A conceptual client-designer framework: Inspiring the development of inclusive design interactive techniques

The adoption of inclusive design approach into design practice is compatible to the needs of an ageing society. However, tools and methods that promote inclusivity during new product development are scarcely used in industry. This paper is part of a research project that investigates ways to accommodate inclusive design into the design process in industrial context. The present paper is based on the finds from the observations and interviews with industrial designers and interviews with stakeholders. The outcomes from the study supported a better understanding of the client-designer dynamic as well as the stages in the design process where information related to inclusive design could be introduced. The findings were essential to inspire the development of an inclusive design interactive technique to be used by clients and designers. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Interactive multi-objective particle swarm optimisation using decision space interaction

The most common approach to decision making in multi-objective optimisation with metaheuristics is a posteriori preference articulation. Increased model complexity and a gradual increase of optimisation problems with three or more objectives have revived an interest in progressively interactive decision making, where a human decision maker interacts with the algorithm at regular intervals. This paper presents an interactive approach to multi-objective particle swarm optimisation (MOPSO) using a novel technique to preference articulation based on decision space interaction and visual preference articulation. The approach is tested on a 2D aerofoil design case study and comparisons are drawn to non-interactive MOPSO. © 2013 IEEE.

Phycobilisome-Deficient Strains of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 Have Reduced Size and Require Carbon-Limiting Conditions to Exhibit Enhanced Productivity.

Reducing excessive light harvesting in photosynthetic organisms may increase biomass yields by limiting photoinhibition and increasing light penetration in dense cultures. The cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 harvests light via the phycobilisome, which consists of an allophycocyanin core and six radiating rods, each with three phycocyanin (PC) discs. Via targeted gene disruption and alterations to the promoter region, three mutants with two (pcpcT→C) and one (ΔCpcC1C2:pcpcT→C) PC discs per rod or lacking PC (olive) were generated. Photoinhibition and chlorophyll levels decreased upon phycobilisome reduction, although greater penetration of white light was observed only in the PC-deficient mutant. In all strains cultured at high cell densities, most light was absorbed by the first 2 cm of the culture. Photosynthesis and respiration rates were also reduced in the ΔCpcC1C2:pcpcT→C and olive mutants. Cell size was smaller in the pcpcT→C and olive strains. Growth and biomass accumulation were similar between the wild-type and pcpcT→C under a variety of conditions. Growth and biomass accumulation of the olive mutant were poorer in carbon-saturated cultures but improved in carbon-limited cultures at higher light intensities, as they did in the ΔCpcC1C2:pcpcT→C mutant. This study shows that one PC disc per rod is sufficient for maximal light harvesting and biomass accumulation, except under conditions of high light and carbon limitation, and two or more are sufficient for maximal oxygen evolution. To our knowledge, this study is the first to measure light penetration in bulk cultures of cyanobacteria and offers important insights into photobioreactor design.

scenario-based interactive intention understanding in pen-based user interfaces

Interactive intention understanding is important for Pen-based User Interface (PUI). Many works on this topic are reported, and focus on handwriting or sketching recognition algorithms at the lexical layer. But these algorithms cannot totally solve the problem of intention understanding and can not provide the pen-based software with high usability. Hence, a scenario-based interactive intention understanding framework is presented in this paper, and is used to simulate human cognitive mechanisms and cognitive habits. By providing the understanding environment supporting the framework, we can apply the framework to the practical PUI system. The evaluation of the Scientific Training Management System for the Chinese National Diving Team shows that the framework is effective in improving the usability and enhancing the intention understanding capacity of this system.

Developing a Pedagogy for Interactive Learning.

