Investigating Open Access Attitudes by Discipline at Mississippi State University

In educating ourselves about Open Access (OA) issues, we found that attitudes vary dramatically by discipline at Mississippi State University. To provide relevant educational programming on OA, we developed an Open Access Assessment Tool (based on a UMN Environmental Scan) for library liaisons to investigate discipline-level investment in and attitudes towards OA. This workshop will demonstrate the use of this three-step process to review top journals, repositories, associations and department-level sentiment toward OA

Mapping the Scholarly Literature Found in Scopus on “Research Data Management”: A Bibliometric and Data Visualization Approach

Since the 2000s, interest in research data management (RDM) has grown considerably. As a result, a large body of literature has discussed a broad variety of aspects related to data management. But, few studies have examined and also interpreted from visual perception the intellectual structure and progressive development of the existing literature on RDM. METHODS Guided by five research questions, this study employed bibliometric techniques and a visualization tool (CiteSpace) to identify and analyze the patterns of the scholarly publications about RDM. RESULTS Through CiteSpace&rsquo;s modeling and computing, the knowledge (or network) structures, significant studies, notable topics, and development trends in the literature of RDM were revealed. DISCUSSION The majority of the literature pertinent to RDM was published after 2002. Major research clusters within this interdisciplinary field include &ldquo;scientific collaboration,&rdquo; &ldquo;research support service,&rdquo; and &ldquo;data literacy,&rdquo; while the &ldquo;scientific collaboration&rdquo; research cluster was the most active. Topics such as &ldquo;digital curation&rdquo; and &ldquo;information processing&rdquo; appeared most frequently in the RDM literature. Additionally, there was a sharp increase in several specific topics, such as &ldquo;digital library,&rdquo; &ldquo;big data,&rdquo; and &ldquo;data sharing." CONCLUSION By looking into the &ldquo;profile&rdquo; of the literature on RDM, in terms of knowledge structure, evolving trends, and important topics in the domain, this work will add new information to current discussions about RDM, new service development, and future research focuses in this area.</p

Lightning Talks

The Lightning Talks will feature three consecutive 10-minute presentations: 1. Defining Digital Scholarship Support at Non-Research-Intensive Academic Libraries by Anne Shelley; 2. Digital El Diario: Towards Archival Justice with Data Care-work and Minimal Computing by Nickoal Eichmann-Kalwara; 3. Community College Archives Supporting COVID-19 Oral History Projects by Thomas Clear

Assessing the Openness of Anthropology Journals

This study analyzes the extent of gold open access (OA) publishing options in 377 anthropology journals by applying a coding scheme ranging from 0) non-transparent publishing options to 5) fully OA (free to read and publish without embargo). This analysis is meant to simplify the process of identifying OA journal publishing options in the discipline of anthropology, in addition to sharing findings on some of the prominent issues in OA publishing as they relate to anthropology journals, including non-transparency by publishers and the prevalence and price of article processing charges (APCs). We conclude that publishers should be more transparent about their OA publishing options and policies by providing conspicuous and straightforward information to potential authors. Further, we find that in the anthropology scholarly communication ecosystem, APCs for hybrid journals are more expensive than those for fully gold OA journals, thus contradicting the assumption that gold OA is more costly to researchers

