What is this open research notebook, and why does it exist in the first place?

Keeping public research notes open fits well with the idea of open science, and there’s even a specific practice called open-notebook science. These open notebooks are usually lab journals, but on this website, people from all walks of academia are invited to share their (preliminary) research notes and ideas. You can find the most recent notes on the Research updates page.

By opening the comment section on research updates, this open research notebook can open up a two-way street between writers and readers, enabling researchers to get real-time feedback from both academics and non-academics. Since these research notes are not only intended for an academic audience, the tone may be more informal than you usually see in academic journals, even though the contents are just as serious.

Are you a Utrecht University researcher that wants to join this website to share research updates? Let me know!