Publications

2 pages, 134 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Scientific Communication—A Vision for Tomorrow

by Anne-Katharina Weilenmann

Publications 2018, 6(4), 49; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040049 - 14 Dec 2018

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 6104

Abstract

“Publishing is not evolving. [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scholarly Communication—A Vision for Tomorrow)

10 pages, 1565 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Research Support Services in Spanish Academic Libraries: An Analysis of Their Strategic Plans and of an Opinion Survey Administered to Their Directors

by Ángel Borrego and Lluís Anglada

Publications 2018, 6(4), 48; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040048 - 10 Dec 2018

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 5992

Abstract

The transition from print to digital information has transformed the role of academic libraries, which have had to redefine themselves as intermediaries and partners in the learning and research processes. This study analyzes the evolution and current provision of research support services in [...] Read more.

The transition from print to digital information has transformed the role of academic libraries, which have had to redefine themselves as intermediaries and partners in the learning and research processes. This study analyzes the evolution and current provision of research support services in Spanish academic libraries through an analysis of the three strategic plans published by the Spanish association of academic libraries (REBIUN) and a survey administered to the library directors. Results show that academic libraries are firmly embedded within universities’ research activities, and that most of them depend on vice-rectorates for research or scientific policy. There is a relationship between the size of the library and its provision of research support services, although no correlation is observed between the size of the library and the staff devoted to research support. Library directors stress the value of institutional repositories, a vision also reflected in the importance assigned to open access in the strategic plans. Other current hot topics, such as data management, do not seem to be among the priorities of Spanish library directors as yet. Full article

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15 pages, 682 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Journals that Rise from the Fourth Quartile to the First Quartile in Six Years or Less: Mechanisms of Change and the Role of Journal Self-Citations

by Juan Miguel Campanario

Publications 2018, 6(4), 47; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040047 - 26 Nov 2018

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 5352

Abstract

Journal self-citations may be increased artificially to inflate a journal’s scientometric indicators. The aim of this study was to identify possible mechanisms of change in a cohort of journals that rose from the fourth (Q4) to the first quartile (Q1) over six years [...] Read more.

Journal self-citations may be increased artificially to inflate a journal’s scientometric indicators. The aim of this study was to identify possible mechanisms of change in a cohort of journals that rose from the fourth (Q4) to the first quartile (Q1) over six years or less in Journal Citation Reports (JCR), and the role of journal self-citations in these changes. A total of 51 different journals sampled from all JCR Science Citation Index (SCI) subject categories improved their rank position from Q4 in 2009 to Q1 in any year from 2010 to 2015. I identified changes in the numerator or denominator of the Journal Impact Factor (JIF) that were involved in each year-to-year transition. The main mechanism of change was the increase in the number of citations used to compute the JIF. The effect of journal self-citations in the increase of the JIF was studied. The main conclusion is that there was no evidence of widespread JIF manipulation through the overuse of journal self-citations. Full article

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12 pages, 1070 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Grades of Openness: Open and Closed Articles in Norway

by Susanne Mikki, Øyvind L. Gjesdal and Tormod E. Strømme

Publications 2018, 6(4), 46; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040046 - 22 Nov 2018

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4955

Abstract

Based on the total scholarly article output of Norway, we investigated the coverage and degree of openness according to the following three bibliographic services: (1) Google Scholar, (2) oaDOI by Impact Story, and (3) 1findr by 1science. According to Google Scholar, we found [...] Read more.

Based on the total scholarly article output of Norway, we investigated the coverage and degree of openness according to the following three bibliographic services: (1) Google Scholar, (2) oaDOI by Impact Story, and (3) 1findr by 1science. According to Google Scholar, we found that more than 70% of all Norwegian articles are openly available. However, the degrees of openness are profoundly lower according to oaDOI and 1findr at 31% and 52%, respectively. Varying degrees of openness are mainly caused by different interpretations of openness, with oaDOI being the most restrictive. Furthermore, open shares vary considerably by discipline, with the medicine and health sciences at the upper end and the humanities at the lower end. We also determined the citation frequencies using cited-by values in Google Scholar and applying year and subject normalization. We found a significant citation advantage for open articles. However, this was not the case for all types of openness. In fact, the category of open access journals was by far the lowest cited, indicating that young journals with a declared open access policy still lack recognition. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bibliometrics, Measurements and Research Evaluation)

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3 pages, 144 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Against Storytelling—The New Paradigm of Scientific Publishing

by Anne-Katharina Weilenmann and Lawrence Rajendran

Publications 2018, 6(4), 45; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040045 - 22 Nov 2018

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 6570

Abstract

This is an interview which I conducted with Lawrence Rajendran, the founder and initiator of the platform «ScienceMatters». [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scholarly Communication—A Vision for Tomorrow)

18 pages, 630 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Evolution of the Concept of Semantic Web in the Context of Wikipedia: An Exploratory Approach to Study the Collective Conceptualization in a Digital Collaborative Environment

by Luís Miguel Machado, Maria Manuel Borges and Renato Rocha Souza

Publications 2018, 6(4), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040044 - 5 Nov 2018

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 5392

Abstract

Wikipedia, as a “social machine”, is a privileged place to observe the collective construction of concepts without central control. Based on Dahlberg’s theory of concept, and anchored in the pragmatism of Hjørland—in which the concepts are socially negotiated meanings—the evolution of the concept [...] Read more.

