bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Geometric Quality in Geographic Information
Authors: Zelasco José Francisco , Porta Gaspar , Fernandez Ausinaga José Luís
Published: May 2011

Both this article, referred to as Article I, and another one, Article II, entitled “Geometric Quality in Geographic Information IFSAR DEM Control”, published in this encyclopedia propose a method to evaluate the geometric integrity of Digital Elevation Models obtained by different techniques. Therefore, the theoretical aspect of the method to evaluate the geometric integrity and different stochastic hypotheses will be presented in both of them. Herein, we consider the classical topographic or aerial photogrammetry stereo images method (included ASTER or SPOT images) and we assume consistent stochastic hypotheses. In the Article II we consider Interferometry SAR (IFSAR) techniques and the stochastic hypotheses are specific according to the particular geometry involved in this technique.
Geometric Quality in Geographic Information IFSAR DEM Control
Authors: Zelasco José Francisco , Donayo Judith , Ennis Kevin , Fernandez Ausinaga José Luís
Published: May 2011

Both this, article II and another one, article I, titled “Geometric Quality In Geographic Information” published in this encyclopedia propose the theoretical aspects of the method to evaluate the geometric integrity of Digital Elevation Models obtained by different techniques and therefore, different stochastic hypotheses are considered. In the article I we considerer the classical topographic or aerial photogrammetry stereo images method (included ASTER or SPOT images) and we assume consistent stochastic hypotheses. In this Article II we consider IFSAR techniques and the stochastic hypotheses are specific according to the particular geometry involved in this technique.
Deep Web
Authors: Shestakov Denis
Published: May 2011

Finding information on the Web using a web search engine is one of the primary activities of today’s web users. For a majority of users results returned by conventional search engines are an essentially complete set of links to all pages on the Web relevant to their queries. However, currentday searchers do not crawl and index a significant portion of the Web and, hence, web users relying on search engines only are unable to discover and access a large amount of information from the nonindexable part of the Web. Specifically, dynamic pages generated based on parameters provided by a user via web search forms are not indexed by search engines and cannot be found in searchers’ results. Such search interfaces provide web users with an online access to myriads of databases on the Web. In order to obtain some information from a web database of interest, a user issues his/her query by specifying query terms in a search form and receives the query results, a set of dynamic pages which embed required information from a database. At the same time, issuing a query via an arbitrary search interface is an extremely complex task for any kind of automatic agents including web crawlers, which, at least up to the present day, do not even attempt to pass through web forms on a large scale.
Differential Learning Expert System in Data Management
Authors: Manjunath R.
Published: May 2011

Expert systems have been applied to many areas of research to handle problems effectively. Designing and implementing an expert system is a difficult job, and it usually takes experimentation and experience to achieve high performance. The important feature of an expert system is that it should be easy to modify. They evolve gradually. This evolutionary or incremental development technique has to be noticed as the dominant methodology in the expert-system area. The simple evolutionary model of an expert system is provided in B. Tomic, J. Jovanovic, & V. Devedzic, 2006. Knowledge acquisition for expert systems poses many problems. Expert systems depend on a human expert to formulate knowledge in symbolic rules. The user can handle the expert systems by updating the rules through user interfaces (J. Jovanovic, D. Gasevic, V. Devedzic, 2004). However, it is almost impossible for an expert to describe knowledge entirely in the form of rules. An expert system may therefore not be able to diagnose a case that the expert is able to. The question is how to extract experience from a set of examples for the use of expert systems.
Querical Data Networks
Authors: Shahabi Cyrus , Banaei-Kashani Farnoush
Published: May 2011

Recently, a family of massive self-organizing data networks has emerged. These networks mainly serve as large-scale distributed query processing systems. We term these networks Querical Data Networks (QDN). A QDN is a federation of a dynamic set of peer, autonomous nodes communicating through a transient-form interconnection. Data is naturally distributed among the QDN nodes in extra-fine grain, where a few data items are dynamically created, collected, and/or stored at each node. Therefore, the network scales linearly to the size of the dataset. With a dynamic dataset, a dynamic and large set of nodes, and a transient-form communication infrastructure, QDNs should be considered as the new generation of distributed database systems with significantly less constraining assumptions as compared to their ancestors. Peer-to-peer networks (Daswani, 2003) and sensor networks (Estrin, 1999, Akyildiz, 2002) are well-known examples of QDN.
Specifying Artificial Institutions in the Event Calculus
Authors: Fornara Nicoletta , Colombetti Marco
Published: May 2011

