A prototype system for the digital lodgement of spatial data

This dissertation develops the model of a prototype system for the digital lodgement of spatial data sets with statutory bodies responsible for the registration and approval of land related actions under the Torrens Title system. Spatial data pertain to the location of geographical entities together with their spatial dimensions and are classified as point, line, area or surface. This dissertation deals with a sub-set of spatial data, land boundary data that result from the activities performed by surveying and mapping organisations for the development of land parcels. The prototype system has been developed, utilising an event-driven paradigm for the user-interface, to exploit the potential of digital spatial data being generated from the utilisation of electronic techniques. The system provides for the creation of a digital model of the cadastral network and dependent data sets for an area of interest from hard copy records. This initial model is calibrated on registered control and updated by field survey to produce an amended model. The field-calibrated model then is electronically validated to ensure it complies with standards of format and content. The prototype system was designed specifically to create a database of land boundary data for subsequent retrieval by land professionals for surveying, mapping and related activities. Data extracted from this database are utilised for subsequent field survey operations without the need to create an initial digital model of an area of interest. Statistical reporting of differences resulting when subsequent initial and calibrated models are compared, replaces the traditional checking operations of spatial data performed by a land registry office. Digital lodgement of survey data is fundamental to the creation of the database of accurate land boundary data. This creation of the database is fundamental also to the efficient integration of accurate spatial data about land being generated by modem technology such as global positioning systems, and remote sensing and imaging, with land boundary information and other information held in Government databases. The prototype system developed provides for the delivery of accurate, digital land boundary data for the land registration process to ensure the continued maintenance of the integrity of the cadastre. Such data should meet also the more general and encompassing requirements of, and prove to be of tangible, longer term benefit to the developing, electronic land information industry.

Legislative and security requirements of audit material for evidentiary purpose

This research used the Queensland Police Service, Australia, as a major case study. Information on principles, techniques and processes used, and the reason for the recording, storing and release of audit information for evidentiary purposes is reported. It is shown that Law Enforcement Agencies have a two-fold interest in, and legal obligation pertaining to, audit trails. The first interest relates to the situation where audit trails are actually used by criminals in the commission of crime and the second to where audit trails are generated by the information systems used by the police themselves in support of the recording and investigation of crime. Eleven court cases involving Queensland Police Service audit trails used in evidence in Queensland courts were selected for further analysis. It is shown that, of the cases studied, none of the evidence presented was rejected or seriously challenged from a technical perspective. These results were further analysed and related to normal requirements for trusted maintenance of audit trail information in sensitive environments with discussion on the ability and/or willingness of courts to fully challenge, assess or value audit evidence presented. Managerial and technical frameworks for firstly what is considered as an environment where a computer system may be considered to be operating “properly” and, secondly, what aspects of education, training, qualifications, expertise and the like may be considered as appropriate for persons responsible within that environment, are both proposed. Analysis was undertaken to determine if audit and control of information in a high security environment, such as law enforcement, could be judged as having improved, or not, in the transition from manual to electronic processes. Information collection, control of processing and audit in manual processes used by the Queensland Police Service, Australia, in the period 1940 to 1980 was assessed against current electronic systems essentially introduced to policing in the decades of the 1980s and 1990s. Results show that electronic systems do provide for faster communications with centrally controlled and updated information readily available for use by large numbers of users who are connected across significant geographical locations. However, it is clearly evident that the price paid for this is a lack of ability and/or reluctance to provide improved audit and control processes. To compare the information systems audit and control arrangements of the Queensland Police Service with other government departments or agencies, an Australia wide survey was conducted. Results of the survey were contrasted with the particular results of a survey, conducted by the Australian Commonwealth Privacy Commission four years previous, to this survey which showed that security in relation to the recording of activity against access to information held on Australian government computer systems has been poor and a cause for concern. However, within this four year period there is evidence to suggest that government organisations are increasingly more inclined to generate audit trails. An attack on the overall security of audit trails in computer operating systems was initiated to further investigate findings reported in relation to the government systems survey. The survey showed that information systems audit trails in Microsoft Corporation's “Windows” operating system environments are relied on quite heavily. An audit of the security for audit trails generated, stored and managed in the Microsoft “Windows 2000” operating system environment was undertaken and compared and contrasted with similar such audit trail schemes in the “UNIX” and “Linux” operating systems. Strength of passwords and exploitation of any security problems in access control were targeted using software tools that are freely available in the public domain. Results showed that such security for the “Windows 2000” system is seriously flawed and the integrity of audit trails stored within these environments cannot be relied upon. An attempt to produce a framework and set of guidelines for use by expert witnesses in the information technology (IT) profession is proposed. This is achieved by examining the current rules and guidelines related to the provision of expert evidence in a court environment, by analysing the rationale for the separation of distinct disciplines and corresponding bodies of knowledge used by the Medical Profession and Forensic Science and then by analysing the bodies of knowledge within the discipline of IT itself. It is demonstrated that the accepted processes and procedures relevant to expert witnessing in a court environment are transferable to the IT sector. However, unlike some discipline areas, this analysis has clearly identified two distinct aspects of the matter which appear particularly relevant to IT. These two areas are; expertise gained through the application of IT to information needs in a particular public or private enterprise; and expertise gained through accepted and verifiable education, training and experience in fundamental IT products and system.

