A Pilot Study with a Novel Setup for Collaborative Play of the Humanoid Robot KASPAR with children with autism

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits any use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and the source are credited.This article describes a pilot study in which a novel experimental setup, involving an autonomous humanoid robot, KASPAR, participating in a collaborative, dyadic video game, was implemented and tested with children with autism, all of whom had impairments in playing socially and communicating with others. The children alternated between playing the collaborative video game with a neurotypical adult and playing the same game with the humanoid robot, being exposed to each condition twice. The equipment and experimental setup were designed to observe whether the children would engage in more collaborative behaviours while playing the video game and interacting with the adult than performing the same activities with the humanoid robot. The article describes the development of the experimental setup and its first evaluation in a small-scale exploratory pilot study. The purpose of the study was to gain experience with the operational limits of the robot as well as the dyadic video game, to determine what changes should be made to the systems, and to gain experience with analyzing the data from this study in order to conduct a more extensive evaluation in the future. Based on our observations of the childrens’ experiences in playing the cooperative game, we determined that while the children enjoyed both playing the game and interacting with the robot, the game should be made simpler to play as well as more explicitly collaborative in its mechanics. Also, the robot should be more explicit in its speech as well as more structured in its interactions. Results show that the children found the activity to be more entertaining, appeared more engaged in playing, and displayed better collaborative behaviours with their partners (For the purposes of this article, ‘partner’ refers to the human/robotic agent which interacts with the children with autism. We are not using the term’s other meanings that refer to specific relationships or emotional involvement between two individuals.) in the second sessions of playing with human adults than during their first sessions. One way of explaining these findings is that the children’s intermediary play session with the humanoid robot impacted their subsequent play session with the human adult. However, another longer and more thorough study would have to be conducted in order to better re-interpret these findings. Furthermore, although the children with autism were more interested in and entertained by the robotic partner, the children showed more examples of collaborative play and cooperation while playing with the human adult.Peer reviewe

Generation and conceptualization of cognitive styles of learning of enterprise negotiators for adaptation of tutorial teaching in the web

A presente pesquisa foi desenvolvida no cerne do projeto multidisciplinar e multinstitucional "Tapejara" - Sistemas Inteligentes de Ensino na Internet-. O artigo apresenta os Estilos Cognitivos de Aprendizagem gerados a partir dos resultados da aplicação do Teste Ross e da Bateria de Provas de Raciocínio BPR-5 numa amostra de funcionários da população-alvo do Curso de Negociação Empresarial a ser ministrado pela empresa parceira de telecomunicações. Os resultados da testagem cognitiva foram submetidos a análises fatoriais e, a seguir, a uma análise de cluster que, com seus respectivos dendogramas, possibilitaram o agrupamento da população em cinco grandes grupos a saber: Analógico-analítico, Concreto-genérico, Dedutivo-avaliativo, Relacional-sintético e Sintético-avaliativo. Os Estilos Cognitivos de Aprendizagem permitirão a Modelagem Cognitiva do Agente-Aprendiz que possibilitará um ensino tutorial adaptado às necessidades próprias de cada estilo cognitivo, e que assista eficazmente o aprendizado de forma assíncrona e individualizada.This article presents a research developed in the core of a multidisciplinary Project 'Tapejara' - Intelligent Systems of Instruction in the Internet -. The article presents, mainly, the Cognitive Styles of Learning generated from the results of Test Ross and BPR-5 Test applications in the employee's partner Company. The results from the cognitive assessment were submitted to a Cluster Analysis. The dendogramms allowed grouping the target population in five groups: Analogue-analytical, Concrete-generic, Evaluative-deductive, Relational-synthetic and Synthetic-evaluative. In the Project 'Tapejara', the Cognitive Styles of Learning will make possible to build the Student Model of the Pedagogical Agent, consequently will allow a tutorial adapted to the individual learning differences

Geração de estilos cognitivos de aprendizagem de negociadores empresariais para adaptação de ensino tutorializado na web

This article presents a research developed in the core of a multidisciplinary Project 'Tapejara' - Intelligent Systems of Instruction in the Internet -. The article presents, mainly, the Cognitive Styles of Learning generated from the results of Test Ross and BPR-5 Test applications in the employee's partner Company. The results from the cognitive assessment were submitted to a Cluster Analysis. The dendogramms allowed grouping the target population in five groups: Analogue-analytical, Concrete-generic, Evaluative-deductive, Relational-synthetic and Synthetic-evaluative. In the Project 'Tapejara', the Cognitive Styles of Learning will make possible to build the Student Model of the Pedagogical Agent, consequently will allow a tutorial adapted to the individual learning differences.A presente pesquisa foi desenvolvida no cerne do projeto multidisciplinar e multinstitucional "Tapejara" - Sistemas Inteligentes de Ensino na Internet-. O artigo apresenta os Estilos Cognitivos de Aprendizagem gerados a partir dos resultados da aplicação do Teste Ross e da Bateria de Provas de Raciocínio BPR-5 numa amostra de funcionários da população-alvo do Curso de Negociação Empresarial a ser ministrado pela empresa parceira de telecomunicações. Os resultados da testagem cognitiva foram submetidos a análises fatoriais e, a seguir, a uma análise de cluster que, com seus respectivos dendogramas, possibilitaram o agrupamento da população em cinco grandes grupos a saber: Analógico-analítico, Concreto-genérico, Dedutivo-avaliativo, Relacional-sintético e Sintético-avaliativo. Os Estilos Cognitivos de Aprendizagem permitirão a Modelagem Cognitiva do Agente-Aprendiz que possibilitará um ensino tutorial adaptado às necessidades próprias de cada estilo cognitivo, e que assista eficazmente o aprendizado de forma assíncrona e individualizada

Unexpected Consequences: Women’s experiences of a self-hypnosis intervention to help with pain relief during labour.

