Finding Meaning in the Madness: Unifying Your Library’s Data Collection with LibAnalytics

Libraries have collected data across multiple platforms and areas and developed reports to inform their stakeholders to show the value of the library. As data collection methods have evolved, more assessment platforms have become available in the market. LibAnalytics can help you pull together an all-inclusive, real-time assessment of your library’s services. At the University of Maryland, Priddy Library, we implemented LibAnalytics in 2011 to centralize our data collection points on numerous library services. Learn how this personalized tool has helped the Priddy Library aggregate statistics on library services such as gate counts, circulation and acquisition statistics, interlibrary loan activity, reference statistics and library instruction sessions. The presentation will focus on how we developed a customized instance based on library services and the assessment needs specific to our library. Participants will brainstorm data collection points based on their library services and how to group data points logically. The presentation will discuss how to create a dataset, categorize data entry fields, develop questions, select data field types (i.e. numeric, single or multi option dropdown menus, or text fields), and edit existing datasets. In a few simple steps, learn how to filter your data, generate custom reports, create visualizations, analyze library usage instantly, and produce shareable dashboards to provide a comprehensive overview of your library’s metrics. Through these features, learn how your library can assess trends across multiple years, make data driven decisions to improve services and demonstrate the library’s value

Executive Authority to Reform Health: Options and Limitations

Presidential power has provoked increasingly vigorous debate since the turn of this century. In recent years, scholars and lawyers have been grappling with how Congress\u27s dictates may limit the President\u27s Commander-in-Chief power to detain enemy combatants at Guantanamo Bay, to fight wars abroad, and to conduct intelligence activities at home. But policymakers have not yet explored the many possibilities for invoking the President\u27s Take Care power to change health care policy. This paper explores the scope and limits of President Barack Obama\u27s ability to invoke his executive authority to reform health care. Specifically, it identifies ways the Obama Administration can use directives to: (1) expand Medicaid and SCHIP coverage through section 1115 waivers; (2) test quality initiatives through Medicare demonstration authority; (3) expand health information technology; (4) allow drug reimportation and experiment with contracting power under Medicare; (5) enhance patient protections and private coverage requirements; (6) lift coverage restrictions on Medicaid and SCHIP; and (7) build on the health insurance program for federal employees. Consistent with the mission of the Legal Solutions in Health Reform project, this paper does not endorse a particular policy. Instead of recommending what, it explains how

Legal Solutions in Health Reform: Executive Authority to Reform Health: Options and Limitations

Examines which healthcare reforms the president can implement without congressional approval and how. Identifies options for promoting and directing agency actions on specific policy goals, as well as legal, budgetary, and legislative constraints

Cellulosic Biofuels: Are They Economically Viable and Environmentally Sustainable?

Miscanthus, Corn Stover, Switchgrass, Cost of Production, Greenhouse Gas Intensity, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Q01, Q54, Q55,

Nonlinear rheology of dense colloidal systems with short-ranged attraction: A mode-coupling theory analysis

The nonlinear rheology of glass-forming colloidal suspensions with short-ranged attractions is discussed within the integration-through transients framework combined with the mode-coupling theory of the glass transition (ITT-MCT). Calculations are based on the square-well system (SWS), as a model for colloid-polymer mixtures. The high-density regime featuring reentrant melting of the glass upon increasing the attraction strength, and the crossover from repulsive glasses formed at weak attraction to attractive glasses formed at strong attraction, are discussed. Flow curves are found in qualitative agreement with experimental data, featuring a strong increase in the yield stress, and, for suitable interaction parameters, the crossover between two yield stresses. The yield strain, defined as the position of the stress overshoot under startup flow, is found to be proportional to the attraction range for strong attraction. At weak and intermediate attraction strength, the combined effects of hard-core caging and attraction-driven bonding result in a richer dependence on the parameters. The first normal-stress difference exhibits a weaker dependence on short-ranged attractions as the shear stress, since the latter is more sensitive the short-wavelength features of the static structure.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figure

Economic Policy and State Owned Enterprises: Evolution Towards Privatisation in India

The paper endeavours to look into the evolution of the role of the state and move towards privatisation in India. It starts with a discussion on the role of State intervention in the economic development within the contours of socio-economic and political circumstances. It recognises the fact that different scholars have advocated various ways through which state can intervene in an advanced capitalist economy and a developing economy or a colony. The nature of intervention is different in each case. The paper argues that State owned enterprises (SOEs) are one such manifestation of state Intervention. In many developing countries, state enterprises are assigned the responsibility of fulfilling specific social goals, which have their origin in colonial period. Whatever may be the idea behind the creation of such enterprises, they come into existence either by direct state investment or through nationalisation of private enterprises. The state intervenes through state owned enterprises in the countries where investment needs for different projects are large and the expected returns at least in the short run are too low to motivate private capital to invest. Since 1980, however, the intervention by the state through state owned enterprises has been undergoing a close scrutiny in many developing countries including India. The argument is that excessive political interference and lack of managerial interests (autonomy) hamper the performance of state enterprises. It has resulted in the reflection of various theories on assessing the performance of state enterprises which includes property rights theory, public choice theory, non-market failure and competition theory. Since economic policy making by the state requires balance of accumulation and legitimisation, then generally, the adopted economic policy serves the interests of a few major social groups. These dominant social groups react to the adopted policy and their reactions are normally taken into account while amending the existing policy or making the new economic policy. Hence, the proper understanding of the economic policy of an economy like India necessitates its historical evaluation. Therefore, in this chapter, the whole period of interaction of economic policy and state owned sector in the post-independence India has been divided into following four phases: (i) 1950-1965, (ii) 1966-1984, (iii) 1984-91 and (iv) post-1991 policy regime. During the first phase, i.e. 1950-65, the growth rates of the economy were generally high and state owned sector was occupying the position of 'commanding heights'. Despite the economy passing through crisis during this phase, the state owned sector enjoyed by and large a significant position. The policy adopted in 1982 was a step forward towards the process of liberalisation. In state owned enterprises, a visible change in the attitude took place. The economy was made predominantly dependent upon market forces rather than on the state. The industrial policy that was initiated in 1985 was the culmination of the process of drifting away, which started during the second phase of the economic policy in India. In the Post 1991, Policy Regime, the Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Plan documents suggested many policy initiatives towards restructuring, modernisation, rationalisation of capacity, product-mix changes, privatisation, autonomy, performance accountability and disinvestments policy. However many studies emerged in favour of and against the policy of privatisation and disinvestment of SOEs and also on the performance of those enterprises that were privatised. While referring to those studies, the chapter looks into the trends of the privatisation of State Owned Enterprises from 1991 to 2000 and points out that during this period, the government offloaded shares in as many as 39 state owned enterprises. However, since March 2000 emphasis has increasingly been on strategic sales of identified state owned enterprises (SOEs). The chapter ends with a critical analysis of the performance of disinvestment process in india and observes that the policy of disinvestment has been looked upon with scepticism. JEL Classifications: O11, P41, P47, P52economic policy, privatisation, state owned enterprises, evolution, disinvestment