VCU Media Lab

We propose the establishment of a VCU Media Lab – a professional creative media technology unit whose mission is to support the development, design, production and delivery of innovative media, multimedia, computer-based instruction, publications and tools in support of VCU education, research and marketing initiatives. This centrally administered, budgeted and resourced facility will acknowledge, refine, focus and expand media services that are currently being provided at VCU in a decentralized manner

The resource decisions and documents of undergraduate engineering students in mathematics courses

This thesis concerns a multiple case study, carried out at three Norwegian universities. The goal was to find similarities and differences between how engineering students from different university contexts used resources to learn mathematics, and how they made decisions regarding their use of resources. My project had an inductive focus, networking thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) with the theoretical framework of the documentational approach to didactics (Gueudet & Trouche, 2009). After my analysis, I also compared my results and conclusions to those of authors who have conducted research projects with a similar focus (i.e. Anastasikis, 2018; Gueudet & Pepin, 2016; Kanwal, 2018; Pepin & Kock, 2019). I generally found that my results were consistent with their reflections, but I had also identified trends that went beyond the ideas within the field. Given the wide focus of the project, the result are numerous, and vary greatly in generality and theoretic value. There are two overarching results that I consider particularly significant to the field of research: I identify an overall structure to students’ decision regarding resources. Students almost exclusively consider resources that are emphasized within the course at hand; that they are familiar with from previous educational experiences or that they are familiar with from non-mathematical activities (for instance YouTube and Google). They primarily make their decisions based on what seems suitable for the task at hand, with preference as a secondary concern. Examinations have a significant impact on what they consider suitable. Their preference for resources are based on quality criteria such as simplicity and that they are able to use the resources efficiently. I introduce the notion of didactical resource purposes. Students use resources for the four purposes of introduction, practice, evaluation and explanation. That is, they use resources to learn the theory and foundations of a topic; to gain experience working mathematically within the confines of the topic; to evaluate their answers, their learning process or their understanding of the topic and to actively search for information when they realize that there is a fact that they do not recall or an aspect of the topic that they do not understand well enough to accomplish their goals.publishedVersio

Migrants' Inclusion in Civil Societies: The Case of Language Cafés in Sweden

This article investigates the role of language cafés as venues where newly arrived migrants to Sweden can socialize and practice the target language. More specifically, we aim to explore how café organizers and volunteers orient to social inclusion as they are interviewed about the goals of the local café and engage in talk‐in‐interaction with the visitors during video‐recorded café sessions. At the methodological level, we rely on ethnomethodologically informed ethnography and conversation analysis, through which we adopt an emic approach to data analysis by taking into account the members' interpretation of their social world and the actions they accomplish in it. Our analysis uncovers the organizers' and volunteers' conceptualization of social inclusion, which they articulate in terms of fostering a sense of belonging and empowerment; they also perceive the mutual benefits derived from the encounters with the migrants at the local café. Overall, the migrants' views dovetail with the concept of "everyday citizenship," which highlights the dimensions of belonging, rights, and access to resources for social participation as constitutive of social inclusion. These findings highlight the perceived role of language cafés as a way to act on the existing social reality to transform the local community into an inclusive, equal, and integrated society

Lusofonia in Musidanças. Governance, discourse and performance

Esta dissertação explora paisagens sonoras lusófonas em Lisboa em perspetivas sincrónica e diacrónica. Centra-se na governância de um festival de música na capital de Portugal: Musidanças, organizado pelo músico Português-angolano Firmino Pascoal desde 2001. Relaciona agentes culturais que têm evocado a noção ambivalente da lusofonia. Baseando-me em trabalho de campo in loco e virtual, analiso teias musicais de interesses em jogo em contextos de fluidez lusófona, e procuro perceber como é que produtores de música locais e seus produtos têm representado lusofonia em eventos festivos, outros locais e gravações. Aponto modos pelos quais Firmino Pascoal verbaliza proveniências nacionais dos músicos e categorias musicais performadas. Apesar de estudos existentes mencionarem referências históricas de mistura intercultural, só recentemente se abordam tabus. Este estudo etnomusicológico do caso Musidanças, implicando estratégias de Análise de Discurso, revela relações entre música e mudança social, pensa além das narrativas de origens e foca representações de sensibilização e intervenção intercultural.This dissertation explores lusophone soundscapes in Lisbon in synchronic and diachronic perspectives. It focuses on the governance of a music festival in the capital of Portugal: Musidanças, organized by the Portuguese-Angolan musician Firmino Pascoal since 2001. It relates cultural agents that have evoked the ambivalent notion of lusofonia. Drawing from in loco and virtual fieldwork, I analyze musical webs of interest into play in contexts of lusophone fluidity, and seek to understand how local music producers and their products represent lusofonia in festive events, other venues and recordings. I point out ways in which Firmino Pascoal has voiced national provenances of musicians and music categories performed. Although existing studies mention historical references of intercultural mixture, only recently related taboos are approached. This Ethnomusicology study case of Musidanças, implying strategies of Discourse Analysis unveils relations between music and social change, thinks beyond narratives of origins and focuses on representations of intercultural awareness and intervention

