Open Access Project Research Articles

The suitability of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model in open access adoption studies

Technology acceptance models or theories are commonly used in studies aiming at predicting and explaining the individual behaviours towards the acceptance and usage of new technologies. This paper reports part of the findings from a doctoral research project which focused at analysing the acceptance and usage of open access within public universities in Tanzania. The study was guided by the Unified Theory of Technology Acceptance and Usage (UTAUT) model). The survey questionnaire targeted 544 respondents selected through stratified random sampling from a population of 1088 university researchers at six public universities in Tanzania. A response rate of 73 percent was achieved and the binary logistic regression statistics of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for data analysis. The study findings suggest support for the application of the UTAUT model in studying the adoption of open access in a research environment. Among the findings, attitude, awareness, effort expectancy and performance expectancy were established as the key determinants for the researchers’ behavioural intentions of open access usage. Similarly, age, awareness, behavioural intention, facilitating conditions and social influence were found to significantly affect researchers’ actual usage of open access. These factors should therefore be taken into account in the planning and implementation of open access projects. A further validation of the open access research model in similar research institutions in Tanzania and elsewhere is recommended.

Bacterial Carbohydrate Structure Database 3: Principles and Realization

Bacterial carbohydrate structure database (BCSDB) is an open-access project that collects primary publication data on carbohydrate structures originating from bacteria, their biological properties, bibliographic and taxonomic annotations, NMR spectra, etc. Almost complete coverage and outstanding data consistency are achieved. BCSDB version 3 and the principles lying behind it, including glycan description language, are reported.

PRESSURE BUILDS ON PUBLISHERS

IN THE PAST WEEK, THE OPEN Society Institute (OSI) announced the Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI), a movement to remove the barriers that limit access to scholarly journals to those who can pay And eight research library associations announced the formation of the International Scholarly Communications Alliance (ISCA) to collaborate with scholars and publishers to establish equitable access to scholarly and research publications. BOAI says it will help traditional journals fund implementation of free online access to their research literature content. It will also support the development of new online journals that have free-access policies. In addition, BOAI backers are encouraging authors and their institutions to deposit their peer-reviewed journal articles, as well as unreviewed preprints, in digital archives. OSI is putting $3 million into open-access projects over the next three years. Supported by the investor and philanthropist George Soros, the institute develops and implements social pro...

Promoting open access in Germany as illustrated by a recent project at the Library of the University of Konstanz

PurposeWith the illustration of a best practice example for an implementation of open access in a scientific institution, the paper will be useful in fostering future open access projects.Design/methodology/approachThe paper starts with a brief overview of the existing situation of open access in Germany. The following report describes the results of a best practice example, added by the analysis of a survey on the position about open access by the scientists at the University of Konstanz.FindingsThe dissemination of the advantages of open access publishing is fundamental for the success of implementing open access in a scientific institution. For the University of Konstanz, it is shown that elementary factors of success are an intensive cooperation with the head of the university and a vigorous approach to inform scholars about open access. Also, some more conditions are essential to present a persuasive service: The Library of the University of Konstanz offers an institutional repository as an open access publication platform and hosts open journal systems for open access journals. High‐level support and consultation for open access publishing at all administrative levels is provided. The integration of the local activities into national and international initiatives and projects is pursued for example by the joint operation of the information platform open‐access.net.Originality/valueThe paper offers insights in one of the most innovative open access projects in Germany. The University of Konstanz belongs to the pioneers of the open access movement in Germany and is currently running a successful open access project.

Item‐level usage statistics

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present how the JISC Usage Statistics Review Project aims to formulate a fundamental scheme for recording usage data and to propose a standard for its aggregation to provide meaningful and comparable item‐level usage statistics for electronic documents such as, for example, research papers and scientific resources.Design/methodology/approachA core element of the project has been a stakeholder workshop. This workshop was held in Berlin, 7/8 July 2008. Representatives of key stakeholder groups (repositories, libraries, COUNTER, IRStats, JISC, LogEc, MESUR, OA‐Statistics and other Open Access projects) were invited. During the workshop a fundamental scheme for the recording and the exchange of log files was discussed as well as the normalization of data collected.FindingsThe following mandatory elements describing usage events were agreed during the stakeholder workshop: Who – identification of user/session, What – item identification and type of request performed (e.g. full‐text, front‐page, including failed/partially fulfilled requests), When – date and time, usage event ID. The following elements were regarded as optional: From where – referrer/the referring entity and identity of the service. Usage events should be exchanged in the form of OpenURL Context Objects using OAI. Automated access (e.g. robots) should be tagged. The definition of automated access has to be straightforward with an option of gradual refinement. Users have to be identified unambiguously, but without recording personal data to avoid conflicts with privacy laws. Policies on statistics should be formulated for the repository community as well as the publishing community. Information about statistics policies should be available on services like OpenDOAR and RoMEO.Originality/valueThe paper is based on the detailed project report to the JISC, available at http://ie‐repository.jisc.ac.uk/250/

Reactome: An integrated expert model of human molecular processes and access toolkit

Summary The behaviour of pervasive molecular processes in human biology can be studied through the large-scale modeling of the molecular events that define them. Constructing detailed models of such extent and scope is a considerable undertaking well beyond the reach and capability of individual efforts, due to the range of expertise required. Reactome (http://www.reactome.org) is an open-access project that collaborates with field experts to integrate their pathway knowledge into a single quality-checked human model. This resource dataset is systematically cross-referenced to major molecular and literature databases, and is accessible to the community in a number of well-established formats. Various tools have been developed to facilitate querying and interaction with this content. The salient features of the annotation strategy are discussed here, and examples of pathway and genomic data integration using flexible interfacing methods from the associated toolkit are also presented.

