Technical aspects of preprint services in the life sciences: a workshop report

lterrat's bookmarks 2017-01-17

Summary:

"The use of preprints as a method of scholarly communication varies across research communities. Despite decades of widespread use of arXiv – the preprint server for physics, mathematics, and computer sciences – preprinting is a relatively unfamiliar concept in the biological sciences. ASAPbio has convened three meetings to discuss how preprints could play a larger role in scientific communication in the life sciences. It organized an initial workshop in February of 2016 to bring together junior and senior researchers, journals, and funders (report at http://asapbio.org/meeting-information). This meeting concluded with optimism about the role of preprints (Berg et al. 2016), but also questions about their future development, since the ecosystem of preprint servers is more fragmented in the life sciences than in fields where use of arXiv dominates.

While such variability in preprint servers presents excellent opportunities for innovation, it also generates challenges in terms of discoverability and the adoption of standard practices. ASAPbio has argued that introducing data and screening standards can promote adoption of best practices relevant to posting of preprints among communities of biologists (cf. http://asapbio.org/document-2-a-preprint-service-supported-by-an-international-consortium-of-funders).

ASAPbio has subsequently convened multiple groups to discuss these ideas of aggregation and standardization. The second ASAPbio meeting was a funder workshop in May, the output of which was a request from funders for the 'develop[ment of] a proposal describing the governance, infrastructure and standards desired for a preprint service that represents the views of the broadest number of stakeholders' (http://asapbio.org/summary-of-the-asapbio-funders-workshop). In response, ASAPbio began to outline a proposal for the creation of a 'Central Service' to collect preprints and other manuscripts prior to peer review (more at http://asapbio.org/cs-appendix-1). A working model and rationale for the service is outlined at http://asapbio.org/summary-of-a-central-preprint-service-model."

Link:

http://riojournal.com/articles.php?id=11825

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Open Access Tracking Project (OATP) » lterrat's bookmarks

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oa.stem oa.versions

Date tagged:

01/17/2017, 13:01

Date published:

01/17/2017, 08:01