Collaboration in Immersive Environments: Challenges and Solutions

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) tools have been applied in all engineering fields in order to avoid the use of physical prototypes, to train in high-risk situations, and to interpret real or simulated results. In order to complete a shared task or assign tasks to the agents in such immersive environments, collaboration or Shared Cooperative Activities are a necessity. Collaboration in immersive environments is an emerging field of research that aims to study and enhance the ways in which people interact and work together in Virtual and Augmented Reality settings. Collaboration in immersive environments is a complex process that involves different factors such as communication, coordination, and social presence. This paper provides an overview of the current state of research on collaboration in immersive environments. It discusses the different types of immersive environments, including VR and AR, and the different forms of collaboration that can occur in these environments. The paper also highlights the challenges and limitations of collaboration in immersive environments, such as the lack of physical cues, cost and usability and the need for further research in this area. Overall, collaboration in immersive environments is a promising field with a wide range of potential applications, from education to industry, and it can benefit both individuals and groups by enhancing their ability to work together effectively

The Romanian Intellectual, Christian Orthodoxy, and Identity in connection to Iron Guardism

As the  second part of a two part series, this article explores the confluence of Romanian intellectual culture and the rise of fascism  in the interwar period, with a distinct concentration on the particularity of Romanian identity and its transformation amid the changing rhetoric of pluri nationality. Ultimately the process by which a concrete Romanian identity was formed within the rhetoric of intellectuals was the result of elements of differing views of nationality, the Romanian peasantry, and Christian Orthodoxy all of which were salient elements of Romanian society during the rise of extremists groups such as the Iron Guard. In this second part I explore the way that the Jewish population, and Jewish identity in Romania was used by intellectuals to define Romanian identity by positing that in fact it was the complete opposite of ‘Romanianism’ as it was defined by the rhetoric of the intelligentsia, which manifested itself in the rise of Iron Guard. The ideals of ‘race,’ and ‘ethnicity’ were therefore paradoxes for many Romanian thinkers and writers

Cyclic Compression of Compacted Clayey Sand at Small Cyclic Strains

Ten drained cyclic strain-controlled direct simple shear tests were conducted on compacted low-plasticity clayey sand to measure its cyclic compression properties. The soil had 37 % fines, liquid limit of 28% and plasticity index 14. The relative compaction of specimens prior to consolidation and cyclic shearing was between 80 and 90 %. Cyclic compression is expressed as the accumulation of vertical strain with the number of cycles, N. Vertical strain recorded at the end of every cycle, ενc, increased with the cyclic shear strain amplitude, γc, and N. Such behavior is typical and has been obtained by others on other types of soils. Amplitude γc was relatively small, ranging between 0.008% and 0.24%. Such small cyclic strains are common in moderate and large earthquakes. The effects of the dry unit weight, γd, and corresponding void ratio, e, vertical consolidation stress, σνc, and certain aspects of the degree of saturation, S, on ενc are evaluated. The test results revealed that for the applied conditions ενc increases with σνc and e (decreases with γd) and is smaller if S is increased above approximately 90%. For this soil the cyclic threshold shear strain of about 0.02% was obtained. Simple mechanisms that most likely govern the cyclic compression of compacted soils are discussed

What User Behaviors Make the Differences During the Process of Visual Analytics?

The understanding of visual analytics process can benefit visualization researchers from multiple aspects, including improving visual designs and developing advanced interaction functions. However, the log files of user behaviors are still hard to analyze due to the complexity of sensemaking and our lack of knowledge on the related user behaviors. This work presents a study on a comprehensive data collection of user behaviors, and our analysis approach with time-series classification methods. We have chosen a classical visualization application, Covid-19 data analysis, with common analysis tasks covering geo-spatial, time-series and multi-attributes. Our user study collects user behaviors on a diverse set of visualization tasks with two comparable systems, desktop and immersive visualizations. We summarize the classification results with three time-series machine learning algorithms at two scales, and explore the influences of behavior features. Our results reveal that user behaviors can be distinguished during the process of visual analytics and there is a potentially strong association between the physical behaviors of users and the visualization tasks they perform. We also demonstrate the usage of our models by interpreting open sessions of visual analytics, which provides an automatic way to study sensemaking without tedious manual annotations.Comment: This version corrects the issues of previous version

