bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Trilogy of Unfortunate Events in China
Authors: Long Zhang A. , Crandall William , Parnell John
Published: February 2011

In this paper, the authors address three recent organizational crises that have occurred in China; the SK-II cosmetic incident, the Sharon Stone comment on the May 2008 earthquake in China, and the melamine milk contamination crisis. Each held significant notoriety due to the crises involving major companies and an assortment of negative outcomes. After presenting an overview of each case, the authors outline their reflections on the management of these crises in relation to their cultural context.
Creating a Chinese “Miele”? Asymmetries in the Consumer Perception of Chinese and German Brands
Authors: Jungbluth Cora F.
Published: February 2011

This paper analyzes the country-of-origin effects of Chinese brands going international. To approach this topic, the author uses a comparative case study, in which a Chinese manufacturer of white goods, Haier, and a German manufacturer, Miele, serve as examples. Fueled by “China trash” reports in EU and US media, the image of China as country of origin still has a negative connotation. The Chinese government and Chinese companies are working to change this image, since they both regard branding as important means for corporate internationalization. This paper argues that Chinese brands could achieve a similar development as did Japanese and Korean brands in the second half of the last century.
Leveraging the Web Platform for Ambient Computing
Authors: Mancinelli Fabio
Published: February 2011

This paper explores the idea of what can be achieved by using the principles and the technologies of the web platform when they are applied to ambient computing. In this paper, the author presents an experience that realizes some of the goals of an Ambient Computing system by making use of the technologies and the common practices of today’s Web Platform. This paper provides an architecture that lowers the deployment costs by maximizing the reuse of pre-existing components and protocols, while guaranteeing accessibility, interoperability, and extendibility.
Impact of Spatial Filtering on the Least Cost Path Method
Authors: Rock Amy E. , Mullett Amanda , Algharib Saad , Schaffer Jared , Lee Jay
Published: February 2011

In the face of renewed interest in High-Speed Rail (HSR) projects, Ohio is one of several states seeking federal funding to relieve pressure on aging, overburdened highway infrastructure by constructing passenger rail routes between major cities. This paper evaluates the creation of a new rail route in Ohio’s 3-C Corridor utilizing GIS. The authors consider two primary cost factors in construction, slope and land cover, to generate alternative least-cost paths. To assess the importance of the cost factors, two separate paths are created using two different weighting methods for the land cover layer. The land cover is weighted first by difficulty of construction, and second by relative acquisition costs. These two paths are then compared against a path selected by the Ohio Hub Project which uses existing track lines, advantages and disadvantages of each are discussed.
Handling of Infinitives in English to Sanskrit Machine Translation
Authors: Mishra Vimal , Mishra R. B.
Published: February 2011

The development of Machine Translation (MT) system for ancient language like Sanskrit is a fascinating and challenging task. In this paper, the authors handle the infinitive type of English sentences in the English to Sanskrit machine translation (EST) system. The EST system is an integrated model of a rule-based approach of machine translation with Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model that translates an English sentence (source sentence) into the equivalent Sanskrit sentence (target sentence). The authors use feed forward ANN for the selection of Sanskrit words, such as nouns, verbs, objects, and adjectives, from English to Sanskrit User Data Vector (UDV). Due to morphological richness of Sanskrit, this system uses only morphological markings to identify Subject, Object, Verb, Preposition, Adjective, Adverb, Conjunctive and as well as an infinitive types of sentence. The performance evaluations of our EST system with different methods of MT evaluations are shown using a table.
On the Ordering Property and Law of Importation in Fuzzy Logic
Authors: Deng Huiwen , Jiang Huan
Published: February 2011

In this paper, the authors investigate the ordering property (OP), , together with the general form of the law of importation(LI), i.e., , whereis a t-norm andis a fuzzy implication for the four main classes of fuzzy implications. The authors give necessary and sufficient conditions under which both (OP) and (LI) holds for S-, R-implications and some specific families of QL-, D-implications. Following this, the paper proposes the sufficient condition under which the equivalence between CRI and triple I method for FMP can be established. Moreover, this conclusion can be viewed as a unified triple I method, a generalized form of the known results proposed by Wang and Pei.
Acquiring Knowledge in Extended Hierarchical Censored Production Rules (EHCPRS) System
Authors: Jain Sarika , Jain N.K.
Published: February 2011

