Identification and Management of Operational Risks in IT Organization of Financial Service Provider

Työn tavoitteena on tunnistaa toiminnallisia riskitekijöitä rahoituspalveluita tarjoavan yrityksen IT-organisaatiossa sekä löytää arkipäiväisiä keinoja hallita näitä riskejä. Työssä riskejä on myös tarkasteltu mahdollisen ulkoistuksen yhteydessä. Fuusiot ovat yleisiä rahoitusalan yrityksissä. Yhteenliittymien tuloksena yritysten IT-arkkitehtuuri voi olla monimutkainen ja kulttuurierot yrityksessä suuria. Synergia- ja mittakaavaetuja saadakseen yritys keskittää toimintojaan ja IT-ratkaisujaan. Riskien tunnistaminen on riskienhallintaprosessin tärkein vaihe. Tässä tutkimuksessa riskit ja riskitekijät tunnistettiin itsearvioinnin avulla kysymyssarjoja hyväksikäyttäen. Monet riskitekijät liittyivät sisäisen valvonnan ja seurannan puutteisiin. Myöhemmin näille riskeille pohdittiin työryhmässä käytännönläheisiä hallintakeinoja. Yritys voi siirtää tai jakaa IT -riskejä ulkoistamalla. Ulkoistaminen voi kuitenkin tuoda mukaan myös uusia riskitekijöitä. Ennen ulkoistamispäätöstä yrityksen sisäisten prosessien ja organisaation on oltava järjestyksessä, jotta sopimuksen kannattavuutta voidaan verrata luotettavasti saman palvelun tuottamiseen sisäisesti.

Quality in services marketing in infocom sector in Finland

Tutkielman tavoitteena oli selvittää, mikä on palvelun laadun taso infocom sektorilla Suomessa, ja miten sitä voidaan parantaa. Teoriaosassa tavoitteeseen pyrittiin muodostamalla teoriakirjallisuuteen, tieteellisiin julkaisuihin sekä aikaisempaan aihealuetta sivuavaan tutkimukseen perustuva viitekehysmalli. Empiirisessä osassa tavoitetta lähestyttiin tutkimalla infocom sektorin kunkin toimialueen (telekommunikaatio, informaatio teknologia ja sisältötuotanto) palvelujen laatua case-kuvausten muodossa. Tutkielman empiirinen osuus toteutettiin kvalitatiivisena multiple case -tutkimuksena teemahaastattelu-menetelmää soveltaen. Case-analyysi suorittiin käyttäen ns. explanation- building -menetelmää. Teoreettiset ja empiiriset tutkimustulokset yhdistettiin erityisiksi infocom sektorille soveltuviksi toimenpidesuosituksiksi. Tutkielman empiirinen osuus antoi tukea teoreettisen osuuden pohjalta kehitetylle viitekehykselle. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli case-analyysi- menetelmän mukaisesti luoda perusta syvemmälle aihepiiriä käsittelevälle jatkotutkimukselle ja luoda kuva infocom sektorin tämän hetkisestä laadullisesta tilasta. Yhteenvetona voidaan sanoa, että laatu palvelujen markkinoinnissa infocom sektorilla on suhteellisen heikkoa, vaikka tutkimusaineiston mukaan laatu arvostetaan hyvin korkealle. Yritysten tämänhetkiset panostukset laatuun liittyvät lähinnä liiketoiminnan tukifunktioihin ja prosessien ohjausmenetelmiä koskeviin järjestelmiin. Tutkimuksen pohjalta tehtävät varsinaiset toimenpidesuositukset liittyvät laadun sisäistämiseen jo strategiaa luotaessa, asiakaslähtöisyyteen, laatujohtamiseen, laatukoulutukseen ja kokonaisvaltaisen laatukulttuurin luomiseen organisaatioissa. Turbulentissa, nopeasti kansainvälistyvässä ja erittäin voimakkaasti kilpaillussa liiketoimintaympäristössä nämä ovat elintärkeitä menestymisen kriteerejä.

