Digital Transformation Of Society Research Articles

APPLICATION OF MACHINE LEARNING TECHNIQUES TO INCREASE THE LEVEL OF ACCURACY OF OPTICAL CHARACTER RECOGNITION RESULTS

One of the most pervasive processes of modernity is undoubtedly digitalization, which has encompassed all key spheres of human life. The development of information technology has contributed to large-scale changes not only in the everyday aspect of life, but also more globally, automating complex business processes in the field of entrepreneurship, economics, and healthcare. The transition to digital data and documentation has provided greater accessibility to necessary information and has also enhanced the efficiency of its analysis and processing. Due to this fact, optical character recognition (OCR) technology has gained significant importance, enabling the identification and extraction of textual data from images. OCR systems play a pivotal role in the digital transformation of society as they eliminate the need for manual handling of textual information in images and are applicable in automating the majority of business processes associated with paper-based data processing, such as gathering statistical data from paper forms, reflecting paper documents in electronic document management systems, converting textual information into audio files, and so on. This paper is dedicated to describing optical character recognition technology, as well as providing an overview of machine learning techniques that are actively used in the context of its modern implementation, in order to enhance the quality of the obtained results. In addition, the paper presents the principles of operation of the described approaches, their capabilities, as well as some limitations that may be encountered when using them in various scenarios.

Технологический детерминизм и социальный конструктивизм как теоретический базис в исследовании отношений технологий и общества

The modern world is intricately woven with technologies. From a sociological perspective, an essential question arises regarding the study of the relationships between technologies and social reality. In an era characterized by rapid technological progress and the digital transformation of society, understanding the interaction between technologies and social structures becomes increasingly relevant. Information and communication technolo-gies not only alter the ways in which individuals interact but also shape new social norms and structures. In this context, the investigation of the relationships between technology and society gains particular significance. Two key theories – technological determinism and social constructivism – offer distinct yet complementary perspec-tives on the role of technology in society, highlighting the importance of considering both technological and social factors. This article will examine the theoretical foundations of both theories, present historical examples to practically demonstrate the theoretical considerations, provide an authorial critique of the theories, and draw conclusions regarding the cumulative integrity of the proposed ideas.

ЦИФРОВЫЕ СРЕДСТВА КОММУНИКАЦИИ В УНИВЕРСИТЕТСКОМ ПРОФСОЮЗЕ ЦИФРОВЫЕ СРЕДСТВА КОММУНИКАЦИИ В УНИВЕРСИТЕТСКОМ ПРОФСОЮЗЕ

The digital transformation of society and higher education affects university trade unions today, especially the sphere of communicative interaction between members of a trade union organization. The introduction of digital communication and information exchange tools has become a daily practice of modern university trade unions. However, representatives of the university trade union have different attitudes towards the use of digital communication tools, perceive their risks, and have different preferences in choosing certain communication tools. The purpose of the article is to identify the attitude of university trade union members to digital communication methods and their impact on various aspects of the life of university trade unions. A study conducted in 2023 in a number of universities in the Ural Federal District showed that members of university trade unions are generally ready to use digitalization tools to intensify communication and quickly achieve their goals. However, the trade union community is clearly aware of the risks of digital communication, including digital exclusion, increased information noise and reduced cohesion.

Beyond the hype: using AI, big data, wearable devices, and the internet of things for high-throughput livestock phenotyping.

Phenotyping of animals is a routine task in agriculture which can provide large datasets for the functional annotation of genomes. Using the livestock farming sector to study complex traits enables genetics researchers to fully benefit from the digital transformation of society as economies of scale substantially reduces the cost of phenotyping animals on farms. In the agricultural sector genomics has transitioned towards a model of 'Genomics without the genes' as a large proportion of the genetic variation in animals can be modelled using the infinitesimal model for genomic breeding valuations. Combined with third generation sequencing creating pan-genomes for livestock the digital infrastructure for trait collection and precision farming provides a unique opportunity for high-throughput phenotyping and the study of complex traits in a controlled environment. The emphasis on cost efficient data collection mean that mobile phones and computers have become ubiquitous for cost-efficient large-scale data collection but that the majority of the recorded traits can still be recorded manually with limited training or tools. This is especially valuable in low- and middle income countries and in settings where indigenous breeds are kept at farms preserving more traditional farming methods. Digitalization is therefore an important enabler for high-throughput phenotyping for smaller livestock herds with limited technology investments as well as large-scale commercial operations. It is demanding and challenging for individual researchers to keep up with the opportunities created by the rapid advances in digitalization for livestock farming and how it can be used by researchers with or without a specialization in livestock. This review provides an overview of the current status of key enabling technologies for precision livestock farming applicable for the functional annotation of genomes.

