Sessions for Interaction and Engagement (SIEs) are expected to once again be an immensely popular element of this year’s iConference, which takes place March 25 – 28 in Sheffield, UK. SIEs will be an ideal complement to iConference 2018’s peer-reviewed research papers offered Monday through Wednesday. Similar to our Sunday Workshops, but typically spanning a shorter period of time, iConference Sessions for Interaction and Engagement involve participants as more than a passive audience, generating meaningful experiences and thoughtful reflection.

To assist participants in planning, the 2018 SIEs are listed below. These sessions are open to all registered conference participants, with no special advance sign-up required. More detail can be found in our online program schedule.

SIE #1: Mini Maker Fest @ iConference 2018
Presenters: Xiaofeng Li, Sarah Barriage, Ross J. Todd, Leanne Bowler
Times: Monday, March 26, 11:00 am – 12:30 pm and Wednesday, March 28, 9:00 – 10:30 am
This two-part SIE provides an opportunity for conference attendees to engage in playful and creative makerspace activities and stimulating critical discussions about the current status and future directions of research in information science related to the maker movement. Participants will also be encouraged to use a mobile photography app to submit their creations to the mini Maker Fest Competition. Learn more

SIE #2: Supporting Group Work in LIS Education
Presenter: Pamela Ann McKinney
Time: Monday, March 26, 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
The purpose of this session is to provide participants with an opportunity to discuss the challenges and benefits experienced by students when they work collaboratively in groups in LIS education. There is increasing interest in visual methods in LIS research, and participants will actively engage with creation of visual data in the form of drawings and will develop their knowledge of the “draw and write” methodology. Learn more

SIE #3: Dériving Data: Wandering as a Research Method for Information Behaviour
Presenters: Melanie Benson, Andrew Martin Cox, Christopher Foster, Jorge Tiago Martins, Elisa Serafinelli, Xin Zhao
Time: Monday, March 26, 1:30pm – 3:00pm
The dérive or drift is a technique of urban encounter developed in Pscyhogeography. It is a playful wander through the city that seeks to uncover the interesting and strange in the everyday environment around us. It is also an opportunity for delegates to encounter Sheffield as a city in an interesting way. Learn more

SIE #4: ALPR DataDive: The Visualization and Analysis of Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) Databases – from Data Science to Data Ethics
Times: Monday, March 26, 1:30 – 3:30 pm and Wednesday, March 28, 11:00 am -12:30 pm
Presenters: Bryce Clayton Newell, Mike Katell, Jeff Hemsley
The growing ability of law enforcement to easily and affordably draw information-rich insights from the surveillance data they collect implicates important social, political, and ethical concerns. The purpose of this 2-part SIE is to provide scholars access to ALPR data and to provide an interactive and collaborative opportunity. Participants can go to http://bcnewell.com/alpr-data-dive/ to request access to the ALPR data prior to iConference 2018. Lean more

SIE #5: Data StorySLAM
Presenters: Michael B. Twidale, Kate McDowell
Time: Monday, March 26, 3:30pm – 5:00pm
In this SIE we will explore the potential of data storytelling by inviting the sharing of stories about data. We will also explore approaches to and challenges of teaching data storytelling, including teaching students who may not be at all familiar with this approach. Lean more

SIE #6: Collective Development of Open Educational Resources in Scholarly Communication
Presenters: Maria Bonn, Josh Bolick, Will Cross
Time: Monday, March 26, 3:30pm – 5:00pm
Understanding the issues at stake in scholarly communication is a core competency that new librarians need to acquire and that new scholars and researchers need to understand in relationship to their work. In this hands-on session, we ask individuals or small teams to design an open learning object like a video, lesson plan, game, or hack, that supports and maximizes the potential of our systems of scholarly communication. Lean more

SIE #7: Computational Thinking at the iSchools: Why Bother?
Presenters: Mega Subramaniam, Hai Hong, Marijke Visser, Melissa Johnston, Colette Drouillard, Stephanie Long-Murphy
Time: Tuesday, March 27, 11:00am – 12:30pm
This Session for Interaction and Engagement will stimulate discussion on research opportunities in CT that leverage the unique strengths and interests of iSchools and roles that iSchools must play in preparing information professionals who have CT skills; resulting in concrete takeaways related to CT in iSchools such as ideas for future research, redesigned courses and curricula, and other larger initiatives. Learn more

SIE #8: Contemplating Information in the Pleasurable and the Profound
Presenters: Kiersten F. Latham, Jenna Hartel, Tim Gorichanaz, Anh Thu Nguyen
Time: Tuesday, March 27, 11:00am – 12:30pm
Mindfulness, meditation, atmospherics, well-being, flourishing, happiness, positivity, spirituality-all part of contemplative studies, an academic understanding of how contemplative practices are used to interpret the world. What can information science learn from, and contribute to, contemplative studies? Learn more

