The use of thesauri in online retrieval

1984 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 63-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.P.R. Dubois

The controlled vocabulary versus the free text approach to information retrieval is reviewed from the mid 1960s to the early 1980s. The dominance of the free text approach following the Cranfield tests is increasingly coming into question as a result of tests on existing online data bases and case studies. This is supported by two case studies on the Coffeeline data base. The differences and values of the two approaches are explored considering thesauri as semantic maps. It is suggested that the most appropriate evaluatory technique for indexing languages is to study the actual use made of various techniques in a wide variety of search environments. Such research is becoming more urgent. Economic and other reasons for the scarcity of online thesauri are reviewed and suggestions are made for methods to secure revenue from thesaurus display facilities. Finally, the promising outlook for renewed develop ment of controlled vocabularies with more effective online display techniques is mentioned, although such development must be based on firm research of user behaviour and needs.

Author(s):  
Ioannis Papadakis ◽  
Konstantinos Kyprianos

One of the most important tasks of a librarian is the assignment of appropriate subject(s) to a resource within a library’s collection. The subjects usually belong to a controlled vocabulary that is specifically designed for such a task. The most widely adopted controlled vocabulary across libraries around the world is the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). However, there seems to be a shifting from traditional LCSH to modern thesauri. In this paper, a methodology is proposed, capable of incorporating thesauri into existing LCSH-based Information Retrieval–IR systems. In order to achieve this, a mapping methodology is proposed capable of providing a common structure consisting of terms belonging to LCSH and/or a thesaurus. The structure is modeled as a Simple Knowledge Organization System (SKOS) ontology, which can be employed by appropriate subject-based IR systems. As a proof of concept, the proposed methodology is applied to the DSpace-based University of Piraeus digital library.


2011 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 74-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ioannis Papadakis ◽  
Konstantinos Kyprianos

One of the most important tasks of a librarian is the assignment of appropriate subject(s) to a resource within a library’s collection. The subjects usually belong to a controlled vocabulary that is specifically designed for such a task. The most widely adopted controlled vocabulary across libraries around the world is the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). However, there seems to be a shifting from traditional LCSH to modern thesauri. In this paper, a methodology is proposed, capable of incorporating thesauri into existing LCSH-based Information Retrieval–IR systems. In order to achieve this, a mapping methodology is proposed capable of providing a common structure consisting of terms belonging to LCSH and/or a thesaurus. The structure is modeled as a Simple Knowledge Organization System (SKOS) ontology, which can be employed by appropriate subject-based IR systems. As a proof of concept, the proposed methodology is applied to the DSpace-based University of Piraeus digital library.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 284-290
Author(s):  
Jocelyn Chan ◽  
Yue Wu ◽  
James Wood ◽  
Mohammad Muhit ◽  
Mohammed K. Mahmood ◽  
...  

Background and Objectives: Congenital Rubella Syndrome (CRS) is the leading cause of vaccine-preventable congenital anomalies. Comprehensive country-level data on the burden of CRS in low and middle-income countries, such as Bangladesh, are scarce. This information is essential for assessing the impact of rubella vaccination programs. We aim to systematically review the literature on the epidemiology of CRS and estimate the burden of CRS in Bangladesh. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of existing literature and transmission modelling of seroprevalence studies to estimate the pre-vaccine period burden of CRS in Bangladesh. OVID Medline (1948 – 23 November 2016) and OVID EMBASE (1974 – 23 November 2016) were searched using a combination of the database-specific controlled vocabulary and free text terms. We used an age-stratified deterministic model to estimate the pre-vaccination burden of CRS in Bangladesh. Findings: Ten articles were identified, published between 2000 and 2014, including seven crosssectional studies, two case series and one analytical case-control study. Rubella seropositivity ranged from 47.0% to 86.0% among all age population. Rubella sero–positivity increased with age. Rubella seropositivity among women of childbearing age was 81.0% overall. The estimated incidence of CRS was 0·99 per 1,000 live births, which corresponds to approximately 3,292 CRS cases annually in Bangladesh. Conclusion: The estimated burden of CRS in Bangladesh during the pre-vaccination period was high. This will provide important baseline information to assess the impact and cost-effectiveness of routine rubella immunisation, introduced in 2012 in Bangladesh.