Information integration and its impacts on logistics performance - Using information technology and systems to facilitate information integration

Fast changing environment sets pressure on firms to share large amount of information with their customers and suppliers. The terms information integration and information sharing are essential for facilitating a smooth flow of information throughout the supply chain, and the terms are used interchangeably in research literature. By integrating and sharing information, firms want to improve their logistics performance. Firms share information with their suppliers and customers by using traditional communication methods (telephone, fax, Email, written and face-to-face contacts) and by using advanced or modern communication methods such as electronic data interchange (EDI), enterprise resource planning (ERP), web-based procurement systems, electronic trading systems and web portals. Adopting new ways of using IT is one important resource for staying competitive on the rapidly changing market (Saeed et al. 2005, 387), and an information system that provides people the information they need for performing their work, will support company performance (Boddy et al. 2005, 26). The purpose of this research has been to test and understand the relationship between information integration with key suppliers and/or customers and a firm’s logistics performance, especially when information technology (IT) and information systems (IS) are used for integrating information. Quantitative and qualitative research methods have been used to perform the research. Special attention has been paid to the scope, level and direction of information integration (Van Donk & van der Vaart 2005a). In addition, the four elements of integration (Jahre & Fabbe-Costes 2008) are closely tied to the frame of reference. The elements are integration of flows, integration of processes and activities, integration of information technologies and systems and integration of actors. The study found that information integration has a low positive relationship to operational performance and a medium positive relationship to strategic performance. The potential performance improvements found in this study vary from efficiency, delivery and quality improvements (operational) to profit, profitability or customer satisfaction improvements (strategic). The results indicate that although information integration has an impact on a firm’s logistics performance, all performance improvements have not been achieved. This study also found that the use of IT and IS have a mediocre positive relationship to information integration. Almost all case companies agreed on that the use of IT and IS could facilitate information integration and improve their logistics performance. The case companies felt that an implementation of a web portal or a data bank would benefit them - enhance their performance and increase information integration.

Theses and Dissertations Digital Library: Ten years of Open Access and Open Archives in Brazil

Poster at Open Repositories 2014, Helsinki, Finland, June 9-13, 2014

Decision making and decision support in service systems

This thesis is a literature study that develops a conceptual model of decision making and decision support in service systems. The study is related to the Ä-Logi, Intelligent Service Logic for Welfare Sector Services research project, and the objective of the study is to develop the necessary theoretical framework to enable further research based on the research project results and material. The study first examines the concepts of service and service systems, focusing on understanding the characteristics of service systems and their implications for decision making and decision support to provide the basis for the development of the conceptual model. Based on the identified service system characteristics, an integrated model of service systems is proposed that views service systems through a number of interrelated perspectives that each offer different, but complementary, implications on the nature of decision making and the requirements for decision support in service systems. Based on the model, it is proposed that different types of decision making contexts can be identified in service systems that may be dominated by different types of decision making processes and where different types of decision support may be required, depending on the characteristics of the decision making context and its decision making processes. The proposed conceptual model of decision making and decision support in service systems examines the characteristics of decision making contexts and processes in service systems, and their typical requirements for decision support. First, a characterization of different types of decision making contexts in service systems is proposed based on the Cynefin framework and the identified service system characteristics. Second, the nature of decision making processes in service systems is proposed to be dual, with both rational and naturalistic decision making processes existing in service systems, and having an important and complementary role in decision making in service systems. Finally, a characterization of typical requirements for decision support in service systems is proposed that examines the decision support requirements associated with different types of decision making processes in characteristically different types of decision making contexts. It is proposed that decision support for the decision making processes that are based on rational decision making can be based on organizational decision support models, while decision support for the decision making processes that are based on naturalistic decision making should be based on supporting the decision makers’ situation awareness and facilitating the development of their tacit knowledge of the system and its tasks. Based on the proposed conceptual model a further research process is proposed. The study additionally provides a number of new perspectives on the characteristics of service systems, and the nature of decision making and requirements for decision support in service systems that can potentially provide a basis for further discussion and research, and support the practice alike.

