bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Les « désadaptés » : genèse d'un mythe non darwinien
Authors: Kohler Florent
Published: February 2012

Résumé Postuler qu’a existé un processus d’hominisation signifie qu’à un moment donné est survenue une rupture. Parler de « rupture » implique, de manière tout à fait cohérente, qu’il y ait discontinuité. Or, s’il y a discontinuité, il est légitime de parler « d’hominisation ». La logique imparable de ce raisonnement repose sur sa circularité. Plutôt que de nous interroger sur la rupture effective, mieux vaut s’interroger sur les fondements cosmologiques de cette assertion, le réseau de stéréotypes dans lequel elle se trouve insérée. Pour ce faire, cet article analyse des discours scientifiques tenus en marge d’une spécialité (neurobiologie, ethnologie, linguistique), discours interstitiels qui ont le mérite de laisser apparaître la trame sous-jacente des représentations ancrées au sujet de l’origine de l’humanité. Nous pensons en effet que la trame narrative sur laquelle repose le scénario de « l’hominisation » s’affranchit de la perspective de l’évolution darwinienne pour s’inscrire de plain-pied dans le registre mythique. En ce sens, elle participerait de la construction d’une identité spécifique opposant l’homme à son contraire, c’est-à-dire l’animal.
Alexandre Lamfalussy et les tentatives de la BRI pour éviter un endettement excessif en Amérique latine dans les années 1970
Authors: Maes Ivo
Published: February 2012

La crise de la dette en Amérique latine, qui éclate en août 1982, est la première crise financière mondiale de l’après-guerre. La BRI joue un rôle important dans la gestion de celle-ci. Le présent article étudie les efforts consentis par cette institution durant la seconde moitié des années 1970 pour limiter l’accumulation de la dette. Il montre qu’Alexandre Lamfalussy joue un rôle crucial à cet égard. En outre, les discussions sur la hausse des niveaux d’endettement déterminent la façon dont la BRI aborde la stabilité financière, centrée sur les aspects macroprudentiels. Dans le présent article, nous analyserons d’abord les origines de la sensibilité de Lamfalussy à la fragilité financière, pour traiter ensuite de la BRI et de son rôle, qui évolue au cours des années 1970. Nous nous pencherons alors sur la crise de la dette en Amérique latine, en étudiant comment s’accumule la dette, et aborderons enfin différentes initiatives destinées à limiter les prêts.
Le Comité des gouverneurs des banques centrales de la CEE et l'unification monétaire européenne
Authors: Scheller Hanspeter K.
Published: February 2012

Cet article jette un nouveau regard sur le rôle que le Comité des gouverneurs des banques centrales des États membres de la Communauté économique européenne a joué dans le processus d’unification monétaire européenne. Créé en 1964 par une décision du Conseil ECOFIN comme un comité dont la mission limitée était de débattre et d’échanger des points de vue sur les questions pertinentes en matière de politique monétaire, il est progressivement devenu un forum pour la coopération des banques centrales européennes sans équivalent dans les autres domaines de la gouvernance économique dans la Communauté à l’époque. Vu les limites inhérentes de la coopération monétaire entre les banques centrales nationales, ces dispositions n’ont pas toujours permis de résister à l’impact négatif de facteurs sur lesquels les banques centrales n’avaient pour l’essentiel pas prise. Mais elles ont contribué à l’obtention progressive d’une stabilité monétaire intérieure et extérieure, en particulier au cours des années 1980, stabilité considérée ensuite comme suffisante pour reprendre la route vers la réalisation finale de l’UEM. Les résultats de la coopération en matière de politique monétaire et de change, et l’expérience qu’elle a permis d’accumuler, ont également servi dans le processus d’unification monétaire européenne. Sur plus de 30 ans de fonctionnement, le Comité des gouverneurs a favorisé les contacts étroits entre les banques centrales de la Communauté, ce qui leur a permis de développer des valeurs et des principes de base communs concernant le rôle et la poursuite de la politique monétaire dans une économie de marché. Ces valeurs et principes sont traduits dans le projet d’UEM élaboré par le comité Delors ainsi que dans les statuts du Système européen de banques centrales (SEBC) et de la Banque centrale européenne (BCE) qui ont été adoptés par la conférence intergouvernementale de 1990-1992 pratiquement sans modification importante et ont été joints sous la forme d’un protocole au « traité de Maastricht ». Le point de vue commun des gouverneurs des banques centrales, selon lequel l’UEM devait être construite sur un système bancaire central européen indépendant dont la mission univoque serait de garantir la stabilité des prix, a permis de résoudre une question délicate qui était jusqu’alors controversée au niveau politique depuis plusieurs années. Après plus de 10 ans d’expérience avec l’UEM, on peut dire que la conception du Comité de l’aile monétaire de l’UEM a passé son test pratique. Grâce à la solidité du cadre juridique et institutionnel créé par le traité de Maastricht pour la conduite de la politique monétaire européenne unique au sein de la zone euro, la BCE a pu réaliser complètement les objectifs de son mandat définis par le traité.
Pain in Dementia: Recognition and Treatment
Authors: Lu Der Fa , Herr Keela
Published: February 2012

