Social Living Labs for Digital Participation: Designing with Regional and Rural Communities [workshop proceedings]

“Fostering digital participation through Living Labs in regional and rural Australian communities,” is a three year research project funded by the Australian Research Council. The project aims to identify the specific digital needs and practices of regional and rural residents in the context of the implementation of high speed internet. It seeks to identify new ways for enabling residents to develop their digital confidence and skills both at home and in the community. This two-day symposium will bring together researchers and practitioners from diverse backgrounds to discuss design practices in social living labs that aim to foster digital inclusion and participation. Day one will consist of practitioner and research reports, while day two will provide an opportunity for participants to imagine and design future digital participation strategies. Academic participants will also have an opportunity to contribute to a refereed edited volume by Chandos Publishing (an imprint of Elsevier).

Bi-cultural content publication on a digital noticeboard: A design and cultural differences case study

We present our observations of Aboriginal Australian practices around a custom digital noticeboard and compare our insights to related research on cultural differences, literacy and ICT4D. The digital noticeboard was created, upon a request by the community Elders, to foster communication across the community. The initial design, informed by discussions and consultations, aimed at supporting the local Aboriginal language and English, both in written and spoken form, at supporting the oral tradition, and at accommodating for different perceptions and representations of time. This paper presents observations about the first encounters with the digital noticeboard by those members of the community that took part in its conceptualization. Such observations reinforce existing knowledge on such cultural phenomena as collectivism and time perception, issues related to literacy, moderation and censorship. We contribute to framing such knowledge within a concrete case study and draw implication for design of tools for bi-cultural content publication.

Translating emotional insights into digital channel designs: Opportunities to enhance the airport experience

Purpose The purpose of this study is to identify and understand the emotions behind a passenger’s airport experience and how this can inform digital channel engagements. Design/methodology/approach This study investigates the emotional experience of two hundred (200) passengers’ journeys at an Australian domestic airport. A survey was conducted which implemented the use of Emocards and an interview approach of laddering. The responses were then analysed into attributes, consequences and values. Findings The results indicate that across key stages of the airport (parking, retail, gates and arrivals) passengers had different emotional experiences (positive, negative and neutral). The attributes, consequences and values behind these emotions were then used to propose digital channel content and purpose of various future digital channel engagements. Research limitations/implications By gaining emotional insights airports are able to generate digital channel engagements, which align with passengers’ needs and values rather than internal operational motivations. Theoretical contributions include the development of the Technology Acceptance Model to include emotional drivers as influences in the use of digital channels. Originality/value This research provides a unique method to understand the passengers’ emotional journey across the airport infrastructure and suggest how to better design digital channel engagements to address passenger latent needs.

Visual Impairment in Finnish Children : Prevalence, causes and morbidity of full-term and preterm children with visual impairment born from 1972 through 1989

The prevalence and the causes of childhood visual impairment in Finland during the 1970s and the 1980s were investigated, with special attention to risk factors and further prevention of visual impairment in children. The primary data on children with visual impairment were obtained from the Finnish Register of Visual Impairment, one of the patient registers kept up by the National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (Stakes). The data were supplemented from other registers in Stakes and from patient records of the children in Finnish central hospitals. Visual impairment had been registered in 556 children from a population of 1,138,326 children between ages 0-17, born from 1972 through 1989. The age-specific prevalence of registered visual impairment was 49/100,000 in total. Of them, 23/100,000 were blind children and 11/100,000 were children born prematurely. Boys were impaired more often and more severely than girls. Congenital malformations (52%), systemic diseases (48%), and multiple impairments (50%) were common. The main ophthalmic groups of visual impairment were retinal diseases (35%), ocular malformations (29%), and neuro-ophthalmological disorders (29%). Optic nerve atrophy was the most common diagnosis of visual impairment (22%), followed by congenital cataract (11%), retinopathy of prematurity (10%), and cerebral visual impairment (8%). Genetic factors (42%) were the most common etiologies of visual impairment, followed by prenatal (30%) and perinatal (21%) factors. The highest rates of blindness were seen in cerebral visual impairment (83%) and retinopathy of prematurity (82%). Retinopathy of prematurity had developed in the children born at a gestational age of 32 weeks or earlier. Significant risks for visual impairment were found in the association with preterm births, prenatal infections, birth asphyxia, neonatal respiratory difficulties, mechanical ventilation lasting over two weeks, and hyperbilirubinemia. A rise in blind and multi-impaired children was seen during the study period, associating with increases in the survival of preterm infants with extremely low birth weight. The incidence of visual impairment in children born prematurely was seven times higher than in children born at full term. A reliable profile of childhood visual impairment was obtained. The importance of highly qualified antenatal, neonatal, and ophthalmological care was clearly proved. The risks associated with pre- and perinatal disorders during pregnancy must be emphasized, e.g. the risks associated with maternal infections and the use of tobacco, alcohol, and drugs during pregnancy. Obvious needs for gene therapies and other new treatments for hereditary diseases were also proved.

