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Weblog posts in English

Library of the Week (9): Lappeenranta Public Library

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This series started with a Savo library – a short detour on my Karelian trip last summer. It’s time to return to Karelia and to the shores of Lappeenranta (a city whose local museum boasts an impressive model of old Viipuri but very little information about Lappeenranta! I don’t mind because Viipuri is cool, but it was surprising). Lappeenranta is the regional capital of South Karelia and is beautifully situated by Lake Saimaa.

Lappeenranta city hall

Lappeenranta city hall, a brutalist beauty behind which the mall that houses the library is situated

I arrived by train in the morning, spoke Finnish well enough (!) to deposit my bag at the train station for 2 €, and walked from the train station to the downtown area. I only spent the day there before continuing to Imatra in the late afternoon so I didn’t how much time but aside from the library I also had time to visit the Cavalry Museum, South Karelia Museum, and Lappeenranta Art Museum (all very good and I especially recommend the cavalry museum!) as well as a sand castle park and pass by a bouncy castle park. Lappeenranta does not get as much cred as it should, fantastic place!

Library Lappeenranta Main Library
Place Lappeenranta, Finland
Coordinates 61.0571607, 28.1934077

Something quite common in Finland (but to my knowledge less so in Sweden, or indeed other countries I’ve been to) are public libraries situated in shopping malls. What was a bit strange about this one was the complete lack of windows (and therefore daylight) inside the library. Despite this unfortunate circumstance (Alvar Aalto thought light/daylight was essential in library architecture) the library really did its best and it was a very pleasant library environment.

To contrast with the shelves lined up as in a storage room (to be fair, this feeling was probably more related to the lack of windows and the walls and ceiling than anything else) there were pockets with reading nooks, computer desks, and study spaces inbetween some shelves. This really livened up the space. I couldn’t understand all the signs (Lappeenranta is a Finnish language municipality with 89.9% Finnish speaking population and 0.2% Swedish) but I think there was a nice story to the mascot/sculpture.

On language: I’m not sure if the English website is strange or if it’s because I don’t allow cookies when I browse, but the Finnish library website seems better. If you use the English version of the Lappeenranta webpages you can search for ”library” and get some English language information about the library.

In the ceiling these signs were hung in various places, resonating with the public library mission to be free, safe, and inclusive spaces.

Area free from discrimination

”Area free from discrimination” – one of few occurences of Swedish language in the library

Just like the other cities around Lake Saimaa the Saimaa ringed seal plays a prominent role in the cityscape, and the library was no exception. Seals are a popular conversation topic in my family because my mother once wrote a blog about seals in the Nordic countries so I was excited to share all this seal content with her (she was very happy about this). In the library, I found a lot of seals (on signs, on decorations, on notice, as toys).

Heilikirjastot (Heili libraries) – mentioned in the reading challenge – is a collaboration between the libraries in Imatra, Lappeenranta, Lemi, Luumäki, Parikkala, Rautjärvi, Ruokolahti, Savitaipale and Taipalsaari. I’ve been trying to find out what ”heili” is in a way that makes sense for a library collaboration (”significant other” seems strange for a library??). I obviously know the word from this banger and so I wondered whether ”heili” could be a specific Karelian word and that there’s some cultural context I don’t know. I’ve asked a friend so maybe I’ll get an answer.

Morrissey records in Lappeenranta

Morrissey records in Lappeenranta

To finish this post, here’s the selection of Morrissey records at the library. My Early Burglary Years is surprisingly hard to come by, you know. I never bought it when I was young(er) because of no money and I tried to buy it last year but ended up getting a ”sorry indefinitely out of stock” e-mail. How culturally poor and contemporary bound our consciousnesses would be without the public library!

 

Library of the Week (8): Hudiksvall Public Library

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The library of the week is the delightful public library in Hudiksvall, Sweden. It’s a library in a municipal system consisting of eight libraries in total. I was there in November 2024 to give a talk on libraries and the 2030 Agenda for HelGebiblioteken (a collaboration between the public libraries in the Gästrikland and Hälsingland provinces).

Something that fascinated me with this rather old building (and the square it was placed on) was that the railroad goes underneath it in a tunnel (!) I remember I asked some local librarians about it, but I don’t remember that the response was very satisfactory. As far as I understand the Rådhustorget square and its buildings were there before the railway was built and somehow building a tunnel underneath the few buildings on the hill made more sense in the late 19th century (to be honest, I started looking up the various railways around Hudiksvall and their incorporation in the national railway net but it’s a rabbit hole I don’t have time to indulge in today). Anyway, Wikipedia has a good picture of a train appearing underneath the Statt hotel (the picture below is taken from the other side of the hotel, facing Rådhustorget).

