November Advisory Committee Report

Hard to believe that the eleventh month of the year is almost over. 2004 has flown, or more likely, I have flown through 2004 on many many planes. Here is the link to this month's Advisory Committee Report, thankfully November has been a bit slower then the preceding months.

Posted by prolurkr at 07:47 PM | TrackBack

Planning travel for HICCS 2005 - Mauna Kea and the Observatories

I've decided that the primary "recreational" activity I want to undertake while we are on the Big Island, is to tour Mauna Kea and get as close to the observatories as I can. Plus I want to say I actually saw snow in Hawaii.

Mauna Kea made an indelible mark in my mind upon my first trip to the Big Island. It was the last hop of my "If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium" tour of the islands. I flew from Honolulu to Hilo and spent most of the inflight time watching the changing patterns of the waves below us. As we neared the Big Island something bright kept winking at me through the clouds ahead. It was bright and constant, even through the thick cloud cover on the mountain you could see the reflection. It took me a minute to remember that some of the biggest and best telescopes in the world are hidden up there on the volcano. Up above the snorkelers, and surfers, and sun worshipers. Up above it all, it is clear and cold and open to the night sky.

I had no idea that there were so many webcams atop Mauna Kea until I started searching for links for this post. Apparently it is all part of their work predicting weather.

Following is a list of the sites I could find online. Let me know if you find more.

Joint Astronomy Centre webcam
Mauna Loa Observatory webcam faces Mauna Kea
Mauna Loa Observatory webcam faces east from 11,000 feet
Mauna Loa Observatory webcam faces southwest view
Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Corporation webcam looks north toward Gemini dome
Gemini Dome webcam looks north-northeast toward Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Corporation
All Sky Camera webcam looks 360 degrees at the sky. This cam is offline until after local sunset. The page gives you a countdown timer so you can calibrate your viewing.
The Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) webcam looks south from 12,000 ft.
Mauna Kea Weather Center webcam page. Includes some of the other cams listed here and includes many more not listed separately.

The photo is of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope and is drawn from the Joint Astronomy Centre site.

Posted by prolurkr at 11:24 PM | TrackBack

Sleepy day

Today is a chilly grey November day in Southern Indiana. The kind of day that seems to sap all of your energy away making you to tired and unfocused to get much work done but not tired enough to sleep.

So I'm sitting in my study with piles of paper that need to be sorted and acted upon, mounds of books that need to be shelved, and untold hours of pre-holiday cleaning on tap...and I can't make myself do much of anything. I am looking for condo's for BROG to rent as homebase for our upcoming presentation in Hawaii...I know Hawaii in January who do I think I am to moan in any shape or form. LOL Believe me I'm not really moaning about the trip just how I wish I had won the lottery, $200 mil or so would be nice, so among other things I could hire an assistant to do this kind of stuff for me. *S* I like looking at all the pictures though...wish I trusted that all of them were really taken from the lanai's of the structures. Oh well.

What I really want to do is take a nap but no luck on that goal so far this afternoon.

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Madison Indiana - Night Before Christmas Candlelight Tour of Homes

Last evening we met friends in Madison Indiana for a grand evening attending the Night Before Christmas Candlelight Tour of Homes 2004. This annual event is in it's 23rd year of featuring restored 19th century buildings dressed in their Christmas finest.

We started out the evening with dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Broadway Tavern & Restaurant. This historic tavern was built in 1834 and has been in operation ever since. Last night the food was excellent as usual. The Broadway is perpetually under some remodeling and since we were there last they have modernized the tables and chairs. Somehow the look doesn't do it for me but this changes doesn't kill the ambiance of dining in a 170 year old tavern...which is pretty old by American building standards.

Then we headed out to join the tour. It was raining last evening a slow steady cold November kinda rain. Which of course meant that the luminaries, which give the "candlelight tour" it's name, were totally washed out at most locations. So it made finding the houses on the tour a case of looking for a house with a line of umbrellas out front. Because of the rain we decided to drive between locations. Of course as we left the tavern and headed from the car I misjudged the width of the water flowing at the edge of the street and jumped into it rather then over it. *sigh* Not a good thing to do when you are wearing clogs. So a cold night became somewhat colder after I gained one wet foot.

