Stephen Mooney from Londonderry was arrested when police saw him pay a man for drugs.

LA CHRONIQUE DE WILLIAM THAY. Le nouveau gouvernement a provoque un climat anti-riches en rompant avec la politique fiscale attractive menee ces dernieres annees.

The paper explores the application of Web 2.0 technologies to support product development efforts in a global, virtual and cross-functional setting. It analyses the dichotomy between the prevailing hierarchical structure of CAD/PLM/PDM systems and the principles of the Social Web under the light of the emerging product development trends. Further it introduces the concept of Engineering 2.0, intended as a more bottom up and lightweight knowledge sharing approach to support early stage design decisions within virtual and cross-functional product development teams. The lessons learned collected from a cross-company study highlight how to further developblogs, wikis, forums and tags for the benefit of new product development teams, highlighting opportunities, challenges and no-go areas.

Ouvrons, cette fois, le livre C’est une chose étrange à la fin que le monde, roman que Jean d’Ormesson publié en 2010. On y trouve, comme toujours, des réflexions et des phrases magnifiques. Savourons-les cet été !

« J’ai beaucoup dormi. J’ai perdu beaucoup de temps. J’ai commis pas mal d’erreurs. Ce qu’il y avait de moins inutile sous le soleil, c’était de nous aimer les uns les autres. »

« Naître est toujours un bonheur. Il y a dans tout début une surprise et une attente qui seront peut-être déçues mais qui donnent au temps qui passe sa couleur et sa vigueur. »

« Nous sommes ...

Voici quelques extraits délicieux et profonds de C’est une chose étrange à la fin que le monde, roman de Jean d’Ormesson. Histoire de savourer quelques instants hors du temps, cet été !

« Ceux qui découvrent détruisent le système qui le précède. Ceux qui inventent de détruisent pas les oeuvres qui les précèdent. »

« Le passé s’éclaire à mesure qu’il s’éloigne. Ce n’est qu’à l’extrême fin du monde qu’une partie au moins des secrets de ses débuts obscurs pourront être révélés. »

« Ce monde est inépuisable, il n’existe que deux voies pour tenter d’en rendre compte : l’art et la science. »

« La poésie est ...

Tous les livres de Jean d’Ormesson doivent être lus et relus. L’auteur nous propose une littérature de vérité, d’empathie, de compréhension de ce que nous sommes. Voici quelques phrases picorées dans C’est une chose étrange à la fin que le monde.

« Chaque amoureux a dans l’amour le sentiment de posséder le monde entier à travers l’être aimé.

Toute la beauté de l’univers lui est enfin révélée. L’art et la littérature ne sont peut-être rien d’autre que la traduction sublimée d’une pulsion sexuelle. »

« Le monde inépuisable dont nous faisons partie, aucun ouvrage de génie, aucune théorie unifiée, aucune formule de ...

This study investigates the effects of social media marketing efforts (SMME) on smartphone brand identification, attachment, association, and willingness to pay premium prices. A survey of 320 smartphone users who followed official social media handles managed by smartphone companies was conducted for this purpose. PLS-SEM was used to analyse the collected data. The findings demonstrated importance of SMME dimensions. According to the study's findings, the smartphone brand's SMMEs had significant impact on brand identification, brand association, and brand attachment. The results revealed that SMMEs had significant impact on willingness to pay the premium price. The findings also show that brand identification, attachment, and association mediated the relationship between SMMEs and willingness to pay a premium price. The findings of this study will be useful in developing social media marketing strategies for smartphones. This study demonstrates the use of social media marketing to promote mobile phones, particularly in emerging markets.

Physiological indicators are an important basis for reflecting the physiological health status of the human body and play an important role in medical practice. Association rules have also been one of the important research hotspots in recent years. This study aims to create a data mining system of association rules and artificial intelligence in biochemical indicators of sports training. This article uses Markov logic for network creation and system training, and tests whether the Markov logic network can be associated with the training system. The results show that the accuracy and recall rate obtained are about 90%, which shows that it is feasible to establish biochemical indicators of sports training based on Markov logic network, and the system has universal, guiding and constructive significance, ensuring that the construction of training system indicators will not go in the wrong direction.

