This study attempts to shed light on the efficacy of crowdsourcing as a means of translating web content in Canada. Within, we seek to explore and understand if a model can be created that can estimate the effectiveness of crowdsourced translation as a means of bridging the Canadian Linguistic Digital Divide. To test our hypotheses and models, we use structural equation modeling techniques coupled with confidence intervals for comparing experimental crowdsourced translation to both professional and machine translation baselines. Furthermore, we explore a variety of factors which influence the quality of the experimental translations, how those translations performed in the context of their source text, and the ways in which the views of the quality of the experimental translations were measured before and after participants were made aware of how the experimental translations were created.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka vilka upplevelser unga vuxna har beträffande den virtuella gemenskapen på Internet communities och hur det påverkar deras hälsa och lärande. Studien grundar sig på folkhälsopedagogiskt perspektiv och bygger på en kvalitativ studie. Under genomförandet av arbetet har åtta individer deltagit i individuella intervjuer. I bakgrunden belyser jag hur den teknologiska utvecklingen förändrar det sociala samspelet i samhället. Ökande kommunikation via Internet communities har bidragit till att människor kan ha större sociala nätvärk utan fysiska hinder. Problemområdet var, att den ökande användningen av communities kan framkalla beroende som i sin tur kan ge upphov till stillasittande livsstil. Stress och brist på sömn var de symptom som har visat sig vara vanliga. I litteraturgenomgången tar jag upp betydelsen av socialt kapital, fysisk hälsa och även lärande med multimedia. I diskussionen tar jag upp vikten av socialt kapital relaterat till det virtuella samhället och på vilket sätt det kan påverka hälsa och lärande. Min konklusion av studien är att kommunikation via Internet communities blivit så pass vardagligt att det kan påverka människors hälsa och lärande, samt det även kan vara en viktig faktor för hälsa och lärande. / The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of young adults concerning the virtual community of Internet communities and how it affects their health and learning. The study is based on public health educational perspective and was based on a qualitative study. During the execution of the study, eight individuals participated in individual interviews. In the background I illustrate how technological progress changes the social interaction in society. Increased communication through Internet community has contributed for peoples to have greater social network without physical barriers. The problem area was that the growing use of online communities can cause dependence, which in return can lead to sedentary lifestyles. Stress and lack of sleep were the symptoms that have been shown to be prevalent. In the literature review I illustrate the importance of social capital, physical health and even learning with multimedia. In the discussion I discuss the importance of social capital related to the virtual community and how it may affect health and learning. My conclusion is communication through the Internet comunities has become everyday issue and that it can affect people’s health and learning. Also that it may be an important factor for health and learning.

The purpose of this study was (1) to capture the digital divide in adolescent specific computer and online activities, and (2) to understand each online activity's meanings in adolescent social development or social capital. To assess the issue of the digital divide, the present study examined the sociodemographic, neighborhood, family, and child characteristic factors which influence each type of computer and online activity. To identify how online and computer activities can influence social capital, the present study examined diverse outcomes related to social capital which could be obtained from each online activity, and tested models explaining the relationships among sociability, Internet use, and social outcomes. The data used in the present study came from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics Child Development Supplement. The sample was 1,312 adolescents ages 12 to 18. This nationally representative dataset includes measures of computer and Internet use, diverse indicators of adolescent social behaviors and social relations, and time diaries that provide records of how and with whom they spent their time. The data were analyzed by regression and structural equation modeling. According to the findings, social economic status including family income to needs ratio, parental education, and neighborhood quality was a significant factor explaining frequent use of the Internet and a computer. However, among users, these factors were not significant in predicting the amount of time spent using a computer. Race, maternal employment, gender, and age explained adolescent different type of computer and Internet use. Analysis of the social impacts of Internet and computer use suggests that Internet and computer use have different impacts depending on the purpose individuals use them for and social outcomes examined. For instance, while adolescent Internet use for educational purposes was related to cohesive relationships with parents, their use of online communication was associated with cohesive friendship and school connectedness. Furthermore, it supports the rich get richer model, indicating that those who have strong social ties will have an increased ability to enhance their social capital by using the Internet and a computer as tools for social interaction than those who have weak social ties.

In the late 1990s, many Western governments introduced policy programs to make information and communication technology (ICT) accessible to all. More than a decade later, however, such universal access is far from a reality. Between 2002 and 2005, in response to a request from a group of contingent workers who felt excluded from effective access to ICT training, a university research group on contingency conducted an applied research project in the form of a series of basic ICT courses. This qualitative dissertation both critically examines the training process and treats it as a case study for exploring broader issues of exclusion and resistance in the context of access to ICT. Specifically, it explores: (1) the symptoms of exclusion as they relate to ICT, social capital, and the community; (2) possibilities for resistance that can alleviate the conditions of exclusion; (3) the assumptions, theories, knowledge construction, policy methods, and processes that underlie the symptoms of exclusion; and (4) alternative assumptions, strategies, and activities that offer possibilities for resistive action. The case study provided an environment in which exclusionary and resistive experiences with access to ICT and training were examined from the perspective of excluded contingent workers, as supported by a university research group. A key finding is that generational behaviour in the domestic sphere erects barriers that contribute to the silencing and exclusion of immigrant contingent women; these barriers then reinforce similar patterns of exclusion in institutionalized ICT training. Another major finding is the need for alleviating the barrier that limited English skills create for ICT learning; addressing this issue must be part of any recommendations for curricular change. Guided throughout by a critical approach that focuses on the concept of ruling relations, this dissertation marshals critical knowledge gained from below in support of change by policymakers, educators, and community practitioners.

