Sample records for tartu university open

  1. Smoking differences between university faculties in Tartu, Estonia, and Oulu, Finland, after the disruption of communism.

    PubMed

    Heikkinen, Rauno; Kivastik, Jana; Kingisepp, Peet-Henn; Hirvonen, Leo; Näyhä, Simo

    2006-01-01

    To provide information on smoking differences between university faculties. Data from smoking surveys performed on 1,441 staff members and 2,308 students at the University of Tartu, Estonia, soon after the fall of communism, were analysed by faculties, using similar data from the University of Oulu, Finland (1,830 staff members, 5,947 students) for reference. Wide variations in smoking were found between faculties in Tartu, the prevalence being high among male students of theology (54%) and low among staff and students in the faculties of exercise & sports sciences (< 5%) and mathematics (< 15%). Less variation was seen in Oulu. The medical faculty showed low smoking rates in Oulu but not in Tartu. High percentages of smokers were typical of Tartu faculties representing disciplines closely connected with the country's transition (e.g. theology), and low percentages in faculties emphasising physical and mental performance (e.g. sports). The relatively high percentage of smokers in the Tartu medical faculty compared with that in Oulu can be interpreted as delayed diffusion of medical information beyond the former Iron Curtain.

  2. [PhD theses at the University of Tartu/Dorpat supervised by Georg Dragendorff 1864-1894].

    PubMed

    Hinrikus, T; Tankler, H; Raal, A

    2005-05-01

    During 30 years, the professor of pharmacy Georg Dragendorff (1836-1898), who had been invited from Germany, supervised 90 theses of Master of Pharmacy and 87 theses of Doctor of Medicine in Tartu/Dorpat. The present article discusses the authors of these theses, Dragendorff and his co-operation with other university lecturers, the structure of the theses and the regulations of the thesis defence. Analysis of the contents of the theses revealed extensive contacts of the pharmacy of the time with different fields of science. Dragendorff as the supervisor of these theses contributed much to the training of physicians.

  3. Prolonged outbreak of Serratia marcescens in Tartu University Hospital: a case–control study

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background The aim of our study was to investigate and control an outbreak and identify risk factors for colonization and infection with Serratia marcescens in two departments in Tartu University Hospital. Methods The retrospective case–control study was conducted from July 2005 to December 2006. Molecular typing by pulsed field gel electrophoresis was used to confirm the relatedness of Serratia marcescens strains. Samples from the environment and from the hands of personnel were cultured. Results The outbreak involved 210 patients, 61 (29%) developed an infection, among them 16 were invasive infections. Multivariate analysis identified gestational age, arterial catheter use and antibiotic treatment as independent risk factors for colonization and infection with Serratia marcescens. Molecular typing was performed on 83 Serratia marcescens strains, 81 of them were identical and 2 strains were different. Conclusions Given the occasionally severe consequences of Serratia marcescens in infants, early implementation of aggressive infection control measures involving patients and mothers as well as the personnel is of utmost importance. PMID:23114062

  4. The Openness of the University of the Philippines Open University: Issues and Prospects

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Villamejor-Mendoza, Maria Fe

    2013-01-01

    This paper is a self-reflection on the state of openness of the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU). An exploratory and descriptive study, it aims not only to define the elements of openness of UPOU, but also to unravel the causes and solutions to the issues and concerns that limit its options to becoming a truly open university.…

  5. Smoking differences between employees in faculties of the University of Tartu, Estonia, and changes during the country's transition.

    PubMed

    Näyhä, Simo; Kivastik, Jana; Kingisepp, Peet-Henn; Heikkinen, Rauno

    2011-03-08

    A previous study found marked differences in smoking between employees in various university faculties in Tartu, Estonia, soon after the disruption of communism. The present study was conducted to see whether such differences still exist and how the patterns had changed during the country's first transitional decade. All employees at the University of Tartu (UT) were surveyed for smoking habits by means of a questionnaire in 1992 and 2003. The present paper is based on respondents whose faculty or workplace was known (1390 people in 1992, 1790 in 2003). Smoking differences were assessed in terms of regression-based adjusted figures. While 20% of the male employees smoked daily in 1992, 13% did so in 2003, the figures for females being 10% and 7%, respectively. The prevalence of men's daily smoking varied between faculties and other workplaces in the range 4-30% in 1992, and 0-24% in 2003, with corresponding ranges of 3-21% and 0-10% among females. Men in the medical faculty in both surveys, and those in the faculty of philosophy in the second survey showed higher rates than men in most other faculties, as did women in the faculty of law in the first survey and those in the faculty of philosophy in the second. The figures were usually low in the faculties of sports & exercise, physics & chemistry and mathematics. The sex pattern was reversed in the faculty of law and also in that of economics, where the women smoked more than the men. Even in this low-smoking academic community, wide smoking differences existed between the faculties and other workplaces. Faculties where physical or mental performance is of prime importance are leading the way towards a smoke-free community, while men in the faculty of philosophy and, paradoxically, men in the medical faculty are lagging behind. The reversed sex ratio in the faculties of law and economics may indicate women's intensified drive for equality in this transitional society. We assume that different professional cultures

  6. Tadeusz Banachiewicz in Tartu (1915 to 1918)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Flin, P.; Panko, E.

    Tadeusz Banachiewicz (1882--1954) was an outstanding Polish astro\\-nomer, mathematician and geodesist. He was a professor at the Jagiellonian University in Cracow and director of the Astronomical Observatory (1919--1954), and had a strong influence on Polish astronomy. His achievements led to honorary degrees at universities, fellowships in academies of sciences, and the prestige of high positions in international organizations, such as the International Astronomical Union and the Baltic Geodetic Commission. He is known from both his theoretical and observational studies, his famous motto being: ``observo ergo sum''. Here we recall three years of his activity in Tartu, where Tadeusz Banachiewicz made the most important steps in his career. He arrived at Yuryev in October of 1915, employed as a young assistant. In March 1918 he became the extraordinary professor and director of the Astronomical Observatory.

  7. Re-Invigorating Openness at The Open University: The Role of Open Educational Resources

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gourley, Brenda; Lane, Andy

    2009-01-01

    This paper describes the internal motivations and external drivers that led The Open University UK to enter the field of Open Educational Resources through its institution-wide OpenLearn initiative (www.open.ac.uk/openlearn). It also describes some of the emerging evidence of the impacts inside and outside the university. Through the rapid…

  8. Smoking differences between employees in faculties of the University of Tartu, Estonia, and changes during the country's transition

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background A previous study found marked differences in smoking between employees in various university faculties in Tartu, Estonia, soon after the disruption of communism. The present study was conducted to see whether such differences still exist and how the patterns had changed during the country's first transitional decade. Methods All employees at the University of Tartu (UT) were surveyed for smoking habits by means of a questionnaire in 1992 and 2003. The present paper is based on respondents whose faculty or workplace was known (1390 people in 1992, 1790 in 2003). Smoking differences were assessed in terms of regression-based adjusted figures. Results While 20% of the male employees smoked daily in 1992, 13% did so in 2003, the figures for females being 10% and 7%, respectively. The prevalence of men's daily smoking varied between faculties and other workplaces in the range 4-30% in 1992, and 0-24% in 2003, with corresponding ranges of 3-21% and 0-10% among females. Men in the medical faculty in both surveys, and those in the faculty of philosophy in the second survey showed higher rates than men in most other faculties, as did women in the faculty of law in the first survey and those in the faculty of philosophy in the second. The figures were usually low in the faculties of sports & exercise, physics & chemistry and mathematics. The sex pattern was reversed in the faculty of law and also in that of economics, where the women smoked more than the men. Conclusions Even in this low-smoking academic community, wide smoking differences existed between the faculties and other workplaces. Faculties where physical or mental performance is of prime importance are leading the way towards a smoke-free community, while men in the faculty of philosophy and, paradoxically, men in the medical faculty are lagging behind. The reversed sex ratio in the faculties of law and economics may indicate women's intensified drive for equality in this transitional society. We assume

  9. Open University

    ScienceCinema

    None

    2018-05-25

    Michel Pentz was born in South Africa and came to CERN in 1957 as a physicist and president of the Association of Personnel. He is also the founder of the Antiapartheid Movement in Geneva and helped found the Open University in Great Britain. He speaks about pedagogical, cultural and national contexts in which the method can be applied.

  10. Chinese Open Universities: Opportunities and Challenges

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Li, Xiaobin

    2017-01-01

    Chinese education has a long history, and the Chinese higher education system is the largest in the world, but open universities in China are not at the same level as they are in developed countries. This article provides an overview of the recent development in the open universities system in China. Specifically, the article discusses the…

  11. "The Open Library at AU" (Athabasca University): Supporting Open Access and Open Educational Resources

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Elliott, Colin; Fabbro, Elaine

    2015-01-01

    To address challenges that learners, course creators, librarians and academics involved with OER and MOOCs are facing when looking for scholarly materials, Athabasca University Library has initiated the development of "the Open Library at AU." This open library is a full library website that provides easy access to open and free…

  12. The Closing of the U.S. Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Meyer, Katrina A.

    2006-01-01

    In spring 1999, the Open University (OU) of the United Kingdom created the U.S. Open University (USOU) to coincide with the explosive growth of online education in the United States. The institution's first chancellor, Richard S. Jarvis (previously chancellor of the University and Community College System of Nevada), began hiring U.S. staff and…

  13. A Comparative Study of Student Support Services of Allama Iqbal Open University and the Open University of Sri Lanka

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gujjar, Aijaz Ahmed; Chaudhry, Bushra Naoreen; Chaudhry, Amtul Hafeez

    2009-01-01

    This paper attempts to compare the availability, quality, similarities and differences in student support services offered by the Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) Pakistan and The Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL). It also aims to identify and report the deficiencies that students of both the institutions face in the student support services.…

  14. Open University Staff Development Materials for Tutors of Open Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Langley, Anne; Perkins, Isabel

    1999-01-01

    Discusses the evolution of staff development and the new Supporting Open Learners' (SOL) materials at the United Kingdom Open University. Outlines objectives of the SOL program. Discusses issues arising from use of SOL materials, including instructional attitudes; modelling good practice; developing the reflective practitioner; perceived value;…

  15. International conference on Functional Materials and Nanotechnologies (FM&NT-2013), 21-24 April 2013, Tartu, Estonia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nõmmiste, Ergo; Kirm, Marco; Plank, Toomas

    2014-04-01

    The annual international conference Functional Materials and Nanotechnologies (FM&NT) was started in 2006 by scientists from the Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Latvia. The warm welcome and open atmosphere of this scientific conference has turned it into an event where people from different countries and different fields come and meet under the shared umbrella of functional materials and nanotechnology. It is particularly important for early stage scientists who are looking for new knowledge and contacts with people from various fields to build their own network. Our Latvian colleagues, with their success in internationalization, made us neighbouring Estonians so jealous that we could not help but propose organising the conference every second year in Estonia. In a way, this conference is a continuation of the idea of the famous Baltic seminars which took place over several decades in the last century. Due to political constraints, these seminars were only open to scientists of former Eastern Europe countries, but had a great popularity and attendance from over the whole Soviet Union. Many collaborations started from the initial personal contact between scientists at these twice yearly seminars, held alternately in Latvia and Estonia. At the FM&NT 2012 conference, the decision was made that Institute of Physics, University of Tartu would organise the next event in Tartu in 2013. FM&NT-2013 was hence held in Tartu (Estonia) from 21-24 April 2013 at the Dorpat Conference Centre. The main selected topics of the conference were: (i) multifunctional materials, (ii) nanomaterials, (iii) materials for sustainable energy applications and (vi) theory. Additionally, the focus in this conference was on studies with the help of synchrotron radiation and other novel light sources such as free electron lasers. The conference provided an opportunity for 300 scientists from 21 countries to meet, establish contacts, exchange knowledge and discuss their research

  16. Imagining tomorrow's university in an era of open science.

    PubMed

    Howe, Adina; Howe, Michael; Kaleita, Amy L; Raman, D Raj

    2017-01-01

    As part of a recent workshop entitled "Imagining Tomorrow's University", we were asked to visualize the future of universities as research becomes increasingly data- and computation-driven, and identify a set of principles characterizing pertinent opportunities and obstacles presented by this shift. In order to establish a holistic view, we take a multilevel approach and examine the impact of open science on individual scholars and how this impacts as well as on the university as a whole. At the university level, open science presents a double-edged sword: when well executed, open science can accelerate the rate of scientific inquiry across the institution and beyond; however, haphazard or half-hearted efforts are likely to squander valuable resources, diminish university productivity and prestige, and potentially do more harm than good. We present our perspective on the role of open science at the university.

  17. Open University Environmental Education and Training.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blackmore, Christine

    1996-01-01

    Describes the approach to environmental education courses at Open University. Includes broad course content, team teaching approach, and philosophy of reorienting education towards sustainable development. Course material for open learning includes self-contained study packs as well as course texts, video, audio, and computer software. Nonformal…

  18. Astronomical Archive at Tartu Observatory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Annuk, K.

    2007-10-01

    Archiving astronomical data is important task not only at large observatories but also at small observatories. Here we describe the astronomical archive at Tartu Observatory. The archive consists of old photographic plate images, photographic spectrograms, CCD direct--images and CCD spectroscopic data. The photographic plate digitizing project was started in 2005. An on-line database (based on MySQL) was created. The database includes CCD data as well photographic data. A PHP-MySQL interface was written for access to all data.

  19. Studying at the Open University of the Netherlands, Developments 1984-1987.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Boon, J.; van Enckevort, G.

    A study examined the success of the first three years of the Dutch Open University's operation by analyzing data pertaining to students' backgrounds and academic progress while enrolled in the open university. The fact that registered inquiries about the Dutch Open University rose from 120,000 during the summer and autumn of 1984 to more than…

  20. Initial Air Traffic Control Training at Tartu Aviation College.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kulbas, Tanel

    1997-01-01

    Development of an air traffic control (ATC) training course at Tartu Aviation College in Estonia had to start at ground zero, creating new rules and regulations for ATC, writing special study materials, building simulators, and finding enough applicants with sufficient English skills. (SK)

  1. Cosmic microwave background anomalies in an open universe.

    PubMed

    Liddle, Andrew R; Cortês, Marina

    2013-09-13

    We argue that the observed large-scale cosmic microwave anomalies, discovered by WMAP and confirmed by the Planck satellite, are most naturally explained in the context of a marginally open universe. Particular focus is placed on the dipole power asymmetry, via an open universe implementation of the large-scale gradient mechanism of Erickcek et al. Open inflation models, which are motivated by the string landscape and which can excite "supercurvature" perturbation modes, can explain the presence of a very-large-scale perturbation that leads to a dipole modulation of the power spectrum measured by a typical observer. We provide a specific implementation of the scenario which appears compatible with all existing constraints.

  2. Open University Learning Analytics dataset.

    PubMed

    Kuzilek, Jakub; Hlosta, Martin; Zdrahal, Zdenek

    2017-11-28

    Learning Analytics focuses on the collection and analysis of learners' data to improve their learning experience by providing informed guidance and to optimise learning materials. To support the research in this area we have developed a dataset, containing data from courses presented at the Open University (OU). What makes the dataset unique is the fact that it contains demographic data together with aggregated clickstream data of students' interactions in the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). This enables the analysis of student behaviour, represented by their actions. The dataset contains the information about 22 courses, 32,593 students, their assessment results, and logs of their interactions with the VLE represented by daily summaries of student clicks (10,655,280 entries). The dataset is freely available at https://analyse.kmi.open.ac.uk/open_dataset under a CC-BY 4.0 license.

  3. Open University Learning Analytics dataset

    PubMed Central

    Kuzilek, Jakub; Hlosta, Martin; Zdrahal, Zdenek

    2017-01-01

    Learning Analytics focuses on the collection and analysis of learners’ data to improve their learning experience by providing informed guidance and to optimise learning materials. To support the research in this area we have developed a dataset, containing data from courses presented at the Open University (OU). What makes the dataset unique is the fact that it contains demographic data together with aggregated clickstream data of students’ interactions in the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). This enables the analysis of student behaviour, represented by their actions. The dataset contains the information about 22 courses, 32,593 students, their assessment results, and logs of their interactions with the VLE represented by daily summaries of student clicks (10,655,280 entries). The dataset is freely available at https://analyse.kmi.open.ac.uk/open_dataset under a CC-BY 4.0 license. PMID:29182599

  4. Results of a Study of Hong Kong and Taiwan Open Universities.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sherritt, Caroline

    Although the National Open University of Taiwan (NOU) and Open University of Hong Kong (OUHK) both opened in the 1980s in environments of rapid economic growth and political stability, the NOU reflects traditional Chinese values whereas the OUHK merges Chinese and Western beliefs. Categorized as a "supplemental" school, the NOU occupies…

  5. Comparing the Open University Systems of China and India: Origins, Developments and Prospects

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Perris, Kirk

    2015-01-01

    The national open universities of China and India are unique adaptations of the open university model that emanated from the UK. These institutions have expanded to become the largest universities in the world as measured by current enrollment of approximately four million each. This article comparatively analyzes how these open universities have…

  6. The Allama Iqbal Open University Library.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ul-Hassan, Mahmud

    1984-01-01

    This profile of an open university library system in Pakistan covers its primary objective; functional organization; library collection and collection development; staffing, budgets and expenditures; library services (users, technical, reference); departmental libraries (on-campus branch, regional); and the library building. A list of 16 library…

  7. Creating Open Textbooks: A Unique Partnership between Oregon State University Libraries and Press and Open Oregon State

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chadwell, Faye A.; Fisher, Dianna M.

    2016-01-01

    This article presents Oregon State University's experience launching an innovative Open Textbook initiative in spring 2014. The partners, Open Oregon State and the Oregon State University Libraries and Press, aimed to reduce the cost of course materials for students while ensuring the content created was peer-reviewed and employed multimedia…

  8. Open-Book, Open-Web Online Examinations: Developing Examination Practices to Support University Students' Learning and Self-Efficacy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Myyry, Liisa; Joutsenvirta, Taina

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate university students' experiences of open-book, open-web online examinations compared to traditional class examinations concerning preparing, responding, and learning. The data (N?=?110) were collected by an online survey from the university students who took an online examination. The students used…

  9. A Course Evaluation System in an Open University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chacon, Fabio J.

    A model is presented for response to evaluating instruction in a university based on the teaching-at-a-distance concept. Technically appropriate and operationally viable, this model is applied to the National Open University of Venezuela (UNA). The model is based on two principles of educational evaluation: (1) the concept of evaluation as a…

  10. Potentiality of Disaster Management Education through Open and Distance Learning System in Bangladesh Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ahmad, Saima; Numan, Sharker Md.

    2015-01-01

    Bangladesh Open University (BOU) is the only public educational institution in Bangladesh, where, a dual-mode method of learning system has been introduced. Established in 21st October, 1992, the University now accommodates 174,459 learners in 2012. The wide range networking of this university provides it a great prospect to execute a broad…

  11. The Need for Participation in Open and Distance Education: The Open University Malaysia Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Raghavan, Santhi; Kumar, P. Rajesh

    2007-01-01

    This paper provides an overview of adult learner participation in open and distance education by focusing participation needs based on selected socio-demographic variables such as age, years of working experience and monthly income. The related study involved a sample of 454 Open University Malaysia students from a number of learning centres…

  12. The Open Education System, Anadolu University, Turkey: E-Transformation in a Mega-University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Latchem, Colin; Ozkul, Ali Ekrem; Aydin, Cengiz Hakan; Mutlu, Mehmet Emin

    2006-01-01

    Anadolu University in Turkey is one of the world's largest and least known mega-universities. Well over one million students in Turkey, the European Union and Northern Cyprus are enrolled in its Open Education System and yet few accounts of this dual-mode provider appear in the international literature. This article describes the evolution of the…

  13. The Open Systems University and Organizational Intelligence.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Counelis, James Steve

    The open systems model of the university defines the function of institutional research to be a cybernetic one. The internal and external reality-testing function is a vital duty and a moral charge. Though policy makers and educational practitioners can carry on for a considerable length of time with organizational intelligence of low validity,…

  14. The Open University in the Third World.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hawkridge, David G.

    The British Open University is described in the first section of this paper as a multi-media system for teaching at a distance. Details are provided on the texts and other materials mailed to the students, the radio and television broadcasts provided by the British Broadcasting Company, and on the auxiliary sources of assistance offered to the…

  15. Quality and Processes of Bangladesh Open University Course Materials Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Islam, Tofazzal; Rahman, Morshedur; Rahman, K. M. Rezanur

    2006-01-01

    A new member of the mega-Universities, Bangladesh Open University (BOU) introduced a course team approach for developing effective course materials for distance students. BOU teaching media includes printed course books, study guides, radio and television broadcasts, audiocassettes and occasional face-to-face tutorials. Each course team…

  16. The Early Development of the Open University: Report of the Vice-Chancellor January 1969-December 1970.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Open Univ., Walton, Bletchley, Bucks (England).

    This report concerns the extablishment and development of the British Open University. Contents include the descriptions of: the development of the institution; staffing the open university; development of the Milton Keynes Campus; undergraduate course development; regional organization; demand for open university courses; development, production,…

  17. 76 FR 18737 - Notification of Open Meeting of the National Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-04-05

    ... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Office of the Secretary Notification of Open Meeting of the National Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV) AGENCY: National Defense University, DoD. ACTION: Notice of Open Meeting... an open meeting of the National Defense University (NDU) Board of Visitors. The dates of the meeting...

  18. A Comparison of Student Confidence Levels in Open Access and Undergraduate University Courses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Atherton, Mirella

    2017-01-01

    Confidence levels of students enrolled in open access programs and undergraduate courses were measured at the University of Newcastle. The open access science students aimed to gain access to undergraduate studies in various disciplines at University. The undergraduate students were enrolled in a variety of degrees and were surveyed during their…

  19. Digital Badging at The Open University: Recognition for Informal Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Law, Patrina

    2015-01-01

    Awarding badges to recognise achievement is not a new development. Digital badging now offers new ways to recognise learning and motivate learners, providing evidence of skills and achievements in a variety of formal and informal settings. Badged open courses (BOCs) were piloted in various forms by the Open University (OU) in 2013 to provide a…

  20. Interactive Radio Counseling in Indira Gandhi National Open University: A Study.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chaudhary, Sohanvir S.; Bansal, Kiron

    2000-01-01

    Explains interactive radio as an effective tool for open and distance learning provided it is planned, designed, implemented, and monitored systematically. Describes the interactive radio counseling at Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) that provides support to students who study print material and may attend weekend…

  1. Role of Radio and TV Programmes in Distance and Open Learning System: A Case of Bangladesh Open University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Karim, Salma; Kama, Mustafa Azad; Islam, Md. Mayenul

    2001-01-01

    Examines the role and effectiveness of radio and television programs in distance and open learning systems based on a survey of students at Bangladesh Open University. Offers recommendations for improvements, including extending the time span, ensuring the quality of presentations, teacher involvement, and audio and video cassette…

  2. Openness in Resource Planning in State Universities. AIR Forum 1980 Paper.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delmont, Timothy J.

    Managerial approaches to budget planning for state universities were investigated using an open budgeting model that emphasizes the function of communication, technical analysis, and participative decision making. System-level and central officers in 32 research universities were surveyed to determine whether they used and endorsed technical…

  3. Setting Up the Open University. Monograph No. 5.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hawkridge, David G.

    An unofficial history is given of the Open University in England. Its intent is to recreate the atmosphere in which the institution was conceived and organized. First the main events of 1963-1969 are summarized. Separate sections are then devoted to events in 1970 and each subsequent calendar year through 1975. Milestones are noted, and the…

  4. Assuring Quality Evaluation Practices in Open and Distance Learning System: The Case of National Open University of Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ofoha, D.

    2012-01-01

    The success of any open and distance learning (ODL) programme depends on how well it is evaluated. In the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), students are assessed and evaluated through continuous assessment as well as end of semester examinations. This paper focuses on Tutor Marked Assignment (TMA), which forms part of continuous…

  5. 76 FR 14950 - Cancellation of Open Meeting of the National Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-03-18

    ... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Office of the Secretary Cancellation of Open Meeting of the National Defense... cancellation of an open meeting. SUMMARY: The Department of Defense, National Defense University, announced an open meeting of the National Defense University Board of Visitors on January 10, 2011 (76 FR 1408). The...

  6. Estimating the Economic Payoff to Virtual University Education: A Case Study of the Open University of Catalonia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Castaño-Muñoz, Jonatan; Carnoy, Martin; Duart, Josep M.

    2016-01-01

    There is surprisingly little analysis of the employment and earnings impact on students of taking and completing Internet-based programs and of how it compares with earnings outcomes for graduates of face-to-face universities. This paper analyzes a follow-up survey of students who began attending the virtual Internet-based Open University of…

  7. University Supports for Open Access: A Canadian National Survey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Greyson, Devon; Vezina, Kumiko; Morrison, Heather; Taylor, Donald; Black, Charlyn

    2009-01-01

    The advent of policies at research-funding organizations requiring grantees to make their funded research openly accessible alters the life cycle of scholarly research. This survey-based study explores the approaches that libraries and research administration offices at the major Canadian universities are employing to support the…

  8. Maintaining the Access Mission: Open Access Universities and the Challenges of Performance-Based Funding

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mathuews, Katy; Pulcini, Brad

    2017-01-01

    For the purposes of this article, open access universities are defined as bachelor's degree-granting institutions that do not restrict admission on the basis of ACT/SAT scores, high school grade point average, and the like. Typically, the mission of an open access university is to provide all students with the opportunity to pursue a degree. The…

  9. In Search for the Open Educator: Proposal of a Definition and a Framework to Increase Openness Adoption among University Educators

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nascimbeni, Fabio; Burgos, Daniel

    2016-01-01

    The paper explores the change process that university teachers need to go through in order to become fluent with Open Education approaches. Based on a literature review and a set of interviews with a number of leading experts in the field of Open Educational Resources and Open Education, the paper puts forward an original definition of Open…

  10. Quality Assurance, Open and Distance Learning, and Australian Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reid, Ian C.

    2005-01-01

    Open and distance education has integrated quality assurance processes since its inception. Recently, the increased use of distance teaching systems, technologies, and pedagogies by universities without a distance education heritage has enabled them to provide flexible learning opportunities. They have done this in addition to, or instead of,…

  11. Increasing Access to Higher Education through Open and Distance Learning: Empirical Findings from Mzuzu University, Malawi

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chawinga, Winner Dominic; Zozie, Paxton Andrew

    2016-01-01

    Slowly but surely, open and distance learning (ODL) programmes are being regarded as one of the most practical ways that universities across the world are increasingly adopting in order to increase access to university education. Likewise, Mzuzu University (MZUNI) set up the Centre for Open and Distance Learning (CODL) to oversee the running of…

  12. Effectiveness of Different Medium of Education to Imparting Knowledge at Bangladesh Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Islam, Anwarul; Islam, Nasirul

    2008-01-01

    Open and distance learning system meanly based on different types of media to impart education to the learners. Bangladesh Open University (BOU) offered education through open and distance learning system. There are two largest programs one is Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and another one is Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) offered by BOU…

  13. Acceptance and Adoption of Open Access Publication (OAP) in University Libraries in South East Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sambe, Manasseh Tyungu; Raphael, Gabriel Okplogidi

    2015-01-01

    This study examines the kinds of open access scholarly publication or information resources accepted and adopted by federal university libraries in South East Nigeria. The purpose was to determine the factors that affect open access scholarly publication or information resources acceptance and adoption in university libraries. The study adopted…

  14. Open University Courses in Science and Technology Applicable to the Education of Teachers of Integrated Science.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pentz, M. J.

    The Open University, founded in 1969, has already become the largest university in Britain in terms of the number of undergraduate students, with an enrollment of 41,000 in 1973. This paper is concerned with three areas of discussion: (1) the number of teachers studying Open University courses; (2) the courses available or planned in science and…

  15. Distance Teaching of Environmental Engineering Courses at the Open University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Porteous, Andrew; Nesaratnam, Suresh T.; Anderson, Judith

    1997-01-01

    Describes two integrated distance learning environmental engineering degree courses offered by the environmental engineering group of the Open University in Great Britain. Discusses admission requirements for courses, advantages offered by distance learning, professional accreditation, site visits, and tutors. (AIM)

  16. Teachers as a Special Target Population at the Open University of Israel.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guri-Rozenblit, Sarah

    1992-01-01

    Examines the programs of the Open University of Israel (OUI) that offer preservice and in-service teacher training. Policies and trends that led to a new model of Israeli teacher education are discussed, and the role of distance teaching universities in teacher training is considered. (15 references) (LRW)

  17. Stanford university medical media and information technologies hosts open source surgical simulation workshop.

    PubMed

    Cornelius, Craig W; Heinrichs, Leroy; Youngblood, Patricia; Dev, Parvati

    2007-01-01

    Stanford University Medical Media and Information Technologies's technical workshop "Prototyping of Surgical Simulators using Open Source Simulation Software" was held in August 2006 at Stanford University. The objectives, program, and topics covered are presented in this short report.

  18. Teachers Training through Distance Mode in Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) Pakistan: A Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jumani, Nabi Bux; Rahman, Fazalur; Chishti, Saeedul Hasan; Malik, Samina

    2011-01-01

    Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) is the first Open University in Asia and established in 1974 on the model of UKOU. AIOU uses different media for the delivery of instruction. It has a well established Institute of Educational Technology which has radio and TV production facilities and advance level of work in computer technology. AOU offers…

  19. A Year in the Life of an Open University Student in the United Kingdom.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ismail, Nazira

    1988-01-01

    Describes a Ugandan student's first-year experiences at the Open University in the United Kingdom. Discusses how the University operates; comments on course texts and supplementary materials; and presents a month-by-month breakdown of university and course activities and requirements. (GEA)

  20. First-Order Open-Universe POMDPs: Formulation and Algorithms

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-12-25

    A full DTBLOG model for the airport domain example is presented in the appendix. Let M ( S , A ) be a DTBLOG model defined using the sets S and A of...respectively. IfM satisfies BLOG’s requirements for well-defined probabilistic models then it constitutes a well-defined OUPOMDP model wrt S and A . Actions on... a first-order, open-universe language to describe POMDPs and identify non-trivial representational issues in describing an agent? s

  1. Assessing an Institutional Response of Universities to HIV/AIDS Epidemic: A Case of National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nom, Ambe-Uva Terhemba

    2007-01-01

    Universities have come under serious attack because of their lackluster response to HIV/AIDS. The article endevours--from an institutional perspective--to what extent National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) has responded to this challenge. This is done by first, highlighting NOUN basic structures that position it to respond better to the…

  2. The Open Admissions Story; 1970 At the City University of New York.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    City Univ. of New York, NY. Office of Univ. Relations.

    This report briefly reviews the history of the open admissions policy at the City University of New York, which offers admission to all New York City high school students graduated in June 1970 and thereafter to some college or center of the University, effective September 1970. The report consists of six sections: (1) The Decision for Open…

  3. Pre-Service Teachers' Attitudes toward Teaching Science and Their Science Learning at Indonesia Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Suprapto, Nadi; Mursid, Ali

    2017-01-01

    This study focuses on attitudes toward (teaching) science and the learning of science for primary school among pre-service teachers at the Open University of Indonesia. A three-year longitudinal survey was conducted, involving 379 students as pre-service teachers (PSTs) from the Open University in Surabaya regional office. Attitudes toward…

  4. Perspectives on Quality and Quality Assurance in Learner Support Areas at Three Southeast Asian Open Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Darojat, Ojat; Nilson, Michelle; Kaufman, David

    2015-01-01

    While quality measures in higher education in general have gained significant and growing attention over the past 30 years, questions remain about quality in open universities. This research was an international comparative case study focusing on perceptions of quality and quality assurance (QA) in learner support areas at open universities. The…

  5. Publishers' PR Tactic Angers University Presses and Open-Access Advocates

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Howard, Jennifer

    2007-01-01

    This article reports on reactions to the Association of American Publishers' new public-relations campaign, which has upset many university presses and research librarians, as well as open-access advocates. The effort, known as the "Partnership for Research Integrity in Science & Medicine," or Prism, is the latest tactic in a continuing…

  6. International outreach for promoting open geoscience content in Finnish university libraries - libraries as the advocates of citizen science awareness on emerging open geospatial data repositories in Finnish society

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rousi, A. M.; Branch, B. D.; Kong, N.; Fosmire, M.

    2013-12-01

    In their Finnish National Spatial Strategy 2010-2015 the Finland's Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry delineated e.g. that spatial data skills should support citizens everyday activities and facilitate decision-making and participation of citizens. Studies also predict that open data, particularly open spatial data, would create, when fully realizing their potential, a 15% increase into the turnovers of Finnish private sector companies. Finnish libraries have a long tradition of serving at the heart of Finnish information society. However, with the emerging possibilities of educating their users on open spatial data a very few initiatives have been made. The National Survey of Finland opened its data in 2012. Finnish technology university libraries, such as Aalto University Library, are open environments for all citizens, and seem suitable of being the first thriving entities in educating citizens on open geospatial data. There are however many obstacles to overcome, such as lack of knowledge about policies, lack of understanding of geospatial data services and insufficient know-how of GIS software among the personnel. This framework examines the benefits derived from an international collaboration between Purdue University Libraries and Aalto University Library to create local strategies in implementing open spatial data education initiatives in Aalto University Library's context. The results of this international collaboration are explicated for the benefit of the field as a whole.

  7. Combating HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Nigeria: Responses from National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ambe-Uva, Terhemba Nom

    2007-01-01

    Universities have come under serious attack because of their lackluster response to HIV/AIDS. This article examines the response of National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) and its strategic responses in combating HIV/AIDS epidemic. This is achieved by examining NOUN's basic structures that position the University to respond to the epidemic; and…

  8. Developing Conceptual Framework for Revising Self-Learning Materials (SLMs) of the Open School (OS) of Bangladesh Open University (BOU) at a Digital Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yeasmin, Sabina; Murthy, C. R. K.

    2011-01-01

    Bangladesh Open University (BOU) runs school programs as part of its academic activities through open schooling since its inception. As of today, the Open School uses the first generation self-learning materials (SLMs) written, before an era, following an in-house style and template. The concerned faculty member corrects, every year, texts before…

  9. Developing Conceptual Framework for Revising Self-Learning Materials (SLMs) of the Open School (OS) of Bangladesh Open University (BOU) at a Digital Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yeasmin, Sabina; Murthy, C. R. K.

    2012-01-01

    Bangladesh Open University (BOU) runs school programs as part of its academic activities through open schooling since its inception. As of today, the Open School uses the first generation self-learning materials (SLMs) written, before an era, following an in-house style and template. The concerned faculty member corrects, every year, texts before…

  10. Academic Freedom and Racial Injustice: South Africa's Former "Open Universities"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Taylor, Y.; Taylor, R.

    2010-01-01

    The article critically re-interrogates three high profile cases of white racism at South Africa's former "open universities" to highlight the way in which existing debates around academic freedom fail to come to terms with questions of racial injustice after apartheid. The cases covered are the Makgoba affair at Wits, the Mamdani affair…

  11. Teaching Particle Physics in the Open University's Science Foundation Course.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Farmelo, Graham

    1992-01-01

    Discusses four topics presented in the science foundation course of the Open University that exemplify current developments in particle physics, in particular, and that describe important issues about the nature of science, in general. Topics include the omega minus particle, the diversity of quarks, the heavy lepton, and the discovery of the W…

  12. Depressive symptoms in elderly participants of an open university for elderly

    PubMed Central

    Batistoni, Samila Sathler Tavares; Ordonez, Tiago Nascimento; da Silva, Thaís Bento Lima; do Nascimento, Priscila Pascarelli Pedrico; Kissaki, Priscilla Tiemi; Cachioni, Meire

    2011-01-01

    Although the prevalence of depressive disorders among the elderly is lower than among the younger population, the presence of significant symptoms of depression is common in this group. Studies report that participation in social, educational and leisure activities is related to fewer depressive symptoms in this population. Objective The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of depression among elderly participants of an Open University for the Third Age, in terms of the time studying. Methods The study had a cross-sectional design and the participation of 95.2% (n=184) of total enrollers in the first half of 2010 on the activities of the Third Age Open University’s School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities of the University of São Paulo. All participants answered a socio-demographic questionnaire and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15). Results An association between studying time of over one semester at the University of the Third Age and a lower rate of depressive symptoms, was observed. Conclusion Study time of over one semester was associated with less depressive symptoms, acting as a possible protective factor against depression. PMID:29213728

  13. Assessing Perseverance in Studies at the Open University of Israel.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guri-Rozenblit, Sarah

    1990-01-01

    A study at the Open University of Israel found students who study in organized groups and get weekly tutorials have a higher persistence rate than those with tutorials every three weeks. More experienced students and those in liberal arts and social sciences have a higher course completion rate. Age, sex, and educational background have little…

  14. Optimising the Blended Learning Environment: The Arab Open University Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hamdi, Tahrir; Abu Qudais, Mohammed

    2018-01-01

    This paper will offer some insights into possible ways to optimise the blended learning environment based on experience with this modality of teaching at Arab Open University/Jordan branch and also by reflecting upon the results of several meta-analytical studies, which have shown blended learning environments to be more effective than their face…

  15. An Evaluation of the Informedia Digital Video Library System at the Open University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes; Van der Zwan, Robert; DiPaolo, Terry; Evers, Vanessa; Clarke, Sarah

    1999-01-01

    Reports on an Open University evaluation study of the Informedia Digital Video Library System developed at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU). Findings indicate that there is definite potential for using the system, provided that certain modifications can be made. Results also confirm findings of the Informedia team at CMU that the content of video…

  16. China's Radio and TV Universities: Reflections on Theory and Practice of Open and Distance Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wei, Runfang

    2010-01-01

    Distance education and open learning are western innovations, representing the educational concepts, cultures and societies of western countries. The introduction of distance education and the adoption of open learning in China's radio and TV universities are by no means an indication that they will and can be copied wholesale. Open and distance…

  17. Perception of Learners on Electronic Examination in Open and Distance Learning Institutions: A Case Study of National Open University of Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Adewale, Olubiyi Adeniyi; Ajadi, Timothy Olugbenga; Inegbedion, Juliet O.

