The Cognitive, Perceptual, and Neural Bases of Skilled Performance

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-02-01

technical report 3/15/90-3/14/93 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE S. FUNDING NUMBERS The Cognitive , Perceptual, and Neural Bases AFOSR 90-0175 of Skilled... COGNITIVE , PERCEPTUAL, AND NEURAL BASES OF SKILLED PERFORMANCE March 15, 1990-March 14, 1993 Principal Investigator: Stephen Grossberg Wang Professor of... Cognitive and Neural Systems Professor of Mathematics, Psychology, and Biomedical Engineering Director, Center for Adaptive Systems Chairman, Department

Decision Support System Requirements Definition for Human Extravehicular Activity Based on Cognitive Work Analysis

PubMed Central

Miller, Matthew James; McGuire, Kerry M.; Feigh, Karen M.

2016-01-01

The design and adoption of decision support systems within complex work domains is a challenge for cognitive systems engineering (CSE) practitioners, particularly at the onset of project development. This article presents an example of applying CSE techniques to derive design requirements compatible with traditional systems engineering to guide decision support system development. Specifically, it demonstrates the requirements derivation process based on cognitive work analysis for a subset of human spaceflight operations known as extravehicular activity. The results are presented in two phases. First, a work domain analysis revealed a comprehensive set of work functions and constraints that exist in the extravehicular activity work domain. Second, a control task analysis was performed on a subset of the work functions identified by the work domain analysis to articulate the translation of subject matter states of knowledge to high-level decision support system requirements. This work emphasizes an incremental requirements specification process as a critical component of CSE analyses to better situate CSE perspectives within the early phases of traditional systems engineering design. PMID:28491008

Decision Support System Requirements Definition for Human Extravehicular Activity Based on Cognitive Work Analysis.

PubMed

Miller, Matthew James; McGuire, Kerry M; Feigh, Karen M

2017-06-01

The design and adoption of decision support systems within complex work domains is a challenge for cognitive systems engineering (CSE) practitioners, particularly at the onset of project development. This article presents an example of applying CSE techniques to derive design requirements compatible with traditional systems engineering to guide decision support system development. Specifically, it demonstrates the requirements derivation process based on cognitive work analysis for a subset of human spaceflight operations known as extravehicular activity . The results are presented in two phases. First, a work domain analysis revealed a comprehensive set of work functions and constraints that exist in the extravehicular activity work domain. Second, a control task analysis was performed on a subset of the work functions identified by the work domain analysis to articulate the translation of subject matter states of knowledge to high-level decision support system requirements. This work emphasizes an incremental requirements specification process as a critical component of CSE analyses to better situate CSE perspectives within the early phases of traditional systems engineering design.

A Modular Artificial Intelligence Inference Engine System (MAIS) for support of on orbit experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hancock, Thomas M., III

1994-01-01

This paper describes a Modular Artificial Intelligence Inference Engine System (MAIS) support tool that would provide health and status monitoring, cognitive replanning, analysis and support of on-orbit Space Station, Spacelab experiments and systems.

Engineering Design Thinking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lammi, Matthew; Becker, Kurt

2013-01-01

Engineering design thinking is "a complex cognitive process" including divergence-convergence, a systems perspective, ambiguity, and collaboration (Dym, Agogino, Eris, Frey, & Leifer, 2005, p. 104). Design is often complex, involving multiple levels of interacting components within a system that may be nested within or connected to other systems.…

Emerging Neuromorphic Computing Architectures & Enabling Hardware for Cognitive Information Processing Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-06-01

DATES COVEREDAPR 2009 – JAN 2010 (From - To) APR 2009 – JAN 2010 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE EMERGING NEUROMORPHIC COMPUTING ARCHITECTURES AND ENABLING...14. ABSTRACT The highly cross-disciplinary emerging field of neuromorphic computing architectures for cognitive information processing applications...belief systems, software, computer engineering, etc. In our effort to develop cognitive systems atop a neuromorphic computing architecture, we explored

Understanding and Managing Causality of Change in Socio-Technical Systems II

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-01-25

SUBJECT TERMS Cognition , Human Effectiveness, Information Science 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT Same as Report (SAR) 18...at large taking into account the cognitive interaction between humans and technology. 8 Hussein Abbass Professor Abbass leads the...Network Centric Operations Future Air Traffic Management Systems Cognitive Engineering including Human-Computer Integration In all of the

Utilization of a Multi-Disciplinary Approach to Building Effective Command Centers: Process and Products

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-06-01

cognitive task analysis , organizational information dissemination and interaction, systems engineering, collaboration and communications processes, decision-making processes, and data collection and organization. By blending these diverse disciplines command centers can be designed to support decision-making, cognitive analysis, information technology, and the human factors engineering aspects of Command and Control (C2). This model can then be used as a baseline when dealing with work in areas of business processes, workflow engineering, information management,

Cognitive Approaches to Automated Instruction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Regian, J. Wesley, Ed.; Shute, Valerie J., Ed.

This book contains a snapshot of state-of-the-art research on the design of automated instructional systems. Selected cognitive psychologists were asked to describe their approach to instruction and cognitive diagnosis, the theoretical basis of the approach, its utility and applicability, and the knowledge engineering or task analysis methods…

The AGINAO Self-Programming Engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skaba, Wojciech

2013-01-01

The AGINAO is a project to create a human-level artificial general intelligence system (HL AGI) embodied in the Aldebaran Robotics' NAO humanoid robot. The dynamical and open-ended cognitive engine of the robot is represented by an embedded and multi-threaded control program, that is self-crafted rather than hand-crafted, and is executed on a simulated Universal Turing Machine (UTM). The actual structure of the cognitive engine emerges as a result of placing the robot in a natural preschool-like environment and running a core start-up system that executes self-programming of the cognitive layer on top of the core layer. The data from the robot's sensory devices supplies the training samples for the machine learning methods, while the commands sent to actuators enable testing hypotheses and getting a feedback. The individual self-created subroutines are supposed to reflect the patterns and concepts of the real world, while the overall program structure reflects the spatial and temporal hierarchy of the world dependencies. This paper focuses on the details of the self-programming approach, limiting the discussion of the applied cognitive architecture to a necessary minimum.

Incorporating Learning Theory into Existing Systems Engineering Models

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-09-01

3. Social  Cognition 22 Table 1. Classification of learning theories Behaviorism Cognitivism Constructivism Connectivism...Introdution to design of large scale systems. New York: Mcgraw-Hill. Grusec. J. (1992). Social learning theory and development psychology: The... LEARNING THEORY INTO EXISTING SYSTEMS ENGINEERING MODELS by Valentine Leo September 2013 Thesis Advisor: Gary O. Langford Co-Advisor

A network engineering perspective on probing and perturbing cognition with neurofeedback

PubMed Central

Khambhati, Ankit N.

2017-01-01

Network science and engineering provide a flexible and generalizable tool set to describe and manipulate complex systems characterized by heterogeneous interaction patterns among component parts. While classically applied to social systems, these tools have recently proven to be particularly useful in the study of the brain. In this review, we describe the nascent use of these tools to understand human cognition, and we discuss their utility in informing the meaningful and predictable perturbation of cognition in combination with the emerging capabilities of neurofeedback. To blend these disparate strands of research, we build on emerging conceptualizations of how the brain functions (as a complex network) and how we can develop and target interventions or modulations (as a form of network control). We close with an outline of current frontiers that bridge neurofeedback, connectomics, and network control theory to better understand human cognition. PMID:28445589

Assisting Students' Cognitive Strategies with the Use of CAS

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sarvari, Csaba; Lavicza, Zsolt; Klincsik, Mihaly

2010-01-01

This paper examines various cognitive strategies applied while CAS (Computer Algebra System) are used in undergraduate-level engineering mathematics teaching and learning. We posed some questions in relation to such CAS use: What kind of tools can CAS offer to enhance different cognitive strategies of students? How can the use of CAS widen the…

Building Cognition: The Construction of Computational Representations for Scientific Discovery.

PubMed

Chandrasekharan, Sanjay; Nersessian, Nancy J

2015-11-01

Novel computational representations, such as simulation models of complex systems and video games for scientific discovery (Foldit, EteRNA etc.), are dramatically changing the way discoveries emerge in science and engineering. The cognitive roles played by such computational representations in discovery are not well understood. We present a theoretical analysis of the cognitive roles such representations play, based on an ethnographic study of the building of computational models in a systems biology laboratory. Specifically, we focus on a case of model-building by an engineer that led to a remarkable discovery in basic bioscience. Accounting for such discoveries requires a distributed cognition (DC) analysis, as DC focuses on the roles played by external representations in cognitive processes. However, DC analyses by and large have not examined scientific discovery, and they mostly focus on memory offloading, particularly how the use of existing external representations changes the nature of cognitive tasks. In contrast, we study discovery processes and argue that discoveries emerge from the processes of building the computational representation. The building process integrates manipulations in imagination and in the representation, creating a coupled cognitive system of model and modeler, where the model is incorporated into the modeler's imagination. This account extends DC significantly, and we present some of the theoretical and application implications of this extended account. Copyright © 2014 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

What to Do Until the Money Runs Out: A Refinement Framework for Cognitive Engineering in the Real World

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shafto, Michael G.; Remington, Roger W.; Trimble, Jay W.

1994-01-01

A case study is presented to illustrate some of the problems of applying cognitive science to complex human-machine systems. Disregard for facts about human cognition often undermines the safety, reliability, and cost-effectiveness of complex systems. Yet single-point methods (for example, better user-interface design), whether rooted in computer science or in experimental psychology, fall far short of addressing systems-level problems in a timely way using realistic resources. A model-based methodology is proposed for organizing and prioritizing the cognitive engineering effort, focusing appropriate expertise on major problems first, then moving to more sophisticated refinements if time and resources permit. This case study is based on a collaborative effort between the Human Factors Division at NASA-Ames and the Spaceborne Imaging Radar SIR-C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SIR-C/X-SAR) Project at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California institute of Technology. The first SIR-C/X-SAR Shuttle mission flew successfully in April, 1994. A series of such missions is planned to provide radar data to study Earth's ecosystems, climatic and geological processes, hydrologic cycle, and ocean circulation. In addition to JPL and NASA personnel, the SIR-C/X-SAR operations team included Scientists and engineers from the German and Italian space agencies.

Technology as Teammate: Examining the Role of External Cognition in Support of Team Cognitive Processes

PubMed Central

Fiore, Stephen M.; Wiltshire, Travis J.

2016-01-01

In this paper we advance team theory by describing how cognition occurs across the distribution of members and the artifacts and technology that support their efforts. We draw from complementary theorizing coming out of cognitive engineering and cognitive science that views forms of cognition as external and extended and integrate this with theorizing on macrocognition in teams. Two frameworks are described that provide the groundwork for advancing theory and aid in the development of more precise measures for understanding team cognition via focus on artifacts and the technologies supporting their development and use. This includes distinctions between teamwork and taskwork and the notion of general and specific competencies from the organizational sciences along with the concepts of offloading and scaffolding from the cognitive sciences. This paper contributes to the team cognition literature along multiple lines. First, it aids theory development by synthesizing a broad set of perspectives on the varied forms of cognition emerging in complex collaborative contexts. Second, it supports research by providing diagnostic guidelines to study how artifacts are related to team cognition. Finally, it supports information systems designers by more precisely describing how to conceptualize team-supporting technology and artifacts. As such, it provides a means to more richly understand process and performance as it occurs within sociotechnical systems. Our overarching objective is to show how team cognition can both be more clearly conceptualized and more precisely measured by integrating theory from cognitive engineering and the cognitive and organizational sciences. PMID:27774074

Technology as Teammate: Examining the Role of External Cognition in Support of Team Cognitive Processes.

PubMed

Fiore, Stephen M; Wiltshire, Travis J

2016-01-01

In this paper we advance team theory by describing how cognition occurs across the distribution of members and the artifacts and technology that support their efforts. We draw from complementary theorizing coming out of cognitive engineering and cognitive science that views forms of cognition as external and extended and integrate this with theorizing on macrocognition in teams. Two frameworks are described that provide the groundwork for advancing theory and aid in the development of more precise measures for understanding team cognition via focus on artifacts and the technologies supporting their development and use. This includes distinctions between teamwork and taskwork and the notion of general and specific competencies from the organizational sciences along with the concepts of offloading and scaffolding from the cognitive sciences. This paper contributes to the team cognition literature along multiple lines. First, it aids theory development by synthesizing a broad set of perspectives on the varied forms of cognition emerging in complex collaborative contexts. Second, it supports research by providing diagnostic guidelines to study how artifacts are related to team cognition. Finally, it supports information systems designers by more precisely describing how to conceptualize team-supporting technology and artifacts. As such, it provides a means to more richly understand process and performance as it occurs within sociotechnical systems. Our overarching objective is to show how team cognition can both be more clearly conceptualized and more precisely measured by integrating theory from cognitive engineering and the cognitive and organizational sciences.

Introduction to System Health Engineering and Management in Aerospace

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Stephen B.

2005-01-01

This paper provides a technical overview of Integrated System Health Engineering and Management (ISHEM). We define ISHEM as "the paper provides a techniques, and technologies used to design, analyze, build, verify, and operate a system to prevent faults and/or minimize their effects." This includes design and manufacturing techniques as well operational and managerial methods. ISHEM is not a "purely technical issue" as it also involves and must account for organizational, communicative, and cognitive f&ms of humans as social beings and as individuals. Thus the paper will discuss in more detail why all of these elements, h m the technical to the cognitive and social, are necessary to build dependable human-machine systems. The paper outlines a functional homework and architecture for ISHEM operations, describes the processes needed to implement ISHEM in the system life-cycle, and provides a theoretical framework to understand the relationship between the different aspects of the discipline. It then derives from these and the social and cognitive bases a set of design and operational principles for ISHEM.

Supporting productive thinking: The semiotic context for Cognitive Systems Engineering (CSE).

PubMed

Flach, John

2017-03-01

The central thesis of this paper is that Rasmussen framed his approach to Cognitive Systems Engineering from the perspective of a Triadic Semiotic Model. This frame became the context for integrating multiple intellectual threads including Control Theory, Information Theory, Ecological Psychology, and Gestalt Psychology into a coherent theoretical framework. The case is made that the triadic semiotic framework is essential for a complete appreciation of the constructs that were central to Rasmussen's approach: Abstraction Hierarchy, Skill-Rules-Knowledge Model, Ecological Interface Design, and Proactive Risk Management. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Developing a framework for qualitative engineering: Research in design and analysis of complex structural systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Franck, Bruno M.

1990-01-01

The research is focused on automating the evaluation of complex structural systems, whether for the design of a new system or the analysis of an existing one, by developing new structural analysis techniques based on qualitative reasoning. The problem is to identify and better understand: (1) the requirements for the automation of design, and (2) the qualitative reasoning associated with the conceptual development of a complex system. The long-term objective is to develop an integrated design-risk assessment environment for the evaluation of complex structural systems. The scope of this short presentation is to describe the design and cognition components of the research. Design has received special attention in cognitive science because it is now identified as a problem solving activity that is different from other information processing tasks (1). Before an attempt can be made to automate design, a thorough understanding of the underlying design theory and methodology is needed, since the design process is, in many cases, multi-disciplinary, complex in size and motivation, and uses various reasoning processes involving different kinds of knowledge in ways which vary from one context to another. The objective is to unify all the various types of knowledge under one framework of cognition. This presentation focuses on the cognitive science framework that we are using to represent the knowledge aspects associated with the human mind's abstraction abilities and how we apply it to the engineering knowledge and engineering reasoning in design.

Assessment of Innovative Emergency Department Information Displays in a Clinical Simulation Center

PubMed Central

McGeorge, Nicolette; Hegde, Sudeep; Berg, Rebecca L.; Guarrera-Schick, Theresa K.; LaVergne, David T.; Casucci, Sabrina N.; Hettinger, A. Zachary; Clark, Lindsey N.; Lin, Li; Fairbanks, Rollin J.; Benda, Natalie C.; Sun, Longsheng; Wears, Robert L.; Perry, Shawna; Bisantz, Ann

2016-01-01

The objective of this work was to assess the functional utility of new display concepts for an emergency department information system created using cognitive systems engineering methods, by comparing them to similar displays currently in use. The display concepts were compared to standard displays in a clinical simulation study during which nurse-physician teams performed simulated emergency department tasks. Questionnaires were used to assess the cognitive support provided by the displays, participants’ level of situation awareness, and participants’ workload during the simulated tasks. Participants rated the new displays significantly higher than the control displays in terms of cognitive support. There was no significant difference in workload scores between the display conditions. There was no main effect of display type on situation awareness, but there was a significant interaction; participants using the new displays showed improved situation awareness from the middle to the end of the session. This study demonstrates that cognitive systems engineering methods can be used to create innovative displays that better support emergency medicine tasks, without increasing workload, compared to more standard displays. These methods provide a means to develop emergency department information systems—and more broadly, health information technology—that better support the cognitive needs of healthcare providers. PMID:27974881

The re-tooled mind: how culture re-engineers cognition

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

One of the main goals of cognitive science is to discover the underlying principles that characterize human cognition, but this enterprise is complicated by culturally-driven variability. While much fruitful work has focused on how culture influences the contents of cognition, here I argue that culture can in addition exercise a profound effect on the how of cognition—the mechanisms by which cognitive tasks get done. I argue that much of the fundamental processes of daily cognitive activity involve the operation of cognitive tools that are not genetically determined but instead are invented and culturally transmitted. Further, these cognitive inventions become ‘firmware’, consituting a re-engineering of the individual’s cognitive architecture. That is, ontogenetic experience from one’s cultural context serves to re-tool the developing mind into a variety of disparate cognitive phenotypes. Drawing on several mutually isolated literatures, I advance four claims to the effect that cognitive tools (i) are ubitquitous in everyday cognition, (ii) result in reorganization of the neural system, (iii) are founded in embodied representations and (iv) were made possible by the evolution of an unprecedented degree of voluntary control over the body. I conclude by discussing the implications for the agenda of cognitive science. PMID:20068033

Description of inpatient medication management using cognitive work analysis.

PubMed

Pingenot, Alleene Anne; Shanteau, James; Sengstacke, L T C Daniel N

2009-01-01

The purpose of this article was to describe key elements of an inpatient medication system using the cognitive work analysis method of Rasmussen et al (Cognitive Systems Engineering. Wiley Series in Systems Engineering; 1994). The work of nurses and physicians were observed in routine care of inpatients on a medical-surgical unit and attached ICU. Interaction with pharmacists was included. Preoperative, postoperative, and medical care was observed. Personnel were interviewed to obtain information not easily observable during routine work. Communication between healthcare workers was projected onto an abstraction/decomposition hierarchy. Decision ladders and information flow charts were developed. Results suggest that decision making on an inpatient medical/surgical unit or ICU setting is a parallel, distributed process. Personnel are highly mobile and often are working on multiple issues concurrently. In this setting, communication is key to maintaining organization and synchronization for effective care. Implications for research approaches to system and interface designs and decision support for personnel involved in the process are discussed.

Prototype of a Graphical CONOPS (Concept of Operations) Development Environment for Agile Systems Engineering

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-03-23

orthogonal dimensions of cognition : things, places, paths, actions, and causes suggested as key by cognitive linguists. The goal of this research task... stylistic treatment across the system? O O O 1.3 Is a single, selected icon clearly visible when surrounded by unselected icons? O O O 1.4...1.21 Complex tasks: 8-12 seconds O O O 1.22 Are response times appropriate to the user’s cognitive processing? O O O 1.23 Continuity of thinking

Cognitive engineering models: A prerequisite to the design of human-computer interaction in complex dynamic systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, Christine M.

1993-01-01

This chapter examines a class of human-computer interaction applications, specifically the design of human-computer interaction for the operators of complex systems. Such systems include space systems (e.g., manned systems such as the Shuttle or space station, and unmanned systems such as NASA scientific satellites), aviation systems (e.g., the flight deck of 'glass cockpit' airplanes or air traffic control) and industrial systems (e.g., power plants, telephone networks, and sophisticated, e.g., 'lights out,' manufacturing facilities). The main body of human-computer interaction (HCI) research complements but does not directly address the primary issues involved in human-computer interaction design for operators of complex systems. Interfaces to complex systems are somewhat special. The 'user' in such systems - i.e., the human operator responsible for safe and effective system operation - is highly skilled, someone who in human-machine systems engineering is sometimes characterized as 'well trained, well motivated'. The 'job' or task context is paramount and, thus, human-computer interaction is subordinate to human job interaction. The design of human interaction with complex systems, i.e., the design of human job interaction, is sometimes called cognitive engineering.

A network engineering perspective on probing and perturbing cognition with neurofeedback.

PubMed

Bassett, Danielle S; Khambhati, Ankit N

2017-05-01

Network science and engineering provide a flexible and generalizable tool set to describe and manipulate complex systems characterized by heterogeneous interaction patterns among component parts. While classically applied to social systems, these tools have recently proven to be particularly useful in the study of the brain. In this review, we describe the nascent use of these tools to understand human cognition, and we discuss their utility in informing the meaningful and predictable perturbation of cognition in combination with the emerging capabilities of neurofeedback. To blend these disparate strands of research, we build on emerging conceptualizations of how the brain functions (as a complex network) and how we can develop and target interventions or modulations (as a form of network control). We close with an outline of current frontiers that bridge neurofeedback, connectomics, and network control theory to better understand human cognition. © 2017 The Authors. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences published by Wiley Periodicals Inc. on behalf of The New York Academy of Sciences.

Human-Systems Integration (HSI) and the Network Integration Evaluations (NIEs), Part 3: Mitigating Cognitive Load in Network-Enabled Mission Command

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-06-01

ARL-TR-7698 ● JUNE 2016 US Army Research Laboratory Human -Systems Integration (HSI) and the Network Integration Evaluations...ARL-TR-7698 ● JUNE 2016 US Army Research Laboratory Human -Systems Integration (HSI) and the Network Integration Evaluations (NIEs), Part 3...Mitigating Cognitive Load in Network-Enabled Mission Command by John K Hawley Human Research and Engineering Directorate, ARL Michael W

Building Cognition: The Construction of Computational Representations for Scientific Discovery

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chandrasekharan, Sanjay; Nersessian, Nancy J.

2015-01-01

Novel computational representations, such as simulation models of complex systems and video games for scientific discovery (Foldit, EteRNA etc.), are dramatically changing the way discoveries emerge in science and engineering. The cognitive roles played by such computational representations in discovery are not well understood. We present a…

Activating Learning in Engineering Education Using ICT and the Concept of "Flipping the Classroom"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lucke, Terry; Dunn, Peter K.; Christie, Michael

2017-01-01

This case study trialled the introduction of a student-response system (Top Hat) in a third-year engineering Fluid Mechanics course (n = 44) to improve student engagement, motivation and cognition. It was recognised that for the potential benefits of student-response systems (SRSs) to be fully realised, more time must be allocated for student…

Psychological tools for knowledge acquisition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rueter, Henry H.; Olson, Judith Reitman

1988-01-01

Knowledge acquisition is said to be the biggest bottleneck in the development of expert systems. The problem is getting the knowledge out of the expert's head and into a computer. In cognitive psychology, characterizing metal structures and why experts are good at what they do is an important research area. Is there some way that the tools that psychologists have developed to uncover mental structure can be used to benefit knowledge engineers? We think that the way to find out is to browse through the psychologist's toolbox to see what there is in it that might be of use to knowledge engineers. Expert system developers have relied on two standard methods for extracting knowledge from the expert: (1) the knowledge engineer engages in an intense bout of interviews with the expert or experts, or (2) the knowledge engineer becomes an expert himself, relying on introspection to uncover the basis of his own expertise. Unfortunately, these techniques have the difficulty that often the expert himself isn't consciously aware of the basis of his expertise. If the expert himself isn't conscious of how he solves problems, introspection is useless. Cognitive psychology has faced similar problems for many years and has developed exploratory methods that can be used to discover cognitive structure from simple data.

To Strengthen American Cognitive Science for the Twenty-First Century. Report of a Planning Workshop for the Cognitive Science Initiative at the National Science Foundation (Washington, D.C., April 20-21, 1991).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Science Foundation, Washington, DC.

Cognitive science, the study of both biological and artificial intelligent systems, is an inherently interdisciplinary activity that embraces aspects of psychology, linguistics, artificial intelligence, neuroscience, engineering, and other behavioral and social sciences. This document reports the results of a workshop designed to provide advice to…

NASA Systems Engineering Research Consortium: Defining the Path to Elegance in Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Watson, Michael D.; Farrington, Phillip A.

2016-01-01

The NASA Systems Engineering Research Consortium was formed at the end of 2010 to study the approaches to producing elegant systems on a consistent basis. This has been a transformative study looking at the engineering and organizational basis of systems engineering. The consortium has engaged in a variety of research topics to determine the path to elegant systems. In the second year of the consortium, a systems engineering framework emerged which structured the approach to systems engineering and guided our research. This led in the third year to set of systems engineering postulates that the consortium is continuing to refine. The consortium has conducted several research projects that have contributed significantly to the understanding of systems engineering. The consortium has surveyed the application of the NASA 17 systems engineering processes, explored the physics and statistics of systems integration, and considered organizational aspects of systems engineering discipline integration. The systems integration methods have included system exergy analysis, Akaike Information Criteria (AIC), State Variable Analysis, Multidisciplinary Coupling Analysis (MCA), Multidisciplinary Design Optimization (MDO), System Cost Modelling, System Robustness, and Value Modelling. Organizational studies have included the variability of processes in change evaluations, margin management within the organization, information theory of board structures, social categorization of unintended consequences, and initial looks at applying cognitive science to systems engineering. Consortium members have also studied the bidirectional influence of policy and law with systems engineering.

NASA Systems Engineering Research Consortium: Defining the Path to Elegance in Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Watson, Michael D.; Farrington, Phillip A.

2016-01-01

The NASA Systems Engineering Research Consortium was formed at the end of 2010 to study the approaches to producing elegant systems on a consistent basis. This has been a transformative study looking at the engineering and organizational basis of systems engineering. The consortium has engaged in a variety of research topics to determine the path to elegant systems. In the second year of the consortium, a systems engineering framework emerged which structured the approach to systems engineering and guided our research. This led in the third year to set of systems engineering postulates that the consortium is continuing to refine. The consortium has conducted several research projects that have contributed significantly to the understanding of systems engineering. The consortium has surveyed the application of the NASA 17 systems engineering processes, explored the physics and statistics of systems integration, and considered organizational aspects of systems engineering discipline integration. The systems integration methods have included system energy analysis, Akaike Information Criteria (AIC), State Variable Analysis, Multidisciplinary Coupling Analysis (MCA), Multidisciplinary Design Optimization (MDO), System Cost Modeling, System Robustness, and Value Modeling. Organizational studies have included the variability of processes in change evaluations, margin management within the organization, information theory of board structures, social categorization of unintended consequences, and initial looks at applying cognitive science to systems engineering. Consortium members have also studied the bidirectional influence of policy and law with systems engineering.

The Roles of Working Memory and Cognitive Load in Geoscience Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jaeger, Allison J.; Shipley, Thomas F.; Reynolds, Stephen J.

2017-01-01

Working memory is a cognitive system that allows for the simultaneous storage and processing of active information. While working memory has been implicated as an important element for success in many science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, its specific role in geoscience learning is not fully understood. The major goal of…

Requirements for psychological models to support design: Towards ecological task analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kirlik, Alex

1991-01-01

Cognitive engineering is largely concerned with creating environmental designs to support skillful and effective human activity. A set of necessary conditions are proposed for psychological models capable of supporting this enterprise. An analysis of the psychological nature of the design product is used to identify a set of constraints that models must meet if they can usefully guide design. It is concluded that cognitive engineering requires models with resources for describing the integrated human-environment system, and that these models must be capable of describing the activities underlying fluent and effective interaction. These features are required in order to be able to predict the cognitive activity that will be required given various design concepts, and to design systems that promote the acquisition of fluent, skilled behavior. These necessary conditions suggest that an ecological approach can provide valuable resources for psychological modeling to support design. Relying heavily on concepts from Brunswik's and Gibson's ecological theories, ecological task analysis is proposed as a framework in which to predict the types of cognitive activity required to achieve productive behavior, and to suggest how interfaces can be manipulated to alleviate certain types of cognitive demands. The framework is described in terms, and illustrated with an example from the previous research on modeling skilled human-environment interaction.

Cognitive Functioning in Space Exploration Missions: A Human Requirement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fiedler, Edan; Woolford, Barbara

2005-01-01

Solving cognitive issues in the exploration missions will require implementing results from both Human Behavior and Performance, and Space Human Factors Engineering. Operational and research cognitive requirements need to reflect a coordinated management approach with appropriate oversight and guidance from NASA headquarters. First, this paper will discuss one proposed management method that would combine the resources of Space Medicine and Space Human Factors Engineering at JSC, other NASA agencies, the National Space Biomedical Research Institute, Wyle Labs, and other academic or industrial partners. The proposed management is based on a Human Centered Design that advocates full acceptance of the human as a system equal to other systems. Like other systems, the human is a system with many subsystems, each of which has strengths and limitations. Second, this paper will suggest ways to inform exploration policy about what is needed for optimal cognitive functioning of the astronaut crew, as well as requirements to ensure necessary assessment and intervention strategies for the human system if human limitations are reached. Assessment strategies will include clinical evaluation and fitness-to-perform evaluations. Clinical intervention tools and procedures will be available to the astronaut and space flight physician. Cognitive performance will be supported through systematic function allocation, task design, training, and scheduling. Human factors requirements and guidelines will lead to well-designed information displays and retrieval systems that reduce crew time and errors. Means of capturing process, design, and operational requirements to ensure crew performance will be discussed. Third, this paper will describe the current plan of action, and future challenges to be resolved before a lunar or Mars expedition. The presentation will include a proposed management plan for research, involvement of various organizations, and a timetable of deliverables.

CARDIOCOG. Experiment ops

NASA Image and Video Library

2006-11-29

ISS014-E-08795 (29 Nov. 2006) --- European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Thomas Reiter, Expedition 14 flight engineer, works with the Cognitive Cardiovascular (Cardiocog-2) experiment in the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station. Cardiocog-2 will determine the impact of weightlessness on the cardiovascular system and respiratory system and the cognitive reactions of crewmembers. The results of this study will be used to develop additional countermeasures that will continue to keep crewmembers healthy during long-duration space exploration.

Technology implications of a cognitive task analysis for locomotive engineers

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-01-01

This report documents the results of a cognitive task analysis (CTA) that examined the cognitive demands and activities of locomotive engineers in todays environment and the changes in cognitive demands and activities that are likely to arise with...

Intelligent tutoring systems for systems engineering methodologies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meyer, Richard J.; Toland, Joel; Decker, Louis

1991-01-01

The general goal is to provide the technology required to build systems that can provide intelligent tutoring in IDEF (Integrated Computer Aided Manufacturing Definition Method) modeling. The following subject areas are covered: intelligent tutoring systems for systems analysis methodologies; IDEF tutor architecture and components; developing cognitive skills for IDEF modeling; experimental software; and PC based prototype.

Improving Health-care Delivery for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: An Interrelated Approach Leveraging Systems Engineering and Optimization

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-09-01

AND EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN ..........................................................................................................31   1...PRIMARY RESERCH QUESTION ............................................................41   C.   OBJECTIVE ACHIEVEMENT...Based Outpatient Clinic CPT Cognitive Processing Therapy DISE Distributed Information Systems Experimentation EBT Evidence-Based Treatment GMC

A Cognitive Engineering Analysis of the Vertical Navigation (VNAV) Function

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sherry, Lance; Feary, Michael; Polson, Peter; Mumaw, Randall; Palmer, Everett

2001-01-01

A cognitive engineering analysis of the Flight Management System (FMS) Vertical Navigation (VNAV) function has identified overloading of the VNAV button and overloading of the Flight Mode Annunciator (FMA) used by the VNAV function. These two types of overloading, resulting in modal input devices and ambiguous feedback, are well known sources of operator confusion, and explain, in part, the operational issues experienced by airline pilots using VNAV in descent and approach. A proposal to modify the existing VNAV design to eliminate the overloading is discussed. The proposed design improves pilot's situational awareness of the VNAV function, and potentially reduces the cost of software development and improves safety.

Improving air traffic control: Proving new tools or approving the joint human-machine system?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gaillard, Irene; Leroux, Marcel

1994-01-01

From the description of a field problem (i.e., designing decision aids for air traffic controllers), this paper points out how a cognitive engineering approach provides the milestones for the evaluation of future joint human-machine systems.

Social Cognitive Predictors of Academic Interests and Goals in South Korean Engineering Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Min Sun; Seo, Young Seok

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the applicability of social cognitive career theory (SCCT) in a cross-cultural setting by examining the relationships between the social cognitive variables of South Korean engineering students and their engineering interests and major choice goals across university type and gender. Participants (N =…

MDO and Cross-Disciplinary Practice in R&D: A Portrait of Principles and Current Practice

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rivas McGowan, Anna-Maria; Papalambros, Panos Y.; Baker, Wayne E.

2014-01-01

For several decades, Multidisciplinary Design Optimization (MDO) has served an important role in aerospace engineering by incorporating physics based disciplinary models into integrated system or sub-system models for use in research, development, (R&D) and design. This paper examines MDO's role in facilitating the integration of the researchers from different single disciplines during R&D and early design of large-scale complex engineered systems (LaCES) such as aerospace systems. The findings in this paper are summarized from a larger study on interdisciplinary practices and perspectives that included considerable empirical data from surveys, interviews, and ethnography. The synthesized findings were derived by integrating the data with theories from organization science and engineering. The over-arching finding is that issues related to cognition, organization, and social interrelations mostly dominate interactions across disciplines. Engineering issues, such as the integration of hardware or physics-based models, are not as significant. Correspondingly, the data showed that MDO is not the primary integrator of researchers working across disciplines during R&D and early design of LaCES. Cognitive focus such as analysis versus design, organizational challenges such as incentives, and social opportunities such as personal networks often drove the human interactive practices among researchers from different disciplines. Facilitation of the inherent confusion, argument, and learning in crossdisciplinary research was identified as one of several needed elements of enabling successful research across disciplines.

DEVELOPMENT OF OPERATIONAL CONCEPTS FOR ADVANCED SMRs: THE ROLE OF COGNITIVE SYSTEMS ENGINEERING

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jacques Hugo; David Gertman

Advanced small modular reactors (AdvSMRs) will use advanced digital instrumentation and control systems, and make greater use of automation. These advances not only pose technical and operational challenges, but will inevitably have an effect on the operating and maintenance (O&M) cost of new plants. However, there is much uncertainty about the impact of AdvSMR designs on operational and human factors considerations, such as workload, situation awareness, human reliability, staffing levels, and the appropriate allocation of functions between the crew and various automated plant systems. Existing human factors and systems engineering design standards and methodologies are not current in terms ofmore » human interaction requirements for dynamic automated systems and are no longer suitable for the analysis of evolving operational concepts. New models and guidance for operational concepts for complex socio-technical systems need to adopt a state-of-the-art approach such as Cognitive Systems Engineering (CSE) that gives due consideration to the role of personnel. This approach we report on helps to identify and evaluate human challenges related to non-traditional concepts of operations. A framework - defining operational strategies was developed based on the operational analysis of Argonne National Laboratory’s Experimental Breeder Reactor-II (EBR-II), a small (20MWe) sodium-cooled reactor that was successfully operated for thirty years. Insights from the application of the systematic application of the methodology and its utility are reviewed and arguments for the formal adoption of CSE as a value-added part of the Systems Engineering process are presented.« less

Characterizing Design Cognition of High School Students: Initial Analyses Comparing Those with and without Pre-Engineering Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wells, John; Lammi, Matthew; Gero, John; Grubbs, Michael E.; Paretti, Marie; Williams, Christopher

2016-01-01

Reported in this article are initial results from of a longitudinal study to characterize the design cognition and cognitive design styles of high school students with and without pre-engineering course experience over a 2-year period, and to compare them with undergraduate engineering students. The research followed a verbal protocol analysis…

Interfaces for End-User Information Seeking.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marchionini, Gary

1992-01-01

Discusses essential features of interfaces to support end-user information seeking. Highlights include cognitive engineering; task models and task analysis; the problem-solving nature of information seeking; examples of systems for end-users, including online public access catalogs (OPACs), hypertext, and help systems; and suggested research…

Leon Cooper, Cooper Pairs, and the BCS Theory

Science.gov Websites

, psychology, mathematics, engineering, physics, linguistics and computer science. An Institute objective is to pave the way for the next generation of cognitive pharmaceuticals and intelligent systems for use in

Cognitive analysis of physicians' medication ordering activity.

PubMed

Pelayo, Sylvia; Leroy, Nicolas; Guerlinger, Sandra; Degoulet, Patrice; Meaux, Jean-Jacques; Beuscart-Zéphir, Marie-Catherine

2005-01-01

Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) addresses critical functions in healthcare systems. As the name clearly indicates, these systems focus on order entry. With regard to medication orders, such systems generally force physicians to enter exhaustively documented orders. But a cognitive analysis of the physician's medication ordering task shows that order entry is the last (and least) important step of the entire cognitive therapeutic decision making task. We performed a comparative analysis of these complex cognitive tasks in two working environments, computer-based and paper-based. The results showed that information gathering, selection and interpretation are critical cognitive functions to support the therapeutic decision making. Thus the most important requirement from the physician's perspective would be an efficient display of relevant information provided first in the form of a summarized view of the patient's current treatment, followed by in a more detailed focused display of those items pertinent to the current situation. The CPOE system examined obviously failed to provide the physicians this critical summarized view. Following these results, consistent with users' complaints, the Company decided to engage in a significant re-engineering process of their application.

Basic functional trade-offs in cognition: An integrative framework.

PubMed

Del Giudice, Marco; Crespi, Bernard J

2018-06-14

Trade-offs between advantageous but conflicting properties (e.g., speed vs. accuracy) are ubiquitous in cognition, but the relevant literature is conceptually fragmented, scattered across disciplines, and has not been organized in a coherent framework. This paper takes an initial step toward a general theory of cognitive trade-offs by examining four key properties of goal-directed systems: performance, efficiency, robustness, and flexibility. These properties define a number of basic functional trade-offs that can be used to map the abstract "design space" of natural and artificial cognitive systems. Basic functional trade-offs provide a shared vocabulary to describe a variety of specific trade-offs including speed vs. accuracy, generalist vs. specialist, exploration vs. exploitation, and many others. By linking specific features of cognitive functioning to general properties such as robustness and efficiency, it becomes possible to harness some powerful insights from systems engineering and systems biology to suggest useful generalizations, point to under-explored but potentially important trade-offs, and prompt novel hypotheses and connections between disparate areas of research. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

On the Measurement and Visualization of Analysis Activity: A Study of Successful Strategies for Web-Based Information Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zelik, Daniel J.

2012-01-01

Cognitive Systems Engineering (CSE) has a history built, in part, on leveraging representational design to improve system performance. Traditionally, however, CSE has focused on visual representation of "monitored" processes--active, ongoing, and interconnected activities occurring in a system of interest and monitored by human…

Less is (sometimes) more in cognitive engineering: the role of automation technology in improving patient safety

PubMed Central

Vicente, K

2003-01-01



 There is a tendency to assume that medical error can be stamped out by automation. Technology may improve patient safety, but cognitive engineering research findings in several complex safety critical systems, including both aviation and health care, show that more is not always better. Less sophisticated technological systems can sometimes lead to better performance than more sophisticated systems. This "less is more" effect arises because safety critical systems are open systems where unanticipated events are bound to occur. In these contexts, decision support provided by a technological aid will be less than perfect because there will always be situations that the technology cannot accommodate. Designing sophisticated automation that suggests an uncertain course of action seems to encourage people to accept the imperfect advice, even though information to decide independently on a better course of action is available. It may be preferable to create more modest designs that merely provide feedback about the current state of affairs or that critique human generated solutions than to rush to automate by creating sophisticated technological systems that recommend (fallible) courses of action. PMID:12897363

Proceedings of the international conference on cybernetics and societ

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1985-01-01

This book presents the papers given at a conference on artificial intelligence, expert systems and knowledge bases. Topics considered at the conference included automating expert system development, modeling expert systems, causal maps, data covariances, robot vision, image processing, multiprocessors, parallel processing, VLSI structures, man-machine systems, human factors engineering, cognitive decision analysis, natural language, computerized control systems, and cybernetics.

A Social Cognitive Approach to Understanding Engineering Career Interest and Expectations among Underrepresented Students in School-Based Clubs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dika, Sandra L.; Alvarez, Jaquelina; Santos, Jeannette; Suárez, Oscar Marcelo

2016-01-01

Interest in engineering at early stages of the educational career is one important precursor to choosing to study engineering in college, and engineering-related clubs are designed to foster such interest and diversify the engineering pipeline. In this study, the researchers employed a social cognitive career theory framework to examine level of…

Kotov collects data for the Cardiocog-2 Experiment in the SM during Expedition 15

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-01

ISS015-E-08661 (May 2007) --- Cosmonaut Oleg V. Kotov, Expedition 15 flight engineer representing Russia's Federal Space Agency, collects medical data for the Cognitive Cardiovascular (Cardiocog-2) experiment in the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station. Cardiocog-2 will determine the impact of weightlessness on the cardiovascular system and respiratory system and the cognitive reactions of crewmembers. The results of this study will be used to develop additional countermeasures that will continue to keep crewmembers healthy during long-duration space exploration.

Kotov collects data for the Cardiocog-2 Experiment in the SM during Expedition 15

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-01

ISS015-E-08660 (May 2007) --- Cosmonaut Oleg V. Kotov, Expedition 15 flight engineer representing Russia's Federal Space Agency, collects medical data for the Cognitive Cardiovascular (Cardiocog-2) experiment in the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station. Cardiocog-2 will determine the impact of weightlessness on the cardiovascular system and respiratory system and the cognitive reactions of crewmembers. The results of this study will be used to develop additional countermeasures that will continue to keep crewmembers healthy during long-duration space exploration.

Kotov collects data for the Cardiocog-2 Experiment in the SM during Expedition 15

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-01

ISS015-E-08659 (May 2007) --- Cosmonaut Oleg V. Kotov, Expedition 15 flight engineer representing Russia's Federal Space Agency, checks procedures checklists while collecting medical data for the Cognitive Cardiovascular (Cardiocog-2) experiment in the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station. Cardiocog-2 will determine the impact of weightlessness on the cardiovascular system and respiratory system and the cognitive reactions of crewmembers. The results of this study will be used to develop additional countermeasures that will continue to keep crewmembers healthy during long-duration space exploration.

Robonaut 2 and Watson: Cognitive Dexterity for Future Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Badger, Julia M.; Strawser, Philip; Farrell, Logan; Goza, S. Michael; Claunch, Charles A.; Chancey, Raphael; Potapinski, Russell

2018-01-01

Future exploration missions will dictate a level of autonomy never before experienced in human spaceflight. Mission plans involving the uncrewed phases of complex human spacecraft in deep space will require a coordinated autonomous capability to be able to maintain the spacecraft when ground control is not available. One promising direction involves embedding intelligence into the system design both through the employment of state-of-the-art system engineering principles as well as through the creation of a cognitive network between a smart spacecraft or habitat and embodiments of cognitive agents. The work described here details efforts to integrate IBM's Watson and other cognitive computing services into NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC)'s Robonaut 2 (R2) anthropomorphic robot. This paper also discusses future directions this work will take. A cognitive spacecraft management system that is able to seamlessly collect data from subsystems, determine corrective actions, and provide commands to enable those actions is the end goal. These commands could be to embedded spacecraft systems or to a set of robotic assets that are tied into the cognitive system. An exciting collaboration with Woodside provides a promising Earth-bound testing analog, as controlling and maintaining not normally manned off-shore platforms have similar constraints to the space missions described.

Using human factors engineering to improve the effectiveness of infection prevention and control.

PubMed

Anderson, Judith; Gosbee, Laura Lin; Bessesen, Mary; Williams, Linda

2010-08-01

Human factors engineering is a discipline that studies the capabilities and limitations of humans and the design of devices and systems for improved performance. The principles of human factors engineering can be applied to infection prevention and control to study the interaction between the healthcare worker and the system that he or she is working with, including the use of devices, the built environment, and the demands and complexities of patient care. Some key challenges in infection prevention, such as delayed feedback to healthcare workers, high cognitive workload, and poor ergonomic design, are explained, as is how human factors engineering can be used for improvement and increased compliance with practices to prevent hospital-acquired infections.

Communications and Intelligent Systems Division Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Emerson, Dawn

2017-01-01

Provides expertise, and plans, conducts and directs research and engineering development in the competency fields of advanced communications and intelligent systems technologies for applications in current and future aeronautics and space systems.Advances communication systems engineering, development and analysis needed for Glenn Research Center's leadership in communications and intelligent systems technology. Focus areas include advanced high frequency devices, components, and antennas; optical communications, health monitoring and instrumentation; digital signal processing for communications and navigation, and cognitive radios; network architectures, protocols, standards and network-based applications; intelligent controls, dynamics and diagnostics; and smart micro- and nano-sensors and harsh environment electronics. Research and discipline engineering allow for the creation of innovative concepts and designs for aerospace communication systems with reduced size and weight, increased functionality and intelligence. Performs proof-of-concept studies and analyses to assess the impact of the new technologies.

Embedding Cognitive Systems into Systems Engineering Practice

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-12-01

application. Brahms, developed out of NASA Ames, is free for research and to the An Analysis of Alternatives consists of eight steps 1. Determine...said to look like a Star Trek ™ control panel. Fields dynamically resize when user click on them. This is helpful for those with vision degradation

Engineering Antifragile Systems: A Change In Design Philosophy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Kennie H.

2014-01-01

While technology has made astounding advances in the last century, problems are confronting the engineering community that must be solved. Cost and schedule of producing large systems are increasing at an unsustainable rate and these systems often do not perform as intended. New systems are required that may not be achieved by current methods. To solve these problems, NASA is working to infuse concepts from Complexity Science into the engineering process. Some of these problems may be solved by a change in design philosophy. Instead of designing systems to meet known requirements that will always lead to fragile systems at some degree, systems should be designed wherever possible to be antifragile: designing cognitive cyberphysical systems that can learn from their experience, adapt to unforeseen events they face in their environment, and grow stronger in the face of adversity. Several examples are presented of on ongoing research efforts to employ this philosophy.

Assessment for Operator Confidence in Automated Space Situational Awareness and Satellite Control Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gorman, J.; Voshell, M.; Sliva, A.

2016-09-01

The United States is highly dependent on space resources to support military, government, commercial, and research activities. Satellites operate at great distances, observation capacity is limited, and operator actions and observations can be significantly delayed. Safe operations require support systems that provide situational understanding, enhance decision making, and facilitate collaboration between human operators and system automation both in-the-loop, and on-the-loop. Joint cognitive systems engineering (JCSE) provides a rich set of methods for analyzing and informing the design of complex systems that include both human decision-makers and autonomous elements as coordinating teammates. While, JCSE-based systems can enhance a system analysts' understanding of both existing and new system processes, JCSE activities typically occur outside of traditional systems engineering (SE) methods, providing sparse guidance about how systems should be implemented. In contrast, the Joint Director's Laboratory (JDL) information fusion model and extensions, such as the Dual Node Network (DNN) technical architecture, provide the means to divide and conquer such engineering and implementation complexity, but are loosely coupled to specialized organizational contexts and needs. We previously describe how Dual Node Decision Wheels (DNDW) extend the DNN to integrate JCSE analysis and design with the practicalities of system engineering and implementation using the DNN. Insights from Rasmussen's JCSE Decision Ladders align system implementation with organizational structures and processes. In the current work, we present a novel approach to assessing system performance based on patterns occurring in operational decisions that are documented by JCSE processes as traces in a decision ladder. In this way, system assessment is closely tied not just to system design, but the design of the joint cognitive system that includes human operators, decision-makers, information systems, and automated processes. Such operationally relevant and integrated testing provides a sound foundation for operator trust in system automation that is required to safely operate satellite systems.

Holarchical Systems and Emotional Holons : Biologically-Inspired System Designs for Control of Autonomous Aerial Vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ippolito, Corey; Plice, Laura; Pisanich, Greg

2003-01-01

The BEES (Bio-inspired Engineering for Exploration Systems) for Mars project at NASA Ames Research Center has the goal of developing bio-inspired flight control strategies to enable aerial explorers for Mars scientific investigations. This paper presents a summary of our ongoing research into biologically inspired system designs for control of unmanned autonomous aerial vehicle communities for Mars exploration. First, we present cooperative design considerations for robotic explorers based on the holarchical nature of biological systems and communities. Second, an outline of an architecture for cognitive decision making and control of individual robotic explorers is presented, modeled after the emotional nervous system of cognitive biological systems. Keywords: Holarchy, Biologically Inspired, Emotional UAV Flight Control

A cognitive evaluation of four online search engines for answering definitional questions posed by physicians.

PubMed

Yu, Hong; Kaufman, David

2007-01-01

The Internet is having a profound impact on physicians' medical decision making. One recent survey of 277 physicians showed that 72% of physicians regularly used the Internet to research medical information and 51% admitted that information from web sites influenced their clinical decisions. This paper describes the first cognitive evaluation of four state-of-the-art Internet search engines: Google (i.e., Google and Scholar.Google), MedQA, Onelook, and PubMed for answering definitional questions (i.e., questions with the format of "What is X?") posed by physicians. Onelook is a portal for online definitions, and MedQA is a question answering system that automatically generates short texts to answer specific biomedical questions. Our evaluation criteria include quality of answer, ease of use, time spent, and number of actions taken. Our results show that MedQA outperforms Onelook and PubMed in most of the criteria, and that MedQA surpasses Google in time spent and number of actions, two important efficiency criteria. Our results show that Google is the best system for quality of answer and ease of use. We conclude that Google is an effective search engine for medical definitions, and that MedQA exceeds the other search engines in that it provides users direct answers to their questions; while the users of the other search engines have to visit several sites before finding all of the pertinent information.

The Investigation of STEM Self-Efficacy and Professional Commitment to Engineering among Female High School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Yi-hui; Lou, Shi-jer; Shih, Ru-chu

2014-01-01

This study employed social cognitive theory and social cognitive career theory (SCCT) as foundations to explore the influence of high school students' beliefs about female gender roles and female engineer role models on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) self-efficacy and professional commitment to engineering. A total of 88…

Usability testing in medical informatics: cognitive approaches to evaluation of information systems and user interfaces.

PubMed Central

Kushniruk, A. W.; Patel, V. L.; Cimino, J. J.

1997-01-01

This paper describes an approach to the evaluation of health care information technologies based on usability engineering and a methodological framework from the study of medical cognition. The approach involves collection of a rich set of data including video recording of health care workers as they interact with systems, such as computerized patient records and decision support tools. The methodology can be applied in the laboratory setting, typically involving subjects "thinking aloud" as they interact with a system. A similar approach to data collection and analysis can also be extended to study of computer systems in the "live" environment of hospital clinics. Our approach is also influenced from work in the area of cognitive task analysis, which aims to characterize the decision making and reasoning of subjects of varied levels of expertise as they interact with information technology in carrying out representative tasks. The stages involved in conducting cognitively-based usability analyses are detailed and the application of such analysis in the iterative process of system and interface development is discussed. PMID:9357620

Development of teaching modules for geology and engineering coursework using terrestrial LiDAR scanning systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yarbrough, L. D.; Katzenstein, K.

2012-12-01

Exposing students to active and local examples of physical geologic processes is beneficial to the learning process. Students typically respond with interest to examples that use state-of-the-art technologies to investigate local or regional phenomena. For lower cognitive level of learning (e.g. knowledge, comprehension, and application), the use of "close-to-home" examples ensures that students better understand concepts. By providing these examples, the students may already have a familiarity or can easily visit the location. Furthermore, these local and regional examples help students to offer quickly other examples of similar phenomena. Investigation of these examples using normal photographic techniques, as well as a more sophisticated 3-D Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) (AKA Terrestrial Laser Scanning or TLS) system, allows students to gain a better understanding of the scale and the mechanics of the geologic processes and hazards. The systems are used for research, teaching and outreach efforts and depending on departmental policies can be accessible to students are various learning levels. TLS systems can yield scans at sub-centimeter resolution and contain surface reflectance of targets. These systems can serve a number of learning goals that are essential for training geoscientists and engineers. While querying the data to answer geotechnical or geomorphologic related questions, students will develop skills using large, spatial databases. The upper cognitive level of learning (e.g. analysis, synthesis, and evaluation) is also promoted by using a subset of the data and correlating the physical geologic process of stream bank erosion and rock slope failures with mathematical and computer models using the scanned data. Students use the examples and laboratory exercises to help build their engineering judgment skills with Earth materials. The students learn not only applications of math and engineering science but also the economic and social implication of designed engineering solutions. These course learning modules were developed for traditional geological engineering courses delivered on campus, for more intensive field work courses and online-based asynchronous course delivery.

