Search Results (344)

Nano-aerial vehicles have emerged as pivotal tools in modern robotics research, offering a safe and scalable means to validate complex algorithms in resource-constrained environments. This scoping review synthesizes the extensive body of work on the Crazyflie nano-quadcopter and evaluates its potential for drone application development in research and academia. The Crazyflie quadcopter has emerged as a leading open-source platform for education and research in aerial robotics due to its modularity and low cost. Despite its rapid evolution, there is currently no comprehensive synthesis mapping its diverse applications across hardware configurations and research domains. This evaluation systematically charts existing research on the Crazyflie platform, outlining its development, identifying relevant hardware and software configurations, categorizing major research topics, and identifying knowledge gaps. A systematic search was performed on three major databases, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar, for studies published between 2015 and 2025. The results indicate a rapid growth in scientific production, an involved research community and very diverse thematic approaches. Expansion decks for the Crazyflie have been analyzed together with their relation to specific fields of research. While control systems remain the primary research theme, there is a significant shift toward artificial intelligence and swarm robotics. Full article

The present study examined how creative intrinsic motivation (CIM), creative extrinsic motivation (CEM), and creative self-efficacy (CSE) moderate differences in individual creativity in one-on-one interactive situations. A total of 262 adults completed the Alternative Uses Task and Chinese Radical Remote Associates Test in single- and paired-player modes on an online interactive creativity task platform, followed by measures of CIM, CEM, and CSE. Participants were classified as relatively higher- versus lower-performing members within each dyad on the basis of their single-player performance. The results showed that CIM and CSE significantly moderated the fluency and originality advantages of higher divergent-thinking performers in the paired-player mode, whereas CEM did not significantly moderate performance. No significant moderating effects were found for CRRAT performance. These findings suggest that individual differences in creative motivation and creative self-efficacy are especially relevant when open-ended creative performance unfolds in interactive settings. They also imply that educators and facilitators seeking to improve collaborative creativity should attend to baseline creative ability, as well as learners’ intrinsic motivation and confidence in their creative capabilities. Full article

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) serve as catalysts for sustainable education by democratizing access to lifelong learning. While this potentially positions them as a key driver of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4), their long-term impact depends heavily on the implementation of inclusive design and ethical governance. This study evaluates the social sustainability of the AKADEMA platform—defined through equity of access, institutional trust, and long-term learner retention—using Badrul Khan’s e-learning framework. Employing a multi-layered mixed-methods design, the study triangulates subjective user perceptions—gathered via quantitative surveys (N = 209; a convenience sample of 6140 contacted users) and qualitative insights (n = 122)—with objective structural evidence from a technical accessibility audit. Although the results indicate high satisfaction with pedagogical quality, the findings reveal specific structural nuances regarding platform inclusivity and user diversity. Specifically, data triangulation highlights a notable ‘privacy awareness gap’—where working professionals demonstrate higher sensitivity regarding data governance than learners—alongside structural barriers hindering ‘Universal Design’ for learners with disabilities. Consequently, to strengthen the sustainability of open education models, future strategies should emphasize digital equity and institutional trust, ensuring that technical environments align with the promise of inclusive quality education. Full article

There has been a recent increase in the use of social media platforms (SMPs), as well as a large increase in scientific journals and academic article publications. We need to study if and how much academics, scholars and researchers trust SMPs as sources, i.e., citations, for writing their research articles. The purpose of this research is to explore the relationship between SMPs and bibliographic article citations for ten years between 2010 and 2019, with 31 December marking the official identification of COVID-19, a milestone that affected the whole world, including academic publishing. By using a citation retrieval tool written in Java, the citations referring to the URLs of 6432 articles from 14 Q1 open access education journals ranked by the SCImago platform were extracted. The retrieved URLs were stored in a relational database, preprocessed and cleaned, and analyzed using SQL queries to identify and quantify citations originating from SMPs. The findings showed that there were 112 instances, which corresponds to 1.8% of the articles, of an SMP post being used as a citation. Out of the 17 SMPs checked, eight were used, with the most popular being YouTube, having a percentage of 68% of the aforementioned 112 citations, followed by Twitter (now X) with approximately 13.5% and then by Facebook with around 7%. Most of these in-text citations were found at the Introduction and the Design/Methodology sections of the papers. Other important findings of this study were that about 2% of the URL citations referred to blogs and wikis and that one in 100 articles used Wikipedia in the bibliography. Also, for a 26-year period from 1999 to 2024, it was observed that the number of journals increased by 82.8%, while the number of open access journals showed an impressive 552.14% increase. The findings of this study could lead to changes in the metadata design of bibliographic databases, like the way of searching them, and to a review of the life cycle duration of sustainable access to the content of the cited SMPs. Full article

