As Open Access Advances, U. of Wisconsin Seeks Stronger Protections for Data - The Chronicle of Higher Education
peter.suber's bookmarks 2013-09-19
Summary:
"About half the states have laws that let state universities keep some details of their research activities secret until publication or patenting....[O]fficials at the University of Wisconsin at Madison...are eager for their state to join that list...The primary threat, said [William W. Barker, U of Wisconsin's director of the Office of Industrial Partnerships], comes from outsiders—sometimes faculty members at other institutions—who use his state's freedom-of-information rules to poach ideas from University of Wisconsin scientists....In a memorandum prepared for state lawmakers, university officials suggested a law making clear they could withhold virtually any research data until they have been 'publicly released, published, or patented.' 'Nobody's talking about keeping research results secret, because we're going to publish them—it's a public institution,' Mr. Barker said. 'It's just a matter of timing, that's all we're talking about.' ..."