bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Lymphoscintigraphic localization of sentinel node in early colorectal cancer: Results of a monocentric study
Authors: Sandrucci Sergio , Mussa Baudolino , Goss Matteo , Mistrangelo Massimiliano , Satolli Maria Antonietta , Sapino Anna , Bellò Marilena , Bisi Gianni , Mussa Antonio
Published: October 2007

Background and Objectives

Evaluation of the feasibility of the sentinel node technique in early colorectal neoplasms and its overall accuracy in predicting nodal metastases.

Methods

Thirty‐five patients with colon or rectal lesions or degenerate polyps not radically excised by endoscopy were included. Lymphatic mapping was performed with 99mTc labeled albumin colloid injected submucosally by an endoscopic route the afternoon before the surgical procedure. The day of the intervention, 2.5% patent blue V dye (S.A.L.F: Italy) was injected circumferentially around the tumor. A hand held gamma detecting probe (Scintiprobe m100, Pol‐Hi‐Tech, Italy) was employed to detect “hot” nodes, in vivo and ex vivo. All sentinel nodes were embedded separately for haematoxylin and eosin staining. No IHC or PCR techniques were employed.

Results

Sentinel lymph nodes (SLN) were successfully identified in 35 out of 35 patients. Concordance between SLN and nodal status was observed in 32 out of 35 cases (91.4%); four patients (11.4%) were upstaged. Three skip nodal metastases were observed (false‐negative rate: 8.5%).

Conclusions

The sentinel node technique with blue dye and radiotracer seems valuable in early colorectal cancers detected by screening programs: a good organization and a learning curve are needed, as further multicentric studies. J. Surg. Oncol. 2007;96:464–469. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Development of a new C14 monolithic silica column containing embedded polar groups for pressurized capillary electrochromatography
Authors: Ye Fanggui , Li Shuting , Zhao Shulin
Published: October 2007

Monolithic columns have been prepared with a novel bonded silica stationary phase, tetradecylamine bonded silica (TDAS), and used in pressurized capillary electrochromatography (pCEC). The monolithic silica column matrix was prepared by a sol‐gel process and then chemically modified with the spacer (3‐glycidoxypropyl)trimethoxysilane and tetradecylamine. The introduced embedded polar amine groups dominated the charge on the surface of the monolithic stationary phase and generated an EOF from cathode to anode under acidic conditions. The tetradecyl hydrophobic chains in TDAS provide chromatographic interactions. The chromatographic characteristics of the prepared monolithic column were studied. Some aromatic compounds including alkylbenzenes, aromatic hydrocarbons, phenols, and anilines were successfully separated on the TDAS monolithic column in pCEC mode. As expected, the TDAS monolithic stationary phases exhibit typical reversed‐phase electrochromatographic behavior toward neutral solutes due to the introduced tetradecyl groups. Hydrophobic as well as electrophoretic migration processes within the monoliths were observed in the separation of basic anilines. Symmetrical peaks can be obtained for anilines because the embedded polar amine groups on the surface can effectively shield the adsorption of positively charged analytes onto the stationary phase.
Extraction of clenbuterol from urine using hydroxylated poly(glycidyl methacrylate‐co‐ethylene dimethacrylate) monolith microextraction followed by high‐performance liquid chromatography determination
Authors: Wen Yi , Wang Ying , Feng Yu‐Qi
Published: October 2007

A hydroxylated poly(glycidyl methacrylate‐co‐ethylene dimethacrylate) (GMA‐co‐EDMA) monolithic capillary was prepared for polymer monolith microextraction (PMME). Coupled to HPLC with UV detection, this extraction medium was successfully applied to establish a simple and fast method for the analysis of clenbuterol (CLB) in urine. To obtain optimum extraction performance, the effects of pH value and ionic strength of the sample matrix on extraction efficiency were investigated. The linearity of the method was evaluated over a concentration range of 10–2000 ng/mL and the correlation coefficient (R2 value) was 0.9985. The detection limit and quantification limit were 2.3 and 7.7 ng/mL, respectively. Good reproducibility of the method was obtained, yielding the intra‐ and interday RSDs less than 5.1 and 9.1%, respectively. Moreover, the hydroxylated poly(GMA‐co‐EDMA) monolithic capillary exhibited good preparation reproducibility and long‐term extraction life. When applied to the determination of CLB in urine samples, an effective removal of interfering compounds was achieved and recoveries were in the range of 87.6–106%. The determination of CLB from one real sample including pretreatment, extraction, and analysis could be finished within 30 min.
Chymotrypsin immobilization on epoxy monolithic silica columns: Development and characterization of a bioreactor for protein digestion
Authors: Temporini Caterina , Calleri Enrica , Campèse Daniel , Cabrera Karin , Félix Guy , Massolini Gabriella
Published: October 2007