Hudiksvall Library exterior

Hudiksvall Library exterior

Anyway, this is a lovely library. I spent a couple of hours there the day before the event I was talking at. I read some magazines (why don’t I do this more often in libraries? It was so nice, and I rarely take time to read magazine articles since I stopped subscribing to the New Yorker a few years back – reading online is not the same. I’m very tactile person).

Library Hudiksvall Library
Place Hudiksvall, Sweden
Coordinates 61.727837, 17.111297

The building is a cultural house (kulturhus, I’m sure there’s a proper translation of this word) so it contains more than the library (even though the library is obviously the most important part of it). In the entrance, one is greeted by a small statue of Mäster Palm, a socialist agitator who once held a speech in Hudiksvall that got him sentenced to three months in prison (let’s all celebrate the wonderful subheading ”Klammeri med myndigheterna” on Wikipedia that describes this event). He apprently said:

”Vi hava en usel regering och dåliga representanter i riksdagen som ingenting begripa av arbetarnas och den betrycktes sak” [source cited on Wikipedia]

Some things never change, it seems! We desperately need a renaissance of socialist agitators in the world.  In the entrance was also colourful shelf containing books sent to the library from the Swedish Arts Council (you can read more about the Garanterat bra böcker programme on their website (in Swedish)). Inside the library was another small statue commemorating the Swedish unknown soldier. The text on the plaque is a tribute to the Swedish unknown soldier, unfortunately I resized the text away and can’t find the text online – this is what happens to rational people with too few GB left on their laptop! :(

This is what the library looked on the inside (I took care to take the picture when there were no people visible, easier said than done). The stairs in the middle leads up to the local collection and archives. Above the computers and printer there are signs in multiple languages, reflecting the diversity of this rather small Swedish city. This picture is taken from the entrance so I think the placement of services may be related to frequently requested services. Books are obviously an important part of libraries but did you know libraries are an essential resource for people who need to manage their everyday life?

Hudiksvall library interior

Hudiksvall library interior

Here are some more interior pictures. I asked the next day whether the side end of the shelves were a special design to connect to the UNESCO world heritage of the ”Decorated Farmhouses of Hälsingland” but if I remember correctly they had used wallpaper to spice up the shelves when redecorating the library and not all users were happy about it. Hehe. Also including a closeup of the computer area, and a picture of a shelf with books in national minority languages.

Great library, friendly staff, and a highlight of the next day was that I saw a librarian in a Star Trek t-shirt. I commented on this (I’d like to say I said ”Qapla'” but as the basic person I am I probably said ”oh cool a Star Trek t-shirt!” and did a Vulcan salute) and was promptly invited to an online Star Trek watch circle. How great is that? Librarians truly are the best. I just noticed the TV circle is also in the library’s official programme – my hearteyes are endless! They also have a Doctor Who circle.

These two last pictures are taken by Marika Alneng, an awesome Swedish library consultant I’ve met and worked with on several occasions over the years. One is from outside the library, in front of their cool sign, the other is from inside the event where I’m just about to start talking about how libraries help build a better world. In true Mäster Palm fashion I also criticised our current government (especially our absolutely USELESS minister for climate and the environment) for their lack of effort in the 2030 Agenda work. No prison sentence yet… :)

Library of the Week (7): Ives Main Library in New Haven

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Ha! I missed one week because I was busy with three (3) deadlines last week, so this is a retcon post dated 12 February (but written on 20 February). I march to my own drum. B) I know next to nothing about this library except it has a beautiful exterior. I must have passed by it when I was on my way to the Rory Gilmore experience of Yale in New Haven in January 2018 and quickly taken a picture. It’s the Ives Main Library, a branch in the New Haven Free Public Library system.

The Ives Main Library of the New Haven Free Public Library

The Ives Main Library of the New Haven Free Public Library

It has that nice turn of the century look of ”palaces for the people” and what intrigues me is that it is not a Carnegie library (New Haven has three dated 1913; two of them now function as a radio station and a church respectively) but was designed by Cass Gilbert in 1911.

Library Ives Main Library
Place New Haven, CT, USA
Coordinates 41.308984, -72.924837

When I said I know nothing about it I meant I didn’t go inside to see it, but they do have some interesting information on their webpage including an at-a-glance document (pdf link) showing more info and demographic and community indicators.

Ives Main Library stats

Ives Main Library demographic and community indicators.

