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CFP - Media Ecology Association Convention NYC June 21-23, 2002
by J. Sternberg 19 Nov '01

19 Nov '01

I'd like to invite AoIR folks to submit proposals for the 3rd Annual MEA Convention described below. Internet-related topics certainly fall within the scope of MEA interests, and there are quite a few media ecologists conducting research in this realm. Both of our previous conventions included panels with cyberspace themes, and it would be great to have an Internet panel next year as well. Janet Sternberg, Ph.D. MEA Historian New York University http://homepages.nyu.edu/~js15 --------- Call for Papers Third Annual Media Ecology Association Convention Marymount Manhattan College, New York June 21-23, 2002 * Are you interested in exploring the media environments in New York City? * Would you like to spend a coffee break debating the ideas of Marshall McLuhan, Harold Innis, Walter Ong, Jacques Ellul or Neil Postman? * Is the history of technology and the culture of those who use it as important to you as how it is currently being used? * Do you feel technology sometimes takes on a life of its own? * Are you interested in studying media literacy and media education? If you answered yes to any of these questions, or if you just want to hang around with a group of people who answered yes to every one of these questions, consider submitting a paper to the Media Ecology Association Convention. People are encouraged to submit topics in the areas suggested above and also the following: Special Topics: * Who have we missed? Media Ecology has a familiar list of scholars that are drawn upon, but what other thinkers from what other fields could contribute to the interdisciplinary nature of Media Ecology? * As China has been picked as the host of the 2008 Olympics, perhaps this should also signal to us to branch out media-ecological analysis internationally. Please submit research in the area of Media Ecology on non-Western media practices, past and present, especially Asian media. * Submit a MEM (media ecology moment). Anyone who studies media for a living notices moments in the real-world that embody the ideas of what we study. We invite you to submit the best MEM you have seen this year. Write it up, illustrate with attached picture or video if you can. * Participate in a roundtable discussion on bringing media ecology into the classroom. You must submit a syllabus and abstract. * Students are encouraged to submit multimedia and video work. * Propose "untraditional" formats for presentation. Inquires or submissions should be directed as follows: Professor Laura Tropp Communications Arts Department Marymount Manhattan College 221 E. 71st Street New York, NY 10021 Ltropp(a)mmm.edu (212) 774-4868 Conference Coordinators: David Linton, Chair, Humanities Division Marymount Manhattan College Laura Tropp, Assistant Professor Marymount Manhattan College Deadline for Submissions: Monday, February 4th, 2002 College housing may be available. http://www.media-ecology.org

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AoIR communal data-database
by Nancy Baym 18 Nov '01

18 Nov '01

Hello, I am developing an 'available research data' section of the member website. The basic goals of this are to provide members with easy access to existing data sources that they can incorporate into their own analyses, to provide members with easy access to tools that will help them conduct research, and to foster collaborative analyses by providing a mechanism for people with shared interests to network around specific materials. I need your help to identify and generate resources to include, and welcome any help in building or maintaining this communal resource. I envision the following sorts of materials [these will be either links or, with permission, archived copies on aoir's server]: (1) data sets that are already available online (e.g. HomeNet data, Pew Internet data...). If you have any suggestions of such data sets that we should include, please email me a brief description and a url for the materials. (2) data collecting tools that are available online such as the recently mentioned NetMiner. If you know of any such tools for analysing the internet, please email me a brief description and a url. (3) online archives such as webarchive.org, and the recent election and 9-11 archives built by aoir members. If you know of good archives, email me the urls and a blurb. (4) data sets contributed by our members either because you are done with them and want to share, or because you are looking for collaborators to help you analyze the materials (it seems a characteristic of a lot of net research that we end up with a lot more data than we can analyze). If you might be interested in sharing your data, please email me a description of what you have (don't send me data sets yet, I'm not that far along). Depending on how free you want your materials to be, you could choose between giving aoir a copy of the data to archive (with info about it) or you could give us a description of the data, the sort of work you're looking for others to do with it, and contact information for those who want to follow up with you (i.e. you hang on to the data files). Our intention is that access to such private resources contributed by aoir members would be limited to aoir members. (5) what would be useful to include that I am leaving out? If you have any other suggestions regarding the shape of this venture or the specifics of what it will include or how it will be done, please email them to me or, better yet, raise them for discussion on air-l. This is in planning stages, and is open to good ideas about how to make it better. This will only be worthwhile if it's something we use, and we'll only use it if it's got things worth using there, so please let me know what you're aware of or what you would be willing to contribute. There will be plenty of work to go around in building and maintaining this resource, so I welcome anyone's participation. Thank you in advance for your input, Nancy _________________________________________________________ Nancy Baym nbaym(a)ku.edu http://www.ku.edu/home/nbaym Communication Studies, University of Kansas 102 Bailey, 1440 Jayhawk Blvd., Lawrence, KS 66045, USA VP, Association of Internet Researchers: http://aoir.org

