March 2026 - Air-L - lists.aoir.org

Call for Papers: Esports at HICSS 60
by Piotr Siuda 16 Mar '26

16 Mar '26

Esports at HICSS 60th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS) January 5–8, 2027, Hilton Waikoloa Village The Esports minitrack at HICSS welcomes submissions that explore the rapidly evolving world of competitive gaming and its broader technological, social, economic, and cultural implications. Esports has developed from a niche subculture into a global, multi-billion-dollar industry, offering rich opportunities for interdisciplinary research across fields such as media studies, sport management, sociology, computer science, and business. This minitrack aims to advance both theoretical and practical understanding of esports. We invite conceptual, theoretical, empirical, and methodological contributions examining electronic competition and its surrounding ecosystems, including players, fans, organizations, technologies, and communities. Researchers from all disciplines and methodological traditions are encouraged to submit. DATES June 15, 2026 – Paper submission deadline August 17, 2026 – Decision notification September 22, 2026 – Final manuscripts due October 1, 2026 – Deadline for at least one author to register for HICSS January 5–8, 2027 – Conference (Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii) ESPORTS TOPICS Possible topics include, but are not limited to: Esports business models, consumer behavior, and marketing Governance, policy, and regulation in esports Team dynamics and performance analytics AI and data analytics in esports training and gameplay Streaming cultures and esports spectatorship Gender, diversity, and inclusion in esports Esports communities and social identities Relations between esports, traditional sports, and media VR/AR/XR and emerging technologies in competitive gaming Game design and balancing for competitive play Esports events and live production Cognitive and behavioral aspects of esports performance LINKS Conference website: https://hicss.hawaii.edu Submission system: https://hicss-submissions.org Author instructions: https://hicss.hawaii.edu/authors/ CO-CHAIRS David P. Hedlund – St. John’s University Piotr Siuda – Kazimierz Wielki University Emma Witkowski – RMIT University Lindsey Darvin – Syracuse University

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Can we make the Internet quantum-resistant? | Free University of Manchester Online Seminar
by Kitty Lo 16 Mar '26

16 Mar '26

What if your internet’s protection & firewall suddenly stopped working? The consequences are horrifying: * Unwanted access attempts — automated bots constantly scan the Internet for open systems. Without a firewall, they can reach you instantly. * Malware infections — if a device has an unpatched vulnerability, an attacker can exploit it directly. * Data exposure — services that were meant to be internal (printers, shared folders, admin panels) may suddenly be reachable from outside. * Device takeover — attackers could install remote‑control tools, ransomware, or use your network for further attacks. * Network instability — high volumes of malicious traffic can slow or crash your connection. That’s the risk we face as quantum computers grow more powerful. Right now, the Internet is going through one of the biggest security upgrades in its history. Old cryptography like Rivest-Shamir-Adleman (RSA) and elliptic curves won’t survive the speed of quantum attacks. And attackers know it. Some are already collecting encrypted data today, hoping to unlock it later. This shift won’t be quick. Updating global systems takes time, money, and coordination. And the new “post‑quantum” tools we’re moving to? Some are still young. Some are untested at scale. But we don’t have the luxury of waiting. Daniel Shiu will explore how organisations are planning this transition, what’s at stake, and how confident we can be in the next generation of cryptography. Free Registration: https://tinyurl.com/2eeruzh4 Digital Trust and Security Webinar: Daniel Shiu DATE: Wednesday, April 29, 2026 TIME: 12:00 pm – 1:00 PM GMT (Online) Free Registration: https://tinyurl.com/2eeruzh4 If you’re curious about how we can make the Internet quantum‑resistant—and what needs to happen next—this is a conversation you won’t want to miss. kitty.lo(a)manchester.ac.uk<mailto:kitty.lo@manchester.ac.uk> | Communications and Engagement Coordinator | Research Platforms Team - Digital Futures<http://www.digitalfutures.manchester.ac.uk/> | The University of Manchester | Pronouns (She/her) Christie Building | The University of Manchester | Oxford Road | M13 9PL Sign up to the Digital Futures newsletter here - https://tinyurl.com/digitalfuturesuom