The preparation and optimization of a new monolithic chymotrypsin bioreactor for online protein digestion is described. Silica monolithic supports have been activated with epoxide functionalities following an optimized in situ procedure and used for covalent immobilization of chymotrypsin in one‐step reaction under different conditions. A total of four bioreactors were prepared and characterized in terms of the amount of immobilized enzyme and apparent active units by using a standard substrate, N‐benzoyl‐L‐tyrosine p‐nitroanilide (BTPNA). The stability of the bioreactors was evaluated and the morphology of the support after immobilization and use was studied by SEM analysis. The proteolytic activity of the optimized chymotrypsin bioreactor was evaluated using HSA as a model protein by online coupling of the bioreactor with LC‐ESI‐MS. With the online protocol, complete protein digestion in 120 min was achieved with a sequence coverage of 97.3%.
Hierarchical delays as a source of nominal price rigidities: evidence from the microcomputer industry
Authors: Hicks Michael J.
Published: October 2007

The non‐market clearing models of New Keynesian macroeconomic theory rely heavily upon sticky prices to generate business cycle activity following monetary shocks. The dominant theoretical explanations for sticky prices assume a degree of market power in the representative firm (e.g. Mankiw, 1985. Quarterly J. Econ. 100(2): 529–538). Thus, an important element of empirical research is the exploration of sticky prices within more competitive industries. The importance of this analysis is in establishing the potential degree of price stickiness in a representative firm employed in a macroeconomic model. Among the many theoretical explanations of nominal rigidities are the existence of hierarchical delays (Blinder, 1991. Amer. Econ. Rev. 72: 334–348) and decision costs (Tommasi, 1992. Optimal Pricing, Inflation, And The Cost of Price Adjustment, 485–511). Both theories rely on the simple notion that managerial inefficiency, high costs of making decisions and sluggish transmission of information lead to price stickiness. This paper investigates the market for microcomputers in the United States from 1993 to 1995 finding strong evidence of nominal price rigidities attributable to hierarchical delays. Alternate explanations for these rigidities are explored and rejected. These prices are sticky in a monopolistically or workably competitive industry, which provides important additional support for the New Keynesian interpretation. Ordinary least squares, a Poisson count and negative binomial count models are employed in establishing the existence of hierarchical delays. Conclusions are offered regarding the appropriate selection of the characteristics of the representative firm in macroeconomic models. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The mechanics of price adjustment: new evidence on the (un)importance of menu costs
Authors: Chakrabarti Rajesh , Scholnick Barry
Published: October 2007

This paper examines nominal price rigidities in an environment, e‐commerce, where literal menu costs can be assumed not to exist. We argue that if we can empirically show that nominal rigidities do still exist in the e‐commerce environment, then it implies that other kinds of costs besides menu costs, such as management costs, must be causing these nominal rigidities. This evidence is of importance because of the central role that menu costs play in Keynesian macroeconomics. In this paper we examine the price changing behavior of two leading online booksellers—Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com—and find strong evidence that nominal price rigidities do indeed persist on the Internet. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Asymmetric price adjustment: evidence from weekly product‐level scanner price data
Authors: Müller Georg , Ray Sourav
Published: October 2007

We investigate asymmetric price responses by considering a unique, highly disaggregate retailer‐ and product‐level time series at a major supermarket chain. We find asymmetry exists, but is limited in scope and there is no evidence of a pervasive chain wide asymmetric pricing strategy. To explain product level variation, we borrow from both economic and marketing perspectives to suggest menu costs, operational efficiency, competition, and consumer perceptions as important factors. The evidence suggests an efficiency‐based rationale for asymmetry. This study complements that of Peltzman (2000. J. Polit. Econ. 108(3): 466–502.) who found no systematic asymmetry in a study of the same data considered at a more aggregate level. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Thick markets, market competition and pricing dynamics: evidence from retailers
Authors: Axarloglou Kostas
Published: October 2007