Ready for the Digital Era? A Comparative Analysis of Hungary and Romania in the Field of Digital Policy

The progress concerning the digital transformation of society is characterized by wide differences among different European countries, in terms of the intensity and timeline of the digital transformation. The extent of the digital transformation in Romania and Hungary is below the EU average and thus, both states need to intensify their endeavours. The present study analyses the e-government and digital education policies of the two countries, in terms of main goals, addressed challenges and predicted impacts of the digital transformation. Alongside the specific societal challenges and drawbacks, we found significant approach differences in elaborating public policies such as the coordinated and centralized approach in Hungary versus the fragmented and the more sector oriented Romanian approach. Among the similarities, we noted the optimist view on digitalisation impacts in the analysed documents – while the benefits are widely presented, far less attention was given to the possible negative outcomes.

The mundane governance of education through time: the case of national testing in Norway

ABSTRACT This article explores national testing in Norway by analyzing technical and bureaucratic documents steering the process of data production. By examining documents through sociological perspectives on time, as well as attuning to the form and genre of the documents, we identify bureaucratic, sociotechnical, and genre-specific ways in which data production is structured to ensure a smooth process of testing. We find that national tests govern (through) time and by ordering time: their time rules produce simultaneity and synchronicity that in turn gently nudge schools and municipalities into alignment. Thus, time rules and routines enable forms of mundane governance that mirror how contemporary education policy happens through short but more prescriptive (and increasingly digital) policy texts. This is how national authorities may make themselves less detectable, but ever more present and productive of national unity. While recent conversations on time and temporality focus on the emergence of complex, non-linear (e.g. networked) time enabled by the digital transformation of society and education, our article attests to the persistence and significance of linear temporalities in and for education governance, and shows how quantification, assessment, bureaucracy and the affordances of digital technologies together play pivotal roles in upholding a linear time order.

The Digital Competences Necessary for the Successful Pedagogical Practice of Teachers in the Digital Age

The digital transformation of society is a reality. Technology is becoming integral to people’s daily lives and children are growing up in the digital age. The education systems have to reflect and adapt to the new digital reality to effectively engage and prepare students for the future. Teachers have to possess digital competences at a high level, meaning that they are successfully able to use digital tools and technologies in their teaching practices. Digital competences include digital literacy, experience using educational software and platforms, and the ability to seamlessly integrate information and communication technologies (ICT) into the organization of educational activities. The current paper aims to study the opinion of teachers in Bulgarian schools regarding the possibilities of using digital technologies to achieve educational goals and the extent to which teachers integrate digital tools in their teaching activities. Teachers’ opinions about the need for specific digital competences are important. The results of the survey show that teachers in Bulgaria actively use digital technologies in their daily teaching activities (84.8%) in order to create and provide learning content to students and to provoke their active participation, and is a convenient tool for evaluating their students’ knowledge and skills and for providing effective feedback. The conducted research also identifies the necessary competences that teachers of the digital generation of learners need—skills and competences for developing authored electronic resources in various formats for students with different learning styles, as well as for working in online environments—individually and collaboratively with other teachers.

PARADIGM OF FRACTALITY OF URBAN SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT IN CRISIS SITUATIONS

The methodology of spatial development of cities and urbanized territories over a certain historical time has objective reasons to change and it changes. Under the influence of challenges of geopolitical, demographic, social, economic, ecological content, which acquire the characteristics of crisis situations, formulation of new content of spatial planning methodology is carried out. Such processes of formulating the content of the new methodology took place at the beginning of the 20th century under the influence of the industrial revolution, such processes are taking place at the present time, in the era of the post-industrial economy and the digital transformation of society (the fourth industrial revolution). A characteristic feature of the modern situation is the lack of incremental nature of changes, they have acquired the features of non-linear processes, which in turn requires an exponential organization of research in urbanism. In turn, urban planning documentation must be adaptive to these changes. The content of fractal urbanism is revealed on the example of an urban cluster.