Digital Photography in the Diagnosis and Follow-up of Ocular Diseases

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to develop and test new digital imaging equipment and methods for diagnosis and follow-up of ocular diseases. Methods: The whole material comprised 398 subjects (469 examined eyes), including 241 patients with melanocytic choroidal tumours, 56 patients with melanocytic iris tumours, 42 patients with diabetes, a 52-year old patient with chronic phase of VKH disease, a 30-year old patient with an old blunt eye injury, and 57 normal healthy subjects. Digital 50° (Topcon TRC 50 IA) and 45° (Canon CR6-45NM) fundus cameras, a new handheld digital colour videocamera for eye examinations (MediTell), a new subtraction method using the Topcon Image Net Program (Topcon corporation, Tokyo, Japan), a new method for digital IRT imaging of the iris we developed, and Zeiss photoslitlamp with a digital camera body were used for digital imaging. Results: Digital 50° red-free imaging had a sensitivity of 97.7% and two-field 45° and 50° colour imaging a sensitivity of 88.9-94%. The specificity of the digital 45°-50° imaging modalities was 98.9-100% versus the reference standard and ungradeable images that were 1.2-1.6%. By using the handheld digital colour video camera only, the optic disc and central fundus located inside 20° from the fovea could be recorded with a sensitivity of 6.9% for detection of at least mild NPDR when compared with the reference standard. Comparative use of digital colour, red-free, and red light imaging showed 85.7% sensitivity, 99% specificity, and 98.2 % exact agreement versus the reference standard in differentiation of small choroidal melanoma from pseudomelanoma. The new subtraction method showed growth in four of 94 melanocytic tumours (4.3%) during a mean ±SD follow-up of 23 ± 11 months. The new digital IRT imaging of the iris showed the sphincter muscle and radial contraction folds of Schwalbe in the pupillary zone and radial structural folds of Schwalbe and circular contraction furrows in the ciliary zone of the iris. The 52-year-old patient with a chronic phase of VKH disease showed extensive atrophy and occasional pigment clumps in the iris stroma, detachment of the ciliary body with severe ocular hypotony, and shallow retinal detachment of the posterior pole in both eyes. Infrared transillumination imaging and fluorescein angiographic findings of the iris showed that IR translucence (p=0.53), complete masking of fluorescence (p=0.69), presence of disorganized vessels (p=0.32), and fluorescein leakage (p=1.0) at the site of the lesion did not differentiate an iris nevus from a melanoma. Conclusions: Digital 50° red-free and two-field 50° or 45° colour imaging were suitable for DR screening, whereas the handheld digital video camera did not fulfill the needs of DR screening. Comparative use of digital colour, red-free and red light imaging was a suitable method in the differentiation of small choroidal melanoma from different pseudomelanomas. The subtraction method may reveal early growth of the melanocytic choroidal tumours. Digital IRT imaging may be used to study changes of the stroma and posterior surface of the iris in various diseases of the uvea. It contributed to the revealment of iris atrophy and serous detachment of the ciliary body with ocular hypotony together with the shallow retinal detachment of the posterior pole as new findings of the chronic phase of VKH disease. Infrared translucence and angiographic findings are useful in differential diagnosis of melanocytic iris tumours, but they cannot be used to determine if the lesion is benign or malignant.

