Artificial Intelligence for Development
Document No: AID/newsletter/number 7
Last Modified and by whom: 20/1/93 kk
Distributed on: 20/1/92
Artificial Intelligence for Development
Newsletter Number 7 January 1993
Contents
Cheerioh!
News from around the world
New Literature
Jobs
Conferences
Groups, bulletin boards and mailing lists
Contact Personnel
Cheerioh!
Apologies as usual for a for anything that's out of date. Please check
the deadlines, if there are any, for jobs and conferences with the
employer/organiser. Apologies also for the mailinglist failures of the
past few issues. If you want copies of newsletters prior to this one
(i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6) mail me. I am sending this one in ordinary
ascii format to those of you with email. If you want a LaTeX copy,
please email me for it.
This is the last AI development newsletter I will
be producing for the forseeable future. If anyone else would like to
take over the newsletter and organising the group please contact me
through any of the usual channels. kk@uk.ac.ed.aisb
News from Around the World
Public access medical informatics software
Renato M.E. Sabbatini SABBATINI@BR.UNICAMP.CCVAX writes:
The Center for Biomedical Informatics of the State University of
Campinas, Brazil, announces the availability of a new public-access
directory containing files for distribution via anonymous FTP (File Transfer
Protocol) to all Internet remote sites.
Its domain is MEDICAL APPLICATIONS OF INFORMATICS and contains documents
in ASCII format, as well public-domain software. As of October 1992,
the directory contains ca. 40 programs.
To access this directory, your local system must have the FTP program.
Execute this program by entering the following line:
FTP CCSUN.UNICAMP.BR or FTP 143.106.1.5 (the numeric address is better)
When you the prompt FTP appears, enter: USER ANONYMOUS
and when prompted for your password, enter your e-mail address.
Having gained access to the system (it's UNIX-based), use
cd pub/medicine
Read the README and 00-INDEX.TXT files first, in order to
acknowledge yourself with the norms and contents of this
directory.
Attention: This directory continuously receives additional
files. You will receive an e-mail message whenever this
happens, but only if you ask us to do so.
We gladly accept contributions to the public-domain directory. Please
address all requests for submissions (uploadings) to the directory-owner
below.
It is our intention to foster educational and practical uses of
computers in Medicine and Health Sciences by providing free access to
software resources and documentation, to the international community.
More AI in Medicine results from Brazil
Renato M.E. Sabbatini SABBATINI@BR.UNICAMP.CCVAX writes:
A group of physicians, nurses and medical informatics specialists
at the Medical School of State University of Campinas, Brazil,
are using artificial neural networks to predict death risk
for critical patients in ICU's. The neural network was
trained with physiological, clinical and pathological data
(30 variables, such as worst pCO2, coma level, arterial
pressure, etc.) based on a sample of more than 300 patients,
whose outcome was known.
The paper will be presented at the MEDINFO'92 workshop on
`Applications of Connectionist System in Biomedicine',
September 8, 1992, in Geneva, Switzerland. Preprints are
available from R.M.E. Sabbatini.
OUTCOME PREDICTION FOR CRITICAL PATIENTS UNDER INTENSIVE
CARE, USING BACKPROPAGATION NEURAL NETWORKS
P. Felipe Jr., R.M.E. Sabbatini, P.M. Carvalho-
Jknior, R.E. Beseggio, and R.G.G. Terzi
Center for Biomedical Informatics, State University of
Campinas, Campinas SP 13081-970 Brazil
Several scores have been designed to estimate death
probability for patients admitted to Intensive Care Units,
such as the APACHE and MPM systems, which are based on
regression analysis. In the present work, we have studied
the potential of a model of artificial neural network, the
three-layer perceptron with backpropagation learning rule,
to perform this task. Training and testing data were derived
from a Brazilian database which was previously used for
calculating APACHE scores. All networks were able to reach
convergence with a small global prediction error. Maximum
percentages of 75
and 99.6
sensitivity and specificity were 60
We conclude that the neural network approach has worked well
for outcome prognosis in a highly `noisy' dataset, with a
similar, if slightly lower performance than APACHE II, but
with the advantage of deriving its parameters from a
regional dataset instead from an universal model.
Cross-Cultural database
Roberto Evaristo (EVARISTO @ UMNSOM.BITNET): writes
How many times have you considered getting involved in cross-
cultural research in information systems but had difficulties
finding an appropriate partner with similar interests?
