Applied metamodelling to collaborative document authoring

This document describes a domain specific language tailored for collaborative document authoring processes. The language can support communication between content management systems and user interfaces in web collaborative applications. It allows dynamic rendering of user interfaces based on a collaboration model specified by end users. The construction of the language is supported by a metamodel. We demonstrate the use of the proposed language by implementation of a simple document authoring system

Distributed collaborative context-aware content-centric workflow management for mobile devices

Ubiquitous mobile devices have become a necessity in today’s society, opening new opportunities for interaction and collaboration between geographically distributed people. With the increased use of mobile phones, people can collaborate while on the move. Collaborators expect technologies that would enhance their teamwork and respond to their individual needs. Workflow is a widely used technology that supports collaboration and can be adapted for a variety of collaborative scenarios. Although the originally computer-based workflow technology has expanded also on mobile devices, there are still research challenges in the development of user-focused device-oriented collaborative workflows. As opposed to desktop computers, mobile devices provide a different, more personalised user experience and are carried by their owners everywhere. Mobile devices can capture user context and behave as digitalised user complements. By integrating context awareness into the workflow technology, workflow decisions can be based on local, context information and therefore, be more adapted to individual collaborators’ circumstances and expectations. Knowing the current context of collaborators and their mobile devices is useful, especially in mobile peer-topeer collaboration where the workflow process execution can be driven by devices according to the situation. In mobile collaboration, team workers share pictures, videos, or other content. Monitoring and exchanging the information on the current state of the content processed on devices can enhance the overall workflow execution. As mobile devices in peer-to-peer collaboration are not aware of a global workflow state, the content state information can be used to communicate progress among collaborators. However, there is still a lack of integrating content lifecycles in process-oriented workflows. The aim of this research was therefore to investigate how workflow technology can be adapted for mobile peer-to-peer collaboration, in particular, how the level of context awareness in mobile collaborative workflows can be increased and how the extra content lifecycle management support can be integrated. The collaborative workflow technology has been adapted for mobile peerto- peer collaboration by integrating context and content awareness. In the first place, a workflow-specific context management approach has been developed that allows defining workflow-specific context models and supports the integration of context models with collaborative workflows. Workflow process has been adapted to make decisions based on context information. Secondly, extra content management support has been added to the workflow technology. A representation for content lifecycles has been designed, and content lifecycles have been integrated with the workflow process. In this thesis, the MobWEL workflow approach is introduced. The Mob- WEL workflow approach allows defining, managing and executing mobile context-aware content-centric workflows. MobWEL is a workflow execution language that extends BPEL, using constructs from existing workflow approaches, Context4BPEL and BPELlight, and adopting elements from the BALSA workflow model. The MobWEL workflow management approach is a technology-based solution that has been designed to provide workflow management support to a specific class of mobile applications

Autoantibodies targeting neuronal proteins as biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) are associated with the accumulation of a range of misfolded proteins across the central nervous system and related autoimmune responses, including the generation of antibodies and the activation of immune cells. Both innate and adaptive immunity become mobilized, leading to cellular and humoral effects. The role of humoral immunity in disease onset and progression remains to be elucidated with rising evidence suggestive of positive (protection, repair) and negative (injury, toxicity) outcomes. In this study, we review advances in research of neuron-targeting autoantibodies in the most prevalent NDDs. We discuss their biological origin, molecular diversity and changes in the course of diseases, consider their relevance to the initiation and progression of pathology as well as diagnostic and prognostic significance. It is suggested that the emerging autoimmune aspects of NDDs not only could facilitate the early detection but also might help to elucidate previously unknown facets of pathobiology with relevance to the development of precision medicine

Applied metamodelling to collaborative document authoring

This document describes a domain specific language tailored for collaborative document authoring processes. The language can support communication between content management systems and user interfaces in web collaborative applications. It allows dynamic rendering of user interfaces based on a collaboration model specified by end users. The construction of the language is supported by a metamodel. We demonstrate the use of the proposed language by implementation of a simple document authoring system