By using store‐level transaction price data for books in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and music CDs in Natick, Massachusetts, the implications of thick markets and the intensity of market competition on price markups and the synchronization in price adjustments are empirically tested. The data indicate that for books, actual price markups are 6% lower than the suggested price markups, while for music CDs, they are 3.6% lower. Popular items are more heavily discounted than less popular ones. The data show that a 10% increase in national sales of a given book title results in a 0.06% drop in price markups. Also, market competition has a non‐linear depressing effect on price markups that becomes stronger for widely known popular items. Finally, a 10% increase in the number of sellers in the market lead to a 5.8% increase in the likelihood of a price adjustment and a 2.2% increase in the share of sellers that synchronize their price adjustments. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Communication and information‐seeking behavior of PhD students in physicists and astronomy
Authors: Jamali Hamid R. , Nicholas David
Published: October 2007

As a part of a wider doctoral research, this paper deals with the communication and information‐seeking behavior of research (PhD) students in physics and astronomy. Based on a qualitative case study of PhD students in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at University College London, this study seeks to derive behavioral patterns in information‐seeking activities of PhD students. The study aims to investigate the intradisciplinary differences in information‐seeking activities of physicists and astronomers. The findings show the high reliance of PhD students in physics and astronomy on electronic journals and their low use of libraries. The findings reveal differences in the information‐seeking patterns of students who conduct theoretical research and those of whom are involved in experimental research. The research highlights the need for the study of small subject communities within academic disciplines instead of studying users in a broad subject area such as physics as one single domain.
Weak Information Work and “Doable” Problems in Interdisciplinary Science
Authors: Palmer Carole L.
Published: October 2007

Drawing on results from two studies of information use in interdisciplinary science, this paper develops the concept of weak information work (WIW). WIW is examined in relation to a model of how different levels of research work are coordinated and a second framework that delineates dimensions of research problems. Scenarios from neuroinformatics case studies are presented to show how WIW is impacting interdisciplinary projects in brain research. Based on the integration of our results with existing frameworks for understanding scientific research problems and processes, we assert that contemporary interdisciplinary research could benefit from information systems and services devoted to supporting some lines of WIW and by transforming others into strong information work.
Known‐Item Search: Variations on a Concept
Authors: Lee Jin Ha , Renear Allen , Smith Linda C.
Published: October 2007

The concept of known‐item search has long been central to research and application in library and information science. It is surprising then that this concept has received practically no systematic discussion. We survey the various conceptual and operational characterizations of known‐item search in the LIS literature in order to determine exactly how the concept is being understood by its users. We demonstrate that this apparently simple notion is actually quite complex and varied, and moreover, that there is hardly a single feature ordinarily associated with it that can confidently be said to be an essential part of the concept.
Factors contributing to mature adult novices' computer skills learning: A case study in a community training program
Authors: Chin Pok W. , Hastings Dr. Samantha K.
Published: October 2007

Information and communication technologies (ICT), such as computers, and the Internet have become increasingly vital tools in United States. People who lack the required skills to use these tools are at a growing disadvantage. Therefore, raising the information and communication technologies skill levels of information deprived people is a critical issue. Increasing the number of Americans using ICT is a fundamentally important national goal. The purpose of this study is to explore the adult novice computer learning. This study defines computer novices as people who have no knowledge or limited skills to perform basic computer functions, such as computer boot up, file opening, internet searching, and basic word processing. Over the last couple of years, community learning centers in Denton, Texas have provided free computer training sessions at public libraries to empower people left behind by the digital revolution. Researchers of this study participate as both lecturers and mentors in the training sessions. The major objective of this study is to identify themes in adult computer learning behavior. This research studies adult novice computer learning using Bandura's (1986) social cognitive theory, Roger's (2003) diffusion of innovation framework, and Chatman's (1996) concepts on information impoverished people.
Exploring the Forecasting Potential of Company Annual Reports
Authors: Qiu Xin Ying , Srinivasan Padmini , Street Nick
Published: October 2007

Previous research indicates that the narration disclosure in company annual reports can be used to assist in assessing the company's short‐term financial prospects. However, not much effort has been made to systematically and automatically assess the predictive potential of such reports using text classification, information retrieval, and machine learning techniques. In this study, we built SVM‐based predictive models with different feature selection methods from ten years of annual reports of 30 companies. We used feature selection methods to reduce the term space and studied the class‐related vocabulary. Evaluation of predictive accuracy is performed with cross validation and t‐test significance tests. We compare different models' performance and analyze misclassification rates by year and by industry. We identify the strengths and weaknesses of each model. Our results support the feasibility of automatically predicting next‐year company financial performance from the current year's report. We suggest text features can be further studied to understand their roles as indicators of company's future performance. This research paves the way for large‐scale automatic analysis of the relationship between annual reports and short‐term performance, as well as the identification of interesting signals within annual reports.
Designing for uncertainty
Authors: Anderson Theresa Dirndorfer , Bates Marcia J. , Berryman Jennifer , Erdelez Sanda , Heinstrom Jannica
Published: October 2007

