Digital Commons Network^™

Building Library-Based Support Structures For Open Science, Henrik Karlstrøm, Ingrid Heggland

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Research institutions meet increasing demands for transparency, accountability, added value and reuse of all aspects of scientific production, from documenting the research process to sharing underlying data to open access to publications. Going beyond admirable slogans about openness there is a clear need for support infrastructures relating to the actual practice of Open Science – describing metadata, archiving datasets and publications and disseminating increasingly interdisciplinary research results. Research libraries, having always been stewards of research institutions’ collective knowledge and offering a variety of research support services, are in a unique position to offer future support for Open Science based on …

Another Player In Citation Database: Are We Subscribing?, Yuyun W. Ishak

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Digital Science’s Dimensions has been officially launched in January 2018. At a first glance, this is an exciting development, bringing new competition to the existing field, which is dominated by Clarivate’s Web of Science and Elsevier’s Scopus. Since Dimensions is a freemium, features such as full text and citation analytics require a subscription. Prior to subscription, library typically conducts trials and thorough evaluation, measuring the value that Dimensions brings to the institution, comparing it to existing products, calculating the cost of switching, examining its features and contents, and even considering the future of the product and the company. This paper, …

Research Support – “Just In Time”?, Inga Lena Grønlund

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Challenges occur as research typically require “just in time” library support. The evolution of a research project may lead to sudden changes in coordination between different phases or steps in the project. Consequentially, the need for flexible research support conflicts the possibilities for long-term resource planning and coordination in the library. Moreover, these consequences will enlarge in a situation with resource scarcity. The aim of my presentation is to address some challenges posed by the time-logic inherent in research projects, based on experiences from the literature search team at OsloMet – Oslo Metropolitan University (formerly HIOA, Oslo and Akershus University …

Supporting Research In A Digital World – Positioning The Library On Campus, Ewald Brahms

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

The digital world offers new opportunities for university libraries to support research and to position itself on campus. However, open access, open science, and further aspects of ‘openness’ necessitate strategic changes in order to ensure high-quality library services tailored to the customers’ needs. Establishing new partnerships, and developing shared initiatives on as well as off campus enable the library to manage new projects, improve its existing services, and also offer new services. Building on a convincing record of past performances Hildesheim University Library is able to undertake new tasks, and thus to position itself on campus as an innovative and …

What Do Demand-Driven E-Lending, E-Acquisition And E-Cataloguing Activities Really Cost: A Case Study In Tallinn University Of Technology Library, Kate-Riin Kont

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

According to C. A. Mandel: „We are all spending money, some of us know how much, fewer of us know what for“ (Mandel 1988, p. 220). For over a several decades, many academic libraries have been purchasing books requested by their patrons or customers. The ease and effectiveness of demand-driven acquisitions definitely helps to optimize acquisitions budget as well. Nowadays university libraries increasingly turn to e-books as an alternative to purchasing multiple copies. Academic libraries have for years been forced to purchase large packages of e-books that are of questionable financial value because so much of the content is not …

Inspiring Innovation With Patent Information Literacy In The Engineering Technology Curriculum, David Zwicky, Margaret Phillips

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Patents have wide appeal to students, faculty, and employers and can be a potent tool for integrating information literacy (IL) into engineering and technology curricula. There is evidence to show that students use patents to assess the patentability of their design ideas, explore the state of the art in a given area of technology, and to inspire creativity in their work. Faculty use patents and other complementary forms of gray literature to go beyond the traditional IL world of scholarly literature and engage students with information problems that reflect real-world design challenges. Working with patents allows students to develop strategic, …

A Digital Information Literacy Course For University Teachers: Challenges And Possibilities, Katri Rintamäki, Anne Lehto

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

In Finland, digitalization is taken as the basis for the development of education: for creating new kinds of learning resources, learning environments, and pedagogy. From primary schools to universities, digital learning is essential. In digital learning, libraries play an important role. University libraries spend most of their acquisition budget on digital information resources and actively promote high-quality open access resources. In digital learning, the libraries and librarians' expertise in digital information resources, in information and digital literacies, and in open research and open science, are vital. Information literacy education for students, even information literacy courses included in the curricula, is …

