Millions of scientific papers are published globally every year. These papers in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine present discoveries that range from the mundane to the profound.
Yet, this extraordinary expansion was once thought to be unsustainable. In his influential 1963 book, "Little Science, Big Science… And Beyond," the founder of scientometrics—or data informetrics related to scientific publications—Derek de Solla Price famously predicted limits to scientific growth.
He warned that the world would soon deplete its resources and talent pool for research. He imagined this would lead to a decline in new discoveries and potential crises in medicine, technology and the economy. At the time, scholars widely accepted his prediction of an impending slowdown in scientific progress.
Faulty predictions
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