EHCPRs system is a knowledge representation and reasoning system for representing common sense knowledge and reasoning with it. In such a system an EHCPR is used as a unit of knowledge for representing any universal concept. There are a number of EHCPRs at various levels of hierarchy of knowledge structure in the EHCPRs system, which results in a tree of EHCPRs. This EHCPRs tree has the capability of continuous growth through new added EHCPRs to it at proper place as well as to get refined continuously with time through improvement in the already acquired EHCPRs. The EHCPRs tree will become stronger in terms of strength of implication and richer in knowledge as time passes. This paper discusses different schemes for enhancing the intelligence, i.e., the knowledge base and the database in the EHCPRs system. By simple and general snippets of code, the EHCPRs system is able to acquire new pieces of knowledge and assimilate it properly in the already acquired knowledge base. The EHCPRs system dynamically restructures the EHCPRs tree in each learning phase by maintaining consistency and minimizing redundancy as well.
Using Data Visualisation to Represent Stages of the Innovation-Decision Process
Authors: Bingley Scott , Burgess Steven
Published: February 2011

This article describes the development of a visual aid to depict the manner in which Internet applications are being diffused through local sporting associations. Rogers’ (2003) Innovation-Decision process categories are used as the theoretical basis of the study. The article discusses the Innovation-Decision process as an important component of Rogers’ (2003) Innovation Diffusion approach. It then outlines the problem at hand, determining how best to represent the adoption and use of Internet applications by different sporting associations. To this end, different data visualisation approaches to representing the data are investigated, with the introduction of an aid the authors have labelled I-D Maps used to represent the adoption of these applications. This article demonstrates how, when compared with the other methods of visual presentations (such as line and bar graphs), the I-D Mapping method is a more suitable method of visual presentation when used with real world data.
E-Banking Diffusion in the Jordanian Banking Services Sector
Authors: Alawneh Ali , Hattab Ezz
Published: February 2011

Grounded in the technology–organization–environment (TOE) framework, we have developed an extended model to examine factors, particularly technological, organizational and environmental factors, which influence e-banking adoption in Jordanian banks. This article added some constructs to (TOE) framework, other factors were excluded. The independent variables are the (technology readiness or competence, bank size, financial resources commitment, IT/Business strategy alignment, adequacy of IT professionals, availability of online revenues, competition intensity or pressure, and regulatory support environment) while e-banking usage constitutes the dependent variable. Our empirical analysis demonstrates several key findings related to the technological, organizational, and environmental aspects of the banks. This article can help further understanding of their role in the adoption of e-banking and examines the impacts of e-banking usage on banks’ performance in terms of sales-services-marketing, internal operations and coordination & communication. This could enable greater e-banking usage that could improve the overall economy.
Negotiating the Socio-Material in and about Information Systems
Authors: Cole Fletcher T. H.
Published: February 2011

Recent moves to more explicitly account for the relationship between the social and the material in the Information Systems discipline, under the banner of socio-materiality, also imply the need for a closer examination of practice. Using John Law’s (2004) exposition of “method assemblage” as foregrounding and backgrounding a re-reading of Jonathan Grudin’s (1990) account of the various delineations of the computer interface is attempted. It is offered as a preliminary orientation to some of the native “ethno-methods”, (discursive and embodied practices) which might be deployed to negotiate sociality and materiality in IS and other technical arenas.
On Actors, Networks, Hybrids, Black Boxes and Contesting Programming Languages
Authors: Tatnall Arthur
Published: February 2011

In the mid 1990s the programming language Visual Basic (VB) fought hard to enter the undergraduate information systems curriculum at RMIT University, against resistance from two incumbent programming languages. It could not, of course, work alone in this and enlisted the assistance of a human ally known as Fred. The incumbent programming languages, Pick Basic and the Alice machine language simulator, also had their human allies to assist them in resisting the assault of the newcomer. In many ways, it is useful to think of all these programming languages as black boxes made up of hybrid entities containing both human and non-human parts, along with a conglomeration of networks, interactions, and associations. The non-human cannot act alone, but without them, the human parts have nothing to contest.
Approaches to Facilitating Analysis of Health and Wellness Data
Authors: Mamykina Lena , Mynatt Elizabeth D.
Published: February 2011

In the last decade novel sensing technologies enabled development of applications that help individuals with chronic diseases monitor their health and activities. These applications often generate large volumes of data that need to be processed and analyzed. At the same time, many of these applications target non-professionals and individuals of advanced age and low educational level. These users may find the data collected by the applications challenging and overwhelming, rather than helpful, and may require additional assistance in interpreting it. In this article we discuss two different approaches to designing computing applications that not only collect the relevant health and wellness data but also find creative ways to engage individuals in the analysis and assist with interpretation of the data.
Optimization of WS-BPEL Workflows through Business Process Re-Engineering Patterns
Authors: Buys Jonas , De Florio Vincenzo , Blondia Chris
Published: February 2011

