Useful Source Of Information Research Articles

Incorporating Multidimensional Probabilistic Information Into Robustness‐Based Water Systems Planning

AbstractThe widespread uncertainty regarding future changes in climate, socioeconomic conditions, and demographics have increased interest in vulnerability‐based frameworks for long‐term planning of water resources. These frameworks shift the focus from projections of future conditions to the weaknesses of the baseline plans and then to options for reductions in those weaknesses across a wide range of futures. A consistent challenge for vulnerability‐based planning is how to assess the relative likelihood of the occurrence of the multidimensional and codependent uncertainties to which the system or plan is vulnerable. This work proposes a methodological solution to the problem, demonstrated in this case as an extension to Decision Scaling framework. The proposed approach first generates a wide range of futures using stochastic simulators, and then stress tests the system across those futures to identify vulnerabilities relative to stakeholder‐defined performance thresholds. The relative likelihood of the vulnerabilities is then explored using a Bayesian belief network of the knowledge domain of the water resources system. The Bayesian network provides a formal representation of the joint probabilistic behavior of the system conditioned on the uncertain but potentially useful sources of information about the future, including historical trends, expert judgments, and model‐based projections. The proposed approach is applied to compare four design options for a dam project in the Coastal Province of Kenya with respect to the reliability and net present value metrics. Results show that incorporation of belief information helps better distinguishing of the available options, principally by magnifying the differences between the computed net present values.

SUAS, SfM-MVS photogrammetry and a topographic algorithm method to quantify the volume of sediments retained in check-dams

Sediments retained in hydrological correction check dams are a useful source of information to understand soil erosion rates and sediment fluxes. Two hundred sixty nine check dams distributed in an area of 239 ha in SW Spain accumulated sediments over a period of 11 to 23 years. The aim of this work is to estimate the volume of sediments deposited in those check dams and to study the spatial variability of the accumulated sediments and its relationships with different environmental variables. The methodology included five steps: 1) flying the study area with a fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle to capture high-resolution aerial photographs, 2) Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry, 3) processing the obtained point clouds and Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) to create the current topography and model the past soil surface, 4) estimating the volume of sediments behind each check dam using a topographic technique and 5) exploring the relationship between sediments and different environmental variables. A total of 269 check dams were identified, from which 160 were suitable to quantify the deposited sediment volume. The volume of sediments trapped by individual check-dams ranged from 0 to 108.35 m3, with an average deposition rate of 0.141 m3 ha−1 y−1. The 77% of the check dams retained <1 m3 of sediment. The topographic position and the size of the dam wall played a fundamental role in explaining the differences of total sediment accumulation as well as the deposition rates. Deposition rate was negatively correlated with drainage area, connectivity index, stream power index, topographic wetness index, upstream channel length and the number of upstream check dams. Conversely, deposition rate was positively correlated with the slope of the channel. Those dams located in valley bottoms with longer walls retained more sediment, while those of hillslopes with shorter check dam walls were ineffective.

Rating the effectiveness of fishery-regulated areas with AIS data

The currently existing Biological Protection Areas (BPAs) are Italian conservation measures specifically oriented to preserve/recover commercial fish stocks through the regulation or ban of few fishing activities. Although BPAs have been well identified/designed within the Italian national waters, neither data on their effects on fishery resources nor on the fishers’ compliance with these no-take regulations are yet available.In this context, the present study was aimed to investigate how AIS data processing could be used to map patterns in fishing activity within/around small regulated areas and rate the effectiveness of the conservation measures in place. To do this, it was impossible not to address the issue surrounding well-known and substantial gaps in data coverage and attempt an estimate of them by flagging events when AIS had been switched off within/around BPAs.Results highlighted that almost all the BPAs are illegally trawled and that, unless additional legislation is effected to regulate the use of AIS by fishing vessels, it may provide a useful source of information to map fishing activities stated that the data are interpreted in an appropriate way.

