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Toronto Metropolitan University Library implemented a Scan and Deliver service in June 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. With this service patrons can request a portion of text, such as a chapter of a book or a journal article, be scanned by a library staff member and emailed to them. This service was implemented because of limited access to the physical library building and the print collection due to pandemic lockdowns. As the Library space reopened to patrons TMU librarians assessed this service to understand its impact and plan for future service offerings. The purpose of this assessment was to understand why Toronto Metropolitan University Library patrons have used the scan and deliver service: what benefits does it offer them, what role do scanned materials play in their scholarly research, and what barriers does it help them overcome? As the researchers found the service was impactful, namely in reducing barriers to academic research related to travel, health, and ease of access. These results have informed the future of this service at TMU Libraries and can be used to as a starting point for assessment by academic libraries regarding similar services implemented mid-pandemic. This collections contains information related to the Scan and Delivery service assessment, including a paper delivered at the Library Assessment Conference in November 2022.

This paper was delivered to the Library Assessment Conference in November 2022. Abstract: In the summer of 2020, the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Libraries started a digitization service called Scan and Deliver amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the Library building was closed to patrons with limited on-site staffing, the library provided some access to parts of the print collection when electronic alternatives were unavailable. The Scan and Deliver service allowed patrons to request a portion of text, such as a chapter of a book or journal article, to be scanned by a Library staff member and emailed to them. When the Library building reopened to patrons in Winter 2022 we assessed this service to understand its impact and plan for future service offerings. This paper addresses why Toronto Metropolitan University Libraries patrons have used the Scan and Deliver service: what benefits does it offer them, what role do scanned materials play in their scholarly research, and what barriers does it help them overcome? The results of our assessment show that the Scan and Deliver service has been impactful for patrons. Specifically, students told us it enabled them to complete their coursework and instructors stated that it allowed them to plan coursework and conduct research. The service helped patrons overcome barriers to completing their academic pursuits during the COVID-19 pandemic, including limits related to travel and serious health concerns. The service has also increased access to the collection and patrons describe it as easy to use and convenient. They also noted a few areas for service improvements. Patrons viewed the service as working in conjunction with other library services, such as interlibrary loan and course reserves, as a method of extending access to print. As a result of this analysis Library administration extended the scanning service for an additional year due to its value to patrons, allowing additional time for ongoing assessment.

This is a video of a presentation given at the Library Assessment Conference in November 2022. This resource contains a video file and a transcript file.

The consent form to participate in research is form that introduces the principal investigator and the purpose of the survey. The form outlines what the resondent will be asked to do, potential benefits and risks. A section of the form includes information about confidentiality, protection and incentives for participation.

Requests for Scan and Deliver survey are submitted through Google forms. This is a download of the request form. Please note that the list of program names would be seen by users as a drop down.

The scan and deliver survey was conducted through Google forms. This is a download of the survey instrument. Please note that this survey includes branching logic and that the lists of program names would be seen by users as a drop down.

This is a conference presentation delivered at Library Assessment Conference in November 2022. Toronto Metropolitan University Library implemented the scan and deliver service in June 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. With this service patrons can request a portion of text, such as a chapter of a book or a journal article, be scanned by a library staff member and emailed to them. This and other complementary services were implemented because of limited access to the physical library building and the print collection due to pandemic lockdowns. As the Library space reopened to patrons, we assessed this service to understand its impact and plan for future service offerings. This paper addresses why Toronto Metropolitan University Library patrons have used the scan and deliver service: what benefits does it offer them, what role do scanned materials play in their scholarly research, and what barriers does it help them overcome? These questions will inform the future of this service at our library and can be used to address similar questions facing other libraries regarding services implemented mid-pandemic.

In this article, the authors take a critical look at the challenges faced by librarians new to the profession. Using Michel de Certeau’s The Practice of Everyday Life, they examine how the coping tactics for new librarians described in the literature mirror the “tactics” de Certeau describes individuals using to “make do” within systems of power. This includes how individuals make do in their personal lives by coping with stress and how they succeed at work by developing networks and manoeuvering politically. This article will also discuss what de Certeau refers to as “strategies,” or moves undertaken by the system of power itself, within the context of onboarding and mentorship. Examining the literature on new librarians through the lens of de Certeau allows the authors to consider the ways in which the individual may choose to act tactically and integrate into a system of power, or may use the limited means available to them to quietly rebel. It also allows the critique of the use of tactics, which require individuals to take on additional work in order to adapt to the needs of the institution. Requiring new librarians to adapt to their institution is problematic, specifically in relation to precarious labour and to barriers to entry. These systematic issues require a collective response beyond what individuals can address. Using de Certeau’s work, the authors critically examine the literature that exists on new librarians and how individuals adapt and change to the needs of the academic library as a system of power.

