Hello everyone, On behalf of HEAnet I would like to hear your ideas on how Internet of Things/IOT could benefit your educational environment and what HEAnet could do to help.
Let me start by setting the scene.
What is Internet of Things/IOT
Internet of Things (IOT) is a concept which pops up everywhere nowadays. In a recent IOT newspaper article some examples were listed, including, rubbish bins which signal their content to the bin collector vans so they can be directed using optimum collection routes. Another example is alarm clocks which are linked to your e-diary and will adjust your wake-up time accordingly, governed by user preferences of course. Remote central heating and coffee machines were also mentioned. All of the above are based on the assumption that they operate on the Internet and in the Cloud.
IDA Ireland describes IOT as starting with sensors to measure the physical world. Devices collect and transmit data to a data host (possibly in the Cloud), where it (big) data can be analysed for the benefit of users and others.
I hope these examples don’t recall George Orwell’s 1984?.. All technology can be misused of course, but it can also be used to improve all our lives.
Can IOT be of value to the education sector?
Having asked around, I identified a couple of few areas where the use of IOT could be worthwhile:
- educating people about what IOT means – the addition of IOT related modules or courses in the curriculum, as per WITs “world-first” BSc: http://tinyurl.com/ot5rknu
- IOT can also be used in pedagogy. A student provided a scenario on researching an essay. When reading the literature, an eye-tracking device monitors the reader. A heart beat monitor checks for interesting text.. While a highlighting e-pen can add additional bookmarks and context. Together with the personal bookshelf, analysis and advice can be performed. And all of this can help the student with further cognitive support for his/her research.
- Another area where IOT can be used is supporting a smart campus/institute. I have heard from campus facilities’ departments that understanding how students move around on campus, have library access, use the laboratories and interact with learning management systems could provide worthwhile information about student needs and wishes. This (big data) has to be analysed to identify its real value. Running a pilot can reveal a lot more than simply discussing it. An example of a smart campus can be seen in this video of UCD.
- Besides the educational aspects, there is the research aspect. Projects on health, industry, public, etc. which would look at how IOT can optimise products, services and life experiences. For instance, researchers at DCUs Insight Centre are working on life-logging which could possibly help people with dementia. Other SFI supported projects on IOT are: CONNECT and SmartBay.
Can IOT be of value to you (and your work)?
The above IOT examples are perhaps too generic. So let’s look at it from your perspective. What I am really looking for is your examples/ideas/experiences:
- What does IOT mean for you?
- Is IOT important/not important and why?
- Will IOT provide challenges/opportunities to society, personal, organisational and/or technology levels? If yes, which challenges/opportunities?
- What IOT inhibitors do you see; are they political, policy, security, data ownership, privacy, a vague definition of IOT etc? How can they be overcome?
- Are there any IOT forums already in existence in Ireland or elsewhere?
- Can IOT devices be manageable; looking at software upgrades, (mis)use aka security, privacy, etc?
- How can HEAnet, as a service provider, support the IOT activities in the educational environment?: connectivity, protocols, storage, compute power, data models, (cognitive) analytics, providing forums, providing leadership, etc?
- Do you see a role change for the ICT sector from data provide to phone provider to energy provider (Power over Ethernet: PoE)?
- Any other IOT related thoughts would be very welcome.
Your feedback will help test the waters on IOT in the educational environment and also help in determining what a service provider, such as HEAnet, could/should contribute. Thanks in advance for your comments.
All the best, Victor
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