Energy Efficiency in Electrical Drive Systems: Technical potentials, barriers and policy approaches for small and medium industries in Ghana

Today industries and commerce in Ghana are facing enormous energy challenge. The pressure is on for industries to reduce energy consumption, lower carbon emissions and provide se-cured power supply. Industrial electric motor energy efficiency improvement is one of the most important tools to reduce global warming threat and reduce electricity bills. In order to develop a strategic industrial energy efficiency policy, it is therefore necessary to study the barriers that inhibit the implementation of cost – effective energy efficiency measures and the driving forces that promote the implementation. The aim of this thesis is to analyse the energy consumption pattern of electric motors, study factors that promote or inhibit energy efficiency improvements in EMDS and provide cost – effective solutions that improve energy efficiency to bridge the existing energy efficiency gap in the surveyed industries. The results from this thesis has revealed that, the existence of low energy efficiency in motor-driven systems in the surveyed industries were due to poor maintenance practices, absence of standards, power quality issues, lack of access to capital and limited awareness to the im-portance of energy efficiency improvements in EMDS. However, based on the results pre-sented in this thesis, a policy approach towards industrial SMEs should primarily include dis-counted or free energy audit in providing the industries with the necessary information on potential energy efficiency measures, practice best motor management programmes and estab-lish a minimum energy performance standard (MEPS) for motors imported into the country. The thesis has also shown that education and capacity development programmes, financial incentives and system optimization are effective means to promote energy efficiency in elec-tric motor – driven systems in industrial SMEs in Ghana

Use of Novel Algorithms MAJE4 and MACJER-320 for Achieving Confidentiality and Message Authentication in SSL & TLS.

Extensive use of the Internet coupled with the marvelous growth in e-commerce and m-commerce has created a huge demand for information security. The Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol is the most widely used security protocol in the Internet which meets this demand. It provides protection against eaves droppings, tampering and forgery. The cryptographic algorithms RC4 and HMAC have been in use for achieving security services like confidentiality and authentication in the SSL. But recent attacks against RC4 and HMAC have raised questions in the confidence on these algorithms. Hence two novel cryptographic algorithms MAJE4 and MACJER-320 have been proposed as substitutes for them. The focus of this work is to demonstrate the performance of these new algorithms and suggest them as dependable alternatives to satisfy the need of security services in SSL. The performance evaluation has been done by using practical implementation method.

Innovation and Globalization Policy in Small Transition Countries ; Case study: Macedonia and Slovenia