Attitudes towards returning wolves (Canis lupus) in Germany: Exposure, information sources and trust matter

Understanding how exposure and information affect public attitudes towards returning large carnivores in Europe is critical for human-carnivore coexistence, especially for developing efficient and de-escalating communication strategies. The ongoing recolonization of wolves (Canis lupus) in Germany provides a unique opportunity to test the role of different information sources and trust on people's attitudes towards wolves. We conducted a phone survey (n = 1250) and compared country-wide attitudes towards wolves with attitudes in a specific region where wolves initially recolonized and have been present since 2000. In particular, we investigate the relationship between information sources, trust and people's attitudes while accounting for factors like knowledge, exposure and socio-cultural determinants of respondents. We found significant differences in attitudes and knowledge about wolves as well as in the use and frequency of information sources between the two population samples. Higher knowledge, information from books and films, science-based information, and higher trust in information sources related positively with positive attitudes towards wolves. Comparatively, information from press or TV news was associated with more negative attitudes. Providing science-based information to the public and building trust in information is likely to be one measure, among others, to dampen extreme attitudes and improve people's appreciation of costs and benefits of human-carnivore coexistence. Management of conflictual situations emerging from large carnivore recolonization in Europe and beyond should consider incorporating assessments of people's use of and trust in information in addition to existing tools to pave new ways for constructive human-carnivore coexistence.

Risk as a Predictor of Online Competitive Information Acquisition

AbstractThis study set out to investigate how personal user traits and behavior and information cues influence the acquisition of online information for actionable decisions. The relationship between personal traits (risk propensity and individual information absorptive capacity), behavioral factors (perceived risk and willingness-to-pay) and informational cues (scenario risk level) was examined by conducting an experiment with 125 mid-level managers. Participants were exposed to high- and low-risk scenarios, given the opportunity to consume free and fee-based competitive information sources, and asked to make a managerial decision. Results of the Willingness-to-Pay (WTP) for information sources indicate: (i) a significant correlation between the perceived risk and WTP, (ii) a significant correlation between the perceived risk and the number of competitive intelligence information items bought, (iii) individual absorptive capacity has high internal reliability, and (iv) investment risk propensity and individual information absorptive capacity did not influence WTP or willingness-to-consume competitive intelligence information. Informational cues rather than personal traits impact decision makers' WTP and willingness to-consume competitive intelligence information. This suggests that best practices should be developed for the use of online information sources in decision-making calibrated to the risk level. Risk level indication may also aid to avoid biases stemming from under- or overuse of information.

Barriers to and Drivers for Improved Energy Efficiency in the Swedish Aluminium Industry and Aluminium Casting Foundries

Industrial energy efficiency is important for reducing CO2 emissions and could be a competitive advantage for companies because it can reduce costs. However, cost-effective energy efficiency measures are not always implemented because there are barriers inhibiting their implementation. Drivers for energy efficiency could provide means for overcoming these barriers. The aim of this article was to study the importance of different barriers to and drivers for improved energy efficiency in the Swedish aluminium industry and foundries that cast aluminium. Additionally, the perceived usefulness of different information sources on energy efficiency measures was studied. The data were collected through a questionnaire covering 39 barriers and 48 drivers, divided into different categories. Both the aluminium and foundry industries considered technological and economic barriers as the most important categories. The most important category of drivers for the aluminium industry was organisational drivers, while the foundries rated economic drivers as the most important. Colleagues within the company, the company group and sector, and the trade organisation were considered the most useful information sources. Important factors for driving work with improved energy efficiency included access to knowledge within the company, having a culture within the company promoting energy efficiency, and networking within the sector. The policy implications identified included energy labelling of production equipment, the law on energy audit in large companies and subsidy for energy audits in small- and medium-sized companies, voluntary agreements that included long-term energy strategies, increased taxes to improve the cost-effectiveness of energy efficiency measures, and EUs Emission Trading System.

Comparing Farm Financial Performance Across Local Foods Market Channels

Financial performance benchmarks were estimated on the basis of samples of successful Northeast fruit and vegetable producers classified by primary local foods market channel. Comparisons across farm stores, large urban farmers' markets, and intermediated market channels were conducted for the purpose of identifying key differences in human and financial resource requirements. The benchmarks provide data useful for assisting individual farmers in assessing their performances and new and beginning farmers in identifying appropriate market channels for their businesses. Additionally, the benchmarks provide a rich source of information for use by Extension educators in developing programming around local foods marketing opportunities and business planning.

