[open-science] Panton Principles Publicity

Mon Jun 13 01:36:07 UTC 2011

The poster looks slick!   But I worry that use of the term 'sharing' is not helping to reach out to the unconverted within the scientific community.  Scientists are more likely to recognize common cause with the PP when the issue is framed in terms of bolstering the scientific method, not when when it calls for behavior (altruistic sharing) that run counter to how 'competitive-collaborative' science is conducted.  Most scientists think of 'sharing' data with collaborators only if and when they can advance their own research.   We don't ask scientists to 'share' their manuscripts (an altruistic act), but rather to publish their manuscripts (a professional obligation but one that brings rewards).  So 'Replicate' -> 'Reuse' -> 'Revolutionize' might be closer to a message that would resonate outside of the choir, and convey the sense that 'open data means better science'.  'Replicate' might not be the perfect term either, though it does at least have the virtue of starting with an 'R'! 

cheers,
Todd

---
Todd Vision
Associate Professor of Biology
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

> See below for a conversation Maria and I have been having regarding
> publicity for the Panton Principles (PP from here on in!). It started when I
> shared a poster design:
> http://tinyurl.com/6gj2e6v
> 
> Since, some very interesting points have come up. As a quick summary for
> those who don't want to read the whole conversation:
> 
> - Would a PP logo be a good thing to have? Should we have a design
> contest/request ideas and submission?
> - Peter came up with a tagline for a web banner of 'Open data means better
> science', could a question directly addressing the community be more
> engaging for the poster?
> - Would a design like this
> http://sunnibrown.com/2010/06/03/pbs-this-emotional-life/ be too childish?
> - What makes open data in science unique compared to open data in other
> fields and how could we incorporate this into our messages/publicity?
> 
> Any comments, opinions, design ideas etc are most welcome!
> 
> Jenny