Elizabeth Cheney graduated from the UCLA MLIS program in 2011 and began working at the UCLA Science and Engineering Library in the same year. She acts as the library liaison to the Department of Computer Science and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

John Kromer is the Physical Sciences Librarian at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he is the liaison to the Departments of Chemistry, Physics, and Statistics.  Before beginning this position in February, he earned his MS in Chemistry (2010) and MA in Library and Information Studies (2011) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  Outside of libraries, John enjoys trivia, bicycling, reading, and television.

Laurie Hunter is the Physical Sciences Librarian at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) and previously served as Reference Librarian at Meredith College in Raleigh, NC. She began her current position in December 2011 after obtaining her MSLS from UNC-CH in May 2011. During her time at the School of Information and Library Science at UNC-CH, she was an intern at Meredith College and the Environmental Protection Agency library at Research Triangle Park, NC. Her undergraduate studies are in Computer Science and Mathematics and she hopes to use that knowledge to assist patrons in the physical sciences at UNC-CH.

Rebeca Befus is the Mathematics Librarian and part of the Information Literacy unit at Michigan State University.  Previously she worked as a First-Year Experience and Science Librarian at Wayne State University. She has written and presented on topics including First-Year Experience, information literacy instruction, and design/development of online tutorials. Her interests include instructional design, online teaching and learning, and instruction in the sciences. She received her MSLIS from Syracuse University and is expecting a M.Ed. in Instructional Technology from Wayne State University.

We will present the winners with awards and $1,000 checks to support their attendance at the 2012 SLA Annual Conference in Chicago.  The presentation will take place during the SLA  PAM Division Luncheon & Business Meeting,  held Monday July 16, 2012 12:00pm – 1:30pm. The location is being determined and will be listed in the final conference program (http://sla2012.sched.org/).

Congratulations Elizabeth, John, Laurie and Rebeca!

Selection Committee Members:

Sharice Collins, Vice President, Marketing, IOP Publishing, Inc.
Nisa Bakkalbasi, PAM Chair
Ruth Kneale, Past PAM Chair
Nedelina Tchangalova, PAM Professional Development Chair

The PAM Division Award is given for significant contribution to the literature of physics , mathematics, or astronomy, or to honor work that demonstrably improves the exchange of information within these three disciplines.  The contribution also should benefit libraries or enhance the ability of librarians to better serve their patrons.  The contribution should be special – above and beyond the normal job requirements of the individual(s) or group concerned.  The honoree(s) may be a member(s) of SLA/PAM, but need not be.

The PAM Achievement Award is reserved for recipients whose professional work is marked by distinction and dedication to librarianship in astronomy, mathematics, and/or physics.  The award recognizes those members of SLA/PAM who have made outstanding contributions to the Division.

More details, guidelines for nominations, and a list of previous winners can be found on the PAM Division web site.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Your PAM Awards Committee:

Donna Thompson (Chair) dthompson@cfa.harvard.edu (617)496-7660
Kiem Ta, kiem.ta@okstate.edu (405)744-9743
Mangala Krishnamurthy, mkrishna@ua.edu (205)348-2109

From the publisher’s website:

“Edited and introduced by Bill Bryson, with original contributions from ‘a glittering array of scientific writing talent’ (Sunday Observer) including Richard Dawkins, Margaret Atwood, Richard Holmes, Martin Rees, Richard Fortey, Steve Jones, James Gleick, and Neal Stephenson, among others, this incomparable book tells the spectacular story of science and the international Royal Society, from 1660 to the present. Seeing Further is also gorgeously illustrated with photographs, documents, and treasures from the Society’s exclusive archives.”

Happy and successful New Year to all PAM members and Bulletin readers!

