MESUR: MEtrics from Scholarly Usage of Resources

A recent Nature review of a PLoS ONE article resulting from research at Los Alamos's MESUR Project on citation and usage data analysis:

Butler (2009) Web usage data outline map of knowledge, Nature, 438, 135.
Bollen et all (2009) Clickstream Data Yields High-Resolution Maps of Science, PLoS ONE 4(3), e4803
MESUR Project Documentation

Pretty plots suggesting that because practitioners read widely but do not publish frequently, citations in the literature under-represent the reach of humanities and social science journals,etc titles.

RIN - Paying for open access publication charges

Research Information Network and Universities UK have produced a new guide to provide advice on paying open access publication charges: that is, fees levied by some journals for the publication of scholarly articles so that they can be made available free of charge to readers, immediately upon publication.

Paying for open access publication charges: Guidance for higher education and research institutions, publishers and authors

The guide also sets out recommendations for universities and other research institutions, publishers, research funders, and authors.

JISC have also published a report on the economics of open access publishing:
Economic Implications of Alternative Scholarly Publishing Models Exploring the costs and benefits

Measuring up - the evolution of impact metrics

15 June 2009, London

Information from the seminar webpages

Run by the Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers, this seminar will explore the evolution of impact metrics.

Research will be presented from the group responsible for the bibliometrics behind HEFCE's Research Excellence Framework (REF) pilot, and will conclude with a consideration of what future metrics might look like, particularly in those areas not currently well served by existing ones.

poster competition for early-career researchers

Research Councils UK is running Perspectives - a poster competition for early-career researchers. Open to postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers funded by the UK Research Councils.

More information at www.britishscienceassociation.org/perspectives

Finalists display their posters at the British Science Festival in September, at the University of Surrey in Guildford.

Cash prizes are awarded by a panel of expert judges.

Deadline for applications is 8 May 2009.

Edinburgh International Science Festival - ASIMO

Festival this year includes:
appearances by Honda's robot ASIMO in the McEwan Hall 4th-5th April in conjunction with School of Informatics.
AISB talks at Heriot-Watt
Doing Astronomy from Scotland: The Scottish Royal Astronomers and Lord Crawford’s Treasure Trove of Astronomical Books

Full programme from the website

Research Information Networks' briefing on scholarly journals in the current financial climate

An outline of three points of pressure on academic library's budgets and what they mean for a University's community are given in:
The Research Information Networks' briefing on scholarly journals in the current financial climate

For an Edinburgh University Library perspective, see Papers 3a and 3c of:
the Library Committee meeting on 11th February 2009.