Search

Resolvent analysis is a powerful tool that can reveal the linear amplification mechanisms between the forcing inputs and the response outputs about a base flow. These mechanisms can be revealed in terms of a pair of forcing and response modes and the associated energy gains (amplification magnitude) at a given frequency. The linear relationship that ties the forcing and the response is represented through the resolvent operator (transfer function), which is constructed through spatially discretizing the linearized Navier–Stokes operator. One of the unique strengths of resolvent analysis is its ability to analyze statistically stationary turbulent flows. In light of the increasing interest in using resolvent analysis to study a variety of flows, we offer this guide in hopes of removing the hurdle for students and researchers to initiate the development of a resolvent analysis code and its applications to their problems of interest. To achieve this goal, we discuss various aspects of resolvent analysis and its role in identifying dominant flow structures about the base flow. The discussion in this paper revolves around the compressible Navier–Stokes equations in the most general manner. We cover essential considerations ranging from selecting the base flow and appropriate energy norms to the intricacies of constructing the linear operator and performing eigenvalue and singular value decompositions. Throughout the paper, we offer details and know-how that may not be available to readers in a collective manner elsewhere. Towards the end of this paper, examples are offered to demonstrate the practical applicability of resolvent analysis, aiming to guide readers through its implementation and inspire further extensions. We invite readers to consider resolvent analysis as a companion for their research endeavors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education has a very important role, even its position in religion becomes an obligation. One of the most important educational roles in human life is moral education. Moral education has always been a major problem that has plagued humanity throughout history. The objectives of this study are 1) To know the concept of the moral education program for students of PPT Al-Hamidiyah NW Kediri. 2) Knowing the implementation of the moral education of students of PPT Al-Hamidiyah NW Kediri 3) Knowing what are the obstacles encountered in implementing the moral education of students of PPT Al-Hamidiyah NW Kediri and their solutions. The method used in this research is a descriptive qualitative method. Data collection techniques through observation, interviews and documentation. While the research location is centered on the Al-Hamidiyah Integrated Islamic Boarding School, NW Kediri, West Lombok. The results of the study are: 1) The concept of the moral education program at PPT Al-Hamidiyah NW Kediri is in the form of intra curricular and extracurricular program activities, as well as the daily activities of the students, 2) The implementation of the moral education of students at PPT Al-Hamidiyah NW Kediri is divided into three stages, namely the stages: (a) Planning (b) Implementation and (c) Evaluation (3) The obstacles encountered in implementing the santri moral education at PPT Al-Hamidiyah NW Kediri include laziness, difficulty gathering during planning meetings, limited infrastructure. sudden event invitations, diverse student backgrounds, the impact of increasingly uncontrolled technological advances, psychological factors, the lack of openness of the asatidz board in expressing their opinions during evaluation meetings, and the busy life of the pesantren leaders. The solution is to collaborate with all parties, prepare back-up asatidz, look for a khos youth for transferring students and provide punishment for rule breakers.

