An Evidence-Based Approach to Access Reform (Working Paper 22)

In August 2000, the federal government began an internal review of the Access to Information Act (ATIA). The ATIA gives Canadians a qualified right of access to records held by federal institutions. Decisions about reform should be based on good evidence about the operation of the Act and the likely impact of proposed reforms. This paper describes how data on ATIA operations is collected by federal institutions and provides a guide to academic researchers interested in conducting empirical research on the operation of the law. It constructs a small dataset that describes the processing of a sample of 663 requests received in 1999, and uses this dataset to illustrate the potential of an evidence-based approach to ATIA reform. The dataset can be downloaded from http://evidence.foilaw.net. The project was supported by a $4,800 grant from the Principal’s Development Fund of Queen’s University awarded in May 2001. Comments should be sent to the principal investigator, Alasdair Roberts, at roberts@policystudies.ca.

A Knowledge Management Process-Based Approach to Support Corporate Crisis Management

In the crisis-prone and complex contemporary business environment, modern organisations and their supply chains, large and small, are challenged by crises more than ever. Knowledge management has been acknowledged as an important discipline able to support the management of complexity in times of crisis. However, the role of effective knowledge retrieval and sharing in the process of crisis prevention, management and survival has been relatively underexplored. In this paper, it is argued that organisational crises create additional challenges for knowledge management, mainly because complex, polymorphic and both structured and unstructured knowledge must be efficiently harnessed, processed and disseminated to the appropriate internal and external supply chain actors, under specific time constraints. In this perspective, a process-based approach is proposed to address the knowledge management needs of organisations during a crisis and to help management in establishing the necessary risk avoidance and recovery mechanisms. Finally, the proposed methodological approach is applied in a knowledge- intensive Greek small and medium enterprise from the pharmaceutical industry, producing empirical results, insights on knowledge pathologies during crises and relevant evaluations.

Random Forest Based Approach for Concept-Drift Handling

Algorithms for concept drift handling are important for various applications including video analysis and smart grids. In this paper we present decision tree ensemble classication method based on the Random Forest algorithm for concept drift. The weighted majority voting ensemble aggregation rule is employed based on the ideas of Accuracy Weighted Ensemble (AWE) method. Base learner weight in our case is computed for each sample evaluation using base learners accuracy and intrinsic proximity measure of Random Forest. Our algorithm exploits both temporal weighting of samples and ensemble pruning as a forgetting strategy. We present results of empirical comparison of our method with îriginal random forest with incorporated replace-the-looser forgetting andother state-of-the-art concept-drift classiers like AWE2.

Measuring children’s experience of their right to participate in school and community: a rights-based approach

This paper discusses the development of a children’s rights-based measure of participation and the findings from its use in a survey of 10 to 11 year old children (n= 3773). The measure, which was developed in collaboration with a group of children, had a high reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = .89). Findings suggest that children’s positive experience of their participation rights is higher in school than in community, and higher for girls compared to boys. It is argued that involving children in the ‘measurement’ of their own lives has the potential to generate more authentic data on children’s lived experiences.

A novel hybrid swarm based approach for curriculum based course timetabling problem

This work applies a hybrid approach in solving the university curriculum-based course timetabling problem as presented as part of the 2nd International Timetabling Competition 2007 (ITC2007). The core of the hybrid approach is based on an artificial bee colony algorithm. Past methods have applied artificial bee colony algorithms to university timetabling problems with high degrees of success. Nevertheless, there exist inefficiencies in the associated search abilities in term of exploration and exploitation. To improve the search abilities, this work introduces a hybrid approach entitled nelder-mead great deluge artificial bee colony algorithm (NMGD-ABC) where it combined additional positive elements of particle swarm optimization and great deluge algorithm. In addition, nelder-mead local search is incorporated into the great deluge algorithm to further enhance the performance of the resulting method. The proposed method is tested on curriculum-based course timetabling as presented in the ITC2007. Experimental results reveal that the proposed method is capable of producing competitive results as compared with the other approaches described in literature

A Value Networks Approach to Implementing Integrated Cross-National Business Operations

The removal of trade impediments is expected to cause companies to integrate more of their operations among countries; however, experience shows that behavioral factors often impede the requisite cooperation and commitment among managers from different countries. This paper discusses these behavioral problems from a national perspective and examines an approach to integration, value networks, which is not bounded by nation-states and their differences or similarities.

