HCI for the deaf community: developing human-like avatars for sign language synthesis

With ever increasing computing power and advances in 3D animation technologies it is no surprise that 3D avatars for sign language (SL) generation are advancing too. Traditionally these avatars have been driven by somewhat expensive and inflexible motion capture technologies and perhaps this is the reason avatars do not feature in all but a few user interfaces (UIs). SL synthesis is a competing technology that is less costly, more versatile and may prove to be the answer to the current lack of access for the Deaf in HCI. This paper outlines the current state of the art in SL synthesis for HCI and how we propose to advance this by improving avatar quality and realism with a view to ameliorating communication and computer interaction for the Deaf community as part of a wider localisation project

A Cartographic Cavalcade

Author Institution: Department of Geography, The Ohio State University, Columbus 1

Building a sign language corpus for use in machine translation

In recent years data-driven methods of machine translation (MT) have overtaken rule-based approaches as the predominant means of automatically translating between languages. A pre-requisite for such an approach is a parallel corpus of the source and target languages. Technological developments in sign language (SL) capturing, analysis and processing tools now mean that SL corpora are becoming increasingly available. With transcription and language analysis tools being mainly designed and used for linguistic purposes, we describe the process of creating a multimedia parallel corpus specifically for the purposes of English to Irish Sign Language (ISL) MT. As part of our larger project on localisation, our research is focussed on developing assistive technology for patients with limited English in the domain of healthcare. Focussing on the first point of contact a patient has with a GP’s office, the medical secretary, we sought to develop a corpus from the dialogue between the two parties when scheduling an appointment. Throughout the development process we have created one parallel corpus in six different modalities from this initial dialogue. In this paper we discuss the multi-stage process of the development of this parallel corpus as individual and interdependent entities, both for our own MT purposes and their usefulness in the wider MT and SL research domains

An Examination of Third and Fourth Grade TCAP Scores and the Universal Breakfast Program in Unicoi County Tennessee.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of standardized test scores on the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) of students enrolled in Unicoi County Schools, that offers a universal breakfast program, compared with mean scores of students in both public and private schools in the state of Tennessee during the 2007-2008 school year. Test results of 404 Unicoi County third and fourth graders were examined with only the mathematics and reading and language arts sections of the TCAP used in this research. The State means were calculated using data collected from TCAP mathematics and reading and language arts tests in 222 public and private school systems across Tennessee. The concept that nutrition, eating breakfast in particular, played an integral role in cognition has been considered for years. Student assessments are now measured using standardized tests. A school system that featured a universal breakfast program and TCAP scores provided a connection between the 2 areas. Four research questions guided the study. One null hypothesis was generated from each of these questions for a total of 4 null hypotheses. Four one-sample t tests were computed to evaluate the data. The results of the one-sample t tests were that there were no statistically significant differences between the Unicoi County and State TCAP score means in third grade mathematics and reading and language arts. However, there was a statistically significant increase between the Unicoi County and State TCAP score means in fourth grade mathematics and reading and language arts. From the results of the study, it was suggested that school administrators consider implementing school breakfast and universal breakfast programs

Arbitration of Right of Employee to Self-Expression

The conflicting interests dealt with by arbitration cases summarized in this paper involve management\u27s right to direct an employee\u27s behavior and the employee\u27s right to retain control over his behavior. Many arbitrators attempt to balance these interests on the theory that (1) an individual\u27s rights are modified to some extent when he voluntarily accepts those responsibilities which accompany his entering an employee relationship; and (2) a contractual right to discharge for just cause, does not equip the employer with an absolute right to direct the employee to do or not to do anything which the employer feels would promote the goals of the enterprise

Fractions of Numerical Semigroups

Let S and T be numerical semigroups and let k be a positive integer. We say that S is the quotient of T by k if an integer x belongs to S if and only if kx belongs to T. Given any integer k larger than 1 (resp., larger than 2), every numerical semigroup S is the quotient T/k of infinitely many symmetric (resp., pseudo-symmetric) numerical semigroups T by k. Related examples, probabilistic results, and applications to ring theory are shown. Given an arbitrary positive integer k, it is not true in general that every numerical semigroup S is the quotient of infinitely many numerical semigroups of maximal embedding dimension by k. In fact, a numerical semigroup S is the quotient of infinitely many numerical semigroups of maximal embedding dimension by each positive integer k larger than 1 if and only if S is itself of maximal embedding dimension. Nevertheless, for each numerical semigroup S, for all sufficiently large positive integers k, S is the quotient of a numerical semigroup of maximal embedding dimension by k. Related results and examples are also given

The Role of the Lawyer in a Changing World

Addison C. Harris Lecture Serie

Harvey Smith to Senator James O. Eastland , 24 August 1943

Typed letter signed dated 24 August 1943 from Harvey Smith, Director of Bureau of the Budget, to Eastland, re: cotton ginning.https://egrove.olemiss.edu/joecorr_a/1000/thumbnail.jp