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wikipedia: Congressional staffers make more than 1, 000 changes to Wikipedia (fwd)
by elw＠stderr.org 29 Jan '06

29 Jan '06

fascinating stuff. (forwarded from dave farber's interesting-people listserv..) --elijah ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Tom Fairlie <tfairlie(a)frontiernet.net> Date: January 29, 2006 12:16:56 AM EST To: dave(a)farber.net Tom Fairlie www.stopthebuck.com ------------------------------------------------------------ Rewriting history under the dome By Evan Lehmann, Sun Washington Bureau WASHINGTON -- The staff of U.S. Rep Marty Meehan wiped out references to his broken term-limits pledge as well as information about his huge campaign war chest in an independent biography of the Lowell Democrat on a Web site that bills itself as the "world's largest encyclopedia," The Sun has learned. The Meehan alterations on Wikipedia.com represent just two of more than 1,000 changes made by congressional staffers at the U.S. House of Representatives in the past six month. Wikipedia is a global reference that relies on its Internet users to add credible information to entries on millions of topics. [...] In November and December, The Sun has learned, users of the House's IP address were temporarily blocked from changing content because of violations described by the site as a "deliberate attempt to compromise the integrity of the encyclopedia." More... http://www.lowellsun.com/ci_3444567 ------------------------------------- You are subscribed as elw(a)stderr.org To manage your subscription, go to http://v2.listbox.com/member/?listname=ip Archives at: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/

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e-commerce and fake trust
by Frank Thomas 29 Jan '06

29 Jan '06

Hi, The New York Times today runs two stories about the treatments of fakes by eBay http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/29/technology/29ebay.html http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/29/technology/29ebayside.html It seems that the reputation system can easily be managed in favour of sellers of fakes. So, creating reputation by a technology is not as easy as eBay pretends. A real surprise. I guess the reputation systems lacks a certain dose of social control based on actors that are outside the systems, and are nor immediate benefactors, as market organiser, seller, and buyer are. Creating fake reputation can easily be extended to stolen goods. I recently looked for a copy of a SPSS stats package and saw a SPSS version 13 with a perpetual ! licence, for below 100$. The seller only had excellent reviews. People get really inventive when they try to fraud. F. Thomas -- .......................................... Dr. Frank Thomas FTR Internet Research 93110 Rosny-sous-Bois France -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.375 / Virus Database: 267.14.23/243 - Release Date: 27/01/2006

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DISABLED-FACULTY a new discussion list
by Charles Wankel 29 Jan '06

29 Jan '06

Colleagues, I have started a new discussion list for disabled-faculty and those interested in them as a research topic. DISABLED-FACULTY will be a place for networking and exchange of information on the reasonable accommodations requested by faculty at universities and other higher educational institutions in which they teach and research. Topics will include discussions of the legal and social contexts that germane issues are nested within and specific cases and situations. This discussion forum is co-sponsored by the Academy of Management HR, MED and SIM divisions. However, faculty members from all disciplines are explicitly sought to join us. To join go to: http://aomlists.pace.edu/scripts/wa.exe?SUBED1=disabled-faculty&A=1 Collegially, Charles Wankel wankelc(a)stjohns.edu Disabled-Faculty List Director

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UW-Seattle Symposium on Social Movements & Online Collective Action
by Philip Howard 27 Jan '06

27 Jan '06

Dear AIR: Kirsten Foot and Deb Kaplan here at UW have put together an interesting symposium for second Friday in February. If you are in the Seattle area you are welcome to attend. Phil Howard Dr. Philip N. Howard Assistant Professor Department of Communication University of Washington http://faculty.washington.edu/pnhoward/ *********************************************** UW Symposium on Social Movements & Online Collective Action Friday, February 10, 1-5 p.m. in Communication 104 Co-sponsored by the Center for Communication and Civic Engagement, the Department of Communication, and the UW Digital Media Working Group The symposium will consist of two panels with five members each, and discussion among all participants. Each panel will address a common question, with each panelist speaking 10 minutes or so from the perspective of his or her own research, followed by discussion. Schedule: 1-1:15 p.m. Overview & Introductions 1:15-2:45 p.m. Panel on Online Collective Action Moderated by Kirsten Foot, Assistant Professor, Communication What are some social strategies and digital tools that have been used effectively (in the organizers perspective) in organizing online collective action for social and/or political purposes, and what are some that have failed or backfired? Panelists: Karine Barzilai-Nahon, Assistant Professor, Information School Zack Exley, former Director of Special Projects for MoveOn.org Danyel Fisher, Researcher, Community Technologies Group, Microsoft Philip Howard, Assistant Professor, Communication Clifford Tatum, PhD Candidate, Communication 2:45-3:15 p.m. Refreshments 3:15-4:45 p.m. Panel on Social Movements Moderated by Deborah Kaplan, Assistant Professor, Communication How are movements (local or transnational, progressive or nationalistic) reconfiguring the public sphere in the face of globalization and global flows of capital, cultural production, information and people? Panelists: Lance Bennett, Professor, Political Science and Communication Maria Garrido, PhD Candidate, Communication Taso Lagos, Lecturer, Communication Steve Pfaff, Associate Professor, Sociology Leah Sprain, Graduate student, Communication 4:45-5:00 p.m. Wrap-up ***************************

