DigitalKoans – What Is the Sound of One E-Print Downloading?

DigitalKoans Posts Resume on 4/14/2025

DigitalKoans posts will resume on 4/14/2025.

Senior Software Developer (Digital Preservation) at University of Cambridge (Term)

Based within the Digital Innovation and Software Development team and working with the Programme’s Technical Lead, the role will focus on implementing systems and tools for digital preservation, including a cloud-native, open-source repository and preservation system with serverless workflows, and enabling and ensuring ongoing access and supporting tools for the deposit, search, discovery, and use of digital materials in the Library’s collections.

https://www.jobs.cam.ac.uk/job/50773/

“OpenAI’s New Image Generator Aims to Be Practical Enough for Designers and Advertisers”

Example images from OpenAI show progress here. The model is able to generate 12 discrete graphics within a single image—like a cat emoji or a lightning bolt—and place them in proper order. Another shows four cocktails accompanied by recipe cards with accurate, legible text. More images show comic strips with text bubbles, mock advertisements, and instructional diagrams. The model also allows you to upload images to be modified, and it will be available in the video generator Sora as well as in GPT-4o.

https://tinyurl.com/msnch7z5

Metadata Operations Specialist at Yale University

In this role, the Metadata Operations Specialist will leverage technical expertise to develop and execute automated solutions for metadata transformation and reconciliation. Usage of scripting languages such as Python and query languages such as SQL, SPARQL, or XQuery, as well as metadata tools and APIs, will be important for optimizing workflows and driving efficiency in metadata operations. The incumbent will also explore and recommend innovative technologies, including artificial intelligence and machine learning methods, to advance metadata processes and support the library’s evolving metadata ecosystem.

https://tinyurl.com/y3errrax

Vice-Provost (Libraries) and University Librarian at University of Manitoba

The University of Manitoba is the province’s only medical doctoral institution and is a member of Canada’s U15 group of research-intensive universities. The University offers a robust and diverse suite of over 100 graduate programs taught by award-winning professors and in partnerships with over 40 research centres and institutes. The University generates more than $1.7 billion in annual economic activity and attracts 200 million dollars annually in sponsored research income. The University’s culturally diverse community is home to over 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students, of which 21.3% are international students representing over 122 countries. . . .

In this role, the Vice-Provost (Libraries) serves as the principal expert on libraries, archives, and digital technologies, ensuring UML remains a dynamic hub of knowledge, discovery, and academic support.

https://tinyurl.com/4yt8bt27

“What’s in a Name? Exploring How Voluntary Library Data Literacy Workshop Titles and Descriptions Affect Learner Motivations to Enroll”

This study examined a large teaching and research-intensive university’s data library that offers several data literacy workshops. Although the data library’s voluntary data literacy workshops can be popular, with some workshops waitlisted, interest ebbs and flows. One way to improve the situation is to better market library workshops through effectively crafting workshop titles and descriptions that encourage engagement. Duke and Tucker (2007) state that it is important to market academic library services to increase service use and meet the needs of its users. Understanding marketing barriers is essential to improving workshop engagement.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2025.103045

Instructional Services Librarian & Coordinator of Digital Experience at Lycoming College

Design and teach inclusive information literacy sessions for academic departments based on the candidate’s experience and interests as well as campus needs. . . .

Support the maintenance and updates of the library’s website.

Manage project-based improvements to digital services, such as the library’s website, by conducting usability studies. . . .

Oversee uploads and troubleshoot issues related to the Institutional Repository, ensuring accurate metadata, proper file formatting, and seamless access for users.

https://tinyurl.com/5yujhx7h

“Evaluating AI Language Models for Reference Services: A Comparative Study of ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot”

The descriptive statistics indicate that Google Gemini outperformed the other GenAI chatbots, by scoring high on “accuracy,” relevancy,” “friendliness” and “instruction” resulting in a higher mean score followed by public ChatGPT, commercial ChatGPT-4.0, and Microsoft Copilot.

https://doi.org/10.1080/10875301.2025.2478861

“Enhancing FAIR Data Practices in the Norwegian Research Data Archive: Towards Research Objects and Improved Interoperability”

