bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Measuring Collaboration in Online Communications
Authors: Ingram Albert L.
Published: May 2011

Collaboration has become a key concept in the workplace, in research laboratories, and in educational settings. Companies want members of different departments located far apart to work together. Various government agencies try to establish collaborative relationships with private organizations. Academics and corporate researchers collaborate with far-flung colleagues to produce new knowledge. Students at all levels of our educational system are increasingly being asked to learn collaboratively. In addition, more work is being done online. Businesses communicate over the Internet, and increasing numbers of educational experiences are being delivered at a distance. Virtual high schools, traditional and for-profit distance education institutions, and colleges and universities are all among the current users of the Internet in education.
Mobile Commerce Technology
Authors: Lee Chung-wei , Hu Wen-Chen , Yeh Jyh-haw
Published: May 2011

With the introduction of the World Wide Web, electronic commerce has revolutionized traditional commerce and boosted sales and exchanges of merchandise and information. Recently, the emergence of wireless and mobile networks has made possible the admission of electronic commerce to a new application and research subject—mobile commerce, which is defined as the exchange or buying and selling of commodities, services, or information on the Internet through the use of mobile handheld devices. With services provided by mobile commerce, consumers may use the microbrowsers on their cellular phones or PDAs to buy tickets, order meals, locate and book local hotel rooms, even write contracts on the move.
Project Management Models in IT
Authors: de Carvalho Marly Monteiro , Barbin Laurindo Fernando José , de Paula Pessoa Marcelo Schneck
Published: May 2011

The implementation of formal efficiency procedures is quite new in It projects. There are different approaches regarding the best practices in the IT project management (Carvalho, Laurindo & Pessôa, 2003; Laurindo, Carvalho & Shimizu, 2003).
Sharing Organizational Knowledge through Knowledge Repositories
Authors: Qayyum M. Asim
Published: May 2011

Knowledge repositories are increasingly being viewed as a special form of knowledge management in organizational memory information systems (OMISs). Presented in this paper are the design concepts and guidelines for building a knowledge repository, and its practical implementation in the form of a prototype. The needs and the organizational and technical challenges associated with the undertaking of such a project are identified, and recommendations and strategies for overcoming the restrictions are discussed. In light of these repository-building guiding principles, the prototype of such a knowledge management system is envisaged to be a Web-based electronic repository of online pedagogical resources, built to help foster a learning organization that works together to gather and share knowledge. As per the design guidelines, information resources within this prototype are combined with user insights and experience in the form of associated annotations and then categorized within a subject tree to appear as knowledge to the repository users.
SMEs Amidst Global Technological Changes
Authors: Al-Qirim Nabeel A.Y.
Published: May 2011

In small countries such as New Zealand, small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are defined as enterprises employing 19 or fewer employees. Small enterprises are defined as those employing zero to five full-time employees (FTEs) (often called microbusinesses), and medium-sized enterprises as those employing six to nineteen FTEs. Other countries, such as the United States and European countries, define their SMEs as having a much larger number of employees (200–500 or fewer).
Software and Systems Engineering Integration
Authors: Gibson Rick
Published: May 2011

With software an increasingly significant component of most products, it is vital that teams of software and systems engineers collaborate effectively to build cost effective, reliable products. This article will identify the key aspects of software engineering and systems engineering in an effort to highlight areas of consensus and conflict to support current efforts by practitioners and academics in the both disciplines in redefining and integrating their professions and bodies of knowledge.
Software Contracts for Component-Based Web Engineering
Authors: Gaedke Martin , Nussbaumer Martin , Tonkin Emma
Published: May 2011

As an emerging technology, the Web is full of unique challenges for developers, designers – and engineers. Its use for increasingly complex applications such as e-commerce and banking, involving connection to many data sources, highlighted a number of common difficulties. During the design phase, good modeling of complex sites is difficult; during implementation, the design models are often found to be difficult to translate into an implementation model; afterwards, maintenance and long-term management of the site’s evolution offer problems of their own. Qualities such as integrity, security, and usability are often afterthoughts, or left unconsidered – most particularly during the site’s post-deployment evolution. Many organizations working for the Web still use ad-hoc, chaotic development and maintenance methods, even though the issues surrounding development are now widely known.
Structural Text Mining
Authors: Kulyukin Vladimir A. , Nicholson John A.
Published: May 2011

The advent of the World Wide Web has resulted in the creation of millions of documents containing unstructured, structured and semi-structured data. Consequently, research on structural text mining has come to the forefront of both information retrieval and natural language processing (Cardie, 1997; Freitag, 1998; Hammer, Garcia-Molina, Cho, Aranha, & Crespo, 1997; Hearst, 1992; Hsu & Chang, 1999; Jacquemin & Bush, 2000; Kushmerick, Weld, & Doorenbos, 1997). Knowledge of how information is organized and structured in texts can be of significant assistance to information systems that use documents as their knowledge bases (Appelt, 1999). In particular, such knowledge is of use to information retrieval systems (Salton & McGill, 1983) that retrieve documents in response to user queries and to systems that use texts to construct domain-specific ontologies or thesauri (Ruge, 1997).
Success Surrogates in Representational Decision Support Systems
Authors: McHaney Roger
Published: May 2011

Rapid and frequent organizational change has been a hallmark of business environments in the past two decades. Frequently, technology and new software development are embraced as aspects of complex strategies and tactical plans. Without sufficient analysis, the unforeseen consequences of change can result in unexpected disruptions and the loss of productivity. In order to better control these contingencies, modern managers often employ a variety of decision support aids. One such aid, classified as a representational decision support system, is discrete event simulation (DES).
Supporting Assurance and Compliance Monitoring
Authors: Goldschmidt Peter
Published: May 2011

Governments and commercial organizations typically use monitoring facilities that depend on data that identify source agents and their relationships, to detect and draw attention to possible anomalies and potential non-compliance.
Teams and Electronic Technologies
Authors: Ferris Sharmila Pixy , Minielli Maureen C.
Published: May 2011

Teams are integral elements in today’s corporate and industrial worlds, considered by some to be the fundamental units of organizations, and technology has become essential to teamwork. Just as it is nearly impossible to engage in any type of organizational task without team support today, it is equally impossible to engage in effective teamwork without technological support. Technology, particularly computer and digital technology, has become essential to the functioning of both traditional teams (face-to-face) and virtual (distributed or geographically separated) teams. Technology and virtuality arguably change work groups in three important ways: they introduce new dimensions of communication among members by breaking down traditional barriers of space and time; they modify traditional group processes; and they enormously enhance the group’s capacity to access, share, manipulate, retrieve, and store information.
Technological Collaboration and Trust in Virtual Teams
Authors: Morris Steven A. , Marshall Thomas E. , Rainer R. Kelly
Published: May 2011

A hypercompetitive environment of global competition, reduced product cycle times, and rapid change has forced organizations to seek new structures and practices that allow them to react with speed and agility. One structure that has gained increasing support among organizations seeking to improve organizational agility has been the virtual team (Mowshowitz, 1997). Virtual teams are the application of virtual organization concepts to team environments. Virtual teams use information technology (IT) to remove barriers of time, location, and organizational boundaries to allow the integration of skills through collaborative relationships based on trust and professionalism to meet specific objectives. Despite the growing popularity of virtual teams among businesses, more needs to be known about the nature of these teams (Bell & Kozlowski, 2002). For example, some research has found virtual teams to outperform traditional face-to-face teams (e.g., Majchrzak, Malhotra, Stamps & Lipnack, 2004; Schmidt, Montoya-Weiss & Massey, 2001), while other research indicates otherwise (Cramton, 2002). It is important that organizations understand the implications of these virtual teams so that they may be used in the most effective manner, and under the most appropriate circumstances.
Technology of Formal Education
Authors: Hantula Donald A. , DeRosa Dareleen M.
Published: May 2011

Internet distance education is a natural consequence of fin de siecle industrial transformations from a manufacturing economy, in which standard educational practices are based, to an information economy, in which greater autonomy, collaboration, flexibility and a project orientation to work are the norm. The Internet did not cause changes in education, but rather enabled educators to meet new demands for instructional practices and outcomes and adapt to a rapidly changing economic and social environment that was beginning to outpace the academy. Today, just as 100 years ago, educational institutions and practices are modeled on prevailing industrial examples of work and organization. This is especially the case in the United States where an overriding intended effect of formal education is to prepare students to fill roles within the prevailing economic system. Against this backdrop, it is only those components of education that reflect and reinforce the prevailing industrial system that are incorporated into the technology known as formal education. Components of education such as teaching machines and distance learning existed throughout the 20th century but never became standard educational practice until fairly recently because they were not acceptable in terms of preparing students to enter the prevailing industrial system.
Trust in B2C E-Commerce Interface
Authors: Wang Ye Diana
Published: May 2011

Electronic commerce (e-commerce) is changing the way people make business transactions, especially in the business-to-consumer (B2C) area, and it is becoming a significant global economic force. Since Internet technologies and infrastructures to support e-commerce are now in place, attention is turning to psychological factors that affect e-commerce acceptance by online users and their perceptions of online transactions. One such factor is trust, seen to be key to the proliferation of e-commerce.
VRML-Based System for a 3D Virtual Museum
Authors: Diez-Higuera José-Fernando. , Diaz-Pernas Francisco-Javier
Published: May 2011

