Dr Patrick O. Brown
Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Stanford University
Dr Fiona Godlee
Editorial Director (Medicine), BioMed Central
Dr David Lipman
Director, National Center for Biotechnology Information
Mr Jan Velterop
Publishing Director, Nature
Freedom of Information Conference 2000
Creating a global knowledge network
P. Ginsparg, Los Alamos National Laboratory
Abstract
If we were to start from scratch today to design a quality-controlled
archive and distribution system for research findings, would it be realized
as a set of "electronic clones" of print journals? Could we imagine instead
some form of incipient knowledge network for our research communications
infrastructure? What differences should be expected in its realization
for different scientific research fields? Is there an obvious alternative
to the false dichotomy of "classical peer review" vs. no quality control
at all? What is the proper role of governments and their funding agencies
in this enterprise, and what might be the role of suitably configured
professional societies? These and other rhetorical questions will be considered
in light of recent experience, followed by some electronic architectural
considerations.
Freedom of Information Conference 2000