Computational approaches to the visual validation of 3D virtual environments

Virtual environments can provide, through digital games and online social interfaces, extremely exciting forms of interactive entertainment. Because of their capability in displaying and manipulating information in natural and intuitive ways, such environments have found extensive applications in decision support, education and training in the health and science domains amongst others. Currently, the burden of validating both the interactive functionality and visual consistency of a virtual environment content is entirely carried out by developers and play-testers. While considerable research has been conducted in assisting the design of virtual world content and mechanics, to date, only limited contributions have been made regarding the automatic testing of the underpinning graphics software and hardware. The aim of this thesis is to determine whether the correctness of the images generated by a virtual environment can be quantitatively defined, and automatically measured, in order to facilitate the validation of the content. In an attempt to provide an environment-independent definition of visual consistency, a number of classification approaches were developed. First, a novel model-based object description was proposed in order to enable reasoning about the color and geometry change of virtual entities during a play-session. From such an analysis, two view-based connectionist approaches were developed to map from geometry and color spaces to a single, environment-independent, geometric transformation space; we used such a mapping to predict the correct visualization of the scene. Finally, an appearance-based aliasing detector was developed to show how incorrectness too, can be quantified for debugging purposes. Since computer games heavily rely on the use of highly complex and interactive virtual worlds, they provide an excellent test bed against which to develop, calibrate and validate our techniques. Experiments were conducted on a game engine and other virtual worlds prototypes to determine the applicability and effectiveness of our algorithms. The results show that quantifying visual correctness in virtual scenes is a feasible enterprise, and that effective automatic bug detection can be performed through the techniques we have developed. We expect these techniques to find application in large 3D games and virtual world studios that require a scalable solution to testing their virtual world software and digital content.

The capstone experience in law

An effective capstone experience provides closure through: Supporting students to synthesise their learning in the program by building upon the knowledge, skills and capability development that has taken place over the entirety of the curriculum; Providing enhanced opportunities for students to reflect on their personal and professional development over the course of their legal education experience and how that prepares them for their future professional and personal lives; Assisting students to attain an understanding of what it means to be a graduate of the discipline and begin to develop a professional identity.

A strategy for delayed research method selection : deciding between grounded theory and phenomenology

This paper presents a strategy for delayed research method selection in a qualitative interpretivist research. An exemplary case details how explorative interviews were designed and conducted in accordance with a paradigm prior to deciding whether to adopt grounded theory or phenomenology for data analysis. The focus here is to determine the most appropriate research strategy in this case the methodological framing to conduct research and represent findings, both of which are detailed. Research addressing current management issues requires both a flexible framework and the capability to consider the research problem from various angles, to derive tangible results for academia with immediate application to business demands. Researchers, and in particular novices, often struggle to decide on an appropriate research method suitable to address their research problem. This often applies to interpretative qualitative research where it is not always immediately clear which is the most appropriate method to use, as the research objectives shift and crystallize over time. This paper uses an exemplary case to reveal how the strategy for delayed research method selection contributes to deciding whether to adopt grounded theory or phenomenology in the initial phase of a PhD research project. In this case, semi-structured interviews were used for data generation framed in an interpretivist approach, situated in a business context. Research questions for this study were thoroughly defined and carefully framed in accordance with the research paradigm‟s principles, while at the same time ensuring that the requirements of both potential research methods were met. The grounded theory and phenomenology methods were compared and contrasted to determine their suitability and whether they meet the research objectives based on a pilot study. The strategy proposed in this paper is an alternative to the more „traditional‟ approach, which initially selects the methodological formulation, followed by data generation. In conclusion, the suggested strategy for delayed research method selection intends to help researchers identify and apply the most appropriate method to their research. This strategy is based on explorations of data generation and analysis in order to derive faithful results from the data generated.

