COLLEGE OF COMPUTING, INFORMATICS AND MATHEMATICS

BACHELOR OF INFORMATION SCIENCE (HONS)

LIBRARY MANAGEMENT (IM244)

DIGITAL LIBRARIES (IML651)

ARTICLE REVIEW – OPEN SCIENCE IN LIBRARY

PREPARED FOR:

PUAN SITI KHAIRIYAH BINTI NORDIN

PREPARED BY:

NUR EZZAD HAQIM BIN ALI

MATRIC NO:

2021871146

CLASS:

IM2446A
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

At this very moment, I want to express my deepest regards to Madam Siti Khairiyah Nordin
because she has guided me well to understand the assignment which I really appreciate. I
want to thank my fellow friends too because they have shared their ideas and opinions to
help me understand better. Ultimately, I felt very grateful to Allah the Almighty because has
given me strength to finish my assignment even during this steaming hot Ramadan days.

Not to mention, my parents that has gave me some moral support to make sure I feel
motivated and not being tired when doing assignment. Thank you.
LIBRARY ROLE IN OPEN SCIENCE
Table of Contents
1.0 INTRODUCTION..........................................................................................................................1
1.1 History of Open Science..........................................................................................................1
2.0 LIBRARY ROLE IN OPEN SCIENCE.......................................................................................1
3.0 BENEFITS OF IMPLEMENTING OPEN SCIENCE................................................................2
4.0 POLICIES USED FOR OPEN SCIENCE IN LIBRARY..........................................................2
5.0 PROBLEMS WITH OPEN SCIENCE........................................................................................3
6.0 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION............................................................................3
References..........................................................................................................................................5
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Open science is a strategy to study that prioritises the early and widespread sharing
of knowledge, results, and tools (Open Science, n.d.). It is mostly about making scientific
research and data available to everyone, promoting transparency and collaboration within
the scientific community.

1.1 History of Open Science

Open science has its origins in the early days of modern science when philosophers
such as Francis Bacon called for the free exchange of knowledge. The term "open science"
came to prominence in the beginning of the 21st century, with the rise of the internet and
digital technology. The open access movement, which began in the 1990s, was one of the
initial major attempts to make scientific information publicly available online. This movement
was triggered by worries about the rising costs of academic journals and the need for more
affordable access to knowledge.

Since then, open science has expanded to include a broader set of actions such as
open data, open techniques, and open peer review. These approaches plan to improve
research transparency and reproducibility while also encouraging global collaboration among
experts. Many funding agencies, institutions, and researchers are sticking with open
scientific principles, resulting in an increasing number of open access journals, data
repositories, and other tools to support open research.

2.0 LIBRARY ROLE IN OPEN SCIENCE

Based on the articles, the library plays a significant role in open science by exploring
information resources, giving consultations, training, and subject assistance. They manage
resources and oversee the entire research process. Since library is a place where information
is gathered, it should be the one that guides people towards learning open science first.

More than that, the library role is actively advocates for open science principles and
raises awareness among researchers, faculty, and students. By organizing workshops,
seminars, and informational sessions, they promote the benefits of open science practices to
librarians. For instance, University of Eastern Finland Library plays crucial role in supporting
researchers with open science by offering services like self-archiving, data management, and
research metrics to make sure the potential of open science is maximized.

The library can play its part in open science by becoming a service provider to
support open access initiatives, research data management, and the creation of open
educational resources. They should provide infrastructure, tools, and services to encourage
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open science practices. In addition, libraries could be the policy makers to shaping
institutional policies related to open science by collaborating with stakeholders to develop
guidelines, mandates, and the appropriate practices.

3.0 BENEFITS OF IMPLEMENTING OPEN SCIENCE

Implementation of open science in libraries surely benefits researchers specifically
because it gives them a place to exchange ideas with other researchers and thrive together
in virtual environment. One of the benefits is improved the access to scholarly journal and
articles. The growing popularity of open access programmes has resulted in an increase in
the number of open access journals and publications making access to scientific literature
more accessible. Furthermore, the open science movement fosters international scientific
cooperation, which is especially critical during global challenges like the COVID-19
pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people are not allowed meet physically to find the
cure so open science at that time seems crucial for accelerating research by removing
barriers to the free flow of ideas and research data. It aids in bridging knowledge gaps,
increasing research transparency, and speeding up the scientific research process. Thus,
implementing open science in educational institutions is important because it proves benefits
academicians and encourages generosity in knowledge sharing.

4.0 POLICIES USED FOR OPEN SCIENCE IN LIBRARY

Based on a case study conducted by the University of Eastern Finland Library, one of
the policies that are used in library process is self-archiving. Libraries and similar agencies
began to set up repositories for self-archiving storage, which refers to the process by which
a publication that is placed behind a paywall by a commercial publisher is also stored for
public use on an open access information system, usually in the form of a manuscript.

Open data and its management too are becoming a part of academic library
collections and activities, or at least libraries will facilitate the opening process in one way or
another. This includes managing extensive data sets and long-term storage challenges.
Moreover, Organizations like the Association of European Research Libraries (LIBER) and
the League of European Research Universities (LERU) have published open science
roadmaps with recommendations to help organizations make their research activities more
open.

