Our assigned readings are up. We may add 1-2 other papers for your consideration, but there is plenty to get you going. Please consider how the current debates about publication — admittedly tilted in favor of open access, based on our assignments — affect your scientific career currently and in the near future. Be as specific as you can, please. Are the journals in which you intend to publish your research easily accessible? What is their publication model (access/copyright/etc)? Do they provide value to you, the author? Are they good for your academic community? Why?
Hope your break is great.
VSC and JAB
scicomm 
This is a very current issue in federal circles: see the Feb. 22 announcement from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy – their blog post includes links to the policy (a pdf) and also to the public petition that got the ball rolling (or at least gave it a good hard shove).
For a timely, thoughtful, and less-than-enthusiastic response, take a look at Michael Eisen’s blog post about the announcement here. It’s also a nice example of the multidimensionality of scientific communication online: check out the links, comments, and trackbacks to get a sense of how Eisen’s comment is embedded in ongoing conversations on this topic, both by him, and by others responding to what he has to say.
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A bit late but here is something to contribute to this topic… Altmetrics
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S009879131300004X
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