Tag Archives: Librarian

By TIME Staff, May 7, 2023 9:00 AM EDT

*Screenshot of video, available on article…*

“Tracie knows the power of words,” Amy Poehler said of American Library Association Executive Director and TIME100 Icon Tracie D. Hall, when she introduced Hall at the 2023 TIME100 Gala on April 26.

“When I met her, and when I asked her what her favorite word was, she answered quickly: Abracadabra. How fitting for someone who believes in the magic of encouraging children to read, and providing more books for the incarcerated. Ms. Hall teaches everyone that comes through her doors that they are the protagonist. They are the main character. They have the magic. And we cannot wait to hear what they have to say.”

Editor’s Note: Read more, see link below for original item…

Source: “Free People Read Freely.” Librarian Tracie D. Hall’s Full TIME100 Speech | Time

Current Affairs, Memories & History, Science & Health, Times They Are A-Changing, Web & Technology

Is ChatGPT Closer to a Human Librarian Than It Is to Google?

March 27, 2023 DrWeb

A search engine researcher explains the promise and peril of letting ChatGPT and its cousins search the web for you.

By Chirag Shah, Published March 19, 2023

*Illustration: Phonlamai Photo (Shutterstock)*

The prominent model of information access and retrieval before search engines became the norm – librarians and subject or search experts providing relevant information – was interactive, personalized, transparent and authoritative. Search engines are the primary way most people access information today, but entering a few keywords and getting a list of results ranked by some unknown function is not ideal.

A new generation of artificial intelligence-based information access systems, which includes Microsoft’s Bing/ChatGPT, Google/Bard and Meta/LLaMA, is upending the traditional search engine mode of search input and output. These systems are able to take full sentences and even paragraphs as input and generate personalized natural language responses.

At first glance, this might seem like the best of both worlds: personable and custom answers combined with the breadth and depth of knowledge on the internet. But as a researcher who studies the search and recommendation systems, I believe the picture is mixed at best.

Source: https://gizmodo.com/chatgpt-ai-openai-like-a-librarian-search-google-1850238908

Arts & Humanities, Books & Reading, Libraries, Podcasts, Science & Health, Web & Technology

Librarian Jessamyn West on teaching computer skills in rural Vermont | Slate

June 5, 2022 DrWeb

“In my dream world, library school would partly be help desk school.”

Podcast production by Cameron Drews, May 29, 20227:00 AM

https://dcs.megaphone.fm/SLT7794022753.mp3

This week, host June Thomas talks to Jessamyn West, a librarian in rural Vermont who’s working to improve computer literacy and access to library services in her community.

In the interview, Jessamyn explains her process for helping people to learn basic computer skills, like building a resume, setting up an online dating profile, or learning how to use a mouse.

She also talks about her broader mission to make sure technology is intuitive and accessible to everyone who needs it.

After the interview, June and co-host Isaac Butler discuss mantras and understanding your strengths and weaknesses.

Note: View transcript…

Source: Librarian Jessamyn West on teaching computer skills in rural Vermont