The specification of open interaction systems is widely recognized to be a crucial issue, which involves the problem of finding a standard way of specifying: a communication language for the interacting agents, the entities that constitute the context of the interaction, and rules that regulate interactions. An approach to solve these problems consists in modelling open interaction systems as a set of artificial institutions. In this chapter we address this issue by formally defining, in the Event Calculus, a repertoire of abstract concepts (like commitment, institutional power, role, and norm) that can be used to specify every artificial institution. We then show how, starting from the formal definition of these concepts and of application-dependent concepts, it is possible to obtain a formal specification of a system. By using a suitable tool, it is then possible to simulate and monitor the system’s evolution through automatic deduction.
A Programming Language for Normative Multi-Agent Systems
Authors: Dastani Mehdi , Tinnemeier Nick A.M. , Meyer John-Jules Ch.
Published: May 2011

Multi-agent systems are viewed as consisting of individual agents whose behaviors are regulated by an organizational artifact. This chapter presents a programming language that aims at facilitating the implementation of norm-based organizational artifacts. The programming language is presented in two steps. We first present a programming language that is designed to support the implementation of nonnormative organizational artifacts. These artifacts are specified in terms of non-normative concepts such as the identity of participating agents, the identity of the constituting environments in which individual agents can perform actions, and the agents’ access relation to the environments. The programming language is then modified and extended to support the implementation of norm-based artifacts. Such artifacts are specified in terms of norms being enforced by monitoring, regimenting, and sanctioning mechanisms. The syntax and operational semantics of the programming language are discussed and explained by means of a conference management system example.
A Framework for Dynamic Agent Organizations
Authors: Fatima Shaheen , Wooldridge Michael
Published: May 2011

This chapter presents an adaptive organizational policy for multi-agent systems called TRACE. TRACE allows a collection of multi-agent organizations to dynamically allocate tasks and resources between themselves in order to efficiently process and incoming stream of tasks. The tasks have deadlines and their arrival pattern changes over time. Hence, at any instant, some organizations could have surplus resources while others could become overloaded. In order to minimize the number of lost requests caused by an overload, the allocation of resources to organizations is changed dynamically by using ideas from microeconomics. We formally show that TRACE has the ability to adapt to load variations, reduce the number of lost requests, and allocate resources to computations on the basis of their criticality. Furthermore, although the solution generated by TRACE is not always Pareto-optimal, TRACE has the properties of feasibility and monotonicity that make it well suited to time-constrained applications. Finally, we present experimental results to demonstrate the performance of TRACE.
Interactions Between Formal and Informal Organizational Networks
Authors: Lamieri Marco , Mangalagiu Diana
Published: May 2011

In this chapter we present a model of organization aimed to understand the effect of formal and informal structures on the organization’s performance. The model considers the interplay between the formal hierarchical structure and the social network connecting informally the agents emerging while the organization performs a task-set. The social network creation and evolution is endogenous, as it doesn’t include any function supposed to optimize performance. After a review of the literature, we propose a definition of performance based on the efficiency in allocating the task of a simulated organization that can be considered as a network-based problem-solving system. We analyze how the emergence of a stable process in decomposing tasks under different market conditions can alleviate the rigidity and the inefficiencies of a hierarchical structure and we compare the performance of different hierarchical structures under variable environment conditions.
Rethinking DRM Using Exception Management
Authors: Morin Jean-Henry
Published: May 2011

This chapter introduces and discusses much needed alternatives to the traditional either/or debate on total security of secure multimedia distribution. Most DRM-based approaches rely on considering the user as untrustworthy and consequently a weak link. We argue there may be alternative ways, providing increased flexibility to users in terms of fair use and copyright balance while still maintaining a much needed level of governed usage of content. While introducing exception management in DRM environments might seam counterintuitive at first sight, we provide elements supporting the idea in the form of a model which is discussed. In doing so, we argue for the need to rethink DRM in ways that will enable both a seamless compelling user experience and the rights holder to address the issue of managed copying of content.
The Social Study of Computer Science
Authors: Tedre Matti
Published: May 2011

This chapter introduces the reader to some social research characteristics that are central to the social study of computer science. It introduces research studies that focus on the sociocultural aspects of computing and computer science, explains some of the central characteristics of those studies, and discusses their implications for the computer science discipline. Furthermore, this chapter is aimed at giving the reader a basic understanding of why social studies are important for the discipline of computing, as well as some broad guidelines and pointers towards carrying out such studies in computer science. Our objective … is to state precisely and clearly where and why sociological analysis is necessary in the understanding of scientific knowledge. Our main method is to present historical case studies. We then show how sociological analysis applies in these cases, and how it is an essential complement to even the most insightful interpretations derived from other perspectives.
Applying Bourdieu to eBay's Success and Socio-Technical Design
Authors: Ellis Rebecca M.
Published: May 2011