Welcome to the new Executive Board of the Division:

Chair: Nisa Bakkalbasi (through 12/2012)
Chair-Elect: Stella Ota (through 12/2012)
Past Chair: Ruth Kneale (through 12/2012)
Treasurer: Michael Chesnes (through 12/2013)
Secretary: Elizabeth (Beth) Brown (through 12/2012)

I want to thank Ruth Kneale, for her tireless work, enthusiasm, creative ideas, and endless energy in 2011 and welcome Stella Ota, as Chair-Elect, and Michael Chesnes, as Treasurer. All new officers for the current year are listed at the PAM Staff Page (http://pam.sla.org/manual/staff/current/). Please extend a thank you to them all for their commitment to PAM. If you are interested in volunteering in any of the committees, please let me know.

I am delighted to begin the New Year with congratulatory announcements. First, congratulations to Ruth Kneale, who was nominated by PAM Division and selected by SLA Awards & Honors Program as a Fellow of SLA in recognition of her leadership in her career as information professional. I am also delighted to announce that Mr. Narendar K. Wadhwa is the winner of the 2012 PAM International Award. Mr. Wadhwa, serves as the Scientist & Head at the Knowledge Resource Centre, National Physical Laboratory in New Delhi, India. Thank you to Khue Duong, chair of the International Relations Committee, and his co-chair, Catherine Vu, for their outstanding work in coordinating the entire award process.

Stella, Ruth and I had the opportunity to attend this year’s Leadership Summit in Atlanta, Georgia, 25 – 28 January. 2012 President Brent Mai launched the Summit with the association’s vision for 2012-2014. We’ve attended sessions on how the association’s initiatives and priorities will affect our division. A most exciting component of the Summit was the research and best practices developed to date on the year-long Loyalty Project, which was led by James Kane. Leaders from the six chapters who have been working with him shared their experiences in following areas: member relationships; leadership relationships, engaging remote members; community relationships and vendor relationships. Stella, Ruth, and I can’t wait to put what we learned into practice as we plan programs for our division.

I would like to take this opportunity to give you a brief update on program planning for Chicago. Many thanks to dedicated and energetic PAM Staff and our generous sponsors, 2012 program is coming along very nicely. In the light of our current fiscal realities and rising cost of sessions, in 2012 we will offer a program that is simpler but rich in experience. Due to the increasing cost of food (e.g. $46 p/Boxed Lunch), beverages (e.g. $95 coffee p/gallon), and A/V equipment (e.g. $972.00 LCD Projector and Screen), we had to cut on food, beverages, and projections systems from some of the sessions. As we get closer to the date, I will be sharing details through PAMnet. The session moderators have been hard at work to ensure there will be engaging discussions on timely and relevant topics. Please take the time to respond to their calls as they seek your input.

In closing, I look forward to seeing all of you in Chicago in July. Even if circumstances prevent you from attending the conference, there are many ways for you to get involved. Just drop us a line.

As Past-Chair, I have the distinct pleasure of hosting the Division Newcomer’s Lunch at the Annual Conference. This year in Chicago, we will be exploring the cuisine of Russia and Central Asia at Russian Tea Time (www.russianteatime.com)! This should be a grand culinary adventure – I can’t wait to try the latkes and pelmeni!

We’ll be lunching on Sunday, July 15th, time to be nailed down later. This lunch is open to all PAM newcomers – either new to the division or who are attending Annual Conference for the first time. Members of the PAM Board also attend, so you can get some quality time with them. If you’re interested in attending, drop me a line at rkneale@nso.edu before June 4th.

We are once again fortunate to have this special event sponsored by Lev Malov of Turpion Publications. Thank you, Lev and Turpion!

PAM's own Sally Bosken, librarian at USNO, with Dr. James H. Billington, Librarian of Congress, at book donation.

by Geoff Chester, via Sally Bosken

The U.S. Naval Observatory’s (USNO) James M. Gilliss Library donated a copy of a rare book to the Thomas Jefferson collection at the Library of Congress Jan. 20.

Rear Adm. Jonathan White, commander, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command (CNMOC), presented a Latin version of Sur la Figure de la Terre, written by the 18th century French mathematician and philosopher Pierre-Louis Moreau de Maupertuis, to Dr. James H. Billington, the librarian of Congress to help the library recreate its collection of books that were once owned by Thomas Jefferson.

