Open Password – Wednesday, November 15, 2021
#998
Future of Information Science – Information Literacy – Domain-Specific Prior Knowledge – Bernd Jörs – Steve Patriarca – Herbert Huemer – Library and Information Science – Neighboring Sciences – Falsification Principle – Socrates – Truth – Theory of Knowledge – Institute for Information Competence & Information Infrastructure – Academic Librarians – Information Professionals – More Critical Rationalism – Overconfidence – Dunning-Kruger Effect – Karl R. Popper – Gerd Fleischmann – Society for Critical Philosophy – Holocaust – Vienna Circle – Moritz Schlick
SUMA – Metager – Standard search engine – Peer-to-peer principle – Google – EU – Auction process – Voila-Phone – Hello World Systems – YaCy – Index – Worldwide overall index – Andreas Orth – Digital loss zone – Wolfgang Sander-Beuermann – NDR
vfm – Marianne Engler Prize – Hiltrud Lehm Kühler
I. Title
Future of information science: Information literacy depends on domain-specific prior knowledge and can only ever be provisional – A reply to Steve Patriarca – By Prof. Dr. Bernd Jörs
II. The Future of Information Science
A Response to Steve Patrarca – By Bernd Jörs
III. Search engine newsletter
option for Metager as the default search engine, search engine based on the peer-to-peer principle
IV. vfm
Winner of the Marianne Englert Prize 2022 wanted!
Future of information science
Information literacy relies
on domain-specific prior knowledge and can only ever be provisional
A reply to Steve Patriarca
By Prof. Dr. Bernd Jörs
Bernd Jörs
Statement on: Steve Patriarca: Information literacy gives us the tools to check sources and verify factual claims – What does Popper’s “There are no authorities” mean?, in: Open Password No. 988
The very title of Steve Patriarca’s statement shows that supporters of “information literacy” continue to make the simple and naive assumption that the mere availability of “information literacy” is enough to “give us the tools”. , “checking sources and verifying factual statements.”
Without repeating the arguments against a “general information competence” that cannot exist as an independent “competence” (see the last statements on this non-term in Open Password No. 682, 691, 759, 960, 963, 965, 971 , 979, etc.), and also to refer to the views of the neighboring sciences (neuroscience, communication science, etc.) on this unpleasant term of library and information science, which are included there, should only be briefly clarified here:
In order to be able to check and verify any sources and factual claims (Steve Patriarca, as a representative of an authoritarian, rather Popper-hostile understanding of science, wisely leaves out the term “falsification” at this point), three things are crucial:
1. Domain-specific, experience-based, technical-methodological (prior) knowledge
2. the acceptance of an idea that appeals to the modesty of human knowledge, that “our objective conjectural knowledge always goes far beyond what a human being can master”. So we can never have certain knowledge and the idea that one has certain truth is false. Socrates’ old wisdom, “I know that I don’t know” (unfortunately often translated incorrectly because the letter “s” is added to the word “not”) is unbearable for many because it probably endangers their claims to authority.
3. Subjective, uncertain (conjectural) knowledge must always be checked for its truth content by applying Popper’s falsification principle in the scientific search for knowledge.
Again, we can never “own” ultimate truth.
Steve Patriarca’s article is enlightening on one point because – in contrast to German-speaking countries – he associates something else with the term “information competence”: “In the United Kingdom we had “key qualifications” and “critical thinking.” One of these key skills is what we now call “information literacy”. This combines the discussion with logical thinking and a “theory of knowledge”. This different view of “information competence” as an epistemological qualification differs significantly from the omnipotence claims of German-speaking library and information science and Hümer’s worldview.
