Adopt explicit 'prequel/sequel' labels for scientific works to surface idea lineages rather than pretending each paper is a standalone breakthrough. This reframes progress as a narrated continuity, countering presentism and hero-worship created by citation metrics.
— Rewriting how credit and novelty are signaled could shift funding, evaluation, and media coverage toward accurate histories of discovery instead of winner‑take‑all myths.
Santa Fe Institute
2025.07.29
100% relevant
Krakauer argues research metrics foster 'winner‑takes‑all' dynamics and that science avoids prequel/sequel language despite clear continuities (e.g., special to general relativity, CRISPR as a sequel to evolutionary genetics).
T. Greer
2025.01.01
72% relevant
The article concretizes idea lineages via Mayr’s account: Lyell posed the core questions (even with wrong answers), and Darwin/Wallace wrote the 'sequels' by answering them. This supports labeling and crediting scientific work by its place in a lineage.
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