- LIS-Forum - ncsi.iisc.ernet.in

impact factor
by afsar bukhari 22 May '03

22 May '03

Dear friends, It is an interesting feature published in Nature magazine. Scientific papers that are not widely read and that lack any great influence can end up being classed as high-impact, claim researchers in California the full text is as follows Copied citations give impact factors a boost TOM CLARKE Scientific papers that are not widely read and that lack any great influence can end up being classed as high-impact, claim researchers in California. The mistake occurs because citations are often just copied from the reference list of one paper to another. A largely unremarkable or unread paper can therefore end up becoming highly cited, the researchers suggest. "Simple mathematical probability, not genius, can explain why some papers are cited a lot more than others," says Vwani Roychowdhury, an electrical engineer at the University of California, Los Angeles. The assertion hinges on a previous analysis by Roychowdhury and his colleague Mikhail Simkin. Last year, they tracked identical errors in reference lists citing a seminal 1973 paper and concluded that almost 80% of authors had not read the paper in question before citing it (see Nature 420, 594; 2002). The pair have now built on that finding to generate a mathematical model to predict citation levels. They tested their prediction in an analysis of about 24,000 articles from the journal Physical Review D stored on SPIRES, a database of high-energy physics papers. The database sorts papers into six categories according to the number of citations that they receive those receiving 500 or more are classed as 'renowned'. Roychowdhury and Simkin's model closely matched the real distribution of citations. In results posted on the arXiv preprint server, they predicted that 40 papers would be cited 500 times or more. In reality, 44 articles in Physical Review D are renowned. "If people cite randomly, the citation distribution would be the same as in reality," says Roychowdhury. Given that citation patterns are similar in other sciences besides physics, the outcome of the model should be similar for biology or engineering papers, he argues. The idea is "fascinating, unorthodox and inspiring", says bibliometrics expert Anthony van Raan of Leiden University in the Netherlands. But although van Raan's research also suggests that copying is rife, he believes that citations levels generally reflect a paper's true impact. Researchers tend to copy references rationally, rather than randomly, and do so from papers that they have read, he says. Ben Martin, director of the Science Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex in Brighton, UK, points out that the new model is important, even if it only partially reflects reality. "Citations are a surrogate for quality," he says. "Some departments look at these when making decisions in recruitment or tenure. Even if this is just a quirk, it's one that is worth airing." http://xxx.lanl.gov/abs/cond-mat/0305150 Happy reading warm regards Bukhari Librarian Shantha Biotechnics Pvt Ltd Medchal, Hyderabad. email:- bukhari_786(a)rediffmail.com quickinfo(a)rediffmail.com ___________________________________________________ Impress your clients! Send mail from me @ mycompany.com . Just Rs.1499/year. Click http://www.rediffmailpro.com to know more.

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Article request...:
by Nirupama Bawdekar 22 May '03

22 May '03

Dear Colleagues, One of our scientists is in need of the following reference not available with us. Article by S. Molau entitled : The AKM Video Meteor Network, page 315-318. which has been published in: Meteoroids 2001 : Proceedings of an international conference, Kiruna, --------------------------------------------------------------------- Sweden, August 6-10, 2001, European Space Agency- Special publication --------------------------------------------------------------------- edited by B. Warmbein. --------------------- I shall appreciate receiving a photocopy of the article. Please send the same on the following address: Mrs Nirupama Bawdekar S/T Officer-Library Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics Post Bag No. 4, Ganeshkhind Pune 411 007 India Sincerely, Mrs Nirupama Bawdekar S/T Officer-C, Library

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EinsteinEinsteinEinstein - Caltech Press Release
by Library 22 May '03

