Critical systems librarianship

In this chapter we perform a meta-analysis and synthesize existing critical library and information studies work into a cohesive approach to critical systems librarianship, informed by diverse perspectives and ethical lenses. We seek to enable and facilitate a critically-informed, reflective, and reflexive approach to systems work with specific focus on how information technologies are applied in library work. Critical systems librarianship centrally involves critical reflection which allows systems workers to question the underlying values, assumptions, and power relations ingrained in their daily practices and the institutions within which they work: this is essential to both theoretical questioning and developing strategies to contest power imbalances

Sequential multiple selection problems

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Francisco Pacheco and polychromy in Seville (1580-1649)

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A note on monotonicity in optimal multiple stopping problems

We consider a version of the optimal choice problem, in which two on-line selections must be made from a finite, possibly multivariate, i.i.d. sequence. We show that monotonicity properties associated with the single selection case may not apply.Optimal multiple stopping secretary problem optimal choice problem

Sequential selection with a better-than-average rule

We consider sequential selection from an i.i.d. sequence under the rule that each acquisition must increase the average value of the selections so far. We discuss the asymptotic growth of this average value.Sequential selection Martingale

'Getting smart' in a time of change : finding our critical voice in our work

Library workers across all industries and sectors will recognise from their workplaces a context of constrained budgets, intensification of work processes, and pressure to continuously improve to meet the evolving needs and increased expectations of customers. We seek to demonstrate the ways we add value, drive customer satisfaction, and work increasingly efficiently. In doing so we actively involve ourselves in roles of self-government rooted in measurement, evaluative techniques, and logic based on markets and competition. Gaps appear between the service that is achievable within our organisational financial constraints and our commitment—framed by professional ethics and personal morals—to providing effective services. Library workers can find this situation emotionally charged, unsettling, and generative of feelings of impostorship. Delegates attending this workshop will co-create a space for frank conversations about these issues. It will help participants find their critical voices in responding to challenges in their workplaces, and in feeling both confident and supported