IRLIST Digest ISSN 1064-6965 February 12, 1996 Volume XIII, Number 7 Issue 294 ********************************************************** I. QUERIES 1. Text Retrieval System Information Sought II. JOBS 1. U. Rhode Island: Assistant Professor, GSLIS III. NOTICES A. Publications 1. Perspectives on Quality in Libraries 2. Virtual Societies: Prospects and Dilemmas B. Meetings 1. ISKO '96/Knowledge Organization and Change 2. AAAI '96: Detecting and Preventing Miscommunication IV. PROJECTS C. Grants, Fellowships, & Proposals 1. ISI Research Grant Announcement ********************************************************** I. QUERIES I.1. Fr: Wendi Pohs Re: Text Retrieval System Information Sought I'm an information consultant currently working on a comparison/analysis of the major text retrieval system vendors from an implementation point of view. I'm interested in hearing about real-life experience with the vendors - I'd like to get a level deeper than the standard features/grid kind of analysis. If you've had any experiences you'd like to share, please drop me a line (wendi@iii.net) or give me a call (508) 952-2534. Any pointers to online info also welcomed. Thanks, Wendi Pohs TextRa Consulting ********************************************************** II. JOBS II.1. Fr: Herb Carson Re: U. Rhode Island: Assistant Professor, GSLIS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND GRADUATE SCHOOL OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION STUDIES FACULTY POSITION AVAILABLE Opportunity for creative curriculum development in the area of information science and technology: The University of Rhode Island seeks a full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor for its Graduate School of Library and Information studies (GSLIS) to develop and deliver courses in the areas of information science and technology. We seek an energetic individual with an formed commitment to library and information service, an understanding of the rapidly evolving contexts of information work, and an interest in working with GSLIS colleagues and partners outside the School both to shape a flexible, meaningful curriculum and to deliver a vital regional program to students throughout New England. The successful candidate will have: * An earned doctorate (or one near completion) in library or information science a related field * MLIS from an ALA Accredited Program and Professional experience in Libraries or Information Services Preferred * Demonstrable potential for highly effective teaching * Demonstrable potential for research, scholarship, and service * Teaching and research interests in areas such as information organization and retrieval systems, telecommunications and information technology management, information sources and services, or appropriate related fields Desirable added qualifications include the ability to teach in one or more of the School's core areas. Faculty duties include teaching both at Kingston and in the Regional Program during the academic year; student advisement; service on GSLIS committees; research and scholarly publication. Additional summer appointment is an option. Libraries at URI are competitive with published norms. The URI Graduate School of Library and Information Studies offers an ALA-accredited MLIS Program, and a school library media certification program accredited by both NCATE and NASDTEC. It serves approximately 200 students at its Kingston campus and satellite locations in Amherst, MA, Boston, MA, and Durham, NH. Deadline for applications is March 15, 1996. Applications should include C.V. and the names and addresses of three references. Please send applications and nominations to: Dr. Gale Eaton, Chair, Search Committee (Log #021268) UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND P.O. BOX G KINGSTON, RI 02881-0815 AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER ********************************************************** III. NOTICES III.A.1. Fr: GSLIS PUBLICATIONS OFFICE Re: Perspectives on Quality in Libraries (This information can also be found at http://edfu.lis.uiuc.edu/puboff/catalog/trends/44_3.html) The Graduate School of Library and Information Science announces the publication of: "Perspectives on Quality in Libraries" Library Trends 44(3), Edited by Thomas W. Shaughnessy How can quality be measured in libraries? Although quality in services, collections, and programs is the assumed raison d'etre of librarianship, how can these activities be compared to a quality standard? Thomas W. Shaughnessy and the authors in the latest issue of LIBRARY TRENDS strive to determine the ways in which quality in libraries can be measured and improved. The difficulty in establishing a measurement of quality (benchmarking), a methodology for measuring quality in libraries, and the need to reach high standards in order to redeem the library mission in the public eye, are examined in the course of this volume. As each library differs vastly in its patrons and resources, can tactics such as Total Quality Management, organizational redesign, staff training and empowerment, and revised systems thinking, be applied wholesale to an industry which varies so widely among its individual participants? The articles in "Perspectives on Quality in Libraries", while addressing various elements of quality assessment, illustrate that quality will continue to be an issue of strategic importance to librarianship and information science. Contributors and articles include: * Thomas Seay, Sheila Seaman, & David Cohen, _Measuring and Improving the Quality of Public Services: A Hybrid Approach_ * Sarah E. Thomas, _Quality in Bibliographic Control_ * Philip Tompkins, _Quality in Community College Libraries_ * Vicki Williamson & F. C. A. Exon, _The Quality Movement in Australian University Libraries_ * Glen E. Holt, _On Becoming Essential: An Agenda for Quality in Twenty-First Century Public Libraries_ * Sarah M. Pritchard, _Determining Quality in Academic Libraries_ * Alan Gilchrist & John Brockman, _Where is the Xerox Corporation of the LIS Sector?