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    Advances in end-user water conservation technologies: a scoping review
    (Frontiers Media SA, 2026-04-15)
    Fernández-Vizcarra, Luis
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    Chambilla-Zuñiga, Josué
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    Gutiérrez-Aguilar, Olger
    ;
    Introduction Water scarcity, intensified by climate change, urbanization, and increasing demand, requires sustainable strategies aimed at reducing consumption among end users. In this context, this article develops a scoping review to examine what types of sustainable technologies aimed at water conservation among end users have been investigated, how they are evaluated, and what types of evidence are reported regarding their effectiveness. Methods Studies published between 2020 and 2025 were retrieved from the Scopus, Web of Science, IEEE Xplore, Wiley Online Library, and EBSCO Engineering Source databases following PRISMA-ScR guidelines. The review integrates a bibliometric analysis of the field and a synthesis of 14 selected empirical studies addressing domestic efficiency technologies, adoption dynamics, digital monitoring systems, and resource management approaches. Results The evidence shows high methodological diversity and limited standardization of effective metrics, as only a small proportion of studies explicitly report quantified or directly measured water savings. Nevertheless, consistent patterns emerge depending on the type of intervention. Circular water management and decentralized reuse strategies report the highest potential impacts, with potable water savings ≥30% through greywater treatment and reductions of up to 80% in integrated urban scenarios. Rainwater harvesting and green infrastructure report runoff reductions between 58.3 and 94.1%, generating indirect benefits for urban water management. In contrast, informational and behavioral interventions tend to produce moderate but consistent reductions in consumption. Digital technologies based on IoT, smart metering, and advanced analytics demonstrate strong technical performance in monitoring and leak detection, although they rarely quantify post-implementation water savings. Conclusion The findings suggest that effective water conservation among end users depends on approaches that combine technological solutions, user engagement, and standardized evaluation frameworks capable of linking technological performance with verifiable reductions in water consumption.
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    Rethinking criminal profiling through cognitive artificial intelligence
    (Frontiers Media SA, 2026-05-08) ;
    Miranda-Toapanta, Davis
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    Rojas-Cañizares, David
    Introduction Traditional criminal investigation often struggles to integrate dispersed and heterogeneous information, delaying the identification of serial or escalating patterns. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and cognitive computing offer data-driven approaches for cross-source correlation and temporal anomaly detection. Methods A focused narrative review of peer-reviewed literature on AI applications in forensic analysis, pattern detection, and investigative support was conducted using major multidisciplinary databases. Selected studies were synthesized into two analytical dimensions: evidence correlation and anomaly detection, and further examined through a retrospective case-based illustration. Results AI-based approaches support the linkage of low-level traces with higher-level events, enabling structured reconstruction and large-scale pattern identification. Machine learning models integrate heterogeneous data into operational representations, achieving high predictive performance under controlled conditions, often reported above 90% accuracy. Statistical and learning-based methods also detect temporal compression, behavioral drift, and cross-source anomalies, revealing patterns that may remain fragmented under manual analysis. Retrospective examination of historically fragmented cases highlights longitudinal regularities, including shrinking inter-event intervals, increasing severity, and the accumulation of weak signals that become meaningful when analyzed jointly. Discussion AI contributes primarily at a methodological level by enabling continuous integration and re-evaluation of investigative signals, supporting more data-informed and longitudinally grounded profiling practices. However, a gap persists between high performance in controlled settings and limited validation in real-world contexts. Future research should prioritize empirical benchmarking using operational datasets, the development of explainable and auditable systems, and governance frameworks ensuring transparent, accountable, and human-supervised deployment.
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    The illusion of flexibility and the limits of teacher autonomy in the Ecuadorian curriculum
    (Frontiers Media SA, 2026-05-21) ;
    Introduction Curriculum reforms in Latin America emphasize flexibility, contextualization, and teacher autonomy. In Ecuador, the 2016 curriculum operationalizes these through Skills with Performance Criteria (PC). Methods An analytical–interpretive approach was applied, examining the national curriculum alongside literature on educational governance and critical pedagogy. Results The PC-based structure, with its criteria and indicators, organizes planning, evaluation, and documentation around predefined outcomes. While this promotes coherence, it fragments practice into discrete units. Contextualization occurs in teaching, but validation relies on standardized references, creating tension between adaptation and assessment. Teacher work is structured by planning and verification processes. Discussion Interpreted as controlled freedom, autonomy is recognized but bounded, and flexibility emerges as a practice shaped by technical constraints.
