Ian Watson — Publications List

Scholarly writing

"Assisting living authors in opening access to their in-copyright works: a report from Iceland." Bókasafnið (the journal of the Icelandic librarians' association) 41 (2017): 34-41.

"Contrast set labelling in information design: Theoretical essentials and suggestions for good practice." Pages 417-423 in Alison Black, Paul Luna, Ole Lund, and Sue Walker (eds.), Information Design: Research and Practice (Routledge, 2017).

"Small claims resolution in Iceland: status and prospects." A preliminary report written for Iceland’s Consumer Spokesman, December 2013.

Ian Watson and Guðmundur Árni Þórisson, "The Icelandic Open Access Barometer 2013," Samtíð 1 (2013), 6. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.12742/samtid.2013.6

"An unusually open identification number system: The Icelandic kennitala." Pages 132-144 in Gayle Lonergan, Ilsen About, and James Brown (eds.), Identification and Registration Practices in Transnational Perspective. Palgrave Macmillan, 2013.

"A short history of national identification numbering in Iceland." Bifröst Journal of Social Science 4 (2010): 51-89. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.12742/bjss.2010.3

"Starting an open access journal in Iceland." ScieCom Info 5,3 (2009).

Hörður Lárusson and Ian Watson, "The uniqueness of Icelandic road signage." Pp. 138-152 in T. Porathe, ed., Applications of information design 2008: selected papers from the international conference at Mälardalen University in Eskilstuna, Sweden 25-28 June 2008 (Eskilstuna: Mälardalen University Press, 2009).

Answer to the question "Why do people have written language?" / Svar við spurningu "Af hverju er skrift til?" Published on Vísindavefur Háskóla Íslands (University of Iceland Science Web, www.visindavefur.is), 15 November 2006.

Answer to the question "Who invented the alphabet?" / Svar við spurningu "Hver fann upp stafrófið?" Published on Vísindavefur Háskóla Íslands (University of Iceland Science Web, www.visindavefur.is), 8 September 2005.

"The challenge of maintaining parity for offshore islands." Middle States Geographer 31 (1998): 132-137.

Review of How Nations Choose Product Standards and Standards Change Nations, by Samuel Krislov. Contemporary Sociology, 27 (1998): 169-170.

Scholarly editing

Editor of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Record starting with the January 2023 issue (volume 154).

Co-editor of Samtíð, tímarit um samfélag og menningu / an Icelandic journal of society and culture published by Bifröst University in 2013.

Editor of the Bifröst Journal of Social Science, published by Bifröst University, from 2008 to 2012.

Scholarly writing — unpublished

"Cognitive design: creating the sets of categories and labels that structure our shared experience." Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Rutgers University, Department of Sociology, 2005.

"Perfect pitch and pitch standardization." Unpublished term paper, Rutgers University, Department of Sociology, 2000.

"The rule of the road, 1919-1986: a case study in standards change." Unpublished master's qualifying paper, Rutgers University, Department of Sociology, 1999. Also at SSRN.

"The common triggers of synesthesia are social conventions." Paper presented at the Central States Anthropological Society conference, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1997. Also at SSRN.

Genealogical writing

Volume 1 of The Great Migration: Immigrants to New England, 1636-1638, covering surnames beginning with A through Be. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2024.

"Martha Woolcott, Probable Wife of Benjamin² Lothrop of Barnstable and Charlestown, Massachusetts." The American Genealogist 92 (2021-2022): 199.

Introduction to George Freeman Sanborn Jr., Ipswich Deeds: Volumes 1 and 2 (Charlottetown, P.E.I., 2023), pp. i-xviii.

"The Dating of the Providence Civil Compact." The American Genealogist 92 (2020): 165-189, 261-283.

Kyle Hurst and Ian Watson, Selected Ancestors of Nelson McMahon and Louise Rathbun (Boston: Newbury Street Press, 2020).

"Abigail Safford, the First Wife of John² Abbey of Wenham, Massachusetts, and Windham, Connecticut." The American Genealogist 91 (2019): 123-124.

"Sell it or give it away? Open access or closed? Content distribution skills for professional genealogists in the open access publishing era." Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly 33, no. 2 (June 2018): 15-20. This article received the 2019 APGQ Excellence Award, given to recognize excellence in submitted APGQ material.

"The origin of Daniel¹ Salmon of Lynn, Massachusetts, and John¹ Francis alias Deacon of Penobscot, Maine." The American Genealogist 90 (2018): 215-216.

