Four Principles for Selecting HCI Research Questions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Clemmensen, Torkil

In this position paper, I present and explain the position that what we should study in HCI depends on the objective of the research and its political, social, cultural, technological, and historical context. I outline four principles for selecting research questions and give a personal account...... of how I have selected research questions using these four principles. The aim with the paper is to generate discussion and advance the understanding of what to study in HCI....

The English and northern (Sweden and Norway) systems regarding the questions posed by the white book; Les systemes anglais et nordiques (Suede et Norvege) au regard des questions posees dans le livre blanc

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Secretariat d' Etat a l' Industrie [ed.] [Secretariat d' Etat a l' Industrie, Ministere de l' Economie, des Finances et de l' Industrie, Paris (France)

1999-06-15

This report issued at request of Ministry of Economy, Finances and Industry - State Secretariat for Industry, presents an analysis of the way the European countries have liberalized their markets, which will be used to answer the questions posed by the white book titled 'Towards the future organization of the French electricity sector'. In the United Kingdom the reform, initiated on 1 April 1990, occurred as a genuine revolution, with the blow-up of CEGB, the equivalent of EDF in France. In Swede and Norway the evolution was progressive; the electric industry was actually not nationalized and the local collectivities, often owners of the production means, have remained the prominent actors. Other characteristic of these countries is the abundance of natural energetic resources, especially for United Kingdom and Norway where the objective of the power policy is of turning profitable the existent potential and not as in France, where the problem is to cope with the consequences of the lack of natural resources. This report contains two parts. The first part presents the main characteristics of the liberalized systems. Indeed while in an integrated system the logic is 'top - down', in a liberalized system the logic is 'bottom - up' i.e., the coordination is based on the market in a decentralized way. The instrument of this coordination is a contract by which the risks are shared among the actors (producers, bankers, distributors, customers). The central actor of the liberalized system is the network authority, so-called 'independent' with rather large autonomy, nominated by the Minister in charge with the energy policy. The network authority has essentially two functions: control and surveillance. In United Kingdom this agency has among his duties the promotion of competition, particularly in production sector, considered as still having monopole capabilities. In Swede and Norway this authority contents itself of only issuing

Yoga Poses Increase Subjective Energy and State Self-Esteem in Comparison to 'Power Poses'.

Science.gov (United States)

Golec de Zavala, Agnieszka; Lantos, Dorottya; Bowden, Deborah

2017-01-01

Research on beneficial consequences of yoga focuses on the effects of yogic breathing and meditation. Less is known about the psychological effects of performing yoga postures. The present study investigated the effects of yoga poses on subjective sense of energy and self-esteem. The effects of yoga postures were compared to the effects of 'power poses,' which arguably increase the sense of power and self-confidence due to their association with interpersonal dominance (Carney et al., 2010). The study tested the novel prediction that yoga poses, which are not associated with interpersonal dominance but increase bodily energy, would increase the subjective feeling of energy and therefore increase self-esteem compared to 'high power' and 'low power' poses. A two factorial, between participants design was employed. Participants performed either two standing yoga poses with open front of the body ( n = 19), two standing yoga poses with covered front of the body ( n = 22), two expansive, high power poses ( n = 21), or two constrictive, low power poses ( n = 20) for 1-min each. The results showed that yoga poses in comparison to 'power poses' increased self-esteem. This effect was mediated by an increased subjective sense of energy and was observed when baseline trait self-esteem was controlled for. These results suggest that the effects of performing open, expansive body postures may be driven by processes other than the poses' association with interpersonal power and dominance. This study demonstrates that positive effects of yoga practice can occur after performing yoga poses for only 2 min.

Learning How to Ask Research Questions

Science.gov (United States)

Musante, Susan

2010-01-01

Collaborative research is a demanding endeavor, and for a group of undergraduate students tasked with identifying their own interdisciplinary research problem, the challenges are even greater. "It was scary--we didn't know what to ask the professors, and we couldn't decide on a research question," says Miran Park, a student at the University of…

Students’ Mathematical Creative Thinking through Problem Posing Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Ulfah, U.; Prabawanto, S.; Jupri, A.

2017-09-01

The research aims to investigate the differences in enhancement of students’ mathematical creative thinking ability of those who received problem posing approach assisted by manipulative media and students who received problem posing approach without manipulative media. This study was a quasi experimental research with non-equivalent control group design. Population of this research was third-grade students of a primary school in Bandung city in 2016/2017 academic year. Sample of this research was two classes as experiment class and control class. The instrument used is a test of mathematical creative thinking ability. Based on the results of the research, it is known that the enhancement of the students’ mathematical creative thinking ability of those who received problem posing approach with manipulative media aid is higher than the ability of those who received problem posing approach without manipulative media aid. Students who get learning problem posing learning accustomed in arranging mathematical sentence become matter of story so it can facilitate students to comprehend about story

Series: Practical guidance to qualitative research: part 2: context, research questions and designs

OpenAIRE

Moser, Albine; Korstjens, Irene

2017-01-01

In the course of our supervisory work over the years, we have noticed that qualitative research tends to evoke a lot of questions and worries, so-called frequently asked questions (FAQs). This series of four articles intends to provide novice researchers with practical guidance for conducting high-quality qualitative research in primary care. By ‘novice’ we mean Master’s students and junior researchers, as well as experienced quantitative researchers who are engaging in qualitative research f...

Good science, bad science: Questioning research practices in psychological research

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bakker, M.

2014-01-01

In this dissertation we have questioned the current research practices in psychological science and thereby contributed to the current discussion about the credibility of psychological research. We specially focused on the problems with the reporting of statistical results and showed that reporting

In-the-wild facial expression recognition in extreme poses

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Fei; Zhang, Qian; Zheng, Chi; Qiu, Guoping

2018-04-01

In the computer research area, facial expression recognition is a hot research problem. Recent years, the research has moved from the lab environment to in-the-wild circumstances. It is challenging, especially under extreme poses. But current expression detection systems are trying to avoid the pose effects and gain the general applicable ability. In this work, we solve the problem in the opposite approach. We consider the head poses and detect the expressions within special head poses. Our work includes two parts: detect the head pose and group it into one pre-defined head pose class; do facial expression recognize within each pose class. Our experiments show that the recognition results with pose class grouping are much better than that of direct recognition without considering poses. We combine the hand-crafted features, SIFT, LBP and geometric feature, with deep learning feature as the representation of the expressions. The handcrafted features are added into the deep learning framework along with the high level deep learning features. As a comparison, we implement SVM and random forest to as the prediction models. To train and test our methodology, we labeled the face dataset with 6 basic expressions.

Analyzing Pre-Service Primary Teachers' Fraction Knowledge Structures through Problem Posing

Science.gov (United States)

Kilic, Cigdem

2015-01-01

In this study it was aimed to determine pre-service primary teachers' knowledge structures of fraction through problem posing activities. A total of 90 pre-service primary teachers participated in this study. A problem posing test consisting of two questions was used and the participants were asked to generate as many as problems based on the…

Series: Practical guidance to qualitative research : part 2: context, research questions and designs

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Albine Moser; Irene Korstjens

2017-01-01

In the course of our supervisory work over the years, we have noticed that qualitative research tends to evoke a lot of questions and worries, so-called frequently asked questions (FAQs). This series of four articles intends to provide novice researchers with practical guidance for conducting

Developing critical thinking through Socratic Questioning: An Action Research Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Husniah Sahamid

2016-07-01

Full Text Available An action research study was conducted among 24 Form 4 level Malaysian students, aged 16. The duration of the study was five months and constituted 16 one-hour literature lessons (short stories from the secondary level Malaysian English Language Upper Secondary Level school syllabus. This paper describes my experience as a teacher-as-researcher to assist students to respond to teacher questions through Paul’s (1993 model of Socratic Questioning which claims to develop students’ critical thinking. Data was collected through researcher’s field notes, students’ writing tasks and student interviews which were analysed after each cycle of the action research study. Changes and adaptations were consequently made based on the data collected and upon teacher reflection to improve practice. The results of this study indicate that repeated practice of Socratic Questioning had a positive effect on student responses and writing tasks. Some of the factors affecting students’ performance included students’ language proficiency, weak reading ability and students’ anxiety towards the questioning method. These issues had to be addressed and dealt with, before Socratic Questioning could be properly implemented in the classroom. Keywords: Socratic questioning, teacher questioning, critical thinking, action research

2D Methods for pose invariant face recognition

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Mokoena, Ntabiseng

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The ability to recognise face images under random pose is a task that is done effortlessly by human beings. However, for a computer system, recognising face images under varying poses still remains an open research area. Face recognition across pose...

Priority water research questions for South Africa developed through ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper describes a collaborative process of identifying and prioritising current and future water research questions from a wide range of water specialists within South Africa. Over 1 600 questions were collected, reduced in number and prioritised by specialists working in water research and practice. A total of 59 ...

Examining Research Questions on Germination from the Perspective of Scientific Creativity

Science.gov (United States)

Demir Kaçan, Sibel

2015-01-01

This study was conducted with the participation of 31 pre-service science teachers. Participants were asked to develop various research questions on germination. The study aims to examine research questions on the subject germination from the perspective of scientific creativity. The research questions were examined using the fluency, science…

HOW TO GENERATE AUTONOMOUS QUESTIONING IN SECONDARY MATHEMATICS TEACHING?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jessen, Britta Eyrich

2017-01-01

In mathematics education it is still a major challenge to find ways to nurture students to pose and pursue their own questions in order to learn mathematics. During the last three decades problem posing has been explored through different approaches and in empirical studies. This paper presents...... the result of an empirical study, where teaching was designed and conducted based on The Anthropological Theory of the Didactic. It is shown how a changed didactic contract and open generating questions posed by the teacher can support students’ autonomous questioning of the taught knowledge. In the study......, students developed knowledge that went beyond curriculum requirements through autonomous activities, which were different from more traditional school and pedagogical culture....

Questioning As a Pedagogical Tool for Eliciting Student Generated Questions During the Teaching of Acid-base Equilibria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ayoade Ejiwale Okanlawon

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Traditionally, teachers simply taught problem-solving by explaining the worked-out examples taken from textbooks and students were expected to listen quietly, copy the solution to the problem, and then work independently at their desks. But a large body of research notes that guiding students to develop a solution pathway with questioning is more effective than simply explaining the sequence of steps to solve the problem. Students involved in question- and-answer sessions are more attentive than those who listen passively to teacher explanations and they are more likely to generate questions. The questions students ask during a lesson perform a number of important functions, including providing the teacher with valuable information about students’ understanding and misunderstanding, fostering self-regulation, inviting classroom discussions and aiding comprehension of contents presented. The skill of posing questions during classroom instruction is often under-valued and under taught in today’s classrooms. To encourage students to ask quality and thought provoking questions related to the contents taught, explicit instruction is required. This paper, therefore, qualitatively reports factors that foster student generated questions during the problem-solving instruction involving acid-base titration problem.

Top 40 questions in coupled human and natural systems (CHANS research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Boyd. Kramer

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Understanding and managing coupled human and natural systems (CHANS is a central challenge of the 21st century, but more focus is needed to pursue the most important questions within this vast field given limited research capacity and funding. We present 40 important questions for CHANS research, identified through a two-part crowdsourcing exercise within the CHANS community. We solicited members of the International Network of Research on Coupled Human and Natural Systems (CHANS-Net to submit up to three questions that they considered transformative, receiving 540 questions from 207 respondents. After editing for clarity and consistency, we asked the network's members to each evaluate a random subset of 20 questions in importance on a scale from 1 (least important to 7 (extremely important. Questions on land use and agriculture topped the list, with a median importance ranking of 5.7, followed by questions of scale, climate change and energy, sustainability and development, adaptation and resilience, in addition to seven other categories. We identified 40 questions with a median importance of 6.0 or above, which we highlight as the current view of researchers active in the field as research questions to pursue in order to maximize impact on understanding and managing coupled human and natural systems for achieving sustainable development goals and addressing emerging global challenges.

Assessing the quality of pharmacist answers to telephone drug information questions.

Science.gov (United States)

Woodward, C T; Stevenson, J G; Poremba, A

1990-04-01

A quality assurance (QA) program is described in which frontline pharmacists were asked test drug information questions via anonymous telephone calls. The program was instituted at a university hospital that began providing decentralized pharmaceutical services in 1985. Questions were developed on the basis of a pilot study conducted to determine the types and complexity of drug information questions received by frontline pharmacists at the hospital. Data on departmental clinical productivity were used to determine the number of questions that would be posed during each shift in the various service areas. The questions were posed during a 10-day period; the pharmacists were aware of the program, but the callers did not identify their affiliation with it. In response to 105 questions asked, 86 were judged to have been answered correctly, 13 answers were deemed incomplete, and 6 were judged incorrect. Pharmacists were more likely to respond incorrectly to complex questions and questions posed during the night shift. As a result of the audit, staff members with advanced clinical knowledge were asked to help less experienced pharmacists, the position of assistant director for drug information and staff development was created, and educational programs were instituted. The QA audit has been repeated twice. Posing test drug information questions via anonymous telephone calls is effective in assessing the quality of drug information provided by pharmacists in patient-care areas.

Question Answering for Dutch : Simple does it

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hoekstra, A.H.; Hiemstra, Djoerd; van der Vet, P.E.; Huibers, Theo W.C.; Schobbens, Pierre-Yves; Vanhoof, Wim; Schwanen, Gabriel

2006-01-01

When people pose questions in natural language to search for information on the web, the role of question answering (QA) systems becomes important. In this paper the QAsystem simpleQA, capable of answering Dutch questions on which the answer is a person or a location, is described. The system's

How Pollination Ecology research can help answer important questions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carvalheiro, Luisa G.

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Pollination Ecology is a dynamic field of scientific research constantly adopting novel methods and making progress in understanding the interactions between plants and their pollinators. A recent paper listed the main scientific questions in this field focussing on the ecological and biological system itself. Here, we follow up on that paper and present some ideas on how to broaden our perspective and explore the role that pollination research can play in answering both ecological and societal questions relevant to a range of different stakeholders. We hope this paper may be useful to researchers aiming at improving both the scientific and societal impact of their research.

Frequently asked questions in hypoxia research

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Wenger RH

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Roland H Wenger,1,2 Vartan Kurtcuoglu,1,2 Carsten C Scholz,1,2 Hugo H Marti,3 David Hoogewijs1,2,4 1Institute of Physiology and Zurich Center for Human Physiology (ZIHP, University of Zurich, 2National Center of Competence in Research “Kidney.CH”, Zurich, Switzerland; 3Institute of Physiology and Pathophysiology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, 4Institute of Physiology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany Abstract: “What is the O2 concentration in a normoxic cell culture incubator?” This and other frequently asked questions in hypoxia research will be answered in this review. Our intention is to give a simple introduction to the physics of gases that would be helpful for newcomers to the field of hypoxia research. We will provide background knowledge about questions often asked, but without straightforward answers. What is O2 concentration, and what is O2 partial pressure? What is normoxia, and what is hypoxia? How much O2 is experienced by a cell residing in a culture dish in vitro vs in a tissue in vivo? By the way, the O2 concentration in a normoxic incubator is 18.6%, rather than 20.9% or 20%, as commonly stated in research publications. And this is strictly only valid for incubators at sea level. Keywords: gas laws, hypoxia-inducible factor, Krogh tissue cylinder, oxygen diffusion, partial pressure, tissue oxygen levels

Question-based inquiry. an experience in research education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

María Eugenia Plata Santos

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The present article introduces the central elements of the research and pedagogical innovation project entitled: “The Use of Questions as a Pedagogical Strategy in the Construction of Research Problems”, developed by the students of the ‘Rizoma’ research training group of the School of Psychopedagogy, which began in the year 2009, and which forms part of the “Educational Innovations” research line of the Masters sin Education Program at UPTC. The question as strategy, pedagogy or didactics, becomes an educational option for the development of thinking processes, and contributes to an education that embraces uncertainty, in order to develop flexible thinking, as well as critical and creative attitudes towards knowledge. These qualities constitute the basis of all research tasks, and are fundamental in the education of professionals in the midst of the current, fast-moving and uncertain postmodern condition. Emerging from the students’ and teacher’s own voices, this article offers an account of this experience and characterizes the findings of this education and research work.

When a Problem Is More than a Teacher's Question

Science.gov (United States)

Olson, Jo Clay; Knott, Libby

2013-01-01

Not only are the problems teachers pose throughout their teaching of great importance but also the ways in which they use those problems make this a critical component of teaching. A problem-posing episode includes the problem setup, the statement of the problem, and the follow-up questions. Analysis of problem-posing episodes of precalculus…

PRA has many faces - can the safety goal be well-posed

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bargmann, H.

1983-01-01

The question is discussed whether probabilistic reliability problems can, principally, be well-posed in practical situations. The problem is reduced to the question whether an underlying probabilistic experiment which is, essentially, the set of outcomes can be precisely specified such that the solution of the problem is unique. Upon reexamination of a classical paradox due to Bertrand and consideration of a typical problem of structural reliability we conclude that the possibility of well-posing a reliability problem should be considered illusory, for fundamental reasons which are inherent in practical situations. In particular, it should not be assumed that a quantitative safety goal could be verified. Generally, a probabilistic assessment should be considered as a quantitative method for establishing rational results which should, however, not be viewed as quantitative measures but as qualitative guides

Formulas in inverse and ill-posed problems

CERN Document Server

Anikonov, Yu E

1997-01-01

The Inverse and Ill-Posed Problems Series is a series of monographs publishing postgraduate level information on inverse and ill-posed problems for an international readership of professional scientists and researchers. The series aims to publish works which involve both theory and applications in, e.g., physics, medicine, geophysics, acoustics, electrodynamics, tomography, and ecology.

Using mixed methods to identify and answer clinically relevant research questions.

Science.gov (United States)

Shneerson, Catherine L; Gale, Nicola K

2015-06-01

The need for mixed methods research in answering health care questions is becoming increasingly recognized because of the complexity of factors that affect health outcomes. In this article, we argue for the value of using a qualitatively driven mixed method approach for identifying and answering clinically relevant research questions. This argument is illustrated by findings from a study on the self-management practices of cancer survivors and the exploration of one particular clinically relevant finding about higher uptake of self-management in cancer survivors who had received chemotherapy treatment compared with those who have not. A cross-sectional study generated findings that formed the basis for the qualitative study, by informing the purposive sampling strategy and generating new qualitative research questions. Using a quantitative research component to supplement a qualitative study can enhance the generalizability and clinical relevance of the findings and produce detailed, contextualized, and rich answers to research questions that would be unachievable through quantitative or qualitative methods alone. © The Author(s) 2015.

Multi-Task Convolutional Neural Network for Pose-Invariant Face Recognition

Science.gov (United States)

Yin, Xi; Liu, Xiaoming

2018-02-01

This paper explores multi-task learning (MTL) for face recognition. We answer the questions of how and why MTL can improve the face recognition performance. First, we propose a multi-task Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) for face recognition where identity classification is the main task and pose, illumination, and expression estimations are the side tasks. Second, we develop a dynamic-weighting scheme to automatically assign the loss weight to each side task, which is a crucial problem in MTL. Third, we propose a pose-directed multi-task CNN by grouping different poses to learn pose-specific identity features, simultaneously across all poses. Last but not least, we propose an energy-based weight analysis method to explore how CNN-based MTL works. We observe that the side tasks serve as regularizations to disentangle the variations from the learnt identity features. Extensive experiments on the entire Multi-PIE dataset demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work using all data in Multi-PIE for face recognition. Our approach is also applicable to in-the-wild datasets for pose-invariant face recognition and achieves comparable or better performance than state of the art on LFW, CFP, and IJB-A datasets.

Socratic Questioning: A Teaching Philosophy for the Student Research Consultation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shannon Marie Robinson

2017-11-01

Full Text Available In Brief Socratic questioning, the act of asking questions in order to prompt critical thinking and reflection, expands the boundaries of librarianship by borrowing from the fields of philosophy, pedagogy, and psychology. When employed during the research consultation, Socratic questioning establishes a cooperative relationship between librarian and student that empowers the student to take agency over the interaction. Engaging learners not only academically but emotionally encourages them to become more deliberate and cognizant as they articulate their research need. This paper demonstrates how reference librarians can adjust interactions with students in order to encourage, empathize, and engage with these learners.

Toward sustainable environmental quality: Identifying priority research questions for Latin America

Science.gov (United States)

Furley, Tatiana Heid; Brodeur, Julie; Silva de Assis, Helena C; Carriquiriborde, Pedro; Chagas, Katia R; Corrales, Jone; Denadai, Marina; Fuchs, Julio; Mascarenhas, Renata; Miglioranza, Karina SB; Miguez Caramés, Diana Margarita; Navas, José Maria; Nugegoda, Dayanthi; Planes, Estela; Rodriguez‐Jorquera, Ignacio Alejandro; Orozco‐Medina, Martha; Boxall, Alistair BA; Rudd, Murray A

2018-01-01

ABSTRACT The Global Horizon Scanning Project (GHSP) is an innovative initiative that aims to identify important global environmental quality research needs. Here we report 20 key research questions from Latin America (LA). Members of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) LA and other scientists from LA were asked to submit research questions that would represent priority needs to address in the region. One hundred questions were received, then partitioned among categories, examined, and some rearranged during a workshop in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Twenty priority research questions were subsequently identified. These research questions included developing, improving, and harmonizing across LA countries methods for 1) identifying contaminants and degradation products in complex matrices (including biota); 2) advancing prediction of contaminant risks and effects in ecosystems, addressing lab‐to‐field extrapolation challenges, and understanding complexities of multiple stressors (including chemicals and climate change); and 3) improving management and regulatory tools toward achieving sustainable development. Whereas environmental contaminants frequently identified in these key questions were pesticides, pharmaceuticals, endocrine disruptors or modulators, plastics, and nanomaterials, commonly identified environmental challenges were related to agriculture, urban effluents, solid wastes, pulp and paper mills, and natural extraction activities. Several interesting research topics included assessing and preventing pollution impacts on conservation protected areas, integrating environment and health assessments, and developing strategies for identification, substitution, and design of less hazardous chemicals (e.g., green chemistry). Finally, a recurrent research need included developing an understanding of differential sensitivity of regional species and ecosystems to environmental contaminants and other stressors. Addressing these critical

Toward sustainable environmental quality: Identifying priority research questions for Latin America.

Science.gov (United States)

Furley, Tatiana Heid; Brodeur, Julie; Silva de Assis, Helena C; Carriquiriborde, Pedro; Chagas, Katia R; Corrales, Jone; Denadai, Marina; Fuchs, Julio; Mascarenhas, Renata; Miglioranza, Karina Sb; Miguez Caramés, Diana Margarita; Navas, José Maria; Nugegoda, Dayanthi; Planes, Estela; Rodriguez-Jorquera, Ignacio Alejandro; Orozco-Medina, Martha; Boxall, Alistair Ba; Rudd, Murray A; Brooks, Bryan W

2018-05-01

The Global Horizon Scanning Project (GHSP) is an innovative initiative that aims to identify important global environmental quality research needs. Here we report 20 key research questions from Latin America (LA). Members of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) LA and other scientists from LA were asked to submit research questions that would represent priority needs to address in the region. One hundred questions were received, then partitioned among categories, examined, and some rearranged during a workshop in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Twenty priority research questions were subsequently identified. These research questions included developing, improving, and harmonizing across LA countries methods for 1) identifying contaminants and degradation products in complex matrices (including biota); 2) advancing prediction of contaminant risks and effects in ecosystems, addressing lab-to-field extrapolation challenges, and understanding complexities of multiple stressors (including chemicals and climate change); and 3) improving management and regulatory tools toward achieving sustainable development. Whereas environmental contaminants frequently identified in these key questions were pesticides, pharmaceuticals, endocrine disruptors or modulators, plastics, and nanomaterials, commonly identified environmental challenges were related to agriculture, urban effluents, solid wastes, pulp and paper mills, and natural extraction activities. Several interesting research topics included assessing and preventing pollution impacts on conservation protected areas, integrating environment and health assessments, and developing strategies for identification, substitution, and design of less hazardous chemicals (e.g., green chemistry). Finally, a recurrent research need included developing an understanding of differential sensitivity of regional species and ecosystems to environmental contaminants and other stressors. Addressing these critical questions will

Students’ Creativity: Problem Posing in Structured Situation

Science.gov (United States)

Amalina, I. K.; Amirudin, M.; Budiarto, M. T.

2018-01-01

This is a qualitative research concerning on students’ creativity on problem posing task. The study aimed at describing the students’ creative thinking ability to pose the mathematics problem in structured situations with varied condition of given problems. In order to find out the students’ creative thinking ability, an analysis of mathematics problem posing test based on fluency, novelty, and flexibility and interview was applied for categorizing students’ responses on that task. The data analysis used the quality of problem posing and categorized in 4 level of creativity. The results revealed from 29 secondary students grade 8, a student in CTL (Creative Thinking Level) 1 met the fluency. A student in CTL 2 met the novelty, while a student in CTL 3 met both fluency and novelty and no one in CTL 4. These results are affected by students’ mathematical experience. The findings of this study highlight that student’s problem posing creativity are dependent on their experience in mathematics learning and from the point of view of which students start to pose problem.

Power dynamics and questioning in elementary science lessons

Science.gov (United States)

Reinsvold, Lori Ann

Discourse interactions between a teacher and students in an inquiry-based fourth-grade science classroom were analyzed to investigate how power dynamics and questioning strategies within elementary science lessons help support students in building their science understanding. Five inquiry-based classroom sessions were observed; verbal interactions were audio- and video-recorded. Research data consisted of observation transcripts, teacher interviews, student work, and instructional materials. Analyses were conducted on the frequencies of utterances, participation roles, power categories, and questioning categories. Results revealed that when students used more frequent power, (a) no significant differences were noted between frequencies of teacher and student talk, (b) the teacher posed more questions than did the students, and (c) students explained what they knew and asked questions to clarify their understanding. When the teacher used more frequent power, she asked questions to provide students opportunities to negotiate investigative processes and explain what they knew and how they knew it. Evidence of student understanding of the science concepts was found in how students used subject matter to discuss what they knew and how they knew it. Pre-service and in-service teachers should be encouraged to consider how their use of power and questioning strategies can engage students to reflect on how they build understanding of science concepts. Teachers can use Professional Learning Communities to reflect on how their practice engages students. Future research should be employed to observe classrooms across an entire school year to determine how power and questioning dynamics flow among students and teachers and change over time. Research can also be used to understand the influence of gender and culture on power and questioning dynamics in classroom settings.

Effects of the Problem-Posing Approach on Students' Problem Solving Skills and Metacognitive Awareness in Science Education

Science.gov (United States)

Akben, Nimet

2018-05-01

The interrelationship between mathematics and science education has frequently been emphasized, and common goals and approaches have often been adopted between disciplines. Improving students' problem-solving skills in mathematics and science education has always been given special attention; however, the problem-posing approach which plays a key role in mathematics education has not been commonly utilized in science education. As a result, the purpose of this study was to better determine the effects of the problem-posing approach on students' problem-solving skills and metacognitive awareness in science education. This was a quasi-experimental based study conducted with 61 chemistry and 40 physics students; a problem-solving inventory and a metacognitive awareness inventory were administered to participants both as a pre-test and a post-test. During the 2017-2018 academic year, problem-solving activities based on the problem-posing approach were performed with the participating students during their senior year in various university chemistry and physics departments throughout the Republic of Turkey. The study results suggested that structured, semi-structured, and free problem-posing activities improve students' problem-solving skills and metacognitive awareness. These findings indicated not only the usefulness of integrating problem-posing activities into science education programs but also the need for further research into this question.

The ecological crisis: a question of justice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kempf, H.

2010-01-01

The question of ecology has become a major issue for international relations in the next half-century. But it poses new problems of worldwide justice more than questions of power politics, and its solution will always be a reflection of internal social issues in the countries concerned. (author)

"To Obey or Disobey? This Is the Question" NDE: Nonviolent Disobedience Education in Israeli and US Civics Textbooks (1980-2012)

Science.gov (United States)

Firer, Ruth

2013-01-01

"To Obey or Disobey" should be a life question for all free people, but for the Israelis, who are in intractable war with their neighbors while facing constant rifts among themselves, it is a concrete problem they have to face every day. Therefore, the research question posed by this article is: How is obedience of laws or military…

On framing the research question and choosing the appropriate research design.

Science.gov (United States)

Parfrey, Patrick S; Ravani, Pietro

2015-01-01

Clinical epidemiology is the science of human disease investigation with a focus on diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment. The generation of a reasonable question requires definition of patients, interventions, controls, and outcomes. The goal of research design is to minimize error, to ensure adequate samples, to measure input and output variables appropriately, to consider external and internal validities, to limit bias, and to address clinical as well as statistical relevance. The hierarchy of evidence for clinical decision-making places randomized controlled trials (RCT) or systematic review of good quality RCTs at the top of the evidence pyramid. Prognostic and etiologic questions are best addressed with longitudinal cohort studies.

Disciplinarity and Methodology in Intersectionality Theory and Research

Science.gov (United States)

Syed, Moin

2010-01-01

Comments on the original article, "Intersectionality and research in psychology," by E. R. Cole. Cole's article, says the current author, makes a welcome and valuable contribution to the field of psychology. Particularly useful are the three questions that she posed, highlighting how these questions are relevant and pressing for all researchers,…

Enhancing students’ mathematical problem posing skill through writing in performance tasks strategy

Science.gov (United States)

Kadir; Adelina, R.; Fatma, M.

2018-01-01

Many researchers have studied the Writing in Performance Task (WiPT) strategy in learning, but only a few paid attention on its relation to the problem-posing skill in mathematics. The problem-posing skill in mathematics covers problem reformulation, reconstruction, and imitation. The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of WiPT strategy on students’ mathematical problem-posing skill. The research was conducted at a Public Junior Secondary School in Tangerang Selatan. It used a quasi-experimental method with randomized control group post-test. The samples were 64 students consists of 32 students of the experiment group and 32 students of the control. A cluster random sampling technique was used for sampling. The research data were obtained by testing. The research shows that the problem-posing skill of students taught by WiPT strategy is higher than students taught by a conventional strategy. The research concludes that the WiPT strategy is more effective in enhancing the students’ mathematical problem-posing skill compared to the conventional strategy.

Do colors exist? and other profound physics questions

CERN Document Server

Cottrell, Seth Stannard

2018-01-01

Why do polished stones look wet? How does the Twin Paradox work? Why are orbits ellipses? How can we be sure that pi never repeats? How does a quantum computer break encryption? Discover the answers to these, and other profound physics questions! This fascinating book presents a collection of articles based on conversations and correspondences between the author and complete strangers about physics and math. The author, a researcher in mathematical physics, responds to dozens of questions posed by inquiring minds from all over the world, ranging from the everyday to the profound. Rather than unnecessarily complex explanations mired in mysterious terminology and symbols, the reader is presented with the reasoning, experiments, and mathematics in a casual, conversational, and often comical style. Neither over-simplified nor over-technical, the lucid and entertaining writing will guide the reader from the each innocent question to a better understanding of the weird and beautiful universe around us. Advance prai...

Questions That Won't Go Away in Participatory Research

Science.gov (United States)

Jonathan W. Long; Heidi L. Ballard; Larry A. Fisher; Jill M. Belsky

2016-01-01

Ethical issues are intrinsic to conducting research regarding society and natural resources, but they often become poignant when engaging in Participatory Action Research. We compiled common and persistent challenges into a list of "Questions That Won't Go Away" or "QTWGAs" that are relevant to people interested in conducting participatory...

FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions regarding the IDRC Research ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

IDRC CRDI

Questions. 1. If I am selected for a Research Award, do I need a work permit to ... Yes, you are responsible for obtaining a valid work permit and proper visa prior to ... is the deadline for awards starting in January of the following calendar year.

Semantic annotation of consumer health questions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kilicoglu, Halil; Ben Abacha, Asma; Mrabet, Yassine; Shooshan, Sonya E; Rodriguez, Laritza; Masterton, Kate; Demner-Fushman, Dina

2018-02-06

Consumers increasingly use online resources for their health information needs. While current search engines can address these needs to some extent, they generally do not take into account that most health information needs are complex and can only fully be expressed in natural language. Consumer health question answering (QA) systems aim to fill this gap. A major challenge in developing consumer health QA systems is extracting relevant semantic content from the natural language questions (question understanding). To develop effective question understanding tools, question corpora semantically annotated for relevant question elements are needed. In this paper, we present a two-part consumer health question corpus annotated with several semantic categories: named entities, question triggers/types, question frames, and question topic. The first part (CHQA-email) consists of relatively long email requests received by the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM) customer service, while the second part (CHQA-web) consists of shorter questions posed to MedlinePlus search engine as queries. Each question has been annotated by two annotators. The annotation methodology is largely the same between the two parts of the corpus; however, we also explain and justify the differences between them. Additionally, we provide information about corpus characteristics, inter-annotator agreement, and our attempts to measure annotation confidence in the absence of adjudication of annotations. The resulting corpus consists of 2614 questions (CHQA-email: 1740, CHQA-web: 874). Problems are the most frequent named entities, while treatment and general information questions are the most common question types. Inter-annotator agreement was generally modest: question types and topics yielded highest agreement, while the agreement for more complex frame annotations was lower. Agreement in CHQA-web was consistently higher than that in CHQA-email. Pairwise inter-annotator agreement proved most

Improving attitudes toward mathematics learning with problem posing in class VIII

Science.gov (United States)

Vionita, Alfha; Purboningsih, Dyah

2017-08-01

This research is classroom action research which is collaborated to improve student's behavior toward math and mathematics learning at class VIII by using problem posing approach. The subject of research is all of students grade VIIIA which consist of 32 students. This research has been held on two period, first period is about 3 times meeting, and second period is about 4 times meeting. The instrument of this research is implementation of learning observation's guidance by using problem posing approach. Cycle test has been used to measure cognitive competence, and questionnaire to measure the students' behavior in mathematics learning process. The result of research shows the students' behavior has been improving after using problem posing approach. It is showed by the behavior's criteria of students that has increasing result from the average in first period to high in second period. Furthermore, the percentage of test result is also improve from 68,75% in first period to 78,13% in second period. On the other hand, the implementation of learning observation by using problem posing approach has also improving and it is showed by the average percentage of teacher's achievement in first period is 89,2% and student's achievement 85,8%. These results get increase in second period for both teacher and students' achievement which are 94,4% and 91,11%. As a result, students' behavior toward math learning process in class VIII has been improving by using problem posing approach.

Problem Posing with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach in Geometry Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Mahendra, R.; Slamet, I.; Budiyono

2017-09-01

One of the difficulties of students in the learning of geometry is on the subject of plane that requires students to understand the abstract matter. The aim of this research is to determine the effect of Problem Posing learning model with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach in geometry learning. This quasi experimental research was conducted in one of the junior high schools in Karanganyar, Indonesia. The sample was taken using stratified cluster random sampling technique. The results of this research indicate that the model of Problem Posing learning with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach can improve students’ conceptual understanding significantly in geometry learning especially on plane topics. It is because students on the application of Problem Posing with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach are become to be active in constructing their knowledge, proposing, and problem solving in realistic, so it easier for students to understand concepts and solve the problems. Therefore, the model of Problem Posing learning with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach is appropriately applied in mathematics learning especially on geometry material. Furthermore, the impact can improve student achievement.

Top 10 research questions related to children physical activity motivation.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Ang

2013-12-01

Physical activity is critical to healthy development of children. It is well documented that helping children develop and sustain a physically active lifestyle requires children to become motivated. Many studies have been conducted in the past 2.5 decades on determinants and correlates for children and adolescents' physical activity motivation. The findings have informed researchers and practitioners about motivation sources for children and effective strategies to motivate children in given physical activity settings. Built on the extensive knowledge base and theoretical platforms formed by these research studies, the purpose of this article is to take a look at the current research landscape and provide subjective thoughts about what we still need to know about children's physical activity motivation. The product of this subjective thinking process rendered 10 potential questions for future research on children's physical activity motivation in both in-school and out-of-school settings. These topics encompass those focusing on children's physical activity motivation as a mental dispositional process, those conceptualizing the motivation as an outcome of person-environment interactions, and those attempting to dissect the motivation as an outcome of social-cultural influences and educational policies. It is hoped that the topics can serve researchers interested in children's physical activity motivation as starting blocks from which they can extend their conceptual thinking and identify research questions that are personally meaningful. It is also hoped that the list of potential questions can be helpful to researchers in accomplishing the imperative and significant mission to motivate children to be physically active in the 21st century and beyond.

Questions and answers on nuclear energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-04-01

Leading questions about nuclear power are posed. These include questions about how much extra radioactivity in the environments is due to the nuclear industry, the risk of a nuclear accident, radioactive wastes, nuclear power as a solution to the greenhouse effect, alternative energy sources, and the economics of nuclear power. The answers are presented from the view point of the authors, members of Greenpeace. A glossary, notes and references are included. (UK)

Novelty Detection for Interactive Pose Recognition by a Social Robot

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Victor Gonzalez-Pacheco

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Active robot learners take an active role in their own learning by making queries to their human teachers when they receive new data. However, not every received input is useful for the robot, and asking for non-informative inputs or asking too many questions might worsen the user's perception of the robot. We present a novelty detection system that enables a robot to ask labels for new stimuli only when they seem both novel and interesting. Our system separates the decision process into two steps: first, it discriminates novel from known stimuli, and second, it estimates if these stimuli are likely to happen again. Our approach uses the notion of curiosity, which controls the eagerness with which the robot asks questions to the user. We evaluate our approach in the domain of pose learning by training our robot with a set of pointing poses able to detect up to 84%, 79%, and 78% of the observed novelties in three different experiments. Our approach enables robots to keep learning continuously, even after training is finished. The introduction of the curiosity parameter allows tuning, for the conditions in which the robot should want to learn more.

Adding question answering to an e-tutor for programming languages

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Kate; Moore, Simon

Control over a closed domain of textual material removes many question answering issues, as does an ontology that is closely intertwined with its sources. This pragmatic, shallow approach to many challenging areas of research in adaptive hypermedia, question answering, intelligent tutoring and humancomputer interaction has been put into practice at Cambridge in the Computer Science undergraduate course to teach the hardware description language Veri/og. This language itself poses many challenges as it crosses the interdisciplinary boundary between hardware and software engineers, giving rise to severalhuman ontologies as well as theprogramming language itself We present further results from ourformal and informal surveys. We look at further work to increase the dialogue between studentand tutor and export our knowledge to the Semantic Web.

Predicting self-reported research misconduct and questionable research practices in university students using an augmented Theory of Planned Behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Rajah-Kanagasabai, Camilla J.; Roberts, Lynne D.

2015-01-01

This study examined the utility of the Theory of Planned Behavior model, augmented by descriptive norms and justifications, for predicting self-reported research misconduct and questionable research practices in university students. A convenience sample of 205 research active Western Australian university students (47 male, 158 female, ages 18–53 years, M = 22, SD = 4.78) completed an online survey. There was a low level of engagement in research misconduct, with approximately one in seven students reporting data fabrication and one in eight data falsification. Path analysis and model testing in LISREL supported a parsimonious two step mediation model, providing good fit to the data. After controlling for social desirability, the effect of attitudes, subjective norms, descriptive norms and perceived behavioral control on student engagement in research misconduct and questionable research practices was mediated by justifications and then intention. This revised augmented model accounted for a substantial 40.8% of the variance in student engagement in research misconduct and questionable research practices, demonstrating its predictive utility. The model can be used to target interventions aimed at reducing student engagement in research misconduct and questionable research practices. PMID:25983709

Pollination ecology in the 21st Century: Key questions for future research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jane C. Stout

2011-03-01

Full Text Available To inspire new ideas in research on pollination ecology, we list the most important unanswered questions in the field. This list was drawn up by contacting 170 scientists from different areas of pollination ecology and asking them to contribute their opinion on the greatest knowledge gaps that need to be addressed. Almost 40% of them took part in our email poll and we received more than 650 questions and comments, which we classified into different categories representing various aspects of pollination research. The original questions were merged and synthesised, and a final vote and ranking led to the resultant list. The categories cover plant sexual reproduction, pollen and stigma biology, abiotic pollination, evolution of animal-mediated pollination, interactions of pollinators and floral antagonists, pollinator behaviour, taxonomy, plant-pollinator assemblages, geographical trends in diversity, drivers of pollinator loss, ecosystem services, management of pollination, and conservation issues such as the implementation of pollinator conservation. We focused on questions that were of a broad scope rather than case-specific; thus, addressing some questions may not be feasible within single research projects but constitute a general guide for future directions. With this compilation we hope to raise awareness of pollination-related topics not only among researchers but also among non-specialists including policy makers, funding agencies and the public at large.

Boneless Pose Editing and Animation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bærentzen, Jakob Andreas; Hansen, Kristian Evers; Erleben, Kenny

2007-01-01

In this paper, we propose a pose editing and animation method for triangulated surfaces based on a user controlled partitioning of the model into deformable parts and rigid parts which are denoted handles. In our pose editing system, the user can sculpt a set of poses simply by transforming...... the handles for each pose. Using Laplacian editing, the deformable parts are deformed to match the handles. In our animation system the user can constrain one or several handles in order to define a new pose. New poses are interpolated from the examples poses, by solving a small non-linear optimization...... problem in order to obtain the interpolation weights. While the system can be used simply for building poses, it is also an animation system. The user can specify a path for a given constraint and the model is animated correspondingly....

On the question of pure or applied research in developing countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sioshansi, P.; Lodhi, A.S.; Payrovan, H.

1977-01-01

One particular approach to the question of pure versus applied research is discussed in this article. It is pointed out how a modest applied research project has been initiated in this laboratory and how this line of work has subsequently developed to include pure research in related areas

Improving the Development of Student's Research Questions and Hypotheses in an Introductory Business Research Methods Course

Science.gov (United States)

Strangman, Lauria; Knowles, Elizabeth

2012-01-01

In an introductory research methods course, students often develop research questions and hypotheses that are vague or confusing, do not contain measurable concepts, and are too narrow in scope or vision. Because of this, the final research projects often fail to provide useful information or address the overall research problem. A Lesson Study…

Latent Space Embedding for Retrieval in Question-Answer Archives

OpenAIRE

Padmanabhan, Deepak; Garg, Dinesh; Shevade, Shirish

2017-01-01

Community-driven Question Answering (CQA) systems such as Yahoo! Answers have become valuable sources of reusable information. CQA retrieval enables usage of historical CQA archives to solve new questions posed by users. This task has received much recent attention, with methods building upon literature from translation models, topic models, and deep learning. In this paper, we devise a CQA retrieval technique, LASER-QA, that embeds question-answer pairs within a unified latent space preservi...

The art of problem posing

CERN Document Server

Brown, Stephen I

1990-01-01

Updated and expanded, this second edition satisfies the same philosophical objective as the first -- to show the importance of problem posing. Although interest in mathematical problem solving increased during the past decade, problem posing remained relatively ignored. The Art of Problem Posing draws attention to this equally important act and is the innovator in the field. Special features include: * an exploration ofthe logical relationship between problem posing and problem solving * a special chapter devoted to teaching problem posing as a separate course * sketches, drawings, diagrams, and cartoons that illustrate the schemes proposed * a special section on writing in mathematics.

Backward Dependencies and in-Situ wh-Questions as Test Cases on How to Approach Experimental Linguistics Research That Pursues Theoretical Linguistics Questions

Science.gov (United States)

Pablos, Leticia; Doetjes, Jenny; Cheng, Lisa L.-S.

2018-01-01

The empirical study of language is a young field in contemporary linguistics. This being the case, and following a natural development process, the field is currently at a stage where different research methods and experimental approaches are being put into question in terms of their validity. Without pretending to provide an answer with respect to the best way to conduct linguistics related experimental research, in this article we aim at examining the process that researchers follow in the design and implementation of experimental linguistics research with a goal to validate specific theoretical linguistic analyses. First, we discuss the general challenges that experimental work faces in finding a compromise between addressing theoretically relevant questions and being able to implement these questions in a specific controlled experimental paradigm. We discuss the Granularity Mismatch Problem (Poeppel and Embick, 2005) which addresses the challenges that research that is trying to bridge the representations and computations of language and their psycholinguistic/neurolinguistic evidence faces, and the basic assumptions that interdisciplinary research needs to consider due to the different conceptual granularity of the objects under study. To illustrate the practical implications of the points addressed, we compare two approaches to perform linguistic experimental research by reviewing a number of our own studies strongly grounded on theoretically informed questions. First, we show how linguistic phenomena similar at a conceptual level can be tested within the same language using measurement of event-related potentials (ERP) by discussing results from two ERP experiments on the processing of long-distance backward dependencies that involve coreference and negative polarity items respectively in Dutch. Second, we examine how the same linguistic phenomenon can be tested in different languages using reading time measures by discussing the outcome of four self

Backward Dependencies and in-Situ wh-Questions as Test Cases on How to Approach Experimental Linguistics Research That Pursues Theoretical Linguistics Questions.