Lawyers’ predicaments in complying with the anti-money laundering law in Malaysia

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide some empirical findings on the predicaments of lawyers’ anti-money laundering (AML) compliance in Malaysia and the rationales for such predicaments.Design/methodology/approachThis paper adopts a qualitative research in which the primary data are obtained from seven case studies involving legal firms within the Klang Valley, Selangor, Malaysia, which is triangulated with the data from the Central Bank and the Malaysian Bar Council.FindingsThe authors contend that despite the vulnerability of their profession to money laundering, the level of awareness of the AML obligations amongst Malaysian legal practitioners is rather minimal. Also, the imposition of obligations upon them in policing their clients and regulating money laundering is not only onerous but also contrary to the ethics of their profession.Originality/valueThis paper fills the gap in providing the empirical evidence on lawyers’ compliance to their statutory AML obligations in Malaysia. Also, this paper could be a useful source of information for practitioners, academicians and students. It could also be a beneficial guide for policymakers for any possible future amendments to the law.

Dictionary Compression in Point Cloud Data Management

Nowadays, massive amounts of point cloud data can be collected thanks to advances in data acquisition and processing technologies such as dense image matching and airborne LiDAR scanning. With the increase in volume and precision, point cloud data offers a useful source of information for natural-resource management, urban planning, self-driving cars, and more. At the same time, on the scale that point cloud data is produced, management challenges are introduced: it is important to achieve efficiency both in terms of querying performance and space requirements. Traditional file-based solutions to point cloud management offer space efficiency, however, they cannot scale to such massive data and provide the declarative power of a DBMS. In this article, we propose a time- and space-efficient solution to storing and managing point cloud data in main memory column-store DBMS. Our solution, Space-Filling Curve Dictionary-Based Compression (SFC-DBC), employs dictionary-based compression in the spatial data management domain and enhances it with indexing capabilities by using space-filling curves. SFC-DBC does so by constructing the space-filling curve over a compressed, artificially introduced dictionary space. Consequently, SFC-DBC significantly optimizes query execution and yet does not require additional storage resources, compared to traditional dictionary-based compression. With respect to space-filling-curve-based approaches, it minimizes storage footprint and increases resilience to skew. As a proof of concept, we develop and evaluate our approach as a research prototype in the context of SAP HANA. SFC-DBC outperforms other dictionary-based compression schemes by up to 61% in terms of space and up to 9.4× in terms of query performance.

Using opportunistic sightings to infer differential spatio-temporal use of western Mediterranean waters by the fin whale.

The fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) is a cosmopolitan species with a resident population in the Mediterranean Sea. Due to its habitat, open seas often far from ports and airfields, and its long-distance migratory behaviour, studying and monitoring its distribution is costly. Currently, many opportunistic sightings (OS) reports are available, which provide a source of potentially useful, low-cost information about the spatio-temporal distribution of this species. Since 1993, the Spanish Institute of Oceanography has compiled a dataset comprising 874 records of OS of nine species of cetaceans in the western Mediterranean Sea and adjacent waters. The aim of this study was to use this dataset to investigate the differential use of these waters by the fin whale when compared with other cetaceans. We compared the presence of fin whales with the presence of any other cetacean species in the dataset. Binary logistic regression was then used to model these occurrences according to several spatio-temporal variables expected to reflect their habitat use. Several significant models reveal that fin whales are more prone than other cetaceans to use the waters over the slope of the Gulf of Lion in summer. This finding confirms that the Gulf of Lion is an area of importance for this species and suggests that the slope of the continental shelf could be particularly important. Our study shows how OS can be a source of useful information when appropriately analyzed.

Understanding the Past and Present and Predicting the Future: Farmers’ Use of Multiple Nutrient Best Management Practices in the Upper Midwest

Understanding what drives farmers’ voluntary adoption of nutrient and soil best management practices has important consequences for many environmental outcomes including water quality. We build on research revealing the need for simultaneous use of multiple nitrogen best management practices to achieve water quality improvement goals. Using social, economic and attitudinal variables we predict the use of multiple nitrogen best management practices at three time points: current use (2013), past use (before 2013), and likelihood of use on their largest field in the next three years. Our empirical analysis uses structural equation modeling with latent variables and 2014 farmer survey data from three Midwestern US states. Most farmers in our sample used at least one of the six best management practices. Our results reveal that farmers’ attitudes, use of information sources, and conservation program participation affect the number of nitrogen best management practices concurrently in use at multiple time points.

Knowledge and use of evidence-based medicine in daily practice by health professionals: a cross-sectional survey

ObjectivesHealthcare professionals are expected to firmly ground their practice in sound evidence. That implies that they know and use evidence-based medicine (EBM). In this study, our aim was to know...

