Bringing the Semantic Web home: a research agenda for local, personalized SWUI

We suggest that by taking the Semantic Web local and personal, and deploying it as a shared "data sea" for all applications to trawl, new types of interaction are possible (even necessitated) with this heterogeneous source integration. We present a motivating scenario to foreground the kind of interaction we envision as possible, and outline a series of associated questions about data integration issues, and in particular about the interaction challenges fostered by these new possibilities. We sketch out some early approaches to these questions, but our goal is to identify a wider field of questions for the SWUI community in considering the implications of a local/social semantic web, not just a public one, for interaction

Decentralized Greedy-Based Algorithm for Smart Energy Management in Plug-in Electric Vehicle Energy Distribution Systems

Variations in electricity tariffs arising due to stochastic demand loads on the power grids have stimulated research in finding optimal charging/discharging scheduling solutions for electric vehicles (EVs). Most of the current EV scheduling solutions are either centralized, which suffer from low reliability and high complexity, while existing decentralized solutions do not facilitate the efficient scheduling of on-move EVs in large-scale networks considering a smart energy distribution system. Motivated by smart cities applications, we consider in this paper the optimal scheduling of EVs in a geographically large-scale smart energy distribution system where EVs have the flexibility of charging/discharging at spatially-deployed smart charging stations (CSs) operated by individual aggregators. In such a scenario, we define the social welfare maximization problem as the total profit of both supply and demand sides in the form of a mixed integer non-linear programming (MINLP) model. Due to the intractability, we then propose an online decentralized algorithm with low complexity which utilizes effective heuristics to forward each EV to the most profitable CS in a smart manner. Results of simulations on the IEEE 37 bus distribution network verify that the proposed algorithm improves the social welfare by about 30% on average with respect to an alternative scheduling strategy under the equal participation of EVs in charging and discharging operations. Considering the best-case performance where only EV profit maximization is concerned, our solution also achieves upto 20% improvement in flatting the final electricity load. Furthermore, the results reveal the existence of an optimal number of CSs and an optimal vehicle-to-grid penetration threshold for which the overall profit can be maximized. Our findings serve as guidelines for V2G system designers in smart city scenarios to plan a cost-effective strategy for large-scale EVs distributed energy management

Wearable and mobile devices

Information and Communication Technologies, known as ICT, have undergone dramatic changes in the last 25 years. The 1980s was the decade of the Personal Computer (PC), which brought computing into the home and, in an educational setting, into the classroom. The 1990s gave us the World Wide Web (the Web), building on the infrastructure of the Internet, which has revolutionized the availability and delivery of information. In the midst of this information revolution, we are now confronted with a third wave of novel technologies (i.e., mobile and wearable computing), where computing devices already are becoming small enough so that we can carry them around at all times, and, in addition, they have the ability to interact with devices embedded in the environment. The development of wearable technology is perhaps a logical product of the convergence between the miniaturization of microchips (nanotechnology) and an increasing interest in pervasive computing, where mobility is the main objective. The miniaturization of computers is largely due to the decreasing size of semiconductors and switches; molecular manufacturing will allow for “not only molecular-scale switches but also nanoscale motors, pumps, pipes, machinery that could mimic skin” (Page, 2003, p. 2). This shift in the size of computers has obvious implications for the human-computer interaction introducing the next generation of interfaces. Neil Gershenfeld, the director of the Media Lab’s Physics and Media Group, argues, “The world is becoming the interface. Computers as distinguishable devices will disappear as the objects themselves become the means we use to interact with both the physical and the virtual worlds” (Page, 2003, p. 3). Ultimately, this will lead to a move away from desktop user interfaces and toward mobile interfaces and pervasive computing

User behaviors toward mobile video adoption in Taiwan: A qualitative study

This study was designed to examine users' usage behaviors toward mobile video adoption in Taiwan. A modified UTAUT (Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology) model was designed to be the theory basis to develop questionnaires and open-ended questions. Data were gathered from six participants from iOS and Android users, two experts, and one focus group with five members. The study was conducted from February to April, 2011. The findings in this study supported those in the literature review: Effort Expectancy and Perceived Playfulness factors had positive influence to users' usage behaviors. Facilitating Conditions and Performance expectancy also had positive effect to users' usage behaviors toward mobile video app adoption. Network quality issue was the concern and should be added in the model. Moreover, several implications and suggestions for mobile video app adoption were discussed in the study. --mobile video,Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model (UTAUT),mobile video adoption,Taiwan

Family memories in the home: contrasting physical and digital mementos

We carried out fieldwork to characterise and compare physical and digital mementos in the home. Physical mementos are highly valued, heterogeneous and support different types of recollection. Contrary to expectations, we found physical mementos are not purely representational, and can involve appropriating common objects and more idiosyncratic forms. In contrast, digital mementos were initially perceived as less valuable, although participants later reconsidered this. Digital mementos were somewhat limited in function and expression, largely involving representational photos and videos, and infrequently accessed. We explain these digital limitations and conclude with design guidelines for digital mementos, including better techniques for accessing and integrating these into everyday life, allowing them to acquire the symbolic associations and lasting value that characterise their physical counterparts

Program your city: Designing an urban integrated open data API

Cities accumulate and distribute vast sets of digital information. Many decision-making and planning processes in councils, local governments and organisations are based on both real-time and historical data. Until recently, only a small, carefully selected subset of this information has been released to the public – usually for specific purposes (e.g. train timetables, release of planning application through websites to name just a few). This situation is however changing rapidly. Regulatory frameworks, such as the Freedom of Information Legislation in the US, the UK, the European Union and many other countries guarantee public access to data held by the state. One of the results of this legislation and changing attitudes towards open data has been the widespread release of public information as part of recent Government 2.0 initiatives. This includes the creation of public data catalogues such as data.gov.au (U.S.), data.gov.uk (U.K.), data.gov.au (Australia) at federal government levels, and datasf.org (San Francisco) and data.london.gov.uk (London) at municipal levels. The release of this data has opened up the possibility of a wide range of future applications and services which are now the subject of intensified research efforts. Previous research endeavours have explored the creation of specialised tools to aid decision-making by urban citizens, councils and other stakeholders (Calabrese, Kloeckl & Ratti, 2008; Paulos, Honicky & Hooker, 2009). While these initiatives represent an important step towards open data, they too often result in mere collections of data repositories. Proprietary database formats and the lack of an open application programming interface (API) limit the full potential achievable by allowing these data sets to be cross-queried. Our research, presented in this paper, looks beyond the pure release of data. It is concerned with three essential questions: First, how can data from different sources be integrated into a consistent framework and made accessible? Second, how can ordinary citizens be supported in easily composing data from different sources in order to address their specific problems? Third, what are interfaces that make it easy for citizens to interact with data in an urban environment? How can data be accessed and collected