The Impact of Information and Communication Technology on the Tourism Sector

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has changed the global businesses environment by a wide range of tools, methodologies and functions, facilitating the strategic management and supporting firms to achieve a long term competitive advantage. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the new applications of Information Communication Technology in tourism industry, the contribution of ICT to the promotion of the tourist product, as well as the potential to the tourism management and the process of decision-making. One important tool, which helps in making decisions in the field of tourism economy, is the Geographic Information System (GIS), which provides a comprehensible representation of the statistical figures of the tourism economy by facilitating decision-making on tourism policy. In this paper is presented some tourist financial figures and their visualization through graphs by Geographic Information System

Α review of thermal tourism in Europe and Greece

Nowadays, all over the world tourists prefer alternative and sustainable forms of tourism, such as thermal tourism, as they seek to receive higher quality of service. Many competing countries have paid a great deal of attention to thermal tourism due to its significant economic benefits. The therapeutic properties and the potential of thermal springs can bring many economic and social benefits at local and national level, such as job growth, longer tourist seasons and increased income, even in areas that are untapped. This form of tourism is considered to be profitable and competitive, outpacing other forms of tourism globally. The aim of this research note is to present an overview of thermal tourism in Europe and in Greece and underline its importance to tourism economy

The Sense of Quality of Life Among the Elderly in the Open Protection Centres of the Elderly (KAPI) During the Economic Crisis

Surveys in the field of health sociology have repeatedly shown that people belonging to low socio-economic groups face health problems and live less than people belonging to high socio-economic groups. The purpose of the current survey is to investigate the socio-economic indicators that affect the health level of the elderly. A number of questionnaires were distributed to the elderly in a number of Open Protection Centres of the Elderly (KAPI) in the country. A total of 897 questionnaires were filled in. The data was processed using the IBM SPSS Statistics v. 23. Regarding the existence of correlations between economic characteristics and the sense of the quality of life of the elderly, it was established that people with economic autonomy and highest annual income perceive their quality of life as being superior compared to those lacking economic autonomy and lower annual income. There is almost complete coincidence of the research findings with the theoretical approaches of the literature survey. Specifically, there is an apparently stronger proportional relationship of the “Sense of Quality of Life” with the Health Characteristics of the respondents and a less proportional relationship of the “Sense of Quality of Life” with the Economic Characteristics of the respondents

Collective Intelligence for Knowledge Building and Research in Communities of Practice and Virtual Learning Environments: A Project Experience

There is little evidence about how collective intelligence, social networks, and communities of practice work in maternal health projects. In this paper, we discuss the approaches towards collective intelligence in a project by focusing on the virtual and web-based environments communities of practice and social network approach. This paper builds upon a research project IS0907 COST action and focuses on the communities of practice, social media within organization and team projects, and how through these networks and communities collective intelligence is building. Also, the current investigation stands as an example of COST IS0907 team and the relationship built between countries and communities of practice through working groups, manage knowledge transfer, and improve research collaboration and partnerships. This article aims to present the working environment developed to facilitate collective intelligence role in knowledge building and how communities of practice can enrich collaboration, in maternal health project settings, both educational and effective health research and knowledge building

Fuzzy Logic and Regression Approaches for Adaptive Sampling of Multimedia Traffic in Wireless Computer Networks

Organisations such as hospitals and the public are increasingly relying on large computer networks to access information and to communicate multimedia-type data. To assess the effectiveness of these networks, the traffic parameters need to be analysed. Due to the quantity of the data packets, examining each packet’s transmission parameters is not practical, especially in real time. Sampling techniques allow a subset of packets that accurately represents the original traffic to be examined and they are thus important in evaluating the performance of multimedia networks. In this study, an adaptive sampling technique based on regression and a fuzzy inference system was developed. The technique dynamically updates the number of packets sampled by responding to the traffic’s variations. Its performance was found to be superior to the conventional nonadaptive sampling methods. Keywords: computer network traffic sampling; multimedia transmission; quality of service; network performance evaluatio

E-ARMA: a method for the fostering of self-regulative skills in mathematical problem solving in primary education with the utilization of computer-supported collaborative systems

