ARDIN: Art, Design and Engineering Method, A New Way Ofunderstanding the Steam Approach in the Teaching- Learning process in Higher Education

Teaching technical drawing to students of fine arts in 2001 is the beginning of an idea that seeks to integrate various fields of knowledge. Later, life's opportunities lead you to teach artistic matters to architects and engineers. After years of teaching different subjects in different universities, the idea of proposing a new method to integrate art into science and science into art arises. We do not want to teach these ideas separately, but we want to consider them as a whole: art and science can go hand in hand. After years of experience, we can propose a new method where art and science could merge into a single concept. This way of thinking is promoted, following the STEAM approach to learning, creating a scientific journal called ArDln (Art, Design and Engineering - ['a:rdi:n]) and spreading the research carried out during these years. Art, design and engineering must set the basis for a new way of understanding the teaching-learning process. It also must set up a way to face the challenges of the future, facing problems from the rationality of science and the creativity of art. Named after the scientific journal, ArDln becomes the method to involve students in the necessary integration of art and science through a constant dialog and critical thinking. Metaphorically, the method is made of a nucleus where other concepts can connect; it is like a molecule, with its bonds that result in a stable set but that can also grow and evolve. Throughout different educational innovation projects, different professors have worked together not only to promote this particular approach, but also to connect learning experiences to the real world. The project based learning projects proposed, dealing with Design Thinking, have also been an opportunity to deal with the professional world where in the end a recognized professional has evaluated their proposals. More and more we are looking for a method that connects with the professional world, where the student is a spectator as well as an actor in their learning period. We seek for a horizontal learning where teacher and student work together. Educational environments must leave the classical classroom; they must connect in a real way with the external world where at the end of their studies they must move with knowledge as well as with ease. We need to prepare them from the self-assessment as a useful and necessary tool once they leave their studies, understanding the importance of training them in a humanistic environment

Culture, society and design ... asusual as sitting

Design and culture are two concepts that have been advancing hand in hand throughout history; the design as that capacity that the human being has to devise and realize those objects that make life more pleasant and the culture as that place of encounter between human beings, perfect scenario to look for synergies and advance. Society, a frame of reference where actions take shape, conditions and molds people, who, while yearning for their own identity, are continually conditioned by the Other, entering again and again into processes of imitation. And finally, the chair, an essential element of our culture, illustrates in each moment the speech making reference to our concerns, desires, actions in constant consonance with the daily actions of the human being. The chair, that element that facilitates the attitude of stopping, resting and reflecting, also assumes a metaphorical dimension, socialization, loneliness, and work, in short, the main axis that brings together our past, present and future. And in this text the chair is the common thread that shows in images the relationship between Culture, Society and Design.El diseño y la cultura son dos conceptos que han ido avanzando de la mano a lo largo de la historia; el diseño como esa capacidad que tiene el ser humano para idear y realizar aquellos objetos que le hacen la vida más agradable y la cultura como ese lugar de encuentro entre seres humanos, escenario perfecto para buscar sinergias y avanzar. La sociedad, marco de referencia donde las acciones toman forma, condiciona y moldea a las personas, que, si bien anhelan una identidad propia, se ven continuamente condicionados por el Otro entrando una y otra vez en procesos de imitación. Y finalmente, la silla, elemento esencial de nuestra cultura, nos ilustra en cada momento el discurso haciendo referencia a nuestras inquietudes, anhelos, acciones en consonancia constantemente con las acciones cotidianas del ser humano. La silla, ese elemento que facilita la actitud de parar, descansar y reflexionar, supone también en una dimensión metafórica, la socialización, la soledad, el trabajo, en definitiva, el eje principal que reúne nuestro pasado, presente y futuro. Y en este texto es el hilo conductor que evidencia en imágenes la relación entre la Cultura, la Sociedad y el Diseño