Analysis of selection criteria for design-builders through the analysis of Request for Proposals (RFPs)

Selecting an appropriate design-builder is critical to the success of DB projects. The objective of this study is to identify selection criteria for design-builders and compare their relative importance by means of a robust content analysis of 94 Request For Proposals (RFPs) for public DB projects. These DB projects had an aggregate contract value of over US$3.5 billion and were advertised between 2000 and 2010. This study summarized twenty-six selection criteria and classified into ten categories, i.e.: price, experience, technical approach, management approach, qualification, schedule, past performance, financial capability, responsiveness to the RFP, and legal status in descending order of their relative importance. The results showed that even though price still remains as the most important selection category, its relative importance declines significantly in the last decade. The categories of qualification, experience, past performance, by contrast, have been becoming more important to DB owners for selecting design-builders. Finally, it is found that the importance weighting of price in large projects is significantly higher than that in small projects. This study provides a useful reference for owners in selecting their preferred design-builders.

Selection of project procurement methods in the consumer electronics industry : a Hong Kong study

Under pressure from both the ever increasing level of market competition and the global financial crisis, clients in consumer electronics (CE) industry are keen to understand how to choose the most appropriate procurement method and hence to improve their competitiveness. Four rounds of Delphi questionnaire survey were conducted with 12 experts in order to identify the most appropriate procurement method in the Hong Kong CE industry. Five key selection criteria in the CE industry are highlighted, including product quality, capability, price competition, flexibility and speed. This study also revealed that product quality was found to be the most important criteria for the “First type used commercially” and “Major functional improvements” projects. As for “Minor functional improvements” projects, price competition was the most crucial factor to be considered during the PP selection. These research findings provide owners with useful insights to select the procurement strategies.

Key competences of design-build clients in China

Purpose-- DB clients play a vital role in the delivery of DB system and the clients’ competences are critical to the success of DB projects. Most of DB clients, however, remain inexperienced with the DB system. This study, therefore, aims to identify the key competences that DB clients should possess to ensure the success of DB projects in the construction market of China. Design/Methodology/Approach -- Five semi-structured face-to-face interviews and two rounds Delphi questionnaire survey were conducted in the construction market of China to identify the key competences of DB clients. Rankings have been assigned to these key competences on the basis of their relative importance. Findings-- Six ranked key competences of DB clients have been identified, which are, namely, (1) the ability to clearly define project scope and objectives; (2) financial capacity for the projects; (3) capacity in contract management; (4) adequate staff or consulting team; (5) effective coordination with DB contractors and (6) experience with similar design-build projects. Calculation of Kendall’s Coefficient of Concordance (W) indicates a statistically significant consensus of panel experts on these top six key competences. Practical implications—Clients should clearly understand the competence requirements in DB projects and should assess their DB capability before going for the DB option. Originality/Value-- The examination of DB client’s key competences will help the client deepen the understanding of the DB system. DB clients can also make use of the research findings as guidelines to improve their DB competence.

Identification of key competences of design-builders in the construction market of the People’s Republic of China (PRC)

Design-builders play a vital role in the success of DB projects. In the construction market of the People’s Republic of China, most of the design-builders, however, lack adequate competences to conduct the DB projects successfully. The objective of this study is, therefore, to identify the key competences that design-builders should possess to not only ensure the success of DB projects but also acquire the competitive advantages in the DB market. Five semi-structured face-to-face interviews and two rounds of Delphi questionnaire survey were conducted to identify the key competences of design-builders. Rankings have been assigned to these key competences on the basis of their relative importance. Six ranked key competences of design-builders have been identified, which are, namely, (1) experience with similar DB projects; (2) capability of corporate management; (3) combination of building techniques and design expertise; (4) financial capability for DB projects; (5) enterprise qualification and scale; and (6) credit records and reputation in the industry. The design-builders can make use of the research findings as guidelines to improve their DB competence. These research findings will also be useful to clients during the selection of design-builders.

Identification of key competences of DB clients in the construction market of China

The design-build system has been demonstrated as an effective delivery method and gained popularity worldwide. Although there are an increasing number of clients adopting DB method in China, most of them remain inexperienced with method. The objective of this study is therefore to identify the key competences that a client or its consultant should possess to ensure the success of DB projects. Face-to-face interviews and a two-round Delphi questionnaire survey were conducted to find the following six key competences of clients, which include the (1) ability to clearly articulate project scope and objectives; (2) financial capacity for DB projects; (3) capability in contract management; (4) adequate staff or consulting team; (5) effective coordination with contractors and (6) experience with similar DB projects. This study will hopefully provide clients with measures to evaluate their DB competence and further promote their understanding of DB system in the PRC.