The presentation and management of pain in older adults with dementia are highly complicated. This article addresses assessment challenges and nonpharmacological and pharmacological management strategies related to pain in those with dementia. Vigilant monitoring of comfort level and the effective use of multidimensional pain management strategies could substantially increase quality of life for older adults with dementia.
Anterolateral Approach for Tibial Pilon Fractures
Authors: Hak David J.
Published: February 2012

The anterolateral approach to the tibia has been popularized for management of tibial pilon fractures. This approach offers the benefit of improved soft tissue coverage and the potential for a lower rate of wound-healing complications by avoiding incision placement over the subcutaneous border of the tibia. Although the fracture pattern dictates specific plate use, antomically designed anterolateral plates are useful for fixation of common fracture patterns. Additional exposures may be required to address other areas of the fracture, such as the medial malleolus, which cannot be accessed through this approach.
Strategies for the Management of Rheumatoid Arthritis
Authors: Wilkie W.S. , Schwieterman Philip
Published: February 2012

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, systemic inflammatory autoimmune disease that, untreated, can lead to permanent joint damage, decrease in quality of life, and disability. Health care professionals play a vital role in caring for patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The therapeutic possibilities in the management of rheumatoid arthritis have changed, with newer biologic therapies that target the inflammatory cascade seen in rheumatoid arthritis. As new treatments become increasingly available, it is important for health care professionals to stay informed. This article provides physicians with a review of biologic therapies currently used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and describe how those therapies are used to manage rheumatoid arthritis.
Intraoperative Cyclorotation and Pupil Centroid Shift During LASIK and PRK
Authors: Narváez Julio , Brucks Matthew , Zimmerman Grenith , Bekendam Peter , Bacon Gregory , Schmid Kristin
Published: February 2012

PURPOSE:

To determine the degree of cyclorotation and centroid shift in the x and y axis that occurs intraoperatively during LASIK and photorefractive keratectomy (PRK).

METHODS:

Intraoperative cyclorotation and centroid shift were measured in 63 eyes from 34 patients with a mean age of 34 years (range: 20 to 56 years) undergoing either LASIK or PRK. Preoperatively, an iris image of each eye was obtained with the VISX WaveScan Wavefront System (Abbott Medical Optics Inc) with iris registration. A VISX Star S4 (Abbott Medical Optics Inc) laser was later used to measure cyclotorsion and pupil centroid shift at the beginning of the refractive procedure and after flap creation or epithelial removal.

RESULTS:

The mean change in intraoperative cyclorotation was 1.48±1.11° in LASIK eyes and 2.02±2.63° in PRK eyes. Cyclorotation direction changed by >2° in 21% of eyes after flap creation in LASIK and in 32% of eyes after epithelial removal in PRK. The respective mean intraoperative shift in the x axis and y axis was 0.13±0.15 mm and 0.17±0.14 mm, respectively, in LASIK eyes, and 0.09±0.07 mm and 0.10±0.13 mm, respectively, in PRK eyes. Intraoperative centroid shifts >100 μm in either the x axis or y axis occurred in 71% of LASIK eyes and 55% of PRK eyes.

CONCLUSIONS:

Significant changes in cyclotorsion and centroid shifts were noted prior to surgery as well as intraoperatively with both LASIK and PRK. It may be advantageous to engage iris registration immediately prior to ablation to provide a reference point representative of eye position at the initiation of laser delivery.
Change in Epithelial Thickness Profile 24 Hours and Longitudinally for 1 Year After Myopic LASIK: Three-dimensional Display With Artemis Very High-frequency Digital Ultrasound
Authors: Reinstein Dan Z. , Archer Timothy J. , Gobbe Marine
Published: February 2012

PURPOSE:

To longitudinally follow epithelial thickness profile changes after myopic LASIK for 1 year to determine when and how epithelial changes occur and when epithelial stability is reached.

METHODS:

Epithelial thickness was measured with Artemis very high-frequency digital ultrasound (ArcScan Inc) across the central 10-mm corneal diameter in 11 eyes before and 1 day, and 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after myopic femtosecond LASIK. For each consecutive pair of time points, maps of the mean change in epithelial thickness and paired
t
test
P
value were plotted.

