The credibility of online news: an evaluation of the information by university students / La credibilidad de las noticias en Internet: una evaluación de la información por estudiantes universitarios

Abstract

The spread of online disinformation is one of the 10 global risks of the future according to the World Economic Forum, and 51% of experts believe that this situation will not improve in the coming years. By 2022, half of the news will be fake news. In terms of users, young people and adults have problems understanding where the information they find online comes from and what sources to trust or not. In order to ascertain the degree of credibility that young users in Andalucía give to information, this study presents the results of the evaluation of online news by university students pursuing degrees in communication and education (N = 188), using the CRAAP test. The data reveal differences in gender and degree programme in the credibility assigned to the news. The conclusion is that university students have difficulty differentiating the veracity of the sources, in line with previous studies, with fake news earning higher ratings than real news.     

The development of children at familial risk for dyslexia: Birth to early school age

Children at risk for familial dyslexia (n = 107) and their controls (n = 93) have been followed from birth to school entry in the Jyvaskyla Longitudinal study of Dyslexia (JLD) on developmental factors linked to reading and dyslexia. At the point of school entry, the majority of the at-risk children displayed decoding ability that fell at least 1 SD below the mean of the control group. Measures of speech processing were the earliest indices to show both group differences in infancy and also significant predictive associations with reading acquisition. A number of measures of language, including phonological and morphological skill collected repeatedly from age three, revealed group differences and predictive correlations. Both the group differences and the predictive associations to later language and reading ability strengthened as a function of increasing age. The predictions, however, tend to be stronger and the spectrum of significant correlations wider in the at-risk group. These results are crucial to early identification and intervention of dyslexia in at-risk children.     

Core Competencies to the Rescue: Taking Stock and Protecting Institutional Knowledge

What happens when the only staff member who knows how to do a particular task is no longer available? Using NASIG’s Core Competencies for Electronic Resources Librarians, the Electronic Resources and Serials Department of Auburn University set out to tackle the problem of the indispensable staff person, and discovered that expertise is never fully achieved, and competence is always a work in progress.     

Analysis and design for continuous-time string-connected Takagi–Sugeno systems

Distributed systems consist of interconnected, lower-dimensional subsystems. For such systems, distributed analysis and design present several advantages, such as modularity, easier analysis and design, and reduced computational complexity. A special case of distributed systems is when the subsystems are connected in a string. Applications include distributed process control, traffic and communication networks, irrigation systems, hydropower valleys, etc. By exploiting such a structure, in this paper, we propose conditions for the distributed stability analysis of Takagi–Sugeno fuzzy systems connected in a string. These conditions are also extended to observer and controller design and illustrated on numerical examples.     

Conveying quality and value in emerging industries: Star scientists and the role of signals in biotechnology

This paper addresses the role that scientific status plays in initial public offerings of technology focused firms. The paper builds on the literature of the sociology of science as well as the work of Spence (1974) and Podolny (1993) and argues that the presence of a Nobel laureate affiliated with a firm making an IPO provides a signal of firm quality to potential investors. Moreover, and building on the work of Podolny and Scott Morton (1999) and Stuart et al. (1999) we hypothesize that the importance of status diminishes as other measures of firm quality become available. We test our hypothesis for two periods of initial public offerings in biotechnology. We document that there is a clear difference in “maturity” of the firms across the two windows on a number of metrics. Consistent with our hypothesis that Nobel laureates play an important role as a non-financial signal of firm quality, we find that first-window firms with a Nobel laureate affiliate realize greater IPO proceeds in the amount of $24 million. In the second window the amount of money raised is not significantly different between Nobel and non-Nobel firms. This finding is consistent with the signaling literature that argues that the importance of a signal is inversely related to the availability of cogent information on firm quality. Consistent with this view, we also find a change between the two windows in the importance of other non-financial metrics used to convey value. Our research is one of the first to examine the dynamic nature of signals. Because we are unable to distinguish the extent to which the reduction in uncertainty at the firm level is correlated with the reduction of uncertainty at the industry level, the question remains as to the extent to which the diminished importance of signals in our second period is due to a change in market uncertainty versus a change in firm uncertainty.     

A validated search assessment tool: assessing practice-based learning and improvement in a residency program

Objective:

The objective of this study was to validate an assessment instrument for MEDLINE search strategies at an academic medical center.

Method:

Two approaches were used to investigate if the search assessment tool could capture performance differences in search strategy construction. First, data from an evaluation of MEDLINE searches from a pediatric resident''s longitudinal assessment were investigated. Second, a cross-section of search strategies from residents in one incoming class was compared with strategies of residents graduating a year later. MEDLINE search strategies formulated by faculty who had been identified as having search expertise were used as a gold standard comparison. Participants were presented with a clinical scenario and asked to identify the search question and conduct a MEDLINE search. Two librarians rated the blinded search strategies.

Results:

Search strategy scores were significantly higher for residents who received training than the comparison group with no training. There was no significant difference in search strategy scores between senior residents who received training and faculty experts.

Conclusion:

The results provide evidence for the validity of the instrument to evaluate MEDLINE search strategies. This assessment tool can measure improvements in information-seeking skills and provide data to fulfill Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education competencies.

Highlights

• The University of Michigan MEDLINE Search Assessment tool can be used to assess search skills in residency education.
• Five elements were identified as critical elements in the development of an effective MEDLINE search strategy: inclusion of all search concepts, appropriate use of Medical Subject Headings, appropriate use of search limits, successful combination of all concepts, and search efficiency.

Implications

• This validated assessment tool can serve as an effective means to measure improvements in residents'' information-seeking skills and provide data to fulfill Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education competencies.

     

Implementing web 2.0 tools in the classroom: Four teachers’ accounts

In this paper, four teachers shared their experiences using the following free Web 2.0 tools with their students: Jing, Wix, Google Sites, and Blogger. The teachers found that students reacted positively to lessons in which these tools were used, and also noted improvements they could make when using them in the future.     

Libraries,Mobile Devices,and the Visible College

Bryan Alexander described the digital environment that we live in, giving an extensive overview of the current state of interactive devices, particularly mobile devices, which are moving us beyond the personal computer. He covered recent major developments that have transformed the world in surprising ways in a rather short period of time. The world of apps is further expanding what these devices can do, also bringing with them more challenges to individual privacy. Gaming and augmented reality are becoming deeply embedded in much of what we do. Alexander laid out four possible futures that these contemporary developments could lead to.