> What? Probably half of the Wolfram Language is written in the Wolfram Language. How is top-level code not source code?
I can write BASIC code all day long without having access to the engine, the interpreter. But if I publish my result, there will be problems.
Also, if the language under discussion were so open, people would write third-party imitations -- not imitations of the results, but of the methods as well. But they can't. They can't because the source is secret.
> And that's not even considering physics, biochemistry, engineering, and astronomy, ...
The only way a result from a proprietary source would not be an issue is if the result isn't original. A routine statistical result, one that anyone can duplicate, isn't likely to be an issue. But an original result, one in which the mathematics itself is key to the result, would require full disclosure.
> ... where many of the tools you use will always be expensive and built by industry, and have no impact on peer review.
Not really. Any significant result must be completely transparent. To understand the reasons, review the history of the Mars Climate Orbiter:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Climate_Orbiter
Even though the specifications were perfectly clear, even though everything was out in the open, two teams used different unit systems, and a critical mid-flight burn went wrong. Imagine how much worse such things would be if any part of important technical processing was concealed from close inspection.