Microsoft Academic - Detailed Review
Education Tools
Microsoft Academic - Product Overview
Overview
Microsoft Academic, although no longer active as of December 31, 2021, was a significant project within Microsoft’s education and research tools category. Here’s a brief overview of its primary function, target audience, and key features:Primary Function
Microsoft Academic was designed to assist scientific researchers by leveraging AI and machine learning. It aimed to enhance the research process through various cognitive capabilities such as memory, computation, sensing, attention, and endurance.Target Audience
The primary target audience for Microsoft Academic included researchers, scientists, and academics across various disciplines. This tool was intended to support anyone involved in scientific research, helping them stay updated with the latest publications, trends, and breakthroughs in their fields.Key Features
Knowledge Acquisition and Reasoning
Microsoft Academic used AI-powered machine readers to process documents and extract scholarly entities and their relationships, forming a comprehensive knowledge base known as the Microsoft Academic Graph (MAG).Semantic Search and Recommendation
The platform employed AI to infer query intent and retrieve the most relevant knowledge from the MAG. It also recommended materials that users might not be aware of and alerted them to recent publications and breaking news.Importance Assessment and Ranking
The system estimated and quantified the importance of each entity using reinforcement learning algorithms, predicting community judgments based on future citations.API Access
A REST API was available for accessing the data, although it was limited to a free-tier with throttling and quota limits. Users could self-host the API for more extensive use.Conclusion
While Microsoft Academic is no longer available, its concepts and technologies have likely influenced other Microsoft initiatives in the education and research sectors. Microsoft Academic - User Interface and Experience
User Interface Overview
The user interface of Microsoft Academic is crafted to be intuitive and user-friendly, particularly for those in the academic and research communities.Profile and Personalization
When you create a profile on Microsoft Academic, you are presented with a personalized homepage. This homepage is customizable, allowing you to follow topics, papers, authors, conferences, or journals that interest you. By clicking the “Follow” button on the entity’s detail page, you can keep track of new publications, conference deadlines, and papers that have recently cited your work, all in one place.Search and Analytics
The website offers an improved search experience, providing users with insights into research topics they find interesting. When viewing an institution, users can see publication data as well as analytics for top authors, journals, and conferences. This feature helps users stay informed about quality research within their domain and other relevant areas.Ease of Use
The interface is streamlined to make it easy for users to build and manage their profiles. The process of creating an account and claiming publications has been simplified, and the overall design is focused on ease of access and intuitiveness. Users can quickly find and follow entities of interest, and the system automatically updates their homepage with relevant information.User Experience
The user experience is enhanced by the ability to track various entities and receive updates on them. For instance, users can follow specific topics and receive news and updates on those topics directly on their homepage. This feature ensures that users stay up-to-date with the latest research and developments in their areas of interest without having to search extensively.Feedback and Improvement
Microsoft Academic encourages user feedback to continuously improve the platform. Users can provide suggestions via the feedback tab on the website, which helps the team to innovate and optimize the platform for user needs.Conclusion
Overall, the user interface of Microsoft Academic is designed to be user-friendly, informative, and highly personalized, making it an effective tool for researchers and academics to stay engaged and informed. Microsoft Academic - Key Features and Functionality
Microsoft Academic
Microsoft Academic is a powerful tool within the education and research sector, leveraging AI and advanced data structures to facilitate scholarly research and discovery. Here are the key features and how they work:
Microsoft Academic Graph (MAG)
Microsoft Academic is built on the Microsoft Academic Graph (MAG), which is a massive database of scholarly works. This graph is populated by Bing technology that crawls the web for content from publisher websites, university repositories, researcher and departmental web pages, and other relevant sources. The content is then analyzed for citations and other scholarly metrics, and if deemed scholarly, it is added to the MAG.
Semantic Search and Recommendations
The service uses a knowledge-driven, semantic inference-based search and recommendation framework. As users type their queries, the system suggests authors, topics, journals, conferences, and other relevant entities, allowing for refined searches based on the data in the underlying academic knowledge graph. This feature helps users quickly find relevant information and refine their search results using filters such as date range, author, affiliation, field of study, journal, and conference.
