Purpose: This study aims to propose the four different typologies for understanding local information. Design/methodology/approach: This study applied a conceptual approach to analyze and clarify how the concept local information can be understood in wildly different ways. Furthermore, this study employed conceptual analysis of 36 studies. For the conceptual analysis, coding was applied to formulate and abstract four typologies for understanding local information with specific focus on the Thai cultural heritage setting. Findings: The four different typologies include local information as an array of different interpretations as diverse meanings of local, local information as cultural heritage, local information as subject of information management and situated local information. Research limitations/implications: This study mainly focuses relevant typologies for understanding local information in the Thai context. Originality/value: This study contributes and extends the literature in the local information field and the cultural heritage context. In addition, an eclectic strategy of using several alternative typologies for dealing with essentially contested concepts is suggested. This can be useful not only for supporting librarians working with local information but also in other practices dealing with broadly defined concepts. © 2021, Pussadee Nonthacumjane and Jan Michael Nolin.

Data feminism, a way of thinking about and “doing” data utilizing feminist tools and perspectives, has emerged in recent years as a part of a critical discourse surrounding datafication. The aim of this study is to analyze and identify shared perceptions of big data as expressed in a corpus of scholarly writings published in the domain of data studies and data feminism. We analyzed a set of 44 scholarly texts engaging in feminism concerned with the concept of big data. For the purpose of this article, we refer to this set of texts as data feminism and examine how authors frame and describe big data. We compare future visions in data feminist material with policies by the European Commission and explore what tensions arise among them. Furthermore, we explore and delineate social and political alternatives that emerge from data feminist texts. Both corpora describe futures inclusive of big data and imagine possible positive outcomes from different perspectives and with different ideas of the current role of big data. We found that sociotechnical imaginaries of big data within the data feminist corpus are considerably richer and more nuanced than those of the European Commission. In the data feminist corpus, big data is described as a multiplicity of things and often implicated in perpetuating power imbalances and large societal issues. The European Commission corpus employs the perspective of “data as a resource” to be exploited.

In 2014, the European Commission initiated a process to strengthen science 2.0 as a core research policy concept. However, this turned into a substantial ideational shift. The concept of science 2.0 was dropped. Instead, open science became established as one of the three pillars of the €94 billion research framework programme Horizon Europe. This article scrutinises the official narrative regarding the shift of concepts, identifying transparency issues, specifically misrepresentation of concepts and data, and the redaction of key material. This can be characterised as problems of input legitimacy. A public consultation did take place, but numerous transparency issues can be found. From science 2.0 to open science, the ideational shift was portrayed as simply a matter of exchanging two synonymous concepts. However, science 2.0 is a descriptive concept referring to science being transformed by digitalisation. In contrast, open science involves normative assumptions about how science should work and be governed. 

Mass participation in social networking sites and online life combined with the development of tracking technology facilitates gathering data on unprecedented scales. The uptake of data collecting during the 2010s coincided with the emergence of data science and data studies, along with critical perspectives such as critical data and critical algorithm studies. This paper explores one such critical perspective. Data Feminism merges the theories of intersectional feminism and critical data studies. Bibliometric text analysis of articles, conference papers, essays, and commentary was conducted in VOSviewer software, which found commonalities between terms within texts. The most prominent terms and keywords in the research area of Data Feminism identified in such a manner informed the close reading that followed. Six clusters of terms were identified, with the two largest clusters formed around the terms “big data” and “artificial intelligence” respectively. We also explored the boundaries, movements and centralities within the six clusters.

The 2020s is on track to become one of the most transformative decades in human history. On the one hand, numerous mature technologies will have their mainstream breakthrough in the years to come. As these are combined in various and innovative ways, all human endeavours are likely to be transformed. This has been talked about in terms of the fourth Industrial Revolution. On the other hand, unchecked exploitation of human resources, particularly in the form of climate change, needs to be efficiently dealt with during the 2020s. The United Nations has stipulated a strategic plan, Agenda 2030, to deal with these, including a strict deadline at the end of the decade. Curiously, few academic researchers work with both the fourth Industrial Revolution and Agenda 2030. The imperative of combining strategic work on these is in this article called the challenge of challenges. The chapter is concerned with the articulation of this meta-challenge as well as discussing the role of academic research, more specifically that of information science. It is argued that information science is well situated to make substantial contributions to the challenges of challenges. Three distinct areas within such contributions are outlined: sustainable targets/indicators, open science, and sustainable information literacies.

Constructive Technology Assessment (CTA) aims to involve a multitude of stakeholders in discussions involving technology. However, all technological assessment is mediated through concepts. Development of concepts regarding technology rich futures has been lively but confusing for many stakeholders. Utilizing bibliographic data from Web of Science, this article overviews and discusses ten influential concepts that have played an important role during the 2000s. It is argued that the lively and dynamic concept production leads to numerous problems for a CTA approach.

Introduction. An emerging research area within the social sciences is infrastructure studies. This article conceptualises school libraries as an infrastructure among others, allowing for a fresh look at the role of the school library. We review and discuss what constitutes the school library as an important infrastructure at a school site.

Method. Empirical data drawn from a qualitative interview study, including qualitative observations of Swedish school libraries was analysed using the concept of infrastructure.

Analysis. The analysis was conducted with the support of a model including structures and arrangements of infrastructures.

Results. A central objective of school library practices is to make the library more visible as one of the infrastructures of a school site. Different aspects of school library infrastructure can work for and against visibility.

Conclusions. By conceptualising school libraries as an important infrastructure among others at school sites, it was possible to develop a deeper understanding of school library practices and visibility. Findings from this study contribute to the research on school libraries as contested functions within the context of schools.

Purpose – A multitude of transparency movements have been developed and grown strong in recentdecades. Despite their growing influence, scholarly studies have focused on individual movements.The purpose of this paper is to make a pioneering contribution in defining transparency movements.Design/methodology/approach – An exploratory approach has been used utilizing movement-specificprofessional and scholarly documents concerning 18 transparency movements.Findings – Different traditions, ideologies of openness and aspects involving connections betweenmovements have been identified as well as forms of organization.Originality/value – This is the first attempt at identifying and defining transparency movements as acontemporary phenomenon.