Background The Perioperative care for Older People undergoing Surgery (POPS) service model is increasingly being implemented across care providers in the English and Welsh National Health Services. Objective The study aimed to produce evidence regarding clinical leaders' activities to implement POPS across different service contexts and to produce generalisable recommendations for future implementation. Methods A qualitative interview study was undertaken across six National Health Services hospitals with established POPS services. Interview participants were recruited on the basis of their direct involvement in the implementation and leadership of the service. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews with 26 people carried out between November 2022 and May 2023. Results The implementation of POPS is often hampered by a lack of managerial and financial support, and apprehension amongst surgeons and anaesthetist about new ways of working. POPS leaders address these through five interconnected activities, each targeted at a combination of implementation factors. (i) Securing management and financial support. (ii) Professional engagement. (iii) Evidence building as a resource for demonstrating the clinical and operational benefits of POPS. (iv) Communication and engagement activities to promote and legitimise POPS to stakeholder groups. (v) Designated and distributed leadership to promote and coordinate implementation activities and to spread the service to new pathways. Conclusions Through a combination of activities POPS can be effectively implemented across different organisational contexts. Some aspects of these activities can be guided by shared resources and learning across sites, but others require adaption to local contextual barriers and drivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses the development of the Algo500 scalable digital platform project. One of its main components is the PerfData data repository, which includes all the parameters necessary to perform a supercomputer experiment, as well as the results obtained on it. All data entered into PerfData must be clearly defined, well-structured and unambiguously understood by various researchers. The purpose of this paper is to describe these data for their subsequent use in the Algo500 project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The long-time development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has sparked debates between scholars who emphasize a state-led approach and those who see decentralized project operations initiated by profit motives. This study bridges this divide by examining the practices of Chinese firms within the BRI, shedding light on state-business relations. Focusing on Kenya, a pivotal maritime BRI location, it explores Chinese state-firm relational dynamics in infrastructure, trade, and manufacturing BRI projects. The findings reveal that Chinese firms in Kenya, private or state-owned, play a partial strategic role. The Chinese state selects activities crucial for establishing a mutually beneficial narrative and guides firms through official visits and awards to build positive reputations. However, firms remain commercially oriented and seek state assistance based on business needs. Private and state-owned Chinese firms in Kenya share a certain level of similarity in accessing state support, both financial and operational. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1931, Walter Shewhart introduced his work in statistical process control (SPC) through his book, Economic Control of Quality of Manufactured Product. A common confusion in the use of SPC is that it does not fit every business or industry. Since Shewhart's work was published, various companies and industries have implemented such practices as a method to control their manufacturing quality of products, service quality, and design quality. In 2017, a supply chain quality organization from a well-known business jet manufacturer discovered that vendors of its supply base were posting ostensibly statistical process control charts on metric walls in their facilities. The charts were not error-free. Out-of-date data placed on the charts, the preponderance appeared to be weeks or months old, and incorrect use of control and specification limits indicated there might be a gap. The purpose of this research was to discover why businesses in the aviation industry are not taking advantage of SPC practices and methodologies. To identify the potential barriers inhibiting the deployment or growth of SPC implementations in the aviation industry, data was gathered from a survey of original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and members of the aviation supply base. The major challenges or barriers to implementing SPC in the aviation supply base were recognized as leadership commitment, cultural mindset and behaviors, understanding the benefits of SPC, and a lack of knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

is not required

The new applications of Clifford's geometric algebra surveyed in this paper include kinematics and robotics, computer graphics and animation, neural networks and pattern recognition, signal and image processing, applications of versors and orthogonal transformations, spinors and matrices, applied geometric calculus, physics, geometric algebra software and implementations, applications to discrete mathematics and topology, geometry and geographic information systems, encryption, and the representation of higher order curves and surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses the stages of evolution of the Algo500 scalable digital platform in general and its components AlgoWiki, CompZoo and PerfData in particular. The main attention is paid to the system analysis of the subject areas of the AlgoWiki, CompZoo and PerfData components. The concept of "supercomputer experiment" is introduced to systematize entering information about program runs into the PerfData component and to build various ratings based on the results of runs. The block diagram of the AlgoWiki, CompZoo and PerfData components integration into the Algo500 platform is described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Integrating evidence-based practice (EBP) into the daily practice of healthcare professionals has the potential to improve the practice environment as well as patient outcomes. It is essential for nurses to build their body of knowledge, standardize practice, and improve patient outcomes. This study aims to explore nursing students’ beliefs and implementations of EBP, to examine the differences in students’ beliefs and implementations by prior training of EBP, and to examine the relationship between the same. Methods A cross-sectional survey design was used with a convenience sample of 241 nursing students from two public universities. Students were asked to answer the questions in the Evidence-Based Practice Belief and Implementation scales. Results This study revealed that the students reported a mean total belief score of 54.32 out of 80 (SD = 13.63). However, they reported a much lower implementation score of 25.34 out of 72 (SD = 12.37). Students who received EBP training reported significantly higher total belief and implementation scores than those who did not. Finally, there was no significant relationship between belief and implementation scores (p > .05). Conclusion To advance nursing science, enhance practice for future nurses, and improve patient outcomes, it is critical to teach nursing students not only the value of evidence-based knowledge, but also how to access this knowledge, appraise it, and apply it correctly as needed.