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Query on IM Research
by nbaron＠american.edu 18 Nov '01

18 Nov '01

I'm undertaking a study on the use of instant messaging and would appreciate references to existing research (either completed or on-going). My primary focus is on interpersonal (i.e., non-commercial) IM, with special interest in textual analysis of actual IM data. One of the biggest challenges is obviously gathering a corpus of users' IMs. References and suggestions are much appreciated. Naomi Baron Professor of Linguistics American University Washington, DC 20016-8045

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seeking Professor of Human Rights, Democracy and New Media
by jeremy hunsinger 18 Nov '01

18 Nov '01

Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2001 13:22:49 -0500 From: Danielle Riou <riou(a)bard.edu> Subject: seeking Professor of Human Rights, Democracy and New Media Bard College seeks to hire a distinguished scholar or practitioner for the position of Henry R. Luce Professor of Human Rights, Democracy, and New Media. The Luce Professor at Bard will teach in his or her primary fields of specialization and help develop an interdisciplinary program of research and teaching in human rights and media, bringing together students and faculty from the arts, literature, social studies, and the sciences. The Professorship is designed to encourage innovative study of the ways in which new information and communications technologies have affected, raise questions about, and are at play in struggles for and around democracy and human rights. Critical and inventive approaches, whether at the level of theory and methodology or that of discipline, period, and field, are welcomed. Research and teaching will be undertaken in the context of Bard's emerging undergraduate program in Human Rights, the New York City-based Program in Globalization and International Affairs, the International Human Rights Exchange, as well as the College's long-term commitment to innovative approaches in the social sciences and international education. The appointment is for a six-year term, with possible renewal for an additional three years. Salary, benefits, rank, and tenure considerations are flexible and commensurate with experience. Applications should include a letter outlining an approach to the concerns of the Professorship, curriculum vitae, names of three referees, and samples of relevant work. Nominations are also welcomed. Applications and nominations will be accepted until the position is filled, and should be addressed to: Luce Professor Search Attn: Prof. Thomas Keenan or Danielle Riou c/o Human Resources Bard College Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504 USA more info at: http://www.bard.edu/hrp/luce.htm jeremy hunsinger on the ibook www.cddc.vt.edu www.cddc.vt.edu/jeremy

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Re: Air-l digest, Vol 1 #215 - 4 msgs
by Ronald E. Rice 17 Nov '01

17 Nov '01

You might want to look at the current issue of American Behaviorial Scientist, 2001, 43(3), which has a variety of articles on the Internet. Ours (also available at www.scils.rutgers.edu/~rrice/syntopia.htm) shows that in overall, though not overwhelmingly, use of the Internet is positively associated with other generators of social capital, such as involvement in politics, community organizations, friendship networks, use of media, and contact with family. ============================================================ Ronald E. Rice Professor, Chair of Department of Communication School of Communication, Information & Library Studies Rutgers University 4 Huntington St., New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1071 w: 732-932-7500, ext. 8122; f: 732-932-6916 e: rrice(a)scils.rutgers.edu; http://scils.rutgers.edu/~rrice ============================================================

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information seeking, web surfing and social capital
by Anabel Quan Haase 17 Nov '01