Science.gov (United States)

Pablos, Leticia; Doetjes, Jenny; Cheng, Lisa L-S

2017-01-01

The empirical study of language is a young field in contemporary linguistics. This being the case, and following a natural development process, the field is currently at a stage where different research methods and experimental approaches are being put into question in terms of their validity. Without pretending to provide an answer with respect to the best way to conduct linguistics related experimental research, in this article we aim at examining the process that researchers follow in the design and implementation of experimental linguistics research with a goal to validate specific theoretical linguistic analyses. First, we discuss the general challenges that experimental work faces in finding a compromise between addressing theoretically relevant questions and being able to implement these questions in a specific controlled experimental paradigm. We discuss the Granularity Mismatch Problem (Poeppel and Embick, 2005) which addresses the challenges that research that is trying to bridge the representations and computations of language and their psycholinguistic/neurolinguistic evidence faces, and the basic assumptions that interdisciplinary research needs to consider due to the different conceptual granularity of the objects under study. To illustrate the practical implications of the points addressed, we compare two approaches to perform linguistic experimental research by reviewing a number of our own studies strongly grounded on theoretically informed questions. First, we show how linguistic phenomena similar at a conceptual level can be tested within the same language using measurement of event-related potentials (ERP) by discussing results from two ERP experiments on the processing of long-distance backward dependencies that involve coreference and negative polarity items respectively in Dutch. Second, we examine how the same linguistic phenomenon can be tested in different languages using reading time measures by discussing the outcome of four self

Backward Dependencies and in-Situ wh-Questions as Test Cases on How to Approach Experimental Linguistics Research That Pursues Theoretical Linguistics Questions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leticia Pablos

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The empirical study of language is a young field in contemporary linguistics. This being the case, and following a natural development process, the field is currently at a stage where different research methods and experimental approaches are being put into question in terms of their validity. Without pretending to provide an answer with respect to the best way to conduct linguistics related experimental research, in this article we aim at examining the process that researchers follow in the design and implementation of experimental linguistics research with a goal to validate specific theoretical linguistic analyses. First, we discuss the general challenges that experimental work faces in finding a compromise between addressing theoretically relevant questions and being able to implement these questions in a specific controlled experimental paradigm. We discuss the Granularity Mismatch Problem (Poeppel and Embick, 2005 which addresses the challenges that research that is trying to bridge the representations and computations of language and their psycholinguistic/neurolinguistic evidence faces, and the basic assumptions that interdisciplinary research needs to consider due to the different conceptual granularity of the objects under study. To illustrate the practical implications of the points addressed, we compare two approaches to perform linguistic experimental research by reviewing a number of our own studies strongly grounded on theoretically informed questions. First, we show how linguistic phenomena similar at a conceptual level can be tested within the same language using measurement of event-related potentials (ERP by discussing results from two ERP experiments on the processing of long-distance backward dependencies that involve coreference and negative polarity items respectively in Dutch. Second, we examine how the same linguistic phenomenon can be tested in different languages using reading time measures by discussing the outcome of

'The research compass'

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ringsted, Charlotte; Hodges, Brian; Scherpbier, Albert

2011-01-01

This AMEE Guide offers an introduction to research in medical education. It is intended for those who are contemplating conducting research in medical education but are new to the field. The Guide is structured around the process of transforming ideas and problems into researchable questions...... by the complexity of the field. Next is a section on how to move from an idea or problem to a research question by placing a concrete idea or problem within a conceptual, theoretical framework. The following sections are structured around an overview model of approaches to medical education research, 'The research......, choosing a research approach that is appropriate to the purpose of the study and considering the individual researcher's preferences and the contextual possibilities and constraints. The first section of the Guide addresses the rationale for research in medical education and some of the challenges posed...

The use of categorization information in language models for question retrieval

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cao, Xin; Cong, Gao; Cui, Bin

2009-01-01

Community Question Answering (CQA) has emerged as a popular type of service meeting a wide range of information needs. Such services enable users to ask and answer questions and to access existing question-answer pairs. CQA archives contain very large volumes of valuable user-generated content...... and have become important information resources on the Web. To make the body of knowledge accumulated in CQA archives accessible, effective and efficient question search is required. Question search in a CQA archive aims to retrieve historical questions that are relevant to new questions posed by users...

Unsaturated flow and transport research questions and priorities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chery, D.L.

1993-01-01

A little over two years ago, a similar meeting (Workshop IV - Flow and Transport through Unsaturated Fractured Rock; Related to High-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal) was held her in Tucson, Arizona, to discuss the same issues discussed here the past 4 days. This presentation revisits what was said 2 years ago, reviews research needs that have been articulated by the licensing staff of the Division of High-Level Waste Management, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and presents some of the thoughts on research needs resulting from the deliberations of a special committee of the National Research Council. After considering these aspects the questions of what has been accomplished in the past 2 years and where attention and energies should be focused in the coming few years, can be asked. 3 refs

Questions Asked by Primary Student Teachers about Observations of a Science Demonstration

Science.gov (United States)

Ahtee, Maija; Juuti, Kalle; Lavonen, Jari; Suomela, Liisa

2011-01-01

Teacher questioning has a central role in guiding pupils to learn to make scientific observations and inferences. We asked 110 primary student teachers to write down what kind of questions they would ask their pupils about a demonstration. Almost half of the student teachers posed questions that were either inappropriate or presupposed that the…

Pose Space Surface Manipulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yusuke Yoshiyasu

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Example-based mesh deformation techniques produce natural and realistic shapes by learning the space of deformations from examples. However, skeleton-based methods cannot manipulate a global mesh structure naturally, whereas the mesh-based approaches based on a translational control do not allow the user to edit a local mesh structure intuitively. This paper presents an example-driven mesh editing framework that achieves both global and local pose manipulations. The proposed system is built with a surface deformation method based on a two-step linear optimization technique and achieves direct manipulations of a model surface using translational and rotational controls. With the translational control, the user can create a model in natural poses easily. The rotational control can adjust the local pose intuitively by bending and twisting. We encode example deformations with a rotation-invariant mesh representation which handles large rotations in examples. To incorporate example deformations, we infer a pose from the handle translations/rotations and perform pose space interpolation, thereby avoiding involved nonlinear optimization. With the two-step linear approach combined with the proposed multiresolution deformation method, we can edit models at interactive rates without losing important deformation effects such as muscle bulging.

Theorising international monetary relations: three questions about the significance of materiality

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Leander

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract This article engages a conversation with Benjamin Cohen by raising three questions about the significance of materiality. The paper's questions focus on how materiality can be included in theorizations so that its political import is not defined away from the outset. The article does this focussing on Cohen's treatment of electronic money and its significance for the Politics of International Monetary Relations. The first question posed is about ontology, the second about agency and the third about the scope of politics. The three questions are raised as a conversation in which arguments and counterarguments are advanced. The questions are therefore posed with Cohen's contributions to theorizing the political significance of materiality as their point of departure. They are formulated as a consequence of bringing these contributions in relation to insights from the Social Studies of Finance. From this perspective it would seem that a more far reaching engagement with materiality (in terms of ontology, agency and epistemology is necessary to capture its political significance for international monetary politics and currency hierarchies. The article does not conclude in conventional fashion but purposefully strives to leave these questions open for discussion.

Teachers Implementing Mathematical Problem Posing in the Classroom: Challenges and Strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Leung, Shuk-kwan S.

2013-01-01

This paper reports a study about how a teacher educator shared knowledge with teachers when they worked together to implement mathematical problem posing (MPP) in the classroom. It includes feasible methods for getting practitioners to use research-based tasks aligned to the curriculum in order to encourage children to pose mathematical problems.…

A Report on the Research and Development of Instructional Simulation.

Science.gov (United States)

West, Charles K.; And Others

The purpose of this report is to communicate findings on current knowledge of simulation design, development, and evaluation. Research on this project was guided by questions posed by the Defense Systems Management College in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. These questions fall into three categories: the constituents of good instructional simulations, the…

Multimodal follow-up questions to multimodal answers in a QA system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Schooten, B.W.; op den Akker, Hendrikus J.A.

2007-01-01

We are developing a dialogue manager (DM) for a multimodal interactive Question Answering (QA) system. Our QA system presents answers using text and pictures, and the user may pose follow-up questions using text or speech, while indicating screen elements with the mouse. We developed a corpus of

Co-researching as a driver for technological innovation: Computing and Cultural Heritage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Arnold

2017-05-01

Full Text Available A recurring question in defining publicly funded research programmes is “what research should be funded publicly and what should be funded through the private sector?”. The way this question is usually answered has placed emphasis on seeking to ensure that research that has a payback in purely economic terms is funded (at least in part by those most likely to receive the economic benefit, but evaluating “who benefits?” and “how?” is not always easy to deduce from the research questions posed.

Statistical Model-Based Face Pose Estimation

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

GE Xinliang; YANG Jie; LI Feng; WANG Huahua

2007-01-01

A robust face pose estimation approach is proposed by using face shape statistical model approach and pose parameters are represented by trigonometric functions. The face shape statistical model is firstly built by analyzing the face shapes from different people under varying poses. The shape alignment is vital in the process of building the statistical model. Then, six trigonometric functions are employed to represent the face pose parameters. Lastly, the mapping function is constructed between face image and face pose by linearly relating different parameters. The proposed approach is able to estimate different face poses using a few face training samples. Experimental results are provided to demonstrate its efficiency and accuracy.

Creativity of Field-dependent and Field-independent Students in Posing Mathematical Problems

Science.gov (United States)

Azlina, N.; Amin, S. M.; Lukito, A.

2018-01-01

This study aims at describing the creativity of elementary school students with different cognitive styles in mathematical problem-posing. The posed problems were assessed based on three components of creativity, namely fluency, flexibility, and novelty. The free-type problem posing was used in this study. This study is a descriptive research with qualitative approach. Data collections were conducted through written task and task-based interviews. The subjects were two elementary students. One of them is Field Dependent (FD) and the other is Field Independent (FI) which were measured by GEFT (Group Embedded Figures Test). Further, the data were analyzed based on creativity components. The results show thatFD student’s posed problems have fulfilled the two components of creativity namely fluency, in which the subject posed at least 3 mathematical problems, and flexibility, in whichthe subject posed problems with at least 3 different categories/ideas. Meanwhile,FI student’s posed problems have fulfilled all three components of creativity, namely fluency, in which thesubject posed at least 3 mathematical problems, flexibility, in which thesubject posed problems with at least 3 different categories/ideas, and novelty, in which the subject posed problems that are purely the result of her own ideas and different from problems they have known.

LEVELING STUDENTS’ CREATIVE THINKING IN SOLVING AND POSING MATHEMATICAL PROBLEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tatag Yuli Eko Siswono

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Many researchers assume that people are creative, but their degree ofcreativity is different. The notion of creative thinking level has beendiscussed .by experts. The perspective of mathematics creative thinkingrefers to a combination of logical and divergent thinking which is basedon intuition but has a conscious aim. The divergent thinking is focusedon flexibility, fluency, and novelty in mathematical problem solving andproblem posing. As students have various backgrounds and differentabilities, they possess different potential in thinking patterns,imagination, fantasy and performance; therefore, students have differentlevels of creative thinking. A research study was conducted in order todevelop a framework for students’ levels of creative thinking inmathematics. This research used a qualitative approach to describe thecharacteristics of the levels of creative thinking. Task-based interviewswere conducted to collect data with ten 8thgrade junior secondary schoolstudents. The results distinguished five levels of creative thinking,namely level 0 to level 4 with different characteristics in each level.These differences are based on fluency, flexibility, and novelty inmathematical problem solving and problem posing.Keywords: student’s creative thinking, problem posing, flexibility,fluency, novelty DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.22342/jme.1.1.794.17-40

Questions of uniqueness and resolution in reconstruction from projections

CERN Document Server

Katz, Myron Bernard

1978-01-01

Reconstruction from projections has revolutionized radiology and as now become one of the most important tools of medical diagnosi- he E. M. I. Scanner is one example. In this text, some fundamental heoretical and practical questions are resolved. Despite recent research activity in the area, the crucial subject ·f the uniqueness of the reconstruction and the effect of noise in the ata posed some unsettled fundamental questions. In particular, Kennan mith proved that if we describe an object by a C~ function, i. e. , nfinitely differentiable with compact support, then there are other bjects with the same shape, i. e. , support, which can differ almost rhitrarily and still have the same projections in finitely many direc­ ions. On the other hand, he proved that objects in finite dimensional unction spaces are uniquely determined by a single projection for almost 11 angles, i. e. , except on a set of measure zero. Along these lines, erman and Rowland in [41) showed that reconstructions obtained from he common...

Answers to questions posed by the Michigan Governor's Nuclear Waste Disposal Task Force

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1976-01-01

A general presentation of the National Waste Terminal Storage (NWTS) Program was given on July 26, 1976, to the Michigan Environmental Review Board and the Michigan Governor's Nuclear Waste Disposal Task Force. Following the presentation, Dr. William G. Taylor, Chairman of the Task Force, provided ERDA with a listing of questions which pertained to the NWTS program and ERDA/OWI's interest in northeast Michigan. This document contains copies of the information which was provided to Dr. Taylor in response to his inquiry

Perspective projection for variance pose face recognition from camera calibration

Science.gov (United States)

Fakhir, M. M.; Woo, W. L.; Chambers, J. A.; Dlay, S. S.

2016-04-01

Variance pose is an important research topic in face recognition. The alteration of distance parameters across variance pose face features is a challenging. We provide a solution for this problem using perspective projection for variance pose face recognition. Our method infers intrinsic camera parameters of the image which enable the projection of the image plane into 3D. After this, face box tracking and centre of eyes detection can be identified using our novel technique to verify the virtual face feature measurements. The coordinate system of the perspective projection for face tracking allows the holistic dimensions for the face to be fixed in different orientations. The training of frontal images and the rest of the poses on FERET database determine the distance from the centre of eyes to the corner of box face. The recognition system compares the gallery of images against different poses. The system initially utilises information on position of both eyes then focuses principally on closest eye in order to gather data with greater reliability. Differentiation between the distances and position of the right and left eyes is a unique feature of our work with our algorithm outperforming other state of the art algorithms thus enabling stable measurement in variance pose for each individual.

Neuroeconomics: cross-currents in research on decision-making

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sanfey, A.G.; Loewenstein, G.; McClure, S.M.; Cohen, J.D.

2006-01-01

Despite substantial advances, the question of how we make decisions and judgments continues to pose important challenges for scientific research. Historically, different disciplines have approached this problem using different techniques and assumptions, with few unifying efforts made. However, the

The Theory Question in Research Capacity Building in Education: Towards an Agenda for Research and Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Biesta, Gert; Allan, Julie; Edwards, Richard

2011-01-01

The question of capacity building in education has predominantly been approached with regard to the methods and methodologies of educational research. Far less attention has been given to capacity building in relation to theory. In many ways the latter is as pressing an issue as the former, given that good research depends on a combination of high…

Pengenalan Pose Tangan Menggunakan HuMoment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dina Budhi Utami

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Computer vision yang didasarkan pada pengenalan bentuk memiliki banyak potensi dalam interaksi manusia dan komputer. Pose tangan dapat dijadikan simbol interaksi manusia dengan komputer seperti halnya pada penggunaan berbagai pose tangan pada bahasa isyarat. Berbagai pose tangan dapat digunakan untuk menggantikan fungsi mouse, untuk mengendalikan robot, dan sebagainya. Penelitian ini difokuskan pada pembangunan sistem pengenalan pose tangan menggunakan HuMoment. Proses pengenalan pose tangan dimulai dengan melakukan segmentasi citra masukan untuk menghasilkan citra ROI (Region of Interest yaitu area telapak tangan. Selanjutnya dilakukan proses deteksi tepi. Kemudian dilakukan ekstraksi nilai HuMoment. Nilai HuMoment dikuantisasikan ke dalam bukukode yang dihasilkan dari proses pelatihan menggunakan K-Means. Proses kuantisasi dilakukan dengan menghitung nilai Euclidean Distance terkecil antara nilai HuMomment citra masukan dan bukukode. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian, nilai akurasi sistem dalam mengenali pose tangan adalah 88.57%.

Enhancing Students' Communication Skills through Problem Posing and Presentation

Science.gov (United States)

Sugito; E. S., Sri Mulyani; Hartono; Supartono

2017-01-01

This study was to explore how enhance communication skill through problem posing and presentation method. The subjects of this research were the seven grade students Junior High School, including 20 male and 14 female. This research was conducted in two cycles and each cycle consisted of four steps, they were: planning, action, observation, and…

Storytelling as an Instructional Method: Descriptions and Research Questions

Science.gov (United States)

2009-01-01

computational brain . Cambridge, MA: Bradford/ MIT Press. Cianciolo, A. T., Prevou, M., Cianciolo, D., & Morris, R. (2007). Using digital storytelling to...volume 3, no. 2 (Fall 2009) 6–23 Storytelling as an Instructional Method: Descriptions and Research Questions Dee H. Andrews, Thomas D. Hull, and...Jennifer A. Donahue Abstract This paper discusses the theoretical and empirical foundations of the use of storytelling in instruction. The defi nition

Mathematical Thinking and Creativity through Mathematical Problem Posing and Solving

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

María F. Ayllón

2016-04-01

Full Text Available This work shows the relationship between the development of mathematical thinking and creativity with mathematical problem posing and solving. Creativity and mathematics are disciplines that do not usually appear together. Both concepts constitute complex processes sharing elements, such as fluency (number of ideas, flexibility (range of ideas, novelty (unique idea and elaboration (idea development. These factors contribute, among others, to the fact that schoolchildren are competent in mathematics. The problem solving and posing are a very powerful evaluation tool that shows the mathematical reasoning and creative level of a person. Creativity is part of the mathematics education and is a necessary ingredient to perform mathematical assignments. This contribution presents some important research works about problem posing and solving related to the development of mathematical knowledge and creativity. To that end, it is based on various beliefs reflected in the literature with respect to notions of creativity, problem solving and posing.

The Effects of Problem Posing on Student Mathematical Learning: A Meta-Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Rosli, Roslinda; Capraro, Mary Margaret; Capraro, Robert M.

2014-01-01

The purpose of the study was to meta-synthesize research findings on the effectiveness of problem posing and to investigate the factors that might affect the incorporation of problem posing in the teaching and learning of mathematics. The eligibility criteria for inclusion of literature in the meta-analysis was: published between 1989 and 2011,…

Research program plan: steam generators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muscara, J.; Serpan, C.Z. Jr.

1985-07-01

This document presents a plan for research in Steam Generators to be performed by the Materials Engineering Branch, MEBR, Division of Engineering Technology, (EDET), Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research. It is one of four plans describing the ongoing research in the corresponding areas of MEBR activity. In order to answer the questions posed, the Steam Generator Program has been organized with the three elements of non-destructive examination; mechanical integrity testing; and corrosion, cleaning and decontamination

Research Methodology in Business: A Starter’s Guide

OpenAIRE

Ragab, Mohamed AF; Arisha, Amr

2018-01-01

A cardinal requisite of successful research lies in the proper selection of the research methodology applied to achieve research objectives using the available resources. In addition to acquiring sufficient knowledge of their specific research topic, researchers are urged to develop good understanding of alternative research methodologies at their disposal to be able to identify the best-suited methods to address the research question. This, however, often poses a challenge for novice researc...

Randomized controlled trials in evidence-based mental health care: getting the right answer to the right question.

Science.gov (United States)

Essock, Susan M; Drake, Robert E; Frank, Richard G; McGuire, Thomas G

2003-01-01

The purpose of clinical research is to answer this question: Would a new treatment, when added to the existing range of treatment options available in practice, help patients? Randomized controlled trials (RCTs)--in particular, double-blind RCTs--have important methodological advantages over observational studies for addressing this question. These advantages, however, come at a price. RCTs compare treatments using a particular allocation rule for assigning patients to treatments (random assignment) that does not mimic real-world practice. "Favorable" results from an RCT indicating that a new treatment is superior to existing treatments are neither necessary nor sufficient for establishing a "yes" answer to the question posed above. Modeled on an experimental design, RCTs are expensive in time and money and must compare simple differences in treatments. Findings have a high internal validity but may not address the needs of the field, particularly where treatment is complex and rapidly evolving. Design of clinical research needs to take account of the way treatments are allocated in actual practice and include flexible designs to answer important questions most effectively.

Beyond Mere Debate: Research Questions Related to the Debate over the SED Definition.

Science.gov (United States)

Center, David B.

This paper addresses research implications of proposed modifications of the definition of "severe emotional disturbance" to include students with conduct disorders. Research questions focus on understanding the nature of antisocial, aggressive behavior in children and youth and identifying what services they need. Research is cited suggesting that…

Developmental regression in autism: research and conceptual questions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carolina Lampreia

2013-11-01

Full Text Available The subject of developmental regression in autism has gained importance and a growing number of studies have been conducted in recent years. It is a major issue indicating that there is not a unique form of autism onset. However the phenomenon itself and the concept of regression have been the subject of some debate: there is no consensus on the existence of regression, as there is no consensus on its definition. The aim of this paper is to review the research literature in this area and to introduce some conceptual questions about its existence and its definition.

Antimicrobial activity of fluoride and its in vivo importance: identification of research questions.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Loveren, C

2001-01-01

This manuscript discusses the antimicrobial activity of fluoride and its in vivo importance in order to identify research questions. There is a lot of information on mechanisms by which fluoride may interfere with bacterial metabolism and dental plaque acidogenicity. The antimicrobial activity of fluoride products is enhanced when fluoride is associated with antimicrobial cations like Sn(2+) and amine. It is not clear whether the antimicrobial mechanisms of fluoride are operating in vivo or even to what extent antimicrobial activity can contribute to caries prevention. This latter question may be the most important one in research. Copyright 2001 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Pollination ecology in the 21st century: Key Questions for future research

OpenAIRE

STOUT, JANE CATHERINE

2011-01-01

PUBLISHED To inspire new ideas in research on pollination ecology, we list the most important unanswered questions in the field. This list was drawn up by contacting 170 scientists from different areas of pollination ecology and asking them to contribute their opinion on the greatest knowledge gaps that need to be addressed. Almost 40% of them took part in our email poll and we received more than 650 questions and comments, which we classified into different categories repr...

Questioning ORACLE: An Assessment of ORACLE's Analysis of Teachers' Questions and [A Comment on "Questioning ORACLE"].

Science.gov (United States)

Scarth, John; And Others

1986-01-01

Analysis of teachers' questions, part of the ORACLE (Observation Research and Classroom Learning Evaluation) project research, is examined in detail. Scarth and Hammersley argue that the rules ORACLE uses for identifying different types of questions involve levels of ambiguity and inference that threaten reliability and validity of the study's…

Classroom Voting Questions to Stimulate Discussions in Precalculus

Science.gov (United States)

Cline, Kelly; Zullo, Holly; Huckaby, David A.; Storm, Christopher; Stewart, Ann

2018-01-01

Classroom voting can be an effective way to stimulate student discussions. In this pedagogy, the instructor poses a multiple-choice question to the class, and then allows a few minutes for consideration and small-group discussion before students vote, either with clickers, cell phones, or a non-electronic method. After the vote the instructor…

Pollination ecology in the 21st century:key questions for future research

OpenAIRE

Mayer, Caroline; Adler, Lynn; Armbruster, W. Scott; Dafni, Amots; Eardley, Connal; Huang, Shuang-Quan; Kevan, Peter; Ollerton, Jeff; Packer, Laurence; Ssymank, Axel; Stout, Jane C.; Potts, Simon G.

2011-01-01

To inspire new ideas in research on pollination ecology, we list the most important unanswered questions in the field. This list was drawn up by contacting 170 scientists from different areas of pollination ecology and asking them to contribute their opinion on the greatest knowledge gaps that need to be addressed. Almost 40% of them took part in our email poll and we received more than 650 questions and comments, which we classified into different categories representing various aspects of p...

Problem posing reflections and applications

CERN Document Server

Brown, Stephen I

2014-01-01

As a result of the editors' collaborative teaching at Harvard in the late 1960s, they produced a ground-breaking work -- The Art Of Problem Posing -- which related problem posing strategies to the already popular activity of problem solving. It took the concept of problem posing and created strategies for engaging in that activity as a central theme in mathematics education. Based in part upon that work and also upon a number of articles by its authors, other members of the mathematics education community began to apply and expand upon their ideas. This collection of thirty readings is a tes

Questioning Questions: Elementary Teachers' Adaptations of Investigation Questions Across the Inquiry Continuum

Science.gov (United States)

Biggers, Mandy

2018-02-01

Questioning is a central practice in science classrooms. However, not every question translates into a "good" science investigation. Questions that drive science investigations can be provided by many sources including the teacher, the curriculum, or the student. The variations in the source of investigation questions were explored in this study. A dataset of 120 elementary science classroom videos and associated lesson plans from 40 elementary teachers (K-5) across 21 elementary school campuses were scored on an instrument measuring the amount of teacher-direction or student-direction of the lessons' investigation questions. Results indicated that the investigation questions were overwhelmingly teacher directed in nature, with no opportunities for students to develop their own questions for investigation. This study has implications for researchers and practitioners alike, calling attention to the teacher-directed nature of investigation questions in existing science curriculum materials, and the need for teacher training in instructional strategies to adapt their existing curriculum materials across the continuum of teacher-directed and student-directed investigation questions. Teachers need strategies for adapting the teacher-directed questions provided in their existing curriculum materials in order to allow students the opportunity to engage in this essential scientific practice.

Scattered Speculations on the 'Internationalization' of Performance Research

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bala, S.; Bala, S.; Gluhovic, M.; Korsberg, H.; Röttger, K.

2017-01-01

The essay looks at what the catchword of ‘internationalisation’ does to the practice of performance research, especially in terms of its pedagogical implications. If internationalisation is seen as the answer, what is the question? What demands does the addition of the qualifier ‘international’ pose

Human action recognition based on estimated weak poses

Science.gov (United States)

Gong, Wenjuan; Gonzàlez, Jordi; Roca, Francesc Xavier

2012-12-01

We present a novel method for human action recognition (HAR) based on estimated poses from image sequences. We use 3D human pose data as additional information and propose a compact human pose representation, called a weak pose, in a low-dimensional space while still keeping the most discriminative information for a given pose. With predicted poses from image features, we map the problem from image feature space to pose space, where a Bag of Poses (BOP) model is learned for the final goal of HAR. The BOP model is a modified version of the classical bag of words pipeline by building the vocabulary based on the most representative weak poses for a given action. Compared with the standard k-means clustering, our vocabulary selection criteria is proven to be more efficient and robust against the inherent challenges of action recognition. Moreover, since for action recognition the ordering of the poses is discriminative, the BOP model incorporates temporal information: in essence, groups of consecutive poses are considered together when computing the vocabulary and assignment. We tested our method on two well-known datasets: HumanEva and IXMAS, to demonstrate that weak poses aid to improve action recognition accuracies. The proposed method is scene-independent and is comparable with the state-of-art method.

100 key research questions for the post-2015 development agenda

OpenAIRE

Oldekop, J. A.; Fontana, L. B.; Grugel, J.; Roughton, N.; Adu-Ampong, E. A.; Bird, G. K.; Dorgan, A.; Vera Espinoza, M. A.; Wallin, S.; Hammett, D.; Agbarakwe, E.; Agrawal, A.; Asylbekova, N.; Azkoul, C.; Bardsley, C.

2016-01-01

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) herald a new phase for international development. This article presents the results of a consultative exercise to collaboratively identify 100 research questions of critical importance for the post-2015 international development agenda. The final shortlist is grouped into nine thematic areas and was selected by 21 representatives of international and non-governmental organisations and consultancies, and 14 academics with diverse disciplinary expertise ...

Preparatory power posing affects nonverbal presence and job interview performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Cuddy, Amy J C; Wilmuth, Caroline A; Yap, Andy J; Carney, Dana R

2015-07-01

The authors tested whether engaging in expansive (vs. contractive) "power poses" before a stressful job interview--preparatory power posing--would enhance performance during the interview. Participants adopted high-power (i.e., expansive, open) poses or low-power (i.e., contractive, closed) poses, and then prepared and delivered a speech to 2 evaluators as part of a mock job interview. All interview speeches were videotaped and coded for overall performance and hireability and for 2 potential mediators: verbal content (e.g., structure, content) and nonverbal presence (e.g., captivating, enthusiastic). As predicted, those who prepared for the job interview with high- (vs. low-) power poses performed better and were more likely to be chosen for hire; this relation was mediated by nonverbal presence, but not by verbal content. Although previous research has focused on how a nonverbal behavior that is enacted during interactions and observed by perceivers affects how those perceivers evaluate and respond to the actor, this experiment focused on how a nonverbal behavior that is enacted before the interaction and unobserved by perceivers affects the actor's performance, which, in turn, affects how perceivers evaluate and respond to the actor. This experiment reveals a theoretically novel and practically informative result that demonstrates the causal relation between preparatory nonverbal behavior and subsequent performance and outcomes. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

QUESTION ANSWERING SYSTEM DAN PENERAPANNYA PADA ALKITAB

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gunawan Gunawan

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Question answering system is a system that allows user to state his or her information need in the form of natural language question, and return short text excerpts or even phrases as an answer. The availability of a wide and various information source and improvements in the techniques of natural language processing, information extraction (wrapper, and information retrieval give a big effect on the development of question answering system, from just answering questions in a specific domain by consulting to structured information source such as database, and like in this research, answering any questions based on information stored in an unstructured text collection. A general architecture of question answering system based on text consists of six processing stages, i.e. question analysis, document collection preprocessing, candidate document selection, candidate document analysis, answer extraction, and response generation. Application of question answering system like AnswerBus, Mulder, and Webclopedia that are developed with its own characteristics has similar processing steps as in the general architecture. Answers returned by a question answering system need to be evaluated for performance measure. This research completed with a simple question answering system application using english Bible in World English Bible (WEB version as the source of information to answer some questions. Because specific domain is selected: Bible, questions that can be posed by user could ask about information in the Bible itself only. Question is also limited to three types of answers that can be supported by the application: person (who, location (where, and date (when. Abstract in Bahasa Indonesia : Question answering system (QA system adalah sistem yang mengijinkan user menyatakan kebutuhan informasinya dalam bentuk natural language question (pertanyaan dalam bahasa alami, dan mengembalikan kutipan teks singkat atau bahkan frase sebagai jawaban. Ketersediaan

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) in South Africa: engaging multiple constituents to shape the research question.

Science.gov (United States)

Mosavel, Maghboeba; Simon, Christian; van Stade, Debbie; Buchbinder, Mara

2005-12-01

Community engagement is an on-going, arduous, and necessary process for developing effective health promotion programs. The challenges are amplified when the particular health issue or research question is not prominent in the consciousness of the targeted community. In this paper, we explore the community-based participatory research (CBPR) model as a means to negotiate a mutual agenda between communities and researchers. The paper is focused on the (perceived) need for cervical cancer screening in an under-resourced community in Cape Town, South Africa. Cervical cancer is a significant health problem in this community and elsewhere in South Africa. Unlike HIV-AIDS, however, many Black South Africans have not been educated about cervical cancer and the importance of obtaining screening. Many may not consider screening a priority in their lives. Our research included extensive consultations and informal interviews with diverse community and regional stakeholders. Following these, we conducted 27 focus groups and 106 demographic surveys with randomly selected youth, parents, local health care personnel, educators and school staff. Focus group data were summarized and analyzed cross-sectionally. Community stakeholders were involved throughout this research. Our consultations, interviews, and focus group data were key in identifying the concerns and priorities of the community. By engaging community stakeholders, we developed a research framework that incorporated the community's concerns and priorities, and stressed the intersecting roles of poverty, violence, and other cultural forces in shaping community members' health and wellbeing. Community members helped to refocus our research from cervical cancer to 'cervical health,' a concept that acknowledged the impact on women's bodies and lives of HIV-AIDS and STDs, sexual violence, poverty, and multiple social problems. We conclude that the research agenda and questions in community-based health research should not be

Does Action Research Have a Future? A Reply to Higgins

Science.gov (United States)

Foreman-Peck, Lorraine; Heilbronn, Ruth

2018-01-01

This paper presents a view of action research (AR) as a valuable way in which teachers can pose fertile questions and engage in inquiry with transformative possibilities. This counters claims of its being at best a sterile method of teacher research and at worst a perilous trap for teachers. Chris Higgins has argued that AR has lost its original…

Can multiple-choice questions simulate free-response questions?

OpenAIRE

Lin, Shih-Yin; Singh, Chandralekha

2016-01-01

We discuss a study to evaluate the extent to which free-response questions could be approximated by multiple-choice equivalents. Two carefully designed research-based multiple-choice questions were transformed into a free-response format and administered on the final exam in a calculus-based introductory physics course. The original multiple-choice questions were administered in another similar introductory physics course on final exam. Findings suggest that carefully designed multiple-choice...

Multi-task pose-invariant face recognition.

Science.gov (United States)

Ding, Changxing; Xu, Chang; Tao, Dacheng

2015-03-01

Face images captured in unconstrained environments usually contain significant pose variation, which dramatically degrades the performance of algorithms designed to recognize frontal faces. This paper proposes a novel face identification framework capable of handling the full range of pose variations within ±90° of yaw. The proposed framework first transforms the original pose-invariant face recognition problem into a partial frontal face recognition problem. A robust patch-based face representation scheme is then developed to represent the synthesized partial frontal faces. For each patch, a transformation dictionary is learnt under the proposed multi-task learning scheme. The transformation dictionary transforms the features of different poses into a discriminative subspace. Finally, face matching is performed at patch level rather than at the holistic level. Extensive and systematic experimentation on FERET, CMU-PIE, and Multi-PIE databases shows that the proposed method consistently outperforms single-task-based baselines as well as state-of-the-art methods for the pose problem. We further extend the proposed algorithm for the unconstrained face verification problem and achieve top-level performance on the challenging LFW data set.

Exemplar-based human action pose correction.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Wei; Deng, Ke; Bai, Xiang; Leyvand, Tommer; Guo, Baining; Tu, Zhuowen

2014-07-01

The launch of Xbox Kinect has built a very successful computer vision product and made a big impact on the gaming industry. This sheds lights onto a wide variety of potential applications related to action recognition. The accurate estimation of human poses from the depth image is universally a critical step. However, existing pose estimation systems exhibit failures when facing severe occlusion. In this paper, we propose an exemplar-based method to learn to correct the initially estimated poses. We learn an inhomogeneous systematic bias by leveraging the exemplar information within a specific human action domain. Furthermore, as an extension, we learn a conditional model by incorporation of pose tags to further increase the accuracy of pose correction. In the experiments, significant improvements on both joint-based skeleton correction and tag prediction are observed over the contemporary approaches, including what is delivered by the current Kinect system. Our experiments for the facial landmark correction also illustrate that our algorithm can improve the accuracy of other detection/estimation systems.

Animal Encounters in Environmental Education Research: Responding to the "Question of the Animal"

Science.gov (United States)

Oakley, Jan; Watson, Gavan P. L.; Russell, Constance L.; Cutter-Mackenzie, Amy; Fawcett, Leesa; Kuhl, Gail; Russell, Joshua; van der Waal, Marlon; Warkentin, Traci

2010-01-01

The "question of the animal" represents an area of emergent interest in the environmental education field, as researchers critically consider human-animal relations and animal advocacy in their work. Following a group discussion at the 10th Seminar in Health and Environmental Education Research, the authors of this paper share experiences,…

Whose Side Are We on and for Whom Do We Write? Notes on Issues and Challenges Facing Those Researching and Evaluating Public Policy

Science.gov (United States)

Warren, Jon; Garthwaite, Kayleigh

2015-01-01

Becker (1967) poses the question "Whose side are we on?," a question which has become an enduring part of discussions within social scientific methodology. This paper explores the key issues in Becker's argument and considers its relevance to researchers today, locating this within a consideration of evaluation-based research and policy.…

Control and System Theory, Optimization, Inverse and Ill-Posed Problems

Science.gov (United States)

1988-09-14

Justlfleatlen Distribut ion/ Availability Codes # AFOSR-87-0350 Avat’ and/or1987-1988 Dist Special *CONTROL AND SYSTEM THEORY , ~ * OPTIMIZATION, * INVERSE...considerable va- riety of research investigations within the grant areas (Control and system theory , Optimization, and Ill-posed problems]. The

The ethics of physicists in questions

CERN Multimedia

2000-01-01

Four CERN physicists, Peggie Rimmer, Ugo Amaldi, Alain Blondel, and Jean-Marie Le Goff, answered questions from 150 college students last Monday during a debate on the theme of the ethics of physics. Organized by CERN and the Department of public instruction of the Canton of Geneva, the meeting followed a reading by the students of the play Die Physiker, by Friedrich Dürrenmatt, which raises the problem of political exploitation of discoveries made during the second world war. The Minister of Education of the Canton de Genève, Mrs Martine Brunschwig-Graf, took part in the debate. The questions posed by students were not lacking in pertinence : Should a physicist reveal a discovery that is dangerous in his opinion ? Who are responsible, those who make the discoveries or those who use them ?

Pollination ecology in the 21st Century: key questions for future research\\ud

OpenAIRE

Mayer, Carolin; Adler, Lynn; Armbruster, W Scott; Dafni, Amots; Eardley, Connal; Huang, Shuang-Quan; Kevan, Peter G; Ollerton, Jeff; Packer, Laurence; Ssymank, Axel; Stout, Jane C; Potts, Simon G

2011-01-01

To inspire new ideas in research on pollination ecology, we list the most important unanswered questions in the field. This list was drawn up by contacting 170 scientists from different areas of pollination ecology and asking them to contribute their opinion on the greatest knowledge gaps that need to be addressed. Almost 40% of them took part in our email poll and we received more than 650 questions and comments, which we classified into different categories representing various aspects of p...

Asking Questions in Academia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Annette Skovsted

2014-01-01

Motivation for the activity In academia the most important skill is to ask academically relevant and sound questions. This is not easy and students need to practice asking questions orally and in writing before they write research papers.......Motivation for the activity In academia the most important skill is to ask academically relevant and sound questions. This is not easy and students need to practice asking questions orally and in writing before they write research papers....

Some of the unanswered questions in finance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Đurić Dragana M.

2006-01-01

Full Text Available A very dynamic development of finance in the last 50 years is inter alia probably due to experiments and innovations in this field. Previously theoretical base could not explain and predict movements especially in volatile times. "The new finance" appeared 50 years ago (portfolio theory CAPM, the efficient market theory, M&M theorem and made substantial progress in understanding movements in globalized and internationalized financial markets. However, many questions remain open. The author tries to put emphasis on some of these questions, perfectly aware that these are not the only ones. Unresolved questions are related to company's aims, project's risks, degree of portfolio optimization, importance of liquidity, dividend policy, as well as factors that determine M&A. As the "new finance" is not able to predict and explain volatile movements, a question that should be posed is whether it is appropriate to add some non-economic factors as the behaviorist theory suggests. Although the behaviorist theory is an important part of "new finance", it is unfortunately the only theory able to explain movements in volatile times. In conclusion, many questions still remain unanswered and wait for appropriate theoretical explanations.

Pose Estimation of Interacting People using Pictorial Structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fihl, Preben; Moeslund, Thomas B.

2010-01-01

Pose estimation of people have had great progress in recent years but so far research has dealt with single persons. In this paper we address some of the challenges that arise when doing pose estimation of interacting people. We build on the pictorial structures framework and make important...... contributions by combining color-based appearance and edge information using a measure of the local quality of the appearance feature. In this way we not only combine the two types of features but dynamically find the optimal weighting of them. We further enable the method to handle occlusions by searching...... a foreground mask for possible occluded body parts and then applying extra strong kinematic constraints to find the true occluded body parts. The effect of applying our two contributions are show through both qualitative and quantitative tests and show a clear improvement on the ability to correctly localize...

Application of Shape Similarity in Pose Selection and Virtual Screening in CSARdock2014 Exercise.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Ashutosh; Zhang, Kam Y J

2016-06-27

To evaluate the applicability of shape similarity in docking-based pose selection and virtual screening, we participated in the CSARdock2014 benchmark exercise for identifying the correct docking pose of inhibitors targeting factor XA, spleen tyrosine kinase, and tRNA methyltransferase. This exercise provides a valuable opportunity for researchers to test their docking programs, methods, and protocols in a blind testing environment. In the CSARdock2014 benchmark exercise, we have implemented an approach that uses ligand 3D shape similarity to facilitate docking-based pose selection and virtual screening. We showed here that ligand 3D shape similarity between bound poses could be used to identify the native-like pose from an ensemble of docking-generated poses. Our method correctly identified the native pose as the top-ranking pose for 73% of test cases in a blind testing environment. Moreover, the pose selection results also revealed an excellent correlation between ligand 3D shape similarity scores and RMSD to X-ray crystal structure ligand. In the virtual screening exercise, the average RMSD for our pose prediction was found to be 1.02 Å, and it was one of the top performances achieved in CSARdock2014 benchmark exercise. Furthermore, the inclusion of shape similarity improved virtual screening performance of docking-based scoring and ranking. The coefficient of determination (r(2)) between experimental activities and docking scores for 276 spleen tyrosine kinase inhibitors was found to be 0.365 but reached 0.614 when the ligand 3D shape similarity was included.

Adaptive relative pose control of spacecraft with model couplings and uncertainties

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Liang; Zheng, Zewei

2018-02-01

The spacecraft pose tracking control problem for an uncertain pursuer approaching to a space target is researched in this paper. After modeling the nonlinearly coupled dynamics for relative translational and rotational motions between two spacecraft, position tracking and attitude synchronization controllers are developed independently by using a robust adaptive control approach. The unknown kinematic couplings, parametric uncertainties, and bounded external disturbances are handled with adaptive updating laws. It is proved via Lyapunov method that the pose tracking errors converge to zero asymptotically. Spacecraft close-range rendezvous and proximity operations are introduced as an example to validate the effectiveness of the proposed control approach.

Collaborative Chat Reference Service Effectiveness Varies by Question Type for Public Library Patrons. A review of: Kwon, Nahyun. ʺPublic Library Patronsʹ Use of Collaborative Chat Reference Service: The Effectiveness of Question Answering by Question Type.ʺ Library & Information Science Research 29.1 (Mar. 2007: 70‐91.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephanie Hall

2008-03-01

Full Text Available Objective – To assess the effectiveness of a collaborative chat reference service in answering different types of question. Specifically, the study compares the degree of answer completion and the level of user satisfaction for simple factual questions vs. more in‐depth subject‐based reference questions, and for ‘local’ (pertaining to a particular library and non‐local questions.Design – Content analysis of 415 transcripts of reference transactions, which were also compared to corresponding user satisfaction survey results.Setting – An online collaborative reference service offered by a large public library system (33 branch and regional locations. This service is part of the Metropolitan Cooperative Library System: a virtual reference consortium of U.S. libraries (public, academic, special, and corporate that provides 24/7 service.Subjects – Reference librarians from around the U.S. (49 different libraries, and users logging into the service via the public library system’s portal (primarily patrons of the 49 libraries. Method – Content analysis was used to evaluate virtual reference transcripts recorded between January and June, 2004. Reliability was enhanced through triangulation, with researchers comparing the content analysis of each transcript against the results of a voluntary exit survey. Of 1,387 transactions that occurred during the period of study, 420 users completed the survey and these formed the basis of the study, apart from 5 transactions that were omitted because the questions were incomprehensible. Questions were examined and assigned to five categories: “simple, factual questions; subject‐based research questions; resource access questions; circulation‐related questions; and local library information inquiries” (80‐81. Answers were classed as either “completely answered, partially answered or unanswered, referred, and problematic endings” (82. Lastly, user satisfaction was surveyed on three

From Questions to Queries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Drlík

2007-12-01

Full Text Available The extension of (Internet databases forceseveryone to become more familiar with techniques of datastorage and retrieval because users’ success often dependson their ability to pose right questions and to be able tointerpret their answers. University programs pay moreattention to developing database programming skills than todata exploitation skills. To educate our students to become“database users”, the authors intensively exploit supportivetools simplifying the production of database elements astables, queries, forms, reports, web pages, and macros.Videosequences demonstrating “standard operations” forcompleting them have been prepared to enhance out-ofclassroomlearning. The use of SQL and other professionaltools is reduced to the cases when the wizards are unable togenerate the intended construct.

