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This study argues that the concept of 'self-organization' is useful as an alternative to evaluate innovative capacity in rural communities and enable an effective engagement with the economic development regions. The concept of self-organization provides a means of reviewing regions in a manner which enables local Governments to measure and develop innovative capacity. Developing innovative capacity is seen as an important driver for achieving the targets of a country strategic planning agenda. This paper presents a study in the state of South Australia, Australia in which the self-organization concept offers a strategy for proactively engaging the regions to innovation.

This paper is about information systems (IS) academics. It seeks to suggest a unique core competency they may wish to consider developing in order to differentiate themselves from practioners. So, this paper will explore the argument that the core competency of IS academics should be a unique insight into how to critique technology related problems. There are multiple disparate critique methods that IS educators might seek to develop and apply. Examples include systems thinking, multiple perspectives, dialectic analysis and critical social thinking.

Falassi (1997) regards festivals as a time of celebration. Can festivalsbe considered catalysts for experiencing local art and culture or do they serve to promote an internationalised version of culture? This paper explores the role of arts festivals on local cultural consumption through festival attendees' preferences to particular styles of cultural performances. Using data from the 2009 Hong Kong Arts Festival the paper seeks to identify the factors underlining attendee preferences. Findings show that there is a demand for a balance of local and international cultural experiences. This result highlights the dual role of major festivals of both bringing the best of international art to local residents while also showcasing the traditional and contemporary culture of the region.

This paper describes a number of issues that have arisen using some of the current methods for forming groups for collaborative group projects and how group interactions and group learning support student progress and development. The use of group projects prepares students for the workplace of tomorrow where they will encounter having to collaborate in teams. Firstly, the paper discusses the importance of IT subjects in universities, specifically addressing the importance of computer literacy among students. The paper then draws on the instructors' reflections on field work undertaken when delivering a number of courses and introduces, in a narrative style, some crucial indicators (key factors) which impact on group work within IT education. A number of preliminary suggestions addressing group work learning in the early stages of forming the group will be discussed. Furthermore, some of the students' views (that is, concerns) and specific experiences will be described to highlight the importance of group learning.

This study explores the relationship between online shoppers' brain hemisphericity and their preference for electronic catalogs (e-catalogs). e-Catalogs provide information on online products and services and can be presented in various forms, including text-oriented catalogs, audio-enabled catalogs, 3D catalogs, virtual trials, and custom animated catalogs. It is proposed that Web shoppers' brain hemisphericity can provide a basis for personalization of e-catalogs. Data were collected using two survey instruments. A verbalizer-visualizer questionnaire was used to measure participants' brain hemisphericity. Participants' preferences for different features of e-catalogs were measured using an e-catalogs questionnaire. Data were collected from a total of 1,087 respondents. ANOVA and multiple regression analyses were conducted to test the hypotheses. The findings suggest that participants' verbal and visual scores provide a basis for customization of e-catalogs. The personalization of e-catalogs can facilitate and improve Web shoppers' online shopping experience and assist their decisionmaking process for online purchases.