Private Websites Research Articles

Online and social media presence of Australian and New Zealand urologists.

To assess the online and social media presence of all practising Australian and New Zealand urologists. In July 2014, all active members of the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand (USANZ) were identified. A comprehensive search of Google and each social media platform (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube) was undertaken for each urologist to identify any private websites or social media profiles. Of the 435 urologists currently practising in Australia and New Zealand, 305 (70.1%) have an easily identifiable social media account. LinkedIn (51.3%) is the most commonly used form of social media followed by Twitter (33.3%) and private Facebook (30.1%) accounts. About half (49.8%) have a private business website. The average number of social media accounts per urologist is 1.42 and 16 urologists (3.7%) have an account with all searched social media platforms. Over half of those with a Twitter account (55.9%) follow a dedicated urology journal club and have a median (range) number of 'followers' of 12 (1-2 862). Social media users had a median (range) of 2 (0-8 717) 'tweets' on Twitter, 2 (1-45) LinkedIn posts and 1 (1-14) YouTube video. This study represents a unique dataset not relying on selection or recall bias but using data freely available to patients and colleagues to gauge social media presence of urologists. Most Australian and New Zealand urologists have a readily identifiable online and social media presence, with widespread and consistent use across both countries.

The Brazilian military reserve officers and the defense of the institutional memory of March 31, 1964

This article analyzes the current debate surrounding the dispute over the official memory of the coup d’etat and the corporate-military dictatorship implanted in Brazil in 1964. It is based on the reaction of former political agents of the institution (currently military reserve officers) and private websites and blogs that were created in order to constitute a space of discourse defending the interests of these military and the institutional memories of the coup and the dictatorship. Complementarily, it discusses how the regime’s “propaganda” reinforced the construction of this memory through the speeches published in the Army’s newsletter, specifically on the commemoration of March 31, and institutional bibliographical production. Keywords: 1964 coup, dictatorship from 1964 to 1985, military memory.

Os oficiais brasileiros da reserva e a defesa da memória institucional do “31 de março de 1964”

This article analyzes the current debate surrounding the dispute over the official memory of the coup d’état and the corporate-military dictatorship implanted in Brazil in 1964. It is based on the reaction of former political agents of the institution (currently military reserve officers) and private websites and blogs that were created in order to constitute a space of discourse defending the interests of these military and the institutional memories about the coup and the dictatorship. In a complementary manner, it discusses how the regime’s “advertising” reinforced the construction of this memory through the speeches published in the Army’s newsletter, specifically on the commemoration of March 31, and institutional bibliographical production.Keywords: 1964 coup, dictatorship from 1964 to 1985, military memory.

Accessing Legal Information in Catalonia: Open Access to Legislation and Case Law

This article outlines free online legal resources to conduct research on Catalan and Spanish legislation and case-law. Most of these resources are primary sources made public by government bodies. The list shows how the Spanish and Catalan governments, in their attempt to promote equal access to legislation and case-law, cover the different jurisdictions. The text also mentions some resources to conduct historical legal research about legislation and case law, and some free legal private websites.

Website accessibility and the European Union: citizenship, procurement and the proposed Accessibility Act

Websites can be accessible to all if they are designed according to certain principles. Website accessibility has long been a European Union policy priority, particularly with the growth of egovernment services and the related impact on citizenship. A number of studies, while showing some improvement in accessibility, indicate the need for accessibility improvement in relation to egovernment services. This article outlines the European Union's policies on accessible websites and the related legislation. A theme in the development of disability related Directives is fragmentation and the lack of harmonising principles. Public procurement has been used as an extremely effective tool to increase accessibility in the United States, and it is this approach that lies at the heart of the proposed Accessibility Act. This initiative seeks to harmonise standards and policies on accessibility to harness fully the power of the internal market and the commercial impetus in order to increase access. While the Accessibility Act is currently being drafted after recent public consultation, this article evaluates the potential impact it could have on the accessibility of European Union public, and ultimately, private websites.

Using GBrowse 2.0 to visualize and share next-generation sequence data

GBrowse is a mature web-based genome browser that is suitable for deployment on both public and private web sites. It supports most of genome browser features, including qualitative and quantitative (wiggle) tracks, track uploading, track sharing, interactive track configuration, semantic zooming and limited smooth track panning. As of version 2.0, GBrowse supports next-generation sequencing (NGS) data by providing for the direct display of SAM and BAM sequence alignment files. SAM/BAM tracks provide semantic zooming and support both local and remote data sources. This article provides step-by-step instructions for configuring GBrowse to display NGS data.