Yalemzewod Assefa Gelaw,1,2 Yibeltal Assefa,2 Ricardo J Soares Magalhaes,3,4 Minilik Demissie,5 Wegayehu Tadele,5 Pandji Wibawa Dhewantara,3,6 Gail Williams2 1Institute of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Science, University of Gondar, Gondar 196, Ethiopia; 2School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4006, Australia; 3UQ Spatial Epidemiology Laboratory, School of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Science, the University of Queensland, Gatton 4343, Queensland, Australia; 4Children’s Health and Environment Program, Child Health Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane 4101, Queensland, Australia; 5HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis Research Directorate, Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; 6Pangandaran Unit for Health Research and Development, National Institute of Health Research and Development, Ministry of Health of Indonesia, Pangandaran 46396, West Java, IndonesiaCorrespondence: Yalemzewod Assefa GelawSchool of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, 288 Herston Road, Herston, Brisbane, Queensland 4006, AustraliaTel +61-469738918Email yalassefa@gmail.comBackground: Integrating and scaling up tuberculosis (TB) and HIV services are essential strategies to achieve the combined goals ending both TB and HIV, especially in TB and HIV high burden countries. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of TB and HIV co-infection and the implementation of collaborative services in Ethiopia.Methods: We used a national sentinel surveillance TB/HIV co-infection collected between 2010 and 2015. The Ethiopian Public Health Institute collected and collated the data quarterly from 79 health facilities in nine regional states and two city administrations.Results: A total of 55,336 people living with HIV/AIDS were screened for active TB between 2011 and 2015. Of these, 7.3% were found co-infected with TB, and 13% TB-negative PLWHA were on isoniazid preventive therapy. Nine out of ten (89.2%) active TB patients were screened for HIV counselling and 17.8% were found to be HIV positive; 78.2% and 53.0% of HIV/TB co-infected patients were receiving cotrimoxazole preventive therapy and antiretroviral treatment, respectively.Conclusion: This study showed that the prevalence of TB and HIV co-infection failed to decrease over the study period, and that, while there was an increasing trend for integration of collaborative services, this was not uniform over time. Aligning and integrating TB and HIV responses are still needed to achieve the target of ending TB and HIV by 2030.Keywords: tuberculosis, TB, HIV, collaborative services, implementations, Ethiopia

The purpose of this paper is to examine the implementations and challenges of SDGs in South Gondar. To attain this purpose, survey questionnaires were administered on a sample of 176 employees. While to the qualitative analysis interview and document observations were used. The study employed mixed methods research approach of parallel concurrent research design. For quantitative data analysis, one sample t-test, Pearson correlation and hierarchical linear regression were used. To the qualitative data, thematic analysis was employed. The study found that the SDG implementation in the study region was "moderate", with average differences between institutions. The major challenges facing the implementation of SDGs are unrealistic goal setting, lack of political commitment, lack of participation, lack of clear policy guide, lack of synergy, lack of capability and over emphasis on one pillar of development. This indicated that both key identified institutional challenges and goal setting characteristics determine the implementation of the SDGs in the study area. Based on this, the study recommends that the study area should set policy goals that are implementable. There should be also participation of the target beneficiaries in the SDGs implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even though Nigeria is recognized for her rich vegetation and tropical weather and blessed with surplus water resources, the country still faces challenges on getting clean water supply around the country and mostly depend on alternative water supply like well, borehole and river. These alternative water supply systems are not efficient and viable enough for water supply systems especially in a country with large population. The country is characterized by irregular water supply and water management laws are also weak and mostly not in conformity with today's standard and needs. Proper management and conservation of the water supply services and resource has not given adequate attention by the government. It is, therefore, important to identify such factor that inhibits the implementation of water regulations and proffer a solution to these. In a bid to provide an understanding of the effect of implementing and enforcing stringent water regulation and providing adequate water supply, we compare forecasted population with investment capital expenditure (CAPEX) for water supply by Millennium Development Goal (MDG+) targets. The result shows that in year to come, the country will significantly benefit from investing and providing regular water supply through employment availability and revenue generated through utility water bills, spending less on epidemic of water-borne diseases thereby improving the lives and health of its citizen.

