Data and Digital Scholarship

Ever wonder how elements are discovered? Alen Hadzovic, Associate Professor in the Department of Physical & Environmental Sciences, can help answer this question.

With the help of a student from the Emerging Professionals Program from the U of T Scarborough Library, Hadzovic put together A Short Story of Germanium that walks the reader through a timeline of the discovery and isolation of the element germanium. The project is to produce a series of open educational resources about the discovery of elements (argon and radium are coming soon!) for those who are curious. Links to digital copies of original articles are provided for those who would like to explore more and see how science works while learning some history of chemistry.

Open educational resources (OER) come in all shapes and sizes, but they all share one thing in common: they're free and open for everyone to use. Our library is a treasure trove for anyone looking to create or find OER. We even have our own collection in the Learn directory. You can also read more about the way U of T Scarborough Library supports OER in the open pressbook “Open Educational Resources at UTSC.”

The library is proud to have played a part in the production of Professor Hadzovic’s work through the Emerging Professionals Program, and to promote it as part of our engagement with Open Educational Week.

Curious about how you can publish or discover open resources for teaching and learning? Just set up a meeting with your liaison librarian, and they'll guide you through the wonderful world of open digital resources and OER publishing at U of T Scarborough Library.

Open Education Week - March 3-7, 2025 

During Open Education Week, March 3-7, hundreds of open educators worldwide share their passion for open education by showcasing their innovations and collective work with students, technologists, and other faculty members. 

This is the 14th edition of OEWeek. Since 2012, the open education community in 79 countries has hosted 2,064 events and shared 843 Open Education assets in 38 languages. Open Education Week has included 85,535 engaged participants from 192 countries. 

Open Educational Resources: A Gateway to Inclusive Learning (Online)

Date & Time: Tuesday, March 4, 2025, 10-12:00pm 

eCampusOntario: Open Educational Resources & Funding Opportunities (Online)

Date & Time: Tuesday, March 4, 2025, 12-1:00pm 

Open Educational Resources at UTSC (Online)

Date & Time: Thursday, March 6, 2025, 11-12:00pm

The Love Data Week is an annual event to celebrate research data and research data management. Originally established at the University of Michigan within the ICPSR, an international consortium of more than 800 academic institutions and research organizations, the Love Data Week has become a worldwide event. In reference to love, it is celebrated in the second week of February, during Valentines Day.  

Several higher education institutions have been participating in the Love Data Week since 2021. During the week they offer various workshops, talks and events focusing on research data management, mostly in digital form. The aim is to raise awareness, promote RDM tools and practices as well as guide researchers and other research support personnel in the field of research data management. 

Here at the University of Toronto you can participate in the following events for Love Data Week:  

Join us for a week of workshops:  

Sage Resources for Using Data in Research and Instruction

Monday, Feb. 10, 10:00 a.m
Location: Online

Sage Research Methods can save you time and effort by providing a single platform to quickly find, explore, visualize, and share detailed data from the most trusted source providers. Come learn how to use this resource and explore potential use cases with us. Recommended for Librarians and Faculty members. 

Introduction to Best Practices for Creating Infographics

Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2:00 p.m.
Location: Online (UTSG)

Learn best practices to create infographics, which are a specific type of data visualization that uses a mix of data, visuals, and text to inform or persuade. Learning infographic creation skills and tools will help you promote yourself and your research findings, more effectively communicate with wide audiences, and stand out in the job market.

Introduction to Best Practices for Creating Infographics 

Tuesday, Feb. 12, 10 a.m.
Location: Online (UTSG)

Learn best practices to create infographics, which are a specific type of data visualization that uses a mix of data, visuals, and text to inform or persuade. Learning infographic creation skills and tools will help you promote yourself and your research findings, more effectively communicate with wide audiences, and stand out in the job market.

Depositing Research Data in U of T Dataverse (Borealis)

Wednesday, Feb. 12, 12:00 p.m.
Location: Online (UTSG)

Are you interested in sharing your data with other researchers? Has a journal or funder asked you to share your data? In this session, participants will learn how to organize and publish research data in the University of Toronto Dataverse, U of T’s institutional data repository hosted by Borealis. Through a live-demo, participants will learn how to organize research data for deposit, upload and publish a dataset, and add appropriate metadata.

Data Resources for Entrepreneurs

Thursday, Feb. 13, 11:00 a.m.
Location: Online

Preparing a business pitch and developing a business idea requires you to have data on your target market. You need data to inform decisions on your business plan, data on your competitors, and if you want to be innovative in your industry you need data to tell you a story on performance and opportunity. Data literacy for entrepreneurs is essential.

Excel and Fundamentals of Data

Thursday, Feb 13., 3:00 p.m. 
Location: The BRIDGE, UTSC

Did you miss our last session? Join us again as we walk through the basics of using data in spreadsheets with Excel or Google Sheets! Designed for those new to working with data and spreadsheets or interested in the Co-Curricular Record credit for the Foundational Data Literacy Skills training, there are no prerequisites and participants from every discipline are welcome.  

