Sample records for evaluating mobile graphics

  1. The development of the Canadian Mobile Servicing System Kinematic Simulation Facility

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Beyer, G.; Diebold, B.; Brimley, W.; Kleinberg, H.

    1989-01-01

    Canada will develop a Mobile Servicing System (MSS) as its contribution to the U.S./International Space Station Freedom. Components of the MSS will include a remote manipulator (SSRMS), a Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM), and a mobile base (MRS). In order to support requirements analysis and the evaluation of operational concepts related to the use of the MSS, a graphics based kinematic simulation/human-computer interface facility has been created. The facility consists of the following elements: (1) A two-dimensional graphics editor allowing the rapid development of virtual control stations; (2) Kinematic simulations of the space station remote manipulators (SSRMS and SPDM), and mobile base; and (3) A three-dimensional graphics model of the space station, MSS, orbiter, and payloads. These software elements combined with state of the art computer graphics hardware provide the capability to prototype MSS workstations, evaluate MSS operational capabilities, and investigate the human-computer interface in an interactive simulation environment. The graphics technology involved in the development and use of this facility is described.

  2. Evaluating Mobile Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) for Real-Time Resource Constrained Applications

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

    Meredith, J; Conger, J; Liu, Y

    2005-11-11

    Modern graphics processing units (GPUs) can provide tremendous performance boosts for some applications beyond what a single CPU can accomplish, and their performance is growing at a rate faster than CPUs as well. Mobile GPUs available for laptops have the small form factor and low power requirements suitable for use in embedded processing. We evaluated several desktop and mobile GPUs and CPUs on traditional and non-traditional graphics tasks, as well as on the most time consuming pieces of a full hyperspectral imaging application. Accuracy remained high despite small differences in arithmetic operations like rounding. Performance improvements are summarized here relativemore » to a desktop Pentium 4 CPU.« less

  3. A graphics to scalable vector graphics adaptation framework for progressive remote line rendering on mobile devices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Le, Minh Tuan; Nguyen, Congdu; Yoon, Dae-Il; Jung, Eun Ku; Kim, Hae-Kwang

    2007-12-01

    In this paper, we introduce a graphics to Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) adaptation framework with a mechanism of vector graphics transmission to overcome the shortcoming of real-time representation and interaction experiences of 3D graphics application running on mobile devices. We therefore develop an interactive 3D visualization system based on the proposed framework for rapidly representing a 3D scene on mobile devices without having to download it from the server. Our system scenario is composed of a client viewer and a graphic to SVG adaptation server. The client viewer offers the user to access to the same 3D contents with different devices according to consumer interactions.

  4. Optimization Techniques for 3D Graphics Deployment on Mobile Devices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Koskela, Timo; Vatjus-Anttila, Jarkko

    2015-03-01

    3D Internet technologies are becoming essential enablers in many application areas including games, education, collaboration, navigation and social networking. The use of 3D Internet applications with mobile devices provides location-independent access and richer use context, but also performance issues. Therefore, one of the important challenges facing 3D Internet applications is the deployment of 3D graphics on mobile devices. In this article, we present an extensive survey on optimization techniques for 3D graphics deployment on mobile devices and qualitatively analyze the applicability of each technique from the standpoints of visual quality, performance and energy consumption. The analysis focuses on optimization techniques related to data-driven 3D graphics deployment, because it supports off-line use, multi-user interaction, user-created 3D graphics and creation of arbitrary 3D graphics. The outcome of the analysis facilitates the development and deployment of 3D Internet applications on mobile devices and provides guidelines for future research.

