Enhancing information-based spaces using IoT and multimedia visualization - a case study

O principal objetivo desta pesquisa é fazer uma exploração em torno das estruturas conceituais, estado da arte e aplicações plausíveis da Internet de Coisas Multimédia em serviços distribuídos com para a criação de ambientes aumentados que contribuam a melhorar a experiência coletiva e participação das pessoas assistentes a conferências profissionais, reuniões grupais e espaços públicos em geral. Assim, a metodologia será baseada em uma revisão do estado da arte das tecnologias de IoT aplicáveis a coisas de multimédia e visualização de informação, especialmente no contexto de espaços públicos aumentados, onde o acesso a informação de alta qualidade possa ser possível sem influenciar negativamente a interação no mundo real entre os participantes, assim como melhorar a experiência global dos mesmos, considerando também soluções tecnológicas projetadas para os eventos de prazos limitados.The main objective of this research is to make an exploration around conceptual frameworks, state of the art and plausible applications of the Internet of Multimedia Things in distributed services for creating augmented environments that contribute to enhance the collective experience and participation of people attending professional conferences, group meetings and public spaces in general. Thus, the methodology will be based on a review of the state of the art of IoT technologies applicable for multimedia things and information visualization, specially in the context of augmented public spaces, where the access of high-quality data can be possible without preventing real-world interaction among attendants, as well as improving the overall experience of participants, considering also technological solutions designed for the events of limited time-frames

Demystifying COVID-19 digital contact tracing: A survey on frameworks and mobile apps

The coronavirus pandemic is a new reality and it severely affects the modus vivendi of the international community. In this context, governments are rushing to devise or embrace novel surveillance mechanisms and monitoring systems to fight the outbreak. The development of digital tracing apps, which among others are aimed at automatising and globalising the prompt alerting of individuals at risk in a privacy-preserving manner is a prominent example of this ongoing effort. Very promptly, a number of digital contact tracing architectures has been sprouted, followed by relevant app implementations adopted by governments worldwide. Bluetooth, and specifically its Low Energy (BLE) power-conserving variant has emerged as the most promising short-range wireless network technology to implement the contact tracing service. This work offers the first to our knowledge, full-fledged review of the most concrete contact tracing architectures proposed so far in a global scale. This endeavour does not only embrace the diverse types of architectures and systems, namely centralised, decentralised, or hybrid, but it equally addresses the client side, i.e., the apps that have been already deployed in Europe by each country. There is also a full-spectrum adversary model section, which does not only amalgamate the previous work in the topic, but also brings new insights and angles to contemplate upon.Comment: 34 pages, 3 figure

Give and Let Give: Building a Culture of Philanthropy in the Financial Services Industry

A review of the potential for partnering between the third sector and business, more specifically the financial services sector in the UK

Enhancing Historical Attractions Through Augmented Reality

The thesis set out to enhance the attractiveness of historical attractions through augmented reality with a concrete, executable example of augmented reality application for a set historical attraction. The technological and technical solutions of the application were to be feasible within 1–2 years of the time the thesis was written. The research done for the thesis included outlining the core concepts. The knowledge base was built by familiarisation with prior research about augmented reality, tourist attractions and museums. The current situation of historical attractions was examined with literature and an expert interview. Augmented reality’s current applications and the state of its technical and technological solutions were described based mainly on expert interviews, research, and concrete examples. The ethical, methodical and methodological choices of the research were reflected regarding responsible conduct of research and literature on subject. Salpa, the application innovated, ended up having a more game-like solution for more competitive users as well as an idler mode for less competitive users. In addition to technical choices, distribution possibilities were considered. The process behind the thesis and suggested subjects for further research were introduced at the end of the thesis.Opinnäytetyön tavoite oli parantaa historiallisten kohteiden vetovoimaisuutta lisätyllä todellisuudella esittelemällä konkreettinen, toteutettavissa oleva lisätyn todellisuuden sovellus määrätylle historialliselle kohteelle. Teknisten ja teknologisten valintojen valossa sovelluksen tuli olla mahdollinen toteuttaa 1–2 vuoden sisällä opinnäytetyön kirjoittamisesta. Opinnäytetyötä varten tehtyyn tutkimukseen kuului keskeisten käsitteiden määrittely. Tietopohja rakennettiin tutustumalla aiempiin tutkimuksiin lisätystä todellisuudesta, matkailijakohteista sekä museoista. Historiallisten kohteiden nykytilannetta tutkittiin kirjallisuuden ja asiantuntijahaastattelun avulla. Lisätyn todellisuuden olemassa olevia sovelluksia sekä siihen liittyvän teknologisten ja teknisten ratkaisujen nykytilaa kuvailtiin pääasiallisesti asiantuntijahaastatteluiden, tutkimusten sekä konkreettisten esimerkkien pohjalta. Tutkimuksen eettisiä, metodisia ja metodologisia valintoja pohdittiin suhteessa hyvään tieteelliseen käytäntöön sekä aiheesta tehtyyn kirjallisuuteen. Innovoituun sovellukseen Salpaan sisällytettiin pelinomaisempi ratkaisu kilpailuhenkisemmille käyttäjille sekä rennompi ratkaisun vähemmän kilpailuhenkisille käyttäjille. Teknisten valintojen lisäksi opinnäytetyössä on pohdittu mahdollisia jakelukanavia. Prosessi opinnäytetyön takana sekä aiheita jatkotutkimukselle nostettiin esille opinnäytetyön lopussa