Digital competence and professional development of vocational education and training teachers in Queensland

Teaching with digital technologies is essential to the development of 21st century students’ graduate capabilities. However, relatively little is known about the extent to which Queensland VET teachers engage with digitally-enhanced teaching, or have the capacity to do so. Using a mixed methods approach, this thesis investigated the current digital teaching capacities of VET teachers and how current professional development opportunities are helping to address their learning needs.

Novel window functions for digital filters

Window technique is one of the simplest methods to design Finite Impulse Response (FIR) filters. It uses special functions to truncate an infinite sequence to a finite one. In this paper, we propose window techniques based on integer sequences. The striking feature of the proposed work is that it overcomes all the problems posed by floating point numbers and inaccuracy, as the sequences are made of only integers. Some of these integer window sequences, yield sharp transition, while some of them result in zero ripple in passband and stopband.

Instagrammatics and digital methods: Studying visual social media, from selfies and GIFs to memes and emoji

Visual content is a critical component of everyday social media, on platforms explicitly framed around the visual (Instagram and Vine), on those offering a mix of text and images in myriad forms (Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr), and in apps and profiles where visual presentation and provision of information are important considerations. However, despite being so prominent in forms such as selfies, looping media, infographics, memes, online videos, and more, sociocultural research into the visual as a central component of online communication has lagged behind the analysis of popular, predominantly text-driven social media. This paper underlines the increasing importance of visual elements to digital, social, and mobile media within everyday life, addressing the significant research gap in methods for tracking, analysing, and understanding visual social media as both image-based and intertextual content. In this paper, we build on our previous methodological considerations of Instagram in isolation to examine further questions, challenges, and benefits of studying visual social media more broadly, including methodological and ethical considerations. Our discussion is intended as a rallying cry and provocation for further research into visual (and textual and mixed) social media content, practices, and cultures, mindful of both the specificities of each form, but also, and importantly, the ongoing dialogues and interrelations between them as communication forms.

Patient exposure monitoring and radiation qualities in two-dimensional digital x-ray imaging

The methods for estimating patient exposure in x-ray imaging are based on the measurement of radiation incident on the patient. In digital imaging, the useful dose range of the detector is large and excessive doses may remain undetected. Therefore, real-time monitoring of radiation exposure is important. According to international recommendations, the measurement uncertainty should be lower than 7% (confidence level 95%). The kerma-area product (KAP) is a measurement quantity used for monitoring patient exposure to radiation. A field KAP meter is typically attached to an x-ray device, and it is important to recognize the effect of this measurement geometry on the response of the meter. In a tandem calibration method, introduced in this study, a field KAP meter is used in its clinical position and calibration is performed with a reference KAP meter. This method provides a practical way to calibrate field KAP meters. However, the reference KAP meters require comprehensive calibration. In the calibration laboratory it is recommended to use standard radiation qualities. These qualities do not entirely correspond to the large range of clinical radiation qualities. In this work, the energy dependence of the response of different KAP meter types was examined. According to our findings, the recommended accuracy in KAP measurements is difficult to achieve with conventional KAP meters because of their strong energy dependence. The energy dependence of the response of a novel large KAP meter was found out to be much lower than with a conventional KAP meter. The accuracy of the tandem method can be improved by using this meter type as a reference meter. A KAP meter cannot be used to determine the radiation exposure of patients in mammography, in which part of the radiation beam is always aimed directly at the detector without attenuation produced by the tissue. This work assessed whether pixel values from this detector area could be used to monitor the radiation beam incident on the patient. The results were congruent with the tube output calculation, which is the method generally used for this purpose. The recommended accuracy can be achieved with the studied method. New optimization of radiation qualities and dose level is needed when other detector types are introduced. In this work, the optimal selections were examined with one direct digital detector type. For this device, the use of radiation qualities with higher energies was recommended and appropriate image quality was achieved by increasing the low dose level of the system.

