How Posting Promotes Open Science

Social media is a valuable tool. These platforms are public, generally free to access, and focus on networking. They are designed for writing and sharing ideas, reading the works of others, and talking about them. This is similar to open access publishing and open science. Digital, transparent, and free communication for the sake of knowledge sharing. And, importantly, the advancement of science, too. As social media becomes more important to academics, it’s necessary to consider what it can do outside of online and social engagement. For instance, how can posting on social media further the open science movement? How can it make scientific data easy to understand for the public? And, importantly, how can it improve the reach and diversity of research?

Here, we’ll take a look at a few of the benefits of being active online in the academic community.

What is open science?

Open access publishing refers to making research free and accessible to the public. Open science broadens this outlook. It encompasses the entire research process, the data, and its reproductions. The goal of this initiative is to not only be transparent about how and where data is coming from, but to ensure that studies can be replicated globally.

This means that academics in countries with less resources, such as in the Global South, can follow proven methods to conduct studies. This wastes less time and funds. It also allows important research to be performed in typically neglected areas. Additionally, it gives all academics the opportunity to contribute their findings to the overall discussion. They can provide differing points of view that recontextualize and expand upon these works.

Posting in layman’s terms

So, how does posting on social media contribute to this movement? For starters, social media requires posts, whether they’re text based or include graphics/videos, to be understandable to the general public. This means text should be free of scientific  jargon, as this performs better by reaching wider audiences. Wordcount limits prevent posts from being too long, meaning text has to be brief and to the point. This eliminates room for overly scholarly language or dense walls of text. Videos and infographics are popular with social media users and algorithms. Visual mediums improve the engagement with and understanding of scientific ideas. Being able to see what’s described is helpful, after all.

All of this means that posts, by their very nature, are for the people rather than just the niche academic communities they belong to. When information is presented briefly and clearly, it makes scientific findings easier to follow. People who wouldn’t typically have access to this knowledge can find it freely. And when they do find it, they can read and talk about it with academics and other social media users. Science becomes approachable via social media.

Social media keeps everyone up to date

Timeliness has always been important in academia. Being able to quickly share findings and gather feedback is a large part of why we have open access journals and a variety of publication forms, such as preprints. Removing barriers to information means that results can be produced faster. For certain subjects, such as medical research, time is of the essence.

Social media has given the world at large the ability to share information immediately. As soon as a news story breaks, thousands of people are talking about it globally. Sometimes, users posting videos or live updates of an event are how news stories break.

We are living in a time the public has the ability to impact the news cycle. They can dictate what information is important and demand instantaneous knowledge. Open science values this kind of speed. Knowledge dissemination is very valuable when information can be received efficiently.

Making science open through communication

Posts don’t just spread information. They also encourage discussion, as posts can be commented on by users all across the platform. This means that academics can talk to the public, answer questions, or learn something new from a different perspective. This enriches research, as varying points of view are crucial to understanding a phenomenon or dataset.

Communication is also promoted by messaging features, where academics can connect with each other directly, fostering the development of relationships. An example is the suggested feed on SciProfiles. This allows users to see content from members they don’t follow. This ensures that academics see all kinds of research and conversations. And they can stay aware of what’s going on in the scholarly and public worlds.

Due to social media, people are able to virtually network, connecting with others they wouldn’t have met in the real world. Additionally, their ideas are expanded upon by voices they wouldn’t typically hear from or perhaps even consider. Their viewpoints can also be challenged by others, forcing them to reconsider their approach to a subject or consider new avenues. None of this would be possible without open science, though.

These digital conversations require the ability to publicly share scientific information. By continuing to engage in academic discourse online, linking research, and networking, open science continues to flourish as more people adopt its methods via social media.