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Purdue Libraries and School of Information Studies News

Purdue Libraries and School of Information Studies saves students over $930,000 in course materials

December 12th, 2024

Purdue Libraries and School of Information Studies collaborates with instructors to locate affordable course materials to support student success. During the fall 2024 semester, Purdue Libraries saved students over $930,000 in textbook fees by acquiring required course materials for Libraries’ electronic collection, including over $36,000 in savings for more than 470 students at Purdue Indianapolis.

The cost of course textbooks can place a significant financial burden on college students and impede their academic opportunities. According to the U.S. PIRG Education Fund, “65 percent of students reported skipping buying assigned course material—a textbook, an access code, or both—during their time at school because of its cost.” Libraries provides access to a wide range of library-licensed materials, including over 800 new ebooks and streaming videos since July 2022. These materials are accessible via the Brightspace integrated electronic reading list, Leganto, where students can readily find and read them in the context of other course assignments and activities.

Affordable course materials website launched

To help instructors create more equitable learning environments, Purdue Libraries launched an affordable course materials website. This resource offers guidance and tools for instructors on how to integrate affordable materials into Purdue courses. 

For more information about affordable learning materials or to schedule a consultation with a librarian, please contact Emily Little, open education and affordable content librarian.


2024 Eli Lilly Case Competition winners announced

December 10th, 2024

2024 Eli Lilly Case Competition winners announced

The Eli Lilly Case Competition is a longstanding component of the Intro to Management and Information Strategies course (MGMT 110) and is organized in collaboration with Libraries assistant professors Zoe Mayhook and Annette Bochenek, Eli Lilly and Company, and the Larsen Leaders Academy Executive Board. 

In MGMT 110, students focus on the development of their academic and professional goals, while building and sharpening their information-gathering skills, by developing systematic methods for finding, evaluating, and presenting information. The Larsen Leaders Academy offers high-achieving business students a community of like-minded peers and professionals dedicated to fostering their natural aptitudes and encouraging their success.

The case competition presents a complex pharmaceutical investment case that requires students to conduct comprehensive business research, including analyzing company financials, evaluating patents and regulatory environments, assessing scientific risks, and examining industry and competitive landscapes and market and consumer profiles. It includes two rounds: an initial virtual presentation round, followed by an in-person, final round for the top six teams. This year, 16 teams competed, six advanced to the final round, and three teams earned top placements. The teams that earned top placements include:

1st Place:

  • Jacob Brooks
  • Ting Hsu
  • Soleil Porcella
  • Anjana Srinivasan

2nd Place:

  • Marie Kingery
  • Katherine Ma
  • Luke Storer
  • Annaleese Timms

3rd Place:

  • Liam Arnold
  • Roan Carpenter
  • Addison Hardan
  • Tess Kenney
  • Sara Negishi

As a member of the 3rd place team, Sara Negishi reflected on her experience and said, “Participating in the Eli Lilly case competition pushed me to become a well-rounded researcher by challenging us to analyze five key metrics (scientific risk, legal risk, competitive profile, market size, and financial profile), each requiring its own, unique research strategy. For example, my team studied clinical trial data for scientific risk and evaluated similar drugs, analyzing their efficacy and safety to assess competitive profile.”

Information literacy is a key component of this case competition. Very little data or information is provided, and students must fill in the gaps with research and informed assumptions. This requires students to spend time locating different types of business information, synthesizing and analyzing their findings, and using that information to make evidence-based decisions and recommendations. 

Also reflecting on his experience participating in the competition, MGMT 110 student Gregory Kotsiviras said, “By participating in the Lilly Case Competition, I developed a strong repertoire of research skills and applied critical thinking to develop strategic solutions. Moving forward, I intend to leverage the valuable insights I gained to inform my approach to future case competitions.”

