This paper reports on the social context of mobile information behavior based on an interview and diary study (n=19). We examine different types of mobile information behavior and how these are affected by social variables. In addition, we compare social and non-social mobile information behavior in terms of where it occurs, applications utilized, expressed information needs of users, and levels of satisfaction. We promote a broader view of how social context shapes and is shaped by mobile information behavior.

This work explores embodied mobile information practices through a photo-diary and interview study with nineteen smartphone users. We qualitatively analyze 234 diary entries and one hundred descriptions of diary entries to explore how mobile devices, specifically smartphones, facilitate embodied information seeking and production, drawing insights about the use of mobile devices as nonverbal communication tools. In addition, we probe the notion of smartphones as an extension of the human body, and ways in which the affordances of these devices (e.g., portability, convenience) support and interrupt information practices. In particular, we observe that mobile devices are not only perceived as extensions of the mind and body, but are embedded in bodily rhythms and routines. This research extends empirical work in Library and Information Science (LIS), which has not focused extensively on mobile information practices in connection with the body, and suggests that the theoretical lens of embodiment may inform future work on mobile information practices.With the arrival of electric technology, man extended, or set outside himself, a live model of the central nervous system itself. -Marshall McLuhan, Understanding Media: The Extensions of ManAlthough the old dichotomy between function and form could be vaguely maintained for a hammer, a locomotive or a chair, it is ridiculous when applied to a mobile phone.

In just a short period of time, social media have altered many aspects of our daily lives, from how we form and maintain social relationships to how we discover, access and share information online. Now social media are also beginning to affect how we teach and learn in this increasingly interconnected and information-rich world. The panelists will discuss their ongoing work that seeks to understand the affordances and potential roles of social media in learning, as well as to determine and provide methods that can help researchers and educators evaluate the use of social media for teaching and learning based on automated analyses of social media texts and networks. The panel will focus on the first phase of this five-year research initiative "Learning

Within and beyond Library and Information Science (LIS), researchers are employing participatory, arts-based research as one way of extending traditional research methods. The use of creative methods can enrich our understanding of complex information practices, particularly in multimedia information environments. This panel will provide an overview of arts-involved practices of data collection, data analysis and knowledge exchange, including examples of specific applications within LIS research projects. We will discuss the ways creative arts may function socially and psychologically among researchers and research participants, as well as topics and populations with which arts-involved methods may be especially enriching.

In this paper, we examine how multiple social media platforms are being used for formal and informal learning by examining data from two connectivist MOOCs (or cMOOCs). Our overarching goal is to develop and evaluate methods for learning analytics to detect and study collaborative learning processes. For this paper, we focus on how to link multiple online identities of learners and their contributions across several social media platforms in order to study their learning behaviours in open online environments. Many challenges were found in collection, processing, and analyzing the data; results are presented here to provide others with insight into such issues for examining data across multiple open media platforms.