From Scientific Ideals to Practical Open Science: How reporting on study limitations can diminish Avoidable Research Waste
February 3 @ 10:00 – 11:00 CET
What can a sociological framework from the mid-20th century teach us about today’s open-science movement? Surprisingly much.
In this virtual seminar, we revisit Robert Merton’s CUDOS framework—Communalism, Universalism, Disinterestedness, and Organized Skepticism—and explore why these four principles continue to shape how we think about responsible and transparent research.
The presentation will place special emphasis on organized skepticism: what it means in practice, why it is crucial for research credibility, and how fostering a culture of constructive critique can directly reduce avoidable research waste. The talk will also introduce practical examples of how these ideals can be operationalized today. You’ll hear about work on the automatic detection of study-limitation statements in scientific texts, its implementation in the research-quality tool ScreenIT, and how such tools can support reproducibility and stronger research assessment. The seminar will end with findings from a recent study on researchers’ adherence to a 14-item checklist for responsible and open research between 2020 and 2024.
This session will appeal to anyone interested in:
- research transparency and rigor
- the philosophical roots of open science
- practical tools for improving research quality
- shaping a scientific culture aligned with modern open-science values
Presenter: Gerben ter Riet MD PhD – Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (AUAS) – Clinical epidemiologist, Open Science Advisor, Member of the Committee for Research Integrity (at AUAS), and advisory board member of the Netherlands Research Integrity Network (NRIN).
Recording: Recording will be available after the event on: https://www.youtube.com/@SciLifeLabTalksTraining
Slides: The slides will be available after the event.
More information
This event is part of the SciLifeLab Open Science seminar series, an event series by the SciLifeLab Data Centre and NBIS joint Data Management team.
The goal of the events in this seminar series is to provide interesting interactive seminars around topics related to Research Data Management and Open Science in general, and to foster discussions around best practices.
Research Data Management (RDM) concerns the organization, storage, preservation, and sharing of data that is collected and analyzed during a research project. Proper planning and management of research data will make project management easier and more efficient while projects are being performed. It also facilitates sharing and allows others to validate as well as reuse the data.
Open Science is a set of principles and practices that aim to make scientific research from all fields accessible to everyone for the benefits of scientists and society as a whole. Open science is about making sure not only that scientific knowledge is accessible but also that the production of that knowledge itself is inclusive, equitable and sustainable.
The events are open to everyone working at or affiliated with a Swedish research institute or university. We welcome all researchers, educational professionals, staff, RDM professionals, and others with an interest in life sciences, from all university levels. The events are informal and inclusive, so feel welcome to join and participate in our interesting discussions!
The events will be recorded and published openly after the seminars on the SciLifeLab YouTube channel. The slides will be made available at our SciLifeLab Data Repository.
More information about SciLifeLab Data Centre and NBIS joint Open Science seminar series: https://www.scilifelab.se/data/scilifelab-data-management-seminar-series/
If you have suggestions for topics or presentations, please contact us at data-management@scilifelab.se
For more information or inquiries, please contact us at data-management@scilifelab.se

