bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Direct and indirect effects of environmental variability on growth and survivorship of pre‐reproductive Joshua trees, Yucca brevifolia Engelm. (Agavaceae)
Authors: Esque Todd C. , Medica Philip A. , Shryock Daniel F. , DeFalco Lesley A. , Webb Robert H. , Hunter Richard B.
Published: December 2014

• Premise of study: Accurate demographic information about long‐lived plant species is important for understanding responses to large‐scale disturbances, including climate change. It is challenging to obtain these data from desert perennial plants because seedling establishment is exceptionally rare, and estimates of survival are lacking for their vulnerable early stages. Desert wildfires, urbanization, and climate change influence the persistence of the long‐lived Yucca brevifolia. Quantitative demographic attributes are crucial for understanding how populations will respond to disturbances and where populations will recede or advance under future climate scenarios.

• Methods: We measured survival in a cohort of 53 pre‐reproductive Y. brevifolia at Yucca Flat, Nevada, USA, for 22 yr and recorded their growth, nurse‐plant relationships, and herbivory.

• Key results: Herbivory by black‐tailed jackrabbits (Lepus californicus) caused severe losses of plants during the first and second years (45% and 31%, respectively). Surviving plants experienced <2.5% annual mortality. Survival for the population was 19% over 22 yr. Plants <25 cm in height had lower life expectancy. Average growth rate (± SD) for plants that survived to the last census was 3.12 ± 1.96 cm yr−1, and growth rates were positively associated with precipitation. Thirty‐year‐old Y. brevifolia had not yet reproduced.

• Conclusions: A rare establishment event for Y. brevifolia during 1983–1984, triggered by above‐average summer rainfall, provided a unique opportunity to track early survival and growth. Infrequent but acute episodes of herbivory during drought influenced demography for decades. Variability in survival among young Y. brevifolia indicates that size‐dependent demographic variables will improve forecasts for this long‐lived desert species under predicted regional climate change.
The Strategies of Translating Economics and Business Terms from English into Lithuanian
Authors: SUCHANOVA Jelena
Published: December 2014

The problems of translating the economics and business terms from English into Lithuanian, associated with the choice of particular translation strategies are considered based on the analysis of the translation of the English Economics Dictionary into the Lithuanian language. The classification of the translation strategies into domesticating and foreignizing methods and the description of other translating techniques are presented, and their advantages and disadvantages are described, taking into account the status of particular languages. The main strategies used in translating the considered Dictionary are determined, and their strengths and weaknesses are analysed from various perspectives. The analysis is based on the established structural-semantic models, underlying the formation of the parallel English and Lithuanian terms presented in the considered dictionary, and determining their similar and different features. The method of the translation changes characteristic of the foreignizing strategy of translation is also analysed. The prospects of further research required for checking the practical use of the translated economics and business terms in Lithuanian works in these fields are also outlined. It is also emphasized that the methods used and the results obtained in the present investigation may be used as a basis for further studies.
Distribution and habitat of the Laotian Rock Rat Laonastes aenigmamus Jenkins, Kilpatrick, Robinson & Timmins, 2005 (Rodentia: Diatomyidae) in Vietnam
Authors: Nguyen Dang , Nguyen Nghia , Nguyen Duy , Dinh Tri , Le Dinh , Dinh Duong
Published: December 2014

The Laotian Rock Rat Laonastes aenigmamus Jenkins, Kilpatrick, Robinson & Timmins, 2005 was originally discovered in Lao People's Democratic Republic in 2005. This species has been recognized as the sole surviving member of the otherwise extinct rodent family Diatomyidae. Laonastes aenigmamus was initially reported only in limestone forests of Khammouane Province, Central Lao. A second population was recently discovered in Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park (PNKB NP), Quang Binh Province, Central Vietnam in 2011. The confirmed distribution range of L. aenigmamus in Vietnam is very small, approximately 150 km2, covering low karst mountains in five communes of Minh Hoa District, Quang Binh Province, at elevations between 250 and 400 m asl. The Laotian Rock Rat inhabits the lower part of steep karst towers with many rock boulders and crevices under tall limestone evergreen forest. They use small rock crevices for their dens. The natural habitat of this species in PNKB NP has been affected by selected timber harvesting, however, a complex 3-4 layer forest structure is retained. The Laotian Rock Rat is omnivorous, feeding on parts (leaves, buds, fruits and roots) of 18 plant species and also some insects (cicada, mantis, grasshopper). The population of this species in PNKB NP is seriously threatened with extinction due to its very restricted distribution, high hunting pressure, and habitat disturbance. Laonastes aenigmamus is listed in the IUCN Red List as endangered and in the Wildlife and Aquatic Red List of Lao, however, this species has not been listed in the Red Data Book or any conservation legislative documents of Vietnam.
An occurence records database of French Guiana harvestmen (Arachnida, Opiliones)
Authors: Cally Sébastien , Solbès Pierre , Grosso Bernadette , Murienne Jérôme
Published: December 2014