Nevertheless, Steve Patriarca, as Vice-President of the Hümer Institute IICIIS (The Institute for Information Competence & Information Infrastructure) in Vienna, perhaps makes it clear in his further statements that, in his old loyalty to his colleague Hümer, he still naturally has a universal claim for the German-speaking people “Information competence” would like to be awarded, thanks to which one can express oneself with information competence on all questions from a wide range of (scientific) areas. Steve Patriarca himself took the view a few lines earlier: “The fact that information literacy may be necessary for serious academic study does not, of course, make it a sufficient condition.” Or elsewhere: “The fact is that information literacy is a helpful “It is a generic term for the skills that are necessary – even if not sufficient – for serious study.” What wouldn’t you do for a friend who, in his own words (Hümer), “can question every message and check for dis-/misinformation”. , and that, according to Hümer, “not just in my subject, but regardless of my previous (prior) knowledge”.
With the acceptance of such an understanding of “information competence”, which is not afraid to separate this “competence” from the necessary condition of the presence of domain-specific, experience-based, technical-methodological (prior) knowledge, the often painstakingly acquired qualification and work discredited, for example, by academic librarians and information professionals who continue to provide valuable services in their scientific fields based on critical rationalism.
Anyone who claims “information literacy” as a general ability to always be able to distinguish “truth from falsehood” or “truth from untruth and falsehood from correctness”, and this for all areas of science, is doing science a disservice. He gets close to the (lateral thinker) supporters of anti-science and helps fake news and disinformation gain greater attention.
As far as the information about the person and history of Karl R. Popper is concerned, Steve Patriarca probably sees no need to substantiate his factual claims. Rather, he chats in a narrative style, which in his opinion is what the philosopher, who unfortunately died almost 30 years ago, would think. All of his (unsubstantiated) clues, like…
…Popper was not “expelled” from Austria;
…Popper even turned down an offer of a position at the University of Cambridge; …Popper returned from Vienna to his native England after the death of his wife, so he did not have to re-emigrate; …Popper did not want to be called a “Viennese philosopher”… etc.
do not meet the “information-competent source checks” and verification of factual claims required by Steve Patriarca.
If you were a doctoral student of a student and scientific colleague of Karl R. Popper (Prof. Dr. Gerd Fleischmann, Goethe University Frankfurt/M.) and if you have been associated with the “Society for Critical Philosophy” (Nuremberg) for years , which is the largest German-speaking scientific organization committed to the work of Karl R. Popper, must be inclined to subject Patriarca’s personal statements, which are accompanied by references, to a critical examination and be tempted to present these claims to young students as an example of misinformation . The reader can request the relevant individual evidence of the claims, including references, from the author of this comment via the editorial team of “Open Passsword”.
Steve Patriarca’s statement in Open Password No. 988 is a good example of the heuristic of overconfidence or the Dunning-Kruger effect, which has been well studied in information behavior science, i.e. a form of cognitive distortion in the self-image of people who overestimate their own knowledge and skills. Brunnhuber describes this effect as follows: “We constantly think that we know more than we actually know. However, knowledge is always conditional, fragile and provisional, but not arbitrary, but rather capable of constant improvement and adaptation in the process of falsification and criticism. Science can help us to constantly revise and push our own limits of thought, but probably not to overcome them” (Stefan Brunnhuber: The Open Society. Munich 2019, page 142, footnote 51).
The fact that these pseudo-scientific arguments can lead to ethically questionable statements will be shown at the end using just one example. It takes a fair amount of cynicism and distortion of history to take the view: “ He (Karl R. Popper, the author) was not expelled from Austria either.”
Does that mean that Popper could have continued to live quietly in the anti-Semitic atmosphere in Vienna, his birthplace, especially since he was not directly personally threatened or attacked by National Socialists? Was his emigration to New Zealand voluntary? Weren’t the dangers to body and soul very real if one had a deep, extensive Jewish family line in the family register, regardless of whether one had converted to Christianity? Throughout his life, Popper had to bear the suffering that 16 people from his immediate circle of relatives “did not survive the Holocaust” (M. Morgenstern, R. Zimmer: Karl Popper, Munich, 2002, page 66). Didn’t he witness how almost all members and scientific colleagues of the world-famous “Vienna Circle” had to flee Austria and emigrate? Didn’t he have to see and experience the murder of the founder of the “Vienna Circle”, Moritz Schlick, at the University of Vienna in May 1936 as an absolute threat? All hopes of a university career in Vienna were dashed for Popper given his Jewish background and the threat from the “Vienna Circle”. Popper declined the offer of a university position in Cambridge primarily to enable a Jewish scientist to escape to England. In his biography (Karl Popper: Starting points – my intellectual development, Hamburg, 3rd edition, 1984, page 156) he emphatically proves how much he was imbued with this idea of practical help in these difficult times: “I was sure that Austrian refugees, driven out by Hitler, would soon need my help. But many years passed before Hitler invaded Austria and the cries for help began.” Popper himself served on a committee that took care of entry permits for refugees to New Zealand and thus, according to his biographical notes, “saved some from the concentration camps and out of prison.”