    2011-01-01

    In mid-2009, the NOUN (National Open University of Nigeria) reached the decision to shift from conventional (that is, pen-and-paper) examination to electronic examination in the conduct of the end of semester examinations. One of the major factors prompting this decision is the inability of the university to release the results of past…

  18. "I've Never Heard of It Before": Awareness of Open Access at a Small Liberal Arts University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kocken, Gregory J.; Wical, Stephanie H.

    2013-01-01

    Small colleges and universities, often late adopters of institutional repositories and open access initiatives, face challenges that have not fully been explored in the professional literature. In an effort to gauge the level of awareness of open access and institutional repositories at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (UWEC), the authors of…

  19. Increasing Public Access to University Qualifications: Evolution of The University of the West Indies Open Campus

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thomas, Michael L.; Soares, Judith

    2009-01-01

    This paper traces the evolution of The University of the West Indies' Open Campus (UWIOC), which is expected to expand service and increase access to the underserved communities of the Eastern Caribbean. At present, UWI, which caters to the needs of the 16 far flung countries of the Commonwealth Caribbean, has not been able to fully serve these…

  20. National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN): A Historical Perspective and Challenges

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ambe-Uva, Terhemba Nom

    2007-01-01

    Distance education has become an important policy option for educational planners in developing countries. In the context of Nigeria, increasing population, growing national demand for education, dwindling financial resources, increasing fiscal constraints, and therefore narrowing of access to education led to the emergence of Open University in…

  1. Open Source in Higher Education: Towards an Understanding of Networked Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Quint-Rapoport, Mia

    2012-01-01

    This article addresses the question of understanding more about networked universities by looking at open source software developers working in academic contexts. It sketches their identities and work as an emerging professional community that both relies upon and develops digitally mediated networks and contributes to the progress of academic…

  2. Present Problems and Future Challenges of the Korea National Open University. ZIFF Papiere 113.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kim, Jae-Woong

    Korea National Open University (KNOU) opened in 1972 as a correspondence college designed to improve adult learners' preparation for Korea's college examination. KNOU has been redefined as "an institution for adults who are deprived, by various reasons, of higher education opportunities and is now playing a major role in developing lifelong…

  3. The Open University of the Netherlands: "Serving the Adult Learner" by Distance Education and "Innovating Higher Education."

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    van Enckevort, G.; Leibbrandt, G. J.

    The Dutch Open University accepted its first students in September 1984 after a two-year preparation period. Like its British counterpart, the Dutch Open University offers free access and has no requirements as far as previous education is concerned. Its principal aims are to (1) provide higher education for adults either as a second chance (for…

  4. Open Access, Retention and Throughput at the Central University of Technology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    de Beer, K. J.

    2006-01-01

    The most debatable question in higher education today is: Why first "open access" to promote massafication and now "capping" to restrict learner intake? (cf. SA Media Information 2004). Concerning the managing of this difficult and extremely sensitive issue, the Central University of Technology, Free State (CUT) has come a long…

  5. Towards Development of OER Derived Custom-Built Open Textbooks: A Baseline Survey of University Teachers at the University of the South Pacific

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Prasad, Deepak; Usagawa, Tsuyoshi

    2014-01-01

    Textbook prices have soared over the years, with several studies revealing many university students are finding it difficult to afford textbooks. Fortunately, two innovations--open educational resources (OER) and open textbooks--hold the potential to increase textbook affordability. Experts, though, have stated the obvious: that students can save…

  6. Large-angle cosmic microwave background anisotropies in an open universe

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kamionkowski, Marc; Spergel, David N.

    1994-01-01

    If the universe is open, scales larger than the curvature scale may be probed by observation of large-angle fluctuations in the cosmic microwave background (CMB). We consider primordial adiabatic perturbations and discuss power spectra that are power laws in volume, wavelength, and eigenvalue of the Laplace operator. Such spectra may have arisen if, for example, the universe underwent a period of `frustated' inflation. The resulting large-angle anisotropies of the CMB are computed. The amplitude generally increases as Omega is decreased but decreases as h is increased. Interestingly enough, for all three Ansaetze, anisotropies on angular scales larger than the curvature scale are suppressed relative to the anisotropies on scales smaller than the curvature scale, but cosmic variance makes discrimination between various models difficult. Models with 0.2 approximately less than Omega h approximately less than 0.3 appear compatible with CMB fluctuations detected by Cosmic Background Explorer Satellite (COBE) and the Tenerife experiment and with the amplitude and spectrum of fluctuations of galaxy counts in the APM, CfA, and 1.2 Jy IRAS surveys. COBE normalization for these models yields sigma(sub 8) approximately = 0.5 - 0.7. Models with smaller values of Omega h when normalized to COBE require bias factors in excess of 2 to be compatible with the observed galaxy counts on the 8/h Mpc scale. Requiring that the age of the universe exceed 10 Gyr implies that Omega approximately greater than 0.25, while requiring that from the last-scattering term in the Sachs-Wolfe formula, large-angle anisotropies come primarily from the decay of potential fluctuations at z approximately less than 1/Omega. Thus, if the universe is open, COBE has been detecting temperature fluctuations produced at moderate redshift rather than at z approximately 1300.

  7. Use and Mastery of Virtual Learning Environment in Brazilian Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gomez, Margarita Victoria

    2014-01-01

    This paper describes and analyses the dynamics of the use and/or mastery of Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) by educators and students Open University, important part of the Brazilian Educational System. A questionnaire with 32 items was answered by 174 students/instructors/coordinators of the Media in Education and Physics courses, of two…

  8. Knowledge Management Systems and Open Innovation in Second Tier UK Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chaston, Ian

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to examine the performance of second tier UK universities in relation to the effectiveness of their knowledge management systems and involvement in open innovation. Data were acquired using a mail survey of academic staff in social science and business faculties in second tier institutions. The results indicate that…

  9. Electronic Media Learning Materials of Indira Gandhi National Open University, India: An Analytical Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roy, V. Manoj; Ghosh, Chinmoy Kumar

    2013-01-01

    The establishment of the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) in 1985 has been a milestone in the growth of higher education in India. A very special feature of the University is that a composite of several instructional methods in practice are aimed at giving effective support to distance learners. Self-instructional print materials are…

  10. Terra Harvest Open Source Environment (THOSE): a universal unattended ground sensor controller

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gold, Joshua; Klawon, Kevin; Humeniuk, David; Landoll, Darren

    2011-06-01

    Under the Terra Harvest Program, the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) has the objective of developing a universal Controller for the Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) community. The mission is to define, implement, and thoroughly document an open architecture that universally supports UGS missions, integrating disparate systems, peripherals, etc. The Controller's inherent interoperability with numerous systems enables the integration of both legacy and future Unattended Ground Sensor System (UGSS) components, while the design's open architecture supports rapid third-party development to ensure operational readiness. The successful accomplishment of these objectives by the program's Phase 3b contractors is demonstrated via integration of the companies' respective plug-'n-play contributions that include various peripherals, such as sensors, cameras, etc., and their associated software drivers. In order to independently validate the Terra Harvest architecture, L-3 Nova Engineering, along with its partner, the University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI), is developing the Terra Harvest Open Source Environment (THOSE), a Java based system running on an embedded Linux Operating System (OS). The Use Cases on which the software is developed support the full range of UGS operational scenarios such as remote sensor triggering, image capture, and data exfiltration. The Team is additionally developing an ARM microprocessor evaluation platform that is both energyefficient and operationally flexible. The paper describes the overall THOSE architecture, as well as the implementation strategy for some of the key software components. Preliminary integration/test results and the Team's approach for transitioning the THOSE design and source code to the Government are also presented.

  11. Open access, open education resources and open data in Uganda.

    PubMed

    Salvo, Ivana Di; Mwoka, Meggie; Kwaga, Teddy; Rukundo, Priscilla Aceng; Ernest, Dennis Ssesanga; Osaheni, Louis Aikoriogie; John, Kasibante; Shafik, Kasirye; de Sousa, Agostinho Moreira

    2015-01-01

    As a follow up to OpenCon 2014, International Federation of Medical Students' Associations (IFMSA) students organized a 3 day workshop Open Access, Open Education Resources and Open Data in Kampala from 15-18 December 2014. One of the aims of the workshop was to engage the Open Access movement in Uganda which encompasses the scientific community, librarians, academia, researchers and students. The IFMSA students held the workshop with the support of: Consortium for Uganda University Libraries (CUUL), The Right to Research Coalition, Electronic Information for Libraries (EIFL), Makerere University, International Health Sciences University (IHSU), Pan African Medical Journal (PAMJ) and the Centre for Health Human Rights and Development (CEHURD). All these organizations are based or have offices in Kampala. The event culminated in a meeting with the Science and Technology Committee of Parliament of Uganda in order to receive the support of the Ugandan Members of Parliament and to make a concrete change for Open Access in the country.

  12. Widening Access through Openness in Higher Education in the Developing World: A Bourdieusian Field Analysis of Experiences from the National Open University of Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Olakulehin, Felix Kayode; Singh, Gurmit

    2013-01-01

    Bourdieu has argued that higher education is a field that reproduces social inequality, thus complicating how openness widens access to higher education in the developing world. Drawing on the experiences of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), this paper critically analyses and evaluates the rationale, approach, difficulties,…

  13. 77 FR 68745 - Notification of an Open Meeting of the National Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-11-16

    ..., organizational management, strategic planning, resource management, and other matters of interest to the National... Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV) AGENCY: National Defense University, DoD. ACTION: Notice of open meeting. SUMMARY: The National Defense University (NDU), Designated Federal Officer, has scheduled...

  14. The Extent of and Reasons for Non Re-Enrollment: A Case of Korea National Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Choi, Hyoseon; Lee, Yekyung; Jung, Insung; Latchem, Colin

    2013-01-01

    Despite continuous efforts to increase retention, dropout rates are high in distance universities. The objectives of this study were: 1) to investigate the extent and causes of non re-enrollment at a mega university, Korea National Open University; and 2) to suggest actions to improve the retention of students, in general, and those with higher…

  15. Making Academic OER Easy: Reflections on Technology and Openness at Oxford University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Highton, Melissa; Fresen, Jill; Wild, Joanna

    2011-01-01

    Due to its stringent entry requirements, academic reputation and world ranking, Oxford University in the United Kingdom is perceived by some as being a closed, exclusive, and elitist institution. As learning technologists working in the institution, we have experienced an enthusiasm amongst academic colleagues for openness in publication and…

  16. The Organization of the Distance Teaching Sub-System in an Open University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chacon, Fabio J.

    The problem of finding an adequate organization for the distance teaching subsystem in the Open University of Venezuela (Universidad Nacional Abierta) is analyzed. Problems facing this subsystem concern: communications with the headquarters and within the learning centers network, interaction with the environment in order to create a favorable…

  17. Adapting on Demand Examination System in National Open University of Nigeria End of Semester Examination

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Okonkwo, Charity Akuadi

    2011-01-01

    Teaching-learning process is incomplete without effective and meaningful assessment of students learning outcomes. This applies to both conventional modes of education as well as to open and distance learning modes. So far, conduct of examinations at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), has been cumbersome and be-decked with "hydra…

  18. The One Universal Graph — a free and open graph database

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ng, Liang S.; Champion, Corbin

    2016-02-01

    Recent developments in graph database mostly are huge projects involving big organizations, big operations and big capital, as the name Big Data attests. We proposed the concept of One Universal Graph (OUG) which states that all observable and known objects and concepts (physical, conceptual or digitally represented) can be connected with only one single graph; furthermore the OUG can be implemented with a very simple text file format with free software, capable of being executed on Android or smaller devices. As such the One Universal Graph Data Exchange (GOUDEX) modules can potentially be installed on hundreds of millions of Android devices and Intel compatible computers shipped annually. Coupled with its open nature and ability to connect to existing leading search engines and databases currently in operation, GOUDEX has the potential to become the largest and a better interface for users and programmers to interact with the data on the Internet. With a Web User Interface for users to use and program in native Linux environment, Free Crowdware implemented in GOUDEX can help inexperienced users learn programming with better organized documentation for free software, and is able to manage programmer's contribution down to a single line of code or a single variable in software projects. It can become the first practically realizable “Internet brain” on which a global artificial intelligence system can be implemented. Being practically free and open, One Universal Graph can have significant applications in robotics, artificial intelligence as well as social networks.

  19. Proteus in a Kaleidoscope: The Educational Technologist in Open University Course Production.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gale, Janet

    1980-01-01

    Describes the educational technologist's work in Open University course production in terms of the work's context and the potential roles and tasks that may be assumed, and concludes that the educational technologist must continually construct and reconstruct his/her own role according to a number of sets of criteria. (Author/CMV)

  20. Mobile Learning via SMS at Open University Malaysia: Equitable, Effective, and Sustainable

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lim, Tina; Fadzil, Mansor; Mansor, Norziati

    2011-01-01

    This article describes Open University Malaysia's efforts at enhancing the blended learning approach for undergraduate distance learners with the successful implementation of the Mobile Learning via SMS initiative. The pilot project was implemented in the May 2009 semester, and this coming January 2011 semester will be in its sixth consecutive…

  1. Bringing Open Educational Practice to a Research-Intensive University: Prospects and Challenges

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Masterman, Elizabeth

    2016-01-01

    This article describes a small-scale study that explored the relationship between the pedagogical practices characterised as "open" and the existing model of undergraduate teaching and learning at a large research-intensive university (RIU). The aim was to determine the factors that might enable (conversely impede) the greater uptake of…

  2. Interactivity in Distance Education: The National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ambe-Uva, Terhemba Nom

    2006-01-01

    The paper represents a study of students' experience of interactivity in distance education programmes at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN). Through surveys and focus groups with students, facilitators, and administrative support staff, we found out that interactivity is a key determinant of student success rate. Majority of the…

  3. Student Feedback on Tutor and Academic Support of Wawasan Open University: A Four-Semester Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ng, Wai-Kong; Kong, Sow-Lai

    2009-01-01

    Standards for academic and student support services (SSS) in distance education as identified by the University of Wisconsin System Administration Board of Regents were applied to the SSS provided by the Wawasan Open University (WOU). A student feedback survey conducted over 4 semesters confirmed that WOU's SSS had been positively received and…

  4. Online Library Accessibility Support: A Case Study within the Open University Library

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mears, Wendy; Clough, Helen

    2015-01-01

    The Open University (OU) is the UK's largest distance education provider and has a large and growing disabled student population. Disabled user support presents particular challenges for an online library service in the distance learning environment. The OU introduced guidelines for working with non-OU--authored content (external content) in 2011…

  5. A Review of the Short Life of the U.S. Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Krenelka, Lynette M.

    2009-01-01

    This article presents the findings of a single case study of the United States Open University (USOU), including factors affecting its demise and success. Interviews were conducted with administrators, board members, associate faculty, and staff who played a major role in the planning and operation of the USOU, and pertinent documents were…

  6. Attitudes toward English among Al-Quds Open University Students in Tulkarm Branch

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tanni, Ziyad Ahmed Ibraheem

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this study is to identify the attitudes toward English among AL-Quds Open University students in Tulkarm Branch, Palestine. To achieve this purpose, the researcher used a questionnaire composed of 30 items distributed to 70 male and 110 female students in four faculties: Education, Social Development, Administrative Sciences and…

  7. Mathematical E-Learning: State of the Art and Experiences at the Open University of Catalonia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Juan, A.; Huertas, A.; Steegmann, C.; Corcoles, C.; Serrat, C.

    2008-01-01

    In this article we present a review of the state of the art in mathematical e-learning and some personal experiences on this area developed during the last eleven years at the Open University of Catalonia (UOC), a completely online university located in Spain. The article discusses important aspects related to online mathematics courses offered in…

  8. AUPress: A Comparison of an Open Access University Press with Traditional Presses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McGreal, Rory; Chen, Nian-Shing

    2011-01-01

    This study is a comparison of AUPress with three other traditional (non-open access) Canadian university presses. The analysis is based on the rankings that are correlated with book sales on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca. Statistical methods include the sampling of the sales ranking of randomly selected books from each press. The results of one-way…

  9. Analytical Study of E-Learning Resources in National Open University of Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ajegbomogun, Fredrick Olatunji; Okunlaya, Rifqah Olufunmilayo Afolake; Alawiye, Mariam Kehinde

    2017-01-01

    This paper analyses e-learning resources in the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) using Abeokuta study center. Survey research method was adopted for this study. A questionnaire was designed and used to collect data for this study. A sample of 150 respondents was randomly selected from the final year students in the six schools of the…

  10. A Pre-Post Evaluation of OpenMinds: a Sustainable, Peer-Led Mental Health Literacy Programme in Universities and Secondary Schools.

    PubMed

    Patalay, Praveetha; Annis, Jennifer; Sharpe, Helen; Newman, Robbie; Main, Dominic; Ragunathan, Thivvia; Parkes, Mary; Clarke, Kelly

    2017-11-01

    Engaging young people in the design and delivery of mental health education could lead to more effective interventions; however, few of these interventions have been evaluated. This study aimed to gain preliminary evidence with regards to the efficacy and acceptability of OpenMinds: a peer-designed and facilitated mental health literacy programme for university and secondary school students. The programme involves a structured programme of education and training for university medical students, who then deliver workshops in secondary schools. Pre- and post-surveys were completed by 234 school students who received two workshops and 40 university medical students who completed the OpenMinds programme and delivered the workshops. The main outcomes in both groups were components of mental health literacy (non-stigmatising attitudes, knowledge, social distance and helping attitudes). Perceived teaching efficacy and interest in mental health careers (university medical students) and workshop acceptability (school students) were also examined. University and school student participation in OpenMinds was associated with significant improvements in three of four mental health literacy elements in both samples. Knowledge and attitudes improved in both samples, social distance improved only in the university sample and knowledge of helping behaviours increased in the school sample. University students' perceived teaching efficacy improved but there was no change in their reported interest in pursuing psychiatry in their career. Acceptability was high; over 70% of the school students agreed that they enjoyed the workshops and liked being taught by a university student. This study provides preliminary evidence for the acceptability and efficacy of OpenMinds as a sustainable peer-led model of mental health education for young people. The OpenMinds programme is ready for efficacy testing in a randomised trial.

  11. Curriculum, Intellectual Property Rights and Open Educational Resources in British Universities--and Beyond

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hawkridge, David; Armellini, Alejandro; Nikoi, Samuel; Rowlett, Tania; Witthaus, Gabi

    2010-01-01

    Is the curriculum in British universities being influenced by decisions about ownership of intellectual property rights (IPR) in "open educational resources" (OERs) that are available online under Creative Commons licenses, free of charge? This paper provides the context for, describes and analyses three significant examples in British…

  12. Process Consultancy. The Demand for Consultancy on Group Processes in the Open University--Implications of Change (Report No. 59). Process Consultancy within the Open University 1981-1991 (Report No. 61).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nicodemus, Robert

    The two reports combined here provide introductory information on consultancy work at Great Britain's Open University Institution of Educational Technology. The approach at the institution was influenced by the theories and methods developed at the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations and applied to group relations training. It is noted that the…

  13. Faculty Perception of Openness and Attitude to Open Sharing at the Indian National Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Panda, Santosh; Santosh, Sujata

    2017-01-01

    In the past decade, the educational scenario world over has significantly been impacted by open access and open education movements. The philosophy of openness and sharing forms the cornerstone of the open education movement. The distance education approaches, together with open educational resources (OER) and massive open online courses (MOOCs),…

  14. Use of Information and Communication Technologies in India's First Open University: Experience and Perceptions of Learners and Learner Support Providers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Satyanarayana, P.; Meduri, Emmanuel D. K.

    2015-01-01

    Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Open University (BRAOU), the first distance teaching university in India, was a great educational event. It started a new chapter in the history of India's distance higher education. The general objects this research studies are: (1) to identify the information and communication technologies used in open distance education…

  15. Analytical Views of Student Enrollment Trend of Different Programs of Bangladesh Open University and Its Projection

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Numan, Sharker; Islam, Anwarul; Sadat, Anwar

    2007-01-01

    Bangladesh Open University (BOU) is only University of the country which provides mass education in different dimensions in science, agriculture, humanities, social science, health, etc. It intends to provide opportunities of education to all classes of people and create efficient and skilled manpower by improving the quality of education. BOU was…

  16. Intelligent Computer-Aided Instruction Research at the Open University. CITE Report No. 10.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Elsom-Cook, Mark

    This document introduces the aims and activities of the Intelligent Computer Aided Instruction (ICAI) research community situated within the Centre for Information Technology in Education (CITE) at the Open University in Great Britain, outlines the nature of the problems which come under the auspices of ICAI, and describes the research…

  17. Access to Higher Education: Students with Disabilities at the Open University. Working Together?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Child, Derek

    Services to students with disabilities at the Open University (OU) in Great Britain are described. This large distance teaching institution offers courses in multi-media form, using printed texts, audio and video material, radio and television programs, microcomputer software, and tutorial support (available either from local study centers or at…

  18. Challenges in the Adoption and Use of OpenCourseWare: Experience of the United Nations University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Barrett, Brendan F. D.; Grover, Velma I.; Janowski, Tomasz; van Lavieren, Hanneke; Ojo, Adegboyega; Schmidt, Philipp

    2009-01-01

    This paper provides insights on the adoption or use of OpenCourseWare (OCW) to support broader research, training and institutional capacity development goals, based on the experience of the United Nations University. Specifically, it explains the strategic context for the use of OCW in the university through its related efforts in the area of…

  19. Prior Education of Open University Students Contributes to Their Capability in Critical Thinking

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Repo, Saara; Lehtinen, Taina; Rusanen, Erja; Hyytinen, Heidi

    2017-01-01

    The focus of this study is on Open University students' entry-level critical thinking skills. The research questions were: how are students' age, and level and discipline of previous education related to critical thinking skills; is the level and discipline of previous education connected to the accuracy of students' self-evaluation of their…

  20. Transactional Distance among Open University Students: How Does it Affect the Learning Process?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kassandrinou, Amanda; Angelaki, Christina; Mavroidis, Ilias

    2014-01-01

    This study examines the presence of transactional distance among students, the factors affecting it, as well as the way it influences the learning process of students in a blended distance learning setting in Greece. The present study involved 12 postgraduate students of the Hellenic Open University (HOU). A qualitative research was conducted,…

  1. Improving Student Retention through Evidence Based Proactive Systems at the Open University (UK)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gibbs, Graham; Regan, Peter; Simpson, Ormond

    2007-01-01

    The Open University has been undertaking an extended initiative to improve student retention through enhanced support for at-risk students. This initiative has evolved through a series of stages from ad hoc small scale local interventions relying largely on tutors and student self-referral, to an institution-wide pro-active system implemented by…

  2. "My naturesound" - nature observations with sound recordings

    PubMed Central

    Runnel, Veljo; Peterson, Marko; Zirk, Allan

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Background Online systems for observation reporting by citizen scientists have been operating for many years. iNaturalist (California Academy of Sciences 2016), eBird (Cornell Lab of Ornithology 2016) and Observado (Observation International 2016) are well-known international systems, Artportalen (Swedish Species Information Centre 2016) and Artsobservasjoner (Norwegian Biodiversity Information Centre 2016) are Scandinavian. In addition, databases and online solutions exist that are more directly research-oriented but still offer participation by citizen scientists, such as the PlutoF (University of Tartu Natural History Museum 2016) platform. The University of Tartu Natural History Museum maintains the PlutoF platform (Abarenkov et al. 2010) for storing and managing biodiversity data, including taxon observations. In 2014, development was started to integrate an observation app "Minu loodusheli"/"My naturesound" (University of Tartu Natural History Museum 2017b) (My naturesound, Fig. 1) within PlutoF system. In 2017, an English language version of the app (University of Tartu Natural History Museum 2017c) was launched that includes nearly all major sound-producing taxon groups in its taxonomy. The application also acts as a practical tool for collecting and publishing occurrence data for the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (Global Biodiversity Information Facility 2017) in standardized Darwin Core format together with download links to the multimedia files. Although the sound recording ability of mobile phones opens new opportunities to validate taxon occurrences, current technological solutions limit the use of recordings in biodiversity research. The "My naturesound" allows the user to record taxon occurrences and to provide audio recordings as evidence. After installing the application, the user is promted to login with PlutoF system credentials or to register with PlutoF. The application is targeted primarely to citizen scientists, but

  3. Going for (Nano)Gold: A University Open Day Experiment for Year 13 Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baker, Christopher; Patel, Bhavik Ani; Cragg, Alexander S.; Cragg, Peter J.

    2013-01-01

    Open day activities rarely give applicants a real sense of the practical and intellectual work that goes on in university chemistry departments. We devised an experiment for year 13 (age 17-18) students based on the size-dependent colours of gold nanoparticles and linked this to current research in diagnostic medicine. The experience was designed…

  4. Library Subject Guides: A Content Management Case Study at the Open University, UK

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wales, Tim

    2005-01-01

    Purpose: To share the experiences and challenges faced by the Open University Library (OUL) in developing a content management (CM) system for its subject guides. Design/methodology/approach: A summary of multi-format subject guide production at the OUL is provided to justify the decision to develop a new system for their production using a…

  5. Educational opportunities based on the university-industry synergies in an open innovation framework

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lucia, Óscar; Burdio, José M.; Acero, Jesús; Barragán, Luis A.; Garcia, José R.

    2012-03-01

    Collaboration between Industry and University is becoming more important in order to improve the competitiveness of the research and development activities. Moreover, establishing synergies to bridge the gap between the academic and industrial spheres has demonstrated to be advantageous for both of them. Nowadays, Industry is moving towards an open innovation structure, in which external agents as universities play a key role. Besides, University is also seeking a more active learning methodology to improve the education of students for the real world. Considering this framework, a special effort should be done to take advantage of the collaborative work between Industry and University. The aim of this paper is to present the collaborative framework and the benefits obtained of the educational activities as a consequence of the long-term collaboration established between the University of Zaragoza and the Bosh and Siemens Home Appliances Group. The key stones of the collaboration are presented, and the positive outcomes for the students are highlighted. The strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the proposed program are also discussed.

  6. The Legacy and Impact of Open University Women's/Gender Studies: 30 Years On

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kirkup, Gill; Whitelegg, Elizabeth

    2013-01-01

    In 1983, the UK Open University (OU) offered its first women's/gender studies (WGS) course. Although a late entrant to the area, OU WGS courses were influential nationally and internationally for many feminists and WGS teachers and scholars. Not only did OU WGS courses have the largest WGS student cohort of any UK institution with over 8000…

  7. A Study of Learners Perception and Attitude towards BA/BSS Program of SSHL of Bangladesh Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sultana, Sabiha; Jahan, Tasrun; Numan, Sharker Md.

    2011-01-01

    In the present day open and distance education has become a significant way of the development of higher education. Bangladesh Open University (BOU), the only public institution in Bangladesh offers several formal and non-formal programs from secondary to post graduate level through distance mode. The main objectives of BOU's program is to provide…

  8. First Year Learning Experiences of University Undergraduates in the Use of Open Educational Resources in Online Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Afolabi, Folashade

    2017-01-01

    This study investigated the first year University undergraduates' experiences in the use of open educational resources (OER) in online learning and their in-course achievement. The design selected for the study was survey and quasi-experimental. A total number of 106 University undergraduates participated in the study after a preliminary study was…

  9. Course Completion and Attainment in Disabled Students Taking Courses with the Open University UK

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Richardson, John T. E.

    2010-01-01

    This investigation compared outcomes in disabled and non-disabled students taking courses by distance learning with the Open University UK in 2003. Students with mental health difficulties showed poorer course completion than non-disabled students. Students with restricted mobility and students with other disabilities showed lower pass rates than…

  10. Open Admissions and Remediation: A Case Study of Policymaking by the City University of New York Board

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Duitch, Suri

    2010-01-01

    An open admissions policy for the City University of New York was approved by the University's Board of Higher Education in 1969, ushering in a new era of greater access to college for the city's poor and working class Blacks, Latinos, and white youth. This policy change was made in response to demands from students, civil rights organizations,…

  11. Language Learning over 50 at the Open University in Poland: An Exploratory Study of Needs and Emotions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Klimczak-Pawlak, Agata; Kossakowska-Pisarek, Sylwia

    2018-01-01

    This exploratory, retrospective study, which focuses on the needs, attitudes, and emotions of learners attending English as a foreign language courses at the Open University of the University of Warsaw is part of a larger scale project which aims at answering calls voiced, among others, by Boulton-Lewis (2010) to gather more data from older adults…

  12. National Student Feedback Surveys in Distance Education: An Investigation at the UK Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ashby, Alison; Richardson, John T. E.; Woodley, Alan

    2011-01-01

    National student feedback surveys are administered in a number of countries, and several of these encompass both campus-based and distance learning students. The UK Open University achieves a high ranking in the annual National Student Survey (NSS), but there are some anomalies in the results. The NSS questionnaire was administered to three…

  13. Captivating Open University Students with Online Literature Search Tutorials Created Using Screen Capture Software

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wales, Tim; Robertson, Penny

    2008-01-01

    Purpose: The aim of this paper is to share the experiences and challenges faced by the Open University Library (OUL) in using screen capture software to develop online literature search tutorials. Design/methodology/approach: A summary of information literacy support at the OUL is provided as background information to explain the decision to…

  14. Examination Management as a Way of Achieving Quality Assurance in ODL Institutions: The Case of Zimbabwe Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mafa, Onias; Gudhlanga, Enna Sukutai

    2012-01-01

    An examination is an important component of any institution that educates people. It is a form of assessment used to measure the students' understanding of the concepts and principles they would have learnt. Zimbabwe Open University, an Open and Distance Learning institution has been setting its own examinations for the academic programmes…

  15. Meeting the Needs of Distance Learners of M.Ed Program: Bangladesh Open University Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Islam, Amirul; Ferdowsi, Sakiba

    2014-01-01

    This study draws on the experience of a cohort of 22 students from 09 tutorial centers enrolled in a Master of Education (M Ed) distance learning program administered by the Bangladesh Open University (BOU). It's purpose is to locate the aims and philosophies of distance learning within the experiences of actual distance learners in order to see…

  16. Disruptive Innovation? Open Educational Projects Peer 2 Peer University and StraighterLine Take Shape

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Observatory on Borderless Higher Education, 2010

    2010-01-01

    The pilot phase of Peer 2 Peer University (P2PU), a "grassroots" open educational project aimed at creating a new model for lifelong learning is now underway. Billing itself as an institution which promotes "learning for everyone, by everyone, about almost anything", P2PU is seeking to provide high-quality, low-cost educational opportunities by…

  17. Student Assessment of Quality of Access at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Inegbedion, Juliet O.; Adu, Folorunso I.; Ofulue, Christine Y.

    2016-01-01

    This paper presents a study conducted by Inegbedion, Adu and Ofulue from the National Open University of Nigeria. The study focused on the quality of access (admission and registration) at NOUN from a student perspective. A survey design was used for the study while a multi-stage sampling technique was used to select the sample size. All the…

  18. Using Interactive Videodiscs in Open University Courses. I.E.T. Papers on Broadcasting No. 218.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fuller, Robert G., Ed.

    This nine-paper collection from a June 1983 Open University (OU) campus workshop in Milton Keynes, England, describes an interactive video project developed for an OU undergraduate course, T252, Introduction to Engineering Materials, and discusses varied aspects of interactive videodisc program development. The following papers are included:…

  19. A Backstairs to a Degree. Demands for an Open University in Late Victorian England. Leeds Studies in Adult and Continuing Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marriott, Stuart

    This book examines the proposal of individuals in England's university extension movement in the final 2 decades of the 19th century to create a part-time teaching university that shared the following similarities with present-day open universities: a policy of admitting all individuals likely to benefit from the university irrespective of their…

  20. Social Support Network for the Elderly Attending the Open University Program for Senior Citizens at the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Domingues, Marisa Accioly; Ordonez, Tiago Nascimento; Lima-Silva, Thais Bento; Torres, Maria Juliana; de Barros, Thabata Cruz; Cachioni, Meire

    2013-01-01

    This study describes the social support network of older adults enrolled in the Open University for Senior Citizens at the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities, University of Sao Paulo. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 117 elderly or older adults, mostly female (78%), married (53%), retired (82%), and aged on average…

  1. Burnout Syndrome in Students of a Distance Learning Program: The Open University of Cyprus Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pavlakis, Andreas; Kaitelidou, Dafni

    2012-01-01

    Introduction: Distance learning seems to have a crucial impact on the social and emotional life of students. Within the framework of distance learning at the Open University of Cyprus, the "Healthcare Management" department conducted a study regarding the levels of stress, anxiety and depression reported by the student population. The…

  2. University Physics Students' Ideas of Thermal Radiation Expressed in Open Laboratory Activities Using Infrared Cameras

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Haglund, Jesper; Melander, Emil; Weiszflog, Matthias; Andersson, Staffan

    2017-01-01

    Background: University physics students were engaged in open-ended thermodynamics laboratory activities with a focus on understanding a chosen phenomenon or the principle of laboratory apparatus, such as thermal radiation and a heat pump. Students had access to handheld infrared (IR) cameras for their investigations. Purpose: The purpose of the…

  3. Administering Examinations for Quality Control in Distance Education: The National Open University of Nigeria Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ibara, E. C.

    2008-01-01

    Examination is an important tool for evaluating students learning outcome and require proper planning to meet high standards. This paper therefore examines the processes leading to administration of face-to-face examination in distance education with focus on the National Open University of Nigeria. It highlighted some procedures such as test…

  4. Benchmarking Course Completion Rates: A Method with an Example from the British Columbia Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Giguere, Louis

    2007-01-01

    We report findings on the methodological phase of a research project designed to assess the progress of the British Columbia Open University (BCOU) toward a 1997 goal of increasing distance education course completion rates to British Columbia system levels by adapting existing "off-line" courses for online delivery (a virtualization…

  5. Implications of the University of South Africa's (UNISA) Shift to Open Distance e-Learning on Teacher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ngubane-Mokiwa, Sindile A.

    2017-01-01

    This conceptual and exploratory article seeks to explore the implications of the University of South Africa's (Unisa) shift from open distance learning (ODL) to open distance e-learning (ODeL) on Teacher Education. In addition, the article problematizes the shift as a policy imperative. Unisa's mandate to provide teacher education opportunities to…

  6. Cultivating Textbook Alternatives from the Ground Up: One Public University's Sustainable Model for Open and Alternative Educational Resource Proliferation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lashley, Jonathan; Cummings-Sauls, Rebel; Bennett, Andrew B.; Lindshield, Brian L.

