National whoppercropper - risk management discussion support software

It is a paradox that in a country with one of the most variable climates in the world, cropping decisions are sometimes made with limited consideration of production and resource management risks. There are significant opportunities for improved performance based on targeted information regarding risks resulting from decision options. WhopperCropper is a tool to help agricultural advisors and farmers capture these benefits and use it to add value to their intuition and experience. WhopperCropper allows probability analysis of the effects of a range of selectable crop inputs and existing resources on yield and economic outcomes. Inputs can include agronomic inputs (e.g crop type, N fertiliser rate), resources (e.g soil water at sowing), and seasonal climate forecast (SOI phase). WhopperCropper has been successfully developed and refined as a discussion-support process for decision makers and their advisers in the northern grains region of Australia. The next phase of the project will build on the current project by extending its application nationally and enhancing the resource management aspects. A commercial partner, with over 800 advisor clients nationally, will participate in the project.

ACONSELHAMENTO PASTORAL E A LEITURA POPULAR DA BÍBLIA: UM DIÁLOGO COM O PENSAMENTO DE CARLOS MESTERS

O presente trabalho aborda as contribuições da Leitura Popular da Bíblia (LPB), na perspectiva de Carlos Mesters, para os processos de cuidado no Aconselhamento Pastoral (AP). Ao repensar criticamente os modelos de Aconselhamento Pastoral (AP), a partir dos principais autores publicados no Brasil sobre o tema, verifica-se que o como fazer do aconselhamento pastoral é fundamental. Da mesma forma que refletir o como usar a Bíblia nos processos de cuidado e auxílio no aconselhamento deveria estar diretamente relacionado ao saber escutar e discernir a necessidade do outro. Sendo assim, é proveitoso integrar à reflexão e prática do cuidado pastoral, enquanto aconselhamento, as perspectivas da espiritualidade e das ciências do comportamento humano com a metodologia da LPB. A LPB empresta seu modo hermenêutico de ver, julgar e agir e aproveita a pedagogia de Paulo Freire nos processos relacionais entre aconselhador/a e aconselhando/a. Este trabalho pretende assim propor uma leitura de mundo que parta da vida vivida levando em consideração a idade, etnia, situação socioeconômica, estado civil, gênero, etc., no sentido de proporcionar saúde integral ao ser humano. Este tipo de leitura articulada com as contribuições da LPB pode promover melhor as habilidades para a escuta que reconheça as relações no Aconselhamento Pastoral como um processo pedagógico e libertador entre aconselhador/a e aconselhando/a. Processo em que a leitura contextualizada, integral e libertadora da Bíblia e ciências humanas iluminam o caminho para uma vida mais humanizadora.

The role of personal advisors at Aston Business School

Aston Business School has moved away from a traditional Personal Tutoring model to the Personal Advisor model. During 2006, a review was undertaken of the existing system and proposed the new scheme. This session will present the current model of supporting students within Aston Business School’s Undergraduate Programme. It will discuss the research undertaken at the beginning of the change process which informed the decisions and structure of the Personal Advisor Scheme. It will also present evaluation research undertaken with students into their perceptions of the new scheme. The session will conclude with the plans for the future.

The Beginning of the End of the Road? Britain and the European Council Meeting, 8-9 December 2011

What will the outcome of last week’s EU summit mean for the future of the UK’s position within the Union? According to Dr. Simon Green, Professor of Politics at Aston University, UK, it could spell disaster for Britain in the single market of the EU. In his essay entitled The Beginning of the End of the Road? Britain and the European Council meeting, 8/9 December 2011, originally published in Aston University’s Aston Centre for Europe blog, Dr. Green explains that Prime Minster David Cameron’s decision to exclude the UK from the EU’s new intergovernmental pact will alienate the UK from the Union more than ever before.

Web-based expert systems:benefits and challenges

Convergence of technologies in the Internet and the field of expert systems have offered new ways of sharing and distributing knowledge. However, there has been a general lack of research in the area of web-based expert systems (ES). This paper addresses the issues associated with the design, development, and use of web-based ES from a standpoint of the benefits and challenges of developing and using them. The original theory and concepts in conventional ES were reviewed and a knowledge engineering framework for developing them was revisited. The study considered three web-based ES: WITS-advisor - for e-business strategy development, Fish-Expert - for fish disease diagnosis, and IMIS - to promote intelligent interviews. The benefits and challenges in developing and using ES are discussed by comparing them with traditional standalone systems from development and application perspectives. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Knowledge-based systems and engineering software

The work described was carried out as part of a collaborative Alvey software engineering project (project number SE057). The project collaborators were the Inter-Disciplinary Higher Degrees Scheme of the University of Aston in Birmingham, BIS Applied Systems Ltd. (BIS) and the British Steel Corporation. The aim of the project was to investigate the potential application of knowledge-based systems (KBSs) to the design of commercial data processing (DP) systems. The work was primarily concerned with BIS's Structured Systems Design (SSD) methodology for DP systems development and how users of this methodology could be supported using KBS tools. The problems encountered by users of SSD are discussed and potential forms of computer-based support for inexpert designers are identified. The architecture for a support environment for SSD is proposed based on the integration of KBS and non-KBS tools for individual design tasks within SSD - The Intellipse system. The Intellipse system has two modes of operation - Advisor and Designer. The design, implementation and user-evaluation of Advisor are discussed. The results of a Designer feasibility study, the aim of which was to analyse major design tasks in SSD to assess their suitability for KBS support, are reported. The potential role of KBS tools in the domain of database design is discussed. The project involved extensive knowledge engineering sessions with expert DP systems designers. Some practical lessons in relation to KBS development are derived from this experience. The nature of the expertise possessed by expert designers is discussed. The need for operational KBSs to be built to the same standards as other commercial and industrial software is identified. A comparison between current KBS and conventional DP systems development is made. On the basis of this analysis, a structured development method for KBSs in proposed - the POLITE model. Some initial results of applying this method to KBS development are discussed. Several areas for further research and development are identified.

Managing supply networks:organizational roles in network management

This paper describes research findings on the roles that organizations can adopt in managing supply networks. Drawing on extensive empirical data, it is demonstrated that organizations may be said to be able to manage supply networks, provided a broad view of ‘managing’ is adopted. Applying role theory, supply network management interventions were clustered into sets of linked activities and goals that constituted supply network management roles. Six supply network management roles were identified – innovation facilitator, co-ordinator, supply policy maker and implementer, advisor, information broker and supply network structuring agent. The findings are positioned in the wider context of debates about the meaning of management, the contribution of role theory to our understanding of management, and whether inter-organizational networks can be managed.

Supply network strategy:role and competence requirements

This paper presents an argument that it is possible for an organisation to manage networks, but understanding this involves consideration of what is meant by "managing". Based on prior research and data from a major longitudinal action research study in the health sector, the paper describes six network management roles: network structuring agent; co-ordinator; advisor; information broker; relationship broker; innovation sponsor. The necessary "assets" for effective performance of these roles are identified, in particular those relating to team competence. The findings enrich and significantly develop previous work on network management roles and activities, and their influencing factors. It is concluded that, given the specific nature of the networks studied, further research is required to evaluate the generalisability of the findings, though initial indications are promising.