"John Ramsdell, John Ravensdale, Isaac Johnson, and Nathaniel Turner." New England Historical and Genealogical Register 171 (2017): 189-198.

"The origins of Aquila Ramsdell's given name: Investigating the 17th century with mitochondrial DNA," American Ancestors 18, no. 2 (summer 2017): 54–56.

"Citing web addresses that last: How to recognize and use persistent identifiers." Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly 31, no. 4 (December 2016): 169-173.

"The parentage of Abel Pasko, Sarah Ferguson, and Ichabod Smith of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York." Connecticut Nutmegger 47 (2015): 194-206.

"Mollie, Countess Russell." Russell: The Journal of Bertrand Russell Studies 23 (2003): 65-68.

"The Pasco family in early New England." New England Historical and Genealogical Register 150 (1996): 131-140.

"Three Mary Peases of Salem, Massachusetts." The American Genealogist 70 (1995): 205-208.

Catawba Indian Genealogy. Geneseo, N.Y.: Geneseo Foundation, 1995. State University of New York at Geneseo, Department of Anthropology, Papers in Anthropology, number 4.

Unpublished papers from Catawba Indian Genealogy are held as the "Ian M. Watson collection" at the South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina, Columbia, S.C. OCLC #37375909.

Unpublished papers from research in the 1980s on the genealogy of the Pasco family are held as the Ian Watson Papers (Mss 392), R. Stanton Avery Special Collections Department, New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Mass. OCLC #47635210.

"Descendants of Hugh Pasco," unpublished manuscript, circa 1985.

Partial 1910 census transcription for Warren County, New York (excluding Glens Falls city and part of Warrensburg), unpublished compilation available as an Excel file.

Journalism, essays

"Umskurður drengja: skoðanir og staðreyndir." (About the proposed circumcision ban in Iceland.) Kjarninn, 12 March 2018.

"Við viljum kjósa." (About Iceland's requirement that Icelanders abroad must visit an embassy or consulate in person in order to vote in elections.) Fréttablaðið, 22 June 2016, p. 14.

"Gæðakönnun á barnabílstólum." (Buying advice for children's car seats.) Neytendablaðið, 59,4 (December 2013), pp. 8-9.

"Vika opins aðgangs." (Open Access Week in Iceland.) By Hrafn H. Malmquist, Guðmundur Árni Þórisson and Ian Watson. Published at visir.is on 25 October 2013.

"Gæðakönnun á þurrkurum." (Buying advice for clothes dryers.) Neytendablaðið, 59,3 (October 2013), pp. 12-13.

"Gæðakönnun á þvottavélum." (Buying advice for washing machines.) Neytendablaðið, 59,1 (March 2013), pp. 10-12.

"Spjaldtölvur verða sífellt betri." (Buying advice for tablet computers.) Neytendablaðið, 58,4 (November 2012), pp. 20-21.

"Gæðakönnun á sparperum: ekki samhengi á milli verðs og gæða." (Buying advice for light bulbs.) Neytendablaðið, 58,3 (September 2012), pp. 16-19.

"Gæðakönnun á þvottavélum." (Buying advice for washing machines.) Neytendablaðið, 58,2 (June 2012), pp. 14-16.

"Er gamla dýnan orðin þreytt?" (Buying advice for mattresses.) Neytendablaðið, 58,1 (March 2012), pp. 9-11.

"Sjónvörp – flókin tækni og ör þróun." (Buying advice for televisions.) Neytendablaðið, 57,3 (September 2011), pp. 6-8.

"Myndavélar – fjölhæfar með hárri upplausn." (Buying advice for compact digital cameras.) Neytendablaðið, 57,3 (September 2011), pp. 19-21.

"Netvæðing íslenska fornbókamarkaðsins." (The Icelandic used book market goes online.) Neytendablaðið, 57,2 (June 2011), p. 12.

"Gæðakönnun á púlsmælum." (Buying advice for pulse meters.) Neytendablaðið, 57,2 (June 2011), pp. 6-7.

"Þvottavélar: Fylgni milli verðs og gæða – með undantekningum þó." (Buying advice for washing machines.) Neytendablaðið, 57,1 (March 2011), pp. 14-15.

"Tími netsímans runninn upp." (Buying advice for mobile phones.) Neytendablaðið, 56,4 (December 2010), pp. 14-17.

"Gæðakönnun á lestölvum: fyrir alvöru lestrarhesta." (Buying advice for e-readers.) Neytendablaðið, 56,4 (December 2010), pp. 4-6.