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Chronicle article: Scribes of the Digital Era (fwd)
by david silver 27 Jan '06

27 Jan '06

interesting article from the chronicle of higher education. david ---------- Forwarded message ---------- This article, "Scribes of the Digital Era" is available online at this address: http://chronicle.com/temp/email2.php?id=sRXQTFMyZPngpmyvZm9jvGdM2fwyCMcm This article will be available to non-subscribers of The Chronicle for up to five days after it is e-mailed.

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Fwd: A new journal: DISCOURSE & COMMUNICATION
by David Brake 27 Jan '06

27 Jan '06

> A new journal: > > DISCOURSE & COMMUNICATION > > An interdisciplinary journal > > > Among its collection of journals in the fields of the studies of > communication and discourse, Sage, Ltd. (London) will publish a new > journal as from 2007 that covers the field between these two > disciplines: Discourse & Communication. > > The new journal, edited by veteran journal editor Teun A. van Dijk > (Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona), assisted by an international > board of prominent experts in discourse analysis and communication > studies, aims to publish high quality papers that pay specific > attention to the qualitative, discourse analytical approach to > issues in communication research. Besides the classical social > scientific methods in communication research, such a content > analysis and frame analysis, a more explicit study of the > structures of discourse (text, talk, images or multimedia messages) > allows unprecedented empirical insights into the many phenomena of > communication. And since contemporary discourse study is not > limited to the account of ‘texts’ or ‘conversation’ alone, but has > extended its field to the study of the cognitive, societal, > cultural, political and historical ‘contexts’ of discourse, it is > also able to be integrated in the broader study of these broader > dimensions of communication. > > Discourse & Communication will publish substantial research papers, > discussion notes as well as reviews and review articles by women > and men from many countries and cultures. Its diversity will also > be apparent in the variety of its theories, methods and approaches, > thus avoiding the frequent limitation to one school, approach or > academic sect. The only criterion will be the quality, the > originality and the analytical sophistication of its articles. > Moreover, the style of its contributions will avoid unnecessary > jargon, and thus make the journal eminently accessible to scholars > and students from many disciplines. > > Discourse & Communication specifically addresses readers in any > field of communication who are interested in qualitative, discourse > analytical approaches, on the one hand, and scholars in discourse > studies, linguistics, pragmatics, semiotics and related fields who > are interested in issues of communication, on the other hand. > > Discourse & Communication will be published as from 2007, with 4 > issues per year. > > For submissions and information about editorial policy, write to > the Editor: Teun A. van Dijk (journals at discourse-in-society dot > org). For subcriptions, consult the website of the publisher > www.sagepub.co.uk as soon as there is a webpage for the new journal > (probably as from May 2006). > > > The (provisional) Board of DISCOURSE & COMMUNICATION > > > Members of the board (under construction) of the new journal are: > David Altheide, Mats Alvesson, Karen Lee Ashcraft, Francesca > Bargiela, Janet Bavelas, Charles Bazerman, Allan Bell, Vijay K. > Bhatia, Donal Carbaugh, Patrick Charaudeau, François Cooren, Nik > Coupland, Ling Chen, George Cheney, Stanley Deetz, John Downing, > Fred Erickson, Norman Fairclough, Gail Fairhurst, William A. > Gamson, Doris Graber, David Grant, Cynthia Hardy, Janet Holmes, > Cheris Kramarae, Jay Lemke, Tamar Liebes, Per Linell, Sonia > Livingstone, Margaret McLaughlin, Ulrike Meinhof, Dennis Mumby, Sik > Hung Ng, Linda Putnam, Cynthia Stohl, Ron Scollon, John Swales, > Karen Tracy, Gaye Tuchman, Theo van Leeuwen, Ruth Wodak. Further > board members who are experts in this interdisciplinary domain are > searched especially in Africa, China, India, Japan, Eastern Europe, > Latin America, and the Middle East. Recommendations for new board > members will be welcome. --- David Brake, Doctoral Student in Media and Communications, London School of Economics & Political Science <http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/media@lse/study/ mPhilPhDMediaAndCommunications.htm> Also see http://davidbrake.org/ (home page), http://blog.org/ (personal weblog) and http://get.to/lseblog (academic groupblog) Author of Dealing With E-Mail - <http://davidbrake.org/ dealingwithemail/> callto://DavidBrake (Skype.com's Instant Messenger and net phone)

