bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparative Study on the Performance of Five Different Hall Effect Devices
Authors: Paun Maria-Alexandra , Sallese Jean-Michel , Kayal Maher
Published: February 2013

Five different Hall Effect sensors were modeled and their performance evaluated using a three dimensional simulator. The physical structure of the implemented sensors reproduces a certain technological fabrication process. Hall voltage, absolute, current-related, voltage-related and power-related sensitivities were obtained for each sensor. The effect of artificial offset was also investigated for cross-like structures. The simulation procedure guides the designer in choosing the Hall cell optimum shape, dimensions and device polarization conditions that would allow the highest performance.
Le mariage et les ramifications du droit
Authors: Padis Marc-Olivier
Published: February 2013

Résumé Le « mariage pour tous » est une transformation de l’institution matrimoniale et de la famille. Mais qu’exprime-t-il de notre manière de faire société ? Est-il l’aboutissement d’une instrumentalisation exacerbée du droit ou traduit-il la recherche de formes d’alliance répondant à la grande précarité des liens affectifs et filiaux ?
L'Europe centrale prise entre deux terreurs
Authors: Snyder Timothy , Clausse Hadrien
Published: February 2013

Résumé L’auteur de Terres de sang revient ici sur la méthode de son livre. La volonté de partir d’un espace permet d’adopter une logique inclusive, en sortant des approches nationales ou strictement quantitatives, pour analyser les massacres de masse perpétrés dans cette région par les nazis comme par les Soviétiques.
Les ressources de la culture politique française
Authors: Sauvé Jean-Marc
Published: February 2013

Résumé En France, la nation s’est construite par l’État ; la crise actuelle de l’État ne doit donc pas être prise à la légère. Les réformes de l’administration des dernières années ont été faites sans réflexion d’ensemble, sans objectifs autres que la réduction des dépenses. L’État a encore un rôle à jouer dans le pays, mais il faut mettre ses atouts en avant.
Full Versus Surface Tibial Baseplate Cementation in Total Knee Arthroplasty
Authors: Galasso Olimpio , Jenny Jean-Yves , Saragaglia Dominique , Miehlke Rolf K.
Published: February 2013

The use of a keel in the tibial component during modern primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA) has become common, and its cementation may affect the future performance of the prosthesis. Although proponents of cementing the entire tibial component argue that this technique provides better initial fixation and may prevent aseptic loosening, reasons exist to apply cement only to the tibial baseplate. In this study, 232 patients who underwent TKA using full or surface cementation of the tibial baseplate were evaluated at an average 5.6-year follow-up to assess survivorship and clinical results. The cumulative survival rate at 8 years was 97.1%. With revision of either component for any reason considered the endpoint, no significant difference was noted between full and surface cemented groups. Knee Society Score, range of motion, and femoro-tibial mechanical angle significantly increased postoperatively. Multivariate analysis revealed that good preoperative range of motion and Knee Society Scores were related to good postoperative range of motion and Knee Society Scores. Follow-up length was a negative predictor of postoperative Knee Society Score. The use of full or surface cementation of the baseplate was unrelated to the postoperative clinical outcomes. Clinical outcomes did not differ according to the tibial component cementation technique. The results of this study suggest that cementing the keel of the tibial component during primary TKA has no advantage for patients. Longer-term follow-up and proper patient randomization are required to confirm these findings.
Immediate Coronal Plane Kinetic Effects of Novel Lateral-offset Sole Shoes and Lateral-wedge Insole Shoes in Healthy Individuals
Authors: Kang Jong Woo , Park Hae Soo , Na Choon Kyun , Park Jong Woong , Hong Jungwha , Lee Soon Hyuck
Published: February 2013

To investigate kinetic differences in the coronal plane between healthy individuals wearing shoes with lateral-offset soles and shoes with lateral-wedge insoles while walking, hip abduction, knee adduction, and ankle abduction moments were estimated using a 3-dimensional motion analysis system under 3 different conditions: wearing conventional shoes (control), wearing lateral-offset sole shoes (condition A), and wearing lateral-wedge insole shoes (condition B). Forty-eight healthy individuals (24 men and 24 women) were tested. Condition A resulted in a significantly reduced peak knee adduction moment compared with the control (condition A=0.316 Nm/kg; control=0.380 Nm/kg;
P
=.006). The peak knee adduction moment of condition B was also lower than that of the control (condition B=0.299 Nm/kg;
P
=.002); however, the peak knee adduction moment was not significantly different between conditions A and B (
P
=.386). Condition B resulted in an increased mean ankle abduction moment in the stance phase compared with the control and condition A (control=0.007 Nm/kg; condition A=0.013 Nm/kg; condition B=0.023 Nm/kg) (control vs condition A,
P
=.051; control vs condition B,
P
<.001; condition A vs condition B,
P
=.002). The hip abduction moments were not significantly different between the control and condition A, control and condition B, or conditions A and B. Wearing lateral-offset sole shoes reduces the peak knee adduction moment and exerts less influence on ankle moment than does wearing lateral-wedge insole shoes. Neither lateral-offset sole shoes nor lateral-wedge insole shoes induce kinetic changes in the coronal plane of the hip.
Positioning Evaluation of Corrective Osteotomy for the Malunited Radius: 3-D CT Versus 2-D Radiographs
Authors: Vroemen Joy C. , Dobbe Johannes G.G. , Strackee Simon D. , Streekstra Geert J.
Published: February 2013

