Thanks Tito, Pete and Shani... There is a formal comment period open until May 6. The U.S. government is accepting letters or briefs from any individual or organization.
I've shared my own in the hopes others will do something similar. If it hasn't already, the Wikimedia Foundation's Research and Public Policy teams should seriously consider a submission. It would also be appropriate for Wikimedia affiliates with any U.S. presence, such as Wiki Project Med, to submit their own letters. Submission is simple and instructions are here: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/02/19/2020-03189/request-for-information-public-access-to-peer-reviewed-scholarly-publications-data-and-code This is a unique opportunity to shift funding and scholarly communications policy. We shouldn't waste it. Jake Orlowitz Founder of the Wikipedia Library On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 2:54 PM <wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org> wrote: > Send Wikimedia-l mailing list submissions to > wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org > > You can reach the person managing the list at > wikimedia-l-ow...@lists.wikimedia.org > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Wikimedia-l digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: Comment Open on U.S. Open Access Policy (Pete Forsyth) > 2. Re: Comment Open on U.S. Open Access Policy (Shani Evenstein) > 3. Re: Comment Open on U.S. Open Access Policy (Yaroslav Blanter) > 4. Re: Comment Open on U.S. Open Access Policy (James Heilman) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Mon, 20 Apr 2020 13:26:29 -0700 > From: Pete Forsyth <petefors...@gmail.com> > To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org> > Subject: Re: [Wikimedia-l] Comment Open on U.S. Open Access Policy > Message-ID: > < > cagwts0h0n3m7kntzq6oaqu2yx_94rtnyxz2_fpdvrtd50e-...@mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Jake, > > How can we most effectively support your excellent effort with this? > > -Pete > -- > Pete Forsyth > User:Peteforsyth on Meta, English Wikisource, English Wikipedia, etc. > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 1:22 PM Tito Dutta <trulyt...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > Hello, > > Very well-written and well-supported by statistics. Thanks for sharing. > > Regards. > > User:Titodutta > > > > > > On Tue, Apr 21, 2020, 1:41 AM Jake Orlowitz <jorlow...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > My Letter to the U.S. Office for Science and Technology Policy > regarding > > a > > > proposal for federally mandate open access to publicly-funded > research... > > > > > > --- > > > > > > Wikipedia is one of the ten most popular websites in the world. Each > > month > > > 200,000 editors improve over 6 million articles. This vital public > > > information is viewed on 1 billion unique devices as our pages are > loaded > > > by people around the globe 7,000 times per second. > > > > > > Wikipedia is the "free encyclopedia", both in its open CC-BY-SA > licensing > > > as well as the unpaid contributions of its volunteer editors. Yet > > > Wikipedia's hundreds of thousands of editors struggle to access > scholarly > > > research. And, if they are able to read and cite it, then hundreds of > > > millions of readers cannot verify or explore it for deeper research. > > > > > > Citations are the bridge between Wikipedia articles and a broader > > landscape > > > of reliable, secondary sources. Citations not only allow readers to > > verify > > > the reliability of the facts they find in Wikipedia; through citations > > > readers can also deep-dive into any given topic by exploring the books, > > > scholarly publications, and news stories referenced in an article. > > > > > > A recently released dataset of all citations with identifiers in > > Wikipedia > > > found that less than half of the official versions of scholarly > > > publications cited with an identifier in Wikipedia are freely available > > on > > > the web. This chasm of for editors and for readers is a tragedy of > public > > > education and digital literacy. > > > > > > Just look at the most recent global catastrophe with Coronavirus. By > > April > > > 2020 the main articles on COVID-19 had received 50 million views. > > > Wikipedia's medical content--made up of more than 155,000 articles and > 1 > > > billion bytes of text across more than 255 languages--has been ranked > as > > > one of the top-3 most viewed sources for medical information on the > > entire > > > internet. > > > > > > References are essential to the public's trust in Wikipedia. Indeed, > > > Wikipedia's medical content is supported by 757,855 references in > English > > > and 1,596,528 in other languages, for a total of 2,354,383 across all > > > languages. In English 168,985 have a PMID while 261,850 do in other > > > languages. This means at least 430,835 references are journal articles. > > > > > > What happens when those journal articles lie behind a paywall? The > public > > > suffers from a dearth of good information to make decisions