  5. Evaluating authentication options for mobile health applications in younger and older adults

    PubMed Central

    Khan, Hassan; Hengartner, Urs; Ong, Stephanie; Logan, Alexander G.; Vogel, Daniel; Gebotys, Robert; Yang, Jilan

    2018-01-01

    Objective Apps promoting patient self-management may improve health outcomes. However, methods to secure stored information on mobile devices may adversely affect usability. We tested the reliability and usability of common user authentication techniques in younger and older adults. Methodology Usability testing was conducted in two age groups, 18 to 30 years and 50 years and older. After completing a demographic questionnaire, each participant tested four authentication options in random order: four-digit personal identification number (PIN), graphical password (GRAPHICAL), Android pattern-lock (PATTERN), and a swipe-style Android fingerprint scanner (FINGERPRINT). Participants rated each option using the Systems Usability Scale (SUS). Results A total of 59 older and 43 younger participants completed the study. Overall, PATTERN was the fastest option (3.44s), and PIN had the fewest errors per attempt (0.02). Participants were able to login using PIN, PATTERN, and GRAPHICAL at least 98% of the time. FINGERPRINT was the slowest (26.97s), had an average of 1.46 errors per attempt, and had a successful login rate of 85%. Overall, PIN and PATTERN had higher SUS scores than FINGERPRINT and GRAPHICAL. Compared to younger participants, older participants were also less likely to find PATTERN to be tiring, annoying or time consuming and less likely to consider PIN to be time consuming. Younger participants were more likely to rate GRAPHICAL as annoying, time consuming and tiring than older participants. Conclusions On mobile devices, PIN and pattern-lock outperformed graphical passwords and swipe-style fingerprints. All participants took longer to authenticate using the swipe-style fingerprint compared to other options. Older participants also took two to three seconds longer to authenticate using the PIN, pattern and graphical passwords though this did not appear to affect perceived usability. PMID:29300736

  6. Evaluating authentication options for mobile health applications in younger and older adults.

    PubMed

    Grindrod, Kelly; Khan, Hassan; Hengartner, Urs; Ong, Stephanie; Logan, Alexander G; Vogel, Daniel; Gebotys, Robert; Yang, Jilan

    2018-01-01

    Apps promoting patient self-management may improve health outcomes. However, methods to secure stored information on mobile devices may adversely affect usability. We tested the reliability and usability of common user authentication techniques in younger and older adults. Usability testing was conducted in two age groups, 18 to 30 years and 50 years and older. After completing a demographic questionnaire, each participant tested four authentication options in random order: four-digit personal identification number (PIN), graphical password (GRAPHICAL), Android pattern-lock (PATTERN), and a swipe-style Android fingerprint scanner (FINGERPRINT). Participants rated each option using the Systems Usability Scale (SUS). A total of 59 older and 43 younger participants completed the study. Overall, PATTERN was the fastest option (3.44s), and PIN had the fewest errors per attempt (0.02). Participants were able to login using PIN, PATTERN, and GRAPHICAL at least 98% of the time. FINGERPRINT was the slowest (26.97s), had an average of 1.46 errors per attempt, and had a successful login rate of 85%. Overall, PIN and PATTERN had higher SUS scores than FINGERPRINT and GRAPHICAL. Compared to younger participants, older participants were also less likely to find PATTERN to be tiring, annoying or time consuming and less likely to consider PIN to be time consuming. Younger participants were more likely to rate GRAPHICAL as annoying, time consuming and tiring than older participants. On mobile devices, PIN and pattern-lock outperformed graphical passwords and swipe-style fingerprints. All participants took longer to authenticate using the swipe-style fingerprint compared to other options. Older participants also took two to three seconds longer to authenticate using the PIN, pattern and graphical passwords though this did not appear to affect perceived usability.