22 May '03

Dear everyone, This may interest you. Use updated versions of netscape or IE. Girija Srinivasan ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Raman Research Institute Library, Tel: +91 80 361 0122 C V Raman Avenue, Sadashivanagar, Fax: +91 80 361 0492 Bangalore 560 080, India. Email: library(a)rri.res.in ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Tue, 20 May 2003 09:16:46 -0500 From: Robert Michaelson <rmichael(a)northwestern.edu> To: PAMnet Discussion List <slapam-l(a)lists.yale.edu> Subject: Re: FYI: EinsteinEinsteinEinstein - Caltech Press Release / AMNH Symposium Just as an update to Jane's message, the Einstein Archive online is now up at <http://www.alberteinstein.info/> and it is beautifully done. There is an article in today's NY Times: <http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/20/science/20EINS.html?ex=1054430676&ei=1&en…>. Bob Michaelson Northwestern University Library Evanston, Illinois 60208 USA rmichael(a)northwestern.edu At 06:53 PM 5/14/2003 -0400, Jane E Holmquist wrote: >For Immediate Release >May 14, 2003 > >Einstein Archives to Be Available Online > >PASADENA, Calif. -More than 900 scientific and nonscientific >documents of one of the most influential intellects in the modern >era, Albert Einstein, will soon be available online for the first >time. > >The Einstein Archives Online website, at >http://www.alberteinstein.info, will also be accompanied by an >extensive database of archival information. It will be launched on >May 19 during a daylong symposium on his life and work, to be held at >the American Museum of Natural History in New York. > >The new website is the result of an ambitious cooperative effort >between the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of >Jerusalem and the Einstein Papers Project at the California Institute >of Technology. It will enable access to some 3,000 high-quality >digitized images. Thirty-nine documents will also be provided (in PDF >format) as they appear in The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein, >published in German by Princeton University Press, with historical >and scientific annotations in English; some of the documents are >accompanied by English translations. > >An extensive archival database and finding aid will allow for the >direct searching and browsing of more than 40,000 records of Einstein >and Einstein-related documents. These concern his scientific and >nonscientific writings, his professional and personal correspondence, >notebooks, travel diaries, personal documents, and third-party items. > >The website was developed in collaboration with the Information >Technology and Photo-Reprography Departments of the Hebrew >University's Jewish National & University Library (JNUL), the David >and Fela Shapell Digitization Project at the JNUL, and with Princeton >University Press. The archival database will present records for all >items that have been edited and annotated by scholars, and that have >appeared since 1987 in The Collected Papers. These will include some >500 items that were not part of the original collection, but that >were uncovered during the past 25 years. The eight volumes that are >available so far contain Einstein's writings and correspondence from >his youth to age 40. They include his major papers on the theory of >special relativity, general relativity, the quantum theory of light >and matter, as well as a wealth of lesser-known contributions to many >aspects of science, education, international reconciliation, Zionism, >and pacifism. > >Einstein's personal papers were bequeathed to the Hebrew University >in his last will and testament of 1950. The Albert Einstein Archives >has been housed at the Hebrew University's JNUL since 1982. > >The Einstein Papers Project at Caltech is a multidisciplinary >research and editorial team engaged in the collection, selection, and >scholarly annotation of The Collected Papers, an edition of 25 >planned volumes of Einstein's writings and correspondence. > >The Hebrew University of Jerusalem was envisaged by its founders as a >"university of the Jewish people." Its foundation stone was laid in >1918, and its doors opened in 1925. Today, its student body totals >around 23,000 and its tenured academic faculty numbers 1,200. The >university is Israel's leading academic center for research and >postgraduate study. > >Founded in 1891, Caltech has an enrollment of some 2,000 students, >and a faculty of about 280 professorial members, 65 research members, >and some 560 postdoctoral scholars. Over the years, 30 Nobel Prizes >and four Crafoord Prizes have been awarded to faculty members and >alumni. > >The Jewish National & University Library is the central library of >the Hebrew University and the national library of the Jewish people >and the State of Israel. Founded in 1892 as a world center for the >preservation of books relating to Jewish thought and culture, it >assumed the additional functions of a general university library in >1920. > > >Contact: Mark Wheeler > (626) 395-8733 > wheel(a)caltech.edu > >Visit the Caltech Media Relations Website at http://pr.caltech.edu/media >

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SCO attempts to kill Linux
by Saiful Amin 21 May '03

21 May '03

Could SCO Be the Death of Linux? Unix vendor SCO is suing IBM, claiming Linux stole its Unix, then gave it away to the world. The Open Source Initiative just fired back with a stinging rebuke, claiming that the suit could kill Linux off just as it's starting to gain traction. Anticipating a huge legal mess, the other big enterprise OS player, Microsoft, just licensed source code and software patents from SCO. So now Big Green's in Happyland, while IBM and Linux are in the doghouse -- at least according to SCO. What will the judge say? If you use Linux or open source anywhere in your organization, this may be the most important story of the year! Read the story at: http://eletters.wnn.ziffdavis.com/zd/cts?d=75-11-1-1-692598-307-1 Regards, Saiful Amin Learning Resource Centre Indian School of Business Gachibowli Hyderabad - 500 019 Ph. +91-40-2318-7963/7999 http://purl.org/net/saiful Catch all the cricket action. Download Yahoo! Score tracker

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XLRI on strategies for e-library
by Nivedita.Sharma＠fluor.com 21 May '03