A special thank you to Yana Petrova, Katarina Nikolovski, Preston Holb, Bailey Harris, Maggie Viewegh, and Brynna Walthers at Eli Lilly and Company for their contributions to this event. We are proud of all students who participated, and congratulations to the three teams who earned top placements. Well done!


The Google Library Project: Purdue Libraries partners with Google to digitize books

December 6th, 2024

Purdue Libraries, as a result of its membership in the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA), has partnered with Google to digitize books in its collection that are rare, out of print, and generally unavailable and are no longer needed in print at its facilities. Google aims to digitize these books from libraries across the world and make them searchable on Google Books to promote accessibility and advance the knowledge of users worldwide. 

In September 2021, Libraries began the process of sending books to Google in test shipments to solidify logistics and project workflow. The project officially began in March 2022, and Libraries selected and sent over 40,000 books to Google to be digitized until October 2023. The project was then paused to categorize and move books to Libraries’ repository, and will restart in May 2025.

More about the project 

The Google Library Project makes it possible for users to search through millions of books written in different languages via Google Books. If a book from the Library Project is in the public domain, Google will make it fully available to the public to read in its entirety. If a book is not in the public domain, the book will still be text-searchable, but Google Books will only display a few lines of text to show the user where their search appears within the context of the book.

Sometimes rights holders of copyrighted books grant permission to show more than a few lines of text; in those cases, a percentage of pages from the book or the entire book may be available for viewing. Also, if a book exists but has yet to be digitized, basic bibliographic information about the book will be available for users to view.
Google works with a number of libraries throughout the world to digitize their collections—once digitized, the libraries also receive a copy to preserve and make available to their patrons as copyright law allows. To learn more about the Google Library Project, visit its website.


Annual recognition event recap

December 5th, 2024

On December 3, Purdue Libraries celebrated the contributions of its faculty and staff at the annual Libraries staff recognition event held in Stewart Center. This long-standing tradition honors those who have demonstrated exceptional service to the Libraries, showcases the creativity of Libraries staff members, and recognizes new hires, retirees, and promotions throughout the year.

The event featured a craft show, where Libraries faculty and staff had the opportunity to browse and appreciate the talents of their colleagues. Handcrafted jewelry, original paintings, crocheted stuffed animals, abstract prints, and more were on display, highlighting the creativity of Susan Zeyher, Jessie Scott, Sarah Merryman, Will Ferrall, Ann O’Donnell, Morgan Richert, and Patricia Swanson.

The event also recognized  those who reached significant service milestones in 2024. Employees who have contributed their talents and dedication to Purdue Libraries were acknowledged for their invaluable service. These milestones were a testament to the lasting impact of their hard work and commitment to the Purdue community.

Service recognitions

We are proud to recognize the following staff members for their outstanding years of service to Purdue Libraries. Their years of service enrich the library community and continue to foster an environment of learning, creativity, and innovation. 

10 years of service:

  • Richard Bernier, processing & public services archivist
  • Cliff Harrison, operations manager for digital programs
  • Dave Zwicky, associate professor

15 years of service:

  • Amanda Gill, lead operations manager

20 years of service:

  • Carolee McGill-Barker, library assistant
  • Ralph Mickey, library assistant

25 years of service:

  • Rebecca Richardson, associate dean for collections & access

30 years of service:

  • Frances Christman, senior library assistant

35 years of service:

  • Candy Scott, Libraries facilities coordinator

40 years of service:

  • Sue Long, data coordinator

Highlights from Celebrating Research 2024

November 20th, 2024

Celebrating Research aims to highlight the work, innovation, and dedication of Libraries faculty by providing an opportunity to share their research with colleagues. This year, over 30 Libraries faculty members—and one undergraduate student alongside their Libraries faculty mentor—participated and showcased their work throughout the year. From projects in their beginning stages to those that are completed, faculty members shared what they have been working on and what we have to look forward to in the future.

