EVALUATING COMPLEX GOVERNMENT SAAS THROUGH VALUE FLOW MODEL ESTIMATION

Government agencies are increasingly making use of cloud computing (CC) services, initially simpler infrastructure and platform as a service (IaaS and PaaS) ones, and later more sophisticated software as a service (SaaS) ones. However, with respect to the latter the electronic support of the high complexity government processes is a difficult task and requires highly sophisticated and complex government-specific SaaS offering extensive functionalities for fulfilling the extensive requirements posed by relevant legislation. It is therefore imperative to conduct comprehensive evaluations of such complex government-specific SaaS, in order to assess to what extent they support the targeted government processes and fulfil their extensive and complex requirements, and also identify and prioritize necessary improvements. This paper presents an advanced methodology for evaluating complex government-specific SaaS, which enables comprehensive multi-dimensional evaluation of a wide range of aspects of them that are highly important in the government context, and detailed evaluation of the provided complex and extensive functionality with respect to the requirements defined by relevant legislation; furthermore, it enables a rational identification and prioritization of necessary improvements. It is based on the estimation of multi-layer ‘value flow models’ of these SaaS from evaluation data collected from users. The proposed methodology has been applied for the evaluation of a complex SaaS aiming to support the wide range of activities of the Greek ‘Local School Committees’, which are responsible for managing all government funding provided for the operation of all the schools in a specific geographical area, as well as all other income of them, and for covering all kinds of their operating expenses as well as purchases. The research presented in this paper can contribute to a more rational, efficient and effective exploitation of an emerging ‘disruptive technology’, the CC, and especially its most sophisticated form, the SaaS, in the public sector

Community Garden as a Context for Civic Ecology: A Multidisciplinary Project in Restoration and Environmental Education

This paper describes a civic ecology program called Bees Alive! developed by the NYU Wallerstein Collaborative for Urban Environmental Education & Sustainability over three years to establish a native plant pollinator garden in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York. The project brought together a large university, public schools, non-profit organizations and a community garden called Lentol Garden to support wildlife and create an outdoor classroom to educate the public about the importance of pollinators. The garden was utilized as a context for civic ecology, environmental education and stewardship. Theories of place-based education and experiential learning were incorporated in designing this long-term project funded by EPA Region 2. This article illustrates how partnerships between educators and stewards can enhance green infrastructure, ecosystem services and human well-being in cities (Krasny 2014)

Libéralisation financière et démocratisation : le long processus de la réforme des banques d’État taïwanaises (1989-2005)

Face au courant mondial de libéralisation des institutions financières, le gouvernement de Taïwan se consacre depuis la fin des années 1980 à la mise en œuvre d’un « Big Bang » financier. Un volet essentiel de la refonte du système financier est la réforme des banques d’État. On pensait à l’époque que la privatisation et la dérégulation de ces banques, du fait de leur poids considérable en termes de parts de marché, permettraient d’améliorer l’efficacité du secteur financier taïwanais. Aussi convient-il de se demander pourquoi, près de 20 ans plus tard, et malgré son importance, cette réforme n’est toujours pas achevée. Dans cet article, nous suggérons que l’État a vu sa capacité à mettre en œuvre sa politique de réformes limitée par l’émergence des nouvelles forces politiques issues de la démocratisation de l’île. Cette étude met également en évidence les nouveaux défis et les nouvelles possibilités de gouvernance financière qui se présentent à l’État taïwanais à l’époque de la démocratisation. Elle apporte ainsi une contribution à une future étude comparative avec d’autres jeunes démocraties également engagées activement dans la libéralisation de leur secteur financier

The Prolonged Reform of Taiwan's State-owned Banks (1989-2005)

Following the global trend of financial liberalisation, Taiwan’s government has dedicated itself to its own financial “Big Bang” since the late 1980s. An essential part of this financial overhaul has been the reform of the state-owned banks (SOBs). It was believed that privatisation and deregulation of the SOBs could effectively enhance the efficiency of Taiwan’s financial sector. After almost two decades, however, the reform is still not complete. Given its importance, the question arises: why is it taking so long? This article argues that the state has been unable to implement its planned reform policies as its ability to carry out the SOB reform has been significantly constrained by the newly rising political forces resulting from Taiwan’s democratisation. This study highlights the new challenges and possibilities of financial governance for the state in Taiwan in an era of democratisation, and could be interesting for future comparative study with other young democracies that also actively undertake financial liberalisation

The Prolonged Reform of Taiwan's State-owned Banks (1989-2005)

Following the global trend of financial liberalisation, Taiwan’s government has dedicated itself to its own financial “Big Bang” since the late 1980s. An essential part of this financial overhaul has been the reform of the state-owned banks (SOBs). It was believed that privatisation and deregulation of the SOBs could effectively enhance the efficiency of Taiwan’s financial sector. After almost two decades, however, the reform is still not complete. Given its importance, the question arises: why is it taking so long? This article argues that the state has been unable to implement its planned reform policies as its ability to carry out the SOB reform has been significantly constrained by the newly rising political forces resulting from Taiwan’s democratisation. This study highlights the new challenges and possibilities of financial governance for the state in Taiwan in an era of democratisation, and could be interesting for future comparative study with other young democracies that also actively undertake financial liberalisation

Application of a computer method to the analysis of a gridded circular curved frame

Call number: LD2668 .R4 1967 L4

Análise dos Estereótipos da Psicologia por Grupo de Acadêmicos

O intuito principal da psicologia é o desenvolvimento pessoal do indivíduo, que possuem demandas psicológicas para serem aperfeiçoadas ou trabalhadas em caso de prejuízos em uma ou demais áreas do comportamento humano. Dentro da psicologia podem-se observar diversos estereótipos que interferem no propósito da sua aplicação. Por essa razão essa pesquisa de caráter qualitativo teve como objetivo analisar o conhecimento dos alunos do 3º ano do ensino médio sobre psicologia, com o intuito de identificar esses estereótipos para desmistificá-los. Foram sete colégios estaduais de Foz do Iguaçu, que totalizaram 266 participantes. O instrumento utilizado foi o Questionário de Conhecimento Prévio de Psicologia (QCPP), que avalia as concepções dos participantes sobre psicologia. Com análise dos resultados foi possível afirmar que a maioria obtém conhecimento básico, embora exista a falta da importância do cuidado da saúde mental e conclui-se que por esse motivo persista a dificulta de buscar por intervenções psicológicas e a formulação de estereótipos. Dentre outros trabalhos que podem ser destacados a partir desse estudo, está a diferenciação da psicologia e psiquiatria e esclarecimento das áreas de atuação da psicologia