Advancements in Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain Technology, and IoT in Higher Education: Mitigating the Impact of COVID-19

With a need to find alternatives to the traditional face-to-face teaching and learning during the pandemic, this topical volume discusses the best use of technologies in higher education, addressing the growing role of AI in the digital transformation of higher education systems. With chapters from eminent professors, researchers, and others involved in higher education from a selection of different countries, the volume looks at blockchain and IoT technologies to create smart universities now and for the future.

Subhendu Kumar Pani, PhD, is Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering and also Research Coordinator at Orissa Engineering College (OEC) Bhubaneswar, India. He has more than 15 years of teaching and research experience. His research interests include data mining, big data analysis, web data analytics, fuzzy decision-making, and computational intelligence. He is the recipient of five researcher awards. In addition to research, he has guided two PhD students and 31 MTech students. He has published over 50 international journal papers (25 Scopus indexed). His professional activities include roles as associate editor, editorial board member, and/or reviewer of various international journals. He is associated with a number of conferences and societies. He has more than 100 international publications, five authored books, two edited books, and ten book chapters to his credit. He is a fellow of the Scientific Society of Advance Research and Social Change and a life member in many other professional organizations.

Kamalakanta Muduli, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Papua New Guinea University of Technology, Lae, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea. He has published 47 papers in peer-reviewed international journals, most of which are indexed in Clarivate Analytics and Scopus and listed in ABDC. Dr. Muduli has also published more than 25 papers in national and international conferences. He has been guest editing a few special issues in journals and books in preparation. Dr. Muduli has guided three PhD students. His current research interest includes sustainable supply chain management and Industry 4.0 applications in operations and supply chain management. Dr. Muduli is a fellow of the Institution of Engineers India. He is also a senior member of the Indian Institution of Industrial Engineering and member of ASME. Dr. Muduli has over 15 years of academic experience at universities in India and Papua New Guinea. Dr Muduli is a recipient of an Erasmus+ KA107 award provided by the European Union.

Sujoy Kumar Jana, PhD, is Associate Professor of the GIS section in the Department of Surveying and Land Studies at the Papua New Guinea University of Technology. He has more than 17 years of experience in research, teaching, training, and administration in the university system. He also consults on disaster risk governance, hazard and risk assessment, geo-statistics, land use/land cover, river/coastal geomorphology, and urban planning. He is the author of numerous peer-reviewed journal papers, conference papers, and books.

Srikanth Bathula, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Applied Sciences, Papua New Guinea University of Technology, Papua New Guinea. He has been involved in teaching for over 13 years. He has secured many collaborative research projects in and around the Pacific Islands with the University of South Pacific and the University of Auckland. He had published many international peer-reviewed research papers and has delivered keynote speeches at many international and national seminars. He received many best paper presentations and other awards for his research contributions in speciation studies on ligand-complex formations and their relevance to biological importance.

Golam Sarwar Khan, PhD, is Professor of Sociology at the Papua New Guinea University of Technology. Prior to that, Dr. Khan has taught mainstream sociology and related social science subjects for over 40 years at universities in Australia, New Zealand, and Bangladesh. Professor Khan has presented over 20 research papers in refereed international conferences such as the World Congress in Sociology. He has reviewed and edited research manuscripts for prestigious journals, including the Journal of Population Ageing, University of Oxford; Women's Studies International Forum, Elsevier; and Journal of Sociology, SAGE Publications and Sage Open Publication, USA. Professor Khan has published books and high-quality research articles in peer-reviewed/refereed international journals of repute, including one in Routledge Handbook of World-Systems Analysis, U.K. His areas of research include international migration, political economy of development, health sociology, research methodology (qualitative), and family dynamics.