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THERE are two ways of settling your tax bill: Pay as You Earn or Pay as You Like. Any executive worth his expenses belongs in the latter category, and there is a vast brains trust of experts to help him stay there.

This study develops the economic rationale for the inclusion of new environmental financial assets, tradable pollution rights, in a well‐diversified portfolio. These new assets are generated and their valuation determined in the market‐incentive environmental regulatory approach called emissions trading, especially the cap‐and‐trade variant. This approach has been gaining wide acceptance and approval. A leading example is the sulfur dioxide market where tradable allowances are assets that may be held by private investors. Transactions in this market have reached volumes indicative of a high degree of liquidity. Comparable tradable rights in other pollutants are under active development. We explain the design and workings of these markets and demonstrate empirically, on the basis of time series data, that sulfur dioxide allowances have rates of return and yield distributions that make them candidates for inclusion in asset portfolios. We conjecture that other tradable pollution rights will exhibit similar properties when sufficient data are available. Financial analysts and accountants are likely to play an increasing role in advising investors about the role of these assets in a well‐diversified portfolio.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which academics are engaged with online communities for research purposes, and the research activities, platforms and tools associated with these communities. In addition, the paper aims to discover the benefits, disadvantages and barriers involved in the use of online communities, and especially in regard to the trust and authority issues, so important in scholarly communications.

A layered, mixed-methods approach was used for this complex research topic. Interviews were undertaken with social science and humanities researchers, followed up with focus groups in both the USA and UK. This qualitative work was then followed up with an online questionnaire that generated over 1,000 responses.

Over half the sample had experience of an online research community and a majority of researchers are making at least occasional use of one or more Web 2.0 services for communicating their research activity; for developing and sustaining networks and collaboration; or for finding out what others are doing. Big differences exist in membership rates according to subject, but not really by age or other demographic factors. The biggest benefit to joining an online community is the ability to seek information in one’s own specialism. Younger researchers are more engaged with online communities.

The qualitative research was limited to the UK and USA. While use of online communities is now accepted by both established and younger researchers, the main ways of communicating research remain scholarly journals and books.

The implications for learned societies and publishers are not clear. Journals are confirmed as the primary way of disseminating research. However, it would be easy for these stakeholders to miss how younger researchers expect to connect in digital communities.

With researchers of all ages accepting the existing and importance of online communities and connections, there are few technical or social barriers to using mainstream digital tools to connect professionally.

There is little published research considering the role of online research communities, so the study is highly original. It is valuable to discover that researchers still prefer to share research findings primarily through journals, rather than through social technologies.

The purpose of this paper is to outline the key themes and discussions which came out of the 2011 UK Serials Group (UKSG) conference.

The conference is introduced and some of the key sessions are described and evaluated, then the report is drawn to a close with a brief conclusion which summarizes the main themes.

Many changes in user demands and the future role for libraries, librarians and publishers within the scholarly research sector; libraries need to shift services from “place to space” (physical location to online) to better fulfill their users' needs; many changes in the book industry such as a rapid increase in the number of E‐book sales; an increase in the use of mobile devices such as e‐readers and tablets; publishers are experimenting with new formats, such as print on demand; the lack of library funding, its impact on research output and the on‐going struggle for library survival was a reoccurring theme throughout the conference.

This conference report is relevant to librarians, publishers and information professionals in all sectors.

To share with readers the issues and coverage of a large international conference.

Conference report of the IFLA 2005 71st World Library and Information Congress held in Oslo, Norway August 14‐18, 2005.

Different sections in each of IFLA’s Divisions held numerous meetings and programs and some highlights are shared. A large vendor and trade exhibition was held. Library visits to different sites were held in greater Oslo. One of the main attractions was the reopening of the Norwegian National Library after a major renovation that took several years.

Will be of interest to library and information professionals.

THERE is a danger in reviewing developments in the reprographic field that one will merely degenerate into giving a catalogue of the recent hardware. Yet the hardware is important. One is reminded of Verner W. Clapp's remark regarding the effectiveness of the American Council on Library Resources that at the end of 11 years, $10 million and 413 grants, contracts and projects, the work of the Council on Library Resources had brought about a great many improvements but that, on the whole, the state of the art was just about where it was when they started!.