Industrial Control Systems (ICSs) are the backbone of modern critical infrastructure, such as electric power, water treatment, oil and gas distribution, and manufacturing operations. While the convergence of IT and OT has greatly increased efficiency and observability, it has also greatly expanded the attack surface of these once-isolated systems. High-profile cyber-physical attacks, including Stuxnet (2010), TRITON (2017), and the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack (2021), have shown that ICS-targeted cyberattacks can cause physical damage, disrupt economic stability, and put public safety at risk. Despite the growing prevalence and intensity of such threats, ICS-based cybersecurity education remains largely under-resourced and underfunded. Traditional ICS training laboratories require highly specialized hardware, vendor-specific tools, and expensive licensing that significantly raise barriers to entry. Traditional labs typically require on-site participation and pose physical safety concerns when cyber-physical attack scenarios are performed. These barriers leave students unable to get necessary security training for ICSs. Therefore, this paper introduces ${\mathrm{AE}}^3$GIS: Agile Emulated Educational Environment for Guided Industrial Security—a fully virtual, lightweight, open-source platform designed to democratize ICS cybersecurity education. Based on the GNS3 network simulation tool, ${\mathrm{AE}}^3$GIS enables rapid deployment of comprehensive ICS environments containing IT and OT systems, industrial communication protocols, control logic, and diverse security tools. ${\mathrm{AE}}^3$GIS is designed to provide practical training for students using realistic ICS cybersecurity scenarios through a local or remote training platform without the cost, safety, or accessibility limitations of hardware-based labs. Full article

Teacher shortages and workforce trends in education are critical policy and research concerns. This study presents a robust data collection pipeline that systematically web-scrapes job postings for K-12 and higher education job postings across multiple sources. While the methodology could theoretically be adapted to other job categories, the pipeline is specifically implemented for educational job postings due to platform-specific structures and scraping constraints. Using R, we extract, clean, and archive job postings weekly, compiling them into a longitudinal master dataset that tracks trends in teacher openings over time. Our approach enables monthly trend analysis, providing insights into hiring patterns, subject-area demands, and geographic disparities. By making this dataset available, we contribute both a reproducible methodological pipeline for scraping, cleaning, and standardizing K-12 and higher education job postings, and a validated longitudinal dataset for research and workforce policy applications. This data descriptor details the methodology, data structure, and potential applications for researchers and policymakers monitoring education sector employment trends. Full article

Africa’s expanding youth population and rapid digitalization present opportunities for innovation and, ultimately, entrepreneurship and economic growth relevant for Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8—Decent Work and Economic Growth. However, the role of social media in shaping these outcomes remains underexplored empirically. This study examines how platform-specific social media use influences innovation, operationalized through external search breadth and depth, while considering macroeconomic moderators. Using panel data from 52 African countries from 2009 to 2022 and fixed effects regressions, the study links activities on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn, and Google to innovation indicators such as R&D expenditure, patent applications, and scientific publications. The findings suggest that YouTube use is consistently and positively associated with all innovation indicators, highlighting its role in knowledge diffusion and creative expression. By contrast, X and LinkedIn display neutral or negative effects. High internet penetration alone is not sufficient enough to spur innovation, underscoring the need for enabling macroeconomics factors such as GDP per capita and ease of doing business. This study concludes that visual open-access platforms, supported by education and institutional capacity, are vital for inclusive and sustained economic growth. Full article

The proliferation of digital health education content (DHEC) offers a transformative opportunity for medical training worldwide. While students in high-income countries routinely integrate these tools, their use and impact in low-resource settings such as Mozambique remain poorly understood. Exploring this topic offers interesting possibilities at the intersection of global health equity, digital literacy, and pedagogical innovation. This study assessed how Mozambican medical students engage with online health videos, examining the types of content they search for, preferred platforms, perceived benefits, and attitudes toward integrating these materials into medical training. A quantitative cross-sectional survey was administered to 151 second-year medical students at the Catholic University of Mozambique and Alberto Chipande University. A structured online questionnaire, comprising multiple-choice, Likert-scale, and open-ended questions, was used. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, cross-tabulation, chi-square test, and Cramer’s V effect size. All students (100%) reported searching for online health videos. They primarily do so via YouTube (92.1%) and use mobile phones (98.7%). Students mainly searched topics related to basic biomedical sciences (60%). They reported that video enhances their learning (86.8%), academic work (11.3%), and other skills (1.9%). Mean scores for utility (4.06), self-reported knowledge gain (4.05), and interest in continuing use (4.30) reflected positive perceptions. Furthermore, an overwhelming majority (91.4%) supported the institutional production of educational videos, whereas 8.6% disagreed, citing videos as a tool that diverts students’ focus from reading and a preference for traditional classes. No statistically significant gender-based differences were observed in usefulness, learning levels, or core interest in continuing to search for online videos (p > 0.05). Online health videos are widely used and positively perceived by Mozambican medical students as a supplementary learning tool. The findings highlight the need for institutions to create curriculum-aligned video libraries and strengthen students’ digital literacy, an affordable strategy for enhancing medical education in low-resource contexts. Full article