With the advent of XML-based SOA, WS-BPEL swiftly became a widely accepted standard for modeling business processes. Although SOA is said to embrace the principle of business agility, BPEL process definitions are still manually crafted into their final executable version. While SOA has proven to be a giant leap forward in building flexible IT systems, this static BPEL workflow model should be enhanced to better sustain continual process evolution. In this paper, the authors discuss the potential for adding business intelligence with respect to business process re-engineering patterns to the system to allow for automatic business process optimization. Furthermore, the paper examines how these re-engineering patterns may be implemented, leveraging techniques that were applied successfully in computer science. Several practical examples illustrate the benefit of such adaptive process models. These preliminary findings indicate that techniques like the re-sequencing and parallelization of instructions, further optimized by introspection, as well as techniques for achieving software fault tolerance, are particularly valuable for optimizing business processes. Finally, the authors elaborate on the design of people-oriented business processes using common human-centric re-engineering patterns.
Efficient Adaptation Decision Making Algorithms for Context-Aware Applications
Authors: Vanrompay Yves , Smits Tim , Berbers Yolande
Published: February 2011

The current trend toward ubiquitous and autonomic computing leads to the necessity to realize adaptive applications. The environment of applications becomes more heterogeneous and user QoS needs and resource availability vary heavily. To maintain the usability, availability and reliability of these applications, adaptive behavior is needed. In this paper, the authors examine the decision-making phase in realizing adaptive behavior of an application. Algorithms reason about the adaptive application and the current context with the goal of selecting a new application variant that better fits the environment. This reasoning happens in a search space that is very complex and consequently poses a problem toward scalability; even when applications are relatively small. Therefore, the authors present two novel algorithms that handle the complex search space in an intelligent way. In this paper, both algorithms are introduced along with a thorough evaluation of their behavior and scalability.
A Machine Learning Based Meta-Scheduler for Multi-Core Processors
Authors: Rai Jitendra Kumar , Negi Atul , Wankar Rajeev , Nayak K. D.
Published: February 2011

Sharing resources such as caches and memory buses between the cores of multi-core processors may cause performance bottlenecks for running programs. In this paper, the authors describe a meta-scheduler, which adapts the process scheduling decisions for reducing the contention for shared L2 caches on multi-core processors. The meta-scheduler takes into account the multi-core topology as well as the L2 cache related characteristics of the processes. Using the model generated by the process of machine learning, it predicts the L2 cache behavior, i.e., solo-run-L2-cache-stress, of the programs. It runs in user mode and guides the underlying operating system process scheduler in intelligent scheduling of processes to reduce the contention of shared L2 caches. In these experiments, the authors observed up to 12 percent speedup in individual as well as overall performance, while using meta-scheduler as compared to default process scheduler (Completely Fair Scheduler) of Linux kernel.
A Recovery-Oriented Approach for Software Fault Diagnosis in Complex Critical Systems
Authors: Carrozza Gabriella , Natella Roberto
Published: February 2011

This paper proposes an approach to software faults diagnosis in complex fault tolerant systems, encompassing the phases of error detection, fault location, and system recovery. Errors are detected in the first phase, exploiting the operating system support. Faults are identified during the location phase, through a machine learning based approach. Then, the best recovery action is triggered once the fault is located. Feedback actions are also used during the location phase to improve detection quality over time. A real world application from the Air Traffic Control field has been used as case study for evaluating the proposed approach. Experimental results, achieved by means of fault injection, show that the diagnosis engine is able to diagnose faults with high accuracy and at a low overhead.
Attending to Temporal Assumptions May Enrich Autonomous Agent Computer Simulations
Authors: Koehler Gus
Published: February 2011

Agent-based computer simulations use agents on landscapes to investigate epidemics, social phenomena, decision making, supply networks, the behavior of biological systems, and physical and chemical processes, among other things. This essay examines how agents and landscapes are oriented in time and this orientation’s relevance to observing and interpreting findings. I argue that the proposed temporal deepening of how simulations are constructed involving interaction of multiple temporalities (itself a kind of temporality) could lead to the unexpected triggering of cascades of secondary emergences. Such cascades may already be there but going unobserved. Buddhist cosmology is briefly used as a contrast with current simulation temporal orientations to illuminate key points. Katherine Hayles’s work on media, my theoretical work on time-ecologies and heterochrony, and J. T. Fraser’s theory of the nested hierarchy of time and associated causalities are used to explore these issues.
Inductive Logic Programming and Embodied Agents
Authors: Kulakov Andrea , Laukkanen Joona , Mustafa Blerim , Stojanov Georgi
Published: February 2011

