Situational Awareness and Systems for Driver-Assistance

Low level of driver’s situation awareness (SA) and high level of cognitive load are considered as reasons of vehicle accidents. Cognitive load is higher when driving abroad because of unfamiliarity with differences in international traffic rules or vehicle configurations. This paper aims to objectively assess the driver’s SA when performing lane changing tasks under unfamiliar driving conditions. We conducted an experiment using a right-hand driving simulator and a left-hand simulated traffic scenario to collect the temporal information about SA such as time, location, and speed as well as lane changing errors. Overall, the participants show low SA in curved roads and road networks, but high SA in straight roads. The results state that speed does not affect the lane changing performance on straight roads and road networks but significantly affects the lane changing performance on curved roads. These findings can be used to design a SA system for driver-assistance in unfamiliar driving conditions considering drivers’ cognitive load

Focus Issue on Legacy Information Systems and Business Process Change:Modelling of Organisational Change Using the EKD Framework

Little attention has been given in the development of a systematic approach for elaborating and using enterprise knowledge to manage organisational change. In this paper we present a framework based on the confluence of two technologies: enterprise knowledge modelling and process guidance. The framework comprises of a set of modelling components for describing intentional enterprise knowledge, and a number of strategies for reasoning with enterprise knowledge during organisational change projects. Dynamic selection of appropriate strategies is guided by the use of a methodology roadmap. The approach is demonstrated using examples from an industrial application of change resulting from de-regulation in the electricity supply sector

State-of-the-art of Language Testing and Assessment in Non-formal Education: The Case of English Language Schools in Turkey

Purveying insights from a mixed-method research design, this study aims to enlighten the exploitation of the European guidelines in language testing and assessment practices in non-formal educational settings. Accordingly, three non-formal English language schools renowned for quality in Turkey were taken to in-depth analysis in order to offer a general paradigm from a sample of leading professionals on the utilization of the European benchmarks in language testing and assessment practices. The results have yielded that (1) there is a need for a more practical curriculum molded with a real auditing system for the enhancement of the current language testing and assessment practices; (2) there is a request for the validation process for language certificate examinations implemented in non-formal educational settings; (3) there is a demand for cooperation amidst the allies for the standardization process in language testing and assessment practices. The results are laced with some recommendations and implications for language testing and assessment

Analysis and Assessment of Onshore and Offshore Wind Turbines Failures

The rapidly increasing energy demand and the inevitable negative effects on the environment caused by fossil-fuelled energy production have made renewable energy technologies increasingly important and preferred among the widely used energy sources during the last decades. Wind energy is one of the leading renewable energy technologies. Wind energy is a carbon-free, environmentally friendly and competitive technology. A step forward in production of wind energy is offshore and onshore wind turbines, with their numerous advantages. Today, the increasing energy needs make onshore and offshore wind turbine applications an increasingly widespread renewable energy source. However, with this change, challenges arise during the operation phases as being associated with the strength of the wind turbines. Potential failures must be known in advance so that they can be dealt with strongly and effectively in the design phase. Damages and failures have a negative effect on the continuation of the operation and cause material and economic impacts. In this paper, the findings from a collection of failure data are presented. The database is available on request. The novelty of this paper is to assess and analyse the damages to wind turbines onshore and offshore in order to reduce the risk of potential failures, damages and collapse of wind turbines. According to the results of these studies and analyses, the database of failures experienced is considered to represent the general failure rate in the industry. This paper brings solutions and suggestions for future studies by pointing out risks and the failure situations that wind turbines are exposed to. It can help innovative solutions with the presentation of a detailed view of risk and failure situations.publishedVersio

Pris Tool: A Case Tool For Privacy-Oriented Requirements Engineering

PriS is a security and privacy requirements engineering method which aims on incorporating privacy requirements early in the system development process. Specifically, PriS provides a set of concepts for modelling privacy requirements in the organisation domain and a systematic way-of-working for translating these requirements into system models. In this paper we present the PriS conceptual framework and a case tool that assist PriS way of working the PriS-Tool. Specifically, PriS-Tool assist developers by offering design capabilities of the organization’s goal-process model, helps them to monitor the impact of privacy requirements on organisation’s goals and processes, suggests them a set of implementation techniques for the realization of the privacy related processes and offers guidance throughout this process

US foreign aid restrictions and maternal and children’s health: evidence from the “Mexico City Policy”

Although family planning services are crucial for global health and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, their funding remains controversial. We document the health consequences of the “Mexico City Policy” (MCP), which restricts US funding for abortion-related activities worldwide. Since its enactment in 1985, the MCP has been enforced only under Republican administrations and quickly rescinded when a Democrat wins the presidency. Our analysis shows that the MCP makes it harder for women to get information on and support for reproductive health and is associated with higher maternal and child mortality rates and HIV rates worldwide. We estimate that reinstating the MCP between 2017 and 2021 resulted in approximately 108,000 maternal and child deaths and 360,000 new HIV infections