Using Browser Data to Understand Desires to Spend Time Online

There is growing recognition that many people feel the need to reduce and/or manage their use of the internet and other digital communications technologies in support of their wellbeing. To understand the role played by various usage factors in desires to regulate time spent online we used Mozilla Firefox browser telemetry to investigate how six metrics pertaining to time spent on the internet and the diversity and intensity of use predict participants’ (n = 8,094) desires to spend more or less time online. Across all six metrics, we did not find evidence for a relationship between browser usage metrics and participants wanting to spend more or less time online, and this finding was robust across various analytical pathways. The study highlights a number of considerations and concerns that need to be addressed in future industry-academia collaborations that draw on trace data or usage telemetry.

Multivariate analysis of the influence between building design and energy performance, socio-demographic metrics, and the intra-urban environment

Through advancements of direct and remote sensing technologies, we have recently learned that urban microclimate and air quality gradients can often be more significant than city to rural differences. However, the urban design parameters that are most critical to improve environmental health and reduce building energy consumption, are yet to be identified. This research makes use of air quality datasets collected through a dense stationary sensing network in New York City, remote sensing datasets for land surface temperature and normalized difference vegetation index, building usage metrics, building and urban design metrics, and socio-demographic datasets including population and health metrics. Through a neighbourhood-scale footprint-based regression analysis, the correlation between the air quality, land surface temperature, building usage and urban metrics has been studied. Highest correlations have been observed between air quality and land surface temperature and urban design and socio-economic metrics. The results show that building usage metrics such as the energy use intensity or electricity purchase, are mainly affected by building design characteristics. On the other hand, significant correlations have been observed between the urban design, socio-demographic and contaminant concentration gradients, addressing the critical role the planning and design of our cities plays in the environmental well-being of citizens.

The pillars determining financial inclusion among SMEs in Egypt: service awareness, access and usage metrics and macroeconomic policies

Over the past decade, financial inclusion has been a trending topic and key priority in developing countries seeking to build a resilient financial sector and pursuing economic growth. Most of the recently launched financial inclusion initiatives in Egypt, especially those aligned with the 2030 sustainability strategy, have targeted marginalized and excluded individuals. Only a few have addressed the financial inclusion of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Accordingly, this paper aims to identify the main pillars of financial inclusion for SMEs. In keeping up with the mainstream literature, it introduces a number of financial inclusion determinants designed to attract SMEs. They include supply-side determinants such as access to financial services and marketing awareness campaigns, which act as tools to segment financial services and market their benefits to SMEs, and demand-side determinants, which involve the use of financial services. Finally, there is an assessment of the macroeconomic risks to investors and SMEs. The researchers’ methodology was based on first deriving a novel dataset from responses to a questionnaire addressing bankers who manage SME portfolios, second analyzing the dataset through descriptive and inferential statistics and third undertaking a twofold econometric estimation. The econometric estimations started with principal component analysis (PCA) and proceeded to a logistic regression to determine the significant variables pertinent to increasing the financial inclusion of SMEs. The PCA suggested three main pillars determining financial inclusion. They are integrated marketing tools, which increase SMEs’ awareness of and access to the most sophisticated banking services, usage of banking services, and assessment of the macroeconomic risks that would prevent SMEs from gaining access to financial services. As well, the interaction term between the variables derived from the three pillars accounts for a variability of 86.6% in the level of financial inclusion of Egypt’s SMEs.

The Det.Belt Server: A Tool to Visualize and Estimate Amphipathic Solvent Belts around Membrane Proteins

Detergents wrap around membrane proteins to form a belt covering the hydrophobic part of the protein serving for membrane insertion and interaction with lipids. The number of detergent monomers forming this belt is usually unknown to investigators, unless dedicated detergent quantification is undertaken, which for many projects is difficult to setup. Yet, having an approximate knowledge of the amount of detergent forming the belt is extremely useful, to better grasp the protein of interest in interaction with its direct environment rather than picturing the membrane protein “naked”. We created the Det.Belt server to dress up membrane proteins and represent in 3D the bulk made by detergent molecules wrapping in a belt. Many detergents are included in a database, allowing investigators to screen in silico the effect of different detergents around their membrane protein. The input number of detergents is changeable with fast recomputation of the belt for interactive usage. Metrics representing the belt are readily available together with scripts to render quality 3D images for publication. The Det.Belt server is a tool for biochemists to better grasp their sample.

