Author Archives: Stephen

Sick of Impact Factors: Coda

Posted on August 19, 2012 by Stephen

My ‘Sick of Impact Factors‘ blog post seems to have struck much more of a chord than I anticipated. At the time of writing it has attracted over 12,900 page views and 460 tweets, far higher than my usual tallies. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Open Access, Scientific Life | Tagged , , | 47 Comments

Sick of Impact Factors

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Stephen

I am sick of impact factors and so is science. The impact factor might have started out as a good idea, but its time has come and gone. Conceived by Eugene Garfield in the 1970s as a useful tool for … Continue reading →

Posted in Open Access, Science | Tagged , , | 233 Comments

Here goes something: Occam’s Typewriter cornered

Posted on August 9, 2012 by Stephen

Well this is nice. Today Occam’s Typewriter opens a new cornershop, so to speak, at the Guardian. For me, this closes a social media circle that started over four years ago because I can trace my entry to the scientific … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, Communication, Science & Media | Tagged , | 6 Comments

“You can’t read this book” but you should

Posted on July 31, 2012 by Stephen

Danny Boyle’s opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Games spread a warm glow through liberal hearts. His imaginative sweep over British history and culture, which managed to be both reverent and irreverent, was filled with a human chaos that constituted a nicely … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review, Libel Reform, Science & Politics | Tagged , , | 22 Comments

Your Invitation to the Open Access Debate

Posted on July 24, 2012 by Stephen

I said the open access debate had been torrid. And it continues apace in the wake of last week’s announcements from the UK government and RCUK, the organisation that represents the common interests of Britain’s Research Councils. This week at … Continue reading →

Posted in Open Access | Tagged , | 7 Comments

UK Government Goes For Broke on Open Access

Posted on July 16, 2012 by Stephen

Well that was quick. Less than a month after the Finch working group published its recommendations on the future of open access, UK science minister David Willetts has responded, saying in effect “Let’s go for it.” The government has taken … Continue reading →

Posted in Open Access, Science & Politics | Tagged , , | 23 Comments

The Young Atheist’s Handbook by Alom Shaha

Posted on July 14, 2012 by Stephen

Don’t be misled by the title: this is a book about love. Love for life, love for family and love for curiosity, which leads — circularly — to a love affair with books. Don’t be misled by the title: this … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

The Entrepreneurial State by Mariana Mazzucato

Posted on July 12, 2012 by Stephen

This is not new since Mariana Mazzucato’s breezy pamphlet, The Entrepreneurial State, was published a year ago, but it was new to me. I’ve just finishing reading it, having snagged one of the copies that she brought to June’s fascinating Science Question … Continue reading →

Posted in Science & Politics | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Open Access by Peter Suber

Posted on July 5, 2012 by Stephen

There has been a fairly torrid debate over open access over the last six months (even longer for aficionados). For people who look in only occasionally it must seem like a storm that swirls around the same arguments time and … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review, Open Access | Tagged , | 20 Comments

Open Access: Who Pays the Copy-editor?

Posted on July 2, 2012 by Stephen

My article on open access in the New Scientist provoked an email from copy-editor Miranda Potter. Starting from the article’s mention of my recent paper in PLoS ONE, she raises the question of who is going to pay for copy-editing … Continue reading →

Posted in Open Access | Tagged , , | 20 Comments

An Eye for an Eye

Posted on July 1, 2012 by Stephen

I have the feeling that there have been too many words on this blog of late. I need a break and wonder if the beleaguered reader does too. Since I happened to be in the sunshine on London’s South Bank … Continue reading →

Posted in Fun | Tagged | 4 Comments

Finch Report: the question of costs

Posted on June 27, 2012 by Stephen

Last week, having quickly digested the executive summary of the Finch Report on open access (OA), I told you it was complicated. I’ve now read the report in its entirety, along with a large swathes of blogospheric commentary. I’m still decidedly of the view … Continue reading →

Posted in Open Access, Science & Politics | Tagged , , , | 31 Comments