A Performance Management Framework for Managing Sustainable Collaborative Enterprise Networks

Part 15: Performance Management Frameworks

Strategic Context, Organizational Features and Network Performances: A Survey on Collaborative Networked Organizations of Italian SMEs

Part 15: Performance Management Frameworks

Conceptual Reference Model for Virtual Factory: Potentials for Collaborative Business

Part 11: Reference and Conceptual Models

Zig-zagging in geometrical reasoning in technological collaborative environments: a Mathematical Working Space-framed study concerning cognition and affect

This study highlights the importance of cognition-affect interaction pathways in the construction of mathematical knowledge. Scientific output demands further research on the conceptual structure underlying such interaction aimed at coping with the high complexity of its interpretation. The paper discusses the effectiveness of using a dynamic model such as that outlined in the Mathematical Working Spaces (MWS) framework, in order to describe the interplay between cognition and affect in the transitions from instrumental to discursive geneses in geometrical reasoning. The results based on empirical data from a teaching experiment at a middle school show that the use of dynamic geometry software favours students’ attitudinal and volitional dimensions and helps them to maintain productive affective pathways, affording greater intellectual independence in mathematical work and interaction with the context that impact learning opportunities in geometric proofs. The reflective and heuristic dimensions of teacher mediation in students’ learning is crucial in the transition from instrumental to discursive genesis and working stability in the Instrumental-Discursive plane of MWS.

An Innovation Model for Collaborative Networks of SOA-Based Software Providers

Part 5: Service Orientation in Collaborative Networks

A COMPARATIVE STUDY AND EVALUATION OF COLLABORATIVE RECOMMENDATION SYSTEMS

Consumers currently enjoy a surplus of goods (books, videos, music, or other items) available to purchase. While this surplus often allows a consumer to find a product tailored to their preferences or needs, the volume of items available may require considerable time or effort on the part of the user to find the most relevant item. Recommendation systems have become a common part of many online business that supply users books, videos, music, or other items to consumers. These systems attempt to provide assistance to consumers in finding the items that fit their preferences. This report presents an overview of recommendation systems. We will also briefly explore the history of recommendation systems and the large boost that was given to research in this field due to the Netflix Challenge. The classical methods for collaborative recommendation systems are reviewed and implemented, and an examination is performed contrasting the complexity and performance among the various models. Finally, current challenges and approaches are discussed.

Project RAILS: Lessons Learned about Collaborative Rubric Assessment of Information Literacy Skills

Link to article on publisher site: https://www.press.jhu.edu/journals/portal_libraries_and_the_academy/portal_pre_print/articles/belanger.pdf

Non perennial Mediterranean Rivers in Europe: Status, pressurs, and challanges for research and management

Non-perennial rivers and streams (NPRS) cover >50% of the global river network. They are particularly predominant in Mediterranean Europe as a result of dry climate conditions, climate change and land use development. Historically, both scientists and policy makers underestimated the importance of NRPS for nature and humans alike, mainly because they have been considered as systems of low ecological and economic value. During the past decades, diminishing water resources have increased the spatial and temporal extent of artificial NPRS as well as their exposure to multiple stressors, which threatening their ecological integrity, biodiversity and ecosystem services. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive overview of the structural and functional characteristics of NPRS in the European Mediterranean, and discuss gaps and problems in their management, concerning their typology, ecological assessment, legislative and policy protection, and incorporation in River Basin Management Plans. Because NPRS comprise highly unstable ecosystems, with strong and often unpredictable temporal and spatial variability - at least as far as it is possible to assess - we outline the future research needs required to better understand, manage and conserve them as highly valuable and sensitive ecosystems. Efficient collaborative activities among multidisciplinary research groups aiming to create innovative knowledge, water managers and policy makers are urgently needed in order to establish an appropriate methodological and legislative background. The incorporation of NPRS in EU-Med River Basin Management Plans in combination with the application of ecological flows is a first step towards enhancing NPRS management and conservation in order to effectively safeguard these highly valuable albeit threatened ecosystems

Collaborative technologies, higher order thinking and self-sufficient learning: A case study of adult learners

The inclusion of online elements in learning environments is becoming commonplace in Post Compulsory Education. A variety of research into the value of such elements is available, and this study aims to add further evidence by looking specifically at the use of collaborative technologies such as online discussion forums and wikis to encourage higher order thinking and self-sufficient learning. In particular, the research examines existing pedagogical models including Salmon’s five-stage model, along with other relevant literature. A case study of adult learners in community-based learning centres forms the basis of the research, and as a result of the findings, an arrow model is suggested as a framework for online collaboration that emphasises the learner, mentions pre-course preparation and then includes three main phases of activity: post, interact and critique. This builds on Salmon’s five-stage model and has the benefit of being flexible and responsive, as well as allowing for further development beyond the model, particularly in a blended learning environment.