RESULTS:

Mean preoperative spherical equivalent refraction was −3.34±1.51 diopters (D) (range: −1.50 to −5.13 D). Overnight, there was a central 5-mm zone of epithelial thickening (0.5 to 1.5 μm,
P
<.05) surrounded by epithelial thinning (4 to 6 μm,
P
<.05) extending to the 8-mm zone. Between 1 day and 1 month, the epithelium thickened within the 7-mm zone by up to 5 μm (
P
<.05) in a lenticular pattern with greater thickening centrally and progressively less thickening centrifugally. Between 1 and 3 months, the epithelium continued to thicken in the central 7-mm zone by approximately 1 μm (
P
<.05). No change in epithelial thickness occurred after 3 months (
P
>.05).

CONCLUSIONS:

A lenticular change occurred in the epithelial thickness profile, with more thickening centrally than paracentrally; 22% of the total increase in central thickness occurred overnight, 58% between 1 day and 1 month, and 20% between 1 and 3 months, with stability between 3 and 12 months. The lenticular epithelial changes contribute to the observed myopic shift after myopic LASIK during the first 3 months.
Investigating eResearch
Authors: Markauskaite Lina , Kennan Mary Anne , Richardson Jim , Aditomo Anindito , Hellmers Leonie
Published: February 2012

Why and how do researchers collaborate, share knowledge resources, data, and expertise? What kinds of infrastructures and services do they use, and what do they need for the future enhancement of collaborative research practices? The chapter focuses on existing and potential eResearch from a “user” perspective. Drawing on a study of ICT-enhanced research practices and needs conducted at seven Australian universities, it discusses how researchers engage with distributed research and use ICT for collaboration. Findings show significant current engagement of the majority of researchers in collaborative research, their acknowledgement of the potential of eResearch, and researchers’ general willingness to engage in collaborative eResearch. While there are some essential differences in the collaboration practices of research students and academics and between practices and challenges in different disciplinary domains, researchers who are more involved in collaborative research also adopt eResearch more extensively, more often use ICT-enhanced collaboration tools, share more of their data, and more often disseminate their findings via digital media.
Data Sharing in CSCR
Authors: Reffay Christophe , Dyke Gregory , Betbeder Marie-Laure
Published: February 2012

In this chapter, the authors show the importance of data in the research process and the potential benefit for communities to share research data. Although most of their references are taken from the fields of Computer Supported Collaborative Learning and Intelligent Tutoring Systems, they claim that their argument applies to any other field studying complex situations that need to be analyzed by different disciplines, methods, and instruments. The authors point out the evolution of scientific publication, especially its openness and the variety of its emerging forms. This leads them to propose corpora as boundary objects for various communities in the scientific sphere. Data release being itself a complex problem, the authors use the Mulce1 experience to show how sharable data can be built and made available. Once corpora are considered available, they discuss the potential of their reuse for multiple analyses or derivation. They focus on analytic representations and their combination with initial data or complementary analytic representations by presenting a tool named Tatiana. Finally, the authors propose their vision of data sharing in a world where scientists would use social network applications.
CAWriter
Authors: Byrne Jake Rowan , Tangney Brendan
Published: February 2012

This chapter discusses a range of topics, including pedagogical concerns, writing practices, existing tools, and human computer interaction approaches, all related to the design of a tool to support PhD candidates with their academic writing. These topics are then used to inform the design of a computer supported collaborative writing tool, CAWriter, which is being developed as part of an ongoing participatory design research project concerned with the creation of a toolkit to support doctoral candidates. This chapter reviews existing tools to support the writing process and explores both the relevant pedagogical and human-computer interaction foundations necessary for the design of such tools. The chapter concludes with a look at a number of initial iterations of the CAWriter tool and the design rationale and approaches used.
Collaborative and Distributed Innovation and Research in Business Activity
Authors: Allan Rob , Crouchley Rob , Robertson Ali
Published: February 2012

This chapter describes how Value Networks (VNs) can be applied in multi-stakeholder business and research environments to characterise different approaches to collaboration. In an attempt to highlight some of the issues, the authors compare a couple of communities that adopt different approaches to Knowledge Exchange (KE) and resource discovery. A collaboration framework is used by one of the communities for on-line discussion, chat, and Web conferencing to supplement KE between fairly regular in-person meetings. The other community applies more traditional collaboration tools such as e-mail to supplement face-to-face meetings. One of the research objectives was to establish the extent of multi-dimensional KE, i.e. from academic to business sector, business sector to business sector, and government to business sector. Conditional on successful e-facilitation, a quickening in KE was apparent in the community that used the collaboration framework. This was observed to a lesser or greater extent across all stakeholder groups. E-facilitators are those that engage stakeholders into making on-line submissions. The authors discuss the importance of satisfactory levels of support for collaboration frameworks in community projects. They compare the role of the e-facilitator with a more traditional “business broker” and compare the behaviour of the communities with and without particular collaboration tools. The authors conclude that VNs helped provide a useful characterisation of the roles that the various contributing community elements play and the types of interaction between them.
Enhancement of e-Learning Systems and Methodologies through Advancements in Distributed Computing Technologies
Authors: Caviglione Luca , Coccoli Mauro
Published: February 2012

