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Category: policy

On Putting the Humanities PhD to Work by Katina Rogers

On Putting the Humanities PhD to Work by Katina Rogers

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In Putting the Humanities PhD to Work: Thriving In and Beyond the Classroom, Katina Rogers takes graduate training reform as her mission. She argues that current graduate training is not fit for purpose; i.e., it primarily trains PhDs to become tenured track faculty members when A) there are very limited TT faculty jobs, and B) most PhDs end up working in other roles or industries altogether. In doing so, Rogers suggests, academia replicates inequalities as a very small (generally moneyed)…

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On “Institutional Repositories and Academic Social Networks: Competition or Complement?” by Julia A. Lovett et al.

On “Institutional Repositories and Academic Social Networks: Competition or Complement?” by Julia A. Lovett et al.

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Julia A. Lovett, Andrée J. Rathemacher, Diana Boukari, and Corey Lang set out to compare whether faculty members at their institution, the University of Rhode Island, deposit their work more with ResearchGate or with the institution’s own repository. To do so, the authors perform a population study and survey of over 500 faculty members. Lovett et al. found that scholars who are prone to depositing with one system will likely deposit with another. As such, Lovett et al. argue, “librarians…

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On “Final Report, Canadian Scholarly Publishing Working Group”

On “Final Report, Canadian Scholarly Publishing Working Group”

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The Final Report of the Canadian Scholarly Publishing Working Group outlines the current challenges to the Canadian academic publishing system, as well as suggests principles to guide a successful, sustainable system moving forward. These principles include accountability (to the academy), supporting openness and high-quality publishing practices, well-informed authors, dynamic Canadian publishing opportunities, building on strength, and flexibility and adaptability. The report applauds initiatives like the collaboration between Érudit and the Canadian Research Knowledge Network to bring more open access journals…

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On Free Culture: How Big Media Uses Technology and the Law to Lock Down Culture and Control Creativity, by Lawrence Lessig

On Free Culture: How Big Media Uses Technology and the Law to Lock Down Culture and Control Creativity, by Lawrence Lessig

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Lawrence Lessig is very concerned about big media’s influence on intellectual property laws in the United States. In Free Culture: How Big Media Uses Technology and the Law to Lock Down Culture and Control Creativity, Lessig details the history of intellectual property and “free culture” in America, and explains why current regulations are running counter to historic precedent in this regard. Lessig argues that big media is destroying the traditional freedom to create cultural material that builds on the output…

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On “‘Think Piece’ on a DI Roadmap,” by the Leadership Council for Digital Infrastructure

On “‘Think Piece’ on a DI Roadmap,” by the Leadership Council for Digital Infrastructure

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In “‘Think Piece’ on a DI Roadmap,” members of the Leadership Council for Digital Infrastructure (LCDI) draw attention to the need for robust and sustainable digital research infrastructure in Canada. They are upfront about acknowledging the “challenges of adapting to the rapidly evolving needs of data-intensive research in a time of fiscal restraint” (n.p.). To navigate this challenging situation, the authors chart some next steps that stakeholders in Canada could take. They call for a largely coordinated approach, with increased…

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On “Digital Canada 150: 2.0,” by the Minister of Industry (Government of Canada)

On “Digital Canada 150: 2.0,” by the Minister of Industry (Government of Canada)

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In Digital Canada 150: 2.0, the Government of Canada Minister of Industry outlines how the government has responded to increasing developments in digital technology. In the prelude to the report, previous Industry Minister James Moore writes that “digital innovations and inventions are helping Canadians live better, more productive, healthier lives” (n.p.), and that the Digital Canada 150: 2.0 plan (and its precursor) is an actionable strategy to facilitate these potential positive outcomes of networked technologies. The authors suggest throughout the…

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On “Research Data Canada Response to Capitalizing on Big Data: Towards a Policy Framework for Advancing Digital Scholarship in Canada,” by Research Data Canada

On “Research Data Canada Response to Capitalizing on Big Data: Towards a Policy Framework for Advancing Digital Scholarship in Canada,” by Research Data Canada

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In “Research Data Canada Response to Capitalizing on Big Data: Towards a Policy Framework for Advancing Digital Scholarship in Canada,” Research Data Canada responds to a Government of Canada report. They acknowledge that the government’s report on digital scholarship in Canada is a good start, but that it requires more attention in 4 specific areas. Research Data Canada suggests that the Government of Canada needs to pay more heed to long term, rather than researcher-focused and thus short term, data…

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On “Consultation: Developing a Digital Research Infrastructure Strategy,” by the Government of Canada

On “Consultation: Developing a Digital Research Infrastructure Strategy,” by the Government of Canada

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In this short document, “Consultation: Developing a Digital Research Infrastructure Strategy” the Government of Canada acknowledges that research methods and processes are changing as the prevalence and complexity of technology increases. The author suggests that “Canada’s current [digital research infrastructure] DRI ecosystem needs to be examined against these rapid changes,” and reiterates that the government intends to develop a more purpose-driven digital research infrastructure strategy. This new strategy will cover research data management and preservation, as well as provisions for…

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On “Policy Recommendations for Open Access to Research Data,” by the RECODE Project Consortium

On “Policy Recommendations for Open Access to Research Data,” by the RECODE Project Consortium

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“Policy Recommendations for Open Access to Research Data” is a report and summary of recommendations made by the RECODE Project Consortium. The RECODE Project is a European partnership that explores solutions to open access implementation and effective research data management. Project partners include Trilateral Research & Consulting, the (previously named) e-Humanities group at KNAW, the University of Sheffield, the Stichting LIBER Foundation, the National Documentation Center, the National Research Council of Italy, the Biekinge Institute for Technology, and the Amsterdam…

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On “A Case Study of Scholars’ Open and Sharing Practices,” by George Veletsianos

On “A Case Study of Scholars’ Open and Sharing Practices,” by George Veletsianos

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In “A Case Study of Scholars’ Open and Sharing Practices,” George Veletsianos examines faculty openness and sharing practices at a university that does not have any sort of open access or open scholarship policy. He concludes, unsurprisingly, that although many faculty members happen to be sharing their work and resources with others, these practices are limited without the incentive of an institutional policy. Notably, Veletsianos draws on David Wiley’s differentiation between openness and sharing: “open practices have to do with…

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