April 5, 2012
Medical Information Resources
If you’ve ever suffered information overload when you’ve Googled for medical information, or wondered if the facts you found were really from an authoritative source, try one of these online medical resources -- available to all U of Illinois students, faculty, and staff. Find links to these resources in the
Library Catalog, http://vufind.carli.illinois.edu/vf-uiu/, and
Online Journals & Databases, http://openurl.library.uiuc.edu/sfxlcl3/az?
MD Consult, from Elsevier
http://vufind.carli.illinois.edu/vf-uiu/Record/uiu_6688149
Brings important medical resources together into an integrated online service to help physicians find answers to pressing clinical questions. Provides access to leading medical reference books, journals and the Clinics of North America. Additionally MD Consult has over 10,000 patient handouts, Gold Standard drug information, practice guidelines for nearly 50 medical specialties, and over 50,000 medical images. Register to receive weekly updates.
UpToDate Online, from Wolters Kluwer Health
http://vufind.carli.illinois.edu/vf-uiu/Record/uiu_5589994
Deemed a “must have” resource by clinicians, UptoDate Online is an evidence-based knowledge system authored by physicians to help clinicians make the right decisions at the point of care. All UpToDate Online content is written and edited by a global community of physicians who are experts in their specialties; the content is continually reviewed to ensure it is based on the latest evidence. Only available from on-campus.
Access Medicine, from McGraw-Hill
http://vufind.carli.illinois.edu/vf-uiu/Record/uiu_6711342
Provides access to more than 65 medical textbooks containing thousands of images and illustrations, tutorials, drug information, a diagnostic tool, patient information flyers, and more. Textbooks include such classics as Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, CURRENT Medical Diagnosis & Treatment 2012, Basic & Clinical Pharmacology, 12 ed., and more. Completely searchable.
The Cochrane Library, from John Wiley & the Cochrane Collaboration
http://vufind.carli.illinois.edu/vf-uiu/Record/uiu_6831495
The Cochrane Library is a collection of six databases that contain high-quality, independent evidence to inform healthcare decision-making, including the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews -- the leading resource for systematic reviews in health care.
Oxford Textbook of Medicine, from Oxford University Press
http://vufind.carli.illinois.edu/vf-uiu/Record/uiu_6811569
Often found on shelves in physicians’ offices, this massive work is unrivalled in its coverage of the scientific aspects and clinical practice of internal medicine and its subspecialties. Use is limited to one user at a time.
MedlinePlus
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/
You’ve all used PubMed [aka Medline], but this resource from the NIH is geared at providing consumers with free, quality links to information. Use MedlinePlus to learn about the latest treatments, look up information on a drug or supplement, find out the meanings of words, or view medical videos or illustrations. You can also get links to the latest medical research on your topic or find out about clinical trials on a disease or condition.
Health Information Portal
http://www.library.illinois.edu/health/
This locally created website will point you toward the best databases, books, journals, and web resources on over 30 health related topics, ranging from aging and neuroscience to genetics, public health, psychology, toxicology, and more.
Posted by Katie Newman at 1:43 PM
February 7, 2012
Library Resources Update
The ORR (Online Research Resources), www.library.Illinois.edu/orr/, is no longer being updated will be discontinued after the Spring semester. In its place, please use the Find Journals and Databases (J&D) resource, openurl.library.uiuc.edu/sfxlcl3/az . Use the J&D to determine if we have electronic access to particular journals or databases.
Scientific American. We recently acquired electronic access to the full run of Scientific American and Scientific American Mind from Nature. Please use the J&D (above) for the link.
OpenHelix. Based on feedback from the research community at the U of I, we now subscribe to OpenHelix. Here you will find tutorials, teaching aids, and other guides for bioinformatics and genomics tools. Tell your students about this resource! Please use the J&D (above) for the link.
JoVE. We now have electronic access to all sections of the Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE), including Neuroscience, Immunology & Infection, Clincial & Translational Medicine, Bioengineering, and Basic Protocols. Please use the J&D (above) for the link to JoVE.
Faculty of 1000. The Faculty of 1000 (F1000) site now includes reviews on articles in both biology and medicine. In addition to evaluated articles you will find two new open access journals, F1000 Reports Biology and F1000 Reports Medicine. Please use the J&D (above) for the link to Faculty of 1000.
Global Health. Recently we added a subscription for Global Health to our CAB Abstracts account. Use Global Health to augment your Medline (PubMed) searches with a more universal outlook, including citations from developing countries. Please use the J&D (above) for the link to CAB Abstracts and Global Health.