Open-ended learning is regarded as the ultimate milestone, especially in intelligent robotics. Preferably it should be unsupervised and it is by its nature inductive. In this article we want to give an overview of attempts to use Inductive Logic Programming (ILP) as a machine learning technique in the context of embodied autonomous agents. Relatively few such attempts exist altogether and the main goal in reviewing several of them was to find a thorough understanding of the difficulties that the application of ILP has in general and especially in this area. The second goal was to review any possible directions for overcoming these obstacles standing on the way of more widespread use of ILP in this context of embodied autonomous agents. Whilst the most serious problems, the mismatch between ILP and the large datasets encountered with embodied autonomous agents seem difficult to overcome we also found interesting research actively pursuing to alleviate these problems.
A Step-By-Step Implementation of a Hybrid USD/JPY Trading Agent
Authors: Barbosa Rui Pedro , Belo Orlando
Published: February 2011

In this article we describe the step-by-step implementation of an agent that can trade the USD/JPY currency pair using a 6 hours timeframe. The agent is capable of trading autonomously due to its ability to handle money management and to decide when to buy or sell the currency pair. Its implementation consists of a prediction mechanism, which it uses to forecast the direction of the price, and a risk management system, which enables it to make decisions regarding how much to invest in each trade and when to avoid trading. We present several alternatives for the price prediction mechanism, from using a standalone classification or regression model to using an ensemble with fixed or dynamic vote weights. The agent performed simulated trades over a period of 17 months, and obtained a return of around 50% using low leverage and after taking into account the trading costs.
Norm Emergence with Biased Agents
Authors: Mukherjee Partha , Sen Sandip , Airiau Stephane
Published: February 2011

Effective norms can significantly enhance performance of individual agents and agent societies. We consider individual agents that repeatedly interact over instances of a given scenario. Each interaction is framed as a stage game where multiple action combinations yield the same optimal payoff. An agent learns to play the game over repeated interactions with multiple, unknown, agents. The key research question is to find out whether a consistent norm emerges when all agents are learning at the same time. In real-life, agents may have pre-formed biases or preferences which may hinder or even preclude norm emergence. We study the success and speed of norm emergence when different subsets of the population have different initial biases. In particular we characterize the relative speed of norm emergence under varying biases and the success of majority/minority groups in enforcing their biases on the rest of the population given different bias strengths.
Business Intelligence in the Bayou
Authors: Smith Gregory , Ariyachandra Thilini , Frolick Mark
Published: February 2011

During the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc on New Orleans. Significant damage to the Gulf region forced the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to begin an unprecedented cleanup effort. The removal and disposal of debris was not only a challenge for landfill capacity but also for the administration of drivers, trucks, and debris type. With the debris removal workforce and certified hauling vehicles changing rapidly, record keeping and fraud detection proved difficult. This paper introduces the results of a data driven manpower audit for one parish in the greater New Orleans area that consolidated records and reconciled multiple record keeping systems. The authors’ findings bring to light the failings in record keeping during this disaster and highlight how a simple business intelligence application can improve the accuracy and quality of data and save costs.
The Importance of Process Thinking in Business Intelligence
Authors: Marjanovic Olivera
Published: February 2011

The growing field of Operational Business Intelligence (BI) has resulted in increasing interest in BI-supported Business Processes (BPs), including their management and ongoing improvement. This has led BI practitioners to consider another field–Business Process Management (BPM)–that is closely related to business performance management. However, current approaches to the BPM and operational BI integration have been limited and reduced to the problem of technical integration of BPM and BI systems. This paper argues that by adopting process- thinking in BI, further opportunities for business value creation could be discovered through systematic analysis of the non-technical aspects of BI and BPM integration, including strategy alignment, human-centered knowledge management, and ongoing improvement of BI supported processes. The authors propose a theoretical framework founded in the related research in BPM, BI, and Knowledge Management (KM) fields, describing the ways it has been used to guide ongoing empirical research in diverse case organizations across different industry sectors.
Organ Augmented Reality
Authors: Jacquemin Christian , Ajaj Rami , Le Beux Sylvain , d’Alessandro Christophe , Noisternig Markus , Katz Brian F.G. , Planes Bertrand
Published: February 2011

This paper discusses the Organ Augmented Reality (ORA) project, which considers an audio and visual augmentation of an historical church organ to enhance the understanding and perception of the instrument through intuitive and familiar mappings and outputs. ORA has been presented to public audiences at two immersive concerts. The visual part of the installation was based on a spectral analysis of the music. The visuals were projections of LED-bar VU-meters on the organ pipes. The audio part was an immersive periphonic sound field, created from the live capture of the organ sounds, so that the listeners had the impression of being inside the augmented instrument. The graphical architecture of the installation is based on acoustic analysis, mapping from sound levels to synchronous graphics through visual calibration, real-time multi-layer graphical composition and animation. The ORA project is a new approach to musical instrument augmentation that combines enhanced instrument legibility and enhanced artistic content.
Toward Autonomic Computing
Authors: Ramdane-Cherif Amar
Published: February 2011