Review of Wasteland with words: a social history of Iceland by Sigurður Gylfi Magnússon. Reykjavík Grapevine, 8 October 2010, p. 26. PDF version.

"Gæðakönnun á ryksugum: mikill gæðamunur." (Buying advice for vacuum cleaners.) Neytendablaðið, 56,3 (September 2010), pp. 6-7.

Review of Vikings in America by Graeme Davis. Reykjavík Grapevine, 30 July 2010, p. 34. PDF version.

Review of Living Inside the Meltdown by Alda Sigmundsdóttir. Reykjavík Grapevine, 2 July 2010, p. 38. PDF version.

"Sparperur eiga langt í land: Gæðakönnun ICRT gefur sparperum slaka einkunn." (Buying advice for compact fluorescent light bulbs.) Neytendablaðið, 56,2 (June 2010), pp. 14-15.

"Á ferð og flugi." (Travel news.) Neytendablaðið, 56,1 (March 2010), p. 19.

"Gæðakönnun á Blu-ray spilurum." (Buying advice on Blu-ray players.) Neytendablaðið, 56,1 (March 2010), pp. 10-12.

Review of The Real Iceland by Páll Ásgeir Ásgeirsson and Top 10 Reykjavík and Iceland by Dr. Gunni. Reykjavík Grapevine, 4 December 2009, p. 30. PDF version.

"Sparaðu í kreppunni." (Savings tips for Icelandic consumers.) Neytendablaðið, 55,3 (October 2009), p. 11.

Review of The Far Traveler by Nancy Marie Brown. Reykjavík Grapevine, 25 September 2009, p. 26. PDF version.

Review of Children's Reykjavík. Reykjavík Grapevine, 28 August 2009, p. 34. PDF version.

Review of The travels of Reverend Ólafur Egilsson, translated by Karl Smári Hreinsson and Adam Nichols. Reykjavík Grapevine, 14 August 2009, p. 30. PDF version.

"Sparnaður og eftirlit með fjarskiptamálum." (Good and bad news for Icelandic telephone customers.) Morgunblaðið, 8 August 2009, p. 26.

Review of The windows of Brimnes by Bill Holm. Reykjavík Grapevine, 31 July 2009, p. 34. PDF version.

"Evrópusambandið og póstverslun." (The European Union and mail-order shopping in Iceland.) Morgunblaðið, 12 March 2009, p. 24.

"Bandaríkin: ógn eða fyrirmynd í neytendamálum?" (On the American consumer movement as an example for Iceland.) Neytendablaðið, 54,4 (December 2008), pp. 22-23.

"Opinn aðgangur að fræðigreinum." (Open access publishing in Iceland.) Morgunblaðið, 15 October 2008, p. 25.

"E-kort: hagstæð fyrir einn en óhagstæð fyrir fjöldann?" (On Icelandic rebate cards and whether they benefit consumers overall.) Neytendablaðið, 54,3 (October 2008), pp. 22-23.

"Talhólfið reynist dýrt í utanlandsferðum." (Using an Icelandic cell phone abroad. With Margrét Gunnarsdóttir.) Morgunblaðið, 13 August 2008, pp. 18-19.

"Of dýrt að endurvinna í Reykjavík." (Compares costs of of household recycling and waste disposal in Reykjavík.) Neytendasamtökin web site, 16 July 2008.

"Að velja rétta málaskólann." (Language schools abroad. With Margrét Gunnarsdóttir.) Morgunblaðið, 15 July 2008, p. 17.

"Er fríhöfnin ódýrari?" (Are prices in the duty-free store at Keflavík Airport lower than in town?) Neytendablaðið, 54,2 (June 2008), pp. 4-5.

"Bílaleiga hefur færst alfarið á netið." (Advice on car rental. With Margrét Gunnarsdóttir.) Morgunblaðið, 12 June 2008, p. 20.

"Leitin að réttu gistingunni." (Finding accommodations. With Margrét Gunnarsdóttir.) Morgunblaðið, 8 May 2008, p. 19.

"Debetkort og reiðufé hagkvæmasta leiðin." (How to change money when traveling abroad. With Margrét Gunnarsdóttir.) Morgunblaðið, 13 March 2008, p. 22.

"Að velja hús fyrir fríið." (How to rent a vacation home or apartment. With Margrét Gunnarsdóttir.) Morgunblaðið, 14 February 2008, p. 20.

"Two holes in your pocket." (Double-strength tax filing headaches for Americans in Iceland.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 8 February 2008, p. 10. PDF version.

"Recent books about Iceland." (Reviews books by D. Edward Bradley, Jonathan Wilcox and Jóna Hammer.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 11 January 2008, p. 21. PDF version.