The Battle for Hearts and Minds: Who Is Communicating Most Effectively With the Cosmetic Marketplace?

Cosmetic surgery, historically the purview of plastic surgeons, has in recent years seen an influx of practitioners from other fields of training. Many of these new providers are savvy in marketing and public relations and are beginning to control a surprisingly large amount of cosmetic patient care. The purpose of this study is to measure the amount of traffic being attracted to the Web sites of individual practitioners and organizations vying for cosmetic patients. This study investigates the trends of the past 12 months and identifies changes of special concern to plastic surgeons. The Web sites of 1307 cosmetic providers were monitored over a year's time. The Web activity of two million individuals whose computers were loaded with a self-reporting software package was recorded and analyzed. The Web sites were analyzed according to the specialty training of the site owner and total unique visits per month were tallied for the most prominent specialties. The dominant Web sites were closely scrutinized and the Web optimization strategies of each were also examined. There is a tremendous amount of Web activity surrounding cosmetic procedures and the amount of traffic on the most popular sites is continuing to grow. Also, a large sum of money is being expended to channel Web traffic, with sums in the thousands of dollars being spent daily by top Web sites. Overall in the past year, the private Web sites of plastic surgeons have increased their reach by 10%, growing from 200,000 to approximately 220,000 unique visitors monthly. Plastic surgery remains the specialty with the largest number of Web visitors per month. However, when combined, the private Web sites of all other providers of aesthetic services have significantly outpaced plastic surgery's growth. The traffic going to non-plastic surgeons has grown by 50% (200,000 visitors per month in September 2008 to 300,000 visitors monthly in September 2009). For providers of aesthetic services, communication with the public is of utmost importance. The Web has become the single most important information resource for consumers because of easy access. Plastic surgeons are facing significant competition for the attention of potential patients, with increasingly sophisticated Web sites and listing services being set up by independent parties. It is important for plastic surgeons to become familiar with the available Internet tools for communication with potential patients and to aggressively utilize these tools for effective practice building.

Characteristics Associated With Use of Public and Private Web Sites as Sources of Health Care Information: Results From a National Survey

Characteristics Associated With Use of Public and Private Web Sites as Sources of Health Care Information: Results From a National Survey

Cybering, online grooming and ageplay

Recent advances in computer technology have been aiding sexual predators, stalkers, child pornographers, child traffickers, and others with the intent of exploiting children. Internet bulletin boards, chat rooms, private websites, and peer-to-peer networks are being used daily by paedophiles to meet unsuspecting children. Compounding the problem is the lack of direct governance by an international body, which will curb the illegal content and activity. Most countries already have laws protecting children, but what is needed is a concerted law enforcement and international legislation to combat child sex abuse. With the enactment of the Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, this may soon become a reality in Europe. This current article will discuss some of the recent legal developments concerning online child protection, including the new Convention.

Characteristics Associated With Use of Public and Private Web Sites as Sources of Health Care Information

We sought to determine the frequency with which Americans access health information from governmental (public sector) and nongovernmental (private sector) web sites and to identify similarities and differences in the characteristics associated with use of each type. Data derive from 928 individuals who responded to a November 2005 national survey. In addition to forms of health communication, we asked about age, gender, race, income, education, insurance, lifestyle, residence, satisfaction, literacy, and health. We report the extent of web site use stratified by sponsorship type-public and private. We also use chi tests to examine bivariate associations. Logistic regression and multiple imputation of missing data were used to examine the correlates of use in a multivariate context. More than twice as many respondents visited private web sites (29.6%) than public web sites (13.2%). However, just 23.6% and 18.9% of private and public web site visitors, respectively, reported doing so once a month or more. Both public and private web site visitors were more likely to be better-educated respondents (odds ratio [OR]=0.83, OR=1.57) reporting greater concerns about health care access (OR=1.28, OR=1.20) than nonvisitors. Younger individuals (OR=0.83) living in urban areas (OR=1.59) with stronger health literacy (OR=1.24) and reporting greater concerns about health care affordability (OR=1.59) were more likely to visit privately sponsored web sites but nonpublicly sponsored ones. Relatively low utilization levels necessitate a concerted effort to improve the quality, accessibility, and relevance of Internet health information. Efforts to close the digital divide must recognize differences in user characteristics across governmental and nongovernmental web site providers.

