Quality Planning for Distributed Collaborative Multimedia Applications

The tremendous power and low price of today s computer systems have created the opportunity for exciting applications rich with graphics audio and video Despite this potential planning computer systems to support the intensity of these multimedia applications is an extremely difficult task We have developed a flexible model and method that allows us to predict multimedia application performance from the user s perspective Our model takes into account the components fundamental to multimedia application quality latency jitter and data loss In applying our method to three specific applications we have identified some general traits 1) processors are the bottleneck in performance for many multimedia applications 2) networks with more bandwidth often do not increase the quality of multimedia applications and 3) performance for many multimedia applications can be improved greatly by shifting capacity demand from computer system components that are heavily loaded to those that are more lightly loade

Thinking interactively with visualization

Interaction is becoming an integral part of using visualization for analysis. When interaction is tightly and appropriately coupled with visualization, it can transform the visualization from display- ing static imagery to assisting comprehensive analysis of data at all scales. In this relationship, a deeper understanding of the role of interaction, its effects, and how visualization relates to interaction is necessary for designing systems in which the two components complement each other. This thesis approaches interaction in visualization from three different perspectives. First, it considers the cost of maintaining interaction in manipulating visualization of large datasets. Namely, large datasets often require a simplification process for the visualization to maintain interactivity, and this thesis examines how simplification affects the resulting visualization. Secondly, example interactive visual analytical systems are presented to demonstrate how interactivity could be applied in visualization. Specifically, four fully developed systems for four distinct problem domains are discussed to determine the common role of interactivity in these visualizations that make the systems successful. Lastly, this thesis presents evidence that interactions are important for analytical tasks using visualizations. Interaction logs of financial analysts using a visualization were collected, coded, and examined to determine the amount of analysis strategies contained within the interaction logs. The finding supports the benefits of high interactivity in analytical tasks when using a visualization. The example visualizations used to support these three perspectives are diverse in their goals and features. However, they all share similar design guidelines and visualization principles. Based on their characteristics, this thesis groups these visualizations into urban visualization, visual analytical systems, and interaction capturing and discusses them separately in terms of lessons learned and future directions

Principles of Human Computer Interaction Design: HCI Design

This book covers the design, evaluation and development process for interactive human computer interfaces including user interface design principles, task analysis, interface design methods, auditory interfaces, haptics, user interface evaluation, usability testing prototyping, issues in interface construction, interface evaluation, World Wide Web and mobile device interface issues.The book is ideal for the student that wants to learn how to use prototyping tools as part of the interface design and how to evaluate an interface and its interaction quality by using usability testing techniques

An Artistic Perspective on Distributed Computer Networks. Creativity in Human-Machine Systems

This thesis is written from an artistic perspective as a reflection on currently significant discussions in media theory, with a focus on the impact of technology on society. While mapping boundaries of contemporary art, post-digital art is considered the best for describing current discourses in media theory in the context of this research. Bringing into the discussion artworks by Martin Howse & Jonathan Kemp (2001-2008), Maurizio Bolognini (Bolognini 1988-present), and myself (mi_ga 2006), among many others, this research defines post-digital art, which in turn defines a complexity of interactions between elements of different natures, such as the living and non-living, human and machine, art and science. Within the analysis of P2P networks, I highlight Milgram's (1967) idea of six degrees of separation, which, at least from a speculative point of view, is interesting for the implementation of human-machine concepts in future technological developments. From this perspective, I argue that computer networks could, in the future, have more potential for merging with society if developed similarly to the computer routing scheme implemented in the Freenet distributed information storage and retrieval system. The thesis then describes my own artwork, 0.30402944246776265, including two newly developed plugins for the Freenet storage system; the first plugin is constructed to fulfill the idea of interacting elements of different natures (in this case, the WWW and Freenet), while the other plugin attempts to visualize data flow within the Freenet storage and retrieval system. All together, this paper proposes that a reconsideration of distributed and self-organized information systems, through an artistic and philosophical lens, can open up a space for the rethinking of the current integration of society and technology