"Flogið með lágfargjaldaflugfélagi." (How to use low-fare airlines. With Margrét Gunnarsdóttir.) Morgunblaðið, 10 January 2008, p. 19.

"Viltu afrit?" (On choosing whether to keep receipts.) Neytendablaðið, 53,4 (December 2007), p. 5.

"Hin raunverulegu amerísku jól." (Christmas in America.) Morgunblaðið, 30 November 2007, Jólablað, p. 10.

"You too can be a citizen." (Explains the procedure for applying for express citizenship from Iceland's Parliament.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 2 November 2007, p. 10. PDF version.

"Ég vil borga mínar skuldir sjálfur." (Iceland's problematic system of deducting assessed taxes from employee paychecks.) Morgunblaðið, 4 October 2007, p. 30.

"Five classic books about moving to the North Atlantic." Reykjavík Grapevine, 21 September 2007, p. B15. PDF version.

"The puffin and the panda." (Feature on current Iceland-China relations.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 21 September 2007, pp. 16-18. PDF version.

"The telephone consumer's guerrilla handbook." (Review of home phone and Internet service in Iceland.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 24 August 2007, p. 16. PDF version.

"Too many numbers!" (Problems with the proliferation of PIN numbers.) Guest article on the website of the Icelandic Consumer Spokesman, 26 August 2007.

"Frelsum bækurnar fyrst." (Argues for making books and low-value consignment relief a priority in Icelandic tax cuts.) Morgunblaðið, "Lesbók," 18 August 2007, p. 2.

"Heimspeki á Spáni eða grafísk hönnun í Grikklandi?" (Study abroad advice for Icelandic students.) Morgunblaðið, "Menntun," 17 August 2007, p. 30.

"Lower phone bills — by law." (Eurotariff and Icelandic roaming rates.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 10 August 2007, p. 17. PDF version.

"Roots tourism in Hofsós." (About the Icelandic Emigration Center in Hofsós.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 27 July 2007, p. 16. PDF version.

"Who knows how the system works?" (About the process of receiving Icelandic citizenship by act of Parliament.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 29 June 2007, p. 12. PDF version.

"Stjórnartíð Runólfs á Bifröst." Morgunblaðið, 17 June 2007, p. 52.

"Hnetusmjör ekki sama og hnetusmjör." (Article on peanut butter for the magazine of Iceland's consumer association.) Neytendablaðið, 53,2 (June 2007), p. 12.

"Share your ancestors." (A report on the state of Icelandic genealogy.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 18 May 2007, pp. 14-15. PDF version.

"To reduce retail prices, make Internet shopping easier." Guest article on the web site of the Icelandic Consumer Spokesman, 6 May 2007.

"Honesty doesn't pay." (True tales of the Icelandic tax system.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 8 March 2007, p. 10. PDF version.

"Recent books about Iceland." (Reviews five English-language books partly or wholly on Icelandic themes.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 9 February 2007, p. 22. PDF version.

"Múrar bókaþjóðarinnar," bls. 1, bls. 2, bls. 3 (Article on the market for foreign books in Iceland.) Morgunblaðið (Lesbók), 28 October 2006. Also see

Update on the market for foreign books in Iceland — 6 January 2007.

"Beware: polar bear may bite." (Travel article on Svalbard and Jan Mayen.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 6 October 2006, p. 44. PDF version.

"If you can't make it to Gdańsk." (Review of Polish supermarket and Polish community in Iceland.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 5 December 2005, p. 42. PDF version.

"We know your identity number, and that's not a bad thing." (The Icelandic personal identification system works well because it is open.) Reykjavík Grapevine, 7 October 2005, pp. 18-19. PDF version.

"Nýtt kerfi - úrelt skilti," bls. 1, bls. 2. [New routes, old signs]. (Article about the public information design of the Reykjavík bus system.) Morgunblaðið (Reykjavík), 6 September 2005, pp. 22-23. See also follow-up articles: Ásgeir Eiríksson, "Áhugaverðar nýjungar á döfinni hjá Strætó," Morgunblaðið, 7 September 2005, p. 27 and "Að skilja strætókerfið," editorial, Morgunblaðið, 9 September 2005, p. 26.

"Cheaper calls abroad." Reykjavík Grapevine, 6 May 2005, p. 26. PDF version.

"Hoxha's Pyramid." Letter to the editor, New York Times Book Review, 19 May 1996, p. 4.

