Modelling pre-clearing vegetation distribution using GIS-integrated statistical, ecological and data models: A case study from the wet tropics of Northeastern Australia

Traditional vegetation mapping methods use high cost, labour-intensive aerial photography interpretation. This approach can be subjective and is limited by factors such as the extent of remnant vegetation, and the differing scale and quality of aerial photography over time. An alternative approach is proposed which integrates a data model, a statistical model and an ecological model using sophisticated Geographic Information Systems (GIS) techniques and rule-based systems to support fine-scale vegetation community modelling. This approach is based on a more realistic representation of vegetation patterns with transitional gradients from one vegetation community to another. Arbitrary, though often unrealistic, sharp boundaries can be imposed on the model by the application of statistical methods. This GIS-integrated multivariate approach is applied to the problem of vegetation mapping in the complex vegetation communities of the Innisfail Lowlands in the Wet Tropics bioregion of Northeastern Australia. The paper presents the full cycle of this vegetation modelling approach including sampling sites, variable selection, model selection, model implementation, internal model assessment, model prediction assessments, models integration of discrete vegetation community models to generate a composite pre-clearing vegetation map, independent data set model validation and model prediction's scale assessments. An accurate pre-clearing vegetation map of the Innisfail Lowlands was generated (0.83r(2)) through GIS integration of 28 separate statistical models. This modelling approach has good potential for wider application, including provision of. vital information for conservation planning and management; a scientific basis for rehabilitation of disturbed and cleared areas; a viable method for the production of adequate vegetation maps for conservation and forestry planning of poorly-studied areas. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Multilevel phenomena and the implications for method: An example of knowledge transfer in sports

Multilevel theories integrate individual-level processes with those occurring at the level of the firm and above to generate richer and more complete explanations of IB phenomena than the traditional specification of IB relationships as single-level and parsimonious allows. Case study methods permit the timely collection of multiple sources of data, in context, from multiple individuals and multiple organizational units. Further, because the definitions for each level emerge from case data rather than being imposed a priori, case analysis promotes an understanding of deeper structures and cross-level processes. This paper considers the example of sport as an internationalized service to illustrate how the case method might be used to illuminate the multilevel phenomena of knowledge.

Database and narratological representation of Australian Aboriginal knowledge as information visualisation using a game engine

Current database technologies do not support contextualised representations of multi-dimensional narratives. This paper outlines a new approach to this problem using a multi-dimensional database served in a 3D game environment. Preliminary results indicate it is a particularly efficient method for the types of contextualised narratives used by Australian Aboriginal peoples to tell their stories about their traditional landscapes and knowledge practices. We discuss the development of a tool that complements rather than supplants direct experience of these traditional knowledge practices.

AKTive Food:semantic web based knowledge conduits for the organic food industry

We present a vision and a proposal for using Semantic Web technologies in the organic food industry. This is a very knowledge intensive industry at every step from the producer, to the caterer or restauranteur, through to the consumer. There is a crucial need for a concept of environmental audit which would allow the various stake holders to know the full environmental impact of their economic choices. This is a di?erent and parallel form of knowledge to that of price. Semantic Web technologies can be used e?ectively for the calculation and transfer of this type of knowledge (together with other forms of multimedia data) which could contribute considerably to the commercial and educational impact of the organic food industry. We outline how this could be achieved as our essential ob jective is to show how advanced technologies could be used to both reduce ecological impact and increase public awareness.

Climate change and knowledge politics

This paper addresses the paradox that although the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has reached a broad consensus, various governments pursue different, if not opposing policies. This puzzle not only challenges the traditional belief that scientific knowledge is objective and can be more or less directly translated into political action, but also calls for a better understanding of the relation between science and public policy in modern society. Based on the conceptual framework of knowledge politics the use of expert knowledge in public discourse and in political decisions will be analysed. This will be carried out through a country comparison between the United States and Germany. The main finding is that the press in both countries relies on different sources of scientific expertise when reporting on global warming. In a similar way, governments in both countries use these different sources for legitimising their contrasting policies.