Delegation framework for federated systems

It is not uncommon for enterprises today to be faced with the demand to integrate and incor- porate many different and possibly heterogeneous systems which are generally independently designed and developed, to allow seamless access. In effect, the integration of these systems results in one large whole system that must be able, at the same time, to maintain the local autonomy and to continue working as an independent entity. This problem has introduced a new distributed architecture called federated systems. The most challenging issue in federated systems is to find answers for the question of how to efficiently cooperate while preserving their autonomous characteristic, especially the security autonomy. This thesis intends to address this issue. The thesis reviews the evolution of the concept of federated systems and discusses the organisational characteristics as well as remaining security issues with the existing approaches. The thesis examines how delegation can be used as means to achieve better security, especially authorisation while maintaining autonomy for the participating member of the federation. A delegation taxonomy is proposed as one of the main contributions. The major contribution of this thesis is to study and design a mechanism to support dele- gation within and between multiple security domains with constraint management capability. A novel delegation framework is proposed including two modules: Delegation Constraint Man- agement module and Policy Management module. The first module is designed to effectively create, track and manage delegation constraints, especially for delegation processes which require re-delegation (indirect delegation). The first module employs two algorithms to trace the root authority of a delegation constraint chain and to prevent the potential conflict when creating a delegation constraint chain if necessary. The first module is designed for conflict prevention not conflict resolution. The second module is designed to support the first module via the policy comparison capability. The major function of this module is to provide the delegation framework the capability to compare policies and constraints (written under the format of a policy). The module is an extension of Lin et al.'s work on policy filtering and policy analysis. Throughout the thesis, some case studies are used as examples to illustrate the discussed concepts. These two modules are designed to capture one of the most important aspects of the delegation process: the relationships between the delegation transactions and the involved constraints, which are not very well addressed by the existing approaches. This contribution is significant because the relationships provide information to keep track and en- force the involved delegation constraints and, therefore, play a vital role in maintaining and enforcing security for transactions across multiple security domains.

How was school today?

What I want to do in this Column, is to paint a picture of the current BPM education portfolios that are offered globally by universities active in the BPM space. To do so, I will draw on work I was involved in that reviewed the BPM teaching capacities of five universities in the United States, Europe, Africa and Australia. My ambition is to complement the listings in the BPTrends Academic Program with a more comprehensive and in-depth discussion of a selected set of universities. Let us explore how BPM capability development is implemented and offered in different universities around the globe.

Interfacing Jack and anybody : towards anthropometric musculoskeletal digital human modeling

Virtual prototyping emerges as a new technology to replace existing physical prototypes for product evaluation, which are costly and time consuming to manufacture. Virtualization technology allows engineers and ergonomists to perform virtual builds and different ergonomic analyses on a product. Digital Human Modelling (DHM) software packages such as Siemens Jack, often integrate with CAD systems to provide a virtual environment which allows investigation of operator and product compatibility. Although the integration between DHM and CAD systems allows for the ergonomic analysis of anthropometric design, human musculoskeletal, multi-body modelling software packages such as the AnyBody Modelling System (AMS) are required to support physiologic design. They provide muscular force analysis, estimate human musculoskeletal strain and help address human comfort assessment. However, the independent characteristics of the modelling systems Jack and AMS constrain engineers and ergonomists in conducting a complete ergonomic analysis. AMS is a stand alone programming system without a capability to integrate into CAD environments. Jack is providing CAD integrated human-in-the-loop capability, but without considering musculoskeletal activity. Consequently, engineers and ergonomists need to perform many redundant tasks during product and process design. Besides, the existing biomechanical model in AMS uses a simplified estimation of body proportions, based on a segment mass ratio derived scaling approach. This is insufficient to represent user populations anthropometrically correct in AMS. In addition, sub-models are derived from different sources of morphologic data and are therefore anthropometrically inconsistent. Therefore, an interface between the biomechanical AMS and the virtual human model Jack was developed to integrate a musculoskeletal simulation with Jack posture modeling. This interface provides direct data exchange between the two man-models, based on a consistent data structure and common body model. The study assesses kinematic and biomechanical model characteristics of Jack and AMS, and defines an appropriate biomechanical model. The information content for interfacing the two systems is defined and a protocol is identified. The interface program is developed and implemented through Tcl and Jack-script(Python), and interacts with the AMS console application to operate AMS procedures.

