voyeurism

student paper to be read during the 16th International Conference on Education, Research and Innovation

my students and i are thrilled to share that we have been given the opportunity to share their work through a paper to be read at this year's 16th International Conference on Education, Research and Innovation (ICERI) :-)

this year's conference will take place as a hybrid event in Seville, from the 13th till the 15th of November.

Biodiversity education through citizen science: a case study of student-driven ornithological identification with deep learning is co-authored with Edwin Ong and Shang Yu Liow. its abstract reads:

Only 4.5 percent of Singapore's land area is set aside as nature reserve. Despite this, Singapore is an important stopover point for more than forty species of migratory birds along both the Central Asian Flyway and the East Asian - Australasian Flyway. The birds are attracted to the wetlands and mudflats of the island-nation.

The Internet of Things (IoT) has afforded the investigation of geographies at scales that have hitherto not been practicable. The relatively low cost of open-source hardware means that localized spaces can potentially be saturated with IoT sensors, with the resulting datasets analysed through modelling in Data Science. Vey and Storring (2022) have appropriated the term ‘hyperlocal’ to refer to “place governance in a fragmented world”, by which they describe the distinct geographies of places at the scale of downtowns, waterfronts, and innovation districts.

This paper reports an independent research project conducted by a pair of high school students between April 2022 and March 2023, under the mentorship of a senior research scientist at the National Institute of Education in Singapore. It is inspired by Sustainable Development Goals 4 and 15 – namely ‘Quality Education’ and ‘Life on Land’ – of the United Nations. The paper documents the identification and evaluation of Deep Learning Models in ornithological identification.

In a presentation at the 2020 Geography Teacher Educators’ Conference hosted by the Geographical Association of the United Kingdom, Witt has described the hyperlocal as referring to “a very small geographical community, such as … a local patch”. Similarly, Matthews (2020) has suggested to us that the pandemic has catalysed renewed interest in the hyperlocal and in personal geographies.

This paper aims to explore the intersections of such geographies (of the hyperlocal and personal) through the lenses afforded by Data Science and the Internet of Things. Specifically, the capabilities of two neural network frameworks, VGG16 and InceptionV3, were identified due to their ability to build image classification models. The models were trained on publicly available datasets comprising more than 70000 images, representing more than 400 species. By the end of the project, the iteration of the model achieved a validation accuracy of 73.04% on forty locally sighted species. As an example of misidentification, an image of a juvenile Barred Eagle-Owl was classified as a White-headed Fish Eagle due to the similar white colouration. The bird prediction could be impacted by the lack of a variety of training data which represents the bird at all stages of its life, all while including images of both genders. A web-based service which linked to the external Singapore Birds Project was subsequently designed as a proof of concept for future scaling.

student-initiated citizen science project on deep learning and ornithology is featured in the 15 May 2023 issue of the schools-focussed newspaper 'IN'

my team was thrilled this morning to learn that a citizen science project conceptualised, designed, and enacted by a pair of our students on using deep learning in the identification of ornithological species has been featured in the 15th May 2023 issue of the schools-focussed newspaper IN. IN is a publication of the Singapore Press Holdings (SPH).

Singapore is an important stopover for migratory bird species between the northern and southern hemispheres each year. This is particularly significant given the highly urbanized nature of the landscape in the island-state. Species biodiversity can therefore be high, with seasonal fluctuations. Keeping accurate records of biodiversity is important is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Birdwatching has always been a globally-enjoyed pastime, and recently, it has been rising in popularity, particularly among the young. Birdwatching promotes exercise, generates high-quality research-grade data of paramount importance to conservation efforts, and enables people to connect to wildlife. However, accurately identifying a particular species of a bird out of the thousands in one’s local area can prove to be quite challenging, and a book identification book or application is deemed essential for any novice birdwatcher.

the Straits Times schools department launched in 2005 with a mission to engage young readers with stories about them. IN accompanies the Straits Times (which is Singapore's main English broadsheet) to secondary schools each week. IN is designed:

- to be in tune with young Singaporeans;

- to bridge current affairs with young people's understandings of the issues of the day; and

- to inspire original content based on giving young people a voice.

we are really very grateful to the editorial and writing team at the SPH.

to God be the Glory.

