Conferences vs. Journals: Throwing the baby out with the bath water?

Abstract: Criticism of the conference model should be put in context. Evidences suggest that the essential features of this model have emerged as responses to challenges posed by current trends of scientific research and the impact of the new techno-economic paradigm, the age of Information and Communication Technology. This context seems indispensable when discussing today's problems of scientific evaluation, in particular the Conference vs. Journal (CvJ) debate. This debate, also, would benefit from systematic historical and sociological studies of these practices. In this note we briefly develop these arguments.