Conference on Intelligent Robotics in Field, Factory, Service, and Space (CIRFFSS 1994), volume 1

The AIAA/NASA Conference on Intelligent Robotics in Field, Factory, Service, and Space (CIRFFSS '94) was originally proposed because of the strong belief that America's problems of global economic competitiveness and job creation and preservation can partly be solved by the use of intelligent robotics, which are also required for human space exploration missions. Individual sessions addressed nuclear industry, agile manufacturing, security/building monitoring, on-orbit applications, vision and sensing technologies, situated control and low-level control, robotic systems architecture, environmental restoration and waste management, robotic remanufacturing, and healthcare applications

Mitigating Complexity in Air Traffic Control: The Role of Structure-Based Abstractions

Cognitive complexity is a limiting factor on the capacity and efficiency of the Air Traffic Control (ATC) system. A multi-faceted cognitive ethnography approach shows that structure, defined as the physical and informational elements that organize and arrange the ATC environment, plays an important role in helping controllers mitigate cognitive complexity. Key influences of structure in the operational environment and on controller cognitive processes are incorporated into a cognitive process model. Controllers are hypothesized to internalize the structural influences in the form of abstractions simplifying their working mental model of the situation. By simplifying their working mental model, these structure-based abstractions reduce cognitive complexity.FAA grants 96-C-001 and # 06-G-006

Security and defence research in the European Union: a landscape review

This landscape report describes the state of play of the European Union’s policies and activities in security and defence and the EU-funded research aimed at supporting them, with an exclusive focus on intentional harm. It is organised around several thematic building blocks under the umbrella of the three core priorities defined in the European agenda on security. The report reviews the current main risks and threats but also those that may emerge within the next 5 years, the policy and operational means developed to combat them, the main active stakeholders and the EU legislation in force. In this context, a short history of EU research on security and defence is presented, followed by an inventory of relevant research and development projects funded under the Horizon 2020 framework programme during the period 2014-2018. The specific contributions of the Joint Research Centre to security research are also highlighted. Finally, future avenues for security and defence research and development are discussed. Please note that the executive summary of this landscape report has been published simultaneously as a companion document.JRC.E.7-Knowledge for Security and Migratio

Creativity, Exploration and Control in Musical Parameter Spaces.

PhDThis thesis investigates the use of multidimensional control of synthesis parameters in electronic music, and the impact of controller mapping techniques on creativity. The theoretical contribution of this work, the EARS model, provides a rigorous application of creative cognition research to this topic. EARS provides a cognitive model of creative interaction with technology, retrodicting numerous prior findings in musical interaction research. The model proposes four interaction modes, and characterises them in terms of parameter-space traversal mechanisms. Recommendations for properties of controller-synthesiser mappings that support each of the modes are given. This thesis proposes a generalisation of Fitts' law that enables throughput-based evaluation of multi-dimensional control devices. Three experiments were run that studied musicians performing sound design tasks with various interfaces. Mappings suited to three of the four EARS modes were quantitatively evaluated. Experiment one investigated the notion of a `divergent interface'. A mapping geometry that caters to early-stage exploratory creativity was developed, and evaluated via a publicly available tablet application. Dimension reduction of a 10D synthesiser parameter space to 2D surface was achieved using Hilbert space-filling curves. Interaction data indicated that this divergent mapping was used for early-stage creativity, and that the traditional sliders were used for late-stage one tuning. Experiment two established a `minimal experimental paradigm' for sound design interface evaluation. This experiment showed that multidimensional controllers were faster than 1D sliders for locating a target sound in two and three timbre dimensions. iv The final study tested a novel embodied interaction technique: ViBEAMP. This system utilised a hand tracker and a 3D visualisation to train users to control 6 synthesis parameters simultaneously. Throughput was recorded as triple that of six sliders, and working memory load was signiffcantly reduced. This experiment revealed that musical, time-targeted interactions obey a different speed-accuracy trade-of law from accuracy-targeted interactions.Electronic Engineering and Computer Science at Queen Mar