Future Now
The IFTF Blog
Social networking comes to the life sciences
Last month, Collexis announced the launch of BioMedExperts.com, an online social networking site that is being billed as the MySpace for research scientists want to find and connect with others who share their research interests. The BioMedExperts website explains that it connects scientists
to each other through the display and analysis of the networks of co-authors with whom each investigator works to publish scientific papers. The comprehensive system of pre-populated expert profiles, coupled with the ability to analyze all associated professional connections within the co-author network, allows scientists and researchers across organizations the ability to share data and collaborate in ways never before considered.
BioMedExperts (BME) uses publicly available information from MedLine and other sources to build its database, which contains the profiles of 1.5 million life science researchers and their published work. It is updated continually so researchers themselves do not need to do anything to keep their profiles current.
According to the website, "Collexis is providing BME free of charge for all researchers around the globe in an effort to increase collaborative biomedical research for the collective good." Sounds to me like a good example of Open Health principles at work.