The Impact of E-commerce on Organizational Performance: Applied study in Jordanian Insurance Companies

This study aim to investigate the concept of E-commerce and organizational performance, and examine the impact of E-commerce on organizational performance in Jordanian insurance companies, The population of the study includes all insurance companies in Jordan, a sample of (100) accountant based on (8) branches of insurance companies in Amman city was selected randomly for the purpose of this study. The study instrument is the questionnaire. The study found that there are positive attitudes towards E-commerce because their mean are greater than the standard mean. The study also rejects hypotheses: Ho: There is no statistical significant relationship between E-commerce and organizational performance in Jordanian insurance companies. The study recommended that insurance companies should improve their company's computer and information needs in order to use E-commerce, and insurance companies should increase their attention for application of E-commerce. Keywords: E-commerce, Performance, insurance compan

Investor-State Arbitration: Exploring Conteporary Issues and Remedy

Abstract In recent years there has been rapid expansion of investments by foreign investors in countries around the world. For addressing the investment-related disputes, the Investor-State Arbitration (ISA) has been frequently resorted to by the parties.  Arbitration is thus the preferred and widely used ADR mechanism in the sphere of commercial disputes between foreign investor and host state. However, of late there has been increasing criticism of ISA coming from the disputants (parties) and various stakeholders. These criticisms have mainly to do with the over delays, costs, unsatisfactory results, loss of harmony-which many a time follow with arbitration. Arbitration in this sense has become comparable with litigation. Foreign investors may find it hard to continue with their business in the host state if the dispute resolution remains slow, tardy, costly and foremost unsatisfactory. Further, host state also risks losing key investments to the detriment of its national economy. Not to speak of delays, costs and other attendant problems, the major challenge to ISA remains the political issues which many times  rights-based arbitral  process might generate. That is to say, if the arbitral award is against the host state’s national interest, the same might create contentious issues, thus challenging the entire mechanism of ISA. In the light of the above, the present paper will first discuss the current global trend of ISA and will highlight the problems associated with it. It will then explore the ways and means of strengthening the ISA mechanism in addressing the investor-state disputes. Thus it will primarily offer analysis of the critical aspects of ISA. To this end it will discuss the ‘other’ consensual forms of dispute resolution like mediation, conciliation and negotiation and how they can effectively help in dispute prevention and management. In this way, it is supposed, the present paper will analyse critically the growing discussion surrounding the utility of Investor-State Arbitration as currently happening at the global level. Keywords: Arbitration, Investment, Investor-State Arbitration, Alternative Dispute Resolutio

Assessing the Performance of Different Large Format Digital Cameras by Investigating the Geometric Accuracy and Camera Calibration

This paper provides an independent investigation on the geometric accuracy and camera calibration of the new photogrammetric digital airborne camera systems, undertaken as a part of the German Society of Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Geoinfirmation (DGPF) project for investigating large format digital cameras (Vexcel Imaging UltraCamX, Z/I Imaging DMC and Z/I Imaging RMC Top 15). This paper presents results from the imaging data on 6 different flight days flown over a test site in Germany during a 10 week time window starting at the beginning of July till the middle of September 2008. Most of the sensors were flown at two different flying heights, resulting in two blocks with different Ground Sampling Distances (GSD); namely GSD 20cm and GSD 8cm. In this paper, the digital camera calibration was assessed through analyzing and identifying any systematic patterns in the image residuals. A new calibration method was undertaken in this paper based on analyzing the systematic errors of the high and low flown residuals. The bundle adjustment will be re-computed based on the analysis of the systematic residual patterns. This approach is based on analyzing the systematic errors of the high flown residuals and re-computing the bundle adjustment of the low flown images based on the residual corrections of the high flown images. These corrections were computed from a block triangulation and applied because the systematic patterns were considered similar for all images. The bundle adjustment will be re-computed based on the analysis of the systematic residual patterns. This approach is based on analyzing the systematic errors of the high flown residuals and re-computing the bundle adjustment of the low flown images based on the residual corrections of the high flown images. The results introduced in this paper were significantly improved by using the traditional existing selfcalibration method and the new calibration approac