Informed use of patients' records on trusted health care services

Health care is an information-intensive business. Sharing information in health care processes is a smart use of data enabling informed decision-making whilst ensuring. the privacy and security of patient information. To achieve this, we propose data encryption techniques embedded Information Accountability Framework (IAF) that establishes transitions of the technological concept, thus enabling understanding of shared responsibility, accessibility, and efficient cost effective informed decisions between health care professionals and patients. The IAF results reveal possibilities of efficient informed medical decision making and minimisation of medical errors. Of achieving this will require significant cultural changes and research synergies to ensure the sustainability, acceptability and durability of the IAF

Levels and trends of PBDEs and HBCDs in the global environment : status at the end of 2012

In this paper, we have compiled and reviewed the most recent literature, published from January2010 to December 2012, relating to the human exposure, environmental distribution, behaviour, fate and concentration time trends of polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) flame retardants, in order to establish their current trends and priorities for future study. Due to the large volume of literature included, we have provided full detail of the reviewed studies as Electronic Supplementary Information and here summarise the most relevant findings. Decreasing time trends for penta-mix PBDE congeners were seen for soils in northern Europe, sewage sludge in Sweden and the USA, carp from a US river, trout from three of the Great Lakes and in Arctic and UK marine mammals and many birds, but increasing time trends continue in Arctic polar bears and some birds at high trophic levels in northern Europe. This is a result of the time delay inherent in long-range atmospheric transport processes. In general, concentrations of BDE209 (the major component of the deca-mix PBDE product) are continuing to increase. Of major concern is the possible/likely debromination of the large reservoir of BDE209 in soils and sediments worldwide, to yield lower brominated congeners which are both more mobile and more toxic, and we have compiled the most recent evidence for the occurrence of this degradation process. Numerous studies reported here reinforce the importance o f this future concern. Time trends for HBCDs are mixed, with both increases and decreases evident in different matrices and locations and, notably, with increasing occurrence in birds of prey.

Bandwidth Design for CMOS Monolithic Photoreceiver

A monolithic photoreceiver which consists of a double photodiode (DPD) detector and a regulated cascade(RGC) transimpedance amplifier (TIA) is designed. The small signal circuit model of DPD is given and the band width design method of a monolithic photoreceiver is presented. An important factor which limits the bandwidth of DPD detector and the photoreceiver is presented and analyzed in detail. A monolithic photoreceiver with 1.71GHz bandwidth and 49dB transimpedance gain is designed and simulated by applying a low-cost 0. 6um CMOS process and the test result is given.

Time-dependent transport through molecular junctions.