El cuento de los sótanos. Sofocada Teherán, rugiente Teherán

No hay cuerpo perfecto en la naturaleza que no esté en armonía con el alma en la que se encuentra. Cuando el alma está en problemas, el cuerpo se incapacita, y cuando el cuerpo se vuelve imperfecto, el alma muere si no se intenta corregir el defecto. La ciudad es la cristalización del cuerpo de la sociedad en la que vive, por lo que la ciudad es el cuerpo y la sociedad es su alma. Obviamente, cuando el cuerpo de la ciudad sufre, su alma se encuentra en un estado de confusión y agitación, y si el alma de la comunidad se estresa, deprime y se enferma, el cuerpo pierde sus capacidades con el tiempo. El espacio, solo con su cuerpo, no tiene sentido sin la presencia del ser humano y la formación de la actividad humana; la atmósfera colectiva es creada por la vida urbana y el soplo del espíritu colectivo en el cuerpo de la ciudad. Este tipo de espacio en el que se desarrolla la vida ciudadana, tiene un papel significativo en la ciudad basado en el recorrido histórico en los espacios urbanos. Un espacio colectivo es una forma de democracia. Es un espacio de libertad de movimiento, expresión y, lo más importante, es nuestro primer contacto con una ciudad. Un mero reflejo del tejido urbano, revela influencias culturales, económicas y políticas. El espacio público diverso, por definición, nos da la posibilidad de estar expuestos a diferentes tipos de personas, especialmente en las zonas urbanas. En general, para conocer el comportamiento de un barrio, un distrito o una ciudad, solemos acudir a estos espacios. Cuando están animados, estos lugares de encuentro pueden incluso cambiar la imagen de una ciudad temporalmente con la implementación de mercados, desfiles y festividades, o permanentemente mediante la introducción de nuevos programas. Pueden variar desde calles planificadas, intersecciones, plazas, bulevares y parques, hasta escenarios informales de aceras, espacios intersticiales y un desbordamiento de espacios privados hacia el dominio público. El espacio social, formado en diferentes períodos históricos de una nación, es uno de los elementos más importantes de la construcción espacial de una ciudad. Este elemento, en el que se han desarrollado diversas actividades culturales, económicas, sociales y de otro tipo, siempre ha estado enraizado en, y ha narrado la historia de la ciudad. Entre todos los espacios conocidos por la variedad de actividades de ocio, el espacio social juega un papel especial. Este entorno es un lugar donde los seres humanos se reúnen para encontrarse, establecer relaciones mutuas y exponer sus experiencias espirituales y sociales entre sí. El espacio social está directamente relacionado con la estructura de la ciudad y el estilo de vida de sus ciudadanos, día y noche, y no se limita a los caminos para pasear o pasar el tiempo libre; es una oportunidad para hacer una pausa y conocer a los residentes de la ciudad. Dado que el espacio social deriva su vida de la presencia de las personas, su formación no es una cuestión de orden, y requiere una coordinación en el conjunto de factores físicos, culturales, sociales, políticos y económicos. Si alguno de estos factores se ve afectado, la naturaleza del espacio social se verá alterada. Teherán, como un organismo dentro del sistema totalitario vigente en Irán, nos muestra la relación entre el sistema, la sociedad y el urbanismo y la forma en que se afectan entre sí. Por ejemplo, ¿cómo es posible que el espacio público, según ciertos criterios, esté muerto ahora debido al uso consciente del diseño urbano por parte del gobierno con fines políticos y, como resultado, todas esas actividades colectivas se llevan a cabo en un espacio privado, oculto al gobierno? Un espacio público es un reflejo de la ciudad. Para descubrir el comportamiento de una ciudad, tenemos que recurrir a estos espacios. Si no son funcionales, la ciudad no es funcional y tampoco lo es la sociedad. El Teherán contemporáneo es gris, torpe, abarrotado, superpoblado y deprimido. Su gente se siente absolutamente impotente y atrapada en una jaula sin barrotes. Pero independientemente de la clase social, el conocimiento, la cultura, la capacidad financiera, la inteligencia social y las opiniones políticas, el cuerpo humano ha sido la herramienta de batalla más primitiva y accesible a lo largo de la historia. Todos los movimientos pacíficos han avanzado gracias a la ocupación física del espacio por parte de los humanos. Los sistemas autoritarios conocen esta herramienta y tratan de evitar su uso a toda costa. Según Havel, aunque en la superficie parezca que estos sistemas se hayan apoderado de todas las fuentes de poder, y la gente sea absolutamente impotente, interiormente, los Individuos tienen el potencial de una identidad dual, una enorme fuente de poder que, dependiendo de qué aspecto de esta identidad dual nutran, se puede utilizar para enfrentarse el autoritarismo o, por el contrario, para fortalecerlo. Definitivamente existe un vínculo entre las preocupaciones más amplias de la sociedad o la situación en la que nos encontramos y la arquitectura. Durante la historia ha habido demasiado mal uso de la arquitectura para crear una narrativa fuera del entorno construido. Muchas veces se ha visto que los políticos o demás buscan construir un monumento, o crear una demostración de poder. Le piden a la arquitectura que haga cosas que vayan más allá de los verdaderos valores de la arquitectura. Es molesto escuchar, “vamos a crear un nuevo ícono para esta ciudad o este país”. Un ícono es algo que evoluciona a través de la aclamación o aceptación popular y se desarrolla con el tiempo o puede ser el resultado de un evento especial o un momento de la historia. Pedirle a un arquitecto que cree un icono para una ciudad, o un renacimiento económico, es perder el sentido. El primer propósito de la arquitectura es crear un hábitat y satisfacer las necesidades de la sociedad o los individuos a lugares para trabajar y vivir. El propósito de la arquitectura no es crear un monumento para ayudar a que alguien sea elegido o para que aparezca en la portada de una revista. Los arquitectos y diseñadores urbanos tienen la capacidad (o tal vez la responsabilidad) de mantenerse comprometidos con su gente, luchar por crear espacios seguros y construir una sociedad que se pueda defender a sí misma y sus derechos. La arquitectura y la planificación urbana tienen un nivel de agencia tan alto. Porque la arquitectura es una profesión que produce espacio y todo sucede en el espacio. Según la manera en que se produzca el espacio, tiene la capacidad de crear un paradigma de cambio. Puede afectar los sistemas socioeconómicos y, conUniversidad de Sevilla. Máster en Ciudad y Arquitectura Sostenible

