Learning Resource Services assessment

via Tom Roper's Weblog by Tom Roper on 22 September

I expected more fanfares, but here it is, the Self-Assessment Toolkit for Learning Resource Services in Further Education Colleges in England.

Hazel's comment:
Not only was there no fanfare but, unless I missed something which I don't think I did, no-one else picked this up and yet it is, as Tom says, a very important document. Too often the learning resource service (LRS) within an FE college is a one-man-band with line management unknowledgable about the modus operandi.

Thanks Tom.

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Cyberabstracts: a portal on the subject of abstracting designed to improve information literacy skills

an article by Maria Pinto (Universidad de Granada, Spain) in Journal of Information Science Volume 34 Number 5 (2008)

Abstract
With the overall purpose of improving the information literacy skills of librarianship and information science students, an academic portal specifically centred on abstracts and abstracting resources is proposed. The author takes the existing literature, together with knowledge and experience of abstract/abstracting topics and web-based technologies to conceive the research design. The research mainly consists of the selection, assessment and web-display of the most relevant abstracts on knowledge management, information representation, natural language processing, abstract/abstracting, modelling the scientific document, information retrieval and information evaluation. The resulting Cyberabstracts portal presents its products consistently and includes reference, abstract, keywords, assessment and access to the full document. Improvement opportunities for this unique subject-based gateway, representing much more than a mere subject catalogue, are uncovered as the starting point on a planned route towards excellence.

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9 From the sublime to the "gorblimey" via the disturbing

Corrupted Science: the history, cause, effect and state of bad science
via Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow on 22 September
John Grant's handsome little hardcover book Corrupted Science: Fraud, Ideology, and Politics in Science, is an eye-popping tour through the history of bad (very, very bad) science, from eugenics to geocentrism to Lysenkoism.


Done with your wedding dress? Why not donate it to The Liberian Wedding Dress Project
via Hippyshopper by AbiSilvester on 23 September
In Liberia, where women typically work for a dollar a day, it can take up to a year to save for a white wedding dress. So when Reverend Louise Collins married Liberian Ambassador Alpha Bird Collins, they set up a charity to help the women of the West African nation.
[via Bridalwave]

Wordia
via infodoodads by Sam on 21 September
Hearkening back to the Periodic Table of Videos post, and thinking about the ever expanding world of video on the Internet, I was overjoyed to come across Wordia today in my travels. Wordia is a video dictionary!

Psychologists vote against role in interrogation
via Blogzilla by Ian Brown on 20 September
The complicity of the American Psychological Association in torture at Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere has been deeply disturbing. Particularly repellent has been the CIA's perversion of Martin Seligman's work on learned helplessness. Finally, the APA has rejected this disgusting conduct, with a (small) majority of members voting in favour a petition to bring this to an end.

All About Cupcakes
via Librarians' Internet Index: New This Week on 25 September
This presentation about cupcakes covers the history of cupcakes, cupcakes today (including cupcake culture and the cupcake "internet craze"), and cupcake designs and recipes. Includes links to related sources. Part of a project for the Interactive Media Lab at the University of Florida.

Friday fun
via Science, Engineering & Technology Blog by Anne on 19 September
A collection of chemcial games and puzzles from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Hull includes chemistry-themed Sudoku, Space Invaders, crossword puzzles, and many more.

Arts & Letters Daily 25 September
A scorched-earth policy toward museums and monuments of historic and artistic value is the Russian way in the attack on Georgia... more

The 10 Most Absurd Social Networks
via Phil Bradley's weblog by philipbradley on 30 September
Social networking for geeks, amazingly attractive people, karaoke, heaven and... dogs. Keep this link on one side for Friday afternoon and boggle.
I'm sure that my dog would love to be part of a social network but given that I'd have to do the typing for him, and translate his sounds into something like human language, I think not. Too much like work!

Contractors paint sock tied to railing instead of removing it
via Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow on 18 September
You have to see it to believe it!

Arts & Letters Daily 2 October
Yes, men are hopeless on dates, and tend to say the most idiotic things. On the other hand, women can be stupid too. Why not try a little humor?... more

Can your favorite color determine your perfect job?

via bizSugar / Hot Topics by suzyQ on 19 September

Do you ever wish finding the perfect job could be as easy as one, two, three? According to new research, it might be as easy as red, yellow or blue.

Hazel's comment:

“Impossible” do I hear you say? Think again!

Read the full article and then link through to take the test for yourself. You will need to provide a name and a valid email address and a bit of information about yourself (which could be completely false!)

It's free to get some ideas but the full report (if you want it) will set you back $19.95

I went for the freebie (of course) and was told that firstly I'm a CREATOR

• Nonconforming, Impulsive, Expressive, Romantic, Intuitive, Sensitive, and Emotional

and secondly that I'm a PERSUADER

• Witty, Competitive, Sociable, Talkative, Ambitious, Argumentative, and Aggressive

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Laws in force from 1st October 2008

via OUT-LAW News on 1 October

A staggering 59 laws came into force across the UK today, changing company laws, employment laws and more. We have summarised the ones that we think are most likely to affect OUT-LAW readers.

Read in full

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Edmodo – a Twitter for education

via Phil Bradley's weblog by philipbradley on 19 September


One of the things that I often hear is that people really can't figure out a use for Twitter, and it leaves them completely cold. I can understand this, because until you really get into Twitter it IS a very odd thing, with apparently little value. However, if you choose your friends wisely it's an excellent way of keeping up to date with what's happening in the world, as well as strengthening bonds, promoting weblogs and so on.


However, the varied uses of Twitter isn't what concerns me in this post – it's a resource called Edmodo, which has been described as Twitter for education. You can use it if you're a teacher or a student – the registration asks you which you are, though it doesn't check at all. Once you're logged in you can use it very much like any other microblogging system. However, it does more than you might expect – it provides teachers and students the ability to share notes, links, and files to foster communication inside and outside of the classroom. Teachers also have the ability to post alerts, assignments, and events to share with their students. You can also embed video presentations for example quickly and easily. I've included a basic screenshot below which isn't very exciting because I don't have any students, but it should give you an idea of what it looks like.
To be honest, if I was a teacher in a school I'd be leaping headfirst into this because it does look really useful.

And if I was a guidance practitioner or school careers adviser I would be looking to see whether I could use this to maintain contact with my clients.

Grateful thanks to Phil for highlighting this.

PS. And I'm still running 13 days behind my drafts! I can see what Sunday will be spent doing, can't I?

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Collaborative pricing model for bundling information goods

an article by Wei-Lun Chang (Department of BA, Tamkang University, Taiwan) and Soe-Tsyr Yuan (Department of MIS, National ChengChi University, Taiwan) in Journal of Information Science Volume 34 Number 5 (October 2008)

Abstract
The information economy engenders consideration of certain issues such as information goods cost/pricing, technology infrastructure, and information policy in the era of knowledge economy. Due to the unique cost structure and product characteristics of information goods, conventional pricing strategies are unfeasible, and a differential pricing strategy is crucial. Nevertheless, few models exist for pricing information goods in the e-service industry. This study proposes a novel collaborative pricing model in which customers are active participants in determining product prices and adopt prices and services that meet their changing needs. This study also shows that the collaborative pricing model generates an optimal bundle price at equilibrium with optimal profit and utility. Theoretical proofs and practical implications justify this pricing model, which is essential for future information goods pricing in the information economy.

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