Agent mediation and management of virtual communities: a redefinition of the traditional community concept

The paper explores the evolution of the concept of community in the light of computer mediated immersive virtual environments. The traditional concept of community has become strained in its attempts to capture the evolving virtual community. We believe the concept of the virtual community is of paramount importance and examine the extent to which this is being redefined to cater for it. We examine the management and mediation of such an environment and specifically the social process associated with the cohabited users. We advocate the use of multi-agent systems in delivering this functionalit

Story Telling: A Comparative Analysis of Three Works by Michael Colgrass, Joseph Schwantner and Ross Lee Finney

This research project examines music by twentieth-century American composers Michael Colgrass, Joseph Schwantner, and Ross Lee Finney in order to compare how different composers present an aural conception to their audience through the wind ensemble medium. An aural conception is the subject upon which the music is commenting; sight (subject) through sound. The study includes an analysis of soundscapes- collections of sounds that form an acoustic representation of an action or objectin works created by Colgrass, Schwantner, and Finney. The project involves analyses of form, orchestration, and of the text, or story, about which the composer is writing. The works analyzed are Winds of Nagual by Michael Colgrass, …and the Mountains Rising Nowhere by Joseph Schwantner, and Skating on the Sheyenne by Ross Lee Finney. Based on these analyses of the works, interviews with conductors and composers, and an examination of othe

Exploring Bluetooth based Mobile Phone Interaction with the Hermes Photo Display

One of the most promising possibilities for supporting user interaction with public displays is the use of personal mobile phones. Furthermore, by utilising Bluetooth users should have the capability to interact with displays without incurring personal financial connectivity costs. However, despite the relative maturity of Bluetooth as a standard and its widespread adoption in today’s mobile phones, little exploration seems to have taken place in this area - despite its apparent significant potential. This paper describe the findings of an exploratory study nvolving our Hermes Photo Display which has been extended to enable users with a suitable phone to both send and receive pictures over Bluetooth. We present both the technical challenges of working with Bluetooth and, through our user study, we present initial insights into general user acceptability issues and the potential for such a display to facilitate notions of community

Sociale zekerheid: onderzoek, beleid en wisselwerking

Inleiding. Een opvallend verschijnsel in Nederland is de relatief beperkte omvang van het wetenschappelijk onderzoek op het terrein van de sociale zekerheid. Deze omvang, die overigens per discipline, en per onderdeel van de sociale zekerheid e.d, verschilt, lijkt niet in verhouding te staan tot de kwantitatieve en maatschappelijke betekenis van het stelsel. Momenteel wordt ca. een derde van het nationaal inkomen via het stelsel van sociale zekerheid herverdeeld

Constraints to the sustainability of a ‘systematised’ approach to livestock marketing amongst smallholder cattle producers in South Africa

Commercialization of smallholder agriculture in South Africa is underpinned by reforms to improve livestock off-take in communal areas and engage smallholder farmers with formal markets. To achieve this, Custom Feeding Programmes (CFPs) were established to improve the condition of communal cattle prior to their sale into formal markets and to ‘systematise’ the informal marketing of cattle in communal areas by enabling participants to achieve higher informal market prices. We evaluate the sustainability of eight CFPs located in Eastern Cape Province in terms of their ability to add value to smallholder cattle production and encourage market participation. Communities with CFPs achieved a 16.6% mean cattle off-take rate, substantially higher than in most communal systems. Furthermore, cattle sold through CFPs attained a 17% higher mean selling price than those sold through other marketing channels. However, these benefits were mainly realized by better-off farmers with larger cattle herds and greater ability to transport animals to and from CFPs. More marginalized farmers, particularly women, had low participation. CFPs also face challenges to their sustainability, including inconsistent feed and water supplies, poor infrastructure and high staff turnover. Key to enhancing participation in CFPs, will be improving the way they are supported and embedded within communities

To what extent are we confident that tapentadol induces less constipation and other side effects than the other opioids in chronic pain patients? : A confidence evaluation in network meta-analysis

Open Access offered under Sage Agreement-waiting for decisionPeer reviewedPostprin