This are the proceedings of ISCONTOUR 2013 - the first "International Student Conference in Tourism Research", which was held at the Salzburg University of Applied Sciences on the 15th of April 2013.

This book presents a selection of papers from the 2017 World Conference on Information Systems and Technologies (WorldCIST'17), held between the 11st and 13th of April 2017 at Porto Santo Island, Madeira, Portugal. WorldCIST is a global forum for researchers and practitioners to present and discuss recent results and innovations, current trends, professional experiences and challenges involved in modern Information Systems and Technologies research, together with technological developments and applications. The main topics covered are: Information and Knowledge Management; Organizational Models and Information Systems; Software and Systems Modeling; Software Systems, Architectures, Applications and Tools; Multimedia Systems and Applications; Computer Networks, Mobility and Pervasive Systems; Intelligent and Decision Support Systems; Big Data Analytics and Applications; Human–Computer Interaction; Ethics, Computers & Security; Health Informatics; Information Technologies in Education; and Information Technologies in Radiocommunications.

The church is a contextualized reality, and if it is to flourish, its leaders must be raised up to serve their own communities. Yet our very techniques for teaching and learning are culturally defined. If the church is to be effective in developing the leaders it needs, our approach to training must be informed by its local context. In this immensely practical text, Joseph Nehemiah combines sound pedagogical research with rich cultural insight to provide a framework for training leaders in an Arab context. Examining principles of adult education in light of Arab cultural dynamics, Nehemiah offers a paradigm for experiential learning that is biblically rooted and contextually appropriate. Informed by the experience of professors in the Arab Gulf, along with extensive interviews from local church leaders, Leadership Training in the Hands of the Church seeks to place the development, teaching, and training of leaders into the hands of the local church.

This book includes a selection of papers from the 2018 World Conference on Information Systems and Technologies (WorldCIST'18), held in Naples, Italy on March27-29, 2018. WorldCIST is a global forum for researchers and practitioners to present and discuss recent results and innovations, current trends, professional experiences and the challenges of modern information systems and technologies research together with their technological development and applications. The main topics covered are: A) Information and Knowledge Management; B) Organizational Models and Information Systems; C) Software and Systems Modeling; D) Software Systems, Architectures, Applications and Tools; E) Multimedia Systems and Applications; F) Computer Networks, Mobility and Pervasive Systems; G) Intelligent and Decision Support Systems; H) Big Data Analytics and Applications; I) Human–Computer Interaction; J) Ethics, Computers & Security; K) Health Informatics; L) Information Technologies in Education; M) Information Technologies in Radiocommunications; N) Technologies for Biomedical Applications.

This book introduces the area of image processing and data-parallel processing. It covers a number of standard algorithms in image processing and describes their parallel implementation. The programming language chosen for all examples is a structured parallel programming language which is ideal for educational purposes. It has a number of advantages over C, and since all image processing tasks are inherently parallel, using a parallel language for presentation actually simplifies the subject matter. This results in shorter source codes and a better understanding. Sample programs and a free compiler are available on an accompanying Web site.

The visual system consists of hierarchically organized distinct anatomical areas functionally specialized for processing different aspects of a visual object (Felleman & Van Essen, 1991). These visual areas are interconnected through ascending feedforward projections, descending feedback projections, and projections from neural structures at the same hierarchical level (Lamme et al., 1998). Accumulating evidence from anatomical, functional and theoretical studies suggests that these three projections play fundamentally different roles in perception. However, their distinct functional roles in visual processing are still subject to debate (Lamme & Roelfsema, 2000). The focus of this Research Topic is the roles of feedforward and feedback projections in vision. Even though the notions of feedforward, feedback, and reentrant processing are widely accepted, it has been found difficult to distinguish their individual roles on the basis of a single criterion. We welcome empirical contributions, theoretical contributions and reviews that fit into any one (or a combination) of the following domains: 1) their functional roles for perception of specific features of a visual object 2) their contributions to the distinct modes of visual processing (e.g., pre-attentive vs. attentive, conscious vs. unconscious) 3) recent techniques/methodologies to identify distinct functional roles of feedforward and feedback projections and corresponding neural signatures. We believe that the current Research Topic will not only provide recent information about feedforward/feedback processes in vision but also contribute to the understanding fundamental principles of cortical processing in general.