2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  

Abstract The relationships that exist between the fundamental drivers of our physical, social and economic environments and the immediate or eventual impacts these environments or “places” have on population health and inequalities are well documented. Successfully empowering communities to positively influence and help shape the decisions that impact on current and future living environments is a fundamental driver of health and well-being. The Place Standard Tool is a flexible product that translates complex public health and place making theory into a simple tool that supports communities, organisations and businesses to work together and identify both the assets of a place and areas deemed priority for improvement albeit within places that are well-established, undergoing change, or still being planned. The tool consists of 14 easy to understand questions or dimensions which cover both the physical and social elements of a place. On completion the tool is designed to provide both a quantitative (a score of 1-7 for each theme) and qualitative response through free text. The quantitative scores are displayed on a compass diagram and allow at a glance an immediate understanding of what dimensions of place work well (a score of 7 is the highest) and what areas require improving (a score of 1 is the lowest). Critical to establishing this full picture is ensuring that all ages and populations successfully contribute to the process. International developments continue to proceed at pace. The European Network for WHO Healthy Cities takes interest in spreading the tool to its members, and adaptations of the tool are already available in 14 European countries. These countries include the Netherlands, Denmark, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Greece, Germany and Spain. This workshop aims to bring together current international experience and developments with the tool, and to reflect on transferability, replicability, possible health impacts and equity aspects in terms of participation and data analysis. Another aim is promote availability of the tool more widely and to allow increased awareness and application to assist with the creation of healthy places. The objectives of the workshop are: To outline the connection between place, health and health inequalitiesTo introduce and explain how, where and when to use the Place Standard Tool to support the design of healthy and equitable placesTo enable participants through a variety of case studies explore whether the Place Standard is a suitable tool to use in their particular context which might be at a national, city and or neighbourhood delivery level. This will be achieved through an introduction to the tool and case studies from the Netherlands, Spain and Germany. Time will be provided at the end for discussion. Key messages Knowledge and awareness of a free and practical product to engage with partners, communities and politicians in taking forward an evidence based, and inclusive approach to healthy place design. An opportunity to contribute to and learn from a growing community of experience and expertise in healthy place making.


1982 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Bawden ◽  
Alison M. Brock

A collaborative evaluation project has been carried out by fourteen UK and European organisations, both industrial and public sector, to compare information resources and searching techniques for chemical toxrcology information. The project had two objectives: to improve the participants' own expertise in this area, and to allow an objective evaluation of searching methods. Eight test queries were designed and searched by the participants, and the results evaluated semi-qualitatively, with an extensive failure analysis. Printed sources, online data-bases, data-banks, and in-house files were included in the evaluation. The results are presented and discussed, including both comments on strengths and weaknesses of sources and search techniques, and recommenda tions for future improvements to facilitate access to chemical toxicology information.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ishumeet Kaur Bajwa ◽  
Navneet Kaur ◽  
Joseph L. Mathew