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    Impact of mixed reality on the care of the elderly: a scoping review
    (Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2026-07-06) ; ;
    Palacios-Navarro, Guillermo
    Population aging requires innovative technological strategies that promote autonomy, functionality, and well-being in old age. In this context, mixed reality (MR), a technology that integrates physical and digital elements in a shared and interactive real-time environment, emerges as a promising alternative. To analyze the current state of evidence on the use of MR in the care of older adults, including its theoretical and practical implications. Scientific articles were reviewed in Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, IEEE Xplore, and EBSCO. Data from 15 studies were organized into an analytical matrix to identify methodological and impact patterns. MR interventions have shown promising preliminary results in physical rehabilitation, cognitive stimulation, emotional well-being, and social interaction by combining sensory feedback, functional tasks, and meaningful experiences. The included studies represent heterogeneous MR configurations along the virtual reality continuum, including transparent or pass-through optical viewers, VR-HMD-based systems with real-world interaction, and sensor- or projection-based platforms. Rather than demonstrating superiority over virtual or augmented reality, the evidence suggests specific advantages related to contextual awareness, physical interaction, and cognitive-motor-affective integration. These features were associated with potential improvements in mobility, executive functions, motivation, positive emotions, and social presence, supporting an interpretive cognitive-motor-emotional framework and the design of safe, meaningful, and context-sensitive interventions. MR shows promising potential for the care of older adults by improving cognitive, motor, emotional, and social outcomes. However, current evidence remains preliminary due to small sample sizes, methodological heterogeneity, a scarcity of comparative studies, and a lack of longitudinal evidence. © The Author(s) 2026.
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    System for Monitoring and Warning of the Ultraviolet Radiation Index: A Study Case in Ecuador Elementary Schools
    (2020) ;
    Chango F.I.
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    Chango M.L.Á.
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    Santamaría M.
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    Solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation has increased in recent years due to ozone layer depletion and in Ecuador in particular, due to its geographical position and the height of its cities. Prolonged sun exposures in childhood increase the risk of causing malignant effects on the skin and eyes, such as squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma and cataracts. For this reason, this document describes the design of a device based on UV optical sensors that allows determining the existing radiation index. As a processing unit there is the Raspberry Pi 3B+ embedded board and to display the data physically there are LED panels. The storage of information is done through a database managed by MySQL and also implemented on the board. The levels of the ultraviolet radiation index (UVI) are presented through a graphical user interface (GUI) in real time, which also allows generating a report in a.csv file. Functional tests were carried out in the central courtyard of two educational units, to raise awareness among parents and authorities on the adoption of preventive measures that avoid possible damage to the skin of children when carrying out outdoor activities. © 2020, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
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    Robotics in higher education and its impact on digital learning
    In recent years, robotics has transformed various industrial processes but has also influenced teaching methodologies. Although there are literature reviews on its application in professional training, many are outdated or lack a current focus on its impact in higher education. Addressing this gap, the present mini review examines the impact, challenges, and opportunities of this technology in the university setting. To this end, a search was conducted in the PubMed, Scopus, IEEE Xplore, APA PsycNet, and Web of Science databases, selecting 11 studies that addressed diverse applications of robotics, including educational robotics, robotic telepresence, human-robot interaction, and artificial intelligence applications. Their effects on teaching, the factors influencing their adoption, and the strategies used to optimize their implementation were analyzed. The findings show that educational robotics enhances student motivation and engagement, with prediction models reaching an accuracy of 98.78% in assessing academic engagement. Additionally, robotic telepresence emerges as an effective alternative for hybrid education, and social robots and AI-based tutors demonstrated their potential to personalize learning. However, methodological and structural challenges persist, such as the need to develop more accurate evaluation metrics and ensure accessibility and educational equity. Future research should focus on improving these aspects, enabling more efficient integration to enhance teaching processes. This study was registered in the Open Science Framework under the code: 10.17605/OSF.IO/KHDTU.
