The cost of knowledge

The cost of knowledge is a web page at which one may register a protest against the practices of Elsevier by pledging not to submit a paper to an Elsevier journal, not to referee for an Elsevier journal, not to join an editorial board of an Elsevier journal, or some combination of the three. This site was inspired by the following blog post:

• Elsevier - my part in its downfall, Timothy Gowers, January 21, 2012.

A more detailed statement of purpose of the boycott, can be found here. It is written and signed by Scott Aaronson, Douglas N. Arnold, Artur Ávila, John Baez, Folkmar Bornemann, Danny Calegari, Henry Cohn, Ingrid Daubechies, Jordan Ellenberg, Matthew Emerton, Marie Farge, David Gabai, Timothy Gowers, Ben Green, Martin Grötschel, Michael Harris, Frédéric Hélein, Rob Kirby, Vincent Lafforgue, Gregory F. Lawler, Randall J. LeVeque, Laszlo Lovasz, Peter J. Olver, Olof Sisask, Terence Tao, Richard Taylor, Bernard Teissier, Burt Totaro, Lloyd N. Trefethen, Takashi Tsuboi, Marie-France Vigneras, Wendelin Werner, Amie Wilkinson, and G?unter M. Ziegler.

• The statement has been published in the London Mathematical Society newsletter, together with responses by Susan Hezlet (from LMS publishing) and David Clark (from Elsevier), March 2012. It has also been published concurrently in Volume 39 of the Australian Mathematical Society Gazette for March 2012, pages 6-13.

See also the blog associated to the cost of knowledge site. A poster for the protest may be found here.

There have since been many reactions to this protest:

