1,652 research outputs found
Slice and Dice: A Physicalization Workflow for Anatomical Edutainment
During the last decades, anatomy has become an interesting topic in
education---even for laymen or schoolchildren. As medical imaging techniques
become increasingly sophisticated, virtual anatomical education applications
have emerged. Still, anatomical models are often preferred, as they facilitate
3D localization of anatomical structures. Recently, data physicalizations
(i.e., physical visualizations) have proven to be effective and
engaging---sometimes, even more than their virtual counterparts. So far,
medical data physicalizations involve mainly 3D printing, which is still
expensive and cumbersome. We investigate alternative forms of physicalizations,
which use readily available technologies (home printers) and inexpensive
materials (paper or semi-transparent films) to generate crafts for anatomical
edutainment. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first computer-generated
crafting approach within an anatomical edutainment context. Our approach
follows a cost-effective, simple, and easy-to-employ workflow, resulting in
assemblable data sculptures (i.e., semi-transparent sliceforms). It primarily
supports volumetric data (such as CT or MRI), but mesh data can also be
imported. An octree slices the imported volume and an optimization step
simplifies the slice configuration, proposing the optimal order for easy
assembly. A packing algorithm places the resulting slices with their labels,
annotations, and assembly instructions on a paper or transparent film of
user-selected size, to be printed, assembled into a sliceform, and explored. We
conducted two user studies to assess our approach, demonstrating that it is an
initial positive step towards the successful creation of interactive and
engaging anatomical physicalizations
An Advanced Conceptual Diagnostic Healthcare Framework for Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disorders
The data mining along with emerging computing techniques have astonishingly
influenced the healthcare industry. Researchers have used different Data Mining
and Internet of Things (IoT) for enrooting a programmed solution for diabetes
and heart patients. However, still, more advanced and united solution is needed
that can offer a therapeutic opinion to individual diabetic and cardio
patients. Therefore, here, a smart data mining and IoT (SMDIoT) based advanced
healthcare system for proficient diabetes and cardiovascular diseases have been
proposed. The hybridization of data mining and IoT with other emerging
computing techniques is supposed to give an effective and economical solution
to diabetes and cardio patients. SMDIoT hybridized the ideas of data mining,
Internet of Things, chatbots, contextual entity search (CES), bio-sensors,
semantic analysis and granular computing (GC). The bio-sensors of the proposed
system assist in getting the current and precise status of the concerned
patients so that in case of an emergency, the needful medical assistance can be
provided. The novelty lies in the hybrid framework and the adequate support of
chatbots, granular computing, context entity search and semantic analysis. The
practical implementation of this system is very challenging and costly.
However, it appears to be more operative and economical solution for diabetes
and cardio patients.Comment: 11 PAGE
Assessment in and of serious games: an overview
There is a consensus that serious games have a significant potential as a tool for instruction. However, their effectiveness in terms of learning outcomes is still understudied mainly due to the complexity involved in assessing intangible measures. A systematic approachâbased on established principles and guidelinesâis necessary to enhance the design of serious games, and many studies lack a rigorous assessment. An important aspect in the evaluation of serious games, like other educational tools, is user performance assessment. This is an important area of exploration because serious games are intended to evaluate the learning progress as well as the outcomes. This also emphasizes the importance of providing appropriate feedback to the player. Moreover, performance assessment enables adaptivity and personalization to meet individual needs in various aspects, such as learning styles, information provision rates, feedback, and so forth. This paper first reviews related literature regarding the educational effectiveness of serious games. It then discusses how to assess the learning impact of serious games and methods for competence and skill assessment. Finally, it suggests two major directions for future research: characterization of the player's activity and better integration of assessment in games
A Paradigm Shift from Optimal Play to Mental Comfort: A Perspective from the Game Refinement Theory
The game refinement theory focuses on the game designer perspective, where its application in various types of games provides evidence of the occurring paradigm shift. Utilizing the logistical model of game outcome uncertainty, it provides a platform for incorporating gamified experience observed in games to be adopted in domains outside of game while retaining the context of the game. Making games as a testbed, the implications of the game refinement theory have been observed in the educational and business perspective, while further explored its utility in interpreting some states of the human mind. In addition, a holistic view of design in games and in the real-world environments was discussed, where the prospects of the game refinement theory were also highlighted
Maggie: A Social Robot as a Gaming Platform
Edutainment robots are robots designed to participate in people's education and in their entertainment. One of the tasks of edutainment robots is to play with their human partners, but most of them offer a limited pool of games. Moreover, it is difficult to add new games to them. This lack of flexibility could shorten their life cycle. This paper presents a social robot on which several robotic games have been developed. Our robot uses a flexible and modular architecture that allows the creation of new skills by the composition of existing and simpler skills. With this architecture, the development of a new game mainly consists in the composition of the skills that are needed for this specific game. In this paper, we present the robot, its hardware and its software architecture, including its interaction capabilities. We also provide a detailed description of the development of five of the games the robot can play.The authors gratefully acknowledge the funds provided by the Spanish MICINN (Ministry of Science and Innovation) through the project "A new Approach to Social Robotics (AROS)". The research leading to these results has also received funding from the RoboCity2030-II-CM project(S2009/DPI-1559), funded by Programas de Actividades I+D en la Comunidad de Madrid and cofunded by Structural Funds ofthe EU
Pairing craft-making with Mandarin eBooks: An investigation into the use of craft for language learning by pre-schoolers
Bilingual ethnic Chinese parents are concerned about their preschoolersâ learning of their mother tongue. Many allow their children to learn Mandarin by accessing language applications on mobile devices. However the effectiveness of solely using mobile devices as a learning tool for preschoolers is debatable. This paper presents a field investigation on how adult-facilitated craft-making, generates greater interest the reading of Mandarin eBooks and retention of the stories. The data suggests pairing of activities may be useful to children from across language abilities. This also highlights a need for designers and educators to formulate a holistic design approach in the development of preschool mobile learning content
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