Modelling for planning building design - a critique of available approaches

This paper reviews four approaches used to create rational tools to aid the planning and the management of the building design process and then proposes a fifth approach. The new approach that has been developed is based on the mechanical aspects of technology rather than subjective design issues. The knowledge base contains, for each construction technology, a generic model of the detailed design process. Each activity in the process is specified by its input and output information needs. By connecting the input demands of one technology with the output supply from another technology a map or network of design activity is formed. Thus, it is possible to structure a specific model from the generic knowledge base within a KBE system.

Can adapting the homes of older people and providing assistive technology pay its way?

Background: Adaptations and assistive technology (AT) have an important role in enabling older people to remain in their own homes. Objective: To measure the feasibility and cost of adaptations and AT, and the scope for these to substitute and supplement formal care. Design: Detailed design studies to benchmark the adaptability of 82 properties against the needs of seven notional users. Setting: Social rented housing sector. Main outcome measures: Measures of the adaptability of properties, costs of care, adaptations and AT, and relationships between these costs. Results: The adaptability of properties varies according to many design factors and the needs of occupiers. The most adaptable properties were ground floor flats and bungalows; the least were houses, maisonettes and flats in converted houses. Purpose-built sheltered properties were generally more adaptable than corresponding mainstream properties but the opposite was the case for bungalows. Adaptations and AT can substitute for and supplement formal care, and in most cases the initial investment in adaptations and AT is recouped through subsequently lower care costs within the average life expectancy of a user. Conclusion: Appropriately selected adaptations and AT can make a significant contribution to the provision of living environments which facilitate independence. They can both substitute for traditional formal care services and supplement these services in a cost-effective way.

Beyond words: Aesthetic knowledge and knowing in design

Aesthetic knowledge comes from practitioners understanding the look, feel, smell, taste and sound of things. It is vital to work in many organizational contexts. In this paper, we explore aesthetic knowledge and knowing in organizations through detailed observation of design work in the architectural practice Edward Cullinan Architects. Through our research, we explore aesthetic knowledge in the context of architectural work, we unpack what it is, how it is generated, and how it is applied in design projects, shared between practitioners and developed at the level of the organization. Our analysis suggests that aesthetic knowledge plays an important part in organizational practice, not only as the symbolic context for work, but as an integral part of the work that people do. It suggests that aesthetic reflexivity, which involves an opening up and questioning of what is known, is experienced as part of practice as well as a `time out' from practice.

Knowledge practices in design: The role of visual representations as 'epistemic objects'

We use a detailed study of the knowledge work around visual representations to draw attention to the multidimensional nature of `objects'. Objects are variously described in the literatures as relatively stable or in flux; as abstract or concrete; and as used within or across practices. We clarify these dimensions, drawing on and extending the literature on boundary objects, and connecting it with work on epistemic and technical objects. In particular, we highlight the epistemic role of objects, using our observations of knowledge work on an architectural design project to show how, in this setting, visual representations are characterized by a `lack' or incompleteness that precipitates unfolding. The conceptual design of a building involves a wide range of technical, social and aesthetic forms of knowledge that need to be developed and aligned. We explore how visual representations are used, and how these are meaningful to different stakeholders, eliciting their distinct contributions. As the project evolves and the drawings change, new issues and needs for knowledge work arise. These objects have an `unfolding ontology' and are constantly in flux, rather than fully formed. We discuss the implications for wider understandings of objects in organizations and for how knowledge work is achieved in practice.

Emerging hybrid practices in construction design work: role of mixed media

Information technologies are used across all stages of the construction process, and are crucial in the delivery of large projects. Drawing on detailed research on a construction megaproject, we take a practice-based approach to examining the practical and theoretical tensions between existing ways of working and the introduction of new coordination tools in this paper. We analyze the new hybrid practices that emerge, using insights from actor-network theory to articulate the delegation of actions to material and digital objects within ecologies of practice. The three vignettes that we discuss highlight this delegation of actions, the “plugging” and “patching” of ecologies occurring across media and the continual iterations of working practices between different types of media. By shifting the focus from tools to these wider ecologies of practice, the approach has important managerial mplications for the stabilization of new technologies and practices and for managing technological change on large construction projects. We conclude with a discussion of new directions for research, oriented to further elaborating on the importance of the material in understanding change.

