Cultural Differences in Collaborative Authoring of Wikipedia

This article explores the relationship between national culture and computer‐mediated communication (CMC) in Wikipedia. The articles on the topic game from the French, German, Japanese, and Dutch Wikipedia websites were studied using content analysis methods. Correlations were investigated between patterns of contributions and the four dimensions of cultural influences proposed by Hofstede (Power Distance, Collectivism versus Individualism, Femininity versus Masculinity, and Uncertainty Avoidance). The analysis revealed cultural differences in the style of contributions across the cultures investigated, some of which are correlated with the dimensions identified by Hofstede. These findings suggest that cultural differences that are observed in the physical world also exist in the virtual world.     

A Collaborative Environment for Authoring Large Knowledge Bases

Collaborative knowledge base (KB) authoring environments are critical for the construction of high-performance KBs. Such environments must support rapid construction of KBs by a collaborative effort of teams of knowledge engineers through reuse of existing knowledge and software components. They should support the manipulation of knowledge by diverse problem-solving engines even if that knowledge is encoded in different languages and by different researchers. They should support large KBs and provide a scalable and interoperable development infrastructure. In this paper, we present an environment that satisfies many of these goals.We present an architecture for scalable frame representation systems (FRSs). The Generic Frame Protocol (GFP) provides infrastructure for reuse of software components. It is a procedural interface to frame representation systems that provides a common means of accessing and modifying frame KBs. The Generic KB Editor (GKB-EDITOR) provides graphical KB browsing, editing, and comprehension services for large KBs. Scalability of loading and saving time is provided by a storage system (PERK) which submerges a database management system in an FRS. Multi-user access is controlled through a collaboration subsystem that uses a novel optimistic concurrency control algorithm. All the results have been implemented and tested in the development of several real KBs.     

Context-Aware Navigation Element for Collaborative Nonlinear Video Authoring Tool

In recent years, online video streaming service has become more popular. High internet bandwidth, powerful mobile devices, and advance of video annotation techniques have raised the popularity of the rapidly growing interactive video genre. This research focuses on enabling collaboration among authors of interactive nonlinear videos that provide alternative story plots for viewers to choose as part of their interactive behaviors. We discuss the “irrelevant navigation elements” problem, which could occur when multiple nonlinear video authors want to reuse a shared interactive video. Then, we propose a system called MAVINS, a managed navigation element for interactive nonlinear videos, to solve the aforementioned problem. The system is implemented as a web-based authoring tool and interactive video player for user-creator and user-viewer, respectively. Experimentation in self-directed learning was conducted to demonstrate the problem that occurs in current approaches as well as to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed system to solve that particular problem. As the result, the proposed system eliminated all the irrelevant navigation elements and, on average, reduced 54.55% of the total amount of displayed navigation elements on the shared videos.     

协同编辑中的语义一致性问题*

针对计算机协同编辑系统的实际应用,如应用于协同写作,提出了其涉及的两种语义的一致性问题--简单语义一致性和复杂语义一致性.简单语义一致性是指参与协同编辑的用户要对所编辑文章中的概念达成一致的理解,提出利用本体这一知识表示工具来解决;复杂语义一致性是指保持所编辑文章的整体语义合乎逻辑,并与主题保持一致,提出利用本体结合自然语言理解技术来解决.     

协同语义特征建模技术研究

为了提高协同语义建模系统的性能,提出了一种新的协同设计方法,亦即使用特征语义表示法和细胞元模型来表示数据和管理模型中的各种数据和信息,然后通过语义匹配的方法来确定子模型间的逻辑和装配关系,通过语义区域划分、最值空间等技术来检测和消解协同设计中发生的操作冲突,最后通过创建临时模型来降低全局约束求解的复杂度。这种方法不仅能够完全实现协同语义特征建模的需要,还可以大大提高协同设计的效率。实验表明,该算法具有更强的适应性和实用性。     

以网络为中心的语义特征造型协同设计

在网络化同步协同设计环境中，如何实现用户系统之间的实时数据交换、维护特征语义的一致性，成为语义特征造型协同设计的关键问题。该文介绍了基于细胞元表示的语义特征模型，根据该造型技术的分层体系结构，基于对协同环境下特征操作的分析，采取了传输造型操作命令的策略，为解决特征语义一致性问题，提出了一种用操作特征管理器调度操作执行的方法，并给出了一个实例。     