:-)

two papers to be read during the annual conference of the Royal Geographical Society

i am thrilled to share that we have been given the opportunity to share our work through two papers to be read at this year's annual conference of the Royal Geographical Society :-)

this year's conference will take place as a hybrid event in London, from the 29th of August till the 1st of September.

Exploring Ornithological Identification with Deep Learning is co-authored with Edwin Ong and Shang Yu Liow. its abstract reads:

Only 4.5 percent of Singapore's land area is set aside as nature reserve. Despite this, Singapore is an important stopover point for more than forty species of migratory birds along both the Central Asian Flyway and the East Asian - Australasian Flyway. The birds are attracted to the wetlands and mudflats of the island-nation. This paper reports an independent research project conducted by a pair of high school students between April 2022 and March 2023, under the mentorship of a senior research scientist at the National Institute of Education in Singapore. It documents the identification and evaluation of Deep Learning Models in ornithological identification. Specifically, the capabilities of two neural network frameworks, VGG16 and InceptionV3, were identified due to their ability to build image classification models. The models were trained on publicly available datasets comprising more than 70000 images, representing more than 400 species. By the end of the project, the iteration of the model achieved a validation accuracy of 73.04% on forty locally sighted species. As an example of misidentification, an image of a juvenile Barred Eagle-Owl was classified as a White-headed Fish Eagle due to the similar white colouration. The bird prediction could be impacted by the lack of a variety of training data which represents the bird at all stages of its life, all while including images of both genders. A web-based service which linked to the external Singapore Birds Project was subsequently designed as a proof of concept for future scaling.

Designing an Autonomous Platform using Hobbyist Robotics Embedded Computing for Performing Geospatial 3D Mapping is co-authored with Christopher Cheng and Yi Xin Ong. its abstract reads:

Typical use cases of geospatial 3D mapping relate to outdoor environments, where virtual navigation platforms are generated via satellite and aerial imagery, and photogrammetry. Much remains to be discovered about mapping indoor environments, where data may not be readily accessible over long periods of time. This paper describes an independent research project conducted by a pair of high school students between April 2022 and March 2023, under the mentorship of a senior research scientist at the National Institute of Education in Singapore. The project investigated remote sensing methods of Light Detection and Ranging sensors (LiDAR), as well as computer vision functionalities of the NVIDIA Jetson Nano, which is a compact microcomputer ideal for machine learning applications. More specifically, through the utilisation of open-source hardware and software, the project aimed to design a mapping device by pairing autonomous robot navigation with map plotting and depth maps. The device organised and interpreted data sourced from Raspberry Pi cameras and a 360° LiDAR fitted onto a mobile platform. Depth perception models and mapping algorithms were explored as precedent for comparing their accuracy in data collection and efficacy in map generation. LiDAR systems - particularly those implemented for large-scale, outdoor scenarios - are costly to maintain. Although a LiDAR system with more available optical power has increased accuracy, it is also more expensive to operate. Nevertheless, autonomous platforms surpass manual labour in 3D mapping. By scheduling timely deployment of the mapping device, up-to-date information and visual representations of a mapped region could be more easily obtained.

invited to share our student project on biodiversity education during the 11th Student Scientific Conference, Konstantin Preslavsky University of Shumen

we are happy and excited to share our students' work on biodiversity education, as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Konstantin Preslavsky University of Shumen, on the 22nd of April.

my students Edwin Ong and Shang Yu Liow will be sharing our paper Facilitating student inventiveness and inquiry: a case example from STEM, as part of the the 11th Student Scientific Conference, themed on ‘Ecology and the Environment’, in the section ‘Environmental education, Biodiversity, Cell biology, Technology’.