Background: We have previously demonstrated that opioid prescribing increased by 127% between 1998 and 2016. New policies aimed at tackling this increasing trend have been recommended by public health bodies, and there is some evidence that progress is being made., Objective: We sought to extend our previous work and develop a data-driven approach to identify general practices and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) whose prescribing data suggest that interventions to reduce the prescribing of opioids may have been successfully implemented., Methods: We analyzed 5 years of prescribing data (December 2014 to November 2019) for 3 opioid prescribing measures-total opioid prescribing as oral morphine equivalent per 1000 registered population, the number of high-dose opioids prescribed per 1000 registered population, and the number of high-dose opioids as a percentage of total opioids prescribed. Using a data-driven approach, we applied a modified version of our change detection Python library to identify reductions in these measures over time, which may be consistent with the successful implementation of an intervention to reduce opioid prescribing. This analysis was carried out for general practices and CCGs, and organizations were ranked according to the change in prescribing rate., Results: We identified a reduction in total opioid prescribing in 94 (49.2%) out of 191 CCGs, with a median reduction of 15.1 (IQR 11.8-18.7; range 9.0-32.8) in total oral morphine equivalence per 1000 patients. We present data for the 3 CCGs and practices demonstrating the biggest reduction in opioid prescribing for each of the 3 opioid prescribing measures. We observed a 40% proportional drop (8.9% absolute reduction) in the regular prescribing of high-dose opioids (measured as a percentage of regular opioids) in the highest-ranked CCG (North Tyneside); a 99% drop in this same measure was found in several practices (44%-95% absolute reduction). Decile plots demonstrate that CCGs exhibiting large reductions in opioid prescribing do so via slow and gradual reductions over a long period of time (typically over a period of 2 years); in contrast, practices exhibiting large reductions do so rapidly over a much shorter period of time., Conclusions: By applying 1 of our existing analysis tools to a national data set, we were able to identify rapid and maintained changes in opioid prescribing within practices and CCGs and rank organizations by the magnitude of reduction. Highly ranked organizations are candidates for further qualitative research into intervention design and implementation., (©Lisa EM Hopcroft, Helen J Curtis, Richard Croker, Felix Pretis, Peter Inglesby, David Evans, Sebastian Bacon, Ben Goldacre, Alex J Walker, Brian MacKenna. Originally published in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance (https://publichealth.jmir.org), 05.06.2024.)

This paper describes a modification of the algorithm classification, which forms the basis of the AlgoWiki Open encyclopedia of parallel algorithmic features. The previously existing version of this page, implemented on the basis of wiki technologies, did not fully implement the functionality needed for the hierarchical structure of the domain descriptions in the form of chains of concepts "problem-method-algorithm-implementation". The approach described in this paper implements the work with an algorithm classification page based on a client-server architecture and prepares a functional basis for the further development of the AlgoWiki project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Integrating evidence-based practice (EBP) into the daily practice of healthcare professionals has the potential to improve the practice environment as well as patient outcomes. It is essential for nurses to build their body of knowledge, standardize practice, and improve patient outcomes. This study aims to explore nursing students' beliefs and implementations of EBP, to examine the differences in students' beliefs and implementations by prior training of EBP, and to examine the relationship between the same. Methods: A cross-sectional survey design was used with a convenience sample of 241 nursing students from two public universities. Students were asked to answer the questions in the Evidence-Based Practice Belief and Implementation scales. Results: This study revealed that the students reported a mean total belief score of 54.32 out of 80 (SD = 13.63). However, they reported a much lower implementation score of 25.34 out of 72 (SD = 12.37). Students who received EBP training reported significantly higher total belief and implementation scores than those who did not. Finally, there was no significant relationship between belief and implementation scores (p >.05). Conclusion: To advance nursing science, enhance practice for future nurses, and improve patient outcomes, it is critical to teach nursing students not only the value of evidence-based knowledge, but also how to access this knowledge, appraise it, and apply it correctly as needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most countries worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic adopted online learning as a means for mitigating the challenges facing face-to-face classroom education. The adoption of remote learning is largely informed by the decisions reached by individual country experts in pursuant to health guidelines of social distancing by the World Health Organization. Further, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) suggested recommendations to countries to implement to ensure that learning remains uninterrupted during the COVID-19 period. The paper analyzes critically the Kenyan situation in implementing and adhering to the UNESCO recommendations to enhance learning in all levels of education. Also, it evaluated the challenges faced and possible remedies in form of recommendations for future actions. The paper is largely based on library research to draw practical implications for both education research and policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data mining information about people is becoming increasingly important in the data-driven society of the 21st century. Unfortunately, sometimes there are real-world considerations that conflict with the goals of data mining; sometimes the privacy of the people being data mined needs to be considered. This necessitates that the output of data mining algorithms be modified to preserve privacy while simultaneously not ruining the predictive power of the outputted model. Differential privacy is a strong, enforceable definition of privacy that can be used in data mining algorithms, guaranteeing that nothing will be learned about the people in the data that could not already be discovered without their participation. In this survey, we focus on one particular data mining algorithm--decision trees--and how differential privacy interacts with each of the components that constitute decision tree algorithms. We analyze both greedy and random decision trees, and the conflicts that arise when trying to balance privacy requirements with the accuracy of the model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Open Platform Communications - Unified Architecture (OPC UA) as a communication protocol has been one of the front running IoT enablers in recent years. Many use cases in manufacturing domains demonstrate the vast inter-operability and cross-platform connectivity strengths of OPC UA. However, to consolidate its position in the IoT world, OPC UA needs to be able to bridge certain gaps, like interconnections across multiple database engines over different networks. This paper aims to investigate aggregation dynamics of OPC UA consisting of multiple database servers from a specific environment such as manufacturing. Prevailing databases over restricted networks such as production floors cannot be accessed by respective clients outside the system. In these cases, OPC UA services can provide an a selective but imperative view of data from these databases to the clients. The investigations in this paper are demonstrated with two different implementations of databases related to manufacturing with OPC UA. These applications show that using OPC UA as a means of connection and distribution of information from databases can be an effective solution to a common data view of all connections not necessarily of factory floor network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online learning provides an individual with flexibility learning based on his own time, pace and availability. Research have made emphasis on importance and limitations of e-learning but there is dearth of literature on teachers’ preparedness in the use of e-learning. However, it is hoped that the COVID-19 pandemic will encourage more teachers in the use of online learning. This paper therefore focused on significance of teachers’ preparedness in the implementation of e-learning in Nigeria. It also discussed the use and importance of e-learning in Nigerian education. Finally, this paper identifies gaps in e-learning literature and rcommend that Federal Government of Nigeria should make effort to provide enabling environment for online learning through establishment of online learning facilities in all schools. Résumé : L'apprentissage en ligne offre à l'individu un apprentissage flexible basé sur son temps, son rythme et sa disponibilité. Les recherches ont mis l’accent sur l’importance et les limites de l’apprentissage en ligne, mais il existe une pénurie de documentation sur la préparation des enseignants à l’utilisation de l’apprentissage en ligne. Cependant, il faut espérer que la pandémie du COVID-19 encouragera davantage d'enseignants à utiliser l'apprentissage en ligne. Cet article s'est donc concentré sur l’importance de la préparation des enseignants dans la mise en œuvre de l’apprentissage en ligne au Nigéria. Il a également discuté de l'utilisation et de l'importance de l'apprentissage en ligne dans l'éducation nigériane. Enfin, ce document identifie les lacunes de la littérature sur l'apprentissage en ligne et recommande au gouvernement fédéral du Nigéria de faire des efforts pour créer un environnement propice à l'apprentissage en ligne par la mise en place de structures d'apprentissage qui lui sont dédié dans toutes les écoles.