_ * Patricia Kovel-Jarboe, _Quality Improvement: A Strategy for Planned Organizational Change_ * Barbara K. Stripling, _Quality in School Library Media Programs: Focus on Learning_ * Ellen Nagle, _The New Knowledge Environment: Quality Initiatives in Health Sciences Libraries_ Single copies are $18.50, including postage. Subscription rates are Institutional: $75 per volume ($82 for international subscribers); Personal: $50 per volume ($57 for international subscribers); and Student $25 per volume ($32 for international subscribers). Order from the University of Illinois Press, Journals Department, 1325 S. Oak Street, Champaign, IL 61820. ISSN 0024-2594 Visit us on the WWW! http://edfu.lis.uiuc.edu/puboff ********** III.A.2. Fr: Magid Igbaria Re: Virtual Societies: Prospects and Dilemmas CALL FOR PAPERS A Special Issue of The Information Society (An International Journal) on "Virtual Societies: Their Prospects and Dilemmas" http://www.ics.uci.edu/kling/virtsoc.html Edited by Magid Igbaria The Claremont Graduate School The Information Society (TIS) journal invited authors to submit papers for review on the topic of "Virtual Societies: Their Prospects and Dilemmas" for a special issue. During the last decade, the adjective "virtual" has become a commonplace descriptor of social forms where people do not have to live, meet or work face to face in order to develop or maintain significant social relationships. There are specialized literatures about new social forms, such as virtual corporations, virtual organizations, virtual communities and virtual classrooms, as well as related practices such as telecommuting, on-line meetings and electronic politics. While computer-networks figure frequently as enablers of these virtual social forms, other kinds of communication technologies, including paper mail, telephone and fax can also play key roles in linking people and groups. Some of the literature celebrates the flexibility and enhanced possibilities of these new forms of "virtual social life." But there are also important empirical studies of specific virtual social forms and also critical studies that examine the possible losses. Unfortunately, there is relatively little work that examines how people can live and work in societies in which these practices and social forms are widespread and mixed in with face-to-face relationships. This special issue will be a critical forum for studies of the implications of these diverse virtual forms within the larger context of "virtual societies" -- where community life, politics, work, and education depend upon information technologies in addition to, or as substitutes for, face-to-face interaction. Either theoretical or empirical papers that examine virtual societies from diverse disciplinary perspectives. A wide diversity of research methods is encouraged, including both quantitative and qualitative methods. Innovative approaches to studying virtual societies are also desirable. The Guest Editor is seeking papers that advance the debates about the character, value nd viability of virtual social forms. Possible contributions include the following kinds of papers: * Examinations of virtual social forms with new data or new theories * Examination of the impact of the new environment on people and organizations * Examinations of virtual social forms in historical perspectives and with sensitivity to different cultural significance of face relations and the formation of social bonds * Analytical syntheses of empirical studies about virtual social forms in specific institutional settings -- such as electronic meetings, virtual classrooms, community computer networks, and telecommuting * Examinations of the broader cultural politics of promoting, shaping, or opposing the development of virtual social forms. AUTHORS ARE INVITED TO NOMINATE UP TO FOUR REVIEWERS FOR THEIR submission (authors should, however, avoid any nominations that involve a conflict of interest). Nominations should include: name, complete address, telephone, fax, and electronic mail address. Nominated reviewers should be knowledgeable about the topic and methods found in the paper. Authors should follow the standard TIS guidelines for preparation of the manuscript (visit the web site at "http://www.ics.uci.edu/kling/tis.html"). Five copies of the paper should be received no later than July 31, 1996 to be considered for inclusion in the special issue. Please submit your manuscript to: Magid Igbaria, Guest Editor, TIS Programs in Information Science The Claremont Graduate School 30 East Ninth Street Claremont, CA 91711 E-Mail: Igbariam@cgs.edu ********** III.B.1. Fr: Rebecca Green Re: ISKO '96/Knowledge Organization and