Take a look back at the most exciting moments and most important takeaways from the JoVE team at this year’s MLA ‘17 conference.
Whether you were able to make it to Seattle this year or had to miss it, we’ve put together a quick review of the key takeaways from our time at the biggest medical librarian event of 2017.
From the ‘Librarian’s Role in Reproducibility’ Symposium
- The librarian’s role is changing. Just a few years ago, it was rare for librarians to know or care about the reproducibility crisis. Today, through symposiums like this, they’re actively getting involved in raising awareness.
- Librarians are more connected to science (and their patrons) than ever before. Many have backgrounds and degrees in biomedical science. As a result, they’re bridging the gap between the library and the research labs.
- The reproducibility crisis is the librarian’s opportunity. Librarians are redefining their role on campus and within the sciences. They’re excited about educating their patrons and ready to demand solutions that increase reproducibility from their institutions and from publishers.
From Leaders in the Librarian Community
- Design services around your specific patrons. When creating initiatives to increase reproducibility, Letisha Wyatt, Ph.D. advises, “Talk to your students. Get to know your audience and really try to understand what kind of support they’re looking for and develop initiatives around that.”
- Build allies and collaborations. Mellanye Lackey recommends librarians involve campus leaders in the effort to increase reproducibility, “go to the high-level research administrators on campus, get their buy in, get their advocacy, and get them on your side.”
- There’s no better time than now to get involved. “My advice to new librarians just learning about this reproducibility crisis is to go ahead and do it,” says Linda Hasman. “Be fearless.”
From the Exhibition Floor
- Science Education is catching fire. Faculty are embracing teaching techniques like the flipped classroom and online learning and the Science Education Library is becoming more and more popular. Keep an eye out for Science Education to double in size by year’s end, including the addition of brand new Physics and Engineering collections.
- Medical researchers find JoVE essential. Librarians at MLA ‘17 reported JoVE resources as being widely requested, widely used, and highly valued by their patrons.
- You scream, I scream, we all scream for ice cream. To be the most popular booth at the conference, it’s crucial to have a few ice cream bars on hand.
From Our 10-Year Anniversary Party
- Hundreds of librarians helped celebrate our anniversary. Our 10-Year Anniversary party had a tremendous turnout and we were delighted to hear that so many of our friends and supporters had a great time at the event.
- Librarians love to party. For proof take a look through our Facebook album from the party and all the pictures from our Snapbar photobooth! Be sure to tag yourself and your friends to remember the best moments from the party.
- We have a lot of work to top this for next year. Can’t wait to see you in Atlanta, May 18-23, 2018!