We had hoped to begin the tour at the Lanier Mansion but the state of Indiana, in it's august wisdom, had decided that the historic landmark would not be open THIS weekend of the tour. *sigh* I was looking forward to seeing the home since the restoration of the ceilings has been completed. The frescos were lovely before and I can only imagine what they look like now. Guess we'll have to plan a trip to Madison during the day when we know the home is open.

As usual the homes were sprinkled around the historic district. We toured five of the nine or so buildings that were opened to the public last evening. Of course some caught our interest more then others. One of the homes had the owners/restorers as docents. They gave a detailed talk on the work they had done to restore the house including pictures of the restoration in progress. Every room we were shown included some type of faux painting from marbling to woodgraining to faux book bindings. It was lovely work.

Christ Episcopal Church was open to entertain those touring the buildings with Christmas Caroles. Hubby and I took special interest in their stained glass restoration project. Apparently they have some of the oldest examples of American Stained Glass still found in their original setting. We will have to go back during daylight to see how lovely these old beauties can be.

After the tour we stopped by the Ovo Café for coffee. That was the plan...just coffee. Of course the best laid plans of mice and people who have been out in a cold rain...so it became coffee, desert, and wine - they serve Cockburns Tawny Port. Lovely way to end an evening.

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The Incredibles

See the animated film The Incredibles. It really is that good.

You know it's really annoying that the movie production folks make it so hard to find links to movie posters that will not break when you copy them. You would think they would want free advertising. *sigh*

Posted by prolurkr at 10:26 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

CFP - 'Young People and New Technologies'

University College Northampton, U.K. September 7th-9th 2005 Organised by the British Sociological Association Youth Study Group.

Abstracts are invited for an interdisciplinary conference focused upon the relationships between young people and new technologies.

As the use of new media technologies has become increasingly widespread in Western societies, the significance of such new technologies for adolescents has become a crucial area of research. Whether in respect of their patterns of leisure and identity, their modes of learning and transition, or their everyday domestic lives, youth are among the heaviest and most dynamic users of a variety of new technologies, most notably perhaps, the various facets of the internet, together with mobile phones, digital television, games consoles and digital music players. At the same time however, it is clear that levels of access and use are subject to considerable variations in quantity and quality.

The conference organisers invite proposals from academics and other researchers, as well as those working with young people in a professional capacity, whether in the voluntary or state sector.

Papers should fall within the area of 'young people and new technologies' and we would particularly encourage contributions which address the topic from the point of view of one or more of the following categories:

* Questions of access/exclusion/inclusion
* New media, leisure and lifestyle
* Community learning/participation and ICTs
* Place, space and globalisation
* Surveillance and risk
* Use of mobile communications technologies
* Individual and/or collective use of the internet
* Youth subcultures/scenes/tribes
* Gender/sexuality
* Education/training/transitions
* Work and employment
* Gaming Cultures
* Production and marketing of 'youth' technologies
* Questions of policy and/or regulation
* Ethnicity and/or nation
* Methodological questions

At this stage these areas of interest are merely intended to illustrate the range of topics which may be included within the conference. Conference streams will be decided upon subsequent to the receipt and review of abstracts.

*The deadline for abstracts is March 31st 2005*
Please send all abstracts by email to Paul Hodkinson: p.hodkinson@surrey.ac.uk

(queries about the event can be addressed to Sian Lincoln at sian.lincoln@northampton.ac.uk or Paul Hodkinson at p.hodkinson@surrey.ac.uk)

Posted by prolurkr at 10:21 PM | TrackBack

New Blogosphere Stats

New stats can be found at: McGann, Rob (Nov. 22, 2004). The Blogosphere By the Numbers. ClickZ Network. Retrieved Nov. 23, 2004 from http://www.clickz.com/stats/sectors/traffic_patterns/article.php/3438891.

Looks good for my research demographic: 13-19 year olds have created an estimate 2,120,000 blogs or 51.5% of the total available.

Source: Perseus Development Corp. via ClickZ

Posted by prolurkr at 09:20 AM | TrackBack

Competitive Christmas Decorating

The competitive Christmas decorators have begun spreading their form of "cheer." I've seen more then one case of a poor misused partner (usually male) hanging off the house's guttering with one foot on the ladder, while the other partner (usually female) gives instructions on the precise placement of a light clip as viewed from their vantage point on the ground. They are out there decorating as though their lives depend upon it.

