Technology Ecosystem Research Articles

Information landscapes, technological ecosystems, enterprise discoverability, humanities open data conundrums and web search analysis for the public good: Reflections on a pandemic

Reports from UKeiG member forums, lectures and events during the pandemic, including: Open data practices in the humanities Analysing web searches for public good Defining and developing the enterprise search experience Managing the information landscape The library technology ecosystem AI - utopia or dystopia?

Personal data governance and privacy in digital reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health initiatives in Palestine and Jordan: a mapping exercise.

There is a rapid increase in using digital technology for strengthening delivery of reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health (RMNCH) services. Although digital health has potentially many benefits, utilizing it without taking into consideration the possible risks related to the security and privacy of patients' data, and consequently their rights, would yield negative consequences for potential beneficiaries. Mitigating these risks requires effective governance, especially in humanitarian and low-resourced settings. The issue of governing digital personal data in RMNCH services has to date been inadequately considered in the context of low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs). This paper aimed to understand the ecosystem of digital technology for RMNCH services in Palestine and Jordan, the levels of maturity of them, and the implementation challenges experienced, particularly concerning data governance and human rights. A mapping exercise was conducted to identify digital RMNCH initiatives in Palestine and Jordan and mapping relevant information from identified initiatives. Information was collected from several resources, including relevant available documents and personal communications with stakeholders. A total of 11 digital health initiatives in Palestine and 9 in Jordan were identified, including: 6 health information systems, 4 registries, 4 health surveillance systems, 3 websites, and 3 mobile-based applications. Most of these initiatives were fully developed and implemented. The initiatives collect patients' personal data, which are managed and controlled by the main owner of the initiative. Privacy policy was not available for many of the initiatives. Digital health is becoming a part of the health system in Palestine and Jordan, and there is an increasing use of digital technology in the field of RMNCH services in both countries, particularly expanding in recent years. This increase, however, is not accompanied by clear regulatory policies especially when it comes to privacy and security of personal data, and how this data is governed. Digital RMNCH initiatives have the potential to promote effective and equitable access to services, but stronger regulatory mechanisms are required to ensure the effective realization of this potential in practice.

Trends and Challenges in AIoT/IIoT/IoT Implementation.

For the next coming years, metaverse, digital twin and autonomous vehicle applications are the leading technologies for many complex applications hitherto inaccessible such as health and life sciences, smart home, smart agriculture, smart city, smart car and logistics, Industry 4.0, entertainment (video game) and social media applications, due to recent tremendous developments in process modeling, supercomputing, cloud data analytics (deep learning, etc.), communication network and AIoT/IIoT/IoT technologies. AIoT/IIoT/IoT is a crucial research field because it provides the essential data to fuel metaverse, digital twin, real-time Industry 4.0 and autonomous vehicle applications. However, the science of AIoT is inherently multidisciplinary, and therefore, it is difficult for readers to understand its evolution and impacts. Our main contribution in this article is to analyze and highlight the trends and challenges of the AIoT technology ecosystem including core hardware (MCU, MEMS/NEMS sensors and wireless access medium), core software (operating system and protocol communication stack) and middleware (deep learning on a microcontroller: TinyML). Two low-powered AI technologies emerge: TinyML and neuromorphic computing, but only one AIoT/IIoT/IoT device implementation using TinyML dedicated to strawberry disease detection as a case study. So far, despite the very rapid progress of AIoT/IIoT/IoT technologies, several challenges remain to be overcome such as safety, security, latency, interoperability and reliability of sensor data, which are essential characteristics to meet the requirements of metaverse, digital twin, autonomous vehicle and Industry 4.0. applications.

Evaluating the effects of ICT core elements on CO2 emissions: Recent evidence from OECD countries

This research aimed to inform policymakers about the actual climate relevance of the information and communication technology (ICT) ecosystem, which includes data centers and content provision, broadband networks, and consumer devices. To provide robust empirical evidence on the net environmental impact of these core ICT elements, we used OECD panel data for 34 Member States for the years 2002–2019 and panel fixed-effects regression models. In contrast to previous literature, we measured basic broadband and new fiber-based wireline broadband and 3G/4G mobile broadband network deployment. We also captured variations in end-user devices, ICT affinity, and famous online content. We found that, on average, the CO2-reducing effects appear to outweigh the CO2-increasing effects. In particular, we found that, in addition to the reduction effect associated with the use of basic broadband connections, there is a further, albeit smaller, reduction effect associated with new fiber-based broadband connections. Other ICT elements showed insignificant coefficient estimates, suggesting largely offsetting environmental impacts. Our main findings were subject to various robustness checks and were broadly consistent with previous literature using data from developed countries. Our results suggested that old and new broadband networks as enabling technology could generate positive environmental effects for society.

