Cognitive Robots for Social Interactions

One of my goals is to work towards developing Cognitive Robots, especially with regard to improving the functionalities that facilitate the interaction with human beings and their surrounding objects. Any cognitive system designated for serving human beings must be capable of processing the social signals and eventually enable efficient prediction and planning of appropriate responses. My main focus during my PhD study is to bridge the gap between the motoric space and the visual space. The discovery of the mirror neurons ([RC04]) shows that the visual perception of human motion (visual space) is directly associated to the motor control of the human body (motor space). This discovery poses a large number of challenges in different fields such as computer vision, robotics and neuroscience. One of the fundamental challenges is the understanding of the mapping between 2D visual space and 3D motoric control, and further developing building blocks (primitives) of human motion in the visual space as well as in the motor space. First, I present my study on the visual-motoric mapping of human actions. This study aims at mapping human actions in 2D videos to 3D skeletal representation. Second, I present an automatic algorithm to decompose motion capture (MoCap) sequences into synergies along with the times at which they are executed (or "activated") for each joint. Third, I proposed to use the Granger Causality as a tool to study the coordinated actions performed by at least two units. Recent scientific studies suggest that the above "action mirroring circuit" might be tuned to action coordination rather than single action mirroring. Fourth, I present the extraction of key poses in visual space. These key poses facilitate the further study of the "action mirroring circuit". I conclude the dissertation by describing the future of cognitive robotics study

Towards the formation and measurement of ethnic price perception

This research is the outcome of a preeminent interest in the topic of price perception. Pointedly, the perception of prices is part of the purchasing process, the same willingness to pay and the actual purchase behaviour, and is indubitably a perceptual construct. As such, perception is problematic to measure as it does not relate to an observable behaviour. On the other hand, pricing is regarded as an important variable in the marketing mix. This research contributes to theory by augmenting the current knowledge on the perception of prices including the methods used in the measurement of such perception. Moreover, this research addresses a gap in the understanding of how diverse ethnic groups perceive prices. The relationship set in this study between ethnicity and price perception is thought-provoking as it contributes to the current discussion around diversity in the marketplace. For example, the literature shows advances in areas such as multicultural and ethnic marketing and this research makes a significant contribution to these areas from price perception. Accordingly, this study involved a systematic review of the literature and presented a framework that suggested that the formation of price perception is affected by external factors such as culture and ethnicity. Furthermore, a qualitative study examined the formation of price perception around ethnic groups. Next, this research used a quantitative study that sought differences in price perception among ethnic groups. Thus, the quantitative study used a price perception scale (Lichtenstein et al., 1993) and a choice-based conjoint analysis. Also, the study adopted structural equation modelling (SEM) to measure differences among scales and the multinomial logit model to analyse the choice-based conjoint analysis. The findings of both the quantitative and the qualitative studies link to the systematic review and support the framework for the formation and measurement of price perception originally proposed

Aeronautical Engineering: A Continuing Bibliography With Indexes

This supplemental issue of Aeronautical Engineering, A Continuing Bibliography with Indexes (NASA/SP-1999-7037) lists reports, articles, and other documents recently announced in the NASA STI Database. The coverage includes documents on the engineering and theoretical aspects of design, construction, evaluation, testing, operation, and performance of aircraft (including aircraft engines) and associated components, equipment, and systems. It also includes research and development in aerodynamics, aeronautics, and ground support equipment for aeronautical vehicles. Each entry in the publication consists of a standard bibliographic citation accompanied, in most cases, by an abstract. Two indexes-subject and author are included after the abstract section

Dual-Use Space Technology Transfer Conference and Exhibition

This document contains papers presented at the Dual-Use Space Technology Transfer Conference and Exhibition held at the Johnson Space Center February 1-3, 1994. Possible technology transfers covered during the conference were in the areas of information access; innovative microwave and optical applications; materials and structures; marketing and barriers; intelligent systems; human factors and habitation; communications and data systems; business process and technology transfer; software engineering; biotechnology and advanced bioinstrumentation; communications signal processing and analysis; new ways of doing business; medical care; applications derived from control center data systems; human performance evaluation; technology transfer methods; mathematics, modeling, and simulation; propulsion; software analysis and decision tools systems/processes in human support technology; networks, control centers, and distributed systems; power; rapid development perception and vision technologies; integrated vehicle health management; automation technologies; advanced avionics; ans robotics technologies. More than 77 papers, 20 presentations, and 20 exhibits covering various disciplines were presented b experts from NASA, universities, and industry

Purchase Decision Type Influences on Consumers’ Reliance: Brand-Related User-Generated Content

Consumers use brand-related user-generated content (UGC), such as online consumer reviews, for their pre-purchase information seeking. However, previous research on consumer information seeking has scarcely explored how purchase situations and product type influence consumers’ use of brand-related UGC. The purpose of this dissertation is to shed light on this area of research. In the first part of the study, Vaughn’s (1980; 1986) Foote, Cone, and Belding (FCB) grid, a popular product classification theory in advertising and consumer research, was updated based on a set of online surveys (N=1,104) that measured three purchase dimensions [i.e., purchase decision involvement (PDI), think/feel purchase, online/offline purchase context]. Multiple research hypotheses relevant to how purchase type influences one’s brand-related UGC seeking were explored, based on another set of online surveys (N=391) in the second part of the study. A Cronbach’s alpha test revealed that the think/feel purchase dimension of the FCB grid measured two purchase constructs, rather than measuring a single construct. The grid model now consists of 118 up-to-date product examples and 35 categories, and has improved usability for research in other fields, because the study altered the theory’s dichotomous-looking dimensions into non-dichotomous variables. To examine the hypotheses, a linear mixed effect model was utilized for analysis, and the results indicated that the four dimensions (PDI, think purchase, feel purchase, online/offline purchase context) are all positively associated with one’s reliance on brand-related UGC. Furthermore, the study found several more associations between demographic factors and consumers’ reliance on brand-related UGC. Age, gender, marital status, number of children in a household, and employment status showed significant associations, whereas education, household income, and ethnicity did not. The dissertation has several implications. First, ad practitioners may use the updated product grid to define overall themes of advertising (e.g., informative vs. emotional theme). Second, marketers can use the study results to determine their budgets for online brand promotions. Finally, the study may also provide implications to scholars whose research explores pre-purchase information-seeking, influences of product type on decision-making, consumer involvement, emotional/rational purchase decisions, and brand-related UGC