Fact Checking Before Internet
Bill Aspray and I are exploring how fact checking was done between the early 1950s and the mid-1990s using computers and networks, that is to say, before the wide use of the Internet, snopes, Wiki etc. If you are aware of specific examples, or documentation, about this use of computing, please let us know. We are interested in all manner of fact checking, not limiting it to press challenges of statements by politicians, hoaxes, and faulty scientific research. Thanks for your help. -- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu 608-274-6382
James and Bill - I’ve mentioned your project to a friend who has been a long-time writer for Texas Monthly, the New York Times, and other publications. She is going to provide me with some contact information later this week. I’ll message you off-list with details. Great idea for a project! -Julie ***************************** Julie Cohn, Ph.D. Research Historian, Center for Public History University of Houston, 315 McElhinney Hall Houston, TX 77204-3007 cohnconnor@gmail.com Author: The Grid: Biography of an American Technology (MIT Press, 2017) https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/grid
On Dec 1, 2018, at 8:42 AM, James Cortada <jcortada@umn.edu> wrote:
Bill Aspray and I are exploring how fact checking was done between the early 1950s and the mid-1990s using computers and networks, that is to say, before the wide use of the Internet, snopes, Wiki etc. If you are aware of specific examples, or documentation, about this use of computing, please let us know. We are interested in all manner of fact checking, not limiting it to press challenges of statements by politicians, hoaxes, and faulty scientific research. Thanks for your help.
-- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu <mailto:jcortada@umn.edu> 608-274-6382 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
James and Bill, you guys might enjoy reading "The Lifespan of a Fact," and/or the script for the play based on the book, which is currently showing in New York City. It's a more recent account of fact-checking than you're looking for, but may have useful insights. On Sun, Dec 2, 2018 at 12:14 PM Julie Cohn <cohnconnor@gmail.com> wrote:
James and Bill -
I’ve mentioned your project to a friend who has been a long-time writer for Texas Monthly, the New York Times, and other publications. She is going to provide me with some contact information later this week. I’ll message you off-list with details.
Great idea for a project!
-Julie
***************************** Julie Cohn, Ph.D. Research Historian, Center for Public History University of Houston, 315 McElhinney Hall Houston, TX 77204-3007 cohnconnor@gmail.com
Author: *The Grid: Biography of an American Technology** (MIT Press, 2017)* https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/grid
On Dec 1, 2018, at 8:42 AM, James Cortada <jcortada@umn.edu> wrote:
Bill Aspray and I are exploring how fact checking was done between the early 1950s and the mid-1990s using computers and networks, that is to say, before the wide use of the Internet, snopes, Wiki etc. If you are aware of specific examples, or documentation, about this use of computing, please let us know. We are interested in all manner of fact checking, not limiting it to press challenges of statements by politicians, hoaxes, and faulty scientific research. Thanks for your help.
-- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu 608-274-6382 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
Thanks, I will check it out. On Sun, Dec 2, 2018 at 12:29 PM Jean Graham <jean.graham@stonybrook.edu> wrote:
James and Bill, you guys might enjoy reading "The Lifespan of a Fact," and/or the script for the play based on the book, which is currently showing in New York City. It's a more recent account of fact-checking than you're looking for, but may have useful insights.
On Sun, Dec 2, 2018 at 12:14 PM Julie Cohn <cohnconnor@gmail.com> wrote:
James and Bill -
I’ve mentioned your project to a friend who has been a long-time writer for Texas Monthly, the New York Times, and other publications. She is going to provide me with some contact information later this week. I’ll message you off-list with details.
Great idea for a project!
-Julie
***************************** Julie Cohn, Ph.D. Research Historian, Center for Public History University of Houston, 315 McElhinney Hall Houston, TX 77204-3007 cohnconnor@gmail.com
Author: *The Grid: Biography of an American Technology** (MIT Press, 2017)* https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/grid
On Dec 1, 2018, at 8:42 AM, James Cortada <jcortada@umn.edu> wrote:
Bill Aspray and I are exploring how fact checking was done between the early 1950s and the mid-1990s using computers and networks, that is to say, before the wide use of the Internet, snopes, Wiki etc. If you are aware of specific examples, or documentation, about this use of computing, please let us know. We are interested in all manner of fact checking, not limiting it to press challenges of statements by politicians, hoaxes, and faulty scientific research. Thanks for your help.
-- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu 608-274-6382 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
-- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu 608-274-6382
A tool that was first operable with NASA records in 1966, and which became commercially available in 1972, is DIALOG. The IEEE recently awarded the DIALOG Online Search System with a Milestone based on what I documented on this webpage <http://ieeemilestones.ethw.org/Milestone-Proposal:The_DIALOG_Online_Search_System,_1966-1970>. A vast array of data not accessible via the Internet is available for searching via the paid service ProQuest Dialog <https://www.proquest.com/products-services/ProQuest-Dialog.html> - you literally get what you pay for, with access to medical research, scholarly papers, etc., that will never be posted for free on the Internet. The USPTO uses this tool as part of its prior art searches for patent applications. The citation for what will be cast in a pair of bronze plaques (at some point in the coming year, to be placed at Lockheed and at the Computer History Museum) is here: *DIALOG Online Search System, 1966DIALOG was the first interactive, online search system addressing large databases while allowing iterative refinement of results. DIALOG was developed at Lockheed Palo Alto Research Laboratory in 1966, extended through contracts with NASA, and offered commercially in 1972. Its speed, ease of use, and wide range of data content attracted professional users worldwide including scientists, attorneys, educators and librarians. DIALOG preceded major Internet search tools by more than two decades.* I highlighted the last sentence because of its relevance to this thread, and there is a wealth of info included on the above linked webpage. This tool has always allowed iterative searches (also highlighted), a unique feature at the time, and which made it a particularly effective tool from the time of its inception. _________________________ Brian A. Berg / bberg@StanfordAlumni.org Berg Software Design 14500 Big Basin Way, Suite F, Saratoga, CA 95070 USA Voice: 408.741.5010 / Cell: 408.568.2505 Consulting: Flash Memory/USB/Storage/Patents visit the Storage Cornucopia: www.bswd.com FMS Technical Chair: www.FlashMemorySummit.com IEEE Milestone <http://www.ieeeghn.org/wiki/index.php/Milestones:List_of_IEEE_Milestones> Coordinator for Region 6 <http://www.ieee-region6.org/> IEEE SCV Section <http://www.ieee.org/scv/> Past Chair / IEEE-CNSV <http://www.CaliforniaConsultants.org> Board Director IEEE Silicon Valley Tech History Committee <http://www.SiliconValleyHistory.com/> Chair On Sun, Dec 2, 2018 at 9:14 AM Julie Cohn <cohnconnor@gmail.com> wrote:
James and Bill -
I’ve mentioned your project to a friend who has been a long-time writer for Texas Monthly, the New York Times, and other publications. She is going to provide me with some contact information later this week. I’ll message you off-list with details.
Great idea for a project!
-Julie
***************************** Julie Cohn, Ph.D. Research Historian, Center for Public History University of Houston, 315 McElhinney Hall Houston, TX 77204-3007 cohnconnor@gmail.com
Author: *The Grid: Biography of an American Technology** (MIT Press, 2017)* https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/grid
On Dec 1, 2018, at 8:42 AM, James Cortada <jcortada@umn.edu> wrote:
Bill Aspray and I are exploring how fact checking was done between the early 1950s and the mid-1990s using computers and networks, that is to say, before the wide use of the Internet, snopes, Wiki etc. If you are aware of specific examples, or documentation, about this use of computing, please let us know. We are interested in all manner of fact checking, not limiting it to press challenges of statements by politicians, hoaxes, and faulty scientific research. Thanks for your help.
-- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu 608-274-6382 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
Dear Jim and Bill, I would divide computerized fact checking into two main kinds – 1) retrieving information from existing written sources, and 2) asking live experts. The former favors systems designed specifically for information retrieval, the latter favors online discussion groups around specific topics. Below are some thoughts on resources for each. 1) Formal information retrieval: As I’m sure you know DIALOG (1966), LexisNexis (LEXIS 1970) and other commercial online search services were used by professionals including journalists until they were absorbed into the Web and Internet (both still exist as Web sites). I did an oral history a couple of years ago with Charlie Bourne, who was a DIALOG VP and a leading expert on information retrieval and early online search. He gave us his extension collection of material on computerized information retrieval in general dating back to the ‘50s, which might be a good starting point. Also happy to introduce you to him. I can also introduce you to Roger Summit, co-founder of DIALOG. He was recorded on a panel in the last year or so at the Silicon Valley IEEE, and I’m sure Brian Berg can point you to the footage. For LexisNexis history author Will Bagley has done extensive research and interviewing and is connected with a number of the principals, can introduce you. Ann Hardy who wrote the OS for Tymshare/Tymnet in the late 1960s and was later a VP there might also have ideas. While they provided the platform for information services rather than offering the information themselves (Tymnet was far bigger than the ARPAnet in the ‘70s) she has an overview of what was around then. We did an oral history with her a while back. In France, people used Minitel for a variety of research tasks from the early ‘80s well into the Web era; we did a Minitel history project and can connect you to people and resources here and in France. Julien Mailland and Kevin Driscoll’s book is an excellent overview. Michel Landaret, who Julien and I did an oral history with a couple of years ago, is a major pioneer of online journalism on Minitel and would be a good source. Computerized card catalogs grew in the 1970s and were a kind of halfway point between online and paper retrieval; can introduce you to pioneers for that if of interest. Wire services like Reuters date to the 1850s. I’m not sure if and when their archives became searchable, either on paper in the telegraph era or at some point online. John Liffen, curator emeritus of telegraphy at the Science Museum, may have info on the earlier part of the story. 2) Asking experts: There are a LOT of examples – topical discussion groups on various timesharing systems, on PLATO Notes, ARPAnet email, Online Services from the Source to CompuServe to AOL to the Well, BBSs, Minitel and other videotex systems, and more I’m not thinking of. Basically anywhere you had people connecting around a particular topic. We have archives related to several of those above, and can point you to experts or principals for most. Best, Marc Marc Weber<http://www.computerhistory.org/staff/Marc,Weber/> | marc@webhistory.org<mailto:marc@webhistory.org> | +1 415 282 6868 Internet History Program Curatorial Director, Computer History Museum 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043 computerhistory.org/nethistory<http://computerhistory.org/nethistory> Co-founder, Web History Center and Project, webhistory.org<http://webhistory.org> On Dec 1, 2018, at 06:42, James Cortada <jcortada@umn.edu<mailto:jcortada@umn.edu>> wrote: Bill Aspray and I are exploring how fact checking was done between the early 1950s and the mid-1990s using computers and networks, that is to say, before the wide use of the Internet, snopes, Wiki etc. If you are aware of specific examples, or documentation, about this use of computing, please let us know. We are interested in all manner of fact checking, not limiting it to press challenges of statements by politicians, hoaxes, and faulty scientific research. Thanks for your help. -- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu<mailto:jcortada@umn.edu> 608-274-6382 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org<http://sigcis.org>, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
Marc Weber, Thanks for the posting, with inclusion of DIALOG. As a follow-up to my post re: DIALOG, the full video of a panel discussion that I led (which included Roger Summit, the originator of the system and the person I worked with on the Milestone) is available here: *Dialog: The Beginning of Online Search* <https://californiaconsultants.org/event/dialog-the-beginning-of-online-search/>. That site also includes the slide set, which embeds some old videos. Brian Berg On Sun, Dec 2, 2018 at 11:53 AM Marc Weber <mweber@computerhistory.org> wrote:
Dear Jim and Bill, I would divide computerized fact checking into two main kinds – 1) retrieving information from existing written sources, and 2) asking live experts. The former favors systems designed specifically for information retrieval, the latter favors online discussion groups around specific topics. Below are some thoughts on resources for each.
1) Formal information retrieval: As I’m sure you know DIALOG (1966), LexisNexis (LEXIS 1970) and other commercial online search services were used by professionals including journalists until they were absorbed into the Web and Internet (both still exist as Web sites). I did an oral history a couple of years ago with Charlie Bourne, who was a DIALOG VP and a leading expert on information retrieval and early online search. He gave us his extension collection of material on computerized information retrieval in general dating back to the ‘50s, which might be a good starting point. Also happy to introduce you to him. I can also introduce you to Roger Summit, co-founder of DIALOG. He was recorded on a panel in the last year or so at the Silicon Valley IEEE, and I’m sure Brian Berg can point you to the footage. For LexisNexis history author Will Bagley has done extensive research and interviewing and is connected with a number of the principals, can introduce you. Ann Hardy who wrote the OS for Tymshare/Tymnet in the late 1960s and was later a VP there might also have ideas. While they provided the platform for information services rather than offering the information themselves (Tymnet was far bigger than the ARPAnet in the ‘70s) she has an overview of what was around then. We did an oral history with her a while back. In France, people used Minitel for a variety of research tasks from the early ‘80s well into the Web era; we did a Minitel history project and can connect you to people and resources here and in France. Julien Mailland and Kevin Driscoll’s book is an excellent overview. Michel Landaret, who Julien and I did an oral history with a couple of years ago, is a major pioneer of online journalism on Minitel and would be a good source. Computerized card catalogs grew in the 1970s and were a kind of halfway point between online and paper retrieval; can introduce you to pioneers for that if of interest. Wire services like Reuters date to the 1850s. I’m not sure if and when their archives became searchable, either on paper in the telegraph era or at some point online. John Liffen, curator emeritus of telegraphy at the Science Museum, may have info on the earlier part of the story.