The authors retrospectively investigated the postoperative position of the distal radius after a corrective osteotomy using 2-dimensional (2-D) and 3-dimensional (3-D) imaging techniques to determine whether malposition correlates with clinical outcome. Twenty-five patients who underwent a corrective osteotomy were available for follow-up. The residual positioning errors of the distal end were determined retrospectively using standard 2-D radiographs and 3-D computed tomography evaluations based on a scan of both forearms, with the contralateral healthy radius serving as reference. For 3-D analysis, use of an anatomical coordinate system for each reference bone allowed the authors to express the residual malalignment parameters in displacements (Δx, Δy, Δz) and rotations (Δφx, Δφy, Δφz) for aligning the affected bone in a standardized way with the corresponding reference bone. The authors investigated possible correlations between malalignment parameters and clinical outcome using patients’ questionnaires.

Two-dimensional radiographic evaluation showed a radial inclination of 24.9°±6.8°, a palmar tilt of 4.5°±8.6°, and an ulnar variance of 0.8±1.7 mm. With 3-D analysis, residual displacements were 2.6±3 (Δx), 2.4±3 (Δy), and −2.2±4 (Δz) mm. Residual rotations were −6.2°±10° (Δφx), 0.3°±7° (Δφy), and −5.1°±10° (Δφz). The large standard deviation is indicative of persistent malalignment in individual cases. Statistically significant correlations were found between 3-D rotational deficits and clinical outcome but not between 2-D evaluation parameters. Considerable residual malalignments and statistically significant correlations between malalignment parameters and clinical outcome confirm the need for better positioning techniques.
Comparative Study of the Prevalence of Venous Thromboembolism After Elective Spinal Surgery
Authors: Yoshioka Katsuhito , Murakami Hideki , Demura Satoru , Kato Satoshi , Hayashi Hiroyuki , Inoue Kei , Ota Takashi , Shinmura Kazuya , Yokogawa Noriaki , Fang Xiang , Tsuchiya Hiroyuki
Published: February 2013

To the authors’ knowledge, no comparative studies exist of venous thromboembolism (VTE) based on different pathologies, surgical procedures, or spinal levels after spinal surgery. The authors prospectively investigated VTE after elective spinal surgery.

The study comprised 4 patient groups. Group 1 comprised 79 patients with lumbar spinal stenosis treated with posterior decompression without fusion; group 2 comprised 90 patients with lumbar or lower thoracic degenerative disease treated with instrumentation for spine fusion; group 3 comprised 89 patients with cervical degenerative disease treated with posterior decompression or instrumentation for fusion; and group 4 comprised 82 patients with spinal tumors treated with total spondylectomy or piecemeal excision with stabilization. Deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) screening was performed for all 340 patients 7 to 10 days postoperatively. Binomial logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association of risk factors. The incidence of VTE was 15.2% in group 1, 13.3% in group 2, 4.5% in group 3, and 22.0% in group 4. The overall incidence of PTE was 2.9% (10/340 patients). Of the 10 cases of PTE, 2 were symptomatic and 8 were asymptomatic. No DVT occurred in 6 of 10 PTE-positive patients. Multivariate analysis showed that spinal tumors, neurologic deficits, and advanced age were risk factors for VTE. Spinal tumor surgery carries a high risk of critical VTE, whereas cervical spine surgery carries a low risk. No DVT occurred in 60% of PTE-positive patients. This result indicates that screening for PTE is also needed in patients who are at high risk for VTE.
The Humane Dimensions of Effective Communication
Authors: Hugman Bruce
Published: February 2013

All communications, especially those intended to influence attitudes and behaviour, depend on the empathy, creativity, and clarity of those responsible for them. Communications of all kinds, in healthcare and other sectors, can be greatly enhanced by the appropriate use of modern media and technology, but at the heart of effective communications are humane and compassionate purposes and values, which have the welfare of the recipient clearly in focus, whatever the chosen method or medium. This chapter examines ways in which communications in healthcare have often failed to meet the highest standards in protecting the welfare and safety of patients. It proposes a number of strategies for addressing the shortcomings in areas such as information for patients and healthcare professionals, physician and pharmacist consultations, and the avoidance of medicinal and vaccination errors and crises.
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis and the Value for Money of Health Technologies
Authors: Simoens Steven
Published: February 2013

