The Influence of Roots on the Accuracy of Soil-Moisture Measurements Taken with a Neutron Moisture Meter

The effects of roots on soil-moisture measurements taken with a neutron probe were studied. These effects were observed under three different soil-moisture conditions, with different sized roots, and with varying distances between the access tube and root. The moisture conditions used were air dry, field capacity, and saturated. Large roots can greatly affect neutron soil-moisture measurements when the access hole is drilled through the root. Positive errors as large as 52 percent were found when the soil moisture was at field capacity. With dry and saturated conditions positive errors of 43 percent and 38 percent respectively, were found. In most practical field situations, where the access hole is not drilled through large roots, root material appears to have very little effect, if any, on neutron soil-moisture measurements. The largest positive error found, when the access holes were not drilled through the roots, was only 8 percent. This occurred at a point where the access tube was in contact with the outside of a root

Evaluation of a dry EEG system for application of passive brain-computer interfaces in autonomous driving

© 2017 Zander, Andreessen, Berg, Bleuel, Pawlitzki, Zawallich, Krol and Gramann. We tested the applicability and signal quality of a 16 channel dry electroencephalography (EEG) system in a laboratory environment and in a car under controlled, realistic conditions. The aim of our investigation was an estimation how well a passive Brain-Computer Interface (pBCI) can work in an autonomous driving scenario. The evaluation considered speed and accuracy of self-applicability by an untrained person, quality of recorded EEG data, shifts of electrode positions on the head after driving-related movements, usability, and complexity of the system as such and wearing comfort over time. An experiment was conducted inside and outside of a stationary vehicle with running engine, air-conditioning, and muted radio. Signal quality was sufficient for standard EEG analysis in the time and frequency domain as well as for the use in pBCIs. While the influence of vehicle-induced interferences to data quality was insignificant, driving-related movements led to strong shifts in electrode positions. In general, the EEG system used allowed for a fast self-applicability of cap and electrodes. The assessed usability of the system was still acceptable while the wearing comfort decreased strongly over time due to friction and pressure to the head. Fromthese results we conclude that the evaluated system should provide the essential requirements for an application in an autonomous driving context. Nevertheless, further refinement is suggested to reduce shifts of the system due to body movements and increase the headset’s usability and wearing comfort

HEP Outreach, Inreach, and Web 2.0

I report on current usage of multimedia and social networking "Web 2.0" tools for Education and Outreach in high-energy physics, and discuss their potential for internal communication within large worldwide collaborations, such as those of the LHC. Following a brief description of the history of Web 2.0 development, I present a survey of the most popular sites and describe their usage in HEP to disseminate information to students and the general public. I then discuss the potential of certain specific tools, such as document and multimedia sharing sites, for boosting the speed and effectiveness of information exchange within the collaborations. I conclude with a brief discussion of the successes and failures of these tools, and make suggestions for improved usage in the future.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/90828/1/1742-6596_331_8_082003.pd

Conceptual modeling for the design of intelligent and emergent information systems

A key requirement to today's fast changing economic environment is the ability of organizations to adapt dynamically in an effective and efficient manner. Information and Communication Technologies play a crucially important role in addressing such adaptation requirements. The notion of `intelligent software' has emerged as a means by which enterprises can respond to changes in a reactive manner but also to explore, in a pro-active manner, possibilities for new business models. The development of such software systems demands analysis, design and implementation paradigms that recognize the need for ‘co-development’ of these systems with enterprise goals, processes and capabilities. The work presented in this paper is motivated by this need and to this end it proposes a paradigm that recognizes co-development as a knowledge-based activity. The proposed solution is based on a multi-perspective modeling approach that involves (i) modeling key aspects of the enterprise, (ii) reasoning about design choices and (iii) supporting strategic decision-making through simulations. The utility of the approach is demonstrated though a case study in the field of marketing for a start-up company

Fostering Software Developers' Productivity at Work Through Self-Monitoring and Goal-Setting

Software development organizations strive to enhance the productivity of their developers. While research has looked into various ways for improving developer productivity, little is known about the activities they pursue at work, how these activities influence the fragmentation of work, and how these insights could be leveraged to foster productivity at work. In my PhD thesis, I address software developer productivity by taking a mixed-method approach to investigate developers’ perceptions of productivity in the field and to examine the individual differences of each developer’s work. My goal is to increase developers’ awareness about their own work habits and productivity, and to encourage productive behavior changes at work through the provision of two persuasive technologies, self-monitoring and goal-setting

Giving 2.0 : transform your giving and our world

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