This dataset provides information on specimens of harvestmen (Arthropoda, Arachnida, Opiliones) collected in French Guiana. Field collections have been initiated in 2012 within the framework of the CEnter for the Study of Biodiversity in Amazonia (CEBA: www.labex-ceba.fr/en/). This dataset is a work in progress. Occurrences are recorded in an online database stored at the EDB laboratory after each collecting trip and the dataset is updated on a monthly basis. Voucher specimens and associated DNA are also stored at the EDB laboratory until deposition in natural history Museums. The latest version of the dataset is publicly and freely accessible through our Integrated Publication Toolkit at http://130.120.204.55:8080/ipt/resource.do?r=harvestmen_of_french_guiana or through the Global Biodiversity Information Facility data portal at http://www.gbif.org/dataset/3c9e2297-bf20-4827-928e-7c7eefd9432c.
Ce qui fait obstacle au modèle : quelle place pour le sujet au sein des pratiques standardisées ?
Authors: Flémal Simon , Jardon Fabrice , Cédric Detienne , Vercruysse Nathalie , Fouchet Philippe
Published: December 2014

Quelles que soient leurs méthodes, différentes disciplines de la psychopathologie proposent des modes d’intervention thérapeutique visant à prendre en charge les sujets en souffrance. En considérant la portée et l’efficacité attribuées à ces différentes pratiques cliniques, que faire lorsque ces dernières se révèlent inappropriées à soutenir une rencontre avec un patient ? Que faire des sujets qui échappent aux modélisations des protocoles de soin ou qui ne satisfont pas leurs critères d’inclusion ? L’analyse du cas d’une patiente psychotique, par le repérage des difficultés rencontrées dans son accompagnement, nous permettra de discuter de l’adaptabilité des modes de traitement standardisés et de la place pouvant y être accordée au sujet comme point de départ du travail clinique. En guise de conclusion, nous soutiendrons qu’une autre orientation de la pratique est possible à partir de questionnements soutenus par les repères de la psychanalyse.
Enjeux psychiques du virtuel à l'adolescence
Authors: Frédérique Preist-Lagache , Mazoyer Anne-Valérie , Marjorie Roques
Published: December 2014

L’engouement pour les réseaux sociaux comme MySpace ou Facebook sur Internet, et leur utilisation accrue par les adolescents, favorisent la circulation d’informations personnelles et leur permettent de mesurer, auprès de leurs pairs, leur popularité. En nous référant à une conception psychodynamique du fonctionnement psychique et à la distinction établie par Tisseron entre la relation d’objet virtuelle à la relation d’objet virtuel, nous avons cherché à comprendre les enjeux psychiques liés à la virtualité. Une analyse psychodynamique élaborée à partir d’entretiens semi-directifs et Thematic Apperception Test , auprès de deux adolescents de 17 ans, utilisateurs des réseaux sociaux, permet d’accéder aux différentes fonctions des réseaux sociaux pour le psychisme : pour Tom, l’utilisation d’Internet semble s’inscrire dans une défaillance de la transitionnalité, tandis que pour Shany, la virtualité permet de laisser advenir ses capacités créatrices et sert la relation à l’autre.
La bêtise existe-t-elle ?
Authors: Godin Christian
Published: December 2014

On peut déduire de la phrase introductive du Discours de la méthode l’idée que la bêtise est un défaut dont on ne s’accusera pas soi-même. Rapportée à l’autre, « la » bêtise est supposée substantielle (et non pas circonstancielle, comme « une » bêtise). Mais tient-elle à un contenu déterminé, ou bien ne serait-elle pas plutôt une question de style ? En respectant le principe d’identité et l’exigence d’universalité, jusqu’aux stéréotypes, la bêtise mime l’intelligence plutôt qu’elle ne la refoule. Les puissances techniques et médiatiques actuelles lui fournissent un champ d’action inédit.
Avoir l'intelligence de se savoir bête
Authors: Bury Laurent
Published: December 2014

Comment peut-on savoir si l’on est intelligent ? Ce genre de certitude n’est-il pas plutôt l’apanage de la bêtise ? La bêtise exclut le doute, parce qu’elle exclut la multiplicité des points de vue. L’intelligence, au contraire, a un champ de vision plus large, elle maîtrise beaucoup mieux l’espace intellectuel et s’y meut à son aise, avec souplesse et tolérance, sans chercher à détruire les obstacles éventuels. Plus que des qualités essentielles, bêtise et intelligence sont peut-être des attitudes passagères qui caractérisent une action plutôt qu’une personnalité entière. Chacun peut se montrer tour à tour bête et intelligent, mais il faut avoir l’intelligence de se savoir bête.
La bêtise : entre immanence et télos
Authors: Bélanger Marco
Published: December 2014

