This study investigated female students’ practices and experiences of using mobile technology for learning in Saudi higher education during the period of 2014-2017, and built a theoretical framework for mobile learning in this context. The rapid expansion of higher education in Saudi Arabia, coupled with the rapid increase in student numbers, is raising the need to find more effective ways to teach, reach and communicate with such a large student body. Mobile technology has been widely used in the context of Saudi higher education by both students and university teachers, but little is known about female students’ experiences of using mobile technology to support their learning. A better understanding of the context of mobile use in higher education in Saudi Arabia might help in exploiting the affordances of mobile technology for learning purposes and uses. As a contribution to innovations in Saudi higher education, this study explored mobile learning experiences of Saudi female students at one of the universities in Saudi Arabia, King Saud University. The study implemented a case study methodology and used a qualitative-led mixed methods design. A large-scale online survey of 7,865 female students provided information about the ownership and practices of mobile technology among higher education students; the extent of Internet access via mobile technology, as well as times, locations, and purposes of the use. The study also investigated the opportunities provided by mobile technology that enhance and foster learning experiences for higher education students through an in-depth investigation of 52 participants through personal diaries, group interviews and in-depth, semistructured interviews. The contribution to knowledge lays in the development of a theoretical framework for mobile learning to describe contemporary practices and experiences in Saudi higher education. Themes of mobile learners’ ubiquitous use, mobile learners’ movement, and mobile learners’ strategies for achieving learning goals emerged through the analysis. One major conclusion of the research is that, as a country with a gender segregated education system and very strong cultural demands on women, mobile learning enables Saudi females to negotiate their way through the different constraints, restrictions and boundaries that prevent or hinder them in their learning process, while maintaining their own cultural values, principles and traditions. The research concluded that the mobile learning framework, in the context of Saudi females in higher education, is about active learners showing their agency through appropriating tools and resources, crossing boundaries of contexts, and personalizing their learning with and through the use of their mobile technology as a cultural resource and boundary-crossing tool to accomplish learning tasks, purposes and goals.

This thesis provides an assessment of the readiness levels within both urban and rural hospitals and clinics in Libya for the implementation of E-health systems. This then enabled the construction of a framework for E-health implementation in the Libyan National Health Service (LNHS). The E-health readiness study assessed how medications were prescribed, how patients were referred, how information communication technology (ICT) was utilised in recording patient records, how healthcare staff were trained to use ICT, and how the ways in which consultations were carried out by healthcare staff. The research was done in five rural clinics and five urban medical centres and focused on the E-health readiness levels of the technology, social attitudes, engagement levels and any other needs that were apparent. Collection of the data was carried out using a mixed methods approach with qualitative interviews and quantitative questionnaires. The study indicated that any IT equipment present was not being utilised for clinical purposes and there was no evidence of any E-health technologies being employed. This implies that the maturity level of the healthcare institutions studied was at level zero in the E-health maturity model used in this thesis. In order for the LNHS to raise its maturity levels for the implementation of E-health systems, it needs to persuade LNHS staff and patients to adopt E-health systems. This can be carried out at a local level throughout the LNHS, though this will need to be coordinated at a national level through training, education and programmes to encourage compliance and providing incentives. In order to move E-health technology usage in the participating Libyan healthcare institutions from Level 0 to Level 2 in the E-health Maturity Model levels, an E-health framework was created that is based on the findings of this research study. The primary aim of the LNHS E-Health Framework is the integration of E-health services for improving the delivery of healthcare within the LNHS. To construct the framework and ensure that it was creditable and applicable, work on it was informed directly by the findings from document analysis, literature review, and expert feedback, in conjunction with the primary research findings presented in Chapter Five. When the LNHS E-Health Framework was compiled there were several things taken into consideration, such as: the abilities of healthcare staff, the needs of healthcare institutions and the existing ICT infrastructure that had been recorded in the E-readiness assessment which was carried out in the healthcare institutions (Chapter 5). The framework also provides proposals for E-health systems based on the infrastructure network that will be developed. The processes addressed are electronic health records, E-consultations, E-prescriptions, E-referrals and E-training. The researcher has received very positive, even enthusiastic, feedback from the LNHS and other officals, and that expect the framework to be further developed and implemented by the LNHS in the near future.

Nowadays, the European automotive market is dominated by Diesel engines. Despite their high efficiency, these produce significant levels of pollutants. Among the various pollutants released, nitrogen oxides and soot are the main issues. Their formation is linked to the combustion process and attempts to reduce one often lead to an increase of the other. Laser diagnostics are among the best tools for experimental, non-intrusive studies inside combustion chambers for a better understanding of the complex combustion processes. Depending on the optical diagnostic, numerous combustion characteristics and processes can be investigated. The work presented here intends initially to develop a quantitative laser technique for characterising soot and, secondly, to further the knowledge on soot formation in Diesel engines by the application of this technique in an optical combustion chamber. Some of the main characteristics describing soot formation are the soot volume fraction, number density and particle sizes. Soot volume fraction is the major one as it is representative of the volume of soot produced. Planar characterisation of soot volume fraction, number density and particle size were achieved for the first time by simultaneous recording laser-induced incandescence (LII), laser scattering and two-colour time-resolved (2C-TiRe) LII signals. Qualitative planar distributions of particle diameter and soot volume fraction were derived from the image ratio of scattering and incandescence signals. 2C- TiRe LII technique allowed the simultaneous recording of the temporal LII signal for two different wavelengths in order to obtain quantitative values of the laser-heated particles temperature, soot volume fraction and particle size for a local or global part of the flame. These were used to recalibrate relative size and soot volume distributions. An initial development of the technique was performed on a laminar diffusion flame (Santoro burner) to validate its viability and performance. Equivalent temperature, soot volume fraction and particle diameter were determined throughout the flame. The results were found to be in good agreement with the ones published in the literature. The diagnostic was subsequently applied to an optical Diesel rapid compression machine, and further refinements were undertaken to cope with the higher soot concentration and lower LII signal. Tests were conducted for in-cylinder pressures ranging from 4 to 10 MPa, and injection pressures up to 160 MPa. A fixed injection timing and injected fuel quantity were used. Effects of in-cylinder pressure, fuel injection pressure and cetane number on soot formation and characteristics were observed. High injection pressure, cetane number and in-cylinder pressure caused a reduction of soot particle size and volume fraction but an increase of the soot particle density.

Corpus-based methods are now dominant in Natural Language Processing (NLP). Creating big corpora is no longer difficult and the technology to analyze them is growing faster, more robust and more accurate. However, when an NLP application performs well on one corpus, it is unclear whether this level of performance would be maintained on others. To make progress on these questions, we need methods for comparing corpora. This thesis investigates comparison methods based on the notions of corpus homogeneity and similarity.

This doctoral research is propelled by a single question: when partners from public and private sectors unify with the aim of increasing access to quality community ‘health’ information, what factors shape the selection of technological platforms? In monitoring the processes of planning and decision making, the choice of platform reveals the interests, ideologies and values of groups given labels such as ‘stakeholders.’