While serving as the U.S. ambassador in Paris in 1789, Jefferson ordered a copy of Maupertuis’ Latin version, Figura Telluris de Maupertuis, which was published in Leipzig, Germany in 1742. It was one of a number of books he selected from a catalogue issued by a book seller in Strasbourg, Armand Koenig.

The book was ordered June 29, 1789. It was sent to Jefferson and was included in a bill from Koenig dated July 17. It was entered without price by Jefferson in his undated manuscript library catalogue.

In 1815, Jefferson sold his books to the Library of Congress to restart its collection after the burning of the original library in the War of 1812. His library – now on display in the Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress – was considered one of the finest in the United States at the time.

Over the years the Library of Congress’ copy of Figura Telluris de Maupertuis was lost. The USNO library has two copies of the work, the original French edition printed in 1738, and the Latin version from 1742. Lt. James M. Gilliss purchased the French version and a copy of Maupertuis’ Astronomie Nautique in 1843 in Paris. USNO has no record of when the Latin version was purchased.

The USNO library was established in 1842 with an $800 allotment from the $25,000 appropriation which funded the observatory’s first permanent home in Washington’s Foggy Bottom district. Today it holds more than 80,000 titles and is considered to be one of the world’s premier astronomical libraries.

USNO’s mission includes determining the positions and motions of the Earth, sun, moon, planets, stars and other celestial objects, providing astronomical data; determining precise time; measuring the Earth’s rotation; and maintaining the master clock for the United States.

It’s over 16 months away but planning for the 2013 SLA annual conference in San Diego kicked off at the SLA Leadership Summit in January. Changes are afoot! The most notable conference redesign is a reduced number of “lead” sessions allowed for each unit: five sessions max.

For PAM, this change provides both an opportunity and an imperative to rethink our traditional six programs: the four roundtables (Physics, Astronomy, Mathematics, Computer Science) plus the PAM-wide and the Business Meeting. What is most important for our division members at annual conference? As your 2013 program planner, I am definitely looking for input.

The conference redesign was based in part on attendee feedback and the economic times. The intent is to encourage collaboration among units, to develop sessions of high interest to a broad group of attendees, and to reduce equipment costs borne by the units.

PASP Report
Paula Szkody, Editor PASP

The PASP had a normal Volume 122 in 2010 and is heading for a similar situation for Volume 123. There were 137 papers and 1543 printed pages in Volume 122. The PASP continues to publish research articles, reviews, and dissertation abstracts. The articles encompass planetary, stellar, galactic and extragalactic observations as well as new instrumentation, data analysis and atmospheric phenomena. Our median publication time for normal articles from receipt at UW to acceptance is 59 days, with the longest delays due to author revisions.

During the past year, the time for open access from time of publication decreased to 2 years, with authors retaining the right to make use of astro-ph with their accepted articles. Other changes included the UCP move of its journals to JSTOR to handle the web interface and access. The PASP continues to have advance notice of upcoming articles with its “Ahead of Print” link, as well as topics sorted by category in each issue for the convenience of readers.

For 2012, institution prices will remain the same as in 2011, while page charges for authors will increase from $105 to $110 (comparable to AAS journals). Color figures in print will remain at $150 per figure. PASP continues to solicit high quality review and scientific articles and to find ways to keep the journal affordable for both individuals and institutions.

ASP Conference Series Report
Joe Jensen, ASPCS Managing Editor

The ASP Conference Series published 23 volumes during 2010. Twelve have been published in 2011 thus far, with a few more on the way before the end of the year. Since the first of July, our readers have accessed 18,000 abstracts and more than 7000 articles. We average 30,000 visits from more than 5,000 unique visitors from countries all over the world to our website per month. This does not include abstracts and papers accessed through the popular NASA ADS service. In the past we have not collected usage statistics by institution, but due to recent demand, we are now collecting those statistics. We plan to provide those in an automated way next year; for now we will answer usage queries individually as needed.

