Educating Reflective Practitioners: The Design of an IT Management Masters Program

The IT Management Group at Umeå University, Sweden, has developed a master program in IT management with emphasison incorporating practice in the learning process. The basic premise lies in the use of reflection-in-action as an approach topresenting students with practical problems throughout the program. We discuss the ways in which practice is at the heart ofthe program, both as a tool for exemplifying codified knowledge such as technical skills and methods but also as arenas forsituated knowledge creation and transfer where reflection and action are intertwined. The paper ends with a discussion of theprogram design, challenges in implementing the reflective practice approach and competencies the students need in theirfuture professional roles

Digital Options Theory for IT Capability Investment

While research has shown that investments in IT capability may translate into improved firm performance, how and why they do is still a source of debate. Drawing on financial options thinking, recent research suggests that managers can support appropriate investment decisions by examining digital options. However, current research has not effectively translated the financial options construct into the IT domain, which makes it difficult to rigorously examine digital options. To address this void, we revisit general options theory and review current notions of digital options. To support understanding, we extend current theorizing by offering a rigorous conceptual foundation that defines the digital option lifecycle and relationships to neighboring constructs. To support practice, we present principles for examining digital options for a specific business process. To illustrate the detailed workings of the theory, we examine a production planning process in the dairy industry to arrive at a set of desirable and feasible IT capability investments. Our proposed theory supports managerial practice by offering a rigorous and actionable foundation for digital options thinking. It also sets an agenda for academic research by articulating theory-based constructs and principles that are subject to further empirical and theoretical investigation

Lancashire in decline: a study in entrepreneurship, technology, and international trade

(print) xii, 276 p. : illus. ; 24 cmAcknowledgments xv -- Part I. Entrepreneurship and Technology -- 1. Introduction 3 -- 2. American Rings and English Mules 15 -- 3. Rings and Mules: Part Two 49 -- 4. Lancashire and the Automatic Loom 67 -- 5. Overall Efficiency and Labor Productivity in Lancashire and Massachusetts before World War I 93 -- 6. Investment in Lancashire between the World Wars 121 -- 7. Some Final Remarks about Technical Progress in Lancashire 131 -- Part II. International Trade -- 8. Lancashire's Export Experience prior to World War I 139 -- 9. Lancashire's Export Experience between the World Wars 175 -- 10. Cotton Textiles and International Comparative Advantage 207 -- 11. Conclusion 221 -- Appendixes 225 -- Bibliography 263 -- Index 27

Regression-Based Retrieval of Boreal Forest Biomass in Sloping Terrain using P-band SAR Backscatter Intensity Data

A new biomass retrieval model for boreal forest using polarimetric P-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) backscatter is presented. The model is based on two main SAR quantities: the HV backscatter and the HH/VV backscatter ratio. It also includes a topographic correction based on the ground slope. The model is developed from analysis of stand-wise data from two airborne P-band SAR campaigns: BioSAR 2007 (test site: Remningstorp, southern Sweden, biomass range: 10-287 tons/ha, slope range: 0-4 degrees) and BioSAR 2008 (test site: Krycklan, northern Sweden, biomass range: 8-257 tons/ha, slope range: 0-19 degrees). The new model is compared to five other models in a set of tests to evaluate its performance in different conditions. All models are first tested on data sets from Remningstorp with different moisture conditions, acquired during three periods in the spring of 2007. Thereafter, the models are tested in topographic terrain using SAR data acquired for different flight headings in Krycklan. The models are also evaluated across sites, i.e., training on one site followed by validation on the other site. Using the new model with parameters estimated on Krycklan data, biomass in Remningstorp is retrieved with RMSE of 40-59 tons/ha, or 22-33% of the mean biomass, which is lower compared to the other models. In the inverse scenario, the examined site is not well represented in the training data set, and the results are therefore not conclusive

Biomass Retrieval Algorithm Based on P-band BioSAR Experiments of Boreal Forest

A new biomass retrieval algorithm based on P-band multi-polarization backscatter has been developed and evaluated based on SAR and ground data over boreal forest. SAR data collections were conducted on three dates at a test site in southern Sweden (Remningstorp, biomass < 300 tons/ha; late winter to early summer 2007) and on a single date at a test site in northern Sweden (Krycklan, biomass < 200 tons/ha; fall 2008). The retrieval algorithm is a multiple linear regression model including the HV-polarized backscatter coefficient, the VV/HH backscatter ratio and the ground slope. Regression coefficients were determined from Krycklan data followed by algorithm evaluation using Remningstorp data. The results from the latter show that RMS errors vary in the range 29-42 tons/ha depending on date and stand type. The new algorithm is also compared with alternative algorithms and found to give significantly better performance. The developed model is a significant step towards an algorithm which gives consistent results across multiple sites and dates, i.e. when forest structure, topography and moisture conditions is expected to vary

Impact and modeling of topographic effects on P-band SAR backscatter from boreal forests

P-band SAR backscatter has been proven to be useful for forest biomass prediction. However, there is a need for further studies on effects of topography on P-band backscatter. In this paper, two prediction models for backscatter are evaluated, one using only biomass as predictor and one which also includes topographic corrections. Data from the BioSAR 2007 and BioSAR 2008 campaigns are used to evaluate the models. A multi-scale error model which is able to handle data from several imaging directions is used. For HH, the slope correction on stand level used in this paper is unable to correct for topographic effects. This is consistent with previous results that within stand topographic variability has a significant impact on HH P-band backscatter. For HV and VV, the model which considers topography gives lower prediction errors than the model which does not include topography. Moreover, for these polarizations topographic the correction strongly reduce the variability in backscatter measurements between imaging directions for stands with ground slopes larger than about 5 degrees

Topographic Correction for Biomass Retrieval from P-band SAR Data in Boreal Forests

The influence of the ground slope on radar backscatter has been proven to be greater for lower radar frequencies due to deeper canopy penetration. In this study, multiple heading, Pband SAR data of boreal forest in Sweden was used to find a model for topographic correction for improved biomass retrieval. Eleven models were tested and the best model was selected. The selected model was then used for biomass retrieval. Even by means of the most simplified approach, forest biomass could be established with a root-mean-square error of approximately 50 t/ha for HV and 66 t/ha for HH