17 Nov '01

Dear AoIR fellows: I am investigating the relationship between information seeking (offline), web surfing, and social capital. I would really appreciate it, if you could point me to any literature on how these three constructs are related. Specifically to information seeking and social capital: There have been some claims that information seeking is related to social capital (the direction of the relationship is still unclear). The argument being that "People who seek information, e.g., read the newspaper, and go to libraries, tend to have higher levels of political and organizational participation, as well as more postivie attitudes towards community." or "The intensity in which people engage in reading news, etc, leads to higher levels of engagement in the community. Specifically to web-surfing or net use and information seeking offline: "It is claimed that those who are interested in politics, and news in general will use the web as one more source thus extending their already existent offline reading habits." So far the only reference that I have found is: Karen E. Pettigrew &- Joan C. Durrance - "Fostering Social Capital Using the 'Net: Perceptions of Community Network Users, Information Providers and Organizers" Thanks so much for your help! -- Anabel ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Anabel Quan Haase Faculty of Information Studies, University of Toronto -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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CFP: Computer Games and Digital Cultures Conference
by Frans Mäyrä 17 Nov '01

17 Nov '01

Computer Games and Digital Cultures Conference Call for Papers June 6-8, 2002 Tampere, Finland --- :: --- Computer Games and Digital Cultures (CGDC) conference is organised by the Hypermedia Laboratory, University of Tampere. It is arranged in co-operation with the University of Turku and the IT University of Copenhagen, the UIAH Medialab, Helsinki, and partners in the digital content industry. The conference continues the series of international game studies conferences opened by Computer Games and Digital Textualities (Copenhagen, March 1-2, 2001). Deadline for proposals January 30, 2002 --- :: --- Overview Computer games have rapidly become a significant and expanding field of entertainment industry and modern culture. The research and development of games has reached an important phase. Various conceptual and theoretical models to understand games and their working are being created, while the games themselves are growing into new dimensions with their online and multiplayer capabilities. The transition into the world of mobile gaming is creating even more challenges and further possibilities. The Computer Games and Digital Cultures conference offers a comprehensive view into the current state of digital games, and their research, as well as forums for interdisciplinary discussion. Conference includes presentations from leading experts, both from the academic research institutions and game industry, including the opening words by Espen Aarseth (University of Bergen), keynote presentations by Greg Costikyan (Unplugged Games, USA), Steven Poole (author of the "Trigger Happy", UK) and designer of games like Ultima Underworld, System Shock, Thief and Deus Ex, Warren Spector (Ionstorm, USA). Agenda Computer games have grown into an increasingly important cultural form, that has a profound impact on the way interactivity, digital aesthetics and online environments are currently understood. The conference will explore the aesthetic as well as narrative and structural issues of computer games, while also functioning as a bridge and intermediary between the academic research and professional gaming community. The approach of conference is interdisciplinary and comprehensive; the analysis of games and the gaming communities will advance the study of interactive media, create fruitful exchange of perspectives with the professional game developers, and further the development of digital culture. Workshops The CGDC has two parts, the first day consisting of workshops that explore the pragmatic and creative issues of games as a form of culture and industry. The participants can register for this day separately, or for the whole three-day conference. The participants may submit proposals for workshops, focusing on creative design processes, dynamics of gameplay in particular game types, or, e.g., issues related to technical implementation or economics of contemporary game projects. Workshops with an academic focus are also invited. The first day will also include keynote workshops, to be announced later. In addition, participants are encouraged to offer suggestions for topics for the panel discussions. Research Papers The second and third days are dedicated to the research papers dealing with games. Both specific analyses of games as a form of art and entertainment are welcome, as well as more general approaches dealing with the cultural practices related with games and social activities in online environments. Suggested topics include, but are not limited to: - design and analysis of games, - communication and community in relation to games, - online and mobile gaming. Since the aim of the CGDC is to foster dialogue between the game developer and researcher communities, organisers wish that even the more theoretical papers would include concrete examples or references to games or game-related practices. The paper and workshop proposals should be submitted in the form of abstracts by the end of January 2002. The deadline for full papers is April 8, 2002, and papers will be included in the printed conference publication. There is a half an hour time reserved for presenting each paper in the programme. The Conference Publication The publication including the conference proceedings will be delivered to the participants at the conference. Submission Format The proposal for a research paper should consist of an abstract of at least 1000 words. A short biography of the author should be included. The proposal for a workshop has no fixed format. Rather, innovative topics and creative working practices are encouraged. The workshop proposals should include a description of the topic, goals and methods applied in the workshop. The time available for a workshop process is either three hours (a half-day workshop), or seven hours (a full day workshop). A proposal should state which alternative it is describing. All proposals should be submitted through the online form at the CGDC web site. Further Inquiries: For further information and updates on the conference programme, please consult the conference website: http://www.uta.fi/cgdc (the official website opens in December 2001). The organising committee can be reached through professor Frans Mäyrä (frans.mayra(a)uta.fi; the conference programme) or conference producer Carolina Pajula (carolina.Pajula(a)uta.fi; the conference arrangements). --- :: ---