Usability Testing of a New Digital Integrated Health Ecosystem (PainRELife) for the Clinical Management of Chronic Pain in Patients With Early Breast Cancer: Protocol for a Pilot Study

Chronic pain (CP) and its management are critical issues in the care pathway of patients with breast cancer. Considering the complexity of CP experience in cancer, the international scientific community has advocated identifying cutting-edge approaches for CP management. Recent advances in the field of health technology enable the adoption of a novel approach to care management by developing integrated ecosystems and mobile health apps. The primary end point of this pilot study is to evaluate patients' usability experience at 3 months of a new digital and integrated technological ecosystem, PainRELife, for CP in a sample of patients with breast cancer. The PainRELife ecosystem is composed of 3 main technological assets integrated into a single digital ecosystem: Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources-based cloud platform (Nu platform) that enables care pathway definition and data collection; a big data infrastructure connected to the Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources server that analyzes data and implements dynamic dashboards for aggregate data visualization; and an ecosystem of personalized applications for patient-reported outcomes collection, digital delivery of interventions and tailored information, and decision support of patients and caregivers (PainRELife app). This is an observational, prospective pilot study. Twenty patients with early breast cancer and chronic pain will be enrolled at the European Institute of Oncology at the Division of Medical Senology and the Division of Pain Therapy and Palliative Care. Each patient will use the PainRELife mobile app for 3 months, during which data extracted from the questionnaires will be sent to the Nu Platform that health care professionals will manage. This pilot study is nested in a large-scale project named "PainRELife," which aims to develop a cloud technology platform to interoperate with institutional systems and patients' devices to collect integrated health care data. The study received approval from the Ethical Committee of the European Cancer Institute in December 2021 (number R1597/21-IEO 1701). The recruitment process started in May 2022 and ended in October 2022. The new integrated technological ecosystems might be considered an encouraging affordance to enhance a patient-centered approach to managing patients with cancer. This pilot study will inform about which features the health technological ecosystems should have to be used by cancer patients to manage CP. DERR1-10.2196/41216.

The Evolution of the Triple Helix Thematic: a Social Networks Analysis

Abstract This study presents the evolution of the Triple Helix thematic using social network analysis. Our research covered 1,122 publications from the Web of Science database between 1995 and 2022. To analyze the data, we adopted the CiteSpace software, from which we interpreted the general properties of the co-citation network and the countries’ network. We also explored a set of nodes’ centralities to identify relevant publications and countries. The results showed two trends related to the literature relevance across different innovation systems. The first one is a possible theoretical replacement by authors who publish mainly about relationships between entities in economically developed countries that are leaders in innovation, whose research migrated from the Triple Helix model to the Quadruple Helix model. The second trend relates to the studies’ continuity based on the prior model by authors investigating innovation systems in less advanced technological ecosystems with newborn or young relationships.

Brutto Assessment of the Early Stage of Research Activity

Indices are widely included in the tools of modern scientometrics. However, there is no reliable numerical criterion for distinguishing between the assessment of the level of various candidate or PhD dissertations, despite the huge differences, sometimes hundreds times, in impact indicators of journals in which work of different doctorates is published. The article discusses brutto evaluation at an early stage of research activity in a wider discourse using the example of a simple scientometric index of publications, ab-index. Case of its calculation, analysis of its features, role in stimulating and ensuring coverage, connection with research impact, comparison with Hirsch index, and recommendations for its use are given. We provide facts, data, reasons, invite to discussion, and illustrate that some indexes have a useful advisory function only if their status is indicated, their scope of applicability is delicately outlined, their place in the overall structure and processes is indicated, discrimination based on one or another index value is eliminated, and appropriate compensatory or transformational measures are deployed to development of scientific and technological ecosystem, instead ofengaging in the production of more indicators, characterized as a mechanism for suppressing knowledge, technologies, and competencies.

DESIGNING A TECHNOLOGY VALUATION MODEL IN IRANIAN STARTUPS

Technology valuation is needed by companies in today's knowledge-based economy. The intangible nature of technology, influence of environmental factors and conditions on it, have made calculating its value complicated. At present, a large part of the country's economic activities in the technological ecosystem is carried out by companies and startups, whose growth and development are possible with the influx of capital. Therefore, the aim of the upcoming research was to identify dimensions and explain the technology valuation model in Iranian startups. The approach of the research is qualitative, and in the research process, the Grounded Theory has been used. The 10 participants including active experts, policymakers, consultants, and CEOs in Iran's startup ecosystem, were selected by using the purposeful sampling method and analyzed by using the content analysis method. Participants identified factors such as lack of technology valuation requirements, bubble of startups claiming technology, innovation as causal factors, technology brokers and conflict of interests as interfering factors in the strategies of the desired phenomenon, development and promotion of technology valuation discourse, transformation of existing knowledge in the field of technology to valuable knowledge, leadership and idea management and localization of technology valuation as solution-oriented strategies, benefits of calculating the real value of technology and valuation process itself regardless of the result were expressed as the consequences of expanding the technology valuation model in Iranian startups. In this way, the dimensions of the desired model were extracted and explained.