Compilation of Abstracts of Theses Submitted by Candidates for Degrees.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-09-30

Musitano, J.R. Fin-line Horn Antennas 118 LCDR, USNR Muth, L.R. VLSI Tutorials Through the 119 LT, USN Video -computer Courseware Implementation...Engineer Allocation 432 CPT, USA Model Kiziltan, M. Cognitive Performance Degrada- 433 LTJG, Turkish Navy tion on Sonar Operator and Tor- pedo Data...and Computer Engineering 118 VLSI TUTORIALS THROUGH THE VIDEO -COMPUTER COURSEWARE IMPLEMENTATION SYSTEM Liesel R. Muth Lieutenant, United States Navy

Cognitive architectures: choreographing the dance of mental operations with the task environment.

PubMed

Gray, Wayne D

2008-06-01

In this article, I present the ideas and trends that have given rise to the use of cognitive architectures in human factors and provide a cognitive engineering-oriented taxonomy of these architectures and a snapshot of their use for cognitive engineering. Architectures of cognition have had a long history in human factors but a brief past. The long history entails a 50-year preamble, whereas the explosion of work in the current decade reflects the brief past. Understanding this history is key to understanding the current and future prospects for applying cognitive science theory to human factors practice. The review defines three formative eras in cognitive engineering research: the 1950s, 1980s, and now. In the first era, the fledging fields of cognitive science and human factors emphasized characteristics of the dancer the limited capacity or bounded rationality view of the mind, and the ballroom, the task environment. The second era emphasized the dance (i.e., the dynamic interaction between mental operations and task environment). The third era has seen the rise of cognitive architectures as tools for choreographing the dance of mental operations within the complex environments posed by human factors practice. Hybrid architectures present the best vector for introducing cognitive science theories into a renewed engineering-based human factors. The taxonomy provided in this article may provide guidance on when and whether to apply a cognitive science or a hybrid architecture to a human factors issue.

User engineering: A new look at system engineering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mclaughlin, Larry L.

1987-01-01

User Engineering is a new System Engineering perspective responsible for defining and maintaining the user view of the system. Its elements are a process to guide the project and customer, a multidisciplinary team including hard and soft sciences, rapid prototyping tools to build user interfaces quickly and modify them frequently at low cost, and a prototyping center for involving users and designers in an iterative way. The main consideration is reducing the risk that the end user will not or cannot effectively use the system. The process begins with user analysis to produce cognitive and work style models, and task analysis to produce user work functions and scenarios. These become major drivers of the human computer interface design which is presented and reviewed as an interactive prototype by users. Feedback is rapid and productive, and user effectiveness can be measured and observed before the system is built and fielded. Requirements are derived via the prototype and baselined early to serve as an input to the architecture and software design.

A Fuzzy Evaluation Method for System of Systems Meta-architectures

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-01

Procedia Computer Science Procedia Computer Science 00 (2013) 000–000 www.elsevier.com/locate/ procedia Conference on Systems Engineering...boundary includes integration of technical systems as well as cognitive and social processes, which alter system behavior [2]. Most system architects...unclassified c. THIS PAGE unclassified Standard Form 298 (Rev. 8-98) Prescribed by ANSI Std Z39-18 Pape/ Procedia Computer Science 00 (2013) 000

Designing Online Problem Representation Engine for Conceptual Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Chwee Beng; Ling, Keck Voon

2012-01-01

Purpose: This paper aims to describe the web-based scaffold dynamic simulation system (PRES-on) designed for pre-service teachers. Design/methodology/approach: The paper describes the initial design of a web-based scaffold dynamic simulation system (PRES-on) as a cognitive tool for learners to represent problems. For the widespread use of the…

Social Cognitive Predictors of Adjustment to Engineering Majors across Gender and Race/Ethnicity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lent, Robert W.; Miller, Matthew J.; Smith, Paige E.; Watford, Bevlee A.; Lim, Robert H.; Hui, Kayi; Morrison, M. Ashley; Wilkins, Gregory; Williams, Kevin

2013-01-01

We tested a social cognitive model of academic adjustment in a sample of 1377 students enrolled in engineering schools at two predominantly White and two historically Black state universities. The model brought together central elements of social cognitive career theory's (SCCT) segmental models of educational/vocational satisfaction, interest,…

Cognitive Processes of Students Participating in Two Approaches to Technology Education. Research in Engineering and Technology Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelley, Todd R.; Hill, Roger B.

2007-01-01

The purpose of this study was to better understand cognitive strategies used by high school technology education students who have participated in technology education instruction with an engineering design focus. Specifically, this study evaluated the cognitive strategies of students participating in "Project Lead the Way" curriculum…

Human-factors engineering for smart transport: design support for car drivers and train traffic controllers.

PubMed

Lenior, Dick; Janssen, Wiel; Neerincx, Mark; Schreibers, Kirsten

2006-07-01

The theme Smart Transport can be described as adequate human-system symbiosis to realize effective, efficient and human-friendly transport of goods and information. This paper addresses how to attune automation to human (cognitive) capacities (e.g. to take care of information uncertainty, operator trust and mutual man-machine adaptations). An introduction to smart transport is presented, including examples of best practice for engineering human factors in the vehicle ergonomics and train traffic control domain. The examples are representative of an ongoing trend in automation and they show how the human role changes from controller to supervisor. Section 2 focuses on the car driver and systems that support, or sometimes even take over, critical parts of the driving task. Due to the diversity of driver ability, driving context and dependence between driver and context factors, there is a need for personalised, adaptive and integrated support. Systematic research is needed to establish sound systems. Section 3 focuses on the train dispatcher support systems that predict train movements, detect potential conflicts and show the dispatcher the possibilities available to solve the detected problems. Via thorough analysis of both the process to be controlled and the dispatcher's tasks and cognitive needs, support functions were developed as part of an already very complex supervision and control system. The two examples, although from a different field, both show the need for further development in cognitive modelling as well as for the value of sound ergonomics task analysis in design practice.

Combining cognitive engineering and information fusion architectures to build effective joint systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sliva, Amy L.; Gorman, Joe; Voshell, Martin; Tittle, James; Bowman, Christopher

2016-05-01

The Dual Node Decision Wheels (DNDW) architecture concept was previously described as a novel approach toward integrating analytic and decision-making processes in joint human/automation systems in highly complex sociotechnical settings. In this paper, we extend the DNDW construct with a description of components in this framework, combining structures of the Dual Node Network (DNN) for Information Fusion and Resource Management with extensions on Rasmussen's Decision Ladder (DL) to provide guidance on constructing information systems that better serve decision-making support requirements. The DNN takes a component-centered approach to system design, decomposing each asset in terms of data inputs and outputs according to their roles and interactions in a fusion network. However, to ensure relevancy to and organizational fitment within command and control (C2) processes, principles from cognitive systems engineering emphasize that system design must take a human-centered systems view, integrating information needs and decision making requirements to drive the architecture design and capabilities of network assets. In the current work, we present an approach for structuring and assessing DNDW systems that uses a unique hybrid DNN top-down system design with a human-centered process design, combining DNN node decomposition with artifacts from cognitive analysis (i.e., system abstraction decomposition models, decision ladders) to provide work domain and task-level insights at different levels in an example intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) system setting. This DNDW structure will ensure not only that the information fusion technologies and processes are structured effectively, but that the resulting information products will align with the requirements of human decision makers and be adaptable to different work settings .

Embedded systems engineering for products and services design.

PubMed

Ahram, Tareq Z; Karwowski, Waldemar; Soares, Marcelo M

2012-01-01

Systems engineering (SE) professionals strive to develop new techniques to enhance the value of contributions to multidisciplinary smart product design teams. Products and services designers challenge themselves to search beyond the traditional design concept of addressing the physical, social, and cognitive factors. This paper covers the application of embedded user-centered systems engineering design practices into work processes based on the ISO 13407 framework [20] to support smart systems and services design and development. As practitioners collaborate to investigate alternative smart product designs, they concentrate on creating valuable products which will enhance positive interaction. This paper capitalizes on the need to follow a user-centered SE approach to smart products design [4, 22]. Products and systems intelligence should embrace a positive approach to user-centered design while improving our understanding of usable value-adding, experience and extending our knowledge of what inspires others to design enjoyable services and products.

Biomedical Engineering and Cognitive Science Secondary Science Curriculum Development: A Three Year Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Klein, Stacy S.; Sherwood, Robert D.

2005-01-01

This study reports on a multi-year effort to create and evaluate cognitive-based curricular materials for secondary school science classrooms. A team of secondary teachers, educational researchers, and academic biomedical engineers developed a series of curriculum units that are based in biomedical engineering for secondary level students in…

Cognitive Mapping Techniques: Implications for Research in Engineering and Technology Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dixon, Raymond A.; Lammi, Matthew

2014-01-01

The primary goal of this paper is to present the theoretical basis and application of two types of cognitive maps, concept map and mind map, and explain how they can be used by educational researchers in engineering design research. Cognitive mapping techniques can be useful to researchers as they study students' problem solving strategies…

How system designers think: a study of design thinking in human factors engineering.

PubMed

Papantonopoulos, Sotiris

2004-11-01

The paper presents a descriptive study of design thinking in human factors engineering. The objective of the study is to analyse the role of interpretation in design thinking and the role of design practice in guiding interpretation. The study involved 10 system designers undertaking the allocation of cognitive functions in three production planning and control task scenarios. Allocation decisions were recorded and verbal protocols of the design process were collected to elicit the subjects' thought processes. Verbal protocol analysis showed that subjects carried out the design of cognitive task allocation as a problem of applying a selected automation technology from their initial design deliberations. This design strategy stands in contrast to the predominant view of system design that stipulates that user requirements should be thoroughly analysed prior to making any decisions about technology. Theoretical frameworks from design research and ontological design showed that the system design process may be better understood by recognizing the role of design hypotheses in system design, as well as the diverse interactions between interpretation and practice, means and ends, and design practice and the designer's pre-understanding which shape the design process. Ways to balance the bias exerted on the design process were discussed.

Using Work Action Analysis to Identify Web-Portal Requirements for a Professional Development Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nickles, George

2007-01-01

This article describes using Work Action Analysis (WAA) as a method for identifying requirements for a web-based portal that supports a professional development program. WAA is a cognitive systems engineering method for modeling multi-agent systems to support design and evaluation. A WAA model of the professional development program of the…

Students' Refinement of Knowledge during the Development of Knowledge Bases for Expert Systems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lippert, Renate; Finley, Fred

The refinement of the cognitive knowledge base was studied through exploration of the transition from novice to expert and the use of an instructional strategy called novice knowledge engineering. Six college freshmen, who were enrolled in an honors physics course, used an expert system to create questions, decisions, rules, and explanations…

Translating theory into practice: integrating the affective and cognitive learning dimensions for effective instruction in engineering education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alias, Maizam; Lashari, Tahira Anwar; Abidin Akasah, Zainal; Jahaya Kesot, Mohd.

2014-03-01

Learning in the cognitive domain is highly emphasised and has been widely investigated in engineering education. Lesser emphasis is placed on the affective dimension although the role of affects has been supported by research. The lack of understanding on learning theories and how they may be translated into classroom application of teaching and learning is one factor that contributes to this situation. This paper proposes a working framework for integrating the affective dimension of learning into engineering education that is expected to promote better learning within the cognitive domain. Four major learning theories namely behaviourism, cognitivism, socio-culturalism, and constructivism were analysed and how affects are postulated to influence cognition are identified. The affective domain constructs identified to be important are self-efficacy, attitude and locus of control. Based on the results of the analysis, a framework that integrates methodologies for achieving learning in the cognitive domain with the support of the affective dimension of learning is proposed. It is expected that integrated approach can be used as a guideline to engineering educators in designing effective and sustainable instructional material that would result in the effective engineers for future development.

A Decision-Oriented Investigation of Air Force Civil Engineering’s Operations Branch and the Implications for a Decision Support System.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-09-01

information when making a decision [ Szilagyi and Wallace , 1983:3201." Driver and Mock used cognitive complexity ideas to develop this two dimensional...flexible AMOUNT OF INFORMATION USED High hierarchic integrative Figure 6. Cognitive Complexity Model ( Szilagyi and Wallace , 1983:321) Decisive Style. The...large amount of inform- ation. However, he processes this information with a multiple focus approach ( Szilagyi and Wallace , 1983:320-321). 26 McKenney

Cognitive engineering models in space systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, Christine M.

1992-01-01

NASA space systems, including mission operations on the ground and in space, are complex, dynamic, predominantly automated systems in which the human operator is a supervisory controller. The human operator monitors and fine-tunes computer-based control systems and is responsible for ensuring safe and efficient system operation. In such systems, the potential consequences of human mistakes and errors may be very large, and low probability of such events is likely. Thus, models of cognitive functions in complex systems are needed to describe human performance and form the theoretical basis of operator workstation design, including displays, controls, and decision support aids. The operator function model represents normative operator behavior-expected operator activities given current system state. The extension of the theoretical structure of the operator function model and its application to NASA Johnson mission operations and space station applications is discussed.

A Second-Generation Device for Automated Training and Quantitative Behavior Analyses of Molecularly-Tractable Model Organisms

PubMed Central

Blackiston, Douglas; Shomrat, Tal; Nicolas, Cindy L.; Granata, Christopher; Levin, Michael

2010-01-01

A deep understanding of cognitive processes requires functional, quantitative analyses of the steps leading from genetics and the development of nervous system structure to behavior. Molecularly-tractable model systems such as Xenopus laevis and planaria offer an unprecedented opportunity to dissect the mechanisms determining the complex structure of the brain and CNS. A standardized platform that facilitated quantitative analysis of behavior would make a significant impact on evolutionary ethology, neuropharmacology, and cognitive science. While some animal tracking systems exist, the available systems do not allow automated training (feedback to individual subjects in real time, which is necessary for operant conditioning assays). The lack of standardization in the field, and the numerous technical challenges that face the development of a versatile system with the necessary capabilities, comprise a significant barrier keeping molecular developmental biology labs from integrating behavior analysis endpoints into their pharmacological and genetic perturbations. Here we report the development of a second-generation system that is a highly flexible, powerful machine vision and environmental control platform. In order to enable multidisciplinary studies aimed at understanding the roles of genes in brain function and behavior, and aid other laboratories that do not have the facilities to undergo complex engineering development, we describe the device and the problems that it overcomes. We also present sample data using frog tadpoles and flatworms to illustrate its use. Having solved significant engineering challenges in its construction, the resulting design is a relatively inexpensive instrument of wide relevance for several fields, and will accelerate interdisciplinary discovery in pharmacology, neurobiology, regenerative medicine, and cognitive science. PMID:21179424

Pre-Service Science Teachers' Cognitive Structures Regarding Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) and Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hacioglu, Yasemin; Yamak, Havva; Kavak, Nusret

2016-01-01

The aim of this study is to reveal pre-service science teachers' cognitive structures regarding Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) and science education. The study group of the study consisted of 192 pre-service science teachers. A Free Word Association Test (WAT) consisting of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and…

Cognitive Enhancement and Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buchanan, Allen

2011-01-01

Cognitive enhancement--augmenting normal cognitive capacities--is not new. Literacy, numeracy, computers, and the practices of science are all cognitive enhancements. Science is now making new cognitive enhancements possible. Biomedical cognitive enhancements (BCEs) include the administration of drugs, implants of genetically engineered or…

Human performance models for computer-aided engineering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Elkind, Jerome I. (Editor); Card, Stuart K. (Editor); Hochberg, Julian (Editor); Huey, Beverly Messick (Editor)

1989-01-01

This report discusses a topic important to the field of computational human factors: models of human performance and their use in computer-based engineering facilities for the design of complex systems. It focuses on a particular human factors design problem -- the design of cockpit systems for advanced helicopters -- and on a particular aspect of human performance -- vision and related cognitive functions. By focusing in this way, the authors were able to address the selected topics in some depth and develop findings and recommendations that they believe have application to many other aspects of human performance and to other design domains.

Cross-System Evaluation of Clinical Trial Search Engines

PubMed Central

Jiang, Silis Y.; Weng, Chunhua

2014-01-01

Clinical trials are fundamental to the advancement of medicine but constantly face recruitment difficulties. Various clinical trial search engines have been designed to help health consumers identify trials for which they may be eligible. Unfortunately, knowledge of the usefulness and usability of their designs remains scarce. In this study, we used mixed methods, including time-motion analysis, think-aloud protocol, and survey, to evaluate five popular clinical trial search engines with 11 users. Differences in user preferences and time spent on each system were observed and correlated with user characteristics. In general, searching for applicable trials using these systems is a cognitively demanding task. Our results show that user perceptions of these systems are multifactorial. The survey indicated eTACTS being the generally preferred system, but this finding did not persist among all mixed methods. This study confirms the value of mixed-methods for a comprehensive system evaluation. Future system designers must be aware that different users groups expect different functionalities. PMID:25954590

Cross-system evaluation of clinical trial search engines.

PubMed

Jiang, Silis Y; Weng, Chunhua

2014-01-01

Clinical trials are fundamental to the advancement of medicine but constantly face recruitment difficulties. Various clinical trial search engines have been designed to help health consumers identify trials for which they may be eligible. Unfortunately, knowledge of the usefulness and usability of their designs remains scarce. In this study, we used mixed methods, including time-motion analysis, think-aloud protocol, and survey, to evaluate five popular clinical trial search engines with 11 users. Differences in user preferences and time spent on each system were observed and correlated with user characteristics. In general, searching for applicable trials using these systems is a cognitively demanding task. Our results show that user perceptions of these systems are multifactorial. The survey indicated eTACTS being the generally preferred system, but this finding did not persist among all mixed methods. This study confirms the value of mixed-methods for a comprehensive system evaluation. Future system designers must be aware that different users groups expect different functionalities.

Cognitive Training for Impaired Neural Systems in Neuropsychiatric Illness

PubMed Central

Vinogradov, Sophia; Fisher, Melissa; de Villers-Sidani, Etienne

2012-01-01

Neuropsychiatric illnesses are associated with dysfunction in distributed prefrontal neural systems that underlie perception, cognition, social interactions, emotion regulation, and motivation. The high degree of learning-dependent plasticity in these networks—combined with the availability of advanced computerized technology—suggests that we should be able to engineer very specific training programs that drive meaningful and enduring improvements in impaired neural systems relevant to neuropsychiatric illness. However, cognitive training approaches for mental and addictive disorders must take into account possible inherent limitations in the underlying brain ‘learning machinery' due to pathophysiology, must grapple with the presence of complex overlearned maladaptive patterns of neural functioning, and must find a way to ally with developmental and psychosocial factors that influence response to illness and to treatment. In this review, we briefly examine the current state of knowledge from studies of cognitive remediation in psychiatry and we highlight open questions. We then present a systems neuroscience rationale for successful cognitive training for neuropsychiatric illnesses, one that emphasizes the distributed nature of neural assemblies that support cognitive and affective processing, as well as their plasticity. It is based on the notion that, during successful learning, the brain represents the relevant perceptual and cognitive/affective inputs and action outputs with disproportionately larger and more coordinated populations of neurons that are distributed (and that are interacting) across multiple levels of processing and throughout multiple brain regions. This approach allows us to address limitations found in earlier research and to introduce important principles for the design and evaluation of the next generation of cognitive training for impaired neural systems. We summarize work to date using such neuroscience-informed methods and indicate some of the exciting future directions of this field. PMID:22048465

Cognitive decision errors and organization vulnerabilities in nuclear power plant safety management: Modeling using the TOGA meta-theory framework

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cappelli, M.; Gadomski, A. M.; Sepiellis, M.

In the field of nuclear power plant (NPP) safety modeling, the perception of the role of socio-cognitive engineering (SCE) is continuously increasing. Today, the focus is especially on the identification of human and organization decisional errors caused by operators and managers under high-risk conditions, as evident by analyzing reports on nuclear incidents occurred in the past. At present, the engineering and social safety requirements need to enlarge their domain of interest in such a way to include all possible losses generating events that could be the consequences of an abnormal state of a NPP. Socio-cognitive modeling of Integrated Nuclear Safetymore » Management (INSM) using the TOGA meta-theory has been discussed during the ICCAP 2011 Conference. In this paper, more detailed aspects of the cognitive decision-making and its possible human errors and organizational vulnerability are presented. The formal TOGA-based network model for cognitive decision-making enables to indicate and analyze nodes and arcs in which plant operators and managers errors may appear. The TOGA's multi-level IPK (Information, Preferences, Knowledge) model of abstract intelligent agents (AIAs) is applied. In the NPP context, super-safety approach is also discussed, by taking under consideration unexpected events and managing them from a systemic perspective. As the nature of human errors depends on the specific properties of the decision-maker and the decisional context of operation, a classification of decision-making using IPK is suggested. Several types of initial situations of decision-making useful for the diagnosis of NPP operators and managers errors are considered. The developed models can be used as a basis for applications to NPP educational or engineering simulators to be used for training the NPP executive staff. (authors)« less

Cognitive Cellular Systems: A New Challenge on the RF Analog Frontend

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Varga, Gabor; Schrey, Moritz; Subbiah, Iyappan; Ashok, Arun; Heinen, Stefan

2016-07-01

Cognitive Cellular Systems are seen today as one of the most promising ways of moving forward solving or at least easing the still worsening situation of congested spectrum caused by the growing number of users and the expectation of higher data transfer rates. As the intelligence of a Cognitive Radio system is located in the digital domain - the Cognitive Engine and associated layers - extensive research has been ongoing in that domain since Mitola published his idea in 1999. Since, a big progress has been made in the domain of architectures and algorithms making systems more efficient and highly flexible. The pace of this progress, however, is going to be impeded by hard requirements on the received and transmitted signal quality, introducing ultimate challenges on the performance of the RF analog frontend, such as in-band local oscillator harmonics, ultra low sensitivity and ultra high linearity. The RF frontend is thus likely to become the limiting technical factor in the true realization of a Cognitive Cellular System. Based on short recapitulations of the most crucial issues in RF analog design for Cognitive Systems, this article will point out why those mechanisms become responsible for the limitation of the overall performance particularly in a broadband Cognitive Cellular System. Furthermore, as part of a possible solution to ease the situation, system design of a high intermediate frequency (IF) to UHF frequency converter for cognitive radios is discussed and the performance of such a converter analyzed as a proof of concept. In addition to successfully tackling some of the challenges, such a high-IF converter enables white space operation for existing commercial devices by acting as frequency converter. From detailed measurements, the capabilities in both physical layer and application layer performance of a high-IF frontend developed out of off-the-shelf components is explained and is shown to provide negligible degradation to the commercial device being connected to.

Social Cognitive Predictors of Academic Interests and Goals in Engineering: Utility for Women and Students at Historically Black Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lent, Robert W.; Brown, Steven D.; Sheu, Hung-Bin; Schmidt, Janet; Brenner, Bradley R.; Gloster, Clay S.; Wilkins, Gregory; Schmidt, Linda C.; Lyons, Heather

2005-01-01

This study examined the utility of social cognitive career theory (SCCT; R. W. Lent, S. D. Brown, & G. Hackett, 1994) in predicting engineering interests and major choice goals among women and men and among students at historically Black and predominantly White universities. Participants (487 students in introductory engineering courses at 3…

The Effects of Computer Simulation and Animation (CSA) on Students' Cognitive Processes: A Comparative Case Study in an Undergraduate Engineering Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fang, N.; Tajvidi, M.

2018-01-01

This study focuses on the investigation of the effects of computer simulation and animation (CSA) on students' cognitive processes in an undergraduate engineering course. The revised Bloom's taxonomy, which consists of six categories in the cognitive process domain, was employed in this study. Five of the six categories were investigated,…

Improving Team Performance: Proceedings of the Rand Team Performance Workshop.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-08-01

organization theory, small group processes, cognitive psychologi training and instruction , decision theory, artificial intelligence, and human engineering...theory, small group processes, cognitive psy- chology, training and instruction , heuristic modeling, decision theory, and human engineering. Within...interact with. The operators are taught about the equipment and how it works; the actual job is left to be learned aboard ship. The cognitive processes the

Psychology of developing and designing expert systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tonn, B.; MacGregor, D.

This paper discusses psychological problems relevant to developing and designing expert systems. With respect to the former, the psychological literature suggests that several cognitive biases may affect the elicitation of a valid knowledge base from the expert. The literature also suggests that common expert system inference engines may be quite inconsistent with reasoning heuristics employed by experts. With respect to expert system user interfaces, care should be taken when eliciting uncertainty estimates from users, presenting system conclusions, and ordering questions.

Impact of pedagogical approaches on cognitive complexity and motivation to learn: Comparing nursing and engineering undergraduate students.

PubMed

McComb, Sara A; Kirkpatrick, Jane M

2016-01-01

The changing higher education landscape is prompting nurses to rethink educational strategies. Looking beyond traditional professional boundaries may be beneficial. We compare nursing to engineering because engineering has similar accreditation outcome goals and different pedagogical approaches. We compare students' cognitive complexity and motivation to learn to identify opportunities to share pedagogical approaches between nursing and engineering. Cross-sectional data were collected from 1,167 freshmen through super senior students. Comparisons were made across years and between majors. Overall nursing and engineering students advance in cognitive complexity while maintaining motivation for learning. Sophomores reported the lowest scores on many dimensions indicating that their experiences need review. The strong influence of the National Council Licensure Examination on nursing students may drive their classroom preferences. Increased intrinsic motivation, coupled with decreased extrinsic motivation, suggests that we are graduating burgeoning life-long learners equipped to maintain currency. The disciplines' strategies for incorporating real-world learning opportunities differ, yet the students similarly advance in cognitive complexity and maintain motivation to learn. Lessons can be exchanged across professional boundaries. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

77 FR 51786 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-27

... to increasing the number and quality of the nation's scientists and engineers. Application... Engineering, Biosciences, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Cognitive, Neural, and...

Proceedings of the 1986 IEEE international conference on systems, man and cybernetics

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1986-01-01

This book presents the papers given at a conference on man-machine systems. Topics considered at the conference included neural model-based cognitive theory and engineering, user interfaces, adaptive and learning systems, human interaction with robotics, decision making, the testing and evaluation of expert systems, software development, international conflict resolution, intelligent interfaces, automation in man-machine system design aiding, knowledge acquisition in expert systems, advanced architectures for artificial intelligence, pattern recognition, knowledge bases, and machine vision.

Engineering neural systems for high-level problem solving.

PubMed

Sylvester, Jared; Reggia, James

2016-07-01

There is a long-standing, sometimes contentious debate in AI concerning the relative merits of a symbolic, top-down approach vs. a neural, bottom-up approach to engineering intelligent machine behaviors. While neurocomputational methods excel at lower-level cognitive tasks (incremental learning for pattern classification, low-level sensorimotor control, fault tolerance and processing of noisy data, etc.), they are largely non-competitive with top-down symbolic methods for tasks involving high-level cognitive problem solving (goal-directed reasoning, metacognition, planning, etc.). Here we take a step towards addressing this limitation by developing a purely neural framework named galis. Our goal in this work is to integrate top-down (non-symbolic) control of a neural network system with more traditional bottom-up neural computations. galis is based on attractor networks that can be "programmed" with temporal sequences of hand-crafted instructions that control problem solving by gating the activity retention of, communication between, and learning done by other neural networks. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach by showing that it can be applied successfully to solve sequential card matching problems, using both human performance and a top-down symbolic algorithm as experimental controls. Solving this kind of problem makes use of top-down attention control and the binding together of visual features in ways that are easy for symbolic AI systems but not for neural networks to achieve. Our model can not only be instructed on how to solve card matching problems successfully, but its performance also qualitatively (and sometimes quantitatively) matches the performance of both human subjects that we had perform the same task and the top-down symbolic algorithm that we used as an experimental control. We conclude that the core principles underlying the galis framework provide a promising approach to engineering purely neurocomputational systems for problem-solving tasks that in people require higher-level cognitive functions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Avionics Collaborative Engineering Technology Delivery Order 0035: Secure Knowledge Management (SKM) Technology Research Roadmap - Technology Trends for Collaborative Information and Knowledge Management Research

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-06-01

such as that represented in the know-how of the master craftsman), and cognitive (know why, perceptions, values, beliefs, and mental models).4... cognitive engineering, educational technology, industrial/organizational psychology, sociology, cultural anthropology, and computational...such as human-human interaction, interface design and evaluation methodology, cognitive models and user models, health and ergonomic studies, empirical

Advancing cognitive engineering methods to support user interface design for electronic health records.

PubMed

Thyvalikakath, Thankam P; Dziabiak, Michael P; Johnson, Raymond; Torres-Urquidy, Miguel Humberto; Acharya, Amit; Yabes, Jonathan; Schleyer, Titus K

2014-04-01

Despite many decades of research on the effective development of clinical systems in medicine, the adoption of health information technology to improve patient care continues to be slow, especially in ambulatory settings. This applies to dentistry as well, a primary care discipline with approximately 137,000 practitioners in the United States. A critical reason for slow adoption is the poor usability of clinical systems, which makes it difficult for providers to navigate through the information and obtain an integrated view of patient data. In this study, we documented the cognitive processes and information management strategies used by dentists during a typical patient examination. The results will inform the design of a novel electronic dental record interface. We conducted a cognitive task analysis (CTA) study to observe ten general dentists (five general dentists and five general dental faculty members, each with more than two years of clinical experience) examining three simulated patient cases using a think-aloud protocol. Dentists first reviewed the patient's demographics, chief complaint, medical history and dental history to determine the general status of the patient. Subsequently, they proceeded to examine the patient's intraoral status using radiographs, intraoral images, hard tissue and periodontal tissue information. The results also identified dentists' patterns of navigation through patient's information and additional information needs during a typical clinician-patient encounter. This study reinforced the significance of applying cognitive engineering methods to inform the design of a clinical system. Second, applying CTA to a scenario closely simulating an actual patient encounter helped with capturing participants' knowledge states and decision-making when diagnosing and treating a patient. The resultant knowledge of dentists' patterns of information retrieval and review will significantly contribute to designing flexible and task-appropriate information presentation in electronic dental records. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

An eye on reactor and computer control

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schryver, J.; Knee, B.

1992-01-01

At ORNL computer software has been developed to make possible an improved eye-gaze measurement technology. Such an inovation could be the basis for advanced eye-gaze systems that may have applications in reactor control, software development, cognitive engineering, evaluation of displays, prediction of mental workloads, and military target recognition.

Ergonomics, safety, and resilience in the helicopter offshore transportation system of Campos Basin.

PubMed

Gomes, José Orlando; Huber, Gilbert J; Borges, Marcos R S; de Carvalho, Paulo Victor R

2015-01-01

Air transportation of personnel to offshore oil platforms is one of the major hazards of this kind of endeavor. Pilot performance is a key factor in the safety of the transportation system. This study seeks to identify the ergonomic factors present in pilots' activities that may in some way compromise or enhance their performance, the constraints and affordances which they are subject to; and where possible to link these to their associated risk factors. Methodology adopted in this project studies work in its context. It is a merging of Activity Analysis (Guerin et al. 2001) of European tradition with Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA - www.ctaresource.com) articulated with the recent approaches to cognitive systems engineering developed by Professors David Woods and Erik Hollnagel. Fifty-five hours of field interviews provided the input for analysis. Sixteen ergonomic constraints were identified, some cognitive, some physical, all considered relevant by the research subjects and expert advisers. Although the safety record of the personnel transportation system studied is considered acceptable, there is low hanging fruit to be picked which can help improve the system's safety.

A Possible Approach for Addressing Neglected Human Factors Issues of Systems Engineering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Christopher W.; Holloway, C. Michael

2011-01-01

The increasing complexity of safety-critical applications has led to the introduction of decision support tools in the transportation and process industries. Automation has also been introduced to support operator intervention in safety-critical applications. These innovations help reduce overall operator workload, and filter application data to maximize the finite cognitive and perceptual resources of system operators. However, these benefits do not come without a cost. Increased computational support for the end-users of safety-critical applications leads to increased reliance on engineers to monitor and maintain automated systems and decision support tools. This paper argues that by focussing on the end-users of complex applications, previous research has tended to neglect the demands that are being placed on systems engineers. The argument is illustrated through discussing three recent accidents. The paper concludes by presenting a possible strategy for building and using highly automated systems based on increased attention by management and regulators, improvements in competency and training for technical staff, sustained support for engineering team resource management, and the development of incident reporting systems for infrastructure failures. This paper represents preliminary work, about which we seek comments and suggestions.

Effective Team Support: From Modeling to Software Agents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Remington, Roger W. (Technical Monitor); John, Bonnie; Sycara, Katia

2003-01-01

The purpose of this research contract was to perform multidisciplinary research between CMU psychologists, computer scientists and engineers and NASA researchers to design a next generation collaborative system to support a team of human experts and intelligent agents. To achieve robust performance enhancement of such a system, we had proposed to perform task and cognitive modeling to thoroughly understand the impact technology makes on the organization and on key individual personnel. Guided by cognitively-inspired requirements, we would then develop software agents that support the human team in decision making, information filtering, information distribution and integration to enhance team situational awareness. During the period covered by this final report, we made substantial progress in modeling infrastructure and task infrastructure. Work is continuing under a different contract to complete empirical data collection, cognitive modeling, and the building of software agents to support the teams task.

Arthur C. Graesser: Award for Distinguished Contributions of Applications of Psychology to Education and Training.

PubMed

2011-11-01

Presents Arthur C. Graesser as the 2011 winner of the American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Contributions of Applications of Psychology to Education and Training. "As a multifaceted psychologist, cognitive engineer of useful education and training technologies, and mentor of new talent for the world of applied and translational cognitive science, Arthur C. Graesser is the perfect role model, showing how a strong scholar and intellect can shape both research and practice. His work is a mix of top-tier scholarship in psychology, education, intelligent systems, and computational linguistics. He combines cognitive science excellence with bold use of psychological knowledge and intelligent systems to design new generations of learning opportunities and to help lay the foundation for a translational science of learning." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved). 2011 APA, all rights reserved

Elementary teachers' mental models of engineering design processes: A comparison of two communities of practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McMahon, Ann P.

Educating K-12 students in the processes of design engineering is gaining popularity in public schools. Several states have adopted standards for engineering design despite the fact that no common agreement exists on what should be included in the K-12 engineering design process. Furthermore, little pre-service and in-service professional development exists that will prepare teachers to teach a design process that is fundamentally different from the science teaching process found in typical public schools. This study provides a glimpse into what teachers think happens in engineering design compared to articulated best practices in engineering design. Wenger's communities of practice work and van Dijk's multidisciplinary theory of mental models provide the theoretical bases for comparing the mental models of two groups of elementary teachers (one group that teaches engineering and one that does not) to the mental models of design engineers (including this engineer/researcher/educator and professionals described elsewhere). The elementary school teachers and this engineer/researcher/educator observed the design engineering process enacted by professionals, then answered questions designed to elicit their mental models of the process they saw in terms of how they would teach it to elementary students. The key finding is this: Both groups of teachers embedded the cognitive steps of the design process into the matrix of the social and emotional roles and skills of students. Conversely, the engineers embedded the social and emotional aspects of the design process into the matrix of the cognitive steps of the design process. In other words, teachers' mental models show that they perceive that students' social and emotional communicative roles and skills in the classroom drive their cognitive understandings of the engineering process, while the mental models of this engineer/researcher/educator and the engineers in the video show that we perceive that cognitive understandings of the engineering process drive the social and emotional roles and skills used in that process. This comparison of mental models with the process that professional designers use defines a problem space for future studies that investigate how to incorporate engineering practices into elementary classrooms. Recommendations for engineering curriculum development and teacher professional development based on this study are presented.

The Flow Engine Framework: A Cognitive Model of Optimal Human Experience

PubMed Central

Šimleša, Milija; Guegan, Jérôme; Blanchard, Edouard; Tarpin-Bernard, Franck; Buisine, Stéphanie

2018-01-01

Flow is a well-known concept in the fields of positive and applied psychology. Examination of a large body of flow literature suggests there is a need for a conceptual model rooted in a cognitive approach to explain how this psychological phenomenon works. In this paper, we propose the Flow Engine Framework, a theoretical model explaining dynamic interactions between rearranged flow components and fundamental cognitive processes. Using an IPO framework (Inputs – Processes – Outputs) including a feedback process, we organize flow characteristics into three logically related categories: inputs (requirements for flow), mediating and moderating cognitive processes (attentional and motivational mechanisms) and outputs (subjective and objective outcomes), describing the process of the flow. Comparing flow with an engine, inputs are depicted as flow-fuel, core processes cylinder strokes and outputs as power created to provide motion. PMID:29899807

Engineering design: A cognitive process approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strimel, Greg Joseph

The intent of this dissertation was to identify the cognitive processes used by advanced pre-engineering students to solve complex engineering design problems. Students in technology and engineering education classrooms are often taught to use an ideal engineering design process that has been generated mostly by educators and curriculum developers. However, the review of literature showed that it is unclear as to how advanced pre-engineering students cognitively navigate solving a complex and multifaceted problem from beginning to end. Additionally, it was unclear how a student thinks and acts throughout their design process and how this affects the viability of their solution. Therefore, Research Objective 1 was to identify the fundamental cognitive processes students use to design, construct, and evaluate operational solutions to engineering design problems. Research Objective 2 was to determine identifiers within student cognitive processes for monitoring aptitude to successfully design, construct, and evaluate technological solutions. Lastly, Research Objective 3 was to create a conceptual technological and engineering problem-solving model integrating student cognitive processes for the improved development of problem-solving abilities. The methodology of this study included multiple forms of data collection. The participants were first given a survey to determine their prior experience with engineering and to provide a description of the subjects being studied. The participants were then presented an engineering design challenge to solve individually. While they completed the challenge, the participants verbalized their thoughts using an established "think aloud" method. These verbalizations were captured along with participant observational recordings using point-of-view camera technology. Additionally, the participant design journals, design artifacts, solution effectiveness data, and teacher evaluations were collected for analysis to help achieve the research objectives of this study. Two independent coders then coded the video/audio recordings and the additional design data using Halfin's (1973) 17 mental processes for technological problem-solving. The results of this study indicated that the participants employed a wide array of mental processes when solving engineering design challenges. However, the findings provide a general analysis of the number of times participants employed each mental process, as well as the amount of time consumed employing the various mental processes through the different stages of the engineering design process. The results indicated many similarities between the students solving the problem, which may highlight voids in current technology and engineering education curricula. Additionally, the findings showed differences between the processes employed by participants that created the most successful solutions and the participants who developed the least effective solutions. Upon comparing and contrasting these processes, recommendations for instructional strategies to enhance a student's capability for solving engineering design problems were developed. The results also indicated that students, when left without teacher intervention, use a simplified and more natural process to solve design challenges than the 12-step engineering design process reported in much of the literature. Lastly, these data indicated that students followed two different approaches to solving the design problem. Some students employed a sequential and logical approach, while others employed a nebulous, solution centered trial-and-error approach to solving the problem. In this study the participants who were more sequential had better performing solutions. Examining these two approaches and the student cognition data enabled the researcher to generate a conceptual engineering design model for the improved teaching and development of engineering design problem solving.

Performance and Cognitive Assessment in 3-D Modeling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fahrer, Nolan E.; Ernst, Jeremy V.; Branoff, Theodore J.; Clark, Aaron C.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate identifiable differences between performance and cognitive assessment scores in a 3-D modeling unit of an engineering drafting course curriculum. The study aimed to provide further investigation of the need of skill-based assessments in engineering/technical graphics courses to potentially increase…

Measurement of cognitive performance in computer programming concept acquisition: interactive effects of visual metaphors and the cognitive style construct.

PubMed

McKay, E

2000-01-01

An innovative research program was devised to investigate the interactive effect of instructional strategies enhanced with text-plus-textual metaphors or text-plus-graphical metaphors, and cognitive style on the acquisition of programming concepts. The Cognitive Styles Analysis (CSA) program (Riding,1991) was used to establish the participants' cognitive style. The QUEST Interactive Test Analysis System (Adams and Khoo,1996) provided the cognitive performance measuring tool, which ensured an absence of error measurement in the programming knowledge testing instruments. Therefore, reliability of the instrumentation was assured through the calibration techniques utilized by the QUEST estimate; providing predictability of the research design. A means analysis of the QUEST data, using the Cohen (1977) approach to size effect and statistical power further quantified the significance of the findings. The experimental methodology adopted for this research links the disciplines of instructional science, cognitive psychology, and objective measurement to provide reliable mechanisms for beneficial use in the evaluation of cognitive performance by the education, training and development sectors. Furthermore, the research outcomes will be of interest to educators, cognitive psychologists, communications engineers, and computer scientists specializing in computer-human interactions.

Outsourcing neural active control to passive composite mechanics: a tissue engineered cyborg ray

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gazzola, Mattia; Park, Sung Jin; Park, Kyung Soo; Park, Shirley; di Santo, Valentina; Deisseroth, Karl; Lauder, George V.; Mahadevan, L.; Parker, Kevin Kit

2016-11-01

Translating the blueprint that stingrays and skates provide, we create a cyborg swimming ray capable of orchestrating adaptive maneuvering and phototactic navigation. The impossibility of replicating the neural system of batoids fish is bypassed by outsourcing algorithmic functionalities to the body composite mechanics, hence casting the active control problem into a design, passive one. We present a first step in engineering multilevel "brain-body-flow" systems that couple sensory information to motor coordination and movement, leading to behavior. This work paves the way for the development of autonomous and adaptive artificial creatures able to process multiple sensory inputs and produce complex behaviors in distributed systems and may represent a path toward soft-robotic "embodied cognition".

Glancing and Then Looking: On the Role of Body, Affect, and Meaning in Cognitive Control

PubMed Central

Su, Li; Bowman, Howard; Barnard, Philip

2011-01-01

In humans, there is a trade-off between the need to respond optimally to the salient environmental stimuli and the need to meet our long-term goals. This implies that a system of salience sensitive control exists, which trades task-directed processing off against monitoring and responding to potentially high salience stimuli that are irrelevant to the current task. Much cognitive control research has attempted to understand these mechanisms using non-affective stimuli. However, recent research has emphasized the importance of emotions, which are a major factor in the prioritization of competing stimuli and in directing attention. While relatively mature theories of cognitive control exist for non-affective settings, exactly how emotions modulate cognitive processes is less well understood. The attentional blink (AB) task is a useful experimental paradigm to reveal the dynamics of both cognitive and affective control in humans. Hence, we have developed the glance–look model, which has replicated a broad profile of data on the semantic AB task and characterized how attentional deployment is modulated by emotion. Taking inspiration from Barnard’s Interacting Cognitive Subsystems, the model relies on a distinction between two levels of meaning: implicational and propositional, which are supported by two corresponding mental subsystems: the glance and the look respectively. In our model, these two subsystems reflect the central engine of cognitive control and executive function. In particular, the interaction within the central engine dynamically establishes a task filter for salient stimuli using a neurobiologically inspired learning mechanism. In addition, the somatic contribution of emotional effects is modeled by a body-state subsystem. We argue that stimulus-driven interaction among these three subsystems governs the movement of control between them. The model also predicts attenuation effects and fringe awareness during the AB. PMID:22194729

Glancing and then looking: on the role of body, affect, and meaning in cognitive control.

PubMed

Su, Li; Bowman, Howard; Barnard, Philip

2011-01-01

In humans, there is a trade-off between the need to respond optimally to the salient environmental stimuli and the need to meet our long-term goals. This implies that a system of salience sensitive control exists, which trades task-directed processing off against monitoring and responding to potentially high salience stimuli that are irrelevant to the current task. Much cognitive control research has attempted to understand these mechanisms using non-affective stimuli. However, recent research has emphasized the importance of emotions, which are a major factor in the prioritization of competing stimuli and in directing attention. While relatively mature theories of cognitive control exist for non-affective settings, exactly how emotions modulate cognitive processes is less well understood. The attentional blink (AB) task is a useful experimental paradigm to reveal the dynamics of both cognitive and affective control in humans. Hence, we have developed the glance-look model, which has replicated a broad profile of data on the semantic AB task and characterized how attentional deployment is modulated by emotion. Taking inspiration from Barnard's Interacting Cognitive Subsystems, the model relies on a distinction between two levels of meaning: implicational and propositional, which are supported by two corresponding mental subsystems: the glance and the look respectively. In our model, these two subsystems reflect the central engine of cognitive control and executive function. In particular, the interaction within the central engine dynamically establishes a task filter for salient stimuli using a neurobiologically inspired learning mechanism. In addition, the somatic contribution of emotional effects is modeled by a body-state subsystem. We argue that stimulus-driven interaction among these three subsystems governs the movement of control between them. The model also predicts attenuation effects and fringe awareness during the AB.

Cognitive science in the era of artificial intelligence: A roadmap for reverse-engineering the infant language-learner.

PubMed

Dupoux, Emmanuel

2018-04-01

Spectacular progress in the information processing sciences (machine learning, wearable sensors) promises to revolutionize the study of cognitive development. Here, we analyse the conditions under which 'reverse engineering' language development, i.e., building an effective system that mimics infant's achievements, can contribute to our scientific understanding of early language development. We argue that, on the computational side, it is important to move from toy problems to the full complexity of the learning situation, and take as input as faithful reconstructions of the sensory signals available to infants as possible. On the data side, accessible but privacy-preserving repositories of home data have to be setup. On the psycholinguistic side, specific tests have to be constructed to benchmark humans and machines at different linguistic levels. We discuss the feasibility of this approach and present an overview of current results. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Pictorial Visual Rotation Ability of Engineering Design Graphics Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ernst, Jeremy Vaughn; Lane, Diarmaid; Clark, Aaron C.

2015-01-01

The ability to rotate visual mental images is a complex cognitive skill. It requires the building of graphical libraries of information through short or long term memory systems and the subsequent retrieval and manipulation of these towards a specified goal. The development of mental rotation skill is of critical importance within engineering…

Cognitive styles of Forest Service scientists and managers in the Pacific Northwest.

Treesearch

Andrew B. Carey

1997-01-01

Preferences of executives, foresters, and biologists of the Pacific Northwest Research Station and executives, District Rangers, foresters, engineers, and biologists of the Pacific Northwest Region, National Forest System (USDA Forest Service), were compared for various thinking styles. Herrmann brain dominance profiles from 230 scientists and managers were drawn from...

Cognitive science as an interface between rational and mechanistic explanation.

PubMed

Chater, Nick

2014-04-01

Cognitive science views thought as computation; and computation, by its very nature, can be understood in both rational and mechanistic terms. In rational terms, a computation solves some information processing problem (e.g., mapping sensory information into a description of the external world; parsing a sentence; selecting among a set of possible actions). In mechanistic terms, a computation corresponds to causal chain of events in a physical device (in engineering context, a silicon chip; in biological context, the nervous system). The discipline is thus at the interface between two very different styles of explanation--as the papers in the current special issue well illustrate, it explores the interplay of rational and mechanistic forces. Copyright © 2014 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Expert vs. novice: Problem decomposition/recomposition in engineering design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Ting

The purpose of this research was to investigate the differences of using problem decomposition and problem recomposition among dyads of engineering experts, dyads of engineering seniors, and dyads of engineering freshmen. Fifty participants took part in this study. Ten were engineering design experts, 20 were engineering seniors, and 20 were engineering freshmen. Participants worked in dyads to complete an engineering design challenge within an hour. The entire design process was video and audio recorded. After the design session, members participated in a group interview. This study used protocol analysis as the methodology. Video and audio data were transcribed, segmented, and coded. Two coding systems including the FBS ontology and "levels of the problem" were used in this study. A series of statistical techniques were used to analyze data. Interview data and participants' design sketches also worked as supplemental data to help answer the research questions. By analyzing the quantitative and qualitative data, it was found that students used less problem decomposition and problem recomposition than engineer experts in engineering design. This result implies that engineering education should place more importance on teaching problem decomposition and problem recomposition. Students were found to spend less cognitive effort when considering the problem as a whole and interactions between subsystems than engineer experts. In addition, students were also found to spend more cognitive effort when considering details of subsystems. These results showed that students tended to use dept-first decomposition and experts tended to use breadth-first decomposition in engineering design. The use of Function (F), Behavior (B), and Structure (S) among engineering experts, engineering seniors, and engineering freshmen was compared on three levels. Level 1 represents designers consider the problem as an integral whole, Level 2 represents designers consider interactions between subsystems, and Level 3 represents designers consider details of subsystems. The results showed that students used more S on Level 1 and 3 but they used less F on Level 1 than engineering experts. The results imply that engineering curriculum should improve the teaching of problem definition in engineering design because students need to understand the problem before solving it.

"Setting up for the Next Big Thing": Undergraduate Women Engineering Students' Postbaccalaureate Career Decisions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Kathleen N.; Gayles, Joy Gaston

2017-01-01

Using social cognitive career theory and the cognitive information processing model as frameworks, in this constructivist case study we examined the career-related experiences and decisions of 10 women engineering undergraduate seniors who accepted full-time positions. From the data analysis 3 major themes emerged: critical undergraduate…

Assessing Cognitive Load Theory to Improve Student Learning for Mechanical Engineers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Impelluso, Thomas J.

2009-01-01

A computer programming class for students of mechanical engineering was redesigned and assessed: Cognitive Load Theory was used to redesign the content; online technologies were used to redesign the delivery. Student learning improved and the dropout rate was reduced. This article reports on both attitudinal and objective assessment: comparing…

Cognitive Apprenticeship and the Supervision of Science and Engineering Research Assistants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maher, Michelle A.; Gilmore, Joanna A.; Feldon, David F.; Davis, Telesia E.

2013-01-01

We explore and critically reflect on the research development of eight science or engineering doctoral students serving as research assistants over the course of an academic year. We use a cognitive apprenticeship framework, assumed to explain doctoral students' skill development, to interpret narratives of skill development for students and their…

Predictive validity of five cognitive skills tests among women receiving engineering training

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wittig, Michele Andrisin; Hennix Sasse, Sharon; Giacomi, Jean

This article addresses two sets of theoretical and practical issues related to increasing the percentage of women engineers. First, the measurement of women's aptitude for and changes in skills during engineering training was assessed. Five cognitive skills tests were administered in a one-group pretest-posttest design to 24 baccalaureate women enrolled in an eleven-month engineering training course. Significant increases in skills were shown on three of the five assessments. Scores on a mathematics anxiety scale and a measure of conservation of horizontality are also reported. Second, the relationship of academic and demographic information and cognitive skills to degree of success in the program is reported. Pretraining spatial visualization scores predicted posttraining GPA group membership. The results are compared and contrasted with those of studies of male undergraduates. Implications are drawn concerning the ways in which evaluations of such programs can contribute to our understanding of the changes in skills that occur with training in engineering and of the factors that predict success in such programs.

[Aerotoxic syndrome: fact or fiction?].

PubMed

de Graaf, Leroy J; Hageman, Gerard; Gouders, Bernie C M; Mulder, Michel F A

2014-01-01

Although the air from the turbine engines of commercial jet aircraft is used chiefly for propulsion some is also used to refresh and replenish air in the cabin. As a result of oil-seal leakage, pyrolysed engine oil or lubricating oil can contaminate cabin air via the aircraft's ventilation system, and flight crew and passengers can then inhale the combusted fumes. Exposure to emissions from cabin air, whether polluted or not, is associated with certain health risks. This phenomenon is known as the aerotoxic syndrome or 'cabin contamination'. The symptoms are non-specific, consisting predominantly of fatigue and mild cognitive impairment. Possible adverse health effects are attributed factors including organophosphate tricresyl phosphate, a component of aircraft engine oil that is potently neurotoxic.

The rehabilitation engineering research center for the advancement of cognitive technologies.

PubMed

Heyn, Patricia Cristine; Cassidy, Joy Lucille; Bodine, Cathy

2015-02-01

Barring few exceptions, allied health professionals, engineers, manufacturers of assistive technologies (ATs), and consumer product manufacturers have developed few technologies for individuals with cognitive impairments (CIs). In 2004, the National Institute on Disability Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) recognized the need to support research in this emergent field. They funded the first Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for the Advancement of Cognitive Technologies (RERC-ACT). The RERC-ACT has since designed and evaluated existing and emerging technologies through rigorous research, improving upon existing AT devices, and creating new technologies for individuals with CIs. The RERC-ACT has contributed to the development and testing of AT products that assist persons with CIs to actively engage in tasks of daily living at home, school, work, and in the community. This article highlights the RERC-ACT's engineering development and research projects and discusses how current research may impact the quality of life for an aging population. © The Author(s) 2014.

