1. Fixing Instead of Breaking, Part Three - Blockchain, RA21, Privacy, and Trust
We continue to battle the tidal wave of data with a bucket brigade of individual privacy settings. Maybe it's time to pause and consider a state-level solution, ala Estonia, notes Kent Anderson, in his post in the Scholarly Kitchen Blog.
The blog post says (quote): In Estonia, your data is stored in an ultra-secure government system complete with digital signatures and timestamps. This means that nobody can access a citizen's data (look at or download) without the owner of the data being alerted and told specifically who accessed the data and for what purpose. For example, a citizen was alerted that the police had accessed his data because the officer was looking for cars matching a particular description. His car was crossed off the list of possible vehicles under suspicion because it had been in the shop at the time. The citizen knew all this, the data were accurate, and the police were able to continue their search. Estonia's blockchain infrastructure delivers unmatched security, trustworthy data exchange, and the ability for both sides of the data transaction to see what was transacted, by whom, and how. Most importantly, it protects the integrity of the underlying data.........(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
2. From Content Creation to Content Delivery: How EBSCO eBooks™ Builds an Accessible User Experience
As an aggregator of e-books, companies like EBSCO face a special kind of challenge regarding accessibility. In her post in the EBSCOpost Blog, Emma Waecker discusses how EBSCO is working with publisher partners and industry leaders to establish best practices for creating accessible e-book files to enhance the user experience.
The blog post says (quote): To address this at the source, EBSCO works with e-book publisher partners and industry leaders to identify and establish best practices for creating accessible e-book files, which helps to meet the needs of their mutual users. In discussing e-book accessibility with leaders in creating accessible content, they've put together suggestions about which formats are most inherently accessible, how to apply proper semantic tagging for improved document navigation, and conversely avoiding the overuse of non-semantic tags like
and
which interrupt the reading experience. EBSCO and its publishers agree that when possible, it's best to submit EPUB files, as HTML is natively more accessible than PDF. EBSCO also encourage the use of consistent page numbers in both PDF and EPUB formats so users can easily cite their source, regardless of the e-book format.............(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
3. The "long tail" of research impact is engendered by innovative dissemination tools and meaningful community engagement
Research impact often tends not to happen in one emphatic, public moment but rather at more discrete points of the 'long tail' of a research project. In their post in the LSE Impact of Social Sciences Blog, Kip Jones and Lee-Ann Fenge discuss what it takes to create meaningful community impact, highlighting a commitment to inclusive co-production and public engagement and the use of participatory research to create innovative dissemination tools.
The blog post says (quote): This case study provides just one example of the possibilities of creating impact through public engagement. It highlights how research projects that include in-depth outputs and dissemination plans can contribute to social engagement and "impact" for social benefit. The fact that the underpinning research began almost a decade and a half ago attests to the principle that research that is meaningful is never really finished, and that dissemination is more than simply a few academic journal articles. In this project "community", in the guise of co-researchers (the research project’s advisory committee and community service providers), was pivotal in providing feedback, momentum, and expanding the audiences for the efforts.........(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
4. Publisher drops plan to charge extra for old papers after outcry
Publisher Taylor & Francis has dropped plans to charge extra for access to older research papers online, after more than 110 universities recently signed a letter of protest. The Publisher earlier proposed to bring in extra charges for digital papers published more than 20 years ago. Papers published in a one-year window between 1997 – seen as the year that the digital academic publishing era began – and 1998 would have been placed in a "modern archive", and universities would have had to purchase access to this as a separate package, notes Holly Else, in her post in the Times Higher Education Blog.
The blog post says (quote): Diminishing this coverage [to older articles] is opportunistic and potentially profiteering within a sector which is recognised to enjoy substantial profit margins at present as it greatly monetises the outputs and inputs of publicly-funded research. It gives the publisher another route to earn money from their collections. Collectively librarians consider this unfair and not in the ethos of partnership. After 20 years those articles suddenly disappear even though academics have been reading them before that and these are the people who produced the articles........(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
5. 10 tips for getting your journal article published
Writing a paper that gets accepted for publication in a high-quality journal is not easy. Publication requirements don't just mean submission guidelines, which, of course, need to be followed, but also the more fundamental aspects of composing a publishable article. Steward T.A. Pickett and Mark J. McDonnell, in their post in the OUPblog, discusses ten recommendations on how to effectively write papers that will be considered for publication in high-quality journals
The blog post says (quote): Academic writing should not be like a mystery novel that reveals the outcome only at the end. Effective scientific narratives start from a stated focus, move through a clear structure of support, and bring the story to fruition. The organisation and order of ideas should be clear throughout. If you find yourself circling back or repeating details, that likely means the structure of the work needs to be revised. Just because the topic is complex does not mean the writing should be. Simple, straightforward sentences are better than long, convoluted ones. Exact, plain words are better than vague ones. Do not use jargon or acronyms - especially when submitting to multi-disciplinary international journals..........(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
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