The Convergence of Player Experience Questionnaires

Player experience is an important field of digital games research to understand how games influence players. A common way to directly measure players’ reported experiences is through questionnaires. However, the large number of questionnaires currently in use introduces several challenges both in terms of selecting suitable measures and comparing results across studies. In this paper, we review some of the most widely known and used questionnaires and focus on the immersive experience questionnaire (IEQ), the game engagement questionnaire (GEQ), and the player experience of need satisfaction (PENS), with the aim to position each of them in relation to each other. This was done through an online survey, in which we gathered 270 responses from players about their most recent experience of a digital game. Our findings show considerable convergence between these three questionnaires and that there is room to refine them into a more widely applicable measure of general game engagement

The effect of time manipulation on immersion in digital games

Many empirical studies look into identifying factors that influence the quality of experience in video games. In this paper, we present research into the effect of playing time and players’ perception of the time on their immersion in the game. We invited 20 participants to play a puzzle game Bejeweled 2 for 7 min. They played the game in two conditions, namely, correct time (timer was programmed to be exactly 7 min) and wrong time (the countdown was set to be for 6 min, but was presented as a 7 min timer to the player). Players’ immersion scores were measured after the game using the IEQ. The results show no significant difference in immersion scores between the two conditions and participants’ comments also revealed that they perceived no difference in playing time between the conditions. This suggests that there is a dissociation between gaming time and subjective experience of gaming. Further research is required to investigate the relationship between playing time and positive gaming experiences

Too Many Questionnaires: Measuring Player Experience Whilst Playing Digital Games

Player experience is an important area of research in digital games. The findings are crucial for the developers, designers and reviewers of games, allowing for the better understanding of player experience whilst playing digital games. Questionnaires are a way to directly measure the reported experiences of players. This approach in games research, however, is challenging for new researchers because of the proliferation of questionnaires available. The problem is knowing which questionnaires are measuring what aspect of experience. This paper sets out the need for positioning the various questionnaires in relation to each other. We list all the current available questionnaires to measure engagement whilst playing digital games. We, therefore, argue that further investigation on these questionnaires is needed to produce better quality questionnaires and reduce confusion amongst player experience researchers

Normal soaking extraction (NSE) of rotenone from Derris elliptica

Derris elliptica or the tuba plant contains rotenone, bio-active compound known that has the potential to be used as bio-pesticide. Bio-pesticide is the best-known alternative bio-pesticide which has the potential to replace the use of conventional pesticides, as it is more environmentally friendly. The main objective of the paper is to obtain the best extraction solvent for optimizing the yield in rotenone extraction. Rotenone was extracted from Derris root using three different parts of roots and three types of solvent in Normal Soaking Extraction (NSE). The types of Derris roots are: (1) Fine root (2) Coarse root (3) Stem. The three types of solvent system are: (1) Acetone 95 % (v/v), (2) Chloroform 99.9 % (v/v) and (3) a mixture of ethanol: H2O (9:1) added with oxalic acid (1mg/ml). The liquid crude extracts were further cleaned up to remove the fine debris of roots. The presence of rotenone was confirmed using qualitative analysis Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) and thereupon the determination of rotenone content was carried out using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). From the results obtained, it was found that the Normal Soaking Extraction (NSE) using acetone 95 % (v/v) was the best method to extract the highest yield of rotenone; 1.14 % (w/w)

Review on automated follicle identification for polycystic ovarian syndrome

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), is a condition of the ovary consisting numerous follicles. Accurate size and number of follicles detected are crucial for treatment. Hence the diagnosis of this condition is by measuring and calculating the size and number of follicles existed in the ovary. To diagnosis, ultrasound imaging has become an effective tool as it is non invasive, inexpensive and portable. However, the presence of speckle noise in ultrasound imaging has caused an obstruction for manual diagnosis which are high time consumption and often produce errors. Thus, image segmentation for ultrasound imaging is critical to identify follicles for PCOS diagnosis and proper health treatment. This paper presents different methods proposed and applied in automated follicle identification for PCOS diagnosis by previous researchers. In this paper, the methods and performance evaluation are identified and compared. Finally, this paper also provided suggestions in developing methods for future research