We have implemented a database with the objective of bringing
together researchers with interest in cross-cultural research in
the IS field. We hope that this will be an added incentive for
getting more people involved in cross-cultural research. This
database, although including people with research interests in
developing countries, includes people that are interested in
developed countries as well. There are currently about 105 people
listed in the database.
An e-mail list is being implemented to provide a forum for all
interested researchers to express their ideas or simply exchange
information on any topic of interest to the community. All those
who sign-up for the database will (a) be included in this e-mail
list and (b) be sent a complete electronic listing of the database,
including all other members' research interests and addresses.
If you are interested, please send the following information to
Roberto Evaristo (at the e-mail address EVARISTO @ UMNSOM.BITNET):
Name, Mailing Address, E-mail address, Research Interests, and a
list of countries (or areas of the world) that you are particularly
interested in for getting involved in cross-cultural research.
OBSERVATION: Please also mention if you have limitations in file
sizes to be received over e-mail, because the full database listing
is about 2000 lines long (and still growing).
AI in Iran
anoosh@com.mips writes:
Informatic Society of Iran - Artificial Intelligence Specialist Interest Group
An Initial Proposal
This is an initial assessment of interest for formulating a proposal directed
to the Informatic Society of Iran (ISI) with the aim of setting up a SIG
covering the area of Artificial Intelligence and its related fields. The
intended outcome is a collection of ideas and visions on what could the SIG
do, what problems it might encounter and how those problems could be handled.
For those who are not familiar with the ISI there is a brief introduction to
the Society in the appendix below.
Why AI-SIG?
- There is currently no AI society or sub-society active in Iran, therefore
no duplication of activity/effort will be done.
- There are formal courses on AI being taught in universities (e.g. MSc in AI)
and there are increasing number of research papers authored by Iranians
appearing in international conferences and journals: therefore there is a
suitable ground to work on. (I do not honestly know why there has not been
an AI-SIG established by now.)
- AI-SIG can offer an international forum for the Iranian AI community
through, for example, publishing a periodical, holding seminars (regional),
participating in the organisation of conferences. Also it could become the
technological point of contact in the field of AI in Iran (i.e. for
collaboration with other AI groups or individuals). Essentially; `a means
to receive, gather and disseminate technology'.
- The list of benefits that such AI-SIG could offer, both at individual
level and national level, could be much longer. The list of implementational
activities could also be enriched and that is what I hope we will achieve
through your replies.
ISI (see the appendix) already enjoys a well established administrative and
technical support structure evolved over its 14 years of activity. Further,
it has the benefit of having contacts in the industry and academia. As part
of its activity spectrum, ISI is interested in setting up SIGs, and I know
of at least one such SIG in ISI (C programming). ISI is the obvious choice
if one believes that one strong society can be more productive than few
small ones.
I feel that some of the key issues to touch on include:
- how to make it successful amongst Iranians abroad,
- how could Iranians abroad contribute to its success,
- the desired relationship between the SIG and its parent society,
- the nature and content of the activities that the AI-SIG could undertake
(periodical, seminars, etc.)
- the issues of language (Farsi vs. others) and geographical dispersion,
- costs: (A word on the potential cost of membership: Current membership fee
of ISI is 25 USDollars (15 Pounds Sterling) payable abroad, or, 5000 Rials
payable in Iran. So I would imagine that ISI and its AI-SIG membership would
cost about 30 USDollars per annum.)
- in order to assess the potential of the SIG, it would be a great help if you
could indicate whether you would be willing to take on membership of an
AI-SIG, take on an active role (e.g. by contributing to a periodical and/or
regional seminars), and also what could the SIG offer to make it a more
attractive forum to its members.
* Please MAKE COPIES AND PASS ON to any Iranian whom you might feel could be
interested in the topic.
* Your IDEAS, COMMENTS AND THOUGHTS will be most gratefully appreciated.
- I can be contacted by: Email: amir@case.co.uk, Tel: (+44) (923)
258292 (work), (+44) (71) 2213119 (home) Address: Amir S. Tabandeh,
Research Department, Dowty Communications Ltd.