Problems of digitalisation of monuments and electronic records of museum collections

The article is devoted to the current problems of domestic museums regarding the preservation, research, and popularization of national cultural heritage under the conditions of globalization, informatization, and digital transformation of society. The author considers the advantages and problems associated with digitizing monuments and electronic accounting of museum collections. The main goal of digital accounting and digitization of exhibits is to increase accessibility and popularization of museums, to safely storage the collections, to promote their scientific analysis and to interpret and expand opportunities for educational and cultural activities, as well as to solve problems of technical, ethical, social, legal and methodological nature that arise in the process of using digital technologies in museum business. The author offers recommendations for their solution based on the analysis of world and domestic experience, scientific sources and normative documents, as well as on his own observations. The author justifies the expediency of using an electronic accounting system for museum funds, which contributes to time economy and data protection, preservation of exhibits, and facilitates filling in and access to scientific documentation. Special attention is paid to the digitization of museum collections in the conditions of martial law and the increased threat of physical destruction of museum exhibits. In this regard, the author substantiated the priority criteria for selecting fund items for digitization, formed in the form of a graphical logical sequence. The peculiarities of the human resources aspect of digitalisation are taken into account.

STRATEGY TO IMPROVE MSME PRODUCT BRANDING THROUGH DIGITAL MARKETING IN THE 5.0 ERA

There have been significant changes in economic life, business and trade in the era of Society 5.0. The presence of digital transformation in society has marked significant changes in business and trade activities. In order to survive and compete with many competitors, entrepreneurs need to implement HR development strategies to increase their competitiveness, one of which is by integrating their business with digital technology innovation. The aim of this research is to find out the right strategy to increase MSME product branding to increase the competitiveness of MSME product branding through digital marketing in the 5.0 era. This research uses a qualitative descriptive method, with data collection using the literature study method from various literature and relevant data related to the research topic. The research results show that the strategy for increasing MSME product branding that is needed to maximize the competitiveness of MSMEs in the 5.0 era is related to the ability to operate digital technology, as well as implementing creative and innovative marketing strategies through the use of digital technology, such as social media. media and websites to support MSME business activities and maximize their competitive advantages. Keywords: Strategy, Competitiveness, MSMEs, Human Resource Keywords: Strategy, Competitiveness, MSMEs, Human Resource

Electronic management in industries

An important factor in the modern transformation of society is digital transformation, which has many implementations. Digitalization of society is the basis for its innovative development. Digital transformation creates synergistic effects in management and production. The accumulated experience of management and production gives reason to introduce the term “digital management” and digital management technology. Currently there is a tendency to increase the importance of digital technologies in the economic systems’ development. This is what led to the emergence of the digital economy and its development. At the same time as in any new economic and technological direction there are a number of specific problems in this area. One of the main issues is the vagueness of terminology. It is associated either with a one-sided construction of definitions, or with an incorrect construction method. Digital technologies, including digital management, are becoming a generator of modern economic development. Digital control methods are changing the structure of control systems, which is clearly manifested in the digital railway and digital twin technologies. To solve this problem, the principles of the digital economy, defined by D. Tapscott, are investigated. This problem is caused by a large number of vague or incorrect interpretations of this direction. The article examines digital transformation as a phenomenon and essence. It is proved that digital management is a consequence of the digital economy and the digital transformation of society.

STIMULATING INNOVATION AND SUPPORTING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: INTEGRATION OF INVESTMENT POLICY AND DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION IN THE CONTEXT OF PANDEMICS

Background . This article examines the interconnection between state investment policy and the digital transformation of society in the context of pandemics, with an emphasis on stimulating innovation and sustainable development. The paper is dedicated to analyzing strategies that foster innovation and sustainable growth within the integration of investment policy and digital transformation, particularly under pandemic conditions. The study considers the potential of digitalization as a catalyst for the development of smart cities, which can significantly enhance the quality of life for citizens by ensuring safety, energy efficiency, and creating comfortable living conditions. Methods . Employing an analytical approach, the research assesses current strategies and initiatives, as well as explores the potential of digitalization for the development of smart cities. Results . The analysis demonstrates that digitalization can significantly improve the quality of life for citizens by ensuring safety and energy efficiency. It highlights the challenges and opportunities that arise for states and economic entities. The paper analyzes how states, regions, and business structures can adapt to rapid changes induced by digital innovations and global crises, including pandemics. It emphasizes the necessity of developing comprehensive strategies that integrate investment policy and digital technologies to achieve sustainable development and form smart cities capable of effectively responding to contemporary challenges. The role of informational transformation in creating smart cities as a platform for enhancing educational systems, healthcare, production innovation, and increasing energy efficiency is outlined. Conclusions . The conclusions underscore the relevance of smart city development in the context of integrating investment policy and digital transformations, which require new approaches to management, societal development, and interaction with global challenges. The development of comprehensive strategies that integrate investment policy and digital transformation is key to achieving sustainable development and creating smart cities capable of effectively responding to modern challenges.

ЭВОЛЮЦИЯ МОДЕЛИ ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКОГО ПОВЕДЕНИЯ ЧЕЛОВЕКА В УСЛОВИЯХ ЦИФРОВОЙ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИИ

The development of information and communication technologies and the rapid digitalization of public life are driving fundamental transformations of socio-economic systems into a knowledge society and a digital economy. The speed of change in recent decades leads to the fact that “traditional” economic models are losing their methodological sufficiency for the modern level of science and need to be rethought. As a result, the purpose of the article is to propose an updated model of human economic behavior in the context of digital transformation based on an analysis of the evolution of economic behavior models. To achieve the goal of the study, the following tasks were set: to analyze models of human economic behavior in economics and the humanities; highlight key aspects of digitalization that significantly influence changes in the socio-economic sphere of public life; characterize changes in human economic behavior generated by the digital transformation of society. As a result of the study, factors determining economic behavior in the digital economy were identified. These include: facilitating access to information as a basic consumption product; the emergence of a new form of property (intellectual property) and new objects of property (information products); changing relations between producers and consumers, employers and employees; the formation of a “sharing” economy as an innovative form of trade. The article shows the significant impact of the digital economy on changing the model of human economic behavior. A model of economic behavior is understood as a system, the elements of which determine the guidelines and choices of a person in the economic sphere. These include: the presence of objective limitations and subjective preferences of the individual, the ability to assess possible behavior options, analysis of information, choice of behavior model. In addition to these constant determinants of economic behavior, the model also contains variable factors influencing economic choice. These include: attitude towards information and the ability to access it, motivation for economic activity, rationality of actions and irrationality in decision making, goal setting as a system-forming function of the individual. Variable elements undergo significant transformations, which must be taken into account in the updated model of the behavior of “economic homo.”

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION OF SOCIETY: REFLEXION OF SOCIOLOGICAL EDUCATION

The digital transformation of society has been studied in sociological science for more than a decade, and in recent years especially intensively. At the same time, these processes are not yet reflected in all educational programmes in sociological education. In the proposed article, a statistical analysis of sociological education's reflection on the digitalisation of society is carried out. To obtain the results, we propose the following criteria: the availability of bachelor's and master's degree programmes with a "digital" orientation, the inclusion of "digital" disciplines in non-digital training programmes, and the availability of relevant literature for modern sociology students. The research has revealed a wider spread of educational programmes and offered disciplines of digital content in Master's degree programmes than in Bachelor's degree programmes. It also suggests that the existing stratification of universities (research institutes, federal, core, etc.) manifests itself as a kind of digital inequality - some universities can afford training in accordance with the requirements of digitalisation, while others lack the resources to do so. At the same time, the reflection of the digitalisation of society is still positive.

Зомбоящик съест ваши мозги на завтрак?

Introduction. The review is devoted to the publication of the book “Cyberhumanism. How communication technologies transform our society” by Nizhny Novgorod researcher A. N. Fortunatov – the Doctor of Philosophy, specialist in the field of communication studies, media philosophy and the history of television. Theoretical analysis. In the book by A. N. Fortunatov, methodological principles of communicative theory, media philosophy and humanism as a philosophical trend were combined. The result was the emergence of the term "cyberhumanism", which serves as a characteristic of the aggressive nature of communication technologies aimed, according to the author, at subordinating a person to digital means of communication and media. The author claims that the digital transformation of society is a natural phenomenon that arose as a result of the development of scientific and technological progress, however, the “callousness” of the digital sphere negatively affects the personality, that becomes only a reflection of the media. A. N. Fortunatov shows how digital media reality is constructed, where the subject and the object change places. A person ceases to be a subject in interaction with the media, since it is not he who influences them, but, on the contrary, the means of communication subordinate him to their will and the logic of existence. Conclusion. Such an ambiguous approach to the consideration of the phenomenon of media constitutes the research value of the book, which may be of interest to a wide range of readers dealing with the problems of digital society.

