Science 2.0

Science 2.0 describes a range of activities to benefit increased collaboration between scientists using networking and the Internet. To do Science 2.0, scientists use wikis, blogs, video, online/open journals, and other collaborative web technologies to share findings. The term suggests the benefits of openness and sharing, regarding papers and research ideas and partial solutions.

A general view is that Science 2.0 is gaining traction with websites beginning to proliferate. There is a "sea change" happening in the status quo of scientific publishing, and substantive change regarding how scientists share research data. There is considerable discussion in the scientific community about whether scientists should embrace the model and exactly how Science 2.0 works. 'Slow use' is as prominent an activity style as faster adaptations and projects.

Science 2.0 is a term that alludes to Web 2.0 — interactive content creation over the Internet — and is frequently used to describe adaptations of the scientific method to this era of the World Wide Web. Many of these adaptations are related to an increased transparency of scientific research, most notably with respect to the handling of data and the publication, in academic journals, of research results derived from these data. Two important movements in this regard are Open Data and Open Access, both inspired by the Open Source movement.

Another important point is to leverage or develop Web 2.0 tools and technologies — e.g. blogs, wikis and social networks — for scientific purposes that range from databases to cloud computing to telemedicine. As such, Science 2.0 is intertwined with parallel developments in other parts of society, including Library 2.0 and Education 2.0.

Wiki Research • Open Scientist