Project Hydra: Designing & Building a Reusable Framework for Multipurpose, Multifunction, Multi-institutional Repository-Powered Solutions

4th International Conference on Open RepositoriesThis presentation was part of the session : Fedora User Group PresentationsDate: 2009-05-20 03:30 PM – 05:00 PMThere is a clear business need in higher education for a flexible, reusable application framework that can support the rapid development of multiple systems tailored to distinct needs, but powered by a common underlying repository. Recognizing this common need, Stanford University, the University of Hull and the University of Virginia are collaborating on "Project Hydra", a three-year effort to create an application and middleware framework that, in combination with an underlying Fedora repository, will create a reusable environment for running multifunction, multipurpose repository-powered solutions. This paper details the collaborators' functional and technical design for such a framework, and will demonstrate the progress made to date on the initiative.JIS

Shared responsibility: conceptualising how a public health approach may enhance police response to missing persons

When a person is reported missing there are substantial costs for the individual, their family and society. This paper conceptualises the experience of missing persons episodes, through a public health approach. This then allows police, stakeholders and the community to engage in discussions about who is vulnerable to going missing by intervening in a way that addresses risk. Historically, a missing persons episode involves an absence, typically followed by police involvement in consultation with next of kin with establishing the whereabouts of the missing person being the primary focus. Yet, the risk factors of going missing relate more to the psychosocial aspects that trigger a disappearance – family disconnection, mental health, poverty, intergenerational trauma. A narrative review of the literature reflects that the police are public health interventionists regarding social issues; however, this concept is untested in a missing persons context. Successful examples of public health approaches in the injury and violence prevention fields demonstrate that a public health approach is critical to address risk and protective factors. In a context of going missing (and the aftermath of a missing episode), enhanced awareness of the social and economic costs of an absence may prevent future episodes. This paper proposes a conceptual framework to address key challenges and risk factors in missing persons cases. The paper also proposes a future framework that emphasises shared responsibility between police working alongside public health and social care agencies to better support those at risk of going missing while fully engaging with the experiences of those who return

The importance of planning to Waikiki : A history and analysis

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2008.At Waikiki, population growth doomed continued agricultural land use and private pro-growth interests wished to develop. Government, faced with the challenge of this lowland environment, created comprehensive plans that included the strategic use of a canal for drainage, complementary open space, public-private partnerships for infrastructure development, and walk able neighborhoods. Such plans were central to protecting Waikiki's assets while sustaining further growth.Comprehensive planning is necessary to preserve a unique sense of place while urban districts undergo rapid increases in both population density and physical growth. Public participation in this planning process is vital to both the financing and completion of such long term plans.The evolution of municipal planning in the United States was paralleled in Waikiki as judicial interpretations of public interest and private property changed during the study period. Planning focus and methodology also was predicated upon the context of the times.Useful tools in promoting planning effectiveness were identified. These included the importance of early planning and land acquisition; periodic public re-envisioning to promote public ownership of plans and thus support; continued use of public-private partnerships to lessen costs to the community budget; and promotion of proactive public entrepreneurship to identify opportunities and challenges. Increasing density of development also illustrated the impact of access to land use, and the need to facilitate the consolidation of small lots.Waikiki was employed as a case study because of its evolution from an agricultural district, to single family residential subdivision, then mixed business and residential area, and finally as a (mostly high-rise) international resort. Information was gathered from the Bishop Museum, City and County of Honolulu, Kawaiaha'o Church, Hawai'i State Archives, Honolulu Advertiser, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, University of Hawai'i, and other sources. Time lines were created for area reclamation; road, water, and sewer development; land use; and open space.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 594-613).Also available by subscription via World Wide Web613 leaves, bound 29 c

Case Studies in Repository Workflows: Three Approaches

4th International Conference on Open RepositoriesThis presentation was part of the session : Fedora User Group PresentationsDate: 2009-05-21 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM"Lightweight workflow" is both an oxymoron, and a continual aspiration of the many stakeholders in the repository community. As part of the Hydra Project, the University of Hull, University of Virginia and Stanford University are collaboratively developing a reusable application framework that will sit on top of Fedora. Developing support for workflow (defined here as orchestrating multistep processes that may include human interaction) is integral to the project. The partners consciously chose to take three different paths in implementing and integrating workflow into the overall solution. This paper briefly details the three different workflow approaches the collaborators are taking, why they chose them, and the apparent pro's and cons of each.JIS

Recent progress on our understanding of the biological effects of mercury in fish and wildlife in the Canadian Arctic

AbstractThis review summarizes our current state of knowledge regarding the potential biological effects of mercury (Hg) exposure on fish and wildlife in the Canadian Arctic. Although Hg in most freshwater fish from northern Canada was not sufficiently elevated to be of concern, a few lakes in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut contained fish of certain species (e.g. northern pike, Arctic char) whose muscle Hg concentrations exceeded an estimated threshold range (0.5–1.0μgg-1 wet weight) within which adverse biological effects begin to occur. Marine fish species generally had substantially lower Hg concentrations than freshwater fish; but the Greenland shark, a long-lived predatory species, had mean muscle Hg concentrations exceeding the threshold range for possible effects on health or reproduction. An examination of recent egg Hg concentrations for marine birds from the Canadian Arctic indicated that mean Hg concentration in ivory gulls from Seymour Island fell within the threshold range associated with adverse effects on reproduction in birds. Mercury concentrations in brain tissue of beluga whales and polar bears were generally lower than levels associated with neurotoxicity in mammals, but were sometimes high enough to cause subtle neurochemical changes that can precede overt neurotoxicity. Harbour seals from western Hudson Bay had elevated mean liver Hg concentrations along with comparatively high muscle Hg concentrations indicating potential health effects from methylmercury (MeHg) exposure on this subpopulation. Because current information is generally insufficient to determine with confidence whether Hg exposure is impacting the health of specific fish or wildlife populations in the Canadian Arctic, biological effects studies should comprise a major focus of future Hg research in the Canadian Arctic. Additionally, studies on cellular interactions between Hg and selenium (Se) are required to better account for potential protective effects of Se on Hg toxicity, especially in large predatory Arctic fish, birds, and mammals