Aim/Purpose: This study examines the use of the Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) platform by undergraduates of the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, during the COVID-19 pandemic using the constructs of the UTAUT2 model. Five constructs of the UTAUT2 model were adopted to investigate the use of the ERT platform by undergraduates of the university. Background: The Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak disrupted academic activities in educational institutions, leading to an unprecedented school closure globally. In response to the pandemic, higher educational institutions adopted different initiatives aimed at ensuring the uninterrupted flow of their teaching and learning activities. However, there is little research on the use of ERT platforms by undergraduates in Nigerian universities. Methodology: The descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The multi-stage random sampling technique was used to select 334 undergraduates at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, while a questionnaire was used to collect data from 271 students. Quantitative data were collected and analyzed using frequency counts, percentages, mean and standard deviation, Pearson Product Moment Correlation, and regression analysis. Contribution: The study contributes to understanding ERT use in the educational institutions of Nigeria – Africa’s most populous country. Furthermore, the study adds to the existing body of knowledge on how the UTAUT2 Model could explain the use of information technologies in different settings. Findings: Findings revealed that there was a positive significant relationship between habit, hedonic motivation, price value, and social influence on the use of ERT platforms by undergraduates. Hedonic motivation strongly predicted the use of ERT platforms by most undergraduates. Recommendations for Practitioners: As a provisional intervention in times of emergencies, the user interface, navigation, customization, and other aesthetic features of ERT platforms should be more appealing and enjoyable to ensure their optimum utilization by students. Recommendation for Researchers: More qualitative research is required on users’ satisfaction, concerns, and support systems for ERT platforms in educational institutions. Future studies could consider the use of ERT by students in different countries and contexts such as students participating in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and the English for Speakers of other languages (ESOL) programs. Impact on Society: As society faces increased uncertainties of the next global pandemic, this article reiterates the crucial roles of information technology in enriching teaching and learning activities in educational institutions. Future Research: Future research should focus on how different technology theories and models could explain the use of ERT platforms at different educational institutions in other geographical settings and contexts.

Aim/Purpose: This study presents some activities that integrate computational thinking (CT) into mathematics lessons utilizing GeoGebra to promote constructionist learning. Background: CT activities in the Indonesian curriculum are dominated by worked examples with less plugged-mode activities that might hinder students from acquiring CT skills. Therefore, we developed mathematics and CT (math+CT) lessons to promote students’ constructionist key behaviors while learning. Methodology: The researchers utilized an educational design research (EDR) to guide the lesson’s development. The lesson featured 11 applets and 22 short questions developed in GeoGebra. To improve the lesson, it was sent to eight mathematics teachers and an expert in educational technology for feedback, and the lesson was improved accordingly. The improved lessons were then piloted with 17 students, during which the collaborating mathematics teachers taught the lessons. Data were collected through the students’ work on GeoGebra, screen recording when they approached the activities, and interviews. We used content analysis to analyze the qualitative data and presented descriptive statistics to quantitative data. Contribution: This study provided an example and insight into how CT can be enhanced in mathematics lessons in a constructionist manner. Findings: Students were active in learning mathematics and CT, especially when they were engaged in programming and debugging tasks. Recommendations for Practitioners: Educators are recommended to use familiar mathematics software such as GeoGebra to support students’ CT skills while learning mathematics. Additionally, our applets are better run on big-screen devices to optimize students’ CT programming and debugging skills. Moreover, it is recommended that students work collaboratively to benefit from peer feedback and discussion. Recommendation for Researchers: Collaboration with teachers will help researchers better understand the situation in the classroom and how the students will respond to the activities. Additionally, it is important to provide more time for students to get familiar with GeoGebra and start with fewer errors to debug. Future Research: Further research can explore more mathematics topics when integrating CT utilizing GeoGebra or other mathematics software or implement the lessons with a larger classroom size to provide a more generalizable result and deeper understanding.

The value and utility of traditional knowledge in conserving and commercialising genetic resources are increasingly becoming apparent due to advances in biotechnology and bioprospecting. However, the absence of an international legally binding instrument within the WIPO system means that traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources is not sufficiently protected like other forms of intellectual property. This means that indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs) do not benefit from the commercial exploitation of these resources. The efficacy of domestic tools to protect traditional knowledge and in balancing the rights of IPLCs and intellectual property rights (IPRs) is still debated. This paper employs a doctrinal research methodology based on desktop research of international and regional law instruments and the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, to determine the basis for balancing the protection of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge with competing interests of IPLCs and IPRs in South Africa.

Because of the problems of low mining precision and slow mining speed in traditional enterprise marketing investment data mining methods, a fast mining method for enterprise marketing investment databased on improved association rules is proposed. First, the enterprise marketing investment data is collected through the crawler framework, and then the collected data is cleaned. Then, the cleaned data features are extracted, and the correlation degree between features is calculated. Finally, according to the calculation results, all data items are used as constraints to reduce the number of frequent itemsets. A pruning strategy is designed in advance. Combined with the constraints, the Apriori algorithm of association rules is improved, and the improved algorithm is used to calculate all frequent itemsets, Obtain fast mining results of enterprise marketing investment data. The experimental results show that the proposed method is fast and accurate in data mining of enterprise marketing investment.

