Capturing “cool”: Measures for assessing coolness of technological products

These days, when we float an idea for an interface or demo a prototype, the compliment that we crave for is “This is Cool!” Coolness has become a major design goal for HCI professionals. If we are serious about building Cool into our products, we should also be serious about measuring it. With this in mind, we performed a scientific explication of the concept in order to capture the psychological essence of “coolness,” covering a number of characteristics such as trendiness, uniqueness, rebelliousness, genuineness and utility. Based on the discourse in the literature, we arrived at a series of questionnaire measures, which we subjected to an exploratory factor analysis in Study 1 (N=315). The factor structure that emerged was tested through a confirmatory factor analysis in Study 2 (N=835), in which American and Korean respondents rated their perceptions of a variety of old and new technologies. Converging evidence suggests that in order for an interface to be rated as cool, it should not only be attractive and original, but also help the user assert his/her uniqueness or subcultural identity. Study 3 (N=317) tested the content validity of our factors by comparing them with a holistic evaluation of coolness and arrived at a parsimonious three-factor solution for conceptualizing it in terms of originality, attractiveness and subcultural appeal. Together, these constitute tangible user criteria that designers can strategically address and researchers can systematically measure.     

浅谈病险水库出险加固工程建设期的环保措施方案

环保措施方案是病险水库出险加固工程建设期的一项重要工作内容,面对日趋严峻的环境问题,有必要把环保措施放在更加突出的位置。本文分析了建设期施工现场环境影响的主要因子,并提出了具体的环保措施方案。     

环境条件下Ni3Al类型金属间化合物的疲劳行为

综述近年来Ni_3Al类型金属间化合物疲劳行为的研究进展，着重讨论了温度和介质对材料疲劳性能的影响。氢和水蒸汽的存在促进了裂纹的扩展；试验温度的升高使Ni_3Al类型合金的疲劳裂纹扩展速率增大。     

Modeling of tool wear in drilling by statistical analysis and artificial neural network

The useful life of a cutting tool and its operating conditions largely control the economics of the machining operations. Hence, it is imperative that the condition of the cutting tool, particularly some indication as to when it requires changing, to be monitored. The drilling operation is frequently used as a preliminary step for many operations like boring, reaming and tapping, however, the operation itself is complex and demanding.

Back propagation neural networks were used for detection of drill wear. The neural network consisted of three layers input, hidden and output. Drill size, feed, spindle speed, torque, machining time and thrust force are given as inputs to the ANN and the flank wear was estimated. Drilling experiments with 8 mm drill size were performed by changing the cutting speed and feed at two different levels. The number of neurons in the hidden layer were selected from 1, 2, 3, …, 20. The learning rate was selected as 0.01 and no smoothing factor was used. The estimated values of tool wear were obtained by statistical analysis and by various neural network structures. Comparative analysis has been done between statistical analysis, neural network structures and the actual values of tool wear obtained by experimentation.     

Developing and Verifying a Questionnaire for Evaluating User Value of a Mobile Device

User experience has become a major issue lately with user value as one of its key elements. This study proposes a method to evaluate user value using a questionnaire specialized for a mobile device such as smartphones. The questionnaire was developed considering elements of user value, product features, and context of use. Then, a case study with hundreds of participants was conducted via the Internet to verify and screen out questionnaire items in terms of reliability and validity. Finally, a total of 16 questionnaire items were selected for evaluating elements of user value, consisting of self‐satisfaction, pleasure, sociability, customer need, and attachment. The results of this study are expected to help understand potential users and select design alternatives.     

面向污水处理过程因子分析故障诊断方法的研究

污水生化处理过程是一个典型的多变量、非线性、具有强外部干扰的复杂工业过程,基于主元分析(PCA)的方法在污水处理过程的故障诊断中已经得到了广泛的应用和发展.但是,主元分析存在着噪声和不确定信息描述能力不足的问题.针对污水过程的特点提出了因子分析(FA)故障诊断方法,同时拓展了因子分析监控指标以及解决了故障辨识贡献图的控制问题,为污水处理过程的有效监控提供了可行性.所提出方法在国际水协会BSM1模型上得到了有效的验证,与PCA的对比研究表明FA提供了更低的故障误报警率和更完整的不确定信息描述能力.     

单周期控制的高功率因数整流器

为了实现高功率因数的整流,对三相电压型PWM（Pulse width Modulate）整流器的拓扑结构和控制方法进行了研究,以其为研究对象,重点在于对三相电压型PWM整流器单周期控制方式的研究。首先建立了三相PWM整流器的数学模型,根据单周期控制特点,设计了控制系统电路框图。然后基于MATLAB/SIMULINK软件平台,建立了基于单周期控制的三相电压型PWM整流器的仿真模型,进行系统验证。最后以DSP为核心设计系统的控制电路和检测电路。编写相应的DSP实现程序,并在DSP开发系统上进行调试。仿真和实验结果都表明单周期控制是一种有效的控制方法,实现了功率因数基本为1的目的。     

全数字测量系统DAT/EM在数据采集中的应用

简要介绍了DAT/EM系统的主要部件和功能,结合HK09-0042-ST Lucia项目对DAT/EM系统内业作业的步骤流程进行了分析和归纳,并对DAT/EM系统与其他系统对比研究,由此总结了DAT/EM系统的性能优点。     

X射线衍射仪3kW高频高压电源设计

提出了一种适用于X射线衍射仪的高频高压电源的设计方法。该电源系统采用高频技术,克服了传统工频电源设备笨重、体积大、效率低等缺陷;采用脉宽调制技术(PWM)对系统进行控制和保护,使信号稳定;采用功率因数校正(PFC)技术使系统的功率因数达到了0.9。     

Typology of teacher perception toward distance education issues – A study of college information department teachers in Taiwan

The popularity of distance education has grown rapidly over the last decade in Taiwan’s higher education, yet many fundamental teaching–learning issues are still in debate. While teacher–student interaction is a key success factor in distance education, little work has been done on the teachers. The intent of this research was to clarify teacher’s perceptions on key distance education issues and to develop a discernible typology of different groups of teachers based on their perceptions. Because there may be a gulf between teachers and the technology used in distance education, the target of this study was teachers in information related departments in Taiwan’s colleges, who were more familiar with current technology. Factor analysis and cluster analysis were used to derive the typology. Five higher-level issue constructs emerged from the factor analysis: learning effect, customization, administrative challenges, geographic and resource integration, and instructional design challenges. Four groups of teachers, namely the skeptics, the optimists, the mild-promising group, and the outlier, were identified using cluster analysis of teachers’ perceptions on these five higher-level issue constructs. The profiles of the four groups of teachers were summarized and implications were discussed, which should provide useful insights to the policy makers of higher education on distance education decisions.