Entity Analytics and Topic Hierarchy
Microsoft Academic provides detailed entity analytics, showing statistics, rankings, and trends for each entity in the graph. The topic hierarchy is visualized through a topic graph explorer, which displays top-level topics and allows users to expand down the graph to see parent and child topics. This visualization helps users understand the hierarchical nature of topics and their connections, making it easier to explore and find related topics.
Data Access and API
The underlying MAG data is available for download or can be accessed via the Academic Knowledge API. This allows developers and researchers to integrate the data into their own applications and analyses, further extending the utility of the platform.
Real-Time Intent Recognition
The service uses real-time intent recognition and knowledge serving, facilitated by a new data structure and graph engine. This enables the system to recognize the user’s intent as they search and provide relevant suggestions and results immediately.
Filtering and Refinement
Users can filter search results by various criteria such as date range, author, affiliation, field of study, journal, and conference. Additionally, users can choose to include news items or limit results to scholarly works only, ensuring that the search results are highly relevant to their needs.
AI Integration
AI plays a crucial role in Microsoft Academic by enabling semantic query suggestions, real-time intent recognition, and the analysis of vast amounts of data to provide accurate and relevant results. The AI-driven search and recommendation framework ensures that users get the most pertinent information quickly and efficiently.
In summary, Microsoft Academic leverages AI to create a comprehensive and user-friendly platform for scholarly research, offering advanced search capabilities, detailed analytics, and a visual representation of topic hierarchies, all of which are designed to enhance the discovery and exploration of academic works.
Microsoft Academic - Performance and Accuracy
Performance
Indexing Capabilities
Microsoft Academic was highly effective in indexing a vast number of publications, far exceeding traditional citation databases. By the end of its operation, it had indexed over 225 million publications, including a broad range of types such as preprints, working papers, and dissertations. This was achieved through its web crawling capabilities and the use of AI technologies, particularly semantic search, which allowed it to understand the meaning of words rather than just matching keywords.Microsoft Academic Graph
The search engine utilized the Microsoft Academic Graph (MAG), a comprehensive database that organized academic knowledge into a structured format. This graph enabled the analysis of citation relationships among publications and authors, providing valuable insights for researchers. The Academic Knowledge API further enhanced the search capabilities by combining the indexing power of Bing with MAG, offering features like histograms of related publications and frequency distributions.Accuracy
General Accuracy
The accuracy of Microsoft Academic was generally considered reasonable and suitable for large-scale analysis of scholarly communication. Studies have shown that the machine-curated results in Microsoft Academic achieved accuracy comparable to, or sometimes greater than, commercial data sets that relied heavily on human effort.Limitations
However, there were some limitations. For instance, while the database was extensive, it had some inconsistencies. About 89.5% of the journal articles correctly listed the publication years, but there were errors in other metadata fields.Limitations and Areas for Improvement
User Interface Challenges
One of the main challenges users faced was the learning curve associated with the semantic search interface. Unlike traditional keyword searches, Microsoft Academic’s AI-driven search required users to adapt to a new way of querying, which could be time-consuming and confusing for some.Adoption Issues
The interface itself, although feature-rich with filtering and sorting options, was not widely adopted by researchers. This was partly due to the unique metrics such as saliency and estimated citation counts, which were difficult for many users to interpret.Usability Concerns
Additionally, the initial lack of tutorials and instructions for using the new application led to confusion among first-time users. The small icons and symbols used in the interface were not clearly defined, adding to the usability issues.Engagement and Community
Despite these challenges, the underlying data from Microsoft Academic was highly valued by researchers and commercial enterprises. The data set was freely available, and its use was facilitated through APIs or full data dumps, making it accessible for various applications and tools. Microsoft also attempted to foster a community by integrating a social network for academics, which aimed to provide support and instructions from colleagues and other users. However, the platform ultimately ceased operations at the end of 2021, with users encouraged to transition to other equivalent services. In summary, Microsoft Academic demonstrated strong performance in indexing and analyzing academic publications, but it faced challenges related to user adoption and the complexity of its AI-driven interface. While its accuracy was generally good, there were areas where improvements were needed, particularly in user education and interface usability. Microsoft Academic - Pricing and Plans
Free Options
Microsoft offers free access to Office 365 Education for eligible students and educators. This includes web versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Microsoft Teams, and Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat, along with additional AI-based tools for learning and work. Students need a valid school email address to access these tools.Microsoft 365 Education Plans
For faculty and institutions, there are several paid plans available:Microsoft 365 A3 for Faculty
- This plan includes Office apps, email, and other productivity tools.
