Model-free video game personalization for educational serious games

Treballs finals del Màster de Fonaments de Ciència de Dades, Facultat de matemàtiques, Universitat de Barcelona, Any: 2018, Tutor: Eloi Puertas i Prats[en] This MSc final project focuses on the problem of reconciling the fun aspect of an educational serious video game with its learning objective. For this, we propose bringing video game personalization to educational serious games in order to help players achieve their learning objectives by modifying the game environment dynamically in response to the player’s behavior. Most applications of video game personalization, however, require detailed models of the player using a lot of information that is often not practical or even possible to get from them. Despite the fact that reinforcement learning in the field of video games has mainly been used for playing, we believe that it is a valuable tool which we will use to achieve an adaptive environment without needing a model of the player. Specifically, we will use the Q-Learning technique to train an AI to help simulated players with simple behaviors fulfill learning objectives in a simplified version of the game. With a virtual reality archaeological educational serious game as our case study, we collected a lot of data and obtained insight into this problem. First, this project studies this data to then try to clearly formalize the problem and decide an appropriate approach. We will also use this data to cluster our players into four types to use for the simulations of different players. Lastly, we turn our attention in a way to evaluate the policies obtained from training and visualize them to better understand what was learned. We will also propose the best course of action when we do not yet know what type of player we are dealing with in a particular playthrough

Estudi i classificació de vivendes de la zona de Sarrià i canvi d’ús de Sant Vicenç de Sarrià nº11 de vivenda unifamiliar a hotel de quatre estrelles

En aquest treball hi consta la feina que en un principi havia de ser una col·laboració amb l’ajuntament de Barcelona. El plantejament inicial d’aquest projecte va sorgir d’una necessitat de catalogar diferents edificis del barri de Sarrià. Degut a que Sarrià és molt gran i hi havia molts edificis per ser analitzats, s’ha dividit el Barri en zones per tenir una càrrega de feina per cada estudiant que fos factible. La zona en qüestió estudiada en aquest treball està delimitada pels següents Carrers: Via Augusta, Jaume Piquet, Ivorra, Carrer Bonaplata i Carrer dels Vergós. Comprèn edificis tan emblemàtics com ara la Casa Orlandai, El monestir de Santa Isabel, o la Torre Bonaplata. El contingut del treball recull: informació històrica referent a la trajectòria de Sarrià des de que era un municipi independent fins que es va convertir en barri de Barcelona, un estudi de catorze façanes corresponents als edificis designats de la meva zona, mitjançant una fitxa estandarditzada per tots els alumnes que estudiàvem les diferents zones, i un projecte bàsic de canvi d’ús d’un dels edificis estudiats, Sant Vicenç de Sarrià 11, per convertir-lo de vivenda unifamiliar a Hotel de quatre estrelles. La realització d’aquest projecte s’ha dut a terme gràcies a una feina d’investigació i recerca de documentació emmagatzemada als diferents arxius de la ciutat, històric, contemporani i municipal de Sarrià, on no sempre tenen el que es necessita. Amb aquest projecte s’espera demostrar que s’han consolidat els coneixements impartits durant la carrera en les assignatures d’expressió gràfica, projectes 1 i 2, estructures, instal·lacions, i en especial els impartits al DAC de reforma integral. Es pretén demostrar també les capacitats de recerca de documentació específica de més difícil accés, la capacitat de sintetitzar informació important, així com demostrar dots de comunicació amb la resta dels company ja que, malgrat no ser un projecte conjunt, la catalogació dels edificis dels que cadascú se n’ha de fer càrrec ha de seguir un mateix esquema estipulat en quòrum pels estudiants, és a dir nosaltres

Geopieces: Joc seriós per l’aprenentatge de la geometria. Part 2D-3D

Treballs Finals de Grau d'Enginyeria Informàtica, Facultat de Matemàtiques, Universitat de Barcelona, Any: 2016, Director: Anna Puig PuigLearning by doing. Many studies claim that the best way of teaching is by making the students interact with what they want to learn. Accordingly, this Bachelor’s Degree Final Project aims to provide teachers with an aiding tool, specifically in the field of geometry teaching during the last years of primary school. Thus, the main goal is to design and create a game using Unity with a series of geometry learning activities allowing students in primary and first years of secondary school to progress in an entertaining and engaging way, having them overcome several challenges. Each student will have their own user and the game will be flexible enough to enable the teacher to analyze their evolution and to identify their difficulties. The teacher will also be able to customize the game, choosing which skills to train, and adding new activities and new 2D and 3D shapes among other geometric concepts. Thus, the game will consist of a series of campaigns that the students will have to finish in order to obtain complex 3D objects from simpler three-dimensional shapes. To gain them, it will be necessary to get first some 2D shapes through a series of level-adjusted missions, chosen according to the student’s acquired competences and which, in practice, will become ever more complex. Once this is accomplished, the game enters a second phase in which these flat shapes must be combined to get, through unfoldings, basic 3D objects. The performance speed and the mistakes made will be taken into account in order to achieve the campaign goals