No description available.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

Broadcast, infrastructure and services play an essential role in both the modernization and social development of a nation. They have become indispensable to enabling countries to compete on equitable terms in an international community, which is now governed by interdependence and by the imperatives of a global economy. They are therefore critical to the achievement of Africa's recovery. In Africa, the broadcast arena or region offer a diverse range of business opportunities and tremendous scope for expanding both basic and advanced telecommunication servIces. This unique event will be the perfect meeting point for key players from industry and governments of the region. It will be a real opportunity for us to help bridge the Digital Divide and to bring modern communications services within reach of all of Africa's or sub-Saharan Africa or South Africa. The digital divide refers to the unequal distribution of access to information technology resources within or between countries. The digital divide is exacerbated by among other factors, income level, employment inequity, disparities in infrastructure development, racial discrimination, social status, gender inequalities lack of access to information , geographic location, an political influence . The divide creates an environment where disadvantaged groups are unable to contribute to and benefit from the information age and global communities created by the Internet in Sub-Saharan Africa ,efforts to bridge the digital divide mistakenly put great emphasis on 11 the digital imbalance between the rich North and the poor South, and often do not consider the gaps within individual countries. This narrow perception alienates the indigenous knowledge component from efforts to bridge the divide. (Scecsal 2002 The need to extend access to services to all South Africans, in order to integrate our country into the world economy, South Africa has made dramatic improvements in the development of a modem communication infrastructure previously denied to the majority. This study will provide the ideal research opportunity to investigate and appraise new products and services and also to explore the possibilities of acquiring the very latest in broadcast technology. This will be the ultimate networking opportunity, which may give us all a clearer vision of the future. Together, let us add strength and speed to Africa's efforts to Bridge the Digital Divide. / Thesis (MBA) - University of Natal, 2003.

The unemployment rate has become a major concern for policy makers in South Africa and therefore the National Plan for Higher Education states that higher education training providers should produce more graduates to address this problem. This resulted in a labour force that has grown rapidly and has become younger and more educated. It would therefore be expected that graduates with a post–matric tertiary qualification would be in high demand, resulting in a low graduate unemployment rate. The reality is that the unemployment rate among graduates has increased. This is not only a concern for the policymakers of South Africa but also for a private higher education training provider situated in the North West Province, specialising in information technology (IT) qualifications (and whose students and alumni participated in this study as part of the study population). The majority of the IT jobs available to their students are in the Gauteng province which means their graduates often need to relocate. As for all other entry level graduates they also have to make choices – when to decline or accept a job offer. This study determines what the expectations of these entry level IT graduates are and the factors that might influence their decision to accept or decline a job offer. For the training provider it is important to know what the challenges are that their graduates encounter. The factors contributing to unemployment among these IT graduates were also investigated. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

This study attempts to shed light on the efficacy of crowdsourcing as a means of translating web content in Canada. Within, we seek to explore and understand if a model can be created that can estimate the effectiveness of crowdsourced translation as a means of bridging the Canadian Linguistic Digital Divide. To test our hypotheses and models, we use structural equation modeling techniques coupled with confidence intervals for comparing experimental crowdsourced translation to both professional and machine translation baselines. Furthermore, we explore a variety of factors which influence the quality of the experimental translations, how those translations performed in the context of their source text, and the ways in which the views of the quality of the experimental translations were measured before and after participants were made aware of how the experimental translations were created.

The unemployment rate has become a major concern for policy makers in South Africa and therefore the National Plan for Higher Education states that higher education training providers should produce more graduates to address this problem. This resulted in a labour force that has grown rapidly and has become younger and more educated. It would therefore be expected that graduates with a post–matric tertiary qualification would be in high demand, resulting in a low graduate unemployment rate. The reality is that the unemployment rate among graduates has increased. This is not only a concern for the policymakers of South Africa but also for a private higher education training provider situated in the North West Province, specialising in information technology (IT) qualifications (and whose students and alumni participated in this study as part of the study population). The majority of the IT jobs available to their students are in the Gauteng province which means their graduates often need to relocate. As for all other entry level graduates they also have to make choices – when to decline or accept a job offer. This study determines what the expectations of these entry level IT graduates are and the factors that might influence their decision to accept or decline a job offer. For the training provider it is important to know what the challenges are that their graduates encounter. The factors contributing to unemployment among these IT graduates were also investigated. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.