A new direction in information science research: making information science a human science

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Introduction

The term human is a core concept of information science literature. However, information science authors have hardly discussed the term. Consequently, what is and is not human remains unclear. The purpose of this paper is to bring consideration of human conditions to the centre stage of information science research.

Method

To ascertain the place of humans in the body of work pertaining to information science, the paper undertakes a content analysis of over 800 articles published between 2011 and 2012 in five major journals of information science, and outlines some research consequences.

Results

Six current humanist research themes were identified from the content analysis.

Conclusions

The paper suggests a new direction for information science authors, which will enable information science to go past the functionality of systems and the optimization of information seeking to engage with the fuller actualization of humans. The goal is to drill deeper in the structures of oppression and vulnerability to allow the worst-off individuals to be well-off. We cannot help our readers as a human species by shunning the concept human.

URL : http://www.informationr.net/ir/20-3/paper686.html

Des sciences dans la Science

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“Dans un contexte européen où se redéfinissent les grandes orientations de la recherche, une réflexion s’impose sur les principes généraux au fondement des sciences humaines et sociales et sur leur place dans la science et dans la société.

La nécessité d’un dialogue fécond entre les sciences pour faire face aux grands enjeux du monde contemporain, invite à renouer avec la figure de « l’ingénieur » largement empreinte d’une formation ouverte aux humanités.

Au-delà des considérations propres au monde scientifique, les SHS reposent la question du sens même de nos sociétés et de leurs évolutions.

Fruit d’une mobilisation exceptionnelle de chercheurs et enseignants, cet ouvrage remet les SHS à la place qui leur revient et encourage la promotion d’hommes et de femmes de science qui évitent les grands écueils du technicisme, du dogmatisme et du scientisme.”

URL : https://books.openedition.org/allianceathena/192

Study of Open Access Publishing in Social Sciences and its Implications for Libraries

The Open Access Movement (OAM), which started as a gradual realisation by authors mainly in biomedical sciences to make available results of public-funded research projects to the public without much barrier pertaining to cost, permission, copyright obligations, etc., gradually gained momentum across the world and India was no exception to it.

Though the movement was confined mainly to science, technology and medical fields in India, since last few years, a number of open access repositories and open access journals in Social Science subjects have started appearing.

The present study which is confined to the open access Social Science journals published from India as mentioned in the Directory of Open Access Journals, identified 60 open access Social Sciences journals in India.

The study also analysed the journals on the basis of certain parameters as to trend of open access journals in Social Sciences, and was found that most of open access journals in Social Sciences appeared between 2009 and 2014 and about half of the journals charge authors for publishing their papers in the journals and only a few are published under Creative Commons Attribution.

Lastly, the paper discusses about implications of open access publishing on Social Science research libraries made few suggestions towards encouraging open access publishing in Social Science subjects in India.

URL : Study of Open Access Publishing in Social Sciences and its Implications for Libraries

Related URL : http://publications.drdo.gov.in/ojs/index.php/djlit/article/view/8720

All That Glisters: Investigating Collective Funding Mechanisms for Gold Open Access in Humanities Disciplines

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“BACKGROUND This article sets out the economic problems faced by the humanities disciplines in the transition to gold open access and outlines the bases for investigations of collective funding models. Beginning with a series of four problems, it then details the key players in this field and their various approaches to collective “procurement” mechanisms.

DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT The Open Library of Humanities seeks to instigate a collective funding model for an open access megajournal and multijournal system that should enable for a phased transition to a gold open access model that does not require author-facing article processing charges. Libraries who participate then have a governance stake in the platform.

NEXT STEPS The project is currently working towards sustainability and launch. Authors’ pledged papers are being called in and libraries are signing up to the model.”

URL : All That Glisters: Investigating Collective Funding Mechanisms for Gold Open Access in Humanities Disciplines

Alternative URL : http://jlsc-pub.org/jlsc/vol2/iss3/5/

Open access journals in Humanities and Social Science

This British Academy research project on the effects of current UK open access policies was funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and was overseen by a Steering Committee set up by the Academy to manage the project. The project was led by Professor Chris Wickham, FBA (British Academy Vice-President, Publications), with support and co-writing from Dr Rebecca Darley and Dr Daniel Reynolds. It investigates some of the issues involved in open access publishing, seeking to examine various practical issues and difficulties that may arise, using the example of twelve disciplines across the Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS).

The key issues investigated were:

  • the degree to which non-UK journals are ‘compliant’ with current UK open-access policies, particularly ‘green’ open-access policies;
  • the differences between journal half-lives across the same disciplines;
  • library acquisition policies and the degree to which these are affected by embargoes before articles are openly available.

URL : Open access journals in humanities and social science

Open access et SHS: controverses

Après avoir rappelé la genèse et l’actualité vive de l’Open Access pour les publications scientifiques, cet article s’attache à discuter l’injonction politique pressante au regard des spécificités de la recherche en sciences humaines et sociales. Partant du constat que les politiques publiques s’élaborent majoritairement selon des caractéristiques empruntées aux sciences biomédicales, technologiques ou de la nature, l’auteur s’attache à discuter la pertinence des postulats avancés, notamment la barrière d’accès aux savoirs, les enjeux sur l’innovation et la croissance, le retour sur l’investissement public, l’enjeu des données ouvertes et du datamining.

La contribution souligne les risques d’une transformation numérique non mesurée pour l’édition des sciences humaines et sociales et esquisse différents scénarios possibles selon les politiques publiques décidées.

URL : http://archivesic.ccsd.cnrs.fr/sic_00965272