Stefania Druga

While this paper focuses on the challenges faced by Chinese early career researchers within China’s academic system, many of the issues it highlights resonate much more broadly. Early career researchers across different countries and institutions often experience similar pressures, despite varying contexts. As the paper notes, “You can do all the ‘right’ things, and still fail.” Even when researchers meet all expected benchmarks, publishing, teaching, and applying for grants, securing stable academic positions is still far from guaranteed. This points to a broader structural reality in academia, where effort and merit do not always translate into outcomes. In this sense, many of these barriers are systemic rather than personal. Perhaps it is also a reminder, especially for early career researchers, to be kind to ourselves when outcomes are shaped by factors beyond individual control. #ECR #AcademicCareers #HigherEducation #ResearchCareer #PhDLife #AcademicWellbeing

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Grateful to Morning Wave in Busan (BeFM Public Radio, South Korea) for the invitation to discuss how Gen Z is reshaping communication in the AI era. 🎙️ Interview: “Gen Z Workers Struggle to Communicate Without AI” 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gTKVK9FZ Our conversation examined how Gen Z’s digital fluency, shaped by pandemic-era socialization and lifelong immersion in networked media, has transformed both the possibilities and the vulnerabilities of communication. As I shared on air, their growing reliance on AI reflects not detachment but redefinition: connection reframed through safety, efficiency, and algorithmic empathy. AI tools have become rehearsal spaces where users can test language, tone, and confidence before stepping into human interaction—a “mirror and mask” that both reflects adaptability and conceals fragility. When thoughtfully integrated, these tools can serve as bridges to expression, especially for neurodivergent or anxious communicators; yet over-automation risks flattening authenticity and emotional nuance. The challenge ahead is one of human rebalancing: reintroducing improvisation, ambiguity, and empathy as vital communicative skills. The humanities remain our best compass in this work and Lindenwood University College of Arts and Humanities continues to lead the way in bridging power skills and workforce readiness. #AI #GenZ #Communication #HumanCenteredAI #DigitalHumanities

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Cozy Heterotopias in JRPGs: A Foucauldian Perspective on the Spatiality of Coziness in Japanese Role-Playing Games (Klös and Dr. Stefan Simond) This article applies the concept of heterotopia as developed by Michel Foucault to cozy aesthetics in JRPGs. After introducing the concept of heterotopia and its six key principles, the term JRPG is briefly reflected upon. We then analyze key aspects of the games Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch and Final Fantasy VII Remake regarding the significance of heterotopias for their sense of coziness. We conclude that Foucault’s concept of heterotopia helps in understanding the way in which coziness, on the one hand, offers a respite from the crises of life while, on the other hand, enabling an engagement with said crises in a safe environment. https://lnkd.in/eSbnen6g

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The four groundbreaking books by Professor Dr. Freitas-Magalhães, now available on Rakuten Kobo, mark a scientific revolution in the study of basic human emotions. 📘 The F-M Face Prototypic Model of the 9 Basic Emotions unveils, for the first time, the universal and cross-cultural codification of the nine basic emotions — including pain and love — through an empirically validated facial prototype. 📙 LOVE: The Ninth Basic Emotion officially recognizes love as a universal basic emotion, with a distinct facial expression, specific neurobiological circuitry, and evolutionary function, grounded in the Facial Brain Theory. 📕 F-M Love Scale introduces the first scientific scale for the facial codification of love, structured across six emotional stages and integrating expressions, neuromicroexpressions, brain activation, and adaptive value. 📗 The NeuroEmotional Triptych Model of Love offers a visual and scientific representation of love through a triple-layer approach — facial, physiological, and neural — establishing love as a fundamental emotion for human connection. 🧠❤️ These works are essential reading for anyone exploring, teaching, or fascinated by the science of the brain, face, and emotion. Now available in digital format on Rakuten Kobo.

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Korea AI Safety Institute (Korea AISI) has launched a new website in cooperation with the Future of Life Institute (FLI): https://lnkd.in/gdq_FscX There, you can find the full English version of Korea’s AI Basic Act, along with a comparison to the EU AI Act. This work by Korea AISI lays the groundwork for the future adoption of the EU’s Code of Practice (CoP), and we hope it will serve as a foundational resource for assessing the governance compatibility between Korea’s AI Basic Act and the EU AI Act.

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Of course this is happening. Academic integrity isn’t just a student issue. Hidden prompt-injection to nudge AI reviewers only exposes what many of us already know: generative AI is shining a floodlight on how fragile and gamified scholarly publishing has become. Until we address the incentives and workflows, the cheats will keep out-innovating the gatekeepers.