An Action Research Study Engaging in the Use of Storyboarding as Research-based Approach to Teaching to Identify Issues Faced when Working with People with Dementia from Minority Ethnic Communities

The common view that research informs teaching assumes a linear approach whereby teaching is considered an output of research. This paper reports the findings of an action research project that identified the issues and challenges faced by those working across health and social care when working with people with dementia from minority ethnic communities. It explored the research-teaching nexus by using an approach to teaching that was research-based as opposed to research-led. A storyboarding technique was used which involved identifying and dissecting real life experiences for discussion. The realisation that each story was unique to the individual demonstrated the benefits and importance of education and training for applying a person-centred approach to dementia care. This project also revealed the benefits of actively engaging course participants with research moving them from being recipients of research, to research- active. Such a process not only encouraged their intrinsic motivations but, also, critical thinking and reflective practice to support deep learning. Such findings demonstrate the benefits of linking teaching with research.

A DST-based Approach for Construction Project Risk Analysis

Despite its huge potential in risk analysis, the Dempster–Shafer Theory of Evidence (DST) has not received enough attention in construction management. This paper presents a DST-based approach for structuring personal experience and professional judgment when assessing construction project risk. DST was innovatively used to tackle the problem of lacking sufficient information through enabling analysts to provide incomplete assessments. Risk cost is used as a common scale for measuring risk impact on the various project objectives, and the Evidential Reasoning algorithm is suggested as a novel alternative for aggregating individual assessments. A spreadsheet-based decision support system (DSS) was devised to facilitate the proposed approach. Four case studies were conducted to examine the approach's viability. Senior managers in four British construction companies tried the DSS and gave very promising feedback. The paper concludes that the proposed methodology may contribute to bridging the gap between theory and practice of construction risk assessment.

Exploring Perceptual Matters: A Textile-Based Approach

This research takes a practice-based approach to exploring perceptual matters that often go unnoticed in the context of everyday lived experience. My approach focuses on the experiential possibilities of knowledge emerging through artistic enquiry, and uses a variety of modes (like textiles, sound, physical computing, programming, video and text) to be conducted and communicated. It examines scholarship in line with the ecological theory of perception, and is particularly informed by neurobiological research on sensory integration as well as by cultural theories that examine the role of sensory appreciation in perception. Different processes contributing to our perceptual experience are examined through the development of a touch-sensitive, sound-generating rug and its application in an experimental context. Participants’ interaction with the rug and its sonic output allows an insight into how they make sense of multisensory information via observation of how they physically respond to it. In creating possibilities for observing the two ends of the perceptual process (sensory input and behavioural output), the rug provides a platform for the study of what is intangible to the observer (perceptual activity) through what can actually be observed (physical activity). My analysis focuses on video recordings of the experimental process and data reports obtained from the software used for the sound generating performance of the rug. Its findings suggest that attentional focus, active exploration, and past experience actively affect the ability to integrate multisensory information and are crucial parameters for the formation of a meaningful percept upon which to act. Although relational to the set experimental conditions and the specificities of the experimental group, these findings are in resonance with current cross-disciplinary discourse on perception, and indicate that art research can be incorporated into the wider arena of neurophysiological and behavioural research to expand its span of resources and methods.

The Effects of a Group-Based Approach to Parent-Mediated Early Behavioral Intervention for Very Young Children with or At-Risk for Autism

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-08

Occupational exposure assessment to particles with task-based approach

Occupational exposure assessment can be a challenge due to several factors being the most important the costs associate and the result's dependence from the conditions at the time of sampling. Conducting a task-based exposure assessment allow defining better control measures to eliminate or reduce exposure since more easily identifies the task with higher exposure. A research study was developed to show the importance of task-based exposure assessment in four different settings (bakery, horsemanship, waste sorting and cork industry). Measurements were performed using a portable direct-reading hand-held equipment and were conducted near the workers nose during tasks performance. For each task were done measurements of approximately 5 minutes. It was possible to detect the task in each setting that was responsible for higher particles exposure allowing the priority definition regarding investments in preventive and protection measures.