Reactions from blogs

• The cost of knowledge, Timothy Gowers, January 23, 2012.
• Ban Elsevier, John Baez, January 26, 2012.
• Boycott Elsevier!, Scott Aaronson, January 26, 2012.
• The cost of knowledge, Terence Tao, January 26, 2012.
• Why boycott Elsevier?, Adam Harrow, January 27, 2012.
• Publisher's wars, Peter Cameron, January 29, 2012.
• What's wrong with electronic journals, Tim Gowers, January 29, 2012.
• A comment on Tim Gowers’s blog, Peter Krautzberger, January 29, 2012.
• Thinking about Elsevier replacements, David Speyer, January 30, 2012.
• Comfort is the death knell of academia: why I’m standing down as a journal referee, Matthew Todd, LSE Impact Blog, February 1, 2012.
• Boykottiert Elsevier! Unterstützt Open Access!, Martin Ballaschk, February 1, 2012. (German)
• Mysteries of the Elsevier Boycott, Rick Anderson, February 2, 2012.
  • Unraveling (some of) the mysteries of the Elsevier Boycott, Sean Johnson Andrews, February 6, 2012.
  • Multigrain Discussion: Another Response to the Elsevier Boycott, Chuck Hamaker, February 14, 2012.
• The Elsevier Boycott — Does It Make Sense?, Kent Anderson, February 2, 2012.
• You are Elsevier: time to overcome our fears and kill subscription journals, Michael Eisen, February 3, 2012.
  • Eisen calls for Elsevier Boycott - but can we all go OA?, Mark Hoofnagle, February 6, 2012.
• In Defence of Elsevier, David Stern, February 4, 2012.
• More reasons to support the Elsevier boycott, Doug Arnold, IMU blog on mathematical journals, February 5, 2012.
• A more formal statement about mathematical publishing, Timothy Gowers, February 8, 2012.
• Explaining resistance to the Elsevier boycott: Practicalities., DrugMonkey, February 8, 2012.
• When scientists’ and publishers’ motivations align, Zen Faulkes, February 9, 2012.
• About the Elsevier Controversy and Essential Science, PF Anderson, February 11, 2012.
• Journal mega-bundles & TheCostOfKnowledge, Ross Mounce, February 12, 2012.
• Mathematics has an Occupy moment, Cathy O'Neil, February 13, 2012.
• A window of opportunity for Elsevier, Mike Taylor, February 13, 2012.
• 5,000 profs join boycott of Elsevier publications in international “academic spring”, Dennis Johnson, February 14, 2012.
• What comes after the Elsevier boycott? The answer might be found by following the ‘Green’ road to open access, Neil Stewart, LSE Impact Blog, February 15, 2012.
• What’s next in the Elsevier boycott?, Dennis Johnson, Melville House, February 16, 2012.
• Joining the Movement: A Call to Action | Peer to Peer Review Barbara Fister, Library Journal, February 16, 2012
• Boykottiert Elsevier! Ich boykottiere Elsevier!, Gunter Ziegler, February 19, 2012. (German)
• I am not a radical, but I am boycotting Elsevier, Burt Totaro, February 19, 2012.
• Taking Control: More Reasons for the Elsevier Boycott, Aaron Barlow, February 20, 2012.
• WissenschaftlerInnen in Deutschland gegen Elsevier, Hendrik Bunke, February 20, 2012. (German)
• The Elsevier Boycott, Zach and Kelly Wienersmith, February 21, 2012. (Podcast)
• The Future of Science Publishing, Kevin Bonham, February 21, 2012.
• Elsevier boycott: Time for librarians to rise up!, John Dupuis, February 21, 2012.
• Elsevier have a right to price their journals as they see fit, but they must be honest in their reasoning and not attack boycotters with untruths, Tim Leunig, LSE Impact blog, February 22, 2012.
• The academic writer’s strike, Inger Mewburn, February 22, 2012.
• Why do we need academic journals in the first place?, Mathew Ingram, GigaOM, February 22, 2012.
• Why boycott Elsevier?, Becky Ward, February 23, 2012.
• Elsevier’s first concessions to its “enablers”, Nassif Ghoussoub, February 24, 2012.
• Elsevier's strategy and the long war, Sean Johnson Andrews, February 27, 2012.
• Elsevier blinks, once, Library Loon, February 27, 2012.
• "The RWA is dead", Cameron Neylon, ScienceGuide, February 27, 2012.
• Holy poop! They did it! Elsevier withdraws support for the Research Works Act, Michael Taylor, February 27, 2012.
• We won the Battle of the Research Works Act. Now let’s win the War for Open Access., Michael Eisen, February 27, 2012.
• Elsevier numbers illustrate - once again - just how much more sense open access makes!, Heather Morrison, February 27, 2012.
• Elsevier Withdraws Support for Research Works Act, Continues Fight Against Open Access, Leonhard Dobusch, February 27, 2012.
• Elsevier withdraws support for the RWA, Peter Suber, February 27, 2012.
• Sponsors and Supporters back away from Research Works Act, Heather Joseph, February 27, 2012.
• You won! Why protecting your rights to your own work is so important, Rebecca Parker, February 28, 2012.
• Can Elsevier save itself?, Michael Taylor, February 28, 2012.
• Research Work Act Dead — What Next?, John Baez, February 28, 2012.
• Academics must be applauded for making a stand by boycotting Elsevier. It’s time for librarians to join the conversation on the future of dissemination, but not join the boycott., Dave Puplett, February 28, 2012.
• Elsevier backs down in response to academic uprising … or does it?, Dennis Johnson, February 29, 2012.
• Elsevier journal boycott: first skirmish in a longer battle, Leo Charbonneau, February 29, 2012.
• An extraordinary week, Kevin Smith, February 29, 2012.
• The Last Days of Rome: The Rise of Open Access and the Fall of For-profit Publishers, Ryan Anderson, March 1, 2012.
• Elsevier Backs Down on RWA, Alan Wexelblat, March 2, 2012.
• Why I am not boycotting Elsevier, Ariel Procaccia, March 5, 2012.
• The “Cost of Knowledge” boycott trajectory, Stuart Shieber, March 8, 2012.
• 8,200+ Strong, Researchers Band Together To Force Science Journals To Open Access, David Hill, March 18, 2012.
• Elsevier, the Research Works Act and Open Access: where to now?, Stephen Curry, March 18, 2012.
• To publish or not to publish – in Elsevier? A rubric for where NOT to publish your scholarship, Brian Cody, March 26, 2012.
• Visibility is currency in academia but it is scarcity in publishing. The push for open access shows that academic publishers can’t serve two masters, Mike Taylor, March 26, 2012.
• Elsevier unleashes the hounds on @FakeElsevier twitter account for trademark violation, March 27, 2012.
• The Cost Of Knowledge - In 2003?, Bjorn Brembs, March 29, 2012.