21 May '03

Hello, May some of you would be interested to participate in this programme: Nivedita Sharma Sr. Technical Librarian Fluor Daniel India Pvt. Ltd. Gurgaon ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Management Development Programme at XLRI Jamshedpur-July 2003 Topic Strategies for Electronic Libraries Dates July 28-Aug 1, 2003 Venue XLRI Jamshedpur Programme Dr. Sangayya S. Sirumath Coordinator Website http://www.xlri.ac.in/mdp For details Email at mdp(a)xlri.ac.in Some more information............................... Introduction and Objectives The electronic library is delivering information, whenever required, to the user's desktop, wherever that may be. Librarians therefore, will increasingly need to provide their services in some electronic form rather than face-to-face contact with their users. As academics become more willing and more accustomed to using electronic information on a regular basis, they will become increasingly dependent on technology for digital information access. In networked environment, information providers can supply their information directly to the end-user. Thus the move to an electronic information environment will radically alter the way in which a library operates and interacts with its users, and library professionals will need to consider their own future role as intermediaries. The electronic library will form a crucial part of an institution's information service provision and is likely to leave a much wider remit than that of the traditional library. This Programme addresses the Strategies for Electronic Libraries and library professionals who will undergo changes because of different ways which will be found to bring information from the creator to the end users. Methodology Experienced professors from library and information science area will conduct the sessions. The main instrument of learning will be case studies, exercises, presentations, discussions and practicals in computer lab. Expected Participants Professionals of Library and Information Science, working in corporate firms, Academic, Special and Public Library, will immensely benefit from this Programme. Programme Contents Electronic Library Environment Electronic Library Programme Planning for e-Library BDBMS; OPAC; e-Journals ; e-Resources; Virtual Services IT Products & Information Services Network Information System Computer Network Internet and Intranet Consortia and Resource sharing Library Web Site Design & Development Trends in Web Based Services Internet as Information Source Information Marketing Knowledge Management in e-Environment Nivedita Sharma Sr. Technical Librarian Fluor Daniel India Pvt. Ltd ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The information transmitted is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential and/or privileged material. If you are not the intended recipient of this message you are hereby notified that any use, review, retransmission, dissemination, distribution, reproduction or any action taken in reliance upon this message is prohibited. If you received this in error, please contact the sender and delete the material from any computer. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender and may not necessarily reflect the views of the company. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Offline web pages in IE
by VYASAMOORTHY /IKP/HYD 16 May '03

16 May '03

Dear Friends: You may be aware that Internet Explorer Version 5 and above provide for Offline web pages. If you would like to preserve a copy of a web page on your hard disk and want to view it without visiting (going online) the page again, you can use this facility. There are many other ways of achieving this). It is under favorites - make this page available offline. While making a Page available offline, you can schedule a job such that the page is visited automatically at desired intervals and your local file remains updated. There is also a provision to get yourself a mail message to tell that a certain Offline Page has been revised/updated! Now my question is: Can this Offline Viewing facility be used for dynamic web pages. I have found it works well for static web pages that are changed infrequently, manually. This does not seem to work for dynamic web pages coming as a result of, say, a search query. Is there a way to utilize "Make this favorite for offline Viewing' facility for dynamic web pages? If we can, then we have a very powerful tool for running SDI services. I hope all of you get what I mean! Any comments? regards Dr.P.Vyasamoorthy, Advisor, Virtual Information Centre, ICICI Knowledge Park, Turkapalli Village, Shameerpet Mandal, RR District, Hyderabad 500078 (Website: www.vic-ikp.info ) Ph: 2348 0053; Fax: 2348 0007; Ph. Res: 2784 6631

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Research essays about net 6
by Shyam Prasad pujar 16 May '03

16 May '03

Dear Members, Following site has a good compilation of around 4200 research essays about the net (Internet studies and Network Research). Most research essays listed here are from 2003 down to 1999. It could be useful for some of you. http://www.netzwissenschaft.de/sem/pool.htm Regards, S.M. Pujar ********************************************************************** Shamprasad M. Pujar Assistant Librarian Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research Gen. Vaidya Marg, Film City Road Goregaon (East) MUMBAI-400 065 India %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% * Phone: (022) 28400919-21 Extn: 514 * * Fax: (022) 28402752 * * E-mail: pujar(a)igidr.ac.in * * URL: http://www.igidr.ac.in * %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

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by Subbiah Arunachalam 16 May '03