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Challenging New Research Positions in Amsterdam
by Paul Wouters 16 Nov '01

16 Nov '01

PLEASE CIRCULATE WIDELY JOB ANNOUNCEMENT THE NETHERLANDS INSTITUTE OF SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION SERVICES Internet and ICT are radically changing the way in which academic research is carried out. This is having far-reaching consequences on information and communication processes in the sciences and humanities. The Netherlands Institute of Scientific Information Services (NIWI), located in Amsterdam, has recently begun a programme of research to chart these changes. To increase the scope of its research domains, our research group of presently three full-time researchers is seeking 2 research associates (M/F) Vacancy number PZ 167 (40 hours full-time *1) to fulfill new positions. NIWI is an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. NIWI aims at providing scientific information in the fields of biomedicine, the social sciences, history and Dutch language and literature. In addition, NIWI provides information on research and researchers throughout the Netherlands. NIWI's main office is situated in Amsterdam. Recently, NIWI has formed a new research department to respond to the transformation of scientific publishing, communication and information. The successful applicants will be part of our team that will ultimately consist of ten people. NIWI's research goals are laid down in our research programme (http://www.niwi.knaw.nl/nerdi) Our present team members are concentrating on: ethnographic research on the role of trust in data-sharing the function of digital data in research quantitative research on Web based scientific information modelling and simulating of innovation processes quality control in science and scholarship access to scientific information We hope that the two new members will be able to address one of the fllowing questions: 1 How do scientists experience ICT-mediated collaboration and how are virtual scientific communities being built? 2 What influence are the new virtual research institutes and networks of research institutes - which rely heavily on communication through the Internet - having on the production of knowledge? 3 How does the use of ICT in science affect social stratification processes (including gender and centre-periphery relationships) and how does stratification in its turn shape the use of ICT in research? We will also welcome any novel ideas by the applicants. Our hypothesis is that the sciences, social sciences and humanities are in the midst of an informational turn. This has important, yet largely uncharted implications for the researcher. Studying these implications is the main objective of our research programme. For this reason, we wish to characterise the informational turn, study its properties, in particular its implications for the use and creation of scientific information by the individual research group and scholar. Although this means that many aspects of the development and of the social impact of information and communication technologies will be involved in our research, our programme differs from existing research efforts, in that it puts the researcher in central place. Many research projects in information and library science are related to the development of specific technologies or information sources. There has been far less research on how the development of ICT affects the conduct of scientific research. Yet, it is the combination of technological and social developments at research group or individual scholar level, which is largely responsible for shaping the future of scientific information and communication patterns and needs. We have therefore chosen to concentrate our research on the changing role and needs of the researcher in scientific information and communication. As well as research aimed at creating new knowledge about the interaction between the researcher and ICT, we are also developing applied research. This is aimed at providing solutions to problems emerging from the practice of library and information services. Applicants should hold a PhD (or be awarded their PhD shortly) and be available to start work in the short term. They should moreover have acquired research experience in a relevant field. Job responsibilities The research associates will be responsible for their own research project (one of the two mentioned above). They will be responsible for the acquisition of funding for additional research projects and submit grant applications. In collaboration with university researchers, some supervision of PhD students may be required. The members of NIWI Research act in an advisory capacity with respect to applied research projects within the institute. The main output of NIWI Research consists of journal publications, books, lectures and conference presentations. NIWI Research will also organise workshops and conferences on a regular basis. Research associates will be expected to share in these activities. Education and experience 1. Demonstrable relevant research experience, attested by a PhD degree and a list of publications in peer reviewed journals. 2. An excellent knowledge of the English language, both oral and written. 3. Experience in either qualitative or quantitative methods of research, preferably both. 4. Candidates should have a particular interest in transformations of academic research and be able to work independently and in a project-orientated manner 5. Candidates with creativity and who are inclined towards/ interested in groundbreaking work are encouraged to apply. Location: Amsterdam, the Netherlands Salary: Maximum full-time gross salary of 8.390 Dutch guilders per month in accordance with salary scale 11 in the academic sector Starting date: With immediate effect For further information please contact: Dr. aul Wouters e-mail:paul.wouters@niwi.knaw.nl Please send applications accompanied by a C.V. and marked with vacancy number PZ 167 to: NIWI Personnel Department PO Box 95110 1090 HC Amsterdam the Netherlands email: henry.duindam(a)niwi.knaw.nl *1: The reduction in working hours ruling applies here NIWI is an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences

