One of a new Research Library Notes issue on 21st century academic library workforce

A presentation by Lee Rainie, Director, Pew Internet Project

Report from Project Information Literacy

part of a series

A project proposed by Cameron Neylon to convene (funders, publishers and individuals) and developers to develop useful research metrics that encourage more open usage and re-usage of research data.

Video of a lecture by Charles Vest (former MIT president and president of the National Academy of Engineering) on sharing educational resources over the web, with MIT's OpenCourseWare as a model.

from the eco4r project, features a review of "enhanced publications" in repositories, data standards for supporting the use of these publications, best practices and examples from Bielefeld University Library repositories

Abstract: The deluge of scientific research data has excited the general public, as well as the scientific community, with the possibilities for better understanding of scientific problems, from climate to culture. For data to be available, researchers must be willing and able to share them. The policies of governments, funding agencies, journals, and university tenure and promotion committees also influence how, when, and whether research data are shared. Data are complex objects. Their purposes and the methods by which they are produced vary widely across scientific fields, as do the criteria for sharing them. To address these challenges, it is necessary to examine the arguments for sharing data and how those arguments match the motivations and interests of the scientific community and the public. Four arguments are examined: to make the results of publicly funded data available to the public, to enable others to ask new questions of extant data, to advance the state of science, and to reproduce research. Libraries need to consider their role in the face of each of these arguments, and what expertise and systems they require for data curation.

Two UMass librarian authors review the literature and study of online respositories dedicated to particular subjects and find study,and guidelines lacking for such entities. They point out: "subject repositories are frequently cited as highly successful scholarly communication initiatives, especially in relation to institutional repositories."

"a novel PDF reader that semantically integrates visualization and data-analysis tools with published research articles." A pilot project with Biochemical Journal is described.

Excerpt; "In contrast to confirmatory analysis, which involves testing preconceived hypothesis, exploratory data analysis involves a broad investigation, a key component of which may be visual display. ... Today, there is tremendous potential for computational biologists, bioinformaticians, and related software developers to shape and direct scientific discovery by designing data visualization tools that facilitate exploratory analysis and fuel the cycle of ideas and experiments that gets refined into well-formed hypotheses, robust analyses, and confident results.""

JISC report explores assumptions about "Generation Y' and information-seeking behavior and facility with technology

A strategy used for scientific data curation needs assessment used at the University of oregon is demonstrated.

MIT librarians report results of a survey of NIH-funded faculty members and researchers on their experiences with the publishing process. Possible areas of library support and partnership are considered.

Dorothea Salo outlines a framework for understanding the complexities of research data and researchers' needs, with emphasis on digital libraries and institutional repositories and data standards and management characteristics and requirements.

A report from the Council of Library and Information Resources. Featured chapters include "Can a library go all-digital?" and "the cost of keeping a book"

Report on a survey of "38 individuals at four prominent U.S. research universities," reflecting how researchers choose "adequate" rather than "optimal" information solutions and "use online tools and commercial services related to their discipline rather than tools provided by their university." Concerns about long term data durability abound.

A review of four bibliographic utility studies on library catalogs points out that the library catalog is no longer the starting point for students and researchers and that it has been eclipsed by easier-to-use and more convenient tools such as Google Books, Google Scholar, and LibraryThing. The author suggests that catalog developers learn from these tools and draw on their metadata; include "social" enhancements such as tagging, comments, and reviews; develop systems that are user-focused rather than librarian-focused; forsake the local catalog for the union catalog to reduce duplication of effort

A bibliography of more than 2000 citations to articles and books by Charles W. Bailey on data preservation and curation.