EDUCAUSE | Research and Reporting

CNI Podcast: nanoHUB.org: Future Cyberinfrastructure - An Interview with George B. Adams III

gbayne — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:57:26 -0500

This podcast features an interview with George B. Adams III, Associate Director for Programs, Network for Computational Nanotechnology at Purdue University. Our interview was recorded at the CNI 2008 Spring Task Force Meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

nanoHUB provides users with “fingertip access” to over 70 simulation tools for research and education. Users not only launch jobs that are executed on the state-of-the-art computational facilities of Open Science Grid and TeraGrid, but also interactively visualize and analyze the results--all via an ordinary Web browser. nanoHUB middleware hides the complexity of Grid computing, handling authentication, authorization, file transfer, and visualization, and letting the researcher focus on research. This approach also helps educators bring these tools to the classroom, letting them bypass the difficulties of Grid computing and focus instead on learning science and engineering.

This interview is provided courtesy of CNI and was recorded at their 2008 Fall Task Force Meeting. The Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) is an organization dedicated to supporting the transformative promise of networked information technology for the advancement of scholarly communication and the enrichment of intellectual productivity. You can learn more about CNI at their web site, http://www.cni.org

Show Them the Data: How Publishing Course Usage Stats Can Change Faculty Support

drupal — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 13:00:51 -0600

UMBC has published online reports showing by discipline and by instructor which Blackboard courses are most active. Initial feedback suggests that regularly publishing these simple but effective reports could create a "tipping point" of one-on-one and departmental pedagogical discussions that change the form and content of institutional faculty support.

Agenda for Developing E-Science in Research Libraries

ckeller — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 10:42:58 -0600

This is the Final Report and Recommendations to the Scholarly Communication Steering Committee, the
Public Policies Affecting Research Libraries Steering Committee, and the Research, Teaching, and Learning Steering Committee.

E-science has the potential to be transformational within research libraries by impacting their operations, functions, and possibly even their mission. Recognizing this potential, the ARL Steering Committees for Scholarly Communication and for Research, Teaching, and Learning jointly appointed a task force in 2006 to address the emergent domain of e-science. The Joint Task Force on Library Support for E-Science focused its attention on the implications of trends in e-science for research libraries, exploring the dimensions that impact collections, services, research infrastructure, and professional development. Priorities of government funding agencies further shaped the task force's work.

The task force recommends that ARL establish dedicated capacity within the Association to develop a program agenda over time and to build a shared understanding among the membership of the component issues and challenges for library engagement. In addition to the recently appointed program officers (one permanent and another temporary part-time), the report proposes a working group with an initial charge to develop principles that will inform program development. Anticipated programmatic efforts would emphasize: education of the research library community about scientific trends, the emergent role of data curation, characteristics of virtual organizations, relevant policy for data and research dissemination, and tools and infrastructure systems. While the task force focused on e-science, it was mindful of the broader eresearch trends that are shaping research and scholarship in all disciplines.

The task force believes that ARL's engagement in the issues of e-science is best focused on educational and policy roles, while partnering with other relevant organizations to contribute in strategic areas of technology development and new genres of publication. These types of strategic collaborations will also provide opportunities to re-envision the research library's role and contribution as 21st-century science takes shape.

FBI-.edu security partnership trying to overcome decades of mistrust

ckeller — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 10:41:35 -0600

"Two weeks ago, we described a report from the National Research Council on the challenges of balancing an open academic research environment with the risks that the fruits of the research could be adopted by terrorists. One of the report's recommendations was the formation of a standing committee comprised of academics and members of the national security agencies. It turns out that the FBI had already heeded similar advice—back in 2005."

EDUCAUSE Core Data Service 2006 Results

drupal — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 13:39:01 -0600

This session will summarize the highlights from the 2006 EDUCAUSE Core Data Service survey data. These analyses will identify key findings, important trends, and similarities and differences across different types of institutions. This year more than 940 institutions participated in this collaborative effort. A discussion period will conclude this session to understand concerns and issues from the audience, as well as discussion of future directions.

Ending the Intellectual Property Frenzy

ckeller — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 10:05:03 -0600

New president of Rochester Institute of Technology proposes alternate way for academe to support business and the economy — and it involves admitting that your institution won’t have a big windfall.

