Social Robot Co-Design Canvases: A Participatory Design Framework

Design teams of social robots are often multidisciplinary, due to the broad knowledge from different scientific domains needed to develop such complex technology. However, tools to facilitate multidisciplinary collaboration are scarce. We introduce a framework for the participatory design of social robots and corresponding canvas tool for participatory design. The canvases can be applied in different parts of the design process to facilitate collaboration between experts of different fields, as well as to incorporate prospective users of the robot into the design process. We investigate the usability of the proposed canvases with two social robot design case studies: a robot that played games online with teenage users and a librarian robot that guided users at a public library. We observe through participants’ feedback that the canvases have the advantages of (1) providing structure, clarity, and a clear process to the design; (2) encouraging designers and users to share their viewpoints to progress toward a shared one; and (3) providing an educational and enjoyable design experience for the teams.

Public Libraries in the Sultanate of Oman and their role in enhancing the knowledge awareness according to the sustainable development goals

This study aims to find out the role of the public libraries in the Sultanate of Oman in achieving knowledge awareness as one of Oman’s Sustainable Development Goals. To achieve the study’s main objective, several questions regarding the public libraries’ role were proposed. To answer these questions, the study adopted a descriptive analytical-qualitative method. Twelve public libraries were covered in this study. Moreover, two qualitative tools were used: interviews with representatives from the public libraries and analyzing the contents of these libraries’ programs. The study found that public libraries’ awareness about sustainable development is medium, as some have no idea about the topic. The study also revealed that the public library focuses on sustainable development as educational aspects by providing databases and facilitating access. Moreover, besides the technical aspects, most public libraries provide the services of public computers and the internet. In addition, some of these public libraries had played a role in disseminating health awareness for society through providing First Aid training courses. However, the public libraries’ role in enhancing society’s awareness of the available job opportunities was very week. In addition, public libraries in Oman have a critical role in preserving Oman’s Documentary Heritage and provide its accessibility as most of the public libraries have a huge number of these documents. The most important recommendation of the study is that the Omani libraries’ authority should focus on developing the awareness of the specialists of the public library about sustainable development and the role of public libraries in achieving it.

ChiroVox: a public library of bat calls

Recordings of bat echolocation and social calls are used for many research purposes from ecological studies to taxonomy. Effective use of these relies on identification of species from the recordings, but comparative recordings or detailed call descriptions to support identification are often lacking for areas with high biodiversity. The ChiroVox website (www.chirovox.org) was created to facilitate the sharing of bat sound recordings together with their metadata, including biodiversity data and recording circumstances. To date, more than 30 researchers have contributed over 3,900 recordings of nearly 200 species, making ChiroVox the largest open-access bat call library currently available. Each recording has a unique identifier that can be cited in publications; hence the acoustic analyses are repeatable. Most of the recordings available through the website are from bats whose species identities are confirmed, so they can be used to determine species in recordings where the bats were not captured or could not be identified. We hope that with the help of the bat researcher community, the website will grow rapidly and will serve as a solid source for bat acoustic research and monitoring.

Ilościowa analiza wykorzystania oprogramowania w badaniach bibliometrycznych

Cel/Teza: Celem analizy było prześledzenie częstości wykorzystania oprogramowania bibliometrycznego oraz aplikacji do analizy sieci społecznych przez badaczy publikujących teksty o tematyce bibliometrycznej. Koncepcja/Metody badań: Artykuły wraz z danymi bibliograficznymi zostały pobrane z serwisu Public Library of Science (PLoS). Do zidentyfikowania publikacji wykorzystano pakiet rplos. Nazwy aplikacji stosowanych w analizach bibliometrycznych ustalono na podstawie literatury przedmiotu oraz witryn internetowych poświęconych tej problematyce. Ogółem w analizie uwzględniono 52 aplikacje, w tym 38 bibliometrycznych i 14 programów do analizy sieci społecznych. Wyniki i wnioski: Łącznie znaleziono 144 artykuły, w których było wymienione przynajmniej jedno oprogramowanie bibliometryczne lub do analizy sieci społecznych. W publikacjach wymieniono 57.69% aplikacji spośród 52, które stały się przedmiotem analizy. Badacze wykorzystali przynajmniej raz 52.63% aplikacji bibliometrycznych oraz 71.43% programów do analizy sieci społecznych. Wśród oprogramowania wyraźnie dominują dwa programy: Gephi i VOSviewer, z których każdy był wskazywany przez badaczy w ponad 20% artykułów. Oryginalność/Wartość poznawcza: Analiza pokazuje znaczenie określonego oprogramowania w analizach bibliometrycznych. Identyfikuje najczęściej wykorzystywane oprogramowanie oraz ewolucję jego wykorzystania w ostatniej dekadzie.

Smart City Technology and Civic Engagement in Ontario, Canada

As smart technologies become more integrated with daily life, vital digital literacy skills are necessary for citizens to engage with and benefit from their cities, local government, and economy. Libraries play an important role in mitigating the growing wealth gap in our communities, especially as it relates to opportunities provided by emerging technologies. With the call for smart city proposals in Toronto, Ontario, what role will the city's LAMs have in collaborating with these future developments? The Toronto Public Library (TPL), a trusted public institution, has a stake in implementing various frameworks and collaborating with government agencies in addressing public concerns around technologies that collect personal information for various purposes and ensuring that vulnerable populations are not left behind. Following an examination of the role libraries play in mitigating consequences of the digital divide, this chapter will discuss the various ways in which TPL and similar community libraries have been involved with digital literacy and inclusion. It will also explore how TPL has been identified by government agencies as a vehicle for civic engagement and oversight in the former Sidewalk Toronto smart city plan.

