The Authority File

Students, faculty, and librarians belong to the same higher education ecosystem. And yet, the three stakeholders often lack strong communication and collaboration, leading to accessibility issues, outdated resources, and a general misunderstanding of each party’s unique responsibilities and obstacles. In fact, when faced with something as (seemingly) simple as a course reading list, the student, professor, and librarian can struggle to settle on one process that suits each other’s needs and best serves the root purpose—a functional guide of sources that supports the student learning experience.

In this four-part series, four guests—a professor, student, librarian, and publisher—join the program to discuss the definition, hurdles, and solutions to the undergraduate workflow. They offer their perspectives and guidance through the lens of a recent research project, which gathered data and offered solutions to the undergraduate workflow, starting at the assignment of a reading list to the search for resources and evaluation of the texts. The guests share what they need from the other in order to succeed, whether that be better signage or reading instructions, a uniform online system, access to open resources, or basic understanding of each party’s process.

In this first episode, we introduce our guests: Ian Snowley, Dean of Student Learning Development & University Librarian at the University of Lincoln; Jamie Wood, professor of History and Education at the University of Lincoln; Samantha Sharman, a student at the University of Lincoln and lead researcher on the project; and Matt Hayes, Managing Director at Technology from SAGE. Ian, Jamie, and Samantha offer background on their roles in the research project, while Matt explains SAGE’s interest and support for this topic, and how the research can bolster SAGE’s digital platforms to better serve everyone. Finally, the guests close with thoughts on the why this juncture between student, librarian, and teaching faculty continues to be such a moving target.

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In the final episode of this four-part series, Felicity Plester, Editorial Director for Humanities, and Tamsine O’Riordan, Editorial Director for Social Science, both at Palgrave Macmillan, discuss the publisher’s future formats and emerging topics in the Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS). They reflect on the power of e-resources in publishing and scholarly dissemination, in addition to flexible access strategies like single title models and artificial intelligence innovations. Felicity also touches on how popular culture factors into acquisition decisions and the balance between staying current and ensuring longevity in a subject. Next, Tamsine shares her thoughts on emerging topics in social justice and sustainability and how today’s readers want to access knowledge—whether through e-content, hybrid formats, or print. Last, Felicity plugs the upcoming Palgrave Macmillan Annual Lecture Series on September 21st, which will focus on how HSS contributes to the peace agenda.

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In the final episode of this series, Dr. Niklas Lidströmer, co-editor of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, looks at future trends of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (AIM). Niklas covers major innovations ahead and their potential impacts on treatment and the patient and doctor relationship. In addition, he discusses the current global applications of AIM and his forthcoming title on Artificial Intelligence and the COVID-19 pandemic. Last, Niklas considers how librarianship will fit into the increased availability of medical data, including more advanced patron requests and co-authorship between librarians and researchers.

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The publication of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) motivated publishers to assess their own mission statements and level of engagement within the scholarly community. Centering goals in gender equality, clean energy, and quality education can strengthen research, heighten impact, and encourage a global perspective. How else can community engagement goals facilitate a publisher’s imprint evolution?

In the third episode of this series, Felicity Plester and Tamsine O’Riordan, both at Palgrave Macmillan, discuss the publisher’s recent developments and adoption of sustainability targets. First, they walk through the balance between pursuing emerging areas of research and maintaining traditional coverage of HSS disciplines. They also discuss peer review, touching on reviewer recruitment and Palgrave Macmillan’s evolving approach to OA. Last, the guests underscore the publisher’s role in community engagement, highlighting the influence of the SDGs and programs like Social Science Matters and Campaign for the Humanities.

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The ethics of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (AIM) include questions of privacy, safety, and authority. In fact, the ownership of medical data and safeguarding patients’ identities is only one part of the puzzle. Additional challenges like preventing biases from entering diagnosis or alerting patients to the use of AI—and receiving consent—are crucial hurdles to overcome with the adoption of AIM.

In this third episode, Dr. Niklas Lidströmer, co-editor of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, tackles the complexities of ethics in AIM. He first discusses issues of safety and privacy when handling sensitive medical data, highlighting solutions like encryption, decentralized storage, and sharing algorithms rather than raw data. Next, Niklas addresses how bias and prejudice affect AIM, and the importance of recognizing how this can impact treatment. Last, he digs into transparency practices in AI decision-making, and the through line in data protection between AIM and librarianship.