Taking “From Scratch” Out of Problem Solving

ckeller — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 15:32:57 -0600

Four tools of the trade facilitate solving IT problems in higher ed by removing the need to develop solutions “from scratch” every time a problem arises.

Publishing Undergraduate Research Electronically

drupal — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 13:42:37 -0500

The College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania has as a goal expanding opportunities for undergraduates to conduct significant research and promoting the products of this research. CUREJ, the College Undergraduate Research Electronic Journal, was developed in collaboration with the Penn Libraries to achieve this goal.

Open Data for Global Science

ckeller — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 16:17:43 -0500

This is a special issue of the CODATA Data Science Journal which focuses on open access for science data research that has been supported by public funds.

Momentum for Open Access

ckeller — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 14:21:41 -0500

"Last year, a proposal in Congress to require all federally supported research to be placed online, freely available, attracted considerable attention and debate — and ultimately stalled.

This year, a measure that is narrower — it would apply only to research supported by the National Institutes of Health — appears within reach of passage. "

Academic Analytics: A New Tool for a New Era

ckeller — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 11:39:27 -0500

As colleges and universities respond to the public demand for greater accountability in the form of documented learning outcomes and increased student retention, the emerging practice of academic analytics can create actionable intelligence for higher education institutions.

Don't Blame Technology

drupal — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 13:36:49 -0600

Research argues downloads do not hurt sales.

Spurring Innovation Through a Pre- and Post-Award Research System

drupal — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:15:36 -0600

The University of Maryland, Baltimore, will present information about a new research and financial system. Proposals are routed and approved electronically. Proposal and award data are integrated with post-award accounting and billing. The system handles new federal electronic processing requirements, and pre- and post-award information will be available via one reporting tool.

Improving Access to Research Results: Six Points

drupal — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 11:34:34 -0600

These are the closing comments by speaker Clifford Lynch at a forum on publicly funded research. The forum, "Improving Access to Publicly Funded Research: Policy Issues and Practical Strategies", was held October 20, 2006 in Washington, DC.

Finding Scholarship: Google Scholar on College and University Library Web Sites

drupal — Wed, 18 Oct 2006 15:56:44 -0500

This study examined the incidence and visibility of Google Scholar on ARL and Oberlin Group college library Web sites to see if, where, and how it appeared. Results will reveal the level of integration of Google Scholar in university and college library Web sites, including any differences between them and effective representations.

Momentum for Open Access Research

drupal — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 11:05:25 -0500

The presidents of 53 liberal arts colleges have signed a letter supporting the Federal Public Research Access Act, which would require free and public access to research funded by the federal government.Librarians have for years protested the steeply rising costs of academic journals, noting that each year they can afford fewer of the resources that students and faculty need. Supporters of the legislation argue it would level the playing field for researchers and would appropriately allow public access to publicly funded science.Publishers of academic journals and the scholarly societies they represent lambasted the legislation, saying it would undermine peer review and the quality of the journals. Allan Adler of the Association of American Publishers said the legislation is "short-sighted" and is simply an attempt by librarians to obtain for free what they have always paid for. The academic community, however, seems inclined to disagree. The new letter of support from college presidents follows similar support in July from the provosts of 25 research universities.According to the new letter, which was drafted by a library group at Oberlin College, the legislation would "democratize access to research information" and would "benefit education, research, and the general public."

Rallying Behind Open Access

drupal — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 13:38:16 -0500

An open letter signed by the provosts of 25 universities supports passage of the Federal Public Research Access Act, which would require federal agencies to publish their research findings online and free within six months of publication elsewhere. Publishers, including scholarly associations, oppose the bill, claiming that it could endanger research and threaten many journals. The provosts' letter encourages higher education to consider changing the way research findings are disseminated while acknowledging that the bill would force publishers and scholarly societies to consider significant shifts in their publishing approach.

July/August EDUCAUSE Review Now Available

cluckett — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 16:18:58 -0500

The current issue of EDUCAUSE Review includes articles by Michael M. Roberts on learning from the past for future Internet development and Sandra Braman on theagenda for research and IT; an interview with Shimizu Yasutaka, president of Japan's National Institute of Multimedia Education (NIME); and research results from Ali Jafari, Patricia McGee, and Colleen Carmean on learning/course management systems. View the July/August EDUCAUSE Review.

