The development and evaluation of a prototyping environment for context-sensitive mobile computing interaction

Recent developments in wireless communication, mobile computing, and sensor technologies have prompted a new vision of the world in which we live. As witnesses the effects of Moore's law, which are evident in many aspects of innovative technical opportunity, such as cost, size, capacity, bandwidth, etc. These advances allow us to build new types of human-computer-environment interaction in augmented physical spaces. Ideally, mobile computing devices can go with people so that they can access information on the move as being constantly connected to the digital space. Sensor technologies enable mobile computing devices to sense their users and environments. This increases the interaction bandwidth between a human and a mobile computing device. The development of context-sensitive mobile computing systems requires considerable engineering skills. None of the existing approaches provides an effective means of obtaining location and environmental information using "standard" hardware and software. This raises the entry level of discovering more about this type of interaction to the designers. In addition, it is important to stress that relatively little is known about the usability problems that might arise from interaction with these different context-sensitive mobile computing applications. The focus of this thesis is on the development of a prototyping environment for context-sensitive mobile computing. This thesis makes two contributions. The most significant contribution is the presentation of the Glasgow Context Server (GCS). It has been specifically designed to address the concerns mentioned above. It successfully integrates an off-the-shelf radio Local Area Network (LAN) with the infrared sensors that have been a feature of many previous context-sensitive mobile computing applications. The GCS is intended to help interface designers validate the claimed benefits of location sensing, location disclosing and environment sensing applications. The second contribution is the working applications, in particular, a web-based annotation system for physical objects and a shopping assistant built upon the GCS environment. These demonstrations are used to evaluate the GCS approach and point out the challenging issues in computing technology as well as usability concern. The hope is that this research can provide interface designers with an in-depth reference to a prototyping environment for context-sensitive mobile computing applications

Exergy-based Planning and Thermography-based Monitoring for energy efficient buildings - Progress Report (KIT Scientific Reports ; 7632)

Designing and monitoring energy efficiency of buildings is vital since they account for up to 40% of end-use energy. In this study, exergy analysis is investigated as a life cycle design tool to strike a balance between thermodynamic efficiency of energy conversion and economic and environmental costs of construction. Quantitative geo-referenced thermography is proposed for monitoring and quantitative assessment via continued simulation and parameter estimation during the operating phase

Property, Privacy and Power: Rethinking the Fourth Amendment in the Wake of \u3ci\u3eU.S. v. Jones\u3c/i\u3e

This Article seeks to uncover invisible gender, race, and class biases driving modern Fourth Amendment discourse. Unlike traditional theories, which tend to view the Fourth Amendment through the lens of either privacy or property, this Article advances a theory focusing on the real issues of power and control that fuel Fourth Amendment jurisprudence. Specifically, the Article exposes the private/public and home/market dichotomies that are central to the Supreme Court rhetoric as arbitrary and artificial. It finds that current Fourth Amendment discourse protects the interest of white, privileged men and perpetuates male ideology as well as male domination. That focus leaves women, people of color, and those less privileged, unprotected. In opposition to that discourse, this Article offers a re-reading of the historical sources of the Fourth Amendment in a way that re-emphasizes the amendment\u27s core: curbing subordinating power. It broadens the traditional focus on power abuses of one\u27s privacy or property and argues that we need to conduct Fourth Amendment inquiries through a prism of multiple, web-like hierarchies. To that end, the Article explores several possibilities of modeling an alternative, feminist Fourth Amendment, including articulating the Fourth Amendment around an antisubordination principle, employing a multi-focal approach to Fourth Amendment adjudication, and infusing search and seizure law with multiple perspectives in the form of personal narratives

Aeronautics and space report of the President, 1980 activities

The year's achievements in the areas of communication, Earth resources, environment, space sciences, transportation, and space energy are summarized and current and planned activities in these areas at the various departments and agencies of the Federal Government are summarized. Tables show U.S. and world spacecraft records, spacecraft launchings for 1980, and scientific payload anf probes launched 1975-1980. Budget data are included

Proceedings of the 1993 Conference on Intelligent Computer-Aided Training and Virtual Environment Technology, Volume 1

These proceedings are organized in the same manner as the conference's contributed sessions, with the papers grouped by topic area. These areas are as follows: VE (virtual environment) training for Space Flight, Virtual Environment Hardware, Knowledge Aquisition for ICAT (Intelligent Computer-Aided Training) & VE, Multimedia in ICAT Systems, VE in Training & Education (1 & 2), Virtual Environment Software (1 & 2), Models in ICAT systems, ICAT Commercial Applications, ICAT Architectures & Authoring Systems, ICAT Education & Medical Applications, Assessing VE for Training, VE & Human Systems (1 & 2), ICAT Theory & Natural Language, ICAT Applications in the Military, VE Applications in Engineering, Knowledge Acquisition for ICAT, and ICAT Applications in Aerospace

Sustainability report

Altres títols : Corporate responsibility report and sustainability report ; Corporate responsibility report

Survey of Washington Search and Seizure Law: 1998 Update

This Survey, as did the previous Surveys, summarizes the predominant treatment of search and seizure issues under the Fourth Amendment and under article I, section 7 of the Washington State Constitution to the extent that this state\u27s provision is interpreted differently from the federal provision. The Survey focuses primarily on substantive search and seizure law in the criminal context; it omits discussion of many procedural issues

Survey of Washington Search and Seizure Law: 1998 Update

This Survey, as did the previous Surveys, summarizes the predominant treatment of search and seizure issues under the Fourth Amendment and under article I, section 7 of the Washington State Constitution to the extent that this state\u27s provision is interpreted differently from the federal provision. The Survey focuses primarily on substantive search and seizure law in the criminal context; it omits discussion of many procedural issues

Urban Terrorism: Strategies for Mitigating Terrorist Attacks Against the Domestic Urban Environment

This study identifies strategies to mitigate the impact of terrorist attacks against the domestic urban environment. It uses multiple qualitative research methods to identify patterns of attack used by terrorists against urban targets in the United States and suggest ways for policymakers to mitigate the effects of a terrorist attack through not only physical, but also organizational, political, legal, and social strategies. It uses case analysis, literature review, and interviews with experts in domestic terrorism preparedness to develop and suggest solutions. Terrorism, as with other criminal acts, can best be met by implementing strategies to mitigate the impact of this form of crime. Governments are simultaneously confronted with a rapidly growing number of potential terrorist targets that must be secured, and constrained by democratic principles from utilizing many technological devices to secure those targets. Creating an effective security system that protects against a wide range of terrorist attacks while it continues to afford a maximum exercise of democratic freedoms and privileges is a formidable task. Several broad, theory-based categories of defending urban spaces are considered. This study builds on past research and extends defensible space theory with careful consideration of the special challenges in dealing with terrorist attacks. The potential for terrorist attack is reviewed, and an understanding of who the domestic urban terrorists are, why they may attack the urban built environment, what might they attack, and what can be done about it is developed. Recommendations for public policy and future research are presented