The contribution of data mining to information science

The information explosion is a serious challenge for current information institutions. On the other hand, data mining, which is the search for valuable information in large volumes of data, is one of the solutions to face this challenge. In the past several years, data mining has made a significant contribution to the field of information science. This paper examines the impact of data mining by reviewing existing applications, including personalized environments, electronic commerce, and search engines. For these three types of application, how data mining can enhance their functions is discussed. The reader of this paper is expected to get an overview of the state of the art research associated with these applications. Furthermore, we identify the limitations of current work and raise several directions for future research

Exploring the academic invisible web

Purpose: To provide a critical review of Bergman's 2001 study on the Deep Web. In addition, we bring a new concept into the discussion, the Academic Invisible Web (AIW). We define the Academic Invisible Web as consisting of all databases and collections relevant to academia but not searchable by the general-purpose internet search engines. Indexing this part of the Invisible Web is central to scientific search engines. We provide an overview of approaches followed thus far. Design/methodology/approach: Discussion of measures and calculations, estimation based on informetric laws. Literature review on approaches for uncovering information from the Invisible Web. Findings: Bergman's size estimate of the Invisible Web is highly questionable. We demonstrate some major errors in the conceptual design of the Bergman paper. A new (raw) size estimate is given. Research limitations/implications: The precision of our estimate is limited due to a small sample size and lack of reliable data. Practical implications: We can show that no single library alone will be able to index the Academic Invisible Web. We suggest collaboration to accomplish this task. Originality/value: Provides library managers and those interested in developing academic search engines with data on the size and attributes of the Academic Invisible Web.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figure

Textual Fragments, Openness of Enquiry and Information Systems: An Example From an ERP Implementation

We anchor our study of an ERP implementation in the verbatim words of a Registrar at a major University. Building on an earlier work, we explore six approaches to analyse the text. The first three are referred to as the textual realm and examine issues such as the veracity of the original text (textual criticism), the meaning of words and phrases (literary criticism) and the purpose and genre of the text (literary criticism). The second three comprise the social realm and here we look at the history, context, process and outcomes described or implied by the text (historical criticism), the traditions and practices of the community from which the text was obtained (form criticism) and the influence of the author in constructing the text (redaction criticism). Using the hermeneutical circle, we write and re-write the meanings we see in the text and in particular suggest the influence of the management elite in using the heavily modified ERP system to inscribe their vision of how the university should be managed and controlled. The paper ends with suggestions about recovering the meaning of the text, uncovering hidden meanings in the text and discovering new meanings and applications of the text

Enacting Smoke, Lilies, and Jade as Black Gay Print Culture

This essay offers a comparative analysis of the ways that Isaac Julien\u27s Looking for Langston (1989) and Rodney Evans\u27s Brother to Brother (2005) inscribe Richard Bruce Nugent\u27s landmark short story Smoke, Lilies, and Jade (1926). Both films are examples of how Smoke, which was first published in the short-lived but infamous journal FIRE!!, now functions as much more than an artifact from the Harlem Renaissance\u27s dynamic print culture. As I contend through this analysis, Smoke is a central diegetic element in both films. It enables Looking\u27s visual depiction of the sojourn that Nugent\u27s protagonist Alex has with his male lover Beauty and Brother\u27s depiction of an intergenerational collaboration that honors Nugent as a black gay male artist. Through honorific interpretations of Smoke, Lilies, and Jade, Looking for Langston and Brother to Brother affirm a black gay print culture as indispensable to black gay film