Cost-effectiveness analysis serves as a tool to assess the value for money of a health technology. This chapter aims to review different approaches to assessing value for money of health technologies. First, the chapter discusses the methodological basis of the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio approach. Second, the chapter reviews alternative approaches such as the replacement approach, program budgeting and marginal analysis, the generalised optimisation framework, and multi-criteria decision analysis. This information will aid health care decision makers and researchers to interpret cost-effectiveness analyses and their results for the purpose of decision making.
A Multi Agent Pharmacoinformatics Reference Model for the Improvement of Hospital Management
Authors: Gasmelseid Tagelsir Mohamed
Published: February 2013

The question of drug and the improvement of pharmaceutical care services is moving to the front line agenda of policy makers in the healthcare system. The expansion of drug-related problems and medical errors motivated healthcare organizations to focus on the adoption of information systems and technologies in pursuit of improving communications, signaling, analyzing, and reporting of adverse drug reactions and facilitating scenario-based interventions. This chapter focuses on the development of a reference pharmacoinformatics model that can be used to improve the quality of pharmaceutical care provided and the management of hospitals. The material used in this chapter was synthesized to document and analyze the main variables that derive the context of pharmaceutical care in local settings. It also benefited from international data managed by international organizations such as WHO and the information systems used to mine data related to adverse drug events at the level of national Pharmacovigilance Centers. The proposed intelligent multi-agent Pharmacoinformatics decision support model included a process model, a multi-agent architecture, and an integrated data processing model with clear description of agent functionalities. The model reflects three main modules: a data capture and update module, diagnosis module, and a pharmaceutical care and drug monitoring module. The chapter also reflects on the practical and managerial environment of the model and the basic considerations to be taken into account.
The Health Care Factory
Authors: Ancona Massimo , Cazzola Walter , Pini Sonia , Frascio Marco
Published: February 2013

The Health Care Factory is the proposal of a highly integrated system designed with the aim of improving the overall healthcare process management and of obtaining a flexible and deeper understanding of the patient treatment mechanisms. The Health Care Factory is based on a software/hardware infrastructure designed for modeling the healthcare problem—including ubiquitous laboratory automation, miniaturized, and lab-on-a-chip devices management, local (i.e., in the hospital), and remote (telemedicine) patient health control—like an integrated large, real-time, ubiquitous, and distributed discrete plant automation problem.
Pharmacovigilance
Authors: Jose Jimmy
Published: February 2013

Any substance that is capable of producing a therapeutic effect can also produce unwanted or adverse effects. It is important to understand the basic concepts related to Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs): epidemiology, classification, predisposing factors, evaluation parameters, and surveillance methods. Pharmacovigilance is defined as the science and activities relating to the detection, evaluation, understanding, and prevention of ADRs or any other drug-related problems. It involves patients, medical professionals, the pharmaceutical industry, drug regulatory agencies, and academic scientists. Pharmacoinformatics, the application of information technology with regard to the drug design, development, and drug use has played a major role in the appropriate implementation of pharmacovigilance at industry, regulatory, and hospital levels. The functioning of international regulatory agencies and drug safety departments of pharmaceutical industries has been greatly influenced by pharmacoinformatics. Pharmacoinformatics has changed the way in which health care is practiced. Modern information technology can be used by health care professionals for various purposes and, thereby, make a substantial contribution to optimize the quality of medication use in institutions with due importance of safety. Pharmacoinformatics has a major influence in the development of pharmacogenetics and its individual applications including improving drug safety. Pharmacoinformatics will play a major role in the future development and practice of pharmacovigilance. The present chapter is aimed at providing the readers an insight into the importance and basic concepts of pharmacovigilance, and the process involved in it. Application of pharmacoinformatics in improving drug safety at various levels from an industry, regulatory and hospital perspective is discussed.
The Role of Pharmacovigilance Center in Sudan in Reporting Adverse Drug Reactions
Authors: Elkhawad Abdalla Omer
Published: February 2013

Pharmacovigilance is an active discipline, which is the study of structured mechanisms of the safety of medicines being used in clinical situations in large populations. In this chapter, the authors attempt to characterize the different types of Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) and related problems and mechanisms by which they cause harm to patients. They investigate the methods of detection of ADRs and various pharmacovigilance methods. The role and contributions of international organizations will be presented. The authors present the importance and need for education of healthcare professionals about pharmacovigilance and the proper reporting of ADRs for the purpose of efficient and safe use of medicines. The establishment of the Sudan pharmacovigilance center and how the system works will be discussed. Sources of data and actions taken since its inception are presented. The authors conclude by highlighting the problems and weaknesses of the system and ways to strengthen it.
New Discovery Methodologies in GIS
Authors: Brisaboa Nieves R. , Luaces Miguel R. , Seco Diego
Published: February 2013