Comparative Analysis of Building Information Modeling (BIM) Patterns and Trends in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with Developed Countries

This research seeks to gain a deeper understanding of the current ecosystem of BIM technology and its utilization in the UAE. Since the UAE has been an early adopter of BIM, its utilization of BIM is now likely to reach that of developed nations. By adopting the BIM case study analysis framework, two sets of projects of similar categories in terms of functionality and typology were selected and mapped. One set represents projects within the UAE, and the second represents projects from developed nations utilizing BIM during the projects’ lifecycle (LC). Incorporating expert interviews to triangulate the results collected from the case study analysis will further contribute to developing a more in-depth comprehension of BIM use in the UAE. The three significant inferences can be drawn from the findings. Firstly, in the UAE, stakeholders utilize BIM fragmentarily in different stages. Secondly, the full extent of BIM utilization over the project’s LC is not pursued. Thirdly, no effective BIM standards or protocols exist. Even though international firms are the main drivers of UAE BIM adoption and utilization, UAE BIM is still in its infancy, necessitating a more collaborative effort to realize the holistic benefits of the BIM process. The findings could be utilized to identify industry standards and guiding principles for BIM implementation in the UAE and help identify areas for improvement. It also provides valuable insights into how BIM can be used more effectively in the country and how its use can be promoted. Additionally, it could be used as a guide for owners/asset managers and AEC professionals in the UAE looking to implement BIM in their projects.

A Novel Telerehabilitation Approach for Cognitive-Language Therapy in Chronic Stroke Subjects With Aphasia: Neurocognitive Intervention Through Neurorehabilitation Exercises and Assessments

By stating “All people, everywhere, deserve the right care, right in their community,” <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref21" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">[21]</xref> . the World Health Organization sets, in an exhortative way, the fundamental assumption for primary health care. Under these premises, we developed an augmented and extended approach to a home-rehabilitation system to provide intensive care to chronic stroke patients with aphasia. The system proposes neurocognitive intervention based on an information and communication technologies ecosystem through neurorehabilitation exercises and assessments. In this study, we analyzed the feasibility, satisfaction, and motivation of patients, and the clinical effect of the intervention using this complex platform which, among other functions, allows the administration of speech and language home therapy. Eight patients conducted a therapeutic plan, including speech therapy, using the remote asynchronous rehabilitation system; seven patients were included in the control group (CG) and followed a traditional speech-therapy program. The analysis of usage revealed that participants made continuous and intensive use of the platform. The results confirmed the acceptability, perceived usefulness, and ease of use of the proposed platform. Clinical assessments showed that the system administers speech and language rehabilitation as effectively as traditional therapy, allowing one to consider such an approach as a valid alternative to standard face-to-face speech therapy.

CleAR: an interoperable architecture for multi-user AR-based school curricula

Although there are some experiences that demonstrate the validity of the use of augmented reality in schools to help students understand and retain complex concepts, augmented reality has not been widely adopted in the education sector yet. This is in part because it is hard to use augmented reality applications in collaborative learning scenarios and to integrate them in the existing school curricula. In this work, we present an interoperable architecture that simplifies the creation of augmented reality applications, enables multi-user student collaboration and provides advanced mechanisms for data analysis and visualization. A review of the literature together with a survey answered by 47 primary and secondary school teachers allowed us to identify the design objectives of cleAR, an architecture for augmented reality-based collaborative educational applications. cleAR has been validated through the development of three proofs of concept. cleAR provides a more mature technological ecosystem that will foster the emergence of augmented reality applications for education and their inclusion in existing school programs.