Teaching problem solving: Don't forget the problem solver(s)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ranade, Saidas M.; Corrales, Angela

2013-05-01

The importance of intrapersonal and interpersonal intelligences has long been known but educators have debated whether to and how to incorporate those topics in an already crowded engineering curriculum. In 2010, the authors used the classroom as a laboratory to observe the usefulness of including selected case studies and exercises from the fields of neurology, artificial intelligence, cognitive sciences and social psychology in a new problem-solving course. To further validate their initial findings, in 2012, the authors conducted an online survey of engineering students and engineers. The main conclusion is that engineering students will benefit from learning more about the impact of emotions, culture, diversity and cognitive biases when solving problems. Specifically, the work shows that an augmented problem-solving curriculum needs to include lessons on labelling emotions and cognitive biases, 'evidence-based' data on the importance of culture and diversity and additional practice on estimating conditional probability.

Study of the scientific reasoning methods: Identifying the salient reasoning characteristics exhibited by engineers and scientists in an R&D environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuhn, William F.

At the core of what it means to be a scientist or engineer is the ability to think rationally using scientific reasoning methods. Yet, typically if asked, scientist and engineers are hard press for a reply what that means. Some may argue that the meaning of scientific reasoning methods is a topic for the philosophers and psychologist, but this study believes and will prove that the answers lie with the scientists and engineers, for who really know the workings of the scientific reasoning thought process than they. This study will provide evidence to the aims: (a) determine the fundamental characteristics of cognitive reasoning methods exhibited by engineer/scientists working in R&D projects, (b) sample the engineer/scientist community to determine their views as to the importance, frequency, and ranking of each of characteristics towards benefiting their R&D projects, (c) make concluding remarks regarding any identified competency gaps in the exhibited or expected cognitive reasoning methods of engineer/scientists working on R&D projects. To drive these aims are the following three research questions. The first, what are the salient characteristics of cognitive reasoning methods exhibited by engineer/scientists in an R&D environment? The second, what do engineer/scientists consider to be the frequency and importance of the salient cognitive reasoning methods characteristics? And the third, to what extent, if at all, do patent holders and technical fellows differ with regard to their perceptions of the importance and frequency of the salient cognitive reasoning characteristics of engineer/scientists? The methodology and empirical approach utilized and described: (a) literature search, (b) Delphi technique composed of seven highly distinguish engineer/scientists, (c) survey instrument directed to distinguish Technical Fellowship, (d) data collection analysis. The results provide by Delphi Team answered the first research question. The collaborative effort validated presented characteristic and most importantly presents ten additional novel or new reasoning characteristics. These characteristics were then presented and evaluated by the Technical Fellows. Their findings answered the second and third research question. With interesting results including the data indicating "imagination" as highest in importance and frequency, and comparison analysis of the patent holders showing those having five or more patents significantly valued "intuition (independent).

Simulation as an Engine of Physical Scene Understanding

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-11-05

critical to the origins of intelligence : Researchers in developmental psychology, language, animal cognition, and artificial intelligence (2–6) con- sider...implemented computationally in classic artificial intelligence systems (18–20). However, these systems have not attempted to engage with physical scene un...N00014-09-0124, N00014-07-1-0937, and 1015GNA126; by Qualcomm; and by Intelligence Advanced Research Project Activity Grant D10PC20023. 1. Marr D (1982

A Systems Engineering Survey of Artificial Intelligence and Smart Sensor Networks in a Network-Centric Environment

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-09-01

problems, to better model the problem solving of computer systems. This research brought about the intertwining of AI and cognitive psychology . Much of...where symbol sequences are sequential intelligent states of the network, and must be classified as normal, abnormal , or unknown. These symbols...is associated with abnormal behavior; and abcbc is associated with unknown behavior, as it fits no known behavior. Predicted outcomes from

Dimensions of Human-Work Domain Interaction: A Preliminary Analysis for the Design of a Corporate Digital Library.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Xie, Hong

2003-01-01

Applies the cognitive system engineering approach to investigate human-work interaction at a corporate setting. Reports preliminary analysis of data collected from diary analysis and interview of 20 subjects. Results identify three dimensions for each of four interactive activities involved in human-work interaction and their relationships.…

A Study Module in the Logical Structure of Cognitive Process in the Context of Variable-Based Blended Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smirnova, Galina I.; Katashev, Valery G.

2017-01-01

Blended learning is increasingly gaining importance in all levels of educational system, particularly in tertiary education. In engineering profiles the core blended learning activity is students' independent work, the efficiency of which is defined by the degree of students' active involvement into the educational process, their ability to absorb…

Academic satisfaction among Latino/a and White men and women engineering students.

PubMed

Flores, Lisa Y; Navarro, Rachel L; Lee, Hang Shim; Addae, Dorothy A; Gonzalez, Rebecca; Luna, Laura L; Jacquez, Ricardo; Cooper, Sonya; Mitchell, Martha

2014-01-01

The current study tests a model of academic satisfaction in engineering based on Lent, Brown, and Hackett's (1994, 2000) social cognitive career theory among a sample of 527 engineering majors attending a Hispanic serving institution. The findings indicated that (a) an alternative bidirectional model fit the data for the full sample; (b) all of the hypothesized relations were significant for the full sample, except the path from engineering interests to goals; (c) social cognitive career theory predictors accounted for a significant amount of variance in engineering goals (26.6%) and academic satisfaction (45.1%); and (d) the model parameters did not vary across men and women or across Latino/a and White engineering undergraduate students. Implications for research and practice are discussed in relation to persistence in engineering among women and Latinos/as. (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Certification of tactics and strategies in aviation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koelman, Hartmut

1994-01-01

The paper suggests that the 'tactics and strategies' notion is a highly suitable paradigm to describe the cognitive involvement of human operators in advanced aviation systems (far more suitable than classical functional analysis), and that the workload and situational awareness of operators are intimately associated with the planning and execution of their tactics and strategies. If system designers have muddled views about the collective tactics and strategies to be used during operation, they will produce sub-optimum designs. If operators use unproven and/or inappropriate tactics and strategies, the system may fail. The author wants to make a point that, beyond certification of people or system designs, there may be a need to go into more detail and examine (certify?) the set of tactics and strategies (i.e., the Operational Concept) which makes the people and systems perform as expected. The collective tactics and strategies determine the information flows and situational awareness which exists in organizations and composite human-machine systems. The available infrastructure and equipment (automation) enable these information flows and situational awareness, but are at the same time the constraining factor. Frequently, the tactics and strategies are driven by technology, whereas we would rather like to see a system designed to support an optimized Operational Concept, i.e., to support a sufficiently coherent, cooperative and modular set of anticipation and planning mechanisms. Again, in line with the view of MacLeod and Taylor (1993), this technology driven situation may be caused by the system designer's and operator job designer's over-emphasis on functional analysis (a mechanistic engineering concept), at the expense of a subject which does not seem to be well understood today: the role of the (human cognitive and/or automated) tactics and strategies which are embedded in composite human-machine systems. Research would be needed to arrive at a generally accepted 'planning theory' which can elevate the analysis, description and design of tactics and strategies from today's cottage industry methods to an engineering discipline. The available infrastructure and equipment (automation) enable these information flows and situational awareness, but are at the same time the constraining factor. Frequently, the tactics and strategies are driven by technology, whereas we would rather like to see a system designed to support an optimized Operational Concept, i.e., to support a sufficiently coherent, cooperative and modular set of anticipation and planning mechanisms. Again, in line with the view of MacLeod and Taylor (1993), this technology driven situation may be caused by the system designer's and operator job designer's over-emphasis on functional analysis (a mechanistic engineering concept), at the expense of a subject which does not seem to be well understood today: the role of the (human cognitive and/or automated) tactics and strategies which are embedded in composite human-machine systems. Research would be needed to arrive at a generally accepted 'planning theory' which can evaluate the analysis, description and design of tactics and strategies from today's cottage industry methods to an engineering discipline.

Is synthetic biology mechanical biology?

PubMed

Holm, Sune

2015-12-01

A widespread and influential characterization of synthetic biology emphasizes that synthetic biology is the application of engineering principles to living systems. Furthermore, there is a strong tendency to express the engineering approach to organisms in terms of what seems to be an ontological claim: organisms are machines. In the paper I investigate the ontological and heuristic significance of the machine analogy in synthetic biology. I argue that the use of the machine analogy and the aim of producing rationally designed organisms does not necessarily imply a commitment to mechanical biology. The ideal of applying engineering principles to biology is best understood as expressing recognition of the machine-unlikeness of natural organisms and the limits of human cognition. The paper suggests an interpretation of the identification of organisms with machines in synthetic biology according to which it expresses a strategy for representing, understanding, and constructing living systems that are more machine-like than natural organisms.

Development of Web-Based Learning Environment Model to Enhance Cognitive Skills for Undergraduate Students in the Field of Electrical Engineering

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lakonpol, Thongmee; Ruangsuwan, Chaiyot; Terdtoon, Pradit

2015-01-01

This research aimed to develop a web-based learning environment model for enhancing cognitive skills of undergraduate students in the field of electrical engineering. The research is divided into 4 phases: 1) investigating the current status and requirements of web-based learning environment models. 2) developing a web-based learning environment…

Influence of Social Cognitive and Ethnic Variables on Academic Goals of Underrepresented Students in Science and Engineering: A Multiple-Groups Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Byars-Winston, Angela; Estrada, Yannine; Howard, Christina; Davis, Dalelia; Zalapa, Juan

2010-01-01

In this study we investigated the academic interests and goals of 223 African American, Latino/a, Southeast Asian, and Native American undergraduate students in 2 groups: biological science (BIO) and engineering (ENG) majors. Using social cognitive career theory (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994), we examined the relationships of social cognitive…

Foundations to the unified psycho-cognitive engine.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bernard, Michael Lewis; Bier, Asmeret Brooke; Backus, George A.

This document outlines the key features of the SNL psychological engine. The engine is designed to be a generic presentation of cognitive entities interacting among themselves and with the external world. The engine combines the most accepted theories of behavioral psychology with those of behavioral economics to produce a unified simulation of human response from stimuli through executed behavior. The engine explicitly recognizes emotive and reasoned contributions to behavior and simulates the dynamics associated with cue processing, learning, and choice selection. Most importantly, the model parameterization can come from available media or survey information, as well subject-matter-expert information. The frameworkmore » design allows the use of uncertainty quantification and sensitivity analysis to manage confidence in using the analysis results for intervention decisions.« less

Advancing cognitive engineering methods to support user interface design for electronic health records

PubMed Central

Thyvalikakath, Thankam P.; Dziabiak, Michael P.; Johnson, Raymond; Torres-Urquidy, Miguel Humberto; Acharya, Amit; Yabes, Jonathan; Schleyer, Titus K.

2014-01-01

Background Despite many decades of research on the effective development of clinical systems in medicine, the adoption of health information technology to improve patient care continues to be slow, especially in ambulatory settings. This applies to dentistry as well, a primary care discipline with approximately 137,000 practitioners in the United States. A critical reason for slow adoption is the poor usability of clinical systems, which makes it difficult for providers to navigate through the information and obtain an integrated view of patient data. Objective In this study, we documented the cognitive processes and information management strategies used by dentists during a typical patient examination. The results will inform the design of a novel electronic dental record interface. Methods We conducted a cognitive task analysis (CTA) study to observe ten general dentists (five general dentists and five general dental faculty members, each with more than two years of clinical experience) examining three simulated patient cases using a think-aloud protocol. Results Dentists first reviewed the patient’s demographics, chief complaint, medical history and dental history to determine the general status of the patient. Subsequently, they proceeded to examine the patient’s intraoral status using radiographs, intraoral images, hard tissue and periodontal tissue information. The results also identified dentists’ patterns of navigation through patient’s information and additional information needs during a typical clinician-patient encounter. Conclusion This study reinforced the significance of applying cognitive engineering methods to inform the design of a clinical system. Second, applying CTA to a scenario closely simulating an actual patient encounter helped with capturing participants’ knowledge states and decision-making when diagnosing and treating a patient. The resultant knowledge of dentists’ patterns of information retrieval and review will significantly contribute to designing flexible and task-appropriate information presentation in electronic dental records. PMID:24503391

Editorial: Computational Creativity, Concept Invention, and General Intelligence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Besold, Tarek R.; Kühnberger, Kai-Uwe; Veale, Tony

2015-12-01

Over the last decade, computational creativity as a field of scientific investigation and computational systems engineering has seen growing popularity. Still, the levels of development between projects aiming at systems for artistic production or performance and endeavours addressing creative problem-solving or models of creative cognitive capacities is diverging. While the former have already seen several great successes, the latter still remain in their infancy. This volume collects reports on work trying to close the accrued gap.

The Design of an Interface to a Programming System and MENUNIX: A Menu-Based Interface to UNIX (User Manual). Two Papers in Cognitive Engineering. Technical Report No. 8105.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perlman, Gary

This report consists of two papers on MENUNIX, an experimental interface to the approximately 300 programs and files available on the Berkeley UNIX 4.0 version of the UNIX operating system. The first paper discusses some of the psychological concerns involved in the design of MENUNIX; the second is a tutorial user manual for MENUNIX, in which the…

Engineering for reliability in at-home chronic disease management

PubMed Central

Kendall, Logan; Eschler, Jordan; Lozano, Paula; McClure, Jennifer B.; Vizer, Lisa M.; Ralston, James D.; Pratt, Wanda

2014-01-01

Individuals with chronic conditions face challenges with maintaining lifelong adherence to self-management activities. Although reminders can help support the cognitive demands of managing daily and future health tasks, we understand little of how they fit into people’s daily lives. Utilizing a maximum variation sampling method, we interviewed and compared the experiences of 20 older adults with diabetes and 19 mothers of children with asthma to understand reminder use for at-home chronic disease management. Based on our participants’ experiences, we contend that many self-management failures should be viewed as systems failures, rather than individual failures and non-compliance. Furthermore, we identify key principles from reliability engineering that both explain current behavior and suggest strategies to improve patient reminder systems. PMID:25954384

Engineering for reliability in at-home chronic disease management.

PubMed

Kendall, Logan; Eschler, Jordan; Lozano, Paula; McClure, Jennifer B; Vizer, Lisa M; Ralston, James D; Pratt, Wanda

2014-01-01

Individuals with chronic conditions face challenges with maintaining lifelong adherence to self-management activities. Although reminders can help support the cognitive demands of managing daily and future health tasks, we understand little of how they fit into people's daily lives. Utilizing a maximum variation sampling method, we interviewed and compared the experiences of 20 older adults with diabetes and 19 mothers of children with asthma to understand reminder use for at-home chronic disease management. Based on our participants' experiences, we contend that many self-management failures should be viewed as systems failures, rather than individual failures and non-compliance. Furthermore, we identify key principles from reliability engineering that both explain current behavior and suggest strategies to improve patient reminder systems.

Design implications for task-specific search utilities for retrieval and re-engineering of code

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iqbal, Rahat; Grzywaczewski, Adam; Halloran, John; Doctor, Faiyaz; Iqbal, Kashif

2017-05-01

The importance of information retrieval systems is unquestionable in the modern society and both individuals as well as enterprises recognise the benefits of being able to find information effectively. Current code-focused information retrieval systems such as Google Code Search, Codeplex or Koders produce results based on specific keywords. However, these systems do not take into account developers' context such as development language, technology framework, goal of the project, project complexity and developer's domain expertise. They also impose additional cognitive burden on users in switching between different interfaces and clicking through to find the relevant code. Hence, they are not used by software developers. In this paper, we discuss how software engineers interact with information and general-purpose information retrieval systems (e.g. Google, Yahoo!) and investigate to what extent domain-specific search and recommendation utilities can be developed in order to support their work-related activities. In order to investigate this, we conducted a user study and found that software engineers followed many identifiable and repeatable work tasks and behaviours. These behaviours can be used to develop implicit relevance feedback-based systems based on the observed retention actions. Moreover, we discuss the implications for the development of task-specific search and collaborative recommendation utilities embedded with the Google standard search engine and Microsoft IntelliSense for retrieval and re-engineering of code. Based on implicit relevance feedback, we have implemented a prototype of the proposed collaborative recommendation system, which was evaluated in a controlled environment simulating the real-world situation of professional software engineers. The evaluation has achieved promising initial results on the precision and recall performance of the system.

Impact of Cognitive-Based Instructional Intervention on Learning Motivation: The Implementation of Student-Made Glossary in a Programming-Oriented Engineering Problem-Solving Course and Its Impact on Learning Motivation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, David Wenhao; Aagard, Hans; Diefes-Dux, Heidi

2004-01-01

This article describes the purpose, development, and implementation of a cognitive-based instructional intervention and its impact on learning motivation. The study was conducted in a programming-based problemsolving course for first-year engineering students. The results suggest that the instructional intervention developed based on the…

A novel approach for cognitive radio application in 2.4-GHz ISM band

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Das, Deepa; Das, Susmita

2017-05-01

This paper reveals the issues of incorporating the cognitive radio (CR) technology in the 2.4-GHz industrial, scientific and medical band. The objective of allowing the coexisting systems in this unlicensed band is to opportunistically share the underutilised spectrum so as to improve the spectral usages efficiency. Hence, proper evaluation of the spectrum occupancy is one of the important tasks. Therefore, we adopt a double threshold-based detection scheme to differentiate the sub-bands with respect to their occupancy statistics satisfying the target miss detection probability. Further, an adaptive power allocation to the CR user (CRU) is proposed for maximising the system throughput under the constraints of interference to the co-existing systems and maximum transmission power. We consider path loss in the channel modelling between the CRUs. Our proposed approach is investigated over the real measurement data collected in the Swearingen Engineering Center, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.

Methodology of problem-based learning engineering and technology and of its implementation with modern computer resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lebedev, A. A.; Ivanova, E. G.; Komleva, V. A.; Klokov, N. M.; Komlev, A. A.

2017-01-01

The considered method of learning the basics of microelectronic circuits and systems amplifier enables one to understand electrical processes deeper, to understand the relationship between static and dynamic characteristics and, finally, bring the learning process to the cognitive process. The scheme of problem-based learning can be represented by the following sequence of procedures: the contradiction is perceived and revealed; the cognitive motivation is provided by creating a problematic situation (the mental state of the student), moving the desire to solve the problem, to raise the question "why?", the hypothesis is made; searches for solutions are implemented; the answer is looked for. Due to the complexity of architectural schemes in the work the modern methods of computer analysis and synthesis are considered in the work. Examples of engineering by students in the framework of students' scientific and research work of analog circuits with improved performance based on standard software and software developed at the Department of Microelectronics MEPhI.

An examination of the identity development of African American undergraduate engineering students attending an HBCU

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taylor, Kenneth J.

This study examined the identity development for a sample of 90 African American undergraduate engineering male and female students attending an HBCU. Using the Student Development Task and Lifestyle Assessment (SDTLA), which is based on Chickering and Reisser's identity development theory, differences in identity development were examined with respect to gender, academic classification, and grade point average. Previous research has shown the need to look beyond academic factors to understand and influence the persistence of African American engineering students. Non-cognitive factors, including identity development have proven to be influential in predicting persistence, especially for African American engineering students. Results from the analysis revealed significant means for academic classification and five of the dependent variables to include career planning peer relations, emotional autonomy, educational involvement, and establishing and clarifying purpose. Post hoc analysis confirmed significant differences for four of those dependent variables. However, the analysis failed to confirm statistical significant differences in peer relations due to academic classification. The significant decline in the mean scores for development in these four areas, as students progressed from sophomore to senior year revealed strong implications for the need to provide programming and guidance for those students. Institutions of higher education should provide more attention to the non-cognitive areas of development as a means of understanding identity development and working toward creating support systems for students.

Normal people working in normal organizations with normal equipment: system safety and cognition in a mid-air collision.

PubMed

de Carvalho, Paulo Victor Rodrigues; Gomes, José Orlando; Huber, Gilbert Jacob; Vidal, Mario Cesar

2009-05-01

A fundamental challenge in improving the safety of complex systems is to understand how accidents emerge in normal working situations, with equipment functioning normally in normally structured organizations. We present a field study of the en route mid-air collision between a commercial carrier and an executive jet, in the clear afternoon Amazon sky in which 154 people lost their lives, that illustrates one response to this challenge. Our focus was on how and why the several safety barriers of a well structured air traffic system melted down enabling the occurrence of this tragedy, without any catastrophic component failure, and in a situation where everything was functioning normally. We identify strong consistencies and feedbacks regarding factors of system day-to-day functioning that made monitoring and awareness difficult, and the cognitive strategies that operators have developed to deal with overall system behavior. These findings emphasize the active problem-solving behavior needed in air traffic control work, and highlight how the day-to-day functioning of the system can jeopardize such behavior. An immediate consequence is that safety managers and engineers should review their traditional safety approach and accident models based on equipment failure probability, linear combinations of failures, rules and procedures, and human errors, to deal with complex patterns of coincidence possibilities, unexpected links, resonance among system functions and activities, and system cognition.

Cognitive Bias in the Verification and Validation of Space Flight Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Larson, Steve

2012-01-01

Cognitive bias is generally recognized as playing a significant role in virtually all domains of human decision making. Insight into this role is informally built into many of the system engineering practices employed in the aerospace industry. The review process, for example, typically has features that help to counteract the effect of bias. This paper presents a discussion of how commonly recognized biases may affect the verification and validation process. Verifying and validating a system is arguably more challenging than development, both technically and cognitively. Whereas there may be a relatively limited number of options available for the design of a particular aspect of a system, there is a virtually unlimited number of potential verification scenarios that may be explored. The probability of any particular scenario occurring in operations is typically very difficult to estimate, which increases reliance on judgment that may be affected by bias. Implementing a verification activity often presents technical challenges that, if they can be overcome at all, often result in a departure from actual flight conditions (e.g., 1-g testing, simulation, time compression, artificial fault injection) that may raise additional questions about the meaningfulness of the results, and create opportunities for the introduction of additional biases. In addition to mitigating the biases it can introduce directly, the verification and validation process must also overcome the cumulative effect of biases introduced during all previous stages of development. A variety of cognitive biases will be described, with research results for illustration. A handful of case studies will be presented that show how cognitive bias may have affected the verification and validation process on recent JPL flight projects, identify areas of strength and weakness, and identify potential changes or additions to commonly used techniques that could provide a more robust verification and validation of future systems.

Creative brains: designing in the real world†

PubMed Central

Goel, Vinod

2014-01-01

The process of designing artifacts is a creative activity. It is proposed that, at the cognitive level, one key to understanding design creativity is to understand the array of symbol systems designers utilize. These symbol systems range from being vague, imprecise, abstract, ambiguous, and indeterminate (like conceptual sketches), to being very precise, concrete, unambiguous, and determinate (like contract documents). The former types of symbol systems support associative processes that facilitate lateral (or divergent) transformations that broaden the problem space, while the latter types of symbol systems support inference processes facilitating vertical (or convergent) transformations that deepen of the problem space. The process of artifact design requires the judicious application of both lateral and vertical transformations. This leads to a dual mechanism model of design problem-solving comprising of an associative engine and an inference engine. It is further claimed that this dual mechanism model is supported by an interesting hemispheric dissociation in human prefrontal cortex. The associative engine and neural structures that support imprecise, ambiguous, abstract, indeterminate representations are lateralized in the right prefrontal cortex, while the inference engine and neural structures that support precise, unambiguous, determinant representations are lateralized in the left prefrontal cortex. At the brain level, successful design of artifacts requires a delicate balance between the two hemispheres of prefrontal cortex. PMID:24817846

Soldier experiments and assessments using SPEAR speech control system for UGVs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Jonathan; Blanco, Chris; Czerniak, Jeffrey; Hoffman, Brian; Hoffman, Orin; Juneja, Amit; Ngia, Lester; Pruthi, Tarun; Liu, Dongqing

2010-04-01

This paper reports on a Soldier Experiment performed by the Army Research Lab's Human Research Engineering Directorate (HRED) Field Element located at the Maneuver Center of Excellence, Ft. Benning, and a Limited Use Assessment conducted by the Marine Corps Forces Pacific Command Experimentation Center (MEC) at Camp Pendleton evaluating the effectiveness of using speech commands to control an Unmanned Ground Vehicle. SPEAR, developed by Think-A-Move, Ltd., provides speech control of UGVs. SPEAR detects user speech in the ear canal with an earpiece containing an in-ear microphone. The system design provides up to 30 dB of passive noise reduction, enabling it to work well in high-noise environments, where traditional speech systems, using external microphones, fail; it also utilizes a proprietary speech recognition engine. SPEAR has been integrated with iRobot's PackBot 510 with FasTac Kit, and with Multi-Robot Operator Control Unit (MOCU), developed by SPAWAR Systems Center Pacific. These integrated systems allow speech to supplement the hand-controller for multi-modal control of different UGV functions simultaneously. HRED's experiment measured the impact of SPEAR on reducing the cognitive load placed on UGV Operators and the time to complete specific tasks. Army NCOs and Officer School Candidates participated in this experiment, which found that speech control was faster than manual control to complete tasks requiring menu navigation, as well as reducing the cognitive load on UGV Operators. The MEC assessment examined speech commands used for two different missions: Route Clearance and Cordon and Search; participants included Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technicians and Combat Engineers. The majority of the Marines thought it was easier to complete the mission scenarios with SPEAR than with only using manual controls, and that using SPEAR improved their situational awareness. Overall results of these Assessments are reported in the paper, along with possible applications to autonomous mine detection systems.

Data Discovery with IBM Watson

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fessler, J.

2016-12-01

BM Watson is a cognitive computing system that uses machine learning, statistical analysis, and natural language processing to find and understand the clues in questions posed to it. Watson was made famous when it bested two champions on TV's Jeopardy! show. Since then, Watson has evolved into a platform of cognitive services that can be trained on very granular fields up study. Watson is being used to support a number of subject domains, such as cancer research, public safety, engineering, and the intelligence community. IBM will be providing a presentation and demonstration on the Watson technology and will discuss its capabilities including Natural Language Processing, text analytics and enterprise search, as well as cognitive computing with deep Q&A. The team will also be giving examples of how IBM Watson technology is being used to support real-world problems across a number of public sector agencies

Modeling driver behavior in a cognitive architecture.

PubMed

Salvucci, Dario D

2006-01-01

This paper explores the development of a rigorous computational model of driver behavior in a cognitive architecture--a computational framework with underlying psychological theories that incorporate basic properties and limitations of the human system. Computational modeling has emerged as a powerful tool for studying the complex task of driving, allowing researchers to simulate driver behavior and explore the parameters and constraints of this behavior. An integrated driver model developed in the ACT-R (Adaptive Control of Thought-Rational) cognitive architecture is described that focuses on the component processes of control, monitoring, and decision making in a multilane highway environment. This model accounts for the steering profiles, lateral position profiles, and gaze distributions of human drivers during lane keeping, curve negotiation, and lane changing. The model demonstrates how cognitive architectures facilitate understanding of driver behavior in the context of general human abilities and constraints and how the driving domain benefits cognitive architectures by pushing model development toward more complex, realistic tasks. The model can also serve as a core computational engine for practical applications that predict and recognize driver behavior and distraction.

Intelligent Systems For Aerospace Engineering: An Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

KrishnaKumar, K.

2003-01-01

Intelligent systems are nature-inspired, mathematically sound, computationally intensive problem solving tools and methodologies that have become extremely important for advancing the current trends in information technology. Artificially intelligent systems currently utilize computers to emulate various faculties of human intelligence and biological metaphors. They use a combination of symbolic and sub-symbolic systems capable of evolving human cognitive skills and intelligence, not just systems capable of doing things humans do not do well. Intelligent systems are ideally suited for tasks such as search and optimization, pattern recognition and matching, planning, uncertainty management, control, and adaptation. In this paper, the intelligent system technologies and their application potential are highlighted via several examples.

Intelligent Systems for Aerospace Engineering: An Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krishnakumar, Kalmanje

2002-01-01

Intelligent systems are nature-inspired, mathematically sound, computationally intensive problem solving tools and methodologies that have become extremely important for advancing the current trends in information technology. Artificially intelligent systems currently utilize computers to emulate various faculties of human intelligence and biological metaphors. They use a combination of symbolic and sub-symbolic systems capable of evolving human cognitive skills and intelligence, not just systems capable of doing things humans do not do well. Intelligent systems are ideally suited for tasks such as search and optimization, pattern recognition and matching, planning, uncertainty management, control, and adaptation. In this paper, the intelligent system technologies and their application potential are highlighted via several examples.

Methodological Considerations in the Design of Large Scale Systems Engineering Processes.

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-02-01

phases as policy and proqram planning, project planning, system development , etc. 32 ro4- E V4-) C 0 (U JW 4-) L > U>) EWQ S -4-) (D4-) S - u 4-- , 4 U...orocedurally or substantively acceptable behavior, in either a descriptive or normative sense, in any specific circumstance. Prospect theory developed by...into a conceptual model of cognitive activity is contained in the works of Piaget ** , the founder of "genetic epistemology". According to Piaget

AAAIC '88 - Aerospace Applications of Artificial Intelligence; Proceedings of the Fourth Annual Conference, Dayton, OH, Oct. 25-27, 1988. Volumes 1 2

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Johnson, J.R.; Netrologic, Inc., San Diego, CA)

1988-01-01

Topics presented include integrating neural networks and expert systems, neural networks and signal processing, machine learning, cognition and avionics applications, artificial intelligence and man-machine interface issues, real time expert systems, artificial intelligence, and engineering applications. Also considered are advanced problem solving techniques, combinational optimization for scheduling and resource control, data fusion/sensor fusion, back propagation with momentum, shared weights and recurrency, automatic target recognition, cybernetics, optical neural networks.

A study of the relationship between learning styles and cognitive abilities in engineering students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hames, E.; Baker, M.

2015-03-01

Learning preferences have been indirectly linked to student success in engineering programmes, without a significant body of research to connect learning preferences with cognitive abilities. A better understanding of the relationship between learning styles and cognitive abilities will allow educators to optimise the classroom experience for students. The goal of this study was to determine whether relationships exist between student learning styles, as determined by the Felder-Soloman Inventory of Learning Styles (FSILS), and their cognitive performance. Three tests were used to assess student's cognitive abilities: a matrix reasoning task, a Tower of London task, and a mental rotation task. Statistical t-tests and correlation coefficients were used to quantify the results. Results indicated that the global-sequential, active-referential, and visual-verbal FSILS learning styles scales are related to performance on cognitive tasks. Most of these relationships were found in response times, not accuracy. Differences in task performance between gender groups (male and female) were more notable than differences between learning styles groups.

Understanding of Student Task Interpretation, Design Planning, and Cognitive Strategies during Engineering Design Activities in Grades 9-12. Final Report. Research in Engineering and Technology Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawanto, Oenardi

2011-01-01

The objective of this study was to describe the task interpretation of students engaged in a design activity and determine the extent to which students translate their understanding of their design task to their planning and cognitive strategies. Twenty-nine students at one Colorado high school participated in this study. Students worked…

Cognitive and Motivational Factors That Inspire Hispanic Female Students to Pursue STEM-Related Academic Programs That Lead to Careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morel-Baker, Sonaliz

2017-01-01

Hispanics, and women in particular, continue to be underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The purpose of this study was to analyze cognitive and motivational factors that inspired Hispanic female college students to major in STEM programs and aspire to academic success. This mixed methods study…

The difference engine: a model of diversity in speeded cognition.

PubMed

Myerson, Joel; Hale, Sandra; Zheng, Yingye; Jenkins, Lisa; Widaman, Keith F

2003-06-01

A theory of diversity in speeded cognition, the difference engine, is proposed, in which information processing is represented as a series of generic computational steps. Some individuals tend to perform all of these computations relatively quickly and other individuals tend to perform them all relatively slowly, reflecting the existence of a general cognitive speed factor, but the time required for response selection and execution is assumed to be independent of cognitive speed. The difference engine correctly predicts the positively accelerated form of the relation between diversity of performance, as measured by the standard deviation for the group, and task difficulty, as indexed by the mean response time (RT) for the group. In addition, the difference engine correctly predicts approximately linear relations between the RTs of any individual and average performance for the group, with the regression lines for fast individuals having slopes less than 1.0 (and positive intercepts) and the regression lines for slow individuals having slopes greater than 1.0 (and negative intercepts). Similar predictions are made for comparisons of slow, average, and fast subgroups, regardless of whether those subgroups are formed on the basis of differences in ability, age, or health status. These predictions are consistent with evidence from studies of healthy young and older adults as well as from studies of depressed and age-matched control groups.

Assessing students' performance in software requirements engineering education using scoring rubrics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mkpojiogu, Emmanuel O. C.; Hussain, Azham

2017-10-01

The study investigates how helpful the use of scoring rubrics is, in the performance assessment of software requirements engineering students and whether its use can lead to students' performance improvement in the development of software requirements artifacts and models. Scoring rubrics were used by two instructors to assess the cognitive performance of a student in the design and development of software requirements artifacts. The study results indicate that the use of scoring rubrics is very helpful in objectively assessing the performance of software requirements or software engineering students. Furthermore, the results revealed that the use of scoring rubrics can also produce a good achievement assessments direction showing whether a student is either improving or not in a repeated or iterative assessment. In a nutshell, its use leads to the performance improvement of students. The results provided some insights for further investigation and will be beneficial to researchers, requirements engineers, system designers, developers and project managers.

Understanding the modeling skill shift in engineering: the impact of self-efficacy, epistemology, and metacognition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yildirim, Tuba Pinar

A focus of engineering education is to prepare future engineers with problem solving, design and modeling skills. In engineering education, the former two skill areas have received copious attention making their way into the ABET criteria. Modeling, a representation containing the essential structure of an event in the real world, is a fundamental function of engineering, and an important academic skill that students develop during their undergraduate education. Yet the modeling process remains under-investigated, particularly in engineering, even though there is an increasing emphasis on modeling in engineering schools (Frey 2003). Research on modeling requires a deep understanding of multiple perspectives, that of cognition, affect, and knowledge expansion. In this dissertation, the relationship between engineering modeling skills and students' cognitive backgrounds including self-efficacy, epistemic beliefs and metacognition is investigated using model-eliciting activities (MEAs). Data were collected from sophomore students at two time periods, as well as senior engineering students. The impact of each cognitive construct on change in modeling skills was measured using a growth curve model at the sophomore level, and ordinary least squares regression at the senior level. Findings of this dissertation suggest that self-efficacy, through its direct and indirect (moderation or interaction term with time) impact, influences the growth of modeling abilities of an engineering student. When sophomore and senior modeling abilities are compared, the difference can be explained by varying self-efficacy levels. Epistemology influences modeling skill development such that the more sophisticated the student beliefs are, the higher the level of modeling ability students can attain, after controlling for the effects of conceptual learning, gender and GPA. This suggests that development of modeling ability may be constrained by the naivete of one's personal epistemology. Finally, metacognition, or 'thinking about thinking', has an impact on the development of modeling strategies of students, when the impacts of four metacognitive dimensions are considered: awareness, planning, cognitive strategy and self-checking. Students who are better at self-checking show higher growth in their modeling abilities over the course of a year, compared to students who are less proficient at self-checking. The growth in modeling abilities is also moderated by the cognitive strategy and planning skills of the student. After some experience with modeling is attained, students who have enhanced skills in these two metacognitive dimensions are observed to do better in modeling. Therefore, inherent metacognitive abilities of students can positively affect the growth of modeling ability.

Transfer Learning in Integrated Cognitive Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-09-01

Psychology Press. 2. Falkenhainer, B ., Forbus, K . D., and Gentner, D. (1989). The Structure-mapping Engine: Algorithm and Examples. Artificial...Kaps, A.; Lemcke, K .; Mannhaupt, G.; Pfeiffer, F.; Schuller, C.; Stocker, S. & Weil, B ., "MIPS: A Database for Genomes and Protein Sequences...NAME OF RESPONSIBLE PERSON Deborah A. Cerino a. REPORT U b . ABSTRACT U c. THIS PAGE U 19b. TELEPHONE NUMBER (Include area code) N/A

Cognitive Systems Modeling and Analysis of Command and Control Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Norlander, Arne

2012-01-01

Military operations, counter-terrorism operations and emergency response often oblige operators and commanders to operate within distributed organizations and systems for safe and effective mission accomplishment. Tactical commanders and operators frequently encounter violent threats and critical demands on cognitive capacity and reaction time. In the future they will make decisions in situations where operational and system characteristics are highly dynamic and non-linear, i.e. minor events, decisions or actions may have serious and irreversible consequences for the entire mission. Commanders and other decision makers must manage true real time properties at all levels; individual operators, stand-alone technical systems, higher-order integrated human-machine systems and joint operations forces alike. Coping with these conditions in performance assessment, system development and operational testing is a challenge for both practitioners and researchers. This paper reports on research from which the results led to a breakthrough: An integrated approach to information-centered systems analysis to support future command and control systems research development. This approach integrates several areas of research into a coherent framework, Action Control Theory (ACT). It comprises measurement techniques and methodological advances that facilitate a more accurate and deeper understanding of the operational environment, its agents, actors and effectors, generating new and updated models. This in turn generates theoretical advances. Some good examples of successful approaches are found in the research areas of cognitive systems engineering, systems theory, and psychophysiology, and in the fields of dynamic, distributed decision making and naturalistic decision making.

Knowledge Engineering and Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lopez, Antonio M., Jr.; Donlon, James

2001-01-01

Discusses knowledge engineering, computer software, and possible applications in the field of education. Highlights include the distinctions between data, information, and knowledge; knowledge engineering as a subfield of artificial intelligence; knowledge acquisition; data mining; ontology development for subject terms; cognitive apprentices; and…

Passive acquisition of CLIPS rules

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kovarik, Vincent J., Jr.

1991-01-01

The automated acquisition of knowledge by machine has not lived up to expectations, and knowledge engineering remains a human intensive task. Part of the reason for the lack of success is the difference in the cognitive focus of the expert. The expert must shift his or her focus from the subject domain to that of the representation environment. In doing so this cognitive shift introduces opportunity for errors and omissions. Presented here is work that observes the expert interact with a simulation of the domain. The system logs changes in the simulation objects and the expert's actions in response to those changes. This is followed by the application of inductive reasoning to move the domain specific rules observed to general domain rules.

The Effect of Contemporary Engineering Education on the Creative Potential of Engineering Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Costello, Francis J.

The possibility that a specific engineering curriculum reduces the creative potential of its students was investigated, along with the relationship between pre-cognition, the ability to foresee events, and creativity. Engineering freshmen and seniors were tested and compared on creative potential. Liberal arts freshmen and seniors were also tested…

Integration of Language and Cognition at Pre-Conceptual Level

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-10-04

and cognition at a pre-conceptual level, where conceptual and emotional contents are not differentiated might be interesting for theoretical linguistics and for practical development of understanding-based search engines .

Cognitive engineering models in space systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, Christine M.

1993-01-01

NASA space systems, including mission operations on the ground and in space, are complex, dynamic, predominantly automated systems in which the human operator is a supervisory controller. Models of cognitive functions in complex systems are needed to describe human performance and form the theoretical basis of operator workstation design, including displays, controls, and decision aids. Currently, there several candidate modeling methodologies. They include the Rasmussen abstraction/aggregation hierarchy and decision ladder, the goal-means network, the problem behavior graph, and the operator function model. The research conducted under the sponsorship of this grant focuses on the extension of the theoretical structure of the operator function model and its application to NASA Johnson mission operations and space station applications. The initial portion of this research consists of two parts. The first is a series of technical exchanges between NASA Johnson and Georgia Tech researchers. The purpose is to identify candidate applications for the current operator function model; prospects include mission operations and the Data Management System Testbed. The second portion will address extensions of the operator function model to tailor it to the specific needs of Johnson applications. At this point, we have accomplished two things. During a series of conversations with JSC researchers, we have defined the technical goal of the research supported by this grant to be the structural definition of the operator function model and its computer implementation, OFMspert. Both the OFM and OFMspert have matured to the point that they require infrastructure to facilitate use by researchers not involved in the evolution of the tools. The second accomplishment this year was the identification of the Payload Deployment and Retrieval System (PDRS) as a candidate system for the case study. In conjunction with government and contractor personnel in the Human-Computer Interaction Lab, the PDRS was identified as the most accessible system for the demonstration. Pursuant to this a PDRS simulation was obtained from the HCIL and an initial knowledge engineering effort was conducted to understand the operator's tasks in the PDRS application. The preliminary results of the knowledge engineering effort and an initial formulation of an operator function model (OFM) are contained in the appendices.

Beyond Ethical Frameworks: Using Moral Experimentation in the Engineering Ethics Classroom.

PubMed

Walling, Olivia

2015-12-01

Although undergraduate engineering ethics courses often include the development of moral sensitivity as a learning objective and the use of active learning techniques, teaching centers on the transmission of cognitive knowledge. This article describes a complementary assignment asking students to perform an ethics "experiment" on themselves that has a potential to enhance affective learning and moral imagination. The article argues that the focus on cognitive learning may not promote, and may even impair, our efforts to foster moral sensitivity. In contrast, the active learning assignments and exercises, like the ethics "experiment" discussed, offer great potential to expand the scope of instruction in engineering ethics to include ethical behavior as well as knowledge. Engineering ethics education needs to extend beyond the narrow range of human action associated with the technical work of the engineer and explore ways to draw on broader lifeworld experiences to enrich professional practice and identity.

Undergraduate STEM Achievement and Retention: Cognitive, Motivational, and Institutional Factors and Solutions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cromley, Jennifer G.; Perez, Tony; Kaplan, Avi

2016-01-01

Student cognition and motivation, as well as institutional policies, determine student course grades and retention in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors. Regarding cognition, study skills relate to course grades, and grades relate to retention in STEM. Several aspects of motivation are related to both grades and…

Cognitive and Task Influences on Web Searching Behavior.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Kyung-Sun; Allen, Bryce

2002-01-01

Describes results from two independent investigations of college students that were conducted to study the impact of differences in users' cognition and search tasks on Web search activities and outcomes. Topics include cognitive style; problem-solving; and implications for the design and use of the Web and Web search engines. (Author/LRW)

Grounded and embodied mathematical cognition: Promoting mathematical insight and proof using action and language.

PubMed

Nathan, Mitchell J; Walkington, Candace

2017-01-01

We develop a theory of grounded and embodied mathematical cognition (GEMC) that draws on action-cognition transduction for advancing understanding of how the body can support mathematical reasoning. GEMC proposes that participants' actions serve as inputs capable of driving the cognition-action system toward associated cognitive states. This occurs through a process of transduction that promotes valuable mathematical insights by eliciting dynamic depictive gestures that enact spatio-temporal properties of mathematical entities. Our focus here is on pre-college geometry proof production. GEMC suggests that action alone can foster insight but is insufficient for valid proof production if action is not coordinated with language systems for propositionalizing general properties of objects and space. GEMC guides the design of a video game-based learning environment intended to promote students' mathematical insights and informal proofs by eliciting dynamic gestures through in-game directed actions. GEMC generates several hypotheses that contribute to theories of embodied cognition and to the design of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education interventions. Pilot study results with a prototype video game tentatively support theory-based predictions regarding the role of dynamic gestures for fostering insight and proof-with-insight, and for the role of action coupled with language to promote proof-with-insight. But the pilot yields mixed results for deriving in-game interventions intended to elicit dynamic gesture production. Although our central purpose is an explication of GEMC theory and the role of action-cognition transduction, the theory-based video game design reveals the potential of GEMC to improve STEM education, and highlights the complex challenges of connecting embodiment research to education practices and learning environment design.

The Use of Executive Control Processes in Engineering Design by Engineering Students and Professional Engineers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dixon, Raymond A.; Johnson, Scott D.

2012-01-01

A cognitive construct that is important when solving engineering design problems is executive control process, or metacognition. It is a central feature of human consciousness that enables one "to be aware of, monitor, and control mental processes." The framework for this study was conceptualized by integrating the model for creative design, which…

Neurosecurity: security and privacy for neural devices.

PubMed

Denning, Tamara; Matsuoka, Yoky; Kohno, Tadayoshi

2009-07-01

An increasing number of neural implantable devices will become available in the near future due to advances in neural engineering. This discipline holds the potential to improve many patients' lives dramatically by offering improved-and in some cases entirely new-forms of rehabilitation for conditions ranging from missing limbs to degenerative cognitive diseases. The use of standard engineering practices, medical trials, and neuroethical evaluations during the design process can create systems that are safe and that follow ethical guidelines; unfortunately, none of these disciplines currently ensure that neural devices are robust against adversarial entities trying to exploit these devices to alter, block, or eavesdrop on neural signals. The authors define "neurosecurity"-a version of computer science security principles and methods applied to neural engineering-and discuss why neurosecurity should be a critical consideration in the design of future neural devices.

Evolutionary psychology: new perspectives on cognition and motivation.

PubMed

Cosmides, Leda; Tooby, John

2013-01-01

Evolutionary psychology is the second wave of the cognitive revolution. The first wave focused on computational processes that generate knowledge about the world: perception, attention, categorization, reasoning, learning, and memory. The second wave views the brain as composed of evolved computational systems, engineered by natural selection to use information to adaptively regulate physiology and behavior. This shift in focus--from knowledge acquisition to the adaptive regulation of behavior--provides new ways of thinking about every topic in psychology. It suggests a mind populated by a large number of adaptive specializations, each equipped with content-rich representations, concepts, inference systems, and regulatory variables, which are functionally organized to solve the complex problems of survival and reproduction encountered by the ancestral hunter-gatherers from whom we are descended. We present recent empirical examples that illustrate how this approach has been used to discover new features of attention, categorization, reasoning, learning, emotion, and motivation.

Human factors in the Naval Air Systems Command: Computer based training

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Seamster, T.L.; Snyder, C.E.; Terranova, M.

1988-01-01

Military standards applied to the private sector contracts have a substantial effect on the quality of Computer Based Training (CBT) systems procured for the Naval Air Systems Command. This study evaluated standards regulating the following areas in CBT development and procurement: interactive training systems, cognitive task analysis, and CBT hardware. The objective was to develop some high-level recommendations for evolving standards that will govern the next generation of CBT systems. One of the key recommendations is that there be an integration of the instructional systems development, the human factors engineering, and the software development standards. Recommendations were also made formore » task analysis and CBT hardware standards. (9 refs., 3 figs.)« less

Vocal Markers of Motor, Cognitive, and Depressive Symptoms in Parkinson’s Disease

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-05-02

Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering under Air Force Contract No. FA8721- 05-C-0002 and/or FA8702-15-D-0001. Any opinions, findings...of Defense for Research and Engineering. depression, which occurs in 35% of patients with PD [1] and cognitive impairment, which occurs in 80% of...Feature Extraction We utilize three feature sets, described below, which have been shown in our previous research to be predictive of PD motor severity

Brain Structure-function Couplings (FY11)

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-01-01

influence time-evolving models of global brain function and dynamic changes in cognitive performance. Both structural and functional connections change on...Artifact Resistant Measure to Detect Cognitive EEG Activity During Locomotion. Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, submitted. 10...Specifically, identifying the communication between brain regions that occurs during tasks may provide information regarding the cognitive processes involved in

A multidimensional approach to examine student interdisciplinary learning in science and engineering in higher education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spelt, Elisabeth Jacoba Hendrika; Luning, Pieternelleke Arianne; van Boekel, Martinus A. J. S.; Mulder, Martin

2017-11-01

Preparing science and engineering students to work in interdisciplinary teams necessitates research on teaching and learning of interdisciplinary thinking. A multidimensional approach was taken to examine student interdisciplinary learning in a master course on food quality management. The collected 615 student experiences were analysed for the cognitive, emotional, and social learning dimensions using the learning theory of Illeris. Of these 615 experiences, the analysis showed that students reported 214, 194, and 207 times on, respectively, the emotional, the cognitive, and the social dimension. Per learning dimension, key learning experiences featuring interdisciplinary learning were identified such as 'frustrations in selecting and matching disciplinary knowledge to complex problems' (emotional), 'understanding how to apply theoretical models or concepts to real-world situations' (cognitive), and 'socially engaging with peers to recognise similarities in perceptions and experiences' (social). Furthermore, the results showed that students appreciated the cognitive dimension relatively more than the emotional and social dimensions.

Engineering Investigation of Information Integration Display (IID) Integration with Platform Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-07-01

Chair DRP © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of National Defence, 2014 © Sa Majesté la Reine (en...Objectives Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) Atlantic has conducted a Cognitive Work Analysis (CWA) for key Victoria Class Submarine...tables, were added. The “Virtual Victoria Data Model” (reference [2]), “Assumptions and Specifications Matrix” (reference [3]), and a DRDC Atlantic

The Relative Efficacy of Intuitive and Analytical Cognition: A Second Direct Comparison

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-06-01

Review, 90(4), 293-315. Wallsten, T. S., & Budescu, D. V. (1981). Addivity and nonaddivity in judging MMPI profiles. Journal of Experimental Psychology...San Diego, CA 92152 "CDR Thomas Berghage Vaval Health Research Center San Diego, CA 92152 7 Department of the Navy Department of the Navy Mr. Paul...Research Lab Pensacola, FL 32508 Dr. S. Schiflett Human Factors Section Commanding Officer Systems Engineering Test Naval Health Research Center

Applying Systems Engineering Methodologies to the Creative Process

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-01

Carrasco, and Ranee A. Flores. 2013. “The Structure of Creative Cognition in the Human Brain .” Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 7: 1–13. doi: 10.3389/fnhum...The place aspect of creativity will be addressed in a limited fashion to raise awareness of possible prescriptive methods to enhance creativity...threshold theory states, “…creativity and intelligence are correlated up to a certain threshold [around an intelligence quotient ( IQ ) of 120] after which

Optimizing Functional Network Representation of Multivariate Time Series

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zanin, Massimiliano; Sousa, Pedro; Papo, David; Bajo, Ricardo; García-Prieto, Juan; Pozo, Francisco Del; Menasalvas, Ernestina; Boccaletti, Stefano

2012-09-01

By combining complex network theory and data mining techniques, we provide objective criteria for optimization of the functional network representation of generic multivariate time series. In particular, we propose a method for the principled selection of the threshold value for functional network reconstruction from raw data, and for proper identification of the network's indicators that unveil the most discriminative information on the system for classification purposes. We illustrate our method by analysing networks of functional brain activity of healthy subjects, and patients suffering from Mild Cognitive Impairment, an intermediate stage between the expected cognitive decline of normal aging and the more pronounced decline of dementia. We discuss extensions of the scope of the proposed methodology to network engineering purposes, and to other data mining tasks.

Optimizing Functional Network Representation of Multivariate Time Series

PubMed Central

Zanin, Massimiliano; Sousa, Pedro; Papo, David; Bajo, Ricardo; García-Prieto, Juan; Pozo, Francisco del; Menasalvas, Ernestina; Boccaletti, Stefano

2012-01-01

By combining complex network theory and data mining techniques, we provide objective criteria for optimization of the functional network representation of generic multivariate time series. In particular, we propose a method for the principled selection of the threshold value for functional network reconstruction from raw data, and for proper identification of the network's indicators that unveil the most discriminative information on the system for classification purposes. We illustrate our method by analysing networks of functional brain activity of healthy subjects, and patients suffering from Mild Cognitive Impairment, an intermediate stage between the expected cognitive decline of normal aging and the more pronounced decline of dementia. We discuss extensions of the scope of the proposed methodology to network engineering purposes, and to other data mining tasks. PMID:22953051

Future Cities Engineering: Early Engineering Interventions in the Middle Grades

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCue, Camille; James, David

2008-01-01

This paper describes qualitative and quantitative research conducted with middle school students participating in a Future Cities Engineering course. Insights were sought regarding both affective and cognitive changes which transpired during the one-semester schedule of activities focused on modeling the infrastructure of a city built 150 years in…

Searching Choices: Quantifying Decision-Making Processes Using Search Engine Data.

PubMed

Moat, Helen Susannah; Olivola, Christopher Y; Chater, Nick; Preis, Tobias

2016-07-01

When making a decision, humans consider two types of information: information they have acquired through their prior experience of the world, and further information they gather to support the decision in question. Here, we present evidence that data from search engines such as Google can help us model both sources of information. We show that statistics from search engines on the frequency of content on the Internet can help us estimate the statistical structure of prior experience; and, specifically, we outline how such statistics can inform psychological theories concerning the valuation of human lives, or choices involving delayed outcomes. Turning to information gathering, we show that search query data might help measure human information gathering, and it may predict subsequent decisions. Such data enable us to compare information gathered across nations, where analyses suggest, for example, a greater focus on the future in countries with a higher per capita GDP. We conclude that search engine data constitute a valuable new resource for cognitive scientists, offering a fascinating new tool for understanding the human decision-making process. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Topics in Cognitive Science published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Cognitive Science Society.