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Reminder - Postdoc positions in platform work
by Kylie Jarrett 16 Mar '26

16 Mar '26

Hi all This is just a reminder that I am advertising two 3-year postdoctoral fellowships with an application deadline of March 20. The posts are to work on the ERC-funded LivePlatforms project in the School of Information and Communication Studies at University College Dublin. This project seeks to identify and critique the range of actors involved in shaping whether, if, or how people make livelihoods in the Irish platform economy. One position needs a specialist in researching online creators (e.g. influencer, streamers, content creators): https://www.ucd.ie/ics/vacancies/staffvacancies/post-doctoralresearchfellow… The other needs a specialism in location-based platform work (e.g. delivery-riders, careworkers, home help): https://www.ucd.ie/ics/vacancies/staffvacancies/post-doctoralresearchfellow… These posts are suitable for those just out of PhD or with up to 1 year PD experience. Thanks, Kylie _________________ Prof. Kylie Jarrett School of Information and Communication Studies University College Dublin She/her Editor-in-chief: *Dialogues on Digital Society* Author: *Digital Labor *(Polity 2022)*;* *Feminism, Labour, and D**igital Media: The Digital Housewife *(Routledge 2016) Co-author*: NSFW: Sex, Humor and Risk in Social Media *(MIT Press 2019) *Google and the Culture of Search *(Routledge 2013)

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Call for Contributions: Intimate Technologies of Reproductive Health - Interdisciplinary Perspectives (working title)
by Helga Sadowski 16 Mar '26