Application of Artificial Intelligence in the Military: An Overview

Modern-day research and innovation have expedited the proliferation of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Its impacts on society, economy, and power are ever-increasing. This paper highlights the remarkable advancements in the entire ecosystem of AI-associated technologies comprising machine learning, computer vision, natural language processing, robotics, brain-machine interface, etc., and their innovative usage in pioneering military technologies/strategies. This paper scrutinizes the unprecedented contingencies and challenges of AI application on three core facets of future defence, i.e., Autonomous Weaponry and Warfare, Intelligence, and National Security. Several powers in the “geopolitical chessboard” have already begun to exploit AI for military applications like intelligence analysis, surveillance, autonomous weaponry, reconnaissance, and logistics. This will eventually propel AI to be the new dimension of military strength evaluation and a pivotal entity for national security. This paper predicts the future of military applications, their constraints and challenges, and also recommends the steps to be pursued by technologically fragile countries like Nepal to acclimatize with these AI-induced transformations. The research will follow a qualitative methodology to analyse AI development and its military incorporation, challenges, and prospects. The review of the published articles, opinions, commentaries, and findings worldwide on AI-driven innovations underscores the results. In sum, the research aims to discuss the future of military applications in light of the burgeoning ecosystem of AI.

Influence of ASSURE model in enhancing educational technology

ABSTRACT With the emergence of the Industrial Revolution 4.0, modern technologies such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and big data are profoundly transforming the education ecosystem. The development of education is not only faced with huge challenges but also contains rare opportunities. New concepts such as deep learning, adaptive learning, and blended learning do not break through the inherent barriers of learning theory, and they also expedite the restoration of the educational technology ecosystem. Based on the ASSURE model, this paper systematically discusses the new development concept of educational technology. Heinich, Russell, and Molenda proposed the ASSURE model in 1989. The “A” stands for Analyze Learner, the first “S” is assumed as Objectives and State Standards; the second “S” for Selecting Media, Strategies, Materials, and Technology; the “U” for Utilizing Materials, Media, and Technology; the “R” stands for Required Learner Participation; and the “E” is assigned for Revise and Evaluate. It is widely used in classroom instruction, online learning, and organizational training. Educational technology must embrace new technology, renew the concept of educational development, shape the new pattern of educational ecology, and better serve the needs of cultivating innovative talents.

Emerging technologies for digitalized learning in higher education

PurposeAcademic institutions, for the most part, discontinued face-to-face classes in favor of adopting and deploying online learning modalities that allowed for immediate participation. The pandemic has hastened the pace of implementation as well as the utilization of and reliance on technology. Artificial intelligence (AI) is important for higher education business continuity. Currently, some institutions are utilizing these resources to strengthen their student recruitment and retention efforts. Others use them to make the classroom more accessible or to construct tailored learning programs.Design/methodology/approachThe rapid spread of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 has compelled many countries to enact stringent measures to halt the virus’s spread. The pandemic has hastened the adoption of online teaching and remote work technology. While a combination of online and face-to-face learning is the way of the future, it will necessitate additional resources to support program development and delivery, as well as increased collaboration between IT and subject matter experts.FindingsThis successful technological integration, which includes a smooth transition from face-to-face training to digital e-courses, provides a variety of benefits, including money saved on travel expenses. Top technological developments will continue to enhance company innovation and efficiency while also improving service efficiency. The top strategic technology trends for this year fall into three categories: human centricity, location independence, and resilient delivery, and are expected to be significant for the next five to ten years. Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) will need to establish a technological ecosystem that is dependable, cloud-based, data-integrated, and learning-focused to compete successfully in this “new normal.” After the epidemic, when classes resume on campus, a hybrid approach to virtual learning is likely to become the new normal. While it is unlikely that campuses would be totally virtual, they will also be unlikely to be entirely physical.Originality/valueA blend of actual and virtual classrooms, as well as online learning, is the long-term solution, and strategic decisions made now will be critical in preparing for a post-pandemic world.

Potential Improvement in a Portable Health Clinic for Community Health Service to Control Non-Communicable Diseases in Indonesia

The COVID-19 pandemic has limited routine community health services, including screening for non-communicable diseases (NCDs). An adaptive and innovative digital approach is needed in the health technology ecosystem. A portable health clinic (PHC) is a community-based mobile health service equipped with telemonitoring and teleconsultation using portable medical devices and an Android application. The aim of this study was to assess the challenges and potential improvement in PHC implementation in Indonesia. This study was conducted in February–April 2021 in three primary health centers, Mlati II in Sleman District, Samigaluh II in Kulon Progo, and Kalikotes in Klaten. In-depth interviews were conducted with 11 health workers and community health workers. At the baseline, 268 patients were examined, and 214 patients were successfully followed-up until the third month. A proportion of 32% of the patients required teleconsultations based on automatic triage. Implementation challenges included technical constraints such as complexity of applications; unstable networks; and non-technical constraints, such as the effectivity of training, the availability of doctors, and the workload at the primary health center. PHCs were perceived as an added value in addition to existing community-based health services. The successful implementation of PHCs should not only be considered with respect to technology but also in terms of human impact, organization, and legality.