A ROS-based software architecture for a versatile collaborative dual-armed autonomous mobile robot for the manufacturing industry

The industrial context is changing rapidly due to advancements in technology fueled by the Internet and Information Technology. The fourth industrial revolution counts integration, flexibility, and optimization as its fundamental pillars, and, in this context, Human-Robot Collaboration has become a crucial factor for manufacturing sustainability in Europe. Collaborative robots are appealing to many companies due to their low installation and running costs and high degree of flexibility, making them ideal for reshoring production facilities with a short return on investment. The ROSSINI European project aims to implement a true Human-Robot Collaboration by designing, developing, and demonstrating a modular and scalable platform for integrating human-centred robotic technologies in industrial production environments. The project focuses on safety concerns related to introducing a cobot in a shared working area and aims to lay the groundwork for a new working paradigm at the industrial level. The need for a software architecture suitable to the robotic platform employed in one of three use cases selected to deploy and test the new technology was the main trigger of this Thesis. The chosen application consists of the automatic loading and unloading of raw-material reels to an automatic packaging machine through an Autonomous Mobile Robot composed of an Autonomous Guided Vehicle, two collaborative manipulators, and an eye-on-hand vision system for performing tasks in a partially unstructured environment. The results obtained during the ROSSINI use case development were later used in the SENECA project, which addresses the need for robot-driven automatic cleaning of pharmaceutical bins in a very specific industrial context. The inherent versatility of mobile collaborative robots is evident from their deployment in the two projects with few hardware and software adjustments. The positive impact of Human-Robot Collaboration on diverse production lines is a motivation for future investments in research on this increasingly popular field by the industry.

Collaborative governance of smart cities: addressing multiple relations of actors involved

This dissertation aims to contribute to the discourse on the governance of smart cities (SC) by examining the collaborative relationships between various actors involved in developing and implementing SC initiatives. Poorly organized collaboration can lead to conflicts and misunderstandings, resulting in failures in realizing such complex technological initiatives. Hence, capturing the main elements of SC collaboration becomes essential for understanding how they should be developed and managed. However, the topic has been limitedly explored in prior research, with fragmented studies on narrow aspects related to the SC governance. Using Russia as an empirical setting, the study focuses on the interplay of both government and non-governmental stakeholders in constructing collaborative relationships within SC, covering both vertical and horizontal dimensions of their interaction. The overarching goal of this research is to understand how collaborative governance unfolds in the SC context by stating two guiding research questions: 1) who are the dominant actors in SC and what are their roles? 2) what are the relationships forged among them? The dissertation investigates the SC initiatives across three different cities – Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Perm – in a format of empirical illustration as well as an in-depth case study. The dissertation provides three main contributions. First, it strengthens the link between the SC domain, public governance, and literature on cross-sectoral collaboration by highlighting ‘urban smartness’ as a source for generating multiple values. Second, the thesis offers novel view on the strategic development paths which conceptually shape the SC framework. It connects the techno-centric and human-centric perspectives of SC by showing that they are naturally linked, rather than mutually exclusive. Third, the study illustrates that SC initiatives are contextually dependent, and this dependence covers specificities of public governance, including underlying informal mechanisms, which influence the inception, development, and management of SC in the organizational realms.

Stromal Myofibroblasts In Squamous Cell Carcinoma Of The Tongue In Young Patients - A Multicenter Collaborative Study.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the presence of myofibroblasts, frequently associated with a more aggressive neoplastic behavior, in oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC) of young patients and to compare with the distribution observed in older patients. Tumor samples from 29 patients younger than 40 years old affected by TSCC were retrieved and investigated for the presence of stromal myofibroblasts by immunohistochemical reactions against α smooth muscle actin, and the results obtained were compared to TSCC cases affecting older patients. No positive reaction could be found in the stromal areas devoid of neoplastic tissue, whereas myofibroblasts were present in 58.6% of the lesions in young patients and in 75.9% of the older ones. No significant difference was found when comparing the invasive front and the overall stroma of both groups, and no correlation could be obtained with stromal α smooth muscle actin expression, higher tumor grades or clinical stage (P > .05). There was no significant difference between the presence of stromal myofibroblasts of TSCC affecting young and old individuals.

Boys In White: A Classic Of Qualitative Research Turns 50.

This article analyzes Boys in white: student culture in medical schoolby Howard S. Becker, Blanche Geer, Everett C. Hughes and Anselm Strauss, considered a model of qualitative research in sociology. The analysis investigates the trajectories of the authors, the book, qualitative analysis, and the medical students, emphasizing their importance in the origins of medical sociology and the sociology of medical education. In the trajectory of the authors, bibliographical information is given. The trajectory of qualitative research focuses on how this methodology influences the construction of the field. The investigation of the students' trajectory shows how they progress through their first years at medical school to build their own student culture.