Assessing the Performance of Different Direct-Georeferencing with Large Format Digital Cameras

This paper provides an independent investigation into the quality, performance and reliability of the Direct Georeferencing (using in-flight control GPS and IMU systems to measure the exterior orientation parameters) with the new photogrammetric digital airborne camera systems, undertaken as a part of the German Society of Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Geoinfirmation (DGPF) investigation project for large format digital camera Z/I Imaging DMC and Z/I Imaging large format film camera RMC Top 15. This paper will present results from the imaging data flown at 6 different flight days over a test site in Germany during a 10 week time window starting in July till mid-September 2008. The two sensors were flown at two different flying heights, resulting in blocks with the same ground sampling distance (GSD); namely GSD = 8cm. The results of Direct Georeferencing from real trials using a traditional Zeiss RMK TOP 15 film frame camera and Z/I Imaging large format digital camera DMC will be presented. These cameras are fitted with an Applanix POS AV 510, GPS, IMU integrated system. In this paper, the quality of Direct Georeferencing for digital cameras and film cameras is assessed through the coordinates of independent measurement of check points. A traditional triangulation (AT) with ground control points will be performed to be used as a ‘benchmark result’ against which other results from direct georeferencing can be compared. The use of direct georeferencing by GPS/IMU can be distinguished in two different concepts: • The use of direct georeferencing (DG) to measure the exterior orientation parameters for photogrammetric data processing without using the aerial triangulation. • Direct georeferencing can be considered with aerial triangulation and the automatically measured minor control points (tie and pass points) and is called Integrated Sensor Orientation (ISO). Which approach is suitable for a specific task depends on many factors; e.g., the required accuracy and the image scale. In general, Direct Georeferencing without aerial triangulation (DG) is used for medium to small scale projects, while Direct Georeferencing with aerial triangulation (ISO) is applied to large and medium scales (Heipke et al., 2000). The results show the importance and the influence of GPS and IMU needed for Direct Georeferencing with these large format digital cameras, and how these cameras are sensitive to the accuracy of data form GPS and IMU sensors. These large format digital cameras can benefit from the higher quality of GPS and IMU data

Investigation into Self-calibration Methods for the Vexcel UltraCam D Digital Aerial Camera

This paper provides an investigation into the camera calibration of a Vexcel UltraCam D digital aerial camera which was undertaken as part of the EuroSDR Digital Camera Calibration project. This paper will present results from two flights flown over a test site at Fredrikstad-Norway using established camera calibration techniques. Furthermore, it proposes an alternative approach. The "new" multi cone digital camera systems are geometrically complex. The image used for photogrammetric analysis is made up of a number of images produced by a cluster of camera cones and possibly various groups of CCD arrays. This produces a resultant image which is not just based on traditional single lens/focal plane camera geometries, but depends on the joining of images from multiple lens (different perspectives), handling groups of focal planes and the matching of overlapping image areas. Some of the requirements from camera calibration such as stability can only be determined through long-term experience/research and some can be determined through investigation and short-term research such as the calibration parameters. The methodology used in this research for assessing the camera calibration is based on self-calibration using the Collinearity Equations. The analysis was undertaken in order to try to identify any systematic patterns in the resulting image residuals. By identifying and quantifying the systematic residuals, a new calibration method is proposed that recomputes the bundle adjustment based on the analysis of the systematic residual patterns. Only very small systematic patterns could be visually identified in small areas of the images. The existing self-calibration methods and the new approach have made a small improvement on the results. The new calibration approach for the low flight has been particularly beneficial in improving the RMSE in Z and reducing image residuals. However, the method was less successful at improving the high flown results. This approach has shown that it has potential but needs further investigation to fully assess its capabilities

Exploring the socio‐cultural sustainability of old and new housing: two cases from Jordan

