Most scientific research is conducted by small teams of investigators who together formulate hypotheses, collect data, conduct analyses, and report novel findings. These teams operate independently as vertically integrated silos. Here we argue that scientific research that is horizontally distributed can provide substantial complementary value, aiming to maximize available resources, promote inclusiveness and transparency, and increase rigor and reliability. This alternative approach enables researchers to tackle ambitious projects that would not be possible under the standard model. Crowdsourced scientific initiatives vary in the degree of communication between project members from largely independent work curated by a coordination team to crowd collaboration on shared activities. The potential benefits and challenges of large-scale collaboration span the entire research process: ideation, study design, data collection, data analysis, reporting, and peer review. Complementing traditional small science with crowdsourced approaches can accelerate the progress of science and improve the quality of scientific research.

中文翻译：

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科学乌托邦III：众包科学。

大多数科学研究是由小型研究人员小组进行的，他们共同提出假设，收集数据，进行分析并报告新发现。这些团队作为垂直集成的筒仓独立运作。在这里，我们认为横向分布的科学研究可以提供实质性的互补价值，旨在最大化可用资源，促进包容性和透明度，并提高严格性和可靠性。这种替代方法使研究人员能够解决在标准模型下无法实现的雄心勃勃的项目。众包的科学计划在项目成员之间的交流程度上有所不同，从协调团队策划的基本上独立的工作到共享活动的众包协作。大规模协作的潜在收益和挑战涵盖了整个研究过程：构思，研究设计，数据收集，数据分析，报告和同行评审。用众包的方法补充传统的小型科学可以加速科学的进步并提高科学研究的质量。