CONTENTS Contents Agents of change


Dealing with a burgeoning requirement for archiving content


Peer predictions Analysis News 12-14


Six industry experts look at the future of peer review


15-18


Keeping history real through research • Making your research stand out in a crowd


19-21


Plaudits for Access to Research • ORCID reaches milestone • IoT research hub launched in UK • Structural diversity aids sustainable research


Publishing in ancient lands


A round-up of scholarly publishing in the Middle East


New products Events


Interview


30-31 32-33 34


Melanie Dolechek, executive director for the Society for Scholarly Publishing


EDITORIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM Editor: Tim Gillett tim.gillett@europascience.com +44 (0) 1223 221040 Specialist reporters: Rebecca Pool, Sharon Davies, David Stuart Circulation/subscriptions: subscriptions@europascience.com


ADVERTISING TEAM Advertising Manager: Darren Ebbs darren.ebbs@europascience.com +44 (0) 1223 221039


CORPORATE TEAM Chairman: Tom Wilkie Managing Director:Warren Clark


Research Information is published by Europa Science Ltd, 4 Signet Court, Cambridge, CB5 8LA ISSN 1744-8026 Tel: +44 (0) 1223 211170 Fax: +44 (0) 1223 213385 Web: www.researchinformation.info


Academic publishing in ancient lands 23


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23-28 Preservation and a question of capacity 8 4-6


Subscription agents face up to an uncertain future Preservation power


8-10 Leader: Tim Gillett


Middle East musings


Mesopotamia – the region around the Tigris-Euphrates river system, which is now part of modern-day Iraq – is known as


the cradle of civilisation, with some of its temple-cities dating back as far as 5000BC.


Though much of the rest of the world has caught up with and in some ways surpassed the region in cultural terms, it remains a centre for scholarly activity – something that is reflected in the six-page Middle East supplement in this issue of Research Information. A selection of writers offer insight into the scholarly publishing scene in Lebanon, Egypt, Qatar and Israel, while we also preview the forthcoming SLA Arabian Gulf Chapter conference taking place in Kuwait in April. There are also previews of important events being held in the UK over the next few months. The role of subscription agents has been regularly called into question recently, following the demise of Swets in 2014 – indeed, in these pages last year, Springer CEO Derk Haank raised a few hackles by referring to subscription agents as ‘professional tea drinkers’. In this issue David Stuart examines the changing role of subscription agents, and considers whether they still have a part to play in academic publishing.


Elsewhere, we look at developments in the world of peer review and digital preservation – and of course we have all the latest industry news and a round-up of recent product launches. @researchinfo


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