Relationship between connectivity and academic productivity

A relevant factor in the growth of academic productivity in the second half of 20th century is the implementation of the internet, particularly in developing countries. One of the first networks in Brazil is the Academic Network at Sao Paulo (ANSP), a regional network implemented in the state of Sao Paulo, which contains the largest concentration of researchers in the country. This study presents a unique metric for analyzing the impact of ANSP in academic productivity in the state of Sao Paulo. We correlate academic production and available bandwidth using Fisher ideal price index with suitable variables to evaluate the impact of the internet on research centers and universities. We find that the members of ANSP show a steady growth in academic productivity compared with other institutions outside of the ANSP network. These results suggest that policies which increase available bandwidth can positively affect academic productivity.

Intelligence systems methodology: a systemic approach to the organizational intelligence function

Organizational intelligence can be seen as a function of the viable structure of an organization. With the integration of the Viable System Model and Soft Systems Methodology (systemic approaches of organizational management) focused on the role of the intelligence function, it is possible to elaborate a model of action with a structured methodology to prospect, select, treat and distribute information to the entire organization that improves the efficacy and efficiency of all processes. This combination of methodologies is called Intelligence Systems Methodology (ISM) whose assumptions and dynamics are delimited in this paper. The ISM is composed of two simultaneous activities: the Active Environmental Mapping and the Stimulated Action Cycle. The elaboration of the formal ISM description opens opportunities for applications of the methodology on real situations, offering a new path for this specific issue of systems thinking: the intelligence systems. Knowledge Management Research & Practice (2012) 10, 141-152. doi:10.1057/kmrp.2011.44

Murine Dendritic Cells Transcriptional Modulation upon Paracoccidioides brasiliensis Infection

Limited information is available regarding the modulation of genes involved in the innate host response to Paracoccidioides brasiliensis, the etiologic agent of paracoccidioidomycosis. Therefore, we sought to characterize, for the first time, the transcriptional profile of murine bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (DCs) at an early stage following their initial interaction with P. brasiliensis. DCs connect innate and adaptive immunity by recognizing invading pathogens and determining the type of effector T-cell that mediates an immune response. Gene expression profiles were analyzed using microarray and validated using real-time RT-PCR and protein secretion studies. A total of 299 genes were differentially expressed, many of which are involved in immunity, signal transduction, transcription and apoptosis. Genes encoding the cytokines IL-12 and TNF-alpha, along with the chemokines CCL22, CCL27 and CXCL10, were up-regulated, suggesting that P. brasiliensis induces a potent proinflammatory response in DCs. In contrast, pattern recognition receptor (PRR)-encoding genes, particularly those related to Toll-like receptors, were down-regulated or unchanged. This result prompted us to evaluate the expression profiles of dectin-1 and mannose receptor, two other important fungal PRRs that were not included in the microarray target cDNA sequences. Unlike the mannose receptor, the dectin-1 receptor gene was significantly induced, suggesting that this beta-glucan receptor participates in the recognition of P. brasiliensis. We also used a receptor inhibition assay to evaluate the roles of these receptors in coordinating the expression of several immune-related genes in DCs upon fungal exposure. Altogether, our results provide an initial characterization of early host responses to P. brasiliensis and a basis for better understanding the infectious process of this important neglected pathogen.

Using complex networks concepts to assess approaches for citations in scientific papers

The number of citations received by authors in scientific journals has become a major parameter to assess individual researchers and the journals themselves through the impact factor. A fair assessment therefore requires that the criteria for selecting references in a given manuscript should be unbiased with regard to the authors or journals cited. In this paper, we assess approaches for citations considering two recommendations for authors to follow while preparing a manuscript: (i) consider similarity of contents with the topics investigated, lest related work should be reproduced or ignored; (ii) perform a systematic search over the network of citations including seminal or very related papers. We use formalisms of complex networks for two datasets of papers from the arXiv and the Web of Science repositories to show that neither of these two criteria is fulfilled in practice. By representing the texts as complex networks we estimated a similarity index between pieces of texts and found that the list of references did not contain the most similar papers in the dataset. This was quantified by calculating a consistency index, whose maximum value is one if the references in a given paper are the most similar in the dataset. For the areas of "complex networks" and "graphenes", the consistency index was only 0.11-0.23 and 0.10-0.25, respectively. To simulate a systematic search in the citation network, we employed a traditional random walk search (i.e. diffusion) and a random walk whose probabilities of transition are proportional to the number of the ingoing edges of the neighbours. The frequency of visits to the nodes (papers) in the network had a very small correlation with either the actual list of references in the papers or with the number of downloads from the arXiv repository. Therefore, apparently the authors and users of the repository did not follow the criterion related to a systematic search over the network of citations. Based on these results, we propose an approach that we believe is fairer for evaluating and complementing citations of a given author, effectively leading to a virtual scientometry.