Engineering Graduates At Work: Reality Check For Information Literacy, Caroline Leiss, Pia Ludwig

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Information Literacy (IL) in the Workplace is a relatively new and increasingly important area of research in library science. Many libraries offer IL programmes in order to help students find, ac-cess and use literature for their studies and final papers. But to what extent does instruction in IL help students in their future employment? In international library science, a number of publications already investigate concepts of em-ployability and their relation to information literacy. In Germany, the discussion is just beginning. There is little evidence that German libraries include information literacy for the workplace in their strategic programme development. The University …

Using Technology To Teach Students Information Literacy Skills: An Online Module For First-Year Students At The University Of Johannesburg (Uj), Elize Du Toit

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Being information literate is a basic requirement for 21st-century learning and assessment. As the shift in 21st-century education moves towards e-learning and the use of technology in education, libraries have to recognise that their role to provide ‘traditional’ support to teaching, learning and research needs to change to support web-based learning. This shift in education necessitates libraries to look at new ways to enhance students’ academic experience by incorporating web-based technology to train students in information literacy skills. The UJ library developed an online information literacy module to support students’ information literacy skills. A pilot study was conducted to analyse …

Using Virtual Reality To Create Real World Collaborations, Richard Smith, Oliver Bridle

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

The Radcliffe Science Library (RSL) is Oxford University’s principle science library and it provides easy access to digital tools to enhance teaching, learning and research. Previous projects have developed lending programmes for e-readers and iPads and introduced a popular 3D printing service. The library’s interest in adapting to disruptive technology and providing innovative tools to support academic projects and exploration of new technologies led us in 2017 to initiate a Virtual Reality (VR) lending programme. University members can now borrow VR Headsets, 360⁰ degree cameras and supplementary equipment free of charge from the RSL. In this paper we describe how …

Scaling And Sustaining International Partnerships – A Case Study, Xin Li, Wei Pan

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

How to keep an international collaboration beyond a one-time project? This is a challenge for many libraries. With support from the Henry Luce Foundation, Cornell University Library implemented a preservation training program for 16 librarian interns from 12 academic libraries in Mainland China and Taiwan during 2012-2016. The project aimed to enable the creation of a low-cost preservation infrastructure where little or none existed, and subsequently prolong the accessibility of these collections to researchers around the world. The most unique aspect is the program’s scalability and sustainability. The train-the-trainers model started with a six-week program on Cornell’s campus. Afterwards, Cornell …

Academic Libraries Support Cross-Disciplinary Innovation And Entrepreneurship, Heather A. Howard, Dave Zwicky, Margaret Phillips

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Supporting innovation is essential in today’s academic ecosystem, and libraries are well-positioned to connect prospective entrepreneurs with the myriad resources and services available. Libraries are able to leverage pre-existing collaborations and partnerships with groups both inside and outside the university (from local community groups to international level organizations); libraries’ status as information brokers across disciplinary boundaries also enables them to make new connections with a wide array of potential stakeholders. Librarians from different subject specialties will share experiences and discuss ways in which libraries can support global entrepreneurship efforts by university faculty, staff, and students, as well as the general …

Someone Has To Pay: The Global Sustainability Coalition For Open Science Services (Scoss), Martin Borchert, Vanessa Proudman

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

The Open Access (OA) and Open Science (OS) movement is gaining momentum with an increasing number of scholarly outputs openly and freely available to researchers and the community. OA and OS cannot however, be free for everyone. Someone has to pay for the infrastructure and there has to be a supporting economy. While many commercial publishers are charging for OA, there are many OA and OS infrastructure providers baring the cost of providing infrastructure. Without funding, essential services that many are dependent upon to implement government and funder OA policies worldwide, are at risk of service degradation, reduced availability and …

F.A.I.R. Is Fair For Research: Australian Initaitves To Improve Openness In The Scholarly Communications Environment, Jill Benn, Martin Borchert

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Disruptive changes are transforming the scholarly communications environment. In an era of false reporting and fake news, quality information and verifiable data is essential. However, much of the world’s best publicly funded research remains hidden behind commercial publisher paywalls. Unlocking this research can help solve the world’s greatest research and social challenges, and result in a more informed society. This paper will explore how, within the Australian context, librarians are seeking to make research more findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable (FAIR). The Australasian Open Access Strategy Group (AOASG) and the Council of Australian University Librarians (CAUL) have worked on a …

