GIS Application to Support Land Administration Services in Ghana: Institutional Factors and Software Developments

In June 1999, the Ghanaian Government launched a new land policy document that sought to address some fundamental problems associated with land administration and management in the country. The document identified the weak land administration system as a particular problem and recommended the introduction of computer-aided information systems in the ‘lands sector’. In 2001, the Government made further proposals to prepare and implement a Land Administration Programme (LAP) to provide a better platform for evolving an efficient land administration that would translate the ‘National Land Policy’ into action. Thus, an up-to-date land information system (LIS), supporting efficient management of land records, is to be constructed, which provides a context for the research reported in this paper. We document two aspects of our research on the adoption of GIS by the Lands Commission Secretariat (LCS) which form part of a pilot project in GIS diffusion. Part one of the paper mainly outlines the empirical results arising from fieldwork undertaken during 2001 to determine the information and GIS requirements of the LCS in relation to their routine administrative processes and to identify the critical factors that are required to ensure that any new GIS applications are successfully embraced. Part two explains the prototype software system developed using ArcView 3.2 and Access that provides the LCS with a means to automate some of the routine administrative tasks that they are required to fulfil. The software has been modified and upgraded following an initial evaluation by LCS employees also conducted as part of the fieldwork in Accra

Early Scottish Monasteries and Prehistory: A Preliminary Dialogue

Reflecting oil the diversity of monastic attributes found in the east and west of Britain, the author proposes that prehistoric ritual practice was influential on monastic form. An argument is advanced that this was not based solely oil inspiration Front the landscape, nor oil conservative tradition, but oil the intellectual reconciliation of Christian and non-Christian ideas, with disparate results that account. for the differences in monumentality. Among more general matters tentatively credited with a prehistoric root are the cult of relics, the tonsure and the date of Easter

Detecting Beyond-Einstein Polarizations of Continuous Gravitational Waves

The direct detection of gravitational waves with the next generation detectors, like Advanced LIGO, provides the opportunity to measure deviations from the predictions of General Relativity. One such departure would be the existence of alternative polarizations. To measure these, we study a single detector measurement of a continuous gravitational wave from a triaxial pulsar source. We develop methods to detect signals of any polarization content and distinguish between them in a model independent way. We present LIGO S5 sensitivity estimates for 115 pulsars.Comment: submitted to PR

Thermal microstructure measurement system

A thermal microstructure measurement system (TMMS) operates autonomously h its own internal power supply and telemeters data to a platform. A thermal array is mounted on a cross-braced frame designed to orient itself normal to existing currents with fixed sensor positioning bars protruding from the cross bars. A plurality of matched thermistors, conductivity probes and inclinometers are mounted on the frame. A compass and pressure transducer are contained in an electronics package suspended below the array. The array is deployed on a taut mooring below a subsurface float. Data are digitized, transmitted via cable to a surface buoy and then telemetered to the platform where the data is processed via a computer, recorded and/or displayed. The platform computer also sends commands to the array via telemetry

The Impact of Systematic Professional Development on Selected Areas of Student Performance in Selected Missouri School Buildings

With the constraints under the No Child Left Behind Act, schools face the challenges of meeting extremely high standards with students. Recent research generally focuses on the role of professional development in school reform. Although a great deal has been written on the topic of professional development, the empirical literature on the topic is much less extensive. Few studies have actually documented its impact on student achievement. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of systematic professional development on selected areas of student performance in selected Missouri school buildings. This research study was quantitative in nature and geared toward aiding school districts in making well-informed decisions regarding the impact of professional development on student achievement. This study examined four reform grants that required professional development. These grants included the Reading First Grant, ?enhancing Missouri\u27s Instructional Networked Teaching Strategies? (eMINTS), Comprehensive School Reform, and High Schools That Work. The Missouri Assessment Program and the American College Test scores were examined through univariate two-way analysis of variance of the differences in schools that participated in specific reform grants and those that did not participate. Achievement data gathered from all 524 Missouri school districts included the following: Missouri Assessment Program scores in third, seventh and eleventh grades in Communication Arts; third and seventh grades in Reading Proficiency; fourth, eighth and tenth grades in Mathematics, and the American College Test composite scores. Where initial significance was not found, an analysis of variance was used to study effects for the independent variables of enrollment, free and reduced lunch percentage and per pupil expenditure. The study found a number of significant interactions. A primary finding was the strong correlation between the Reading First grant and its impact on third grade Communication Arts and Reading Proficiency MAP scores. The results of this investigation have implications for all educators and school districts involved in professional development and reform. This research could assist educators in selecting reform models that require staff development programs that impact student achievement

London or New York? Implications of Enron Debacle for Law and Accounting Reform in Hong Kong

The collapse of the American corporation Enron has profound and hard lessons for Hong Kong. Enron has provided new examples of ways in which it is possible for unethical business behaviour to be lawful, in the positivist sense of law. This article argues that the complex relationship between the Companies Ordinance and the protection of investors can never be stated as more than a set of principles. The superstructure of the 'public interest' rests, somewhat uneasily, on the professional shoulders of accountants. Accounting standards fill the gap between law and ethics in the system. The meaning of what is understood by a 'true and fair view' remains the same, whilst the 'contents' (ie specific accounting regulations) can be expected to change. A question for Hong Kong is who decides, and who should have the final say on those 'contents': the accounting profession, the stock exchange, an accounting standard setter, the Securities and Futures Commission, or the Government?published_or_final_versio