Factors influencing discretionary ICT corporate social responsibility decisions made by financial services organisations

Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D) promotes the use of technology in development. Business organisations are realising that ICT solutions can be used to solve certain developmental issues and businesses are deciding to invest into these kinds of technology solutions as part of its Corporate social responsibility (CSR). The purpose of this paper is to evaluate this intersection of these two concepts (ICT4D and CSR) by identifying the factors that influence ICT4D CSR decisions made by South African financial services organisations. This evaluation is performed by interviewing representatives of financial services organisations that participate in CSR projects as well as by analysing corporate websites and documentation on these organisations’ CSR strategy and activities to identify major factors that influence ICT CSR decisions. These factors when grouped into categories highlight that businesses are searching for the projects that align with the business organisation’s corporate strategy, projects that make use of solutions that the business consider the most appropriate and projects where businesses can partner with the correct partner. This research paper proposes a new theoretical framework that combines elements of the Strategic IT decision making (SITDM) model with the Technological organisational and environmental (TOE) model with which to identify the factors that influence ICT CSR projects

A fundamental approach to predicting mass transfer coefficients in bubble column reactors

Includes bibliographical references.A bubble column reactor is a vertical cylindrical vessel used for gas-liquid reactions. Bubble Columns have several applications in industry due to certain obvious advantages such as high gas-liquid interfacial area, high heat and mass transfer rates, low maintenance requirements and operating costs. On the other hand, attempts at modelling and simulation are complicated by lack of understanding of hydrodynamics and mass transfer characteristics. This complicates design scale-up and industrial usage. Many studies and models have attempted to evolve understanding of the hydrodynamic complexity in Bubble Columns reactors. A closer look at these studies and models reveals a variety of solution methods for different systems (Frössling, 1938; Clift et al., 1978; Hughmark, 1967; Dutta, 2007; Ranz and Marshall, 1952; Benitez, 2009; Buwa et al., 2006; Suzzia et al., 2009; Wylock et al., 2011). Numerous correlations (Frössling, 1938; Clift et al., 1978; Hughmark, 1967; Dutta, 2007; Ranz and Marshall, 1952; Benitez, 2009; Buwa et al., 2006) exist but to date in literature, there is no general approach to determining accurate estimates of average mass transfer coefficient values. Good estimates of the average mass transfer coefficient will improve the predictive capacity of the associated models. Recent attempts at modelling micro-scale bubble-fluid interaction resulted in the Bubble Cell Model, BCM, (Coetzee et al., 2009) which simulates the velocity vector field around a single gas bubble in a flowing fluid stream using a Semi-Analytical model. The aim of the present study is to extend the BCM applications by integrating the mass balance into the framework to predict the average mass transfer coefficient in bubble columns. A nitrogen-water steady state system was simulated in an axisymmetric grid where mass transfer occurs between the gas and liquid

Non‐Rayleigh Statistics of Ultrasonic Backscattered Echo from Tissues

The envelope of the backscattered signal from tissues can exhibit non‐Rayleigh statistics if the number density of scatterers is small or if the variations in the scattering cross sections are random. The K distribution which has been used extensively in radar, is introduced to model this non‐Rayleigh behavior. The generalized K distribution is extremely useful since it encompasses a wide range of distributions such as Rayleigh, Lognormal, and Rician. Computer simulations were conducted using a simple one‐dimensional discrete scatteringmodel to investigate the properties of the echo envelope. In addition to cases of low number densities, significant departures from Rayleigh statistics were seen as the scattering cross sections of the scatterers become random. The validity of this model was also tested using data from tissue mimicking phantoms. Results indicate that the density function of the envelope can be modeled by the K distribution and the parameters of the K distribution can provide information on the nature of the scattering region in terms of the number density of the scatterers as well as the scattering cross sections of the scatterers in the range cell. [Work was supported by NSF Grant No. BCS‐9207385.

Transition to adult services for children and young people with palliative care needs : a systematic review

Objective: To evaluate the evidence on the transition process from child to adult services for young people with palliative care needs. Design: Systematic review Setting: Child and adult services and interface between healthcare providers. Patients: Young people aged 13 to 24 years with palliative care conditions in the process of transition. Main outcome measures: Young people and their families’ experiences of transition, the process of transition between services and its impact on continuity of care, and models of good practice. Results: 92 studies included. Papers on transition services were of variable quality when applied to palliative care contexts. Most focused on common life threatening and life limiting conditions. No standardised transition programme identified and most guidelines used to develop transition services were not evidence based. Most studies on transition programmes were predominantly condition-specific (e.g. cystic fibrosis, cancer) services. Cystic fibrosis services offered high quality transition with the most robust empirical evaluation. There were differing condition-dependent viewpoints on when transition should occur but agreement on major principles guiding transition planning and probable barriers. There was evidence of poor continuity between child and adult providers with most originating from within child settings. Conclusions: Palliative care was not, in itself, a useful concept for locating transition-related evidence. It is not possible to evaluate the merits of the various transition models for palliative care contexts, or their effects on continuity of care, as there are no long-term outcome data to measure their effectiveness. Use of validated outcome measures would facilitate research and service development