Actionable strategy knowledge:a practice perspective

Increasingly the body of knowledge derived from strategy theory has been criticized because it is not actionable in practice, particularly under the conditions of a knowledge economy. Since strategic management is an applied discipline this is a serious criticism. However, we argue that the theory-practice question is too simple. Accordingly, this paper expands this question by outlining first the theoretical criteria under which strategy theory is not actionable, and then outlines an alternative perspective on strategy knowledge in action, based upon a practice epistemology. The paper is in three sections. The first section explains two contextual conditions which impact upon strategy theory within a knowledge economy, environmental velocity and knowledge intensity. The impact of these contextual conditions upon the application of four different streams of strategy theory is examined. The second section suggests that the theoretical validity of these contextual conditions breaks down when we consider the knowledge artifacts, such as strategy tools and frameworks, which arise from strategy research. The third section proposes a practice epistemology for analyzing strategy knowledge in action that stands in contrast to more traditional arguments about actionable knowledge. From a practice perspective, strategy knowledge is argues to be actionable as part of the everyday activities of strategizing. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Virtual manufacturing:a study of some important issues relating to the transformation of traditional manufacturing organisations

This thesis starts with a literature review, outlining the major issues identified in the literature concerning virtual manufacturing enterprise (VME) transformation. Then it details the research methodology used – a systematic approach for empirical research. next, based on the conceptual framework proposed, this thesis builds three modules to form a reference model, with the purpose of clarifying the important issues relevant to transforming a traditional manufacturing company into a VME. The first module proposes a mechanism of VME transformation – operating along the VME metabolism. The second module builds a management function within a VME to ensure a proper operation of the mechanism. This function helps identify six areas as closely related to VME transformation: lean manufacturing; competency protection; internal operation performance measurement; alliance performance measurement; knowledge management; alliance decision making. The third module continues and proposes an alliance performance measurement system which includes 14 categories of performance indicators. An analysis template for alliance decision making is also proposed and integrated into the first module. To validate these three modules, 7 manufacturing organisations (5 in China and 2 in the UK) were investigated, and these field case studies are analysed in this thesis. The evidence found in these organisations, together with the evidence collected from the literature, including both researcher views and literature case studies, provide support for triangulation evidence. In addition, this thesis identifies the strength and weakness patterns of the manufacturing companies within the theoretical niche of this research, and clarifies the relationships among some major research areas from the perspective of virtual manufacturing. Finally, the research findings are summarised, as well as their theoretical and practical implications. Research limitations and recommendations for future work conclude this thesis.

The variance in sales performance explained by the knowledge structures of salespeople

The last major study of sales performance variance explained by salespeople attributes was by Churchill et al. (1985). They examined the effect of role, skills, motivation, personal factors, aptitude, and organizational/environmental factors on sales performance—factors that have dominated the sales performance area. About the same time, Weitz, Sujan, and Sujan (1986) introduced the concepts of salespeople's knowledge structures. Considerable work on the relationship of the elements of knowledge structures and performance can be found in the literature. In this research note, we determine the degree to which sales performance can be explained by knowledge structure variables, a heretofore unexplored area. If knowledge structure variables explain more variance than traditional variables, then this paper would be a call to further research in this area. In examining this research question in a retail context, we find that knowledge structure variables explain 50.2 percent of the variance in sales performance. We also find that variance explained by knowledge structures is significantly different based on gender. The impact of knowledge structures on performance was higher for men than for women. The models using education demonstrated smaller differences.

Competing for knowledge:creating, connecting and growing

With the buzzwords of knowledge-based economy and knowledge-driven economy, policy-makers, as well as journalists and management consultants, are pushing forward a vision of change that transforms the way advanced economies work. Yet little is understood about how the knowledge-based economy differs from the old, traditional economy. It is generally agreed that the phenomenon has grown out of the branch of economic thought known as new growth theory. Digesting up-to-date thinking in economics, management, innovation studies and economic geography, this significant volume provides an account of these developments and how they have transformed advanced economies.

