Abstract

The update of the ISI rankings of Spanish universities according to fields and scientific disciplines (2nd ed. 2011)  is presented. Specifically, in this second edition we focus on the inclusion of 19 new scientific disciplines and the creation of a dynamic new website. Various bibliometric analyses of the different rankings are also shown. Firstly, the updated data for the rankings on 12 scientific fields for the 2006-2010 period are presented focusing on the changes in the positions compared to the 2005-2009 period. Secondly, we present the results in the scientific disciplines during the 2006-2010 period, on the one hand for the Spanish university system as a whole, and on the other hand showing the major universities in 19 new disciplines. Finally we conclude that the 2nd edition of the ISI Rankings improves the global analysis of strengths and weaknesses in the Spanish higher education system and more precisely profiles the performance of Spanish universities in more specific areas.

Abstract

The validity of Google Scholar as a service that reflects properly the scientific output of a university is analyzed, comparing its coverage of Spanish public universities with that of Scopus. The presence and evolution of scientific documentation on the websites of the Spanish public universities from January to July (both months inclusive) 2009 is also studied. The results show that, despite finding some interrelationship between Scholar and Scopus concerning the productivity of institutions, there are large differences in the total results that override the latter as a valid reflection of university productivity. Finally, Scholar shows positive, albeit modest, growth during the studied period for most university websites analyzed

Abstract

This longitudinal study of the development of Spain’s ISI scientific domain examines three key time periods: 1990-1995, 1996-2000 and 2001-2005, with the goal of describing the basic structure and backbone of Spanish research, as well as studying its development over time. To this end, ISI categories are used as units of analysis, co-citation as units of measure, and pruning algorithms to simplify the relationship between categories in the visualizations. The results show that from the macrostructure point of view, biomedicine and materials science research provide the basic nucleus at first. Over the years this nucleus is consolidated and expanded with agricultural and soil sciences research. From the microstructure perspective, an increase is observed in the number of interdisciplinary categories, which occupy central positions, indicating increased interaction between disciplines that have traditionally been more important or visible and those on the periphery, or less well known.

Abstract

The Union of South American Nations (Unasur) can be considered as a new emergent region in the world. By using advanced bibliometric methods, the development of science and technology in Unasur is explored. Based on data from the InCites tool of Thomson Reuters, which facilitates national comparisons across long time periods using publication output and normalized citation impact values, we explored how this region (particularly the most productive individual countries within it) is developing. The publication output results reveal an increase in the scientific and technological activities in most of the Unasur countries (especially Brazil). Compared to the rest of the world, the citation impact trend is less favourable for all Unasur countries. 

Abstract

In recent years, the UPF has implemented several initiatives to disseminate the scientific output of the university’s teaching and research personnel: UPF digital repository (e-Repositori), scientific output portal (PPC), and the provision of tools and recommendations to standardize an author’s name and affiliation, evaluate scholarly journals, improve the curriculum vitae, etc. The library’s role in these initiatives is discussed, along with the increasing importance of these activities within the scope of academic libraries.

Abstract

Although Spain is ranked 10th in scientific production, it is 22nd in impact. The distribution of scientific production across the 17 Spanish regions is analyzed. Madrid and Catalonia account for 49% of total production and for 58% of excellence as reflected in impact, defined as publications within the 10% most cited worldwide.

Abstract

The “ISI rankings  of the spanish universities by scientific fields” report is described, and some of the results are presented. One of the essential characteristics of this new ranking, based on Thomson-Reuters products, is its organization into 12 fields of knowledge. The IFQ2A-Index indicator was used to sort the universities, synthesizing information from 6 bibliometric indicators. The results section presents some total indicators for the Spanish university system, showing a steady growth of scientific production but almost no change in the visibility of the journals. Furthermore, a detailed analysis of the results shows the dominance of Catalan universities in the 12 fields of knowledge analyzed during the period 2005-2009.

Abstract

University libraries need ways of measuring their effectiveness as a means of demonstrating their value to their institutions. The roles that could be considered include: learning objects, repositories of scientific information and research, digital library, etc. These aspects are analyzed and the findings of the ALFA Network’s Biblioteca de Babel project are briefly described. The Babel report has three elements: 1. Annual report on university libraries, 2. Guidelines for creating institutional repositories, and 3. Teaching strategies for the use of Technologies of Information and Communication (TICs) in education. Although it is not easy to find good indicators, the author offers recommendations.

Abstract

The Union of South American Nations (Unasur) can be considered as a new emergent region in the world. By using advanced bibliometric methods, the development of science and technology in Unasur is explored. Based on data from the InCites tool of Thomson Reuters, which facilitates national comparisons across long time periods using publication output and normalized citation impact values, we explored how this region (particularly the most productive individual countries within it) is developing. The publication output results reveal an increase in the scientific and technological activities in most of theUnasur countries (especially Brazil). Compared to the rest of the world, the citation impact trend is less favourable for all Unasur countries.

Abstract

Over the recent years, the subject of university rankings has attracted a significant amount of attention and sparked a scientific debate. However, few studies on this topic focus on elaborating the scientific performance of universities’ institutions, such as institutes, schools, and faculties. For this reason, the aim of this study is to design an appropriate framework for evaluating and ranking institutions within a university. The devised methodology ranks institutions based on the number of published papers, mean normalized citation score (MNCS), and four percentile-based indicators using the I-distance method. We applied the proposed framework and scrutinized the University of Belgrade (UB) as the biggest and the best-ranked university in Serbia. Thus, 31 faculties and 11 institutes were compared. Namely, an in-depth percentile-based analysis of the UB papers indexed in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIe) and the Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) for the period 2008-2011 is provided. The results clearly show considerable discrepancies in two occasions: first, when it comes to the question of leading author, and second, when it comes to analyzing the percentile rank classes (PRs) of groups of faculties.