The Conference Series continues to focus on three objectives: publishing more quickly, reducing workload for authors and editors, and maintaining a high-quality, affordable product. The ASPCS is also seeking to gain greater recognition, promote the ASP’s mission, and increase the impact of our contributing authors’ work by establishing and marketing a new type of inexpensive electronic-only subscription for non-research institutions. The purpose of our marketing campaign is to introduce the ASP mission and the ASPCS’s products (proceedings and monographs) to a wider audience of science educators and other professionals at non-research institutions. The flyers (see attached) have been sent to about 200 institutions. Please contact us for more information if you are interested.

Finally, in an effort to modernize our computer systems and significantly reduce workload for the authors, editors, and ourselves, we are designing a new user interface and database management system to automate many of the tedious tasks that are currently handled in a very haphazard and labor-intensive way.

Report from the AMS Library Committee Meeting

The AMS Library Committee met at the Joint Mathematics Meetings (JMM) in Boston on Wednesday, January 4, 2012, chaired by Linda Yamamoto. The members of the committee for 2011-12 were: Jonathan Borwein (co-chair, Univ. of Newcastle, Australia), Linda Yamamoto (co-chair, Stanford), Cunera Buys (Northwestern), Kris Fowler (Univ. of Minnesota), Joe Rosenblatt (Univ. of Illinois), Andrew Sills (Georgia Southern Univ.) and Smilka Zdravkovska (AMS).

The three librarian members of the committee (Cunera, Kris, and Linda) attended in person. Since the three faculty members (Jonathan, Joe, and Andrew) did not attend this year’s JMM, the room was set up so they could attend via Skype. Meeting via Skype was a first for the committee and despite some technical difficulties, a success. An additional 16 guests from libraries and publishers were in attendance. Smilka was unable to attend, but there were representatives from the AMS at the meeting.

The committee continued to explore the mandate and name of committee and whether or not they need to be revised. In the past, the work of the committee’s annual meetings focused around particular projects (e.g., surveys of math libraries). In order to carry on such projects in the future, the committee would need to set up mechanisms to collaborate outside the annual in-person meeting, such as meeting via Skype. The committee’s charge can be found at
http://www.ams.org/about-us/governance/committees/AMS_Library.pdf.

Beth Ayer (AMS) continues to invite comments from math librarians on the redesigned AMS.org. The website now includes a rotating librarian profile, for which more volunteers are wanted. Carol Hutchins is the first librarian profiled on the redesigned site. It was suggested that a link to the Library Committee’s membership and charge be added to the site.

Carol Hutchins (NYU Courant) encouraged promotion of and participation in IMU/ICIAM’s present effort (at http://blog.mathunion.org ) to elicit feedback about the proposal for a panel to rate math journals by quality, as an expert alternative to bibliometrics such as the Impact Factor.

MathSciNet update (Kathy Wolcott & Norman Richert):

• MathSciNet tutorials http://www.mathscinet.info/index.html;
• A short movie about Math Reviews on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUEOghB3MvM;
• All reference lists from all AMS publications are now in MathSciNet;
• Getting metadata from publishers to speed their preliminary entry into MathSciNet as they move through the regular Math Reviews process, improving current awareness;
• Rolling out an alerting service, tied to a log-in, which will allow saving searches that will run periodically and generate an alert; logged-in user will also be able to add info to own author profile, e.g., email address, URL, photo;
• Rolling out in first quarter: “pairing” to allow user at subscribing institution to register while on campus so they could use MathSciNet on their own device for a month without having to sign in again.

Project Euclid update (Mira Waller):

• Website upgrade will be implemented within 6-8 months, including the ability to export citations in BibTeX; new interface will also include alerting and pairing;
• Shibboleth being implemented.

arXiv update (David Ruddy):

• The transition to “community-supported” economic model is being finalized courtesy of an award from the Simons Foundation; it will be introduced in early 2013; user meetings in 2012 in U.S. and Europe will gather input;
• In an effort to connect pre-prints to the published literature, publishers can currently provide info so DOI shows on arXiv record.

