Research strategies in click chemistry: Measuring its cognitive contents and knowledge flow

作     者：Jing Zhu Ming Chen He Liang Quanmin Li Xuefeng Jiang Jing Zhu;Ming Chen;He Liang;Quanmin Li;Xuefeng Jiang

作者机构：Department of PhilosophyEast China Normal UniversityShanghai 200241China School of JournalismFudan UniversityShanghai 200433China Shanghai Key Laboratory of Green Chemistry and Chemical ProcessDepartment of ChemistryEast China Normal UniversityShanghai 200062China 

出 版 物：《Chinese Chemical Letters》 (中国化学快报（英文版）)

年 卷 期：2023年第34卷第2期

页      面：3-6页

核心收录：

学科分类：07[理学] 070304[理学-物理化学(含∶化学物理)] 0703[理学-化学] 

基　　金：supported by the Research Funds of Happiness Flower ECNU (No. 2019ECNU-XFZH006) the National Social Science Fund of China (No. 19BZX041) the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 22125103 and 21971065) the Science Technology Commission Shanghai Municipality (Nos. 22JC1401000, 20JC1416800 and 20XD1421500)。 

主　　题：Click chemistry K.B.Sharpless Research strategies Connectivity History and philosophy of chemistry 

摘      要：The issue about how outstanding scientists obtained innovative findings has drawn the interest of researchers in science, policy and scientometrics. Here, we attempt to address this question by using computational methods to measure the cognitive content and concepts of K. Barry Sharpless’ research and estimate the knowledge flow of his click chemistry to other fields. First, we traced Sharpless’ conceptual journey over time through topic modeling approach, mapping and clustering of the epistemic network from distant reading his publications. We find that connectivity and functions, the core features of click chemistry, are embodied in his constant search for simplicity. What makes simplicity possible is his continuous work with collaborators on reactivity and reaction mechanisms. Moreover, citation and link analysis show that click chemistry had a much richer impact on other research fields than what is generally acknowledged, and drew solutions to significant and practical questions back to chemistry from biology.Together with these findings, we propose that the click chemistry philosophy follows the way that values nature’s principle. Chemistry has a clear-cut epistemic domain in modeling Nature. Thus, click chemistry as a concept on doing science beyond a connective technology goes across the boundaries between disciplines and impacts many other fields.