Change PRELIMINARY PROGRAM AND REGISTRATION MATERIALS INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR KNOWLEDGE ORGANIZATION FOURTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE "Knowledge Organization and Change" July 15-19, 1996--Washington, DC, USA Co-sponsored by the Library of Congress Conference activities will take place in the James Madison Memorial Building, Library of Congress, 101 Independence Avenue, SE, except where otherwise indicated. The registration/information desk will be staffed 8:30am-3:30pm, Monday-Wednesday; on Monday it will be located outside the Digital Library Visitors' Center (ground floor, Madison Building), and on Tuesday and Wednesday, outside the Mumford Room (6th floor, Madison Building). Exhibits will be open 8:30am- 30pm, Tuesday-Thursday. MONDAY, JULY 15 Tools of Knowledge Organization Dewey 120th Anniversary Address, Fran Miksa TUESDAY, JULY 16 Session A1a: Opening: . Welcome and Introductory Remarks, Sarah Thomas, Ingetraut Dahlberg . Keynote Address, Roland Hjerppe Session A1b: Library of Congress Classification Session A2: Management of Change in Knowledge Organization Schemes Session A3: Knowledge Organization in Cross-Cultural and Cross- Linguistic Settings Session A4: The Role of Relationships in Knowledge Organization Session A5: Knowledge Organization in the Online Environment, I Software demonstrations Lecture, Douglas Bennett, and Banquet, held at the Supreme Court of the United States WEDNESDAY, JULY 17 Session B1: Knowledge Organization in the Online Environment, II Session B2a: Impact of Technology on Bibliographic Elements Session B2b: Knowledge Organization in the Economic Environment Session B3: User Focus in Knowledge Organization Session B4: Thesauri and Metathesauri, I Session B5: Knowledge Organization and Images ISKO Business Meeting THURSDAY, JULY 18 Session C1: Interplay of Epistemology and Knowledge Organization Session C2: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Knowledge Organization Session C3: Natural Language Processing Session C4: Thesauri and Metathesauri, II Session C5: Dewey Decimal Classification Concluding Remarks, Robert Fugmann (5:00-5:30pm) Reception, German Embassy (6:30-8:30pm) FRIDAY, JULY 1 Post-Conference Excursions: National Library of Medicine or National Agricultural Library (morning) CONFERENCE CHAIR: Sarah Thomas, Director of Cataloging, Collections Services, Library of Congress, LM 642 (COLL/O), Washington, DC 20540, USA; phone: +1 202 707-5333; fax: +1 202 707-6269; email: stho@loc.gov. PROGRAM CHAIR: Rebecca Green, College of Library and Information Services, Hornbake Bldg. (So. Wing), Rm. 4105, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA; phone: +1 301 405-2050; fax: +1 301 314-9145; email: rgreen@umd5.umd.edu. FOR COMPLETE INFORMATION, CONTACT: ISKO REGISTRATION OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR FOR CATALOGING LM 642 - LIBRARY OF CONGRESS WASHINGTON, D.C. 20540-4300 CONTACT: THEODORE MORGAN Phone: + 202 707 6230 Telefax: + 202 707 6269 Email: tmor@loc.gov The preliminary program and full registration information are available at: http:/www.hud.ac.uk/ISKO96 ********** III.B.2. Fr: Dr. Susan McRoy Re: Detecting and Preventing Miscommunication DETECTING, REPAIRING, AND PREVENTING HUMAN--MACHINE MISCOMMUNICATION AAAI '96 Workshop---Portland, OR Any system that communicates must be able to cope with the possibility of miscommunication---including misunderstanding, non-understanding, and misinterpretation: o In misunderstanding, one participant obtains an interpretation that she believes is complete and correct, but which is, however, not the one that the other speaker intended her to obtain. o In non-understanding, a participant either fails to obtain any interpretation at all, or obtains more than one interpretation, with no way to choose among them. o In misinterpretation, the most likely interpretation of a participant's utterance suggests that their beliefs about the world are unexpectedly out of alignment with the other's. All three forms of miscommunication can eventually lead to repair in a dialogue; however, misinterpretations and non-understandings are typically recognized immediately, whereas a participant is not aware, at least initially, when a misunderstanding occurs. Additionally, misinterpretation can be a source of misunderstanding. Successful communication requires that participants share considerable knowledge. For example, they must share some knowledge about the state of their interaction and about the physical and social situation in which they are communicating. Knowledge of their interaction includes the current topic under discussion (often a shared task), the focus of attention, and the relevance of each utterance to the previous interaction. In practice, no two participants start with an identical understanding of their task or of the situation---nor can they take the time to identify and resolve discrepancies beforehand. As a result, participants must be prepared to handle miscommunication during dialogue. Research related to achieving robust interaction is an important subarea in Artificial Intelligence (AI). Early work concerned the correction of spelling or grammatical errors in a user's utterance so that the system could more easily match them against a fixed linguistic model; work has also been done in the area of speech recognition, attempting to find the best fit of a sound signal to legal sequences of linguistic objects. Other systems have attempted to detect misconceptions in the user's model of the domain of discourse. All of these approaches have assumed that the system's model is always correct. More recently, researchers have been looking at detecting and correcting errors in the system's model of an interaction. This work includes research on speech repairs, miscommunication, misunderstanding, non-understanding, and related work in planning, such as plan misrecognition and plan repair. The focus of this workshop is to bring together researchers interested in developing theoretical models of robust interaction or in designing robust systems. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following: o Theories that delineate what knowledge must be represented, how it will be obtained and updated, and how responsibility for achieving robustness might be distributed among the interactants. o Strategies for identifying POTENTIAL causes of breakdowns, such as ambiguities, misconceptions, and plan misrecognition, in order to avert miscommunication. o Strategies for identifying symptoms of ACTUAL breakdowns, such as deviations from expected behavior, unresolvable ambiguities, and speech errors. o Techniques for correcting errors in interpretation that have been used in other areas of AI, such as plan recognition and computer vision, and in related areas, such as human-computer interaction and multimedia. o Approaches to minimizing and correcting miscommunication in tutoring systems and education. o Empirical data regarding the occurrence of miscommunication and approaches to robust communication that derive from empirical methods. o Research in knowledge representation that would be useful in detecting, repairing, and preventing miscommunication. We solicit papers that explore these issues, and papers that discuss implementations of solutions to the problems of detecting, repairing, and preventing human--machine miscommunication. Papers submitted to the workshop should address these topics explicitly. As AAAI procedures require, participation will be limited to 65. SCHEDULE: Submission deadline: March 18, 1996 Author notification: April 15, 1996 Camera-ready copy due: May 13, 1996 Conference dates: August 4--8, 1996 SUBMISSIONS: Submit an extended abstract. Abstracts should not exceed 10 pages, exclusive of references, in 12 point, double-spaced text, with one-inch margins. We strongly encourage electronic submissions, either plain text or postscript. Emailed submissions should be emailed to mcroy@cs.uwm.edu with a subject heading ``ATTN: AAAI MNM''. In the event that electronic submission is not possible, send 6 copies to: Susan McRoy ATTN: AAAI MNM Workshop Computer Science, University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee 3200 North Cramer Street, EMS Room 503 Milwaukee, WI 53211 This cfp is on the WWW at http://www.cs.uwm.edu/faculty/mcroy/mnm.html ********************************************************** IV. PROJECTS IV.C.1. Fr: Helen Atkins Re: ISI Research Grant Announcement ISI Research Grant 1996 Award The Institute for Scientific Information's Citation Products Division is pleased to announce its new grant program. An award in the amount of $3,000 will be granted in July this year to support a research project based on citation analysis. The deadline for submissions is May 24, 1996, and the grantee will be notified of the award by June 30, 1996. Proposals may be submitted in hard copy or by email, but in either case must be double-spaced and not exceed a maximum of 1,000 words. Proposals should include the following information: Name, address, affiliation, and brief biography/c.v. of applicant(s) * Brief statement of the research problem * Description of the research design and methodology, including details of how citation data will be used * Discussion of expected impact of the research results. Submissions will be evaluated by an internal ISI committee and will be judged on the proposed application of citation analysis and the significance of the research problem. The winner of the award will be expected to pursue dissemination of the results in an appropriate forum and to acknowledge the support of ISI in any presentation or publication based on the funded work. Two hard copies (or one electronic copy) of the proposal, postmarked/dated no later than May 24, should be sent to: Helen Atkins Manager, Product Development Institute for Scientific Information 3501 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19104-3302 email: hatkins@isinet.com ********************************************************** IRLIST Digest is distributed from the University of California, Division of Library Automation, 300 Lakeside Drive, Oakland, CA. 94612-3550. Send subscription requests and submissions to: NCGUR@UCCMVSA.UCOP.EDU Editorial Staff: Clifford Lynch calur@uccmvsa.ucop.edu Nancy Gusack ncgur@uccmvsa.ucop.edu The IRLIST Archives is set up for anonymous FTP. Using anonymous FTP via the host dla.ucop.edu, the files will be found in the directory pub/irl, stored in subdirectories by year (e.g., /pub/irl/1993). These files are not to be sold or used for commercial purposes. Contact Nancy Gusack for more information on IRLIST. 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