We investigate transport properties of molecular junctions under two types of bias--a short time pulse or an ac bias--by combining a solution for Green's functions in the time domain with electronic structure information coming from ab initio density functional calculations. We find that the short time response depends on lead structure, bias voltage, and barrier heights both at the molecule-lead contacts and within molecules. Under a low frequency ac bias, the electron flow either tracks or leads the bias signal (resistive or capacitive response) depending on whether the junction is perfectly conducting or not. For high frequency, the current lags the bias signal due to the kinetic inductance. The transition frequency is an intrinsic property of the junctions.

Teleconsultation in sexual and reproductive health for young adults through mobile devices: Experience in Colombia

Background: Sexual risk behaviors associated with poor information on sexuality have contributed to major public health problems in the area of sexual and reproductive health in teenagers and young adults in Colombia. Objective: To measure the perception of changes in sexual and reproductive risk behavior after the use of a teleconsultation service via mobile devices in a sample of young adults. Methods: A before and after observational study was designed, where a mobile application to inquire about sexual and reproductive health was developed. The perception of changes in sexual and reproductive health risk behaviors in a sample of young adults after the use of the application was measured using the validated survey “Family Health International (FHI) – Behavioral Surveillance Survey (BSS) – Survey for Adults between 15 to 40 Years”. Non-probabilistic convenience recruitment was undertaken through the study´s web page. Participants answered the survey online before and after the use of the mobile application for a six month period (intervention). For the inferential analysis, data was divided into three groups (dichotomous data, discrete quantitative data, and ordinal data), to compare the results of the questions between the first and the second survey. For all tests, a confidence interval of 95% was established. For dichotomous data, the Chi-squared test was used. For quantitative data, we used the Student’s t-test, and for ordinal data, the Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon test. Results: A total of 257 subjects were registered in the study and met the selection criteria. The pre-intervention survey was answered by 232 subjects, and 127 completely answered the post-intervention survey, of which 54.3% did not use the application, leaving an effective population of 58 subjects for analysis. 53% (n=31) were female, and 47% (n=27) were male. The mean age was 21 years, ranging between 18 and 40 years. The differences between the answers on the first and the second survey were not statistically significant. The main risk behaviors identified in the population were homosexual relations, non-use of condoms, sexual relations with non-regular and commercial partners, the use of psychoactive substances, and ignorance about the symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases and HIV transmission. Conclusions: Although there were no differences between the pre- and post-intervention results, the study revealed different risk behaviors among the participating subjects. These findings highlight the importance of promoting educational strategies on this matter and the importance of providing patients with easily accessible tools with reliable health information.

El nuevo impulso a la reutilización del RD 1495/2011

Presentació que es centra en les dades obertes, les lleis d'aplicació i els Reals Decrets relacionats amb l' accés i la reutilització de la informació administrativa. En concret es refereix al RD 1495/2011 que ofereix una eina per a la dinamització de l'accés i la reutilització comercial de la documentació administrativa

Modern approaches to floristics and their impact on the region of SW Asia

Attitudes to floristics have changed considerably during the past few decades as a result of increasing and often more focused consumer demands, heightened awareness of the threats to biodiversity, information flow and overload, and the application of electronic and web-based techniques to information handling and processing. This paper will examine these concerns in relation to our floristic knowledge and needs in the region of SW Asia. Particular reference will be made to the experience gained from the Euro+Med PlantBase project for the preparation of an electronic plant-information system for Europe and the Mediterranean, with a single core list of accepted plant names and synonyms, based on consensus taxonomy agreed by a specialist network. The many challenges Ð scientific, technical and organisational Ð that it has presented will be discussed as well as the problems of handling nontaxonomic information from fields such as conservation, karyology, biosystematics and mapping. The question of regional cooperation and the sharing of efforts and resources will also be raised and attention drawn to the recent planning workshop held in Rabat (May 2002) for establishing a technical cooperation network for taxonomic capacity building in North Africa as a possible model for the SW Asia region.

