Search

Purpose: To describe the issues involved in the introduction of mandatory submission of electronic theses at Cranfield University. Design/methodology/approach: Background information on how the availability of e-theses has developed at Cranfield University is provided along with discussions and advice on issues such as the choice of software, thesis submission workflow and timeframes, particularly in relation to the publication of thesis-related articles. It also looks at metadata issues as well as both retrieval and usage of electronic theses. Finally it describes how the service has expanded from e-theses to other types of material and to the development and expansion of an institutional repository for Cranfield. Findings: It is shown that there are a number of issues that will need to be addressed from the points of view of librarians, academic staff and registry staff and that one effective method of managing the process is to set up a working group with all stakeholders in the process. There is a clear need for administrative procedures to be discussed in detail and a recognition that the time involved in changing regulations may be significant. Practical implications: It is clear that most of the issues that have arisen at Cranfield as outlined in the paper will be mirrored at other institutions that are considering the same changes, and so those institutions looking at the area of e-thesis submission may gain some useful insights. Originality/value: This paper provides useful advice on the issues that will arise as institutions go through the process of introducing the mandatory submission of electronic theses. (Contains 3 figures.)

The International Stem Cell Initiative characterized 59 human embryonic stem cell lines from 17 laboratories worldwide. Despite diverse genotypes and different techniques used for derivation and maintenance, all lines exhibited similar expression patterns for several markers of human embryonic stem cells. They expressed the glycolipid antigens SSEA3 and SSEA4, the keratan sulfate antigens TRA-1-60, TRA-1-81, GCTM2 and GCT343, and the protein antigens CD9, Thy1 (also known as CD90), tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase and class 1 HLA, as well as the strongly developmentally regulated genes NANOG, POU5F1 (formerly known as OCT4), TDGF1, DNMT3B, GABRB3 and GDF3. Nevertheless, the lines were not identical: differences in expression of several lineage markers were evident, and several imprinted genes showed generally similar allele-specific expression patterns, but some gene-dependent variation was observed. Also, some female lines expressed readily detectable levels of XIST whereas others did not. No significant contamination of the lines with mycoplasma, bacteria or cytopathic viruses was detected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides information on the turnout of the 27th United Kingdom Serials Groups (UKSG) Annual Conference, held in England in 2004. An informal mailing list was set up under the auspices of the UKSG. The mailing list has above 1,500 members from 33 countries, and is composed of librarians, publishers, learned societies, agents, and many others with an interest in electronic journals. The main function of the mailing list is to provide a forum where issues relating to electronic journals can be discussed openly. As such, the list has raised a wide variety of issues, including publishers' pricing policies, gracing periods, communication between publishers and librarians, open access, tracking journal changes, access issues, archives, authentication issues and usage statistics. Such discussion has allegedly provided publishers, intermediaries and agents with useful feedback on the services they provide and how they can improve the way they conduct their functions. Apparently, an increasing number of publishers provide newsletters, alerting services and dedicated areas on their sites to provide support for librarians. The list has also helped in the development of standards, such as gracing policies.