The rest of the meeting was devoted to discussing a variety of issues:

• Increasing online availability of journal back issues;
• Increasing ebook availability of AMS Books;
• AMS is working on monographs (including the backfile) beyond Contemporary Mathematics, which is available now. Many AMS books are already currently indexed in Google Books;
• Funding models for math journals.

Afterwards, about 10 of us went out to a delicious dinner at Legal Seafoods – Copley Place, where a good time was had by all (thanks to Michael Noga (MIT) for coming up with dining options).

Many thanks to Kris Fowler for taking the minutes of the meeting from which I cribbed liberally for this report. The plan is to make the minutes publicly available in future.
One final note: Fellow PAM member Cunera Buys (c-buys@northwestern.edu) and Joe Rosenblatt will be taking over as co-chairs of the committee as of February 1, 2012. Other committee members for 2012-13 are Smilka Zdravkovska (AMS), Andrew Sills (Georgia Southern Univ.), Kristine Fowler – (Univ. of Minnesota), J. Parker Ladwig – (Univ. of Notre Dame) and Bob Noel – (Indiana Univ.) JMM 2013 will be held January 9-12 in San Diego, CA.

Submitted by
Linda Yamamoto
AMS Library Committee co-chair, 2011-12
linday@stanford.edu

Free Texts Available Online

In postings to PAMNET, Thurston Miller and Carol Hutchins noted the availability of two textbooks that can be downloaded for free:

Real Analysis for Graduate Students: Measure and Integration Theory by Richard F. Bass
http://homepages.uconn.edu/~rib02005/real.html
A soft cover version is available from Amazon.com for $16.95

Introduction to Real Analysis by William Trench
http://ramanujan.math.trinity.edu/wtrench/misc/index.shtml
Previously published by Pearson in 2003, the online version has been updated in January 2012.

New AMS Librarian page

The American Mathematical Society has revised ams.org‘s “Information for Librarians” page to make it more useful and interesting to math librarians. The new page includes tools, resources, news, and a math librarian highlight. Carol Hutchins is the first librarian highlighted on the new page. We invite all math librarians to be highlighted in this monthly feature. To volunteer or to recognize a fellow librarian, contact Beth Ayer, the AMS Web Editor: eda@ams.org.

Mathematicians’ Views on Current Publishing Issues: A Survey of Researchers

At the 2011 Math Roundtable, Kristine Fowler, University of Minnesota, presented findings of a survey she conducted of mathematics faculty on current publishing issues. The refereed article now appears in the Fall 2011 issue of Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship:

Mathematicians’ Views on Current Publishing Issues: A Survey of Researchers
http://www.istl.org/11-fall/refereed4.html

Backlog of Mathematics Research Journals

The AMS published its annual journal backlog report in the November 2011 issue of the Notices of American Mathematical Society. The report covers the median time from acceptance of an article to publication in electronic posting and the print version as well as the editor’s current estimate of waiting time between submission and publication.

IMU Mathematics Library Assistance for Developing Countries

The International Mathematical Union’s Commission for Developing Countries (CDC) announced a program to match donors of mathematical materials with libraries in universities/research institutions in developing countries where there is a need for mathematical research literature. CDC offers limited financial support for shipment costs for individual scientists or institutions wishing to donate books in the mathematical sciences to libraries in developing countries. For additional information, go to http://www.mathunion.org/?id=1009 or contact Library Assistant Scheme, IMU Secretariat Berlin, at icmi.cdc.administrator@mathunion.org.

What is MathJax?

MathJax is an open-source JavaScript display engine that produces high-quality math in all modern browsers without plugins. AIP recently announced that it has partnered with MathJax to render mathematics in its online journals, as have MathSciNet and Project Euclid. An article appears in the February 2012 issue of the Notices of the American Mathematical Society describing the technology.

Call for Roundtable Discussion Topics

The Mathematics Roundtable is scheduled to be held at the annual conference in Chicago on Wednesday, July 18 at 10am. We would like to devote this session to group discussion about topics of current interest. We are looking for your ideas as we plan this session. Please contact Jane Holmquist at jane@princeton.edu or Andy Shimp at andy.shimp@yale.edu.