• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.519-528
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• 2007

Although science continues to be a key subject in the education of the majority of young people throughout the world, it is becoming increasingly clear that school science is failing to win the hearts and minds of many of today's younger generation. Researchers have begun to look at ways in which the learning that takes place in museums, science centres and other informal settings can add value to science learning in schools. Four case studies are used to illustrate the potential afforded by informal contexts to research aspects of science learning. The case studies involve: the European Union PENCIL (Permanent European Resource Centre for Informal Learning) project (a network of 14 museums and science centres working with schools to enhance learning in maths and science); a large natural history museum in England; the Tate Modernart gallery in London, and the Outdoor Classroom Action Research Project which involved researchers working in school grounds, field centres and farms. The range of research questions that were asked are examined as are the methodological approaches taken and the methods used to collect and analyse data. Lessons learned from the studies about research in the informal contexts are discussed critically.

• Journal of Information Science Theory and Practice
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.58-72
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• 2015

This paper focuses generally on the ‘fourteen principles of management’ by Henri Fayol. However, it specifically analyses their application to and implications for libraries and information centres. An extensive review of published works on management generally, and library management in particular, was conducted. This yielded vital insights on the original meaning and later modifications of these principles, as well as their application in the management of various organisations. Consequently, the strengths and weaknesses of these principles were examined to determine their suitability in libraries and information centres. Inferences, illustrations, and examples were drawn from both developed and developing countries which gives the paper a global perspective. Based on available literature, it was concluded that Fayol’s principles of management are as relevant to libraries as they are in other organisations. The paper, therefore, recommends that in addition to modifying some aspects to make these principles more responsive to the peculiar needs of libraries, further research should be undertaken to expand the breadth of these principles and ascertain their impacts on the management of information organisations.

• International Journal of Knowledge Content Development & Technology
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.7-22
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• 2023

The development of rural areas is expected to be holistic covering all essential infrastructure. Community information centres (CICs) are agen- cies that should be part of the infrastructures for rural development. Unfortunately, these centres are hardly seen in rural communities in Nigeria, including Afikpo in Ebonyi State. Thus, this study was conceived to explore the perceptions of citizens towards the establishment of CICs in the locality. It adopted survey research method with questionnaire as instrument for data collection, which was self-developed and validated by experts with a pre-texted reliability index of 0.72. A total of 399 copies of the questionnaire were distributed, out of which 267 copies were properly completed, representing 67% and were used for analysis. Findings revealed that the citizens have overall positive perception to- wards establishing the CICs; they are also knowledgeable of the benefits of such centres. Furthermore, there are workable suggestions on ways of establishing, funding and managing CICs in Afikpo. In addition, about 65% of the respondents indicated interest to assist and support the funding and management of the CICs when established. However, the challenges of inadequate funding and support as well as the possible politics of where to site/locate the CICs in Afikpo, are likely impediments to the project. The study concluded that citizens have strong and positive disposition towards establishing CICs in Afikpo. The implications of such CICs for technological innovations were analysed. The study recom- mends, among others, that government should see the establishment of CICs as priority projects that would significantly contribute to the growth and development of rural communities in Nigeria; communities in Afikpo should explore self-help approach to development; and political representatives from Afikpo should take advantage of establishing CICs as constituency projects for the citizens.

• Science & Technology Policy
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• v.13 no.6 s.144
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• pp.40-53
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• 2003

• Perspectives in Nursing Science
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.19-25
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• 2007

Systems and processes to provide clinical education to students of nursing have been established between universities and health facilities in all countries where nurse education is tertiary based. However, systems and processes to link nurse researchers based in universities to their clinical colleagues are less well developed. When collaborations are established they are frequently based on personal networks, and while the rhetoric of the organizations encourages these collaborations, they are largely unrecognised by senior administrators in health facilities. The research is frequently "invisible" and the clinician researchers usually do not have access to appropriate infrastructure and other resources that are required to support large projects that have the potential to change practice across organisations. This situation influences the focus and scope of nursing research and limits opportunities for clinicians to be engaged in the generation of professional knowledge. The University of Western Sydney (UWS) has taken a strategic approach to the development of collaborations for research and has linked with health services in Western Sydney to establish and maintain research centres and adjunct appointments. The partner organisations jointly fund the infrastructure of the centres which include a Professor, research assistant position(s) and administrative staff. Five Professors of Nursing have been appointed to positions in one of three nursing research centres. This paper describes the approach established by the School of Nursing at UWS to build collaborations with clinical areas to promote research. This approach could be adopted or adapted by other facilities.

