Collaborative trails in e-learning environments

This deliverable focuses on collaboration within groups of learners, and hence collaborative trails. We begin by reviewing the theoretical background to collaborative learning and looking at the kinds of support that computers can give to groups of learners working collaboratively, and then look more deeply at some of the issues in designing environments to support collaborative learning trails and at tools and techniques, including collaborative filtering, that can be used for analysing collaborative trails. We then review the state-of-the-art in supporting collaborative learning in three different areas – experimental academic systems, systems using mobile technology (which are also generally academic), and commercially available systems. The final part of the deliverable presents three scenarios that show where technology that supports groups working collaboratively and producing collaborative trails may be heading in the near future

TCitySmartF: A comprehensive systematic framework for transforming cities into smart cities

A shared agreed-upon definition of "smart city" (SC) is not available and there is no "best formula" to follow in transforming each and every city into SC. In a broader inclusive definition, it can be described as an opportunistic concept that enhances harmony between the lives and the environment around those lives perpetually in a city by harnessing the smart technology enabling a comfortable and convenient living ecosystem paving the way towards smarter countries and the smarter planet. SCs are being implemented to combine governors, organisations, institutions, citizens, environment, and emerging technologies in a highly synergistic synchronised ecosystem in order to increase the quality of life (QoL) and enable a more sustainable future for urban life with increasing natural resource constraints. In this study, we analyse how to develop citizen- and resource-centric smarter cities based on the recent SC development initiatives with the successful use cases, future SC development plans, and many other particular SC development solutions. The main features of SC are presented in a framework fuelled by recent technological advancement, particular city requirements and dynamics. This framework - TCitySmartF 1) aims to aspire a platform that seamlessly forges engineering and technology solutions with social dynamics in a new philosophical city automation concept - socio-technical transitions, 2) incorporates many smart evolving components, best practices, and contemporary solutions into a coherent synergistic SC topology, 3) unfolds current and future opportunities in order to adopt smarter, safer and more sustainable urban environments, and 4) demonstrates a variety of insights and orchestrational directions for local governors and private sector about how to transform cities into smarter cities from the technological, social, economic and environmental point of view, particularly by both putting residents and urban dynamics at the forefront of the development with participatory planning and interaction for the robust community- and citizen-tailored services. The framework developed in this paper is aimed to be incorporated into the real-world SC development projects in Lancashire, UK

The PO-VE Framework : Understanding the Relationships Between Player Objects and Virtual Environments in Digital Games

Based on a qualitative analysis of 99 different digital games, this study develops a framework for understanding the functionality and relationships between player objects and virtual environments, explored in what has been named the PO-VE framework. The PO-VE framework encompasses a general theory, a dedicated terminology, and an analysis model. A virtual environment is a navigable geometry and a computational, relational model that represents the relative positions and functions of objects within it. Based on a relational and functional approach, objects are conceived of as integrated in the virtual environment by being spatially and functionally related to other objects within it, thus emphasising the virtual environment’s relational system-structure. Within the virtual environment, player objects constitute the player’s point of control. As integrated and movable objects, they consist of attributes (properties such as health, speed, and size) and affordances (possible actions such as running, shooting, and jumping). In most cases, player objects are dynamic (i.e., their attributes and affordances are altered over time); they can not only move along a single axis, but also be used for navigating the virtual environment along multiple axes; and they have some sort of visual presentation, which varies according to the specific visual framing of the player object and the virtual environment. The PO-VE framework results from an analysis and iterative coding process of 99 digital games. The games were chosen using a purposive sampling method guided by a pre-conceptualisation of what constitutes an avatar-based game (the initial focus of the study), popular game examples from game studies literature, and certain diversity labels: year of publication, platform, and country of origin. The PO-VE framework thus results from observational data iteratively translated into codes from games published between 1978 and 2018, across 32 different platforms, developed in 17 different countries. The iterative data collection and coding process, which resembled to some extent that of grounded theory, was finally conceptualised into the PO-VE framework, consisting of a general theory of virtual environments as relational systems, a terminology of player objects in virtual environments, and an analysis model that consists of seven categories related to different aspects of PO-VE relations. To illustrate the applicability of the PO-VE model, two levels of application were employed. The first was a broad analysis of the 78 of the 99 games in the sample that meet the player object definition, which reveals general trends and patterns according to types, genres, and production year of games. The second were close readings of ten chosen games from the sample: Space Attack, Altered Beast, Passage, Hotline Miami, Subway Surfers, ZombiU, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes, Papers, Please, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and Reigns: Her Majesty, that each illustrate the depth of the PO-VE framework, while also clarifying some of the limitations of the framework, including how and why some games, such as Papers, Please and Reigns: Her Majesty, cannot be analysed using the PO-VE framework. The relational foundation of the PO-VE model offers a unique and descriptive approach to analytical game studies that utilises a functional understanding of the digital object. This enables a focus on the environment as a relational system and on integration within it, rather than, for example, on rules, goals, or player experiences. Utilising an OOA/D inspired terminology in the analytical framework is a step towards bridging the gap between humanities-based, theoretical game studies, more technical game studies, and game development. This study is thus a contribution to the most fundamental level of any research endeavour: attempting to map out (parts of) the research object and develop a language that facilitates closer inspection and ultimately a better understanding of digital games and virtual environments.Doktorgradsavhandlin