"Albania slowly joining the info highway." IREX news in brief 7,2 (March-April 1996): 1, 14-15.

"E-mail and the Internet in southeastern Europe." IREX news in brief 5,5 (Sept.-Oct. 1994): 3-6. PDF version.

"Mongolia goes high-tech." Freedom Review, November-December 1992, pp. 39-40.

"Equilibrium and exhaustion: can America survive when we run out of area codes?" Exposé: Essays from the Expository Writing Program, Harvard University, 1988-89, pp. 4-9. Reprinted in Reading and writing essays: the imaginative tasks, by Pat C. Hoy. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1992.

Travel guidebooks

Rick Steves' Vienna, Salzburg & Tirol, 7th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2023. ISBN 978-1641713801. Updater of Hallstatt, Salzkammergut, and Salzburg sections.

Rick Steves' Switzerland, 11th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2023. ISBN 978-1641715195. Updater of Berner Oberland, Bern, Murten & Avenches, Luzern, and Zürich sections.

Rick Steves' Germany, 14th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2023. ISBN 978-1641714631. Updater of Munich, Salzburg, Trier, and Cologne sections.

Rick Steves' Italy, 27th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2022. ISBN 978-1641714594. Updater of The Lakes, Milan, The Cinque Terre, Riviera Towns, Sorrento & Capri, and Amalfi Coast & Paestum sections.

Rick Steves' Iceland. Second edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2020. ISBN 978-1641712316. With Rick Steves and Cameron Hewitt.

Rick Steves' Iceland. First edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2018. ISBN 978-1631218132. Main author of the entire book, with major contributions from Cameron Hewitt. This book received first place in the travel guidebook category of the 2018 Lowell Thomas Awards by the Society of American Travel Writers Foundation.

Rick Steves' Italy 2017. Berkeley: Avalon, 2016. ISBN 978-1631214431. Updater of Rome and Campania sections.

Rick Steves' Rome 2017. Berkeley: Avalon, 2016. ISBN 978-1631214493. Updater of entire book.

Rick Steves' Switzerland, 8th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2016. ISBN 978-1631213038. Updater of entire book.

Rick Steves' Italy 2016. Berkeley: Avalon, 2015. ISBN 978-1631211836. Updater of Castelrotto and Alpe di Siusi sections.

Rick Steves' Germany 2015. Berkeley: Avalon, 2015. ISBN 978-1612389707. Updater of Bavaria/Tirol and Salzburg sections.

Rick Steves' Vienna, Salzburg, and Tirol, 4th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2014. ISBN 978-1631210563. Updater of entire book.

Rick Steves' Italy 2015. Berkeley: Avalon, 2014. ISBN 978-1612389646. Updater of Milan, Lake Como, Bolzano, Venice, and Padua sections.

Rick Steves' Venice, 14th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2014. ISBN 978-1612389622. Updater of entire book.

Rick Steves' Switzerland, 7th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2014. ISBN 978-1612387666. Updater of entire book.

Rick Steves' Germany 2014. Berkeley: Avalon, 2014. ISBN 978-1612386713. Updater of Munich, Salzburg, Berchtesgaden, Nürnberg, Dresden, Leipzig, Wittenberg, and Erfurt sections.

Rick Steves' Italy 2014. Berkeley: Avalon, 2013. ISBN 978-1612386591. Updater of Campania and Umbria sections.

Rick Steves' Germany 2013. Berkeley: Avalon, 2013. ISBN 978-1-61238-393-4. Updater of Munich, Salzburg, Black Forest, Frankfurt, Rhine, Mosel, Trier, Köln, Würzburg, Rothenburg, Nürnberg, Dresden, and Görlitz sections.

Rick Steves' Scandinavia, 13th edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2012. ISBN 978-1-61238-192-3. Updater of Finland and Estonia sections.

Rick Steves' Germany 2012. Berkeley: Avalon, 2012. ISBN 978-1-59880-988-6. Updater of Munich, Bavaria/Tirol, Black Forest, Mosel, Trier, and Köln sections. Created new Hamburg section.

Rick Steves' Italy 2012. Berkeley: Avalon, 2011. ISBN 978-1-61238-000-1. Updater of Venice, Padua, Verona, Ravenna, and Bolzano sections.

Rick Steves' Venice 2012. Berkeley: Avalon, 2011. ISBN 978-1-61238-017-9. Updater of entire book.

Rick Steves' Vienna, Salzburg & Tirol. Second edition. Berkeley: Avalon, 2011. ISBN 978-1-59880-770-7. Updater of Melk, Mauthausen, Hallstatt, and Innsbruck/Tirol sections.

