Abstract
In Portugal, the dropout rate of university courses is around 29%. Understanding the reasons behind such a high desertion rate can drastically improve the success of students and universities. This work applies existing data mining techniques to predict the academic dropout mainly using the academic grades. Four different machine learning techniques are presented and analyzed. The dataset consists of 331 students who were previously enrolled in the Computer Engineering degree at the Universidade de Tras-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD). The study aims to detect students who may prematurely drop out using existing methods. The most relevant data features were identified using the Permutation Feature Importance technique. In the second phase, several methods to predict the dropouts were applied. Then, each machine learning technique's results were displayed and compared to select the best approach to predict academic dropout. The methods used achieved good results, reaching an Fl-Score of 81% in the final test set, concluding that students' marks somehow incorporate their living conditions.

Abstract
The accelerated changes on our planet have led to a growing interest in climate change and its consequences: natural hazards and adverse socio-economic impacts. However, the development of climate research and the proliferation of datasets require an integrated and efficient approach to the analysis, investigation, and visualization of atmospheric meteorological data. Thus, we propose a literature review of existing systems viewing meteorological phenomena in four and three dimensions. Moreover, we evaluate meteorological occurrences to better understand the dynamics associated with a meteorological phenomenon and visualize different weather data. Based on the investigation of tools and methods, we consider the existence of different ways of representing meteorological data and methodologies. However, it was imperative to obtain knowledge and create our way of visualizing weather data. This article found eleven existing solutions for 4D meteorological visualization and meteorological phenomena.

Abstract
The advance of industrialization regarding the optimization of production to obtain greater productivity and consequently generate more profits has led to the emergence of Industry 4.0, which aims to create an environment called smart manufacturing. On the other hand, the Internet of Things is a global network of interrelated physical devices, such as sensors, actuators, intelligent applications, computers, mechanical machines, objects, and people, becoming an essential part of the Internet. These devices are data sources that provide abundant information on manufacturing processes in an industrial environment. A concern of this type of system is processing large sets of data and generating knowledge. These challenges often raise concerns about security, more specifically cybersecurity. Good cybersecurity practices make it possible to avoid damage to production lines and information. With the growing increase in threats in terms of security, this paper aims to carry out a review of existing technologies about cybersecurity in intelligent manufacturing and an introduction to the architecture of the IoT and smart manufacturing.

Abstract
Vocational high school is a secondary education whose practice portion is larger than its theoretical portion. This allows students to do more hands-on practice in the laboratory, as skill competency is very important in vocational education. Through practice, students have the skills to become competent and skilled technicians in the future. When students practice in a hands-on laboratory, errors may occur that can injure students, equipment, and components. In addition, short circuits can also endanger student safety. Therefore, to improve practical skills in the laboratory, teachers must find innovative ways to incorporate these methods into the learning process. One of the things that can be done to improve students’ practical skills is to use simulation software before doing direct practice in the laboratory. In-depth interviews were conducted with three electrical engineering teachers to verify the perspective of the proposed model. The results suggest that the proposed design is likely to improve problem-solving skills when an error occurs during the simulation, and it will improve practical skills when using hands-on laboratories so that students learn more about hands-on lab practice in vocational high school. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Abstract
The Industry 4.0 (I4.0) paradigm comes as a direct action by the German government to improve the industrial production process, by enhancing the ability to take action during the process and produce customized products, while maintaining the mass production industrial context. The I4.0 solutions rely on cybernetics systems that can enhance the users' decision-making. Some technologies are particularly suited for this purpose, including data science combined with context sensitive applications and virtual assistants (VA). These types of user application can provide information and features according to the user's context, thus acting proactively and foreseeing the user actions. In this work, we partnered with Continental Advanced Antenna - a manufacturer of radiofrequency devices for the auto industry, to further develop the concept of a VA to assist the production management. A prototype was built to interact and keep the production management team up to date regarding the ongoing execution of the production plan.

Abstract
In this paper, we describe a preliminary study on a multisensory music experience for people with hearing loss. Our main goal is to provide a music event through visual and tactile stimuli, granting a multisensory experience using haptic interfaces and taking advantage of visual feedback, vibrations and pressure to induce feelings. In this context, a mobile application was developed, allowing the user to interact with recorded audio samples that exploit vibrations to trigger emotions, such as fear, adrenaline, anxiety, suspense, drama, adventure, or even more complex moods like when dancing and relaxing. We thus describe our methodology (design, implementation and user assessment) for a preliminary study of a music experience based on a user-centered design approach. Indeed, we gathered promising results as the experience was considered effective and satisfying. We also uncovered some development issues to be addressed in future work, having to do with the use of specific hardware for providing a fully immersive experience. © 2022, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.