Our highly digitized world brings us into contact with networked information systems with the potential to help us locate information quickly and easily at the touch of a button. But it is far from easy to quickly find the exact information we need. Every new resource added increases the time needed to locate the right information. The increasing scale of resource collections continues to drive the need for innovative methods of organizing and providing access to the information within these collections (Bates, 1999). This panel will discuss the prospect of designing for uncertainty ‐ that is creating information systems based on the premise that (in certain situations) uncertainty can be a powerful mediating strategy for people.
Designing Web‐based Forms for Users with Lower Literacy Skills
Authors: Summers Kathryn , Langford Jonathan , Wu Jennifer , Abela Christine , Souza Randy
Published: October 2007

Previous research (Summers & Summers, 2003) has identified patterns of behavior and effective practices related to how lower literacy users interact with health‐related Internet sites. However, prior research has not addressed how such users react to the unique challenges represented by interactive medical forms on health sites, such as interactive health quizzes, questionnaires, and registration forms. The goal of this four‐month study was twofold: 1) to identify reading, writing, and navigational strategies of users with lower literacy skills when interacting with web‐based forms in a medical context; 2) to develop design principles for making such web‐based medical forms usable and accessible for lower‐literacy adults. Eyetracking was used to gather data about how users interacted with a variety of web‐based forms. Analysis of sessions with 26 low‐literacy users (REALM score < 60) identified a variety of challenges users faced in completing forms. Based on these observations, proposed principles of effective form design were developed. Revised prototype forms were designed in accordance with these principles and iteratively tested with 14 users to verify improved usability.
Video Annotation in a Learning Environment
Authors: Fu Xin , Schaefer John C. , Marchionini Gary , Mu Xiangming
Published: October 2007

Numerous studies have demonstrated that annotation is an important part of human reading behavior in both printed and electronic environments. Annotation in the electronic environment requires special support due to limited media affordances. We have witnessed continuous improvement of annotation functions in some electronic reading environments, such as text documents in Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat and images in Flickr. However, comparatively little research has been conducted to understand people's needs for making annotations when they watch videos, let alone work to develop tools to support their needs. With the increasing use of videos in many aspects of our lives, from professional activities to personal entertainment, by not only specialists but also general consumers, there is need for more efforts on designing annotation facilities for video navigation and manipulation devices. This study focuses on video annotation in a learning environment. We studied how people in a teaching assistant training class annotated videotaped instructional presentations. We attempted to understand the value of annotation in achieving their learning objectives and how video annotation functions helped in supporting their tasks. The results of this study provide implications for video annotation system design.
Where do good query terms come from?
Authors: Muresan Gheorghe , Roussinov Dmitri
Published: October 2007

This paper describes a framework for investigating the quality of different query expansion approaches, and applies it in the HARD TREC experimental setting. The intuition behind our approach is that each topic has an optimal term‐based representation, i.e. a set of terms that best describe it, and that the effectiveness of any other representation is correlated with the overlap that it has with the optimal representation. Indeed, we find that, for a wide number of candidate topic representations, obtained through various query‐expansion approaches, there is a high correlation between standard effectiveness measures (R‐P, P@10, MAP) and term overlap with what is estimated to be the optimal representation.

An important conclusion of comparing different query expansion approaches is that machines are better than humans at doing statistical calculations and at estimating which query terms are more likely to discriminate documents relevant for a given topic. This explains why, in the HARD track of TREC 2005, the overall conclusion was that interaction with the searcher and elicitation of additional information could not over‐perform automatic procedures for query improvement. However, the best results are obtained from hybrid approaches, in which human relevance judgments are used by algorithms for deriving terms representations. This result suggest that the best approach in improving retrieval performance is probably to focus on implicit relevance feedback and novel interaction models based on ostention or mediation, which have shown great potential.
Understanding teachers' information needs in a time of challenge
Authors: Normore Lorraine
Published: October 2007

American schools are being asked to meet ‘high stakes’ testing goals using research‐based instruction methods. If teachers are to achieve these goals, they must become knowledgeable about the latest research‐based information on how to teach effectively. However, we know little, in general, about the information seeking behaviors of practicing teachers or about the uses to which they would put the information they seek. This focus group study explores the information needs expressed by a group of early literacy teachers. Both traditional and non‐traditional sources are identified to meet those needs and insight provided into the context of use.
The potential for web services to enhance information access to legacy data: An exploratory study and application
Authors: Oguz Fatih , Moen William E.
Published: October 2007

