Abstract: This paper reviews the internal use of blogs and their
potential effectiveness as organisational learning tools. Since the
emergence of the concept of ‘Enterprise 2.0’ there remains a lack of
empirical evidence associated with how organisations are applying
social media tools and whether they are effective towards supporting
organisational learning. Surprisingly, blogs, one of the more
traditional social media tools, still remains under-researched in the
context of ‘Enterprise 2.0’ and organisational learning. The aim of
this paper is to identify the theoretical linkage between blogs and
organisational learning in addition to reviewing prior research on
organisational blogging exploring why this area remains underresearched.
Through a literature review, one of the principal findings
of this paper is that organisational blogs have a mutual compatibility
with the interpretivist aspect of organisational learning. This paper
further advocates that further empirical work in this subject area is
required to substantiate this theoretical assumption.
Abstract: Since the emergence of e-Commerce, the world of
business has witnessed a radical shift in the way business activities
are conducted. However, the emergence of m-Commerce has further
pushed the boundaries of virtual commerce revolution. As a result,
there seems to be a growing blur in the distinction between e-
Commerce and m-Commerce. In addition, existing definitions for
both forms of commerce highlight characteristics (e.g. type of device
and activity conducted) that may be applicable to both concepts. The
aim of this paper is to identify the characteristics that help define and
delineate between e- and m- Commerce. The paper concludes that
characteristics of mobility, ubiquity and immediacy provide a clearer
and simpler template to distinguish between e-Commerce and m-
Commerce.
Abstract: The emergence of the Semantic Web technology
increases day by day due to the rapid growth of multiple web pages.
Many standard formats are available to store the semantic web data.
The most popular format is the Resource Description Framework
(RDF). Querying large RDF graphs becomes a tedious procedure
with a vast increase in the amount of data. The problem of query
optimization becomes an issue in querying large RDF graphs.
Choosing the best query plan reduces the amount of query execution
time. To address this problem, nature inspired algorithms can be used
as an alternative to the traditional query optimization techniques. In
this research, the optimal query plan is generated by the proposed
SAPSO algorithm which is a hybrid of Simulated Annealing (SA)
and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithms. The proposed
SAPSO algorithm has the ability to find the local optimistic result
and it avoids the problem of local minimum. Experiments were
performed on different datasets by changing the number of predicates
and the amount of data. The proposed algorithm gives improved
results compared to existing algorithms in terms of query execution
time.
Abstract: Sustainable tall buildings that provide comfortable,
healthy and efficient indoor environments are clearly desirable as the
densification of living and working space for the world’s increasing
population proceeds. For environmental concerns, these buildings
must also be energy efficient. One component of these tasks is the
provision of indoor air quality and thermal comfort, which can be
enhanced with natural ventilation by the supply of fresh air. Working
spaces can only be naturally ventilated with connections to the
outdoors utilizing operable windows, double facades, ventilation
stacks, balconies, patios, terraces and skygardens. Large amounts of
fresh air can be provided to the indoor spaces without mechanical
air-conditioning systems, which are widely employed in
contemporary tall buildings.
This paper tends to present the concept of natural ventilation for
sustainable tall office buildings in order to achieve healthy and
comfortable working spaces, as well as energy efficient
environments. Initially the historical evolution of ventilation
strategies for tall buildings is presented, beginning with natural
ventilation and continuing with the introduction of mechanical airconditioning
systems. Then the emergence of natural ventilation due
to the health and environmental concerns in tall buildings is handled,
and the strategies for implementing this strategy are revealed. In the
next section, a number of case studies that utilize this strategy are
investigated. Finally, how tall office buildings can benefit from this
strategy is discussed.
Abstract: There have been a lot of efforts and researches undertaken in developing efficient tools for performing several tasks in data mining. Due to the massive amount of information embedded in huge data warehouses maintained in several domains, the extraction of meaningful pattern is no longer feasible. This issue turns to be more obligatory for developing several tools in data mining. Furthermore the major aspire of data mining software is to build a resourceful predictive or descriptive model for handling large amount of information more efficiently and user friendly. Data mining mainly contracts with excessive collection of data that inflicts huge rigorous computational constraints. These out coming challenges lead to the emergence of powerful data mining technologies. In this survey a diverse collection of data mining tools are exemplified and also contrasted with the salient features and performance behavior of each tool.
