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Letter from the Executive Director

Communicating clear, concise, and accurate information is one element of scientific information exchange that can have tremendous impact. We have seen examples of these communication qualities over the past month and even this week as the National Hurricane Center and NOAA track the hurricanes heading toward the southern states of the U.S. and nearby islands. We owe the agencies that support the systems necessary to forecast and predict these events a debt of gratitude; the devastation could be significantly worse without the knowledge about impending storm activity and advance warning that these scientists provide. Some criticize the agencies' minor inaccuracies, but on the whole, those fall within the margins of error that result from trying to understand tremendously complex systems. We should look beyond occasional inaccuracies and praise the processes, systems, and scientists that produce even the simplest weather forecast map.

The technology involved in weather forecasting is astounding and the data gathering, interoperability, computational needs, and preservation aspects involved are some of the most intense data processing challenges in science. Data is gathered from satellites, buoys, and surface observation stations. Related computer models have developed over decades, with input from curated observational data. The mix of observational-data gathering, data science, computational power, and data management that results in a reliable forecast is one of the true wonders of science.

While I often joke that the work that we perform in the information sciences isn't saving lives, in some ways it is. Our work allows scientists to gather the data and resources necessary to calculate the storms' paths, study the potential effects on health after floods to avoid disease outbreaks, and learn from previous events to improve response. Especially as these storms seem to grow in intensity, the officials and first responders on the ground confronting them--as well everyone else impacted--will need all the information and support they can get. Information science supports the chain of data gathering that goes into preparing for a hurricane and the work that ensures plans are well executed. Most libraries also provide a community gathering point after a disaster. There are fewer and fewer communal spaces, and public libraries, in particular, provide an essential, free communal space in times of need.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those facing the devastation that these storms bring to our friends and family, our NISO colleagues, and fellow countrymen and women. Be safe, everyone.

Todd Carpenter

Executive Director

NISO Reports

Media Stories

BISG Revises Governance Structure to Better Serve Members

BISG News, August 28, 2017; by Kim Graff

"On August 24, the Board of Directors of the Book Industry Study Group (BISG) voted to change the organization's bylaws to provide segment-specific representation within the Board; open up the nominating process to all members; and increase participation opportunities for members, including three new advisory groups and an Association Advisory Council."

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Using and Preserving Born-Digital Research Collections

Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), August 2, 2017; by Dr. Ashley E. Sands

This past April, IMLS announced grants made through the National Leadership Grants for Libraries program (NLG) and the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian program (LB21). This post discusses the funded projects that relate to the preservation of born-digital collections, including work to develop emulation and software preservation services, preserve born-digital architectural and design records, and investigate the interoperability of open source digital library tools for content curation.

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Managing Audiovisual Research Data: Five Things You Need to Know

Jisc blog, August 1, 2017; by Caroline Ingram

Ingram offers here her top takeaways ("Make it a team effort," "Make sure researchers know what they want") from Jisc's new Audiovisual Research Data guide, which was created in response to demand from academic institutions. The document itself provides far more than five ideas, detailing risks to audiovisual research data and how to plan effectively for dealing with this material for the long haul.

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IFLA 2016 Satellite Meeting Proceedings: Libraries as Publishers: Building a Global Community

Journal of Electronic Publishing 20 (2), Summer 2017

Libraries around the world impart perspectives on their work as publishers in this themed issue of the Journal of Electronic Publishing. Two of the articles take continent-wide perspectives, looking at work in Latin America and Africa, whereas other pieces are much more locally focused, describing projects at Georgetown Law Library and Stockholm University Press, for example.

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Draft National Archives Strategic Plan 2018-2022

U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), August 25, 2017

NARA's draft strategic plan for the upcoming four years outlines the agency's mission, vision, and values, and strategic goals. The document also describes plans for producing "Transformational Outcomes" in the years to come.

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New and Proposed Specs and Standards

ISNI Organizations Registry: identifying Organizations in the Supply Chain

"The ISNI International Agency Ltd (ISNI-IA) today announces changes to its infrastructure focused on providing open identifiers for organizations working in the field of scholarly communications. The ISNI Organizations Registry will enable organizations to change and correct their own records and allow the research community to identify author affiliations persistently and authoritatively, thereby supporting analysis of research output and impact."

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NIST Crafts Next-Generation Safeguards for Information Systems and the Internet of Things

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has issued a draft fifth revision of Special Publication 800-53, Security and Privacy Controls for Information Systems and Organizations, which addresses federal government information security.

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Current ISO Ballots

NISO Voting Members participate in the development, revision, and evaluation of standards. Voting Members are able to influence the standards process and mold the future of the industry. The following ballots are open and will close before the next issue of Newsline. If you are a NISO Voting Member, log into your NISO page and you'll see the ballots linked there.

ISO TC 46/SC 11, ISO/FDIS 23081-1 (Ed 2)
This document covers the principles that underpin and governrecords management metadata. These principles are applicable to: - records and their metadata; - all processes that affect them; - any system in which they reside; - any organization that is responsible for their management.

This ballot closes on September 8, 2017.

ISO TC 46/SC 11, ISO/FDIS 17068, Information and documentation -- Trusted third party repository for digital records
This document specifies requirements for a trusted third party repository (TTPR) to support the authorized custody service in order to safeguard provable integrity and authenticity of clients' digital records and serve as a source of reliable evidence.

This ballot closes on September 15, 2017.

TC 46 DIS ISO CD 8, Information and documentation - Presentation and Identification of Periodicals
This International Standard contains recommendations intended to enable editors and publishers of periodicals to identify and present key information in a form that will help users discover, cite and access their information over time and through any changes.

This ballot closes on September 29, 2017.

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