Education/Newsletter/May 2015/Articles of interest in other publications
Edit-a-thons team up Wikipedia users and archivists to fix wiki mistakes
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Aiming to improve the online content about labor history, an editathon was held in Hornbake Library in the University of Maryland on the International Workers’ Day. The editathon was a joint effort from the Wikipedia community and institutional archives. The event had unexpected number of participants from volunteers, students and faculty staff from the history department and University Libraries who began creating and adding information to the articles related to labor history and labor movement. Moreover, the event was also of a great benefit to university’s collection of archive as it brought attention to this important historical collection.
Researchers Use Wikipedia Page Views To Track Seasonal Flu Activity
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A study published this month in Public Library of Science reports suggests that researchers could use the Wikipedia page views tool to locate the activity of seasonal influenza. Researchers compared the numbers taken from Wikipedia page views in 2013/2014 flu season with the reports done by the CDC. Results were very close!
Jimmy Wales receives Dan David Prize at Tel Aviv University
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On May 17, Tel Aviv University witnessed the Dan David Prize Ceremony. Dan David Prize is one of the most reputable prizes in the academic world. The prize is awarded to those achieved exceptional efforts in Arts, science and humanities around the world. Three prizes of 1 million dollars are given every year to those with extraordinary achievements. The prize committee considers Wales an exceptional initiator has a great contribution to humanity by introducing the first, top, and only free encyclopedia on the internet.
Aboriginal language Wikipedia faces cultural hurdles and a university professor tries to save it
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This article in The Guardian covers the efforts of Clint Bracknell who is a Nyungar lecturer at the University of Sydney with other academics trying to see a Wikipedia in their native language. University of Western Australia and Curtin University in Australia are also involved in these efforts. While Wikipedia is now available in 288 languages, there is no Wikipedia in any Indigenous Australian language till this moment.