Rick Steves' Germany 2011. Berkeley: Avalon, 2010. ISBN 978-1-59880-668-7. Updater of Rhine, Mosel, Trier, Köln, Frankfurt, Würzburg, Nürnberg, Rothenburg, Black Forest, Berchtesgaden and Bavaria/Tirol sections.

Rick Steves' Germany 2010. Berkeley: Avalon, 2009. ISBN 978-1-59880-294-8. Updater of Rhine, Mosel, Trier, Köln, Frankfurt, Würzburg, Nürnberg, Rothenburg, Munich, and Bavaria/Tirol sections.

Rick Steves' Germany 2009. Berkeley: Avalon, 2008. ISBN 978-1-59880-112-5. Updater of Rhine, Mosel, Trier, Köln, Frankfurt, Würzburg, Nürnberg, Rothenburg, and southwestern Germany sections.

Rick Steves' Germany & Austria 2008. Emeryville, California: Avalon, 2008. ISBN 978-1-59880-135-4. Cover photograph (of Trier, Germany).

Rick Steves' Germany & Austria 2007. Emeryville, California: Avalon, 2006. ISBN 978-1-56691-813-8. Updater of Rhine, Mosel, Trier, Rothenburg, and southwestern Germany sections.

Rick Steves' Scandinavia 2006. Emeryville, California: Avalon, 2006. ISBN 978-1-56691-733-9. Updater of Sweden, Finland and Estonia sections.

Rick Steves' Scandinavia 2005. Emeryville, California: Avalon, 2005. ISBN 1-56691-684-4. Updater of Stockholm, Finland and Estonia sections.

Rick Steves' Eastern Europe 2005. Emeryville, California: Avalon, 2005. ISBN 1-56691-786-7. Updater of Danube Bend section.

Rick Steves' Europe Through the Back Door 2005. Emeryville, California: Avalon, 2005. ISBN 1-56691-531-7. Author of "Mobile phones" section (pp. 274-278).

Rick Steves' Scandinavia 2000. Santa Fe: John Muir, 2000. ISBN 1-56261-501-7. Updater of Finland and Estonia sections.

Rick Steves' Russia & the Baltics 1998. Santa Fe: John Muir, 1998. ISBN 1-56261-389-8. 151 pp. Author (with Rick Steves).

Rick Steves' Baltics and Russia 1997. Santa Fe: John Muir, 1997. ISBN 1-56261-325-1. 151 pp. Author (with Rick Steves).

Rick Steves' Baltics and Russia 1996. Santa Fe: John Muir, 1996. ISBN 1-56261-276-X. 140 pp. Author (with Rick Steves).

Rick Steves' Best of the Baltics and Russia. Santa Fe: John Muir, 1995. ISBN 1-56261-211-5. 140 pp. Author (with Rick Steves).

Rick Steves' The Baltics and Russia Through the Back Door. 2nd ed. Edmonds, Washington: Europe Through the Back Door, 1994. ISBN 0-9605568-8-5. 128 pp. Author.

The Baltics and Russia Through the Back Door. Edmonds, Washington: Europe Through the Back Door, 1993. ISBN 0-9605568-7-7. 80 pp. Author.

Frommer's Eastern Europe on $30 a Day. 5th ed. New York: Macmillan, 1994. ISBN 0-02-860092-4. Author of Albania (pp. 24-46) and Slovenia (pp. 561-582) sections. Updater of Hungary section (pp. 276-422).

Let's Go: Europe 1992. New York: St. Martin's, 1991. ISBN 0-312-06391-1. 882 pp. Editor.

Let's Go: Europe 1991. New York: St. Martin's, 1990. ISBN 0-312-05111-5. Author of "Albania" (pp. 50-53) and "Faroe Islands" (p. 147) and updater of "Scotland" (pp. 380-393).

Let's Go: Britain & Ireland 1991. New York: St. Martin's, 1990. ISBN 0-312-05108-5. Updater of "Scotland" (pp. 394-486).

Let's Go: Europe 1990. New York: St. Martin's, 1989. ISBN 0-312-03377-X. Updater of "Iceland" (pp. 462-473), "Denmark" (pp. 121-136) and "Sweden" (pp. 754-769).

Talks, presentations, etc.

"The Nordic ID tradition: Five countries, five systems." Presentation at the Bhalisa Network symposium, University of Bergen, Norway, 27 June 2022.