  7. Study of the Usability of Spaced Retrieval Exercise Using Mobile Devices for Alzheimer’s Disease Rehabilitation

    PubMed Central

    Mowafi, Yaser; Mashal, Ehab

    2014-01-01

    Background Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an irreversible brain disease that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills, and eventually the ability to carry out the simplest daily tasks. Recent studies showed that people with AD might actually benefit from physical exercises and rehabilitation processes. Studies show that rehabilitation would also add value in making the day for an individual with AD a little less foggy, frustrating, isolated, and stressful for as long as possible. Objective The focus of our work was to explore the use of modern mobile technology to enable people with AD to improve their abilities to perform activities of daily living, and hence to promote independence and participation in social activities. Our work also aimed at reducing the burden on caregivers by increasing the AD patients’ sense of competence and ability to handle behavior problems. Methods We developed ADcope, an integrated app that includes several modules that targeted individuals with AD, using mobile devices. We have developed two different user interfaces: text-based and graphic-based. To evaluate the usability of the app, 10 participants with early stages of AD were asked to run the two user interfaces of the spaced retrieval memory exercise using a tablet mobile device. Results We selected 10 participants with early stages of AD (average age: 75 years; 6/10, 60% males, 4/10, 40% females). The average elapsed time per question between the text-based task (14.04 seconds) and the graphic-based task (12.89 seconds) was significantly different (P=.047). There was also a significant difference (P<.001) between the average correct answer score between the text-based task (7.60/10) and the graphic-based task (8.30/10), and between the text-based task (31.50/100) and the graphic-based task (27.20/100; P<.001). Correlation analysis for the graphic-based task showed that the average elapsed time per question and the workload score were negatively correlated (−.93, and −.79, respectively) to the participants’ performance (P<.001 and P=.006, respectively). Conclusions We found that people with early stages of AD used mobile devices successfully without any prior experience in using such devices. Participants’ measured workload scores were low and posttask satisfaction in fulfilling the required task was conceivable. Results indicate better performance, less workload, and better response time for the graphic-based task compared with the text-based task. PMID:25124077

  8. Study on application of dynamic monitoring of land use based on mobile GIS technology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tian, Jingyi; Chu, Jian; Guo, Jianxing; Wang, Lixin

    2006-10-01

    The land use dynamic monitoring is an important mean to maintain the real-time update of the land use data. Mobile GIS technology integrates GIS, GPS and Internet. It can update the historic al data in real time with site-collected data and realize the data update in large scale with high precision. The Monitoring methods on the land use change data with the mobile GIS technology were discussed. Mobile terminal of mobile GIS has self-developed for this study with GPS-25 OEM and notebook computer. The RTD (real-time difference) operation mode is selected. Mobile GIS system of dynamic monitoring of land use have developed with Visual C++ as operation platform, MapObjects control as graphic platform and MSCmm control as communication platform, which realizes organic integration of GPS, GPRS and GIS. This system has such following basic functions as data processing, graphic display, graphic editing, attribute query and navigation. Qinhuangdao city was selected as the experiential area. Shown by the study result, the mobile GIS integration system of dynamic monitoring of land use developed by this study has practical application value.

  9. Risk Assessment for Mobile Systems Through a Multilayered Hierarchical Bayesian Network.

    PubMed

    Li, Shancang; Tryfonas, Theo; Russell, Gordon; Andriotis, Panagiotis

    2016-08-01

    Mobile systems are facing a number of application vulnerabilities that can be combined together and utilized to penetrate systems with devastating impact. When assessing the overall security of a mobile system, it is important to assess the security risks posed by each mobile applications (apps), thus gaining a stronger understanding of any vulnerabilities present. This paper aims at developing a three-layer framework that assesses the potential risks which apps introduce within the Android mobile systems. A Bayesian risk graphical model is proposed to evaluate risk propagation in a layered risk architecture. By integrating static analysis, dynamic analysis, and behavior analysis in a hierarchical framework, the risks and their propagation through each layer are well modeled by the Bayesian risk graph, which can quantitatively analyze risks faced to both apps and mobile systems. The proposed hierarchical Bayesian risk graph model offers a novel way to investigate the security risks in mobile environment and enables users and administrators to evaluate the potential risks. This strategy allows to strengthen both app security as well as the security of the entire system.

  10. Accelerating image recognition on mobile devices using GPGPU

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bordallo López, Miguel; Nykänen, Henri; Hannuksela, Jari; Silvén, Olli; Vehviläinen, Markku

    2011-01-01

    The future multi-modal user interfaces of battery-powered mobile devices are expected to require computationally costly image analysis techniques. The use of Graphic Processing Units for computing is very well suited for parallel processing and the addition of programmable stages and high precision arithmetic provide for opportunities to implement energy-efficient complete algorithms. At the moment the first mobile graphics accelerators with programmable pipelines are available, enabling the GPGPU implementation of several image processing algorithms. In this context, we consider a face tracking approach that uses efficient gray-scale invariant texture features and boosting. The solution is based on the Local Binary Pattern (LBP) features and makes use of the GPU on the pre-processing and feature extraction phase. We have implemented a series of image processing techniques in the shader language of OpenGL ES 2.0, compiled them for a mobile graphics processing unit and performed tests on a mobile application processor platform (OMAP3530). In our contribution, we describe the challenges of designing on a mobile platform, present the performance achieved and provide measurement results for the actual power consumption in comparison to using the CPU (ARM) on the same platform.