Soon the electronic crèches with the motorized baby Jesus, who nods at his plastic parents and those wise looking men with the light bulbs up their backsides, will be dotting the front yards of homes throughout the area. My favorite has the aforementioned electric crèche, with a lighted air filled Santa and Frosty standing guard on each side. Call me Scrooge if you will, though I'm actually more of a Grinch if the truth be told. I do not see the joy in spending hours stringing lights around everything that doesn't move to fast, or in those December electric bills that will undoubtedly be enough to chock the proverbial cat, or in the sheer wastefulness of the entire operation. So de-Grinch me and prove that the holidays can be celebrated without all the electric trappings...PROVE IT. LOL

Several years ago I worked in an office with a lot of women. A LOT OF WOMEN. I also drove 2 hours to work there so I spent a significant part of each day, 4 hours total, in the car seeing what people did to their homes. That year I tried to elaborate on the whole "competitive Christmas decorating" concept, only to be told - in chorus - that the folks were just sharing their "Christmas spirit" with others. *rolling my eyes in their sockets*

You see, everyday on my drive I watched new lights being added to home displays. There were these two double-wides across the highway from each other. I don't know if they were just rivals or if they were family, though knowing the finer points of house placement in southern Indiana I bet on the family thing. They started out with the average display…electrification of the bushes along side the front door, a single 3D figure in the yard (one had a Santa the other a Snowman), and a wreath on the front door itself. As the weeks leading up to Christmas passed, first one would add something to the display then the other would add the same thing and trump them with a larger version or more elaborate one or just more than one. It finally ended up that each had rope lights lining the driveway, multiple electrified 3D objects, and lights on everything you can think of plant-wise plus one of them - the winner I assume - had lights strung all over their old junker car that always sat in the driveway. Christmas spirit my ***, I know pure competition when I see it. LOL

That was also the year that in Brownstown Indiana the Jackson Country Courthouse display included putting chaser lights on the treads of the county tank. When you stopped at the cities only stoplight, it sincerely looked like the dang thing was coming at you. The lights only stayed on the tank for about three days…I'm sure some flustered person called and complained. Good for them because it was a traffic hazard. This link takes you to a picture of the Courthouse, the tank is visible through the trees in the right of the picture. Sorry it's not a holiday picture.

There is Christmas spirit for you..chaser lights on a tank and miniature airports, complete with lighted runways.

Posted by prolurkr at 07:08 PM | TrackBack

Cooking Whole Carnberry Sauce

When I was a kid, whole cranberry sauce cooking was a sure sign that fall was here. The sound of those hard berries popping in the hot sugar syrup was as tempting to young ears as the sugary smell of the concoction was to the nose. A real sensory fest...and we always knew that the taste buds would get the last comment.

So today, when I was in the grocery, I had to pickup a couple of bags of cranberries to make whole berry sauce. As I write this the popping is just finishing up and I will shortly be turning down the heat so they can cool. The recipe follows, so run out and make some for yourself. Not for the holiday, just for you. *S* Oh the recipe says that serving size is two tablespoons...not sure who they are kidding...in my experience a cup or so per person is perfect. *S*

Homemade Whole Cranberry Sauce

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
1 (12-ounce) package Ocean Spray® Fresh or Frozen Cranberries, rinsed and drained

1. Combine water and sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to boil; add cranberries, return to boil. Reduce heat and boil gently for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cover and cool completely at room temperature. Refrigerate until serving time.

Makes 2 1/4 cups.

Nutritional Facts Per Serving (2 tablespoons): Calories 51(3%DV), Fat 0grams, Pot. 14mg(<1%DV), Total Carb. 13grams(4%DV), Dietary Fiber <1gram(3%DV), Sugars 11grams, Vitamin C 2mg(3%DV), Dietary Exchange: Fruit 1

Recipe and photograph courtesy of Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc.