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November 2001 report
by Steve Jones 15 Nov '01

15 Nov '01

November 15, 2001 Report of the a(o).i.r. executive committee Prepared by Steve Jones AoIR Executive Committee President: Steve Jones Vice-President: Nancy Baym Secretary: Ulla Bunz Treasurer: Benjamin Bates Open Seats: David Silver and Barry Wellman Appointed Seats: Matthew Allen and Leslie Shade Student Seat: Lisbeth Klastrup Publications Officers: Jeremy Hunsinger and Charlie Breindahl 2002 Conference Coordinator: Monica Murero 2002 Conference Program Chair: Klaus Bruhn Jensen Ethics Working Group Chair: Charles Ess 1. Introduction & General (Jones) Below is the monthly report from AoIR executive committee members. 2. Executive Officers' Reports 2.1 President (Jones) 2.1.1 The transition to a newly elected executive committee has been proceeding smoothly, and the new team's ideas and energy are already helping us make progress on a number of administrative fronts. The timing seemed appropriate, so I have been preparing documentation of policies and procedures (at first primarily related to AoIR conferences) to ensure the organization's continuity and its efficiency. 2.2 Vice President (Baym) 2.2.1 I have been working on conference planning and planning on building an aoir research data database, which I will bring to air-l for input shortly. 2.3 Secretary (Bunz) 2.3.1 According to bylaws, I've created a folder that contains printouts of the bylaws, previous calls for paper, membership list, Aoir history, executive information, minutes (would love to obtain a copy of previous years' minutes; Matt?), and conference planning guidelines. A membership list will be added in the next few days when I receive the appropriate file. I'm planning to save IR 1 and 2 programs off the web for a continuous record. 2.3.2 Helped David and Matt to brainstorm our "plan of action" regarding the list of listserves. 2.3.3 Started assessment of the Aoir website with the ultimate goal of improving its usability. There are a couple of volunteers to help me, but I've been slowed down by heavy workload and NCA. 2.3.4 Went to the "Human Communication and Technology" division business meeting at the National Communication Association Convention in Atlanta last week and promoted Aoir. They requested a copy of the next call for papers. Other than that, I'm still breathing. 2.4 Treasurer (Bates) 2.4.1 Jeremy, and I have been working at getting the treasurer's job transferred. Since the convention, we've processed about a dozen new memberships and about a half dozen renewals. I've just sent out renewal reminders to slightly over 200 expiring members. All but a few "joined" at the first conference, and that includes a large percentage of UKansas people who may not be that interested in staying with AIR. I'm starting to be deluged with address error messages, but we'll see how effective this effort was over the next few weeks. I did include on the reminders sent to European members a mention about the next conference being in Maastricht. 2.5 Open Seats (Silver, Wellman) 2.5.1 Silver: I have been working with the AIR 3.0 conference committee, brainstorming the CFP and banging out a number of conference themes and subtopics. I am also working with Matt Allen and Ulla Bunz on developing an archive of mailing lists and listservs devoted to discussions on Internet / cyberculture research. 2.5.2 Wellman: Began work as liasion with Toronto based AoIR 2003 conference organizers. Proposed changes to AoIR election procedures. 2.6 Appointed Seats (Allen, Shade) 2.6.1 Allen: Returning from the fantastic conference and with the honour and enthusiasm of a newly appointed Exec Committee member, I found Australia to be full of end-of-year chores - marking and re-enrolling, marketing and meetings! I am currently working on a draft discussion paper for the exec on the way in which AoIR might organise its website activities (finding a way to divide those activities between core AoIR business, hosted on the AoIR server, and related activities to which AoIR links). I am also working with David Silver on collecting information for a 'list of lists' to assist members to select and subscribe to the many relevant Internet Studies email lists across the world. In December I will attend the fibreculture conference in Melbourne Australia and heavily promote membership of AoIR as a way for Australian scholars of Internet and related new media/technology to become part of the global community of scholarship. Plus, I am enjoying the delicious subshine of the Aussie summer (which will be, by March, far too much of a good thing, just in case you are feeling jealous in the north!) 