Background Research projects often involve observation, registration, and data processing starting from information obtained in field experiments. In many cases, these tasks are carried out by several persons in different places, times, and ways, adding different levels of complexity and error in data collecting. Furthermore, data processing can be time consuming, and input errors may produce u...

Evaluating mobile applications to identify usability problems presents a unique set of challenges. Not only is it difficult to capture data on an application that is inherently mobile, but generating an authentic environment of use is also problematic. This paper compares two “traditional” user-based approaches to evaluate a mobile system: one laboratory-based and the other in the field. These ...

The business segment of Japanese companies such as Toshiba changed drastically for the last several years. This means that companies should change their culture and need new product development process applying information technologies. This paper presents examples of design technologies that realize the innovative product development process in Toshiba focused on an electromechanical product d...

PURPOSE Recruitment to trials is often difficult. Many trials fail to meet recruitment targets resulting in underpowered studies which waste resources and the time of those who participated. While there is evidence that many people are willing to take part in research, particularly if it involves a condition from which they suffer, researchers are unable to easily contact such people often rely...

BACKGROUND Governments, universities and pan-African research networks are building durable infrastructure and capabilities for biomedical research in Africa. This offers the opportunity to adopt from the outset innovative approaches and technologies that would be challenging to retrofit into fully established research infrastructures such as those regularly found in high-income countries. In t...