Importance of scientific social networks (9.1)

Abstract

Global scientific social networks have existed for more than 150 years, fueling many great discoveries through the dissemination of published research findings and subsequent scientist communication and collaboration. Indeed, many scientists used email and the world wide web for their research before these internet tools became so commonplace. Online government‐based databases such as PubMed, as well as subject‐specific listservs and forums, played an important part in connecting scientists and advancing many life science ideas and disciplines. Today, scientific social networks go well beyond these early internet tools, allowing scientists to connect, promote their work, and learn on a fast‐paced, global scale. In this introduction to the importance of scientific social networks, we’ll talk about general tools such as blogs, Twitter, and Google+ that researchers as a whole, including anatomists, are using to make important scientific advances.