In the last decade, the availability of on-line resources, and also the number of users accessing those resources, has grown exponentially. The information retrieval process, which aims at the improvement of the access to such resources, has been the focus of interest of many researchers. The presence of geographic data in these repositories of information is surprisingly high (for example, note that most of the web pages about business contain information about the locations of their offices). In order to properly manage this geographic data, the information retrieval process has been extended using architectures, data structures, and other techniques developed by the GIS community. This has meant the beginning of a new research field called Geographic Information Retrieval. In this chapter, the authors present a study of the state-of-the-art of this new field, and they also highlight the main open problems that will concentrate efforts during the next years.
Discovering Geosensor Data By Means of an Event Abstraction Layer
Authors: Llaves Alejandro , Everding Thomas
Published: February 2013

Environmental monitoring is a critical process in areas potentially affected by natural disasters. Nowadays, the distributed processing of vast amounts of heterogeneous sensor data in real time is a challenging task. Event processing tools allow creating an event abstraction layer on top of sensor data. Users can define event patterns to filter in real-time the information they are interested in and avoid irrelevant data. Extreme events are usually related to other environmental occurrences, e.g. landslides are related (among others) to precipitations and earthquakes. To be able to determine whether an occurrence could potentially lead to an extreme event, domain knowledge is necessary. Ontologies are helpful for this task, since they are able to capture a representation of knowledge as a set of concepts and relations, within a specific domain. The research presented in this chapter aims at combining event-processing tools with semantic technologies to improve the discovery of environmental data.
Methodologies for Augmented Discovery of Geospatial Resources
Authors: Santoro Mattia , Mazzetti Paolo , Nativi Stefano , Fugazza Cristiano , Granell Carlos , Díaz Laura
Published: February 2013

Different strategies can be adopted in order to enable new ways of searching geospatial resources, leveraging the Semantic Web and Web 2.0 technologies. The authors propose a Discovery Augmentation Methodology which is essentially driven by the idea of enriching the searchable information that is associated with geospatial resources. They describe and discuss three different high-level approaches for discovery augmentation: Provider-based, User-based, and Third-party based. From the analysis of these approaches, the authors suggest that, due to their flexibility and extensibility, the user-based and the third-party based approaches result more appropriate for heterogeneous and changing environments such as the SDI one. For the user-based approach, they describe a conceptual architecture and the main components centered on the integration of user-generated content in SDIs. For the third-party approach, the authors describe an architecture enabling semantics-based searches in SDIs.
E-Documents and E-Signatures in Tanzania
Authors: John Ubena
Published: February 2013

This chapter analyses the use of e-Documents and e-Signatures in Tanzania with a view of establishing their legal status, applicability, and the future of such technologies in e-Government systems. That is important as Information and Communications Technology (ICT) is widely employed in Tanzania. Moreover, the development and application of information systems is influenced by law. Therefore, the problem investigated is twofold: First, legal status, validity, and admissibility of e-Documents and e-Signatures in evidence in Tanzania are questioned. Second, the challenges facing the establishment of e-Government in Tanzania are explored. The chapter is a qualitative study, i.e. library- and desk-based research. Various literatures focusing on e-Documents and e-Signatures are reviewed, analysed, and evaluated so as to draw a conclusion on the relevancy of e-Documents and e-Signatures in the e-Government projects in Tanzania. The literature analysis conducted found that there is a lack of legal framework to recognize e-Documents and e-Signatures compounded with poor ICT infrastructure in Tanzania. This scenario puts e-Government endeavours at risk. It is recommended that the government should enact the laws to recognise e-Documents and e-Signatures to boost e-Commerce as well as e-Government.
Using Internet Survey to Evaluate the Effects of E-Government
Authors: Huang Tong-yi , Lee Chung-Pin , Hsiao Naiyi
Published: February 2013

This chapter examines the case of an online survey regarding the assessment of the tax return filing system in Taiwan. The aim is to illustrate the strengths and limitations of utilizing on-line surveys to evaluate the performance of e-government. Based on our findings, we propose suggestions pertaining to increasing the quality of the survey as well as how to collaborate with a government agency while conducting a survey concerning sensitive issues. This is pioneering, and perhaps is the first attempt to address the methodological and administrative issues of an on-line survey in collaboration with the public sector. We invite and encourage future efforts to confront such issues, to advance and enrich methodological discussions, and to make online survey a useful tool for evaluating government performance not only with regard to e-government effects but also on other programs.
Educational and Democratic Potential of Digital Games in e-Government
Authors: Patokorpi Erkki , Leppimäki Sami , Tétard Franck
Published: February 2013