Background Self-hypnosis is becoming increasingly popular as a means of labour pain management. Previous studies have produced mixed results. There are very few data on women’s views and experiences of using hypnosis in this context. As part of a randomized controlled trial of self-hypnosis for intra-partum pain relief (the SHIP Trial) we conducted qualitative interviews with women randomized to the intervention arm to explore their views and experiences of using self-hypnosis during labour and birth. Methods Participants were randomly selected from the intervention arm of the study, which consisted of two antenatal self-hypnosis training sessions and a supporting CD that women were encouraged to listen to daily from 32 weeks gestation until the birth of their baby. Those who consented were interviewed in their own homes 8-12 weeks after birth. Following transcription, the interviews were analysed iteratively and emerging concepts were discussed amongst the authors to generate organizing themes. These were then used to develop a principal organizing metaphor or global theme, in a process known as thematic networks analysis. Results Of the 343 women in the intervention group, 48 were invited to interview, and 16 were interviewed over a 12 month period from February 2012 to January 2013. Coding of the data and subsequent analysis revealed a global theme of ‘unexpected consequences’, supported by 5 organising themes, ‘calmness in a climate of fear’, ‘from sceptic to believer’, ‘finding my space’, ‘delays and disappointments’ and ‘personal preferences’. Most respondents reported positive experiences of self-hypnosis and highlighted feelings of calmness, confidence and empowerment. They found the intervention to be beneficial and used a range of novel strategies to personalize their self-hypnosis practice. Occasionally women reported feeling frustrated or disappointed when their relaxed state was misinterpreted by midwives on admission or when their labour and birth experiences did not match their expectations. Conclusion The women in this study generally appreciated antenatal self-hypnosis training and found it to be beneficial during labour and birth. The state of focused relaxation experienced by women using the technique needs to be recognized by providers if the intervention is to be implemented into the maternity service

Simpson's Paradox, Lord's Paradox, and Suppression Effects are the same phenomenon – the reversal paradox

This article discusses three statistical paradoxes that pervade epidemiological research: Simpson's paradox, Lord's paradox, and suppression. These paradoxes have important implications for the interpretation of evidence from observational studies. This article uses hypothetical scenarios to illustrate how the three paradoxes are different manifestations of one phenomenon – the reversal paradox – depending on whether the outcome and explanatory variables are categorical, continuous or a combination of both; this renders the issues and remedies for any one to be similar for all three. Although the three statistical paradoxes occur in different types of variables, they share the same characteristic: the association between two variables can be reversed, diminished, or enhanced when another variable is statistically controlled for. Understanding the concepts and theory behind these paradoxes provides insights into some controversial or contradictory research findings. These paradoxes show that prior knowledge and underlying causal theory play an important role in the statistical modelling of epidemiological data, where incorrect use of statistical models might produce consistent, replicable, yet erroneous results

Neurofibromatosis

Neurofibromatosis (NF) is one of the most common genetic disorders. Inherited in an autosomal dominant fashion, this phacomatosis is classified into two genetically distinct subtypes characterized by multiple cutaneous lesions and tumors of the peripheral and central nervous system. Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), also referred to as Recklinghausen's disease, affects about 1 in 3500 individuals and presents with a variety of characteristic abnormalities of the skin and the peripheral nervous system. Neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2), previously termed central neurofibromatosis, is much more rare occurring in less than 1 in 25 000 individuals. Often first clinical signs of NF2 become apparent in the late teens with a sudden loss of hearing due to the development of bi-or unilateral vestibular schwannomas. In addition NF2 patients may suffer from further nervous tissue tumors such as meningiomas or gliomas. This review summarizes the characteristic features of the two forms of NF and outlines commonalities and distinctions between NF1 and NF2

BioMaPS: A Roadmap for Success

The manuscript outlines the impact that our National Science Foundation Interdisciplinary Training for Undergraduates in Biological and Mathematical Sciences program, BioMaPS, has had on the students and faculty at Murray State University. This interdisciplinary program teams mathematics and biology undergraduate students with mathematics and biology faculty and has produced research insights and curriculum developments at the intersection of these two disciplines. The goals, structure, achievements, and curriculum initiatives are described in relation to the effects they have had to enhance the study of biomathematics

A multi-disciplinary perspective on climate model evaluation for Antarctica

A workshop was organized by Antarctic Climate 21 (AntClim21), with the topic 'evaluation of climate models' representation of Antarctic climate from the perspective of long-term twenty-first-century climate change.' The suggested approach for evaluating whether climate models over- or underestimate the effects of ozone depletion is to diagnose simulated historical trends in lower-stratospheric temperature and compare these to observational estimates. With regard to more regional changes over Antarctica, such as West Antarctic warming, the simulation of teleconnection patterns to the tropical Pacific was highlighted. To improve the evaluation of low-frequency variability and trends in climate models, the use and development of approaches to emulate ice-core proxies in models was recommended. It is recommended that effort be put into improving datasets of ice thickness, motion, and composition to allow for a more complete evaluation of sea ice in climate models. One process that was highlighted in particular is the representation of Antarctic clouds and resulting precipitation. It is recommended that increased effort be put into observations of clouds over Antarctica, such as the use of instruments that can detect cloud-base height or the use of remote sensing resources