16 Mar '26

Dear AOIR community, We are a group of researchers in Human-Computer Interaction at Uppsala University, Sweden, and are currently seeking contributors for an edited volume on Intimate Technologies of Reproductive Health. This might be of interest to you or a colleague? Best wishes, Helga (Sadowski) Call for Contributions: Intimate Technologies of Reproductive Health - Interdisciplinary Perspectives (working title) Edited by Helga Sadowski, Lina Eklund and Beatrice Tylstedt Over the past decade, digital technologies designed to monitor, predict, and manage reproductive health have proliferated at an unprecedented pace. It has become commonplace to use apps to track menstrual cycles, fertility status, pregnancy progress, or menopausal symptoms. In other words, apps and accompanying gadgets such as wristbands, thermometers, or insertables are part of our most intimate everyday life, mentally and physically. With their help, we track, we predict, we expect; we tell them about pain, lust or even loss. In return, platforms promise freedom from hormonal ‘chaos’ or pharmaceutical intervention, and the ability to take health and fertility into our own hands. Through proprietary algorithms and increasingly AI-driven features, they translate embodied rhythms into data streams, offering the seductive sense that what has historically been framed as unpredictable or uncontrollable can now be known and managed. Yet reproductive health technologies are never neutral tools. They operate within dense networks of gender norms, racialized histories of medical control, data concerns, and more. Reproductive health apps thus sit at a critical intersection of technological innovation, societal expectation, and political struggle. They constitute what might colloquially be termed a “can of worms”, demanding sustained, systematic, and intersectional feminist inquiry. Although important scholarship exists, research remains fragmented. What is needed is a dedicated volume that brings these strands together to interrogate both the promises and the power structures of digital reproductive health. We ask: • How do these technologies make or break societal expectations of gender, sexuality, and reproduction? • In what ways do they transform embodied experience, self-knowledge, and affective relations to the body? • How do users make sense of the paradoxical situation of having body data available on their screens, while it is at the same time harvested by big tech companies and used in oblique ways • How do race, class, disability, sexuality, age, and geopolitical location intersect with these technologies? • What would reproductive health apps look like in a sustainable, feminist, decolonial future—one that acknowledges the uncontrollable and centers embodied knowledge, collective care, and reproductive justice? • How might feminist and critical design practices intervene in current infrastructures? We invite chapter proposals for an edited volume that critically examines reproductive health apps and related digital technologies from intersectional feminist perspectives including but not limited to HCI and interaction design. The collection seeks to foreground power, inequality, and resistance while exploring possibilities for more just and accountable technological futures. We welcome contributions that engage with, but are not limited to, the following themes: Social and Cultural Dimensions ● Empowerment and Agency: How do reproductive health apps enable or constrain users in taking reproductive health into their own hands? ● Diversity, Gender, and Queer Perspectives: How do they address—or fail to address— diverse identities, non-binary experiences, and queer communities? ● Normativity and Inclusion: How do reproductive health apps reinforce or challenge traditional norms around gender, sexuality, and reproductive health? ● Intersectional Analyses: How do race, class, disability, and other axes of identity shape experiences with such digital technologies? Technical and Design Perspectives ● User and Design Studies: How are reproductive health apps designed, and how do users interact with them? What are the implications for usability, accessibility, and user experience? ● Algorithmic Intimacy and Automation: How do algorithms and automation shape users’ experiences of intimacy, bodily autonomy, and reproductive decision-making? ● Datafication and Patienthood: How do reproductive health apps contribute to the datafication of reproductive health, and how does this reshape concepts of patienthood and self-tracking? ● Speculative and Feminist Design Futures: What would non-extractive, collectively governed, or community-owned reproductive technologies look like? Privacy, Policy, and Ethics ● Privacy and Data Concerns: What are the risks and ethical dilemmas surrounding data collection, storage, and sharing in reproductive health apps? ● Political and Policy Consequences: How do they intersect with reproductive rights, healthcare policies, and surveillance? ● Commodification of Intimacy: How are bodily rhythms, fertility intentions, and affective disclosures transformed into economic value?● Sustainability and Material Infrastructures: What are the ecological footprints of wearable devices and data storage infrastructures tied to reproductive tracking? Comparative and Contextual Studies ● Case Studies: How are reproductive health apps developed, regulated, and used in different countries or cultural contexts? ● Comparative Analyses: How do experiences with reproductive health apps vary across regions, legal frameworks, or healthcare systems? Submission Guidelines • Abstract Submission Deadline: April 12, 2026. Abstracts (300–500 words) should outline the chapter’s focus, methodology, and contribution to the volume’s themes. Include a brief author bio (100 words) and contact information • Notification of acceptance: May 3rd, 2026 • Draft Chapter Deadline: September 15, 2026. Contributors submit full draft chapters (6,000–8,000 words). • Feedback Sent to Contributors: November 1, 2026 • Final chapter deadline: January 15th, 2027 • Final Editorial Review: January 16–March 31, 2027 The book will be published as Diamond Open Access volume via Uppsala University Library’s Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis, ensuring global accessibility. Contact Please direct inquiries and submissions to helga.sadowski(a)im.uu.se<mailto:helga.sadowski@im.uu.se> När du har kontakt med oss på Uppsala universitet med e-post så innebär det att vi behandlar dina personuppgifter. För att läsa mer om hur vi gör det kan du läsa här: http://www.uu.se/om-uu/dataskydd-personuppgifter/ E-mailing Uppsala University means that we will process your personal data. For more information on how this is performed, please read here: http://www.uu.se/en/about-uu/data-protection-policy

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*Wednesday!* - Big Data & Society S'26 Colloquium - Governing Digital Infrastructures
by Linda Huber 15 Mar '26