Beginning EFL Teachers' Beliefs about Quality Questions and Their Questioning Practices

Science.gov (United States)

Pham, Ly Ngoc Khanh; Hamid, M. Obaidul

2013-01-01

Motivated by the scarcity of research that examines the impact of teacher beliefs on their actual practices in Vietnam, this study investigated the relationship between teachers' beliefs about quality questions and their questioning behaviours in terms of questioning purposes, content focus, students' cognitive level, wording and syntax. Thirteen…

Pose Planning for the Feed Support System of FAST

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rui Yao

2014-01-01

Full Text Available A six-cable driven parallel manipulator and an A-B rotator in the feed support system of the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST are adopted for realizing the position and pose of nine feeds. The six-cable driven parallel manipulator is a flexible mechanism, which may not be stably controlled due to a small cable tension. The A-B rotator is a rigid mechanism, and its stability and accuracy can be improved by small pose angle. Based on the different characteristics, a pose planning function is presented. The optimization target of the pose planning function is to get the smallest pose angle of the A-B rotator, and the constraint condition can reflect the controllability of the six-cable driven parallel manipulator. Then, the pose planning realization process of the feed support system is proposed. Based on the pose planning method, optimized pose angles of the feed support system for the nine feeds are obtained, which suggests that the pose angle of the six-cable driven parallel manipulator changes from 0° to 14° and the pose angle of the A-B rotator changes from 0° to 26.4°.

The nucleolus is well-posed

Science.gov (United States)

Fragnelli, Vito; Patrone, Fioravante; Torre, Anna

2006-02-01

The lexicographic order is not representable by a real-valued function, contrary to many other orders or preorders. So, standard tools and results for well-posed minimum problems cannot be used. We prove that under suitable hypotheses it is however possible to guarantee the well-posedness of a lexicographic minimum over a compact or convex set. This result allows us to prove that some game theoretical solution concepts, based on lexicographic order are well-posed: in particular, this is true for the nucleolus.

Real-Time Head Pose Estimation on Mobile Platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jianfeng Ren

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Many computer vision applications such as augmented reality require head pose estimation. As far as the real-time implementation of head pose estimation on relatively resource limited mobile platforms is concerned, it is required to satisfy real-time constraints while maintaining reasonable head pose estimation accuracy. The introduced head pose estimation approach in this paper is an attempt to meet this objective. The approach consists of the following components: Viola-Jones face detection, color-based face tracking using an online calibration procedure, and head pose estimation using Hu moment features and Fisher linear discriminant. Experimental results running on an actual mobile device are reported exhibiting both the real- time and accuracy aspects of the developed approach.

Answers to questions posed by the Michigan Governor's Nuclear Waste Disposal Task Force

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1976-09-30

A general presentation of the National Waste Terminal Storage (NWTS) Program was given on July 26, 1976, to the Michigan Environmental Review Board and the Michigan Governor's Nuclear Waste Disposal Task Force. Following the presentation, Dr. William G. Taylor, Chairman of the Task Force, provided ERDA with a listing of questions which pertained to the NWTS program and ERDA/OWI's interest in northeast Michigan. This document contains copies of the information which was provided to Dr. Taylor in response to his inquiry.

Exploring Pre-Service Science Teacher Methods and Strategies for the Driving Questions in Research Inquiry: From Consulting an Instructor to Group Discussion

Science.gov (United States)

Aydin, Miraç

2016-01-01

An important stage in any research inquiry is the development of research questions that need to be answered. The strategies to develop research questions should be defined and described, but few studies have considered this process in greater detail. This study explores pre-service science teachers' research questions and the strategies they can…

Head pose estimation algorithm based on deep learning

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, Yuanming; Liu, Yijun

2017-05-01

Head pose estimation has been widely used in the field of artificial intelligence, pattern recognition and intelligent human-computer interaction and so on. Good head pose estimation algorithm should deal with light, noise, identity, shelter and other factors robustly, but so far how to improve the accuracy and robustness of attitude estimation remains a major challenge in the field of computer vision. A method based on deep learning for pose estimation is presented. Deep learning with a strong learning ability, it can extract high-level image features of the input image by through a series of non-linear operation, then classifying the input image using the extracted feature. Such characteristics have greater differences in pose, while they are robust of light, identity, occlusion and other factors. The proposed head pose estimation is evaluated on the CAS-PEAL data set. Experimental results show that this method is effective to improve the accuracy of pose estimation.

Ethics creep or governance creep? Challenges for Australian Human Research Ethics Committees (HRECS).

Science.gov (United States)

Gorman, Susanna M

2011-09-01

Australian Human Research Ethics Committees (HRECs) have to contend with ever-increasing workloads and responsibilities which go well beyond questions of mere ethics. In this article, I shall examine how the roles of HRECs have changed, and show how this is reflected in the iterations of the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research 2007 (NS). In particular I suggest that the focus of the National Statement has shifted to concentrate on matters of research governance at the expense of research ethics, compounded by its linkage to the Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (2007) in its most recent iteration. I shall explore some of the challenges this poses for HRECs and institutions and the risks it poses to ensuring that Australian researchers receive clear ethical guidance and review.

Feminism and Psychology: Analysis of a Half-Century of Research on Women and Gender

Science.gov (United States)

Eagly, Alice H.; Eaton, Asia; Rose, Suzanna M.; Riger, Stephanie; McHugh, Maureen C.

2012-01-01

Starting in the 1960s, feminists argued that the discipline of psychology had neglected the study of women and gender and misrepresented women in its research and theories. Feminists also posed many questions worthy of being addressed by psychological science. This call for research preceded the emergence of a new and influential body of research…

Scholar-Craftsmanship: Question-Type, Epistemology, Culture of Inquiry, and Personality-Type in Dissertation Research Design

Science.gov (United States)

Werner, Thomas P.; Rogers, Katrina S.

2013-01-01

"Scholar-Craftsmanship" (SC) is a quadrant methodological framework created to help social science doctoral students construct first-time dissertation research. The framework brackets and predicts how epistemological domains, cultures of inquiries, personality indicators, and research question--types can be correlated in dissertation…

Face pose tracking using the four-point algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Fung, Ho Yin; Wong, Kin Hong; Yu, Ying Kin; Tsui, Kwan Pang; Kam, Ho Chuen

2017-06-01

In this paper, we have developed an algorithm to track the pose of a human face robustly and efficiently. Face pose estimation is very useful in many applications such as building virtual reality systems and creating an alternative input method for the disabled. Firstly, we have modified a face detection toolbox called DLib for the detection of a face in front of a camera. The detected face features are passed to a pose estimation method, known as the four-point algorithm, for pose computation. The theory applied and the technical problems encountered during system development are discussed in the paper. It is demonstrated that the system is able to track the pose of a face in real time using a consumer grade laptop computer.

Skill Levels of Prospective Physics Teachers on Problem Posing

Science.gov (United States)

Cildir, Sema; Sezen, Nazan

2011-01-01

Problem posing is one of the topics which the educators thoroughly accentuate. Problem posing skill is defined as an introvert activity of a student's learning. In this study, skill levels of prospective physics teachers on problem posing were determined and their views on problem posing were evaluated. To this end, prospective teachers were given…

Yoga Poses Increase Subjective Energy and State Self-Esteem in Comparison to ‘Power Poses’

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agnieszka Golec de Zavala

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Research on beneficial consequences of yoga focuses on the effects of yogic breathing and meditation. Less is known about the psychological effects of performing yoga postures. The present study investigated the effects of yoga poses on subjective sense of energy and self-esteem. The effects of yoga postures were compared to the effects of ‘power poses,’ which arguably increase the sense of power and self-confidence due to their association with interpersonal dominance (Carney et al., 2010. The study tested the novel prediction that yoga poses, which are not associated with interpersonal dominance but increase bodily energy, would increase the subjective feeling of energy and therefore increase self-esteem compared to ‘high power’ and ‘low power’ poses. A two factorial, between participants design was employed. Participants performed either two standing yoga poses with open front of the body (n = 19, two standing yoga poses with covered front of the body (n = 22, two expansive, high power poses (n = 21, or two constrictive, low power poses (n = 20 for 1-min each. The results showed that yoga poses in comparison to ‘power poses’ increased self-esteem. This effect was mediated by an increased subjective sense of energy and was observed when baseline trait self-esteem was controlled for. These results suggest that the effects of performing open, expansive body postures may be driven by processes other than the poses’ association with interpersonal power and dominance. This study demonstrates that positive effects of yoga practice can occur after performing yoga poses for only 2 min.

Generation of priority research questions to inform conservation policy and management at a national level.

Science.gov (United States)

Rudd, Murray A; Beazley, Karen F; Cooke, Steven J; Fleishman, Erica; Lane, Daniel E; Mascia, Michael B; Roth, Robin; Tabor, Gary; Bakker, Jiselle A; Bellefontaine, Teresa; Berteaux, Dominique; Cantin, Bernard; Chaulk, Keith G; Cunningham, Kathryn; Dobell, Rod; Fast, Eleanor; Ferrara, Nadia; Findlay, C Scott; Hallstrom, Lars K; Hammond, Thomas; Hermanutz, Luise; Hutchings, Jeffrey A; Lindsay, Kathryn E; Marta, Tim J; Nguyen, Vivian M; Northey, Greg; Prior, Kent; Ramirez-Sanchez, Saudiel; Rice, Jake; Sleep, Darren J H; Szabo, Nora D; Trottier, Geneviève; Toussaint, Jean-Patrick; Veilleux, Jean-Philippe

2011-06-01

Integrating knowledge from across the natural and social sciences is necessary to effectively address societal tradeoffs between human use of biological diversity and its preservation. Collaborative processes can change the ways decision makers think about scientific evidence, enhance levels of mutual trust and credibility, and advance the conservation policy discourse. Canada has responsibility for a large fraction of some major ecosystems, such as boreal forests, Arctic tundra, wetlands, and temperate and Arctic oceans. Stressors to biological diversity within these ecosystems arise from activities of the country's resource-based economy, as well as external drivers of environmental change. Effective management is complicated by incongruence between ecological and political boundaries and conflicting perspectives on social and economic goals. Many knowledge gaps about stressors and their management might be reduced through targeted, timely research. We identify 40 questions that, if addressed or answered, would advance research that has a high probability of supporting development of effective policies and management strategies for species, ecosystems, and ecological processes in Canada. A total of 396 candidate questions drawn from natural and social science disciplines were contributed by individuals with diverse organizational affiliations. These were collaboratively winnowed to 40 by our team of collaborators. The questions emphasize understanding ecosystems, the effects and mitigation of climate change, coordinating governance and management efforts across multiple jurisdictions, and examining relations between conservation policy and the social and economic well-being of Aboriginal peoples. The questions we identified provide potential links between evidence from the conservation sciences and formulation of policies for conservation and resource management. Our collaborative process of communication and engagement between scientists and decision makers for

Association between framing of the research question using the PICOT format and reporting quality of randomized controlled trials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thabane Lehana

2010-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Experts recommend formulating a structured research question to guide the research design. However, the basis for this recommendation has not been formally evaluated. The aim of this study was to examine if a structured research question using the PICOT (Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome, Time-frame format is associated with a better reporting quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs. Methods We evaluated 89 RCTs reports published in three endocrinology journals in 2005 and 2006, the quality of reporting of which was assessed in a previous study. We examined whether the reports stated each of the five elements of a structured research question: population, intervention, comparator, outcome and time-frame. A PICOT score was created with a possible score between 0 and 5. Outcomes were: 1 a 14-point overall reporting quality score (OQS based on the Consolidated Standards for Reporting Trials; and 2 a 3-point key score (KS, based on allocation concealment, blinding and use of intention-to-treat analysis. We conducted multivariable regression analyses using generalized estimating equations to determine if a higher PICOT score or the use of a structured research question were independently associated with a better reporting quality. Journal of publication, funding source and sample size were identified as factors associated with OQS in our previous report on this dataset, and therefore included in the model. Results A higher PICOT score was independently associated with OQS (incidence rate ratio (IRR = 1.021, 95% CI: 1.012 to 1.029 and KS (IRR = 1.142, 95% CI: 1.079 to 1.210. A structured research question was present in 33.7% of the reports and it was associated with a better OQS (IRR = 1.095, 95% CI 1.059-1.132 and KS (IRR = 1.530, 95% CI 1.311-1.786. Conclusions Better framing of the research question using the PICOT format is independently associated with better overall reporting quality - although the effect

Traveling questions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hoeyer, Klaus

2016-01-01

In this paper, I argue that uncertainty and nonknowledge, and not just research results, can be important vehicles of translation through which genetic research participation comes to affect the lives of research participants. Based on interviews with participants in a genetic research project, I....... Research questions, and not just results, may serve as a generative form of knowledge that can travel as fast as any answer....

The Research Frontier in Corporate Governance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ahrens, Thomas; Filatotchev, Igor; Thomsen, Steen

2011-01-01

in our knowledge of corporate governance and is likely to lead of a rethink of central concepts like shareholder value, debt governance, and management incentives (2) what do we know and what do we need to how about the impact of national institutions on corporate governance? (3) What research questions......In this paper we attempt to identify the research frontier in corporate governance using three different approaches: (1) what challenges does the financial crisis 2007–2009 pose for corporate governance research? We show that the financial crisis is a huge natural experiment which has exposed gaps...

Local Feature Learning for Face Recognition under Varying Poses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Duan, Xiaodong; Tan, Zheng-Hua

2015-01-01

In this paper, we present a local feature learning method for face recognition to deal with varying poses. As opposed to the commonly used approaches of recovering frontal face images from profile views, the proposed method extracts the subject related part from a local feature by removing the pose...... related part in it on the basis of a pose feature. The method has a closed-form solution, hence being time efficient. For performance evaluation, cross pose face recognition experiments are conducted on two public face recognition databases FERET and FEI. The proposed method shows a significant...... recognition improvement under varying poses over general local feature approaches and outperforms or is comparable with related state-of-the-art pose invariant face recognition approaches. Copyright ©2015 by IEEE....

Mining Key Skeleton Poses with Latent SVM for Action Recognition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaoqiang Li

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Human action recognition based on 3D skeleton has become an active research field in recent years with the recently developed commodity depth sensors. Most published methods analyze an entire 3D depth data, construct mid-level part representations, or use trajectory descriptor of spatial-temporal interest point for recognizing human activities. Unlike previous work, a novel and simple action representation is proposed in this paper which models the action as a sequence of inconsecutive and discriminative skeleton poses, named as key skeleton poses. The pairwise relative positions of skeleton joints are used as feature of the skeleton poses which are mined with the aid of the latent support vector machine (latent SVM. The advantage of our method is resisting against intraclass variation such as noise and large nonlinear temporal deformation of human action. We evaluate the proposed approach on three benchmark action datasets captured by Kinect devices: MSR Action 3D dataset, UTKinect Action dataset, and Florence 3D Action dataset. The detailed experimental results demonstrate that the proposed approach achieves superior performance to the state-of-the-art skeleton-based action recognition methods.

Person-Independent Head Pose Estimation Using Biased Manifold Embedding

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sethuraman Panchanathan

2008-02-01

Full Text Available Head pose estimation has been an integral problem in the study of face recognition systems and human-computer interfaces, as part of biometric applications. A fine estimate of the head pose angle is necessary and useful for several face analysis applications. To determine the head pose, face images with varying pose angles can be considered to be lying on a smooth low-dimensional manifold in high-dimensional image feature space. However, when there are face images of multiple individuals with varying pose angles, manifold learning techniques often do not give accurate results. In this work, we propose a framework for a supervised form of manifold learning called Biased Manifold Embedding to obtain improved performance in head pose angle estimation. This framework goes beyond pose estimation, and can be applied to all regression applications. This framework, although formulated for a regression scenario, unifies other supervised approaches to manifold learning that have been proposed so far. Detailed studies of the proposed method are carried out on the FacePix database, which contains 181 face images each of 30 individuals with pose angle variations at a granularity of 1∘. Since biometric applications in the real world may not contain this level of granularity in training data, an analysis of the methodology is performed on sparsely sampled data to validate its effectiveness. We obtained up to 2∘ average pose angle estimation error in the results from our experiments, which matched the best results obtained for head pose estimation using related approaches.

To Strike a Pose: No Stereotype Backlash for Power Posing Women

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miriam Rennung

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Power posing, the adoption of open and powerful postures, has effects that parallel those of actual social power. This study explored the social evaluation of adopting powerful versus powerless body postures in men and women regarding perceived warmth, competence, and the likelihood of eliciting admiration, envy, pity, and contempt. Previous findings suggest that the display of power by women may have side effects due to gender stereotyping, namely reduced warmth ratings and negative emotional reactions. An experiment (N = 2,473 asked participants to rate pictures of men and women who adopted high-power or low-power body postures. High-power posers were rated higher on competence, admiration, envy, and contempt compared to low-power posers, whereas the opposite was true for pity. There was no impact of power posing on perceived warmth. Contrary to expectations, the poser’s gender did not moderate any of the effects. These findings suggest that nonverbal displays of power do influence fundamental dimensions of social perception and their accompanying emotional reactions but result in comparably positive and negative evaluations for both genders.

Hohenheim University. 1991 research report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Geiler, U.

1992-06-01

The 1991 Research Report of the Hohenheim University near Stuttgart is based on data collected in 1989 and extensively in 1990 and 1991. The progress reports were sent to all of the faculties, institutions, particular research areas and centres of the University. Questions were posed regarding current and recently completed projects. The final version was adapted for print. The survey also enquired about financial support from third parties. The numerous contacts abroad of the Hohenheim University are also documented in this book. Finally, it was asked under which of the nine main Hohenheim research programme headings the particular project could be listed. (orig.) [de

Robustness Analysis of Visual Question Answering Models by Basic Questions

KAUST Repository

Huang, Jia-Hong

2017-11-01

Visual Question Answering (VQA) models should have both high robustness and accuracy. Unfortunately, most of the current VQA research only focuses on accuracy because there is a lack of proper methods to measure the robustness of VQA models. There are two main modules in our algorithm. Given a natural language question about an image, the first module takes the question as input and then outputs the ranked basic questions, with similarity scores, of the main given question. The second module takes the main question, image and these basic questions as input and then outputs the text-based answer of the main question about the given image. We claim that a robust VQA model is one, whose performance is not changed much when related basic questions as also made available to it as input. We formulate the basic questions generation problem as a LASSO optimization, and also propose a large scale Basic Question Dataset (BQD) and Rscore (novel robustness measure), for analyzing the robustness of VQA models. We hope our BQD will be used as a benchmark for to evaluate the robustness of VQA models, so as to help the community build more robust and accurate VQA models.

Robustness Analysis of Visual Question Answering Models by Basic Questions

KAUST Repository

Huang, Jia-Hong

2017-01-01

Visual Question Answering (VQA) models should have both high robustness and accuracy. Unfortunately, most of the current VQA research only focuses on accuracy because there is a lack of proper methods to measure the robustness of VQA models. There are two main modules in our algorithm. Given a natural language question about an image, the first module takes the question as input and then outputs the ranked basic questions, with similarity scores, of the main given question. The second module takes the main question, image and these basic questions as input and then outputs the text-based answer of the main question about the given image. We claim that a robust VQA model is one, whose performance is not changed much when related basic questions as also made available to it as input. We formulate the basic questions generation problem as a LASSO optimization, and also propose a large scale Basic Question Dataset (BQD) and Rscore (novel robustness measure), for analyzing the robustness of VQA models. We hope our BQD will be used as a benchmark for to evaluate the robustness of VQA models, so as to help the community build more robust and accurate VQA models.

US fertility prevention as poverty prevention: an empirical question and social justice issue.

Science.gov (United States)

Romero, Diana; Agénor, Madina

2009-01-01

This paper examines the impact of the US welfare reform family-cap policy on the childbearing decisions of poor and low-income women by posing two complementary questions, both placed within a broader historical context. Specifically, it raises an empirical question pertaining to the family cap's effectiveness and a social justice question pertaining to the policy's ethical and legal justification in terms of human and reproductive rights. To address the first question, a thorough review of past and current research pertaining to the family cap at both the state and national levels is provided. The second question is addressed with an overview of international human and reproductive rights documents of relevance to the family-cap policy, as well as an analysis of the covenants' numerous components with which the family cap is in conflict. Finally, this paper situates the family cap in its historical context by investigating previous governmental attempts to control and regulate the reproductive health and rights of poor women and women of color in the United States. The majority of empirical analyses of the family cap have found that the policy has not had an impact on poor women's reproductive health behaviors. In addition, the exclusive application of this policy to poor women receiving cash assistance is demonstrated to be in violation of eight international human and reproductive rights documents, several of which the US is a signatory. These two findings make a strong case that policy makers and social and health researchers alike critically reexamine whether a policy that has not achieved its ostensible goal and is applied in a disparate manner-primarily to poor women and families and women of color-should continue to be implemented by the states.

Teacher's Questions in Reading Classes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zuliati Rohmah

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract: The present paper discusses an English teacher's questions in Reading classes at MAN Malang III. Types of questions, functions of teacher's questions, question levels and the strategies applied by the teacher were put as the research problems. Non-participant observa­tion was applied to collect the data with the researcher as the main in­strument aided by field-notes and a tape recorder. It was found that the distribution of the questions did not allow the students to talk longer and to think more analytically. Meanwhile, the strategies applied by the teacher helped the students to respond to the questions previously unanswered. The teacher is suggested to produce more open and refer­ential question as well as inference and evaluation questions as to give more chances for the students to think aloud more.

ACT-CCREC Core Research Program: Study Questions and Design. ACT Working Paper Series. WP-2015-01

Science.gov (United States)

Cruce, Ty M.

2015-01-01

This report provides a non-technical overview of the guiding research questions and research design for the ACT-led core research program conducted on behalf of the GEAR UP College and Career Readiness Evaluation Consortium (CCREC). The core research program is a longitudinal study of the effectiveness of 14 GEAR UP state grants on the academic…

Robust head pose estimation via supervised manifold learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chao; Song, Xubo

2014-05-01

Head poses can be automatically estimated using manifold learning algorithms, with the assumption that with the pose being the only variable, the face images should lie in a smooth and low-dimensional manifold. However, this estimation approach is challenging due to other appearance variations related to identity, head location in image, background clutter, facial expression, and illumination. To address the problem, we propose to incorporate supervised information (pose angles of training samples) into the process of manifold learning. The process has three stages: neighborhood construction, graph weight computation and projection learning. For the first two stages, we redefine inter-point distance for neighborhood construction as well as graph weight by constraining them with the pose angle information. For Stage 3, we present a supervised neighborhood-based linear feature transformation algorithm to keep the data points with similar pose angles close together but the data points with dissimilar pose angles far apart. The experimental results show that our method has higher estimation accuracy than the other state-of-art algorithms and is robust to identity and illumination variations. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fraction Multiplication and Division Word Problems Posed by Different Years of Pre-Service Elementary Mathematics Teachers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tuba Aydogdu Iskenderoglu

2018-04-01

Full Text Available It is important for pre-service teachers to know the conceptual difficulties they have experienced regarding the concepts of multiplication and division in fractions and problem posing is a way to learn these conceptual difficulties. Problem posing is a synthetic activity that fundamentally has multiple answers. The purpose of this study is to analyze the multiplication and division of fractions problems posed by pre-service elementary mathematics teachers and to investigate how the problems posed change according to the year of study the pre-service teachers are in. The study employed developmental research methods. A total of 213 pre-service teachers enrolled in different years of the Elementary Mathematics Teaching program at a state university in Turkey took part in the study. The “Problem Posing Test” was used as the data collecting tool. In this test, there are 3 multiplication and 3 division operations. The data were analyzed using qualitative descriptive analysis. The findings suggest that, regardless of the year, pre-service teachers had more conceptual difficulties in problem posing about the division of fractions than in problem posing about the multiplication of fractions.

Student teachers’ mathematical questioning and courage in metaphorical thinking learning

Science.gov (United States)

Hendriana, H.; Hidayat, W.; Ristiana, M. G.

2018-01-01

This study was designed in the form of experiments with control group design and post-test only which aimed to examine the role of metaphorical thinking learning in the mathematical questioning ability of student teachers based on the level of mathematical courage. The population of this study was student teachers of mathematics education study program in West Java Province, while the sample of this study was 152 student teachers which were set purposively and then randomly to be included in the experimental class and control class. Based on the results and discussion, it was concluded that: (a) the mathematical questioning ability of student teachers who received Metaphorical Thinking learning was better than those who received conventional learning seen from mathematical courage level; (b) learning and mathematical courage level factors affected the achievement of student teachers’ mathematical questioning ability. In addition, there was no interaction effect between learning and mathematical courage level (high, medium, and low) simultaneously in developing student teachers’ mathematical questioning ability; (c) achievement of mastering mathematical questioning ability of student teacher was still not well achieved on indicator of problem posing in the form of non-routine question and open question.

POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION OF AMERICAN YOUTH--A REVIEW OF RESEARCH WITH IMPLICATIONS FOR SECONDARY SCHOOL SOCIAL STUDIES.

Science.gov (United States)

PATRICK, JOHN J.

A REVIEW OF EXISTING RESEARCH WAS MADE ON THE TOPIC OF POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION OF AMERICAN YOUTH. THE AUTHOR POSED THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS AS SUBTOPICS TO THE OVERALL RESEARCH REVIEW--(1) WHAT IS POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION, (2) WHAT DO YOUNG AMERICANS BELIEVE ABOUT POLITICS, (3) HOW DO YOUNG AMERICANS ACQUIRE POLITICAL BELIEFS, AND (4) HOW IMPORTANT…

Ebola and Its Global Research Architecture—Need for an Improvement

OpenAIRE

Quarcoo, David; Brüggmann, Dörthe; Klingelhöfer, Doris; Groneberg, David A.

2015-01-01

Abstract: The current Ebola outbreak poses a threat to individual and global public health. Although the disease has been of interest to the scientific community since 1976, an effective vaccination approach is still lacking. This fact questions past global public health strategies, which have not foreseen the possible impact of this infectious disease. To quantify the global research activity in this field, a scientometric investigation was conducted. We analyzed the research output of count...

General technical comments on climate change - comment 1: Answers to five questions posed at the conference

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Firor, J.

1992-01-01

An attempt is made to answer the following five questions: (1) what are the projections of global average temperature increase? (2) What are the prospects for projecting regional climate change? (3) Do the climate models produce outlooks for a group of climate variables closely related to sociatal impacts? (4) What is the feasibility and what are the costs of proposed geoengineering options for responding to climate change? (5) What climate variables co-vary with global average temperature

University Students' Problem Posing Abilities and Attitudes towards Mathematics.

Science.gov (United States)

Grundmeier, Todd A.

2002-01-01

Explores the problem posing abilities and attitudes towards mathematics of students in a university pre-calculus class and a university mathematical proof class. Reports a significant difference in numeric posing versus non-numeric posing ability in both classes. (Author/MM)

European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy - Establishing the key unanswered research questions within gastrointestinal endoscopy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rees, Colin J; Ngu, Wee Sing; Regula, Jaroslaw

2016-01-01

Background and study aim: Gastrointestinal endoscopy is a rapidly evolving research field. The European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE) plays a key role in shaping opinion and endoscopy activity throughout Europe and further afield. Establishing key unanswered questions within the fi...

A review of cooperative and uncooperative spacecraft pose determination techniques for close-proximity operations

Science.gov (United States)

Opromolla, Roberto; Fasano, Giancarmine; Rufino, Giancarlo; Grassi, Michele

2017-08-01

The capability of an active spacecraft to accurately estimate its relative position and attitude (pose) with respect to an active/inactive, artificial/natural space object (target) orbiting in close-proximity is required to carry out various activities like formation flying, on-orbit servicing, active debris removal, and space exploration. According to the specific mission scenario, the pose determination task involves both theoretical and technological challenges related to the search for the most suitable algorithmic solution and sensor architecture, respectively. As regards the latter aspect, electro-optical sensors represent the best option as their use is compatible with mass and power limitation of micro and small satellites, and their measurements can be processed to estimate all the pose parameters. Overall, the degree of complexity of the challenges related to pose determination largely varies depending on the nature of the targets, which may be actively/passively cooperative, uncooperative but known, or uncooperative and unknown space objects. In this respect, while cooperative pose determination has been successfully demonstrated in orbit, the uncooperative case is still under study by universities, research centers, space agencies and private companies. However, in both the cases, the demand for space applications involving relative navigation maneuvers, also in close-proximity, for which pose determination capabilities are mandatory, is significantly increasing. In this framework, a review of state-of-the-art techniques and algorithms developed in the last decades for cooperative and uncooperative pose determination by processing data provided by electro-optical sensors is herein presented. Specifically, their main advantages and drawbacks in terms of achieved performance, computational complexity, and sensitivity to variability of pose and target geometry, are highlighted.

Portraying Reflexivity in Health Services Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Rae, John; Green, Bill

2016-09-01

A model is proposed for supporting reflexivity in qualitative health research, informed by arguments from Bourdieu and Finlay. Bourdieu refers to mastering the subjective relation to the object at three levels-the overall social space, the field of specialists, and the scholastic universe. The model overlays Bourdieu's levels of objectivation with Finlay's three stages of research (pre-research, data collection, and data analysis). The intersections of these two ways of considering reflexivity, displayed as cells of a matrix, pose questions and offer prompts to productively challenge health researchers' reflexivity. Portraiture is used to show how these challenges and prompts can facilitate such reflexivity, as illustrated in a research project. © The Author(s) 2016.

[The mixed design in nursing sciences or when a question of research calls for qualitative and quantitative strategies].

Science.gov (United States)

Bourgault, Patricia; Gallagher, Frances; Michaud, Cécile; Saint-Cyr-Tribble, Denise

2010-12-01

The use of a mixed method research design raises many questions, especially regarding the paradigmatic position. With this paradigm, we may consider the mixed method design as the best way of answering a research question and the latter orients to one of the different subtypes of mixed method design. To illustrate the use of this kind of design, we propose a study such as conducted in nursing sciences. In this article, the challenges raised by the mixed method design, and the place of this type of research in nursing sciences is discussed.

Manifolds for pose tracking from monocular video

Science.gov (United States)

Basu, Saurav; Poulin, Joshua; Acton, Scott T.

2015-03-01

We formulate a simple human-pose tracking theory from monocular video based on the fundamental relationship between changes in pose and image motion vectors. We investigate the natural embedding of the low-dimensional body pose space into a high-dimensional space of body configurations that behaves locally in a linear manner. The embedded manifold facilitates the decomposition of the image motion vectors into basis motion vector fields of the tangent space to the manifold. This approach benefits from the style invariance of image motion flow vectors, and experiments to validate the fundamental theory show reasonable accuracy (within 4.9 deg of the ground truth).

The lighter side of advertising: investigating posing and lighting biases.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Nicole A; Burkitt, Jennifer A; Patrick, Regan E; Elias, Lorin J

2008-11-01

People tend to display the left cheek when posing for a portrait; however, this effect does not appear to generalise to advertising. The amount of body visible in the image and the sex of the poser might also contribute to the posing bias. Portraits also exhibit lateral lighting biases, with most images being lit from the left. This effect might also be present in advertisements. A total of 2801 full-page advertisements were sampled and coded for posing direction, lighting direction, sex of model, and amount of body showing. Images of females showed an overall leftward posing bias, but the biases in males depended on the amount of body visible. Males demonstrated rightward posing biases for head-only images. Overall, images tended to be lit from the top left corner. The two factors of posing and lighting biases appear to influence one another. Leftward-lit images had more leftward poses than rightward, while the opposite occurred for rightward-lit images. Collectively, these results demonstrate that the posing biases in advertisements are dependent on the amount of body showing in the image, and that biases in lighting direction interact with these posing biases.

Phrasal Paraphrase Based Question Reformulation for Archived Question Retrieval.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Zhang

Full Text Available Lexical gap in cQA search, resulted by the variability of languages, has been recognized as an important and widespread phenomenon. To address the problem, this paper presents a question reformulation scheme to enhance the question retrieval model by fully exploring the intelligence of paraphrase in phrase-level. It compensates for the existing paraphrasing research in a suitable granularity, which either falls into fine-grained lexical-level or coarse-grained sentence-level. Given a question in natural language, our scheme first detects the involved key-phrases by jointly integrating the corpus-dependent knowledge and question-aware cues. Next, it automatically extracts the paraphrases for each identified key-phrase utilizing multiple online translation engines, and then selects the most relevant reformulations from a large group of question rewrites, which is formed by full permutation and combination of the generated paraphrases. Extensive evaluations on a real world data set demonstrate that our model is able to characterize the complex questions and achieves promising performance as compared to the state-of-the-art methods.

Generalized Hough transform based time invariant action recognition with 3D pose information

Science.gov (United States)

Muench, David; Huebner, Wolfgang; Arens, Michael

2014-10-01

Human action recognition has emerged as an important field in the computer vision community due to its large number of applications such as automatic video surveillance, content based video-search and human robot interaction. In order to cope with the challenges that this large variety of applications present, recent research has focused more on developing classifiers able to detect several actions in more natural and unconstrained video sequences. The invariance discrimination tradeoff in action recognition has been addressed by utilizing a Generalized Hough Transform. As a basis for action representation we transform 3D poses into a robust feature space, referred to as pose descriptors. For each action class a one-dimensional temporal voting space is constructed. Votes are generated from associating pose descriptors with their position in time relative to the end of an action sequence. Training data consists of manually segmented action sequences. In the detection phase valid human 3D poses are assumed as input, e.g. originating from 3D sensors or monocular pose reconstruction methods. The human 3D poses are normalized to gain view-independence and transformed into (i) relative limb-angle space to ensure independence of non-adjacent joints or (ii) geometric features. In (i) an action descriptor consists of the relative angles between limbs and their temporal derivatives. In (ii) the action descriptor consists of different geometric features. In order to circumvent the problem of time-warping we propose to use a codebook of prototypical 3D poses which is generated from sample sequences of 3D motion capture data. This idea is in accordance with the concept of equivalence classes in action space. Results of the codebook method are presented using the Kinect sensor and the CMU Motion Capture Database.

Coupled bias-variance tradeoff for cross-pose face recognition.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Annan; Shan, Shiguang; Gao, Wen

2012-01-01

Subspace-based face representation can be looked as a regression problem. From this viewpoint, we first revisited the problem of recognizing faces across pose differences, which is a bottleneck in face recognition. Then, we propose a new approach for cross-pose face recognition using a regressor with a coupled bias-variance tradeoff. We found that striking a coupled balance between bias and variance in regression for different poses could improve the regressor-based cross-pose face representation, i.e., the regressor can be more stable against a pose difference. With the basic idea, ridge regression and lasso regression are explored. Experimental results on CMU PIE, the FERET, and the Multi-PIE face databases show that the proposed bias-variance tradeoff can achieve considerable reinforcement in recognition performance.

Animated pose templates for modeling and detecting human actions.

Science.gov (United States)

Yao, Benjamin Z; Nie, Bruce X; Liu, Zicheng; Zhu, Song-Chun

2014-03-01

This paper presents animated pose templates (APTs) for detecting short-term, long-term, and contextual actions from cluttered scenes in videos. Each pose template consists of two components: 1) a shape template with deformable parts represented in an And-node whose appearances are represented by the Histogram of Oriented Gradient (HOG) features, and 2) a motion template specifying the motion of the parts by the Histogram of Optical-Flows (HOF) features. A shape template may have more than one motion template represented by an Or-node. Therefore, each action is defined as a mixture (Or-node) of pose templates in an And-Or tree structure. While this pose template is suitable for detecting short-term action snippets in two to five frames, we extend it in two ways: 1) For long-term actions, we animate the pose templates by adding temporal constraints in a Hidden Markov Model (HMM), and 2) for contextual actions, we treat contextual objects as additional parts of the pose templates and add constraints that encode spatial correlations between parts. To train the model, we manually annotate part locations on several keyframes of each video and cluster them into pose templates using EM. This leaves the unknown parameters for our learning algorithm in two groups: 1) latent variables for the unannotated frames including pose-IDs and part locations, 2) model parameters shared by all training samples such as weights for HOG and HOF features, canonical part locations of each pose, coefficients penalizing pose-transition and part-deformation. To learn these parameters, we introduce a semi-supervised structural SVM algorithm that iterates between two steps: 1) learning (updating) model parameters using labeled data by solving a structural SVM optimization, and 2) imputing missing variables (i.e., detecting actions on unlabeled frames) with parameters learned from the previous step and progressively accepting high-score frames as newly labeled examples. This algorithm belongs to a

Electric Power Lines : Questions and Answers on Research into Health Effects.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

United States. Bonneville Power Administration.

1995-06-01

Most people know that electric power lines, like the wiring in our homes, can cause serious electric shocks if we`re not careful. Many people also want to know whether the EMF (electric and magnetic fields) produced by power lines and other electrical devices affect our health. Although no adverse health effects of electric power EMF have been confirmed, there is continued scientific uncertainty about this issue. Research on EMF is ongoing throughout the world. The purpose of this booklet is to answer some common questions that the BPA (Bonneville Power Administration) receives about the possible effects of power lines on health. First, some basic electrical terms are defined, and electric and magnetic fields are debed. Next, answers are given to several questions about recent scientific studies. Some important information about electrical safety follows. We then describe how BPA is addressing public concerns about potential health effects of power lines. The last section tells you how to obtain more detailed information about the health and safety issues summarized in this booklet.

Consistent Treatment of Variables and Causation Poses a Challenge for Behavioral Research Methods: A Commentary on Nesselroade and Molenaar (2016).

Science.gov (United States)

Markus, Keith A

2016-01-01

Nesselroade and Molenaar presented the ideographic filter as a proposal for analyzing lawful regularities in behavioral research. The proposal highlights an inconsistency that poses a challenge for behavioral research more generally. One can distinguish a broadly Humean approach from a broadly non-Humean approach as they relate to variables and to causation. Nesselroade and Molenaar rejected a Humean approach to latent variables that characterizes them as nothing more than summaries of their manifest indicators. By contrast, they tacitly accepted a Humean approach to causes characterized as nothing more than summaries of their manifest causal effects. A non-Humean treatment of variables coupled with a Humean treatment of causation creates a theoretical tension within their proposal. For example, one can interpret the same model elements as simultaneously representing both variables and causes. Future refinement of the ideographic filter proposal to address this tension could follow any of a number of strategies.

The science of stakeholder engagement in research: classification, implementation, and evaluation

OpenAIRE

Goodman, Melody S.; Sanders Thompson, Vetta L.

2017-01-01

In this commentary, we discuss the science of stakeholder engagement in research. We propose a classification system with definitions to determine where projects lie on the stakeholder engagement continuum. We discuss the key elements of implementation and evaluation of stakeholder engagement in research posing key questions to consider when doing this work. We commend and critique the work of Hamilton et al. in their multilevel stakeholder engagement in a VA implementation trial of evidence-...

The Economic Impact of Terrorism in the Near East: Understanding the Threats Posed by Militant Groups

Science.gov (United States)

2015-05-21

terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001 researchers have sought to better understand the macroeconomic consequences of terrorism. Despite a...The Economic Impact of Terrorism in the Near East: Understanding the Threats Posed by Militant Groups A Monograph by MAJ Joshua Glonek...SUBTITLE The Economic Impact of Terrorism in the Near East: Understanding the Threats Posed by Militant Groups 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT

Posed versus spontaneous facial expressions are modulated by opposite cerebral hemispheres.

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Elliott D; Pulusu, Vinay K

2013-05-01

Clinical research has indicated that the left face is more expressive than the right face, suggesting that modulation of facial expressions is lateralized to the right hemisphere. The findings, however, are controversial because the results explain, on average, approximately 4% of the data variance. Using high-speed videography, we sought to determine if movement-onset asymmetry was a more powerful research paradigm than terminal movement asymmetry. The results were very robust, explaining up to 70% of the data variance. Posed expressions began overwhelmingly on the right face whereas spontaneous expressions began overwhelmingly on the left face. This dichotomy was most robust for upper facial expressions. In addition, movement-onset asymmetries did not predict terminal movement asymmetries, which were not significantly lateralized. The results support recent neuroanatomic observations that upper versus lower facial movements have different forebrain motor representations and recent behavioral constructs that posed versus spontaneous facial expressions are modulated preferentially by opposite cerebral hemispheres and that spontaneous facial expressions are graded rather than non-graded movements. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Fast human pose estimation using 3D Zernike descriptors

Science.gov (United States)

Berjón, Daniel; Morán, Francisco

2012-03-01

Markerless video-based human pose estimation algorithms face a high-dimensional problem that is frequently broken down into several lower-dimensional ones by estimating the pose of each limb separately. However, in order to do so they need to reliably locate the torso, for which they typically rely on time coherence and tracking algorithms. Their losing track usually results in catastrophic failure of the process, requiring human intervention and thus precluding their usage in real-time applications. We propose a very fast rough pose estimation scheme based on global shape descriptors built on 3D Zernike moments. Using an articulated model that we configure in many poses, a large database of descriptor/pose pairs can be computed off-line. Thus, the only steps that must be done on-line are the extraction of the descriptors for each input volume and a search against the database to get the most likely poses. While the result of such process is not a fine pose estimation, it can be useful to help more sophisticated algorithms to regain track or make more educated guesses when creating new particles in particle-filter-based tracking schemes. We have achieved a performance of about ten fps on a single computer using a database of about one million entries.

Transfer between Pose and Illumination Training in Face Recognition

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Chang Hong; Bhuiyan, Md. Al-Amin; Ward, James; Sui, Jie

2009-01-01

The relationship between pose and illumination learning in face recognition was examined in a yes-no recognition paradigm. The authors assessed whether pose training can transfer to a new illumination or vice versa. Results show that an extensive level of pose training through a face-name association task was able to generalize to a new…

New Views on the Woman Question

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ann Waltner

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Marcia Yonemoto. The Problem of Women in Early Modern Japan. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2016. 304 pp. $70 (cloth, e-book. Wang Zheng. Finding Women in the State: A Socialist Feminist Revolution in the People’s Republic of China, 1949–1964. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2017. 400 pp. $85 (cloth; $35 (paper, e-book. "The Problem of Women in Early Modern Japan" and "Finding Women in the State" are in many ways quite different: they cover different geographic areas and different time periods; they use different sources and ask different questions. But it is productive to think about them in tandem, to see what kind of questions they do raise and to think about the ways “the woman question” is posed in these two contexts—early modern Japan and early Maoist China, respectively. Both books are interested in the question of what looking at history through a feminist lens does to our view of that history; both are interested in dismantling a hegemonic narrative that provides a diminished vision of women as historical subjects. And both of them point out ways in which neither the “problem of women” (Yonemoto nor the problem of finding women in the state (Wang has been resolved...

An improved silhouette for human pose estimation

Science.gov (United States)

Hawes, Anthony H.; Iftekharuddin, Khan M.

2017-08-01

We propose a novel method for analyzing images that exploits the natural lines of a human poses to find areas where self-occlusion could be present. Errors caused by self-occlusion cause several modern human pose estimation methods to mis-identify body parts, which reduces the performance of most action recognition algorithms. Our method is motivated by the observation that, in several cases, occlusion can be reasoned using only boundary lines of limbs. An intelligent edge detection algorithm based on the above principle could be used to augment the silhouette with information useful for pose estimation algorithms and push forward progress on occlusion handling for human action recognition. The algorithm described is applicable to computer vision scenarios involving 2D images and (appropriated flattened) 3D images.

Pose estimation for mobile robots working on turbine blade

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ma, X.D.; Chen, Q.; Liu, J.J.; Sun, Z.G.; Zhang, W.Z. [Tsinghua Univ., Beijing (China). Key Laboratory for Advanced Materials Processing Technology, Ministry of Education, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering

2009-03-11

This paper discussed a features point detection and matching task technique for mobile robots used in wind turbine blade applications. The vision-based scheme used visual information from the robot's surrounding environment to match successive image frames. An improved pose estimation algorithm based on a scale invariant feature transform (SIFT) was developed to consider the characteristics of local images of turbine blades, pose estimation problems, and conditions. The method included a pre-subsampling technique for reducing computation and bidirectional matching for improving precision. A random sample consensus (RANSAC) method was used to estimate the robot's pose. Pose estimation conditions included a wide pose range; the distance between neighbouring blades; and mechanical, electromagnetic, and optical disturbances. An experimental platform was used to demonstrate the validity of the proposed algorithm. 20 refs., 6 figs.

Temporal subtraction of chest radiographs compensating pose differences

Science.gov (United States)

von Berg, Jens; Dworzak, Jalda; Klinder, Tobias; Manke, Dirk; Kreth, Adrian; Lamecker, Hans; Zachow, Stefan; Lorenz, Cristian

2011-03-01

Temporal subtraction techniques using 2D image registration improve the detectability of interval changes from chest radiographs. Although such methods are well known for some time they are not widely used in radiologic practice. The reason is the occurrence of strong pose differences between two acquisitions with a time interval of months to years in between. Such strong perspective differences occur in a reasonable number of cases. They cannot be compensated by available image registration methods and thus mask interval changes to be undetectable. In this paper a method is proposed to estimate a 3D pose difference by the adaptation of a 3D rib cage model to both projections. The difference between both is then compensated for, thus producing a subtraction image with virtually no change in pose. The method generally assumes that no 3D image data is available from the patient. The accuracy of pose estimation is validated with chest phantom images acquired under controlled geometric conditions. A subtle interval change simulated by a piece of plastic foam attached to the phantom becomes visible in subtraction images generated with this technique even at strong angular pose differences like an anterior-posterior inclination of 13 degrees.

