Search Results (3,023)

Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) have emerged as a promising tool for augmenting medical image datasets used by AI solutions. However, GANs trained on small datasets (300–500 images) frequently encounter mode collapse, overfitting, and instability, which hinder their practical application. Many GAN-generated images look unrealistic. The Enhanced Deep Convolutional GAN (EDCGAN) is introduced to generate high-quality synthetic images of breast US (BUS). The model includes an experimental design for the Discriminator and Generator. The main components are spectral normalization (SN), the Squeeze-and-Excitation (SE) block, and the Scaled Exponential Linear Unit (SELU). One of the basic versions of DCGAN is considered for the proposed modifications. The stopping criteria are based on the convergence of the smoothed loss function and the constraints imposed on the Discriminator. The contribution is a combination of the above modifications and postprocessing based on the visual evaluation by radiologists and selected image processing metrics. The Inception Score (IS), the Structural Similarity Index (SSIM), and the Mean Squared Error (MSE) comply with the results obtained in the preceding works. The efficiency of augmenting the US data has been verified on a DL classification based on ResNet-18. The tests against training on a non-augmented data outperform ResNet by 5% and by the data augmented by the previous DCGAN by 3%. These numbers are substantial since this variant of ResNet has been pre-trained on 1000 categories by ImageNet-1K, including 1.28 million images. Additionally, the model wins the “Guess-the-real-image” game, competing with seven preceding GANs. Full article

Against the backdrop of the synergistic advancement of Industry 4.0 and the dual-carbon strategy, traditional university mathematics education struggles to meet the demands for cultivating engineering talents’ integrated competencies in mathematics, specialization, and application. The STEM education paradigm urgently needs innovation. Guided by sustainable development principles, this study explores integrated approaches to university mathematics teaching for advanced manufacturing. It constructs a four-stage cyclical framework, Concept–Algorithm–Equipment–Evaluation (CAEE), and integrates Fourier Transform systems into industrial inspection workflows, using silicon carbide wafer thickness measurement as a case study. Targeting second-year students in Measurement and Control Technology and Instrumentation, a comparative design involving an experimental and a control group was employed. Comprehensive evaluation utilized AI-powered dynamic questionnaires, multimodal eye-tracking and EEG data, along with mixed-methods research. Results indicate that the assessment tools achieved high reliability and validity (0.906). The experimental group demonstrated significantly superior performance in deep learning proficiency and subject-specific educational structure (effect size 0.67) compared to the control group, along with modest positive enhancements in cognitive engagement and social interaction dimensions. This pedagogical model transcends conventional ‘knowledge collage’ integration, transforming mathematics from an external auxiliary tool into an ‘endogenous variable’ within industrial systems. It establishes a replicable and scalable STEM education practice paradigm. Full article

Artificial intelligence (AI), including machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL), is rapidly transforming clinical veterinary practice by enhancing diagnostics, disease surveillance and decision support processes across animal health domains. The safe and effective clinical deployment of these technologies, however, depends critically on the preparedness of the veterinary workforce, positioning veterinary education as a strategic enabler of translational adoption. This narrative review examines the integration of AI within veterinary education as a foundational step toward its responsible application in clinical practice. We synthesize current evidence on AI-driven tools relevant to veterinary curricula, including generative and multimodal large language models, intelligent tutoring systems, virtual and augmented reality platforms and AI-based decision support tools applied to imaging, epidemiology, parasitology, food safety and animal health. Particular attention is given to how the structured educational use of AI mirrors real-world clinical workflows and supports the development of competencies essential for clinical translation, such as data interpretation, uncertainty management, ethical reasoning and professional accountability. The review further addresses ethical, regulatory and cognitive considerations associated with AI adoption, including algorithmic bias, data privacy, equity of access and the risks of overreliance, emphasizing their direct implications for diagnostic reliability and animal welfare. By framing veterinary education as a controlled and reflective environment for AI engagement, this article highlights how pedagogically grounded training can facilitate safer clinical deployment, foster interdisciplinary collaboration and align technological innovation with professional standards in veterinary medicine. Full article

Social factors profoundly shape the bereavement process for individuals who have lost someone to a drug-related death. In this study, we integrate qualitative (n = 19), quantitative (n = 5), and mixed-methods (n = 2) results from a large research project on drug-related bereavement and utilise Bronfenbrenner and Morris’s bioecological model as an analytical framework. The results of the project demonstrate that bereavement following a drug-related death is deeply rooted in social context, and they highlight that the process of grieving a drug-related death requires the navigation of complex personal, familial, and societal challenges. Sociocultural understandings of addiction and societal stigma must be addressed to create a more supportive environment for bereaved individuals. A more cohesive and responsive support system can be developed by understanding and acting at all levels of Bronfenbrenner and Morris’s model, encompassing individual competencies, organisational structures, broader social environments, and systemic policies. Focusing on a family and compassionate community approach, our research promotes an inclusive and empathetic societal response to these multifaceted losses. Furthermore, the importance of enhanced professional competencies, interdisciplinary collaboration, and the implementation of organisational change is emphasised in order to meet the needs of those affected by a drug-related death. Ultimately, social work can play a pivotal role in this context. Full article

