Google search tricks

Thank you Huffington Post for posting a link to Google's "Explore Google Search" page.

As a library and information science student, I've listened to many class discussions about traditonal librarian skills, knowledge and purpose in a Google world. Are Google's algorithm a replacement for human librarian guidance or a tool to help us do our jobs better?

Copyright state of mind

I just completed an essay for MLIS 2000 class on US copyright policy and the future of libraries. My understanding of copyright, based on three assigned books, has had me thinking about how copyright laws, if unbalanced, are a real threat to society's ability to create, share and collaborate on projects that contribute to our culture.

The books, Wealth of Networks, Remix, and Digital Copyright, explain how our current copyright law is an environment of prohibition, that is, assume everything is copyrighted unless otherwise told it is not. This is an unreasonable way to function in the digital age, where information sharing of any stripe is second-nature.

The books really changed the way I think about what I see on the mass media and what is available in the public domain. If we want a culture of possibilities, of work that is created by the public for social advancement, we need less private owners. Passive consumption is not enough.

File under #matteroftime

Thank you for this story, New York Times:

E-Books Now Top Hardcovers at Amazon

Excerpt

Amazon.com, one of the nation’s largest booksellers, announced Monday that for the last three months, sales of books for its e-reader, the Kindle, outnumbered sales of hardcover books.

In that time, Amazon said, it sold 143 Kindle books for every 100 hardcover books, including hardcovers for which there is no Kindle edition.

The pace of change is quickening, too, Amazon said. In the last four weeks sales rose to 180 digital books for every 100 hardcover copies. Amazon has 630,000 Kindle books, a small fraction of the millions of books sold on the site.

I'm warming up to algorithms

Lately, from a journalist 2.0 perspective, algorithms are either the devil or a savior. They can be the devil when used for content farms, which use highly searched topics to drive story ideas. When these story ideas are assigned, they usually come with little pay and scant quality control. The story generator wants a lot of content to sell, hence the name "content farm."

But algorithms, which I was told by a computer science graduate from a top science school, are simply recipes or instructions for figuring out a "problem."

Algorithms are being explored for lowering newsroom costs (this is the savior part). Duke University is working on applying algorithms to computational journalism that could find anomalies or discrepancies in, say, a stack of public documents.

But most famously, algorithms are a huge part of search engine results. This has had an enormous impact on our ability to find stuff on the Internet.

As librarians, we should be thinking about the role of algorithms in future library settings, especially digital, if we want to remain competitive and useful to patrons. As the Wikipedia entry on "search algorithm" states for "Explicity stored databases":

Algorithms for searching in explicitly stored databases include the simple linear search, and many other algorithms that use a variety of search data structures, such as binary search trees, heaps and hash tables, to speed up multiple queries over the same database.

There are also many algorithms designed specifically for retrieval in very large databases, such as bank account records, electronic documents, product catalogs, fingerprint and image databases, and so on.

If librarians are going to use or build databases to find information for patrons, we should consider how algorithms work and how to make them most effective.

time management skillz needed

Oh how I've got so much to do. I've got like three part-time activities going right now, which is the equivalent of one and a half jobs. I either need some time management advice, less commitments, or a drug that turns me into a machine so I can just do things one after the other.

My occupations right now are a media policy fellowship, graduate school (MLIS program) and serving on the board of directors for a nonprofit organization. All of which require a combination of reading, research, writing, travel, networking and a lot of e-mailing.

So in that spirit, here are some time management tips from the Mayo Clinic, abridged:

• Plan each day.
  
• Prioritize your tasks.
  
• Say no to nonessential tasks.
  
• Delegate.
• Take the time you need to do a quality job.
  
• Break large, time-consuming tasks into smaller tasks.
  
• Practice the 10-minute rule.
  
• Evaluate how you're spending your time.
  
• Limit distractions.
• Get plenty of sleep, have a healthy diet and exercise regularly.
  
• Take a time management course.
• Take a break when needed.
  

Pitt MLIS first visit

The MLIS Cohort 10 met in person for the first time on Friday and Saturday at the University of Pittsburgh campus. This was quite a treat -- it brought everything home. The experience really did connect our virtual learning environment with the traditional, physical learning structure, and being on campus made me feel part of the campus.

Here is a picture, taken from Google Images, of the Information School building on Bellefield Avenue. The poured concrete building has architectural flaws, in both design and function, but that's okay. It was built in 1962, we were told, and is in the Brutalist style.

The other part about being a Pitt student is the education is in Pittsburgh, probably one of my favorite US cities. I was introduced to Pittsburgh last year when I went there to attend a wedding, and I was impressed with the city. Cool vibe, energy, pace, and people. I was happy to return this year and I liked it even more. I went to the highest floor in the Cathedral of Learning (36th?), and walked around campus.



Here is a shot of the Oakland neighborhood, where the Pitt campus is, in P-Town.

Copycat bills of AZ SB 1070 in other parts of US

I am 100 percent against the Arizona immigration bill, SB 1070, which sets a precedent of police state tactics and discrimination. Here is a map by Kristopher Fortin that illustrates where other bills inspired by Arizona are emerging or being debated.


View States and politicians considering bills similar to SB 1070 in a larger map