I wonder about the importance of these indicators in library planning in New Haven?  In general, something I’ve thought about a lot in my own research is how different library services are depending on where the library is located. Location drastically changes conditions related to budget, community, access, etc etc. Is it possible to provide equal library services to all or will main libraries in cities always be better equipped than the branches or rural libraries?

I guess there is a base line for services that must be provided, but I’m also thinking about – well, for instance, take the city I currently live in: the main library in Turku has a piano room, sewing machines, and 3D printers. The collections are obviously bigger because the library is bigger, but these can be ordered to other branches so the collection is accessible to everyone. The other services are highly useful, but who are they accessible to? When do they go from extra or experimental library services to being library services all library users should expect in their local library? Is that even reasonable?

If you think about the demographic situation, it’s more likely the affluent households are in the centre of a city (where the main branch is most often located) than in the suburbs (where branches might be located). Who is in more need of a lending a sewing machine? Not that I’m criticising the existence of sewing machines in the main branch, a bus ride away from most corners of the city, but it’s interesting to think about.

Library of the week (6): Seattle Central Library

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Some libraries I’ve visited has just been a quick run in and out whilst passing by. Seattle Central Library is one such visit. I went there on a Wednesday evening in October 2019 when I was travelling around the US. I remember being hungry and looking for a vegan burger joint when deciding to stop at the library because it was on the way. I also remember being very tired and therefore staying in at the hotel in the evening watching Star Trek: TNG on the telly. Strange associations with this library, but I guess travelling is a mix of experiences blended into one lasting impression.

Library Seattle Central Library
Place Seattle, WA, USA
Coordinates 47.606698, -122.332487

I took some pictures of the library and it’s easy to see that my old phone camera didn’t produce the best pictures. In fact I also think I had a phone case that somehow made the pictures worse but otherwise was very good at protecting and storing things in the phone. You get some, you lose some. These two pictures are quite similar, one catching the height and one the width. You can probably see better pictures on the Wikipedia page of the library.

Here’s an example of a typical library picture I would take: no shelves, but a floor plan or directory. Not as picturesque, but it often contains more information about a library than a random picture of a random shelf with books! The only issue I take with this sign is the use of lowercase letters – was it written by Bruno K Öijer? :C I think the contents of the library really show how the library is a place for finding information, culture, sightseeing, having meetings, and hanging out.

Directory of Central Library

Directory of Central Library. I can’t remember what the ”mixing chamber” was, but note ”living room”, ”highest viewpoint”, and the division of DVDs in non-fiction/fiction!

I also found a couple of videos on the old hard drive where I stored these pictures. I usually don’t take videos and I’m usually very careful not to include identifiable people in videos and photos. The escalator video does contain some people at the end and I’m unsure of how privacy invasive this is? It is in the entrance so you can’t see what they do at the library – something I think is very important to never show – but it’s a difficult case. Let me know in the comments if you think I should edit this out!

I’m posting the videos here because I think they showcase what I felt at the time – the spatiality of the library and the movement of people inside it. I think the architecture just makes it very clear that this is a place where people move. Not necessarily just passing through, but moving and interacting. The space lends itself very well to a certain library flow, if that makes sense?

Last but not least I had taken a couple of photos from the exhibition I assume was in the Seattle room (since I was there after dark there are no highest viewpoint pictures, it’s probably very nice during the day). The second picture – it’s not very nice looking but I’m intrigued. The poster is folded at place where it hides the answer to the question ”Matrimony is good but single life is …”. What did it say? Why did I take this picture? Did I laugh? Was it absurd? What was the whole exhibition about?

I will have you know I searched through the library’s digital collections with search terms and variations of the poster’s content as well as the 1890s decade category. No result. It’s obviosuly a play, could it be related to this book that was published just a few years earlier? Some sleuthing would required to find out for sure, but I’m afraid I need to get back to writing my dissertation.

Library of the Week (5): Mini Library at Manhattan Ave/Java St

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What to do when the library you want to visit is closed for renovation? Chances are you encounter a library surprise in the street because the world is ultimately a good place!

Library Mini library at Manhattan Ave/Java St
Place Brooklyn, NY, USA
Coordinates 40.731556, -73.954406

I was browsing through old pictures from my first trip to New York City in 2017, in search of libraries to post here. At the top of my mind was Beinecke Library because they have a similar stone facade thing going (veined marble) as the UNAM central library (tecali/Mexican onyx). I found plenty of visited libraries (more than I remembered…!) and I also found the Greenpoint Library that I didn’t visit, due to it being closed for renovations.