The Impact of Facilities on Recruitment and Retention of Students

drupal — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 12:20:10 -0500

This article is a summary of the full research report that will be available this summer. Over the past 30 years considerable research has been done to understand the issues that impact the decision of a student's choice of a higher education institution. This research has focused on understanding the phases of the decision process, the timing of the phases in the decision process and the personal, financial, and environmental factors that influence institutional choice.

The new mobile scholar and the effective use of information and communication technology

drupal — Mon, 01 May 2006 12:46:43 -0500

Our goal in this article is to understand how scholars — who need to collect, organize, analyze, and present large amounts of information in a short period of time — can use mobile information and communication technology (ICT) to work more efficiently and effectively. We argue that wireless fidelity (wi–fi) and universal serial bus (USB) technologies have made it possible for social scientists to work more productively outside of their own offices, but that many lack the kinds of practical knowledge needed to do so. We discuss ways in which understanding and using some basic and generally inexpensive ICT devices can help the "new mobile scholar" take full advantage of emerging ICTs.

Cyberinfrastructure and the Future of Collaborative Work

drupal — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 13:52:35 -0500

Online sharing of data, computing power, and expensive equipment is transforming research and blazing the trail for widespread advances in cooperative efforts in all human endeavors.

Tracking Computer Lab Usage with LabStats

drupal — Mon, 27 Mar 2006 09:42:44 -0600

Wesleyan University needed more information about how its students were using computer lab resources in order to make better decisions about budgeting, staffing, and allocating resources. See how Wesleyan implemented LabStats to meet its needs and how easy it is for them to get valuable, real-time information about computer lab usage. You may even win an iPod!

The Economic Imperative for Teaching with Technology

drupal — Thu, 23 Mar 2006 16:57:06 -0600

Innovative approaches to increasing classroom productivity are the best option for controlling the escalating costs of research universities. In 1997, management guru Peter Drucker predicted that in 30 years the big university campuses would be relics, driven out of existence by their inexorable increases in tuition and by competition from alternative education systems made possible by information technology (IT). Drucker overstates the case, but the nation's major research universities, both the publics and the private nonprofits, will have to make fundamental changes in the way they provide education if they are to thrive, rather than merely survive, in the coming decades.

Even Universities Change

drupal — Thu, 23 Mar 2006 16:00:32 -0600

Industry restructured dramatically in response to IT progress, and education leaders should prepare for similar upheaval. U.S. research universities are going to change, and education leaders would be wise to begin now to direct that change. This will not be easy, but they have the advantage of being able to learn from the experience of many U.S. corporations that have reinvented themselves to respond to the market changes caused by the rapid advances in information technology (IT).

Building an Emerging Research Support Structure at a Doctoral-Intensive Institution

drupal — Mon, 20 Mar 2006 12:58:15 -0600

This presentation explores how a central IT group acts as a catalyst, engaging stakeholders in collaborative efforts where faculty are encouraged and supported to incorporate technology into their research activities. Through identifying and implementing best practices for research support, the presenters have gained recognition for their work within the campus community.

OSU:profiles--A Data Integration Tool for Tracking Faculty Expertise

drupal — Mon, 20 Mar 2006 12:58:14 -0600

OSU:profiles is a Web-based strategy designed to facilitate collection, tracking, and reporting of the teaching, research, and service efforts of faculty and professional staff across a university. Our novel methodology leverages authoritative campus data systems to provide a comprehensive dashboard view of faculty information.

Safeguarding Research Data: Policy and Implementation Challenges

drupal — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 12:14:17 -0600

Exposure of research data to the risk of loss or misuse can significantly impede researchers' progress or ultimately result in the loss of research funding. This presentation shares The University of Texas System's challenges, experience, and lessons learned in its attempt to develop a system-level umbrella policy for the safeguarding of research data.

Effort Reporting: A Collaborative Systems Solution Model

drupal — Wed, 18 Jan 2006 10:44:11 -0600

Collaborative initiative and sponsorship led to the development of a streamlined effort reporting system at the University of California. This presentation will examine the collaboration, business and technology challenges, project management characteristics, and successes of this unique project at the University of California.

