Simulating virtual humans in networked virtual environments

In the past decade, networked virtual environments (NVEs) have been an increasingly active area of research, with the first commercial systems emerging recently. Graphical and behavioral representation of users within such systems is a particularly important issue that has lagged in development behind other issues such as network architectures and space structuring. We expose the importance of using virtual humans within these systems and provide a brief overview of several virtual human technologies used in particular for simulation of crowds. As the main technical contribution, the paper presents the integration of these technologies with the COVEN-DIVE platform, the extension of the DIVE system developed within the COVEN project. In conjunction with this, we present our contributions through the COVEN project to the MPEG-4 standard concerning the representation of virtual human

Constructing a gazebo: supporting teamwork in a tightly coupled, distributed task in virtual reality

Many tasks require teamwork. Team members may work concurrently, but there must be some occasions of coming together. Collaborative virtual environments (CVEs) allow distributed teams to come together across distance to share a task. Studies of CVE systems have tended to focus on the sense of presence or copresence with other people. They have avoided studying close interaction between us-ers, such as the shared manipulation of objects, because CVEs suffer from inherent network delays and often have cumbersome user interfaces. Little is known about the ef-fectiveness of collaboration in tasks requiring various forms of object sharing and, in particular, the concurrent manipu-lation of objects. This paper investigates the effectiveness of supporting teamwork among a geographically distributed group in a task that requires the shared manipulation of objects. To complete the task, users must share objects through con-current manipulation of both the same and distinct at-tributes. The effectiveness of teamwork is measured in terms of time taken to achieve each step, as well as the impression of users. The effect of interface is examined by comparing various combinations of walk-in cubic immersive projection technology (IPT) displays and desktop devices

DIVE on the internet

This dissertation reports research and development of a platform for Collaborative Virtual Environments (CVEs). It has particularly focused on two major challenges: supporting the rapid development of scalable applications and easing their deployment on the Internet. This work employs a research method based on prototyping and refinement and promotes the use of this method for application development. A number of the solutions herein are in line with other CVE systems. One of the strengths of this work consists in a global approach to the issues raised by CVEs and the recognition that such complex problems are best tackled using a multi-disciplinary approach that understands both user and system requirements. CVE application deployment is aided by an overlay network that is able to complement any IP multicast infrastructure in place. Apart from complementing a weakly deployed worldwide multicast, this infrastructure provides for a certain degree of introspection, remote controlling and visualisation. As such, it forms an important aid in assessing the scalability of running applications. This scalability is further facilitated by specialised object distribution algorithms and an open framework for the implementation of novel partitioning techniques. CVE application development is eased by a scripting language, which enables rapid development and favours experimentation. This scripting language interfaces many aspects of the system and enables the prototyping of distribution-related components as well as user interfaces. It is the key construct of a distributed environment to which components, written in different languages, connect and onto which they operate in a network abstracted manner. The solutions proposed are exemplified and strengthened by three collaborative applications. The Dive room system is a virtual environment modelled after the room metaphor and supporting asynchronous and synchronous cooperative work. WebPath is a companion application to a Web browser that seeks to make the current history of page visits more visible and usable. Finally, the London travel demonstrator supports travellers by providing an environment where they can explore the city, utilise group collaboration facilities, rehearse particular journeys and access tourist information data

Vol. 53 No. 1 - Whole No. 376

Mythprint is the monthly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization devoted to the study, discussion, and enjoyment of myth and fantasy literature, especially the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams. To promote these interests, the Society publishes three magazines, maintains a World Wide Web site, and sponsors the annual Mythopoeic Conference and awards for fiction and scholarship, as well as local and written discussion groups

How Do The Courts See Sexual And Gender-Based Violence In The U.s. Asylum Context: Issues Of Judicial Ethics In The Fact-Finding And Decision-Making Process

Background: There are many concerns regarding the U.S. asylum system, especially regarding how it views cases based on claims of sexual and gender-based violence. Wide discrepancies in decision-making in the various courts throughout the U.S. not solely attributed to the strength of the asylum case or the evidence presented leads to injustice for people seeking asylum.Methods: Precedential cases were selected and read in their entirety, grouped together by topic or executive branch era in which it occurred, and the types of evidence extracted and tallied. Categories for evidence were expert testimony, DOS reports, US agency reports, UN agency reports, and scholarly works. In each group of cases, I analyzed: (1) The state of precedent and decisions of each case, and the disparities in outcomes within each group of cases (2) Potential contributing factors to the disparities in outcomes (primarily the type and usage of evidence, gender of the judge, experience in immigration work) (3) The relationship of these factors to the ethical principles governing judicial practice as they relate to bias and competence Law/case review – discussion and analysis: The three case categories were: (1) Decisions regarding female genital mutilation (2) Decisions regarding domestic violence-based asylum claims, and (3) Domestic violence asylum claims under the shifting policies of the Trump and Biden administrations. In terms of gender bias, it was found that for all three case categories, a majority of the decisions were written by male judges. Bias based on political affiliation was considered primarily for the third case group, as it was found that shifting executive administrations likely influenced the decision-making. Competence had the most significant connection to the evidence presented in these claims. Based on a decision-maker’s previous experience and the types of evidence analyzed and incorporated into the decision, a relationship was found between these factors to the ethical principles governing judicial practice as they relate to bias and competence. Conclusion: To hold the U.S. asylum system and system of judicial reasoning accountable to ethics and to the promises of the international human rights law the U.S. has undertaken, it needs to be aligned with contemporary, evidence-based understandings of what bias and competence are. Whatever bias judges have that come with gender, political affiliation, or any other biases, and any lack of competence that is seen through incorporations or lack thereof of evidence, it is best overcome not by restricting the gender of decision-makers, but rather training them to overcome bias and increase competence