Examining the relationship of ethnicity, gender and social cognitive factors with the academic achievement of first-year engineering students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carr, Bruce Henry

The purpose of the study was to examine the relationships of social cognitive factors and their influence on the academic performance of first-year engineering students. The nine social cognitive variables identified were under the groupings of personal support, occupational self-efficacy, academic self-efficacy, vocational interests, coping, encouragement, discouragement, outcome expectations, and perceived stress. The primary student participants in this study were first-year engineering students from underrepresented groups which include African American, Hispanic American students and women. With this in mind, the researcher sought to examine the interactive influence of race/ethnicity and gender based on the aforementioned social cognitive factors. Differences in academic performance (university GPA of first-year undergraduate engineering students) were analyzed by ethnicity and gender. There was a main effect for ethnicity only. Gender was found not to be significant. Hispanics were not found to be significantly different in their GPAs than Whites but Blacks were found to have lower GPAs than Whites. Also, Pearson correlation coefficients were used to examine the relationship between and among the nine identified social cognitive variables. The data from the analysis uncovered ten significant correlations which were as follows: occupational self-efficacy and academic self-efficacy, occupational self-efficacy and vocational interest, occupational self-efficacy and perceived stress, academic self-efficacy and encouragement, academic self-efficacy and outcome expectations, academic self-efficacy and perceived stress, vocational interest and outcome expectations, discouragement and encouragement, coping and perceived stress, outcome expectations and perceived stress. Next, a Pearson correlation coefficient was utilized to examine the relationship between academic performance (college GPA) of first-year undergraduate engineering students and the nine identified social cognitive variables. The data analysis revealed three significant correlations which were as follows academic performance and occupational self-efficacy, academic performance and academic self-efficacy, and academic performance and encouragement. Finally, a Pearson correlation coefficient was used to examine the relationship between high school GPA and the nine identified social cognitive variables. The Pearson correlational coefficient indicated that there was one statistically significant correlation which was high school GPA and academic self-efficacy. Recommendations for further study included (a) future research involving investigations that compare a variety of institutions in different regions of the country; (b) further investigations utilizing open-ended responses from engineering students based on interviews; (c) a replicated study in 5 to 10 years to evaluate whether differences emerged relating to ethnicity and gender due to possible societal or cultural changes; and (d) a study involving a pretest and posttest of students' self-efficacy beliefs. Finally, the researcher recommends a qualitative study specifically involving interview questions aimed at students with moderate level grades and SAT scores who exhibited above average academic performance. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).

Passive motion paradigm: an alternative to optimal control.

PubMed

Mohan, Vishwanathan; Morasso, Pietro

2011-01-01

IN THE LAST YEARS, OPTIMAL CONTROL THEORY (OCT) HAS EMERGED AS THE LEADING APPROACH FOR INVESTIGATING NEURAL CONTROL OF MOVEMENT AND MOTOR COGNITION FOR TWO COMPLEMENTARY RESEARCH LINES: behavioral neuroscience and humanoid robotics. In both cases, there are general problems that need to be addressed, such as the "degrees of freedom (DoFs) problem," the common core of production, observation, reasoning, and learning of "actions." OCT, directly derived from engineering design techniques of control systems quantifies task goals as "cost functions" and uses the sophisticated formal tools of optimal control to obtain desired behavior (and predictions). We propose an alternative "softer" approach passive motion paradigm (PMP) that we believe is closer to the biomechanics and cybernetics of action. The basic idea is that actions (overt as well as covert) are the consequences of an internal simulation process that "animates" the body schema with the attractor dynamics of force fields induced by the goal and task-specific constraints. This internal simulation offers the brain a way to dynamically link motor redundancy with task-oriented constraints "at runtime," hence solving the "DoFs problem" without explicit kinematic inversion and cost function computation. We argue that the function of such computational machinery is not only restricted to shaping motor output during action execution but also to provide the self with information on the feasibility, consequence, understanding and meaning of "potential actions." In this sense, taking into account recent developments in neuroscience (motor imagery, simulation theory of covert actions, mirror neuron system) and in embodied robotics, PMP offers a novel framework for understanding motor cognition that goes beyond the engineering control paradigm provided by OCT. Therefore, the paper is at the same time a review of the PMP rationale, as a computational theory, and a perspective presentation of how to develop it for designing better cognitive architectures.

Methods for studying medical device technology and practitioner cognition: the case of user-interface issues with infusion pumps.

PubMed

Schraagen, Jan Maarten; Verhoeven, Fenne

2013-02-01

The aims of this study were to investigate how a variety of research methods is commonly employed to study technology and practitioner cognition. User-interface issues with infusion pumps were selected as a case because of its relevance to patient safety. Starting from a Cognitive Systems Engineering perspective, we developed an Impact Flow Diagram showing the relationship of computer technology, cognition, practitioner behavior, and system failure in the area of medical infusion devices. We subsequently conducted a systematic literature review on user-interface issues with infusion pumps, categorized the studies in terms of methods employed, and noted the usability problems found with particular methods. Next, we assigned usability problems and related methods to the levels in the Impact Flow Diagram. Most study methods used to find user interface issues with infusion pumps focused on observable behavior rather than on how artifacts shape cognition and collaboration. A concerted and theory-driven application of these methods when testing infusion pumps is lacking in the literature. Detailed analysis of one case study provided an illustration of how to apply the Impact Flow Diagram, as well as how the scope of analysis may be broadened to include organizational and regulatory factors. Research methods to uncover use problems with technology may be used in many ways, with many different foci. We advocate the adoption of an Impact Flow Diagram perspective rather than merely focusing on usability issues in isolation. Truly advancing patient safety requires the systematic adoption of a systems perspective viewing people and technology as an ensemble, also in the design of medical device technology. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Development of a dynamic computational model of social cognitive theory.

PubMed

Riley, William T; Martin, Cesar A; Rivera, Daniel E; Hekler, Eric B; Adams, Marc A; Buman, Matthew P; Pavel, Misha; King, Abby C

2016-12-01

Social cognitive theory (SCT) is among the most influential theories of behavior change and has been used as the conceptual basis of health behavior interventions for smoking cessation, weight management, and other health behaviors. SCT and other behavior theories were developed primarily to explain differences between individuals, but explanatory theories of within-person behavioral variability are increasingly needed as new technologies allow for intensive longitudinal measures and interventions adapted from these inputs. These within-person explanatory theoretical applications can be modeled as dynamical systems. SCT constructs, such as reciprocal determinism, are inherently dynamical in nature, but SCT has not been modeled as a dynamical system. This paper describes the development of a dynamical system model of SCT using fluid analogies and control systems principles drawn from engineering. Simulations of this model were performed to assess if the model performed as predicted based on theory and empirical studies of SCT. This initial model generates precise and testable quantitative predictions for future intensive longitudinal research. Dynamic modeling approaches provide a rigorous method for advancing health behavior theory development and refinement and for guiding the development of more potent and efficient interventions.

Machine Understanding of Human Implicit Intention

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-05-18

Cognitive Neurodynamics , Hokkaido, Japan, June 2011, Hokkaido, Japan (Plenary Talk) - Soo-Young Lee, Implicit Intention Recognition and Hierarchical...subject’s response with the accuracy of about 80% by SVM. 15. SUBJECT TERMS Brain Science and Engineering; Cognitive Neuroscience; Human-Computer...oscillations have been related to a variety of functions such as perception, cognition , sleep, etc. For a long time, researchers have found the sensory and

An architecture and model for cognitive engineering simulation analysis - Application to advanced aviation automation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Corker, Kevin M.; Smith, Barry R.

1993-01-01

The process of designing crew stations for large-scale, complex automated systems is made difficult because of the flexibility of roles that the crew can assume, and by the rapid rate at which system designs become fixed. Modern cockpit automation frequently involves multiple layers of control and display technology in which human operators must exercise equipment in augmented, supervisory, and fully automated control modes. In this context, we maintain that effective human-centered design is dependent on adequate models of human/system performance in which representations of the equipment, the human operator(s), and the mission tasks are available to designers for manipulation and modification. The joint Army-NASA Aircrew/Aircraft Integration (A3I) Program, with its attendant Man-machine Integration Design and Analysis System (MIDAS), was initiated to meet this challenge. MIDAS provides designers with a test bed for analyzing human-system integration in an environment in which both cognitive human function and 'intelligent' machine function are described in similar terms. This distributed object-oriented simulation system, its architecture and assumptions, and our experiences from its application in advanced aviation crew stations are described.

Problem-Based Learning in Engineering Ethics Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirkman, Robert

2016-01-01

I describe the first stages of a process of design research in which I employ problem-based learning in a course in engineering ethics, which fulfills a requirement for students in engineering degree programs. The aim of the course is to foster development of particular cognitive skills contributing to moral imagination, a capacity to notice,…

Adaptive design lessons from professional architects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geiger, Ray W.; Snell, J. T.

1993-09-01

Psychocybernetic systems engineering design conceptualization is mimicking the evolutionary path of habitable environmental design and the professional practice of building architecture, construction, and facilities management. In pursuing better ways to design cellular automata and qualification classifiers in a design process, we have found surprising success in exploring certain more esoteric approaches, e.g., the vision of interdisciplinary artistic discovery in and around creative problem solving. Our evaluation in research into vision and hybrid sensory systems associated with environmental design and human factors has led us to discover very specific connections between the human spirit and quality design. We would like to share those very qualitative and quantitative parameters of engineering design, particularly as it relates to multi-faceted and future oriented design practice. Discussion covers areas of case- based techniques of cognitive ergonomics, natural modeling sources, and an open architectural process of means/goal satisfaction, qualified by natural repetition, gradation, rhythm, contrast, balance, and integrity of process.

DataView: a computational visualisation system for multidisciplinary design and analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Chengen

2016-01-01

Rapidly processing raw data and effectively extracting underlining information from huge volumes of multivariate data become essential to all decision-making processes in sectors like finance, government, medical care, climate analysis, industries, science, etc. Remarkably, visualisation is recognised as a fundamental technology that props up human comprehension, cognition and utilisation of burgeoning amounts of heterogeneous data. This paper presents a computational visualisation system, named DataView, which has been developed for graphically displaying and capturing outcomes of multiphysics problem-solvers widely used in engineering fields. The DataView is functionally composed of techniques for table/diagram representation, and graphical illustration of scalar, vector and tensor fields. The field visualisation techniques are implemented on the basis of a range of linear and non-linear meshes, which flexibly adapts to disparate data representation schemas adopted by a variety of disciplinary problem-solvers. The visualisation system has been successfully applied to a number of engineering problems, of which some illustrations are presented to demonstrate effectiveness of the visualisation techniques.

BA07PRO103: Modeling Warfighter Physical and Cognitive Performance While Wearing CB Protective Equipment: A Trade-Space Analysis Tool

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-10-31

Development and Engineering Center 15 Kansas St., Natick, MA 01760 Telephone: (508) 233-5597 Email : thaddeus.t.brunye.civ@mail.mil Submitted to: Mr...Salvatore Clementi 8725 John J. Kingman Road Stop 6201 Fort Belvoir, Virginia 22060-6201 Telephone: (703) 767-6275 Email : salvatore.clementi...detection, memory, attention/vigilance, and multitasking /decision-making. A non-linear dynamical systems approach was developed that described Soldier

Research into the development of a knowledge acquisition taxonomy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fink, Pamela K.; Herren, L. Tandy

1991-01-01

The focus of the research was on the development of a problem solving taxonomy that can support and direct the knowledge engineering process during the development of an intelligent tutoring system. The results of the research are necessarily general. Being only a small initial attempt at a fundamental problem in artificial intelligence and cognitive psychology, the process has had to be bootstrapped and the results can only provide pointers to further, more formal research designs.

An Intelligent Case-Based Help Desk Providing Web-Based Support for EOSDIS Customers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, Christine M.; Thurman, David A.

1998-01-01

This paper describes a project that extends the concept of help desk automation by offering World Wide Web access to a case-based help desk. It explores the use of case-based reasoning and cognitive engineering models to create an 'intelligent' help desk system, one that learns. It discusses the AutoHelp architecture for such a help desk and summarizes the technologies used to create a help desk for NASA data users.

Pilot Errors Involving Head-Up Displays (HUDs), Helmet-Mounted Displays (HMDs), and Night Vision Goggles (NVGs)

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-01-01

results in stimulation of spatial-motion-location visual processes, which are known to take precedence over any other sensor or cognitive stimuli. In...or version he is flying. This was initially an observation that stimulated the birth of the human-factors engineering discipline during World War H...collisions with the surface, the pilot needs inputs to sensory channels other than the focal visual system. Properly designed auditory and

[Steady car engine noise does not affect the cognitive abilities of sleep apnea syndrome patients].

PubMed

Mayoralas, L R; Barbé, F; Muñoz, A; Agustí, A G N

2003-09-01

Traffic accidents are more frequent for sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) patients than in the population at large. The mechanisms that underlie this observation are poorly defined. Our working hypothesis was that in SAS patients the steady noise of a car engine might alter cognitive capacities that may be involved in driving, thus increasing the risk of traffic accidents. To test this hypothesis we designed a prospective randomized controlled trial. Eighteen SAS patients (apnea-hypopnea index [SEM] 62 [6] h1) and 18 healthy controls were studied. All the participants were evaluated in random order both in basal conditions and after exposure to the steady noise of a car engine recorded on a compact disc. Their level of vigilance was evaluated (Steer-Clear) as well as their reaction time (PVT 192). Attention, coordination, and memory were measured using the following tests: Wechsler Memory Scale (digit span), the Wechsler Intelligence Scale (digit symbol), and Lezack's Trail Making tests A and B. The SAS patients were slightly younger than the control group (mean 50 [7] vs 57 [11] years, respectively; P=.05). The patients showed a lower level of vigilance than the controls both in basal and engine noise conditions (P<.05). No differences between groups were found for the other variables studied. Exposure to steady car engine noise had no effect on the tests of either group. In conclusion, the results of our study do not support the hypothesis that steady car engine noise significantly alters the cognitive ability of SAS patients.

Learning the Task Management Space of an Aircraft Approach Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krall, Joseph; Menzies, Tim; Davies, Misty

2014-01-01

Validating models of airspace operations is a particular challenge. These models are often aimed at finding and exploring safety violations, and aim to be accurate representations of real-world behavior. However, the rules governing the behavior are quite complex: nonlinear physics, operational modes, human behavior, and stochastic environmental concerns all determine the responses of the system. In this paper, we present a study on aircraft runway approaches as modeled in Georgia Tech's Work Models that Compute (WMC) simulation. We use a new learner, Genetic-Active Learning for Search-Based Software Engineering (GALE) to discover the Pareto frontiers defined by cognitive structures. These cognitive structures organize the prioritization and assignment of tasks of each pilot during approaches. We discuss the benefits of our approach, and also discuss future work necessary to enable uncertainty quantification.

The Critical Incident Technique: An Effective Tool for Gathering Experience from Practicing Engineers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, James H.; Brophy, Patrick D.

2012-01-01

Not all knowledge and skills that educators want to pass to students exists yet in textbooks. Some still resides only in the experiences of practicing engineers (e.g., how engineers create new products, how designers identify errors in calculations). The critical incident technique, CIT, is an established method for cognitive task analysis. It is…

Conversational Agents in Virtual Worlds: Bridging Disciplines

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Veletsianos, George; Heller, Robert; Overmyer, Scott; Procter, Mike

2010-01-01

This paper examines the effective deployment of conversational agents in virtual worlds from the perspective of researchers/practitioners in cognitive psychology, computing science, learning technologies and engineering. From a cognitive perspective, the major challenge lies in the coordination and management of the various channels of information…

Styles, Strategies & Tasks: Are They Related?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parnrod, Urarat; Darasawang, Pornapit; Singhasiri, Wareesiri

2014-01-01

This qualitative study aims at investigating the relationship among cognitive styles, learning strategies and task. In order to determine the dominant cognitive styles of the subjects, questionnaires designed by Kolb (2005) were distributed to 778 engineering students. From the data analysis, it was found that two cognitive…

Study on a Real-Time BEAM System for Diagnosis Assistance Based on a System on Chips Design

PubMed Central

Sung, Wen-Tsai; Chen, Jui-Ho; Chang, Kung-Wei

2013-01-01

As an innovative as well as an interdisciplinary research project, this study performed an analysis of brain signals so as to establish BrainIC as an auxiliary tool for physician diagnosis. Cognition behavior sciences, embedded technology, system on chips (SOC) design and physiological signal processing are integrated in this work. Moreover, a chip is built for real-time electroencephalography (EEG) processing purposes and a Brain Electrical Activity Mapping (BEAM) system, and a knowledge database is constructed to diagnose psychosis and body challenges in learning various behaviors and signals antithesis by a fuzzy inference engine. This work is completed with a medical support system developed for the mentally disabled or the elderly abled. PMID:23681095

Introduction to cognition in science and technology.

PubMed

Gorman, Michael E

2009-10-01

Cognitive studies of science and technology have had a long history of largely independent research projects that have appeared in multiple outlets, but rarely together. The emergence of a new International Society for Psychology of Science and Technology suggests that this is a good time to put some of the latest work in this area into topiCS in a way that will both acquaint readers with the cutting edge in this domain and also give them a hint of its history. One core theme includes how scientists, inventors, and engineers represent and solve problems; another, related theme is the extent to which they distribute and share cognition. Methodologies include fine-grained studies of historical records, protocols of working scientists, observations and comparisons of engineering science laboratories, and computational simulations designed both to serve as research tools and also to improve scientific problem-solving. The series of articles will conclude with the Associate Editor's suggestions for future research. Copyright © 2009 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

A methodology for hard/soft information fusion in the condition monitoring of aircraft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bernardo, Joseph T.

2013-05-01

Condition-based maintenance (CBM) refers to the philosophy of performing maintenance when the need arises, based upon indicators of deterioration in the condition of the machinery. Traditionally, CBM involves equipping machinery with electronic sensors that continuously monitor components and collect data for analysis. The addition of the multisensory capability of human cognitive functions (i.e., sensemaking, problem detection, planning, adaptation, coordination, naturalistic decision making) to traditional CBM may create a fuller picture of machinery condition. Cognitive systems engineering techniques provide an opportunity to utilize a dynamic resource—people acting as soft sensors. The literature is extensive on techniques to fuse data from electronic sensors, but little work exists on fusing data from humans with that from electronic sensors (i.e., hard/soft fusion). The purpose of my research is to explore, observe, investigate, analyze, and evaluate the fusion of pilot and maintainer knowledge, experiences, and sensory perceptions with digital maintenance resources. Hard/soft information fusion has the potential to increase problem detection capability, improve flight safety, and increase mission readiness. This proposed project consists the creation of a methodology that is based upon the Living Laboratories framework, a research methodology that is built upon cognitive engineering principles1. This study performs a critical assessment of concept, which will support development of activities to demonstrate hard/soft information fusion in operationally relevant scenarios of aircraft maintenance. It consists of fieldwork, knowledge elicitation to inform a simulation and a prototype.

Identifying potential misfit items in cognitive process of learning engineering mathematics based on Rasch model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ataei, Sh; Mahmud, Z.; Khalid, M. N.

2014-04-01

The students learning outcomes clarify what students should know and be able to demonstrate after completing their course. So, one of the issues on the process of teaching and learning is how to assess students' learning. This paper describes an application of the dichotomous Rasch measurement model in measuring the cognitive process of engineering students' learning of mathematics. This study provides insights into the perspective of 54 engineering students' cognitive ability in learning Calculus III based on Bloom's Taxonomy on 31 items. The results denote that some of the examination questions are either too difficult or too easy for the majority of the students. This analysis yields FIT statistics which are able to identify if there is data departure from the Rasch theoretical model. The study has identified some potential misfit items based on the measurement of ZSTD where the removal misfit item was accomplished based on the MNSQ outfit of above 1.3 or less than 0.7 logit. Therefore, it is recommended that these items be reviewed or revised to better match the range of students' ability in the respective course.

Who Chooses STEM Careers? Using A Relative Cognitive Strength and Interest Model to Predict Careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.

PubMed

Wang, Ming-Te; Ye, Feifei; Degol, Jessica Lauren

2017-08-01

Career aspirations in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are formulated in adolescence, making the high school years a critical time period for identifying the cognitive and motivational factors that increase the likelihood of future STEM employment. While past research has mainly focused on absolute cognitive ability levels in math and verbal domains, the current study tested whether relative cognitive strengths and interests in math, science, and verbal domains in high school were more accurate predictors of STEM career decisions. Data were drawn from a national longitudinal study in the United States (N = 1762; 48 % female; the first wave during ninth grade and the last wave at age 33). Results revealed that in the high-verbal/high-math/high-science ability group, individuals with higher science task values and lower orientation toward altruism were more likely to select STEM occupations. In the low-verbal/moderate-math/moderate-science ability group, individuals with higher math ability and higher math task values were more likely to select STEM occupations. The findings suggest that youth with asymmetrical cognitive ability profiles are more likely to select careers that utilize their cognitive strengths rather than their weaknesses, while symmetrical cognitive ability profiles may grant youth more flexibility in their options, allowing their interests and values to guide their career decisions.

Neuromorphic Hardware Architecture Using the Neural Engineering Framework for Pattern Recognition.

PubMed

Wang, Runchun; Thakur, Chetan Singh; Cohen, Gregory; Hamilton, Tara Julia; Tapson, Jonathan; van Schaik, Andre

2017-06-01

We present a hardware architecture that uses the neural engineering framework (NEF) to implement large-scale neural networks on field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) for performing massively parallel real-time pattern recognition. NEF is a framework that is capable of synthesising large-scale cognitive systems from subnetworks and we have previously presented an FPGA implementation of the NEF that successfully performs nonlinear mathematical computations. That work was developed based on a compact digital neural core, which consists of 64 neurons that are instantiated by a single physical neuron using a time-multiplexing approach. We have now scaled this approach up to build a pattern recognition system by combining identical neural cores together. As a proof of concept, we have developed a handwritten digit recognition system using the MNIST database and achieved a recognition rate of 96.55%. The system is implemented on a state-of-the-art FPGA and can process 5.12 million digits per second. The architecture and hardware optimisations presented offer high-speed and resource-efficient means for performing high-speed, neuromorphic, and massively parallel pattern recognition and classification tasks.

Air Force Center of Excellence on Bio-nano-enabled Inorganic/Organic Nanostructures and Improved Cognition (BIONIC)

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-01-09

IRG #3)  Mostafa A. El-Sayed, School of Chemistry & Biochemistry (IRG #2)  Andrei Fedorov, School of Mechanical Engineering (IRG #2)  Michael A...Engineering, U.S. Citizen)  *David Anderson (Ph.D. student, School of Mechanical Engineering, U.S. Citizen)  Luke A. Beardslee (Ph.D. student, School...Songkil Kim (PhD student, School of Mechanical Engineering)  Philip Kwon (Ph.D. student, School of Mechanical Engineering, U.S. Citizen)  Erin Lightman

The experiences of African-American students majoring in engineering: Cognitive, non-cognitive and situational aspects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hill, Gloria Pinckney

1997-12-01

To understand the causes for the disproportionately high rate of attrition among ethnic minority students, it is important to consider not only how they differ from the majority population, but what differences exist in personal qualities and academic preparation within groups at particular types of institutions, and within particular majors. The purpose of this study is to examine the experiences of African-American students enrolled in engineering at a predominately white, selective research university to determine which cognitive, non-cognitive and situational variables impact their progress towards graduation. The goal was to see how African-American students who meet or exceed the minimum criteria for admission perceive their experience on campus, and what strategies they use to manage their day-to-day existence. The study was conducted using personal interviews guided by an open-ended questionnaire. The qualitative methodology allowed students to assess the college experience through their own cultural lens, and to identify the cognitive, non-cognitive, and situational variables important to them. Responses were sorted by class and gender, tabulated and grouped into categories. Interpretation was primarily descriptive. Consistencies, inconsistencies, patterns and relationships to concepts in the literature and to the research questions were discussed. Findings indicate that well prepared students become less confident about their commitment to engineering and their ability to succeed academically after they begin matriculating rather than before, and that redefinition of what it means to be academically successful is an effective coping mechanism to sustain the effort required to master courses. The study suggests that the current focus on the impact of the freshman year transition on student retention should be expanded to include the sophomore year. This is particularly true for institutions where engineering students spend the first year in a core curriculum, then move into specific disciplines as sophomores. The perception of their ability among non-minority peers, assertively utilizing resources and services, the absence of a critical mass of African-American students, and participation in study groups were among the variables thought to influence their success.

Anticipatory Systems via Anticipatory Behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Julià, Pere

2010-11-01

Although cybernetics and systems research have included references to biological phenomena from their very inception, their technical and conceptual wherewithal remains rooted in engineering and the physical and formal sciences. The methodological consequences of this make themselves increasingly felt as biological systems come under closer scrutiny, when the brain becomes the be-all-and-end-all of human cognition, or when individual and social behavior comes up for analysis. In the absence of prior empirical research, the application of a straight-jacketed modus operandi across the board can easily result in conceptual confusion. When the truly functional nature of the phenomena under discussion is not sharply differentiated from our constructional activities, our notational devices may well determine how we conceptualize the object of study instead of the other way around; witness, e.g., the growing literature on "observed" and "observing" systems. A mechanistic outlook fosters the continued treatment of organism and environment as disjoint domains, e.g., when cognition is treated in bucolic ignorance of conative factors without which there would be no cognition or any other behavior to speak of Elucidation of the specific variables, processes, and parameters involved in different fields is needed, if we are to achieve an effective treatment of the automaticity/self-regulation continuum and capture the synergism that emerges from the environment-organism interactivity. It is this interactivity that defines the boundaries of the system, self-regulating or otherwise. Clearly, there is need for deep foundational thinking and much of it revolves around language in the human case. Models are verbal constructions or the product of verbal constructions. Anticipatory systems seem like a good place to begin.

Tactile stimulations and wheel rotation responses: toward augmented lane departure warning systems

PubMed Central

Tandonnet, Christophe; Burle, Borís; Vidal, Franck; Hasbroucq, Thierry

2014-01-01

When an on-board system detects a drift of a vehicle to the left or to the right, in what way should the information be delivered to the driver? Car manufacturers have so far neglected relevant results from Experimental Psychology and Cognitive Neuroscience. Here we show that this situation possibly led to the sub-optimal design of a lane departure warning system (AFIL, PSA Peugeot Citroën) implemented in commercially available automobile vehicles. Twenty participants performed a two-choice reaction time task in which they were to respond by clockwise or counter-clockwise wheel-rotations to tactile stimulations of their left or right wrist. They performed poorer when responding counter-clockwise to the right vibration and clockwise to the left vibration (incompatible mapping) than when responding according to the reverse (compatible) mapping. This suggests that AFIL implements the worse (incompatible) mapping for the operators. This effect depended on initial practice with the interface. The present research illustrates how basic approaches in Cognitive Science may benefit to Human Factors Engineering and ultimately improve man-machine interfaces and show how initial learning can affect interference effects. PMID:25324791

Could positive affect help engineer robot control systems?

PubMed

Quirin, Markus; Hertzberg, Joachim; Kuhl, Julius; Stephan, Achim

2011-11-01

Emotions have long been seen as counteracting rational thought, but over the last decades, they have been viewed as adaptive processes to optimize human (but also animal) behaviour. In particular, positive affect appears to be a functional aspect of emotions closely related to that. We argue that positive affect as understood in Kuhl's PSI model of the human cognitive architecture appears to have an interpretation in state-of-the-art hybrid robot control architectures, which might help tackle some open questions in the field.

Engineering Evaluation and Assessment (EE and A) Report for the Symbolic and Sub-symbolic Robotics Intelligence Control System (SS-RICS)

DTIC Science & Technology

2018-04-01

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions...2006. Since that time , SS-RICS has been the integration platform for many robotics algorithms using a variety of different disciplines from cognitive...voice recognition. Each noise level was run 10 times per gender, yielding 60 total runs. Two paths were chosen for testing (Paths A and B) of

Monaural Speech Segregation by Integrating Primitive and Schema-Based Analysis

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-02-03

vol. 19, pp. 475-492. Wang D.L. and Chang P.S. (2008): An oscillatory correlation model of auditory streaming. Cognitive Neurodynamics , vol. 2, pp...Subcontracts DeLiang Wang (Principal Investigator) March 2008 Department of Computer Science & Engineering and Center for Cognitive Science The

An Integrated Neuroscience and Engineering Approach to Classifying Human Brain-States

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-12-22

AFRL-AFOSR-VA-TR-2016-0037 An Integrated Neuroscience and Engineering Approach to Classifying Human Brain-States Adrian Lee UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON...to 14-09-2015 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE An Integrated Neuroscience and Engineering Approach to Classifying Human Brain- States 5a.  CONTRACT NUMBER 5b...specific cognitive states remains elusive, owing perhaps to limited crosstalk between the fields of neuroscience and engineering. Here, we report a

An Innovative Project and Design Oriented Electrical Engineering Curriculum at the University of North Texas

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garcia, Oscar N.; Varanasi, Murali R.; Acevedo, Miguel F.; Guturu, Parthasarathy

2011-01-01

We analyze and study the beginning of a new Electrical Engineering Department, supported by an NSF Departmental Level Reform award, within a new College of Engineering in the 21st Century and also describe the academic approach and influences of an innovative cognitive-based approach to curriculum development. In addition, the approach taken…

Using Cognitive Load Theory to Interpret Student Difficulties with a Problem-Based Learning Approach to Engineering Education: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peters, Michael

2015-01-01

This article reports on an investigation with first year undergraduate Product Design and Management students within a School of Engineering and Applied Science. The students at the time of this investigation had studied fundamental engineering science and mathematics for one semester. The students were given an open ended, ill-formed problem…

The Measurement and Role of Ecological Resilience Systems Theory Across Domain-Specific Outcomes: The Domain-Specific Resilient Systems Scales.

PubMed

Maltby, John; Day, Liz; Hall, Sophie S; Chivers, Sally

2017-10-01

Research suggests that trait resilience may be best understood within an ecological resilient systems theory, comprising engineering, ecological, and adaptive capacity resilience. However, there is no evidence as to how this theory translates to specific life domains. Data from two samples (the United States, n = 1,278; the United Kingdom, n = 211) facilitated five studies that introduce the Domain-Specific Resilient Systems Scales for assessing ecological resilient systems theory within work, health, marriage, friendships, and education. The Domain-Specific Resilient Systems Scales are found to predict unique variance in job satisfaction, lower job burnout, quality-of-life following illness, marriage commitment, and educational engagement, while controlling for factors including sex, age, personality, cognitive ability, and trait resilience. The findings also suggest a distinction between the three resilience dimensions in terms of the types of systems to which they contribute. Engineering resilience may contribute most to life domains where an established system needs to be maintained, for example, one's health. Ecological resilience may contribute most to life domains where the system needs sustainability in terms of present and future goal orientation, for example, one's work. Adaptive Capacity may contribute most to life domains where the system needs to be retained, preventing it from reaching a crisis state, for example, work burnout.

Designing Preclinical Instruction for Psychomotor Skills (II)--Instructional Engineering: Task Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knight, G. William; And Others

1994-01-01

The first step in engineering the instruction of dental psychomotor skills, task analysis, is explained. A chart details the procedural, cognitive, desired-criteria, and desired-performance analysis of a single task, occlusal preparation for amalgam restoration with carious lesion. (MSE)

Exploration on the matching between Optical Comprehensive Design Experiment and Washington Accord

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Yiping; Chen, Wenjing; Zhang, Qican; Liu, Yuankun; Li, Dahai; Zhou, Xinzhi; Wei, Jun

2017-08-01

Common problems faced in optical comprehensive design experiment and going against the Washington Accord are pointed out. For resolving these problems, an instructional and innovative teaching scheme for Optics Comprehensive Design Experiment is proposed. We would like to understand the student that can improve the hands-on practical ability, theory knowledge understanding ability, complex problem solving ability, engineering application ability, cooperative ability after tracking and researching the student who have attended the class about Optical Comprehensive Design Experiment, We found that there are some problems on the course such as the experiment content vague, the student beginning less time, phase separation theory and engineering application, the experiment content lack of selectivity and so on. So we have made some improvements reference to the Washington Accord for the class teaching plan about Optical Comprehensive Design Experiment. This class must relevant to the engineering basic courses, professional foundation course and the major courses, so far as to the future study and work that which can play a role in inheriting and continuity to the students. The Optical Comprehensive Design Experiment teaching program requires students learning this course to have learnt basic courses like analog electronics technique, digital electronic technique, applied optics and computer and other related courses which students are required to comprehensively utilize. This teaching scheme contains six practical complex engineering problems which are respectively optical system design, light energy meter design, illuminometer design, material refractive index measuring system design, light intensity measuring system design and open design. Establishing the optional experiment and open experiment can provide students with a greater choice and enhance the students' creativity, vivid teaching experimental teachers and enriching contents of experiment can make the experiment more interesting, providing students with more opportunities to conduct experiment and improving students' practical ability with long learning time, putting emphasis on student's understanding of complex engineering problems and the cognitive of the process to solve complex engineering problems with actual engineering problems. Applying the scheme in other courses and improving accordingly will be able to ensure the quality of engineering education. Look forward to offering useful reference for the curriculum system construction in colleges and universities.

Evaluation in context: ATC automation in the field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harwood, Kelly; Sanford, Beverly

1994-01-01

The process for incorporating advanced technologies into complex aviation systems is as important as the final product itself. This paper described a process that is currently being applied to the development and assessment of an advanced ATC automation system, CTAS. The key element of the process is field exposure early in the system development cycle. The process deviates from current established practices of system development -- where field testing is an implementation endpoint -- and has been deemed necessary by the FAA for streamlining development and bringing system functions to a level of stability and usefulness. Methods and approaches for field assessment are borrowed from human factors engineering, cognitive engineering, and usability engineering and are tailored for the constraints of an operational ATC environment. To date, the focus has been on the qualitative assessment of the match between TMA capabilities and the context for their use. Capturing the users' experience with the automation tool and understanding tool use in the context of the operational environment is important, not only for developing a tool that is an effective problem-solving instrument but also for defining meaningful operational requirements. Such requirements form the basis for certifying the safety and efficiency of the system. CTAS is the first U.S. advanced ATC automation system of its scope and complexity to undergo this field development and assessment process. With the rapid advances in aviation technologies and our limited understanding of their impact on system performance, it is time we opened our eyes to new possibilities for developing, validating, and ultimately certifying complex aviation systems.

Using Minute Papers to Determine Student Cognitive Development Levels

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vella, Lia

2015-01-01

Can anonymous written feedback collected during classroom assessment activities be used to assess students' cognitive development levels? After library instruction in a first-year engineering design class, students submitted minute papers that included answers to "what they are left wondering." Responses were coded into low, medium and…

Cognitive Learning Styles: Can You Engineer a "Perfect" Match?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khuzzan, Sharifah Mazlina Syed; Goulding, Jack Steven

2016-01-01

Education and training is widely acknowledged as being one of the key factors for leveraging organisational success. However, it is equally acknowledged that skills development and the acquisition of learning through managed cognitive approaches has yet to provide a "perfect" match. Whilst it is argued that an ideal learning scenario…

Medical sieve: a cognitive assistant for radiologists and cardiologists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Syeda-Mahmood, T.; Walach, E.; Beymer, D.; Gilboa-Solomon, F.; Moradi, M.; Kisilev, P.; Kakrania, D.; Compas, C.; Wang, H.; Negahdar, R.; Cao, Y.; Baldwin, T.; Guo, Y.; Gur, Y.; Rajan, D.; Zlotnick, A.; Rabinovici-Cohen, S.; Ben-Ari, R.; Guy, Amit; Prasanna, P.; Morey, J.; Boyko, O.; Hashoul, S.

2016-03-01

Radiologists and cardiologists today have to view large amounts of imaging data relatively quickly leading to eye fatigue. Further, they have only limited access to clinical information relying mostly on their visual interpretation of imaging studies for their diagnostic decisions. In this paper, we present Medical Sieve, an automated cognitive assistant for radiologists and cardiologists designed to help in their clinical decision-making. The sieve is a clinical informatics system that collects clinical, textual and imaging data of patients from electronic health records systems. It then analyzes multimodal content to detect anomalies if any, and summarizes the patient record collecting all relevant information pertinent to a chief complaint. The results of anomaly detection are then fed into a reasoning engine which uses evidence from both patient-independent clinical knowledge and large-scale patient-driven similar patient statistics to arrive at potential differential diagnosis to help in clinical decision making. In compactly summarizing all relevant information to the clinician per chief complaint, the system still retains links to the raw data for detailed review providing holistic summaries of patient conditions. Results of clinical studies in the domains of cardiology and breast radiology have already shown the promise of the system in differential diagnosis and imaging studies summarization.

Cognitive work analysis to evaluate the problem of patient falls in an inpatient setting

PubMed Central

Lopez, Karen Dunn; Cary, Michael P; Kanak, Mary F

2010-01-01

Objective To identify factors in the nursing work domain that contribute to the problem of inpatient falls, aside from patient risk, using cognitive work analysis. Design A mix of qualitative and quantitative methods were used to identify work constraints imposed on nurses, which may underlie patient falls. Measurements Data collection was done on a neurology unit staffed by 27 registered nurses and utilized field observations, focus groups, time–motion studies and written surveys (AHRQ Hospital Survey on Patient Culture, NASA-TLX, and custom Nursing Knowledge of Fall Prevention Subscale). Results Four major constraints were identified that inhibit nurses' ability to prevent patient falls. All constraints relate to work processes and the physical work environment, opposed to safety culture or nursing knowledge, as currently emphasized. The constraints were: cognitive ‘head data’, temporal workload, inconsistencies in written and verbal transfer of patient data, and limitations in the physical environment. To deal with these constraints, the nurses tend to employ four workarounds: written and mental chunking schemas, bed alarms, informal querying of the previous care nurse, and informal video and audio surveillance. These workarounds reflect systemic design flaws and may only be minimally effective in decreasing risk to patients. Conclusion Cognitive engineering techniques helped identify seemingly hidden constraints in the work domain that impact the problem of patient falls. System redesign strategies aimed at improving work processes and environmental limitations hold promise for decreasing the incidence of falls in inpatient nursing units. PMID:20442150

Cognitive work analysis to evaluate the problem of patient falls in an inpatient setting.

PubMed

Lopez, Karen Dunn; Gerling, Gregory J; Cary, Michael P; Kanak, Mary F

2010-01-01

To identify factors in the nursing work domain that contribute to the problem of inpatient falls, aside from patient risk, using cognitive work analysis. A mix of qualitative and quantitative methods were used to identify work constraints imposed on nurses, which may underlie patient falls. Data collection was done on a neurology unit staffed by 27 registered nurses and utilized field observations, focus groups, time-motion studies and written surveys (AHRQ Hospital Survey on Patient Culture, NASA-TLX, and custom Nursing Knowledge of Fall Prevention Subscale). Four major constraints were identified that inhibit nurses' ability to prevent patient falls. All constraints relate to work processes and the physical work environment, opposed to safety culture or nursing knowledge, as currently emphasized. The constraints were: cognitive 'head data', temporal workload, inconsistencies in written and verbal transfer of patient data, and limitations in the physical environment. To deal with these constraints, the nurses tend to employ four workarounds: written and mental chunking schemas, bed alarms, informal querying of the previous care nurse, and informal video and audio surveillance. These workarounds reflect systemic design flaws and may only be minimally effective in decreasing risk to patients. Cognitive engineering techniques helped identify seemingly hidden constraints in the work domain that impact the problem of patient falls. System redesign strategies aimed at improving work processes and environmental limitations hold promise for decreasing the incidence of falls in inpatient nursing units.

Dynamical Constants and Time Universals: A First Step toward a Metrical Definition of Ordered and Abnormal Cognition.

PubMed

Elliott, Mark A; du Bois, Naomi

2017-01-01

From the point of view of the cognitive dynamicist the organization of brain circuitry into assemblies defined by their synchrony at particular (and precise) oscillation frequencies is important for the correct correlation of all independent cortical responses to the different aspects of a given complex thought or object. From the point of view of anyone operating complex mechanical systems, i.e., those comprising independent components that are required to interact precisely in time, it follows that the precise timing of such a system is essential - not only essential but measurable, and scalable. It must also be reliable over observations to bring about consistent behavior, whatever that behavior is. The catastrophic consequence of an absence of such precision, for instance that required to govern the interference engine in many automobiles, is indicative of how important timing is for the function of dynamical systems at all levels of operation. The dynamics and temporal considerations combined indicate that it is necessary to consider the operating characteristic of any dynamical, cognitive brain system in terms, superficially at least, of oscillation frequencies. These may, themselves, be forensic of an underlying time-related taxonomy. Currently there are only two sets of relevant and necessarily systematic observations in this field: one of these reports the precise dynamical structure of the perceptual systems engaged in dynamical binding across form and time; the second, derived both empirically from perceptual performance data, as well as obtained from theoretical models, demonstrates a timing taxonomy related to a fundamental operator referred to as the time quantum. In this contribution both sets of theory and observations are reviewed and compared for their predictive consistency. Conclusions about direct comparability are discussed for both theories of cognitive dynamics and time quantum models. Finally, a brief review of some experimental data measuring sensitivity to visual information presented to the visual blind field (blindsight), as well as from studies of temporal processing in autism and schizophrenia, indicates that an understanding of a precise and metrical dynamic structure may be very important for an operational understanding of perception as well as more general cognitive function in psychopathology.

Accelerated cognitive aging following severe traumatic brain injury: A review.

PubMed

Wood, Rodger Ll

2017-01-01

The primary objective of this review was to examine relevant clinical and experimental literatures for information on the long-term cognitive impact of serious traumatic brain injury (TBI) with regard to the process of cognitive aging. Online journal databases were queried for studies pertaining to cognitive aging in neurologically healthy populations, as well as the late cognitive effects of serious TBI. Additional studies were identified through searching bibliographies of related publications and using Google search engine. Problems of cognition exhibited by young adults after TBI resemble many cognitive weaknesses of attention deficit and poor working memory that are usually seen in an elderly population who have no neurological history. The current state of the literature provides support for the argument that TBI can result in diminished cognitive reserve which may accelerate the normal process of cognitive decline, leading to premature aging, potentially increasing the risk of dementia.

An Investigation of Factors That Influence the Hypothesis Generation Ability of Students in School- Based Agricultural Education Programs When Troubleshooting Small Gasoline Engines

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blackburn, J. Joey; Robinson, J. Shane

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine if selected factors influenced the ability of students in school-based agricultural education programs to generate a correct hypothesis when troubleshooting small gasoline engines. Variables of interest included students' cognitive style, age, GPA, and content knowledge in small gasoline engines. Kirton's…

Assessment Engineering Task Model Maps, Task Models and Templates as a New Way to Develop and Implement Test Specifications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luecht, Richard M.

2013-01-01

Assessment engineering is a new way to design and implement scalable, sustainable and ideally lower-cost solutions to the complexities of designing and developing tests. It represents a merger of sorts between cognitive task modeling and engineering design principles--a merger that requires some new thinking about the nature of score scales, item…

Cognitive engineering of film library transition from film medium to digital environment in a Texas teaching hospital.

PubMed

Koperwhats, Martha A; Chang, Wei-Chih; Xiao, Jianguo

2002-01-01

Digital imaging technology promises efficient, economical, and fast service for patient care, but the challenges are great in the transition from film to a filmless (digital) environment. This change has a significant impact on the film library's personnel (film librarians) who play a leading roles in storage, classification, and retrieval of images. The objectives of this project were to study film library errors and the usability of a physical computerized system that could not be changed, while developing an intervention to reduce errors and test the usability of the intervention. Cognitive and human factors analysis were used to evaluate human-computer interaction. A workflow analysis was performed to understand the film and digital imaging processes. User and task analyses were applied to account for all behaviors involved in interaction with the system. A heuristic evaluation was used to probe the usability issues in the picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) modules. Simplified paper-based instructions were designed to familiarize the film librarians with the digital system. A usability survey evaluated the effectiveness of the instruction. The user and task analyses indicated that different users faced challenges based on their computer literacy, education, roles, and frequency of use of diagnostic imaging. The workflow analysis showed that the approaches to using the digital library differ among the various departments. The heuristic evaluation of the PACS modules showed the human-computer interface to have usability issues that prevented easy operation. Simplified instructions were designed for operation of the modules. Usability surveys conducted before and after revision of the instructions showed that performance improved. Cognitive and human factor analysis can help film librarians and other users adapt to the filmless system. Use of cognitive science tools will aid in successful transition of the film library from a film environment to a digital environment.

Codebook-based electrooculography data analysis towards cognitive activity recognition.

PubMed

Lagodzinski, P; Shirahama, K; Grzegorzek, M

2018-04-01

With the advancement in mobile/wearable technology, people started to use a variety of sensing devices to track their daily activities as well as health and fitness conditions in order to improve the quality of life. This work addresses an idea of eye movement analysis, which due to the strong correlation with cognitive tasks can be successfully utilized in activity recognition. Eye movements are recorded using an electrooculographic (EOG) system built into the frames of glasses, which can be worn more unobtrusively and comfortably than other devices. Since the obtained information is low-level sensor data expressed as a sequence representing values in constant intervals (100 Hz), the cognitive activity recognition problem is formulated as sequence classification. However, it is unclear what kind of features are useful for accurate cognitive activity recognition. Thus, a machine learning algorithm like a codebook approach is applied, which instead of focusing on feature engineering is using a distribution of characteristic subsequences (codewords) to describe sequences of recorded EOG data, where the codewords are obtained by clustering a large number of subsequences. Further, statistical analysis of the codeword distribution results in discovering features which are characteristic to a certain activity class. Experimental results demonstrate good accuracy of the codebook-based cognitive activity recognition reflecting the effective usage of the codewords. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Streaming Media Technology: Laying the Foundations for Educational Change.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sircar, Jayanta

2000-01-01

Discussion of the delivery of multimedia using streaming technology focuses on its use in engineering education. Highlights include engineering education and instructional technology, including learning approaches based on cognitive development; differences between local and distance education; economic factors; and roles of Web-based streaming,…

Envisioning engineering education and practice in the coming intelligence convergence era — a complex adaptive systems approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noor, Ahmed K.

2013-12-01

Some of the recent attempts for improving and transforming engineering education are reviewed. The attempts aim at providing the entry level engineers with the skills needed to address the challenges of future large-scale complex systems and projects. Some of the frontier sectors and future challenges for engineers are outlined. The major characteristics of the coming intelligence convergence era (the post-information age) are identified. These include the prevalence of smart devices and environments, the widespread applications of anticipatory computing and predictive / prescriptive analytics, as well as a symbiotic relationship between humans and machines. Devices and machines will be able to learn from, and with, humans in a natural collaborative way. The recent game changers in learnscapes (learning paradigms, technologies, platforms, spaces, and environments) that can significantly impact engineering education in the coming era are identified. Among these are open educational resources, knowledge-rich classrooms, immersive interactive 3D learning, augmented reality, reverse instruction / flipped classroom, gamification, robots in the classroom, and adaptive personalized learning. Significant transformative changes in, and mass customization of, learning are envisioned to emerge from the synergistic combination of the game changers and other technologies. The realization of the aforementioned vision requires the development of a new multidisciplinary framework of emergent engineering for relating innovation, complexity and cybernetics, within the future learning environments. The framework can be used to treat engineering education as a complex adaptive system, with dynamically interacting and communicating components (instructors, individual, small, and large groups of learners). The emergent behavior resulting from the interactions can produce progressively better, and continuously improving, learning environment. As a first step towards the realization of the vision, intelligent adaptive cyber-physical ecosystems need to be developed to facilitate collaboration between the various stakeholders of engineering education, and to accelerate the development of a skilled engineering workforce. The major components of the ecosystems include integrated knowledge discovery and exploitation facilities, blended learning and research spaces, novel ultra-intelligent software agents, multimodal and autonomous interfaces, and networked cognitive and tele-presence robots.

A comparative study on real lab and simulation lab in communication engineering from students' perspectives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balakrishnan, B.; Woods, P. C.

2013-05-01

Over the years, rapid development in computer technology has engendered simulation-based laboratory (lab) in addition to the traditional hands-on (physical) lab. Many higher education institutions adopt simulation lab, replacing some existing physical lab experiments. The creation of new systems for conducting engineering lab activities has raised concerns among educators on the merits and shortcomings of both physical and simulation labs; at the same time, many arguments have been raised on the differences of both labs. Investigating the effectiveness of both labs is complicated, as there are multiple factors that should be considered. In view of this challenge, a study on students' perspectives on their experience related to key aspects on engineering laboratory exercise was conducted. In this study, the Visual Auditory Read and Kinetic model was utilised to measure the students' cognitive styles. The investigation was done through a survey among participants from Multimedia University, Malaysia. The findings revealed that there are significant differences for most of the aspects in physical and simulation labs.

Learning about Genetic Engineering in an Outreach Laboratory: Influence of Motivation and Gender on Students' Cognitive Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldschmidt, Marlen; Bogner, Franz X.

2016-01-01

During the last 10 years, outreach science laboratories have become increasingly popular due to resource and time limitations in schools. Outreach laboratories offer hands-on projects in a situated and authentic learning setting, thereby promoting the development of students' scientific literacy. However, students' cognitive achievement within…

Spatial Cognition Support for Exploring the Design Mechanics of Building Structures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rudy, Margit; Hauck, Richard

2008-01-01

A web-based tool for visualizing the simulated structural behavior of building models was developed to support the teaching of structural design to architecture and engineering students by activating their spatial cognition capabilities. The main didactic issues involved establishing a consistent and complete three-dimensional vocabulary (3D)…

Ethnography of Novices' First Use of Web Search Engines: Affective Control in Cognitive Processing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nahl, Diane

1998-01-01

This study of 18 novice Internet users employed a structured self-report method to investigate affective and cognitive operations in the following phases of World Wide Web searching: presearch formulation, search statement formulation, search strategy, and evaluation of results. Users also rated their self-confidence as searchers and satisfaction…

The Impact of Cognitive Style on Social Networks in On-Line Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jablokow, Kathryn; Vercellone-Smith, Pamela

2011-01-01

With the rise of e-Learning in engineering education, understanding the impact of individual differences on the ways students communicate and collaborate on-line has become increasingly important. The research described here investigates the influence of cognitive style on the interactions within student social networks in an on-line learning…

The Role of Social Support in Students' Perceived Abilities and Attitudes toward Math and Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rice, Lindsay; Barth, Joan M.; Guadagno, Rosanna E.; Smith, Gabrielle P. A.; McCallum, Debra M.

2013-01-01

Social cognitive models examining academic and career outcomes emphasize constructs such as attitude, interest, and self-efficacy as key factors affecting students' pursuit of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) courses and careers. The current research examines another under-researched component of social cognitive models: social…

Teaching Compound Nouns in ESP: Insights from Cognitive Semantics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fries, Marie-Hélène

2017-01-01

The objective of this chapter is to explore the relevance of cognitive linguistics for teaching [noun] + [noun] constructions to French learners of English for Specific Purposes (ESP), and more specifically, for process engineering. After a review of research on Compound Nouns (CNs) and explicit versus implicit learning, three basic tenets of…

Power of the desired self: Influence of induced perceptions of the self on reasoning.

PubMed

Augustinova, Maria; Collange, Julie; Sanitioso, Rasyid Bo; Musca, Serban C

2011-12-01

This research shows that the motivation to posses a desired characteristic (or to avoid an undesired one) results in self-perceptions that guide people's use of base rate in the Lawyer-Engineer problem (Kahneman & Tversky, 1973). In four studies, participants induced to believe (or recall, Exp. 2) that a rational cognitive style is success-conducive (or an intuitive cognitive style failure-conducive) subsequently viewed themselves as more rational and relied more on base rate in their probability estimates than those induced to believe that a rational cognitive style is failure-conducive (or an intuitive cognitive style success-conducive). These findings show that the desired self had an influence on reasoning in the self-unrelated lawyer-engineer task, since the use of base rates was mediated by changes in participants' perceptions of their own rationality. These findings therefore show that the desired self, through the working self-concept that it entails, constitutes another factor influencing people's use of distinct modes of reasoning. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Gender Gap in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM): Current Knowledge, Implications for Practice, Policy, and Future Directions

PubMed Central

Degol, Jessica L.

2016-01-01

Although the gender gap in math course-taking and performance has narrowed in recent decades, females continue to be underrepresented in math-intensive fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Career pathways encompass the ability to pursue a career as well as the motivation to employ that ability. Individual differences in cognitive capacity and motivation are also influenced by broader sociocultural factors. After reviewing research from the fields of psychology, sociology, economics, and education over the past 30 years, we summarize six explanations for US women’s underrepresentation in math-intensive STEM fields: (a) cognitive ability, (b) relative cognitive strengths, (c) occupational interests or preferences, (d) lifestyle values or work-family balance preferences, (e) field-specific ability beliefs, and (f) gender-related stereotypes and biases. We then describe the potential biological and sociocultural explanations for observed gender differences on cognitive and motivational factors and demonstrate the developmental period(s) during which each factor becomes most relevant. We then propose evidence-based recommendations for policy and practice to improve STEM diversity and recommendations for future research directions. PMID:28458499

Gender Gap in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM): Current Knowledge, Implications for Practice, Policy, and Future Directions.

