Expert knowledge acquisition and the unwilling expert: a knowledge engineering perspective

Expert systems are an evolving technology with the potential to make human expertise widely and cheaply available. The literature describing the development of expert systems generally assumes that experts willingly give up their knowledge. This is unrealistic and may be a reason why most expert system projects fail. This paper explores the problem of unwilling experts from the perspective of a knowledge engineer building an expert system. The link between knowledge and organizational power is established and human motivation theories are discussed. Finally, a new motivational approach is introduced to help the knowledge engineer deal with unwilling experts.     

Changes in structural aspects of mood during 39–66 h of sleep loss using matched controls

A number of studies have described mood change during sleep loss in the laboratory, however, an understanding of fluctuations in structural aspects of mood under such conditions is lacking. Sixty-two healthy young adults completed one of three possible conditions: one (n = 20) or two (n = 23) nights of sleep loss or the control condition which consisted of one (n = 9) or two (n = 10) nights of 9 h time in bed. The Mood Scale II was completed every two waking hours and data were analysed in terms of the frequency and intensity of mood reports. Overall, sleep loss conditions were associated with significantly less frequent happiness and activation and more frequent fatigue reports (p < 0.001). Intensity was also significantly reduced for activation and happiness, and increased for depression, anger and fatigue (p < 0.05). Interestingly, there were no significant differences in anger following two nights in the laboratory with or without sleep. Further, two nights in the lab with normal sleep was associated with significant increases in depression intensity (p < 0.05). Findings support the hypothesis of a mood regulatory function of sleep and highlight the relative independence of frequency and intensity and of positive and negative mood dimensions. Findings also suggest that the laboratory environment, in the absence of sleep loss, may have a significant negative impact on mood.     

SME与CRM一切就绪只欠东风

SME市场对那些能够带来些有用东西的新进者们开了大门.在对中小型企业(SME)的调研中我们试图预测他们的期望是什么?以及他们对目前的产品是否满意.我们在门户网站www.crm4sme.com的会员中进行了投票,有近2500位中小企业的经理/职员参与.其中约10%(228人)的人作出了响应.     

When design just isn’t enough: the unanticipated challenges of the real world for large collaborative displays

Large interactive displays for supporting workgroup collaboration comprise a growing area of ubiquitous computing research and many such systems have been designed and deployed in laboratory studies and research settings. Such displays face difficulties in real-world deployments, as they are often supplemental technologies as opposed to primary tools for work activities. In this work, we investigate the integration and uptake of the NASA MERBoards, shared interactive displays that were deployed to support science tasks in the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) missions. We examine the hurdles to adoption imposed specifically by the real-world circumstances of the deployment that were external to the design of the system, and explain how these concerns apply to the general deployment of shared ubicomp technologies in the real world.     

The role of the fixation location in inhibition of return.

In examining the role of the fixation location in inhibition of return (IOR), 3 experiments were conducted in which an exogenous cue was used to reorient attention following a peripheral cue and before the appearance of a target. However, this cue occurred at either the traditional central fixation location or a nonfixated location. In Exp 1, 10 undergraduates' eye positions were monitored at the 3 different times during the trial (after the onset of the cue at 1 of the target locations; after the onset of the 2nd cue; after the onset of the target). In Exp 2, 16 undergraduates repeated the same procedures as in Exp 1 except that an additional cue was added. In Exp 3, 8 undergraduates repeated the same procedures as in Exp 1 except the placement of the fixation, peripheral, and target locations was altered. The results indicate that reorienting attention to a fixated location results in a significant reduction in the inhibitory effect. The results from the study suggest that IOR could serve as a mechanism that improves the efficiency of visual searches. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparisons of tibial accelerations when walking on a wood composite vs. a concrete mezzanine surface

Mezzanine surfaces can be made from concrete, bar grate, or composite materials. Anecdotal data indicate that mezzanines in distribution centers made from composite materials, due to their increased compliance, may be a more comfortable working surface. Prior research suggested that a measure of tibial shock, peak tibial acceleration, could potentially discriminate the biomechanical differences between these surfaces. The objective of this study was to quantify differences in tibial accelerations as 27 people walked on mezzanines constructed from concrete and a wood composite material. Accelerometers were attached bilaterally to the shins of volunteers, and data were collected as they walked 30.5 m on each surface at their normal walking speed, a faster-than-normal walking speed, and a slower-than-normal walking speed. Peak acceleration values obtained from the leg with the highest values were compared. On average, the peak acceleration values were 5% higher on the concrete mezzanine as compared with the wood composite mezzanine (p = .036). These findings suggest that individuals working on mezzanines in distribution centers constructed from composite surfaces would potentially experience less discomfort associated with long exposure periods on these surfaces.     

The European Union general data protection regulation: what it is and what it means*

This paper introduces the strategic approach to regulating personal data and the normative foundations of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (‘GDPR’). We explain the genesis of the GDPR, which is best understood as an extension and refinement of existing requirements imposed by the 1995 Data Protection Directive; describe the GDPR’s approach and provisions; and make predictions about the GDPR’s implications. We also highlight where the GDPR takes a different approach than U.S. privacy law. The GDPR is the most consequential regulatory development in information policy in a generation. The GDPR brings personal data into a detailed regulatory regime, that will influence personal data usage worldwide. Understood properly, the GDPR encourages firms to develop information governance frameworks, to in-house data use, and to keep humans in the loop in decision making. Companies with direct relationships with consumers have strategic advantages under the GDPR, compared to third party advertising firms on the internet. To reach these objectives, the GDPR uses big sticks, structural elements that make proving violations easier, but only a few carrots. The GDPR will complicate and restrain some information-intensive business models. But the GDPR will also enable approaches previously impossible under less-protective approaches.     

Evaluation of haptic guidance virtual fixtures and 3D visualization methods in telemanipulation—a user study

Intelligent Service Robotics - This work presents a user-study evaluation of various visual and haptic feedback modes on a real telemanipulation platform. Of particular interest is the potential...     

麒麟开山 非同凡响——《成吉思汗》封测心得

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