OCLS and Library 2.0

I think of libraries and librarians as connection-makers. Whether connecting a community with the world of ideas or connecting a single reader with just the right book, we strive to be the medium facilitating that connection.
The Orange Seed and Orlando Memory are important to me and important to the Library because they are both uniquiely suited to connecting people and ideas. The Orange Seed provides a tariff-free virtual marketplace for innovative ideas to be shopped, discussed and shaped. Orlando Memory is a conduit for sharing and learning about all varieties of local lore.
Making these sorts of connections possible is our bread-and-butter.

Web 2.0 Continues

One Web 2.0 application that I find useful is the LibraryThing (http://www.librarything.com/) social cataloging application. You can catalog up to 200 books for free and if you choose to make your list public you can find others with similar reading tastes. Worldcat (http://www.worldcat.org/) has begun to offer a Facebook plug-in that will allow you to do most of the same things. Worldcat allows users a maximum book list of 250 items, but they allow users an unlimited number of lists. In addition, Worldcat contains DVD and CD records in addition to print source records.
VuFind (http://www.vufind.org/) may also be of interest to those in the library environment. VuFind is an open-source modular portal to a library's holdings. It allows catalog searchers to search beyond OPAC cataloged records and find, for example, locally held documents, reading lists and bibliographies, tutorials, classes, or just about any library resource that you might want to search for. VuFind also supports "More Like This" suggestions, and allows users to creat and organize resource lists. Pretty exciting stuff!

Chain, Chain, Change

The part of the mission statement that I relate to the most is the part about creating a well-informed community. There are many reasons, but the most basic reason is perhaps also the most compelling. An informed public is necessary for a healthy democracy. An open and long-view examination of ideas and choices (not to mention a dose of critical thinking) are all things that libraries traditionally defend and enable.

Open Source Information

Technology has undoubtedly changed the way we access, use and provide information. Many facts are easier to locate but sometimes more challenging to verify. As technology makes information more open source, verification may become more challenging.

Open source information invites two breeds of fallacy. The first is called the fallacy of consensus gentium. This is the fallacy that a statement is true because it is widely believed. Popular opinion is in this case presented as a proof.

The second fallacy is the fallacy of ascertainment. This is "finding what you are looking for" even when presented with ample evidence to the contrary. In an immense open source environment, it becomes easier to find and read only information that supports a particular point of view, whether correct or incorrect. (such as the extreme example: "space aliens are here and are working with the government")

These fallacies are not problems with the technology software, but simply known human tendencies that information professionals (and laypersons) should strive to compensate for.

Here is a nice summary of 35 fallacies: http://www.wdv.com/Writings/Fallacies/

Health, Wellness & Technology

The Cardio Coach and Nutritional Data websites were interesting and useful, but my favorite was the Google Map Pedometer. I feel myself living longer already!

Don't forget the 1.0 fitness technologies as well: good walking shoes, plenty of water to drink, the food pyramid, maybe some rollerblades or a bicycle.

Finally, because this is the Plurium Interrogationum blog, we will now share the potential correlational fallacy that owning fitness equipment is as productive as using fitness equipment. Formally this type of fallacy is known as cum hoc ergo propter hoc ("with this, therefore because of this"). The core of this fallacy is the lack of distinction between correlation and causation. For example, the fact that Bill is fit and owns lots of sports equipment, while Fred is not fit and does not own any sports equipment does not prove that investing in sports equipment caused Bill's fitness. Bill may have had good genes, an active lifestyle, and good nutritional habits long before he made his purchase. Correlations may provide hints to causation, but are unable to stand alone as causes.

For a wiki-explanation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correlation_does_not_imply_causation

Plurium Interrogationum

From the Latin and translated literally as 'of many questions,' plurium interrogationum is a type of logical fallacy that is more precisely defined as a 'loaded' or 'trick' question.

It is an attempt to elicit a simple answer to a complex question. Simple examples include the questions like 'have you stopped beating your wife?' which attempt to force a 'yes' or 'no' answer, either of which is incriminating. More sophisticated examples might include political posturing, as in the question 'how long do we allow the such-and-such political party to ruin this country?' In both examples, complex, unfounded and perhaps unrelated assumptions are presented as facts that demand a response.

Beyond awareness of the logical fallacy, the next defense is to separate the question into parts and deal with the parts independently.

For more information on Plurium Interrogationum: http://www.fallacyfiles.org/loadques.html