[Watch this video] Open access explained
Here's a lovely video about why open access for academic articles is so important. It touches upon many key problems with academic publishing, and it's animated by the guy who makes the awesome PhD Comics.
Open access explained! (8min)
As the video explains, academic publishing without open access is an extremely inefficient way of distributing knowledge, and it excludes anyone who doesn't have piles of money or happens to be attached to an institution that has piles of money. This system perverts the whole purpose of science. "It doesn't make sense in terms of what science is supposed to be about. Science is about discovering new things and spreading that knowledge around! It's so irrational to think that scientists are paid by taxpayers to do research and distribute it (...) and then (that work) is not going to be made available to people."
In a fannish context, this is why it's important to have an open access journal like Transformative Works and Cultures where academics who do fan studies research can publish. Without such outlets, all academic research on fans would just end up locked up behind paywalls and far out of reach of the people for whom it's the most relevant (instead of just most academic research on fans).
The fact that academics who do research on fans still need to publish in an officially accredited journal to get their work acknowledged by their institutions is a whole other, gigantic problem. Maybe we wouldn't have to angst about the need for an open access fan studies journal if researchers had more ways of getting recognition from their employers for putting stuff online. Massive advances in learning and knowledge happen entirely outside of traditional academic publishing channels, but far too few institutions reward researchers for devoting time and effort to things that don't result in papers in journals. This entry was originally posted at http://unjapanologist.dreamwidth.org/63499.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
Open access explained! (8min)
Click to viewAs the video explains, academic publishing without open access is an extremely inefficient way of distributing knowledge, and it excludes anyone who doesn't have piles of money or happens to be attached to an institution that has piles of money. This system perverts the whole purpose of science. "It doesn't make sense in terms of what science is supposed to be about. Science is about discovering new things and spreading that knowledge around! It's so irrational to think that scientists are paid by taxpayers to do research and distribute it (...) and then (that work) is not going to be made available to people."
In a fannish context, this is why it's important to have an open access journal like Transformative Works and Cultures where academics who do fan studies research can publish. Without such outlets, all academic research on fans would just end up locked up behind paywalls and far out of reach of the people for whom it's the most relevant (instead of just most academic research on fans).
The fact that academics who do research on fans still need to publish in an officially accredited journal to get their work acknowledged by their institutions is a whole other, gigantic problem. Maybe we wouldn't have to angst about the need for an open access fan studies journal if researchers had more ways of getting recognition from their employers for putting stuff online. Massive advances in learning and knowledge happen entirely outside of traditional academic publishing channels, but far too few institutions reward researchers for devoting time and effort to things that don't result in papers in journals. This entry was originally posted at http://unjapanologist.dreamwidth.org/63499.html. Please comment there using OpenID.