The recipe was taken from Cooks Recipes

Posted by prolurkr at 12:42 PM | TrackBack

Conference CFP - Rethinking Reception

RETHINKING RECEPTION
Duke University, Durham, NC March 24-26, 2005

This conference both proposes, and interrogates the utility of the concept of reception for understanding audience interaction with texts in all their various forms—be it readers and novels, readers and critical theory, viewers and films, viewers and television, web-users and the internet, listeners and radio, consumers and products, and nations and the trans-national flow of cultural objects. Thus the conference proposes to bring together work on readership, spectatorship, and consumption under the broader analytic of reception, and to initiate a dialogue between work in film studies, literary studies, cultural studies, critical theory, philosophy, and cognitive psychology. The conference aspires to shed light on different aspects of reception and to develop and to refine trans-disciplinary avenues of approach to questions of audience interaction with texts.

Potential panels or areas of specification within the broader theme of reception could include the following:

ONTOLOGY, AFFECT AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE SUBJECT
What is the agency of receivers in relation to objects? To what extent are subjects determined or even constituted in different ways by the objects with which they interact?

PERCEPTION, RECEPTION AND TECHNOLOGIES
How do different technologies—media, transportation, medical, architectural etc.—create different frames for reception, or practices of reception--if these can still be thought of as discrete areas at all?

RECEPTION AND THE POLITICAL
How is the concept of reception useful for theorizing the constitution of political discourses and hierarchies of power in a public sphere dominated by the media--videos and photographs of violence committed in wartime, beheadings broadcast on the internet, endless TV and internet replays of spectacular events?

RECEPTION, THE NATION AND SOVEREIGNTY
What does reception as an analytic reveal about the concepts of the nation, sovereignty, regionalism and trans-nationalism? What do reflections on reception at a trans-national level reveal about the ontogenesis of forms of political sovereignty in the 20th century?

Papers of 20 minutes might address any aspect of reception and proposals for panels not listed above are also welcome. Submissions should ideally address the specificities of the receivers in question, or the specific circumstances or practices of reception, or, alternatively, justify why such attention is not relevant in the case(s) considered. The organizers also hope to initiate a fruitful dialogue among conference participants through workshops for discussion of texts related to reception. Conference participants are encouraged to propose specific articles, books, studies or even works in progress that could be discussed.

The deadline for submission of 250-500 word paper abstracts is January 1, 2005. Please include your name, institutional affiliation, e-mail address, and phone number. Email abstracts to rethinkingreception@yahoo.com. Please see http://www.duke.edu/literature/Reception/conference.html for a more detailed call for papers and additional information. For general questions about the conference, contact rethinkingreception@yahoo.com.

Posted by prolurkr at 10:02 AM | TrackBack

Weblog / Blog Reference List

I've been working on my Reference Manager listings both adding new material and reworking the output style so it conforms to both APA and the type of material I cite. So I decided to do a general blog reference dump and post it here, Weblog & Blog Reference List, as a pdf file. I will try to periodically rework this page by adding new material. Enjoy.

Posted by prolurkr at 06:58 PM | TrackBack

What is a weblog or a blog?

I have been collecting definitions of the terms "weblog" & "blog" for sometime now. I find it interesting how each draws the lines between self and other - what is us and what is not us. I'm sure I will be writing more on this issue in the future, as I'm spending today searching for online definitions before I hit the academic journals I can't access at home. So to start the conversation I decided to post the current definition that I am using in my writing:

A weblog is a frequently modified website that allows updating with items that are grouped primarily by the time and/or date of posting. Entries usually appear in reverse chronological order. Contents of the weblog may be available publicly or through restricted access. Weblogs may also utilize special software designed for this implementation.

This is my personal definition so if you are going to use it please make sure you spell my name correctly in the citation. *w* I'll be watching.

Posted by prolurkr at 02:12 PM | TrackBack

Social Network Analysis on the Semantic Web: Techniques and Challenges for Visualizing FOAF - Preprint

From Geek-Guides

Social Network Analysis on the Semantic Web: Techniques and Challenges for Visualizing FOAF

A preprint of the paper, 'Social Network Analysis on the Semantic Web: Techniques and Challenges for Visualizing FOAF' is now available via the 'papers' box in the sidebar of the BROG site.

This is a draft chapter (Chapter 14) that we've prepared for Vladimir Geroimenko's edited book, Visualizing the Semantic Web.