Pengembangan Pembelajaran Menulis Teks Ceramah Dengan Model Problem Based Learning Dipadukan Media Gambar Pada Siswa Kelas XI SMA

Writing entitled Development of Text Writing Lesson Lecture with Problem Based Learning Model Combined Image Media for Students Class XI on High School aims to examine the development of learning text writing lecture with Problem Based Learning (PBL) learning model with the help of picture media in grade XI high school students. The scope of this development is limited only to planning, materials and evaluation in the learning process. The method used in this research is Research and Development (R &amp; D), using development research design with ADDIE model, ie Analysis (stage), Design (Design) stage, Development stage, Implementation stage and Evaluation stage (evaluation). Source of data that became the object in this research is the students of class XI in SMA Negeri 8 PPU. The results of development are obtained based on two aspects: feasibility, practicality and effectiveness. So that data obtained the feasibility of 71%, practicality is 84%, 83% effectiveness. Overall the quality of teaching materials that are the product of this development is categorized as appropriate for the use of odd semester class XI students. The benefits of this development for Indonesian language teachers are expected to help as an alternative choice of text lecture lessons. For students, this development model can make students more creative, innovative, more productive. For the author itself is expected to be a means to deepen science. In addition, it is hoped that the results of development will be useful for the school as a useful source of information for the development of Indonesian language learning model.

Barriers to the use of patient safety information sources by community pharmacies.

When patient safety information is communicated across a regulatory jurisdiction or country, the potential to enhance the safety of community pharmacy practice is significant. While there currently exists a number of sources for patient safety information (e.g., websites, safety bulletins, online tools), knowledge of the barriers that may inhibit the use of such information sources within community pharmacies is limited. This research explores community pharmacy manager use of Canadian patient safety information sources and the barriers that may limit the use of such sources. A qualitative research study design using semi-structured interviews was conducted with 15 community pharmacy managers in the Halifax Regional Municipality of Nova Scotia, Canada. The study explored how pharmacists access and engage a variety of information sources, including corporate intranets, websites, and tools provided by third party data base repositories. Interview data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Five general barriers were identified: lack of time to access information sources and its contents; too many sources of available information; too much information not relevant to community pharmacy practice; complexity navigating online information sources; and lack of community pharmacy involvement in source design. While pharmacies do use safety information sources to enhance practice safety, their ability to incorporate this information is inhibited by their general lack of time available to access and read safety information, lack of knowledge about where to get this information, and lack of tailored information for the community pharmacy context. Future initiatives should address increasing information awareness of available sources, consolidating and reducing information overload of such sources, and packaging information to better fit with pharmacists' needs.

The use of information in online healthcare provider choice

Abstract In order to evaluate and facilitate the provision of health information online, we must first understand how it is perceived by those who use it. Two important considerations in research on patients’ information use in online healthcare provider choice are the need for a conceptual framework for studying information types and methods for studying information use. Therefore, our first contribution lies in using Donabedian's structure-process-outcome model of healthcare quality to identify specific patterns of preference and information use in online healthcare provider choice, and differences in information use between two healthcare provider types. Our second contribution lies in identifying differences in results between data collection methods (importance rating/selection, concurrent self-report of online information use and retrospective information use) in relation to choice tasks. In a mixed-methods design, provider type (primary and secondary care) was systematically varied during participants’ use of the infomediary NHS Choices. Participants preferred process topics over structure topics, in contrast with the results of concurrent and retrospective self-report. We conclude that the differences in results between the types of data collection method reflect underlying differences in choice task. Future research should address the use of novel infomediary user-interfaces, and infomediaries in relation to the use of other information sources and (e-)health literacy.

Parental digital health information seeking behavior in Switzerland: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundDigital media are increasingly abundant and used to seek health information, however, to date very little is known on parents’ seeking behavior in the context of child’s health and development outside English-speaking and Scandinavian countries. By investigating the prevalence of, and reasons for use, we studied parents’ perception of the Internet as a resource for improving their health-related knowledge.MethodsThe survey was conducted in a random sample of 2573 Swiss-German parents with at least one child aged less-than 2 years old. Parents received a mailed invitation to fill in an online questionnaire. Two reminders were sent, the later with a paper questionnaire attached. The questionnaire included questions on use of print, digital, and personal information sources, as well as different information situations: general health and development or illness. We ran descriptive analyses on information seeking behavior, type of digital media used, reasons of use. We also conducted regression analyses to explore factors associated with parental perceptions with regard to the Internet’s utility as a source for health information.ResultsA total of 769 questionnaires were returned (response rate 30%). Nearly all parents (91%) used digital media for seeking information on their child’s health and development, and the main reason for use was indicated as being the 24/7 availability of information. Search engines (55%) and webpages for parents (47%) were by far the most frequently used digital media. Generally, the internet is perceived as a good resource, especially by fathers (OR = 1.80, 95% CI: 1.03–3.16). However, a large percentage of parents are skeptical about the correctness of online info (91%), are unsure about their interpretive understanding, and ask for guidance from their pediatrician (67%).ConclusionsThe Internet has become a highly frequented source of information for Swiss-German parents on children’s health with largely valuable perceptions of its utility. Digital media are used in addition to and not in replacement of print media and personal contacts. Increasing parental guidance by health and public health professionals could improve parental digital health utilization and empower parents in the new role they adopt.

