38,446 research outputs found

    The Metaverse: Survey, Trends, Novel Pipeline Ecosystem & Future Directions

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    The Metaverse offers a second world beyond reality, where boundaries are non-existent, and possibilities are endless through engagement and immersive experiences using the virtual reality (VR) technology. Many disciplines can benefit from the advancement of the Metaverse when accurately developed, including the fields of technology, gaming, education, art, and culture. Nevertheless, developing the Metaverse environment to its full potential is an ambiguous task that needs proper guidance and directions. Existing surveys on the Metaverse focus only on a specific aspect and discipline of the Metaverse and lack a holistic view of the entire process. To this end, a more holistic, multi-disciplinary, in-depth, and academic and industry-oriented review is required to provide a thorough study of the Metaverse development pipeline. To address these issues, we present in this survey a novel multi-layered pipeline ecosystem composed of (1) the Metaverse computing, networking, communications and hardware infrastructure, (2) environment digitization, and (3) user interactions. For every layer, we discuss the components that detail the steps of its development. Also, for each of these components, we examine the impact of a set of enabling technologies and empowering domains (e.g., Artificial Intelligence, Security & Privacy, Blockchain, Business, Ethics, and Social) on its advancement. In addition, we explain the importance of these technologies to support decentralization, interoperability, user experiences, interactions, and monetization. Our presented study highlights the existing challenges for each component, followed by research directions and potential solutions. To the best of our knowledge, this survey is the most comprehensive and allows users, scholars, and entrepreneurs to get an in-depth understanding of the Metaverse ecosystem to find their opportunities and potentials for contribution

    The Viability and Potential Consequences of IoT-Based Ransomware

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    With the increased threat of ransomware and the substantial growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) market, there is significant motivation for attackers to carry out IoT-based ransomware campaigns. In this thesis, the viability of such malware is tested. As part of this work, various techniques that could be used by ransomware developers to attack commercial IoT devices were explored. First, methods that attackers could use to communicate with the victim were examined, such that a ransom note was able to be reliably sent to a victim. Next, the viability of using "bricking" as a method of ransom was evaluated, such that devices could be remotely disabled unless the victim makes a payment to the attacker. Research was then performed to ascertain whether it was possible to remotely gain persistence on IoT devices, which would improve the efficacy of existing ransomware methods, and provide opportunities for more advanced ransomware to be created. Finally, after successfully identifying a number of persistence techniques, the viability of privacy-invasion based ransomware was analysed. For each assessed technique, proofs of concept were developed. A range of devices -- with various intended purposes, such as routers, cameras and phones -- were used to test the viability of these proofs of concept. To test communication hijacking, devices' "channels of communication" -- such as web services and embedded screens -- were identified, then hijacked to display custom ransom notes. During the analysis of bricking-based ransomware, a working proof of concept was created, which was then able to remotely brick five IoT devices. After analysing the storage design of an assortment of IoT devices, six different persistence techniques were identified, which were then successfully tested on four devices, such that malicious filesystem modifications would be retained after the device was rebooted. When researching privacy-invasion based ransomware, several methods were created to extract information from data sources that can be commonly found on IoT devices, such as nearby WiFi signals, images from cameras, or audio from microphones. These were successfully implemented in a test environment such that ransomable data could be extracted, processed, and stored for later use to blackmail the victim. Overall, IoT-based ransomware has not only been shown to be viable but also highly damaging to both IoT devices and their users. While the use of IoT-ransomware is still very uncommon "in the wild", the techniques demonstrated within this work highlight an urgent need to improve the security of IoT devices to avoid the risk of IoT-based ransomware causing havoc in our society. Finally, during the development of these proofs of concept, a number of potential countermeasures were identified, which can be used to limit the effectiveness of the attacking techniques discovered in this PhD research

    Causes of Cassava Post-Harvest Losses Among Farmers In Imo State, Nigeria

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    ABSTRACT The study examined farmers perception of post harvest cassava losses in Imo state. It specifically addressed the frequency of use of electronic sources of information on post harvest losses, perceived causes of cassava post-harvest losses and the involvement in cassava processing. A structured questionnaire was used to obtain data from 120 rural farmers selected at random. Data was analyzed using SPSS to obtain the mean, percentage and mean score. Findings from the study reveal that the frequency of use of the eight electronic sources of information on post harvest cassava losses listed has a grand mean of 1.7, an indication of low use of the sources. Mobile phone calls/SMS has the highest mean score(3.01). Age, education, household size, farm size, were important socioeconomic characteristics influencing the perceived causes of post harvest losses having been found significant at 5% level. Cassava farmers should be granted credit facilities and be encouraged to form cooperatives to help raise fund and get facility needed to reduce post-harvest losses. Farmers should be encouraged to use other electronic sources in order to enjoy those services and keep abreast of information on cassava post harvest losses. Keywords; post harvest cassava losses, E- information sources