Peu de penseurs ont théorisé sur la bêtise. L’un d’eux (A. Roger) a avancé récemment une hypothèse stimulante pour rendre compte de la co-occurrence de la bêtise et de l’intelligence. Elle porte sur l’immanence de la bêtise chez tout être rationnel : la bêtise serait inscrite dans le principe même des lois de la logique. Dans cet article, je propose, en complément à cette hypothèse, une autre hypothèse pour brosser un tableau plus complet de la bêtise. Cette hypothèse fait valoir que la raison mobilisée dans l’atteinte d’une fin peut elle aussi, dans son principe, conduire à la bêtise. Par l’examen de diverses figures types de notre culture, ainsi que de cas inspirés de la vie réelle, je tente de montrer comment ces deux hypothèses peuvent donner un tableau plus complet de la bêtise.
L'intelligence du rire ou la bêtise feinte
Authors: Paillat Sylvie
Published: December 2014

Dans quelle mesure un rire peut-il être bête ? Le rire n’est-il pas plutôt toujours le rire de l’intelligence, dût-il en apparence manifester la bêtise ou la feindre ? Dans son rapport au rire, la bêtise peut revêtir plusieurs formes : ignorance, inattention, moquerie, contagion émotive ou rire mécanique – comme réflexe corporel. Si l’on s’en tient à son sens étymologique, bêtise signifie ce qui relève de la bête. Mais la bête peut-elle rire ? Y a-t-il tout du moins en l’homme un rire qui pourrait faire penser, à tort ou à raison, à la bête ?
Grandeur et décadence de la philosophie grecque
Authors: Citot Vincent
Published: December 2014

Il s’agit de proposer une interprétation novatrice de l’histoire de la philosophie grecque, à la lumière de catégories et de critères qui ne sont pas, habituellement, considérés comme pertinents en histoire de la philosophie. Il nous semble pourtant que l’étude des rapports qu’entretient la philosophie avec la religion et la science permette de diviser son histoire en trois grandes périodes : le temps des progrès, celui de l’apogée, et celui du déclin. Outre son intérêt historique, une telle lecture de la philosophie grecque entend aussi stimuler la réflexion historiographique en histoire de la philosophie, quelle que soit la période considérée.
L'éthique de Hans Jonas contre l'utopie (marxiste)
Authors: Boyer Charles
Published: December 2014

Si l’éthique que Hans Jonas a développée dans son Principe responsabilité , est connue aujourd’hui, on a complètement refoulé les implications politiques de sa pensée. Pourtant, dès la préface, il écrivait : « La dynamique mondiale du progrès technologique contient en elle un utopisme implicite par sa tendance, si ce n’est par son programme. Et alliée à la technique, une des éthiques à perspective d’avenir globale qui existe déjà, le marxisme , a précisément élevé l’utopie au rang d’un but explicite ». Cela nécessite une critique détaillée de l’idéal utopique chez Marx et Ernst Bloch. Notre étude vise à montrer que cette critique est problématique, d’autant qu’elle semble reposer sur la conception heideggérienne de la technique – même si c’est son ontologie de la vie qui est en jeu.
De l'« éthique du care » à la « société du soin » : la politisation du care au Parti socialiste
Authors: Chahsiche Jean-Michel
Published: December 2014

Résumé Au printemps 2010, la première secrétaire du Parti socialiste défend dans une interview au journal Mediapart une « société du soin » qu’elle fonde sur l’éthique du care théorisée par la psychologue américain Carol Gilligan. La violence des réactions qui suivent cette première mention médiatique du care en France conduit à une série de prises de position publiques des acteurs de l’introduction initiale du concept en France. Alors que les introducteurs académiques initiaux dénoncent la « misogynie » des élites intellectuelles, politiques et médiatiques françaises et « l’amateurisme » du PS dans son utilisation du care, les artisans de la politisation du concept tentent d’apporter des correctifs aux premiers échos médiatiques. L’article se concentre sur la séquence de politisation du care au PS : nous reviendrons sur l’investissement politique du concept dans le cadre du Laboratoire des idées socialistes afin de rendre compte des formes et logiques de la soumission des intellectuels à la commande politique (1) par lesquelles les significations attachées à la notion de care se transforment radicalement (2) : éthique féministe opposée à la fois à la tradition déconstructiviste du féminisme français et à la théorie de la justice de John Rawls, le care devient au PS l’instrument théorique d’une rénovation de l’État-providence autour de la mission de services publics personnalisés.
Dynamique du prix international du coton : aléas, aversion au risque et chaos
Authors: Diasso Yankou
Published: December 2014