  11. Oklahoma's Mobile Computer Graphics Laboratory.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McClain, Gerald R.

    This Computer Graphics Laboratory houses an IBM 1130 computer, U.C.C. plotter, printer, card reader, two key punch machines, and seminar-type classroom furniture. A "General Drafting Graphics System" (GDGS) is used, based on repetitive use of basic coordinate and plot generating commands. The system is used by 12 institutions of higher education…

  12. Bioavailability and mobility of organic contaminants in soil: new three-step ecotoxicological evaluation.

    PubMed

    Prokop, Zbyněk; Nečasová, Anežka; Klánová, Jana; Čupr, Pavel

    2016-03-01

    A novel approach was developed for rapid assessment of bioavailability and potential mobility of contaminants in soil. The response of the same test organism to the organic extract, water extract and solid phase of soil was recorded and compared. This approach was designed to give an initial estimate of the total organic toxicity (response to organic extractable fraction), as well as the mobile (response to water extract) and bioavailable fraction (response to solid phase) of soil samples. Eighteen soil samples with different levels of pollution and content of organic carbon were selected to validate the novel three-step ecotoxicological evaluation approach. All samples were chemically analysed for priority contaminants, including aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) and dichlordiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT). The ecotoxicological evaluation involved determination of toxicity of the organic, mobile and bioavailable fractions of soil to the test organism, bacterium Bacillus cereus. We found a good correlation between the chemical analysis and the toxicity of organic extract. The low toxicity of water extracts indicated low water solubility, and thus, low potential mobility of toxic contaminants present in the soil samples. The toxicity of the bioavailable fraction was significantly greater than the toxicity of water-soluble (mobile) fraction of the contaminants as deduced from comparing untreated samples and water extracts. The bioavailability of the contaminants decreased with increasing concentrations of organic carbon in evaluated soil samples. In conclusion, the three-step ecotoxicological evaluation utilised in this study can give a quick insight into soil contamination in context with bioavailability and mobility of the contaminants present. This information can be useful for hazard identification and risk assessment of soil-associated contaminants. Graphical Abstract New three-step ecotoxicological evaluation by using the same organism.

  13. Design and implementation of a cartographic client application for mobile devices using SVG Tiny and J2ME

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hui, L.; Behr, F.-J.; Schröder, D.

    2006-10-01

    The dissemination of digital geospatial data is available now on mobile devices such as PDAs (personal digital assistants) and smart-phones etc. The mobile devices which support J2ME (Java 2 Micro Edition) offer users and developers one open interface, which they can use to develop or download the software according their own demands. Currently WMS (Web Map Service) can afford not only traditional raster image, but also the vector image. SVGT (Scalable Vector Graphics Tiny) is one subset of SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) and because of its precise vector information, original styling and small file size, SVGT format is fitting well for the geographic mapping purpose, especially for the mobile devices which has bandwidth net connection limitation. This paper describes the development of a cartographic client for the mobile devices, using SVGT and J2ME technology. Mobile device will be simulated on the desktop computer for a series of testing with WMS, for example, send request and get the responding data from WMS and then display both vector and raster format image. Analyzing and designing of System structure such as user interface and code structure are discussed, the limitation of mobile device should be taken into consideration for this applications. The parsing of XML document which is received from WMS after the GetCapabilities request and the visual realization of SVGT and PNG (Portable Network Graphics) image are important issues in codes' writing. At last the client was tested on Nokia S40/60 mobile phone successfully.