Digital games have, or can be made to have, certain characteristics that make them suitable for education, communication, and the promotion of civic skills in e-Government: hypertextuality, interactivity, reusability, updateability, object-likeness, reprogrammability, personalizability, multimodality, and so forth. From the citizens’ point of view, the functions of societal games can be divided into learning support and the enhancement of participation in society. Enlightened participation in the civic society requires both. Learning by games should promote the understanding of complex social issues and their mutual relationships. For learning to act as a springboard to informed action, one would also have to understand the consequences of actions and events. Consequently, learning by playing serious games is best understood as reasoned practical action in a virtual world.
National Interoperability Approach for Social Services Information Management in Finland
Authors: Mykkänen Juha , Hyppönen Konstantin , Kortelainen Pekka , Lehmuskoski Antero , Hotti Virpi , Paakkanen Esa , Ensio Anneli
Published: February 2013

In this chapter, the authors introduce and discuss the approach for defining IT interoperability solutions on national level for social services in Finland. Goals and phases of the national initiative are presented, and various projects related to the transformation and unification of various aspects of supporting social services via interoperability solutions are illustrated. In addition, the path from general e-Government requirements through the definition of domain-specific information and documentation down to the development of technology solutions and dissemination plan is presented. The authors highlight several success factors and issues for the organization of multipartite collaboration, the specification of architectural and information management approach, the selection and definition of technology standards to support the domain-specific information needs and specifications and strategic alternatives for central information repositories.
An Organizing Vision for E-Participation Projects in Africa
Authors: Ochara Nixon Muganda
Published: February 2013

To address the shortcomings of this artifact concept, the chapter further presents literature and insights from prior analyses to underpin a nomadic e-particpation framework for realizing effective e-particpation. The framework is clustered around two major layers of building Mobile Communities: building local networks of governance and building flexible networks. The emphasis in the proposed framework is that the current conceptualization of e-government stifles e-particpation, which therefore limits greater online public participation and deliberations on public policy issues.
Managing Interactional Performance in E-Government
Authors: Simon Françoise
Published: February 2013

Currently, citizen-users show a noticeable preference for in-person communication, over Internet-based delivery channels. As a result, governmental agencies still face high numbers of contacts via more traditional service channels such as phone and desk. This chapter deals with the issue of interactional performance in public e-service delivery. It offers a conceptual framework built on the literature of media choice and the theory of perceived justice. As such, it examines the interplay of service complexity, media richness, and social cues on individual media preferences. In addition, it presents key factors which lead citizen-users to the perception of a sense of equity through electronic communication. Finally, this chapter concludes by highlighting a number of possible directions for future action.
ICT Policies on Structural and Socio-Cultural Participation in Brussels
Authors: Mertens Stefan , Servaes Jan
Published: February 2013

In this chapter the authors present an overview and an evaluation of ICT policy in Brussels based on an analysis of policy documents and interviews with 12 policy experts. They discuss two types of policies enhancing structural participation (digital education policy for youngsters and digital adult education policy) and two types of policies enhancing socio-cultural participation (wireless networks in Brussels and E-government of Brussels) To contextualize this presentation of policies some results from a survey among youngsters (N=1005) and from exploratory focus groups will be used as well. These policies are evaluated as policies with a well-intended access approach, but the necessity to focus more on digital education and not only on digital access is stressed.
Elucidating Online Structure for Democratic Legitimacy
Authors: Sayogo Djoko Sigit , Nam Taewoo
Published: February 2013

This study explores the impact of online communicative structures in local government Web disclosure on democratic legitimacy, after the implementation of e-government in Java, Indonesia, as a result of recent bureaucratic decentralization. Being at a very early stage in the e-government initiative, the analysis of 78 local government websites in Indonesia reveals that local government online structures present certain aspects of democratic and interactive appearance. However, the levels of democratized Internet mediated human interactions are restricted. These restrictions reflect the eradication of sensitive information, a low level of responses to citizens’ solicitations, and disclosure of selective information in local government websites. This chapter suggests that restriction on local government online structure is due to the government’s favor of more controlled media interaction influenced by the embedded authoritarian political culture due to many years of institutionalization. In a sense, websites merely function as a symbol of government legitimacy and power over citizens through media technology, which could suggest local government manipulation of democratization processes.
Conceptualization of Trust in the e-Government Context
Authors: Alsaghier Hisham M. , Hussain Rahim
Published: February 2013

Although trust aspects have been investigated in e-commerce context, the e-government field is still significantly lacking from empirical studies that explore trust in e-government from the citizen’s perspective. The lack of trust in e-government in developing countries is another persuasive impetus for conducting this study. The few recent studies investigating citizens’ trust in e-government are conducted in developed countries. This study employed a qualitative approach (focus groups) to gain in depth understanding of the citizen’s perception of e-government adoption. E-government initiative in Saudi Arabia is the main focus of this research. Based on the literature review, the key antecedent factors that affect citizen trust in e-government are identified, and a research model is build. Based on the results of the analysis of three focus groups, managerial recommendations are provided.
Is Romania Ready for Nation-Wide Public e-Services?
Authors: Stoica Virgil , Ilas Andrei
Published: February 2013