This paper presents an overview of an exploratory research project to identify, describe, and investigate the applicability of the Web services (WS) approach to access legacy data. In the Z Texas Implementation Component of the Library of Texas (ZLOT) project, the ZLOT technical team has implemented a multi‐purpose Texas Library Directory Database (TLDD) that is used as a back‐end database to support the Library of Texas (LOT) Resource Discovery Service (RDS). The researchers developed and implemented a prototype WS application to show how a legacy system can be accessed and its data can be searched and retrieved. This study focused on understanding how requests and responses between software applications are encoded in Extensible Markup Language (XML).
Ethical implications of values embedded in computational models: An exploratory study
Authors: Fleischmann Kenneth R. , Wallace William A.
Published: October 2007

This NSF‐funded research study examines the role of social, cultural, and moral values in computational modeling. This project emerges at the intersection of the process of modeling and the ethics of modeling. Three hypotheses were used to guide the research: 1) that values are embedded in computational models; 2) that the ethical frameworks of the organization and the profession influence what values are embedded during the modeling process; and 3) that the success or failure of a model as a product is influenced by the values that are embedded during the modeling process. To test these hypotheses, the researchers employed a multi‐method approach to data collection and analysis, including surveys, interviews, and participant observation. After a preliminary analysis of the data, the data provide support for all three hypotheses. This study aims to contribute to the literature on the ethics of modeling by providing an in‐depth case study of the ethics and values of computational modeling. This study also makes important societal contributions, such as to improve the practice of computational modeling by demonstrating to modelers how values are embedded in the models that they produce and the ethical implications of these embedded values.
The activities of the emerging knowledge ecologist function in large research organizations
Authors: Templeton Thomas Clay
Published: October 2007

This poster outlines a function through which organizations might actively promote the health of innovative knowledge enterprises operating under their auspices.
Naturalistic observation for understanding users: How technology professionals use & communicate information at work
Authors: Allard Suzie , Levine Kenneth , Tenopir Carol , Urs Shalini
Published: October 2007

This study examines how design engineers and technical professionals (hereafter referred to as engineers) in innovative high‐tech firms in the U.S. and India communicate and use information in their daily work activities including research, development, and management. By observing engineers in the workplace, it extends our understanding of the engineering workplace, and the information environment in the workplace. This study will provide information useful for improving communication and information methods for accessing information and communicating in the workplace, which will ultimately lead to better job performance, facilitate innovation, and encourage economic growth. This poster focuses on the methodology the researchers used to gather data for the study. Researchers conducted a series of daylong workplace observations with 108 engineers engaged in product design and testing in four U.S. and two India based firms. Using naturalistic observation provided researchers with the ability to see engineers in their workplace carrying out their daily work rather than depending on self‐reported data which may be incomplete. The poster focuses on the naturalistic observation method, how it was employed, and lessons learned in conducting the work in the U.S. and India.
Investigating the boundaries and substance of humanitarian actors″ information environments
Authors: Lappenbusch Steve , Kemp Randall B.
Published: October 2007

Humanitarian action organizations alleviate human suffering and prevent death. Understanding relief workers as information users and how they use (or choose not to use) information as part of a system could pay enormous dividends in human suffering reduced and lives saved. Understanding the lived experience of users “on the ground” avoids perilous mistakes, especially in humanitarian action where end users are of such utter importance in literally saving lives.
An exploration of web‐based monitoring activities
Authors: Kellar Melanie , Watters Carolyn
Published: October 2007

While previous work has shown that monitoring is an emerging web activity, we have very little understanding of how users actually engage in monitoring on the Web. That is, how users complete their monitoring activities and the types of information being monitored. In this poster, we discuss the role of monitoring and present a study currently underway to further examine the role of monitoring on the Web.
Interindexer consistency, term usage, and indexer experience levels in the application of image descriptors
Authors: Beaudoin Joan
Published: October 2007