Courses on Human Computer Interaction (HCI) largely differ in the conception of the role of the course in the program, in the topics to be included, in emphases, in the instructional strategies that are employed, and more. This paper describes the design and implementation of a HCI course for students of the Management Information Systems department in our college. Students’ intermediate and final homework assignments were analyzed to provide feedback for the course design. Quantitative analysis showed high correlation between the quality of the requirement analysis performed by the students and the quality of the final interface prototype, and also that the quality of design alternatives that were considered by the students can be a good predictor for the quality of the overall interface design. Qualitative analysis of students’ submissions showed the need for practicing skills required in users’ studies, especially conducting interviews and observations. Implications from these and other findings are discussed.

Aim/Purpose: Two research objectives were addressed in this study. The first objective was to determine the effect of knowledge management orientation behaviour on business performance, and the second objective was to investigate the mediating effect of market orientation in the relationship between knowledge management orientation behaviour and business performance. Background: In business strategic perspective, the idea of knowledge management has been discussed widely. However, there is a lack of study exploring the notion of knowledge management orientation especially in the perspective of Indonesia’s creative economy sector. Methodology: One hundred and thirty one participants were involved in this study. They were economy creative practitioners in Indonesia. Data were analysed by using Partial Least Squares. Contribution: Upon the completion of the research objectives, this study contributes to both theoretical and practical perspectives. From a theoretical standpoint, this study proposes a conceptual model explaining the relationship among knowledge management orientation behaviour, market orientation, and business performance in Indonesia’s creative economy sector. As this study found a significant effect of knowledge sharing in market orientation and market orientation in business performance, the study showed the mediation role of market orientation in the relationship between knowledge sharing and business performance. From a practical perspective, this study implies a guideline for business practitioners in enhancing business through the application of knowledge management orientation behaviour. Findings: The results show that organizing memory, knowledge absorption, and knowledge receptivity has a direct significant effect on business performance. However, in affecting business performance, knowledge sharing must be mediated by market orientation. Recommendations for Practitioners: Based on the results of the study, practitioners should enhance their behaviour in implementing knowledge management in terms of increasing business performance. In addition, it is suggested that business practitioners must be market driven, as market orientation was found to have an important role in affecting business performance. Recommendation for Researchers: Future researchers might integrate other constructs such as innovation, marketing capabilities, or organizational learning with this current conceptual model to have more comprehensive insight about the relationship between knowledge management orientation and business performance. Impact on Society: This study suggests that business practitioners must have knowledge management driven behaviour as well as market orientation to enhance the performance of their business. Future Research: Future research might add other variables to make the conceptual model more comprehensive and also replicate this study into different industrial settings.

Aim/Purpose: To examine millennial satisfaction towards online food delivery services, including e-service quality, food quality, and perceived value as the determinants and behavioral intention as the consequence. Background: Among the generational cohorts, millennials are a demanding target group for many retailers, including restaurants. Despite many studies examining millennial behavior in the restaurant context, almost no research on millennial attitudes and behavior in the context of online food home delivery service can be found. Methodology: For this research, 332 millennials completed a self-administered survey in Indonesia. To assess the associations between satisfaction and its determinants and consequences, this study employs Partial Least Square modeling. Contribution: This research extends existing knowledge of millennial satisfaction toward online food delivery service by highlighting that food quality, e-service quality and perceived value are the main determinants of satisfaction for online food purchasing among millennials. Further, this study offers support for the spillover theory in the online food home delivery service from millennial perspective. Findings: This study uncovers the important direct dual influences of e-service quality and food quality on millennial satisfaction with online food delivery services. Further, this study notes that e-service and food quality also have an indirect influence on satisfaction via perceived value. Moreover, satisfied millennial customers are more likely to re-purchase, recommend to others, and re-purchase at an increased price. Recommendations for Practitioners: For small and medium restaurants, it is suggested that they need to focus solely on their core business of providing food. If they want to offer an e-service, they should develop strategic cooperation with one or more online service providers. Recommendation for Researchers: Millennials tend to repurchase, recommend, and be willing to pay more in the future extends the existing models that look at the associations among quality, satisfaction and behavioral intention. Thus, in online restaurant purchasing services, both e-service quality and food quality should be included in the future research models. Impact on Society: This study could help restaurant industries to increase their business performance and, indirectly, impact on society as a whole by providing high quality food, employment opportunities, and tax revenues. Future Research: Future researchers can reassess the model in different countries and/or with other generation cohorts as well as including other variables such as trust, image, involvement, as well as socio-demographic factors.