Recent developments in higher education have seen the demise of much didactic, teacher-directed instruction which was aimed mainly towards lower-level educational objectives. This traditional educational approach has been largely replaced by methods which feature the teacher as an originator or facilitator of interactive and learner-centred learning - with higher-level aims in mind. The origins of, and need for, these changes are outlined, leading into an account of the emerging pedagogical approach to interactive learning, featuring facilitation and reflection. Some of the main challenges yet to be confronted effectively in consolidating a sound and comprehensive pedagogical approach to interactive development of higher level educational aims are outlined.

Interactive support effects on career agency and occupational engagement among young adults.

The PIC model by Gati and Asher describes three career decision making stages: pre-screening, in-depth exploration, and choice of career options. We consider the role that three different forms of support (general career support by parents, emotional/instrumental support, and informational support) may play for young adults in each of these three decision-making stages. The authors further propose that different forms of support may predict career agency and occupational engagement, which are important career decision precedents. In addition, we consider the role of personality traits and perceptions (decision-making window) on these two outcomes. Using an online survey sample (N = 281), we found that general career support was important for career agency and occupational engagement. However, it was the combination of higher general career support with either emotional/instrumental support or informational support that was found to lead to both greater career agency and higher occupational engagement. Personality also played a role: Greater proactivity also led to greater occupational engagement, even when there was little urgency for participants to make decisions (window of decision-making was wide open and not restricted). In practical terms, the findings suggest that the learning required in each of the three PIC processes (pre-screening, in-depth exploration, choice of career options may benefit when the learner has access to the three support measures.

Agency and animation: the performance of interactive game characters

As an animator and practice-based researcher with a background in games development, I am interested in technological change in the video game medium, with a focus on the tools and technologies that drive game character animation and interactive story. In particular, I am concerned with the issue of ‘user agency’, or the ability of the end user to affect story development—a key quality of the gaming experience and essential to the aesthetics of gaming, which is defined in large measure by its interactive elements. In this paper I consider the unique qualities of the video game1 as an artistic medium and the impact that these qualities have on the production of animated virtual character performances. I discuss the somewhat oppositional nature of animated character performances found in games from recent years, which range from inactive to active—in other words, low to high agency. Where procedural techniques (based on coded rules of movement) are used to model dynamic character performances, the user has the ability to interactively affect characters in real-time within the larger sphere of the game. This game play creates a high degree of user agency. However, it lacks the aesthetic nuances of the more crafted sections of games: the short cut-scenes, or narrative interludes where entire acted performances are mapped onto game characters (often via performance capture)2 and constructed into relatively cinematic representations. While visually spectacular, cut-scenes involve minimal interactivity, so user agency is low. Contemporary games typically float between these two distinct methods of animation, from a focus on user agency and dynamically responsive animation to a focus on animated character performance in sections where the user is a passive participant. We tend to think of the majority of action in games as taking place via playable figures: an avatar or central character that represents a player. However, there is another realm of characters that also partake in actions ranging from significant to incidental: non-playable characters, or NPCs, which populate action sequences where game play takes place as well as cut scenes that unfold without much or any interaction on the part of the player. NPCs are the equivalent to supporting roles, bit characters, or extras in the world of cinema. Minor NPCs may simply be background characters or enemies to defeat, but many NPCs are crucial to the overall game story. It is my argument that, thus far, no game has successfully utilized the full potential of these characters to contribute toward development of interactive, high performance action. In particular, a type of NPC that I have identified as ‘pivotal’3—those constituting the supporting cast of a video game—are essential to the telling of a game story, particularly in genres that focus on story and characters: adventure games, action games, and role-playing games. A game story can be defined as the entirety of the narrative, told through non-interactive cut-scenes as well a interactive sections of play, and development of more complex stories in games clearly impacts the animation of NPCs. I argue that NPCs in games must be capable of acting with emotion throughout a game—in the cutscenes, which are tightly controlled, but also in sections of game play, where player agency can potentially alter the story in real-time. When the animated performance of NPCs and user agency are not continuous throughout the game, the implication is that game stories may be primarily told through short movies within games, making it more difficult to define video games animation as a distinct artistic medium.