In 2009, the Romanian Government engaged itself to the ambitious goal of providing most of the traditional administration services through electronic means. The authors’ larger aim is to assess the policy’s chances of success by looking both at the history and the current level of e-development in Romania. While most of governments’ actions are incremental, only marginally modifying existing programs or practices, the e-government policies around the world do not necessarily fall within this model. However, even the miraculous advancements depend on specific realities. Based on the relevant literature, the authors consider the way towards the success of a nation-wide e-government public policy as being paved by several major pre-requisites: educated citizenry, adequate technical infrastructures, offering of e-services that citizens need, commitment from top government officials, and membership in international organizations supporting e-government development. Results stress the importance of the EU membership and the disequilibrium between the level of Romanians’ e-knowledge and that of governmental e-services. The chapter concludes that in the case of Romania, a successful e-government policy should primarily target the raise of citizens’ Internet and computer related skills.
Small Communities and the Limits of E-Government Engagement
Authors: Hoornbeek John A. , Sowards Kent , Kelley Brian
Published: February 2013

Existing research suggests that progress toward a “virtual state” is inconsistent – at least at the local level of government. Coursey and Norris (2008) argue that few governments have moved beyond an informational presence on the internet and Cassell and Hoornbeek (2010) suggest that populist engagements (Kakabadse et al., 2003) between citizens and local governments remain the exception rather than the rule. This chapter examines two questions regarding e-government engagement among small communities in northeast Ohio. First, it assesses the extent to which small communities in northeast Ohio use websites to engage their citizens. And second, it analyzes factors that lead these governments to create websites and develop them to enable citizen engagement. We find that limited capacities and uncertain demand both limit small community website operations. We also suggest that these findings can help us understand constraints to E-government transformations and perhaps also the inconsistent nature of e-government citizen engagements.
Web 2.0 and Government Transformation
Authors: Glasco Jon E.
Published: February 2013

The existing body of knowledge on public sector transformation explores the concept that e-government contributes to improving public sector services and increasing the participation of citizens in government planning and change initiatives. This chapter provides information on the potential for a digital ecosystem of government, citizens and businesses to use Web 2.0 and social media innovation to shape government transformation and contribute to government’s quality-of-life mission. The chapter includes examples of how web-centric technologies affect e-government innovation and proposes a new planning framework for web-centric services.
Mapping Affymetrix Microarray Probes to the Rat Genome via a Persistent Index
Authors: Fairley Susan , McClure John D. , Hanlon Neil , Irving Rob , McBride Martin W. , Dominiczak Anna F. , Hunt Ela
Published: February 2013

A probe mapping technique using a novel implementation of a persistent q-gram index was developed. It guarantees to find all matches that meet certain definitions. These include exact matching of the central 19 bases of 25 base probes, matching the central 19 bases with at most one or three mismatches and exact matching of any 16 bases. In comparison with BLAST and BLAT, the new methods were either significantly faster or identified matches missed by the heuristics. The 16 bp method was used to map the 342,410 perfect match probes from the Affymetrix GeneChip Rat Genome 230 2.0 Array to the genome. When compared with the mapping from Ensembl, the new mapping included over seven million novel matches, providing additional evidence for researchers wishing to further investigate the sources of signals measured in microarray experiments. The results demonstrate the practicality of the index, which could support other q-gram based algorithms.
Characterization and Classification of Local Protein Surfaces Using Self-Organizing Map
Authors: Sael Lee , Kihara Daisuke
Published: February 2013

Annotating protein structures is an urgent task as increasing number of protein structures of unknown function is being solved. To achieve this goal, it is critical to establish computational methods for characterizing and classifying protein local structures. The authors analyzed the similarity of local surface patches from 609 representative proteins considering shape and the electrostatic potential, which are represented by the 3D Zernike descriptors. Classification of local patches is done with the emergent self-organizing map (ESOM). They mapped patches at ligand binding-sites to investigate how they distribute and cluster among the ESOM map. They obtained 30-50 clusters of local surfaces of different characteristics, which will be useful for annotating surface of proteins.
Incorporating Network Topology Improves Prediction of Protein Interaction Networks from Transcriptomic Data
Authors: Larsen Peter E. , Collart Frank , Dai Yang
Published: February 2013