Aim/Purpose: Use of the term “rigor” is ubiquitous in the research community. But do we actually know what it means, and how it applies to transdisciplinary research? Background: Too often, rigor is presumed to mean following an established research protocol scrupulously. Unfortunately, that frequently leads to research with little or no impact. Methodology: We identify a sample of 62 articles with “rigor” in the title and analyze their content in order to capture the range of perspectives on rigor. We then analyze how these findings might apply to informing science. Contribution: This paper offers an approach to defining rigor that is theory based and appropriate for transdisciplinary research. Findings: Rigor definitions tend to fall into one of two categories: criteria-based and compliance-based. Which is appropriate depends on the research context. Even more variation was found with respect to relevance, which is often used as a catch-all for research characteristics that aren’t associated with rigor. Recommendations for Practitioners: Recognize that when researchers are referring to rigor and relevance, they of-ten mean these to apply to other researchers rather than to practice. When funding research, it is important to understand who the rigor and relevance are directed towards. Recommendations for Researchers: When using the term “rigor”, think carefully about which meaning is intended and be transparent about that meaning in your writing. Impact on Society: A great deal of public money is invested in achieving research rigor. Society should be aware of what it is buying with that funding. Future Research: Developing a better understanding of research fitness and the factors that contribute to it.

Aim/Purpose: Embitterment comprises a stress-related response to unjust life experiences. Studies have found that it can have a toll on employees’ well-being. However, research on this matter is still in its infancy. Background: Within the scope of the present study, Ι sought to investigate how embitterment relates to burnout – the prolonged consequence of stress. This study further explored whether breaches of psychological contracts can trigger embitterment. Methodology: The study employed a cross-sectional design where two hundred and eight (N = 208) participants from the general population completed an online survey. Contribution: Findings suggest that the toll of embitterment might be much more than what research has suggested so far. Those who experience embitterment can become emotionally exhausted and cynical and these findings can be especially useful when identifying embitterment. Findings: It was found that embitterment related to higher burnout levels and more specifically emotional exhaustion and cynicism. No significant findings were revealed for the relationship between professional inefficacy and embitterment. Also, psychological contract breach was found to be a significant predictor of embitterment, supporting further the notion that perceptions of injustice can trigger feelings of embitterment. Results also showed that embitterment mediated the relationship between psychological contract breach and burnout. Recommendation for Researchers: The study highlights the notion that fairness is a key precursor of embitterment, and this finding is essential when developing interventions to prevent embitterment from arising. Future Research: Future research could use a longitudinal study design to unravel whether burnout represents a precondition or the consequence of embitterment. Future research should also include more objective measures. For example, it would be useful to pair self-report data with more objective measures on embitterment (e.g. clinical interviews).

[Meg O’Neill] 00:08 Hello and welcome to the Berkeley Technology Law Journal podcast. My name is Meg O’Neill and I am one of the editors of the podcast. Today we are excited to share with you a conversation between Berkeley Law LLM student Franco Dellafiori, and Professor Bertrall Ross. Professor ...

The post Berkeley Technology Law Journal Podcast: Will ChatGPT Tell Me How to Vote? Democracy & AI with Professor Bertrall Ross appeared first on Berkeley Technology Law Journal.

Nan WU,Xiaocong LAI,Mei CHEN,Ying PAN, Vol.E107-D, No.11, pp.1433-1443
With the development of the Semantic Web, an increasing number of researchers are utilizing ontology technology to construct domain ontology. Since there is no unified construction standard, ontology heterogeneity occurs. The ontology matching method can fuse heterogeneous ontologies, which realizes the interoperability between knowledge and associates to more relevant semantic information. In the case of differences between ontologies, how to reduce false matching and unsuccessful matching is a critical problem to be solved. Moreover, as the number of ontologies increases, the semantic relationship between ontologies becomes increasingly complex. Nevertheless, the current methods that solely find the similarity of names between concepts are no longer sufficient. Consequently, this paper proposes an ontology matching method based on semantic association. Accurate matching pairs are discovered by existing semantic knowledge, and then the potential semantic associations between concepts are mined according to the characteristics of the contextual structure. The matching method can better carry out matching work based on reliable knowledge. In addition, this paper introduces a probabilistic logic repair method, which can detect and repair the conflict of matching results, to enhance the availability and reliability of matching results. The experimental results show that the proposed method effectively improves the quality of matching between ontologies and saves time on repairing incorrect matching pairs. Besides, compared with the existing ontology matching systems, the proposed method has better stability.
Publication Date: 2024/11/01

Female corporate leadership has drawn increasing attention from academia and practitioners. We contribute to the literature by examining the impact of CEO succession with gender change—i.e., a male CEO succeeded by a female or vice versa. We propose that due to gender differences in executive leadership positions, CEO succession with gender change may amplify the disruption of the CEO succession process and thus adversely affect post-succession firm performance and increase the likelihood of successor early departure. Using data from 3,320 CEO successions in companies listed in China's Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges from 1997 to 2010, we find evidence to support this argument. We also find that the negative (positive) impact of male-to-female succession on firm performance (the likelihood of successor early departure) may be weakened by positive organizational attitudes toward female leadership as indicated by the presence of other female leaders on the firm's board of directors and/or top management team, and the successor's inside origin.

MALAYSIAN consumer associations have been around since the 1960s. However, today we have few that are active and serve consumer interest.

They should continue to fight for consumer rights nationwide and address issues that require better consumer education, stronger laws and enhanced regulatory frameworks, especially in commerce.

Many of these associations face several challenges when it comes to consumer protection, despite existing legal frameworks such as the Consumer Protection Act 1999. The main issues stem from a combination of factors, including:

Limited awareness: Many consumers are not fully aware of their rights under consumer protection laws. This lack of awareness leads to consumers not filing complaints or pursuing justice when their rights are violated.

Weak enforcement: While there are laws in place, the enforcement of these laws can be inconsistent. Regulatory agencies sometimes lack the resources or the will to take effective action against businesses that violate consumer rights.

Online transactions: With the rise of e-commerce, there have been increasing complaints about fraud, counterfeit goods and scams. Consumer protection laws are still catching up to fully address issues arising from online transactions, leaving many consumers vulnerable.

Delayed resolutions: Consumers often face long wait-times when filing complaints or seeking compensation. Dispute resolution mechanisms can be slow, which discourages consumers from pursuing complaints.

Misleading advertisements: There have been cases of misleading or false advertising where consumers end up buying products or services that do not meet expectations. The penalties for businesses engaging in such practices are not always strong enough to act as a deterrent.

Price gouging: In certain industries, especially during times of crisis, for example, the Covid-19 pandemic, price gouging can be a significant issue, with some businesses exploiting consumers by drastically raising prices on essential goods.

The government also has a duty to see that consumer associations function as they should and continue to stay active, and that they are fully supported.

Consumers should take action to defend their rights and ensure they are not violated while pursuing consumer protection.

Bulbir is a former president of the Negeri Sembilan Consumers Association. Comments: letters@thesundaily.com

KUALA LUMPUR: As the takaful industry contends with escalating medical inflation and the rising costs of healthcare, the Malaysian Takaful Association (MTA) has called for increased government and private sector collaboration to ensure affordable, accessible protection options for all Malaysians.

MTA CEO Mohd Radzuan Mohamed envisions takaful becoming a leading option for Malaysians seeking protection.

With only 60% of the population currently insured or covered by takaful, he sees untapped potential among the remaining 40%, primarily in underserved and unserved communities.

“Our goal is to make takaful an accessible option, particularly for groups like the BM40 (top 20% of B40 and bottom 40% M40), who often do not receive enough attention from traditional agents,” he told SunBiz at the recent launch of Hijrah27.

Radzuan said the takaful sector has struggled to expand its market share, currently at about 20% after four decades.

In response, he said, they are considering how digital transformation, distribution enhancements and technology can address these challenges.

“Malaysia’s transformation plan and recent initiatives, like the financial sector blueprint, outline steps to close this gap by focusing on underserved communities, leveraging financial literacy campaigns, and engaging technology to make takaful accessible,” he added.

Additionally, he said co-payments, a shared cost model between the insurer and the insured, is seen as a potential solution to rising premiums fuelled by medical inflation.

“Collaborating with the Ministry of Health and Bank Negara Malaysia, takaful providers aim to develop cost-sharing models that help balance affordability and coverage. With co-payments, premiums could become more manageable, helping to mitigate the effects of medical inflation and making Takaful accessible for more people.”
While the adoption of co-payments is currently optional, Radzuan said, making it mandatory could have far-reaching implications on the takaful industry. “A balanced co-payment structure can be beneficial, but affordability must remain a priority to avoid defeating the purpose of protection,” he emphasised.

Looking forward, Radzuan said the association is exploring new technology-driven initiatives, such as the Hijrah27 framework, to improve customer service and operational efficiency. “Collaborations with fintech firms and the rise of AI-based solutions also show promise in elevating the industry’s standards and expanding reach,” he added.

BENTLEY is accelerating toward its electric future, building on a path that began with the introduction of the Bentayga Hybrid in 2018. With plug-in hybrid versions of the Continental GT and Flying Spur now available, the luxury automaker has officially announced plans for its first fully electric vehicle (EV), set to debut in 2026.

This new EV will be a luxury urban crossover SUV, described by Bentley’s new CEO, Frank-Steffen Walliser, as “compact” — a term that is relative in Bentley’s world. Measuring under 5003mm in length, it is expected to be similar in size to the Porsche Cayenne or Audi Q7 and will likely share its platform with the forthcoming Porsche Cayenne EV.