we are very grateful to our friends at the Biology Department for extending the invitation to us :-)

student projects on biodiversity education and sleep quality at the 13th annual symposium of the Mobiles for Education Alliance

today our team received news that we have been invited to share our students' work on biodiversity education and the investigation of sleep quality during the 13th annual symposium of the Mobiles for Education Alliance in the track on Climate Education. This track focuses on the intersection of STEM education and climate change to enhance students' understanding of climate science, sustainable practices, and the role of technology in addressing environmental challenges.

we thank God for His continued grace and provision.

this year, the symposium is being conducted as an in-person event between the 11th to the 14th of September, with the overarching theme of Inspiring the next generation of STEM leaders - everywhere! 

other teams having representations are from UNESCO, the World Bank, the UNHCR, among others.

The mEducation Alliance was formed by USAID in 2010. It is an international collaborative effort between bilateral and multilateral donors, NGOs, foundations, private sector partners, and academic researchers. The collective agenda of the alliance is to: highlight and catalyze promising information and communications technology for education (ICT4E) practices and initiatives, particularly in low-resource and developing country context; to reduce duplicative efforts; to promote collective knowledge-sharing, and to identify and support efforts to evaluate and scale promising ICT4E interventions.

:-)

the Life2Well Project as part of the UNESCO's first online interactive learning webinar, themed on ESD-Net 2030

my team and i are thrilled to share that - by God's grace - we have been afforded the rare opportunity to share our work on Learning at the intersection of AI, physiology, EEG, our environment and well-being (the Life2Well Project) as part of UNESCO's first online interactive learning webinar, for the benefit of its global network of education stakeholders: ESD-Net 2030. The webinar will be held on the 30th of March, and our work will be shared alongside parallel sessions facilitated by the Association for Learning Design and Sustainable Development (represented by Maria Toro-Troconis and Norita Ahmad), the OPEDUCA Project (represented by Jos Eussen), and the International Association of Universities (represented by Hilligje van't Land and Isabel Toman).

ESD-Net 2030 was set up in October 2022 to take the lessons learned from the Global Action Programme and subsequently facilitate the implementation of the Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) for 2030 framework and its roadmap. To this end, the webinar series is designed with a focus on sharing and strengthening pedagogical approaches and key competencies in ESD. The inaugural March webinar will be opened by the Chief of Section of ESD, Education Sector, UNESCO - Jun Morohashi - and facilitated by Mark Manns, Sarah Margono, and Takanori Kusaka.

for our particular project, of the registered participants, 21 % were from African nations, 20 % were from Central and South Asia, 16 % were from the UK and Europe, 10 % were from East Asia, 10 % were from the Middle East, 9 % were from Central and South America, 9 % were from North America, and the remainder from Southeast Asia.

we describe the scope of our session thus:

Have you wondered how we may nurture values among our students in support of sustainable development? What about how curricula may be designed to develop climate literacy among youth and the leaders of tomorrow? In this workshop, you will hear the voices of young people themselves, as they share four examples of how they have conceptualised, designed, and enacted citizen science investigations inspired by observations from their own respective local environments. From promoting appreciations of ecological biodiversity, to understanding sleep and concentration better, to exploring the relationships between microclimatic stressors and our physiological and neurological responses - the examples all have in common that they do not rely on expensive and fragile industrial-grade equipment which cannot be taken out of the lab. Be inspired by the stories of the students as they share their ups and downs through their respective investigative journeys, and their hopes as young makers for the future.

Call for Proposals: Geographies of the here and now: inquiry of the hyperlocal as afforded by Data Science and the Internet of Things

Call for Proposals for a session to be held at the Annual Conference of the Royal Geographical Society, London, 29 August to 1 September 2023

 

Geographies of the here and now: inquiry of the hyperlocal as afforded by Data Science and the Internet of Things

 

