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Digitalization plays a crucial role in our daily lives, permeating every feature of our existence. At the same time the process of digitalization is viewed as one of the drivers of economic development. It has macroeconomic, sectoral, and microeconomic effects, but it may also boost regional economic cooperation. Despite its omnipresence, the global distribution of digital progress is uneven, and the Western Balkans (WB) stands as an example where digitalization remains a challenging and evolving process. Despite the involvement of numerous international and regional stakeholders, achieving digitalization in the region poses a formidable challenge. Progress requires collaborative efforts and joint problem-solving among the WB nations. The transition to digitalization should benefit everyone, contributing to the prosperity of countries capable of competing with EU members. This paper aims to showcase the integration of digital technology in business, assessed through electronic information sharing, social media usage, advanced digital technologies, and corporate initiatives towards environmental sustainability and e-commerce. The Literature review shown that the impact of digitalisation on economic growth has been found to be mostly positive, but the impact varies depending on the degree of development of the analysed countries. The analysis relies on secondary data from State Statistical Offices in the Western Balkans and the Digital Economy Society Index for 2022. Findings reveal that in terms of digital technology integration, the WB region lags behind the EU. Montenegro exhibits the highest position in the dimension of digital technology integration, followed by Kosovo, Albania, and Serbia, all scoring above the regional average. The adoption of digital technologies by SMEs remains notably below the EU average, while successive pandemic lockdowns increasingly integrated online sales channels in the WB region. The paper concludes that robust policies and targeted investments are vital components for expediting digital transformation, accelerating the Western Balkans into a fast-track trajectory to attain digital objectives. Further research could explore how the intersection of digitalization and economic collaboration influences the economic advancement of Western Balkan nations. Additionally, an examination of whether varying stages of economic development among these countries result in distinct impacts from the digitalization process on economic growth would be a valuable area of investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the intent to further increase production efficiency while making human the centre of the processes, human-centric manufacturing focuses on concepts such as digital twins and human–machine collaboration. This paper presents enabling technologies and methods to facilitate the creation of human-centric applications powered by digital twins, also from the perspective of Industry 5.0. It analyses and reviews the state of relevant information resources about digital twins for human–machine applications with an emphasis on the human perspective, but also on their collaborated relationship and the possibilities of their applications. Finally, it presents the results of the review and expected future works of research in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Getting highly accurate output in biomedical data processing concerning biomedical signals and images is impossible because biomedical data are generated from various electronic and electrical resources that can deliver the data with noise. Filtering is widely used for signal and image processing applications in medical, multimedia, communications, biomedical electronics, and computer vision. The biggest problem in biomedical signal and image processing is developing a perfect filter for the system. Digital filters are more advanced in precision and stability than analog filters. Digital filters are getting more attention due to the increasing advancements in digital technologies. Hence, most medical image and signal processing techniques use digital filters for preprocessing tasks. This paper briefly explains various filters used in medical image and signal processing. Matlab is a famous mathematical, analytical software with a platform and built-in tools to design filters and experiment with different inputs. Even though this paper implements filters like, Mean, Median, Weighted Average, Guassian, and Bilateral in Python to verify their performance, a suitable filter can be selected for biomedical applications by comparing their performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growth of 3D construction printing needs appropriate integration into the planning and execution phases of building projects. With this aim, the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction sector (AEC) has been increasingly adopting building information modeling (BIM) systems to synchronize design and construction processes. This study proposes a technical workflow to manage 3D construction printing into BIM models, evaluating various procedures according to construction element features. Based on mature software platforms, the research details the data transfer process using a case study of a single-story home. The case delves into design procedures for constructing walls of varied shapes, adjustments in width, joints, openings, textures, fillings, and the insertion of reinforcements and services while also discussing requirements of other building elements. Work steps for managing design information and controlling printing machines are described. The study's outcome presents a comprehensive information flow, encompassing model segmentation, geometric data transfer, adjustments of details, and the generation of printing paths. Then, it is offered a discussion that underlines the importance of a synergistic digital information flow that merges both design and execution phases, promoting construction efficiency and the embrace of innovative technologies. The contribution of the paper focuses on technical design strategies for 3D construction printing, but also on suggesting an integrated process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital health literacy has been defined as the 'ability to seek, find, understand, and appraise health information from electronic sources and apply the knowledge gained to address or solve a health problem' (Norman and Skinner, 2006). Health literacy and digital health literacy are essential in order to reach universal health coverage and to reform the processes of the healthcare systems (WHO, 2018). Healthcare professionals need to treat patients in a continuous evolving structure (WHO, 2013). The research question that guided the paper is 'How can Romanian health professionals' digital health literacy be used to improve communication with their patients?'. The aim of the study is to explore Romanian health professionals' level of digital literacy, to identify how it can improve the communication with the patients. 20 interviews with resident and senior medical doctors, medical students and nurses were conducted. The interviews were audio recorded, transcribed and then stored as Word documents in a password-secured environment. From the data gathered in the interviews four major themes emerged: (a) digital health literacy; (b) communication with the patients; (c) improvements for the National Health Strategy 2014-2020; (d) time as a barrier in communication. Data was analyzed using thematic analysis through the MAXQDA2018 software. