Automatic deployment of autonomous cars in a robotic urban-like environment

Abstract-We present a computational framework and experimental setup for deployment of autonomous cars in a miniature Robotic Urban-Like Environment (RULE). The specifications are given in rich, human-like language as temporal logic statements about roads, intersections, and parking spaces. We use transition systems to model the motion and sensing capabilities of the robots and the topology of the environment and use tools resembling model checking to generate robot control strategies and to verify the correctness of the solution. The experimental setup is based on Khepera III robots, which move autonomously on streets while observing traffic rules

Motivations, Learning and Creativity in Online Citizen Sceince Charlene Jennett, Laure Kloetzer, Daniel Schneider, Ioanna Iacovides, Anna L. Cox, Margaret Gold, Brian Fuchs, Alexandra Eveleigh, Kathleen Mathieu, Zoya Ajani and Yasmin Talsi

Online citizen science projects have demonstrated their usefulness for research, however little is known about the potential benefits for volunteers. We conducted 39 interviews (28 volunteers, 11 researchers) to gain a greater understanding of volunteers' motivations, learning and creativity (MLC). In our MLC model we explain that participating and progressing in a project community provides volunteers with many indirect opportunities for learning and creativity. The more aspects that volunteers are involved in, the more likely they are to sustain their participation in the project. These results have implications for the design and management of online citizen science projects. It is important to provide users with tools to communicate in order to supporting social learning, community building and sharing.This article is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial - NoDerivativeWorks 4.0 License. The article attached is the publisher's pdf

Learning outcomes in online citizen science communities designed for inquiry

The purpose of most citizen science projects is engaging citizens in providing data to scientists, not supporting citizen learning about science. Any citizen learning that does occur in most projects is normally a by-product of the project rather than a stated aim. This study examines learning outcomes of citizens participating in online citizen science communities purposely designed for inquiry learning. The ‘Citizen inquiry’ approach adopted in this study prioritises and scaffolds learning and engages people in all stages of the scientific process by involving them in inquiry-based learning while participating in citizen science activities. The exploratory research involved an intervention with two design studies of adult volunteer participants engaging in citizen-led inquiries, employing a mixed-methods approach. The findings indicated that, in both design studies, participants engaged in an inquiry process, and practised inquiry skills alongside other kinds of knowledge and skills not directly related to science. Differences between the outcomes of each study highlighted the importance of the design on learning impact. In particular, participant understanding of research processes and methods, and developing more experimental studies were more evident with the support of a dynamic representation of the inquiry process. Furthermore, in the second study, which was hosted in a more engaging and interactive learning environment, participants perceived science as fun, were involved in inquiry discussions, and showed progress in scientific vocabulary. The paper concludes with some considerations for science educators and citizen science facilitators to enhance the learning outcomes of citizen inquiry and similar online communities for science inquiries

Eco-friendly Production of Chemicals 1. Improvement of Enzymatic Production of Acetophenone by Direct Extraction

Acetophenone can be enzymatically produced by conversion of methylbenzylamine using transaminase. The enzymatic process is strongly affected by the product inhibition, thus requiring the acetophenone removal from the media during its synthesis. In this purpose, the individual and selective extraction of acetophenone and methylbenzylamine with the biocompatible solvent nheptane containing 1-octanol, D2EHPA or TOA has been analyzed at three values of pH (5, 7, and 9). Regardless of the solvent used and pH-value, the highest efficiency has been reached for extraction of acetophenone, the difference between the extraction yields of acetophenone and methylbenzylamine being amplified during the separation of these compounds from their mixture. On the basis of the experimental selectivity factors and taking into consideration both the possible loss of substrate from the media and the pH required for enzymatic reaction, pH = 7, it has been concluded that the optimum solvent combination is the mixture between n-heptane and 1-octanol. This solvent mixture allowed reaching high selectivity factor of 315, corresponding to the extraction yield of acetophenone of 94.5 % and of methylbenzylamine of only 0.3 %

Health Status and Health Care Use Among Adolescents Identified With and Without Autism in Early Childhood — Four U.S. Sites, 2018–2020

Persons identified in early childhood as having autism spectrum disorder (autism) often have co-occurring health problems that extend into adolescence (1–3). Although only limited data exist on their health and use of health care services as they transition to adolescence, emerging data suggest that a minority of these persons receive recommended guidance* from their primary care providers (PCPs) starting at age 12 years to ensure a planned transition from pediatric to adult health care (4,5). To address this gap in data, researchers analyzed preliminary data from a follow-up survey of parents and guardians of adolescents aged 12–16 years who previously participated in the Study to Explore Early Development (https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/seed.html). The adolescents were originally studied at ages 2–5 years and identified at that age as having autism (autism group) or as general population controls (control group). Adjusted prevalence ratios (aPRs) that accounted for differences in demographic characteristics were used to compare outcomes between groups. Adolescents in the autism group were more likely than were those in the control group to have physical difficulties (21.2% versus 1.6%;aPR = 11.6;95% confidence interval [CI] = 4.2–31.9), and to have additional mental health or other condition

Constructive Hybrid Games

Hybrid games are models which combine discrete, continuous, and adversarial dynamics. Game logic enables proving (classical) existence of winning strategies. We introduce constructive differential game logic (CdGL) for hybrid games, where proofs that a player can win the game correspond to computable winning strategies. This is the logical foundation for synthesis of correct control and monitoring code for safety-critical cyber-physical systems. Our contributions include novel static and dynamic semantics as well as soundness and consistency.Comment: 60 pages, preprint, under revie

Automatic deployment of autonomous cars in a robotic urban-like environment

Abstract-We present a computational framework and experimental setup for deployment of autonomous cars in a miniature Robotic Urban-Like Environment (RULE). The specifications are given in rich, human-like language as temporal logic statements about roads, intersections, and parking spaces. We use transition systems to model the motion and sensing capabilities of the robots and the topology of the environment and use tools resembling model checking to generate robot control strategies and to verify the correctness of the solution. The experimental setup is based on Khepera III robots, which move autonomously on streets while observing traffic rules