903 research outputs found
Quality delivery of mobile video: In-depth understanding of user requirements
No full textThe increase of powerful mobile devices has accelerated the demand for mobile videos. Previous studies in mobile video have focused on understanding of mobile video usage, improvement of video quality, and user interface design in video browsing. However, research focusing on a deep understanding of users ’ needs for a pleasing quality delivery of mobile video is lacking. In particular, what quality-delivery mode users prefer and what information relevant to video quality they need requires attention. This paper presents a qualitative interview study with 38 participants to gain an insight into three aspects: influencing factors of user-desired video quality, user-preferred quality-delivery modes, and user-required interaction information of mobile video. The results show that user requirements for video quality are related to personal preference, technology background and video viewing experience, and the preferred quality-delivery mode and interactive mode are diverse. These complex user requirements call for flexible and personalised quality delivery and interaction of mobile video. Author Keywords Mobile video, quality-delivery mode, user requirements
The English question, or academic freedoms
No full textTo be or not to be free, that is the question, the English question, the question of what is academic English at the beginning of the 21st century. So argues Thomas Docherty in this new and important new study, a study that begins with the claim that the fundamental idea governing the institution of the University is a will to freedom. Tracing a history of the modern European University from Vico onwards and including Hume, Rousseau, Schiller, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Newman, Alain, Benda and Jaspers, the author argues the academy's will to freedom is grounded in study of the 'eloquence' that has shaped literate and humane values. He goes on to explore the current condition of English as a literary discipline, arguing that literary studies is (or should be) a search for the unknown; and that in only that search can the academy establish the real meaning - or meanings - of social, political and ethical freedom
Harnessing the creativity of science students to develop an online learning tool
No full textCreativity plays a fundamental role in scientific investigation and there are various perspectives on the nature and source of this creativity (Simonton, 2004). However there has often been little opportunity for students to be creative in the early years of an undergraduate science curriculum. In previous work we have used the creative expressions of students to gain insight into world views and attitudes (Rolka and Bulmer, 2005). In this paper we present an innovative virtual environment for teaching and learning that aims to encourage creative scientific investigation but that has also been built through the creative input of students. We begin with an overview of this environment, the “Island”, and its initial design before looking at three ways in which student creativity has been harnessed in its development
Aesthetic democracy
No full textAesthetic Democracy argues that art and the aesthetic in general are the founding condition of the possibility of establishing social and political democracy. The book examines contemporary criticism and finds that it is historically shaped by colonialism, and that it sets up an opposition of east and west that shapes all contemporary cultural politics. The author argues for a way of outwitting this potentially dangerous struggle of east and west grounded in an aestheticism and a validation of sensory experience. Docherty proposes a new model of cultural critique, based on a revitalized and positively valorized notion of "hypocrisy," whose roots lie in Machiavelli, but whose contemporary strength lies in its potential for an ethical encounter with alterity as such
Cross-Entropy Optimization using Xgrid
No full textXgrid provides a simple interface and architecture for distributed computing. In this paper we discuss the use of Xgrid on an undergraduate teaching network consisting of 162 eMacs situated in a number of computing labs. We give an overview of the setup and the results of a test of the grid for calculating π. We then introduce Cross- Entropy optimization, a recently developed method that is amenable to parallel implementation. Optimization results and performance are given for varying numbers of grid nodes, demonstrating the successful scalability of parallel computing on the Xgrid
Philosophies of Marxism: Gramsci, Lukacs, Benjamin, Althusser
No full textTable of contents : 1. The beginnings of phenomenology: Husserl and his predecessors Richard Cobb-Stevens, Boston College
2. Philosophy of existence 1: Heidegger Jacques Taminiaux, University of Louvain, Belgium
3. Philosophy of existence 2: Sartre Thomas Flynn, Emory University
4. Philosophy of existence 3: Merleau-Ponty Bernard Cullen, Queen's University, Belfast
5. Philosophies of religion: Jaspers, Marcel, Levinas William Desmond, Loyola College
6. Philosophies of science: Mach, Duhem, Bachelard Babette Babich, Fordham University
7. Philosophies of Marxism: Gramsci, Lukacs, Benjamin, Althusser Michael Kelly, University of Southampton
8. Critical theory: from Adorno to Habermas David Rasmussen, Boston College
9. Hermeneutics: Gadamer, Ricoeur Gary Madison, McMaster University
10. Italian idealism and after: Croce, Gentile, Vattimo Giacomo Rinaldi, University of Urbino, Italy
11. French structuralism and after: Barthes, Lacan, Lévi-Strauss, Foucault Hugh Silverman, State University of New York at Stony Brook
12. French feminism and after: de Beauvoir, Kristeva, Irigaray, Cixious Alison Ainley, Oxford Brookes University
13. Deconstruction Simon Critchley, Essex University
14. Derrida Timothy Mooney, Essex University
15. Postmodernist theory: Lyotard, Baudrillard Thomas Docherty, Trinity College, Dublin<br/
Mobile banking customization via user-defined tags