Lessons learned from supplementing archaeological museum exhibitions with virtual reality

Archaeological excavations provide us with important clues about the past. Excavated artefacts represent an important connection to civilisations that no longer exist and help us understand some of their customs, traditions and common practices. With the help of academics and practitioners from various disciplines the results of archaeological excavations can be analysed and a body of knowledge about the corresponding society can be created and shared with members of the general public. Museums have traditionally served the purpose of communicating this knowledge and backing it up with the help of the excavated artefacts. Many museum visitors, however, find it difficult to develop a coherent understanding of the corresponding society only based on the artefacts and annotations showed in museums. Effective modern techniques that have high potential in helping museum visitors with better understanding of the past are 3D reconstruction and Virtual Reality. 3D reconstruction offers a cost effective way of recreating historical settlements in a computer-generated virtual environment, while Virtual Reality helps with immersing people into such environments and reaching a high degree of realism. With the help of these technologies it becomes possible to relive history, imagine yourself being a part of the reconstructed society and learn about its culture firsthand. The combination of 3D reconstruction and Virtual Reality \anton{represents} a very powerful learning tool, however this tool has been rarely used in a museum setting and its correct use has not been properly investigated. In this paper we present a study into using Virtual Reality in itinerant archaeological exhibitions. We discuss the lessons we have learned from developing an interactive Virtual Reality simulation of the Neolithic settlement of La Draga. These lessons feature our analysis of qualitative and quantitative feedback of museum visitors, as well as what we have learned from analysing their navigation and interaction patterns

Estudi i classificació de vivendes de la zona de Sarrià i canvi d’ús de Sant Vicenç de Sarrià nº11 de vivenda unifamiliar a hotel de quatre estrelles

En aquest treball hi consta la feina que en un principi havia de ser una col·laboració amb l’ajuntament de Barcelona. El plantejament inicial d’aquest projecte va sorgir d’una necessitat de catalogar diferents edificis del barri de Sarrià. Degut a que Sarrià és molt gran i hi havia molts edificis per ser analitzats, s’ha dividit el Barri en zones per tenir una càrrega de feina per cada estudiant que fos factible. La zona en qüestió estudiada en aquest treball està delimitada pels següents Carrers: Via Augusta, Jaume Piquet, Ivorra, Carrer Bonaplata i Carrer dels Vergós. Comprèn edificis tan emblemàtics com ara la Casa Orlandai, El monestir de Santa Isabel, o la Torre Bonaplata. El contingut del treball recull: informació històrica referent a la trajectòria de Sarrià des de que era un municipi independent fins que es va convertir en barri de Barcelona, un estudi de catorze façanes corresponents als edificis designats de la meva zona, mitjançant una fitxa estandarditzada per tots els alumnes que estudiàvem les diferents zones, i un projecte bàsic de canvi d’ús d’un dels edificis estudiats, Sant Vicenç de Sarrià 11, per convertir-lo de vivenda unifamiliar a Hotel de quatre estrelles. La realització d’aquest projecte s’ha dut a terme gràcies a una feina d’investigació i recerca de documentació emmagatzemada als diferents arxius de la ciutat, històric, contemporani i municipal de Sarrià, on no sempre tenen el que es necessita. Amb aquest projecte s’espera demostrar que s’han consolidat els coneixements impartits durant la carrera en les assignatures d’expressió gràfica, projectes 1 i 2, estructures, instal·lacions, i en especial els impartits al DAC de reforma integral. Es pretén demostrar també les capacitats de recerca de documentació específica de més difícil accés, la capacitat de sintetitzar informació important, així com demostrar dots de comunicació amb la resta dels company ja que, malgrat no ser un projecte conjunt, la catalogació dels edificis dels que cadascú se n’ha de fer càrrec ha de seguir un mateix esquema estipulat en quòrum pels estudiants, és a dir nosaltres

