Will Perform Sensemaking Tasks for Food

Not for the first time, this morning I allowed the promise of $20 to lure me up to SI North to participate in a sensemaking experiment. It was administered by a doctoral student, but in reading the consent form, I learned that the faculty member in charge was none other than our favorite GWF. *swoon*

I had to use a special system (something not unlike a general version of the Strategy Hub) to find information for a hypothetical public library talk on "Everyday Drinks of Old People." It was pretty much searching the web, but with some nifty features that theoretically make it easier. I guess I must have given the person running the experiment a WTF-look, because she made sure to explain to me that this is a really hard topic, and not to get discouraged if I don't find anything, because nobody has been finding anything. So it was nice to be able to impress the living daylights out of her when I actually came up with enough material to give at least a mini-talk. (I only had 45 minutes to search) I guess all that experience answering IPL questions paid off. I have become accustomed to finding information on random topics and answering poorly worded questions. I think I might have to find a job where I'm doing at least a bit of reference-related stuff, because it seems to be one of the things where I really feel like I know what I'm doing.

So all in all, it was a morning well-spent. I got $20 (minus taxes) and got to show off my killer web search skills. Plus on my way out the door, I saw a flier for another paid experiment. At this rate, I'll have a condo in the Bahamas in no time!