The case for metadata harvesting

Metadata harvesting is an increasingly popular model of interaction between the mutually autonomous parties of medium, medium-large federations of digital library services. With a harvesting protocol, in particular, resource descriptions locally available at each party can be served to remote applications for the implementation of federated services, such as resource discovery. This article offers a systematic explanation of the success of the model and its standard implementations in the context of current initiatives for national and international federations

A Historical Perspective of Teacher Education in Rivers State of Nigeria: 1967-1998

Teacher education is an essential component of the educational system because teachers, among others, help to develop human capacity and implement educational policies for the realization of the nation’s objectives and goals. The development of teacher education in Rivers State, a chip of the then Eastern Nigeria that was created on 27th May, 1967 with a myriad of challenges, contributes to data on the subject in Nigeria and explains how these challenges were surmounted. From a gradual development of three Teacher Training Colleges (TTCs) for primary school teachers, tertiary institutions were established to produce non-graduate and graduate teachers for secondary schools, undergraduate and post graduate teacher education. Sandwich, in-service and long-distance programmes boosted teacher education in the State. The Universal Primary Education (UPE), insistence on certification for employment in the system, and attainment of the national minimum qualification of Nigeria certificate in Education for teaching were some major factors that stimulated and sustained teacher education development between 1967 and 1998 in Rivers State

Exploring Entrepreneurial Mindset of Engineering Students at a Rural Midwestern University.

Background: Regional communities and economic development rely on businesses and entrepreneurs to provide goods, services, jobs, and overall economic growth. Engineering students at a rural Midwestern US university are equipped with engineering backgrounds and problem-solving competencies that make them familiar with new product development and prepare them for entrepreneurship. Purpose/Hypothesis: This study explores the senior engineering students\u27 perceptions of entrepreneurship, creativity, risk-taking, and the extent to which entrepreneurship plays a role in their career plans. Design/Method: The study utilizes an assessment tool that measures three mindset domains: entrepreneurship self-efficacy, creativity, and risk-taking behaviors. Results: The study’s findings showed that the readiness for entrepreneurship varies among senior engineering students; however, most of them preferred working for established businesses rather than being an entrepreneur as a career choice.Conclusions: The author discusses the entrepreneurial ecosystem already established in the region and advocates for entrepreneurship education within engineering programs at this university as a potential solution for the region to obtain its strategic economic development goals

A Program Evaluation of an Apprenticeship Program using Stufflebeam’s CIPP Model

This dissertation is a program evaluation of an apprenticeship program operated by Siemens Energy, Inc. in Charlotte, North Carolina. The evaluation was based on Stufflebeam’s CIPP model of context (C), input (I), process (P), and product (P). The CIPP sought to evaluate (C) current and future objectives, (I) various strategies use to achieve the objectives, (P) the implementation of the strategies, and (P) the outcome of the program. The entire model provided insight into the effectiveness of the program and provided feedback for decision making and accountability toward current and future improvement of the program (Stufflebeam, 1971). Four questions were cultivated to align with the CIPP model. The four CIPP questions were (a) Context: How are the objectives of the program matched up with the needs of Siemens and the apprentices; (b) Input: What characteristics help apprentices finish their program? (c) Process: Are the apprentices being successfully trained; and (d) Product: What was the outcome in meeting the program’s strategic plan? The research design methodology follows several pathways. Current apprentices took the online survey of the Noel-Levitz Adult Learner Inventory. They also completed the apprentice survey and were involved in a planned interview. The management team was administered a survey and was part of an interview. Other documents and data were reviewed and analyzed such as strategic plans, current and projected sales demand, applicant and apprentice information, training materials, graduation, retention, and employment information. Based on the findings of the program evaluation, the apprenticeship program is effective and accomplishing its goals. The researcher has concluded three recommendations for consideration based on the evaluation findings: provide more support for apprentices, ensure the apprentices fully comprehend the curriculum requirements and expectations for their associate’s degree, and develop a strategic plan with a mission and vision statement

Factors considered by undergraduate medical students when selecting specialty of their future careers

Introduction: medical students are the source of a country's physicians. Determining how medical students select their areas of specialization isthe key to achieve a balanced distribution of doctors among all specialties. The objective is to identify the number of medical students who havedecided their postgraduate specialty career, their career specialties preference, and factors that may influence their decision to select a particular specialty.Methods: a facility based cross-sectional study was conducted in  September 2013 at Faculty of Medicine, University of Medical Sciences and Technology, Khartoum, Sudan. A self-administered semi-structured  questionnaire comprising demographic data and questions about future specialties preferences and factors influencing those preferences was  distributed to 887 male and female students, (from first to fifth academicyears) recruited in the study.Results: response rate was 73% with 647 questionnaires collected, out of 887 eligible medical students. Of the returned questionnaires, 604 were valid. The majority of students (541, 89.6%) have chosen a specialty. Surgery, medicine, paediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology were the most selected specialties. The least selected specialty was  anaesthesiology. A significant association was found between gender and specialty choice using Chi-square test (p=0.00). There was no association between undergraduate level and specialty choice (p=0.633). The most common reason for choosing a specific specialty was "Personal Interest" (215, 39.7 %) followed by being "Helpful to the community" (144, 26.6%). Conclusion: surgery, medicine, paediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology were the most selected specialties

Pendidikan bahasa Cina di kalangan pelajar Melayu: satu kajian kes di negeri Kelantan / Heng Buai Chin, Neo Kian Sen and Chia Oai Peng

Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina (SJKC) menjadi semakin popular di kalangan ibu bapa Melayu di Negeri Kelantan, bilangan pelajar Melayu di SJKC semakin bertambah ramai. Kajian ini dijalankan untuk mengenalpasti apakah faktor-faktor pendorong yang menyumbang kepada penghantaran anak-anak Melayu ke SJKC di Kelantan. Kajian ini juga mengkaji tahap penguasaan Bahasa Cina pelajar Melayu, dan pengaruh faktor bahasa serta faktor-faktor lain ke atas pencapaian mata pelajaran Matematik dan Sains yang dipelajari dalam Bahasa Cina. Di samping itu, impak pendidikan Cina ke atas seseorang pelajar Melayu dan masalah yang dihadapi oleh pelajar Melayu di SJKC juga ditentukan. Kajian ini merupakan satu kajian berbentuk gabungan kuantitatif dan kualitatif. Kaedah tinjauan dan temu ramah telah digunakan. Sampel kajian terdiri daripada 250 orang pelajar tahap dua yang dipilih dari tujuh buah sekolah di negeri Kelantan. Satu set borang soal selidik dijawab oleh sampel kajian, di samping itu 3 orang guru dan 3 orang ibu bapa dari setiap sekolah kajian juga ditemuramah. Pakej Perisian Statistik SPSS 12.01 diguna untuk menganalisis hasil kajian soal selidik secara deskriptif. Hasil temu ramah pula diguna untuk menyokong dan melengkapi analisis kuantitatif

Hvilke holdninger har unge voksne i Norge til kjøp av falske merkevarer på nett?

Bakgrunn: Denne studien er en bacheloroppgave som retter seg mot hvilke holdninger unge voksne i Norge mellom 18 og 24 år har til kjøp av falske merkevarer. Oppgaven vil belyse hvilke kunnskaper deltagerne har om den type handel, hvilke holdninger de har og hva insentivene til slik handel er. Undersøkelsen baserer seg på tidligere studier fra Europa, Asia samt Nord-Amerika og Russland. De ulike studiene har omhandlet temaer som i stor grad er relevante i forhold til vår problemstilling og forskningsspørsmål. Problemstilling: Hvilke holdninger har unge voksne i Norge til kjøp av falske merkevarer på nett? Metoder: Studien er en kvalitativ studie med et intensivt design. Det er benyttet semistrukturerte dybdeintervjuer av ti deltagere fordelt på tre fokusgrupper. Gruppene har bestått av begge kjønn i alderen 19 til 24 år. Resultater: Funnene i denne undersøkelsen skilte seg i noen grad fra studiene vi har valgt å sammenligne med. De sosiale insentivene som gruppetilhørighet og aksept fra andre, var mindre framtredende i våre funn kontra studiene vi har valgt å sammenligne med. Det var i stor grad egenverdien ved å bruke en falsk merkevare, som deltagerne i vår undersøkelse trakk fram som en negativ faktor. Når det gjaldt det økonomiske insentivet, det vil si pris på produktet, sammenfalt våre funn med funn fra de studiene vi har sammenlignet med. Konklusjon: I vår undersøkelse fremkom det at deltagerne har god kunnskap rundt de falske produktene og etterligningene, men at kunnskapen og forståelsen for den samfunnsmessige problematikken som eksempelvis kriminalitet, arbeidsvilkår og miljø er lav. Inntrykket til deltagerne, og medieoppslag de viser til er at originalprodusenter heller ikke driver virksomhet på akseptabel måte. Undersøkelsen viser at det er stor aksept for handel av falske merkevarer. Få av deltagerne ville kjøpt slike varer selv, men det ville vært akseptabelt og legitimt om andre kjøpte. Dette begrunnes i liten egenverdi av å bruke slike varer, og at det ville vært ydmykende å bli avslørt med falske produkter. Ni av ti sier at falske varer ville gitt en dårlig følelse og at de heller ville kjøpt et ekte produkt fra et billigere merke. Av økonomiske insentiver for kjøp fant vi stor enighet i at pris er avgjørende. Det var videre stor enighet i at sosial aksept og gruppepress er et mye større problem i ungdoms- og videregående- skolealder. Avslutningsvis var flere deltagere enige om at det kunne friste med kjøp av et falskt produkt der varen var eksklusivt begrenset. Det vil si der den ekte varen ikke var å få tak i

Best Practices for OAI Data Provider Implementations and Shareable Metadata

In summer 2004, the Digital Library Federation (DLF) sponsored a meeting at the California Digital Library. DLF and the National Science Digital Library (NSDL)-affiliated data and service providers as well as other interested individuals discussed issues about OAI PMH implementations and concerns stemming from the harvesting of metadata from diverse collections. This ad hoc working group brainstormed a large list of areas that needed guidelines or best practices and agreed to establish a wiki, hosted by the NSDL, to write a set of best practices. This work was chiefly facilitated by Kat Hagedorn of the University of Michigan, Sarah L. Shreeves of the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign, and Jenn Riley of Indiana University. It was part of an IMLS-funded effort to establish a training program and set of resources on the implementation of the OAI PMH for data providers and DLF member institutions. The best practices work was coordinated through weekly conference calls and twice-yearly meetings held at the DLF Forums. This document presents the best practices as they existed on the wiki as of April 2007.Sponsored by the Digital Library Federation and the National Science Digital Library (through the National Science Foundation).Ope

Thomas Salmon's just intonation viol

本稿は、17世紀イギリスの音楽理論家トマス・サモン(1648-1706)による、純正律で演奏可能なヴィオルの構想について論じたものである。その構想は、科学者団体であるロンドン王立協会主催の演奏会において実現するに至ったが、ピュタゴラス以来の思弁的な数学的音楽理論の伝統にのっとりつつも、演奏実践や聴覚的な快を重視する彼の姿勢には、同時代のイギリスにおける経験主義的な思潮が反映されているものと思われる。p.376, l.2の表記に誤りあり。(誤)「ガスパーロ」→(正)「ガスパロ」application/pdfdepartmental bulletin pape