Digital Realities and Academic Research

Abstract

There's a change occurring in the delivery of scientific content. The development and application of virtual reality and augmented reality is changing research in nearly every field, from the life sciences to engineering. As a result, scholarly content is also changing its direction from print centric to fully submersed digital. Historically, scientific content has been simple text and figures. To create higher quality, more intuitive and engaging content, scholarly communication has witnessed a shift to video and, most recently, researchers have begun to include data to create next generation content types that supplement and enrich their works. Scholarly communication will continue this trend, requiring the delivery of content that is more innovative and interactive. However, in a world where the PDF has dominated the industry for years, new skills and technologies will be needed to ensure reader use and engagement remain stable as the information services industry shifts to accommodate new forms of content and articles enhanced by virtual and augmented reality. Implementing and delivering on augmented or virtual reality supplemental material, and supporting them with the necessary tools for engagement, is no easy task. For as much as interest, discussion and innovation are occurring-as with all disruptive entrants-questions will need to be answered, issues addressed, and best practices established so that publisher, author and end-user can benefit from the results of deeper content engagement. For publishers who work directly with scholars and researchers, this pivot means they must re-examine the needs of their customers, understand what they need delivered, where they expect to find that information, and how they want to interact with it. This will require publishers to update their current infrastructures, submission practices and guidelines, as well as develop or license software to keep pace and meet the needs of their authors and readers. This session will help to define the challenges and strengths related to digital realities, data, and the role researchers play in shaping mixed content types in a more data drive, digital environment. Discussion includes: What are some of the pros and cons associated with data and digital reality research? How are these different content types being used as supplemental material and will they be shifting to be seen as a more integral part of the scholarly record? In the future, what role will libraries play in this shift in providing users what they want, and in a format conducive to their work and research?