A Framework for User Agency during Development of Interactive Risk Visualization Tools

ABSTRACT

Participating in user-centered design provides potential users of interactive risk visualization tools agency in influencing tool development. This article identifies and characterizes pathways for agency that users may experience as they participate in design of interactive tools for visualizing environmental risks. We present an empirically based conceptual framework for better understanding user agency during visualization tool development based on findings from interviews with professional visualization tool developers and discuss practical implications and future research recommendations.     

The challenge of multiple perspectives: multiple solution tasks for students incorporating diverse tools and representation systems

This study focuses on the role of multiple solution tasks (MST) incorporating multiple learning tools and representation systems (MTRS) in encouraging each student to develop multiple perspectives on the learning concepts under study and creativity of thought. Specifically, two types of MST were used, namely tasks that allowed and demanded multiple solutions and tasks that allowed but did not demand multiple solutions from each student. Each of these tasks was tested in the field using 14-year-old students, through a comparative experiment on the learning of the mathematical notion of area within the C.AR.ME computer microworld that provides MTRS for the learning of area. Data analysis reveals that all students who were asked to encounter tasks allowing and demanding multiple solutions within C.AR.ME were motivated to invent a plethora of solution strategies to these tasks, by integrating both their intuitive and school-based knowledge with the knowledge embodied within C.AR.ME, and to construct diverse perspectives on the concepts in question which are non-common to paper-and-pencil and school practices. On the other hand, students expressed limited views on these concepts when faced with tasks that allowed but did not demand multiple solutions.     

积极心理学在中职德育教学中的运用初探

把积极心理学的认知理论与行为理论运用于中职德育教学中,可以使教师确立对职业和对学生的积极认知,在积极认知的支配下很容易产生积极的教学行为,在设计教学内容时会主动与学生专业相结合并且与学生的认知能力相匹配,在探讨教学方式时会主动寻找适合中职学生参与的互动方式,在教学工具方面会有意识地选择积极语言及富有时代性的多媒体等教学工具;也会积极筹划课程管理方式引导学生完美自己的人格,最终对教师和学生的身心都能产生积极的成果。     

Learning to Love Your Discovery Tool: Strategies for Integrating a Discovery Tool in Face-To-Face,Synchronous, and Asynchronous Instruction

Some librarians embrace discovery tools while others refuse to use them. This lack of consensus can have consequences for student learning when there is inconsistent use, especially in large-scale instruction programs. The authors surveyed academic librarians whose institutions have a discovery tool and who teach information literacy classes in order to identify barriers to using them and to develop strategies to effectively integrate them into instruction. The authors used the survey results and recent studies on the research habits of undergraduates to propose strategies for integrating the discovery tool at the programmatic level in a more meaningful and sustainable way.     

From Horse-Drawn Wagon to Hot Rod: The University of California's Digital Image Service Experience

SUMMARY

This article proposes that a viable approach archivists might consider to meet increasing demands for access to digital images with functional presentation tools is to develop a reciprocal partnership with a digital library. The University of California's experience with the federation of licensed and UC-owned digital image collections is summarized to illuminate core issues related to collection development, system functionality, and patron usability. The resulting UC Image Service is then examined against a backdrop of comparable digital imaging projects with reflections on strategies and intersections. The range of business models and approaches to digital image collection access and developing image management and presentation tools highlight the unprecedented opportunities digital technology provides for moving archives towards an integrated environment through collaborative action.     

Online Updates

No abstract available for this article.     

Pollution monitoring at heritage sites in developing and emerging economies

Abstract

Air quality is an important factor in the preservation of cultural heritage. Systematic air quality assessment is a requirement in most heritage conservation plans. However, apart from temperature and relative humidity, air pollution, which is another air quality parameter, is less often monitored. This is the case especially, but not only, in developing and emerging economies where the lack of air pollution data is worrying. In this paper, issues with air pollution monitoring at heritage sites in developing and emerging economies, from management to technical, are reviewed. Questionnaire responses from over 20 sites in Africa, Asia, and Latin America reveal that about eight out of ten sites have not yet considered pollution data. The responses also show that cost is not the only obstacle but that lack of awareness and insufficient technical expertise are also significant issues. Different possible solutions are reviewed and their appropriateness discussed. They range from systematic monitoring to model-based estimations. Diffusion tube measurements of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone from 11 sites are reported and discussed.     

How Do Youngsters Use Public Libraries to Find Non-Fiction Books? The Results of a Recent Research Project

ABSTRACT

Even in the face of widespread domestic use of electronic materials, books within public libraries remain an important source of information for many youngsters. This paper draws on the results of a qualitative English study broadly concerned with young people's information behavior to explore how youngsters locate non-fiction books within such libraries. One of several approaches was taken. Familiar with the placement of materials on the subject of the need, some went directly to the appropriate part of the collection. Others did not know the position of the desired section and combed the shelves randomly, consulted labels on the shelves/walls, sought help from staff or exploited the subject index. Most users wanted information on a certain topic, not a particular item. There were high levels of ignorance of both library terminology and the arrangement of books within the building. The article concludes by making recommendations for both practice and future research, based on the investigation's findings.     

A Squatter on the Fourth Estate: Google News

SUMMARY

Buoyed by its brand name, Google News has grown from its beta stage into a popular news site with a significant share of the Internet market for “Current Events and Global News.” The success of Google News raises questions about the nature of news and even the desirability of Google's presenting news. Where does Google News fit into the myriad news resources available on the Internet and in libraries? How does Google News work? Is Google News an effective source for news research? How will Google News stand up to its competition, in particular a new wave of community news sites?     

Promise Fulfilled? An EBSCO Discovery Service Usability Study

Discovery tools are the next phase of library search systems. Illinois State University's Milner Library implemented EBSCO Discovery Service in August 2010. The authors conducted usability studies on the system in the fall of 2010. The aims of the study were twofold: first, to determine how Milner users set about using the system in order to better inform customization choices, which in turn would create better search experiences, and second, to find out whether discovery tools fix the problems of federated search. With federated search technology, users often felt frustrated by the search experience. Some reasons for the frustration included a desire for better ways to determine the relevancy of search results and for more information about the material included in the records. The authors determined that while many federated search problems were solved, some issues persisted. Overall, the move to EBSCO Discovery Service at Milner Library has been a positive experience for its users.