Caxton Way, Watford, Herts. WD1 8XH, England
Appendix: Few words on ISI:
ISI is a non-profit-distributing and independent society (no affiliation to
the government, universities or companies) purely devoted to promoting
computer science and its related topics in Iran. It has been active since 1357
(1978). Its executive body is elected bi-annually. All active members work on
voluntary basis. ISI has just under one thousand members from universities
and companies in Iran and abroad (the figure is a guesstimate). Apart from the
class of `student membership', members should hold at least a BSc. ISI
activities include, but not limited to, publishing `Computer Report (ISI-CR)'
(a bi-monthly magazine), holding monthly seminars, organising conferences
(the latest was on `Computers in Education'), organising educational and
awareness courses, compiling a Computer Dictionary (English-Farsi),
maintaining a library, etc. ISI activities are fundamentally based on its
members' initiatives and endurance. Its financial accounts are published
annually. The latest was in CR Vol.13, No.4 (Nov. 1991), indicating that the
main sources of income are subscription dues and members' donations.
New Literature
Reprinted without permission from the AI in Medicine mailinglist.
Source for this information was humphrey@gov.nih.nlm (Susanne M
Humphrey).
University Microfilms Order Number ADG92-34334.
SCHOENHOFF, DORIS MARIE.
THE BAREFOOT EXPERT: THE INTERFACE OF COMPUTERIZED KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS
AND INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS.
Washington University Ph.D. 1992, 228 pages.
DAI V53(07), SecB, pp3607.
Computer Science. Education, Bilingual and Multicultural.
Artificial Intelligence.
Computerized expert systems, implementations of Artificial
Intelligence, are unique from earlier forms of technology because
they seek to externalize man's reasoning ability and to breed, not
simple store, knowledge outside of the human mind. This
knowledge-based technology, which purports to symbolically encode
knowledge and expertise, can never be completely extricated from the
language, culture, and context in which it is designed and
implemented. To be humanly meaningful in Third World environments,
expert systems must incorporate indigenous knowledge and indigenous
reasoning about knowledge.
Imprecise, unsystematic local knowledge will be pitted against
Western prejudices that `real' knowledge, `technical' knowledge is
formalized, logical, verifiable, externalized, and impersonal.
Knowledge, however, can never be completely articulated or
formalized. Expert systems can only encapsulate what experts say
about their knowledge.
While respect for the local knowledge and wisdom is critical, it is
also important not to idealize or romanticize it. Traditional
systems may, in fact, be improved by incorporating certain elements
of Western knowledge and science.
The decision to implement knowledge-based systems places ethical
demands and risks upon those in power within Third World nations and
upon those from the industrialized nations that trade with and for
that power. These knowledge-based systems can potentially be useful
tools in developing the critical consciousness of local community
leaders because the design process forces individuals to think about
their knowledge and not just act upon it.
While they are potential tools, expert systems are also a potential
threat to personal and social identity. Whether in a traditional
society or in a modern society, our identity and role are largely
determined by what we know. To convince someone that most of their
knowledge is useless or even wrong is to proffer death not
development. Western experts must be open to the possibility of
their own ignorance and not let their self-perceived expertise
preclude local participation and decision. If we do not seek the
empowerment of the local communities, then our own technological
knowledge, including our attempts to recreate ourselves in silicon
and symbols, diminishes us and puts wisdom and global peace further
from our reach.
Jobs
Costa Rica
Program Officer, Costa Rica.
Acceso, a non-profit service organization based in Costa Rica,
provides communication services, information, training and
technical assistance to NGOs in Central America. The program
officer will be responsible for contributing to the design, start-
up, and consolidation of an electronic network for communications
and information exchange between NGOs in the region; recruitment
and orientation of new organizations on the network; coordinating
the organizations that will contribute specific information
products to the network; working closely with the network steering
committee; training new users; assisting with the development of
training materials; and participating in the administration and
institutional development of Acceso.
Essential Requirements: A personal commitment to the regionUs
social and economic development, bilingual (English/Spanish),
minimum of 4 years professional experience with NGOs, university
degree, familiarity with computers and word processing programs,
ability to write clearly and analytically.
Preferred Requirements: Central American origin or experience,
experience with electronic communication, applied experience in
management of development organizations, experience in training
and knowledge of training programs and methods.
Remuneration: Competitive salary and benefits commensurate with
experience.
Please submit: Resume, an original essay in Spanish (maximum two
typed pages) on the topic 'Factores Criticos para el Trabajo de
Organizaciones Privadas de Desarrollo en los Annos Noventa,' and
the names and phone numbers of three professional references.