The expert group health research and care after disasters and environmental crises: an analysis of research questions formulated by Dutch health authorities for the expert group between 2006 and 2016.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Alting, D.; Dückers, M.L.; Yzermans, J.

2017-01-01

Study/Objective: The aim of this study is (1) to examine developments in the research questions, submitted to the Expert Group Health Research and Care after Disasters and Environmental Crises between 2006 and 2016, and (2) to explore implications of the research questions for the nature of advice

Non-standard and improperly posed problems

CERN Document Server

Straughan, Brian; Ames, William F

1997-01-01

Written by two international experts in the field, this book is the first unified survey of the advances made in the last 15 years on key non-standard and improperly posed problems for partial differential equations.This reference for mathematicians, scientists, and engineers provides an overview of the methodology typically used to study improperly posed problems. It focuses on structural stability--the continuous dependence of solutions on the initial conditions and the modeling equations--and on problems for which data are only prescribed on part of the boundary.The book addresses continuou

Assessing exposure risks for aquatic organisms posed by Tamiflu use under seasonal influenza and pandemic conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Wei-Yu; Lin, Chia-Jung; Liao, Chung-Min

2014-01-01

Environmental pollution by anti-influenza drugs is increasingly recognized as a threat to aquatic environments. However, little is known about empirical data on risk effects posed by environmentally relevant concentrations of anti-influenza drug based on recently published ecotoxicological researches in Taiwan. Here we linked ecotoxicology models with an epidemiological scheme to assess exposure risks of aquatic organisms and environmental hazards posed by antiviral oseltamivir (Tamiflu) use in Taiwan. Built on published bioassays, we used probabilistic risk assessment model to estimate potential threats of environmentally relevant hazards on algae, daphnid, and zerbrafish. We found that Tamiflu use was unlikely to pose a significant chronic environmental risk to daphnia and zebrafish during seasonal influenza. However, the chronic environmental risk posed by Tamiflu use during pandemic was alarming. We conclude that no significant risk to algal growth was found during seasonal influenza and high pandemic Tamiflu use. -- Highlights: • Environmentally relevant concentrations of anti-influenza drug have ecotoxicologically important effects. • Tamiflu is unlikely to pose a significant chronic environmental risk during seasonal influenza. • Chronic environmental risk posed by Tamiflu during pandemic is alarming. • Tertiary process in sewage treatment plants is crucial in mitigating Tamiflu exposure risk. -- A probabilistic framework can be used for assessing exposure risks posed by environmentally relevant concentrations of anti-influenza drug in aquatic ecosystems

Good questions require good answers. Critics on current climate research contradicted

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vellinga, P.; Van Dorland, R.; Kabat, P.

2008-01-01

In some of the previous issues of this magazine (Spil 2007, issue 4 and 5-6, and Spil 2008, issue 1) the authors Labohm, Roersch and Thoenes started a frontal attack of the greenhouse theory and the researchers who report on the state of science in the framework of the IPCC. The author of this article addresses two main questions arising from the above-mentioned authors: (1) Does the use of fossil fuels affect global climate?; and (2) Is the warming of the last 30 years related to the increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere? [mk] [nl

Answering the Questions of Rape Prevention Research: A Response to Tharp et al. (2011)

Science.gov (United States)

Foubert, John D.

2011-01-01

Rape prevention programmers and researchers have long struggled to select the most appropriate theoretical models to frame their work. Questions abound regarding appropriate standards of evidence for success of program interventions. The present article provides an alternative point of view to the one put forward by seven staff members from the…

Recognizing and overcoming challenges of couple interview research.

Science.gov (United States)

Mellor, Ruth M; Slaymaker, Emma; Cleland, John

2013-10-01

In this article we discuss some methodological and ethical challenges we faced when conducting a couple-based study on men's role in contraceptive switching, and how we overcame them. The challenges we discuss include recruiting couples with a range of experiences, ensuring informed consent of participants, maintaining confidentiality within interviews, and participants discussing interview content between interviews. As appropriate, we have drawn on study participants' views of these challenges. We conclude that although couple research poses challenges, they can be overcome or minimized, and that for certain research questions this methodology is well worth using.

Muscle utilization patterns vary by skill levels of the practitioners across specific yoga poses (asanas).

Science.gov (United States)

Ni, Meng; Mooney, Kiersten; Balachandran, Anoop; Richards, Luca; Harriell, Kysha; Signorile, Joseph F

2014-08-01

To compare muscle activation patterns in 14 dominant side muscles during different yoga poses across three skill levels. Mixed repeated-measures descriptive study. University neuromuscular research laboratory, Miami, US. A group of 36 yoga practitioners (9 M/27 F; mean ± SD, 31.6 ± 12.6 years) with at least 3 months yoga practice experience. Each of the 11 surya namaskar poses A and B was performed separately for 15s and the surface electromyography for 14 muscles were recorded. Normalized root mean square of the electromyographic signal (NrmsEMG) for 14 muscles (5 upper body, 4 trunk, 5 lower body). There were significant main effects of pose for all fourteen muscles except middle trapezius (p<.02) and of skill level for the vastus medialis; p=.027). A significant skill level × pose interaction existed for five muscles (pectoralis major sternal head, anterior deltoid, medial deltoid, upper rectus abdominis and gastrocnemius lateralis; p<.05). Post hoc analyses using Bonferroni comparisons indicated that different poses activated specific muscle groups; however, this varied by skill level. Our results indicate that different poses can produce specific muscle activation patterns which may vary due to practitioners' skill levels. This information can be used in designing rehabilitation and training programs and for cuing during yoga training. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Method of orthogonally splitting imaging pose measurement

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Na; Sun, Changku; Wang, Peng; Yang, Qian; Liu, Xintong

2018-01-01

In order to meet the aviation's and machinery manufacturing's pose measurement need of high precision, fast speed and wide measurement range, and to resolve the contradiction between measurement range and resolution of vision sensor, this paper proposes an orthogonally splitting imaging pose measurement method. This paper designs and realizes an orthogonally splitting imaging vision sensor and establishes a pose measurement system. The vision sensor consists of one imaging lens, a beam splitter prism, cylindrical lenses and dual linear CCD. Dual linear CCD respectively acquire one dimensional image coordinate data of the target point, and two data can restore the two dimensional image coordinates of the target point. According to the characteristics of imaging system, this paper establishes the nonlinear distortion model to correct distortion. Based on cross ratio invariability, polynomial equation is established and solved by the least square fitting method. After completing distortion correction, this paper establishes the measurement mathematical model of vision sensor, and determines intrinsic parameters to calibrate. An array of feature points for calibration is built by placing a planar target in any different positions for a few times. An terative optimization method is presented to solve the parameters of model. The experimental results show that the field angle is 52 °, the focus distance is 27.40 mm, image resolution is 5185×5117 pixels, displacement measurement error is less than 0.1mm, and rotation angle measurement error is less than 0.15°. The method of orthogonally splitting imaging pose measurement can satisfy the pose measurement requirement of high precision, fast speed and wide measurement range.

Investigating Mathematics Teachers Candidates' Knowledge about Problem Solving Strategies through Problem Posing

Science.gov (United States)

Ünlü, Melihan

2017-01-01

The aim of the study was to determine mathematics teacher candidates' knowledge about problem solving strategies through problem posing. This qualitative research was conducted with 95 mathematics teacher candidates studying at education faculty of a public university during the first term of the 2015-2016 academic year in Turkey. Problem Posing…

Questioning context: a set of interdisciplinary questions for investigating contextual factors affecting health decision making

Science.gov (United States)

Charise, Andrea; Witteman, Holly; Whyte, Sarah; Sutton, Erica J.; Bender, Jacqueline L.; Massimi, Michael; Stephens, Lindsay; Evans, Joshua; Logie, Carmen; Mirza, Raza M.; Elf, Marie

2011-01-01

Abstract Objective  To combine insights from multiple disciplines into a set of questions that can be used to investigate contextual factors affecting health decision making. Background  Decision‐making processes and outcomes may be shaped by a range of non‐medical or ‘contextual’ factors particular to an individual including social, economic, political, geographical and institutional conditions. Research concerning contextual factors occurs across many disciplines and theoretical domains, but few conceptual tools have attempted to integrate and translate this wide‐ranging research for health decision‐making purposes. Methods  To formulate this tool we employed an iterative, collaborative process of scenario development and question generation. Five hypothetical health decision‐making scenarios (preventative, screening, curative, supportive and palliative) were developed and used to generate a set of exploratory questions that aim to highlight potential contextual factors across a range of health decisions. Findings  We present an exploratory tool consisting of questions organized into four thematic domains – Bodies, Technologies, Place and Work (BTPW) – articulating wide‐ranging contextual factors relevant to health decision making. The BTPW tool encompasses health‐related scholarship and research from a range of disciplines pertinent to health decision making, and identifies concrete points of intersection between its four thematic domains. Examples of the practical application of the questions are also provided. Conclusions  These exploratory questions provide an interdisciplinary toolkit for identifying the complex contextual factors affecting decision making. The set of questions comprised by the BTPW tool may be applied wholly or partially in the context of clinical practice, policy development and health‐related research. PMID:21029277

Identifying research priorities for public health research to address health inequalities: use of Delphi-like survey methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Turner, S; Ollerhead, E; Cook, A

2017-10-09

In the funding of health research and public health research it is vital that research questions posed are important and that funded research meets a research need or a gap in evidence. Many methods are used in the identification of research priorities, however, these can be resource intensive, costly and logistically challenging. Identifying such research priorities can be particularly challenging for complex public health problems as there is a need to consult a number of experts across disciplines and with a range of expertise. This study investigated the use of Delphi-like survey methods in identifying important research priorities relating to health inequalities and framing tractable research questions for topic areas identified. The study was conducted in two phases, both using Delphi-like survey methods. Firstly, public health professionals with an interest in health inequalities were asked to identify research priorities. Secondly academic researchers were asked to frame tractable research questions relating to the priorities identified. These research priorities identified using Delphi-like survey methods were subsequently compared to those identified using different methods. A total of 52 public health professionals and 21 academics across the United Kingdom agreed to take part. The response rates were high, from public health professionals across three survey rounds (69%, 50% and 40%) and from academics across one round (52%), indicating that participants were receptive to the method and motivated to respond. The themes identified as encompassing the most important research priorities were mental health, healthy environment and health behaviours. Within these themes, the topic areas that emerged most strongly included community interventions for prevention of mental health problems and the food and alcohol environment. Some responses received from academic researchers were (as requested) in the form of tractable research questions, whereas others

Pose measurement method with six parameters for microassembly based on an optical micrometer

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Xin; Wang, Qiang; Zhang, Zhi-jing; Sun, Yuan; Zhang, Xiao-feng

2009-07-01

This paper presents a new pose measurement method of microminiature parts that is capable of transforming one dimension (1D) contour size obtained by optical micrometer to three dimension (3D) data with six parameters for microassembly. Pose measurement is one of the most important processes for microminiature parts' alignment and insertion in microassembly. During the past few years, researchers have developed their microassembly systems focusing on visual identification to obtain two or three dimension data with no more than three parameters. Scanning electronic microscope (SEM), optical microscope, and stereomicroscope are applied in their systems. However, as structures of microminiature parts become increasingly complex, six parameters to represent their position and orientation are specifically needed. Firstly, The pose measurement model is established based on the introduction of measuring objects and measuring principle of optical micrometer. The measuring objects are microminiature parts with complex 3D structure. Two groups of two dimension (2D) data are gathered at two different measurement positions. Then part pose with 6 parameters is calculated, including 3 position parameters of feature point of the part and 3 orientation parameters of the part axis. Secondly, pose measurement process for a small shaft, vertical orientation determination, and position parameters obtaining are presented. 2D data is gathered by scanning the generatrix of the part, and valid data is extracted and saved in arrays. A vertical orientation criterion is proposed to determine whether the part is parallel to the Z-axis of the coordinate. If not, 2D data will be fixed into a linear equation using least square algorithm. Then orientation parameters are calculated. Center of Part End (CPE) is selected as feature point of the part, and its position parameters are extracted form two group of 2D data. Finally, a fast pose measurement device is developed and representative

An investigation into multi-dimensional prediction models to estimate the pose error of a quadcopter in a CSP plant setting

Science.gov (United States)

Lock, Jacobus C.; Smit, Willie J.; Treurnicht, Johann

2016-05-01

The Solar Thermal Energy Research Group (STERG) is investigating ways to make heliostats cheaper to reduce the total cost of a concentrating solar power (CSP) plant. One avenue of research is to use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to automate and assist with the heliostat calibration process. To do this, the pose estimation error of each UAV must be determined and integrated into a calibration procedure. A computer vision (CV) system is used to measure the pose of a quadcopter UAV. However, this CV system contains considerable measurement errors. Since this is a high-dimensional problem, a sophisticated prediction model must be used to estimate the measurement error of the CV system for any given pose measurement vector. This paper attempts to train and validate such a model with the aim of using it to determine the pose error of a quadcopter in a CSP plant setting.

Pose estimation of industrial objects towards robot operation

Science.gov (United States)

Niu, Jie; Zhou, Fuqiang; Tan, Haishu; Cao, Yu

2017-10-01

With the advantages of wide range, non-contact and high flexibility, the visual estimation technology of target pose has been widely applied in modern industry, robot guidance and other engineering practices. However, due to the influence of complicated industrial environment, outside interference factors, lack of object characteristics, restrictions of camera and other limitations, the visual estimation technology of target pose is still faced with many challenges. Focusing on the above problems, a pose estimation method of the industrial objects is developed based on 3D models of targets. By matching the extracted shape characteristics of objects with the priori 3D model database of targets, the method realizes the recognition of target. Thus a pose estimation of objects can be determined based on the monocular vision measuring model. The experimental results show that this method can be implemented to estimate the position of rigid objects based on poor images information, and provides guiding basis for the operation of the industrial robot.

Multi-view 3D Human Pose Estimation in Complex Environment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hofmann, K.M.; Gavrila, D.M.

2012-01-01

We introduce a framework for unconstrained 3D human upper body pose estimation from multiple camera views in complex environment. Its main novelty lies in the integration of three components: single-frame pose recovery, temporal integration and model texture adaptation. Single-frame pose recovery

Contactless and pose invariant biometric identification using hand surface.

Science.gov (United States)

Kanhangad, Vivek; Kumar, Ajay; Zhang, David

2011-05-01

This paper presents a novel approach for hand matching that achieves significantly improved performance even in the presence of large hand pose variations. The proposed method utilizes a 3-D digitizer to simultaneously acquire intensity and range images of the user's hand presented to the system in an arbitrary pose. The approach involves determination of the orientation of the hand in 3-D space followed by pose normalization of the acquired 3-D and 2-D hand images. Multimodal (2-D as well as 3-D) palmprint and hand geometry features, which are simultaneously extracted from the user's pose normalized textured 3-D hand, are used for matching. Individual matching scores are then combined using a new dynamic fusion strategy. Our experimental results on the database of 114 subjects with significant pose variations yielded encouraging results. Consistent (across various hand features considered) performance improvement achieved with the pose correction demonstrates the usefulness of the proposed approach for hand based biometric systems with unconstrained and contact-free imaging. The experimental results also suggest that the dynamic fusion approach employed in this work helps to achieve performance improvement of 60% (in terms of EER) over the case when matching scores are combined using the weighted sum rule.

A Question of Control? Examining the Role of Control Conditions in Experimental Psychopathology using the Example of Cognitive Bias Modification Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Blackwell, Simon E; Woud, Marcella L; MacLeod, Colin

2017-10-26

While control conditions are vitally important in research, selecting the optimal control condition can be challenging. Problems are likely to arise when the choice of control condition is not tightly guided by the specific question that a given study aims to address. Such problems have become increasingly apparent in experimental psychopathology research investigating the experimental modification of cognitive biases, particularly as the focus of this research has shifted from theoretical questions concerning mechanistic aspects of the association between cognitive bias and emotional vulnerability, to questions that instead concern the clinical efficacy of 'cognitive bias modification' (CBM) procedures. We discuss the kinds of control conditions that have typically been employed in CBM research, illustrating how difficulties can arise when changes in the types of research questions asked are not accompanied by changes in the control conditions employed. Crucially, claims made on the basis of comparing active and control conditions within CBM studies should be restricted to those conclusions allowed by the specific control condition employed. CBM studies aiming to establish clinical utility are likely to require quite different control conditions from CBM studies aiming to illuminate mechanisms. Further, conclusions concerning the clinical utility of CBM interventions cannot necessarily be drawn from studies in which the control condition has been chosen to answer questions concerning mechanisms. Appreciating the need to appropriately alter control conditions in the transition from basic mechanisms-focussed investigations to applied clinical research could greatly facilitate the translational process.

State of the Science Meeting: Burn Care: Goals for Treatment and Research

Science.gov (United States)

2006-11-01

13. Celis, MM, Suman, OE, Huang, TT, Yen, P, Herndon, DN. Effect of a Supervised Exercise and Physiotherapy Program on Surgical Interventions in...the following: surgeons, nurses, therapists, nutritionists, pharmacists, residents, medical students , scientists, healthcare administration, industry...specialists, and students interact to pose research questions based on clinical problems, to look for answers in the laboratories and then in the clinical

Four questions on European consumers' attitudes to the use of genetic modification in food production

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grunert, Klaus G.; Bredahl, Lone; Scholderer, Joachim

2003-01-01

Four questions on European consumers' attitudes to the use of genetic modification (GM) in food production are posed and answered: (1) how negative are consumer attitudes to GM applications in food production? (2) How do these attitudes affect perception of and preference for products involving GM...

Asking the Right Questions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Richter, Line

Based on fieldwork in Mali this paper discusses the role of anthropology (and the anthropologist) in a large public health research project on children's health. In the uncertainty and disquiet that comes with the battle to combat and avoid diseases in a setting where poverty and abysmal diseases......, is the ability to move beyond even the best hidden assumptions and question our own questions, thereby enabling us to ask the right questions....

Winners, losers, and posers: The effect of power poses on testosterone and risk-taking following competition.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Kristopher M; Apicella, Coren L

2017-06-01

A contribution to a special issue on Hormones and Human Competition. The effect of postural power displays (i.e. power poses) on hormone levels and decision-making has recently been challenged. While Carney et al. (2010) found that holding brief postural displays of power leads to increased testosterone, decreased cortisol and greater economic risk taking, this failed to replicate in a recent high-powered study (Ranehill et al. 2015). It has been put forward that subtle differences in social context may account for the differences in results. Power displays naturally occur within the context of competitions, as do changes in hormones, and researchers have yet to examine the effects of poses within this ecologically relevant context. Using a large sample of 247 male participants, natural winners and losers of a physical competition were randomly assigned to hold a low, neutral or high-power postural display. We found no main effect of pose type on testosterone, cortisol, risk or feelings of power. Winners assigned to a high-power pose had a relative, albeit small, rise in testosterone compared to winners who held neutral or low-power poses. For losers, we found little evidence that high-power poses lead to increased testosterone relative to those holding neutral or low-powered poses. If anything, the reverse was observed - losers had a reduction in testosterone after holding high-power poses. To the extent that changes in testosterone modulate social behaviors adaptively, it is possible that the relative reduction in testosterone observed in losers taking high-powered poses is designed to inhibit further "winner-like" behavior that could result in continued defeat and harm. Still, effects were small, multiple comparisons were made, and the results ran counter to our predictions. We thus treat these conclusions as preliminary. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Methods of RVD object pose estimation and experiments

Science.gov (United States)

Shang, Yang; He, Yan; Wang, Weihua; Yu, Qifeng

2007-11-01

Methods of measuring a RVD (rendezvous and docking) cooperative object's pose from monocular and binocular images respectively are presented. The methods solve the initial values first and optimize the object pose parameters by bundle adjustment. In the disturbance-rejecting binocular method, chosen measurement system parameters of one camera's exterior parameters are modified simultaneously. The methods need three or more cooperative target points to measure the object's pose accurately. Experimental data show that the methods converge quickly and stably, provide accurate results and do not need accurate initial values. Even when the chosen measurement system parameters are subjected to some amount of disturbance, the binocular method manages to provide fairly accurate results.

Single-frame 3D human pose recovery from multiple views

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hofmann, M.; Gavrila, D.M.

2009-01-01

We present a system for the estimation of unconstrained 3D human upper body pose from multi-camera single-frame views. Pose recovery starts with a shape detection stage where candidate poses are generated based on hierarchical exemplar matching in the individual camera views. The hierarchy used in

Research in thermal biology: Burning questions for coldwater stream fishes

Science.gov (United States)

McCullough, D.A.; Bartholow, J.M.; Jager, H.I.; Beschta, R.L.; Cheslak, E.F.; Deas, M.L.; Ebersole, J.L.; Foott, J.S.; Johnson, S.L.; Marine, K.R.; Mesa, M.G.; Petersen, J.H.; Souchon, Y.; Tiffan, K.F.; Wurtsbaugh, W.A.

2009-01-01

With the increasing appreciation of global warming impacts on ecological systems, in addition to the myriad of land management effects on water quality, the number of literature citations dealing with the effects of water temperature on freshwater fish has escalated in the past decade. Given the many biological scales at which water temperature effects have been studied, and the growing need to integrate knowledge from multiple disciplines of thermal biology to fully protect beneficial uses, we held that a survey of the most promising recent developments and an expression of some of the remaining unanswered questions with significant management implications would best be approached collectively by a diverse research community. We have identified five specific topic areas of renewed research where new techniques and critical thought could benefit coldwater stream fishes (particularly salmonids): molecular, organism, population/species, community and ecosystem, and policy issues in water quality. Our hope is that information gained through examination of recent research fronts linking knowledge at various scales will prove useful in managing water quality at a basin level to protect fish populations and whole ecosystems. Standards of the past were based largely on incipient lethal and optimum growth rate temperatures for fish species, while future standards should consider all integrated thermal impacts to the organism and ecosystem. ?? Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.

Turkish Primary School Teachers' Opinions about Problem Posing

Science.gov (United States)

Kilic, Cigdem

2013-01-01

Problem posing is one of the most important topics in a mathematics education. Through problem posing, students gain mathematical abilities and concepts and teachers can evaluate their students and arrange adequate learning environments. The aim of the present study is to investigate Turkish primary school teachers' opinions about problem posing…

Standard diffusive systems are well-posed linear systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Matignon, Denis; Zwart, Heiko J.

2004-01-01

The class of well-posed linear systems as introduced by Salamon has become a well-understood class of systems, see e.g. the work of Weiss and the book of Staffans. Many partial partial differential equations with boundary control and point observation can be formulated as a well-posed linear system.

The prime questions in authentic patient's consultations: a call for additional research on current and new paradigms.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Hanh Thi

2013-01-01

Although the 3 prime questions ("What did your doctor tell you the medication is for?" "How did your doctor tell you to take the medication?," and "What did your doctor tell you to expect?") have been recommended as a way to implement an interactive approach to patient's counseling in pharmacy, research examining how these questions are actually used in practice is relatively sparse. Qualitative approaches might assist to inform pertinent questions that might challenge prevailing paradigms. This commentary calls for a close look at how novice pharmacists in training manage these questions in real-life patient's consultations. These examples are aimed to provide preliminary observations about (1) how the prime questions in their original and modified forms are treated by pharmacists in training and patients, and (2) the interactional functions that the prime questions and similar questions may serve. Preliminary observations based on a conversation analysis of these examples show that the open-ended nature of the original prime questions sometimes leads to interactional problems such as delays in patients' responses and pharmacists' revision of the questions. Modified question formats that involve the use of specific knowledge expected to be possessed by a pharmacist, such as declarative questions and Q-word questions with concrete information, may lead to smoother interaction. Finally, questions about the purpose of the therapy may also be used to create opportunities to express empathy toward the patient or to shift the zone of expertise to the doctor. These initial findings suggest a more context sensitive and adaptive approach to communication in pharmacy. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Research in education and concepts of knowledge: the production of knowledge in question

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Almeida, Natalia Regina

2014-04-01

Full Text Available In the field of knowledge in education, discussion about the treatment given to its definition as a field, investigative object and different possibilities theoretical-methodological, epistemological, was frequent in the last decades of the twentieth century. In this perspective, the aspects that relate to the process of construction and production of research in the field of education and knowledge of different theoretical and methodological possibilities deserve more theoretical and conceptual investment. Thus, this paper, from the literature, aims to present a brief discussion of the different conceptions of knowledge in the construction of research in the field of knowledge in education and two theoretical and methodological positions the practice of educational research. As a final consideration, the intention of this article is not to exhaust the issue in question, for there are many issues that permeate the practice of educational research.

Design and Statistics in Quantitative Translation (Process) Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Balling, Laura Winther; Hvelplund, Kristian Tangsgaard

2015-01-01

Traditionally, translation research has been qualitative, but quantitative research is becoming increasingly important, especially in translation process research but also in other areas of translation studies. This poses problems to many translation scholars since this way of thinking...... is unfamiliar. In this article, we attempt to mitigate these problems by outlining our approach to good quantitative research, all the way from research questions and study design to data preparation and statistics. We concentrate especially on the nature of the variables involved, both in terms of their scale...... and their role in the design; this has implications for both design and choice of statistics. Although we focus on quantitative research, we also argue that such research should be supplemented with qualitative analyses and considerations of the translation product....

Pose estimation for augmented reality applications using genetic algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Ying Kin; Wong, Kin Hong; Chang, Michael Ming Yuen

2005-12-01

This paper describes a genetic algorithm that tackles the pose-estimation problem in computer vision. Our genetic algorithm can find the rotation and translation of an object accurately when the three-dimensional structure of the object is given. In our implementation, each chromosome encodes both the pose and the indexes to the selected point features of the object. Instead of only searching for the pose as in the existing work, our algorithm, at the same time, searches for a set containing the most reliable feature points in the process. This mismatch filtering strategy successfully makes the algorithm more robust under the presence of point mismatches and outliers in the images. Our algorithm has been tested with both synthetic and real data with good results. The accuracy of the recovered pose is compared to the existing algorithms. Our approach outperformed the Lowe's method and the other two genetic algorithms under the presence of point mismatches and outliers. In addition, it has been used to estimate the pose of a real object. It is shown that the proposed method is applicable to augmented reality applications.

Posing Problems to Understand Children's Learning of Fractions

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Lu Pien

2013-01-01

In this study, ways in which problem posing activities aid our understanding of children's learning of addition of unlike fractions and product of proper fractions was examined. In particular, how a simple problem posing activity helps teachers take a second, deeper look at children's understanding of fraction concepts will be discussed. The…

Feminism and psychology: analysis of a half-century of research on women and gender.

Science.gov (United States)

Eagly, Alice H; Eaton, Asia; Rose, Suzanna M; Riger, Stephanie; McHugh, Maureen C

2012-04-01

Starting in the 1960s, feminists argued that the discipline of psychology had neglected the study of women and gender and misrepresented women in its research and theories. Feminists also posed many questions worthy of being addressed by psychological science. This call for research preceded the emergence of a new and influential body of research on gender and women that grew especially rapidly during the period of greatest feminist activism. The descriptions of this research presented in this article derive from searches of the journal articles cataloged by PsycINFO for 1960-2009. These explorations revealed (a) a concentration of studies in basic research areas investigating social behavior and individual dispositions and in many applied areas, (b) differing trajectories of research on prototypical topics, and (c) diverse theoretical orientations that authors have not typically labeled as feminist. The considerable dissemination of this research is evident in its dispersion beyond gender-specialty journals into a wide range of other journals, including psychology's core review and theory journals, as well as in its coverage in introductory psychology textbooks. In this formidable body of research, psychological science has reflected the profound changes in the status of women during the last half-century and addressed numerous questions that these changes have posed. Feminism served to catalyze this research area, which grew beyond the bounds of feminist psychology to incorporate a very large array of theories, methods, and topics.

Consensus statement on genetic research in dementia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rikkert, M.G. Olde; der, V van; Burns, A.

2008-01-01

In this article, the authors describe how the European Dementia Consensus Network developed a consensus on research ethics in dementia, taking into account the questions posed by the era of genetic research and its new research methods. The consensus process started with a Delphi procedure...... to analyze relevant stakeholders' positions by describing their statements on the possibilities and limitations of research into genetic determinants of Alzheimer disease and to describe and analyze the moral desirability of genetic research on Alzheimer disease. The conclusions drawn from the Delphi...... procedure fuelled the development of the consensus statement, which is presented in this paper. The consensus statement aims to stimulate ethically acceptable research in the field of dementia and the protection of vulnerable elderly patients with dementia from application of inadequate research methods...

An official American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society statement: research questions in COPD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bartolome R. Celli

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD is a leading cause of morbidity, mortality and resource use worldwide. The goal of this official American Thoracic Society (ATS/European Respiratory Society (ERS Research Statement is to describe evidence related to diagnosis, assessment, and management; identify gaps in knowledge; and make recommendations for future research. It is not intended to provide clinical practice recommendations on COPD diagnosis and management. Clinicians, researchers and patient advocates with expertise in COPD were invited to participate. A literature search of Medline was performed, and studies deemed relevant were selected. The search was not a systematic review of the evidence. Existing evidence was appraised and summarised, and then salient knowledge gaps were identified. Recommendations for research that addresses important gaps in the evidence in all areas of COPD were formulated via discussion and consensus. Great strides have been made in the diagnosis, assessment and management of COPD, as well as understanding its pathogenesis. Despite this, many important questions remain unanswered. This ATS/ERS research statement highlights the types of research that leading clinicians, researchers and patient advocates believe will have the greatest impact on patient-centred outcomes.

The Priority of the Question: Focus Questions for Sustained Reasoning in Science

Science.gov (United States)

Lustick, David

2010-08-01

Science education standards place a high priority on promoting the skills and dispositions associated with inquiry at all levels of learning. Yet, the questions teachers employ to foster sustained reasoning are most likely borrowed from a textbook, lab manual, or worksheet. Such generic questions generated for a mass audience, lack authenticity and contextual cues that allow learners to immediately appreciate a question’s relevance. Teacher queries intended to motivate, guide, and foster learning through inquiry are known as focus questions. This theoretical article draws upon science education research to present a typology and conceptual framework intended to support science teacher educators as they identify, develop, and evaluate focus questions with their students.

Fostering Integrity in Research

Science.gov (United States)

McNutt, M. K.

2017-12-01

The responsible conduct of research requires that all involved in the research enterprise - researchers, sponsors, reviewers, publishers, and communicators - adhere to a set of integrity principles to protect the public's investment. Given the increasing complexity and globalization of the research enterprise, the National Academies recently re-examined and updated its integrity recommendations for researchers in the report Fostering Integrity in Research, with sponsorship from the National Science Foundation. Major departures from the previous recommendations 25-years earlier are the recognition that practices that were previously classified as merely questionable are indeed detrimental to the responsible conduct of research. Furthermore, the report concludes that there has been insufficient effort to respond to the threats that lapses in research integrity pose to the quality of research products and the reputation of researchers as deserving of the public trust. It recommends the creation of an independent, non-profit entity dedicated to promoting research integrity by serving as a resource and clearing house for expertise, advice, materials, and best practices on fostering research integrity and responding to allegations of research misconduct.

Top 10 Research Questions Related to Teaching Games for Understanding.

Science.gov (United States)

Memmert, Daniel; Almond, Len; Bunker, David; Butler, Joy; Fasold, Frowin; Griffin, Linda; Hillmann, Wolfgang; Hüttermann, Stefanie; Klein-Soetebier, Timo; König, Stefan; Nopp, Stephan; Rathschlag, Marco; Schul, Karsten; Schwab, Sebastian; Thorpe, Rod; Furley, Philip

2015-01-01

In this article, we elaborate on 10 current research questions related to the "teaching games for understanding" (TGfU) approach with the objective of both developing the model itself and fostering game understanding, tactical decision making, and game-playing ability in invasion and net/wall games: (1) How can existing scientific approaches from different disciplines be used to enhance game play for beginners and proficient players? (2) How can state-of-the-art technology be integrated to game-play evaluations of beginners and proficient players by employing corresponding assessments? (4) How can complexity thinking be utilized to shape day-to-day physical education (PE) and coaching practices? (5) How can game making/designing be helpfully utilized for emergent learning? (6) How could purposeful game design create constraints that enable tactical understanding and skill development through adaptive learning and distributed cognition? (7) How can teacher/coach development programs benefit from game-centered approaches? (8) How can TGfU-related approaches be implemented in teacher or coach education with the goal of facilitating preservice and in-service teachers/coaches' learning to teach and thereby foster their professional development from novices to experienced practitioners? (9) Can the TGfU approach be considered a helpful model across different cultures? (10) Can physical/psychomotor, cognitive, affective/social, and cultural development be fostered via TGfU approaches? The answers to these questions are critical not only for the advancement of teaching and coaching in PE and sport-based clubs, but also for an in-depth discussion on new scientific avenues and technological tools.

Top 10 Research Questions Related to Teaching Games for Understanding

Science.gov (United States)

Memmert, Daniel; Almond, Len; Bunker, David; Butler, Joy; Fasold, Frowin; Griffin, Linda; Hillmann, Wolfgang; Hüttermann, Stefanie; Klein-Soetebier, Timo; König, Stefan; Nopp, Stephan; Rathschlag, Marco; Schul, Karsten; Schwab, Sebastian; Thorpe, Rod; Furley, Philip

2015-01-01

In this article, we elaborate on 10 current research questions related to the “teaching games for understanding” (TGfU) approach with the objective of both developing the model itself and fostering game understanding, tactical decision making, and game-playing ability in invasion and net/wall games: (1) How can existing scientific approaches from different disciplines be used to enhance game play for beginners and proficient players? (2) How can state-of-the-art technology be integrated to game-play evaluations of beginners and proficient players by employing corresponding assessments? (4) How can complexity thinking be utilized to shape day-to-day physical education (PE) and coaching practices? (5) How can game making/designing be helpfully utilized for emergent learning? (6) How could purposeful game design create constraints that enable tactical understanding and skill development through adaptive learning and distributed cognition? (7) How can teacher/coach development programs benefit from game-centered approaches? (8) How can TGfU-related approaches be implemented in teacher or coach education with the goal of facilitating preservice and in-service teachers/coaches’ learning to teach and thereby foster their professional development from novices to experienced practitioners? (9) Can the TGfU approach be considered a helpful model across different cultures? (10) Can physical/psychomotor, cognitive, affective/social, and cultural development be fostered via TGfU approaches? The answers to these questions are critical not only for the advancement of teaching and coaching in PE and sport-based clubs, but also for an in-depth discussion on new scientific avenues and technological tools. PMID:26452580

Point Cloud Based Relative Pose Estimation of a Satellite in Close Range

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lujiang Liu

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Determination of the relative pose of satellites is essential in space rendezvous operations and on-orbit servicing missions. The key problems are the adoption of suitable sensor on board of a chaser and efficient techniques for pose estimation. This paper aims to estimate the pose of a target satellite in close range on the basis of its known model by using point cloud data generated by a flash LIDAR sensor. A novel model based pose estimation method is proposed; it includes a fast and reliable pose initial acquisition method based on global optimal searching by processing the dense point cloud data directly, and a pose tracking method based on Iterative Closest Point algorithm. Also, a simulation system is presented in this paper in order to evaluate the performance of the sensor and generate simulated sensor point cloud data. It also provides truth pose of the test target so that the pose estimation error can be quantified. To investigate the effectiveness of the proposed approach and achievable pose accuracy, numerical simulation experiments are performed; results demonstrate algorithm capability of operating with point cloud directly and large pose variations. Also, a field testing experiment is conducted and results show that the proposed method is effective.

Spontaneous and posed facial expression in Parkinson's disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, M C; Smith, M K; Ellgring, H

1996-09-01

Spontaneous and posed emotional facial expressions in individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD, n = 12) were compared with those of healthy age-matched controls (n = 12). The intensity and amount of facial expression in PD patients were expected to be reduced for spontaneous but not posed expressions. Emotional stimuli were video clips selected from films, 2-5 min in duration, designed to elicit feelings of happiness, sadness, fear, disgust, or anger. Facial movements were coded using Ekman and Friesen's (1978) Facial Action Coding System (FACS). In addition, participants rated their emotional experience on 9-point Likert scales. The PD group showed significantly less overall facial reactivity than did controls when viewing the films. The predicted Group X Condition (spontaneous vs. posed) interaction effect on smile intensity was found when PD participants with more severe disease were compared with those with milder disease and with controls. In contrast, ratings of emotional experience were similar for both groups. Depression was positively associated with emotion rating but not with measures of facial activity. Spontaneous facial expression appears to be selectively affected in PD, whereas posed expression and emotional experience remain relatively intact.

Analytical and ethical complexities in video game research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Mads Lund; Chimiri, Niklas Alexander; Søndergaard, Dorte Marie

Session: Sociomaterial complexities in digital-analog spaces Abstract: Analytical and ethical complexities in video game research A central issue that video game research seldom explicitly articulates is the ethical complexities involved in its empirical and analytical work. The presentation...... explores common research questions posed and analytical foci chosen by video game researchers subscribing to either the media effects tradition, represented by (ref.) or to interdisciplinary Game Studies. Both fields, which tend to depict themselves as polar-opposites, build on ethical assumptions...... of theoretical or analytical arrogance. The relevance of acknowledging and situating ethical complexity becomes pertinent when alternatively taking a sociomaterial perspective on doing empirical and analytical work on video gaming. From an agential realist point of view, for instance, a researcher...

What Makes a Scientific Research Question Worth Investigating? Students' Epistemic Criteria and Considerations of Contribution

Science.gov (United States)

Berson, Eric Bruckner

2012-01-01

This dissertation introduces the construct of "worthwhileness" as an important aspect of students' "practical" epistemologies of science (Sandoval, 2005). Specifically, it examines how students conceptualize what makes a scientific research question worthwhile, through a close analysis of the criteria they use for…

Pose-Invariant Face Recognition via RGB-D Images.

Science.gov (United States)

Sang, Gaoli; Li, Jing; Zhao, Qijun

2016-01-01

Three-dimensional (3D) face models can intrinsically handle large pose face recognition problem. In this paper, we propose a novel pose-invariant face recognition method via RGB-D images. By employing depth, our method is able to handle self-occlusion and deformation, both of which are challenging problems in two-dimensional (2D) face recognition. Texture images in the gallery can be rendered to the same view as the probe via depth. Meanwhile, depth is also used for similarity measure via frontalization and symmetric filling. Finally, both texture and depth contribute to the final identity estimation. Experiments on Bosphorus, CurtinFaces, Eurecom, and Kiwi databases demonstrate that the additional depth information has improved the performance of face recognition with large pose variations and under even more challenging conditions.

Ethical issues in trauma-related research: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Newman, Elana; Risch, Elizabeth; Kassam-Adams, Nancy

2006-09-01

ETHICAL DECISION-MAKING ABOUT TRAUMA-RELATED STUDIES requires a flexible approach that counters assumptions and biases about victims, assures a favorable ethical cost-benefit ratio, and promotes advancement of knowledge that can benefit survivors of traumatic stress. This paper reviews several ethical issues in the field of traumatic stress: benefit and risks in trauma-related research, whether trauma-related research poses unique risks and if so what those might be, informed consent and mandatory reporting, and supervision of trauma-related research. For each topic, we review potential ethical issues, summarize the research conducted thus far to inform ethical practice, and recommend future practice, research questions and policies to advance the field so that research on trauma can continue to be a win-win situation for all stakeholders in the research enterprise.

Questions and Answers about School-Age Children in Self-Care: A Sloan Work and Family Research Network Fact Sheet

Science.gov (United States)

Sloan Work and Family Research Network, 2009

2009-01-01

The Sloan Work and Family Research Network has prepared Fact Sheets that provide statistical answers to some important questions about work-family and work-life issues. This Fact Sheet includes statistics about Children in Self-Care, and answers the following questions about school-age children in self-care: (1) How many school-age children are in…

The science of stakeholder engagement in research: classification, implementation, and evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Goodman, Melody S; Sanders Thompson, Vetta L

2017-09-01

In this commentary, we discuss the science of stakeholder engagement in research. We propose a classification system with definitions to determine where projects lie on the stakeholder engagement continuum. We discuss the key elements of implementation and evaluation of stakeholder engagement in research posing key questions to consider when doing this work. We commend and critique the work of Hamilton et al. in their multilevel stakeholder engagement in a VA implementation trial of evidence-based quality improvement in women's health primary care. We also discuss the need for more work in this area to enhance the science of stakeholder engagement in research.

A combined vision-inertial fusion approach for 6-DoF object pose estimation

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Juan; Bernardos, Ana M.; Tarrío, Paula; Casar, José R.

2015-02-01

The estimation of the 3D position and orientation of moving objects (`pose' estimation) is a critical process for many applications in robotics, computer vision or mobile services. Although major research efforts have been carried out to design accurate, fast and robust indoor pose estimation systems, it remains as an open challenge to provide a low-cost, easy to deploy and reliable solution. Addressing this issue, this paper describes a hybrid approach for 6 degrees of freedom (6-DoF) pose estimation that fuses acceleration data and stereo vision to overcome the respective weaknesses of single technology approaches. The system relies on COTS technologies (standard webcams, accelerometers) and printable colored markers. It uses a set of infrastructure cameras, located to have the object to be tracked visible most of the operation time; the target object has to include an embedded accelerometer and be tagged with a fiducial marker. This simple marker has been designed for easy detection and segmentation and it may be adapted to different service scenarios (in shape and colors). Experimental results show that the proposed system provides high accuracy, while satisfactorily dealing with the real-time constraints.

Living with risk: a management question

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ale, Ben J.M.

2005-01-01

Public authorities started to be really involved in risk management of hazardous materials some 30 years ago. Recent developments have led to fresh attention for this matter and many further developments are underway. The history of risk management and safety regulation is one of strongly variable interest, forgotten lessons and rude awakenings. The impetus exerted by accidents is short lived. Safety cases become documents to satisfy regulation rather than instruments to reduce risk. Deregulation, privatisation, and outsourcing pose new challenges to safety and risk management. Some of the unfortunate side effects have already become apparent. This invariably leads to the next disaster, which will have a striking resemblance to the previous one when abstracted from the immediate technological context. Lessons can be learned if we really want. The question remains: 'Do we?'

The Impact of Political Context on the Questions Asked and Answered: The Evolution of Education Research on Racial Inequality

Science.gov (United States)

Wells, Amy Stuart; Roda, Allison

2016-01-01

This chapter examines how the larger political context and policies enacted at different points in American history have affected the questions education researchers asked and answered. The authors argue that while education researchers are often quick to consider how their research should shape policy, they are less likely to contemplate the…

Top 10 Research Questions Related to Youth Aerobic Fitness.

Science.gov (United States)

Armstrong, Neil

2017-06-01

Peak oxygen uptake ([Formula: see text] 2 ) is internationally recognized as the criterion measure of youth aerobic fitness, but despite pediatric data being available for almost 80 years, its measurement and interpretation in relation to growth, maturation, and health remain controversial. The trainability of youth aerobic fitness continues to be hotly debated, and causal mechanisms of training-induced changes and their modulation by chronological age, biological maturation, and sex are still to be resolved. The daily physical activity of youth is characterized by intermittent bouts and rapid changes in intensity, but physical activity of the intensity and duration required to determine peak [Formula: see text] 2 is rarely (if ever) experienced by most youth. In this context, it may therefore be the transient kinetics of pulmonary [Formula: see text] 2 that best reflect youth aerobic fitness. There are remarkably few rigorous studies of youth pulmonary [Formula: see text] 2 kinetics at the onset of exercise in different intensity domains, and the influence of chronological age, biological maturation, and sex during step changes in exercise intensity are not confidently documented. Understanding the trainability of the parameters of youth pulmonary [Formula: see text] 2 kinetics is primarily based on a few comparative studies of athletes and nonathletes. The underlying mechanisms of changes due to training require further exploration. The aims of the present article are therefore to provide a brief overview of aerobic fitness during growth and maturation, increase awareness of current controversies in its assessment and interpretation, identify gaps in knowledge, raise 10 relevant research questions, and indicate potential areas for future research.

MODEL PEMBELAJARAN PROBLEM POSING DENGAN PENDEKATAN SAINTIFIK UNTUK MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN PEMECAHAN MASALAH

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adi Purnomo

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Tujuan penelitian ini untuk menghasilkan perangkat pembelajaran model problem posing pendekatan saintifik yang valid, praktis dan efektif. Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian pengembangan dengan model Thiagarajan. Pengolahan data penelitian untuk uji kevalidan dan kepraktisan dilakukan dengan menghitung rata-rata skor, sedangkan uji keefektifan dilakukan dengan uji t, uji proporsi, uji regresi, uji t berpasangan, dan uji normalitas gain. Hasil pengembangan diperoleh perangkat pembelajaran dinyatakan valid dengan rata-rata skor validasi silabus 4,3, RPP 4,31, buku peserta didik 4,24, LKPD 4,16, TKPM 4,19, dari skor maksimal 5,00. Perangkat pembelajaran praktis berdasarkan hasil pengamatan kemampuan guru 4,5 (sangat baik dan respon peserta didik 3,8 (baik. Implementasi perangkat pembelajaran efektif yang ditunjukkan dengan: (1 ketuntasan klasikal TKKM melampaui 75%, rata-rata kelas melampaui KKM; (2 kemampuan pemecahan masalah peserta didik yang pembelajarannya menggunakan model problrm posing pendekatan saintifik lebih baik dari pada peserta didik dengan pembelajaran konvensional; (3 keterampilan proses saintifik dan karakter kemandirian berpengaruh positif terhadap kemampuan pemecahan masalah; dan (4 adanya peningkatan pemecahan masalah dan mendiskripsikan peningkatan kemampuan pemecahan masalah berdasarkan Taksonomi SOLO.The purpose of this research to development lesson plan through problem posing model with scientific approach which are valid, practical, and effective. The development research using Thiagarajan model. Processing data for validation and practice can be done calculating the score average, while effectivity by use of t-test, proportion test, regression test, paired t-test, n-gain. The lesson plan is valid based on the average of validation scores syllabus 4,3, RPP 4,31, student book 4,24, LKPD 4,16, TKPM 4,19.  The lesson plan is practical based on the result of observation teacher ability 4,53 and student response 4,23. The

A diaper bank and home visiting partnership: Initial exploration of research and policy questions.

Science.gov (United States)

Sadler, Lois S; Condon, Eileen M; Deng, Shirley Z; Ordway, Monica Roosa; Marchesseault, Crista; Miller, Andrea; Alfano, Janet Stolfi; Weir, Alison M

2018-03-01

The cost of diapering an infant can place a significant financial strain on families living in poverty. Partnerships between diaper banks and home visiting programs for young families may offer an innovative solution to expanding the reach and impact of diaper banks in low-income communities. The purpose of this pilot study was to uncover preliminary information about the functions of diaper distribution through home visiting programs, and to inform future research and policy questions regarding diaper distribution to families in need. In this descriptive qualitative pilot study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 6 home visitors from Minding the Baby ® (MTB), a home visiting intervention for young parents. MTB clinicians routinely distribute diapers in partnership with The Diaper Bank in Connecticut. We used directed content analysis to code and analyze interview transcripts. These preliminary findings indicate that partnerships between home visiting programs and diaper banks may benefit families by improving diaper access, reducing stigma, and fostering trusting relationships with home visitors. Home visiting program benefits including engagement or re-engagement with families may need to be balanced with potential effects on clinical and therapeutic relationships. Recommendations for next steps in research and related policy questions are discussed. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Ethical considerations for sleep intervention in organizational psychology research.

Science.gov (United States)

Barber, Larissa K

2017-12-01

Over the past several years, interest into the role of sleep in the workplace has grown. The theoretical shift from research questions examining sleep as an outcome to placing sleep as the independent variable has increased experimental approaches to manipulating sleep in organizational studies. This is an exciting trend that is likely to continue in the organizational sciences. However, sleep experimentation can also pose special challenges for organizational researchers unaccustomed to sleep science. In this commentary, I discuss five ethical considerations of conducting negative sleep interventions in organizational psychology research. I also provide recommendations for organizational researchers-or even other researchers in disciplines outside of sleep science-who wish to implement sleep interventions in their studies. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The highs and lows of theoretical interpretation in animal-metacognition research

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, J. David; Couchman, Justin J.; Beran, Michael J.

2012-01-01

Humans feel uncertain. They know when they do not know. These feelings and the responses to them ground the research literature on metacognition. It is a natural question whether animals share this cognitive capacity, and thus animal metacognition has become an influential research area within comparative psychology. Researchers have explored this question by testing many species using perception and memory paradigms. There is an emerging consensus that animals share functional parallels with humans’ conscious metacognition. Of course, this research area poses difficult issues of scientific inference. How firmly should we hold the line in insisting that animals’ performances are low-level and associative? How high should we set the bar for concluding that animals share metacognitive capacities with humans? This area offers a constructive case study for considering theoretical problems that often confront comparative psychologists. The authors present this case study and address diverse issues of scientific judgement and interpretation within comparative psychology. PMID:22492748

Research through teaching

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Høyen, Marianne Elisabeth Steensgaard

of childhood socialisation, it became obvious that we had to pose a similar research question: How can we analyse kindergarten workers' understanding of nature? This paper will describe the project and its challenges and further discuss how we can work with various methods alongside life story interviews......This paper describes how we have set up a research project with life histories as a central component. The life story interviews are made with kindergarten workers, and the aim is to analyse how the interviewee deals with a specific aspect of his or her job: How do kindergarten workers use nature...... in their work, and how do they teach the children about nature? Doing life story interviews is part of a voluntary offer for students who want to participate in research projects to get a better grasp of qualitative methods and to qualify for future jobs in general. University college as well as university...

The effect of problem posing and problem solving with realistic mathematics education approach to the conceptual understanding and adaptive reasoning

Science.gov (United States)

Mahendra, Rengga; Slamet, Isnandar; Budiyono

2017-12-01

One of the difficulties of students in learning mathematics is on the subject of geometry that requires students to understand abstract things. The aim of this research is to determine the effect of learning model Problem Posing and Problem Solving with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach to conceptual understanding and students' adaptive reasoning in learning mathematics. This research uses a kind of quasi experimental research. The population of this research is all seventh grade students of Junior High School 1 Jaten, Indonesia. The sample was taken using stratified cluster random sampling technique. The test of the research hypothesis was analyzed by using t-test. The results of this study indicate that the model of Problem Posing learning with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach can improve students' conceptual understanding significantly in mathematics learning. In addition tu, the results also showed that the model of Problem Solving learning with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach can improve students' adaptive reasoning significantly in learning mathematics. Therefore, the model of Problem Posing and Problem Solving learning with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach is appropriately applied in mathematics learning especially on the subject of geometry so as to improve conceptual understanding and students' adaptive reasoning. Furthermore, the impact can improve student achievement.

Driver head pose tracking with thermal camera

Science.gov (United States)

Bole, S.; Fournier, C.; Lavergne, C.; Druart, G.; Lépine, T.

2016-09-01

Head pose can be seen as a coarse estimation of gaze direction. In automotive industry, knowledge about gaze direction could optimize Human-Machine Interface (HMI) and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). Pose estimation systems are often based on camera when applications have to be contactless. In this paper, we explore uncooled thermal imagery (8-14μm) for its intrinsic night vision capabilities and for its invariance versus lighting variations. Two methods are implemented and compared, both are aided by a 3D model of the head. The 3D model, mapped with thermal texture, allows to synthesize a base of 2D projected models, differently oriented and labeled in yaw and pitch. The first method is based on keypoints. Keypoints of models are matched with those of the query image. These sets of matchings, aided with the 3D shape of the model, allow to estimate 3D pose. The second method is a global appearance approach. Among all 2D models of the base, algorithm searches the one which is the closest to the query image thanks to a weighted least squares difference.

A Support System for the Electric Appliance Control Using Pose Recognition

Science.gov (United States)

Kawano, Takuya; Yamamoto, Kazuhiko; Kato, Kunihito; Hongo, Hitoshi

In this paper, we propose an electric appliance control support system for aged and bedridden people using pose recognition. We proposed a pose recognition system that distinguishes between seven poses of the user on the bed. First, the face and arm regions of the user are detected by using the skin color. Our system focuses a recognition region surrounding the face region. Next, the higher order local autocorrelation features within the region are extracted. The linear discriminant analysis creates the coefficient matrix that can optimally distinguish among training data from the seven poses. Our algorithm can recognize the seven poses even if the subject wears different clothes and slightly shifts or slants on the bed. From the experimental results, our system achieved an accuracy rate of over 99 %. Then, we show that it possibles to construct one of a user-friendly system.

Flexible Polyhedral Surfaces with Two Flat Poses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hellmuth Stachel

2015-05-01

Full Text Available We present three types of polyhedral surfaces, which are continuously flexible and have not only an initial pose, where all faces are coplanar, but pass during their self-motion through another pose with coplanar faces (“flat pose”. These surfaces are examples of so-called rigid origami, since we only admit exact flexions, i.e., each face remains rigid during the motion; only the dihedral angles vary. We analyze the geometry behind Miura-ori and address Kokotsakis’ example of a flexible tessellation with the particular case of a cyclic quadrangle. Finally, we recall Bricard’s octahedra of Type 3 and their relation to strophoids.

Synthesizing models useful for ecohydrology and ecohydraulic approaches: An emphasis on integrating models to address complex research questions

Science.gov (United States)

Brewer, Shannon K.; Worthington, Thomas; Mollenhauer, Robert; Stewart, David; McManamay, Ryan; Guertault, Lucie; Moore, Desiree

2018-01-01

Ecohydrology combines empiricism, data analytics, and the integration of models to characterize linkages between ecological and hydrological processes. A challenge for practitioners is determining which models best generalizes heterogeneity in hydrological behaviour, including water fluxes across spatial and temporal scales, integrating environmental and socio‐economic activities to determine best watershed management practices and data requirements. We conducted a literature review and synthesis of hydrologic, hydraulic, water quality, and ecological models designed for solving interdisciplinary questions. We reviewed 1,275 papers and identified 178 models that have the capacity to answer an array of research questions about ecohydrology or ecohydraulics. Of these models, 43 were commonly applied due to their versatility, accessibility, user‐friendliness, and excellent user‐support. Forty‐one of 43 reviewed models were linked to at least 1 other model especially: Water Quality Analysis Simulation Program (linked to 21 other models), Soil and Water Assessment Tool (19), and Hydrologic Engineering Center's River Analysis System (15). However, model integration was still relatively infrequent. There was substantial variation in model applications, possibly an artefact of the regional focus of research questions, simplicity of use, quality of user‐support efforts, or a limited understanding of model applicability. Simply increasing the interoperability of model platforms, transformation of models to user‐friendly forms, increasing user‐support, defining the reliability and risk associated with model results, and increasing awareness of model applicability may promote increased use of models across subdisciplines. Nonetheless, the current availability of models allows an array of interdisciplinary questions to be addressed, and model choice relates to several factors including research objective, model complexity, ability to link to other models, and

Baseline Face Detection, Head Pose Estimation, and Coarse Direction Detection for Facial Data in the SHRP2 Naturalistic Driving Study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paone, Jeffrey R [ORNL; Bolme, David S [ORNL; Ferrell, Regina Kay [ORNL; Aykac, Deniz [ORNL; Karnowski, Thomas Paul [ORNL

2015-01-01

Keeping a driver focused on the road is one of the most critical steps in insuring the safe operation of a vehicle. The Strategic Highway Research Program 2 (SHRP2) has over 3,100 recorded videos of volunteer drivers during a period of 2 years. This extensive naturalistic driving study (NDS) contains over one million hours of video and associated data that could aid safety researchers in understanding where the driver s attention is focused. Manual analysis of this data is infeasible, therefore efforts are underway to develop automated feature extraction algorithms to process and characterize the data. The real-world nature, volume, and acquisition conditions are unmatched in the transportation community, but there are also challenges because the data has relatively low resolution, high compression rates, and differing illumination conditions. A smaller dataset, the head pose validation study, is available which used the same recording equipment as SHRP2 but is more easily accessible with less privacy constraints. In this work we report initial head pose accuracy using commercial and open source face pose estimation algorithms on the head pose validation data set.

Coupled multiview autoencoders with locality sensitivity for three-dimensional human pose estimation

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Jialin; Sun, Jifeng; Luo, Shasha; Duan, Bichao

2017-09-01

Estimating three-dimensional (3D) human poses from a single camera is usually implemented by searching pose candidates with image descriptors. Existing methods usually suppose that the mapping from feature space to pose space is linear, but in fact, their mapping relationship is highly nonlinear, which heavily degrades the performance of 3D pose estimation. We propose a method to recover 3D pose from a silhouette image. It is based on the multiview feature embedding (MFE) and the locality-sensitive autoencoders (LSAEs). On the one hand, we first depict the manifold regularized sparse low-rank approximation for MFE and then the input image is characterized by a fused feature descriptor. On the other hand, both the fused feature and its corresponding 3D pose are separately encoded by LSAEs. A two-layer back-propagation neural network is trained by parameter fine-tuning and then used to map the encoded 2D features to encoded 3D poses. Our LSAE ensures a good preservation of the local topology of data points. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed method.

"While we are questioning we are progressing"—A Reply to the Ancestors of Qualitative Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Monika Götsch

2009-07-01

Full Text Available REICHERTZ' reflections on the development of qualitative research during the Berlin Meeting on Qualitative Research Methods in 2009 (http://www.berliner-methodentreffen.de/ have led to the following central questions: Are we facing the end of critical social research? Is this possible end correlated with an uncritical mass of young scientists? In their reply to the ancestors of qualitative research the present authors advocate the abolition of a bipolar thinking about the issues and support a hybrid turn, standing the test through a fundamentally open-minded, reflexive, and deconstructive researcher`s attitude. Using the example of ethnography and gender studies we show that there are indeed opportunities for the future of critical social research: This approach would take place beyond the slaves of market-controlled contract research and ahead of the characters of the eternal hall of fame of social research. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0903306

Inverse and Ill-posed Problems Theory and Applications

CERN Document Server

Kabanikhin, S I

2011-01-01

The text demonstrates the methods for proving the existence (if et all) and finding of inverse and ill-posed problems solutions in linear algebra, integral and operator equations, integral geometry, spectral inverse problems, and inverse scattering problems. It is given comprehensive background material for linear ill-posed problems and for coefficient inverse problems for hyperbolic, parabolic, and elliptic equations. A lot of examples for inverse problems from physics, geophysics, biology, medicine, and other areas of application of mathematics are included.

KEMAMPUAN MAHASISWA DALAM MEMBUAT COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pudiyono Pudiyono

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The aims of the research were to find out (a the level of the students’ ability in making comprehension questions, (b the students’ map of problems in making comprehension questions. The population of the research was all students joining Reading 4 academic year 2016, totaling to 30 students, while the sample was taken from all students. The result of data analysis showed that the average ability of the students, with score more than 70 reached 66.66%. In details, only 4 of the samples (13.33% got no wrong answers or an A. Those who got good achievement (B, considered as majority, amounted to 16 students (53.33%. The participants achieving enough grades (C reached 7 students or 23.33%. The last level achieved in this research was D with the number reaching 3 (10%. The map of problems laid on their inability in identifying between yes/no and WH questions, inverted sentence, choosing the right auxiliary and verbs and their spelling ability. Keyword: comprehension, questions, inversion, problem map, ability

Trajectory Planning with Pose Feedback for a Dual-Arm Space Robot

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yicheng Liu

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In order to obtain high precision path tracking for a dual-arm space robot, a trajectory planning method with pose feedback is proposed to be introduced into the design process in this paper. Firstly, pose error kinematic models are derived from the related kinematics and desired pose command for the end-effector and the base, respectively. On this basis, trajectory planning with pose feedback is proposed from a control perspective. Theoretical analyses show that the proposed trajectory planning algorithm can guarantee that pose error converges to zero exponentially for both the end-effector and the base when the robot is out of singular configuration. Compared with the existing algorithms, the proposed algorithm can lead to higher precision path tracking for the end-effector. Furthermore, the algorithm renders the system good anti-interference property for the base. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed trajectory planning algorithm.

Determining the Performances of Pre-Service Primary School Teachers in Problem Posing Situations

Science.gov (United States)

Kilic, Cigdem

2013-01-01

This study examined the problem posing strategies of pre-service primary school teachers in different problem posing situations (PPSs) and analysed the issues they encounter while posing problems. A problem posing task consisting of six PPSs (two free, two structured, and two semi-structured situations) was delivered to 40 participants.…

The Medical Anthropologist as the Patient: Developing Research Questions on Hospital Food in Japan through Auto-Ethnography

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pamela Runestad

2016-03-01

Full Text Available I was an inpatient at a small maternity clinic in Japan in 2012–13 and found it impossible to separate the way I experienced medical care and my training as a medical anthropologist. As I was encouraged to eat and monitor my weight so that I would “grow” a healthy baby, I recalled how interviewees from my HIV/AIDS project described nourishing their bodies so they could fight disease. Because of my experience in the healthcare system in Japan, I ended up reframing my data to add questions about the role of hospital food in patient care. Meanwhile, I developed the social networks necessary to execute a new project, which I would later undertake. In this essay I argue that medical anthropologists working from a phenomenological perspective may regard their own bodies as assets rather than hindrances in research, and that because bodies are gendered, focusing on this facet of habitus can be particularly informative. I also illustrate how systematic reflection on personal experience in the field (autoethnography aids in the development of research questions and reframing data. Finally, I discuss how highlighting these steps in research methods courses can demystify the research process for students.

Tooth display and lip position during spontaneous and posed smiling in adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Der Geld, Pieter; Oosterveld, Paul; Berge, Stefaan J; Kuijpers-Jagtman, Anne M

2008-08-01

To analyze differences in tooth display, lip-line height, and smile width between the posed smiling record, traditionally produced for orthodontic diagnosis, and the spontaneous (Duchenne) smile of joy. The faces of 122 male participants were each filmed during spontaneous and posed smiling. Spontaneous smiles were elicited through the participants watching a comical movie. Maxillary and mandibular lip-line heights, tooth display, and smile width were measured using a digital videographic method for smile analysis. Paired sample t-tests were used to compare measurements of posed and spontaneous smiling. Maxillary lip-line heights during spontaneous smiling were significantly higher than during posed smiling. Compared to spontaneous smiling, tooth display in the (pre)molar area during posed smiling decreased by up to 30%, along with a significant reduction of smile width. During posed smiling, also mandibular lip-line heights changed and the teeth were more covered by the lower lip than during spontaneous smiling. Reduced lip-line heights, tooth display, and smile width on a posed smiling record can have implications for the diagnostics of lip-line height, smile arc, buccal corridors, and plane of occlusion. Spontaneous smiling records next to posed smiling records are therefore recommended for diagnostic purposes. Because of the dynamic nature of spontaneous smiling, it is proposed to switch to dynamic video recording of the smile.

Head Pose Estimation Using Multilinear Subspace Analysis for Robot Human Awareness

Science.gov (United States)

Ivanov, Tonislav; Matthies, Larry; Vasilescu, M. Alex O.

2009-01-01

Mobile robots, operating in unconstrained indoor and outdoor environments, would benefit in many ways from perception of the human awareness around them. Knowledge of people's head pose and gaze directions would enable the robot to deduce which people are aware of the its presence, and to predict future motions of the people for better path planning. To make such inferences, requires estimating head pose on facial images that are combination of multiple varying factors, such as identity, appearance, head pose, and illumination. By applying multilinear algebra, the algebra of higher-order tensors, we can separate these factors and estimate head pose regardless of subject's identity or image conditions. Furthermore, we can automatically handle uncertainty in the size of the face and its location. We demonstrate a pipeline of on-the-move detection of pedestrians with a robot stereo vision system, segmentation of the head, and head pose estimation in cluttered urban street scenes.

Design Research on Personalized Problem Posing in Algebra

Science.gov (United States)

Walkington, Candace

2017-01-01

Algebra is an area of pressing national concern around issues of equity and access in education. Recent theories and research suggest that personalization of instruction can allow students to activate their funds of knowledge and can elicit interest in the content to be learned. This paper examines the results of a large-scale teaching experiment…

VQABQ: Visual Question Answering by Basic Questions

KAUST Repository

Huang, Jia-Hong

2017-03-19

Taking an image and question as the input of our method, it can output the text-based answer of the query question about the given image, so called Visual Question Answering (VQA). There are two main modules in our algorithm. Given a natural language question about an image, the first module takes the question as input and then outputs the basic questions of the main given question. The second module takes the main question, image and these basic questions as input and then outputs the text-based answer of the main question. We formulate the basic questions generation problem as a LASSO optimization problem, and also propose a criterion about how to exploit these basic questions to help answer main question. Our method is evaluated on the challenging VQA dataset and yields state-of-the-art accuracy, 60.34% in open-ended task.

VQABQ: Visual Question Answering by Basic Questions

KAUST Repository

Huang, Jia-Hong; Alfadly, Modar; Ghanem, Bernard

2017-01-01

Taking an image and question as the input of our method, it can output the text-based answer of the query question about the given image, so called Visual Question Answering (VQA). There are two main modules in our algorithm. Given a natural language question about an image, the first module takes the question as input and then outputs the basic questions of the main given question. The second module takes the main question, image and these basic questions as input and then outputs the text-based answer of the main question. We formulate the basic questions generation problem as a LASSO optimization problem, and also propose a criterion about how to exploit these basic questions to help answer main question. Our method is evaluated on the challenging VQA dataset and yields state-of-the-art accuracy, 60.34% in open-ended task.

Pose-invariant face recognition using Markov random fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Ho, Huy Tho; Chellappa, Rama

2013-04-01

One of the key challenges for current face recognition techniques is how to handle pose variations between the probe and gallery face images. In this paper, we present a method for reconstructing the virtual frontal view from a given nonfrontal face image using Markov random fields (MRFs) and an efficient variant of the belief propagation algorithm. In the proposed approach, the input face image is divided into a grid of overlapping patches, and a globally optimal set of local warps is estimated to synthesize the patches at the frontal view. A set of possible warps for each patch is obtained by aligning it with images from a training database of frontal faces. The alignments are performed efficiently in the Fourier domain using an extension of the Lucas-Kanade algorithm that can handle illumination variations. The problem of finding the optimal warps is then formulated as a discrete labeling problem using an MRF. The reconstructed frontal face image can then be used with any face recognition technique. The two main advantages of our method are that it does not require manually selected facial landmarks or head pose estimation. In order to improve the performance of our pose normalization method in face recognition, we also present an algorithm for classifying whether a given face image is at a frontal or nonfrontal pose. Experimental results on different datasets are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Top 10 Research Questions Related to Preventing Sudden Death in Sport and Physical Activity.

Science.gov (United States)

Katch, Rachel K; Scarneo, Samantha E; Adams, William M; Armstrong, Lawrence E; Belval, Luke N; Stamm, Julie M; Casa, Douglas J

2017-09-01

Participation in organized sport and recreational activities presents an innate risk for serious morbidity and mortality. Although death during sport or physical activity has many causes, advancements in sports medicine and evidence-based standards of care have allowed clinicians to prevent, recognize, and treat potentially fatal injuries more effectively. With the continual progress of research and technology, current standards of care are evolving to enhance patient outcomes. In this article, we provided 10 key questions related to the leading causes and treatment of sudden death in sport and physical activity, where future research will support safer participation for athletes and recreational enthusiasts. The current evidence indicates that most deaths can be avoided when proper strategies are in place to prevent occurrence or provide optimal care.

Pose Estimation and Adaptive Robot Behaviour for Human-Robot Interaction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svenstrup, Mikael; Hansen, Søren Tranberg; Andersen, Hans Jørgen

2009-01-01

Abstract—This paper introduces a new method to determine a person’s pose based on laser range measurements. Such estimates are typically a prerequisite for any human-aware robot navigation, which is the basis for effective and timeextended interaction between a mobile robot and a human. The robot......’s pose. The resulting pose estimates are used to identify humans who wish to be approached and interacted with. The interaction motion of the robot is based on adaptive potential functions centered around the person that respect the persons social spaces. The method is tested in experiments...

Pose Tracking Algorithm of an Endoscopic Surgery Robot Wrist

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, L; Yin, H L; Meng, Q

2006-01-01

In recent two decades, more and more research on the endoscopic surgery has been carried out [2]. Most of the work focuses on the development of the robot in the field of robotics and the navigation of the surgery tools based on computer graphics. But the tracking and locating of the EndoWrist is also a very important aspect. This paper deals with the the tracking algorithm of the EndoWrist's pose (position and orientation). The linear tracking of the position is handled by the Kalman Filter. The quaternion-based nonlinear orientation tracking is implemented with the Extended Kalman Filter. The most innovative point of this paper is the parameterization of the motion model of the Extended Kalman Filter

An anti-disturbing real time pose estimation method and system

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Jian; Zhang, Xiao-hu

2011-08-01

Pose estimation relating two-dimensional (2D) images to three-dimensional (3D) rigid object need some known features to track. In practice, there are many algorithms which perform this task in high accuracy, but all of these algorithms suffer from features lost. This paper investigated the pose estimation when numbers of known features or even all of them were invisible. Firstly, known features were tracked to calculate pose in the current and the next image. Secondly, some unknown but good features to track were automatically detected in the current and the next image. Thirdly, those unknown features which were on the rigid and could match each other in the two images were retained. Because of the motion characteristic of the rigid object, the 3D information of those unknown features on the rigid could be solved by the rigid object's pose at the two moment and their 2D information in the two images except only two case: the first one was that both camera and object have no relative motion and camera parameter such as focus length, principle point, and etc. have no change at the two moment; the second one was that there was no shared scene or no matched feature in the two image. Finally, because those unknown features at the first time were known now, pose estimation could go on in the followed images in spite of the missing of known features in the beginning by repeating the process mentioned above. The robustness of pose estimation by different features detection algorithms such as Kanade-Lucas-Tomasi (KLT) feature, Scale Invariant Feature Transform (SIFT) and Speed Up Robust Feature (SURF) were compared and the compact of the different relative motion between camera and the rigid object were discussed in this paper. Graphic Processing Unit (GPU) parallel computing was also used to extract and to match hundreds of features for real time pose estimation which was hard to work on Central Processing Unit (CPU). Compared with other pose estimation methods, this new

Locating binding poses in protein-ligand systems using reconnaissance metadynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Söderhjelm, Pär; Tribello, Gareth A.; Parrinello, Michele

2012-01-01

A molecular dynamics-based protocol is proposed for finding and scoring protein-ligand binding poses. This protocol uses the recently developed reconnaissance metadynamics method, which employs a self-learning algorithm to construct a bias that pushes the system away from the kinetic traps where it would otherwise remain. The exploration of phase space with this algorithm is shown to be roughly six to eight times faster than unbiased molecular dynamics and is only limited by the time taken to diffuse about the surface of the protein. We apply this method to the well-studied trypsin–benzamidine system and show that we are able to refind all the poses obtained from a reference EADock blind docking calculation. These poses can be scored based on the length of time the system remains trapped in the pose. Alternatively, one can perform dimensionality reduction on the output trajectory and obtain a map of phase space that can be used in more expensive free-energy calculations. PMID:22440749

A Grasp-Pose Generation Method Based on Gaussian Mixture Models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wenjia Wu

2015-11-01

Full Text Available A Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM-based grasp-pose generation method is proposed in this paper. Through offline training, the GMM is set up and used to depict the distribution of the robot's reachable orientations. By dividing the robot's workspace into small 3D voxels and training the GMM for each voxel, a look-up table covering all the workspace is built with the x, y and z positions as the index and the GMM as the entry. Through the definition of Task Space Regions (TSR, an object's feasible grasp poses are expressed as a continuous region. With the GMM, grasp poses can be preferentially sampled from regions with high reachability probabilities in the online grasp-planning stage. The GMM can also be used as a preliminary judgement of a grasp pose's reachability. Experiments on both a simulated and a real robot show the superiority of our method over the existing method.

Investigation of Problem-Solving and Problem-Posing Abilities of Seventh-Grade Students

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Arikan, Elif Esra; Ünal, Hasan

2015-01-01

This study aims to examine the effect of multiple problem-solving skills on the problem-posing abilities of gifted and non-gifted students and to assess whether the possession of such skills can predict giftedness or affect problem-posing abilities. Participants' metaphorical images of problem posing were also explored. Participants were 20 gifted…

A New 3D Object Pose Detection Method Using LIDAR Shape Set.

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Kim, Jung-Un; Kang, Hang-Bong

2018-03-16

In object detection systems for autonomous driving, LIDAR sensors provide very useful information. However, problems occur because the object representation is greatly distorted by changes in distance. To solve this problem, we propose a LIDAR shape set that reconstructs the shape surrounding the object more clearly by using the LIDAR point information projected on the object. The LIDAR shape set restores object shape edges from a bird's eye view by filtering LIDAR points projected on a 2D pixel-based front view. In this study, we use this shape set for two purposes. The first is to supplement the shape set with a LIDAR Feature map, and the second is to divide the entire shape set according to the gradient of the depth and density to create a 2D and 3D bounding box proposal for each object. We present a multimodal fusion framework that classifies objects and restores the 3D pose of each object using enhanced feature maps and shape-based proposals. The network structure consists of a VGG -based object classifier that receives multiple inputs and a LIDAR-based Region Proposal Networks (RPN) that identifies object poses. It works in a very intuitive and efficient manner and can be extended to other classes other than vehicles. Our research has outperformed object classification accuracy (Average Precision, AP) and 3D pose restoration accuracy (3D bounding box recall rate) based on the latest studies conducted with KITTI data sets.

The marketing of dissolvable tobacco: social science and public policy research needs.

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Southwell, Brian G; Kim, Annice E; Tessman, Greta K; MacMonegle, Anna J; Choiniere, Conrad J; Evans, Sarah E; Johnson, Robin D

2012-01-01

The latest generation of smokeless tobacco products encompasses a wide range of offerings, including what is commonly referred to as dissolvable tobacco. Designed to deliver nicotine upon dissolving or disintegrating in a user's mouth, dissolvable tobacco products currently appear in various United States markets as strips, orbs, sticks, and lozenges. The emergence of these new products poses distinct opportunities and challenges for social and behavioral science and public health research and raises important public policy questions.

Basic Science Research and the Protection of Human Research Participants

Science.gov (United States)

Eiseman, Elisa

2001-03-01

Technological advances in basic biological research have been instrumental in recent biomedical discoveries, such as in the understanding and treatment of cancer, HIV/AIDS, and heart disease. However, many of these advances also raise several new ethical challenges. For example, genetic research may pose no physical risk beyond that of obtaining the initial blood sample, yet it can pose significant psychological and economic risks to research participants, such as stigmatization, discrimination in insurance and employment, invasion of privacy, or breach of confidentiality. These harms may occur even when investigators do not directly interact with the person whose DNA they are studying. Moreover, this type of basic research also raises broader questions, such as what is the definition of a human subject, and what kinds of expertise do Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) need to review the increasingly diverse types of research made possible by these advances in technology. The National Bioethics Advisory Commission (NBAC), a presidentially appointed federal advisory committee, has addressed these and other ethical, scientific and policy issues that arise in basic science research involving human participants. Two of its six reports, in particular, have proposed recommendations in this regard. "Research Involving Human Biological Materials: Ethical and Policy Guidance" addresses the basic research use of human tissues, cells and DNA and the protection of human participants in this type of research. In "Ethical and Policy Issues in the Oversight of Human Research" NBAC proposes a definition of research involving human participants that would apply to all scientific disciplines, including physical, biological, and social sciences, as well as the humanities and related professions, such as business and law. Both of these reports make it clear that the protection of research participants is key to conducting ethically sound research. By ensuring that all participants in

Consistently Showing Your Best Side? Intra-individual Consistency in #Selfie Pose Orientation

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Lindell, Annukka K.

2017-01-01

Painted and photographic portraits of others show an asymmetric bias: people favor their left cheek. Both experimental and database studies confirm that the left cheek bias extends to selfies. To date all such selfie studies have been cross-sectional; whether individual selfie-takers tend to consistently favor the same pose orientation, or switch between multiple poses, remains to be determined. The present study thus examined intra-individual consistency in selfie pose orientations. Two hundred selfie-taking participants (100 male and 100 female) were identified by searching #selfie on Instagram. The most recent 10 single-subject selfies for the each of the participants were selected and coded for type of selfie (normal; mirror) and pose orientation (left, midline, right), resulting in a sample of 2000 selfies. Results indicated that selfie-takers do tend to consistently adopt a preferred pose orientation (α = 0.72), with more participants showing an overall left cheek bias (41%) than would be expected by chance (overall right cheek bias = 31.5%; overall midline bias = 19.5%; no overall bias = 8%). Logistic regression modellng, controlling for the repeated measure of participant identity, indicated that sex did not affect pose orientation. However, selfie type proved a significant predictor when comparing left and right cheek poses, with a stronger left cheek bias for mirror than normal selfies. Overall, these novel findings indicate that selfie-takers show intra-individual consistency in pose orientation, and in addition, replicate the previously reported left cheek bias for selfies and other types of portrait, confirming that the left cheek bias also presents within individuals’ selfie corpora. PMID:28270790

Socrates was not a pimp: changing the paradigm of questioning in medical education.

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Kost, Amanda; Chen, Frederick M

2015-01-01

The slang term "pimping" is widely recognized by learners and educators in the clinical learning environment as the act of more senior members of the medical team publicly asking questions of more junior members. Although questioning as a pedagogical practice has many benefits, pimping, as described in the literature, evokes negative emotions in learners and leads to an environment that is not conducive to adult learning. Medical educators may employ pimping as a pedagogic technique because of beliefs that it is a Socratic teaching method. Although problems with pimping have previously been identified, no alternative techniques for questioning in the clinical environment were suggested. The authors posit that using the term "pimping" to describe questioning in medical education is harmful and unprofessional, and they propose clearly defining pimping as "questioning with the intent to shame or humiliate the learner to maintain the power hierarchy in medical education." Explicitly separating pimping from the larger practice of questioning allows the authors to make three recommendations for improving questioning practices. First, educators should examine the purpose of each question they pose to learners. Second, they should apply historic and modern interpretations of Socratic teaching methods that promote critical thinking skills. Finally, they should consider adult learning theories to make concrete changes to their questioning practices. These changes can result in questioning that is more learner centered, aids in the acquisition of knowledge and skills, performs helpful formative and summative assessments of the learner, and improves community in the clinical learning environment.

Public support for medical research in the 21st century.

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Smith, P M

2000-01-01

Key public policies that have contributed to the rise of modern medical research in the 20th Century are reviewed, focusing especially on the United States and the post-World War II period. Drawing on this history, the question is posed: "Are these policies sufficient to insure vigorous medical research in the 21st Century?" Although radical policy changes are not needed, several proposals for policy and medical research portfolio redirection are offered, including a rebalancing of public supported research in all fields of science that contribute to medical advances. Medical research must also invest in a national and international information infrastructure that will allow the linking of researchers, clinical experimenters, practicing physicians, and the public in ways heretofore not imagined. Medical researchers must be leaders and advocates for the whole research enterprise in the 21st Century.

Cultural adaptations to the differential threats posed by hot versus cold climates.

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Murray, Damian R

2013-10-01

Hot and cold climates have posed differential threats to human survival throughout history. Cold temperatures can pose direct threats to survival in themselves, whereas hot temperatures may pose threats indirectly through higher prevalence of infectious disease. These differential threats yield convergent predictions for the relationship between more demanding climates and freedom of expression, but divergent predictions for freedom from discrimination.

[On the question of a practice.].

Science.gov (United States)

Sévigny, R

1979-01-01

The author, a psycho-sociologist and a professor in the department of sociology at l'Université de Montreal, looks back and reflects on his practice as an intervener in different types of groups. He returns to his first experiences with T-groups and to the analysis of them which he made at the beginning of his practice. Furthermore, this analysis touches on questions that remain very relevant. Thus the author explains why, for social reasons, he came to privilege work with "real groups" rather than that with spontaneous groups. On the basis of twenty years of experience and a view of many group approaches it can be asked whether the question of man in society as a change agent should not be posed to a greater extent within groups. 1) Dans Sociologie A Sociétés, vol. 9, no 2, d'octobre 1977, le lecteur trouvera un article de moi qui préserve une réflexion plus systématique mais sans référence immédiate à ma propre pratique. Oe numéro, entièrement consacré au thème "psychologie, sociologie, intervention" comprend également plusieurs textes qui ne sont pas étrangers à certains thèmes développés ici. On y trouvera aussi de nombreuses références bibliographiques.

Managing an Open Access Fund: Tips from the Trenches and Questions for the Future

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heidi Zuniga

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The authors describe the process and results of an ongoing Open Access Fund program at the Health Sciences Library of the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.  The fund has helped students and other early career researchers pay for the article processing charge or APC to publish their articles in an OA journal since 2013.  In the three years since, the fund has paid the APC for 39 applicants with a total expenditure of $37,576.  Most applicants were students as intended, however the fund supported a surprisingly large number of medical residents and junior faculty.  Individuals associated with the School of Medicine overwhelmingly represented the awardees compared to other units, and the Public Library of Science (PLoS journals were the most common journal they published in.  While acknowledging the undeniable benefit of the fund to the awardees, the authors also pose challenging questions about the future role of libraries in subsidizing open access journals.

The relative pose estimation of aircraft based on contour model

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Tai; Sun, Xiangyi

2017-02-01

This paper proposes a relative pose estimation approach based on object contour model. The first step is to obtain a two-dimensional (2D) projection of three-dimensional (3D)-model-based target, which will be divided into 40 forms by clustering and LDA analysis. Then we proceed by extracting the target contour in each image and computing their Pseudo-Zernike Moments (PZM), thus a model library is constructed in an offline mode. Next, we spot a projection contour that resembles the target silhouette most in the present image from the model library with reference of PZM; then similarity transformation parameters are generated as the shape context is applied to match the silhouette sampling location, from which the identification parameters of target can be further derived. Identification parameters are converted to relative pose parameters, in the premise that these values are the initial result calculated via iterative refinement algorithm, as the relative pose parameter is in the neighborhood of actual ones. At last, Distance Image Iterative Least Squares (DI-ILS) is employed to acquire the ultimate relative pose parameters.

Pose Tracking Algorithm of an Endoscopic Surgery Robot Wrist

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, L [Chinese-German Institute of Automatic Control Engineering, Tongji University (China); Yin, H L [Chinese-German Institute of Automatic Control Engineering, Tongji University (China); Meng, Q [Shanghai University of Electric Power (China)

2006-10-15

In recent two decades, more and more research on the endoscopic surgery has been carried out [2]. Most of the work focuses on the development of the robot in the field of robotics and the navigation of the surgery tools based on computer graphics. But the tracking and locating of the EndoWrist is also a very important aspect. This paper deals with the the tracking algorithm of the EndoWrist's pose (position and orientation). The linear tracking of the position is handled by the Kalman Filter. The quaternion-based nonlinear orientation tracking is implemented with the Extended Kalman Filter. The most innovative point of this paper is the parameterization of the motion model of the Extended Kalman Filter.

PENGARUH DARI PROBLEM POSING METHOD TERHADAP KREATIVITAS VERBAL SISWA SMP KELAS VII

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bagus Priambodo

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Verbal creativity is the ability to think fluent, flexible, and original that manifested through the words. Psychological freedom is one factor that can develop creativity. One alternative teaching methods that provide freedom in an atmosphere of learning is the Problem Posing Method (PPM which is triggered by Paulo Freire. This research aims to determine the presence or absence of the influence of PPM on verbal creativity. Characteristic of the subjects was junior high school students in grade 7th, received conventional learning materials, and have never had learning by using PPM. This study used a non-randomized pretest-posttest control group design. Subjects in the study were divided into two, experimental group (N = 33 and control group (N= 35. The data was collected using the Verbal Creativity Test. The results of hypothesis testing used Independent Sample T Test techniques showed the differences of mean = 3.294, α = 0.014 with (p<0.05. Keywords: Verbal creativity, problem posing method, a test of verbal creativity, junior high school students

Pose and Solve Varignon Converse Problems

Science.gov (United States)

Contreras, José N.

2014-01-01

The activity of posing and solving problems can enrich learners' mathematical experiences because it fosters a spirit of inquisitiveness, cultivates their mathematical curiosity, and deepens their views of what it means to do mathematics. To achieve these goals, a mathematical problem needs to be at the appropriate level of difficulty,…

The role of research in nuclear regulation: A US industry perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simard, R.L.

1997-01-01

The author reviews the focus of research efforts within the NRC following the development of nuclear energy. Initial work focused on research in support of rulemaking and generic-issue resolution largely to support the licensing of U.S. plants that was going on at the time, including study of design basis accidents. Going into the 1980's there was a need for information on accidents beyond the design basis, following the TMI accident. Aging research became relevant with the plants accumulating years of operation. More recently effort has gone into work on more advanced reactor designs. Looking ahead the author argues there may be few unresolved safety issues, and analytic tools are presently very well developed. So the question of what to do in the future is relevant, especially when coupled with changing responsibilities, changing legislation, changing budgets, changing market forces, and changing expectations from consumers. So the author poses questions which should be addressed as one looks at planning for the role of research in the NRC in the future

The SPARK Tool to prioritise questions for systematic reviews in health policy and systems research: development and initial validation.

Science.gov (United States)

Akl, Elie A; Fadlallah, Racha; Ghandour, Lilian; Kdouh, Ola; Langlois, Etienne; Lavis, John N; Schünemann, Holger; El-Jardali, Fadi

2017-09-04

Groups or institutions funding or conducting systematic reviews in health policy and systems research (HPSR) should prioritise topics according to the needs of policymakers and stakeholders. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a tool to prioritise questions for systematic reviews in HPSR. We developed the tool following a four-step approach consisting of (1) the definition of the purpose and scope of tool, (2) item generation and reduction, (3) testing for content and face validity, (4) and pilot testing of the tool. The research team involved international experts in HPSR, systematic review methodology and tool development, led by the Center for Systematic Reviews on Health Policy and Systems Research (SPARK). We followed an inclusive approach in determining the final selection of items to allow customisation to the user's needs. The purpose of the SPARK tool was to prioritise questions in HPSR in order to address them in systematic reviews. In the item generation and reduction phase, an extensive literature search yielded 40 relevant articles, which were reviewed by the research team to create a preliminary list of 19 candidate items for inclusion in the tool. As part of testing for content and face validity, input from international experts led to the refining, changing, merging and addition of new items, and to organisation of the tool into two modules. Following pilot testing, we finalised the tool, with 22 items organised in two modules - the first module including 13 items to be rated by policymakers and stakeholders, and the second including 9 items to be rated by systematic review teams. Users can customise the tool to their needs, by omitting items that may not be applicable to their settings. We also developed a user manual that provides guidance on how to use the SPARK tool, along with signaling questions. We have developed and conducted initial validation of the SPARK tool to prioritise questions for systematic reviews in HPSR, along with

How Tom Moon's research highlighted the question of glucose tolerance in carnivorous fish.

Science.gov (United States)

Polakof, S; Panserat, S

2016-09-01

Fifteen years ago, Tom Moon wrote a review on this journal in order to propose some explanations to the exacerbated glycaemic response after a glucose load or a carbohydrate meal intake observed in fish, the so-called intolerance to glucose. Before, but in most of cases after this paper, several laboratories worldwide started to make important efforts in order to better understand this strange phenotype observed in fish and that so far seemed to belong to diabetic humans only. Tom had been worked on fish metabolism for at least 30years when he proposed that mini-review and the paths opened by him in 2001 were followed by tens of fish researchers, making this paper a breaking point on the field. Fifteen years later, we propose not only to have a look to the answers given to the questions rose in that paper, but also to summarize how his career over all these years impacted the domain of glucose metabolism in fish. In the review, we will show how Tom Moon analysed at different levels (from genes up to the whole organism), using distinct experimental tools (cells, hormone or glucose injection, pumps, drugs) the questions of glucose metabolism, tolerance and nutrition in fish species. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Head Pose Estimation on Eyeglasses Using Line Detection and Classification Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Setthawong, Pisal; Vannija, Vajirasak

This paper proposes a unique approach for head pose estimation of subjects with eyeglasses by using a combination of line detection and classification approaches. Head pose estimation is considered as an important non-verbal form of communication and could also be used in the area of Human-Computer Interface. A major improvement of the proposed approach is that it allows estimation of head poses at a high yaw/pitch angle when compared with existing geometric approaches, does not require expensive data preparation and training, and is generally fast when compared with other approaches.

Conceiving Human Interaction by Visualising Depth Data of Head Pose Changes and Emotion Recognition via Facial Expressions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kalliatakis, Grigorios; Stergiou, A.G.; Vidakis, Nikolaos

2017-01-01

Affective computing in general and human activity and intention analysis in particular comprise a rapidly-growing field of research. Head pose and emotion changes present serious challenges when applied to player’s training and ludology experience in serious games, or analysis of customer

Attribute And-Or Grammar for Joint Parsing of Human Pose, Parts and Attributes.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Seyoung; Nie, Xiaohan; Zhu, Song-Chun

2017-07-25

This paper presents an attribute and-or grammar (A-AOG) model for jointly inferring human body pose and human attributes in a parse graph with attributes augmented to nodes in the hierarchical representation. In contrast to other popular methods in the current literature that train separate classifiers for poses and individual attributes, our method explicitly represents the decomposition and articulation of body parts, and account for the correlations between poses and attributes. The A-AOG model is an amalgamation of three traditional grammar formulations: (i)Phrase structure grammar representing the hierarchical decomposition of the human body from whole to parts; (ii)Dependency grammar modeling the geometric articulation by a kinematic graph of the body pose; and (iii)Attribute grammar accounting for the compatibility relations between different parts in the hierarchy so that their appearances follow a consistent style. The parse graph outputs human detection, pose estimation, and attribute prediction simultaneously, which are intuitive and interpretable. We conduct experiments on two tasks on two datasets, and experimental results demonstrate the advantage of joint modeling in comparison with computing poses and attributes independently. Furthermore, our model obtains better performance over existing methods for both pose estimation and attribute prediction tasks.