Wikipedia, as a “social machine”, is a privileged place to observe the collective construction of concepts without central control. Based on Dahlberg’s theory of concept, and anchored in the pragmatism of Hjørland—in which the concepts are socially negotiated meanings—the evolution of the concept of semantic web (SW) was analyzed in the English version of Wikipedia. An exploratory, descriptive, and qualitative study was designed and we identified 26 different definitions (between 12 July 2001 and 31 December 2017), of which eight are of particular relevance for their duration, with the latter being the two recorded at the end of the analyzed period. According to them, SW: “is an extension of the web” and “is a Web of Data”; the latter, used as a complementary definition, links to Berners-Lee’s publications. In Wikipedia, the evolution of the SW concept appears to be based on the search for the use of non-technical vocabulary and the control of authority carried out by the debate. As a space for collective bargaining of meanings, the Wikipedia study may bring relevant contributions to a community’s understanding of a particular concept and how it evolves over time. Full article

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15 pages, 1971 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Women’s Studies in the Muslim World: A Bibliometric Perspective

by Engin Arik and Sema Akboga

Publications 2018, 6(4), 43; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040043 - 31 Oct 2018

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 5529

Abstract

This study investigates the scientific outputs made by scholars residing in Muslim countries in the field of Women’s Studies as represented in the Web of Knowledge between 1900 and 2016. Focusing on countries whose population was at least 50% Muslim, we found 741 [...] Read more.

This study investigates the scientific outputs made by scholars residing in Muslim countries in the field of Women’s Studies as represented in the Web of Knowledge between 1900 and 2016. Focusing on countries whose population was at least 50% Muslim, we found 741 publications in this field. However, scholars in 16 out of 49 (32.65%) Muslim countries did not publish any works in Women’s Studies. Although the first work appeared in 1977, an exponential increase in the number of such publications was seen from 2008 on. Most of the articles were written by scholars in Turkey (188, 30.9%), followed by those in Malaysia (59, 9.7%), Nigeria (51, 8.4%), Lebanon (43, 7.07%), Bangladesh (42, 6.91%), and Iran (40, 6.58%) in the fields of Public, Environment & Occupation Health (37.1%), General Internal Medicine (17%), Obstetrics Gynecology (17%), and Psychology (9.4%). The most frequently used words in the titles and abstracts and as keywords were women, women’s, Turkey, gender, violence, and health. We predict that the number of such publications will continue increasing in the coming years. Full article

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14 pages, 226 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Developing a Business Plan for a Library Publishing Program

by Kate McCready and Emma Molls

Publications 2018, 6(4), 42; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040042 - 23 Oct 2018

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 13934

Abstract

Over the last twenty years, library publishing has emerged in higher education as a new class of publisher. Conceived as a response to commercial publishing practices that have strained library budgets and prevented scholars from openly licensing and sharing their works, library publishing [...] Read more.

Over the last twenty years, library publishing has emerged in higher education as a new class of publisher. Conceived as a response to commercial publishing practices that have strained library budgets and prevented scholars from openly licensing and sharing their works, library publishing is both a local service program and a broader movement to disrupt the current scholarly publishing arena. It is growing both in numbers of publishers and numbers of works produced. The commercial publishing framework which determines the viability of monetizing a product is not necessarily applicable for library publishers who exist as a common good to address the needs of their academic communities. Like any business venture, however, library publishers must develop a clear service model and business plan in order to create shared expectations for funding streams, quality markers, as well as technical and staff capacity. As the field is maturing from experimental projects to full programs, library publishers are formalizing their offerings and limitations. The anatomy of a library publishing business plan is presented and includes the principles of the program, scope of services, and staffing requirements. Other aspects include production policies, financial structures, and measures of success. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Business Models in (Digital) Academic Publishing)

4 pages, 141 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Planning for Academic Publishing after Retirement

by Stephen K. Donovan

Publications 2018, 6(4), 41; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040041 - 18 Oct 2018

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3554

Abstract

Many academics retire, yet continue to tread a well-worm research path. In contrast, retirement may also be a time for reinvention and changes in direction—place, name, institutional links, where to publish, and what to review. These changes may be by pursuing a more [...] Read more.

Many academics retire, yet continue to tread a well-worm research path. In contrast, retirement may also be a time for reinvention and changes in direction—place, name, institutional links, where to publish, and what to review. These changes may be by pursuing a more restricted research agenda, but in a way convenient or interesting to the retiree. In short, the anticipation is that research in retirement will be a lot of fun; may the retiree leave the angst to the professionals. Full article

11 pages, 1261 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Bibliometric Analysis of Cannabis Publications: Six Decades of Research and a Gap on Studies with the Plant

by Cristiane B. D. Matielo, Deise S. Sarzi, Beatriz Justolin, Rafael P. M. Lemos, Flavio A. O. Camargo and Valdir M. Stefenon

Publications 2018, 6(4), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications6040040 - 26 Sep 2018

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 4901

Abstract

In this study we performed a bibliometric analysis focusing on the general patterns of scientific publications about Cannabis, revealing their trends and limitations. Publications related to Cannabis, released from 1960 to 2017, were retrieved from the Scopus database using six search [...] Read more.

In this study we performed a bibliometric analysis focusing on the general patterns of scientific publications about Cannabis, revealing their trends and limitations. Publications related to Cannabis, released from 1960 to 2017, were retrieved from the Scopus database using six search terms. The search term “Genetics” returned 53.4% of publications, while “forensic genetics” and “traceability” represented 2.3% and 0.1% of the publications, respectively. However, 43.1% of the studies were not directly related to Cannabis and, in some cases, Cannabis was just used as an example in the text. A significant increase in publications was observed after 2001, with most of the publications coming from Europe, followed by North America. Although the term Cannabis was found in the title, abstract, or keywords of 1284 publications, we detected a historical gap in studies on Cannabis. We expect that increasing interest in this issue and the rise of new biotechnological advances will lead to the development of new studies. This study will help scientists identify overall research needs, detect the scientific areas in evidence concerning Cannabis studies, and find excellent centers of investigation for scientific interchange and collaboration. Full article

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