Diese Arbeit befasst sich mit der Innovations- und Globalisierungspolitik in kleinen Transformationsländern am Beispiel Mazedoniens; diese wurde mit der Lage in Slowenien verglichen, einem Land von ungefähr gleicher Größe und mit gemeinsamer Vergangenheit als Teilrepublik der Jugoslawischen Föderation, aber mit einem wesentlich höheren ökonomischen Entwicklungsstand. Innovation wird dabei verstanden als „Herstellung, Anpassung und Ausnutzung von Neuerungen“, und sie wird durch das Umfeld, in dem sie stattfindet, beeinflusst. Anpassung und Ausnutzung sind gerade für kleine Transformationsländer von erheblicher Bedeutung, da ihre Fähigkeit zu Herstellung von Neuerungen sehr begrenzt sind. Die Rolle der Innovationspolitik besteht hierbei darin, institutionelle und organisationelle Regulierungen einzuführen, die ein günstiges Umfeld sowohl für Innovationen als auch für die Entwicklung eines nationalen Innovationssystems schaffen. Die Rolle der Politik besteht also nicht in der Innovation als solcher, sondern in der Herstellung der notwendigen Bedingungen für die Industrie und die Forschungseinrichtungen dahingehend zu schaffen, dass sie ihr Wissen, ihre Fertigkeiten und ihre praktischen Erfahrungen für innovative Tätigkeiten einsetzen können. Auf der einen Seite gibt es Institutionen und Organisationen, ohne die die Unternehmen rückständig und wenig leistungsstark wären (etwa das Patentamt oder Institutionen höherer Bildung), und auf der anderen Seite gibt es Institutionen und Organisationen, welche die Unternehmen dabei unterstützen, dass sie ihre Tätigkeit weiter unterstützen (z.B. durch Technologietransfer-Zentren und Netzwerke). Die Leistungen dieser Institutionen und Organisationen sind von großer Bedeutung für die nationalen Innovationssysteme und sollten ihrerseits durch Innovationspolitik unterstützt werden; dies bedeutet jedoch nicht, dass diese Leistungen vom Staat bereitgestellt werden, vielmehr sollte die Wirtschaftspolitik Möglichkeiten für die öffentlich/private oder sogar rein private Bereitstellung solcher Leistungen in Erwägung ziehen; dies würde nicht nur die Kosten für den Staat senken, sondern auch die Effizienz bei der Erstellung dieser Leistungen steigern. Die Arbeit kommt zu dem Schluss, dass das größte Problem der Innovationspolitik in Mazedonien darin besteht, dass es sie gar nicht gibt, und zwar nicht als Folge einer bewussten Entscheidung darüber. Tatsächlich müssen Ressourcen und Zeit für die Schaffung eines nationalen Innovationssystems eingesetzt werden mit Hilfe einer Politik, die sich auf die wesentlichen Umrisse konzentriert, wobei die Nachfrage nach Technologie im Unternehmensbereich gesteigert wird und das Wissen und das Informationsangebot restrukturiert wird. Dieses System muss offen sein, unter beständigem Verbesserungsdruck stehen und fähig sein, sich an Veränderungen anzupassen. Damit eine solche Politik erfolgreich ist, muss es einen Konsens darüber zwischen allen beteiligten Akteuren geben und darüber hinaus auch eine Kohärenz zwischen den verschiedenen politischen Institutionen. Das ist deswegen wichtig, weil der Innovationsprozess komplex ist und verschiedene Politikbereiche berührt. Ziel sollte die Schaffung eines Systems sein, das einerseits auf Autonomie und Kooperation aufbaut, andererseits aber auch Wettbewerb zwischen den beteiligten Institutionen und Organisationen fördert. Eine wichtige Bedingung für ein positives Investitionsklima im Bereich der Innovation ist die Erreichung von makroökonomischer Stabilität. Die gegenwärtige Situation ist gekennzeichnet durch Instabilität des Rechtswesens, durch Korruption und Probleme des Vertragsschutzes, die sowohl ausländische als auch inländische Akteure davon abhält, sich in wirtschaftlichen Aktivitäten in Mazedonien zu engagieren. Bei der Suche nach einem Ausweg aus diesen Problemen ist es wichtig für Mazedonien, von anderen Ländern wie Slowenien zu lernen, die ähnliche Probleme haben, aber auch schon Erfahrungen in der Problemlösung. Man muss dabei beachten, dass der Entwicklungsstand, das wirtschaftliche und das politische Umfeld in beiden Vergleichsländern sich erheblich unterscheiden, so dass die Lektionen, die Mazedonien von Slowenien lernen könnte, nicht direkt übertragen und kopiert werden können, sondern entsprechend angepasst werden müssen. Die vorliegende Arbeit liefert Einsichten in die Probleme der Innovationspolitik in Transformationsländern und liefert daher sowohl einen Anreiz als auch eine Quelle von Informationen für künftige Analysen der wirtschaftlichen Bedingungen und vor allem Innovationspolitik in Transformationsländern.

Information Exchange and Fusion in Dynamic and Heterogeneous Distributed Environments

Context awareness, dynamic reconfiguration at runtime and heterogeneity are key characteristics of future distributed systems, particularly in ubiquitous and mobile computing scenarios. The main contributions of this dissertation are theoretical as well as architectural concepts facilitating information exchange and fusion in heterogeneous and dynamic distributed environments. Our main focus is on bridging the heterogeneity issues and, at the same time, considering uncertain, imprecise and unreliable sensor information in information fusion and reasoning approaches. A domain ontology is used to establish a common vocabulary for the exchanged information. We thereby explicitly support different representations for the same kind of information and provide Inter-Representation Operations that convert between them. Special account is taken of the conversion of associated meta-data that express uncertainty and impreciseness. The Unscented Transformation, for example, is applied to propagate Gaussian normal distributions across highly non-linear Inter-Representation Operations. Uncertain sensor information is fused using the Dempster-Shafer Theory of Evidence as it allows explicit modelling of partial and complete ignorance. We also show how to incorporate the Dempster-Shafer Theory of Evidence into probabilistic reasoning schemes such as Hidden Markov Models in order to be able to consider the uncertainty of sensor information when deriving high-level information from low-level data. For all these concepts we provide architectural support as a guideline for developers of innovative information exchange and fusion infrastructures that are particularly targeted at heterogeneous dynamic environments. Two case studies serve as proof of concept. The first case study focuses on heterogeneous autonomous robots that have to spontaneously form a cooperative team in order to achieve a common goal. The second case study is concerned with an approach for user activity recognition which serves as baseline for a context-aware adaptive application. Both case studies demonstrate the viability and strengths of the proposed solution and emphasize that the Dempster-Shafer Theory of Evidence should be preferred to pure probability theory in applications involving non-linear Inter-Representation Operations.