2) Asking experts: There are a LOT of examples – topical discussion groups on various timesharing systems, on PLATO Notes, ARPAnet email, Online Services from the Source to CompuServe to AOL to the Well, BBSs, Minitel and other videotex systems, and more I’m not thinking of. Basically anywhere you had people connecting around a particular topic. We have archives related to several of those above, and can point you to experts or principals for most.
Best, Marc
Marc Weber<http://www.computerhistory.org/staff/Marc,Weber/> | marc@webhistory.org<mailto:marc@webhistory.org> | +1 415 282 6868 Internet History Program Curatorial Director, Computer History Museum 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043 computerhistory.org/nethistory<http://computerhistory.org/nethistory> Co-founder, Web History Center and Project, webhistory.org< http://webhistory.org>
On Dec 1, 2018, at 06:42, James Cortada <jcortada@umn.edu<mailto: jcortada@umn.edu>> wrote:
Bill Aspray and I are exploring how fact checking was done between the early 1950s and the mid-1990s using computers and networks, that is to say, before the wide use of the Internet, snopes, Wiki etc. If you are aware of specific examples, or documentation, about this use of computing, please let us know. We are interested in all manner of fact checking, not limiting it to press challenges of statements by politicians, hoaxes, and faulty scientific research. Thanks for your help.
-- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu<mailto:jcortada@umn.edu> 608-274-6382 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org<http://sigcis.org>, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
There's also the "morgue," in newspaper offices, of previously published articles. Robert Darnton touches on this, I think, in some of his articles on the institutions and sociology of journalism. On Sun, Dec 2, 2018 at 3:11 PM Brian Berg <brianberg@gmail.com> wrote:
Marc Weber,
Thanks for the posting, with inclusion of DIALOG. As a follow-up to my post re: DIALOG, the full video of a panel discussion that I led (which included Roger Summit, the originator of the system and the person I worked with on the Milestone) is available here: *Dialog: The Beginning of Online Search* <https://californiaconsultants.org/event/dialog-the-beginning-of-online-search/>. That site also includes the slide set, which embeds some old videos.
Brian Berg
On Sun, Dec 2, 2018 at 11:53 AM Marc Weber <mweber@computerhistory.org> wrote:
Dear Jim and Bill, I would divide computerized fact checking into two main kinds – 1) retrieving information from existing written sources, and 2) asking live experts. The former favors systems designed specifically for information retrieval, the latter favors online discussion groups around specific topics. Below are some thoughts on resources for each.
1) Formal information retrieval: As I’m sure you know DIALOG (1966), LexisNexis (LEXIS 1970) and other commercial online search services were used by professionals including journalists until they were absorbed into the Web and Internet (both still exist as Web sites). I did an oral history a couple of years ago with Charlie Bourne, who was a DIALOG VP and a leading expert on information retrieval and early online search. He gave us his extension collection of material on computerized information retrieval in general dating back to the ‘50s, which might be a good starting point. Also happy to introduce you to him. I can also introduce you to Roger Summit, co-founder of DIALOG. He was recorded on a panel in the last year or so at the Silicon Valley IEEE, and I’m sure Brian Berg can point you to the footage. For LexisNexis history author Will Bagley has done extensive research and interviewing and is connected with a number of the principals, can introduce you. Ann Hardy who wrote the OS for Tymshare/Tymnet in the late 1960s and was later a VP there might also have ideas. While they provided the platform for information services rather than offering the information themselves (Tymnet was far bigger than the ARPAnet in the ‘70s) she has an overview of what was around then. We did an oral history with her a while back. In France, people used Minitel for a variety of research tasks from the early ‘80s well into the Web era; we did a Minitel history project and can connect you to people and resources here and in France. Julien Mailland and Kevin Driscoll’s book is an excellent overview. Michel Landaret, who Julien and I did an oral history with a couple of years ago, is a major pioneer of online journalism on Minitel and would be a good source. Computerized card catalogs grew in the 1970s and were a kind of halfway point between online and paper retrieval; can introduce you to pioneers for that if of interest. Wire services like Reuters date to the 1850s. I’m not sure if and when their archives became searchable, either on paper in the telegraph era or at some point online. John Liffen, curator emeritus of telegraphy at the Science Museum, may have info on the earlier part of the story.