Patientens omvårdnadsbehov under rehabilitering efter en hjärtinfarkt : En systematisk litteraturstudie

Föreliggande systematiska litteraturstudie syftade till att samla information, som kan hjälpa sjuksköterskan att få insyn i patientens omvårdnadsbehov under rehabiliteringen efter en hjärtinfarkt. Sexton vetenskapliga artiklar valdes ut via fulltextdatabasen ELIN (Electronic Library Information Navigator) för vidare granskning. Sökorden cardiac*, rehab* AND nurs* användes. Litteratururvalet till resultatet utfördes genom att läsa titlar, abstrakt och sedan utfördes en kvalitetsgranskning av artiklarna efter granskningsmallar med 28 bedömningskriterier. Omvårdnadsbehoven som framkom vid artikelgranskningen evidensgraderades med hjälp av en graderingsskala modifierad efter Bahtsevani. Resultatet visade att omvårdnadsbehoven psykiskt stöd vid oro och depression, kontinuerlig kontakt med vården, individanpassad rehabilitering, information om riskreducerande åtgärder, stöd i allmänhet samt motivation för rehabilitering var de omsorgsanspråk, som studien fann evidens för. Av dessa omvårdnadsbehov hade kontinuerlig kontakt med vården och individanpassad rehabilitering ej uppmärksammats i större grad i tidigare forskning. Resultatet diskuterades utifrån Dorothea Orems humanistiska behovsteori där omvårdnadsbehoven ställdes i relation till patientens faktiska egenvårdsförmåga. Med hjälp av föreliggande studies resultat i kombination med Dorothea Orems omvårdnadsteori så kan sjuksköterskan skapa en förbättrad rehabiliteringsplan.

Humorns betydelse i omvårdnaden : En systematisk litteraturstudie

Denna systematiska litteraturstudie syftade till att beskriva och kartlägga humorns betydelse i omvårdnadsarbetet med inriktning på humorns påverkan på patientens välbefinnande, sjuksköterskans kommunikation med patienter och närstående samt sjuksköterskans psykosociala arbetsmiljö. Tjugo vetenskapliga artiklar, vilka sökts huvudsakligen via fulltextbasen Electronic Library Information Navigator (ELIN), valdes ut utifrån titel, abstrakt och genomläsning, varefter de kvalitetsgranskades och genomgick textanalys utmynnande i sex temata. Dessa evidensgraderades utifrån artiklarnas kvalitet. Resultatet visade att humor upplevdes ha betydelse i omvårdnadsarbetet både för patient och sjuksköterska genom att göra det lättare att hantera känslor, bygga upp en positiv självbild och att bevara värdigheten. Humorn är ett verktyg i bemästring av sjukdom och hälsoproblem samt viktig för en god kommunikation mellan såväl sjuksköterska och patient som mellan vårdpersonal. Humorn upplevs vara en betydelsefull faktor för ett gott lagarbete samt en moderator för hierarkiska spänningar mellan yrkesgrupper och patienter-vårdpersonal. Som omvårdnadsteoretisk referensram valdes Joyce Travelbees teori om den mellanmänskliga kommunikationen där humor visade sig vara ett viktigt redskap. Studien ökar läsarens förståelse av humorns betydelse för patient, närstående och personal i omvårdnaden likaväl som för kommunikationen mellan berörda parter, med särskild tonvikt på sjuksköterskans profession.

Evidensbaserade omvårdnadsåtgärder vid trycksår : En systematisk litteraturstudie

I föreliggande systematiska litteraturstudie var syftet att samla information om och belysa sjuksköterskans evidensbaserade omvårdnadsåtgärder för att förebygga och bedöma trycksår. Artiklar söktes via Högskolan Dalarnas bibliotek och sökmotorn Electronic Library Information Navigator (ELIN). Sökorden pressure, ulcer och nurs* användes. De vetenskapliga artiklarna (n= 15) kvalitetsbedömdes enligt granskningsmallar som bestod av 28 kvalitetskriterier. Därefter evidensgraderades artiklarna. Resultatet i föreliggande studie visade att sjuksköterskan använde sig av tre evidensbaserade omvårdnadsåtgärder i omsorgen om patienter med risk för trycksår. Den första omvårdnadsåtgärden omfattade tryckavlastande omvårdnadsåtgärder, vilka insatser befanns vila på stark vetenskaplig grund. Den andra omvårdnadsåtgärden inbegrep användning av riskbedömningsinstrument och den tredje bestod av klinisk bedömning som båda befanns vila på måttlig vetenskapligt underlag. I resultatet framkom att riskbedömningsinstrument hjälpte sjuksköterskan att reducera uppkomsten av trycksår och därmed minskade ett onödigt lidande för patienten. Resultatet diskuterades utifrån Florence Nightingales omvårdnadsteori, där miljön var en av grundstenarna i omsorgen och att sjuksköterskan hade ansvaret för att anpassa miljön efter patientens behov. Medvetenheten om detta tillsammans med de evidensbaserade omvårdnadsåtgärderna som framkom i föreliggande studie kunde minska risken för trycksår hos patienter och i förlängningen reducera sjukvårds- kostnaderna.