The evolution of the Internet, distributed architectures, and Grid-oriented frameworks can change the way people acquire and disseminate both knowledge and experience, thus the way they learn. Therefore, one can envisage new e-learning models, based on a more efficient users’ interaction, that also empowers the hands-on experience. This will improve learning outcomes, while reducing the need of physical devices and removing the inherent boundaries. Moreover, this reduces costs by promoting the sharing of resources and learning assets. From this perspective, the chapter discusses the integration of classical e-learning paradigms with new advancements of distributed computing, such as: 1) the usage of Peer-to-Peer (P2P) to produce network-independent overlays, also by enabling direct student-to-student exchanges; 2) the integration, through grid-based middleware, of real or virtual devices, plants and Sensors Network (SN) within the e-learning environment; and 3) the adoption of a distributed e-learning system to spread culture through mobile devices, with an emphasis on satellite communications.
An Approach to Faulty Reader Detection in RFID Reader Network
Authors: Mahdin Hairulnizam , Abawajy Jemal H.
Published: February 2012

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology is becoming increasingly popular as an automated tool for object monitoring and identification in a cost-efficient manner. RFID systems are made up of heterogeneous components consisting of both hardware and software. RFID components such as the readers are prone to failures with serious consequences to the overall system. Thus, issues such as reliability and dependability of RFID systems are receiving attention recently. This mandates fault management that includes monitoring the health of RFID readers and accessing the RFID reader configurations remotely. Therefore, an approach that detects the faulty readers with the aim to minimize the impacts of the faulty readers on the system reliability and dependability is of paramount importance. In this chapter, the authors discuss an approach to detect faulty readers in networked RFID system environments. Performance evaluation of the approach against other techniques is presented and shows that it performs reasonably well in the presence of faulty readers.
A Security Framework for Networked RFID
Authors: Fernando Harinda Sahadeva , Abawajy Jemal H.
Published: February 2012

In the last decade RFID technology has become a major contender for managing large scale logistics operations and generating and distributing the massive amount of data involved in such operations. One of the main obstacles to the widespread deployment and adoption of RFID systems is the security issues inherent in them. This is compounded by a noticeable lack of literature on how to identify the vulnerabilities of a RFID system and then effectively identify and develop counter measures to combat the threats posed by those vulnerabilities. In this chapter, the authors develop a conceptual framework for analysing the threats, attacks, and security requirements pertaining to networked RFID systems. The vulnerabilities of, and the threats to, the system are identified using the threat model. The security framework itself consists of two main concepts: (1) the attack model, which identifies and classifies the possible attacks, and (2) the system model, which identifies the security requirements. The framework gives readers a method with which to analyse the threats any given system faces. Those threats can then be used to identify the attacks possible on that system and get a better understanding of those attacks. It also allows the reader to easily identify all the security requirements of that system and identify how those requirements can be met.
A Review of Privacy, Internet Security Threat, and Legislation in Africa
Authors: Ezumah Bellarmine , Adekunle Suraj Olunifesi
Published: February 2012

This chapter serves as a collection of works that were done in the area of cybersecurity in Africa—with a focus on four countries representing the cardinal points in Africa: Kenya, Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa. It presents detailed information on the legislative framework proposed and implemented by these countries to combat and control cybercrimes. Notable among them are the Egypt’s e-Signature Law 15, Kenya’s e-Transaction Bill, Nigeria’s Computer Security and Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Bill, and South Africa’s Electronic Communications and Transaction Act. Equally, these legislative measures were commended, criticized, and factors that militate their implementation are discussed. The ultimate realization is that cybercrime can never be abolished; rather, every effort aims at combating and controlling it in some way. Finally, the chapter posits areas that the African nations can improve in their quest for making cyberspace safer.
A Walk through Sensor Network Programming Models
Authors: Pathan Mukaddim , Palmer Doug , Salehi Ali
Published: February 2012

The widespread use of sensor networks in a range of applications has given rise to various programming approaches. It is a long standing concept that the application programmer of a sensor network should be shielded, as much as possible, from the questions of communications and systems architecture, that is, the low level details. In this chapter, the authors survey existing programming models for sensor networks and classify them by following a layered approach, based on their level of abstractions. With their approach they endeavor to lay out a clear guideline to choose the right approach for programming sensor networks for application development, thus potentially alleviating the heavy burden for programmers.
Wireless Sensor Network Security Attacks
Authors: Mirante Dennis P. , Ammari Habib M.
Published: February 2012

