No office hours this week!

Because I will be out of town at a conference, there will be no Librarian Office Hours in Wallace 342-A this Thursday (tomorrow).  I will, however, be back NEXT Thursday, available to answer all your questions from 3-5 p.m. in Wallace 342-A.

Library products aid in promotion and tenure!

A Library News article published this morning on the VT Libraries website describes how two databases by Thomson Reuters (both of which we subscribe to) can provide valuable information for faculty members working toward promotion and tenure.  Both Web of Science and Journal Citation Reports contain information that can help assess the impact of a particular author, article, or periodical.  The full Library News article is accessible from the link above.

These databasees, Web of Science and JCR can also provide valuable information for students just beginning research in a particular discipline or area of research.  JCR relates a journal's impact factor and a general overview of the landscape of literature in a particular field, while Web of Science offers cited reference searching and other ways to track an author's influence within his field of research.

Although these databases do have limitations (not every journal that is published is listed in JCR, for example), they can provide a great deal of valuable information for both the new researcher and the more experienced faculty member applying for tenure.

FARQ: EndNote Styles

It seems like several upper-level HNFE classes are using EndNote pretty heavily, and there's one question in particular that I have seen a lot of lately:

What if the journal that I need isn't showing up in EndNote when I go to select my style?

There's actually several things going on with this question.  First of all, going to the journal's website and checking the "information for authors" section should let you know what style the journal that you're interested in submtting to uses.  The journal may simply use the JAMA style, or another style that is already in EndNote.  If, however, you check and see that the style used by the journal uses a style slightly different from any style already in EndNote, then you will need to do a bit of extra work. 

A good example of this sort of situation is JADA:  Journal of the American Dietetic Association.  On this journal's "Information for Authors" page, we discover that JADA uses a slight permutation of the AMA Manual of Style.  Because of this slight permutation, you would be unable to use the JAMA style to cite information for a paper that you intend to submit to this journal.  So, what do you do now?

Basically, the EndNote website offers "output style" files for all kinds of journals that do not use the "basic" citation styles.  This database of output style files is available:  http://www.endnote.com/support/enstyles.asp.  Here, you can search for any particular journal (EndNote offers more than 4500 distinct bibliographic styles at no extra cost--essentially free for you) that you may be interested in submitting to.  

A brief look at the EndNote output styles database

Once you find the output style file for your journal, you'll need to download it (the file will be a .ens file), and then make sure that the file is placed in the "Styles" folder of the EndNote program files.  The EndNote program files are usually housed in your main hard disk drive.  On my computer, I can find my EndNote style folder in the following location:  C:\Program Files\EndNote X4\Styles.  

This may look different on a Mac,
but the idea is essentially the same

Once you move the newly downloaded EndNote output style file to this location, you should see the style in the style drop-down menu the next time you go to EndNote.  If you already had EndNote open, you shouldn't even need to close and reopen in order to see the new output style file.

Voila!  You should now be able to write a paper using whatever completely obscure style your journal demands.  

Of course, you can always contact me if you have any questions!  

A Post for Sustainability Week

During this past week, we here at VT have focused on "sustainability" in a number of different ways and through a variety of events, University Libraries offers sustainability-related information year round!

Recently, we created a group of 7 Sustainability Research Guides.  With these guides, we point out databases, websites, books, and other resources relating specifically to:

• Climate Change
• Green Campus Initiatives
• Life Cycle Analysis
• Local Food
• Renewable or Sustainable Energy
• Sustainable Agriculture
• Sustainable Building and Design

Also, if you're interested in researching or simply perusing information related to sustainability, you may want to check out the following subscription databases offered through University Libraries:

• GreenFILE
• DOE Green Energy
• BuildingGreen Suite
• Environment Complete
• Environment Abstracts
• Environment Impact from CABI
• ...and plenty more!

Good news for Mac users!

EndNote X4 for Mac has arrived!  You can now download it from the VT network software site, read all about it on the VT Libraries site, and watch a video about "What's New in EndNote X4"  from the EndNote folks.

Open Access...is good?

Okay, I am a little bit obsessed with my Google Reader, where I receive updates from all of my favorite blogs.  I subscribe to many blogs on the topics of science, libraries, travel, fashion, and food.  On my science and library blogs, I often receive interesting updates about what's going on with information sharing, scholarly publishing, and other related items.  Many times, I will turn around and re-blog about the topics I find particularly interesting and that I think you might, too. One of my blogs, Science Intelligence and InfoPros recently posted results from 2nd Conference on Scholarly Publishing (Prague, August 2010).  These results show that most scientists believe that:

Open access is good for science!