In the last few years, because of the increasing growth of the Internet, general-purpose clients have achieved a high level of popularity for static consultation of text and pictures. This is the case of the World Wide Web (i.e., the Web browsers). Using a hypertext system, Web users can select and read in their computers information from all around the world, with no other requirement than an Internet connection and a navigation program. For a long time, the information available on the Internet has been series of written texts and 2D pictures (i.e., static information). This sort of information suited many publications, but it was highly unsatisfactory for others, like those related to objects of art, where real volume, and interactivity with the user, are of great importance. Here, the possibility of including 3D information in Web pages makes real sense.
Web Technologies and Data Warehousing Synergies
Authors: Artz John M.
Published: May 2011

Data warehousing is an emerging technology that greatly extends the capabilities of relational databases specifically in the analysis of very large sets of time-oriented data. The emergence of data warehousing has been somewhat eclipsed over the past decade by the simultaneous emergence of Web technologies. However, Web technologies and data warehousing have some natural synergies that are not immediately obvious. First, Web technologies make data warehouse data more easily available to a much wider variety of users. Second, data warehouse technologies can be used to analyze traffic to a Web site in order to gain a much better understanding of the visitors to the Web site. It is this second synergy that is the focus of this article.
Web-Based Distance Learning and the Second Digital Divide
Authors: Burgstahler Sheryl
Published: May 2011

In no field have we witnessed a greater impact of emerging technologies than in that of distance learning. Correspondence courses using printed material and postal mail have been replaced by Web-based courses with the potential to make learning available to anyone, anywhere at anytime. This potential cannot be realized, however, unless two digital divides are eliminated. Some people are on the wrong side of the first “digital divide” between the technology “haves” and the technology “have-nots”. The benefits of technology are less available to those who are poor, who live in rural areas, who are members of minority racial or ethnic groups, and/or who have disabilities (Kaye, 2000; U.S. Department of Commerce, 1999). Lack of access to new technologies limits their options for taking and teaching technology-based courses. This is true for individuals with disabilities, even though the rapid development of assistive technology makes it possible for an individual with almost any type of disability to operate a computer (2003 Closing the Gap Resource Directory, 2003). Unfortunately, many people with disabilities still do not have access to these empowering tools, putting them on the “have not” side of the first digital divide.
Advancing the Effective Use of Technology in Higher Education
Authors: Johnstone Sally M.
Published: May 2011

In 1989 the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) located in Boulder, Colorado, founded the Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications (WCET) as a resource for the 15 western states. At the first annual meeting, delegates from outside the WICHE states petitioned to join. The original membership agreed. By 2004, WCET had over 250 members representing 43 states and seven countries. WCET had become an international, member-driven service agency.
Asynchronous vs. Synchronous Interaction
Authors: Kung-Ming Tiong , Khoon-Seng Sim
Published: May 2011

The rapid development of technology greatly influences computer-based learning in distance education. One of the most important aspects is interactivity, and this is threefold: student-student interaction, student-instructor interaction, and student-content interaction (Moore & Kearsley, 1996). As distance-education technology increasingly moves toward multimedia-oriented systems, a more effective synergy of synchronous and asynchronous interaction is required. As discussed by Garrison (1990), the quality and integrity of the educational process in distance learning largely depends upon sustained, two-way communication. In this article, we will look into the characteristics of both types of interaction and discuss their advantages as well as impact on the three forms of interactions. We will also look at some examples for both asynchronous and synchronous interaction technologies in facilitating distance learning. Finally, we look at some possible future trends in distance-learning interactivity.
Blended Learning Environments
Authors: Graham Charles R. , Allen Stephanie
Published: May 2011

The term “blended learning” is being used with increased frequency in academic publications and conferences as well as in industry trade magazines around the world. In 2003, the American Society for Training and Development identified blended learning as one of the top ten emergent trends in the knowledge delivery industry (Rooney, 2003). In higher education, some predict a dramatic increase in the number of hybrid (i.e., blended) courses that will include as many as 80-90% of the range of higher education courses (Young, 2002). Additionally, in a recent Chronicle of Higher Education article, the president of Pennsylvania State University, Graham Spanier, was quoted as saying that the convergence between online and residential instruction was “the single-greatest unrecognized trend in higher education today” (Young, 2002). This article provides an overview of blended learning environments (BLEs) with examples from both corporate training and higher education contexts. It also identifies the most common benefits and challenges related to the use of blended learning environments from the research literature.
Change Management and Distance Education
Authors: Partow-Navid Parviz , Slusky Ludwig
Published: May 2011