Cognitive approach through the neural network “NN” paradigm is a critical discipline that will help bring about autonomic computing “AC.” NN-related research, some involving new ways to apply control theory and control laws, can provide insight into how to run complex systems that optimize to their environments. NN is one kind of AC system that can embody human cog-nitive powers and that can adapt, learn, and take over certain functions previously performed by humans. In recent years, artificial neural networks have received a great deal of attention for their ability to perform nonlinear mappings. In trajectory control of robotic devices, neural networks provide a fast method of autonomously learning the relation between a set of output states and a set of input states. In this article, we apply the cognitive approach to solve position controller problems using an inverse geometrical model. In order to control a robot manipulator in the accomplishment of a task, trajectory planning is required in advance or in real time. The desired trajectory is usually described in Cartesian coordinates and needs to be converted to joint space for the purpose of analyzing and controlling the system behavior. In this article, we use a memory neural network (MNN) to solve the optimization problem concerning the inverse of the direct geometrical model of the redundant manipulator when subject to constraints. Our approach offers substantially better accuracy, avoids the computation of the inverse or pseudo-inverse Jacobian matrix, and does not produce problems such as singularity, redundancy, and considerably increased computational complexity.
Knowledge Representation for Distances and Orientations of Regions
Authors: Dong Tiansi
Published: February 2011

From the perspective of cognitive informatics (CI), this paper proposes internal relations between distance and orientation knowledge of extended objects, and presents a formal representation of spatial knowledge. The connection relation is taken as primitive. Notions of near extension regions and the nearer predicate are developed. Distance relations between extended objects are understood as degrees of the near extension from one object to the other. Orientation relations are understood as distance comparison from one object to the sides of the other object. Therefore, distance and orientation relations can be internally related through the connection relation. The notion of the fiat projection is presented to model the mental formation of the deictic orientation reference framework. This paper introduces a new axiom to govern the connection relation in the literature and presents examples to show diagrammatically the internal relations between distance and orientation relations of extended objects.
On the Cognitive Processes of Human Perception with Emotions, Motivations, and Attitudes
Authors: Wang Yingxu
Published: February 2011

An interactive motivation-attitude theory is developed based on the Layered Reference Model of the Brain (LRMB) and the object-attribute-relation (OAR) model. This paper presents a rigorous model of human perceptual processes such as emotions, motivations, and attitudes. A set of mathematical models and formal cognitive processes of perception is developed. Interactions and relationships between motivation and attitude are formally described in real-time process algebra (RTPA). Applications of the mathematical models of motivations and attitudes in software engineering are demonstrated. This work is a part of the formalization of LRMB, which provides a comprehensive model for explaining the fundamental cognitive processes of the brain and their interactions. This work demonstrates that the complicated human emotional and perceptual phenomena can be rigorously modeled and formally treated based on cognitive informatics theories and denotational mathematics.
A Fix-Point Semantics for Rule-Base Anomalies
Authors: Zhang Du
Published: February 2011

A crucial component of an intelligent system is its knowledge base (KB) that contains knowledge about a problem domain. KB development involves domain analysis, context space definition, ontological specification, and knowledge acquisition, codification, and verification. KB anomalies can affect the correctness and performance of an intelligent system. In this article, we describe a fix-point semantics for a KB that is based on a multi-valued logic. We then use the fix-point semantics to provide formal definitions for four types of KB anomalies: (1) inconsistency, (2) redundancy, (3) incompleteness, and (4) circularity. We believe such formal definitions of KB anomalies will help pave the way for a more effective KB verification process.
A Formal Specification of the Memorization Process
Authors: López Natalia , Núñez Manuel , Pelayo Fernando L.
Published: February 2011

In this article we present the formal language STOchastic Process Algebra (STOPA) to specify cognitive systems. In addition to the usual characteristics of these formalisms, this language features the possibility of including stochastic time. This kind of time is useful to represent systems where the delays are not controlled by fix amounts of time, but they are given by probability distribution functions. In order to illustrate the usefulness of our formalism we will formally represent a cognitive model of the memory. Following contemporary theories of memory classification (see Solso, 1999; Squire, Knowlton, & Musen, 1993) we consider sensory buffer, short-term, and long-term memories. Moreover, borrowing from Wang and Wang (2006), we also consider the so-called action buffer memory.
On the Big-R Notation for Describing Interative and Recursive Behaviors
Authors: Wang Yingxu
Published: February 2011