News aggregators

• Fields medalist Tim Gowers: Elsevier — my part in its downfall, Hacker News, January 21, 2012
• One mathematician's stance against Elsevier, Reddit, January 22, 2012.
• The Cost of Knowledge: Researchers taking a stand against Elsevier, Hacker News, January 23, 2012.
• Scientists organize Elsevier boycott, Slashdot, January 27, 2012.
• Scientists boycott Elsevier, Metafilter, January 29, 2012.
• Elsevier Publishing Boycott Gathers Steam Among Academics, Hacker News, January 31, 2012.
• The Cost of Knowledge is an online campaign encouraging scientists to boycott Elsevier journals and their high subscription prices. Should knowledge be free?, Reddit, January 30, 2012.
• Thanks to angry mathematicians, Elsevier's publishing model might be about to go up in smoke, Reddit, February 7, 2012.
• The high price of knowledge - should journals charge authors high fees to publish? Is there any other way? Academic publisher Elsevier hit with growing boycott, Reddit, February 18, 2012.
• Publisher Pulls Supports; 'Research Works Act' Killed, Slashdot, February 27, 2012.
• RIP RWA, Metafilter, February 28, 2012.
• Boycott of Elsevier Exceeds 8000 Researchers, Slashdot, March 19, 2012.

Coverage by the media

• Blog blast births boffin boycott of publisher Elsevier, Iain Thomson, the Register, January 28, 2012.
• Elsevier's Publishing Model Might be About to Go Up in Smoke, Tim Worstall, Forbes, January 28, 2012.
• Testify: The Open-Science Movement Catches Fire David Dobbs, Wired, January 30, 2012.
• Elsevier Publishing Boycott Gathers Steam Among Academics, Josh Fischman, The Chronicle of Higher Education, January 30, 2012.
• Will Academics' Boycott Of Elsevier Be The Tipping Point For Open Access -- Or Another Embarrassing Flop?, Glyn Moody, Techdirt, January 31, 2012.
• Scientists and scholars boycott Elsevier over bad business practices and copyright maximalism, Cory Doctorow, Boingboing, January 31, 2012.
• Petition Targeting Elsevier’s Business Practices Begins to Snowball, Michael Kelley, Library Journal, January 31, 2012.
• Academics call for boycott of Elsevier, Charlotte Williams, The Bookseller, January 31, 2012.
• As Journal Boycott Grows, Elsevier Defends Its Practices, Josh Fischman, The Chronicle of Higher Education, January 31, 2012.
• Researchers boycott publisher; will they embrace instant publishing?, John Timmer, Ars Technica, January 31, 2012.
• Boicot científico a Elsevier, Cristina de Martos, El Mundo, January 31, 2012. (Spanish)
• Elsevier in de clinch met wetenschappers, NOS News, January 31, 2012. (Dutch)
• Thousands of Scientists Vow to Boycott Elsevier to Protest Journal Prices, Jop de Vrieze, Science Insider, February 1, 2012.
• Elsevier begins outreach as push-back on publisher threatens to widen, Deborah Weinstein, Medical Marketing & Media, February 1, 2012.
• Scientists Fight For Open Access For Research, Kristina Chew, Care2, February 1, 2012.
• Samsung, CSR, NFL, Elsevier, Motorola: Intellectual Property, Victoria Slind-Flor, Bloomberg, February 1, 2012. (Brief mention only.)
• The Breakfast Meeting: A Week of Negative Ads, and New Chief at Sony, Noam Cohen, New York Times, February 1, 2012. (Brief mention only.)
• Scientists sign petition to boycott academic publisher Elsevier, Alison Flood, the Guardian, February 2, 2012.
• Étonnante fronde de chercheurs contre les revues savantes d’Elsevier, Jean-François Cliche, le Soleil, February 2, 2012. (French)
• Is the Open Science Revolution For Real?, David Dobbs, Wired, February 3, 2012.
• The price of information, the Economist, February 4, 2012.
• Zum Elsevier-Boykott, Klaus Graf, Archivalia, February 5, 2012. (German)
• Academics Revolt Against Elsevier’s Journal Pricing, Robert Andrews, PaidContent, February 6, 2012.
• Spread the word: scientists are tearing down publishers' walls, Alex Holcombe, the Conversation, February 7, 2012.
• Heard on the Hill: University Senate considering boycotting publisher Elsevier; newspaper readership program popular at other places, too; KUMC researcher mentioned in LA Times story on Alzheimer’s, Andy Hyland, LJWorld, February 7, 2012.