However, the disappointment soon turned into joy when I a few blocks from there ran into a Mini library at the corner of Manhattan Avenue and Java Street! As you can see in the picture this old newspaper box was turned into a mini library by Urban Libraries Unite. I am unfamiliar with the organisation, but I liked this mini library. I’ve seen this kind of small library appear in many places all over the world, and the initiative is usually by a city, a local library, a local community, a private person, or an organisation (as is the case here).

The fact that a library – the very epitome of shared economy and knowledge – can pop up anywhere, by anyone, shows that there is some kind of public ownership to the idea of a library. Is this the pinnacle of democracy or what?

Other brilliant things about the Greenpoint area was the bar with a Lord of the Rings marathon on New Year’s Day (this is the most brilliant thing ever and I can’t for the life of me understand why this is not a common occurence everywhere? Move over Ivanhoe!) and that they had an Aaron Swartz mural. I wonder if it’s still around?

Aaron Swartz was a brilliant computer programmer and internet activist who passed away on 11 January 2013. He was involved in development of RSS, Reddit, CC licences, and Markdown (to name a few things) and a political activist advocating for a free and open web. MIT and JSTOR will forever have a stain on their name for their role in his far too early demise.

There’s a really good documentary about Swartz, The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz, that you should watch if you haven’t already. As bonus content to this post, here is my go to desktop background, as well as my inspiration and compass in my work and mission as a librarian.

"What is the most important thing you could be working on in the world right now? ... And if you're not working on that, why aren't you?"

”What is the most important thing you could be working on in the world right now? … And if you’re not working on that, why aren’t you?”

Come to think of it, maybe the library of the week – of every week – is the internet. The internet as Aaron Swartz would have designed it. I’ll end this post with another quote by Swartz:

”Be curious. Read widely. Try new things. What people call intelligence just boils down to curiosity.”

Library of the Week (4): Kallio library in Helsinki

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This week’s library is Kallio library (Berghälls bibliotek, Kallion kirjasto) in Helsinki. It’s a beautiful library in a neighbourhood formerly dominated by workers and currently dominated by hipsters paying overpriced rent. Kallio is the setting for the famous novel Pussikaljaromaani (Öl, vänskap och tärningsspel) that I read with great pleasure the second summer I lived in Helsinki.

Library Kallio Public Library
Place Helsinki, Finland
Coordinates 60.183589, 24.953620

When I visited Kallio library in the summer last year it had changed a lot from my previous visits in 2014-2015. The changes made change, considering how society develops (and libraries with it), but I did feel a sense of nostalgic longing when I was there. Coincidentally, one and a half week ago I felt for the very first time that I liked Turku more than Helsinki and that Helsinki maybe is most pleasurable through the lens of youthful innocence and sense of wonder.

A fun fact about Kallio library is that they used to have 5-stringed kanteles that you could check out with your library card – and quite possibly they still do! So if you ever feel threathened by a great pike, you know where to go.

Kallio library exterior

Kallio library exterior, with Pride flags due to Helsinki Pride taking place the same week.

Kallio library stairs 1

The stairs in Kallio library – old fashioned beauty.

Kallio library stairs 2

Kallio library, a stairway to heaven, or at least a stairway to the Stairway to Heaven record as the top floor is the music section.

Kallio library top floor

Kallio library top floor: children’s and music sections.

Kallio library view

View from the top floor of Kallio library. You can see on of Helsinki’s famous trams down the road!

Library of the Week (3): Biblioteca Daniel Cosío Villegas at Colmex

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This week I’m doing a live post from CDMX where I’m attending the Wikimedia+Libraries International Convention (its first edition was in Dublin 2022). This will be a short but delightful post since I’m busy conferencing.

Here you can read a little bit about Biblioteca Daniel Cosío Villegas.

Library Biblioteca Daniel Cosío Villegas
Place Mexico City, Mexico
Coordinates 19.3040286, -99.2075279

Entrance to Daniel Cosío Villegas Library

Entrance Biblioteca Daniel Cosío Villegas.

Library interior and globe closeup

Library interior and globe closeup – Sweden chipped away :< The library is a place for reflection.

Details from the library interior: your place to write, a time capsule, and an interesting way to avoid managing money in the information desk. "Silence"

Details from the library interior: your place to write, a time capsule, and an interesting way to avoid managing money in the information desk. ”Silence”.

A friend, a model of Colmex, an interior shot including library panopticon

A friend, a model of Colmex, an interior shot including library panopticon.

Library interior

Library interior with ominous portrait. I like how the library offices are in the library room! Very present.