Those who presented and the topic of their projects include:

  • Zoe Mayhook, Doug Pruim, Rachel Scallatine: Perceived Transferability of Data Visualization Skills: A thematic analysis of graduate student discourse in a ‘Storytelling with Data’ course.
  • Jing Lu: Transforming K12 World Language Education: Using AI to Foster Effective World Language Teaching
  • Samantha LeGrand, Jing Lu, Zoe Mayhook: Co-creating AI Learning Solutions: ​A qualitative Analysis of Student and Faculty Deliverables in an Algorithmic Literacy Learning Community
  • Annette Bochenek: Primary Sources Mini Case Development for the Undergraduate Business Classroom
  • Thom Gerrish, Rachel Fundator, Clarence Maybee: Information Literacy at the Field Station: Cultivating Environmental Researchers and Citizens
  • Bethany McGowan: Building Epistemic Communities through Service-Learning: Advancing Information Diplomacy to Tackle Information Manipulation
  • Jason Reed, Chelsea M. Baker, Becky Mahan, Trista Bailey, Tim Bloom: End-of-Life Education in Colleges of Pharmacy
  • Dave Zwicky, Margaret Phillips, Heather Howard: University to Workplace Information Strategies, Part Two 
  • Zoe Mayhook, Christopher Ghita (student): The Impact of Finance Case Competitions on Undergraduate Learning and Professional Skill Building
  • Pete Pascuzzi, Jason Reed: Analysis of library faculty publishing trends with Web of Science bibliometric data.
  • Chao Cai, Jane Yatcilla, Justyna Czader: Evaluating the reporting quality of systematic reviews and meta-analyses in agricultural publications
  • Kevin Wiggins: Overlap Analysis in Scopus and Web of Science
  • Jean-Pierre V. M. Hérubel, Stanislav Pejša, Dr. Pierre Verschueren: Mapping French Doctoral Dissertations
  • Kristin Leaman: Medieval Mis- and Disinformation: Filling  a Gap in Medieval Studies
  • Bert Chapman: Government Information on Semiconductors & Space Strategy and Military Doctrine: Policy Documents of NATO Allies
  • Jo Otremba: Barron Hilton Flight and Space Archives: Where We Are, Where We’re Going
  • Spencer Stewart: History in the Age of YouTube: How Online Platforms are Transforming the Practice and Creation of Historical Knowledge
  • Jerilyn Tinio: Threshold Concepts: A Framework for Teaching Data Science Ethics
  • Reid Boehm, Jerry Kuang: PURR + ORCiD: Adding PURR data to researchers’ ORCiD profile
  • Kelly Burns, Reid Boehm: Deconstructing the DMP: Research Models, Results, and Practical Applications
  • Shirley Li, Nicole Kong: Advancing data integration and utility in the Alien Forest Pest Explorer
  • Ben Parnin, Reid Boehm: Finding the Path Home: Visualizing connections and characteristics across the PLN ecosystem
  • Stanislav Pejša: The Perplexity of Humanities Datare-Use
  • Wei Zakharov, Donna Ferullo, Emily Little, Clarence Maybee: The Journey of PoRTAL (2017–2024): Purdue Repository for online Teaching and Learning

One of the highlights from the event included professor Zoe Mayhook and her mentee Christopher Ghita, a Purdue senior majoring in finance, presenting his research. With Mayhook’s guidance and expertise, Ghita worked to research the impact of finance case competitions on undergraduate learning and professional skill building. 

When reflecting on his experience working with Mayhook, Ghita said “Zoe is the best mentor I could have had. I’ve never done a lot of research, and her understanding of the literature review side and the analyzing data side has been nothing but valuable to me. It’s been a fantastic experience, and I couldn’t ask for a better mentor.”

Celebrating Research was an excellent opportunity to catch up with faculty and learn about their research endeavors. We are proud of our faculty for their commitment and dedication to research and contributing to their fields of expertise, and look forward to seeing how their work will shape the future of their disciplines.


