The notion of ‘Open Science’: its values and meaning for the higher education system

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the analysis of the notion and phenomenon of ‘open science’ as a way to solve the paradoxes of the today’s science as a mass occupation, especially in higher education. In the absence of inner motivations for scientific investigations among both undergraduates and professional researchers, science becomes a ‘closed’ system, which turns into a profanation of academic activities and is deprived of connection with society in general. The concept of “open science” that has appeared in the public discourse in 2010s is presented as a complex multilayer phenomenon. The analyzes reveals that this notion combines the emphasis on behavior, practices and procedures (free and open public access to data, methods, research results and publications) on the ‘lower‘ level with the urge to create technological platforms, services and tools for scientists to enable their wide international and interdisciplinary cooperation on the ‘middle’ level and with the theory and values that would enable science to re-institutionalize itself in today’s society as a public activity on the ‘higher’ level. The values here refer to the classical scientific ethos: openness of science acts as an explication of the mertonian principles of universalism and communism as fundamental values of science. It is argued that the development of the ‘open science’ concept corresponds to the democratization of science in general: a truly effective academic activity could be based only on the moral imperative of each human person as an autonomous and creative subject of judgment and of reconstruction of the ideal of scientific ethos. At the same time, ‘open science’ partly resembles today a popular slogan actively used in public discourse and in various declarations, but the task of filling it with meanings and translating it into practices is still unsolved.

Open Science and Humanism: Decolonization of Knowledge and Fractality of Identities

“…But Open Science in general manifests itself today as a very complex multilayer phenomenon, as an "umbrella term" used to denote different approaches and schools of thought (Fecher, Friesike, 2014). Considering the structure of Open Science, I propose to single out behavior, practices and procedures of free and open public access to data, methods, research results and publications on the 'lower' level of Open Science; the urge to create technological platforms, services and tools for scientists to enable their wide international and interdisciplinary cooperation on the 'middle' level; and finally a fundamental theory and specific values that could and would enable science to re-institutionalize itself in today's society as a science, on the 'higher' level (Mielkov, 2021).…”

Human Thinking in the Age of Generative A.I.: Values of Openness and Higher Education for the Future

“…Actually, information-in contrast to knowledge-is a fundamentally subjectless phenomenon: it has a material carrier, whose role could be performed by, say, paper or artificial intelligence to practically the same effect, but it is not connected to its impersonal carrier in any significant way. Knowledge is information acquired by a certain sentient person; accordingly, information is knowledge alienated from a person that can be transferred or sold [9], and therefore artificial intelligence is quite capable of operating with it.…”

Теоретичні Та Методичні Основи Модернізації Механізмів Підвищення Дослідницької Спроможності Університетів України У Контексті Імплементації Концепції “Відкрита Наука” Та Повоєнного Відновлення України Як Сильної Європейської Країни

“…Для більш ретельного розгляду даного питання слід уважно розглянути саме ті цінності, на яких будується відкрита наука. На мій погляд, аксіологічні засади складають собою останній, найглибший із трьох рівнів, що їх можна відокремити у структурі відкритої науки, при всій складності та багатоманітності тих ідей і концептів, які до неї входять 197 . Перший рівень, найбільш наочний і прикладний, складають настанови, що відносяться до процедур, практик і поведінки: це вільний та відкритий публічний доступ до даних, методів і результатів досліджень, що становить собою історично перший і найбільш відомий аспект відкритої науки.…”