Conference Papers
Recent Submissions
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The impact of Big Data on an Intellectual Property Literacy training program(SLA/AGC, 2018-03-08) [Conference Paper]
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Exploring the Need for Intellectual Property Information Literacy for Business and STEM Disciplines(Communications in Computer and Information Science, Springer Nature, 2018-01-19) [Conference Paper]A major component of any information literacy training program incorporates training on copyright and fair use. While in the library literature, librarians have provided excellent training on understanding copyright and appropriate use, they have not focused on providing training on other forms of intellectual property (IP), particularly patents. As IP in the form of patents is becoming exponentially more important in the research-to-commercialization process, more work on information literacy training about patents is needed. This paper provides definitions of IP literacy, places the value of IP literacy in a larger context, looks at target audiences, proposes a framework for IP literacy and provides suggestions about the role that librarians can play in developing IP literacies beyond copyright.
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Design and Implementation of a Campus-Wide Online Plagiarism Tutorial: Role played by the Library in an emerging research institution in Saudi Arabia(2017-06-20) [Conference Paper]Academic dishonesty and plagiarism are serious issues in institutes of higher education especially in this Internet age with academic literature and information readily available on the web. Some research studies point to the students’ lack of understanding of the concept of plagiarism and how to cite sources as reasons why they plagiarize (Volkov, Volkov, & Tedford, 2011). Academic librarians have an important role to play in providing instruction in the ethical use of information and helping students develop abilities to attribute and cite sources in their academic writing (Mages & Garson, 2010; Maxymuk, 2006). Recognizing this important role played by librarians, the University Library at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) started offering face-to-face workshops on the topic in the spring of 2015. While the workshops were positively received by the participants, informal feedback from students points to a need for an online course which would provide asynchronous just-in-time training for students. In this way, students who are not able to attend the face-to-face workshops would be able to access the tutorial in their own time and at their own pace. This paper reports on the process the University Library took to create and embed an online plagiarism tutorial in Blackboard, the Learning Management System (LMS) used by the university. Drawing on and expanding on materials covered in the face-to-face workshop, the online tutorial included original multimedia material, and a summative evaluation quiz. Improvements were made based on feedback gathered from students, library staff, and other university departments, such as the Office of Writing Services, Graduate Affairs, and ESP Instructors from the Writing Center. The online tutorial was initially planned as an optional course for students, but with the support of Academic Affairs and Graduate Affairs, it has been mandated as a compulsory course for all new in-coming students.
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A Study on the use of Facebook, RSS, Blogs and Twitter (Web2.0) among selected academic libraries from 6 Gulf countries namely: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait(QScience Proceedings, Hamad bin Khalifa University Press (HBKU Press), 2017-04-20) [Conference Paper, Presentation]This paper aims to explore and study the current usage trends of Web2.0 namely Facebook, RSS, Blogs and Twitter among selected higher education institutions’ libraries in 6 gulf countries namely: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait. Websites of the selected libraries would be compared on the extent of the usage of these tools, the participation level and their purpose. The author would also share his opinion and suggestions on improving the current trends pertaining to the area of Web2.0 and libraries. The impact and importance of Web2.0 on libraries cannot be disputed. Since gaining popularity in mid-2000, libraries around the globe have jumped onto the Web2.0 bandwagon. Among the common examples of Web2.0 used by libraries today are namely: social networking sites, blogs, wikis, folksonomies and video sharing sites. Libraries are using Web2.0 to (among others): • market their services / resources to their community, • announce latest library news, • provide their online guides / notes for their resources among others. Though such tools have been implemented by most libraries around the world, some of the challenges faced by libraries are: •participation level – casting the net to a wider audience •selection of web2.0 tools •effectiveness of present web2.0 tools used by the libraries
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A CRIS in the Desert: The Implementation of Pure at KAUST: A Case Study in Information Exchange(Procedia Computer Science, Elsevier BV, 2017-03-21) [Conference Paper, Presentation]The integration of research information systems with existing university processes has tended towards information exchange models in which the CRIS ingests information from existing systems and takes on functions that were previously distributed across several independent solutions. This paper draws upon the experience of the implementation of a CRIS at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) to posit a model in which functions remain distributed so as to take advantage of the strengths of each system. The functions discussed include institutional reporting, publications tracking, preservation of research outputs, provision of public access, researcher identity and profiling, and metrics analysis. The systems reviewed include a CRIS (Pure), a locally developed publications tracking system, a hosted DSpace repository, a locally developed ORCID integration, and a metrics dashboard (PlumX). The interactions between these systems forms a network of services to our research community, with each node connected to several others, and we discuss how we arrived at the current arrangement, as well as its drawbacks and advantages. The still limited use of standard data exchange formats like CERIF XML is discussed as a constraint that increases the costs of adding to and maintaining the network of services. At the same time we look at how increased standardization should make this distributed approach sustainable, allowing institutions like ours to mix and match complementary systems to achieve an optimal set of research information services for our needs.