While Bentley has withheld technical details, Walliser emphasised that the upcoming model will prioritise usable range and charging speed to meet the demands of modern luxury car buyers. Addressing concerns about the transition to electric power, he assured, “We don’t want to make just any electric car; we want to make a Bentley.” The brand remains committed to preserving the unique qualities that define a Bentley, even without the traditional engine sound. Bentley board member Matthias Rabe hinted at innovative solutions to replicate the emotional experience of a combustion engine without merely copying conventional engine notes.

Bentley’s electrification strategy, initially called Beyond 100, has been rebranded as Beyond 100 Plus, reflecting an adjusted timeline for full carbon neutrality, extended from 2030 to 2035. The shift is driven by both regulatory pressures and growing customer interest, though Walliser acknowledged that the transition will vary across different markets.

This announcement underscores Bentley’s ambition to balance modern sustainability with its storied heritage of opulence and performance. As the brand embraces its electric transformation, it aims to redefine luxury mobility for the next generation.

Infiniti is showing off its upcoming seven passenger crossover and we get behind the wheel of a Dodge Challenger 392 HEMI SRT8.

The Canadian Soccer Association says an independent review confirmed the Paris Olympics drone-spying scandal was not an isolated misstep.

The University of Cambridge invites for applications for a Research Associate to work on EU-BON, a major EU-funded research project seeking to improve the use of biodiversity data in public policy.

Applicants should have a PhD in a relevant social science or conservation science. Experience in both qualitative and quantitative analysis is desirable. Applicants should ideally have some first-hand experience of public policy processes and a willingness to travel within the European Union for research. Excellent organisational and communication skills will be essential in working as a successful part of this large, multi-partner and multinational team.

The researcher will carry out research on how biodiversity data is currently used in European policy making and will contribute to analysis of the opportunities to increase its effective provision and use. Research methods are likely to combine qualitative and quantitate analysis and to focus on the use of biodiversity data in public policy contexts. It is expected that some of the research will take place in Brussels. The researcher will have considerable freedom in defining the research project in discussion with Dr Doubleday and Prof Sutherland. In addition to carrying out research on the use of biodiversity data in European policy making, the researcher will support Cambridge's contribution to EU BON as a whole. This will involve contributing to other workpackages as and when required. More information about EU BON can be found here: http://www.eubon.eu

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for 36 months in the first instance.

Completed applications consisting of a CHRIS/6 (Parts I & III) (downloadable from http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/offices/hr/forms/chris6/) a covering letter, and CV, should be sent to Danielle Feger, via email: geogrec@hermes.cam.ac.uk or sent to Research Administrator, Department of Geography, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EN

Please quote reference LC01355 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

Any enquiries concerning the position can be made to Dr Robert Doubleday, rob.doubleday@csap.cam.ac.uk

For more information about the position, please visit: http://www.jobs.cam.ac.uk/job/1611/

EU BON takes care to enhance the expertise of its consortium by affiliating associate partners, an approach the project is planning to continue with. EU BON is pleased to welcome the latest addition to our list of associate partners - HaMAARAG- The Israel National Program for Ecosystem Assessment.

HaMaarag was established in 2006, following a decade’s worth of research in Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) stations. Its main objective is to promotescience-based management of open landscapes and natural resources, for human well-being and for long-term sustainability of nature in Israel.

HaMaarag aims to:
•   Generate science-based knowledge about the state of ecosystems and biodiversity in Israel
•   Strengthen the relationship between scientific knowledge, management and policymaking, in the fields of natural resource and open landscape management, land use planning and nature conservation.
•   Improve accessibility of this knowledge to decision-makers and the general public.

By achieving these aims, HaMaarag promotes the development of a common language, knowledge base and perspective regarding ecosystems in Israel, thus facilitating efficiency of management and policy within the relevant organizations.

EU BON is happy to announce that Memoranda of Understanding have been signed with four new associated partners. The EU BON family is now joined by DataOne (Observation Network for Earth), USA; Fondation pour la Recherche sur la Biodiversité (FRB) / ECOSCOPE, France; Atlas Florae Europaeae (AFE), Finland; and the Natural Environment Centre / SYKE (Finnish Environment Institute), Finland. Welcome to all!

DataOne (Observation Network for Earth)

Natural Environment Centre / SYKE (Finnish Environment Institute)

The Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) promotes the conservation of biodiversity by various measures, e.g. by assessments of the conservation status of species and natural habitats or by research on methods of management and restoration of habitats. An important field of research is the significance of ecosystem services and their interactions with biodiversity. SYKE's tasks also include finding solutions to problems with invasive species, assessment of the environmental impacts of genetically modified organisms and permits for international trade in endangered species.

EU BON is pleased to welcome a new associated partner Long-Term Ecosystem Research (LTER) Europe to its family!

Long-Term Ecosystem Research (LTER) is an essential component of world-wide efforts to better understand ecosystems. This comprises their structure, functions, and long-term response to environmental, societal and economic drivers. LTER contributes to the knowledge base informing policy and to the development of management options in response to the Grand Challenges under Global Change.