This study concerns image indexing and the affect of indexer experience levels on interindexer consistency and the choice of indexing terms. Owing to the importance of concept‐based indexing for images, this investigation will provide information for the development of basic criteria for image indexing practices. Four groups of participants with varying degrees of image indexing and subject expertise will be studied through an interactive Web site. A questionnaire will gather information on indexer experience levels and basic demographic data, and an image component of the study will gather indexing terms applied by the participants. Quantitative analysis will be conducted on the data resulting from the questionnaire, while qualitative methods will be employed for analyzing the indexing terms assigned by the participants. The study will examine the multiplicity of term types applied to images (generic description, identification, and interpretation) and the degree of indexing difficulty due to the accessibility of representation and subject content of the image. It is hoped that this study will lead to a deeper understanding of the role of indexer experience in image indexing, which in turn can inform the processes utilized to enhance access to digital collections of visual materials.
A practical framework for social justice research in the information professions
Authors: Mehra Bharat , Albright Kendra S. , Rioux Kevin
Published: October 2007

This paper proposes a practical framework for social justice research in the information professions by sharing examples from three qualitative studies, each of which represents an information service and/or application of social justice ideals for meeting the needs of a particular underserved population. In order to develop the framework and to encourage consideration of the social justice angle within mainstream LIS discourse and practice, the three studies are examined in light of social justice elements and principles. What is common to these studies is an underlying need to bring about a change in existing power dynamics between who we as information professionals consider central and who we consider peripheral in our teaching, research, and service missions.
Contextualizing internet use practices of the cyber‐queer: Empowering information realities in everyday life
Authors: Braquet Donna , Mehra Bharat
Published: October 2007

Based on empirical research with queer students, staff, and faculty at a typical southern university in the United States, this paper reports qualitative feedback gathered from 21 gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning individuals about the use of the Internet in their everyday lives. The study shares interview data and presents participant perceptions in the form of scenarios representing their typical Internet use‐related experiences. Scenarios map intersections between participants' cyberspace practices and queer identity formation and help recognize participant Internet use experiences as significant to their individual, social, and community empowerment. Findings help to uncover multidimensional and complex realities in the everyday lives of queer people in terms of their personal growth, social networking, and political and community engagement, achieved via the use of the Internet, in ways that are meaningful to them.
So, let's talk about tagging, user‐defined/supplied descriptors … A research and curricular agenda
Authors: Abbas June , Graham Jennifer
Published: October 2007

As Ellyssa Kroski (Kroski, 2005) so correctly describes, “there is a revolution happening on the Internet that is alive and building momentum with each passing tag”, a revolution that, like the Internet and the World Wide Web (WWW), has the potential to change the traditional ways that information is organized, found, and used. Information science professionals have long understood that good metadata shrinks the chasm between user and resource. Tagging (or metadata creation by the user) is bringing people and information together in a revolutionary fashion. Putting metadata creation into the hands of users enables users to browse for desired topics without needing to know an often outdated, Anglo‐centric controlled vocabulary that librarians and users alike do not always know or understand. However, like the early emergence and development of the Internet and WWW, this potential might not currently be informed by library and information science research, practice, or even involvement. Will this be another case where LIS researchers and professionals might feel “left behind” or “out of the loop”? Is there a role for information science professionals to educate and inform the use of folksonomies and tagging so that, in this vast world of digital information, users are even more connected with useful information, whether it be recreational, scholarly, or social?
National differences in librarians' reception to the open access movement: A comparison of the professional library literatures of China, Taiwan, and the United States
Authors: Sin Sei‐Ching Joanna , Eschenfelder Kristin R. , Lin Chi‐Shiou
Published: October 2007

This poster describes an analysis of arguments supportive of, or critical of the Open Access (OA) movement expressed in a sample of the professional library literature from China, Taiwan and the United States during the 1998‐2005 time period. Scientific journals have played a central role in the accumulation and growth of scientific knowledge (Meadows, 1974); and the sharp rise in the price of scientific journals in recent years has led to numerous calls for publishing reform, including the development of the Open Access movement. This movement envisions a “world‐wide electronic distribution of the peer‐reviewed journal literature and completely free and unrestricted access to it by all scientists, scholars, teachers, students, and other curious minds.” Such system could “share the learning of the rich with the poor and the poor with the rich”, so that “research and education in every part of the world are that much more free to flourish” (Budapest Open Access Initiative, 2002).
Indiana's community networking movement: Websites then and now
Authors: Clodfelter Kathryn , Buente Wayne
Published: October 2007

Spurred on by interest at the federal level by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in reducing the "Digital Divide" between those with access to the Internet and those without it, the state of Indiana launched a community networking initiative in 1995. Dubbed "Access Indiana", the initiative ultimately funded about thirty geographically‐based community networks and created the Indiana Community Network Association (ICNA) to serve as an advocacy organization for the community networks. Contractor and Bishop (1999) define community networks as "not‐for‐profit institutions that typically provide online community information, Internet services, and user support to local residents and organizations" (p. 155).
Proxies, ties and health information seeking realities: Survey results of an african‐American community
Authors: Morey Ophelia T.
Published: October 2007

