The Teaching of English Vocabulary through the Multisensory Approach to Older Adults in a Private Nursing Home in Pereira, Colombia

El siguiente documento es un proyecto de investigación cualitativo cuyo objetivo es integrar la teoría andragógica y el enfoque multisensorial para facilitar el aprendizaje de vocabulario en inglés a adultos mayores. Adicionalmente, este estudio es una iniciativa para incluir a los adultos mayores en un proceso de educación bilingüe ya que esta población casi no ha sido tomada en cuenta para la realización de proyectos bilingües. Por esta razón, este proyecto propone nuevas oportunidades para futuras investigaciones El presente estudio fue implementado en el hogar del anciano Casa Santa María en Pereira, Colombia. Este proyecto fue llevado a cabo en 10 clases en las cuales las participantes aprendieron 47 palabras relacionadas con su contexto inmediato. Las participantes del proyecto fueron cuatro mujeres, quienes tenían más de 60 años de edad. Las cuatro fueron consideradas como un proceso de muestreo típico intencional para recopilar los datos, los cuales fueron interpretados por los investigadores. Además, durante la implementación del estudio, tres métodos de recolección de datos fueron empleados: observaciones, diarios de campo, y entrevistas. Los datos recogidos fueron analizados aplicando la teoría fundada, y después de este análisis los datos sugirieron que a) las estrategias de aprendizaje autodirigido pueden facilitar el éxito del aprendizaje de vocabulario y b) los sentidos de los adultos mayores tienen diferentes usos dependiendo de la etapa de la clase. Para concluir, el enfoque multisensorial es efectivo para enseñar vocabulario en inglés a adultos mayores junto con los principios andragógicos

Consciosusness in Cognitive Architectures. A Principled Analysis of RCS, Soar and ACT-R

This report analyses the aplicability of the principles of consciousness developed in the ASys project to three of the most relevant cognitive architectures. This is done in relation to their aplicability to build integrated control systems and studying their support for general mechanisms of real-time consciousness.\ud To analyse these architectures the ASys Framework is employed. This is a conceptual framework based on an extension for cognitive autonomous systems of the General Systems Theory (GST).\ud A general qualitative evaluation criteria for cognitive architectures is established based upon: a) requirements for a cognitive architecture, b) the theoretical framework based on the GST and c) core design principles for integrated cognitive conscious control systems

Examining College Student Athlete Attitudes Towards Concussion Testing and Reporting Concussions

Examining College Student Athlete Attitudes and Behaviors Toward Baseline Neurocognitive Concussion Testing FryK, Anderson, M, Anderson, M, Schatz, P, Elbin, RJ: University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas Context: Examining athletes’ attitudes toward concussion diagnosis, management, and treatment can lead to improved multi-faceted management of a concussion injury. Although attitudes towards concussion injuries have been studied, the examination of athletes’ attitudes towards baseline computerized neurocognitive testing is understudied and is warranted. Objective: To examine the relationship between sex, concussion history, and previous exposure to baseline testing on athletes’ perceptions of effort provided during baseline testing and the utility of neurocognitive testing. Methods: College athletes (18-23 years) completing a baseline neurocognitive test (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Test: ImPACT) were asked to complete an anonymous 33-item online survey. Survey questions included demographics and inquired about athletes’ effort and utility of baseline and post-concussion neurocognitive testing. A series of chi-square analyses measured the association between sex, concussion history, and previous exposure to baseline testing on effort provided during testing and utility of the test. Level of statistical significance was p \u3c .05. Results: One hundred eighty-two (88 males, 95 females) athletes (M =19.05, SD = 1.15 years) completed the survey. Thirty-eight percent (70/183) reported prior concussion history and 27% (50/182) were first time test takers. Ninety-four percent (172/183) reported providing above average to maximal effort on the baseline test they completed prior to completing the survey. Ninety percent (158/176) and 87% (156/179) of the sample reported that the baseline and post-concussion test results were useful in mitigating premature return to play, respectively. There was no association between sex, concussion history, or previous exposure to baseline testing on reported effort or perceptions of utility for baseline neurocognitive testing (p \u3e .05). Conclusion: The majority of athletes report high effort on baseline neurocognitive testing and recognize the utility of this measure for safe return to play

Quality measures for ETL processes: from goals to implementation

Extraction transformation loading (ETL) processes play an increasingly important role for the support of modern business operations. These business processes are centred around artifacts with high variability and diverse lifecycles, which correspond to key business entities. The apparent complexity of these activities has been examined through the prism of business process management, mainly focusing on functional requirements and performance optimization. However, the quality dimension has not yet been thoroughly investigated, and there is a need for a more human-centric approach to bring them closer to business-users requirements. In this paper, we take a first step towards this direction by defining a sound model for ETL process quality characteristics and quantitative measures for each characteristic, based on existing literature. Our model shows dependencies among quality characteristics and can provide the basis for subsequent analysis using goal modeling techniques. We showcase the use of goal modeling for ETL process design through a use case, where we employ the use of a goal model that includes quantitative components (i.e., indicators) for evaluation and analysis of alternative design decisions.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Emergence of Self-Organized Symbol-Based Communication \ud in Artificial Creatures

In this paper, we describe a digital scenario where we simulated the emergence of self-organized symbol-based communication among artificial creatures inhabiting a \ud virtual world of unpredictable predatory events. In our experiment, creatures are autonomous agents that learn symbolic relations in an unsupervised manner, with no explicit feedback, and are able to engage in dynamical and autonomous communicative interactions with other creatures, even simultaneously. In order to synthesize a behavioral ecology and infer the minimum organizational constraints for the design of our creatures, \ud we examined the well-studied case of communication in vervet monkeys. Our results show that the creatures, assuming the role of sign users and learners, behave collectively as a complex adaptive system, where self-organized communicative interactions play a \ud major role in the emergence of symbol-based communication. We also strive in this paper for a careful use of the theoretical concepts involved, including the concepts of symbol and emergence, and we make use of a multi-level model for explaining the emergence of symbols in semiotic systems as a basis for the interpretation of inter-level relationships in the semiotic processes we are studying

Sound for Fantasy and Freedom

Sound is an integral part of our everyday lives. Sound tells us about physical events in the environ- ment, and we use our voices to share ideas and emotions through sound. When navigating the world on a day-to-day basis, most of us use a balanced mix of stimuli from our eyes, ears and other senses to get along. We do this totally naturally and without effort. In the design of computer game experiences, traditionally, most attention has been given to vision rather than the balanced mix of stimuli from our eyes, ears and other senses most of us use to navigate the world on a day to day basis. The risk is that this emphasis neglects types of interaction with the game needed to create an immersive experience. This chapter summarizes the relationship between sound properties, GameFlow and immersive experience and discusses two projects in which Interactive Institute, Sonic Studio has balanced perceptual stimuli and game mechanics to inspire and create new game concepts that liberate users and their imagination