3,676 research outputs found
Reconceptualising the information system as a service
Information Technology (IT) now plays a central role in almost all aspects of business. However to
best realise the potential of IT, it is vital that educators adopt strategies that challenge rather than
reinforce existing disciplinary divides in IT education and business. This paper supports the
application of active learning, via the use of a serial teaching case, towards bridging disciplinary
divides in IT education. Specifically, the case calls for the design, development and implementation of
an Integrated Management Information System. Students are therefore required to demonstrate
analytical as well as technical skill-sets in the areas of IT, accounting and business. The paper
describes the business context facing AHN Ltd. and illustrates the pedagogic use of the case as a
means of integrating IT with aspects of accounting and business knowledge, towards helping
educators contribute to answering the calls from academia (Panko, 2008) and industry (Chan and
Reich, 2007) for graduates with a hybrid of business and IT skill-sets
Adaptive driver modelling in ADAS to improve user acceptance: A study using naturalistic data
Accurate understanding of driver behaviour is crucial for future Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving. For user acceptance it is important that ADAS respect individual driving styles and adapt accordingly. Using data collected during a naturalistic driving study carried out at the University of Southampton, we assess existing models of driver acceleration and speed choice during car following and when cornering. We observe that existing models of driver behaviour that specify a preferred inter-vehicle spacing in car-following situations appear to be too prescriptive, with a wide range of acceptable spacings visible in the naturalistic data. Bounds on lateral acceleration during cornering from the literature are visible in the data, but appear to be influenced by the minimum cornering radii specified in design codes for UK roadway geometry. This analysis of existing driver models is used to suggest a small set of parameters that are sufficient to characterise driver behaviour in car-following and curve driving, which may be estimated in real-time by an ADAS to adapt to changing driver behaviour. Finally, we discuss applications to adaptive ADAS with the objectives of improving road safety and promoting eco-driving, and suggest directions for future researc
The screen representation of vector coupling coefficients or Wigner 3j symbols: exact computation and illustration of the asymptotic behavior
The Wigner symbols of the quantum angular momentum theory are related to
the vector coupling or Clebsch-Gordan coefficients and to the Hahn and dual
Hahn polynomials of the discrete orthogonal hyperspherical family, of use in
discretization approximations. We point out the important role of the Regge
symmetries for defining the screen where images of the coefficients are
projected, and for discussing their asymptotic properties and semiclassical
behavior. Recursion relationships are formulated as eigenvalue equations, and
exploited both for computational purposes and for physical interpretations.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, presented at ICCSA 2014, 14th International
Conference on Computational Science and Application
Plane waves in quantum gravity: breakdown of the classical spacetime
Starting with the Hamiltonian formulation for spacetimes with two commuting
spacelike Killing vectors, we construct a midisuperspace model for linearly
polarized plane waves in vacuum gravity. This model has no constraints and its
degrees of freedom can be interpreted as an infinite and continuous set of
annihilation and creation like variables. We also consider a simplified version
of the model, in which the number of modes is restricted to a discrete set. In
both cases, the quantization is achieved by introducing a Fock representation.
We find regularized operators to represent the metric and discuss whether the
coherent states of the quantum theory are peaked around classical spacetimes.