Balancing Migration: Overcoming the challenge to SaaS provisioning for core business activities: A South African case study

Cloud computing provides shared information and communication technology (ICT) resources to individuals and organisations, including hardware and software resources that were previously too costly for an individual organisation to manage and own. Cloud computing makes vast amounts of ICT resources available to business organisations, resources that can improve business processes and allow business organisations to leverage ICT in ways that were previously impossible. The correct implementation, adoption and usage of ICT within a business organisation can lead to enhancements in productivity, innovation, and new products and services, as well as the reduction of production costs. Recent literature has attested to the fact that the adoption of cloud computing has been much lower than expected. Business organisations that have adopted cloud computing have done so mainly in products and services that can be categorised as support or non-core activities, such as HR, accounting, and marketing. In order to understand why the adoption pattern of cloud computing in business organisations has focused mainly on non-core activities, this study aims to identify the core challenge facing cloud service providers (CSPs) that provision cloud solutions to business organisations in the investment management industry. These would include cloud solutions that investment managers can use in their core business activities. Furthermore, the aim of this dissertation is to identify how CSPs overcome the core challenge faced. A case study was performed on a single CSP that provisions a SaaS solution to the investment management sector in South Africa. The case study identified migration as the core challenge experienced by CSPs. Classical grounded theory was used to generate the theory of “Balancing Migration” being the resolution to the core challenge identified. The results of the study point to the fact that investment management organisations have processes and systems that have become entrenched in their business over many years. Migrating an established system to the cloud is more than just substituting software. Migration to the cloud requires investment managers to migrate both business processes and operating strategy, and to migrate the actual software products and infrastructure. A CSP provisioning a SaaS solution for a core business activity needs to migrate the products that they offer as well as their business strategy. The theory of “Balancing Migration” proposes that these four categories of migration challenges need to be addressed simultaneously and holistically. In summary, “Migration” is the core concern to a CSP provisioning a SaaS solution for a core business activity, and “balancing migration” is how this core concern is resolved

Kajian Mutu Air dengan Metode Indeks Pencemaran pada Sungai Krengseng, Kota Semarang

Krengseng river is flowing through Banyumanik sub-district and Tembalang sub-district, Semarang, with a length of river approximately 7,72 miles. The slope of the river can be written with S=0,0174 and the river catchment area of 738,855 hectares. Both of these districts are growing area that is designated as an area of education and office. Determination of water quality status in the Krengseng river is necessary in order to find out how much blackened conditions experienced and produce recommendations based on river pollution control. This study aims to analyze the fluctuations of pollutants concentration parameters in Krengseng river influenced by land use based on the parameters of TSS, COD, DO, Phospate, Nitrate and Nitrite; calculate the value of index water pollution at each sampling point in Krengseng river based on parameters, and analyze the pollution load in the river Krengseng. The study was conducted in the dry and rainy season. Pollution index values were analyzed by KepMen LH No. 115 of 2003 about Guidelines for Determination of Water Quality Status by taking 17 points of sampling and make segmentation divided into 10 segments region. The study showed pollution index values is higher in the downstream than upstream; low pollution index value of 1,2 fit into category of minor impurity, while the highest pollution index value of 10 fit the category of being defiled

Perception of Students and Lecturers on Students Centered Learning (SCL) in the College of Nursing and Midwifery Gombe Northern Nigeria

