Science Libraries in the Self Service Age

Science librarians will have to adapt to changing behaviors and needs if they want to remain a part of their organization’s future. Science Libraries in the Self Service Age suggests ways in which they can remain relevant to their institution. The Internet has moved many day-to-day transactions to a self-service model and libraries are no different. Because science publishing has been the first of the academic disciplines to publish online in a standard fashion, many science researchers no longer need the intervention of a librarian to assist with certain transactions. The ability to obtain articles and books themselves means that scientists and students no longer need to physically visit their library as much as they once did. This trend has hastened science librarians to develop new services, many of them aimed at audiences or user groups which had typically not used the library other than a source of reading material. This book describes the myriad of new services and user communities which science librarians have recently incorporated into their routines. Where applicable, the forces both of researcher needs and desires as well as simple economics will emphasize the need for new service development.

• provides a list of practical, targeted services which science librarians can implement
• presents unified topics which previously had been dealt with separately (data management services, scholarly communication, digital preservation, etc.)
• considers conomic and resource issues in developing new services
• written by an experienced librarian at a global institution

Science librarians, scientific librarians, science libraries, institution libraries, cultural institutions; researchers and postgraduate researchers in library and information science

1. Introduction
2. Pre-digital science libraries and services
3. Internet and the self-service library
4. New Services – Introduction
5. Support for the entire research lifecycle
6. Purchase on demand (Demand Driven Acquisitions)
7. Scholarly Publishing Reform advocacy
8. Publishing services
9. Research information management
10. New Audiences
11. Conclusion: The future of science libraries and services