PubMed

Wang, Ming-Te; Degol, Jessica L

2017-03-01

Although the gender gap in math course-taking and performance has narrowed in recent decades, females continue to be underrepresented in math-intensive fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Career pathways encompass the ability to pursue a career as well as the motivation to employ that ability. Individual differences in cognitive capacity and motivation are also influenced by broader sociocultural factors. After reviewing research from the fields of psychology, sociology, economics, and education over the past 30 years, we summarize six explanations for US women's underrepresentation in math-intensive STEM fields: (a) cognitive ability, (b) relative cognitive strengths, (c) occupational interests or preferences, (d) lifestyle values or work-family balance preferences, (e) field-specific ability beliefs, and (f) gender-related stereotypes and biases. We then describe the potential biological and sociocultural explanations for observed gender differences on cognitive and motivational factors and demonstrate the developmental period(s) during which each factor becomes most relevant. We then propose evidence-based recommendations for policy and practice to improve STEM diversity and recommendations for future research directions.

Influence of social cognitive and ethnic variables on academic goals of underrepresented students in science and engineering: a multiple-groups analysis.

PubMed

Byars-Winston, Angela; Estrada, Yannine; Howard, Christina; Davis, Dalelia; Zalapa, Juan

2010-04-01

This study investigated the academic interests and goals of 223 African American, Latino/a, Southeast Asian, and Native American undergraduate students in two groups: biological science and engineering (S/E) majors. Using social cognitive career theory (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994), we examined the relationships of social cognitive variables (math/science academic self-efficacy, math/science outcome expectations), along with the influence of ethnic variables (ethnic identity, other-group orientation) and perceptions of campus climate to their math/science interests and goal commitment to earn an S/E degree. Path analysis revealed that the hypothesized model provided good overall fit to the data, revealing significant relationships from outcome expectations to interests and to goals. Paths from academic self-efficacy to S/E goals and from interests to S/E goals varied for students in engineering and biological science. For both groups, other-group orientation was positively related to self-efficacy and support was found for an efficacy-mediated relationship between perceived campus climate and goals. Theoretical and practical implications of the study's findings are considered as well as future research directions.

Influence of Social Cognitive and Ethnic Variables on Academic Goals of Underrepresented Students in Science and Engineering: A Multiple-Groups Analysis

PubMed Central

Byars-Winston, Angela; Estrada, Yannine; Howard, Christina; Davis, Dalelia; Zalapa, Juan

2010-01-01

This study investigated the academic interests and goals of 223 African American, Latino/a, Southeast Asian, and Native American undergraduate students in two groups: biological science and engineering (S/E) majors. Using social cognitive career theory (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994), we examined the relationships of social cognitive variables (math/science academic self-efficacy, math/science outcome expectations), along with the influence of ethnic variables (ethnic identity, other-group orientation) and perceptions of campus climate to their math/science interests and goal commitment to earn an S/E degree. Path analysis revealed that the hypothesized model provided good overall fit to the data, revealing significant relationships from outcome expectations to interests and to goals. Paths from academic self-efficacy to S/E goals and from interests to S/E goals varied for students in engineering and biological science. For both groups, other-group orientation was positively related to self-efficacy and support was found for an efficacy-mediated relationship between perceived campus climate and goals. Theoretical and practical implications of the study’s findings are considered as well as future research directions. PMID:20495610

Passive Motion Paradigm: An Alternative to Optimal Control

PubMed Central

Mohan, Vishwanathan; Morasso, Pietro

2011-01-01

In the last years, optimal control theory (OCT) has emerged as the leading approach for investigating neural control of movement and motor cognition for two complementary research lines: behavioral neuroscience and humanoid robotics. In both cases, there are general problems that need to be addressed, such as the “degrees of freedom (DoFs) problem,” the common core of production, observation, reasoning, and learning of “actions.” OCT, directly derived from engineering design techniques of control systems quantifies task goals as “cost functions” and uses the sophisticated formal tools of optimal control to obtain desired behavior (and predictions). We propose an alternative “softer” approach passive motion paradigm (PMP) that we believe is closer to the biomechanics and cybernetics of action. The basic idea is that actions (overt as well as covert) are the consequences of an internal simulation process that “animates” the body schema with the attractor dynamics of force fields induced by the goal and task-specific constraints. This internal simulation offers the brain a way to dynamically link motor redundancy with task-oriented constraints “at runtime,” hence solving the “DoFs problem” without explicit kinematic inversion and cost function computation. We argue that the function of such computational machinery is not only restricted to shaping motor output during action execution but also to provide the self with information on the feasibility, consequence, understanding and meaning of “potential actions.” In this sense, taking into account recent developments in neuroscience (motor imagery, simulation theory of covert actions, mirror neuron system) and in embodied robotics, PMP offers a novel framework for understanding motor cognition that goes beyond the engineering control paradigm provided by OCT. Therefore, the paper is at the same time a review of the PMP rationale, as a computational theory, and a perspective presentation of how to develop it for designing better cognitive architectures. PMID:22207846

The Structure-Mapping Engine: Algorithm and Examples.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Falkenhainer, Brian; And Others

This description of the Structure-Mapping Engine (SME), a flexible, cognitive simulation program for studying analogical processing which is based on Gentner's Structure-Mapping theory of analogy, points out that the SME provides a "tool kit" for constructing matching algorithms consistent with this theory. This report provides: (1) a…

Development of a Thinking Programme for Engineering Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tan, Oon-Seng

2006-01-01

The challenge of preparing engineering graduates for a fast-changing work environment calls for the development of thinking programmes. A psychological basis was used to develop the tenets of the approach. The Cognitive Modifiability Intervention (CMI) was rationalized and conceived as a corollary of observations of learning scenarios and an…

Analogical Reasoning in the Engineering Design Process and Technology Education Applications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Daugherty, Jenny; Mentzer, Nathan

2008-01-01

This synthesis paper discusses the research exploring analogical reasoning, the role of analogies in the engineering design process, and educational applications for analogical reasoning. Researchers have discovered that analogical reasoning is often a fundamental cognitive tool in design problem solving. Regarding the possible role of analogical…

Children's Search Engines from an Information Search Process Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Broch, Elana

2000-01-01

Describes cognitive and affective characteristics of children and teenagers that may affect their Web searching behavior. Reviews literature on children's searching in online public access catalogs (OPACs) and using digital libraries. Profiles two Web search engines. Discusses some of the difficulties children have searching the Web, in the…

An Investigation of an Open-Source Software Development Environment in a Software Engineering Graduate Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ge, Xun; Huang, Kun; Dong, Yifei

2010-01-01

A semester-long ethnography study was carried out to investigate project-based learning in a graduate software engineering course through the implementation of an Open-Source Software Development (OSSD) learning environment, which featured authentic projects, learning community, cognitive apprenticeship, and technology affordances. The study…

Task-oriented display design - Concept and example

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abbott, Terence S.

1989-01-01

The general topic was in the area of display design alternatives for improved man-machine performance. The intent was to define and assess a display design concept oriented toward providing this task-oriented information. The major focus of this concept deals with the processing of data into parameters that are more relevant to the task of the human operator. Closely coupled to this concept of relevant information is the form or manner in which this information is actually presented. Conventional forms of presentation are normally a direct representation of the underlying data. By providing information in a form that is more easily assimilated and understood, a reduction in human error and cognitive workload may be obtained. A description of this proposed concept with a design example is provided. The application for the example was an engine display for a generic, twin-engine civil transport aircraft. The product of this concept was evaluated against a functionally similar, traditional display. The results of this evaluation showed that a task-oriented approach to design is a viable concept with regard to reducing user error and cognitive workload. The goal of this design process, providing task-oriented information to the user, both in content and form, appears to be a feasible mechanism for increasing the overall performance of a man-machine system.

Task-oriented display design: Concept and example

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abbott, Terence S.

1989-01-01

The general topic was in the area of display design alternatives for improved man-machine performance. The intent was to define and assess a display design concept oriented toward providing this task-oriented information. The major focus of this concept deals with the processing of data into parameters that are more relevant to the task of the human operator. Closely coupled to this concept of relevant information is the form or manner in which this information is actually presented. Conventional forms of presentation are normally a direct representation of the underlying data. By providing information in a form that is more easily assimilated and understood, a reduction in human error and cognitive workload may be obtained. A description of this proposed concept with a design example is provided. The application for the example was an engine display for a generic, twin-engine civil transport aircraft. The product of this concept was evaluated against a functionally similar, traditional display. The results of this evaluation showed that a task-oriented approach to design is a viable concept with regard to reducing user error and cognitive workload. The goal of this design process, providing task-oriented information to the user, both in content and form, appears to be a feasible mechanism for increasing the overall performance of a man-machine system.

Cognitive Engineering of Advanced Information Technology for Air Force Systems Design and Deployment: Prototype for Air Defense Intelligence and Operations

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-10-01

train members of the eventual decision-making group to have different strategies, called " policies ," for making inferences and/or decisions. For example...group task, the task side of the lens model is structured so that each person must modify his judgment policy by learning from the other person in order...judgment policy ; that is, they would receive in both pictorial and textual form a description of how each person combines information to make a judgment

Job Complexity and Cognitive Performance in Bank Personnel

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-09-01

Hemispheric differences in serial versus parallel processing. Journal of Experimental Psychology 97(3):349-356, 1973. Dumas, R. and Morgan, A. EEG ...7 8 9 10 J_l 12 13 14 15. 16 .17 18 19 20 i 1 n -ifl i 3^1 9 4f^^^ 1 1 M sM^ tM i ’ N eH^^^^H i 1 yllH^^^^I i sH^^^^^^^B ! i...NL Boiling Air Force Base Washington, D.C. 20332 ’ AFHRL/LRS TDC Attn: Susan Ewing Wright-Patterson AFB, OH 45433 Chief, Systems Engineering

Modeling cognitive deficits following neurodegenerative diseases and traumatic brain injuries with deep convolutional neural networks.

PubMed

Lusch, Bethany; Weholt, Jake; Maia, Pedro D; Kutz, J Nathan

2018-06-01

The accurate diagnosis and assessment of neurodegenerative disease and traumatic brain injuries (TBI) remain open challenges. Both cause cognitive and functional deficits due to focal axonal swellings (FAS), but it is difficult to deliver a prognosis due to our limited ability to assess damaged neurons at a cellular level in vivo. We simulate the effects of neurodegenerative disease and TBI using convolutional neural networks (CNNs) as our model of cognition. We utilize biophysically relevant statistical data on FAS to damage the connections in CNNs in a functionally relevant way. We incorporate energy constraints on the brain by pruning the CNNs to be less over-engineered. Qualitatively, we demonstrate that damage leads to human-like mistakes. Our experiments also provide quantitative assessments of how accuracy is affected by various types and levels of damage. The deficit resulting from a fixed amount of damage greatly depends on which connections are randomly injured, providing intuition for why it is difficult to predict impairments. There is a large degree of subjectivity when it comes to interpreting cognitive deficits from complex systems such as the human brain. However, we provide important insight and a quantitative framework for disorders in which FAS are implicated. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Restoration of neurological functions by neuroprosthetic technologies: future prospects and trends towards micro-, nano-, and biohybrid systems.

PubMed

Stieglitz, T

2007-01-01

Today applications of neural prostheses that successfully help patients to increase their activities of daily living and participate in social life again are quite simple implants that yield definite tissue response and are well recognized as foreign body. Latest developments in genetic engineering, nanotechnologies and materials sciences have paved the way to new scenarios towards highly complex systems to interface the human nervous system. Combinations of neural cells with microimplants promise stable biohybrid interfaces. Nanotechnology opens the door to macromolecular landscapes on implants that mimic the biologic topology and surface interaction of biologic cells. Computer sciences dream of technical cognitive systems that act and react due to knowledge-based conclusion mechanisms to a changing or adaptive environment. Different sciences start to interact and discuss the synergies when methods and paradigms from biology, computer sciences and engineering, neurosciences, psychology will be combined. They envision the era of "converging technologies" to completely change the understanding of science and postulate a new vision of humans. In this chapter, these research lines will be discussed on some examples as well as the societal implications and ethical questions that arise from these new opportunities.

Cognitive diversity in undergraduate engineering: Dyslexia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fitzpatrick, Velvet R.

In the United States, institutions have established multiple programs and initiatives aimed at increasing the diversity of both faculty and students in engineering as means to produce a workforce that will better serve society. However, there are two major problems in addressing engineering student diversity. First, the engineering education research community has paid little attention to date as to how engineering education research characterizes diversity in its broadest sense. Second, research on persons with disabilities in undergraduates engineering, a population of interests within diversity, is minimal. Available disability studies tend to be skewed toward physical disabilities, leading to a neglect of cognitive differences such as learning disabilities (LD). In addition, disability research questions and study designs are inherently steeped in ability bias. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the meaning of ability for students with dyslexia while in undergraduate engineering and establish the significance of cognitive diversity, focusing on LD and more specifically dyslexia, in undergraduate engineering education and answer the following research question: How do undergraduate engineering students with dyslexia experience ability while pursuing and persisting in engineering? The motivation was to lay the groundwork for future engineering education studies on undergraduate students with LD in general but dyslexia in specific. The first goal was to conduct a critical literature review pertaining to the academic strengths of undergraduate students with LD, specifically, dyslexia and the second goal was to describe how undergraduate engineering students with dyslexia experience ability. The intent was not to redefine dyslexia or disability. The intent is to provide an inclusive account of dyslexia, weakness and strengths, within the field of engineering education. This study was conducted from a qualitative inquiry approach, within the social constructivism paradigm, and utilized purposive sampling to identify appropriate participants. The thematic analysis methodological framework was used to portray a rich, complex description of experiences in which undergraduate engineering students with dyslexia constructed meaning around ability while pursuing and persisting in engineering. Eight students participated and semi-structured interviews were the data source. The findings are presented in three parts. First, significant findings that were also salient amongst the general undergraduate engineering student populations are presented. This is done to make a clear demarcation from those significant findings found to be unique to undergraduate engineering students with dyslexia presented in the themes: relationships, early exposure to engineering, and securing an internship or co-op position. Second, the four themes that developed from the analysis will were discussed: alignment, dissociation, ideal education environments, and time. Third, additional findings for further investigation were proposed: the role of remediation practices, the representation of dyslexia in media, gender differences in extracurricular activities that constructed different meanings of ability, the prevalence of co-occurring LD amongst the participants, and the visualization of science, engineering, mathematics concepts. The study is closed with a discussion; findings are discussed with respect to relevant research in the conclusion.

Cognitive impairment and associated loss in brain white microstructure in aircrew members exposed to engine oil fumes.

PubMed

Reneman, Liesbeth; Schagen, Sanne B; Mulder, Michel; Mutsaerts, Henri J; Hageman, Gerard; de Ruiter, Michiel B

2016-06-01

Cabin air in airplanes can be contaminated with engine oil contaminants. These contaminations may contain organophosphates (OPs) which are known neurotoxins to brain white matter. However, it is currently unknown if brain white matter in aircrew is affected. We investigated whether we could objectify cognitive complaints in aircrew and whether we could find a neurobiological substrate for their complaints. After medical ethical approval from the local institutional review board, informed consent was obtained from 12 aircrew (2 females, on average aged 44.4 years, 8,130 flying hours) with cognitive complaints and 11 well matched control subjects (2 females, 43.4 years, 233 flying hours). Depressive symptoms and self-reported cognitive symptoms were assessed, in addition to a neuropsychological test battery. State of the art Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques were administered that assess structural and functional changes, with a focus on white matter integrity. In aircrew we found significantly more self-reported cognitive complaints and depressive symptoms, and a higher number of tests scored in the impaired range compared to the control group. We observed small clusters in the brain in which white matter microstructure was affected. Also, we observed higher cerebral perfusion values in the left occipital cortex, and reduced brain activation on a functional MRI executive function task. The extent of cognitive impairment was strongly associated with white matter integrity, but extent of estimated number of flight hours was not associated with cognitive impairment nor with reductions in white matter microstructure. Defects in brain white matter microstructure and cerebral perfusion are potential neurobiological substrates for cognitive impairments and mood deficits reported in aircrew.

How Cognitive Style and Problem Complexity Affect Preservice Agricultural Education Teachers' Abilities to Solve Problems in Agricultural Mechanics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blackburn, J. Joey; Robinson, J. Shane; Lamm, Alexa J.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this experimental study was to determine the effects of cognitive style and problem complexity on Oklahoma State University preservice agriculture teachers' (N = 56) ability to solve problems in small gasoline engines. Time to solution was operationalized as problem solving ability. Kirton's Adaption-Innovation Inventory was…

A Study in the Further Development of a Relationship between Precognition and Creativity.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Costello, Francis J.

The relationship between pre-cognition and creativity was investigated in an effort to reaffirm previous findings (Costello 1977) of a correlation between these variables. A sample of 100 engineering freshmen was tested for creativity using the Torrance Test for Creative Thinking and was tested for pre-cognitive ability using the Dean-Mihalasky…

Children's Language Production: How Cognitive Neuroscience and Industrial Engineering Can Inform Public Education Policy and Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leisman, Gerry

2012-01-01

Little of 150 years of research in Cognitive Neurosciences, Human Factors, and the mathematics of Production Management have found their way into educational policy and certainly not into the classroom or in the production of educational materials in any meaningful or practical fashion. Whilst more mundane concepts of timing, sequencing, spatial…

Flight decks and free flight: where are the system boundaries?

PubMed

Hollnagel, Erik

2007-07-01

The change from managed to free flight is expected to have large effects, over and above the intended efficiency gains. Human factor concerns have understandably focused on how free flight may affect the pilots in the cockpit. Yet it is necessary to see the change from managed to free flight as more than just an increment to the pilots' work. Despite the best intentions the transition will not be a case of a smooth, carefully planned and therefore uneventful introduction of a new technology. It is more likely to be a substantial change to an already challenging working environment, in the air as well as on the ground. The significant effects will therefore not just happen within the existing structure or distribution of work and responsibilities, but affect the structure of work itself. This paper takes a look at free flight from a cognitive systems engineering perspective and identifies two major concerns: first what effects free flight has on the boundaries of the joint cognitive systems, and second how this affects demands to control. The conclusion is that both will change considerably and that we need to understand the nature of these changes before focusing on the possible effects of free flight on pilots' performance.

Tuning the cognitive environment: Sound masking with 'natural' sounds in open-plan offices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DeLoach, Alana

With the gain in popularity of open-plan office design and the engineering efforts to achieve acoustical comfort for building occupants, a majority of workers still report dissatisfaction in their workplace environment. Office acoustics influence organizational effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction through meeting appropriate requirements for speech privacy and ambient sound levels. Implementing a sound masking system is one tried-and-true method of achieving privacy goals. Although each sound masking system is tuned for its specific environment, the signal -- random steady state electronic noise, has remained the same for decades. This research work explores how `natural' sounds may be used as an alternative to this standard masking signal employed so ubiquitously in sound masking systems in the contemporary office environment. As an unobtrusive background sound, possessing the appropriate spectral characteristics, this proposed use of `natural' sounds for masking challenges the convention that masking sounds should be as meaningless as possible. Through the pilot study presented in this work, we hypothesize that `natural' sounds as sound maskers will be as effective at masking distracting background noise as the conventional masking sound, will enhance cognitive functioning, and increase participant (worker) satisfaction.

Optimal trajectories of brain state transitions

PubMed Central

Gu, Shi; Betzel, Richard F.; Mattar, Marcelo G.; Cieslak, Matthew; Delio, Philip R.; Grafton, Scott T.; Pasqualetti, Fabio; Bassett, Danielle S.

2017-01-01

The complexity of neural dynamics stems in part from the complexity of the underlying anatomy. Yet how white matter structure constrains how the brain transitions from one cognitive state to another remains unknown. Here we address this question by drawing on recent advances in network control theory to model the underlying mechanisms of brain state transitions as elicited by the collective control of region sets. We find that previously identified attention and executive control systems are poised to affect a broad array of state transitions that cannot easily be classified by traditional engineering-based notions of control. This theoretical versatility comes with a vulnerability to injury. In patients with mild traumatic brain injury, we observe a loss of specificity in putative control processes, suggesting greater susceptibility to neurophysiological noise. These results offer fundamental insights into the mechanisms driving brain state transitions in healthy cognition and their alteration following injury. PMID:28088484

A Bayesian Framework for Analysis of Pseudo-Spatial Models of Comparable Engineered Systems with Application to Spacecraft Anomaly Prediction Based on Precedent Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ndu, Obibobi Kamtochukwu

To ensure that estimates of risk and reliability inform design and resource allocation decisions in the development of complex engineering systems, early engagement in the design life cycle is necessary. An unfortunate constraint on the accuracy of such estimates at this stage of concept development is the limited amount of high fidelity design and failure information available on the actual system under development. Applying the human ability to learn from experience and augment our state of knowledge to evolve better solutions mitigates this limitation. However, the challenge lies in formalizing a methodology that takes this highly abstract, but fundamentally human cognitive, ability and extending it to the field of risk analysis while maintaining the tenets of generalization, Bayesian inference, and probabilistic risk analysis. We introduce an integrated framework for inferring the reliability, or other probabilistic measures of interest, of a new system or a conceptual variant of an existing system. Abstractly, our framework is based on learning from the performance of precedent designs and then applying the acquired knowledge, appropriately adjusted based on degree of relevance, to the inference process. This dissertation presents a method for inferring properties of the conceptual variant using a pseudo-spatial model that describes the spatial configuration of the family of systems to which the concept belongs. Through non-metric multidimensional scaling, we formulate the pseudo-spatial model based on rank-ordered subjective expert perception of design similarity between systems that elucidate the psychological space of the family. By a novel extension of Kriging methods for analysis of geospatial data to our "pseudo-space of comparable engineered systems", we develop a Bayesian inference model that allows prediction of the probabilistic measure of interest.

An optoelectric professional's training model based on Unity of Knowing and Doing theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qin, Shiqiao; Wu, Wei; Zheng, Jiaxing; Wang, Xingshu; Zhao, Yingwei

2017-08-01

The "Unity of Knowing and Doing" (UKD) theory is proposed by an ancient Chinese philosopher, Wang Shouren, in 1508, which explains how to unify knowledge and practice. Different from the Chinese traditional UKD theory, the international higher education usually treats knowledge and practice as independent, and puts more emphasis on knowledge. Oriented from the UKD theory, the College of Opto-electric Science and Engineering (COESE) at National University of Defense Technology (NUDT) explores a novel training model in cultivating opto-electric professionals from the aspects of classroom teaching, practice experiment, system experiment, design experiment, research experiment and innovation experiment (CPSDRI). This model aims at promoting the unity of knowledge and practice, takes how to improve the students' capability as the main concern and tries to enhance the progress from cognition to professional action competence. It contains two hierarchies: cognition (CPS) and action competence (DRI). In the cognition hierarchy, students will focus on learning and mastering the professional knowledge of optics, opto-electric technology, laser, computer, electronics and machine through classroom teaching, practice experiment and system experiment (CPS). Great attention will be paid to case teaching, which links knowledge with practice. In the action competence hierarchy, emphasis will be placed on promoting students' capability of using knowledge to solve practical problems through design experiment, research experiment and innovation experiment (DRI). In this model, knowledge is divided into different modules and capability is cultivated on different levels. It combines classroom teaching and experimental teaching in a synergetic way and unifies cognition and practice, which is a valuable reference to the opto-electric undergraduate professionals' cultivation.

Efficacy of the Technological/Engineering Design Approach: Imposed Cognitive Demands within Design-Based Biotechnology Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wells, John G.

2016-01-01

Though not empirically established as an efficacious pedagogy for promoting higher order thinking skills, technological/engineering design-based learning in K-12 STEM education is increasingly embraced as a core instructional method for integrative STEM learning that promotes the development of student critical thinking skills (Honey, Pearson,…

Investigating the Impacts of Design Heuristics on Idea Initiation and Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kramer, Julia; Daly, Shanna R.; Yilmaz, Seda; Seifert, Colleen M.; Gonzalez, Richard

2015-01-01

This paper presents an analysis of engineering students' use of Design Heuristics as part of a team project in an undergraduate engineering design course. Design Heuristics are an empirically derived set of cognitive "rules of thumb" for use in concept generation. We investigated heuristic use in the initial concept generation phase,…

Implementing Assessment Engineering in the Uniform Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Examination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burke, Matthew; Devore, Richard; Stopek, Josh

2013-01-01

This paper describes efforts to bring principled assessment design to a large-scale, high-stakes licensure examination by employing the frameworks of Assessment Engineering (AE), the Revised Bloom's Taxonomy (RBT), and Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA). The Uniform CPA Examination is practice-oriented and focuses on the skills of accounting. In…

A Competitive and Experiential Assignment in Search Engine Optimization Strategy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clarke, Theresa B.; Clarke, Irvine, III

2014-01-01

Despite an increase in ad spending and demand for employees with expertise in search engine optimization (SEO), methods for teaching this important marketing strategy have received little coverage in the literature. Using Bloom's cognitive goals hierarchy as a framework, this experiential assignment provides a process for educators who may be new…

Some NASA contributions to human factors engineering: A survey

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Behan, R. A.; Wendhausen, H. W.

1973-01-01

This survey presents the NASA contributions to the state of the art of human factors engineering, and indicates that these contributions have a variety of applications to nonaerospace activities. Emphasis is placed on contributions relative to man's sensory, motor, decisionmaking, and cognitive behavior and on applications that advance human factors technology.

A Coding Scheme for Analysing Problem-Solving Processes of First-Year Engineering Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grigg, Sarah J.; Benson, Lisa C.

2014-01-01

This study describes the development and structure of a coding scheme for analysing solutions to well-structured problems in terms of cognitive processes and problem-solving deficiencies for first-year engineering students. A task analysis approach was used to assess students' problem solutions using the hierarchical structure from a…

Experts and Novices: Differences in Their Use of Mental Representation and Metacognition in Engineering Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dixon, Raymond Anthony

2010-01-01

Research shows that mental representation such as analogical reasoning is a fundamental cognitive tool for design problem solving (Daugherty & Mentzer, 2008; Hey, Lensey, Agogino, & Wood, 2008; Lewis, 2008). Not much is known, however, about the way students and professional engineers actively generate and change their mental representation when…

Toward Technical Understanding: Part 5. General Hierarchy Applied to Engineering Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haile, J. M.

2000-01-01

Illustrates how the five cognitive levels--somatic, mythic, romantic, philosophic, and ironic--can be used to guide teaching and learning activities appropriate for engineering students. Uses the example of the concept of energy to demonstrate how educators might appeal to each mode of thinking for understanding a particular concept. (Contains 11…

Bioinformatics Education in High School: Implications for Promoting Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Careers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kovarik, Dina N.; Patterson, Davis G.; Cohen, Carolyn; Sanders, Elizabeth A.; Peterson, Karen A.; Porter, Sandra G.; Chowning, Jeanne Ting

2013-01-01

We investigated the effects of our Bio-ITEST teacher professional development model and bioinformatics curricula on cognitive traits (awareness, engagement, self-efficacy, and relevance) in high school teachers and students that are known to accompany a developing interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. The…

Second Language Socialization through Team Interaction among Electrical and Computer Engineering Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vickers, Caroline H.

2007-01-01

This article, based on a longitudinal, ethnographic study among engineering students, examines the interactional processes surrounding second language (L2) socialization. L2 socialization perspectives argue that the cognitive and the social are interconnected, and that learning an L2 is a process of coming to understand socially constructed…

Cognitive systems in electronic warfare

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kulpa, Krzysztof; Szczepankiewicz, Michał; Żywek, Marcin; Malanowski, Mateusz; Misiurewicz, Jacek; Samczyński, Piotr

2017-04-01

Electronic warfare (EW) techniques were invented 70 years ago and are still being developed, all the time with a key role played by their operators. However, a human operator responds far too slowly for the on-going needs since to be adequate to current threats the EW system reaction should be within 1 ms or less. Too slow reaction defers an achievement of the objectives, and generally may lead to disclosure of the applied strategy and to waste of resources. Developing the adequate response to the threat is a multifaceted matter that requires considerable experience and knowledge on the one hand, and thorough observation of outcomes of the applied strategy on the other hand. Such action requires the use of not only intelligence but also more complex algorithms for automatic control than the classical ones, and it heavily builds on the experience. It is therefore a cognitive task in its nature, and a human operator acts naturally this way. Consequently, a proper training and experience gained are what really matters. As a result of tests and actions in EW the operator builds his own knowledge base, thus, gains a capability of responding to the known threats in a balanced way. New threats, however, are much more challenging since they should be handled as fast as possible but in a fresh and creative manner. To this end, adapting the algorithms of radar jamming protection for the new conditions of the battlefield is an example of such challenging tasks. At present, such adjustments are done in a long feedback loop when the operator, after recognizing the problem, notifies the equipment manufacturers, and then, their engineers work on required solutions accordingly. Thus, the reaction time is counted in years, not a single milliseconds or seconds. Speeding up the response time is therefore the key issue, and a solution to it would be feasible only when cognitive systems were used. A concept of such cognitive system is presented in this paper.

Learning strategy preferences, verbal-visual cognitive styles, and multimedia preferences for continuing engineering education instructional design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baukal, Charles Edward, Jr.

A literature search revealed very little information on how to teach working engineers, which became the motivation for this research. Effective training is important for many reasons such as preventing accidents, maximizing fuel efficiency, minimizing pollution emissions, and reducing equipment downtime. The conceptual framework for this study included the development of a new instructional design framework called the Multimedia Cone of Abstraction (MCoA). This was developed by combining Dale's Cone of Experience and Mayer's Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning. An anonymous survey of 118 engineers from a single Midwestern manufacturer was conducted to determine their demographics, learning strategy preferences, verbal-visual cognitive styles, and multimedia preferences. The learning strategy preference profile and verbal-visual cognitive styles of the sample were statistically significantly different than the general population. The working engineers included more Problem Solvers and were much more visually-oriented than the general population. To study multimedia preferences, five of the seven levels in the MCoA were used. Eight types of multimedia were compared in four categories (types in parantheses): text (text and narration), static graphics (drawing and photograph), non-interactive dynamic graphics (animation and video), and interactive dynamic graphics (simulated virtual reality and real virtual reality). The first phase of the study examined multimedia preferences within a category. Participants compared multimedia types in pairs on dual screens using relative preference, rating, and ranking. Surprisingly, the more abstract multimedia (text, drawing, animation, and simulated virtual reality) were preferred in every category to the more concrete multimedia (narration, photograph, video, and real virtual reality), despite the fact that most participants had relatively little prior subject knowledge. However, the more abstract graphics were only slightly preferred to the more concrete graphics. In the second phase, the more preferred multimedia types in each category from the first phase were compared against each other using relative preference, rating, and ranking and overall rating and ranking. Drawing was the most preferred multimedia type overall, although only slightly more than animation and simulated virtual reality. Text was a distant fourth. These results suggest that instructional content for continuing engineering education should include problem solving and should be highly visual.

MoPCoM Methodology: Focus on Models of Computation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koudri, Ali; Champeau, Joël; Le Lann, Jean-Christophe; Leilde, Vincent

Today, developments of Real Time Embedded Systems have to face new challenges. On the one hand, Time-To-Market constraints require a reliable development process allowing quick design space exploration. On the other hand, rapidly developing technology, as stated by Moore's law, requires techniques to handle the resulting productivity gap. In a previous paper, we have presented our Model Based Engineering methodology addressing those issues. In this paper, we make a focus on Models of Computation design and analysis. We illustrate our approach on a Cognitive Radio System development implemented on an FPGA. This work is part of the MoPCoM research project gathering academic and industrial organizations (http://www.mopcom.fr).

Emerging CAE technologies and their role in Future Ambient Intelligence Environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noor, Ahmed K.

2011-03-01

Dramatic improvements are on the horizon in Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) and various simulation technologies. The improvements are due, in part, to the developments in a number of leading-edge technologies and their synergistic combinations/convergence. The technologies include ubiquitous, cloud, and petascale computing; ultra high-bandwidth networks, pervasive wireless communication; knowledge based engineering; networked immersive virtual environments and virtual worlds; novel human-computer interfaces; and powerful game engines and facilities. This paper describes the frontiers and emerging simulation technologies, and their role in the future virtual product creation and learning/training environments. The environments will be ambient intelligence environments, incorporating a synergistic combination of novel agent-supported visual simulations (with cognitive learning and understanding abilities); immersive 3D virtual world facilities; development chain management systems and facilities (incorporating a synergistic combination of intelligent engineering and management tools); nontraditional methods; intelligent, multimodal and human-like interfaces; and mobile wireless devices. The Virtual product creation environment will significantly enhance the productivity and will stimulate creativity and innovation in future global virtual collaborative enterprises. The facilities in the learning/training environment will provide timely, engaging, personalized/collaborative and tailored visual learning.

Framework and Implications of Virtual Neurorobotics

PubMed Central

Goodman, Philip H.; Zou, Quan; Dascalu, Sergiu-Mihai

2008-01-01

Despite decades of societal investment in artificial learning systems, truly “intelligent” systems have yet to be realized. These traditional models are based on input-output pattern optimization and/or cognitive production rule modeling. One response has been social robotics, using the interaction of human and robot to capture important cognitive dynamics such as cooperation and emotion; to date, these systems still incorporate traditional learning algorithms. More recently, investigators are focusing on the core assumptions of the brain “algorithm” itself—trying to replicate uniquely “neuromorphic” dynamics such as action potential spiking and synaptic learning. Only now are large-scale neuromorphic models becoming feasible, due to the availability of powerful supercomputers and an expanding supply of parameters derived from research into the brain's interdependent electrophysiological, metabolomic and genomic networks. Personal computer technology has also led to the acceptance of computer-generated humanoid images, or “avatars”, to represent intelligent actors in virtual realities. In a recent paper, we proposed a method of virtual neurorobotics (VNR) in which the approaches above (social-emotional robotics, neuromorphic brain architectures, and virtual reality projection) are hybridized to rapidly forward-engineer and develop increasingly complex, intrinsically intelligent systems. In this paper, we synthesize our research and related work in the field and provide a framework for VNR, with wider implications for research and practical applications. PMID:18982115

Leveraging Cognitive Load Theory, Scaffolding, and Distance Technologies to Enhance Computer Programming for Non-Majors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Impelluso, Thomas J.

2009-01-01

Cognitive Load Theory (CLT) was used as a foundation to redesign a computer programming class for mechanical engineers, in which content was delivered with hybrid/distance technology. The effort confirmed the utility of CLT in course design. And it demonstrates that hybrid/distance learning is not merely a tool of convenience, but one, which, when…

Direct perception vs inferential processes in reading an opponent's mind: The case of a goalkeeper facing a soccer penalty kick. Comment on "Seeing mental states: An experimental strategy for measuring the observability of other minds" by Cristina Becchio et al.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandini, Giulio; Morasso, Pietro

2018-03-01

In engineering cybernetics, observability is a measure of how well internal states of a system can be inferred from knowledge of its external outputs. Moreover, observability and controllability of a system are mathematically inter-related properties in the sense that it does not matter to have access to hidden states if this knowledge is not exploited for achieving a goal. While such issues can be well posed in the engineering field, in cognitive neuroscience it is quite difficult to restrict the analysis in such a way to isolate direct perception from other cognitive processes, named as "inferences" by the authors [1], without losing a great part of the action (unless one trivializes the meaning of "direct" by stating that "all perception is direct": Gallagher and Zahavi [6]). In other words, in spite of the elegance and scientific rigor of the proposed experimental strategy, in our opinion it misses the fact that in real human-human interactions "direct perception" and "inference" are two faces of the same coin and mental states in a social context are, in a general sense, accessible on the basis of directly perceived sensory signals (here and now) tuned by expectations. In the following, we elaborate this opinion with reference to a competitive interaction paradigm, namely the attempt of a goalkeeper to save a soccer penalty kick by "reading the mind" of his opponent.

Are systemizing and autistic traits related to talent and interest in mathematics and engineering? Testing some of the central claims of the empathizing-systemizing theory.

PubMed

Morsanyi, Kinga; Primi, Caterina; Handley, Simon J; Chiesi, Francesca; Galli, Silvia

2012-11-01

In two experiments, we tested some of the central claims of the empathizing-systemizing (E-S) theory. Experiment 1 showed that the systemizing quotient (SQ) was unrelated to performance on a mathematics test, although it was correlated with statistics-related attitudes, self-efficacy, and anxiety. In Experiment 2, systemizing skills, and gender differences in these skills, were more strongly related to spatial thinking styles than to SQ. In fact, when we partialled the effect of spatial thinking styles, SQ was no longer related to systemizing skills. Additionally, there was no relationship between the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) and the SQ, or skills and interest in mathematics and mechanical reasoning. We discuss the implications of our findings for the E-S theory, and for understanding the autistic cognitive profile. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

Persistence of community college engineering science students: The impact of selected cognitive and noncognitive characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chatman, Lawrence M., Jr.

If the United States is to remain technologically competitive, persistence in engineering programs must improve. This study on student persistence employed a mixed-method design to identify the cognitive and noncognitive factors which contribute to students remaining in an engineering science curriculum or switching from an engineering curriculum at a community college in the northeast United States. Records from 372 students were evaluated to determine the characteristics of two groups: those students that persisted with the engineering curriculum and those that switched from engineering; also, the dropout phenomenon was evaluated. The quantitative portion of the study used a logistic regression analyses on 22 independent variables, while the qualitative portion of the study used group interviews to investigate the noncognitive factors that influenced persisting or switching. The qualitative portion of the study added depth and credibility to the results from the quantitative portion. The study revealed that (1) high grades in first year calculus, physics and chemistry courses, (2) fewer number of semesters enrolled, (3) attendance with full time status, and (4) not participating in an English as a Second Language (ESL) program were significant variables used to predict student persistence. The group interviews confirmed several of these contributing factors. Students that dropped out of college began with (1) the lowest levels of remediation, (2) the lowest grade point averages, and (3) the fewest credits earned.

Factors influencing analysis of complex cognitive tasks: a framework and example from industrial process control.

PubMed

Prietula, M J; Feltovich, P J; Marchak, F

2000-01-01

We propose that considering four categories of task factors can facilitate knowledge elicitation efforts in the analysis of complex cognitive tasks: materials, strategies, knowledge characteristics, and goals. A study was conducted to examine the effects of altering aspects of two of these task categories on problem-solving behavior across skill levels: materials and goals. Two versions of an applied engineering problem were presented to expert, intermediate, and novice participants. Participants were to minimize the cost of running a steam generation facility by adjusting steam generation levels and flows. One version was cast in the form of a dynamic, computer-based simulation that provided immediate feedback on flows, costs, and constraint violations, thus incorporating key variable dynamics of the problem context. The other version was cast as a static computer-based model, with no dynamic components, cost feedback, or constraint checking. Experts performed better than the other groups across material conditions, and, when required, the presentation of the goal assisted the experts more than the other groups. The static group generated richer protocols than the dynamic group, but the dynamic group solved the problem in significantly less time. Little effect of feedback was found for intermediates, and none for novices. We conclude that demonstrating differences in performance in this task requires different materials than explicating underlying knowledge that leads to performance. We also conclude that substantial knowledge is required to exploit the information yielded by the dynamic form of the task or the explicit solution goal. This simple model can help to identify the contextual factors that influence elicitation and specification of knowledge, which is essential in the engineering of joint cognitive systems.

Investigating the Roles of Knowledge and Cognitive Abilities in Older Adult Information Seeking on the Web

PubMed Central

SHARIT, JOSEPH; HERNÁNDEZ, MARIO A.; CZAJA, SARA J.; PIROLLI, PETER

2009-01-01

This study investigated the influences of knowledge, particularly Internet, Web browser, and search engine knowledge, as well as cognitive abilities on older adult information seeking on the Internet. The emphasis on aspects of cognition was informed by a modeling framework of search engine information-seeking behavior. Participants from two older age groups were recruited: twenty people in a younger-old group (ages 60–70) and twenty people in an older-old group (ages 71–85). Ten younger adults (ages 18–39) served as a comparison group. All participants had at least some Internet search experience. The experimental task consisted of six realistic search problems, all involving information related to health and well-being and which varied in degree of complexity. The results indicated that though necessary, Internet-related knowledge was not sufficient in explaining information-seeking performance, and suggested that a combination of both knowledge and key cognitive abilities is important for successful information seeking. In addition, the cognitive abilities that were found to be critical for task performance depended on the search problem’s complexity. Also, significant differences in task performance between the younger and the two older age groups were found on complex, but not on simple problems. Overall, the results from this study have implications for instructing older adults on Internet information seeking and for the design of Web sites. PMID:20011130

Motivation for Creativity in Architectural Design and Engineering Design Students: Implications for Design Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Casakin, Hernan; Kreitler, Shulamith

2010-01-01

The investigation reported here dealt with the study of motivation for creativity. The goals were to assess motivation for creativity in architectural design and engineering design students based on the Cognitive Orientation theory which defines motivation as a function of a set of belief types, themes, and groupings identified as relevant for the…

Case Study Analysis of the Effect of Contextual Supports and Barriers on African American Students' Persistence in Engineering

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery, Lisa

2009-01-01

Using case study methodology (Stake, 2006), this research examined the environmental influences, or contextual supports and barriers, that were most influential in contributing to African American students' persistence in an engineering major. Social cognitive career theory provides the framework for understanding the role of contextual supports…

The Use of Reverse Engineering to Analyse Student Computer Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vanneste, Philip; And Others

1996-01-01

Discusses how the reverse engineering approach can generate feedback on computer programs without the user having any prior knowledge of what the program was designed to do. This approach uses the cognitive model of programming knowledge to interpret both context independent and dependent errors in the same words and concepts as human programmers.…

An Application of Reverse Engineering to Automatic Item Generation: A Proof of Concept Using Automatically Generated Figures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lorié, William A.

2013-01-01

A reverse engineering approach to automatic item generation (AIG) was applied to a figure-based publicly released test item from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) mathematical literacy cognitive instrument as part of a proof of concept. The author created an item…

Does Personality Matter? Applying Holland's Typology to Analyze Students' Self-Selection into Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Majors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, P. Daniel; Simpson, Patricia A.

2015-01-01

This study utilized John Holland's personality typology and the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) to examine the factors that may affect students' self-selection into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors. Results indicated that gender, race/ethnicity, high school achievement, and personality type were statistically…

Can We Expect to Recruit Future Engineers among Students Who Have Never Repaired a Toy?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Virtic, Mateja Ploj; Šorgo, Andrej

2016-01-01

Education has traditionally focused primarily on content and cognitive goals. While content knowledge is important, to enter to the labour market today, graduates must also develop manual skills and technical literacy. The paper deals with engineering and technology education in Slovenia. It portrays the problem of the decline in interest in…

Programmed to Think.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Edelson, Edward

1980-01-01

Described are the historical uses and research involving the discipline of artifical intelligence. Topics discussed include: symbol manipulation; knowledge engineering; cognitive modeling; and language, vision and robotics. (Author/DS)

Final priority; National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research--Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers. Final priority.

PubMed

2014-06-05

The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services announces a priority for the Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects and Centers Program administered by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR). Specifically, we announce a priority for a Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC) on Technologies to Enhance Independence in Daily Living for Adults with Cognitive Impairments. The Assistant Secretary may use this priority for competitions in fiscal year (FY) 2014 and later years. We take this action to focus research attention on an area of national need. We intend the priority to contribute to improved outcomes related to independence in daily activities in the home, community, or workplace setting for adults with cognitive impairments.

The Impact of Motion Induced Interruptions on Cognitive Performance

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-07-23

found that even participants presenting with minor physiological effects of motion experienced a decline in multitasking performance. Further, Yu...literature has investigated the impact of task based interruptions such as being inter- rupted by a phone call or writing an email . In these...Engineers Journal. 102 (2) 65-72. Matsangas, P. (2013). The Effect of Mild Motion Sickness and Sopite Syndrome on Multitasking Cognitive Performance

Predictive Modelling of Operative Performance by Means of Personality Traits - Implications for Selection of Personnel

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-06-02

Inc., Hillsdale. Matsumoto , D., & LeRoux, J. (2003). Measuring the psychological engine of intercultural adjustment: The Intercultural Adjustment...Report 3. DATES COVERED (From – To) 12 September 2007 - 12-Sep-09 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Cognitive and Personality Determinants of Cultural ...training since long form corner stones for effective military operations. 15. SUBJECT TERMS EOARD, Psychology , Cognition 16

Systems engineering implementation in the preliminary design phase of the Giant Magellan Telescope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maiten, J.; Johns, M.; Trancho, G.; Sawyer, D.; Mady, P.

2012-09-01

Like many telescope projects today, the 24.5-meter Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) is truly a complex system. The primary and secondary mirrors of the GMT are segmented and actuated to support two operating modes: natural seeing and adaptive optics. GMT is a general-purpose telescope supporting multiple science instruments operated in those modes. GMT is a large, diverse collaboration and development includes geographically distributed teams. The need to implement good systems engineering processes for managing the development of systems like GMT becomes imperative. The management of the requirements flow down from the science requirements to the component level requirements is an inherently difficult task in itself. The interfaces must also be negotiated so that the interactions between subsystems and assemblies are well defined and controlled. This paper will provide an overview of the systems engineering processes and tools implemented for the GMT project during the preliminary design phase. This will include requirements management, documentation and configuration control, interface development and technical risk management. Because of the complexity of the GMT system and the distributed team, using web-accessible tools for collaboration is vital. To accomplish this GMTO has selected three tools: Cognition Cockpit, Xerox Docushare, and Solidworks Enterprise Product Data Management (EPDM). Key to this is the use of Cockpit for managing and documenting the product tree, architecture, error budget, requirements, interfaces, and risks. Additionally, drawing management is accomplished using an EPDM vault. Docushare, a documentation and configuration management tool is used to manage workflow of documents and drawings for the GMT project. These tools electronically facilitate collaboration in real time, enabling the GMT team to track, trace and report on key project metrics and design parameters.

Bio-inspired group modeling and analysis for intruder detection in mobile sensor/robotic networks.

PubMed

Fu, Bo; Xiao, Yang; Liang, Xiannuan; Philip Chen, C L

2015-01-01

Although previous bio-inspired models have concentrated on invertebrates (such as ants), mammals such as primates with higher cognitive function are valuable for modeling the increasingly complex problems in engineering. Understanding primates' social and communication systems, and applying what is learned from them to engineering domains is likely to inspire solutions to a number of problems. This paper presents a novel bio-inspired approach to determine group size by researching and simulating primate society. Group size does matter for both primate society and digital entities. It is difficult to determine how to group mobile sensors/robots that patrol in a large area when many factors are considered such as patrol efficiency, wireless interference, coverage, inter/intragroup communications, etc. This paper presents a simulation-based theoretical study on patrolling strategies for robot groups with the comparison of large and small groups through simulations and theoretical results.

Validation of the Cognition Test Battery for Spaceflight in a Sample of Highly Educated Adults.

PubMed

Moore, Tyler M; Basner, Mathias; Nasrini, Jad; Hermosillo, Emanuel; Kabadi, Sushila; Roalf, David R; McGuire, Sarah; Ecker, Adrian J; Ruparel, Kosha; Port, Allison M; Jackson, Chad T; Dinges, David F; Gur, Ruben C

2017-10-01

Neuropsychological changes that may occur due to the environmental and psychological stressors of prolonged spaceflight motivated the development of the Cognition Test Battery. The battery was designed to assess multiple domains of neurocognitive functions linked to specific brain systems. Tests included in Cognition have been validated, but not in high-performing samples comparable to astronauts, which is an essential step toward ensuring their usefulness in long-duration space missions. We administered Cognition (on laptop and iPad) and the WinSCAT, counterbalanced for order and version, in a sample of 96 subjects (50% women; ages 25-56 yr) with at least a Master's degree in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM). We assessed the associations of age, sex, and administration device with neurocognitive performance, and compared the scores on the Cognition battery with those of WinSCAT. Confirmatory factor analysis compared the structure of the iPad and laptop administration methods using Wald tests. Age was associated with longer response times (mean β = 0.12) and less accurate (mean β = -0.12) performance, women had longer response times on psychomotor (β = 0.62), emotion recognition (β = 0.30), and visuo-spatial (β = 0.48) tasks, men outperformed women on matrix reasoning (β = -0.34), and performance on an iPad was generally faster (mean β = -0.55). The WinSCAT appeared heavily loaded with tasks requiring executive control, whereas Cognition assessed a larger variety of neurocognitive domains. Overall results supported the interpretation of Cognition scores as measuring their intended constructs in high performing astronaut analog samples.Moore TM, Basner M, Nasrini J, Hermosillo E, Kabadi S, Roalf DR, McGuire S, Ecker AJ, Ruparel K, Port AM, Jackson CT, Dinges DF, Gur RC. Validation of the Cognition Test Battery for spaceflight in a sample of highly educated adults. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2017; 88(10):937-946.

Designing Colorectal Cancer Screening Decision Support: A Cognitive Engineering Enterprise.

PubMed

Militello, Laura G; Saleem, Jason J; Borders, Morgan R; Sushereba, Christen E; Haverkamp, Donald; Wolf, Steven P; Doebbeling, Bradley N

2016-03-01

Adoption of clinical decision support has been limited. Important barriers include an emphasis on algorithmic approaches to decision support that do not align well with clinical work flow and human decision strategies, and the expense and challenge of developing, implementing, and refining decision support features in existing electronic health records (EHRs). We applied decision-centered design to create a modular software application to support physicians in managing and tracking colorectal cancer screening. Using decision-centered design facilitates a thorough understanding of cognitive support requirements from an end user perspective as a foundation for design. In this project, we used an iterative design process, including ethnographic observation and cognitive task analysis, to move from an initial design concept to a working modular software application called the Screening & Surveillance App. The beta version is tailored to work with the Veterans Health Administration's EHR Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS). Primary care providers using the beta version Screening & Surveillance App more accurately answered questions about patients and found relevant information more quickly compared to those using CPRS alone. Primary care providers also reported reduced mental effort and rated the Screening & Surveillance App positively for usability.

Designing Colorectal Cancer Screening Decision Support: A Cognitive Engineering Enterprise

PubMed Central

Militello, Laura G.; Saleem, Jason J.; Borders, Morgan R.; Sushereba, Christen E.; Haverkamp, Donald; Wolf, Steven P.; Doebbeling, Bradley N.

2016-01-01

Adoption of clinical decision support has been limited. Important barriers include an emphasis on algorithmic approaches to decision support that do not align well with clinical work flow and human decision strategies, and the expense and challenge of developing, implementing, and refining decision support features in existing electronic health records (EHRs). We applied decision-centered design to create a modular software application to support physicians in managing and tracking colorectal cancer screening. Using decision-centered design facilitates a thorough understanding of cognitive support requirements from an end user perspective as a foundation for design. In this project, we used an iterative design process, including ethnographic observation and cognitive task analysis, to move from an initial design concept to a working modular software application called the Screening & Surveillance App. The beta version is tailored to work with the Veterans Health Administration’s EHR Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS). Primary care providers using the beta version Screening & Surveillance App more accurately answered questions about patients and found relevant information more quickly compared to those using CPRS alone. Primary care providers also reported reduced mental effort and rated the Screening & Surveillance App positively for usability. PMID:26973441

Learning in the model space for cognitive fault diagnosis.

PubMed

Chen, Huanhuan; Tino, Peter; Rodan, Ali; Yao, Xin

2014-01-01

The emergence of large sensor networks has facilitated the collection of large amounts of real-time data to monitor and control complex engineering systems. However, in many cases the collected data may be incomplete or inconsistent, while the underlying environment may be time-varying or unformulated. In this paper, we develop an innovative cognitive fault diagnosis framework that tackles the above challenges. This framework investigates fault diagnosis in the model space instead of the signal space. Learning in the model space is implemented by fitting a series of models using a series of signal segments selected with a sliding window. By investigating the learning techniques in the fitted model space, faulty models can be discriminated from healthy models using a one-class learning algorithm. The framework enables us to construct a fault library when unknown faults occur, which can be regarded as cognitive fault isolation. This paper also theoretically investigates how to measure the pairwise distance between two models in the model space and incorporates the model distance into the learning algorithm in the model space. The results on three benchmark applications and one simulated model for the Barcelona water distribution network confirm the effectiveness of the proposed framework.

Will the future of knowledge work automation transform personalized medicine?