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are a rapidly growing area for research and commercial development. Originally used in military applications, their commercialization offers potential low cost solutions for real-world monitoring and process control. Since they may be deployed in hostile, unattended, environments and may collect sensitive data, they may be prone to attack by entities that wish to interfere with their operation and/or usurp or alter the information they collect. While their low cost enhances their desirability as a monitoring solution, it also presents inherent resource and computing constraints. These constraints are major obstacles for the implementation of traditional security paradigms. Consequently, one of the most active areas of research in Wireless Sensor Networks is security. This chapter takes a representative survey of the types of security attacks WSNs may be subjected to. Additionally, steps that may be taken to mitigate these attacks are also discussed. Intrusion Detection Systems, a paradigm for monitoring network activities for malicious behavior, are introduced, and specific examples of them are discussed.
Clustering in Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Haque Enamul , Yoshida Norihiko
Published: February 2012

Applications of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) have been expanded from industrial operation to daily common use. With the pace of development, a good number of state-of-the-art routing protocols have been proposed for WSN. Among many of these protocols, hierarchical or cluster-based protocol technique is adopted from the wired network because of its scalability, better manageability, and implicit energy efficiency. In this chapter, the authors have surveyed Low Energy Adaptive Clustering Hierarchy, Power-Efficient Gathering in Sensor Information Systems, Adaptive Periodic Threshold-Sensitive Energy Efficient Sensor Network, and Hybrid Energy-Efficient Distributed Routing Protocols. These protocols exhibit notable characteristics and advantages compared to their contemporaries. Again, context aware computing and applications have been greatly emphasized in recent articles by renowned technologists. This approach is considered as a momentous technology that will change the way of interaction with information devices. Accordingly, context aware clustering technique carries a great deal of importance among WSN routing protocols. Therefore, the authors have investigated noteworthy context aware routing protocols such as: Context Adaptive Clustering, Data-Aware Clustering Hierarchy, Context-Aware Clustering Hierarchy, and Context-Aware Multilayer Hierarchical Protocol. Their investigation and analysis of these protocols has been included in this chapter with useful remarks. Context awareness is considered an integral part of Body Sensor Networks (BSN), which is one kind of WSN. Thus, the authors have also discussed issues related to context aware techniques used in BSN.
Energy-Efficient MAC Protocols in Distributed Sensor Networks
Authors: Hu Yupeng , Li Rui
Published: February 2012

As an enabling network technology, energy efficient Medium Access Control (MAC) protocol plays a vital role in a battery-powered distributed sensor network. MAC protocols control how sensor nodes access a shared radio channel to communicate with each other. This chapter discusses the key elements of MAC design with an emphasis on energy efficiency. Furthermore, it reviews several typical MAC protocols proposed in the literature, comparing their energy conservation mechanism. Particularly, it presents a Collaborative Compression Based MAC (CCP-MAC) protocol, which takes advantage of the overheard data to achieve energy savings. Finally, it compares the performance of CCP-MAC with related MAC protocols, illustrating their advantages and disadvantages.
A Symbiotic Model for Information Systems Success Determination
Authors: Jamieson Kieren
Published: February 2012

Traditional approaches to identifying and measuring Information Systems success or failure typically suffer from two deficiencies. First, the measures are taken at a single point in time, usually shortly after the system adoption with a focus on the implementation “success.” Second, the focus is purely on the organisational net gain or loss. The organisation is treated as a single entity, and the Information System itself is relegated to a subservient cog. The power relationship between the organisation and the Information System is left unexplored: in other words, which entity controls the other? This chapter proposes and demonstrates an alternate categorisation model that addresses both deficiencies. The model is applied to a longitudinal study of an implementation of an enterprise system in order to both categorise and explain the outcomes for the host organisation.
Information Systems for Organizational Effectiveness Model
Authors: Marthandan Govindan , Tang Chun Meng
Published: February 2012

Despite the proposal of various Information Systems (IS) evaluation models and approaches, IS evaluation has never been straightforward. There are issues and challenges in proving the business value of IS. Adding to the difficulty, a vast number of measures have been employed conveniently for evaluation purposes without going through a rigorous validation process. Recognising the complexity for IS researchers, IS specialists, and business managers to agree on a common model for the evaluation of IS business value, this chapter presents an empirically validated IS evaluation model, the IS for organisational effectiveness (ISOE) model, for planning, designing, implementing, and appraising IS. There also emerges a new theory, the Information System business value (ISBV) theory, from the ISOE model to establish that IS business value is multifaceted and are observable in the form of improvements in organisational effectiveness.
Information Systems Success
Authors: Martinez Hugo , Becerra Luis , Camacho Jaime
Published: February 2012