The purpose of this research poster is to present preliminary findings from a telephone survey. The goal of the survey was to explore consumer health information (CHI) seeking behavior using Mark Granovetter's (1973) strength of weak ties theory as the conceptual framework. Interviewers asked 216 respondents questions to determine where individuals go to seek CHI and to explore the “closeness” of tie relationships if the respondent sought CHI from an individual and/or if the information seeking was for someone else (proxy searching)(Fisher et al., 2005). Overall, 45.3 percent of respondents sought health information from a health service professional, 14.5 percent from a web site and 9.8 percent from another source. Respondents (n=125) who looked for health information in the past six months (42.4%) sought the information from a health service professional (weak tie) and most (52.8%) identified their relationship with this person as being “somewhat close” (significant tie). Respondents who looked for health information in the past six months were more likely to have sought the information for themselves (76.2%), although 22.2 percent sought health information on behalf of another person (proxy searching), such as a child, parent, another relative or non‐relative. Women slightly more often exhibit proxy searching behavior.
Trained vs. untrained searchers' interaction with search features in digital libraries: A case study
Authors: Li Yuelin , Zhang Xiangmin , Liu Jingjing , Zhang Ying
Published: October 2007

This case study explores how trained and untrained searchers interact with search features in a digital library. Thirty five trained and untrained searchers completed the experiment. The results indicate that the usage of the search modes is significantly associated with the participants' search training background. The study also suggests that the untrained participants prefer to accept the system's default search field and search results display format. The suggestions for improving the interaction design in IEEE Xplore digital library are proposed and future studies are addressed.
Blog commenting: A new political information space
Authors: Walker Dana M.
Published: October 2007

Though still a small subsection of the internet, weblogs are becoming an increasingly prominent space for finding and discussing information ‐ in particular political information. But because of their newness, the question remains as to what are the possible implications of political blogs on people's current information reality. As a way to better understand political blogs as a space for gaining political information and also discussing that information, a pilot study was developed whose main focus was to understand the nature of the comments posted to political blogs. There has been much speculation in the popular and scholarly press about the possible democratic implications of people writing blogs, with claims that the medium opens up a new space for deliberation and participation. However, little work has focused on blog commenters ‐ the people who are reading blogs and responding based on what they have read. And yet, to understand the blogosphere as a new deliberative or political information space, it is critical to analyze those who are engaging in the discussion. Therefore, this study focuses not on the principal authors of popular blog sites but the readers who are inspired to post their responses.
An investigation of query expansion terms
Authors: Muresan Gheorghe
Published: October 2007

This poster describes a framework for investigating the effectiveness of query expansion term sets and reports the results of an investigation on the quality of query expansion terms coming from different sources: pseudo‐relevance feedback, web‐based expansion, interactive elicitations from human searchers, and expansion approaches based on query clarity.

The conclusion regarding the experimental framework is that certain different evaluation approaches show a substantial level of correlation, and can therefore be used interchangeably according to convenience considerations.

With regard to the actual comparison of different sources of expansion terms, the conclusion is that machines are better than humans at doing statistical calculations and at estimating which query terms are more likely to discriminate documents relevant for a given topic. One consequence is a recommendation for research in implicit relevance feedback approaches and novel interaction models based on ostention or mediation, which have shown great potential.
Spatialized information visualizations: a “BASSTEP” approach to application design
Authors: Julien Charles‐Antoine , Bouthillier France , Leide John
Published: October 2007

Large result sets stemming from topical queries on the Web tend to cause disorientation and are often reduced to a manageable size through successive exclusions (NOTing) and/or restrictions (ANDing) which also reject relevant documents. The information visualization (IV) technique known as spatialization is a scalable automatic process creating a topographical map metaphor of the semantic information space. The domain of IV offers many prototypes, some controlled experiments but few low‐cost testing methods which are critical in the early stages of the design process. This communication reports on efforts to adapt the low‐cost BASSTEP approach to the evaluation of the IV technique known as spatialization by isolating and evaluating (using paper mock‐ups) information features of a spatialized Web corpus in the context of Web IR. Six (6) semi‐structured formative interviews provide a list of most expected initial user interpretations of four (4) features and three (3) additional interviews attempt to triangulate the findings when these features are integrated into a single interface mock‐up. This work hopes to verify if the application of the BASSTEP approach is applicable to spatialized visualisations early in the design process improving the usability of this visual IR tool.
How chemists are really finding and using information in our digital environment
Authors: Brown Cecelia , Blake Catherine , Rogers Brown E. Ashley , Tenopir Carol
Published: October 2007