Use of Information Sources by Research Scholars and Faculty Members of Biological Science: A Case Study of Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu

This study identified that the user studies help build need-based and balanced collections in University Environment. A questionnaire was used to collect data about use of information sources by research scholars and faculty members of biological Science in Bharathidasan University in Tiruchirappalli. This study identified relative importance of information sources among the research scholars and faculty members of biological Science in a University environment is emphasized. The study reveals that Reprints/Prints, Abstracting and Indexing Journal, primary periodicals, Newspaper, Dictionaries, Subject Bibliographies and Monographs / Text books were the sources of information which were most frequently used. A majority of the biologists use Internet and sixty percent collected information through on-line search. Most found the collection inadequate to meet their information needs.

Use of Electronic Information Sources by the Faculty Members of Social Science Departments in Annamalai University A Study

International Journal of Computer Sciences and Engineering (A UGC Approved and indexed with DOI, ICI and Approved, DPI Digital Library) is one of the leading and growing open access, peer-reviewed, monthly, and scientific research journal for scientists, engineers, research scholars, and academicians, which gains a foothold in Asia and opens to the world, aims to publish original, theoretical and practical advances in Computer Science,Information Technology, Engineering (Software, Mechanical, Civil, Electronics & Electrical), and all interdisciplinary streams of Computing Sciences. It intends to disseminate original, scientific, theoretical or applied research in the field of Computer Sciences and allied fields. It provides a platform for publishing results and research with a strong empirical component. It aims to bridge the significant gap between research and practice by promoting the publication of original, novel, industry-relevant research.

Listenership of Latoju Oja Radio Extension Programme among Farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria

This study assessed the listenership of latoju oja radio programme among farmers in Oyo state, Nigeria. Ninety farmers from three local government areas were randomly interviewed and data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results revealed that the mean age of farmers was 47 years. Most of them (67.8%) were Muslims, male (76.7%), and married (94.4%). Respondents had moderate level of education showing primary education (42.2%) to be in the modal class. A high proportion (80.0%) of the farmers were satisfied with the time of airing of latoju oja programme and considered it to be a useful source of information with a favourable disposition about the programme. Farmers disposition was highest in areas of enhancement of farmers bargaining power (x̄=4.53). The major constraint faced by respondents was how to sort out conflicting information provided by latoju oja radio programme (x̄=2.84)). The findings indicated listenership to be low among a majority (58.9%). A significant relationship existed between level of education (x2=3.99), benefits derived (r=0.15) and listenership of latoju oja radio programme. Although latoju oja radio programme is well listened to, the information provided should be reconciled with the current market value so as to achieve the desired objective.Key words: Latoju oja radio programme, listenership, farmers

Small worlds in a distant land: International newcomer students' local information behaviors in unfamiliar environments

International students face various challenges in their new countries, but research is less clear about their challenges in information behaviors. This article fills this gap by examining information behaviors of international newcomer students during adjustment to local environments, that is, local information behavior (LIB). Drawing on prior work, we focus on the local co‐national context—the degree to which there are co‐nationals available in one's local environments—to analyze the LIBs of 149 first‐year graduate students and 57 follow‐up interviewees, who were classified into: International‐common group (students from China, India, and Korea—with many local co‐nationals), International‐less‐common group (students from other countries—with fewer local co‐nationals), and Domestic‐out‐of‐state group (students from other U.S. states; control group). We identify differences in international newcomer students' use of information sources during adjustment and the role that local co‐national contexts play in these differences. These results suggest ways that information scholars and practitioners might account for the influences of local co‐national contexts when examining information behaviors of internationally mobile students and designing systems and services for newcomers from around the world.