PubMed

Naik, Gauri; Bhide, Sanika S

2014-09-01

Today, we live in a world of 'information overload' which demands high level of knowledge-based work. However, advances in computer hardware and software have opened possibilities to automate 'routine cognitive tasks' for knowledge processing. Engineering intelligent software systems that can process large data sets using unstructured commands and subtle judgments and have the ability to learn 'on the fly' are a significant step towards automation of knowledge work. The applications of this technology for high throughput genomic analysis, database updating, reporting clinically significant variants, and diagnostic imaging purposes are explored using case studies.

High level organizing principles for display of systems fault information for commercial flight crews

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rogers, William H.; Schutte, Paul C.

1993-01-01

Advanced fault management aiding concepts for commercial pilots are being developed in a research program at NASA Langley Research Center. One aim of this program is to re-evaluate current design principles for display of fault information to the flight crew: (1) from a cognitive engineering perspective and (2) in light of the availability of new types of information generated by advanced fault management aids. The study described in this paper specifically addresses principles for organizing fault information for display to pilots based on their mental models of fault management.

Mediodorsal thalamus and cognition in non-human primates

PubMed Central

Baxter, Mark G.

2013-01-01

Several recent studies in non-human primates have provided new insights into the role of the medial thalamus in different aspects of cognitive function. The mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus (MD), by virtue of its connectivity with the frontal cortex, has been implicated in an array of cognitive functions. Rather than serving as an engine or relay for the prefrontal cortex, this area seems to be more specifically involved in regulating plasticity and flexibility of prefrontal-dependent cognitive functions. Focal damage to MD may also exacerbate the effects of damage to other subcortical relays. Thus, a wide range of distributed circuits and cognitive functions may be disrupted from focal damage within the medial thalamus (for example as a consequence of stroke or brain injury). Conversely, this region may make an interesting target for neuromodulation of cognitive function via deep brain stimulation or related methods, in conditions associated with dysfunction of these neural circuits. PMID:23964206

Mediodorsal thalamus and cognition in non-human primates.

PubMed

Baxter, Mark G

2013-01-01

Several recent studies in non-human primates have provided new insights into the role of the medial thalamus in different aspects of cognitive function. The mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus (MD), by virtue of its connectivity with the frontal cortex, has been implicated in an array of cognitive functions. Rather than serving as an engine or relay for the prefrontal cortex, this area seems to be more specifically involved in regulating plasticity and flexibility of prefrontal-dependent cognitive functions. Focal damage to MD may also exacerbate the effects of damage to other subcortical relays. Thus, a wide range of distributed circuits and cognitive functions may be disrupted from focal damage within the medial thalamus (for example as a consequence of stroke or brain injury). Conversely, this region may make an interesting target for neuromodulation of cognitive function via deep brain stimulation or related methods, in conditions associated with dysfunction of these neural circuits.

A social-cognitive framework of multidisciplinary team innovation.

PubMed

Paletz, Susannah B F; Schunn, Christian D

2010-01-01

The psychology of science typically lacks integration between cognitive and social variables. We present a new framework of team innovation in multidisciplinary science and engineering groups that ties factors from both literatures together. We focus on the effects of a particularly challenging social factor, knowledge diversity, which has a history of mixed effects on creativity, most likely because those effects are mediated and moderated by cognitive and additional social variables. In addition, we highlight the distinction between team innovative processes that are primarily divergent versus convergent; we propose that the social and cognitive implications are different for each, providing a possible explanation for knowledge diversity's mixed results on team outcomes. Social variables mapped out include formal roles, communication norms, sufficient participation and information sharing, and task conflict; cognitive variables include analogy, information search, and evaluation. This framework provides a roadmap for research that aims to harness the power of multidisciplinary teams. Copyright © 2009 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

The impact of project-based learning on improving student learning outcomes of sustainability concepts in transportation engineering courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fini, Elham H.; Awadallah, Faisal; Parast, Mahour M.; Abu-Lebdeh, Taher

2018-05-01

This paper describes an intervention to enhance students' learning by involving students in brainstorming activities about sustainability concepts and their implications in transportation engineering. The paper discusses the process of incorporating the intervention into a transportation course, as well as the impact of this intervention on students' learning outcomes. To evaluate and compare students' learning as a result of the intervention, the Laboratory for Innovative Technology and Engineering Education survey instrument was used. The survey instrument includes five constructs: higher-order cognitive skills, self-efficacy, ease of learning subject matter, teamwork, and communication skills. Pre- and post-intervention surveys of student learning outcomes were conducted to determine the effectiveness of the intervention on enhancing students' learning outcomes. The results show that the implementation of the intervention significantly improved higher-order cognitive skills, self-efficacy, teamwork, and communication skills. Involving students in brainstorming activities related to sustainability concepts and their implications in transportation proved to be an effective teaching and learning strategy.

Archeological insights into hominin cognitive evolution.

PubMed

Wynn, Thomas; Coolidge, Frederick L

2016-07-01

How did the human mind evolve? How and when did we come to think in the ways we do? The last thirty years have seen an explosion in research related to the brain and cognition. This research has encompassed a range of biological and social sciences, from epigenetics and cognitive neuroscience to social and developmental psychology. Following naturally on this efflorescence has been a heightened interest in the evolution of the brain and cognition. Evolutionary scholars, including paleoanthropologists, have deployed the standard array of evolutionary methods. Ethological and experimental evidence has added significantly to our understanding of nonhuman brains and cognition, especially those of nonhuman primates. Studies of fossil brains through endocasts and sophisticated imaging techniques have revealed evolutionary changes in gross neural anatomy. Psychologists have also gotten into the game through application of reverse engineering to experimentally based descriptions of cognitive functions. For hominin evolution, there is another rich source of evidence of cognition, the archeological record. Using the methods of Paleolithic archeology and the theories and models of cognitive science, evolutionary cognitive archeology documents developments in the hominin mind that would otherwise be inaccessible. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Selected Core Thinking Skills and Cognitive Strategy of an Expert and Novice Engineer

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dixon, Raymond A.

2011-01-01

This exploratory study highlights certain differences in the way an expert and a novice engineer used their analyzing and generating skills while solving a fairly ill-structured design problem. The expert tends to use more inferences and elaboration when solving the design problem and the novice tend to use analysis that is focused on the…

Learning to Be a Programmer in a Complex Organization: A Case Study on Practice-Based Learning during the Onboarding Process at Google

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Maggie; Senges, Max

2010-01-01

Purpose: This paper seeks to analyse the effectiveness and impact of how Google currently trains its new software engineers ("Nooglers") to become productive in the software engineering community. The research focuses on the institutions and support for practice-based learning and cognitive apprenticeship in the Google environment.…

The Impact of the Pre-Instructional Cognitive Profile on Learning Gain and Final Exam of Physics Courses: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Capizzo, Maria Concetta; Nuzzo, Silvana; Zarcone, Michelangelo

2006-01-01

The case study described in this paper investigates the relationship among some pre-instructional knowledge, the learning gain and the final physics performance of computing engineering students in the introductory physics course. The results of the entrance engineering test (EET) have been used as a measurement of reading comprehension, logic and…

The 2017 Academic Emergency Medicine Consensus Conference: Catalyzing System Change Through Healthcare Simulation: Systems, Competency, and Outcomes.

PubMed

Bond, William F; Hui, Joshua; Fernandez, Rosemarie

2018-02-01

Over the past decade, emergency medicine (EM) took a lead role in healthcare simulation in part due to its demands for successful interprofessional and multidisciplinary collaboration, along with educational needs in a diverse array of cognitive and procedural skills. Simulation-based methodologies have the capacity to support training and research platforms that model micro-, meso-, and macrosystems of healthcare. To fully capitalize on the potential of simulation-based research to improve emergency healthcare delivery will require the application of rigorous methods from engineering, social science, and basic science disciplines. The Academic Emergency Medicine (AEM) Consensus Conference "Catalyzing System Change Through Healthcare Simulation: Systems, Competency, and Outcome" was conceived to foster discussion among experts in EM, engineering, and social sciences, focusing on key barriers and opportunities in simulation-based research. This executive summary describes the overall rationale for the conference, conference planning, and consensus-building approaches and outlines the focus of the eight breakout sessions. The consensus outcomes from each breakout session are summarized in proceedings papers published in this issue of Academic Emergency Medicine. Each paper provides an overview of methodologic and knowledge gaps in simulation research and identifies future research targets aimed at improving the safety and quality of healthcare. © 2017 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine.

Social Network Theory in Engineering Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, Peter A.

Collaborative groups are important both in the learning environment of engineering education and, in the real world, the business of engineering design. Selecting appropriate individuals to form an effective group and monitoring a group's progress are important aspects of successful task performance. This exploratory study looked at using the concepts of cognitive social structures, structural balance, and centrality from social network analysis as well as the measures of emotional intelligence. The concepts were used to analyze potential team members to examine if an individual's ability to perceive emotion in others and the self and to use, understand, and manage those emotions are a factor in a group's performance. The students from a capstone design course in computer engineering were used as volunteer subjects. They were formed into groups and assigned a design exercise to determine whether and which of the above-mentioned tools would be effective in both selecting teams and predicting the quality of the resultant design. The results were inconclusive with the exception of an individual's ability to accurately perceive emotions. The instruments that were successful were the Self-Monitoring scale and the accuracy scores derived from cognitive social structures and Level IV of network levels of analysis.

A Cognitive-System Model for En Route Air Traffic Management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Corker, Kevin M.; Pisanich, Gregory; Lebacqz, J. Victor (Technical Monitor)

1998-01-01

NASA Ames Research Center has been engaged in the development of advanced air traffic management technologies whose basic form is cognitive aiding systems for air traffic controller and flight deck operations. In the design and evaluation of such systems the dynamic interaction between the airborne aiding system and the ground-based aiding systems forms a critical coupling for control. The human operator is an integral control element in the system and the optimal integration of human decision and performance parameters with those of the automation aiding systems offers a significant challenge to cognitive engineering. This paper presents a study in full mission simulation and the development of a predictive computational model of human performance. We have found that this combination of methodologies provide a powerful design-aiding process. We have extended the computational model Man Machine Integrated Design and Analysis System (N13DAS) to include representation of multiple cognitive agents (both human operators and intelligent aiding systems), operating aircraft airline operations centers and air traffic control centers in the evolving airspace. The demands of this application require the representation of many intelligent agents sharing world-models, and coordinating action/intention with cooperative scheduling of goals and actions in a potentially unpredictable world of operations. The operator's activity structures have been developed to include prioritization and interruption of multiple parallel activities among multiple operators, to provide for anticipation (knowledge of the intention and action of remote operators), and to respond to failures of the system and other operators in the system in situation-specific paradigms. We have exercised this model in a multi-air traffic sector scenario with potential conflict among aircraft at and across sector boundaries. We have modeled the control situation as a multiple closed loop system. The inner and outer loop alerting structure of air traffic management has many implications that need to be investigated to assure adequate design. First, there are control and stability factors implicit in the design. As the inner loop response time approaches that of the outer loop, system stability may be compromised in that controllers may be solving a problem the nature of which has already been changed by pilot action. Second, information exchange and information presentation for both air and ground must be designed to complement as opposed to compete with each other. Third, the level of individual and shared awareness in trajectory modification and flight conformance needs to be defined. Fourth, the level of required awareness and performance impact of mixed fleet operations and failed-mode recovery must be explored.

DataRocket: Interactive Visualisation of Data Structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parkes, Steve; Ramsay, Craig

2010-08-01

CodeRocket is a software engineering tool that provides cognitive support to the software engineer for reasoning about a method or procedure and for documenting the resulting code [1]. DataRocket is a software engineering tool designed to support visualisation and reasoning about program data structures. DataRocket is part of the CodeRocket family of software tools developed by Rapid Quality Systems [2] a spin-out company from the Space Technology Centre at the University of Dundee. CodeRocket and DataRocket integrate seamlessly with existing architectural design and coding tools and provide extensive documentation with little or no effort on behalf of the software engineer. Comprehensive, abstract, detailed design documentation is available early on in a project so that it can be used for design reviews with project managers and non expert stakeholders. Code and documentation remain fully synchronised even when changes are implemented in the code without reference to the existing documentation. At the end of a project the press of a button suffices to produce the detailed design document. Existing legacy code can be easily imported into CodeRocket and DataRocket to reverse engineer detailed design documentation making legacy code more manageable and adding substantially to its value. This paper introduces CodeRocket. It then explains the rationale for DataRocket and describes the key features of this new tool. Finally the major benefits of DataRocket for different stakeholders are considered.

Cognitive capitalism: the effect of cognitive ability on wealth, as mediated through scientific achievement and economic freedom.

PubMed

Rindermann, Heiner; Thompson, James

2011-06-01

Traditional economic theories stress the relevance of political, institutional, geographic, and historical factors for economic growth. In contrast, human-capital theories suggest that peoples' competences, mediated by technological progress, are the deciding factor in a nation's wealth. Using three large-scale assessments, we calculated cognitive-competence sums for the mean and for upper- and lower-level groups for 90 countries and compared the influence of each group's intellectual ability on gross domestic product. In our cross-national analyses, we applied different statistical methods (path analyses, bootstrapping) and measures developed by different research groups to various country samples and historical periods. Our results underscore the decisive relevance of cognitive ability--particularly of an intellectual class with high cognitive ability and accomplishments in science, technology, engineering, and math--for national wealth. Furthermore, this group's cognitive ability predicts the quality of economic and political institutions, which further determines the economic affluence of the nation. Cognitive resources enable the evolution of capitalism and the rise of wealth.

Adaptation of abbreviated mathematics anxiety rating scale for engineering students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nordin, Sayed Kushairi Sayed; Samat, Khairul Fadzli; Sultan, Al Amin Mohamed; Halim, Bushra Abdul; Ismail, Siti Fatimah; Mafazi, Nurul Wirdah

2015-05-01

Mathematics is an essential and fundamental tool used by engineers to analyse and solve problems in their field. Due to this, most engineering education programs involve a concentration of study in mathematics courses whereby engineering students have to take mathematics courses such as numerical methods, differential equations and calculus in the first two years and continue to do so until the completion of the sequence. However, the students struggled and had difficulties in learning courses that require mathematical abilities. Hence, this study presents the factors that caused mathematics anxiety among engineering students using Abbreviated Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (AMARS) through 95 students of Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM). From 25 items in AMARS, principal component analysis (PCA) suggested that there are four mathematics anxiety factors, namely experiences of learning mathematics, cognitive skills, mathematics evaluation anxiety and students' perception on mathematics. Minitab 16 software was used to analyse the nonparametric statistics. Kruskal-Wallis Test indicated that there is a significant difference in the experience of learning mathematics and mathematics evaluation anxiety among races. The Chi-Square Test of Independence revealed that the experience of learning mathematics, cognitive skills and mathematics evaluation anxiety depend on the results of their SPM additional mathematics. Based on this study, it is recommended to address the anxiety problems among engineering students at the early stage of studying in the university. Thus, lecturers should play their part by ensuring a positive classroom environment which encourages students to study mathematics without fear.

Computer-based cognitive rehabilitation: the CoRe system.

PubMed

Alloni, Anna; Sinforiani, Elena; Zucchella, Chiara; Sandrini, Giorgio; Bernini, Sara; Cattani, Barbara; Pardell, Daniela Tost; Quaglini, Silvana; Pistarini, Caterina

2017-02-01

This work aims at providing a tool for supporting cognitive rehabilitation. This is a wide field, that includes a variety of diseases and related clinical pictures; for this reason the need arises to have a tool available that overcomes the difficulties entailed by what currently is the most common approach, that is, the so-called pen and paper rehabilitation. We first organized a big number of stimuli in an ontology that represents concepts, attributes and a set of relationships among concepts. Stimuli may be words, sounds, 2D and 3D images. Then, we developed an engine that automatically generates exercises by exploiting that ontology. The design of exercises has been carried on in synergy with neuropsychologists and speech therapists. Solutions have been devised aimed at personalizing the exercises according to both patients' preferences and performance. Exercises addressed to rehabilitation of executive functions and aphasia-related diseases have been implemented. The system has been tested on both healthy volunteers (n = 38) and patients (n = 9), obtaining a favourable rating and suggestions for improvements. We created a tool able to automate the execution of cognitive rehabilitation tasks. We hope the variety and personalization of exercises will allow to increase compliance, particularly from elderly people, usually neither familiar with technology nor particularly willing to rely on it. The next step involves the creation of a telerehabilitation tool, to allow therapy sessions to be undergone from home, thus guaranteeing continuity of care and advantages in terms of time and costs for the patients and the National Healthcare System (NHS). Implications for rehabilitation Cognitive impairments can greatly impact an individual's existence, appreciably reducing his abilities and autonomy, as well as sensibly lowering his quality of life. Cognitive rehabilitation can be used to restore lost brain function or slow down degenerative diseases. Computerization of rehabilitation entails many advantages, but patients - especially elderly people - might be less prone to the use of technology and consequently reluctant towards this innovative therapeutic approach. Our software system, CoRe, supports a therapist during the administration of rehabilitation sessions: exercises can be generated dynamically, thus reducing repetitivity, and patients' performance trends automatically analysed to facilitate the assessment of their progress. Tests performed on both healthy subjects and patients provided useful information that allowed us to define an implementation strategy able to reduce patients' resistance to computerized rehabilitation as much as possible.

Reflections on a giant of brain science: How lucky we are having Walter J. Freeman as our beacon in cognitive neurodynamics research.

PubMed

Kozma, Robert

2016-12-01

Walter J. Freeman was a giant of the field of neuroscience whose visionary work contributed various experimental and theoretical breakthroughs to brain research in the past 60 years. He has pioneered a number of Electroencephalogram and Electrocorticogram tools and approaches that shaped the field, while "Freeman Neurodynamics" is a theoretical concept that is widely known, used, and respected among neuroscientists all over the world. His recent death is a profound loss to neuroscience and biomedical engineering. Many of his revolutionary ideas on brain dynamics have been ahead of their time by decades. We summarize his following groundbreaking achievements: (1) Mass Action in the Nervous System, from microscopic (single cell) recordings, through mesoscopic populations, to large-scale collective brain patterns underlying cognition; (2) Freeman-Kachalsky model of multi-scale, modular brain dynamics; (3) cinematic theory of cognitive dynamics; (4) phase transitions in cortical dynamics modeled with random graphs and quantum field theory; (5) philosophical aspects of intentionality, consciousness, and the unity of brain-mind-body. His work has been admired by many of his neuroscientist colleagues and followers. At the same time, his multidisciplinary approach combining advanced concepts of control theory and the mathematics of nonlinear systems and chaos, poses significant challenges to those who wish to thoroughly understand his message. The goal of this commemorative paper is to review key aspects of Freeman's neurodynamics and to provide some handles to gain better understanding about Freeman's extraordinary intellectual achievement.

Building machines that learn and think like people.

PubMed

Lake, Brenden M; Ullman, Tomer D; Tenenbaum, Joshua B; Gershman, Samuel J

2017-01-01

Recent progress in artificial intelligence has renewed interest in building systems that learn and think like people. Many advances have come from using deep neural networks trained end-to-end in tasks such as object recognition, video games, and board games, achieving performance that equals or even beats that of humans in some respects. Despite their biological inspiration and performance achievements, these systems differ from human intelligence in crucial ways. We review progress in cognitive science suggesting that truly human-like learning and thinking machines will have to reach beyond current engineering trends in both what they learn and how they learn it. Specifically, we argue that these machines should (1) build causal models of the world that support explanation and understanding, rather than merely solving pattern recognition problems; (2) ground learning in intuitive theories of physics and psychology to support and enrich the knowledge that is learned; and (3) harness compositionality and learning-to-learn to rapidly acquire and generalize knowledge to new tasks and situations. We suggest concrete challenges and promising routes toward these goals that can combine the strengths of recent neural network advances with more structured cognitive models.

Job Analysis Results for Malicious-Code Reverse Engineers: A Case Study

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-05-01

Testing in Personnel Selection: Contemporary Issues in Cognitive Ability and Personality Testing .” Journal of Business Inquiry: Research , Edu- cation, and...federally funded research and development center. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of...predict the develop- ment of expertise is important. Currently, job analysis research on teams of malicious-code re- verse engineers is lacking. Therefore

Designing Transferable Skills Inventory for Assessing Students Using Group Discussion: A Case Study of First Year Electrical and Electronics Engineering Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tejaswani, K.; Madhuri, G. V.

2015-01-01

Employability skills among engineering graduates have been a concern due to their inability to perform on a professional platform to the employer's expected level. As they are higher cognitive skills, they are to be nurtured during the graduation period. Keeping this in view, group discussions are identified as one of the methods to elicit…

The Modular Clock Algorithm for Blind Rendezvous

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-03-26

and Computer Engineering Graduate School of Engineering and Management Air Force Institute of Technology Air University Air Education and Training...capabilities in spectrum management and particularly in harvesting unused portions of pre-allocated band- width under DSA. The term “cognitive radio” was...of rendezvous and our role as the waiter . However, if the “child” refuses to move from non-common spectrum, rendezvous cannot occur. Bluetooth

College Students' Persistence and Degree Completion in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM): The Role of Non-Cognitive Attributes of Self-Efficacy, Outcome Expectations, and Interest

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aryee, Michael

2017-01-01

The lack of students' persistence (or student's effort to continue their academic studies until degree completion) in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and the attrition of STEM students as well as the shortage of STEM workers have gathered much attention from policy makers, governmental agencies, higher education…

A case study of the influences of audience and purpose on the composing processes of an engineer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stalnaker, B. J.

1981-01-01

The design and preliminary findings of a study of composing processes (on the job) of engineers, managers, and scientists is presented. The influences of audience and purpose on the composing process of engineers was of concern; specifically, the cognitive processes, physical behaviors, and factors that influence the evoluton of a piece of writing. An overview of the study, related literature, outlines of research design, and preliminary findings from a case study of engineers are given. It is suggested that teaching be adapted to help students learn to represent rhetorical problems to guide composing for effective writing.

Reducing the cognitive workload - Trouble managing power systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Manner, David B.; Liberman, Eugene M.; Dolce, James L.; Mellor, Pamela A.

1993-01-01

The complexity of space-based systems makes monitoring them and diagnosing their faults taxing for human beings. When a problem arises, immediate attention and quick resolution is mandatory. To aid humans in these endeavors we have developed an automated advisory system. Our advisory expert system, Trouble, incorporates the knowledge of the power system designers for Space Station Freedom. Trouble is designed to be a ground-based advisor for the mission controllers in the Control Center Complex at Johnson Space Center (JSC). It has been developed at NASA Lewis Research Center (LeRC) and tested in conjunction with prototype flight hardware contained in the Power Management and Distribution testbed and the Engineering Support Center, ESC, at LeRC. Our work will culminate with the adoption of these techniques by the mission controllers at JSC. This paper elucidates how we have captured power system failure knowledge, how we have built and tested our expert system, and what we believe its potential uses are.

Synthetic Teammates as Team Players: Coordination of Human and Synthetic Teammates

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-05-31

distribution is unlimited 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT This project is part of a larger effort that focuses on human-automation coordination in the...context of the development, integration, and validation of a computational cognitive model that acts as a full-fledged synthetic teammate on an...integrated the synthetic teammate model into the CERTT II (Cognitive Engineering Research on Team Tasks II) testbed in order to empirically address these

Assessing effect of meditation on cognitive workload using EEG signals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jadhav, Narendra; Manthalkar, Ramchandra; Joshi, Yashwant

2017-06-01

Recent research suggests that meditation affects the structure and function of the brain. Cognitive load can be handled in effective way by the meditators. EEG signals are used to quantify cognitive load. The research of investigating effect of meditation on cognitive workload using EEG signals in pre and post-meditation is an open problem. The subjects for this study are young healthy 11 engineering students from our institute. The focused attention meditation practice is used for this study. EEG signals are recorded at the beginning of meditation and after four weeks of regular meditation using EMOTIV device. The subjects practiced meditation daily 20 minutes for 4 weeks. The 7 level arithmetic additions of single digit (low level) to three digits with carry (high level) are presented as cognitive load. The cognitive load indices such as arousal index, performance enhancement, neural activity, load index, engagement, and alertness are evaluated in pre and post meditation. The cognitive indices are improved in post meditation data. Power Spectral Density (PSD) feature is compared between pre and post-meditation across all subjects. The result hints that the subjects were handling cognitive load without stress (ease of cognitive functioning increased for the same load) after 4 weeks of meditation.

Security implications and governance of cognitive neuroscience.

PubMed

Kosal, Margaret E; Huang, Jonathan Y

2015-01-01

In recent years, significant efforts have been made toward elucidating the potential of the human brain. Spanning fields as disparate as psychology, biomedicine, computer science, mathematics, electrical engineering, and chemistry, research venturing into the growing domains of cognitive neuroscience and brain research has become fundamentally interdisciplinary. Among the most interesting and consequential applications to international security are the military and defense community's interests in the potential of cognitive neuroscience findings and technologies. In the United States, multiple governmental agencies are actively pursuing such endeavors, including the Department of Defense, which has invested over $3 billion in the last decade to conduct research on defense-related innovations. This study explores governance and security issues surrounding cognitive neuroscience research with regard to potential security-related applications and reports scientists' views on the role of researchers in these areas through a survey of over 200 active cognitive neuroscientists.

Employing socially driven techniques for framing, contextualization, and collaboration in complex analytical threads

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wollocko, Arthur; Danczyk, Jennifer; Farry, Michael; Jenkins, Michael; Voshell, Martin

2015-05-01

The proliferation of sensor technologies continues to impact Intelligence Analysis (IA) work domains. Historical procurement focus on sensor platform development and acquisition has resulted in increasingly advanced collection systems; however, such systems often demonstrate classic data overload conditions by placing increased burdens on already overtaxed human operators and analysts. Support technologies and improved interfaces have begun to emerge to ease that burden, but these often focus on single modalities or sensor platforms rather than underlying operator and analyst support needs, resulting in systems that do not adequately leverage their natural human attentional competencies, unique skills, and training. One particular reason why emerging support tools often fail is due to the gap between military applications and their functions, and the functions and capabilities afforded by cutting edge technology employed daily by modern knowledge workers who are increasingly "digitally native." With the entry of Generation Y into these workplaces, "net generation" analysts, who are familiar with socially driven platforms that excel at giving users insight into large data sets while keeping cognitive burdens at a minimum, are creating opportunities for enhanced workflows. By using these ubiquitous platforms, net generation analysts have trained skills in discovering new information socially, tracking trends among affinity groups, and disseminating information. However, these functions are currently under-supported by existing tools. In this paper, we describe how socially driven techniques can be contextualized to frame complex analytical threads throughout the IA process. This paper focuses specifically on collaborative support technology development efforts for a team of operators and analysts. Our work focuses on under-supported functions in current working environments, and identifies opportunities to improve a team's ability to discover new information and disseminate insightful analytic findings. We describe our Cognitive Systems Engineering approach to developing a novel collaborative enterprise IA system that combines modern collaboration tools with familiar contemporary social technologies. Our current findings detail specific cognitive and collaborative work support functions that defined the design requirements for a prototype analyst collaborative support environment.

Conceptual Spaces of the Immune System.

PubMed

Fierz, Walter

2016-01-01

The immune system can be looked at as a cognitive system. This is often done in analogy to the neuro-psychological system. Here, it is demonstrated that the cognitive functions of the immune system can be properly described within a new theory of cognitive science. Gärdenfors' geometrical framework of conceptual spaces is applied to immune cognition. Basic notions, like quality dimensions, natural properties and concepts, similarities, prototypes, saliences, etc., are related to cognitive phenomena of the immune system. Constraints derived from treating the immune system within a cognitive theory, like Gärdenfors' conceptual spaces, might well prove to be instrumental for the design of vaccines, immunological diagnostic tests, and immunotherapy.

A Qualitative Analysis of Physician Perspectives on Missed and Delayed Outpatient Diagnosis: The Focus on System-Related Factors.

PubMed

Sarkar, Urmimala; Simchowitz, Brett; Bonacum, Doug; Strull, William; Lopez, Andrea; Rotteau, Leahora; Shojania, Kaveh G

2014-10-01

Delayed and missed diagnoses lead to significant patient harm. Because physician actions are fundamental to the outpatient diagnostic process, a study was conducted to explore physician perspectives on diagnosis. As part of a quality improvement initiative, an integrated health system conducted six physician focus groups in 2004 and 2005. The focus groups included questions about the process of diagnosis, specific factors contributing to missed diagnosis, use of guidelines, atypical vs. typical presentations of disease, diagnostic tools, and follow-up, all with regard to delays in the diagnostic process. The interviews were analyzed (1) deductively, with application of the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) model, which addresses systems design, quality management, job design, and technology implementations that affect safety-related patient and organizational and/or staff outcomes, and (2) inductively, with identification of novel themes using content analysis. A total of 25 physicians participated in the six focus groups, which yielded 12 hours of discussion. Providers identified multiple barriers to timely and accurate diagnosis, including organizational culture, information availability, and communication factors. Multiple themes relating to each of the participants in the diagnostic process-health system, provider, and patient-emerged. Concerns about health system structure and providers' interactions with one another and with patients far exceeded discussion of the cognitive factors that might affect the diagnostic process. The results suggest that, at least in physicians' views, improving the diagnostic process requires attention to the organization of the health system in addition to the cognitive aspects of diagnosis.

Innovative intelligent technology of distance learning for visually impaired people

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samigulina, Galina; Shayakhmetova, Assem; Nuysuppov, Adlet

2017-12-01

The aim of the study is to develop innovative intelligent technology and information systems of distance education for people with impaired vision (PIV). To solve this problem a comprehensive approach has been proposed, which consists in the aggregate of the application of artificial intelligence methods and statistical analysis. Creating an accessible learning environment, identifying the intellectual, physiological, psychophysiological characteristics of perception and information awareness by this category of people is based on cognitive approach. On the basis of fuzzy logic the individually-oriented learning path of PIV is con- structed with the aim of obtaining high-quality engineering education with modern equipment in the joint use laboratories.

Six Suggestions for Research on Games in Cognitive Science.

PubMed

Chabris, Christopher F

2017-04-01

Games are more varied and occupy more of daily life than ever before. At the same time, the tools available to study game play and players are more powerful than ever, especially massive data sets from online platforms and computational engines that can accurately evaluate human decisions. This essay offers six suggestions for future cognitive science research on games: (1) Don't forget about chess, (2) Look beyond action games and chess, (3) Use (near)-optimal play to understand human play and players, (4) Investigate social phenomena, (5) Raise the standards for studies of games as treatments, (6) Talk to real experts. Copyright © 2017 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Next gen perception and cognition: augmenting perception and enhancing cognition through mobile technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goma, Sergio R.

2015-03-01

In current times, mobile technologies are ubiquitous and the complexity of problems is continuously increasing. In the context of advancement of engineering, we explore in this paper possible reasons that could cause a saturation in technology evolution - namely the ability of problem solving based on previous results and the ability of expressing solutions in a more efficient way, concluding that `thinking outside of brain' - as in solving engineering problems that are expressed in a virtual media due to their complexity - would benefit from mobile technology augmentation. This could be the necessary evolutionary step that would provide the efficiency required to solve new complex problems (addressing the `running out of time' issue) and remove the communication of results barrier (addressing the human `perception/expression imbalance' issue). Some consequences are discussed, as in this context the artificial intelligence becomes an automation tool aid instead of a necessary next evolutionary step. The paper concludes that research in modeling as problem solving aid and data visualization as perception aid augmented with mobile technologies could be the path to an evolutionary step in advancing engineering.

Understanding the Effects of Team Cognition Associated with Complex Engineering Tasks: Dynamics of Shared Mental Models, Task-SMM, and Team-SMM

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Miyoung; Johnson, Tristan E.

2008-01-01

This study investigates how shared mental models (SMMs) change over time in teams of students in a manufacturing engineering course. A complex ill-structured project was given to each team. The objective of the team project was to analyze, test, and propose ways to improve their given manufactured product. Shared mental models were measured in…

Dimensions and geometry of the temporomandibular joint and masseter muscles.

PubMed

Zurowski, R; Gosek, M; Aleksandrowicz, R

1976-01-01

The bio-engineering team presents its suggestion of a method for the measurement of the temporomandibular joint and masseter muscles in order to determine the parameters necessary for exact sciences and indispensable for unified and objective cognitive studies. Ten formalin-fixed human cadavers served for the studies. The preparations were prepared by the modified method of anatomical procedure. Linear and angular measurements of temporomandibular joint and masseter muscles were carried out with the use of the three-dimensional Cartesian system of OXYZ coordinates in relation to frontal, sagittal and horizontal planes. The physiological cross-sections of the masseter, temporal, lateral and medial pterygoid muscles were also determined. The collected data make it possible to develop a mathematical three-dimensioned model of the osseo-articulo-muscular system of the mastication organ.

The space station: Human factors and productivity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gillan, D. J.; Burns, M. J.; Nicodemus, C. L.; Smith, R. L.

1986-01-01

Human factor researchers and engineers are making inputs into the early stages of the design of the Space Station to improve both the quality of life and work on-orbit. Effective integration of the human factors information related to various Intravehicular Activity (IVA), Extravehicular Activity (EVA), and teletobotics systems during the Space Station design will result in increased productivity, increased flexibility of the Space Stations systems, lower cost of operations, improved reliability, and increased safety for the crew onboard the Space Station. The major features of productivity examined include the cognitive and physical effort involved in work, the accuracy of worker output and ability to maintain performance at a high level of accuracy, the speed and temporal efficiency with which a worker performs, crewmember satisfaction with their work environment, and the relation between performance and cost.

Coherence and Divergence of Megatrends in Science and Engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roco, M. C.

2002-04-01

Scientific discoveries and technological innovations are at the core of human endeavor, and it is estimated that their role will only increase in time. Such advancements evolve in coherence, with areas of confluence and temporary divergences, which bring synergism and that stimulate further developments following in average an exponential growth. Six increasingly interconnected megatrends are perceived as dominating the scene for the next decades: (a) information and computing, (b) nanoscale science and engineering (S&E), (c) biology and bio-environmental approaches, (d) medical sciences and enhancing human physical capabilities, (e) cognitive sciences and enhancing intellectual abilities, and (f) collective behavior and system approach. This paper presents a perspective on the process of identification, planning and program implementation of S&E megatrends, with illustration for the US research initiative on nanoscale science, engineering, and technology. The interplay between coherence and divergence, leading to unifying science and converging technologies, does not develop only among simultaneous scientific trends but also along time and across geopolitical boundaries. There is no single way of development of S&E, and here is the role of taking visionary measures. Societal implication scientists need to be involved from the conceptual phase of a program responding to a S&E megatrend.

Relationship of prior knowledge and working engineers' learning preferences: implications for designing effective instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baukal, Charles E.; Ausburn, Lynna J.

2017-05-01

Continuing engineering education (CEE) is important to ensure engineers maintain proficiency over the life of their careers. However, relatively few studies have examined designing effective training for working engineers. Research has indicated that both learner instructional preferences and prior knowledge can impact the learning process, but it has not established if these factors are interrelated. The study reported here considered relationships of prior knowledge and three aspects of learning preferences of working engineers at a manufacturing company: learning strategy choices, verbal-visual cognitive styles, and multimedia preferences. Prior knowledge was not found to be significantly related to engineers' learning preferences, indicating independence of effects of these variables on learning. The study also examined relationships of this finding to the Multimedia Cone of Abstraction and implications for its use as an instructional design tool for CEE.

Human Factors Research Under Ground-Based and Space Conditions. Part 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

Session TP2 includes short reports concerning: (1) Human Factors Engineering of the International space Station Human Research Facility; (2) Structured Methods for Identifying and Correcting Potential Human Errors in Space operation; (3) An Improved Procedure for Selecting Astronauts for Extended Space Missions; (4) The NASA Performance Assessment Workstation: Cognitive Performance During Head-Down Bedrest; (5) Cognitive Performance Aboard the Life and Microgravity Spacelab; and (6) Psychophysiological Reactivity Under MIR-Simulation and Real Micro-G.

A Brain-Machine-Brain Interface for Rewiring of Cortical Circuitry after Traumatic Brain Injury

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-01

2004. He served as Guest Coeditor of a special issue on applied neurodynamics for the Journal of Neural Engineering with Dr. Peter Thomas in December...for the millions of individuals who are left with permanent motor and cognitive impairments after acquired brain injury, as occurs in stroke and...Other investigators have proposed a closed-loop approach for a cognitive prosthesis that has shown promise in animal models (40). Other potential

Transforming Spatial Reasoning Skills in the Undergraduate Geoscience Classroom Through Interventions Based on Cognitive Science Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ormand, C. J.; Shipley, T. F.; Tikoff, B.; Manduca, C. A.; Dutrow, B. L.; Goodwin, L. B.; Hickson, T.; Atit, K.; Gagnier, K. M.; Resnick, I.

2013-12-01

Spatial visualization is an essential skill in many, if not all, STEM disciplines. It is a prerequisite for understanding subjects as diverse as fluid flow through 3D fault systems, magnetic and gravitational fields, atmospheric and oceanic circulation patterns, cellular and molecular structures, engineering design, topology, and much, much more. Undergraduate geoscience students, in both introductory and upper-level courses, bring a wide range of spatial skill levels to the classroom. However, spatial thinking improves with practice, and can improve more rapidly with intentional training. As a group of geoscience faculty members and cognitive psychologists, we are collaborating to apply the results of cognitive science research to the development of teaching materials to improve undergraduate geology majors' spatial thinking skills. This approach has the potential to transform undergraduate STEM education by removing one significant barrier to success in the STEM disciplines. Two promising teaching strategies have emerged from recent cognitive science research into spatial thinking: gesturing and predictive sketching. Studies show that students who gesture about spatial relationships perform better on spatial tasks than students who don't gesture, perhaps because gesture provides a mechanism for cognitive offloading. Similarly, students who sketch their predictions about the interiors of geologic block diagrams perform better on penetrative thinking tasks than students who make predictions without sketching. We are developing new teaching materials for Mineralogy, Structural Geology, and Sedimentology & Stratigraphy courses using these two strategies. Our data suggest that the research-based teaching materials we are developing may boost students' spatial thinking skills beyond the baseline gains we have measured in the same courses without the new curricular materials.

The busy social brain: evidence for automaticity and control in the neural systems supporting social cognition and action understanding.

PubMed

Spunt, Robert P; Lieberman, Matthew D

2013-01-01

Much social-cognitive processing is believed to occur automatically; however, the relative automaticity of the brain systems underlying social cognition remains largely undetermined. We used functional MRI to test for automaticity in the functioning of two brain systems that research has indicated are important for understanding other people's behavior: the mirror neuron system and the mentalizing system. Participants remembered either easy phone numbers (low cognitive load) or difficult phone numbers (high cognitive load) while observing actions after adopting one of four comprehension goals. For all four goals, mirror neuron system activation showed relatively little evidence of modulation by load; in contrast, the association of mentalizing system activation with the goal of inferring the actor's mental state was extinguished by increased cognitive load. These results support a dual-process model of the brain systems underlying action understanding and social cognition; the mirror neuron system supports automatic behavior identification, and the mentalizing system supports controlled social causal attribution.

Demonstration of a Safety Analysis on a Complex System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leveson, Nancy; Alfaro, Liliana; Alvarado, Christine; Brown, Molly; Hunt, Earl B.; Jaffe, Matt; Joslyn, Susan; Pinnell, Denise; Reese, Jon; Samarziya, Jeffrey;

Section 508 Electronic Information Accessibility Requirements for Software Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ellis, Rebecca

2014-01-01

Section 508 Subpart B 1194.21 outlines requirements for operating system and software development in order to create a product that is accessible to users with various disabilities. This portion of Section 508 contains a variety of standards to enable those using assistive technology and with visual, hearing, cognitive and motor difficulties to access all information provided in software. The focus on requirements was limited to the Microsoft Windows® operating system as it is the predominant operating system used at this center. Compliance with this portion of the requirements can be obtained by integrating the requirements into the software development cycle early and by remediating issues in legacy software if possible. There are certain circumstances with software that may arise necessitating an exemption from these requirements, such as design or engineering software using dynamically changing graphics or numbers to convey information. These exceptions can be discussed with the Section 508 Coordinator and another method of accommodation used.

Grounding Robot Autonomy in Emotion and Self-awareness

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sanz, Ricardo; Hernández, Carlos; Hernando, Adolfo; Gómez, Jaime; Bermejo, Julita

Much is being done in an attempt to transfer emotional mechanisms from reverse-engineered biology into social robots. There are two basic approaches: the imitative display of emotion —e.g. to intend more human-like robots— and the provision of architectures with intrinsic emotion —in the hope of enhancing behavioral aspects. This paper focuses on the second approach, describing a core vision regarding the integration of cognitive, emotional and autonomic aspects in social robot systems. This vision has evolved as a result of the efforts in consolidating the models extracted from rat emotion research and their implementation in technical use cases based on a general systemic analysis in the framework of the ICEA and C3 projects. The desire for generality of the approach intends obtaining universal theories of integrated —autonomic, emotional, cognitive— behavior. The proposed conceptualizations and architectural principles are then captured in a theoretical framework: ASys — The Autonomous Systems Framework.

Navigation studies based on the ubiquitous positioning technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ye, Lei; Mi, Weijie; Wang, Defeng

2007-11-01

This paper summarized the nowadays positioning technologies, such as absolute positioning methods and relative positioning methods, indoor positioning and outdoor positioning, active positioning and passive positioning. Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) technologies were introduced as the omnipresent out-door positioning technologies, including GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BD-1/2. After analysis of the shortcomings of GNSS, indoor positioning technologies were discussed and compared, including A-GPS, Cellular network, Infrared, Electromagnetism, Computer Vision Cognition, Embedded Pressure Sensor, Ultrasonic, RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification), Bluetooth, WLAN etc.. Then the concept and characteristics of Ubiquitous Positioning was proposed. After the ubiquitous positioning technologies contrast and selection followed by system engineering methodology, a navigation system model based on Incorporate Indoor-Outdoor Positioning Solution was proposed. And this model was simulated in the Galileo Demonstration for World Expo Shanghai project. In the conclusion, the prospects of ubiquitous positioning based navigation were shown, especially to satisfy the public location information acquiring requirement.

From biological and social network metaphors to coupled bio-social wireless networks

PubMed Central

Barrett, Christopher L.; Eubank, Stephen; Anil Kumar, V.S.; Marathe, Madhav V.

2010-01-01

Biological and social analogies have been long applied to complex systems. Inspiration has been drawn from biological solutions to solve problems in engineering products and systems, ranging from Velcro to camouflage to robotics to adaptive and learning computing methods. In this paper, we present an overview of recent advances in understanding biological systems as networks and use this understanding to design and analyse wireless communication networks. We expand on two applications, namely cognitive sensing and control and wireless epidemiology. We discuss how our work in these two applications is motivated by biological metaphors. We believe that recent advances in computing and communications coupled with advances in health and social sciences raise the possibility of studying coupled bio-social communication networks. We argue that we can better utilise the advances in our understanding of one class of networks to better our understanding of the other. PMID:21643462

The emergence of cognitive hearing science.

PubMed

Arlinger, Stig; Lunner, Thomas; Lyxell, Björn; Pichora-Fuller, M Kathleen

2009-10-01

Cognitive Hearing Science or Auditory Cognitive Science is an emerging field of interdisciplinary research concerning the interactions between hearing and cognition. It follows a trend over the last half century for interdisciplinary fields to develop, beginning with Neuroscience, then Cognitive Science, then Cognitive Neuroscience, and then Cognitive Vision Science. A common theme is that an interdisciplinary approach is necessary to understand complex human behaviors, to develop technologies incorporating knowledge of these behaviors, and to find solutions for individuals with impairments that undermine typical behaviors. Accordingly, researchers in traditional academic disciplines, such as Psychology, Physiology, Linguistics, Philosophy, Anthropology, and Sociology benefit from collaborations with each other, and with researchers in Computer Science and Engineering working on the design of technologies, and with health professionals working with individuals who have impairments. The factors that triggered the emergence of Cognitive Hearing Science include the maturation of the component disciplines of Hearing Science and Cognitive Science, new opportunities to use complex digital signal-processing to design technologies suited to performance in challenging everyday environments, and increasing social imperatives to help people whose communication problems span hearing and cognition. Cognitive Hearing Science is illustrated in research on three general topics: (1) language processing in challenging listening conditions; (2) use of auditory communication technologies or the visual modality to boost performance; (3) changes in performance with development, aging, and rehabilitative training. Future directions for modeling and the translation of research into practice are suggested.

'Televaluation' of clinical information systems: an integrative approach to assessing Web-based systems.

PubMed

Kushniruk, A W; Patel, C; Patel, V L; Cimino, J J

2001-04-01

The World Wide Web provides an unprecedented opportunity for widespread access to health-care applications by both patients and providers. The development of new methods for assessing the effectiveness and usability of these systems is becoming a critical issue. This paper describes the distance evaluation (i.e. 'televaluation') of emerging Web-based information technologies. In health informatics evaluation, there is a need for application of new ideas and methods from the fields of cognitive science and usability engineering. A framework is presented for conducting evaluations of health-care information technologies that integrates a number of methods, ranging from deployment of on-line questionnaires (and Web-based forms) to remote video-based usability testing of user interactions with clinical information systems. Examples illustrating application of these techniques are presented for the assessment of a patient clinical information system (PatCIS), as well as an evaluation of use of Web-based clinical guidelines. Issues in designing, prototyping and iteratively refining evaluation components are discussed, along with description of a 'virtual' usability laboratory.

Reprint of "Safe places for pedestrians: using cognitive work analysis to consider the relationships between the engineering and urban design of footpaths".

PubMed

Stevens, Nicholas; Salmon, Paul

2015-01-01

Footpaths provide an integral component of our urban environments and have the potential to act as safe places for people and the focus for community life. Despite this, the approach to designing footpaths that are safe while providing this sense of place often occurs in silos. There is often very little consideration given to how designing for sense of place impacts safety and vice versa. The aim of this study was to use a systems analysis and design framework to develop a design template for an 'ideal' footpath system that embodies both safety and sense of place. This was achieved through using the first phase of the Cognitive Work Analysis framework, Work Domain Analysis, to specify a model of footpaths as safe places for pedestrians. This model was subsequently used to assess two existing footpath environments to determine the extent to which they meet the design requirements specified. The findings show instances where the existing footpaths both meet and fail to meet the design requirements specified. Through utilising a systems approach for footpaths, this paper has provided a novel design template that can inform new footpath design efforts or be used to evaluate the extent to which existing footpaths achieve their safety and sense of place requirements. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Safe places for pedestrians: using cognitive work analysis to consider the relationships between the engineering and urban design of footpaths.

PubMed

Stevens, Nicholas; Salmon, Paul

2014-11-01

Footpaths provide an integral component of our urban environments and have the potential to act as safe places for people and the focus for community life. Despite this, the approach to designing footpaths that are safe while providing this sense of place often occurs in silos. There is often very little consideration given to how designing for sense of place impacts safety and vice versa. The aim of this study was to use a systems analysis and design framework to develop a design template for an 'ideal' footpath system that embodies both safety and sense of place. This was achieved through using the first phase of the Cognitive Work Analysis framework, Work Domain Analysis, to specify a model of footpaths as safe places for pedestrians. This model was subsequently used to assess two existing footpath environments to determine the extent to which they meet the design requirements specified. The findings show instances where the existing footpaths both meet and fail to meet the design requirements specified. Through utilising a systems approach for footpaths, this paper has provided a novel design template that can inform new footpath design efforts or be used to evaluate the extent to which existing footpaths achieve their safety and sense of place requirements. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

REDIR: Automated Static Detection of Obfuscated Anti-Debugging Techniques

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-03-27

analyzing code samples that resist other forms of analysis. 2.5.6 RODS and HASTI: Software Engineering Cognitive Support Software Engineering (SE) is another...and (c) this method is resistant to common obfuscation techniques. To achieve this goal, the Data/Frame sensemaking theory guides the process of...No Starch Press, 2012. [46] C.-W. Hsu, S. W. Shieh et al., “Divergence Detector: A Fine-Grained Approach to Detecting VM-Awareness Malware,” in

Information Operations Team Training & Information Operations Training Aid, Information Warfare Effectiveness (IWE) Program, Delivery Order 8

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-01

submenus and toolbar with icon buttons 4. The IFOTA shall conform to Defense Information Infrastructure Common Operating Environment ( DII COE) and...him my business card , but it might come in the package we request via AFRL). PSYOP Instructor IWST is now called IWT (??) SME MD MD Instructor...Engineering and Software Engineering CTA Cognitive Task Analysis DII COE Defense Information Infrastructure Common Operating Environment EJB Enterprise Java

A computerized system to monitor resilience indicators in organizations.

PubMed

de Carvalho, Paulo Victor Rodrigues; de Souza, Alan Pinheiro; Gomes, Jose Orlando

2012-01-01

The concepts developed by resilience engineering allow the understanding and monitoring the functioning of organizations and, particularly, to map the role of human activities, in success or in failure, enabling a better comprehension about how people make decisions in unexpected situations. The capture of information about human activities in the various organization levels gives managers a deeper real-time understanding of what is influencing the people performance, providing awareness of the factors that influence positively or negatively the organizational goals initially projected. The monitoring is important because the correct functioning of complex systems depends on the knowledge that people have to perform their activities and how the system environment provides tools that actually support the human performance. Therefore, organizations should look forward through precursors in operating signals to identify possible problems or solutions in the structure of tasks and activities, safety, quality, schedule, rework, and maintenance. We apply the concepts of resilience engineering to understand the organization by the analysis of cognitive tasks and activities. The aim is the development of a computerized system to monitor human activities to produce indicators to access system resilience. The validation of the approach was made in a real organization and the results show the successful applicability of the system. Based on findings obtained after the experiment of the system in a real organization, and managers and workers opinions, it was possible to show that the use of system provided an anticipated (real-time) perception about how activities are effectively being performed, allowing managers and workers to make decisions more consistent with daily problems, and also to anticipate solutions to cope with unexpected situations.

Cognitive Radio Application for Evaluating Coexistence with Cognitive Radars: A Software User’s Guide

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-10-01

with both conventional wireless systems as well as other types of cognitive RF systems (e.g., cognitive radar). The radio hardware for this...WBX daughtercard. This technical report begins with a system -level overview in Section 1. Then, the remaining sections explain the configuration and...Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. 1 1. Introduction and Theory of Operation The system model has 2 kinds of cognitive radio

Revealing the Dynamic Modulations That Underpin a Resilient Neural Network for Semantic Cognition: An fMRI Investigation in Patients With Anterior Temporal Lobe Resection.

PubMed

Rice, Grace E; Caswell, Helen; Moore, Perry; Lambon Ralph, Matthew A; Hoffman, Paul

2018-06-06

One critical feature of any well-engineered system is its resilience to perturbation and minor damage. The purpose of the current study was to investigate how resilience is achieved in higher cognitive systems, which we explored through the domain of semantic cognition. Convergent evidence implicates the bilateral anterior temporal lobes (ATLs) as a conceptual knowledge hub. While bilateral damage to this region produces profound semantic impairment, unilateral atrophy/resection or transient perturbation has a limited effect. Two neural mechanisms might underpin this resilience to unilateral ATL damage: 1) the undamaged ATL upregulates its activation in order to compensate; and/or 2) prefrontal regions involved in control of semantic retrieval upregulate to compensate for the impoverished semantic representations that follow from ATL damage. To test these possibilities, 34 postsurgical temporal lobe epilepsy patients and 20 age-matched controls were scanned whilst completing semantic tasks. Pictorial tasks, which produced bilateral frontal and temporal activation, showed few activation differences between patients and control participants. Written word tasks, however, produced a left-lateralized activation pattern and greater differences between the groups. Patients with right ATL resection increased activation in left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). Patients with left ATL resection upregulated both the right ATL and right IFG. Consistent with recent computational models, these results indicate that 1) written word semantic processing in patients with ATL resection is supported by upregulation of semantic knowledge and control regions, principally in the undamaged hemisphere, and 2) pictorial semantic processing is less affected, presumably because it draws on a more bilateral network.

An Integrated Knowledge Framework to Characterize and Scaffold Size and Scale Cognition (FS2C)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Magana, Alejandra J.; Brophy, Sean P.; Bryan, Lynn A.

2012-09-01

Size and scale cognition is a critical ability associated with reasoning with concepts in different disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. As such, researchers and educators have identified the need for young learners and their educators to become scale-literate. Informed by developmental psychology literature and recent findings in nanoscale science and engineering education, we propose an integrated knowledge framework for characterizing and scaffolding size and scale cognition called the FS2C framework. Five ad hoc assessment tasks were designed informed by the FS2C framework with the goal of identifying participants' understandings of size and scale. Findings identified participants' difficulties to discern different sizes of microscale and nanoscale objects and a low level of sophistication on identifying scale worlds among participants. Results also identified that as bigger the difference between the sizes of the objects is, the more difficult was for participants to identify how many times an object is bigger or smaller than another one. Similarly, participants showed difficulties to estimate approximate sizes of sub-macroscopic objects as well as a difficulty for participants to estimate the size of very large objects. Participants' accurate location of objects on a logarithmic scale was also challenging.