Perspectives of Urban Growth Management and Sustainable Development In West Bank, Hebron District as a case Study

The main objective of this PhD research study is to provide a perspective on the urban growth management and sustainable development in Palestine, and more specifically in Hebron district as a case study. Hebron is located 36 km south of Jerusalem, with an overall population size of around 600,000 people living in a total area around1246km2. Hebron is the biggest Palestinian district that has 16 municipalities and 154 localities. The research discusses and analyzes the urban planning system, economical and environmental policies and the solution required to manage and integrate the development elements to develop a sustainable development plan for Hebron. The research provides answers for fundamental questions such as what kind and definition of sustainable development are applicable to the Palestinian case?. What are the sustainability problems there and how the Israeli occupation and unstable political condition affect the sustainable development in Palestine? What are the urban growth management and sustainability policies and actions required from government, public and privets sector in Palestine? The fast urban growth in Palestine is facing many problems and challenges due to the increase in the population size and the resulting impact of this increase including, but not limited to, the demand of new houses, need for more infrastructure services, demands on new industrial, commercial, educational and health projects, which in turn reduces the area of agricultural lands and threatens the natural resources and environment. There are also other associated sustainability problems like the absence of effective plans or regulations that control urban expansion, the absence of sufficient sustainable development plans at the national levels for the district, new job requirements, Israeli restrictions and occupation for more than 60 years, existence of construction factories near residential areas, poor public awareness and poor governmental funds for service projects and development plans. The study consists of nine chapters. Chapter One includes an introduction, study objectives, problems and justifications, while Chapter Two has a theoretical background on sustainability topic and definitions of sustainability. The Palestinian urban planning laws and local government systems are discussed in Chapter Three and the methodology of research is detailed in Chapter Four. As for Chapter Five, it provides a general background on Hebron District including demographical and economical profiles, along with recommendations related to sustainable development for each profile Chapter Six addresses the urban environment, sustainability priorities and policies required. Chapter Seven discusses and analyzes infrastructure services including transportation, water and wastewater. As for Chapter Eight, it addresses the land use, housing and urban expansion beside the cultural heritage, natural heritage with relevant sustainable development polices and recommendations. Finally, Chapter Nine includes a conclusion and comprehensive recommendations integrating all of urban and sustainability event in one map. Hebron has a deep history including a rich cultural heritage aged by thousands of years, with 47% of Hebron district population under 14 years old. Being the biggest Palestinian district, Hebron has thousands of industrial and economical organizations beside a large agricultural sector at Palestine level. This gives Hebron a potential to play major roles in developing a national sustainability plan, as the current urban planning system in Palestine needs urgent reform and development to fulfill the sustainability requirement. The municipalities and ministers should find permanent financial aid for urban planning and development studies so as to face future challenges. The Palestinian government can benefit from available local human resources in development projects; hence Palestinian people have sufficient qualifications in most sectors. The Palestinian people also can invest in the privet sector in Palestine in case businessmen have been encouraged and clear investment laws and plans have been developed. The study provides recommendations associated to the sustainable development in Palestine in general and Hebron, as a case study, in specific. Recommendations include increasing the privet sector as well as the public involvement in urban growth management, and stopping unplanned urban expansion, subjecting granting building permits of new projects to the no-harm environmental impact assessment, increasing the coordination and cooperation between localities and central bodies, protection and renovation of old cites and green areas, increasing the quality and quantity of infrastructure services, establishing district urban planning department to coordinate and organize urban planning and sustainable development activities. Also, among recommendations come dividing Hebron into three planning and administrative areas (north, central and south), and dividing the sustainable development and implementation period (2010 to 2025) into three main phases. Finally, the study strongly recommends benefiting from the same urban development plans in similar districts at national and international levels, also to use new technologies and information systems in urban planning process.