    Digital Library of the Middle East

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    The Digital Library of the Middle East (DLME) is a collaborative, free-access aggregator developed by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR), Stanford Libraries, and the Qatar National Library. The platform brings together records from thirty-nine holding institutions related to the Middle East and North Africa

    A Design Science Research Approach to Smart and Collaborative Urban Supply Networks

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    Urban supply networks are facing increasing demands and challenges and thus constitute a relevant field for research and practical development. Supply chain management holds enormous potential and relevance for society and everyday life as the flow of goods and information are important economic functions. Being a heterogeneous field, the literature base of supply chain management research is difficult to manage and navigate. Disruptive digital technologies and the implementation of cross-network information analysis and sharing drive the need for new organisational and technological approaches. Practical issues are manifold and include mega trends such as digital transformation, urbanisation, and environmental awareness. A promising approach to solving these problems is the realisation of smart and collaborative supply networks. The growth of artificial intelligence applications in recent years has led to a wide range of applications in a variety of domains. However, the potential of artificial intelligence utilisation in supply chain management has not yet been fully exploited. Similarly, value creation increasingly takes place in networked value creation cycles that have become continuously more collaborative, complex, and dynamic as interactions in business processes involving information technologies have become more intense. Following a design science research approach this cumulative thesis comprises the development and discussion of four artefacts for the analysis and advancement of smart and collaborative urban supply networks. This thesis aims to highlight the potential of artificial intelligence-based supply networks, to advance data-driven inter-organisational collaboration, and to improve last mile supply network sustainability. Based on thorough machine learning and systematic literature reviews, reference and system dynamics modelling, simulation, and qualitative empirical research, the artefacts provide a valuable contribution to research and practice

    Subsidiary Entrepreneurial Alertness: Antecedents and Outcomes

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    This thesis brings together concepts from both international business and entrepreneurship to develop a framework of the facilitators of subsidiary innovation and performance. This study proposes that Subsidiary Entrepreneurial Alertness (SEA) facilitates the recognition of opportunities (the origin of subsidiary initiatives). First introduced by Kirzner (1979) in the context of the individual, entrepreneurial alertness (EA) is the ability to notice an opportunity without actively searching. Similarly, to entrepreneurial alertness at the individual level, this study argues that SEA enables the subsidiary to best select opportunities based on resources available. The research further develops our conceptualisation of SEA by drawing on work by Tang et al. (2012) identifying three distinct activities of EA: scanning and search (identifying opportunities unseen by others due to their awareness gaps), association and connection of information, and evaluation and judgement to interpret or anticipate future viability of opportunities. This study then hypothesises that SEA leads to opportunity recognition at the subsidiary level and further hypothesises innovation and performance as outcomes of opportunity recognition. This research brings these arguments together to develop and test a comprehensive theoretical model. The theoretical model is tested through a mail survey of the CEOs/MDs of foreign subsidiaries within the Republic of Ireland (an innovative hub for foreign subsidiaries). This method was selected as the best method to reach the targeted respondent, and due to the depth of knowledge the target respondent holds, the survey can answer the desired question more substantially. The results were examined using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The study’s findings confirm two critical aspects of subsidiary context, subsidiary brokerage and subsidiary credibility are positively related to SEA. The study establishes a positive link between SEA and both the generation of innovation and the subsidiary’s performance. This thesis makes three significant contributions to the subsidiary literature as it 1) introduces and develops the concept of SEA, 2) identifies the antecedents of SEA, and 3) demonstrates the impact of SEA on subsidiary opportunity recognition. Implications for subsidiaries, headquarters and policy makers are discussed along with the limitations of the study

    Reviewing the literature on scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL): An academic literacies perspective: Part 2

