Pop Up Play: a digital creative play space

This article discusses the research findings from a year-long investigation funded by a Digital R&D for the Arts grant. The overarching aims of this research project were to understand how arts and cultural organisations can access mixed-reality environments and digital technology for creative play and learning, and how they can enable children and young people to access meaningful digital realm engagement. The article starts by introducing the underlying philosophical and cognitive framework built from embodiment philosophy, gaming theory and digital pedagogy that helped the research team determine what was meant by meaningful engagement in mixed reality. This is woven into an analysis of the four action-research case studies, followed by a discussion on the potential future areas for investigation. The conclusion evaluates how the resultant Pop Up Play product (free software download, supporting materials and bespoke digital creative play framework http://thesparkarts.co.uk/popupplay/) can be considered an environment for communications skill development, innovative thinking and immersive exploration through experiential play.     

Music,dimensions and play: composing for autonomous laptop musicians and improvising humans

Abstract

This article discusses three compositions for autonomous laptops performing with improvising musicians. The laptops were programmed with software environments that make narrow-band ‘decisions’ regarding performative soundscapes. They also made ‘decisions’ about visual materials that were presented as onscreen scores for the human improviser to consider. The unfolding aural and visual streams were both functional and creative, and highlighted the here-and-now of indeterminate composition, whilst carefully embedding the aesthetics of the composer within the core of the programming. As such, these laptops were considered as collaborating performers and collaborating composers. The opening section highlights the connecting principles within this collection of works, before discussing each in isolation. This is placed within the context of late twentieth-century and early twenty-first- century composition, whilst offering a framework, for the reading of these, based on Deleuze and Guattari's rhizome philosophy. Three Last Letters is then used as a case study of the concept of wholeness within the computer-generated soundscapes and the algorithmic programming. Section 3 draws together several theories surrounding the mental seeing evoked by sound into dimensionality: a playground for inventive HCI-music improvisation. The values and principles with which the humans and computers interact is developed using creative play theory, followed by some personal responses of the musicians. Finally, an evaluation is offered on the effect on the audience and their perceptual modes when experiencing live and fluid compositions of this nature. The article is concluded with a poetics of experience from the composer's perspective.     

Sterol content in sunflower seeds (Helianthus annuus L.) as affected by genotypes and environmental conditions

Phytosterols play essential roles in many plant cell mechanisms. They are of industrial interest since, as part of the diet, they can reduce low density lipoprotein cholesterol. An increase in plant sterol contents, by improved crop varieties or crop management, could help to answer industrial demands and also to develop environmentally friendly extraction methods. The aim of this study was to evaluate genotypic variability of sterol content in cultivated sunflower and, in particular, effects of sowing date. Results showed large variability among a collection of sixteen sunflower inbred lines and hybrids. Total sterols varied almost twofold between extreme genotypes. A delay of sowing, giving higher temperatures during seed formation, induced a general increase in total sterol concentration by up to 35%, as well as variation in sterol composition according to genotype. These results are considered with an aim of improving sterol content by sunflower breeding programmes.     

桉木浆轻ECF漂白

VCP是巴西的一家公司,生产各种桉木商品浆和纸产品。VCP采用轻ECF漂白技术,采用较低ClO2用量、氧化合物（H2O2、O2和O3）、苛性钠和热酸的最佳组合进行漂白。热酸段和O3段组合是生产超轻ECF漂白浆的关键。采用含元素氯的漂白程序O（CD）EopD生产的漂白浆,其有机氯化物（OCl）含量为300g／t（风干浆）。按规定,标准ECF漂白浆中OCl的含量是200g／t。VCP在其Jacarei工厂有B和C2条生产线。C生产线采用Oa（Ze）DP漂白程序生产轻ECF漂白浆,其OCl含量为80g／t。B生产线采用OAZDP漂白程序生产超轻ECF漂白浆,其OCl含量低于30g／t。VCP的2条漂白浆生产线废水量大约为8m63／t。ECF、轻ECF和超轻ECF漂白浆机械强度之间没有明显的差异。