Yurchyshyna et al. on Knowledge Capitalisation & Organisation for Conformance Checking Model in Construction

Dr. Anastasiya Yurchyshyna of the University of Geneva MATIS Database Laboratory, and colleagues, have published Knowledge Capitalisation and Organisation for Conformance Checking Model in Construction, 2 International Journal of Knowledge Engineering and Soft Data Paradigms 15 (2010). Here is the abstract:

“This paper presents an ontological method aimed at the capitalisation and organisation of conformance-related knowledge for semi-automatic checking model of the conformance of construction projects against a set of conformance requirements. We start by developing a method for knowledge representation of explicit knowledge taking part in checking, and capitalisation of tacit knowledge defining checking practices. Then we explain our approach for classification, organisation and retrieval of conformance requirements and propose an approach for scheduling these requirements to optimise the checking process. Finally, we introduce our reasoning model that is based on matching graph representations of construction projects and conformance queries, and interpret the acquired results in terms of conformance checking in construction. To validate our approach, we describe a prototype illustrating its feasibility, and discuss ongoing works and perspectives of our research.”

Regulations.gov: New Features

A number of new features have been added to regulations.gov, the U.S. federal eRulemaking service. Click here for a video describing the new features. The new features include:

• an “Exchange” tab, to link to the site’s online forum;
• agency specific RSS feeds;
• a bookmarking tool;
• a browse-by-topic index;
• a “Your Voice in Action” tab, featuring graphic displays about regulations and comments;
• a “What’s Hot” tab;
• new links to information about comment periods that are closing soon, newly posted items, and frequently used items;
• a search wizard;
• two new videos: one on searching, and one on submitting comments.

Note: As of 30 January 2010, the new features did not display in the Google Chrome browser. I notified the eRulemaking Program on 30 January 2010. [Update on 2 February 2010: The problem was with my browser; clearing the cache resolved the problem. Thanks to the Regulations.gov Help Desk for guiding me through.]

HT @ecarr42.

Lu & Weber on Internet Software Piracy in China: A User Analysis of Resistance to Global Software Copyright Enforcement

Dr. Jia Lu of Tsinghua University, and Dr. Ian Weber of the University of Southern Queensland, have published Internet Software Piracy in China: A User Analysis of Resistance to Global Software Copyright Enforcement, 2 Journal of International and Intercultural Communication 298 (2009). Here is the abstract:

“China’s entry into the global networked society has raised considerable debate over what is derived from the development and expansion of information and communication technologies (ICTs). One of the hotly debated issues is Internet copyright piracy, which is critical to the credibility and stability of China’s membership to the global networked society. This paper examines Chinese users’ online discussion about Internet software piracy as local resistance to global copyright enforcement exercised through globalization processes. The study uses Mittelman and Chin’s (2005) framework of Polanyi’s (1957) counter-hegemony and Gramsci’s (1971) counter-movements as a heuristic device to conceptualize the resistance points to globalization located within the dominant discourse on intellectual property rights, specifically Internet software piracy, by Chinese Internet users. Gee’s (2002) discourse analysis framework is applied to produce seven recurring themes within online postings: cost, convenience, software companies, foreign developed countries, China’s development, Chinese culture, and moral dilemma. The analysis on these dominant themes illustrates the cultural models held by Chinese users towards the issues of Internet software piracy: Internet as a public domain, socialist market economy, patriotism, and Chinese culture. These cultural models represent different types of resistance in Mittelman and Chin’s (2005) framework. Meanwhile, these resistance positions are integrated under the notion of Chinese nationalism to constitute a complete set of counter-discourses to global software copyright enforcement.”

Ura on The Supreme Court and Issue Attention: The Case of Homosexuality

Professor Joseph Daniel Ura of the Texas A&M University Department of Political Science has published The Supreme Court and Issue Attention: The Case of Homosexuality, 26 Political Communication 430 (2009). Here is the abstract:

“Previous studies have shown that a small number of Supreme Court decisions that ‘rearrange[d] the … distribution of political benefits’ have drawn the media’s attention to the underlying issues involved in those cases. This article provides an additional test of that empirical claim, examining the effects of the Supreme Court’s gay rights cases on media coverage of homosexuality from 1990 to 2005. The data indicate that Supreme Court decisions that expanded the scope of gay rights increased coverage of homosexuality in both The New York Times and USA Today, while cases that affirmed the existing scope of gay rights had no such effect.”

Pitts et al. on Dialectical Tensions Underpinning Family Farm Succession Planning

Professor Margaret J. Pitts of the Old Dominion University Department of Communication, and colleagues, have published Dialectical Tensions Underpinning Family Farm Succession Planning, 37 Journal of Applied Communication Research 59 (2009). Here is the abstract:

“Though succession planning is vital if a farm is to survive, many farm families fail to take necessary succession planning actions. Semi-structured interviews conducted with 20 members of nine small-farm families in Pennsylvania revealed that dialectical tensions surrounding a farm transfer influence succession planning readiness and action. This report identifies five indigenous dialectical tensions that influence succession planning and describes five praxis patterns families use to manage them. Practical applications are outlined for agriculture estate planning professionals and others involved in family inheritance communication services to provide effective assistance to farm families in their succession planning efforts.”