The chapter focuses largely on FOAF (friend-of-a-friend) data collected from LiveJournal -- to our knowledge, this is one of the few attempts to really work with that data.

Posted by prolurkr at 11:59 PM | TrackBack

The Most Important Conference CFP of them All - AoIR

Call for Papers – Internet Research 6.0: INTERNET GENERATIONS

International and Interdisciplinary Conference of the Association of Internet Researchers
Chicago, Illinois, USA
October 5 – 9, 2005

Workshops: October 5, 2005

AoIR conference: October 6 – 9, 2005

Deadline for submissions: February 1, 2005. Submission instructions will be announced soon.

INTERNET GENERATIONS

The Internet has been a rapidly evolving phenomenon, so much so that we may talk about generations of the Internet. With everything moving faster in ‘Internet time,’ we have arguably spanned many technological Internet generations within a single human generation: from the birth of computing to the first online communications; from the beginnings of email to the enriched worlds of chat, virtual worlds and mobile text messaging; from the workplace to home and school; from optional to all-but-mandatory; and from mainframe to desktop to laptop to mobile devices.

We can also talk about contextual Internet generations, from the early pioneers who count themselves among those communicating online before the 1980s; to the early adopters of the 1980s in university and proprietary systems; to latecomers finding the need to adopt computing and technology use as part of their daily work; to the current and coming generations that will not know a time without a computer in the household, a mobile phone in their hand, and a lap- or palmtop and an MP3 player an essential part of their daily wear.

This massive change in technologies, and in work and social practices suggests many avenues of interest for Internet research.

CALL FOR PAPERS

We call for papers from a wide perspective of disciplines, methodologies, and communities. We invite papers that address the theme of Internet Generations including TOPICS such as:

* Histories of the Internet: human, social, technical, and/or cultural stories and histories
* Internet use by generation, e.g., by era of technology, by children and seniors, or by age of user, etc.
* Individual, group, organizational, or community use, adoption, or diffusion of the Internet and its practices
* Development in use of languages, new vocabularies, social roles, rules, and etiquette
* Societal impacts of and on the Internet and its evolution
* Perspectives on the Internet and social change in a changing world
* Internet expansion across divides, borders, nationalities, etc.
* Mapping the course of Internet connectivity
* Prospects for the future: Next generation Internet

We invite submissions for papers, panels, and demonstrations of work on topics related to the conference theme of Internet Generations. Sessions at the conference will be established that specifically
address the conference theme. We particularly call for innovative, exciting, and unexpected takes on the conference theme. We also welcome submissions on topics that address social, cultural, political,
economic, and/or aesthetic aspects of the Internet beyond the conference theme. In all cases, we welcome disciplinary and interdisciplinary submissions as well as international collaborations from both AoIR and non-AoIR members.

GRADUATE STUDENT PROPOSALS AND PARTICIPATION

We strongly encourage submissions of proposals from graduate students, and papers for consideration for a special Student Award. Students should note their student status with submission. Students wishing to be a candidate for the Student Award must send a full final paper to the conference organizers by June 1, 2005.

PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS

We invite proposals for a limited number of pre-conference workshops which will provide participants with in-depth, hands-on and/or creative opportunities. Proposals should be no more than 1000 words, and should clearly outline the purpose, methodology, structure, participant costs, equipment and minimal attendance required, as well as the relevance of the workshop to the conference as a whole. Proposals will be accepted if they demonstrate that the workshop will add significantly to the overall program in terms of thematic depth, hands-on experience, or local opportunities for scholarly or artistic connections.

CONTACT INFORMATION

If you have questions about the conference, program, or AoIR, please contact the following people. Please use a subject line that clearly distinguishes your message for spam!

Program Chair: Caroline Haythornthwaite haythorn@uiuc.edu – Inquiries on conference content: paper submissions, reviewing, paper organization

Conference Site Coordinator: Steve Jones sjones@uic.edu – Inquiries on meeting rooms, audiovisual equipment, conference site

AoIR President: Nancy Baym, University of Kansas, nbaym@ku.edu – Inquiries regarding the Association of Internet Researchers and sponsorship

Posted by prolurkr at 11:47 PM | TrackBack

"Group, Community, or Social Network: A Discussion"

I have a long standing issue with the term "community" as it is applied to online spaces. It often seems that any gathering of more than two individuals and someone will call them a community. In trying to sort though my own thinking on the term I wrote the following paper for a Sociology class in 2003. Based on some backchannel discussions I've had in the last two weeks, including ones about the "Electronic Tribes" CFP, I decided to link this class paper from Professional-Lurker so that if nothing else someone can use my bibliography for their own work.