  14. A daily living activity remote monitoring system for solitary elderly people.

    PubMed

    Maki, Hiromichi; Ogawa, Hidekuni; Matsuoka, Shingo; Yonezawa, Yoshiharu; Caldwell, W Morton

    2011-01-01

    A daily living activity remote monitoring system has been developed for supporting solitary elderly people. The monitoring system consists of a tri-axis accelerometer, six low-power active filters, a low-power 8-bit microcontroller (MC), a 1GB SD memory card (SDMC) and a 2.4 GHz low transmitting power mobile phone (PHS). The tri-axis accelerometer attached to the subject's chest can simultaneously measure dynamic and static acceleration forces produced by heart sound, respiration, posture and behavior. The heart rate, respiration rate, activity, posture and behavior are detected from the dynamic and static acceleration forces. These data are stored in the SD. The MC sends the data to the server computer every hour. The server computer stores the data and makes a graphic chart from the data. When the caregiver calls from his/her mobile phone to the server computer, the server computer sends the graphical chart via the PHS. The caregiver's mobile phone displays the chart to the monitor graphically.

  15. Novel graphical environment for virtual and real-world operations of tracked mobile manipulators

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, ChuXin; Trivedi, Mohan M.; Azam, Mir; Lassiter, Nils T.

    1993-08-01

    A simulation, animation, visualization and interactive control (SAVIC) environment has been developed for the design and operation of an integrated mobile manipulator system. This unique system possesses the abilities for (1) multi-sensor simulation, (2) kinematics and locomotion animation, (3) dynamic motion and manipulation animation, (4) transformation between real and virtual modes within the same graphics system, (5) ease in exchanging software modules and hardware devices between real and virtual world operations, and (6) interfacing with a real robotic system. This paper describes a working system and illustrates the concepts by presenting the simulation, animation and control methodologies for a unique mobile robot with articulated tracks, a manipulator, and sensory modules.

  16. People detection method using graphics processing units for a mobile robot with an omnidirectional camera

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kang, Sungil; Roh, Annah; Nam, Bodam; Hong, Hyunki

    2011-12-01

    This paper presents a novel vision system for people detection using an omnidirectional camera mounted on a mobile robot. In order to determine regions of interest (ROI), we compute a dense optical flow map using graphics processing units, which enable us to examine compliance with the ego-motion of the robot in a dynamic environment. Shape-based classification algorithms are employed to sort ROIs into human beings and nonhumans. The experimental results show that the proposed system detects people more precisely than previous methods.

  17. Evaluation of Game Engines for Cross-Platform Development of Mobile Serious Games for Health.

    PubMed

    Kleinschmidt, Carina; Haag, Martin

    2016-01-01

    Studies have shown that serious games for health can improve patient compliance and help to increase the quality of medical education. Due to a growing availability of mobile devices, especially the development of cross-platform mobile apps is helpful for improving healthcare. As the development can be highly time-consuming and expensive, an alternative development process is needed. Game engines are expected to simplify this process. Therefore, this article examines the question whether using game engines for cross-platform serious games for health can simplify the development compared to the development of a plain HTML5 app. At first, a systematic review of the literature was conducted in different databases (MEDLINE, ACM and IEEE). Afterwards three different game engines were chosen, evaluated in different categories and compared to the development of a HTML5 app. This was realized by implementing a prototypical application in the different engines and conducting a utility analysis. The evaluation shows that the Marmalade engine is the best choice for development in this scenario. Furthermore, it is obvious that the game engines have great benefits against plain HTML5 development as they provide components for graphics, physics, sounds, etc. The authors recommend to use the Marmalade Engine for a cross-platform mobile Serious Game for Health.

  18. A Literature Review: Website Design and User Engagement.

    PubMed

    Garett, Renee; Chiu, Jason; Zhang, Ly; Young, Sean D

    2016-07-01

    Proper design has become a critical element needed to engage website and mobile application users. However, little research has been conducted to define the specific elements used in effective website and mobile application design. We attempt to review and consolidate research on effective design and to define a short list of elements frequently used in research. The design elements mentioned most frequently in the reviewed literature were navigation, graphical representation, organization, content utility, purpose, simplicity, and readability. We discuss how previous studies define and evaluate these seven elements. This review and the resulting short list of design elements may be used to help designers and researchers to operationalize best practices for facilitating and predicting user engagement.