SIE #9: When iSchool meets D-School
Presenter: ginger “all-lower-case” coons
Time: Tuesday, March 27, 3:30pm – 5:00pm
A comparatively new trend is the iSchool as graduate-level design school, offering courses and concentrations in fields like User Experience Design. In this session, the floor will be open for participants to discuss the experiences, ramifications, and tactics of negotiating design education in an iSchool setting. Learn more

SIE #10: Curators of the Infosphere?: What’s the Good of PI for LIS (and Vice Versa)?
Presenters: David Bawden, Lyn Robinson
Time: Tuesday, March 27, 3:30pm – 5:00pm
This is an interactive panel session, in which the panel members, and Luciano Floridi as discussant, engage with the audience to debate the value and potential of Floridi’s Philosophy of Information as a foundation for library/information science. Learn more

SIE #11: How Ethical will you be with my Deepest Story?
Presenters: Theresa Dirndorfer Anderson, Ina Fourie, Anika Meyer, Liezl Ball
Time: Wednesday, March 28, 9:00am – 10:30am
Transformation of digital worlds that secure social inclusion for all requires a deep understanding of information needs and lived experiences. The session will develop awareness of ethical concerns, offer an opportunity for shared sense-making and co-design of guidelines to help researchers build the confidence to engage in and report on this deeply personal form of research inquiry. Learn more

SIE #12: Standardizing Knowledge
Presenters: Heather Marie MacNeil, Jennifer Douglas, Fiorella Foscarini, Bonnie Mak, Gillian Oliver
Time: Wednesday, March 28, 11:30 am – 12:30 pm
Standards and standardized languages are frequently invoked as a reliable way to ensure consistency and interoperability in the management of information objects, from archives, libraries, and museums to the digital environment and beyond. This panel seeks to explore how the infrastructure of standards can transmit values and biases, and how those perspectives are embodied in the description, management, interpretation, and use of resources. Learn more

SIE #13: iSchools as an Inspirative Movement: Information Science Harmonization Issues
Presenters: Tatjana Aparac-Jelusic, Alen Doracic, Jan Pisanski, Juan Jose Bote Vericad, Maria Simi
Time: Wednesday, March 28, 11:00am – 12:30pm
This panel will provide an interactive platform for faculty members interested in designing Information Science (IS) educational programs and motivating students with different background other than in IS to become information professionals. It will introduce the goals and aims of the EINFOSE project (European Information Science Education: Encouraging Mobility and Learning Outcomes Harmonization) and debate the issues of harmonization of entry requirements and learning outcomes at graduate level programs in IS. Learn more

iConference 2018 takes place Sunday, March 25 through Wednesday, March 28, 2018. It is jointly organized by two iSchools in the UK: The University of Sheffield’s Information School and the iSchool at Northumbria. Registration is now open. Visit the iConference website for complete details.

The iConference 2018 early registration period ends Friday, Jan. 19. Register now to secure the lowest available rate. Late-registration fees will go into effect Saturday, Jan. 20, with an increase of roughly 20 percent. Visit the iConference registration page for details: http://ischools.org/the-iconference/registration/

iConference 2018 will take place in Sheffield, UK, March 25-28. The 2018 theme is Transforming Digital Worlds. The conference will feature an array of papers to be published by Springer, as well as workshops, interactive session, posters, early career colloquium, and three keynote presentations by Dr. Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Dr. Susan Dumais and Professor Luciano Floridi.

The early registration rate is £360 ($427 USD) and £270 ($355) for students. This rate will increase roughly 20 percent at the conclusion of the early registration period on Friday, Jan. 19. This year’s registration includes lunch on all conference days, as well as coffee breaks, the opening reception on March 25, and banquet dinner on March 27. Combined, the 2018 rates represent the best overall iConference registration value in many years.

Important Links
iConference 2018 Home: http://ischools.org/the-iconference/
Registration: http://ischools.org/the-iconference/registration/
Program Schedule: https://www.conftool.com/iconference2018/sessions.php
Accommodation, travel and more: http://ischools.org/the-iconference/venue/

iConference 2018 is jointly organized by the University of Sheffield’s Information School and the iSchool at Northumbria. The iConference is presented each year by the iSchools organization. 2018 sponsors include Microsoft and Morgan & Claypool Publishers.

The iConference 2018 Program Schedule is now available. Participants and presenters can browse the agenda to start making their plans. In addition, conference organizers have also published Presentation Guidelines for papers and posters authors, so they can begin preparations.

iConference 2018 takes place March 25-28 in Sheffield UK. Jointly organized by the iSchools at the University of Sheffield and Northumbria University, the conference theme is “Transforming Digital Worlds.” Keynote speakers include Dr. Lynn Silipigni Connaway (OCLC Research), Dr. Susan Dumais (Microsoft Research) and Professor Luciano Floridi (University of Oxford).

