In the tug-of-war between researchers and IT for supercomputing resources, a centralized approach can help both sides get more bang for their buck. As 2010 began, the University of Washington was preparing to launch its first shared high-performance computing cluster, a 1,500-node system called Hyak, dedicated to research activities. Like other…

Distributed Data Processing, linking a central processing unit to remote computer sites, allows end users more control over their own destiny. Schools have distributed hardware and software but not talent. The primary goal of these staff experts should be to educate users as fully as they can. (MLW)

Presents and discusses implications of a set of measures of information. Definitions of relevant terms, including fact, data, representation, information, and knowledge, are given; four levels of processing data are explained (i.e., data transfer, data selection, data analysis, and data reduction); and relationships between information and…

Discusses the use of optical character recognition (OCR) for inputting documents in an information retrieval system and describes a study that used an OCR-generated database and its corresponding corrected version to examine query evaluation in the presence of noisy data. Scanning technology, recognition technology, and retrieval technology are…

This report provides a summary of the accredited programs in library and information science in the Federal Republic of Germany. Discussions consider the expansion of education programs in such fields as electronic data processing and information and communications technology; the shifting trend in course development from more general to very…

An information society is one in which the expression "to earn one's daily bread by the sweat of one's brow" appears decidedly anachronistic. People have been seduced by the rhetoric of novelty and confused by the surface significance of terms which have become accepted parts of everyday speech. What do rubrics such as information society,…

This paper examines the relationship between democratic citizenship and information technology. Modern information technology disputes the idea that citizens can be properly educated to assume the burdens necessary to reap the blessing of freedom. Information technologies challenge the ability of citizens to fulfill the fundamental requirement of…

Proceedings of a 1986 CAUSE conference on the impact of converging information technologies are presented. Topics of conference papers include: policy issues in higher education, planning and information technology, people issues in information technology, telecommunications/networking, special environments, microcomputer issues and applications,…

Discusses the relationship between computer technology and increased productivity in business activities. The importance of training and user support is emphasized, and a new position of knowledge manager who would coordinate the technology with a user support system is proposed. (LRW)

Described are some of the ways in which computers can enter invisibly into people's lives. The social issues that embodied virtuality will engender are discussed. The hardware and software, connected by wires, radio waves, and infrared that will allow this to occur are described. (KR)

Creative applications of computer networks are discussed. Products and services of the future that come from imaginative applications of both channel and computing capacity are described. The topics of entertainment, transactions, and electronic personal surrogates are included. (KR)

Technologies that enhance the ability to create and understand information have led to changes in the traditional legal concepts of property, ownership, originality, privacy, and intellectual freedom. The importance of government addressing such issues and investing in development of a high-capacity computer network is discussed. (KR)

Institutional policies are needed to guide the responsible use of data, especially in a decentralized operating environment. Factors that influence the development and implementation of policies for decentralized data use are explored. Data use, technological developments, and the needs and responsibilities of users and the institution must be…

The demands placed on the networks transporting the information and knowledge generated by the increased diversity and sophistication of computational machinery are described. What is needed to support this increased flow, the structures already in place, and what must be built are topics of discussion. (KR)

The changes in the relationship between the computer and user from that of an isolated productivity tool to than of an active collaborator in the acquisition, use, and creation of information, as well as a facilitator of human interaction are discussed. The four paradigms of computing are compared. (KR)