Unpacking the “black box”: a preliminary study of visualizing humanists and social science scholars’ data and research processes

Due to the significant variations in their needs, attitudes, and practices toward their research, different scholars could have different research processes and interact with different kinds of data. We report the preliminary results of a qualitative study that examines how humanities and social science (H&SS) scholars interact with their data throughout the course of their research process. By conducting two focus group sessions with eight H&SS scholars, our results show that scholars indeed took different research patterns and thus interacted with distinctive data. The sketches produced in this study provide insights on future larger-scale focus group design, and also identify opportunities for an academic library or data service provider to support H&SS scholars’ research activities

The Basic Structure as Object: Institutions and Humanitarian Concern (draft)

[FIRST PARAGRAPHS] One third of the human species is infested with worms. The World Health Organization estimates that worms account for 40 percent of the global disease burden from tropical diseases excluding malaria. Worms cause a lot of misery. In this article I will focus on one particular type of infestation, which is hookworm. Approximately 740 million people suffer from hookworm infection in areas of rural poverty: more than one human in ten, a total greater than 23 times the population of Canada or twice the population of the United States. The greatest numbers of cases occur in China, Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa—that is, mostly in the places in the world where poverty is most severe

Regional Data Archiving and Management for Northeast Illinois

This project studies the feasibility and implementation options for establishing a regional data archiving system to help monitor and manage traffic operations and planning for the northeastern Illinois region. It aims to provide a clear guidance to the regional transportation agencies, from both technical and business perspectives, about building such a comprehensive transportation information system. Several implementation alternatives are identified and analyzed. This research is carried out in three phases. In the first phase, existing documents related to ITS deployments in the broader Chicago area are summarized, and a thorough review is conducted of similar systems across the country. Various stakeholders are interviewed to collect information on all data elements that they store, including the format, system, and granularity. Their perception of a data archive system, such as potential benefits and costs, is also surveyed. In the second phase, a conceptual design of the database is developed. This conceptual design includes system architecture, functional modules, user interfaces, and examples of usage. In the last phase, the possible business models for the archive system to sustain itself are reviewed. We estimate initial capital and recurring operational/maintenance costs for the system based on realistic information on the hardware, software, labor, and resource requirements. We also identify possible revenue opportunities. A few implementation options for the archive system are summarized in this report; namely: 1. System hosted by a partnering agency 2. System contracted to a university 3. System contracted to a national laboratory 4. System outsourced to a service provider The costs, advantages and disadvantages for each of these recommended options are also provided.ICT-R27-22published or submitted for publicationis peer reviewe

Improving Wound Care using the TIME Framework

Abstract Background and purpose:Although wound care guidelines are available for primary care providers, barriers to assessment and treatment remain. This paper examines current evidence, guidelines, and discusses the need for improved training, education, and a simplified approach to wound management in primary care. The goal of the project was to increase the provider’s comfort level in assessing and initiating wound care treatment in the clinical setting. Methods:An evidence-based wound treatment framework, identified as the TIME (tissue, infection, moisture, epithelial) framework, was selected for the project. The framework was tailored by subject matter experts to provide a distinctive approach to the non-wound care expert allowing more diverse utilizations across the primary care spectrum. The modified TIME framework was shared with 29 providers over three educational sessions. Participants included Nurse Practitioners and Physicians. The knowledge attained and the usability of the framework was evaluated using a case study approach and self-reported comfort level relating to the assessment and initiation of wound treatment. Conclusion:After the educational sessions, the comfort level of all providers increased dramatically from pre- to post-assessment.Comfort level was self-reported on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = poor, 3 = average, 5 = excellent). Responses indicated that 42% of participants reported below average or poor comfort at the pretest, while 96% of participants reported average or above average comfort at the posttest. Comfort level related to knowledge gained in developing a treatment plan also increased: At pretest, 77% of participants reported below average comfort, while 96% of participants reported average or above average comfort at the posttest. Results also indicated a significant increase in wound care knowledge and understanding of wound care concepts related to the modified TIME framework, including identifying specific wounds and initiating treatment

MSIS 2006: Model Curriculum and Guidelines for Graduate Degree Programs in Information Systems

This article presents the MSIS 2006 Model Curriculum and Guidelines for Graduate Degree Programs in Information Systems. As with MSIS 2000 and its predecessors, the objective is to create a model for schools designing or revising an MS curriculum in Information Systems. The curriculum was designed by a joint committee of the Association for Information Systems and the Association for Computing Machinery. MSIS2006 is a major update of MSIS 2000. Features include increasing the number of required courses from 10 to 12 while revising prerequisites, introducing new courses and revising existing courses to modernize the curriculum, and alternatives for phased upgrading from MSIS2000 to MSIS 2006. As with the previous curriculum, it is the product of detailed consultation with the IS community. The curriculum received the endorsement of 8 major IS professional groups

Analysis of Current Supplier Relationship Management Practices: A Solution Proposal

The work contributes with the existing literature by investigating current SRM practices. Based on the research, the author has designed an information system framework, which provides companies with an innovative SRM solution to manage their indirect material purchasing process through an environment that supports companies entire plan-to-order activities, including functionalities such as central data management, spend data management, e-sourcing and the usual e-procurement features

Enhancement of virtual colonoscopy system.

Colorectal cancer is the fourth most common cancer, and the fourth leading cause of cancer related death in the United States. It also happens to be one of the most preventable cancers provided an individual performs a regular screening. For years colonoscopy via colonoscope was the only method for colorectal cancer screening. In the past decade, colonography or virtual colonoscopy (VC) has become an alternative (or supplement) to the traditional colonoscopy. VC has become a much researched topic since its introduction in the mid-nineties. Various visualization methods have been introduced including: traditional flythrough, colon flattening, and unfolded-cube projection. In recent years, the CVIP Lab has introduced a patented visualization method for VC called flyover. This novel visualization method provides complete visualization of the large intestine without significant modification to the rendered three-dimensional model. In this thesis, a CVIP Lab VC interface was developed using Lab software to segment, extract the centerline, split (for flyover), and visualize the large intestine. This system includes adaptive level sets software to perform large intestine segmentation, and CVIP Lab patented curve skeletons software to extract the large intestine centerline. This software suite has not been combined in this manner before so the system stands as a unique contribution to the CVIP Lab colon project. The system is also a novel VC pipeline when compared to other academic and commercial VC methods. The complete system is capable of segmenting, finding the centerline, splitting, and visualizing a large intestine with a limited number of slices (~350 slices) for VC in approximately four and a half minutes. Complete CT scans were also validated with the centerline extraction external to the system (since the curve skeletons code used for centerline extraction cause memory exceptions because of high memory utilization)

A Digital Registry for Archaeological Find Spots and Excavation Documentation in IANUS

Grey literature (site notebooks, reports etc.) and research data in archaeology are invaluable sources of information currently lacking a central reference registry in Germany. This paper discusses requirements and the underlying data model of a registry to be developed for find spots and archaeological excavation data within the IANUS project at the German Archaeological Institute. This registry is to collect information on archaeological investigations data for a finding aid service. The focus for this registry will be based on the collection of metadata about primary data and grey literature, not on secondary data or on publications. Starting with the acquisition of basic metadata needs drawn from the IANUS mission and project charter. A review of already existing projects and initiatives in this field (EDNA, tDAR, ADS, Open Context) provides more details about which information should be captured during a registration of research data for a long term digital preservation archive. Finally recommendations for the data model of this registry are drawn from the evaluation of existing generic and archaeology-specific metadata standards (Dublin Core, EDM, LIDO, ADeX, CARARE)