The reconstruction of protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks from high-throughput experimental data is one of the most challenging problems in bioinformatics. These biological networks have specific topologies defined by the functional and evolutionary relationships between the proteins and the physical limitations imposed on proteins interacting in the three-dimensional space. In this paper, the authors propose a novel approach for the identification of potential protein-protein interactions based on the integration of known PPI network topology and transcriptomic data. The proposed method, Function Restricted Value Neighborhood (FRV-N), was used to reconstruct PPI networks using an experimental data set consisting of 170 yeast microarray profiles. The results of this analysis demonstrate that incorporating knowledge of interactome topology improves the ability of transcriptome analysis to reconstruct interaction networks with a high degree of biological relevance.
SPCCTDM, a Catalogue for Analysis of Therapeutic Drug Monitoring Related Contents
Authors: Ulrich Sven , Baumann Pierre , Conca Andreas , Kuss Hans-Joachim , Stieffenhofer Viktoria , Hiemke Christoph
Published: February 2013

Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) has consistently been shown to be useful for optimization of drug therapy. For the first time, a method has been developed for the text analysis of TDM in SPCs in that a catalogue SPC-ContentTDM (SPCCTDM) provides a codification of the content of TDM in SPCs. It consists of six structure-related items (dose, adverse drug reactions, drug interactions, overdose, pregnancy/breast feeding, and pharmacokinetics) according to implicit or explicit references to TDM in paragraphs of the SPC, and four theory-guided items according to the information about ranges of plasma concentrations and a recommendation of TDM in the SPC. The catalogue is regarded as valid for the text analysis of SPCs with respect to TDM. It can be used in the comparison of SPCs, in the comparison with medico-scientific evidence and for the estimation of the perception of TDM in SPCs by the reader. Regarding the approach as a model of text mining, it may be extended for evaluation of other aspects reported in SPCs.
Hierarchical Density-Based Clustering of White Matter Tracts in the Human Brain
Authors: Shao Junming , Hahn Klaus , Yang Qinli , Wohlschläeger Afra , Boehm Christian , Myers Nicholas , Plant Claudia
Published: February 2013

Diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTI) provides a promising way of estimating the neural fiber pathways in the human brain non-invasively via white matter tractography. However, it is difficult to analyze the vast number of resulting tracts quantitatively. Automatic tract clustering would be useful for the neuroscience community, as it can contribute to accurate neurosurgical planning, tract-based analysis, or white matter atlas creation. In this paper, the authors propose a new framework for automatic white matter tract clustering using a hierarchical density-based approach. A novel fiber similarity measure based on dynamic time warping allows for an effective and efficient evaluation of fiber similarity. A lower bounding technique is used to further speed up the computation. Then the algorithm OPTICS is applied, to sort the data into a reachability plot, visualizing the clustering structure of the data. Interactive and automatic clustering algorithms are finally introduced to obtain the clusters. Extensive experiments on synthetic data and real data demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of our fiber similarity measure and show that the hierarchical density-based clustering method can group these tracts into meaningful bundles on multiple scales as well as eliminating noisy fibers.
Energy Efficient Association Method for Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Lee Jae-Hyung , Kim Dong-Sung
Published: February 2013

This chapter describes an energy efficient association method for Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). The described method can be used to implement an association procedure by which an improved processing rate can be achieved by using a Beacon Only Period (BOP). The performance of mobile nodes is enhanced by using information on depth, traffic, and Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI). By using the Energy Efficient Association (EEA) method, trusted data can be transferred, and traffic overloads that occur at specific nodes can be prevented. In order to research the performance of the described method, the obtained information, such as depth, traffic rate, and RRSI from the relay nodes, is investigated and analyzed. Simulation results show that the EEA method can be used to obtain an efficient network configuration according to the mobility of nodes in WSNs.
Energy Efficient Routing by Switching-Off Network Interfaces
Authors: Giroire Frédéric , Mazauric Dorian , Moulierac Joanna
Published: February 2013

Several studies exhibit that the traffic load of routers only has a small influence on their energy consumption. Hence, the power consumption in networks is strongly related to the number of active network elements, such as interfaces, line cards, base chassis, etc. The goal is to find a routing that minimizes the (weighted) number of active network elements used when routing. In this chapter, the authors consider a simplified architecture where a connection between two routers is represented as a link joining two network interfaces. When a connection is not used, both network interfaces can be turned off. Therefore, in order to reduce power consumption, the goal is to find the routing that minimizes the number of used links while satisfying all the demands. The authors first define formally the problem and model it as an integer linear program. Then, they prove that this problem is not in APX, that is there is no polynomial-time constant-factor approximation algorithm. They propose a heuristic algorithm for this problem and also prove some negative results about basic greedy and probabilistic algorithms. Thus, the authors present a study on specific topologies, such as trees, grids, and complete graphs, that provides bounds and results useful for real topologies. They then exhibit the gain in terms of number of network interfaces (leading to a global reduction of approximately 33 MWh for a medium-sized backbone network) for a set of existing network topologies: the authors see that for almost all topologies more than one third of the network interfaces can be spared for usual ranges of operation. Finally, the authors discuss the impact of energy efficient routing on the stretch factor and on fault tolerance.
Energy Optimizations in Broadband Access Networks
Authors: Guenach Mamoun , Hooghe Koen , Timmers Michael , Maes Jochen , Singy Dominique , Lamparter Oliver
Published: February 2013

