Wait! What? There’s stuff missing from the scholarly record?

Abstract

The scholarly record is an ever-evolving network – or graph – of truth assertions on which each discipline bases its discussions, and against which each discipline measures its progress. But what if the scholarly record is missing a significant number of truths? In this article, you will learn about the scholarly record, what it comprises, and what’s missing. You’ll discover that the volume – and value – of what’s missing, called grey literature, has been. Grey literature is a costly asset that’s going to waste. n f I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders (sic) of Giants.” So wrote Isaac Newton to his rival, Hooke, in 1675. Newton wasn’t the first to notice the importance of building on the works of others. Five hundred years earlier, Bernard of Chartres is quoted as saying “We see more and farther than our predecessors, not because we have keener vison of greater height, but because we are lifted up and borne aloft on their gigantic stature”. It seems to me that the collective noun for giants’ shoulders should be a “scholarly record” since this comprises “an ever-evolving network – or graph – of truth assertions” 1 “upon which each discipline bases its discussions, and against which each discipline measures its progress”. 2 Some go further to suggest the scholarly record can even frame the identity of an institution. 3 If we agree that a giant’s shoulder is worth standing upon, how do we ensure that their truth assertions are collected and preserved to ensure that we can indeed see further than our predecessors and measure progress? In short, how do we ensure that all giants are included in the scholarly record? To