Wharton Research Data Services (WRDS)

November 17th, 2024

WRDS, developed by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, provides single-point access to over 350 terabytes of data across multiple disciplines, including Finance, Marketing, and Economics.

Purdue’s WRDS instance includes access to the following: Bank Regulatory BoardEx Academic Research Data; CBOE Indexes; Compustat Capital IQ; Contributed Data; CRSP; DMEF Academic Data; Dow Jones ; FactSet; FAMA French & Liquidity Factors; IBES; IRI; Macro Finance Society; MFLINKS; MSRB; Nastraq; OTC Markets; Penn World Tables; Peters & Taylor Total Q; PHLX; Research Quotient; SAS Visual Analytics; SEC Order Execution; TAQ; Thomoson Reuters; TRACE; Zacks.

Please note that WRDS requires a user account. Undergraduate access may be approved on a case-by-case basis but cannot be guaranteed.

Access

The List of Business Databases is an alphabetical list of databases filtered to those most applicable to business, entrepreneurship, and hospitality and tourism management programs of study.

Tutorial

Click Getting Started with WRDS to watch the basics of using this database.

Related Resources

  • LSEG Workspace includes company, industry, and economic data and news from the London Stock Exchange Group including ESG, M&A, and robust charting.
  • Morningstar Investing Center provides information on 20,000 stocks and mutual funds – allows screening using a variety of criteria. Also provides access to Morningstar Rating for mutual funds and stocks. Includes Morningstar Analyst Reports on 1,000 stocks and 2,000 mutual funds.
  • PitchBook is a top resource for private market data — startups, private equity and venture capital investors, angel investors, limited partners like foundations and sovereign wealth funds, plus deals, funding rounds, and more. Also provides information about public and private companies plus market research.

Featured Database comes to you from the Roland G. Parrish Library of Management & Economics. If you would like more information about this database, or if you would like a demonstration of it for a class, contact parrlib@purdue.edu.

Want to see a specific database promoted in an upcoming edition? Send an email to parrlib@purdue.edu and we will gladly promote it.


Highlights from Purdue GIS Day 2024: Exploring GeoAI

November 8th, 2024

Purdue GIS Day 2024, with the theme of “Exploring GeoAI,” was a success and brought together over 180 students, academics, and industry professionals in a day filled with insightful talks, poster presentations, and networking opportunities. The event, hosted by Gang Shao, showcased the latest advancements in geospatial analysis and its applications across many disciplines. 

The conference featured two keynote speakers—Gregory Brunner, an experienced scientist, award-winning professor, and principal data scientist at Esri, a global market leader in GIS software; and Michael Johns, a lead geospatial product specialist at Databricks, a global data, analytics, and artificial intelligence company. Brunner spoke about the rapid growth of the AI model ecosystem and the potential impact it has and will have on GIS, and Johns discussed how to use Databricks to perform scaled spatial analysis while retaining full visibility and control over all of the underlying processes, code, models, and data lineage. Both Brunner and Johns enjoyed getting the opportunity to connect with students throughout the day and share their insights and professional experience with GIS. 

After his talk and having an opportunity to connect with students, Brunner said, “I think they are making the connections between the trends that I’m seeing, the direction Esri is going with GeoAI generative AI and what they’re doing with their own work. I hope that work continues and that they continue to make these observations and connections between what they see going on in the broadview spatial community and how it impacts their research, their work, and their interests.”

The schedule also included 14 five-minute lightning talks, presented by undergraduate and graduate students, demonstrating the depth of our student body’s research and innovation in geospatial fields. Additionally, 21 undergraduate and graduate students presented posters at the event, tying in their respective disciplines to the field of GIS. 

“I was really impressed with the quality of the posters and presentations. It feels like there’s a lot of grounding around real-world problems that speaks well of how students are being set up here through the program and I think there’s a lot of good questions that are being asked about how students take what they learned at the university and apply it at the level they aim to achieve,” said Johns, reflecting on his experience viewing the student poster presentations and lightning talks. 