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🌟 New Research Publication Alert 🌟 We are excited to share our latest paper, titled "An Exploration of Preschool Curriculum Learning Areas in Taiwan," now available on ResearchGate! In this study, we delve into the 2017 Taiwanese Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Curriculum Framework, exploring the six key areas of learning that guide curriculum planning and teaching strategies. The research sheds light on how Taiwanese preschools apply these learning areas, emphasizing holistic child development, cultural identity, and the use of local resources in early childhood education. 📚 Read the full paper here: https://lnkd.in/dtvWg9mq #EarlyChildhoodEducation #PreschoolCurriculum #HolisticDevelopment #CulturalIdentity #Taiwan #EducationResearch #Pedagogy #LearningAreas

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Insights below from Gary Liang, founder of Bloom AI, and one of EVR's awesome Associates, on deploying AI at scale with schools and universities 👇

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🎉 Exciting News! 📚 Our team’s latest research on the neural mechanisms of English and coding learning in Chinese preschoolers has officially been published in "Brain and Language!" Do the brain mechanisms for learning English and coding share similarities? This question has intrigued many. To explore this, we conducted an fNIRS study with 51 Chinese-speaking preschoolers and found some fascinating results: - English learning activates the right prefrontal region, while coding learning engages the left prefrontal and premotor areas, which are linked to spatial cognition and planning abilities. - Stronger first language skills correlate with less brain activation during English learning, indicating that L1 proficiency enhances neural efficiency in L2 learning. - The two learning tasks exhibit different patterns of functional connectivity in the brain. 🌟 Theoretical Significance: This study reveals the distinct neural foundations of foreign language and coding learning in early childhood, highlighting their cognitive commonalities and differences. Our findings provide a neuroscientific basis for integrating language and coding education and offer new insights to enhance children's learning efficiency. 📖 We invite you to download, read, cite, and share our work! For more details, click here: https://lnkd.in/erAKcv2e #Neuroscience #LanguageLearning #Coding #Education #EarlyChildhood #Research

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I’m glad to share that our paper, “ClayPhys: Towards Toolkits that Support Making Expressive Data Physicalization” has been accepted at ACM CHI 2026. In this work, we explore how toolkits can better support expressive approaches to data physicalization. I’m sincerely thankful to my coauthors Yichun Zhao, Jiayue Wong, Aurélien Tabard, Sowmya Somanath, and Charles Perin for their insights and guidance throughout this project. I look forward to presenting it at CHI 2026. #CHI2026

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Anthony Verardi, a Research Program Manager from Duolingo English Test, spoke to our Baskin Engineering at UCSC NLP MS cohort about their role at the intersection of applied linguistics, assessment design, and research coordination. A key takeaway from this talk was that success in NLP/EdTech requires more than just models and metrics. Anthony’s background in linguistics and humanities highlights how courses like sociolinguistics and language acquisition directly prepares students to build meaningful projects and solve problems "out in the wild". Real-world language behavior should guide our analyses, research decisions, and project design. Anthony also shared practical career advice, including lessons on professional communication and avoiding overly deferential behavior. Thank you, Anthony, for the authentic and lively conversation, for sharing your expertise and practical career advice, and for bringing a linguistically rich perspective to our cohort as we continue building our own paths in NLP. #NLP #AppliedLinguistics #EdTech

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In early 2026 DataSeer will join Proofig AI as a partner on their PubShield program. The collaboration will enable researchers at dozens of leading institutions to automatically check their manuscripts for compliance with institutional, funder, or publisher Open Science policies. https://lnkd.in/gJkb5zkq #openscience #opendata #researchintegrity #openresearch #scholcomm #scholcomms

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Good contextual review of #AI Literacy and digital literacy, featuring some of my favorite colleagues, like Pati Ruiz June Ahn Ji Soo Song Isabelle Hau. "These findings point to the need in education for coherent, community-led approaches that integrate digital literacy, AI literacy, and CS rather than treating them as siloed priorities" -- I agree! https://lnkd.in/eyve6iYE

