Open access as a mechanism of revolutionary science and the limitations of data

Data is the cornerstone of the modern academic industry, like a constant production line of consumable goods packaged with a veneer of statistical techniques. Biomedical and psychological sciences invert the traditional logic of the physical sciences where hypotheses were tested against data rather than data against hypotheses. This is likely to reflect the immaturity of the new paradigms that barely cope with the data output of a precocious enterprise. However, the current state leads to distortions of the practice of science and entrenchment of its dysfunctional politics reflected in the science itself. With the debate now on the reproduction of data and statistical sleights of hand accompanying many if not most studies, what is lost in the debate is the preeminent role of good theoretical discovery. This is partly as a result of the structure of funding, the nature of reporting in biomedical fields based on the symbiotic relationship of high ranking institutions and journals. Open access could fill a gap in traditional publishing literature which has entrenched a culture of highly restrictive practices at a time when revolutionary science is required. OA is not in danger of lowering the standards of science as its critics claim, but because it is ‘open’ to new and radical ideas that would never see the light of day otherwise, it may well provide a rejuvenating energy. OA is a self-regulatory response to the consequences of the distorted and inhibitory contemporary practice of science.