Chapter 10

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The Bermuda Triangle of Academic Exchange

In this book, a notable theme is the Bermuda Triangle phenomenon in academic exchanges. This metaphor vividly depicts the complex and often ineffective network of relationships formed among scholars, university presses, and libraries during the process of academic communication. The interactions among these three parties lack balance and collaboration, resulting in the overall failure of the academic communication system.
As producers of academic content, scholars often focus too narrowly and intensively on specific fields when writing monographs, which results in limited audience for their works and makes it difficult to attract a wider readership. At the same time, when pursuing appointments, tenure, and promotion (HTP), scholars are often required to publish printed monographs, further intensifying the pressure on academic publishing.
In the face of high printing costs and fierce competition among scientific journals, university presses, while pursuing profits, often neglect their social responsibilities in academic publishing. The short-sighted behavior of publishers and their slow response to market changes have made many valuable academic monographs difficult to come out.
As the main repository and distributor of academic resources, libraries, under the dual pressures of budget cuts and changes in reader demands, have had to adjust their collection strategies and reduce the purchase of humanities-related books. This not only affects the dissemination of scholars’ research results but also limits the access of the public to academic resources.
High printing costs, price competition among scientific journals, and budget cuts for libraries have all contributed to the economic barriers in academic communication. The evaluation standards within the academic community are overly simplistic, overly emphasizing the publication of paper monographs while neglecting the importance of digital publishing and diverse dissemination channels. At the same time, poor communication between scholars, publishers, and libraries, as well as a lack of mutual understanding and collaboration mechanisms, have hindered academic communication. Although digital technology has provided new possibilities for academic communication, the academic community is still lagging behind in the application of technology. Many scholars are not proficient in using digital tools, and publishers and libraries also face numerous challenges during the digital transformation process.
Resolving the crisis in academic communication requires policy guidance and support from the highest administrative level of universities. By establishing unified academic evaluation standards, providing publication subsidies and incentive measures, it is possible to promote the diverse dissemination of academic achievements. Academic societies have unique advantages in promoting academic communication. By organizing academic conferences, publishing academic journals and providing online resources, the societies can facilitate communication and cooperation among scholars and promote the wide dissemination of academic achievements. This book also details various digital humanities tools, which not only enhance the efficiency and quality of academic research but also provide new platforms and channels for academic communication. By leveraging these tools, scholars can more conveniently share research results, conduct collaborative research, and thereby break down barriers in academic communication.