CLOUD COMPUTING UNDER HERMES PLATFORM FOR THE PROMOTION AND DIFFUSION OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ACTIVITIES IN THE EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT

Technological advances are transforming our teaching procedures, providing us with useful formative technologies and incorporating technological environments and resources in the educational field, which facilitate both knowledge transmission and cultural interchange. In this respect, cloud computation under computing platforms allows users to share knowledge, therefore contributing to attain teaching excellence. Formative platforms set as networks are applications designed for students to be able to receive training, independently of the pace they are in, and benefitting from the advantages offered by the Internet in this respect. Platforms show numerous tools to facilitate the learning process, and to make it easier for the teacher to follow the aforementioned process.
Cloud computing is a paradigm where information is permanently stored in Internet servers and sent to temporal caches of the customers. It therefore constitutes a new model of content and technology service which allows the user to access a catalogue of standardized contents.
Our Hermes platform (Cloud Smart Computing Platform) facilitates the promotion and diffusion of scientific research activities in the educational field. Hermes has been developed by Abadia Computing Technologies. It is a multi-appliance platform with open code, and which is based in the concept of ‘cloud computation’ for training environments. It is a knowledge management platform that will enable different users to be connected, share information, keep updated and receive training by using 3D tools, among several other utilities. Hermes is developed with open code. Through the conversion of knowledge into image, Hermes offers the possibility to train in new techniques by using simulators. It is also possible to create a new profile and include a curriculum or visit the television set, although new applications will be progressively added.
Hermes Cloud Computing Platform has information distributed in different exigency profiles. A hundred per cent Cloud Computing structure does not need to install any type of hardware, what allows its easy and quick integration in the rest of applications, either internally or externally developed.
Technological advances attained in the last decade have smoothed the way leading to the birth of this new computational paradigm represented by cloud computing, conformed by an Internet platform where different services and appliances can be offered to the client, all optimized to use the services offered by the aforementioned platform.

This work has been partially funded by the research Project I+D+I EDU2009-08753EDU, Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation.