According to Dr Alexandra Freeman, founder of the Octopus platform, the traditional academic journal up to now has been trying to fulfil two distinct functions:-
Disseminate useful research findings to practitioners and researchers through the form of a research narrative
To act as the primary research record: recording the nuts and bolts of how the research was performed, what data or results were obtained, what methods of analysis were employed etc.
While journals are generally effective at performing the first of these functions, they are arguably less effective in relation to the second. This is where the Octopus platform comes in.
Octopus has been purposefully designed to act as the Primary Research record, allowing scholars to record each component step of the research process and to link them together in a chain. Octopus does not intend to replace traditional journals, but rather to allow them to focus on their primary function of disseminating findings without also acting as the primary research record.
Octopus allows authors to make use of seven publication types: Research Problem, Hypothesis, Method/Protocol, Data/Results, Analysis, Interpretation and Application. A ‘review’ can then be applied to any of these publication types. Reviews are intended to act as a form of peer-evaluation giving feedback on the particular research component which they are linked to. Collaboration is encouraged, with researchers able to add to others' research chains to help advance the research inquiry along. The platform is also Open Access by design and will make use of Creative Commons licensing with authors being able to select a licence for each Octopus publication type.
One additional features which Octopus provides is the ability for each type of ‘publication’, including reviews, to be given a star rating by end-users. Publications which are highly scored by other users on the platform will then be given greater prominence in search results.
Octopus has been designed to provide ‘instant priority’ for different research components. The platform in effect can act a bit like a ‘patent office’ for establishing a record of priority. As a result, researchers don’t need to hide their research prior to publication.
Those who are supporting Octopus hope that Researchers, Universities and Funders will all find different levels of value with the Octopus system. Funders, for example, could potentially make use of the review system to identify well reviewed early-stage research which could benefit from support.
Octopus has received start-up funding from UK Research & innovation (UKRI) and is supported by the UK Reproducibility Network (UKRN). The support from UKRN highlights the fact that the Octopus platform has the potential to tackle the so-called ‘Reproducibility Crisis’ by providing greater transparency around the research process and making it easier for each component step to be replicated and understood.
A common challenge in promoting Open Research practices in general is the lack of relative incentives built into a researcher’s career path. So long as researchers feel obliged to publish in a small number of ‘high impact’ journals and to conceal the fruits of their research prior to publication, then the numerous drawbacks of operating within a secretive, opaque research culture will persist.
Major research funders who have signed up to the Plan S initiative are working to change the incentives for researchers by committing to not assessing the quality of a researchers work based on the use of journal metrics related to where they have previously published. The support of UKRI behind the Octopus platform may also contribute to a greater focus on Open Research and emphasis on the value of non-standard output types such as research data and software / computer code in the redesign of the UK’s Future Research Assessment Programme which is presently ongoing.
The Octopus platform, currently still in beta mode but with a full launch expected imminently, provides further information about its aims and purpose on its website. For the latest Octopus developments, you can also follow them on Twitter @science_octopus.
11.7.22 Update - The recording from the Octopus launch event held at the end of June is now available to view online.
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