Supporting Research

Enable researchers to find, access, use and share Rice collections of research materials. 

Fondren increases e-books and primary source collections 

  • Fondren Library shifted from print to an e-preferred book program for Duke University Press in the summer of 2021. By shifting to e-preferred the library was able to purchase the entire e-Duke frontlist (i.e., more titles) at a deeper discount. A recent analysis of the usage for these e-Duke titles has shown an overall increase in usage for the ebook titles in comparison to print. Other benefits included access to the e-Duke backfile of titles and more. The cost of moving to the e-preferred program was comparable to the library's expenditure for Duke University Press print books and is expected to reduce spending costs for e-Duke ebooks over time.         
  • Fondren Library purchased the remaining collections of the Adam Matthew (AM) primary source collections and they became available in late 2021. This upfront purchase allowed for the library to acquire the AM primary source collections at a deeper discount offsetting the ongoing costs of purchasing a few of these highly demanded collections each year at a higher cost while at the same time delaying access to the remaining collections for Rice researchers. The offer also included significant ongoing discounts for new collection purchases.  
  • Between June 2021 and June 2022, the Rice Digital Scholarship Archive had approximately 3.4 million users. During this period, approximately 1,350 new items were added to the archive. 
  • In Summer 2022, years-long efforts to digitize print theses and dissertations were completed. Now, all Rice theses and dissertations can be found in the archive.

DMC supports creation of scientific illustrations

Research Data Services 

  • Fondren said farewell to Data Services Specialist Miaomiao Rimmer, who is now Research Specialist III at the Baker Institute, and welcomed her replacement, Dr. Catherine Barber. Dr. Barber, who has a PhD in psychology, came to Rice from the University of St. Thomas, where she was a professor in the School of Education and Human Services and Analyst in the Office of Assessment and Institutional Effectiveness.
  • Lisa Spiro, Amanda Thomas, Joe Goetz and Miaomiao Rimmer co-authored a report on Teaching with Quantitative Data in Undergraduate Social Science Classes at Rice University: An Ithaka S+R Local Report, which is part of a national project to understand social science data instruction sponsored by Ithaka S+R.
  • In collaboration with the Center for Research Computing and the Ken Kennedy Information Institute, Research Data Services offered three two-day Carpentries workshops to help students develop research computing and data analysis skills, including workshops on Python, R, and data skills for social scientists. In addition, Research Data Services offered a number of one- to two hour workshops on topics such as Python, R, MySQL, and research data management.

Staff Highlight: Data Services Specialist Catherine Barber 

Catherine Barber joined Fondren’s Research Data Services team in June of 2022. She holds a B.A. in psychology from Columbia University and an M.A. and Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Loyola University Chicago.  As a Data Services Specialist, Catherine supports researchers through training and consultation on all aspects of the data life cycle.  She enjoys blending her expertise in teaching with her passion for research to create enjoyable, effective learning experiences for the Rice research community.

Catherine Barber
Catherine Barber

 

UX-Microforms User Journey

  • Through a series of observed user journeys, User Researcher and UX student assistant Reagan Reynolds was able to gather data on the usability of Fondren's microform system and resources. Collaboration with Hannah Edlund of the Kelley Center for Government Information, and Mang Sun, Fondren systems librarian, led to improvements including increased signage, the creation of a video explanation that gives a brief overview of process of accessing microforms and updates in the library catalog to include the "Map it!" function, and a new distinct library sublocation to separate the Readex microprint from general government stacks. The study presentation is available in the Digital Scholarship Archive

Kolah, Debra and Reynolds, Reagan. "Microform User Journey: a selected look at faculty and librarian use of the Kelley Center Microform area." (2022) Rice University: https://hdl.handle.net/1911/113153.

Faculty member seeking microform for study.
Faculty member seeking microform for study.
Reagan Reynolds, Rice ‘25
Reagan Reynolds, Rice ‘25
StackMap Screenshot Microform
Mapping the Microforms
StackMap Screenshot Microform
Mapping the Readex Collection in the Microform Room

New Product focus -  

  • Fondren Library entered into a pilot subscription to the Wiley Use KnowItAll Anyware databases of spectra, structures and chemical properties, including an expert tool for non-targeted mass spectrometry analysis in the summer of 2022. The tool uses integrated solutions to identify, analyze and manage multiple types of spectral data in multiple file and instrument formats. 
     
  • A subscription to Overleaf Professional was launched in June 2022. Overleaf is a collaborative cloud based LaTeX tool which makes writing, editing and publishing scientific papers much easier than other editors available.  All Rice University students, faculty and staff now have access to a free Overleaf Pro account. You can sign in at the Rice University home page for Overleaf to access your account. More information can be found on the Overleaf Libguide. 
  • In the fall of 2021, Fonden Library implemented Article Galaxy Scholar (AGS), an unmediated express document delivery tool, to help supplement our existing journal subscriptions.   AGS helps the library fill gaps in journal coverage and reduce overall journal subscription costs by providing a real-time delivery option for full-text articles delivered via email from journals the library does not have current subscriptions.  You can read more about AGS at https://libguides.rice.edu/AGS