Iterative and recursive control structures are the most fundamental mechanisms of computing that make programming more effective and expressive. However, these constructs are perhaps the most diverse and confusable instructions in programming languages at both syntactic and semantic levels. This article introduces the big-R notation that provides a unifying mathematical treatment of iterations and recursions in computing. Mathematical models of iterations and recursions are developed using logical inductions. Based on the mathematical model of the big-R notation, fundamental properties of iterative and recursive behaviors of software are comparatively analyzed. The big-R notation has been adopted and implemented in Real-Time Process Algebra (RTPA) and its supporting tools. Case studies demonstrate that a convenient notation may dramatically reduce the difficulty and complexity in expressing a frequently used and highly recurring concept and notion in computing and software engineering.
User-Centered Interactive Data Mining
Authors: Zhao Yan , Chen Yaohua , Yao Yiyu
Published: February 2011

While many data mining models concentrate on automation and efficiency, interactive data mining models focus on adaptive and effective communications between human users and computer systems. User requirements and preferences play the most important roles in human-machine interactions, and guide the selection of target knowledge representations, operations, and measurements. Practically, user requirements and preferences also decide strategies of abnormal situation handling, and explanations of mined patterns. In this article, we discuss these fundamental issues based on a user-centered three-layer framework of interactive data mining.
On System Algebra
Authors: Wang Yingxu
Published: February 2011

Systems are the most complicated entities and phenomena in abstract, physical, information, and social worlds across all science and engineering disciplines. System algebra is an abstract mathematical structure for the formal treatment of abstract and general systems as well as their algebraic relations, operations, and associative rules for composing and manipulating complex systems. This article presents a mathematical theory of system algebra and its applications in cognitive informatics, system engineering, software engineering, and cognitive informatics. A rigorous treatment of abstract systems is described, and the algebraic relations and compositional operations of abstract systems are analyzed. System algebra provides a denotational mathematical means that can be used to model, specify, and manipulate generic “to be” and “to have” type problems, particularly system architectures and high-level system designs, in computing, software engineering, system engineering, and cognitive informatics.
A Logic Approach to Granular Computing
Authors: Zhou Bing
Published: February 2011

Granular computing is an emerging field of study that attempts to formalize and explore methods and heuristics of human problem solving with multiple levels of granularity and abstraction. A fundamental issue of granular computing is the representation and utilization of granular structures. The main objective of this article is to examine a logic approach to address this issue. Following the classical interpretation of a concept as a pair of intension and extension, we interpret a granule as a pair of a set of objects and a logic formula describing the granule. The building blocks of granular structures are basic granules representing an elementary concept or a piece of knowledge. They are treated as atomic formulas of a logic language. Different types of granular structures can be constructed by using logic connectives. Within this logic framework, we show that rough set analysis (RSA) and formal concept analysis (FCA) can be interpreted uniformly. The two theories use multilevel granular structures but differ in their choices of definable granules and granular structures.
On Foundations and Applications of the Paradigm of Granular Rough Computing
Authors: Polkowski Lech , Semeniuk-Polkowska Maria
Published: February 2011

Granular computing, initiated by Lotfi A. Zadeh, has acquired wide popularity as a tool for approximate reasoning, fusion of knowledge, cognitive computing. The need for formal methods of granulation, and means for computing with granules, has been addressed in this work by applying methods of rough mereology. Rough mereology is an extension of mereology taking as the primitive notion the notion of a part to a degree. Granules are formed as classes of objects which are a part to a given degree of a given object. In addition to an exposition of this mechanism of granulation, we point also to some applications like granular logics for approximate reasoning and classifiers built from granulated data sets.
An Agent System to Manage Knowledge in CoPs
Authors: Soto Juan Pablo , Vizcaino Aurora , Portillo-Rodriguez Javier , Piattini Mario
Published: February 2011

This paper proposes a multi-agent architecture and a trust model with which to foster the reuse of information in organizations which use knowledge bases or knowledge management systems. The architecture and the model have been designed with the goal of giving support to communities of practices which are a means of sharing knowledge. However, members of these communities are currently often geographically distributed, and less trust therefore exists among members than in traditional co-localizated communities of practice. This situation has led us to propose our trust model, which can be used to calculate what piece of knowledge is more trustworthy. The architecture’s artificial agents will use this model to recommend the most appropriate knowledge to the community’s members.
Self Adjustable Negotiation Mechanism for Convergence and Conflict Resolution of Replicas in Data Grids
Authors: Belalem Ghalem , Benotmane Zineb , Benhallou Khadidja
Published: February 2011

