How does access to the database work? Do scientists request specific types of data which are sent to them if their proposal is approved? Do they get temporary access keys to look stuff up?
I'm wondering how plausible it would be for someone to pirate/copy the database and replicate it elsewhere anonymously kind of like sci-hub. Which would be more or less plausible depending on who has how much access to the database.
Access is by study or study subset and so would require a massive distributed project of requests that were falsified or a big internal wikileaks style breach. That would really suck for all the patients who were generous enough to share their data with the assumption it would be protected. I think it is a Bad Thing to be avoided.
Probably. In addition to the damage to those specific individuals, it would make it significantly harder to convince future patients to commit to similar projects. But on the other hand, it would reduce barriers to scientific progress and the authoritarian control of elite institutions from being able to arbitrate which topics are and are not within the Overton Window of Science.
I assume a theoretical leaker would leak anonymously, but I guess if the data set is unique to that study then they could deduce it, unless a bunch of them were combined and mixed together, maybe with some stochastic omissions to further obfuscate what the original data looked like. A deadman's switch might work, where the data gets uploaded to the internet and made public like 10 years later.
But you're right that there would also be the issue that nobody could publish results using the leaked data.
This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a
court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to
optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.
The weekly Culture War threads host the most
controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are
appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy;
if in doubt, post!
Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts.
You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.
Why are you called The Motte?
A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently,
it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey",
originally identified by
philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial
but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens
this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for
the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired
propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."
On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.
New post guidelines
If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it.
A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts
such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a
submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).
Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or
significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
How does access to the database work? Do scientists request specific types of data which are sent to them if their proposal is approved? Do they get temporary access keys to look stuff up?
I'm wondering how plausible it would be for someone to pirate/copy the database and replicate it elsewhere anonymously kind of like sci-hub. Which would be more or less plausible depending on who has how much access to the database.
Probably. In addition to the damage to those specific individuals, it would make it significantly harder to convince future patients to commit to similar projects. But on the other hand, it would reduce barriers to scientific progress and the authoritarian control of elite institutions from being able to arbitrate which topics are and are not within the Overton Window of Science.
I assume a theoretical leaker would leak anonymously, but I guess if the data set is unique to that study then they could deduce it, unless a bunch of them were combined and mixed together, maybe with some stochastic omissions to further obfuscate what the original data looked like. A deadman's switch might work, where the data gets uploaded to the internet and made public like 10 years later.
But you're right that there would also be the issue that nobody could publish results using the leaked data.
Your mean publications in scientific journals?... ... one can publish anonymously.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link