Prominent information scientist to speak at iSchool

Prominent information scientist to speak at iSchoolJanuary 22, 2008Margaret Costello Spillettmcostell@syr.edu

In 1945, long before the advent of the information super highway, Vannevar Bush described what he saw as “bewildering array of knowledge” — an information explosion phenomenon — and proposed a new technology to solve the growing problem of managing the information. This problem defined a new field of study — information science, according to leading information science scholar Tefko Saracevic. But how can the field keep up with the increasingly commercial, already global, Internet-dependent society?

Saracevic, professor at Rutgers University’s School of Communication, Information and Library Studies, will present his ideas on “Information Science: Where Does It Come From and Where Is It Going?” at 2 p.m. Monday, Jan. 28, in an open lecture in the Katzer Collaboratory, Room 347 of Hinds Hall.

Initially educated in electrical engineering at the University of Zagreb, Croatia, Saracevic earned a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in information science at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. He has spent much of his career dedicated to studying the question of relevance in information retrieval, as well as human-computer interaction and user experiences, digital libraries and search engine evaluation.

He is an internationally known expert in information systems, specializing in the design, deployment and evaluation of high-quality, low-cost medical information systems in developing countries. Saracevic has also been active in service to Croatia, receiving a Fulbright grant to work at the University of Zagreb and chairing the annual conference and course “Libraries in the Digital Age” in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Saracevic is highly regarded by peers, earning their recognition through awards, grants, guest lecture invitations and frequent citation in others’ research. He has also held leadership positions in many professional organizations, including serving as president of the American Society for Information Science and editor in chief of Information Processing and Management, the premier journal in information science.

Saracevic’s lecture is free and open to the University community. A reception will follow his presentation in Hinds Hall.