This chapter characterizes the publication activity of Information Systems success by data collected from the Science Citation Index and Social Science Citation Index databases from ISI Web of Science during 2001 to 2010. It provides insights into the research activities of Information Systems success research and identifies patterns, tendencies, or regularities existing in the literature related to authors, journals, institutes, and countries. A co-ocurrence analysis of keywords is made to indicate the core themes research areas in the literature and new emerging topics. It is found that the IS success literature has a positive growth rate, and it is likely to continue with this tendency in the future. However, the analysis shows the need to set up a common language framework that serves as a guide to researchers to develop a most mature body of knowledge.
Measuring IT Service Management Performance
Authors: Gacenga Francis , Cater-Steel Aileen , Toleman Mark , Tan Wui-Gee
Published: February 2012

Prompted by the realisation that IT is now seen as a service, with a customer focus and process orientation, the authors propose a model to measure IT service management (ITSM) performance. Measuring ITSM performance will enable organisations to demonstrate the benefit from their investment. The model is based on a systematic literature review that progressed from considering the general areas of organisation performance measurement to examining commonly used performance metrics. Although there are a number of studies on ITSM implementation, only a few considered the performance measurement of ITSM. A structured method for the design of the model was adopted through a three-level analysis. A comparison of existing performance measurement frameworks was first made to identify those that are suitable for ITSM and that would facilitate communication between the business and IT function. This was done using appropriate dimensions from past work of various performance measurement researchers. The frameworks were then classified along these dimensions to identify their completeness, eliminate unnecessary dimensions, and identify the natural dimensions for ITSM.
A Steady-State Framework for Integrated Business Change and Information Systems Development and Maintenance
Authors: McGinnes Simon
Published: February 2012

Success models often treat Information Systems (IS) as static. Yet most IS evolve continuously, and most development effort occurs during the so-called maintenance phase. For an IS to succeed, its evolutionary process must also remain successful. Unfortunately many IS projects fail, particularly when outsourced. This chapter argues that the practice of managing IS work in project form may itself be implicated in IS failure. The project model is critically examined, identifying mismatches with the reality of IS work as a component of business change. The results suggest that merely trying harder to make projects succeed may be ineffective. An alternative framework for “steady state” development is proposed, which characterises IS work as evolutionary and inseparable from its context of business change, providing a blueprint for IS development without the need for projects, and offering improved chances of success when “big bang” project management would otherwise be the only option.
Enterprise Resource Planning Acceptance Model (ERPAM)
Authors: Sternad Simona , Bobek Samo
Published: February 2012

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems have been implemented in most organizations for few years. But most of the organizations cannot really expose promised benefits of ERP systems. One of the reasons might be ERP users who do not accepted and use ERP system properly. In IT/IS literature organizational users have been exposed as important factor, which has influence on IT/IS acceptance and usage. Technology acceptance model (TAM) proposed by Davis (1989) has been most widely used model for researching user acceptance and usage of IT/IS. While this research is not the first attempt to apply TAM to ERP context, the authors of this chapter aim to make more contributions to the topic. First, they focus on the ERP system use in routine (mature) stage, and because of that, they use construct extended use instead of actual use. In the latest research of ERP system usage, the relationship between work compatibility and usefulness has been examined. New relationships between work compatibility and attitude toward using ERP system have been added. In all TAM studies regarding ERP context, a small number of external factors have been researched. The groups of external factors that have influence on ERP extended usage have been researched. The proposed model has been empirically tested using data collected from a survey of 293 ERP users in 44 organizations across country.
Specific Factors for ERP-Success Measurement in Healthcare
Authors: Kronbichler Stephan , Ostermann Herwig
Published: February 2012

There are different success factors that influence the outcome of ERP-projects. According to Bullen and Rockart (1981), these success factors depend on five main influencing variables. One of these variables is industry. This shows that each industry has certain requirements on success measurement other industries, in general, do not. In healthcare for example the legal constraints are different from other branches. Each success measurement model has a specific aim and covers specific needs. It measures different success dimensions and can be used at different stages of ERP-projects. Some of the models consider different phases within ERP-projects others can be used to determine overall ERP-success after the implementation of an IS. One important factor for the use of such models is if the models covers branch specific needs in a way that allows the researchers to allocate meaningful results and recommendations for actions. This chapter investigates the specific needs on ERP-success measurement of the healthcare industry and the fit of the existing success measurement models for this use case.
Issues Facing Website Evaluation
Authors: Ghandour Ahmad , Deans Kenneth R. , Benwell George L.
Published: February 2012

As business organisations have become more reliant on Information Technology in achieving success, Information Systems have become essential. Business organisations now use websites as part of their Information Systems as a medium for communication and transactions between the business and their customers. A better understanding of how to evaluate a website is necessary. This chapter explores website evaluation and recognises the current challenges facing website evaluation. It begins by identifying the type of website the current study is focussed on, namely the e-commerce website. This is followed by reviewing the literature on website evaluative approaches and anecdotally described issues with the existing performance measures. Three perspectives were identified when evaluating websites, user, designer, and owner perspectives. While the user and the designer perspectives are well advanced in the literature, there is a relative dearth of scholarly studies that address the owners’ needs. The provision of such a perspective may enhance an owner’s ability to increase returns and benefits from their online activity. Such gap need to be filled, a call from the authors.
Historical Evolution in Internet
Authors: Vidyarthi Deo P.
Published: February 2012

