100,904 research outputs found
DATA Agent
This paper introduces DATA Agent, a system which creates murder
mystery adventures from open data. In the game, the player
takes on the role of a detective tasked with finding the culprit of
a murder. All characters, places, and items in DATA Agent games
are generated using open data as source content. The paper discusses
the general game design and user interface of DATA Agent,
and provides details on the generative algorithms which transform
linked data into different game objects. Findings from a user study
with 30 participants playing through two games of DATA Agent
show that the game is easy and fun to play, and that the mysteries
it generates are straightforward to solve.peer-reviewe
Data-driven design : a case for maximalist game design
Maximalism in art refers to drawing on and combining
multiple different sources for art creation, embracing
the resulting collisions and heterogeneity. This paper
discusses the use of maximalism in game design
and particularly in data games, which are games that
are generated partly based on open data. Using Data
Adventures, a series of generators that create adventure
games from data sources such as Wikipedia and Open-
StreetMap, as a lens we explore several tradeoffs and
issues in maximalist game design. This includes the tension
between transformation and fidelity, between decorative
and functional content, and legal and ethical issues
resulting from this type of generativity. This paper
sketches out the design space of maximalist data-driven
games, a design space that is mostly unexplored.peer-reviewe
Data-driven Design: A Case for Maximalist Game Design
Maximalism in art refers to drawing on and combining multiple different
sources for art creation, embracing the resulting collisions and heterogeneity.
This paper discusses the use of maximalism in game design and particularly in
data games, which are games that are generated partly based on open data. Using
Data Adventures, a series of generators that create adventure games from data
sources such as Wikipedia and OpenStreetMap, as a lens we explore several
tradeoffs and issues in maximalist game design. This includes the tension
between transformation and fidelity, between decorative and functional content,
and legal and ethical issues resulting from this type of generativity. This
paper sketches out the design space of maximalist data-driven games, a design
space that is mostly unexplored.Comment: 9 pages, 2 Figures, Accepted in ICCC 201
The adventures of Spacetime
We discuss how developments in physics often imply in the need that spacetime
acquires an increasingly richer and complex structure. General Relativity was
the first theory to show us the way to connect space and time with the physical
world. Since then, scrutinizing the ways spacetime might exist is, in a way,
the very essence of physics. Physics has thus given substance to the pioneering
work of scores of brilliant mathematicians who speculated on the geometry and
topology of spaces.Comment: Chapter in the book Relativity and the Dimensionality of the World to
be published in the Springer series Fundamental Theories of Physics. Volume
Editor: Vesselin Petkov. 18 pages plus macros; updated reference
ISER Working Paper 2009.1
In this report we calculate the economic importance of nature-based tourism in Southeast Alaska
as measured by business revenue. Our estimates are based on field research conducted during
2005, 2006 and 2007. We define nature-based tourism as those tourism activities for which the
natural environment is a significant input.1
Our key findings include the following:
⢠Nature-based tourism generates about 140 per visitor in Juneau to more than $2,600 per visitor on Prince
of Wales Island. These differences reflect the range of activities offered -- from half-day
excursions to multiple, overnight all-inclusive lodge stays.
⢠Nature-based tourism expenditures create a significant economic ripple effect that keeps
money circulating through the economy. This money supports jobs in marketing, support
services, food and beverages, accommodations, fuel sales, government, and other sectors.
⢠Communities are clearly striving to differentiate themselves and capitalize on local
amenities such as the Stikine River, Anan Creek, the LeConte Glacier, Tracy Arm,
Glacier Bay, Pack Creek and exceptional fishing and scenic opportunities.
⢠A large and growing portion of Southeast Alaskaâs visitors are cruise ship passengers.
Both cruise passengers and independent travelers are similarly interested in nature-based
tourism services. The majority of cruise ship shore excursions offer nature-based
activities, from hikes and glacier viewing to flightseeing and forest canopy zip lines.
⢠Communities hosting large numbers of cruise passengers are actively developing new
and creative tourism products such as forest canopy zip lines and mountain biking while
those with fewer visitors tend to be focused on sport fishing. This appears to be the case
even if local amenities exist to support a broader range of business and visitor activities.
Thus, there appear to be unrealized opportunities in some communities, but these may
also reflect an inadequate visitor base upon which to risk additional investment.
⢠There is a complex and competitive system for pre-booking cruise ship shore excursions.
Businesses with exclusive cruise line contracts make price and tour information available
only to cruise passengers and often agree to sell tours only through the cruise line.⢠The tourism businesses in cruise ports of call that appear to be most successful either
have a cruise ship shore excursion contract or are catering to overnight (non-cruise)
guests with high-quality and high-value services. Examples of these types of businesses
include sport fishing lodges and multi-day yacht cruises.
⢠It is difficult to compete with established businesses holding existing cruise line
contracts. Despite this hurdle, a number of companies are offering creative new products
including zip lines through the forest canopy, glass-bottomed boats, and an amphibious
âduckâ tour.
⢠Some operators attribute the increased interest in adventure activities to a change in
cruise ship clientele. In recent years, cruise companies have been catering to a younger
crowd, targeting families. In any event, increasing numbers of passengers are interested
in more active pursuits.
⢠Competition for cruise passengers exists both within and between communities, as people
are booking their shore excursions in advance and look at all the options. Sitka
companies mentioned they were carefully tracking zip line activity in Juneau and
Ketchikan, dogsled tours on the Mendenhall Glacier, and other activities to see which
market niche they could capture.