The Internet of Things (IoT) has afforded the investigation of geographies at scales that have hitherto not been practicable. The relatively low cost of open-source hardware means that localized spaces can potentially be saturated with IoT sensors, with the resulting datasets analysed through modelling in Data Science. Examples include their use in monitoring microclimates in urban farming and to improve energy efficiencies in so-called ‘smart’ homes and workplaces. Vey and Storring (2022) have appropriated the term ‘hyperlocal’ to refer to “place governance in a fragmented world”, by which they describe the distinct geographies of places at the scale of downtowns, waterfronts, and innovation districts. Similarly, in a presentation at the 2020 Geography Teacher Educators’ Conference hosted by the Geographical Association, Witt has described the hyperlocal as referring to “a very small geographical community, such as … a local patch”. Matthews (2020) has reminded us that the pandemic has catalysed renewed interest in the hyperlocal and in personal geographies. This session aims to explore the intersections of such geographies (of the hyperlocal and personal) through the lenses afforded by Data Science and the Internet of Things. Possible topics include (but are not limited to):

 

• Methodological approaches to investigations of the hyperlocal;

• Ethical implications of the use of IoT and Data Science in such investigations;

• Empirical studies of hyperlocal and / or personal geographies;

• Personal geographies of health and well-being, particularly as seen through the lenses of IoT and Data Science; and

• Citizen science and the democratization of geographical investigation of the hyperlocal.

 

Enquiries to Kenneth Y T Lim (kenneth.lim at nie.edu.sg) are welcome.

 

Session organizer:

 

Name: Kenneth Y T Lim

Affiliation: National Institute of Education, Singapore

 

Presenters are kindly invited to submit their proposals to the session organizer by the 10th of March 2023. Proposals should minimally comprise the title of the paper, an abstract (of up to 150 words), and full contact details.

Disciplinary Intuitions: welcoming college students to NTU's Undergraduate Research Experience on Campus (URECA) AY 2022 / 2023

further to my post two months’ ago, my team and i are really happy and privileged to welcome four college students (from a total of twenty-three applicants) to our projects offered under NTU’s Undergraduate Research Experience on Campus (URECA) programme for the Academic Year 2022 / 2023.

 

three of our students are from the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, and the fourth is pursuing a Double Major from the School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and the School of Computer Science and Engineering.

 

the opportunity to participate in URECA is extended through invitation only to select second- and third-year undergraduates, who will subsequently be conferred as NTU President Research Scholars.

 

the projects we have offered are:

 

NIE22349 – Investigating local micro-climate and thermal comfort with open-source

 

NIE22355 – Implementation of Inline Debugger in Submission Portals to Facilitate Students' Learning

 

NIE22356 – Improving code readability for novice coders: a tool for actionable feedback

 

NIE22357 – Training Natural Language Processing (NLP) models to parse and analyse Python code in order to predict logic errors with the aim of improving the process of debugging code

i have been invited to share - in-person - at a symposium of the Learning Sciences at Seoul National University

this is a simple post, but a deeply meaningful one - the opportunity for which i thank God.

Seoul National University is hosting a symposium on the Learning Sciences on the 7th of July, and they have very graciously extended an invitation to share our team's recent work in-person.

the symposium has, as its theme, Future Directions of Learning Sciences: AI, Brain and Education.

sharing the day's events with me are Professor Carolyn Penstein Rose, who is currently the interim Director of the Language Technologies Institute at Carnegie Mellon, and Dr Minkang Kim from the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Sydney.

:-)

Student-initiated inquiry of our local environments with Data Science and the Internet of Things

Following up from my post from two weeks' ago, projects from two pairs of my students were shared during the official launch of the AI@NIE Blueprint.

Under the general theme of Student-initiated inquiry of our local environments with Data Science and the Internet of Things, students Terence and Tristan developed an integrated module that utilises Internet of Things to measure various environmental factors in the local microclimate in a fish pond, and also uses AI to count the number of fishes and correlate data with the environmental factors from instrument readings.

As a second example, students Minh Anh and Minh Tuan starting from 2021, assembled their own microclimate devices, EEG headsets and devised their own model to collect microclimate, biometric and EEG data using IoT. Machine Learning models are then used to find out different relationships between them. We describe this latter project as Learning at the intersection of AI, physiology, EEG, our environment and well-being (The Life2Well Project).