Topmost among the 21st century innovations in pedagogy is the introduction of the constructivist approach in which students are afforded wide latitude of involvement in constructing, reconstructing and ascending a scaffold of knowledge based on student centered learning (SCL) approach. This study aimed to assess the perception of SCL introduced as a form of teaching and learning among students and lecturers in the College of Nursing and Midwifery, Gombe State, Nigeria. Employing a descriptive cross sectional study design and a purposive sampling technique, a sample of 117 students and 24 lecturers were drawn. Using an adapted SCL questionnaire, data collection was done from November to December, 2020 and was analyzed using SPSS (IBM) version 23 and result presented as means and percentages, while Pearson correlation and one-way ANOVA was used to present inferential statistics results. All statistical findings were considered significant at p≥0.05. Cronbach’s alpha reliability score of at least 7.0 was achieved within each set of variables considered. Of the eight SCL components assessed, the most highly rated were role of lecturers (3.99±0.7) and role of students (3.53±0.6) while the least rated were obstacles (2.91±0.9) and learning outcomes (2.95±1.1). Three major obstacles to SCL identified in the study include: “in ability to cover the syllabus using SCL approaches” (3.04±1.4); “lack of infrastructure for SCL in my school” (3.87±1.1) and; “lack of guidelines for the SCL approach in my school” (3.13±1.3). The study findings conclude that, despite the good perception of SCL in the college there are limitations to its full adoption. Therefore, it is recommended that online discussions, training of staff and provision of measures to ensure content coverage using SCL, provision of critical infrastructure and guidelines for SCL be prioritized by the management and other stakeholders

The factors affecting household transmission dynamics and community compliance with Ebola control measures: a mixed-methods study in a rural village in Sierra Leone.

BACKGROUND: Little is understood of Ebola virus disease (EVD) transmission dynamics and community compliance with control measures over time. Understanding these interactions is essential if interventions are to be effective in future outbreaks. We conducted a mixed-methods study to explore these factors in a rural village that experienced sustained EVD transmission in Kailahun District, Sierra Leone. METHODS: We reconstructed transmission dynamics using a cross-sectional survey conducted in April 2015, and cross-referenced our results with surveillance, burial, and Ebola Management Centre (EMC) data. Factors associated with EVD transmission were assessed with Cox proportional hazards regression. Following the survey, qualitative semi-structured interviews explored views of community informants and households. RESULTS: All households (n = 240; 1161 individuals) participated in the survey. 29 of 31 EVD probable/confirmed cases died (93·5% case fatality rate); six deaths (20·6%) had been missed by other surveillance systems. Transmission over five generations lasted 16 weeks. Although most households had ≤5 members there was a significant increase in risk of Ebola in households with > 5 members. Risk of EVD was also associated with older age. Cases were spatially clustered; all occurred in 15 households. EVD transmission was better understood when the community experience started to concord with public health messages being given. Perceptions of contact tracing changed from invading privacy and selling people to ensuring community safety. Burials in plastic bags, without female attendants or prayer, were perceived as dishonourable. Further reasons for low compliance were low EMC survival rates, family perceptions of a moral duty to provide care to relatives, poor communication with the EMC, and loss of livelihoods due to quarantine. Compliance with response measures increased only after the second generation, coinciding with the implementation of restrictive by-laws, return of the first survivor, reduced contact with dead bodies, and admission of patients to the EMC. CONCLUSIONS: Transmission occurred primarily in a few large households, with prolonged transmission and a high death toll. Return of a survivor to the village and more effective implementation of control strategies coincided with increased compliance to control measures, with few subsequent cases. We propose key recommendations for management of EVD outbreaks based on this experience

Pesticide Safety Awareness among Rural Farmers in Dadinkowa, Gombe State, Nigeria

Introduction: Because of the longer growing season and warmer climate, weeds and insect pests spread are on the rise, thereby increasing the demand for pesticide use and consequently harmful emissions that further exacerbate climate change. Unsafe occupational exposure to pesticide residue is associated with a lack of product knowledge and safety awareness among farmers in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study design was adopted for this study in which a face-to-face administered questionnaire was used to collect data from 285 respondents who were selected using convenient snowball sampling technique. Knowledge, awareness, and practices related to pesticide storage, handling, application, and containers disposal among the farmers were measured. Categorical variables were analysed and presented using descriptive statistics in the form of frequency count and percentage, while numeric items were summarized using mean and standard deviation. Results: Dichlorvos and Perfekthion 2.5 EC listed in the WHO Group I pesticide classification were among the most frequently used pesticides. Symptoms of pesticide intoxication reported include headaches (56.1%), dizziness (56.5%), skin irritation (53.3%), and fatigue (45.6%), respectively. Farmers’ behaviour during pesticide application include blowing clogged nozzle with mouth (42.7%), talking while spraying (59.8%), and mixing pesticide with bare hands (31.1%). Furthermore, 38.5% of them use pesticide containers for other domestic purposes. Conclusions: Socioeconomic factors, i.e., educational level, age, and years of farm practice, influenced farmers safety behaviour. Based on these findings, an approach that will help strengthen capacity building programmes and the enhancement of knowledge-based initiatives around the adoption of non-synthetic pest-control methods should be encouraged