IRF: Institutional Repository FHNW

Welcome to the publication and research database of the FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland.

The institutional repository contains publications, projects and student theses.

Further information can be found in the IRF manual (available in German).

 

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Digitalisierte Soziale Arbeit betrachten. Analytische Potenziale aus dem Neuen Materialismus
(Barbara Budrich, 2026) Weber, Joshua; Weber, Joshua; Neumaier, Stefanie
04A - Book part
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Editorial
(Barbara Budrich, 2026) Neumaier, Stefanie; Weber, Joshua; Weber, Joshua; Neumaier, Stefanie
04A - Book part
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Proxy-based programming. Making programming more accessible through virtual, physical, and social embodiment
(American Chemical Society, 2026) Repenning, Alexander
From a theoretical perspective, this article examines the role of embodiment in K-12 computer science education through three distinct perspectives: virtual embodiment for cognitive understanding, physical embodiment for emotional engagement, and social embodiment for collaborative learning. The research introduces proxy-based programming as a novel programming paradigm that helps novice programmers overcome pragmatic programming challenges by providing a visual proxy that serves as an embodiment of the object being programmed. This proxy features dual temporal representation that simultaneously shows both the present and future situations resulting from programming actions. Unlike programming approaches that primarily address syntactic challenges, proxy-based programming also mitigates semantic and pragmatic aspects of computational thinking. RULER.game, a Collaborative Computational Thinking Tool, implements four core principles of proxy-based programming, enabling safe programming experimentation while proactively preventing errors. Initial studies comparing proxy-based programming with block-based programming show significant reductions in error rates. The article explores how embodiment plays a role in making programming more accessible from both theoretical and practical perspectives. Additionally, the article explores the motivational benefits of physical embodiment, where students create games by first drawing objects on paper before importing them digitally, as well as social embodiment through awareness interfaces that make collaborators’ actions and intentions visible in real-time. This comprehensive approach to embodiment presents a novel framework for making programming more accessible and engaging for K-12 students.
01A - Journal article
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Towards a sustainable astronomical data infrastructure. Optimising linking data from the Rucio datalake to the users areas within the SKA Regional Centres Network
(F1000 Research, 2026) Parra-Royón, Manuel; Garrido-Sánchez, Julián; Sánchez-Expósito, Susana; Darriba-Pol, Laura; Sánchez-Castañeda, Jesús; Mendoza, M. Ángeles; Coles, Jeremy; McConkey, Sean; Joshi, Rohini; Barnsley, Rob; Salgado, Jesús; Verdes-Montenegro, Lourdes
The distributed architecture of the SKA Regional Centre Network (SRCNet) aims to provide scientific communities worldwide with efficient computational and storage resources to exploit the massive data volumes produced by the SKA Observatory (SKAO). Given the amount of SKAO data, traditional data management paradigms — where data is transferred to computational resources— are no longer feasible. Instead, computational workflows must increasingly be relocated closer to data storage locations, emphasizing efficient data access strategies and avoiding unnecessary duplication or redundancy. In this context, we present PrepareData, a modular and extensible data delivery service developed within SRCNet prototyping activities. Our proposal for this service addresses the critical challenge of redundant data transfers and duplication at both node and user levels by enabling seamless delivery of requested datasets from local Rucio Storage Elements (RSEs) directly into users’ working environments. PrepareData operates as a local service within each SRCNet node and it is integrated into a broader ecosystem of federated services. Specifically, we designed and evaluated two distinct yet complementary implementations to avoid unnecessary data duplication and to enable a dynamic data bridge between the RSEs and the user storage areas, through: (1) a filesystem-based solution leveraging CephFS, which uses shared filesystem mount points and bind mounts to ensure consistent and immediate data availability of the data across computational nodes, and (2) a Kubernetes model using Persistent Volumes and Persistent Volume Claims, dynamically injecting data into a user’s areas. To tackle this work we detail the architectural design and development, the technical implementation, the integration of both solutions with science enabling tools, such as JupyterHub, CARTA or virtually any application, and finally we provide a performance evaluation. This contribution provides a scalable and sustainable blueprint for data delivery in federated scientific infrastructures, supporting the broader goals of green computing and efficient resource utilisation.
01A - Journal article
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06 - Presentation