Web 2.0 Tools: awareness and extent of use among visually impaired students

The article discusses a study conducted at Aligarh Muslim University to identify the awareness and use of Web 2.0 Tools by visually impaired students. The survey technique was employed in which structured interview method was followed to collect data from 83 visually impaired students and analysed using SPSS (Version 23). Findings of the study reveal that these students were aware about Web 2.0 Tools. Among these, 32.5% students possessed membership of these tools for more than 3 years and majority were using WhatsApp (89.2%), YouTube (87.9%), and Facebook (85.5%) on daily basis. These tools were used by students for different purposes, for instance 91.6% students utilized these tools for academic purposes, 84.3% for seeking job opportunities, and 81.9% for sharing knowledge. It also came to light that the major problem faced by visually impaired users was in the form of compatibility issues with screen readers (85.5%) and non-availability of JAWS software in all languages (66.3%). Further, the study also put forth certain suggestions for enhancing the use of Web 2.0 Tools among visually impaired students.

Usage and Influence of E-resources on Academic Efficiency in Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, India

The study discussed in this article was aimed to investigate the usages of e-resources, the relationship of access points with devices for accessing e-resources and influence of the use of e-resources on academic efficiency of faculty and technical staff of India’s first Agricultural University—Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, India. The study also showed usage levels of different types of e-resources amongst users if access points are correlated with devices employed and the effect of e-resources on academic efficiency of academics. A questionnaire was used as a data collection instrument. The use of e-resources was studied using a method to scaling responses, following Likert Scales. Data obtained were converted into scores using scale rating. Standard statistical techniques were used for the analysis of variance, correlation coefficients, and others. Originality/value. This study will help understand the extent to which different e-resources can be used, the relationship between access points and devices used, and the influence of e-resources on academic efficiency. The librarians engaged in agricultural universities can also utilize findings of the study for carrying out acquisition and management of e-resources.

An Evaluation of Using Library Resources and Services by the Agriculture Scientists in Postgraduate Agriculture College Libraries: special reference to Chhattisgarh, India

Library resources and services are pivotal role players in teaching, learning, and innovation. Owing to the adoption of information communication technology (ICT) in library and day-to-day changing information needs of the users, it is need of present era to redesign the library resources and services. The study which forms the subject matter of the present article highlights the usage of resources and services by agriculture postgraduate colleges of Chhattisgarh and examines the library resources and services which are really useful to agriculture scientist. Further the study is focused on significance satisfaction level differences amongst agriculture scientists. For carrying out this study, the research approach was used as a survey method. Questionnaire was used as a tool for getting information from respondents. The findings of the study have confirmed that most of the agriculture scientists were occasional visitors to the library due to less information resources in the library. It was found that majority of the agriculture scientists were partially satisfied with the library resources and services.

Global Machine-learning Research: a scientometric assessment of global literature during 2009–18

The article provides a quantitative and qualitative analyses of global machine-learning research output (48,455 publications), using select bibliometric indicators, using Web of Science database for 2009–18 period. The various indicators used in this study are: average annual growth, citations per paper, international collaborative papers, relative citation index, activity index, top-productive countries, organizations, authors, journals, and highly cited papers. Machine learning (within the domain of artificial intelligence) as a subject of study has fast-emerged as a subject of intensive research. It registered average annual growth rate of 27.59% and averaged citation impact of 10.78 per paper. Among 138 participating countries, the USA and China were in top 10 most productive countries on the subject. Among top 10 countries, France and Canada were the leading countries in terms of average citation per paper and relative index. France and Australia were leading in terms of for their national-level share to international collaborative publications (64.95% and 63.95%, respectively). In terms of type of machine learning, supervised learning registered the largest publications’ share, followed by deep learning, semi-supervised learning and reinforced learning (0.89% share, 556 papers). Centre National De La Recherche Scientique, France (769 papers), Harvard University, USA (751 papers) and University of London, UK (729 papers) were the three most productive global research organizations. In contrast, University of Toronto, Canada, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and University of Oxford, UK were the three leading organizations in terms of citation per paper and relative citation index. Y. Zhang (246 papers), Y. Liu (204 papers) and J. Wang (203 papers) were leading in publication productivity in contrast to J. Li (12.52 and 1.03). L. Zhang (12.42 and 1.02) and J. Zhang (11.23 and 0.92) scored high in citation per paper and relative citation index on the subject. Neurocomputing (1310 papers), PLOS One (917 papers) and Expert Systems with Applications (861 papers) were the leading journals on this subject.

An Assessment of Information Communication Technology Skills and Competencies of Library and Information Science Professionals Working in Eastern State University Libraries, Uttar Pradesh: a study

Library and information science (LIS) professionals play a pivotal role in providing qualitybased services to the users. Owing to adoption of new emerging technologies in library and their characteristics of disruptiveness, library professionals are facing issues related to gaining skills and competencies in the digital environment. The present article highlights the information communication technology (ICT) skills of library professionals of eastern state university libraries of Uttar Pradesh. In addition, it focuses on the significance of differences in competencies amongst professionals. For carrying out study, the research approach was used as a survey method to collect data. Questionnaires were distributed to all working LIS professionals to evaluate their skills and competencies in digital era. The findings of the study have revealed that majority of the library professionals were facing problems, in some form or the other, in developing the required skills and competencies. They possessed only the basic skills of ICT application and significant differences amongst LIS professional were found in the level of ICT skills and competencies.