8 research outputs found
Seeing the Intangible: Surveying Automatic High-Level Visual Understanding from Still Images
The field of Computer Vision (CV) was born with the single grand goal of
complete image understanding: providing a complete semantic interpretation of
an input image. What exactly this goal entails is not immediately
straightforward, but theoretical hierarchies of visual understanding point
towards a top level of full semantics, within which sits the most complex and
subjective information humans can detect from visual data. In particular,
non-concrete concepts including emotions, social values and ideologies seem to
be protagonists of this "high-level" visual semantic understanding. While such
"abstract concepts" are critical tools for image management and retrieval,
their automatic recognition is still a challenge, exactly because they rest at
the top of the "semantic pyramid": the well-known semantic gap problem is
worsened given their lack of unique perceptual referents, and their reliance on
more unspecific features than concrete concepts. Given that there seems to be
very scarce explicit work within CV on the task of abstract social concept
(ASC) detection, and that many recent works seem to discuss similar
non-concrete entities by using different terminology, in this survey we provide
a systematic review of CV work that explicitly or implicitly approaches the
problem of abstract (specifically social) concept detection from still images.
Specifically, this survey performs and provides: (1) A study and clustering of
high level visual understanding semantic elements from a multidisciplinary
perspective (computer science, visual studies, and cognitive perspectives); (2)
A study and clustering of high level visual understanding computer vision tasks
dealing with the identified semantic elements, so as to identify current CV
work that implicitly deals with AC detection
A Collaborative Color Laboratory: Using 3D Modelling, Texturization, and AR to Challenge White Supremacist Uses of Ancient Classical Sculptures
Polychromy in ancient classical sculptures is a historical fact. However, for centuries, archeologists and museum curators have scrubbed away traces of color before their public display. This omission has led to the incorrect idea of a Greco-Roman predilection for pure whitenessâand to the equation of white marble with beautyâwith a tendency toward chromophobia, that may even verge into a system of chromoeugenics (Calvo-QuirĂłs, 2013). Currently, white supremacist groups are using the purported aesthetics of classical white refinement for propaganda. The consequences of this use run deep, and an international rise in neo-fascism, entangled with a fear of difference, requires a re-examination of cultural heritageâs connection to identity formation. In line with the idea that physical engagement and supporting the social setting are principles that interaction designers should consider (Petrelli et al., 2016), interactive technologies afford new opportunities to curve classical sculptureâs misuse. This paper discusses the power of color in ancient sculptural polychromy and new models of civic education that tap into the power of new technological paradigms. The work investigates lessons afforded by the humanities on the meaning and power of interpretative processes of cultural artifacts such as the view of objects as social and affective-inducing beings, and then presents ColorColab, a potential critical thinking tool, consisting of an online app and an Augmented Reality (AR) device. The tool would allow users to look at ancient classical sculptures in their original or imagined colors, and would function as a tool for museums, teachers, and public officials interested in using technology for historical education about past and modern diversity through informal education. Initial explorations about the technical development of such a tool are presented, and further directions are discussed
Semantic Integration of MIR Datasets with the Polifonia Ontology Network
Integration between different data formats, and between data belonging to different collections, is an ongoing challenge in the MIR field. Semantic Web tools have proved to be promising resources for making different types of music information interoperable. However, the use of these technologies has so far been limited and scattered in the field. To address this, the Polifonia project is developing an ontological ecosystem that can cover a wide variety of musical aspects (musical features, instruments, emotions, performances). In this paper, we present the Polifonia Ontology Network, an ecosystem that enables and fosters the transition towards semantic MIR
The Impact of Story Structure, Meaningfulness, and Concentration in Serious Games
This contribution analyzes the impact of factors related to story structure, meaningfulness, and concentration in the design of Serious Games. To explore them, the authors carried out an experimental evaluation aiming to identify relevant aspects affecting the cognitive-emotional impact of immersive Virtual Reality (VR), specifically Educational Environmental Narrative (EEN) Games. The experiment was designed around three main research questions: if passive or active interaction is preferable for factual and spatial knowledge acquisition; whether meaningfulness is a relevant experience in a serious game (SG) context; and if concentration impacts knowledge acquisition and engagement also in VR educational games. The findings highlight that passive interaction should only be encouraged for factual knowledge acquisition, that meaningfulness is a relevant experience and should be included in serious game design, and, finally, that concentration is a factor that impacts the experience in immersive games. The authors discuss potential design paths to improve both factual and spatial knowledge acquisition, such as abstract concept-oriented design, concluding that SGs should contain game mechanics explicitly supporting playersâ moments of reflection, and story structures explicitly aligned to educational facts
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Competition Elicits more Physical Affiliation between Male than Female Friends
Across species, cooperative alliances must withstand internal tensions. The mechanisms by which allies respond to competing against one another have been studied extensively in non-human animals, but much less so in humans. In non-human species, affiliative physical contact and close proximity immediately following a contest are utilized to define reconciliation between opponents. The proportion of conflicts that are reconciled however differs markedly by species and sex. The purpose of this study was to examine whether, like many other social species, humans utilize physical contact and close proximity following a competition between friends, and if so, whether one sex is more likely to exhibit these behaviors. Using a standardized procedure, two same-gender friends competed against one another producing a clear winner and loser. Prior to and following the competition, the friends relaxed together. Videotapes of the relaxation periods showed that male friends spent more time than female friends engaged in affiliative physical contact and close proximity both before and after the competition, but not during a brief intervening cooperative task. These results suggest that in the face of competing self-interests, physical contact and close proximity facilitate repair of malesâ more than femalesâ valuable relationships
Integrating Citizen Experiences in Cultural Heritage Archives: Requirements, State of the Art, and Challenges
Digital archives of memory institutions are typically concerned with the cataloguing of artefacts of artistic, historical, and cultural value. Recently, new forms of citizen participation in cultural heritage have emerged, producing a wealth of material spanning from visitorsâ experiential feedback on exhibitions and cultural artefacts to digitally mediated interactions like the ones happening on social media platforms. Citizen curation is proposed in the context of the European project SPICE (Social Participation, Cohesion, and Inclusion through Cultural Engagement) as a methodology for producing, collecting, interpreting, and archiving peopleâs responses to cultural objects, with the aim of favouring the emergence of multiple, sometimes conflicting, viewpoints and motivating users and memory institutions to reflect upon them. We argue that citizen curation urges to rethink the nature of computational infrastructures supporting data management of memory institutions, bringing novel challenges that include issues of distribution, authoritativeness, interdependence, privacy, and rights management. To approach these issues, we survey relevant literature toward a distributed, Linked Data infrastructure, with a focus on identifying the roles and requirements involved in such an infrastructure. We show how existing research can contribute significantly in facing the challenges raised by citizen curation and discuss challenges and opportunities from the socio-technical standpoint