Effect of management strategies on the performance of ruminant livestock production systems and the safety of plant and animal products in the city of Sikasso, Mali

The regional population growth in West Africa, and especially its urban centers, will bring about new and critical challenges for urban development policy, especially in terms of ensuring food security and providing employment for the growing population. (Peri-) urban livestock and vegetable production systems, which can contribute significantly to these endeavours, are limited by various constraints, amongst them limited access to expensive production factors and their (in)efficient use. To achieve sustainable production systems with low consumer health risks, that can meet the urban increased demand, this doctoral thesis determined nutrient use efficiencies in representative (peri-) urban livestock production systems in three West African cities, and investigated potential health risks for consumers ensuing from there. The field study, which was conducted during July 2007 to December 2009, undertook a comparative analysis of (peri-) urban livestock production strategies across 210 livestock keeping households (HH) in the three West African cities of Kano/Nigeria (84 HH), Bobo Dioulasso/Burkina Faso (63 HH) and Sikasso/Mali (63 HH). These livestock enterprises were belonging to the following three farm types: commercial gardening plus field crops and livestock (cGCL; 88 HH), commercial livestock plus subsistence field cropping (cLsC; 109 HH) and commercial gardening plus semi-commercial livestock (cGscL; 13 HH) which had been classified in a preceding study; they represented the diversity of (peri-) urban livestock production systems in West Africa. In the study on the efficiency of ruminant livestock production, lactating cowsand sheep herd units were differentiated based on whether feed supplements were offered to the animals at the homestead (Go: grazing only; Gsf: mainly grazing plus some supplement feeding). Inflows and outflows of nutrients were quantified in these herds during 18 months, and the effects of seasonal variations in nutrient availability on animals’ productivity and reproductive performance was determined in Sikasso. To assess the safety of animal products and vegetables, contamination sources of irrigated lettuce and milk with microbiological contaminants, and of tomato and cabbage with pesticide residues in (peri-) urban agriculture systems of Bobo Dioulasso and Sikasso were characterized at three occasions in 2009. Samples of irrigation water, organic fertilizer and ix lettuce were collected in 6 gardens, and samples of cabbage and tomato in 12 gardens; raw and curdled milk were sampled in 6 dairy herds. Information on health risks for consumers of such foodstuffs was obtained from 11 health centers in Sikasso. In (peri-) urban livestock production systems, sheep and goats dominated (P<0.001) in Kano compared to Bobo Dioulasso and Sikasso, while cattle and poultry were more frequent (P<0.001) in Bobo Dioulasso and Sikasso than in Kano. Across cities, ruminant feeding relied on grazing and homestead supplementation with fresh grasses, crop residues, cereal brans and cotton seed cake; cereal grains and brans were the major ingredients of poultry feeds. There was little association of gardens and livestock; likewise field cropping and livestock were rarely integrated. No relation existed between the education of the HH head and the adoption of improved management practices (P>0.05), but the proportion of HH heads with a long-term experience in (peri-) urban agriculture was higher in Kano and in Bobo Dioulasso than in Sikasso (P<0.001). Cattle and sheep fetched highest market prices in Kano; unit prices for goats and chicken were highest in Sikasso. Animal inflow, outflow and dairy herd growth rates were significantly higher (P<0.05) in the Gsf than in the Go cattle herds. Maize bran and cottonseed expeller were the main feeds offered to Gsf cows as dry-season supplement, while Gsf sheep received maize bran, fresh grasses and cowpea pods. The short periodic transhumance of Go dairy cows help them maintaining their live weight, whereas Gsf cows lost weight during the dry season despite supplement feeding at a rate of 1506 g dry matter per cow and day, resulting in low productivity and reproductive performance. The daily live weight gains of calves and lambs, respectively, were low and not significantly different between the Go and the Gsf system. However, the average live weight gains of lambs were significantly higher in the dry season (P<0.05) than in the rainy season because of the high pressure of gastrointestinal parasites and of Trypanosoma sp. In consequence, 47% of the sheep leaving the Go and Gsf herds died due to diseases during the study period. Thermo-tolerant coliforms and Escherichia coli contamination levels of irrigation water significantly exceeded WHO recommendations for the unrestricted irrigation of vegetables consumed raw. Microbial contamination levels of lettuce at the farm gate and the market place in Bobo Dioulasso and at the farm gate in Sikasso were higher than at the market place in Sikasso (P<0.05). Pesticide residues were detected in only one cabbage and one tomato sample and were below the maximum residue limit for consumption. Counts of thermo-tolerant coliforms and Escherichia coli were higher in curdled than in raw milk (P<0.05). From 2006 to x 2009, cases of diarrhea/vomiting and typhoid fever had increased by 11% and 48%, respectively, in Sikasso. For ensuring economically successful and ecologically viable (peri-) urban livestock husbandry and food safety of (peri-) urban foodstuffs of animal and plant origin, the dissemination and adoption of improved feeding practices, livestock healthcare and dung management are key. In addition, measures fostering the safety of animal products and vegetables including the appropriate use of wastewater in (peri-) urban agriculture, restriction to approve vegetable pesticides and the respect of their latency periods, and passing and enforcement of safety laws is required. Finally, the incorporation of environmentally sound (peri-) urban agriculture in urban planning by policy makers, public and private extension agencies and the urban farmers themselves is of utmost importance. To enable an efficient (peri-) urban livestock production in the future, research should concentrate on cost-effective feeding systems that allow meeting the animals’ requirement for production and reproduction. Thereby focus should be laid on the use of crop-residues and leguminous forages. The improvement of the milk production potential through crossbreeding of local cattle breeds with exotic breeds known for their high milk yield might be an accompanying option, but it needs careful supervision to prevent the loss of the local trypanotolerant purebreds.

