[open-science] JennyMolloy and PeterMR representing OKF at Open Science Summit

Thu Oct 27 06:09:04 UTC 2011

2011/10/27 Paweł Szczęsny <ps at pawelszczesny.org>

> Dear Peter,
>
> I'm even more outraged after seeing the slides, than I was after
> reading your blog posts.  Not only you show no data for assertion
> "closed access means people die" (anecdotal evidence is not an
> evidence - instead of formulating a hypothesis, you claim  "I don’t
> think anyone can deny the truth of that conclusion."), but you imply
> absolutely false connection between mortality rates in very poor
> countries and lack of access to primary research literature.
>

I did not say it was the major cause of mortality, but it is a contributor,
including in the rich west. After talking with people who run patient groups
there is anecdotal evidence that many patients cannot get access to the
literature they want and that diagnoses are in error because of that.

I shall take steps to create bodies of anecdotal evidence to support my
assertion.

>
> This is very wrong. Majority of maternal mortality rate in Bangladesh
> (see your last slide) is attributed to child marriage, lack of female
> education and lack of skilled birth attendants. Access to scholarly
> literature is absolutely irrelevant in such case. You'd need to
> improve the standard of living and the quality of education first.
>

this is an independent effect.

> Please stop flashing images of poor people in your open foo talks.
> You're harming the credibility of open science community.
>
>
That's an opinion.

P.

-- 
Peter Murray-Rust
Reader in Molecular Informatics
Unilever Centre, Dep. Of Chemistry
University of Cambridge
CB2 1EW, UK
+44-1223-763069
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