DeSci Is the Next Big Thing in Web3; How Does it Transform Science?

Blockchain has been successfully integrated into the financial infrastructure, triggering bold innovations capable of transforming the entire financial architecture, with central banks pondering the use of digital currencies instead of cash. However, can technology challenge other industries, such as science?

The short answer is yes. While science is a vague industry with many branches, decentralization is the last describing term for it. In 2018, a paper by Valentin Danchev, an alumnus of the University of Chicago, concluded that centralized scientific communities were less likely to generate replicable results. This is an important finding given that the science industry is very centralized, with many sectors being monopolized by a mix of government and private entities.

Danchev and co-authors concluded that centralized scientific communities propagate claims that are less likely to replicate even if widely agreed upon, suggesting that centralized, overlapping collaborations weaken our collective understanding. On the other side, decentralized research communities involve independent teams and leverage diverse methodologies, eventually generating replicable results.

There is a growing concern that many, if not the majority of published results, may be partially or entirely false and are rarely examined against rapidly expanding research production. Besides the lack of true decentralization, replications occur only on small scales because of limited professional incentives.

Blockchain can come to the rescue and improve the essential practices in science by bringing decentralization and providing a fair mechanism to incentivize professionals. Not only that: the technology can ensure transparency and make the scientific findings and knowledge available to the general public.

Danchev's findings stress the importance of science policies that encourage decentralized collaboration to support robust scientific advances.

DeSci to Make Science More Transparent and Community-Oriented

Decentralized finance (DeFi) has grown into an influential trend within the blockchain industry, aiming to transform traditional finance. In a similar fashion, decentralized science (DeSci) is focused on making science more transparent and open to the public.

Blockchain can help improve science in many ways, but the fundamental principles of DeSci relate to the following:

• Scientific knowledge should be open to the general public - this is one of the key principles that address the significant gap in today's relationship between researchers and the public. Thankfully, there are already some positive changes in the right direction: at the end of August, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy issued a new policy requiring that, by 2026, all federally-funded research results be freely available to the public without delay.

• Scientific work should be credited and incentivized fairly - blockchain can prevent any conflict of interest, which is still affecting many sectors, especially the pharma industry. On top of that, the technology can empower communities to directly contribute to science in a more direct and measurable way.

• Collaboration and transparency should be at the forefront - the narrative of blockchain revolves around decentralization and immutability of data, which makes transparency one of the best benefits it can guarantee.

• Consumers and patients should be able to have complete control over their medical data - privacy and storage of data are some of the main features of Web3, of which DeSci is part. Blockchain can bring back the control over data to users, who are responsible for storage and communication.

Meet The Science DAO

One of the key actors in this emergent trend is The Science DAO - a think tank, incubator engine, and accelerator platform helping inventors, institutions and entrepreneurs collaborate and share experiences. The platform, which aims to become a science-oriented decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), is also letting individual and institutional investors contribute to science by taking part in fundraising efforts.

While there are several DeSci entities, The Science DAO is universal as it covers most sectors and benefits all players. The think tank focuses on three main areas:

• Health and Environment - medical, genetics, nutrition, mycology, microbiology, city planning, renewable energy and climate, anatomy, and waste disposal.

• Computing and Technology - blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), national security, social computing, and learning.

• Natural Science - astronomy, hydrology, material sciences, chemistry, physics, oceanography, radiation, archeology, and botany.

The goal of The Science DAO is to bring advanced technology and scientific breakthroughs to the masses for the betterment of society and humanity. The end goal is to build a complete DAO for Science.

With The Science DAO, the collaboration between scientific funds, institutions, and universities will improve considerably, eventually supporting science and empowering communities.