Omvårdnadsbehov hos anhörigavars familjemedlemfår palliativ vård i hemmet

Föreliggande systematiska litteraturstudies syfte var att beskriva anhörigas upplevelser och deras omvårdnadsbehov då en familjemedlem vårdades palliativt i hemmet, för att skapa en förståelse för vad sjuksköterskan kan bidra med. Sökord som valdes var palliative AND relative* AND home för insamling av vetenskapliga artiklar via fulltextdatabasen Electronic Library Information Navigator (ELIN) och databasen Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL). En systematisk kvalitetsgranskning gjordes på 15 vetenskapliga artiklar enligt modifierade kvalitetsgranskningsmallar efter förlagor av Forsberg och Wengström (2003) och Willman et al. (2006) och på basen av kvalitetsresultatet evidensgraderades de anhörigas till familjemedlem i det palliativa skedets omvårdnadsbehov. Tre omvårdnadsbehov som vilade på starkt vetenskapligt underlag framkom: att få professionellt stöd, att få avlastning som anhörig eller anhörigvårdare till en familjemedlem som vårdas palliativt i hemmet och att få information och undervisning om familjemedlemmens situation. Vidare framkom ett omvårdnadsbehov som vilade på måttligt vetenskapligt underlag: att få dela sina upplevelser med andra anhöriga i liknande situation. Resultatet diskuterades utifrån Joyce Travelbees teori om empati eller förmågan att sätta sig in i den andres psykologiska tillstånd och sympati det vill säga förmågan att förmedla till patienten att han/hon inte är ensam i sin tunga situation. Med hjälp av föreliggande studies resultat kan sjuksköterskan få en bättre bild av sina omvårdnadsuppgifter och kan förankra sina insikter teoretiskt i Travelbees tankekonstruktion.

Sjuksköterskans evidensbaserade hygienåtgärder som kan förebygga vårdrelaterade infektioner : En systematisk litteraturstudie

Föreliggande systematiska litteraturstudies syfte är att undersöka sjuksköterskans evidensbaserade hygienåtgärder som kan förebygga vårdrelaterade infektioner. Artiklarna söktes inom Högskolan Dalarnas bibliotek via databasen Electronic Library Information Navigator (ELIN). Använda sökord var Infect* and Prevent* and Nurs* and Hygien*. De artiklar vars titel och abstrakt motsvarade studiens syfte genomgick kvalitetsgranskning utifrån 28 stycken på förhand fastställda kriterier, sedan evidensgraderades artiklarna på basen av kvalitetsbedömningen med hjälp av en modifierad graderingsskala. Sammanlagt 15 artiklar uppnådde 60 % av kriterierna i granskningsmallen och användes i resultatet. Resultatet visade att det erhölls starkt vetenskapligt underlag för hygienåtgärd såsom hygienriktlinjer, handhygien, engångshandskar och desinfektion av händerna direkt efter avtagandet av engångshandskar. Studiens resultat visade att dessa fynd förebyggde vårdrelaterade infektioner, vilket var av betydelse då hygienåtgärder utgör grunden för all vård och främjar patientens hälsa, vilket i sin tur är kostnadseffektivt och gynnar den enskilda patienten. Resultatet i föreliggande studie diskuterades utifrån Nightingales omvårdnadsteori.