Understanding SQL

Friday, Feb. 14, 3:00 p.m. 
Location: The BRIDGE, UTSC 

Ever been curious how Databases work? This workshop is for you! The workshop will cover the basics of understanding relational databases and how to request information from these databases using Structured Query Language (SQL).  

We live in a world of information, and the knowledge we share matters: it can challenge or uphold the systemic barriers that many in our communities face. This February, we invite you to join your library in making the world of information more inclusive in the Black Histories Wikipedia  Edit-a-thon! 

Join us on Wednesday, February 12, 2025, 12  to 4 pm EST for an online edit-a-thon with training. No experience with Wikipedia is needed because all events have training embedded into their programming. Open to all. In addition to this flagship editing event, there are other in-person events held at participating institutions — as well as ways to participate on your own remotely. Visit the webpage to learn more.

This will be followed by a keynote address by Dr. Kisha McPherson, Assistant Professor in the School of Professional Communication at Toronto Metropolitan University. (Details and registration  forthcoming. Check back on our webpage soon.)

This event is organized by U of T Libraries, York University Libraries, Toronto Metropolitan University Libraries, and Toronto Public Library. We look forward to seeing you!

The Library supports Tamil Heritage Month 📣🌐  

The library is partnering with Tamil Studies/Tamil Worlds Initiative at Department of Historical and Cultural Studies to celebrate Tamil heritage month with a full day of events on January 25, 2025, including the launch of new collections relevant to the local and global Tamil community. Register to attend today. 

Knowledge Mobilization Resources 🎓📚

Did you know? The Library helps researchers mobilize their research and increase their impact by:  

• Helping create knowledge mobilization plans for grant applications,  
• Identifying and providing access to infrastructure, guides, and other asynchronous resources to support knowledge mobilization activities, and  
• Delivering on demand training and workshops.

Check out some examples of the library’s existing knowledge mobilization supports and infrastructure and contact your Liaison Librarian to learn more.  

Fun Data Fridays 📊📅

Please check out the UTSC Library Fun Data Friday series every other Friday starting January 17th, 2025, in-person at The BRIDGE Finance & Data Lab. These sessions are open to all members of the U of T community.

1. Excel and the Fundamentals of Data — January 17th, 2025, 3-5pm
2. Messy Data Cleaning (OpenRefine) — January 31st, 2025, 3-5pm
3. Understanding SQL — February 14th, 2025, 3-5pm
4. Storytelling with Data (PowerBI) — February 28th, 2025, 3-5pm
5. Visualizing Data with Maps (ArcGIS Online) — March 14th, 2025, 3-5pm
6. Qualitative Data Analysis (NVivo) — March 28th, 2025, 3-5pm
7. Visualizing Data Networks (Gephi) — April 11th, 2025, 3-5pm

For more information about Fun Data Friday events, please contact David Kwasny (david.kwasny@utoronto.ca).  

October 21-27, 2024 marks International Open Access Week. Open access (OA) seeks to not only serve institutional users better but ensure access to knowledge for everyone. The University of Toronto Libraries (UTL) provides financial support to external initiatives that work to unlock research created across disciplines. UTL also provide resources for researchers and faculty looking to publish OA. 

Discover TSpace 🌐📊 

TSpace is a free and secure research repository established by U of Toronto Libraries to disseminate and preserve the scholarly record of University of Toronto. 

To take advantage of our mediated deposit service, please complete the mediated deposit form then send us your publications. 

Save with Article Processing Charge (APCs) Discounts 💰 

Did you know that the U of T Libraries offers open access publishing agreements and discounts with a range of scholarly publishers, reducing the financial obligations on researchers who publish their work openly? These discounts are negotiated into institutional licenses with the publisher or through paid memberships. 

Check to see which journals are eligible and start counting your savings.

Avoid Predatory Publishers ⚠️ 

Updated in July 2024, the aim of this checklist is to assist you in avoiding publishing your work in a predatory or low-quality journal. Being associated with a predatory publisher can lead to financial loss because of inappropriate fees or be harmful to your reputation and that of your institution, even possibly impeding promotion and tenure. 

Download the checklist to learn more. 

Emerging Professional Spotlight 🔦 

The Library’s Emerging Professionals Program hires information studies and computer science students to support library/researcher collaborations in interdisciplinary teams. We can also train your RAs. 

Learn more about the program and the library’s many experiential education initiatives. 

Featured Workshop - Introduction to ArcGIS Online 🎓 

This workshop will provide an overview of geographic information for students who have data they want to map or analyze to understand if what they are studying demonstrates variability across space (e.g., across an environmental region, between neighbourhoods in a city region). 

Learn more about this workshop and other Library workshops on our website.

Have questions or feedback? Reach out to our Digital Scholarship Unit Librarians. You can also reach out to your Liaison Librarian to learn more about any of the items listed above.

The University of Toronto Scarborough Library is thrilled to announce the third cohort of the Sophia Hilton Library Storytelling Fellowship. This initiative program continues to foster a vibrant community of storytellers who explore and celebrate diverse cultural narratives through innovative and creative means.

The Fellowship is designed to support students in developing their storytelling skills, with a focus on Tamil cultural heritage and community engagement. This year, we are proud to welcome three exceptional fellows who bring unique perspectives and a deep passion for Tamil culture and storytelling.

