From Daniel (and an excellent timing for our survey on barriers to expert participation).
Dario
Time to underpin Wikipedia wisdom
Alex Bateman & Darren W. Logan
Nature 468, 765 (09 December 2010) DOI:10.1038/468765cPublished online 08 December 2010
Wikipedia, the world's largest online encyclopaedia, is regarded with suspicion by
some in the scientific community — perhaps because the wiki model is inconsistent with
traditional academic scholarship (Nature 468, 359–360; 2010). But the time has come for
scientists to engage more actively with Wikipedia.
Type any scientific term into any search engine and it is likely that a Wikipedia article
will be the first hit. Ten years ago, it would have been inconceivable that a free
collaborative website, written and maintained by volunteers, would dominate the global
provision of knowledge. But Wikipedia is now the first port of call for people seeking
information on subjects that include scientific topics. Like it or not, other scientists
and the public are using it to get an overview of your specialist area.
Wikipedia's user-friendly global reach offers an unprecedented opportunity for public
engagement with science. Scientists who receive public or charitable funding should
therefore seize the opportunity to make sure that Wikipedia articles are understandable,
scientifically accurate, well sourced and up-to-date.
Many in the scientific community will admit to using Wikipedia occasionally, yet few have
contributed content. For society's sake, scientists must overcome their reluctance to
embrace this resource.