Design and development of a haptic dental training system - hapTEL

This paper presents a novel design of a virtual dental training system (hapTEL) using haptic technology. The system allows dental students to learn and practice procedures such as dental drilling, caries removal and cavity preparation for tooth restoration. This paper focuses on the hardware design, development and evaluation aspects in relation to the dental training and educational requirements. Detailed discussions on how the system offers dental students a natural operational position are documented. An innovative design of measuring and connecting the dental tools to the haptic device is also shown. Evaluation of the impact on teaching and learning is discussed.

Considering user attitude and behavior in persuasive systems design: the 3D-RAB model

As in any technology systems, analysis and design issues are among the fundamental challenges in persuasive technology. Currently, the Persuasive Systems Development (PSD) framework is considered to be the most comprehensive framework for designing and evaluation of persuasive systems. However, the framework is limited in terms of providing detailed information which can lead to selection of appropriate techniques depending on the variable nature of users or use over time. In light of this, we propose a model which is intended for analysing and implementing behavioural change in persuasive technology called the 3D-RAB model. The 3D-RAB model represents the three dimensional relationships between attitude towards behaviour, attitude towards change or maintaining a change, and current behaviour, and distinguishes variable levels in a user’s cognitive state. As such it provides a framework which could be used to select appropriate techniques for persuasive technology.

Considering user attitude and behaviour in persuasive systems design: the 3D-RAB model

As in any technology systems, analysis and design issues are among the fundamental challenges in persuasive technology. Currently, the Persuasive Systems Development (PSD) framework is considered to be the most comprehensive framework for designing and evaluation of persuasive systems. However, the framework is limited in terms of providing detailed information which can lead to selection of appropriate techniques depending on the variable nature of users or use over time. In light of this, we propose a model which is intended for analysing and implementing behavioural change in persuasive technology called the 3D-RAB model. The 3D-RAB model represents the three dimensional relationships between attitude towards behaviour, attitude towards change or maintaining a change, and current behaviour, and distinguishes variable levels in a user’s cognitive state. As such it provides a framework which could be used to select appropriate techniques for persuasive technology.

What have dendritic cells ever done for adjuvant design? Cellular and molecular methods for the rational development of vaccine adjuvants

Our new molecular understanding of immune priming states that dendritic cell activation is absolutely pivotal for expansion and differentiation of naïve T lymphocytes, and it follows that understanding DC activation is essential to understand and design vaccine adjuvants. This chapter describes how dendritic cells can be used as a core tool to provide detailed quantitative and predictive immunomics information about how adjuvants function. The role of distinct antigen, costimulation, and differentiation signals from activated DC in priming is explained. Four categories of input signals which control DC activation – direct pathogen detection, sensing of injury or cell death, indirect activation via endogenous proinflammatory mediators, and feedback from activated T cells – are compared and contrasted. Practical methods for studying adjuvants using DC are summarised and the importance of DC subset choice, simulating T cell feedback, and use of knockout cells is highlighted. Finally, five case studies are examined that illustrate the benefit of DC activation analysis for understanding vaccine adjuvant function.

Assessing L2 task performance: understanding effects of task design

The overarching aim of the research reported here was to investigate the effects of task structure and storyline complexity of oral narrative tasks on second language task performance. Participants were 60 Iranian language learners of English who performed six narrative tasks of varying degree of structure and storyline complexity in an assessment setting. A number of analytic detailed measures were employed to examine whether there were any differences in the participants’ performances elicited by the different tasks in terms of their accuracy, fluency, syntactic complexity and lexical diversity. Results of the data analysis showed that performance in the more structured tasks was more accurate and to a great extent more fluent than that in the less structured tasks. The results further revealed that syntactic complexity of L2 performance was related to the storyline complexity, i.e. more syntactic complexity was associated with narratives that had both foreground and background storylines. These findings strongly suggest that there is some unsystematic variance in the participants’ performance triggered by the different aspects of task design.

