A deployment mechanism for the double roll-out flexible solar array on the space telescope

A roll-out flexible array which provides more than 4 kW of power for the space telescope was developed. The Array is configured as two wings. The deployment mechanism for each wing is based on flight-proven FRUSA design. Modifications have been incorporated to accommodate an increase in size and mission requirements. The assembly and operation of the deployment mechanism are described together with environmental and functional tests results

Scum

"Scum" is the personal narrative of first-generation scholar Lola Cawsey, a first-year undergraduate student at Durham University. As the narrative unfolds, she creates a comparison between the life she led before starting university and the challenging situations she has overcome in an elitist, exclusive environment where her identity as a first-generation scholar often places her as the recipient of others’ criticisms. The word "scum" comes to embody Lola’s struggles and doubts, but also inspires her drive for change and her advocation of the power of first-generation scholars

Generating explanatory discourse: a plan-based, interactive approach

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:D91660 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Knowledge Acquisition for Content Selection

An important part of building a natural-language generation (NLG) system is knowledge acquisition, that is deciding on the specific schemas, plans, grammar rules, and so forth that should be used in the NLG system. We discuss some experiments we have performed with KA for content-selection rules, in the context of building an NLG system which generates health-related material. These experiments suggest that it is useful to supplement corpus analysis with KA techniques developed for building expert systems, such as structured group discussions and think-aloud protocols. They also raise the point that KA issues may influence architectural design issues, in particular the decision on whether a planning approach is used for content selection. We suspect that in some cases, KA may be easier if other constructive expert-system techniques (such as production rules, or case-based reasoning) are used to determine the content of a generated text.Comment: To appear in the 1997 European NLG workshop. 10 pages, postscrip

A Study of the Value of Mechanical Aids in the Teaching/Learning of Swimming with Advanced Swimmers

Problem: This study was concerned with effectiveness of a commercially produced hand-paddle as a teaching/learning aid for learning the arm action of the front crawl swimming stroke. Procedure: The population was restricted to two classes from the general program at the Advanced Swimmer Level of the Health, Physical Education and Recreation Department of the University of North Dakota. The two samples were randomly divided into experimental and traditional groups. Data were collected by means of a subjective rating instrument designed by the researcher. Students were rated on a pre-test and post-test after eight hours of instruction. Statistically, the data were treated by using t tests for comparisons both within groups and between groups. An ,05 alpha level of significance was selected a priori for the determination of significance in the analyses. Conclusions: 1. The use of the hand-paddles did not result in significantly better performance of the arm stroke in the front crawl than that obtained by subjects using no mechanical aids, 2, The traditional group in Sample Two did not improve significantly and all other groups did during the experimentation period. Recommendations: 1. It is recommended, as a result of improvements found in the data obtained from the Experimental Groups, that a long-range study of the effects of hand-paddles be undertaken, 2. As a result of the significant level of improvement made by the Experimental Groups, it is recommended that coaches and teachers be prepared to use the hand-paddles with some of their students. 3. It is further recommended that tests based on strength, power, endurance, and speed be carried out using the hand-paddles as aids in developing these aspects of various swimming strokes, 4. Since there is now more than one type of hand-paddle available, it is recommended that studies comparing the various types of paddles be initiated, 5. The most important recommendation made by this researcher is that more experimentation be carried out in regard to mechanical learning aids for the recreational swimmer. This could be done at the beginning, intermediate and advanced levels and also over a longer period of instruction

Assessing the biodiversity benefits of plantations: The Plantation Biodiversity Benefits Score

All forests, including commercial plantations, provide a range of habitats for conserving and enhancing elements of native biodiversity. However, the biodiversity values of commercial plantations will depend on the management practices adopted on site, as well as the landscape context of the plantation. The present study describes a generic, quantitative method for assessing the potential biodiversity benefits that might be derived from a plantation, depending on the management practices adopted. This method is based on existing ecological design and management principles. The Plantation Biodiversity Benefits Score (PBBS) was designed to be repeatable and practical to apply. The method can be used either as a stand-alone tool or as part of an integrated framework to assess and compare the commercial and environmental benefits that can be derived from different layouts, management practices and locations of plantations anywhere in Australia

Using segmented objects in ostensive video shot retrieval

This paper presents a system for video shot retrieval in which shots are retrieved based on matching video objects using a combination of colour, shape and texture. Rather than matching on individual objects, our system supports sets of query objects which in total reflect the user’s object-based information need. Our work also adapts to a shifting user information need by initiating the partitioning of a user’s search into two or more distinct search threads, which can be followed by the user in sequence. This is an automatic process which maps neatly to the ostensive model for information retrieval in that it allows a user to place a virtual checkpoint on their search, explore one thread or aspect of their information need and then return to that checkpoint to then explore an alternative thread. Our system is fully functional and operational and in this paper we illustrate several design decisions we have made in building it

A Framework for Interaction-driven User Modeling of Mobile News Reading Behaviour

The news you read is, of course, a highly individual choice and one for which substantial and successful news recommendation techniques have been developed. But as well as what news you read, the way you choose and read that news is also known to be highly individual. We propose a framework for extending the user profile of news readers with features of these interactions. The extensions are dynamic through monitoring an individual's reading and browsing activity. They include factors learned from the user's interaction log and also factors inferred from category level definitions contained in the framework. We report a study in which users' interaction logs with a news app are used to generate user profiles that are verified with self-reported questionnaire data about reading habits. We discuss the implications of our user modeling approach in news personalisation for both recommendation and user interface personalisation for news apps