about their > > > lives as independent citizens and members of a global community. > > > > > > As founder of The Wikipedia Library, I arranged partnerships with > dozens > > of > > > leading scholarly journals, to give Wikipedia editors free access to > > their > > > reliable content and so they would be able to do effective and rigorous > > > research. This time-intensive process took 6 years to amass access to > > only > > > 1/5th of the most highly regarded academic publications. Frankly, > > Wikipedia > > > editors--volunteers who selflessly give of their intelligence and > passion > > > to educate--should not have to beg and borrow to access publicly-funded > > > research. Readers should not hit paywalls when they are seeking > > > citizen-supported knowledge. > > > > > > I implore you to make the bold but entirely reasonable decision and > > ensure > > > that taxpayers have access to the vital scientific and scholarly > studies > > > that they themselves fund. This is not only sensible, it is essential > to > > > civic health, societal progress, and human flourishing. > > > > > > > > > Sincerely, > > > Jake Orlowitz > > > Founder of The Wikipedia Library > > > > > > > > > --- > > > > > > "Public Access to Peer-Reviewed Scholarly Publications, Data and Code > > > Resulting From Federally Funded Research" > > > > > > > > > > > > https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/02/19/2020-03189/request-for-information-public-access-to-peer-reviewed-scholarly-publications-data-and-code > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > _______________________________________________ > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Mon, 20 Apr 2020 23:33:01 +0300 > From: Shani Evenstein <shani.e...@gmail.com> > To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org> > Subject: Re: [Wikimedia-l] Comment Open on U.S. Open Access Policy > Message-ID: > < > caepmzqu4bxenokt38hj619nqncui6nd2pypgzphdsch0abl...@mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Jake, well written and nicely put. > Is this online somewhere, where we can share it further? > > Best, > Shani. > > > ----------------------------------------------- > *Shani Evenstein Sigalov* > > * Lecturer, Tel Aviv University. > * EdTech Innovation Strategist, NY/American Medical Program, Sackler School > of Medicine, Tel Aviv University. > > * PhD Candidate, School of Education, Tel Aviv University. > * Azrieli Foundation Research Fellow. > * OER & Emerging Technologies Coordinator, UNESCO Chair > <https://education.tau.ac.il/node/3495> on Technology, > Internationalization > and Education, School of Education, Tel Aviv University > <https://education.tau.ac.il/node/3495>. > > * Member of the Board of Trustees > <https://wikimediafoundation.org/profile/shani-evenstein-sigalov/>, > Wikimedia > Foundation <https://wikimediafoundation.org/>. > * Chairperson, The Hebrew Literature Digitization Society > <http://www.israelgives.org/amuta/580428621>. > * Chief Editor, Project Ben-Yehuda <http://benyehuda.org>. > > +972-525640648 > > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 11:27 PM Pete Forsyth <petefors...@gmail.com> > wrote: > > > Jake, > > > > How can we most effectively support your excellent effort with this? > > > > -Pete > > -- > > Pete Forsyth > > User:Peteforsyth on Meta, English Wikisource, English Wikipedia, etc. > > > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 1:22 PM Tito Dutta <trulyt...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > Hello, > > > Very well-written and well-supported by statistics. Thanks for sharing. > > > Regards. > > > User:Titodutta > > > > > > > > > On Tue, Apr 21, 2020, 1:41 AM Jake Orlowitz <jorlow...@gmail.com> > wrote: > > > > > > > My Letter to the U.S. Office for Science and Technology Policy > > regarding > > > a > > > > proposal for federally mandate open access to publicly-funded > > research... > > > > > > > > --- > > > > > > > > Wikipedia is one of the ten most popular websites in the world. Each > > > month > > > > 200,000 editors improve over 6 million articles. This vital public > > > > information is viewed on 1 billion unique devices as our pages are > > loaded > > > > by people around the globe 7,000 times per second. > > > > > > > > Wikipedia is the "free encyclopedia", both in its open CC-BY-SA > > licensing > > > > as well as the unpaid contributions of its volunteer editors. Yet > > > > Wikipedia's hundreds of thousands of editors struggle to access > > scholarly > > > > research. And, if they are able to read and cite it, then hundreds of > > > > millions of readers cannot verify or explore it for deeper research. > > > > > > > > Citations are the bridge between Wikipedia articles and a broader > > > landscape > > > > of reliable, secondary sources. Citations not only allow readers to > > > verify > > > > the reliability of the facts they find in Wikipedia; through > citations > > > > readers can also deep-dive into any given topic by exploring the > books, > > > > scholarly publications, and news stories referenced in an article. > > > > > > > > A recently