The second part of this chapter focuses on deployment practices and describes how different access network architectures can improve the energy consumption, when considering both the telecom equipment and its supporting functions. The authors show that introducing an access network architecture that distributes more functions in the outside plant does not negatively impact energy consumption of the access network. A use case for the Benelux is worked out and a related innovation in the Swisscom access network shows that also in the more centralized architectures further optimizations are possible.1
Power Management and Energy Scavenging
Authors: Muhtaroglu Ali
Published: February 2013

Contemporary computing requires long battery life, low energy operation, and compact, low cost, light platforms, all at the same time. Good power management is often the determinant for success. Main traditional power management development areas are architectural power/performance features, low power circuits, power electronics or power delivery, and thermal management system design. These areas are reviewed in the first part of this chapter. Next, energy scavenging is introduced as a recently proposed power management field with great potential for development. Available energy sources around a computing platform, and associated scavenging technologies are reviewed in Section 2. The final section of the chapter emphasizes a full system approach for effective integration of energy scavengers to practical computing platforms through proper case studies.
Lightning Protection of Substations and the Effects of the Frequency-Dependent Surge Impedance of Transformers
Authors: Tarko Rafal , Nowak Wieslaw
Published: February 2013

The reliability of electrical power transmission and distribution depends upon the progress in the insulation coordination, which results both from the improvement of overvoltage protection methods and new constructions of electrical power devices, and from the development of the surge exposures identification, affecting the insulating system. Owing to the technical, exploitation, and economic nature, the overvoltage risk in high and extra high voltage electrical power systems has been rarely investigated, and therefore the theoretical methods of analysis are intensely developed. This especially applies to lightning overvoltages, which are analyzed using mathematical modeling and computer calculation techniques. The chapter is dedicated to the problems of voltage transients generated by lightning overvoltages in high and extra high voltage electrical power systems. Such models of electrical power lines and substations in the conditions of lightning overvoltages enable the analysis of surge risks, being a result of direct lightning strokes to the tower, ground, and phase conductors. Those models also account for the impulse electric strength of the external insulation. On the basis of mathematical models, the results of numerical simulation of overvoltage risk in selected electrical power systems have been presented. Those examples also cover optimization of the surge arresters location in electrical power substations.
Transformer Insulation Design Based on the Analysis of Impulse Voltage Distribution
Authors: Veens Jos A.M.
Published: February 2013

In this chapter, the calculation of transient voltages over and between winding parts of a large power transformer, and the influence on the design of the insulation is treated. The insulation is grouped into two types; minor insulation, which means the insulation within the windings, and major insulation, which means the insulation build-up between the windings and from the windings to grounded surfaces. For illustration purposes, the core form transformer type with circular windings around a quasi-circular core is assumed. The insulation system is assumed to be comprised of mineral insulating oil, oil-impregnated paper and pressboard. Other insulation media have different transient voltage withstand capabilities. The results of impulse voltage distribution calculations along and between the winding parts have to be checked against the withstand capabilities of the physical structure of the windings in a winding phase assembly. Attention is paid to major transformer components outside the winding set, like active part leads and cleats and various types of tap changers.
Optimal Passive Damper Positioning Techniques
Authors: Puthanpurayil Arun M. , Dhakal Rajesh P , Carr Athol J.
Published: February 2013

A consolidated review of the current-state-of-the-art on optimal damper positioning techniques is presented in this chapter. The inherent assumptions made in previous research are discussed and substantiated with numerical studies. Earlier studies have shown that optimal distribution of dampers is sensitive to in-structure damping. In this chapter the significance of optimal distribution of dampers coupled with the necessity for the use of a more realistic in-structure damping model is qualitatively illustrated using a comparative sensitivity study. The effect of inherent assumption of linearity of the parent frame on the ‘optimality’ is also investigated. It is shown that linearity assumption imposed on the parent frame in a major seismic event may not be justified; thereby raising doubts on the scope of optimality techniques proposed in literature.
Evolutionary Optimization of Passive Compensators to Improve Earthquake Resistance
Authors: Steinbuch Rolf
Published: February 2013

Compensators are widely used to influence the dynamic response of excited structures. The coupling of additional masses with defined stiffness and damping to the vibrating elements reduces or avoids unwanted oscillations. In earthquake engineering, compensators often consist of one or a small number of such additional mass-spring combinations. To come up with a good design of the compensators, a multidimensional optimization problem has to be solved. As there might be many local optima, evolutionary approaches are the appropriate choice of the optimization strategy. They start with some basic designs. Then a sequence of generations of design variants is studied. The members of each generation are derived from the parent generation by crossing and mutation. The best kids are the parents of the next generation. Optimization results show that the use of compensating systems may essentially reduce the impact of an earthquake.