V.A.S.T. Virginia Academy of Science Team Website Feasibility I October 23, 2013.

V.A.S.T.Virginia Academy of Science Team

Website Feasibility I

October 23, 2013

CS410 - Virginia Academy of Science Team (V.A.S.T.)

The Team

Mark Ben

Raven Jack Jasmine

Peter

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Project Mentor

•Dr. Christopher J. Osgood

•Associate Professor of Biological Sciences

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Outline

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•Introduction

•History

•Who needs the Virginia Academy of Science

•Why the Virginia Academy of Science

•Problem

•Solution

•Software and Hardware

•Conclusion


Problem

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What is the Virginia Academy of Science ?• Purpose: “The purpose of this organization shall be to establish and

maintain in Virginia for scientific and educational purposes an association of persons and organizations interested in science and scientific research in all of its branches; to solicit financial and other support; to cooperate with educational institutions, industries, and state agencies in fostering an interest in scientific matters, in promoting scientific investigations and in spreading knowledge of the sciences; to provide a forum for the presentation and discussion of papers on scientific subjects and facilities for their publication; to provide opportunities for the cooperation and fellowship among its members; and generally, in doing these things, to benefit not only its own members, but to promote the civic, agricultural, academic, industrial, and commercial welfare of the people of Virginia.”2

--- The Constitution of the Virginia Academy of Science Article II

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Virginia Academy of Science

•Association of Virginia Biologists was original organization5

•April 26th, 1923 Virginia Academy of Science founded, 123 members5

•Dr. Ivey E. Lewis, first president of the academy

•Majority of members were affiliated with Biology

•Dr. Miller, also known as “Mr. Academy”5

•First Secretary-Treasurer

•Held the position for two decades

•Dr. George W. Jeffers5

•In the 70s he recorded all of the known history

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What is the Virginia Academy of Science ?

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There are nineteen sections of the Virginia Academy of Science

1. Agriculture, Forestry, and Aquaculture 11. Education

2. Astronomy, Mathematics, and Physics 12. Statistics

3. Microbiology and Molecular Biology 13. Aeronautical and Aerospace Sciences

4. Biology* 14. Botany

5. Chemistry 15. Environmental Science

6. Materials Science 16. Archaeology

7. Biomedical and General Engineering 17. Computer Science

8. Geology 18. Geography

9. Medical Sciences 19. Natural History and Biodiversity

10. Psychology

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CS410 - Virginia Academy of Science Team (V.A.S.T.) October 23, 2013 9


What is the Virginia Junior Academy of Science ?• 1941 - Virginia Junior Academy of Science4

• A yearly symposium is held4

• Awards

• Scholarships

• Scholarships range from $5,000 - $ 14,0004

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What do they do?• Provide annual meetings

• Provide grants and awards for members that do research in a scientific area of study

• Publishes the Virginia Journal of Science

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What do they do? • Part of the purpose of the Virginia Academy of Science is to provide grants for

scientific research.

• Current Virginia Academy of Science grants:

• Mary Louise Olds Andrews Cancer Grants - Funding of up to $3000 for cancer research projects

• Small Project Research Grant - Funding of up to $1250 for small research projects, especially initiation of new research programs

• Jeffress Memorial Trust - to support basic scientific in chemical, medical or other scientific fields through grants to educational and research institutions

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http://www.vacadsci.org/andrews.htm

http://www.vacadsci.org/smproj.htm

http://www.vacadsci.org/Jeffress%20Change.htm

http://www.vacadsci.org/Jeffress%20Change.htm


What do they do?The Virginia Academy of Science publishes the Virginia Journal of Science. It is filled with content submitted to them from members.1

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Why do we need the Virginia Academy of Science?

•To increase awareness in the fields of science

•To provide an economic boost to Virginia by enticing programs and scientists to setup and work here

•To help give access to Virginia’s colleges and universities to young scientists

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Who benefits from The Virginia Academy of Science?

● Students

● Faculty

● Businesses / Corporations

● Anyone

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Problem Statement

The Virginia Academy of Science does not effectively promote its cause with the use of publicly available information via the Internet.

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Created from Google Trends

State Academy of Science Comparison

State Academy

Clear Navigation

Social Media Links

Drop Down Menu

Membership Login

Able to browse by topic

Events Calendar

Login on Homepage

Link to PayPal for donations

Footer Navigation

Search Engine

Alabama X X X X

Alaska

Arizona X X X X

Arkansas X

California X X X X X X X X

Colorado X X X X X

Connecticut X X

Delaware X X X

Florida X X X X X

Georgia X

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State Academy of Science Comparison Cont.

