archiTECTONICS: Pre- and Trans-Disciplinary Reference in Beginning Design

This presentation was part of the session : Pedagogy: Procedures, Scaffolds, Strategies, Tactics24th National Conference on the Beginning Design StudentPedagogical approaches to beginning design in architecture often assume trans-disciplinary modes of exploration to filter problem parameters and sculpt perceptual outlook for iterative potential. A closer look suggests moments within the architectural design process that come before, or around, the discipline itself in the form of other disciplines accompanied by basic principles, such as Visual Literacy. Iterating and perceiving through every disciplinary dynamic, instance, and/or action in the process of designing transcends, builds, and structures its neighbor for explorative sequencing, intention, and growth of sensibilities in design resolution. An acute awareness of disciplinary state, in a maturing design process, can alleviate obscurity of ideological foundation and facilitate growth for trans-disciplinary thinking, making, and communicating in a root discipline such as architecture. How can beginning design instructors guide young designers to keep ideas and concepts for design in focus, recognizing that root disciplines transcend pre- and trans-disciplinary processes? Does recognizing variation in pace, induced by digital and analog tools, and intention of design iteration, by discipline, instill clarity by pre-disciplinary thinking, perception, and operation? Trans-disciplinary exercise provokes awareness of pre-disciplinary foundations furthering possibilities for unique root-disciplinary understandings and results. The developed exercise, archiTECTONIC, recognizes and cycles through reasoning, conceptualization, and iteration in a trans-disciplinary sequence, allowing the beginning design student to recognize pre-disciplinary ideology, pace, and purpose when processing ideas through fundamentals of architectural design. Engaging this as a strategy for seeing, thinking, and maneuvering through a dynamic process provides design liberty and clarity for processing and communicating in a root discipline, in this case architecture

Review of A Short Introduction to Stata For Biostatistics by Hills and De Stavola

The new book by Hills and De Stavola (2002) is reviewed. Copyright 2002 by Stata Corporation.biostatistics

Sequencing of learning activities oriented towards reuse and auto-organization for intelligent tutoring systems

Three have been the main contributions of this thesis. First, a platform for the deployment of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS) with a modular architecture has been designed. This platform, called SIT, focuses on the adaptation of the sequencing of learning content, not adaptation of the content itself. This separation permits specialization of pedagogical experts and encourages reuse of learning resources. Second, a tool for the adaptation of the sequencing of learning units has been presented: Sequencing Graphs. It is a specialization of the finite automata paradigm, adapted for the specific needs of learning. Sequencing graphs focus on reuse, both of learning units and of adaptive sequencings definitions. They are hierarchical to prevent scalability problems. Two ITS have developed using sequencing graphs for SIT. Experimental results support the hypothesis that sequencing adaptation has a good influence on learning and that Sequencing Graphs are a useful tool to achieve this objective. Finally, the thesis analyzes the current initiatives in the emerging field of swarm intelligence techniques in education. Apart of the theoretical overview, three results are presented: an experimental study performed on the Paraschool system, a system of pedagogical alarms based on learning pheromones on the same system, and a swarm paths information module for SIT. This module synthesizes the best results from swarm-based adaptation sequencing and collaborative filtering for providing an additional level of adaptation to the content sequencing in SI

In what sense can instruments and bodies be said to form spaces?

My recent work is an exploration of the physical and conceptual mechanisms that interface people with instruments. Central to this investigation is a conception of the performer/instrument assemblage as a symbiosis of two parallel and interdependent systems: one – the performer – moves through space established by the other – the instrument. Each system possesses its own intrinsic properties and characteristics; each possesses capacities to affect and be affected by one another. The music emanates from this contiguous interaction. Instrument surface is understood as a compositional resource itself, a topological façade, defined by ordinal distances, that guides gestures along its contours. Within these fluctuating constellations of spatial coordinates, I consider all the relevant ways a body can move, and establish some general combinatory rules that inform the convergence of forces within the body. The traditional subjects of compositional contemplation such as form, duration, dynamic, etc. are not attributing features to the work per se but emerge as results from spatiotemporal relations of (bodily) movement’s correspondence with (instrumental) surface and mechanism. This liberation of movement is understood as a liberation of timbre, and the inherent indeterminacy of this relationship is embraced. As such, I would hypothesize that sound is, to an extent, freed from the subtractive tendencies of perception that might otherwise subvert it into generalized typological categories. Once liberated from the imagination, sound can bypass the brain and directly engage the nervous system

The influence of motor ability rehabilitation on temporal-spatial parameters of gait in Huntington's disease patients on the basis of a three-dimensional motion analysis system: An experimental trial