The present PhD Thesis researches if the self-regulative skills can be fostered in young students through an instructional method that utilizes computer supported collaborative learning systems. The proposed method adopts the Sternberg’s six step approach to problem solving and is based on Zimmerman’s principles for self-regulated learning. According to the proposed method students develop these skills in a social context in the presence of guidelines for problem solving process. The social context is gradually decreased until students are able to perform a task individually. As a consequence the focal point of the proposed method is the students engagement in collaborative activities in order they reinforce their cognitive experiences. The proposed collaborative activities take place in a synchronous Computer Supported Collaborative Learning environment (Synergo) that facilitates the communication among the members of a problem solving team while their activities are logged in. At the same time the students have access to educational material in the Learning Management System Moodle. The proposed instructional method was tested in the Mathematics course of fourth grade. The sample of this study included 262 students of public elementary schools from Attiki and Larisa regions. The study has been completed in two sub-phases. The effectiveness of the proposed instructional method for developing higher order thinking skills was initially tested in traditional classroom settings. This first phase of the study lasted for two months. During this pilot application the problem solving steps were clearly defined and the associated educational scenarios were completed. The proposed method was found to be effective in terms of the acquisition of problem solving skill. However, there were existing difficulties in implementing it. It was necessary for all students involved in the problem solving process to work together and have access to the same shared space and educational material so that the problem solving environment would have the same setting. All these hindrances made it necessary to utilize networked environments and enable students perform the activities as proposed by the proposed instructional method. The second sub-phase of the study lasted for two months too. Ten problem solving scenarios were designed to frame and support the proposed method of self-regulated problem solving. A mixed summative evaluation method was used to gather and analyze all data since the analysis of problem solving process is a complex and multi-sided task. In the second sub-phase of the pilot study the followings were found: a) The students increased the use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies during the process of problem solving, b) the number of correct solved problems was increased, c) the duration of the problem solving activity was dramatically decreased, d) the use of self-regulative strategies during the planning, the implementation and the evaluation of problem solving process was increased.Η παρούσα διατριβή ερευνά το θέμα υποβοήθησης της ανάπτυξης αυτό-ρυθμιστικών δεξιοτήτων σε μικρές ηλικίες με αξιοποίηση σύγχρονων συστημάτων συνεργατικής μάθησης. Για το σκοπό αυτό σχεδιάστηκε και δοκιμάστηκε μια μέθοδος που στηρίχθηκε στις αρχές επίλυσης του Sternberg και τη μέθοδο ανάπτυξης αυτο-ρυθμιστικών δεξιοτήτων του Zimmerman. Σύμφωνα με τη μέθοδο ο λύτης μαθητής της Πρωτοβάθμιας Εκπαίδευσης αναπτύσσει αυτές τις δεξιότητες μέσα σε ένα κοινωνικό πλαίσιο παρουσία των οδηγιών επίλυσης. Σταδιακά η παρουσία του κοινωνικού πλαισίου φθίνει μέχρι ο λυτής να αναπτύξει δράσεις αυτόνομης επίλυσης. Επομένως κομβικό σημείο αυτής της μεθόδου είναι η εμπλοκή του εκπαιδευόμενου σε συνεργατικές δραστηριότητες ώστε να εκτεθεί σε πολλαπλά μοντέλα επίλυσης έκτος του παραδειγματικού που του παρουσιάζεται με τη μορφή οδηγιών και να αποκτήσει ευχέρεια κατά την επίλυση αφού ενισχύονται οι γνωστικές του εμπειρίες. Τις συνεργατικές αυτές δραστηριότητες ο λύτης τις πραγματοποιεί σε ένα σύστημα συνεργατικής μάθησης διαμοιρασμένου χώρου (Synergo) που διευκολύνει την επικοινωνία μεταξύ των λυτών σε πραγματικό χρόνο ενώ παράλληλα κάθε δραστηριότητά του καταγράφεται. Ταυτόχρονα ο λύτης έχει πρόσβαση σε εκπαιδευτικό υλικό που είναι αναρτημένο στην πλατφόρμα του Moodle. Η προτεινομένη μέθοδος δοκιμάστηκε στο μάθημα των Μαθηματικών σε μαθητές της Δ’ τάξης. Κατά τη δοκιμή έλαβαν μέρος συνολικά 262 μαθητές από 13 δημόσια σχολεία Πρωτοβάθμιας Εκπαίδευσης της Αττικής και της Λάρισας. Η πιλοτική δοκιμή ολοκληρώθηκε σε δύο φάσεις. Στην πρώτη φάση δοκιμάστηκε η αποτελεσματικότητα της προτεινόμενης μεθόδου σε παραδοσιακές συνθήκες μάθησης. Κατά τη διάρκεια αυτής της φάσης προσδιορίστηκαν τα βήματα επίλυσης με ακρίβεια, ολοκληρώθηκε ο σχεδιασμός των εκπαιδευτικών σεναρίων που πλαισιώνουν τη μέθοδο αλλά και ανέκυψαν δυσκολίες σχετικές με την υλοποίηση των συνεργατικών δραστηριοτήτων και τη λεπτομερή καταγραφή της γνωστικής δραστηριότητας των μαθητών. Αυτές οι δυσκολίες οδήγησαν στην υιοθέτηση δικτυακών τεχνολογιών όπως το Synergo για τη διευκόλυνση των συνεργατικών δραστηριοτήτων και της επικοινωνίας και το σύστημα διαχείρισης της μάθησης του Moodle για το πρόσθετο μαθησιακό υλικό που θα υποστήριζε τις δραστηριότητες επίλυσης. Έτσι προέκυψε η ανάγκη ενίσχυσης και δοκιμής της μεθόδου εκ νέου. Στη δεύτερη φάση δοκιμάστηκε η αποτελεσματικότητα της προτεινομένης μεθόδου με αξιοποίηση της δικτυακής τεχνολογίας. Για τη συλλογή και ανάλυση των δεδομένων που αφορούν στην αξιολόγηση της αποτελεσματικότητας της μεθόδου χρησιμοποιήθηκε μεικτή τεχνική ολικής αξιολόγησης. Στη δεύτερη φάση που οι δραστηριότητες της μεθόδου υποστηρίζονταν από τα προαναφερόμενα τεχνολογικά εργαλεία σημειώθηκε: α) Αύξηση του αριθμού των προβλημάτων που λύνονται επιτυχώς από τους μαθητές. β) Συντόμευση του χρόνου επίλυσης. γ) Αύξηση της χρήσης μεταγνωστικών στρατηγικών και δ) Αύξηση της χρήσης των αυτό-ρυθμιστικών στρατηγικών κατά τη φάση του σχεδιασμού της πορείας επίλυσης της υλοποίησης και της αξιολόγησης της ακολουθούμενης πορείας τους