Optimization of a multielectrode array (MEA)-based approach to study the impact of Aβ on the SH-SY5Y cell line

The human brain stores, integrates, and transmits information recurring to millions of neurons, interconnected by countless synapses. Though neurons communicate through chemical signaling, information is coded and conducted in the form of electrical signals. Neuroelectrophysiology focus on the study of this type of signaling. Both intra and extracellular approaches are used in research, but none holds as much potential in high-throughput screening and drug discovery, as extracellular recordings using multielectrode arrays (MEAs). MEAs measure neuronal activity, both in vitro and in vivo. Their key advantage is the capability to record electrical activity at multiple sites simultaneously. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disease and one of the leading causes of death worldwide. It is characterized by neurofibrillar tangles and aggregates of amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides, which lead to the loss of synapses and ultimately neuronal death. Currently, there is no cure and the drugs available can only delay its progression. In vitro MEA assays enable rapid screening of neuroprotective and neuroharming compounds. Therefore, MEA recordings are of great use in both AD basic and clinical research. The main aim of this thesis was to optimize the formation of SH-SY5Y neuronal networks on MEAs. These can be extremely useful for facilities that do not have access to primary neuronal cultures, but can also save resources and facilitate obtaining faster high-throughput results to those that do. Adhesion-mediating compounds proved to impact cell morphology, viability and exhibition of spontaneous electrical activity. Moreover, SH-SY5Y cells were successfully differentiated and demonstrated acute effects on neuronal function after Aβ addition. This effect on electrical signaling was dependent on Aβ oligomers concentration. The results here presented allow us to conclude that the SH-SY5Y cell line can be successfully differentiated in properly coated MEAs and be used for assessing acute Aβ effects on neuronal signaling.

Task-based approach used on surfaces sampling strategy definition: the case of antineoplastic occupational exposure

Task-based approach implicates identifying all the tasks developed in each workplace aiming to refine the exposure characterization. The starting point of this approach is the recognition that only through a more detailed and comprehensive understanding of tasks is possible to understand, in more detail, the exposure scenario. In addition allows also the most suitable risk management measures identification. This approach can be also used when there is a need of identifying the workplace surfaces for sampling chemicals that have the dermal exposure route as the most important. In this case is possible to identify, through detail observation of tasks performance, the surfaces that involves higher contact (frequency) by the workers and can be contaminated. Identify the surfaces to sample when performing occupational exposure assessment to antineoplasic agents. Surfaces selection done based on the task-based approach.

From engaging to enabling : could an asset-based approach transform Indigenous affairs?

Identifying New Business Opportunities and Customer Value Creation: Case Vuosaari

Previously conducted research projects in the field of logistics services have emphasized the importance of value added services in customer value creation. Through value added services companies can extend their service portfolio and gain higher customer satisfaction and loyalty. In more general level service marketing has been recognized to be challenging due the intangible nature of services. This has caused issues in pricing and value perceptions. To tackle these issues scholars have suggested well–managed customer reference marketing practices. The main goal of this research work is to identify shortages in the current service offering. Additionally, the focus is on, how these shortages can be fixed. Due the low capacity utilization of warehouse premises, there is a need to find the main factors, which are causing or affecting on the current situation. The research aims to offer a set of alternatives how to come over these issues. All the potential business opportunities are evaluated and the promising prospects are discussed. The focus is on logistics value added services and how those effect on route decisions in logistics. Simultaneously the aim is to create a holistic understanding of how added value and offered services effect on logistics centralization. Moreover, customer value creation and customer references’ effectiveness in logistics service marketing are emphasized in this project. Logistics value added services have a minor effect on logistics decision. Routes are chosen on a low–cost basis. However, it is challenging to track down logistics costs and break those down into different phases. Customer value as such is a difficult concept. This causes challenges when services are sold with value–based principles. Customer references are useful for logistics service providers and this should be exploited in marketing. Those reduce the perceived risk and give credibility to the service provider.