Three-feature model to reproduce the topology of citation networks and the effects from authors' visibility on their h-index

Various factors are believed to govern the selection of references in citation networks, but a precise, quantitative determination of their importance has remained elusive. In this paper, we show that three factors can account for the referencing pattern of citation networks for two topics, namely "graphenes" and "complex networks", thus allowing one to reproduce the topological features of the networks built with papers being the nodes and the edges established by citations. The most relevant factor was content similarity, while the other two - in-degree (i.e. citation counts) and age of publication - had varying importance depending on the topic studied. This dependence indicates that additional factors could play a role. Indeed, by intuition one should expect the reputation (or visibility) of authors and/or institutions to affect the referencing pattern, and this is only indirectly considered via the in-degree that should correlate with such reputation. Because information on reputation is not readily available, we simulated its effect on artificial citation networks considering two communities with distinct fitness (visibility) parameters. One community was assumed to have twice the fitness value of the other, which amounts to a double probability for a paper being cited. While the h-index for authors in the community with larger fitness evolved with time with slightly higher values than for the control network (no fitness considered), a drastic effect was noted for the community with smaller fitness. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Knowledge management and strategic orientation: leveraging innovativeness and performance

Purpose - The aim of this study is to investigate whether knowledge management (KM) contributes to the development of strategic orientation and to enhance innovativeness, and whether these three factors contribute to improve business performance. Design/methodology/approach - A sample of 241 Brazilian companies was surveyed, using Web-based questionnaires with 54 questions, using ten-point scales to measure the degree of agreement on each item of each construct. Structural equation modeling techniques were applied for model assessment and analysis of the relationships among constructs. Exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and path analysis using the technique of structural equation modeling were applied to the data. Findings - Effective KM contributes positively to strategic orientation. Although there is no significant direct effect of KM on innovativeness, the relationship is significant when mediated by strategic orientation. Similarly effective KM has no direct effect on business performance, but this relationship becomes statistically significant when mediated by strategic orientation and innovativeness. Research limitations/implications - The findings indicate that KM permeates all relationships among the constructs, corroborating the argument that knowledge is an essential organizational resource that leverages all value-creating activities. The results indicate that both KM and innovativeness produce significant impacts on performance when they are aligned with a strategic orientation that enables the organization to anticipate and respond to changing market conditions. Originality/value - There is a substantial body of research on several types of relationships involving KM, strategic orientation, innovativeness and performance. This study offers an original contribution by analyzing all of those constructs simultaneously using established scales so that comparative studies are possible.

Ofertas de trabalho na Web para os profissionais brasileiros da informação-documentação: análise das competências e habilidades exigidas pelas empresas e instituições

Analisam-se as características de ofertas de emprego do setor da Informação-Documentação. A mostra foi obtida de anúncios na Internet, feitos por empresas e instituições privadas brasileiras, durante o ano de 2010. A atividade foi realizada no âmbito de pesquisa maior, que tem como objetivo geral construir uma taxonomia que classifique e hierarquize as competências e conhecimentos exigidos pelas empresas, bem como as características dos postos oferecidos. Extraiu-se a informação de 200 ofertas de emprego obtidas nos portais Catho e Portal do bibliotecário. Cada entrada foi mantida em seu contexto de incidência e com a expressão original. Os termos obtidos passaram por um processo de normalização. A análise busca classificar e valorar as atividades, conhecimentos e tarefas mais solicitados, bem como as aptidões, competências e habilidades, além das incidências das unidades e dos profissionais de informação.

High Proportion of Male Faeces in Jaguar Populations

Faeces provide relevant biological information which includes, with the application of genetic techniques, the sex and identity of individuals that defecated, thus providing potentially useful data on the behaviour and ecology of individuals, as well as the dynamics and structure of populations. This paper presents estimates of the sex ratio of different felid species (jaguar, Panthera onca; puma, Puma concolor; and ocelot/margay, Leopardus pardalis/Leopardus wiedi) as observed in field collected faeces, and proposes several hypotheses that could explain the strikingly high proportion of faeces from male jaguars. The proportion of male and female faeces was estimated using a non-invasive faecal sampling method in 14 study areas in Mexico and Brazil. Faecal samples were genetically analysed to identify the species, the sex and the individual (the latter only for samples identified as belonging to jaguars). Considering the three species, 72.6% of faeces (n = 493) were from males; however, there were significant differences among them, with the proportion from males being higher for jaguars than for pumas and ocelots/margays. A male-bias was consistently observed in all study areas for jaguar faeces, but not for the other species. For jaguars the trend was the same when considering the number of individuals identified (n = 68), with an average of 4.2 +/- 0.56 faeces per male and 2.0 +/- 0.36 per female. The observed faecal marking patterns might be related to the behaviour of female jaguars directed toward protecting litters from males, and in both male and female pumas, to prevent interspecific aggressions from male jaguars. The hypothesis that there are effectively more males than females in jaguar populations cannot be discarded, which could be due to the fact that females are territorial and males are not, or a tendency for males to disperse into suboptimal areas for the species.

