4 May 2020
The Company of Biologists has announced that a group of early-career researchers in the preLights community have launched a new website, covidpreprints.com, to track landmark coronavirus studies throughout the ongoing pandemic. Preprints, non peer reviewed open access scientific papers, enable researchers to share their data before journal publication. An increasingly popular method of disseminating research, the number of coronavirus preprints has soared in response to the outbreak.
Such a high volume of science across different platforms has made it difficult to filter out and connect reliable information. “The volume and disparity of information relating to COVID-19 is making it increasingly difficult to understand what information is reliable, trustworthy and important. We have created a central resource to make this job easier,” said Jonathon Coates, a member of the team, preLighter and postdoctoral researcher at the University of Cambridge.
The website links to expert reviews from organisations and leaders in the field. Summaries, ongoing online discussions and major events of the pandemic accompany the studies. The team made the decision to include controversial preprints, reasoning that all science informs future directions. A colour coded system highlights preprints, events and important comments or caveats.
The website is free to access and available to everyone: scientists, the media and the public are invited to use the resource to gain clarity on the rapidly evolving situation. Data collection for the website is live and ongoing. The project team welcomes feedback and community contributions.