Big Data Research at the University of Colorado Boulder

Background: Big data, defined as having high volume, complexity or velocity, have the potential to greatly accelerate research discovery. Such data can be challenging to work with and require research support and training to address technical and ethical challenges surrounding big data collection, analysis, and publication.&nbsp; &nbsp; Methods: The present study was conducted via a series of semi-structured interviews to assess big data methodologies employed by CU Boulder researchers across a broad sample of disciplines, with the goal of illuminating how they conduct their research; identifying challenges and needs; and providing recommendations for addressing them.&nbsp; &nbsp; Findings: Key results and conclusions from the study indicate: gaps in awareness of existing big data services provided by CU Boulder; open questions surrounding big data ethics, security and privacy issues; a need for clarity on how to attribute credit for big data research; and a preference for a variety of training options to support big data research.&nbsp; &nbsp; Recommendations: Evaluation of current access to existing research infrastructure at CU Boulder across departments and disciplines, including recommendations for how inequities could be addressed. Development of big data training curriculum, particularly for big data ethics, privacy and security, through a variety of channels (e.g., documentation and context-specific consultations for specific big data services, more general course-based curriculum).&nbsp; Consider how to address the complexity and dynamic nature of big data in the IRB process in a manner that fully and reasonably considers the ethical, security and privacy implications of a given big data research project. Creation of CU Boulder guidelines for attributing credit to the myriad contributors in big data research projects, and considering the sometimes unconventional contributions, with the goal of helping departments develop clear policies and incentives for researchers performing big data research. Development of marketing and outreach strategies to increase awareness of existing and forthcoming big data research support services at CU Boulder, in a manner that promotes equitable access to services across disciplines.&nbsp; Assessment of staffing gaps and staff-training needs in order to support big data curriculum and services. Periodic evaluation of emerging trends and needs in big data research, in order to adjust strategies and services appropriately to ensure CU Boulder is providing state-of-the-science support and infrastructure. An optimal way of addressing the complex questions above may be to establish a steering committee composed of a broad range of CU Boulder (and possibly external) stakeholders and decision makers. </p

The Center for Research Data and Digital Scholarship at the University of Colorado Boulder

The Center for Research Data and Digital Scholarship at the University of Colorado Boulder is a campus research center that supports data-intensive research undertaken by the CU Boulder campus community. The center is a partnership between the University Libraries and the Office of Information Technologies' Research Computing group. The center provides consulting and training in methods and practices supporting digital research (e.g., digital humanities, research data management, programming languages), offers cloud and other cyberinfrastructure to support data-intensive research, and provides interdisciplinary educational opportunities. The center's directors will discuss this partnership in practice as well as some of our infrastructure and educational programming, including data publishing for large data sets and the Digital Humanities Graduate Certificate

Digital Scholarship at University of Colorado Boulder: Campus Survey Results, 2018

A team of CU Boulder librarians developed and distributed a campus survey in April 2018 in order to assess 1) current engagement in digital research methods and tools, 2) which digital research methods and tools CU researchers would like training in, 3) what types of resources they consider to be beneficial for undertaking digital scholarship, 4) what best practices they deem the most important for their research practices, and 5) what training formats they most prefer. In asking about these topics, the goals of the survey were threefold: 1) to gain updated information to a previous campus survey on Digital Humanities interests and needs (2013, Lindquist, et al.), 2) to identify areas of current engagement and gaps of knowledge in digital research methods and practices in order to improve library services and support, and 3) to better understand how researchers understand and employ digital scholarship to inform how to improve outreach, engagement, and communication can be improved between the University Libraries, CRDDS, and their users.</p

"A peculiar mark of infamy": Punitive dissection and England's Murder Act of 1752

Abstract: In 1752, the English Parliament enacted <i>An Act for the Better Preventing the Horrid Crime of Murder</i>, which allowed judges to augment murderers’ death sentences with punitive dissection. On the surface, the Murder Act seems anomalous and anachronistic because it was introduced at the cusp of a significant penal reform era. However, as much as the writers of the statute hoped punitive dissection would serve as a crime deterrent, the public reaction resulted in something quite different.<div><br></div><div>The Murder Act ultimately epitomizes the culmination of a negotiation and appropriation of several early modern English attitudes pertaining to crime and punishment and corporal violability, all stemming from scientific, legal, and popular discourses on death. In creating a hierarchy of superior and inferior bodies, it transmitted a message of marginalization and amplified the distinctions between classes and illustrated that gap in death. Transforming the body into a site of knowledge and punishment, the criminal was, essentially, excised from the social body. This contradicted popular ideals of a “good” death primarily by denying proper Christian funerary and burial services and especially in denying life after death to the dissectee. As such, punitive dissection represented a form of spiritual banishment and reflected mortalist views contrary to established Anglican eschatology of life after death.</div