• 欧米圏で“学術の春”運動始まる、電子ジャーナル出版大手Elsevierに対し学者たちのボイコット運動が急拡大, editorial, hon.jp Daywatch, Feb 7, 2012. (Japanese)
• Occupy Elsevier?, Bob Grant, the Scientist, February 7, 2012.
• Academics boycott publisher Elsevier, Bernard Lane, the Australian, February 8, 2012.
• Wednesday book news: Bezos, the Elsevier boycott and more, Carolyn Kellogg, Los Angeles Times, February 8, 2012. (Brief mention only.)
• Open access journals: are we asking the right questions?, Martin Paul Eve, the Guardian, February 8, 2012.
• The Academic Spring, Patrick O'Grady, Varsity, February 8, 2012.
• The Other Academic Freedom Movement: How scientists broke through the paywall and made their articles available to (almost) everyone., Konstantin Kakaes, Slate, February 9, 2012.
• Elsevier defends stance on anti-open-access bill, John Gill, Times Higher Education, February 9, 2012.
• Elsevier boycott gathers pace, John Whitfield, Nature, February 9, 2012.
• Open Science Revolt Occupies Congress, David Dobbs, Wired, February 9, 2012.
• The future of academic publishing, Mike Taylor, the Independent, February 9, 2012.
• Cambridge Professor leads boycott of Elsevier Publications, Emily Loud, the Cambridge Student Online, February 9, 2012.
• Protest launched against journal publisher, Kimberly Barlow, University Times, February 9, 2012.
• A revolution in scientific publishing?, Sina Scherer, JEPS Bulletin, February 10, 2012.
• Elsevier Boycott Grows: MIT Faculty Speak About Participation, Ellen Duranceau, MIT Libraries News, February 10, 2012.
• Cientistas boicotam a maior editora de periódicos do mundo, Sabine Righetti, Folha, February 10, 2012. (Portugese)
• Boykott gegen Elsevier gewinnt an Fahrt, ORF.at, February, 10, 2012. (Austrian)
• Why scientists are boycotting a publisher, Gareth Cook, the Boston Globe, February 12, 2012.
  • Elsevier committed to universal access to content, sustainable publishing model, Lynne Herndon (former CEO of Cell press), letter to the editor, the Boston Globe, February 16, 2012.
    • Elsevier’s sorry defense of the Research Works Act, Jordan Ellenberg, February 16, 2012.
• The Cost of Knowledge Versus Elsevier: 5,600 Signatures and Growing, Robin Peek, Information Today, February 13, 2012.
• La fronde des chercheurs contre Elsevier, Maurice Mashaal, Pour la Science, February 13, 2012.
• Web freedoms fuel 'academic spring' journal protest, Jacob Aron, New Scientist, February 13, 2012.
• Mathematicians Organize Boycott of a Publisher, Thomas Lin, New York Times, February 13, 2012.
• Science Uprising, Julia Whitty, Mother Jones, February 13, 2012.
• Professors boycott prominent publishing company, Kelsey Cipolla, The University Daily Kansan, February 13, 2012.
• Monopoly on research publishing is unethical, Editorial, The Exponent, February 14, 2012.
• Duke Scholars Join Boycott Against Elsevier, Ashley Yeager, Duke Today, February 14, 2012.
• Academics line up to boycott world’s biggest journal publisher, Justin Norrie, the Conversation, February 15, 2012.
• Reed chief hits back at critics of division, Salamander Davoudi, February 16, 2012.
• Occupy publishing, Timothy Gowers, Times Higher Education, February 16, 2012.
• Academics boycott journal publisher, Eleanor Bell, ABC news, February 17, 2012.
• Trouble for Elsevier, the leading academic publisher, Rick Karr, On the media, NPR, February 17, 2012. (Audio)
  • Some questions for Elsevier, Harry Brighouse, Crooked Timber, February 21, 2012.
• Journal publishers: in strife and in denial, The common room blog, The Australian, February 20, 2012.
• Forscher boykottieren Fachverlag Elsevier, nachrichten.at, February, 20, 2012. (Austrian)
• Protest gegen teures Wissen, KURIER.at, February, 20, 2012. (Austrian)
• Academics join world fight against publisher, Nicky Phillips, Sydney Morning Herald, February 21, 2012.
• It’s Not Academic: How Publishers Are Squelching Science Communication, Michael Taylor, Discover Magazine, February 21, 2012.
• NHMRC CEO supports Elsevier boycott; says all research must be made open access, Julie Hare, The Australian, February 22, 2012.