Group, Community, or Social Network: A Discussion

This paper explores definitions of group, community, and social network through a review of associated literature. The prevailing definitions are then applied to six different CMC environments: email, email listserv, bulletin boards/message boards/newsgroups, chat, instant messenger, and weblogs. Each environment is described including its mode of communication, requirements for access, and the availability of cross posting within the same environment.

Posted by prolurkr at 07:44 PM | TrackBack

CFP - Book Chapters "Electronic Tribes"

A CALL FOR BOOK CHAPTERS:

ELECTRONIC TRIBES: INTERPERSONAL, SMALL-GROUP, ORGANIZATIONAL, AND CULTURAL COMMUNICATION ON THE INTERNET

A collection of essays on the human tendency toward online tribalism.

Collected and Edited by:
Tyrone L. Adams
University of Louisiana at Lafayette

&

Stephen A. Smith
University of Arkansas

What does it mean to be in a tribe? How does one create a shared identity with a tribe? What are the aspects of tribalism? Furthermore, does online discourse amplify or alter the realities of tribal instinct? Electronic Tribes: Interpersonal, Small-group, Organizational, and Cultural Communication on the Internet is a foray into the psyche of the human mind and how it functions in several online communication contexts. This collection of essays makes the argument that humanity only has the capacity to think and communicate within the parameters of its biological and nurtured tribal instincts.

The co-editors of Electronic Tribes are now in the solicitation stage of abstracts, outlines, or finished essays which relate to the theme of online tribalism. All work must conform to the American Psychological Association’s style guide (4th Edition), and must be no longer than 25 pages double-spaced, including references. Please place all inquiries and submissions to Tyrone L. Adams (tyadams@louisiana.edu) at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. To date, no agreement has been reached with a publisher. However, a working prospectus document is in production.

Posted by prolurkr at 07:15 PM | TrackBack

Jennifer Stromer-Galley's Musing on Being "On" the Academic Job Market

Jennifer Stromer-Galley has posted an interesting musing on the wages of the academic job hunt. Check it out here, and scroll to Thursday, November 18, 2004.

At NCA last week I was struck by the flock of casually dressed recruiters standing inside the door to the "Job Fair" ballroom. They were waiting there not talking to each other, eyeing everyone who walked by outside, evaluating potential everywhere. I got a cold shiver seeing them there.

They reminded me to clearly of my HR days recruiting undergrads, where you could pretty much tell in 10 seconds if the candidate had potential for your organization. I would love to say it's all in the candidate's background but truthfully "fit" in an organization is the most important component, once you have crossed the threshold by meeting the basic requirements for the job. This is the stuff that is impossible to quantify...it's totally qualitative and pretty metaphysical. And as much as some folks would like to say that academic and business worlds are different...trust me they are not THAT different. Folks who think they are do so because they have little or no experience in both spheres as an adult.

Posted by prolurkr at 07:07 PM | TrackBack

Organization and finding the right tools for the job

As I've begun thinking about the next set of research projects, and in light of attending the NCA Pre-Conference Workshop on Ethnographic Field Notes, I've been thinking about my work practices and the tools I use.

Back when I was a Human Resources Manager I found the perfect notepads for my note taking style. Levenger Notepads work great for me, particularly the yellow ruled version. They are narrowly lined with an open vertical space at the left that allows me to make notes about things to lookup, or to draw mind-maps, or to doodle. I took many a management meeting note on this paper then when I returned to school I kept using my same pads to take class, conference, and colloquia notes. Many, but not all, of which I file for later use.

