Free Journals Grow Amid Ongoing Debate.

The article discusses open-access scientific journals and the evolution of the Public Library of Science (PLoS). Under this system, authors are charged a fee to have their research papers copyrighted and placed online for immediate access. The philosophy of the founders of PLoS is discussed, one of whom is Harold Varmus, former director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and head of the National Cancer Institute. Several open access publishers are noted in addition to PLoS including BioMed Central, Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), and PubMed Central of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH).