The Virtual Dietitian (VD) application is a nutrition knowledge-based system that generates personalized meal plans in accordance with the one-size-does-not-fit-all concept of precision nutrition. A subset of the population that was not involved in its four-part developmental study was gym and fitness enthusiasts despite them being important target users. As part of our quality improvement (QI) plan, we initiated a two-phase user testing to inform modifications to VD. We recruited a total of 30 users with prior experience in nutrition applications. In phase 1, they used the current version of VD for a week and answered a mixed-form questionnaire afterward. We used the same questionnaire from our previous study, which is composed of System Usability Scale (SUS) items and open-ended questions. After months of system modification, the same set of users evaluated again the new VD version after another week of use. A paired-sample t-test showed a statistically significant difference in SUS scores before (SUS = 79) and after (SUS = 82) modifying VD based on the suggestions of the participants (p = 0.005). Some new features include water tracker and reminder modules, Google Fit integration, and other nutrition support services (e.g., teleconsultation with registered dietitians). Although further refinements to VD are still needed, we were able to incorporate a QI initiative typically employed by healthcare organizations into software development for a better and improved personalized nutrition application.

Governments and health agencies around the world have been at the forefront of managing the COVID-19 pandemic. To control the spread of the outbreak, mandatory safety protocols have been put into effect. Despite the continuous development and strict enforcement of these preventive guidelines, non-compliance with these mandatory safety protocols has been reported. Getting the message to the public is one of the key challenges in convincing people to follow mitigation policies. In this study, we employed the media of video games to advocate for COVID-19 safety protocols. We developed a video game called "Corona Larona" that features microgames with action gameplay playable on a mobile platform. Our video game concentrated on several preventive measures such as physical distancing, hand washing, wearing face masks as well as basic knowledge about the virus using in-game multiple choice questions. To our knowledge, this is the first video game dedicated to the COVID-19 outbreak and the mandatory safety protocols. In a time when many people play video games to survive their current situation, the Corona Larona game is a strategic example of using and maximizing this form of media for a more noble purpose.

In this study, we developed a PC-based video game that aims to promote awareness of Persistent Depressive Disorder (PDD), also known as dysthymia. Anchored to the survival horror subgenre and a hack and slash gameplay, we constructed "Escape from Oblivion" as a single-player platformer game that highlights eerie game world environments and scenarios indicative of mental health conditions. It exhibits different mental states under terrible circumstances, forcing players to see and feel what it is almost like when suffering from a mental health condition like PDD. With the necessary expertise on PDD and mental health, we consulted with an expert to co-design the video game. We also evaluated the game prototype with players in terms of game characteristics. The initial version of our game received acceptable scores during the virtual open house event. Although there are several enhancements to be incorporated, our video game Escape from Oblivion demonstrates potential in being a promotional tool for mental health awareness.

Student engagement and enrichment are key factors as learners have shifted from the traditional classroom to the virtual classroom when a flexible learning environment has been in place. It has posed a challenge for educators to shift from traditional educational methods to the utilization of technology-enhanced learning all the more since online and flexible mode were often used since the pandemic. This paper intends to convey that students may exhibit engagement inside the virtual classroom by posting student-generated questions during a discussion forum in the Canvas LMS as question-based inquiries. More so, students have enjoyed and increase their academic performance by playing and participating in a gamified learning activity. This research discussed an activity in encouraging students' learning, curiosity, and involvement in online learning environments. The authors aim for this objective by fusing the 1) utilization of student-generated questions in the goal of promoting learning and thinking, and 2) boosting student engagement through the use of gamified activities which increases students’ academic performance. These intentions will be realized in the virtual classroom implementation and its assessment. Employing the Canvas New Analytics, 148 first year-second semester students questioned their teacher about a course topic and as their questions were each replied to, they were graded through discussion post with an average grade of 99% for all sections. The game Jeopardy was played as an examination review session for the same sections and 181 students from the four sections have an average grade score of 77.5% in their midterm examination. A course learning objective item is also measured with a university target that at least 60% of students should reach an average grade score of 80% and above. For the CLO target, average of four sections reached 68.3% which is descriptively attained. Generating questioned-based inquiry in the forum discussion showed an increase in engagement and enrichment from students. The findings have a positive impact on them as their posted inquiries and questions gained them grades which indicated high average grade for each section. Utilizing a gamified learning activity in a pure online setting for the school year 2021-2022, allowing the students to participate in educational games is necessary to boost engagement and enrichment as well.