Vernacular architecture serves as inspiration and learning material to create more impactful and meaningful contemporary building solutions. However, most research in this area focuses on the technical aspects of sustainability. There remains a gap in the sociocultural aspects of both contemporary and vernacular architecture. A coherent understanding of the indicators that inform this vernacular-inspired sustainable architecture is also still lacking. This study aimed to propose and categorize indicators of a theoretical eco-cultural sustainability framework and indicators. This was underpinned by a literature review of existing sustainability assessment frameworks and tools. A qualitative approach was used comprising 81 semi-structured interviews from two case study areas - historical and contemporary development, in Jordan. Framework and thematic analysis guided the analysis stage. Factors related to cultural appropriation were the most prioritised by participants and linked to sustainability. It was also found that due to its intangibility and complexity, most sustainability frameworks in the built environment only focus on the environmental criteria and have failed to integrate cultural indicators. Therefore, this study makes a significant theoretical and practical contribution in that it bridges this gap by proposing tangible metrics relating to intangible cultural factors so that this can be effectively incorporated into existing design assessment methods and tools.</p

Sports Betting: Surveying the Legality Issues and Current Developments

The unpredictability of the results of sporting events creates a recurring natural thought in the human mind, as to “who will win or who will lose”. Such a question is seemingly not easy to answer before the result is actually out. However, the betters around the world would like to make winning or losing predictions, and in that process they either earn or lose money involved in the betting exercise. Betting here may be defined as- activity of predicting result and placing a wager on the outcome. The same is considered a form of gambling. The sports betting are happening around the world involving various sporting events which include offline as well as online. The legality question comes into play when the sports betting (betters) start influencing the players of a given sport in order to make the result predictable, and thus to win the wager amount. The situation thus raises several questions on sports ethics. Here, the larger question of legality of sports betting assumes critical significance. How far the betting exercise is justified under the law? Can it be eliminated? Should it be legalized? Can the same is subject to legal regulation? Such pressing questions are all dogging the lawmakers and judiciaries around the world. In the light of the above, the present paper will discuss and analyse the sports betting by surveying the legal developments in few prominent jurisdictions like US, UK, Australia and India, etc. Based on its analysis, the paper will make an attempt to find out the rationalizing factors behind legalization of sports betting. Keywords: Sport, Betting, Legal Issue, US, UK, Australia, India

The Impact of Social Media Marketing on the Success of Small-Sized Enterprises in Jordan

The present study aimed to explore the impact of using social media as marketing tool on the success of small-sized enterprises in Jordan. The study’s population consists from all the owners of small restaurants located in Jordan, Amman. As for the sample, it consists of (100) owners who are selected from the population. The questionnaire sheds a light on (e-infrastructure, having a social media page, and human resources).It was found that the owners of small restaurants in Jordan have positive attitudes towards using social media as a marketing tool.  It was found that using social media as a marketing tool has a statistically significant impact on the success of small-sized enterprises in Jordan. It was found that having a social media page has a statistically significant impact on the success of small-sized enterprises. It was found that e-infrastructure and human resources don’t have any statistically significant impact on the success of small-sized enterprises. The researcher recommends developing the e-infrastructure in Jordan. Keywords: E-Marketing, Social Networks, Small-sized enterprises DOI: 10.7176/IKM/9-6-03 Publication date:June 30th 201

Intelligent Arabic letters speech recognition system based on mel frequency cepstral coefficients

Speech recognition is one of the important applications of artificial intelligence (AI). Speech recognition aims to recognize spoken words regardless of who is speaking to them. The process of voice recognition involves extracting meaningful features from spoken words and then classifying these features into their classes. This paper presents a neural network classification system for Arabic letters. The paper will study the effect of changing the multi-layer perceptron (MLP) artificial neural network (ANN) properties to obtain an optimized performance. The proposed system consists of two main stages; first, the recorded spoken letters are transformed from the time domain into the frequency domain using fast Fourier transform (FFT), and features are extracted using mel frequency cepstral coefficients (MFCC). Second, the extracted features are then classified using the MLP ANN with back-propagation (BP) learning algorithm. The obtained results show that the proposed system along with the extracted features can classify Arabic spoken letters using two neural network hidden layers with an accuracy of around 86%