No full textIn this paper, we describe on-going work on mobile banking customization, particularly in the Australian context. The use of user-defined tags to facilitate personalized interactions in the mobile context is explored. The aim of this research is to find ways to improve mobile banking interaction. Customization is more significant in the mobile context than online due to factors such as smaller screen sizes and limited software and hardware capabilities, placing an increased emphasis on usability. This paper explains how user-defined tags can aid different types of customization at the interaction level. A preliminary prototype has been developed to demonstrate the mechanics of the proposed approach. Potential implications, design decisions and limitations are discussed with an outline of future work
General theory of stigmergy : modelling stigma semantics
No full textStigmergy is a biological term used when discussing a sub-set of insect swarm-behaviour describing the apparent organisation seen during their activities. Stigmergy describes a communication mechanism based on environment-mediated signals which trigger responses among the insects. This phenomenon is demonstrated in the behavior of ants and their food gathering process when following pheromone trails, where the pheromones are a form of environment-mediated communication. What is interesting with this phenomenon is that highly organized societies are achieved without an apparent management structure. \ud
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Stigmergy is also observed in human environments, both natural and engineered. It is implicit in the Web where sites provide a virtual environment supporting coordinative contributions. Researchers in varying disciplines appreciate the power of this phenomenon and have studied how to exploit it. As stigmergy becomes more widely researched we see its definition mutate as papers citing original work become referenced themselves. Each paper interprets these works in ways very specific to the research being conducted. Our own research aims to better understand what improves the collaborative function of a Web site when exploiting the phenomenon. However when researching stigmergy to develop our understanding we discover a lack of a standardized and abstract model for the phenomenon. Papers frequently cited the same generic descriptions before becoming intimately focused on formal specifications of an algorithm, or esoteric discussions regarding sub-facets of the topic. None provide a holistic and macro-level view to model and standardize the nomenclature. \ud
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This paper provides a content analysis of influential literature documenting the numerous theoretical and experimental papers that have focused on stigmergy. We establish that stigmergy is a phenomenon that transcends the insect world and is more than just a metaphor when applied to the human world. We present from our own research our general theory and abstract model of semantics of stigma in stigmergy. We hope our model will clarify the nuances of the phenomenon into a useful road-map, and standardise vocabulary that we witness becoming confused and divergent. Furthermore, this paper documents the analysis on which we base our next paper: Special Theory of Stigmergy: A Design Pattern for Web 2.0 Collaboration
Animating ideas: Communicating complex dynamic content
No full textThe broadband environment removes previous technical barriers to using animated explanations for online and mixed mode learning. University teachers are keenly taking up the opportunities this environment offers for animated presentation of dynamic content, especially with complex subject matter that learners find demanding. However, merely presenting animations of demanding content may be ineffective, even when such presentations communicate in a highly realistic manner. Until recently, university teachers and educational designers \Vere largely reliant on their intuitions and experience to guide the development of instructional animations. Unfortunately, such guidance may be unreliable and misleading, with the results in terms of learning being disappointing. This presentation details key design factors to be considered when developing animations intended to foster learning of complex dynamic content and argues the need for ne\V approaches to guide design. It presents examples and practical strategies for improving the contribution that such animations can make to learning
Is trucking along enough? An exploration of mid-career nurses’ satisfaction
No full textIs trucking along enough? An exploration of mid-career nurses’ satisfaction
Heather Docherty RN, BSN, BA, MA, CMRSN
Background: The topic of nursing retention and satisfaction has been the focus of much research; many studies have focused on the experience of novice nurses. This project focuses on exploring the factors that influence the job satisfaction of nurses who are “mid-career” in a sample of hospital’s medical surgical units. The approach to this work is informed by the theoretical work of Benner’s model of novice to expert as well Maslow’s work on hierarchy of needs.
Literature Review: A literature search was conducted in the spring of 2017 using keywords such as “nursing career satisfaction”, “job satisfaction”, mid-career nurses” and “nurse residency program”. Six articles were found that informed the topic; they were summarized in tabular format. A valid and reliable measure of nurse career overall satisfaction was also as included as a part of this review.
Purpose: PICOT What are the characteristics of nursing career satisfaction in mid-career nurses who work in a 3 medical surgical settings in a large teaching hospital in the northeastern United States?.
Methods/Discussion: This study used a quantitative approach using a survey which did not contain respondent identifiers. Permission to utilize the survey tool was obtained from the author. The survey, along with a letter of introduction, was distributed among three medical surgical units to mid-career nurses (had worked between 10-30 years); 28 were returned. Data analysis is pending.
Results: Information from this literature review and survey is expected to inform an intervention that will address mid-career nursing satisfaction
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