The Virtual University and Avatar Technology: E-learning Through Future Technology

E-learning gains increasingly importance in academic education. Beyond present distance learning technologies a new opportunity emerges by the use of advanced avatar technology. Virtual robots acting in an environment of a virtual campus offer opportunities of advanced learning experiences. Human Machine Interaction (HMI) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) can bridge time zones and ease professional constraints of mature students. Undergraduate students may use such technology to build up topics of their studies beyond taught lectures. Objectives of the paper are to research the options, extent and limitations of avatar technology for academic studies in under- and postgraduate courses and to discuss students' potential acceptance or rejection of interaction with AI. The research method is a case study based on Sir Tony Dyson's avatar technology iBot2000. Sir Tony is a worldwide acknowledged robot specialist, creator of Star Wars' R2D2, who developed in recent years the iBot2000 technology, intelligent avatars adaptable to different environments with the availability to speak up to eight different languages and capable to provide logic answers to questions asked. This technology underwent many prototypes with the latest specific goal to offer blended E-learning entering the field of the virtual 3-D university extending Web2.0 to Web3.0 (Dyson. 2009). Sir Tony included his vast experiences gained in his personal (teaching) work with children for which he received his knighthood. The data was mainly collected through interviews with Sir Tony Dyson, which helps discover the inventor’s view on why such technology is of advantage for academic studies. Based on interviews with Sir Tony, this research critically analyses the options, richness and restrictions, which avatar (iBot2000) technology may add to academic studies. The conclusion will discuss the opportunities, which avatar technology may be able to bring to learning and teaching activities, and the foreseeable limitations – the amount of resources required and the complexity to build a fully integrated virtual 3-D campus. Key Words: virtual learning, avatar technology, iBot2000, virtual universit

Comparisons and Contrasts Between Marketing Techniques Used by the Tobacco Industry and Public Health Figures

The tobacco industry has long been known for its aggressive advertising techniques to promote its product to the general public; conversely the public health field has long been regarded as the main opposing force to the tobacco industry\u27s efforts. The public health field\u27s techniques of manipulating and presenting information has not been examined to the degree that the tobacco industry\u27s techniques have been due to public health\u27s mostly-accurate message regarding tobacco smoke. This review was performed by analyzing a variety of articles and academic sources focused on this subject. This review was conducted to examine as well as compare and contrast the methods used by both the industry and accredited public health officials and institutions. Neither the tobacco industry nor public health professionals can deny scientific findings or empirical evidence regarding tobacco smoke and its harmful qualities but that does not deter them from manipulating evidence or even producing their own contradictory studies. The tobacco industry\u27s public relation efforts to promote its product have long been a part of the industry\u27s history. It has also been shown that accredited health professionals (such as the Surgeon General) use manipulative methods to promote their bias on the issue of tobacco and smoking. Accredited health professionals display conflicts of interest when definitively shutting down any opposing opinions regarding the health risks involved with tobacco smoke. Because of the utmost importance of maintaining credibility in the public eye, both institutions must remain careful and tactful in their marketing techniques. The public, however, does not internalize the PR from the tobacco industry in the same way that it does the governmental institutions. While the government is rightfully protecting the public against the damages and harms of tobacco smoke, it is suppressing some of the potential research that can and should be conducted in order to further the public\u27s knowledge on the issue of tobacco smoke and its byproducts.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/uresposters/1087/thumbnail.jp

Ceramide Synthase 2 Interacts with Ceramide Synthases 5 and 6 at the mRNA and Protein Levels

Ceramides and sphingolipids make up major portions of the plasma membrane and therefore are crucial for cell proliferation, survival, and death. With dysregulation comes numerous pathophysiological conditions, such as Alzheimer\u27s, Huntington\u27s Disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob, cardiovascular disease, and many cancers. However, the regulation of the enzymes responsible for catalyzing the formation of ceramides is still not well understood. In this experiment, three isoforms were of focus: CerS2, CerS5, and CerS6. Through mRNA, protein, and immunofluorescence analysis, it can be concluded that these isoforms do indeed interact within the human cell in order to upregulate their activity. It was also found that cells made to overexpress CerS2 also tend to express CerS5 and CerS6 to the point of interaction between the two proteins

Global e-government Web Accessibility: An Empirical Examination of EU, Asian and African Sites

Accessibility of government Web sites is an important factor for inclusion of disabled persons to be able to fully utilize a variety of government services and information. In this paper, we examine the levels of disability accessibility for a variety of e-government sites in the European Union (EU), Asia and Africa. The study was conducted in 2008, and the results showed that the vast majority of sites in both developed and underdeveloped countries did not meet either legal requirements or industry guidelines in providing fully accessible government sites. Sites located in countries with stronger disabilities laws did score better in the compliance levels. Through comparison of the results, it is concluded that for governments to meet the needs of their disabled constituents, they need to implement a multiphase approach to site development, including stronger legal mandates and establishing localized best practice guidelines. Keywords: Accessibility, Disability, e-government, WCAG, W3

From brand experience to happiness: exploring the impacts on brand loyalty and price premium

