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Weekly News Digest

March 22, 2018 — In addition to this week's NewsBreaks article and the monthly NewsLink Spotlight, Information Today, Inc. (ITI) offers Weekly News Digests that feature recent product news and company announcements. Watch for additional coverage to appear in the next print issue of Information Today.

CLICK HERE to view more Weekly News Digest items.

MyScienceWork Debuts Polaris OS Data Analysis Tool

MyScienceWork rolled out Polaris OS, an “open source solution for archiving and analyzing data” that is available on GitHub. It is designed to “improve data management, research impact analysis and user experience” at research institutions, according to the press release. With a configurable API Store and pay-per-view data models, an administrator console, tools for visualizing research results, and more, the solution helps users engage in strategic decision making. It draws on existing information systems’ scientific, technological, financial, and managerial data and models, cleans up, structures, and enriches the data.

For more information, read the press release.

OCLC Plans Release of Wise Community Engagement System

OCLC is launching Wise, a solution it calls “the first community engagement system for U.S. public libraries.” They can use Wise’s tools for increasing community engagement—which are integrated with the functions of library management—to create more personalized and targeted communications and distribute them to their communities and to make decisions about their collections to reflect community needs, thus strengthening their relationships with patrons and building new connections with others. According to the press release, “This collection management approach combines internal expertise with evidence-based advice about what to keep, buy, move, weed—down to the shelf level and in real time.” Wise is currently being used by more than 75% of public libraries in the Netherlands, and it will be available in the U.S. later this year.

For more information, read the press release.

National Geographic Debuts a Special Issue Centered on Race

National Geographic is publishing a special issue “that explores how race defines, separates, and unites us.” A series “about racial, ethnic, and religious groups and their changing roles” will run through 2018. Muslims, Latinos, Asian-Americans, and Native Americans will be featured, among other groups. Debra Adams Simmons writes:
National Geographic strives to deepen our understanding of the world and our role in it. It’s difficult to understand 21st-century America without exploring the issue of race. It’s the elephant in the room, permeating every aspect of our culture, neighborhoods, schools, businesses, politics, sports, arts, and relationships.
While science tells us that there is no such thing as race, society uses racial distinctions to divide us. Throughout history, groups of people have classified those who were different from them as the ‘other.’ On the eve of the 50th anniversary of the assassination of civil rights leader Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., we decided to look deeply into these issues with a distinct National Geographic lens. Our stories reflect a view that is global, scientific, and cultural.

For more information, read the article.

OK Go Musicians Want Teachers to Play in Their Sandbox

OK Go partnered with the Playful Learning Lab to create OK Go Sandbox, a suite of resources for teachers who use the band’s videos in their classrooms to help students explore STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) concepts. According to the website, “OK Go Sandbox is about bringing different ideas, disciplines, and people together to explore creativity and learning. Director Geoff Shelton is creating new videos specifically designed to inspire classroom discussions and projects.” The band is encouraging feedback and ideas from educators (email hello@okgosandbox.org).

For more information, read the Instagram post.

IFLA's Global Vision Report Summary Features Responses From Worldwide Libraries

The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) released the “Global Vision Report Summary: Top 10 Highlights and Opportunities,” which collects contributions from more than 31,000 participants from 190 United Nations member states across seven continents. Now IFLA is focusing on the second phase of the Global Vision initiative: building an “ideas store” and turning ideas into actions. The press release states:
Overwhelmingly, the most important key finding from the global vision discussion is the discovery that we are globally united in our goals.  Across regions, library types and length of engagement with libraries, we share a deep commitment to the enduring value and role of libraries. 
 
This gives us a strong foundation in which to explore how a connected library field can meet the challenges of the future.

For more information, read the press release.

Cengage Joins Forces With Follett to Expand the Reach of Cengage Unlimited

Cengage and Follett entered into an extensive partnership for distributing, marketing, and promoting the Cengage Unlimited subscription service, which will be available at all of Follett’s 1,200-plus campus bookstores (and online) in fall 2018. With Cengage Unlimited, students get access to more than 22,000 products across 70 disciplines and 675-plus courses for a flat fee of $119.99 per semester. They can rent materials for free if they pay a $7.99 shipping fee. Cengage and Follett developed a digital integration for delivering Cengage materials to stores and online.

For more information, read the press release.

'YouTube's Wikipedia Partnership Doesn't Solve Either Site's Fact Checking Issues' by John Bonazzo

John Bonazzo writes in Observer that YouTube announced “it will begin including Wikipedia links alongside videos touting conspiracy theories. … The site already labels state-run media clips as part of this initiative.” The new feature, which offers “a brief excerpt from the topic’s Wikipedia page and a link to the full encyclopedia entry” will appear on videos that cover “events like the moon landing, which some conspiracy theorists believe was faked.” Bonazzo cautions that Wikipedia entries for topics such as money and acupuncture “are filled with falsehoods” and concludes, “Given that Wikipedia is still working out its own fact checking procedures, it may not be the cure-all YouTube thinks it is.”

For more information, read the article.

ACS Commits to the Sustainability of the ChemRxiv Preprint Server

The American Chemical Society (ACS) joined forces with the Royal Society of Chemistry and the German Chemical Society (GDCh) to support the financial and strategic development of ChemRxiv. According to the press release, “This strategic partnership among three of the largest scientific societies in the chemical sciences will enable researchers to rapidly disseminate their findings in a forum that is free and globally accessible.” It will also ensure the sustainability of the service and allow it to continue to provide researchers around the world with access to preprints from all fields of chemistry.

For more information, read the press release.

TLC and Mackin Partner for Access to Educational E-Resources

The Library Corp. (TLC) teamed up with Mackin to integrate the MackinVIA educational e-resources platform with TLC’s Library•Solution for Schools public access catalog (PAC), bringing Mackin’s capabilities to TLC’s customer base. According to the press release, this partnership “enables borrowers to find and manage MackinVIA titles alongside other library collections using a single interface. Borrowers can check out, download, return and renew, and place holds on MackinVIA titles with TLC’s LS2 PAC and LS2 Kids, creating a seamless integration with a single user account.”

For more information, read the press release.

bibliotheca Brings open+ Library Management Solution to New Market

bibliotheca launched its open library solution, open+, in North America. Library staffers can use its central management hub to control building access, security, automation, and audio announcements; configure open hours; and monitor library activity. Additionally, it integrates with their existing ILS and other tools. It is designed to provide “more convenient access for users, more flexibility for library staff and more opportunities for libraries to make an impact within their communities.”

For more information, read the press release.



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