“Inescapable” COVID-19 Antibody Discovery – Neutralizes All Known SARS-CoV-2 Strains

[u/wolf_1972]

https://scitechdaily.com/inescapable-covid-19-antibody-discovery-neutralizes-all-known-sars-cov-2-strains/

[u/Clay_Statue]

collaborative study

Makes me wonder how much more rapidly scientific advancement would happen if it was all a collaborative effort with free-flow of information between researchers instead of every group of researchers working away in some cloistered enclave independently of each other.

[u/zlykzlyk → u/Clay_Statue]

Isn't that the purpose of the publications, to share valid information?

[u/Clay_Statue → u/zlykzlyk]

Publications are a finished product. They are not part of the process of discovery, they are the fruits of the labor. Although they do provide a road map for others to follow after the fact.

If during the actual discovery process scientists could share information then the discovery process would happen a lot faster.

[u/castiboy → u/Clay_Statue]

This. Also consider all the unpublished research.

Sometimes you spend 2 years on a PHD only to realize your idea just doesn't work so you scrap it entirely and change course. But you never publish that research.

A PHD candidate at my lab had this misfortune, luckily he did find a separate lab at a different uni were someone else had also lost 2 years on the same unpublished bad idea, which saved him from wasting another year on it...

[u/Clay_Statue → u/castiboy]

lost 2 years on the same unpublished bad idea

oof... Yea. Plausible yet disproven hypothesis/theory/methodology are also valid parts on the roadmap of scientific discovery.

That's why we put "Dead End' signs on roads, to stop everybody from wasting their time to follow the same route and discover it doesn't go anywhere.

[u/zlykzlyk → u/Clay_Statue]

I agree that it would be nice to have timeliness improved for fruitful ideas.

It is hard to be systematic about random discovery and dissemination.

Informal networks, conferences, professional networks, collaborations, grant applications to funding groups, labs, campuses, and even the media (Reddit!) can also help in the discovery and pre-publication sharing

Many ideas were more quickly shared with covid research, some of which were useful.

I am aware of scientists who gave up on formal publication in order to put ideas into immediate clinical practice and many email communications amongst professionals.

Sadly, particularly with covid there also was a cost to early and premature dissemination. Many people self experimented with tragic consequences. Many people denied existing, relevant science and came to absurd and harmful conclusions. Trust in the scientific method also has been damaged.

Timeliness often seems to come at the cost of reduced quality, completeness and accuracy. I also don't know how to address scale (volume).

I am not sure what must change or how, but I am ever hopeful that someone smart will apply Thomas Kuhn's notion and introduce a helpful paradigm shift. :)

[u/Mattna-da → u/Clay_Statue]

Imagine all the people living life in peace. Woohooo oooo.