Keyword Join: Realizing Keyword Search in P2P-based Database Systems

In this paper, we present a P2P-based database sharing system that provides information sharing capabilities through keyword-based search techniques. Our system requires neither a global schema nor schema mappings between different databases, and our keyword-based search algorithms are robust in the presence of frequent changes in the content and membership of peers. To facilitate data integration, we introduce keyword join operator to combine partial answers containing different keywords into complete answers. We also present an efficient algorithm that optimize the keyword join operations for partial answer integration. Our experimental study on both real and synthetic datasets demonstrates the effectiveness of our algorithms, and the efficiency of the proposed query processing strategies.

IT and other training in the always connected era

Abstract Google and YouTube are quickly becoming the training resource of choice for the IT literate, especially in relation to computer based applications. Many businesses are addressing this training issue in a number of ways, some more successful than others. Find out what the IT services at the university are doing to adapt to this change and contribute to the discussion on how the approach could be improved. Before the talk you could have a look at the following; * One service that has been licenced is Lynda http://go.soton.ac.uk/lynda or lynda.com (note you have to enter www.southampton.ac.uk as the organisation if you don’t log in through the go.soton link) * The IT training team publish a portfolio of systems and courses at http://www.southampton.ac.uk/isolutions/computing/training/portfolio/index.php. * More and more internal systems are being supported through online guides such as http://go.soton.ac.uk/bgsg

A contrastive analysis of non-native interlanguage english intonation systems and their implication in the organisation of information from a functional perspectiva : a study based on a computerized corpus of spanish learners of english

El contexto teórico y empírico de esta investigación sobre entonación, se enmarca dentro de la filosofía lingüística de la teoría sistémico-funcional. El modelo metodológico empleado se basa en la Lingüística de Corpus. La descripción de la adquisición y aprendizaje de la lengua extranjera está justificada dentro del marco teórico de la teoría de interlengua y la adquisición de segundas lenguas y lenguas extranjeras.. El presente estudio del corpus comparativo y longitudinal de aprendices y hablantes nativos de lengua inglesa, tiene como objetivo principal investigar los modelos de entonación producidos por ambos grupos de hablantes. Se pretende demostrar que la diferencia a nivel entonativo entre estos dos grupos no sólo tiene como resultado que los no nativos tengan acento extranjero; sino que puede afectar al mensaje transmitido, en cuanto a la estructura y organización de la información dentro del discurso oral en las metafunciones textual e interpersonal.. Se asume la existencia de un sistema entonativo de interlengua, de esta forma este análisis tiene como objeto no sólo reflejar los errores sino también los posibles sistemas aproximativos de los aprendices mencionados..