From the beginning (around 2003) the design of LTER-Europe has focussed on the integration of natural sciences and ecosystem research approaches, including the human dimension. LTER-Europe was heavily involved in conceptualizing socio-ecological research (LTSER). As well as LTER Sites, LTER-Europe features LTSER Platforms, acting as test infrastructures for a new generation of ecosystem research across European environmental and socio-economic gradients.

The University of Cambridge invites for applications for a Research Associate to work on EU-BON, a major EU-funded research project, seeking to improve the use of biodiversity data in public policy. EU-BON will carry out research towards building a European gateway for biodiversity information, which will integrate a wide range of biodiversity data from on ground observations to remote sensing datasets and make it accessible for scientists, policy makers, and the public. The project is coordinated from the Berlin Natural History Museum with the University of Cambridge contribution being led Professor William Sutherland (Department of Zoology) and Dr Robert Doubleday (Centre for Science and Policy and Department of Geography). EU-BON started on 1 December 2012 and runs for 4.5 years.

The post The researcher will carry out research on how biodiversity data is currently used in European policy making and will contribute to analysis of the opportunities to increase its effective provision and use. Research methods are likely to combine qualitative and quantitative analysis and to focus on the use of biodiversity data in public policy contexts. The researcher will be expected to spend time working in both the Department of Zoology and the Centre for Science and Policy.

In addition to carrying out research on the use of biodiversity data in European policy making, the researcher will support Cambridge's contribution to EU BON as a whole. This will involve contributing to other workpackages as and when required. More information about EU BON can be found here:http://www.eubon.eu

Person Specification Applicants should have a PhD in a relevant field. Experience in both qualitative and quantitative analysis is desirable. Applicants should ideally have some first-hand experience of public policy processes and a willingness to travel within the European Union for research. Excellent organisational and communication skills will be essential in working as a successful part of this large, multi-partner and multinational team.

Any enquiries concerning the position can be made to Dr Robert Doubleday,rob.doubleday@csap.cam.ac.uk or Professor William Sutherland, w.sutherland@zoo.cam.ac.uk

Interviews for this post will take place on Thursday 18th June 2015.

To apply and for more information, please go to teh official job offer.

EU BON is happy to announce a new addition to our growing family of associated partners. In April 2015, the project has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the German Federation for Biological Data (GFBio).

GFBio is a project that brings together national key players providing environmentally related biological data and services to develop the ‘German Federation for Biological Data' . The overall goal is to provide a sustainable, service oriented, national data infrastructure facilitating data sharing and stimulating data intensive science in the fields of biological and environmental research. 

The federation will build on proven data archiving infrastructures and workflows such as those of PANGAEA for environmental data and the resources of Germany's major natural history collection data repositories. The new infrastructure will improve and integrate these existing components within a common technological and organizational framework.

Our family of Associated Partners has grown with three new members that joined us this month. EU BON has signed MoUs with the GLOBal Infrastructures for Supporting Biodiversity research (GLOBIS-B), the Institute of Geosciences and Earth Resources of the National Research Council of Italy (IGG-CNR) and ECOPOTENTIAL: Improving Future Ecosystem Benefits through Earth Observations, The hand over took place during the 9th GEO European Projects' Workshop in Copenhagen (15 – 16 June 2015).

   
Left: EU BON coordinator Christoph Hauser and Anke Hoffmann handing over the MoUs to our partners from IGG-CNR and ECOPOTENIAL  Antonello Provenzale, Carl Beierkuhnlein and Palma Blonda; Right: Handing over the MoU to Daniel Kissling - scientfic coordinator of GLOBIS-B; Credits: Anke Hoffmann
 

The GLOBIS-B project is a new H2020 project aiming to bring together biodiversity scientists with research infrastructure operators and legal interoperability experts to address the research needs and infrastructure services required to calculate Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBV) at a global scale.

ECOPOTENTIAL makes significant progress beyond the state-of-the-art and creates a unified framework for ecosystem studies and management of protected areas (PA). ECOPOTENTIAL focuses on internationally recognized PAs in Europe and beyond in a wide range of biogeographic regions, and it includes UNESCO, Natura2000 and LTER sites and Large Marine Ecosystems. Best use of Earth Observation (EO) and monitoring data is enabled by new EO open-access ecosystem data services (ECOPERNICUS). 

IGG-CNR conducts studies based on mineralogy, petrology, geochemistry, geodynamics and geophysics, aimed at understanding the processes occurring both in the interior and at the surface of the Earth, and providing the fundamental knowledge for the applications (technological use of geomaterials, mitigation of the natural risks and correct management of the Earth resources for a sustainable development).

