ATM network impairment to video quality

Includes bibliographical reference

Prototype system for supporting the incremental modelling of vague geometric configurations

In this paper the need for Intelligent Computer Aided Design (Int.CAD) to jointly support design and learning assistance is introduced. The paper focuses on presenting and exploring the possibility of realizing learning assistance in Int.CAD by introducing a new concept called Shared Learning. Shared Learning is proposed to empower CAD tools with more useful learning capabilities than that currently available and thereby provide a stronger interaction of learning between a designer and a computer. Controlled computational learning is proposed as a means whereby the Shared Learning concept can be realized. The viability of this new concept is explored by using a system called PERSPECT. PERSPECT is a preliminary numerical design tool aimed at supporting the effective utilization of numerical experiential knowledge in design. After a detailed discussion of PERSPECT's numerical design support, the paper presents the results of an evaluation that focuses on PERSPECT's implementation of controlled computational learning and ability to support a designer's need to learn. The paper then discusses PERSPECT's potential as a tool for supporting the Shared Learning concept by explaining how a designer and PERSPECT can jointly learn. There is still much work to be done before the full potential of Shared Learning can be realized. However, the authors do believe that the concept of Shared Learning may hold the key to truly empowering learning in Int.CAD

Virtual reality for the built environment: A critical review of recent advances

This paper reviews the current state of the art for Virtual Reality (VR) and Virtual Environment (VE) applications in the field of the built environment. The review begins with a brief overview of technological components involved in enabling VR technology. A classification framework is developed to classify 150 journal papers in order to reveal the scholarly coverage of VR and VE from 2005 to 2011, inclusive. The classification framework summarizes achievements, established knowledge, research issues and challenges in the area. The framework is based on four layers of VR: concept and theory, implementation, evaluation and industrial adoption. These layers encompass architecture and design, urban planning and landscape, engineering, construction, facility management, lifecycle integration, training and education. This paper also discusses various representative VR research work in line with the classification framework. Finally the paper predicts future research trends in this area

Application of Asynchronous Transfer Mode (Atm) technology to Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (Pacs): A survey

Broadband Integrated Services Digital Network (R-ISDN) provides a range of narrowband and broad-band services for voice, video, and multimedia. Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) has been selected by the standards bodies as the transfer mode for implementing B-ISDN; The ability to digitize images has lead to the prospect of reducing the physical space requirements, material costs, and manual labor of traditional film handling tasks in hospitals. The system which handles the acquisition, storage, and transmission of medical images is called a Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS). The transmission system will directly impact the speed of image transfer. Today the most common transmission means used by acquisition and display station products is Ethernet. However, when considering network media, it is important to consider what the long term needs will be. Although ATM is a new standard, it is showing signs of becoming the next logical step to meet the needs of high speed networks; This thesis is a survey on ATM, and PACS. All the concepts involved in developing a PACS are presented in an orderly manner. It presents the recent developments in ATM, its applicability to PACS and the issues to be resolved for realising an ATM-based complete PACS. This work will be useful in providing the latest information, for any future research on ATM-based networks, and PACS

Shipping Configuration Optimization with Topology-Based Guided Local Search for Irregular Shaped Shipments

Manufacturer that uses containers to ship products always works to optimize the space inside the containers. Container loading problems (CLP) are widely encountered in forms of raw material flow and handling, product shipments, warehouse management, facility floor planning, as well as strip-packing nesting problems.Investigations and research conducted two decades ago were logistic orientated, on the basis of the empirical approaches

Spacelab data analysis and interactive control study

The study consisted of two main tasks, a series of interviews of Spacelab users and a survey of data processing and display equipment. Findings from the user interviews on questions of interactive control, downlink data formats, and Spacelab computer software development are presented. Equipment for quick look processing and display of scientific data in the Spacelab Payload Operations Control Center (POCC) was surveyed. Results of this survey effort are discussed in detail, along with recommendations for NASA development of several specific display systems which meet common requirements of many Spacelab experiments

Designing Activities for Collaboration at Classroom Scale Using Shared Technology