If you've visited the Recommended Resources page, you'll see an entire list of open access databases, including PubMed Central, BioMed Central, Directory of Open Access Journals, and PLoS (Public Library of Science).  But what, exactly, is open access, and why is it good for science?

Peter Suber, a scholar of scholarly communications, provides a great overview of open access here:  http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/overview.htm.  He writes that open access resources are those that are online, free of charge, and free of most copyright restrictions.  This means, of course, that the information is more accessible, since it does not come with the hefty price tag that many journals and databases have.  Because of this, information in open access journals can be more influential, and have a greater impact on literature and practice, if it is not limited to the group of people able to pay for it.

At the 2nd Conference on Scholarly Publishing, the reported findings included that:

• 2/3 of all OA journals are Science, Technology, or Medicine-related
• 3/4 of all OA articles are Science, Technology, or Medicine-related
• Overall, the OA model improves scholarly communication and accelerates science

Of course, one of the perceived weaknesses of open access appears right in its name:  open access is open. While many open access journals do utilize the peer review process, the idea of a freely available journal makes many researchers a bit nervous.  In my post on the peer review process, I mention a few of the ideas that are involved in the journal-vetting process:  politics, prestige, and authority.  Since open access has been around for awhile, many researchers are becoming more comfortable with the idea of it; however, the prestige factor is one that still discourages some researchers from fully backing (and therefore, publishing in) open access journals.

People have been conducting research about open access journals, their usage, and their impact for about the past decade.  A detailed bibliography of studies conducted about open access journals can be found here.  Getting back to the original point of this post, many of these studies support what was found at the 2nd Conference on Scholarly Publishing:  that open access journals are good for science.  Interested in more information about OA?  Visit the SPARC (The Scholarly Publishing & Academic Resources Coalition) website to get information about authors rights, guidelines, policies, and more!

New Dissertation & Thesis Database

University Libraries recently acquired the Dissertations & Theses by ProQuest database, which offers access to over 2.7 million citations and more than 1.2 million full text dissertations and theses.  Documents in this database go back as far as 1861, and offers many valuable searching tools such as a controlled subject listing and hyper-linking of authors and institutions.

A quick search in the "Nutrition" subject area yielded 12,373 dissertations and theses.  Aside from being great sources for literature reviews and bibliographies, the dissertations and theses in this database offer wonderful examples of work that has already been done in this particular field, if you're just starting your research for a dissertation or thesis.

Of course, to see samples of dissertations and these written right here at Virginia Tech, don't forget about our Electronic Thesis & Dissertation Library, which holds 18,362 documents from the various departments at the Unviersity.  If you come across a dissertation or thesis from another school that is not available through the new Dissertations & Theses database, simply request it through Interlibrary Loan.

As always, just let me know if you have any questions!

Two Milestones for PubMed

The current issue of the NLM Technical Bulletin (published 9/10/10) celebrates two major milestones for PubMed and the National Library of Medicine.  First of all, PubMed indexed its 20 millionth citation earlier this summer on July 27.  On that same day, PubMed Central, the NIH free digital archive of biomedical and science literature, added its 2 millionth full text article.

The full article can be found here, as part of the NLM website, and offers a few more interesting details:  usage statistics indicate that over 1 billion PubMed searches are run each year!  Additionally, PubMed Central, which, again, offers access to free full-text articles, now offers articles from over 650 journals, and even includes historic collections from the 1800s (which should remind you of the expert research advice I gave earlier this week!).

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, and MORE

Barbara Kingsolver is in town!  Although I have loved her writing ever since I read The Poisonwood Bible about seven years ago, I was completely intrigued by Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, the 2010-11 choice for the VT Common Book.  I had hoped to write a series of posts about the book, the idea of local food, and other related topics, and may still write more about these topics later.  Earlier this summer, I did create a Local Foods Subject Guide that addresses many of the issues that I'd like to blog about.  Take a look if you're interested in that!

For now, though, I want to let everyone know that there is a fabulous exhibit in Newman Library (put together by yours truly and Outreach Librarian Jennifer Nardine), on the glass shelves when you first walk into the library.  Here, we've gathered other books written by Kingsolver and other books related to local food, sustainable living, and cooking.

