Day archives: December 20th, 2018

Will America’s libraries miss out while Harvard grows still richer? Library endowment could help.

David Rothman is an indefatigable advocate for a national library endowment. He states: “Just ten Americans are together worth more than half a trillion dollars, and the assets of the top 400 U.S. billionaires added up to a cool $2.7 trillion in October 2017. Charity-minded members of the super rich love to give to elite institutions such as Harvard. Its endowment is well north of $35 billion. The Gates Giving Pledge could free up countless billions in future years for prestigious institutions like Harvard. But will America’s libraries miss out while Harvard, Yale, and Princeton grow still richer? Very possibly, if the American Library Association and other good people in the library establishment fail to act in time.”

Subjects: E-Books, Economy, Education, Libraries & Librarians, Social Media

The Bullshit Algorithm

Jason Voiovich goes directly to the heart of the matter with his statements that are a lessons learned guide that no researcher can afford to ignore – “Wasn’t the promise of data-driven, search engine and social media algorithms that they would amplify the truth and protect us from misinformation by tapping the wisdom of crowds? The fact is that they do not. And cannot. Because that is not what they are designed to do. At the heart of every social media algorithm is a fatal flaw that values persuasion over facts. Social media platforms (as well as search engines) are not designed for truth. They are designed for popularity. They are bullshit engines.”

Subjects: Internet Resources, KM, Search Engines, Social Media

A Private Eye in The Library

Christopher Kenneally interviewed Marcy Phelps on his Copyright Clearance Center’s podcast series, Beyond the Book. A licensed private eye who earned her master’s degree in library and information science from the University of Denver, Marcy Phelps works for asset management firms, commodity pool operators, M&A professionals, and others. Her detective work combing through databases and other online data dumps helps build a definitive dossier documenting any litigation, bankruptcies, and regulatory actions that could raise unpleasant questions for investors and even uncover unsavory characters.

Subjects: Business Research, Competitive Intelligence, KM, Legal Research