Scaling the Paywall: How Unpaywall Improved Open Access

Episode Summary:

In this episode we are discussing Unpaywall. Unpaywall is a database and browser extension that legally searches for Open Access versions of research papers. Our interview guest will be Heather Piwowar who co-developed and manages Unpaywall. We will cover how and why Unpaywall was developed, and the issues with current Open Science tools.

Resources and Links:

• Factsheets
• http://unpaywall.org/
• Heather Piwowar Twitter
• Impact Story
• Nature article: How Unpaywall is transforming open science

Episode Quotes:

“It is cool to see the green unlock icon, which if you click it takes you immediately to a free article, right beside a big box on a publisher’s page that says ‘$39 to view’. It feels like we are really unlocking the power of Open Access”.