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The Government has promulgated Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 11 of 2008 concerning Electronic Information and Transactions as first amended by Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 19 of 2016 concerning Amendments to Law Number 11 of 2008 concerning Electronic Information and Transactions and amended again by Law Number 1 of 2024 concerning Second Amendment to Law Number 11 of 2008 concerning Electronic Information and Transactions and Government has also made derivative regulations in the form of Government Regulation Number 71 of 2019 concerning the Implementation of Electronic Systems and Transactions. Currently, the Government through the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology has also granted permission to agencies or legal entities authorized as Electronic Certification Providers (PSrE) that provide electronic certificate and electronic signature services. However, the fact is that today people still rarely or do not know how to use electronic signatures or electronic transactions in every agreement. Often people also do not know about the difference between electronic signatures or signature scans. People today also still doubt the legal consequences and legal risks that occur if electronic transactions and/or electronic documents are signed through electronic signatures. With the existing facilities and infrastructure made by the current government, people should be able to use electronic signatures in electronic transactions, both in buying and selling transactions, accounts receivable or the implementation of other agreements that are often carried out in the community. Therefore, this study aims to discuss and elaborate the implementation of provisions regarding the use of Electronic Signatures in electronic transactions and electronic contracts and also to provide an understanding of legal protection to facilitate and convince the public to be able to carry out transactions and agreements electronically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to map the distribution of publications on plagiarism among higher educational institutions in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Studies reviewed were based on 171 plagiarism related publications within a decade (2012–2022). Findings revealed that most plagiarism related articles were published in 2016. Additionally, a majority of the studies (53) were from Nigeria and Ghana (23). Most of the articles focused on students' and faculty's awareness of plagiarism, and institutional prevention of plagiarism, but were rather marginal on challenges involved in preventing plagiarism, as well as effects of plagiarism. Dominant forms of plagiarism were self-plagiarism, branded plagiarism and commission plagiarism. However, major causes of plagiarism comprised easy access to digital information and resources; poor supervision of students; pressure on academics to publish for promotion; and insufficient skills development regarding ethical academic writing. Additionally, plagiarism preventive software and policies on plagiarism were the main ways of preventing plagiarism. Finally, in fighting plagiarism, higher educational institutions in SSA encountered challenges such as lack of well-trained academic experts to detect and report plagiarism cases; reluctance on the part of technical administrative staff to investigate works for traces of plagiarism; and low plagiarism detection skills from project supervisors. Based on the findings, recommendations are made to stakeholders for future research, policy and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Libraries all across the world are promoting faster, more affordable and better ways to make electronic information resources available to all types of information searchers through their current global network. The creation of the proper infrastructure for libraries that are a part of the network environment, especially academic libraries, has undergone a revolution thanks to INFLIBNET. The creation of the N-LIST program for colleges is crucial to advancing higher education. The member colleges have access to a wealth of information for a little monthly fee that may be accessed with just one click. The study looked at how the faculty of three famous colleges of Amritsar uses the E-Shodh Sindhu College Component (N-LIST) resources and made some important suggestions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Up-to-date digital soil resource information and its comprehensive understanding are crucial to supporting crop production and sustainable agricultural development. Generating such information through conventional approaches consumes time and resources, and is difficult for developing countries. In Ethiopia, the soil resource map that was in use is qualitative, dated (since 1984), and small scaled (1 : 2 M), which limit its practical applicability. Yet, a large legacy soil profile dataset accumulated over time and the emerging machine-learning modeling approaches can help in generating a high-quality quantitative digital soil map that can provide better soil information. Thus, a group of researchers formed a Coalition of the Willing for soil and agronomy data-sharing and collated about 20 000 soil profile data and stored them in a central database. The data were cleaned and harmonized using the latest soil profile data template and 14 681 profile data were prepared for modeling. Random forest was used to develop a continuous quantitative digital map of 18 World Reference Base (WRB) soil groups at 250 m resolution by integrating environmental covariates representing major soil-forming factors. The map was validated by experts through a rigorous process involving senior soil specialists or pedologists checking the map based on purposely selected district-level geographic windows across Ethiopia. The map is expected to be of tremendous value for soil management and other land-based development planning, given its improved spatial resolution and quantitative digital representation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching, learning and research at every level of the education system cannot be successful without appropriate resources. Adequate, quality resources are not readily available, especially in resource-constrained countries like Nigeria. These resources come in various formats (physically and/or electronically). Audiovisual resources (AVRs), electronic information resources (EIRs) and open educational resources (OERs) are examples of teaching and learning materials that could be procured by educational institutions and accessed by students and other members of the academic community. The instrument for data collection was a literature review directed to the librarians of the selected university libraries. The educational resources--in terms of availability and usage--were presented in tables comparatively. Findings show that each of the three university libraries has certain types of AVR, EIR and OER, which are available for students' use. Strategies for the effective use of these educational resources in Nigeria's academic libraries were discussed. It is recommended that adequate learning facilities, other than books, be provided by the government or private individual owners of the academic libraries in Ebonyi State, Nigeria. There is also a need for academic librarians and users to keep themselves abreast of the skills necessary for the appropriate use of educational resources (subscription or free-based) in the institutions where they are available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]