Ayuda técnica para la autonomía en el desplazamiento

The project developed in this thesis involves the design, implementation and evaluation of a new technical assistance aiming to ease the mobility of people with visual impairments. By using processing and sounds synthesis, the users can hear the sonification protocol (through bone conduction) informing them, after training, about the position and distance of the various obstacles that may be on their way, avoiding eventual accidents. In this project, surveys were conducted with experts in the field of rehabilitation, blindness and techniques of image processing and sound, which defined the user requirements that served as guideline for the design. The thesis consists of three self-contained blocks: (i) image processing, where 4 processing algorithms are proposed for stereo vision, (ii) sonification, which details the proposed sound transformation of visual information, and (iii) a final central chapter on integrating the above and sequentially evaluated in two versions or implementation modes (software and hardware). Both versions have been tested with both sighted and blind participants, obtaining qualitative and quantitative results, which define future improvements to the project. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------El proyecto desarrollado en la presente tesis doctoral consiste en el diseño, implementación y evaluación de una nueva ayuda técnica orientada a facilitar la movilidad de personas con discapacidad visual. El sistema propuesto consiste en un procesador de estereovisión y un sintetizador de sonidos, mediante los cuales, las usuarias y los usuarios pueden escuchar un código de sonidos mediante transmisión ósea que les informa, previo entrenamiento, de la posición y distancia de los distintos obstáculos que pueda haber en su camino, evitando accidentes. En dicho proyecto, se han realizado encuestas a expertos en el campo de la rehabilitación, la ceguera y en las técnicas y tecnologías de procesado de imagen y sonido, mediante las cuales se definieron unos requisitos de usuario que sirvieron como guía de propuesta y diseño. La tesis está compuesta de tres grandes bloques autocontenidos: (i) procesado de imagen, donde se proponen 4 algoritmos de procesado de visión estéreo, (ii) sonificación, en el cual se detalla la propuesta de transformación a sonido de la información visual, y (iii) un último capítulo central sobre integración de todo lo anterior en dos versiones evaluadas secuencialmente, una software y otra hardware. Ambas versiones han sido evaluadas con usuarios tanto videntes como invidentes, obteniendo resultados cualitativos y cuantitativos que permiten definir mejoras futuras sobre el proyecto finalmente implementado

Simulation and analysis of adaptive routing and flow control in wide area communication networks

This thesis presents the development of new simulation and analytic models for the performance analysis of wide area communication networks. The models are used to analyse adaptive routing and flow control in fully connected circuit switched and sparsely connected packet switched networks. In particular the performance of routing algorithms derived from the L(_R-I) linear learning automata model are assessed for both types of network. A novel architecture using the INMOS Transputer is constructed for simulation of both circuit and packet switched networks in a loosely coupled multi- microprocessor environment. The network topology is mapped onto an identically configured array of processing centres to overcome the processing bottleneck of conventional Von Neumann architecture machines. Previous analytic work in circuit switched work is extended to include both asymmetrical networks and adaptive routing policies. In the analysis of packet switched networks analytic models of adaptive routing and flow control are integrated to produce a powerful, integrated environment for performance analysis The work concludes that routing algorithms based on linear learning automata have significant potential in both fully connected circuit switched networks and sparsely connected packet switched networks

Dordt College 1993-94 Catalog

Academic Catalog for 1993-94https://digitalcollections.dordt.edu/academic_catalogs/1027/thumbnail.jp