BIOSIS Citation Index. We recently upgraded our subscription for Biological Abstracts to BIOSIS Citation Index. Unlike Biological Abstracts, BIOSIS Citation Index includes review journals and scientific meetings. And, like Web of Science, also includes citations to cited references. Find a link to Biosis Citation Index in the J&D (above).
Tip: Search “Web of Knowledge” (all databases) to search simultaneously Web of Science, BIOSIS Citation Index, CAB Abstracts & Global Health, Medline, Food Science & Technology Abstracts, and Zoological Abstracts. Find a link to Web of Knowledge in the J&D (above).
Posted by Katie Newman at 11:13 AM
August 8, 2011
NRC Assesssment of Biological Programs
The National Academies of Science have released the report, Research-Doctorate Programs in the Biomedical Sciences: Selected Findings from the NRC Assessment. It is available as a pdf for free download (with registration), or you may read it at their site.
Fields for which data is presented:
Field Name (Number of Programs)
Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology (157)
Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering (74)
Cell and Developmental Biology (120)
Genetics and Genomics (66)
Immunology and Infectious Disease (68)
Integrated Biological and Biomedical Sciences (113)
Microbiology (71)
Neuroscience and Neurobiology (93)
Nutrition (45)
Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Environmental Health (117)
Physiology (58)
Posted by Katie Newman at 10:26 AM
June 29, 2011
2010 Impact Factors are Out!
The 2010 edition of Journal Citation Reports is out, with the 2010 Impact Factors for journals that are tracked by Thomson Reuters (Web of Science). From their news release:
“The 2010 release features the largest ever JCR with 10,196 journal listings in 238 disciplines of Science and Social Sciences. 2,494 publishers from 84 countries are represented, some for the first time. A total of 1,075 journals receive their first Journal Impact Factor in the latest JCR release.”
News Release: http://thomsonreuters.com/content/press_room/science/JCR-impact-factor-2010
Access the Journal Citation Reports database:
http://www.library.uiuc.edu/orr/get.php?instid=258273
Not sure what Impact Factors are? Here’s a link to a presentation I’ve used for a Library Savvy Researcher workshop on the topic:
http://www.library.illinois.edu/export/biotech/docs/ImpactFactors.ppt
Note: Many open access journals are pulling quite decent impact factors. For instance:
• PLOS Biology - 12.469
• PLOS Medicine - 15.617
• PLOS Computational Biology - 5.515
• PLOS Genetics - 9.543
• PLOS Pathogens - 9.079
• PLOS One - 4.411
• Genome Biology - 6.885
• BMC Bioinformatics - 3.028
• BMC Medicine - 5.750
• BMC Biology - 5.203
• BMC Genomics - 4.206
• BMC Plant Biology - 4.085
• Breast Cancer Research - 5.785
• Molecular Neurodegeneration - 5.361
• Nucleic Acids Research - 7.836
On the other hand (top tiered, but not open access):
• Cell - 32.401
• PNAS - 9.771
• Science - 31.364
• Nature - 36.101
Posted by Katie Newman at 2:51 PM
June 15, 2011
New Open Access Journal from Nature: Scientific Reports
PRESS RELEASE FROM NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
14 June 2011
New open access title Scientific Reports launches today with the publication of its first articles. The fifteen articles published today range in scope from graphene to coral disease to viral nanoparticles. More articles will be published in the coming days, under Scientific Reports' rapid continuous publication schedule. An online-only, open access, multidisciplinary publication from Nature Publishing Group (NPG), Scientific Reports covers all areas of the biological, chemical, physical and earth sciences.
Scientific Reports is led by a team of 17 Editorial Advisory Panel members, who are supported by more than 330 Editorial Board members. A streamlined peer-review system ensures papers are rapidly and fairly peer-reviewed: the current average time from submission to first decision is under 30 days. An internal publishing team works with the board and authors to ensure manuscripts are processed for publication as quickly as possible.
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With the launch of Scientific Reports, NPG adds to its growing portfolio of open access options. Scientific Reports publishes technically sound, original research papers of interest to specialists within their field.
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All articles published in Scientific Reports will be open access and subject to an article-processing charge (APC). The 2011 APC is US$1,350. Authors have a choice of two non-commercial Creative Commons (CC) licenses. (Note: $1,350 represents a 20% discount on the APC for manuscripts accepted for publication before 31 December 2011. From January 2012, the APC will be US$1700.)