BACKGROUND Microneedles are defined as micron-sized projections that create microscopic holes to the skin on application so that drug molecules can penetrate across the outer layers of the skin into the dermis or deeper. Skin is a natural barrier for defense against invading pathogens. Additionally, the dermis possesses dendritic cells that are efficient for antigen presentation and initiating the cascade of immunogenic responses leading to antibody production. Therefore, intradermal delivery of vaccine antigens could be a safe and less invasive alternative for vaccine delivery compared with conventional intramuscular injection. OBJECTIVE We intend to undertake a systematic review of the literature to evaluate the efficacy and safety of intradermal delivery of vaccines using microneedles in animal models. METHODS In this systematic review, we will consider all study designs evaluating the safety and/or efficacy of intradermal delivery of vaccines using microneedles in animal models. Our search strategy will include free text terms and controlled vocabulary for, “microneedle”, “vaccine”, and “intradermal”. We will search literature through PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and OpenGrey, and we will not have language or date limits. Two review authors will independently select eligible studies and assess the risk of bias using the SYRCLE’s tool particularly for controlled studies and OHAT Risk of Bias Rating Tool for case studies, case-control studies, non-randomized studies, and cohort studies, and CAMARADES checklist to appraise the quality of the included studies. We will report structured summaries of the included studies and, if possible, conduct meta-analyses. The primary outcome to be measured is the efficacy of vaccine delivered through an intradermal route using microneedle(s) such as parameters of immunogenicity (for example antibody levels), sero-efficacy (for example sero-conversion), protective efficacy, etc. Secondary outcomes would include the safety of vaccines delivered through the intradermal route. This could include parameters to identify and/or quantify the timing and nature of local reactions, bleeding, systemic reactions, and death. Pain response during vaccination delivered through the intradermal route will also be evaluated. RESULTS This is a protocol for a systematic review; therefore, results are not available. CONCLUSIONS This is the first systematic review protocol aiming to assess the evidence on the efficacy and safety of intradermal delivery of vaccines using microneedles in various animal models. The findings will inform the safety and efficacy of intradermal delivery of vaccines in animal models, with the overall goal of considering the method for human vaccination as well. The results of this study will be published in a peer-reviewed journal. CLINICALTRIAL PROSPERO CRD42021236625


Author(s):  
Chattavut Peechapol ◽  
Jaitip Na-Songkhla ◽  
Siridej Sujiva ◽  
Arthorn Luangsodsai

This review examines 12 years of research by focusing on the following question: What are the factors that influence self-efficacy in an online learning environment? There has been a plethora of research concerning self-efficacy. However, few works have focused on the sources of self-efficacy in online-learning environments. Systematic searches of numerous online data-bases published between 2005 and 2017, which covered factors influencing self-efficacy in online learning context, resulted in the investigation of 25 studies. The data were extracted, organized and analyzed using a narrative synthesis. Results revealed that various factors improved self-efficacy and provided evidence of significant sources of self-efficacy in the context of online learning. Moreover, the investigation provides guidance for further research in designing online learning environments to enhance the self-efficacy of learners.


1999 ◽  
Vol 38 (04/05) ◽  
pp. 289-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. J. Tange

AbstractThis article presents an overview of a research project concerning the consultation of medical narratives in the electronic medical record (EMR). It describes an analysis of user needs, the design and implementation of a prototype EMR system, and the evaluation of the ease of consultation of medical narratives when using this system. In a questionnaire survey, 85 hospital physicians judged the quality of their paper-based medical record with respect to data entry, information retrieval and some other aspects. Participants were more positive about the paper medical record than the literature suggests. They wished to maintain the flexibility of data entry but indicated the need to improve the retrieval of information. A prototype EMR system was developed to facilitate the consultation of medical narratives. These parts were divided into labeled segments that could be arranged source-oriented and problem-oriented. This system was used to evaluate the ease of information retrieval of 24 internists and 12 residents at a teaching hospital when using free-text medical narratives divided at different levels of detail. They solved, without time pressure, some predefined problems concerning three voluminous, inpatient case records. The participants were randomly allocated to a sequence that was balanced by patient case and learning effect. The division of medical narratives affected speed, but not completeness of information retrieval. Progress notes divided into problem-related segments could be consulted 22% faster than when undivided. Medical history and physical examination divided into segments at organ-system level could be consulted 13% faster than when divided into separate questions and observations. These differences were statistically significant. The fastest divisions were also appreciated as the best combination of easy searching and best insight in the patient case. The results of our evaluation study suggest a trade-off between searching and reading: too much detailed segments will delay the consultation of medical narratives. Validation of the results in daily practice is recommended.


2011 ◽  
Vol 51 (4) ◽  
pp. 732-744 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Lang Beebe ◽  
Jan Guynes Clark ◽  
Glenn B. Dietrich ◽  
Myung S. Ko ◽  
Daijin Ko

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