一种基于本体语义相似度的协同过滤推荐方法

协同过滤推荐是一种基于用户偏好的个性化推荐方法,一般包含两个步骤:首先根据用户或项目的标注信息计算出用户或项目的相似度,确定邻居集合;然后根据相似度进行排序推荐,其核心问题在于相似度的计算。为了更好地达到这一目的,近年来关于将用户社交网络信息融入相似度计算的方法受到广泛关注。用户的注册信息、项目评分和社交信息都可以作为用户比较的依据。基于此提出了通过构建用户本体,计算本体之间的语义相似度,从而找到相似用户集合,最终实现目标用户的推荐方法。该方法为本体技术与推荐系统的结合提供了一种思路,实验表明 它能够在一定程度上提高推荐的准确度。     

Authoring templates with Tracker

Tracker, a tool developed by DARPA'S active templates program, extends data-entry forms to support plan authoring, information monitoring, and execution planning. Tracker is used to develop templates for a military air transportation system tool. The Tracker software lets users define templates to describe and implement a given planning problem's associated workflow.     

Authoring Hierarchical Road Networks

We present a procedural method for generating hierarchical road networks connecting cities, towns and villages over large terrains. Our approach relies on an original geometric graph generation algorithm based on a non‐Euclidean metric combined with a path merging algorithm that creates junctions between the different types of roads. Unlike previous work, our method allows high level user control by manipulating the density and the pattern of the network. The geometry of the highways, primary and secondary roads as well as the interchanges and intersections are automatically created from the graph structure by instantiating generic parameterized models.     

New Recommender Framework: Combining Semantic Similarity Fusion and Bicluster Collaborative Filtering

Collaborative filtering (CF) systems help address information overload, by using the preferences of users in a community to make personal recommendations for other users. The widespread use of these systems has exposed some well‐known limitations, such as sparsity, scalability, and cold‐start, which can lead to poor recommendations. During the last years, a great number of works have focused on the improvement of CF, but they do not solve all its problems efficiently. In this article, we present a new approach that applies semantic similarity fusion as well as biclustering to alleviate the aforementioned problems. The experimental results verify the effectiveness and efficiency of our approach over the benchmark CF methods.     

Authoring Narrative Visualizations with Ellipsis

Data visualization is now a popular medium for journalistic storytelling. However, current visualization tools either lack support for storytelling or require significant technical expertise. Informed by interviews with journalists, we introduce a model of storytelling abstractions that includes state‐based scene structure, dynamic annotations and decoupled coordination of multiple visualization components. We instantiate our model in Ellipsis: a system that combines a domain‐specific language (DSL) for storytelling with a graphical interface for story authoring. User interactions are automatically translated into statements in the Ellipsis DSL. By enabling storytelling without programming, the Ellipsis interface lowers the threshold for authoring narrative visualizations. We evaluate Ellipsis through example applications and user studies with award‐winning journalists. Study participants find Ellipsis to be a valuable prototyping tool that can empower journalists in the creation of interactive narratives.     

标准化课件制作系统

基于计算机网络的远程教育近年来的迅速发展,标准化、实用化的课件制作工具的研究也逐渐成为热点。该文提出了符合IEEELTSC(IEEE学习技术标准委员会)的两个重要规范CMI(ComputerManagedInstruction)、LOM(Learn-ingObjectMetadata)的学习资源组织模型,基于这个模型设计并实现了标准化课件制作系统,对于促进我国网络教育资源标准化具有重要意义。     

Authoring of scalable multimedia documents

With the diversity of usage conditions affecting the consumption of multimedia content, the adaptation of dynamic and interactive multimedia presentations is essential. The challenge consists in allowing a multimedia presentation to adapt in all its dimensions: spatially, temporally and interactively, without lessening its attractiveness and still giving the author the control over adapted versions. Additionally, the authoring of adaptable content should not increase the complexity of authoring. To address this challenge, we propose to transpose the concept of scalability to the world of multimedia documents by introducing the so-called Scalable MSTI model. In this paper, we show the properties of this model and how, from an authoring point of view, scalable multimedia documents can be created to address a wide range of usage conditions.     