    2017-01-01

    This note from the field reviews the sustainability of an institution-wide program for adopting and adapting open and alternative educational resources (OAER) at Kansas State University (K-State). Developed in consult of open textbook initiatives at other institutions and modified around the needs and expectations of K-State students and faculty,…

  7. The Role of Postgraduate Students in Co-Authoring Open Educational Resources to Promote Social Inclusion: A Case Study at the University of Cape Town

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hodgkinson-Williams, Cheryl; Paskevicius, Michael

    2012-01-01

    Like many universities worldwide, the University of Cape Town (UCT) in South Africa has joined the open educational resources (OER) movement, making a selection of teaching and learning materials available through its OER directory, UCT OpenContent. However, persuading and then supporting busy academics to share their teaching materials as OER…

  8. A Universal Definition of Life: Autonomy and Open-Ended Evolution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ruiz-Mirazo, Kepa; Peretó, Juli; Moreno, Alvaro

    2004-06-01

    Life is a complex phenomenon that not only requires individual self-producing and self-sustaining systems but also a historical-collective organization of those individual systems, which brings about characteristic evolutionary dynamics. On these lines, we propose to define universally living beings as autonomous systems with open-ended evolution capacities, and we claim that all such systems must have a semi-permeable active boundary (membrane), an energy transduction apparatus (set of energy currencies) and, at least, two types of functionally interdependent macromolecular components (catalysts and records). The latter is required to articulate a `phenotype-genotype' decoupling that leads to a scenario where the global network of autonomous systems allows for an open-ended increase in the complexity of the individual agents. Thus, the basic-individual organization of biological systems depends critically on being instructed by patterns (informational records) whose generation and reliable transmission cannot be explained but take into account the complete historical network of relationships among those systems. We conclude that a proper definition of life should consider both levels, individual and collective: living systems cannot be fully constituted without being part of the evolutionary process of a whole ecosystem. Finally, we also discuss a few practical implications of the definition for different programs of research.

  9. New Openings in University-Industry Cooperation: Aalto University as the Forerunner of European University Reform

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Markkula, Markku; Lappalainen, Pia

    2009-01-01

    The Innovation University (IU)--to be called the Aalto University after Alvav Aalto, a famous Finnish architect and MIT professor--is a new university which will be created through a merger of three existing universities: the Helsinki University of Technology (TKK), the Helsinki School of Economics (HSE) and the University of Art and Design…

  10. Establishing Influential Decision Making Factors for University Library Opening Hours: An Exploratory UK Regional Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ravenwood, Clare; Stephens, Derek; Walton, Graham

    2015-01-01

    Many factors and pressures affect decisions made in UK university libraries on opening hours especially 24/7. This article reports on a project to examine the decision-making process, influential factors, and stakeholders. A workshop for senior library managers in the East Midlands was held to gather data and share experiences. From analysis of…

  11. Department Involvement in Instructional Materials Development for ODL Study at the Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tanyanyiwa, Vincent Itai; Mutambanengwe, Betty

    2015-01-01

    The teaching and designing of modules at Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) is the principal responsibility of a single body of teaching staff, although some authors and content reviewers could be sourced from elsewhere if they are not available in ZOU. This survey, through a case study, examines the involvement of lecturers and staff in the…

  12. Charting a Course through CORAL: Texas A&M University Libraries' Experience Implementing an Open-Source Electronic Resources Management System

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hartnett, Eric; Beh, Eugenia; Resnick, Taryn; Ugaz, Ana; Tabacaru, Simona

    2013-01-01

    In 2010, after two previous unsuccessful attempts at electronic resources management system (ERMS) implementation, Texas A&M University (TAMU) Libraries set out once again to find an ERMS that would fit its needs. After surveying the field, TAMU Libraries selected the University of Notre Dame Hesburgh Libraries-developed, open-source ERMS,…

  13. The Impact of "Virtualization" on Independent Study Course Completion Rates: The British Columbia Open University Experiment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Giguere, Louis

    2009-01-01

    In 1997 the British Columbia Open University (BCOU) adopted a virtualization strategy based primarily on twinning off-line independent study distance education courses (textbook-based with study guide and telephone and e-mail tutor support) with alternate online versions (textbook-based with integrated conferencing and communications provided…

  14. What Makes a MOOC? Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCSs) Compared to Mainstream Online University Courses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Johnston, Timothy C.

    2014-01-01

    A Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) is a model for delivering learning content online to any person who wants to take a course, with no limit on attendance. The MOOC industry is growing rapidly, fueled by students interested in free higher-education learning, and the universities and venture capitalists willing to fund the courses. This paper…

  15. The Impact of Sunshine/Open Meeting Laws on the Governing Boards of Public Colleges and Universities.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kaplowitz, Richard A.

    The provisions of "sunshine" or "open meeting" laws are discussed to assist governing boards and chief executive officers of public universities and colleges. These laws stipulate that the business of the public must be conducted in public. Topics include: the legal constitution of a meeting, personnel matters, collective…

  16. Does On-Line Distance Higher Education Pay off for Adult Learners? The Case of the Open University of Catalonia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carnoy, Martin; Rabling, Brenda Jarillo; Castano-Munoz, Jonatan; Montoliu, Josep Maria Duart; Sancho-Vinuesa, Teresa

    2012-01-01

    The increasing opportunities created for adults by on-line distance universities raise important issues about the payoff to such education. This study uses a unique set of survey data gathered by the Open University of Catalonia (UOC) in 2009 to estimate the earnings gains of the 2000-2003 cohorts of UOC students in six programmes of study over an…

  17. Research on OpenStack of open source cloud computing in colleges and universities’ computer room

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Lei; Zhang, Dandan

    2017-06-01

    In recent years, the cloud computing technology has a rapid development, especially open source cloud computing. Open source cloud computing has attracted a large number of user groups by the advantages of open source and low cost, have now become a large-scale promotion and application. In this paper, firstly we briefly introduced the main functions and architecture of the open source cloud computing OpenStack tools, and then discussed deeply the core problems of computer labs in colleges and universities. Combining with this research, it is not that the specific application and deployment of university computer rooms with OpenStack tool. The experimental results show that the application of OpenStack tool can efficiently and conveniently deploy cloud of university computer room, and its performance is stable and the functional value is good.

  18. Teleconferencing for Distance Education and Training: Is the Open University Experience Typical? Optel Report No. 16.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bacsich, Paul D.

    This paper surveys the various teleconferencing trials in the Open University, and attempts to analyze why they have been relatively unsuccessful compared to other new media initiatives such as audio cassettes and computer assisted learning. The situation is placed in the context of British and European educational use of telecommunications in…

  19. Content Analysis of Research Projects Submitted by Undergraduate Students (2000-2009) at the Zimbabwe Open University: Implications for Quality Assessment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kangai, Caleb; Bukaliya, Richard; Musika, Farirai; Babra, Mapuranga

    2011-01-01

    One of the issues that have continued to attract the attention of Open and Distance Learning (ODL) educators, scholars and researchers at the Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) is the question of quality in the assessment of students' research work. This study was part of a series of studies, into issues of quality, currently being conducted at the…

  20. Assessing Learners' Satisfication towards Support Services Delivery in National Open University Nigeria: Implications for Counselling Services

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Okopi, Fidel; Ofole, Ndidi

    2013-01-01

    This study aims at determining the level of students' satisfaction of learner support services in the study centres of NOUN--National Open University of Nigeria and whether the support services offered at the study centres have significant influence on the level of students' satisfaction. A descriptive survey of ex-post facto research design was…

  1. The University as an Open Laboratory

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Birx, Donald L.; Ford, Ralph M.; Payne, Carrie A.

    2013-01-01

    Colleges and universities are two of the most formidable resources a country has to reinvent and grow its economy. This is the second of two papers that outlines a process of building and strengthening research universities that enhances regional technology development and facilitates flexible networks of collaboration and resource sharing. In the…

  2. Openly Published Environmental Sensing (OPEnS) | Advancing Open-Source Research, Instrumentation, and Dissemination

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Udell, C.; Selker, J. S.

    2017-12-01

    The increasing availability and functionality of Open-Source software and hardware along with 3D printing, low-cost electronics, and proliferation of open-access resources for learning rapid prototyping are contributing to fundamental transformations and new technologies in environmental sensing. These tools invite reevaluation of time-tested methodologies and devices toward more efficient, reusable, and inexpensive alternatives. Building upon Open-Source design facilitates community engagement and invites a Do-It-Together (DIT) collaborative framework for research where solutions to complex problems may be crowd-sourced. However, barriers persist that prevent researchers from taking advantage of the capabilities afforded by open-source software, hardware, and rapid prototyping. Some of these include: requisite technical skillsets, knowledge of equipment capabilities, identifying inexpensive sources for materials, money, space, and time. A university MAKER space staffed by engineering students to assist researchers is one proposed solution to overcome many of these obstacles. This presentation investigates the unique capabilities the USDA-funded Openly Published Environmental Sensing (OPEnS) Lab affords researchers, within Oregon State and internationally, and the unique functions these types of initiatives support at the intersection of MAKER spaces, Open-Source academic research, and open-access dissemination.

  3. Motivations for Older Adults' Participation in Distance Education: A Study at the National Open University of Taiwan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mulenga, Derek; Liang, Jr-Shiuan

    2008-01-01

    This study investigated the factor structure of motivational constructs as expressed by older adult learners and examined how these constructs correlated with selected socio-demographic characteristics at the National Open University of Taiwan (NOUT). Results were based on the responses of 371 elders to the 32-item Reasons for Participation Scale…

  4. Ten Years of Open Practice: A Reflection on the Impact of OpenLearn

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Law, Patrina; Jelfs, Anne

    2016-01-01

    The Open University (OU) makes a proportion of all its taught modules available to the public via OpenLearn each year. This process involves the modification, of module excerpts, showcasing subject matter and teaching approach. This activity serves both the University's social and business missions through the delivery of free courses to the…

  5. Exploring Strategies of Assessment and Results in the Spanish Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia and the United Kingdom Open University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    James, Arthur

    The strategies of student evaluation and the patterns of results are compared for The Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia (UNED) in Spain and The Open University of The United Kingdom. Both universities operate a system of undergraduate subject credits leading to a degree, but the length of the courses of the two systems differ. UNED…

  6. Open Access, Open Source and Digital Libraries: A Current Trend in University Libraries around the World

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Krishnamurthy, M.

    2008-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe the open access and open source movement in the digital library world. Design/methodology/approach: A review of key developments in the open access and open source movement is provided. Findings: Open source software and open access to research findings are of great use to scholars in developing…

  7. Dependence of global radiation on cloudiness and surface albedo in Tartu, Estonia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tooming, H.

    The dependence of global and diffuse radiation on surface albedo due to multiple reflection of radiation between the surface and the atmosphere (base of clouds) is found on the basis of data obtained at the Tartu-Tõravere Actinometric Station over the period 1955-2000. It is found that the monthly totals of global radiation increase by up to 1.38-1.88 times, particularly in the winter half-year between November and March, when snow cover albedo may be high. A semi-empirical formula is derived for calculating with sufficient accuracy the monthly totals of global radiation, considering the amount of cloudiness and the surface albedo. In the time series of the monthly total by global radiation a downward trend occurs in winter months. A decrease in global radiation by up to 20% in the past 46 years can be explained primarily by a relatively high negative trend in the snow cover duration and surface albedo (up to -0.24). As a result, days are growing darker, a new phenomenon associated with climate change, which undoubtedly affects human mood to some extent.

  8. One-year outcome after first-ever stroke according to stroke subtype, severity, risk factors and pre-stroke treatment. A population-based study from Tartu, Estonia.

    PubMed

    Vibo, R; Kõrv, J; Roose, M

    2007-04-01

    The aim of the current study was to evaluate the outcome at 1 year following a first-ever stroke based on a population-based registry from 2001 to 2003 in Tartu, Estonia. The outcome of first-ever stroke was assessed in 433 patients by stroke risk factors, demographic data and stroke severity at onset using the Barthel Index (BI) score and the modified Rankin Score (mRS) at seventh day, 6 months and 1 year. Female sex, older age, blood glucose value >10 mmol/l on admission and more severe stroke on admission were the best predictors of dependency 1 year following the first-ever stroke. At 1 year, the percentage of functionally dependent patients was 20% and the survival rate was 56%. The use of antihypertensive/antithrombotic medication prior to stroke did not significantly affect the outcome. The survival rate of stroke patients in Tartu is lower compared with other studied populations. The outcome of stroke was mainly determined by the initial severity of stroke and by elevated blood glucose value on admission. Patients with untreated hypertension had more severe stroke and trend for unfavourable outcome compared with those who were on treatment.

  9. Biotechnology and Open University Science.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Grobstein, Clifford

    1985-01-01

    Discusses whether biotechnology commercial application will significantly inhibit the free flow of information traditional in academic environments. Background factors, crux of the concern, assessment, and current options are given. Although little evidence that industry-university collaboration has impaired academic molecular genetics exists,…

  10. Open Access Alternatives

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tenopir, Carol

    2004-01-01

    Open access publishing is a hot topic today. But open access publishing can have many different definitions, and pros and cons vary with the definitions. Open access publishing is especially attractive to companies and small colleges or universities that are likely to have many more readers than authors. A downside is that a membership fee sounds…

  11. The Best of Two Open Worlds at the National Open University of Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Agbu, Jane-frances Obiageli; Mulder, Fred; de Vries, Fred; Tenebe, Vincent; Caine, Abel

    2016-01-01

    It will be wise for educational institutions, from primary to tertiary level, globally, to reflect on their position and profile with respect to the new concepts of Open Educational Resources (OER) and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Responses will be diverse of course but the potential is so manifest that many institutions probably will…

  12. A Balanced Scorecard for Open Innovation: Measuring the Impact of Industry-University Collaboration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Flores, Myrna; Al-Ashaab, Ahmed; Magyar, Andrea

    The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) can be considered as a strategic measurement tool. Since its first publication by Norton and Kaplan in the early 1990’s, many companies have applied it to measure four key aspects of their organisations’ performance: Financial, Customer, Internal Business Process, Learning and Growth. Although it is widely used in the business arena, this original BSC was not developed to assess the impact of collaborative research projects under an open innovation strategy, where the outputs of research and development (R&D) developed by collaborative projects undertaken by industry and universities should be measured in a different way. In fact, many companies are losing important opportunities to spur their R&D results by not being able to quantify the results of such collaborations. Therefore, this paper will propose a Scorecard to measure the outcomes of collaborative research. It is important to recall that this scorecard has been developed during a collaborative research project by CEMEX Research Group AG (Switzerland) and Cranfield University (UK). During such project, a survey was developed to carry out eleven face-to-face interviews in a sample of ten companies in UK, which provided important inputs to design such strategic scorecard. It was confirmed that a collaborative balanced scorecard is a very useful tool to measure, track and improve the impact of conducting collaborative projects with universities.

  13. Access under Siege: Are the Gains of Open Education Keeping Pace with the Growing Barriers to University Access?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Olcott, Don, Jr.

    2013-01-01

    Traditional and affordable access to a university education is under siege from all sides. National realpolitiks and global economic downturns have driven open education into the mainstream to stand against educational elitism, the growing digital divide, and to support the core values that give education its fundamental credence as a human right.…

  14. Open pelvic fractures: the University of Tennessee Medical Center at Knoxville experience over ten years.

    PubMed

    Black, Emily Anne; Lawson, Christy M; Smith, Scott; Daley, Brian J

    2011-01-01

    Open fractures of the pelvis remain a devastating injury with a high mortality and morbidity. Such injuries require an aggressive treatment plan and the coordination of trauma and orthopaedic surgeons to achieve the best outcomes. We report our experience at the University of Tennessee Medical Center at Knoxville with open pelvic fractures over the last ten years. After IRB and institutional approval, we reviewed patients admitted with a diagnosis of open fracture of the pelvis from 1999 to 2009. Demographic and admission data were recorded in the trauma registry (TRACS) of the Level I Trauma Center, serving the 1.2 million people living in the regions of east Tennessee, western North Carolina and southeastern Kentucky. Data on fractures were obtained from review of the medical records and radiographs within the chart. There were 3053 pelvic fractures from January 1999 to December 2009. There were 231 deaths in this group (6%) and ages ranged from 18 to 89 years old and Injury Severity Scores ranged from 4 to 75, with a mean of 18.3. Seventy five percent of patients were able to be discharged home. Fifty-two fractures were open. There were 43 men and the mean age was 39 years old. Average ISS was 23 and ranged from 5 to 50. There were 10 deaths (19%) and eight patients underwent angioembolization for control of bleeding (3 deaths). Motorcycle crashes were the most frequent cause of an open fracture, with lateral compression injuries representing 71%. A defined algorithm for fracture management has been in place and employed to assure adequate resuscitation and fracture care and is presented. Open pelvic fractures are usually the result of a high energy transfer, and convey a high morbidity and mortality. A defined resuscitation and fixation strategy improves outcome from historical reports. Injuries from penetrating mechanisms are associated with less morbidity and lower mortality.

  15. A University of the Air

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stanistreet, Paul

    2009-01-01

    The term "open university" was coined by that visionary "seedsman" of reformist ideas Michael Young in an article for a 1962 number of "Where?" magazine. He proposed an "open university" to prepare people for external degrees at London University, with three key functions: (1) to organise new and better…

  16. International University Will Open in North Korea

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McNeill, David

    2007-01-01

    This article reports that construction is nearing completion on Pyongyang University of Science and Technology in North Korea, in which academics from around the world will teach the best of the country's graduate students. This will be North Korea's first international university and will let the world know that the capacity of their scientists…

  17. Open Source Vision

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Villano, Matt

    2006-01-01

    Increasingly, colleges and universities are turning to open source as a way to meet their technology infrastructure and application needs. Open source has changed life for visionary CIOs and their campus communities nationwide. The author discusses what these technologists see as the benefits--and the considerations.

  18. The Use of Facebook to Build a Community for Distance Learning Students: A Case Study from the Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Callaghan, George; Fribbance, Ian

    2016-01-01

    Social media platforms such as Facebook are commonplace throughout society. However, within higher education institutions such networking environments are still in the developmental stage. This paper describes and discusses case study data from the Open University's Faculty of Social Science Facebook page. It starts by giving an overview of the…

  19. A Study of Older Adult Students' Satisfaction with Web-Based Distance Learning at the National Open University of Taiwan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chen, Ho-Yuan

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between older learners' demographic characteristics and their satisfaction with distance learning in the Web-based environment at National Open University in Taiwan (NOUT). Increases in the older adult population have had many impacts throughout societies. The major purpose of older…

  20. Students' Failure to Submit Research Projects on Time: A Case Study from Masvingo Regional Centre at Zimbabwe Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chabaya, Owence; Chiome, Chrispen; Chabaya, Raphinos A.

    2009-01-01

    The study sought to determine lecturers' and students' perceptions of factors contributing to students' failure to submit research projects on time in three departments of the Zimbabwe Open University. The study employed a descriptive survey design and was both quantitative and qualitative. The questionnaire used as a data-gathering instrument had…

  1. Comparisons in the Organisation, Methods, and Results of the Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia (Spain) and The Open University of The United Kingdom.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    James, Arthur

    The organization, methods, and outcomes of the distance education systems at the Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia (UNED) in Spain and The Open University of the United Kingdom are compared. The following topics are covered: higher education in Spain, UNED's ideology, student characteristics in both universities, organization,…

  2. The Open University of the United Kingdom. An Evaluation of an Innovative Experience in the Democratisation of Higher Education. DERG Papers Numer 6.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rumble, Greville

    This 10-section report on the activities of the Open University of the United Kingdom as an innovative institution with a concern for democratization of higher education begins with a discussion of the criteria for an innovative organization. The origins of the University and the intentions of its early planners are then discussed, followed by a…

  3. Higher Education System and the "Open" Knowledge Transfer: A View from Perception of Senior Managers at University Knowledge Transfer Offices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sharifi, Hossein; Liu, Weisheng; Ismail, Hossam S.

    2014-01-01

    Higher education institutions (HEIs) have become increasingly entrepreneurial. Such a shift is highly dependent on the managers of university knowledge transfer offices whose perceptions can be critical in this transformation. This study examines such senior managers' perceptions concerning the "open" paradigm in relation with the…

  4. First Stages of Adult Students' Relationship to Scientific Knowing and Research in the Open University's Web-Based Methodology Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Isosomppi, Leena; Maunula, Minna

    2016-01-01

    The adult students who participate in the web-based studies of the open university have in many ways heterogeneous starting points for studying and learning, for example, the educational backgrounds, the acquired work experience, the general academic skills and the objectives of the future can vary considerably. The adult students striving from…

  5. Making Sense of Learner and Learning Big Data: Reviewing Five Years of Data Wrangling at the Open University UK

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rienties, Bart; Cross, Simon; Marsh, Vicky; Ullmann, Thomas

    2017-01-01

    Most distance learning institutions collect vast amounts of learning data. Making sense of this 'Big Data' can be a challenge, in particular when data are stored at different data warehouses and require advanced statistical skills to interpret complex patterns of data. As a leading institute on learning analytics, the Open University UK instigated…

  6. Broadcasting environmental knowledge: Open University & BBC collaborations serving massive global audiences

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Brandon, M. A.; Smith, J.; Garrow, K. H.; Law, A.

    2013-12-01

    The UK Open University has a long history of working with broadcast media - indeed before it first formed over 40 years ago it was proposed to be a "University of the Air ". Originally the University made its own television programmes that were directly connected with teaching. They were usually recordings of academics giving lectures that were broadcast late at night. Over recent times we have moved into developing co-productions with mainstream broadcast media specifically designed to be of general educational interest to UK and worldwide audiences. These include both high impact one-off programmes such as Are we changing planet Earth?, multiple international award winning series such as Frozen Planet, and World Service radio such as Earth Reporters. These programmes have had global audiences; in some cases of tens of millions. Whilst we have only worked using clear scientific evidence and expertise, we have co-produced media which small sections of the general public could consider controversial. For example, in Are we changing planet Earth? the case was presented pre IPCC AR4 for anthropogenic climate change. The final episode of Frozen Planet "On thin ice" presented evidence of how the polar climate is changing and likely future global impacts. It created a large and occasionally hostile international media impact long before broadcast. This continued after broadcast in some media but we believe it stopped because the science presented was robust within the current literature. Based around broadcasting, we used a communication strategy based on our personal experience over the last decade along with our institutional experience going back 40 years. For example our outreach include social media, newspapers, radio and podcasts to speak about underpinning science. We use Twitter during actual broadcasts to circulate links to journal articles and provide context around the science presented on screen. Backed up by a large public outreach campaign at science fairs

  7. OPEN PELVIC FRACTURES: THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE MEDICAL CENTER AT KNOXVILLE EXPERIENCE OVER TEN YEARS

    PubMed Central

    Black, Emily Anne; Lawson, Christy M; Smith, Scott; Daley, Brian J

    2011-01-01

    Introduction Open fractures of the pelvis remain a devastating injury with a high mortality and morbidity. Such injuries require an aggressive treatment plan and the coordination of trauma and orthopaedic surgeons to achieve the best outcomes. We report our experience at the University of Tennessee Medical Center at Knoxville with open pelvic fractures over the last ten years. Methods After IRB and institutional approval, we reviewed patients admitted with a diagnosis of open fracture of the pelvis from 1999 to 2009. Demographic and admission data were recorded in the trauma registry (TRACS) of the Level I Trauma Center, serving the 1.2 million people living in the regions of east Tennessee, western North Carolina and southeastern Kentucky. Data on fractures were obtained from review of the medical records and radiographs within the chart Results There were 3053 pelvic fractures from January 1999 to December 2009. There were 231 deaths in this group (6%) and ages ranged from 18 to 89 years old and Injury Severity Scores ranged from 4 to 75, with a mean of 18.3. Seventy five percent of patients were able to be discharged home. Fifty-two fractures were open. There were 43 men and the mean age was 39 years old. Average ISS was 23 and ranged from 5 to 50. There were 10 deaths (19%) and eight patients underwent an-gioembolization for control of bleeding (3 deaths). Motorcycle crashes were the most frequent cause of an open fracture, with lateral compression injuries representing 71%. A defined algorithm for fracture management has been in place and employed to assure adequate resuscitation and fracture care and is presented. Discussion Open pelvic fractures are usually the result of a high energy transfer, and convey a high morbidity and mortality. A defined resuscitation and fixation strategy improves outcome from historical reports. Injuries from penetrating mechanisms are associated with less morbidity and lower mortality. PMID:22096441

  8. The Open University System of Brazil: A Study of Learner Support Facilities in the Northern, North-Eastern and Southern Regions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Da Cruz Duran, Maria Renata; Da Costa, Celso José; Amiel, Tel

    2014-01-01

    Since June 2011, research on the Open University System of Brazil's (UAB's) official evaluation processes relating to learner support facilities has been carried out by the Teachers' Training, New Information, Communication and Technologies research group, which is linked to the Laboratory of New Technologies for Teaching at Fluminense Federal…

  9. Assessment in Education: A Case for Quality and Standards within the Context of Open and Distance Education--A Case Study of One Zimbabwean University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Samkange, Wellington

    2012-01-01

    A study was carried out to assess the assessment procedures used at one Open and Distance Learning (ODL) institution in Zimbabwe. The study focused on the views and perceptions of current and former students of the university. The study also analyzed some documents on assessment procedures at the university. The study used the qualitative…

  10. University Museums of Ukraine: the revival stage

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kazantseva, Liliya

    Young Section UMAC in Ukraine, which was created only in 2011, set a goal to change societal attitudes towards university collections for their conservation. To do this we are exploring the world experience to overcome the problems of volume, typology and current savings of academic heritage, the basic needs of museums. In addition, we pay much attention to promotion of university museums and their educational work, looking for partners for interdisciplinary research in the collections. By the beginning of 2012 a total of 495 museums and collections housed in 147 educational establishments in Ukraine had been mapped. Just 96 of these also cover the history of the educational establishments, and only 180 have their own websites. The museums are also trying to raise the level of education of employees who are dealing with collections. Unfortunately, because we are confronted with mistrust, we have to unite ourselves as many preserved collections have the sad experience from the past with the collections of regional museums being scattered and most valuable exhibits removed from regional museums to the central museums. We hope that we will overcome temporary difficulties in the future and the collections of unique national university will become more accessible, understandable and useful not only to the Ukrainian community, but also the world community. It is important for a museum or collection to be widely known and frequented and influential because a combination of these factors makes its status more secure. And we have much to be proud of - the history of education in Ukraine dates back over a thousand years. Contact with Estonia and the University of Tartu dates back at least two hundred years.

  11. The low-frequency array (LOFAR): opening a new window on the universe

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kassim, N. E.; Lazio, T. J. W.; Ray, P. S.; Crane, P. C.; Hicks, B. C.; Stewart, K. P.; Cohen, A. S.; Lane, W. M.

    2004-12-01

    We present an overview of the low-frequency array (LOFAR) that will open a window on one of the last and most poorly explored regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. LOFAR will be a large (baselines up to 400 km), low-frequency (ν˜10-240MHz) aperture synthesis array with large collecting area ( ˜106m2 at 15MHz) and high resolution ( ˜1.5″ at 100 MHz), and will provide sub-mJy sensitivity across much of its operating range. LOFAR will be a powerful instrument for solar system and planetary science applications as reviewed by papers in this monogram. Key astrophysical science drivers include acceleration, turbulence, and propagation in the galactic interstellar medium, exploring the high red-shift universe and transient phenomena, as well as searching for the red-shifted signature of neutral hydrogen from the cosmologically important epoch of re-ionization.

  12. Enacs Survey of Southern Galaxies Indicates Open Universe

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    1996-02-01

    New Light on Rich Clusters of Galaxies and their Formation History In the context of a comprehensive Key-Programme , carried out with telescopes at the ESO La Silla Observatory, a team of European astronomers [1]. has recently obtained radial velocities for more than 5600 galaxies in about 100 rich clusters of galaxies. With this programme the amount of information about the motions of galaxies (the kinematical data) in such clusters has almost been doubled. This has allowed the team to study the distribution of the cluster masses, and also the dynamical state of clusters in new and interesting ways. An important result of this programme is that the derived masses of the investigated clusters of galaxies indicate that the mean density of the Universe is insufficient to halt the current expansion; we may therefore be living in an open Universe that will expand forever. Clusters of galaxies as tracers of large-scale structure About 40 years ago, American astronomer George Abell, working at the Palomar Observatory in California, was the first to perform a systematic study of rich clusters of galaxies , that is clusters with particularly many member galaxies located within a relatively restricted region in the sky. He identified several thousands of such clusters, and he numbered and described them; they are now known to astronomers as `Abell clusters'. More than twenty years earlier, Swiss-American astronomer Fritz Zwicky, using the famous 100-inch Mount Wilson telescope above Los Angeles, concluded that the total mass of a rich cluster of galaxies is probably much larger than the combined mass of the individual galaxies we can observe in it. This phenomenon is now known as the `Missing Dark Matter' , and many attempts have since been made to understand its true nature. Although the existence of this Dark Matter is generally accepted, it has been very difficult to prove its existence in a direct way. Rich clusters have several components: in addition to several

  13. On Building a Web-Based University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Constantinescu, Dana; Stefansson, Gunnar

    2010-01-01

    This paper describes some of the principles for building a freely available web-based university with open content. The "tutor-web" is an international project for web-assisted education, including such free and open access. This project was initiated by the University of Iceland in partnership with many universities around the world,…

  14. Establishing the Role and Impact of Academic Librarians in Supporting Open Research: A Case Study at Leeds Beckett University, UK

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bower, Kirsty; Sheppard, Nick; Bayjoo, Jennifer; Pease, Adele

    2017-01-01

    This practical article presents findings of a small scale study undertaken at a large U.K. University. The purpose of the study was to encourage academic engagement with Open Access (OA) and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) mandate with the measurable impact being increased engagement with the Repository and dissemination…

  15. Distance and E-Learning, Social Justice, and Development: The Relevance of Capability Approaches to the Mission of Open Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tait, Alan

    2013-01-01

    This article reviews the discourse of mission in large distance teaching and open universities, in order to analyse the theories of development and social justice that are claimed or may be inherent in them. It is suggested that in a number of cases the claims are unsupported or naive. The article goes on to set out the nature of Amartya…

  16. PWC Opens up

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Weinstein, Margery

    2011-01-01

    Coming up with the latest and greatest learning curriculum for employees year after year can be overwhelming--especially if one works for a small or mid-size company with minimal resources. Fortunately, there is a burgeoning trend that three-time No. 1 Top 125er PwC is helping to "open" up. In creating PwC Open University, the professional…

  17. Open Educational Partnerships and Collective Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Macintyre, Ronald

    2013-01-01

    At the Open University in Scotland "openness" is part of our sense of self; our engagement with Open Educational Resources and Practices (OER/OEP) seems obvious. In this paper we explore some of those obvious aspects and using our partnership with a third sector organisation explore some of the less apparent aspects of openness. In…

  18. Open Educational Resources: Enabling Universal Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Caswell, Tom; Henson, Shelley; Jensen, Marion; Wiley, David

    2008-01-01

    The role of distance education is shifting. Traditionally distance education was limited in the number of people served because of production, reproduction, and distribution costs. Today, while it still costs the university time and money to produce a course, technology has made it such that reproduction costs are almost non-existent. This shift…

  19. Open Access to Scientific Literature: An Assessment of Awareness Support and Usage among Academic Librarians at Historically Black Colleges and Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Evans, Marsha Ann Johnson

    2012-01-01

    Open Access (OA) to scholarly communications is a critical component in providing equitable admission to scholarly information and a key vehicle toward the achievement of global access to research in the knowledge building process. A standard and universally accepted process for guaranteeing OA permits complimentary access to knowledge, research…

  20. Using Satellite Classes to Optimise Access to and Participation in First-Year Business Management: A Case at an Open and Distance-Learning University in South Africa

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Swanepoel, Elana; De Beer, Andreas; Muller, Helene

    2009-01-01

    We investigated the effect of satellite classes as a component of blended learning, to enhance student performance of the Business Management I and Management I students at an open and distance-learning university. We discuss the evolution of distance education, the interactivities promoted by open and distance learning and the concept of blended…

  1. PREFACE: International Conference on Functional Materials and Nanotechnologies 2013 (FM&NT2013)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nõmmiste, Ergo; Kirm, Marco; Plank, Toomas

    2013-12-01

    The International Conference Functional Materials and Nanotechnologies (FM&NT - 2013) was held in Tartu, 21-24 April 2013 at the Dorpat Conference Centre. The conference was organised by Institute of Physics, University of Tartu. The FM&NT conference series was started in 2006 by scientists from the Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Latvia. It is an annual conference bringing together researchers from the whole world. The warm and open atmosphere of this scientific conference has turned it into event where people from different fields meet under the common name of functional materials and nanotechnology. It is particularly important for early stage scientists who are looking for new knowledge and contact with people from various fields. Our Latvian colleagues with their success in internationalization made us neighbouring Estonians so envious that we could not withstand proposing that we host the conference in every second year in Estonia. Actually this is in a way the continuation of the idea of the famous Baltic seminars which took place over several decades during the last century. Due to political constraints these seminars were only opened to scientist of the former Eastern European countries, but which were extremely popular and attracted attendees from over the whole Soviet Union. Much fruitful cooperation started from the initial personal contacts of scientists at these seminars held twice per year, once in Latvia and the second time in Estonia. At the last FM&NT 2012 conference, the decision was made that Institute of Physics, University of Tartu would organise the event in Tartu in 2013. Along with traditional topics such as multifunctional materials, nanomaterials, materials for sustainable energy applications and theory, this conference focused on studies using synchrotron radiation and other novel light sources. The number of registered participants from 21 countries was nearly 300. During the three days of the conference 14 invited, 45

  2. The Road to Free and Open Educational Resources at the University of the Western Cape: A Personal and Institutional Journey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Keats, Derek

    2009-01-01

    Free and Open Educational Resources at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) are deeply rooted in our institutional culture, stemming from the role we played in the struggle for political freedom in South Africa. The successful development of a strategy has been influenced by this history, as well as the role of a champion in the main…

  3. The University as an Open System. Proceedings of the Annual Forum of European Association for Institutional Research (5th, Maastricht, The Netherlands, August 17-19, 1983).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Belanger, Charles H., Ed.

    The university as an open system is addressed in 13 papers and 12 abstracts of papers from the 1983 forum of the European Association for Institutional Research. Topics are as follows: program review, analysis of faculty outcomes and characteristics, manpower planning in Dutch universities, adult education in the United Kingdom, outside funding,…

  4. Opening our eyes to Global Health; a philosophy of universal values.

    PubMed

    Wass, Val

    2015-12-01

    Globalization is advancing at a pace. As we strive to introduce 'Global Health' into clinical curricula we risk fundamental misunderstandings unless we clearly define what we aim to achieve. Clinicians must be prepared for a life time of uncertainty, change and challenge. The fluctuating world arena will undoubtedly impact on their future work in ways we cannot predict. Population migration, climate change and shifts in cultural dominance are already at play. Global health risks being translated through the eyes of Western ideology as disease-based curricula focused paternalistically on 'helping' the developing world. We must not lack humility to open eyes to learning within the context of increasingly diverse environments and patient populations. Global health is as 'local' as it is 'international'. It should be viewed, I argue, as a philosophy based on the values and expectations found within ourselves and our communities. Responding to globalization lies not only in knowledge but embraces human rights, justice and, most importantly, self-awareness. Knowledge is more easily translated into curriculum objectives. We risk letting future clinicians and their patients down if we ignore the other universal values.

  5. The Role of Open Access and Open Educational Resources: A Distance Learning Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hatzipanagos, Stylianos; Gregson, Jon

    2015-01-01

    The paper explores the role of Open Access (in licensing, publishing and sharing research data) and Open Educational Resources within Distance Education, with a focus on the context of the University of London International Programmes. We report on a case study where data were gathered from librarians and programme directors relating to existing…

  6. Undergraduate Learners' Perceptions of Blended Learning and its Relationship with Some Demographic and Experiential Variables at the Arab Open University--Bahrain Branch

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Juma Shehab, Samya Ali

    2007-01-01

    This research focused on the undergraduate learners' perceptions of blended learning at the Arab Open University--Bahrain Branch (AOU-BH). It also focused on factors that influence learners' perceptions and examined the relationships between learners' perceptions and their particular demographic characteristics (age, gender, educational level,…

  7. Key Considerations of Community, Scalability, Supportability, Security, and Functionality in Selecting Open-Source Software in California Universities as Perceived by Technology Leaders

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Britton, Todd Alan

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the key considerations of community, scalability, supportability, security, and functionality for selecting open-source software in California universities as perceived by technology leaders. Methods: After a review of the cogent literature, the key conceptual framework categories were identified…

  8. Open Textbooks and Increased Student Access and Outcomes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Feldstein, Andrew; Martin, Mirta; Hudson, Amy; Warren, Kiara; Hilton, John, III; Wiley, David

    2012-01-01

    This study reports findings from a year-long pilot study during which 991 students in 9 core courses in the Virginia State University School of Business replaced traditional textbooks with openly licensed books and other digital content. The university made a deliberate decision to use open textbooks that were copyrighted under the Creative…

  9. Tutorials in the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) Open University System

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Castolo, Carmencita L.

