SysteM of augmented reality for teaching kids: smartkids

As crianças do jardim de infância/pré-escola são um grupo de utilizadores muito especiais, uma vez que se encontram numa fase inicial das suas vidas onde têm de aprender a viver em sociedade, isto é, aprender a ouvir e respeitar as opiniões dos outros, partilhar os mesmos objectos e também a ajudar-se mutuamente. Este estudo mostra que através da utilização da tecnologia Realidade Aumentada, estas crianças são capazes de colaborar de uma forma espontânea suportada pela motivação, envolvimento e curiosidade. Descreve-se o design e a avaliação de um jogo de Realidade Aumentada, que consiste num sistema educativo para o ensino de crianças do pré-escolar. Este jogo permite que as crianças explorem conceitos tais como os animais e os meios onde vivem através de marcadores de Realidade Aumentada e de um tabuleiro de madeira. Estes marcadores consistem nas peças do jogo e através deles, as crianças podem manipular objectos virtuais em 3D. Foram realizados testes com diversas turmas de crianças em diferentes ambientes de aprendizagem, nomeadamente em escolas e num museu. Os resultados sugerem que o jogo é eficaz para obter níveis altos de concentração, motivação e colaboração entre as crianças, particularmente quando o feedback do jogo é fornecido de forma imediata. Os resultados mostram também que o jogo tem um impacto positivo sobre a experiência de aprendizagem das crianças.

Integrating eye tracking in virtual reality for stroke rehabilitation

This thesis reports on research done for the integration of eye tracking technology into virtual reality environments, with the goal of using it in rehabilitation of patients who suffered from stroke. For the last few years, eye tracking has been a focus on medical research, used as an assistive tool  to help people with disabilities interact with new technologies  and as an assessment tool  to track the eye gaze during computer interactions. However, tracking more complex gaze behaviors and relating them to motor deficits in people with disabilities is an area that has not been fully explored, therefore it became the focal point of this research. During the research, two exploratory studies were performed in which eye tracking technology was integrated in the context of a newly created virtual reality task to assess the impact of stroke. Using an eye tracking device and a custom virtual task, the system developed is able to monitor the eye gaze pattern changes over time in patients with stroke, as well as allowing their eye gaze to function as an input for the task. Based on neuroscientific hypotheses of upper limb motor control, the studies aimed at verifying the differences in gaze patterns during the observation and execution of the virtual goal-oriented task in stroke patients (N=10), and also to assess normal gaze behavior in healthy participants (N=20). Results were found consistent and supported the hypotheses formulated, showing that eye gaze could be used as a valid assessment tool on these patients. However, the findings of this first exploratory approach are limited in order to fully understand the effect of stroke on eye gaze behavior. Therefore, a novel model-driven paradigm is proposed to further understand the relation between the neuronal mechanisms underlying goal-oriented actions and eye gaze behavior.

Anonimato e fama no reality show BBB 3

In the present work we make an incursion about the Reality Show, in a specific study of the program Big Brother 3 (BBB 3) approaching the question of Anonymity and Fame, though of its Narratives Strategic. We search to explain phenomenon of transformations of anonymous people in celebrities, showing all net of relationships established by the participants of BBB 3, during the together in the setting house, stage of the tram that tells the daily one of a group of youngs. Supported in concepts of it and Reality Show, the work is link the theories semiotic of means, proposal for Algirda Julien Greimas. We stand out strategies of the program, showing that they on the basis of structuralize elements fiction that stimulate and seduce the receiving public. How empirical reference, the work bases on the program Big Brother Brazil, shown for the Rede Globo de Televisão opened canal, in period of January 14 to April 01 of 2003. Ahead of the results gotten in analysis, we verify that BBB 3 is a format of reality and fiction. What although to create the effect of a hurt of real everything to show, its reality artificial, built principally for edition of the images

Visibilidade espetacular e relações de poder no reality show BB9

Dans le présent travail, nous faisons une incursion sur l'exposition de la réalité, dans une étude spécifique du programme Big Brother Brasil 9, approcher le sujet de la visibilité et de l'exposition à travers les concepts de la culture, corps, à et communication. Nous avons lié l'him/it à la théorie de pouvoir proposée par Michel Foucault. Le corps, dans notre analyse, est prisonnier à ordinateur individuel propulse, en camionnant des transformations dans le filet de rapports établis pour les participants de BBB. Nous avons cherché, à travers un plurimetodológica de l'approche, expliquer comme ils sentent les rapports de pouvoir dans ce televisivo du programme/jeu et la transformation des gens anonymes dans célébrités, raconter, avec tout ce avec la logique d'une consommation d'images. Dans l´époque contemporain, les images sont mediateurs puissants de la communication et ils servent de support au midiatique des produits, dans la fiction et banalité ou actions différentes et expériences du quotidien. Comme référence de recherche empirique, le travail est basé au Big Brother-9, a exposé par le Globe Net de Télévision, canal ouvert, dans la période du 13 janvier à avril 07, 2009. Avant que les résultats aient obtenu par l'analyse, nous avons vérifié ce BBB-9 à travers les plusieurs épreuves, les preuves et situations ont créé au-dedans parmi les participants du jeu il met à jour des rapports de pouvoir et d'exclusion, dans le différend pour le succès individuel, le tout coût. Le publique/telespectateur quand participe à travers le vote du programme travaille comme un régulateur pédagogique qu'il qualifie, Il classifique et il punit les conduites privées des joueurs, en étant responsable pour l'acceptation possible, ou pas, des gens, pendant s'écouler du jeu

Dental Implants in Patients With Osteoporosis: A Clinical Reality?

