Biomechanical versus inertial information: Stable individual differences in perception of self-rotation.

When turning without vision or audition, people tend to perceive their locomotion as a change in heading relative to objects in the remembered surroundings. Such perception of self-rotation depends on sensitivity to information for movement from biomechanical activity of the locomotor system or from inertial activation of the vestibular and postural systems. The authors report 3 experiments that investigated the relative contributions of biomechanical and inertial information to perceiving the speed of self-rotation. Using a circular treadmill, the proportions of the 2 sources of proprioceptive information were varied, creating walking conditions with a constant rate of biomechanical activity but with variable speeds of rotation relative to inertial space. The results reveal stable individual differences in sensitivity to information for the perception of locomotion. Just more than half of the participants based their perceived speed of self-rotation on biomechanical information, whereas the others based theirs on inertial information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Visual experience, visual field size, and the development of nonvisual sensitivity to the spatial structure of outdoor neighborhoods explored by walking.

When places are explored without vision, observers go from temporally sequenced, circuitous inputs available along walks to knowledge of spatial structure (i.e., straight-line distances and directions characterizing the simultaneous arrangement of the objects passed along the way). Studies show that a life history of vision helps develop nonvisual sensitivity, but they are unspecific on the formative experiences or the underlying processes. This study compared judgments of straight-line distances and directions among landmarks in a familiar area of town by partially sighted persons who varied in types and ages of visual impairment. Those with early childhood loss of broad-field vision and those blind from birth performed significantly worse than those with early or late acuity loss and those with late field loss. Broad-field visual experience facilitates perceptual development by providing a basis for proprioceptive and efferent information from locomotion against distances and directions relative to the surrounding environment. Differences in the perception of walking, in turn, cause the observed differences in sensitivity to spatial structure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teaching thinking and problem solving: Research foundations.

Reviews 2 general research approaches to the development and effective teaching of reasoning, thinking, and problem solving. The first derives from studies of individuals who are experts in particular domains and emphasizes the role of domain-specific knowledge. The second emphasizes general strategic and metacognitive knowledge; ideally, people who develop the ability to learn new information and to monitor their current levels of proficiency will be able to function more effectively in a variety of contexts. Issues discussed include developmental and intraindividual differences, the representation of knowledge, means of facilitating memory access, and the concept of metacognition. It is concluded that many existing programs designed to teach thinking and problem solving could be strengthened by focusing more explicitly on domain knowledge, especially when students are helped to understand how different ways of learning new knowledge can affect their abilities to solve relevant problems. (3? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Locative media and situated learning

This article covers the conception and development of Empedia, a new locative software environment for mobile phones specifically designed for expanded archives, documentary and heritage/historical interpretation, using situated and collaborative learning, at resonant and related sites. It will examine our developmental methods employed through a number of workshops for pilot projects, employed specifically to test the reception of rich media assets and augmented reality features in a simple open source user interface and authoring environment for iPhone and browser consumption. The research projects at the Institute of Creative Technologies (IOCT) examined here include: a D. H. Lawrence Heritage Blue Line trail in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire (2009); Riverains, a dramatised history trail in Shoreditch, London (2010); and the use of collaborative documentary in Codes of Disobedience and Dysfunctionality in Athens (2011).     

The recalibration of rotational locomotion.

Rotational locomotion (i.e., turning in place) can be recalibrated by arranging a situation in which one steps around at 1 speed but turns through the world at a different speed. After exposure to such a situation, people will show predictable changes if asked to look at a target, close their eyes, and turn to face it. In 5 experiments, this recalibration was shown to be attributable to 2 different mechanisms, one a sensory adaptation-like component from simply turning in place for several minutes and the other a perceptual-learning-like component related to the discrepancy created by the rearrangement of optical flow and action. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modifizierung von Polyaramid-Ultrafiltrationsmembranen durch Elektronenbestrahlung

Electron beam irradition of polyaramide ultrafiltration membranes (PA-UF membranes; NADIR® UF-PA-5) led to an increase of retention R from 93% to 98% in the applied dose range between 150 and 200 kGy. Contrary to common findings, no reduction of permeate flux J_PVP was observed. The formation of carboxy groups caused by electron beam irradiation was confirmed by ζ-potential measurements and ATR-FTIR spectroscopic investigations.     

Modelling the impacts of land system dynamics on human well-being: Using an agent-based approach to cope with data limitations in Koper,Slovenia

To cope with data limitations and to provide insight into the dynamics of LUCC for local stakeholders in the Municipality of Koper, Slovenia, we constructed an ABM (loosely defined) that integrates utility theory, logistic regression, and cellular automaton-like rules to represent the decision-making strategies of different agents. The model is used to evaluate the impact of LUCC on human well-being, as represented by the provision of highly productive agricultural soil, the extent of noise pollution, and quality-of-life measurements. Results for the Municipality of Koper show that, under a range of model assumptions, (1) high quality agricultural soils are disproportionately affected by urban growth, (2) aggregate resident quality of life increases non-linearly with a change in development density, (3) some drivers of residential settlement produce non-linear preference responses, and (4) clustering industrial development had a beneficial impact on human well-being. Additional novel contributions include the incorporation of noise pollution feedbacks and an approach to empirically inform agent preferences using a conjoint analysis of social survey data.