    2016-01-01

    Tutorial is one of the student support services often provided by open and distance teaching institutions. These are regularly scheduled meetings between a tutor and his/here students which may include individual consultation sessions, either face-to-face or through telephone; a more formal "lecture format;" optimal participation in…

  10. Nurse-delivered universal point-of-care testing for HIV in an open-access returning traveller clinic.

    PubMed

    Herbert, R; Ashraf, A N; Yates, T A; Spriggs, K; Malinnag, M; Durward-Brown, E; Phillips, D; Mewse, E; Daniel, A; Armstrong, M; Kidd, I M; Waite, J; Wilks, P; Burns, F; Bailey, R; Brown, M

    2012-09-01

    Early diagnosis of HIV infection reduces morbidity and mortality associated with late presentation. Despite UK guidelines, the HIV testing rate has not increased. We have introduced universal HIV screening in an open-access returning traveller clinic. Data were prospectively recorded for all patients attending the open-access returning traveller clinic between August 2008 and December 2010. HIV testing was offered to all patients from May 2009; initially testing with laboratory samples (phase 1) and subsequently a point-of-care test (POCT) (phase 2). A total of 4965 patients attended the clinic; 1342 in phase 0, 792 in phase 1 and 2831 in phase 2. Testing rates for HIV increased significantly from 2% (38 of 1342) in phase 0 to 23.1% (183 of 792) in phase 1 and further increased to 44.5% (1261 of 2831) during phase 2 (P < 0.0001). Two new diagnoses of HIV-1 were identified in phase 1 (1.1% of tested); seven patients had a reactive POCT test in phase 2, of whom five (0.4% of those tested) were confirmed in a 4th generation assay. The patients with false reactive tests had a concurrent Plasmodium falciparum infection. Patients travelling to the Middle East and Europe were less likely to accept an HIV test with POCT. A nurse-delivered universal point-of-care HIV testing service has been successfully introduced and sustained in an acute medical clinic in a low-prevalence country. Caution is required in communicating reactive results in low-prevalence settings where there may be alternative diagnoses or a low population prevalence of HIV infection. © 2012 British HIV Association.

  11. Open Textbook Proof-of-Concept via Connexions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baker, Judy; Thierstein, Joel; Fletcher, Kathi; Kaur, Manpreet; Emmons, Jonathan

    2009-01-01

    To address the high cost of textbooks, Rice University's Connexions and the Community College Open Textbook Project (CCOTP) collaborated to develop a proof-of-concept free and open textbook. The proof-of-concept served to document a workflow process that would support adoption of open textbooks. Open textbooks provide faculty and students with a…

  12. LERU roadmap towards Open Access.

    PubMed

    Ayris, Paul; Björnshauge, Lars; Collier, Mel; Ferwerda, Eelco; Jacobs, Neil; Sinikara, Kaisa; Swan, Alma; de Bries, Saskia; van Wesenbeeck, Astrid

    2015-09-01

    Money which is not directly spent on research and education, even though it is largely taxpayers´ money. As Harvard University already denounced in 2012, many large journal publishers have rendered the situation "fiscally unsustainable and academically restrictive", with some journals costing as much as $40,000 per year (and publishers drawing profits of 35% or more). If one of the wealthiest universities in the world can no longer afford it, who can? It is easy to picture the struggle of European universities with tighter budgets. In addition to subscription costs, academic research funding is also largely affected by "Article Processing Charges" (APC), which come at an additional cost of €2000/article, on average, when making individual articles Gold Open Access. Some publishers are in this way even being paid twice for the same content ("double dipping"). In the era of Open Science, Open Access to publications is one of the cornerstones of the new research paradigm and business models must support this transition. It should be one of the principal objectives of Commissioner Carlos Moedas and the Dutch EU Presidency (January-June 2016) to ensure that this transition happens. Further developing the EU´s leadership in research and innovation largely depends on it. With this statement "Moving Forwards on Open Access", LERU calls upon all universities, research institutes, research funders and researchers to sign this statement and give a clear signal towards the European Commission and the Dutch EU Presidency. Copyright© by the Spanish Society for Microbiology and Institute for Catalan Studies.

  13. The Scholarly Communication Process within the University Research Corridor (Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, and Wayne State University): A Case Study in Cooperation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Utter, Timothy; Holley, Robert P.

    2009-01-01

    The growth of open access publishing, the development of institutional repositories, and the availability of millions of digitized monographs and journals are rapidly changing scholarly communication. This case study looks at the current and possible uses of these tools by Michigan's three largest universities: Michigan State University, the…

  14. openBIS ELN-LIMS: an open-source database for academic laboratories.

    PubMed

    Barillari, Caterina; Ottoz, Diana S M; Fuentes-Serna, Juan Mariano; Ramakrishnan, Chandrasekhar; Rinn, Bernd; Rudolf, Fabian

    2016-02-15

    The open-source platform openBIS (open Biology Information System) offers an Electronic Laboratory Notebook and a Laboratory Information Management System (ELN-LIMS) solution suitable for the academic life science laboratories. openBIS ELN-LIMS allows researchers to efficiently document their work, to describe materials and methods and to collect raw and analyzed data. The system comes with a user-friendly web interface where data can be added, edited, browsed and searched. The openBIS software, a user guide and a demo instance are available at https://openbis-eln-lims.ethz.ch. The demo instance contains some data from our laboratory as an example to demonstrate the possibilities of the ELN-LIMS (Ottoz et al., 2014). For rapid local testing, a VirtualBox image of the ELN-LIMS is also available. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press.

  15. Open Source Software Projects Needing Security Investments

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-06-19

    modtls, BouncyCastle, gpg, otr, axolotl. 7. Static analyzers: Clang, Frama-C. 8. Nginx. 9. OpenVPN . It was noted that the funding model may be similar...to OpenSSL, where consulting funds the company. It was also noted that OpenVPN needs to correctly use OpenSSL in order to be secure, so focusing on...Dovecot 4. Other high-impact network services: OpenSSH, OpenVPN , BIND, ISC DHCP, University of Delaware NTPD 5. Core infrastructure data parsers

  16. An Open Singularity-Free Cosmological Model with Inflation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Karaca, Koray; Bayin, Selçuk

    In the light of recent observations which point to an open universe (Ω0 < 1), we construct an open singularity-free cosmological model by reconsidering a model originally constructed for a closed universe. Our model starts from a nonsingular state called prematter, governed by an inflationary equation of state P = (γp - 1)ρ where γp (~= 10-3) is a small positive parameter representing the initial vacuum dominance of the universe. Unlike the closed models universe cannot be initially static hence, starts with an initial expansion rate represented by the initial value of the Hubble constant H(0). Therefore, our model is a two-parameter universe model (γp,H(0)). Comparing the predictions of this model for the present properties of the universe with the recent observational results, we argue that the model constructed in this work could be used as a realistic universe model.

  17. Institutional Change for Improving Accessibility in the Design and Delivery of Distance Learning--The Role of Faculty Accessibility Specialists at the Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Slater, Rachel; Pearson, Victoria K.; Warren, James P.; Forbes, Tina

    2015-01-01

    The Open University (OU) has an established infrastructure for supporting disabled students. Historically, the thrust of this has focused on providing accessible adjustments post-production. In 2012, the OU implemented securing greater accessibility (SeGA) to raise awareness and bring about an institutional change to curriculum design so that the…

  18. Sharing Lessons-Learned on Effective Open Data, Open-Source Practices from OpenAQ, a Global Open Air Quality Community.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hasenkopf, C. A.

    2017-12-01

    Increasingly, open data, open-source projects are unearthing rich datasets and tools, previously impossible for more traditional avenues to generate. These projects are possible, in part, because of the emergence of online collaborative and code-sharing tools, decreasing costs of cloud-based services to fetch, store, and serve data, and increasing interest of individuals to contribute their time and skills to 'open projects.' While such projects have generated palpable enthusiasm from many sectors, many of these projects face uncharted paths for sustainability, visibility, and acceptance. Our project, OpenAQ, is an example of an open-source, open data community that is currently forging its own uncharted path. OpenAQ is an open air quality data platform that aggregates and universally formats government and research-grade air quality data from 50 countries across the world. To date, we make available more than 76 million air quality (PM2.5, PM10, SO2, NO2, O3, CO and black carbon) data points through an open Application Programming Interface (API) and a user-customizable download interface at https://openaq.org. The goal of the platform is to enable an ecosystem of users to advance air pollution efforts from science to policy to the private sector. The platform is also an open-source project (https://github.com/openaq) and has only been made possible through the coding and data contributions of individuals around the world. In our first two years of existence, we have seen requests for data to our API skyrocket to more than 6 million datapoints per month, and use-cases as varied as ingesting data aggregated from our system into real-time models of wildfires to building open-source statistical packages (e.g. ropenaq and py-openaq) on top of the platform to creating public-friendly apps and chatbots. We will share a whirl-wind trip through our evolution and the many lessons learned so far related to platform structure, community engagement, organizational model type

  19. "It's Not Their Job to Share Content": A Case Study of the Role of Senior Students in Adapting Teaching Materials as Open Educational Resources at the University of Cape Town

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hodgkinson-Williams, Cheryl; Paskevicius, Michael

    2013-01-01

    Inspired by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's landmark decision to make its teaching and learning materials freely available to the public as OpenCourseWare (OCW), many other higher education institutions have followed suit sharing resources now more generally referred to as Open Educational Resources (OER). The University of Cape Town…

  20. Attitudes and Perceptions of Students to Open and Distance Learning in Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ojo, David Olugbenga; Olakulehin, Felix Kayode

    2006-01-01

    In the West African Region of Africa, the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) is the first full fledged university that operates in an exclusively open and distance learning (ODL) mode of education. NOUN focuses mainly on open and distance teaching and learning system, and delivers its courses materials via print in conjunction with…

  1. Big Five Personality Factors and Facets as Predictors of Openness to Diversity.

    PubMed

    Han, Suejung; Pistole, M Carole

    2017-11-17

    Openness to diversity is a crucial component of cultural competence needed in the increasingly diversified modern society and a necessary condition for benefitting from diversity contacts and interventions (e.g., diversity training, cultural courses). Responding to the recent call for more research on personality and its relation to diversity outcomes, we examined the associations between Big Five personality (i.e., Openness to Experience, Agreeableness, Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Conscientiousness) higher order factors and lower order facets and universal-diverse orientation (i.e., open attitude of appreciating human universality and diversity; Miville et al., 1999 ). In the Study 1 (N = 338) web survey on Big Five factors, Openness to Experience and Agreeableness were associated with universal-diverse orientation significantly. In the Study 2 (N = 176) paper survey on both Big Five factors and facets, Openness to Experience, low Neuroticism, and Conscientiousness, and various lower-order facets of all the Big Five personality were associated with universal-diverse orientation significantly. Practical implications were suggested on how personality facets could be incorporated into current diversity interventions to enhance their effectiveness of promoting openness to diversity.

  2. Social capital and health in a national cohort of 82,482 Open University adults in Thailand.

    PubMed

    Yiengprugsawan, Vasoontara; Khamman, Suwanee; Seubsman, Sam-Ang; Lim, Lynette L-Y; Sleigh, Adrian C

    2011-05-01

    We report associations between social capital and health among 82,482 adults in a national cohort of Open University students residing throughout Thailand.After adjusting for covariates, poor self-assessed health was positively associated with low social trust (OR = 1.88; 95% CI 1.76-2.01) and low social support (OR = 1.79; 95% CI 1.63-1.95). In addition, poor psychological health was also associated with low social trust (OR = 2.52; 95% CI 2.41-2.64) and low social support (OR = 1.80; 95% CI 1.69-1.92). Females, elderly, unpartnered, low income, and urban residents were associated with poor health. Findings suggest ways to improve social capital and heath in Thailand and other middle-income countries.

  3. Teaching Chemistry at Indira Gandhi National Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fozdar, Bharat I.; Kumar, Lalita S.

    2006-01-01

    The Open Distance Learning (ODL) concept is fast becoming popular all over the world and it has a lot of relevance for a highly populated country like India. However, the most important aspect of this type of teaching-learning process is establishment of the credibility especially when the laboratory based science programmes are delivered from…

  4. Open Source 2010: Reflections on 2007

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wheeler, Brad

    2007-01-01

    Colleges and universities and commercial firms have demonstrated great progress in realizing the vision proffered for "Open Source 2007," and 2010 will mark even greater progress. Although much work remains in refining open source for higher education applications, the signals are now clear: the collaborative development of software can provide…

  5. Open Biomedical Engineering education in Africa.

    PubMed

    Ahluwalia, Arti; Atwine, Daniel; De Maria, Carmelo; Ibingira, Charles; Kipkorir, Emmauel; Kiros, Fasil; Madete, June; Mazzei, Daniele; Molyneux, Elisabeth; Moonga, Kando; Moshi, Mainen; Nzomo, Martin; Oduol, Vitalice; Okuonzi, John

    2015-08-01

    Despite the virtual revolution, the mainstream academic community in most countries remains largely ignorant of the potential of web-based teaching resources and of the expansion of open source software, hardware and rapid prototyping. In the context of Biomedical Engineering (BME), where human safety and wellbeing is paramount, a high level of supervision and quality control is required before open source concepts can be embraced by universities and integrated into the curriculum. In the meantime, students, more than their teachers, have become attuned to continuous streams of digital information, and teaching methods need to adapt rapidly by giving them the skills to filter meaningful information and by supporting collaboration and co-construction of knowledge using open, cloud and crowd based technology. In this paper we present our experience in bringing these concepts to university education in Africa, as a way of enabling rapid development and self-sufficiency in health care. We describe the three summer schools held in sub-Saharan Africa where both students and teachers embraced the philosophy of open BME education with enthusiasm, and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of opening education in this way in the developing and developed world.

  6. Bispectrum from open inflation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sugimura, Kazuyuki; Komatsu, Eiichiro

    2013-11-01

    We calculate the bispectrum of primordial curvature perturbations, ζ, generated during ``open inflation.'' Inflation occurs inside a bubble nucleated via quantum tunneling from the background false vacuum state. Our universe lives inside the bubble, which can be described as a Friedmann-Lemaȋtre-Robertson-Walker (FLRW) universe with negative spatial curvature, undergoing slow-roll inflation. We pay special attention to the issue of an initial state for quantum fluctuations. A ``vacuum state'' defined by a positive-frequency mode in de Sitter space charted by open coordinates is different from the Euclidean vacuum (which is equivalent to the so-called ``Bunch-Davies vacuum'' defined by a positive-frequency mode in de Sitter space charted by flat coordinates). Quantum tunneling (bubble nucleation) then modifies the initial state away from the original Euclidean vacuum. While most of the previous study on modifications of the initial quantum state introduces, by hand, an initial time at which the quantum state is modified as well as the form of the modification, an effective initial time naturally emerges and the form is fixed by quantum tunneling in open inflation models. Therefore, open inflation enables a self-consistent computation of the effect of a modified initial state on the bispectrum. We find a term which goes as langleζk1ζk2ζk3ranglepropto1/k12k34 in the so-called squeezed configurations, k3 << k1 ≈ k2, in agreement with the previous study on modifications of the initial state. The bispectrum in the exact folded limit, e.g., k1 = k2+k3, is also enhanced and remains finite. However, these terms are exponentially suppressed when the wavelength of ζ is smaller than the curvature radius of the universe. The leading-order bispectrum is equal to the usual one from single-field slow-roll inflation; the terms specific for open inflation arise only in the sub-leading order when the wavelength of ζ is smaller than the curvature radius.

  7. How OpenLearn Supports a Business Model for OER

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Law, Patrina; Perryman, Leigh-Anne

    2017-01-01

    In 2013, the Open University (OU) in the UK launched a large-scale survey of users of its OpenLearn platform for open educational resources. The survey results revealed that OpenLearn is functioning as a showcase and a taster for the OU, thereby offering informal learners a bridge to formal education. In 2014 and 2015, the OpenLearn survey was…

  8. A heterogeneous computing accelerated SCE-UA global optimization method using OpenMP, OpenCL, CUDA, and OpenACC.

    PubMed

    Kan, Guangyuan; He, Xiaoyan; Ding, Liuqian; Li, Jiren; Liang, Ke; Hong, Yang

    2017-10-01

    The shuffled complex evolution optimization developed at the University of Arizona (SCE-UA) has been successfully applied in various kinds of scientific and engineering optimization applications, such as hydrological model parameter calibration, for many years. The algorithm possesses good global optimality, convergence stability and robustness. However, benchmark and real-world applications reveal the poor computational efficiency of the SCE-UA. This research aims at the parallelization and acceleration of the SCE-UA method based on powerful heterogeneous computing technology. The parallel SCE-UA is implemented on Intel Xeon multi-core CPU (by using OpenMP and OpenCL) and NVIDIA Tesla many-core GPU (by using OpenCL, CUDA, and OpenACC). The serial and parallel SCE-UA were tested based on the Griewank benchmark function. Comparison results indicate the parallel SCE-UA significantly improves computational efficiency compared to the original serial version. The OpenCL implementation obtains the best overall acceleration results however, with the most complex source code. The parallel SCE-UA has bright prospects to be applied in real-world applications.

  9. EUA's Open Access Checklist for Universities: A Practical Guide on Implementation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Morais, Rita; Lourenço, Joana; Smith, John H.; Borrell-Damian, Lidia

    2015-01-01

    Open Access (OA) to research publications has received increased attention from the academic community, scientific publishers, research funding agencies and governments. This movement has been growing exponentially in recent years, both in terms of the increasing number of Open Access journals and the proliferation of policies on this topic. The…

  10. The Openness That Closes: Allan Bloom and the Contemporary University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Orwin, Clifford; Forbes, H. D.

    1991-01-01

    Discusses the contemporary university in Canada, focusing on Allan Bloom's "The Closing of the American Mind" which analyzes problems in today's education. The paper calls Bloom's book an unrivaled diagnosis of the impasse of the university, and it examines Bloom's relativistic principles. (SM)

  11. An Analysis of Challenges Faced by Students Learning in Virtual and Open Distance Learning System: A Case of Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dodo, Obediah; Makwerere, David; Parwada, Matavire; Parwada, Cosmas

    2013-01-01

    After realizing that the traditional modes of tuition in Zimbabwe's andragogy had either gone obsolete or over-crowded, BUSE ventured into a "virtualised" model of open and distance learning as a way of out-doing other competing universities. However, as the programme was rolled out, there came a myriad of challenges affecting the…

  12. How to Run a University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Evans, G. R.

    2006-01-01

    The Lambert Review of Business-University Collaboration proposed a business model for universities in 2003. Pressure to change university governance to make it match the business model remains strong, and it is being most actively applied to Oxford and Cambridge. The Oxford and Cambridge governance debates (which began in the 1990s) open up the…

  13. Examining Student Perception of an Open Statistics Book

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Illowsky, Barbara Sack; Hilton, John, III; Whiting, Justin; Ackerman, Jordan Dale

    2016-01-01

    The rise of Open Educational Resources (OER) research provides data that Open Textbooks and other forms of OER may be one cost saving approach for college and university students. Yet little research has been conducted around the attitudes and perceptions of the students using these Open Textbooks. This paper examines the perceptions that students…

  14. State-of-the-Art in Open Courseware Initiatives Worldwide

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vladoiu, Monica

    2011-01-01

    We survey here the state-of-the-art in open courseware initiatives worldwide. First, the MIT OpenCourseWare project is overviewed, as it has been the real starting point of the OCW movement. Usually, open courseware refers to a free and open digital publication of high quality university level educational materials that are organized as courses,…

  15. The member of the Academy H.P. Keres and the Relativity theory in Estonia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kuusk, P.; Muursepp, P. V.; Piir, Ivar

    1987-10-01

    The first popular lecture on the Einstein theory of relativity was given in Estonia already in 1914 by Jaan Sarv (1877-1954)[1],afterwards a professor of mathematics at the Tartu University. The first student courses on special relativity were delivered by Professor of Mathematics Juri Nuut (1892-1952): non-Euclidean geometry (1930), the mathematical theory of relativity (1932/1933),the Lorenz transformations (1937). His own research work concerned the Lobachevsky geometry [7] and its application to cosmology [6]. Harald Keres qraguated from the Tartu University in 1936. He gave the first student course on general relativity (based on books [11-14]in 1940.In 1942,he got the dr.phil.nat degree form the Tartu University for his theses "Raum und Zeit in der allgemeinen Relativitatstheorie". The degree of the doctor of mathematical and physical sciences was confirmed by VAK (the All-Union Higher Attestation Commission) in 1949.In this period, he got aquainted with the leading Soviet scientists working on General Relativity, prof.V.A.Fock,Prof.D.D.Ivanenko,Prof.A.Z.Petrov,and Prof.M.F.Shirokov. After World War two all-union university courses were introduced in Tartu State University. According to the curriculum of the course the special theory of relativity is a part of electrodynamics obligatory for all students of the department of Physics. From 1947 till 1985 this course was delivered by Prof.PaulKard(1914-1985).He also published a number of text-books on the subject [15-19]. The general theory of relativity was read by Prof.H.Keres in 1951-1960 and later by his pupils R.Lias and A.Koppel [20-23] as a special course for students specializing in theoretical Physics. The first PHD-s in general relativity were made by R.Lias [27](1954) and I.Piir [28] (1955). In 1961, Prof.H.Keres was elected a member of the Academy of Sciences of the Estonian S.S.R. He left the TArtu State University and began to work in the Institute of Physics as the head of the Department of

  16. The Future of the Universe.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Page, Don N.; McKee, M. Randall

    1983-01-01

    The future of the universe is discussed in terms of several models. These include the closed, open, and critical models of the universe. Black holes and speculation on what may happen to life in the cosmological models are also discussed. (JN)

  17. The Impact of ICT in Learning through Distance Education Programmes at Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU): Roles of ICT in Learning through Distance Education Programmes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mpofu, John; Chimhenga, Sylod; Mafa, Onias

    2013-01-01

    Zimbabwe Distance Open University is enrols students from both urban and rural settings. The majority of students living and working in rural areas have limited or no access to computers and electricity as a result the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in the learning process is very limited. Though government has realized the…

  18. Columbia University to Open Network of International Collaborative-Research Centers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Labi, Aisha

    2009-01-01

    In what university officials say represents a new approach to the internationalization of higher education, Columbia University is building a network of six to eight research institutes in capitals around the world. The Columbia Global Centers, as they are called, are designed for faculty members and students from various disciplines to…

  19. UNED OER Experience: From OCW to Open UNED

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ros, Salvador; Hernández, Roberto; Read, Timothy; Artacho, Miguel Rodriguez; Pastor, Rafael; Orueta, Gabriel Diaz

    2014-01-01

    Much has happened with open software, there has been a global attitude shift in the education community toward the open sharing of educational courses and resources. As the largest public distance education university in Spain, Universidad Nacional de Educacio´n a Distancia (UNED) has had a clear commitment to open learning and content since its…

  20. The Challenges Facing Corporate Universities in Dealing with Open Innovation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rhéaume, Louis; Gardoni, Mickaël

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: This paper aims to illustrate the quick rise in the popularity of corporate universities since the 1990s. Because knowledge management is becoming imperative to the survival and growth of firms in most industries, better management of corporate universities is becoming more and more critical. The purpose of this paper is to analyze three…

  1. A Survey of a Study on the Reasons Responsible for Student Dropout from the Bachelor of Science Programme at Indira Gandhi National Open University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fozdar, Bharat Inder; Kumar, Lalita S.; Kannan, S.

    2006-01-01

    This paper presents a report on students who decided to drop out of the BSc program offered by Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). This study was designed to determine the reasons leading to students' decisions to withdraw from the program. Identified and reported in this study are nine major reasons leading to drop out. Results of…

  2. A Changed Economy with Unchanged Universities? A Contribution to the University of the Future

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cunha, Maria Manuela; Putnik, Goran D.

    2007-01-01

    Individualised open and distance learning at the university continuing education and post-graduate education levels is a central issue of today. The advanced information and communication technologies together with several applications offer new perspectives, such as the so-called virtual university. Simultaneously, to gain market share, several…

  3. Previous Open Rotor Research in the US

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    VanZante, Dale

    2011-01-01

    Previous Open Rotor noise experience in the United States, current Open Rotor noise research in the United States and current NASA prediction methods activities were presented at a European Union (EU) X-Noise seminar. The invited attendees from EU industries, research establishments and universities discussed prospects for reducing Open Rotor noise and reviewed all technology programs, past and present, dedicated to Open Rotor engine concepts. This workshop was particularly timely because the Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) plans to involve Independent Experts in late 2011 in assessing the noise of future low-carbon technologies including the open rotor.

  4. Article processing charges for open access publication—the situation for research intensive universities in the USA and Canada

    PubMed Central

    Björk, Bo-Christer

    2016-01-01

    Background. Open access (OA) publishing via article processing charges (APCs) is growing as an alternative to subscription publishing. The Pay It Forward (PIF) Project is exploring the feasibility of transitioning from paying subscriptions to funding APCs for faculty at research intensive universities. Estimating of the cost of APCs for the journals authors at research intensive universities tend to publish is essential for the PIF project and similar initiatives. This paper presents our research into this question. Methods. We identified APC prices for publications by authors at the 4 research intensive United States (US) and Canadian universities involved in the study. We also obtained APC payment records from several Western European universities and funding agencies. Both data sets were merged with Web of Science (WoS) metadata. We calculated the average APCs for articles and proceedings in 13 discipline categories published by researchers at research intensive universities. We also identified 41 journals published by traditionally subscription publishers which have recently converted to APC funded OA and recorded the APCs they charge. Results. We identified 7,629 payment records from the 4 European APC payment databases and 14,356 OA articles authored by PIF partner university faculty for which we had listed APC prices. APCs for full OA journals published by PIF authors averaged 1,775 USD; full OA journal APCs paid by Western European funders averaged 1,865 USD; hybrid APCs paid by Western European funders averaged 2,887 USD. The APC for converted journals published by major subscription publishers averaged 1,825 USD. APC funded OA is concentrated in the life and basic sciences. APCs funded articles in the social sciences and humanities are often multidisciplinary and published in journals such as PLOS ONE that largely publish in the life sciences. Conclusions. Full OA journal APCs average a little under 2,000 USD while hybrid articles average about 3,000 USD

  5. Selectivity and Openness in Israeli Higher Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guri-Rozenblit, Sarah

    1990-01-01

    Israel's efforts to respond to growing social demands and to expand higher education are outlined, focusing on the extent of the state's involvement in higher education, demand and supply in Israeli universities, the social and academic functions of the Open University, and the overall academization of postsecondary institutions. (MSE)

  6. PREFACE: 2nd International School and Conference Saint-Petersburg OPEN on Optoelectronics, Photonics, Engineering and Nanostructures (SPbOPEN2015)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    2015-11-01

    The 2nd International School and Conference ''Saint Petersburg OPEN 2015'' on Optoelectronics, Photonics, Engineering and Nanostructures was held on April 6 - 8, 2015 at St. Petersburg Academic University. The School and Conference included a series of invited talks given by leading professors with the aim to introduce young scientists with actual problems and major advances in physics and technology. The keynote speakers were Mikhail V. Maximov (Ioffe Physico-Technical Institute RAS, Russia) Vladimir G. Dubrovskii (St. Petersburg Academic University and St. Petersburg State University, Russia) Anton Yu. Egorov (JSC Connector Optics, Russia) Victor V. Luchinin (St. Petersburg State Electrotechnical University, Russia) Vladislav E. Bugrov (St. Petersburg University of Internet Technologies, Mechanics and Optics, Russia) Vitali A. Schukin (VI Systems, Germany) Yuri P. Svirko (University of Eastern Finland, Finland) During the poster session all undergraduate and graduate students attending the conference presented their works. A sufficiently large number of participants, with more than 170 student attendees from all over the world, allowed the Conference to provide a fertile ground for fruitful discussions between the young scientists as well as to become a perfect platform for valuable discussions between student authors and highly experienced scientists. The best student papers, which were selected by the Program Committee and by the invited speakers basing on the theses and their poster presentation, were awarded with diplomas of the conference - see the photos. This year ''Saint Petersburg OPEN 2015'' is organized by St. Petersburg Academic University in cooperation with Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University. The School and Conference is supported by Russian Science Foundation, SPIE (The International Society for Optics and Photonics), OSA (The Optical Society) and by Skolkovo Foundation. It is a continuation of the annual schools and seminars for

  7. LIGO and the opening of a unique observational window on the universe.

    PubMed

    Kalogera, Vassiliki; Lazzarini, Albert

    2017-03-21

    A unique window on the universe opened on September 14, 2015, with direct detection of gravitational waves by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors. This event culminated a half-century effort around the globe to develop terrestrial detectors of adequate sensitivity to achieve this goal. It also happened appropriately only a few months before the centennial of Einstein's final paper introducing the general theory of relativity. This detection provided the surprising discovery of a coalescing pair of "heavy" black holes (more massive than [Formula: see text] M[Formula: see text]) leading to the formation of a spinning [Formula: see text]62 solar mass black hole. One more binary black-hole detection and a significant candidate event demonstrated that a population of such merging binaries is formed in nature with a broad mass spectrum. This unique observational sample has already provided concrete measurements on the coalescence rates and has allowed us to test the theory of general relativity in the strong-field regime. As this nascent field of gravitational-wave astrophysics is emerging we are looking forward to the detection of binary mergers involving neutron stars and their electromagnetic counterparts, as well as continuous-wave sources, supernovae, a stochastic confusion background of compact-object mergers, known sources detected in unexpected ways, and completely unknown sources.

  8. LIGO and the opening of a unique observational window on the universe

    PubMed Central

    Kalogera, Vassiliki; Lazzarini, Albert

    2017-01-01

    A unique window on the universe opened on September 14, 2015, with direct detection of gravitational waves by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors. This event culminated a half-century effort around the globe to develop terrestrial detectors of adequate sensitivity to achieve this goal. It also happened appropriately only a few months before the centennial of Einstein’s final paper introducing the general theory of relativity. This detection provided the surprising discovery of a coalescing pair of “heavy” black holes (more massive than ≃25 M๏) leading to the formation of a spinning ≃62 solar mass black hole. One more binary black-hole detection and a significant candidate event demonstrated that a population of such merging binaries is formed in nature with a broad mass spectrum. This unique observational sample has already provided concrete measurements on the coalescence rates and has allowed us to test the theory of general relativity in the strong-field regime. As this nascent field of gravitational-wave astrophysics is emerging we are looking forward to the detection of binary mergers involving neutron stars and their electromagnetic counterparts, as well as continuous-wave sources, supernovae, a stochastic confusion background of compact-object mergers, known sources detected in unexpected ways, and completely unknown sources. PMID:28283663

  9. Mortality After Elective and Ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Surgical Repair: 12-Year Single-Center Experience of Estonia.

    PubMed

    Lieberg, J; Pruks, L-L; Kals, M; Paapstel, K; Aavik, A; Kals, J

    2018-06-01

    Abdominal aortic aneurysm is a degenerative vascular pathology with high mortality due to its rupture, which is why timely treatment is crucial. The current single-center retrospective study was undertaken to analyze short- and long-term all-cause mortality after operative treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysm and to examine the factors that influence outcome. The data of all abdominal aortic aneurysm patients treated with open repair or endovascular aneurysm repair in 2004-2015 were retrospectively retrieved from the clinical database of Tartu University Hospital. The primary endpoint was 30-day, 90-day, and 5-year all-cause mortality. The secondary endpoint was determination of the risk factors for mortality. Elective abdominal aortic aneurysm repair was performed on 228 patients (mean age 71.8 years), of whom 178 (78%) were treated with open repair and 50 (22%) with endovascular aneurysm repair. A total of 48 patients with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm were treated with open repair (mean age 73.8 years) at the Department of Vascular Surgery, Tartu University Hospital, Estonia. Mean follow-up period was 4.2 ± 3.3 years. In patients with elective abdominal aortic aneurysm, 30-day, 90-day, and 5-year all-cause mortality rates were 0.9%, 2.6%, and 32%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, the main predictors for 5-year mortality were preoperative creatinine value and age (p < 0.05). In patients with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm, 30-day, 90-day, and 5-year all-cause mortality rates were 22.9%, 33.3%, and 55.1%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, the risk factors for 30-day mortality in ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm were perioperative hemoglobin and lactate levels (p < 0.05). According to this study, the all-cause mortality rates of elective abdominal aortic aneurysm and ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm at our hospital were comparable to those at other centers worldwide. Even though some variables were identified as

  10. Anadolu University, Open Education Faculty, Turkish Language and Literature Department Graduated Students' Views towards Pedagogical Formation Training Certificate, Special Teaching Methods Courses and Turkish Language and Literature Education from: Sample of Turkey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bulut, Mesut

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study is to find out Anadolu University Open Education Faculty Turkish Language and Literature graduated students' views towards Pedagogical Formation Training certificate and their opinions about special teaching methods. This study has been done in one of the universities of East Karadeniz in Turkey in which the 20 Turkish…

  11. Positioning the Undervalued Metropolitan University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brown, Herbert E.

    1993-01-01

    It is noted that "undervalued metropolitan universities," which generally have open enrollment, low tuition, and a large proportion of nontraditional students, often also have a diffuse and unclear public image. A model positioning concept for these institutions, used by Wright State University (Ohio) is proposed and described. (MSE)

  12. University Education on Computers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kurki-Suonio, Reino; Benediktsson, Oddur; Bubenko, Janis; Dahlstrand, Ingemar; Gram, Christian; Impagliazzo, John

    Following a session on university education, this panel discussed early Nordic visions and experiences on university computing education, contrasting them to today’s needs and the international development at that time. This report gives short papers by the panelists (their opening statements), and a brief summary (the chair’s interpretation) of the views that were raised in the ensuing discussion.

  13. Mobile Learning: Challenges for Teachers of Indian Open Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Awadhiya, Ashish Kumar; Miglani, Anshu

    2016-01-01

    "Mobile Learning" (m-Learning) has emerged as a trend in the field of Open and Distance Learning (ODL). It is removing the time and geographical barriers for learning by placing learning opportunities at the fingertips of learners. ODL institutes in India are also adopting m-learning in different forms; however, it is not fully…

  14. Opening the Ivory Tower: The UTK-Tyson Project

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pace, Amy

    1973-01-01

    The UTK (University of Tennessee at Knoxville)-Tyson Project is a project between the University of Tennessee and Tyson Junior High School in Knoxville which hopes to open the lines of communication between those who teach the public schools and those who prepare teachers. (NQ)

  15. Let Us Take a Yale Open Course: A Chinese View of Open Educational Resources Provided by Institutions in the West

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Xia, J.

    2013-01-01

    This research examines selected online comments from open courses available on Chinese websites. These courses were created by universities in the West as an effort to build open educational resources (OER) and were recently translated into Chinese and were relocated to some popular Chinese websites. This research aimed to understand why the…

  16. Findings of a Research on the Students' Use of Time. A Case Study of the Anadolu University Open Education Faculty in Turkey. Educational Research Publications No. 017.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Demiray, Ugur

    This study examines what fourth year Open Education Faculty students enrolled in economics and business administration education in Anadolu University's distance education program expect from their faculty in terms of leisure time activities and how they spend their leisure time. Additional questions addressed include the personal, social, and…

  17. Provision of Research Support Services to ODL Learners by Tutors: A Focus on the Zimbabwe Open University's Bachelor of Education (Educational Management) Research Students' Supervision Experiences

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mapolisa, Tichaona

    2012-01-01

    The study examined the ODL learners' perceptions of the quality of provision of research support services to the ODL learners by tutors. It focused on the Zimbabwe Open University's (ZOU) Bachelor of Education (Educational Management) research students' experiences. It was a qualitative multiple case study of four of the 10 Regional Centres of the…

  18. The OpenPlanetary initiative

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Manaud, Nicolas; Rossi, Angelo Pio; Hare, Trent; Aye, Michael; Galluzzi, Valentina; van Gasselt, Stephan; Martinez, Santa; McAuliffe, Jonathan; Million, Chase; Nass, Andrea; Zinzi, Angelo

    2016-10-01

    Software Node, bit.ly/PDS_SN. [5] Zinzi et al. (2016), dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ascom.2016.02.006. [6] Open Universe initiave, bit.ly/OpenUniverse, [7] Manaud N. et al. (2016), LPSC47-1387. [8] bit.ly/PlanetaryDataWorkshops

  19. Implementing an Open Source Learning Management System: A Critical Analysis of Change Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uys, Philip M.

