DeSci Ep. #1: Using Web3 Tech to Reward Good Science—with Chris Hill & Philipp Koellinger of DeSci Labs

The system for publishing scientific research is broken.  Academic success is measured by citations rather than scientific quality. And publishing companies have a monopoly on the knowledge scientists produce. Can we use blockchain technology to promote the verifiability of scientific findings? And make science accessible to everyone? Dr. Christopher Hill is an interdisciplinary scientist with a background in neuroeconomics and machine learning. Phillip Koellinger is Professor of Social Science Genetics in the Department of Economics at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.  Together, Chris and Philipp are Cofounders of DeSci Labs, an initiative that aims to make science more replicable, accessible, transparent and fair by way of Web3 technologies. On this episode of Boost VC, Chris and Philipp join us to explain what inspired their interest in decentralized science and explore what differentiates success for science versus individual scientists. They walk us through the goals of the open science movement and weigh in on how DeSci tech provides new ways of funding research and makes scientific knowledge available to everyone. Listen in for insight around the grassroots movement known as metascience and learn how DeSci is working to improve the quality of the scientific record and reward scientists for the value they create. Topics Covered What inspired Chris & Philipp’s interest in decentralized scienceBureaucracy and broken publishing system in academiaPassionate about open science, reproducibilityImprove durability and quality of scientific recordUplift material conditions of early-career scientists The goals of the open science movementMake research more transparent, accessible to everyoneBetter markers of scientific quality than impact factorImprove and promote verifiability and reproducibility  What differentiates success for science vs. success for scientistsScientific success = verifiable new knowledgeSuccess for scientist = prestige How Chris & Philipp define decentralized scienceTech stack for true open access to researchMakes science more transparent and reproducibleAllows scientists to recapture value they create The problem with measuring value by impact factor (IF)Metric derived exclusively from citation ratesPublishers have monopoly on scientific knowledge How DeSci technologies can benefit scientific researchAccelerate pace of knowledge progress and accessibilityProvide new ways of funding researchBusiness models that reward scientists for contributionsPotential for rapid experimentation at scaleCreate accountability in peer review process The interdisciplinary grassroots movement of metascienceCheck work of other scientists through replicationsConduct basic hygiene of scientific ecosystem The transition from scientific manuscripts to research objectsStore artifacts of journey, including peer review feedbackPermanent knowledge graphs to secure scientific record  Connect with Chris Hill & Philipp Koellinger DeSci Labs https://www.desci.com/DeSci Labs on Twitter https://twitter.com/descilabsDeSci Foundation https://descifoundation.org/DeSci Foundation on Twitter https://twitter.com/DeSciFoundation Resources David Deutsch https://www.daviddeutsch.org.uk/‘Raise Standards for Pre-Clinical Cancer Research’ in Nature https://www.nature.com/articles/483531a‘Why Most Published Research Findings Are False’ in PLOS Medicine https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1182327/Gitcoin https://gitcoin.co/ Connect with Boost VC Boost VC Website https://www.boost.vc/Boost VC on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/boostvc/Boost VC on Twitter https://twitter.com/BoostVCBoost VC on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/boost_vc/