Enhancing enterprise knowledge processes via cross-media extraction

In large organizations the resources needed to solve challenging problems are typically dispersed over systems within and beyond the organization, and also in different media. However, there is still the need, in knowledge environments, for extraction methods able to combine evidence for a fact from across different media. In many cases the whole is more than the sum of its parts: only when considering the different media simultaneously can enough evidence be obtained to derive facts otherwise inaccessible to the knowledge worker via traditional methods that work on each single medium separately. In this paper, we present a cross-media knowledge extraction framework specifically designed to handle large volumes of documents composed of three types of media text, images and raw data and to exploit the evidence across the media. Our goal is to improve the quality and depth of automatically extracted knowledge.

Computational methods for traditional Chinese medicine:a survey

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been actively researched through various approaches, including computational techniques. A review on basic elements of TCM is provided to illuminate various challenges and progresses in its study using computational methods. Information on various TCM formulations, in particular resources on databases of TCM formulations and their integration to Western medicine, are analyzed in several facets, such as TCM classifications, types of databases, and mining tools. Aspects of computational TCM diagnosis, namely inspection, auscultation, pulse analysis as well as TCM expert systems are reviewed in term of their benefits and drawbacks. Various approaches on exploring relationships among TCM components and finding genes/proteins relating to TCM symptom complex are also studied. This survey provides a summary on the advance of computational approaches for TCM and will be useful for future knowledge discovery in this area. © 2007 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fuzzy knowledge-based approach to treating uncertainty in inventory control

Inventory control in complex manufacturing environments encounters various sources of uncertainity and imprecision. This paper presents one fuzzy knowledge-based approach to solving the problem of order quantity determination, in the presence of uncertain demand, lead time and actual inventory level. Uncertain data are represented by fuzzy numbers, and vaguely defined relations between them are modeled by fuzzy if-then rules. The proposed representation and inference mechanism are verified using a large numbers of examples. The results of three representative cases are summarized. Finally a comparison between the developed fuzzy knowledge-based and traditional, probabilistic approaches is discussed.

Using patient knowledge for better health systems

Purpose – This paper describes a “work in progress” research project being carried out with a public health care provider in the UK, a large NHS hospital Trust. Enhanced engagement with patients is one of the Trust’s core principles, but it is recognised that much more needs to be done to achieve this, and that ICT systems may be able to provide some support. The project is intended to find ways to better capture and evaluate the “voice of the patient” in order to lead to improvements in health care quality, safety and effectiveness. Design/methodology/approach – We propose to investigate the use of a patient-orientated knowledge management system (KMS) in managing knowledge about and from patients. The study is a mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative) investigation based on traditional action research, intended to answer the following three research questions: (1) How can a KMS be used as a mechanism to capture and evaluate patient experiences to provoke patient service change (2) How can the KMS assist in providing a mechanism for systematising patient engagement? (3) How can patient feedback be used to stimulate improvements in care, quality and safety? Originality/value –This methodology aims to involve patients at all phases of the study from its initial design onwards, thus leading to an understanding of the issues associated with using a KMS to manage knowledge about and for patients that is driven by the patients themselves. Practical implications – The outcomes of the project for the collaborating hospital will be firstly, a system for capturing and evaluating knowledge about and from patients, and then as a consequence, improved outcomes for both the patients and the service provider. More generally, it will produce a set of guidelines for managing patient knowledge in an NHS hospital that have been tested in one case example.

Educating the iPod generation:undergraduate attitudes, experiences and knowledge of vodcast and podcast use

There is an increasing pressure on university staff to provide ever more information and resources to students. This study investigated student opinions on (audio) podcasts and (video) vodcasts and how well they met requirements and aided learning processes. Two experiments within the Aston University looked at student opinion on, and usage of, podcasts and vodcasts for a selection of their psychology lectures. Recordings were produced first using a hand-held camcorder, and then using the in-house media department. WebCT was used to distribute the podcasts and vodcasts, attitude questionnaires were then circulated at two time points. Overall students indicated that podcasts and vodcasts were a beneficial addition resource for learning, particularly when used in conjunction with lecturers’ slides and as a tool for revision/assessment. The online material translated into students having increased understanding of the material, which supplemented and enhanced their learning without being a substitute for traditional lectures. There is scope for the provision of portable media files to become standard practice within higher education; integrating distance and online learning with traditional approaches to improve teaching and learning.