We were also honored to hear from industry partners during four research and industry presentations and a career panel discussion that connected the practical applications of geospatial technologies between academia and industry. From learning about how to build an open geospatial data ecosystem to finding and accessing statewide GIS data, the speakers highlighted the relevance of these tools in real-world scenarios.

A special thanks to the following individuals for their involvement, participation, and professional insights shared with attendees during the panel discussion and/or their research and industry presentation:

  • Gregory Brunner, principal data scientist at Esri
  • Michael Johns,  lead geospatial product specialist
  • Ryan Bowe, aviation project manager at Woolpert and president of Indiana Geographic Information Council
  • Joan Keene, GIS director at Hamilton County, IN
  • Phil Worrall, geospatial consultant at Philip Worrall LLC
  • Brian DeKemper, enterprise account executive at Amazon Web Services
  • Jinhin Cai, Ph. D. candidate
  • Jinha Jung, associate professor of civil engineering
  • Minyoung Jung, postdoctoral researcher in civil engineering
  • Benjamin Hancock, senior web developer in agricultural and biological engineering
  • Shaun Schooler, GIS program director
  • Daniel Council, geographic information outreach coordinator

The day concluded by recognizing the best graduate and undergraduate student who had an outstanding lightning talk or poster presentation. Each winner was presented with a certificate and a $100 reward for their unique contributions to the field of GIS. 

Undergraduate award winners:

  • Lightning talk: Shrithik Sekar, Environmental and Ecological Engineering | “Nonpoint Source Pollution Analysis Using ArcGIS Pro”
  • Poster presentation: Andrew Thompson, Computer Science | “Evaluating the Use of LiDAR Traffic Data for Assessing Infrastructure”

Graduate award winners:

  • Lightning talk: Margaret Deahn, Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences | “How to (safely) land a robot on another planet: Mapping planetary missions from Venus to Mars”
  • Poster presentation: Adebola Esther Adeniji, Forestry and Natural Resources | “Modeling suitable habitat for the Near Threatened Cerulean Warbler in the contiguous United States using ArcGIS and MaxENT”

Congratulations to our winners for their outstanding achievements, and to all of our GIS Day 2024 participants for their commendable successes and contributions to the field of Geographic Informations Systems. As we look forward to another inspiring event, please mark your calendars for next year’s conference, which will be held on November 6, 2025.


Passport

November 3rd, 2024

Passport aggregates industry reports, economic information, and consumer information by region and country with global coverage.

Access

The List of Business Databases is an alphabetical list of databases filtered to those most applicable to business, entrepreneurship, and hospitality and tourism management programs of study.

Tutorial

Click Getting Started with Passport to watch the basics of using this database.

Related Resources

  • Bizminer includes two main categories: Industry Financial Analyses that provides financial ratios and data for industry segments with sales class filters, and Industry Market Profile that offers demographics, competitors, market volume, and more for the entire US, states, counties, zip codes, cities, and customizable market radius.
  • Business Insights: Global provides detailed global and industry profiles including SWOT reports, market share reports, and financial reports.
  • IBISWorld Industry Reports provides data-driven reports on industries each containing an authoritative overview of trends, competitive forces, statistics, top companies, and more.

Featured Database comes to you from the Roland G. Parrish Library of Management & Economics. If you would like more information about this database, or if you would like a demonstration of it for a class, contact parrlib@purdue.edu.

Want to see a specific database promoted in an upcoming edition? Send an email to parrlib@purdue.edu and we will gladly promote it.


Purdue Libraries participating in First-Generation Celebration Week

October 29th, 2024

In honor of First-Generation Celebration Week held November 4–8, 2024, Purdue Libraries will showcase valuable insights and advice from faculty and staff on our social media channels, many of whom are first-generation graduates themselves. This annual event is dedicated to raising awareness about the experiences of first-generation college students and promoting a positive narrative about their journeys and achievements. 