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Publishers today are working to implement robust internal practices that center diversity, equity, and inclusion. Palgrave Macmillan—a publisher whose titles focus on issues of race, gender, disability, class, and more—is no different. What kind of DEI initiatives, projects, and training has the publisher introduced? How do they ensure that this work is outlined with intention and paid roles instead of left to volunteers? Why are editorial and company policies so essential to transforming a catalogue and authorship?

In this second episode, our guests dig into DEI policies and practices at Palgrave Macmillan. Felicity Plester, Editorial Director for Humanities, and Tamsine O’Riordan, Editorial Director for Social Science, both at Palgrave Macmillan, emphasize how internal policies translate into external changes through implicit bias training, acquisition workshops, and recruitment to expand representation in their author base and staff. The guests also discuss burnout due to COVID-19, and its effects on both researchers and editorial teams.

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Introducing Artificial Intelligence to the medical world has reaped advancements in symptom detection, diagnosis procedures, and patient autonomy. However, it has also sparked questions of security, privacy, and ownership. Who owns medical data? What governing body dictates that ownership? How do practitioners and stakeholders create standards for implementing AI into medicine?

In this second episode, Dr. Niklas Lidströmer, co-editor of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, discusses the benefits and challenges of AI in medicine. First, Niklas digs into how AIM allows for a progressiveness that could leave non-AI inclusive doctors behind. He also touches on the process of creating standardized, global practices for medical data processing, the significance of empowering the patient with their own medical information, and how AIM could transform the doctor-patient relationship for the better.

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Scholarly publishing extends beyond disseminating research. Editorial and internal practices, community engagement, and spreading awareness for social issues all comprise a publisher’s mission and cultural influence. So how do publishers strike a balance between activism and critical research? Are those two goals really in opposition to each other? How can recognizing and responding to the current social climate and inequalities strengthen a publisher’s ultimate goal of advancing knowledge?

In this series, Felicity Plester, Editorial Director for Humanities, and Tamsine O’Riordan, Editorial Director for Social Science, both at Palgrave Macmillan, dig into how the publisher prioritizes social justice through publications and company initiatives. In particular, they share how the Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) play a unique part in fostering interdisciplinary work and understanding the world around us. Further, Felicity and Tamsine discuss DEI policies at Palgrave Macmillan, the challenges of the peer review process, and the evolution of digital trends.

In this first episode, Felicity and Tamsine provide some background on their positions at Palgrave Macmillan and help situate HSS within the broader scholarly publishing ecosystem. In addition, they explore the role that publishers play in affecting change though research, innovation, and following or dictating trends. They also discuss Palgrave Macmillan’s merger with Springer Nature and how it has impacted workflows, output, and name recognition.

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Over a decade ago, specialist physician and researcher Dr. Niklas Lidströmer found electronic health records to be unorganized, error-prone, and underutilized. Convinced of the value in sifting through and connecting this medical data, Niklas tried to persuade stakeholders of the data’s efficacy, eventually leading to his work in artificial intelligence—a practical tool that could handle sorting through mass amounts of data. Since then, Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (AIM) has grown worldwide as researchers and medical practitioners alike see the benefits of implementing AI not just into data organization, but tasks in patient diagnosis, medical imaging, and telemedicine.

In this four-part series, Niklas dives into the power of AI in medicine, giving us a closer look at how AIM has already shaped clinical practices and doctor-patient relationships. Further, Niklas unpacks the ethics of artificial intelligence in the medical fields, paying particular attention to data privacy and systematic biases.

In this first episode, Niklas introduces his research and the inspiration behind his co-edited title Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, one of the first reference works available on AIM. In addition, he provides an overview on how artificial intelligence is currently being used in medicine, and how AI can impact librarianship, such as in administrative support and citation use.

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Throughout this series, Deanna Reder, Associate Professor of Indigenous Studies and English at Simon Fraser University, has discussed her many contributions to the growing field of Indigenous Studies: her latest book, Autobiography as Indigenous Intellectual Tradition, her time as Series Editor for the Indigenous Series at Wilfrid Laurier University Press, and her work for organizations like the Indigenous Literary Studies Association (ILSA), the Indigenous Editors Association, and the Indigenous Voices Awards.

In this final episode, Deanna looks forward, digging into the evolution of the discipline and next steps for the future. She describes the vitality and impact of the current generation of Indigenous authors, and plans to expand the archive of Indigenous writing, The People and the Text. Last, she closes with how far Indigenous Studies has come in the past decade, and, crucially, how far it still needs to go to better serve the scholarship, students, and Indigenous communities.

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