Book Review: "Engin Isin and Evelyn Ruppert, Being Digital Citizens. London: Rowman & Littlefield, 2015"

The concept of digital citizenship has become increasingly important to our understanding of the relationship between media and political action, and the possibilities for democratization, decentralization, and diversification of power offered by the Internet. In the era of the digitalization of just about everything, citizenship and its related concepts are in processes of technology-driven transformation, with important implications for the global future of democratic culture. Isin and Ruppert’s book is a timely engagement with these questions, and with the emerging notion of the “digital subject.”

Leading Digital Transformation: Building Technology and Information Governance Capability in Boards of Directors and the C-Suite

Information and technology and its use in organisation transformation presents unprecedented opportunities and risks. Increasingly, the Governance of Enterprise Information and Technology (GEIT) competency in the board room and executive is needed. Whether your organization is small or large, public, private or not for profit or whether your industry is not considered high-tech, IT is impacting your sector – no exceptions. But there is a skill shortage in boards: GEIT capability is concerningly low. This capability is urgently needed across the board, including those directors who come from finance, legal, marketing, operations and HR backgrounds. Digital disruption also affects all occupations. Putting in place a vision will help ensure emergency responses will meet technology-related duty of care responsibilities. When GEIT-related forward thinking and planning is carried out at the same time that you put your business strategy and plan in place, your organization has a significantly increased chance of not only surviving, but thriving into the future. Those organizations that don’t build GEIT capability risk joining the growing list of once-leading firms left behind in the digital ‘cloud of smoke’. Those organizations that do will be better placed to reap the benefits and hedge against the risks of a digital world. This chapter provides actionable, research-based considerations and processes for boards to use, to build awareness, knowledge and skills in governing technology-related organization strategy, risk and value creation.

A Safe Vaccine (DV-STM-07) against Salmonella Infection Prevents Abortion and Confers Protective Immunity to the Pregnant and New Born Mice

Pregnancy is a transient immuno-compromised condition which has evolved to avoid the immune rejection of the fetus by the maternal immune system. The altered immune response of the pregnant female leads to increased susceptibility to invading pathogens, resulting in abortion and congenital defects of the fetus and a subnormal response to vaccination. Active vaccination during pregnancy may lead to abortion induced by heightened cell mediated immune response. In this study, we have administered the highly attenuated vaccine strain delta pmrG-HM-D (DV-STM-07) in female mice before the onset of pregnancy and followed the immune reaction against challenge with virulent S. Typhimurium in pregnant mice. Here we demonstrate that DV-STM-07 vaccine gives protection against Salmonella in pregnant mice and also prevents Salmonella induced abortion. This protection is conferred by directing the immune response towards Th2 activation and Th1 suppression. The low Th1 response prevents abortion. The use of live attenuated vaccine just before pregnancy carries the risk of transmission to the fetus. We have shown that this vaccine is safe as the vaccine strain is quickly eliminated from the mother and is not transmitted to the fetus. This vaccine also confers immunity to the new born mice of vaccinated mothers. Since there is no evidence of the vaccine candidate reaching the new born mice, we hypothesize that it may be due to trans-colostral transfer of protective anti-Salmonella antibodies. These results suggest that our vaccine DV-STM-07 can be very useful in preventing abortion in the pregnant individuals and confer immunity to the new born. Since there are no such vaccine candidates which can be given to the new born and to the pregnant women, this vaccine holds a very bright future to combat Salmonella induced pregnancy loss.

An Inexpensive Digital Network Analyzer

Frequency response analysis is critical in understanding the steady and transient state behavior of any electrical network. Network analyzeror frequency response analyzer is used to determine the frequency response of an electrical network. This paper deals with the design of an inexpensive digitally controlled Network Analyzer. The frequency range of the network analyzer is from 10Hz to 50kHz (suitable range for system studies on most power electronics apparatus). It is composed of a microcontroller (as central processing unit) and a personal computer (as analyzer and display). The communication between the microcontroller and personal computer is established through one of the USB ports. The testing and evaluation of the analyzer is done with RC, RLC and multi-resonant circuits. The design steps, basis of analysis, experimental results, limitation in bandwidth and possible techniques for improvement in performances are presented.