It is shown that, although the expectation value of the metric on Killing
orbits coincides with a classical solution, its relative fluctuations become
significant when one approaches a region where null geodesics are focused. In
that region, the spacetimes described by coherent states fail to admit an
approximate classical description. This result applies as well to the vacuum of
the theory.Comment: 11 pages, no figures, version accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
Symmetric angular momentum coupling, the quantum volume operator and the 7-spin network: a computational perspective
A unified vision of the symmetric coupling of angular momenta and of the
quantum mechanical volume operator is illustrated. The focus is on the quantum
mechanical angular momentum theory of Wigner's 6j symbols and on the volume
operator of the symmetric coupling in spin network approaches: here, crucial to
our presentation are an appreciation of the role of the Racah sum rule and the
simplification arising from the use of Regge symmetry. The projective geometry
approach permits the introduction of a symmetric representation of a network of
seven spins or angular momenta. Results of extensive computational
investigations are summarized, presented and briefly discussed.Comment: 15 pages, 10 figures, presented at ICCSA 2014, 14th International
Conference on Computational Science and Application
Living with multiple losses: Insights from patients living with pressure injury
© 2017 Australian College of Nursing Ltd Background: Pressure injury is a common problem. Its prevention and treatment is predominantly focussed on views, perceptions and knowledge of healthcare staff rather than on patient experience, particularly those patients living in their own homes. Aim: This paper reports findings on patients experiences and perceptions of loss associated with PI. These findings are drawn from a larger study of pressure injury patients living and receiving care in the community. Methods: Qualitative interviews with 12 participants with pressure injury and five carers. Data was audio recorded and thematically analysed. The study is reported in accordance with the COREQ guidelines. Findings: Having a pressure injury negatively affected many aspects of life for our participants resulting in multiple losses. These losses included loss of mobility and independence, privacy and dignity, and social engagement and ability to engage in preferred activities. Discussion: Although the effects of a pressure injury may be similar for many people, the most important issues will differ from person-to-person thus treatment and prevention of pressure injury requires a multidisciplinary team having a holistic care approach. Some patients’ pressure injury will never heal and it is increasingly important to involve the patient to find out what matters most to them and how their wound is impacting on them, to jointly develop a holistic, person-centred plan. Conclusion: Policy and practice should recognise and reflect that patients living with a pressure injury at home have different challenges and needs to those in acute or long term care. Pragmatic solutions in the delivery of pressure injury care are needed to compliment the drive to move healthcare from the hospital-to-home
Projective Invariance and One-Loop Effective Action in Affine-Metric Gravity Interacting with Scalar Field
We investigate the influence of the projective invariance on the
renormalization properties of the theory. One-loop counterterms are calculated
in the most general case of interaction of gravity with scalar field.Comment: 10 pages, LATE
The Screen representation of spin networks: 2D recurrence, eigenvalue equation for 6j symbols, geometric interpretation and Hamiltonian dynamics
This paper treats 6j symbols or their orthonormal forms as a function of two
variables spanning a square manifold which we call the "screen". We show that
this approach gives important and interesting insight. This two dimensional
perspective provides the most natural extension to exhibit the role of these
discrete functions as matrix elements that appear at the very foundation of the
modern theory of classical discrete orthogonal polynomials. Here we present 2D
and 1D recursion relations that are useful for the direct computation of the
orthonormal 6j, which we name U. We present a convention for the order of the
arguments of the 6j that is based on their classical and Regge symmetries, and
a detailed investigation of new geometrical aspects of the 6j symbols.
Specifically we compare the geometric recursion analysis of Schulten and Gordon
with the methods of this paper. The 1D recursion relation, written as a matrix
diagonalization problem, permits an interpretation as a discrete
Schr\"odinger-like equations and an asymptotic analysis illustrates
semiclassical and classical limits in terms of Hamiltonian evolution.Comment: 14 pages,9 figures, presented at ICCSA 2013 13th International
Conference on Computational Science and Applicatio
Quantization of pure gravitational plane waves
Pure gravitational plane waves are considered as a special case of spacetimes
with two commuting spacelike Killing vector fields. Starting with a
midisuperspace that describes this kind of spacetimes, we introduce
gauge-fixing and symmetry conditions that remove all non-physical degrees of
freedom and ensure that the classical solutions are plane waves. In this way,
we arrive at a reduced model with no constraints and whose only degrees of
freedom are given by two fields. In a suitable coordinate system, the reduced
Hamiltonian that generates the time evolution of this model turns out to
vanish, so that all relevant information is contained in the symplectic
structure. We calculate this symplectic structure and particularize our
discussion to the case of linearly polarized plane waves. The reduced phase
space can then be described by an infinite set of annihilation and creation
like variables. We finally quantize the linearly polarized model by introducing
a Fock representation for these variables.Comment: 11 pages, Revtex, no figure
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