SciVee (YouTube for Scientists) makes its debut….

Scientists now have their own outlet for media related to publications–SciVee.

The website allows scientists to upload videos that are synchronized with their papers, set up personalized channels, and communicate with each other about papers. The site enjoys sponsorship from the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Public Library of Science (PLOS), and the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC).

Given the novelty of this approach, SciVee provides some useful tips to would-be posters. For example, here is their list of topics for what to include in a video:

It is likely that you have already presented your paper in person, so you could plan your video presentation in the same way as if you were presenting in front of a live audience possibly using PowerPoint slides as a teleprompter to guide you.

Because the video duration we suggest is relatively short, you should emphasize and highlight the main points of your paper. It would be good to discuss any concepts that are particularly difficult to grasp from reading the text.

As you are planning your video, consider that this might be the first time that someone has come across your paper. This is your chance to make an impression and establish a readership for your paper!

Remember that video is a different medium than written word. Video is more suitable for communicating the big picture or difficult concepts rather than methodological details.

To get you started, here is a suggested guideline for the video content:

• Motivation/hypothesis to be tested (as described in the Introduction)
• Method employed (brief overview of the Methods section)
• Major results (from the Results section)
• Outcome as defined by the results and the initial motivation (as described in the Discussion)
• Next steps for this project (from the Conclusions)

Most of the content is biological, but I’m hoping psychologists will get involved soon.

Why is this attractive? I’m guessing that there still is no substitute for that face-to-face exchange of ideas. I like to hear scientists explain their results in their own words. This is also likely to become a terrific teaching tool. Sometimes, students seem to forget that real people are working in real labs to produce the papers they’re assigned.