Integrated approach for HP-LNG pump diagnosis and prognostics based on health state probability estimation

This paper presents an innovative prognostics model based on health state probability estimation embedded in the closed loop diagnostic and prognostic system. To employ an appropriate classifier for health state probability estimation in the proposed prognostic model, the comparative intelligent diagnostic tests were conducted using five different classifiers applied to the progressive fault levels of three faults in HP-LNG pump. Two sets of impeller-rubbing data were employed for the prediction of pump remnant life based on estimation of discrete health state probability using an outstanding capability of SVM and a feature selection technique. The results obtained were very encouraging and showed that the proposed prognosis system has the potential to be used as an estimation tool for machine remnant life prediction in real life industrial applications.

Design for manufacturing : a review and case study

Design for Manufacturing (DFM) is a highly integral methodology in product development, starting from the concept development phase, with the aim of improving manufacturing productivity. It is used to reduce manufacturing costs in complex production environments, while maintaining product quality. While Design for Assembly (DFA) is focusing on elimination or combination of parts with other components, which in most cases relates to performing a function and manufacture operation in a simpler way, DFM is following a more holistic approach. Common consideration for DFM are standard components, manufacturing tool inventory and capability, materials compatibility with production process, part handling, logistics, tool wear and process optimization, quality control complexity or Poka-Yoke design. During DFM, the considerable background work required for the conceptual phase is compensated for by a shortening of later development phases. Current DFM projects normally apply an iterative step-by-step approach and eventually transfer to the developer team. The study is introducing a new, knowledge based approach to DFM, eliminating steps of DFM, and showing implications on the work process. Furthermore, a concurrent engineering process via transparent interface between the manufacturing engineering and product development systems is brought forward.

Characteristics of immigrant entrepreneurs and their involvement in international new ventures

We studied 561 young firms in Australia to understand the involvement of immigrant entrepreneurs (IE) in international new ventures (INV). We found that IE are over-represented in INV and have many characteristics known to facilitate INV success including more founders, university degree, international connections and technical capability. Our study has implications for immigration policy and economic policy and the efficient use of a nation’s human capital. This research challenges a necessity-based stereotype of immigrant entrepreneurs by identifying areas in which immigrant entrepreneurs have natural competitive advantages over native entrepreneurs. This research makes a contribution to the theory of immigrant entrepreneurship by identifying the significant role of immigrant entrepreneurs in INV and the suitability of immigrant entrepreneurs for the development INV. We inform diverse streams of research in transnational and immigrant entrepreneurship with broader strategic work on the creation of INV.

Introduction to special issue on what criminology can say about the war on terror

On 20 September 2001, the former US President, George W. Bush, declared what is now widely, and arguably infamously, known as a ‘war on terror’. In response to the fatal 9/11 attacks in New York and Washington, DC, President Bush identified the US military response as having far-reaching and long-lasting consequences. It was, he argued, ‘our war on terror’ that began ‘with al Qaeda, but … it will not end until every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped and defeated’ (CNN 2001). This was to be a war that would, in the words of former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, seek to eliminate a threat that was ‘aimed at the whole democratic world’ (Blair 2001). Blair claimed that this threat is of such magnitude that unprecedented measures would need to be taken to uphold freedom and security. Blair would later admit that it was a war that ‘divided the country’ and was based on evidence ‘about Saddam having actual biological and chemical weapons, as opposed to the capability to develop them, has turned out to be wrong’ (Blair 2004). The failures of intelligence ushered in new political rhetoric in the form of ‘trust me’ because ‘instinct is no science’ (Blair 2004). The war on terror has been one of the most significant international events in the past three decades, alongside the collapse of the former Soviet Union, the end of apartheid in South Africa, the unification of Europe and the marketization of the People's Republic of China. Yet, unlike the other events, it will not be remembered for advancing democracy or sovereignty, but for the conviction politics of particular politicians who chose to dispense with international law and custom in pursuit of personal instincts that proved fatal. Since the invasions of Afghanistan in October 2001 and …