SHAKSPER 2008: A Problem of Access

From: Hardy M. Cook (editor@SHAKSPER.NET)
Date: 05/08/08 

The Shakespeare Conference: SHK 19.0272  Thursday, 8 May 2008

[1] 	From:	Gabriel Egan <mail@GabrielEgan.com>
	Date:	Tuesday, 6 May 2008 16:28:29 +0100
	Subj:	Re: SHK 19.0266 A Problem of Access

[2] 	From:	Nicole Coonradt <nmcoonradt@comcast.net>
	Date:	Tuesday, 06 May 2008 16:47:06 +0000
	Subj:	Re: SHK 19.0266 A Problem of Access

[3] 	From:	Jack Heller <jackheller@kconline.com>
	Date:	Tuesday, 6 May 2008 16:52:40 -0400 (EDT)
	Subj:	Re: SHK 19.0266 A Problem of Access


[1]-----------------------------------------------------------------
From:		Gabriel Egan <mail@GabrielEgan.com>
Date:		Tuesday, 6 May 2008 16:28:29 +0100
Subject: 19.0266 A Problem of Access
Comment:	Re: SHK 19.0266 A Problem of Access

Larry Weiss asks a most pertinent question about Open Access:

 >Does this mean that the recipient of a research
 >grant should not publish the results of the research
 >in any journal that charges a subscription fee?

Yes, it does, and indeed this requirement is increasingly being written 
into the guidance for applicants to funding bodies. It is better to 
choose a journal that gives away its content for free, including those 
that charge the author for publication. This charge has no bearing on 
the peer-review process and in the sciences the cost is merely added to 
the funding application that makes the research possible in the first 
place. Since arts and humanities research is not, by and large, funded 
by individual grant applications this model is not easily adopted in 
these fields, and there is considerable debate on how Open Access should 
be implemented.

 >Why stop there; shouldn't an academic whose
 >research is publicly funded refuse to lecture on
 >the subject to students who have to pay tuition?

She should certainly refuse to tell these students research outcomes 
that will remain unavailable elsewhere, for that would indeed constitute 
the sale of public property. But to say something to a fee-paying 
audience (as at a conference) in advance of making it freely available 
to the public would not offend most advocates of Open Access, since the 
work is likely to be enhanced by the ensuing conversations prior to 
publication.

Gabriel Egan

[2]-----------------------------------------------------------------
From:		Nicole Coonradt <nmcoonradt@comcast.net>
Date:		Tuesday, 06 May 2008 16:47:06 +0000
Subject: 19.0266 A Problem of Access
Comment:	Re: SHK 19.0266 A Problem of Access

Larry makes an excellent point. In a roundabout way, this puts me in 
mind of this kind of hoarding that happens elsewhere.

Outside of literature or the humanities, this apparently happens with 
other areas of inquiry. In a recent _Wall Street Journal_ article called 
"Recipe for a Pandemic" (4/18/08), the World Health Organization 
requested important findings about avian influenza from Indonesia, 
which, according to the article, is "putting itself and the rest of the 
world at risk" (para. 1). The problem is apparently "intellectual 
property" and credit for Indonesia.

Here is an excerpt:

"Health Ministry refuses to give the WHO avian flu virus samples taken 
from Indonesian victims. This matters because sample sharing allows 
experts around the world to track mutations of the virus and spot 
dangerous mutations. Even more important, sharing allows researchers to 
develop vaccines" (2).

This kind of thing keeps important, life-saving research from the 
public.  The gist of the article is that by keeping the research 
findings "secret" other scientists who might collaborate with their own 
findings or intended research are not made aware of the whole of what is 
out there, thus stalling critical advances, in this case the development 
of vaccines.

More at the link:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120846038978123721.html

Best,
Nicole

[3]-----------------------------------------------------------------
From:		Jack Heller <jackheller@kconline.com>
Date:		Tuesday, 6 May 2008 16:52:40 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: 19.0266 A Problem of Access
Comment:	Re: SHK 19.0266 A Problem of Access

 >Does this mean that the recipient of a research grant
 >should not publish the results of the research in any
 >journal that charges a subscription fee? Why stop there;
 >shouldn't an academic whose research is publicly funded
 >refuse to lecture on the subject to students who have to
 >pay tuition?

Not to belabor the point, but with Project Muse, I cannot even get 
access by paying. And surely, there cannot be too many people who want 
an article from a 1963 issue of the JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY.

I do want to thank those who have replied offlist and have helped me to 
obtain the articles I need.

Jack Heller

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Hardy M. Cook, editor@shaksper.net
The S H A K S P E R Web Site <http://www.shaksper.net>

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