Using positive psychology to manage tensions in international classrooms at tertiary education levels

Different models from positive psychology have been successfully employed to boost student engagement and increase learning capacity. With conflict, either at individual level as well as group or national level becoming more a norm than an exception in various contexts, this paper aims to explore and illustrate how positive psychology can be used to keep mixed groups of students – Czechs, Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Germans, Kazaks, Slovaks – interested, engaged, focused and feeling safe in volatile and unpredictable times. The model discussed is being applied in language classrooms at the Skoda Auto University in the Czech Republic to foster engagement but particularly to keep spirits high in these troubling times. The paper aims to illustrate how Seligman’s PERMA model prevailed in maintaining a sense of normality in the classroom. Focused on enhancing positive emotional responses, PERMA is also an improved predictor of psychological distress. This means that proactively working on the components of PERMA not only increases aspects of wellbeing, but also decreases psychological distress which is crucial not only in fostering learning but mostly in establishing a relationship in the classroom that will allow mixed groups of students to work together toward common projects and share accomplishments, regardless of detrimental factors as stress, fear, disengagement or even prejudice. This paper explores how all these aspects translate into the classroom. While the case studies are chosen from language and competencies courses, the lessons learned can be reproduced for other types of courses regardless of the topic

Context-aware content-centric collaborative workflow management for mobile devices

The paper examines mobile context-aware contentcentric workflows. With the proliferation of mobile devices, distributed collaborative teams can communicate, share content and remain productive while working out of the office. The collaboration process can be enhanced, more dynamic and efficient by using a workflow management technology that responds to collaborators’ requirements, supports coordination of a teamwork and is adapted for context-aware content manipulation. This paper discusses context awareness and proposes to extend the existing collaborative workflow approach by a context-aware content lifecycle in order to make workflow processes more adaptive to collaboration needs

Context-aware content-centric collaborative workflow management for mobile devices

The paper examines mobile context-aware contentcentric workflows. With the proliferation of mobile devices, distributed collaborative teams can communicate, share content and remain productive while working out of the office. The collaboration process can be enhanced, more dynamic and efficient by using a workflow management technology that responds to collaborators’ requirements, supports coordination of a teamwork and is adapted for context-aware content manipulation. This paper discusses context awareness and proposes to extend the existing collaborative workflow approach by a context-aware content lifecycle in order to make workflow processes more adaptive to collaboration needs

An extensible, self contained, layered approach to context acquisition

Smart phones show increasing capabilities for context-aware applications. The development of such applications involves implementation of mechanisms for context acquisition and context adaptation. To facilitate efficient use of the device's resources and avoid monitoring the same context changes from multiple points, it is necessary that applications share the context acquisition mechanism. In this paper, we intend to develop a generic context acquisition engine which is capable of context capturing, composition and broadcasting. By deploying the engine on a mobile device, context changes are monitored from single point and disseminated to various context aware applications running on the same device. As a proof of concept, the context acquisition engine has been implemented on the Android platform

MobWEL - mobile context-aware content-centric workflow execution language

Collaboration among people has been empowered by using mobile devices in daily life. However, increasing user demands for a better mobile collaboration experience require constant evolution and adaptation of existing mobile collaborative technologies. In this paper, the collaborative workflow technology is adapted to enhance mobile peer-to-peer collaboration. With context awareness integrated, workflows are adapted to collaborators' needs and circumstances. Extra management support for content behaviour is incorporated in order to increase content awareness in workflows and enable communicating progress among collaborators. This paper introduces MobWEL, a context-aware content-centric workflow language designed for mobile peer-to-peer collaboration. MobWEL extends BPEL, using constructs from existing workflow approaches, Context4BPEL and BPELlight, and adopting elements from the BALSA workflow model

Towards improved distributed collaborative workflow management for mobile devices

The research aim is to develop a dynamic lightweight approach for mobile context aware collaborative workflow systems that operates in a decentralized manner. Based on such approach, open scale collaboration, more dynamic workflow management capable of utilizing contextual events and better context aware content manipulation can be achieved