This article examines graduate employability challenges in the tourism and hospitality sector of Marrakech, a major tourism destination and strategic regional labour market in Morocco, characterised by strong seasonality, high labour turnover, and persistent education–employment mismatches. Rather than focusing exclusively on technology, the study analyses employability as a multidimensional and context-dependent process, in which digitalisation and artificial intelligence (AI) constitute one influencing factor among others. The research adopts a qualitative, purposive design based on semi-structured interviews conducted between August and October 2025 with 20 stakeholders directly involved in recruitment, training, or early career integration. These include five-star hotel general managers and HR officers, riad managers, travel agencies, recruitment intermediaries, representatives of Morocco’s public employment service (ANAPEC—National Agency for the Promotion of Employment and Skills) and private, regional tourism authorities, academics and young tourism graduates. Interview transcripts were thematically analysed using NVivo to identify recurrent patterns in recruitment practices, skill expectations, and the impact of AI in employability. The results, reflecting stakeholders’ perceptions within this local labour market, show that employability is shaped by six interrelated dimensions: (1) the structure and functioning of the tourism labour market (segmentation, turnover, mobility); (2) partial misalignment between training provision and operational service realities; (3) recruitment standards that prioritise behavioural and relational competences alongside formal qualifications, particularly for frontline positions; (4) language proficiency, especially English and French, as a baseline employability condition; (5) growing expectations regarding digital literacy linked to tourism operations (property management systems, reservation platforms, online reputation management); and (6) the perceived impact of AI-enabled tools (automation of routine tasks, decision-support systems, chatbots), which is seen less as a source of job destruction than as a driver of task reconfiguration and skill upgrading. By situating employer and graduate perceptions within the broader Moroccan employment and training context, the study contributes a place-based understanding of employability in tourism. It highlights the shared responsibility of individuals, employers, and education and training institutions in supporting skill development. The article concludes by discussing policy and practice-oriented levers to strengthen graduate employability, including co-designed curricula, structured internships and mentoring schemes, employer-supported upskilling in tourism-specific digital and AI-related competences, and reinforced labour-market intermediation through ANAPEC and regional governance actors. Full article

Background: Population ageing is reshaping cardiovascular medicine, with older adults increasingly presenting with heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and structural heart disease. Their management is frequently complicated by frailty, multimorbidity, functional impairment, and competing priorities, challenging traditional disease-centred cardiovascular models. Objective: To address who should act as the cardiogeriatrician using a competency-based perspective focused on the clinical skills and decision-making capacities required to care for older frail adults. Methods: Narrative review of PubMed/MEDLINE literature integrating cardiology, geriatrics, and health services research, including guidelines, consensus statements, observational studies, and conceptual frameworks. Results: Cardiogeriatric care models vary widely and are often defined by professional roles rather than competencies. A competency-based framework better captures core requirements, including frailty-informed interpretation, proportionality of care, trajectory-based assessment, and goal-concordant decision-making. Cardiogeriatric expertise may be embodied by different professional profiles. One workable profile is a geriatrician with sustained cardiovascular practice and clearly defined competencies. Cardiology expertise remains essential for diagnostic confirmation, complex decision-making, and interventional care. Conclusions: A competency-based conceptualisation of cardiogeriatrics supports collaborative, proportionate, and patient-centred cardiovascular care in ageing populations, without redefining professional boundaries. Full article

The progressive digitalization of healthcare requires nursing students to develop digital competence to safely access, evaluate, and apply scientific information in clinical practice. This study described nursing students’ perceived digital competence and confidence in using digital resources to support evidence-based clinical decision-making after a structured educational seminar. A descriptive post-intervention, single-group study was conducted with 35 undergraduate nursing students enrolled in a compulsory clinical nursing course. The two-hour seminar covered evidence-based websites and clinical guidelines, biomedical database searching, and use of a wound-management mobile application. Data were collected using an anonymous 12-item Likert-scale questionnaire (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.935). Domain mean scores ranged from 4.19 (SD = 0.83) to 4.51 (SD = 0.67). The highest item mean was for continuous learning (M = 4.63, SD = 0.60) and the lowest was for statistical programs (M = 4.03, SD = 0.95); intellectual property protection was also lower (M = 4.17, SD = 0.89). Spearman correlations showed no significant associations between age and any item after Bonferroni correction (adjusted α = 0.0042; all p > 0.05). These findings describe high perceived digital competence and identify areas for further educational reinforcement. Full article