Bonus picture because I like the yellow and I love university merch. It’s a thing.

Colmex merch

Colmex merch selection

Library of the Week (2): Savonlinna Main Library ”Joeli”

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Welcome to this new segment – we’ll see how long it lasts. Like many ”start of the new year” initiatives this may trickle out soon. This has been on my mind for a while, and what I’ve really wanted to do is to create my own library map of the world featuring all the libraries I’ve visited. Usually when I travel somewhere I try to visit a public library (or other types of libraries, but public libraries are usually the more interesting libraries because of their local flavour) and over the years I’ve seen quite a few. I take pictures, notes and then it all goes to the digital graveyard on my laptop. This is an attempt to resuscitate my library experiences – maybe they can inspire someone else too!

Exterior of Savonlinna Main Library "Joeli"

Exterior of Savonlinna Main Library ”Joeli”

Library Savonlinna Main Library ”Joeli”
Place Savonlinna, Finland
Coordinates 61.872475, 28.874575

First out in my library of the week series (hehe) is Savonlinna Main Library ”Joeli”. Last summer I went on a train excursion through Karelia and Savonia in Finand. Well, I say Savonia but I really only visited Savonlinna (sv. Nyslott), easily reached by switching to railbus in Parikkala. It’s a beautiful town, probably best enjoyed in the summer, and the main library is situated a bit off from the tourist city center. Like many cities and towns around Saimaa (Finland’s largest lake) the Saimaa ringed seal makes its appearance here and there, and can be spotted on the metal decorations of the wooden building. The library was built in 2013 and therefore has many characteristics of a modern public library, in terms of light, spaces, and furniture.

Savonlinna boasts a 15th century castle built on the then borderlands between Sweden and Russia. It’s called Olofsborg (fi. Olavinlinna, named after St Olaf) and is well worth a visit, but be prepared to walk many stairs. In the summer the castle is a venue for operatic performances (sadly I didn’t attend a show as I was only there over the day). The castle being named after the Nordic patron saint is reasonably why there was a poster marketing the celebration of St Olaf’s day at the library notice board. It’s usually not celebrated in Sweden and Finland, and more often in Norway and the Faroe Islands.

Bike anarchy outside the library and a poster for St Olaf celebrations

Bike anarchy outside the library and a poster for St Olaf celebrations.

As for the contents of the library, it was quite standard. There was a library café, good selection of newspapers, and in addition to books one could also check out records and hobby equipment. Being a fan of Morrissey I usually check out the record section of the library and surprisingly often one can find the World Peace record that has been unavailable on streaming services and in record stores for ~10 years. One shouldn’t underestimate the analogue power of a public library when it comes to access to information.

Overall, a surprisingly large library for a town with a population of 32 000 people. Savonlinna is the main city in Southern Savonia and has been an important city of trade since it was founded in 1639 (making it as old as Västmanlands-Dala Nation in Uppsala). Mind you, I repeat this from memory after my visit to the excellent Savonlinna Museum, and I do seem to remember there was some controversy regarding its status as a trade city a few hundred years back, related to its proximity to the border and having been thrown between Swedish, Russian, and Finnish rule. There’s a brief overview of this in the Swedish language Wikipedia article on Savonlinna (the English language version was less detailed on the city rights). Highly recommend a visit if you’re passing by!

The main library staircase in black and white, featuring my hem and shoe.

The main library staircase in black and white, featuring my hem, shoe, and enthusiasm for its aestethics.

The oddly shaped staircase (see the angles on the library interior map I posted) was in black and white, very pleasing for the eyes. Although it looked like it could be slippery in the winter.

”Thumbs up” ended the conversation before it began

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I’m currently reading Naomi Klein’s Doppelgänger and I’ve therefore experienced a flare of disgust at the thought of building my personal brand (it’s essentially just more data for the surveillance capitalism monster).

The last year or so I’ve been posting about my doctoral research progress on Linkedin. I think I at some point started worrying about my future career (doctoral research is a very, very lonely endeavour and I sometimes lose my bearings) and thought I needed to make something of what I do seen. Please keep me in mind …!

Being in a better place now, I recently posted about two thrilling topics that I expected would spark enthusiastic discussion. Alas, they did not. I am not surprised, but I am outraged. What intellectual contribution does anyone bring with a thumbs up? None. And if it’s none, why am I trying to start a stimulating discussion in that forum?

In combination with my Doppelgänger mood, I’ve therefore started to move some of my old posts from Linkedin to my weblog and delete them from Linkedin. It’s annoyingly difficult to find out the publication date of a Linkedin post as it just says ”5mos” or similar, but I found this tool to help figure it out.

