Search

Attempts to answer the question of who should own scientific papers. History of scientific publishing; How electronic communication has effected ways in which results are distributed; The assertion that scientists, administrators, and federal science policymakers must reconsider how results of publicly-funded research are best disseminated; Mentions the United States Copyright Act of 1976; Matching scientific research goals to public policy goals; Articulating the public benefits of research publication.

The article reports on the new law which requires grantees of the National Institute of Health (NIH) to publish their biomedical manuscripts in the U.S. To comply with the new law, NIH informed its grantees to begin sending copies of their accepted, peer-reviewed manuscripts to NIH for posting in a free online archive. NIH warns grantees that failure to send the copies of their manuscripts could delay a grant or jeopardize new research funding. This public-access law is designed to enable taxpayers to learn about research they fund as a part of a spending bill Congress passed in December 2007.