This chapter introduces the work of sociologist Pierre Bourdieu and his concepts of “the field” and “capital” in relation to eBay. In any given field, there is competition for various sorts of “capital”—power and resources. This chapter considers eBay to be a “field” in its own right—a socio-technical system with its own set of social norms and rules. eBay is used as a case study of the importance of applying a Bourdieuean approach to create successful socio-technical systems. Using a study of eBay users as empirical illustration, this chapter argues that much of eBay’s success is in the affordances for social translucence of eBay’s Web site in supporting the Bourdieuean competition over capital and status. This exploration has implications for socio-technical systems design— in particular, the importance of creating and maintaining socially translucent systems, informed by Bourdieu’s theoretical insights, which support competition for “capital” and status.
Augmenting Actual Life Through MUVEs
Authors: Ripamonti Laura Anna , Di Loreto Ines , Maggiorini Dario
Published: May 2011

The necessity of supporting more and more social interaction (and not only mere information sharing) in online environments is the disruptive force upon which phenomena ascribed to the Web2.0 paradigm continuously bud. People interacting in online socio-technical environments mold technology to their needs, seamlessly integrating it into their everyday life. MUVEs (Multi User Virtual Environments) are no exception and, in several cases, represent a new frontier in this field. In this chapter the authors analyze if and how MUVEs can be considered a means for augmenting the life of real communities and of people in general. The authors trace a framework of analysis based on four main observations, and through these lenses we look at Second Life and at several projects they are currently developing in this synthetic world.
Gaze-Aided Human-Computer and Human-Human Dialogue
Authors: Qvarfordt Pernilla , Zhai Shumin
Published: May 2011

Eye-gaze plays an important role in face-to-face communication. This chapter presents research on exploiting the rich information contained in human eye-gaze for two types of applications. The first is to enhance computer mediated human-human communication by overlaying eye-gaze movement onto the shared visual spatial discussion material such as a map. The second is to manage multimodal human-computer dialogue by tracking the user’s eye-gaze pattern as an indicator of user’s interest. The authors briefly review related literature and summarize results from two research projects on human-human and human-computer communication.
Cultural Appropriation of Software Design and Evaluation
Authors: Winschiers-Theophilus Heike
Published: May 2011

Communities all over the world have established their own value systems which do not necessarily correlate with the intrinsic values of technology. The account of internationalization and localization of information technology reveals that an abstraction of the receiving societies’ culture leads to the design of unusable and unwanted socio-technical systems. Cross-cultural research extrapolates major challenges of current development practices. Longtime established methods, understandings of quality concepts, and metrics of socio-technical systems can no longer be assumed to be universals. Thus the author argues that as much as the design of socio-technical systems has to be synchronized with the target community so does the design and evaluation process itself as well as the underlying quality concepts. Empirical research in the design of information and decision support systems in the Namibian context demonstrates the need for a change of paradigm in socio-technical system design and supports the presented culture-driven design framework.
Socio-Technical Communities
Authors: Jahnke Isa
Published: May 2011

The chapter describes an empirical study of a socio-technical community—as an extended part of an institution— with the aim of revealing its changing processes. One hypothesis is that structures of socio-technical communities evolve from being less defined and informal to being more formal structures supported by evolving social control mechanisms, regulations and rules. The focus is the new emerging forms of sociotechnical relationships. It is argued that the more established a socio-technical system is on the societal level, the more regulations will be developed which are enforced first by surveillance and social sanctions, and finally by technical determination. This chapter illustrates how socio-technical networks evolve in this direction under certain conditions.
Knowledge Management and Lifelong Learning in Archival Heritage
Authors: Kourtoumi Triantafillia
Published: May 2011

Archives have a key role to play in underpinning learning in its broadest sense, both as a formal activity within an institution and informally within the community. This is becoming especially important in an increasingly KM-based environment. This chapter provides an overview of technologies that can be applied to archival knowledge management. Furthermore, it assesses their actual or potential contribution to the basic processes of knowledge sharing within archival organizations, with a focus on lifelong learning. The scope of the first section (the screens) is to identify new developments that seem to be significant and to relate them to technology research in the archival field. The second section (the frames) discusses the concepts supporting digital collections by integrating collections of digitized archival resources to create new services and infrastructures. The third section (the agendas) analyses-from the educational perspective of lifelong learning-important social benefits, both quantitatively and qualitatively, of developing new infrastructures for accessing and using archival resources.
A Basis for the Semantic Web and E-Business
Authors: Li Changqing , Ling Tok Wang
Published: May 2011

