Topic: Digital scholarship and data management
Blog Post
June 30, 2022
How Can Data Librarians Support Data Communities?
An Interview with Jordan Wrigley
Data communities provide social and practical incentives for scientists to voluntarily share and reuse data with colleagues. In order for data communities to emerge and grow, they need support. Information professionals, such as data librarians and research computing specialists, can advise data communities on best practices for data sharing and help them create or improve the required infrastructure, such as online repositories and metadata schemas. However, research scientists and information professionals rarely have structured opportunities to meet together,…
Blog Post
June 13, 2022
The Library’s Role in Facilitating Users’ Experiences Navigating Computing and Data Services
An Interview with Susan Ivey, Director of the Research Facilitation Service at North Carolina State University
Since 2012, when Ithaka S+R began systematic exploration of the changing needs and practices of researchers, the stunning growth in the accessibility of large datasets and the computing power necessary to work with them has transformed research practices across disciplines. As big data methods have spread, universities have responded by expanding their research support service offerings. Libraries have been the most active players in this space, but many campus units—including information technology offices, research computing centers, and academic…
Past Event
April 13, 2022
Roger Schonfield and Deanna Marcum at RLUK DSF
On April 13, Roger Schonfield and Deanna Marcum will discuss their new book, “Along Came Google: A History of Library Digitization” at RLUK’s Digital Shift Forum. Please the abstract below. The registration information is available here. Abstract The history of library digitization can provide many important lessons for library leaders today. In this session, Deanna Marcum and Roger Schonfeld, authors of the recently published Along Came Google (Princeton University Press), will have a conversation about some of the key…
Past Event
March 28, 2022
Aligning Data Support Services to Researchers’ Needs
Danielle Cooper and Dylan Ruediger at CNI Spring 2022 Membership Meeting
Danielle Cooper and Dylan Ruediger will present on “Aligning Data Support Services to Researchers’ Needs” at the CNI Spring 2022 Membership Meeting in San Diego. About the session As data-intensive research has become the norm in an expanding number of academic fields, universities have adapted by offering a wider range of data support services. Previous research by Ithaka S+R has demonstrated that university libraries have been especially active in this space and are now the largest single…
Past Event
March 17, 2022
Data Support Services Needs in the DIY Era
Dylan Ruediger at the RDAP Summit
On March 17th, from 12:45 – 1:45 PM, Dylan Ruediger will moderate a panel on “Data Support Services in the DYI Era” at the RDAP Summit. For more information about the Summit, please see the RDAP website. Abstract This panel will highlight findings from a recent national study of the research practices of fresearchers working with big data. Our findings suggest that many researchers prefer to learn new skills and tools using internet resources and tutorials rather than…
Blog Post
January 18, 2022
Ithaka S+R is Growing: Join Us!
Over the past few years, the scope and breadth of Ithaka S+R’s work has grown substantially. The Libraries, Scholarly Communication, and Museums program has seen increases in cohort projects that explore critical issues facing libraries; grant funded initiatives focused on digital preservation, higher education in prison, student success, and museum leadership; national surveys of faculty, community college administrators, and archivists; and sponsored work on topics including the health of the research enterprise and diversifying collections. To…
Blog Post
January 12, 2022
Preprints: Their Evolving Role in Science Communication
New Publication
We are pleased to announce the publication of Preprints: Their Evolving Role in Science Communication by Iratxe Puebla and Jessica Polka, both of ASAPbio, and Ithaka S+R’s Oya Y. Rieger. It is part of the Charleston Briefings: Trending Topics for Information Professionals series. This briefing discusses the history and role of preprints—scholarly manuscripts posted by the author(s) to a repository or platform to facilitate open and broad sharing of early work without any limitations…
Blog Post
December 15, 2021
Building Sustainable Data Sharing Communities
Announcing the Participants in an NSF-Funded Incubation Workshop
Across the country and around the world, communities of researchers are voluntarily sharing data across disciplinary and institutional borders. Understanding the motivations, practices, and challenges faced by members of these communities is important to the National Science Foundation (NSF) and other funders seeking to promote and normalize data sharing and reuse. However, questions remain about how to best support data communities as they emerge and mature. Some of the most urgent issues involve documentation,…
Past Event
December 7, 2021
Assessing the Preservation Systems Landscape
Oya Y. Rieger & Roger Schonfeld at CNI Fall 2021 Membership Meeting
On December 7-9, 2021, Oya Y. Rieger & Roger Schonfeld will present at the CNI Fall 2021 Membership Meeting on assessing how digital preservation systems are developed, deployed, and sustained. Abstract is below: Libraries, museums, and archives have increasing dependency on digital platforms such as APTrust, LIBNOVA, Preservica, Samvera to support the curation, discovery, and management of digital content. The long-term stewardship of digital materials depends not only on the technical resiliency of preservation systems, but also on the strength…
Past Event
December 9, 2021
Assessing the Reliability, Effectiveness, and Sustainability of Data Repositories
Oya Y. Rieger at USDA's Data Stewards Community of Practice Meeting