Today, for my loyal blog readers, I bring a virtual version of this exhibit to you:

Other Books by Barbara Kingsolver:

• Animal Dreams (1991)
• Another America (1992)
• The Bean Trees (1988)
• High Tide in Tucson (1995)
• Holding the Line:  Women in the great Arizona mine strike of 1983 (1989)
• Homeland and Other Stories (1989)
• The Lacuna (2009)
• Pigs in Heaven (1999)
• The Poisonwood Bible (1998)
• Prodigal Summer (2000)
• Small Wonder (2002)

Local Food/Sustainability

• Home Grown:  The case for local food in a global market (2002)
• Encyclopedia of Organic, Sustainable, and Local Food (2010)
• Bringing it to the Table:  On farming and food (2009)
• In Defense of Food:  An eater's manifesto (2008)
• Food Fears:  From industrial to sustainable food systems (2008)
• From Kitchen to Market:  Selling your gourmet food specialty (2005)

Cookbooks in Newman

If you're in the mood to cook, then browse TX642-TX840 (5th floor) for a wide variety of cookbooks that you can check out of the library!  A few cookbooks that might fit into this virtual exhibit are:

• The Healthy College Cookbook (1999)
• College Vegetarian Cooking:  Feed yourself and your friends (2009)
• Veganomicon:  The ultimate vegan cookbook (2007)
• American Food Writing:  An anthology with class recipes (2007)
• The United States of Arugula:  How we became a gourmet nation (2006)
• A Taste of America:  Recipes from the Blacksburg Master Chorale (2007)
• The Place Setting:  Timeless tastes of the American South (2009)

Expert Research Tip: Go back...

What does the 2001 death of a Johns Hopkins research participant have to do with understanding best research practices?  Everything, according to reports of the tragedy that were published in The Lancet in 2001.  In the article (1), author Sarah Ramasay cites "shortcomings in oversight of the research" as an explanation for what may have happened during the trial.  Basically, potential complications for the Johns Hopkins clinical trial appeared in biomedical literature published prior to 1966, but the principal investigator failed to look back that far, thus failing to locate information that would have likely saved the life of the 24-year-old participant.

This leads us to this week's expert research tip:

Relying solely on recent information can be dangerous.  (And this is what you do when you rely on using PubMed or Google Scholar to perform your literature searches).  


In another Lancet article (2) then-President of the Medical Library Association Carol Jenkins asserts that the Hopkins case underscores "the complexity of finding and evaluating biomedical literature." This same article concludes by positing that this situation serves to "highlight the value of older medical literature," and summarizes by saying that new questions very well may be answered in old literature.

Often, we want to limit our searches in PubMed (and other databases) to the most recent 2 or 5 years.  However, situations like the 2001 Johns Hopkins incident highlight why this is so dangerous.  Interestingly, Medline (PubMed) doesn't go back *that far*.  Earlier this year, it extended its reach back to 1947, which is definitely an improvement (3).  When the JHU researcher did his literature search in 2001, Medline only went back to 1966, which was part of the issue.  Similarly, ISI Web of Science only goes back to 1975, and no one really knows what Google Scholar searches, so no one knows how far it goes back, either!

So, how do you make sure you cover your bases and find important information within older literature?  My advice includes several options:

• Always review the references/bibliographic information included in articles that are relevant to your topic. If an article is foundational or seminal in a particular area of research, then your article should be citing it.
• Use databases or even print indexes that go back as far as possible.  VT, for example, has access to Biological Abstracts on paper that goes back to 1926.  Other indexes/archival databases that you could check might include:
• JSTOR Health Sciences, which goes back as far as 1840 for some titles
• American Chemical Society publications, which go back as far as 1879
• Engineering Village, which may have some relevant applied science information going back as far as1884
• ProQuest Historical Periodicals, which offers information from 1740-1900
• And many others, available through University Libraries databases

Although I wouldn't say that it's always necessary to search through 300-year old literature, I want to mention this to remind you all that current information, while desirable, isn't always sufficient.  If you want more suggestions or help with searching older literature, simply contact me!

References
1.  Ramasay S.  Johns Hopkins takes responsibility for volunteer's death.  The Lancet 2001;358:(9277):213.

2.  McLellan, F. 1966 and all that--when is a literature search done?  The Lancet 2001;358:(9282):646.

3.  PubMed extends its reach--biomedical database moves back in time to 1947.  NLM Technical Bulletin  2010; 373:e8.

Friday Fun: New entrance to the library!

Most of you all have probably discovered this by now, but just in case you haven't:  the first floor entrance to Newman Library is now open again!

This is the door that at the bottom of the library, where the study cafe will be coming soon.  A full description of plans for the area can be found here:  http://www.lib.vt.edu/libnews/2010/2010-09-06.html.  Additionally, you can read the entire evolution of the new study cafe in the Study Cafe Construction Log.

The Newman Study Cafe sure has come a long way since January 2010,
when this picture was taken

Change in Librarian Office Hours (Today only!)

Today, September 9, I will be in Wallace 342-A from 4-5 p.m. rather than the usual 3-5 p.m. because of a small scheduling conflict.

Of course, I am also available by appointment or in my Newman Library office.  Use this blog's About the HNFE Librarian page, or visit the College Librarians contact information page to find my contact information.

