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Situated with Infrastructures: Interactivity and Entanglement in Sensor Data Interpretation
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Serpentine Robots for Planetary Exploration (SERPEX)
Get PDFSnake robots have a strong inherent potential to move and operate robustly in challenging environments where more conventional wheeled and tracked mobile robots may fail. Such abilities are important for planetary exploration. In this report, we have investigated the feasibility of snake robots for planetary exploration. In particular, we discuss the advantages (e.g., traversability, stability, redundancy) and disadvantages (e.g., low payload/speed/energy efficiency) for snake robots in a planetary exploration context, as well as the imminent challenges (i.e., control system and mechanism development) which need to be addressed in order to realize the potential of snake robots as transport mechanisms in cluttered and challenging terrains. Moreover, we consider operational and scientific aspects of snake robots for planetary exploration, and discuss serious spin-off possibilities to terrestrial applications within, e.g., inspection and maintenance, fire-fighting, and search and rescue. Finally, we present selected concepts involving snake robots for planetary exploration, which include rover-snake robot cooperative systems. Oppdragsgiver: European Space Agency (ESA)publishedVersio
When safety science meets the practitioners: Does safety science contribute to marginalization of practical knowledge?
Get PDFIn this paper we explore the proposal that knowledge generated by safety scientists may displace or marginalize existing local or system-specific safety knowledge embedded in operational practices. The proposition is based on theory about relationships between knowledge and power, complemented by organizational theory on standardization and accountability. We suggest that the increased reliance on self-regulation and international standards in safety management may be drivers for a shift in the distribution of power regarding safety, changing the conception of what is valid and useful knowledge. Case studies from two Norwegian transport sectors, the railway and the maritime sectors, are used to illustrate the proposition. In both sectors we observe discourses based on generic approaches to safety management and an accompanying disempowerment of the practitioners and their perspectives. We discuss some contributing elements to this development: for example, the roles of external and internal HSE-specialists and the increased importance of international standards. We propose that the search for broad generalizations and the widespread adoption of cybernetic thinking in safety science may resonate with societal trends towards standardization and bureaucratic control. We conclude that safety scientists, safety professionals, and organizations that hire safety professionals need to be sensitive to the possibility that their well-intentioned efforts to promote safety may lead to a marginalization of local and system-specific safety knowledge.acceptedVersio
Detecting Psychiatric Disorders in Preschoolers: Screening With the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire
No full textObjective: To examine screening efficiency for preschool psychopathology by comparing the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire findings against diagnostic information, and to determine the added value of impact scores and teacher information. Method: Using a 2-phase sampling design, a population-based sample of 845 children 4 years of age was recruited from community health check-ups in Trondheim, Norway, screen score stratified and oversampled for high screening scores. Blinded to screen ratings, DSM-IV diagnoses were assigned using the Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment interview, against which the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire scores were compared through receiver operating characteristic analysis. Results: Emotional and behavioral disorders were identified through parent ratings with a specificity of 88.8% (range, 87.0%–90.6%) and a sensitivity of 65.1% (range, 51.6–78.6%). The negative predictive value was 97.9% (range, 96.8%–98.9%), whereas the positive predictive value was 24.2% (range, 18.0%–30.3%) at a prevalence of 5.2%. Parental ratings identified more behavioral disorders (79.3%) than emotional disorders (59.2%). Screening for any disorder was somewhat less efficient: specificity, 88.9% (range, 87.0%–90.7%); sensitivity, 54.2% (range, 41.8%–66.6%); negative predictive value, 96.4% (range, 95.0%–97.8%); and positive predictive value, 25.9% (range, 19.6%–32.2%) at a prevalence of 6.7%. The area under the curve (AUC) value was 0.83 (range, 0.76–0.90) for emotional and behavioral disorders and 0.76 (range, 0.68–0.83) for any disorder. The prediction accuracy was not improved by impact scores or teacher information. Conclusions: The results indicate that preschoolers' emotional and behavioral disorders can be screened with the same efficiency as those of older children and adults. Other disorders were identified to a lesser extent. Further research should explore the potential of preschool screening to improve early detection and subsequent intervention.acceptedVersio
Preschool predictors of childhood anxiety disorders: a prospective community study
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Sleep Disorders in Preschoolers: Prevalence and Comorbidity with Psychiatric Symptoms
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Development and change in disabled children's social participation assessed by parents in Norwegian daycare centres: 1999 - 2009
Get PDFThe aim of the article was to explore if htere was any alteration in social participation with peers assessed by parents amongst children with disabilities from 1999 - 2009 and discuss the results in light of the education/welfare policies during the last decades, and internal developments in education/welfare policies regarding children under compulsory school age. The main finding is that disabled children have increased their social participation with peers in the period from 1999 - 2009. Gender, age and being in a segregated daycare setting, all had significant impact on participation with peers in 1999, but had lost their significance in 2009. The current study found that Norwegian daycare centres still have to be considered as social integrating institutions, even though in the period from 1999 to 2009, they have changed from being a care- and familily-supportive service to become a pedagogical service preparing children for school.submittedVersio
Facilitating for cultural change: Lessons learned from a 12-year safety improvement programme
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Innovation in a heterogeneous CCS research centre, managerial and organizational challenges
Get PDFRecently, the Norwegian authorities have established a number of Centres for Environment-friendly Energy Research (CEER), intended to develop new knowledge, foster breakthrough technology and promote innovation in order to solve specific challenges in the field of energy and environment. The expectation is that these heterogeneous, multipartner research consortia will lead to excellent academic performance and at the same time, that the new knowledge is of such nature that it can be exploited for practical and commercial purposes. This paper suggests that the adoption of two concepts of knowledge production, denoting knowledge produced in an academic context and in a context of application, respectively. These concepts, referred to as Mode 1 and Mode 2 knowledge production, open up for insight and implications about the challenges inherent in the CEER scheme. Our key argument is that in order to move our understanding of innovation in heterogeneous research collaborations, research efforts should be seen as concurrent processes of problem solving around scientific and practical problems. The main management challenge identified is the need to perform well as a manager of basic research and at the same time, lay the groundwork for innovation, that is, to lead according to differing expectations. Our claims are based on an empirical example, drawn on the CEER Centre BIGCCS. Copyright © 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd.publishedVersio