Epilepsy is a common brain disorder that causes patients to face multiple seizures in a single day. Around 65 million people are affected by epilepsy worldwide. Patients with focal epilepsy can be treated with surgery, whereas generalized epileptic seizures can be managed with medications. It has been noted that in more than 30% of cases, these medications fail to control epileptic seizures, resulting in accidents and limiting the patient’s life. Predicting epileptic seizures in such patients prior to the commencement of an oncoming seizure is critical so that the seizure can be treated with preventive medicines before it occurs. Electroencephalogram (EEG) signals of patients recorded to observe brain electrical activity during a seizure can be quite helpful in predicting seizures. Researchers have proposed methods that use machine and/or deep learning techniques to predict epileptic seizures using scalp EEG signals; however, prediction of seizures with increased accuracy is still a challenge. Therefore, we propose a three-step approach. It includes preprocessing of scalp EEG signals with PREP pipeline, which is a more sophisticated alternative to basic notch filtering. This method uses a regression-based technique to further enhance the SNR, with a combination of handcrafted, i.e., statistical features such as temporal mean, variance, and skewness, and automated features using CNN, followed by classification of interictal state and preictal state segments using LSTM to predict seizures. We train and validate our proposed technique on the CHB-MIT scalp EEG dataset and achieve accuracy of 94%, sensitivity of 93.8%, and 91.2% specificity. The proposed technique achieves better sensitivity and specificity than existing methods.

The new ‘normal’ defined during the COVID-19 pandemic has forced us to re-assess how people with special needs thrive in these unprecedented conditions, such as those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). These changing/challenging conditions have instigated us to revisit the usage of telehealth services to improve the quality of life for people with ASD. This study aims to identify mobile applications that suit the needs of such individuals. This work focuses on identifying features of a number of highly-rated mobile applications (apps) that are designed to assist people with ASD, specifically those features that use Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies. In this study, 250 mobile apps have been retrieved using keywords such as autism, autism AI, and autistic. Among 250 apps, 46 were identified after filtering out irrelevant apps based on defined elimination criteria such as ASD common users, medical staff, and non-medically trained people interacting with people with ASD. In order to review common functionalities and features, 25 apps were downloaded and analysed based on eye tracking, facial expression analysis, use of 3D cartoons, haptic feedback, engaging interface, text-to-speech, use of Applied Behaviour Analysis therapy, Augmentative and Alternative Communication techniques, among others were also deconstructed. As a result, software developers and healthcare professionals can consider the identified features in designing future support tools for autistic people. This study hypothesises that by studying these current features, further recommendations of how existing applications for ASD people could be enhanced using AI for (1) progress tracking, (2) personalised content delivery, (3) automated reasoning, (4) image recognition, and (5) Natural Language Processing (NLP). This paper follows the PRISMA methodology, which involves a set of recommendations for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

Internet of Things (IoT) devices usage is increasing exponentially with the spread of the internet. With the increasing capacity of data on IoT devices, these devices are becoming venerable to malware attacks; therefore, malware detection becomes an important issue in IoT devices. An effective, reliable, and time-efficient mechanism is required for the identification of sophisticated malware. Researchers have proposed multiple methods for malware detection in recent years, however, accurate detection remains a challenge. We propose a deep learning-based ensemble classification method for the detection of malware in IoT devices. It uses a three steps approach; in the first step, data is preprocessed using scaling, normalization, and de-noising, whereas in the second step, features are selected and one hot encoding is applied followed by the ensemble classifier based on CNN and LSTM outputs for detection of malware. We have compared results with the state-of-the-art methods and our proposed method outperforms the existing methods on standard datasets with an average accuracy of 99.5%.

Group Formation (GF) strongly influences the collaborative learning process in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL). Various factors affect GF that include personal characteristics, social, cultural, psychological, and cognitive diversity. Although different group formation methods aim to solve the group compatibility problem, an optimal solution for dynamic group formation is still not addressed. In addition, the research lacks to supplement collaborative group formation with a collaborative platform. In this study, the next level of collaboration in CSCL and Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) platforms is achieved. First, initial groups are formed based on students learning styles, and knowledge level, i.e. for knowledge level, an activity-based dynamic group formation technique is proposed. In this activity, swapping of students takes place on each permutation based on their knowledge level. Second, the formed heterogeneous balanced groups are used to augment the collaborative learning system. For this purpose, a hybrid framework of Intelligent Tutor Collaborative Learning (ITSCL) is used that provides a unique and real-time collaborative learning platform. Third, an experiment is conducted to evaluate the significance of the proposed study. Inferential and descriptive statistics of Paired T-Tests are applied for comprehensive analysis of recorded observations. The statistical results show that the proposed ITSCL framework positively impacts student learning and results in higher learning gains.

In recent years, the rapid growth of online learning has highlighted the need for effective methods to monitor and improve student experiences. Emotions play a crucial role in shaping students’ engagement, motivation, and satisfaction in online learning environments, particularly in complex STEM subjects. In this context, sentiment analysis has emerged as a promising tool to detect and classify emotions expressed in textual and visual forms. This study offers an extensive literature review using the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) technique on the role of sentiment analysis in student satisfaction and online learning in STEM subjects. The review analyses the applicability, challenges, and limitations of text- and facial-based sentiment analysis techniques in educational settings by reviewing 57 peer-reviewed research articles out of 236 articles, published between 2015 and 2023, initially identified through a comprehensive search strategy. Through an extensive search and scrutiny process, these articles were selected based on their relevance and contribution to the topic. The review’s findings indicate that sentiment analysis holds significant potential for improving student experiences, encouraging personalised learning, and promoting satisfaction in the online learning environment. Educators and administrators can gain valuable insights into students’ emotions and perceptions by employing computational techniques to analyse and interpret emotions expressed in text and facial expressions. However, the review also identifies several challenges and limitations associated with sentiment analysis in educational settings. These challenges include the need for accurate emotion detection and interpretation, addressing cultural and linguistic variations, ensuring data privacy and ethics, and a reliance on high-quality data sources. Despite these challenges, the review highlights the immense potential of sentiment analysis in transforming online learning experiences in STEM subjects and recommends further research and development in this area.

With technological advancement, cloud computing paradigms are gaining massive popularity in the ever-changing technological advancement. The main objective of the cloud computing system is to provide on-demand storage and computing resources to the users on the pay-per-use policy. It allows small businesses to use top-notch infrastructure at low expense. However, due to the cloud resource sharing property, data privacy and security are significant concerns and barriers for smart systems to constantly transfer generated data to the cloud computing resources, which a third-party provider manages. Many encryption techniques have been proposed to cope with data security issues. In this paper, different existing data protection and encryption techniques based on common parameters have been critically analyzed and their workflows are graphically presented. This survey aims to collect existing data encryption techniques widely presented in the literature for smart system data security offloaded to the cloud computing systems under a single umbrella.