2.6.2 Shade: Participants in AOIR 2.0 have been asked to send their papers so they can be posted online. 2.7 Student Seat (Klastrup) 2.7.1 Participated in conference in Tampere, Finland: "Interactive Man and His Future" (http://www.mindtrek.org/conference/) which proved that currently a lot of interesting research is going on in Finland on mobile culture and mobile devices use. Currently communicating with other AoIR graduate student on setting up a list of citation databases. 2.8 Publications Officers (Hunsinger, Breindahl) 2.8.1 Hunsinger: it has been busy helped on air-meet worked on aoir.org/members made changes to navbar added submitted content feel free to submit content to the system added submitted links feel free to submit links to the system approved calendar submissions Nalini Kotamraju submitted some conference dates for the aoir calendar you can add things to the calendar easily, but if you could also submit them to calendar(a)aoir.org, which Nalini volunteered to help out with. made changes to sections area(oceania) worked on conference webpage policy began work on aoir 2.0 paper archive working on revising conference review system to match new conference organizational structure irritated charlie by approving things in the listserve system before he could going to give charlie administration duties on air-meet in about 5 minutes(done). 2.8.2 Breindahl: Well, I have updated aoir.org a little bit as usual and been engaged in the ongoing discussion about how to bootstrap the members area into a collaborative effort. Not to mention that I inadvertently jumpstarted the discussion on air-meet about possible keynote speakers in Maastricht :o/ 2.9 2002 Conference (Monica Murero, Coordinator; Klaus Bruhn Jensen, Program Chair) 2.9.1 Murero: The organization of next year's conference is progressing very well. Local arrangements are proceeding as planned. The conference planning committee was very active in helping shape the conference (call for paper, invited speakers and so on). The call for papers will be issued soon. 2.9.2 Jensen: In addition to reviewing the planning process, I have collaborated with Monica Murero in developing the call for papers, as well as participating in the collective efforts of the air-meet list. With the active assistance of many AIRers, planning is progressing on schedule. 2.10 AoIR Ethics Working Group (Charles Ess, Chair) 2.10.1 The ethics committee is currently discussing competing sets of guidelines for Internet research.

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FW: Technology Conference, Tuscon .... (note: submit deadline extended)
by Ellis Godard 15 Nov '01

15 Nov '01

-----Original Message----- From: Andrea Hoplight Tapia [mailto:andreat@u.arizona.edu] Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2001 12:21 PM Hello Techno-friends and colleagues, The submission deadline for this conference has been extended to January 15th, 2002. Please consider submitting you work if you have not done so already. The conference is as follows: "The Technology Economy on the Sonoran Border: Theory, Practice and Promise." It will focus on information technology and social change, especially between diverse populations, nations, and institutions. It is a one day (plus) conference to be held Friday, May 3rd, 2002 at the Sheraton El Conquistador in Tucson, AZ. There will also be a reception on Thursday evening, May 2nd. We are looking for papers/presentations in four areas: 1. The digital divide-- with special focus Latin American and Hispanic-American populations. 2. Technology at the border- International borderlands and IT 3. E-commerce- the changing nature of technical/information work 4. Law, privacy and policy in institutions- Higher Education and Government Please send submissions electronically to my address, andreat(a)u.arizona.edu. Detailed abstracts will be accepted. Very limited funding is available to help defer travel costs on a competitive basis. PLEASE circulate this e-flyer among all interested friends, colleagues, departments and lists.

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