October 2011 Issue

Please join HSLS as we focus on author rights during International Open Access Week, October 24-30, 2011. Submitting scholarly research for publication requires careful consideration due to a wide range of access models and mandates, including Open Access and the NIH Public Access Policy. HSLS is committed to providing the information resources necessary to help authors navigate these new publishing options.

The highlight of HSLS Open Access Week 2011 is a special lecture, “Author Rights and Publishing Today: What You Should Know and Why You Should Care,” presented by Denise Troll Covey, Principal Librarian for Special Projects at Carnegie Mellon University. Covey’s professional work focuses on copyright, open access, and digital libraries. She has been a Distinguished Fellow in the Digital Library Federation and her research on orphan works recently resulted in a consultation with the Librarian of the U.S. Supreme Court. The lecture is scheduled for Wednesday, October 26, from noon-1 p.m., in Scaife Hall, Lecture Room 5. Continue reading →

Do you need to design PCR primers? Perform multiple sequence alignment? Search for SNPs? Identify gene mutations? Build pathway models? Discover protein binding sites? Analyze high-throughput data? The HSLS Molecular Biology Information Service can help you with all of these questions, and more.

HSLS provides access to a wide variety of authoritative “omics” software, databases, and protocols for molecular biology data analysis. These resources are available to all University of Pittsburgh and UPMC affiliates upon registration. Some of the resources are Web-based and password-dependent, whereas others involve downloading software and may be limited to campus computers or require remote access. Specific software access requirements are provided online for each licensed tool. HSLS does not charge a fee for access to these resources by qualified users.

 The full array of tools is available through the MolBio Licensed Tools Web page. The tools are organized in categories based on function; click on the name of each tool to find additional information, including a brief description, registration instructions, noteworthy features, and additional links.

The HSLS Molecular Biology Information Service offers hands-on training workshops for many of these licensed tools. The online Molecular Biology Class Schedule shows the meeting times, locations, and descriptions of all workshops offered during the fall 2011 semester. Contact Ask A MolBio Librarian with suggestions for additional tools or workshops.

~ Carrie Iwema

Until recently, the National Center for Biotechnology Information’s Images database provided access to images in PubMed Central (PMC). This database no longer exists as a separate entity because you can now search for images directly in PMC. PMC is the National Institutes of Health digital archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature. It contains over 2.2 million articles.

A basic search in PMC will look at all image captions in the database and retrieve images related to your topic. For example, a search on “liver cancer therapy” retrieves the usual list of summary citations, and a maximum of four thumbnails of the most relevant images that appear on the top right side of the results page.

Users then have two options:

1. Move the mouse over any of the thumbnail images and the image will appear in a new window, along with its caption and basic article information.

2. Click directly on one of the thumbnail images and two windows will open, one that shows the full-text article and another, the image view.

Click on “See more…,” under the thumbnail display, to view a new search results page that lists all the matching images in PMC.

The image thumbnails display next to their corresponding article citations, which also include links to both the full-text article and the corresponding article citation

Images will not appear for searches that use Limits or Advanced Search features.

The images contained in PMC may be subject to the general copyright restrictions that apply to material available through the NCBI site. For more information, see the NCBI Copyright Notice, and PubMed Central Copyright Notice.

Parts of this article were reprinted from the NLM Technical Bulletin, July-August 2011.

~ Jill Foust

Every year about this time, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) performs additional maintenance to MEDLINE data, known as year-end processing. This involves changes to the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) on existing MEDLINE citations to conform to next year’s version of MeSH, and other global changes.

What does this mean to you? Starting about mid-November, records will be added to MEDLINE without the MeSH headings. These are referred to as “in-process” citations and will occur in both PubMed and Ovid MEDLINE. This year-end processing should conclude by mid-December. During this period, any searching you do using MeSH will not retrieve the newest citations. To retrieve new, “in process” records during this time, you should use searches that do not limit to MeSH, such as textword searching.

Since March, HSLS patrons have been asking questions using the mhsls Chat widget on our Ask A Librarian page. So what are you asking us about?

Some of your questions are specialized:

[11:17] meeboguest92268: Hi, I was wondering if the Falk Library still keeps copies of common psychological assessment questionaires and if so, if there is some way for me to search online to see if a specific measure is available
[11:17] mhsls: we don’t have the actual questionnaires here. In most cases you would need to get them from the author.
[11:18] meeboguest92268: ok, thanks!