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KAUST Open Access policy(Open Access: Insights from the publisher and the library, 2017-03-07) [Conference Paper]The transition to open access (OA) is being driven by funders, libraries, researchers and publishers around the world, and is having an impact on us all. It is inevitable that different countries, organisations and disciplines are moving at different rates towards an OA model, and it is this that we will focus on in this session. Drawing on experiences from across Europe and the Middle East we will provide perspectives from both a global publisher and institutions based in the region. Taylor & Francis take a flexible, evidence-based approach to open access, providing a choice of publication routes for our authors, and a choice of agreements for our library customers. Carolyn will outline some of the open access developments, opportunities and challenges at Taylor & Francis. The library plays a critical role in facilitating open access for their researchers, from managing a repository to providing support and information on the OA publication process to their authors. Janis Tyhurst and Dr Imad Bachir will each give an overview of how this is being managed by their institution. There will be an opportunity for questions and discussion with the panel.
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Managing user queries using cloud services: KAUST library experience(2017-03) [Conference Paper]The provision of reference and information services are one of the major activities for academic libraries. Answering questions and providing relevant and timely answers for library users are just one of such services. Questions come in many format: in person, phone, email and even on social media platforms. The type of questions may also differ from simple, directional to complicated ones. One of the challenges for libraries is the capturing and managing of these inquiries. Libraries need to address some of these points: • How the questions will be captured • How the questions will be answered • Who will answer these questions • What is the turn-around time for answering these questions • What kind of statistics to monitor • How are these statistics communicated to internal library staff and other stakeholders This paper describe the initiatives undertaken by KAUST, a brand new Graduate Research Library located in Saudi Arabia. This initiatives include the implementation of LibAnswers to assist the library in capturing and managing all inquiries. We are tracking inquiries coming in via email or widgets (such as online form), converting received questions into FAQ entries, creating and maintaining a public knowledge base for our users. In addition, it will also describe future plans in store to expand reference services for our library users. KAUST: (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology) is a graduate research university located along the shores of the Red Sea. The university was inaugurated in September 2009. The main areas of study are: Mathematics and Computer Science, Physical Sciences and Life Sciences. The university library is situated at the heart of the campus. It is a digitally born library with collections comprising of print and electronic resources. The library has: • 310,000 e-book titles • Over 50,000 e-journal titles • Over 30 scientific databases • About 3,500 print titles
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Research Funding, Patent Search Training and Technology Transfer: a collaboration(2016) [Conference Paper, Presentation]This paper will focus on the collaboration efforts of three different university departments to create, teach and evaluate the benefits of a joint patent training series, as well as the future directions this collaboration will take. KAUST has as one of its goals the diversification of the Saudi economy. There is a strong focus at the university on developing entrepreneurial ideas and commercializing research done. The University Library supports this goal through the provision of electronic resources and introductory patent search training skills. However, the patent training class offered by the University Library is only one step in a process that faculty and students need when starting or taking their research to the next level. In the Fall of 2015, I met with representatives of the two major stakeholders in the patent arena, the office of Sponsored Research (OSR) and the Technology Transfer Office (TTO), to develop a patent training program to meet the needs of researchers. The OSR provides funding to researchers who have demonstrated that their ideas have merit with potential applications, the TTO works with researchers who are at the point of needing IP protection. The resulting discussion led us to collaborate on creating a workshop series that benefit the researcher’s information needs and each of our departments as well. In the first of the series of three 2 hour workshops, the Manager of TTO and the Lead Integrative Specialist from the OSR presented a workshop on an overview of Intellectual Property and the patenting process. These presentations focused on when and how to determine whether research is potentially patentable, why a researcher needs to protect his/her research and how to go about protecting it. The second workshop focused on introductory patent search skills and tools, how to expand a literature search to include the information found in patents, and how this kind of research will improve not only the literature search but the research itself. This workshop was presented by me, representing the library, and an Integrative Specialist from the OSR. The third session builds on the first two by focusing in on how to evaluate a patent’s quality, how to read the patent to find the critical point(s) of the claim(s) being made, and free tools that will assist in evaluating the “intellectual space” around the claim(s) that will help focus and direct current and future research. This session is presented by another member of the TTO.