- Price: $69.00 per year.
Microsoft 365 A5 for Faculty
- This plan adds advanced security, compliance, and analytics features on top of the A3 plan.
- Price: $129.00 per year.
Microsoft 365 Apps for Faculty
- This plan provides access to Office apps only.
- Price: $27.60 per year.
Microsoft 365 A1 for Devices with Office Desktop Apps
- This is a 6-year license aimed at devices rather than individual users.
- Price: $38.00 for the 6-year term.
Specialized Tools and Services
Other tools and services are available at additional costs:Microsoft Visio Online
- Plan 1: $12.00 per year
- Plan 2: $26.40 per year.
Microsoft Project Online
- Plan 3: $72.00 per year
- Plan 5: $132.00 per year.
Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps
- Price: $8.40 per year.
Microsoft Entra ID Plans
- Plan P1: $7.20 per year
- Plan P2: $10.80 per year.
Minecraft Education Edition
- Price: $6.20 per year.
Additional Resources
For students and educators, Microsoft also provides access to other educational resources such as LinkedIn Learning courses, Microsoft certifications, and GitHub Education, which can be accessed separately or as part of the broader educational offerings. Microsoft Academic - Integration and Compatibility
Integration with Learning Management Systems (LMS)
Seamless Integration
Microsoft Education tools are designed to integrate smoothly with popular Learning Management Systems (LMS) such as Canvas, Schoology, Blackboard, D2L/Brightspace, and Moodle. This integration is facilitated through the Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI) standard.Key Features
For example, the Microsoft Teams Assignments LTI app allows educators to create and manage assignments directly within their LMS, while the Microsoft OneDrive LTI app enables the attachment and distribution of Microsoft 365 files, real-time collaboration on documents, and single sign-on capabilities.Microsoft Teams Integration
Central Component
Microsoft Teams is a central component of Microsoft’s education suite and integrates well with various LMS systems.Enhanced Learning Experience
Educators can use Teams to create assignments, conduct meetings, and manage class teams all from within their LMS. The Teams Meetings LTI app allows for scheduling and joining meetings directly from the LMS, enhancing the hybrid learning experience.Compatibility Across Devices
Multi-Device Access
Microsoft 365 Education, which includes Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, and other Office applications, is compatible across multiple devices. This includes PCs, Macs, iPads, iPhones, and Android devices.Office Mobile Apps
The Office Mobile apps ensure that students and educators can access and use Microsoft tools on their preferred devices.Single Sign-On and Data Sync
Streamlined User Experience
Microsoft School Data Sync (SDS) helps in synchronizing data with Microsoft Entra ID and Microsoft 365, enabling single sign-on to various applications.Integration with Student Information Systems
This simplifies the user experience and reduces the time spent on integrating different systems. SDS works with multiple Student Information Systems (SIS) and supports various operating systems and devices.AI-Driven Tools
Integration of AI in Education
The Microsoft Education AI Toolkit provides resources and tools to help educational institutions integrate AI into their teaching and learning processes.Complementing Educational Technology
This includes AI for education resources, learning pathways for educators, and technical skilling resources. While the AI Toolkit itself does not integrate directly with LMS systems, it complements the overall educational technology ecosystem by enhancing teaching and learning with AI tools like Copilot.Conclusion
In summary, Microsoft’s education tools are highly integrated and compatible across a range of platforms and devices, making it easier for educators and students to manage their educational activities efficiently. The use of LTI standards and tools like Microsoft School Data Sync further streamlines the integration process, ensuring a seamless experience. Microsoft Academic - Customer Support and Resources
Customer Support Options
For educational institutions and users, Microsoft offers several support channels:Phone Support
Technical support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For example, in the United States, you can call 1-800-865-9408, and in Australia, you can call 1-800-197-503.
