International Symposium on Knowledge Communities 2012
Ronald L. Larsen, Dean
School of Information Sciences
University of Pittsburgh
December 14, 2012

Traditional values and principles of librarianship The tide of big data Implications of digitization on scholarship The global response by iSchools
 Emerging opportunities in a changing profession
 Reinterpreting traditional values in non-traditional times
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Stewardship of human record
 Service to individuals, communities, and societies
 Intellectual Freedom and free expression of thought Privacy of inquiry Rationalism in organization and classification
 Commitment to literacy and learning Equity of access to resources and services
 Democracy through a well-informed electorate* Michael Gorman (2000). Our Enduring Values: Librarianship in the 21st Century3

Libraries serve humanityRespect all forms by which knowledge is communicated“… rather than adopted for its own sake”

Protect free access to knowledge“using whatever is more effective, cost effective, or advantageous”

Use technology intelligently to enhance service“furtherance of the higher aspirations of mankind”“society without uncensored libraries is a society open to tyranny”

Honor the past and create the future
“Balance nostalgia for a pre-digital past with the need to embrace newtechnologies”*Crawford, W. and Gorman, M. (1995). Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness and Reality
4Come gather 'round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone.
If your time to you
Is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin'.
Bob Dylan - The Times They Are A Changin' (1976)

5World capacity to store information(gigabytes)

2000
1993

2007

So whither libraries and librarians??
Computing power …

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Qualitatively different opportunities
for new forms of research Interdisciplinary investigations
engage scientists, technologists, andhumanities scholars.
 Transformative opportunities andchallenges to libraries and theinformation professionsLet’s look at some examples…
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Visualization of dark matter clusters using Los Alamos RoadRunner Petaflop Computer8Three Dimensional Data Renderings

Rendering from Laser Scan

Marc Levoy/Stanford University
http://graphics.stanford.edu/

Pot Assembly from Sherds

David Cooper/Brown University
http://www.lems.brown.edu/shape/

9Digital Flattening of Non-Planar Manuscripts

Brent Seales/University of Kentucky

www.vis.uky.edu

1013th Century Buddhist Canon in Immersive Environment

Lewis Lancaster, Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative

www.ecai.org

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Data-driven discovery as a new research paradigm

A necessity for interoperability at scaleTransformation of scholarly communications



New organizational forms to exploit information



Evolving social mores among individuals

But what does this haveto do with iSchools??
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Stewarding contemporary scholarship Digital content
 Web services
 WorkflowsCurating primary research data Often discarded Rarely accessible
 Frequently incompatible

Approaching a tipping point
 Digital content the norm in most disciplines Infrastructure and professional services lagging
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What we said a decade ago:“… educate high quality information professionals and build the knowledge,resources and tools to create, organize, find, transmit, preserve, integrate, anduse information.” “… advance the profession and practice of librarianship and information
science, to prepare students for careers in the field of information and libraryscience, and to make significant contributions to the study of information.”

What we say now:“… educating students, furthering knowledge, and contributing expertise toadvance humankind's progress through information.” “… educate innovative and responsible thinkers who will lead the information
professions; discover principles and impacts of information; create systems,techniques, and policies to advance information processes and services; andpromote information creation, access, use, management, and stewardship toimprove the quality of life…”
The mission has changed little…
The environment has changed a lot!

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

Refine the LIS curriculum
Reach beyond the conventional library Champion digital stewardship Engage with disciplinary researchers

Recruit students to prospective careers
STEM students, business students, …
 Diversity students

Explore emerging roles

Library as data repository & publisher
 Embedded librarian/informationist with disciplinary expertise Proactive mediation throughout lifecycle of scholarly workflowsPartner to define and shape new career paths
Data librarian / data scientist (e.g., as Co-PI on major research projects)
 Dual degree programs (e.g., X-Informatics)
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A SAMPLER …

Web analytics manager
Information resources specialist
Documentation specialist
Digital reference librarian
CuratorArchivist, Archival consultant
Director of emerging technologies andcommunity services
Discovery metadata librarian
Associate archivist for digital initiatives
and records management

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






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Manager, information services
Metadata analyst
Data officer
Digital services manager
Records management manager
Data management analyst
Information management officer
Intelligence associate
Wine librarian
Clinical informatics librarian
Freelance researcher* “61 Non-Librarian Jobs for LIS Grads”, Mia Breitkopf, Syracuse iSchool (December 2011 blog posting)
http://infospace.ischool.syr.edu/2011/12/23/61-non-librarian-jobs-for-librarians/

16•Data Creator - Researchers with domain expertise•

Data Manager - Computer scientists or information technologists
responsible for computing facilities, storage, continuing access, andpreservation of data•

Data Scientist – Information professionals working with data creators,
engaging in creative inquiry and analysis•

Data Librarian – Information professionals specializing in digitalstewardship, including the curation, preservation and archiving of data

* JISC17

highest

Computational objects & digital
rendering of the human record

Value-added experimental data(human involvement)

Priority
Irreplaceable sensor data
(automated collection and preparation)

lowestRe-generable (e.g., simulation) data18

1990’s – Digital library research targeted largely at
enabling technology
 2000’s – Development of institutional repositories& disciplinary digital collections
 2010’s - Development of interoperable strategies
to collect & curate primary data Data Management Plans
 Linked open data
 Metadata19• Seeking the high ground• Sustaining linkage to institutional mission• Creating new value-added services• Supporting disciplinary research teams• Assuring stewardship of the scholarly record20Curation

AccessCapture21

Ronald L. Larsen
Dean and Professor
School of Information Sciences
University of Pittsburghrlarsen@pitt.edu

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