What is #365papers?
I already have a few New Year's resolutions (hello, my old friend Gym), but recently came across a science-related resolution that I really like and want to share.
#365papers is a challenge to read one peer-reviewed, scientific paper a day and to share something about it on Twitter. It was started by two professors in ecology and evolution, Meghan Duffy and Jacquelyn Gill.
#365papers is a challenge to read one peer-reviewed, scientific paper a day and to share something about it on Twitter. It was started by two professors in ecology and evolution, Meghan Duffy and Jacquelyn Gill.
"#365papers" is a hashtag you can use to Tweet updates on your progress. I love the accountability of this idea (you number each paper that you post about from 1 to 365), and the community-building, knowledge-sharing aspect, which was beautifully described by Pietro Gatti-Lafranconi on his blog:
"It kicked-off as sort of a challenge, a provocative question that might sound like: 'do people that build their career on knowledge, hence papers, actually read enough of them?' After all, discursive practices are key for the construction of scientific knowledge, and essential for the advancement of science. This advancement must then be intended as process that occurs between persons (rather than within them): it is science as a social activity. And isn’t this the purpose of publishing? Engaging with other scientists and constructing knowledge as a community, when time allows. The #365papers hashtag challenges our habits, both in terms of reading papers as well as discussing science with other researchers."
Towards a #365papers SRH community
Pietro extended the concept by compiling edited #365papers collections, such as this one by Paulette. And he's happy to include a series on sexual and reproductive health (SRH) research, if we build up a sufficient collection.
@cbpolis if you'd like to contribute with an 'edited collection', I'm trying to build a record of these tweets
http://t.co/swgubOGDLw
— Pietro G-L (@p_gl) February 9, 2015
As Andrew Hoffman noted in "Isolated Scholars: Making bricks not shaping policy"...
"Academics find themselves talking to ever smaller and narrower academic audiences, using a language that educated readers do not understand, publishing in journals they don’t read, and asking questions they don’t care about. Whether this work actually creates real-world change is a question that is rarely, if ever, asked."
While there will undoubtedly be times where busy schedules prohibit participation, I'm very excited to attempt the #365paper challenge. There are many controversial SRH-related issues that aren't always handled fairly in media or policy realms. Can a daily challenge like #365papers help scientists keep themselves and their peers more actively engaged with the literature, while making science somewhat more accessible and digestible to the public? Could it positively impact the ways we consume, discuss, and share scientific information? Let's find out together, building towards an SRH-themed #365papers collection.
Update: 2-29-15 - the hashtag creator notes that some folks are doing #52papers or #262papers - which might suit schedules better. As she says "Whatever gets you reading more!"
@chriscesar Some folks are doing #52papers, or #262papers. Whatever gets you reading more!
— Jacquelyn Gill (@JacquelynGill) February 17, 2015
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