Tom Roper's Weblog

BioMed Central comment on Scientific publications: free for all?

BioMed Central have issued a press release with their reactions to Scientific Publications: Free for all?

House Of Commons Select Committee on Science and Technology Tenth Report Scientific Publications: Free for all?

It is now up there.
Select Committee on Science and Technology Tenth Report Session 2003-04
Scientific Publications: Free for all?
PDF of main report
PDF of oral & written evidence
The report is 118 pages and the evidence 487 pages long.
I can't improve on the Open Access News summary of the recommendations and Peter Suber's version on the SPARC OA Forum

HoCS&TC Inquiry into Scientific Publications reports...or perhaps not

The press notice says: "The Science and Technology Committee will publish its Tenth Report of Session 2003-04, Scientific Publications: Free for all? (HC 399), at 0001 hours on Tuesday 20 July 2004".

But is it there? No and it's now 7.57, BST. Good job I didn't stay up for it.
However Peter Suber, who must have had an advance copy as he submitted evidence, has put a summary up on Open Access News

HoCS&TC report imminent

Yesterday's Observer suggests that the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee Inquiry is about to report.
And so it is: there's a press notice here

Tackling plagiarism

In light of a THES report this week which suggests a quarter of students admit to plagiarising - and almost all of them are getting away with it - here are some UK anti-plagiarism resources

Peter Suber, Open Access Overview

I've been thinking for a while about an idiot's guide to open access and then I find Peter Suber has already done it. Splendid piece:Peter Suber, Open Access Overview

European Commission study on scientific publications markets

The European commission has announced a study of the scientific publication markets in Europe, to report next year.

FT letters on open access

The Financial Times of today carries two letters on open access in reply to a piece by Arie Jongejan of Elsevier from the issue of 26th May. One is from David C Prosser of SPARC Europe, the other from Tony Delamothe of the BMJ

Elsevier and open access

Steve Harnad reports on lis-elib that Elsevier have announced that they are now a full Romeo Green publisher...in other words authors may self-archive both their pre-refereeing preprints and their refereed
postprints.

HEFCE and the Funding Councils oral evidence online

The final oral evidence to the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee inquiry into scientific journals is now online: HEFCE and the Funding Councils