Performative, Arts-Based, or Arts-Informed? Reflections on the Development of Arts-Based Research in Music Therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Ledger, Alison; McCaffrey, Tríona

2015-01-01

Arts-based research (ABR) has emerged in music therapy in diverse ways, employing a range of interpretive paradigms and artistic media. It is notable that no consensus exists as to when and where the arts are included in the research process, or which music therapy topics are most suited to arts-based study. This diversity may pose challenges for music therapists who are developing, reading, and evaluating arts-based research. This paper provides an updated review of arts-based research literature in music therapy, along with four questions for researchers who are developing arts-based research. These questions are 1) When should the arts be introduced? 2) Which artistic medium is appropriate? 3) How should the art be understood? and 4) What is the role of the audience? We argue that these questions are key to understanding arts-based research, justifying methods, and evaluating claims arising from arts-based research. Rather than defining arts-based research in music therapy, we suggest that arts-based research should be understood as a flexible research strategy appropriate for exploring the complexities of music therapy practice. © the American Music Therapy Association 2015. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

SU-G-JeP3-03: Effect of Robot Pose On Beam Blocking for Ultrasound Guided SBRT of the Prostate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gerlach, S; Schlaefer, A [Hamburg University of Technology, Hamburg (Germany); Kuhlemann, I; Ernst, F [Universitaet zu Luebeck, Luebeck (Germany); Fuerweger, C [European Cyberknife Center Munich, Munich (Germany)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Ultrasound presents a fast, volumetric image modality for real-time tracking of abdominal organ motion. How-ever, ultrasound transducer placement during radiation therapy is challenging. Recently, approaches using robotic arms for intra-treatment ultrasound imaging have been proposed. Good and reliable imaging requires placing the transducer close to the PTV. We studied the effect of a seven degrees of freedom robot on the fea-sible beam directions. Methods: For five CyberKnife prostate treatment plans we established viewports for the transducer, i.e., points on the patient surface with a soft tissue view towards the PTV. Choosing a feasible transducer pose and using the kinematic redundancy of the KUKA LBR iiwa robot, we considered three robot poses. Poses 1 to 3 had the elbow point anterior, superior, and inferior, respectively. For each pose and each beam starting point, the pro-jections of robot and PTV were computed. We added a 20 mm margin accounting for organ / beam motion. The number of nodes for which the PTV was partially of fully blocked were established. Moreover, the cumula-tive overlap for each of the poses and the minimum overlap over all poses were computed. Results: The fully and partially blocked nodes ranged from 12% to 20% and 13% to 27%, respectively. Typically, pose 3 caused the fewest blocked nodes. The cumulative overlap ranged from 19% to 29%. Taking the minimum overlap, i.e., considering moving the robot’s elbow while maintaining the transducer pose, the cumulative over-lap was reduced to 16% to 18% and was 3% to 6% lower than for the best individual pose. Conclusion: Our results indicate that it is possible to identify feasible ultrasound transducer poses and to use the kinematic redundancy of a 7 DOF robot to minimize the impact of the imaging subsystem on the feasible beam directions for ultrasound guided and motion compensated SBRT. Research partially funded by DFG grants ER 817/1-1 and SCHL 1844/3-1.

SU-G-JeP3-03: Effect of Robot Pose On Beam Blocking for Ultrasound Guided SBRT of the Prostate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gerlach, S; Schlaefer, A; Kuhlemann, I; Ernst, F; Fuerweger, C

2016-01-01

Purpose: Ultrasound presents a fast, volumetric image modality for real-time tracking of abdominal organ motion. How-ever, ultrasound transducer placement during radiation therapy is challenging. Recently, approaches using robotic arms for intra-treatment ultrasound imaging have been proposed. Good and reliable imaging requires placing the transducer close to the PTV. We studied the effect of a seven degrees of freedom robot on the fea-sible beam directions. Methods: For five CyberKnife prostate treatment plans we established viewports for the transducer, i.e., points on the patient surface with a soft tissue view towards the PTV. Choosing a feasible transducer pose and using the kinematic redundancy of the KUKA LBR iiwa robot, we considered three robot poses. Poses 1 to 3 had the elbow point anterior, superior, and inferior, respectively. For each pose and each beam starting point, the pro-jections of robot and PTV were computed. We added a 20 mm margin accounting for organ / beam motion. The number of nodes for which the PTV was partially of fully blocked were established. Moreover, the cumula-tive overlap for each of the poses and the minimum overlap over all poses were computed. Results: The fully and partially blocked nodes ranged from 12% to 20% and 13% to 27%, respectively. Typically, pose 3 caused the fewest blocked nodes. The cumulative overlap ranged from 19% to 29%. Taking the minimum overlap, i.e., considering moving the robot’s elbow while maintaining the transducer pose, the cumulative over-lap was reduced to 16% to 18% and was 3% to 6% lower than for the best individual pose. Conclusion: Our results indicate that it is possible to identify feasible ultrasound transducer poses and to use the kinematic redundancy of a 7 DOF robot to minimize the impact of the imaging subsystem on the feasible beam directions for ultrasound guided and motion compensated SBRT. Research partially funded by DFG grants ER 817/1-1 and SCHL 1844/3-1.

Explanation, Motivation and Question Posing Routines in University Mathematics Teachers' Pedagogical Discourse: A Commognitive Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Viirman, Olov

2015-01-01

This paper investigates the teaching practices used by university mathematics teachers when lecturing, a topic within university mathematics education research which is gaining an increasing interest. In the study, a view of mathematics teaching as a discursive practice is taken, and Sfard's commognitive framework is used to investigate the…

D-linking or set-restriction? Processing Which-questions in Dutch

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Donkers, Jantien; Hoeks, John C. J.; Stowe, Laurie A.

2013-01-01

Research on Wh-questions suggests that Which questions are harder to process than Who questions (e.g., Who/Which athlete won the competition?). According to the Discourse (D)-linking Hypothesis, Which-questions differ from Who-questions in that Which questions need a link to a preceding discourse,

Automatic generation of statistical pose and shape models for articulated joints.

Science.gov (United States)

Xin Chen; Graham, Jim; Hutchinson, Charles; Muir, Lindsay

2014-02-01

Statistical analysis of motion patterns of body joints is potentially useful for detecting and quantifying pathologies. However, building a statistical motion model across different subjects remains a challenging task, especially for a complex joint like the wrist. We present a novel framework for simultaneous registration and segmentation of multiple 3-D (CT or MR) volumes of different subjects at various articulated positions. The framework starts with a pose model generated from 3-D volumes captured at different articulated positions of a single subject (template). This initial pose model is used to register the template volume to image volumes from new subjects. During this process, the Grow-Cut algorithm is used in an iterative refinement of the segmentation of the bone along with the pose parameters. As each new subject is registered and segmented, the pose model is updated, improving the accuracy of successive registrations. We applied the algorithm to CT images of the wrist from 25 subjects, each at five different wrist positions and demonstrated that it performed robustly and accurately. More importantly, the resulting segmentations allowed a statistical pose model of the carpal bones to be generated automatically without interaction. The evaluation results show that our proposed framework achieved accurate registration with an average mean target registration error of 0.34 ±0.27 mm. The automatic segmentation results also show high consistency with the ground truth obtained semi-automatically. Furthermore, we demonstrated the capability of the resulting statistical pose and shape models by using them to generate a measurement tool for scaphoid-lunate dissociation diagnosis, which achieved 90% sensitivity and specificity.

Questions of Modern Cosmology Galileo's Legacy

CERN Document Server

D'Onofrio, Mauro

2009-01-01

Are we living in the "golden age" of cosmology? Are we close to understanding the nature of the unknown ingredients of the currently most accepted cosmological model and the physics of the early Universe? Or are we instead approaching a paradigm shift? What is dark matter and does it exist? How is it distributed around galaxies and clusters? Is the scientific community open to alternative ideas that may prompt a new scientific revolution - as the Copernican revolution did in Galileo's time? Do other types of supernovae exist that can be of interest for cosmology? Why have quasars never been effectively used as standard candles? Can you tell us about the scientific adventure of COBE? How does the extraction of the Cosmic Microwave Background anisotropy depend on the subtraction of the various astrophysical foregrounds? These, among many others, are the astrophysical, philosophical and sociological questions surrounding modern cosmology and the scientific community that Mauro D'Onofrio and Carlo Burigana pose t...

Some open questions concerning biological growth

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Escudero, Carlos

2010-12-01

Full Text Available We briefly review the properties of radially growing interfaces and their connection to biological growth. We focus on simplified models which result from the abstraction of only considering domain growth and not the interface curvature. Linear equations can be exactly solved and the phenomenology of growth can be inferred from the explicit solutions. Nonlinear equations pose interesting open questions that are summarized herein.

En este trabajo revisamos brevemente las propiedades de las superficies que crecen de forma radial y su conexión con el crecimiento biológico. Nos vamos a concentrar en modelos simplificados que resultan de la abstracción de sólo considerar el crecimiento del dominio y no la curvatura de la interfaz. Las ecuaciones lineales se pueden resolver exactamente y la fenomenología del crecimiento puede ser inferida de las soluciones explítas. Las ecuaciones no lineales dan lugar a interesantes problemas abiertos que vamos a resumir aquí.

Crisis planning to manage risks posed by animal rights extremists.

Science.gov (United States)

Bailey, Matthew R; Rich, Barbara A; Bennett, B Taylor

2010-01-01

Among the multitude of crises that US research institutions may face are those caused by animal rights activists. While most activists opposed to animal research use peaceful and lawful means of expressing their opinions, some extremists resort to illegal methods. Arson, break-ins, and theft with significant property damage at US animal research facilities began in the 1980s. The most troubling trend to develop in the past decade is the targeting of individuals associated with animal research, whether directly or indirectly, and the use of violent scare tactics to intimidate researchers and their families. The National Association for Biomedical Research has a 30-year history of monitoring the animal rights movement and assisting member institutions with crisis situations. In this article we discuss attacks on researchers at their homes, cyber crimes, exploitation of new media formats, infiltration of research facilities, and the targeting of external research stakeholders and business partners. We describe the need for a well-conceived crisis management plan and strong leadership to mitigate crisis situations. Institutions with well-informed leaders and crisis management teams ready to take timely action are best equipped to protect staff, laboratory animals, and research programs. They act on early warnings, provide support for targeted staff, seek legal remedies, thoughtfully control access to research facilities, and identify and enlist new research supporters. We underscore the importance of up-to-date crisis planning so that institutions are not only aware of ongoing risks posed by animal rights extremists but also better prepared to take preemptive action and able to manage those risks successfully.

Single leg balancing in ballet: effects of shoe conditions and poses.

Science.gov (United States)

Lobo da Costa, Paula H; Azevedo Nora, Fernanda G S; Vieira, Marcus Fraga; Bosch, Kerstin; Rosenbaum, Dieter

2013-03-01

The purpose of this study was to describe the effects of lower limb positioning and shoe conditions on stability levels of selected single leg ballet poses performed in demi-pointe position. Fourteen female non-professional ballet dancers (mean age of 18.4±2.8 years and mean body mass index of 21.5±2.8kg/m(2)) who had practiced ballet for at least seven years, without any musculoskeletal impairment volunteered to participate in this study. A capacitive pressure platform allowed for the assessment of center of pressure variables related to the execution of three single leg ballet poses in demi pointé position: attitude devant, attitude derriére, and attitude a la second. Peak pressures, contact areas, COP oscillation areas, anterior-posterior and medio-lateral COP oscillations and velocities were compared between two shoe conditions (barefoot versus slippers) and among the different poses. Barefoot performances produced more stable poses with significantly higher plantar contact areas, smaller COP oscillation areas and smaller anterior-posterior COP oscillations. COP oscillation areas, anterior-posterior COP oscillations and medio-lateral COP velocities indicated that attitude a la second is the least challenging and attitude derriére the most challenging pose. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Conducting systematic reviews of intervention questions I: Writing the review protocol, formulating the question and searching the literature.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Connor, A M; Anderson, K M; Goodell, C K; Sargeant, J M

2014-06-01

This article is the fourth of six articles addressing systematic reviews in animal agriculture and veterinary medicine. Previous articles in the series have introduced systematic reviews, discussed study designs and hierarchies of evidence, and provided details on conducting randomized controlled trials, a common design for use in systematic reviews. This article describes development of a review protocol and the first two steps in a systematic review: formulating a review question, and searching the literature for relevant research. The emphasis is on systematic reviews of questions related to interventions. The review protocol is developed prior to conducting the review and specifies the plan for the conduct of the review, identifies the roles and responsibilities of the review team and provides structured definitions related to the review question. For intervention questions, the review question should be defined by the PICO components: population, intervention, comparison and outcome(s). The literature search is designed to identify all potentially relevant original research that may address the question. Search terms related to some or all of the PICO components are entered into literature databases, and searches for unpublished literature also are conducted. All steps of the literature search are documented to provide transparent reporting of the process. © 2014 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

The Dynamic Features of Lip Corners in Genuine and Posed Smiles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hui Guo

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The smile is a frequently expressed facial expression that typically conveys a positive emotional state and friendly intent. However, human beings have also learned how to fake smiles, typically by controlling the mouth to provide a genuine-looking expression. This is often accompanied by inaccuracies that can allow others to determine that the smile is false. Mouth movement is one of the most striking features of the smile, yet our understanding of its dynamic elements is still limited. The present study analyzes the dynamic features of lip corners, and considers how they differ between genuine and posed smiles. Employing computer vision techniques, we investigated elements such as the duration, intensity, speed, symmetry of the lip corners, and certain irregularities in genuine and posed smiles obtained from the UvA-NEMO Smile Database. After utilizing the facial analysis tool OpenFace, we further propose a new approach to segmenting the onset, apex, and offset phases of smiles, as well as a means of measuring irregularities and symmetry in facial expressions. We extracted these features according to 2D and 3D coordinates, and conducted an analysis. The results reveal that genuine smiles have higher values for onset, offset, apex, and total durations, as well as offset displacement, and a variable we termed Irregularity-b (the SD of the apex phase than do posed smiles. Conversely, values tended to be lower for onset and offset Speeds, and Irregularity-a (the rate of peaks, Symmetry-a (the correlation between left and right facial movements, and Symmetry-d (differences in onset frame numbers between the left and right faces. The findings from the present study have been compared to those of previous research, and certain speculations are made.

Macrobend optical sensing for pose measurement in soft robot arms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sareh, Sina; Noh, Yohan; Liu, Hongbin; Althoefer, Kaspar; Li, Min; Ranzani, Tommaso

2015-01-01

This paper introduces a pose-sensing system for soft robot arms integrating a set of macrobend stretch sensors. The macrobend sensory design in this study consists of optical fibres and is based on the notion that bending an optical fibre modulates the intensity of the light transmitted through the fibre. This sensing method is capable of measuring bending, elongation and compression in soft continuum robots and is also applicable to wearable sensing technologies, e.g. pose sensing in the wrist joint of a human hand. In our arrangement, applied to a cylindrical soft robot arm, the optical fibres for macrobend sensing originate from the base, extend to the tip of the arm, and then loop back to the base. The connectors that link the fibres to the necessary opto-electronics are all placed at the base of the arm, resulting in a simplified overall design. The ability of this custom macrobend stretch sensor to flexibly adapt its configuration allows preserving the inherent softness and compliance of the robot which it is installed on. The macrobend sensing system is immune to electrical noise and magnetic fields, is safe (because no electricity is needed at the sensing site), and is suitable for modular implementation in multi-link soft continuum robotic arms. The measurable light outputs of the proposed stretch sensor vary due to bend-induced light attenuation (macrobend loss), which is a function of the fibre bend radius as well as the number of repeated turns. The experimental study conducted as part of this research revealed that the chosen bend radius has a far greater impact on the measured light intensity values than the number of turns (if greater than five). Taking into account that the bend radius is the only significantly influencing design parameter, the macrobend stretch sensors were developed to create a practical solution to the pose sensing in soft continuum robot arms. Henceforward, the proposed sensing design was benchmarked against an electromagnetic

An Improved Method of Pose Estimation for Lighthouse Base Station Extension.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yi; Weng, Dongdong; Li, Dong; Xun, Hang

2017-10-22

In 2015, HTC and Valve launched a virtual reality headset empowered with Lighthouse, the cutting-edge space positioning technology. Although Lighthouse is superior in terms of accuracy, latency and refresh rate, its algorithms do not support base station expansion, and is flawed concerning occlusion in moving targets, that is, it is unable to calculate their poses with a small set of sensors, resulting in the loss of optical tracking data. In view of these problems, this paper proposes an improved pose estimation algorithm for cases where occlusion is involved. Our algorithm calculates the pose of a given object with a unified dataset comprising of inputs from sensors recognized by all base stations, as long as three or more sensors detect a signal in total, no matter from which base station. To verify our algorithm, HTC official base stations and autonomous developed receivers are used for prototyping. The experiment result shows that our pose calculation algorithm can achieve precise positioning when a few sensors detect the signal.

Neuroeconomics: cross-currents in research on decision-making.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanfey, Alan G; Loewenstein, George; McClure, Samuel M; Cohen, Jonathan D

2006-03-01

Despite substantial advances, the question of how we make decisions and judgments continues to pose important challenges for scientific research. Historically, different disciplines have approached this problem using different techniques and assumptions, with few unifying efforts made. However, the field of neuroeconomics has recently emerged as an inter-disciplinary effort to bridge this gap. Research in neuroscience and psychology has begun to investigate neural bases of decision predictability and value, central parameters in the economic theory of expected utility. Economics, in turn, is being increasingly influenced by a multiple-systems approach to decision-making, a perspective strongly rooted in psychology and neuroscience. The integration of these disparate theoretical approaches and methodologies offers exciting potential for the construction of more accurate models of decision-making.

Questioning Questions: Elementary Teachers' Adaptations of Investigation Questions across the Inquiry Continuum

Science.gov (United States)

Biggers, Mandy

2018-01-01

Questioning is a central practice in science classrooms. However, not every question translates into a "good" science investigation. Questions that drive science investigations can be provided by many sources including the teacher, the curriculum, or the student. The variations in the source of investigation questions were explored in…

Teach it Yourself - Fast Modeling of Industrial Objects for 6D Pose Estimation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sølund, Thomas; Rajeeth Savarimuthu, Thiusius; Glent Buch, Anders

2015-01-01

In this paper, we present a vision system that allows a human to create new 3D models of novel industrial parts by placing the part in two different positions in the scene. The two shot modeling framework generates models with a precision that allows the model to be used for 6D pose estimation wi....... In addition, the models are applied in a pose estimation application, evaluated with 37 different scenes with 61 unique object poses. The pose estimation results show a mean translation error on 4.97 mm and a mean rotation error on 3.38 degrees....

What does social research say about high-stakes tests?

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Rafael Feito Alonso

2017-03-01

Full Text Available High-stake tests, which students need to pass in order to gain a Secondary education certificate, have aroused a lot of controversy whenever they have been implemented. Especially in the USA these tests have produced a dramatic shrinking of school knowledge as they have been focused into questions posed by the very tests. At the same time, there has been a critical modification of the learning processes due to the fact that these tests encourage students to pay more attention to factual knowledge, which is far away from hands-on learning, debating in class or working in teams. In spite of certain discrepancies, by and large, research casts serious doubts about whether these tests are conductive to better academic performance. Nevertheless, the dropout rate is on the rise. More often than not, school principals have been found preventing struggling students to sit the exams. A review of the research into this matter allows us to put into context the debate surrounding external exams posed by the current education law (LOMCE: Law for the Improvement of Educational Quality passed by the parliamentary majority of the Popular Party in Spain in 2013.

ONKALO POSE experiment. Phase 3: execution and monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valli, J.; Hakala, M.; Wanne, T.; Kantia, P.; Siren, T.

2014-01-01

In-depth knowledge of the in situ stress state at the Olkiluoto site is critical for stability assessment both prior to and after deposition of spent nuclear fuel in order to understand and avoid potential damage to the rock at the site. Posiva's Olkiluoto Spalling Experiment (POSE) was designed specifically for this purpose with three primary goals: establish the in situ spalling/damage strength of Olkiluoto migmatitic gneiss, establish the state of in situ stress at the -345 m depth level and act as a Prediction-Outcome (P-O) exercise. Phases 1 and 2 of POSE are outlined in WR 2012-60. The objectives of the third phase of the POSE experiment are the same as the original objectives outlined above. This report outlines the execution and results of the third phase of the POSE experiment. The third phase of the experiment involved internally heating the third experimental hole (ONK-EH3) of the POSE niche in order to cause a symmetrical thermal stress increase around the hole due to the thermal expansion of rock. This thermomechanically induced stress increase, coupled with the estimated existing in situ stress state, should cause the maximum principal stress around the hole to exceed the predicted spalling strength of the rock around the hole. ONK-EH3 is located almost completely in pegmatitic granite. Four fractures near the top of the hole were mapped after boring ONK-EH3, and a tensile failure located at the contact between mica-rich gneiss and pegmatitic granite was observed 18 months after boring, prior to the experiment. Based on predictive calculations and the estimated in situ state of stress, the maximum principal stress magnitude should reach ca. 100 MPa when the temperature was just below 100 deg C after 12 weeks of heating. There were problems with the heater control unit at the beginning of the experiment, after which heating proceeded according to plan. The crack damage threshold of pegmatitic granite has been determined to be 85 ±17 MPa at Olkiluoto

Optical neural network system for pose determination of spinning satellites

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Andrew; Casasent, David

1990-01-01

An optical neural network architecture and algorithm based on a Hopfield optimization network are presented for multitarget tracking. This tracker utilizes a neuron for every possible target track, and a quadratic energy function of neural activities which is minimized using gradient descent neural evolution. The neural net tracker is demonstrated as part of a system for determining position and orientation (pose) of spinning satellites with respect to a robotic spacecraft. The input to the system is time sequence video from a single camera. Novelty detection and filtering are utilized to locate and segment novel regions from the input images. The neural net multitarget tracker determines the correspondences (or tracks) of the novel regions as a function of time, and hence the paths of object (satellite) parts. The path traced out by a given part or region is approximately elliptical in image space, and the position, shape and orientation of the ellipse are functions of the satellite geometry and its pose. Having a geometric model of the satellite, and the elliptical path of a part in image space, the three-dimensional pose of the satellite is determined. Digital simulation results using this algorithm are presented for various satellite poses and lighting conditions.

"I didn't write the questions!" - Negotiating telephone-survey questions on birth timing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marian May

2008-06-01

Full Text Available This paper examines interviewer-respondent interaction in the collection of demographic data. Conversation analysis (CA makes transparent the interaction between an interviewer and 25 respondents on a question about pregnancy and birth timing in an Australian telephone survey, Negotiating the Life Course. The analysis focuses on the troubles that occur and the work interviewers do to fit respondents' answers to the survey researcher's categories. Interviewers are shown to act as mediators in difficult interaction, with responses often distorted by question format, the imperative of achieving an allowed response, and the need to keep the respondent in the survey.

Numerical methods for the design of large-scale nonlinear discrete ill-posed inverse problems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haber, E; Horesh, L; Tenorio, L

2010-01-01

Design of experiments for discrete ill-posed problems is a relatively new area of research. While there has been some limited work concerning the linear case, little has been done to study design criteria and numerical methods for ill-posed nonlinear problems. We present an algorithmic framework for nonlinear experimental design with an efficient numerical implementation. The data are modeled as indirect, noisy observations of the model collected via a set of plausible experiments. An inversion estimate based on these data is obtained by a weighted Tikhonov regularization whose weights control the contribution of the different experiments to the data misfit term. These weights are selected by minimization of an empirical estimate of the Bayes risk that is penalized to promote sparsity. This formulation entails a bilevel optimization problem that is solved using a simple descent method. We demonstrate the viability of our design with a problem in electromagnetic imaging based on direct current resistivity and magnetotelluric data

Michaelis' hundred Questions and the Royal Instructions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Friis, Ib

2017-01-01

Michaelis' 100 questions for the expedition is a remarkable document. It provides insight into the sources and methods of biblical research anno 1762, at the same time as highlighting the challenges the members of the expedition faced. As the scholarly foundation of the expedition, the questions ...

Michaelis' Hundred Questions and the Royal Instruction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Friis, Ib

2015-01-01

Michaelis' 100 questions for the expedition is a remarkable document. It provides insight into the sources and methods of biblical research anno 1762, at the same time as highlighting the challenges the members of the expedition faced. As the scholarly foundation of the expedition, the questions ...

A multi-camera system for real-time pose estimation

Science.gov (United States)

Savakis, Andreas; Erhard, Matthew; Schimmel, James; Hnatow, Justin

2007-04-01

This paper presents a multi-camera system that performs face detection and pose estimation in real-time and may be used for intelligent computing within a visual sensor network for surveillance or human-computer interaction. The system consists of a Scene View Camera (SVC), which operates at a fixed zoom level, and an Object View Camera (OVC), which continuously adjusts its zoom level to match objects of interest. The SVC is set to survey the whole filed of view. Once a region has been identified by the SVC as a potential object of interest, e.g. a face, the OVC zooms in to locate specific features. In this system, face candidate regions are selected based on skin color and face detection is accomplished using a Support Vector Machine classifier. The locations of the eyes and mouth are detected inside the face region using neural network feature detectors. Pose estimation is performed based on a geometrical model, where the head is modeled as a spherical object that rotates upon the vertical axis. The triangle formed by the mouth and eyes defines a vertical plane that intersects the head sphere. By projecting the eyes-mouth triangle onto a two dimensional viewing plane, equations were obtained that describe the change in its angles as the yaw pose angle increases. These equations are then combined and used for efficient pose estimation. The system achieves real-time performance for live video input. Testing results assessing system performance are presented for both still images and video.

Rhetorical questions or rhetorical uses of questions?

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Špago Džemal

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to explore whether some rhetorical questions contain certain linguistic elements or forms which would differentiate them from answer-eliciting and action-eliciting questions, and thereby hint at their rhetorical nature even outside the context. Namely, despite the fact that the same questions can be rhetorical in one context, and answer-eliciting in another, some of them are more likely to be associated with rhetorical or non-rhetorical use. The analysis is based on extensive data (over 1200 examples of rhetorical questions taken from 30 plays by two British and two American writers, and the results are expected to give an insight into whether we can talk about rhetorical questions or just a rhetorical use of questions.

What Children Learn from Questioning

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Paul

2015-01-01

Research shows that young children ask a multitude of why and how questions. And when they do, they're not simply trying to get adult attention; instead, they're actively seeking information. In this article, Paul Harris describes the findings of a number of research analyses based on extensive transcripts of children's natural speech. Some of the…

A deep learning approach for pose estimation from volumetric OCT data.

Science.gov (United States)

Gessert, Nils; Schlüter, Matthias; Schlaefer, Alexander

2018-05-01

Tracking the pose of instruments is a central problem in image-guided surgery. For microscopic scenarios, optical coherence tomography (OCT) is increasingly used as an imaging modality. OCT is suitable for accurate pose estimation due to its micrometer range resolution and volumetric field of view. However, OCT image processing is challenging due to speckle noise and reflection artifacts in addition to the images' 3D nature. We address pose estimation from OCT volume data with a new deep learning-based tracking framework. For this purpose, we design a new 3D convolutional neural network (CNN) architecture to directly predict the 6D pose of a small marker geometry from OCT volumes. We use a hexapod robot to automatically acquire labeled data points which we use to train 3D CNN architectures for multi-output regression. We use this setup to provide an in-depth analysis on deep learning-based pose estimation from volumes. Specifically, we demonstrate that exploiting volume information for pose estimation yields higher accuracy than relying on 2D representations with depth information. Supporting this observation, we provide quantitative and qualitative results that 3D CNNs effectively exploit the depth structure of marker objects. Regarding the deep learning aspect, we present efficient design principles for 3D CNNs, making use of insights from the 2D deep learning community. In particular, we present Inception3D as a new architecture which performs best for our application. We show that our deep learning approach reaches errors at our ground-truth label's resolution. We achieve a mean average error of 14.89 ± 9.3 µm and 0.096 ± 0.072° for position and orientation learning, respectively. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Discourse analysis and the impact of the philosophy of Enlightenment in nursing research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Beedholm, Kirsten; Lomborg, Kirsten; Frederiksen, Kirsten

2014-01-01

analysis in nursing research reflect a dominant pattern of thought in the discourse of the nursing profession that have held sway throughout the last century. We argue that this pattern of thought stems from the Western philosophy of consciousness and the conception of the sovereign subject. By applying......Discourse analysis has been introduced into nursing research as an approach which has the potential to offer new perspectives and to pose new questions to taken-for-granted assumptions. However, critique has arisen that when applied to nursing studies, the epistemological foundation...... a discourse analytical perspective to the discourse of the nursing profession itself, this paper elucidates the challenges of applying discourse analysis in nursing research....

Water-energy-food nexus: concepts, questions and methodologies

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Y.; Chen, X.; Ding, W.; Zhang, C.; Fu, G.

2017-12-01

The term of water-energy -food nexus has gained increasing attention in the research and policy making communities as the security of water, energy and food becomes severe under changing environment. Ignorance of their closely interlinkages accompanied by their availability and service may result in unforeseeable, adverse consequences. This paper comprehensively reviews the state-of-the-art in the field of water-energy-food, with a focus on concepts, research questions and methodologies. First, two types of nexus definition are compared and discussed to understand the essence of nexus research issues. Then, three kinds of nexus research questions are presented, including internal relationship analysis, external impact analysis, and evaluation of the nexus system. Five nexus modelling approaches are discussed in terms of their advantages, disadvantages and application, with an aim to identify research gaps in current nexus methods. Finally, future research areas and challenges are discussed, including system boundary, data uncertainty and modelling, underlying mechanism of nexus issues and system performance evaluation. This study helps bring research efforts together to address the challenging questions in the nexus and develop the consensus on building resilient water, energy and food systems.

Thirty Years of Research on Crown-of-Thorns Starfish (1986–2016: Scientific Advances and Emerging Opportunities

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Morgan S. Pratchett

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Research on the coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish (CoTS has waxed and waned over the last few decades, mostly in response to population outbreaks at specific locations. This review considers advances in our understanding of the biology and ecology of CoTS based on the resurgence of research interest, which culminated in this current special issue on the Biology, Ecology and Management of Crown-of-Thorns Starfish. More specifically, this review considers progress in addressing 41 specific research questions posed in a seminal review by P. Moran 30 years ago, as well as exploring new directions for CoTS research. Despite the plethora of research on CoTS (>1200 research articles, there are persistent knowledge gaps that constrain effective management of outbreaks. Although directly addressing some of these questions will be extremely difficult, there have been considerable advances in understanding the biology of CoTS, if not the proximate and ultimate cause(s of outbreaks. Moving forward, researchers need to embrace new technologies and opportunities to advance our understanding of CoTS biology and behavior, focusing on key questions that will improve effectiveness of management in reducing the frequency and likelihood of outbreaks, if not preventing them altogether.

Phenomenology of the innovative question when based on wonderment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Herholdt-Lomholdt, Sine Maria; Hansen, Finn Thorbjørn

This paper questions, how we, from a phenomenological point of view, can describe and understand the phenomenology of innovative questions and processes of questioning when based in a wonderdriven approach to innovation and entrepreneurship. Approach: In our research we take on a phenomenological...

Recovering the 3d Pose and Shape of Vehicles from Stereo Images

Science.gov (United States)

Coenen, M.; Rottensteiner, F.; Heipke, C.

2018-05-01

The precise reconstruction and pose estimation of vehicles plays an important role, e.g. for autonomous driving. We tackle this problem on the basis of street level stereo images obtained from a moving vehicle. Starting from initial vehicle detections, we use a deformable vehicle shape prior learned from CAD vehicle data to fully reconstruct the vehicles in 3D and to recover their 3D pose and shape. To fit a deformable vehicle model to each detection by inferring the optimal parameters for pose and shape, we define an energy function leveraging reconstructed 3D data, image information, the vehicle model and derived scene knowledge. To minimise the energy function, we apply a robust model fitting procedure based on iterative Monte Carlo model particle sampling. We evaluate our approach using the object detection and orientation estimation benchmark of the KITTI dataset (Geiger et al., 2012). Our approach can deal with very coarse pose initialisations and we achieve encouraging results with up to 82 % correct pose estimations. Moreover, we are able to deliver very precise orientation estimation results with an average absolute error smaller than 4°.

Interview Questions with Bentham Scientific

Science.gov (United States)

Mather, John C.

2013-01-01

John Mather answers questions for an interview for the Bentham Science Newsletter. He covers topics ranging from his childhood, his professional career and his thoughts on research, technology and today's scientists and engineers.

A problem-posing approach to teaching the topic of radioactivity

Science.gov (United States)

Klaassen, C. W. J. M.

1995-12-01

This thesis highlights a problem-posing approach to science education. By this is meant an approach that explicitly aims at providing students with content-related motives for extending their existing conceptual resources, experiential base and belief system in a certain direction, such that a further development in that direction eventually leads to a proper understanding of science. An elaboration of that approach consists in designing, testing, improving, etc, concrete didactical structures. The eventual aim of the approach is a coherent, and by means of developmental research empirically supported, didactical structure that covers the whole of science education. The thesis also contains a few steps in the direction suggested by this programmatic view. It contains an illustration of the heuristic value of an articulation of a didactical structure in some main substructures, based on the work of van Hiele and ten Voorde. It further contains a discussion of some methodological aspects relating to the design and evaluation of a didactical structure, and of the role that a further developed version of Davidson's theory of interpretation could play in this respect. A detailed didactical structure of the topic of radioactivity is presented, evaluated and, on the basis of the evaluation, judged as `good enough.' Also the role of the teacher in a problem-posing approach is dis-cussed, and in particular the consequences for that role of giving students control over and responsibility for the progress of their learning process with respect to content.

A problem-posing approach to teaching the topic of radioactivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klaassen, J.M.

1995-01-01

This thesis highlights a problem-posing approach to science education. By this is meant an approach that explicitly aims at providing students with content-related motives for extending their existing conceptual resources, experiential base and belief system in a certain direction, such that a further development in that direction eventually leads to a proper understanding of science. An elaboration of that approach consists in designing, testing, improving, etc, concrete didactical structures. The eventual aim of the approach is a coherent, and by means of developmental research empirically supported, didactical structure that covers the whole of science education. The thesis also contains a few steps in the direction suggested by this programmatic view. It contains an illustration of the heuristic value of an articulation of a didactical structure in some main substructures, based on the work of van Hiele and ten Voorde. It further contains a discussion of some methodological aspects relating to the design and evaluation of a didactical structure, and of the role that a further developed version of Davidson's theory of interpretation could play in this respect. A detailed didactical structure of the topic of radioactivity is presented, evaluated and, on the basis of the evaluation, judged as 'good enough'. Also the role of the teacher in a problem-posing approach is discussed, and in particular the consequences for that role of giving students control over and responsibility for the progress of their learning process with respect to content. refs

Teaching Human Poses Interactively to a Social Robot

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez-Pacheco, Victor; Malfaz, Maria; Fernandez, Fernando; Salichs, Miguel A.

2013-01-01

The main activity of social robots is to interact with people. In order to do that, the robot must be able to understand what the user is saying or doing. Typically, this capability consists of pre-programmed behaviors or is acquired through controlled learning processes, which are executed before the social interaction begins. This paper presents a software architecture that enables a robot to learn poses in a similar way as people do. That is, hearing its teacher's explanations and acquiring new knowledge in real time. The architecture leans on two main components: an RGB-D (Red-, Green-, Blue- Depth) -based visual system, which gathers the user examples, and an Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) system, which processes the speech describing those examples. The robot is able to naturally learn the poses the teacher is showing to it by maintaining a natural interaction with the teacher. We evaluate our system with 24 users who teach the robot a predetermined set of poses. The experimental results show that, with a few training examples, the system reaches high accuracy and robustness. This method shows how to combine data from the visual and auditory systems for the acquisition of new knowledge in a natural manner. Such a natural way of training enables robots to learn from users, even if they are not experts in robotics. PMID:24048336

Teaching Human Poses Interactively to a Social Robot

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miguel A. Salichs

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The main activity of social robots is to interact with people. In order to do that, the robot must be able to understand what the user is saying or doing. Typically, this capability consists of pre-programmed behaviors or is acquired through controlled learning processes, which are executed before the social interaction begins. This paper presents a software architecture that enables a robot to learn poses in a similar way as people do. That is, hearing its teacher’s explanations and acquiring new knowledge in real time. The architecture leans on two main components: an RGB-D (Red-, Green-, Blue- Depth -based visual system, which gathers the user examples, and an Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR system, which processes the speech describing those examples. The robot is able to naturally learn the poses the teacher is showing to it by maintaining a natural interaction with the teacher. We evaluate our system with 24 users who teach the robot a predetermined set of poses. The experimental results show that, with a few training examples, the system reaches high accuracy and robustness. This method shows how to combine data from the visual and auditory systems for the acquisition of new knowledge in a natural manner. Such a natural way of training enables robots to learn from users, even if they are not experts in robotics.

An Investigation of Eighth Grade Students' Problem Posing Skills (Turkey Sample)

Science.gov (United States)

Arikan, Elif Esra; Ünal, Hasan

2015-01-01

To pose a problem refers to the creative activity for mathematics education. The purpose of the study was to explore the eighth grade students' problem posing ability. Three learning domains such as requiring four operations, fractions and geometry were chosen for this reason. There were two classes which were coded as class A and class B. Class A…

Using physics-based pose predictions and free energy perturbation calculations to predict binding poses and relative binding affinities for FXR ligands in the D3R Grand Challenge 2

Science.gov (United States)

Athanasiou, Christina; Vasilakaki, Sofia; Dellis, Dimitris; Cournia, Zoe

2018-01-01

Computer-aided drug design has become an integral part of drug discovery and development in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry, and is nowadays extensively used in the lead identification and lead optimization phases. The drug design data resource (D3R) organizes challenges against blinded experimental data to prospectively test computational methodologies as an opportunity for improved methods and algorithms to emerge. We participated in Grand Challenge 2 to predict the crystallographic poses of 36 Farnesoid X Receptor (FXR)-bound ligands and the relative binding affinities for two designated subsets of 18 and 15 FXR-bound ligands. Here, we present our methodology for pose and affinity predictions and its evaluation after the release of the experimental data. For predicting the crystallographic poses, we used docking and physics-based pose prediction methods guided by the binding poses of native ligands. For FXR ligands with known chemotypes in the PDB, we accurately predicted their binding modes, while for those with unknown chemotypes the predictions were more challenging. Our group ranked #1st (based on the median RMSD) out of 46 groups, which submitted complete entries for the binding pose prediction challenge. For the relative binding affinity prediction challenge, we performed free energy perturbation (FEP) calculations coupled with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. FEP/MD calculations displayed a high success rate in identifying compounds with better or worse binding affinity than the reference (parent) compound. Our studies suggest that when ligands with chemical precedent are available in the literature, binding pose predictions using docking and physics-based methods are reliable; however, predictions are challenging for ligands with completely unknown chemotypes. We also show that FEP/MD calculations hold predictive value and can nowadays be used in a high throughput mode in a lead optimization project provided that crystal structures of

Student questions in urban middle school science communities of practice

Science.gov (United States)

Groome, Meghan

This dissertation examines student questions within three Communities of Practice (CoP), all urban middle school science environments. The study analyzed student questions from a sociocultural perspective and used ethnographic research techniques to detail how the CoP's shaped questions in the classroom. In the first study, two case study girls attempted to navigate questioning events that required them to negotiation participation. Their access to participation was blocked by participation frameworks that elevated some students as "gatekeepers" while suppressing the participation of others. The next two studies detail the introduction of written questioning opportunities, one into a public middle school classroom and the other into an informal classroom. In both studies, students responded to the interventions differently, most notable the adoption of the opportunity by female students who do not participate orally. Dissertation-wide findings indicate all students were able to ask questions, but varied in level of cognitive complexity, and the diagnostic interventions were able to identify students who were not known to be "target students", students who asked a high number of questions and were considered "interested in science". Some students' roles were as "gatekeepers" to participation of their peers. Two out of three teachers in the studies reported major shifts in their teaching practice due to the focus on questions and the methods used here have been found to be effective in producing educational research as well as supporting high-need classrooms in prior research. In conclusion, these studies indicate that social factors, including participation frameworks, gender dynamics, and the availability of alternative participation methods, play an important role in how students ask science-related questions. It is recommended that researchers continue to examine social factors that reduce student questions and modify their teaching strategies to facilitate

Positive, negative, and bipolar questions: The effect of question polarity on ratings of text readability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Naomi Kamoen

2013-12-01

Full Text Available For decades, survey researchers have known that respondents give different answers to attitude questions worded positively (X is good. Agree-Disagree, negatively (X is bad. Agree-Disagree or on a bipolar scale (X is bad-good. This makes survey answers hard to interpret, especially since findings on exactly how the answers are affected are conflicting. In the current paper, we present twelve studies in which the effect of question polarity was measured for a set of thirteen contrastive adjectives. In each study, the same adjectives were used so the generalizability of wording effects across studies could be examined for each word pair. Results show that for five of the word pairs an effect of question wording can be generalized. The direction of these effects are largely consistent: respondents generally give the same answers to positive and bipolar questions, but they are more likely to disagree with negative questions than to agree with positive questions or to choose the positive side of the bipolar scale. In other words, respondents express their opinions more positively when the question is worded negatively. Even though answers to the three wording alternatives sometimes differ, results also show that reliable answers can be obtained with all three wording alternatives. So, for survey practice, these results suggest that all three wording alternatives may be used for attitude measurement.

Employees as Individually and Collectively Acting Subjects—Key Contributions from Nordic Working Life Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Hasle

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The Nordic countries—Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden—are societies that share many features among themselves that also distinguish them from other industrialized countries. The paper poses the question whether the distinct character of the Nordic societies has generated working life research that is clearly distinguishable from similar research in other countries in terms of distinctness in topics, methods, empirical findings, or theoretical concepts. The aim of this paper is to answer this question by identifying, analyzing, and discussing selected key contributions from Nordic working life research to understand how they research and construe the conditions of humans at work with a special focus on the psychosocial well-being of industrial workers. The paper concludes that the key contributions to Nordic working life research have a distinctive emphasis on collective employee voice and autonomy and an extensive use of empirical and actionoriented research methods. Employees are construed not only as workers resisting exploitations from management or as workers pursuing individual careers, but also as members of collectives who share ideas and aspirations and who legitimately influence the management (and research using cooperation and pressure.

Web-based Visualisation of Head Pose and Facial Expressions Changes:

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kalliatakis, Grigorios; Vidakis, Nikolaos; Triantafyllidis, Georgios

2016-01-01

Despite significant recent advances in the field of head pose estimation and facial expression recognition, raising the cognitive level when analysing human activity presents serious challenges to current concepts. Motivated by the need of generating comprehensible visual representations from...... and accurately estimate head pose changes in unconstrained environment. In order to complete the secondary process of recognising four universal dominant facial expressions (happiness, anger, sadness and surprise), emotion recognition via facial expressions (ERFE) was adopted. After that, a lightweight data...

Cloud computing approaches for prediction of ligand binding poses and pathways.

Science.gov (United States)

Lawrenz, Morgan; Shukla, Diwakar; Pande, Vijay S

2015-01-22

We describe an innovative protocol for ab initio prediction of ligand crystallographic binding poses and highly effective analysis of large datasets generated for protein-ligand dynamics. We include a procedure for setup and performance of distributed molecular dynamics simulations on cloud computing architectures, a model for efficient analysis of simulation data, and a metric for evaluation of model convergence. We give accurate binding pose predictions for five ligands ranging in affinity from 7 nM to > 200 μM for the immunophilin protein FKBP12, for expedited results in cases where experimental structures are difficult to produce. Our approach goes beyond single, low energy ligand poses to give quantitative kinetic information that can inform protein engineering and ligand design.

Six questions about translational due diligence.

Science.gov (United States)

Selinger, Evan

2010-04-28

To maintain stable respect and support, translational research must be guided by appropriate ethical, social, legal, and political concerns and carry out culturally competent practices. Considering six key questions concerning due diligence will enable the translational research community to examine critically how it approaches these endeavors.

