Comment on Finish him. đȘ
TheObviousSolution@lemm.ee âš5â© âšmonthsâ© agoTo be fair, it would probably be full of crackpot theories, which would make anything released on it a crackpot theory by association. Unless it involves a heavy but fair dose of educated moderation.
Kwakigra@beehaw.org âš5â© âšmonthsâ© ago
Not necessarily. Just because my theoretical journal wouldnât be subject to the existing academic establishment it does not mean it would accept everything. This journal would be more rigorous because it would be composed exclusively by fidelity to the scientific process. I am not anti-academia, only acknowledging that the existing structures are so large and composed of so many egos that there is necessarily over-focus on some areas and under-focus on other areas as a consequence of the structure. My pretend journal wouldnât be for everyone rejected from those institutions for explicit reasons of incompetence, it would be for those scientists who want to pool resources to do work that would not be easy to support on the current academic model.
towerful@programming.dev âš5â© âšmonthsâ© ago
How to you vet papers that are being submitted?
If it is outside of your specific experience, how do you get someone else who is specialised to vet the paper?
Kwakigra@beehaw.org âš5â© âšmonthsâ© ago
Fortunately I donât need to have all the answers in my imaginary journal. I imagine it more as a cooperative enterprise among scientists who have become disenchanted with established academic paradigms and are looking to do the research and experimentation in that zone which is of interest to scientists themselves but not necessarily supported by the need to publish in the areas most emphasized by the academic establishment. This is not anything against what exists and what is being produced which I personally consider to be important, only to provide additional avenues to serve science in ways itâs not currently being served.
Youâre right that credentials in this model are fuzzy. At least at the beginning it would be composed exclusively of scientists already working in their field who would want something like this. It could be possible that these scientists answering only to their immediate guerilla journal peers may see fit to support the research of an individual with no doctorate but who has demonstrated their self-education has made them capable of designing an experiment which can be quantified, criticized, and re-produced. Whether this standard would be agreed upon by the greater community would certainly be controversial with plenty of politics involved, but that reality it outside of the scope of my daydream.
As for the sustainability, itâs as in question as any open source project. It lives and dies based on peoplesâ desire to do it only because they want to do it and others want to support them doing it. This couldnât be a career alternative to academia because making it into a business or non-profit would defeat the purpose as it would attain the same vulnerabilities to a much more severe degree than the much larger and stable existing model.
towerful@programming.dev âš5â© âšmonthsâ© ago
How the Linux kernel âmade itâ and is still free and open source is - imo - one of the pinnacles of humanity.
Itâs inspired so much other software to adopt the same philosophy, and modern humanity/science/society stands on those shoulders.
I think science has missed that boat.
Or that pinnacle was before the tools to support such an open source atmosphere/community were around⊠So not missed the boat, but swam before the boat was built