Health care organizations are investing in system solutions that can be leveraged across the continuum of care (i.e. electronic medical records (EMR's); electronic health records (EHR's); health information exchanges (HIE's) and patient portals. The importance of these systems and how they have evolved over the past 30 years has been well researched. The value and benefits of these systems are therefore well known; however, it is estimated that most projects are typically 100% over budget and a year behind schedule [1, p. 2]. In this paper the authors examine what literature is available on agile project management methodologies in health care settings. A scoping review of the literature available specifically on agile methods use in implementing systems within health care was undertaken. Findings revealed there is very little literature available on agile project management methodologies used in health care IT systems implementations. The authors identify there is a strong need for research to look into project management methodologies and identify areas in the project lifecycle, where change is needed to increase clinical systems adoption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces new techniques and correct complexity analyses for impossible differential cryptanalysis, a powerful block cipher attack. We show how the key schedule of a cipher impacts an impossible differential attack, and we provide a new formula for the time complexity analysis that takes this parameter into account. Further, we show, for the first time, that the technique of multiple differentials can be applied to impossible differential attacks. Then, we demonstrate how this technique can be combined in practice with multiple impossible differentials or with the so-called state-test technique. To support our proposal, we implemented the above techniques on small-scale ciphers and verified their efficiency and accuracy in practice. We apply our techniques to the cryptanalysis of ciphers including AES-128, CRYPTON-128, ARIA-128, CLEFIA-128, Camellia-256 and LBlock. All of our attacks significantly improve previous impossible differential attacks and generally achieve the best memory complexity among all previous attacks against these ciphers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to review the food supply chain management (FSCM) in terms of systems and implementations so that observations and lessons from this research could be useful for academia and industrial practitioners in the future. Design/methodology/approach - A systematical and hierarchical framework is proposed in this paper to review the literature. Categorizations and classifications are identified to organize this paper. Findings - This paper reviews total 192 articles related to the data-driven systems for FSCM. Currently, there is a dramatic increase of research papers related to this topic. Looking at the general interests on FSCM, research on this topic can be expected to increase in the future. Research limitations/implications - This paper only selected limited number of papers which are published in leading journals or with high citations. For simplicity without generality, key findings and observations are significant from this research. Practical implications - Some ideas from this paper could be expanded into other possible domains so that involved parties are able to be inspired for enriching the FSCM. Future implementations are useful for practitioners to conduct IT-based solutions for FSCM. Social implications - As the increasing of digital devices in FSCM, large number of data will be used for decision-makings. Data-driven systems for FSCM will be the future for a more sustainable food supply chain. Originality/value - This is the first attempt to provide a comprehensive review on FSCM from the view of data-driven IT systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work discusses the problem of selecting methods for valuing the costs and estimating the time of implementing computer systems in cases when system modification is necessary. The methods presented in literature are reviewed and the stages of strategic phase of implementation characterised. On the basis of the analysis of data required by each method and the data obtained at different stages, appropriate selection of methods for each stage was proposed.

User resistance is a paramount factor in the implementation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, but a large amount of previous research has focused solely on user acceptance. This review seeks to identify, summarize, and better understand the factors that could cause users to resist. Therefore, this review summarizes the current literature on user resistance within the ERP domain, and attempts to adapt existing information systems’ concepts and theories into the context of ERP implementations. Three theoretical perspectives for user resistance have been identified: the people-, system- and interaction-oriented approaches, in addition, perceived risk and habit has been found to be a key reason for why users resist information systems, such as, an ERP. Some strategies to overcome user resistance are also identified, and these can be placed within two main categories: participative and directive strategies. Further, strategies adapted from the field of marketing such as: differentiation, cost minimization, timing and top management commitment, are suggested to be useful for ERP practitioners in order to reduce or overcome user resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the early 2000s, several practitioners and authors have predicted the overshadowing of customer relationship management (CRM) systems by what is called enterprise resource planning systems II (ERP II). ERP II was envisioned to virtually cover all the processes within organizations from supply chain, CRM, to e-business. In 2000, Gartner group published an article titled “ERP is dead, long live ERP” in which they argued that in near future, ERP systems will overcome the need for other specialized systems (e.g. CRM). While there have been major advances in ERP systems since then, and the fact that most current ERP systems include CRM modules and applications, however, separate CRM systems are still widely adopted by organizations. Thus, this research attempts to investigate the main reasons that motivate organizations to invest in distinct CRM systems instead of using the CRM related modules in the acquired ERP system. Via a multiple case study, our results show that ERP II as envisioned, is not existent yet. Organizations tend to prefer separate CRM systems. Thus, we have developed four main reasons for this preference, which are: scoping during ERP implementations, costs, features, user-friendliness and ease of use. This paper, ultimately, leaves space for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A brief scientific and historical essay on the state-of-the-art research on nanotechnologies and accomplishments in this field implemented in various fields of science and technology.