This study presents an integrated assessment model for evaluating motor skills in trainee generalist primary school teachers. The model integrates objective performance measures with self-reported qualitative observations, aiming to promote body awareness and highlight the quality of movement. A total of 547 university students, divided into two cohorts (2023/24 and 2024/25), completed a battery of standardized field tests and recorded both quantitative results (e.g., times, repetitions) and qualitative reflections on their execution. The findings show that the 2024/25 cohort performed better in balance and muscular endurance, while showing slower times in agility and sprint tests. Qualitative data revealed more fluid execution, a wider range of motor strategies, and greater self-reflection, suggesting a more mature motor profile. These differences are not solely attributable to individual factors; they may also reflect the evolving structure of the training program, the instructional approach, and the learning environment. The integration of objective and subjective data enabled the construction of multidimensional motor profiles, capturing not only outcomes but also processes. This model supports the development of reflective and adaptive motor competence and offers promising applications in teacher training and health promotion, contributing to a more inclusive and effective approach to physical education in primary schools. Full article

This study examines the systemic and political dynamics shaping the professional trajectories of Palestinian educators trained for boundary-crossing roles in Jewish state schools in Israel. While specialized programs successfully cultivated intercultural competence and pedagogical readiness, these gains were undermined by entrenched structural and ideological barriers. 12 in-depth semi-structured interviews with 12 Palestinian teachers were analyzed as well as findings from a telephone survey with 99 graduates. Findings reveal that institutional absorption failure, manifested through contractual precarity, geographic misalignment, and organizational inertia, prevented the conversion of individual readiness into stable tenure. Inclusion was found to be conditional, requiring sustained emotional labor, linguistic self-censorship, and political alignment, particularly during periods of heightened sociopolitical tension following 7 October 2023. These patterns reflect deeply rooted power asymmetries that marginalize Palestinian citizens and perpetuate tokenistic integration. This study argues that durable professional integration in contested spaces demands a paradigmatic shift: from viewing inclusion as a temporary concession to embedding stability and equity as structural principles. Such transformation requires dismantling institutional mechanisms that reproduce asymmetry and investing in long-term ecological supports, such as permanent contracts, culturally responsive leadership, and inclusion protocols. Without these systemic reforms, intercultural competence remains insufficient to overcome the political and structural forces. Full article

Although reflective practice is recognised as a driver of instructional change, technology-focused professional development—particularly one-shot tool workshops—often lacks systematic analysis of student evidence, prioritising technical skills over evidence-based reflection. This study aimed to empirically develop and refine a technology integration competency framework for mathematics teachers by investigating how structured reflective practice serves as a mechanism for longitudinal development. Adopting a design-based research (DBR) approach, the study was conducted over 18 months with 21 in-service mathematics teachers in northern Thailand through two iterative cycles of design, enactment, analysis, and redesign. The intervention utilised structured tools, including guided reflective journals, classroom video reflection, and reflective dialogue, enabling teachers to connect pedagogical intentions with evidence of student response. Thematic analysis indicated that the initial framework required reconfiguration into a dynamic model characterised by three structural shifts: the merger of technological knowledge and tool proficiency into a single fundamental technology competency; the reclassification of teacher confidence as a transversal element; and the central positioning of flexible learning design for blended orchestration. These thematic findings were validated through data triangulation of journals, video reflections, and interviews. The study contributes an empirically warranted framework with actionable implications for designing professional development that fosters sustained instructional improvement in mathematics. Full article

Centers for Teaching and Learning (CTLs) have emerged as crucial change agents in preparing faculty to integrate employment-relevant skills into higher education, yet limited research examines how these centers operate in resource-constrained contexts. This study investigates how CTLs in Israeli higher education prepare faculty to teach employment skills and what insights this experience offers for understanding effective strategies in similar contexts. Using an embedded single-case study design, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 31 CTL directors (77.5% response rate) across universities, academic colleges, and education colleges, supplemented by document analysis. Our findings reveal three distinct implementation approaches: embedded integration (47% of centers), industry partnership (32%), and competency framework (21%) models. Despite operating with limited formal authority and resources, Israeli CTLs demonstrate “networked legitimacy”, achieving institutional influence through strategic relationship-building rather than hierarchical position. University-based CTLs emphasize cognitive-analytical skills but show lower implementation rates (29%), while college-based CTLs demonstrate higher implementation levels (57%) with stronger workplace connections. The study extends institutional entrepreneurship theory by explaining how resource-constrained organizations drive change without formal authority. These findings offer actionable frameworks for CTL directors, demonstrating that embedded integration can achieve high faculty engagement without separate program infrastructure, while industry partnerships enhance workplace relevance. The research contributes to understanding how educational institutions can enhance graduate employability through strategic faculty development, with implications for workforce-responsive higher education policy development globally. Full article