The quantity of information available to scientists continues to increase alarmingly with the top 418 journals having published more than 110,000 articles in 2002. Chemists are particularly prone to this information overload because they have more personal journal subscriptions (Noble & Coughlin 1997), read more articles (Tenopir et al. 2003), and access more journals than other scientists (Davis & Solla 2003). This quantity of information makes it difficult to stay current as well as explore new connections between articles. To ensure the provision and improvement of access to this essential element of scientific productivity and innovation it is critical that information scientists understand how the print and digital information explosion is influencing the information behavior of scientists.

To elucidate the information sources chemists are using, two studies employing citation analysis of American Chemical Society (ACS) journals will be discussed. The third study employs interviews to describe the role of the literature in chemists' discovery processes. The goal is to provide a realistic snapshot of the current information behavior of chemists in order to assist in the creation, design, and delivery of information products and services for the support of the research, teaching, and creative activities of chemists and scientists in general.
Data realities in plural contexts: Appraisal of a definition [of social informatics]
Authors: Cole Fletcher
Published: October 2007

The meaning of “context” within the definition of social informatics (SI) is explored. The most general context of interest is formed by the relationship between the broad categories of the “technological” and the “social”, as they are manifest in information and communication technologies (ICTs). Within and between these broad categories there are numerous distinct but inter‐related contexts. Contextual complexity at a more detailed level is illustrated through close examination of the data‐related references in a textual description of geographic information systems (GIS). A six‐category taxonomy is used to highlight the complex cross‐referencing between inter‐related vocabularies that reflects the multiple contextual realities involved. They reveal themselves as open to multiple and continuing interpretation within different contexts at different levels of conceptualisation.

Practical implications include suggestions that current generalist approaches to systems design may be too removed from the specifics of the task at hand, and that information professionals in their education and training need to be exposed to a wide range of perspectives, reflecting the various human contexts in which their technical expertise is likely to be deployed. What is desirable is a sophisticated appreciation of the many contexts in which ICTs function.
A semiotic view of information: Semiotics as a foundation of LIS research in information behavior
Authors: Huang Sheng‐Cheng
Published: October 2007

Traditional information behavior studies in library and information science (LIS) research have focused on primarily two trends: one is to provide physical access to material objects and the other is to direct users to certain thoughts and ideas. Both focuses are two sides of the same problem that LIS researchers have worked to address: how to provide a better system or service to accommodate people's need for information. Among the domains of users, material objects, and meaningful ideas, applying the concept of information as sign with semiotics not only joins these two trends in the analysis of the pragmatic‐syntactic relationship and the pragmatic‐semantic relationship, but it also gives an additional focus on the syntactic‐semantic relationship. It is this additional focus that helps LIS professionals/researchers understand an individual's states of knowing and ways of obtaining knowledge through physical and mental interactions with informative objects. The author conducts a review of information studies, the epistemological concerns and pragmatic traditions in LIS, and semiotics in an attempt to seek a holistic principle that will incorporate both the traditional trends of LIS research and provide an additional awareness in assisting users to make connections between material objects and ideas in information behavior studies. By applying a semiotic view of information and the concept of information as sign, LIS researchers of information behavior will find semiotics a useful epistemological framework.
Specialists and synthesists in a question answering community
Authors: Gazan Rich
Published: October 2007

The most sustainable online communities are those that allow and encourage their users to have a voice in how the community evolves. The proliferation of online communities with collaborative filtering mechanisms, where user feedback is aggregated to shape future interactions, makes it necessary to understand why participants in online communities value the content they do. Building on the concepts of users as specialists and synthesists developed in previous research, this study examines Answerbag, an online question answering community where users rate one another's answers to provide collaborative filtering. In this environment, specialists are operationalized as those who claim expertise in a given topic and answer questions without referencing other sources, and synthesists as those who include one or more references to external sources in their answers. The results of the study suggest that within the Answerbag community as a whole, the answers of synthesists tended to be rated more highly than those of specialists, though answers provided by specialists were rated more highly within certain categories. The consequences of differences in the perceived value of information provided by specialists and synthesists are examined, and avenues for future research are discussed.