Managing the market place: the consortium approach

The funding context of higher education is examined, together with some of the constraints and imperatives to which it gives rise. The history, constitution and operation of the Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium's Libraries Project Group are discussed. The paper closes with a discussion of possible future roles for purchasing consortia

Procuring electronic information: new business models in the context of the supply chain

Examines the information value chain and some of its concepts, first for printed information and second for electronic information. Discusses the procurement process and, in the light of the analysis made earlier in the paper, evaluates the various emerging models for procuring electronic information

The information value chain: emerging models for procuring electronic publications

The first part of this paper examines the information supply chain and some of its concepts; particular attention is paid to features differentiating electronic from printed information. The second part discusses the procurement process and, in the light of the analysis made in the first part, evaluates the various models for procuring electronic information

Differential Diagnosis of Late Onset Psychosis Using Neuropsychological Assessment and Neuroimaging Techniques

Few references in the literature have been made with respect to the diagnosis of late onset psychosis by the use of behavioral observations coupled with neuropsychological and neuroimaging techniques. This is a report of the case of a 68-year-old woman who experienced a sudden onset of psychotic illness characterized by delusions and confabulation. As part of her neurobehavioral evaluation, a SPECT scan revealed right frontal and left anterior temporal lobe hypoperfusion. Serial neuropsychological evaluations demonstrated decline on tests of executive control (monitoring, allocation of attention, perseveration) and visuospatial abilities, whereas performance in other areas of cognitive functioning remained close to the normal range for the patient\u27s age and educational level. Over the same period of time MRI and neurological examinations were within normal limits. Thus, there was little evidence to diagnose dementia. The patient did not have a fundamental disorder of thinking or profound deterioration in mental or social functioning, so a diagnosis of late life onset schizophrenia was not made. It is suggested that impairment in executive control with a diminished capacity to process perceptual information can give rise to psychotic behavior characterized by late onset psychosis. The review of the literature provides a nosology for late onset psychosis, which follows a succinct neuroanatomical review of the frontal, temporal, and parietal lobe function found to be involved with the psychotic underpinnings of the disorder. This work culminates with a research study wherein specific neuropsychological and neuroirnaging tests sensitive to late onset psychosis would be delivered to three elderly cohort groups to aid in early detection and differential diagnosis of late onset psychosis. It is expected that proficiency on neuropsychological tests sensitive to visuospatial organization will be compromised for individuals having late onset psychosis. It is also expected that these individuals will demonstrate a low total score on a neuropsychiatric inventory scale. It is postulated that MRI will demonstrate subcortical white matter intensities not found in late life onset schizophrenia or frontotemporal dementia. Additionally, it is hypothesized that the SPECT scan of individuals having late onset psychosis will demonstrate hypoperfusion to the right frontal, right parietal, and anterior left temporal regions

Integrated modeling tool for performance engineering of complex computer systems

This report summarizes Advanced System Technologies' accomplishments on the Phase 2 SBIR contract NAS7-995. The technical objectives of the report are: (1) to develop an evaluation version of a graphical, integrated modeling language according to the specification resulting from the Phase 2 research; and (2) to determine the degree to which the language meets its objectives by evaluating ease of use, utility of two sets of performance predictions, and the power of the language constructs. The technical approach followed to meet these objectives was to design, develop, and test an evaluation prototype of a graphical, performance prediction tool. The utility of the prototype was then evaluated by applying it to a variety of test cases found in the literature and in AST case histories. Numerous models were constructed and successfully tested. The major conclusion of this Phase 2 SBIR research and development effort is that complex, real-time computer systems can be specified in a non-procedural manner using combinations of icons, windows, menus, and dialogs. Such a specification technique provides an interface that system designers and architects find natural and easy to use. In addition, PEDESTAL's multiview approach provides system engineers with the capability to perform the trade-offs necessary to produce a design that meets timing performance requirements. Sample system designs analyzed during the development effort showed that models could be constructed in a fraction of the time required by non-visual system design capture tools