To re-use is to re-write: experiences with re-using IIR experiment software

Interactive Information Retrieval experiments have two main requirements. They need to follow a workflow that takes the participant through the individual steps of the experiment and they need to show the user an interface to interact with. Both of these aspects look like they should lend themselves to re-use. This paper analyses the experience of developing and re-using software for both of these aspects across a time period of approximately five years. The main conclusion is that re-use of workflow management software should be possible, but for software for interface creation the question of whether re-use is possible is still open

OBSTACLES TO SUCCESS IN THE WORKPLACE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES: A REVIEW AND RESEARCH AGENDA

Our objectives in this paper were to summarize research relevant to obstacles that people with disabilities (PWD) face in the workplace and to identify directions for future research on the topic. We included review, theoretical, and empirical articles in mainstream management journals and those in psychology or rehabilitation journals if they had clear workplace implications. We argue that obstacles identified in prior research may only partially reflect organizational reality. This is because of the heavy reliance on laboratory studies, which we urge researchers to replicate in organizational settings. Better understanding of obstacles will lead to more evidence-based solutions where the payoff is a less exclusionary world in which more individuals are provided opportunities to use their talent for the benefit of all. .Disability, Workplace obstacles, Review

From Searching to Using: Making Sense of Digital Cultural Heritage Collections

The rise of digital cultural heritage has seen the creation of a vast number of collections, which provide access to large amounts of data. While initially access to this data was provided only via keyword-based search interfaces, there has been increased interest in exploratory interfaces to support open-ended search tasks. However, finding information that interests the user is only the first step and the next step must be to provide interfaces that allow the user to actually make use of the information they have found. Towards this goal a novel sense-making workbench is presented in this paper, which enables the user to aggregate information from multiple collections, arrange them into a sense-making structure, and export them for their final use

Noise and disturbance in quantum measurements: an information-theoretic approach

We introduce information-theoretic definitions for noise and disturbance in quantum measurements and prove a state-independent noise-disturbance tradeoff relation that these quantities have to satisfy in any conceivable setup. Contrary to previous approaches, the information-theoretic quantities we define are invariant under relabelling of outcomes, and allow for the possibility of using quantum or classical operations to `correct' for the disturbance. We also show how our bound implies strong tradeoff relations for mean square deviations.Comment: v3: to appear on PRL (some issues fixed, supplemental material expanded). v2: replaced with submitted version; 5 two-column pages + 6 one-column pages + 3 figures; one issue corrected and few references added. v1: 17 pages, 3 figure

Development of unsteady aerodynamic analyses for turbomachinery aeroelastic and aeroacoustic applications

Theoretical analyses and computer codes are being developed for predicting compressible unsteady inviscid and viscous flows through blade rows. Such analyses are needed to determine the impact of unsteady flow phenomena on the structural durability and noise generation characteristics of turbomachinery blading. Emphasis is being placed on developing analyses based on asymptotic representations of unsteady flow phenomena. Thus, flow driven by small-amplitude unsteady excitations in which viscous effects are concentrated in thin layers are being considered. The resulting analyses should apply in many practical situations, lead to a better understanding of the relevent physics, and they will be efficient computationally, and therefore, appropriate for aeroelastic and aeroacoustic design applications. Under the present phase (Task 3), the effort was focused on providing inviscid and viscid prediction capabilities for subsonic unsteady cascade flows

A Humorous View into the Past: The Old Jokes Archive

Jokes represent one of the most understudied sources about nineteenth century society. Due to their ephemeral nature they slipped from attention as soon as they were no longer funny or topical. Digitisation of newspapers and books has made them available again, but due to their short nature they are not easily accessible through current generic keyword-based newspaper search systems. In this paper we present the Old Jokes Archive, which aims to provide a digital archive focused solely on jokes. The archive will support the full process from initial text acquisition to search and finally re-use by both academic and general public users

Duration of antibody response following vaccination against feline immunodeficiency virus

