Appropriate computer-mediated communication: An Australian indigenous information system case study

This article discusses ways to operationalise the concept of culturally appropriate computer-mediated communication, utilising information systems (IS) development methodologies and adopting a postmodern and postcolonial perspective. By way of illustration, it describes progress on the participative development of the Ieramugadu Cultural Information System. This project is designed to develop and evaluate innovative procedures for elicitation, analysis, storage and communication of indigenous cultural heritage information. It is investigating culturally appropriate IS design techniques, multimedia approaches and ways to ensure protection of secret/sacred information. Ethical issues are foregrounded.     

Models for monitoring wind farm power

Different models for monitoring wind farm power output are considered. Data mining and evolutionary computation are integrated for building the models for prediction and monitoring. Different models using wind speed as input to predict the total power output of a wind farm are compared and analyzed. The k-nearest neighbor model, combined with the principal component analysis approach, outperforms other models studied in this research. However, this model performs poorly when the conditions of the wind farm are abnormal. The latter implies that the original data contains many noisy points that need to be filtered. An evolutionary computation algorithm is used to build a nonlinear parametric model to monitor the wind farm performance. This model filters the outliers according to the residual approach and control charts. The k-nearest neighbor model produces good performance for the wind farm operating in normal conditions.     

Connections for composite concrete slab and LVL flooring systems

Composite concrete slab and timber flooring systems are commonly used in many parts of the world to exploit the high strength-to-weight ratio of timber and the good acoustic separation provided by concrete floor slabs. This paper describes the results of an experimental programme that investigated the suitability of a range of connectors to transfer shear between a concrete slab and a laminated veneer lumber (LVL) beam. Shear tests on reduced scale specimens were performed with the aim of comparing the strength, stiffness, and post-peak performance of different connectors such as round and rectangular concrete plugs with and without screw and steel pipe reinforcement, proprietary (SFS) screws, coach screws with different diameters, sheet brace anchors, and framing brackets. The rectangular concrete plug reinforced with a coach screw was found to provide the greatest stiffness and strength, as well as favourable post-peak behaviour. Such a system can be used for cost-effective composite floor systems due to its efficient cost-to-capacity ratio, which reduces the number of connectors needed along the beam axis to achieve the composite action.     

An internet of old things as an augmented memory system

The interdisciplinary Tales of Things and electronic Memory (TOTeM) project investigates new contexts for augmenting things with stories in the emerging culture of the Internet of Things (IoT). Tales of Things is a tagging system which, based on two-dimensional barcodes (also called Quick Response or QR codes) and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, enables the capturing and sharing of object stories and the physical linking to objects via read and writable tags. Within the context of our study, it has functioned as a technology probe which we employed with the aim to stimulate discussion and identify desire lines that point to novel design opportunities for the engagement with personal and social memories linked to everyday objects. In this paper, we discuss results from fieldwork with different community groups in the course of which seemingly any object could form the basis of a meaningful story and act as entry point into rich inherent ‘networks of meaning’. Such networks of meaning are often solely accessible for the owner of an object and are at risk of getting lost as time goes by. We discuss the different discourses that are inherent in these object stories and provide avenues for making these memories and meaning networks accessible and shareable. This paper critically reflects on Tales of Things as an example of an augmented memory system and discusses possible wider implications for the design of related systems.     

The language of demand/withdraw: Verbal and vocal expression in dyadic interactions.

Associations between vocally expressed emotional arousal, influence tactics, and demand/withdraw behavior were examined in a treatment-seeking sample of 130 seriously and stably distressed, married, heterosexual couples and in a community sample (N = 38) of 18 married heterosexual and 20 dating heterosexual couples. Fundamental frequency was used to measure emotional arousal, and computational linguistics were used to measure influence tactics. Higher levels of demand/withdraw behavior were associated with greater use of manipulative and controlling influence tactics, higher levels of emotional arousal, and less frequent use of cooperative and compromising influence tactics. Overall, demanders tended to express more arousal and to use more influence tactics than withdrawers. Both influence tactics and emotional arousal were uniquely associated with demand/withdraw behavior. Implications of results are discussed for refining theories of demand/withdraw interaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Thermodynamically consistent modeling of elementary electrochemistry in lithium-ion batteries

This paper is particularly concerned with the elementary reactions and transport processes that are responsible for Li-ion battery performance. The model generally follows the widely practiced approach developed by Newman and co-workers (e.g., Doyle et al., J. Electrochem. Soc. 140 (1993) 1526 [1]). However, there are significant departures, especially in modeling electrochemical charge transfer. The present approach introduces systems of microscopically reversible reactions, including both heterogeneous thermal reactions and electrochemical charge-transfer reactions. All reaction rates are evaluated in elementary form, providing a powerful alternative to a Butler-Volmer formalism for the charge-transfer reactions. The paper is particularly concerned with the influence of non-ideal thermodynamics for evaluating reversible potentials as well as charge-transfer rates. The theory and modeling approach establishes a framework for extending chemistry models to incorporate detailed reaction mechanisms that represent multiple competitive reaction pathways.     

Validation of iGPS as an external measurement system for cooperative robot positioning

External metrology systems are increasingly being used in modern manufacturing to improve the accuracy of industrial robots. In this paper, the problem of achieving absolute accuracy in the positioning and movement of cooperating robots is addressed using the indoor GPS (iGPS) technology as an external position measurement system for real-time feedback and control. This metrology system is presented as an introduction to the iGPS-based 3D Pose Detector and a new concept using generalised measurement systems inspired by iGPS. Attached to the robot end-effectors, the receivers allow coordinate frame measurements to provide spatial information on the robot poses in six degrees of freedom. Experimental results show a strong correspondence between iGPS measurements of cooperating robot end-effector positioning and the control measurements obtained from a double ballbar. Ballbar measurements are further used to determine the relative accuracy between state-of-the-art cooperating manipulators. The iGPS system is validated as an external measurement system using a ballbar device, and its use in the external control of basic robotic tasks is demonstrated. The predicted accuracy achievable for the robots when being controlled or compensated is determined to be at least within 0.3 mm, subject to improvements with continuing research and refinements.