I hope this isn't off topic, but I suppose it might qualify for "a place to send out timely notices about upcoming events." In any case, I'd be happy to see some local Wikipedians :).

[1]:http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimedia_nyc/2008-February/000000.html

---------- Forwarded Message ----------

Dear Colleagues:

Please join us for the next ITS Colloquium.

4:30 - 6:00 PM, Tuesday February 17 206 Vanderbilt Hall, 40 Wash. Sq. So.

Presenter: Joseph Reagle, NYU Department of Media, Culture, and Communication

Topic: Wikipedia: Nazis and Norms

Abstract: In 1990 Mike Godwin coined his "Law of Nazi Analogies" to capture the common devolution of Usenet discourse into insulting comparisons with Nazis or Hitler. Eleven years later, Jimmy Wales wrote that it was important that the Wikipedia community "preserve and extend our culture of co-operation, with all of us standing as firmly as possible against the culture of conflict embodied in Usenet." I argue Wikipedia is a realization -- even if flawed -- of a long-held vision for a universal encyclopedia: a technology inspired vision seeking to wed increased access to information with greater human accord. And I claim Wikipedia's collaborative culture is a big factor for this success: the norms of "Neutral Point of View" ensures that the scattered pieces of what we think we know can be joined and good faith facilitates the actual practice of fitting them together.

Joseph Reagle is an adjunct professor at NYU's Department of Media, Culture, and Communication where he studies collaborative cultures, specifically Wikipedia. As a former Research Engineer at MIT's Lab for Computer Science, he served as a Working Group Chair and Author within IETF and W3C on topics including digital security, privacy, and Internet policy.

ALL WELCOME!

For more information: www1.law.nyu.edu/ili/colloquia/index.html

Helen Nissenbaum, professor media, culture & communication, NYU + http://www.nyu.edu/projects/nissenbaum protect the privacy of your web searches + http://mrl.nyu.edu/~dhowe/TrackMeNot/ 2008: visitor, School of Social Sciences, Institute for Advanced Study