This article examines vulnerability to counterfeit currency fraud in Bulgaria by assessing citizens’ competence in recognizing genuine banknotes of the national currency (BGN) prior to the introduction of euro banknotes in 2026. Counterfeit banknotes represent a form of economic crime in which individual victims’ losses are closely tied to their ability to authenticate cash in everyday transactions. Drawing on level-1 security features and guidelines of the Bulgarian National Bank, we developed a structured questionnaire to operationalize knowledge of key authenticity checks (hologram, intaglio printing, watermark, security thread, see-through register). The survey was administered online and on paper over a 20-day period (22 August–11 September 2025) and completed by 371 respondents from across the country. Using descriptive statistics tools, we identify three distinct groups: (i) highly competent respondents who reliably distinguish genuine from counterfeit banknotes; (ii) individuals with high self-reported confidence but inconsistent performance; and (iii) a particularly vulnerable group with low knowledge of security features, limited awareness of official guidance and low self-confidence. Vulnerability is significantly associated with lower education, residence in smaller settlements, lack of prior exposure to counterfeit banknotes and absence of contact with institutional information campaigns. The findings have direct implications for crime prevention and criminal justice policy: they provide an evidence base for targeted public awareness initiatives and risk-based allocation of resources aimed at protecting high-risk groups from currency-related fraud in the context of the monetary transition. Full article

The selective removal of radioactive cesium-137 and strontium-90 from high-salinity radioactive wastewater remains a critical challenge, as competing ions reduce adsorption efficiency and selectivity. In this study, high-performance granulated adsorbents were developed based on alkali-activated geopolymer matrices to enhance sorption performance. The adsorbents were synthesized by inorganic polymerization, and mechanically robust granules with controlled porosity and surface chemistry were obtained. Batch sorption experiments conducted in simulated seawater demonstrated greater than 99% removal efficiencies for cesium and strontium. Isotherm modeling confirmed high maximum sorption capacities (up to 0.41 meq/g for Cs⁺ and 5.07 meq/g for Sr²⁺). Continuous fixed-bed column tests demonstrated sustained removal efficiencies for the optimized adsorbents. Structural analyses, including scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy mapping, and X-ray diffraction, confirmed uniform elemental distribution and crystalline phases consistent with selective sorption mechanisms. Assessment of mechanical strength revealed sufficient compressive strengths to ensure operational durability under hydraulic stress. These findings demonstrate that the synthesized geopolymer-based granules are a potentially effective and versatile solution for the comprehensive treatment of radioactive wastewater. Full article

The lasca Protochondrostoma genei is an endemic freshwater fish of high conservation concern, listed in Annex II of the Habitat Directive and classified as Endangered in Italy. This study investigates the ecology, population structure, and habitat use of P. genei in the Chiarò di Cialla Creek (Northeast Italy), a biodiversity hotspot recently designated as a Special Area of Conservation (SAC IT3320041). Particular regard is given to the issue represented by the presence of the common nase Chondrostoma nasus, which competes with the lasca for habitats and trophic resources. Fish assemblages were surveyed by electrofishing during 2023 and 2024, coupled with detailed hydromorphological characterization of mesohabitats. Results highlighted that the lasca showed preference for glides and especially pools, characterized by moderate depths, low to moderate current velocities, high shading, and abundant shelters such as boulders, roots, and woody debris. However, P. genei extensively overlapped in habitat use with the invasive common nase C. nasus, whose density increased markedly during the study period, suggesting ongoing colonization and potential issues for the lasca conservation. Despite moderate river functionality scores and localized anthropogenic pressures, the Chiarò di Cialla Creek remains a key refuge for P. genei. These findings provide essential ecological information to support targeted conservation actions, including habitat management and invasive species control, within protected riverine systems. Full article

There is a lack of consensus on the role of structured nature experiences (SNEs) in mental, emotional, and social health (MESH) competencies across youth summer camp participants. This systematic review synthesized research on the relationship between SNEs and MESH competencies in camps since the emergence of positive youth development. Following a Google Scholar search, 21 articles were reviewed and synthesized. The findings revealed that SNEs consistently support growth in MESH competencies, particularly through experiential learning and nature immersion. The mental health domain was the most prominent MESH domain studied in the reviewed literature. Interrelated themes are discussed within each domain. While some improvements show short-term gains, lasting improvements were also observed, especially among youth with social or behavioral challenges. This review identifies SNEs as intentional and evidence-based mechanisms for advancing MESH outcomes among youth in the summer camp setting. Full article