AKSESIBILITAS LAYANAN FISIK BAGI PENYANDANG DISABILITAS DI PERPUSTAKAAN UMUM DAERAH KABUPATEN JEMBER

The Government of Jember Regency is actively implementing the Regional Regulation (PERDA) of Jember Regency No. 7 of 2016 concerning the Protection and Fulfillment of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, especially on equal distribution of access to information in public spaces, one of which is the library. This study discusses the accessibility of disabled users at the Regional Public Library of Jember Regency. The method used in this study is a qualitative description through data collection, interviews, observations and literature. The analysis of physical accessibility which includes parking areas, pedestrian paths, guide paths for library door services, circulation desks, signs, ramps, layouts and toilets so far has carried the spirit of a disability-friendly library, although it is not fully compliant with IFLA standards, but this is a capital for its development. management of the main causes of the program and the diversity of types of services with consideration of the degree of disability in the Jember Regency Public Library.

Library services enriching community engagement for dementia care: The Tales & Travels Program at a Canadian Public Library as a case study

Growing dementia-friendly library services are contributing to community-based dementia care. Emerging community programs in libraries and museums provide notable opportunities for promoting engagement and inclusivity, but these programs have yet to receive in-depth assessments and analyses to guide future research and practice. This paper presents a case study examining a social and storytelling program for people with dementia run by a Canadian public library. It investigates two research questions: How can public library programs contribute to community-based dementia care? And what are public libraries’ strengths and challenges in running programs for people with dementia? The study involves participant observations of the program and semi-structured interviews with people with dementia, caregivers, and program facilitators (librarians and Alzheimer Society coordinators). Through thematic analysis of fieldnotes and transcripts, the study reveals how this inclusive platform supports engagement, fosters relationships, helps caregivers, and reaches broader communities. This research further uncovers the librarians’ diversified roles as demonstrated through their collaboration with professionals, preparation and research, and facilitation of the sessions. This paper advances librarianship research on enriching community-based dementia care, including furthering inclusivity and engagement and extending accessible library services. By analyzing library programming for the dementia community and assessing its strengths and challenges, the paper highlights librarians’ awareness of the community’s evolving needs and their collaboration with other professionals. It offers practical insights on useful resources and emerging best practices that will hopefully inspire other initiatives in which information professionals can help improve the well-being of vulnerable populations.

Public librarians' perception of their professional role and the library's role in supporting the public sphere: a multi-country comparison

PurposeThe overarching aim of this article is to consider to what extent the perceptions of librarians in Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Norway, Poland and Sweden reflect a unified view of their professional role and the role of their institutions in supporting the formation of the public sphere and to what extent the variations reflect national contexts.Design/methodology/approachThe multi-country comparison is based on online questionnaires. The central research questions are how do librarians legitimize the use of public resources to uphold a public library service? How do librarians perceive the role of public libraries as public spaces? How do librarians perceive their professional role and the competencies needed for it? Consideration is given to how the digital and social turns are reflected in the responses.FindingsThe results show evidence of a unified professional culture with clear influences from national contexts. A key finding is that librarians see giving access as central for both legitimizing library services and for the library's role as a public sphere institution. Strong support is shown for the social turn in supporting the formation of the public sphere while the digital turn appears to be a future challenge; one of seemingly increased importance due to the pandemic.Research limitations/implicationsThis study shows that libraries across the seven countries have expanded beyond simply providing public access to their book-based collections and now serve as social, learning and creative spaces: both in the physical library and digitally. Qualitative research is needed concerning librarians' notions of public libraries and librarianship, which will provide a more in-depth understanding of the changing professional responsibilities and how public libraries recruit the associated competencies.Originality/valueThe article provides a much needed insight into how librarians perceive the role of public libraries in supporting the formation of the public sphere and democratic processes, as well as their own role.

The role of public libraries within ensuring information security and formation of media literacy of personality

The purpose of the article is to determine the role of public libraries in ensuring the information securityof the individual and to establish the formation of its media education. Analyze the practice of teaching medialiteracy in libraries. The methodology consists of the application of general scientific methods of analysis and synthesis, generalization, and review-analytical description, which revealed the place and role of publiclibraries in the formation of personal media literacy and information security of the individual. The scientificnovelty is that the information security of the individual is considered in the context of media literacy andthrough the prism of library activities for the formation of media literacy of users. Conclusions. As a resultof the research, it is determined that - issues of information security of the individual are not considered atthe legislative level, to the appropriate extent, and the main attention is paid to the information security ofthe state. Information security of the individual is an interdisciplinary concept that is studied by scholarsin law, information and library affairs, journalism, computer technology, psychology, sociology, pedagogy,etc. Information security of the individual is an interdisciplinary concept that is studied by scholars in law,information and library affairs, journalism, computer technology, psychology, sociology, pedagogy, etc. It hasbeen proven that the information security of an individual depends on the level of his media literacy, ability tocritically evaluate information, identify unreliable – fake or ordered information that is misleading, to resistpropaganda and manipulation. Modern public libraries play an important role in shaping the media educationof citizens, in particular through their educational and educational activities. Media literacy training is heldon the basis of libraries. Libraries create information materials on this topic, select appropriate informationsources and resources, hold mass events on this topic.Keywords: informational security, media literacy, public library, information.