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Examination cheating activities like whispering, head movements, hand movements, or hand contact are extensively involved, and the rectitude and worthiness of fair and unbiased examination are prohibited by such cheating activities. The aim of this research is to develop a model to supervise or control unethical activities in real-time examinations. Exam supervision is fallible due to limited human abilities and capacity to handle students in examination centers, and these errors can be reduced with the help of the Automatic Invigilation System. This work presents an automated system for exams invigilation using deep learning approaches i.e., Faster Regional Convolution Neural Network (RCNN). Faster RCNN is an object detection algorithm that is implemented to detect the suspicious activities of students during examinations based on their head movements, and for student identification, MTCNN (Multi-task Cascaded Convolutional Neural Networks) is used for face detection and recognition. The training accuracy of the proposed model is 99.5% and the testing accuracy is 98.5%. The model is fully efficient in detecting and monitoring more than 100 students in one frame during examinations. Different real-time scenarios are considered to evaluate the performance of the Automatic Invigilation System. The proposed invigilation model can be implemented in colleges, universities, and schools to detect and monitor student suspicious activities. Hopefully, through the implementation of the proposed invigilation system, we can prevent and solve the problem of cheating because it is unethical.

AbstractPopulation-level vaccination with newly developed vaccines to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic created a need to monitor vaccine effectiveness (VE) in the context of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants and changing epidemiology. WHO and partners launched the African Region Monitoring Vaccine Effectiveness (AFRO-MoVE) Network in March 2021 to assess the performance of COVID-19 vaccines in real-world conditions in Africa. The Network aimed to facilitate and support comparable COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness studies in the African region, to provide a platform of scientific expertise and infrastructure, encourage the use of robust similar study designs to enable pooling to produce regional VE estimates and to build a sustainable network of hospitals, institutions, and experts to evaluate vaccines against pandemic and endemic respiratory pathogens. In the two years since its inception, the network has coordinated VE studies in the region and provided technical guidance and generic protocols employing robust methodologies. It brought together over 200 experts, representing 22 African countries and 55 organisations, and strengthened capacities by hosting ten webinars and six technical workshops. Of the 55 partners organisations, 25 based in 13 countries collaborated on implementing VE studies in the region. AFRO-MoVE supported study implementation in two phases, first targeting COVID-19 vaccination priority groups, then the general population. The network provides technical and financial support to nine studies, including three cohort studies in health workers and adults with comorbidities, and six test-negative design studies evaluating VE against symptomatic and severe disease. A data platform was established for pooled regional estimates. The AFRO-MoVE Network can form a sustainable platform to provide data for evidence informed decisions and timely VE monitoring for existing and new vaccines against respiratory pathogens and other diseases in the African region. Further development and consolidation of the network’s activities can enable rapid response to future epidemics and pandemics.

By asking: Can action research help transmit ordinary, conventional, descriptive-analytic knowledge?, we set out to explore the complementarity between the descriptive-analytic \"knowing that\" and the practical \"knowing how\" knowledge. Drawing on a longitudinal study, the paper shows how a theoretical concept: \"trust\", was used as a practical vehicle for facilitating commitment to the network development process. The answer to the question is definitely positive. Moreover, it emerges that the debate on the different forms of knowledge fails to address what it actually means to construct practical orders. Only the embodiment of research knowledge into specific social constructions will demonstrate the potential gains of action. Key words: research roles, action research, regional networks, network development, trust-building

Since its initial detection in Turkey in 2009, the invasive destructive pest South American tomato pinworm Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) has started its new invasion journey to east and invaded most Asian countries. This pest currently causes extensive damage to tomato production and potentially threatens key production areas such as China. To provide an overview of current status of T. absoluta in Asia, we have briefly reviewed the damage and economic impacts by this pest locally and discussed why this species has spread so rapidly among the countries. Moreover, ongoing integrated pest management options are summarized in newly invaded areas with an emphasis of discussing the potential control failures by chemical insecticides. Future research efforts on developing promising management technologies are recommended. Finally, we suggest building a cross-regional network to enhance the sustainable control of this pest.

