Web navigation for individuals with dyslexia: An exploratory study

In this paper, we present an exploratory study of the web navigation experiences of dyslexic users. Findings indicate that dyslexics exhibit distinctive web navigation behaviour and preferences. We believe that the outcomes of this study add to our understanding of the particular needs of this web user population and have implications for the design of effective navigation structures

A Human-centric AI-driven Framework for Exploring Large and Complex Datasets

Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HCAI) is a new frontier of research at the intersection between HCI and AI. It fosters an innovative vision of human-centred intelligent systems, which are systems that take advantage of computer features, such as powerful algorithms, big data management, advanced sensors and that are useful and usable for people, providing high levels of automation and enabling high levels of human control. This position paper presents our ongoing research aiming to extend the HCAI framework for better supporting designers in creating AI-based systems

Experimental evidence of rainbow trapping and Bloch oscillations of torsional waves in chirped metallic beams

[EN] The Bloch oscillations (BO) and the rainbow trapping (RT) are two apparently unrelated phenomena, the former arising in solid state physics and the latter in metamaterials. A Bloch oscillation, on the one hand, is a counter-intuitive effect in which electrons start to oscillate in a crystalline structure when a static electric field is applied. This effect has been observed not only in solid state physics but also in optical and acoustical structured systems since a static electric field can be mimicked by a chirped structure. The RT, on the other hand, is a phenomenon in which the speed of a wave packet is slowed down in a dielectric structure; different colors then arrive to different depths within the structure thus separating the colors also in time. Here we show experimentally the emergence of both phenomena studying the propagation of torsional waves in chirped metallic beams. Experiments are performed in three aluminum beams in which different structures were machined: one periodic and two chirped. For the smaller value of the chirping parameter the wave packets, with different central frequencies, are back-scattered at different positions inside the corrugated beam; the packets with higher central frequencies being the ones with larger penetration depths. This behavior represents the mechanical analogue of the rainbow trapping effect. This phenomenon is the precursor of the mechanical Bloch oscillations, which are here demonstrated for a larger value of the chirping parameter. It is observed that the oscillatory behavior observed at small values of the chirp parameter is rectified according to the penetration length of the wave packet.Work partially supported by DGAPA-UNAM under projects PAPIIT IN103115 and IN109318 and by CONACYT project 284096. A.A.L. acknowledges CONACYT for the support granted to pursue his Ph.D. studies. G. Baez received CONACYT's financial support. RAMS received support from DGAPA-UNAM under program PASPA. We thank M. Martinez, A. Martinez, V. Dominguez-Rocha, E. Flores and E. Sadurni for invaluable comments. F.C., A.C. and J.S-D. acknowledge the support by the Ministerio de Economa y Competitividad of the Spanish government, and the European Union FEDER through project TEC2014-53088-C3-1-R.Arreola-Lucas, A.; Baez, G.; Cervera Moreno, FS.; Climente Alarcón, A.; Mendez-Sanchez, R.; Sánchez-Dehesa Moreno-Cid, J. (2019). Experimental evidence of rainbow trapping and Bloch oscillations of torsional waves in chirped metallic beams. Scientific Reports. 9:1860-1872. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-37842-7S186018729Ascroft, N. W. & Mermin, N. D. Solid State Physics (Hold, Reinhart & Winston, 1972).Kadic, M., Buckmann, T., Schittny, R. & Wegener, M. Metamaterials beyond electromagnetism. Rep. Prog. Phys. 76, 126501 (2013).Cummer, S. A., Christensen, J. & Alù, A. 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Lett. 91, 263902 (2014).Morandotti, R., Peschel, U., Aitchison, J. S., S., E. H. & Silberberg, Y. Experimental observation of linear and nonlinear optical Bloch oscillations. Phys. Rev. Lett. 83, 4756 (1999).Battestti, R. et al. Bloch oscillations of ultracould atoms: a tool for a metrological determination of h / mRb. Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 253001, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.92.253001 (2007).Sanchis-Alepuz, H., Kosevich, Y. & Sánchez-Dehesa, J. Acoustic analogue of electronic Bloch oscillations. Phys. Rev. Lett. 98, 134301, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.197402 (2007).Lanzilotti-Kimura, N. D. et al. Bloch oscillations of THz acoustic phonons in coupled nanocavity structures. Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 197402, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.197402 (2010).Floß, J., Kamalov, A., Averbukh, I. S. & H., B. P. Observation of Bloch oscillations in molecular rotation. Phys. Rev. Lett. 115, 203002, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.115.203002 (2015).Gan, Q., Ding, Y. J. & Bartoli, F. Trapping and releasing at telecommunication wavelengths. Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 056801, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.102.056801 (2009).Park, J., Boarman, A. D. & Hess, O. Trapping light in plasmonic waveguides. Opt. Express 18, 598–623, https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.18.000598 (2010).Zhao, D., Li, Y. & Zhu, X. Trapped rainbow effect in visible light left-handed heterostructures. Appl. Phys. Lett. 95, 071111, https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3211867 (2009).Smolyaninova, V. N., Smolyaninov, I. I., Kildishev, A. V. & Shalaev, V. Experimental observation of the trapped rainbow. Appl. Phys. Lett. 96, 211121, https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3442501 (2010).Ni, X. et al. Acoustic rainbow trapping by coiling up space. Sci. Rep. 4, 7038, https://doi.org/10.1038/srep07038 (2014).Zhu, J. et al. Acoustic rainbow trapping. Sci. Rep. 3, 1728, https://doi.org/10.1038/srep01728 (2013).Romero-García, V., Picó, R., Cebrecos, A., Sánchez-Morcillo, V. J. & Staliunas, K. Enhancement of sound in chirped sonic cristals. Appl. Phys. Lett. 102, 091906, https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4793575 (2013).Cebrecos, A. et al. Enhancement of sound by soft reflections in exponentially chirped cristals. AIP Adv. 4, 124402, https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4902508 (2014).Zhao, D., Li, Y. & Zhu, X. Broadband lamb wave trapping in cellular metamaterial plates with multiple local resonances. Sci. Rep. 5, 9376, https://doi.org/10.1038/srep09376 (2015).Gutierrez, L. et al. Wannier-stark ladders in one-dimensional elastic systems. Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 114301, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.97.114301 (2006).Morales, A., Flores, J., Gutierrez, L. & Méndez-Sánchez, R. A. Compressional and torsional wave amplitudes in rods with periodic structures. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 112, 1961, https://doi.org/10.1121/1.1509431 (2002).Arreola-Lucas, A. et al. Bloch oscillations in mechanical vibrations. PIERS proceedings. (to appear).Graff, K. F. Wave Motion in Elastic Solids (Dover, 1991)