How Do Professional Engineers Use Information Compared To Undergradutes, And How Can Libraries Prepare Students And Support Engineers For Future Success?, Margaret Phillips, Michael Fosmire, Jing Lu, Kristin Petersheim, Laura Turner

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

Librarians at Purdue University seek to develop engineering graduates who are effective information users. Similarly, information specialists at Caterpillar Inc. are concerned with how well new hires are prepared for the information landscape at work as practicing engineers. Librarians from Purdue University and Caterpillar partnered to create and disseminate a survey to compare how students and practicing engineers seek and use information in the research process. Within a framework that asked survey participants to think about information use in a recently completed project, responses highlighted several gaps in information literacy training, including the use of external standards and internal document …

Developing A Digital Culture And Embedding Digital Agility Within A Library Workforce, Anne Horn, Eleanor Reynolds

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

“Culture is the most significant self-reported barrier to digital effectiveness” (Goran, LaBerge & Srinivasan, 2017). Universities are looking to a “different kind of education for a much more uncertain world” (Havergal, 2017). University Libraries are preparing students to be effective citizens in these changing times by ensuring graduates are information and digitally literate. To continue to evolve and provide excellent library services it is essential that the library workforce embraces the challenges that the Fourth Industrial Revolution poses. Following the successful development and launch of an Information and Digital Literacy (IDL) framework for learning and teaching, The University of Sheffield …

Courage And Co-Creation: Cultural Transformation In An Academic Library, Catherine Clark, Carolyn Hofmeester, Jane Pritchard

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

University libraries are transforming to be vibrant and distinctive online and physical spaces that, at their heart, continue to foster the connection of people to ideas. Rapid and continuously changing expectations of clients in the range of services that are delivered by libraries, combined with increasingly demanding resourcing environments are challenges for all library leaders. A library staff culture that is energised, focused and resilient is essential to ensure that service expectations are met or exceeded and that the library retains its valued position in the university. The University Librarian at Curtin University in Australia has initiated and led a …

Slowly But Surely: Leading The Workforce At The University Of Adelaide Into The Library Of The Future, Teresa Chitty

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

In 2015, a broadly representative committee from across the University of Adelaide considered the next 20 years of the University’s Library: how to respond to changes in the academic and information management landscape while preserving and enhancing what is valued in the Library today. The Library of the Future Committee, as it was called, found that library services were struggling to be all things to all people; students, staff, alumni and the wider community. As in many academic libraries there was a large legacy print collection that was little used, and that use was continuing to decline; correspondingly the staff …

Cognitive Cloud Collaboration, M. David Hanes, Sebastian Jeuk, Gonzalo Salgueiro, Chuck Byers

Defensive Publications Series

Techniques are described for using a cognitive learning instance to learn a user's preferences across a wide range of cloud collaboration services and provide a customized user experience. This customized user experience is then leveraged on the back-end for optimizing cloud resources.

Mechanical Controller For A Smartphone, Gökhan Bakir, Joseph Lange

Defensive Publications Series

This disclosure describes a mechanically operated controller for a mobile device. The controller includes a grid of black and white squares whose pattern can be mechanically changed. Particular patterns are read by a mobile device, e.g., via its camera, and interpreted as different commands. The mechanical controller can be used as an interface between a mechanical device, e.g., a musical instrument, and the mobile device.

Asymmetric Pcie, Nishant Patil

Defensive Publications Series

Many devices such as accelerators, storage appliances, video transcoding accelerators, etc. have asymmetric bandwidth requirements. For example, the ingress bandwidth for a machine learning accelerator can be more than ten times the egress bandwidth. However, this asymmetry in bandwidth is not reflected in the interconnect. For example, PCI-express typically has as many lanes for host-to-device communications as it does for device-to-host communications. This disclosure presents techniques for asymmetric links between host and device. By reflecting the relative magnitudes of to-and-fro traffic more accurately, the asymmetric PCIe link achieves greater efficiency of communication.