This experimental study examines how generative AI reshapes the balance between perceptual fluency and cultural semiosis in children’s picture-book illustration by using a corpus derived from The Monkey King picture-book series, adapted from the classical Chinese novel Journey to the West. The study compares 224 handcrafted illustrations with 224 AI images generated by the Doubao platform (Seedream-3.0). Computational visual metrics, edge curvature and color entropy were calculated using OpenCV, while iconographic features were manually annotated with the UAM Image Tool (Mick O’Donnell, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain). Quantitative analysis reveals statistically significant formal divergences between the two illustration modes. AI images generated by the Doubao platform exhibit a shift toward more outwardly convex contours and reduced color entropy, indicating smoother contours and chromatic homogenization that enhance perceptual accessibility. Iconographic analysis, however, demonstrates an attenuation of culturally specific symbols. High-frequency, contour-salient attributes are largely preserved, whereas low-frequency, ritualized, and hierarchically organized elements are frequently omitted or simplified. The findings reveal a tension between perceptual fluency and cultural–semantic stability in AI images generated by Doubao (ByteDance, Beijing, China), employing the Seedream 3.0 model. They support a framework of conditional applicability, with implications for picture-book illustration, cultural adaptation, and children’s visual-literacy education. Full article

Background/Objectives: Obesity remains a major global health burden, with metabolic–bariatric surgery being the most efficient long-term treatment strategy. However, both variability in perioperative care and postoperative complications persist. To address these challenges, the EUropean PErioperative MEdical Networking (EUPEMEN) protocol for bariatric surgery was developed to standardize care and enhance perioperative outcomes across European healthcare settings. Methods: The protocol was formulated through close collaboration among experts from multiple disciplines, involving surgeons, anesthetists, nurses, and nutritionists. Its development included a literature review, expert consensus, and the creation of structured perioperative guidelines covering the preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative phases. Focus areas include patient education, nutritional optimization, early mobilization, opioid-sparing analgesia, and minimally invasive surgical techniques, supported by educational materials and manuals. Technical activities included the development of detailed multimodal rehabilitation manuals translated into five languages, the creation of an open-access online learning platform, training of future educators through a “train the trainer” approach, organization of multiplier promotional events, international collaboration meetings to refine the protocol, and revision and standardization of existing perioperative care guidelines to ensure evidence-based, unified practices across Europe. Results: Implementation of the EUPEMEN protocol aims to reduce postoperative complications, enhance recovery, and decrease hospitalization time. Standardized rehabilitation pathways and access to free educational platforms promote consistent care delivery across diverse healthcare environments. Key strategies include early oral intake, limited use of invasive devices, and comprehensive patient preparation. Conclusions: The EUPEMEN protocol introduces an evidence-based, multidisciplinary framework for optimizing perioperative management in bariatric surgery. While variability in resources and adherence may present potential obstacles, its application holds significant promise for improving perioperative outcomes. Future studies are necessary to assess its long-term impact and adaptability in different healthcare settings. Full article

This article presents AgoraAI, an open-source framework designed to enable dynamic, multi-participant conversations by integrating Multi-Persona Orchestration within a shared conversational environment. Unlike traditional single-agent Large Language Model (LLM) interactions or passive commercial meeting assistants, AgoraAI allows users to configure distinct AI personas that engage in active facilitation and simultaneous, turn-based dialogues with human participants. The system supports diverse high-stakes use cases, including formal panel discussions and interactive educational settings. Crucially, this work addresses the engineering challenge of the “Concurrency-Coherence Paradox” in real-time voice systems. Key architectural contributions include: (1) the implementation of Asynchronous Dual-Queue Processing, a thread-safe integration strategy that synchronizes real-time Speech-to-Text streams with LLM generation to resolve race conditions; and (2) Dynamic Context-Injection pipelines that ensure persona consistency. The platform’s ecological validity is demonstrated through deployment in a human-supervised Master’s thesis seminar and a corporate coordination meeting. Results from an exploratory pilot study indicate high usability, perceived utility, and strong user acceptance. These findings suggest that AgoraAI provides a flexible, empirically evaluated architecture for democratizing multi-perspective collaboration across education, research, and professional domains. Full article

