Twenty-three steps to learning Web 2.0 technologies in an academic library

Purpose – This paper aims to report on the adoption and evaluation of a Learning 2.0 program in a pilot program at the Edith Cowan University Library during 2007. Design/methodology/approach – The paper examines the suitability of Learning 2.0 for training eight “early adopters” among library staff in the new and emerging Web 2.0 technologies. The program was set up and deployed via a blog, which recorded staff progress through the nine-week implementation phase of the program. At the conclusion, a focus group was held and the pilot group members responded to questions about the relevance of the program, and the effectiveness of their learning. Findings – It was found that library staff responded positively to this program, not least because it adhered to adult learning principles. For the authors\u27 purpose, Learning 2.0 was an eminently suitable training package. Originality/value – The paper is unique in that Edith Cowan University Library was the first Australian university library to adopt Learning 2.0

Website Usability: A Window into a Learning Environment

Academic library websites provide a vital online learning environment for students. They should follow sound design principles, provide functionality, and ease of navigation. As part of a strategy to make effective changes to the library website, Edith Cowan University Library wanted to gather evidence to discover how users went about locating information resources accessible from its website. Concerns existed amongst the library staff about how intuitive it was to locate the various information resources provided. This paper will outline the action research process taken to test the website heuristics to determine what improvements were needed in the design. Using Jakob Nielsen\u27s usability testing principles as a guide, we conducted usability tests with students selected from across the three metropolitan campuses. Results provided us with an understanding of how students approached the interface, which problems related to design and which highlighted an information literacy issue

Learning 2.0: a catalyst for library organisational change

The purpose of this paper is to describe “what happened” with round two of the implementation of Learning 2.0 with a large and diverse group of library staff at Edith Cowan University (ECU) Library during 2007/2008. A previous paper reported on a study of the suitability of the 23 Things Learning 2.0 program for a small group of early adopters in the ECU Library. This follow-up paper reports challenges that library management faced when the remaining staff were given the 23 Things Learning 2.0 program. All remaining library staff members were encouraged to undertake the program, but take-up was not strong and only 25 per cent of staff completed the program. At the conclusion of round two of Learning 2.0, all staff were surveyed to find out reasons for completion or non-completion, what types of technologies they needed support with, and how they wished to learn about the emerging/Web 2.0 technologies. From the observations and survey responses in this study it was found that while Learning 2.0 was a suitable program, some staff required extra time and a more hands-on approach to their workplace learning. The paper is unique in that it follows up on previous research at the same institution, and reveals new findings

Common Neural Systems Associated with the Recognition of Famous Faces and Names: An Event-Related fMRI Study

Person recognition can be accomplished through several modalities (face, name, voice). Lesion, neurophysiology and neuroimaging studies have been conducted in an attempt to determine the similarities and differences in the neural networks associated with person identity via different modality inputs. The current study used event-related functional-MRI in 17 healthy participants to directly compare activation in response to randomly presented famous and non-famous names and faces (25 stimuli in each of the four categories). Findings indicated distinct areas of activation that differed for faces and names in regions typically associated with pre-semantic perceptual processes. In contrast, overlapping brain regions were activated in areas associated with the retrieval of biographical knowledge and associated social affective features. Specifically, activation for famous faces was primarily right lateralized and famous names were left-lateralized. However, for both stimuli, similar areas of bilateral activity were observed in the early phases of perceptual processing. Activation for fame, irrespective of stimulus modality, activated an extensive left hemisphere network, with bilateral activity observed in the hippocampi, posterior cingulate, and middle temporal gyri. Findings are discussed within the framework of recent proposals concerning the neural network of person identification

Spin-Nematic Squeezed Vacuum in a Quantum Gas

Using squeezed states it is possible to surpass the standard quantum limit of measurement uncertainty by reducing the measurement uncertainty of one property at the expense of another complementary property. Squeezed states were first demonstrated in optical fields and later with ensembles of pseudo spin-1/2 atoms using non-linear atom-light interactions. Recently, collisional interactions in ultracold atomic gases have been used to generate a large degree of quadrature spin squeezing in two-component Bose condensates. For pseudo spin-1/2 systems, the complementary properties are the different components of the total spin vector , which fully characterize the state on an SU(2) Bloch sphere. Here, we measure squeezing in a spin-1 Bose condensate, an SU(3) system, which requires measurement of the rank-2 nematic or quadrupole tensor as well to fully characterize the state. Following a quench through a nematic to ferromagnetic quantum phase transition, squeezing is observed in the variance of the quadratures up to -8.3(-0.7 +0.6) dB (-10.3(-0.9 +0.7) dB corrected for detection noise) below the standard quantum limit. This spin-nematic squeezing is observed for negligible occupation of the squeezed modes and is analogous to optical two-mode vacuum squeezing. This work has potential applications to continuous variable quantum information and quantum-enhanced magnetometry

Arlene Raven's Legacy

Art critic Arlene Raven's life and work are the subject of seventeen visual and narrative essays and a chronology in this special issue of the journal Critical Matrix: The Princeton Journal of Women, Gender, and Culture

Synoptic tool for reporting of hematological and lymphoid neoplasms based on World Health Organization classification and College of American Pathologists checklist

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Synoptic reporting, either as part of the pathology report or replacing some free text component incorporates standardized data elements in the form of checklists for pathology reporting. This ensures the pathologists make note of these findings in their reports, thereby improving the quality and uniformity of information in the pathology reports.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The purpose of this project is to develop the entire set of elements in the synoptic templates or "worksheets" for hematologic and lymphoid neoplasms using the World Health Organization (WHO) Classification and the College of American Pathologists (CAP) Cancer Checklists. The CAP checklists' content was supplemented with the most updated classification scheme (WHO classification), specimen details, staging as well as information on various ancillary techniques such as cytochemical studies, immunophenotyping, cytogenetics including Fluorescent In-situ Hybridization (FISH) studies and genotyping. We have used a digital synoptic reporting system as part of an existing laboratory information system (LIS), CoPathPlus, from Cerner DHT, Inc. The synoptic elements are presented as discrete data points, so that a data element such as tumor type is assigned from the synoptic value dictionary under the value of tumor type, allowing the user to search for just those cases that have that value point populated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>These synoptic worksheets are implemented for use in our LIS. The data is stored as discrete data elements appear as an accession summary within the final pathology report. In addition, the synoptic data can be exported to research databases for linking pathological details on banked tissues.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Synoptic reporting provides a structured method for entering the diagnostic as well as prognostic information for a particular pathology specimen or sample, thereby reducing transcription services and reducing specimen turnaround time. Furthermore, it provides accurate and consistent diagnostic information dictated by pathologists as a basis for appropriate therapeutic modalities. Using synoptic reports, consistent data elements with minimized typographical and transcription errors can be generated and placed in the LIS relational database, enabling quicker access to desired information and improved communication for appropriate cancer management. The templates will also eventually serve as a conduit for capturing and storing data in the virtual biorepository for translational research. Such uniformity of data lends itself to subsequent ease of data viewing and extraction, as demonstrated by rapid production of standardized, high-quality data from the hemopoietic and lymphoid neoplasm specimens.</p