    2010-01-01

    This paper analyses the change and innovation strategies that Charles Sturt University (CSU) used from 2007 to 2009 during the implementation and mainstreaming of an open source learning management system (LMS), Sakai, named locally as "CSU Interact". CSU was in January 2008 the first Australian University to implement an open source…

  20. Stability of the Einstein static universe in open cosmological models

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Canonico, Rosangela; Parisi, Luca; INFN, Sezione di Napoli, GC di Salerno, Via Ponte Don Melillo, I-84081 Baronissi

    2010-09-15

    The stability properties of the Einstein static solution of general relativity are altered when corrective terms arising from modification of the underlying gravitational theory appear in the cosmological equations. In this paper the existence and stability of static solutions are considered in the framework of two recently proposed quantum gravity models. The previously known analysis of the Einstein static solutions in the semiclassical regime of loop quantum cosmology with modifications to the gravitational sector is extended to open cosmological models where a static neutrally stable solution is found. A similar analysis is also performed in the framework of Horava-Lifshitz gravitymore » under detailed balance and projectability conditions. In the case of open cosmological models the two solutions found can be either unstable or neutrally stable according to the admitted values of the parameters.« less

  1. The University as a Community of Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Daniel, Wallace

    2014-01-01

    Building on classical and recent studies of the learning paradigm of higher education, the author distinguishes between receiving ideas and using them and how universities might educate students to be more open to the world, open to discovery and creativity.

  2. Open Admissions: Expanding Educational Opportunity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Benjamin, Jeanette Ann; Powell, Philip Edward

    1971-01-01

    A report on initial results of the open admissions policy (City University of New York) concludes that significant numbers of high risk students can make progress toward a degree. Program modifications are suggested as a response to the learning needs of these students. (Author/CJ)

  3. The Open College of the North West, Distance Learning, and the "Open Tech" Programme.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Percy, Keith; Saunders, Murray

    1982-01-01

    A regional program of pre-university courses in northwestern England open to adults with no entry qualifications is discussed. It uses some distance learning techniques but is investigating expansion to technical education through distance learning. The complexities and potential costs of such a substantial directional change are examined. (MSE)

  4. Open Education and the Emancipation of Academic Labour

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Winn, Joss

    2015-01-01

    I have previously argued that open education is a liberal project with a focus on the freedom of things rather than the freedom of people (Winn, Joss. 2012. "Open Education: From the Freedom of Things to the Freedom of People." In "Towards Teaching in Public: Reshaping the Modern University", edited by Michael Neary, Howard…

  5. Problems in University Teaching Faculty Construction and Countermeasures

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Han, Yuzheng

    2015-01-01

    The construction of university teaching faculty directly affects and restricts the long-term development of universities. Since the reform and opening up, China's university teaching faculty construction has realized marvelous achievements. However, in comparison with the higher education in developed countries, in China the construction of…

  6. Debate: Open radical prostatectomy vs. laparoscopic vs. robotic.

    PubMed

    Nelson, Joel B

    2007-01-01

    Surgical removal of clinically localized prostate cancer remains the most definitive treatment for the disease. The emergence of laparoscopic and robotic radical prostatectomy (RP) as alternatives to open RP has generated considerable discussion about the real and relative merits of each approach. Such was the topic of a debate that took place during the 2006 Society of Urologic Oncology meeting. The participants were Dr. William Catalona, Northwestern University, advocating for open RP, Dr. Betrand Guillonneau, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center advocating for laparoscopic RP, and Dr. Mani Menon, Henry Ford Hospital, advocating for robotic RP. The debate was moderated by Dr. Joel Nelson, University of Pittsburgh. This paper summarizes that debate.

  7. Theorizing the Entrepreneurial University: Open Questions and Possible Answers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sotiris, Panagiotis

    2012-01-01

    This article attempts to address theoretical questions regarding the transition towards an entrepreneurial university and the changes associated with this process, namely the increased commodification, the competitive quest for private funding and the introduction of business management practices. The important theoretical advances made in the…

  8. Imagining the “open” university: Sharing scholarship to improve research and education

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Open scholarship, such as the sharing of articles, code, data, and educational resources, has the potential to improve university research and education as well as increase the impact universities can have beyond their own walls. To support this perspective, I present evidence from case studies, published literature, and personal experiences as a practicing open scholar. I describe some of the challenges inherent to practicing open scholarship and some of the tensions created by incompatibilities between institutional policies and personal practice. To address this, I propose several concrete actions universities could take to support open scholarship and outline ways in which such initiatives could benefit the public as well as institutions. Importantly, I do not think most of these actions would require new funding but rather a redistribution of existing funds and a rewriting of internal policies to better align with university missions of knowledge dissemination and societal impact. PMID:29065148

  9. From Learning in Coffee Houses to Learning with Open Educational Resources

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Peter, Sandra; Farrell, Lesley

    2013-01-01

    What is "open" about Open Educational Resources? How does education become "open" when it is removed from the institutional housing of the school or the university and develops in public social settings? Has the Internet, in providing educational content without cost and free of copyright restrictions, provoked a unique and…

  10. The potential of open learning in animal breeding.

    PubMed

    Lohuis, M M; Lohuis, C T; Petrongolo, R A

    1999-07-01

    Animal breeding education is presently facing many challenges. These include rapid changes in breeding knowledge and technology, resource and funding restrictions, and altering demographics of the learner and the animal breeding industry. These challenges can be met via an open learning educational format. This nontraditional approach is based on the needs of individual learners, not the interests of the teacher or the institution. An important feature of open learning is its appropriateness for the professional development audience. Delivery methods include interactive distance courses on the Web, computer-assisted learning, and team-based study. The Canadian dairy breeding industry has expressed the need for ongoing professional development to understand and adopt new animal breeding technologies. The University of Guelph responded by delivering a series of animal breeding short courses (Executive Certificate Program in Animal Breeding) to industry decision makers in 1997. A version modified specifically for farmers and breeding industry personnel was offered in 1998. Through the collaboration of experts from various agricultural institutions and the use of a learner-centered format, this professional development initiative was a pedagogical and financial success. This paper describes how the open learning approach differs from traditional university teaching. Using the University of Guelph example in animal breeding professional development, the framework for a successful open learning program will be examined. The best practices for effective adult education will also be identified and discussed within this case study.

  11. A Matter of Discipline: Open Access, the Humanities, and Art History

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tomlin, Patrick

    2009-01-01

    Recent events suggest that open access has gained new momentum in the humanities, but the slow and uneven development of open-access initiatives in humanist fields continues to hinder the consolidation of efforts across the university. Although various studies have traced the general origins of the humanities' reticence to embrace open access, few…

  12. Supporting Access to Open Online Courses for Learners of Developing Countries

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nti, Kwame

    2015-01-01

    This paper examines how access to, and use of, open online courses may be enhanced for learners of developing countries from a learner perspective. Using analysis of the open education concept, factors that affect access to open educational resources content, and universal standards for delivering online learning, the author demonstrates that the…

  13. A study of institutional spending on open access publication fees in Germany.

    PubMed

    Jahn, Najko; Tullney, Marco

    2016-01-01

    Publication fees as a revenue source for open access publishing hold a prominent place on the agendas of researchers, policy makers, and academic publishers. This study contributes to the evolving empirical basis for funding these charges and examines how much German universities and research organisations spent on open access publication fees. Using self-reported cost data from the Open APC initiative, the analysis focused on the amount that was being spent on publication fees, and compared these expenditure with data from related Austrian (FWF) and UK (Wellcome Trust, Jisc) initiatives, in terms of both size and the proportion of articles being published in fully and hybrid open access journals. We also investigated how thoroughly self-reported articles were indexed in Crossref, a DOI minting agency for scholarly literature, and analysed how the institutional spending was distributed across publishers and journal titles. According to self-reported data from 30 German universities and research organisations between 2005 and 2015, expenditures on open access publication fees increased over the years in Germany and amounted to € 9,627,537 for 7,417 open access journal articles. The average payment was € 1,298, and the median was € 1,231. A total of 94% of the total article volume included in the study was supported in accordance with the price cap of € 2,000, a limit imposed by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) as part of its funding activities for open access funding at German universities. Expenditures varied considerably at the institutional level. There were also differences in how much the institutions spent per journal and publisher. These differences reflect, at least in part, the varying pricing schemes in place including discounted publication fees. With an indexing coverage of 99%, Crossref thoroughly indexed the open access journals articles included in the study. A comparison with the related openly available cost data from Austria and

  14. A study of institutional spending on open access publication fees in Germany

    PubMed Central

    Tullney, Marco

    2016-01-01

    Publication fees as a revenue source for open access publishing hold a prominent place on the agendas of researchers, policy makers, and academic publishers. This study contributes to the evolving empirical basis for funding these charges and examines how much German universities and research organisations spent on open access publication fees. Using self-reported cost data from the Open APC initiative, the analysis focused on the amount that was being spent on publication fees, and compared these expenditure with data from related Austrian (FWF) and UK (Wellcome Trust, Jisc) initiatives, in terms of both size and the proportion of articles being published in fully and hybrid open access journals. We also investigated how thoroughly self-reported articles were indexed in Crossref, a DOI minting agency for scholarly literature, and analysed how the institutional spending was distributed across publishers and journal titles. According to self-reported data from 30 German universities and research organisations between 2005 and 2015, expenditures on open access publication fees increased over the years in Germany and amounted to € 9,627,537 for 7,417 open access journal articles. The average payment was € 1,298, and the median was € 1,231. A total of 94% of the total article volume included in the study was supported in accordance with the price cap of € 2,000, a limit imposed by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) as part of its funding activities for open access funding at German universities. Expenditures varied considerably at the institutional level. There were also differences in how much the institutions spent per journal and publisher. These differences reflect, at least in part, the varying pricing schemes in place including discounted publication fees. With an indexing coverage of 99%, Crossref thoroughly indexed the open access journals articles included in the study. A comparison with the related openly available cost data from Austria and

  15. University Unbound! Higher Education in the Age of "Free"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harney, John O.

    2012-01-01

    Innovators and entrepreneurs are using technologies to make freely available the things for which universities charge significant money. MOOCs (massive open online courses), free online courses, lecture podcasts, low-cost off-the-shelf general education courses, online tutorials, digital collections of open learning resources, open badges--all are…

  16. Academic Culture and Campus Culture of Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shen, Xi; Tian, Xianghong

    2012-01-01

    Academic culture of universities mainly consists of academic outlooks, academic spirits, academic ethics and academic environments. Campus culture in a university is characterized by individuality, academic feature, opening, leading, variety and creativity. The academic culture enhances the construction of campus culture. The campus culture…

  17. Open wounds of the Achilles tendon in tropical settings: 36 cases at the Donka University Hospital in Guinea Conakry.

    PubMed

    Lamah, L; Diallo, M; Tékpa, J B D; Bah, M L; Keita, K; Sidime, S; Soumah, M T; Diallo, I

    2017-06-01

    The aim of this study was to analyze the epidemiologic, etiologic, and therapeutic aspects of open wounds of the Achilles tendon managed in the Donka University Hospital. This 3-year prospective included all patients admitted for an Achilles tendon injury. Closed injuries, suppurating wounds, and those that occurred more than 24 hours before admission were excluded. Surgical treatment consisted in debridement and tendon repair, with plaster cast protection for 6 weeks. The study included 36 patients with a mean age of 23.4 years, 29 of whom were male. The primary cause was traffic accidents (n = 21), mainly due to motorcycle taxis (n = 18). The mean follow-up was 9 months. Infection (7 cases) and skin necrosis (5 cases) were the main postoperative complications. The functional result, evaluated by the McComis score, was excellent in 20 cases, good or satisfactory in 10, and poor in 6 cases. Open injuries of the Achilles tendon are common in Guinea-Conakry and mostly due to motorcycle taxis. Outcome of surgical treatment depends on the severity of the injury. Infection and skin necrosis are frequent complications, and their management is challenging in this setting.

  18. Students' Experiences with Community in an Open Access Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blackmon, Stephanie J.; Cullen, Theresa A.

    2016-01-01

    Online open access courses have become regular offerings of many universities. Building community and connectedness is an important part of branding and success of such offerings. Our goal was to investigate students' experiences with community in an open access course. Therefore, in this study, we explored the sense of community of 342…

  19. Web accessibility and open source software.

    PubMed

    Obrenović, Zeljko

    2009-07-01

    A Web browser provides a uniform user interface to different types of information. Making this interface universally accessible and more interactive is a long-term goal still far from being achieved. Universally accessible browsers require novel interaction modalities and additional functionalities, for which existing browsers tend to provide only partial solutions. Although functionality for Web accessibility can be found as open source and free software components, their reuse and integration is complex because they were developed in diverse implementation environments, following standards and conventions incompatible with the Web. To address these problems, we have started several activities that aim at exploiting the potential of open-source software for Web accessibility. The first of these activities is the development of Adaptable Multi-Interface COmmunicator (AMICO):WEB, an infrastructure that facilitates efficient reuse and integration of open source software components into the Web environment. The main contribution of AMICO:WEB is in enabling the syntactic and semantic interoperability between Web extension mechanisms and a variety of integration mechanisms used by open source and free software components. Its design is based on our experiences in solving practical problems where we have used open source components to improve accessibility of rich media Web applications. The second of our activities involves improving education, where we have used our platform to teach students how to build advanced accessibility solutions from diverse open-source software. We are also partially involved in the recently started Eclipse projects called Accessibility Tools Framework (ACTF), the aim of which is development of extensible infrastructure, upon which developers can build a variety of utilities that help to evaluate and enhance the accessibility of applications and content for people with disabilities. In this article we briefly report on these activities.

  20. Open Access Metadata, Catalogers, and Vendors: The Future of Cataloging Records

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Flynn, Emily Alinder

    2013-01-01

    The open access (OA) movement is working to transform scholarly communication around the world, but this philosophy can also apply to metadata and cataloging records. While some notable, large academic libraries, such as Harvard University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Cambridge, released their cataloging records under OA…

  1. The Open Learning Initiative: New Directions for Higher Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    King, Bruce

    This paper describes the Australian Open Learning Initiative (OLI), a program to facilitate access to postsecondary education. The program will provide off-campus or distance education courses for which there is evident high demand. Program features include an independent brokering agency, coordination by a university or group of universities,…

  2. Massive Open Online Courses: Designing for the Unknown Learner

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Macleod, Hamish; Sinclair, Christine; Haywood, Jeff; Woodgate, Amy

    2016-01-01

    University teachers are faced with a problem of "knowing" their learners when teaching on a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC). This paper explores and analyses what the University of Edinburgh has come to know about its recent MOOC participants, highlighting one particular course. We draw attention to barriers and enablers from…

  3. Where "Sign Language Studies" Has Led Us in Forty Years: Opening High School and University Education for Deaf People in Viet Nam through Sign Language Analysis, Teaching, and Interpretation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Woodward, James; Hoa, Nguyen Thi

    2012-01-01

    This paper discusses how the Nippon Foundation-funded project "Opening University Education to Deaf People in Viet Nam through Sign Language Analysis, Teaching, and Interpretation," also known as the Dong Nai Deaf Education Project, has been implemented through sign language studies from 2000 through 2012. This project has provided deaf…

  4. Experience of e-learning implementation through massive open online courses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ivleva, N. V.; Fibikh, E. V.

    2016-04-01

    E-learning is considered to be one of the most prospective directions in education development worldwide. To have a competitive advantage over other institutions offering a wide variety of educational services it is important to introduce information and communication technologies into the educational process to develop e-learning on the whole. The aim of the research is to reveal problems which prevent from full implementation of e-learning at the Reshetnev Siberian State Aerospace University (SibSAU) and to suggest ways on solving those problems through optimization of e-learning introduction process at the university by motivating students and teaching staff to participate in massive open online courses and formation of tailored platforms with the view to arrange similar courses at the premises of the university. The paper considers the introduction and development level of e-learning in Russia and at SibSAU particularly. It substantiates necessity to accelerate e-learning introduction process at an aerospace university as a base for training of highly-qualified specialists in the area of aviation, machine building, physics, info-communication technologies and also in other scientific areas within which university training is carried out. The paper covers SibSAU’s experience in e-learning implementation in the educational process through students and teaching staff participation in massive open online courses and mastering other up-to-date and trendy educational platforms and their usage in the educational process. Key words. E-learning, distance learning, online learning, massive open online course.

  5. International Business Education in Estonia--from Socialism to Capitalism.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Palm, Thomas

    1995-01-01

    Issues in reform of international business and economics education at Tartu University (Estonia) are discussed, including need for faculty development, faculty reallocation, and redistribution of resources within the country's new social and economic context. It is argued that reform depends on effective integration of foreign experts with more…

  6. Awareness, Attitudes and Participation of Teaching Staff towards the Open Content Movement in One University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reed, Peter

    2012-01-01

    This research investigates the current awareness of, and participation in, the open content movement at one UK institution for higher education. The open content movement and the open educational resources can be seen as potential methods for reducing time and cost of technology-enhanced learning developments; however, its sustainability and, to…

  7. A Qualitative Research on the University Administrators' Capacity to Use Management Knowledge Tools (The Case of TRNC Universities)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dagli, Gokmen; Silman, Fatos; Birol, Cem

    2009-01-01

    In order to reach goals and continue the ongoing learning process, like other organizations, universities also need the effective use of knowledge management. Knowledge management is an ongoing process and it has to be organized in a manner that is always open to new ideas. In universities where research and development studies play an important…

  8. From Open Content to Open Course Models: Increasing Access and Enabling Global Participation in Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Morgan, Tannis; Carey, Stephen

    2009-01-01

    Two of the major challenges to international students' right of access to higher education are geographical/economic isolation and academic literacy in English (Carey, 1999; Hamel, 2007). The authors propose that adopting open course models in traditional universities, through blended or online delivery, can offer benefits to the institutions and…

  9. Open Science: Trends in the Development of Science Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Scanlon, Eileen

    2011-01-01

    This article comments on some trends in the evolution of science teaching at a distance using the Open University UK (OU UK) experience as a benchmark. Even from the first years of the university there was an understanding of the potential role for media in developing methods for teaching science at a distance, in particular the potential for…

  10. University Technology Transfer: In Tough Economic Times

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Powers, Joshua B.; Campbell, Eric G.

    2009-01-01

    In 1907, Frederick Cottrell, professor of chemistry at the University of California-Berkeley and father of the modern academic patent, worried that if universities became too directly involved in patenting and licensing operations, their thirst for profits could lead to the erosion of the openness necessary for academic science to flourish. For…

  11. Implementation of Open Educational Resources in a Nursing Programme: Experiences and Reflections

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Elf, Marie; Ossiannilsson, Ebba; Neljesjö, Maria; Jansson, Monika

    2015-01-01

    The IMPOER project (implementation of open educational resources, OER) aimed to implement OER in a nursing programme at Dalarna University, Sweden. The university and its nursing programme have long engaged in e-learning, and the nursing programme has recently been awarded the European Association of Distance Teaching Universities E-xcellence…

  12. Impact of OpenCourseWare Publication on Higher Education Participation and Student Recruitment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carson, Stephen; Kanchanaraksa, Sukon; Gooding, Ira; Mulder, Fred; Schuwer, Robert

    2012-01-01

    The free and open publication of course materials (OpenCourseWare or OCW) was initially undertaken by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and other universities primarily to share educational resources among educators (Abelson, 2007). OCW, however, and more in general open educational resources (OER), have also provided well-documented…

  13. Administering the Open-Area Elementary School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Small, J. M.

    1975-01-01

    Examines the outcome of a study of the operation of open area schools in the Separate School System of Edmonton. (Available from C. A. Business Manager, Department of Educational Administration, The University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2G5; $0.50, single copy.) (Author/IRT)

  14. The Morning after the Millennium: Building the Long-Haul Learning University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Duke, Chris

    2002-01-01

    To build the Learning Society requires universal higher education. In the 21st century, universities should embrace entrepreneurship by opening systems, building partnerships and networks, and becoming learning organizations. The entrepreneurial university is not in opposition to the academic university, but is an enrichment or enlargement of its…

  15. Who Attends and Completes Virtual Universities: The Case of the Open University of Catalonia (UOC)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carnoy, Martin; Rabling, Brenda Jarillo; Castano-Munoz, Jonatan; Montoliu, Josep Maria Duart; Sancho-Vinuesa, Teresa

    2012-01-01

    A highly touted feature of the so-called global "revolution" in higher education is the trend to use information technology to reach a broader clientele. Although there is evidence that students may be learning the material in on-line courses as well as in traditional face-to-face universities, how well students learn content is not the…

  16. Astronomers' Do-It-Yourself Project Opening A New Window on the Universe

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    1999-05-01

    Rolling up their sleeves to build and install new equipment for the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Very Large Array (VLA) radio telescope, a team of astronomers has opened a new window on the universe, revealing tantalizing new information about the explosions of massive stars, the workings of galaxies with supermassive black holes at their centers, and clusters of galaxies. "We're going back to the region of wavelengths where Karl Jansky started radio astronomy in 1932," said Namir Kassim, of the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), in Washington, D.C. "This is one of the most poorly explored regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, yet it offers tremendous potential to learn exciting new information about everything from the Sun and planets to galaxy clusters and the universe itself," Kassim said. Kassim, along with Rick Perley of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Socorro, NM; William Erickson, a professor emeritus at the University of Maryland; and Joseph Lazio, also of NRL, presented results of their observations with the new VLA system at the American Astronomical Society's meeting in Chicago. The new system uses the 27 dish antennas of the VLA, each 25 meters (82 feet) in diameter, to receive cosmic radio emissions at a frequency of 74 MHz, or a wavelength of about four meters. This frequency, lower than that of the FM broadcast band, is far below the usual frequencies, 1- 50 GHz, used for radio astronomy. "Though the region of 15-150 MHz is where Jansky and Grote Reber did the first radio-astronomy work in the 1930s and 1940s, it has long been neglected because of technical difficulties of working in that region," said Perley. Still, the astronomers said, there is much to be learned by studying the universe at these wavelengths. "There are phenomena associated with the Sun and planets, with other objects in our own Milky Way Galaxy, and with other galaxies and clusters of galaxies, and potentially ancient emission from the Universe itself

  17. COP - Pet Owners - Open Clinical Trials | Center for Cancer Research

    Cancer.gov

    Current Open Clinical Trials If you are interested in learning more about the eligibility requirements for any of open studies listed below, please contact the nearest participating University or Christina Mazcko. To search studies being conducted by other groups please visit Vet Cancer Trials. This will allow you to search by location and tumor type.

  18. Plasma universe

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Alfven, H.

    1986-01-01

    Traditionally the views on the cosmic environent have been based on observations in the visual octave of the electromagnetic spectrum, during the last half-century supplemented by infrared and radio observations. Space research has opened the full spectrum. Of special importance are the X-ray-gamma-ray regions, in which a number of unexpected phenomena have been discovered. Radiations in these regions are likely to originate mainly from magnetised cosmic plasmas. Such a medium may also emit synchrotron radiation which is observable in the radio region. If a model of the universe is based on the plasma phenomena mentioned it is found that the plasma universe is drastically different from the traditional visual universe. Information about the plasma universe can also be obtained by extrapolation of laboratory experiments and magnetospheric in situ measurements of plasmas. This approach is possible because it is likely that the basic properties of plasmas are the same everywhere. In order to test the usefulness of the plasma universe model it is applied to cosmogony. Such an approach seems to be rather successful. For example, the complicated structure of the Saturnian C ring can be accounted for. It is possible to reconstruct certain phenomena 4 to 5 billions of years ago with an accuracy of better than 1%.

  19. Opening Health Data: What Do Researchers Want? Early Experiences With New York's Open Health Data Platform.

    PubMed

    Martin, Erika G; Helbig, Natalie; Birkhead, Guthrie S

    2015-01-01

    Governments are rapidly developing open data platforms to improve transparency and make information more accessible. New York is a leader, with currently the only state platform devoted to health. Although these platforms could build public health departments' capabilities to serve more researchers, agencies have little guidance on releasing meaningful and usable data. Structured focus groups with researchers and practitioners collected stakeholder feedback on potential uses of open health data and New York's open data strategy. Researchers and practitioners attended a 1-day November 2013 workshop on New York State's open health data resources. After learning about the state's open data platform and vision for open health data, participants were organized into 7 focus groups to discuss the essential elements of open data sets, practical challenges to obtaining and using health data, and potential uses of open data. Participants included 33 quantitative health researchers from State University of New York campuses and private partners and 10 practitioners from the New York State Department of Health. There was low awareness of open data, with 67% of researchers reporting never using open data portals prior to the workshop. Participants were interested in data sets that were geocoded, longitudinal, or aggregated to small area granularity and capabilities to link multiple data sets. Multiple environmental conditions and barriers hinder their capacity to use health data for research. Although open data platforms cannot address all barriers, they provide multiple opportunities for public health research and practice, and participants were overall positive about the state's efforts to release open data. Open data are not ideal for some researchers because they do not contain individually identifiable data, indicating a need for tiered data release strategies. However, they do provide important new opportunities to facilitate research and foster collaborations among

  20. Open Admissions Assessed: The Example of The City University of New York, 1970-1975

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Polishook, Irwin

    1976-01-01

    Open Admissions procedures respond to the non-traditional philosophy that higher education should perform a triple function: communicate knowledge to students, expand the content of various disciplines, and interact in a direct relationship to society. This article describes the ideological and fiscal course of Open Admissions at City University…

  1. Information Found and Not Found: What University Websites Tell Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Meyer, Katrina A.; Jones, Stephanie

    2011-01-01

    This study investigates how graduate students experience their university websites, or the institutional "virtual face." The sample included graduate students admitted to online and blended higher education programs at Texas Tech University and the University of Memphis. A total of 42 students provided open-ended answers to questions…

  2. An Assessment of Educational Benefits from the OpenOrbiter Space Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Straub, Jeremy; Whalen, David

    2013-01-01

    This paper analyzes the educational impact of the OpenOrbiter Small Spacecraft Development Initiative, a CubeSat development program underway at the University of North Dakota. OpenOrbiter includes traditional STEM activities (e.g., spacecraft engineering, software development); it also incorporates students from non-STEM disciplines not generally…

  3. Participatory Pedagogy in an Open Educational Course: Challenges and Opportunities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Andersen, Renate; Ponti, Marisa

    2014-01-01

    This article presents an empirical study of an open educational course in an online peer-to-peer university (P2PU). P2PU is a nonprofit organization offering free educational opportunities. Focus is on how peers are part of creating course content in a Web 2.0 environment. Massive open online courses (MOOCs) have evolved into two different…

  4. A Framework for Developing Competencies in Open and Distance Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arinto, Patricia B.

    2013-01-01

    Many open universities and distance education institutions have shifted from a predominantly print-based mode of delivery to an online mode characterised by the use of virtual learning environments and various web technologies. This paper describes the impact of the shift to open and distance e-learning (ODeL), as this trend might be called, on…

  5. Occasional Papers in Distance Education: Number 11, Charles Sturt University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roberts, David, Ed.; Meacham, David, Ed.

    The four papers in this collection focus on distance education and open education. In the first paper, "The Open Learning Institute," D. W. Roberts cites the original recommendation that Charles Sturt University establish a new division to be known as the Open Learning Institute, and presents a definition of the concept. In the second…

  6. Is the Universe a white-hole?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Berman, Marcelo Samuel

    2007-10-01

    Pathria (1972) has shown, for a pressureless closed Universe, that it is inside a black (or white) hole. We show now, that the Universe with a cosmic pressure obeying Einstein’s field equations, can be inside a white-hole. In the closed case, a positive cosmological constant does the job; for the flat and open cases, the condition we find is not verified for the very early Universe, but with the growth of the scale-factor, the condition will be certainly fulfilled for a positive cosmological constant, after some time. We associate the absolute temperature of the Universe, with the temperature of the corresponding white-hole.

  7. Celebrations and Tough Questions Follow Harvard's Move to Open Access

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guterman, Lila

    2008-01-01

    In light of a decision by members of Harvard University's Faculty of Arts and Sciences to make access to their scholarly papers free, advocates of open access celebrated, but some publishers expressed concern. Members of Harvard's Faculty of Arts and Sciences voted unanimously to provide the university with copies of their published articles and…

  8. Open Standards, Open Source, and Open Innovation: Harnessing the Benefits of Openness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Committee for Economic Development, 2006

    2006-01-01

    Digitization of information and the Internet have profoundly expanded the capacity for openness. This report details the benefits of openness in three areas--open standards, open-source software, and open innovation--and examines the major issues in the debate over whether openness should be encouraged or not. The report explains each of these…

  9. The Invention Studio: A University Maker Space and Culture

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Forest, Craig R.; Moore, Roxanne A.; Jariwala, Amit S.; Fasse, Barbara Burks; Linsey, Julie; Newstetter, Wendy; Ngo, Peter; Quintero, Christopher

    2014-01-01

    Creativity, invention, and innovation are values championed as central pillars of engineering education. However, university environments that foster open-ended design-build projects are uncommon. Fabrication and prototyping spaces at universities are typically "machine shops" where students relinquish actual fabrication activities to…

  10. Social Work Education through Open and Distance Learning: An Indian Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dash, Bishnu Mohan; Botcha, Rambabu

    2018-01-01

    The paper traces the historical perspectives of open and distance education in India. It also discusses the various modalities and standards followed by various universities in offering social work education through open and distance learning (ODL) mode. It also highlights the achievements and challenges of social work education through ODL mode…

  11. Harnessing Openness to Improve Research, Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Committee for Economic Development, 2009

    2009-01-01

    This report examines higher education through the lens of openness. The goal is to understand the potential impact of greater openness on colleges and universities. Like other service industries such as finance or entertainment, higher education is rooted in information--its creation, analysis, and transmission--and the development of the skills…

  12. Open Innovation Challenge in Healthcare. Role for Education.

    PubMed

    Dimitriu, Rodica; Lungeanu, Diana; Mãnescu, Cristina; Pantazi, Mirela; Mihalas, George I

    2015-01-01

    The vision of this paper is that collaboration creates new openings for engagement of non-commercial actors, such as universities, in innovation networks on the one hand, while opening up for collaborative innovation, and getting valuable real life anchors on the other hand, all these underpinned by greater connectivity and globalization. We present our approach in re-designing the courses on medical informatics and data processing to meet these challenges by employing public Internet services and media facilitation.

  13. Measuring, Rating, Supporting, and Strengthening Open Access Scholarly Publishing in Brazil

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Neto, Silvio Carvalho; Willinsky, John; Alperin, Juan Pablo

    2016-01-01

    This study assesses the extent and nature of open access scholarly publishing in Brazil, one of the world's leaders in providing universal access to its research and scholarship. It utilizes Brazil's Qualis journal evaluation system, along with other relevant data bases to address the association between scholarly quality and open access in the…

  14. Opening Public Institutions: OER in North Dakota and the Nation, 2015

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Spilovoy, Tanya M.; Seaman, Jeff

    2015-01-01

    In the past year, Open Educational Resources have been a focus of policymakers and stakeholders in North Dakota. As a result, North Dakota University System (NDUS) faculty are more aware of the term open educational resources (OER) than their counterparts in national public institutions and all sectors of higher education. In addition, North…

  15. Data Architecture in an Open Systems Environment.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bernbom, Gerald; Cromwell, Dennis

    1993-01-01

    The conceptual basis for structured data architecture, and its integration with open systems technology at Indiana University, are described. Key strategic goals guiding these efforts are discussed: commitment to improved data access; migration to relational database technology, and deployment of a high-speed, multiprotocol network; and…

  16. Strategic Integration of Open Educational Resources in Higher Education

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schaffert, Sandra

    Open Educational Resources (OERs) can be seen as social movement but are also implemented as strategic measures in higher education institutions (HEIs). This chapter describes the current aims and experiences of OERs in HEIs. Starting with definitions and milestones in respect of the current status, this chapter gives an overview of projects and implementation objectives and it describes two concrete case studies, i.e., the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Open CourseWare project and the OpenLearn project at the Open University in the United Kingdom. The aim of this chapter is to give a comprehensive overview to decision makers and policy drivers within higher education organizations, and thus it develops a blueprint of an implementation model.

  17. Open Technologies at Athabasca University's Geospace Observatories

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Connors, M. G.; Schofield, I. S.

    2012-12-01

    Athabasca University Geophysical Observatories feature two auroral observation sites situated in the subauroral zone of western Canada, separated by approximately 25 km. These sites are both on high-speed internet and ideal for observing phenomena detectable from this latitude, which include noctilucent clouds, meteors, and magnetic and optical aspects of the aurora. General aspects of use of Linux in observatory management are described, with emphasis on recent imaging projects involving control of high resolution digital SLR cameras at low cadence, and inexpensive white light analog video cameras at 30 Hz. Linux shell scripts are extensively used, with image capture controlled by gphoto2, the ivtv-utils package, x264 video coding library, and ffmpeg. Imagemagick allows processing of images in an automated fashion. Image archives and movies are created and can be correlated with magnetic data. Much of the magnetic data stream also uses GMT (Generic Mapping Tools) within shell scripts for display. Additionally, SPASE metadata are generated for most of the magnetic data, thus allowing users of our AUTUMN magnetic data repository to perform SPASE queries on the dataset. Visualization products from our twin observatories will be presented.

  18. Climate Change and Sustainability Open Educational Resources: Lessons learned and challenges to tackle

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Robinson, Zoe; Whitfield, Stephen; Gertisser, Ralf; Krause, Stefan; McKay, Deirdre; Pringle, Jamie; Szkornik, Katie; Waller, Richard

    2010-05-01

    The UK's Higher Education Academy Subject Centre for Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences (GEES) is currently running a project entitled ‘C-Change in GEES: Open licensing of climate change and sustainability resources in the Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences' as part of a national Open Educational Resource project. The C-Change project aims to explore the challenges involved in ‘repurposing' existing teaching materials on the topics of climate change and sustainability to make them open access. This project has produced an open access resource of diverse climate change and sustainability-related teaching materials across the subjects of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences. The process of repurposing existing face-to-face teaching resources requires consideration of a wide variety of issues including the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) associated with images and other material included in the teaching resources, in addition to issues of quality, accessibility and usability of resources. Open access education is an issue that will have implications across the whole of the organizational structure of a university, from legal advisors with commitments to University research and enterprise activities, to the academics wishing to produce open access resources, through to all levels of senior management. The attitudes, concerns and openness to Open Educational Resources of stakeholders from all positions within a HE institution will have implications for the participation of that institution within the OER movement. The many barriers to the whole-scale adoption of Open Educational Resources within the UK Higher Education system and the willingness of UK Higher Education Institutions to engage in the OER movement include institutional perspectives on the IPR of teaching materials developed by members of staff within the institution and financial viability, in addition to more sceptical attitudes of potential contributors. Keele University is

  19. Science Practical Work Instructional Technologies and Open Distance Learning in Science Teacher Training: A Case Study in Zimbabwe

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bhukuvhani, Crispen; Mupa, Mathew; Mhishi, Misheck; Dziva, Daimond

    2012-01-01

    The practical work component offers unique challenges for university science courses. This is even more pertinent in an Open and Distance Learning (ODL) environment like the Bindura University of Science Education's Virtual and Open Distance Learning (VODL) programme. Effective ODL education should be flexible enough to accommodate science…

  20. The Governance in the Development of Public Universities in China

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liu, Xu

    2017-01-01

    This paper examines institutional governance of the public university in China, investigating the extent to which government has sponsored the autonomy of universities since the inception of the opening up reforms of 1978. The paper sets out to explain how the party governance system of China is interconnected with aspects of the university's…

  1. Open-Source GIS

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Vatsavai, Raju; Burk, Thomas E; Lime, Steve

    2012-01-01

    The components making up an Open Source GIS are explained in this chapter. A map server (Sect. 30.1) can broadly be defined as a software platform for dynamically generating spatially referenced digital map products. The University of Minnesota MapServer (UMN Map Server) is one such system. Its basic features are visualization, overlay, and query. Section 30.2 names and explains many of the geospatial open source libraries, such as GDAL and OGR. The other libraries are FDO, JTS, GEOS, JCS, MetaCRS, and GPSBabel. The application examples include derived GIS-software and data format conversions. Quantum GIS, its origin and its applications explainedmore » in detail in Sect. 30.3. The features include a rich GUI, attribute tables, vector symbols, labeling, editing functions, projections, georeferencing, GPS support, analysis, and Web Map Server functionality. Future developments will address mobile applications, 3-D, and multithreading. The origins of PostgreSQL are outlined and PostGIS discussed in detail in Sect. 30.4. It extends PostgreSQL by implementing the Simple Feature standard. Section 30.5 details the most important open source licenses such as the GPL, the LGPL, the MIT License, and the BSD License, as well as the role of the Creative Commons.« less

  2. Distance Learner Ecologies of the University of the West Indies Open Campus Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Beaubrun, Elizabeth

    2012-01-01

    This research project examined the learner ecologies of University of the West Indies (UWI) distance learning program participants in two countries within the regional university's network: Dominica, and Antigua and Barbuda. The descriptive study focused on a period of transition from dual-mode delivery (teleconference and in-person tutorial…

  3. Online Estonian Language Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Teral, Maarika; Rammo, Sirje

    2014-01-01

    This presentation focuses on computer-assisted learning of Estonian, one of the lesser taught European languages belonging to the Finno-Ugric language family. Impulses for this paper came from Estonian courses that started in the University of Tartu in 2010, 2011 and 2012. In all the courses the students gain introductory knowledge of Estonian and…

  4. Used and foregone health services among a cohort of 87,134 adult open university students residing throughout Thailand.