Since the advent of the 21st century, the overemphasis on the utilitarian aspects of products has shifted the interest to the hedonic facets of consumption (Pine & Gilmore, 2011). Experience marketing presents a new approach to address this shift and to achieve long and lasting competitive advantages (Gentile, Spiller & Noci, 2007) and loyalty (Smilansky, 2009). Despite the increasing number and quality of articles addressing brand experience, this research area remains underdeveloped and not as well-established as other marketing constructs, such as consumer attitudes, consumer satisfaction and brand equity (Schmitt & Zarantonello, 2013). More recently, happiness has received attention from marketers, and studies examining happiness in consumer research have also begun to appear (Schmitt, Brakus & Zarantonello, 2015; Bhattacharjee & Mogilner, 2014; Schmitt, 2012; Bettingen & Luedicke, 2009). Further, in a world where social concerns are garnering more insistence, it is argued that brands should contribute to consumers’ happiness through experiences (Schmitt, Brakus & Zarantonello, 2014). The main aim of this study is to model the relationship between brand experience dimensions (sensory, emotional, relational and cognitive) on the one hand and happiness on the other hand through the three orientations to happiness (pleasure, meaning, and engagement) (Peterson, Park & Seligman, 2005), and to examine the influence of happiness on brand loyalty and price premium. Therefore, the current research represents a meeting point between brand experience and happiness—two unique areas in marketing and psychology that are being afforded more importance nowadays (Brakus, Schmitt & Zarantonello, 2012; Carter & Gilovich, 2010; Brakus, Schmitt & Zarantonello, 2009; Peterson, Park & Seligman, 2005). Figure 1 displays the conceptual framework and the suggested hypotheses of the study

Implementation Evaluation of an Education Program in Pediatric Clinics

Background: A public health approach to child maltreatment prevention relies on programs that impact the underlying drivers of maltreatment and that can easily be implemented. Stress in the family, mental illness, unrealistic expectations, and lack of knowledge have all been shown to be preceding factors in maltreatment risk. To help address some of these risks, an education program consisting of the Period of PURPLE crying, a social and economic stressor questionnaire, and the Parenting Action Plan was designed for maternal caregivers of newborns at pediatric clinics. This paper explores implementation challenges and successes of the education program, and describes strategies to implement such a program for maternal caregivers of newborns in pediatric clinics. Methods: The education program was delivered at 4 pediatric clinics serving low-income families in Houston, Texas. Each clinic received a program orientation, topic specific training for implementing staff, and technical assistance as needed. The implementation evaluation of the education program focused on responses from key informant interviews with 18 staff members from the 4 pediatric clinics. Interview data was recorded through note taking then transcribed and coded relying on the grounded theory approach using inductive reasoning for analysis. Results: A majority of the 18 study staff interviewed across all four clinics expressed the need for and benefits of providing an education program to maternal caregivers of newborn during well-child visits. Key themes that emerged were (1) maternal caregivers were receptive to an education program for support during well-child visits and staff saw its benefits, (2) motivational interviewing was helpful in engaging caregivers in conversations, and (3) it is important to establish a workflow that can accommodate the maternal caregivers and clinic needs alike. Conclusions: An education program in pediatric clinics is a valuable resource to support maternal caregivers and their families. This type of program can be achievable when key factors are in place including: leadership and staff buy-in by having program transparency, efficient workflow that carefully considers maternal caregivers and staff time, and willingness of the organization is invest into the program. However, there is no one-size fits-all approach to successfully implement an education program into a routine part of pediatric care. It is vital to understand the organizational and structural strengths of each implementing clinic and leverage personnel in order to implement the program components with the highest fidelity

Coping with Coping:International migrants’ experiences of the Covid-19 lockdown in the UK

Globally, policymakers have overlooked the challenges faced by international migrants in host countries during the Covid-19 pandemic. The policies and support systems designed by host governments highlight the lack of social justice and raise concerns for scholarly attention. Considering the experiences of international migrants living in the UK during the Covid-19 lockdown from the theoretical perspective of coping, this interpretivist study investigates international migrants’ coping strategies adopted during the first UK national lockdown. Data collected from 60 Chinese, Italian and Iranian migrants using semi-structured interviews during the lockdown period were analysed thematically using NVivo. The findings show that migrants adopted multi-layered and multi-phase coping strategies. To cope with the anxiety and uncertainties caused by the pandemic, they initiated new practices informed by both home and host institution logics. Nevertheless, the hostile context's responses provoked unexpected new worries and triggered the adoption of additional and compromising practices. The paper illustrates how coping became paradoxical because migrants had to cope with the hostile reactions that their initial coping strategies provoked in the host environment. By introducing the new concept of coping with coping, this paper extends previous theoretical debate and leads to several managerial implications for governments and policymakers.</p

Evaluation of the economic impact of California's Tobacco Control Program: a dynamic model approach

ObjectiveTo evaluate the long-term net economic impact of the California Tobacco Control Program.MethodsThis study developed a series of dynamic models of smoking-caused mortality, morbidity, health status and healthcare expenditures. The models were used to evaluate the impact of the tobacco control programme. Outcomes of interest in the evaluation include net healthcare expenditures saved, years of life saved, years of treating smoking-related diseases averted and the total economic value of net healthcare savings and life saved by the programme. These outcomes are evaluated to 2079. Due to data limitations, the evaluations are conducted only for men.ResultsThe California Tobacco Control Program resulted in over 700,000 person-years of life saved and over 150,000 person-years of treatment averted for the 14.7 million male California residents alive in 1990. The value of net healthcare savings and years of life saved resulting from the programme was $22 billion or$107 billion in 1990 dollars, depending on how a year of life is discounted. If women were included, the impact would likely be much greater.ConclusionsThe benefits of California's Tobacco Control Program are substantial and will continue to accrue for many years. Although the programme has resulted in increased longevity and additional healthcare resources for some, this impact is more than outweighed by the value of the additional years of life. Modelling the programme's impact in a dynamic framework makes it possible to evaluate the multiple impacts that the programme has on life, health and medical expenditures

Identifying the employment and vocational rehabilitation concerns of people with traditional and emerging disabilities

This is the published version, also found here: http://www.iospress.nl/journal/journal-of-vocational-rehabilitation