Steve Petriarca’s comment leaves you shaking your head in disbelief and leaving an unpleasant aftertaste. Shouldn’t children already learn that dealing with the terms “truth”, “lie”, “fact” and “fiction” requires constant attention and constant questioning and is very, very personal and intentional?
The future of information science
Information literacy relies on domain-specific prior knowledge and can only ever be provisional
A response to Steve Patriarca
By Prof. Dr. Bernd Jörs
Response to: Steve Patriarca: Information literacy gives us the tools to check sources and verify factual claims – What does Popper’s “There are no authorities” mean?, in: Open Password No. 988
Already the title of Steve Patriarca’s statement proves that the supporters of “information literacy” still start from the simple and naive assumption that the mere availability of “information literacy” is sufficient to “give us the tools” to “check sources and verify factual claims “.
Without repeating again in a prayer-like manner the arguments against a “universally valid information literacy”, which cannot exist as an independent “competence” (see the last statements on this non-term in Open Password No. 682, 691, 759, 960, 963, 965, 971, 979 etc.), and further referring to the views of the neighboring sciences (neuroscience, communication science etc.) on this unpleasant term of library and information science integrated there, it is only briefly clarified here .
In order to be able to check and verify any sources and factual claims (Steve Patriarca, as a representative of an authoritarian, rather Popper-hostile understanding of science, wisely omits the term “falsification” at this point), three things are crucial:
1. domain-specific, experience-based, technical-methodical (prior) knowledge
2. the acceptance of a notion appealing to the modesty of human knowledge, that “our objective conjectural knowledge is always far beyond what a human can master.” Thus, we can never possess certain knowledge, and the notion that one is in possession of certain truth is false. Socrates’ old adage, “I know that I do not know” (unfortunately often mistranslated as the letter “s” has been added to the word “not”) is, however, intolerable to many as it presumably compromises their claims to authority.
3. Subjective, not certain (conjectural) knowledge is always to be checked for its truth content by applying Popper’s principle of falsification in the scientific search for knowledge.
Once again, we can never “own” the final truth.
Steve Patriarca’s contribution is enlightening in one respect, because – in contrast to the German-speaking world – he associates the term “information literacy” with something else: “In the UK we had “key skills” and “critical thinking.” One of these key skills is what we now call “information literacy.” This is associated with engaging in logical thinking and a “Theory of Knowledge.” This different view of “information literacy” as an epistemological qualification differs substantially from the omnipotence claims of German- language library and information science and Hümer’s worldview.
Nevertheless, Steve Patriarca perhaps rather as Vice-President of Hümer’s Institute IICIIS (The Institute for Information Competence & Information Infrastructure) in Vienna lets recognize in his further remarks that he still wants to ascribe to his colleague Hümer in old affinity as a matter of course a universal claim of German-speaking “information competence”, thanks to which one can express oneself information-competently on all questions of most different (scientific) fields. At the same time, Steve Patriarca himself held the view a few lines earlier: “The fact that information competence may be necessary for serious academic study does not of course make it sufficient.” Or elsewhere, “The fact is that information literacy can be a helpful umbrella term for the range of skills which are necessary – although not sufficient – for serious study.” What won’t one do for a friend who, in his own words (Hümer), can “scrutinize any news item and check it for dis/misinformation” and that, according to Hümer, “not only in my subject, but regardless of my previous (prior) knowledge.”