released dataset of all citations with identifiers in > > > Wikipedia > > > > found that less than half of the official versions of scholarly > > > > publications cited with an identifier in Wikipedia are freely > available > > > on > > > > the web. This chasm of for editors and for readers is a tragedy of > > public > > > > education and digital literacy. > > > > > > > > Just look at the most recent global catastrophe with Coronavirus. By > > > April > > > > 2020 the main articles on COVID-19 had received 50 million views. > > > > Wikipedia's medical content--made up of more than 155,000 articles > and > > 1 > > > > billion bytes of text across more than 255 languages--has been ranked > > as > > > > one of the top-3 most viewed sources for medical information on the > > > entire > > > > internet. > > > > > > > > References are essential to the public's trust in Wikipedia. Indeed, > > > > Wikipedia's medical content is supported by 757,855 references in > > English > > > > and 1,596,528 in other languages, for a total of 2,354,383 across all > > > > languages. In English 168,985 have a PMID while 261,850 do in other > > > > languages. This means at least 430,835 references are journal > articles. > > > > > > > > What happens when those journal articles lie behind a paywall? The > > public > > > > suffers from a dearth of good information to make decisions about > their > > > > lives as independent citizens and members of a global community. > > > > > > > > As founder of The Wikipedia Library, I arranged partnerships with > > dozens > > > of > > > > leading scholarly journals, to give Wikipedia editors free access to > > > their > > > > reliable content and so they would be able to do effective and > rigorous > > > > research. This time-intensive process took 6 years to amass access to > > > only > > > > 1/5th of the most highly regarded academic publications. Frankly, > > > Wikipedia > > > > editors--volunteers who selflessly give of their intelligence and > > passion > > > > to educate--should not have to beg and borrow to access > publicly-funded > > > > research. Readers should not hit paywalls when they are seeking > > > > citizen-supported knowledge. > > > > > > > > I implore you to make the bold but entirely reasonable decision and > > > ensure > > > > that taxpayers have access to the vital scientific and scholarly > > studies > > > > that they themselves fund. This is not only sensible, it is essential > > to > > > > civic health, societal progress, and human flourishing. > > > > > > > > > > > > Sincerely, > > > > Jake Orlowitz > > > > Founder of The Wikipedia Library > > > > > > > > > > > > --- > > > > > > > > "Public Access to Peer-Reviewed Scholarly Publications, Data and Code > > > > Resulting From Federally Funded Research" > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/02/19/2020-03189/request-for-information-public-access-to-peer-reviewed-scholarly-publications-data-and-code > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > Unsubscribe: > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > _______________________________________________ > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Mon, 20 Apr 2020 22:50:57 +0200 > From: Yaroslav Blanter <ymb...@gmail.com> > To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org> > Subject: Re: [Wikimedia-l] Comment Open on U.S. Open Access Policy > Message-ID: > < > cam-kgdmd3xbcr00dfjs0fzjyxjqzohicj_fdwgo+dbb_43_...@mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > As an actively publishing researcher, I just know that mandating open > access publishing would mean that the author pays the (huge) publication > fee rather than the library pays the subscription. In an ideal world, the > universities would refund the fees, and will get subsidy from the > governments, In our real world, the researchers will have to pay everything > out of their own pocket, with some of them losing all possibilities to > publish, for the lack of funds. I tried to raise this before, and the > universal reply was that this is my problem, not the problem of the > society. I do not expect anything else this time. > > Cheers > Yaroslav > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 10:34 PM Shani Evenstein <shani.e...@gmail.com> > wrote: > > > Jake, well written and nicely put. > > Is this online somewhere, where we can share it further? > > > > Best, > > Shani. > > > > > > ----------------------------------------------- > > *Shani Evenstein Sigalov* > > > > * Lecturer, Tel Aviv University. > > * EdTech Innovation Strategist, NY/American Medical Program, Sackler > School > > of Medicine, Tel Aviv University. > > > > * PhD Candidate, School of Education, Tel Aviv University. > > * Azrieli Foundation Research Fellow. > > * OER & Emerging Technologies Coordinator, UNESCO Chair > > <https://education.tau.ac.il/node/3495> on Technology, > > Internationalization > > and Education, School of Education, Tel Aviv University > > <https://education.tau.ac.il/node/3495>. > > > > * Member of the Board of Trustees > > <https://wikimediafoundation.org/profile/shani-evenstein-sigalov/>, > > Wikimedia > > Foundation <https://wikimediafoundation.org/>. > > * Chairperson, The Hebrew Literature Digitization Society > > <http://www.israelgives.org/amuta/580428621>. > > * Chief Editor, Project Ben-Yehuda <http://benyehuda.org>. > > > > +972-525640648 > > > > > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 11:27 PM Pete Forsyth <petefors...@gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > > > Jake, > > > > > > How can we most effectively support your excellent effort with this? > > > > > > -Pete > > > -- > > > Pete Forsyth > > > User:Peteforsyth on Meta, English Wikisource, English Wikipedia, etc. > > > > > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 1:22 PM Tito Dutta <trulyt...@gmail.com> > wrote: > > > > > > > Hello, > > > > Very well-written and well-supported by statistics. Thanks for > sharing. > > > > Regards. > > > > User:Titodutta > > > > > > > > > > > > On Tue, Apr 21, 2020, 1:41 AM Jake Orlowitz <jorlow...@gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > > > > > > > My Letter to the U.S. Office for Science and Technology Policy > > > regarding > > > > a > > > > > proposal for federally mandate open access to publicly-funded > > > research... > > > > > > > > > > --- > > > > > > > > > > Wikipedia is one of the ten most popular websites in the world. > Each > > > > month > > > > > 200,000 editors improve over 6 million articles. This vital public > > > > > information is viewed on 1 billion unique devices as our pages are > > > loaded > > > > > by people around the globe 7,000 times per second. > > > > > > > > > > Wikipedia is the "free encyclopedia", both in its open CC-BY-SA > > > licensing > > > > > as well as the unpaid contributions of its volunteer editors. Yet > > > > > Wikipedia's hundreds of thousands of editors struggle to access > > > scholarly > > > > > research. And, if they are able to read and cite it, then hundreds > of > > > > > millions of readers cannot verify or explore it for deeper > research. > > > > > > > > > > Citations are the bridge between Wikipedia articles and a broader > > > > landscape > > > > > of reliable, secondary sources. Citations not only allow readers to > > > > verify > > > > > the reliability of the facts they find in Wikipedia; through > > citations > > > > > readers can also deep-dive into any given topic by exploring the > > books, > > > > > scholarly publications, and news stories referenced in an article. > > > > > > > > > > A recently released dataset of all citations with identifiers in > > > > Wikipedia > > > > > found that less than half of the official versions of scholarly > > > > > publications cited with an identifier in Wikipedia are freely > > available > > > > on > > > > > the web. This chasm of for editors and for readers is a tragedy of > > > public > > > > > education and digital literacy. > > > > > > > > > > Just look at the most recent global catastrophe with Coronavirus. > By > > > > April > > > > > 2020 the main articles on COVID-19 had received 50 million views. > > > > > Wikipedia's medical content--made up of more than 155,000 articles > > and > > > 1 > > > > > billion bytes of text across more than 255 languages--has been > ranked > > > as > > > > > one of the top-3 most viewed sources for medical information on the > > > > entire > > > > > internet. > > > > > > > > > > References are essential to the public's trust in Wikipedia. > Indeed, > > > > > Wikipedia's medical content is supported by 757,855 references in > > > English > > > > > and 1,596,528 in other languages, for a total of 2,354,383 across > all > > > > > languages. In English 168,985 have a PMID while 261,850 do in other > > > > > languages. This means at least 430,835 references are journal > > articles. > > > > > > > > > > What happens when those journal articles lie behind a paywall? The > > > public > > > > > suffers from a dearth of good information to make decisions about > > their > > > > > lives as independent citizens and members of a global community. > > > > > > > > > > As founder of The Wikipedia Library, I arranged partnerships with > > > dozens > > > > of > > > > > leading scholarly journals, to give Wikipedia editors free access > to > > > > their > > > > > reliable content and so they would be able to do effective and > > rigorous > > > > > research. This time-intensive process took 6 years to amass access > to > > > > only > > > > > 1/5th of the most highly regarded academic publications. Frankly, > > > > Wikipedia > > > > > editors--volunteers who selflessly give of their intelligence and > > > passion > > > > > to educate--should not have to beg and borrow to access > > publicly-funded > > > > > research. Readers should not hit paywalls when they are seeking > > > > > citizen-supported knowledge. > > > > > > > > > > I implore you to make the bold but entirely reasonable decision and > > > > ensure > > > > > that taxpayers have access to the vital scientific and scholarly > > > studies > > > > > that they themselves fund. This is not only sensible, it is > essential > > > to > > > > > civic health, societal progress, and human flourishing. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Sincerely, > > > > > Jake Orlowitz > > > > > Founder of The Wikipedia Library > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > --- > > > > > > > > > > "Public Access to Peer-Reviewed Scholarly Publications, Data and > Code > > > > > Resulting From Federally Funded Research" > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/02/19/2020-03189/request-for-information-public-access-to-peer-reviewed-scholarly-publications-data-and-code > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > > Unsubscribe: > > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org > ?subject=unsubscribe> > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > Unsubscribe: > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > _______________________________________________ > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Mon, 20 Apr 2020 15:54:03 -0600 > From: James Heilman <jmh...@gmail.com> > To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org> > Subject: Re: [Wikimedia-l] Comment Open on U.S. Open Access Policy > Message-ID: > <CAF1en7UeExtKLH9skVK+cRU_RPCBbuSF4yYZX98= > pyydw_c...@mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > We within the Wikimedia movement have a open access journal without any > publication fees. https://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/WikiJournal_User_Group > There > are also other platinum open access publishers. > > James > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 2:52 PM Yaroslav Blanter <ymb...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > As an actively publishing researcher, I just know that mandating open > > access publishing would mean that the author pays the (huge) publication > > fee rather than the library pays the subscription. In an ideal world, the > > universities would refund the fees, and will get subsidy from the > > governments, In our real world, the researchers will have to pay > everything > > out of their own pocket, with some of them losing all possibilities to > > publish, for the lack of funds. I tried to raise this before, and the > > universal reply was that this is my problem, not the problem of the > > society. I do not expect anything else this time. > > > > Cheers > > Yaroslav > > > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 10:34 PM Shani Evenstein <shani.e...@gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > > > Jake, well written and nicely put. > > > Is this online somewhere, where we can share it further? > > > > > > Best, > > > Shani. > > > > > > > > > ----------------------------------------------- > > > *Shani Evenstein Sigalov* > > > > > > * Lecturer, Tel Aviv University. > > > * EdTech Innovation Strategist, NY/American Medical Program, Sackler > > School > > > of Medicine, Tel Aviv University. > > > > > > * PhD Candidate, School of Education, Tel Aviv University. > > > * Azrieli Foundation Research Fellow. > > > * OER & Emerging Technologies Coordinator, UNESCO Chair > > > <https://education.tau.ac.il/node/3495> on Technology, > > > Internationalization > > > and Education, School of Education, Tel Aviv University > > > <https://education.tau.ac.il/node/3495>. > > > > > > * Member of the Board of Trustees > > > <https://wikimediafoundation.org/profile/shani-evenstein-sigalov/>, > > > Wikimedia > > > Foundation <https://wikimediafoundation.org/>. > > > * Chairperson, The Hebrew Literature Digitization Society > > > <http://www.israelgives.org/amuta/580428621>. > > > * Chief Editor, Project Ben-Yehuda <http://benyehuda.org>. > > > > > > +972-525640648 > > > > > > > > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 11:27 PM Pete Forsyth <petefors...@gmail.com> > > > wrote: > > > > > > > Jake, > > > > > > > > How can we most effectively support your excellent effort with this? > > > > > > > > -Pete > > > > -- > > > > Pete Forsyth > > > > User:Peteforsyth on Meta, English Wikisource, English Wikipedia, etc. > > > > > > > > On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 1:22 PM Tito Dutta <trulyt...@gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > > > > > > > Hello, > > > > > Very well-written and well-supported by statistics. Thanks for > > sharing. > > > > > Regards. > > > > > User:Titodutta > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Tue, Apr 21, 2020, 1:41 AM Jake Orlowitz <jorlow...