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Connecting the pieces: using ORCIDs to improve research impact and repositories(F1000Research, F1000 Research Ltd, 2015-07-07) [Conference Paper, Presentation]Quantitative data are crucial in the assessment of research impact in the academic world. However, as a young university created in 2009, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) needs to aggregate bibliometrics from researchers coming from diverse origins, not necessarily with the proper affiliations. In this context, the University has launched an institutional repository in September 2012 with the objectives of creating a home for the intellectual outputs of KAUST researchers. Later, the university adopted the first mandated institutional open access policy in the Arab region, effective June 31, 2014. Several projects were then initiated in order to accurately identify the research being done by KAUST authors and bring it into the repository in accordance with the open access policy. Integration with ORCID has been a key element in this process and the best way to ensure data quality for researcher’s scientific contributions. It included the systematic inclusion and creation, if necessary, of ORCID identifiers in the existing repository system, an institutional membership in ORCID, and the creation of dedicated integration tools. In addition and in cooperation with the Office of Research Evaluation, the Library worked at implementing a Current Research Information System (CRIS) as a standardized common resource to monitor KAUST research outputs. We will present our findings about the CRIS implementation, the ORCID API, the repository statistics as well as our approach in conducting the assessment of research impact in terms of usage by the global research community.
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To get or not to get: the KAUST library e-resources acquisition experience(IATUL Conference 2014, 2014-06) [Conference Paper]In the challenging times of budget cuts and reviews, libraries are faced with issues, among others, such as justifying acquisition, negotiating deals and reviewing current subscriptions (pertaining to electronic resources). With the rapid increase in growth of electronic resources, libraries have to continuously assess their acquisition models and policies to constantly ensure that they are balancing their budget and users’ needs as well. This paper highlights the role played by Technical and IT department of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) library (Saudi Arabia) in acquiring the electronic resources (electronic books, electronic journals, databases, image and reference) for the community. It will describe the processes during the early days when KAUST library was inaugurated; how electronic resources were acquired and what went through during those days. The paper will elaborate further how the acquisition model has evolved and the various important roles played by the library staff in ensuring that acquisitions/subscriptions are justified, within the budget and provides ROI for the library. King Abdullah University is a graduate research university which opened in September 2009 with its first cohort of 800 graduate students (25% female) taught by 100 faculties. The focus of study and research in the university are: Mathematics and Computer Science, Physical Sciences and Life Sciences. The university library started with 10 staff. The library has a “state-of-the-art learning and information resource center supporting graduate education and advanced scientific research” (KAUST, 2010).
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Cloud Computing in KAUST Library: Beyond Remote Hosting(Global Information and Management Symposium (GIAMS), 2013-12) [Conference Paper]Enterprise computing is the key strategic approach for KAUST to build its modern IT landscape. In such a strategic direction and technical environment, the library tries to establish library technology by catching new trends which help to make the library more efficient and sufficient. This paper focuses on the cloud computing development in the KAUST library, by using real world scenarios and first-hand experiences to describe what cloud computing means for KAUST library. It addresses the difficulties that were met by the library during the implementation process, how cloud computing affects the functional performance and work procedure of the library, how it impacts the style and modal of the library’s technical service and systems administration, how it changes the relationships and cooperation among the involved players (the library, campus IT and vendors), and what the benefits and disadvantages are. The story of cloud computing at KAUST will share the knowledge and lessons that the KAUST library learnt during its development, and will also point out the future direction of cloud computing at KAUST.
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Establishing a Lean Six Sigma Program in Higher Education(First International Conference on LSS for Higher Education, 2013-09-12) [Conference Paper]Purpose: The objective of this paper is a contribution to the body of Lean Six Sigma knowledge within the vertical of higher education institutions. The paper will review the initial phase of an implementation and highlight future challenges. Approach: The observations presented in this paper, originates from rolling out a large lean six sigma implementation at a newly established university. The paper is supported with secondary data from literature. Findings: The paper will discuss the challenges of applying the lean six sigma method in a complex transactional environment. Research limitations: This paper is based on an empirical study of a single instance and authors’ experiences as practitioners. Originality: This paper is the first description of what is believed to be one of the largest implementations of Lean Six Sigma in higher education.