AI in Learning: Designing the Future

AI (Artificial Intelligence) is predicted to radically change teaching and learning in both schools and industry causing radical disruption of work. AI can support well-being initiatives and lifelong learning but educational institutions and companies need to take the changing technology into account. Moving towards AI supported by digital tools requires a dramatic shift in the concept of learning, expertise and the businesses built off of it. Based on the latest research on AI and how it is changing learning and education, this book will focus on the enormous opportunities to expand educational settings with AI for learning in and beyond the traditional classroom. This open access book also introduces ethical challenges related to learning and education, while connecting human learning and machine learning. This book will be of use to a variety of readers, including researchers, AI users, companies and policy makers

Sonic interactions in virtual environments

This book tackles the design of 3D spatial interactions in an audio-centered and audio-first perspective, providing the fundamental notions related to the creation and evaluation of immersive sonic experiences. The key elements that enhance the sensation of place in a virtual environment (VE) are: Immersive audio: the computational aspects of the acoustical-space properties of Virutal Reality (VR) technologies Sonic interaction: the human-computer interplay through auditory feedback in VE VR systems: naturally support multimodal integration, impacting different application domains Sonic Interactions in Virtual Environments will feature state-of-the-art research on real-time auralization, sonic interaction design in VR, quality of the experience in multimodal scenarios, and applications. Contributors and editors include interdisciplinary experts from the fields of computer science, engineering, acoustics, psychology, design, humanities, and beyond. Their mission is to shape an emerging new field of study at the intersection of sonic interaction design and immersive media, embracing an archipelago of existing research spread in different audio communities and to increase among the VR communities, researchers, and practitioners, the awareness of the importance of sonic elements when designing immersive environments

AI in Learning: Designing the Future

AI (Artificial Intelligence) is predicted to radically change teaching and learning in both schools and industry causing radical disruption of work. AI can support well-being initiatives and lifelong learning but educational institutions and companies need to take the changing technology into account. Moving towards AI supported by digital tools requires a dramatic shift in the concept of learning, expertise and the businesses built off of it. Based on the latest research on AI and how it is changing learning and education, this book will focus on the enormous opportunities to expand educational settings with AI for learning in and beyond the traditional classroom. This open access book also introduces ethical challenges related to learning and education, while connecting human learning and machine learning. This book will be of use to a variety of readers, including researchers, AI users, companies and policy makers

Sacred Assets: Design for the Food System

Food is intimate to every individual and can communicate across cultures. The problem of food access is not technically a problem of lack of food, but largely an issue of income inequality and individual mobility. In Syracuse, every zip code has at least one sector that is considered a food desert. However, the region of Central New York that Syracuse sits is a bastion of food producers, including small farmers which are a keystone for a sustainable future. This project investigates how to expand food access as well as support small farmers by using strategic technologies. There 50 total participants in this study from across three methods: survey (n = 36), semi-structured interviews (n = 8), and user testing (n = 6). This study includes the development of a mobile application named Farm Loop, which empowers farmers to sell directly to consumers via an online retail platform or to the emergency food system for a lower price. This application has a system design that uses a business model that creates a community fund that expands food access and pays farmers. This supports both the small farmer with additional revenue streams while expanding food access