UTILIZATION AND VALUE OF PUBLIC SECTOR INFORMATION FOR KNOWLEDGE DEVELOPMENT: THE CASE OF SOUTH AFRICA

Although there appears to be a broad recognition of the key role that Public Sector Information (PSI) can play in the development of societies, there are still significant gaps in our understanding of how PSI is actually being utilized and of its wider societal value, especially in developing countries. The overarching goal of this dissertation was to analyze the PSI utilization process within the knowledge creation context and the factors and conditions that affect its value and usability from the user perspective. More specifically, the thesis investigates the PSI-related factors and conditions that facilitate or hinder the utilization process, as well as the PSI attributes that affect its usefulness and value in two organizations working on social and economic development issues in South Africa: the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) and the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA). The dissertation uses the information management process framework (Choo, 1995) and the information value-in-use framework (Repo, 1986) to guide the study\u27s design, data collection, data analysis, and presentation of the results. Employing a qualitative approach, a single case study was used to gather data through in-depth, semi-structured interviews, informal interviews, and document review. The study demonstrates that in their attempts to find and acquire the PSI needed for their work, the study participants faced a wide range of technical, institutional, and political obstacles and challenges. The study also demonstrates that several of the assumptions in the literature about PSI-related policies and resources were not applicable to a developing country. Despite these access challenges and issues related to PSI quality, the utilized PSI resources were still instrumental to the knowledge creation processes at the study sites and to the overall socioeconomic development of the country. The study concludes that in addition to the progressive legislation on information access and use in South Africa, effective PSI utilization for knowledge creation and development requires defined and clear national standards and mechanisms to ensure that the policies and guidelines are adhered to, and that the bureaucratic restrictions on information access and use are minimal. It also requires the development of an organizational culture that is sensitive to the value of its information assets and the effective management of relations with users. It is hoped that this effort can help PSI holders in South Africa and elsewhere to create more enabling environments so that the value of these resources can be maximize

M-ary phase-shift keying using finite impulse response filter based on window function method

Digital filters are vastly utilized in the area of communication. A perfect digital filter efficiency is significant and hence to design a digital finite impulse response filter (FIR) favorable all the wanted situations is necessary. In this paper, a new proposed FIR digital filter designed, the fineness of the submitted filter is tested in terms of BER and then matched with another window, namely Hamming, Hanning, and Blackman. The design procedure done in the MATLAB software. It is concluded that the Blackman window is the best window to design the FIR digital filter, because it is bit error rate is better than another window

Development of an Expert System Tool for Environmental Impact Assessment

In this study, approaches to environmental impact assessment are reviewed and discussed. An expert system tool has been developed via the use of Microsoft Access tool for data management and Visual Basic programming for decision-making. Policies and regulations included in the program are based on the Technical Guidelines # 4 of the Dubai Municipality. The salient features of the program can be summarized as follows: the program allows the EIA applicant to input all the necessary information about his/her company and its activities. All discharges to air, water and land are compared with TG # 4 and status report is issued indicating whether or not the application is in compliance with the current policies and regulations. Also, suggested measures are outlined to mitigate the anticipated adverse impact. The Program is documented and an example is given to highlight its use. It is anticipated that such program could be adapted by Federal Environmental Agency for EIAs throughout the UAE

Development of an Instrument to Assess Capacity for Systems Thinking

With the rapid growth and integration in technology and information, the behavior and structure of complex systems presents escalating challenges. Complex systems are marked by high level of ambiguity, uncertainty, and emergence. These conditions impose challenges and difficulties for practitioners responsible to successfully manage and design complex systems. There is a fundamental need to have a cadre of individuals who are capable of dealing with increasingly complex systems and their problems. One response is Systems Thinking, which can provide a holistic thinking paradigm that opens new channels and opportunities to think differently about complex systems as a whole unit. This paradigm will enable individuals to avoid solving the wrong problems. The emphasis of this paper is to explore possible applications of a research-based instrument developed to capture the level of systems thinking for individuals who engage and design complex systems. The Systems Thinking Profiles produced by the instrument represent individual inclination to adapt a systemic perspective for engaging and solving complex system problems, and reflects a state that can be enhanced through training and/or education to improve capacity for systems thinking