This chapter introduces how to effectively organize ontology languages and ontologies and how to efficiently process semantic information based on ontologies. In this chapter the authors propose the hierarchies to organize ontology languages and ontologies. Based on the hierarchy of ontology languages, the ontology designers need not bear in mind which ontology language the primitives exactly come from, also we can automatically and seamlessly use the ontologies defined with different ontology languages in an integrated environment. Based on the hierarchy of ontologies, the conflicts in different ontologies are resolved, thus the semantics in different ontologies are clear without ambiguities. Also, these semantic-clear ontologies can be used to efficiently process the semantic information in Semantic Web and E-Business.
Modeling Business Process Variability for Design-Time Configuration
Authors: La Rosa Macello , Dumas Marlon , ter Hofstede Arthur H.M.
Published: May 2011

A reference process model represents multiple variants of a common business process in an integrated and reusable manner. It is intended to be individualized in order to fit the requirements of a specific organization or project. This practice of individualizing reference process models provides an attractive alternative with respect to designing process models from scratch; in particular, it enables the reuse of proven practices. This chapter introduces techniques for representing variability in the context of reference process models, as well as techniques that facilitate the individualization of reference process models with respect to a given set of requirements.
The People Integration Challenge
Authors: Ploesser Karsten , Russell Nick
Published: May 2011

This chapter discusses the challenges associated with integrating work performed by human agents into automated workflows. It briefly recounts the evolution of business process support systems and concludes that although the support for people integration continues to evolve in these offerings, in broad terms it has not advanced markedly since their inception several decades ago. Nevertheless, people are an integral part of business processes and integration of human work deserves special consideration during process design and deployment. To this end, the chapter explores the requirements associated with modelling human integration and examines the support for people integration offered by WS-BPEL, which (together with its WS-BPEL4People and WS-HumanTask extensions) currently represents the state of the art when defining and implementing business processes in a service-oriented environment. In order to do this, it utilises a common framework for language assessment, the workflow resource patterns, both to illustrate the capabilities of WS-BPEL and to identify future technical opportunities.
Business Process Engineering
Authors: Jimenez Guillermo
Published: May 2011

In this chapter the authors introduce the role of a business process engineer (BPE) and necessary competencies to define, simulate, analyze, and improve business processes. As a minimal body of knowledge for a BPE we propose two complementary fields: enterprise integration engineering (EIE) and business process management (BPM). EIE is presented as a discipline that enriches business models by providing additional views to enhance and extend the coverage of business models through the consideration of additional elements to those that are normally considered by a process model, such as the inclusion of mission, vision, and strategy which are cornerstone in EIE. A BPE is a person who holistically uses principles of BPE, EIE, and associated tools to build business models that identify elements such as information sources involved, the roles which use and transform the information, and the processes that guide end-to-end transformation of information along the business.
An Evaluation of Context-Aware Infomobility Systems
Authors: Paganelli Federica , Giuli Dino
Published: May 2011

The delivery of real-time, context-aware, and personalized information to end-users for mobility support is a high-priority objective in improving mobility services efficiency and effectiveness. This chapter aims at providing an analysis of existing studies in the field of context awareness research targeted to the infomobility application domain. The authors propose an evaluation framework for infomobility services based on the elicitation of context information items and high-level requirements. The framework is applied to some relevant state-of-the art research works among personal navigation systems, infomobility service integration frameworks and context-aware location-based communication platforms. Evaluation results are discussed in order to highlight open research challenges in the infomobility application domain.
Blended Learning and Professional Development in the K-12 Sector
Authors: Riverin Suzanne
Published: May 2011

This chapter examines the use of blended learning in an online community which supported teacher professional development in the province of Ontario, Canada for ten years. The online network which was called The Education Network of Ontario/ Le Réseau éducatif de l’Ontario (ENO/REO) used a blend of tools and some face-to-face opportunities to support teacher professional development across the province. Teachers were encouraged to use the ENO/REO environment to join in discussions, create and maintain online projects and share research and curriculum resources. The chapter will focus on a study which examined the effect of long term participation in such a community in order to provide insight into the use of blended learning in online communities for professional development.
Optimizing Society
Authors: Macaš Martin , Lhotská Lenka
Published: May 2011