A Methodological Approach for the Smartification of a University Campus: The Smart ESI Use Case

As the term smart begins to move away from inflationary usage, mostly related to communication capabilities, and towards a more effective dimension, there is room for research into the systematic process of transforming the things that were not originally designed to be smart. Such a process is referred to as smartification, which evokes the digital refinement of an existing product by embedding digital technologies and smart services. The state of the art shows only a few articles that investigate such methodological approaches to provide smartness on several application domains (e.g., home appliances, buildings, cities), while the smart university domain has not been deeply faced up yet. Based on the hypothesis that a methodology synthesizes a set of suitable procedures oriented to simplify the process of measuring the degree of smartification, we propose in this work a methodology that uses technological and academic criteria for designing a tool to measure the smartification of universities. The main conclusions of this work are the following: (1) The review of the current state of the art related to smart universities and smartification reveals the need for a new vision for a more adequate and accurate assessment of the degree of smartness of universities; (2) A formal method based on Multiple-Attribute Decision Making and case study research aimed at assessing the degree of smartification within the scope of smart universities; (3) A demonstration of the feasibility and application of our method to quantify the smartification degree of the School of Computer Science (ESI) at the University of Castilla-La Mancha under the project Smart ESI; and (4) A valuable method that allows equal comparison between smart universities through a set of standardized indicators, which offers the opportunity to analyze in depth the strength and weakness, and potential achievements of any smart initiatives. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first approach aimed at assessing the extent of the smartification process in smart universities through a formal method. The outcome of this research can benefit different stakeholders: university community, researchers, and, ultimately, the digital transformation of society.

Risk-Generating aspect of public history in digital environment (on the example of Russian video blogging in the 2020s)

The article contains materials of a sociological study of public history sociocultural practices in social media. Based on the analysis of data from in-depth interviews with experts in the field of media history (N = 60) conducted in 2022-2023, a classification of the main risks that a historian faces on the Web has been compiled. The concept of digital capital was used as a theoretical framework, considering it as a relevant component of cultural, symbolic, and social types of capital. Digital transformation of society, including education system, is a factor in digitalization and democratization of knowledge. In this process, academic communities, commercial projects, initiative groups, and individual citizens face a number of risks associated with acquisition and realization of their capitals. The analysis of the research results allowed us to conclude that the relevant sources of risks are the communicative and financial side of activity. The issue of confrontation between academic community and digital popularizers of history remains debatable, as experts point out the danger of deprofessionalization in case of excessive audience orientation. Since riskiness goes hand in hand with societal instability, uncertainty, and hypervariability, political and corporate suppression of certain discourses and dynamic development of information and communication technologies have been highlighted as risks. The latter creates both risks and potential for public history development, historians mastering a new set of competences and obtaining differentiated sources of income. In this process, intangible capital is converted into material capital, actualizing the financial side of practices.

ЦИФРОВАЯ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЯ РЕГИОНАЛЬНЫХ ПОДКОМПЛЕКСОВ АПК

The article defines the relevance, purpose and objectives of the study of the theoretical aspects of digitalization and digital transformation of society. The analysis of international indices of digital transformation digital approaches in assessing the level of development of the digital economy of countries in a typical rating was carried out. The importance of using a platform approach at the regional level of the agro-industrial complex to create a digital entrepreneurial rural ecosystem is determined.

Digitalization impact factorial analysis on the consolidation prospects of urban communities

The article deals with the influence problem of digitalization processes on the prospects of urban communities’ consolidation, which is implemented through a system of multi-level factors. The opinions of modern researchers and practitioners are studied on the introduction impact of digital technologies on the process of social consolidation. The article is based on the study results of expert surveys and focus group interviews, and ambivalent assessments of participants were obtained regarding the digital transformation of society. The paper presents the expert assessment results of the factors’ importance of urban communities’ consolidation and the influence of the second level’s digitalization factor on the prospects of urban communities’ consolidation. On the basis of these data, the following conclusions are formulated: in cases where digital transformation contributes to the improvement of social interactions, it will stimulate consolidation; reflection on the negative consequences of the digital technologies’ introduction, dehumanization of social reality as a result of its hybridization may prompt citizens to consolidate.

Valențe formative ale jocurilor digitale

Digital Game - Based Learning is inevitable and is based on two big concepts: (1) digital transformation of society, including development of artificial intelligence, vis-à-vis digital natives (students) and digital immigrants (teachers) and (2) resetting training and education to be efficient. This scientific article highlights the formative values of digital games depending on its type. The advantages and risks in applying digital games during the educational process are pointed out.