    PubMed

    Yiengprugsawan, Vasoontara; Seubsman, Sam-Ang; Lim, Lynette L-Y; Sleigh, Adrian C

    2009-11-01

    There are limited data on the frequency of foregone health service use in defined populations. Here we describe Thai patterns of health service use, types of health insurance used and reports of foregone health services according to geo-demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. Data on those who considered they had needed but not received health care over the previous year were obtained from a national cohort of 87,134 students from the Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU). The cohort was enrolled in 2005 and was largely made up of young and middle-age adults living throughout Thailand. Among respondents, 21.0% reported use of health services during the past year. Provincial/governmental hospitals (33.4%) were the most attended health facilities in general, followed by private clinics (24.1%) and private hospitals (20.1%). Health centers and community hospitals were sought after in rural areas. The recently available government operated Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) was popular among the lower income groups (13.6%), especially in rural areas. When asked, 42.1% reported having foregone health service use in the past year. Professionals and office workers frequently reported 'long waiting time' (17.1%) and 'could not get time off work' (13.7%) as reasons, whereas manual workers frequently noted it was 'difficult to travel' (11.6%). This information points to non-financial opportunity cost barriers common to a wide array of Thai adults who need to use health services. This issue is relevant for health and workplace policymakers and managers concerned about equitable access to health services.

  5. Open Innovation Labs for Physics Undergraduate Independent Research

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Carlsmith, Duncan

    2014-03-01

    The open undergraduate laboratory Garage Physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is home to a variety of independent physics and multidisciplinary research projects. Its maker-style environment encourages innovation and entrepreneurship. Experience establishing and staffing the laboratory will be described.

  6. Understanding Bereavement in a Christian University: A Qualitative Exploration

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Walker, Andrea C.; Gewecke, Rachelle; Cupit, Illene N.; Fox, Jeffrey T.

    2014-01-01

    This phenomenological study, based on ecological systems theory, examined the college student bereavement experience in a Christian university. Undergraduate students (N = 127) from a small Christian university provided answers to open-ended questions about their experiences regarding college following a death loss. Results indicate that students…

  7. Gravitational Wave Astrophysics: Opening the New Frontier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Centrella, Joan

    2011-01-01

    A new era in astronomy will begin when the gravitational wave window onto the universe opens in approx. 5 years) as ground-based detectors make the first detections in the high-frequency regime. Since the universe is nearly transparent to gravitational waves) these signals carry direct information about their sources - such as masses) spins) luminosity distances) and orbital parameters - through dense) obscured regions across cosmic time. This talk will explore gravitational waves as cosmic messengers) highlighting key sources and opportunities for multi-messenger astronomy across the gravitational wave spectrum.

  8. Gravitational Wave Astrophysics: Opening the New Frontier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Centrella, Joan

    2012-01-01

    A new era in astronomy will begin when the gravitational wave window onto the universe opens in approx. 5 years, as ground-based detectors make the first detections in the high-frequency regime. Since the universe is nearly transparent to gravitational waves, these signals carry direct information about their sources - such as masses, spins, luminosity distances, and orbital parameters - through dense, obscured regions across cosmic time. This talk will explore gravitational waves as cosmic messengers, highlighting key sources and opportunities for multi-messenger astronomy across the gravitational wave spectrum.

  9. Gravitational Wave Astrophysics: Opening the New Frontier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Centrella, Joan

    2011-01-01

    A new era in time-domain astronomy will begin when the gravitational wave window onto the universe opens in approx. 5 years, as ground-based detectors make the first detections in the high-frequency regime. Since the universe is nearly transparent to gravitational waves, these signals carry direct information about their sources - such as masses, spins, luminosity distances, and orbital parameters through dense, obscured regions across cosmic time. This talk will explore gravitational waves as cosmic messengers, highlighting key sources and opportunities for multimessenger astronomy across the gravitational wave spectrum.

  10. University lobbying

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Richman, Barbara T.

    In the past year, an increasing number of individual academic institutions have lobbied in Congress for new science facilities funds thus circumventing the traditional peer review process of evaluating the merits of such facilities. As an attempt to stem this rising tide, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) governing council and the Association of American Universities (AAU) recently and independently issued strong statements condemning lobbying by individual universities and enthusiastically supporting the peer review system.“Informed peer judgments on the scientific merits of specific proposals, in open competition, should be a central element in the awarding of all federal funds for science,” the NAS resolution stated. AAU, meanwhile, implored “scientists, leaders of America's universities, and members of Congress” to “refrain from actions that would make scientific decisions a test of political influence rather than a judgment on the quality of the work to be done.” Roughly 50 research institutions constitute AAU; the two AAU Canadian members did not vote on the consortium's statement.

  11. University teaching - where next?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    1999-03-01

    A one-day workshop will take place on 23 April 1999 at the University of Edinburgh's Conference and Training Centre to consider the topic `The future of university teaching? Multimedia, web and new technologies'. The workshop is being organized by Edinburgh Parallel Computing Centre and will be attended by experts in distance learning from various institutions including the Clyde Virtual University and the Open University, plus a speaker from the USA. They will present case studies of the opportunities new technologies provide for higher education, covering all aspects from development of electronic courses through delivery mechanisms to user feedback. There is certainly an increasing need for quality teaching materials and new ways of learning. The workshop will aim to discuss how those involved in university teaching can benefit from new developments such as multimedia, the Internet, as well as new computing and networking technologies. Participation is free, with lunch and refreshments provided. More information and registration details can be found at http://www.epcc.ed.ac.uk/epcc-tec/JTAP/workshop/ or by e-mail to epcc-tec@epcc.ed.ac.uk.

  12. Body composition of university students by hydrostatic weighing and skinfold measurement.

    PubMed

    Jürimäe, T; Jagomägi, G; Lepp, T

    1992-12-01

    The body composition of 124 male and 70 female Tartu University students was measured by three different methods: hydrostatic weighing by maximal expiration, hydrostatic weighing by maximal inspiration and subcutaneous fat thickness measurements. Our results show that the proposed body density measuring method by maximal expiration is simple, reliable and applicable not only in indoor swimming pools but in field conditions as well. The second new hydrostatic weighing apparatus is more comfortable for the subjects where the body density is measured at maximal inspiration. The mean body density of males was somewhat higher when measured by the maximal inspiration (1.066 +/- 0.012 g.ml-1) than when measured by the maximal expiration (1.063 +/- 0.009 g.ml-1, p < 0.05). For females, on the contrary, the maximal expiration method (1.044 +/- 0.010 g.ml-1) yielded a higher body density value than when measured by the maximal inspiration (1.040 +/- 0.011 g.ml-1, p > 0.05). The body fat percentage measured by skinfold thickness correlated significantly with the body fat percentage calculated by body density by maximal expiration (males r = 0.420, females r = 0.531) and inspiration (males r = 0.507, females r = 0.663). We must conclude that the presented two methods of measuring body density offer new possibilities for densitometric analysis without the need for expensive laboratory equipment.

  13. Of Birkenstocks and Wingtips: Open Source Licenses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gandel, Paul B.; Wheeler, Brad

    2005-01-01

    The notion of collaborating to create open source applications for higher education is rapidly gaining momentum. From course management systems to ERP financial systems, higher education institutions are working together to explore whether they can in fact build a better mousetrap. As Lois Brooks, of Stanford University, recently observed, the…

  14. Institutional Repositories, Open Access, and Scholarly Communication: A Study of Conflicting Paradigms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cullen, Rowena; Chawner, Brenda

    2011-01-01

    The Open Access movement of the past decade, and institutional repositories developed by universities and academic libraries as a part of that movement, have openly challenged the traditional scholarly communication system. This article examines the growth of repositories around the world, and summarizes a growing body of evidence of the response…

  15. Student and Faculty Perceptions of OpenStax in High Enrollment Courses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Watson, C. Edward; Domizi, Denise P.; Clouser, Sherry A.

    2017-01-01

    As public funding for higher education decreases and the cost to students to attend college increases, universities are searching for strategies that save students money while also increasing their chances for success. Using free online textbooks is one such strategy, and the OpenStax College initiative at Rice University is one of the most widely…

  16. Universal cell frame for high-pressure water electrolyzer and electrolyzer including the same

    DOEpatents

    Schmitt, Edwin W.; Norman, Timothy J.

    2013-01-08

    Universal cell frame generic for use as an anode frame and as a cathode frame in a water electrolyzer. According to one embodiment, the universal cell frame includes a unitary annular member having a central opening. Four trios of transverse openings are provided in the annular member, each trio being spaced apart by about 90 degrees. A plurality of internal radial passageways fluidly interconnect the central opening and each of the transverse openings of two diametrically-opposed trios of openings, the other two trios of openings lacking corresponding radial passageways. Sealing ribs are provided on the top and bottom surfaces of the annular member. The present invention is also directed at a water electrolyzer that includes two such cell frames, one being used as the anode frame and the other being used as the cathode frame, the cathode frame being rotated 90 degrees relative to the anode frame.

  17. Slow relaxation in weakly open rational polygons.

    PubMed

    Kokshenev, Valery B; Vicentini, Eduardo

    2003-07-01

    The interplay between the regular (piecewise-linear) and irregular (vertex-angle) boundary effects in nonintegrable rational polygonal billiards (of m equal sides) is discussed. Decay dynamics in polygons (of perimeter P(m) and small opening Delta) is analyzed through the late-time survival probability S(m) approximately equal t(-delta). Two distinct slow relaxation channels are established. The primary universal channel exhibits relaxation of regular sliding orbits, with delta=1. The secondary channel is given by delta>1 and becomes open when m>P(m)/Delta. It originates from vertex order-disorder dual effects and is due to relaxation of chaoticlike excitations.

  18. Open source Modeling and optimization tools for Planning

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Peles, S.

    Open source modeling and optimization tools for planning The existing tools and software used for planning and analysis in California are either expensive, difficult to use, or not generally accessible to a large number of participants. These limitations restrict the availability of participants for larger scale energy and grid studies in the state. The proposed initiative would build upon federal and state investments in open source software, and create and improve open source tools for use in the state planning and analysis activities. Computational analysis and simulation frameworks in development at national labs and universities can be brought forward tomore » complement existing tools. An open source platform would provide a path for novel techniques and strategies to be brought into the larger community and reviewed by a broad set of stakeholders.« less

  19. Exploring University Teacher Perceptions about Out-of-Class Teamwork

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ruiz-Esparza Barajas, Elizabeth; Medrano Vela, Cecilia Araceli; Zepeda Huerta, Jesús Helbert Karim

    2016-01-01

    This study reports on the first stage of a larger joint research project undertaken by five universities in Mexico to explore university teachers' thinking about out-of-class teamwork. Data from interviews were analyzed using open and axial coding. Although results suggest a positive perception towards teamwork, the study unveiled important…

  20. Life, the Universe, and Nothing: Life and Death in an Ever-expanding Universe

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Krauss, Lawrence M.; Starkman, Glenn D.

    2000-03-01

    Current evidence suggests that the cosmological constant is not zero, or that we live in an open universe. We examine the implications for the future under these assumptions, and find that they are striking. If the universe is cosmological constant-dominated, our ability to probe the evolution of large-scale structure will decrease with time; presently observable distant sources will disappear on a timescale comparable to the period of stellar burning. Moreover, while the universe might expand forever, the integrated conscious lifetime of any civilization will be finite, although it can be astronomically long. We argue that this latter result is farmore » more general. In the absence of possible exotic and uncertain strong gravitational effects, the total information recoverable by any civilization over the entire history of our universe is finite. Assuming that consciousness has a physical computational basis, and therefore is ultimately governed by quantum mechanics, life cannot be eternal. (c) 2000 The American Astronomical Society.« less

  1. Activity and the Role of Keio University Pharmacy.

    PubMed

    Fukushima, Noriko

    2016-01-01

    Keio University Faculty of Pharmacy opened an insurance pharmacy on its campus in 2001. This pharmacy was opened with the objectives of 1) educating pharmacists to serve the regional community; 2) heightening students' motivation; and 3) providing practical education geared to the needs of actual healthcare settings. Since my appointment as director in 2003, I have led various initiatives to determine an ideal business model for a university pharmacy. This paper reports these initiatives and discusses the mission and future prospects of university pharmacies. In terms of education, all 4th-year students provide medication guidance to simulated patients at our university pharmacy counters, and are briefed by pharmacists about pharmacy administration and dispensing activities. Over three periods each academic year, trainees from other universities have been accepted for long-term on-site training. Students also work at local facilities for elderly persons to learn how to effectively communicate with this demographic and to better understand their unique pharmacokinetic profiles, impaired QOL, etc. Students can also participate in health promotion and drug education courses for regional residents, and support their self-medication. Pharmacies are important points of contact with local communities where residents' lives can be medically monitored. It is important for pharmaceutical universities to operate their own pharmacies in order to determine and stay abreast of the evolving challenges society expects pharmaceutical science to address. University pharmacies need to become models for general community pharmacies.

  2. Massive Open Online Courses and Economic Sustainability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liyanagunawardena, Tharindu R.; Lundqvist, Karsten O.; Williams, Shirley A.

    2015-01-01

    Millions of users around the world have registered on Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) offered by hundreds of universities (and other organizations) worldwide. Creating and offering these courses costs thousands of pounds. However, at present, revenue generated by MOOCs is not sufficient to offset these costs. The sustainability of MOOCs is a…

  3. Is Open Source the ERP Cure-All?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Panettieri, Joseph C.

    2008-01-01

    Conventional and hosted applications thrive, but open source ERP (enterprise resource planning) is coming on strong. In many ways, the evolution of the ERP market is littered with ironies. When Oracle began buying up customer relationship management (CRM) and ERP companies, some universities worried that they would be left with fewer choices and…

  4. 77 FR 56635 - The Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Advisory Board

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-09-13

    ... DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION The Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Advisory... College and University Capital Financing Advisory Board. ACTION: Notice of an open meeting. SUMMARY: This... College and University Capital Financing Advisory Board (Board). The notice also describes the functions...

  5. Open Vessel Data Management (OpenVDM), Open-source Software to Assist Vessel Operators with the Task of Ship-wide Data Management.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pinner, J. W., IV

    2016-02-01

    Data from shipboard oceanographic sensors are collected in various ASCii, binary, open and proprietary formats. Acquiring all of these formats using single, monolithic data acquisition system (DAS) can be cumbersome, complex and difficult to adapt for the ever changing suite of emerging oceanographic sensors. Another approach to the at-sea data acquisition challenge is to utilize multiple DAS software packages and corral the resulting data files with a ship-wide data management system. The Open Vessel Data Management project (OpenVDM) implements this second approach to ship-wide data management and over the last three years has successfully demonstrated it's ability to deliver a consistent cruise data package to scientists while reducing the workload placed on marine technicians. In addition to meeting the at-sea and post-cruise needs of scientists OpenVDM is helping vessel operators better adhere to the recommendations and best practices set forth by 3rd party data management and data quality groups such as R2R and SAMOS. OpenVDM also includes tools for supporting telepresence-enabled ocean research/exploration such as bandwidth-efficient ship-to-shore data transfers, shore-side data access, data visualization and near-real-time data quality tests and data statistics. OpenVDM is currently operating aboard three vessels. The R/V Endeavor, operated by the University of Rhode Island, is a regional-class UNOLS research vessel operating under the traditional NFS, P.I. driven model. The E/V Nautilus, operated by the Ocean Exploration Trust specializes in ROV-based, telepresence-enabled oceanographic research. The R/V Falkor operated by the Schmidt Ocean Institute is an ocean research platform focusing on cutting-edge technology development. These three vessels all have different missions, sensor suites and operating models yet all are able to leverage OpenVDM for managing their unique datasets and delivering a more consistent cruise data package to scientists and data

  6. Multimedia University: A Paperless Environment to Take the Challenges for the 21st Century

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reaz, Mamun Bin Ibne; Hussain, Sazzad; Khadem, Shajib

    2007-01-01

    Predictability of absolute data transaction for real time information and reduction of incalculable data delivery time are the major factors to lead the global education as well as economic system towards a paperless environment. Some universities such as the University of Phoenix, Western Governors University, UK Open University, University of…

  7. The Nature of the University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lenartowicz, Marta

    2015-01-01

    Higher education research frequently refers to the complex external conditions that give our old-fashioned universities a good reason to change. The underlying theoretical assumption of such framing is that organizations are open systems. This paper presents an alternative view, derived from the theory of social systems autopoiesis. It proposes…

  8. Page, Text and Screen in the University: Revisiting the Illich Hypothesis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marin, Lavinia; Masschelein, Jan; Simons, Maarten

    2018-01-01

    In the age of web 2.0, the university is constantly challenged to re-adapt its "old-fashioned" pedagogies to the new possibilities opened up by digital technologies. This article proposes a rethinking of the relation between university and (digital) technologies by focusing not on how technologies function in the university, but on their…

  9. Open Access: From Myth to Paradox

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ginsparg, Paul

    2009-05-06

    True open access to scientific publications not only gives readers the possibility to read articles without paying subscription, but also makes the material available for automated ingestion and harvesting by 3rd parties. Once articles and associated data become universally treatable as computable objects, openly available to 3rd party aggregators and value-added services, what new services can we expect, and how will they change the way that researchers interact with their scholarly communications infrastructure? I will discuss straightforward applications of existing ideas and services, including citation analysis, collaborative filtering, external database linkages, interoperability, and other forms of automated markup, and speculatemore » on the sociology of the next generation of users.« less

  10. Open Access: From Myth to Paradox

    ScienceCinema

    Ginsparg, Paul [Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States

    2018-04-19

    True open access to scientific publications not only gives readers the possibility to read articles without paying subscription, but also makes the material available for automated ingestion and harvesting by 3rd parties. Once articles and associated data become universally treatable as computable objects, openly available to 3rd party aggregators and value-added services, what new services can we expect, and how will they change the way that researchers interact with their scholarly communications infrastructure? I will discuss straightforward applications of existing ideas and services, including citation analysis, collaborative filtering, external database linkages, interoperability, and other forms of automated markup, and speculate on the sociology of the next generation of users.

  11. [Dr. Michiharu Matsuoka, founder of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Kyoto University, and his achievements (Part 6: Studying abroad of Dr. Matsuoka and opening to public, reputation and achievement of the department)].

    PubMed

    Hirotani, Hayato

    2011-03-01

    Dr. Michiharu Matsuoka studied orthopaedic surgery in Germany, Austria and other countries during the period from August, 1902 to May, 1906. He visited many university pathological institutes and surgical and orthopaedic clinics to study pathology and to learn the practice of orthopaedic surgery. After that, he started his practice at the newly established Department of Orthopaedic Surgery in the Medical School of Kyoto Imperial University in June, 1906. The department was opened in 1907 and in 1911 it was opened to all citizens and practical doctors in Kyoto City and exhibited many orthopaedic specimens and instruments. In particular, the x-ray apparatus of the Department was so well equipped that a German radiologist who visited the Department admired it in his article that was published in the journal of radiology in 1911. The Department was not surpassed by others for the number of patients with the dislocation of the hip and tuberculous spondylitis as well as the advanced quality and variety of roentgenological and pathological researches on these diseases.

  12. The development of the learning video for the flipped classroom model on student of open university on human skeletal system and muscles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Andrini, V. S.

    2018-05-01

    The objectives of the research are to develop the learning video for the flipped classroom model for Open University’s student and to know the effectiveness of the video. The development of the video used Research and Development ADDIE design (Analyses, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation). The sampling used purposive sampling was 28 students in Open University of Nganjuk. The techniques of data collection were the observation data to know the problems of the students, and learning facilities, the test (pre-test and post-test) to know a knowledge aspect, a questionnaire to know advisability of video learning, a structured interview to confirm their answer. The result of the expert of matter and media showed that the average product score was 3.75 of 4 or very good, the small-scale test showed that the average score was 3.60 of 4 and the large-scale test showed that the average score was 3.80 of 4, it had a very good category. The t-test with paired sample test showed that sig. (2-tailed) < 0.05. The N-gain score of pre and post test was 0.55, it had the medium category. It can be concluded that the development of the learning video for flipped classroom was effective to be implemented.

  13. Examining Digital Literacy Competences and Learning Habits of Open and Distance Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ozdamar-Keskin, Nilgun; Ozata, Fatma Zeynep; Banar, Kerim; Royle, Karl

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of the study is to examine digital literacy competences and learning habits of learners enrolled in the open and distance education system of Anadolu University in Turkey. Data were gathered from 20.172 open and distance learners through a survey which included four parts: demographic information, abilities to use digital technologies,…

  14. Understanding Utilization of E-Journals through Usage Reports from Aggregators in a Distance Education University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tripathi, Manorama; Kumar, Sunil; Jeevan, V. K. J.

    2012-01-01

    The present study gives an account of how the e-resources in general and EBSCO, PROQUEST, Project MUSE, and JSTOR in particular were used in the Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi, India. It studies and highlights the access pattern of the patrons in an open university. The study suggests consistency and uniformity in computing and…

  15. Gravitational Wave Astrophysics: Opening the New Frontier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Centrella, Joan

    2011-01-01

    The gravitational wave window onto the universe is expected to open in approx. 5 years, when ground-based detectors make the first detections in the high-frequency regime. Gravitational waves are ripples in spacetime produced by the motions of massive objects such as black holes and neutron stars. Since the universe is nearly transparent to gravitational waves, these signals carry direct information about their sources - such as masses, spins, luminosity distances, and orbital parameters, through dense, obscured regions across cosmic time. This article explores gravitational waves as cosmic messengers, highlighting key sources, detection methods, and the astrophysical payoffs across the gravitational wave spectrum.

  16. Global health equity in United Kingdom university research: a landscape of current policies and practices.

    PubMed

    Gotham, Dzintars; Meldrum, Jonathan; Nageshwaran, Vaitehi; Counts, Christopher; Kumari, Nina; Martin, Manuel; Beattie, Ben; Post, Nathan

    2016-10-10

    Universities are significant contributors to research and technologies in health; however, the health needs of the world's poor are historically neglected in research. Medical discoveries are frequently licensed exclusively to one producer, allowing a monopoly and inequitable pricing. Similarly, research is often published in ways that make it inaccessible. Universities can adopt policies and practices to overcome neglect and ensure equitable access to research and its products. For 25 United Kingdom universities, data on health research funding were extracted from the top five United Kingdom funders' databases and coded as research on neglected diseases (NDs) and/or health in low- and lower-middle-income countries (hLLMIC). Data on intellectual property licensing policies and practices and open-access policies were obtained from publicly available sources and by direct contact with universities. Proportions of research articles published as open-access were extracted from PubMed and PubMed Central. Across United Kingdom universities, the median proportion of 2011-2014 health research funds attributable to ND research was 2.6% and for hLLMIC it was 1.7%. Overall, 79% of all ND funding and 74% of hLLMIC funding were granted to the top four institutions within each category. Seven institutions had policies to ensure that technologies developed from their research are affordable globally. Mostly, universities licensed their inventions to third parties in a way that confers monopoly rights. Fifteen institutions had an institutional open-access publishing policy; three had an institutional open-access publishing fund. The proportion of health-related articles with full-text versions freely available online ranged from 58% to 100% across universities (2012-2013); 23% of articles also had a creative commons CC-BY license. There is wide variation in the amount of global health research undertaken by United Kingdom universities, with a large proportion of total research

  17. Mina Shaughnessy and Open Admissions at New York's City College.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reeves, LaVona L.

    2002-01-01

    Discusses basic writing pioneer Mina Shaughnessy, who advocated for a humanistic approach to writing instruction for disadvantaged students, within the context of the City University of New York's policy of open admissions. (EV)

  18. Open innovation in early drug discovery: roadmaps and roadblocks.

    PubMed

    Reichman, Melvin; Simpson, Peter B

    2016-05-01

    Open innovation in pharmaceutical R&D evolved from a triple helix of convergent paradigm shifts in academic, industrial and government research sectors. The birth of the biotechnology sector catalyzed shifts in location dynamics that led to the first wave of open innovation in pharmaceutical R&D between big pharma and startup companies. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Roadmap was a crucial inflection point that set the stage for a new wave of open innovation models between pharmaceutical companies and universities that have the potential to transform the pharmaceutical R&D landscape. We highlight the attributes of leading protected open innovation models that foster the sharing of proprietary small molecule collections by lowering the risk of premature escape of intellectual property, particularly structure-activity data. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Opening Educational Practices in Scotland (OEPS)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cannell, Pete; Page, Anna; Macintyre, Ronald

    2016-01-01

    OEPS is a cross-sector project led by the Open University in Scotland (OUiS) and funded by the Scottish Funding Council. The project began in late spring 2014 and runs until the end of July 2017. It has its origins in OER projects carried out by the OUiS over the preceding four years. In most cases these involved close partnership between the…

  20. The Physics of Open Ended Evolution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Adams, Alyssa M.

    What makes living systems different than non-living ones? Unfortunately this question is impossible to answer, at least currently. Instead, we must face computationally tangible questions based on our current understanding of physics, computation, information, and biology. Yet we have few insights into how living systems might quantifiably differ from their non-living counterparts, as in a mathematical foundation to explain away our observations of biological evolution, emergence, innovation, and organization. The development of a theory of living systems, if at all possible, demands a mathematical understanding of how data generated by complex biological systems changes over time. In addition, this theory ought to be broad enough as to not be constrained to an Earth-based biochemistry. In this dissertation, the philosophy of studying living systems from the perspective of traditional physics is first explored as a motivating discussion for subsequent research. Traditionally, we have often thought of the physical world from a bottom-up approach: things happening on a smaller scale aggregate into things happening on a larger scale. In addition, the laws of physics are generally considered static over time. Research suggests that biological evolution may follow dynamic laws that (at least in part) change as a function of the state of the system. Of the three featured research projects, cellular automata (CA) are used as a model to study certain aspects of living systems in two of them. These aspects include self-reference, open-ended evolution, local physical universality, subjectivity, and information processing. Open-ended evolution and local physical universality are attributed to the vast amount of innovation observed throughout biological evolution. Biological systems may distinguish themselves in terms of information processing and storage, not outside the theory of computation. The final research project concretely explores real-world phenomenon by means of

  1. Using Open Educational Practices to Support Institutional Strategic Excellence in Teaching, Learning & Scholarship

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carey, Thomas; Davis, Alan; Ferreras, Salvador; Porter, David

    2015-01-01

    This paper explores the integration of Open Educational Practices (OEP) into an institutional strategy to develop distinctive excellence in teaching, learning and scholarship. The institution in the case study is a public polytechnic university serving a metropolitan area in Canada. If emerging Open Educational Practices are to flourish at our…

  2. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) for Teaching Portuguese for Foreigners: A Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zancanaro, Airton; Domingues, Maria Jose Carvalho de Souza

    2018-01-01

    Education is experiencing a period of change and the traditional models of education adopted by universities need to go through innovative processes to democratize knowledge, attract new learners and optimize resources. The use of Open Educational Resources (OERs) and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) can contribute to such changes. However,…

  3. The Disruptive Potential of the Massive Open Online Course: A Literature Review

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jacoby, Jean

    2014-01-01

    The Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) is a rapidly evolving phenomenon which has stimulated discussion in universities around the world. A central theme of these discussions, and much of the published literature on the phenomenon, is the potential of the MOOC to disrupt the way universities do business. The aim of this narrative literature review…

  4. MOOCs to University: A Consumer Goal and Marketing Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Howarth, Jason; D'Alessandro, Steven; Johnson, Lester; White, Lesley

    2017-01-01

    In this paper we apply consumer goal theories to an educational context by examining how completion of a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) may motivate enrolment in a university course. We contend that individuals who finish a MOOC are more likely to establish a new goal intention for university than those who do not finish. This new goal…

  5. Robotic Mining Competition - Opening Ceremony

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2018-05-15

    NASA Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana welcomes college and university teams to NASA's 9th Robotic Mining Competition, May 15, during the opening ceremony in the RobotPits in the Educator Resource Center at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. More than 40 student teams from colleges and universities around the U.S. will use their mining robots to dig in a supersized sandbox filled with BP-1, or simulated Martian soil, gravel and rocks, and participate in other competition requirements. The Robotic Mining Competition is a NASA Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate project designed to encourage students in science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM fields. The project provides a competitive environment to foster innovative ideas and solutions that could be used on NASA's deep space missions.

  6. Open scientific communication urged

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Richman, Barbara T.

    In a report released last week the National Academy of Sciences' Panel on Scientific Communication and National Security concluded that the ‘limited and uncertain benefits’ of controls on the dissemination of scientific and technological research are ‘outweighed by the importance of scientific progress, which open communication accelerates, to the overall welfare of the nation.’ The 18-member panel, chaired by Dale R. Corson, president emeritus of Cornell University, was created last spring (Eos, April 20, 1982, p. 241) to examine the delicate balance between open dissemination of scientific and technical information and the U.S. government's desire to protect scientific and technological achievements from being translated into military advantages for our political adversaries.The panel dealt almost exclusively with the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union but noted that there are ‘clear problems in scientific communication and national security involving Third World countries.’ Further study of this matter is necessary.

  7. 78 FR 11865 - President's Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-02-20

    ... Universities AGENCY: U.S. Department of Education, President's Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (Board). ACTION: Notice of an open meeting. SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the... Universities. The notice also describes the functions of the Board. Notice of the meeting is required by...

  8. Keeping the Doors of Learning Open for Adult Student-Workers within Higher Education?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Walters, Shirley; Abrahams, Mark; Witbooi, Sally

    2015-01-01

    The Freedom Charter of the African National Congress (ANC), the triumphant South African liberation movement, proclaims that "the doors of learning shall be open" for all. Twenty years since coming to power, the doors of the universities are struggling to stay open for adult student-workers. An action research project into implementation…

  9. Issues and Challenges in Open and Distance e-Learning: Perspectives from the Philippines

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arinto, Patricia Brazil

    2016-01-01

    Rapid advances in information and communications technology in the digital age have brought about significant changes in the practice of distance education (DE) worldwide. DE practitioners in the Philippines' open university have coined the term "open and distance e-learning" (ODeL) to refer to the new forms of DE, which are…

  10. OpenCL Implementation of NeuroIsing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zapart, C. A.

    Recent advances in graphics card hardware combined with anintroduction of the OpenCL standard promise to accelerate numerical simulations across diverse scientific disciplines. One such field benefiting from new hardware/software paradigms is econophysics. The paper describes an OpenCL implementation of a selected econophysics model: NeuroIsing, which has been designed to execute in parallel on a vendor-independent graphics card. Originally introduced in the paper [C.~A.~Zapart, ``Econophysics in Financial Time Series Prediction'', PhD thesis, Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Japan (2009)], at first it was implemented on a CELL processor running inside a SONY PS3 games console. The NeuroIsing framework can be applied to predicting and trading foreign exchange as well as stock market index futures.

  11. Detecting Successful Student Profiles at an Open University: The Case of the UNED (Spain)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fernández-Avilés, Gema; Pérez-Zabaleta, Amelia; Martínez-Merino, Juan-Luis

    2014-01-01

    At present, one of the major issues and most interesting discussions within the European Higher Education Area is the rate of success in university-level study, and therefore the adaptation of today's university education system to society's requirements. Moreover, we have seen significant growth in distance education throughout recent decades, as…

  12. Application of Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) for assessment of occupational heat stress in open-pit mines.

    PubMed

    Nassiri, Parvin; Monazzam, Mohammad Reza; Golbabaei, Farideh; Dehghan, Somayeh Farhang; Rafieepour, Athena; Mortezapour, Ali Reza; Asghari, Mehdi

    2017-10-07

    The purpose of this article is to examine the applicability of Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) index as an innovative index for evaluating of occupational heat stress in outdoor environments. 175 workers of 12 open-pit mines in Tehran, Iran were selected for this research study. First, the environmental variables such as air temperature, wet-bulb temperature, globe temperature, relative humidity and air flow rate were measured; then UTCI, wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and heat stress index (HSI) indices were calculated. Simultaneously, physiological parameters including heart rate, oral temperature, tympanic temperature and skin temperature of workers were measured. UTCI and WBGT are positively significantly correlated with all environmental parameters (p<0.03), except for air velocity (r<-0.39; p>0.05). Moreover, a strong significant relationship was found between UTCI and WBGT (r=0.95; p<0.001). The significant positive correlations exist between physiological parameters including oral temperature, tympanic and skin temperatures and heart rate and both the UTCI and WBGT indices (p<0.029). The highest correlation coefficient has been found between the UTCI and physiological parameters. Due to the low humidity and air velocity (~<1 m/s) in understudied mines, UTCI index appears to be appropriate to assess the occupational heat stress in these outdoor workplaces.

  13. Moving to Open Educational Resources at Athabasca University: A Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ives, Cindy; Pringle, Mary Margaret

    2013-01-01

    Since the birth of the World Wide Web, educators have been exchanging ideas and sharing resources online. They are all aware of the turmoil in higher education created by freely available content, including some hopeful developments charted in this issue. Interest has grown steadily over the past decade in making a university-level education…

  14. Language Policy in Puerto Rico's Higher Education: Opening the Door for Translanguaging Practices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carroll, Kevin S.; Mazak, Catherine M.

    2017-01-01

    This paper investigates the relationship between meso university language policies in Puerto Rico and their micro instantiations in an undergraduate psychology classroom. We describe a typology of language policies used by 38 universities and campuses in Puerto Rico where their openness allows for flexible implementation of everyday micro policy.…

  15. 78 FR 57135 - President's Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-09-17

    ... Universities AGENCY: U.S. Department of Education, President's Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities. ACTION: Notice of an Open Meeting. SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the schedule and... Universities. The notice also describes the functions of the Board. Notice of the meeting is required by...

  16. 78 FR 55687 - Meeting of the Board of Visitors of Marine Corps University

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-09-11

    ... University AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. ACTION: Notice of open meeting. SUMMARY: The Board of Visitors of the Marine Corps University will meet to review, develop and provide recommendations on all aspects of the academic and administrative policies of the University; examine all aspects of professional...

  17. 78 FR 3409 - Meeting of the Board of Visitors of Marine Corps University

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-01-16

    ... University AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. ACTION: Notice of Open Meeting. SUMMARY: The Board of Visitors of the Marine Corps University will meet to review, develop and provide recommendations on all aspects of the academic and administrative policies of the University; examine all aspects of professional...

  18. 75 FR 53958 - Meeting of the Board of Visitors of Marine Corps University

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-02

    ... University AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. ACTION: Notice of open meeting. SUMMARY: The Board of Visitors of the Marine Corps University (BOV MCU) will meet to review, develop and provide recommendations on all aspects of the academic and administrative policies of the University; examine all aspects of...

  19. 77 FR 12578 - Meeting of the Board of Visitors of Marine Corps University

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-03-01

    ... University AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. ACTION: Notice of open meeting. SUMMARY: The Board of Visitors of the Marine Corps University will meet to review, develop and provide recommendations on all aspects of the academic and administrative policies of the University; examine all aspects of professional...

  20. 76 FR 12716 - Meeting of the Board of Visitors of Marine Corps University

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-03-08

    ... University AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. ACTION: Notice of open meeting. SUMMARY: The Board of Visitors of the Marine Corps University (BOV MCU) will meet to review, develop and provide recommendations on all aspects of the academic and administrative policies of the University; examine all aspects of...

  1. 76 FR 55367 - Meeting of the Board of Visitors of Marine Corps University

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-09-07

    ... University AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. ACTION: Notice of Open Meeting. SUMMARY: The Board of Visitors of the Marine Corps University will meet to review, develop and provide recommendations on all aspects of the academic and administrative policies of the University; examine all aspects of [[Page 55368...