Abstract: Japanese society is experiencing an aging population and declining birth rate along with the popularization of higher education, spread of economic globalization, rapid progress in technical innovation, changes in employment conditions, and emergence of a knowledge-based society. Against this background, interest in career education at Japanese universities has increased in recent years. This paper describes how the government has implemented career education policies in Japan, and introduces the cases of two universities that have successfully linked career education to university education in Japan.
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to explore the economic circumstances in which the selective credit policy, the least used instrument of four types of instruments on disposal to central banks, should be used. The most significant example includes the use of selective credit policies in response to the emergence of the global financial crisis by the FED. Specifics of the potential use of selective credit policies as the instigator of economic growth in Croatia, a small open economy, are determined by high euroization of financial system, fixed exchange rate and long-term trend growth of external debt that is related to the need to maintain high levels of foreign reserves. In such conditions, the classic forms of selective credit policies are unsuitable for the introduction. Several alternative approaches to implement selective credit policies are examined in this paper. Also, thorough analysis of distribution of selective monetary policy loans among economic sectors in Croatia is conducted in order to minimize the risk of investing funds and maximize the return, in order to influence the GDP growth.
Abstract: Economic development and globalization of international markets have created a favourable atmosphere for the emergence of new forms of crime such as money laundering or financing of terrorism, which may contribute to destabilized and damage economic systems. In particular, money laundering have acquired great importance since the 11S attacks, what has caused on the one hand, the establishment and development of preventive measures and, on the other hand, a progressive hardening of penal measures. Since then, the regulations imposed to fight against money laundering have been viewed as key components also in the fight against terrorist financing. Terrorism, at the beginning, was a “national” crime connected with internal problems of the State (for instance the RAF in Germany or ETA in Spain) but in the last 20 years has started to be an international problem that is connected with the defence and security of the States. Therefore, the new strategic concept for the defense and security of NATO has a comprehensive list of security threats to the Alliance, such as terrorism, international instability, money laundering or attacks on cyberspace, among others. With this new concept, money laundering and terrorism has become a priority in the national defense.
In this work we will analyze the methods to combat these new threats to the national security. We will study the preventive legislations to combat money laundering and financing of terrorism, the UIF that exchange information between States, and the hawala-Banking.
Abstract: Malaria constitutes one of the major health problems
in Nigeria. One of the reasons attributed for the upsurge was the
development of resistance of Plasmodium falciparum and the
emergence of multi-resistant strains of the parasite to anti-malaria
drugs. A continued search for other effective, safe and cheap plantbased
anti-malaria agents thus becomes imperative in the face of
these difficulties. The objective of this study is therefore to evaluate
the in vivo anti-malarial efficacy of ethanolic extracts of
Chromolaena odorata and Androgaphis paniculata leaves. The two
plants were evaluated for their anti-malaria efficacy in vivo in a 4-day
curative test assay against Plasmodium berghei strain in mice. The
group treated with 500mg/ml dose of ethanolic extract of A.
paniculata plant showed parasite suppression with increase in Packed
Cell Volume (PCV) value except day 3 which showed a slight
decrease in PCV value. During the 4-day curative test, an increase in
the PCV values, weight measurement and zero count of Plasmodium
berghei parasite values was recorded after day 3 of drug
administration. These results obtained in group treated with A.
paniculata extract showed anti-malarial efficacy with higher
mortality rate in parasitaemia count when compared with
Chromolaena odorata group. These results justify the use of
ethanolic extracts of A. paniculata plant as medicinal herb used in
folklore medicine in the treatment of malaria.
Abstract: One of the most essential issues in software products is to maintain it relevancy to the dynamics of the user’s requirements and expectation. Many studies have been carried out in quality aspect of software products to overcome these problems. Previous software quality assessment models and metrics have been introduced with strengths and limitations. In order to enhance the assurance and buoyancy of the software products, certification models have been introduced and developed. From our previous experiences in certification exercises and case studies collaborating with several agencies in Malaysia, the requirements for user based software certification approach is identified and demanded. The emergence of social network applications, the new development approach such as agile method and other varieties of software in the market have led to the domination of users over the software. As software become more accessible to the public through internet applications, users are becoming more critical in the quality of the services provided by the software. There are several categories of users in web-based systems with different interests and perspectives. The classifications and metrics are identified through brain storming approach with includes researchers, users and experts in this area. The new paradigm in software quality assessment is the main focus in our research. This paper discusses the classifications of users in web-based software system assessment and their associated factors and metrics for quality measurement. The quality model is derived based on IEEE structure and FCM model. The developments are beneficial and valuable to overcome the constraints and improve the application of software certification model in future.
