Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library Blog

Pundits say that the future lies in the “information economy,” and university faculty, administrators, librarians, researchers, and publishers all engage in “information valuation.”  What is the value of information resources to a researcher, and how is this different from the way librarians and administrators determine the value of those resources?  How do publishers make decisions on what to publish and in what formats?  From the administrator’s perspective, what is the return on investment in information resources?

The UCLA Library invites faculty and administrators to attend a colloquium and discussion on this topic on May 5th, 2008, in the UCLA Faculty Center. Advance registration is required. View the Assessing Research Performance and Value web page to see a list of speakers and to register for the event.

April 7th marked the implementation date for the NIH Public Access Policy. The overall goal of the policy is to “ensure that public has access to the published results of NIH funded research. It requires scientists to submit journal articles that arise from NIH funds to the digital archive PubMed Central . The Policy requires that these articles be accessible to the public on PubMed Central to help advance science and improve human health.”

The UCLA Library, Office of Intellectual Property and the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research are working together to address compliance with the NIH policy and to support our researchers and authors. An email giving preliminary guidance on these issues was sent Friday evening to Deans, Directors, Department Chairs and Administrative Officers. The email was jointly issued by the Vice Provost of Intellectual Research and Industrial Relations, the Vice Chancellor for Research and the University Library. From the email: (more…)

How the New NIH Public Access Law Affects UCLA Scientists

Scientists receiving grant money from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will now have to submit copies of their research papers to PubMed Central (PMC) when their papers are accepted for publication in a journal. PMC will then make these papers freely available to the public no later than 12 months after publication.

PubMed Central (PMC) is the NIH’s free digital archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature.

Important dates:

• As of April 7, 2008, all articles arising from NIH funds must be submitted to PubMed Central upon acceptance for publication.
• As of May 25, 2008, NIH applications, proposals, and progress reports must include the PubMed Central reference number when citing an article that falls under the policy and is authored or co-authored by the investigator, or arose from the investigator’s NIH award. This policy includes applications submitted to the NIH for the May 25, 2008 due date and subsequent due dates.

Further Information and Help

• The NIH maintains a Public Access website with an FAQ and detailed instructions.
• To help you become familiar with the step-by-step submission process, illustrated submission tutorials are available.
• For more information or questions about the NIH policy, during this transitional stage, please contact Janet Carter, jcarter@libraray.ucla.edu or 310-825-5802.

The UCLA Library, Academic Senate, Academic Senate Committee on Library and Scholarly Communication, and the Office of Intellectual Property Administration have created a series of lunchtime sessions to educate faculty about special topics in intellectual property. Admission is free, and lunch will be provided. Registration is limited to UCLA faculty; advance registration is required, and space is limited. Upcoming sessions include:

• “Don’t I Own My Own Work?”: Negotiating to Keep Your Copyright (February 7th, 2008; Noon-1:30 p.m.)
• “What Are My Rights?”: Software, Patents, and Open Source (April 10th, 2008; Noon-1:30 p.m.)

Read full descriptions of each workshop and register for each session on the Library’s web page, Intellectual Property in the Digital Age: The Rights Stuff for Teaching and Publishing.

Researchers who receive grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) should be aware that on November 16th, 2007, the NIH released a new Notice called “Guidance on New Law (Public Law 110-85) Enacted to Expand the Scope of ClinicalTrials.gov: Registration.” This Notice gives information about the new law requiring the registration of clinical trials, responsibility for registration and penalties for failing to register an applicable clinical trial. The release also includes dates for registration and further contact information for assistance with registering trials.

The UCLA Library, Academic Senate, Academic Senate Committee on Library and Scholarly Communication, and the Office of Intellectual Property Administration have created a series of lunchtime sessions to educate faculty about special topics in intellectual property. Upcoming sessions include:

• If You Don’t Ask, How Can You Tell?: Getting Permission to Use Material in Course Instruction and E-Publishing (December 6th, 2007)
• “Don’t I Own My Own Work?”: Negotiating to Keep Your Copyright (February 7th, 2008)
• “What Are My Rights?”: Software, Patents, and Open Source (spring quarter 2008; date TBA)

Read full descriptions of each workshop and register on the Library’s web page, Intellectual Property in the Digital Age: The Rights Stuff for Teaching and Publishing.

The UCLA Libraries will present a special session for graduate students focusing on using citations in academic writing. This workshop will cover topics such as citing correctly and using information ethically.

The workshop will take place on Thursday, October 25th, at 3 PM in the Student Activities Center Conference Room. No advance reservations are required.

To find out about other library workshops for graduate students, visit the Young Research Library’s Graduate Student Workshops web page.