A qualitative assessment of a community pharmacy cognitive pharmaceutical services program, using a work system approach.

PubMed

Chui, Michelle A; Mott, David A; Maxwell, Leigh

2012-01-01

Although lack of time, trained personnel, and reimbursement have been identified as barriers to pharmacists providing cognitive pharmaceutical services (CPS) in community pharmacies, the underlying contributing factors of these barriers have not been explored. One approach to better understand barriers and facilitators to providing CPS is to use a work system approach to examine different components of a work system and how the components may impact care processes. The goals of this study were to identify and describe pharmacy work system characteristics that pharmacists identified and changed to provide CPS in a demonstration program. A qualitative approach was used for data collection. A purposive sample of 8 pharmacists at 6 community pharmacies participating in a demonstration program was selected to be interviewed. Each semistructured interview was audio recorded and transcribed, and the text was analyzed in a descriptive and interpretive manner by 3 analysts. Themes were identified in the text and aligned with 1 of 5 components of the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) work system model (organization, tasks, tools/technology, people, and environment). A total of 21 themes were identified from the interviews, and 7 themes were identified across all 6 interviews. The organization component of the SEIPS model contained the most (n=10) themes. Numerous factors within a pharmacy work system appear important to enable pharmacists to provide CPS. Leadership and foresight by the organization to implement processes (communication, coordination, planning, etc.) to facilitate providing CPS was a key finding across the interviews. Expanding technician responsibilities was reported to be essential for successfully implementing CPS. To be successful in providing CPS, pharmacists must be cognizant of the different components of the pharmacy work system and how these components influence providing CPS. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A qualitative assessment of a community pharmacy cognitive pharmaceutical services program, using a work system approach

PubMed Central

Chui, Michelle A.; Mott, David A.; Maxwell, Leigh

2012-01-01

Background Although lack of time, trained personnel, and reimbursement have been identified as barriers to pharmacists providing cognitive pharmaceutical services (CPS) in community pharmacies, the underlying contributing factors of these barriers have not been explored. One approach to better understand barriers and facilitators to providing CPS is to use a work system approach to examine different components of a work system and how the components may impact care processes. Objectives The goals of this study were to identify and describe pharmacy work system characteristics that pharmacists identified and changed to provide CPS in a demonstration program. Methods A qualitative approach was used for data collection. A purposive sample of 8 pharmacists at 6 community pharmacies participating in a demonstration program was selected to be interviewed. Each semistructured interview was audio recorded and transcribed, and the text was analyzed in a descriptive and interpretive manner by 3 analysts. Themes were identified in the text and aligned with 1 of 5 components of the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) work system model (organization, tasks, tools/technology, people, and environment). Results A total of 21 themes were identified from the interviews, and 7 themes were identified across all 6 interviews. The organization component of the SEIPS model contained the most (n = 10) themes. Numerous factors within a pharmacy work system appear important to enable pharmacists to provide CPS. Leadership and foresight by the organization to implement processes (communication, coordination, planning, etc.) to facilitate providing CPS was a key finding across the interviews. Expanding technician responsibilities was reported to be essential for successfully implementing CPS. Conclusions To be successful in providing CPS, pharmacists must be cognizant of the different components of the pharmacy work system and how these components influence providing CPS. PMID:21824822

Classification of cognitive systems dedicated to data sharing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ogiela, Lidia; Ogiela, Marek R.

2017-08-01

In this paper will be presented classification of new cognitive information systems dedicated to cryptographic data splitting and sharing processes. Cognitive processes of semantic data analysis and interpretation, will be used to describe new classes of intelligent information and vision systems. In addition, cryptographic data splitting algorithms and cryptographic threshold schemes will be used to improve processes of secure and efficient information management with application of such cognitive systems. The utility of the proposed cognitive sharing procedures and distributed data sharing algorithms will be also presented. A few possible application of cognitive approaches for visual information management and encryption will be also described.

Synthetic cognitive development. Where intelligence comes from

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weinbaum (Weaver), D.; Veitas, V.

2017-01-01

The human cognitive system is a remarkable exemplar of a general intelligent system whose competence is not confined to a specific problem domain. Evidently, general cognitive competences are a product of a prolonged and complex process of cognitive development. Therefore, the process of cognitive development is a primary key to understanding the emergence of intelligent behavior. This paper develops the theoretical foundations for a model that generalizes the process of cognitive development. The model aims to provide a realistic scheme for the synthesis of scalable cognitive systems with an open-ended range of capabilities. Major concepts and theories of human cognitive development are introduced and briefly explored, focusing on the enactive approach to cognition and the concept of sense-making. The initial scheme of human cognitive development is then generalized by introducing the philosophy of individuation and the abstract mechanism of transduction. The theory of individuation provides the ground for the necessary paradigmatic shift from cognitive systems as given products to cognitive development as a formative process of self-organization. Next, the conceptual model is specified as a scalable scheme of networks of agents. The mechanisms of individuation are formulated in context-independent information theoretical terms. Finally, the paper discusses two concrete aspects of the generative model - mechanisms of transduction and value modulating systems. These are topics of further research towards an implementable architecture.

The HOCS paradigm shift from disciplinary knowledge (LOCS)--to interdisciplinary evaluative, system thinking (HOCS): what should it take in science-technology-environment-society oriented courses, curricula and assessment?

PubMed

Zoller, U; Scholz, R W

2004-01-01

Given the current world state of affairs, striving for sustainability and the consequent paradigm shift: growth-to-sustainable development, correction-to-prevention and options selection-to-options generation: the corresponding paradigm shift in science-technology-environment-society (STES) education is unavoidable. Accordingly, the essence of the current reform in STES education, worldwide, is a purposed effort to develop students' higher-order cognitive skills (HOCS) capability; i.e., question-asking, critical system thinking, decision making and problem solving, at the expense of the "delivery" of lower-order cognitive skills (LOCS)-oriented knowledge. This means a paradigm shift from the contemporary prevalent LOCS algorithmic teaching to HOCS evaluative learning and HOCS-promoting courses, curricula, teaching strategies and assessment methodologies, leading, hopefully to evaluative thinking and transfer. Following the formulation of selected relevant axioms, major paradigm shift in STES research and education for sustainability have been identified. The consequent shift, in the STES context, from disciplinary to inter- and transdisciplinary learning, in science technology and environmental engineering education is discussed, followed by selected examples of successfully implemented HOCS-promoting courses, and assessment methodologies. It is argued, that transferable "HOCS learning" for sustainability can and should be done.

Progreen online engineering diploma in the Middle East: assessment of the educational experience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baytiyeh, Hoda

2018-03-01

Little is known about the status of online learning in the Middle East. This study investigates educational experiences of engineers enrolled in the new joint online ProGreen diploma programme offered by three universities, two in Lebanon and one in Egypt. Forty-eight working engineers responded to an online survey based on the three components of the community of inquiry model: social presence, teaching presence, and cognitive presence. Exploratory factor analysis identified five factors: sense of belonging, self-directedness, self-actualisation, interaction, and instructional guidance. The findings showed that sense of belonging was the factor engineers rated highest but it did not correlate with instructional guidance. However, instructional guidance highly correlated with self-directedness and self-actualisation.

Smartphone-based system to improve transportation access for the cognitively impaired.

PubMed

Anderson, Shane M; Riehle, Timothy H; Lichter, Patrick A; Brown, Allen W; Panescu, Dorin

2015-01-01

This project developed and evaluated a smartphone-based system to improve mobility and transportation access for the cognitively impaired. The proposed system is intended to allow the cognitively impaired to use public transportation systems, community transportation and dedicated transportation services for the disabled with greater ease and safety. Individuals with cognitive disabilities are often unable to operate an automobile, or may require a prolonged recovery period before resuming driving. Public transportation systems represent a significant means to allow these individuals to maintain independence. Yet public transportation systems can pose significant challenges to individuals with cognitive impairment. The goal of this project is to develop a system to reduce these barriers via a technological solution consisting of components developed both for the cognitively impaired user and their caregiver or family member. The first component consists of a cognitive prosthetic device featuring traditional memory cueing and reminders as well as custom location-based transportation specific functions. This cognitive mobility assistant will leverage the computing power and GPS location determination capabilities of inexpensive, powerful smart phones. The second component consists of a management application which offers caregivers the ability to configure and program the reminder and transit functions remotely via the Internet. Following completion of the prototype system a pilot human test was performed with cognitively disabled individuals and family members or caregivers to assess the usability and acceptability of both system components.

Nine human factors contributing to the user acceptance of telemedicine applications: a cognitive-emotional approach.

PubMed

Buck, Susanne

2009-01-01

Much attention is paid to the technical aspects of telemedicine in the development of new applications, but the enthusiasm about what is technically possible very often leads to the user acceptance of such products being neglected. The number of successful and sustainable telemedicine applications would be much higher if developers concentrated more on matters related to the cognitive-emotional situation of the users involved in telemedicine. The users include the care and cure providers, as well as the care and cure receivers. Based on an informal literature search and discussions with telemedicine implementation staff, nine factors have been identified which are essential for the user acceptance of telemedicine applications. All of them are connected more to the cognitive-emotional than to the cognitive-rational side of information processing. This suggests that in the future the cognitive-emotional side will need more attention. This in turn implies that the nine points mentioned above have to find their way into requirements engineering, development processes and product life cycles.

Social norms of "good" design: Interdisciplinary perspectives from a survey of engineers and clinicians in bioengineering.

PubMed

Johnson, Angela N

2016-08-01

In bioengineering training for new researchers and engineers, a great deal of time is spent discussing what constitutes "good" design. Conceptualization of good design, however, varies widely across interdisciplinary team members, with potential to both foster innovation or lead to unproductive conflict. To explore how groups central to bioengineering teams (physicians/clinicians and engineers/physicists) conceptualize good design, we asked 176 professionals in bioengineering to complete a comprehensive online survey including items designed to assess cognitive and moral foundations (validated MFQ30 tool) and custom items assessing perceptions on good design in three areas (good design characteristics, reputation of design approvers, and perceived design patient/consumer suitability). Of those that responded, 82 completed all quantitative survey sections and were included in this preliminary analysis. Correlations between response areas were examined to explore the possible links between cognitive and moral biases and perspectives on good design. The survey results indicated that both groups were more conservative than average Americans based on previous reports, and clinicians scored higher on average for all MFQ30 domains. Numerous significant correlations with good design were observed among clinicians, while engineers/physicists most closely correlated good design with prescriber approval and scientific/technical literature. The exploratory analysis demonstrated the potential utility of sociological frameworks to explore relationships in design thinking with potential utility to stimulate thriving conversation on team-based design thinking in bioengineering education and practice.

An Overview of the NASA Aviation Safety Program (AVSP) Systemwide Accident Prevention (SWAP) Human Performance Modeling (HPM) Element

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foyle, David C.; Goodman, Allen; Hooley, Becky L.

2003-01-01

An overview is provided of the Human Performance Modeling (HPM) element within the NASA Aviation Safety Program (AvSP). Two separate model development tracks for performance modeling of real-world aviation environments are described: the first focuses on the advancement of cognitive modeling tools for system design, while the second centers on a prescriptive engineering model of activity tracking for error detection and analysis. A progressive implementation strategy for both tracks is discussed in which increasingly more complex, safety-relevant applications are undertaken to extend the state-of-the-art, as well as to reveal potential human-system vulnerabilities in the aviation domain. Of particular interest is the ability to predict the precursors to error and to assess potential mitigation strategies associated with the operational use of future flight deck technologies.

Some Open Issues on Rockfall Hazard Analysis in Fractured Rock Mass: Problems and Prospects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferrero, Anna Maria; Migliazza, Maria Rita; Pirulli, Marina; Umili, Gessica

2016-09-01

Risk is part of every sector of engineering design. It is a consequence of the uncertainties connected with the cognitive boundaries and with the natural variability of the relevant variables. In soil and rock engineering, in particular, uncertainties are linked to geometrical and mechanical aspects and the model used for the problem schematization. While the uncertainties due to the cognitive gaps could be filled by improving the quality of numerical codes and measuring instruments, nothing can be done to remove the randomness of natural variables, except defining their variability with stochastic approaches. Probabilistic analyses represent a useful tool to run parametric analyses and to identify the more significant aspects of a given phenomenon: They can be used for a rational quantification and mitigation of risk. The connection between the cognitive level and the probability of failure is at the base of the determination of hazard, which is often quantified through the assignment of safety factors. But these factors suffer from conceptual limits, which can be only overcome by adopting mathematical techniques with sound bases, not so used up to now (Einstein et al. in rock mechanics in civil and environmental engineering, CRC Press, London, 3-13, 2010; Brown in J Rock Mech Geotech Eng 4(3):193-204, 2012). The present paper describes the problems and the more reliable techniques used to quantify the uncertainties that characterize the large number of parameters that are involved in rock slope hazard assessment through a real case specifically related to rockfall. Limits of the existing approaches and future developments of the research are also provided.

Preliminary Results Obtained in Integrated Safety Analysis of NASA Aviation Safety Program Technologies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

This is a listing of recent unclassified RTO technical publications processed by the NASA Center for AeroSpace Information from January 1, 2001 through March 31, 2001 available on the NASA Aeronautics and Space Database. Contents include 1) Cognitive Task Analysis; 2) RTO Educational Notes; 3) The Capability of Virtual Reality to Meet Military Requirements; 4) Aging Engines, Avionics, Subsystems and Helicopters; 5) RTO Meeting Proceedings; 6) RTO Technical Reports; 7) Low Grazing Angle Clutter...; 8) Verification and Validation Data for Computational Unsteady Aerodynamics; 9) Space Observation Technology; 10) The Human Factor in System Reliability...; 11) Flight Control Design...; 12) Commercial Off-the-Shelf Products in Defense Applications.

Electronic collaboration: Some effects of telecommunication media and machine intelligence on team performance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wellens, A. Rodney

1991-01-01

Both NASA and DoD have had a long standing interest in teamwork, distributed decision making, and automation. While research on these topics has been pursued independently, it is becoming increasingly clear that the integration of social, cognitive, and human factors engineering principles will be necessary to meet the challenges of highly sophisticated scientific and military programs of the future. Images of human/intelligent-machine electronic collaboration were drawn from NASA and Air Force reports as well as from other sources. Here, areas of common concern are highlighted. A description of the author's research program testing a 'psychological distancing' model of electronic media effects and human/expert system collaboration is given.

Grounded understanding of abstract concepts: The case of STEM learning.

PubMed

Hayes, Justin C; Kraemer, David J M

2017-01-01

Characterizing the neural implementation of abstract conceptual representations has long been a contentious topic in cognitive science. At the heart of the debate is whether the "sensorimotor" machinery of the brain plays a central role in representing concepts, or whether the involvement of these perceptual and motor regions is merely peripheral or epiphenomenal. The domain of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning provides an important proving ground for sensorimotor (or grounded) theories of cognition, as concepts in science and engineering courses are often taught through laboratory-based and other hands-on methodologies. In this review of the literature, we examine evidence suggesting that sensorimotor processes strengthen learning associated with the abstract concepts central to STEM pedagogy. After considering how contemporary theories have defined abstraction in the context of semantic knowledge, we propose our own explanation for how body-centered information, as computed in sensorimotor brain regions and visuomotor association cortex, can form a useful foundation upon which to build an understanding of abstract scientific concepts, such as mechanical force. Drawing from theories in cognitive neuroscience, we then explore models elucidating the neural mechanisms involved in grounding intangible concepts, including Hebbian learning, predictive coding, and neuronal recycling. Empirical data on STEM learning through hands-on instruction are considered in light of these neural models. We conclude the review by proposing three distinct ways in which the field of cognitive neuroscience can contribute to STEM learning by bolstering our understanding of how the brain instantiates abstract concepts in an embodied fashion.

Fun cube based brain gym cognitive function assessment system.

PubMed

Zhang, Tao; Lin, Chung-Chih; Yu, Tsang-Chu; Sun, Jing; Hsu, Wen-Chuin; Wong, Alice May-Kuen

2017-05-01

The aim of this study is to design and develop a fun cube (FC) based brain gym (BG) cognitive function assessment system using the wireless sensor network and multimedia technologies. The system comprised (1) interaction devices, FCs and a workstation used as interactive tools for collecting and transferring data to the server, (2) a BG information management system responsible for managing the cognitive games and storing test results, and (3) a feedback system used for conducting the analysis of cognitive functions to assist caregivers in screening high risk groups with mild cognitive impairment. Three kinds of experiments were performed to evaluate the developed FC-based BG cognitive function assessment system. The experimental results showed that the Pearson correlation coefficient between the system's evaluation outcomes and the traditional Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores was 0.83. The average Technology Acceptance Model 2 score was close to six for 31 elderly subjects. Most subjects considered that the brain games are interesting and the FC human-machine interface is easy to learn and operate. The control group and the cognitive impairment group had statistically significant difference with respect to the accuracy of and the time taken for the brain cognitive function assessment games, including Animal Naming, Color Search, Trail Making Test, Change Blindness, and Forward / Backward Digit Span. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Supporting Multiple Cognitive Processing Styles Using Tailored Support Systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tuan Q. Tran; Karen M. Feigh; Amy R. Pritchett

According to theories of cognitive processing style or cognitive control mode, human performance is more effective when an individual’s cognitive state (e.g., intuition/scramble vs. deliberate/strategic) matches his/her ecological constraints or context (e.g., utilize intuition to strive for a "good-enough" response instead of deliberating for the "best" response under high time pressure). Ill-mapping between cognitive state and ecological constraints are believed to lead to degraded task performance. Consequently, incorporating support systems which are designed to specifically address multiple cognitive and functional states e.g., high workload, stress, boredom, and initiate appropriate mitigation strategies (e.g., reduce information load) is essential to reduce plantmore » risk. Utilizing the concept of Cognitive Control Models, this paper will discuss the importance of tailoring support systems to match an operator's cognitive state, and will further discuss the importance of these ecological constraints in selecting and implementing mitigation strategies for safe and effective system performance. An example from the nuclear power plant industry illustrating how a support system might be tailored to support different cognitive states is included.« less

Multimedia abstract generation of intensive care data: the automation of clinical processes through AI methodologies.

PubMed

Jordan, Desmond; Rose, Sydney E

2010-04-01

Medical errors from communication failures are enormous during the perioperative period of cardiac surgical patients. As caregivers change shifts or surgical patients change location within the hospital, key information is lost or misconstrued. After a baseline cognitive study of information need and caregiver workflow, we implemented an advanced clinical decision support tool of intelligent agents, medical logic modules, and text generators called the "Inference Engine" to summarize individual patient's raw medical data elements into procedural milestones, illness severity, and care therapies. The system generates two displays: 1) the continuum of care, multimedia abstract generation of intensive care data (MAGIC)-an expert system that would automatically generate a physician briefing of a cardiac patient's operative course in a multimodal format; and 2) the isolated point in time, "Inference Engine"-a system that provides a real-time, high-level, summarized depiction of a patient's clinical status. In our studies, system accuracy and efficacy was judged against clinician performance in the workplace. To test the automated physician briefing, "MAGIC," the patient's intraoperative course, was reviewed in the intensive care unit before patient arrival. It was then judged against the actual physician briefing and that given in a cohort of patients where the system was not used. To test the real-time representation of the patient's clinical status, system inferences were judged against clinician decisions. Changes in workflow and situational awareness were assessed by questionnaires and process evaluation. MAGIC provides 200% more information, twice the accuracy, and enhances situational awareness. This study demonstrates that the automation of clinical processes through AI methodologies yields positive results.

Rational use of cognitive resources: levels of analysis between the computational and the algorithmic.

PubMed

Griffiths, Thomas L; Lieder, Falk; Goodman, Noah D

2015-04-01

Marr's levels of analysis-computational, algorithmic, and implementation-have served cognitive science well over the last 30 years. But the recent increase in the popularity of the computational level raises a new challenge: How do we begin to relate models at different levels of analysis? We propose that it is possible to define levels of analysis that lie between the computational and the algorithmic, providing a way to build a bridge between computational- and algorithmic-level models. The key idea is to push the notion of rationality, often used in defining computational-level models, deeper toward the algorithmic level. We offer a simple recipe for reverse-engineering the mind's cognitive strategies by deriving optimal algorithms for a series of increasingly more realistic abstract computational architectures, which we call "resource-rational analysis." Copyright © 2015 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Visual analytics as a translational cognitive science.

PubMed

Fisher, Brian; Green, Tera Marie; Arias-Hernández, Richard

2011-07-01

Visual analytics is a new interdisciplinary field of study that calls for a more structured scientific approach to understanding the effects of interaction with complex graphical displays on human cognitive processes. Its primary goal is to support the design and evaluation of graphical information systems that better support cognitive processes in areas as diverse as scientific research and emergency management. The methodologies that make up this new field are as yet ill defined. This paper proposes a pathway for development of visual analytics as a translational cognitive science that bridges fundamental research in human/computer cognitive systems and design and evaluation of information systems in situ. Achieving this goal will require the development of enhanced field methods for conceptual decomposition of human/computer cognitive systems that maps onto laboratory studies, and improved methods for conducting laboratory investigations that might better map onto real-world cognitive processes in technology-rich environments. Copyright © 2011 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

A cognitive robotics system: the symbolic and sub-symbolic robotic intelligence control system (SS-RICS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelley, Troy D.; Avery, Eric

2010-04-01

This paper will detail the progress on the development of the Symbolic and Subsymbolic Robotics Intelligence Control System (SS-RICS). The system is a goal oriented production system, based loosely on the cognitive architecture, the Adaptive Control of Thought-Rational (ACT-R) some additions and changes. We have found that in order to simulate complex cognition on a robot, many aspects of cognition (long term memory (LTM), perception) needed to be in place before any generalized intelligent behavior can be produced. In working with ACT-R, we found that it was a good instantiation of working memory, but that we needed to add other aspects of cognition including LTM and perception to have a complete cognitive system. Our progress to date will be noted and the challenges that remain will be addressed.

Space Shuttle Hot Cabin Emergency Responses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stepaniak, P.; Effenhauser, R. K.; McCluskey, R.; Gillis, D. B.; Hamilton, D.; Kuznetz, L. H.

2005-01-01

Methods: Human thermal tolerance, countermeasures, and thermal model data were reviewed and compared to existing shuttle ECS failure temperature and humidity profiles for each failure mode. Increases in core temperature associated with cognitive impairment was identified, as was metabolic heat generation of crewmembers, temperature monitoring, and communication capabilities after partial power-down and other limiting factors. Orbiter landing strategies and a hydration and salt replacement protocol were developed to put wheels on deck in each failure mode prior to development of significant cognitive impairment or collapse of crewmembers. Thermal tradeoffs for use of the Advanced Crew Escape Suit (ACES), Liquid Cooling Garment, integrated G-suit and Quick Don Mask were examined. candidate solutions involved trade-offs or conflicts with cabin oxygen partial pressure limits, system power-downs to limit heat generation, risks of alternate and emergency landing sites or compromise of Mode V-VIII scenarios. Results: Rehydration and minimized cabin workloads are required in all failure modes. Temperature/humidity profiles increase rapidly in two failure modes, and deorbit is recommended without the ACES, ICU and g-suit. This latter configuration limits several shuttle approach and landing escape modes and requires communication modifications. Additional data requirements were identified and engineering simulations were recommended to develop more current shuttle temperature and humidity profiles. Discussion: After failure of the shuttle ECS, there is insufficient cooling capacity of the ACES to protect crewmembers from rising cabin temperature and humidity. The LCG is inadequate for cabin temperatures above 76 F. Current shuttle future life policy makes it unlikely that major engineering upgrades necessary to address this problem will occur.

Cognitive and perceptual principles of window-based computer dialogues

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pavel, M.; Card, S.

1986-01-01

The information-space flyer concept is similar to a flight simulator where one traverses over information topology (such as a sematic network) rather than a geographical terrain. Research and software engineering are discussed. Also included is a user manual.

Playing an action video game reduces gender differences in spatial cognition.

PubMed

Feng, Jing; Spence, Ian; Pratt, Jay

2007-10-01

We demonstrate a previously unknown gender difference in the distribution of spatial attention, a basic capacity that supports higher-level spatial cognition. More remarkably, we found that playing an action video game can virtually eliminate this gender difference in spatial attention and simultaneously decrease the gender disparity in mental rotation ability, a higher-level process in spatial cognition. After only 10 hr of training with an action video game, subjects realized substantial gains in both spatial attention and mental rotation, with women benefiting more than men. Control subjects who played a non-action game showed no improvement. Given that superior spatial skills are important in the mathematical and engineering sciences, these findings have practical implications for attracting men and women to these fields.

Prestige versus citation volume as journal indices in cognitive neuroscience.

PubMed

Ward, Jamie

2014-01-01

In recent years, alternative measures of a journal's influence have been developed to those based on citation metrics (such as Impact Factor). This includes the Scimago Journal Rank (SJR) which is adapted from algorithms used to prioritize webpages in search engines. It is considered a measure of "prestige" insofar as it takes into account the importance of links/citations and not just their total number. Taking a sample of 38 journals from within the field of cognitive neuroscience, it is shown that SJR and Impact Factor correlate highly (r = .83) but with a few large discrepancies in rankings. This journal, Cognitive Neuroscience, fares better on the prestige-based measure than might otherwise be expected from its citation-based rank.

Cognitive neuroimaging: cognitive science out of the armchair.

PubMed

de Zubicaray, Greig I

2006-04-01

Cognitive scientists were not quick to embrace the functional neuroimaging technologies that emerged during the late 20th century. In this new century, cognitive scientists continue to question, not unreasonably, the relevance of functional neuroimaging investigations that fail to address questions of interest to cognitive science. However, some ultra-cognitive scientists assert that these experiments can never be of relevance to the study of cognition. Their reasoning reflects an adherence to a functionalist philosophy that arbitrarily and purposefully distinguishes mental information-processing systems from brain or brain-like operations. This article addresses whether data from properly conducted functional neuroimaging studies can inform and subsequently constrain the assumptions of theoretical cognitive models. The article commences with a focus upon the functionalist philosophy espoused by the ultra-cognitive scientists, contrasting it with the materialist philosophy that motivates both cognitive neuroimaging investigations and connectionist modelling of cognitive systems. Connectionism and cognitive neuroimaging share many features, including an emphasis on unified cognitive and neural models of systems that combine localist and distributed representations. The utility of designing cognitive neuroimaging studies to test (primarily) connectionist models of cognitive phenomena is illustrated using data from functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) investigations of language production and episodic memory.

Developing a Cognitive and Communications Tool for Burn Intensive Care Unit Clinicians.

PubMed

Nemeth, Christopher; Anders, Shilo; Strouse, Robert; Grome, Anna; Crandall, Beth; Pamplin, Jeremy; Salinas, Jose; Mann-Salinas, Elizabeth

2016-05-01

Burn Intensive Care Unit (BICU) work is necessarily complex and depends on clinician actions, resources, and variable patient responses to interventions. Clinicians use large volumes of data that are condensed in time, but separated across resources, to care for patients. Correctly designed health information technology (IT) systems may help clinicians to treat these patients more efficiently, accurately, and reliably. We report on a 3-year project to design and develop an ecologically valid IT system for use in a military BICU. We use a mixed methods Cognitive Systems Engineering approach for research and development. Observations, interviews, artifact analysis, survey, and thematic analysis methods were used to reveal underlying factors that mold the work environment and affect clinician decisions that may affect patient outcomes. Participatory design and prototyping methods have been used to develop solutions. We developed 39 requirements for the IT system and used them to create three use cases to help developers better understand how the system might support clinician work to develop interface prototypes. We also incorporated data mining functions that offer the potential to aid clinicians by recognizing patterns recognition of clinically significant events, such as incipient sepsis. The gaps between information sources and accurate, reliable, and efficient clinical decision that we have identified will enable us to create scenarios to evaluate prototype systems with BICU clinicians, to develop increasingly improved designs, and to measure outcomes. The link from data to analyses, requirements, prototypes, and their evaluation ensures that the solution will reflect and support work in the BICU as it actually occurs, improving staff efficiency and patient care quality. Reprint & Copyright © 2016 Association of Military Surgeons of the U.S.

An Evolutionary Perspective on Learning Disability in Mathematics

PubMed Central

Geary, David C.

2015-01-01

A distinction between potentially evolved, or biologically-primary forms of cognition, and the culturally-specific, or biologically-secondary forms of cognition that are built from primary systems is used to explore mathematical learning disability (MLD). Using this model, MLD could result from deficits in the brain and cognitive systems that support biologically-primary mathematical competencies, or from the brain and cognitive systems that support the modification of primary systems for the creation of secondary knowledge and secondary cognitive competencies. The former include visuospatial long-term and working memory and the intraparietal sulcus, whereas the latter include the central executive component of working memory and the anterior cingulate cortex and lateral prefrontal cortex. Different forms of MLD are discussed as related to each of the cognitive and brain systems. PMID:17650991

A comparison of personality characteristics of male and female engineering students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Williams, Erin Beth

The purpose of this study was to investigate differences between personality characteristics of female and male freshmen, engineering students. A secondary purpose was to ascertain whether personality characteristics of freshmen, engineering students were different from those of general collegiate students of the same sex. The Millon Index of Personality Styles (MIPS) was administered to a sample of 72 female and 86 male freshmen, engineering students at a private midwestern engineering institution. The MIPS college normative sample of 1,600 college students was used as a comparison group. A total of 24 personality characteristics were assessed in the domains of motivation aims, cognitive modes, and interpersonal behaviors. Four hypotheses, which dealt with comparisons of the engineering samples, were tested by way of discriminant analyses. Two hypotheses, which compared the engineering samples to the collegiate samples of the same sex, were tested by way of t-tests. All six hypotheses yielded significant differences across various personality variables. It was concluded that engineering students of both sexes were more similar than different in personality characteristics. It was also concluded that there were greater personality differences between freshmen male engineering students and male college students than there are between freshmen female engineering students and female college students.

Example of a Human Factors Engineering approach to a medication administration work system: potential impact on patient safety.

PubMed

Beuscart-Zéphir, Marie-Catherine; Pelayo, Sylvia; Bernonville, Stéphanie

2010-04-01

The objectives of this paper are: In this approach, the implementation of such a complex IT solution is considered a major redesign of the work system. The paper describes the Human Factor (HF) tasks embedded in the project lifecycle: (1) analysis and modelling of the current work system and usability assessment of the medication CPOE solution; (2) HF recommendations for work re-design and usability recommendations for IT system re-engineering both aiming at a safer and more efficient work situation. Standard ethnographic methods were used to support the analysis of the current work system and work situations, coupled with cognitive task analysis methods and documents review. Usability inspection (heuristic evaluation) and both in-lab (simulated tasks) and on-site (real tasks) usability tests were performed for the evaluation of the CPOE candidate. Adapted software engineering models were used in combination with usual textual descriptions, tasks models and mock-ups to support the recommendations for work and product re-design. The analysis of the work situations identified different work organisations and procedures across the hospital's departments. The most important differences concerned the doctor-nurse communications and cooperation modes and the procedures for preparing and administering the medications. The assessment of the medication CPOE functions uncovered a number of usability problems including severe ones leading to impossible to detect or to catch errors. Models of the actual and possible distribution of tasks and roles were used to support decision making in the work design process. The results of the usability assessment were translated into requirements to support the necessary re-engineering of the IT application. The HFE approach to medication CPOE efficiently identifies and distinguishes currently unsafe or uncomfortable work situations that could obviously benefit from an IT solution from other work situations incorporating efficient work procedures that might be impaired by the implementation of the CPOE. In this context, a careful redesign of the work situation and of the entire work system is necessary to actually benefit from the installation of the product in terms of patient safety and human performances. In parallel, a usability assessment of the product to be implemented is mandatory to identify potentially dangerous usability flaws and to fix them before the installation. (c) 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Extended spider cognition.

PubMed

Japyassú, Hilton F; Laland, Kevin N

2017-05-01

There is a tension between the conception of cognition as a central nervous system (CNS) process and a view of cognition as extending towards the body or the contiguous environment. The centralised conception requires large or complex nervous systems to cope with complex environments. Conversely, the extended conception involves the outsourcing of information processing to the body or environment, thus making fewer demands on the processing power of the CNS. The evolution of extended cognition should be particularly favoured among small, generalist predators such as spiders, and here, we review the literature to evaluate the fit of empirical data with these contrasting models of cognition. Spiders do not seem to be cognitively limited, displaying a large diversity of learning processes, from habituation to contextual learning, including a sense of numerosity. To tease apart the central from the extended cognition, we apply the mutual manipulability criterion, testing the existence of reciprocal causal links between the putative elements of the system. We conclude that the web threads and configurations are integral parts of the cognitive systems. The extension of cognition to the web helps to explain some puzzling features of spider behaviour and seems to promote evolvability within the group, enhancing innovation through cognitive connectivity to variable habitat features. Graded changes in relative brain size could also be explained by outsourcing information processing to environmental features. More generally, niche-constructed structures emerge as prime candidates for extending animal cognition, generating the selective pressures that help to shape the evolving cognitive system.

On the design of learning outcomes for the undergraduate engineer's final year project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thambyah, Ashvin

2011-03-01

The course for the final year project for engineering students, because of its strongly research-based, open-ended format, tends to not have well defined learning outcomes, which are also not aligned with any accepted pedagogical philosophy or learning technology. To address this problem, the revised Bloom's taxonomy table of Anderson and Krathwohl (2001) is utilised, as suggested previously by Lee and Lai (2007), to design new learning outcomes for the final year project course in engineering education. Based on the expectations of the engineering graduate, and integrating these graduate expectations into the six cognitive processes and four knowledge dimensions of the taxonomy table, 24 learning outcomes have been designed. It is proposed that these 24 learning outcomes be utilised as a suitable working template to inspire more critical evaluation of what is expected to be learnt by engineering students undertaking final year research or capstone projects.

Using Dual Process Models to Examine Impulsivity Throughout Neural Maturation.

PubMed

Leshem, Rotem

2016-01-01

The multivariate construct of impulsivity is examined through neural systems and connections that comprise the executive functioning system. It is proposed that cognitive and behavioral components of impulsivity can be divided into two distinct groups, mediated by (1) the cognitive control system: deficits in top-down cognitive control processes referred to as action/cognitive impulsivity and (2) the socioemotional system: related to bottom-up affective/motivational processes referred to as affective impulsivity. Examination of impulsivity from a developmental viewpoint can guide future research, potentially enabling the selection of more effective interventions for impulsive individuals, based on the cognitive components requiring improvement.

Novel Television-Based Cognitive Training Improves Working Memory and Executive Function

PubMed Central

Shatil, Evelyn; Mikulecká, Jaroslava; Bellotti, Francesco; Bureš, Vladimír

2014-01-01

The main study objective was to investigate the effect of interactive television-based cognitive training on cognitive performance of 119 healthy older adults, aged 60–87 years. Participants were randomly allocated to a cognitive training group or to an active control group in a single-blind controlled two-group design. Before and after training interactive television cognitive performance was assessed on well validated tests of fluid, higher-order ability, and system usability was evaluated. The participants in the cognitive training group completed a television-based cognitive training programme, while the participants in the active control group completed a TV-based programme of personally benefiting activities. Significant improvements were observed in well validated working memory and executive function tasks in the cognitive training but not in the control group. None of the groups showed statistically significant improvement in life satisfaction score. Participants' reports of “adequate” to “high” system usability testify to the successful development and implementation of the interactive television-based system and compliant cognitive training contents. The study demonstrates that cognitive training delivered by means of an interactive television system can generate genuine cognitive benefits in users and these are measurable using well-validated cognitive tests. Thus, older adults who cannot use or afford a computer can easily use digital interactive television to benefit from advanced software applications designed to train cognition. PMID:24992187

A Framework for Relating Cognitive to Neural Systems. Cognitive Science Program, Technical Report No. 84-2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Posner, Michael I.

This paper reviews the aspects of cognitive science that relate best to using electrical and magnetic recording to understand the function of brain systems. It outlines a framework for relating cognitive activities of daily life (typing, reading) to underlying neural systems. The framework uses five levels of analysis: task, elementary operations,…

Using GOMS and Bayesian plan recognition to develop recognition models of operator behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaientz, Jack D.; DeKoven, Elyon; Piegdon, Nicholas; Wood, Scott D.; Huber, Marcus J.

2006-05-01

Trends in combat technology research point to an increasing role for uninhabited vehicles in modern warfare tactics. To support increased span of control over these vehicles human responsibilities need to be transformed from tedious, error-prone and cognition intensive operations into tasks that are more supervisory and manageable, even under intensely stressful conditions. The goal is to move away from only supporting human command of low-level system functions to intention-level human-system dialogue about the operator's tasks and situation. A critical element of this process is developing the means to identify when human operators need automated assistance and to identify what assistance they need. Toward this goal, we are developing an unmanned vehicle operator task recognition system that combines work in human behavior modeling and Bayesian plan recognition. Traditionally, human behavior models have been considered generative, meaning they describe all possible valid behaviors. Basing behavior recognition on models designed for behavior generation can offers advantages in improved model fidelity and reuse. It is not clear, however, how to reconcile the structural differences between behavior recognition and behavior modeling approaches. Our current work demonstrates that by pairing a cognitive psychology derived human behavior modeling approach, GOMS, with a Bayesian plan recognition engine, ASPRN, we can translate a behavior generation model into a recognition model. We will discuss the implications for using human performance models in this manner as well as suggest how this kind of modeling may be used to support the real-time control of multiple, uninhabited battlefield vehicles and other semi-autonomous systems.

Interdisciplinary multisensory fusion: design lessons from professional architects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geiger, Ray W.; Snell, J. T.

1992-11-01

Psychocybernetic systems engineering design conceptualization is mimicking the evolutionary path of habitable environmental design and the professional practice of building architecture, construction, and facilities management. Human efficacy for innovation in architectural design has always reflected more the projected perceptual vision of the designer visa vis the hierarchical spirit of the design process. In pursuing better ways to build and/or design things, we have found surprising success in exploring certain more esoteric applications. One of those applications is the vision of an artistic approach in/and around creative problem solving. Our evaluation in research into vision and visual systems associated with environmental design and human factors has led us to discover very specific connections between the human spirit and quality design. We would like to share those very qualitative and quantitative parameters of engineering design, particularly as it relates to multi-faceted and interdisciplinary design practice. Discussion will cover areas of cognitive ergonomics, natural modeling sources, and an open architectural process of means and goal satisfaction, qualified by natural repetition, gradation, rhythm, contrast, balance, and integrity of process. One hypothesis is that the kinematic simulation of perceived connections between hard and soft sciences, centering on the life sciences and life in general, has become a very effective foundation for design theory and application.

On Cognition, Structured Sequence Processing, and Adaptive Dynamical Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petersson, Karl Magnus

2008-11-01

Cognitive neuroscience approaches the brain as a cognitive system: a system that functionally is conceptualized in terms of information processing. We outline some aspects of this concept and consider a physical system to be an information processing device when a subclass of its physical states can be viewed as representational/cognitive and transitions between these can be conceptualized as a process operating on these states by implementing operations on the corresponding representational structures. We identify a generic and fundamental problem in cognition: sequentially organized structured processing. Structured sequence processing provides the brain, in an essential sense, with its processing logic. In an approach addressing this problem, we illustrate how to integrate levels of analysis within a framework of adaptive dynamical systems. We note that the dynamical system framework lends itself to a description of asynchronous event-driven devices, which is likely to be important in cognition because the brain appears to be an asynchronous processing system. We use the human language faculty and natural language processing as a concrete example through out.

Evolution of Cognitive Rehabilitation After Stroke From Traditional Techniques to Smart and Personalized Home-Based Information and Communication Technology Systems: Literature Review

PubMed Central

Cogollor, José M; Rojo-Lacal, Javier; Hermsdörfer, Joachim; Arredondo Waldmeyer, Maria Teresa; Giachritsis, Christos; Armstrong, Alan; Breñosa Martinez, Jose Manuel; Bautista Loza, Doris Anabelle; Sebastián, José María

2018-01-01

Background Neurological patients after stroke usually present cognitive deficits that cause dependencies in their daily living. These deficits mainly affect the performance of some of their daily activities. For that reason, stroke patients need long-term processes for their cognitive rehabilitation. Considering that classical techniques are focused on acting as guides and are dependent on help from therapists, significant efforts are being made to improve current methodologies and to use eHealth and Web-based architectures to implement information and communication technology (ICT) systems that achieve reliable, personalized, and home-based platforms to increase efficiency and level of attractiveness for patients and carers. Objective The goal of this work was to provide an overview of the practices implemented for the assessment of stroke patients and cognitive rehabilitation. This study puts together traditional methods and the most recent personalized platforms based on ICT technologies and Internet of Things. Methods A literature review has been distributed to a multidisciplinary team of researchers from engineering, psychology, and sport science fields. The systematic review has been focused on published scientific research, other European projects, and the most current innovative large-scale initiatives in the area. A total of 3469 results were retrieved from Web of Science, 284 studies from Journal of Medical Internet Research, and 15 European research projects from Community Research and Development Information Service from the last 15 years were reviewed for classification and selection regarding their relevance. Results A total of 7 relevant studies on the screening of stroke patients have been presented with 6 additional methods for the analysis of kinematics and 9 studies on the execution of goal-oriented activities. Meanwhile, the classical methods to provide cognitive rehabilitation have been classified in the 5 main techniques implemented. Finally, the review has been finalized with the selection of 8 different ICT–based approaches found in scientific-technical studies, 9 European projects funded by the European Commission that offer eHealth architectures, and other large-scale activities such as smart houses and the initiative City4Age. Conclusions Stroke is one of the main causes that most negatively affect countries in the socioeconomic aspect. The design of new ICT-based systems should provide 4 main features for an efficient and personalized cognitive rehabilitation: support in the execution of complex daily tasks, automatic error detection, home-based performance, and accessibility. Only 33% of the European projects presented fulfilled those requirements at the same time. For this reason, current and future large-scale initiatives focused on eHealth and smart environments should try to solve this situation by providing more complete and sophisticated platforms. PMID:29581093

Does human cognition allow Human Factors (HF) certification of advanced aircrew systems?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Macleod, Iain S.; Taylor, Robert M.

1994-01-01

This paper has examined the requirements of HF specification and certification within advanced or complex aircrew systems. It suggests reasons for current inadequacies in the use of HF in the design process, giving some examples in support, and suggesting an avenue towards the improvement of the HF certification process. The importance of human cognition to the operation and performance of advanced aircrew systems has been stressed. Many of the shortfalls of advanced aircrew systems must be attributed to over automated designs that show little consideration on either the mental limits or the cognitive capabilities of the human system component. Traditional approaches to system design and HF certification are set within an over physicalistic foundation. Also, traditionally it was assumed that physicalistic system functions could be attributed to either the human or the machine on a one to one basis. Moreover, any problems associated with the parallel needs, or promoting human understanding alongside system operation and direction, were generally equated in reality by the natural flexibility and adaptability of human skills. The consideration of the human component of a complex system is seen as being primarily based on manifestations of human behavior to the almost total exclusion of any appreciation of unobservable human mental and cognitive processes. The argument of this paper is that the considered functionality of any complex human-machine system must contain functions that are purely human and purely cognitive. Human-machine system reliability ultimately depends on human reliability and dependability and, therefore, on the form and frequency of cognitive processes that have to be conducted to support system performance. The greater the demand placed by an advanced aircraft system on the human component's basic knowledge processes or cognition, rather than on skill, the more insiduous the effects the human may have on that system. This paper discusses one example of an attempt to devise an improved method of specificaiton and certification with relation to the advanced aircrew system, that of the RN Merlin helicopter. The method is realized to have limitations in practice, these mainly associated with the late production of the system specification in relation to the system development process. The need for a careful appreciation of the capabilities and support needs of human cognition within the design process of a complex man machine system has been argued, especially with relation to the concept of system functionality. Unlike the physicalistic Fitts list, a new classification of system functionality is proposed, namely: (1) equipment - system equipment related; (2) cognitive - human cognition related; and (3) associated - necessary combinatin of equipment and cognitive. This paper has not proposed a method for a fuller consideration of cognition within systems design, but has suggested the need for such a method and indicated an avenue towards its development. Finally, the HF certification of advanced aircrew systems is seen as only being possible in a qualified sense until the important functions of human cognition are considered within the system design process. (This paper contains the opinions of its authors and does not necessarily refledt the standpoint of their respective organizations).

Neurotech for Neuroscience: Unifying Concepts, Organizing Principles, and Emerging Tools

PubMed Central

Silver, Rae; Boahen, Kwabena; Grillner, Sten; Kopell, Nancy; Olsen, Kathie L.

2012-01-01

The ability to tackle analysis of the brain at multiple levels simultaneously is emerging from rapid methodological developments. The classical research strategies of “measure,” “model,” and “make” are being applied to the exploration of nervous system function. These include novel conceptual and theoretical approaches, creative use of mathematical modeling, and attempts to build brain-like devices and systems, as well as other developments including instrumentation and statistical modeling (not covered here). Increasingly, these efforts require teams of scientists from a variety of traditional scientific disciplines to work together. The potential of such efforts for understanding directed motor movement, emergence of cognitive function from neuronal activity, and development of neuromimetic computers are described by a team that includes individuals experienced in behavior and neuroscience, mathematics, and engineering. Funding agencies, including the National Science Foundation, explore the potential of these changing frontiers of research for developing research policies and long-term planning. PMID:17978017

Utilization-Based Modeling and Optimization for Cognitive Radio Networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Yanbing; Huang, Jun; Liu, Zhangxiong

The cognitive radio technique promises to manage and allocate the scarce radio spectrum in the highly varying and disparate modern environments. This paper considers a cognitive radio scenario composed of two queues for the primary (licensed) users and cognitive (unlicensed) users. According to the Markov process, the system state equations are derived and an optimization model for the system is proposed. Next, the system performance is evaluated by calculations which show the rationality of our system model. Furthermore, discussions among different parameters for the system are presented based on the experimental results.

Process Algebra Approach for Action Recognition in the Maritime Domain

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huntsberger, Terry

2011-01-01

The maritime environment poses a number of challenges for autonomous operation of surface boats. Among these challenges are the highly dynamic nature of the environment, the onboard sensing and reasoning requirements for obeying the navigational rules of the road, and the need for robust day/night hazard detection and avoidance. Development of full mission level autonomy entails addressing these challenges, coupled with inference of the tactical and strategic intent of possibly adversarial vehicles in the surrounding environment. This paper introduces PACIFIC (Process Algebra Capture of Intent From Information Content), an onboard system based on formal process algebras that is capable of extracting actions/activities from sensory inputs and reasoning within a mission context to ensure proper responses. PACIFIC is part of the Behavior Engine in CARACaS (Cognitive Architecture for Robotic Agent Command and Sensing), a system that is currently running on a number of U.S. Navy unmanned surface and underwater vehicles. Results from a series of experimental studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of the system are also presented.

Using the Cognitive Apprenticeship Web-Based Argumentation System to Improve Argumentation Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tsai, Chun-Yen; Jack, Brady Michael; Huang, Tai-Chu; Yang, Jin-Tan

2012-01-01

This study investigated how the instruction of argumentation skills could be promoted by using an online argumentation system. This system entitled "Cognitive Apprenticeship Web-based Argumentation" (CAWA) system was based on cognitive apprenticeship model. One hundred eighty-nine fifth grade students took part in this study. A quasi-experimental…

Computer Based Simulation of Laboratory Experiments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Edward, Norrie S.

1997-01-01

Examines computer based simulations of practical laboratory experiments in engineering. Discusses the aims and achievements of lab work (cognitive, process, psychomotor, and affective); types of simulations (model building and behavioral); and the strengths and weaknesses of simulations. Describes the development of a centrifugal pump simulation,…

Assessment in Professional Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elman, Sandra E.; Lynton, Ernest A.

The assessment of professional programs at the undergraduate level is discussed (i.e., engineering, business, education, nursing, and other career-oriented fields). Presently, assessment in professional education relies almost exclusively on written or oral testing of a predetermined set of cognitive and analytical skills. This is followed by…

Predictors of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics choice options: A meta-analytic path analysis of the social-cognitive choice model by gender and race/ethnicity.

PubMed

Lent, Robert W; Sheu, Hung-Bin; Miller, Matthew J; Cusick, Megan E; Penn, Lee T; Truong, Nancy N

2018-01-01

We tested the interest and choice portion of social-cognitive career theory (SCCT; Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994) in the context of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) domains. Data from 143 studies (including 196 independent samples) conducted over a 30-year period (1983 through 2013) were subjected to meta-analytic path analyses. The interest/choice model was found to fit the data well over all samples as well as within samples composed primarily of women and men and racial/ethnic minority and majority persons. The model also accounted for large portions of the variance in interests and choice goals within each path analysis. Despite the general predictive utility of SCCT across gender and racial/ethnic groups, we did find that several parameter estimates differed by group. We present both the group similarities and differences and consider their implications for future research, intervention, and theory refinement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Entrepreneurship: introduction.

PubMed

Sánchez, José C

2011-08-01

Many investigators from diverse perspectives focus their studies on the area of entrepreneurship due to its important role as an engine of economic and social development. The aim of this monograph is to provide an overview of the state of entrepreneurship research. It presents the controversy about the domain of the study and whether entrepreneurship can be considered a legitimate field of knowledge. We study the aspects that differentiate people who are entrepreneurs from those who are not from the perspective of cognitive psychology and we discuss the role of entrepreneurial education. The work is also an attempt to understand the factors that determine the durability of a company such as resources, location, personality traits, strategies, organizational systems, etc. Lastly, we examine the reality of entrepreneurship research in Spain.

Virtual displays for 360-degree video

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gilbert, Stephen; Boonsuk, Wutthigrai; Kelly, Jonathan W.

2012-03-01

In this paper we describe a novel approach for comparing users' spatial cognition when using different depictions of 360- degree video on a traditional 2D display. By using virtual cameras within a game engine and texture mapping of these camera feeds to an arbitrary shape, we were able to offer users a 360-degree interface composed of four 90-degree views, two 180-degree views, or one 360-degree view of the same interactive environment. An example experiment is described using these interfaces. This technique for creating alternative displays of wide-angle video facilitates the exploration of how compressed or fish-eye distortions affect spatial perception of the environment and can benefit the creation of interfaces for surveillance and remote system teleoperation.

Some Instructional Implications from a Mathematical Model of Cognitive Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mierkiewicz, Diane B.

Cognitive development and various educational implications are discussed in terms of Donald Saari's model of the interaction of a learner and the enviroment and the constraints imposed by the inefficiency of the learner's cognitive system. Saari proposed a hierarchical system of cognitive structures such that the relationships between structures…

Cognition as a Dynamic System: Principles from Embodiment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Linda B.

2005-01-01

Traditional approaches to cognitive development concentrate on the stability of cognition and explain that stability via concepts segregated from perceiving acting. A dynamic systems approach in contrast focuses on the self-organization of behavior in tasks. This article uses recent results concerning the embodiment of cognition to argue for a…

Intellectual classification of Black and White children in special education programs using the WISC-III and the Cognitive Assessment System.

PubMed

Naglieri, J A; Rojahn, J

2001-07-01

The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children--Third Edition and the Cognitive Assessment System were compared for a sample of 78 White and Black students in special education programs for children with mental retardation. Results showed that the WISC-III identified more children as having mental retardation than did the Cognitive Assessment System. More important, however, the WISC-III classified disproportionately more Blacks than Whites as having mental retardation as compared to the Cognitive Assessment System. Results imply that the problem of disproportionate representation of Black children in special education classes for children with mental retardation may be addressed if the Cognitive Assessment System were used instead of the WISC-III.

Resource Analysis of Cognitive Process Flow Used to Achieve Autonomy

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-03-01

to be used as a decision - making aid to guide system designers and program managers not necessarily familiar with cognitive pro- cessing, or resource...implementing end-to-end cognitive processing flows multiplies and the impact of these design decisions on efficiency and effectiveness increases [1]. The...end-to-end cognitive systems and alternative computing technologies, then system design and acquisition personnel could make systematic analyses and

Test Review: Naglieri, J. A., Das, J. P., & Goldstein, S. (2014). Cognitive Assessment System-Second Edition (2nd Ed.)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGill, Ryan J.

2015-01-01

The Cognitive Assessment System-Second Edition (CAS2) is an individually administered measure of cognitive ability designed for children and adolescents ages 5 through 18 years. The measure, authored by Jack A. Naglieri, J. P. Das, and Sam Goldstein, was published by Pro-Ed in 2014 and is the first revision of the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS;…

The Roles of Implicit Understanding of Engineering Ethics in Student Teams' Discussion.