2) Asking experts: There are a LOT of examples – topical discussion groups on various timesharing systems, on PLATO Notes, ARPAnet email, Online Services from the Source to CompuServe to AOL to the Well, BBSs, Minitel and other videotex systems, and more I’m not thinking of. Basically anywhere you had people connecting around a particular topic. We have archives related to several of those above, and can point you to experts or principals for most.
Best, Marc
Marc Weber<http://www.computerhistory.org/staff/Marc,Weber/> | marc@webhistory.org<mailto:marc@webhistory.org> | +1 415 282 6868 Internet History Program Curatorial Director, Computer History Museum 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043 computerhistory.org/nethistory<http://computerhistory.org/nethistory> Co-founder, Web History Center and Project, webhistory.org< http://webhistory.org>
On Dec 1, 2018, at 06:42, James Cortada <jcortada@umn.edu<mailto: jcortada@umn.edu>> wrote:
Bill Aspray and I are exploring how fact checking was done between the early 1950s and the mid-1990s using computers and networks, that is to say, before the wide use of the Internet, snopes, Wiki etc. If you are aware of specific examples, or documentation, about this use of computing, please let us know. We are interested in all manner of fact checking, not limiting it to press challenges of statements by politicians, hoaxes, and faulty scientific research. Thanks for your help.
-- James W. Cortada Senior Research Fellow Charles Babbage Institute University of Minnesota jcortada@umn.edu<mailto:jcortada@umn.edu> 608-274-6382 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org<http://sigcis.org>, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
Marc, the first asyncronous group communication on the arpa network was EMISARI (Emergency Management Information System And Reference Index) in 1971 to handle the wage price freeze. See the network nation: human communication via computers, by Hiltz and Turoff, 1978 It had 300-400 user around the united states. It had messages, conferences, group and personal notebook and attachments to items as well as collaborative database structure as well as attachments of comments to items of data. The later EIES system at NJIT was based upon the ideas in that system (1974) and introduced evaluation studies of groups and designing specail features for different groups (beyond the general features available to all). The library at NJIT has a stored and free access collection of the research reports the resulted from the EIES work and a number of papers and reports resulting from EMISARI as well as complete specifications of the EMISARI and the EIES interface and capabilities. http://library.njit.edu/archives/cccc-materials/ there was also the early dephi system that led to EMISARI which was first used in 1970 TECHNOLOGICAL FORECASTING AND SOCIAL CHANGE 3, 159-204 (1972) Delphi Conferencing: Computer-Based Conferencing with Anonymity 159 MURRAY TUROFF Abstract This paper is a report on an on-line (computer-automated) conference that was conducted for thirteen weeks in the spring of 1970. The conference involved twenty individuals throughout the country who were able to engage in the conference discussion at their convenience by going to a computer terminal at their time of choice. The computer maintained a real-time accounting of the discussion items entered by the various respondents and of how the group had voted on these items with respect to scales of desirability and feasibility (for proposals), or importance and confidence (for comments). (the paper had the results of their discussion about the future of this technology and the name of 20 individuals are included as well as the results of their discussion.) The Delphi method is a series of communication structures to produce collective intelligence. The delphi method book is free on my website (1975 Linstone and Turoff) my website was frozen when i retired in 2007 but i have published a lot in recent years in the emergency management IS area. *http://web.njit.edu/~turoff <http://web.njit.edu/~turoff>* * please send messages to murray.turoff@gmail.com <murray.turoff@gmail.com> do not use @njit.edu <http://njit.edu> addressDistinguished Professor EmeritusInformation Systems, NJIThomepage: http://web.njit.edu/~turoff <http://web.njit.edu/~turoff> *
participants (6)
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Brian Berg -
James Cortada -
Jean Graham -
Julie Cohn -
Marc Weber -
Murray Turoff