It All Adds Up

Sandra Porter says accessing scientific papers from several journals can be costly. At her Discovering Biology in a Digital World blog, Porter outlines personal subscription and individual article access costs for multiple journals, finding that prices vary widely among them. In comments to this post, David Robert Grimes says that because science journals don't provide the content of proofing, their per-article prices are especially difficult to swallow. "In the average paper I write, I cite [approximately] 25 publications, with a median cost of about $32 dollars," Grimes says, adding that he's fortunate his university covers those charges. Also in the comments, Porter adds that universities aren't the only institutions paying the price. "Small companies and non-profits need access to journal articles, too," she says. "These companies are not affluent, and are also challenged by the high cost of individual papers."