  2. 77 FR 55813 - Meeting of the Board of Visitors of Marine Corps University

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-09-11

    ... University AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. ACTION: Notice of open meeting. SUMMARY: The Board of Visitors of the Marine Corps University will meet to review, develop and provide recommendations on all aspects of the academic and administrative policies of the University; examine all aspects of professional...

  3. The Politics of Structural Change in American Higher Education: The Case of Open Admissions at the City University of New York. [Report from the] Project on Politics and Inequality in American Higher Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Karabel, James; And Others

    The political dynamics surrounding the adoption of an open admissions policy at the City University of New York (CUNY) are discussed. Analysis of the case of CUNY also provides a basis for considering the politics of structural change in American higher education. It is suggested that when Chancellor Albert Bowker took office in 1963, he followed…

  4. Something for Everyone? The Different Approaches of Academic Disciplines to Open Educational Resources and the Effect on Widening Participation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coughlan, Tony; Perryman, Leigh-Anne

    2011-01-01

    This article explores the relationship between academic disciplines' representation in the United Kingdom Open University's (OU) OpenLearn open educational resources (OER) repository and in the OU's fee-paying curriculum. Becher's (1989) typology was used to subdivide the OpenLearn and OU fee-paying curriculum content into four disciplinary…

  5. Home | Oregon State University Extension Service

    Science.gov Websites

    "How To" Communities OSU Open Campus Oregon's Agricultural Progress Magazine Emerging Issues Oregon's Agricultural Progress cover image Oregon's Agricultural Progress, the research magazine for the Oregon State University Agricultural Experiment Station. Read current OAP issue » Bridges logo image

  6. A Creative University: Is It Possible?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bennich-Bjorkman, Li; Rothstein, Bo

    1991-01-01

    This essay examines the importance of university organization to its creative capacity, in particular how the research policies and organizational structure affect the creative capability of scientists. The argument opens by exploring possible measures of institutional success and creativity. There follows a discussion of creativity and insight in…

  7. Gravitational Wave Astrophysics: Opening the New Frontier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Centrella, Joan

    2011-01-01

    The gravitational wave window onto the universe is expected to open in approximately 5 years, when ground-based detectors make the first detections in the high-frequency regime. Gravitational waves are ripples in spacetime produced by the motions of massive objects such as black holes and neutron stars. Since the universe is nearly transparent to gravitational waves, these signals carry direct information about their sources - such as masses, spins, luminosity distances, and orbital parameters through dense, obscured regions across cosmic time. This talk will explore gravitational waves as cosmic messengers, highlighting key sources, detection methods, and the astrophysical payoffs across the gravitational wave spectrum.

  8. Mega-Universities and Knowledge Media: Technology Strategies for Higher Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Daniel, John S

    This book explores the essentials of distance education and reviews issues facing large open universities (mega-universities) worldwide. It uses examples from industry and the knowledge media, to show how technology-based learning can be made attractive both to students and to institutions. The book's eight chapters, including 10 figures and 5…

  9. Integrated Teacher Education Programme for Open Distance Learning: A Model for Development and Implementation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bose, Sutapa

    2013-01-01

    Teacher education in India, including that offered by the open distance learning (ODL) system to thousands every year, imparts mainly pedagogic knowledge, although the need for integrated teacher education programmes has been underscored. As the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), an ODL institution, will develop an integrated Bachelor…

  10. OER on the Asian Mega Universities: Developments, Motives, Openness, and Sustainability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Farisi, Mohammad Imam

    2013-01-01

    The OER movement originated and integrated into ODE developments. Mega Universities (MUs) are among the most important of ODE providers worldwide should be to be the primary organizations for providing access to OER. So far, however, in-depth studies on OER developments in the Asian MUs were very limited. This study focuses on the developments,…

  11. Successful industry-university graduate-level research partnerships at the Pennsylvania State University

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Feltus, M.A.

    1996-12-31

    Previously, nuclear utilities have been considered {open_quotes}deep pockets{close_quotes} for university research; however, in the current cost-cutting competitive environment, most utilities have drastically reduced or eliminated research. Any collaboration with universities requires that any research effort have a focused objective, short-term duration, and tangible payback. Furthermore, the research must concentrate on solving operating problems, rather than on long-term general concerns. Although practical studies may seem mundane, untheoretical, and uninteresting for most academics, such pragmatic topics can provide interesting research for students and helpful results for the utilities. This paper provides examples of the author`s research funded by utilities. Each project hasmore » a specific objective involving a particular utility need or computer code analysis tool.« less

  12. Barriers to Taking Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Semenova, Tatiana Vadimovna; Rudakova, Lyudmila Mikhailovna

    2016-01-01

    Researchers of the traditional higher education system identify a number of factors affecting admission to a university (barriers to entry) and factors of its successful completion (barriers to exit). Massive open online courses (MOOCs), available to any Internet user, remove barriers to entry because anyone can study there. But do all students…

  13. The Athabasca University eduSource Project: Building an Accessible Learning Object Repository

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cleveland-Innes, Martha; McGreal, Rory; Anderson, Terry; Friesen, Norm; Ally, Mohamed; Tin, Tony; Graham, Rodger; Moisey, Susan; Petrinjak, Anita; Schafer, Steve

    2005-01-01

    Athabasca University--Canada's Open University (AU) made the commitment to put all of its courses online as part of its Strategic University Plan. In pursuit of this goal, AU participated in the eduSource project, a pan-Canadian effort to build the infrastructure for an interoperable network of learning object repositories. AU acted as a leader in…

  14. Quantum computing without wavefunctions: time-dependent density functional theory for universal quantum computation.

    PubMed

    Tempel, David G; Aspuru-Guzik, Alán

    2012-01-01

    We prove that the theorems of TDDFT can be extended to a class of qubit Hamiltonians that are universal for quantum computation. The theorems of TDDFT applied to universal Hamiltonians imply that single-qubit expectation values can be used as the basic variables in quantum computation and information theory, rather than wavefunctions. From a practical standpoint this opens the possibility of approximating observables of interest in quantum computations directly in terms of single-qubit quantities (i.e. as density functionals). Additionally, we also demonstrate that TDDFT provides an exact prescription for simulating universal Hamiltonians with other universal Hamiltonians that have different, and possibly easier-to-realize two-qubit interactions. This establishes the foundations of TDDFT for quantum computation and opens the possibility of developing density functionals for use in quantum algorithms.

  15. Measuring Confidence Levels of Male and Female Students in Open Access Enabling Courses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Atherton, Mirella

    2015-01-01

    The study of confidence was undertaken at the University of Newcastle with students selecting science courses at two campuses. The students were enrolled in open access programs and aimed to gain access to undergraduate studies in various disciplines at University. The "third person effect" was used to measure the confidence levels of…

  16. Continuing professional development of dentists through distant learning: an Indira Gandhi National Open University-Dental Council of India experiment a report.

    PubMed

    Kuba, Ruchika; Kohli, Anil

    2014-01-01

    To keep themselves updated with all the advancements in the field of dentistry, dentists should involve themselves in some kind of professional development. Distance learning is the most appropriate way to serve the growing demand due to technological advancements. Indira Gandhi National Open University in collaboration with Dental Council of India (DCI) developed and launched two continuing professional development programs in Endodontics (postgraduate certificate in endodontics) and postgraduate certificate in oral implantology and has trained over 400 and 280 BDS dentists respectively till date. The program package consists of self-instructional material, assignments, videos and practical training. The training is conducted in premiere dental colleges and institutions recognized by DCI. The certificate is awarded after a term end examination, both in theory and practical. The pass percentages of the theory courses ranged from around 63% to 98%, and 90% of the candidates cleared the practical exam.

  17. The University of Dayton Core Program.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lasley, Thomas J., II; Geiger, John; Palermo, Patrick

    This paper describes how the University of Dayton, Ohio, has strengthened teacher education through the creation of two institutional general education initiatives that integrate general and professional education in a coherent learning experience. The first is a CORE program that is open to all students pursuing degree work in the elementary…

  18. Gutenberg's Effects on Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moodie, Gavin

    2014-01-01

    This article considers the effects on universities of Gutenberg's invention of printing. It considers four major effects: the gradual displacement of Latin as the language of scholarship with vernacular languages, the expansion and eventual opening of libraries, major changes to curriculum, and major changes to pedagogy including lectures.…

  19. Effects of Mathematics Innovation and Technology on Students Performance in Open and Distance Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Israel, Oginni 'Niyi

    2016-01-01

    This study investigated the effect of mathematics innovation and technology on students' academic performance in open and distance learning. Quasi -- experimental research design was adopted for the study. The population for the study consisted of all the 200 level primary education students at the National Open University of Nigeria (Ekiti and…

  20. MOOCs for Language Learning-Opportunities and Challenges: The Case of the Open University Italian Beginners' MOOCs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Motzo, Anna; Proudfoot, Anna

    2017-01-01

    Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are a fairly recent development in online education. Language MOOCs (LMOOCs) have recently been added to the ever-growing list of open courses offered by various providers, including FutureLearn. For learners, MOOCs offer an innovative and inexpensive alternative to formal and traditional learning. For course…

  1. 76 FR 41219 - Board of Regents of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-07-13

    ... University of the Health Sciences AGENCY: Department of Defense; Uniformed Services University of the Health... Services University of the Health Sciences (USU). DATES: Tuesday, August 9, 2011. 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. (Open... (D3001), Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, Maryland...

  2. Questioning the efficacy of 'gold' open access to published articles.

    PubMed

    Fredericks, Suzanne

    2015-07-01

    To question the efficacy of 'gold' open access to published articles. Open access is unrestricted access to academic, theoretical and research literature that is scholarly and peer-reviewed. Two models of open access exist: 'gold' and 'green'. Gold open access provides everyone with access to articles during all stages of publication, with processing charges paid by the author(s). Green open access involves placing an already published article into a repository to provide unrestricted access, with processing charges incurred by the publisher. This is a discussion paper. An exploration of the relative benefits and drawbacks of the 'gold' and 'green' open access systems. Green open access is a more economic and efficient means of granting open access to scholarly literature but a large number of researchers select gold open access journals as their first choices for manuscript submissions. This paper questions the efficacy of gold open access models and presents an examination of green open access models to encourage nurse researchers to consider this approach. In the current academic environment, with increased pressures to publish and low funding success rates, it is difficult to understand why gold open access still exists. Green open access enhances the visibility of an academic's work, as increased downloads of articles tend to lead to increased citations. Green open access is the cheaper option, as well as the most beneficial choice, for universities that want to provide unrestricted access to all literature at minimal risk.

  3. University management nurse: a grounded theory.

    PubMed

    Cunha, Kamylla Santos da; Andrade, Selma Regina de; Erdmann, Alacoque Lorenzini

    2018-03-08

    to understand the meaning of the university management performed by nurses managers of the nursing undergraduate course of a public university. this is a qualitative research, based on the grounded theory. Data collection took place between May and September 2016, with open interviews, in the scenario of a federal public university. The technique of constant comparative analysis of the data was followed, obtaining a theoretical sample with 19 nurses, in two sample groups. there were three categories emerged that shaped the phenomenon: Articulating complex collectives through university management for the qualified training of new nurses. The categories included: a) conditions, defined by perceiving the commitment to the collective, previous experiences, and training for health management, as motivations to be a teacher manager; b) actions/interactions, delimited by Knowing and recognizing, in practice, the university management process, limits and possibilities in the coordination of complex collective subjects; and, c) consequences, such as Improving teaching work and taking responsibility for university education. the nurses teaching managers to explain university management as a set of individual and collective actions that, articulated in a complex social environment, promote conditions for the training of critical and reflexive nurses with the demands of society.

  4. OER Perspectives: Emerging Issues for Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Olcott, Don

    2012-01-01

    This reflection examines some of the continuing and emerging issues in the open educational resources (OER) field. These include blending OER with university management structures; formal and non-formal OER; the need for sustainable OER business models; and expanding awareness, adoption, and use of OER. In the future, research will need to examine…

  5. [Development of child neuropsychiatry at the Karl Marx University of Leipzig].

    PubMed

    Gebelt, H

    1978-05-01

    The development of pedoneuropsychiatry at the University of Leipzig is marked by the opening in 1926 of the first "Department of Pedopsychiatric Observation", the establishment of the Clinic of Pedoneuropsychiatry as an independent unit of the Department of Medicine, Karl Marx University, and the setting up in 1976 of a Chair of Pedoneuropsychiatry. Paul Schröder's and R. A. Pfeifer's services to their university are particularly appreciated.

  6. Gravitational-wave Astronomy: Opening a New Window on the Universe for Students, Educators and the Public

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cavaglià, M.; Hendry, M.; Ingram, D.; Milde, S.; Reitze, D.; Riles, K.; Schutz, B.; Stuver, A. L.; Summerscales, T.; Thacker, J.; Torres, C. V.; Ugolini, D.; Vallisneri, M.; Zermeno, A.

    2008-11-01

    The nascent field of gravitational-wave astronomy offers many opportunities for effective and inspirational astronomy outreach. Gravitational waves, the ``ripples in space-time'' predicted by Einstein's theory of General Relativity, are produced by some of the most energetic and dramatic phenomena in the cosmos, including black holes, neutron stars and supernovae. The detection of gravitational waves will help to address a number of fundamental questions in physics, from the evolution of stars and galaxies to the origin of dark energy and the nature of space-time itself. Moreover, the cutting-edge technology developed to search for gravitational waves is pushing back the frontiers of many fields, from lasers and materials science to high performance computing, and thus provides a powerful showcase for the attractions and challenges of a career in science and engineering. For several years a worldwide network of ground-based laser interferometric gravitational-wave detectors has been fully operational, including the two LIGO detectors in the United States. These detectors are already among the most sensitive scientific instruments on the planet and in the next few years their sensitivity will achieve further significant improvement. Those developments promise to open an exciting new window on the universe, heralding the arrival of gravitational-wave astronomy as a revolutionary, new observational field. In this paper we describe the extensive program of public outreach activities already undertaken by the LIGO Scientific Collaboration, and a number of special events which we are planning for IYA2009.

  7. Mobile Learning: Readiness and Perceptions of Teachers of Open Universities of Commonwealth Asia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Miglani, Anshu; Awadhiya, Ashish Kumar

    2017-01-01

    Integration of "Mobile Learning" (m-learning) in Open and Distance Learning (ODL) systems can play a crucial role in reducing the "Digital Divide" and strengthening "Democratization of Education" by providing quality educational opportunities and access to information quickly at affordable cost in Commonwealth Asian…

  8. The Anthropocene Biosphere: Supporting 'Open Interdisciplinarity' through Blogging.

    PubMed

    Trachtenberg, Zev M; Burns, Thomas J; de Beurs, Kirsten; Ellis, Stephen E; Gates, Kiza K; Hoagland, Bruce W; Kelly, Jeffrey F; Neeson, Thomas M; Randall, Asa R; Schlupp, Ingo; Soppelsa, Peter S; Soreghan, Gerilyn S; Zeigler, James J

    2017-01-01

    This paper describes a process of 'open' interdisciplinary scholarship. Researchers from across the University of Oklahoma blogged about a recent paper by ecologist Erle Ellis, and met in person to discuss posts. They then hosted Ellis for a seminar on questions that emerged, and for a public panel discussion. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Positioning Your Library in an Open-Access Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bhatt, Anjana H.

    2010-01-01

    This paper is a summary of the project that the author completed at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) library for providing online access to 80 open access E-journals and digital collections. Although FGCU uses SerialsSolutions products to establish online access, any one can provide access to these collections as they are free for all. Paper…

  10. 75 FR 56078 - Federal Advisory Committee; Defense Acquisition University Board of Visitors

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-15

    ... p.m. DAU Strategic Planning Discussion Open Forum. Public's Accessibility to the Meeting Pursuant to... University Board of Visitors AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Defense. ACTION: Meeting....150, the Department of Defense announces that the Defense Acquisition University Board of Visitors...

  11. Gravitational Wave Astrophysics: Opening the New Frontier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Centrella, Joan

    2011-01-01

    The gravitational wave window onto the universe is expected to open in 5 years, when ground-based detectors make the first detections in the high-frequency regime. Gravitational waves are ripples in spacetime produced by the motions of massive objects such as black holes and neutron stars. Since the universe is nearly transparent to gravitational waves, these signals carry direct information about their sources such as masses, spins, luminosity distances, and orbital parameters through dense, obscured regions across cosmic time. This article explores gravitational waves as cosmic messengers, highlighting key sources, detection methods, and the astrophysical payoffs across the gravitational wave spectrum. Keywords: Gravitational wave astrophysics; gravitational radiation; gravitational wave detectors; black holes.

  12. Project-based physics labs using low-cost open-source hardware

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bouquet, F.; Bobroff, J.; Fuchs-Gallezot, M.; Maurines, L.

    2017-03-01

    We describe a project-based physics lab, which we proposed to third-year university students. These labs are based on new open-source low-cost equipment (Arduino microcontrollers and compatible sensors). Students are given complete autonomy: they develop their own experimental setup and study the physics topic of their choice. The goal of these projects is to let students to discover the reality of experimental physics. Technical specifications of the acquisition material and case studies are presented for practical implementation in other universities.

  13. Relationships between Open Education Students' Economic Profiles and Their Use of Internet in Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nartgun, Senay

    2011-01-01

    The study aims to identify the economic profiles of Open Education Faculty students and to determine the relationship between their economic profiles and the following of online courses using Internet. In the study survey model was used. The population of the study was composed of 4652 Anadolu University Open Education Faculty students who live in…

  14. Usage Trends of Open Access and Local Journals: A Korean Case Study

    PubMed Central

    Chung, Hosik; Yun, Jungmin; Park, Jin Young; Park, Eunsun; Ahn, Yuri

    2016-01-01

    Articles from open access and local journals are important resources for research in Korea and the usage trends of these articles are important indicators for the assessment of the current research practice. We analyzed an institutional collection of published papers from 1998 to 2014 authored by researchers from Seoul National University, and their references from papers published between 1998 and 2011. The published papers were collected from Web of Science or Scopus and were analyzed according to the proportion of articles from open access journals. Their cited references from published papers in Web of Science were analyzed according to the proportion of local (South Korean) or open access journals. The proportion of open access papers was relatively stable until 2006 (2.5 ~ 5.2% in Web of Science and 2.7 ~ 4.2% in Scopus), but then increased to 15.9% (Web of Science) or 18.5% (Scopus) in 2014. We analyzed 2,750,485 cited references from 52,295 published papers. We found that the overall proportion of cited articles from local journals was 1.8% and that for open access journals was 3.0%. Citations of open access articles have increased since 2006 to 4.1% in 2011, although the increase in open access article citations was less than for open access publications. The proportion of citations from local journals was even lower. We think that the publishing / citing mismatch is a term to describe this difference, which is an issue at Seoul National University, where the number of published papers at open access or local journals is increasing but the number of citations is not. The cause of this discrepancy is multi-factorial but the governmental / institutional policies, social / cultural issues and authors' citing behaviors will explain the mismatch. However, additional measures are also necessary, such as the development of an institutional citation database and improved search capabilities with respect to local and open access documents. PMID:27195948

  15. Usage Trends of Open Access and Local Journals: A Korean Case Study.

    PubMed

    Seo, Jeong-Wook; Chung, Hosik; Yun, Jungmin; Park, Jin Young; Park, Eunsun; Ahn, Yuri

    2016-01-01

    Articles from open access and local journals are important resources for research in Korea and the usage trends of these articles are important indicators for the assessment of the current research practice. We analyzed an institutional collection of published papers from 1998 to 2014 authored by researchers from Seoul National University, and their references from papers published between 1998 and 2011. The published papers were collected from Web of Science or Scopus and were analyzed according to the proportion of articles from open access journals. Their cited references from published papers in Web of Science were analyzed according to the proportion of local (South Korean) or open access journals. The proportion of open access papers was relatively stable until 2006 (2.5 ~ 5.2% in Web of Science and 2.7 ~ 4.2% in Scopus), but then increased to 15.9% (Web of Science) or 18.5% (Scopus) in 2014. We analyzed 2,750,485 cited references from 52,295 published papers. We found that the overall proportion of cited articles from local journals was 1.8% and that for open access journals was 3.0%. Citations of open access articles have increased since 2006 to 4.1% in 2011, although the increase in open access article citations was less than for open access publications. The proportion of citations from local journals was even lower. We think that the publishing / citing mismatch is a term to describe this difference, which is an issue at Seoul National University, where the number of published papers at open access or local journals is increasing but the number of citations is not. The cause of this discrepancy is multi-factorial but the governmental / institutional policies, social / cultural issues and authors' citing behaviors will explain the mismatch. However, additional measures are also necessary, such as the development of an institutional citation database and improved search capabilities with respect to local and open access documents.

  16. Part-Time Learners in Open and Distance Learning: Revisiting the Critical Importance of Choice, Flexibility and Employability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Butcher, John; Rose-Adams, John

    2015-01-01

    In this article, we argue that, if open learning seeks to (re)assert a social justice mission, issues of openness and flexibility are more critical than ever. Drawing on qualitative data from a National Union of Students Wales/Open University study, which explored, in the voices of Welsh students, the identity, motivation and barriers faced by…

  17. Declining Symptom of Academic Productivity in the Japanese Research University Sector

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arimoto, Akira

    2015-01-01

    From a framework of this study, modern society may be explained by a paradigm transformation from ascription to achievement and also from particularism to universalism. According to this hypothesis, Japanese university society has not developed successfully for more than the closed society to the opened society. This paper intends to deal with the…

  18. Open Geodata Initiative for Romania

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Craciunescu, Vasile; Iosifescu, Ionut; Ilie, Codrina Maria; Gaitanaru, Dragos; Radu Gogu, Constantin; Hurni, Lorenz

    2013-04-01

    The concept of open data access is a very important topic nowadays. The concept assumes that all data collected or generated by public sector bodies (excepting personal data and data protected under existing privacy protection or accessibility rules) is made publicly accessible in commonly-used, machine-readable formats and can be re-used for any purpose, commercial or non-commercial. Governmental agencies are considered to be the most significant data owners and providers in modern societies. The sheer volume and wealth of this data makes apparent the potential benefits of reusing, combining, and processing governmental data. Even though metadata (information about the data) is sometimes published, administrations typically express reluctance to making their data available, for various reasons, cultural, political, legal, institutional and technical. The governmental spatial information (also called geospatial data, georeferenced data or geodata) producers in Romania are no exception -with the additional situation that even metadata is not usually available. Starting from 2013 a joint program between a Swiss partner (The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology ETH- Zurich - Institute of Cartography and Geoinformation) and a Romanian partner (Technical University of Civil Engineering - UTCB) is developed in order to establish a new approach on the open geodata topic. The main objective of the project GEOIDEA.RO (GEodata Openness Initiative for Development and Economic Advancement in ROmania) is to improve the scientific basis for open geodata model adoption in Romania. Is our believe that publishing government geodata in Romania over the Internet,under an open license and in a reusable format can strengthen citizen engagement and yield new innovative businesses, bringing substantial social and economic gains.

  19. Digital curation and online resources: digital scanning of surgical tools at the royal college of physicians and surgeons of Glasgow for an open university learning resource.

    PubMed

    Earley, Kirsty; Livingstone, Daniel; Rea, Paul M

    2017-01-01

    Collection preservation is essential for the cultural status of any city. However, presenting a collection publicly risks damage. Recently this drawback has been overcome by digital curation. Described here is a method of digitisation using photogrammetry and virtual reality software. Items were selected from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow archives, and implemented into an online learning module for the Open University. Images were processed via Agisoft Photoscan, Autodesk Memento, and Garden Gnome Object 2VR. Although problems arose due to specularity, 2VR digital models were developed for online viewing. Future research must minimise the difficulty of digitising specular objects.

  20. Open Education and the Open Science Economy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Peters, Michael A.

    2009-01-01

    Openness as a complex code word for a variety of digital trends and movements has emerged as an alternative mode of "social production" based on the growing and overlapping complexities of open source, open access, open archiving, open publishing, and open science. This paper argues that the openness movement with its reinforcing structure of…

  1. COBE DMR-normalized open inflation cold dark matter cosmogony

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gorski, Krzysztof M.; Ratra, Bharat; Sugiyama, Naoshi; Banday, Anthony J.

    1995-01-01

    A cut-sky orthogonal mode analysis of the 2 year COBE DMR 53 and 90 GHz sky maps (in Galactic coordinates) is used to determine the normalization of an open inflation model based on the cold dark matter (CDM) scenario. The normalized model is compared to measures of large-scale structure in the universe. Although the DMR data alone does not provide sufficient discriminative power to prefer a particular value of the mass density parameter, the open model appears to be reasonably consistent with observations when Omega(sub 0) is approximately 0.3-0.4 and merits further study.

  2. A Case Study of MOOCs Design and Administration at Seoul National University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lim, Cheolil; Kim, Sunyoung; Kim, Mihwa; Han, Songlee; Seo, Seungil

    2014-01-01

    This research, based on the case study of edX at Seoul National University, which is running Korea's first Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), discussed and proposed the roles of principal facilitators, the process, and the relationships among various facilitators in selecting, designing, opening and administrating MOOCs classes. Researches on…

  3. An Evaluation of Open Source Learning Management Systems According to Administration Tools and Curriculum Design

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ozdamli, Fezile

    2007-01-01

    Distance education is becoming more important in the universities and schools. The aim of this research is to evaluate the current existing Open Source Learning Management Systems according to Administration tool and Curriculum Design. For this, seventy two Open Source Learning Management Systems have been subjected to a general evaluation. After…

  4. Similarity and Difference in Fee-Paying and No-Fee Learner Expectations, Interaction and Reaction to Learning in a Massive Open Online Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cross, Simon; Whitelock, Denise

    2017-01-01

    The new pedagogical opportunities that massive open online course (MOOC) learning environments offer for the teaching of fee-paying students on university-accredited courses are of growing interest to educators. This paper presents a case study from a postgraduate-taught course at the Open University, UK, where a MOOC performed the dual role of a…

  5. College and University Facilities Survey. Part 5: Enrollment and Facilities of New Colleges and Universities Opening Between 1961 and 1965.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Robbins, Leslie F.; Bokelman, W. Robert

    Facilities data for 181 colleges opened between 1961 and 1965 are summarized. Data from the survey suggests the institutional characteristics, type and purpose of the new colleges, and the trends in enrollment distribution. The facilities of the new colleges are tabulated according to new construction and rehabilitation costs by categories of…

  6. A Record Book of Open Heart Surgical Cases between 1959 and 1982, Hand-Written by a Cardiac Surgeon.

    PubMed

    Kim, Won-Gon

    2016-08-01

    A book of brief records of open heart surgery underwent between 1959 and 1982 at Seoul National University Hospital was recently found. The book was hand-written by the late professor and cardiac surgeon Yung Kyoon Lee (1921-1994). This book contains valuable information about cardiac patients and surgery at the early stages of the establishment of open heart surgery in Korea, and at Seoul National University Hospital. This report is intended to analyze the content of the book.

  7. Asian Universities' Collaboration for Advanced Environmental Engineering via Simultaneous Distant Learning Classes Using Video Playback

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Araki, Mituhiko; Nakamura, Yuichi; Fujii, Shigeo; Tsuno, Hiroshi

    Three international simultaneous lectures of the post graduate level in the field of environmental science and engineering are under preparation in Kyoto University. They are planned to be opened in three Asian universities (Tsinghua University in China, University of Malaya in Malaysia, and Kyoto University in Japan) as formal courses. The contents of the lectures, purpose of the project and technical problems are reported.

  8. Open Educational Resources (OER) Usage and Barriers: A Study from Zhejiang University, China

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hu, Ermei; Li, Yan; Li, Jessica; Huang, Wen-Hao

    2015-01-01

    Open educational resources (OER) as an innovation to share educational resources has been influential in past decade and expected to bring changes to higher education worldwide. There is, however, very limited literature on OER usage, especially from the perspective of college students in developing countries, who are often projected as the…

  9. Topology and the universe

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gott, J. Richard, III

    1998-09-01

    Topology may play an important role in cosmology in several different ways. First, Einstein's field equations tell us about the local geometry of the universe but not about its topology. Therefore, the universe may be multiply connected. Inflation predicts that the fluctuations that made clusters and groups of galaxies arose from random quantum fluctuations in the early universe. These should be Gaussian random phase. This can be tested by quantitatively measuring the topology of large-scale structure in the universe using the genus statistic. If the original fluctuations were Gaussian random phase then the structure we see today should have a spongelike topology. A number of studies by our group and others have shown that this is indeed the case. Future tests using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey should be possible. Microwave background fluctuations should also exhibit a characteristic symmetric pattern of hot and cold spots. The COBE data are consistent with this pattern and the MAP and PLANCK satellites should provide a definitive test. If the original inflationary state was metastable then it should decay by making an infinite number of open inflationary bubble universes. This model makes a specific prediction for the power spectrum of fluctuations in the microwave background which can be checked by the MAP and PLANCK satellites. Finally, Gott and Li have proposed how a multiply connected cosmology with an early epoch of closed timelike curves might allow the universe to be its own mother.

  10. 4 Massive Open Online Courses and How They Work

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gose, Ben

    2012-01-01

    Massive open online courses (MOOC's) are the latest development in online education. Over the past decade, millions of students have taken free online versions of existing courses at well-known universities like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, but such courses often offered little more than reading lists and lecture notes. MOOC's are…

  11. Comparison of treatment costs of laparoscopic and open surgery.

    PubMed

    Śmigielski, Jacek A; Piskorz, Łukasz; Koptas, Włodzimierz

    2015-09-01

    Laparoscopy has been a standard procedure in most medical centres providing surgical services for many years. Both the range and number of laparoscopic procedures performed are constantly increasing. Over the last decade, laparoscopic procedures have been successfully applied both in emergency and oncological surgery. However, treatment costs have become a more important factor in choosing between open or laparoscopic procedures. To present the total real costs of open and laparoscopic cholecystectomy, appendectomy and sigmoidectomy. Between 1 May 2010 and 30 March 2015 in the Department of Thoracic Surgery, General and Oncological Surgery, Medical University of Lodz, and in the Department of General Surgery of the Saint John of God Hospital, Lodz, doctors performed 1404 cholecystectomies, 392 appendectomies and 88 sigmoidectomies. A total of 97% of the cholecystectomy procedures were laparoscopic and 3% were open. Similarly, 22% of total appendectomies were laparoscopic and 78% were open, while 9% of sigmoidectomies were laparoscopic and 91% open. The requirement for single-use equipment in laparoscopic procedures increases the expense. However, after adding up all other costs, surprisingly, differences between the costs of laparoscopic and open procedures ranged from 451 PLN/€ 114 for laparoscopic operations to 611 PLN/€ 153 for open operations. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy, considered the standard surgery for treating gallbladder diseases, is cheaper than open cholecystectomy. Laparoscopic appendectomy and sigmoidectomy are safe methods of minimally invasive surgery, slightly more expensive than open operations. Of all the analyzed procedures, one-day laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the most profitable. The costs of both laparoscopic and open sigmoidectomy are greatly underestimated in Poland.

  12. LISA: Opening New Horizons

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Centrella, Joan M.

    2011-01-01

    The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) is a space-borne observatory that will open the low frequency (approx.0.1-100 mHz) gravitational wave window on the universe. LISA will observe a rich variety of gravitational wave sources, including mergers of massive black holes, captures of stellar black holes by massive black holes in the centers of galaxies, and compact Galactic binaries. These sources are generally long-lived, providing unprecedented opportunities for multi-messenger astronomy in the transient sky. This talk will present an overview of these scientific arenas, highlighting how LISA will enable stunning discoveries in origins, understanding the cosmic order, and the frontiers of knowledge.

  13. Formal Definitions of Unbounded Evolution and Innovation Reveal Universal Mechanisms for Open-Ended Evolution in Dynamical Systems.

    PubMed

    Adams, Alyssa; Zenil, Hector; Davies, Paul C W; Walker, Sara Imari

    2017-04-20

    Open-ended evolution (OEE) is relevant to a variety of biological, artificial and technological systems, but has been challenging to reproduce in silico. Most theoretical efforts focus on key aspects of open-ended evolution as it appears in biology. We recast the problem as a more general one in dynamical systems theory, providing simple criteria for open-ended evolution based on two hallmark features: unbounded evolution and innovation. We define unbounded evolution as patterns that are non-repeating within the expected Poincare recurrence time of an isolated system, and innovation as trajectories not observed in isolated systems. As a case study, we implement novel variants of cellular automata (CA) where the update rules are allowed to vary with time in three alternative ways. Each is capable of generating conditions for open-ended evolution, but vary in their ability to do so. We find that state-dependent dynamics, regarded as a hallmark of life, statistically out-performs other candidate mechanisms, and is the only mechanism to produce open-ended evolution in a scalable manner, essential to the notion of ongoing evolution. This analysis suggests a new framework for unifying mechanisms for generating OEE with features distinctive to life and its artifacts, with broad applicability to biological and artificial systems.

  14. Community College Selective Enrollment and the Challenge to Open Access

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Morris, David Brian

    2012-01-01

    The open access mission is central to the community college role and mission in higher education. Although initially implemented by four-year colleges and universities, adoption of formal enrollment management initiatives in community colleges is on the increase. Admission, matriculation, retention, and persistence are affected by enrollment…

  15. Lifestyle of students from different universities in Wroclaw, Poland.

    PubMed

    Jakubiec, Dorota; Kornafel, Danuta; Cygan, Agata; Górska-Kłęk, Lucyna; Chromik, Krystyna

    2015-01-01

    Changes in the economic and political system that took place in Poland in recent decades had a significant impact on lifestyles of different social groups, especially in youngsters as vulnerable and open to all novelty and changes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the healthy or non-healthy behaviours including physical activity, diet, time devoted for sleeping, leisure, stress and the use of drugs by students of four universities in Wroclaw. The study involved 604 students (305 women and 299 men) from four universities in Wroclaw: University of Wroclaw - 25.0%, Wroclaw University of Technology - 24.5%, University School of Physical Education (AWF) - 25.2% and Wroclaw Medical University - 25.3%. A questionnaire developed for this study was used. The questions were both open and closed, one or multiple answers could be matched. The questions related to: physical activity, nutrition, time devoted for sleeping, leisure, stress and stimulants. On the basis of the results it was found that students mostly reported an average level of physical activity. The highest level of physical activity was presented by students of the University School of Physical Education and the lowest by students of the University of Wroclaw. Just one in ten students consumed meals on a regular basis, including one in five studying in the AWF. Almost half of the respondents (48.7%) spent 5-7 hours sleeping. Every tenth student slept less than five hours. Most respondents preferred passive forms of recreation, only one in three practiced sports in their spare time (usually students of the AWF). Every fourth student declared smoking, and more than 90% consumed alcohol. Lifestyle of majority of the students surveyed did not follow the recommendations of preventive care. The need for more efficient education of students is obvious, which will lead to the future positive changes in their lifestyle, reducing the risk of lifestyle diseases.

  16. World's Most Advanced Planetarium Opens; University Partners Sought

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Duncan, Douglas K.

    2015-01-01

    The 40 year old-Fiske Planetarium at the Univ. of Colorado has remodeled as the most advanced planetarium ever built. The 20m diameter dome features a stunning video image 8,000 x 8,000 pixels, up to 60 frames per second, produced by 6 JVC projectors. It also features the first US installation of the Megastar IIa Opto-mechanical planetarium that projects 20 million individual stars and 170 deep sky objects. You can use binoculars indoor and see individual Milky Way stars.The video projectors have high dynamic range, but not as great as the eye. In order to preserve the remarkable Megastar sky while still using video, each projector shines through a computer controlled variable density filter than extends the dynamic range by about 4 magnitudes. It therefore is possible to show a Mauna Kea quality star field and also beautiful bright videos.Unlike most planetariums, the #1 audience of Fiske is college students - the more than 2,000 who take Introductory Astronomy at Colorado each year. WE ARE SEEKING OTHER UNIVERSITIES WITH FULL-DOME VIDEO PLANETARIUMS to join us in the production of college-level material. We already have a beautiful production studio funded by Hewlett Packard and an experienced full-time Video Producer for Educational Programs. Please seek out Fiske Director Dr. Doug Duncan if interested in possible collaboration.

  17. 78 FR 57623 - Notification of an Open Meeting of the National Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-09-19

    ... discussion on accreditation compliance, organizational management, strategic planning, resource management... Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV) AGENCY: National Defense University, DoD. ACTION: Notice of... following Federal Advisory Committee meeting of the National Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV) will...