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    There are few sources that critically evaluate the different ways of reviewing the literature on scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL). We use an academic literacies perspective as a lens with which to explore the different ways that literature reviews may be undertaken. While reviewing the literature is often presented as a scientific, objective process; the reality is much messier, nuanced, and iterative. It is a complex, context-dependent procedure. We provide a practical, critical guide to undertaking SoTL literature reviews. By adopting an academic literacies perspective, we argue that undertaking a synthesis of the literature is a socially constructed process. There is no one way of reviewing the SoTL literature. We distinguish between embedded reviews that present a review contextualising the research that follows, as in most SoTL research articles; and freestanding reviews that synthesize research on specific topics. We discuss the nature of embedded reviews, and evaluate systematic and narrative review approaches to undertaking freestanding reviews. We contend that some of the claims of the superiority of systematic reviews are unjustified. Though critical of systematic reviews, we recognise that for the most part narrative and systematic reviews have different purposes, and both are needed to review the SoTL literature. We suggest that narrative reviews are likely to continue to dominate the SoTL literature, especially while most SoTL studies use qualitative or mixed methods. It is important that contextually-sensitive judgements and interpretation of texts, associated with narrative reviews, are seen as central to the reviewing process, and as a strength rather than a weakness. This article complements a separate one, where we apply an academic literacies lens to reviewing the literature on searching the SoTL literature (Healey and Healey 2023). Together they present a narrative review of searching and reviewing the SoTL literature undertaken systematically. We conclude the current article by discussing the implications for the further development of an academic literacies perspective to searching and reviewing the SoTL literature. We call for studies investigating the lived experiences of SoTL scholars as they go about searching and reviewing the literature. We illustrate this argument with an auto-ethnographic account of the often-serendipitous nature of our hunt for sources in preparing this review and the way our thinking and writing evolved during the writing of the two articles

    Effects of School Shift Change on Sleep and Academic Performance: A Quasi-Experimental Evaluation for Adolescent Students in Brazil

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    This paper investigates the influence of the school shift change on the academic performance of 6th and 7th graders (lower secondary education) of public schools in the city of Recife, Brazil. The empirical analyses use educational data from a panel of the Brazilian Ministry of Education, with a sample of 4,500 students, 3,468 parents or guardians, 85 principals, and 137 teachers working in 87 public schools that were spatially distributed. The identification strategy explores a quasi-experiment in which some classes of the investigated sample had their school shifts changed between the two years, which occurred exclusively due to the school logistics and regardless of the parents’ preferences. Difference-in-differences models combined with propensity score matching demonstrate that students who shifted from morning to afternoon between the two years analyzed improved their Portuguese test scores, and that those who experienced the opposite change, from afternoon to morning, had a drop in the performance. Estimations in intermediary outcomes also reveal that the changes in the students’ sleeping habits are an important mechanism that explains the relation between the scores and the school shift

    Comparison of Forensic Tool Results on Android Smartphone Backup Files Using NIST Method

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    Smartphone technology currently developing not only has a positive impact but can also have a negative impact if it is used to commit crimes which can be called cybercrime. Choosing the right forensic tools is very important when conducting an investigation. So it is necessary to research the results of the comparative analysis of the performance of forensic tools on android smartphone backup files. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) method was used in this study as a parameter and for the digital evidence obtained. The results of the extraction of the OPPO A37f android smartphone from the MOBILedit tools acquired android backup files and the analysis results from using the Magnet AXIOM tools with a data accuracy rate of 39.3% from the predetermined variables. The Oxygen Forensic Tools obtained a data accuracy rate of 28.6% from the variable that has been determined. The Belkasoft Evidence Center tools can get a data accuracy rate of 35.7% of the predetermined variables. The results of this study can be concluded that the Magnet Axiom tool has a high level of accuracy compared to the Oxygen Forensic and Belkasoft Evidence Center tools in extracting data from android smartphone backup files

    SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR SENSITIVE DATA PROTECTION FOR ACCESSIBILITY USERS

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    Present disclosure discloses a method and a system for sensitive data protection for accessibility users. In some embodiments, the method includes receiving a message from user device (102-1) from the accessibility user, and identifying if the message includes sensitive data by using a predefined technique. Thereafter, the method discloses detecting if an audio device (106) is plugged in or not plugged in to the user device (102-1). If the audio device (106) is not plugged in to the user device (102-1) , the method includes performing obfuscation of the sensitive data and reads out the sensitive data with obfuscation. However, if the audio device (106) is plugged in to the user device (102-1), the method includes reading out the sensitive data without obfuscation. The present disclosure provides a secure environment with personalized obfuscation mechanism for protection of sensitive data for the accessibility users
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