NFTs: A New Approach to Digital Content

Global crises create a sense of urgency for change and innovation, and libraries definitely stepped up to the call for action in their various communities. Join your peers from across the globe as they come together online for Internet Librarian Connect 2021, where we'll highlight some of the exciting changes that will likely become standard, those that were great experiments from which we learned much, as well as creative new insights and plans for the future.

NewsBreaks

by Larissa Pack

For now, NFTs have not been widely applied to digital content in the library space. However, as part of its Library of the Future initiative, ALA recently discussed the potential use cases for the blockchain technology vital to NFTs, including providing full access to digital content for those who cannot obtain a library card. The use of NFTs also presents a new layer to the issue of ownership when discussing subscriptions to digital content.

Weekly News Digests

'Internet Archive Predicts a Grim Future With Its Wayforward Machine' by Liam Tung

Liam Tung writes the following for ZDNet: "The Internet Archive, the non-profit responsible for the online archive called the Wayback Machine, has a grim message about the potential future of the internet at it celebrates its own 25th anniversary."

'UK's 10 Year Plan to Become Global AI Superpower' by Adam Collins

Adam Collins writes the following for Access Partnership: "The UK recently published its National AI Strategy, detailing its plan to become a leading global AI superpower within the next decade."

SAGE Celebrates 50 Years of the Journal of Black Studies

SAGE is endowing a $100,000 Africology and African American Studies graduate research scholarship—the SAGE Asante Award—to Temple University's College of Liberal Arts in Philadelphia to honor the 50th anniversary of the Journal of Black Studies (JBS).

CyberRisk Alliance Shares Plans for Cybersecurity Awareness Month

CyberRisk Alliance is offering a series of interactive educational programs during October's Cybersecurity Awareness Month, which aims to help individuals and organizations be safer and more secure when online.

Primary Research Group Studies COVID Vaccinations on College Campuses

Primary Research Group rolled out the "Survey of College Health Services: COVID Vaccination Practices & Plans" (purchase required) in both PDF and print, and site licenses are available. It is based on data collected in September 2021 from 30 institutions in the U.S. and Canada. ...

NewsLink Spotlight

Hitting the Books: A Pro Baseball Player Promotes Reading and Media Literacy

by Lauree Padgett

At 6 feet, 4 inches tall and weighing 255 pounds, the Washington Nationals' switch-hitting first baseman Josh Bell is an imposing figure. When he steps up to the plate, it isn't hard to imagine that he can hit the ball a loooong way. And in the 2021 MLB season, Bell sent balls flying out of the ballpark more than 25 times. What isn't apparent when looking at this 29-year-old native of Irving, Texas, is how much he is committed to sharing his love of reading and libraries and helping people recognize the importance of literacy—especially media literacy.

How to Meet the Challenge of Exponential Database Growth

Applied Knowledge Sciences CEO Art Murray discusses the five key drivers of knowledge growth and how to meet the challenges of that growth in this clip from his presentation at KMWorld 2022.

Bookshelf

Strangers in the Avalon Dunes (A Meg Daniels Mystery)
by Jane Kelly

After the turbulence of her last adventure, Meg Daniels swears she never wants to help someone find a lost loved one ever again. She settles into a lazy routine in an upscale home in the high dunes of Avalon, New Jersey, that is owned by a friend who has asked her and her fiancé, Andy Beck, to housesit for several months.

However, Meg finds she can't outrun her reputation. When a young woman asks Meg to find her long-lost grandfather, Ken Patterson, Meg just can't say no.

January 2023/284 pp/trade paperback/ISBN 978-1-940091-12-9 | Regular Price $15.95

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