E-learning is defined as the transmission of knowledge whereby the instructor and/or the student participate in the learning process from different places and/or different times (Henry, 2001). Many organizations have adopted e-learning as a way to make the learning process faster and better (Roshan, 2002). However, recent studies have revealed that about 85% of students participating in e-learning and distance education fall short of completing their program. Low completion leads to low retention, which leads to low performance (Land, 2002). The problem, exacerbated by rapid changes in information technology (IT), lies on the shoulder of the universities and the students. For universities, e-learning often is such a giant technological and managerial change that the faculty attempts to deal with it by scaling instructions down to merely automated text lectures with a primary focus on the delivery of instructional materials, rather than addressing the students’ needs. For students, e-learning is usually a short experience coupled with little-known technologies for which they need extra guidance and support that is more persistent. However, the challenge is how to employ this new technology and bring students the help they need when they need it (Gordon, 2003; Roberts, 2001).
Collaborative and Cooperative Learning
Authors: McInnerney J. M. , Roberts T. S.
Published: May 2011

The increasingly rapid movement of undergraduate and postgraduate courses to online Web-based forms of delivery would seem to provide the ideal circumstances for non-traditional methods of teaching and learning to be re-examined.
Communication and Media Theory
Authors: Berg Gary A.
Published: May 2011

Communications theory dates to the Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle, but became a recognized academic field in the 1940s during World War II (Newby, Stepich, Lehman, & Russell, 1996). Media theorists have analyzed the development of new media and how they are connected to broader social evolution. These theories are useful to examine in regard to understanding computer learning environments as a new medium because they place it in a larger historical context.
Community Colleges in America and Distance Learning
Authors: Berg Gary A.
Published: May 2011

Community colleges in the United States have played an important role in the development and implementation of various forms of computer- and media-based education. A common mistake made when discussing distance learning in American higher education is to fail to distinguish the policies and practices of different institutional types. Generalizations about distance learning are particularly misleading if one does not recognize the very large differences in mission, resources, stakeholders, and external pressures between community colleges and four-year institutions.
Distance Education from Religions of the World
Authors: Rogers Clint P. , Howell Scott L.
Published: May 2011

nternationally, religious institutions are developing distance learning for a variety of reasons and purposes. The religious applications of distance learning comprise three main areas: extending the reach of theological education (primarily for the training of clergy), expanding opportunities for higher education from religious-sponsored universities and colleges, and facilitating other lifelong learning opportunities for members of the laity. Although Amos noted in 1999 that “little has been written and published on distance education in North American theological education” (p. 126), that is still the case today. Despite an expanding usage of distance learning by religious institutions, there has been little published on any of these international efforts. Accordingly, this article is a synthesis of original research, the authors having contacted leaders and academics from international institutions affiliated with major world religions to discover more about their various applications of distance learning.
Educational Software Evaluation
Authors: Shaughnessy Michael
Published: May 2011

From 1980 to 2000, there were many articles written on the subject of software review and evaluation. Upon initial investigation of educational software methodologies, it appears that there are as many evaluation methodologies as there are authors presenting them. Several articles (methodology analyses) have been written describing these evaluation techniques (Bryson & Cullen, 1984; Eraut, 1989; Holznagel, 1983; Jones et al., 1999; McDougall & Squires, 1995; Reiser & Kegelmann, 1994, 1996; Russell & Blake, 1988). Each of these articles describes various methodologies and presents the most current evaluation methodology available, but fails to provide a complete history of the types of evaluation methodologies. These analyses of evaluation methodologies focus on the individual methodology, but refrain from putting individual methodologies into a greater systematic context.
E-Learning Design Quality
Authors: Zaharias Panagiotis
Published: May 2011

A critical review of the literature was conducted which resulted in the formulation of an e-learning research agenda with a focus on quality and e-learning design issues. The e-learning research agenda summarizes the most commonly identifiable research dimensions regarding e-learning design that influence e-learning quality.
From R&D Project to Virtual Universities
Authors: Haugen Harald , Ask Bodil
Published: May 2011

Four Norwegian higher educational institutions—the University Colleges at Agder, Stord/Haugesund, and Sør-Trøndelag, and the University in Trondheim (NTNU)—had all participated in a European collaborative project on open learning, that is, JITOL (Just-In-Time Open Learning, 1992-1994) under the Delta program of the European Community. Building on experiences from this and other related projects, representatives from the four institutions decided to propose a national experiment along the same principles. Support was granted from a governmental agency, SOFF, and NITOL (Norway-net with IT for Open Learning) was established in April 1994.
History of Correspondence Instruction
Authors: Berg Gary A.
Published: May 2011

