Exploring library service models at Fudan University and Appalachian State University: Experiences from an International Librarian Exchange program

In 2008, Fudan University Library (FDUL) in Shanghai and Belk Library and Information Commons at Appalachian State University (ASU) in Boone, North Carolina created a three-year librarian exchange program. The first pair of librarian exchanges occurred during the 2009–2010 academic year, with the Appalachian State librarian traveling to Fudan for five weeks during the Fall of 2009, and the first librarian from Fudan traveling to Appalachian State for five months in the spring and summer of 2010. This paper documents how the first exchanges revealed interesting similarities and differences in the academic library service models between the two universities which are illustrative of general similarities and differences between Chinese and American academic library services. The paper also discusses how any academic library can benefit from the experience of a librarian exchange program with a partner library in another country.

The experience gained from these first exchanges confirms on an international level the basic assertion that a major role of an academic library is to support the university’s curriculum.

Moreover it can be extrapolated from discussions held between librarians of the two institutions that in both the United States and China the curriculum evolves in response to reforms on campus and to changing trends within the country’s education system. It was also determined that the modes of library services in both cultures change as new technologies arise and that the pace of technological change within academic libraries is rapid and ongoing. Participants in the exchange discovered that there are strengths and weaknesses in both the ASU and FDUL service models and that the librarians from both systems can learn from one another and absorb best practices from their exchange partners. This paper reflects the views and experiences of the exchange librarians (Shi and Johnson) and also author Shao, who is a Chinese national working as a faculty fellow librarian at Appalachian State University.     

Librarians Do It Differently: Comparative Usability Testing with Students and Library Staff

Usability testing on library search tools was conducted with ten students and eighteen library staff members at Syracuse University. The study addressed three research questions: (1) Do the ways in which librarians carry out search tasks on the library Web site vary from those of student users?; (2) Are those variations indicative of different mental models, i.e. different experience with and knowledge about the content and search tools on the Web site?; and (3) If there are differences, what are the implications of those different models for the usability of the site by students? Participants were tasked by using the library's Web site to locate both known items and items about a subject in the library's collection. The two groups differed in the success with which they were able to complete the tasks, as well as the time used. There were differences in the selection of search tools, the syntax used within the search box, the expectations of how library resources are organized, and the level of persistence as tasks were performed. Students’ behavior is characteristic of different mental models for how search tools work. The results are applicable to the design of the library's Web site and have implications for how library staff conduct reference and instruction services.     

中职教育中计算思维培养方法初探

计算思维培养近年来在国内外教育机构中得到了广泛的重视。本文从教学模式改革角度出发,探寻中职教育中计算思维培养的思路和方法。     

科技融资模式选择路径研究

科技企业初创期资金投入大、风险高等特点决定了其在融资方面必然面临诸多问题。从全球范围看,多数发达国家已经采取了适合有效的科技融资模式化解高科技企业融资难题。我国科技融资的发展尚处于初级阶段,为此文章深入研究并比较美、日、德三个发达国家的科技融资模式,构建科技融资模式的理论选择模型,经过分析,得到科技融资模式的选择与经济主体的经济金融发展水平密切相关、与其社会中投资主体的决策水平和管理能力密切相关的结论,为进一步完善我国科技融资模式提供借鉴。     

PID-based bit allocation strategy for asymmetric stereoscopic video coding with fuzzy quality controller

Asymmetric stereoscopic video coding can take advantage of binocular suppression in human vision by representing one of the two views in lower quality.This paper proposes a bit allocation strategy for asymmetric stereoscopic video coding.In order to improve the accuracy of bit allocation and rate control in the left view,a proportionalintegral-derivative controller is adopted.Meanwhile,to control the quality fluctuation between consecutive frames of the left view,a quality controller is adopted.Besides,a fuzzy controller is proposed to control the variation in quality between the left and right views by comparing the PSNR disparity of two views with a fixed threshold,which is used to quantize the binocular psycho-visual redundancy and adjust the quantization parameter (QP) of the right view correspondingly.The proposed algorithm has been implemented in H.264/AVC video codec,and the experimental results show its effectiveness in rate control while keeping a good quality for the left view,and fewer bits are allocated for the right view so that the overall bit rate is saved by 7.2% at most without the loss of subjective visual quality for stereoscopic video.     

Optimal Sample Allocation in Group-Randomized Mediation Studies with a Group-Level Mediator

We derive sample-allocation formulas that maximize the power of several mediation tests in two-level–group-randomized studies under a linear cost structure and fixed budget. The results suggest that the optimal individual sample size is typically smaller than that associated with the detection of a main effect and is frequently less than 10 under parameter values commonly seen in the literature. However, the optimal sample allocation can be heavily influenced by the group-to-individual cost ratio, the ratio of the treatment-mediator to mediator-outcome path coefficients, and the outcome variance structure. We illustrate these findings with a hypothetical group-randomized trial examining a school-discipline reform policy. To encourage utilization of the sample allocation formulas we implement them in the R package PowerUpR and powerupr Shiny application.     

A limitation with least squares predictions

Although researchers have documented that some data make larger contributions than others to predictions made with least squares models, it is relatively unknown that some data actually make no contribution to the predictions produced by these models. This article explores such noncontributory data.     

基于动态面板数据的中国农村居民消费的研究

本文通过构建农村居民消费与收入之间的动态面板数据模型,将全国30个省、市的数据分成低、中等、高收入三个阶层,利用1997～2011年的面板数据对三个阶层地区农村居民的消费进行实证分析。结果表明,全国不同收入地区的农村居民消费存在着一定程度的消费习惯;农村居民的家庭经营性收入和工资性收入对居民的消费支出起着决定性的作用,财产性收入和转移性收入在不同地区的农村居民消费中起着不同的作用。     

Advanced Nonlinear Latent Variable Modeling: Distribution Analytic LMS and QML Estimators of Interaction and Quadratic Effects

Interaction and quadratic effects in latent variable models have to date only rarely been tested in practice. Traditional product indicator approaches need to create product indicators (e.g., x ₁ ², x ₁ x ₄) to serve as indicators of each nonlinear latent construct. These approaches require the use of complex nonlinear constraints and additional model specifications and do not directly address the nonnormal distribution of the product terms. In contrast, recently developed, easy-to-use distribution analytic approaches do not use product indicators, but rather directly model the nonlinear multivariate distribution of the measured indicators. This article outlines the theoretical properties of the distribution analytic Latent Moderated Structural Equations (LMS; Klein & Moosbrugger, 2000) and Quasi-Maximum Likelihood (QML; Klein & Muthén, 2007) estimators. It compares the properties of LMS and QML to those of the product indicator approaches. A small simulation study compares the two approaches and illustrates the advantages of the distribution analytic approaches as multicollinearity increases, particularly in complex models with multiple nonlinear terms. An empirical example from the field of work stress applies LMS and QML to a model with an interaction and 2 quadratic effects. Example syntax for the analyses with both approaches is provided.