Suitable Urban Space for Disable People (Ajodanieh)

Growth and prosperity of any society depends on how to use the existing talents and abilities in the community. One of the certain solutions in the realization of the growth is to provide the area for collective activities for all talents. Undoubtedly, a part of the active forces in our society refers to individuals who have less physical and mobility ability who can demonstrate their own ability in the service to the homeland in different areas. In general, many citizens daily pass through different routes that sometimes for various reasons are encountered to event and accident and incur damages while veterans and people with physical and mobility disabilities face with problems more than others because of their own disabilities and suffer from the poor design of the passages. This study tries to explain the characteristics of suitable passage for veterans and disabled individuals and in this regard, they are considered as one of the vulnerable groups of society

The effect of hyperthyroidism on the levels of liver enzymes in adult male Wistar rats

 Thyrotoxicosis is a condition in which tissues are stimulated by increased secretion of thyroid hormone. The most common cause is diffuse toxic goiter and toxic multi-nodular goiter. For more reviews on this disease, the effects of hyperthyroidism on liver enzyme levels were studied. A total of 30 adult male Wistar rats weighing about 190 g were purchased from the Pasteur Institute of Iran. In this study, rats were divided into control group, the group receiving vitamin E, the group receiving levothyroxine, the group receiving levothyroxine treated with vitamin E; blood was taken from all groups over a period of 10 days after injection, and measurement of thyroid hormones and liver tests was made. The findings obtained in this study show that Isolated systolic hypertension (ISH) hormone levels in rats treated with levothyroxine, Treatment with vitamin E may reduce serum levels of ISH , Hormone levels of T4 in the rats treated with levothyroxine were increased compared to normal rates. Treatment with vitamin E reduces serum levels of T4 compared to the first hyper group. T4 hormone levels in rats treated with levothyroxine were reduced compared to normal rates. Treatment with vitamin E may reduce serum levels of T4 compared with the first hyper group. Asparagine Transferase (AST) enzyme levels in rats treated with levothyroxine were increased compared, Treatment with vitamin E may reduce serum levels of AST , Alanine transferase (ALT) enzyme levels in rats treated with levothyroxine were increased , Treatment with vitamin E may increase serum levels of ALT , alkaline phosphatase (ALP) enzyme levels in rats treated with levothyroxine has been increased compared with normal rates. Treatment with vitamin E resulted in serum levels of ALT not to be increased compared with the first group. According to the results of hyperthyroidism and levels of liver enzymes, it can be concluded that hyperthyroidism induced by levothyroxine can increase the levels of hormones T3, T4 and Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH), and then increase the levels of liver enzymes. Treatment of empirical samples with vitamin E is likely to reduce liver damages and prevent the increased levels of liver enzymes compared to empirical samples of hyperthyroidism which have been treated with vitamin E.