Send application to: Acceso, P.O. Box 025216-34, Miami, FL 33102-
5216, or by e-mail to acceso@nicarao.apc.org.
Application deadline: January 15, 1993.
Nigeria
das@castle.ed.ac.uk (D Stewart) writes:
Eclipse compuing need someone to work on a contract in
Nigeria. This would involve looking after a BP computing (unix ?)
system in Nigeria. This would initially be for one year
(could be two). UKL 40,000 tax free, banked in the UK. All
expenses paid plus flights home. 10 weeks on 2 weeks off.
If at all interested then please contact:-
Colin Garrod,
Eclipse Computing,
Unit 17,
Thistle Business Park North,
Ayr Rd,
Cumnock,
Ayrshire,
SCOTLAND,
KA18 1EQ, Phone:
0290 20987
Fax: 0290 20233
Vietnam
fair@iss.nus.sg (Kim Michael Fairchild) writes:
I have been asked by SCITEC/LOTUS in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) to post
this message.
They are interested in hosting lecturers at this leading computer
technology institute.
If you have a desire to see Vietnam, this is a marvelous opportunity.
I have lectured there myself several times.
Basically, in exchange for lecturing, they will arrange your visas,
hotels, cars, drivers, guides, and trips out of Saigon.
They are interested in most computer technology, in particular
multimedia, and technologies that are emerging.
If you would like more information, write to me at fair@iss.nus.sg or
fax directly to Vietnam at 84.8.30059, Attention: Director Hiep.
I will be going myself on Jan 20th (with my mom who will guest lecture
at some English classes) and if you wish, I can bring
hard-copy of any messages you might have.
Latin America (Location Boston)
ccrazy@athena.mit.edu (Ellen Kranzer) writes:
Position Open: Project Officer for Electronic Communications
Organization: Latin American Scholarship Program of American Universities
(LASPAU).
Responsibilities: Cooperates with LASPAU staff to ensure that Fulbright
scholars are connected to BITNET and the Internet at their host
universities. Develops an electronic network of Fulbright scholars in the
United States and Fulbright alumni in Latin America. On behalf of and in
cooperation with Latin American and Caribbean universities -- with the
assistance of consultants to LASPAU -- develops and oversees plans to
provide `value added services' to increase electronic-mail message volume
and the number of users in Latin American and Caribbean academic and
research institutions. Maintains electronic mail lists for other projects.
Reports to Program Director.
Qualifications: Bachelor's degree in a related discipline. Two to three
years of experience with electronic-communications technology and
communications Fluency in Spanish is required. Knowledge of Latin American
higher education systems a plus.
Hiring Salary: US dollars 26,400 - 33,800/year
Send Resumes to:
Joyce Lamensdorf, Personnel Officer,
LASPAU,
25 Mt. Auburn Street,
Cambridge, MA 02138
The Latin American Scholarship Program of American Universities (LASPAU),
affiliated with Harvard University, is a nonprofit organization which
assists in the development of universities and other public and private
institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean. LASPAU administers
approximately 1,000 scholarships per year for Latin American and Caribbean
professionals to pursue graduate studies in the United States. The
organization also offers specialized educational consulting services to
institutions both inside and outside of the Americas.
Conferences
Social science research, technical systems and cooperative
work: Workshop
DATE: March 8-11, 1993
VENUE: French Research and Space Ministry, 1 rue Descartes,
75005 Paris, France
HOSTED: The Delagation for Scientific and Technical Information
of France's Research and Space Ministry, The British Council
TOPICS: The number of people participating in the workshop will be
limited in order to ensure optimal working conditions. Each
participant will be asked to provide `notes' summarizing his or her
experience in building technical systems to support cooperative work,
especailly on processes of collaboration across the divide. `Notes'
are not `papers': the goal is to identify and critically analyze the
obstacles that have to be overcome in order to build an academic
working culture in the area. The `papers' will be requested after the
workshop from a certain number of participants. The goal is to
publish a book on `Social Science Research, Technical Systems and
Cooperative Work' which will help lay the foundations of work in this
growing area.
DEADLINES: The Organization Committee select contributions to
the workshop by Dec. 15.
