forsdyke wrote:
>> The conventional paper press is hardly likely to give a balanced
> view of the impending e-print revolution (a la Ginsparg) planned by
> Varmus and his advisers at NIH. The latest issue of Nature Structural
> Biology (NSB) leads off rhetorically with "Would you use an e-print
> server?" (vol 6, 399-400).
To continue this thread, the dread monster "information overload"
is cited as a "major concern" by NSB. How nice to have the journals act
as "proxy" for us and do the "filtering". For filtering read
"peer-review" or "censorship" as you incline.
This seems a silly argument. There is already information overload
out there, if you want to look at it this way. To survive, researchers
have already adapted to the use of various filtering devices...citation
indexes, references in reviews, knowledge of key players, etc. There are
many excellent web-filters which supplement this. The amateur (perhaps
looking for research on AIDS because a friend has it), may want to go to
the "cutting edge" and look at the "front-line" journals, and so may
benefit from NSB's editorial "filters", but the "pros" don't need it.
Sincerely, Donald Forsdyke Discussion Leader. Bionet.journals.note