The spurt in the Information Technology in the recent past has been well complemented by the innovative research in communication technology. Tremendous growth in the Internet is the result of this. This chapter highlights how the Internet has evolved, over the years, since its inception. The major contributors of Internet Technology have also been pointed out in this chapter.
The User as a Service
Authors: Delgado José C.
Published: February 2012

The Web has changed a lot since its inception, 20 years ago, now offering dynamic information and services. The users have also evolved and are no longer mere information consumers, but rather active producers. This calls for a paradigm shift, with the user at the center of the information, service, and collaboration networks, taking the role of active services (able to respond to requests), in equal terms with current service providers. This leads to a unified user model, in which both individual and institutional entities are users and providers, although with different emphasis. To support this approach, the authors present a new Web access device, the browserver, which includes a browser and a server working in close cooperation, with the goal of replacing the classical browser but being backwards compatible with it to ease the migration path. The authors show how it can be implemented and its advantages in the case of typical applications.
The Physical Layer Aspects of Wireless Networks
Authors: Purohit Neetesh
Published: February 2012

The modern era belongs to wireless communication systems. The cellular networks, which were originally designed for voice services, have now been upgraded to accommodate Internet services. Wi-Fi and Wi-Max systems have been explicitly developed for delivering data services over wireless channels. Just like wired systems, wireless systems also follow the layered architecture for developing or accessing various Internet services; still, there exist significant differences between the technologies used at various layers for the similar purpose. Special design requirements of physical layer due to distinct properties of wireless channel have caused these differences. Low bandwidth supported by the channel, poor equipment capabilities, et cetera, features require special attention in developing various Internet services intended to be accessed by wireless devices. This chapter addresses various aspects of the physical layer of a wireless channel for developing a basic understanding of the problems, existing solutions, and proposals for future networks.
Quality of Service (QoS) in WiMAX
Authors: Basu Kashinath , Zeadally Sherali , Siddiqui Farhan
Published: February 2012

The WiMAX technology provides wireless QoS-enabled broadband access for fixed and mobile users at the metropolitan level. It is end-to-end IP based and provides a rich set of QoS support for multimedia-based ubiquitous computing. The main contribution of WiMAX in terms of technology has been over its radio interface, which is based on the IEEE 802.16-2004 and 802.16e protocols. It is a two layer protocol stack, which provides a very robust QoS framework. At the physical layer, it focuses on optimising the use of radio resources. In the MAC layer, the main focus is on efficient scheduling and allocation of bandwidth to meet the QoS requirements of IP sessions. This chapter investigates the WiMAX architecture, its components, and the QoS support provided by the IEEE 802.16 protocol stack. It also examines mobility management issues, end-to-end QoS, and current and future application areas of the technology.
IP Connected Low Power Wireless Personal Area Networks in the Future Internet
Authors: Jacobsen Rune Hylsberg , Toftegaard Thomas Skjødeberg , Kjærgaard Jens Kristian
Published: February 2012

The Internet of Things is a key concept of the Future Internet. The Internet of Things potentially interconnects billions of small devices in a large ubiquitous infrastructure based on the Internet Protocol (IP). Typically, these devices will be limited in computational capacity, memory, and available energy and will suffer a high data loss rate when integrated into a network infrastructure. This poses significant challenges in the network design. This chapter describes the assumptions, technologies, and challenges for transmitting IPv6 over low power wireless personal area networks (LoWPANs). The authors address the key mechanisms from network aspects down to device design aspects and discuss how technologies interplay to make real application deployment practical for the Internet of Things.
A Comparative Study of Evolutionary Algorithms for Maximizing Reliability of a Flow in Cellular IP Network
Authors: Anbar Mohammad , Vidyarthi Deo P.
Published: February 2012

The rapid development in technology, witnessed in daily communication, especially in wireless communication, is a good motivation for performance improvement in this field. Cellular IP access network is a suitable environment where a micro mobility of mobile users is implemented and managed. The reliability of Cellular IP network during the communication is an important characteristic measure and must be considered while designing a new model. Evolutionary Algorithms are powerful tools for optimization and problem solving, which require extracting the best solution from a big search space. This chapter explores the reliability issue in Cellular IP of a flow of packets passing through the route from a source to a destination. The main aim of the chapter is to maximize the reliability of the flow passing through a route having number of routers. Two Evolutionary Algorithms (EAs), Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), have been used for this purpose, and a comparative study between the two is performed. Experimental studies of the proposed work have also been performed.
Blending Augmented Reality with Real World Scenarios Using Mobile Devices
Authors: Dingli Alexiei , Seychell Dylan
Published: February 2012

