Research: the process by which we understand the world, ourselves, and other phenomena ranging from the alpha helix of a protein to the societal movements in politics is what life is.  That may be a bit too grandiose, but research is an integral part of advancing humankind forward.

Said differently, research is the engine by which progress occurs.  Yet, performing successful research is something that is not easy. Unlocking the secrets of life is a laborious task and it requires cooperation amongst people in real time as well as those that came before us.  Key to this progress is clarity, completeness, and access.  One might guess that this is the what defines the research publishing community.  One might be wrong.

Scholarly research is for the most part locked behind expensive paywalls in forms that resemble more of something like a trophy than a document used for conveying important of pieces of research in the best manner possible.  While there are lots of things occurring in scholarly research  that don't make sense for research, sense,  one blatant one stands out.  We charge researchers to access other researchers documents-- not in the name of sustainability, but in the name of profit.  In fact, we had to invent a word to describe a publication process that is conducive to research: open access.  What is #OpenAccess and what is it good for?  Absolutely everything, as far as research is concerned.