This document summarizes a panel discussion on the past, present, and future of scientific information. The panelists discussed ideas around indexing all of the world's knowledge in one place, how open access and open science make organizing information easier, what open science means to them and if scientists are ready for it, and tools for accessing and storing academic papers like Google Scholar, Mendeley, and ResearchGate. They also discussed concerns around bibliometrics and priorities for better information retrieval, indicators to evaluate scientific output, education on content services, different data needs, and the future of knowledge flow in academia and research.

1. the Past, Present and Future of
Scientific Information
Mundaneum, Mons (Belgium)
07.10.2015
COST Action TD1210

2. Panelists
• Petra Ahrweiler
• Milena Dobreva
• Charles van den Heuvel
• Jan Kozłowski
• Nikolay Vitanov
• Shenghui Wang

3. Questions Part 1
We are here at the Mundaneum, the cradle of
documentation.
• What are you thinking about the idea of
indexing the whole knowledge of the world
at one place, in one index?
• Do you think that Open Access and Open
Science make it easier to 'order the world' -
something of this kind?

4. Questions Part 2
• What is Open Science for you? Do you think the
Sciences/ the Scientists are ready for Open
Science today?
• For instance, is reviewing literature becoming
easier today or harder?
Think about the different available tools like WoS,
Scopus, Google Scholar,, or academic network
sites to store/access academic profiles and
papers such as Mendeley, ResearchGate,
Academia.edu etc …

5. Questions Part 3
There is an ongoing discussion on the ethics of bibliometrics (e.g.
Leiden manifesto) and concern that professionalization and
standardization in the field is actually threading the intellectual
freedom and academic discourse. What do we need most?
• Better information retrieval and knowledge discovery
principles on existing content services?
• Better indicators to evaluate and order scientific output?
• Better education how to use the IR/Content services around?
• More data? Different data?
– Try to give priorities!
– Share experiences from your practices!
– Formulate a wish list!

6. Questions Part 4
With the digitization of all knowledge, the
access and the type of access we have to
knowledge has changed drastically (hence we
are talking about “better information retrieval
needs”), however the gatekeepers of knowledge
are still the same.
• What will be the future of knowledge flow of
academy/research?

7. Contact
Philipp Mayr (GESIS)
philipp.mayr@gesis.org