In a general sense, the origin of computer-based learning methods as they have developed internationally derived from correspondence instruction. In the United States, certain problems drove the development of alternative forms of higher education such as correspondence instruction at the end of the 19th century, including geographical separation from sources of higher education, demands of work and military service, lack of access for women, minorities, and the handicapped, religious convictions, and limitations of the curriculum.
Implementing a Statewide Electronic Portfolio Infrastructure
Authors: Wasko Paul
Published: May 2011

On August 1, 2002, after over a year of discussion, design, and development, the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) launched eFolio MinnesotaTM . After 15 months of operations, eFolio Minnesota has over 12,000 registered users and is receiving close to two million hits per month. The effort has experienced double-digit monthly growth since its launch and is well on its way to being adopted throughout the state by the K-20 education community along with the State’s Workforce Center System. This article is intended to provide the reader with a chance to understand the historical factors that helped shaped this one-of-a-kind effort, along with providing an understanding of the design/development process and what the future potentially holds. This article is not intended to go into the history of the electronic portfolio movement; if one is interested in that, one needs go no further than to check out Dr. Helen Barrett’s site at http://www.electronicpor tfolios.com (2004).
Lower Perceived Performance in Testing
Authors: Martz Jr. Wm. Benjamin , Shepherd Morgan M.
Published: May 2011

Distance education is big business; more than 1.6 million students enroll in distance education classes annually. The Institute of Higher Education (2000) estimated that by 2004 more than 90% of all two- and four-year colleges will offer some sort of online courses. By the end of 2003, the virtual education market will grow in excess of $21 billion (Svetcov, 2000). New technologies and improvements in networking capabilities are enabling distance education instructors to come closer to providing the traditional learning environment for their students. However, many issues still need to be resolved and, according to recent research studies, it does not appear that these will be resolved any time soon.
Online Critical Thinking in Problem-Solving Groups
Authors: Molinari Deana L. , Dupler Alice E.
Published: May 2011

There are many different definitions of critical thinking (CT). Some type of the concept is taught in all higher education disciplines. Academia teaches teamwork and critical thinking (Cathcart & Samovar, 1992) because the professional world requires small-group decision making (Jonassen & Kwon, 2001). Critical thinking is taught by precept and practice (Facione, 1995; Wilkinson, 2001; Winningham, 2000). Constructivists recommend dialogue because meaningful discussion enhances experiential learning through social negotiations and reflection (Vrasidas & McIsaac, 1999). Collaborative problem solving is often utilized in nursing education to increase critical thinking (Collis, Andernach, & Van Diepen, 1997; Cragg, 1991; Crooks, Klein, Savenye, & Leader, 1998; Krothe, Pappas, & Adair, 1996).
Online Learning Programs
Authors: Boettcher Judith V.
Published: May 2011

The importance of design for online instructional programs increases with the potential combinations of students, student goals, content, skills to be acquired and the teaching and learning environments.
Openness Dimensions of Distance Teaching Universities
Authors: Guri-Rosenblit Sarah
Published: May 2011

Distance teaching universities are often referred to as open universities, even if they are not called an open university. The use of the term open supposes that education and learning have traditionally been closed by various barriers, such as entrance requirements, time constraints, geographical location, and so forth, and assumes that an open learning institution purports to overcome these barriers or part of them.
Perspectives on E-Learning
Authors: Bonk Curtis J. , Wisher Robert A. , Lee Ji-Yeon
Published: May 2011

For students, teachers, and administrators, e-learning is a relatively new and sometimes uncertain event. With popular technologies and instructional trends coming and going, distance learning practice and policies change constantly. Regardless of one’s preference for an online learning management system, he or she may be forced to drop it in favor of an inferior and untested courseware shell that was developed internally and adopted solely because it was free. Adding to the confusion, technology tradeshows and teaching and learning conferences continue to alter their themes to fit the current online terminology, which, in turn, changes and evolves. Despite the anxiety caused by the many uncertainties and the accelerating pace of change, teaching online is fast becoming an expected part of one’s scholarly endeavors or, at the very least, a legitimate practice of one’s colleagues and home institution.
Stress of Nursing Students Studying Online
Authors: Molinari Deana L. , Dupler Alice E. , Lungstrom Naomi
Published: May 2011

Stress impacts both the quality and length of life (Sapolsky, 1998), but the stress of learning is yet to be understood. Few studies exist in the literature about learning stress. The lack of technology contributed to this deficiency until recently. Invasive technologies made it difficult to study people in vivo. Recent theoretical and technological developments changed this situation. New holistic theories permit the inclusion of biological measurements, brain research developments enable the research of learning physiology, and advanced technology facilitates field-data collection.
Teachers for the New Millennium
Authors: Lerman James
Published: May 2011