Conference registration is now open, with discounted early rates available through Jan. 19, 2018. All information scholars, researchers and practitioners are welcome, regardless of affiliation—affiliation with a member-iSchool is not required. Also please note that the iConference 2018 Program Schedule is subject to change.

Important Links

• Conference Home: http://ischools.org/the-iconference/
• Program Schedule: https://www.conftool.com/iconference2018/sessions.php
• Registration: http://ischools.org/the-iconference/registration/
• Accommodation, travel and more: http://ischools.org/the-iconference/venue/

Registration is now open for iConference 2018, with discounted rates available through Jan. 19, 2018. iConference 2018 will take place in Sheffield, UK, March 25-28.

The 2018 theme is Transforming Digital Worlds. The conference chairs have just finished the most competitive review process in iConference history, with 30% of completed research papers accepted for presentation. The conference will also present preliminary papers, workshops, interactive sessions, posters, early career colloquium, and three keynote presentations by Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Luciano Floridi and Susan Dumais.

The early registration rate is £360 ($427 USD) and £270 ($355) for students. This year’s registration includes lunch on all conference days, as well as coffee breaks, the opening reception on March 25, and banquet dinner on March 27. Combined, the 2018 rates represent the best overall iConference registration value in many years.

Visit the conference website today for more information on registration, booking accommodation in Sheffield, travel, and visa information. The program schedule will be posted in December.

iConference 2018 is jointly organized by the University of Sheffield’s Information School and the iSchool at Northumbria. The iConference is presented each year by the iSchools organization, and iConference 2018 marks the thirteenth conference in this annual series. Click here for summaries of past conferences and links to proceedings.

iConference 2018 is now accepting submissions of papers, posters and proposals. Authors can submit their work using the conference’s secure submission website through the deadline of September 18. iConference 2018 will take place March 25-28, 2018 in Sheffield, UK; accepted papers will be published in Springer’s Lecture Notes in Computer Science, and indexed by Web of Science and Scopus.

The theme of iConference 2018 is “Transforming Digital Worlds.” The conference is being jointly organized by the University of Sheffield’s Information School and the iSchool at Northumbria. It is the thirteenth event in the iConference series, and the second to take place in Europe.

The iConference pushes the boundaries of information studies, explores core concepts and ideas, and creates new technological and conceptual configurations. It is open to all information scholars, researchers and practitioners, regardless of affiliation with a member iSchool. Click here to view this year’s Call for Participation.

The iConference series is presented by the iSchools Inc., a worldwide consortium of information schools dedicated to advancing the information field, and preparing students to meet the information challenges of the 21st Century. Sponsors for 2018 include Microsoft Corp.

iConference 2018 organizers University of Sheffield and Northumbria University have announced their full slate of keynote speakers for next year’s conference in Sheffield, UK. And given that the collective members of the iSchools Organization share a fundamental interest in the relationships between information, people, and technology, it’s only appropriate that the three 2018 speakers are scheduled to give talks on the subjects of people, information, and technology, respectively.

The following is a brief introduction of the 2018 speakers; more detail is offered on the conference’s Keynote Speakers webpage:

• People: Dr. Lynn Connaway, Senior Research Scientist and Director of User Research at OCLC Research where she leads research into user and information seeking behaviour, and an American Library Association for College and Research Libraries project on academic library support for student learning.
• Information: Professor Luciano Floridi, Professor of Philosophy and Ethics of Information at the Oxford Internet Institute, Distinguished Scholar in Residence at the Department of Economics, American University, Washington D.C., and Faculty Fellow of The Alan Turing Institute.
• Technology: Dr. Sue Dumais, Distinguished Scientist at Microsoft and the Deputy Managing Director of Microsoft’s Redmond Research Laboratory where she leads research at the intersection of information retrieval and human-computer interaction.

iConference 2018 will take place March 25-28, 2018, and this June announcement represents the earliest point at which the conference’s full speaker program has been established.

The iConference 2018 Call for Participation was announced in May, and authors are encouraged to begin work on their submissions. This year, for the first time, accepted papers will be published in Springer’s Lecture Notes in Computer Science series, and indexed by major services such as Web of Science and Scopus. Conference organizers will begin accepting submissions in early July. Visit the conference website for more details.

About the iConference
An annual presentation of the iSchools organization since 2005, the iConference brings together scholars and researchers from around the world to examine critical information issues in contemporary society. The 2018 theme is Transforming Digital Worlds. iConference 2018 is jointly presented by the Information School at the University of Sheffield and the iSchool at Northumbria University. Vist the About the iConference page to learn more about the series, including links to past proceedings.

The iConference is sponsored by Microsoft, and additional sponsorships are available.