Alors que la récente flambée des cours des matières premières ravive le débat sur l’explication endogène versus exogène des fluctuations, nous montrons dans cet article que les deux phénomènes sont conjointement en œuvre dans la dynamique des prix mensuels du coton. L’application des outils de détection du chaos (dimension de corrélation, exposant Lyapunov) sur la série des prix montre certes l’existence d’une instabilité propre au fonctionnement même du marché, mais le test d’effet ARCH confirme également celle d’une part d’aléa. Aussi avons-nous fait appel à un modèle combinant processus chaotique et stochastique (Mackey-Glass – EGARCH) inspiré de la théorie des agents hétérogènes pour reproduire les caractéristiques des prix. Nos résultats suggèrent que la dynamique complexe des prix pourrait avoir pour origine l’hétérogénéité des formes d’anticipation des agriculteurs. Classification JEL : C22, E32, O13.
Patterns of Communication in High-Fidelity Simulation
Authors: Anderson Judy K. , Nelson Kimberly
Published: December 2014

High-fidelity simulation is commonplace in nursing education. However, critical thinking, decision making, and psychomotor skills scenarios are emphasized. Scenarios involving communication occur in interprofessional or intraprofessional settings. The importance of effective nurse–patient communication is reflected in statements from the American Nurses Association and Quality and Safety Education for Nurses, and in the graduate outcomes of most nursing programs. This qualitative study examined the patterns of communication observed in video recordings of a medical–surgical scenario with 71 senior students in a baccalaureate program. Thematic analysis revealed patterns of (a) focusing on tasks, (b) communicating-in-action, and (c) being therapeutic. Additional categories under the patterns included missing opportunities, viewing the “small picture,” relying on informing, speaking in “medical tongues,” offering choices…okay?, feeling uncomfortable, and using therapeutic techniques. The findings suggest the importance of using high-fidelity simulation to develop expertise in communication. In addition, the findings reinforce the recommendation to prioritize communication aspects of scenarios and debriefing for all simulations. [
J Nurs Educ
. 2015;54(1):22–27.]
The Who, What, and How of Evaluation Within Online Nursing Education: State of the Science
Authors: Russell Bedelia H.
Published: December 2014

The resource capacity in nursing programs has a direct impact on student admissions and number of graduates who enter the nursing workforce. Online delivery of nursing education is identified as a solution to expand nursing program capacity. As nursing programs continue to address capacity with online course delivery, it is essential that nurse educators maintain consistent evaluation practices to ensure successful and positive outcomes, compared with traditional models. Evaluation is a central component to determine program quality and mastery of learning outcomes. This article examines the state of the science around the current evaluation of educational practices, instructional strategies, and outcomes within the context of online nursing education. Thirty-six articles met the inclusion criteria. Despite substantive contributions to the state of the science, the findings reflect evaluation practices that are diffuse and superficial and serve as the basis for future recommendations and research opportunities. [
J Nurs Educ.
2015;54(1):13–21.]
Responsive Practices in Online Teacher Education
Authors: Jóhannsdóttir Thurídur
Published: December 2014

The chapter describes research on the development of teaching and learning in a distance teacher education programme in Iceland. The focus is on challenges that school-based student teachers faced in learning to become online students and the way in which their experience of teaching in schools contributed to the development of teaching and learning in the programme. Cultural-historical activity theory was used for analysing the development of individuals and activity systems as a dialectical process. The expansive learning theory directed the contradiction analysis to reveal tensions and challenges in the development of practice within the programme, as well as future developmental possibilities. Data includes interviews with school-based student teachers and observation of face-to-face sessions, as well as transcriptions of online courses. Results indicate that a combination of non-traditional student groups and new online tools called for changed practice in teacher education and that a new model of teaching and learning is emerging. In order to develop this model, schools and the teacher education faculty need to look at the education of student teachers as a shared responsibility and negotiate acceptable arrangements for the institutions involved.
Game Construction Activity in Higher Education
Authors: Kyhlbäck Hans
Published: December 2014

This activity theoretical discussion is based on experiences from teaching and learning in higher education (i.e. university students' activities in game construction). Learning by creating a new technical artefact is taken for granted. In higher education, the produced artefacts are the firsthand proof of students' work success. Sometimes, and prominently in game technology construction, such artefacts are further used and developed outside school. Digital games with an origin in higher education reach a level of maturity and technology utilization that goes beyond many student projects. The authors argue that successful making of artefacts is characterized by repeated and contextualized feedback, found as an intriguing interplay between activity systems in which the students participate. A driving force for students' efforts and achievements is found in a contradiction between school grade markings and becoming a professional producer of games.
Networking around Supervisors in an Industrial Corporation
Authors: Ruotsala Riikka
Published: December 2014

This chapter presents a network-level developmental intervention conducted in an industrial corporation. It focuses on production supervisors' changing work and follows how practitioners from the organizational support functions of human resources, occupational safety, and occupational health services build collaboration with supervisors. The notion of “client understanding” provides a starting point for the study: in order to serve supervisors, the support functions need to understand the challenges in the supervisors' operational environment. Results show that attaining client understanding requires, firstly, joint analysis of the sources of the problems and, secondly, the adaptation of dynamic and systemic explanations for them. The study describes the process of how client understanding, in the form of making generalizations, expands during the intervention. The findings have practical relevance for evaluating and developing collaborative practices in networked multi-activity settings.
Modeling and Analyzing Contextual Influences
Authors: Hansson Thomas
Published: December 2014

