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This chapter reflects on the outcomes of the Digital Student Selves project at a small, specialist arts institution in the United Kingdom. The project aimed to promote increased student understanding of the research process as well as increased reflexivity by engaging students in an inquiry-based approach to unpacking experiences and perspectives of the role of technology in learning. Specifically, students were asked to consider the contribution of programme-specific learning technologies and social media to their creative identity and lifelong professionalism.

Discussion within this chapter outlines strategies that students employed in adopting blended approaches to learning and also presents key aspects of students’ negotiation of digital selfhood. The discussion therefore has relevance in considering current practices in support of digital confidence and how these might be refined or augmented. In this way, the student contributors become co-creators in the learning environment, influencing recommendations for institutional change and best practice.

Based on clarifying the structural difference between jade fibre and general polyester fibre, this paper aims to study the dyeing properties and dyeing adsorption mechanism of jade fibre with disperse dye and cationic dye.

The chemical structure and microstructure of jade fibre were briefly explained comparing with ordinary polyester fibre. The dyeing rate curve and dyeing adsorption isotherm of disperse dyes and cationic dyes on jade fibre were, respectively, studied. The dyeing uptake, dyeing absorption mechanism, and the main dyeing process parameters were proposed.

Jade fibre can be dyed with cationic dye and disperse dye. The suitable exhaust dyeing process is 110°C and 40 minutes for disperse dye, 100°C and 60 minutes for cationic dye. The dyeing uptake on jade fibre with both disperse dyes or cationic dyes is much higher than that on general polyester fibre and acrylic fibre, and the dyeing adsorption mechanism belongs to the combination of Langmuir and Nernst adsorption for disperse dyes and Langmuir adsorption for cationic dyes. Comparing with ordinary polyester fibre, jade fibre has the advantage of low temperature dyeing and reduced effluent, as is significant to energy-saving and emission reduction.

Jade fibre is a new type of modified polyester fibre with the function of health protection and energy conservation. There are little technical data in the literature at present about the dyeing property of jade fibre.

Fairly rapid environmental changes call for continuous surveillance and on‐line decision making. There are two main areas where IT technologies can be valuable. In this paper we present a multi‐agent system for monitoring and assessing air‐quality attributes, which uses data coming from a meteorological station. A community of software agents is assigned to monitor and validate measurements coming from several sensors, to assess air‐quality, and, finally, to fire alarms to appropriate recipients, when needed. Data mining techniques have been used for adding data‐driven, customized intelligence into agents. The architecture of the developed system, its domain ontology, and typical agent interactions are presented. Finally, the deployment of a real‐world test case is demonstrated.

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The purpose of this paper is to extend understanding of marketing in MENA by investigating how women entrepreneurs use social networking sites (SNS) in marketing their businesses in Lebanon.

To address contextual issues arising from research in this region, this study consists of a two-phase research design of, first, a panel of specialised business commentators and, second, digital qualitative data collection that enabled access to hard to reach informants.

The study reveals that the activities of women entrepreneurs are fundamentally enabled by SNS as it allows them to optimise their networks in prospecting, communicating and developing relationships with stakeholders. It also allows them to support the social fabric of the family unit by providing an extra source of income and facilitating connections.

This study draws on a single country within the MENA region; nonetheless, the analysis offers new and nuanced understanding to marketing of small businesses in uncovering how Lebanese women entrepreneurs are able to build and run their businesses using SNS.

This research demonstrates how women entrepreneurs can set up and run businesses using SNS to reach and extend their networks in a culturally diverse and growing economy. SNS provides an inclusive platform through which women build and run a small business.

This research responds to a World Development aim of studying the relationships between gender and trade such as women entrepreneurs using social technologies.

This research responds to a World Development aim of studying the relationships between gender and trade, here by investigating how women entrepreneurs set up and run small businesses enabled by SNS.