CFP: Library History Seminar XIII: Libraries: Traditions and Innovations
July 31 - August 2, 2015
Pre-Conference Trips, July 30-31, 2015
School of Library & Information Science
Simmons College
Boston, MA 02115
Boston, Massachusetts, the site of the Library History Seminar XIII, provides an apt setting to explore traditions and innovations in libraries. The Boston area is home to many important library innovations in North America, including the first university library and the first large, free municipal library. At the same time, new information institutions continue to be created here, of which the Digital Public Library of America and the Digital Commonwealth of online heritage materials are two recent examples.
With Boston as the backdrop, this conference seeks to delve into the enduring and evolving aspects of libraries and librarianship. The convergence and divergence of the physical and the digital may result in opportunities and challenges that we do not yet realize. Traditionally libraries have made their collections available to defined audiences, but today it is increasingly difficult to define and delineate user communities. At the same time, so-called “disruptive technologies” in publishing are resulting in new approaches to the collection and dissemination of information. The Library History Seminar XIII will provide a lively forum for such scholarly debate.
We encourage the submission of papers and panels that explore the notion of the library, from brick-and-mortar to digital. Topics include, but are not limited to, the history of library services and types, library architecture, the library as place, library users (digital and virtual), library communities, challenges and opportunities of cyberspace, disruptive technologies, social media and networking, pop-up libraries, online learning, and social reading.
Proposals should include a 200-250 word abstract of the paper, along with the name, title, affiliation, and email address of the author. Panels should include an abstract for each paper, as well as an abstract for the panel. All proposals should be submitted to lhs13@simmons.edu with the paper and panel proposals attached in a word or pdf document. Any queries regarding the conference should also be submitted to lhs13@simmons.edu.
THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION IS NOVEMBER 1, 2014.