16 May '03

Friends: Do we really value information seeking skills? Do our organizations - academic, corporate, government, non-governmental - really encourage people to develop skills for searching and sharing information? Do we recognise gatekeepers and information evangelists? Here is something an outstanding development information specialist has said in another list. Read and I am sure he will set you thinking. Arun [Subbiah Arunachalam] -------- Here is a URL for a paper I wrote on "The Practical Reality of Knowledge Management within Development Initiatives" - http://www.telecommons.com/reports.cfm?itemid=219 - click on the Microsoft Word icon to download the paper. The paper touches on some of the organizational requirements necessary for staff - such as extension workers - to feel comfortable seeking, sharing and using information/knowledge. The simple task of searching the Internet for information requires some skill, but more importantly, staff require an organizational mandate and clear support from management so that they can spend time accessing information, and have management encouragement to use the tools they need to do so. If an extension worker wants to spend two hours at a local cybercafe to search for information on the carabao industry, for example, do their managers actively encourage them to do so? Do their job descriptions include this task? Has the organization developed simple procedures - staff meetings, lunch seminars, internal and external newsletters, etc. - to help staff share what they have learned? Is there a performance appraisal procedure that acknowledges and rewards time spent searching for and sharing information? Are their extension outreach mechanisms that allow extension workers to help farmers make use of what the extension worker has learned? Does the organization spend time developing staff skills to insure that information it produces is clear, valuable to audiences, and of high quality? Internal organizational structures and procedures are critically important. I find, however, that extension and research organizations do not often spend a great deal of time planning how to integrate knowledge management into day to day work so that concrete improvements in agricultural systems can be realized. Organizations that are serious about knowledge management, involve staff members and managers in participatory planning exercises to design the processes, policies and procedures to make it work. And they set measurable goals and objectives to monitor and improve processes, policies and procedures as they move along. Good, participatory planning leads can address some of the questions Ajit asks: - identification of skills that need improvement, and ways to improve those skills - identification of institutional and infrastructural constraints, and ways to transcend those constraints, remove them, or create new incentives - identification of possible local, regional, national and international communities of practice that managers and staff wish to associate with for knowledge sharing - and practical ways to take advantage of those communities of practice Finally, staff incentives are critically important - perhaps the most important component of knowledge management. People tend to work on tasks that are rewarding - personally, organizationally, financially, etc. This is also true for senior managers who seek to implement knowledge management activities - they require high level organizational mandates and incentives tied to knowledge management performance outcomes for the staff they supervise. All the best, Don Richardson Director TeleCommons Development Group ESG International Guelph, Ontario, Canada Email: don(a)telecommons.com

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Indian Science output- a report -In-Cites
by Mailing List Manager 14 May '03

14 May '03

---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 14 May 2003 10:09:17 +0530 (IST) From: Shalini R.Urs <shalini(a)vidyanidhi.org.in> We have been hearing (sometimes) conflicting reports about India's Science Output. Here is a recent report that you might find interesting.India's number of papers and average citations per paper are steadily increasing! The ISI Research Services Group has prepared this data and has made it available through the Science Watch publication and corresponding on-line version called In-Cites. You can find the report at the URL below. http://www.in-cites.com/countries/india.html -- Shalini ------------- Prof.Shalini R.Urs Project Director Vidyanidhi-Indian Digital Library of Electronic Theses Department of library and Information Science University of Mysore Manasagangotri Mysore.570006. India Ph:91-821-514699 Fax:91-821-519209 Website:http://www.vidyanidhi.org.in

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RE: [LIS-Forum] Classification on Ayurveda (fwd)
by Mailing List Manager 13 May '03

