How to succeed with grant applications - Zoë Corbyn

Interesting article in Nature News on "How to succeed with grant applications" by Zoë Corbyn - Look at the respondent views underneath for more insight


Read the article here: http://ht.ly/4RmVj

An Intellectual Property System for the Internet Age, James Boyle

Excellent review of copyright issues being reviewed in the UK currently.
An Intellectual Property System for the Internet Age, James Boyle
In November 2010, the Prime Minister commissioned a review of the Britain’s intellectual property laws and their effect on economic growth, quoting the founders of Google that “they could never have started their company in Britain” because of a lack of flexibility in British copyright.. Mr. Cameron wanted to see if we could have UK intellectual property laws “fit for the Internet age.” Today the Review will be published. Its conclusion? “Could it be true that laws designed more than three centuries ago with the express purpose of creating economic incentives for innovation by protecting creators’ rights are today obstructing innovation and economic growth? The short answer is: yes.” Those words are from Professor Ian Hargreaves, head of the Review. (Full disclosure: I was on the Review’s panel of expert advisors.)

The Review makes 10 specific recommendations covering patent, copyright and the policy-making process. Some examples: Patent law needs reform to prevent the formation of “thickets” that actually impede innovation, while patents should never be extended to non-technical software inventions or business methods. We found that while patents are working well for standalone innovations, such as a particular drug developed to treat a particular disease, there are problems in technical fields marked by “sequential innovation” such as information technology.
Read the full article here: http://www.thepublicdomain.org/2011/05/18/the-hargreaves-review-is-published/

The Value of Libraries to Research and Researchers

RLUK/ RIN Report 'The Value of Libraries to Research and Researchers'. Press Release and key points at http://bit.ly/mPz3R1

Guide for Researchers on Using Social Media for Research

Excellent Guide for Researchers on Using Social Media for Research by the Research Information Network
http://www.rin.ac.uk/system/files/attachments/social_media_guide_for_screen.pdf

New Guide to Web 2.0/Social Media for Arts and Humanities

Chances are, if you are reading this post, then you are already familiar with Web 2.0 tools that can facilitate you in your research. But if not, you might like to check out Web 2.0 for arts and humanities researchers which is a resource created by Newcastle University Library to show academic researchers (particularly in arts and humanities) how web 2.0 (or 'social media') can help at all stages of the research process. The site contains brief web tutorials illustrated with real-life examples. Worth a look!

NUIG's Library Research Week timed to coincide with International Open Access Week

October 18-22 will be the first Library Research Week at National University of Ireland, Galway. There will be a series of talks and seminars throughout the week, both in the Library and in research centres to promote library services and collections supporting researchers. The event has been timed to coincide with International Open Access Week, so there will be talks covering open access publishing, including our own institutional repository, ARAN. There will also be an exhibition of material from the Archives and Special Collections. For the full programme please see http://www.library.nuigalway.ie/support/supportforresearchers/researchweek/

To check out the other events being organised internationally to celebrate International Open Access Week have a look at http://www.openaccessweek.org/

Gwen Ryan
Research Support Librarian for Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences
National University of Ireland, Galway

Impact and Value of International University Rankings

From this week's THE:
Measured, and found wanting more
International comparisons of universities still have their detractors, but the appetite for them continues to grow. Phil Baty traces their roots and looks at how they are increasing in number and quality, while Ellen Hazelkorn considers their impact and value

Ellen's original article is available at http://arrow.dit.ie/cserart/2
Hazelkorn, E. (2009) 'Rankings and the Battle for World-Class Excellence: Institutional Strategies and Policy Choices', Higher Education Management and Policy, 21 (1)