Export Control Laws: Analysis for the IT Manager

drupal — Thu, 08 Dec 2005 13:01:00 -0600

Through the use of a hypothetical international research collaboration between a U.S. university and various foreign universities and governments, a means for analyzing the applicable export control laws will be set out and applied. The applicability of export control laws to computer programs and computers on campus (including encryption software) will also be discussed.

IBM Opens Research to Academia

drupal — Mon, 18 Jul 2005 11:01:28 -0500

IBM is extending an academic outreach program to give universities access to some of its cutting-edge research free of charge.

University-Industry Partnerships with High Potential for Impact

drupal — Fri, 20 May 2005 11:52:29 -0500

This article discuses the ramifications of the changing relationship between industry and higher education and explores the resultant opportunities and challanges facing campus leaders today. It also explores the some recent university industry initiatives focused on women and technology.

Data: Roads Traveled, Lessons Learned

drupal — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 13:53:52 -0600

The directors of three widely cited and respected IT data-collection projects—the Campus Computing Project, the COSTS Project, and the EDUCAUSE Core Data Service—answer questions regarding the challenges and issues involved in the task of collecting data about campus activities.

NIH Directions

drupal — Tue, 22 Feb 2005 09:38:52 -0600

The NIH Roadmap spells out the expectations for new modes of discovery through creation of interdisciplinary research partnerships and reengineering of the clinical research enterprise. Through NIH-funded initiatives, the research community will explore new organizational models for team science. These "virtual organizations" will span departments and institutions and involve cooperation between public and private sectors.

Identity management will be a key to interorganizational collaboration, requiring appropriate authentication and authorization controls. In this talk, attendees will learn about the NIH vision for virtual organizations and the ways in which the agency's programs will provide opportunities for academic medical centers and partners to develop the research teams of the future.

NIH Asks for Internet Access to Studies

drupal — Mon, 07 Feb 2005 10:21:56 -0600

The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has expressed its support for an open-access model of publishing, at least for research that it funds. The agency called on scientists who receive grants from the NIH to submit their research to PubMed Central, an online database operated by the National Library of Medicine, after such research is published in medical or scientific journals. Elias Zerhouni, director of the NIH, said, "Scientists have a right to see the results of their work disseminated as quickly and broadly as possible, and NIH is committed to helping our scientists exercise this right." Zerhouni said for-profit journals should not be significantly affected by the policy because they only publish a small number of papers on NIH-funded research. Still, he said researchers could request a delay of up to one year after publication before research is made publicly available.According to NIH estimates, in 2003, 60,000 published papers dealt with research the agency funded. In 2004, the NIH distributed $19.3 billion to 212,000 researchers around the world.

Informatics and Knowledge Management for Faculty Research Data

drupal — Tue, 18 Jan 2005 10:07:43 -0600

This research bulletin describes the results of a study conducted at the University of California, Santa Barbara, into systems and project requirements for informatics in a broad range of scientific fields (including, but not limited to, bioscience fields), along with requirements in the social sciences and humanities. Faculty were interviewed about what has led them to develop informatics systems in support of their research and what factors are at the forefront as they seek to manage large amounts of research data in a decentralized and collaborative environment. The findings, a mix of the expected and unexpected, have laid the groundwork for new proposals in faculty IT support services.

E-Research and Supporting Cyberinfrastructure: A Forum to Consider the Implications for Research Libraries & Research Institutions

drupal — Mon, 22 Nov 2004 10:54:01 -0600

These are presentations from the October CNI/ARL forum, E-Research and Supporting Cyberinfrastructure one-day forum. The forum focused particularly on library and information technology strategies and organizations. For example, the scientific community is calling for federated strategies for disciplinary data curation. What is the connection between such strategies and institutional repositories? What will be the most critical services that scientists and scholars need and expect as they undertake their e-research?

