New generation learners - does the learning environment match student expectations

Who exactly are our students and what characteristics do they have in terms of their interest in using technology for learning The study presented in brief below developed from a desire to know how far the--new generation of learners entering Higher Education had experienced technology and what their expectations might be for using technology in--their tertiary learning

Use of a haptic device by blind and sighted people : perception of virtual textures and objects

This paper describes a series of studies involving a haptic device which can display virtual textures and 3-D objects. The device has potential for simulating real world objects and assisting in the navigation of virtual environments (VEs). Three experiments investigated: (a) whether previous results from experiments using real textures could be replicated using virtual textures; (b) whether participants perceived virtual objects to have the intended size and angle; and (c) whether simulated real objects could be recognised. In all the experiments differences in perception by blind and sighted people were also explored. The results have implications for the future design of VEs in that it cannot be assumed that virtual textures and objects will feel to the user as the designer intends. A set of guidelines for the design of haptic interfaces and VEs are presented

Differential effects of age on prospective and retrospective memory tasks in young, young-old, and old-old adults

Original article can be found at : http://www.informaworld.com/ Copyright Informa / Taylor and Francis Group.Remembering to do something in the future (termed prospective memory) is distinguished from remembering information from the past (retrospective memory). Because prospective memory requires strong self-initiation, Craik (1986) predicted that age decrements should be larger in prospective than retrospective memory tasks. The aim of the present study was to assess Craik's prediction by examining the onset of age decline in two retrospective and three prospective memory tasks in the samples of young (18-30 years), young-old (61-70 years), and old-old (71-80 years) participants recruited from the local community. Results showed that although the magnitude of age effects varied across the laboratory prospective memory tasks, they were smaller than age effects in a simple three-item free recall task. Moreover, while reliable age decrements in both retrospective memory tasks of recognition and free recall were already present in the young-old group, in laboratory tasks of prospective memory they were mostly present in the old-old group only. In addition, older participants were more likely to report a retrospective than prospective memory failure as their most recent memory lapse, while the opposite pattern was present in young participants. Taken together, these findings highlight the theoretical importance of distinguishing effects of ageing on prospective and retrospective memory, and support and extend the results of a recent meta-analysis by Henry, MacLeod, Phillips, and Crawford (2004).Peer reviewe

The perception of texture, object size and angularity by touch in virtual environments with two haptic devices

The incorporation of the sense of touch (haptic sense) into virtual reality (VR) has considerable potential to enhance the realism of virtual environments and make VR accessible to blind people. This paper summarises a series of investigations into the haptic perception of texture and object size/angularity in VR, with two haptic devices. Guidelines for the creation of haptic environments for blind and sighted individuals are also presented