Last year I started taking reading notes in Clairefontaine Cloth-bound French-ruled Notebooks this unique lining allows me to draw graphs, take detailed notes using the smaller line widths, and to keep my outline format notes neat. The vertical gird pattern repeats to the end of the paper, from the first vertical line that is...the large horizontal lines only section is just on the left margin. With these notebooks I can lay them open, I take reading notes on the right and then annotate thoughts, the occasional insight, etc. on the left. Like the Levenger pads I use the margins to note things I need to lookup, or to draw mind-maps connecting ideas in my reading. The only problem with these notebooks is that they are hard to find. TIS College Bookstore in Bloomington carries them, but I don't know if they do so at their other college locations. Though I should note that they do not list the notebooks, or much of any other expendable, office supply on their website.

At the NCA Pre-Conference Workshop on Ethnographic Field Notes one of the participants took her field notes in a Field Sketchbook. This top wirebound book was roughly 5x7 and looked like it contained drawing paper with a nice tooth. The pages are laid out with a square for the drawing and then maybe 5 or 6 lines below the sketch for notes. I really liked this idea for sketching and taking notes at the same time when doing ethnographic work. I had previously done diagrams and rough layouts but not real sketches.

So yesterday I visited Pygmalion's Art Supplies in Bloomington to find my own copy of this handy little notebook. Unfortunately, well fortunately actually, they were out of this type of field sketchbook and the sales assistant had no idea when they would have them back in stock. Because they were out of what I wanted she asked if maybe another type of sketchbook would work, say a Bienfang NoteSketch? Presto, a much better notebook for my application was found. This 8.5x11 inch notebook has sheets that are roughly divided in half horizontally with a drawing square on the top and lines on the bottom. More space for notes, sketches, and diagrams. In looking up links for this post I now find that the same company makes a version that is divided vertically between drawing and note spaces, I may try that one next to see if it works better.

Finally I have come to realize that I need to take more professional lab notes when I am working on my research. This is really not something I have been trained to do like I understand that laboratory scientists learn to do through their required work. So I am learning. Yesterday at T.I.S. I bought a couple of Avery Lab Books, wide and quad ruled to use for this process. I understand that officially you are to write up notes in ink, lining out as necessary. Likewise all the pages are to remain in the book, mistakes and all. This will be an interesting process for me who likes writing in pencil and hates messy, i.e. lined out, pages in anything I retain. But I'm going to give it a good go in learning to use these techniques to document my research processes.

If I learn to do this well then maybe I will switch to a nicer book, say hardbound lab notebooks in grid and lined styles. And then again maybe I'll just stick with the standard issue you find in any college bookstore.

Posted by prolurkr at 06:20 PM | TrackBack

Call for Papers, Computer Mediated Technologies Special Issue

The Iowa Journal of Communication, an award-winning regional journal in the U.S., issues a Call for Papers for a special issue on Computer Mediated Technologies:

The Iowa Journal of Communication announces a 2005 special issue on internet communication, guest edited by Mark Johns. Manuscripts should be received no later than January 30, 2005.

Computer-mediated technologies (CMTs) are no longer the province of "techies," but have become everyday means of social interaction in our society. This interdisciplinary issue welcomes research on the impact CMTs have had in daily communication among family members and coworkers, colleagues and competitors, friends and strangers. Papers investigating how individuals communicate with one another through email, community mailing lists (listservs or USENET), instant messaging, weblogs, MUDs and MOOs, game environments, and other online venues will be considered. The issue will particularly focus on issues arising for researchers in effectively and ethically studying online communication, therefore papers dealing specifically with these "meta-research" issues, and papers suggesting particularly innovative adaptations of traditional research methods to the CMT settings are especially welcomed.

We welcome submissions from researchers in a variety of areas. Any manuscripts not accepted for the special issue will be considered for the general issue of the journal.

The IJC follows a policy of blind review so no author identification should appear in the body of the manuscript. Manuscripts should not exceed 25 pages and should include a title page that includes author(s) name, academic position, institutional affiliation, full address, telephone number, email address and brief author bio. An abstract of not more than 150 words should accompany the paper. All submissions must conform to the most current edition of the APA. Queries and manuscript submissions should be sent electronically to:

Kimberly A. Powell, Editor
Iowa Journal of Communication
powellki@luther.edu.

Posted by prolurkr at 04:16 PM | TrackBack

Blog Research on Genre (BROG) Project in the news