Efficient and reliable medical image analysis is indispensable in modern healthcare settings. The conventional approaches in diagnostics and evaluations from a mere picture are complex. It often leads to subjectivity due to experts' various experiences and expertise. Using convolutional neural networks, we proposed an end-to-end pipeline for automatic Cobb angle measurement to pinpoint scoliosis severity. Our results show that the Residual U-Net architecture provides vertebrae average segmentation accuracy of 92.95% based on Dice and Jaccard similarity coefficients. Furthermore, a comparative benchmark between physician's measurement and our machine-driven approach produces an acceptable mean deviation of 1.57 degrees and a T-test p-value of 0.9028, indicating no significant difference. This study has the potential to help doctors in prompt scoliosis magnitude assessments.

This study determined the items that could predict university students’ susceptibility to disinformation (e.g., fake news). Toward this goal, randomly-selected students from the four private universities in Manila answered a content-validated and pilot-tested survey form. Through binary logistic regression analysis, it was found that frequent visits to Instagram, sharing a political post of a friend, and liking a post of a political party could increase the susceptibility of students to fake news. On the other hand, sharing the post of a political party, and seeking the opinion of experts could decrease the susceptibility of students to fake news. Of these items, liking a post with a similar opinion of a political party – a confirmation bias – had the highest contribution to fake news susceptibility of students. It is worth noting that the most reliable source of information, i.e. the library, is the least utilized fact-checking resource. It can be concluded that technological, internal, and external factors contribute either positively or negatively to the susceptibility of students to fake news. Implications to combat fake news are offered.

Artificial intelligence-based medical image analysis promises an efficient and reliable diagnosis in today's healthcare. Traditional approaches for cataract screening by medical practitioners often results in subjectivity due to their varying levels of knowledge and expertise. Using transfer learning, ensembles of pre-trained convolutional neural networks, and stacked long short-term memory networks, we developed a non-invasive and streamlined pipeline for automatic cataract severity classification. Empirical results show that our proposed combined models of AlexNet, InceptionV3, Xception, and InceptionResNetV2 using a weighted average algorithm produces 99.20% (normal vs. cataract) and 97.76% (normal to severe) accuracies compared to standalone models. Furthermore, the ensemble model reduces classification error rates by an average of 2.17%. This study has the potential to help doctors to specify the magnitude of cataract stages with highly acceptable precision.

Social relationships are a fundamental aspect of human existence. Unsurprisingly, policymakers are incessantly devising strategies that accentuate the benefits of social relationships and diminish the risks of social isolation. The natural manifestation of player-to-player interaction in a video game context poses a unique opportunity to study the effects of co-playing on social relationship formation. However, most studies recruited players with existing relationships (e.g., family and friendship), utilized random commercial video games, or experimented in an online environment. These research gaps warrant further investigation on the utility of video games for promoting social relationships among unacquainted players while in the same physical space. Thus, this study presents the development and evaluation of a couch cooperative video game grounded on sequential team-building mechanics. The findings of this study offer empirical evidence that would have significant practical implications for any organization seeking to increase teamwork and cooperation among its members.

Location-based marketing (LBM) is becoming an integral element of the media mix for making highly personalised offers to the targeted audience at the most opportune time and place. Yet, the literature calls for more usability studies due to the lack of user-centred research. To fill this gap, this study explores the development of PushMapp - a geomarketing tool for launching LBM campaigns - through a user-centred, parallel-iterative approach. Usability analysis shows that this type of application is affected by issues related to security, privacy, advertisement relevancy, and notification overload. Meanwhile, only performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and hedonic motivation appeared to be the significant factors in an LBM mobile application. Experiences from this study provided valuable insights for marketers and business owners who plan to capitalise on LBM strategies by underscoring the importance of integrating users' input, ensuring usability compliance, and conforming to factors of mobile application utilisation.

The association between nutrition and health has been repeatedly established by the field of nutrition science and evidence-based practices. Nevertheless, inadequate nutrition is still prevalent among Filipino households. As a response to this public health issue, a nutrition system called Virtual Dietitian (VD) was conceived. Through a mixed-methods approach, VD was beta tested via a user study and System Usability Scale (SUS) by six information technology experts and six registered dietitians. Participants performed the standardized tasks with a mean of 85% completion rate and 106.2 seconds, and graded SUS with a mean score of 83.4 (excellent). Albeit the prototype successfully exhibited the potential of VD as a nutrition system, qualitative feedback from experts revealed some modifications that are needed to accomplish before going to the next phase of the study. Healthcare professionals delivered their feedback on the correctness of processes and meal plan generation while the information technology experts pointed out the deficiencies of VD from the technical perspective (e.g., web standards, layout and design, functionality, navigation, usability). With this beta evaluation, an overview of the true experience gained by end users while using VD was determined without the trouble of undergoing the whole project lifecycle. Feedback from experts, which will be used in the next phase, were beneficial to ensure that the final version of VD will be correct, useful, and valid.