Speakers Include;

*Dan Atkins, Chair of the NSF Blue Ribbon Panel that recommended major NSF investments in cyberinfrastructure to support e-science, made a keynote presentation. Dr. Atkins reviewed the cyberinfrastructure movement and its strategic implications for the research institution community.
*George Djorgovski, Professor of Astronomy at Caltech, illustrated the potential of cyberinfrastructure by describing the work underway via the National Virtual Observatory.
*Paul Courant, Provost at the University of Michigan, reviewed an investigation of cyberinfrastructure needs in the humanities and social sciences being conducted by a commission of the American Council of Learned Societies, of which he is a member. Dr. Courant also spoke to some of the institution-wide implications of building and sustaining cyberinfrastructure.
*Sang Kim, Director of the Division of Shared Cyberinfrastructure, National Science Foundation, provided an update of the Division's program.

EDUCAUSE Core Data Service

drupal — Fri, 20 Aug 2004 12:09:47 -0500

This session will summarize the highlights from the 2003 EDUCAUSE Core Data Service survey data. These analyses will identify key findings, important trends, and similarities and differences across different types of institutions. This year more than 800 institutions participated in this collaborative effort. A discussion period will conclude this session to understand concerns and issues from the audience.

Assessing Blackboard As a Tool for Learning: Student Attitudes and Use Patterns

drupal — Thu, 13 Nov 2003 13:14:33 -0600

What are students saying about the use of course management systems? For two years a team of researchers studied a wide range of learning issues among different populations of students. The presentation will include project goals, methods, and outcomes of this grant-funded project.

EDUCAUSE Core Data Service

drupal — Wed, 30 Jul 2003 16:56:14 -0500

This session will summarize some of the highlights from the 2003 EDUCAUSE Core Data Service survey data. These analyses will identify key findings, as well as similarities and differences across different types of institutions. New features, enhancements, and new directions for the 2004 survey and service will be discussed. Finally, a discussion period will conclude this session to understand concerns and issues from the audience.

Information Technology and Humanities Scholarship

drupal — Wed, 19 Feb 2003 11:23:15 -0600

Humanities scholars are moving toward a radical change in how they conduct research.

Data Entry Policy

drupal — Thu, 13 Jun 2002 14:49:08 -0500

The Computing & Technology User Services at St. Cloud State University provide dataentry and statistical analysis for faculty and grad students doing research projects. This is their policy.

Yarns into Gold: Moving ECAR from Idea to Action

drupal — Thu, 23 May 2002 10:34:21 -0500

In January 2001, NLII meeting attendees participated in a guided discussion on the idea for the EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research (ECAR). In this presentation, ECAR staff will discuss the evolution of the initiative, its research agenda, and early findings. Presenters will also solicit the attendees' input on areas needing research attention.

2001 Annual Gartner-EDUCAUSE Update

drupal — Mon, 10 Dec 2001 12:50:16 -0600

In this, the 10th Annual Gartner Higher Education Update, we will look at which technologies are looming large on the Gartner higher education research radar screen and also provide an update on trends and forces at work in the management of information technology in higher education. The session will present current data from a recent Gartner higher education survey, with particular attention given to e-learning, portals, and course management systems.

Protecting Your School and Supporting Faculty in Online Research

drupal — Fri, 07 Dec 2001 15:49:38 -0600

Networks make online data collection fast and easy. The ease and speed with which data can be accessed can cause researchers to shortcut data security, subject's rights, and required research review procedures. Presenters will provide examples and guidelines for human subjects reviews, fair information practices, responsible online research, and protection against institutional liability.

Yarns into Gold or Can Good Research Trump Good Stories?

drupal — Tue, 28 Aug 2001 13:00:20 -0500

It comes as no surprise that managing in higher education (itself an oxymoron) entails managing contradictions. One of those contradictions is the unwavering belief in research that forms the basis of the faculty belief system and the dominance of the anecdote as a driver of institutional administrative behaviors. It is an old saw that "anecdotes trump data" in political organizations. As information technologies grow in cost, complexity, and impact on the institutions they serve, can we any longer afford to fly by the collective seats of our pants? The EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research is being created to support higher education by creating a new body of applied research to support technology and management decisions of consequence.

Information Technology: Ariadne's Thread through the Research and Education Labyrinth

drupal — Tue, 12 Sep 2000 13:47:54 -0500

Information technology helps to unify the disciplines of scientific research, to integrate research with education, and to bring science closer to society.