In order not to be limited in term of calculation, storage and communication, the concept of grid, which does not cease evolving, makes it possible to offer a practical operation of work unified as well as a great storage and computing power. To manage the division in the data grid, technical replication is used, but in spite of their advantages, the competitor access to the data could involve inconsistencies, from where the great challenge to ensure the consistency management between replicas of object. In this article, we describe model double-layered adapted to the applications on a large scale and which represents the support of the hybrid approach of consistency management of replicas based on pessimistic and optimistic approaches. This hybrid approach present an adapted mechanism based on the various negotiation forms between virtual consistency agents to be able to reduce the number of conflicts between replicas in data grids.
A Web Knowledge Discovery Engine Based on Concept Algebra
Authors: Hu Kai , Wang Yingxu , Tian Yousheng
Published: February 2011

Autonomous on-line knowledge discovery and acquisition play an important role in cognitive informatics, cognitive computing, knowledge engineering, and computational intelligence. On the basis of the latest advances in cognitive informatics and denotational mathematics, this paper develops a web knowledge discovery engine for web document restructuring and comprehension, which decodes on-line knowledge represented in informal documents into cognitive knowledge represented by concept algebra and concept networks. A visualized concept network explorer and a semantic analyzer are implemented to capture and refine queries based on concept algebra. A graphical interface is built using concept and semantic models to refine users’ queries. To enable autonomous information restructuring by machines, a two-level knowledge base that mimics human lexical/syntactical and semantic cognition is introduced. The information restructuring model provides a foundation for automatic concept indexing and knowledge extraction from web documents. The web knowledge discovery engine extends machine learning capability from imperative and adaptive information processing to autonomous and cognitive knowledge processing with unstructured documents in natural languages.
A New Quantum Evolutionary Algorithm with Sifting Strategy for Binary Decision Diagram Ordering Problem
Authors: Layeb Abdesslem , Saidouni Djamel-Eddine
Published: February 2011

In this work, the authors focus on the quantum evolutionary quantum hybridization and its contribution in solving the binary decision diagram ordering problem. Therefore, a problem formulation in terms of quantum representation and evolutionary dynamic borrowing quantum operators are defined. The sifting search strategy is used in order to increase the efficiency of the exploration process, while experiments on a wide range of data sets show the effectiveness of the proposed framework and its ability to achieve good quality solutions. The proposed approach is distinguished by a reduced population size and a reasonable number of iterations to find the best order, thanks to the principles of quantum computing and to the sifting strategy.
The Selection of the IT Platform
Authors: Shakir Maha , Viehland Dennis
Published: February 2011

The Health Board is one of the largest public health care providers in New Zealand (NZ). In early 1999, a supply chain optimization review recommended an enterprise system (ES) implementation to provide better control and reporting of organizational finances. The focus of this case is the IT platform decision made in conjunction with the ES implementation process. This decision was thoroughly considered by all Health Board stakeholders and the final choice was made in alignment with the Board’s strategic IT policy. Nevertheless, initial testing two months prior to go-live revealed major performance problems with the new system. The case documents the events that led up to the selection of the original IT platform and the challenges the project team faced in deciding what to do when the platform did not meet contractual specifications.
The Algos Center
Authors: Chinn Susan J. , Pryor Charlotte A. , Voyer John J.
Published: February 2011

Two systems faculty from a university was contracted to perform an analysis of information systems at the Algos Center, a small non-profit charitable organization which provides support for children and their families facing losses. The Center specifically requested help in integrating its fundraising and accounting software packages or exploring alternative software solutions. It also needed to generate reports required by the Board of Directors and United Way. Finally, the Center requested help in designing a family database to capture and track statistics about the families receiving services. As the team analyzed the Center, they discovered many underlying issues that would form part of their recommendations to the staff. This case makes two contributions. First, it reveals many problems facing small non-profit organizations, which primarily expend their resources on mission-critical activities, and allows readers to supply possible courses of action. Second, it provides an opportunity to evaluate how a consulting experience was handled and to make recommendations to ensure successful project implementation.
End-User System Development
Authors: Jennex Murray E.
Published: February 2011

How much end-user computing is too much? Should end users develop systems? This case looks at a study of end user computing within the engineering organizations of an electric utility undergoing deregulation. The case was initiated when management perceived that too much engineering time was spent doing IS functions. The case found that there was significant effort being expended on system development, support, and ad hoc use. Reviews of a few key systems illustrate quality problems found with the end-user developed systems. Several issues were identified affecting system development including use of programming standards, documentation, infrastructure integration, and system support. Additionally, the issues of obsolescence, security, and procurement are discussed.
Cross-Cultural Implementation of Information System
Authors: Law Wai K. , Perez Karri
Published: February 2011