Description of the SSF PMAD DC testbed control system data acquisition function

The NASA LeRC in Cleveland, Ohio has completed the development and integration of a Power Management and Distribution (PMAD) DC Testbed. This testbed is a reduced scale representation of the end to end, sources to loads, Space Station Freedom Electrical Power System (SSF EPS). This unique facility is being used to demonstrate DC power generation and distribution, power management and control, and system operation techniques considered to be prime candidates for the Space Station Freedom. A key capability of the testbed is its ability to be configured to address system level issues in support of critical SSF program design milestones. Electrical power system control and operation issues like source control, source regulation, system fault protection, end-to-end system stability, health monitoring, resource allocation, and resource management are being evaluated in the testbed. The SSF EPS control functional allocation between on-board computers and ground based systems is evolving. Initially, ground based systems will perform the bulk of power system control and operation. The EPS control system is required to continuously monitor and determine the current state of the power system. The DC Testbed Control System consists of standard controllers arranged in a hierarchical and distributed architecture. These controllers provide all the monitoring and control functions for the DC Testbed Electrical Power System. Higher level controllers include the Power Management Controller, Load Management Controller, Operator Interface System, and a network of computer systems that perform some of the SSF Ground based Control Center Operation. The lower level controllers include Main Bus Switch Controllers and Photovoltaic Controllers. Power system status information is periodically provided to the higher level controllers to perform system control and operation. The data acquisition function of the control system is distributed among the various levels of the hierarchy. Data requirements are dictated by the control system algorithms being implemented at each level. A functional description of the various levels of the testbed control system architecture, the data acquisition function, and the status of its implementationis presented

‘For All of Your Protection Needs’: Tracing the witch-bottle from the Early Modern Period to TikTok

© 2023 TRUSTEES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA. This is the accepted manuscript version of an article which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1353/mrw.2023.a906600In the Early Modern Period, witch-bottles were a magical-medical remedy for bewitchment, prescribed by cunning-folk. Filled with pins, nails, and the victim’s urine, the bottles were then heated or buried, counteracting the suspected curse. Today, witch-bottles have taken on new meanings and new physical specifications. It is no longer seventeenth-century cunning-folk instructing on how to make them, but contemporary Wiccans on social media. This paper traces the shift in the purpose and perceptions of the witch-bottle over time, its adaptation key to our understanding of the custom itself and of how people today engage with the practices of the past.Peer reviewe

A study of event traffic during the shared manipulation of objects within a collaborative virtual environment

Event management must balance consistency and responsiveness above the requirements of shared object interaction within a Collaborative Virtual Environment (CVE) system. An understanding of the event traffic during collaborative tasks helps in the design of all aspects of a CVE system. The application, user activity, the display interface, and the network resources, all play a part in determining the characteristics of event management. Linked cubic displays lend themselves well to supporting natural social human communication between remote users. To allow users to communicate naturally and subconsciously, continuous and detailed tracking is necessary. This, however, is hard to balance with the real-time consistency constraints of general shared object interaction. This paper aims to explain these issues through a detailed examination of event traffic produced by a typical CVE, using both immersive and desktop displays, while supporting a variety of collaborative activities. We analyze event traffic during a highly collaborative task requiring various forms of shared object manipulation, including the concurrent manipulation of a shared object. Event sources are categorized and the influence of the form of object sharing as well as the display device interface are detailed. With the presented findings the paper wishes to aid the design of future systems

Analysis domain model for shared virtual environments

The field of shared virtual environments, which also encompasses online games and social 3D environments, has a system landscape consisting of multiple solutions that share great functional overlap. However, there is little system interoperability between the different solutions. A shared virtual environment has an associated problem domain that is highly complex raising difficult challenges to the development process, starting with the architectural design of the underlying system. This paper has two main contributions. The first contribution is a broad domain analysis of shared virtual environments, which enables developers to have a better understanding of the whole rather than the part(s). The second contribution is a reference domain model for discussing and describing solutions - the Analysis Domain Model

Troponin Elevation in Chronic Kidney Disease: An Educational Project

Many patients may present to Emergency Departments (ED) daily for a multitude of medical issues that may include chest pain, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, elevated troponin levels in the presence of CKD, abnormal serum BUN and creatinine levels, or an abnormal renal ultra sound. Troponin levels that are elevated within the presence of CKD with no other signs and symptoms is not concerning for ACS or MI, but for cardiovascular death and mortality. The purpose of this project was to develop, create and deliver an educational program designed to increase nursing knowledge of elevated troponin levels in the presence of Chronic Kidney Disease. A pre-&post-test design was developed and implemented to measure the nursing staff’s knowledge of elevated troponin levels in the presence of CKD. The educational program was designed as a pamphlet that provided information from the literature and relevant clinical experience about signs, symptoms and the diagnosis of CKD, signs & symptoms of Acute Coronary Syndrome, (ACS). Twenty-three nurses (25%) completed both the pretest with a mean score of 74.7% with total scores ranging from 40%-90%. Twenty-three nurses also (25%) also completed the post-test with a mean score of 76.5% with total scores that ranged from 50%-100% which helped to prove there was an overall increase in learning, therefore suggesting that nurses’ knowledge on the topic was improved. Recommendations and implications for APRNs are also discussed