1,721,010 research outputs found
Adaptive Experience Engine for Serious Games
No full textDesigning games that support knowledge and skill acquisition has become a promising frontier of education techniques, since games are able to capture the user concentration for long periods and can present users with realistic and compelling challenges. In this scenario, there is a need for scientific and engineering methods to build games not only as more realistic simulations of the physical world but as means to provide effective learning experiences. Abstracting state of the art serious games’ (SGs) features, we propose a new design methodology for the sand box serious games (SBSGs) class, decoupling content from the delivery strategy during the gameplay. This methodology aims at making design more efficient and standardized in order to meet the growing demand for interactive learning. The methodology consists in modeling an SBSG as a hierarchy of tasks (e.g., missions) and specifies the requirements for a runtime scheduling policy that maximizes learning objectives in a full entertainment context. The policy is learned by an experience engine (EE) based on computational intelligence. In this approach, the domain-expert author focuses on the creation and semantic annotation of tasks. Tasks are put in a repository and can then be exploited by game designers who define the expected learning curve and other requirements about
education and entertainment for the game. The task sequencing that aims at matching such specifications with the real user profile is then presented to the EE. The EE can operate also in absence of the specification of the learning curve, continuously adapting the game flow without aiming at the achievement of target knowledge levels predefined by the author.We have implemented an EE module based on genetic computation and reinforcement learning (RL) atop of a state-of-the-art game engine. Test results show that the EE is able to define in real-time missions that meet the requirements expressed by the author
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Enhancing the Educational Value of Video Games
No full textLowering the barrier between education and real entertainment is an important challenge in order to better exploit the potential of computers and reach a demographic that is traditionally averse to learning. To this end, it is important to investigate how to exploit the appeal of video games (VGs) to also favor and induce learning via playing video games. Achieving this goal is not only a matter of content, since simply “superimposed” educational content risks being perceived as boring. Hence, we believe that the game should feature mechanisms for acquiring knowledge and skill that are smoothly embedded in a meaningful, homogeneous, and compelling whole.
Thus, there is a need to compartmentalize components of a game engine so that it becomes easy and efficient to integrate the graphics/interface—which has already been done very well by state-of-the-art successful video games and the educational aspect which is typically poor in those same games. Hence we have defined a general set of mechanisms and modules that can be inserted in state-of-the-art VG environments and are aimed at promoting various kinds of knowledge and procedural skill acquisition.
In order to investigate and validate this concept, we have built an educational game, SeaGame, using a state-of-the-art commercial game development approach, and enriched the environment with instances of developed educational modules.
Analyzing user test results, we conclude that SeaGame is perceived quite similarly to commercial VGs, which suggests that the proposed mechanisms do not compromise the overall enjoyability of the game, which is key to attracting a wide demographic that is not currently involved in educational
activities during their leisure time.
The results of this research can be generalized, since the standards of commercial games and the proposed educational enhancements can be instantiated in a variety of educational contexts and applied to different types of content
Supporting authors in the development of Task-Based Learning in Serious Virtual Worlds
No full textSerious virtual worlds (SVWs) represent a great opportunity for learning and should embed a lot of high-quality contextualised information so that the player can take the most from his or her exploration of the environment. This requires defining new methodologies and tools for effective production. We have investigated this issue in implementing a couple of SVWs and abstracted a conceptual framework relying on the task-based learning pedagogical theory. The model defines games set in realistic SVWs enriched with embedded educational tasks. Tasks are simple trial activities that embody units of knowledge. The player can discover them in his or her SVW exploration and interact with them in order to construct meaning, build lasting memories and deepen understanding of the featured item(s). The model involves pedagogical task annotation—which allows decoupling the tasks, which can be reused in different VWs from the definition of their delivery strategy in the context of a specificVW, which is specified by theVWdesigner and automatically managed by the run-time engine. This approach simplifies the authoring work. The visual Creative Toolkit (CT) we have developed is being used for producing contents for the 15 reconstructed cultural cities that will be featured in the first version of the Travel in Europe VW. The paper described the overall framework and the details of the CT. It also presented an implemented example, briefly discussing the methodology we have followed for developing cultural heritage content
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