 

Sometimes you ask for help navigating our web site:

[11:11] meeboguest297527: is it possible to access Scopus through HSLS

 

“How can I get this article?” is a perennial topic…

[09:26] meeboguest289073: i am trying to retrieve an article that is online but when i click to the link it says i need a user name and password. I am on the pitt network

[09:27] mhsls: Hi, I can double check the status of the journal for you. Can you supply the citation, please, so I can check it?

 

… as is “Can you help me with my search?”:

[11:56] mhsls: Hello- may I help you with a reference question?

[11:57] meeboguest308546: I’m doing a search in Ovid for a literature review, and I could use some help.

[11:57] meeboguest308546: Would I be able to come to the library and meet with someone to discuss it?

[11:57] mhsls: Yes, I should be free between 3 and 5 pm. Are you available during that time?

In other words, we get the same variety of questions through chat as through e-mail and phone. Which works best for you? It probably depends on your question and on your personal communication preferences. It may also depend on where you are. Away from the Web? Click on the link above the mhsls widget and sign up for the HSLS buddy list so you can chat with us from your mobile device.

~ Patricia Weiss

HSLS provides access to 44 e-books from the R2 Digital Library. An easily navigable and highly searchable database, the R2 Digital Library offers full-text access to e-books in three “Library” collections: Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health.

Continue reading →

The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) held its annual conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico this past August. This international conference brings together over 3,500 participants from more than 120 countries. I was fortunate to have been accepted to present at a preconference session hosted by the Section of Health and Biosciences Libraries. Librarians and library educators from Australia, Canada, Ireland, Puerto Rico and the U.S. also presented at this session. My presentation, “The Development of a Post-Masters Online Curriculum in Health Sciences Librarianship,” described the HealthCAS online post-Master’s degree program, a joint project between HSLS and the University’s School of Information Sciences.

IFLA had the look and feel of any other library conference I had attended in the U.S. It was held in a large convention center, there were plenary speakers, individual and poster sessions and vendor exhibits. Unlike other conferences, the attendees were from all over the world and spoke many different languages. Every session was translated into seven different languages. When I entered a session, I could exchange my badge for a headphone which would allow me to listen to sessions in other languages. My IFLA conference badge stated that I was from the United States, unlike other conferences which normally would have noted that I was from the University of Pittsburgh. The larger sessions had speakers presenting about global issues. For example, a speaker from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an agency of the United Nations, spoke about developing international property laws and standards.

While meeting librarians from many countries around the world, I learned that they are experiencing the same challenges and concerns as those of us at HSLS. These include struggling with budget constraints, open access issues, and how best to provide information to our users to name just a few.

~ Nancy Tannery

On September 13, HSLS, the Regional Medical Library (RML) for the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, Middle Atlantic Region (NN/LM MAR), hosted a meeting for the Region’s Resource Library directors.  The Middle Atlantic Region includes 29 Resource Libraries in Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania:  24 (including HSLS) are located in medical schools or other academic institutions, two in cancer specialty hospitals, two in large health systems, and three independent academy libraries.  These libraries are named Resource Libraries based on quality, scope and size of collections, special strengths and uniqueness of collections, geographic location, and past record of participation as a resource library.  Resource Libraries participate in resource sharing activities within the National Network.

Resource Libraries also assist the RML in planning, coordinating and implementing a variety of Network and outreach programs.  At the meeting, Renae Barger, NN/LM MAR executive director, presented an overview of the 2011–2016 program, including planned Network and outreach activities, funding opportunities and funding structure.  Barbara Epstein, NN/LM MAR director, presented an overview of the advisory structure and the role of Resource Libraries.  The library directors had an opportunity to discuss and provide input into planned NN/LM MAR activities.

Mary Lou Klem, HSLS reference librarian and co-investigator for the Value of Libraries Study, gave an update on the study and discussed future directions for the project.  Martha Fishel, NLM, chief, Public Services Division, ended the meeting with a discussion of NLM’s program to ensure the preservation and continued access to historical literature through a new national cooperative medical journals print retention program.

NN/LM MAR has a talented group of Resource Library directors.  The services they provide to the Network, and their guidance and support of the NN/LM MAR program are indispensible.

~ Renae Barger

The HSLS Staff News section includes recent HSLS presentations, publications, staff changes, staff promotions, degrees earned, etc.

Presentations

Nancy Tannery, senior associate director, presented a talk titled “The Development of a Post-Masters Online Curriculum in Health Sciences Librarianship” at a pre-conference satellite meeting at the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) General Conference and Assembly in Puerto Rico. The talk was co-authored with Barbara A. Epstein¹, Ester Saghafi¹, Susan Alman² and Christinger Tomer².