Monocular-Based 6-Degree of Freedom Pose Estimation Technology for Robotic Intelligent Grasping Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tao Liu

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Industrial robots are expected to undertake ever more advanced tasks in the modern manufacturing industry, such as intelligent grasping, in which robots should be capable of recognizing the position and orientation of a part before grasping it. In this paper, a monocular-based 6-degree of freedom (DOF pose estimation technology to enable robots to grasp large-size parts at informal poses is proposed. A camera was mounted on the robot end-flange and oriented to measure several featured points on the part before the robot moved to grasp it. In order to estimate the part pose, a nonlinear optimization model based on the camera object space collinearity error in different poses is established, and the initial iteration value is estimated with the differential transformation. Measuring poses of the camera are optimized based on uncertainty analysis. Also, the principle of the robotic intelligent grasping system was developed, with which the robot could adjust its pose to grasp the part. In experimental tests, the part poses estimated with the method described in this paper were compared with those produced by a laser tracker, and results show the RMS angle and position error are about 0.0228° and 0.4603 mm. Robotic intelligent grasping tests were also successfully performed in the experiments.

Ethics in researching teacher professionalism as relational competence

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dahl, Kari Kragh Blume

’s academic achievements, among other (OECD, 2004). This poses ethical questions about researching what ‘good teacher professionalism’ is, since focusing on personal rather than academical or professional skills means shift in focus from subjects, knowledge, pedagogy, motivation and ideologies, which has been......Research findings suggest that teachers’ relational competencies are critical for pupils’ academical engagement and progression, welfare, social behavior and participation in the school’s processes, among other (Nielsen, 2015). Relational competence can be defined as having an eye for children...... thus possibly develop academically and become persons in various ways) according to which teacher, whom s/he is relating with (Nielsen, 2015). Yet findings suggest that there is a link between a teacher’s psychological and social skills, that is, aspects related to the person, and school children...

A pose estimation method for unmanned ground vehicles in GPS denied environments

Science.gov (United States)

Tamjidi, Amirhossein; Ye, Cang

2012-06-01

This paper presents a pose estimation method based on the 1-Point RANSAC EKF (Extended Kalman Filter) framework. The method fuses the depth data from a LIDAR and the visual data from a monocular camera to estimate the pose of a Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) in a GPS denied environment. Its estimation framework continuy updates the vehicle's 6D pose state and temporary estimates of the extracted visual features' 3D positions. In contrast to the conventional EKF-SLAM (Simultaneous Localization And Mapping) frameworks, the proposed method discards feature estimates from the extended state vector once they are no longer observed for several steps. As a result, the extended state vector always maintains a reasonable size that is suitable for online calculation. The fusion of laser and visual data is performed both in the feature initialization part of the EKF-SLAM process and in the motion prediction stage. A RANSAC pose calculation procedure is devised to produce pose estimate for the motion model. The proposed method has been successfully tested on the Ford campus's LIDAR-Vision dataset. The results are compared with the ground truth data of the dataset and the estimation error is ~1.9% of the path length.

Questioning the Federal Role in Educational Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Florio, David H.

1981-01-01

Reviews the Reagan administration's proposed budget cuts for education, educational research, and social science research. Holds that examples used to bolster the administration's criticisms of social and behavioral research come from the late 1960s/early 1970s, and ignore federally funded work currently focusing on educational practice, policy,…

Probability and Statistics: 5 Questions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Probability and Statistics: 5 Questions is a collection of short interviews based on 5 questions presented to some of the most influential and prominent scholars in probability and statistics. We hear their views on the fields, aims, scopes, the future direction of research and how their work fits...... in these respects. Interviews with Nick Bingham, Luc Bovens, Terrence L. Fine, Haim Gaifman, Donald Gillies, James Hawthorne, Carl Hoefer, James M. Joyce, Joseph B. Kadane Isaac Levi, D.H. Mellor, Patrick Suppes, Jan von Plato, Carl Wagner, Sandy Zabell...

Study and Research Paths at Upper Secondary Mathematics Education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jessen, Britta Eyrich

the scope of teaching at this level. With respect to mathematical modelling, links and gaps were identified between scholarly knowledge and knowledge to be taught in secondary school. It is suggested that SRP based teaching can bridge parts of the identified gaps. Finally, it is found that in order for SRP......In didactics of mathematics, researchers have for decades been interested in how to teach students to pose questions and solve problems. Several approaches rely on the idea, that students learn mathematics, when they are engaged in activities similar to research mathematicians. This PhD project...... touch upon these ideas from the perspective offered by the Anthropological Theory of Didactics (ATD ). Within ATD, teaching is proposed to be designed as Study and Research Paths (SRP). This thesis investigates how SRP's support the students' learning of mathematics in a bidisciplinary context involving...

Multispectral embedding-based deep neural network for three-dimensional human pose recovery

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Jialin; Sun, Jifeng

2018-01-01

Monocular image-based three-dimensional (3-D) human pose recovery aims to retrieve 3-D poses using the corresponding two-dimensional image features. Therefore, the pose recovery performance highly depends on the image representations. We propose a multispectral embedding-based deep neural network (MSEDNN) to automatically obtain the most discriminative features from multiple deep convolutional neural networks and then embed their penultimate fully connected layers into a low-dimensional manifold. This compact manifold can explore not only the optimum output from multiple deep networks but also the complementary properties of them. Furthermore, the distribution of each hierarchy discriminative manifold is sufficiently smooth so that the training process of our MSEDNN can be effectively implemented only using few labeled data. Our proposed network contains a body joint detector and a human pose regressor that are jointly trained. Extensive experiments conducted on four databases show that our proposed MSEDNN can achieve the best recovery performance compared with the state-of-the-art methods.

Short-Term Research Experiences with Teachers in Earth and Planetary Sciences and a Model for Integrating Research into Classroom Inquiry

Science.gov (United States)

Morgan, P.; Bloom, J. W.

2006-12-01

For the past three summers, we have worked with in-service teachers on image processing, planetary geology, and earthquake and volcano content modules using inquiry methods that ended with mini-research experiences. Although almost all were science teachers, very few could give a reasonable definition of science at the start of the modules, and very few had a basic grasp of the processes of scientific research and could not include substantive scientific inquiry into their lessons. To build research understanding and confidence, an instructor-student interaction model was used in the modules. Studies have shown that children who participate in classrooms as learning and inquiry communities develop more complex understandings. The same patterns of complex understandings have resulted in similarly structured professional communities of teachers. The model is based on professional communities, emphasizing from the beginning that inquiry is a form of research. Although the actual "research" component of the modules was short, the teachers were identified as professionals and researchers from the start. Research/inquiry participation is therefore an excellent example by which to allow their teachers to learn. Initially the teachers were very reluctant to pose questions. As they were encouraged to share, collaborate, and support each other, the role of the instructor became less of a leader and more of a facilitator, and the confidence of the teachers as professionals and researchers grew. One teacher even remarked, "This is how we should be teaching our kids!' Towards the end of the modules the teachers were ready for their mini- research projects and collaborated in teams of 2-4. They selected their own research topics, but were guided toward research questions that required data collection (from existing studies), some data manipulation, interpretation, and drawing conclusions with respect to the original question. The teachers were enthusiastic about all of their

Can we share questions? Performance of questions from different question banks in a single medical school.

Science.gov (United States)

Freeman, Adrian; Nicholls, Anthony; Ricketts, Chris; Coombes, Lee

2010-01-01

To use progress testing, a large bank of questions is required, particularly when planning to deliver tests over a long period of time. The questions need not only to be of good quality but also balanced in subject coverage across the curriculum to allow appropriate sampling. Hence as well as creating its own questions, an institution could share questions. Both methods allow ownership and structuring of the test appropriate to the educational requirements of the institution. Peninsula Medical School (PMS) has developed a mechanism to validate questions written in house. That mechanism can be adapted to utilise questions from an International question bank International Digital Electronic Access Library (IDEAL) and another UK-based question bank Universities Medical Assessment Partnership (UMAP). These questions have been used in our progress tests and analysed for relative performance. Data are presented to show that questions from differing sources can have comparable performance in a progress testing format. There are difficulties in transferring questions from one institution to another. These include problems of curricula and cultural differences. Whilst many of these difficulties exist, our experience suggests that it only requires a relatively small amount of work to adapt questions from external question banks for effective use. The longitudinal aspect of progress testing (albeit summatively) may allow more flexibility in question usage than single high stakes exams.

Methods for intraoperative, sterile pose-setting of patient-specific microstereotactic frames

Science.gov (United States)

Vollmann, Benjamin; Müller, Samuel; Kundrat, Dennis; Ortmaier, Tobias; Kahrs, Lüder A.

2015-03-01

This work proposes new methods for a microstereotactic frame based on bone cement fixation. Microstereotactic frames are under investigation for minimal invasive temporal bone surgery, e.g. cochlear implantation, or for deep brain stimulation, where products are already on the market. The correct pose of the microstereotactic frame is either adjusted outside or inside the operating room and the frame is used for e.g. drill or electrode guidance. We present a patientspecific, disposable frame that allows intraoperative, sterile pose-setting. Key idea of our approach is bone cement between two plates that cures while the plates are positioned with a mechatronics system in the desired pose. This paper includes new designs of microstereotactic frames, a system for alignment and first measurements to analyze accuracy and applicable load.

Making 2D face recognition more robust using AAMs for pose compensation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Huisman, Peter; Munster, Ruud; Moro-Ellenberger, Stephanie; Veldhuis, Raymond N.J.; Bazen, A.M.

2006-01-01

The problem of pose in 2D face recognition is widely acknowledged. Commercial systems are limited to near frontal face images and cannot deal with pose deviations larger than 15 degrees from the frontal view. This is a problem, when using face recognition for surveillance applications in which

Integrating Worked Examples into Problem Posing in a Web-Based Learning Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Hsiao, Ju-Yuan; Hung, Chun-Ling; Lan, Yu-Feng; Jeng, Yoau-Chau

2013-01-01

Most students always lack of experience and perceive difficult regarding problem posing. The study hypothesized that worked examples may have benefits for supporting students' problem posing activities. A quasi-experiment was conducted in the context of a business mathematics course for examining the effects of integrating worked examples into…

Research Issues in Clinical Data Warehousing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Torben Bach; Jensen, Christian Søndergaard

1998-01-01

to data warehousing technologies, over those posed by conventional data warehouse applications. This article presents a number of exciting new research challenges posed by clinical applications, to be met by the database research community. These include the need for complex-data modeling features...

Head Pose Estimation from Passive Stereo Images

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Breitenstein, Michael D.; Jensen, Jeppe; Høilund, Carsten

2009-01-01

function. Our algorithm incorporates 2D and 3D cues to make the system robust to low-quality range images acquired by passive stereo systems. It handles large pose variations (of ±90 ° yaw and ±45 ° pitch rotation) and facial variations due to expressions or accessories. For a maximally allowed error of 30...

Research, climate, energy : Questions of destiny for the chemical industry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kastinen, A., email: aimo.kastinen@chemind.fi

2010-07-01

Registration for the first phase of Reach finishes at the end of November. Then we will see whether the standard of legislation has been set correctly in respect of the EU's operational ability. If it isn't, significant problems will result for the community's treatment of materials and the EU's competitiveness, and Reach's value as a global model will become questionable. Also, the CLP regulation concerning classification, labelling and packaging of chemicals will start to come into effect as from the beginning of December. In the first phase, the question is one of classification of substances, and gradually the requirements will be applied to mixtures too. At the same time, Safety Data Sheets shall be renewed in accordance with their own transition period. The current product legislation concerning chemicals shall be fully revised by the mid-point of the decade, but before then company safety officers will have to do lots of work to change the previous routines

Meta-analysis, complexity, and heterogeneity: a qualitative interview study of researchers' methodological values and practices.

Science.gov (United States)

Lorenc, Theo; Felix, Lambert; Petticrew, Mark; Melendez-Torres, G J; Thomas, James; Thomas, Sian; O'Mara-Eves, Alison; Richardson, Michelle

2016-11-16

Complex or heterogeneous data pose challenges for systematic review and meta-analysis. In recent years, a number of new methods have been developed to meet these challenges. This qualitative interview study aimed to understand researchers' understanding of complexity and heterogeneity and the factors which may influence the choices researchers make in synthesising complex data. We conducted interviews with a purposive sample of researchers (N = 19) working in systematic review or meta-analysis across a range of disciplines. We analysed data thematically using a framework approach. Participants reported using a broader range of methods and data types in complex reviews than in traditional reviews. A range of techniques are used to explore heterogeneity, but there is some debate about their validity, particularly when applied post hoc. Technical considerations of how to synthesise complex evidence cannot be isolated from questions of the goals and contexts of research. However, decisions about how to analyse data appear to be made in a largely informal way, drawing on tacit expertise, and their relation to these broader questions remains unclear.

Improved pose and affinity predictions using different protocols tailored on the basis of data availability

Science.gov (United States)

Prathipati, Philip; Nagao, Chioko; Ahmad, Shandar; Mizuguchi, Kenji

2016-09-01

The D3R 2015 grand drug design challenge provided a set of blinded challenges for evaluating the applicability of our protocols for pose and affinity prediction. In the present study, we report the application of two different strategies for the two D3R protein targets HSP90 and MAP4K4. HSP90 is a well-studied target system with numerous co-crystal structures and SAR data. Furthermore the D3R HSP90 test compounds showed high structural similarity to existing HSP90 inhibitors in BindingDB. Thus, we adopted an integrated docking and scoring approach involving a combination of both pharmacophoric and heavy atom similarity alignments, local minimization and quantitative structure activity relationships modeling, resulting in the reasonable prediction of pose [with the root mean square deviation (RMSD) values of 1.75 Å for mean pose 1, 1.417 Å for the mean best pose and 1.85 Å for the mean all poses] and affinity (ROC AUC = 0.702 at 7.5 pIC50 cut-off and R = 0.45 for 180 compounds). The second protein, MAP4K4, represents a novel system with limited SAR and co-crystal structure data and little structural similarity of the D3R MAP4K4 test compounds to known MAP4K4 ligands. For this system, we implemented an exhaustive pose and affinity prediction protocol involving docking and scoring using the PLANTS software which considers side chain flexibility together with protein-ligand fingerprints analysis assisting in pose prioritization. This protocol through fares poorly in pose prediction (with the RMSD values of 4.346 Å for mean pose 1, 4.69 Å for mean best pose and 4.75 Å for mean all poses) and produced reasonable affinity prediction (AUC = 0.728 at 7.5 pIC50 cut-off and R = 0.67 for 18 compounds, ranked 1st among 80 submissions).

Research Designs and Special Education Research: Different Designs Address Different Questions

Science.gov (United States)

Cook, Bryan G.; Cook, Lysandra

2016-01-01

The aim of this article is to provide practitioners and other nonresearchers a basic understanding of research designs to aid in appropriately interpreting and applying research findings in special education. Research design provides the blueprint for conducting a research study and shapes what kind of knowledge is generated by the study. We…

Metal Particles – Hazard or Risk? Elaboration and Implementation of a Research Strategy from a Surface and Corrosion Perspective

OpenAIRE

Midander, Klara

2009-01-01

Do metal particles (including particles of pure metals, alloys, metal oxides and compounds) pose a hazard or risk to human health? In the light of this question, this thesis summarizes results from research conducted on metal particles, and describes the elaboration and implementation of an in vitro test methodology to study metal release from particles through corrosion and dissolution processes in synthetic biological media relevant for human exposure through inhalation/ingestion and dermal...

Ebola and Its Global Research Architecture--Need for an Improvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Quarcoo, David; Brüggmann, Dörthe; Klingelhöfer, Doris; Groneberg, David A

2015-09-01

The current Ebola outbreak poses a threat to individual and global public health. Although the disease has been of interest to the scientific community since 1976, an effective vaccination approach is still lacking. This fact questions past global public health strategies, which have not foreseen the possible impact of this infectious disease. To quantify the global research activity in this field, a scientometric investigation was conducted. We analyzed the research output of countries, individual institutions and their collaborative networks. The resulting research architecture indicated that American and European countries played a leading role regarding output activity, citations and multi- and bilateral cooperations. When related to population numbers, African countries, which usually do not dominate the global research in other medical fields, were among the most prolific nations. We conclude that the field of Ebola research is constantly progressing, and the research landscape is influenced by economical and infrastructural factors as well as historical relations between countries and outbreak events.

Ebola and Its Global Research Architecture--Need for an Improvement.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Quarcoo

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The current Ebola outbreak poses a threat to individual and global public health. Although the disease has been of interest to the scientific community since 1976, an effective vaccination approach is still lacking. This fact questions past global public health strategies, which have not foreseen the possible impact of this infectious disease. To quantify the global research activity in this field, a scientometric investigation was conducted. We analyzed the research output of countries, individual institutions and their collaborative networks. The resulting research architecture indicated that American and European countries played a leading role regarding output activity, citations and multi- and bilateral cooperations. When related to population numbers, African countries, which usually do not dominate the global research in other medical fields, were among the most prolific nations. We conclude that the field of Ebola research is constantly progressing, and the research landscape is influenced by economical and infrastructural factors as well as historical relations between countries and outbreak events.

"Preparatory power posing affects nonverbal presence and job interview performance": Correction to Cuddy et al. (2015).

Science.gov (United States)

2018-05-01

Reports an error in "Preparatory power posing affects nonverbal presence and job interview performance" by Amy J. C. Cuddy, Caroline A. Wilmuth, Andy J. Yap and Dana R. Carney ( Journal of Applied Psychology , 2015[Jul], Vol 100[4], 1286-1295). In the article, the degrees of freedom associated with the three F-tests noted on pages 1289 and 1290 should be 1 and 59 (and not 1 and 60, as previously reported). Also, on p. 1290, in the first sentence under the "Mediation" heading, it should be noted that the dependent variables were regressed onto the mediators, and not the other way around. Finally, in Figures 2 and 3 (on p.interview-preparatory power posing-would enhance performance during the interview. Participants adopted high-power (i.e., expansive, open) poses or low-power (i.e., contractive, closed) poses, and then prepared and delivered a speech to 2 evaluators as part of a mock job interview. All interview speeches were videotaped and coded for overall performance and hireability and for 2 potential mediators: verbal content (e.g., structure, content) and nonverbal presence (e.g., captivating, enthusiastic). As predicted, those who prepared for the job interview with high- (vs. low-) power poses performed better and were more likely to be chosen for hire; this relation was mediated by nonverbal presence, but not by verbal content. Although previous research has focused on how a nonverbal behavior that is enacted during interactions and observed by perceivers affects how those perceivers evaluate and respond to the actor, this experiment focused on how a nonverbal behavior that is enacted before the interaction and unobserved by perceivers affects the actor's performance, which, in turn, affects how perceivers evaluate and respond to the actor. This experiment reveals a theoretically novel and practically informative result that demonstrates the causal relation between preparatory nonverbal behavior and subsequent performance and outcomes. (PsycINFO Database

Body-part templates for recovery of 2D human poses under occlusion

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Poppe, Ronald Walter; Poel, Mannes; Perales, F.J.; Fisher, R.B.

2008-01-01

Detection of humans and estimation of their 2D poses from a single image are challenging tasks. This is especially true when part of the observation is occluded. However, given a limited class of movements, poses can be recovered given the visible body-parts. To this end, we propose a novel template

Problem-Posing in Education: Transformation of the Practice of the Health Professional.

Science.gov (United States)

Casagrande, L. D. R.; Caron-Ruffino, M.; Rodrigues, R. A. P.; Vendrusculo, D. M. S.; Takayanagui, A. M. M.; Zago, M. M. F.; Mendes, M. D.

1998-01-01

Studied the use of a problem-posing model in health education. The model based on the ideas of Paulo Freire is presented. Four innovative experiences of teaching-learning in environmental and occupational health and patient education are reported. Notes that the problem-posing model has the capability to transform health-education practice.…

Robotic-surgical instrument wrist pose estimation.

Science.gov (United States)

Fabel, Stephan; Baek, Kyungim; Berkelman, Peter

2010-01-01

The Compact Lightweight Surgery Robot from the University of Hawaii includes two teleoperated instruments and one endoscope manipulator which act in accord to perform assisted interventional medicine. The relative positions and orientations of the robotic instruments and endoscope must be known to the teleoperation system so that the directions of the instrument motions can be controlled to correspond closely to the directions of the motions of the master manipulators, as seen by the the endoscope and displayed to the surgeon. If the manipulator bases are mounted in known locations and all manipulator joint variables are known, then the necessary coordinate transformations between the master and slave manipulators can be easily computed. The versatility and ease of use of the system can be increased, however, by allowing the endoscope or instrument manipulator bases to be moved to arbitrary positions and orientations without reinitializing each manipulator or remeasuring their relative positions. The aim of this work is to find the pose of the instrument end effectors using the video image from the endoscope camera. The P3P pose estimation algorithm is used with a Levenberg-Marquardt optimization to ensure convergence. The correct transformations between the master and slave coordinate frames can then be calculated and updated when the bases of the endoscope or instrument manipulators are moved to new, unknown, positions at any time before or during surgical procedures.

Collaborative Random Faces-Guided Encoders for Pose-Invariant Face Representation Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Shao, Ming; Zhang, Yizhe; Fu, Yun

2018-04-01

Learning discriminant face representation for pose-invariant face recognition has been identified as a critical issue in visual learning systems. The challenge lies in the drastic changes of facial appearances between the test face and the registered face. To that end, we propose a high-level feature learning framework called "collaborative random faces (RFs)-guided encoders" toward this problem. The contributions of this paper are three fold. First, we propose a novel supervised autoencoder that is able to capture the high-level identity feature despite of pose variations. Second, we enrich the identity features by replacing the target values of conventional autoencoders with random signals (RFs in this paper), which are unique for each subject under different poses. Third, we further improve the performance of the framework by incorporating deep convolutional neural network facial descriptors and linking discriminative identity features from different RFs for the augmented identity features. Finally, we conduct face identification experiments on Multi-PIE database, and face verification experiments on labeled faces in the wild and YouTube Face databases, where face recognition rate and verification accuracy with Receiver Operating Characteristic curves are rendered. In addition, discussions of model parameters and connections with the existing methods are provided. These experiments demonstrate that our learning system works fairly well on handling pose variations.

Advancing cancer control research in an emerging news media environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Katherine C; Niederdeppe, Jeff; Blake, Kelly D; Cappella, Joseph N

2013-12-01

Cancer is both highly feared and highly newsworthy, and there is a robust body of research documenting the content and effects of cancer news coverage on health behaviors and policy. Recent years have witnessed ongoing, transformative shifts in American journalism alongside rapid advances in communication technology and the public information environment. These changes create a pressing need to consider a new set of research questions, sampling strategies, measurement techniques, and theories of media effects to ensure continued relevance and adaptation of communication research to address critical cancer control concerns. This paper begins by briefly reviewing what we know about the role of cancer news in shaping cancer-related beliefs, attitudes, behaviors, and policies. We then outline challenges and opportunities, both theoretical and methodological, posed by the rapidly changing news media environment and the nature of audience engagement. We organize our discussion around three major shifts associated with the emerging news media environment as it relates to health communication: 1) speed and dynamism of news diffusion, 2) increased narrowcasting of media content for specialized audiences, and 3) broadened participation in shaping media content. In so doing, we articulate a set of questions for future theory and research, in an effort to catalyze innovative communication scholarship to improve cancer prevention and control.

Open Questions Limiting the Practice of Interorganizational Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Schermerhorn, John R., Jr.

1981-01-01

Summarizes the open questions that must be answered by researchers if practioners of interorganizational development are to have adequate planning-and-action guidelines. Suggests the questions should help practitioners become more sensitive to potential action considerations that may require special thought and attention until a firmer knowledge…

The new history of psychology II: Some (different) answers to Watrin's four questions.

Science.gov (United States)

Brock, Adrian C

2017-05-01

This article is mainly a response to the article by João Paulo Watrin, "The Ambiguous 'New History of Psychology': Some New Questions to Brock (2017)" (Watrin, 2017), which was itself a reply to my article, "The New History of Psychology: Some (Different) Answers to Lovett's Five Questions" (Brock, 2017). Watrin (2017) suggested that previous writers have conflated the terms "critical history" and "new history." They are said to differ, in that although the former is merely a name for a loose collection of approaches to the history of psychology, the latter involves rhetoric about the historiographical commitments of critical history. He also disputed the validity of the distinction between "old" and "new" history. I suggest that he is wrong on all these points. Watrin then poses and answers four rhetorical questions on Whig history, textbooks, critical thinking, and ad hominem arguments, and I provide alternative answers to all of them. After suggesting that our different views can be attributed to different agendas, I conclude with some reflections on how professional historians and psychologists can work together. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Trotting Gait of a Quadruped Robot Based on the Time-Pose Control Method

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Cai RunBin

2013-02-01

Full Text Available We present the Time-Pose control method for the trotting gait of a quadruped robot on flat ground and up a slope. The method, with brief control structure, real-time operation ability and high adaptability, divides quadruped robot control into gait control and pose control. Virtual leg and intuitive controllers are introduced to simplify the model and generate the trajectory of mass centre and location of supporting legs in gait control, while redundancy optimization is used for solving the inverse kinematics in pose control. The models both on flat ground and up a slope are fully analysed, and different kinds of optimization methods are compared using the manipulability measure in order to select the best option. Simulations are performed, which prove that the Time-Pose control method is realizable for these two kinds of environment.

Perturbation-Based Regularization for Signal Estimation in Linear Discrete Ill-posed Problems

KAUST Repository

Suliman, Mohamed Abdalla Elhag; Ballal, Tarig; Al-Naffouri, Tareq Y.

2016-01-01

Estimating the values of unknown parameters from corrupted measured data faces a lot of challenges in ill-posed problems. In such problems, many fundamental estimation methods fail to provide a meaningful stabilized solution. In this work, we propose a new regularization approach and a new regularization parameter selection approach for linear least-squares discrete ill-posed problems. The proposed approach is based on enhancing the singular-value structure of the ill-posed model matrix to acquire a better solution. Unlike many other regularization algorithms that seek to minimize the estimated data error, the proposed approach is developed to minimize the mean-squared error of the estimator which is the objective in many typical estimation scenarios. The performance of the proposed approach is demonstrated by applying it to a large set of real-world discrete ill-posed problems. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach outperforms a set of benchmark regularization methods in most cases. In addition, the approach also enjoys the lowest runtime and offers the highest level of robustness amongst all the tested benchmark regularization methods.

Perturbation-Based Regularization for Signal Estimation in Linear Discrete Ill-posed Problems

KAUST Repository

Suliman, Mohamed Abdalla Elhag

2016-11-29

Estimating the values of unknown parameters from corrupted measured data faces a lot of challenges in ill-posed problems. In such problems, many fundamental estimation methods fail to provide a meaningful stabilized solution. In this work, we propose a new regularization approach and a new regularization parameter selection approach for linear least-squares discrete ill-posed problems. The proposed approach is based on enhancing the singular-value structure of the ill-posed model matrix to acquire a better solution. Unlike many other regularization algorithms that seek to minimize the estimated data error, the proposed approach is developed to minimize the mean-squared error of the estimator which is the objective in many typical estimation scenarios. The performance of the proposed approach is demonstrated by applying it to a large set of real-world discrete ill-posed problems. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach outperforms a set of benchmark regularization methods in most cases. In addition, the approach also enjoys the lowest runtime and offers the highest level of robustness amongst all the tested benchmark regularization methods.

Analysing the Mathematical Experience: Posing the "What Is Mathematics?" Question

Science.gov (United States)

Padula, Janice

2011-01-01

In this paper, different schools of thought are discussed and compared to encourage lively classroom discussion and interest in mathematics for high achieving Form 12 students and first (or higher) year university students enrolled in a mathematics degree program. In particular the work and views of two mathematicians, Kurt Godel (1931) and Ian…

How do 5-year-olds understand questions?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sauerland, Uli; Grohmann, Kleanthes; Teresa Guasti, Maria

2016-01-01

developing children across 19 European countries, 18 different languages, and 7 language (sub-)families. The study investigated the effects of two factors on question formation: (a) whether the question contains a simple interrogative word like ‘who’ or a complex one like ‘which princess’, and (b) whether......The comprehension of constituent questions is an important topic for language acquisition research and for applications in the diagnosis of language impairment. This article presents the results of a study investigating the comprehension of different types of questions by 5-year-old, typically...... the question word was related to the sentential subject or object position of the verb. The findings show that there is considerable variation among languages, but the two factors mentioned consistently affect children’s performance. The cross-linguistic variation shows that three linguistic factors facilitate...

Top 10 research questions to promote physical activity in bipolar disorders: A consensus statement from the International Organization of Physical Therapists in Mental Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Vancampfort, Davy; Rosenbaum, Simon; Probst, Michel; Connaughton, Joanne; du Plessis, Christy; Yamamoto, Taisei; Stubbs, Brendon

2016-05-01

Research has only recently started to consider the importance and applicability of physical activity (PA) for people with bipolar disorder (BD). The aim of the current study is to highlight 10 pertinent PA research questions in people with BD. The International Organization of Physical Therapy in Mental Health executed a consultation with all National organizations (n=13) to identify the most salient questions to guide future research on PA in BD. We identified the following 10 questions: (1) What are the benefits of PA for people with BD? (2) What are the most prominent safety issues for PA prescription in BD? (3) What is the optimal PA prescription for people with BD? (4) What are the key barriers to PA among people with BD? (5) What are the most effective motivational strategies for ensuring PA adoption and maintenance in BD? (6) How do we translate PA research into community practice? (7) If one treatment goal is increased physical activity, what type of professionals are needed as part of a multidisciplinary team? (8) How do we incorporate PA as a vital sign in clinical practice? (9) How can we prevent sedentary behavior in BD? (10) What is the most appropriate PA assessment method? We did not consult people with BD. Addressing these questions is critical for developing evidence-based approaches for promoting and sustaining an active lifestyle in BD. Ultimately, achieving this will reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease and improve the quality of life of this population. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Questions and Questioning Techniques: A View of Indonesian Students’ Preferences

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Debora Tri Ragawanti

2009-01-01

Full Text Available This study investigated students’ preference on teacher’s questions and questionings techniques and more importantly on how they could facilitate or impede their learning. The results on teacher’s questioning techniques showed that random nomination was more preferred than pre-arranged format nomination. In addition, techniques of nominating volunteering students and of giving wait-time were disliked by most student-respondents. As for types of question, the yes/no question was favored by most of the respondents. Different from the yes/no question, the number of respondents leaning forward to the analysis question, questions about fact of life, and questions to state opinion did not show a significant difference from the number of those leaning against the same questions.

Robust Pose Estimation using the SwissRanger SR-3000 Camera

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gudmundsson, Sigurjon Arni; Larsen, Rasmus; Ersbøll, Bjarne Kjær

2007-01-01

In this paper a robust method is presented to classify and estimate an objects pose from a real time range image and a low dimensional model. The model is made from a range image training set which is reduced dimensionally by a nonlinear manifold learning method named Local Linear Embedding (LLE)......). New range images are then projected to this model giving the low dimensional coordinates of the object pose in an efficient manner. The range images are acquired by a state of the art SwissRanger SR-3000 camera making the projection process work in real-time....

Assessing the psychometric questioner for students rating teachers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Razaghi Reza Sharif

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Educational institutions use different ways to evaluate their teachers. Asking students to rate their teachers is common practice. The purpose of this research was to examine the reliability of the instruments used to evaluate the instructors in a college of medicine. This cross-sectional descriptive research used questioners that evaluated instructors. The questioner was targeting different dimensions of instructors. Item analysis in addition to exploratory factor analysis was performed on 1040questioners answered by the students of the College of Medicine of Kashan University of Medical Sciences. SPSS software was used to perform the analysis. The psychometric properties of questionnaires including Cronbach alpha was determined. The result of exploratory factor analysis and item analysis indicated that three of the subscales of the questioner showed sufficient reliability to evaluate the instructors and two subscales needed further examination. This type of evaluations is necessary to ensure quality of instructors working in an institution as well as providing reliable feedback to the instructors. The result showed that while some subscales of the questioner seems to target the concept of interest; a re-evaluation of the instrument would be valuable to increase its reliability for the administrators in the colleges.

Reincarnation Revisited: Question format and the distribution of belief in reincarnation in survey research

OpenAIRE

Siegers, Pascal

2013-01-01

Comparing frequency of belief in reincarnation from different international survey projects (RAMP, EVS, ISSP) reveals differences of about 15 to 20 percent depending on the specific question format. If single binary questions are used, then belief in reincarnation is more often reported than if a forced-choice question is used which offers respondents alternatives to belief in reincarnation (e.g. resurrection). One possible explanation for this result is that respondents confuse reincarnation...

Emerging Model of Questioning through the Process of Teaching and Learning Electrochemistry

Science.gov (United States)

Iksan, Zanaton Haji; Daniel, Esther

2015-01-01

Verbal questioning is a technique used by teachers in the teaching and learning process. Research in Malaysia related to teachers' questioning in the chemistry teaching and learning process is more focused on the level of the questions asked rather than the content to ensure that students understand. Thus, the research discussed in this paper is…

6-DOF Pose Estimation of a Robotic Navigation Aid by Tracking Visual and Geometric Features.

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Cang; Hong, Soonhac; Tamjidi, Amirhossein

2015-10-01

This paper presents a 6-DOF Pose Estimation (PE) method for a Robotic Navigation Aid (RNA) for the visually impaired. The RNA uses a single 3D camera for PE and object detection. The proposed method processes the camera's intensity and range data to estimates the camera's egomotion that is then used by an Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) as the motion model to track a set of visual features for PE. A RANSAC process is employed in the EKF to identify inliers from the visual feature correspondences between two image frames. Only the inliers are used to update the EKF's state. The EKF integrates the egomotion into the camera's pose in the world coordinate system. To retain the EKF's consistency, the distance between the camera and the floor plane (extracted from the range data) is used by the EKF as the observation of the camera's z coordinate. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method results in accurate pose estimates for positioning the RNA in indoor environments. Based on the PE method, a wayfinding system is developed for localization of the RNA in a home environment. The system uses the estimated pose and the floorplan to locate the RNA user in the home environment and announces the points of interest and navigational commands to the user through a speech interface. This work was motivated by the limitations of the existing navigation technology for the visually impaired. Most of the existing methods use a point/line measurement sensor for indoor object detection. Therefore, they lack capability in detecting 3D objects and positioning a blind traveler. Stereovision has been used in recent research. However, it cannot provide reliable depth data for object detection. Also, it tends to produce a lower localization accuracy because its depth measurement error quadratically increases with the true distance. This paper suggests a new approach for navigating a blind traveler. The method uses a single 3D time-of-flight camera for both 6-DOF PE and 3D object

Frequently Asked Questions about Clinical Research

Science.gov (United States)

... Care Genomic Medicine Working Group New Horizons and Research Patient Management Policy and Ethics Issues Quick Links for Patient Care Education All About the Human Genome Project Fact Sheets Genetic Education Resources for ...

Binary classification posed as a quadratically constrained quadratic ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Binary classification is posed as a quadratically constrained quadratic problem and solved using the proposed method. Each class in the binary classification problem is modeled as a multidimensional ellipsoid to forma quadratic constraint in the problem. Particle swarms help in determining the optimal hyperplane or ...

Developing teachers' subject didactic competence through problem posing

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Tichá, Marie; Hošpesová, A.

2013-01-01

Roč. 83, č. 1 (2013), s. 133-143 ISSN 0013-1954 Institutional support: RVO:67985840 Keywords : professional development * primary school teachers * problem posing Subject RIV: AM - Education Impact factor: 0.639, year: 2013 http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10649-012-9455-1

NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Exploiting Mental Imagery with Computers in Mathematics Education

CERN Document Server

Mason, John

1995-01-01

The advent of fast and sophisticated computer graphics has brought dynamic and interactive images under the control of professional mathematicians and mathematics teachers. This volume in the NATO Special Programme on Advanced Educational Technology takes a comprehensive and critical look at how the computer can support the use of visual images in mathematical problem solving. The contributions are written by researchers and teachers from a variety of disciplines including computer science, mathematics, mathematics education, psychology, and design. Some focus on the use of external visual images and others on the development of individual mental imagery. The book is the first collected volume in a research area that is developing rapidly, and the authors pose some challenging new questions.

Cognitive styles: Controversial issues and research problems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natalia N. Volkova

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The paper presents an analytical review of cognitive styles research, considering the problems of its theory, methodology, measurement and practical applications. Issues concerning the prospects, as well as theoretical and practical relevance of cognitive styles research, are discussed. We examine the main causes leading to researchers’ declining interest to study of cognitive styles, related to theory, methodology, measurement and practical applications. The main problems discussed relate to lack of clear definition and common theoretical framework. Moreover, the number of empirical studies prevails over the one aimed at theoretical generalization of empirical results and findings, and therefore the primacy of empirics appears. We analyze the possible ways of advancing the field, suggested research programs and potential perspectives for future research. We pose questions of the relationship between cognitive styles and other psychological constructs, such as abilities and cognitive strategies. We emphasize the need to develop integrative models of cognitive styles in order to systematize and organize a large number of existing cognitive styles dimensions. The main controversial issues concerning cognitive styles’ stability and value are considered. We suggest that cognitive style is a psychological mean of cognitive tasks solving, based on both situation circumstances and subject’s current cognitive resources. Issues concerning cognitive styles may answer the question on the nature of individual differences and clarify psychological mechanisms of personality-situation interaction. Furthermore, it may serve as a basis for integrated studies at the areas of personality and cognitive psychology.

Inertial measurement unit–based iterative pose compensation algorithm for low-cost modular manipulator

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yunhan Lin

2016-01-01

Full Text Available It is a necessary mean to realize the accurate motion control of the manipulator which uses end-effector pose correction method and compensation method. In this article, first, we established the kinematic model and error model of the modular manipulator (WUST-ARM, and then we discussed the measurement methods and precision of the inertial measurement unit sensor. The inertial measurement unit sensor is mounted on the end-effector of modular manipulator, to get the real-time pose of the end-effector. At last, a new inertial measurement unit–based iterative pose compensation algorithm is proposed. By applying this algorithm in the pose compensation experiment of modular manipulator which is composed of low-cost rotation joints, the results show that the inertial measurement unit can obtain a higher precision when in static state; it will accurately feedback to the control system with an accurate error compensation angle after a brief delay when the end-effector moves to the target point, and after compensation, the precision errors of roll angle, pitch angle, and yaw angle are reached at 0.05°, 0.01°, and 0.27° respectively. It proves that this low-cost method provides a new solution to improve the end-effector pose of low-cost modular manipulator.

2012 Gordon Research Conference on Water and Aqueous Solutions, Final Progress Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ben-Amotz, Dor [Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States)

2012-08-17

Understanding the fundamental principles governing the structure and dynamics of water - and particularly how water mediates chemical interactions and processes - continues to pose formidable challenges and yield abundant surprises. The focus of this Gordon Research Conference is on identifying key questions, describing emerging understandings, and unveiling surprising discoveries related to water and aqueous solutions. The talks and posters at this meeting will describe studies of water and its interactions with objects such as interfaces, channels, electrons, oils, ions, and proteins; probed using optical, electrical, and particle experiments, and described using classical, quantum, and multi-scale theories.

Conceiving Human Interaction by Visualising Depth Data of Head Pose Changes and Emotion Recognition via Facial Expressions

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Grigorios Kalliatakis

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Affective computing in general and human activity and intention analysis in particular comprise a rapidly-growing field of research. Head pose and emotion changes present serious challenges when applied to player’s training and ludology experience in serious games, or analysis of customer satisfaction regarding broadcast and web services, or monitoring a driver’s attention. Given the increasing prominence and utility of depth sensors, it is now feasible to perform large-scale collection of three-dimensional (3D data for subsequent analysis. Discriminative random regression forests were selected in order to rapidly and accurately estimate head pose changes in an unconstrained environment. In order to complete the secondary process of recognising four universal dominant facial expressions (happiness, anger, sadness and surprise, emotion recognition via facial expressions (ERFE was adopted. After that, a lightweight data exchange format (JavaScript Object Notation (JSON is employed, in order to manipulate the data extracted from the two aforementioned settings. Motivated by the need to generate comprehensible visual representations from different sets of data, in this paper, we introduce a system capable of monitoring human activity through head pose and emotion changes, utilising an affordable 3D sensing technology (Microsoft Kinect sensor.

Health Issues: Do Cell Phones Pose a Health Hazard?

Science.gov (United States)

... Procedures Home, Business, and Entertainment Products Cell Phones Health Issues Share Tweet Linkedin Pin it More sharing ... it Email Print Do cell phones pose a health hazard? Many people are concerned that cell phone ...

Pose Self-Measurement of Noncooperative Spacecraft Based on Solar Panel Triangle Structure

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Jingzhou Song

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Aiming at the recognition and location of noncooperative spacecraft, this paper presents a monocular vision pose measurement method based on solar triangle structure. First of all, an autonomous recognition algorithm of feature structure based on sliding window Hough transformation (SWHT and inscribed circle of a triangle is proposed, and the image coordinates of feature points on the triangle can be obtained relying on this algorithm, combined with the P4P algorithm and the structure of spacecraft, calculating the relative pose of target expressed by rotation and translation matrix. The whole algorithm can be loaded into the prewritten onboard program, which will get the autocomplete feature structure extraction and relative pose measurement without human intervention, and this method does not need to mount any markers on the target. Then compare the measured values with the accurate value of the laser tracker, so that a conclusion can be drawn that the maximum position error is lower than 5% and the rotation error is lower than 4%, which meets the requirements of noncooperative spacecraft’s pose measurement for observations, tracking, and docking in the final rendezvous phase.

Field-Based Teacher Research: How Teachers and Scientists Working Together Answers Questions about Turtle Nesting Ecology while Enhancing Teachers' Inquiry Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Winters, J. M.; Jungblut, D.; Catena, A. N.; Rubenstein, D. I.

2013-12-01

Providing rigorous academic supplement to a professional development program for teachers, QUEST is a fusion of Drexel University's environmental science research department with Princeton University's Program in Teacher Preparation. Completed in the summers of 2012 (in partnership with Earthwatch) and 2013 in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey, QUEST's terrapin field research program enhances K-12 teachers' ecological knowledge, develops inquiry-based thinking in the classroom, and builds citizen science engagement. With a focus on quality question development and data analysis to answer questions, teachers are coached in developing, implementing, and presenting independent research projects on diamondback terrapin nesting ecology. As a result, teachers participating in QUEST's week long program bring a realistic example of science in action into their classrooms, helping to develop their own students' critical thinking skills. For teachers, this program provides training towards educating students on how to do real and imaginative science - subsequently sending students to university better prepared to engage in their own independent research. An essential component of the collaboration through QUEST, in addition to the teacher's experience during and after the summer institute, is the research data collected which supplements that of the Principal Investigator. In 2012, by documenting terrapin nest site predators, teachers gained valuable scientific experience, while Drexel acquired important ecological data which would have not been able to be collected otherwise. In 2013, teachers helped answer important questions about terrapin nesting success post Superstorm Sandy. In fact, the 2013 QUEST teachers are the first to visualize the frighteningly increased erosion of a primary terrapin nesting site due to Sandy; showing how most terrapin nests now lie in the bay, instead of safe on shore. Teachers comment that interacting with scientists in the field, and contributing to

Comparison On Matching Methods Used In Pose Tracking For 3D Shape Representation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Khin Kyu Kyu Win

2017-01-01

Full Text Available In this work three different algorithms such as Brute Force Delaunay Triangulation and k-d Tree are analyzed on matching comparison for 3D shape representation. It is intended for developing the pose tracking of moving objects in video surveillance. To determine 3D pose of moving objects some tracking system may require full 3D pose estimation of arbitrarily shaped objects in real time. In order to perform 3D pose estimation in real time each step in the tracking algorithm must be computationally efficient. This paper presents method comparison for the computationally efficient registration of 3D shapes including free-form surfaces. Matching of free-form surfaces are carried out by using geometric point matching algorithm ICP. Several aspects of the ICP algorithm are investigated and analyzed by using specified surface setup. The surface setup processed in this system is represented by simple geometric primitive dealing with objects of free-from shape. Considered representations are a cloud of points.

Question popularity analysis and prediction in community question answering services.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Ting; Zhang, Wei-Nan; Cao, Liujuan; Zhang, Yu

2014-01-01

With the blooming of online social media applications, Community Question Answering (CQA) services have become one of the most important online resources for information and knowledge seekers. A large number of high quality question and answer pairs have been accumulated, which allow users to not only share their knowledge with others, but also interact with each other. Accordingly, volumes of efforts have been taken to explore the questions and answers retrieval in CQA services so as to help users to finding the similar questions or the right answers. However, to our knowledge, less attention has been paid so far to question popularity in CQA. Question popularity can reflect the attention and interest of users. Hence, predicting question popularity can better capture the users' interest so as to improve the users' experience. Meanwhile, it can also promote the development of the community. In this paper, we investigate the problem of predicting question popularity in CQA. We first explore the factors that have impact on question popularity by employing statistical analysis. We then propose a supervised machine learning approach to model these factors for question popularity prediction. The experimental results show that our proposed approach can effectively distinguish the popular questions from unpopular ones in the Yahoo! Answers question and answer repository.

