Scotland heads up major virtual medical school project: The University of Dundee in Scotland is spearheading an initiative to enable doctors to train over the Internet, following a STG2.5 million investment to create the International Virtual Medical School (IVIMEDS). The new school, which was launched at the World eLearning Conference in Edinburgh, will bring together resources from more than 30 of the world's top medical schools. Students enrolled in IVIMEDS, which will begin operation in August 2004, will see their education composed of a combination of e-learning materials and clinical experience in local health facilities. The University of Dundee said that IVIMEDS has partners in Germany, Italy, Ireland, Spain, Hong Kong, China, Syria, Malaysia and Australia as well as the US and the UK, and said that the National Board of Medical Examiners in the US has also signed up to the scheme.
UK brings job searches to high street: The UK is running a six-month trial that lets jobseekers search for a position using high-street kiosks. The free "i-plus" kiosks, which link to the national jobs Web site Worktrain, are currently available at 115 locations including Bath, Bristol, Manchester, Reading, Newcastle, and Oxford Street in London. As well as accessing job details, users can see information about the area from local authorities. The kiosks are provided by the Department for Works and Pensions in partnership with the media technology company Cityspace. Cityspace Managing Director Mark Meyohas said the kiosks would help the government reach those jobseekers who may not visit government Web sites for jobs or who may not have Internet access.
Australian biometric passport checks begin: The Australian Customs Service (ACS) has launched SmartGate, a biometric photo-matching technology, at Sydney International Airport. The system, which ACS says is the fastest automated border control system in the world, is being used to process 3,000 enrolled Qantas aircrew. The SmartGate kiosk performs the face-to-passport check that a customs officer usually undertakes, and can verify in less than 10 seconds that a face matches the passport image. Customs said that after further trials with crews, it will examine the possibility of expanding the system for the general Australian public. A pilot of the system started in November and was expected to go for six months, but it's believed that international interest in the system and its positive initial trials has encouraged officials to move to roll-out stage sooner than planned. ACS said it had tested the technology across a range of variables including age, ethnicity, expression, pose and changes in facial appearance, such as glasses and facial hair.
Oracle wins major IT systems deal in UK: The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) has announced a major strategic partnership agreement with Oracle. The IT giant will work alongside the UK government on ways of developing standardised systems based on common requirements. Under the deal, the OGC is guaranteed "best prices and terms" on all Oracle technology products to the public sector; an average cost reduction of 11 percent is expected. This means Oracle will now offer the same terms to the UK government for all technology products as those it offers to the US government. The pricing terms apply to Oracle's Secure Infrastructure Bundle, which includes Oracle 9i Database and Oracle 9i Application Server. The OGC said it believed the partnership would help reduce the costly customisation of systems and the duplication of effort. Effective from the beginning of February, the three-year deal is a first in that it will allow departments to see the actual cost that the rest of the public sector is paying for IT.
Japanese local government launches e-certificates: The government of the Japanese city of Okayama is to make available a limited e-certificates service on-line. Around 220 residents are trialling the service, which marks the first time a local government has issued certificates on-line. Citizens will be able to apply for certificates for tax payment and income, but forms including certificates of residency or family registers will not be available on-line. After applying on-line, citizens will receive forms with encoded official seals to let them print out the certificates at home. As a nation, Japan expects to reach Internet penetration of more than 83 percent by 2005.
US e-gov providers expected to foot project costs: Tighter budget constraints mean that companies who develop e-government solutions for US states are increasingly expected to foot the cost of development. Under this so-called "benefits funded" model, developers get no payment up front; instead, when systems have been deployed, the contractor is paid using the revenue generated by the system. "This is the only business model that will push e-government forward as we originally envisioned," Kim Bahrami, Florida's chief information officer, told Washington Technology. Wide-ranging e-government systems developed for US states by major consulting firms like BearingPoint and Accenture run into tens of millions of dollars, investments that will take a number of years to recoup. The reliance on a benefits funded model, also known as "shared savings", is likely to further consolidate e-government contracts to large providers only, forcing smaller developers out of the market or into partnership with larger players.
Quelle: electricnews