State Academy

Clear Navigation

Social Media Links

Drop Down Menu

Membership Login


Events Calendar

Login on Homepage


Footer Navigation

Search Engine

Hawaii X X X X X

Idaho X X X X X

Illinois X X X

Indiana X X X X X X

Iowa X X X

Kansas X

Kentucky X X X X X

Louisiana X X X

Maine X X X X X X X

Maryland X X X X X X X X



State AcademyClear

Navigation

Social Media Links

Drop Down Menu

Membership Login


Events Calendar

Login on Homepage


Footer Navigation

Search Engine

Massachusetts

X X X X X X X X X X

Michigan X X X X X X X

Minnesota X X X X X X X X

Mississippi X X X X X X X

Missouri X X

Montana X X X

Nebraska X X X

Nevada X

New Hampshire

New Jersey X X



State Academy

Clear Navigation

Social Media Links

Drop Down Menu

Membership Login


Events Calendar

Login on Homepage


Footer Navigation

Search Engine

New Mexico X X

New York X X X X X X X

North Carolina X

North Dakota X X X X X X X

Ohio X X X

Oklahoma X X X

Oregon X X X X

Pennsylvania X X X X X

Rhode Island

South Carolina

X X X X X



State Academy

Clear Navigation

Social Media Links

Drop Down Menu

Membership Login


Events Calendar

Login on Homepage


Footer Navigation

Search Engine

South Dakota X X X X

Tennessee X X

Texas X X X X X

Utah X X

Vermont X X X

(Current) Virginia

X

Washington X X X X

West Virginia X

Wisconsin X X X X X X

Wyoming X X X X X



Comparison Conclusion

Clear Navigation

Social Media Links

Drop Down Menu

Membership Login

Able to browse by

topic

Events Calendar

Login on Homepage


Footer Navigation

Search Engine

# of States That Implement This Design: 41 16 19 15 37* 16 6 12 18 12

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* The only design Virginia Academy of Science utilizes on their website


Current Process I (Becoming a Member)

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Current Process II (Document and Journal Storage)

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GoalTo restructure the Virginia Academy of Science

offerings and information to clearly promote

their cause to the targeted audience, while

providing contributors an easier method to

update via a custom content management

system.

Objectives• Define target audience• Demonstrate specific advantages to said

target audience• Show these benefits in an attractive manner

on the site• Allow interested members to sign up

electronically• Give the option for Virginia Academy of

Science admins to submit member only content

• Simplify content approval and addition process via an updated back-end

• Store pertinent information on a database for retrieval by interested Virginia Academy of Science members

• Create a tiered admin system with varying privileges

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User Role Hierarchy

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Solution Process I (Becoming a Member)

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Solution Process II (Document and Journal Storage)

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Major Functional Components

Hardware Software● Web Server (Bluehost)

● Database Server

● PHP

● MySQL

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Major Functional Components

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Solution Problems

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• Participation is not guaranteed

• Increased interest also not guaranteed

• Maintenance


Summary

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The Virginia Academy of Science does not effectively promote to a targeted audience.

Feasibly corrected with:• Proper content organization• Clean designs• Improved backend system for contributors

References

1. The virginia journal of science. (n.d.). Retrieved October 20, 2013 from http://www.vacadsci.org/vjs.htm

2. The virginia academy of science. (n.d.). Retrieved October 20, 2013 from http://www.vacadsci.org/

3. The constitution of virginia academy of science. (n.d.). Retrieved October 20, 2013 from http://www.vacadsci.org/constitution2.htm#commd11

4. The virginia junior academy of science. (n.d.). Retrieved October 20, 2013 from http://66.147.244.216/~vacadsci/vjas-1.htm

5. Staggers, H. J. (1968). A history of the virginia academy of science. The Virginia Journal of Science, 19(1), 61-83. Retrieved from http://www.vacadsci.org/history1.htm

CS410 - Virginia Academy of Science Team (V.A.S.T.) October 23, 2013 32

http://www.vacadsci.org/vjs.htm



http://www.vacadsci.org/



http://www.vacadsci.org/constitution2.htm



http://66.147.244.216/~vacadsci/vjas-1.htm



http://www.vacadsci.org/history1.htm

http://www.vacadsci.org/history1.htm

V.A.S.T. Virginia Academy of Science Team Website Feasibility I October 23, 2013.

Documents

virginia academy of

people of virginia

virginia biologists

environmental science

materials science

computer science

scientific subjects

scientific investigations