They say if you drop a live frog into a pot of boiling water, it will jump right out. But, if you place the same frog into a pot of water at room temperature and then gradually raise the flame under it, the frog will not notice the changes and remain in the pot until it is cooked.
Tropical Medicine Open Learning Environment
Authors: Clarebout Geraldine , Elen Jan , Lowyck Joost , Van den Ende Jef , Van den Enden Erwin
Published: May 2011

Educational goals have generally shifted from knowing everything in a specific domain to knowing how to deal with complex problems. Reasoning and information-processing skills have become more important than the sheer amount of information memorized. In medical education, the same evolution has occurred. Diagnostic reasoning processes get more strongly emphasized. Whereas previously knowing all symptoms and diseases was stressed, reasoning skills have now become educationally more important. They must enable professionals to distinguish between differential diagnoses and to recognize patterns of illnesses (e.g., Myers & Dorsey, 1994).
Virtual Organizations in Post-Graduate Education in Egypt
Authors: Kamel Sherif
Published: May 2011

New online learning techniques lead to improved ways to investing in larger numbers of people and optimizing the use of resources. Respectively, virtual organizations are gaining grounds in the education sector with its vehicle capable of closing the digital divide and spreading knowledge that can help improve the literacy rate. This article covers the case of the Regional IT Institute (RITI), an institute located in Cairo, Egypt, that specializes in providing quality education in the fields of information and communication technology and management. The institute’s goal is to educate more students while overcoming the challenge of scarce resources, trying to meet the needs of 30% of the population (70 million) enrolled in education programs (Economic News Bulletin).
Web-Based Multimedia Children's Art Cultivation
Authors: Lin Hao-Tung , Chen Herng-Yow
Published: May 2011

With the rapid advance in Web and multimedia technologies, authoring various types of multimedia content and distributing them on the Web has been very popular for many years. These technologies are applied in e-learning extensively, such as from language learning (e.g., ESL) to professional domain knowledge (e.g., computer science). In contrast, e-learning systems focusing on art domains, especially for kids or teenagers, are few. This is a notable shortcoming, because from a technical viewpoint, current advances in multimedia technology via the Web promise this kind of application. On the other hand, compared with technologies needed for more general-purpose knowledge, cultivating children’s art through e-learning technology needs much more edutainment ingredients – it must be interesting and interactive and offer multimedia. Realizing this kind of e-learning is really a challenge, not only from a pedagogical viewpoint (the first ingredient) but also technical ones (the latter two ingredients).
Facilitating Technology Transfer Among Engineering Community Members
Authors: Cumbie Barry A. , Sankar Chetan S. , Raju P. K.
Published: May 2011

A report, entitled “Benchmarking University-Industry Technology Transfer in the South and the EPSCoR States,” by Waugaman and Tornatzky (1998) found that universities in Alabama have a poor technology-transfer record when compared to their counterparts in other states. Not a single university was listed among the “best-in-class” universities that produced significant economic impact among the 72 universities that were analyzed in this report. This report notes that those universities that emphasize technology development as an essential extension of basic research will generally also be more competitive in research. This problem of a poor technology-transfer seems strange given the enormous effort put forth by many individuals and organizations at state and local levels. The problem seems to arise not from any one group’s deficiencies, but rather from the fragmentation of effort across a wide spectrum. Better communication among non-affiliated groups could increase the effectiveness of technology transfer, thus potentially creating a significant positive economic impact in Alabama. To change this trend and position, the Auburn University College of Engineering, as a leader in
Knowledge Extraction and Sharing in External Communities of Practice
Authors: Udechukwu Ajumobi , Barker Ken , Alhajj Reda
Published: May 2011

Communities of practice (CoPs) may be described as groups whose members regularly engage in sharing and learning, based on common interests (Lesser & Storck, 2001). Traditional communities of practice exist within organizations and are centered on work functions. These CoPs may be self-organizing or corporately sponsored. They exist to encourage learning and interaction, create new knowledge, and identify and share best practices for the organization’s processes (Wenger, 1998). The members of a community of practice may be collocated (within an office) or spatially dispersed (e.g., a group may interact via electronic chat). There may also be communities of practice that are not centered on work functions. For example, several online groups exist for enthusiasts of new technology, politics, environment, and so forth. These groups qualify as bona fide CoPs. We classify the CoPs discussed so far as active communities of practice because the members actively seek to learn and share from each other. In this work, however, we examine passive communities of practice in which the members do not actively interact with each other. This class of CoPs shares the core characteristics of traditional communities of practice—the members can learn from each other, and the organization can gain useful knowledge capital and best practices. Our discussions will be based on user communities using cable-TV viewers as a case in point. In contrast to work-centered CoPs whose members share knowledge and learn how to perform their work tasks better, members of user-centered CoPs learn how to maximize the utility from the product/service of interest. In both cases, a learning organization can extract useful knowledge capital and best practices to improve its processes and products/services. In this work, we use the case of cable-TV viewers to show how useful knowledge can be learned and shared in passive user-centered communities of practice. Our techniques will be based on data mining and knowledge discovery, which are introduced in the subsection that follows.
Managing Complexity via Communities of Practice
Authors: Ng Lai Ling , Pemberton Jon
Published: May 2011

