PUMA Footprints: linking theory and craft skill in usability evaluation

‘Footprints’ are marks or features of a design that alert the analyst to the possible existence of usability difficulties caused by violations of design principles. PUMA Footprints make an explicit link between the theory underlying a Programmable User Model and the design principles that can be derived from that theory. While principles are widely presented as being intuitively obvious, it is desirable that they should have a theoretical basis. However, working directly with theory tends to be time-consuming, and demands a high level of skill. PUMA footprints offer a theory-based justification for various usability principles, with guidelines on detecting violations of those principles

Interaction design issues for car navigation systems

We describe a study on the interaction design of in-car navigation systems. It focused on a commercial product. Critical incident analysis was performed based on natural use of the system by a usability analyst. A cognitive walkthrough was then performed based on actual scenarios from the natural use. This is a non-classic application of cognitive walkthrough. It allowed anecdotal critical incidents to be theoretically grounded. We draw conclusions about the interaction design of car navigation systems

Discovering baryon-number violating neutralino decays at the LHC.

Recently there has been much interest in the use of single-jet mass and jet substructure to identify boosted particles decaying hadronically at the LHC. We develop these ideas to address the challenging case of a neutralino decaying to three quarks in models with baryonic violation of R parity. These decays have previously been found to be swamped by QCD backgrounds. We demonstrate for the first time that such a decay might be observed directly at the LHC with high significance, by exploiting characteristics of the scales at which its composite jet breaks up into subjets

Depth sensitive sampling of implanted species in Genesis Collectors using UV laser ablation and SIMS

SIMS profiling of laser abalation pits in CVD diamond implanted with oxygen- 18 shows that homogenised 193nm excimer laser beam can successfully ablate a layer a few nm thick, removing surface contamination without signicant loss of implanted sample

A proposed DAQ system for a calorimeter at the International Linear Collider

This note describes R&D to be carried out on the data acquisition system for a calorimeter at the future International Linear Collider. A generic calorimeter and data acquisition system is described. Within this framework modified designs and potential bottlenecks within the current system are described. Solutions leading up to a technical design report will to be carried out within CALICE-UK groups.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figure

People -- Marine Mammal Interactions

Our relationships with marine mammals are complex. We have used them as resources, and in some places this remains the case; viewed them as competitors and culled them (again ongoing in some localities); been so captivated and intrigued by them that we have taken them into captivity for our entertainment; and developed a lucrative eco-tourism activity focused on them in many nations. When we first envisaged this special topic, we had two overarching aims: Firstly, we hoped to generate critical evaluation of some of our relationships with these animals. Secondly, we hoped to attract knowledgeable commentators and experts who might not traditionally publish in the peer-reviewed literature. We were also asking ourselves a question about what responsibility mankind might have to marine mammals, on our rapidly changing planet? The answer to the question; can, or should, humans have responsibility for the lives of marine mammals when they are affected by our activities? - is, in our opinion, ‘yes’ – and the logical progression from this question is to direct research and effort to understand and optimise the actions, reactions and responses that mankind may be able to take. We hope that the papers in this special issue bring some illumination to a small selection of topics under this much wider topic area, and prove to be informative and stimulating.https://www.wellbeingintlstudiesrepository.org/anibsci/1000/thumbnail.jp

Patterns of Welfare Attitudes in the Australian Population

The study of community attitudes toward welfare and welfare recipients is an area of increasing interest. This is not only because negative attitudes can lead to stigmatization and discrimination, but because of the relevance of social attitudes to policy decisions. We quantify the attitudes toward welfare in the Australian population using attitude data from a nationally representative survey (N = 3243). Although there was broad support for the social welfare system, negative attitudes are held toward those who receive welfare benefits. Using canonical correlation analysis we identify multivariate associations between welfare attitudes and respondent demographic characteristics. A primary attitudinal dimension of welfare positivity was found amongst those with higher levels of education, life instability, and personal exposure to the welfare system. Other patterns of negative welfare attitudes appeared to be motivated by beliefs that the respondent’s personal circumstances indicate their deservingness. Moreover, a previously unidentified and unconsidered subset of respondents was identified. This group had positive attitudes toward receiving government benefits despite having no recent experience of welfare. They did, however, possess many of the characteristics that frequently lead to welfare receipt. These results provide insights into not only how attitudinal patterns segment across the population, but are of relevance to policy makers considering how to align welfare reform with community attitudes

Comments on "Wall-plug (AC) power consumption of a very high energy e+/e- storage ring collider" by Marc Ross

The paper arXiv:1308.0735 questions some of the technical assumptions made by the TLEP Steering Group when estimating in arXiv:1305.6498 the power requirement for the very high energy e+e- storage ring collider TLEP. We show that our assumptions are based solidly on CERN experience with LEP and the LHC, as well accelerators elsewhere, and confirm our earlier baseline estimate of the TLEP power consumption.Comment: 6 page