Why? Well, it’s my research journal, my professional endeavours, and my data. So it should be here, on my webpage, and not on ”social” media, gathering a collection of ”thumbs up” that really only says the conversation ended before it began.

Revisiting the Multimedia PhD Thesis: Interview Quotations

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I’m currently in Chester, taking a two week course in academic English. It came at an opportune time for me as I am in the process of writing of my doctoral research in a monograph.

This morning we did a writing exercise in free writing – a stream of consciousness from the academic mind, if you will. I had planned to ask our teacher about how to quote from interviews in academic writing (n.b. not how to write the quotes, but how to choose and integrate in the textual flow) so with this on my mind, my text flow was centered around this topic.

The problem: representing the interviewees without disrupting the textual flow

Quotes from interviews are useful to validate any claims you as a research might have when presenting results or findings. A quote can be more powerful than a paraphrase or summary of  what was said since it represents the voice – an empirical voice – of the interviewee. The real life experience as told in an interview is part of what makes qualitative research compelling. It’s not just about the researcher’s analysis of the interviews but also about the researcher’s responsibility to retell and represent the stories told by interviewees.

From a textual perspective quotes take up a lot of space (useless in articles that are so limited in scope) and can also disturb the flow of the text, making it a smorgasbord of various thoughts and voices instead of being a presented dish at a Michelin restaurant.

How to overcome this hurdle? Is there a best practice – and is that practice really the best?

The solution (?!): a multimedia PhD thesis

The train of thought led me back to a topic I was keen on exploring in 2016 (but never did): the multimedia PhD thesis. If I was asked to explain what this is, I would say: it’s about moving on from the Gutenberg parenthesis and the pdf pseudo codex and instead utilising the marvel of technology to make the most of presenting the research to various audiences.

I could say more, but you get the general idea. I you want to, you can read more about multimedia theses in Coral Manton’s ”Multimedia and Non-Text PhD Research Outputs: Theses research project for the British Library EThOS web service”.

My idea for a solution to the interview quote problem is to use hyperlinks to display quotes supporting a statement made in the academic text. This way, a statement will be directly linked to the quotes supporting it, without having 3-4 repetetive blockquotes taking up space in the text body. The reader can choose whether they just want to read the article text or if they want to get closer to the sources by reading the quotes.

A quick sketch of hyperlink quotations (and some notes)

A possible extension is to link the quotations to the interview transcript, providing further context for the quote that could be interesting to study. This multilayered hyperlink approach make the transcription dataset more accessible than if it was published as bulk text data.

With this transparent presentation design, both the voice of the researcher and interviewee can be heard and the reader can compare the researcher’s analysis with the source material and make their own interpretation.

Mockup: does it work?

I thought I’d do a quick mockup to see if this is a feasible design idea. I’d also like to collect some views from readers on whether this would be an interesting way to read a paper or whether it’s just theoretically pleasing. The mockup will be based on my 2023 article of AI skills in libraries (CC BY-SA 4.0) and the associated dataset (an interview transcript) (CC BY 4.0). (The choice of licensing really pays off when you want to do experimentation like this! Open science ftw! \o/)

We’re soon heading out on a tour of the city so this section will be updated later…

September research update

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September is the best month of the year. I’ve always found it ideal for travelling. Summer is starting to let go but the autumn slump has not yet begun and the beginning-of-the-semester vibe is omnipresent, full with hope and enthusiasm for the future. 🌞🍁⚖️

This September I have been (and am still!) travelling through Sweden 🇸🇪 (and Finland 🇫🇮) to interview public librarians for my research. I want to learn more about their perceptions of privacy and freedom of information in relation to public libraries and also how this works in practice – what challenges do they have? What questions are being discussed among librarians and library users in relation to these topics? 📚🛤️👩🏻‍💻

Democracy day celebrated at a Swedish public library, including workshop for making your own protest sign

Democracy day celebrated at a Swedish public library, including workshop for making your own protest sign

One of my main research questions is the European perspective – do European librarians face similar issues, do they have a common librarian information ethic or are they heavily influenced or limited by local laws, traditions, and perceptions? And if so, how does this affect international policy making as the international aspect is impossible to ignore due to the “nature” of the information society (e.g. the internet, that so far remains “borderless”)? I’ve previously interviewed librarians in Czechia 🇨🇿, France 🇫🇷, and the United Kingdom 🇬🇧.