Accepting such an understanding of “information literacy,” which is not afraid to separate this “competence” from the necessary condition of having domain-specific, experience-based, subject-methodological (prior) knowledge, discredits the often painstakingly acquired qualifications and work of, for example, academic librarians and information professionals, who continue to provide valuable services in their academic fields based on critical rationalism.
Anyone who claims “information literacy” as a general ability to always distinguish “truth from falsehood” or “truth from falsehood” and “falsehood from correctness”, and this for all areas of science, is doing science a disservice. He puts himself close to the supporters of anti-science (“lateral thinkers”) and helps fake news and disinformation to get more attention.
As for the information about the person and history of Karl R. Popper, Steve Patriarca probably sees no need to substantiate his factual claims. Rather, he prattles on in a narrative style about what he thinks the philosopher, who sadly passed away almost 30 years ago, might have been thinking. All his (unsubstantiated) references, such as….
…Popper was not “expelled” from Austria;
…Popper even turned down an offered position at the University of Cambridge;
…Popper returned to his native England from Vienna after the death of his wife, so he did not have to re-emigrate;
…Popper did not want to be called a “Viennese philosopher”…etc.
do not stand up to the “information-competent source checks” and verifications of factual claims required by Steve Patriarca.
If you yourself were a doctoral student of a student and fellow scientist of Karl R. Popper (Prof. Dr. Gerd Fleischmann, Goethe University Frankfurt/M.) and if you have been associated for years with the “Society for Critical Philosophy” ( Nuremberg), which is the largest German-language scientific organization committed to the work of Karl R. Popper, you must be inclined to subject Patriarca’s personal statements, accompanied by a source reference, to critical scrutiny and be tempted to present these claims to young students as examples of misinformation. Readers may request the relevant itemized references to the assertions, along with source citations, from the author of this commentary through the editors of “Open Passsword”.
Steve Patriarca’s statement in Open Password No. 988 is a good example of the heuristic of overconfidence or the Dunning-Kruger effect, which is well studied in information behavior science, ie a form of cognitive bias in the self-concept of people who overestimate their own knowledge and ability. Brunnhuber describes this effect as follows: “We constantly think that we know more than we actually do. Knowledge, however, is always subject to reservation, fragile and provisional, but not arbitrary; rather, it is constantly capable of improvement and adaptation in the process of falsification and criticism. Science can help us to constantly revise and push out our own limits of thinking, but probably not to overcome them” (Stefan Brunnhuber: Die offen Gesellschaft. Munich 2019, page 142, footnote 51).
The fact that these scientific sham arguments can lead to ethically questionable statements shall be shown in conclusion with just one example. It takes a fair amount of cynicism and distortion of history to hold the view: “Nor was he (Karl R. Popper, the author) expelled from Austria.”
Are you saying that Popper could have continued to live quietly in the anti-Semitically charged atmosphere in Vienna, his birthplace, especially since he was not directly threatened personally or attacked by Nazis? Was his emigration to New Zealand voluntary? Weren’t the dangers to body and soul very real if one had a deep, widespread Jewish line of kinship in one’s family tree, regardless of whether one had converted to Christianity? Popper had to carry with him all his life the suffering that 16 persons from his immediate circle of relatives “did not survive the Holocaust” (M. Morgenstern, R. Zimmer: Karl Popper, Munich, 2002, page 66). Had he not witnessed how almost all members and scientific colleagues of the world-famous “Vienna Circle” had to leave Austria in flight and emigrate? Had he not seen and experienced the murder of the founder of the “Vienna Circle”, Moritz Schlick, at the University of Vienna in May 1936 as an absolute threat? All hopes for a university career in Vienna were destroyed for Popper in view of his Jewish background and the threat of the “Vienna Circle”. Popper renounced the offered university position in Cambridge mainly to enable a Jewish scientist to escape to England. In his biography (Karl Popper: Starting points – my intellectual development, Hamburg, 3rd edition, 1984, page 156) he emphatically proves how much he was imbued with this idea of lived help in these difficult times: “I was sure that Austrian refugees, driven out by Hitler, would soon need my help. But many years passed before Hitler invaded Austria and the cries for help began.” Popper himself served on a committee that handled entry permits for refugees to New Zealand and thus, according to his biographical notes, “rescued some from concentration camps and from prison.”