Assessing the Safety of Children's Playgrounds from the Parents' Point of View: A Case of the Third District of Tehran

Undoubtedly, playgrounds should be safe and secure environments for children so that children can play in them, enjoy the game and gain different experiences. Despite the above, the statistics regarding the playground environmental incidents in urban areas indicate a lack of proper attention to the safety of playgrounds. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety of children’s playgrounds from the perspective of parents in district 3 of Tehran. The sample of the present study included 295 children from district 3 of Tehran, Iran. The data was collected by the use of standard questionnaires. Also, in order to organize, summarize and describe the data, descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation) were implemented, and in order to test statistical assumptions and prioritization with the normally distributed data, T-Hotelling test and Friedman test were performed. It should be noted that in this study, SPSS software version 23 was used to analyze the data, also the level of reliability of the scale used in this study is 95%. The results of the t-hotelling test showed that the safety of design, the safety of the equipment and the safety of the environmental features in children's playgrounds were in good condition in Tehran's third district. The differences and priorities among these components are also identifie

The Problem of Mixing up of Leishmania Isolates in the Laboratory: Suggestion of ITS1 Gene Sequencing for Verification of Species

Background: Leishmaniasis is endemic in Iran. Different species of Leishmania (L.) parasites are causative agents of this disease. Correct identification of Leishmania species is important for clinical studies,prevention, and control of the diseases. Mix up of Leishmania isolates is possible in the laboratory, so there is need for verification of species for isolates of uncertain identity. Different methods may be used for this purpose including isoenzyme electrophoresis and molecular methods. The isoenzyme lectrophoresis, due to its drawbacks, is feasible only in specialized laboratories while molecular methods may be more feasible. The aim of this research was to study the application of the internal transcribedspacer 1 (ITS1) sequencing method, in comparison to isoenzyme electrophoresis method, for verification of Leishmania species.Methods: Six Leishmania isolates were received from different research institutions in Iran. The species of these isolates were known by donating institution according to their isoenzyme profile. The species of these isolates were re-identified in Pasteur Institute of Iran by PCR amplification of ITS1 followed bysequencing and comparison of these sequences with Leishmania sequences in GenBank. Isoenzyme electrophoresis was performed for confirmation of the results of ITS1.Results: ITS1 sequence showed that some isolates were mixed up or contaminated with Crithidia. Isoenzyme electrophoresis confirmed the results of ITS1 sequences.Conclusion: ITS1 sequencing is relatively more feasible than the traditional isoenzyme electrophoresismethod and is suggested for verification of Leishmania species

Magnesium as a Prognostic Factor in Neonates with Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Background: Magnesium (Mg) is a vital element which plays a significant role in the human body. Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is one of the most common problems in preterm neonates. The current study aimed to investigate the role of serum Mg level as a prognostic factor in neonates diagnosed with RDS. Methods: This case-control study was performed in Vali-e-Asr Hospital, Tehran, Iran, for two years. A total of 100 preterm infants (50 cases, 50 controls) admitted to NICU were enrolled in this study. Demographic data, serum magnesium level, therapeutic interventions, and neonatal outcomes were investigated and the obtained data were analyzed using SPSS software. P-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: Of 100 neonates, 52% were male. The mean gestational age and birth weights were 33.4 ± 2.4 weeks and 2062 ± 72 gr, respectively. The findings revealed that the mean serum magnesium level in neonates with RDS was 2.02 ± 0.57 mg/dl, while it was 2.35 ± 0.67 mg/dl for neonates in the control group (P-value=0.001). Additionally, the calculated odds ratio of 2.38 indicated a correlation between reduced serum Mg levels and the occurrence of RDS. Conclusion: The serum level of Mg among neonates with RDS was significantly lower, but the lower level of Mg was not associated with adverse outcomes in neonates