The Usability of E-learning Platforms in Higher Education: A Systematic Mapping Study

The use of e-learning in higher education has increased significantly in recent years, which has led to several studies being conducted to investigate the usability of the platforms that support it. A variety of different usability evaluation methods and attributes have been used, and it has therefore become important to start reviewing this work in a systematic way to determine how the field has developed in the last 15 years. This paper describes a systematic mapping study that performed searches on five electronic libraries to identify usability issues and methods that have been used to evaluate e-learning platforms. Sixty-one papers were selected and analysed, with the majority of studies using a simple research design reliant on questionnaires. The usability attributes measured were mostly related to effectiveness, satisfaction, efficiency, and perceived ease of use. Furthermore, several research gaps have been identified and recommendations have been made for further work in the area of the usability of online learning

Organizing the multimedia content of an m-learning service through Fedora Digital Objects

In this paper a software infrastructure is presented, developed in the ambit of the CHAT (“Cultural Heritage fruition & e-learning applications of new Advanced (multimodal) Technologies”) research project to provide context-sensitive services accessible through thin clients such as cellular phones or PDAs. We propose a client/server architecture. On the server side, software modules implement the algorithms to manage the “dialogue” with the user. The client application displays the multimedia contents sent by the server and captures user interaction and contextual data registered by the mobile device carried by the user and/or received from other sensors in the surrounding environment. The multimedia contents are organized through Digital Objects managed by the Fedora open-source content management software. An additional system component, the Authoring Tool, allows end users lacking computer programming expertise to develop multimedia contents for the different services provided. Exploiting the wide applicability of the infrastructure, we have designed an m-learning service, called Explore!, that supports and enhances middle school students' experience of a visit to an archaeological par

“Isn’t This Archaeological Site Exciting!”: a Mobile System Enhancing School Trips

Explore! is an m-learning system that aims to improve young visitors' experience of historical sites. It exploits the imaging and multimedia capabilities of the latest generation cell phone, creating electronic games that support learning of ancient history during a visit to historical sites. Explore! consists of two main components: 1) the Game Application running on cellular phones, to be used during the game and 2) the Master Application running on a notebook, used by the game master (i.e. a teacher) to perform a reflection phase, which follows the game. Having the Game Application been described in previous papers, in this work we mainly illustrate the Master Application

Privacy Design Strategies and the GDPR: A Systematic Literature Review

Article 25 of the GDPR states that data collection, processing and management measures should be implemented following tṇhe privacy by design and privacy by default paradigms. This paper presents a systematic literature review to identify useful guidelines to support the development of GDPR-compliant software. Selected papers are categorized under 8 different data-oriented and process-oriented strategies and their contributions are reported. Future activities will highlight the HCI community’s attitude towards these new technical and organizational approaches in order to bridge the identified gaps and shortcomings