A novel binary optimization technique is introduced called Social Impact Theory based Optimizer (SITO), which is based on social psychology model of social interactions. The algorithm is based on society of individuals. Each individual holds a set of its attitudes, which encodes a candidate solution of a binary optimization problem. Individuals change their attitudes according to their spatial neighbors and their fitness, which leads to convergence to local (or global) optimum. This chapter also tries to demonstrate different aspects of the SITO’s behavior and to give some suggestions for potential user. Further, a comparison to similar techniques – genetic algorithm and binary particle swarm optimizer – is discussed and some possibilities of formal analysis are briefly presented.
Integrating Imaging and Clinical Data for Decision Support
Authors: Hsu William , Bui Alex A.T. , Taira Ricky K. , Kangarloo Hooshang
Published: May 2011

Though an unparalleled amount and diversity of imaging and clinical data are now collected as part of routine care, this information is not sufficiently integrated and organized in a way that effectively supports a clinician’s ability to diagnose and treat a patient. The goal of this chapter is to present a framework for organizing, representing, and manipulating patient data to assist in medical decision-making. We first demonstrate how probabilistic graphical models (specifically, Bayesian belief networks) are capable of representing medical knowledge. We then propose a data model that facilitates temporal and investigative organization by structuring and modeling clinical observations at the patient level. Using information aggregated into the data model, we describe the creation of multi-scale, temporal disease models to represent a disease across a population. Finally, we describe visual tools for interacting with these disease models to facilitate the querying and understanding of results. The chapter concludes with a discussion about open problems and future directions.
Combining Geometry and Image in Biomedical Systems
Authors: Kilindris Thomas V. , Theodorou Kiki
Published: May 2011

Patient anatomy, biochemical response, as well functional evaluation at organ level, are key fields that produce a significant amount of multi modal information during medical diagnosis. Visualization, processing, and storage of the acquired data sets are essential tasks in everyday medical practice. In order to perform complex processing that involves or rely on image data a robust as well versatile data structure was used as extension of the Visualization Toolkit (VTK). The proposed structure serves as a universal registration container for acquired information and post processed resulted data. The structure is a dynamic multidimensional data holder to host several modalities and/or Meta data like fused image sets, extracted features (volumetric, surfaces, edges) providing a universal coordinate system used for calculations and geometric processes. A case study of Treatment Planning System (TPS) in the stereotactic radiotherapy (RT) based on the proposed structure is discussed as an efficient medical application.
Anomaly Detection in Medical Image Analysis
Authors: Taboada-Crispi Alberto , Sahli Hichem , Hernandez-Pacheco Denis , Falcon-Ruiz Alexander
Published: May 2011

Various approaches have been taken to detect anomalies, with certain particularities in the medical image scenario, linked to other terms: content-based image retrieval, pattern recognition, classification, segmentation, outlier detection, image mining, as well as computer-assisted diagnosis, and computeraided surgery. This chapter presents, a review of anomaly detection (AD) techniques and assessment methodologies, which have been applied to medical images, emphasizing their peculiarities, limitations and future perspectives. Moreover, a contribution to the field of AD in brain computed tomography images is also given, illustrated and assessed.
Digital Simulation in Teaching and Learning
Authors: Baek Youngkyun
Published: May 2011

This chapter expands upon the definition of a simulation with two categories: experiential and symbolic. It discusses the interactive, experiential trend in digital teaching and learning, and the educational merits of simulations. This chapter tries to locate digital simulation’s position in these trends. In doing so, it explores the educational merits of digital simulation, discusses the learning mode of digital simulation, and outlines what digital simulation conveys to deliver educational contents. In addition, it will look at the characteristics and functions of digital simulation. Mainly this chapter focuses on how simulation is used for teaching and learning. It highlights simulation’s features to be effective for teaching and learning. It also introduces challenges to simulation to overcome its disadvantages. Several examples of digital simulation in teaching and learning are explored: They are “Max Trax, Strategy CoPilot, Virtual School, simSchool, simClass, Krucible”, and “Starry Night”. Lastly, this chapter seeks to forecast the future of teaching and learning with a focus on information technology and simulation by finding simulation’s role and contribution in learning context.
Dynamic Modeling of the Cyber Security Threat Problem
Authors: Radianti Jaziar , Gonzalez Jose J.
Published: May 2011

This chapter discusses the possible growth of black markets (BMs) for software vulnerabilities and factors affecting their spread. It is difficult to collect statistics about BMs for vulnerabilities and their associated transactions, as they are hidden from general view. We conduct a disguised observation of online BM trading sites to identify causal models of the ongoing viability of BMs. Our observation results are expressed as a system dynamic model. We implement simulations to observe the effects of possible actions to disrupt BMs. The results suggest that without interventions the number and size of BMs is likely to increase. A simulation scenario with a policy to halt BM operations results in temporary decrease of the market. The intervention ultimately meets policy resistance, failing to neutralize a reinforcing feedback. Combining the policy with efforts to build distrust among BM participants may cause them to leave the forum and inhibit the imitation process to establish similar forums.
Information Sharing
Authors: Singh Preeti , Singh Pranav , Park Insu , Lee JinKyu
Published: May 2011

