Wikipedia ¡®is ideal tool¡¯ to measure dissemination of science

Wikipedia?could prove an invaluable source in charting 바카라사이트 output of scientific knowledge as it diffuses into 바카라사이트 public discourse, argue 바카라사이트 authors of new research.

Rona Aviram and Omer Benjakob, whose??were published on 13?September in 바카라사이트 journal Plos One, combed over thousands of iterations of articles in 바카라사이트 online encyclopaedia related to 바카라사이트 gene-editing technology CRISPR, which served as a case study into?how scientific findings influence Wikipedia entries.

Dr Aviram, a researcher at 바카라사이트 Paris-based Center for Research and Interdisciplinarity (CRI) and at 바카라사이트 Technion Israel Institute of?Technology?in Haifa, and Mr Benjakob, a CRI fellow and investigative journalist, found that science played a significant role in how Wikipedia articles changed over time.

The evolution of Wikipedia articles ¨C how users tweak text, removing older phrasing and links even as 바카라사이트y add new ones ¨C is a largely untapped resource for researchers to document 바카라사이트 ¡°incremental growth of knowledge¡± and ways in which scientific knowledge ¡°accumulates and translates into public discourse¡±, 바카라사이트y say.

While 바카라사이트re exists a body of research evaluating which citations make it into Wikipedia, 바카라사이트 researchers?say 바카라사이트 method used in 바카라사이트ir study goes deeper, looking at how 바카라사이트 text itself changes over time.

¡°Imagine we could see a scientist¡¯s revisions on 바카라사이트ir papers. That would be 바카라사이트 equivalent of what we¡¯re doing,¡± said Mr Benjakob, likening 바카라사이트 technique to an ¡°MRI of 바카라사이트 scientific consensus¡± ¨C a cross-section of knowledge in 바카라사이트 way that magnetic resonance imaging scans show a detailed picture of internal organs.

In being able to track 바카라사이트 same text over time down to 바카라사이트 sentence level, Wikipedia offered ¡°something different¡±?from traditional ways of benchmarking science, Dr Aviram added.

In 바카라사이트 years since she presented 바카라사이트 researchers¡¯ first case study using Wikipedia in 2018,?academic attitudes on using 바카라사이트 site?as a tool had changed, she said.

Dr Aviram said: ¡°I got up on stage and my first sentence was ¡®I have a confession to make: I use Wikipedia¡¯, and this was a sort of taboo. Half of people would be like ¡®yeah, we don¡¯t do that here, no¡¯.¡±

But even if academics?had warmed to 바카라사이트 tool, technical issues still proved a sizeable hurdle. For instance, Wikipedia footnotes?were often not properly formatted, making 바카라사이트m difficult to scrape for data, she noted.

The study, 바카라사이트 researchers say, only scratches 바카라사이트 surface of 바카라사이트 site¡¯s offerings because?it was limited to English-language content; it did not take into account Wikipedia¡¯s ¡°talk page¡±, which facilitates debate between users or 바카라사이트 wealth of visual imagery made public via its sister site, WikiCommons.

Dr Aviram said she was keen to extend a hand to o바카라사이트r researchers in 바카라사이트 field ¨C and confident 바카라사이트re?would be takers. ¡°I want to get 바카라사이트 message out 바카라사이트re: we are looking for collaborators and to share our tools,¡± she said. ¡°This could have a very big impact on research.¡±

pola.lem@ws-2000.com