Abstract: Recent concerns of the growing impact of aviation on
climate change has prompted the emergence of a field referred to as
Sustainable or “Green” Aviation dedicated to mitigating the harmful
impact of aviation related CO2 emissions and noise pollution on
the environment. In the current paper, a unique “green” business
jet aircraft called the TransAtlantic was designed (using analytical
formulation common in conceptual design) in order to show the
feasibility for transatlantic passenger air travel with an aircraft
weighing less than 10,000 pounds takeoff weight. Such an advance in
fuel efficiency will require development and integration of advanced
and emerging aerospace technologies. The TransAtlantic design is
intended to serve as a research platform for the development of
technologies such as active flow control. Recent advances in the field
of active flow control and how this technology can be integrated
on a sub-scale flight demonstrator are discussed in this paper. Flow
control is a technique to modify the behavior of coherent structures
in wall-bounded flows (over aerodynamic surfaces such as wings and
turbine nozzles) resulting in improved aerodynamic cruise and flight
control efficiency. One of the key challenges to application in manned
aircraft is development of a robust high-momentum actuator that
can penetrate the boundary layer flowing over aerodynamic surfaces.
These deficiencies may be overcome in the current development
and testing of a novel electromagnetic synthetic jet actuator which
replaces piezoelectric materials as the driving diaphragm. One of
the overarching goals of the TranAtlantic research platform include
fostering national and international collaboration to demonstrate (in
numerical and experimental models) reduced CO2/ noise pollution
via development and integration of technologies and methodologies
in design optimization, fluid dynamics, structures/ composites,
propulsion, and controls.
Abstract: Some of the key aspects of vulnerability—discovery, dissemination, and disclosure—have received some attention recently. However, the role of interaction among the vulnerability discoverers and vulnerability acquirers has not yet been adequately addressed. Our study suggests that a major percentage of discoverers, a majority in some cases, are unaffiliated with the software developers and thus are free to disseminate the vulnerabilities they discover in any way they like. As a result, multiple vulnerability markets have emerged. In some of these markets, the exchange is regulated, but in others, there is little or no regulation. In recent vulnerability discovery literature, the vulnerability discoverers have remained anonymous individuals. Although there has been an attempt to model the level of their efforts, information regarding their identities, modes of operation, and what they are doing with the discovered vulnerabilities has not been explored.
Reports of buying and selling of the vulnerabilities are now appearing in the press; however, the existence of such markets requires validation, and the natures of the markets need to be analyzed. To address this need, we have attempted to collect detailed information. We have identified the most prolific vulnerability discoverers throughout the past decade and examined their motivation and methods. A large percentage of these discoverers are located in Eastern and Western Europe and in the Far East. We have contacted several of them in order to collect firsthand information regarding their techniques, motivations, and involvement in the vulnerability markets. We examine why many of the discoverers appear to retire after a highly successful vulnerability-finding career. The paper identifies the actual vulnerability markets, rather than the hypothetical ideal markets that are often examined. The emergence of worldwide government agencies as vulnerability buyers has significant implications. We discuss potential factors that can impact the risk to society and the need for detailed exploration.
Abstract: Information retrieval has become an important field of study and research under computer science due to explosive growth of information available in the form of full text, hypertext, administrative text, directory, numeric or bibliographic text. The research work is going on various aspects of information retrieval systems so as to improve its efficiency and reliability. This paper presents a comprehensive study, which discusses not only emergence and evolution of information retrieval but also includes different information retrieval models and some important aspects such as document representation, similarity measure and query expansion.
Abstract: Clustering in data mining is an unsupervised learning technique of aggregating the data objects into meaningful groups such that the intra cluster similarity of objects are maximized and inter cluster similarity of objects are minimized. Over the past decades several clustering tools were emerged in which clustering algorithms are inbuilt and are easier to use and extract the expected results. Data mining mainly deals with the huge databases that inflicts on cluster analysis and additional rigorous computational constraints. These challenges pave the way for the emergence of powerful expansive data mining clustering softwares. In this survey, a variety of clustering tools used in data mining are elucidated along with the pros and cons of each software.
Abstract: This study aims to investigate the emergence of the thought of Islamic literature in the development of modern Malay literature in Malaysia. It examines the views, approaches and theories discussed and argued by literary scholars. Further, this study investigates the influence of the thought of Islamic literature on the development of modern Malay literature in Malaysia by examining the emergence of prominent scholars and bodies that organized competitions for writing Islamic literary works. Findings reveal that in the 70’s, the movement began to be accepted by the literary society. Government bodies played an important role in creating and disseminating the Islamic literary works.