CORRESPONDENCE: People wanting to participate should send a
one-page description of their professional activity indicating the
questions they would like to address to :
G. Bowker, Center for the History of Science,
Technology and Medicine, Mathematics Tower, University
of Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
email: g.c.bowker@manchester.ac.uk
International Conference on Information Technology and People - ITAP'93
DATE: May 24-26, 1993
VENUE: Moscow, Russia
HOSTED: International Centre for Scientific and Technical
Information (Moscow), The Institute of Electrical Engineers (UK),
British Computer Society (UK), Open University (UK), Human Factors
Society, ACM SIG on Computers and Society, Journal `Information
Technology and People'
TOPICS: IT and changing society, Strategic implications of IT,
The revolution in the mass-media, IT and quality of life, IT in the
home, IT's impact on working life and skills, IT in retail
distribution and banking, Health and safety conditions - implications
of IT, IT and disabled people, Electronic social and culture
information, Computer networks and human-to-human interaction,
Barriers to communication, Social protocol and social machines, Future
media and evaluation of forthcoming IT, Interactive experience,
Creative/innovative lifestyles and IT, Intellectual property, Human
and organizational factors in information technology, IT in education
and training, IT and government, IT in manufacturing
FORMAT FOR PAPERS:
Submissions for papers and poster sessions are invited in the form
of abstracts of about 500 words to be sent by email OR FAX to the
conference secretaries.
Each submission should state whether for paper or poster session,
it should identify a topic area to which it is addressed, and any
supporting facilities required. Submissions should include name(s)
of authors, postal and email addresses, and a list of keywords.
PROCEEDINGS: Authors of papers accepted are expected to send a
5000 word text by March 15th for publication in English in the
Proceedings of the conference.
LANGUAGE: English and Russian
DEADLINES: 15th December 1992
CORRESPONDENCE: enir@ccic.icsti.msk.su or FAX No
(7095)943-00-89, and m.allott@open.ac.uk or FAX No (44)998 653744).
XIX Latin American Informatics Conference
The XIX Latin American Informatics Conference will be held along with
the 22nd Argentine Meeting of Informatics and Operational Research.
DATE: 2nd - 6th of August, 1993
VENUE: Buenos Aires, Argentina
TOPICS :
Algorithms and Data Structures.
Artificial Intelligence.
Databases and Knowledge Bases.
Networks and Distributed Systems.
Non-Conventional Architectures.
Software Engineering.
Programming Paradigms.
Connectionism and Neural Networks.
Human-Computer Interfaces.
Optimization and Simulation.
Informatics in Education.
Informatics and Government.
FORMAT FOR PAPERS:
Prospective authors should submit three copies of their work, of up to
20 A4 pages in lenght (21 x 29.7cm) double-spaced, with an abstract of
no more than 200 words
LANGUAGE: Spanish, Portuguese or English.
DEADLINES: Papers by APRIL 1st, 1993. Notification of acceptance or
rejection will be communicated by May 31st, 1993.
CORRESPONDENCE:
Papers should be sent to:
Program Committee
PANEL '93/22 JAIIO, SADIO
Uruguay 252, 2do. piso D
1015 Buenos Aires, Argentina
For additional information, contact:
jaiio@sadio.edu.ar, fax +54-1-476-3950,
telephone +54-1-40-5755.
The 1993 East-West International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction
DATE: 3-6 August, 1993 (tentative)
VENUE: Moscow, Russia
TOPICS: human factors and ergonomics, formal methods, modeling,
and simulation, object-oriented languages and systems, knowledge-based
and expert systems and interfaces, hypertext and hypermedia,
networking and computer-mediated human communication, graphics and
video, marketing and use of interactive systems, architectures for
interactive systems, user testing practices, user interface
standardization, both corporate and industrial, user interface tools
and development environments
FORMAT FOR PAPERS: For those intending
to submit a paper, tutorial, poster, demonstration or video the
notification should include the format, title and a brief outline (100
words) of the proposed submission. Proposals for a demonstration
should include details of the equipment required. PC based
demonstations will be especially appropriate. Those interested in
attending but who do not intend to submit a presentation should
include a brief statement summarising their interests (300 words).
Submissions must include Name, Address, Telephone number, Fax number
and e-mail address. For those in the West, all other materials must be sent in hardcopy to:
Claus Unger,
Praktische Informatik II,
Fernuniversitat,
Feithstr. 140,
D-5800 Hagen,
GERMANY
PROCEEDINGS: A Proceedings of the conference will be published.