In this work, the authors present methods that add value to the current Web by connecting administrators of a space such as a city with its visitors. The mobile device has nowadays become an important tool in the hands of visitors of cities and the authors present it as a gateway for the administrators to their visitors. The authors present a method that processes various environmental factors during a visit and uses these factors as a context for presenting the recommendations. In this work, the authors also propose a method that can measure queues in a city, and by knowing the overall picture of the situation, it provides individual recommendations of separate mobile devices accordingly. This chapter shows, therefore, the three main steps in the process of recommendation systems: collecting information, processing the recommendations, and presenting them in an attractive way. In this case the authors focus on presenting recommendations through augmented reality in order to provide an attractive tool for end users, which would, at the end of the day, connect them further to the city over the Internet.
Pervasive Internet via Wireless Infrastructure-Based Mesh Networks
Authors: Das Nabanita
Published: February 2012

With the arrival of Wi-Fi, WiMax, Zigbee, and other wireless network standards, the penetration of Internet in daily life has surged significantly. While the usage of Internet access in urban areas is steadily increasing in recent years, rural people are still suffering from the effect of the digital divide, mainly due to the poor coverage by Internet service providers in remote areas. This chapter aims to provide a cost-effective reliable broadband Internet access solution for rural people in the form of Wireless Mesh Network (WMN) whose coverage can be easily extended in a multi-hop fashion. Starting from a general description of the WMN architecture and protocol developments, this chapter focuses on the primary design issues and challenges for making Internet pervasive through WMN’s that demand innovations in protocols at different layers and perfect integration. The brief discussion on the research works and related experimental testbeds shows that WMN with its unique features seems to be a promising solution to provide next generation Internet access to areas that are too remote to receive it via cable or DSL, or where upgrading the landlines to broadband is highly cost-prohibitive. Finally, this chapter concludes introducing various open issues and research challenges still to be addressed and resolved in coming days to make this solution commercially viable.
Where Do I Begin?
Authors: King Kathleen P.
Published: February 2012

One of the greatest needs of faculty in adult and higher education today is to understand how to design distance learning courses which address the needs of their current and prospective students while upholding academic excellence and remaining feasible to develop (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, & Zvacek, 2009; Palloff & Pratt, 2004). This article provides an overview of the rapidly changing field of distance learning with a focus on trends and lessons for faculty course design and facilitation. Beginning with distance learning, the article illustrates not only the possibilities for teaching and learning through a variety of inexpensive, popular and easy technologies, but will also leads into how to plan, design and facilitate courses which incorporate them. The basis for this model is 13 years of distance learning research, design and teaching, as well as extensive continued literature reviews. The aim is to assist faculty in identifying how to envision, plan, design and facilitate online classes which will best address the many demands they have to satisfy.
Rethinking the Measurement of Training and Development in the Professions
Authors: Lynch Doug , Thomas Chris , Green Wendy , Gottfried Michael , Varga Matthew
Published: February 2012

The 21st century is often called the “age of talent.” Globalization has influenced both organizational processes and employee training, creating an increased need for educated, skilled, and adaptable employees. Training and development has become an integral part of most organizations’ efforts to develop and maintain competitive advantage, with an emphasis on creating learning organizations. These changes in the methods, modes and quantity of training have made it challenging to quantify the amount of training occurring across workplaces. This paper takes the view that in order to understand the impact of training on organizations, it is important to conceptualize where and through whom training activities occur. We can think of the training and development profession as consisting of a series of four tiers, with the T&D function occurring less centrally within each tier. Tier I members of the training and development profession occupy jobs in which training and development are paramount to their roles and occupy the vast majority, if not all, of their time. Tier II professionals may be the primary person within the organization responsible for training and development, but the training is often limited to a particular focal area. A whole host of supervisory occupations might be considered Tier III jobs because of the close relation supervisors often have with the employees they supervise. Tier IV training and development professionals may come from any occupational background, and this is where much of informal training occurs.
From Politicized Adult Education to Market Oriented Adult Higher Education
Authors: Wang Victor X. , Mott Vivian W.
Published: February 2012

This study investigated the general instructional modes of adult educators in Southeast China and Northeast China. The study utilized Conti’s (1983, 2004) Principles of Adult Learning Scale (PALS) to measure instructional modes of adult educators. Data were collected from 112 randomly selected participants engaged in teaching Chinese adult learners in Southeast China and Northeast China. The results of the study showed that adult educators in Southeast China were andragogical in their instruction while their counterparts in Northeast China were pedagogical although the difference (p>0.05) between the means of adult educators in Southeast China and Northeast China was not statistically significant.