White paper sobre Open Source, Open Access, open Standards e o futuro da catalogação

The discussions on the future of cataloging has received increased attention in the last ten years, mainly due to the impact of rapid development of information and communication technologies in the same period, which has provided access to the Web anytime, anywhere. These discussions revolve around the need for a new bibliographic framework to meet the demand of this new reality in the digital environment, ie how libraries can process, store, deliver, share and integrate their collections (physical, digital or scanned), in current post-PC era? Faced with this question, Open Access, Open Source and Open Standards are three concepts that need to receive greater attention in the field of Library and Information Science, as it is believed to be fundamental elements for the change of paradigm of descriptive representation, currently based conceptually on physical item rather than intellectual work. This paper aims to raise and discuss such issues and instigate information professionals, especially librarians, to think, discuss and propose initiatives for such problems, contributing and sharing ideas and possible solutions, in multidisciplinary teams. At the end is suggested the effective creation of multidisciplinary and inter-institutional study groups on the future of cataloging and its impact on national collections, in order to contribute to the area of descriptive representation in national and international level

Periódicos de Ciência da Informação nas bases de dados internacionais

PO artigo demonstra as interações entre algumas bases de dados internacionais na disponibilização de periódicos da área de Ciência da Informação. Para isso, foram investigadas seis bases de dados com acesso a texto completo dentro da área de Ciência da Informação. Foram elas: Web of Science, Scopus, Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts, Information Science & Technology Abstracts, Library Literature Information Science – full text e Library Information Science Abstract. No desenvolvimento da pesquisa foram utilizados conceitos, princípios e equações da ‘teoria ingênua dos conjuntos’, o que permitiu observar as bases de dados como conjuntos compostos por elementos, aqui considerados os títulos de periódicos, bem como conferir consistência aos resultados. A análise dos dados foi dividida em três etapas, a saber: a) a primeira priorizou o cruzamento entre as duas maiores bases de dados utilizadas para levantamento bibliográfico (Web of Science e Scopus), seguido do cruzamento com a mais utilizada na Ciência da Informação, a Library and Information Science Abstracts; b) a segunda etapa tratou somente do cruzamento das bases especialistas da área; c) a terceira e última etapa tratou da interseção de todas as bases de dados do estudo. O resultado mostra que 10 títulos de periódicos constituem a interseção dos seis conjuntos de bases de dados. Foi possível identificar, também, o número de periódicos disponibilizados exclusivamente por uma base de dados, demonstrando que as necessidades de pesquisas bibliográficas exaustivas passam, obrigatoriamente, pelo levantamento em todas as bases de dados aqui elencadas.

Knowledge: custody & access

The University of São Paulo celebrates its Integrated Library System 30th anniversary with an exhibition, discussing the problems of retrieval, preservation and access to knowledge resulting from the exceptional changes ICTs produce in contemporary society. It opens up discussions on the main function of the ancient library institution, reinforces its relevance and reflects on technical tools and social practices that make information and basic raw material accessible, generating new forms of knowledge. About the future library, it´s a call for reflection on how the brilliant minds of the past projected into the future, which for us are the achievements of the present. The future has already started and expects each one to exercise inventiveness and determination to build it in a human and collaborative sense.

Strategisches Innovationsmanagement von Buchverlagen im Kontext konvergierender Medienmärkte