We live in a digital era where the global community relies on Information Systems to conduct all kinds of operations, including averting or responding to unanticipated risks and disasters. This can only happen when there is a robust information exchange facilitation mechanism in place, which can help in taking quick and legitimate steps in dealing with any kind of emergent situation. Prior literature in the field of information assurance has focused on building defense mechanisms to protect assets and reduce vulnerability to foreign attacks. Nevertheless, information assurance does not simply mean building an impermeable membrane and safeguarding information, but also implies letting information be securely shared, if required, among a set of related groups or organizations that serve a common purpose. This chapter will revolve around the central pivot of Information Sharing. Further, to study the relative significance of various information dimensions in different disaster situations, content analyses are conducted. The results hence obtained can be used to develop a prioritization framework for different disaster response activities, thus to increase the mitigation efficiency. We will also explore roles played by few existing organizations and technologies across the globe that are actively involved in Information Sharing to mitigate the impact of disasters and extreme events.
Server Hardening Model Development
Authors: White Doug , Rea Alan
Published: May 2011

In this chapter the authors present essential server security components and develop a set of logical steps to build hardened servers. The authors outline techniques to examine servers in both the Linux/ UNIX and the Windows Environment for security flaws from both the internal and external perspectives. Ultimately, the chapter builds a complete model which includes advice on tools, tactics, and techniques that system administrators can use to harden a server against compromise and attack.
Trusted Computing
Authors: Teo Jeff
Published: May 2011

Computer attacks of all sorts are commonplace in today’s interconnected, globalized society. A computer worm, written and released in one part of the world, can now traverse cyberspace in mere minutes creating havoc and untold financial hardship and loss. To effectively combat such threats and other novel and sophisticated assaults, our network defenses must be equipped to thwart such attacks. Yet, our software-dominated defenses are woefully inadequate (Bellovin, 2001). The Trusted Computing Group (TCG) has embarked on a mission to use an open standards-based interoperability framework utilizing both hardware and software implementations to defend against computer attacks. Specifically, the TCG uses a trusted hardware called the trusted platform module (TPM) in conjunction with TPM-enhanced software to provide better protection against such attacks. While millions of TPMs have been shipped with more expected annually, adoption of trusted computing technology enabled by the devices has been slow, despite escalating security infractions. This chapter will detail a brief history of trusted computing (TC), the goals of the TCG, and the workings of trusted platforms. The chapter will also look into how the TPM enables roots of trust to afford improved trust and security.
Automatic Digital Content Generation System for Real-Time Distance Lectures
Authors: Takeda Hiroshi , Yaginuma Hisashi , Kiyohara Hajime , Tokuyasu Akira , Iwatsuki Masami , Takeuchi Norio , Kobayashi Hisato , Yana Kazuo
Published: May 2011

This article describes a new automatic digital content generation system we have developed. Recently some universities, including Hosei University, have been offering students opportunities to take distance interactive classes over the Internet from overseas. When such distance lectures are delivered in English to Japanese students, there is a pressing need to provide materials for review after class, such as video content on a CDROM or on a Web site. To meet this need, we have developed a new automatic content generation system, which enables the complete archiving of lectures including video/audio content, synchronized presentation materials, and handwritten traces on virtual whiteboards. The content is generated in real time and is immediately available at the end of the class. In addition, this system incorporates a unique video search algorithm which adopts a phonetic-based search technology. This enables quick review of the video content by typed-in keywords. The system can automatically create a vast amount of digital content and provide students with an efficient learning tool.
A SCORM Compliant Courseware Authoring Tool for Supporting Pervasive Learning
Authors: Wang Te-Hua , Chia-I Chang Flora
Published: May 2011

The sharable content object reference model (SCORM) includes a representation of distance learning contents and a behavior definition of how users should interact with the contents. Generally, SCORMcompliant systems were based on multimedia and Web technologies on PCs. We further build a pervasive learning environment, which allows users to read SCORM-compliant textbooks with multimodal learning devices. Respecting the learning contents for supporting such learning environment, an efficient authoring tool was developed for serving this goal. Some specific tags were defined to specify the corresponding information or interactions that cannot be performed in the hardcopy books. These tags can be printed in SCORM-compliant textbooks and recognized by Hyper Pen to facilitate the affinity between the physical textbooks and digital world. Therefore, users can read the SCORM-compliant hardcopy textbooks in a traditional manner. The authored course contents will be the same while applying to the multimodal learning devices with different layouts.
Adaptive Synchronization of Semantically Compressed Instructional Videos for Collaborative Distance Learning
Authors: Phung Dan , Valetto Giuseppe , Kaiser Gail E. , Liu Tiecheng , Kender John R.
Published: May 2011

