Mechanisms of access to the Internet in rural areas of developing countries

Because of severe affordability and skills constraints it is especially difficult to bring the Internet to rural areas of developing countries. But a number of promising alternatives are beginning to emerge. These are mainly designed to bring the Internet to non-users, that is, persons who do not actually come into direct contact with the technology. Such persons make up the bulk of the rural population in most developing countries. Two possibilities exist: one that involves intermediation at a distance (blending) and the other that takes place at close range (via say Internet kiosks). I use numerous examples to illustrate the potential of both these categories. For the minority of those who are able to actually use the Internet, costs can be lessened by a combination of communal institutions and technical sharing devices.     

The application of Web ATMs in e-payment industry: A case study

Today’s highly competitive marketplace is forcing the retail banking industry to optimize every possible revenue-generating opportunity. New electronic channels are replacing the more traditional ones. Web ATMs system represents one of the recent developments in financial service distribution.Through a real-life case study, this article explains how much more advantage can be achieved by enhancing Web ATMs with the latest Web-enablement technology, and examines the key benefits that can accrue from the deployment of integrated circuit (IC) card and smart card reader on Web ATMs. Last but not the least, it is expected that this article could provide strategic thinking with some apocalypses of Web 2.0 to steer the banking system for achievable changes in a direction that is consistent with the needs and expectations of a population, especially in C2C business model.     

Measurement development for cultural characteristics of mobile Internet users at the individual level

Culture plays an important role in how an information technology is developed and used. However, few studies attempt to identify the cultural traits most relevant to the specific technology being examined. The main purpose of this study is to develop measures for cultural characteristics of individual users with a specific information technology, the mobile Internet. We propose measures for four cultural characteristics important in the context of the mobile Internet, which are expected to be widely used in the future. The proposed measures were verified empirically through online surveys conducted in seven countries. The results indicate that the measures have high validity and reliability, as well as comparability among the seven countries. The paper ends with a discussion of the study’s limitations and implications.     

党校系统干部教育远程教育网的构建

适应中国特色社会主义事业发展的要求,进一步完善中国共产党党校教育体系,推进党校工作的科学化、规范化、制度化,建立党校系统干部教育远程教育网是我国干部教育事业的一项战略抉择.本文论述了党校系统干部教育的特点,介绍了党校系统干部教育远程教育网的基本模式,实施过程中各项技术的应用策略以及它们相互之间的关系.     

Identity construction on Facebook: Digital empowerment in anchored relationships

Early research on online self-presentation mostly focused on identity constructions in anonymous online environments. Such studies found that individuals tended to engage in role-play games and anti-normative behaviors in the online world. More recent studies have examined identity performance in less anonymous online settings such as Internet dating sites and reported different findings. The present study investigates identity construction on Facebook, a newly emerged nonymous online environment. Based on content analysis of 63 Facebook accounts, we find that the identities produced in this nonymous environment differ from those constructed in the anonymous online environments previously reported. Facebook users predominantly claim their identities implicitly rather than explicitly; they “show rather than tell” and stress group and consumer identities over personally narrated ones. The characteristics of such identities are described and the implications of this finding are discussed.     

Harvesting implicit group attitudes and beliefs from a demonstration web site.

Respondents at an Internet site completed over 600,000 tasks between October 1998 and April 2000 measuring attitudes toward and stereotypes of social groups. Their responses demonstrated, on average, implicit preference for White over Black and young over old and stereotypic: associations linking male terms with science and career and female terms with liberal arts and family. The main purpose was to provide a demonstration site at which respondents could experience their implicit attitudes and stereotypes toward social groups. Nevertheless, the data collected are rich in information regarding the operation of attitudes and stereotypes, most notably the strength of implicit attitudes, the association and dissociation between implicit and explicit attitudes, and the effects of group membership on attitudes and stereotypes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A multimedia social interaction service for inclusive community living: Initial user trials

The move from institution to community care has resulted in many people receiving care at home. For some, disability or frailty restricts their involvement in social activities outside the home, resulting in unacceptable social isolation. This problem is compounded if the person has a speech or language impairment. In this paper, we will describe a communication service designed to provide nonspeaking people with a means to interact socially when living independently, based on the sharing of stories using pictures and other media. Initial exploration on the usability of the system by a pair of representative users will be described. Published online: 6 November 2002     

ISDN在接入INTERNET中的应用

讨论了ISDN在高速接入INTERNET中的应用及实现，与现有的MODEM和专线连接方法作了比较，并介绍了相应的ISDN接入INTERNET设备。     

量子计算机与量子互联网

计算机由电子管计算机发展到晶体管计算机,再由晶体管计算机走向更高层次的量子计算机;互联网由电联网发展到光联网,再由光联网走向更高层次的量子联网。文章通过量子力学原理和量子“缠结”理论描述了量子计算机与量子互联网的概念,并介绍了量子计算机与量子互联网的研究情况。