Kent Anderson

Friday Song: “Show Me How”

The Foo Fighters capture their grief in a masterpiece of a new album

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The PLOS Union

Small, non-profit publishers are facing unionization efforts — and fighting like movie baddies in the process

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Our Lost Independence

Friday Song: “Hanging Around”

A 1977 song by the Stranglers gets an update by a band with a similar sense of humor

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A Few Quick Insights

The Risky Political Game of OA

As powerful political forces batter scientific communications, are we up to the task of checking their power and influence?

Song: “Gimme Chocolate!”

A little cute metal this Friday? Jump on the Babymetal train and take a ride

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Taking the “I” Out of “AI”

Should LLMs be allowed to use first-person references? And why there is no "I" in "AI"

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Reality’s Recurring Power

Market forces and societal expectations are undercutting OA, bringing back an acceptance of subscriptions

Friday Song: “Motherless Child”

A master of manipulating tone, watching Prince do it live reveals some of how it's done

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And Now, Paid Student Journals

College placement services have started mock journals to publish "papers" by high school students

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Does Ideology Beat Merit Now?

Science and scholarly publishing have become infested with political, identity, and social justice priorities, thwarting merit and truth-seeking

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Cureus Hits “The Wall”

Suspending their Wall of Shame, Cureus seems destined to spend some cycles on an unseen version of the same Wall

Facing a Wave of OA Closures?

OA closures start, OA funds sunset, and PLOS staff demand a union

Friday Song: “Fancy”

An update of a Bobbie Gentry original became a signature song for “the Queen of Country”

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Will AI Cause Us to Stall Out?

AI is difficult to discuss, and much is unknown. But limiting ourselves to one topic might yield some insights.

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The Preprint About Fake Papers

What Huffy Editors Can Forget

Storming off believing starting a new journal only requires the same editors may not be a strong flex

Z-Library Domains Seized

The US Department of Justice continues its pursuit of Z-Library, a Russia-affiliated piracy site. In November 2022, two Russian nationals associated with it were arrested in Argentina, and more than 250 domains were seized. This came amidst the growing realization — ahem, Sci-Hub — that “shadow libraries” have effectively leveraged pseudo-rebel instincts

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EU Pushes Puzzling OA Proposal

Edits and insertions to a proposed EU OA policy show a growing realization that things are not going as planned

Song: “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”

A 1968 George Harrison classic continues to attract great guitarists to entrance listeners

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“Distribution Mismatch”

Euphemisms abound in a recent post about how OA content is less targeted and possibly less trusted, leaving an overall stain on the literature

A Lesson from Tucker Carlson

When personalities believe they are more powerful than brands, they often find some hard truths

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OA’s Teetering House of Cards

Song: “Where the Streets Have No Name”

An iconic soundscape, a structurally complex song, and a classic, all rolled into one