LANGUAGE: English, translation provided when necessary.
DEADLINES:
Feb 15, 1993 Notification of intention to participate,
March 15 Submissions,
May 1 Notification of acceptance,
June 1 Submission of camera-ready copy for the Proceedings
CORRESPONDENCE: The notification of intention to participate
should be e-mailed to: ew-submit.chi@xerox.com.
Questions should be directed to: ew-info.chi@xerox.com.
Intellectual Property Rights in Computer Software
and their Impact on Developing Countries.
DATE: Fri 20-21, Aug 1993
VENUE: Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore INDIA
HOSTED: International Federation for Information Processing
(IFIP WG9.4) and Computer Society of India (CSI) in cooperation with
Institution of Engineers (IE) Indian Institute of Science (IISc)
TOPICS: How well is the existing IPR regime in software
currently working in developed and developing countries?, Do
developing countries need alternative IPR regimes?, Comparative
evaluation and impact on a country's economy of different patent
regimes, Creation, classification and access to software patent
databases, Current defensive techniques for avoiding IPR difficulties,
Landmark legal case studies of IPR disputes and their resolution, Case
studies of the workings of national patent offices in the area of
software, Impact of Dunkel proposals in developed and developing
countries, Nature and distribution of software patents and actual
ownership, Perspectives of established software companies in developed
countries wrt developing countries in the area of IPR, Licensing of
technologies to developing countries, High cost of productivity
software, Control of unauthorised duplication of software in developed
and developing countries, Strategies and options for developing
countries post-Dunkel, Impact of ``open systems'' like IBM PC for
world economy, IPR in automatically generated code,
Philosophical/equity issues in assigning IPR to ``common property
resources'', Case studies of how IPR were articulated and enforced in
new technologies in the past, Similarities and differences with IPR in
other areas like biotechnology
FORMAT FOR PAPERS: E-mail submission is strongly encouraged, esp. in
Latex / Wordstar format. (All e-mail submissions will be
acknowledged - please remail if there is no ack.) If e-mail facility
is not available, authors should submit five copies of the manuscript
in A4 size paper not exceeding 20 pages.
PROCEEDINGS: Will be published by North Holland under an
arrangement with IFIP.
LANGUAGE: English
DEADLINES: Full Paper May 1, 1993,
Acceptance notice June 15, 1993,
Final manuscript July 15, 1993
REGISTRATION: The registration fee is Rs. 600 / US dollars 100 which will
cover lunches and teas. Participants from developing countries may
apply for subsidy from the registration committee.
ACCOMMODATION:
Accommodation arrangements should be made directly by participants. It is
expected that some housing will be made available in the Institute
Guest House. Details will be made available later.
CORRESPONDENCE: K. Gopinath, Asst. Prof.
Computer Science and Automation (CSA),
Indian Institute of Science (IISc),
Bangalore 560012 INDIA
Telex: 0845-8349 IISc IN Fax: 091-0812-341683
e-mail: ipr@maitreyi.csa.iisc.ernet.in
Support for attending IJCAI
Alan Bundy (bundy@uk.ac.ed.aisb) writes:
TRAVEL GRANTS FOR IJCAI-93
IJCAII has established a program to provide support for travel to and
participation in IJCAI-93, the 13th International Joint Conference on
Artificial Intelligence, which will take place in Chambery, France from
29 August to 3 September 1993. The amounts awarded will vary depending
on location and on the number of persons applying. The intent is to
help about 100 people. Priority will be given (1) to younger members
of the AI community who are presenting papers or are on panels at the
conference and who would not otherwise be able to attend because of
limited travel funds and (2) to members of the AI community whose
countries have currency problems and cannot provide support for
attendance at IJCAI-93.
To insure consideration, applications should be received by 1 May
1993. They should briefly identify the expected form of conference
participation; describe benefits that would result from attendance;
specify current sources of research funding; and list travel support
from other sources. A brief resume should be attached, and students
should include a letter of recommendation from a faculty member.
Awards from the grants will be issued after the conference following
submission of receipts for expenses incurred and a brief report on
participation in the conference. Although grants will be awarded in
specified denominations, payment will be made on the basis of actual
expenses.
