QRCodes for PIDs

The Need for Wider Adoption of Scholarly PIDs

Scholarly Persistent Identifiers (PIDs) such as ORCID, Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs), and Registry of Research Repositories (RORs) play a crucial role in the digital landscape of scholarly communication. Despite their importance, the adoption of PIDs across all scholarly entities—particularly for conferences and conference series—remains incomplete. This gap hinders the potential to create a comprehensive scholarly knowledge graph that seamlessly connects researchers, institutions, publications, and events.

Challenges in Current Adoption

• Lack of Universality: Not all core scholarly entities, such as conferences and conference series, have PIDs assigned, leading to inconsistencies in the scholarly record.
• Visibility and Awareness: The benefits and usage of PIDs are not sufficiently visible or understood within the academic community.

Proposal: QR Codes for Scholarly PIDs

To enhance the visibility and utility of PIDs, we propose the integration of QR codes as a standard feature in scholarly publishing. This would involve displaying QR codes for entities' PIDs on every relevant digital platform, including homepages, institutional repositories, and publications.

Benefits

• Increased Engagement: Making PIDs more visible and accessible through QR codes can encourage their adoption and use.
• Seamless Connectivity: QR codes can facilitate the direct linking of scholarly entities, enhancing the discoverability and interconnectivity within the scholarly ecosystem.

Implementation Strategy

To make this proposal a reality, a series of coordinated efforts across multiple stakeholders in the scholarly communication ecosystem is necessary.

Short-Term Tasks

• Advocacy and Awareness Campaigns: Launch initiatives to educate stakeholders about the importance of PIDs and the benefits of QR code integration.
• Technical Development: Develop tools and guidelines for generating and embedding QR codes for scholarly PIDs on digital platforms.

Long-Term Goals

• Standardization Efforts: Work with standards organizations and scholarly publishers to incorporate QR codes for PIDs as a best practice in publishing.
• Expansion and Integration: Encourage the assignment of PIDs to all scholarly entities, including those currently overlooked, and integrate QR code functionality into scholarly databases and search engines.

Viral Adoption Strategy

Creating a "viral" movement for this initiative requires engaging the scholarly community in a way that highlights the immediate value and long-term benefits of this approach.

• Incentivize Adoption: Offer recognition or benefits to early adopters who implement QR codes for PIDs in their publications and digital presences.
• Community Engagement: Leverage social media and academic networks to share success stories and practical examples of QR code implementation.
• Collaborate with Influencers: Partner with influential researchers, institutions, and publishers to advocate for this practice.

Conclusion

The adoption of QR codes for scholarly PIDs represents a pragmatic and innovative approach to enhancing the visibility and utility of PIDs in scholarly communication. By making these identifiers more accessible and engaging, we can take a significant step toward the realization of a fully interconnected scholarly knowledge graph.