Academia - Information Matters

What happens when students can write a literature review, analyze information, and receive instant feedback with a few prompts? What happens when they make a summary of literatures and answers questions based on the documents they upload? What happens when they find relevant questions and answers for discussion in their thesis work using Grok? Yes, these are possible and researchers are using these tools in effective and productive ways.

Featured Opinion

July 31, 2026 Yanling Liu

What Happens When Research Starts with an Answer?

Have you ever asked ChatGPT a question just to get a quick answer? You’re not alone. Millions of people now turn to AI assistants before opening Google, visiting a website, or asking a librarian for help. College students are no different. Instead of beginning a research assignment by searching for books, articles, or websites, many now begin by asking a generative AI assistant a question and receiving a polished response within seconds. It feels much faster and easier. Yet this seemingly simple shift raises an important question: if research increasingly starts with an answer instead of a search, how do learners move from information to understanding?

Education Original

June 15, 2025 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.

Original

February 4, 2025 Andrew M. Cox

Academic Libraries in Northern England Support Mental Health and Wellbeing

Academic Libraries North is sharing resources about how libraries can support mental health and wellbeing, including case studies based on experience. ALN is a consortium of 33 higher education libraries in the north of England in the United Kingdom. Through collaborative activities and mutual support, they provide opportunities for their members in the exchange of knowledge and experience.

Translation

January 17, 2025 Keren Dali

The Inclusion of Disabled and Neurodiverse Ph.D. Students: Embracing Care and Kindness

Theory- and experience-grounded contemplations about the impact of the COVID-19 global health crisis were reflected in the recent study of disabled and neurodiverse Ph.D. students in information science programs in Canada and the U.S. that we conducted. Ph.D. students present a unique demographic in academia, blending the characteristics of students, researchers, and often teachers as well. Responses from 42 participants revealed a wide range of experiences in their doctoral programs that were both pandemic-specific and transcending the pandemic period.

Professional Development

May 3, 2023 Zoë Abbie Teel

MBTI: Personality as Professional Development in Information Science Fields

The MBTI personality and psychology theory-informed test has become a well-used source in professional development to provide ways for employees, employers, or hopeful candidates to determine how a person will behave, react, act, and conduct business.

Translation

March 21, 2023 Toluwase Victor Asubiaro

(Under)Representation of Research Journals from Africa in Web of Science, and Scopus

Despite the global authoritativeness of Web of Science and Scopus, there are concerns that both platforms are not truly “global” because they are systematically and structurally biased against research produced in non-Western countries, non-English language journals, and research from the arts, humanities, and social sciences.

Professional Development

February 10, 2023 Aylin Imeri

Don’t Underestimate Soft Skills—Hard Skills Are Just the Tip of the Iceberg

Aylin Imeri discusses with Yvonne Appiah Dadson and JonLuc Christensen the value of soft skills such as communication and argumentation when interviewing for Information Science job positions.

Professional Development

January 23, 2023 Aylin Imeri

Professional Development—Ways To Go

Highlights from the ASIS&T Annual Meeting panel, titled “Professional Development in Crisis,” that discussed empowering students and professionals in their early career stages and making them more resilient in a hyper-competitive society and uncertain world.