Have You Seen Prof & Net Researcher Phil Agre?

Where in the world is Phil Agre? That’s one of the questions posed by NPR in a post on the strange disappearance of the noted information studies professor and Internet researcher. Last month, the Chronicle for Higher Education reported that Agre’s sister filed a missing persons report that was dated Oct. 28th, but there has been no word on Agre’s whereabouts.

Agre founded and published the Red Rock Eaters News Service, a popular mailing list that dates back to the 1990s in which he often wrote about Internet policies. And as NPR notes, he also published a guide to how to use social networks to build relationships.

Agre’s missing person report states that he “abandoned his apartment and his job” several months ago and that he suffers from manic depression. Friends, family and colleagues of Agre are turning to the very Internet-based tools that he championed to establish his whereabouts. UCLA colleagues have put up a web page, and there is a Google Group for organizing volunteer search efforts. You can also find a Facebook page dedicated to the search effort here.

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