Three copies of the application should be sent to:
Priscilla Rasmussen, IJCAI-93 Travel Grants
Rutgers, the State University
Laboratory for Computer Science Research
Hill Center, Busch Campus
New Brunswick, NJ 08903, USA
+1-908-932-2768 phone
+1-908-932-0537 fax
rasmussen@aramis.rutgers.edu
IFIP WG 9.4, 1994 The impact of Informatics on Society:
Key issue for Developing Countries
DATE: February 21-23, 1994.
VENUE: the International Conference Centre, Havana, Cuba
HOSTED:
Working Group 9.4 of the International Federation of
Information Processing Societies,
INSAC, The National Institute for Automated Systems and Computer
Technics, (Electronics and Informatics Ministry), Cuba,
National Electronic Front and National Informatics Committee,
Non Governmental Organizations, and Havana University
TOPICS:
Social Implications,
Strategies and Policies for Developing Countries,
Impact of I. T. Applications,
Improving Social Services,
Increasing the Competitiveness of Business,
Export of Services and Software
PROCEEDINGS: Xerox copies of the full papers will be available at the
conference. An edited proceedings will be produced after the
conference.
DEADLINES: Notice of intent to participate, as soon as possible.
Submission of 2-3 page abstract, June 15, 1993.
Notice of acceptance, September 1, 1993.
Full papers due: December 1, 1993.
CORRESPONDENCE:
Submit papers and program queries to:
Prof. Sam Lanfranco,
Centre for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean (CERLAC),
York University (Room 240YL),
4700 Keele Street, North York,
Ontario, Canada, M3J 1P3,
phone: (416) 736-5237 (English or Spanish),
fax: (416) 736-5737,
email: lanfran@vm1.yorku.ca
Volunteers to work with the Cuban Organizing Committee contact:
Prof. Ruben A. Lopez Santana,
INSAC,
5ta Ave No. 4602 entre 46 y 60 ,Playa, Habana 11300, La Habana, Cuba,
Phone: + 53-7 -331191,222530-40,221463,222885,
Fax: + 53-7-331233,332510,331191,
Telex: 511258 and 511706 dric cu,
E. Mail: insac
Volunteers to work with the International Organizing Committee or
Program Committee contact:
Prof. Larry Press,
California State University, Dominguez Hills,
10726 Esther Avenue,
Los Angeles, CA 90064,
phone: (310) 475-6515,
fax: (310) 516-3664 (fax),
email: lpress@isi.edu
Groups, Bulletin Boards and Mailing Lists
Niblist
Renato M.E. Sabbatini SABBATINI@BR.UNICAMP.CCVAX writes:
The State University of Campinas announces the availability of NIBNews,
an electronic newsletter dedicated to Medical Informatics.
The Newsletter has the objetive of disseminating information about
Brazilian and Latin-american activities, people, news, scientific
events, publications, software, etc., in the area of computer
applications in healthcare, medicine and biology. It is issued
on a monthly basis to voluntary subscribers, only. Subscription is
free. Past issues are available by FTP (issue 1 is dated June 1992).
Periodically, NIBNews contains notices about new public-domain medical
software added to the Internet FTP public directory CCSUN.UNICAMP.BR,
maintained by the State University of Campinas.
NIBNews is distributed automatically through LISTSERV@CCSUN.UNICAMP.BR,
which is a Sun-based server located at the State University of Campinas,
in Campinas, Brazil.
To subscribe, send an one-line message to the listserver above, containing:
SUBSCRIBE NIBNEWS Your Name
NIBNews is also a moderated list, so you may submit contributions to it,
addressing NIBNEWS@CCSUN.UNICAMP.BR
In case you do not have access to Internet, send your request for
subscription or submission directly to my email address.
Southern Africa Net
jim@sytex.com (Jim Arnold) writes:
I would like to draw people's attention to a new network
being set up under the auspices of the U.S. Agency for International
Development, and the World Food Program, called `SAFIRE' or
Southern Africa Food Information Resources Exchange.
This network is now being put into place, using FTSC (fidonet)
technology, and links with MANGO Net and other existing African
networks.
For information, contact john.glazer@f183.n109.z1.fidonet.org
I am sure he will be happy to respond to any queries.
Gnet
Laurence Press (LPRESS@ISI.EDU) writes:
GNET: an Archive and Electronic Journal, Toward a Truly Global Network
Computer-mediated communication networks are proliferating and
growing rapidly, yet they are not truly global -- they are
concentrated in affluent parts of North America, Western Europe,
and parts of Asia.
