Open Access Hackathon at MIT | Open Access Science – Broader Impacts Group

“Knowledge is the power that moves the world. Free and accessible knowledge is a force-multiplier to do worldwide good.” These words by MIT Open Access Task Force officer Herng Yi Cheng kicked off the 2018 Open Access Hackathon at MIT. As a computer science novice, I at first wondered if I could ‘hack it’ at an MIT-level hackathon. Given my recent and growing interest in the Open Access movement, however, the timing of this event seemed fortuitous. Thus, I took the plunge and registered for the opening talks on Friday. Source: University Libraries, University of Washington.

Upon arriving in the conference room, I was impressed by the diverse problems and projects proposed by students and presented on posters around the room. This dedicated group of students and faculty sought to attack issues of scientific accessibility from all angles, and many teams sought diverse skill sets, more than just computer science as I had originally expected. The idea behind the ‘hackathon’, was to hear talks, propose ideas, then break into groups based on interest and spend the following day designing solutions. 

Cheng, our opening speaker, introduced his initial exposure to the open access issue. “My professor was involved in a boycott of the publishing company Elsevier, a movement called ‘The Cost of Knowledge’. At first, I had no idea why an academic would boycott a distributer of scientific papers. I thought the dissemination of knowledge was a good thing, right?” said Cheng. The Cost of Knowledge movement was initiated by a group of mathematicians who recognized that publishing companies charge exorbitant prices both for scientists to publish and for citizens to access published content. In the past when editing, copying, and disseminating written works took more time and effort, publishing companies served the valuable function of typesetting, printing, and physically distributing articles. Now, with cheap and instant computerized typesetting programs, internet access, and the ability to infinitely copy and share content, publishing companies can earn profit margins of over 33%. The purpose of our event, organized by the MIT OA Task Force, was to discuss the cultural, economic, and scientific underpinnings of the scientist/publisher relationship...."