1. Failure to Deliver: Reaching Users in an Increasingly Mobile World
Technology is changing how users access content in a world increasingly on the move, yet delivery of content acquired by libraries is optimised for the user who is physically on campus. In their post in the Scholarly Kitchen Blog, Judy Luther and Todd Carpenter look at the technological challenges of providing access to content in an increasingly dispersed and mobile world.
The blog post says (quote): Publishers could reasonably provide access based on a user's IP-address and therefore providing a seamless user experience. However, over the ensuing years, technology has advanced, connectivity has improved rapidly, and the new cloud-based network has little to do with one's physical location. This approach has hindered the ability of library patrons to get access to the content to which the library has subscribed. Users should be able to have anywhere, anytime access to content or services in a way that fits their workflow, not in a way that suits the workflow of an antiquated network architecture………………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
2. How do researchers use social media and scholarly collaboration networks (SCNs)?
Social media is not only a way for authors and publishers to disseminate research findings, it is also increasingly being used by researchers to discover and read scientific content. Davy Falkner, in his post in the BioMed Central Blog, discusses a survey conducted by Springer Nature to better understand how social media and scholarly collaboration networks (SCNs) are used within academia to support research activity.
The blog post says (quote): In the Nature survey conducted in 2014, the most-selected activity on both ResearchGate and Academia.edu was simply maintaining a profile in case someone wanted to get in touch (68 percent). This year’s survey revealed that the research activity that over three quarters of respondents stated that they use social media and SCNs for was discovering and / or reading scientific content (Nature's 2014 study 33 percent). 57 percent of respondents to the survey used some form of social media and / or SCNs to support with self or research promotion. Therefore, unsurprisingly, the content that the majority of researchers appreciate from publishers is information on new topics and trends; and research relevant to their field and article recommendations………………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
3. Guest Post, The TEF: How Publishers and Booksellers Can Engage with Higher Education Assessment
UK's Research Excellence Framework (REF), the newly launched Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) is an effort to assess the effectiveness and impact of higher education teaching primarily by means of metrics. In their guest post in the Scholarly Kitchen Blog, Linda Bennett and Annika Bennett of Gold Leaf discuss the results of their recent study of stakeholder views on the UK's Teaching Excellence Framework.
The blog post says (quote): Academic publishers and booksellers are already speculating about the opportunities that the TEF offers, but there are challenges to face as well. A higher level of engagement is essential if the industry is to be an effective part in supplying the HE resources necessary for this developing environment. Although prominent members of the industry tried to gain places on TEF boards, they were told that they could not be admitted because of their commercial interests (even though universities are themselves now often run as commercial enterprises). Publishers and booksellers must lobby to raise awareness of the crucial impact that professionally prepared and distributed learning resources will have on TEF outcomes………………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
4. A closer look at the Sci-Hub corpus: what is being downloaded and from where?
Sci-Hub remains among the most common sites via which readers circumvent article paywalls and access scholarly literature. But where exactly are its download requests coming from? And just what is being downloaded? In his post in The Impact Blog, Bastian Greshake has analysed the full Sci-Hub corpus and its request data, and found that articles are being downloaded from all over the world, more recently published papers are among the most requested, and there is a marked overrepresentation of requested articles from journals publishing on chemistry.
The blog post says (quote): Looking at six months' worth of data, totalling 28 million download requests to Sci-Hub, the answer was a resounding "everyone", with downloads coming from all over the globe. The public release of the data enabled further analysis showing that, while the country-wide use of Sci-Hub correlates with population size, there are some clear outliers. Iran, which has long suffered from international sanctions affecting access to academic journal subscriptions, shows a large number of requests to Sci-Hub, as does Greece, which continues to struggle with unemployment and economic hardship. Additionally this analysis showed that around 8% of all download requests come from inside academic institutions around the globe, hinting that access through university libraries is far from universal………………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
5. Public Libraries in Summer: A Great Place to Build Success Skills
The start of summer also kicks off the annual challenge of keeping learning afloat and avoiding summer learning loss. A post in the EBSCOpost Blog discusses how public libraries can help.
The blog post says (quote): Public libraries can have a meaningful impact helping students maintain their current academic skills, acquire new skills and get ready in advance for a strong upcoming academic year. One of the best ways to do this is to build the foundational skills that help anyone sail more smoothly through life and its daily challenges. Soft-skills such as time management, study skills, information literacy, and basic money management help students succeed in school and beyond. Summer is a great time to focus on these skills, without the stress of coursework and extracurricular activities………………(unquote)
The full entry can be read Here.
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