  18. Peer Observation: Improvement of Teaching Effectiveness through Class Participation at a Polytechnic University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lowder, Loraine; Atiqulla, Mir; Colebeck, Donna; Das, Sandip; Karim, M. A.; Khalid, Adeel; Singh, Rajnish; Utschig, Tristan

    2017-01-01

    An important purpose of peer observation is to provide formative feedback that will improve classroom teaching and learning. Peer observation in higher education has both quality and developmental objectives. Kennesaw State University, formerly Southern Polytechnic State University, offers a voluntary "Teaching Partners Program" open to…

  19. Reflections on Systemic Discrimination in a University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rees, Ruth

    This paper uses examples of systemic sex discrimination at one Canadian university to illustrate the need to continue to redress the causes of such discrimination. An opening section explores some legal definitions of systemic discrimination from court decisions and government regulation. Using these, this section develops a working definition of…

  20. Student Support Gaps in an Open Distance Learning Context

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arko-Achemfuor, Akwasi

    2017-01-01

    Studying through distance education can be problematic for any student, but it can be worse for rural students for diverse reasons. To ensure that students studying through the open distance learning (ODL) system have an enduring learning experience, ODL builds student support as one of its components. The University of South Africa (Unisa)…

  1. A Preliminary Exploration of Operating Models of Second Cycle/Research Led Open Education Involving Industry Collaboration

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Olsson, Ulf

    2014-01-01

    Scientists from five Swedish universities were interviewed about open second cycle education. Research groups and scientists collaborate closely with industry, and the selection of scientists for the study was made in relation to an interest in developing technology-enhanced open education, indicated by applications for funding from the Knowledge…

  2. 78 FR 25431 - Notification of an Open Meeting of the National Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-05-01

    ..., organizational management, strategic planning, resource management, and other matters of interest to the National... Defense University Board of Visitors (BOV) AGENCY: National Defense University, DoD. ACTION: Notice of... 102-3.150, the Department of Defense announces that meeting of the National Defense University Board...

  3. From Performativity to Aporia: Taking "Tremendous Responsibility" towards Feminism and the University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vrablikova, Lenka

    2016-01-01

    This paper seeks to contribute to the thinking on feminism's past and present entanglement with the university and strives to imagine its future. Through a close reading of the opening passage of Derrida's essay "Mochlos, or The Conflict of the Faculties," I trace "a university responsibility" which does not lead to a subject…

  4. What to Expect from a Virtual University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vignare, Karen

    2009-01-01

    Virtual universities (VUs) were formed to open up access to higher education for new and existing students, and they continue to grow and thrive. They come in all sizes and organizational and business models, and most differ from their founding institutions. However, VUs face more rigorous requirements for accountability and reporting. Most of…

  5. Building the Sustainable Library at Macquarie University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brodie, Maxine

    2012-01-01

    This article explores a number of current issues and challenges in sustainability, both of and in academic libraries of the future, using as a case study the new library opened at Macquarie University, Sydney in 2011. Issues covered include sustainable design and operation of library buildings, sustainability in relation to library collections,…

  6. Probing Scientists' Beliefs: How Open-Minded Are Modern Scientists?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coll, Richard; Taylor, Neil

    2004-01-01

    Just how open-minded are modern scientists? In this paper we examine this question for the science faculty from New Zealand and UK universities. The Exeter questionnaire used by Preece and Baxter (2000) to examine superstitious beliefs of high school students and preservice science teachers was used as a basis for a series of in-depth interviews…

  7. Delivery of Open, Distance, and E-Learning in Kenya

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nyerere, Jackline Anyona; Gravenir, Frederick Q.; Mse, Godfrey S.

    2012-01-01

    The increased demand and need for continuous learning have led to the introduction of open, distance, and e-learning (ODeL) in Kenya. Provision of this mode of education has, however, been faced with various challenges, among them infrastructural ones. This study was a survey conducted in two public universities offering major components of ODeL,…

  8. Arab Protests May Open Door for U.S. Scholars

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wheeler, David L.; Wilhelm, Ian

    2011-01-01

    As protesters across the Arab world demand an end to autocratic regimes that have drained universities of resources and suffocated critical thinking, scholars see some hope of an Arab renaissance and a new opening for American involvement. From the ancient Library of Alexandria to a new Islamic-arts museum in Qatar that holds 700-year-old…

  9. University multi-user facility survey-2010.

    PubMed

    Riley, Melissa B

    2011-12-01

    Multi-user facilities serve as a resource for many universities. In 2010, a survey was conducted investigating possible changes and successful characteristics of multi-user facilities, as well as identifying problems in facilities. Over 300 surveys were e-mailed to persons identified from university websites as being involved with multi-user facilities. Complete responses were received from 36 facilities with an average of 20 years of operation. Facilities were associated with specific departments (22%), colleges (22%), and university research centers (8.3%) or were not affiliated with any department or college within the university (47%). The five most important factors to succeed as a multi-user facility were: 1) maintaining an experienced, professional staff in an open atmosphere; 2) university-level support providing partial funding; 3) broad client base; 4) instrument training programs; and 5) an effective leader and engaged strategic advisory group. The most significant problems were: 1) inadequate university financial support and commitment; 2) problems recovering full service costs from university subsidies and user fees; 3) availability of funds to repair and upgrade equipment; 4) inability to retain highly qualified staff; and 5) unqualified users dirtying/damaging equipment. Further information related to these issues and to fee structure was solicited. Overall, there appeared to be a decline in university support for facilities and more emphasis on securing income by serving clients outside of the institution and by obtaining grants from entities outside of the university.

  10. Universality and predictability in molecular quantitative genetics.

    PubMed

    Nourmohammad, Armita; Held, Torsten; Lässig, Michael

    2013-12-01

    Molecular traits, such as gene expression levels or protein binding affinities, are increasingly accessible to quantitative measurement by modern high-throughput techniques. Such traits measure molecular functions and, from an evolutionary point of view, are important as targets of natural selection. We review recent developments in evolutionary theory and experiments that are expected to become building blocks of a quantitative genetics of molecular traits. We focus on universal evolutionary characteristics: these are largely independent of a trait's genetic basis, which is often at least partially unknown. We show that universal measurements can be used to infer selection on a quantitative trait, which determines its evolutionary mode of conservation or adaptation. Furthermore, universality is closely linked to predictability of trait evolution across lineages. We argue that universal trait statistics extends over a range of cellular scales and opens new avenues of quantitative evolutionary systems biology. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  11. Open Space, Open Education, and Pupil Performance.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lukasevich, Ann; Gray, Roland F.

    1978-01-01

    Explores the relationship between instructional style (open and non-open programs), architectural style (open and non-open facilities) and selected cognitive and affective outcomes of third grade pupils. (CM)

  12. [Cost-effectiveness of laparoscopic versus open cholecystectomy].

    PubMed

    Fajardo, Roosevelt; Valenzuela, José Ignacio; Olaya, Sandra Catalina; Quintero, Gustavo; Carrasquilla, Gabriel; Pinzón, Carlos Eduardo; López, Catalina; Ramírez, Juan Camilo

    2011-01-01

    Cholecystectomy has been the subject of several clinical and cost comparison studies. The results of open or laparoscopy cholecystectomy were compared in terms of cost and effectiveness from the perspective of health care institutions and from that of the patients. The cost-effectiveness study was undertaken at two university hospitals in Bogotá, Colombia. The approach was to select the type of cholecystectomy retrospectively and then assess the result prospectively. The cost analysis used the combined approach of micro-costs and daily average cost. Patient resource consumption was gathered from the time of surgery room entry to time of discharge. A sample of 376 patients with cholelithiasis/cystitis (May 2005-June 2006) was selected--156 underwent open cholecystectomy and 220 underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The following data were tabulated: (1) frequency of complications and mortality, post-surgical hospital stay, (2) reincorporation to daily activities, (3) surgery duration, (4) direct medical costs, (5) costs to the patient, and (6) mean and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios. Frequency of complications was 13.5% for open cholecystectomy and 6.4% for laparoscopic cholecystectomy (p=0.02); hospital stay was longer in open cholecystectomy than in laparoscopic cholecystectomy (p=0.003) as well as the reincorporation to daily activities reported by the patients (p<0.001). The duration of open cholecystectomy was 22 min longer than laparoscopic cholecystectomy (p<0.001). The average cost of laparoscopic cholecystectomy was lower than open cholecystectomy and laparoscopic cholecystectomy was more cost-effective than open cholecystectomy (US$ 995 vs. US$ 1,048, respectively). The patient out-of-pocket expenses were greater in open cholecystectomy compared to laparoscopic cholecystectomy (p=0.015). Mortality was zero. The open laparoscopy procedure was associated with longer hospital stays, where as the cholecystectomy procedure required a longer surgical

  13. Faculty Views of Open Web Resource Use by College Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tomaiuolo, Nicholas G.

    2005-01-01

    This article assesses both the extent of students' use of open Web resources and library subscription databases and professors' satisfaction with that use as reported by a survey of 120 community college and university English faculty. It was concluded that although library budgets allocate significant funds to offer subscription databases,…

  14. We Are the Game Changers: An Open Gaming Literacy Programme

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arnab, Sylvester; Morini, Luca; Green, Kate; Masters, Alex; Bellamy-Woods, Tyrone

    2017-01-01

    This paper discusses the first iteration of Game Changers Programme hosted by Coventry University's Disruptive Media Learning Lab (DMLL), an open game design initiative. The Programme had the goal of facilitating new models of teaching and learning, new practices in cross-faculty learning/ collaboration to make game design and development more…

  15. Employment-Driven Online Student Attrition and the Assessment Policy Divide: An Australian Open-Access Higher Education Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moore, Catherine; Greenland, Steven

    2017-01-01

    Two hundred and twenty-six qualitative interviews with students studying at Australia's largest online tertiary education organisation, Open Universities Australia (OUA), found that failure to complete assessments due to unexpected and unavoidable employment commitments was the standout reason for dropping out of its open-access courses. The…

  16. A Template for Open Inquiry: Using Questions to Encourage and Support Inquiry in Earth and Space Science

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hermann, Ronald S.; Miranda, Rommel J.

    2010-01-01

    This article provides an instructional approach to helping students generate open-inquiry research questions, which the authors call the "open-inquiry question template." This template was created based on their experience teaching high school science and preservice university methods courses. To help teachers implement this template, they…

  17. Open Content in Open Context

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kansa, Sarah Whitcher; Kansa, Eric C.

    2007-01-01

    This article presents the challenges and rewards of sharing research content through a discussion of Open Context, a new open access data publication system for field sciences and museum collections. Open Context is the first data repository of its kind, allowing self-publication of research data, community commentary through tagging, and clear…

  18. Openness, Web 2.0 Technology, and Open Science

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Peters, Michael A.

    2010-01-01

    Open science is a term that is being used in the literature to designate a form of science based on open source models or that utilizes principles of open access, open archiving and open publishing to promote scientific communication. Open science increasingly also refers to open governance and more democratized engagement and control of science…

  19. Will E-Business Shape the Future of Open and Distance Learning?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oblinger, Diana

    2001-01-01

    Explores the impact that electronic business is likely to have on the growth of open and distance learning. Discusses global consortia and global virtual universities; technological developments, including Web qualities; value chains; pricing models; the importance of scale; operating efficiencies; and increasing competition. (Author/LRW)

  20. Staying Power: The Effect of Pathway into University on Student Achievement and Attrition

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chesters, Jenny; Watson, Louise

    2016-01-01

    The expansion of the higher education sector in Australia opened up new pathways into university increasing the diversity of the student population. For non-traditional students, those who did not successfully complete secondary school, barriers to gaining entry into university have been dismantled, however, previous research suggests that…

  1. Open science versus commercialization: a modern research conflict?

    PubMed

    Caulfield, Timothy; Harmon, Shawn He; Joly, Yann

    2012-02-27

    Efforts to improve research outcomes have resulted in genomic researchers being confronted with complex and seemingly contradictory instructions about how to perform their tasks. Over the past decade, there has been increasing pressure on university researchers to commercialize their work. Concurrently, they are encouraged to collaborate, share data and disseminate new knowledge quickly (that is, to adopt an open science model) in order to foster scientific progress, meet humanitarian goals, and to maximize the impact of their research. We present selected guidelines from three countries (Canada, United States, and United Kingdom) situated at the forefront of genomics to illustrate this potential policy conflict. Examining the innovation ecosystem and the messages conveyed by the different policies surveyed, we further investigate the inconsistencies between open science and commercialization policies. Commercialization and open science are not necessarily irreconcilable and could instead be envisioned as complementary elements of a more holistic innovation framework. Given the exploratory nature of our study, we wish to point out the need to gather additional evidence on the coexistence of open science and commercialization policies and on its impact, both positive and negative, on genomics academic research.

  2. Key NLRB Decision Opens a Wide Door for Faculty Organizing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ambash, Joseph W.

    2015-01-01

    In its stunning and far-reaching decision in the "Pacific Lutheran University" case (12/16/14), the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) opened the door to union organizing among faculty at thousands of private-sector institutions, both secular and religious. The question before the NLRB was whether a local of the Service Employees…

  3. From Castalia to Wikipedia: Openness and Closure in Knowledge Communities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roberts, Peter; Peters, Michael A.

    2011-01-01

    This article explores different forms of openness and closure in two knowledge communities: the fictional world of Castalia in Hermann Hesse's great work "The Glass Bead Game", and the twenty-first-century cyberspatial universe of Wikipedia. These two worlds differ in some important respects, but they also share a number of educationally…

  4. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs): Current Applications and Future Potential

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Milheim, William D.

    2013-01-01

    Massive Open Online Courses (or MOOCs) are the subject of numerous recent articles in "The Chronicle of Higher Education," "The New York Times," and other publications related to their increasing use by a variety of universities to reach large numbers of online students. This article describes the current state of these online…

  5. Study and practice in the construction of open physical experiments teaching system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Yan

    2017-09-01

    Based on open physical experiments teaching system put forward by Ministry of Education, HHU(Hohai University) has carried out the construction of open experimental manage system, which includes course selecting system, teaching system, manage system and information desk. The innovation is in order to mobilize the students’ learning autonomy, cultivate the students’ creative ability and improve teaching quality. Besides, it achieves direct management from school to college to the laboratory and traced manage to the working device regardless of distance and time.

  6. Quantum entanglement in de Sitter space with a wall and the decoherence of bubble universes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Albrecht, Andreas; Kanno, Sugumi; Sasaki, Misao

    2018-04-01

    We study the effect of a bubble wall on the entanglement entropy of a free massive scalar field between two causally disconnected open charts in de Sitter space. We assume there is a delta-functional wall between the open charts. This can be thought of as a model of pair creation of bubble universes in de Sitter space. We first derive the Euclidean vacuum mode functions of the scalar field in the presence of the wall in the coordinates that respect the open charts. We then derive the Bogoliubov transformation between the Euclidean vacuum and the open chart vacua that makes the reduced density matrix diagonal. We find that larger walls lead to less entanglement. Our result may be regarded as evidence of decoherence of bubble universes from each other. We also note an interesting relationship between our results and discussions of the black hole firewall problem.

  7. Life, the Universe, and everything—42 fundamental questions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Allen, Roland E.; Lidström, Suzy

    2017-01-01

    In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams, the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything is found to be 42—but the meaning of this is left open to interpretation. We take it to mean that there are 42 fundamental questions which must be answered on the road to full enlightenment, and we attempt a first draft (or personal selection) of these ultimate questions, on topics ranging from the cosmological constant and origin of the Universe to the origin of life and consciousness.

  8. The Open Learning Initiative: Measuring the Effectiveness of the OLI Statistics Course in Accelerating Student Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lovett, Marsha; Meyer, Oded; Thille, Candace

    2008-01-01

    The Open Learning Initiative (OLI) is an open educational resources project at Carnegie Mellon University that began in 2002 with a grant from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. OLI creates web-based courses that are designed so that students can learn effectively without an instructor. In addition, the courses are often used by instructors…

  9. Open, Online, and Blended: Transactional Interactions with MOOC Content by Learners in Three Different Course Formats

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Emanuel, Jeffrey P.; Lamb, Anne

    2017-01-01

    During the 2013-14 academic year, Harvard University piloted the use of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) as tools for blended learning in select undergraduate and graduate residential and online courses. One of these courses, The Ancient Greek Hero, combined for-credit (Harvard College and Harvard Extension School) and open online (HarvardX)…

  10. Open Energy Info (OpenEI) (Fact Sheet)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Not Available

    2010-12-01

    The Open Energy Information (OpenEI.org) initiative is a free, open-source, knowledge-sharing platform. OpenEI was created to provide access to data, models, tools, and information that accelerate the transition to clean energy systems through informed decisions.

  11. Observation of Young Stars at the University Observatory Jena

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Berndt, A.; Errmann, R.; Maciejewski, G.; Raetz, St.; Marka, C.; Ginski, Ch.; Mugrauer, M.; Schmidt, T. O. B.; Neuhäuser, R.; Seeliger, M.; Moualla, M.; Pribulla, T.; Hohle, M. M.; Tetzlaff, N.; Adam, Ch.; Eisenbeiss, T.; YETI Team

    2011-12-01

    We report on observation and determination of rotational and orbital periods of young stars and eclipsing binaries in the young open cluster Trumpler 37. Observations were carried out with the "Schmidt-Teleskop-Kamera" (STK) at University Observatory Jena in 2009 and 2010.

  12. Teaching Biochemistry Online at Oregon State University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ahern, Kevin

    2017-01-01

    A strategy for growing online biochemistry courses is presented based on successes in ecampus at Oregon State University. Four free drawing cards were key to the effort--YouTube videos, iTunes U online free course content, an Open Educational Resource textbook--Biochemistry Free and Easy, and a fun set of educational songs known as the Metabolic…

  13. Current state of open access to journal publications from the University of Zagreb School of Medicine.

    PubMed

    Škorić, Lea; Vrkić, Dina; Petrak, Jelka

    2016-02-01

    To identify the share of open access (OA) papers in the total number of journal publications authored by the members of the University of Zagreb School of Medicine (UZSM) in 2014. Bibliographic data on 543 UZSM papers published in 2014 were collected using PubMed advanced search strategies and manual data collection methods. The items that had "free full text" icons were considered as gold OA papers. Their OA availability was checked using the provided link to full-text. The rest of the UZSM papers were analyzed for potential green OA through self-archiving in institutional repository. Papers published by Croatian journals were particularly analyzed. Full texts of approximately 65% of all UZSM papers were freely available. Most of them were published in gold OA journals (55% of all UZSM papers or 85% of all UZSM OA papers). In the UZSM repository, there were additional 52 freely available authors' manuscripts from subscription-based journals (10% of all UZSM papers or 15% of all UZSM OA papers). The overall proportion of OA in our study is higher than in similar studies, but only half of gold OA papers are accessible via PubMed directly. The results of our study indicate that increased quality of metadata and linking of the bibliographic records to full texts could assure better visibility. Moreover, only a quarter of papers from subscription-based journals that allow self-archiving are deposited in the UZSM repository. We believe that UZSM should consider mandating all faculty members to deposit their publications in UZSM OA repository to increase visibility and improve access to its scientific output.

  14. Current state of open access to journal publications from the University of Zagreb School of Medicine

    PubMed Central

    Škorić, Lea; Vrkić, Dina; Petrak, Jelka

    2016-01-01

    Aims To identify the share of open access (OA) papers in the total number of journal publications authored by the members of the University of Zagreb School of Medicine (UZSM) in 2014. Methods Bibliographic data on 543 UZSM papers published in 2014 were collected using PubMed advanced search strategies and manual data collection methods. The items that had “free full text” icons were considered as gold OA papers. Their OA availability was checked using the provided link to full-text. The rest of the UZSM papers were analyzed for potential green OA through self-archiving in institutional repository. Papers published by Croatian journals were particularly analyzed. Results Full texts of approximately 65% of all UZSM papers were freely available. Most of them were published in gold OA journals (55% of all UZSM papers or 85% of all UZSM OA papers). In the UZSM repository, there were additional 52 freely available authors’ manuscripts from subscription-based journals (10% of all UZSM papers or 15% of all UZSM OA papers). Conclusion The overall proportion of OA in our study is higher than in similar studies, but only half of gold OA papers are accessible via PubMed directly. The results of our study indicate that increased quality of metadata and linking of the bibliographic records to full texts could assure better visibility. Moreover, only a quarter of papers from subscription-based journals that allow self-archiving are deposited in the UZSM repository. We believe that UZSM should consider mandating all faculty members to deposit their publications in UZSM OA repository to increase visibility and improve access to its scientific output. PMID:26935617

  15. Developing Pedagogical Expertise in Modern Language Learning and Specific Learning Difficulties through Collaborative and Open Educational Practices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gallardo, Matilde; Heiser, Sarah; Arias McLaughlin, Ximena

    2017-01-01

    This paper analyses teachers' engagement with collaborative and open educational practices to develop their pedagogical expertise in the field of modern language (ML) learning and specific learning difficulties (SpLD). The study analyses the findings of a staff development initiative at the Department of Languages, Open University, UK, in 2013,…

  16. Private Cost of Education: A Comparative Study of Distance and Campus-Based University Students in Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Olakulehin, Felix K.; Panda, Santosh K.

    2011-01-01

    This paper examines the comparative private costs of distance and conventional (classroom-based) university students in Nigeria. A total of 200 subjects comprising students registered for the B.Sc. Computer Science and B.A. English Studies programmes at the University of Lagos, Nigeria and the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) were…

  17. A Discussion of the Effect of Open-Book and Closed-Book Exams on Student Achievement in an Introductory Statistics Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Block, Robert M.

    2012-01-01

    The use of open-book tests, closed-book tests, and notecards on tests in an introductory statistics course is described in this article. A review of the literature shows that open-book assessments are universally recognized to reduce anxiety. The literature is mixed however on whether deeper learning or better preparation occurs with open-book…

  18. The University in the Modern World: Ten Lessons of Civic and Community Engagement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Watson, David

    2008-01-01

    Building on the analysis in his "Managing Civic and Community Engagement" (McGraw-Hill/Open University Press, 2007), the author offers an international perspective on the ways in which universities relate to their various communities. Relevant issues of leadership, policy and management are approached through key areas such as: the "narrative" of…

  19. Students' Performance in M. Ed. Programs at the Cleveland State University, 1968-1975.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gans, Thomas G.

    The College of Education of the Cleveland State University opened its first graduate program in 1968. The purpose of the study reported here is to provide information for reflection about the college's past performance and for planning new directions in its graduate programs. The study uses information from college and university records,…

  20. Personality and Field of Study Choice in University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Humburg, Martin

    2017-01-01

    This paper demonstrates that the Big five personality traits (openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and emotional stability) measured at age 14 can be linked to field of study choice in university at around age 19. While personality matters less than cognitive skills, such as math ability and verbal ability, for…

  1. Faith and Secularisation in Religious Colleges and Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arthur, James

    2008-01-01

    This article looks at the contemporary rationale for faith-based universities. There has certainly been a new openness to issues in religion within higher education more generally. Religious influence and involvement in higher education continues to be extensive and manifests itself through the presence of believing Christians, Jews and Muslims in…

  2. Imagining a Gold Open Access Future: Attitudes, Behaviors, and Funding Scenarios among Authors of Academic Scholarship

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tenopir, Carol; Dalton, Elizabeth D.; Christian, Lisa; Jones, Misty K.; McCabe, Mark; Smith, MacKenzie; Fish, Allison

    2017-01-01

    The viability of gold open access publishing models into the future will depend, in part, on the attitudes of authors toward open access (OA). In a survey of academics at four major research universities in North America, we examine academic authors' opinions and behaviors toward gold OA. The study allows us to see what academics know and perceive…

  3. Innovation in engineering education through computer assisted learning and virtual university model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Raicu, A.; Raicu, G.

    2015-11-01

    The paper presents the most important aspects of innovation in Engineering Education using Computer Assisted Learning. The authors propose to increase the quality of Engineering Education programs of study at European standards. The use of computer assisted learning methodologies in all studies is becoming an important resource in Higher Education. We intend to improve the concept of e-Learning using virtual terminals, online support and assisting special training through live seminars and interactive labs to develop a virtual university model. We intend to encourage computer assisted learning and innovation as sources of competitive advantage, to permit vision and learning analysis, identifies new sources of technology and ideas. Our work is based on our university datasets collected during last fifteen years using several e-Learning systems. In Constanta Maritime University (CMU), using eLearning and Knowledge Management Services (KMS) is very important and we apply it effectively to achieve strategic objectives, such as collaboration, sharing and good practice. We have experience in this field since 2000 year using Moodle as KMS in our university. The term KMS can be associated to Open Source Software, Open Standards, Open Protocols and Open Knowledge licenses, initiatives and policies. In CMU Virtual Campus we have today over 12500 active users. Another experience of the authors is the implementation of MariTrainer Wiki educational platform based on Dokeos and DekiWiki under MARICOMP and MEP Leonardo da Vinci Project. We'll also present in this paper a case study under EU funded project POSDRU, where the authors implemented other educational platform in Technological High Schools from Romania used over 1000 teachers. Based on large datasets the study tries to improve the concept of e-Learning teaching using the revolutionary technologies. The new concept present in this paper is that the teaching and learning will be interactive and live. The new and modern

  4. Open source data assimilation framework for hydrological modeling

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ridler, Marc; Hummel, Stef; van Velzen, Nils; Katrine Falk, Anne; Madsen, Henrik

    2013-04-01

    An open-source data assimilation framework is proposed for hydrological modeling. Data assimilation (DA) in hydrodynamic and hydrological forecasting systems has great potential to improve predictions and improve model result. The basic principle is to incorporate measurement information into a model with the aim to improve model results by error minimization. Great strides have been made to assimilate traditional in-situ measurements such as discharge, soil moisture, hydraulic head and snowpack into hydrologic models. More recently, remotely sensed data retrievals of soil moisture, snow water equivalent or snow cover area, surface water elevation, terrestrial water storage and land surface temperature have been successfully assimilated in hydrological models. The assimilation algorithms have become increasingly sophisticated to manage measurement and model bias, non-linear systems, data sparsity (time & space) and undetermined system uncertainty. It is therefore useful to use a pre-existing DA toolbox such as OpenDA. OpenDA is an open interface standard for (and free implementation of) a set of tools to quickly implement DA and calibration for arbitrary numerical models. The basic design philosophy of OpenDA is to breakdown DA into a set of building blocks programmed in object oriented languages. To implement DA, a model must interact with OpenDA to create model instances, propagate the model, get/set variables (or parameters) and free the model once DA is completed. An open-source interface for hydrological models exists capable of all these tasks: OpenMI. OpenMI is an open source standard interface already adopted by key hydrological model providers. It defines a universal approach to interact with hydrological models during simulation to exchange data during runtime, thus facilitating the interactions between models and data sources. The interface is flexible enough so that models can interact even if the model is coded in a different language, represent

  5. Aiming at Narrowing Social Gaps in Israel through a Special Program of Everyman's University.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guri, Sarah

    The philosophy and implementation of the Community Leaders Project at Everyman's University (EU), the Open University of Israel, are discussed. The project is designed to narrow social gaps in Israel by upgrading the educational level of disadvantaged populations and by developing indigeneous leadership for decision-making in the most…

  6. Alcohol Policies and Practices on College and University Campuses. NASPA Monograph Series Volume 7.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sherwood, Joan S., Ed.

    Following the alcohol-related death of a student at Western Washington University in 1984, the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), initiated a study of guidelines for dealing with alcohol on college and university campuses nationwide. Suggestions are made for establishing effective policies and opening lines of…

  7. Introducing Change From the Top in Universities and Colleges. 10 Personal Accounts. Managing Innovation and Change in Universities and Colleges.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Weil, Susan, Ed.

    Ten personal accounts by successful leaders of colleges and universities in the United Kingdom describe how these individuals are reshaping their roles to respond to and shape the rapid and profound changes in higher education today. The opening and closing papers are by the editor and review current changes in education, and the importance of…

  8. First Universities Allied for Essential Medicines (UAEM) Neglected Diseases and Innovation Symposium.

    PubMed

    Musselwhite, Laura W; Maciag, Karolina; Lankowski, Alex; Gretes, Michael C; Wellems, Thomas E; Tavera, Gloria; Goulding, Rebecca E; Guillen, Ethan

    2012-01-01

    Universities Allied for Essential Medicines organized its first Neglected Diseases and Innovation Symposium to address expanding roles of public sector research institutions in innovation in research and development of biomedical technologies for treatment of diseases, particularly neglected tropical diseases. Universities and other public research institutions are increasingly integrated into the pharmaceutical innovation system. Academic entities now routinely undertake robust high-throughput screening and medicinal chemistry research programs to identify lead compounds for small molecule drugs and novel drug targets. Furthermore, product development partnerships are emerging between academic institutions, non-profit entities, and biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to create diagnostics, therapies, and vaccines for diseases of the poor. With not for profit mission statements, open access publishing standards, open source platforms for data sharing and collaboration, and a shift in focus to more translational research, universities and other public research institutions are well-placed to accelerate development of medical technologies, particularly for neglected tropical diseases.

  9. First Universities Allied for Essential Medicines (UAEM) Neglected Diseases and Innovation Symposium

    PubMed Central

    Musselwhite, Laura W.; Maciag, Karolina; Lankowski, Alex; Gretes, Michael C.; Wellems, Thomas E.; Tavera, Gloria; Goulding, Rebecca E.; Guillen, Ethan

    2012-01-01

    Universities Allied for Essential Medicines organized its first Neglected Diseases and Innovation Symposium to address expanding roles of public sector research institutions in innovation in research and development of biomedical technologies for treatment of diseases, particularly neglected tropical diseases. Universities and other public research institutions are increasingly integrated into the pharmaceutical innovation system. Academic entities now routinely undertake robust high-throughput screening and medicinal chemistry research programs to identify lead compounds for small molecule drugs and novel drug targets. Furthermore, product development partnerships are emerging between academic institutions, non-profit entities, and biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to create diagnostics, therapies, and vaccines for diseases of the poor. With not for profit mission statements, open access publishing standards, open source platforms for data sharing and collaboration, and a shift in focus to more translational research, universities and other public research institutions are well-placed to accelerate development of medical technologies, particularly for neglected tropical diseases. PMID:22232453

  10. Astronomy for Astronomical Numbers: A Worldwide Massive Open Online Class

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Impey, Chris D.; Wenger, Matthew C.; Austin, Carmen L.

    2015-01-01

    Astronomy: State of the Art is a massive, open, online class (MOOC) offered through Udemy by an instructional team at the University of Arizona. With nearly 24,000 enrolled as of early 2015, it is the largest astronomy MOOC available. The astronomical numbers enrolled do not translate into a similar level of engagement. The content consists of 14…

  11. [Polish historical collection at the University of Edinburgh].

    PubMed

    Tomaszewski, W

    1995-01-01

    The Polish School of Medicine, a joint Scottish-Polish academic enterprise, established in 1941 at the University of Edinburgh for soldiers-students in the Polish Forces, ceased its activity in 1949, four years after the end of the war. Owing to the stalinist terror in occupied Poland most of the 227 graduates remained in the West. There was a deep feeling of gratitude towards the University on the part of the graduates of the Polish School. The 25th anniversary of the School in 1966 was an opportunity to convoke in Edinburgh a world reunion of the graduates. At the academic ceremony two gold medals were presented to the University. The warm reception extended by the University, prompted the resolution to hold quinquennial world reunions in Edinburgh. Since then world reunions were held in Edinburgh every 5 years with meetings with the University authorities and presentation of gifts. By 1980 the number of gifts accumulated to such extent that the seminar room in the Erskine Medical Library was selected for the permanent display of the gifts; this served to intensify the collection of exhibits. Gifts were chosen to remind of certain events in the Polish history of medicine, especially items reflecting Polish links with Scotland. The highest achievement in the Scottish-Polish links, was of course the creation of the Polish School of Medicine. The official opening of the Historical Collection took place in June 1986 on the occasion of a world reunion on the 45th anniversary of the School. It was marked by the unveiling of a memorial plaque. On this ocasion another venture was also initiated: the opening of the Polish School of Medicine Memorial Fund at the University of Edinburgh. It was funded by the graduates to provide scholarship for young doctors from Poland. Another venture was the creation of the "Professor Antoni Jurasz lectureship" for Edinburgh professors to lecture in Medical Academies in Poland. The Historical Collection of the Polish School of Medicine

  12. Educational Opportunities Based on the University-Industry Synergies in an Open Innovation Framework

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lucia, Oscar; Burdio, Jose M.; Acero, Jesus; Barragan, Luis A.; Garcia, Jose R.

    2012-01-01

    Collaboration between Industry and University is becoming more important in order to improve the competitiveness of the research and development activities. Moreover, establishing synergies to bridge the gap between the academic and industrial spheres has demonstrated to be advantageous for both of them. Nowadays, Industry is moving towards an…

  13. Xtreme Learning Control: Examples of the Open Source Movement's Impact on Our Educational Practice in a University Setting.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dunlap, Joanna C.; Wilson, Brent G.; Young, David L.

    This paper describes how Open Source philosophy, a movement that has developed in opposition to the proprietary software industry, has influenced educational practice in the pursuit of scholarly freedom and authentic learning activities for students and educators. This paper provides a brief overview of the Open Source movement, and describes…

  14. IFLA General Conference, 1992. Opening Session; Plenary Session; Core Programme for the Universal Availability of Publications (UAP). Papers.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, London (England).

    Papers from the opening session of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) conference are presented. "New Beginnings" (Robert Wedgeworth) opens the conference and pays tribute to S. R. Ranganathan, in whose memory the conference was dedicated, and William Warner Bishop, also a past president of IFLA.…

  15. OpenFresco | OpenFresco

    Science.gov Websites

    Skip to content HOME NEWS USERS OpenFrescoExpress OpenFresco Examples & Tools Feedback staff and research students learning about hybrid simulation and starting to use this experimental the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center (PEER) and others. Search Search for: Search Menu

  16. Quality Assurance in Asian Open and Distance Learning: Policies and Implementation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Darojat, Ojat; Nilson, Michelle; Kaufman, David

    2015-01-01

    Open universities have emerged as an innovative pillar in the expansion of access to higher education participation, with single-mode distance education providers broadening access in many countries through economies of scale supported by large enrolments. These models raise questions about the quality of education provided. This paper reports on…

  17. E-Learning and Technologies for Open Distance Learning in Management Accounting

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kashora, Trust; van der Poll, Huibrecht M.; van der Poll, John A.

    2016-01-01

    This research develops a knowledge acquisition and construction framework for e-learning for Management Accounting students at the University of South Africa, an Open Distance Learning institution which utilises e-learning. E-learning refers to the use of electronic applications and processes for learning, including the transfer of skills and…

  18. Seamless Support: Technology Enhanced Learning in Open Distance Learning at NWU

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Esterhuizen, Hennie

    2015-01-01

    Frantic attempts of investing in technology to demonstrate willingness to educate for the knowledge society may result in failure to address the real requirements. This paper presents the main features of a framework for integrating Technology Enhanced Learning in Open Distance Learning at North-West University, South Africa. Support towards…

  19. Production and Consumption of University Linked Data

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zablith, Fouad; Fernandez, Miriam; Rowe, Matthew

    2015-01-01

    Linked Data increases the value of an organisation's data over the web by introducing explicit and machine processable links at the data level. We have adopted this new stream of data representation to produce and expose existing data within The Open University (OU) as Linked Data. We present in this paper our approach for producing the data,…

  20. Hypersonic simulations using open-source CFD and DSMC solvers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Casseau, V.; Scanlon, T. J.; John, B.; Emerson, D. R.; Brown, R. E.

    2016-11-01

    Hypersonic hybrid hydrodynamic-molecular gas flow solvers are required to satisfy the two essential requirements of any high-speed reacting code, these being physical accuracy and computational efficiency. The James Weir Fluids Laboratory at the University of Strathclyde is currently developing an open-source hybrid code which will eventually reconcile the direct simulation Monte-Carlo method, making use of the OpenFOAM application called dsmcFoam, and the newly coded open-source two-temperature computational fluid dynamics solver named hy2Foam. In conjunction with employing the CVDV chemistry-vibration model in hy2Foam, novel use is made of the QK rates in a CFD solver. In this paper, further testing is performed, in particular with the CFD solver, to ensure its efficacy before considering more advanced test cases. The hy2Foam and dsmcFoam codes have shown to compare reasonably well, thus providing a useful basis for other codes to compare against.

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