GHI, an international service conglomerate, recently acquired a new subsidiary in an Asian country. A new information system was planned to facilitate the re-branding of the subsidiary. The project was outsourced to an application service provider through a consultant. A functional manager from another subsidiary in the country was assigned to assist the development of specifications. The customized information passed numerous benchmarking tests, and was ready for implementation. At that point, it was discovered that the native users at the rural location of the new subsidiary could not comprehend any of the user interfaces programmed in the English language. A depressed local management team, with a depleted technology budget, must reinvent all operating procedures dependent on the new information system.
Power Conflict, Commitment & the Development of Sales & Marketing IS/IT Infrastructures at Digital Devices, Inc.
Authors: Butler Tom
Published: February 2011

This article explores the political relationships, power asymmetries, and conflicts surrounding the development, deployment, and governance of IT-enabled sales and marketing information systems (IS) at Digital Devices, Inc. The study reports on the web of individual, group and institutional commitments and influences on the IS development and implementation processes in an organizational culture that promoted and supported user-led development. In particular, the article highlights the problems the company’s IS function encountered in implementing its ad-hoc strategies and governance policies. It will be seen that the majority of these problems occurred because of the high levels of autonomy and budgetary independence of the IT-literate, engineering-oriented business ‘communities-of-practice’ that constituted Digital Devices. The case therefore provides rare insights into the reality of IS development and IT infrastructure deployment in organizations through its in-depth description of the positive and negative influences on these processes and their outcomes.
Experiences from Using the CORAS Methodology to Analyze a Web Application
Authors: den Braber Folker , Bjørn Mildal Arne , Nes Jone , Stølen Ketil , Vraalsen Fredrik
Published: February 2011

During a field trial performed at the Norwegian telecom company NetCom from May 2003 to July 2003, a methodology for model-based risk analysis was assessed. The chosen methodology was the CORAS methodology (CORAS, 2000), which has been developed in a European research project carried out by 11 European companies and research institutes partly funded by the European Union. The risk analysis and assessment were carried out by the Norwegian research institute SINTEF in cooperation with NetCom. NetCom (www.netcom.no) is one of the main mobile phone network providers in Norway. Their ‘MinSide’ application offers their customers access to their personal account information via the Internet, enabling them to view and change the properties of their mobile phone subscription. ‘MinSide’ deals with a lot of sensitive customer information that needs to be secure, while at the same time being easily available to the customer in order for the service to remain usable and competitive. The goal of the analysis was to identify risks in relation to the use of the ‘MinSide’ application and, where possible, suggest treatments for these risks. This was achieved through two model-driven brainstorming sessions based on system documentation in the form of UML sequence diagrams and data flow diagrams.
Challenges of Complex Information Technology Projects
Authors: Stamati Teta , Kanellis Panagiotis , Martakos Drakoulis
Published: February 2011

Although painstaking planning usually precedes all large IT development efforts, 80% of new systems are delivered late (if ever) and over budget, frequently with functionality falling short of contract. This case study provides a detailed account of an ill-fated initiative to centrally plan and procure, with the aim to homogenize requirements, an integrated applications suite for a number of British higher education institutions. It is argued that because systems are so deeply embedded in operations and organization and, as you cannot possibly foresee and therefore plan for environmental discontinuities, high-risk, ‘big-bang’ approaches to information systems planning and development must be avoided. In this context the case illustrates the level of complexity that unpredictable change can bring to an information technology project that aims to establish the ‘organizationally generic’ and the destabilizing effects it has on the network of the project’s stakeholders.
New Forms of Collaboration & Information Sharing in Grocery Retailing
Authors: Pramatari Katerina , Doukidis Georgios I.
Published: February 2011

In spring 2001, Veropoulos, the third biggest retailer in Greece and three of its top suppliers together with a service provider, started a pilot implementation to experiment with collaborative store ordering. The pilot involved the ordering from the retailer’s stores to their central warehouse as well as to the direct-store-delivery suppliers. The four companies together with the service provider were starting an ambitious plan to use the Internet technology in order to enable the sharing of daily POS data between retail stores and suppliers with the objective to streamline the store replenishment process. This effort resulted in significant business results but at the same time several pitfalls and challenges as far as the use of technology was concerned.
MACROS
Authors: Zhang Jing , Pardo Theresa A. , Sarkis Joseph
Published: February 2011

Knowledge sharing among divisions of an organization is an important yet difficult goal for any institution to achieve. This case reports on development of a system that fosters knowledge sharing across divisions and levels of government in a New York State agency. The case will focus on project management aspects, and discuss tools and models used to aid in the development and evolution of this project from an intra-division application to a more pervasive enterprise-wide system. A number of organizational and technological elements provide the impetus for growth, improvement, and success of this system. Overall, the case study provides insights and lessons learned to problems encountered in diverse and sizable organizations, such as large companies and not-for-profit organizations, as well as state and federal governments, where knowledge is distributed and sharing knowledge is critical to organizational performance.