15 Mar '26

Hello all! Please join us on Wednesday for our fourth and final panel of Big Data & Society's Spring 2026 Colloquium: Governing Digital Infrastructures: Platforms, AI, and the Public Interest Date: March 18, 16:00-18:00 GMT / 11:00AM-1:00PM EST *Webinar link*: https://uky.zoom.us/j/83382671765 Abstract/ Description: AI is consolidating around a few firms that control data, compute, and distribution, which raises questions about market power, innovation, and democratic oversight. This panel asks what “good” AI markets look like and which governance tools (e.g., antitrust, interoperability mandates / standards, public options, and data access regimes) can align private incentives with public value. Drawing on perspectives from law, economics, and political economy, we will compare approaches across jurisdiction and sectors to identify actionable mechanisms for policy and institutional design. Panelists: - Brett Aho, Goethe University Frankfurt - Annabelle Gawer, University of Surrey - Troels Krarup, Aalborg University Chair: Monja Sauvagerd, University of Bonn Best, Linda -- *Linda Huber, she/her* *NB: I have recently graduated from the University of Michigan **School of Information and started a new role as Postdoctoral Fellow in Social Justice & Technology at Swarthmore College. I am in the midst of transitioning away from this email address, and can also be found at puellaludens1(a)gmail.com <puellaludens1(a)gmail.com>, or lhuber1(a)swarthmore.edu <lhuber1(a)swarthmore.edu>. * *Member, Platform Economies Research Network <https://platformeconomies.net/>* *Fellow, Institute for the Cooperative Digital Economy <https://platform.coop/about/icde/>* *+1 773 575 7783*

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CfP: HICSS Games & Gaming
by Nathaniel Poor 15 Mar '26

15 Mar '26

Call for Papers: Games & Gaming at HICSS (Game Scholars and Hawaii in January!) Games & Gaming at HICSS 60th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS) January 5-8, 2027, Hilton Waikoloa Village For the eleventh straight year, the Games & Gaming minitrack at HICSS is seeking papers that examine the social aspects of digital gaming. We feature work related to digital games and sociality that covers a variety of methods: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods papers are welcome, ranging from interviews to big data analyses, detailed observations of games and associated social or streaming networks, as well as theoretical papers looking at digital gaming practices in general. Types of games studied may include mobile, social, free to play, AAA, MMOs, PC, console, multiplayer, and indie games. As part of the Digital and Social Media track, papers must contain a social dimension, examining, for example, sociability, social practices, communities (in-game, out-game, across multiple spaces or time), use of social affordances, or some other social dimension. Student authors are welcome! See here for HICSS author instructions and guidelines: http://hicss.hawaii.edu/authors/ . Also, see below for links to previously accepted papers to get an idea of what we are looking for, and a list of other game-related mini-tracks that will probably be at HICSS. DATES April 15: Submission site opens (see http://hicss.hawaii.edu/authors/ ) June 15, 11:59 pm HST: Papers due August 17: Decision notification September 22: Final manuscripts due October 1: Deadline for at least one author to register for HICSS January 5-8, 2027: Conference! G&G TOPICS AI and gaming Community management Cooperative and competitive play Ethical issues around gaming Fans and fan communities Game curation via sites like Steam Game design for sociality Intercultural play Multigenerational play Multiplayer games Network analysis of game-related groups and communities Player communities Social affordances of games Social issues in game development Social practices (in-game, out-game, both) Streaming gameplay (e.g., Twitch, YouTube Live, etc.) Toxicity online …or email us! LINKS HICSS: http://hicss.hawaii.edu/ Author Instructions: http://hicss.hawaii.edu/authors/ Digital and Social Media track: https://hicss.hawaii.edu/tracks-57/digital-and-social-media/ Papers from 2026: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/112450 Papers from 2025: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/109892 Papers from 2024: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/107457 Papers from 2023: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/102510 Papers from 2022: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/79200 Papers from 2021: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/72169 CO-CHAIRS Nathaniel Poor (Primary Contact Co-Chair) Underwood Institute natpoor(a)gmail.com <mailto:natpoor@gmail.com> Steph Orme Key Lime Interactive orme.stephanie(a)gmail.com <mailto:orme.stephanie@gmail.com> Andy Phelps American University andymphelps(a)gmail.com <mailto:andymphelps@gmail.com> OTHER GAME-RELATED MINI-TRACKS AT HICSS (and Track) Esports (in Internet at Work and Play) Game-Based Learning (in Internet at Work and Play) Games for Impact (in Software Technology) Gamification (in Decision Analytics and Service Science) Metaverse, Mixed Reality, and Digital Personas (in Digital and Social Media) Metaverse for Work and Play (in Internet at Work and Play) Social Media Influencers and Influencing (in Digital and Social Media) ------------------------------- Nathaniel Poor, Ph.D. (he/him/his) Underwood Institute http://www.underwood-institute.org/ http://github.com/natpoor http://natpoor.blogspot.com/ http://sites.google.com/site/natpoor/

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CFP: MisD2026 Workshop on Misinformation Detection (ICWSM 2026)
by calvin cheng 14 Mar '26

14 Mar '26

Dear community members, We are pleased to invite you to *submit your work to MisD-2026 workshop*, taking place on May 26, 2026, at the 20th International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media (ICWSM 2026) in Los Angeles, USA. 🎺 *Keynote Speaker* 🔊🔊🔊 We are honoured to announce that Preslav Nakov will join MisD-2026 as our invited keynote speaker. Professor Nakov is the Department Chair for NLP at the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence. He is part of the core team that developed Jais, the world's best open-source Arabic-centric LLM, as well as part of the LLM360 team at MBZUAI. He is one of the leading experts on fake news, disinformation, fact checking, propaganda, and media bias detection and has published tens of research papers on solutions and stop-gaps for the ever-growing online social media infodemic. Please find more details in our workshop website: https://sites.google.com/view/misd-2026/ 📬📬📬 *Submission system is now open*: https://openreview.net/group?id=cwsm.org/MisD/2026/Conference We welcome long papers, short papers, abstracts, and visionary/idea papers related to misinformation, fake news, rumours, and misleading narratives across disciplines. *Topics include (but are not limited to):*• LLMs for misinformation detection • Multimodal / multilingual detection • Cross-domain misinformation (health, politics, finance, etc.) • Social and psychological dynamics of misinformation • Hallucination mitigation in LLMs • Fairness, bias, policy, and ethics 📊* Shared Task*: The Reference-Free Counterfactual (RFC) benchmark has begun. You can obtain the training dataset through registration at: https://sites.google.com/view/icwsm-2026-fmd/ *⏲ Important Dates*Submission Deadline: March 31, 2026 Notification: April 15, 2026 Workshop: May 26, 2026 *🔗 Official website:*https://sites.google.com/view/misd-2026/ We look forward to your contributions and to seeing you in Los Angeles! Best regards, Calvin Yixiang Cheng, On behalf of the Organizers of MisD 2026

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Applications Open: Nordic Nerds 2026 Reading and Mentorship Group
by me＠coryrobinson.se 13 Mar '26