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    Ethical Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence Among Ecuadorian University Students
    (2025) ;
    Ángel Ramón Sabando-García
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    Bosco Javier Sabando-García
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    Artificial intelligence has transformed educational environments by facilitating processes such as information retrieval, assisted writing, automated feedback, and personalized tutoring. Within university settings, the adoption of technologies capable of autonomously generating content has increased rapidly, becoming a common academic resource for students. However, this accelerated integration poses ethical challenges, particularly when such tools are used without a clear understanding of their implications. This study aimed to examine how students’ emotional attitudes (affective), understanding (cognitive), and practical use (behavioral) of AI relate to their ethical engagement with these technologies. A structured questionnaire was administered to 833 university students in Ecuador. The instrument showed excellent internal consistency (α = 0.992; Ω = 0.992), and the validity analyses confirmed that the dimensions measured distinct but related constructs. ChatGPT was reported as the most used tool (62.2%), followed by Gemini and Siri. The structural model indicated that emotional and cognitive dimensions substantially influenced ethical behavior (β = 0.413 and β = 0.567, respectively), whereas frequent use alone exhibited no significant effect (β = −0.128; p = 0.058). These results suggest that ethical engagement with AI is primarily driven by reflection and knowledge rather than habit. This study contributes to the literature by modeling how different learning dimensions shape ethical behavior in AI use and underscores the relevance of aligning academic practices with socially responsible uses of emerging technologies.
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    Perceptions and Dispositions of Parents and Teachers Toward Technological Learning Communities
    (2023)
    Núñez-Hernández C.
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    The search for strategies to improve students’ academic performance is increasingly common in education. Parents’ participation and teachers’ attention are key factors in forming a learning community. This article presents the results of a survey in which relevant statistical data was obtained. A significant association (p = 0.571) was found between the frequency with which parents help their children understand school content and their willingness to be part of a learning community, representing 40.65% of the population. In addition, it was found that 66.67% of parents frequently meet with their children’s teachers because they often solve the children’s doubts. Regarding the attention of teachers, it was evidenced that 64.71% of parents who meet very frequently with teachers do so with those who very frequently resolve children’s doubts effectively, which shows a correlation significant (p = 0.467). Finally, the relationship between the degree of mastery of teachers in learning management platforms and their participation in forming learning communities was analyzed. A significant correlation (phi = 0.321) was found between the degree of mastery of teachers in these platforms and their participation in the formation of learning communities, with 28.24% of teachers having sufficient mastery and 20.61% of those with a moderate domain. These findings highlight the importance of parent-teacher collaboration in fostering a culture of learning in school and improving student academic achievement. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2023.
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    Non-formal Virtual Training Strategies to Promote Entrepreneurship
    (2025)
    Mónica Naranjo-Costales
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    In the current context, entrepreneurship requires extensive knowledge for proper development. In Latin America, the lack of expertise in areas such as marketing and financial management leads to a high rate of business failure. This study addresses this issue by implementing a virtual learning environment called Emprende Virtual, designed to promote sustainable entrepreneurship through masterclasses and practical activities. The methodology used was a quantitative approach with an experimental design. A total of 59 participants were divided into two groups: an experimental group that received training through the digital resource of the virtual environment and a control group that received no intervention. Pre- and post-test surveys were conducted to measure the impact of the virtual learning environment on the participants’ entrepreneurial attitude, knowledge and skills. The results showed a significant improvement in the experimental group compared to the control group, especially in areas such as educational technology, innovation and entrepreneurship, and business management. This demonstrates that the strategy not only facilitates access to education but also contributes to the development of essential skills for business success, promoting sustainability and economic growth. Despite limitations such as the lack of geographical representativeness and variability in prior experience, the VLE proves to be an effective tool for developing entrepreneurs in the region.
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    Support vector machine as tool for classifying coffee beverages
    (2020) ;
    Fuentes, E.M.
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    Meló, R.G.
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    Barat, J.M.
    Classifiers are tools widely used nowadays to process data and obtain prediction models that are trained through supervised learning techniques; there is a wide variety of sensors that acquire the data to be processed, such as the voltammetric electronic tongue, as a device employed to analyze food compounds. This paper presents a normal and decaffeinated coffee beverage classifier using a Support Vector Machine with a linear separation function, detailing the classification function and the model optimization method; to train the model, the data measured by 4 electrodes of a voltammetric tongue that is excited by a predetermined sequence of positive pulses is used. In addition, the results graphically show the measurements obtained, the support vectors and the evaluation data, the values of the classifier parameters are also presented. Finally, the conclusions establish an acceptable error in the classification of coffee drinks according to caffeine presence at the sample analyzed. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.
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