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Sheng-Hsiang Lance Peng

When the Gates Open: Ghost Month and the Hauntings of the Web

At its core, Ghost Month is about infrastructures of connection. The gates of the underworld are said to swing open, allowing for traffic (spiritual, emotional, social) between realms. It is about networks: between the living and the dead and also between generations, between households and temples, between earthly desires and cosmic orders. And here is where I want to ask: what if we read the internet itself as a kind of ghost gate? What if the lag, glitches, hidden circuits of our digital infrastructures are not simply “errors” but hauntings, reminders that our networks, too, are spectral spaces where living and nonliving, human and machinic, constantly mingle?

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Magnus Igbinovia

Through a Filtered Lens: How Information Retrieval Bias Shapes Users’ Information Consumption

Everyone is interacting with information systems to access, retrieve, and subsequently use information for diverse purposes. What if the information we are consuming to make life-staking decisions has been filtered by an invisible hand? Like the lens of a camera, the invisible hand filters what information we receive, decides for us what is most relevant to our search queries, what is emphasized in our search results, and the ranking order of the information we receive. Unfortunately, this invisible hand is with a “closed fist” (devoid of openness, clarity, and understanding) and is highly subjective.

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Kaetrena Davis Kendrick

Considering Beneficence as a Core Librarianship Practice

Apathy.  Disengagement. Burnout. Contempt. Anger. These are a few commonly reported long-term behavioral and emotional outcomes of low-morale experiences, which I’ve been talking with academic and public library workers about since 2016.  Defined as repeated, protracted exposure to workplace abuse and neglect, these experiences reveal the pervasiveness of dysfunctional behaviors in library workplaces. Just as concerning, long-term exposure to harm also results in increased breaches of ethics, and many library workers report high levels of skepticism, mistrust, and uncertainty towards their colleagues and library users.

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Sheng-Hsiang Lance Peng

Why Not the Pub? Rethinking UK Bars as Accessible Learning Environments

This isn’t a manifesto to turn every UK pub into a coworking space. I’m not here to replace crisps with coursework or suggest that anyone swap pints for PowerPoint. UK bars serve a really rooted cultural role as social hubs, third places and sites of relaxation, laughter and (often messy) community. But after weeks of hopping between libraries and cafés (some packed, others shutting early or refusing laptops) I found myself quietly wondering: Why not the pub?

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Shaharima Parvin

Librarians as Cultural Stewards: Preserving Iftar Traditions Through Storytelling

By preserving the traditions of Iftar, librarians play the role of cultural stewards, spiritual witnesses, and bridge builders. In urban societies, many traditions are changing or disappearing. The pressures of modern life – migration, economic transition, climate change – have changed the way people celebrate Ramadan. Preserving Iftar traditions is therefore not only an act of nostalgia but also a means of cultural rehabilitation.

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EducationOriginal
Azeez Adeoye

Fear, Concern, and Collapse of Artificial Intelligence Tools: Perspectives of an Academia

Technology is not a bad invention, but the inability to be human after its adoption and use is what is challenging human existence. Young adults see technology as demi-gods and adore AI without employing critical thinking. Despite their digital nativeness, there is a lack of skills to critically interrogate AI tools and decipher their output or results. Many young adults do not know that AI is prone to error, stemming from the large language models (LLM) upon which it operates. Therefore, there is a greater need for critical digital literacy skills — now more than ever.

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Sheng-Hsiang Lance Peng

The Holy API: Ritual, Protocol and Papal Smoke

Every few decades, a curious thing happens in Vatican City: thousands of people turn their eyes to a chimney. And when the smoke is white, the world knows: Habemus Papam. We have a pope! This centuries-old moment feels ancient, mystical and perhaps even opaque. But let’s look again. What if, instead of dismissing this as quaint Catholic pageantry, we considered it a form of communication? A system. A protocol. In the language of information science and software engineering: an API.

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graphic of AI in education with books and tablet
Original
A. Miller

Integrating AI in Education: Educational Technology Practices, Tools, and Accessibility

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly a topic of interest and concern in higher education. Much of the current research focuses on AI policies, how AI is changing education, and the AI use cases that include benefits (e.g., new insights) and concerns (e.g., academic integrity) of AI use. This article focuses on AI integration and builds on an earlier article on AI tools, algorithmic literacies, and educational technology, demonstrating how inclusive design impacts accessibility and the design of AI in education. With this understanding, educators can evaluate existing educational technologies and AI tools as options they may consider adding to their curriculum. The integration ideas presented may help educators plan for educational technology practices, such as scaffolded lessons and assessments for AI literacy (which include digital and AI literacy frameworks and the benefits and challenges of AI). Additionally, these ideas may help educators get started with AI by offering suggestions on technologies to evaluate.

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