University Times

To provide a forum for scholars and professionals to address issues relating to the human aspects of an increasingly technological society, the School of Information Sciences (SIS) has established the Sara Fine Institute for Interpersonal Behavior and Technology. Named for Sara Fine, professor emerita who taught at Pitt for 23 years, the institute will sponsor an annual distinguished lecture series, with speakers from information sciences, philosophy of science, psychology or other related fields addressing the connection between humans and machines.

"Sara Fine, who is both a professor and licensed psychologist, focused her teaching and research in the areas of behavioral communication, the counseling aspects of library service, and uniting integrating technology with the behavioral sciences," said Dean Toni Carbo.

Throughout her career, Fine, who now lives in Israel and is on the faculty of the Bar Ilan University in Tel Aviv, has been widely published and has conducted extensive research in areas including interpersonal and intellectual communications, human factors and technology, organizational behavior and management, and human information processing. Following her retirement in 1998, Fine's children, friends, and former students established an endowment totaling more than $250,000 to support the institute, its activities and initiatives. Thomas Detre, former senior vice chancellor for Health Sciences, has been named chair of the institute's advisory committee, which will help select speakers and seminar and workshop topics.