Online Support
You can initiate a service request online through the Microsoft 365 admin center. Here, you can type a question or keyword, and if the results don’t help, you can select “Contact Support” to enter a description of your issue and choose your preferred contact method.
Chat and Email Assistance
Support is also available via chat or email. You can go to the specific help centers for various Microsoft Office programs (like OneNote, Project, Publisher, or Visio) and click on “Contact Us” to initiate support.
Additional Resources
Microsoft Education offers a wealth of resources to support the effective use of their AI-driven tools:Microsoft Learn Courses
These include professional development courses from the Educator Center, covering topics such as AI for education, Microsoft Copilot, Reading Coach, and more. These resources help educators become proficient in Microsoft technologies and innovative classroom skills.
Learning Accelerators
These are free tools integrated into Microsoft 365 for Education, such as Reading Progress, Reading Coach, Search Coach, and Speaker Coach. These tools help students practice and improve skills like reading fluency and presentation techniques.
Quick Guides
Microsoft provides quick guides for tools like Reading Coach, Reading Progress, Search Coach, Speaker Coach, and Immersive Reader. These guides help educators get started with these tools and use them effectively in the classroom.
AI Classroom Toolkit
This resource helps educators and students aged 13-15 learn about generative AI in a safe and responsible manner. It includes narrative stories and instructional information to create an engaging learning experience.
GitHub Prompt Library
Educators can use a curated collection of Bing Chat prompts to craft engaging lessons, respond to student inquiries, or streamline administrative tasks.
Webinars and PPT Decks
Microsoft Education offers webinars and PowerPoint decks on various topics, including new features and tools like Immersive Reader, Translator, and Math Solver. These resources are updated regularly to keep educators informed about the latest tools and best practices.
By leveraging these support options and resources, educators can effectively integrate Microsoft’s AI-driven education tools into their teaching practices, enhancing student engagement and learning outcomes.
Microsoft Academic - Pros and Cons
Advantages of Microsoft Academic
Microsoft Academic, a bibliometric tool, offers several significant advantages that make it a valuable resource in the education and research community.
Semantic Search Functionality
Microsoft Academic boasts a sophisticated semantic search engine that leverages entities associated with a paper, such as fields of study, journal, author, and affiliation. This results in more accurate search results compared to traditional keyword-based searches used by other databases like Google Scholar.
Broad Coverage and Structured Metadata
The platform combines the broad coverage of Google Scholar with the structured and rich metadata of Scopus and Web of Science. This makes it easier for users to find and analyze a wide range of academic publications.
Citation Analysis
Microsoft Academic provides solid citation analysis features, including aggregated citation counts and frequency distributions. This enables the calculation of various bibliometric indicators, such as the h-index, which is comparable to those from Scopus and Web of Science.
Affordable Access to Raw Data
The Academic Knowledge API allows users to access raw data at a relatively low cost ($0.25 per 1,000 queries), making it an affordable option for researchers and institutions.
Filtering and Sorting Options
The search interface offers a range of filtering and sorting options, which is more comprehensive than what Google Scholar provides. This helps users refine their search results efficiently.
Disadvantages of Microsoft Academic
Despite its advantages, Microsoft Academic also has some notable disadvantages.
Data Quality Issues
There have been reports of data quality issues, such as incorrect publication years and author affiliations. For instance, 3.5% of the publication years were found to have larger differences than ±1 year, and some users have experienced difficulties in updating their affiliation information.
User Interface Challenges
Initially, the platform lacked clear instructions and tutorials, which confused novice users. The small icons and symbols were not defined, and users were not aware that they could use phrases instead of single words for queries.
Limited User Control Over Profile Information
Some users have reported difficulties in claiming and updating their works, with the process being time-consuming and not allowing for easy import of works via ORCID.
Potential for Incomplete Coverage
Although Microsoft Academic is expanding its coverage, it still may not be as comprehensive as some other databases. The initial coverage was criticized for being limited, especially compared to established databases like Scopus and Web of Science.
By considering these points, users can better evaluate whether Microsoft Academic meets their needs for bibliometric analysis and academic research.
Microsoft Academic - Comparison with Competitors
Microsoft Learning Accelerators
Microsoft’s Learning Accelerators, which include Coach tools and Progress tools, offer several distinctive features:- Real-time Coaching: Tools like Reading Coach and Math Coach provide real-time feedback and coaching to students, helping them improve reading fluency and math problem-solving skills.