Combining Front Vehicle Detection with 3D Pose Estimation for a Better Driver Assistance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Peng

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Driver assistant systems enhance traffic safety and efficiency. The accurate 3D pose of a front vehicle can help a driver to make the right decision on the road. We propose a novel real-time system to estimate the 3D pose of the front vehicle. This system consists of two parallel threads: vehicle rear tracking and mapping. The vehicle rear is first identified in the video captured by an onboard camera, after license plate localization and foreground extraction. The 3D pose estimation technique is then employed with respect to the extracted vehicle rear. Most current 3D pose estimation techniques need prior models or a stereo initialization with user cooperation. It is extremely difficult to obtain prior models due to the varying appearance of vehicles' rears. Moreover, it is unsafe to ask for drivers' cooperation when a vehicle is running. In our system, two initial keyframes for stereo algorithms are automatically extracted by vehicle rear detection and tracking. Map points are defined as a collection of point features extracted from the vehicle's rear with their 3D information. These map points are inferences that relate the 2D features detected in following vehicles' rears with the 3D world. The relative 3D pose of the onboard camera to the front vehicle rear is then estimated through matching the map points with point features detected on the front vehicle rear. We demonstrate the capabilities of our system by testing on real-time and synthesized videos. In order to make the experimental analysis visible, we demonstrated an estimated 3D pose through augmented reality, which needs accurate and real-time 3D pose estimation.

A questions-based investigation of consumer mental-health information

Science.gov (United States)

Kart, Joyce Brothers

2015-01-01

Despite the wealth of mental-health information available online to consumers, research has shown that the mental-health information needs of consumers are not being met. This study contributes to that research by soliciting consumer questions directly, categorizing them, analyzing their form, and assessing the extent to which they can be answered from a trusted and vetted source of online information, namely the website of the US National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). As an alternative to surveys and analyses of online activity, this study shows how consumer questions provide new insight into what consumers do not know and how they express their information needs. The study crowdsourced 100 consumer questions through Amazon Inc.’s Mechanical Turk. Categorization of the questions shows broad agreement with earlier studies in terms of the content of consumer questions. It also suggests that consumers’ grasp of mental health issues may be low compared to other health topics. The majority of the questions (74%) were simple in form, with the remainder being multi-part, multifaceted or narrative. Even simple-form questions could, however, have complex interpretations. Fifty four questions were submitted to the search box at the NIMH website. For 32 questions, no answer could be found in the top one to three documents returned. Inadequacies in the search and retrieval technology deployed at websites account for some of the failure to find answers. The nature of consumer questions in mental health also plays a role. A question that has a false presupposition is less likely to have an answer in trusted and vetted sources of information. Consumer questions are also expressed with a degree of specificity that makes the retrieval of relevant information difficult. The significance of this study is that it shows what an analysis of consumer mental-health questions can tell us about consumer information needs and it provides new insight into the difficulties facing

Two-Year-Old Children Differentiate Test Questions from Genuine Questions

Science.gov (United States)

Grosse, Gerlind; Tomasello, Michael

2012-01-01

Children are frequently confronted with so-called "test questions". While genuine questions are requests for missing information, test questions ask for information obviously already known to the questioner. In this study we explored whether two-year-old children respond differentially to one and the same question used as either a genuine question…

Perbedaan Keterampilan Pemecahan Masalah pada Pembelajaran Fisika Menggunakan Metode Problem Posing dan Problem Solving

OpenAIRE

Rahman, Adetya; Hartini, Sri; An'nur, Syubhan

2015-01-01

Teachers should be able to choose the method of learning that can help students in learning physics, namely the method of problem posing and problem solving method. The purposes of this study are : (1) describe the learning physics skills by using problem posing method, (2) describe the learning physics skills by using problem solving method, and (3) know difference between learning physics skills by using problem posing method and problem solving method in class XI of Science SMAN 6 Banjarma...

Electric Power Lines : Questions and Answers on Research into Health Effects.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

United States. Bonneville Power Administration.

1994-05-01

Most people know that electric power lines, like the wiring in our homes, can cause serious electric shocks if we`re not careful. Many people also want to know whether the electric and magnetic fields (EMF) produced by power lines and other electrical devices cause health effects. The purpose of this booklet is to answer some common questions that the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) receives about the possible effects of power lines on health. First, some basic electrical terms are defined, and electric and magnetic fields are debed. Next, answers are given to several questions about recent scientific studies. Some important information about electrical safety follows. We then describe how BPA is addressing public concerns about potential health effects of power lines. The last section tells you how to obtain more detailed information about the health and safety issues summarized in this booklet.

Nuclear questions; Le nucleaire en questions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berg, Eugene

2012-02-15

Civilian and military nuclear questions fill a multitude of publications these days, especially after the Japanese tsunami and the Fukushima disaster. The author analyses some of them and highlights the links between civil and military nuclear industries, the realities of the nuclear cycle and related industrial questions before concluding on the controversial issue of weapons and their proliferation potential

Ontologies and adaptivity in dialogue for question answering

CERN Document Server

Sonntag, D

2010-01-01

Question answering (QA) has become one of the fastest growing topics in computational linguistics and information access. To advance research in the area of dialogue-based question answering, we propose a combination of methods from different scientific fields (i.e., Information Retrieval, Dialogue Systems, Semantic Web, and Machine Learning). This book sheds light on adaptable dialogue-based question answering. We demonstrate the technical and computational feasibility of the proposed ideas, the introspective methods in particular, by beginning with an extensive introduction to the dialogical

Asking the right questions: Scoping studies in the commissioning of research on the organisation and delivery of health services

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peckham Stephen

2008-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Scoping studies have been used across a range of disciplines for a wide variety of purposes. However, their value is increasingly limited by a lack of definition and clarity of purpose. The UK's Service Delivery and Organisation Research Programme (SDO has extensive experience of commissioning and using such studies; twenty four have now been completed. This review article has four objectives; to describe the nature of the scoping studies that have been commissioned by the SDO Programme; to consider the impact of and uses made of such studies; to provide definitions for the different elements that may constitute a scoping study; and to describe the lessons learnt by the SDO Programme in commissioning scoping studies. Scoping studies are imprecisely defined but usually consist of one or more discrete components; most commonly they are non-systematic reviews of the literature, but other important elements are literature mapping, conceptual mapping and policy mapping. Some scoping studies also involve consultations with stakeholders including the end users of research. Scoping studies have been used for a wide variety of purposes, although a common feature is to identify questions and topics for future research. The reports of scoping studies often have an impact that extends beyond informing research commissioners about future research areas; some have been published in peer reviewed journals, and others have been published in research summaries aimed at a broader audience of health service managers and policymakers. Key lessons from the SDO experience are the need to relate scoping studies to a particular health service context; the need for scoping teams to be multi-disciplinary and to be given enough time to integrate diverse findings; and the need for the research commissioners to be explicit not only about the aims of scoping studies but also about their intended uses. This necessitates regular contact between researchers and

Meanings Given to Algebraic Symbolism in Problem-Posing

Science.gov (United States)

Cañadas, María C.; Molina, Marta; del Río, Aurora

2018-01-01

Some errors in the learning of algebra suggest that students might have difficulties giving meaning to algebraic symbolism. In this paper, we use problem posing to analyze the students' capacity to assign meaning to algebraic symbolism and the difficulties that students encounter in this process, depending on the characteristics of the algebraic…

Inspiring Collaboration: The Legacy of Theo Colborn's Transdisciplinary Research on Fracking.

Science.gov (United States)

Wylie, Sara; Schultz, Kim; Thomas, Deborah; Kassotis, Chris; Nagel, Susan

2016-09-13

This article describes Dr Theo Colborn's legacy of inspiring complementary and synergistic environmental health research and advocacy. Colborn, a founder of endocrine disruption research, also stimulated study of hydraulic fracturing (fracking). In 2014, the United States led the world in oil and gas production, with fifteen million Americans living within one mile of an oil or gas well. Colborn pioneered efforts to understand and control the impacts of this sea change in energy production. In 2005, her research organization The Endocrine Disruption Exchange (TEDX) developed a database of chemicals used in natural gas extraction and their health effects. This database stimulated novel scientific and social scientific research and informed advocacy by (1) connecting communities' diverse health impacts to chemicals used in natural gas development, (2) inspiring social science research on open-source software and hardware for citizen science, and (3) posing new scientific questions about the endocrine-disrupting properties of fracking chemicals. © The Author(s) 2016.

Ten questions about radiant heating and cooling systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rhee, Kyu-Nam; Olesen, Bjarne W.; Kim, Kwang Woo

2017-01-01

to extend the applicability of the RHC system are providing the continuous impetus for research on RHC systems. This paper summarizes the important issues involved in the research on RHC system, whereby ten questions and answers concerning the RHC system are discussed, which will help researchers to conduct...

The Neurobiology of Emotion-Cognition Interactions: Fundamental Questions and Strategies for Future Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hadas eOkon-Singer

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Recent years have witnessed the emergence of powerful new tools for assaying the brain and a remarkable acceleration of research focused on the interplay of emotion and cognition. This work has begun to yield new insights into fundamental questions about the nature of the mind and important clues about the origins of mental illness. In particular, this research demonstrates that stress, anxiety, and other kinds of emotion can profoundly influence key elements of cognition, including selective attention, working memory, and cognitive control. Often, this influence persists beyond the duration of transient emotional challenges, partially reflecting the slower molecular dynamics of catecholamine and hormonal neurochemistry. In turn, circuits involved in attention, executive control, and working memory contribute to the regulation of emotion. The distinction between the ‘emotional’ and the ‘cognitive’ brain is fuzzy and context-dependent. Indeed, there is compelling evidence that brain territories and psychological processes commonly associated with cognition, such as the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and working memory, play a central role in emotion. Furthermore, putatively emotional and cognitive regions influence one another via a complex web of connections in ways that jointly contribute to adaptive and maladaptive behavior. This work demonstrates that emotion and cognition are deeply interwoven in the fabric of the brain, suggesting that widely held beliefs about the key constituents of ‘the emotional brain’ and ‘the cognitive brain’ are fundamentally flawed. We conclude by outlining several strategies for enhancing future research. Developing a deeper understanding of the emotional-cognitive brain is important, not just for understanding the mind but also for elucidating the root causes of its disorders.

Electric Power Lines : Questions and Answers on Research into Health Effects.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

United States. Bonneville Power Administration.

1993-11-01

Most people know that electric power lines, like the wiring in our homes, can cause serious electric shocks if we`re not careful. Many people also want to know whether the electric and magnetic fields (EMF) produced by power lines and other electrical devices cause health effects. The purpose of this pamphlet is to answer some common questions that the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) receives about the possible effects of power lines on health. (BPA is the Pacific Northwest`s Federal electric power marketing agency.) First, some basic electrical terms are defined, and electric and magnetic fields are described. Next, answers are given to several questions about recent scientific studies. We then describe how BPA is addressing public concerns raised by these studies. Some important information about electrical safety follows. The last section tells you how to obtain more detailed information about the health and safety issues summarized in this pamphlet.

Can simply answering research questions change behaviour? Systematic review and meta analyses of brief alcohol intervention trials.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jim McCambridge

Full Text Available Participant reports of their own behaviour are critical for the provision and evaluation of behavioural interventions. Recent developments in brief alcohol intervention trials provide an opportunity to evaluate longstanding concerns that answering questions on behaviour as part of research assessments may inadvertently influence it and produce bias. The study objective was to evaluate the size and nature of effects observed in randomized manipulations of the effects of answering questions on drinking behaviour in brief intervention trials.Multiple methods were used to identify primary studies. Between-group differences in total weekly alcohol consumption, quantity per drinking day and AUDIT scores were evaluated in random effects meta-analyses. Ten trials were included in this review, of which two did not provide findings for quantitative study, in which three outcomes were evaluated. Between-group differences were of the magnitude of 13.7 (-0.17 to 27.6 grams of alcohol per week (approximately 1.5 U.K. units or 1 standard U.S. drink and 1 point (0.1 to 1.9 in AUDIT score. There was no difference in quantity per drinking day.Answering questions on drinking in brief intervention trials appears to alter subsequent self-reported behaviour. This potentially generates bias by exposing non-intervention control groups to an integral component of the intervention. The effects of brief alcohol interventions may thus have been consistently under-estimated. These findings are relevant to evaluations of any interventions to alter behaviours which involve participant self-report.

The rarity of "unusual" [corrected] dispositions of victim bodies: staging and posing.

Science.gov (United States)

Keppel, Robert D; Weis, Joseph G

2004-11-01

The act of leaving a victim's body in an unusual position is a conscious criminal action by an offender to thwart an investigation, shock the finder and investigators of the crime scene, or give perverted pleasure to the killer. The unusual position concepts of posing and staging a murder victim have been documented thoroughly and have been accepted by the courts as a definable phenomenon. One staging case and one posing case are outlined and reveal characteristics of those homicides. From the Washington State Attorney General's Homicide Investigation and Tracking System's database on murder covering the years 1981-2000 (a total of 5,224 cases), the relative frequency of unusual body dispositions is revealed as a very rare occurrence. Only 1.3% of victims are left in an unusual position, with 0.3% being posed and 0.1% being staged. The characteristics of these types of murders also set them apart: compared to all other murders, in staged murders the victims and killers are, on average, older. All victims and offenders in the staged murders are white, with victims being disproportionately white in murders with any kind of unusual body disposition. Likewise, females stand out as victims when the body is posed, staged, or left in other unusual positions. Whereas posed bodies are more likely to include sexual assault, often in serial murders, there is no evidence of either in the staged cases. Lastly, when a body is left in an unusual position, binding is more likely, as well as the use of more "hands on" means of killing the victim, such as stabbing or cutting weapons, bludgeons, ligatures, or hands and feet.

Fostering the exchange of real world data across different countries to answer primary care research questions: an UNLOCK study from the IPCRG.

Science.gov (United States)

Cragg, Liza; Williams, Siân; van der Molen, Thys; Thomas, Mike; Correia de Sousa, Jaime; Chavannes, Niels H

2018-03-08

There is growing awareness amongst healthcare planners, providers and researchers of the need to make better use of routinely collected health data by translating it into actionable information that improves efficiency of healthcare and patient outcomes. There is also increased acceptance of the importance of real world research that recruits patients representative of primary care populations and evaluates interventions realistically delivered by primary care professionals. The UNLOCK Group is an international collaboration of primary care researchers and practitioners from 15 countries. It has coordinated and shared datasets of diagnostic and prognostic variables for COPD and asthma to answer research questions meaningful to professionals working in primary care over a 6-year period. Over this time the UNLOCK Group has undertaken several studies using data from unselected primary care populations from diverse contexts to evaluate the burden of disease, multiple morbidities, treatment and follow-up. However, practical and structural constraints have hampered the UNLOCK Group's ability to translate research ideas into studies. This study explored the constraints, challenges and successes experienced by the UNLOCK Group and its participants' learning as researchers and primary care practitioners collaborating to answer primary care research questions. The study identified lessons for future studies and collaborations that require data sharing across borders. It also explored specific challenges to fostering the exchange of primary care data in comparison to other datasets such as public health, prescribing or hospital data and mechanisms that may be used to overcome these.

Surety of the nation`s critical infrastructures: The challenge restructuring poses to the telecommunications sector

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cox, R.; Drennen, T.E.; Gilliom, L.; Harris, D.L.; Kunsman, D.M.; Skroch, M.J.

1998-04-01

The telecommunications sector plays a pivotal role in the system of increasingly connected and interdependent networks that make up national infrastructure. An assessment of the probable structure and function of the bit-moving industry in the twenty-first century must include issues associated with the surety of telecommunications. The term surety, as used here, means confidence in the acceptable behavior of a system in both intended and unintended circumstances. This paper outlines various engineering approaches to surety in systems, generally, and in the telecommunications infrastructure, specifically. It uses the experience and expectations of the telecommunications system of the US as an example of the global challenges. The paper examines the principal factors underlying the change to more distributed systems in this sector, assesses surety issues associated with these changes, and suggests several possible strategies for mitigation. It also studies the ramifications of what could happen if this sector became a target for those seeking to compromise a nation`s security and economic well being. Experts in this area generally agree that the U. S. telecommunications sector will eventually respond in a way that meets market demands for surety. Questions remain open, however, about confidence in the telecommunications sector and the nation`s infrastructure during unintended circumstances--such as those posed by information warfare or by cascading software failures. Resolution of these questions is complicated by the lack of clear accountability of the private and the public sectors for the surety of telecommunications.

The science and art of asking questions in cognitive therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

James, Ian Andrew; Morse, Rachel; Howarth, Alan

2010-01-01

Questions underpin all aspects of therapeutic assessment and intervention and are a vital component of the clinical process. Over recent years frameworks have started to be applied to obtain a greater understanding of questioning formats and processes. This paper examines the use of questions in cognitive therapy (CT). An overview of the main types of questions identified in the literature is presented. In addition, we examine a range of client and therapist characteristics that may impact on the questioning process. Asking questions in therapy is a complex, yet under-taught, skill. This paper provides a set of frameworks to assist in identifying helpful and unhelpful questioning skills. Thus the article has implications for further training and research.

Finding the Patient's Voice Using Big Data: Analysis of Users' Health-Related Concerns in the ChaCha Question-and-Answer Service (2009-2012).

Science.gov (United States)

Priest, Chad; Knopf, Amelia; Groves, Doyle; Carpenter, Janet S; Furrey, Christopher; Krishnan, Anand; Miller, Wendy R; Otte, Julie L; Palakal, Mathew; Wiehe, Sarah; Wilson, Jeffrey

2016-03-09

The development of effective health care and public health interventions requires a comprehensive understanding of the perceptions, concerns, and stated needs of health care consumers and the public at large. Big datasets from social media and question-and-answer services provide insight into the public's health concerns and priorities without the financial, temporal, and spatial encumbrances of more traditional community-engagement methods and may prove a useful starting point for public-engagement health research (infodemiology). The objective of our study was to describe user characteristics and health-related queries of the ChaCha question-and-answer platform, and discuss how these data may be used to better understand the perceptions, concerns, and stated needs of health care consumers and the public at large. We conducted a retrospective automated textual analysis of anonymous user-generated queries submitted to ChaCha between January 2009 and November 2012. A total of 2.004 billion queries were read, of which 3.50% (70,083,796/2,004,243,249) were missing 1 or more data fields, leaving 1.934 billion complete lines of data for these analyses. Males and females submitted roughly equal numbers of health queries, but content differed by sex. Questions from females predominantly focused on pregnancy, menstruation, and vaginal health. Questions from males predominantly focused on body image, drug use, and sexuality. Adolescents aged 12-19 years submitted more queries than any other age group. Their queries were largely centered on sexual and reproductive health, and pregnancy in particular. The private nature of the ChaCha service provided a perfect environment for maximum frankness among users, especially among adolescents posing sensitive health questions. Adolescents' sexual health queries reveal knowledge gaps with serious, lifelong consequences. The nature of questions to the service provides opportunities for rapid understanding of health concerns and may

The investigation and implementation of real-time face pose and direction estimation on mobile computing devices

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Deqian; Gao, Lisheng; Jhang, Seong Tae

2012-04-01

The mobile computing device has many limitations, such as relative small user interface and slow computing speed. Usually, augmented reality requires face pose estimation can be used as a HCI and entertainment tool. As far as the realtime implementation of head pose estimation on relatively resource limited mobile platforms is concerned, it is required to face different constraints while leaving enough face pose estimation accuracy. The proposed face pose estimation method met this objective. Experimental results running on a testing Android mobile device delivered satisfactory performing results in the real-time and accurately.

Research Questions: Women and Mass Media.

Science.gov (United States)

Busby, Linda J.

Typically, research concerning media presentations of women has involved six types of analysis: (1) content analysis (what is said), (2) cultural and social analysis (why it is said), (3) control or gatekeeper analysis (by whom it is said), (4) audience analysis (to whom it is said), (5) media analysis (in which channel), and (6) effects analysis…

Zebra Mussels Pose a Threat to Virginia's Waters

OpenAIRE

Helfrich, Louis A. (Louis Anthony), 1942-; Weigmann, Diana L.; Speenburgh, Renee M.; Neves, Richard J.; Kitchel, Lisie; Bruenderman, Sue A., 1962-

2005-01-01

Provides an brief introduction to the invasion of the zebra mussel into American waters, explains the economic consequences they pose, and discusses if Virginia will inherit the problem, what the public can do to help, the general lifecycle of the zebra mussel and if they can be controlled, and who is working on the zebra mussel problem.

Pose Self-Calibration of Stereo Vision Systems for Autonomous Vehicle Applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Musleh, Basam; Martín, David; Armingol, José María; de la Escalera, Arturo

2016-09-14

Nowadays, intelligent systems applied to vehicles have grown very rapidly; their goal is not only the improvement of safety, but also making autonomous driving possible. Many of these intelligent systems are based on making use of computer vision in order to know the environment and act accordingly. It is of great importance to be able to estimate the pose of the vision system because the measurement matching between the perception system (pixels) and the vehicle environment (meters) depends on the relative position between the perception system and the environment. A new method of camera pose estimation for stereo systems is presented in this paper, whose main contribution regarding the state of the art on the subject is the estimation of the pitch angle without being affected by the roll angle. The validation of the self-calibration method is accomplished by comparing it with relevant methods of camera pose estimation, where a synthetic sequence is used in order to measure the continuous error with a ground truth. This validation is enriched by the experimental results of the method in real traffic environments.

Pose Self-Calibration of Stereo Vision Systems for Autonomous Vehicle Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Musleh, Basam; Martín, David; Armingol, José María; de la Escalera, Arturo

2016-01-01

Nowadays, intelligent systems applied to vehicles have grown very rapidly; their goal is not only the improvement of safety, but also making autonomous driving possible. Many of these intelligent systems are based on making use of computer vision in order to know the environment and act accordingly. It is of great importance to be able to estimate the pose of the vision system because the measurement matching between the perception system (pixels) and the vehicle environment (meters) depends on the relative position between the perception system and the environment. A new method of camera pose estimation for stereo systems is presented in this paper, whose main contribution regarding the state of the art on the subject is the estimation of the pitch angle without being affected by the roll angle. The validation of the self-calibration method is accomplished by comparing it with relevant methods of camera pose estimation, where a synthetic sequence is used in order to measure the continuous error with a ground truth. This validation is enriched by the experimental results of the method in real traffic environments. PMID:27649178

Social networks, web-based tools and diseases: implications for biomedical research.

Science.gov (United States)

Costa, Fabricio F

2013-03-01

Advances in information technology have improved our ability to gather, collect and analyze information from individuals online. Social networks can be seen as a nonlinear superposition of a multitude of complex connections between people where the nodes represent individuals and the links between them capture a variety of different social interactions. The emergence of different types of social networks has fostered connections between individuals, thus facilitating data exchange in a variety of fields. Therefore, the question posed now is "can these same tools be applied to life sciences in order to improve scientific and medical research?" In this article, I will review how social networks and other web-based tools are changing the way we approach and track diseases in biomedical research. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

IMU-based Real-time Pose Measurement system for Anterior Pelvic Plane in Total Hip Replacement Surgeries.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhe Cao; Shaojie Su; Hao Tang; Yixin Zhou; Zhihua Wang; Hong Chen

2017-07-01

With the aging of population, the number of Total Hip Replacement Surgeries (THR) increased year by year. In THR, inaccurate position of the implanted prosthesis may lead to the failure of the operation. In order to reduce the failure rate and acquire the real-time pose of Anterior Pelvic Plane (APP), we propose a measurement system in this paper. The measurement system includes two parts: Initial Pose Measurement Instrument (IPMI) and Real-time Pose Measurement Instrument (RPMI). IPMI is used to acquire the initial pose of the APP, and RPMI is used to estimate the real-time pose of the APP. Both are composed of an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and magnetometer sensors. To estimate the attitude of the measurement system, the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) is adopted in this paper. The real-time pose of the APP could be acquired together with the algorithm designed in the paper. The experiment results show that the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) is within 1.6 degrees, which meets the requirement of THR operations.

Environmental challenges posed by veld fires in fragile regions: The case of the Bulilima and Mangwe districts in southern Zimbabwe

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ernest Dube

2015-11-01

Full Text Available This original research confronted challenges to environmental management and sustainability posed by veld fires in the Bulilima and Mangwe Districts of Matabeleland in the South Province in southern Zimbabwe. Veld fires have affected the fauna and flora, polluted air and water, and destroyed livelihoods. The study aimed at establishing challenges to environmental sustainability posed by veld fires, identifying the type of environment upon which veld fires have impacted, analysing legal issues and other interventions surrounding the control of veld fires and suggesting new control measures for veld fires. A qualitative research design and quota sampling were used. The study involved 30 participants. Data was collected through a questionnaire, an interview guide and participant observation. Challenges to environmental management and sustainability posed by veld fires include property damage, reduced soil fertility, destruction of vegetation, air and water pollution and destruction of wildlife. Most veld fires are a result of human actions that emanate from the disposal of cigarettes, the burning of vegetation when preparing fields, the use of fire by hunters, smoking out bees and the making of fires by motorists along highways. The government should consider reviewing the current environmental statues. Fireguards should be wide enough to lessen veld-fire impact. Lastly, veld-fire campaigns and rehearsals should be run on a regular basis. It is hoped that this work would make a significant contribution through improving the current thinking about environmental management and sustainability, thereby benefiting policy makers, practitioners and stakeholders.

Tridimensional pose estimation of a person head

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perez Berenguer, Elisa; Soria, Carlos; Nasisi, Oscar; Mut, Vicente

2007-01-01

In this work, we present a method for estimating 3-D motion parameters; this method provides an alternative way for 3D head pose estimation from image sequence in the current computer vision literature. This method is robust over extended sequences and large head motions and accurately extracts the orientation angles of head from a single view. Experimental results show that this tracking system works well for development a human-computer interface for people that possess severe motor incapacity

Impact of Sliding Window Length in Indoor Human Motion Modes and Pose Pattern Recognition Based on Smartphone Sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gaojing Wang

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Human activity recognition (HAR is essential for understanding people’s habits and behaviors, providing an important data source for precise marketing and research in psychology and sociology. Different approaches have been proposed and applied to HAR. Data segmentation using a sliding window is a basic step during the HAR procedure, wherein the window length directly affects recognition performance. However, the window length is generally randomly selected without systematic study. In this study, we examined the impact of window length on smartphone sensor-based human motion and pose pattern recognition. With data collected from smartphone sensors, we tested a range of window lengths on five popular machine-learning methods: decision tree, support vector machine, K-nearest neighbor, Gaussian naïve Bayesian, and adaptive boosting. From the results, we provide recommendations for choosing the appropriate window length. Results corroborate that the influence of window length on the recognition of motion modes is significant but largely limited to pose pattern recognition. For motion mode recognition, a window length between 2.5–3.5 s can provide an optimal tradeoff between recognition performance and speed. Adaptive boosting outperformed the other methods. For pose pattern recognition, 0.5 s was enough to obtain a satisfactory result. In addition, all of the tested methods performed well.

Defining the research agenda to reduce the joint burden of disease from diabetes mellitus and tuberculosis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Harries, Anthony D; Murray, Megan B; Jeon, Christie Y

2010-01-01

diseases, to address research gaps and to develop a research agenda. Ten key research questions were identified, of which 4 were selected as high priority: (i) whether, when and how to screen for TB in patients with diabetes mellitus and vice versa; (ii) the impact of diabetes mellitus and non......The steadily growing epidemic of diabetes mellitus poses a threat for global tuberculosis (TB) control. Previous studies have identified an important association between diabetes mellitus and TB. However, these studies have limitations: very few were carried out in low-income countries, with none...... and monitoring tests, including measurements of blood glucose and glycated haemoglobin A(1c) (HbA(1c)) for patients with diabetes mellitus. Implementation of this research agenda will benefit the control of both diseases....

Robustness Analysis of Visual QA Models by Basic Questions

KAUST Repository

Huang, Jia-Hong

2017-09-14

Visual Question Answering (VQA) models should have both high robustness and accuracy. Unfortunately, most of the current VQA research only focuses on accuracy because there is a lack of proper methods to measure the robustness of VQA models. There are two main modules in our algorithm. Given a natural language question about an image, the first module takes the question as input and then outputs the ranked basic questions, with similarity scores, of the main given question. The second module takes the main question, image and these basic questions as input and then outputs the text-based answer of the main question about the given image. We claim that a robust VQA model is one, whose performance is not changed much when related basic questions as also made available to it as input. We formulate the basic questions generation problem as a LASSO optimization, and also propose a large scale Basic Question Dataset (BQD) and Rscore (novel robustness measure), for analyzing the robustness of VQA models. We hope our BQD will be used as a benchmark for to evaluate the robustness of VQA models, so as to help the community build more robust and accurate VQA models.

Robustness Analysis of Visual QA Models by Basic Questions

KAUST Repository

Huang, Jia-Hong; Alfadly, Modar; Ghanem, Bernard

2017-01-01

Visual Question Answering (VQA) models should have both high robustness and accuracy. Unfortunately, most of the current VQA research only focuses on accuracy because there is a lack of proper methods to measure the robustness of VQA models. There are two main modules in our algorithm. Given a natural language question about an image, the first module takes the question as input and then outputs the ranked basic questions, with similarity scores, of the main given question. The second module takes the main question, image and these basic questions as input and then outputs the text-based answer of the main question about the given image. We claim that a robust VQA model is one, whose performance is not changed much when related basic questions as also made available to it as input. We formulate the basic questions generation problem as a LASSO optimization, and also propose a large scale Basic Question Dataset (BQD) and Rscore (novel robustness measure), for analyzing the robustness of VQA models. We hope our BQD will be used as a benchmark for to evaluate the robustness of VQA models, so as to help the community build more robust and accurate VQA models.

From Question Answering to Visual Exploration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McColgin, Dave W.; Gregory, Michelle L.; Hetzler, Elizabeth G.; Turner, Alan E.

2006-08-11

Research in Question Answering has focused on the quality of information retrieval or extraction using the metrics of precision and recall to judge success; these metrics drive toward finding the specific best answer(s) and are best supportive of a lookup type of search. These do not address the opportunity that users? natural language questions present for exploratory interactions. In this paper, we present an integrated Question Answering environment that combines a visual analytics tool for unstructured text and a state-of-the-art query expansion tool designed to compliment the cognitive processes associated with an information analysts work flow. Analysts are seldom looking for factoid answers to simple questions; their information needs are much more complex in that they may be interested in patterns of answers over time, conflicting information, and even related non-answer data may be critical to learning about a problem or reaching prudent conclusions. In our visual analytics tool, questions result in a comprehensive answer space that allows users to explore the variety within the answers and spot related information in the rest of the data. The exploratory nature of the dialog between the user and this system requires tailored evaluation methods that better address the evolving user goals and counter cognitive biases inherent to exploratory search tasks.

Four Questions

Science.gov (United States)

Hark-Weber, Amara G., Ed.

2013-01-01

The author is pleased to introduce a new section in "TAJ," Four Questions. The structure is simple: four questions are asked to teaching artists working in various media and locations. The questions are always the same, but because each teaching artist's approach is unique, their answers will provide an insight into particular methodologies that…

ESPRIT: Exercise Sensing and Pose Recovery Inference Tool, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — We propose to develop ESPRIT: an Exercise Sensing and Pose Recovery Inference Tool, in support of NASA's effort in developing crew exercise technologies for...

The Pioneering Work of Enrico Morselli (1852-1929) in Light of Modern Scientific Research on Hypnosis and Suggestion.

Science.gov (United States)

Bartolucci, Chiara; Lombardo, Giovanni Pietro

2017-01-01

This article examines research on hypnosis and suggestion, starting with the nineteenth-century model proposed by Enrico Morselli (1852-1929), an illustrious Italian psychiatrist and psychologist. The authors conducted an original psychophysiological analysis of hypnosis, distancing the work from the neuropathological concept of the time and proposing a model based on a naturalistic approach to investigating mental processes. The issues investigated by Morselli, including the definition of hypnosis and analysis of specific mental processes such as attention and memory, are reviewed in light of modern research. From the view of modern neuroscientific concepts, some problems that originated in the nineteenth century still appear to be present and pose still-open questions.

Pose tracking for augmented reality applications in outdoor archaeological sites

Science.gov (United States)

Younes, Georges; Asmar, Daniel; Elhajj, Imad; Al-Harithy, Howayda

2017-01-01

In recent years, agencies around the world have invested huge amounts of effort toward digitizing many aspects of the world's cultural heritage. Of particular importance is the digitization of outdoor archaeological sites. In the spirit of valorization of this digital information, many groups have developed virtual or augmented reality (AR) computer applications themed around a particular archaeological object. The problem of pose tracking in outdoor AR applications is addressed. Different positional systems are analyzed, resulting in the selection of a monocular camera-based user tracker. The limitations that challenge this technique from map generation, scale, anchoring, to lighting conditions are analyzed and systematically addressed. Finally, as a case study, our pose tracking system is implemented within an AR experience in the Byblos Roman theater in Lebanon.

Deformation-specific and deformation-invariant visual object recognition: pose vs identity recognition of people and deforming objects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tristan J Webb

2014-04-01

Full Text Available When we see a human sitting down, standing up, or walking, we can recognise one of these poses independently of the individual, or we can recognise the individual person, independently of the pose. The same issues arise for deforming objects. For example, if we see a flag deformed by the wind, either blowing out or hanging languidly, we can usually recognise the flag, independently of its deformation; or we can recognise the deformation independently of the identity of the flag. We hypothesize that these types of recognition can be implemented by the primate visual system using temporo-spatial continuity as objects transform as a learning principle. In particular, we hypothesize that pose or deformation can be learned under conditions in which large numbers of different people are successively seen in the same pose, or objects in the same deformation. We also hypothesize that person-specific representations that are independent of pose, and object-specific representations that are independent of deformation and view, could be built, when individual people or objects are observed successively transforming from one pose or deformation and view to another. These hypotheses were tested in a simulation of the ventral visual system, VisNet, that uses temporal continuity, implemented in a synaptic learning rule with a short-term memory trace of previous neuronal activity, to learn invariant representations. It was found that depending on the statistics of the visual input, either pose-specific or deformation-specific representations could be built that were invariant with respect to individual and view; or that identity-specific representations could be built that were invariant with respect to pose or deformation and view. We propose that this is how pose-specific and pose-invariant, and deformation-specific and deformation-invariant, perceptual representations are built in the brain.

A new benchmark for pose estimation with ground truth from virtual reality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schlette, Christian; Buch, Anders Glent; Aksoy, Eren Erdal

2014-01-01

The development of programming paradigms for industrial assembly currently gets fresh impetus from approaches in human demonstration and programming-by-demonstration. Major low- and mid-level prerequisites for machine vision and learning in these intelligent robotic applications are pose estimation......, stereo reconstruction and action recognition. As a basis for the machine vision and learning involved, pose estimation is used for deriving object positions and orientations and thus target frames for robot execution. Our contribution introduces and applies a novel benchmark for typical multi...

Research plan for lands administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior in the Interior Columbia Basin and Snake River Plateau

Science.gov (United States)

Beever, Erik A.; Pyke, David A.

2002-01-01

This document presents a long-term research strategy designed to address current and future research needs for management of Department of the Interior-administered ecosystems in the Intermountain West. Although the research plan was developed in the context of the Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project, the plan addresses many high-priority issues facing land managers throughout the Intermountain West. These issues pose management challenges that may be addressed with applied research both currently and in upcoming decades. Possessing a particular focus on semiarid ecosystems, the plan is a collection of research questions under five categories of research emphases: 1) restoration; 2) rangeland health; 3) aquatic-terrestrial connections; 4) development of monitoring and evaluation protocols; and 5) species and habitats at risk.

Structural interface parameters are discriminatory in recognising near-native poses of protein-protein interactions.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sony Malhotra

Full Text Available Interactions at the molecular level in the cellular environment play a very crucial role in maintaining the physiological functioning of the cell. These molecular interactions exist at varied levels viz. protein-protein interactions, protein-nucleic acid interactions or protein-small molecules interactions. Presently in the field, these interactions and their mechanisms mark intensively studied areas. Molecular interactions can also be studied computationally using the approach named as Molecular Docking. Molecular docking employs search algorithms to predict the possible conformations for interacting partners and then calculates interaction energies. However, docking proposes number of solutions as different docked poses and hence offers a serious challenge to identify the native (or near native structures from the pool of these docked poses. Here, we propose a rigorous scoring scheme called DockScore which can be used to rank the docked poses and identify the best docked pose out of many as proposed by docking algorithm employed. The scoring identifies the optimal interactions between the two protein partners utilising various features of the putative interface like area, short contacts, conservation, spatial clustering and the presence of positively charged and hydrophobic residues. DockScore was first trained on a set of 30 protein-protein complexes to determine the weights for different parameters. Subsequently, we tested the scoring scheme on 30 different protein-protein complexes and native or near-native structure were assigned the top rank from a pool of docked poses in 26 of the tested cases. We tested the ability of DockScore to discriminate likely dimer interactions that differ substantially within a homologous family and also demonstrate that DOCKSCORE can distinguish correct pose for all 10 recent CAPRI targets.

Questions raised in developing fast reactor steam generator designs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Taylor, P A; Hayden, O

1975-07-01

The most important component in the achievement of satisfactory LMFBR reliability is the steam generator. When the failure statistics of other nuclear steam generators and the implications of a sodium water reaction are considered, there is some cause for concern. It is apparent that considerable improvement in technology is necessary and until more experience on operating plant is available a conservative design approach must be taken. Many solutions have been proposed, varying from forced circulation straight tube modular to large single vessel once through helical designs. The paper poses what are considered to be the main questions which arise when making a choice of fast reactor steam generator type and tube configuration. The aim is to promote discussion amongst the assembled experts on their relative design approaches and the importance placed upon the various factors in reaching our common goal of ensuring the success of the LMFBR in its essential role of conserving world energy resources. (author)

Questions raised in developing fast reactor steam generator designs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor, P.A.; Hayden, O.

1975-01-01

The most important component in the achievement of satisfactory LMFBR reliability is the steam generator. When the failure statistics of other nuclear steam generators and the implications of a sodium water reaction are considered, there is some cause for concern. It is apparent that considerable improvement in technology is necessary and until more experience on operating plant is available a conservative design approach must be taken. Many solutions have been proposed, varying from forced circulation straight tube modular to large single vessel once through helical designs. The paper poses what are considered to be the main questions which arise when making a choice of fast reactor steam generator type and tube configuration. The aim is to promote discussion amongst the assembled experts on their relative design approaches and the importance placed upon the various factors in reaching our common goal of ensuring the success of the LMFBR in its essential role of conserving world energy resources. (author)

Reflective questioning in management education : lessons from supervising thesis projects

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Seggelen-Damen, van I.C.M.; Romme, A.G.L.

2014-01-01

Reflective questioning is a critical activity in management learning and education. This article describes research on the nature of reflective questioning in groups of management students working on final MSc projects. Drawing on content analysis of recorded meetings, we identify the following key

Pose Self-Calibration of Stereo Vision Systems for Autonomous Vehicle Applications

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Basam Musleh

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, intelligent systems applied to vehicles have grown very rapidly; their goal is not only the improvement of safety, but also making autonomous driving possible. Many of these intelligent systems are based on making use of computer vision in order to know the environment and act accordingly. It is of great importance to be able to estimate the pose of the vision system because the measurement matching between the perception system (pixels and the vehicle environment (meters depends on the relative position between the perception system and the environment. A new method of camera pose estimation for stereo systems is presented in this paper, whose main contribution regarding the state of the art on the subject is the estimation of the pitch angle without being affected by the roll angle. The validation of the self-calibration method is accomplished by comparing it with relevant methods of camera pose estimation, where a synthetic sequence is used in order to measure the continuous error with a ground truth. This validation is enriched by the experimental results of the method in real traffic environments.

Personal privacy, information assurance, and the threat posed by malware techology

Science.gov (United States)

Stytz, Martin R.; Banks, Sheila B.

2006-04-01

In spite of our best efforts to secure the cyber world, the threats posed to personal privacy by attacks upon networks and software continue unabated. While there are many reasons for this state of affairs, clearly one of the reasons for continued vulnerabilities in software is the inability to assess their security properties and test their security systems while they are in development. A second reason for this growing threat to personal privacy is the growing sophistication and maliciousness of malware coupled with the increasing difficulty of detecting malware. The pervasive threat posed by malware coupled with the difficulties faced when trying to detect its presence or an attempted intrusion make addressing the malware threat one of the most pressing issues that must be solved in order to insure personal privacy to users of the internet. In this paper, we will discuss the threat posed by malware, the types of malware found in the wild (outside of computer laboratories), and current techniques that are available for from a successful malware penetration. The paper includes a discussion of anti-malware tools and suggestions for future anti-malware efforts.

Semi-automated categorization of open-ended questions

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Matthias Schonlau

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Text data from open-ended questions in surveys are difficult to analyze and are frequently ignored. Yet open-ended questions are important because they do not constrain respondents’ answer choices. Where open-ended questions are necessary, sometimes multiple human coders hand-code answers into one of several categories. At the same time, computer scientists have made impressive advances in text mining that may allow automation of such coding. Automated algorithms do not achieve an overall accuracy high enough to entirely replace humans. We categorize open-ended questions soliciting narrative responses using text mining for easy-to-categorize answers and humans for the remainder using expected accuracies to guide the choice of the threshold delineating between “easy” and “hard”. Employing multinomial boosting avoids the common practice of converting machine learning “confidence scores” into pseudo-probabilities. This approach is illustrated with examples from open-ended questions related to respondents’ advice to a patient in a hypothetical dilemma, a follow-up probe related to respondents’ perception of disclosure/privacy risk, and from a question on reasons for quitting smoking from a follow-up survey from the Ontario Smoker’s Helpline. Targeting 80% combined accuracy, we found that 54%-80% of the data could be categorized automatically in research surveys.

Understanding Bitcoins: Facts and Questions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bruno Saboia de Albuquerque

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The objective of this work is to do a research challenge about the digital currency named Bitcoins, as well as exploit the general concept behind digital currencies and cryptocurrencies, and enumerate some of its current criticism and problems. Such currencies usage and public knowledge is increasing hastily on the last few months, and many questions arise with its popularity.

Hierarchical graphical-based human pose estimation via local multi-resolution convolutional neural network

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Aichun; Wang, Tian; Snoussi, Hichem

2018-03-01

This paper addresses the problems of the graphical-based human pose estimation in still images, including the diversity of appearances and confounding background clutter. We present a new architecture for estimating human pose using a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN). Firstly, a Relative Mixture Deformable Model (RMDM) is defined by each pair of connected parts to compute the relative spatial information in the graphical model. Secondly, a Local Multi-Resolution Convolutional Neural Network (LMR-CNN) is proposed to train and learn the multi-scale representation of each body parts by combining different levels of part context. Thirdly, a LMR-CNN based hierarchical model is defined to explore the context information of limb parts. Finally, the experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed deep learning approach for human pose estimation.

Hierarchical graphical-based human pose estimation via local multi-resolution convolutional neural network

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aichun Zhu

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This paper addresses the problems of the graphical-based human pose estimation in still images, including the diversity of appearances and confounding background clutter. We present a new architecture for estimating human pose using a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN. Firstly, a Relative Mixture Deformable Model (RMDM is defined by each pair of connected parts to compute the relative spatial information in the graphical model. Secondly, a Local Multi-Resolution Convolutional Neural Network (LMR-CNN is proposed to train and learn the multi-scale representation of each body parts by combining different levels of part context. Thirdly, a LMR-CNN based hierarchical model is defined to explore the context information of limb parts. Finally, the experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed deep learning approach for human pose estimation.

Introduced organisms pose the most significant threat to the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

spamer

Introduced organisms pose the most significant threat to the conservation status of oceanic islands (e.g.. Williamson 1996). Subantarctic Prince Edward Island, the smaller of the two islands in the Prince Edward. Island group, has few introduced organisms; it is cur- rently known to support only three introduced animals.

Morozov-type discrepancy principle for nonlinear ill-posed problems ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

For proving the existence of a regularization parameter under a Morozov-type discrepancy principle for Tikhonov regularization of nonlinear ill-posed problems, it is required to impose additional nonlinearity assumptions on the forward operator. Lipschitz continuity of the Freéchet derivative and requirement of the Lipschitz ...

Full Body Pose Estimation During Occlusion using Multiple Cameras

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fihl, Preben; Cosar, Serhan

people is a very challenging problem for methods based on pictorials structure as for any other monocular pose estimation method. In this report we present work on a multi-view approach based on pictorial structures that integrate low level information from multiple calibrated cameras to improve the 2D...

Morozov-type discrepancy principle for nonlinear ill-posed problems ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2016-08-26

Aug 26, 2016 ... For proving the existence of a regularization parameter under a Morozov-type discrepancy principle for Tikhonov regularization of nonlinear ill-posed problems, it is required to impose additional nonlinearity assumptions on the forward operator. Lipschitz continuity of the Freéchet derivative and requirement ...

NASA Earthdata Forums: An Interactive Venue for Discussions of NASA Data and Earth Science

Science.gov (United States)