Integration of VR with BIM to facilitate real-time creation of bill of quantities during the design phase:a proof of concept study

As time goes on and building practices change, procedures that at one point seemed indispensable can fall by the wayside. One such example is the bill of quantities (B/Q). Research into the extant literature attributes declining use of B/Qs to a multitude of reasons, such as its complexity and potentially drawn-out time to produce, non-traditional procurement systems growing in popularity and the challenge of using its information in a construction schedule. With these issues in mind, a combined process of Building Information Modelling (BIM), Virtual Reality (VR) and including the client in the design process has been proposed as a potential solution. Following a literature review and precedent study, an experiment was carried out using this new process to simulate a client’s design decisions on window and interior furnishings, specifically. Their choices made using VR automatically updated a B/Q Revit Schedule and allowed the client to have a firm grasp on the project costs. Not only did this process give the client more confidence in a pleasing final outcome, but the technology ensured an up-to-date, accurate and easily understood B/Q. Here lies great potential savings in cost, time and gives the B/Q a newfound importance in future construction processes. The research case presented in this paper was a stepping stone in exploring new opportunities offered by VR and BIM and how they could improve the reliability and accuracy of traditional procurement within construction, specifically within the B/Q document

Art history with a click of a mouse or a flip of a page?

The primary purpose of this study was to explore the impact of three research methods. It examined online materials, as well as contextual research based on printed texts in the elementary population. The researcher sought to determine what the most effective method is for helping students to learn art history content, whether it is in the virtual environment of the Internet, the confines of various textbooks, or a combination of both technology-based and text-based research. The subjects of the study were fifth grade students who attended Bells Elementary School, Turnersville, NJ, in the fall of 2006. The researcher used multiple data collection instruments to verify findings: pre-tests and post-tests, a pre-research and post-research Student Attitude Survey, district standard grading scale, observation output, and class discussions. This paper will examine the effects of text-based research, technology-based research, and a combination of both mediums. It will uncover the best method of research development in an elementary art context

Compendium of procedures: tècniques experimentals en aerofísica (TEA)

2011/201

Proceedings of the 1999 Annual Meeting, Association of American Law Schools Section on Employment Discrimination Law: Is There a Disconnect between EEO Law and the Workplace?

(The following is an edited transcript of the proceedings of the section on Employment Discrimination Law at the AALS Annual Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana, January 9, 1999.) DOUGLAS D. SCHERER*: Good morning. The program description asks the question, Is there a disconnect between existing EEO jurisprudence and the realities of the workplace and workforce of the Twenty-First Century? Societal disapproval of employment discrimination is reflected in federal EEO laws that have been enacted during the last thirty-six years and in court interpretations of these laws. The goals of these laws are fairly clear. It is less clear how well these goals have been achieved. Of more importance for this morning\u27s session, serious questions can be raised concerning the extent to which these laws connect to the forms of discrimination that are emerging and that are becoming visible as the workforce and workplace change. These issues will be addressed this morning by our superb panel of speakers