13 May '03

Date: Mon, 12 May 2003 17:19:42 +0530 From: VYASAMOORTHY /IKP/HYD <Vyasamoorthy(a)icicikp.com> Dear Friends: Niscom Project on Traditional Knowledge Dihital Library also looks into Classification aspects. Here is a news item: ======== TKDL- A safeguard for Indian traditional knowledge by Nirupa Sen Excerpted from: Current Science 82 (9): 1070-71. India has woken up to the task of protecting her traditional knowledge from patent bio-piracy. The trigger was the successful revoking by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) of patents filed on turmeric, neem and basmati. This success set the tarmac from which the new initiative called the 'Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL)' is getting ready for flight. The first phase of TKDL on ayurveda is marked for completion in October this year. For bringing out a TKDL on ayurveda, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed on 6 June 2001 between the National Institute of Science Communication (NISCOM), New Delhi and the Department of Indian Systems of Medicine and Homeopathy (ISM&H), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. When compiled, TKDL would have documented the traditional knowledge available in the public domain in a digitized format. Starting with the existing literature in ayurveda, it would later cover unani, siddha, naturopathy, homeopathy and folklore medicine. In the first phase, a 'Traditional Knowledge Resource Classification (TKRC)' is being prepared for 2147 medicinal plants. The content of TKDL would initially consist of about 35,000 'slokas' (verses) from ayurveda. These slokas gleaned from 14 ancient texts and recognized books would be digitally transcribed into a readable form and made available both in Indian and foreign languages. The methodology adopted in setting up TKDL is explained below. TKDL would help patent examiners the world over to have a ready reference to Indian traditional knowledge, while granting patents in such domains. The project cost for TKDL is about Rs.1.18 crore. TKDL is an effort that brings together the Department of ISM&H, CSIR and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. : At the inauguration of TKDL in New-Delhi on 26 March 2002, the Minister of Health and Family Welfare, C. P. Thakur emphasized that TKDL would play 'a crucial role not only in documenting our precious heritage in the area of traditional health-care systems, but also in preventing bio-piracy and un- - scrupulous patenting of indigenous herbal medicinal formulations'. He stated that in the prevailing era of globalization, only the efficient would survive. Therefore we need to protect ourselves from theft of traditional knowledge. The TKDL, he added, could also serve as a useful reference point for research workers. The awareness that such a library would create might help the cause of preventing extinction of rare species. Awareness generated could be helpful in the propagation of such species in conjunction with farmers, Thakur felt. R. A. Mashelkar, Director General of CSIR, while speaking on this occasion pointed out that the global market for herbal/traditional medicines is US $ 60 billion, with an annual growth rate of 5- 15%. In this, China's share is about US $ 7-8 billion and India's US $ 400- 500 million. He also referred to a TKDL Task Force study of the US Patent and Trade Mark Office (USPTO) database conducted in March 2000. The study showed that out of 4896 references on 90 medicinal plants mentioned in the USPTO database, 80% of these references was on seven medicinal plants of Indian origin: Kumari, 'Mustaka, Tamraparna, Garjara, Atasi, Jambira, Kharbuja. The findings revealed that out of the 762 patents on medicinal plants studied, 360 of them could be characterized as traditional. There has been international acceptance of TKDL, Recently, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) constituted a group of members from USPTO, China, Japan, European Patent Office and India for discussing the findings of the TKDL Task Force. The group presented their views at the International Patent Classification (IPC) Union meeting in February this year. The outcome is to create a new sub-class for TKRC in IPC and link TKRC with ayurveda. India's TKDL database has also been selected for a pilot study by 170 member states of WIPO. India presently is not a member of the IPC Union. When completed, TKDL would help patent examiners for easy retrieval of traditional knowledge-related information, thus avoiding the possibility of granting patents to unoriginal inventions. Further, a review process of patents already granted in light of the TKDL database would help in cancellation of some patents. Methodology used for TKDL Slokas from ayurvedic texts are first identified. Each sloka is read and converted into structured language using Traditional Knowledge Resource Classification (TKRC). TKRC is innovative in itself. The TKRC classification has been evolved for about 5000 subgroups as against one group in file International Patent Classification (IPC) for traditional knowledge. The TKDL portal would be based on XML standards and would be platform-independent. The codes for each sloka are fed into a data entry screen and also saved on the database. Computer-savvy ayurveda experts carry out the data entry. These are then decoded in different languages. The ayurvedic formulations can be presently decoded in English, French, German, Hindi, Japanese and Spanish. In future, it would be available in 20 foreign languages and all Indian languages. The decoded format of the formulation is easy to read and understand, even by the layman. The web version of TKDL would include a web-based search interface. This would provide for a full text search and retrieval of traditional knowledge information on IPC and keywords in multiple languages. TKRC would be an integral part of TKDL, and would provide a background on ayurvedic concepts, definitions and scientific basis of Indian systems of medicine. In addition, it would carry information on practitioners, hospitals and dispensaries. There are several search features incorporated in the format. According to V. K. Gupta, Director of National Institute of Science Communication, the TKDL software developed in-house does not do transliteration but it does smart translation. Once abstracted, data from the slokas are converted into several languages using Unicode meta data methodology. The software developed can perform smart translation of botanical names and ayurvedic descriptions from traditional terminology into modern terminology. Examples of this are 'Kumari' to 'Aloe Vera', or 'Mussorika' to 'small pox', etc. Nirupa Sen, 1333 Poorvanchal Complex, I.N.U. New Campus, New Delhi 110067, India (e-mail: nirupasen(a)vsnl.net) ================== Dr.P.Vyasamoorthy, Advisor, Virtual Information Centre, ICICI Knowledge Park, Turkapalli Village, Shameerpet Mandal, RR District, Hyderabad 500078 (Website: www.vic-ikp.info ) Ph: 2348 0053; Fax: 2348 0007; Ph. Res: 2784 6631

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