Blockchain to Democratize Research

Ok, so there is no doubt that I am the more skeptical writer in this blog. As notice by the “DEAD” tag on all of my posts. My esteemed colleague will be the first to tell you that I like the idea of cryptocurrency, but not the current practice of it. Saying that I do feel like there are legitimate ways to use the concepts and infrastructure of blockchain and crypto to build a better world. (P.S. to Variance- Yes- taking power away from central banking institutions might better the world too… just adding that as a precursor to any comments from my co-blog-author). In this post I am going to discuss how blockchain and crypto techniques can help to democratize scientific research.

I Can Find Anything on the Internet!

The world of scientific research findings has come under scrutiny in recent years (especially with the pandemic research push as of late), with concerns raised about the biases that can exist in the publication process. As well as who controls the publications with funds and influence. It is now easier than ever to find information published in scientific journals, but that does not necessarily mean that all of that information is unbiased or trustworthy. I can google pretty much anything and find a scientific article on it. Let me try it— “Mountain Dew Is Actually Healthy Research Article” — and I came up with this article of a case study on a how diet mountain dew might actually protect against kidney stones

“It was theorized that the high citrate in Diet Mountain Dew was protective against his newly recurrent nephrolithiasis”

A Rocky Discontinuation of Diet Mountain Dew
Justin Durland, MD¹ and Samuel Owens Schumann, III, MD, MSCR¹

Now nothing against that article or those authors (or against Mountain Dew), it is just a demonstration how you can find what you want and can spin it to your liking.

This might be due to the fact that now there is just so many papers being published and it is easier than ever to publish.

Source: The number of papers over time. The total number of papers has surged exponentially over the years.

Why are some many articles being published in recent years? Have you heard the term “publish or parish”? This is a term in academia where the professor or researcher must publish papers if they want the keep working at the institution. The only concern is publishing stats. Now I won’t get into the weeds of research publishing like impact score or peer reviewed but there is certain credibility based on publishing in certain journals, but usually the general public does not look at that.

The increasing number of scientific journals and the rise of open access publishing has made it easier than ever to publish scientific research. While this has expanded access to scientific information, it has also made it easier for questionable research to be published in journals that have less rigorous standards for evaluating the quality and reliability of research.

There are many other ways that research can be biased like:

• publication bias – where researchers may be more likely to submit articles for publication if they have achieved positive results, and editors may be more likely to accept articles that report positive results.
• conflicts of interest – where researchers may have financial or personal interests that could affect the outcome of their research or their interpretation of their results.
• reviewer bias – peer reviewers are typically selected by the editors of scientific journals, and there may be conflicts of interest between reviewers and authors. Additionally, peer reviewers may be influenced by their own biases and preferences, which could affect their evaluation of the research.

So, How are we to fix this? Crypto to the rescue!

In recent years, the rise of blockchain and cryptocurrency technology has opened up new possibilities for how scientific research can be conducted and shared. One platform that has been at the forefront of this movement is ResearchHub, which aims to create a more open and accessible scientific ecosystem by leveraging blockchain technology and incentivizing participation through cryptocurrency rewards. Now, I am certainly not shilling the coin or platform of ResearchHub, I just think it is an interesting paradigm shift in the way research works.

At its core, ResearchHub is a platform that enables researchers to share their work and collaborate with one another in a more transparent and decentralized way. First it is available to everyone and not locked by paywalls which is nice. It also has a very nice website design, it reminds me of my favorite research portal Papers With Code.

Next, by using blockchain technology, ResearchHub provides a secure and immutable way of recording and sharing research findings, while also allowing researchers to receive rewards in the form of cryptocurrency for their contributions.

One of the key benefits of using blockchain technology in scientific research is that it provides a more secure and tamper-proof way of recording research data. By utilizing a decentralized ledger that is distributed across a network of nodes, the integrity of research data can be ensured without the need for a centralized authority to verify it (kinda like that Web3 everyone was talkling about for while). This not only helps to prevent fraud and manipulation but also makes it easier for researchers to collaborate and share data with one another in a more transparent way.

Another way that blockchain technology can help democratize scientific research is by incentivizing participation through cryptocurrency rewards. By rewarding researchers for their contributions, ResearchHub is able to create a more collaborative and competitive ecosystem that encourages innovation and creativity. This can be especially beneficial for researchers who may not have access to traditional funding sources or who are working on projects that may not be considered “mainstream.”

The coin is not able to be purchased with FIAT, like other coins. So the only on-ramp to get in the ecosystem is to participate in the community and earn from research uploads, comments, reviews, and other ways. So the quality of the research and participation of the members is the earning mechanism, which supports active community and worthwhile research.

Disclaimer: I am not super familiar with the “Research Coin” (RSC) of ResearchHub and I would hope they have protections in place to avoid anyone from something like a 51% attack to sway research on their platform.

ResearchHub and other blockchain-based platforms like it could help to revolutionize the way scientific research is conducted and shared. Taking the central publishing agency out of the equation. As the world continues to become more connected and digital and research continues to grow and spread, it’s clear that more accountability and trust need to be present in the research (and blockchain) space. Blockchain and crypto technology can play a role in shaping the future of scientific research for the better.

So there are possible use cases for blockchain that can make good in the world. If you take the “currency” out of crypto-currency it could be seen for the amazing tech that it is… Instead of a get-rich-quick scheme.