Osteoporosis is a systemic disorder characterized by generalized decrease in bone mineral density. Dental implantology is a specialty with high predictability when both quantity and quality of the bone are respected. Therefore, the diagnosis and the implant treatment in patients with osteoporosis are important. In the current study, a literature review about osteoporosis and dental implant therapy was conducted. PubMed, Cochrane, ISI, Dentistry Oral Science, SciELO, and Bireme databases were consulted over the last 20 years. English- and Portuguese-language articles were included in this revision. Some authors stated that the osteoporotic bone is similar to the proposed model of bone type IV. Randomized clinical studies reported implant failure in patients with osteoporosis after menopause. Studies that contraindicate the use of implants in patients with osteoporosis infer that the impaired bone metabolism led to reduction of bone healing around the implants. Nevertheless, other authors believe that the presence of osteoporosis is not a definitive condition to contraindicate the therapy with dental implants. In these cases, the dentist should perform a proper treatment planning, modifying the implant geometry, and use larger implant diameter and with surface treatment. Thus, osteoporosis is not a contraindication for implant surgery because an accurate analysis of bone quality by means tomography is performed.

Animal welfare: from concepts to reality.

In this review, we provide a brief retrospective history of the science of animal welfare and recognize the sentience of non-human animals; however, we emphasize that crucial problems remain regarding how to define and measure animal welfare. In general, the use of physiological measures to assess welfare is discouraged. Furthermore, there is a theoretical background for measures of stress, but not for welfare states because life may not be at risk. Instead, a preference or choice-based approach, which is based on the animal decision, is recommended. To this end, welfare is discussed and then contrasted with disease, health, stress and distress. In addition, the importance of prospective capacities for the welfare of human and non-human animals is discussed.

Design and ergonomics of package inserts of drugs in Brazil: a reality in construction

This research deals with the design of leaflets of medicines, evidencing the problems resulting from the lack of Brazilian normalization to promote the use of the graphical representation of instructional texts warnings. It approaches studies related to the effectiveness and efficiency of information systems, highlighting the semiotics and the cultural and informational ergonomics. The analysis of the context uses as method, an analytical study on selected warnings of thirty leaflets of medicines, followed by interviews lead with the public managers involved with the regulation of the pharmaceutical companies, and two experiments with users performed in city of Recife, in State of Pernambuco: one aiming at to identify how they interact with the leaflets of medicines, and the second one testing their understanding concerning standardized illustrations in the United States and the South Africa. The results show the need for improvements in presentation and graphic representation of leaflets of medicines, powering them to the role of communication, to ensure the consumption of medicine safely by its users. The conclusion congregates parameters and recommendations for the graphic representation of warnings in leaflets of medicines in Brazil.

ARISupport - Interaction support for augmented reality systems

The communication between user and software is a basic stage in any Interaction System project. In interactive systems, this communication is established by the means of a graphical interface, whose objective is to supply a visual representation of the main entities and functions present in the Virtual Environment. New ways of interacting in computational systems have been minimizing the gap in the relationship between man and computer, and therefore enhancing its usability. The objective of this paper, therefore, is to present a proposal for a non-conventional user interface library called ARISupport, which supplies ARToolKit applications developers with an opportunity to create simple GUI interfaces, and provides some of the functionality used in Augmented Reality systems. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2005.

Library in virtual reality: An innovative way for accessing, disseminating, and sharing information

This paper focuses on Virtual Reality (VR) as a very powerful technology that can be applied to the libraries, aiming at contributing to the activities of accessing, disseminating, and sharing information. The paper presents the VR concept and describes some libraries in virtual reality under utilization in different countries. In the final considerations, it is pointed out the use of virtual reality to develop libraries as collaborative virtual environments.

Support on the remote interaction for augmented reality system

This article presents a support on the remote interaction for utilization in augmented reality systems based on ARToolkit. It utilizes the multicast communication in order to improve the scalability of distributed environment. This support may be utilized in production of specific applications pointed to distance education, training and entertainment. The validity of support happened with the implementation of a prototype and realization of tests for communication latency analysis and frames per second rate. © 2007 IEEE.

The generation of scenes in mixed reality environments using the chromakey technique

A classic problem in the development of Mixed Reality systems is the registration. The correct alignment between virtual objects and the real elements is extremely important for the coherent composition of the resultant scene. Considering this context, this paper describes an approach for the composition of scenes in Mixed Reality environments using the chromakey technique for the extraction of real objects. After that, the scene is mounted in a coherent way related to the depth in OpenGL framebuffer for posterior rendering. ©2007 IEEE.

Trade and economic growth: a Latin American perspective on rhetoric and reality

Incluye Bibliografía

Reality and language in The Voyage Out, by Virginia Woolf

This article discusses one of Virginia Woolf's greatest literary concerns: the difficulty of expressing human experience through language. The focus is on The Voyage Out, her first novel, published in 1915, particularly the conflicts and contrasts present not only in the trajectory of Rachel Vinrace, the main character, but also in the structure of the novel itself, which establish a constant tension between reality and language.