Die Dissertation „Strategisches Innovationsmanagement von Buchverlagen im Kontext konvergierender Medienmärkte“ nimmt sich des Themengebiets der Innovation in Buchverlagen in Zeiten der Digitalisierung an. Grob gliedert die Arbeit sich in einen Theorieteil und einen Empirieteil. Den Einstieg in den Theorieteil bildet eine Einführung in die Themenstellung, in der das Erkenntnisinteresse anhand von vier forschungsleitenden Fragen eingegrenzt wird: rn1) „Welche Anforderungen an die Innovationsfähigkeit von Verlagen ergeben sich aus aktuellen und antizipierten zukünftigen Entwicklungen, insbesondere der Medienkonvergenz?“rn2) „Welchen Beitrag kann strategisches Innovationsmanagement leisten, um diesen Anforderungen mit erfolgreichen Innovationen gerecht zu werden?“ rn3) „Welches sind die kritischen Faktoren für erfolgreiches Innovieren im Buchverlag?“ rn4) „Wie kann erfolgsförderndes Innovationsmanagement in Buchverlage implementiert werden?“rnrnDer Ausgangspunkt ist dabei die Darstellung aktueller Entwicklungen im Buchmarkt, die in ihrer Relevanz für das Thema bewertet werden. Dabei stehen solche Veränderungen im Mediennutzungsverhalten und dem veränderten Marktumfeld im Fokus, aus denen resultiert, dass Verlage sich nicht mehr nur auf ihre tradierten Kernkompetenzen verlassen können. Der Medienkonvergenz wird in dem Kontext als Suprakategorie eine herausgehobene Bedeutung zuerkannt. Am Ende des dritten Kapitels wird resümierend erörtert, woraus für Verlage heute die Notwendigkeit innovativen Handelns erwächst. Damit findet auch eine Überleitung in das folgende Kapitel über Innovation im Buchverlag statt, das inhaltlich den Kern des Theorieteils der Arbeit bildet.rnrnIm Kapitel Innovation im Buchverlag wird zuerst eine definitorische Eingrenzung des Innovationsbegriffs vorgenommen. Dabei wird eine Entscheidung für den mehrdimensionalen Ansatz nach Hauschildt und Salomo als definitorisches Grundraster getroffen. Darauf folgt eine Einführung in theoretische Grundbegriffe und Konzepte des Innovationsmanagements. Im Folgenden finden Erkenntnisse aus der Innovationsforschung Anwendung auf Spezifika in Buchverlagen, wobei zunächst Handlungsfelder identifiziert werden. Eine wesentliche Rolle im Argumentationsgang der Arbeit spielen dann die Erfolgsfaktoren des Innovationsmanagements in Buchverlagen. Eine herausragende Stellung wird dabei dem Wissensmanagement zuerkannt. Es folgt darauf ein Unterkapitel über Innovationskooperation. Darin wird zunächst die strategische Relevanz von Kooperationen beleuchtet, wobei auch eine teils kritische Auseinandersetzung mit dem modernen Begriff der Open Innovation stattfindet. Dann wird dargestellt, wer sich als Kooperationspartner für Buchverlage eignet und welche Modi des kooperativen Innovierens existieren. Es folgen darauf Ausführungen zur Implementierung einer Innovationsstrategie, wobei sowohl aufbau- als auch ablauforganisatorische Aspekte zum Tragen kommen. Im Mittelpunkt steht dabei die Darstellung des Stage-Gate-Modells als Ansatz für die Ablaufplanung von Innovationsprozessen in Buchverlagen. Wegen seiner guten Skalierbarkeit wird diesem Ansatz eine Eignung sowohl für kleine als auch mittelgroße und große Verlage zuerkannt. Den Abschluss des Kapitels über Innovation im Buchverlag bilden Betrachtungen über die rechtliche und technische Absicherung von Innovationen. rnrnDer empirische Teil der Arbeit wird eingeläutet mit einer Herleitung empirischer Fragestellungen. Dies geschieht zum einen auf der Grundlage einer Betrachtung, welche Erkenntnislücken die rein theoretische Auseinandersetzung mit dem Thema offengelassen hat. Die empirischen Fragestellungen bilden das Grundgerüst, auf dem im Folgenden die Ergebnisse einer qualitativen Maßnahme in Form von Interviews und einer quantitativen Maßnahme in Form einer Befragung per Fragebogen dargestellt werden. In der Auswertung der Ergebnisse werden dabei zunächst Hypothesen aus den Fallstudien gebildet, die auf Grundlage der Interviews entstanden sind. Diese Hypothesen werden anhand der Daten, die bei der Erhebung per Fragebogen gewonnen wurden, mit statistischen Methoden überprüft.rnrnDen Abschluss der Arbeit bildet eine Schlussbetrachtung, in der die gewonnenen Erkenntnisse verdichtet und vor dem Hintergrund der eingangs gestellten forschungsleitenden Fragen als Quintessens der Arbeit präsentiert werden. Zu jeder forschungsleitenden Frage findet dabei ein kurzes Resümee statt. Als größte Anforderung an die Innovationsfähigkeit von Verlagen wird darin erkannt, den Modus der eigenen Wertschöpfung kontinuierlich zu aktualisieren und an die dynamischen Veränderungen im Umfeld anzupassen. Dem strategischen Innovationsmanagement kommt dabei vor allem die Bedeutung zu, dass es ein konsistentes Handeln ermöglicht, das als Voraussetzung für die Planbarkeit von Innovationserfolgen gesehen wird. Auch erscheint es zunehmend wichtig, den Paradigmenwechsel weg vom Denken in Produktkategorien hin zu einem Denken in Problemlösungskategorien zu vollziehen, wobei ein strategisches Innovationsmanagement Buchverlagen hilfreich sein kann.rn

Don't Worry, B-Buy: E-Procurement at Bucknell

Bucknell University is piloting a centralized e-procurement system for institutional purchasing that will streamline the procurement process.

Extreme Creativity

Bucknell University's instructional technology division of Library and IT partnered with Professor Carmen Gillespie for an innovative course called "Extreme Creativity".