Using BLAST for Performing Sequence Alignment

BLAST is a widely used genetic sequence comparison program developed at the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). In this unit, three Basic Protocols and one Support Protocol are provided for general-purpose BLAST searches on the NCBI and ENSEMBL Web-accessible BLAST servers. Key parameters affecting how the search algorithm works are reviewed, with advice on modifying search parameters for specific situations. Many other public and private Web sites offer BLAST interfaces which may differ from those described in this unit, but the general principles will be similar. The Support Protocol describes how to obtain sequences in various formats from NCBI for use in BLAST searches. It is emphasized that no algorithm can be a substitute for biological understanding; performing a BLAST search takes only a few minutes but understanding the implications of the results takes much longer.

MMR vaccination advice over the Internet

We wanted to investigate what advice UK homeopaths, chiropractors and general practitioners give on measles, mumps and rubella vaccination programme (MMR) vaccination via the Internet. Online referral directories listing e-mail addresses of UK homeopaths, chiropractors and general practitioners and private websites were visited. All addresses thus located received a letter of a (fictitious) patient asking for advice about the MMR vaccination. After sending a follow-up letter explaining the nature and aim of this project and offering the option of withdrawal, 26% of all respondents withdrew their answers. Homeopaths yielded a final response rate (53%, n=77) compared to chiropractors (32%, n=16). GPs unanimously refused to give advice over the Internet. No homeopath and only one chiropractor advised in favour of the MMR vaccination. Two homeopaths and three chiropractors indirectly advised in favour of MMR. More chiropractors than homeopaths displayed a positive attitude towards the MMR vaccination. Some complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) providers have a negative attitude towards immunisation and means of changing this should be considered.

HOW COURTS HELP YOU HELP YOURSELF

This note is the result of an in‐depth analysis of existing state judiciary websites and how they have and will continue to affect self‐represented divorce litigants in the United States. It surveys all existing state court websites and examines what resources they provide to pro se litigantsd. It also touches on private divorce‐related websites and offers some comments about their utility to pro se litigants as an alternative and a supplement to court‐based websites. This note calls for courts to adopt programs and policies that facilitate the process of getting a divorce for those who choose to represent themselves, and make those programs and policies available to the pro se litigant via the Internet.

A Pilot Study For Evaluating Egyptian Health Websites: Technical And Ethical Perspectives

Background: The growing popularity of the Internet has made it easier and faster to find health information. Much of this information is valuable; however, the Internet also allows rapid and widespread distribution of false and misleading information. Aim of the work: To evaluate some of the Egyptian health websites from the Technical and Ethical perspectives and to compare the reliability of the different types of Egyptian health websites. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive study. Search engines (eg. Google.com and Yahoo.com) were thoroughly searched for Egyptian health websites. Some of these websites were not accessible. Out of thirty two health websites, thirteen internet health websites were randomly selected and evaluated twice in this study. They were classified into 4 categories, official, professional, educational and private. The tool used in this study was a questionnaire developed by the research team depending on EHealth code of ethics, 2000 and international technical guidelines. The questionnaire consists of two main categories (technical and ethical). The technical evaluation includes (authority, objectivity, coverage, currency, design, privacy and security). The ethical evaluation includes (quality of information, informed consent and professionalism). A score for the questionnaire was developed by the research team to assess the websites. All statistical analyses were performed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 11.0. Comparisons between ethical and technical categories were done using the student’s t-test and ANOVA test for continuous variables and Pearson’s Chi square test for categorical variables. Results: On evaluating the quality of information of the health websites, it is noticed that in 92.3% of the sample, medical care is provided by professionals and their information based on scientific studies. Around forty six percent (46.2%) of the health websites do not mention the date of publication, date of recent update and the source of the information. Concerning the professionalism, 100% of the sample obeys laws and regulation in identifying themselves and mentioning the limitation of online consultation. 76.95% of the sample states clearly the purpose of the health website. Only 38.5% of them were recently updated. Privacy policy evaluation shows that 33.3% mentions if the system prevents unauthorized access to personal data while only 16.7% states how the user's personal data is stored and for how long. There is a statistically a significant change (p<0.05) on comparing the quality of information between the different types of websites. Both of the official and professional websites are better than educational and private websites. Conclusion: Some of the Egyptian health websites are reliable and up-to-date; some are not. Most of them are technically satisfactory. Evaluation of the health websites faces difficulties due to continuous updating. Recommendations: we should teach the health seekers to trust what they see or read on the Internet only if they can validate the source of the information and the authors and contributors should always be identified. It is necessary to establish mechanisms of Accreditation of Egyptian Health Websites. E-Health Ethics Training is very essential for the health professionals. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bioethics.v1i3.9629 Bangladesh Journal of Bioethics 2010; 1(3): 2-14