Working practices rather than purpose or instrumentation defines workplaces as individually motivated or systems controlled units of analysis. In this chapter, analysis of religious work in spiritual organizations covers interview data on employees' experiences of their organizations. Methodological consideration applies for comparison between concepts, models, and theories. Results on religious workplace characteristics emerge from applied activity theory and a model of literary analysis. Religious people perceive and conceive of their workplaces as self-controlled, purpose-driven, administratively structured, and multi-faceted environments. As their words come out during interviews, the data they supply differs from their perceived workplace impressions. Deployed activity and literary theory plus empirical data make up the means for analyzing the impact of setting, purpose, individual action, and collective activity.
“Memeration”
Authors: Simon Rob , Acosta Alisa , Houtman Eveline
Published: December 2014

This chapter examines how digital authorship in graduate education can broaden conceptions of scholarly engagement. Using a blog created by one of the authors in the context of a graduate literacy course as data, the authors explore how digital authoring practices influence both what counts as scholarly activity and how individuals approach scholarship. They analyze this blog using a framework that addresses four characteristics of academic writing in online spaces: remix, paratext, curation, and audience. This inquiry is guided by the following questions: What are implications of regarding multimodal practices as forms of scholarly work? What does it mean to invite multimodal work in graduate education? What are affordances and challenges of engaging in multimodal scholarship? In conclusion, the authors discuss several interconnected ways that multimodal authorship can contribute to renewed visions of what counts as writing, literacy, and scholarship in graduate education.
Towards a Conceptual Framework for Open Systems Developments
Authors: Cowling James A. , Morgan Christopher V. , Cloutier Robert
Published: December 2014

The systems engineering discipline has made great strides in developing a manageable approach to system development. This is predicated on thoroughly articulating the stakeholder requirements. However, in some engineering environments, requirements are changing faster than they can be captured and realized, making this ‘traditional' form of systems engineering less tenable. An iterative system refinement approach, characterized by open systems developments, may be a more appropriate and timely response for fast-changing needs. The open systems development approach has been utilized in a number of domains including open source software, Wikipedia®, and open innovation in manufacturing. However, open systems development appears difficult to recreate successfully, and while domain tradecraft advice is often available, no engineering management methodology has emerged to improve the likelihood of success. The authors discuss the essential features of openness in these three domains and use them to propose a conceptual framework for the further exploration of the effect of governance in determining success in such open endeavors. It is the authors' hope that further research to apply this conceptual framework to open source software projects may reveal some rudimentary elements of a management methodology for environments where requirements are highly uncertain, volatile, or ‘traditional' systems engineering is otherwise sub-optimal.
Emerging Trends in OAI-PMH Application
Authors: Khan Nadim Akhtar
Published: December 2014

Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH) provides an application-independent interoperability framework based on metadata harvesting. It is an effective way of sharing metadata between gateway services. The chapter gives an overview of Open Archives Initiative and underscores development, structure, and basic working of OAIPMH for harvesting procedures. It also traces the emerging trends in the use of Open Archive Initiative-Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH) by open access repositories to support interoperability among globally distributed information systems. The study was carried out by consulting the database of Directory of Open Access Repositories (OpenDOAR), which is an authoritative directory of academic open access repositories. The study observed growth in the use and application of OAI-PMH protocol by OA repositories at a global level. Growth in the number of OAI-PMH complaint repositories provides an ample justification for its distinction among varied protocols to be utilized for resource sharing in knowledge society. However, developing and underdeveloped nations need to be made aware of the benefits of utilizing the harvesting capabilities of this protocol. The study provides an opportunity to understand the astounding growing trends in the use of the protocol in different setups.
Intellectual Property Rights, Innovation, and Knowledge Economy in Arab Countries
Authors: Zouag Nada , Kadiri Molk
Published: December 2014

Access to knowledge economy, as well as progress in this area, is continuously assessed by the expansion of the Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) in any economy. Development and enforcement of IPRs is likely to protect rights to innovation and creation and contribute thus to further production and use of knowledge. This chapter describes how Arab countries protect the rights to innovation through patents, copyrights, geographical indications, models, labels, and other distinctive measures. Issues related to lack of enforcement and limited implementation of IPRs are not absent from Arab economies.
The University Cloud Library Model and the Role of the Cloud Librarian
Authors: Dhamdhere Sangeeta , Lihitkar Ramdas
Published: December 2014