Engage Students in News Writing

The technologies evolution impacts how information is produced and consumed by users. Nonetheless, with the spread of information content available on most online news platforms, the misinformation increases alongside the less credible content. In this scope, the present research aims to develop a technological ecosystem to promote students’ writing ability. The system will help students, search for credible content to create school newspapers. Thus, in this article, the architecture of the solution for news writing tool for the Portuguese language is presented.This paper aims to introduce a constructive approach that presents the system architecture that will support the development of a news creation tool.

Evaluation of the use of inter-company platform relations

The research objective of this study is to systematize the experience of organizing digital platforms in the field of inter-company relations to assess the level of their use by Russian enterprises. The research is based on a methodological generalization of published scientific results and an empirical analysis of general trends in the development of the organization of inter-firm interaction based on digital platforms among manufacturing enterprises. The obtained results showed the presence of several types of digital platforms used for the organization of inter-company relations. The practice of Russian enterprises is dominated by simpler platform solutions aimed at increasing the transactional efficiency of inter-firm interactions, allowing their participants to achieve positive effects associated with an increase in the number of counterparties, an increase in sales, a reduction in risks and transaction costs of interaction with counterparties. It is concluded that the possibility of achieving more significant transformational effects is associated with the development of technological ecosystems of platforms, which requires the participating enterprises to significantly transform business processes based on costly investments in capital-intensive and technologically complex solutions.

Municipal solid waste management technological barriers: A hierarchical structure approach in Taiwan

The ecosystem of digital technologies in Industry 4.0 is growing continuously, new data and information sources integration rising has carried notable value in waste management transitions with various technological barriers remains. The municipal solid waste management technological attributes are illustrated by qualitative information, and it is hard to form the consistent interdependence hierarchical structure under interrelationships. This study applies the fuzzy Delphi method to obtain the valid attributes. Fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory is to envisage the interrelationships among the attributes. The analytic network process is to test the consistency among the hierarchical structures. The results provide an insight of municipal solid waste management technological barriers in Taiwan. The cyber-physical limitations, artificial intelligence application challenges, and human interface problems as cause aspects. In practices, (1) inadequate public data, (2) robotic process automation limitations, and (3) lack of predictive and emergency assistance, hinders the municipal solid waste management technological improvement.

Large-scale calibration and simulation of COVID-19 epidemiologic scenarios to support healthcare planning

The COVID-19 pandemic has provided stiff challenges for planning and resourcing in health services in the UK and worldwide. Epidemiological models can provide simulations of how infectious disease might progress in a population given certain parameters. We adapted an agent-based model of COVID-19 to inform planning and decision-making within a healthcare setting, and created a software framework that automates processes for calibrating the model parameters to health data and allows the model to be run at national population scale on National Health Service (NHS) infrastructure. We developed a method for calibrating the model to three daily data streams (hospital admissions, intensive care occupancy, and deaths), and demonstrate that on cross-validation the model fits acceptably to unseen data streams including official estimates of COVID-19 incidence. Once calibrated, we use the model to simulate future scenarios of the spread of COVID-19 in England and show that the simulations provide useful projections of future COVID-19 clinical demand. These simulations were used to support operational planning in the NHS in England, and we present the example of the use of these simulations in projecting future clinical demand during the rollout of the national COVID-19 vaccination programme. Being able to investigate uncertainty and test sensitivities was particularly important to the operational planning team. This epidemiological model operates within an ecosystem of data technologies, drawing on a range of NHS, government and academic data sources, and provides results to strategists, planners and downstream data systems. We discuss the data resources that enabled this work and the data challenges that were faced.

Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) ecosystems in Indonesia (1945-2021): A historical policy analysis

By the mid 2019, the President of Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo had stipulated Law No. 11/2019, concerning the National System of Science and Technology. This regulation served as an efforts from the Indonesian government to build the science and technology and innovation ecosystem lies in terms of strengthening innovation policies. The implication of this policy mandates that the National Research and Innovation Agency serves as the only research and innovation institution owned by the Government of Republic of Indonesia. Efforts in establishing the science and technology ecosystem and innovation have been initiated since the era of President Soekarno (1945-1965), which was further continued in the leadership of the next president. The aforementioned efforts are additionally described in this study from the perspective of policy history. A content analysis approach is employed to identify each stipulated regulation in Indonesia in the form of Laws, Government Regulations, Presidential Regulations, Presidential Decrees, and Presidential Instructions. There are 78 regulations in the field of science and technology and innovation that are analyzed. The results of the analysis are described based on the emergence of regulations and institutional implications generated as part of the ecosystem.