13 Mar '26

Hello all, Applications are now open for the 2026 cohort of Nordic Nerds (https://www.nordicnerds.org/) an interdisciplinary reading and mentorship group for scholars and professionals working across culture, technology, and digital rights. I started Nordic Nerds to help create the kind of space that is often difficult to find in academic life: one that combines intellectual exchange, supportive mentorship, and genuine community. Too often, graduate students and early-career researchers are expected to navigate academic and professional development without enough informal guidance, constructive feedback, or opportunities for cross-disciplinary conversation. This group was created in response to that need. Nordic Nerds is not meant to replace graduate supervision or formal institutional mentoring. Rather, it is a small, engaged, and informal space where participants can discuss emerging research, share ideas, ask questions about academic and professional life, and support one another through mentorship and discussion. Over time, the group has developed into a community centered on thoughtful exchange, generosity, and interdisciplinary curiosity. The group is especially well suited to PhD students, postdocs, early-career researchers, and professionals with interests in areas such as AI and ethics, digital rights and privacy, internet governance, platform regulation and policy, social media and online communities, and the broader intersections of culture and technology. Meetings take place online every second week, typically in the afternoon CET. We use Zoom for meetings and Element for ongoing group communication. Members are expected to participate actively in discussions and are encouraged to contribute by helping shape readings, presenting work, offering feedback, leading discussions, and mentoring more junior participants where appropriate. As in previous years, the cohort will be intentionally small in order to foster close discussion, trust, and meaningful engagement. Because places are limited, the application process is competitive and focuses on fit, motivation, and willingness to contribute to the group community. If this sounds like a good fit for you, or for someone in your networks, applications are open here: https://forms.gle/F33jXF5iHJP8KrwM7 Please feel free to share with colleagues, students, or others who may be interested. Best, Cory ---- Former Associate Professor in Communication Design & Information Systems at Linköping University E: me(a)coryrobinson.se<mailto:me@coryrobinson.se> https://coryrobinson.se<https://coryrobinson.se/> LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephencoryrobinson/

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Fwd: 4S Toronto - Code, Bodies, and Territories - Submit your abstracts by April 30
by Fernanda Rosa 13 Mar '26

13 Mar '26

(português abaixo; español abajo) Hello everyone, We would like to invite scholars working on Latin America to submit your abstracts to our 4S Open Panel: *Code, Bodies, and Territories: Digital Colonialism and Resistance in Latin America* https://www.4sonline.org/accepted_open_panels_toronto.php Although submissions must be in English, our goal is to expand our community of practice and connect through experiences, concepts, and problems that bring us together in different languages. Please find the key dates and panel description below, and feel free to reach out if you have any questions. We recommend consulting the 4S website for other dates related to travel grants and volunteering opportunities. Cheers, === Olá a todes, Gostaríamos de convidar pesquisadores que atuam na América Latina a submeter seus resumos para o nosso Painel Aberto da 4S: *Código, Corpos e Territórios: Colonialismo Digital e Resistência na América Latina*. https://www.4sonline.org/accepted_open_panels_toronto.php Embora as submissões devam ser feitas em inglês, nosso objetivo é expandir nossa comunidade de prática e nos conectar por meio de experiências, conceitos e problemas que nos unem em diferentes idiomas. Confiram abaixo as datas principais e a descrição do painel, e sintam-se à vontade para entrar em contato caso tenham alguma dúvida. Recomendamos consultar o site da 4S para verificar outras datas relacionadas a auxílios-viagem e oportunidades de voluntariado. Atenciosamente, ==== Hola a todes: Nos gustaría invitar a les investigadores que trabajan con América Latina a enviar sus resúmenes para nuestro Panel Abierto de la 4S: *«Código, cuerpos y territorios: colonialismo digital y resistencia en América Latina»*. https://www.4sonline.org/accepted_open_panels_toronto.php Aunque las postulaciones deban realizarse en inglés, nuestro objetivo es ampliar nuestra comunidad de práctica y conectar a través de experiencias, conceptos y problemáticas que nos unen en diferentes idiomas. A continuación encontrarán las fechas clave y la descripción del panel; no duden en ponerse en contacto con nosotres si tienen alguna pregunta. Recomendamos consultar el sitio web de la 4S para conocer otras fechas relacionadas con becas de viaje y oportunidades de voluntariado. Saludos cordiales, ==== *Deadline for abstract submissions:* April 30 *Notification of Abstract Acceptance: *May 29, 2026 *Early Bird Registration: *June 1—July 3, 2026 *4S 2026 Conference: *October 7-10, 2026 *209 Code, Bodies, and Territories: Digital Colonialism and Resistance in Latin America* Fernanda R. Rosa, Virginia Tech; Diego Vicentin; Carolina Israel, Federal University of Parana; Rodolfo Avelino, Insper; Leonardo Cruz, Federal University of Para Information, Computing and Media Technology; Decolonial and Postcolonial STS; Feminist STS The constitution of modernity is inseparable from scientific narratives that defend universality as a principle of knowledge production. Consequently, the Western technical incorporation into the bodies and territories, as taught by Indigenous and Black peoples, has become a systematic mechanism of subalternization of traditional, local, popular, and dissident knowledge. The forms of resistance that historically emerge involve multiple strategies that encompass both the preservation of knowledge, memory and identities and the technical appropriation following different sociotechnical arrangements. Given these guiding principles and the current techno-productive transformations that emerge with AI, this panel constitutes a space-time to address the relationships between digital technologies, including code, infrastructure, and their governance, as devices of bodily, epistemic, ontological, and territorial domination in Latin America, as well as the forms of resistance in their multiple configurations. Indigenous practices, maintained for centuries on the continent, are the prime example of such resistance, to which the struggles of Black and maroon populations, women, LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities, those under social vulnerability, among others, are added. Despite techno-epistemic hegemonies, Indigenous and Decolonial Science and Technology Studies (STS) emerge as a possibility for repositioning academic research in a way that is committed to a pluriversal future that respects multiple cosmotechnics and symmetrical dialogue with diverse forms of knowledge. In line with this horizon, this panel establishes among its objectives: To provide a space for debate focused on the possibilities of techno-scientific (re)making in dialogue with the pluriversality of knowledge and technologies; To reimagine code, infrastructure, and governance of digital technologies mediating human and nonhuman relations; To socialize experiences, research, and actions that aim at counterpointing hegemonic digital socio-technical relations; To share knowledge and experiences about the characteristics of Latin American techniques in the embodiment of the digital, highlighting the relationships between technique, territory, and body.

