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Online archive of Cohen AIDS literature now in beta version
(Dec 2008) In conjunction with World AIDS Day on Dec. 1, the University of Michigan will launch a searchable, online trove of AIDS-related literature gathered by a prominent science writer.
The materials digitized and organized by the School of Information and the University Library include transcripts of government meetings, obscure documents from across the globe, and investigative reports from government agencies, among other items.
The database is a beta version of the digital Jon Cohen Aids Research Collection. Cohen, a correspondent for Science since 1990, has written extensively about the epidemic for decades. The items in this online archive came from 36 file drawers of raw materials behind his articles and his 2001 book Shots in the Dark: The Wayward Search for an AIDS Vaccine.
This beta version contains 600 items. The full database will have 6,000 documents, or 230,000 pages of records. Cohen's notes are not included. But the archive does include documents he obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, speeches and proceedings from major AIDS conferences, case law, abstracts and news articles, and dozens of other categories of data. These materials are full-text searchable.
"Archives are the materials that form the meat of history," said Elizabeth Yakel, an associate professor in the School of Information who currently leads this project.
While finished products such as books and articles are already on the Web and more are being added every day, archives are the next frontier.
"This is really the wave of the future," Yakel said. "Right now, very few archival collections are fully digitized. When it is complete, this collection will really provide you with a whole context, rather than just little pieces."
Researchers expect the full Cohen archive site to be complete in mid-2009.
Cohen sees the new Web site as a resource for anyone interested in HIV/AIDS, such as those infected with HIV, as well as journalists, policymakers, lawyers, academics, and non-governmental organizations.
"The files have proven to be a terrific, unique resource for me, and I think many people could benefit from them," Cohen said. "There also are loads of historical documents that may interest people in the future. Many of these documents would be extremely difficult to obtain elsewhere.
"I have extensive documentation of investigations of alleged wrongdoing, old brochures from drug makers, reports from stock analysts that hilariously attempt to predict which vaccine will make it to market first, as well as many scientific papers and newspaper articles."
For 70 percent of the records, the University obtained copyright permission to display the actual documents to the general public. In the other 30 percent of cases, general public users can see only a citation. Users from within U-M and other universities will have access to a higher percentage of the documents through subscriptions held by the institutions.
"The University of Michigan Library is proud to play a role in bringing this important collection online, and in particular, to have done so in collaboration with the School of Information. The Library's commitment to long term access will ensure its availability into the future," said John Weise, senior associate librarian who is working on this project.
The archive is available now at http://quod.lib.umich.edu/c/cohenaids to journalists who wish to view it in advance of the launch date. The URL will stay the same when the site is officially launched.
This project, which is funded by a grant from the John D. Evans Foundation and additional financial support from the School of Information, began in May 2007. It was initially under the direction of emeritus School of Information professor Gary Olson, the Paul M. Fitts Collegiate Professor of Human Computer Interaction. Dharma Akmon, now an SI doctoral student, served as project manager responsible for organizing the collection and securing the copyright permissions.
The Digital Library Production Service provides services within the University of Michigan Library including digitization, Web development, and hosting of books, images, and archive materials.
-- Nicole Moore, U-M News Service
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