- Integration with Microsoft Ecosystem: These tools seamlessly integrate with Microsoft 365 apps, such as Word, OneNote, and Microsoft Teams, making them highly convenient for schools already using these platforms.
- Personalized Learning: The Progress tools help teachers personalize assignments, feedback, and instruction using actionable insights, ensuring each student receives targeted support.
- Comprehensive Support: The tools cover various subjects, including reading and math, and are supported in over 50 languages.
Alternatives and Competitors
Smart Sparrow
Smart Sparrow is an adaptive e-learning platform that uses AI to personalize learning and provide real-time feedback. Unlike Microsoft’s tools, Smart Sparrow focuses more on interactive lessons across a broader range of subjects and does not have the same level of integration with a specific productivity suite.Querium and GradeSlam
Querium and GradeSlam are AI-powered tutoring platforms that provide personalized learning experiences. These platforms use machine learning algorithms to assess students’ strengths and weaknesses and offer targeted instruction. However, they do not have the same level of integration with a comprehensive suite of productivity tools like Microsoft 365.Coursera
Coursera is an online learning platform that uses AI to personalize learning experiences and recommend courses. While it offers a wide range of courses from top universities, it does not provide the same level of real-time coaching and feedback as Microsoft’s Learning Accelerators.Woot Math
Woot Math is an AI-powered math education platform that personalizes math lessons for each student. It provides real-time feedback but is more specialized in math education compared to Microsoft’s broader subject coverage.AI Assistants for Educators
Microsoft Co-Pilot vs. ChatGPT vs. Perplexity AI
Microsoft Co-Pilot, integrated into the Microsoft ecosystem, is excellent for productivity tasks such as drafting lesson plans, creating presentations, and analyzing student data. However, it requires a Microsoft 365 subscription and is limited to the Microsoft environment. ChatGPT, on the other hand, is versatile and can assist with lesson planning, grading, and generating educational content. It is more accessible due to its conversational interface and does not require a specific subscription, although it may lack the integration benefits of Co-Pilot. Perplexity AI is best for research and verification, providing cited responses and quick answers to specific questions. It is free and does not require a subscription but lacks the creative and interactive features of ChatGPT.Conclusion
Microsoft’s Learning Accelerators stand out due to their integration with the Microsoft 365 ecosystem and their comprehensive support across various subjects. However, other tools like Smart Sparrow, Querium, and Woot Math offer specialized personalized learning experiences that might be more suitable for specific needs. For educators looking for AI assistants, Microsoft Co-Pilot, ChatGPT, and Perplexity AI each have unique strengths that can be chosen based on the specific requirements of the teacher. Microsoft Academic - Frequently Asked Questions
What is Microsoft Academic?
Microsoft Academic is a next-generation academic search tool developed by Microsoft. It uses AI semantic search algorithms to scan publishers, societies, and open web content to identify key authors, topics, conferences, and journals across all disciplines.
What features does Microsoft Academic offer?
Microsoft Academic offers several key features:
- It contains over 252 million scholarly records and is growing quickly.
- It ranks top topics, descriptors, publication types, authors, journals, repositories, and institutions.
- It allows for sorting, alerting, downloading, and citation analysis tools.
- It includes powerful citation and disciplinary visualizations.
- It provides article “cited by” analysis lists.
- It has personal account features for managing saved citations, sharing lists, and receiving notifications.
How does Microsoft Academic perform compared to other academic databases?
Microsoft Academic performs similarly to established databases like Scopus and Web of Science in terms of citation analysis and coverage of main document types. It combines the broad coverage of Google Scholar, the structured and rich metadata of Scopus and Web of Science, and the social network features of ResearchGate. Its semantic search engine provides accurate results, making it a strong competitor in the field of bibliometrics.
What is the Microsoft Academic Graph (MAG)?
The Microsoft Academic Graph (MAG) is the underlying data structure of Microsoft Academic. It is built by crawling the web for scholarly content from publisher websites, university repositories, and researcher web pages. The MAG contains over 150 million entities and billions of relationships, facilitating real-time intent recognition and knowledge serving.