⢠There is some evidence that visitors are willing to pay premium prices for higher quality
experiences in more pristine environments. However, it is not clear what specific
attributes (seclusion, fishing experience, food, services, perceived exclusivity, and
environmental amenities) are the key components of this higher market value.
⢠It is possible to design a community-based tourism program that provides employment to
local residents as is occurring in Hoonah. However, Elfin Cove appears to bring in more
in gross revenues than Hoonah with about one-eighth as many visitors because Hoonahâs
operation relies on volume while Elfin Cove businesses rely on higher-priced fishing
lodge experiences. Day trips seem to be relatively higher cost, lower profit operations.
⢠Independent travelers appear to try to avoid crowds and many are repeat visitors. Most
tend to stay longer and have more open itineraries than those on cruise ships or organized
tours. These characteristics make independent travelers more difficult to contact.
⢠Independent travelers also appear to seek communities with fewer visitors and those that
they perceive to be more âauthentic,â such as Petersburg, Wrangell, and communities on
Chichagof Islands. A lack of transportation capacity, whether on scheduled jets or on
ferries, may be limiting the opportunities for these smaller communities. Less marketing
may also be a factor limiting visits by independent travelers.
⢠The primary marketing mechanisms for smaller, non-cruise related businesses are the
internet and word of mouth. In addition, many customers return to the same fishing
lodge, yacht tour, or charter business year after year.
⢠Wildlife viewing is highly attractive to visitors due to spectacular scenery and abundant
wildlife including whales and other marine mammals. Companies in several communities
expressed a desire to move toward more wildlife viewing and sightseeing and away from
sport fishing. These operators preferred wildlife viewing as it was less stressful due to less pressure to catch fish. Some operators were making this shift, while others thought
they would not be able to match the revenue generated by sport fishing.
⢠Weather has a significant impact on business for companies whose tours are not prebooked
on cruise ships. Operators noted a marked difference between the sunny, dry
summer of 2004 and the remarkably wet summer of 2006. Visitors walking off a ship in
the rain were much less likely to go on marine tours or hikes in soggy conditions, and
seasonal revenues were down. Businesses with cruise contracts did not experience this
setback as passengers are not reimbursed for pre-sold tours when weather conditions are
poor. The one exception was flightseeing, where companies had to cancel tours due to
unsafe weather conditions.
⢠Promoting wildlife watching is an important marketing strategy for Southeast Alaska
communities. Visitors bureaus currently produce pamphlets with charismatic large
animals, such as whales and bears. Bureau staff cited studies showing the desire to see
wildlife was attracting a large portion of out-of-state visitors.
⢠A significant policy question emerging from this research is how the public lands might
be managed to increase the economic returns from tourism to residents of Southeast
Alaska communities, especially the smaller communities that can only accommodate
smaller numbers of visitors at one time. Bear viewing is one example of a high-value
activity that depends on controlled access to specific infrastructure.Alaska Conservation Foundation.
University of Alaska Foundation.
The Wilderness Society.Executive Summary / Introduction / Methods / Ketchikan / Juneau / Sitka / Norther Southeast Alaska Yachts / Chichagof Island / Prince of Wales Island / Petersburg / Wrangell / Conclusion
The Official Student Newspaper of UAS
UAS Answers -- Depletion: reconceptualizing uranium and âthe otherâ -- Red Velvet Cupcakes: It doesnât have to come from a box -- UAS abroad: Exploring language, culture, history -- Beyond the textbook page: travels in Ghana -- Stress Week: Eight ways to decompress -- Campus Calenda
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A Mongolian horsepacking adventure through my paranoid poetics of digital ontology
This is not quite an essay. It is more of a scientific experiment conducted with words. It titrates the paranoid poetics of critique with the narrative practices of social media to precipitate a postcritical theory of digital ontology. The organic compounds used in this titration were extracted from a 16-month mine of ethnography among digitalreal tourists known as Dimecams. This ethnographic mine was full of participant-observations among the âdigitalâ and ârealâ aggregates of horsepacking adventures in Mongolia. Starting with myths of Mongolian adventures that circulate in the backpacker communities of Asia, this experiment rewires the narrative circuits of exploration to illuminate two distinct iterations of adventureâthe ârealâ and the âdigital.â Common sense would have it that digital adventures appearing on social media are ârepresentationsâ of real adventures from the flesh. The experiments I conducted, however, demonstrated that the digital and the real are actually two separate ontologies in which different types of adventures occur. Real adventures are full of misery and hunger while digital adventures are nothing but epic selfies and unhinged freedom. The radical alterity between these two kinds of adventures necessitated a turn towards ontology. However, in this ontological turn, my experiment spun out of control and crystallized as a fractal. That fractal was later revealed to be a continuously self-referential postcritique of the paranoid poetics of critique. The same fractal was also shown to be the operational procedure which kept the narrative ontology of digital adventures afloat in a self-sustaining world that endlessly retold itself into existence. What emerged at the end of this experiment was a not-quite-ontology composed of not-quite-beingsâwhich, in the not-too-distant future, will detach itself from reality entirely, drifting off into space and forming a new planetAnthropolog
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Getting every kid outdoors: Notes from the field
The evolution of programs to encourage grade-schoolers to get out into parks
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