1. Why good metadata matters: discoverability, tracking, marketing and more…
Among the many services that publishers provide authors throughout the publication process, metadata has become increasingly valuable in recent years. In their post in the Altmetric Blog, Charlotte Perry-Houts and Tyler Ruse examine the importance of publishers providing good metadata and describe the data Altmetric needs to provide accurate tracking.
The blog post says (quote): Metadata is not only basic information, such as identifiers, contributors, and titles, rather it is now the main path for discovery; populating search engines in libraries, at retailers, even all the way to Google. It is how readers find content. Publishers now have an opportunity to support their own business as well as help their authors by 'being good' at metadata. They can help drive views and subscribers, and ensure the right content is in front of those readers. Metadata is now much more than titles and authors; it is descriptions, subject classifications, rights declarations, keywords, awards, related items, pricing information, and so much more. Altmetric pulls out key metadata from the article landing pages in order to link mentions from across the web to the research. This metadata ends up in Altmetric details pages in the 'Summary' tab and makes it possible to search the Altmetric Explorer database for content based on author, keyword, title, publication date, and so on………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
2. Plan T: Scrap APCs and Fund Open Access with Submission Fees
Plan S proposes to take a hammer to how authors fund peer review and publication. The focus is currently on APCs, but submission fees are overall cheaper for authors, particularly at highly selective journals, and thus warrant serious consideration, notes Tim Vines, in his post in the Scholarly Kitchen Blog.
The blog post says (quote): The big obstacle to adopting submission fees has always been first-mover disadvantage: authors do not particularly like the prospect of submission fees and may favour journals that do not charge them. Any journal introducing submission fees thus risks deterring authors. Interestingly, this did not seem to be the case at the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, where the introduction of a $250 submission fee led to a fall in low quality submissions, but the volume of higher quality articles remained steady. If Plan S becomes a reality then 'business as usual' goes out the window, as publishers will find themselves scrambling to ensure that as many journals as possible are a) Open Access, and b) charging an acceptably low APC. One or more publishers opting to achieve (a) and (b) by introducing submission fees would affect so many journals that the first mover disadvantage becomes a non-issue. As one might expect, having submission fees paid directly by funders would also significantly mitigate the first-mover effect, and helpfully the direct payment of publication fees is already part of Plan S………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
3. Mastering the Pre-Discovery Phase of Biopharmaceutical Research
Developing a new medicine is a long and complicated process. Due to scientific advances, pharmaceutical research is now more thorough than ever. A post in the EBSCOpost Blog, explores the first step of pharmaceutical research - pre-discovery.
The blog post says (quote): Target identification is the ultimate goal of the pre-discovery phase of pharmaceutical research. The pre-discovery stage allows researchers the time to understand the disease and choose a valid target molecule. This understanding allows for the potential of discovering and developing more advanced medicines. Once the researcher has identified the unmet need, they must understand the disease at a molecular level. Once this is completed, they will choose the biological target for a prospective medicine. Researchers will then validate their biological target by performing studies in cells, tissues and animals to verify that their target can be influenced by medicine. This validation is important to help scientists identify the most promising approaches before further developing a potential medicine; increasing the effectiveness of their research. This research is also cost-effective, helping to save large amounts of money having conducted the requisite research prior to target identification………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
4. In a globalised and networked world, what is the unique value a university can bring? Introducing Open Knowledge Institutions
Digital ubiquity has disrupted the traditional university model. The internet has shifted the balance of a tension between control and disorder in knowledge production, with many of the opportunities the web brings leading directly to many of the challenges they now need to address. In their post in the LSE Impact of Social Sciences Blog, Lucy Montgomery and Cameron Neylon advocate for the idea of universities as Open Knowledge Institutions, which would support and provide spaces for the world’s creative diversity to contribute to a common stock of global knowledge.
The blog post says (quote): Universities are still defined by a community of scholarship which creates and conveys knowledge. But in that transaction of discovery and learning, digital access and the rise of tremendous repositories of knowledge online have forced to change the way they think about universities. Online learning, globalisation, increased affordability of travel and digital access have also meant that the community of scholarship must be redefined – if it can be tightly described at all. Complex international issues are frequently resolved only through a coalition of international expertise and collaboration. At the same time, changing business models and nationalist self-interest ensure many universities still keep current and future intellectual property in a closely guarded enclave. What links many of these issues is the question of 'how' a university should be open and networked with the wider world. This is surfacing as a significant point of debate in university planning and strategy around the globe………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
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