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ECAP'06 submission deadline extended
by Charles Ess 26 Jan '06

26 Jan '06

Dear AoIRists, with the usual apologies for duplications and cross-postings - please note that the submission deadline for ECAP'06 (the European Computers and Philosophy Conference) has been pushed back one week - to 3. February 2006. For more information, please see the conference website, www.eu-cap.org Please pass this information on to interested colleagues and/or appropriate mailing lists. Thanks in advance, and cheers - Charles Ess Distinguished Research Professor, Interdisciplinary Studies <http://www.drury.edu/gp21> Drury University 900 N. Benton Ave. Voice: 417-873-7230 Springfield, MO 65802 USA FAX: 417-873-7435 Home page: http://www.drury.edu/ess/ess.html Co-chair, CATaC'06: http://www.catacconference.org Co-chair, ECAP'06: http://www.eu-cap.org Professor II, Globalization and Applied Ethics Programmes Norwegian University of Science and Technology NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway http://www.anvendtetikk.ntnu.no/pres/bridgingcultures.php Exemplary persons seek harmony, not sameness. -- Analects 13.23

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The Strength of Internet Ties
by Barry Wellman 26 Jan '06

26 Jan '06

Folks, Here is the press release for our new Pew Report on the intersection of social, communication and computer networks. Jeff Boase and I deeply thank John Horrigan and Lee Rainie of the Pew Internet and American Life project for being such wonderful collaborators. Barry PS: When next we meet at conference, buy me a latte and we'll talk about the interesting life of being in the media spotlight for the short term. _____________________________________________________________________ Barry Wellman Professor of Sociology NetLab Director wellman at chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 To network is to live; to live is to network _____________________________________________________________________ "The Strength of Internet Ties" Jeffrey Boase, John Horrigan, Barry Wellman and Lee Rainie Full report at http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/172/report_display.asp The internet improves Americans' capacity to maintain their social networks and they gain a big payoff when they use the internet to activate those networks to solicit help Washington (January 25, 2005) - The internet and email expand and strengthen the social ties that people maintain in the offline world, according to a new report released today by the Pew Internet & American Life Project. One major payoff comes when people use the internet to press their social networks into action as they face major challenges. People not only socialize online, but they also incorporate the internet into their quest for information and advice as they seek help and make decisions. Disputing concerns that heavy use of the internet might diminish people's social relations, the report finds that the internet fits seamlessly with Americans' in-person and phone encounters. With the help of the internet, people are able to maintain active contact with sizable social networks, even though many of the people in those networks do not live close to them. The report, "The Strength of Internet Ties," highlights how email supplements, rather than replaces, the communication people have with others in their network. "The larger, the more far-flung, and the more diverse a person's network, the more important email is," argues Jeffrey Boase, a University of Toronto sociologist who co-authored the Pew Internet Project report. "You can't make phone calls or personal visits to all your friends very often, but you can 'cc' them regularly with a couple of keystrokes. That turns out to be very important." One major benefit comes when people want to mobilize their networks as they face problems or significant decisions. The Pew Internet Project survey finds that internet users are more likely than non-users to have been helped by those in their networks as they faced important events in their life. "Internet use provides online Americans a path to resources, such as access to people who may have the right information to help deal with family health crises or find a new job," says John Horrigan, Associate Director for Research at the Pew Internet Project and another author of the report. "When you need help these days, you don't need a bugle to call the cavalry, you need a big buddy list." These survey findings fit into a larger transformation in social relations that sociologist Barry Wellman of the University of Toronto has called the rise of "networked individualism." He says that users of modern technology are less tied to local groups and increasingly tied to looser and more geographically scattered networks. "The internet and the cell phone have transformed communication: Instead of being based on house-to-house interactions, they are built on person-to-person exchanges," maintains Wellman, also a co-author of the report. "This creates a new basis for community. Rather than relying on a single community for social support, individuals often must actively seek out a variety of appropriate people and resources for different situations." In addition to using the internet to get help from their networks, some use the internet to get information and compare options as they face decisions and milestones in their lives. One of the Pew Internet Project surveys covered in this report shows that 45% of internet users - about 60 million Americans - say the internet has played an important or crucial role in helping them deal with at least one major life decision in the previous two years. That is a 33% increase from a similar survey in early 2002. The eight major decisions queried in a March 2005 survey were: Getting additional training for your career: About 21 million said the internet had played a crucial or important role in this. Helping another person with a major illness or medical condition: About 17 million said the internet had played a crucial or important role in this. Choosing a school for yourself or a child: About 17 million said the internet had played a crucial or important role in this. Buying a car: About 16 million said the internet had played a crucial or important role in this. Making a major investment or financial decision: About 16 million said the internet had played a crucial or important role in this. Finding a new place to live: About 10 million said the internet had played a crucial or important role in this. Changing jobs: About 8 million said the internet had played a crucial or important role in this. Dealing oneself with a major illness or health condition: About 7 million said the internet had played a crucial or important role in this. This report is based on the findings of two daily tracking surveys on Americans' use of the Internet. The Project's Social Ties survey was fielded from February 17, 2004, through March 17, 2004, and it involved interviews with 2,200 adults age 18 and older. The Project's Major Moments survey was fielded from February 21, 2004, through March 21, 2004, and it involved interviews with 2,201 adults. Both surveys have a margin of error of plus or minus two percentage points. -30-