Lampathaki et al. on Cross-Dimensional Modelling Patterns to Empower Pan-European Business to Government Services Interoperability

Fenareti Lampathaki and colleagues at National Technical University of Athens, have published Cross-Dimensional Modelling Patterns to Empower Pan-European Business to Government Services Interoperability, in Proceedings of the Confederated International Workshops and Posters on On the Move to Meaningful Internet Systems: ADI, CAMS, EI2N, ISDE, IWSSA, MONET, OnToContent, ODIS, ORM, OTM Academy, SWWS, SEMELS, Beyond SAWSDL, and COMBEK 2009, at 152 (2009). Here is the abstract:

“Pan-European policies envisioning a single European market and reduction of administrative burden call for effective, interoperable implementation and transformation of cross-border business-to-government services. Despite the existence of dedicated tools and methodologies that enable modelling and execution of cross-organizational business processes, a service-driven approach, that implies associating legal and business rules on the workflow, binding reusable documents with specific information exchanges among the stakeholders and extracting all-inclusive executable flows, remains to be adopted. In this context, the present paper outlines cross-dimensional patterns for modelling and transforming pan-European Business to Government Services interconnecting processes, data and rules under a common, cross-country prism. Such model-driven patterns foster interoperability on a conceptual and platform-independent basis. Discussion on the results is targeting best practices that can be drawn at research level and is pointing out the key difficulties that have to be tackled due to lack of enterprises’ and public organizations’ readiness in various countries.”

Navarro Herrera on Techno-Legal Culture in the Judicial System of Columbia

Vladimir Alexander Navarro Herrera has published Techno-Legal Culture in ICEGOV 2009: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance 97 (2009). Here is the abstract:

“This paper describes three possible solutions for the short, medium and long term to improve the Judicial System of Colombia, with the use of Information and Communication Technology. The first solution is to create a curriculum for training institutions to train professionals in the use of technology and electronic governance. The second one aims to generate a public policy that defines a strategy for human resources in
the legal domain. The third solution is to provide the basis for a general theory of the electronic judicial processes. All of this is relevant to the field of Electronic Governance.”

Furtado et al. on Collective Intelligence in Law Enforcement: The WikiCrimes System

Professor Vasco Furtado of Universidade de Fortaleza – UNIFOR, and colleagues, have published Collective Intelligence in Law Enforcement: The WikiCrimes System, 180 Information Sciences 4 (2010). Here is the abstract:

“Collaboration is on the rise, primordially leveraged by the Web 2.0 in which the difference between information producer and consumer decreases significantly. In this paper we describe WikiCrimes, an example of a Web 2.0 application that offers a collaborative environment based on the use and direct manipulation of maps, in order to register and research criminal events. WikiCrimes is driven by three goals: (i) to give more transparency and publicity to criminal information, (ii) to provide means for citizen prevention, and (iii) to reduce the phenomenon of under-reporting (crimes that are not notified to authorities). In the paper we pay particular attention to the fact that in this context, finding the equilibrium between people’s participation and information credibility is crucial. Anonymous mass collaboration is the easiest way to receive information; however, the credibility of the received information is depreciated, because the source of information is unknown. We particularly concentrate on the ways we have created to keep the ‘participation vs. reliability of information’ trade-off at good level. The reputation model is the main component created with this purpose. The experiences and the obstacles we are facing in the implementation of the project are the subjects of discussion and analyses.”

Video Available for Princeton Open Government Workshop Panels & Law.gov

Videos are now available for all of the workshop panels and the Law.gov panel from Open Government: Defining, Designing, and Sustaining Transparency (POGW), a workshop held 21-22 January 2010 at Princeton University’s Center for Information Technology Policy (CITP).

Click here for a summary of the legal-information-related discussion at the workshop.

Revised Draft Available: Proposed State Statute on Authentication and Preservation of State Electronic Legal Materials

A revised discussion draft of The Authentication and Preservation of State Electronic Legal Materials Act, has been posted at the documents Website of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) Drafting Committee on Authentication and Preservation of State Electronic Legal Materials.

The committee’s chair is Michele L. Timmons, the Revisor of Statutes for the State of Minnesota, and its reporter is Professor Barbara Bintliff of the University of Colorado School of Law.

According to the current draft of the statute’s prefatory note, “[d]igital information formats have become fundamental and indispensable to the operation of state government. This [act] addresses the critical need to manage electronic legal information in a manner that guarantees the trustworthiness of and continuing access to important state documents.”

The draft is to be discussed at the committee’s meeting to be held 5-7 March 2010 in Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Previous drafts, committee meeting minutes, and the study committee report, are available from the Website for the committee’s documents, hosted by the University of Pennsylvania’s Biddle Law Library.

HT Tom Bruce.