Remote and hybrid teaching have become enduring features of European higher education, yet their implications for teachers’ well-being are often examined in fragmented ways. This study investigated a systemic imbalance across five interdependent domains—physical, emotional, cognitive, social, and existential well-being—among Lithuanian higher education teachers, interpreted through the Job Demands–Resources framework and Self-Determination Theory. Using a mixed-methods design, data were collected from 385 teachers via a structured online questionnaire that included demographic variables, 10-point imbalance ratings across the five domains, and open-ended questions. Quantitative analyses (descriptive statistics and correlational pattern exploration) were complemented by thematic analysis of teachers’ narratives. Results indicate a widespread multidimensional disruption: elevated stress and emotional exhaustion, substantial physical strain associated with inadequate home workspaces, cognitive overload linked to multi-platform teaching, reduced collegial connection, blurred work–life boundaries, and challenges to professional meaning. Strain was unevenly distributed, with higher vulnerability associated with gender and caregiving demands, early-career status, limited ergonomic conditions, and weak institutional support. The findings support a systemic interpretation in which intensified demands, reduced resources, and frustrated psychological needs jointly drive well-being imbalance. Sustainable remote/hybrid teaching therefore requires institution-level measures (workload regulation, training, ergonomic support, and boundary-setting policies) rather than reliance on individual coping alone. Full article

A digital twin (DT) is an automation strategy that integrates a physical plant with an adaptive, real-time simulation environment, with bidirectional communication between them. In process engineering, DTs promise real-time monitoring, prediction of future conditions, predictive maintenance, process optimization, and control. Dashboards for process monitoring are becoming increasingly relevant for tracking key metrics and supervising industrial units in real time. Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems are widely used for process automation, with ScadaBR, an open-source, freely licensed platform. This work presents the development of a computational tool that integrates the Aspen HYSYS/Python with the ScadaBR system for real-time monitoring and supervision of dynamic models. The virtual plant, which replicates the system’s physical behavior, was connected to the SCADA platform via the Modbus protocol, enabling bidirectional data exchange between the simulated model and the supervisory interface. The system supports operational analysis and control strategy validation. Two case studies were analyzed: (i) a simplified catalytic hydrocracking process, implemented in the Python environment, and (ii) a heat exchanger networks process, simulated using the HYSYS simulator. In the second case, the process was dynamically simulated, with real-time monitoring of a simple dynamic indicator that correlates the feed methane concentration with heat transfer fluids. The results demonstrate the feasibility and applicability of the proposed approach for educational purposes, operator training, and process engineering validation, fostering a more realistic and interactive simulation environment. Furthermore, the results show that the tool is promising for dynamic monitoring of environmental and energy indices, demonstrating that methane consumption relative to process feed can be evaluated and controlled over time. Full article

Over recent decades, various projects—especially at the European level—have developed platforms for storing 2D and 3D digital models of cultural heritage. These platforms aim to preserve, organise, and make heritage data accessible for research, education, and public engagement. However, they face challenges due to diverse data formats, increasing user demands, and a lack of standardisation and metadata consistency. Advancements in digital technologies have enabled more efficient systems for acquiring, processing, and preserving cultural heritage data. Three-dimensional digitisation, in particular, supports multidimensional analysis and modernises documentation practices. Despite significant experience in creating 3D data repositories, comprehensive Information Systems for managing the full lifecycle of cultural heritage—especially those that integrate existing platforms—or web-based platforms designed to support collaborative scientific research by integrating data, tools, and computational resources remain limited and are not established at national levels. This paper explores this evolving landscape, highlighting key methodological and technological foundations for future systems. It also addresses open questions, opportunities, limitations, and ongoing challenges, emphasizing the need for semantic-based approaches to integrate fragmented data and foster collaboration between public and private stakeholders. Full article

This exploratory mixed-methods study examined whether a narrative-driven digital gamification platform, FantasyClass, grounded in the MDA (Mechanics–Dynamics–Aesthetics) framework and Bartle’s player typology (used as a cohort-level design input), was associated with science attitudinal change in preservice primary teachers. The quantitative component employed a one-group pretest–posttest (pre-experimental) within-participant design using a validated 22-item attitudes questionnaire (N = 23), structured across three temporal dimensions: past (retrospective experiences), present (current perceptions), and future (teaching expectations). Significant improvements were observed across all attitudinal dimensions with large effect sizes, most notably in students’ future expectations and confidence to teach science. Exploratory correlation analyses indicated that participants’ perceived motivational value of narrative and immersion elements was moderately associated with Future-dimension attitudinal gains. Qualitative thematic analysis of open-ended responses (n = 15) revealed enhanced motivation, reduced science anxiety, more positive perceptions of physics and chemistry, and strong intentions to adopt game-based and gamified strategies in future teaching practice. Convergence across quantitative and qualitative strands suggests that structurally coherent, player-type-informed narrative gamification may be associated with attitudinal transformation and early professional identity development in STEM teacher education, while recognizing that the design does not permit causal attribution. Full article