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Position announcement - Interactive Media Studies
by Lim Sun Sun 26 Jan '06

26 Jan '06

Apologies for cross-posting Interactive Media Studies Tenure-Track Positions National University of Singapore The Singapore government recently announced a $2 billion fund injection to boost the interactive/digital media industry. In addition, Singapore's growing interactive media industry is attracting considerable industry investment. Recent milestones include the establishment of the Lucasfilm Animation Studio and a game development studio by Koei Games, Japan's premiere video gaming company. In view of government and industry interest to develop Singapore as an interactive media hub, the National University of Singapore seeks to expand its research and teaching expertise in the area. The Communications and New Media (CNM) Programme in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences invites applications for five tenure-track positions at either Assistant or Associate Professor levels. We are seeking media scholars (Ph.D. /M.F.A. preferred) who conduct research, do creative work and/or have industry experience in one or more of the following areas: 1. Interactive Media content design and development-including games/interactive entertainment/serious games/e-learning, virtual/immersive environments, visual interface design, information architecture, interaction design, mobile and web-based content, e-learning 2. HCI and evaluation research-including observational research, mobile and pervasive computing, usability, presence & VR, social computing (virtual collaboration, social software and social networks), parasocial relationships 3. User experience design/strategy and innovation-including understanding the impact, desirability and context of interactive media technology from the perspectives of sociology, anthropology, psychology, ethnography, ergonomics/human factors 4. Interactive advertising/business/marketing-including electronic customer relationship management, interactive campaigns, mobile advertising 5. Media arts-storytelling, cyberculture and cyberarts, new media arts (theory and practice) The successful applicant will teach core CNM courses as well as courses in his/her area of specialization. Examples of courses offered by our programme include Aesthetics of New Media, Critical Introduction to Gaming, Visual Design and Game Design. New courses include User Experience Design, Interactive Storytelling, and Interactivity and Everyday Life. For more details please see http://www.fas.nus.edu.sg/cnm Preference will be given to candidates who show evidence of (1) completing their Ph.D. by May 2006 (ABDs may apply); (2) effective teaching; (3) research/creative productivity; and (4) experience or promise in obtaining external grant funding. Review of applications will commence immediately and chosen applicants will be able to start in August 2006 or January 2007. The search will continue until all the positions are filled. Send (1) letter of application (addressing teaching/ research/creative interests and teaching effectiveness), (2) C.V. and (3) three letters of reference to Dr. Sun Sun Lim at cnmjob(a)nus.edu.sg. Fax (65) 6779-4911. __________________________ To find out more about living and working in Singapore, see http://www.contactsingapore.org.sg/ To find out more about the National University of Singapore, see http://www.nus.edu.sg In the recent Times Higher Education Supplement World University Rankings, NUS was ranked 22nd in the world and amongst the top three universities in Asia.

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FW: [APLS-MEMBERS] Fwd: CFP: Darwinian perspectives on electronic communication
by Charles Ess 26 Jan '06

26 Jan '06

In case those who might be interested have not seen this yet ... Charles Ess > Darwinian Perspectives on Electronic Communication > > A Special Issue of the Journal: > IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication > > http://cits.tamiu.edu/ieeetpc/ > > Guest Editor: > Ned Kock, Texas A&M International University > > Guest Associate Editors: > Donald Hantula, Temple University > Stephen Hayne, Colorado State University > Gad Saad, Concordia University > Peter Todd, Indiana University at Bloomington > Richard Watson, University of Georgia > > IEEE TPC Editor: > Kim S. Campbell, University of Alabama > > Topics: > The list below includes possible topics to be explored from a Darwinian > perspective for this Special Issue: > Online consumer behavior on the Web. > Electronic mating behavior, such as in Internet dating. > Deception identification through electronic communication media. > "Foraging" behavior by online consumers. > Media naturalness and cognitive effort in complex group tasks. > Trust building through electronic communication media. > Information overload induced by Web interface design choices. > "Flashbulb memorization" and surprise-enhanced computer-mediated learning. > Compensatory adaptation and online learning. > Vertical distortion and the design of electronic communication interfaces. > Please see the website for additional information.

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