"The Nordic national ID tradition: a guidepost for the future or a relic from the past?" Presentation at the FutureID3 conference, Jesus College, Cambridge, 19 March 2019. Short paper accompanying the presentation.

"The Great Migration Project continues: Series 3 in sight." Talk at the "Thirty Years of the Great Migration Study Project" event, New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, 26 January 2019.

"Genealogical publishing in the open access age." (On open access publishing and open digital libraries in genealogy.) Association of Professional Genealogists, Professional Management Conference, Kansas City, Missouri, 5 October 2018.

"The challenge of open access." (On open access publishing and open digital libraries in genealogy.) Association of Professional Genealogists, Professional Management Conference, Arlington, Virginia, 1 October 2017.

Presentation on Linux activity in Iceland and its relationship to the rise of the Pirate Party there. Linux User Group Augsburg (www.luga.de), 1 June 2016.

"The Icelandic kennitala." Invited lecture at the 21st Century National Identification Systems conference, Harvard University School of Public Health, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 19 November 2015. Audio recording of the presentation. Slides from the presentation.

"Framlag Bókasafns Dagsbrúnar við að efla opinn aðgang að bókum á árunum 2013-2015." (The Dagsbrún Library's efforts at supporting open access to Icelandic scholarly books, 2013-2015.) Lecture at the Reykjavík Academy, 17 April 2015. Video recording of the presentation. Slides from the presentation.

"Contrast set labeling in information design." Invited lecture at Gjøvik University College, Gjøvik, Norway, 24 April 2014.

Lunch talk on open access to books at the Reykjavík Academy, Reykjavík, 16 January 2014.

"Helping authors who want to open access to their own books." Lecture at the Icelandic Open Access conference, Reykjavík, 25 October 2013.

"Post-colonial echoes in the Icelandic consumer experience." Lecture at the "Claiming the North" symposium, University of Iceland, 4 October 2013.

"Self-importing in Iceland." Ráðstefna um íslenska þjóðfélagsfræði, Háskólanum á Bifröst, 3 May 2013.

"Contrast set labeling in information design." Invited lecture at the Department of Typography and Graphic Communication, Reading, England, 22 February 2013.

"Does the unusually free use of national identification numbers in Iceland reflect heightened interpersonal trust?" 26th conference of the Nordic Sociological Association, Reykjavík, 18 August 2012.

"The use and avoidance of Ð, Þ, and Æ: a report from everyday life in Iceland." AtypI conference, Reykjavík, 16 September 2011. Slides from the presentation.

Panel participant, "Reinventing the letterform 'ð'", AtypI conference, Reykjavík, 16 September 2011.

"How tour operators and travel guidebooks select destinations." Practicing Nature-Based Tourism conference, Listasafn Reykjavíkur, Reykjavík, 5 February 2011. Listen to audio of speech; audio of Q&A.

"From free software to open access." FSCONS 2010, Göteborgs universitet, Gothenburg, Sweden, 7 November 2010. Video of the presentation.

"Ættfræðigagnagrunnar á Íslandi." (Genealogical databases in Iceland.) Ráðstefna um íslenska þjóðfélagsfræði, Háskólanum á Bifröst, 8. maí 2010.

"James M. Watson, D.O., M.D., 1891-1956." James M. Watson Memorial Lecture, American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians conference, Williamsburg, Virginia, 23 April 2010.

"Ísland í rafrænu upplýsingasamfélagi." (Iceland in the digital information society.) Ráðstefna Upplýsingar (annual conference of the Icelandic librarians' association), Þjóðarbókhlaðan, 26 March 2010.

"Open access to scholarly publications." Ráðstefna um stafrænt frelsi 2009, Háskólanum í Reykjavík, 1 December 2009.

"Saga íslenskra persónuauðkennisnúmera." (The history of Icelandic national identification numbering.) Ráðstefna um íslenska þjóðfélagsfræði, Háskólanum á Akureyri, 9. maí 2009.

"Explaining change in social conventions: the case of the rule of the road." Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, N.M., 8 December 2008.

"The American consumer experience." Guest lecture in Gísli Tryggvason's course on consumer law, Reykjavík University, 5 November 2008.

"The uniqueness of Icelandic road signage." With Hörður Lárusson. Applications of Information Design conference, Mälardalen University, Eskilstuna, Sweden, 27 June 2008.

"Mikilvægi opins aðgangs fyrir fræðimenn." (The importance of open access for scholars.) National and University Library of Iceland conference on open access, 13 May 2008.

"Contrast sets." University of Iceland linguistics discussion group, 12 October 2007.