Multiple Choices After School: Findings from the Extended-Service Schools Initiative

In the summer of 2002, every state became eligible to receive federal funds for after-school programs. With this opportunity came the need to make decisions about the goals, design and content of after-school programming -- decisions that will influence which youth participate, what they experience and how they may benefit. This report aims to put policymakers and program operators on firmer ground as they grapple with these decisions; it shares lessons from existing school-based after-school programs

The Collegian: April 22, 2015

Volume 130Issue 26https://openprairie.sdstate.edu/collegian_2014-15/1002/thumbnail.jp

The Motion-Lab: A Virtual Reality Laboratory for Spatial Updating Experiments

The main question addressed in the Motion-Lab is: How do we know where we are? Normally, humans know where they are with respect to the immediate surround. The overall perception of this environment results from the integration of multiple sensory modalities. Here we use Virtual Reality to study the interaction of visual, vestibular, and proprioceptive senses and explore the way these senses might be integrated into a coherent perception of spatial orientation and location. This Technical Report describes a Virtual Reality laboratory, its technical implementation as a distributed network of computers and discusses its usability for experiments designed to investigate questions of spatial orientation

Socio-Informatics

Contents Editorial Thematic Focus: Socio-Informatics Introduction to the Thematic Focus “Socio-Informatics” / Claudia Müller Digitalisation in Small German Metal-Working Companies. Appropriation of Technology in a “Traditional” Industrial Domain / Bernhard Nett, Jennifer Bönsch Travelling by Taxi Brousse in Madagascar: An Investigation into Practices of Overland Transportation / Volker Wulf, Kaoru Misaki, Dave Randall, and Markus Rohde Mobile and Interactive Media in the Store? Design Case Study on Bluetooth Beacon Concepts for Food Retail / Christian Reuter, Inken Leopold Facebook and the Mass Media in Tunisia / Konstantin Aal, Marén Schorch, Esma Ben Hadj Elkilani, Volker Wulf Book Review Symposium Charles Goodwin Charles Goodwin’s Co-Operative Action: The Idea and the Argument / Erhard Schüttpelz, Christian Meyer Multi-Modal Interaction and Tool-Making: Goodwin’s Intuition / Christian Meyer, Erhard Schüttpelz Co-Operation is a Feature of Sociality, not an Attribute of People : “We inhabit each other’s actions.” (Goodwin, cover) / Jutta Wiesemann, Klaus Amann The Making of the World in Co-Operative Action. From Sentence Construction to Cultural Evolution / Jürgen Streeck On Goodwin and his Co-Operative Action / Jörg R. Bergman

Flexible Electronics for Large Area Sensing and Stimulation

Advancements in soft materials and hybrid flexible electronics have enabled developments in flexible circuits and wearables. Where rigid electronics are extremely precise over small physical areas, flexible electronics have the capability to sense over large curved areas. From the onset of epidermal electronics and flexible transistors, there have been great advancements in sensing over soft curved objects, such as human skin or brain tissue. This thesis focuses on hybrid flexible electronics to sense and stimulate over large areas. The aim of the systems presented is to provide insight into complex navigation and sensor processing systems. In addition to the design, fabrication, and characterization of each device, several important characteristics of each device are investigated: material choice, curvature limits, and device sensitivity. The first device presented in this thesis uses strain gauges to track the bending of neurosurgery navigation stylets for catheter placement. The strain gauge fabrication and characterization is presented. Adhesive testing, stylet bending modeling, and noise techniques are also discussed as they were found to be critical components of the system. The device's limit of detection is 1 mm tip displacement. The purpose of the second set of devices presented is to gain object information from curved or edged robotic structures. Three sensing modes were explored: piezoelectric, strain, and capacitive. The piezoelectric sensor was founded to have a 6.7 times increase in sensitivity when an open-cell foam compliant layer is used. The strain sensor was found to have a gauge factor of 2.83 on a silicone layer and 1.5 on a polymer layer. The combination of the piezoelectric and strain sensing modes is presented. The capacitive sensor is able to detect object shape using inverse problem mathematical techniques. The third device and system presented is a flexible electrode array for stimulating the electroreceptors of electric fish. The spatial and temporal control of a conformal stimulation array enables the decoding of motor signals in the brain. The array fabrication and system development is presented. Surface modification of the electrode array successfully altered the surface energy of the array to match that of the fish for the optimal array-fish interface. In summary, the development and integration of these flexible electronic devices has been achieved. It was found that the interface between the flexible electronic devices and binding objects is critical to device sensitivity and reliability