Reverse Transcriptase PCR detection of Hepatitis A virus (HAV) in cultured and wild shellfish from the Peninsular of Malaysia

Hepatitis A is a liver infection caused by the hepatitis A virus (HAV). Outbreaks of hepatitis A have been linked to the consumption of both raw and cooked shellfish. These outbreaks could induce a public confidence problem over shellfish safety and may result in important economic losses for the seafood industry. The work presented in this study investigated the presence of HAV in shellfish from Peninsular Malaysia. A total of 365 of cultured and wild shellfish from 36 sampling locations located throughout Peninsular Malaysia were examined using a commercial nucleic acid extraction and reverse transcription -polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) kit. HAV was not detected in almost all of the shellfish samples examined. Only one cockle sample from Changkat, Seberang Perai was positive for HAV. The results suggest the absence of HAV or very low amount of HAV viral particles in most of the shellfish examined

Syntax and Semantics Question Analysis Using User Modelling and Relevance Feedback

A Question Answering (QA) system aims to provide relevant answers to users’ natural language (NL) questions by consulting its knowledge base (KB). Providing users with the most relevant answers to their questions is an issue. Many answers returned are not relevant to the questions and this issue is due to many factors. One such factor is the ambiguity yield during the semantic analysis of lexical extracted from the user’s question. The existing techniques did not consider some of the terms, called modifier terms, in the user’s question which are claimed to have a significant impact of returning correct answer. The objective of this study is to present the syntax and semantic question analysis using user modelling (UM) and relevance feedback (RF). This analysis interprets all the modifier terms in the user’s question in order to yield correct answers. A combination of UM and RF is used to increase the accuracy of the returned answer. UM helps the QA system to understand the user’s question and manage for question adjustment. RF provides an extended framework for the QA system to avoid or remedy the ambiguity of the user’s question. The analysis utilizes Vector Space Model (VSM) to semantically interpret and correctly converts modifier terms into a quantifiable form. The finding of this analysis demonstrates good precision percentage of 94.7% in returning relevant answers for each NL question

Intelligent glove for suppression of resting tremor in Parkinson’s disease

One of the significant symptoms in Parkinson’s disease is resting tremor. Resting tremor occurs when the muscle is relaxed, causing the limb to shake. Rhythmic muscle movement of the patients commonly happens within the range of 4 Hz to 6 Hz. Thus, reducing this type of tremor will help improve patients’ quality of life. In this paper, to suppress resting tremors, an intelligent glove was designed utilizing the concepts of vibrations and gyro effect. A rotating brass disc attached to the glove creates a gyroscopic effect of the smart glove. Therefore, the disc will do their utmost to stay upright and counter any input forces instantaneously by providing the counterforce. A reduction of more than 50 % with the intelligent glove is also shown

Establishment of a shellfish model farm : a case study in Sg. Jarum Mas, Perak, Malaysia

This study evaluates the sanitary and physico-chemical quality of Sg. Jarum Mas shellfish waters in order to establish its suitability as a model farm. Seawater and shellfish from nine stations (4 shellfish harvesting waters, 4 surrounding waters and 1 control site) were collected and analyzed monthly from September 2004 - September 2005. The results show that shellfish harvesting waters in Sg. Jarum Mas can be classified as 'approved' and 'conditionally approved'. Hepatitis A virus was not detected in any of the shellfish examined. Dinophysis caudata and Pseuodonitzshia spp. were the most common harmful alga species observed. Harmful species that are known to produce toxins and cause shellfish poisoning such as Alexandrium spp., Gymnodinum spp., Pyrodinium sp. and Prorocentrum spp. were not detected. The physico-chemical characteristics of shellfish waters in Sg. Jarum Mas imply that they are suitable for aquaculture activity of moderately tolerant species such as shellfish

Optimised combinatorial control strategy for active anti-roll bar system for ground vehicle

The objective of this paper is to optimise the proposed control strategy for an active anti-roll bar system using non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) tuning method. By using an active anti-roll control strategy, the controller can adapt to current road conditions and manoeuvres unlike a passive anti-roll bar. The optimisation solution offers a rather noticeable improvement results compared to the manually-tuned method. From the application point of view, both tuning process can be used. However, using optimisation method gives a multiple choice of solutions and provides the optimal parameters compared to manual tuning method