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From red to green: building and managing the scientific electronic collections for a new Sci-Tech University Library(IFLA WLIC 2013 - Singapore - "Future Libraries: Infinite Possibilities", IFLA - International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, 2013-08) [Conference Paper]Electronic resources have evolved to become one of the most important resources within the library’s collection. The growths of these resources and the players involved within this area have provided library users with another alternative to obtain information. When implemented correctly with library assistance (library trainings, reference consultations and so forth), library users can access these electronic resources anywhere in the world with relative ease as long as there is an internet connection. Geographic barriers are no longer an issue and information can be obtained in a just-in-time manner. This paper describes how KAUST library built its electronic resources and how they grew into what it is today. Issues such as manpower, expertise level, budget, ERM tools, library-vendor relations and library-user communication will also be elaborated in the paper. Despite its drawbacks, KAUST library has managed to overcome most of them and strived to improve certain areas of concern. The paper will also describe the library’s ERM future directions and strategic planning. KAUST University was opened in September 2009 and it started out with its first cohort of 800 graduate students (25% female) taught by 100 faculties. The main areas of study focus on science and engineering divisions consisting mainly of: Mathematics and Computer Science, Physical Sciences and Life Sciences. From a demographic snapshot taken in 2010, 36% of the student body came from Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, 34% from Asia, 21% from Americas, 5% from Europe and 4% from Africa (alZahrani, R. , Branin, J. and Yi , 2012). The university library, when first started, had about 10 staff. The library is known to have a “state-of-the-art learning and information resource center supporting graduate education and advanced scientific research” (KAUST, 2010). The library subscribed to major science databases, electronic journals and books. It also offers a myriad of services from document delivery requests, textbook services, reference assistance and library trainings and consultations just to name a few.
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New Generation Discovery: A Systematic View for Its Development, Issues and Future(SSRN Electronic Journal, Elsevier BV, 2012-11) [Conference Paper]Collecting, storing, discovering, and locating are integral parts of the composition of the library. To fully utilize the library and achieve its ultimate value, the construction and production of discovery has always been a central part of the library’s practice and identity. That is the reason why the new generation (also called the next-generation discovery) discovery gets such striking effect since it came into library automation arena. However, when we talk about the new generation of discovery in the library domain, we should see it in the entirety of the library as one of its organic parts and consider its progress along with the evolution of the whole library world. We should have a deeper understanding about its relationship and interaction with the internet, the rapidly changing digital environment, and the elements and the chain of library services. To address above issues, this paper overviews the different versions of the definition for the new generation discovery by combining our own understanding. The paper also gives our own description for its properties and characteristics. The paper points out what challenges, which extends the technology domain to commercial interests and business strategy, are faced by the discovery applications, and how library and library professionals deal with those challenges. Finally, the paper elaborates on the promise brought by the new discovery development and what the next exploration might be for its future.
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BUILDING A NEW GENERATION SCIENCE LIBRARY: THE KAUST STORY(2012-06) [Conference Paper]If you had the opportunity to build a science library from scratch for a new generation of researchers and students, what would it look like and how would it operate? We will show you the vision and reality of the new King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) Library that won the 2011 ALA/AIA Library Architecture award and that for the last three years has been providing a high level of information services to top level international scientists and graduate students. We will describe the major characteristics in contemporary science research, education, and information management that guided the design of our library facility, technical infrastructure, and services. We will give concrete examples and evaluations of our implementation of new information services and tools. And we will end with the challenges still before us, most notably the effective integration of science knowledge management into the workflow of scientific research and enterprise based information technology organization.
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Sharing of information and knowledge among staff in King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) library(17th Annual Conference - Special Libraries Association, 2011-03) [Conference Paper]This paper describes strategies and initiatives undertaken by the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) library in sharing information and knowledge among its staff. KAUST Library adopted several IT platforms to enable staff to contribute, share, collaborate, extract and act upon knowledge in order to serve our users better. They include: Sharepoint and Google Docs. As Duffy (2000) stated, that “success depends on capitalizing on every available resource including what a company knows and how it uses what it knows”. Therefore, to provide value-added services to our community of researchers and academicians, library staff needs to be equipped with the right skills and tools to be able to act upon users’ inquiries and information needs. KAUST library which was opened in Aug 2009 aims to support education and advanced scientific research. With its state of the art learning and information resource center, the library provides instructional assistance and reference services to its research and academic community. With the influx of information coupled the pervasive use of information technology and Web2.0, the library has to grapple with the issue of information overload. It is important to be able to sieve through the rubbles of information to apply the relevant ones during the point of transaction. Based on our experience in using various IT platforms, this paper will share the impacts of such tools. Lessons learnt and future directions in this area will also be discussed.
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The Role of Systems Librarian for Establishing and Developing A New Academic and Research Library(2011-03) [Presentation]