@gmail.com> > > > wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > My Letter to the U.S. Office for Science and Technology Policy > > > > regarding > > > > > a > > > > > > proposal for federally mandate open access to publicly-funded > > > > research... > > > > > > > > > > > > --- > > > > > > > > > > > > Wikipedia is one of the ten most popular websites in the world. > > Each > > > > > month > > > > > > 200,000 editors improve over 6 million articles. This vital > public > > > > > > information is viewed on 1 billion unique devices as our pages > are > > > > loaded > > > > > > by people around the globe 7,000 times per second. > > > > > > > > > > > > Wikipedia is the "free encyclopedia", both in its open CC-BY-SA > > > > licensing > > > > > > as well as the unpaid contributions of its volunteer editors. Yet > > > > > > Wikipedia's hundreds of thousands of editors struggle to access > > > > scholarly > > > > > > research. And, if they are able to read and cite it, then > hundreds > > of > > > > > > millions of readers cannot verify or explore it for deeper > > research. > > > > > > > > > > > > Citations are the bridge between Wikipedia articles and a broader > > > > > landscape > > > > > > of reliable, secondary sources. Citations not only allow readers > to > > > > > verify > > > > > > the reliability of the facts they find in Wikipedia; through > > > citations > > > > > > readers can also deep-dive into any given topic by exploring the > > > books, > > > > > > scholarly publications, and news stories referenced in an > article. > > > > > > > > > > > > A recently released dataset of all citations with identifiers in > > > > > Wikipedia > > > > > > found that less than half of the official versions of scholarly > > > > > > publications cited with an identifier in Wikipedia are freely > > > available > > > > > on > > > > > > the web. This chasm of for editors and for readers is a tragedy > of > > > > public > > > > > > education and digital literacy. > > > > > > > > > > > > Just look at the most recent global catastrophe with Coronavirus. > > By > > > > > April > > > > > > 2020 the main articles on COVID-19 had received 50 million views. > > > > > > Wikipedia's medical content--made up of more than 155,000 > articles > > > and > > > > 1 > > > > > > billion bytes of text across more than 255 languages--has been > > ranked > > > > as > > > > > > one of the top-3 most viewed sources for medical information on > the > > > > > entire > > > > > > internet. > > > > > > > > > > > > References are essential to the public's trust in Wikipedia. > > Indeed, > > > > > > Wikipedia's medical content is supported by 757,855 references in > > > > English > > > > > > and 1,596,528 in other languages, for a total of 2,354,383 across > > all > > > > > > languages. In English 168,985 have a PMID while 261,850 do in > other > > > > > > languages. This means at least 430,835 references are journal > > > articles. > > > > > > > > > > > > What happens when those journal articles lie behind a paywall? > The > > > > public > > > > > > suffers from a dearth of good information to make decisions about > > > their > > > > > > lives as independent citizens and members of a global community. > > > > > > > > > > > > As founder of The Wikipedia Library, I arranged partnerships with > > > > dozens > > > > > of > > > > > > leading scholarly journals, to give Wikipedia editors free access > > to > > > > > their > > > > > > reliable content and so they would be able to do effective and > > > rigorous > > > > > > research. This time-intensive process took 6 years to amass > access > > to > > > > > only > > > > > > 1/5th of the most highly regarded academic publications. Frankly, > > > > > Wikipedia > > > > > > editors--volunteers who selflessly give of their intelligence and > > > > passion > > > > > > to educate--should not have to beg and borrow to access > > > publicly-funded > > > > > > research. Readers should not hit paywalls when they are seeking > > > > > > citizen-supported knowledge. > > > > > > > > > > > > I implore you to make the bold but entirely reasonable decision > and > > > > > ensure > > > > > > that taxpayers have access to the vital scientific and scholarly > > > > studies > > > > > > that they themselves fund. This is not only sensible, it is > > essential > > > > to > > > > > > civic health, societal progress, and human flourishing. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Sincerely, > > > > > > Jake Orlowitz > > > > > > Founder of The Wikipedia Library > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > --- > > > > > > > > > > > > "Public Access to Peer-Reviewed Scholarly Publications, Data and > > Code > > > > > > Resulting From Federally Funded Research" > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/02/19/2020-03189/request-for-information-public-access-to-peer-reviewed-scholarly-publications-data-and-code > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > > > Unsubscribe: > > > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org > > ?subject=unsubscribe> > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > > Unsubscribe: > > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org > ?subject=unsubscribe> > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > Unsubscribe: > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > _______________________________________________ > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > > -- > James Heilman > MD, CCFP-EM, Wikipedian > > > ------------------------------ > > Subject: Digest Footer > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > ------------------------------ > > End of Wikimedia-l Digest, Vol 193, Issue 30 > ******************************************** > _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe>