NPG makes an annual donation to Creative Commons, equivalent to $20 per APC paid for publication in Scientific Reports and the 19 other journals owned by NPG that offer an open access option. (Total annual donation from NPG will be up to $100,000.00)
...snip...
Scientific Reports joins more than 40 titles published by NPG offering an open access option. More information, about NPG's open access activities and policies, is available from NPG's January 2011 open access position statement.
Scientific Reports: www.nature.com/scientificreports
Read the full announcement.
Posted by Katie Newman at 11:08 AM
June 2, 2011
The National Academies Press Makes All PDF Books Free to Download
As of today all PDF versions of books published by the National Academies Press will be downloadable to anyone free of charge. This includes a current catalog of more than 4,000 books plus future reports produced by the Press. The mission of the National Academies Press (NAP) -- publisher for the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council -- is to disseminate the institutions' content as widely as possible while maintaining financial sustainability.
Read the full news bulletin
Search for books at the NAP site.
Among the recent books that may be of interest...
- Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals: Eighth Edition (2010)
- On Being a Scientist:A Guide to Responsible Conduct in Research: Third Edition (2009)
- A New Biology for the 21st Century (2009)
- Dietary Reference Intakes: The Essential Guide to Nutrient Requirements (2006)
- Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and of Chemical Hazards, Updated Version (2011)
- Status of Pollinators in North America (2007)
- The Value of Genetic and Genomic Technologies:Workshop Summary (2010)
Posted by Katie Newman at 9:48 AM
May 13, 2011
U.S. Expands List of Fields in Which Foreign Students May Extend Stay After Graduation
The Chronicle of Higher Education News Ticker is carrying a short article that will be of interest to many of our international students:
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May 13, 2011
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has published an expanded list of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields that qualify foreign students for an extended stay in the United States after graduation. The program, known as Optional Practical Training, allows graduates on student visas to work after they receive their degrees. Most graduates are allowed to stay on for an additional 12 months, but students in specific STEM fields can stay for 17 months beyond that. In a press release, the White House said the expansion was made to deal with shortages of certain high-tech scientists and technology experts.
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Read the list of STEM fields that qualify (additions are listed in BOLD):
STEM-Designated Degree Program List [pdf]
Posted by Katie Newman at 3:12 PM
NSF Announces Its Strategic Vision for Road Ahead
May 10, 2011
The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently released a strategic plan to guide the agency's priorities and investments for the next five years. Empowering the Nation Through Discovery and Innovation: NSF Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2011-2016 [pdf] sets the pathway for the agency's future, refining NSF's vision statement, refocusing its strategic goals and drawing upon new approaches and methods for assessing and evaluating the performance of NSF's investments in science and engineering research and education.
"NSF can play a significant role in helping the United States retain global leadership in discovery, in innovation, in advancing the frontiers of science and engineering, and in educating new generations of scientists and engineers," said NSF Director Subra Suresh. "Our new strategic plan provides a road map that guides us and keeps the agency on track to achieving these goals."
The new plan outlines three strategic goals that underpin all programs and activities during both the short term and over the long term: transform the frontiers, innovate for society, and perform as a model organization. The first two goals align with the two merit criteria that NSF applies in evaluating every research proposal the agency receives--intellectual merit and broader impacts. The third strategic goal emphasizes the importance of operational excellence to achieving NSF's vision, and it encourages experimentation in business processes in order to make the agency more efficient and effective. The plan sets performance targets to measure progress in achieving the strategic goals, and it lays out near-, mid- and long-term actions for the agency to take.
The strategic plan also commits NSF to innovation and experimentation in the assessment process itself. For example, through the STAR METRICS project (Science and Technology in America's Reinvestment - Measuring the Effect of Research and Innovation, Competitiveness, and Science), NSF is working with other federal science agencies and with research institutions to improve the tracking of outcomes from investments in science and engineering research and education.
"We're living in a time when complex problems demand new approaches that bring together and energize innovative collaborations among scientists, engineers and educators from across disciplinary boundaries," Suresh noted. "This strategic plan encourages us to do exactly that while ensuring that we remain good stewards of taxpayers' dollars and help the public understand the value of the investments we make."
The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993 requires federal agencies to develop strategic plans and measure performance. The new strategic plan reflects extensive discussions among NSF staff, the agency's advisory committee members, the National Science Board, other government partners, and the greater research and education community. Although it's a five-year plan, this strategic plan will be revisited and updated for FY 2013, based on the new requirements of the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010.
Read the full report: Empowering the Nation Through Discovery and Innovation: NSF Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2011-2016.
Posted by Katie Newman at 10:30 AM
