Thomson Reuters And The University Of Queensland To Host Bibliometrics Conference On Research Evaluation In Brisbane
Conference Will Focus On Metrics-Based Research Evaluation And Research Excellence
Sydney, AUSTRALIA, — March 5, 2009 — The Healthcare and Science business of Thomson Reuters today announced an upcoming international bibliometrics conference on research evaluation, jointly organised with The University of Queensland (UQ) in Brisbane from April 16-17. The conference will address issues and challenges of metrics-based research evaluation.
National and institutional perspectives will be presented by a distinguished panel of international and Australian speakers in the field of higher education research, including:
• Professor Liu Niancai, Director of the Center for World-Class Universities and the Dean of the Graduate School of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. An online publication of his group “The Academic Ranking of World Universities” has gained international attention.
• Professor Charles Oppenheim, Loughborough University, and Advisor to the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) on the Research Excellence Framework (REF) implementation in the UK.
• Associate Professor Robert Tijssen, CWTS, Leiden University, a leading world centre for bibliometrics research.
• Andrew Calder, Director of Research Evaluation Branch, Australian Research Council (ARC).
• Warren Smart, Senior Research Analyst, Ministry of Education, New Zealand.
Additional discussions will address the role of university libraries in supporting research evaluation and the practical aspects of integrating publication management systems. Associate Professor Robert Tijssen will lead an extended session on measuring research excellence.
Mr. Jeroen Prinsen, Sales Director of Australia and New Zealand, Thomson Reuters said, "We are extremely pleased to host this bibliometrics conference together with a leading research institution such as The University of Queensland, and to welcome so many distinguished speakers from the field of research evaluation. As the leading global provider of authoritative information to research and academic communities, we are committed to supporting their research efforts and ensuring the integrity of our information in research evaluation. Methodological consistency is the key to maintaining statistical validity, particularly in research evaluation. In these challenging times, it is even more important for the Australian and New Zealand academic and research communities to continue developing their performance and world-class evaluation standards in order to advance research and innovation.”
Professor Paul Greenfield, UQ Vice-Chancellor said: “The conference is well-timed, given that national systems in the UK, Australia and New Zealand are changing focus from peer review to predominantly metrics-based approaches. Measuring research excellence and impact is complex. It may extend beyond the researcher’s field, and in many cases the outcomes and the benefits for broader society are not immediate or readily visible. UQ has a strong interest in developing rigorous systems to measure research excellence, so we are pleased to work with Thomson Reuters to bring together distinguished international and Australian speakers to share their experiences and perspectives on research evaluation.”
The conference will be held at the UQ Queensland Brain Institute Auditorium.
Conference abstracts and podcasts of speakers’ presentations will be available to delegates shortly after the conference. For information on the conference programme, visit http://isiwebofknowledge.com/realnumbers and refer to events.
About Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters is the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. We combine industry expertise with innovative technology to deliver critical information to leading decision makers in the financial, legal, tax and accounting, scientific, healthcare and media markets, powered by the world’s most trusted news organization. With headquarters in New York and major operations in London and Eagan, Minnesota, Thomson Reuters employs more than 50,000 people in 93 countries. For more information, go to thomsonreuters.com.
About The University of Queensland
UQ strives to achieve excellence in research and scholarship and to make a significant contribution to intellectual, cultural, social, and economic life at the local, national, and international levels. UQ is highly successful in attracting competitive research funding, receiving $28.7 million for 71 new research projects in the 2008 Australian Research Council Discovery Projects scheme. This scheme supports excellent fundamental research. The University has more than 3,600 research higher degree candidates, and graduated more than 500 PhD candidates in 2008. Visit http://www.uq.edu.au/
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