Each year, Purdue proudly welcomes thousands of first-generation college students to campus, who are typically defined as students whose parents or guardians did not earn a four-year college degree. In 2022, approximately 16% of Purdue undergraduate students self-identified as first-generation. First-gen students bring unique perspectives and insights, and an ever-changing skill set. 

Visit the First-Generation at Purdue website for additional information and to learn more about first-generation services, and be sure to follow our social media channels throughout the week to discover inspiring advice and tips tailored specifically to first-generation college students from our dedicated faculty and staff. 


Dr. Donald R. Lynam receives the 2024 Purdue University Libraries and School of Information Studies Leadership in Open Access Award

October 22nd, 2024

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.—Purdue University Libraries and School of Information Studies is pleased to recognize Dr. Donald R. Lynam, distinguished professor in the Department of Psychological Sciences, with the 2024 Leadership in Open Access Award. 

Dr. Lynam is a tireless advocate for open access, open data, and open science. His advocacy and leadership led the university to join OSF Institutions, resulting in open and wider visibility of Purdue research and scholarship in the Open Science Framework.

Dr. Lynam collaborated with Purdue Libraries to develop and organize the Open Science Talk Series—eight lectures associated with open science conducted throughout the 2023–2024 academic year. He is also part of the nationwide HELIOS project that provides opportunities for the Purdue community to participate in open scholarship.

The Leadership in Open Access award has been given annually since 2010 in recognition of exceptional commitment to broadening the reach of scholarship by making Purdue research freely accessible online. The award is granted to nominees who have worked in collaboration with one or more repositories supported by Purdue Libraries, such as Purdue e-Pubs, Purdue University Research Repository (PURR), or Purdue e-Archives.

Open Access Week

October 21–27, 2024 was International Open Access Week. This year’s theme, Community over Commercialization, sought to encourage approaches to open scholarship that prioritize the best interests of the public and the academic community.  

Open Access publishing provides free, immediate access to scholarly literature, removing paywalls and reuse restrictions. For more than 20 years, Open Access publishing has paved the way to greater transparency in scientific research, providing a model for other open scholarship endeavors including open data, open peer review, and open science.  

Purdue Libraries and Open Access

Purdue University Libraries and School of Information Studies remains an avid advocate for open access publishing, aligning with the institution’s land-grant mission of learning, discovery, and engagement. Purdue’s commitment to open access began with Open Access Day in 2008, and the university has actively participated in International Open Access Week since its establishment in 2009.

In 2020, Purdue Libraries, with support from the Dean’s Advisory Council and generous donors, established an endowment to promote a sustainable and transparent system of scholarly research. This endowment has enabled Purdue Libraries to contribute to innovative open access publishing initiatives, further solidifying Purdue’s commitment to open scholarship.

Purdue Libraries negotiates with publishers to provide free Open Access publishing opportunities—its current Open Access Publishing Partnerships are a result of these negotiations. When publishing in journals that qualify under these agreements, Purdue authors can select Open Access publishing options at no cost.  

Authors have access to additional services and support, including support for posting works to Purdue e-Pubs, Purdue’s institutional repository for scholarly documents. As an open access service, scholarly works posted to Purdue e-Pubs are freely available to a global audience and benefit from wide availability and discovery. 

Most publishers allow authors to post a version of their scholarship to an institutional repository. Purdue Libraries offers a free CV review service, and authors who wish to participate need only to share a list of publications or their ORCID iD. Purdue e-Pubs staff will review publisher sharing policies and inform authors that their works can be made openly available at no cost. 

For more information, contact openaccess@purdue.edu. 

Purdue University Libraries and School of Information Studies

Purdue University Libraries and School of Information Studies, a unit of Purdue University, aims to create and provide equitable access to diverse resources, outstanding services, and innovative spaces by pioneering new methods in information science and advancing knowledge to meet the evolving information needs of the future.
To learn more, visit lib.purdue.edu.