"Háskólasamfélag tekur við af námuvinnslu." (Talk on the role of industry, tourism, and education in the economy of Longyearbyen, Svalbard.) Vísindaport Háskólaseturs Vestfjarða, Ísafjörður, 28 September 2007.

"A brief introduction to synesthesia." Scholar's evening of Res Extensa, the Icelandic cognitive science association, 5 July 2007.

Guest lecturer on board Holland America's Prinsendam, cruise to Norway, Svalbard, and Iceland, July 2006.

"Islands as geographical categories." Paper presented at the Middle States conference of the American Association of Geographers, Rutgers University, 10 October 1998.

"The common triggers of synesthesia are social conventions." Paper presented at the Central States Anthropological Society conference, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1997.

Committee reports

Committee established by the Icelandic Parliament to recommend revisions to the legislation on cross-border mail-order commerce. Click here for the report, dated 3 December 2013.

Panel and session chairing, moderating, etc.

Moderator, 2013 Icelandic Open Access Conference, Reykjavík, 25 October 2013.

Moderator, 2012 Reykjavík Digital Freedoms Conference, Reykjavík, 29 March 2012.

Session moderator, AtypI conference, Reykjavík, 14-18 September 2011.

Moderator, Conference on open access, National and University Library of Iceland, 13 April 2010.

Panel chair — "Numbering buildings and bodies." Identinet conference, St. Antony's College, Oxford, 27 September 2009.

Interviews with me and reviews

"Introducing Ian Watson, PhD, editor of The NYG&B Record." New York Genealogical and Biographical Society blog, 9 March 2023. Also published in part in the New York Researcher, vol. 34, no. 1 (Spring 2023).

"Making In-Copyright Works Open Access: A Report From Iceland." Interview with me on the Authors Alliance blog, 15 November 2017.

Sólveig Þorsteinsdóttir, "Open Minds Towards Open Access: An interview with Ian Watson, Bifröst University in Iceland", ScieCom Info: Nordic-Baltic Forum for Scientific Communication 7, 3 (2011).

"Neytendafrömuður nemur land." (Interview with me on consumer issues.) Neytendablaðið, 55,3 (October 2009), p. 10.

Roger D. Joslyn, Review of Catawba Indian Genealogy, The American Genealogist 71 (1996): 190-191.

Karen Johnson, Review of Rick Steves' The Baltics & Russia Through the Back Door, Moscow Times, 28 July 1993, p. 16.

Selected translations

Hörður Lárusson, The Flag (Revised edition, Crymogea, 2014). ISBN 978-9935420077.

Arna Skúladóttir, Sweet Dreams (Carroll & Brown, 2012). ISBN 978-1907952104.

Parts of Vatnsmýri 102 Reykjavík (Reykjavík Planning and Building Department, 2009). ISBN 978-9979904021.

Gunnsteinn Ólafsson, The Golden Circle and Blue Lagoon (Reykjavík: Veröld, 2007). ISBN 978-9979789345.

Selected theses advised

Erkka Wessman, "Developments in personal identification: The Finnish henkilötunnus." M.A. thesis at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Department of Design, June 2018.

Hanne Neverdal Frestad, "The Norwegian national identification numbering system: The history of a design process." M.A. thesis at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Department of Design, June 2017.

Michael Than, "Lines in information design and their use through the centuries." B.A. thesis at the Iceland Academy of the Arts, Department of Architecture and Design, January 2013.

Egill Rúnar Viðarsson, "Samsteypur leturfræðinnar." B.A. thesis at the Iceland Academy of the Arts, Department of Architecture and Design, January 2012.

Jóhann Geir Úlfarsson, "Leturform og læsileika lesblindra." B.A. thesis at the Iceland Academy of the Arts, Department of Architecture and Design, January 2012.

Kristín Edda Gylfadóttir, "Letur í barnabókum: steinskrift eða þverendaletur?" B.A. thesis at the Iceland Academy of the Arts, Department of Architecture and Design, January 2010.

Alexander Eyjólfsson, "Hvað er 'mem' og hver er staða þess meðal vísindanna?" B.A. thesis at Bifröst University, Department of Social Sciences, 2009.

Anton Kaldal Ágústsson, "Breyting á íslensku er krafa nútímans: Saga og greining á bókstöfunum Þ,þ og Ð,ð." B.A. thesis at the Iceland Academy of the Arts, Department of Architecture and Design, January 2009.

Hörður Lárusson, "A critical analysis of the Icelandic road signage system." B.A. thesis at the Iceland Academy of the Arts, Department of Architecture and Design, February 2006.