I look forward to researching with you!

FARQ: Textbooks?

This is another beginning-of-the-semester frequently asked reference question.  Frugal students always want to know:

Where is the library's textbook section?

Image from Educated Nation | Higher Education blog:
http://www.educatednation.com/2009/07/29/free-money-for-textbooks

This FARQ is loaded with several issues that can complicate the search for a textbook that is used in a particular class, and that a student wants to check out.

• First of all, there is no "textbook section" of the library.  If we own a book that your course happens to be using as a textbook, then it will be shelved by its call number within the library. You can use the bookstore's textbook list to discover books that are required for your course, if you don't have your syllabus handy.  

• The best way to search Addison (the library catalog) may be by using a book's ISBN.  You can find that through the textbook list, and then use Addison's Number Search to see if University Libraries owns the book.

• Sometimes, instructors place books on Reserve.  This means that a book will only circulate briefly (2 hours, or 2 days), giving everyone in the class an opportunity to access it.  You an search for reserve books here.  

• If you are an instructor and would like to place items on reserve, you can use the online reserve request form to begin this procedure.  

A more complete description of how University Libraries can help you track down textbooks is available on our website, published as a piece of Library News on August 13.  

Questions?  As always, just let me know!

Tutorial: Renewing Books Online

In (fewer than) 90 seconds, you'll be able to renew books online through My Library Account!


This tutorial is more like a combined tutorial and Frequently-Asked-Reference-Question.  Everyone wants to be able to renew their library items with as little hassle as possible.  Although renewing books online is pretty simple, there are a few restrictions, in general, about library renewals.  For example, DVDs can never be renewed, nor can journals.  A full list of borrowing privileges and restrictions for undergraduates, graduate students, faculty members, and other library users can be found here:  http://www.lib.vt.edu/circ-reserve/borrowing.html

The following tutorials demonstrates the ease with which you can view your library record and renew your books online.

Hint:  for best viewing, enlarge the tutorial to full screen.  On the far right of the toolbar (which pops up after you've hit "play"), there is a square icon that will make the tutorial full screen.  Hitting "Esc" will minimize the tutorial after you've finished watching it.

Peer Review Revised?

Last month, the New York Times published two articles that dealt with the changing nature of peer review.  The first one, published on August 16, discussed a real-time analysis of a mathematical proof on mathematics-related blogs and wikis.  The second one, published on August 23, presented the case of the Shakespeare Quarterly's recent experiment as it invited criticism, via the world wide web, on four articles submitted to the journal.

These two examples indicate that the traditional methods, and notion, of peer review are changing.  Traditionally, we rely on peer review as a sort of quality assurance policy.  Peer reviewed journals are the ones we want to use in research, because we trust that they have been vetted by authorities in the field.  However, the changing nature of publishing and communication seems to be making many people rethink the peer review process.

Politics, competition, and other issues often play a role in the peer review process, too, which is what these articles seem to be getting at.  Revising the peer review process could help alleviate these issues, but also introduce new ones that are not easily alleviated.  As a librarian, I can't foresee a radical change in the peer review process anytime soon, and I will not be changing the way I communicate the "peer review process" to students or select books/journals for the library.  However, these articles did make me realize that critically thinking about the peer review process, and the way we trust information, is always an interesting exercise.

I did a quick keyword search in Addison, just to see what sort of books we may have on the topic, and I found several recent ones that I might recommend, just for some more food for thought:

• Peer Review:  A Critical Inquiry, by David Schatz (2004)
• How Professors Think:  Inside the Curious World of Academic Judgment, by Michele Lamont (2009)
• Peer Review in Health Sciences, edited by Fiona Godlee (2003)

New Books from August 2010--with reviews!

The August 2010 New Book List is up!  Here are a few that I (and hopefully you) find particularly interesting.  Any reviews posted below are available through University Libraries, and may prompt you to log in with your VT PID and password.

Global agro-food trade and standards : challenges for Africa / edited by Peter Gibbon, Stefano Ponte, and Evelyne Lazaro.

Summary, Notes, and Table of Contents available here

Sugar : a bittersweet history / Elizabeth Abbott.

Summary, Notes, and Table of Contents available here

Library Journal review available via Academic Search Complete

Twain's feast : searching for America's lost foods in the footsteps of Samuel Clemens / Andrew Beahrs.

Summary, Notes, and Table of Contents available here

Booklist review available via Academic Search Complete

Hyperspectral imaging for food quality analysis and control / edited by Da-Wen Sun.

Table of Contents available here

Are you waiting for a particular book to appear on the New Books list?  Recommend it to us!  Simply fill out the form here:  https://aqua.lib.vt.edu/Bookorder.php