Toward openness and transparency to better facilitate knowledge creation

Changes in modes of publication over recent decades and moves to publish material freely and openly have resulted in increased amounts of research and scholarly outputs being available online. These include teaching and other material but consist mostly of research publications. There have been significant UK and European initiatives as part of the Open Agenda that facilitate and indeed mandate the move to open whether that is for educational materials, research output and data, or the mechanisms for ensuring the quality of these materials. A significant issue is that although making research outputs freely available is praiseworthy, without the data on which that research is based, reproducibility and so verification, which are fundamental principles of scholarly methodology, are not possible. When discrete datasets are linked openly and freely, are able to interact by using common standards, they become more powerful with extended possibilities for research questions that cross disciplinary divides and knowledge domains. There are always objections and resistance to new innovations, and open publication is no exception; published research, nevertheless, indicates that publishing material openly is becoming considered to be “good research practice” and that the positives of “new collaborations and higher citation” outweigh any perceived negative effects

Localizing Chinese Digital Humanities within the Globalized Community

Our research communities are developing against a background of a globalized, and multilingual world with all the affordances of the Internet. Within the digital humanities there are distinct regional variations in approaches and objects of study. Nevertheless, in the development of our field, despite these differences, there are many similarities in approach and techniques. Geographical and linguistic variations, however, mean that each area develops its own ‘flavour’ of digital humanities practice. Globally, there is a preponderance of and bias towards the English language and we need to question the need for a single centralized structure, perhaps in favour of more regional and localized organization. This paper raises questions about the place of mainland China within the now globalized DH community and how to find the distinct voice for and flavour of DH practice there. What is the story that mainland China can relate to the global DH community

Knowledge Creation and Sharing with Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching and Learning Roles in So-called University 2.0

AbstractUniversities have long been accepted as major social and cultural institutions. They have been taken those responsibilities for centuries by doing research, teaching, learning and publishing in a scholarly manner. These institutions serve developments in various organisational forms such as ‘brick and mortar (traditional campus base)’, ‘click (distance-online)’, and ‘brick and click (traditional campus base with distance-online)’ types.This study aims to search new opportunities and developments brought by Web 2.0 (Social Web) technologies into university's teaching and learning roles. These innovative communication platforms encourage people to share their thoughts and experiences to collaborate thorough the interactive Social Media. Knowledge as an organizational strategic asset is distributed and created by new way of interactions within groups. Therefore universities can use Web 2.0 services in accordance with their organisational missions and strategies

Toward implementing equality, diversity, and inclusion for virtual conferences within the LIS professions

Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) has gained increased attention within the library and information professions, becoming an important aspect of the ethical framework and strategic planning of several professional bodies. This paper uses a data-driven analysis of material from the iSchools conferences (iConferences) as a case study to examine how we might facilitate EDI in practice and engage more effectively with our communities in a virtual context with the move to more online conferences. Our findings identify both positive and negative aspects about the use of online conference platforms and raise concerns over the possibility that virtual conferences may increase unconscious bias and assumptions that could impact adversely on those already disadvantaged. Transparency and communication are key to identifying and addressing any barriers to equality and so online conferences need to ensure clarity and transparency concerning privacy, content, and process, and to demonstrate awareness of the diverse backgrounds of their community members

Genealogy as digital objects with stories to support research

Within GLAM institutions there is often tension between the collection and storing of data and its use within research, particularly regarding its authenticity and research value. In this presentation, using the Chinese Genealogy Knowledge Service Platform1, maintained by Shanghai Library, we use methodology from storytelling and chronotope theory (Bakhtin, 2001) to bridge the gap between cultural heritage data and research

Digital editions of text:Surveying user requirements in the Digital Humanities

This article presents the findings of a web survey designed to better understand the expectations and use of digital editions of texts. The survey, modelled upon a detailed analysis of 242 projects, recorded 218 complete responses, shedding light on user requirements of digital editions. Specifically, the survey indicates that issues of data reuse, licensing, image availability, and comprehensive documentation are the most requested features of digital editions, although ones which seldom are provided. This analysis feeds into previous studies on good practice in building Digital Humanities resources and puts forward practical recommendations for both creators and funders of digital editions in an effort to promote a stronger consideration of user needs. This survey will be of interest to those who produce digital editions of texts, including developers and engineers, and will also be of interest to those who commission and fund these projects, such as universities, libraries, and archives, whose documentary collections are often showcased in digital editions