I presume Albert Henderson's's assertion that "student work" is of lesser
value is based on personal opinion rather than on any scientometric
study of the relative impact of different types of research.
I believe the majority of the members of research groups consist of
research students (PhDs); hence the novel work that research students
undertake forms the bedrock from which research in general is developed
(not only through the students carrying their own work on into research
posts and professorships, but also as it feeds directly into the student's
research group and the research community in general).
It would seem, therefore, that research dissertations may be a potentially
valuable resource after all - one that for too long has been accessible
only from library archives.
All the best,
Tim Brody
(PhD Research Student)
----- Original Message -----
From: "Albert Henderson" <chessNIC_at_COMPUSERVE.COM>
To: <AMERICAN-SCIENTIST-OPEN-ACCESS-FORUM_at_LISTSERVER.SIGMAXI.ORG>
Sent: Thursday, July 18, 2002 9:09 PM
Subject: Re: Book on future of STM publishers
> The fundamental flaw in Stevan's position is
> that it discounts the receipt of value --
> recognition and targeted dissemination -- exchanged
> by the journal author. If one recognizes that the
> journal publisher does provide such value, the
> journal author is on the same footing as the book
> author. "No man but a blockhead ever wrote, except
> for money," as Samuel Johnson observed. Steven's
> position is out of bounds. The question is moot.
>
> In the case of the dissertation, the acceptance
> is of a lesser value, since it is student work.
> Most books derived from dissertations require a
> good deal of additional work before they are
> publishable in the usual sense and recognizable
> by the world beyond dissertation examiners.
>
> The future of STM publishing is a great topic
> for magazines that have a short shelf life.
> They can attract a curious readership and sell
> lots of advertising by puzzling over questions
> without answers.
>
> I for one have serious doubts whether the future
> of any industry niche would be a fit subject for
> a student dissertation. Most predictive visions
> offered decades ago by "experts" are today only
> meaningful as evidence of lobbying and other
> promotional efforts. Book or dissertation, I
> would expect to shelve this topic near astrology.
>
> Albert Henderson
> Former Editor, PUBLISHING RESEARCH QUARTERLY 1994-2000
> <70244.1532_at_compuserve.com>
>
>
> .
> .
>
Received on Fri Jul 19 2002 - 13:01:57 BST