This study examines how academic historians search for, access, and use primary source materials in their research pursuits. Recruited historians completed an online questionnaire about current information practices and potential information needs in archival settings. The results shed light on the most frequent methods historians use to search for primary source materials; the types of primary source documents they are most likely to use; whether they access materials online or in person; their use of digitized archival collections; factors they consider important in their decision to use archival collections; and what might prevent them from using collections.

Alexandra M. Chassanoff: Historians' Experiences Using Digitized Archival Photographs as Evidence (Under the direction of Christopher A. Lee) Widespread digitization has presented scholars with unprecedented access to archival sources. In particular, the availability of archival photographs through online collections has been championed as an opportunity to fill in underrepresented histories absent from archival collections. Yet the degree to which scholars are using digital visual sources, and how they are using them, is relatively unexplored in the literature. In part, this can be attributed to the difficulties of modeling visual information use; no empirical models currently link scholarly interpretive practices to how scholars actually use visual materials. This dissertation sought to address these gaps in the literature by examining the experiences of one group-self-identified historians using digitized archival photographs as evidence in their scholarly activities. This study uses an embedded case study approach to explore how and why historians use images in the construction of their arguments. Fifteen participants were recruited during the spring and summer of 2015. I conducted semi-structured interviews with each participant, eliciting descriptions about their image practices and specific experiences related to image use. I used thematic analysis and thematic synthesis to reveal salient aspects of historians' experiences as they interpret and decide to use (or not use) materials. To strengthen and verify the analysis, I used triangulation strategies at different stages in the study. The results of this exploratory research can be used to inform designs for archival description and access, and to provide guidance for historical image use. In particular, my This dissertation would not have been possible without the guidance, advice, and patience of my advisor, Dr. Christopher (Cal) Lee. Cal continually kept an open mind as I talked through various ideas and strategies, providing structure and endless suggestions for sculpting a dissertation topic out of vague connections of interest. Simply put, Cal made me a better writer, editor, and researcher. I am grateful for his support and guidance. I am also extraordinarily lucky to have been able to assemble a superior group as my committee members: Matthew Kirschenbaum, Sandra Hughes-Hassell, Ryan Shaw, and Helen Tibbo. Your careful attention and feedback at different points in this process were essential contributions. Thank you to SILS faculty member Diane Kelly for providing methodological guidance early-on. I'd also like to thank my good friend and colleague, Kaitlin Costello, for endless support, timely feedback, and simply "just getting it." Friends and loved ones, thank you for being there. I could not have done this without you. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………………....xi LIST OF TABLES……………………………………………………………………………….xii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION……………………………...………………………………….1 1.1 Statement of the Problem…………………………………………………………………....

This article considers the problem of preserving research software within the wider realm of digital curation, academic research libraries, and the scholarly record. We conducted a pilot study to understand the ecosystem in which research software participates, and to identify significant characteristics that have high potential to support future scholarly practices. A set of topical curation dimensions were derived from the extant literature and applied to select cases of institutionally significant research software. This approach yields our main contribution, a curation model and decision framework for preserving research software as a scholarly object. The results of our study highlight the unique characteristics and challenges at play in building curation services in academic research libraries.

INTRODUCTION Research software plays an increasingly vital role in the scholarly record. Academic research libraries are in the early stages of exploring strategies for curating and preserving research software, aiming to facilitate support and services for long-term access and use. DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM In 2016, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) began offering postdoctoral fellowships in software curation. Four institutions hosted the initial cohort of software curation fellows. This article describes the work activities and research program of the cohort, highlighting the challenges and benefits of doing this exploratory work in research libraries. NEXT STEPS Academic research libraries are poised to play an important role in research and development around robust services for software curation. The next cohort of CLIR fellows is set to begin in fall 2018 and will likely shape and contribute substantially to an emergent research agenda.

Research software plays an increasingly vital role in the scholarly record. Academic research libraries are in the early stages of exploring strategies for curating andpreserving research software, aiming to provide long-term access and use. In 2016, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) began offering postdoctoral fellowships in software curation. Four institutions hosted the initial cohort of fellows. This article describes the work activities and research program of the cohort, highlighting the challenges and benefits of doing this exploratory work in research libraries.