WEB INFORMATION MONITORING FOR COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE

The WWW has become one of the most important media for sharing information. Web information provides another emerging and important avenue and source of competitive intelligence (CI) for companies. CI is critical for companies to stay competitive in the marketplace. Apart from business users, there are other types of CI users such as technical users, casual users, news awareness users and others who would like to be kept informed on the latest development of their interested areas over the WWW. To discover web information, CI users need to constantly monitor certain web sites and web pages for related information. However, the dynamic nature of the web has made such monitoring task complicated and time-consuming. This paper proposes a web monitoring system, WebMon, to help users monitor specified web pages for latest changes and updates in information. Four monitoring functions including date monitoring, keywords monitoring, link monitoring and portion monitoring are supported by the system. The performance of these monitoring functions is also evaluated.     

A multi-faceted and automatic knowledge elicitation system (MAKES) for managing unstructured information

Management of unstructured information, such as emails, is vital for supporting knowledge work in professional services. However, the conventional way for managing unstructured information is inadequate as the knowledge work and associated tasks are becoming more complex, are dynamically changing with time and involve multiple concepts. This paper attempts to address the inadequacy, deficiency and limitations of the methods presently used to elicit knowledge from masses of unstructured information. These methods rely heavily on manpower, are time consuming and costly. With the development of a multi-faceted and automatic knowledge elicitation system (MAKES) manpower, time and cost can be dramatically reduced. The MAKES integrates the processes of collecting data, classifying unstructured information, modelling knowledge flow and social network analysis, and makes all of these actions into a connected process to audit unstructured information automatically. This audit is based on specific search criteria, search keywords, and the user behaviours of the knowledge workers. The unstructured information is automatically organized, classified and presented in a multi-facet taxonomy map. New concepts and knowledge are uncovered, analyzed and updated continuously from the incoming unstructured information, using a purpose-built knowledge elicitation algorithm named self-associated concept mapping (SACM). The capability and advantages of the MAKES are demonstrated through a successful trial implementation and a verification test conducted in an electronics trading company. Encouraging results have been achieved and a number of potential advantages have been realized. The area of application in this first deployment is based on an email-intensive organization and the proposed study will contribute to the advancement of methods and tools for managing other kinds of unstructured information.     

模型库管理系统的设计和实现*

模型库管理系统是决策支持系统的核心，其基本功能包括模型的定义、组合、存储和调用.该文介绍一个支持客户/服务器模式的模型库管理系统的设计和实现，在这个系统中，模型被视为程序模块，通过运用面向对象的方法进行组织以及对模型的远程和动态的透明调用提供支持，使实现的系统具有良好的动态可扩充性.同时,通过提供模型定义语言和模型库管理，便于决策支持系统客户软件的开发.     

CPE: a parallel library for financial engineering applications

The Clustertech parallel environment is an object-oriented C++ library that uses abstractions to simplify parallel programming for financial engineering applications. The message passing interface ensures CPE's portability and performance over a wide range of parallel cluster and symmetric multiprocessing machines.     

Alone or together? Exploring the role of desire for online group gaming in players’ social game addiction

Drawing on dual-system theory, this study examines the role of desire for online group gaming in online social game addiction. By conducting a longitudinal online survey, we show that attitude, anticipated enjoyment, group norm, and social identity contribute to the development of desire for online group gaming. Such desire facilitates habit and self-regulation deficiency, which, in turn, fosters online social game addiction. This study contributes to the literature by theorizing a nomological network of desire for online group gaming on online social game addiction and by offering implications for managing addictive gaming.     

Interlocutory Injunctions in Construction Cases in Hong Kong: Revisiting American Cyanamid Principles

Interlocutory injunctions in construction litigation cases are not uncommon, in particular, in construction nuisance cases. Despite its importance, there are only a few written materials dealing with this topic. With the public increasingly aware of their legal rights, it is anticipated that the number of interlocutory injunction applications will remain high in the foreseeable future. It is now timely and a worthwhile exercise to revisit those principles governing the courts’ discretion in granting and rejecting interlocutory injunctions. This paper discusses those factors that are relevant in exercising that discretion and how they should be assessed. It also examines the principles established by Lord Diplock in the landmark case “American Cyanamid,” i.e., how this case influenced judgments in recent Hong Kong construction cases. The paper concludes by summarizing the overriding principles in interlocutory injunction applications.     

Quantitative electroencephalographic profiles for children with autistic spectrum disorder.

The present study examined quantitative electroencephalographic (QEEG) profile for children with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). Five-minute QEEG data were obtained from 90 normal controls (NCs) and 66 children with ASD. Spectrum analyses revealed that ASD children showed significantly less relative alpha and more relative delta than NC. Specifically, 26% of ASD children and 2% of NCs showed 1.5 SDs of relative alpha below the normative mean. Children with this QEEG profile had 17 times the risk of having ASD than those without such a profile. Sensitivity and specificity of relative alpha were 91% and 73%, respectively. Split-half cross-validation yielded a sensitivity of 76%. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The influence of emotional dissonance and resources at work on job burnout among Chinese human service employees.

The authors extended Hobfoll's Conservation of Resources (COR) model to examine the influence of emotional dissonance and work resources on burnout among 392 Chinese human service employees. Bivariate correlation results showed that emotional dissonance correlated positively with display rules and burnout, but negatively with work resources, specifically, satisfactory work relations and job rewards. Results of structural equation modeling analyses supported the extension of the COR model to study the dissonance-resources-burnout association. In the revised model, display rules had a direct impact on emotional dissonance, which in turn influenced burnout indirectly through the mediation of work resources. Limitations of the study and implications for work stress management are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A topological hierarchy-based approach to toolpath planning for multi-material layered manufacturing

This paper proposes a topological hierarchy-based approach to toolpath planning for multi-material layered manufacturing (MMLM) of heterogeneous prototypes. The approach facilitates control of MMLM and increases the fabrication efficiency of complex objects by generating multi-toolpaths that avoid redundant tool movements and potential collisions. It uses a topological hierarchy-sorting algorithm to group complex multi-material slice contours into families connected by a parent-and-child relationship. Subsequently, a sequential toolpath planning algorithm generates multi-toolpaths for sequential deposition of materials without redundant tool movements. To reduce build time further, a concurrent toolpath planning algorithm generates collision-free multi-toolpaths to control the tools that deposit materials concurrently. It uses parametric polygons to construct tool envelopes for contour families of the same material property to simplify detection of tool collisions. The tightness of polygons can be controlled to suit the processing speed and the optimality of the resulting concurrent toolpaths. The proposed approach has been implemented as an integral part of a multi-material virtual prototyping (MMVP) system that can process complex slice contours for planning, stereoscopic simulation, and validation of multi-toolpaths. It may be adapted for subsequent control of MMLM processes.