The increasing popularity of online courses has highlighted the need for collaborative learning tools for student groups. In this article, we present an e-Learning architecture and adaptation model called AI2TV (Adaptive Interactive Internet Team Video), which allows groups of students to collaboratively view instructional videos in synchrony. Video player actions, like play, pause and stop, can be initiated by any group member and and the results of those actions are synchronized with all the other students. These features allow students to review a lecture video in tandem, facilitating the learning process. AI2TV upholds the invariant that each student will receive semantically equivalent content at all times.
Adoption of Information Technology Governance in the Electronics Manufacturing Sector in Malaysia
Authors: Teo Wil Ly , Tan Khong Sin
Published: May 2011

Past studies and surveys of top management in business and information technology (IT) have shown the importance of strong IT governance in delivering results to the business. This research investigates the extent to which empirical results from past studies is applicable to the electronics manufacturing sector in Malaysia. Empirical evidence from 33 organisations in this sector indicates that having the right decision owners making appropriate decision types lead to better IT governance performance. Organisations with growth as their primary goal demonstrate marginally higher IT governance performance, contrary to expected outcomes. The research also shows that awareness of industry IT governance frameworks is not related to IT governance performance. We conclude that adoption of IT governance is on track, though familiarity with technicalities of the available frameworks should be improved.
Conceptual Framework for the Intersection of Software and Art
Authors: Ahmed Salah Uddin , Jaccheri Letizia , Sindre Guttorm , Trifonova Anna
Published: May 2011

The interaction between art and technology, especially computing technology, is an increasing trend in the recent years. The context of this intersection is growing in numbers, size and aspects, each year. The number of artists participating in multimedia software or game development projects is continuously increasing and so is the number of software engineers participating in art projects like interactive art installations. As this intersection of art and technology grows, it involves people from different disciplines with varying interests creating a milieu of interdisciplinary collaborations. In this context at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, we explore the intersection of software and art to understand different entities that are involved in the intersection. This is done by literature review and inspired by our previous experiences from participation in art projects. The objective is to conceptualize the framework of the intersection between software and art and develop a knowledge base at this interdisciplinary domain.
The Design of Engineering
Authors: Pruitt Joseph William
Published: May 2011

The purpose of this chapter is to define the roles of engineering and design within the product development cycle looking at both the scientific and artistic methods used by the creators of new ideas. With the vastly different philosophies of product development between the engineer and the designer, the production manager is often faced with an ubiquitous tension that is frequently misdirected and mismanaged. The disparate design philosophies tend to force companies to pick either “science” or “art” in their development cycles which in turn creates either products that have no connection with human beings or products that cannot conceivably be produced on this planet. This chapter addresses these concerns and suggests methods in managing the creative insanity of successful product design.
Broken Cinema
Authors: DiLuzio Raphael
Published: May 2011

This is a guide for working with a visual art form using a digital time-based medium. This chapter will provide an overview of the necessary theories; processes, concepts and most important the “elements,” needed to create expressive visual artworks through the technologies associated with this visual art form. It will examine in some detail how people can effectively visually communicate and express our artistic ideas and intentions through a digitally time-based medium. We have reached a point in time-based visual art where the tools and technology have matured enough to allow us to focus our attention more on process and concept rather than specific hardware or software tools. Please understand that more than a theorist, the author is a practitioner of the art form that he will discuss in the following pages. As such, at times, the author will be using his own empirical experience to support arguments in combination with or in place of the opinions of others. The ideas this chapter would like to address are rather complex and there is not enough space in a single chapter to put them forth in their entirety. Therefore, by necessity the atuhor will have to be brief, somewhat simplified, and a bit reductive. Nonetheless, he hopes it provides a basic understanding of the concepts and principles for creating visual art with a digital time-based medium.
Theatre in Second Life® Holds the VR Mirror up to Nature
Authors: Schrum Stephen A.
Published: May 2011