The latest trend of Cloud Computing is progressing fast and using this technology it is possible to publish and store information on a virtual cloud based infrastructure. Virtualization technology has been adopted by many data centers in the industry. It shares resources on a single system efficiently and reduces infrastructure costs. Libraries are using various technologies along with Web tools at a time. Information sharing and an open access culture are developing fast in the education field. How libraries can make use of the application of cloud computing and virtualization technology for common data storage and managing multiple servers and provide cloud based information services to patrons will be discussed in detail in this chapter. This chapter also discusses in brief the applications of these technologies in libraries along with the university cloud library model and the role of cloud librarians.
Incorporating Free/Open-Source Data and Tools in Software Engineering Education
Authors: Yu Liguo , Surma David R. , Hakimzadeh Hossein
Published: December 2014

Software development is a fast-changing area. New methods and new technologies emerge all the time. As a result, the education of software engineering is generally considered not to be keeping pace with the development of software engineering in industry. Given the limited resources in academia, it is unrealistic to purchase all the latest software tools for classroom usage. In this chapter, the authors describe how free/open-source data and free/open-source tools are used in an upper-level software engineering class at Indiana University South Bend. Depending on different learning objectives, different free/open-source tools and free/open-source data are incorporated into different team projects. The approach has been applied for two semesters, where instructor's experiences are assembled and analyzed. The study suggests (1) incorporating both free/open-source tools and free/open-source data in a software engineering course so that students can better understand both development methods and development processes and (2) updating software engineering course regularly in order to keep up with the advance of development tools and development methods in industry.
Open Source vs. Proprietary Collaborative Virtual Learning Environments
Authors: Mavridis Apostolos , Konstantinidis Andreas , Tsiatsos Thrasyvoulos
Published: December 2014

This chapter is an evaluation of the efficiency of 3D Collaborative Virtual Learning Environments to facilitate the implementation of collaborative learning activities. Firstly, there is a presentation of the state of the art regarding open source as well as proprietary platforms. Afterwards, the use of a case study reveals issues concerning the suitability of open source Collaborative Virtual Learning Environments, rationalizing the choice of executing a collaborative learning scenario in Second Life. The specific scenario is then presented culminating in evaluation results related to the appropriateness of Second Life with regards to its technical and pedagogical affordances. Finally, students' suggestions and reactions towards such a novel didactical approach are discussed.
E-Health Sites Development Using Open Source Software and OMT Methodology as Support for Family Doctors' Activities
Authors: Rosu Sebastian Marius , Dragoi George
Published: December 2014

E-health is the generic term used for the set of tools based on information and communication technology used to help prevent, diagnose, treat, and monitor the health and lifestyles and to improve these processes. These considerations are the starting point of this chapter, which presents a Website development solution for family doctors' consulting-rooms to meet the needs of potential patients, based on Object Modeling Technique (OMT) and Open Source Software (OSS) in a metropolitan area network infrastructure. Development of ICT leaves much more freedom to the consultants to accommodate organizations to other influences, both internal and external.
Free Assistive Technology Software for Persons with Motor Disabilities
Authors: Pino Alexandros
Published: December 2014

Free assistive technology software can be an answer to various problems of the market, most importantly the products' high cost. The focus of this chapter is on open source software and freeware available at online repositories like Raising the Floor, EmpTech, Adaptech, ATHENA, OATSoft, and Project:Possibility. The most important features and suggested information fields for each included application are presented, followed by a comparison of the repositories in the context of these features. Finally, brief descriptions and prominent examples of free AT applications are given in the following categories: augmentative and alternative communication, click helpers, content simplification, eye control, games, head control, joystick control, media players, mouse enhancers, on-screen keyboards, scanning, shortcuts and macros, stylus control, switch control, talking browsers, text entry, text readers, voice control, and word prediction.
Users' Acceptance and Use of Moodle
Authors: Baytiyeh Hoda
Published: December 2014

The open source course management system Moodle, which a great number of organizations worldwide have adopted, is designed to help instructors deliver course materials to their students from a social constructivist perspective. The aim of this research is evaluate the acceptance and use of Moodle as an open source application from the viewpoint of both professors and students at the American University of Beirut. The theoretical framework for this study is drawn from the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) to investigate user intentions toward Moodle. The participants were 189 professors and 1,867 students who completed an online survey, evaluating a set of 30 items on a scale of five that reflected the UTAUT constructs applied to Moodle. An exploratory factor analysis was employed and generated five factors: community influence, satisfaction, service quality, learnability and technical quality. Repeated measures ANOVA showed community influence as the highest rated by participants, followed by satisfaction, service quality, learnability and technical quality. Also, two open-ended questions were included to solicit comments from users about various features that should be integrated into this free open source application.
Theses and Dissertations from Print to ETD
Authors: Alemneh Daniel Gelaw , Hartsock Ralph
Published: December 2014