Globalisation, liberalisation of trade, internationalisation of financial markets, and the information technology revolution are but some of the developments that organisations have had to contend with in the last few years. There are, therefore, huge challenges for business leaders in the wake of constantly shifting global competition and ever-increasing change, underpinned by complexity, unpredictability, instability, and ambiguity (Nixon, 2003). In dynamic and complex environments, it is essential for organisations to continually create, validate, and apply new knowledge in the development of their products, processes, and services to ensure they add value (Bhatt, 2001). In essence, organisations seek to differentiate themselves on the basis of what they know, and managers of successful organisations are consistently searching for better ways to improve performance and results. Indeed, frequent disappointments with past management initiatives have motivated managers to gain new understanding into the underlying, but complex mechanisms, like knowledge, which govern an organisation’s effectiveness (Wiig, 1997). Knowledge is, however, not a rigid structure that excludes what does not fit—it can deal with complexity in a complex way (Davenport & Prusak, 2000). A variety of approaches to knowledge management (KM) exist, many relying heavily on technology. However, the focus of KM has moved from an early emphasis on technologies and databases to a keen appreciation of how deeply corporate knowledge is embedded in people’s experience. Organisations have learned that technology is the easy part of supporting knowledge creation; the difficult aspect is working with people to improve collaboration and knowledge sharing (Allee, 2000). To sustain long-term competitive advantage, an organisation needs to ensure a fit between its technological and social systems. In effect, technologies can be used to increase the efficiency of the people and enhance the information flow within the organisation, while social systems facilitate better communications and understanding of complex issues by bringing multiple viewpoints to a variety of situations (Bhatt, 2001). This socio-technical view of KM has spawned a number of initiatives in recent years embracing organisational, cultural, and individual issues (Pemberton & Stonehouse, 2000). One in particular, the notion of a community of practice (CoP), has played, and continues to play, a significant role in knowledge exchange and creation. Indeed, CoPs are KM’s mechanism of choice and are a valuable means of unlocking this hidden treasure (McDermott, 2000). In this sense, CoPs have an important role in the management of complexity within organisations; this is the focus of this particular article.
Metaphors as Cognitive Devices in Communities of Practice
Authors: von Wartburg Iwan
Published: May 2011

The role of language for knowledge creation in communities of practice (CoPs) and innovation teams has been stressed by the accounts of storytelling (Orr, 1996; Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995). Stories work as metaphors connecting new problem situations with prior problem situations. They guide CoP members to arrive at new connections of prior unconnected knowledge domains within cognitive maps. Cognitive maps contain causal and temporal relations between cognitive concepts: “[Cognitive] maps portray causality, predicate logic, or sequences, all capture temporal relations: if this (in the now), then that (in the future)” (Weick, 1990, p. 1). New connections of knowledge domains brought about by metaphorical reasoning enable innovative problem solutions and serve as a ‘platform’ for new knowledge creation in the future. Thus, investigating metaphorical language usage promises to add value to the understanding of knowledge creation in CoPs.
Organisational Change Elements of Establishing, Facilitating, and Supporting CoPs
Authors: Smith P. A.C.
Published: May 2011

Although knowledge management (KM) is often proposed as a viable means to enhance business performance by facilitating knowledge creation and sharing, there is serious concern that it frequently fails to deliver on its promise (Despres & Chauvel, 2000; Fuller, 2001; Newell, Scarbrough, Swan & Hislop, 1999; Pietersen, 2001; Brown & Duguid, 2000; Storey & Barnett, 2000). Smith and McLaughlin (2003) posit that KM’s lacklustre performance can often be traced to non-rational emotion-based “people-factors” that negatively influence interpersonal relationships, and that are ignored during typical KM implementation. These authors argue that the success of any significant change initiative, including KM, will be critically dependent on understanding, and improving as necessary, the collaborative characteristics of the organisation’s culture. This article adopts the notion that effective KM is largely people-centric, and that communities of practice (CoPs), when suitably grounded, provide a practical framework for assisting in the development of appropriate “people-factors” and the nurturing of collaborative relationships. It builds on the work of Smith and McLaughlin (2003) by proposing an extension of their approach that helps ensure the presence of a truly collaborative culture in the target community.
The Reformation of Communities of Practice
Authors: Pyke Aidan
Published: May 2011