Abstract: With the ever-increasing need for wireless communication and the emergence of many systems, it is important to design broadband antennas to cover a wide frequency range. The aim of this paper is to design a broadband patch antenna, employing the three techniques of slotting, adding directly coupled parasitic elements, and fractal EBG structures. The bandwidth is improved from 9.32% to 23.77%. A wideband ranging from 4.15 GHz to 5.27 GHz is obtained. Also a comparative analysis of embedding EBG structures at different heights is also done. The composite effect of integrating these techniques in the design provides a simple and efficient method for obtaining low profile, broadband, high gain antenna. By the addition of parasitic elements the bandwidth was increased to only 18.04%. Later on by embedding EBG structures the bandwidth was increased up to 23.77%. The design is suitable for variety of wireless applications like WLAN and Radar Applications.
Abstract: With an increase in the interest in the energy conservation for buildings, and the emergence of many methods and easily-understandable approaches to it, energy conservation has now become the public’s main interest, as compared to in the past when it was only focused upon by experts. This study aims to help the occupants of a building to understand the energy efficiency and consumption of the building by providing them information on the building’s energy efficiency through a mobile application. The energy performance assessment models are proposed on the basis of the actual energy usage and building characteristics such as the architectural scheme and the building equipment. The university buildings in Korea are used as a case to demonstrate the mobile application.
Abstract: Ergonomics is a useful tool for creating a healthy and
safe workplace. The long-term action of harmful conditions on the
health of workers is the emergence of occupational disease, and the
firm-s increased compensation costs associated with these diseases,
but is also the loss of time needed for educating and including new
workers in the work process. The article deals with the link of
ergonomics to occupational diseases, factors which influence these
diseases. In the conclusion, a model is described to help reduce the
risk of selected occupational diseases using ergonomic principles and
knowledge.
Abstract: This paper analyses the structural changes in
education sector since the introduction of liberalization policy in
India. This paper explains how the so-called non-profit trusts and
societies appropriated the liberalization policy and enhanced
themselves as new capitalist class in higher education sector. Over
the decades, the policy witnessed the role of private sector in terms
of maintaining market equilibrium. The state also witnessed the
incompatibility of the private sector in inculcating the values of
social justice. The most important consequence of the policy is to
witness the rise of new capitalist class and academic capitalism.
When the state came to realize that it no longer cope up with
market demands, it opens the entry of private sector in higher
education. Concessions and tax exemptions were provided to the
trusts and societies to establish higher education institutions. There
is a basic difference between western countries and India in
providing higher education by the trusts and societies. In western
countries the big business houses contributed their surplus
revenues to promote higher education and research as a
complementary service to society and nation. In India, several
entrepreneurs came up with business motive using education
sector. Over the period, they accumulated wealth at the cost of
students and concessions from the government. Four major results
can now be identified: production of manpower in view of market
demands; reduction of standards in higher education; bypassing the
values of social justice; and the rise of new capitalist class from the
business of education. This paper tries to substantiate these issues
with the inputs from case studies.
Abstract: Cattle manure and mineral fertilizers are two source
of Nitrogen, which can affect the growth and quantity of potato. In
this research the effects of the use of cattle manure (5, 10, 15 and 20
ton ha-1), Nitrogen fertilizer (50, 100 and 150 kg N ha-1) and their
interaction on potato growth were evaluated during field
experiments in 2008 with the help of Randomized Complete Block
(RCB) with the factorial arrangement of three experimental
replications in Iran. At the 75 th day after emergence, dry weight of
Shoots, leaf area index (LAI) and plant height were recorded. Results
showed that, dry weight of Shoots, LAI and plant height increased
linearly and very significantly in response to the application of
manure and Nitrogen fertilizer. While the interaction between
manure and Nitrogen fertilizer just on the LAI and plant height was
significant, somehow the maximum amount of plant height( 73 cm)
was obtained by using 150 kg Nitrogen + 15 tons of manure per
hectare, and maximum LAI ( 5.36) was obtained by using 150 kg
Nitrogen + 20 tons of manure per hectare. Also in this experiment
maximum tuber yield (36.8 tons ha-1) was obtained by the utilization
of 150 kg Nitrogen per hectare + 20 tons manure.