flynn002

I recently travelled to Lismore, Ireland, to speak at the annual Robert Boyle summer school. I had been intrigued by the invitation, as it was clear this was not the usual kind of scientific meeting. The theme of Robert Boyle, who was born in Lismore Castle, was approached from very different angles, and those attending included historians of science, scientists, journalists, as well as interested members of the public. We were treated to reconstructions of some of Boyle's livelier experiments, heard wonderful Irish music, and we celebrated the installation of a plaque at Lismore Castle to honour Katherine Jones , Boyle's remarkable sister, who was also a scientist. My talk was on the future of scientific scholarly publication, a topic that the Royal Society had explored in a series of meetings to celebrate the 350th Anniversary of the publication of Philosophical Transactions. I'm particularly interested in the extent to which current publishing culture discourages good ...