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Paula Bialski on Middletech
by Ilana Gershon 13 Mar '26

13 Mar '26

Dear Colleagues, I am so pleased to announce that there will be a CaMP reading group with Paula Bialski as the featured author in two weeks. March 27th -- Friday at noon east coast time. Paula Bialski offers us chapter 2 and the introduction for context. Please read as much as you can, but do feel free to join us even if you haven't managed to read everything. The readings can be found here: Chapters 1 and 2: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1A3Y74RNqmkKYWqLzHC1hsLoAtZDyUlnk/view?usp=… The meeting will be at noon to 1 pm east coast time - Friday, March 27th and can be reached by clicking on this Zoom link: https://iu.zoom.us/j/949202698 <https://iu.zoom.us/j/949202698> Looking forward to seeing you all virtually, Ilana Press blurb: Contrary to much of the popular discourse, not all technology is seamless and awesome; some of it is simply “good enough.” In *Middle Tech*, Paula Bialski offers an ethnographic study of software developers at a non-flashy, non-start-up corporate tech company. Their stories reveal why software isn’t perfect and how developers communicate, care, and compromise to make software work—or at least work until the next update. Exploring the culture of good enoughness at a technology firm she calls “MiddleTech,” Bialski shows how doing good-enough work is a collectively negotiated resistance to the organizational ideology found in corporate software settings. The truth, Bialski reminds us, is that technology breaks due to human-related issues: staff cutbacks cause media platforms to crash, in-car GPS systems cause catastrophic incidents, and chatbots can be weird. Developers must often labor to patch and repair legacy systems rather than dream up killer apps. Bialski presents a less sensationalist, more empirical portrait of technology work than the frequently told Silicon Valley narratives of disruption and innovation. She finds that software engineers at MiddleTech regard technology as an ephemeral object that only needs to be good enough to function until its next iteration. As a result, they don’t feel much pressure to make it perfect. Through the deeply personal stories of people and their practices at MiddleTech, Bialski traces the ways that workers create and sustain a complex culture of good enoughness.

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