The increasing volume and complexity of research data necessitate robust data management practices to ensure data is Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable (FAIR). The Norwegian Research Data Archive (NRDA) is at the forefront of efforts to create a comprehensive platform for researchers to share and archive their data. This paper discusses NRDA’s ongoing initiatives to enhance its infrastructure in alignment with FAIR principles, emphasizing the integration of Research Objects (ROs) and RO-Crate technologies. These improvements aim to facilitate better data discoverability, accessibility, and interoperability, thereby fostering a more integrated and sustainable data ecosystem. The paper also highlights NRDA’s collaborative efforts with other platforms via the use of Research Objects to support data sharing and reuse across repositories. By focusing on standardized metadata, persistent identifiers, and interoperability, NRDA is advancing Open Science practices, ultimately contributing to a more transparent, efficient, and collaborative research environment. The challenges and future directions of these initiatives are also explored, providing insights into the ongoing efforts to create a more open and interconnected scientific landscape.

https://doi.org/10.52825/ocp.v5i.1202

“Scaffolding AI Literacy: An Instructional Model for Academic Librarianship”

As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes integral to academic, professional, and societal contexts, the demand for AI literacy in higher education is growing. Academic librarians, with their expertise in information literacy and critical pedagogy, are well-equipped to address this need. This article introduces a scaffolded model to advance AI literacy through progressive skill development across four tiers: foundational awareness, applied problem-solving, critical evaluation, and ethical advocacy. Each tier builds on the previous, fostering a comprehensive understanding of AI concepts, tools, and societal implications. Adapted from traditional information literacy workshops, this instructional model empowers students to navigate, critique, and responsibly engage with AI technologies. Tier 1 introduces basic AI concepts and tools. Tier 2 examines AI’s role in research and problem-solving, addressing practical applications and limitations. Tier 3 emphasizes the critical evaluation of AI-generated content and tools. Tier 4 focuses on ethical decision-making and advocacy, encouraging students to consider AI’s broader societal impacts. This article discusses the proposed model’s pedagogical design, details its application through workshop plans, and explores its implications for academic librarians’ roles in fostering AI literacy. By implementing this approach, librarians can equip students to become critical consumers of AI technologies.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2025.103041

“Portico to Preserve Clarivate’s Ebook Central”

Portico has signed an agreement with Clarivate to preserve books available to academic libraries through Ebook Central. This agreement ensures the long-term preservation of this expansive collection. Portico will also receive new books added to Ebook Central in the future.

https://librarytechnology.org/pr/31206

Senior Digital Collections Specialist at Library of Congress

This position serves as the Senior Digital Collections Specialist and is located within the Technology Policy Directorate in Library Services. The position reports to the Head, Digital Content Management Section of the Digital Collections Management & Services Division. The Digital Content Management Section is responsible for providing digital acquisitions support to Library Services, and for the lifecycle management of digital collections that are not otherwise under the care of a custodial division. The section also is responsible for managing the Library’s web archiving program and collections, and provides advice and assistance to the Law Library as needed. Digital Content Management Section staff collaborates with other Library curatorial units, technical staff, and external organizations to establish best practices, implement new and streamline existing digital workflows, identify digital content management problems, and propose solutions for the content within the scope of the section.

https://tinyurl.com/8wyu6yhr

“The New Zealand Thesis Project: Connecting a Nation’s Dissertations Using Wikidata”

Introduction: Libraries hold large amounts of bibliographic data, with great potential for enrichment with linked open data. The New Zealand Thesis Project explored this potential by uploading thesis metadata records from New Zealand institutional repositories to Wikidata, a collaborative linked data knowledge base.

Description of Project: Nine New Zealand tertiary institutions collaborated with four Wikidata experts to upload a combined national dataset of doctoral and master’s theses. Thesis records, including author and advisor names and richly described with main subject statements, were extracted from each repository, combined, and data cleaned before being uploaded to Wikidata. The team then undertook additional data enrichment, round-tripped Wikidata’s QID identifiers back to individual repositories, and used the new records to cite theses on authors’ Wikipedia pages. Wikidata queries and other visualizations were created to demonstrate how connecting the thesis metadata to records for authors, advisors, institutions, and subjects allows new insights into our collections.

Next Steps: Documentation is being fine-tuned to support future similar projects, and a second combined upload is under discussion to continue growing the New Zealand Thesis Project. There is considerable scope to continue enriching Wikidata records, some of which is already underway by Wikidata volunteers.

https://doi.org/10.31274/jlsc.18295

Digital Archivist at Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Act as liaison to curatorial staff and internal content producers to manage the selection, description, preservation, and archiving of digital assets.

Perform content audits and verify fixity of born-digital collections.