GNET is an archive/journal for documents pertaining to the effort
to bring the net to lesser-developed nations and the poorer parts
of developed nations. (Net access is better in many `third
world' schools than in South-Central Los Angeles). GNET consists
of two parts, an archive directory and a moderated discussion.
Archived documents are available by anonymous ftp from the
directory global at dhvx20.csudh.edu (155.135.1.1). To
conserve bandwidth, the archive contains an abstract of each
document, as well as the full document. (Those without ftp
access can contact me for instructions on mail-based retrieval).
In addition to the archive, there is a moderated GNET discussion
list. The list is limited to discussion of the documents in the
archive. It is hoped that document authors will follow this
discussion, and update their documents accordingly. If this
happens, the archive will become a dynamic journal. Monthly
mailings will list new papers added to the archive.
We wish broad participation, with papers from nuts-and-bolts to
visionary. Suitable topics include, but are not restricted to:
low-cost, appropriate-technology networks,
satellite and terrestrial packet radio,
communication protocols,
connection options,
host and user software,
the current state of global networking,
current applications,
proposed applications,
education in a networked world,
education for a networked world,
social implications of a global network,
economic implications of a global network,
politics and funding for a global network,
political implications of a global network,
free speech on the global network,
environmental implications of a global network,
directories and lists of people and resources
To submit a document to the archive or subscribe to the moderated
discussion list, send a message to gnet
Africa-l
To subscribe to africa-l,a listserv list dealing with Africa, send
the following message:
SUBSCRIBE AFRICA-L name name area of interest
SET AFRICA-L REPRO
to this address: LISTSERV@BRUFBP.BITNET
Comnet-IT
THE COMMONWEALTH NETWORK OF INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY FOR DEVELOPMENT (COMNET-IT)
COMNET-IT is a newly formed Commonwealth organisation working to
build networks of people and institutions cooperating to harness Information
Technology for development.
It is intended that COMNET-IT will share the experiences, successes and
failures, of Information Technology applications and of national policies;
will identify key areas of research; and will assess training opportunities.
COMNET-IT will make the maximum use of existing computer networks for
information sharing within and between Commonwealth countries.
COMNET-IT is an umbrella organisation within which a series of related
Task Forces will be working in specific areas:
The Technical Advice Task Force will be providing advice, support and
encouragement to key people, particularly in developing countries, enabling them to take maximum advantage from existing networks.
Contact: Dr. S. Ramani
phone: +91-22-6200590
fax: +91-22-6210139
email: ramani@ncst.ernet.in
ramani@shakti.ernet.in
The Directory/Partnership Task Force will be enhancing the value and
attractiveness of existing professional networks by providing directories and by developing and supporting communities of interest.
Contact: Mr. J. Seymour
phone: +44-71-405-8400
fax: +44-71-242-1845
email: j.seymour@noc.ulcc.ac.uk
The Management Development Task Force will strengthen and
develop the lines of communication between Commonwealth national and regional Management Development Institutions.
Contact: Mr. P. Schmidt
phone: +61-3-2151156
fax: +61-3-2151166
email:
mez113d@vaxc.cc.monash.edu.au
The Research Task Force will share experiences of IT applications,
and will develop individual and collaborative research proposals.
Contact: Dr. S. Bhatnagar
phone: +91-272-407241
fax: +91-272-467396
email: subhash@iimahd.ernet.in
The Publications/Newsletter Task Force will facilitate the sharing of
papers from personnel within the developing countries, supported by a
system of active moderation. The Task Force will also be collaborating with
IFIP Working Group 9.4 to produce a shared newsletter 'Information
Technology in Developing Countries'.
Contact: Dr. S. Bhatnagar
phone: +91-272-407241
fax: +91-272-467396
email: subhash@iimahd.ernet.in
The Caribbean Region Task Force is the first of an intended series of
regional Task Forces concerned to identify and support local Networking
Centres.
Contact: R. Sanatan
phone: +592-2-69281
fax: +592-2-67816
The COMNET-IT Secretariat will respond to general enquiries.
Contact: Ms S. Qureshi
phone: +44-71-839-3411 (x8322)
fax: +44-71-930-0827
email: comsec@noc.ulcc.ac.uk