Digital Libraries and Educational Resources: the AquaRing Semantic Approach

Authors

  • Stefano Bianchi Softeco Sismat S.p.A.
  • Gianni Vercelli University of Genoa
  • Giuliano Vivanet University of Genoa

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v5i1.1030

Keywords:

Digital Libraries, Learning Objects, Ontologies, Semantic Web

Abstract


Large amounts of scientific digital contents are nowadays held by scientific institutions which collect, produce and store information valuable for dissemination, work, study and research. In this context, the development of the web and learning technologies has brought new opportunities for teachers and learners to retrieve and share pedagogical objects. This paper introduces the use of a semantic approach developed within the EC funded AquaRing project with the aim of improving access to the vast amount of digital content concerning the aquatic environment and its resources, as well as supporting enhanced education and informal learning in this specific domain. In order to achieve these goals, a semantic framework and an educational ontology were developed and implemented. Both were used to support the indexing of learning resources and to provide several educational services to end-users (especially children, students, parents and teachers).

Author Biographies

Stefano Bianchi, Softeco Sismat S.p.A.

Biomedical Engineering degree from the University of Genoa in 2002. In 7 years of experience in EC-funded research and innovation projects, he mainly addressed semantic-based knowledge and content management in advanced Java-based technology web applications (J2EE, JSP/Servlet, JSF). Actively involved in 8 European projects (eContent Worksafe, eContent ERDDS, eTEN EuOrphan, IST K-Wf Grid, eTEN EuroWorksafe, eContentplus AquaRing, IST Accessibile and HEALTH Hypergenes) his experience ranges from user requirements analysis to system architecture design and technical software development, with particular emphasis on complementary activities such as market analysis and business model planning, dissemination and exploitation, corporate image definition and support of project coordination.

Gianni Vercelli, University of Genoa

Gianni Vercelli, Born in Genoa (Italy) in 1962, is Associated Professor of Computer Science in the Education Sciences Faculty of the University of Genoa. In 1987 he received the magna cum laude degree in Electronic Engineering, with AICA Award for Best 1987 Italian Master Thesis in Computer Science, and in 1992 he received a Ph.D. in Computer Science; he joined as Researcher the University of Trieste from 1996 to 1998, working on distance education and streaming video. In November 1998 he came back as Assistant Professor in Computer Science and Multimedia Design at the Education Sciences Faculty of University of Genoa, where it is now teaching Computer Sciences in Education, Operating Systems and E-learning technologies in graduate, post-graduate and master classes. Member of Italian E-Learning Society and of the Artificial Intelligence Italian Association, his scientific interests are focused on E-learning, Educational Multimedia Tools, Assistive Technologies, Artificial Intelligence and Semantic Web, with more than 100 publications in these fields.

Giuliano Vivanet, University of Genoa

Giuliano Vivanet, born in Cagliari (Italy) in 1975, is a research collaborator at University of Genoa. In 2003 he received the magna cum laude degree in Education Sciences, in 2005 the Master's Degree in ?E-Learning for the school, University and enterprisesâ�?¬, and in 2009 a Ph.D in ?Languages, Cultures and Information and Comunication Technologiesâ�?¬ from the University of Genoa. Currently, he is involved in research activity on e-learning issues at the "E-learning and Knowledge Management Laboratory" of the Department of Communication, Computer and System Sciences (DIST) of the University of Genoa. His scientific interests are focused on e-learning, semantic web application in learning context, ontologies for education, instructional design and learning resources. Since 2006 he has published more than 20 publications in these fields.

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Published

2010-02-23

How to Cite

Bianchi, S., Vercelli, G., & Vivanet, G. (2010). Digital Libraries and Educational Resources: the AquaRing Semantic Approach. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning (iJET), 5(1), pp. 11–15. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v5i1.1030

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 1 (2010)

Section

Papers