Authoring diagram-based CBA with CourseMarker

The CourseMarker system has been used to assess free-response computer based assessment (CBA) exercises since 1998. The aim of the studies reported here was to evaluate the feasibility and usefulness of developing and deploying diagram-based exercises using DATsys, an authoring environment for diagram-based CBA, together with CourseMarker. Postgraduate students constructed diagram-based exercises in four domains. The process of constructing the exercises was captured as an indicator of feasibility. The exercises were then used to assess two cohorts of undergraduate students. Instruments including system submission logs and student questionnaires were used to assess usefulness.Findings indicate that there is considerable potential for the assessment of free-response domains such as diagrams. Such an approach can help students as part of an iterative process of learning by allowing repeated submission of coursework, which may be most appropriate within a formative assessment context. The exercises are popular with students and demonstrate a gradual, though decelerating, increase in marks over subsequent submissions. The techniques are reliable, but further development allowing for alternative model solutions and assessment of the aesthetic appearance of diagrams would increase validity. Our techniques and findings are novel for CBA, and have implications for the increasingly important research area of formative assessment.     

Integrating Searching and Authoring in Mizar

The vision of a computerized assistant to mathematicians has existed since the inception of theorem-proving systems. The Alcor system has been designed to investigate and explore how a mathematician might interact with such an assistant by providing an interface to Mizar and the Mizar Mathematical Library. Our current research focuses on the integration of searching and authoring while proving. In this paper we use a scenario to elaborate on the nature of the interaction. We abstract from the scenario two distinct styles of searching and describe how the Alcor interface implements these with a keyword and LSI-based search. Though Alcor is still in its early stages of development, there are clear implications for the general problem of integrating searching and authoring, as well as technical issues with Mizar.     

浅谈多媒体教学课件的开发

多媒体教学课件的开发过程分为四个阶段：选题与搜集整理素材,选取开发工具,设计,开发及测试。     

拼铺法快速合成大规模植物分布

为了在构建大规模森林场景时快速而有效地在森林区域内分布大量的植物,提出一种基于Poisson disk tiles模型,通过样本块拼铺的方式快速合成大面积植物分布的方法.在样本集生成阶段,采用一种角匹配的方式,并配合Relaxation dart throwing算法来生成植物分布的样本块集合,从而克服了传统方法中的圆盘越界问题和顶角问题;在合成阶段,按照角匹配的方式,并采用直接随机拼铺的模式来快速合成视域范围内的植物分布,可满足大规模植被场景的实时合成与漫游要求.此外,提出一种合成植物多密度变化、多物种混合分布的方法,其采用一种分离策略,通过从高密度样本块中分离提取一部分样本点来生成多密度等级及多物种等级的子样本块集;根据所合成地区的密度信息和物种信息来选取合适的样本块集进行拼铺,从而合成带有密度变化及多物种混合的植物分布.在此基础上,实现了一个大规模森林场景的构建与漫游系统.实验结果表明,文中方法在构建大规模植物场景上是非常有效的,即使植物规模达到千万级,其合成效率也可以满足交互式应用的需求.     

基于构件的分布式多媒体创作环境初探

以构件技术为基础,介绍了一个分布式多媒体创作环境的设计与实现过程,给出了该分布式多媒体创作环境的系统构成、实现策略,并就协同创作及相关技术进行了讨论。     

Environmental Objects for Authoring Procedural Scenes

We propose a novel approach for authoring large scenes with automatic enhancement of objects to create geometric decoration details such as snow cover, icicles, fallen leaves, grass tufts or even trash. We introduce environmental objects that extend an input object geometry with a set of procedural effects that defines how the object reacts to the environment, and by a set of scalar fields that defines the influence of the object over of the environment. The user controls the scene by modifying environmental variables, such as temperature or humidity fields. The scene definition is hierarchical: objects can be grouped and their behaviours can be set at each level of the hierarchy. Our per object definition allows us to optimize and accelerate the effects computation, which also enables us to generate large scenes with many geometric details at a very high level of detail. In our implementation, a complex urban scene of 10 000 m², represented with details of less than 1 cm, can be locally modified and entirely regenerated in a few seconds.