In this paper, we propose a regional dynamic traffic assignment framework for macroscopic fundamental diagram (MFD) models that explicitly accounts for trip length distributions. The proposed framework considers stochasticity on both the trip lengths and the regional mean speed. Consequently, we can define utility functions to assess the cost on alternatives, depending on which terms are considered stochastic. We propose a numerical resolution scheme based on Monte Carlo simulations and use the method of successive averages to solve the network equilibrium. Based on our test scenarios, we show that the variability of trip lengths inside the regions cannot be neglected. Moreover, it is also important to consider the stochasticity on the regional mean speeds to account for correlation between regional paths. We also discuss an implementation of the proposed dynamic traffic assignment framework on the sixth district of the Lyon network, where trip lengths are explicitly calculated. The traffic states are modeled by considering the accumulation-based MFD model. The results highlight the influence of the variability of trip lengths on the predicted traffic states.

Background Many national and international organizations are working to improve maternal and child nutrition in countries with high malnutrition prevalence and burdens. While there has been progress in strengthening multi-organizational networks on nutrition at country and global levels, the regional level has received much less attention. We conducted a study to 1) determine the existing relationships and levels of engagement between international organizations working to improve nutrition at the regional level or in at least two countries in South Asia; and 2) examine the experiences and perspectives of international organizations on regional-level communication, coordination or collaboration on nutrition in South Asia. Methods  A mixed methods approach involving organizational network analysis (ONA) and semi-structured interviews was used to develop an understanding of the existing network and relationships between international organizations working on nutrition in South Asia. ONA data from 43 international organizations was analysed using a social network analysis software (UCINET) to systematically quantify and visualize the patterns of relationships between organizations. Results We found a high degree of connectivity between most of the international organizations in South Asia, but there were gaps between the many organizations that knew each other and the work they did together regionally on nutrition. Most organizations worked together only ‘rarely’ or ‘sometimes’ on nutrition at the regional level and high-intensity (collaborative) working relationships were uncommon. Organizations of the same type tended to cluster together, and a small number of UN agencies and multilateral organizations were central brokers in the nutrition working relationships. Perceived constraints to the nutrition working relationships included organizations’ agenda and mandate, threats to visibility and branding, human and financial resources, history, trust and power relations with other organizations, absence of a regional network for cooperation, and donor expectations. There was high demand to remedy this situation and to put network mechanisms in place to strengthen communication, coordination and collaboration on nutrition. Conclusions Opportunities are being missed for organizations to work together on nutrition at the regional level in South Asia. The effectiveness of regional nutrition networks in influencing policy or programme decisions and resources for nutrition at country level should be explored.

AbstractBackgroundThe African Region Monitoring Vaccine Effectiveness network (AFRO-MoVE) was established by the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa in March 2021 to support implementation of COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness studies in the region. ObjectivesPrimary goals of the evaluation were to assess how AFRO-MoVE addressed its objectives supporting regional vaccine effectiveness (VE) studies, to describe challenges and opportunities, and make recommendations to strengthen future efforts related to regional VE research. MethodsFrom September 2023 through June 2024, a mixed-methods approach was employed to synthesize information from: (1) documentation provided by AFRO-MoVE; (2) a standardized study review tool; (3) an electronic stakeholder survey; and (4) a series of key informant interviews. Data were collected and exported via REDCap and summarized using Microsoft Excel. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data. Perceived challenges were summarized together with perceived support by the network in addressing each challenge. ResultsAFRO-MoVE provided support to ten VE studies, including support for protocol development, study implementation, data management, and analysis, while also facilitating knowledge exchange and experience sharing among study implementers. While respondents reported strengthened capacity for VE studies at the national and regional levels in these areas, enrollment of SARS-CoV-2 positive cases was challenging, due to a decline in reported cases in network countries in mid-2022, when many studies were launched. These challenges contributed to a lack of published VE estimates from network study sites in time to inform vaccine policy. ConclusionAFRO-MoVE technical assistance and financial support was viewed positively by network members and contributed to increased capacity for conducting VE studies in the region. Publication of study results would further bolster the impact of the network. These finding underscore opportunities to enhance capacity for rapid VE generation and support preparedness for future pandemics.

