Groups and frequent visitors shaping the space dynamics

Our research is about a dynamic symbolic space model that is fed with data from the environment by a set of processing modules that receive raw data from sensor networks. For the conducted experiments we have been using data from a WiFi network as it is a widely available infrastructure in our campus. Here we propose two processing modules which will provide more information about the spaces described in the model. The first one tries to implement our human perception of the usual visitors of a place using two measures, the long term and the short term tenant level. The second one detects where groups of users emerge, how many there are and what are their dimensions. Based on this new perspective of the campus we intend to realize how the presence of people shapes the dynamics of a space.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

Determinants of impact : towards a better understanding of encounters with the arts

The article argues that current methods for assessing the impact of the arts are largely based on a fragmented and incomplete understanding of the cognitive, psychological and socio-cultural dynamics that govern the aesthetic experience. It postulates that a better grasp of the interaction between the individual and the work of art is the necessary foundation for a genuine understanding of how the arts can affect people. Through a critique of philosophical and empirical attempts to capture the main features of the aesthetic encounter, the article draws attention to the gaps in our current understanding of the responses to art. It proposes a classification and exploration of the factors—social, cultural and psychological—that contribute to shaping the aesthetic experience, thus determining the possibility of impact. The ‘determinants of impact’ identified are distinguished into three groups: those that are inherent to the individual who interacts with the artwork; those that are inherent to the artwork; and ‘environmental factors’, which are extrinsic to both the individual and the artwork. The article concludes that any meaningful attempt to assess the impact of the arts would need to take these ‘determinants of impact’ into account, in order to capture the multidimensional and subjective nature of the aesthetic experience

New urban Soundscapes: Angklung Buskers in Yogyakarta

Caratterizzati da una costante sovrapposizione di stimoli acustici di diversa natura, i paesaggi sonori delle realtà metro- politane contemporanee sono entità composite di difficile interpretazione. Entro questi contesti, tuttavia, la produzione di musica dal vivo ha senza dubbio un ruolo cruciale nella costruzione degli spazi sonori pubblici e dell’immaginario acustico ad essi associato. Nel presente articolo sono presentati alcuni risultati di una ricerca svolta a Yogyakarta (Giava, Indonesia) su un particolare fenomeno di musica di strada, le angklung bands: gruppi di musicisti di strada che si guadagna- no da vivere esibendosi quotidianamente negli spazi più trafficati della città. Applicando il metodo etnografico dell’osservazione partecipante, è stata documentata l’attività di questi musicisti, indagandone storie di vita, prassi performative e repertori, considerando la complessità del feno- meno e il suo rapporto “osmotico” con l’ambiente urbano Yogyanese. Descrivendo questo specifico caso di studio, si cercherà di dimostrare come una pratica musicale apparentemente marginale possa avere una funzione importante nella costruzione di una realtà acustica metropolitana, sino a divenirne un’impronta sonora. Il saggio è corredato da esempi video che illustrano la pratica musicale in analisi e consentono di valutarne l’impatto sul paesaggio sonoro circostante.Being characterized by a constant overlapping of different kinds of acoustic stimuli, contemporary metropolitan soundscapes are composite entities that are rather difficult to interpret. Within these contexts however, the production of live music undoubtedly has a crucial role in the construction of sonic public spaces and of the acoustic ideas and concepts that are associated with them. This paper presents some results of a research conducted in Yogyakarta (Java, Indonesia) regarding a particular kind of street music, i.e. the angklung bands: groups of buskers who make a living by performing every day in the most crowded spaces of the city. By applying the ethnographic method of participant observation, the activity of these musicians was documented, together with their life stories, repertoires and performative practices. In addition, the complexity of the phenomenon and its “osmotic” relationship with the Yogyanese urban context was carefully considered. This specific case study is utilized in order to show how an apparently marginal musical practice has had a significant function in the construction of a metropolitan acoustic environment, to the extent of becoming one of its soundmarks. This paper is accompanied by several video examples, which illustrate how the musical practice analyzed is conducted and make it possible to evaluate its impact on the surrounding soundscape

Human Social Behavior and Demography Drive Patterns of Fine-Scale Dengue Transmission in Endemic Areas of Colombia

Dengue is known to transmit between humans and A. aegypti mosquitoes living in neighboring houses. Although transmission is thought to be highly heterogeneous in both space and time, little is known about the patterns and drivers of transmission in groups of houses in endemic settings. We carried out surveys of PCR positivity in children residing in 2-block patches of highly endemic cities of Colombia. We found high levels of heterogeneity in PCR positivity, varying from less than 30% in 8 of the 10 patches to 56 and 96%, with the latter patch containing 22 children simultaneously PCR positive (PCR22) for DEN2. We then used an agent-based model to assess the likely eco-epidemiological context of this observation. Our model, simulating daily dengue dynamics over a 20 year period in a single two block patch, suggests that the observed heterogeneity most likely derived from variation in the density of susceptible people. Two aspects of human adaptive behavior were critical to determining this density: external social relationships favoring viral introduction (by susceptible residents or infectious visitors) and immigration of households from non-endemic areas. External social relationships generating frequent viral introduction constituted a particularly strong constraint on susceptible densities, thereby limiting the potential for explosive outbreaks and dampening the impact of heightened vectorial capacity. Dengue transmission can be highly explosive locally, even in neighborhoods with significant immunity in the human population. Variation among neighborhoods in the density of local social networks and rural-to-urban migration is likely to produce significant fine-scale heterogeneity in dengue dynamics, constraining or amplifying the impacts of changes in mosquito populations and cross immunity between serotypes

The dynamic nature of caregiver communication networks and spatialised work processes in hospital wards

This paper presents an empirical study of four hospital wards in two UK hospitals. Of interest are caregiver communication networks and behaviours because they form an important part of care provision. Space syntax research argues that the spatial configuration of buildings has an effect on social behaviours. However, only few notable studies investigate how inpatient wards influence work processes and relationships amongst caregivers. The dynamic nature of this work environment is particularly challenging to observe. Therefore, this study focuses on spatial layouts and dynamically evolving communication networks and behaviours adopting a set of complimentary methods to disentangle the complex and dynamic social processes in hospital wards. The two case studies are situated in London and were specifically selected to contrast in their setup and spatial organisation. Two corresponding inpatient departments in each hospital were chosen for a comparison – the intensive care unit and one medical ward. Space syntax was used alongside a staff survey including social network analysis to assess communication networks amongst caregivers. The survey was carried out for four consecutive days and asked about communication partners on each particular day to capture snapshots of everyday communication that could explain the dynamics of social networks. Sociometric sensors developed at MIT were run for eight consecutive days and provided information about frequency and duration of conversations. The dynamic nature of the workflow was captured by shadowing caregivers and recording digitally type and durations of sequential activities and locations. The study offers several contributions by bringing together spatial analysis, observational data, self-reported surveys and sensor data. Results indicate that the structure of communication networks of doctors and nurses became less hierarchical to keep the network stable when a key role was missing. It was also shown that distance influence the frequency and duration of conversations in the intensive care unit assuming that caregivers are fixed to their assigned beds. However, for the general nursing ward, a different methodology to model distance is required as one caregiver takes care of several physically dispersed patients. Finally, it was shown that nurses spent a great proportion of their time in various activities in different locations pointing towards the dynamic nature of the workplace. The outcome of this study generates insights into everyday life in hospital wards and how spatial practices play out