• International Journal of Computer Science & Network Security
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.147-158
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• 2022

Cloud Computing offers flexible, on demand, ubiquitous resources for cloud users. Cloud users are provided computing resources in a virtualized environment. In order to meet the growing demands for computing resources, data centres contain a large number of physical machines accommodating multiple virtual machines. However, cloud data centres cannot utilize their computing resources to their total capacity. Several policies have been proposed for improving energy proficiency and computing resource utilization in cloud data centres. Virtual machine placement is an effective method involving efficient mapping of virtual machines to physical machines. However, the availability of many physical machines accommodating multiple virtual machines in a data centre has made the virtual machine placement problem a non deterministic polynomial time hard (NP hard) problem. Metaheuristic algorithms have been widely used to solve the NP hard problems of multiple and conflicting objectives, such as the virtual machine placement problem. In this context, we presented essential concepts regarding virtual machine placement and objective functions for optimizing different parameters. This paper provides a taxonomy of metaheuristic algorithms for the virtual machine placement method. It is followed by a review of prominent research of virtual machine placement methods using meta heuristic algorithms and comparing them. Finally, this paper provides a conclusion and future research directions in virtual machine placement of cloud computing.

• Journal of Information Management
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.72-89
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• 2001

This article takes a look at current developments of science organization and the distribution of scientific information in Germany. In the information age, libraries and information centres become centres of knowledge management for the science community, as well as for the industry and for the public. Suitable solutions for a fair trade of information are necessary. Information professionals set up digital libraries and new metadata systems. The government's updated science policy and public-initiatives accelerate the development.

• Journal of the Korean Regional Science Association
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.1-26
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• 1993

• STI Policy Review
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.79-91
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• 2012

With the globalisation of the world's economies and the increasing role of multinational corporations in the generation of knowledge, global research and development (R&D) activities in emerging countries are following a new trend. This paper describes case studies of two large companies and discussion of the motives (demand vs. supply) and tasks (demand-driven vs. supply-driven) of R&D activities outside their home country. This work is based on an analysis of four overseas R&D units of two Korean ICT companies - here, ICT refers to goods and services in the information technology and communication technology fields - in India and China. The research findings are as follows: (1) The overseas R&D activities of Korean ICT enterprises in emerging countries may be driven by a combination of demand and supply factors of host countries; and (2) Korean overseas R&D centres in emerging countries may need to carry out both demand- and supply-driven tasks in view of the overlap between demand and supply factors of the host countries. Based on the results of this research, the following policy implications can be drawn for encouraging more effective overseas R&D activities of Korean enterprises in emerging countries. First, the government needs to expand the support systems so that enterprises can manage local R&D centres more effectively and actively use the variety of local support systems and useful information. Second, the government needs to expand the support systems so that the overseas R&D centres of Korean enterprises revitalise collaborations with locally excellent universities and research institutions.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.11
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• pp.6845-6850
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• 2013

Background: This study was performed to gather data on second-hand smoke (SHS) concentrations in a range of public venues following the implementation of partial Smoke-Free Legislation in Malaysia in 2004. Materials and Methods: $PM_{2.5}$ was measured as a marker of SHS levels in a total of 61 restaurants, entertainment centres, internet caf$\acute{e}$s and pubs in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Results: Under the current smoke-free laws smoking was prohibited in 42 of the 61 premises. Active smoking was observed in nearly one-third (n=12) of these. For premises where smoking was prohibited and no active smoking observed, the mean (standard deviation) indoor $PM_{2.5}$ concentration was 33.4 (23.8) ${\mu}g/m^3$ compared to 187.1 (135.1) ${\mu}g/m^3$ in premises where smoking was observed The highest mean $PM_{2.5}$ was observed in pubs [361.5 (199.3) ${\mu}g/m^3$]. Conclusions: This study provides evidence of high levels of SHS across a range of hospitality venues, including about one-third of those where smoking is prohibited, despite 8 years of smoke-free legislation. Compliance with the legislation appeared to be particularly poor in entertainment centres and internet caf$\acute{e}$s. Workers and non-smoking patrons continue to be exposed to high concentrations of SHS within the hospitality industry in Malaysia and there is an urgent need for increased enforcement of existing legislation and consideration of more comprehensive laws to protect health.