The Anglosphere Core as a Pluralistic Security Community

This thesis posits that in the post World War 2 era, a nexus of relationships has given rise to a transnational group of five states that form a Deutschian security community. This Anglospheric security community of the US, UK, Australia and NZ, is examined by utilising Adler and Barnett’s security community model. The model is adapted to give greater weight to the role of memes/culture. It finds that it is culture factors (meme-complexes) related to political values and social behaviour that inform the nature, and modus operandi of this Anglospheric security community. The Brexit debate on the UK’s future is found to have illuminated these issues by exposing aspects the contradictions between the competing meme-complexes of the wider Anglospheric community and the EU. The Anglospheric security community’s durability and progress is found to be directly related to notions of legitimacy. This conclusion is informed by revisiting Deutsch’s original writings on the difference between naturally developing communities and the dangers of policy-elites creating political constructs that run counter to cultural considerations. A values-based meme-complex found to provides not just a common identity but to inform the nature of the Anglospheric security community from which it accrues legitimacy. It is further posited that the Adler and Barnett model’s standard categorisations of pluralistic security community types do not adequately describe certain features of the Anglospheric security community. The research in this thesis has uncovered new institutions and fora and established that members do assist one another in conflict and confirms it to be a tightly-coupled version. However, the Anglospheric security community displays an actorship not implicit in Adler and Barnett’s categorisation. This thesis offers the terms ‘synergic’ and ‘hemiplegic’ to describe functional and dysfunctional communities. The Anglospheric security community is held to be synergic since it exhibits actorship on defence and security matters externally. In contrast the European Union is held up to be hemiplegic due to endemic problems to function cohesively on external defence issues

Maritime expressions:a corpus based exploration of maritime metaphors

This study uses a purpose-built corpus to explore the linguistic legacy of Britain’s maritime history found in the form of hundreds of specialised ‘Maritime Expressions’ (MEs), such as TAKEN ABACK, ANCHOR and ALOOF, that permeate modern English. Selecting just those expressions commencing with ’A’, it analyses 61 MEs in detail and describes the processes by which these technical expressions, from a highly specialised occupational discourse community, have made their way into modern English. The Maritime Text Corpus (MTC) comprises 8.8 million words, encompassing a range of text types and registers, selected to provide a cross-section of ‘maritime’ writing. It is analysed using WordSmith analytical software (Scott, 2010), with the 100 million-word British National Corpus (BNC) as a reference corpus. Using the MTC, a list of keywords of specific salience within the maritime discourse has been compiled and, using frequency data, concordances and collocations, these MEs are described in detail and their use and form in the MTC and the BNC is compared. The study examines the transformation from ME to figurative use in the general discourse, in terms of form and metaphoricity. MEs are classified according to their metaphorical strength and their transference from maritime usage into new registers and domains such as those of business, politics, sports and reportage etc. A revised model of metaphoricity is developed and a new category of figurative expression, the ‘resonator’, is proposed. Additionally, developing the work of Lakov and Johnson, Kovesces and others on Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), a number of Maritime Conceptual Metaphors are identified and their cultural significance is discussed

Tecnología, innovación e investigación en los procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje

Este libro ha ganado el “PREMIO INTERNAZIONALE FRANCESCO SAVERIO NITTI PER IL MEDITERRANEO 2017” (NÁPOLES, ITALIA).Este libro pretende mostrar un compendio de aportaciones en torno a la tecnología, innovación e investigación en los procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje, de ahí su título. Desde diversos contextos educativos, los autores respectivos de cada capítulo dan a conocer las posibilidades que ofrecen las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación [TIC] con respecto al diseño y desarrollo de nuevos escenarios de enseñanza-aprendizaje. Cabe considerar que las TIC deben asentarse en fundamentos pedagógicos cuando se trate de perfilar las características de dichos escenarios educativos. Así, se podrán mostrar reflexiones, innovaciones e investigaciones que añadan nuevos significados al conocimiento. En este sentido, las aportaciones de este libro se estructuran en cuatro grandes bloques temáticos: Innovación Educativa, Investigación Científica en Tecnología Educativa, Políticas Educativas y de Investigación, y Escenarios de aprendizaje basados en TIC. Se trata de cuatro pilares en los cuales consideramos debe fundamentarse el aporte de investigación, desarrollo e innovación que este libro contiene a fin de responder a las exigencias educativas del siglo XXI