Objectives: Recently, two point-of-care (PoC) feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) antibody test kits (Witness and Anigen Rapid) were reported as being able to differentiate FIV-vaccinated from FIV-infected cats at a single time point, irrespective of the gap between testing and last vaccination (0–7 years). The aim of the current study was to investigate systematically anti-FIV antibody production over time in response to the recommended primary FIV vaccination series. Methods: First, residual plasma from the original study was tested using a laboratory-based ELISA to determine whether negative results with PoC testing were due to reduced as opposed to absent antibodies to gp40. Second, a prospective study was performed using immunologically naive client-owned kittens and cats given a primary FIV vaccination series using a commercially available inactivated whole cell/inactivated whole virus vaccine (Fel-O-Vax FIV, three subcutaneous injections at 4 week intervals) and tested systematically (up to 11 times) over 6 months, using four commercially available PoC FIV antibody kits (SNAP FIV/FeLV Combo [detects antibodies to p15/p24], Witness FeLV/FIV [gp40], Anigen Rapid FIV/FeLV [p24/gp40] and VetScan FeLV/FIV Rapid [p24]). Results: The laboratory-based ELISA showed cats from the original study vaccinated within the previous 0–15 months had detectable levels of antibodies to gp40, despite testing negative with two kits that use gp40 as a capture antigen (Witness and Anigen Rapid kits). The prospective study showed that antibody testing with SNAP Combo and VetScan Rapid was positive in all cats 2 weeks after the second primary FIV vaccination, and remained positive for the duration of the study (12/12 and 10/12 cats positive, respectively). Antibody testing with Witness and Anigen Rapid was also positive in a high proportion of cats 2 weeks after the second primary FIV vaccination (8/12 and 7/12, respectively), but antibody levels declined below the level of detection in most cats (10/12) by 1 month after the third (final) primary FIV vaccination. All cats tested negative using Witness and Anigen Rapid 6 months after the third primary FIV vaccination. Conclusions and relevance: This study has shown that a primary course of FIV vaccination does not interfere with FIV antibody testing in cats using Witness and Anigen Rapid, provided primary vaccination has not occurred within the previous 6 months. Consequently, Witness and Anigen Rapid antibody test kits can be used reliably to determine FIV infection status at the time of annual booster FIV vaccination to help detect ‘vaccine breakthroughs’ and in cats that have not received a primary course of FIV vaccination within the preceding 6 months. The duration of antibody response following annual booster FIV vaccination and the resulting effect on antibody testing using PoC kits needs to be determined by further research. The mechanism(s) for the variation in FIV antibody test kit performance remains unclear

High-speed imaging and wavefront sensing with an infrared avalanche photodiode array

Infrared avalanche photodiode arrays represent a panacea for many branches of astronomy by enabling extremely low-noise, high-speed and even photon-counting measurements at near-infrared wavelengths. We recently demonstrated the use of an early engineering-grade infrared avalanche photodiode array that achieves a correlated double sampling read noise of 0.73 e- in the lab, and a total noise of 2.52 e- on sky, and supports simultaneous high-speed imaging and tip-tilt wavefront sensing with the Robo-AO visible-light laser adaptive optics system at the Palomar Observatory 1.5-m telescope. We report here on the improved image quality achieved simultaneously at visible and infrared wavelengths by using the array as part of an image stabilization control-loop with adaptive-optics sharpened guide stars. We also discuss a newly enabled survey of nearby late M-dwarf multiplicity as well as future uses of this technology in other adaptive optics and high-contrast imaging applications.Comment: Accepted to Astrophysical Journal. 8 pages, 3 figures and 1 tabl

PATHS in Context: User Characteristics and the Construction of Cultural Heritage Narratives

There is ample evidence of the influence of individual differences on information-seeking behaviours. Trailways and paths are increasingly important objects to support internet navigation. The EU-funded PATHS (Personalised Access to Cultural Heritage) project is investigating ways of assisting users with exploring a large collection of cultural heritage material taken from Europeana, the European aggregator for museums, archives, libraries, and galleries. A prototype system has been developed that includes innovative functionality for exploring the collection based on Google map-style interfaces, data-driven taxonomies, and supporting the manual creation of guided tours or paths along with the use of personalised (and nonpersonalised) recommendations to promote information discovery. After analysing the paths created by participants during an extended user evaluation, this paper discusses the effect of individual differences on path creation and characteristics

Organizational Purchasing Theory: A Review and Assessment

Mark C. Hall is an Associate Professor in the Department of Marketing at Mankato State University. C.P. Rao is University Professor in the Department of Marketing at the University of Arkansas. Kevin M. Elliott is an Associate Professor in the Department of Marketing at Mankato State University