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Open science 

Earlier this year, I did a lot of work on the role of science in society, particularly in Britain. So (even as an American) it was great to see two British scientists — and an American — share the Nobel prize in medicine yesterday. Sydney Brenner, John Sulston and Robert Horvitz won for their discoveries concerning genetic regulation of organ development and programmed cell death.

One of the most gratifying aspects of this win was Sulston’s opportunity to spread the gospel about the importance of open scientific research. Sulston led the British side of the Human Genome Project, and he believes the Nobel-winning work on the nematode worm benefited as well from a culture of shared results.

“The worm worked so well because the community held an ethos of sharing…. We gave all our results to others as soon as we had them. Research is hastened when people share results freely.”

And this just in: the physics prize has been shared by Raymond Davis, Masatoshi Koshiba and Riccardo Giacconi. Davis and Koshiba won “for pioneering contributions to astrophysics, in particular for the detection of cosmic neutrinos”, and Giacconi for “pioneering contributions to astrophysics, which have led to the discovery of cosmic X-ray sources”.

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