As creative people inhabit virtual worlds, they bring their ideas for art and performance with them into these brave new worlds. While at first glance, virtual performance may have the outward trappings of theatre, some believe they don’t adhere to the basic traditional definition of theatre: the interaction between an actor and an audience. Detractors suggest that physical presence is required for such an interaction to take place. However, studies have shown that computer mediated communication (CMC) can be as real as face-to-face communication, where emotional response is concerned. Armed with this information, the author can examine how performance in a virtual world such as Second Life may indeed be like “real” theatre, what the possibilities for future virtual performance are, and may require that we redefine theatre for online performance venues.
DRGs and the Professional Independence of Physicians
Authors: Frisina Lorraine , Cacace Mirella
Published: May 2011

This chapter examines the effects of diagnosis related groups (DRGs) on the professional independence of physicians in three distinct types of healthcare systems: the U.S. private insurance system, where DRGs were first developed and subsequently implemented in the public Medicare program in 1983; the British National Health Service (NHS), which adopted an analogous version of DRGs referred to as Health Resource Groups (HRGs) in 1992; and the German social insurance system, which adopted its own DRG version (G-DRGs) based on a refined version of the Australian model that is to be fully phased into the hospital system by 2009. By examining these three cases, the present contribution asks (a) whether it is possible to identify any effects of DRGs on the professional independence of physicians; and (b) whether these effects are specific to the respective healthcare system and/or DRG version at hand.
Evidence on the Efficacy of Integrated Care
Authors: Larsen Torben
Published: May 2011

The fragmented delivery of healthcare and social services was put on the agenda as a major problem by WHO in 2002. Early home-supported discharge (EHSD) of stroke patients combining efficacy with net savings represents a prototype of integrated care (IC) or overlapping services for better clinical continuity. Other frequent chronic conditions as heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and mental disease exhibit parallel results from home health interventions. A SWOT analysis of IC emphasizes: Strengths are 1) economic dominance, 2) benefits to a majority of the population, and 3) psychological motivators for the patient (Hawthorne effect). Weaknesses are 1) moderate improvements on a day-to-day basis, 2) some lack of RCT, and 3) lack of trust across settings. Opportunities are 1) job enrichment to health professionals, 2) low-tech improvements affordable to low and middle income countries, and 3) organisational quality. Threats are 1) fragmented financial conditions, 2) defensive specialists, and 3) mediocre implementations. A meso-strategy of implementation is recommended to EU (FP7): 1) Make a synthesis of existing and ongoing research as a health technology assessment (HTA) of IC in EU for improved interdisciplinary cooperation across the hospital and primary care interface for selected CC. 2) The organisational dimension should focus on the formation of country specific multidisciplinary networks on IC.
A Care Informatics Approach to Telehomecare Applications
Authors: Glascock Anthony , Kutzik David
Published: May 2011

The authors argue in this chapter that telehomecare is comprised of three separate components: 1) the technology that collects and transfers the data; 2) the informatics that transforms the data into information and then stores and displays it; and 3) the care component that actually delivers the care. Furthermore, the authors maintain that, for telehomecare to be successful, emphasis must shift from developing new technologies to determining the best means of integrating information into sustainable care models. The authors conclude that the future success of telehomecare is largely based on making the care needs of individuals the starting point, rather than an afterthought, and viewing the technology and informatics as tools not solutions.
Physicians and the Utilization of Information Technology
Authors: Holsinger James W.
Published: May 2011

This chapter introduces the issues faced by physicians in interacting with information technology (IT). It argues that the needs of physicians must be taken into consideration in order for successful implementation of information technology systems to occur. Physician professionalism and the development of their IT competence must be understood as well as understanding the need for physicians to acquire IT skills. The personality of physicians and the issues of their dissatisfaction with their profession are key elements for understanding physician engagement with IT. The Dreyfus model of skills acquisition may play a useful role in developing physicians’ IT skills. The author hopes that understanding the need for physician involvement in the development of information technology solutions in healthcare, as well as their level of IT skills, will assist healthcare organizations in the successful implementation of information technology both in heathcare institutions and physician practice settings.
Health-Related Quality of Life Measures in the Information Age
Authors: Warrian Kevin , Spaeth George
Published: May 2011

This chapter provides an introduction to a variety of essential issues concerning quality of life (QoL) as a social-scientific construct. The chapter begins with an introduction to the notion of QoL as an essentially contested concept and provides a taxonomy for classifying various instruments. The various methods of operationalizing the measurement of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) are outlined and a variety of practical examples are provided. A range of methods of determining the validity, reliability, and responsiveness of QoL measures are discussed to provide the reader with the tools necessary to critically evaluate the broad range of QoL instruments available. Finally, the scope of employment of QoL instruments is explored and several important limitations of this mode of assessment are discussed.