Objective There is no existing standard, evidence-based, scientific model for motor ability improvement in Huntington's Disease (HD) patients aimed at maintaining independent gait for as long as possible, or performing activities of daily living, the effectiveness of which would be supported by the results of studies using objective research tools. Under these circumstances, the aim of this study was to analyze the influence of motor ability rehabilitation on the spatial-temporal parameters of gait in HD patients. Design It was an experimental trial. The studied group consisted of 30 patients (17 women and 13 men) with HD. In hospital conditions, the patients participated in the 3-week motor ability l rehabilitation programme tailored to individual needs. The study group was tested using the Vicon 250 three-dimensional gait analysis system before and after the physical exercise programme. Results Walking speed after therapy increased for the left lower limb from 1.06 (SD 0.24) [m/s] to 1.21 (SD 0.23) [m/s], and for the right lower limb from 1.07 (SD 0.25) [m/s] to 1.20 (SD 0.25) [m/s]. The cycle length increased after the applied therapy for the left lower limb from 1.17 (SD 0.20) [m] to 1.23 (SD 0.19) [m]. Conclusion The three-week motor ability rehabilitation programme positively influences spatial-temporal gait parameters in HD patients

Constrained evolution drives limited influenza diversity

H3N2 influenza A viruses have been widely circulating in human populations since the pandemic of 1968. A striking feature of the evolutionary development of this strain has been its 'canalized' nature, with narrow evolutionary trees dominated by long trunks with few branching, or bifurcation events and a consequent lack of standing diversity at any single point. This is puzzling, as one might expect that the strong human immune response against the virus would create an environment encouraging more diversity, not less. Previous models have used various assumptions in order to account for this finding. A new analysis published in BMC Biology suggests that this processive evolution down a single path can be recapitulated by a relatively simple model incorporating only two primary parameters - the mutation rate of the virus, and the immunological distance created by each mutation - so long as these parameters are within a particular narrow but biologically plausible range

Feasibility study of an Integrated Program for Aerospace-vehicle Design (IPAD) system. Volume 2: Characterization of the IPAD system, phase 1, task 1

The aircraft design process is discussed along with the degree of participation of the various engineering disciplines considered in this feasibility study

Simulation verification techniques study: Simulation performance validation techniques document

Techniques and support software for the efficient performance of simulation validation are discussed. Overall validation software structure, the performance of validation at various levels of simulation integration, guidelines for check case formulation, methods for real time acquisition and formatting of data from an all up operational simulator, and methods and criteria for comparison and evaluation of simulation data are included. Vehicle subsystems modules, module integration, special test requirements, and reference data formats are also described

Practical Methods for Optimizing Equipment Maintenance Strategies Using an Analytic Hierarchy Process and Prognostic Algorithms

Many large organizations report limited success using Condition Based Maintenance (CbM). This work explains some of the causes for limited success, and recommends practical methods that enable the benefits of CbM. The backbone of CbM is a Prognostics and Health Management (PHM) system. Use of PHM alone does not ensure success; it needs to be integrated into enterprise level processes and culture, and aligned with customer expectations. To integrate PHM, this work recommends a novel life cycle framework, expanding the concept of maintenance into several levels beginning with an overarching maintenance strategy and subordinate policies, tactics, and PHM analytical methods. During the design and in-service phases of the equipment’s life, an organization must prove that a maintenance policy satisfies specific safety and technical requirements, business practices, and is supported by the logistic and resourcing plan to satisfy end-user needs and expectations. These factors often compete with each other because they are designed and considered separately, and serve disparate customers. This work recommends using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) as a practical method for consolidating input from stakeholders and quantifying the most preferred maintenance policy. AHP forces simultaneous consideration of all factors, resolving conflicts in the trade-space of the decision process. When used within the recommended life cycle framework, it is a vehicle for justifying the decision to transition from generalized high-level concepts down to specific lower-level actions. This work demonstrates AHP using degradation data, prognostic algorithms, cost data, and stakeholder input to select the most preferred maintenance policy for a paint coating system. It concludes the following for this particular system: A proactive maintenance policy is most preferred, and a predictive (CbM) policy is more preferred than predeterminative (time-directed) and corrective policies. A General Path prognostic Model with Bayesian updating (GPM) provides the most accurate prediction of the Remaining Useful Life (RUL). Long periods between inspections and use of categorical variables in inspection reports severely limit the accuracy in predicting the RUL. In summary, this work recommends using the proposed life cycle model, AHP, PHM, a GPM model, and embedded sensors to improve the success of a CbM policy