As technology and teaching requirements continue to evolve, one would think the choice of which data projector to buy would be easier because there now are more products with more capabilities. Yet just the opposite is true: The sheer number of projectors and myriad combinations of available features can be overwhelming, making it really tough to…

The "cyberinfrastucture" is a broad informational network that entails connections to real-time data sensors as well as tools that permit visualization and other forms of analysis, and that facilitates access to vast scientific databases. This multifaceted network, already a major boon to scientific discovery, now shows exceptional promise in…

This exploratory study reports on what engineering undergraduate students know and would like to learn about engineering information sources and access. Responses were obtained on selected performance measures within the framework of "Information Literacy Standards for Science and Engineering/Technology" (ACRL/ALA/STS 2006). The results are based…

Many web 2.0 sites are extremely popular and contain vast amounts of content, but how much of this content is useful in academia? This exploratory paper investigates the potential use of the popular web 2.0 image site Flickr as an academic image resource. The study identified images tagged with any one of 12 subject names derived from recognized…

Introduction: We examine how residents and citizens of The Netherlands perceive open access to acquire preliminary insight into the role it might play in cultivating civic scientific literacy. Open access refers to scientific or scholarly research literature available on the Web to scholars and the general public in free online journals and…

Using data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), we investigate the link between test scores (mathematics and science) and cross-country income differences. We would like to know whether test scores are good indicators of labor-force quality. The…

The response to the ongoing international crisis is a holistic response due to the multiple effects impacting on the various segments of societies around the world. Since 1945, the world has to perform again, a new leap in terms of development process based on the pressing need for socio-economic reconstruction. The level of globalisation and…

Given identified synergies between information use and health status greater understanding is needed about how people use information to learn about their health. This paper presents the findings of preliminary research into health information literacy. Analysis of data from semi-structured interviews revealed six different ways ageing Australians…

Several core competencies related to information literacy have been identified by the Association of College and Research Libraries. Students must learn to gather relevant information and communicate their findings effectively. The collaborative activity described here, which could easily be adapted for other disciplines, introduces first-semester…

The advent of large-scale digital repositories, along with the need for sharing useful data world-wide, demands change to the current information structure. The merging of digital scientific data with scholarly literature has the potential to fulfill the Semantic Web design principles. This paper will identify factors leading to integration of…

Using primary literature in undergraduate science classes helps teach students both scientific information and process. However, students' lack of understanding of scientific techniques can hinder their understanding of the papers. This article describes a "technique module" that uses peer teaching and active learning to facilitate…

The author is not used to writing on assigned topics and does not intend to deviate from this principle in future, but since he is in various ways indebted to the editors of this special issue, he could not very well turn down their request to contribute to their endeavour. The author has therefore consulted two experts in the field, F. and C.,…

In this dissertation we develop a framework that combines data mining, statistics and operations research methods for improving real-time decision support systems in healthcare. Our approach consists of three main concepts: data gathering and preprocessing, modeling, and deployment. We introduce the notion of offline and semi-offline modeling to…

The rapid advances in technology and scientific knowledge in modern society increases the need for a workforce with an understanding of technology and critical thinking skills College graduates are entering the working world without the critical thinking skills and ability to apply the scientific knowledge gained during their undergraduate…

Research objective. Electronic Health Records (EHR) are expected to transform the way medicine is delivered with patients/consumers being the intended beneficiaries. However, little is known regarding patient knowledge and attitudes about EHRs. This study examined patient perceptions about EHR. Study design. Surveys were administered following…