Patellar Tendon Structural Adaptations Occur during Pre-Season and First Competitive Cycle in Male Professional Handball Players

Background: While there is evidence that tendon adapts to training load, structural alterations in the patellar tendon in response to training loads are still unclear. The aim of this study is to identify changes in patellar tendon structure throughout pre-season and after finalizing the first competitive cycle. Methods: Nineteen professional handball players participated in the aforesaid cross-sectional study, in which patellar tendon scan and counter movement jump (CMJ) performance were conducted. Measurements were taken on the first and last day of pre-season training, and at the end of the first competitive cycle. Results: The results revealed that variation on the tendon structure occurred, mainly at the end of pre-season training; for injured tendons this occurred at the proximal (Right p = 0.02), distal (Right p = 0.01), and (Left p = 0.02) tendon, while changes in healthy tendons occurred at the mid (Left p = 0.01) and distal tendon (Right p = 0.01). At the end of the first competitive cycle, changes were observed in the distal injured tendon (p = 0.02). Conclusion: Patellar tendon shows greater structural change after completing pre-season training than at the end of the first competitive cycle, from which it may be inferred that gradual loading during pre-season training allows the tendon to adapt and potentially decrease the onset of patellar tendinopathy

Lessons learned from supplementing archaeological museum exhibitions with virtual reality

Archaeological excavations provide us with important clues about the past. Excavated artefacts represent an important connection to civilisations that no longer exist and help us understand some of their customs, traditions and common practices. With the help of academics and practitioners from various disciplines the results of archaeological excavations can be analysed and a body of knowledge about the corresponding society can be created and shared with members of the general public. Museums have traditionally served the purpose of communicating this knowledge and backing it up with the help of the excavated artefacts. Many museum visitors, however, find it difficult to develop a coherent understanding of the corresponding society only based on the artefacts and annotations showed in museums. Effective modern techniques that have high potential in helping museum visitors with better understanding of the past are 3D reconstruction and Virtual Reality. 3D reconstruction offers a cost effective way of recreating historical settlements in a computer-generated virtual environment, while Virtual Reality helps with immersing people into such environments and reaching a high degree of realism. With the help of these technologies it becomes possible to relive history, imagine yourself being a part of the reconstructed society and learn about its culture firsthand. The combination of 3D reconstruction and Virtual Reality \anton{represents} a very powerful learning tool, however this tool has been rarely used in a museum setting and its correct use has not been properly investigated. In this paper we present a study into using Virtual Reality in itinerant archaeological exhibitions. We discuss the lessons we have learned from developing an interactive Virtual Reality simulation of the Neolithic settlement of La Draga. These lessons feature our analysis of qualitative and quantitative feedback of museum visitors, as well as what we have learned from analysing their navigation and interaction patterns

Vulnerabilitats de seguretat, setembre 2011

Material docent de la Universitat Oberta de Catalunya.Material docente de la "Universitat Oberta de Catalunya".Learning material of the "Universitat Oberta de Catalunya"

Melatonin affects the motility and adhesiveness of in vitro capacitated boar spermatozoa via a mechanism that does not depend on intracellular ROS levels

This work sought to address the effects of melatonin during in vitro capacitation (IVC) and progesterone-induced acrosome exocytosis (IVAE) in boar spermatozoa. With this purpose, two different experiments were set. In the first one, IVC and IVAE were induced in the absence or presence of melatonin, which was added either at the start of IVC or upon triggering the IVAE with progesterone. Different parameters were evaluated, including intracellular levels of peroxides and superoxides, free cysteine radicals and distribution of specific lectins. While melatonin neither affected most capacitation-associated parameters nor IVAE, it dramatically decreased sperm motility, with a maximal effect at 5 lM. This effect was accompanied by a significant increase in the percentage of agglutinated spermatozoa, which was independent from noticeable changes in the distribution of lectins. Levels of free cysteine radicals were significantly lower in melatonin treatments than in the control after 4 h of incubation in capacitating medium. The second experiment evaluated the effects of melatonin on in vitro fertilising ability of boar spermatozoa. Spermatozoa previously subjected to IVC in the presence of 1 lM melatonin and used for in vitro fertilisation exhibited less ability to bind the zona pellucida (ZP) and higher percentages of monospermy. In conclusion, melatonin affects sperm motility and the stability of nucleoprotein structure and also modulates the ability of in vitro capacitated boar spermatozoa to bind the oocyte ZP. However, such effects do not seem to be related to either its antioxidant properties or changes in the sperm glycocalix