Caenorhabditis elegans expressed sequence tags identify gene families and potential disease gene homologues

A database containing mapped partial cDNA sequences from Caenorhabditis elegans will provide a ready starting point for identifying nematode homologues of important human genes and determining their functions in C. elegans. A total of 720 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) have been generated from 585 clones randomly selected from a mixed-stage C. elegans cDNA library. Comparison of these ESTs with sequence databases identified 422 new C. elegans genes, of which 317 are not similar to any sequences in the database. Twenty-six new genes have been mapped by YAC clone hybridization. Members of several gene families, including cuticle collagens, GTP-binding proteins, and RNA helicases were discovered. Many of the new genes are similar to known or potential human disease genes, including CFTR and the LDL receptor.

Quantitative information presentation and gender: an interaction effect

The authors investigated whether performance on mathematical test items would be influenced by an interaction between presentation format and gender. One hundred fourteen students in a management accounting course were randomly assigned either to a tabular format or to a graphics format. There were significant main effects for gender and presentation format; men outperformed women, and the subjects who received the tabular format outperformed the subjects who received the graphics format. A significant interaction supported the existence of a conditional relationship between performance on mathematical test items and presentation format. This relationship varied as a function of gender (symmetry permits the interchange of presentation format and gender). Simple effects for the interaction determined that the women who received the graphics presentation did not perform as well as their male counterparts, or as well as other women and men who received the tabular format. The results of this study indicate that presentation format is an important consideration in gender differences for mathematics performance.

Knowledge acquisition

The application of expert systems has increased drastically in the last decade. The power of these systems derives from the knowledge they possess, rather than from the inference mechanism that they employ. To ensure the performance of an expert system, the acquisition of knowledge becomes a vital task in the development process. This article discusses issues related to people involved in the knowledge acquisition task, reviews techniques to acquire knowledge, and presents a methodology that offers a structured approach to knowledge acquisition. Trends in knowledge acquisition are discussed.

Quality end user-developed applications

This article examines the dimension of quality in end user-developed applications. Quality is defined as the degree to which an application of "high grade" accomplishes or attains its goal from the perspective of the user. We propose a definition for "quality" as a combination of end user information satisfaction and application utilization. We then discuss three measurement instruments that were developed to capture the dimensions of quality and assess their psychometric properties.

Towards Determining the Appropriate Systems Development Environment: The Role of Task Characteristics

The growth of user developed computer-based applications (UDA) presents today's organizations with a means to augment traditional systems development by Information Systems professionals. In order to effectively use the resources offered by these two development environments, organizations need to answer the question: given a systems requirement, which development environment should be used to ensure success. This paper hypothesizes that the answer to this question depends upon the characteristics of the task? Drawing upon previous systems analysis and design research, we examine the effect of a task's degree of structure, interdependency, scope and periodicity, on the appropriate development environment. Results from a preliminary empirical test indicate that these task characteristics are useful in suggesting the appropriate environment for successful development of an information system.

A User-Satisfaction Approach to IS Effectiveness Measurement

This paper reports on research conducted by the authors into how to measure the effectiveness of a personal computer network used by a business school to deliver a range of personal productivity tools to MBA students, as well as academic and administrative staff. The use of user-satisfaction is recognized by many IT researchers as an appropriate surrogate for IT effectiveness. The authors decided to use a user-satisfaction model which is based on the gap between users’ beliefs of what is important and their perception of what is delivered by the ISD, to measure the effectiveness of the personal computer network.

In brief, the research showed that all was not well with the personal computer network in use. The gaps on the two perceptual performance factors, namely effective benefits and system access, are significant in assessing overall satisfaction with the network. The gap on effective benefits is approximately twice as important as system's access in terms of its impact on overall satisfaction. This research study showed that this gap approach is quite effective. It is inexpensive. It does not require an enormous amount of expertize, although an acquaintance with factor analysis is necessary. The study need not take a long period of time; the total lapse time for the above research was six weeks, requiring the equivalent of five person-days work.

The Evolution of Interorganizational Systems

In the literature on interorganizational systems (IOS) one encounters mainly examples of information systems that support highly structured transactions between organizations. However, the range of interorganizational activities also includes less structured interactions, such as negotiations and joint problem solving. This paper wants to contribute to a better understanding of the potential of IOS by developing the notion of a high-level IOS. Technological and managerial challenges are delineated that have to be mastered in order to reach high-level IOS. Underlying the analysis of these challenges is the prediction of an evolution of IOS that is based on the analysis of the evolution of internal information systems (IS).

The Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Information Officer: The Strategic Partnership

Information technology (IT) has become a strategic resource for many firms today. Coordination of this resource requires strong leadership and cooperation within the firm. The relationship of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and the Chief Information Officer (CIO) is crucial for the effective, successful utilization of IT for competitive advantage.

This paper first explores the CIO position, giving reasons for its development, tracing its evolution, and pinpointing certain responsibilities associated with the position. The paper then highlights the CIO's concerns and identifies the future implications for the CIO. The second portion of the paper takes the CEO's perspective towards IT and the CIO's position. Special attention is directed towards describing the CEO's perspective on the CIO's qualifications, addressing the problem of overblown CEO expectations for the CIO position, and discussing ‘old-line’ CEOs’ attitudes towards IT and the CIO position. Also addressed is the exploration of the common CEO perception of the CIO as an ‘empire builder’ and an analysis of the CEO's perspective on the future need for a CIO position.

Finally the paper focuses on developing this ‘strategic partnership’ between the CIO and the CEO. Suggestions are provided for the CIO and the CEO to help achieve this ideal partnership. Although these suggestions are not all conclusive, they are critical to the ‘partnership’.

Global Information Systems: A Joint Venture between Business and Education

The expanding role of computers and information processing in today's global business environment makes it imperative that business students receive the appropriate computer education. This article evaluates the role of business schools in preparing students to meet the challenges of the global information age. Business and academic perspectives on computers and information processing and their influence on computer education in the business school are presented. The authors conclude that the general lack of enforceable standards in computer business education is a global concern, affecting businesses, educational institutions, and computer hardware and software vendors alike. Recommendations for the globalization of computer education in business schools are provided.

Integrating expert systems with group decision support systems

Expert systems are powerful tools that serve as adjuncts to decision making and have found wide applicability in a wide variety of areas. Integrating expert systems with group decision support systems has the potential to enhance the quality and effeciency of group communication, negotiation, and collaborative work. This paper examines possible synergies between the two technologies and provides a survey of current partially-integrated systems. Finally, a prototype design of a highly-integrated system is described with directions for further research.