I am aware it will be hard to answer the European question – partly due to the method (semi-structured interviews – meaning fewer informants but a richer, more complex material) and partly due to not being able (restrictions: time, money, advised length of academic articles) to interview more public librarians from more European countries. However, the selection I do have is incredibly interesting in itself with so many rabbits to follow it’s unclear if I’ll show up on the other side with something coherent. Fingers crossed I do. 👩🏻‍🏫🐇🤞

This post was moved here from Linkedin on 31 May 2024.

August research update

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Let’s start off this semester with some reflections on artificial intelligence in libraries. 🤖 🗃 📚

This month is a lot of revising, writing, transcribing, reading, and making travel arrangements for fieldwork in Sweden in September. East, south, west, north – fingers crossed the ships and trains will carry me where I need to go. 🚢 🚉 🇸🇪

Oh, and yesterday I submitted a challenge paper with my colleague Hilda Ruokolainen (I highly recommend you read her recently defended doctoral dissertation on misinformation – whether our paper is accepted or not it has been a great experience and it immediately switched my brain from vacation to research mode. Great way to start August! 👩‍🏫

This post was moved here from Linkedin on 31 May 2024.

New publication: Report about Wikipedia and libraries

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I’ve written a report (sv. kunskapsöversikt) about libraries and Wikipedia on behalf of Biblioteksutveckling Sörmland. The report highlights how libraries can work with Wikipedia and other Wikimedia platforms to

– teach media and information literacy and digital literacy 💻 ;
– preserve, communicate, and encourage interactivity with cultural heritage collections 🎭 ;
– inspire the future development of knowledge organisation and management 🗃 ;
– support libraries in their work to promote democracy, e.g. by engaging with minorities and minority languages 🗣 ;
– promote and support open knowledge and research available for all 📚.

The report was published last week and is available as pdf document. There is also a 10 minute long film summarising the findings of the report. Both are in Swedish 🇸🇪 , but the long list of references is multilingual so hopefully it can be useful as a resource even if you don’t read Swedish. 😁

The document is not complete in the sense that there is a lot of new research coming out about Wikipedia, it’s difficult to cover everything that has been done so far, and I had to make a selection. The report will therefore be published in a wiki format later on, so that people can add to it, extend it, and contribute with new references. It’s how knowledge should be built, right? Together! 🤓 🌍

You can find the report 📕 and the film 📽 through this link.

This post was moved here from Linkedin on 31 May 2024.

My first keynote! On AI, libraries and society

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May was a month of adventures! On 11 May I gave a keynote on AI, libraries and society at the library days of Finland’s Swedish library association. This picture from this event was graciously taken and shared by Maria Lorentzon.

Karolina holding a keynote speech at FSBF:s biblioteksdagar in Vaasa

Karolina – a keynote speaker!

On 24 May a text I wrote together with my colleague Hilda Forss about ChatGPT and DALL-E (or really mainly about challenges and opportunities in art and society brought on by AI) was published in Ny tid. It’s an interesting mix of our perspectives as researchers in information studies and literary studies respectively, and I’m very grateful to collaborate with such an astute and clever researcher who continuously changes and expands my train of thought every time we talk.

On May 25-26 I also attended a conference for doctoral researchers organised by the Society of Swedish Literature in Finland that gave very useful insights in the doctoral research process and on what happens next. In some ways it provided me with a map confirming that I am, indeed, on the right path. A big thank you to the organisers and to Camilla Lindholm (TAU) and Åsa Burman (SU) for the lecture/workshop!

Can’t wait to see what June will bring!

This post was moved here from Linkedin on 31 May 2024.

When in Blackpool, don’t miss the public library

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I was in Blackpool late September 2022 for a concert and I didn’t have a clue about the place. A Mancunian friend said it was one of those seaside resorts that had its heyday in the postwar decade (when it received 17 million visitors a year) but that it now was the perfect embodiment of Everyday Is Like Sunday’s line ”this is the coastal town that they forgot to close down”.

A glance on the Blackpool Wikipedia article says the town grew into a popular destination for the working class in the mid-19th century when Lancashire cotton mill owners took turns to shut down their factories for maintenance one week per year which provided a steady stream of visitors to Blackpool. Famous for its promenade, piers and perhaps especially its electrical lights – it was the first municipality in the world (1879) to have electric street lighting and its electrical tramway (1885) is also one of the world’s first. The (according to British friends apparently very famous) Blackpool Tower, inspired by the Parisian Eiffel Tower, was opened in 1894 and was at the time the tallest man made structure in the British empire.