Manage preservation ingests and monitor file-based workflows for proxy creation; identify preservation issues and report problems to AMPAS staff and system vendors

https://tinyurl.com/mr9cjxft

“The Quest to Share Data”

Data sharing in scientific research is widely acknowledged as crucial for accelerating progress and innovation. Mandates from funders, such as the NIH’s updated Data Sharing Policy, have been beneficial in promoting data sharing. However, the effectiveness of such mandates relies heavily on the motivation of data providers. Despite policy-imposed requirements, many researchers may only comply minimally, resulting in data that is inadequately reusable. Here, we discuss the multifaceted challenges of incentivizing data sharing and the complex interplay of factors involved. Our paper delves into the motivations of various stakeholders, including funders, investigators, and data users, highlighting the differences in perspectives and concerns. We discuss the role of guidelines, such as the FAIR principles, in promoting good data management practices but acknowledge the practical and ethical challenges in implementation. We also examine the impact of infrastructure on data sharing effectiveness, emphasizing the need for systems that support efficient data discovery, access, and analysis. We address disparities in resources and expertise among researchers and concerns related to data misuse and misinterpretation. Here, we advocate for a holistic approach to incentivizing data sharing beyond mere compliance with mandates. It calls for the development of reward systems, financial incentives, and supportive infrastructure to encourage researchers to share data enthusiastically and effectively. By addressing these challenges collaboratively, the scientific community can realize the full potential of data sharing to advance knowledge and innovation.

https://doi.org/10.3389/fninf.2025.1570568

Data Librarian at University of Toronto

Provide in-depth research consultations on the planning, management, use, curation, deposit and sharing of research data

Develop and deliver instructional sessions, material and web resources on research data management and other data-related topics

Liaise with academic programs involved in data-intensive research and instruction

https://tinyurl.com/2vjt54zb

“A Master Class in Destroying Trust”

Clarivate’s dismissal of one-time purchases is alarming, but when you consider the company’s larger strategy, it makes sense. On the Q4 earnings call, Shem Tov refers to one-time purchases as “a drain.” He also says that Clarivate has “retained financial advisers to help us in evaluating strategic alternatives to unlock value. This may include divesting business units or an entire segment.” He goes on to say, “There is no guarantee that anything actionable will arise from this process,” but considering Clarivate will no longer sell books, Clarivate’s furthering its investment in data should make us wary.

https://tinyurl.com/y57tdkz3

Digital Scholarship & Sciences Research Specialist Librarian at University of Nebraska-Lincoln

The Digital Scholarship & Sciences Research Specialist Librarian develops instruction and consults on research projects to leverage computational approaches, including using scripting tools, databases, APIs, large language models, social network analysis, and/or text analysis. Areas of support may include data analysis, data cleaning, and data visualization, and using programming languages or applications like Tableau or Flourish. This librarian will actively participate in the field of digital scholarship, leading our department engagement with efforts like Library Carpentries and Data Carpentries.

https://employment.unl.edu/postings/96265

“Making Your Repository (More) Accessible”

Introduction: As colleges and universities make increasing and overdue efforts under the auspices of access, equity, and inclusion to make their resources accessible to all users, these efforts must extend to the institution’s online presence, including its institutional repository. IR managers must first ask what “accessible” means for compliance with university policies as well as the Americans with Disability Act (ADA), immediately followed by plans for both remediating existing content and imposing best practices on new content, amid current workflows and budgetary restraints.

Literature Review: Literature on the topic of accessibility in IRs has mostly focused on the need to make collections accessible and the challenges for doing so. Advice on how to navigate the actual process is harder to come by.

Description of Service: The University of Mississippi established a goal that everything going into its IR would use OCR software to convert images of text into searchable text and create a process by which patrons could request remediation of older content from the IR, whether documents or recordings. A combination of shared tools (including Equidox and SensusAccess) and interdepartmental partnerships has made a significant difference in making these digital collections proactively accessible.

Next Steps: We continue to maintain partnerships with units around campus, made challenging by frequent turnover as in demand specialists take positions at other institutions. Despite our efforts to provide searchable text as a minimum level of service, OCR correction provides tags but not necessarily headings or alt-text. Hopefully future versions of OCR editors will include such features.

https://doi.org/10.31274/jlsc.18308

Research Data Librarian at Dartmouth College

This position works as part of the Dartmouth Libraries’ Research Facilitation team to develop and deliver a robust suite of services supporting data-intensive advanced research and curricular needs at Dartmouth. The person in this position will coordinate, develop, and provide deep research support, curricular and co-curricular educational modules, and data-related collections services to faculty, students, and staff. They will hold primary liaison responsibility for the economics department, and will work with other data-intensive subject areas, programs, and centers.

https://tinyurl.com/2zar5hf5

“Making an Open Information Literacy Textbook: A Case Study in OER Collaborations Among Four Oklahoma Academic Librarians”

Springboarding from a statewide initiative, four academic librarians from three different universities collaborated to create an openly licensed textbook on the Pressbooks platform that could be easily embedded into one-shots or general education research courses. The project developed over the span of a year, which included: planning, exploring, creating, evaluating, sharing, and implementing. The first three steps taught the authors to set and agree upon shared expectations early, decide to either clone or create original content, and trust remixing material from other OER is firmly within the moral framework of sharing knowledge. In the final three stages the authors learned to recruit more reviewers/editors than needed, recognize when to turn off perfectionism and publish, and stay open to new collaborative opportunities. The authors experienced firsthand how OER transforms libraries from information gate-keepers to become content owners. This transformation brings libraries closer to their missions of access for all.

https://doi.org/10.33011/newlibs/18/2

Digital Preservation Librarian at Tulane University

The Digital Preservation Librarian leads the development of the cohesive digital preservation program ensuring the long-term access and preservation of digital assets under Tulane University Libraries’(TUL) stewardship. In collaboration with other library units, the Digital Preservation Librarian maintains and updates TUL Digital Preservation Framework, policies and practices appropriate for the long-term management and preservation of TUL’s digital assets both digitized and born-digital.

https://apply.interfolio.com/161582

“What Are Journals and Reviewers Concerned about in Data Papers? Evidence From Journal Guidelines and Review Reports”

The evolution of data journals and the increase in data papers call for associated peer review, which is intricately linked yet distinct from traditional scientific paper review. This study investigates the data paper review guidelines of 22 scholarly journals that publish data papers and analyses 131 data papers’ review reports from the journal Data. Peer review is an essential part of scholarly publishing. Although the 22 data journals employ disparate review models, their review purposes and requirements exhibit similarities. Journal guidelines provide authors and reviewers with comprehensive references for reviewing, which cover the entire life cycle of data. Reviewer attitudes predominantly encompass Suggestion, Inquiry, Criticism and Compliment during the specific review process, focusing on 18 key targets including manuscript writing, diagram presentation, data process and analysis, references and review and so forth. In addition, objective statements and other general opinions are also identified. The findings show the distinctive characteristics of data publication assessment and summarise the main concerns of journals and reviewers regarding the evaluation of data papers.

https://doi.org/10.1002/leap.2001

Web and User Experience Specialist at University of Cincinnati

The University of Cincinnati Libraries (UCL) seeks a Web & User Experience Specialist to support and advance UCL’s mission by ensuring its website and digital resources are discoverable, accessible, and aligned with the needs of the university community. This position will oversee the content and continuous improvement of the UCL website, ensuring usability, accuracy, and accessibility. The Web & User Experience Specialist will collaborate with library partners to develop and implement strategies that optimize the library’s digital services and overall web experience.

https://tinyurl.com/3rva7bmp

“NVIDIA Announces DGX Spark and DGX Station Personal AI Computers”

DGX Spark — formerly Project DIGITS — and DGX Station™, a new high-performance NVIDIA Grace Blackwell desktop supercomputer powered by the NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra platform, enable AI developers, researchers, data scientists and students to prototype, fine-tune and inference large models on desktops. Users can run these models locally or deploy them on NVIDIA DGX Cloud or any other accelerated cloud or data center infrastructure. . . .

NVIDIA DGX Station brings data-center-level performance to desktops for AI development. The first desktop system to be built with the NVIDIA GB300 Grace Blackwell Ultra Desktop Superchip, DGX Station features a massive 784GB of coherent memory space to accelerate large-scale training and inferencing workloads. The GB300 Desktop Superchip features an NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra GPU with latest-generation Tensor Cores and FP4 precision — connected to a high-performance NVIDIA Grace™ CPU via NVLink-C2C — delivering best-in-class system communication and performance.

https://tinyurl.com/2r66z523

Ars Technica reports that: “Since the systems will be manufactured by different companies, Nvidia did not mention pricing for the units. However, in January, Nvidia mentioned that the base-level configuration for a DGX Spark-like computer would retail for around $3,000.”