Spreading the news of RIVAL at the 2021 CILIPS and SCURL conferences #cilips21

RIVAL logoFollowing the completion of our Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) funded Research Impact Value and Library and Information Science (RIVAL) project at the end of March 2021, Dr Bruce Ryan and I are each pleased to have an opportunity to speak about this work at two different conferences this week. The first is the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals Scotland (CILIPS) annual conference, which opened today. The second is the annual conference of the Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL), which takes place on Wednesday. Continue reading

RIVAL network members gather (online) for event 4

RIVAL logoToday the members of the Royal Society of Edinburgh-funded RIVAL network are meeting formally for the penultimate time at part 1 of RIVAL Event 4. As has been the case for so many professional activities since mid-March 2020, Dr Bruce Ryan, Rachel Salzano, Katherine Stephen and I are not hosting this event as originally envisaged. Rather than gathering face-to-face, at Edinburgh Napier University’s Sighthill campus for a full day on July 9th 2020, the RIVAL network members will be logging onto Teams for two half day meetings, the first of which is this afternoon, with the second on the morning of Friday 12th February. Continue reading

RIVAL network event 3: preview

RIVAL logoAfter two postponements and a decision to move to virtual delivery, we (myself, Dr Bruce Ryan and our Edinburgh Napier PhD student helpers Rachel Salzano and Katherine Stephen) will (finally) be hosting the third RIVAL network event next week on Thursday 19th November 2020. Continue reading

Collaboration and networking: learning from DREaM and RIVAL #UofGISTalks

This afternoon I am giving a SICSA-sponsored talk at the University of Glasgow. I have been invited to present by Dr Paul Gooding, Dr Nicole Smith, and Professor Maria Economou of the School of Information Studies as a contributor to the School’s seminar series. Continue reading

Centre for Social Informatics ‘all centre’ meeting December 2019

Social Informatcis staff and students all centre meeting December 2019

At the Social Informatics ‘All centre’ meeting, L to R: John, Peter, Lyndsey, Katherine, Rachel, Marina, Laura, Hazel, Leo, Ella, David H, David B, Frances, Colin, Wegene, and Bruce

Every six months the staff and research students from the Social Informatics group at Edinburgh Napier University gather for an ‘All centre’ celebration of their recent achievements. The December 2019 gathering took place on Wednesday 18th December, with 19 participants. The format of the meeting allowed for a maximum 5 minute update from each person. Continue reading

Research Impact and Value in LIS: introducing the RIVAL network

This afternoon I’m speaking at the Edge conference in Edinburgh about a new project, as summarised in the slide below.

RIVAL launch poster We started work on Research Impact and Value and LIS (RIVAL) on 1st February 2019. The Royal Society of Edinburgh has awarded us a grant to create a collaborative network of Scotland-based library and information science (LIS) researchers and library and information professionals interested in maximising the value of LIS research. This work builds on the pilot RIVAL event that we hosted at Edinburgh Napier University on 11th July last year. Continue reading

Royal Society of Edinburgh New Fellows’ Induction Day, 15 May 2017

RSE roll book signatures 1856-57

RSE roll book signatures 1856-57 (credit D. Miell)

Annually the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) holds an Induction Day to admit its new Fellows, and to introduce them to the work of the Society. I enjoyed yesterday’s event as one of the new cohort of Fellows in 2017.

The order of the day included a number of presentations. The first was a welcome speech from RSE President Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell. Later on there were short talks on the history of the RSE, the work of the RSE Young Academy, and what it means to be a Fellow.

There was also an opportunity to take a tour of the RSE‘s headquarters at 22-26 George Street. As we were guided through the building we learnt more about the people who have played key roles in the work of the RSE (while some of them looked down at us from their portraits).  We were also invited to examine some of the RSE‘s treasures, including scientific notes in the handwriting of James Clerk Maxwell, and the Crown Charter of Incorporation that constituted the formation of the society in 1783. Continue reading

Two new appointments: Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and Docent at Åbo Akademi University

The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) brings together distinguished individuals from the arts, business, science and technology and academia worlds to advance learning and knowledge in Scottish public life. The breadth of the Fellowship – which includes over 1600 individuals from the UK and abroad – enables the RSE to provide a wide range of leadership and expertise.

Each year the RSE undertakes a rigorous five-stage nomination and election process to appoint around 60 new Fellows. I was delighted to learn last week that I am one of those elected in 2017. Also elected in 2017 are Val McDermid, James Naughtie, Professor Iain Stewart and Kirsty Wark. HRH The Duke of Cambridge also joins the cohort as a Royal Honorary Fellow. Continue reading