The cultural authority of science is the authority that is granted to science in any particular context. This authority is as much a matter of image and perceived legitimacy as of statutory guarantee. However, while authority can be charismatic, based on tradition or based on competence, we would assume that science aims to be an authority of competence. To what extent does science have the last word, or stand above opinion on public issues? This Indo-European led collaboration aims to map the cultural authority of science, and to construct a system of indicators to observe this ‘science culture’ based on artefacts (science news analysis) and espoused beliefs and evaluations (public attitude data). Indeed, through a series of studies the authors examine the cultural authority of science in light of the challenges posed by European, Asian, African and American developments and debates. In particular, two main ideas are examined: the ‘Lighthouse’ model, whereby science is shining into a stormy sea of ignorance and mistrust; and the ‘Bungee Jump’ model, which demonstrates how science occasionally experiences a rough ride against a backdrop of goodwill. Presenting expertise in discourse analysis, computer-assisted text analysis and largescale survey analysis, The Cultural Authority of Science will be of interest to a global audience concerned with the standing of science in society. In particular, it may appeal to scholars and students of fields such as sociology of science, science communication, science studies, scientometrics, innovation studies and social psychology.

These Proceedings represent the work of contributors to the 14th European Conference on e-Learning, ECEL 2015, hosted this year by the University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK on 29-30 October 2015. The Conference and Programme Co-Chairs are Pro-fessor Amanda Jefferies and Dr Marija Cubric, both from the University of Hertfordshire. The conference will be opened with a keynote address by Professor Patrick McAndrew, Director, Institute of Educational Tech-nology, Open University, UK with a talk on "Innovating for learning: designing for the future of education." On the second day the keynote will be delivered by Professor John Traxler, University of Wolverhampton, UK on the subject of "Mobile Learning - No Longer Just e-Learning with Mobiles." ECEL provides a valuable platform for individuals to present their research findings, display their work in progress and discuss conceptual advances in many different branches of e-Learning. At the same time, it provides an important opportunity for members of the EL community to come together with peers, share knowledge and exchange ideas. With an initial submission of 169 abstracts, after the double blind, peer review process there are 86 academic papers,16 Phd Papers, 5 Work in Progress papers and 1 non academic papers in these Conference Proceedings. These papers reflect the truly global nature of research in the area with contributions from Algeria, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Botswana, Canada, Chile, Cov-entry, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, England, Estonia, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Portugal, Republic of Kazakhstan, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Uganda, UK, United Arab Emirates, UK and USA, Zimbabwe. A selection of papers - those agreed by a panel of reviewers and the editor will be published in a special conference edition of the EJEL (Electronic Journal of e-Learning www.ejel.org ).

This Research Topic covers some of the latest research on brain and behavior in health and disease in Africa. With its untapped resources and unique situations, “Neuroscience in Africa” has the potential to contribute to a better understanding of human brain function both in health and disease. The diverse African fauna display a range of specializations in brain structure/function relationships as a result of adaptations to the environment. Exploration of these may lead to insights into coping strategies which could be extrapolated to humans. Africa’s unique flora is being investigated for anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive, antioxidant, antiepileptogenic and neuroprotective properties to determine its potential for use in the treatment of human brain disorders. There is also research on neurodegenerative and infectious diseases, not only common to the global world, but also neglected tropical diseases and conditions which provide unique avenues of investigations in basic and translational neuroscience on highly debilitating disorders - and on the effects of pathogens and environmental toxins.

This book addresses the importance of human factors in optimizing the learning and training process. It reports on the latest research and best practices, and discusses key principles of behavioral and cognitive science, which are extremely relevant to the design of instructional content and new technologies to support mobile and multimedia learning, virtual training and web-based learning, among others, as well as performance measurements, social and adaptive learning and many other types of educational technology, with a special emphasis on those important in the corporate, higher education, healthcare and military training contexts. Gathering contributions to the AHFE 2020 Virtual Conference on Human Factors in Training, Education, and Learning Sciences, held on July 16–20, 2020, the book offers a timely perspective on the role of human factors in education. It highlights important new approaches and ideas, and fosters new discussions on how to optimally design learning experiences.