A bit of vocabulary...

The licenses associated with scientific productions are generally of the Creative Commons type, as described here, and depend on the type of document to which the license must be associated. It is therefore necessary to define these concepts for a better understanding.

Use of licenses

These licenses specify types of use that must be defined before the most appropriate license can be chosen:

1. Distribute

• • Definition: Sharing copies of the original work with others.
  • Examples:
    • Publish the work on a website.
    • Share it by email.
    • Distribute physical copies like printed books.

2. Remix

• • Definition: Taking the original work and combining it with other materials to create something new.
  • Examples:
    • Aggregate and statistically analyze data from multiple studies to arrive at new conclusions.
    • Combine elements (figures, data, and concepts) from multiple sources to teach a specific topic.
    • Integrate theories or models from different sources to propose a new comprehensive theory.
  • Note on the summary vs. the remix: A literature review or a state-of-the-art section in a scientific article aims to summarize and integrate existing knowledge to set the stage for new research. This respects the integrity of the original works and does not combine them into a new work in the same sense that "remixing" implies.

3. Adapt

• • Definition: Changing or modifying the original work to create a new version.
  • Examples:
    • Translate a book into another language.
    • Changing the format of a work, like turning a novel into a screenplay.
    • Update a report with new data or analytics.

4. Expand/Expand

• • Definition: Using the original work as a basis to create something new that adds to or extends it.
  • Examples:
    • Expand a research article with additional results.
    • Use an existing protocol to develop a more efficient one.
    • Develop new software based on existing code.

Document Type

1. Postprint Publisher

• • Definition: The final version of the article after peer review and all revisions, formatted and published by the editor in a scientific journal.
  • Example: The article as it appears in the newspaper with the publisher's layout, page numbers, and all finalized graphic and textual material.

2. Postprint Author

• • Definition: The final version of the article after peer review and all revisions, but before layout by the editor. This is often referred to as an "accepted manuscript".
  • Example: The Word or PDF document that the author submits to the editor after incorporating all the reviewers' comments.

3. Preprint Author

• • Definition: The version of the article before peer review. This is the original manuscript submitted for review, containing all of the author's ideas and data.
  • Example: The first full draft of the article that the author uploads to a preprint server like arXiv or bioRxiv for feedback before peer review.