Thus, Steve Petriarca’s comment leaves one shaking one’s head in disbelief and an uneasy aftertaste. Shouldn’t children already learn that dealing with the terms “truth,” “lie,” “fact,” and “fiction” requires constant mindfulness, constant questioning, and is very, very person-specific and intentional?
Search engine newsletter
Option for Metager as default search engine,
search engine based on the peer-to-peer principle
Dear friends of MetaGer,…
Option for Metager as default search engine. Google was ordered by the EU to offer a selection of search engines that can be set as the default search engine on Android smartphones when they are reconfigured. Search engines were able to apply through an auction. We also took part in the auction process, but purely formally with a bid of zero euros. Google has now been ordered by the EU to forego the competition-distorting auction process and to offer all registered search engines as an option. On Android it is now optionally possible to select MetaGer as the default search engine for the D/A/CH area. Although not all search engines are always displayed for selection, the random principle ensures that every search engine has a certain probability of being found in the list.
It will soon also be possible to select MetaGer as the default search engine on the Volla phone. The Volla Phone is a product from “Hallo Welt Systeme UG” in Remscheid. The developers of the smartphone pursue the approach of demanding as little of the user’s attention as possible. Technology should not distract and play a role in the foreground, but rather remain in the background as a mere tool. Options such as detailed data protection settings, log-free VPN, and open-source apps from an alternative app store also enable privacy protection – without any Google services. Through the partnership with MetaGer, Volla-Phone users can also implement privacy protection in the search engine area. More at: https://suma-ev.de/mit-metager-auf-dem-volla-phone-suche/
YaCy: Search engine based on the peer-to-peer principle. YaCy is a decentralized, free search engine. The special feature: the free search engine does not run on central servers of a single operator, but works according to the peer-to-peer (P2P) principle. This is based on the fact that YaCy users index websites accessed locally on their computer. Each user “crawls” a small index that they can share with other YaCy peers through communication. The program ensures that the small, decentralized crawlers of individual users ultimately create a global overall index. The more users are part of this decentralized search, the larger the shared index that each individual user can then have access to. YaCy has recently joined the network of our search engines. We are therefore also part of the search engine’s index.
TV film “Digital Loss Zone”. The documentary filmmaker Andreas Orth made a documentary about digitalization last year. The result of the report “Digital Loss Zone” was broadcast on ARD in 2020. Now the film, in which the history of MetaGer is also a topic and MetaGer inventor and search engine pioneer Dr. Wolfgang Sander-Beuermann was interviewed, repeated on NDR on November 27th.
Kind regards, your MetaGer/SUMA-EV team
vfm
Winner of the Marianne Englert Prize 2022 wanted!
What awaits you: two overnight stays at the conference location, travel expenses covered, high-quality lectures, the opportunity to present your work to around 250 colleagues and prize money of €500.
The application deadline is running!
Work that deals with issues relating to the information society can be submitted. This particularly includes works and projects that focus on media documentary or communication science-technical topics and are, if possible, no older than two years.
The award ceremony will take place on April 26, 2022 during the spring conference of the vfm – Association for Media Information and Media Documentation eV.
The deadline for entries is January 31, 2022.
*If you have developed a project or completed a thesis that fits the competition requirements, then apply to us now!
*If you hear about interesting projects or theses from your younger colleagues in your company, tell them about the Marianne Englert Prize or forward this email straight away!
We look forward to receiving many applications. The vfm jury consists of Frank Dürr, Ute Essegern, Vanessa Sautter and Michael Vielhaber. www.vfm-online.de
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me!
Kind regards, Hiltrud Lehmkuehler, +49 234 3889376, buero@vfm-online.de , https://vfm-online.de/cms/processwire/de/tagung/
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