Meet the 2024-25 Library Storytelling Fellows

Bhavana Akilan

4th year student

Major in Neuroscience, Minors in Psychology and Health Humanities

Bhavana draws inspiration from the Tamil poet Kaniyan Pungundranar’s quote, “Yaadhum oore, yaavarum kelir,” which translates to “people everywhere are my kith and kin.” She aims to reflect on renowned Tamil literature through the lens of present-day youth experiences. Bhavana aspires to use devised theatre to co-create characters based on lived experiences, advocating for mental health awareness among second- and third-generation immigrant Tamil students through her work in the Fellowship.

Jyotshana Chaileyndrachankar

3rd year student

Major in Human Biology, Immunology, and History

Jyotshana’s deep-rooted passion for Tamil culture and storytelling is evident in her extensive background in Tamil cultural arts. She has performed classical dance, played the Veena, and participated in various storytelling workshops. Jyotshana aims to preserve and promote Tamil heritage through innovative storytelling and performances, collaborating with like-minded individuals to celebrate Tamil culture.

Amari Lukshmi Sabeshan

2nd year student

Neuroscience specialist

As a second-generation Canadian with Sri Lankan roots, Amari is dedicated to sharing the beauty of Tamil culture. She believes in promoting Tamil culture through artistic performances, including Bharathanatyam, a South Asian dance style. Amari seeks to use various media to depict classic Tamil stories, fostering cultural appreciation and understanding within the Scarborough University community.

The Sophia Hilton Library Storytelling Fellowship not only provides leadership experience but also helps fellows gain a deeper appreciation for Tamil culture while building lasting connections. We look forward to the innovative projects and contributions from this year’s fellows.

For more information about the Library Storytelling Fellowship, please visit our information page, or view past Fellows project in our Digital Tamil Studies project.

As we prepare for another inspiring academic year, the library is reaching out to share the latest developments in Research & Digital Initiatives (RDI). Whether you’re a seasoned researcher or just dipping your toes into the digital waters, there’s something here for everyone.

What’s in the Library Dispatch?

• Cutting-Edge Research Tools: Discover resources that can enhance your scholarly pursuits.
• Data Support Initiatives: Unleash the potential of your research data with the library.
• Innovative Collaborations: Explore exciting partnerships and interdisciplinary projects.

Have questions or feedback? Reach out to our Associate Librarian Research & Digital Initiatives. You can also reach out to your Liaison Librarian to learn more about any of the items listed below.

Request Data & Digital Literacy Workshops 🎓

As you plan for the fall semester, consider partnering with the library to weave data and digital literacy workshops into your course. Your students will thank you! Plus, it’s a fantastic opportunity to empower them with essential skills for the digital age.  

New Resource Alert: Sage Data 🌐📊

The library has purchased access to Sage Data, an all-in-one data discovery hub. Explore, visualize, and share meticulously curated data from over 550 U.S. and international databases. Whether you’re an independent researcher or a classroom trailblazer, Sage Data empowers you. 

Access Sage Data online! 

Writing a grant and need a data management plan? 💰

The DMP Assistant is a national, online, bilingual data management planning tool developed by the Digital Research Alliance of Canada (the Alliance) to assist researchers in preparing DMPs (Data Management Plans). This tool is freely available to all researchers and develops a DMP through a series of key data management questions, supported by best-practice guidance and examples. 

Check out the DMP Assistant online!

Sophia Hilton Storytelling Fellowship – Applications Open! 📚💡

Calling all folklore enthusiasts! Encourage students with a passion for cultural documentation to apply for the Scarborough Library Storytelling Fellowship. They’ll immerse themselves in Tamil folk culture, host captivating events, and get paid! The next info session is on Friday, September 6, from 12-1 p.m. ET. 

Don’t miss out—applications are due by September 15!

Celebrating the Campus 60th 📣

Discover the rich tapestry of U of T Scarborough’s past through the Memory Project. Immerse yourself in digitized materials—student newspapers, captivating images, and insightful interviews—that chronicle our campus history. 

Do you have resources to contribute? Reach out to us and be part of preserving our legacy!

Library Focus Groups: What does Research Mean to You? 📅

The University of Toronto Libraries’ Research Supports Task Force is running a series of focus groups for faculty and graduate students between now and September to help understand how researchers think about their work, how they plan and undertake their research from start to finish, and how they use the library.  

There will be a focus group held on the University of Toronto Scarborough campus on August 22nd, 2024, from 1:00-2:30pm coffee, tea and treats will be provided! 

Register online to be part of the conversation!

Keep an eye out for our next Dispatch in October.

After months of dedication and creativity, the UTSC Storytelling fellows invite you to attend their performance of "The Land of the Golden River".

On March 28, join us at 6:30 p.m. in 1265 Bistro (lower level of the Student Centre), as they bring this enchanting epic to life right before your eyes. 

Through the guidance of Dr. Brenda Beck, the fellows have prepared dramatic monologues to honour the oral folk epic told by skillful bards. 

Don't miss this chance to enjoy a night of storytelling. Save your seat now. 

We look forward to seeing you on March 28!