A “knowledge set that distinguishes and provides a competitive advantage” to a firm is considered to be that firm’s “core capability” (Leonard-Barton, 1992, p.113). Firms cultivate groups or communities of practice to create, integrate, and disseminate organisational knowledge in particular fields of knowing (Brown & Duguid, 1991). Creating, sharing, and integrating knowledge is mission-critical to a firm because firm-specific advantage flows not from an organisation’s resources per se, but from the knowledge that enables it to deploy such resources to leverage maximum benefit within its operational environment (Penrose, 1959). Knowledge must be managed in a way that differs from the management of a firm’s other resources (Spender, 1996). This requirement stems from the intrinsic qualities of knowledge; it emanates from individual thoughts, which shape and are in turn shaped by the social dynamic within an organisation, a fusion of cognitive and societal processes (Berger & Luckmann, 1967). The inherent qualities of knowledge affect its appropriability (Teece, 1998). Leonard and Sensiper (1998) assert that knowledge is a combination of tacit and explicit. Polanyi (1967) contends that explicit knowledge is knowledge in the abstract, while tacit knowledge incorporates experience and intuitive knowledge, which results from subconscious learning. Itami (1989) argues that it is impossible to separate the individual from the tacit knowledge that he or she possesses. The replication and transfer of knowledge is often impossible without the transfer of actors (Teece, 2000).
Understanding Communities of Practice to Support Collaborative Research
Authors: Cordoba José , Robson Wendy
Published: May 2011

In this article, we present an overview of the relationship between communities of practice and collaborative research. We relate this to an observation of how information technologies could be used as a tool for cultivating research communities of practice. Our aim is to explore similarities between research as an activity developed and supported by communities and the concepts that have been developed by advocates of communities of practice. We focus our attention on research in the social sciences and how it can be improved with the support of community-enabling technologies.
Action Rules
Authors: Ras Zbigniew W. , Tzacheva Angelina , Tsay Li-Shiang
Published: May 2011

There are two aspects of interestingness of rules that have been studied in data mining literature, objective and subjective measures (Liu, 1997; Adomavicius & Tuzhilin, 1997; Silberschatz & Tuzhilin, 1995, 1996). Objective measures are data-driven and domain-independent. Generally, they evaluate the rules based on their quality and similarity between them. Subjective measures, including unexpectedness, novelty and actionability, are user-driven and domain-dependent.
Business Processes
Authors: Sundaram David , Portougal Victor
Published: May 2011

The concept of a business process is central to many areas of business systems, specifically to business systems based on modern information technology. In the new era of computer-based business management the design of business process has eclipsed the previous functional design. Lindsay, Downs, and Lunn (2003) suggest that business process may be divided into material, information and business parts. Further search for efficiency and cost reduction will be predominantly through office automation. The information part, including data warehousing, data mining and increasing informatisation of the office processes will play a key role. Data warehousing and data mining, in and of themselves, are business processes that are aimed at increasing the intelligent density (Dhar & Stein, 1997) of the data. But more important is the significant roles they play within the context of larger business and decision processes. Apart from these the creation and maintenance of a data warehouse itself comprises a set of business processes (see Scheer, 2000). Hence a proper understanding of business processes is essential to better understand data warehousing as well as data mining.
Classification and Regression Trees
Authors: Gehrke Johannes
Published: May 2011

It is the goal of classification and regression to build a data-mining model that can be used for prediction. To construct such a model, we are given a set of training records, each having several attributes. These attributes either can be numerical (e.g., age or salary) or categorical (e.g., profession or gender). There is one distinguished attribute—the dependent attribute; the other attributes are called predictor attributes. If the dependent attribute is categorical, the problem is a classification problem. If the dependent attribute is numerical, the problem is a regression problem. It is the goal of classification and regression to construct a data-mining model that predicts the (unknown) value for a record, where the value of the dependent attribute is unknown. (We call such a record an unlabeled record.) Classification and regression have a wide range of applications, including scientific experiments, medical diagnosis, fraud detection, credit approval, and target marketing (Hand, 1997).
Clustering Techniques
Authors: Ma Sheng , Li Tao
Published: May 2011

Clustering data into sensible groupings as a fundamental and effective tool for efficient data organization, summarization, understanding, and learning has been the subject of active research in several fields, such as statistics (Hartigan, 1975; Jain & Dubes, 1988), machine learning (Dempster, Laird & Rubin, 1977), information theory (Linde, Buzo & Gray, 1980), databases (Guha, Rastogi & Shim, 1998; Zhang, Ramakrishnan & Livny, 1996), and bioinformatics (Cheng & Church, 2000) from various perspectives and with various approaches and focuses. From an application perspective, clustering techniques have been employed in a wide variety of applications, such as customer segregation, hierarchal document organization, image segmentation, microarray data analysis, and psychology experiments.