Independent component analysis (ICA) is one of the most effective approaches in extracting independent signals from a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) regional station network. However, ICA requires the involved time series to be complete, thereby the missing data of incomplete time series should be interpolated beforehand. In this contribution, a modified ICA is proposed, by which the missing data are first recovered based on the reversible property between the original time series and decomposed principal components, then the complete time series are further processed with FastICA. To evaluate the performance of the modified ICA for extracting independent components, 24 regional GNSS network stations located in North China from 2011 to 2019 were selected. After the trend, annual and semiannual terms were removed from the GNSS time series, the first two independent components captured 17.42, 18.44 and 17.38% of the total energy for the North, East and Up coordinate components, more than those derived by the iterative ICA that accounted for 16.21%, 17.72% and 16.93%, respectively. Therefore, modified ICA can extract more independent signals than iterative ICA. Subsequently, selecting the 7 stations with less missing data from the network, we repeatedly process the time series after randomly deleting parts of the data and compute the root mean square error (RMSE) from the differences of reconstructed signals before and after deleting data. All RMSEs of modified ICA are smaller than those of iterative ICA, indicating that modified ICA can extract more exact signals than iterative ICA.

Background Health policy and systems research (HPSR) is vital for strengthening health systems, yet its development in West Africa remains constrained by limited capacity. To strengthen capacity, the West African Network of Emerging Leaders in Health Policy and Systems (WANEL) was created to foster peer learning and cross-country collaboration among early- and mid-career HPSR actors. This study used Social Network Analysis (SNA) to examine WANEL’s structure and functioning, with the aim of understanding how well the network supports its capacity and HPSR field-building goals. Methods A cross-sectional whole-network survey was conducted with all 103 WANEL members, supported by document reviews and qualitative interviews. Relationship types assessed included acquaintance, communication, advice, mentorship and research collaboration. Data were analysed using Gephi to visualize relational patterns and compute metrics such as density and centralization, while qualitative findings provided context for interpreting network dynamics. Results While WANEL has enhanced cross-country awareness and disciplinary diversity, the network exhibits low cohesion and high centralization. Key support relationships, particularly mentorship, advice and collaboration are sparse and unevenly distributed. A few actors dominate the flow of information and access to opportunities, while many, especially early-career and francophone actors, remain peripheral or isolated. Network interactions are driven by prior relationships and linguistic or professional affinity, limiting broader engagement. Conclusion Findings reveal structural barriers that constrain WANEL’s potential to act as an inclusive platform for HPSR capacity-strengthening. To fulfil its vision, the network must address its current fragmentation by building stronger cross-cutting ties, broadening participation and decentralizing influence. This study contributes empirical insights into the design and governance of regional HPSR networks in low- and middle-income contexts and underscores the importance of relational infrastructure in advancing collective capacity.

To meet scientific, policy, and community goals, there is a critical need to strengthen research capacity, increase monitoring, and inform adaptation and mitigation policies to enhance resilience against ocean acidification (OA) and associated multi-stressors in the Caribbean. In 2023, an OA Needs Based Assessment survey of ocean professionals was conducted, engaging 59 participants from across the wider Caribbean to evaluate regional challenges and opportunities in OA research and monitoring. To understand differences in OA research capacity related to training and funding, we divide the respondents into four groups: those that have received 1) training and funding, 2) training only, 3) funding only, and 4) neither training nor funding. Results indicate regional strengths include awareness of local oceanic conditions, access to nearshore sites, and strong social support networks in ocean research. Regional barriers include limited technical capacity and funding to conduct oceanographic research and monitoring, and in particular, carbonate measurements. The four training and funding groups vary significantly, suggesting that access to training and funding are important factors to increasing the amount of access that respondents have to different types of equipment, the number of different types of measurements they conduct, the number of different habitats they research, and the amount of experience they have conducting OA research. This study also demonstrates the community-led efforts to address local OA challenges by presenting a case study on the formation of the Global Ocean Acidification Network (GOA-ON) OA Caribbean Hub that was founded by local leaders (co-authors of this study) who were inspired through the survey process and engagement that was conducted by co-authors. This study provides examples of avenues and challenges to build OA capacity for research and monitoring from the ground up within the wider Caribbean to advance towards global sustainability goals.