Drawing as a means in the construction of knowledge and ideas projection

Drawing, beyond being an expressive language in the artistic field, can be the channel through which our graphic thought materializes. As such, there are multiple functions we can find in it, especially when it comes to being the instrument capable of shaping those first shapeless ideas, which we cannot define in words in a first state. But it is also the way in which we can put our minds in order and land concepts that, in the first instance, we do not even know what they mean. In the content that follows, presented references explain in a reflective and theoretical way the topic that concerns us in contrast to visual material related to it. Language and graphic thought go hand in hand through drawing, in the gestation of projects that need to be transmitted and understood by those who develop them, although they do not always get materialized.El dibujo, más allá de ser un lenguaje expresivo en el ámbito artístico, puede ser es el canal por el que nuestro pensamiento gráfico se materialice. Como tal, son múltiples las funciones que podemos encontrar en él, sobre todo a la hora de ser el instrumento capaz de moldear esas primeras ideas informes, que ni con palabras podemos definir en un primer estado. Pero también es el modo por el que podemos poner en orden nuestra mente y aterrizar conceptos que, en primera instancia, no sabemos ni lo que significan. En el contenido que sigue se exponen referencias que explican de un modo reflexivo y teórico el tema que nos ocupa en contraste con material visual relacionado con él. El lenguaje y el pensamiento gráfico van de la mano a través del dibujo, en la gestación de proyectos que necesitan ser transmitidos y comprendidos por aquellos que los desarrollen, aunque no siempre se lleguen a materializar

Design of a virtual assistant to improve interaction between the audience and the presenter

This article presents a novel design of a Virtual Assistant as part of a human-machine interaction system to improve communication between the presenter and the audience that can be used in education or general presentations for improving interaction during the presentations (e.g., auditoriums with 200 people). The main goal of the proposed model is the design of a framework of interaction to increase the level of attention of the public in key aspects of the presentation. In this manner, the collaboration between the presenter and Virtual Assistant could improve the level of learning among the public. The design of the Virtual Assistant relies on non-anthropomorphic forms with ‘live’ characteristics generating an intuitive and self-explainable interface. A set of intuitive and useful virtual interactions to support the presenter was designed. This design was validated from various types of the public with a psychological study based on a discrete emotions’ questionnaire confirming the adequacy of the proposed solution. The human-machine interaction system supporting the Virtual Assistant should automatically recognize the attention level of the audience from audiovisual resources and synchronize the Virtual Assistant with the presentation. The system involves a complex artificial intelligence architecture embracing perception of high-level features from audio and video, knowledge representation, and reasoning for pervasive and affective computing and reinforcement learning to teach the intelligent agent to decide on the best strategy to increase the level of attention of the audience

Collaborative design project of public spaces throughout learning-service and design thinking

Ponencia de la conferencia "12th Annual International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation (ICERI)", Seville, Spain.Teachers and students from the Superior Center of Fashion Design [Centro Superior de Diseno de Moda of Madrid (CSDMM)] spend much of their time at university, referring not only to the one spent in the center, but also to the hours a day commuting. The travel time between the subway gate and the university entrance can be long and weary at times, especially when the route and its conditions do not favor a friendly, welcoming and functional environment. This is the case of Campus Sur, where the journey between the means of transport and the university does not satisfy any of the aforementioned characteristics. Students have faced this problem for years. This is why this educational innovation project has been proposed to create a pleasant atmosphere that accompanies them every day on their way to class. Professors and students can collaborate to map out a visual design on a 450-meters-long wall to give a service to the community. Thanks to this project, students can improve their learning by focusing on the immediate social environment. They can include the dynamics of learning-service, as a complementary educational strategy mixed with Design Thinking. To involve the UPM community, two schools have joined in this project. The Technical School of Engineering and Industrial Design [Escuela Tecnica Superior de Ingenieria de Diseno Industrial (ETSIDI)] can provide aesthetics and solve technical problem. The CSDMM can explain and take part by providing their personal experience, as they are directly involved. This entire project will be carried out jointly between both schools. The idea is to continue developing an earlier project in which the university's learning spaces were improved through Design Thinking. In this case, that improvement has been applied to public spaces based not only on Design Thinking, but also on Service Learning The following paper will show the creation process followed by the students from both schools throughout the whole project, as well as some of the best wall proposals