• Elsevier Boycott Not a Petition, But “A Declaration of Independence”, David Dobbs, Wired Magazine, February 22, 2012.
• Why Are We Boycotting Elsevier?, Barbara Fister, Inside Higher Ed, February 24, 2012.
• Amid boycott, Elsevier backtracks on research bill, CBC news, February 27, 2012.
• Legislation to Bar Public-Access Requirement on Federal Research Is Dead, Jennifer Howard, Chronicle of Higher Education, February 27, 2012.
• Positive news for access to tax-funded science, Editorial, Newsday, February 27, 2012.
• Elsevier Backs Off RWA Support; Still Opposes Mandated Open Access, Meredith Schwartz, Library Journal, February 27, 2012.
• Journal Boycott Targets Rising Subscription Costs, Hiromi Oka, the Hoya, February 27, 2012.
• Research Works Act Shelved by Sponsors, Mike Palmedo, InfoJustice, February 27, 2012.
• Elsevier Abandons Anti-Open Access Bill, Bob Grant, The Scientist, February 28, 2012.
• Elsevier vows to keep price of mathematics journals low, Jacob Aron, New Scientist, February 28, 2012.
• Elsevier-Backed Publishing Bill Bites The Dust, At Least For This Session, Kathy Gill, The Moderate Voice, February 28, 2012.
• Academic journal publisher Elsevier drops support of Research Works Act in response to boycott, Chris Meadows, Teleread, February 28, 2012.
• A Significant Flinch, Steve Kolowich, Inside Higher Ed, February 28, 2012.
• Push to block free access to academic research falters in the US, Justin Norrie, The Conversation, February 28, 2012.
• The “open science” revolution, Zhou Zhou, the Chronicle, February 28, 2012.
• Elsevier withdraws support from Research Works Act, bill collapses, Cory Doctorow, Boingboing, February 28, 2012.
• “Academic spring” sees widening boycott of Elsevier, Keith Epstein, British Medical Journal, February 28, 2012.
• Scientists' Victory Over the Research Works Act Is Like the SOPA Defeat, Konstantin Kakaes, Slate, February 28, 2012.
• Scientists protest cost of research journals, Ben Wolfgang, Washington Times, February 29, 2012.
• Copyright Fight Hits the Lab, Nancy Scola, March 1, 2012.
• A tale of two bills: the Research Works Act and Federal Research Public Access Act, Peter Suber, SPARC Open Access Newsletter, March 2, 2012.
• Union backs Elsevier boycott, Stephen Matchett, The Australian, March 2, 2012.
• Anti-open access bill suffers sudden death, Rebecca Trager, Chemistry World, March 2, 2012.
• Terry Tao joins Elsevier boycott, Bernard Lane, The Australian, March 3, 2012.
• Union joins ‘white coat’ revolution, Annette Blackwell, Campus Review, March 5, 2012.
• Publishers be damned!, Stephen Foley, The Independent, March 8, 2012.
• U.S. Research Works Act Leads to Elsevier Journal Boycott: What Is to Be Done?, John Willinsky, Slaw, March 8, 2012.
• Reed Elsevier in U-turn as boycott bites, Alex Hawkes, This is Money, March 11, 2012.
• From Anonymous to shuttered websites, the evolution of online protest, Adam Carter, CBC News, March 15, 2012.
• Forscher-Aufstand gegen Großverlag: Wir zahlen nicht für unsere Gedanken, Stefan Kesselhut, der Spiegel, March 16, 2012. (German)
• housands Of Researchers Boycott Elsevier, Demand Open Access Journals, Amir Khan, International Business Times, March 19, 2012.
• Elsevier's backpedalling not stopping scientist strike, Iain Thompson, The Register, March 20, 2012.
• Connecting The Dots: Lessons in Rebellion From the Math Network, Travis Korte, Huffington Post, March 22, 2012.
• Fake Elsevier's complaints about academic publishing leads to fake takedown notice, John Timmer, Ars Technica, March 27, 2012.
• Journal Publishing Reform Needed, Atreya Misra and Alex Liao, Ridge Political Review, March 28, 2012.
• Publisher draws researcher boycott, Jeff Hartagen, Minnesota Daily, March 29, 2012.
• Angry blogpost plus 9,000 academics add up to a scientific journal boycott, Alok Jha, The Guardian, April 9, 2012.
• Wellcome Trust joins 'academic spring' to open up science, Alok Jha, The Guardian, April 9, 2012.
• Mathematicians take a stand, Doug Arnold and Henry Cohn, Notices of the American Mathematical Society, June/July 2012. The arXiv version is available here.