We are happy to announce the latest member of our Associated Partners list - MUSE (Museo delle Scienze). 

MUSE, or the Science Museum is an auxiliary body of the Autonomous Province of Trento. Its task is to interpret nature, starting from the mountains, using the eyes, tools, and applications of scientific research, taking advantage of the challenges of the contemporary world, stimulating scientific curiosity and the pleasure of knowledge, giving value to science, innovation, and sustainability. 

We look forward to more institutions and projects joining our Associated Partners family.

MUSE (Museo delle Scienze) joined EU BON's Associated Partners family in November 2015. We are now happy to present some more information about the museum and its initiative - the TEAM network.

MUSE is involved in biodiversity monitoring both locally in Trento Province, southeastern Alps, and globally. In particular, its Tropical Biodiversity Section runs a long-term biodiversity research and monitoring programme in the Udzungwa Mountains of Tanzania, an outstanding site for biological diversity and endemism. In 2009, this site became the first in Africa to enter the TEAM Network, a global programme for the standardized monitoring of biodiversity across the tropical moist forests.

 
Camera trap images from the MUSE site in Tanzania; Credit: MUSE – Science Museum 

Started in 2002 by Conservation International (CI), the Tropical Ecology Assessment and Monitoring (TEAM) Network (http://www.teamnetwork.org/ ) – grew to a coalition in 2009 that includes CI, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and the Wildlife Conservation Society. TEAM has collected and made publicly available more than 2.5 million photos from camera traps in tropical forests across the planet. With support from Hewlett Packard Enterprise, formerly Hewlett Packard Company, the TEAM Network is now able to analyze this global data set in near real-time and provide data-driven insights for improving natural resource management.

A major analysis of TEAM data was recently published in PloS Biology and caught vast media coverage as it represents the first standardized assessment of its kind for population trends of tropical forest mammals and terrestrial birds (http://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.1002357). TEAM researchers monitored 244 species of ground-dwelling mammals and birds in 15 protected areas spanning tropical regions in Central and South America, Africa and Southeast Asia. They analyzed more than 2.5 million pictures captured by more than 1,000 camera traps and found that 17% of the animal populations they monitor increased in number while 22% remained constant and 22% decreased. The Wildlife Picture Index (WPI) Analytics System was developed in partnership with Hewlett Packard Company.

WPI is an index that summarizes the occupancy trends at community level and is an official indicator to monitor progresses against the Aichi Targets under the CBD (http://www.bipindicators.net/wildlifepictureindex).

In 2015, MUSE – Science Museum established in a Natural Park in the Brenta Dolomites (near Trento) the first site in Europe of systematic camera trapping that adopts the standardized protocol developed by the TEAM Network. This entails the sampling of 60 camera trap locations within an area of 200-250 km2 for 30 days each year, to derive data that are suitable to occupancy analysis and that can allow, as demonstrated by the recent paper in PLoS Biology, to assess population trends using state-of-the-art ecological methods.

MUSE’s scientists hope that this protocol may attract the interest of other partners within the EU BON family that may be keen to replicate this sampling at other sites in Europe.

ECSA – the European Citizen Science Association is the latest addition to our ever growing group of associated partners. The Memorandum of Understanding handover took place at the reception of the ECSA Conference at the Museum für Naturkunde on 19 May 2016.

ECSA is a network of Citizen Science initiatives, research institutes, universities, museums, other organisations and individuals from 20 EU countries, Switzerland, Israel and the US, who are working together with the mission to connect citizens and science through fostering active participation. ECSA is a registered non-profit association administered by a Secretariat hosted at the Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Research (MfN) in Berlin, Germany. 

See the full list of associated partners here.

Photo: Signing the MoU between ECSA Chair of Data, Tools and Technology Committee Dr. Jaume Piera and EU BON's Project manager Anke Hoffmann; Credit: Hwaja Götz

The 10th GEO European Projects Workshop that took place from 31 May - 2 June, in Berlin, was a success for EU BON in many ways. Among the significant achievements was signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the ConnectinGEO project to add this important initiative to our ever-growing list of associated partners.

The MoU handed over by EU BON coordinator Dr. Christoph Häuser to Dr. Joan Masó, coordinator of ConnectinGEO.

Handing over the MoU between Christoph Häuser, EU BON (left) and Joan Masó, ConnectinGEO (right); Credit: EU BON

ConnectinGEO is under the umbrella of GEOSS and the EU funding with the aim of linking existing coordinated Earth observation networks with the science and technology (S&T) communities, the industry sector and the GEOSS and Copernicus stakeholders. The goal is to facilitate a broader and more accessible knowledge base to support the needs of the GEO Societal Benefit Areas (SBAs) and their users. A broad range of subjects from climate, natural resources and raw materials, to the emerging UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be addressed.