Institutional repository statistics: reliable, consistent approaches for Canada

Introduction: “Usage metrics are an effective way for libraries to demonstrate the value of their institutional repositories, however, existing tools are not always reliable and can either undercount or overcount file downloads. As well, although statistics can sometimes be accessed through the various repository interfaces, without an agreed standard it is impossible to reliably assess and compare usage data across different IRs in any meaningful way.”[1] The Task Group for Standards for IR Usage Data has undertaken an information-gathering exercise to better understand both the existing practices of Canadian repositories, as well as the emerging tools and processes available for repositories to track and monitor usage more effectively. This exercise directly links to the broader goals of the Open Repositories Working Group, which are to “strengthen and add value to the network of Canadian open access repositories by collaborating more closely and adopting a broader range of services.”[2] Our recommended course of action is for all Canadian IRs to collectively adopt OpenAIREStatistics. This path aligns with the following recommendations which our group also advances: Recommendations: We suggest the following Mandatory (M) and Optional (O) recommendations: R1(M):All Canadian IRs should adopt the COUNTER Code of Practice. R2(M): All Canadian IRs should select a service that allows for interoperability with other web services via a fully open, or accessible, permissions-based API. R3(M): All Canadian IRs should usea statistics service that practices transparent communication and maintains a governance strategy. In addition, we strongly urge for the future that Canadian IRs consider the following advice. R4(O): Make further investments into understanding and utilizing the common log format (CLF). R5(O): Conduct research into the privacy implications of collecting use statistics via third party services with commercial interests and consider available alternatives. R6(O): Practice a healthy skepticism towards tools and solutions that promise “increased” usage statistics, and instead advocate for responsible collection assessment based on multiple aspects of use.

Institutional repository statistics: reliable, consistent approaches for Canada

Introduction: “Usage metrics are an effective way for libraries to demonstrate the value of their institutional repositories, however, existing tools are not always reliable and can either undercount or overcount file downloads. As well, although statistics can sometimes be accessed through the various repository interfaces, without an agreed standard it is impossible to reliably assess and compare usage data across different IRs in any meaningful way.”[1] The Task Group for Standards for IR Usage Data has undertaken an information-gathering exercise to better understand both the existing practices of Canadian repositories, as well as the emerging tools and processes available for repositories to track and monitor usage more effectively. This exercise directly links to the broader goals of the Open Repositories Working Group, which are to “strengthen and add value to the network of Canadian open access repositories by collaborating more closely and adopting a broader range of services.”[2] Our recommended course of action is for all Canadian IRs to collectively adopt OpenAIREStatistics. This path aligns with the following recommendations which our group also advances: Recommendations: We suggest the following Mandatory (M) and Optional (O) recommendations: R1(M):All Canadian IRs should adopt the COUNTER Code of Practice. R2(M): All Canadian IRs should select a service that allows for interoperability with other web services via a fully open, or accessible, permissions-based API. R3(M): All Canadian IRs should usea statistics service that practices transparent communication and maintains a governance strategy. In addition, we strongly urge for the future that Canadian IRs consider the following advice. R4(O): Make further investments into understanding and utilizing the common log format (CLF). R5(O): Conduct research into the privacy implications of collecting use statistics via third party services with commercial interests and consider available alternatives. R6(O): Practice a healthy skepticism towards tools and solutions that promise “increased” usage statistics, and instead advocate for responsible collection assessment based on multiple aspects of use.