A Special Education Teacher\u27s Use of Progress Monitoring

This study explored my use of progress monitoring in order to find the most effective ways to organize and gather data to support two of my students\u27 literacy development. I investigated the purpose and reliability of my use of assessment. I have chosen the three participants based on their individual needs for literacy instruction and their quality of attendance, yet two of the three students participated. The design of this study enabled me to authentically and systematically reflect on my use of progress monitoring and the impact it had my individual students

Online collaboration and real-life benefits. A social use of Blogs in peripheral communities in Colombia

This thesis aims to shed light on the Medellín, Colombia-based blogging project HiperBarrioConvergentes. With theories of assessment in the field of Community Informatics, and inparticular those of Dara O'Neil, it puts focus on a part of the blogosphere that in the twentyfirstcentury has gotten steadily more influence, but has been given little interest in academiccircles. By doing a short fieldwork and conducting interviews with the youth and organizersin HiperBarrio Convergentes, an outline has been given of the benefits that a project still in itsinfancy can give its participants. In the analysis, empiric data has been used to see if thetheories have any relevance for this type of project. Blogging and citizen journalism hasbecome a major part of the internet sphere, and projects similar to the one I investigate here,could in the future be a relevant factor in the lives of not only the people producing them, butalso people in their neighbourhoods and others reading the blogs. This thesis shows thatHiperBarrio Convergentes does not fulfil all of the aims that are presented in CommunityInformatics literature, but indeed has great relevance for the social capital and sense ofbelonging for the participants. Moreover, it suggests that in projects like this, it is not thetechnology that is important, but the face-to-face cooperation.Denne oppgaven forsøker å kaste lys over bloggeprosjektet HiperBarrio Convergentes fraMedellín, Colombia. Med teorier vedrørende vurdering innen fagfeltet CommunityInformatics, og spesielt de tilhørende Dara O'Neil, settes fokus på en del av bloggesfærensom i det 21. århundre har fått stadig mer innflytelse, men som har fått liten oppmerksomhet iakademiske kretser. Ved å gjennomføre et kort feltarbeid og foreta intervjuer medungdommene og administratorene som er aktive i HiperBarrio Convergentes har en oversiktblitt gitt over utbyttet som et prosjekt som fortsatt er i startfasen kan gi dets deltakere. Ianalysen har empirisk data blitt brukt for å se om teoriene er relevante i forhold til dennetypen prosjekter. Blogging og borgerjournalistikk har blitt en viktig del av internett, ogprosjekter lik det som her blir gjennomgått kan i framtiden bli en relevant faktor i livene tilikke bare de som produserer bloggene, men også folk i dere nabolag og andre som leser dem.Denne oppgaven viser at HiperBarrio Convergentes ikke oppfyller de mål som blir presenterti Community Informatics litteratur, men at det har stor betydning for sosial kapital ogtilhørighetsfølelse for deltakerne. Dessuten antyder oppgaven at i prosjekter som dette er detikke teknologien, men samarbeid ansikt til ansikt som er viktig.MEVI350MASV-MEV

Analytical and mathematical methods for revealing hidden details in ancient manuscripts and paintings: A review

In this work, a critical review of the current nondestructive probing and image analysis approaches is presented, to revealing otherwise invisible or hardly discernible details in manuscripts and paintings relevant to cultural heritage and archaeology. Multispectral imaging, X-ray fluorescence, Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and Thermography are considered, as techniques for acquiring images and spectral image sets; statistical methods for the analysis of these images are then discussed, including blind separation and false colour techniques. Several case studies are presented, with particular attention dedicated to the approaches that appear most promising for future applications. Some of the techniques described herein are likely to replace, in the near future, classical digital photography in the study of ancient manuscripts and paintings

METODE MOST PROMINENT RIDGE LINE PADA PENGUKURAN RANGKA ATLET JALAN CEPAT

Perkembangan teknologi yang semakin canggih berdampak positif terhadap banyak aspek tetapi tidak berdampak nyata pada peningkatan kualitas bidang olahraga. Performa atlet khususnya atlet cabang jalan cepat dapat ditingkatkan melalui biomekaniknya. Biomekanik merupakan salah satu cabang dari sport science yang mempelajari mekanisme sistem biologis gerakan. Salah satu metode untuk mempelajari biomekanik manusia yaitu dengan melakukan analisa gait manusia. Gait adalah pola gerakan individu yang dihasilkan dari orang berjalan.. Proses skeletonisasi tersebut menghasilkan citra rangka berupa rangka dari para atlet jalan cepat. Berdasarkan hasil yang diperoleh, citra rangka yang terbentuk dengan baik namun ada juga rangka yang tidak menggambarkan bentuk atlet secara sempurna. Hal ini disebabkan oleh banyak faktor seperti pemilihan algoritma skeletoning atau proses pembentukan siluet. Skeletoning dilakukan mulai dari proses capture, background subtraction, filtering, dilasi erosi dan skeletonisasi menggunakan algoritma most prominent ridge line Kata kunci : gait cycle, gait analysis, rangka, skeletoning, atlet jalan cepat