The merits of open access and burden of journal subscriptions have been hotly debated in libraries, laboratories, and online forums for many years. However, these exchanges have generally been limited to the exchange of opinions in verbal or written form. This year, the debate entered a new medium.
Major advances in health care offer the opportunity to not only improve quality of life around the world, but also earn large profits for the companies that can turn research findings into real-world applications. One startup that promised to revolutionize blood testing and received tens of millions of dollars in investments was recently shuttered following a string of controversies.
Early in the summer of 2018, details regarding the end of a major public health research project headed by researchers in the United States were revealed in the mainstream media. The reports attracted significant attention due to appearance that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) had partnered with alcohol manufacturers including Anheuser Busch and Carlsberg to conduct an alcohol-related study.
The damaging effects of the plastic waste accumulating in the world’s oceans are well known. Plastic debris accumulation is known to be harmful to ecosystems and ingestion of plastic particles is recognized as a major health risk to marine species.
