Exciting news from our partners at The Alberta Library (TAL) who have arranged with Gale Cengage for province-wide access to the vast majority of Gale's Primary Sources databases.

This acquisition provides all Albertans with perpetual access to 69 primary source collections! These include extensive resources related to First Nations and Indigenous peoples, the Associated Press Collections, Smithsonian Collection Online, Archives of Human Sexuality and Gender, Sabin Americana, and 25 titles from the Gale Virtual Reference Library.

Gale Primary Sources uses geo-authentication, meaning anyone in Alberta with an Internet-connected device can access these resources with no need to log in or authenticate. You can also access the resources through TAL's web portal abresearchportal.ca.

The province-wide access agreement was reached due to contributions made by institutions such as the University of Alberta, as well as: University of Calgary, Mount Royal University, University of Lethbridge, Edmonton Public Library, Calgary Public Library, Ambrose University, Burman University, St. Mary’s University, Medicine Hat College, Concordia University of Edmonton, Keyano College, Red Deer College, NorQuest College, Wood Buffalo Regional Library.

The University of Alberta Libraries thanks The Alberta Library for being key provincial partners who facilitate the the coordination of services that benefit all Albertans.

Finals are approaching and we know it can be difficult to make time for the gym or to commit to an exercise class when you have a busy student schedule that is always changing. Physical activity is an effective and healthy tool to manage stress and UAlberta’s Healthy Campus Unit and LiveWell have partnered with University of Alberta Libraries to bring you Physical Activity Lending Kits! These kits contain various at home workout equipment that can serve as a free and accessible alternative to heading out the gym.

Each kit contains:

• Skipping rope - Did you know that jumping rope at 120 revolutions per minute for 10 minutes is equivalent to jogging for 30 minutes?!
• Resistance bands - These are a great tool for static and dynamic stretching as well as bone and muscle development.
• Pedometer - Did you know that walking is Canada’s most popular form of physical activity? Research has found a link between walking and lower prevalence of depression and a lower BMI.
• Gliding discs - These are a great way to engage your core muscles so that your pelvis, hips, lower back, and abdomen all work in harmony.
• Exercise cards - These cards will provide you with information on how to use the items in the kit.

According to the National College Health Assessment (2013), stress, anxiety, and sleep are the top three factors affecting academic performance for U of A students. Research shows that physical activity has been able to lessen the effects of these factors and improve mental health.

These kits contain various at home workout equipment to help you take a study break and manage your stress throughout the school year. Drop by one of the U of A libraries to borrow one today, and Unwind Your Mind!

The Portage Network has just launched a website that will support the various components and communities central to the shared stewardship of research data in Canada.

The Portage Network is dedicated to:

• developing a national research data culture;
• fostering a community of practice for research data; and
• building national research data services and infrastructure.

Launched in 2014 by the Canadian Association of Research Libraries, Portage works within the library community to coordinate expertise, services, and technology in research data management, seeking to collaborate with other research data management stakeholders.  University of Alberta Libraries is a key partner in the development and maintenance of the DMP Assistant tool for preparing data management plans.

• Access Portage's data management tool, DMP Assistant
• Visit the full Portage website
• Check University of Alberta's Research Data Management site for more information on organizing, sharing, accessing and archiving data

The Public Knowledge Project (PKP) is pleased to announce that the University of Alberta Libraries (UAL) have entered into a major development partnership with PKP, furthering a commitment to the development of scholarly communication software.  As a result of this agreement, UAL will provide significant financial and in-kind support to assist with PKP’s ongoing development and support of its open source software suite - Open Journal Systems (OJS), Open Monograph Press (OMP), Open Conference Systems (OCS), and Open Harvester System (OHS).

Brian Owen, Associate University Librarian at Simon Fraser University Library and PKP’s Managing Director stated: “The University of Alberta Libraries are a real powerhouse with their contributions to a wide variety of open source projects in the library community both in Canada and elsewhere.  PKP is looking forward to working closely with UAL staff on a number of initiatives.”

“We are excited to take the relationship between PKP and UAL to the next level. Leveraging our shared knowledge to improve open source publishing environments is an opportunity too great not to take advantage of it” commented Geoff Harder, Associate University Librarian for Digital Initiatives at the University of Alberta Libraries.

UAL will be working with PKP on the following areas in the coming years:

• user interface/user experience review and testing for the all new version of OJS 3.0
• specific software enhancements such as digital object identifer (DOI) support
• OJS journal hosting deployment strategies
• article level metrics

“This partnership creates a wonderful opportunity for PKP to tap into UAL’s leadership in library systems and scholarly communication,” said John Willinsky, PKP’s founding director and Stanford professor,  “with benefits for the larger academic community and the public, as well, through the expansion of open access.”

“PKP’s mission and global reach aligns perfectly with UAL’s own commitment to the creation of an open, sustainable and responsive environment for scholarly communications” added Gerald Beasley, Vice-Provost (Learning Services) and Chief Librarian.

• Visit the UAL journal hosting site to view currently OJS-hosted journals and get information about using this service
• Read more about The Public Knowledge Project

• successfully deploying a production instance of Hydra in the fall 2015 redesign of ERA, the University of Alberta’s well-established open access digital repository

• actively contributing to technical development

• actively participating in the Hydra community through contributions to documentation, membership on interest and working groups and community forums, participation at Hydra Connect meetings, and consultation with potential Hydra adopters

• visibly advocating for the project through presentations on UAL’s Hydra implementation at a range of open repository conferences/meetings

Check out UAL’s code for HydraNorth and other projects on Github!