PubMed

Lee, Eun Ah; Grohman, Magdalena; Gans, Nicholas R; Tacca, Marco; Brown, Matthew J

2017-12-01

Following previous work that shows engineering students possess different levels of understanding of ethics-implicit and explicit-this study focuses on how students' implicit understanding of engineering ethics influences their team discussion process, in cases where there is significant divergence between their explicit and implicit understanding. We observed student teams during group discussions of the ethical issues involved in their engineering design projects. Through the micro-scale discourse analysis based on cognitive ethnography, we found two possible ways in which implicit understanding influenced the discussion. In one case, implicit understanding played the role of intuitive ethics-an intuitive judgment followed by reasoning. In the other case, implicit understanding played the role of ethical insight, emotionally guiding the direction of the discussion. In either case, however, implicit understanding did not have a strong influence, and the conclusion of the discussion reflected students' explicit understanding. Because students' implicit understanding represented broader social implication of engineering design in both cases, we suggest to take account of students' relevant implicit understanding in engineering education, to help students become more socially responsible engineers.

Reducing the cognitive workload: Trouble managing power systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Manner, David B.; Liberman, Eugene M.; Dolce, James L.; Mellor, Pamela A.

1993-01-01

The complexity of space-based systems makes monitoring them and diagnosing their faults taxing for human beings. Mission control operators are well-trained experts but they can not afford to have their attention diverted by extraneous information. During normal operating conditions monitoring the status of the components of a complex system alone is a big task. When a problem arises, immediate attention and quick resolution is mandatory. To aid humans in these endeavors we have developed an automated advisory system. Our advisory expert system, Trouble, incorporates the knowledge of the power system designers for Space Station Freedom. Trouble is designed to be a ground-based advisor for the mission controllers in the Control Center Complex at Johnson Space Center (JSC). It has been developed at NASA Lewis Research Center (LeRC) and tested in conjunction with prototype flight hardware contained in the Power Management and Distribution testbed and the Engineering Support Center, ESC, at LeRC. Our work will culminate with the adoption of these techniques by the mission controllers at JSC. This paper elucidates how we have captured power system failure knowledge, how we have built and tested our expert system, and what we believe are its potential uses.

Memory and cognitive control circuits in mathematical cognition and learning.

PubMed

Menon, V

2016-01-01

Numerical cognition relies on interactions within and between multiple functional brain systems, including those subserving quantity processing, working memory, declarative memory, and cognitive control. This chapter describes recent advances in our understanding of memory and control circuits in mathematical cognition and learning. The working memory system involves multiple parietal-frontal circuits which create short-term representations that allow manipulation of discrete quantities over several seconds. In contrast, hippocampal-frontal circuits underlying the declarative memory system play an important role in formation of associative memories and binding of new and old information, leading to the formation of long-term memories that allow generalization beyond individual problem attributes. The flow of information across these systems is regulated by flexible cognitive control systems which facilitate the integration and manipulation of quantity and mnemonic information. The implications of recent research for formulating a more comprehensive systems neuroscience view of the neural basis of mathematical learning and knowledge acquisition in both children and adults are discussed. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Memory and cognitive control circuits in mathematical cognition and learning

PubMed Central

Menon, V.

2018-01-01

Numerical cognition relies on interactions within and between multiple functional brain systems, including those subserving quantity processing, working memory, declarative memory, and cognitive control. This chapter describes recent advances in our understanding of memory and control circuits in mathematical cognition and learning. The working memory system involves multiple parietal–frontal circuits which create short-term representations that allow manipulation of discrete quantities over several seconds. In contrast, hippocampal–frontal circuits underlying the declarative memory system play an important role in formation of associative memories and binding of new and old information, leading to the formation of long-term memories that allow generalization beyond individual problem attributes. The flow of information across these systems is regulated by flexible cognitive control systems which facilitate the integration and manipulation of quantity and mnemonic information. The implications of recent research for formulating a more comprehensive systems neuroscience view of the neural basis of mathematical learning and knowledge acquisition in both children and adults are discussed. PMID:27339012

Feasibility of neuro-morphic computing to emulate error-conflict based decision making.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Branch, Darren W.

2009-09-01

A key aspect of decision making is determining when errors or conflicts exist in information and knowing whether to continue or terminate an action. Understanding the error-conflict processing is crucial in order to emulate higher brain functions in hardware and software systems. Specific brain regions, most notably the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) are known to respond to the presence of conflicts in information by assigning a value to an action. Essentially, this conflict signal triggers strategic adjustments in cognitive control, which serve to prevent further conflict. The most probable mechanism is the ACC reports and discriminates different types of feedback,more » both positive and negative, that relate to different adaptations. Unique cells called spindle neurons that are primarily found in the ACC (layer Vb) are known to be responsible for cognitive dissonance (disambiguation between alternatives). Thus, the ACC through a specific set of cells likely plays a central role in the ability of humans to make difficult decisions and solve challenging problems in the midst of conflicting information. In addition to dealing with cognitive dissonance, decision making in high consequence scenarios also relies on the integration of multiple sets of information (sensory, reward, emotion, etc.). Thus, a second area of interest for this proposal lies in the corticostriatal networks that serve as an integration region for multiple cognitive inputs. In order to engineer neurological decision making processes in silicon devices, we will determine the key cells, inputs, and outputs of conflict/error detection in the ACC region. The second goal is understand in vitro models of corticostriatal networks and the impact of physical deficits on decision making, specifically in stressful scenarios with conflicting streams of data from multiple inputs. We will elucidate the mechanisms of cognitive data integration in order to implement a future corticostriatal-like network in silicon devices for improved decision processing.« less

Design space for space design: Dialogs through boundary objects at the intersections of art, design, science, and engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balint, Tibor S.; Pangaro, Paul

2017-05-01

For over half a century space exploration has been dominated by engineering and technology driven practices. This paradigm leaves limited room for art and design. Yet in other parts of our lives, art and design play important roles: they stimulate new ideas and connect people to their experiences and to each other at a deeper level, while affecting our worldview as we evolve our cognitive models. We develop these models through circular conversations with our environment, through perception and making sense through our sensory systems and responding back through language and interactions. Artists and designers create artifacts through conversation cycles of sense-giving and sense-making, thus increasing variety in the world in the form of evolving messages. Each message becomes information when the observer decodes it, through multiple sense-making and re-sampling cycles. The messages form triggers to the cognitive state of the observer. Having a shared key between the artist/designer and the observer-for example, in the form of language, gestures, and artistic/design styles-is fundamental to encode and decode the information, in conversations. Art, design, science, and engineering, are all creative practices. Yet, they often speak different languages, where some parts may correspond, while others address a different variety in a cybernetic sense. These specialized languages within disciplines streamline communications, but limit variety. Thus, different languages between disciplines may introduce communication blocks. Nevertheless, these differences are desired as they add variety to the interactions, and could lead to novel discourses and possibilities. We may dissolve communication blocks through the introduction of boundary objects in the intersection of multiple disciplines. Boundary objects can ground ideas and bridge language diversity across disciplines. These artifacts are created to facilitate circular cybernetic conversations, supporting convergence towards common shared languages between the actors. The shared language can also create new variety that evolves through conversations between the participants. Misunderstandings through conversations can also lead to new ideas, as they stimulate questions and may suggest novel solutions. In this paper we propose new categorizations for boundary objects, drawn from design and cybernetic approaches. We evidence these categories with a number of space-related object examples. Furthermore, we discuss how these boundary objects facilitate communications between diverse audiences, ranging from scientists, and engineers, to artists, designers, and the general public.

Uncovering the requirements of cognitive work.

PubMed

Roth, Emilie M

2008-06-01

In this article, the author provides an overview of cognitive analysis methods and how they can be used to inform system analysis and design. Human factors has seen a shift toward modeling and support of cognitively intensive work (e.g., military command and control, medical planning and decision making, supervisory control of automated systems). Cognitive task analysis and cognitive work analysis methods extend traditional task analysis techniques to uncover the knowledge and thought processes that underlie performance in cognitively complex settings. The author reviews the multidisciplinary roots of cognitive analysis and the variety of cognitive task analysis and cognitive work analysis methods that have emerged. Cognitive analysis methods have been used successfully to guide system design, as well as development of function allocation, team structure, and training, so as to enhance performance and reduce the potential for error. A comprehensive characterization of cognitive work requires two mutually informing analyses: (a) examination of domain characteristics and constraints that define cognitive requirements and challenges and (b) examination of practitioner knowledge and strategies that underlie both expert and error-vulnerable performance. A variety of specific methods can be adapted to achieve these aims within the pragmatic constraints of particular projects. Cognitive analysis methods can be used effectively to anticipate cognitive performance problems and specify ways to improve individual and team cognitive performance (be it through new forms of training, user interfaces, or decision aids).

When physics is not "just physics": complexity science invites new measurement frames for exploring the physics of cognitive and biological development.

PubMed

Kelty-Stephen, Damian; Dixon, James A

2012-01-01

The neurobiological sciences have struggled to resolve the physical foundations for biological and cognitive phenomena with a suspicion that biological and cognitive systems, capable of exhibiting and contributing to structure within themselves and through their contexts, are fundamentally distinct or autonomous from purely physical systems. Complexity science offers new physics-based approaches to explaining biological and cognitive phenomena. In response to controversy over whether complexity science might seek to "explain away" biology and cognition as "just physics," we propose that complexity science serves as an application of recent advances in physics to phenomena in biology and cognition without reducing or undermining the integrity of the phenomena to be explained. We highlight that physics is, like the neurobiological sciences, an evolving field and that the threat of reduction is overstated. We propose that distinctions between biological and cognitive systems from physical systems are pretheoretical and thus optional. We review our own work applying insights from post-classical physics regarding turbulence and fractal fluctuations to the problems of developing cognitive structure. Far from hoping to reduce biology and cognition to "nothing but" physics, we present our view that complexity science offers new explanatory frameworks for considering physical foundations of biological and cognitive phenomena.

Collaborative Systems Thinking: A Response to the Problems Faced by Systems Engineering's 'Middle Tier'

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Phfarr, Barbara B.; So, Maria M.; Lamb, Caroline Twomey; Rhodes, Donna H.

2009-01-01

Experienced systems engineers are adept at more than implementing systems engineering processes: they utilize systems thinking to solve complex engineering problems. Within the space industry demographics and economic pressures are reducing the number of experienced systems engineers that will be available in the future. Collaborative systems thinking within systems engineering teams is proposed as a way to integrate systems engineers of various experience levels to handle complex systems engineering challenges. This paper uses the GOES-R Program Systems Engineering team to illustrate the enablers and barriers to team level systems thinking and to identify ways in which performance could be improved. Ways NASA could expand its engineering training to promote team-level systems thinking are proposed.

Medical Image Analysis by Cognitive Information Systems - a Review.

PubMed

Ogiela, Lidia; Takizawa, Makoto

2016-10-01

This publication presents a review of medical image analysis systems. The paradigms of cognitive information systems will be presented by examples of medical image analysis systems. The semantic processes present as it is applied to different types of medical images. Cognitive information systems were defined on the basis of methods for the semantic analysis and interpretation of information - medical images - applied to cognitive meaning of medical images contained in analyzed data sets. Semantic analysis was proposed to analyzed the meaning of data. Meaning is included in information, for example in medical images. Medical image analysis will be presented and discussed as they are applied to various types of medical images, presented selected human organs, with different pathologies. Those images were analyzed using different classes of cognitive information systems. Cognitive information systems dedicated to medical image analysis was also defined for the decision supporting tasks. This process is very important for example in diagnostic and therapy processes, in the selection of semantic aspects/features, from analyzed data sets. Those features allow to create a new way of analysis.

Active monitoring as cognitive control of grinders design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flizikowski, Jozef B.; Mrozinski, Adam; Tomporowski, Andrzej

2017-03-01

A general monitoring methodology applicable to plastics recyclates grinding processes development for energy engineering, has been presented in this work. The method includes two beings: mathematical aiding an invention and working of a novelty. The common set is composed of characteristics, structure, relationships of knowledge about states and transformations, effectiveness and progress of the devices and machinery engineering, e.g. breaking up in the energy-materials recycling process. This innovations theory is identified by the valuation, estimation, testing and creative archiving the elaborated character and structure of the invention and grinders construction development.

The influence of the glutamatergic system on cognition in schizophrenia: A systematic review.

PubMed

Thomas, Elizabeth H X; Bozaoglu, Kiymet; Rossell, Susan L; Gurvich, Caroline

2017-06-01

Previous literature showing the role of the glutamatergic system on cognition in schizophrenia has been inconclusive. 44 relevant pharmacological, candidate gene and neuroimaging studies were identified through systematic search following PRISMA guidelines. To be included, studies must have observed at least one objective measure of cognitive performance in patients with schizophrenia and either manipulated or measured the glutamatergic system. Of the cognitive domains observed, memory, working memory and executive functions appear to be most influenced by the glutamatergic pathway. In addition, evidence from the literature suggests that presynaptic components synthesis and uptake of glutamate is involved in memory, while postsynaptic signalling appears to be involved in working memory. In addition, it appears that the glutamatergic pathway is particularly involved in cognitive flexibility and learning potential in regards to executive functioning. The glutamatergic system appears to contribute to the cognitive deficits in schizophrenia, whereby different parts of the pathway are associated with different cognitive domains. This review demonstrates the necessity for cognition to be examined by domain as opposed to globally. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Culture and Cognition in Information Technology Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holvikivi, Jaana

2007-01-01

This paper aims at explaining the outcomes of information technology education for international students using anthropological theories of cultural schemas. Even though computer science and engineering are usually assumed to be culture-independent, the practice in classrooms seems to indicate that learning patterns depend on culture. The…

Anthropomorphic reasoning about neuromorphic AGI safety

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jilk, David J.; Herd, Seth J.; Read, Stephen J.; O'Reilly, Randall C.

2017-11-01

One candidate approach to creating artificial general intelligence (AGI) is to imitate the essential computations of human cognition. This process is sometimes called 'reverse-engineering the brain' and the end product called 'neuromorphic.' We argue that, unlike with other approaches to AGI, anthropomorphic reasoning about behaviour and safety concerns is appropriate and crucial in a neuromorphic context. Using such reasoning, we offer some initial ideas to make neuromorphic AGI safer. In particular, we explore how basic drives that promote social interaction may be essential to the development of cognitive capabilities as well as serving as a focal point for human-friendly outcomes.

Emissions of piston engine aircraft using aviation gasoline (avgas) and motor gasoline (mogas) as fuel – a review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thanikasalam, K.; Rahmat, M.; Fahmi, A. G. Mohammad; Zulkifli, A. M.; Shawal, N. Noor; Ilanchelvi, K.; Ananth, M.; Elayarasan, R.

2018-05-01

There are two categories of aircraft engines, namely, piston and gas turbine engines. Piston engine extracts energy from a combustion compartment through a piston and crank apparatus that engages the propellers, which in turn, provides an aircraft the needed momentum. On the other hand, gas turbine engine heats a compressed air in the combustion compartment resulting in propulsion that drives an aircraft. Piston engine aircrafts might appear small but together thousands of piston engine aircraft, which encompasses a bulk of the general aviation fleet, present a considerable health threat. That is because these aircraft, which depend on avgas and mogas to run, comprise major remaining sources of lead emissions. People exposed to even small levels of lead, particularly children, have tendencies to suffer from cognitive and neurological harm. Dissimilar from commercial airliners that do not utilize leaded fuels, piston engine aircraft account for nearly half of the lead discharge in skies. But, what is the extent of the impact caused by these airborne emissions on the country’s economy and public health? To answer this query, a thorough literature review on emissions of piston engine aircraft ought to be undertaken. This article conducts a literature review on emissions of piston engine aircraft using avgas as fuel and mogas as fuel.

Children's and Adolescents' Thoughts on Pollution: Cognitive Abilities Required to Understand Environmental Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodríguez, Manuel; Kohen, Raquel; Delval, Juan

2015-01-01

Pollution phenomena are complex systems in which different parts are integrated by means of causal and temporal relationships. To understand pollution, children must develop some cognitive abilities related to system thinking and temporal and causal inferential reasoning. These cognitive abilities constrain and guide how children understand…

Techniques and devices to restore cognition

PubMed Central

Serruya, Mijail Demian; Kahana, Michael J.

2011-01-01

Executive planning, the ability to direct and sustain attention, language and several types of memory may be compromised by conditions such as stroke, traumatic brain injury, cancer, autism, cerebral palsy and Alzheimer’s disease. No medical devices are currently available to help restore these cognitive functions. Recent findings about the neurophysiology of these conditions in humans coupled with progress in engineering devices to treat refractory neurological conditions imply that the time has arrived to consider the design and evaluation of a new class of devices. Like their neuromotor counterparts, neurocognitive prostheses might sense or modulate neural function in a non-invasive manner or by means of implanted electrodes. In order to paint a vision for future device development, it is essential to first review what can be achieved using behavioral and external modulatory techniques. While non-invasive approaches might strengthen a patient’s remaining intact cognitive abilities, neurocognitive prosthetics comprised of direct brain–computer interfaces could in theory physically reconstitute and augment the substrate of cognition itself. PMID:18539345

Performance Evaluation and Benchmarking of Next Intelligent Systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

del Pobil, Angel; Madhavan, Raj; Bonsignorio, Fabio

Performance Evaluation and Benchmarking of Intelligent Systems presents research dedicated to the subject of performance evaluation and benchmarking of intelligent systems by drawing from the experiences and insights of leading experts gained both through theoretical development and practical implementation of intelligent systems in a variety of diverse application domains. This contributed volume offers a detailed and coherent picture of state-of-the-art, recent developments, and further research areas in intelligent systems. The chapters cover a broad range of applications, such as assistive robotics, planetary surveying, urban search and rescue, and line tracking for automotive assembly. Subsystems or components described in this bookmore » include human-robot interaction, multi-robot coordination, communications, perception, and mapping. Chapters are also devoted to simulation support and open source software for cognitive platforms, providing examples of the type of enabling underlying technologies that can help intelligent systems to propagate and increase in capabilities. Performance Evaluation and Benchmarking of Intelligent Systems serves as a professional reference for researchers and practitioners in the field. This book is also applicable to advanced courses for graduate level students and robotics professionals in a wide range of engineering and related disciplines including computer science, automotive, healthcare, manufacturing, and service robotics.« less

A medical prescription for a mind

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simões da Fonseca, J.

1999-03-01

The author who is an expert in clinical psychiatry deals with the problem of modeling human Mind the way physicians implicitly use when their profession renders necessary to intervene to help or even cure patients. If physicists, mathematicians or cognitive science specialists and engineers may propose artificial designs for a mind, psychiatrists and psychologists have developed reliable diagnostic systems for the classification of normal or else psychopathological states. Usually in Psychiatry it is not made any use of an algorithmic approach to describe and characterize psychological processes during cognitive, perceptual, emotional, motivational processes or else anticipatory processes, distinct types of memory, learning processes, etc. Differently from what is mentioned in Neuropsychological literature the author and his group were able to find a significant and consistent relationship between the level of ostensive expression of symptoms and competence in interpretation of information carried by verbal communication during the simulation of social interactions by restrict groups of experimenters. Furthermore it is shown how dendro-dendritic models of neural processing are adequate to represent symbolic processes performed by local operators in the Cortex, as well as the usefulness of models of chemical reactors either batch reactors or else flow plug reactors to represent virtual neural networks capable of clarifying some aspects of cognition and of the structure of the Self. Finally many episodes of the life of the late Warren Sturgis McCulloch are recalled as attribute of gratitude of the author who was his before the last student.

Of the Helmholtz Club, South-Californian seedbed for visual and cognitive neuroscience, and its patron Francis Crick

PubMed Central

Aicardi, Christine

2014-01-01

Taking up the view that semi-institutional gatherings such as clubs, societies, research schools, have been instrumental in creating sheltered spaces from which many a 20th-century project-driven interdisciplinary research programme could develop and become established within the institutions of science, the paper explores the history of one such gathering from its inception in the early 1980s into the 2000s, the Helmholtz Club, which brought together scientists from such various research fields as neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, psychophysics, computer science and engineering, who all had an interest in the study of the visual system and of higher cognitive functions relying on visual perception such as visual consciousness. It argues that British molecular biologist turned South Californian neuroscientist Francis Crick had an early and lasting influence over the Helmholtz Club of which he was a founding pillar, and that from its inception, the club served as a constitutive element in his long-term plans for a neuroscience of vision and of cognition. Further, it argues that in this role, the Helmholtz Club served many purposes, the primary of which was to be a social forum for interdisciplinary discussion, where ‘discussion’ was not mere talk but was imbued with an epistemic value and as such, carefully cultivated. Finally, it questions what counts as ‘doing science’ and in turn, definitions of success and failure—and provides some material evidence towards re-appraising the successfulness of Crick’s contribution to the neurosciences. PMID:24384229

The NASA SETI program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Billingham, J.; Brocker, D. H.

1991-01-01

In 1959, it was proposed that a sensible way to conduct interstellar communication would be to use radio at or near the frequency of hydrogen. In 1960, the first Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) was conducted using a radiotelescope at Green Bank in West Virginia. Since 1970, NASA has systematically developed a definitive program to conduct a sophisticated search for evidence of extraterrestrial intelligent life. The basic hypothesis is that life may be widespread in the univers, and that in many instances extraterrestrial life may have evolved into technological civilizations. The underlying scientific arguments are based on the continuously improving knowledge of astronomy and astrophysics, especially star system formation, and of planetary science, chemical evolution, and biological evolution. If only one in a million sun-like stars in our galaxy harbors species with cognitive intelligence, then there are 100,000 civilizations in the Milky Way alone. The fields of radioastronomy digital electronic engineering, spectrum analysis, and signal detection have advanced rapidly in the last twenty years and now allow for sophisticated systems to be built in order to attempt the detection of extraterrestrial intelligence signals. In concert with the scientific and engineering communities, NASA has developed, over the last several years, a Microwave Observing Project whose goal is to design, build, and operate SETI systems during the decade of the nineties in pursuit of the goal signal detection. The Microwave Observing Project is now approved and underway. There are two major components in the project: the Target Search Element and the Sky Survey Element.

6D Visualization of Multidimensional Data by Means of Cognitive Technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vitkovskiy, V.; Gorohov, V.; Komarinskiy, S.

2010-12-01

On the basis of the cognitive graphics concept, we worked out the SW-system for visualization and analysis. It allows to train and to aggravate intuition of researcher, to raise his interest and motivation to the creative, scientific cognition, to realize process of dialogue with the very problems simultaneously. The Space Hedgehog system is the next step in the cognitive means of the multidimensional data analyze. The technique and technology cognitive 6D visualization of the multidimensional data is developed on the basis of the cognitive visualization research and technology development. The Space Hedgehog system allows direct dynamic visualization of 6D objects. It is developed with use of experience of the program Space Walker creation and its applications.

Toward a more embedded/extended perspective on the cognitive function of gestures

PubMed Central

Pouw, Wim T. J. L.; de Nooijer, Jacqueline A.; van Gog, Tamara; Zwaan, Rolf A.; Paas, Fred

2014-01-01

Gestures are often considered to be demonstrative of the embodied nature of the mind (Hostetter and Alibali, 2008). In this article, we review current theories and research targeted at the intra-cognitive role of gestures. We ask the question how can gestures support internal cognitive processes of the gesturer? We suggest that extant theories are in a sense disembodied, because they focus solely on embodiment in terms of the sensorimotor neural precursors of gestures. As a result, current theories on the intra-cognitive role of gestures are lacking in explanatory scope to address how gestures-as-bodily-acts fulfill a cognitive function. On the basis of recent theoretical appeals that focus on the possibly embedded/extended cognitive role of gestures (Clark, 2013), we suggest that gestures are external physical tools of the cognitive system that replace and support otherwise solely internal cognitive processes. That is gestures provide the cognitive system with a stable external physical and visual presence that can provide means to think with. We show that there is a considerable amount of overlap between the way the human cognitive system has been found to use its environment, and how gestures are used during cognitive processes. Lastly, we provide several suggestions of how to investigate the embedded/extended perspective of the cognitive function of gestures. PMID:24795687

Investigating surety methodologies for cognitive systems.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Caudell, Thomas P.; Peercy, David Eugene; Mills, Kristy

2006-11-01

Advances in cognitive science provide a foundation for new tools that promise to advance human capabilities with significant positive impacts. As with any new technology breakthrough, associated technical and non-technical risks are involved. Sandia has mitigated both technical and non-technical risks by applying advanced surety methodologies in such areas as nuclear weapons, nuclear reactor safety, nuclear materials transport, and energy systems. In order to apply surety to the development of cognitive systems, we must understand the concepts and principles that characterize the certainty of a system's operation as well as the risk areas of cognitive sciences. This SAND report documentsmore » a preliminary spectrum of risks involved with cognitive sciences, and identifies some surety methodologies that can be applied to potentially mitigate such risks. Some potential areas for further study are recommended. In particular, a recommendation is made to develop a cognitive systems epistemology framework for more detailed study of these risk areas and applications of surety methods and techniques.« less

Automotive Stirling Engine Mod 1 Design Review, Volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1982-01-01

Risk assessment, safety analysis of the automotive stirling engine (ASE) mod I, design criteria and materials properties for the ASE mod I and reference engines, combustion are flower development, and the mod I engine starter motor are discussed. The stirling engine system, external heat system, hot engine system, cold engine system, and engine drive system are also discussed.

APPLICATION OF EYE TRACKING FOR MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION IN HUMAN FACTORS STUDIES IN CONTROL ROOM MODERNIZATION

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kovesdi, C.; Spielman, Z.; LeBlanc, K.

An important element of human factors engineering (HFE) pertains to measurement and evaluation (M&E). The role of HFE-M&E should be integrated throughout the entire control room modernization (CRM) process and be used for human-system performance evaluation and diagnostic purposes with resolving potential human engineering deficiencies (HEDs) and other human machine interface (HMI) design issues. NUREG-0711 describes how HFE in CRM should employ a hierarchical set of measures, particularly during integrated system validation (ISV), including plant performance, personnel task performance, situation awareness, cognitive workload, and anthropometric/ physiological factors. Historically, subjective measures have been primarily used since they are easier to collectmore » and do not require specialized equipment. However, there are pitfalls with relying solely on subjective measures in M&E such that negatively impact reliability, sensitivity, and objectivity. As part of comprehensively capturing a diverse set of measures that strengthen findings and inferences made of the benefits from emerging technologies like advanced displays, this paper discusses the value of using eye tracking as an objective method that can be used in M&E. A brief description of eye tracking technology and relevant eye tracking measures is provided. Additionally, technical considerations and the unique challenges with using eye tracking in full-scaled simulations are addressed. Finally, this paper shares preliminary findings regarding the use of a wearable eye tracking system in a full-scale simulator study. These findings should help guide future full-scale simulator studies using eye tracking as a methodology to evaluate human-system performance.« less

Four domains: The fundamental unicell and Post-Darwinian Cognition-Based Evolution.

PubMed

Miller, William B; Torday, John S

2018-04-13

Contemporary research supports the viewpoint that self-referential cognition is the proper definition of life. From that initiating platform, a cohesive alternative evolutionary narrative distinct from standard Neodarwinism can be presented. Cognition-Based Evolution contends that biological variation is a product of a self-reinforcing information cycle that derives from self-referential attachment to biological information space-time with its attendant ambiguities. That information cycle is embodied through obligatory linkages among energy, biological information, and communication. Successive reiterations of the information cycle enact the informational architectures of the basic unicellular forms. From that base, inter-domain and cell-cell communications enable genetic and cellular variations through self-referential natural informational engineering and cellular niche construction. Holobionts are the exclusive endpoints of that self-referential cellular engineering as obligatory multicellular combinations of the essential Four Domains: Prokaryota, Archaea, Eukaryota and the Virome. Therefore, it is advocated that these Four Domains represent the perpetual object of the living circumstance rather than the visible macroorganic forms. In consequence, biology and its evolutionary development can be appraised as the continual defense of instantiated cellular self-reference. As the survival of cells is as dependent upon limitations and boundaries as upon any freedom of action, it is proposed that selection represents only one of many forms of cellular constraint that sustain self-referential integrity. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

When bad stress goes good: increased threat reactivity predicts improved category learning performance.

PubMed

Ell, Shawn W; Cosley, Brandon; McCoy, Shannon K

2011-02-01

The way in which we respond to everyday stressors can have a profound impact on cognitive functioning. Maladaptive stress responses in particular are generally associated with impaired cognitive performance. We argue, however, that the cognitive system mediating task performance is also a critical determinant of the stress-cognition relationship. Consistent with this prediction, we observed that stress reactivity consistent with a maladaptive, threat response differentially predicted performance on two categorization tasks. Increased threat reactivity predicted enhanced performance on an information-integration task (i.e., learning is thought to depend upon a procedural-based memory system), and a (nonsignificant) trend for impaired performance on a rule-based task (i.e., learning is thought to depend upon a hypothesis-testing system). These data suggest that it is critical to consider both variability in the stress response and variability in the cognitive system mediating task performance in order to fully understand the stress-cognition relationship.

Analyzing Engineering Design through the Lens of Computation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Worsley, Marcelo; Blikstein, Paulo

2014-01-01

Learning analytics and educational data mining are introducing a number of new techniques and frameworks for studying learning. The scalability and complexity of these novel techniques has afforded new ways for enacting education research and has helped scholars gain new insights into human cognition and learning. Nonetheless, there remain some…

Formalisms for user interface specification and design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Auernheimer, Brent J.

1989-01-01

The application of formal methods to the specification and design of human-computer interfaces is described. A broad outline of human-computer interface problems, a description of the field of cognitive engineering and two relevant research results, the appropriateness of formal specification techniques, and potential NASA application areas are described.

Introducing Modeling Transition Diagrams as a Tool to Connect Mathematical Modeling to Mathematical Thinking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Czocher, Jennifer A.

2016-01-01

This study contributes a methodological tool to reconstruct the cognitive processes and mathematical activities carried out by mathematical modelers. Represented as Modeling Transition Diagrams (MTDs), individual modeling routes were constructed for four engineering undergraduate students. Findings stress the importance and limitations of using…

Representational Competence: Towards a Distributed and Embodied Cognition Account

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pande, Prajakt; Chandrasekharan, Sanjay

2017-01-01

Multiple external representations (MERs) are central to the practice and learning of science, mathematics and engineering, as the phenomena and entities investigated and controlled in these domains are often not available for perception and action. MERs therefore play a twofold constitutive role in reasoning in these domains. Firstly, MERs stand…

PAL Boot Camp: Preparing Cognitive Assistants for Deployment

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-06-01

to program it. Another technique used in the military for training humans is simulation. Officers moving to a joint staff tour are taught crisis...a PAL, it may be easier to have it learn from experiencing the military domain within a training setting rather than having an engineer decide how

Abstract Numeric Relations and the Visual Structure of Algebra

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Landy, David; Brookes, David; Smout, Ryan

2014-01-01

Formal algebras are among the most powerful and general mechanisms for expressing quantitative relational statements; yet, even university engineering students, who are relatively proficient with algebraic manipulation, struggle with and often fail to correctly deploy basic aspects of algebraic notation (Clement, 1982). In the cognitive tradition,…

A Pilot Meta-Analysis of Computer-Based Scaffolding in STEM Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Belland, Brian R.; Walker, Andrew E.; Olsen, Megan Whitney; Leary, Heather

2015-01-01

This paper employs meta-analysis to determine the influence of computer-based scaffolding characteristics and study and test score quality on cognitive outcomes in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education at the secondary, college, graduate, and adult levels. Results indicate that (a) computer-based scaffolding positively…

Think3d!: Improving Mathematics Learning through Embodied Spatial Training

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burte, Heather; Gardony, Aaron L.; Hutton, Allyson; Taylor, Holly A.

2017-01-01

Spatial thinking skills positively relate to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) outcomes, but spatial training is largely absent in elementary school. Elementary school is a time when children develop foundational cognitive skills that will support STEM learning throughout their education. Spatial thinking should be considered a…

Choosing and Leaving Science in Highly Selective Institutions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strenta, A. Christopher; And Others

1994-01-01

A study investigated causes of initial interest in and attrition from natural sciences and engineering among 5,320 students entering 4 highly selective institutions in 1988, with attention to probable causes of disproportionate attrition of women. Reasons for high attrition were based on cognitive variables or the perceived "chilly"…

Modeling Diagnostic Assessments with Bayesian Networks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Almond, Russell G.; DiBello, Louis V.; Moulder, Brad; Zapata-Rivera, Juan-Diego

2007-01-01

This paper defines Bayesian network models and examines their applications to IRT-based cognitive diagnostic modeling. These models are especially suited to building inference engines designed to be synchronous with the finer grained student models that arise in skills diagnostic assessment. Aspects of the theory and use of Bayesian network models…

Information Processing in Cognition Process and New Artificial Intelligent Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Nanning; Xue, Jianru

In this chapter, we discuss, in depth, visual information processing and a new artificial intelligent (AI) system that is based upon cognitive mechanisms. The relationship between a general model of intelligent systems and cognitive mechanisms is described, and in particular we explore visual information processing with selective attention. We also discuss a methodology for studying the new AI system and propose some important basic research issues that have emerged in the intersecting fields of cognitive science and information science. To this end, a new scheme for associative memory and a new architecture for an AI system with attractors of chaos are addressed.

The Cognitive Advantages of Counting Specifically: A Representational Analysis of Verbal Numeration Systems in Oceanic Languages.

PubMed

Bender, Andrea; Schlimm, Dirk; Beller, Sieghard

2015-10-01

The domain of numbers provides a paradigmatic case for investigating interactions of culture, language, and cognition: Numerical competencies are considered a core domain of knowledge, and yet the development of specifically human abilities presupposes cultural and linguistic input by way of counting sequences. These sequences constitute systems with distinct structural properties, the cross-linguistic variability of which has implications for number representation and processing. Such representational effects are scrutinized for two types of verbal numeration systems-general and object-specific ones-that were in parallel use in several Oceanic languages (English with its general system is included for comparison). The analysis indicates that the object-specific systems outperform the general systems with respect to counting and mental arithmetic, largely due to their regular and more compact representation. What these findings reveal on cognitive diversity, how the conjectures involved speak to more general issues in cognitive science, and how the approach taken here might help to bridge the gap between anthropology and other cognitive sciences is discussed in the conclusion. Copyright © 2015 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

The use of physical and virtual manipulatives in an undergraduate mechanical engineering (Dynamics) course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pan, Edward A.

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education is a national focus. Engineering education, as part of STEM education, needs to adapt to meet the needs of the nation in a rapidly changing world. Using computer-based visualization tools and corresponding 3D printed physical objects may help nontraditional students succeed in engineering classes. This dissertation investigated how adding physical or virtual learning objects (called manipulatives) to courses that require mental visualization of mechanical systems can aid student performance. Dynamics is one such course, and tends to be taught using lecture and textbooks with static diagrams of moving systems. Students often fail to solve the problems correctly and an inability to mentally visualize the system can contribute to student difficulties. This study found no differences between treatment groups on quantitative measures of spatial ability and conceptual knowledge. There were differences between treatments on measures of mechanical reasoning ability, in favor of the use of physical and virtual manipulatives over static diagrams alone. There were no major differences in student performance between the use of physical and virtual manipulatives. Students used the physical and virtual manipulatives to test their theories about how the machines worked, however their actual time handling the manipulatives was extremely limited relative to the amount of time they spent working on the problems. Students used the physical and virtual manipulatives as visual aids when communicating about the problem with their partners, and this behavior was also seen with Traditional group students who had to use the static diagrams and gesture instead. The explanations students gave for how the machines worked provided evidence of mental simulation; however, their causal chain analyses were often flawed, probably due to attempts to decrease cognitive load. Student opinions about the static diagrams and dynamic models varied by type of model (static, physical, virtual), but were generally favorable. The Traditional group students, however, indicated that the lack of adequate representation of motion in the static diagrams was a problem, and wished they had access to the physical and virtual models.

Managing uncertainty in collaborative robotics engineering projects: The influence of task structure and peer interaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jordan, Michelle

Uncertainty is ubiquitous in life, and learning is an activity particularly likely to be fraught with uncertainty. Previous research suggests that students and teachers struggle in their attempts to manage the psychological experience of uncertainty and that students often fail to experience uncertainty when uncertainty may be warranted. Yet, few educational researchers have explicitly and systematically observed what students do, their behaviors and strategies, as they attempt to manage the uncertainty they experience during academic tasks. In this study I investigated how students in one fifth grade class managed uncertainty they experienced while engaged in collaborative robotics engineering projects, focusing particularly on how uncertainty management was influenced by task structure and students' interactions with their peer collaborators. The study was initiated at the beginning of instruction related to robotics engineering and preceded through the completion of several long-term collaborative robotics projects, one of which was a design project. I relied primarily on naturalistic observation of group sessions, semi-structured interviews, and collection of artifacts. My data analysis was inductive and interpretive, using qualitative discourse analysis techniques and methods of grounded theory. Three theoretical frameworks influenced the conception and design of this study: community of practice, distributed cognition, and complex adaptive systems theory. Uncertainty was a pervasive experience for the students collaborating in this instructional context. Students experienced uncertainty related to the project activity and uncertainty related to the social system as they collaborated to fulfill the requirements of their robotics engineering projects. They managed their uncertainty through a diverse set of tactics for reducing, ignoring, maintaining, and increasing uncertainty. Students experienced uncertainty from more different sources and used more and different types of uncertainty management strategies in the less structured task setting than in the more structured task setting. Peer interaction was influential because students relied on supportive social response to enact most of their uncertainty management strategies. When students could not garner socially supportive response from their peers, their options for managing uncertainty were greatly reduced.

Exploring the entanglement of personal epistemologies and emotions in students' thinking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gupta, Ayush; Elby, Andrew; Danielak, Brian A.

2018-06-01

Evidence from psychology, cognitive science, and neuroscience suggests that cognition and emotions are coupled. Education researchers have also documented correlations between emotions (such as joy, anxiety, fear, curiosity, boredom) and academic performance. Nonetheless, most research on students' reasoning and conceptual change within the learning sciences and physics and science education research has not attended to the role of learners' emotions in describing or modeling the fine timescale dynamics of their conceptual reasoning. The few studies that integrate emotions into models of learners' cognition have mostly done so at a coarse grain size. In this study, toward the long-term goal of incorporating emotions into models of in-the-moment cognitive dynamics, we present a case study of Judy, an undergraduate electrical engineering and physics major. We show that shifts in the intensity of a fine-grained aspect of Judy's emotions, her annoyance at conceptual homework problems, co-occur with shifts in her epistemological stance toward differentiating knowledge about and the practical utility of real circuits and idealized circuit models. We then argue for the plausibility of a cognitive model in which Judy's emotions and epistemological stances mutually affect each other. We end with discussions on how models of learners' cognition that incorporate their emotions are generative for instructional purposes and research on learning.

A Kantian critique of cognitive psychotherapy.

PubMed

Yesavage, J A

1980-01-01

Modern cognitive psychotherapies such as those practiced by George Kelly, Aaron Beck, and Albert Ellis are examined from the perspective of Immanuel Kant's critique of eighteenth-century cognitive philosophy. Parallel strengths and weaknesses are found in the psychotherapeutic and philosophical systems. The major strengths of the systems are based upon their abilities to predict phenomena based upon an understanding of concepts used to organize experience. The major weaknesses of the systems arise when one takes such concepts to be too concrete. It is argued that modern psychiatrists interested in cognitive techniques may relearn some important but forgotten, facts about the strengths and limits of cognition by reviewing Kantian philosophy.

Systems Engineering Workshops | Wind | NREL

Science.gov Websites

Workshops Systems Engineering Workshops The Wind Energy Systems Engineering Workshop is a biennial topics relevant to systems engineering and the wind industry. The presentations and agendas are available for all of the Systems Engineering Workshops: The 1st NREL Wind Energy Systems Engineering Workshop

Mutually Augmented Cognition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Friesdorf, Florian; Pangercic, Dejan; Bubb, Heiner; Beetz, Michael

In mac, an ergonomic dialog-system and algorithms will be developed that enable human experts and companions to be integrated into knowledge gathering and decision making processes of highly complex cognitive systems (e.g. Assistive Household as manifested further in the paper). In this event we propose to join algorithms and methodologies coming from Ergonomics and Artificial Intelligence that: a) make cognitive systems more congenial for non-expert humans, b) facilitate their comprehension by utilizing a high-level expandable control code for human experts and c) augment representation of such cognitive system into “deep representation” obtained through an interaction with human companions.

Multi-Objective Reinforcement Learning-based Deep Neural Networks for Cognitive Space Communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferreria, Paulo; Paffenroth, Randy; Wyglinski, Alexander M.; Hackett, Timothy; Bilen, Sven; Reinhart, Richard; Mortensen, Dale

2017-01-01

Future communication subsystems of space exploration missions can potentially benefit from software-defined radios (SDRs) controlled by machine learning algorithms. In this paper, we propose a novel hybrid radio resource allocation management control algorithm that integrates multi-objective reinforcement learning and deep artificial neural networks. The objective is to efficiently manage communications system resources by monitoring performance functions with common dependent variables that result in conflicting goals. The uncertainty in the performance of thousands of different possible combinations of radio parameters makes the trade-off between exploration and exploitation in reinforcement learning (RL) much more challenging for future critical space-based missions. Thus, the system should spend as little time as possible on exploring actions, and whenever it explores an action, it should perform at acceptable levels most of the time. The proposed approach enables on-line learning by interactions with the environment and restricts poor resource allocation performance through virtual environment exploration. Improvements in the multiobjective performance can be achieved via transmitter parameter adaptation on a packet-basis, with poorly predicted performance promptly resulting in rejected decisions. Simulations presented in this work considered the DVB-S2 standard adaptive transmitter parameters and additional ones expected to be present in future adaptive radio systems. Performance results are provided by analysis of the proposed hybrid algorithm when operating across a satellite communication channel from Earth to GEO orbit during clear sky conditions. The proposed approach constitutes part of the core cognitive engine proof-of-concept to be delivered to the NASA Glenn Research Center SCaN Testbed located onboard the International Space Station.

Nature-Inspired Cognitive Evolution to Play MS. Pac-Man

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tan, Tse Guan; Teo, Jason; Anthony, Patricia

Recent developments in nature-inspired computation have heightened the need for research into the three main areas of scientific, engineering and industrial applications. Some approaches have reported that it is able to solve dynamic problems and very useful for improving the performance of various complex systems. So far however, there has been little discussion about the effectiveness of the application of these models to computer and video games in particular. The focus of this research is to explore the hybridization of nature-inspired computation methods for optimization of neural network-based cognition in video games, in this case the combination of a neural network with an evolutionary algorithm. In essence, a neural network is an attempt to mimic the extremely complex human brain system, which is building an artificial brain that is able to self-learn intelligently. On the other hand, an evolutionary algorithm is to simulate the biological evolutionary processes that evolve potential solutions in order to solve the problems or tasks by applying the genetic operators such as crossover, mutation and selection into the solutions. This paper investigates the abilities of Evolution Strategies (ES) to evolve feed-forward artificial neural network's internal parameters (i.e. weight and bias values) for automatically generating Ms. Pac-man controllers. The main objective of this game is to clear a maze of dots while avoiding the ghosts and to achieve the highest possible score. The experimental results show that an ES-based system can be successfully applied to automatically generate artificial intelligence for a complex, dynamic and highly stochastic video game environment.

Multi-Objective Reinforcement Learning-Based Deep Neural Networks for Cognitive Space Communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferreria, Paulo Victor R.; Paffenroth, Randy; Wyglinski, Alexander M.; Hackett, Timothy M.; Bilen, Sven G.; Reinhart, Richard C.; Mortensen, Dale J.

2017-01-01

Future communication subsystems of space exploration missions can potentially benefit from software-defined radios (SDRs) controlled by machine learning algorithms. In this paper, we propose a novel hybrid radio resource allocation management control algorithm that integrates multi-objective reinforcement learning and deep artificial neural networks. The objective is to efficiently manage communications system resources by monitoring performance functions with common dependent variables that result in conflicting goals. The uncertainty in the performance of thousands of different possible combinations of radio parameters makes the trade-off between exploration and exploitation in reinforcement learning (RL) much more challenging for future critical space-based missions. Thus, the system should spend as little time as possible on exploring actions, and whenever it explores an action, it should perform at acceptable levels most of the time. The proposed approach enables on-line learning by interactions with the environment and restricts poor resource allocation performance through virtual environment exploration. Improvements in the multiobjective performance can be achieved via transmitter parameter adaptation on a packet-basis, with poorly predicted performance promptly resulting in rejected decisions. Simulations presented in this work considered the DVB-S2 standard adaptive transmitter parameters and additional ones expected to be present in future adaptive radio systems. Performance results are provided by analysis of the proposed hybrid algorithm when operating across a satellite communication channel from Earth to GEO orbit during clear sky conditions. The proposed approach constitutes part of the core cognitive engine proof-of-concept to be delivered to the NASA Glenn Research Center SCaN Testbed located onboard the International Space Station.

Reconfigurable Antenna and Cognitive Radio for Space Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hwu, Shian U.

2012-01-01

This presentation briefly discusses a research effort on mitigation techniques of radio frequency interference (RFI) on communication systems for possible space applications. This problem is of considerable interest in the context of providing reliable communications to the space vehicle which might suffer severe performance degradation due to RFI sources such as visiting spacecrafts and various ground radar systems. This study proposes a communication system with Reconfigurable Antenna (RA) and Cognitive Radio (CR) to mitigate the RFI impact. A cognitive radio is an intelligent radio that is able to learn from the environment and adapt to the variations in its surrounding by adjusting the transmit power, carrier frequency, modulation strategy or transmission data rate. Therefore, the main objective of a cognitive radio system is to ensure highly reliable communication whenever and wherever needed. To match the intelligent adaptability of the cognitive radio, a reconfigurable antenna system will be required to ensure the system performance. The technical challenges in design such a system will be discussed in this presentation.

How Accumulated Real Life Stress Experience and Cognitive Speed Interact on Decision-Making Processes

PubMed Central

Friedel, Eva; Sebold, Miriam; Kuitunen-Paul, Sören; Nebe, Stephan; Veer, Ilya M.; Zimmermann, Ulrich S.; Schlagenhauf, Florian; Smolka, Michael N.; Rapp, Michael; Walter, Henrik; Heinz, Andreas

2017-01-01

Rationale: Advances in neurocomputational modeling suggest that valuation systems for goal-directed (deliberative) on one side, and habitual (automatic) decision-making on the other side may rely on distinct computational strategies for reinforcement learning, namely model-free vs. model-based learning. As a key theoretical difference, the model-based system strongly demands cognitive functions to plan actions prospectively based on an internal cognitive model of the environment, whereas valuation in the model-free system relies on rather simple learning rules from operant conditioning to retrospectively associate actions with their outcomes and is thus cognitively less demanding. Acute stress reactivity is known to impair model-based but not model-free choice behavior, with higher working memory capacity protecting the model-based system from acute stress. However, it is not clear which impact accumulated real life stress has on model-free and model-based decision systems and how this influence interacts with cognitive abilities. Methods: We used a sequential decision-making task distinguishing relative contributions of both learning strategies to choice behavior, the Social Readjustment Rating Scale questionnaire to assess accumulated real life stress, and the Digit Symbol Substitution Test to test cognitive speed in 95 healthy subjects. Results: Individuals reporting high stress exposure who had low cognitive speed showed reduced model-based but increased model-free behavioral control. In contrast, subjects exposed to accumulated real life stress with high cognitive speed displayed increased model-based performance but reduced model-free control. Conclusion: These findings suggest that accumulated real life stress exposure can enhance reliance on cognitive speed for model-based computations, which may ultimately protect the model-based system from the detrimental influences of accumulated real life stress. The combination of accumulated real life stress exposure and slower information processing capacities, however, might favor model-free strategies. Thus, the valence and preference of either system strongly depends on stressful experiences and individual cognitive capacities. PMID:28642696

How Accumulated Real Life Stress Experience and Cognitive Speed Interact on Decision-Making Processes.

PubMed

Friedel, Eva; Sebold, Miriam; Kuitunen-Paul, Sören; Nebe, Stephan; Veer, Ilya M; Zimmermann, Ulrich S; Schlagenhauf, Florian; Smolka, Michael N; Rapp, Michael; Walter, Henrik; Heinz, Andreas

2017-01-01

Rationale: Advances in neurocomputational modeling suggest that valuation systems for goal-directed (deliberative) on one side, and habitual (automatic) decision-making on the other side may rely on distinct computational strategies for reinforcement learning, namely model-free vs. model-based learning. As a key theoretical difference, the model-based system strongly demands cognitive functions to plan actions prospectively based on an internal cognitive model of the environment, whereas valuation in the model-free system relies on rather simple learning rules from operant conditioning to retrospectively associate actions with their outcomes and is thus cognitively less demanding. Acute stress reactivity is known to impair model-based but not model-free choice behavior, with higher working memory capacity protecting the model-based system from acute stress. However, it is not clear which impact accumulated real life stress has on model-free and model-based decision systems and how this influence interacts with cognitive abilities. Methods: We used a sequential decision-making task distinguishing relative contributions of both learning strategies to choice behavior, the Social Readjustment Rating Scale questionnaire to assess accumulated real life stress, and the Digit Symbol Substitution Test to test cognitive speed in 95 healthy subjects. Results: Individuals reporting high stress exposure who had low cognitive speed showed reduced model-based but increased model-free behavioral control. In contrast, subjects exposed to accumulated real life stress with high cognitive speed displayed increased model-based performance but reduced model-free control. Conclusion: These findings suggest that accumulated real life stress exposure can enhance reliance on cognitive speed for model-based computations, which may ultimately protect the model-based system from the detrimental influences of accumulated real life stress. The combination of accumulated real life stress exposure and slower information processing capacities, however, might favor model-free strategies. Thus, the valence and preference of either system strongly depends on stressful experiences and individual cognitive capacities.

Cognitive remediation in large systems of psychiatric care.

PubMed

Medalia, Alice; Saperstein, Alice M; Erlich, Matthew D; Sederer, Lloyd I

2018-05-02

IntroductionWith the increasing enthusiasm to provide cognitive remediation (CR) as an evidence-based practice, questions arise as to what is involved in implementing CR in a large system of care. This article describes the first statewide implementation of CR in the USA, with the goal of documenting the implementation issues that care providers are likely to face when bringing CR services to their patients. In 2014, the New York State Office of Mental Health set up a Cognitive Health Service that could be implemented throughout the state-operated system of care. This service was intended to broadly address cognitive health, to assure that the cognitive deficits commonly associated with psychiatric illnesses are recognized and addressed, and that cognitive health is embedded in the vocabulary of wellness. It involved creating a mechanism to train staff to recognize how cognitive health could be prioritized in treatment planning as well as implementing CR in state-operated adult outpatient psychiatry clinics. By 2017, CR was available at clinics serving people with serious mental illness in 13 of 16 adult Psychiatric Centers, located in rural and urban settings throughout New York state. The embedded quality assurance program evaluation tools indicated that CR was acceptable, sustainable, and effective. Cognitive remediation can be feasibly implemented in large systems of care that provide a multilevel system of supports, a training program that educates broadly about cognitive health and specifically about the delivery of CR, and embedded, ongoing program evaluation that is linked to staff supervision.

Designing an Adaptive Web-Based Learning System Based on Students' Cognitive Styles Identified Online

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lo, Jia-Jiunn; Chan, Ya-Chen; Yeh, Shiou-Wen

2012-01-01

This study developed an adaptive web-based learning system focusing on students' cognitive styles. The system is composed of a student model and an adaptation model. It collected students' browsing behaviors to update the student model for unobtrusively identifying student cognitive styles through a multi-layer feed-forward neural network (MLFF).…

NASA systems engineering handbook

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shishko, Robert; Aster, Robert; Chamberlain, Robert G.; McDuffee, Patrick; Pieniazek, Les; Rowell, Tom; Bain, Beth; Cox, Renee I.; Mooz, Harold; Polaski, Lou

1995-06-01

This handbook brings the fundamental concepts and techniques of systems engineering to NASA personnel in a way that recognizes the nature of NASA systems and environment. It is intended to accompany formal NASA training courses on systems engineering and project management when appropriate, and is designed to be a top-level overview. The concepts were drawn from NASA field center handbooks, NMI's/NHB's, the work of the NASA-wide Systems Engineering Working Group and the Systems Engineering Process Improvement Task team, several non-NASA textbooks and guides, and material from independent systems engineering courses taught to NASA personnel. Five core chapters cover systems engineering fundamentals, the NASA Project Cycle, management issues in systems engineering, systems analysis and modeling, and specialty engineering integration. It is not intended as a directive.