Important products in an academic library's collection are Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations since they represent a wealth of scholarly and artistic content created by Master's and Doctoral students in the degree-seeking process. Each has experienced an evolution to a new format, electronic. Many of these are PDF files, using the Adobe Acrobat software. Until very recently, though, those files with accompanying materials were separated. This chapter further discusses several issues inherent in this process. These include access, use, re-use, preservation, storage, integration with other systems, copyrights, and permissions. The successful management of Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) requires effort across the entire lifecycle to ensure that ETDs are managed, preserved, and made accessible in a manner that today's users expect. Given the pressure of reading more in less time, today's users demand access to various formats regardless of temporal and spatial restrictions and the types of devices used.
A Lost Dimension in the Open Scholarly World
Authors: Gul Sumeer , Shah Tariq Ahmad
Published: December 2014

The movement of free accessibility of scholarly literature on the public Web has brought uprising in the intellectual class of the digital world. Though several studies have been carried out to understand the end-users' awareness level and the benefits they avail from this revolution, researchers/authors who play a pivotal role and without whom Open Access (OA) could not have seen the dawn and could not have been successful so far, have remained least studied, if not, unnoticed. Regardless of the use of OA platforms, earlier research has to some extent indicated the experiences, behaviour, and attitudes of authors towards open access. The way they think about OA has been explored by authorities from various dimensions. The current chapter is an attempt to understand their experiences, perceptions, and the opinions they hold about open access publishing. The chapter highlights the growing awareness, views, and perceptions of 336 authors in the field of medicine towards OA publishing. The survey instrument, an online questionnaire covering e-mail invitation to participate, was sent to the authors publishing their works in OA journals. The authors who had made recent submissions in the open access journals were consulted and the journals were selected from the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). The study explores the attitudes of authors to open publishing models, including OA journals and OA repositories. The research work is not a reflection of all the authors in the field of medicine, and hence, the findings should not be generalized to represent the views of all the authors contributing to open access platforms in the field of medicine. Neither should the findings be generalized to represent the views of all the authors in the open access world. The study can further be extended to divulge the views of authors in the field of medicine on the basis of geographical locations and gender. A follow up study can also be taken to monitor the opinion shifts of the authors in the sub-fields of medicine.
Economic Impact of Information and Communication Technology in Higher Education
Authors: Brown Carol A.
Published: December 2014

Developed nations are experiencing economic growth through the advantages associated with Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Digital resources along with Massive Open Online Courses provide educational opportunities to an ever-expanding population of students. Some areas, however, lack Internet connectivity and are unable to take advantage of ICTs needed to support the demands of global economies. Cloud computing is growing in usefulness as universities are able to work with remote applications and store data on cloud servers. Along with the ubiquitous Web and ICT resources, there is also the risk of too much information, which can negatively impact job performance and satisfaction. Even with reports of faculty concerns in disproportionate amount time needed to offer online courses, the university is experiencing growth in online education, extended opportunities for global education, and a challenge to manage an incessant flow of digital information.
The Migration of the Book across Territorial Borders
Authors: Cantatore Francina
Published: December 2014

Although the USA, Canada, UK, and Australia currently retain territorial copyright laws, with commensurate restrictions on parallel, importation of books, advances in digital technology, and the advent of e-books have caused an involuntary migration of the book across these defined borders. This changing publishing sphere has impacted authors' copyright protection, with authors struggling to come to grips with breaches of copyright outside the protection of their own borders. Additionally, the extra-territorial publication of books are often in breach of authors' copyright but difficult to address locally. This article deals with the copyright issues faced by authors once their books enter the digital sphere, as well as the difficulties associated with overseas publications of their books, from a territorial perspective. It examines—especially in view of recent case law in the United States—whether territorial copyright borders still afford book authors effective copyright protection in the digital economy, and further, whether the culture of the book is being eroded through the prevalence of extra-territorial publications. In addressing these issues, the article references recent qualitative and quantitative research conducted through interviewing and surveying published Australian authors nationally. The findings of the qualitative and quantitative research showed that, whilst publication in the digital sphere poses significant challenges for book authors, their responses to copyright challenges are varied and inconsistent, depending on their viewpoints. Relevantly, this article examines the recent US Supreme Court decision of Kirtsaeng v Wiley and Sons, Inc.—which dealt with the application of the “first sale doctrine” in the cross-border sale of text books on eBay—and considers its likely future impact on the enforcement of territorial copyright by authors and publishers. Finally, the article concludes that territorial copyright borders have become blurred, difficult to enforce in view of recent precedent, and are ineffective in preserving authors' copyright and the cultural dimensions of their books. In conclusion, it suggests that new copyright solutions are required, demanding that authors embrace digital technology, improve their knowledge of online publishing, and apply creative publishing models to their advantage.
Knowing Protection of Intellectual Contents in Digital Era
Authors: Vishwakarma Priyanka , Mukherjee Bhaskar
Published: December 2014