The Beat

Vol. 115, No. 4 EnvironewsOpen AccessThe Beat Erin E. Dooley Erin E. Dooley Search for more papers by this author Published:1 April 2007https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.115-a189bAboutSectionsPDF ToolsDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InReddit Global Map of Malaria RiskScientists from the University of Oxford and the Kenya Medical Research Institute have just completed the first data-gathering stage of the Malaria Atlas Project, which will identify populations most at risk for malaria and predict the disease’s impact. Malaria data have been gathered from more than 3,000 communities in 79 countries. A final map will be generated using data from satellites, censuses, and other sources, with statistical methods filling in data gaps. Policy makers and funding agencies can utilize this information to better target resources. The open-access project is described in the December 2006 edition of PLoS Medicine.China Top CO2 Producer by 2010An International Energy Agency report issued in November 2006 estimates that China will overtake the United States as the largest producer of carbon dioxide by 2010, a decade sooner than earlier studies projected. A large percentage of the carbon dioxide emitted in the world comes from coal consumption. Seventy percent of China’s energy comes from coal, which is cheap and abundant in that country. China has stated it will try to limit coal production to 2.6 billion metric tons by 2010, but experts say this goal will probably not be met—the Chinese government is planning 500 new coal-fired power plants to meet the nation’s energy demands.Airline Rules Stir Up ControversyIn December 2006 the European Commission proposed new rules to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from the airline industry. Such emissions have increased 87% since 1990, and by 2020 are expected to more than double over present levels. The regulations place a cap on carbon dioxide emissions, with each airline receiving a set number of pollution allowances each year. Those using up their allowances must buy carbon credits from companies that still have them. As proposed, the rules will apply by 2012 to all flights to and from airports within the European Union. However, U.S. industry and government officials feel the rules violate international trade agreements and may fight the regulations if they are passed.The Sting of Climate ChangeThe number of people treated for jellyfish stings in Australia doubled to 26,000 between 2005 and 2006. An Australian jellyfish expert warns that the number of people stung each year could continue to rise as rising ocean temperatures may result in longer jellyfish seasons and larger jellyfish populations. Lisa-Ann Gershwin, an advisor to Surf Life Saving, also says that jellyfish, an ancient species, are “very good at taking advantage of changing conditions.” The nonstinging Mnemiopsis leidyi, for instance, thought to have been introduced to the Black and Caspian Seas via ballast water, has flourished to the point of decimating local ecosystems.Antimicrobial Nanoparticles to Be RegulatedThe U.S. EPA announced in November 2006 that it would begin regulating consumer items made with nanoparticles of silver, the first time the agency has regulated any nanomaterial. Among the products made with these bactericidal nanoparticles are food-storage containers, air fresheners, shoe liners, and washing machines. Environmentalists worry that the growth of this technology may contribute to the killing off of beneficial bacteria and aquatic organisms, with adverse ramifications for human health. Only products that claim to kill germs will be affected by the rules.Asbestos Found in Korean SubwaysInspectors with the Seoul Metro subway in South Korea found asbestos in passenger-accessible sections of 17 of 30 subway stations they inspected in the winter of 2006. This follows a January 2004 Environment International study that found that Korean repair workers were being exposed to chrysotile and tremolite fibers in the subway. Asbestos was used in the construction of the stations to absorb noise and vibration from trains and is mainly present in ceiling tiles and insulation. Seoul Metro issued a statement on 22 January 2007 that it will remove the asbestos, though experts in Korea say the lack of trained asbestos removal specialists in the country will make it difficult to complete the job safely and effectively.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Vol. 115, No. 4 April 2007Metrics About Article Metrics Publication History Originally published1 April 2007Published in print1 April 2007 Financial disclosuresPDF download License information EHP is an open-access journal published with support from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health. All content is public domain unless otherwise noted. Note to readers with disabilities EHP strives to ensure that all journal content is accessible to all readers. However, some figures and Supplemental Material published in EHP articles may not conform to 508 standards due to the complexity of the information being presented. 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The open access movement in China

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe the current status of open access (OA) in China, including problems and possible solutions and to introduce the role of the academic library in OA.Design/methodology/approachThis research paper analyzes several successful OA projects with a focus on the user requirements and the role of the academic library. The paper also analyzes the current status of OA in three areas. First, publishers. The paper will introduce some Chinese OA websites in detail, and point out the problems facing Chinese OA. Second, OA users (both writers and readers) requirements will be investigated. Third, the role of libraries will be analyzed.FindingsThe libraries goal of sharing resources is similar to that of the OA movement. The paper will recommend some Chinese OA resources set up by libraries. The paper will also describe OA promotion by China libraries. Some suggestions for the way forward are also described.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper will analyze OA development and problems in China from a librarian perspective. The paper does not have a deep understanding of the publishing business. Most of the best Chinese academic papers are published in foreign commercial academic journals, which costs Chinese writers their intellectual property rights since their rights of communication through the internet is then owned by foreign publishers. As a result, most products based on public investment in China become a foreign publisher's exclusive property, earning exclusive profit for them rather than for China. This situation exists not only in China, but also in other developing countries. This “problem” is worth researching.Practical implicationsA comprehensive introduction to the current state of OA in China will be useful to those who are unfamiliar with, or seek deeper knowledge of, the Chinese situation. The constructive suggestions to be offered should be useful to Chinese administrators, OA publishers and librarians.Originality/valueThis may be the first research paper describing the status of OA in China in summary and in detail, with an analysis of the problems in OA development and offering recommendations.