A Reusable, Extensible Infrastructure for Augmented Field Trips

This paper describes a reusable pervasive information infrastructure developed as part of the Equator IRC, designed to allow the construction of literacy based eLearning activities on top of material created as part of a more traditional visitors system. The architecture of the system is described along with details of the creation of the curated material and the subsequent adaption of the system by local primary school teachers to create a literacy experiences. Results of the first trials of the system are presented with conclusions drawn and discussion of future directions

The Literacy Fieldtrip: Using UbiComp to Support Children's Creative Writing

Fieldtrips, traditionally associated with science, history and geography teaching, have long been used to support children’s learning by allowing them to engage with environments first-hand. Recently, ubiquitous computing (UbiComp) has been used to enhance fieldtrips in these educational areas by augmenting environments with a range of instruments, devices and sensors. However, the sorts of interaction design that UbiComp makes possible have the potential not just to enhance the value of educational techniques in known application areas, but also to expand the application of those techniques into new areas of curriculum. We report on a UbiComp-supported fieldtrip to support creative writing, associated with the learning of literacy skills. We discuss how the fieldtrip, designed and run in the grounds of a historic English country house with Year 5 UK schoolchildren, engendered interactions which changed both the processes and products of creative writing, with benefits for both teachers and children

UbiComp in Opportunity Spaces: Challenges for Participatory Design

The rise of ubiquitous computing (UbiComp), where pervasive, wireless and disappearing technologies offer hitherto unavailable means of supporting activity, increasingly opens up ‘opportunity spaces’. These are spaces where there is no urgent problem to be solved, but much potential to augment and enhance practice in new ways. Based on our experience of co-designing novel user experiences for visitors to an English country estate, we discuss challenges for PD in such an opportunity space. Key amongst these are how to build a working relationship of value when there are no urgent requirements; how to understand and scope the space of opportunities; and how to leave users with new resources of value to them

A persistent infrastructure for augmented field trips

This paper describes an approach to the provision of pervasive field trips where a persistent infrastructure is provided, upon which teachers can easily create novel pervasive experiences for children. The physical infrastructure is briefly described along with the underlying information infrastructure, which enables the tools for authoring the content and designing the orchestration of the experience to be placed in the hands of teachers. A literacy experience and initial trials of the system are discussed, conclusions drawn, and future directions outlined

On Hyperstructure and Musical Structure

In this paper we report on an ongoing investigation into the relationship between musical structure and hyperstructure, based on a series of open hypermedia systems research projects that have featured case studies involving musical content. We provide a general overview of the intersection between hypermedia and musical structure, drawing also on ideas from narrative structure. Through the example systems we consider techniques for building hyperstructure from musical structure and, conversely, building musical structure from hyperstructure. Additionally we describe an experiment in the sonification of hyperstructure

Calderón de la Barca en la colección de Comedias escogidas

Despite the importance of the Comedias escogidas collection (1652-1681/ 1704) as a means of dissemination of plays for the theatre in the second half of the seventeenth century, this work has not been studied in depth from a point of view that takes into consideration issues related to authorship, and which does not only approach it from a bibliographical perspective. This paper studies Calderón de la Barca's authorship with a double approach: on the one hand, we intend to elucidate his involvement in the bureaucratic process of the book collection; on the other hand, we provide a quantitative analysis not only of his comedias but also of works mistakenly attributed to him. The paper also provides new bibliographical data

MUD Slinging: Virtual Orchestration of Physical Interactions

In this paper we look at two scenarios of physical-digital interaction. The first is an Ambient Wood, forming a sub project of the Equator IRC researching playful learning through novel interaction. The second, a meeting room, constructed for the FEEL project in which the management of intrusive notifications is desired. We look at how these scenarios can be modelled using a Multi-User Dungeon (MUD), providing orchestration tools for the interactions taking place, with consideration to other mechanisms available