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Chung-Ang University Launches the ‘Global Virtual Convergence Colleges Alliance’ Chung-Ang University in Korea has officially launched the Global Virtual Convergence Colleges Alliance. On November 25, the launch ceremony for the alliance was held at the 3rd Conference Room of the Korean National Assembly Members’ Office Building. This alliance aims to establish a global cooperative network with leading universities worldwide to build an IT-based convergence education ecosystem, including AI and XR technologies. It is expected to become a turning point for spreading future-oriented higher education models. The ceremony was attended by key officials from Chung-Ang University, including Vice President for Academic Affairs Park Kwang-yong and Dean of the Virtual Convergence College Wi Jong-hyun, as well as lawmakers Jeon Yong-gi, Kim Jun-hyuk, Cho In-cheol, and Kang Kyung-sook; Goo Bon-eok, Director of Talent Development Support at the Ministry of Education; Nguyen Trung Kien, Vice President of Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology (PTIT); Worawit Janchai, Dean of Chiang Mai University in Thailand; Tutun Juhana, Dean of Bandung Institute of Technology in Indonesia; Attila Pálfalusi, Head of Center at Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design in Hungary; and Esengeldi Zhumadilov, President of Salimbekov University in Kyrgyzstan.   Korea Prime Minister Kim Min-seok delivered a congratulatory address, stating: “This is a time when efforts are needed to expand knowledge globally through online platforms and diversify learning frameworks. Amid the new trend of convergence education that integrates industry, technology, art, and humanities, we expect to provide future generations with open opportunities for learning and challenge.”   Lawmakers Jeon Yong-gi, Kim Jun-hyuk, Cho In-cheol, and Kang Kyung-sook also emphasized the importance of university education innovation and international cooperation in the era of digital transformation. They encouraged Chung-Ang University’s initiative, saying: “The global education model promoted by the Virtual Convergence College will present a new direction for Korean higher education.”   In the keynote speeches, Dean Wi Jong-hyun presented “Joint Education Promotion Models and IT-Based University Education Cooperation Strategies between Chung-Ang University and Overseas Universities.” Nguyen Trung Kien introduced “IT Education Innovation Cases and Future Cooperation Plans between Chung-Ang University and PTIT.” Goo Bon-eok discussed “Government Policies for Globalizing K-Education.”   Meanwhile, Chung-Ang University’s Virtual Convergence College plans to operate joint curricula and co-develop immersive media and AI-based convergence education programs based on this alliance. It will also actively participate in creating a global education ecosystem through international exchanges of students and faculty and expanding joint research.

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End of Japanese community at Mozilla due to the introduction of AI-based translation. The community members have expressed disappointment and frustration that their long term volunteer efforts and local knowledge were being replaced by machine translation, which they felt did not match the quality of human provided support. Source: nixCraft https://lnkd.in/e4qQzziR

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Excited to share a successful collaboration between OIT Research Technology Services and SMU Libraries! Together, we developed an AI-powered workflow that automates metadata creation for library cataloging using the MARC standard. By leveraging open-source Vision Transformer models running on SMU's NVIDIA DGX SuperPOD, we built a pipeline that processes hundreds of scanned images using a fixed-prompt approach, generating high quality metadata drafts ready for cataloger review. All data stays securely behind institutional firewalls, addressing privacy concerns that come with commercial AI tools. This work was presented at the Amigos Annual Member Conference https://lnkd.in/g2jQtAi6

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Can a better onboarding design significantly improve usability and user experience? In our recent study — published in the Springer Future Technologies Conference (FTC) 2024 — we tested this in the context of an ecological information app for Taiwan's endemic bird species. We examined how two onboarding strategies — interactive tutorials vs. contextual help — affect usability and overall user experience. Our usability testing involved 67 participants aged 20–40, all familiar with smartphones and active social media users — a demographic representative of real-world app users. Our Key findings: (1) The version with onboarding tutorials achieved an average SUS score of 74.77 (Good–Excellent). It was rated "Excellent" in dependability, stimulation, and novelty in UEQ evaluation. (2) The version with contextual help scored 67.86 (OK–Good), with lower UX ratings. These results suggest that onboarding design is critical in ensuring clarity, efficiency, and engagement, particularly in information-rich or learning-based mobile apps. Our design process combined visual simplification, user-centered interface design, interactive structure development, and heuristic evaluation, with usability testing conducted remotely via MAZE. 🔗 Read the full paper here: https://lnkd.in/gQ4PQJzX Suppose you're working at the intersection of UX research or digital learning. In that case, I'd love to connect and exchange ideas! #UXResearch #UserOnboarding #UsabilityTesting #UserCenteredDesign #InteractionDesign #DesignForEcology #DigitalProductDesign #MAZEtesting #FTC2024 #Springer #HCI #UXForGood

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The White House and DoE published policy documents on AI development and educational responses for AI. This report focuses on guidance and opportunities for community and technical colleges – AI Workforce Development, Educational Innovation & Support, and Responsible AI Use in Education. Here is a brief report from the perspectives of the community & technical colleges - Federal AI Action Plan from the White House and DoE.docx (attached).

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A new Nature correspondence warns that AI is eroding apprenticeship in research. Jing Hu (UNSW) and Tony Huiquan Zhang (University of Macau) describe their experience using Claude Code and "OpenClaw" across various research projects. They call these tools "the perfect assistants that any researcher would want." AI debugged complex code in minutes or hours that would have taken weeks or months. Data collection, cleaning, curation... all outsourcable now. "We doubt we are alone in feeling this way", they say about wanting to hand off all the grunt work to AI. The exact grunt work that trains junior researchers. Then again, maybe that initial 'grunt' level is just going to be deleted and replaced by a more fun 'first step'. A lot of people assume that apprenticeship means having to pay your dues in a particular painful way and that LLMs eroding that pain is a bad thing. I guess that's true if the pain is conducive to some skill that's usable later on, so the real question is what are those going to look like by the time the noobies become more senior...

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