Although researchers, teachers and policy makers broadly agree on the benefits of collaborative learning, there appears to be less clarity regarding how effective collaboration can be realised at classroom scale. Research in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL), Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), simulation-based learning and related fields has produced a considerable range of applications that aim to support collaboration in classrooms. Grounded in well-established theories of how humans learn, many such applications have shown promising results within the context of small research studies. However, most of those research-driven applications never matured beyond the prototype stage and few are available today as products that schools can easily use and adopt. Many systems lack flexibility or require too much time, hardware, technical skills or other resources to be effectively implemented. Furthermore, teachers can be overwhelmed by managing large groups of students engaged in complex, computer-supported tasks. This thesis investigates how forms of whole-classroom activity can be supported by combining shareable technologies with simulation, team play and orchestration. New designs are explored to help large groups engage and discuss at multiple scales (from pairs and small groups to the entire classroom) in ways that effectively include each student and use the teacher's limited resources efficiently. Moreover, this research aims to devise and validate a conceptual framework that can guide future design, orchestration and evaluation of such activities. Three in-situ studies were conducted to address these goals. The first study involved the design of a climate change simulation to support a professional training course. Iterative design and video analysis resulted in the formulation of the Collaborative Learning Orchestration for Verbal Engagement and Reflection (CLOVER) framework. This framework comprises a suite of conceptual tools and recommendations that aim to help designers and teachers create, orchestrate and evaluate decision-based simulations for whole-classroom use. Two follow-up studies were conducted to validate the usability and usefulness of CLOVER. One of them aimed to replicate the previous findings in a similar context and resulted in the design of a sustainable, whole-classroom simulation for students to discuss finance decisions. The other used CLOVER to expand an existing desktop application (a~language comprehension task for children) to classroom scale. In sum, the three studies provide substantial empirical evidence, suggesting that CLOVER-based applications can effectively reconcile learning needs (collaboration) and technological affordances (shareable devices) with the inherent benefits and constraints of teacher-driven, co-located environments. Furthermore, the findings contribute to a better understanding of what it means to design for sustainability in this context

AI Methods in Algorithmic Composition: A Comprehensive Survey

Algorithmic composition is the partial or total automation of the process of music composition by using computers. Since the 1950s, different computational techniques related to Artificial Intelligence have been used for algorithmic composition, including grammatical representations, probabilistic methods, neural networks, symbolic rule-based systems, constraint programming and evolutionary algorithms. This survey aims to be a comprehensive account of research on algorithmic composition, presenting a thorough view of the field for researchers in Artificial Intelligence.This study was partially supported by a grant for the MELOMICS project (IPT-300000-2010-010) from the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, and a grant for the CAUCE project (TSI-090302-2011-8) from the Spanish Ministerio de Industria, Turismo y Comercio. The first author was supported by a grant for the GENEX project (P09-TIC- 5123) from the Consejería de Innovación y Ciencia de Andalucía

An overview of ciao and its design philosophy

We provide an overall description of the Ciao multiparadigm programming system emphasizing some of the novel aspects and motivations behind its design and implementation. An important aspect of Ciao is that, in addition to supporting logic programming (and, in particular, Prolog), it provides the programmer with a large number of useful features from different programming paradigms and styles and that the use of each of these features (including those of Prolog) can be turned on and off at will for each program module. Thus, a given module may be using, e.g., higher order functions and constraints, while another module may be using assignment, predicates, Prolog meta-programming, and concurrency. Furthermore, the language is designed to be extensible in a simple and modular way. Another important aspect of Ciao is its programming environment, which provides a powerful preprocessor (with an associated assertion language) capable of statically finding non-trivial bugs, verifying that programs comply with specifications, and performing many types of optimizations (including automatic parallelization). Such optimizations produce code that is highly competitive with other dynamic languages or, with the (experimental) optimizing compiler, even that of static languages, all while retaining the flexibility and interactive development of a dynamic language. This compilation architecture supports modularity and separate compilation throughout. The environment also includes a powerful autodocumenter and a unit testing framework, both closely integrated with the assertion system. The paper provides an informal overview of the language and program development environment. It aims at illustrating the design philosophy rather than at being exhaustive, which would be impossible in a single journal paper, pointing instead to previous Ciao literature