Software Service For Facilitating Unbiased Ratings, Tuna Toksoz, John Dukellis

Defensive Publications Series

Online application stores, e.g., that enable users to download software applications to a user device, include rating systems that allow users to provide ratings and reviews. Some application developers attempt to obtain favorable reviews for their apps by first asking users if they are enjoying the app, and requesting a review only from the users that answer affirmatively to provide a review. As a result, the ratings and reviews for such applications on the store may be skewed.

This disclosure describes a service for obtaining unbiased ratings directly from users. An application store that utilizes the techniques sends a ratings …

Machine Learning To Optimize Controlled Experiments, Neil Hoyne

Defensive Publications Series

Businesses use pre-sales questionnaires to quantify the value of incoming leads. Results from such questionnaires can improve allocations of sales resources and optimize advertising campaigns. A given questionnaire may ask for dozens of pieces of information from a prospective client. However, it is well understood that the questions are not always predictive of the likelihood that a client completes a purchase.

This disclosure provides machine-learning techniques that discover the predictive ability of questions on a questionnaire. The techniques enable a business to select or design questions or experiments that correlate with the closure of a sale. The business benefits by …

Conversion Detection For Improved Online Ad Selection, Stephen Hsu, Eric J. Kolb, Steven T. Dieter

Defensive Publications Series

Online ads sometimes continue unchanged even after the ad had resulted in a conversion, e.g., after a user has purchased the advertised product. Many users find such continued presence of the ad annoying. Also, not refreshing the ad with a different product represents lost revenue for the website publisher and the ad network.

This disclosure describes techniques to detect if the user has purchased a given product by analyzing, with user consent and permission, user data such as emails and other data. Upon detecting conversion, display of ads relating to the product or similar products is discontinued.

Machine-Learned Alt Text For Images And Videos, Sandro Feuz, Mohammadamin Barekatain

Defensive Publications Series

HTML has a provision for adding a textual description, known as alt text, to media elements in a webpage, such as images and videos. This is useful for improving accessibility of web pages, for display environments that do not support a particular media item, for content searching, etc. The alt text is currently added manually, e.g., by the web page developer or publisher. This is a labor intensive activity and does not work for dynamic media. This disclosure utilizes machine learning techniques to automatically add alt text to media content.

Context-Dependent Output Volume For Voice-Controlled Virtual Assistant, Victor Cărbune, Thomas Deselaers

Defensive Publications Series

Voice-controlled virtual assistants typically maintain a standard output volume level. In certain circumstances, this leads to a response from the virtual assistant that is either too loud or too low. For example, if the last-used context of the virtual assistant was a party with high ambient noise, then the virtual assistant continues responding too loudly even after the party has ended and the ambient noise level has dropped.

This disclosure describes techniques to automatically adapt the output volume level of a virtual assistant based on current context, user preferences, user feedback, etc. A machine learning model predicts an optimum volume …

Uniting Energy And Environmental Law: Focus On Innovation, Creativity, And Economics, Inara Scott

Oil and Gas, Natural Resources, and Energy Journal

No abstract provided.

Fast Wifi Scanning, Jiwoong Lee

Defensive Publications Series

In some countries, unlicensed spectrum used by WiFi networks is shared with radar systems. WiFi networks that operate in such bands employ radar detection and avoidance. A WiFi transceiver spends a certain channel sojourn (dwell) time scanning a channel prior to starting communication on it. A full scan takes about seven seconds, a user-perceptible delay.

This disclosure describes techniques to reduce scan time by leveraging radar detection procedures that have already been completed by nearby access points. If a nearby access point has recently transmitted a frame or emits a wide-band transmission, it is an indication that the nearby access …

Task Completion By Seeking Input From Multiple Parties, Matthew Sharifi

Defensive Publications Series

People frequently perform online tasks that require input from others, typically requiring multiple context switches to consult with multiple parties until a consensus is reached. The process can be time consuming, requiring the user to pause until others provide input. A user must also remember to return to the task and complete it after the input sought from others is received. This disclosure describes a technique to obtain input from others regarding an online task. At the point when completing the task requires input from another party, the techniques solicit such input, with user permission. Conversational responses received from other …

We Are ... Marshall, December 19, 2018, Office Of Marshall University Communications

We Are ... Marshall: the Newsletter for Marshall University 1999-2023

No abstract provided.