新一代音视频编码标准MPEG-4

本文介绍了多媒体通信音视频编码新标准ＭＰＥＧ－４,重点介绍了其两大特点：对音视频对象的编码及基于内容的交互。同时介绍了ＭＰＥＧ－４的组成及功能。     

“研究型教学模式”在建筑历史理论教学中的运用

本文从对高等教育中"研究型教学模式"内涵和系统实现的阐述出发,对重庆大学建筑学专业建筑历史理论教学中推进的研究型教学模式改革进行了总结,提出进行课程教学体系的结构性调整,建成"基础类、主干类和拓展类"系列课程;并且密切配合设计主干课程教学阶段目标,建立历史理论课程群和各年级设计教学的配合协调机制;通过教学内容的整体优化,以实习和实践课程体系、设计课程体系(辅助)和理论课程体系形成完整但各自相对独立的三条纵向线索支撑整个历史理论课程研究型教学体系,并积极探索"问题教学法和启发式教学法"在理论课程中的运用,以改善过去单一的授课方式。     

2010年上海世博会 瑞士馆

人们可以把上海世博会瑞士馆理解成一个可持续发展的实验室,其建筑本身就是技术与艺术的完美结合,体现了城市与乡村间的平衡与互动.     

Field experiments on energy consumption and thermal comfort in the office environment controlled by occupants’ requirements from PC terminal

The thermal environment in an office is not always optimal from the viewpoint of energy-conservation and occupants’ comfort. The main reason is that air-conditioning systems are controlled without taking the occupants’ needs into account. In this study, we would like to propose a new system to control air-conditioning systems, lighting systems, etc. via occupants’ requests. This system collects occupants’ requests from their own personal computers and controls the air-conditioning system with logic that balances the needs of occupants and energy consumption. The control logic is referred to as “Logic for Building a Consensus” and can be adjusted according to operating strategies such as energy-saving or occupants’ satisfaction with their environment. Moreover, the variety of feedback motivates occupants to cooperate with energy-saving efforts.

An interactive system to use occupants’ requests for controlling the air-conditioning system and providing a variety of feedback was developed. A series of cooling experiments were conducted in an open-plan office where about 50 people worked. The results show that this interactive system could save 20% more energy compared with controlling an air-conditioning system at a constant 26 °C.     

Broadening the understanding of social presence: Implications and contributions to the mediated communication and online education

Social presence is a concept found to facilitate effective learning experiences in online education. However, there is limited understanding of the theoretical notion in the literature. In an attempt to broaden the understanding of social presence, the current investigation examined two issues: a) distinction between social presence and interactivity, and b) multidimensional nature of social presence and its predictive validity for online learning experiences. Data were collected from 210 undergraduate students using an online survey. Findings indicate that social presence and interactivity are related but distinct constructs. Both psychological involvement and co-presence appear to be under the concept of social presence. The data indicate strong predictive validity of social presence for online learning experiences when it is measured with both dimensions of psychological involvement and co-presence.     

Promote physical activity among college students: Using media richness and interactivity in web design

Recently with widely available access, the web has emerged as a medium for new interventions. However, as yet, little is known about what makes some websites more effective than others. This study investigated an approach to developing websites that utilized two media characteristics – media richness and interactivity – to promote physical activity among college students. Four forms of websites were developed and tested in a 2 × 2 between-subject experiment (high vs. low richness; high vs. low interactivity) that was conducted among 205 participants. Overall, media richness had a significant main effect on college students’ intention to visit the fitness center while interactivity influenced the likelihood they would recommend it. Although media richness did not have a significant main effect on recommendation, a significant interaction effect was observed that rich media led to higher recommendation intention when interactivity level was low. In addition, knowledge, attitude and trustworthiness of the fitness center mediated the effects of media richness and interactivity on behavioral intentions. These findings support the efficacy of utilizing these media characteristics to design web-based health interventions promoting college students’ physical activity.     

Practical computing with interactive fuzzy variables

The importance of epistemic uncertainty in engineering is being recognized more and more. In this work, epistemic uncertainty is captured through the use of fuzzy variables, i.e. variables that are described in terms of possibility distributions. Taking into account epistemic uncertainty implies that one should also be able to propagate such uncertainty through increasingly complex models. In earlier work, we have developed a general tool, called Fuzzy Calculator, to propagate epistemic uncertainty regarding non-interactive fuzzy input variables. In reality, however, the fuzzy input variables of a model are often interactive. Taking into account this interactivity reduces the uncertainty on the fuzzy output variable and should therefore always be aimed for. However, the full determination of the joint possibility distribution of the fuzzy input variables is not an easy task. In literature, it is often claimed that triangular norms can be used to model interactivity between fuzzy variables. Making use of a generalization of Nguyen's alpha-cut approach, we have developed a general-purpose Fuzzy Calculator that is able to take into account interactivity modelled by a triangular norm. However, the absence of a general strategy to select an appropriate triangular norm often results in the use of other strategies to model interactivity in practice. Therefore, we have also applied our Fuzzy Calculator to a case study where the interactivity between the fuzzy input variables is identified through possibilistic clustering. The results illustrate that this Fuzzy Calculator is an efficient tool to propagate epistemic uncertainty regarding non-interactive as well as interactive fuzzy input variables.     

A politics for interactivity: Progressivism and its limits in federal congressional deliberations of distance education policy

This article analyzes federal congressional discourse on distance education policy, describing progressive reformers’ use of the term, interactivity. Isolating congressional records of deliberations that treat interactivity, rhetorical analysis first traces progressive legislators’ and educators’ attempts to use the term to eliminate a restriction on financial aid funding for distance education students. Next, critical analysis describes how legislators and educators have advanced interactivity as a simple educational good. Contrasting legislators’ and educators’ views on interactivity with perspectives drawn from emerging computers and composition research, this article discusses what the field has to contribute to public deliberation of this issue. A conclusion notes opportunities for researchers’ participation in progressive reform efforts.     

An interactive software tool for system identification

The paper describes the conceptual basis, main features and functionality of an interactive software tool developed in support of system identification education and discovery. This Interactive Tool for System Identification Education (ITSIE) has been developed using Sysquake, a Matlab-like language with fast execution and excellent facilities for interactive graphics, and is deliverd as a stand-alone executable that is readily accessible to students and engineers. ITSIE provides two distinct functional modes that are very useful from an educational and industrial point of view. The simulation mode enables the user to evaluate the main stages of system identification, from input signal design through model validation, simultaneously and interactively in one screen on a user-specified dynamical system. The real data mode allows the user to load experimental data obtained externally and identify suitable models in an interactive fashion. The interactive tool enables students and engineers in industry to discover a myriad of fundamental system identification concepts with a much lower learning curve than existing methods.     

The effects of interactive brand placements in online games on children’s cognitive,affective, and conative brand responses

This study investigated how persuasive messages integrated in an online game affects children’s cognitive, affective, and conative responses to the brand, as well as their attitude toward the game itself. An experiment conducted among 2453 girls between the ages of 11 and 17 demonstrated that confrontation with interactive brand placement in the game resulted in more positive attitudes toward the game, higher top of mind awareness of the brand, more positive brand images, and more favorable behavioral intentions. In addition, consistent with persuasion literature and theories on child development, this study showed that there was a three-way interaction effect between exposure to the brand placement, age, and prior brand use for behavioral intentions. The youngest girls who had no prior experience with the brand were more strongly influenced by the brand placement than the oldest girls who had no prior brand experience.