New technological innovations have made the publishing of ideas easy, while maintaining protection of the published content has become a concerning issue. Plagiarism is an emerging issue in the digital era. The intention of writing this chapter is to explore various tools and projects that enable an author to know: 1) that their work is original; 2) The best possible options to maintain rights on intellectual work; 3) the publishers' policies while archiving your document in an institutional repository; and 4) the ethics of publishing. To handle such issues, the authors identify ways to avoid plagiarism and mention the use of anti-plagiarism software. Attempts are also made to explore how far a scholarly work can be treated under the periphery of “fair use.” The various derivatives of creative commons are also explained regarding copyright issues in the digital era. The essence of projects like SHERPA/RoMEO and COPE are also discussed.
Internet Policy Issues and Digital Libraries' Management of Intellectual Property
Authors: Tella Adeyinka , Afolabi A. K.
Published: December 2014

The policy issues posed by the Internet in different countries around the world do not seem to be very different. The Internet itself helps us realize this by allowing governments and citizens everywhere to share their problems and solutions. How different governments react to the Internet depends on the extent to which they are prepared to accept external influences. The continued growth of the Internet for personal, government, and business purposes is now being affected by a number of policy issues. The discussions in this chapter center on these various Internet policy issues. These are the issues of content on the Internet, equal access, copyright, and protection of intellectual property. The chapter also considers the emerging Internet policy issues such as privacy and security, and explores the basic principles for managing intellectual property in the digital environment and then suggests the tools for managing intellectual property by digital libraries.
Digitize or Perish
Authors: Asunka Stephen
Published: December 2014

In today's knowledge and technology driven society, most scholarly information is increasingly being produced and distributed in digital formats. Yet, in Sub-Saharan Africa, academic libraries have been very slow at joining this digital movement, and hence stand the risk of losing their relevance, particularly with regard to locally generated intellectual material. To better serve the knowledge and information seeking needs of their patrons, librarians need to reinvent services. The challenges are discussed as well as prescriptions of workable strategies that librarians, information scientists, and other stakeholders can adopt to overcome these barriers. Such strategies mostly involve appropriately leveraging the existing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools and resources to make library resources more accessible. Consequently, digitizing indigenous intellectual resources may keep libraries from perishing and respond to user needs and information seeking habits in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Building Open-Source Resources for Online Learning in a Higher Education Environment
Authors: Hai-Jew Shalin
Published: December 2014

Faculty, administrators, and staff at institutions of higher education are singularly well poised to create open-source digital learning contents. Creating open-source digital learning contents seems to fit with a university's mission and the education paradigm of sharing knowledge and training up others to move a domain field forward. Indeed, they have contributed to many open-source endeavors. While individual open-source development endeavors may require a relatively light investment by colleges and universities, the work of building open-source resources involves significant planning in order to support the endeavor in an organized way on a campus. This chapter introduces some of the known challenges and methods to building open-source resources for online learning in the higher education environment in the US.
Free Public Wi-Fi and E-Planning
Authors: Lambert Alex , McQuire Scott , Papastergiadis Nikos
Published: December 2014

Networked media are increasingly pervading public spaces and influencing the way we behave in public. Australian municipalities and cultural institutions have begun deploying free Wi-Fi services hoping they will attract more visitors to public places, aid in curated events, galvanize communities and enhance local economies. In this article we present multi-method research aimed at understanding whether such services can enhance public space and culture, and hence contribute to the public good. We identify multiple forms of positive use which certain kinds of ‘user-centric' services enable. However, many public institutions face problems to do with funding, network models and choice of place which prevent the actualization of these positive outcomes. We consider how e-planning can be mobilized to help such institutions develop virtuous networked public spaces.
A Systematic Approach to Evaluating Open Source Software
Authors: Ahmad Norita , Laplante Phillip A.
Published: December 2014

Selecting appropriate Open Source Software (OSS) for a given problem or a set of requirements can be very challenging. Some of the difficulties are due to the fact that there is not a generally accepted set of criteria to use in evaluation and that there are usually many OSS projects available to solve a particular problem. In this study, the authors propose a set of criteria and a methodology for assessing candidate OSS for fitness of purpose using both functional and non-functional factors. The authors then use these criteria in an improved solution to the decision problem using the well-developed Analytical Hierarchy Process. In order to validate the proposed model, it is applied at a technology management company in the United Arab Emirates, which integrates many OSS solutions into its Information Technology infrastructure. The contribution of this work is to help decision makers to better identify an appropriate OSS solution using a systematic approach without the need for intensive performance testing.
Critical Analysis on Open Source LMSs Using FCA
Authors: Sumangali K. , Kumar Ch. Aswani
Published: December 2014

The objective of this paper is to apply Formal Concept Analysis (FCA) to identify the best open source Learning Management System (LMS) for an E-learning environment. FCA is a mathematical framework that represents knowledge derived from a formal context. In constructing the formal context, LMSs are treated as objects and their features as attributes. This context is analysed and classified into concepts based on the rules of FCA. The knowledge derived from the concepts and our analyses reveal that Moodle is exceptional, with more features when compared with other LMSs.