Task design and second language performance: the effect of narrative type on learner output

This article reports on a detailed empirical study of the way narrative task design influences the oral performance of second-language (L2) learners. Building on previous research findings, two dimensions of narrative design were chosen for investigation: narrative complexity and inherent narrative structure. Narrative complexity refers to the presence of simultaneous storylines; in this case, we compared single-story narratives with dual-story narratives. Inherent narrative structure refers to the order of events in a narrative; we compared narratives where this was fixed to others where the events could be reordered without loss of coherence. Additionally, we explored the influence of learning context on performance by gathering data from two comparable groups of participants: 60 learners in a foreign language context in Teheran and 40 in an L2 context in London. All participants recounted two of four narratives from cartoon pictures prompts, giving a between-subjects design for narrative complexity and a within-subjects design for inherent narrative structure. The results show clearly that for both groups, L2 performance was affected by the design of the task: Syntactic complexity was supported by narrative storyline complexity and grammatical accuracy was supported by an inherently fixed narrative structure. We reason that the task of recounting simultaneous events leads learners into attempting more hypotactic language, such as subordinate clauses that follow, for example, while, although, at the same time as, etc. We reason also that a tight narrative structure allows learners to achieve greater accuracy in the L2 (within minutes of performing less accurately on a loosely structured narrative) because the tight ordering of events releases attentional resources that would otherwise be spent on finding connections between the pictures. The learning context was shown to have no effect on either accuracy or fluency but an unexpectedly clear effect on syntactic complexity and lexical diversity. The learners in London seem to have benefited from being in the target language environment by developing not more accurate grammar but a more diverse resource of English words and syntactic choices. In a companion article (Foster & Tavakoli, 2009) we compared their performance with native-speaker baseline data and see that, in terms of nativelike selection of vocabulary and phrasing, the learners in London are closing in on native-speaker norms. The study provides empirical evidence that L2 performance is affected by task design in predictable ways. It also shows that living within the target language environment, and presumably using the L2 in a host of everyday tasks outside the classroom, confers a distinct lexical advantage, not a grammatical one.

Isotype: design and contexts 1925–1971

The work in graphic communication carried out by Otto Neurath and his associates – now commonly known simply as Isotype – has been the subject of much interest in recent years. Conceived and developed in the 1920s as ‘the Vienna method of pictorial statistics’, this approach to designing information had from its inception the power to grow and spread internationally. Political developments in Europe played their part in its development, and production moved to the Netherlands (1934) and to England (1940), where the Isotype Institute continued to produce work until 1971. Bringing together the latest research, this book is the first comprehensive, detailed account of its subject. The Austrian, Dutch, and English years of Isotype are described here freshly and extensively. There are chapters on the notable extensions of Isotype to Soviet Russia, the USA, and Africa. Isotype work in film and in designing for children is fully documented and discussed. Between these main chapters the book presents interludes documenting Isotype production visually. Three appendices reprint key documents. In its international coverage and its extensions into the wider terrain of history, this book opens a new vista in graphic design.

Considering the Feasibility of Semantic Model Design in the Built-Environment

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is the process of structuring, capturing, creating, and managing a digital representation of physical and/or functional characteristics of a built space [1]. Current BIM has limited ability to represent dynamic semantics, social information, often failing to consider building activity, behavior and context; thus limiting integration with intelligent, built-environment management systems. Research, such as the development of Semantic Exchange Modules, and/or the linking of IFC with semantic web structures, demonstrates the need for building models to better support complex semantic functionality. To implement model semantics effectively, however, it is critical that model designers consider semantic information constructs. This paper discusses semantic models with relation to determining the most suitable information structure. We demonstrate how semantic rigidity can lead to significant long-term problems that can contribute to model failure. A sufficiently detailed feasibility study is advised to maximize the value from the semantic model. In addition we propose a set of questions, to be used during a model’s feasibility study, and guidelines to help assess the most suitable method for managing semantics in a built environment.

Does more detailed information mean better performance? An experiment in information explicitness

Purpose – Investors are now able to analyse more noise-free news to inform their trading decisions than ever before. Their expectation that more information means better performance is not supported by previous psychological experiments which argue that too much information actually impairs performance. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the degree of information explicitness improves stock market performance. Design/methodology/approach – An experiment is conducted in a computer laboratory to examine a trading simulation manipulated from a real market-shock. Participants’ performance efficiency and effectiveness are measured separately. Findings – The results indicate that the explicitness of information neither improves nor impairs participants’ performance effectiveness from the perspectives of returns, share and cash positions, and trading volumes. However, participants’ performance efficiency is significantly affected by information explicitness. Originality/value – The novel approach and findings of this research add to the knowledge of the impact of information explicitness on the quality of decision making in a financial market environment.