On December 9, 2021, Oya Y. Rieger will be presenting at USDA’s Data Stewards Community of Practice Meeting. Abstract is below: Assessing the Reliability, Effectiveness, and Sustainability of Data Repositories Researchers feel an increasing pressure to make research data publicly available in disciplinary or general repositories. To enable this process, there need to be standards and processes to assist them in identifying reliable data repositories to ensure that the data will be preserved and made accessible and usable for the…
Blog Post
December 1, 2021
Supporting Big Data Research
New Report Offers Recommendations for Stakeholders
As “big data” has moved from the margins to the center of a growing number of academic disciplines, how well are universities, funders, and publishers supporting researchers? To better understand how big data research is pursued in academic contexts, Ithaka S+R partnered with librarians at more than 20 colleges and universities, interviewing over 200 faculty members, to explore how researchers work with big data and identify the challenges they face. “Big Data Infrastructure at the Crossroads:…
Research Report
December 1, 2021
Big Data Infrastructure at the Crossroads
Support Needs and Challenges for Universities
Ithaka S+R’s Research Support Services program explores current trends and support needs in academic research. Our most recent project in this program, “Supporting Big Data Research,” focused specifically on the rapidly emerging use of big data in research across disciplines and fields. As part of our study, we partnered with librarians from more than 20 colleges and universities, who then conducted over 200 interviews with faculty. These interviews provided insights into the research methodologies and support needs of researchers working…
Past Event
December 7, 2021
Deanna Marcum and Roger Schonfeld at CNI’s Fall 2021 Membership Meeting
On December 7th at 1:30 pm (EST), Deanna Marcum and Roger C. Schonfeld will discuss their new book, “Along Came Google: A History of Library Digitization” at CNI’s Fall 2021 Membership Meeting. “Along Came Google” is the first in-depth study of the move to digitize collections of books at scale, tracing this work through the Google Books program and the creation of HathiTrust. This series of efforts have been of central concern to CNI’s work and took on new importance…
Blog Post
November 11, 2021
Engaging Undergraduates in Primary Source Research
An Interview with the Authors of Two New Books
Creating meaningful learning encounters with primary sources involves dynamic collaboration between instructors and those who work with cultural heritage collections, including librarians, archivists, and museum professionals. Here at Ithaka S+R we have been engaging in a series of studies in collaboration with academic libraries, archives, and museums to understand instructors’ support needs in this area, including how to support their teaching with digital cultural heritage materials as classes went remote during the pandemic. In addition to understanding instructors’ experiences…
Past Event
October 20, 2021
Oya Y. Rieger at iPRES2021
On October 20, Rieger will join other panelists to provide insights from on implementations of current preservation tools and to consider the opportunities in deploying and integrating these tools with local digital content management processes. Please see abstract below: Abstract As cultural heritage organizations seek solutions, open source, community-based, and commercial digital preservation systems and tools have proliferated. Nevertheless, given the magnitude of digital content and the requirements of specific file formats, institutions struggle to integrate disparate tools and…
Past Event
October 26, 2021
Putting the Tri-Agency Policy into Practice
Danielle Cooper presents at Portage
On October 26, Danielle Cooper will present on the development of institutional research data management (RDM) strategies during a workshop series hosted by Portage.
Past Event
September 8, 2021
Danielle Cooper at FORGE 2021
On September 8 at 14:00 Central European Time (CET), Danielle Cooper will discuss her research on research data in the humanities. For more information, please visit this website. …
Blog Post
August 5, 2021
Deadline Extended: Call for Proposals on Leveraging Data Communities to Advance Open Science
Ithaka S+R is currently accepting applications from researchers interested in participating in Leveraging Data Communities to Advance Open Science, an NSF-funded workshop developed in partnership with the Data Curation Network. Participants will receive funding to attend a two-day incubation workshop in 2022, as well as expert guidance from information professionals about how to create sustainable infrastructures to support voluntary data sharing across disciplinary and institutional boundaries. Applications are due October 1, 2021. Please see the following CFP for full…
Blog Post
August 4, 2021
New Questionnaire for the Ithaka S+R Faculty Survey 2021 Now Available
We’re excited to announce that we have now finalized updates for the 2021 edition of the Ithaka S+R Faculty Survey, which we will be fielding nationally and with a number of college and university partners this fall. As with previous cycles of the survey, the instrument will explore the research, teaching, and publishing practices and perspectives of scholars at four-year colleges and universities. We have also expanded several areas of coverage within the questionnaire to cover instructional support services,…
Blog Post
May 20, 2021
Leveraging Data Communities to Advance Open Science
New NSF-Funded Collaboration between Ithaka S+R and the Data Curation Network
We are excited to announce that Ithaka S+R has been awarded grant funding from the National Science Foundation to support the development of infrastructures for data sharing within data communities in collaboration with the Data Curation Network. “Leveraging Data Communities to Advance Open Science,” will bring together scientists and information technology professionals for focused discussions about initiating and sustaining data communities. A unique opportunity to leverage data communities…