Trust and innovativeness in virtual organisations

This paper discusses trust and control in a virtualised environment. An extensive use of information and communication technology, and virtualisation of organisations put trust into the core of management challenges. Trust is a glue that bonds individuals and groups together to form virtual teams and a virtual organisation. It is also an important force behind their innovativeness and flexibility. Besides the traditional perception of personal or individual trust, we have to introduce a much wider concept of organisational trust. It can be enhanced by legislation on e-business, electronic signatures and data protection acts. Another factor that can reduce the risk and consequently build trust is the ability of computer technology to archive and recover all data and processes. Altogether, a virtual environment looks relatively safe if all available techniques and legislation are employed. Innovativeness in virtual organisations should be able to be spread in order to be regarded as an efficient and worthy innovation. This can be achieved by setting standardisations and avoiding social risks during its acceptance. © 2008, Inderscience Publishers

CIS6/413: Design of a Computer-Based Patient Record System (ARISTOPHANES) for Medical Departments: Implementation for Surgery Wards

INTRODUCTION: Today, the demand for computer-based patient records to improve the quality of patient care and to reduce costs in health services is generally recognized. The new electronic patient record system (ARISTOPHANES) is based on a self-developed relational data model with a star-shaped topology. An hierarchical structure has been chosen for the user interface. ARISTOPHANES has been developed for use in clinical workstations taking into account varied requirements, user acceptance, and future extension. METHODS: For the design of the electronic patient records was used the software "Oracle Forms 5.0". An Oracle database has been generated and loaded with test data. The designed forms are currently being implemented using "SQL*Plus 8.0" by Oracle. RESULTS: We used a self-developed star-shaped relational data model, which is highly flexible with regard to the modification and extension of the data structure. The design of the electronic patient records has taken into account the varied demands of the medical partners in order to guarantee user acceptance. The hierarchical topology that has been chosen renders the designed electronic patient record system flexible and efficient, such that further departments and regulatory changes can be integrated within a short time. General functions required by all departments are contained in the main menu. These include patient data, case details, medical documentation, care documentation, personnel details, and business partners. Specific functions are included at lower levels for the demands of the surgery departments, such as anaesthesia record, operation record, present status record. DISCUSSION: The complexity of user acceptance is reflected by (i) the different groups of users of Electronic Healthcare Record systems (physicians, nurses, managers, researchers) together with their various requirements, and (ii) the different contexts of use (e.g., support in normal or emergency situations, access for research, and mobile access). Commercial providers have developed electronic patient record systems, that often turn out to be too inflexible for the requirements of a university setting and need to be customized considerably. To ensure user acceptance, we analyzed the demands together with clinical partners from the surgery departments. It is expected that the ARISTOPHANES system will also be attractive to other medical departments in light of the overall advantages such as paperless documentation, reliable patient data transfer, improved settlement of accounts, and easing the burden on care personnel