These policies are part of a broader movement towards transparency and openness
in scientific research, aiming to make both research publications and the research data as
widely accessible as possible. The library’s role includes supporting researchers in adopting

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an open approach and providing services related to open science advocacy, training, and
counselling.

5.0 PROBLEMS WITH OPEN SCIENCE

As the open science use is highly demanding, problems will undeniably occur no
matter how advanced the technology is. The main problem that arises with the open science
is professional competencies. There is a need for appropriate skills, knowledge, and
professional competencies among librarians to perform the declared functionality of open
science. It may take some time for someone to understand the concept and usage of open
science specifically for those that are not used to databases. At the same time, incomplete
or inaccurate metadata of open access information resources can lead to unreliability.

Another problem is the incentives and career advancements. Traditional research

incentives and career advancements still favour conventional methods over open science
practices. This is sadly true because due to today’s economic factor causes people tend to
get profit than do it willingly. The culture of openness, however, is still developing with many
academics either unaware or reluctant to adopt open science due to existing academic
norms.

Inadequate security of internal resources also a problem of open science in library.

Academic libraries are struggling with insufficient internal resources to support their open
science activities effectively. Lastly, there is a lack of adequate support from the external
environment, which hampers the libraries’ ability to conduct open science practices. As a
result, the library needs better resource allocation and external support to effectively runs the
open science movement.

6.0 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

In the final verdict, open science has the potential to accelerate the progress in these
fields by enabling more collaboration and sharing of resources. With advancements in cloud
computing, machine learning, and AI, the analysis and interpretation of large datasets will
become more feasible. This could lead to the development of new tools and platforms that
make open science more efficient and accessible. The future of open science looks
promising, but it requires the collective effort of the entire scientific community to fully realize
its potential.

Some efforts need to be made to overcome the problems. One of them are
enhancing professional competencies. This could involve workshops, seminars, or courses
focused on Open Science principles and practices. Institutions can foster an environment
that encourages the adoption of Open Science practices. These educational initiatives can

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help researchers and librarians acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively
practice Open Science.

More than that, standardizing metadata also important in avoiding unreliable

information in open science. Standardize metadata means using a common format across
systems for efficient data exchange. For instance, ONIX data from publishers might be
transformed into MARC format used by libraries. This ensures data can be shared between
different systems. This process, though complex, is crucial for Open Science, enhancing
data accessibility and transparency.

The funding in open science is dependent on policies of the organization.

Universities, research institutions, and funding agencies can play a significant role by
implementing policies that recognize and reward open science practices. This could include
considering open science activities in promotion and tenure decisions.

Next, to overcome inadequate security of internal resource, libraries should conduct

an internal audit to identify areas where resources are underutilized or misallocated. By
optimizing resource allocation, libraries can ensure that sufficient resources are dedicated to
open science activities. As for the external problems, libraries should actively advocate for
more support from external stakeholders, such as government agencies and private
foundations. This could be in the form of funding, policy changes, or other forms of support.
Hence, library engagement with their local communities to raise awareness about the
importance of open science could help garner more support for their activities.

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References
Allen, C., & Mehler, D. M. A. (2019). Correction: Open science challenges, benefits and tips

in early career and beyond. PLoS Biology, 17(12), e3000587.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000587

Barnes, L. (2023, November 16). Open metadata and libraries.

https://openaccessbooksnetwork.hcommons.org/2023/11/16/open-metadata-and-

libraries/

European Commission, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, O'Carroll, C.,

Hyllseth, B., Berg, R. (2017). Providing researchers with the skills and competencies

they need to practise Open Science, Publications Office.

https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2777/121253

Heise, C., & Pearce, J. M. (2020). From Open Access to Open Science: The path from scientific

reality to open scientific communication. SAGE Open, 10(2), 215824402091590.

https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020915900

Historical context of Open Science – NOVA SBE Library. (n.d.).

https://library.novasbe.unl.pt/historical-context-of-open-science/

Incentives to adopt open science practices in your daily research. (2020, July 7). Max Planck

PhDnet. https://www.phdnet.mpg.de/2020-07-07-open-science-in-daily-research

Leonelli, S. (2023). Philosophy of Open Science. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009416368

Liu, L., & Liu, W. (2023). The engagement of academic libraries in open science: A systematic

review. ˜the œJournal of Academic Librarianship, 49(3), 102711.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2023.102711

Open science. (n.d.-b). European Research Executive Agency. https://rea.ec.europa.eu/open-

science_en

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Redkina, N. S. (2021). The library in the information ecosystem of Open Science. Scientific and

Technical Information Processing, 48(4), 239–247.

https://doi.org/10.3103/s0147688221040043

Saarti, J., Rosti, T., & Silvennoinen-Kuikka, H. (2020). Implementing Open Science policies into

library processes – case study of the University of Eastern Finland library. Liber Quarterly:

The Journal of European Research Libraries, 30(1), 1. https://doi.org/10.18352/lq.10336

The Historical Origins of “Open Science” | Center for Advanced Study. (n.d.).

https://cas.illinois.edu/node/1281

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APPENDIX

Article 1 - The Library in the Information Ecosystem of Open Science

Article 2 - Implementing Open Science Policies into Library Processes – Case Study of the
University of Eastern Finland Library

Article 3 - The engagement of academic libraries in open science: a systematic review