Open Science with a focus on Diamond Open Access in Chemistry
Dr. Wendy Patterson is a member of the board of management of the Beilstein-Institut where she serves as scientific director. She received various degrees in the field of physics, culminating in a doctorate degree in optics and then continued post-doctoral research in the areas of nanotechnology and materials for energy conversion and storage in the US and Germany. Concerned with the direction that scholarly publishing had taken and its impact on scholars, she joined the Beilstein-Institut, a charitable foundation, in 2014 to contribute to their diamond open access journals. She is also a board member of Crossref and the Free Journal Network, both non-profit entities providing services for the scholarly community.
Wendy joins Jo on this episode to discuss her journey from academia to her current position at the Beilstein-Institut, where she now focuses on improving the scholarly publishing system, promoting open science principles, including supporting open access, open data, and open infrastructure in chemistry. They talked about the challenges with academia's focus on publishing metrics and the pressure to publish, which led Wendy to seek alternative career paths.
They also touched on challenges in scholarly publishing, such as the dominance of commercial publishers and the misuse of metrics like journal impact factors. Wendy further emphasized the importance of transparent and sustainable publishing models, like diamond open access, to ensure equitable access to research.
Which researcher – dead or alive – do you find inspiring?: Jean-Claude Guédon - I can read his writings all day long!
What is your favorite animal and why?: Dogs, of the rescue variety, particularly the oldies. Because my vote always goes for the "underdog", literally and figuratively.
What is your favorite dish/meal?: Anything (super) spicy + vegetarian.
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