse if grasping the Green
> > Gratis OA that is already within immediate reach of
> > Green Gratis OA mandates is discouraged as not being
> > enough, because it does not meet all the potential needs
> > of some fields.
> > 
> > 
> > Whatever you call it, "Libre OA" or Gratis OA plus certain
> > further re-use rights is not within reach today. Publishers oppose
> > it and it is not at all clear whether all, many, or most authors
> > want it -- but it is clear that only 20% of authors are providing
> > even just Gratis OA.
> > 
> > 
> > Hence immediate burden of the OA movement is not, as PM-R 
> > suggests, to gather evidence as to how many authors need and 
> > want the further re-use rights PM-R seeks. Nor is there any
> > practical 
> > strategy for mandating the further re-use rights PM-R seeks.
> > 
> > 
> > The immediate priority is to mandate the Green Gratis
> > OA that is already within reach -- and that also happens
> > to be a necessary condition for the further re-use rights PM-R 
> > seeks.
> > 
> > 
> > I urge PM-R to stop arguing that Gratis OA is not enough,
> > and that what is needed instead is Gratis OA plus certain 
> > further re-use rights.
> > 
> > 
> > Stop letting the out-of-reach best get in the way of 
> > grasping the within reach better.
> > 
> > 
> > We'll all end up a lot better off that way.
> > 
> > 
> > Stevan Harnad
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > > 
> > 
> > 
> 
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