Open letters to Elsevier

• Letter to Elsevier, Rob Kirby, December 30, 1997.
• Call for Boycott of Cell Press Journals, Peter Walter and Keith Yamomoto, October 19, 2003.
  • Researchers boycott Cell Press, Alison McCook, Genome Biology, October 24, 2003.
• Journal of Algorithms editorial board resignation, December 13, 2003.
• Topology editorial board resignation letter, August 10, 2006.
• Arms fairs and academics, 138 signatories, February 28, 2007.
• An open letter to Elsevier and all those involved in the IEHG, Keith Halfacree, April 10, 2007.
• Open Letter to Elsevier, Norbert Lossau, Chair of the Executive Board, Confederation of Open Access Repositories, February 6, 2012.
• Letter to Elsevier, Cynthia Parr, February 10, 2012.
• Declining elsevier, Kent Holsinger, February 10, 2012.
• An Open Letter to Elsevier, Stephen Curry, February 12, 2012.
• A response to one Elsevier employee, and an open letter to the rest, Matt Wedel, February 15, 2012.
• Dear Elsevier employees, with love, from @FakeElsevier, FakeElsevier, February 19, 2012.
• Dear Elsevier, Jan Jensen, February 27, 2012.

Responses by Elsevier

• A response by David Clark at Elsevier, January 23, 2012.
• An open letter to the research community: journal prices, discounts, and access, Elsevier, initially published Feb 6, 2012, then edited slightly on February 27, 2012.
  • Against Own Assertion, Elsevier Doubled Price For Access, Bjorn Brembs, February 11, 2012.
  • Elsevier’s open letter point by point, and some further arguments, Timothy Gowers, February 26, 2012.
• Exciting World of Research Information, Chrysanne Lowe, VP Global Marketing Communications for Elsevier A&G Research Markets, February 2, 2012.
• Elsevier and Evolution & Human Behavior, Robert Kurzban (co-editor-in-chief of the Elsevier journal Evolution & Human Behavior), February 6, 2012.
• Elsevier’s Alicia Wise on the RWA, the West Wing, and Universal Access, Richard Poynder, February 9, 2012.
• Elsevier withdraws support for the Research Works Act, Elsevier, February 27, 2012.
  • Even Now The RWA Was Worth It For Elsevier, Bjorn Brembs, February 27, 2012.
• A letter to the mathematics community, Elsevier, February 27, 2012.
• Elsevier withdraws support for the Research Works Act, Chrysanne Lowe, Vice President, Marketing Communications, Elsevier, February 27, 2012.
• A response by David Clark from Elsevier to the statement of purpose of the boycott, London Mathematical Society Newsletter, March 2012.

Other coverage

• Prime Time for Public Access, Heather Joseph, Executive Director, SPARC, February 9, 2012.
• Elsevier’s practices opposing open access, Open Access Infrastructure for Research in Europe, February 16, 2012.
• Values and Scholarship, Joint letter by eleven research provosts, Inside Higher Ed, February 23, 2012.
• Evolution of Science, an open debate in Oxford involving Gowers, representatives of Nature, Elsevier, Wellcome Trust, etc. February 29, 2012.
• A Look Inside the Boycott of Elsevier: A Q&A with Tim Gowers and Tyler Neylon, Caralee Adams, SPARC, March 6, 2012.
• The wikipedia page for this protest.

See also this list of links, which is focused more around the Research Works Act, but also contains many links regarding the boycott, as well as Math 2.0, a discussion forum for all topics related to the future of mathematical publishing.

Other related links may be found at the page on journal publishing reform.