NCSU Libraries Focus Online

Volume 21 number 1 - Fall 2000

By Karen Ciccone, Research and Information Services

The NCSU Librarians Association (NCSULA) sponsored the I. T. Littleton Seminar on April 7, 2000. Association officers Karen Ciccone (president), Deborah Westmoreland (vice chair/chair elect), Linda McCormick (secretary), and Tamika Barnes (liaison to the Staff Association), together with Karen Grigg (NCSULA Food Committee) planned and made arrangements for the seminar and reception. Guest speaker Marshall Van Alstyne, assistant professor of information at the University of Michigan's School of Information, described a theoretical framework for valuing information that combined ideas from economics and computer science. A reception honoring former library director I. T. Littleton and the speaker followed the program.

Van Alstyne's specialty lies in the area of information economics, an interdisciplinary field of study that draws on principles of information science, economics, and computer science in an attempt to understand better our networked society. His research focuses on the measurement and management of information capital. Academic interest in this field is increasing as the growth in electronic commerce raises questions about how to value goods that are intangible.

Van Alstyne began by defining and describing many of the different types of information that individuals deal with, from facts to procedural knowledge. Using ideas from the field of computer science, he presented a robust definition of information. He then applied basic economic models to various types of information goods to arrive at methods for calculating their monetary value.

The seminar was free and open to the NC State community and interested colleagues. A diverse audience made up of representatives from such varied fields as library administration, economics, computer science, and English enlivened the post-lecture discussion. Attendees also included librarians and faculty from Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill, NCCU, and corporate libraries in the area.

Funding for the seminar was provided by the I. T. Littleton Seminar Endowment, established in March 1987 to mark the retirement of I. T. Littleton. The I. T. Littleton Seminar series addresses major issues that affect libraries across the nation and explores diverse perspectives. Individuals interested in making a contribution to the Littleton endowment should write a check to "Friends of the Library" and specify the endowment name. Please send contributions to Friends of the Library, NCSU Libraries, Campus Box 7111, Raleigh, NC 27695-7111.