The increased popularity of package holidays abroad meant Blackpool lost its traditional tourist crowd and as I understand it’s now mainly day tourists who go there, and not nearly as many as before. However, tourism remains a pillar in the town’s economy. A fun fact is that Blackpool shares its etymology with Dublin on the other side of the Irish sea: Dublin is derived from Irish Duibhlinn which means ”black pool” (though the common name for the city in modern Irish is Baile Átha Cliath, ”town of the hurdled ford”).

Knowing a bit about Blackpool’s history, it’s not surprising that it’s also home to a Carnegie library which serves as the main public library of the town. The Carnegie libraries were built between 1883 and 1929 with money donated from the Scottish-American philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and of the 2509 libraries, 660 are located in the United Kingdom and Ireland. What makes the Blackpool Central Library unique among Carnegie libraries is that it has a portrait of the philanthropist. As you ascend the stairs and reach the upper floor (which hosts local history collections and the Brunswick room) the donor’s gaze meet you from a stained glass window. This part of the library was closed of for renovation when I visited but the lovely librarian Jools showed me the closed section and also told me the story about the rare Carnegie portrait.

The public libraries of Blackpool have seven other branches that together with the Central Library serves the town’s population (~141,000 people). What really struck me with the Central Library was that it was so colourful. Many Carnegie libraries (and other libraries from the same era) I’ve visited look very similar, with white walls and an old fashioned sense of a library space trying to fit in with modern services. It’s hard to put my finger on it but I think it has something to do with only shelves, furniture, and signage dividing the space into different sections, whereas in Blackpool painted walls and decorations are used to create spaces (for example the children’s section). Then again, perhaps this only reflects my personal opinion about white walls being inherently uncosy, it seems to be a ”neutral” standard in apartments as well and I’ve rented plenty of places where the walls had to be covered in posters and photos to combat the eerie feeling of being lost in a desolate snowstorm. Either way, the colours of Blackpool were wondrous and if I remember correctly the decorations had been made by a local artist (maybe even a former staff member?) and the imaginative bookcase seems to have been built by local dads.

Supporting dads through collaboration with the charity Dads Matter UK was an interesting focus that I haven’t really noticed in libraries before (maybe I’m just unobservant) and it made me think about libraries as an important place for such activities. Libraries are neutral and open spaces and even if you go their for peer support groups to help with your anxiety etc. no one seeing you at the library would immediately know the purpose for your visit – you might just as well be there to print documents, get books with your children, or use the bathroom. The broad scope of library activities (and activities taking place in the library) by design helps protect the privacy of the individual who participates.

My usual library tourism is just popping in at the public library in the place I’m visiting and have a look around. If no people are around I might take some pictures and I’m a fan of studying the event boards to see what kind of activities libraries and their partners (for example local organisations) arrange. Sometimes friendly library staff ask if I want any help and sometimes this will lead to a short conversation about me being a librarian and that I like visiting libraries whenever I travel somewhere. In Blackpool I started talking to librarian Jools who prompted by my story started sharing facts about the library and the town. Unfortunately, I got to the library just 15 minutes before closing time on September 28 so we didn’t have much time, but Jools kindly invited me back the next day to see the upper floor and to hear more about the library’s activities.

One remarkable feature of the library is the stained glass windows that were made for the library’s centenary in 2011. They were created through consultation with community and staff members and the themes of the windows reflects Blackpool’s history, present, and future. By each window there was a sign explaining the window and I’ve included an image of the Freedom window explanation in this post (the text: FREEDOM: Words, knowledge, ideas all create new ways of thinking and ways of living. This window celebrates freedom of thought and speech.) I’m sure anyone familiar with me or my research can imagine how much this resonates with me. You can read more about the centenary redesign of the library here, or the making of the stained glass windows here.

The library also offers a lot of activities to support its community’s social, reading, and IT skills needs – among other things (see image of the event board to explore further). When I met Jools the next morning she had just broadcasted a digital story event through the library’s social media. Here’s an example of a digital story session on Blackpool Libraries’ facebook page, and below is an image of the studio which was a corner of her office. I’ve understood (not just based on Blackpool) that in many public libraries digital events have started and/or expanded during the pandemic, and they continue to be a vital part of post-pandemic library services to make sure the library can reach all of its users.

There always more to say and write and tell, but I’m wrapping up this post and I hope your curiosity will lead you to this amazing library one day. Going back to my British friends who said Blackpool was a rundown resort that had seen its best days I’d have to say that whatever else in the city may lead to this impression the library certainly doesn’t. It is such an imaginative, beautiful, and friendly space and I hope and assume that Blackpool citizens share my sentiment about the library.