¹Health Sciences Library System, University of Pittsburgh

²School of Information Sciences, University of Pittsburgh

 

Publications

Jonathon Erlen, history of medicine librarian published “Current Journal Articles on Disability History: Dissertations” in H-Disability: An H-Net Discussion Network, 123, August 2011, and 124, September 2011.

HSLS offers classes on database searching, software applications such as Adobe Photoshop, bibliographic management, molecular biology and genetics, and library orientations. For more information visit the online course descriptions.

Classes are held on the first floor of Falk Library (200 Scaife Hall) in Classroom 1 and Conference Room B, and on the second floor in the Computer and Media Center Classroom 2. Some classes are also held in the Conference Room at UPMC Shadyside Libraries. All classes are open to faculty, staff and students of the schools of the health sciences at the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC.

No registration is required for any of these classes. Seating for classes is first-come, first-served, until the class is full. Classes marked with an asterisk (*) qualify for American Medical Association Category 2 continuing education credit.

Class schedules are subject to change. Please consult the online class calendar for the most current information.

HSLS ORIENTATION
Introduction to HSLS Resources and Services at Falk Library
(Meet inside entrance to Library)
Offered upon request to groups or individuals. Call 412-648-8866.

Introduction to HSLS Services at UPMC Shadyside
Offered upon request to groups or individuals. Call 412-623-2415.

Finding Full-Text Articles at UPMC Shadyside
Offered upon request to groups or individuals. Call 412-623-2415.

SEARCHING DATABASES
PubMed Basics* (Falk Library Classroom 1)

Wednesday, November 16	2-3:30 p.m.
Friday, December 2	9-10:30 a.m.

Focus on Behavioral Medicine: Searching in PsycINFO (Falk Library Classroom 1)

Friday, November 18

10:30 a.m.-noon

MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND GENETICS RESOURCES
Lasergene* (Falk Library Classroom 2)

Wednesday, November 2

1-3 p.m.

Sequence Similarity Searching* (Falk Library Classroom 2)

Wednesday, November 9

1-3 p.m.

DNA Analysis Tools* (Falk Library Classroom 2)

Wednesday, November 16

1-3 p.m

Protein Sequence Analysis* (Falk Library Classroom 2)

Wednesday, November 30

1-3 p.m.

Microarray Data Analysis* (Falk Library Classroom 2)

Wednesday, December 7

1-3 p.m.

Proteomic Analysis: Protein Identification & Quantification* (Falk Library Classroom 2)

Wednesday, December 14

1-3 p.m.

SOFTWARE TRAINING
EndNote Basics (Falk Library Classroom 2)
(Note: This class is usually full. Please arrive 15 minutes in advance to ensure seating.)

Tuesday, November 15	10 a.m-noon
Thursday, December 8	11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Adobe Photoshop for Beginners (Falk Library Classroom 2)

Tuesday, December 13

9-11 a.m.

PowerPoint for Beginners (Falk Library Classroom 2)

Tuesday, November 29

9-11 a.m.

Advanced PowerPoint for Presentations(Falk Library Classroom 2)

Thursday, December 8

9-11 a.m.

The WOW Factor: PowerPoint for Posters(Falk Library Classroom 2)

Thursday, November 17

9-11 a.m.

Lunch With A Librarian
These informal, brown-bag lunches are held in Falk Library Conference Room B. Bring your own lunch. Drinks and dessert are provided. For more information visit the online descriptions.

Search Clinic

Thursday, November 10

noon-1 p.m.

Beyond Cochrane Reviews: Resources that Provide Evidence if Cochrane Doesn’t

Tuesday, December 13

noon-1 p.m.

Classes at UPMC Shadyside Libraries
Why use PubMed? (UPMC Shadyside Libraries)

Tuesday, November 15

1-2 p.m.

My NCBI: A PubMed Tool to Save You Time (UPMC Shadyside Libraries)

Friday, December 2

11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Advanced Google: Tips and Strategies for Getting More from Google (UPMC Shadyside Libraries)

Tuesday, December 13

2-3 p.m.

Software Training at UPMC Shadyside Libraries
Advanced PowerPoint for Presentations (UPMC Shadyside Libraries)

Thursday, November 3

9-11 a.m.

Thursday @ Three HSLS UPMC Shadyside Libraries Information Series
These informal sessions are held in the Conference Room at UPMC Shadyside Libraries.

Learn to be Creative. Jazz up your Fliers and Presentations

Thursday, November 10

3-4 p.m.

iPads in Medicine

Thursday, December 1

3-4 p.m.

CUSTOMIZED CLASSES
Customized classes can be developed for your department, course, or other group.

LEARNING @ YOUR PACE
These online tutorials provide information on getting started at HSLS, focusing on the Web site and popular resources.