How can I access the data from Microsoft Academic?
The data from Microsoft Academic can be accessed through the Academic Knowledge API, which allows users to retrieve structured and rich metadata, including aggregated citation counts and frequency distributions of citations. This API is available at a relatively low cost of $0.25 per 1,000 queries.
Is Microsoft Academic free to use?
Yes, Microsoft Academic is straightforward and free to search. However, accessing raw data through the Academic Knowledge API requires a small fee.
What kind of search capabilities does Microsoft Academic offer?
Microsoft Academic offers semantic search functionality, which leverages entities associated with a paper such as fields of study, journals, authors, and affiliations. It also provides traditional keyword search as a fallback. Users can refine their search results using filters such as date range, author, affiliation, field of study, journal, and conference.
How accurate is the data in Microsoft Academic?
While the data quality is still being evaluated, initial studies show that 89.5% of the publication years are correct, 7.0% differ by ±1 year, and 3.5% feature larger differences. Additionally, 95.1% of the journal articles list the correct number of authors.
Can I use Microsoft Academic for citation analysis?
Yes, Microsoft Academic provides powerful tools for citation analysis. It includes features such as citation visualizations, “cited by” analysis lists, and the ability to calculate various bibliometric indicators like the h-index and average-based and distribution-based indicators.
How does Microsoft Academic help in refining search results?
Microsoft Academic offers a range of filtering and sorting options to refine search results. Users can filter by date range, author, affiliation, field of study, journal, and conference, making it more convenient than some other scholarly databases like Google Scholar.
Is Microsoft Academic user-friendly for novice users?
While Microsoft Academic has impressive features, there are some reservations about the availability of instructions for novice users. However, its user-friendly interface and semantic query suggestions help users refine their searches based on the data in the underlying academic knowledge graph.
Microsoft Academic - Conclusion and Recommendation
Final Assessment of Microsoft Academic
Microsoft Academic, particularly in its enhanced version, Microsoft Academic 2.0, stands out as a formidable tool in the academic research and education sector. Here’s a comprehensive assessment of its benefits and who would most benefit from using it.
Key Features and Benefits
- Semantic Search: Microsoft Academic 2.0 leverages a semantic search engine, which provides highly accurate results by associating papers with entities such as fields of study, journals, authors, and affiliations. This feature is a significant improvement over traditional keyword-based searches used by other databases like Google Scholar.
- Broad Coverage and Structured Metadata: The platform offers broad coverage similar to Google Scholar, combined with the structured and rich metadata of Scopus and Web of Science. This makes it an excellent resource for comprehensive academic searches.
- Citation Analysis: Microsoft Academic allows for detailed citation analysis, including aggregated citation counts and frequency distributions. This is particularly useful for bibliometric studies and calculating indicators like the h-index.
- Affordable Data Access: The Academic Knowledge API provides access to raw data at a relatively low cost ($0.25 per 1,000 queries), making it an attractive option for researchers and institutions.
- User-Friendly Interface: The platform offers a range of filtering and sorting options, making it easier for users to refine their search results. This is a notable advantage over Google Scholar, which has limited refinement options.
Who Would Benefit Most
- Researchers and Academics: Those conducting in-depth academic research will greatly benefit from the semantic search functionality, broad coverage, and detailed citation analysis features of Microsoft Academic.
- Educational Institutions: Universities and research institutions can leverage Microsoft Academic to enhance their research capabilities, improve the accuracy of bibliometric studies, and support faculty and student research projects.
- Librarians and Information Specialists: These professionals can utilize Microsoft Academic to provide better support to researchers by offering more precise and comprehensive search results.
Overall Recommendation
Microsoft Academic is a highly recommended tool for anyone involved in academic research. Its combination of broad coverage, structured metadata, and advanced semantic search capabilities make it a valuable resource. The affordability of accessing raw data through the Academic Knowledge API is an additional advantage.
For educational institutions and researchers, Microsoft Academic offers a powerful tool to streamline research processes, improve the accuracy of citation analyses, and enhance overall research productivity. Given its ongoing development and the continuous expansion of its database, it is poised to become an indispensable resource in the academic community.