In The Undersea Network, Nicole Starosielski traces transoceanic cable systems in order to illuminate their hidden narratives. Used to transmit the majority of Internet activity across the globe, these cables are seldom seen or thought of, notwithstanding their immense impact on global connectivity and the digital world.

A large portion of the annotated genes in Drosophila melanogaster show sex-biased expression, indicating that sex and reproduction-related genes (SRR genes) represent an appreciable component of the genome. Previous studies, in which subsets of genes were compared among few Drosophila species, have found that SRR genes exhibit unusual evolutionary patterns. Here, we have used the newly released genome sequences from 12 Drosophila species, coupled to a larger set of SRR genes, to comprehensively test the generality of these patterns. Among 2505 SRR genes examined, including ESTs with biased expression in reproductive tissues and genes characterized as involved in gametogenesis, we find that a relatively high proportion of SRR genes have experienced accelerated divergence throughout the genus Drosophila. Several testis-specific genes, male seminal fluid proteins (SFPs), and spermatogenesis genes show lineage-specific bursts of accelerated evolution and positive selection. SFP genes also show evidence of lineage-specific gene loss and/or gain. These results bring us closer to understanding the details of the evolutionary dynamics of SRR genes with respect to species divergence.

Background Male - female incompatibilities can be critical in keeping species as separate and discrete units. Premating incompatibilities and postzygotic hybrid sterility/inviability have been widely studied as isolating barriers between species. In recent years, a number of studies have brought attention to postmating prezygotic barriers arising from male - male competition and male - female interactions. Yet little is known about the genetic basis of postmating prezygotic isolation barriers between species. Results Using D. simulans lines with mapped introgressions of D. mauritiana into their third chromosome, we find at least two D. mauritiana introgressions causing male breakdown in competitive paternity success. Eighty one genes within the mapped introgressed regions were identified as broad-sense candidates on the basis of male reproductive tract expression and male-related function. The list of candidates was narrowed down to five genes based on differences in male reproductive tract expression between D. simulans and D. mauritiana. Another ten genes were confirmed as candidates using evidence of adaptive gene coding sequence diversification in the D. simulans and/or D. mauritiana lineage. Our results show a complex genetic basis for conspecific sperm precedence, with evidence of gene interactions between at least two third chromosome loci. Pleiotropy is also evident from correlation between conspecific sperm precedence and female induced fecundity and the identification of candidate genes that might exert an effect through genetic conflict and immunity. Conclusions We identified at least two loci responsible for conspecific sperm precedence. A third of candidate genes within these two loci are located in the 89B cytogenetic position, highlighting a possible major role for this chromosome position during the evolution of species specific adaptations to postmating prezygotic reproductive challenges.

Affiliations des auteurs : cf page 216 de l'article; International audience; Comparative analysis of multiple genomes in a phylogenetic framework dramatically improves the precision and sensitivity of evolutionary inference, producing more robust results than single-genome analyses can provide. The genomes of 12 Drosophila species, ten of which are presented here for the first time (sechellia, simulans, yakuba, erecta, ananassae, persimilis, willistoni, mojavensis, virilis and grimshawi), illustrate how rates and patterns of sequence divergence across taxa can illuminate evolutionary processes on a genomic scale. These genome sequences augment the formidable genetic tools that have made Drosophila melanogaster a pre-eminent model for animal genetics, and will further catalyse fundamental research on mechanisms of development, cell biology, genetics, disease, neurobiology, behaviour, physiology and evolution. Despite remarkable similarities among these Drosophila species, we identified many putatively non-neutral changes in protein-coding genes, non-coding RNA genes, and cis-regulatory regions. These may prove to underlie differences in the ecology and behaviour of these diverse species.