  19. A Literature Review: Website Design and User Engagement

    PubMed Central

    Garett, Renee; Chiu, Jason; Zhang, Ly; Young, Sean D.

    2015-01-01

    Proper design has become a critical element needed to engage website and mobile application users. However, little research has been conducted to define the specific elements used in effective website and mobile application design. We attempt to review and consolidate research on effective design and to define a short list of elements frequently used in research. The design elements mentioned most frequently in the reviewed literature were navigation, graphical representation, organization, content utility, purpose, simplicity, and readability. We discuss how previous studies define and evaluate these seven elements. This review and the resulting short list of design elements may be used to help designers and researchers to operationalize best practices for facilitating and predicting user engagement. PMID:27499833

  20. Developing a Mobile App for Prevention and Treatment of Pressure Injuries.

    PubMed

    Salomé, Geraldo Magela; Ferreira, Lydia Masako

    2018-02-01

    This descriptive study describes the planning and development of a mobile application (app) for prevention and treatment of pressure injuries for use by providers in a university research center. The app delineates risk factors for pressure injury development, provides an evaluation of the wound, recommends wound cleansing procedures, performs pressure injury staging, and recommends treatment interventions. A mobile app was developed using a contextualized instructional design, which involves a constructivist proposal and planning, developing, and applying specific didactic situations, thus incorporating mechanisms that favor contextualization. A literature search was conducted to identify relevant studies for the construction of the mobile app. The development process involved the selection of app tools, definition of the navigation structure, and planning of the environment configuration. The environment for downloading the app software on the Internet and installing it on the mobile device was created. The literature search yielded 18 articles, 2 books, and 1 master's degree thesis. A mobile app was created with an easy-to-use graphic interface. The app stores the patient's demographic characteristics and provides an evaluation of his/her wound, a list of risk factors for pressure injury development, wound cleansing procedures, and treatment interventions. The developed app may be useful in clinical practice, helping to prevent pressure injuries and promote select nursing interventions for the treatment of patients with pressure injury.

  1. Evaluating the Ozioma cancer news service: A community randomized trial in 24 U.S. cities

    PubMed Central

    Caburnay, Charlene A.; Luke, Douglas A.; Cameron, Glen T.; Cohen, Elisia L.; Fu, Qiang; Lai, Choi L.; Stemmle, Jonathan; Paulen, Melissa; McDaniels-Jackson, Lillie; Kreuter, Matthew W.

    2012-01-01

    Objective This community randomized trial evaluated effects of the Ozioma News Service on the amount and quality of cancer coverage in Black weekly newspapers in 24 U.S. cities. Method We created and operated Ozioma, the first cancer information news service specifically for Black newspapers. Over 21 months, Ozioma developed community- and race-specific cancer news releases for each of 12 Black weekly newspapers in intervention communities. Cancer coverage in these papers was tracked before and during the intervention and compared to 12 Black newspapers in control communities. Results From 2004-2007, we coded 9,257 health and cancer stories from 3,178 newspaper issues. Intervention newspapers published approximately 4 times the expected number of cancer stories compared to control newspapers (p12&21mo<.01), and also saw an increase in graphics (p12&21mo<.01), local relevance (p12mo=.01), and personal mobilization (p12mo<.10). However, this increased coverage supplanted other health topics and had smaller graphics (NS), had less community mobilization (p21mo=.01), and less likely to be from a local source (NS). Conclusion Providing news releases with localized and race-specific features to minority-serving media outlets can increase the quantity of cancer coverage. Results are mixed for the journalistic and public health quality of this increased cancer coverage in Black newspapers. PMID:22546317

  2. Automatic detection and classification of obstacles with applications in autonomous mobile robots

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ponomaryov, Volodymyr I.; Rosas-Miranda, Dario I.

    2016-04-01

    Hardware implementation of an automatic detection and classification of objects that can represent an obstacle for an autonomous mobile robot using stereo vision algorithms is presented. We propose and evaluate a new method to detect and classify objects for a mobile robot in outdoor conditions. This method is divided in two parts, the first one is the object detection step based on the distance from the objects to the camera and a BLOB analysis. The second part is the classification step that is based on visuals primitives and a SVM classifier. The proposed method is performed in GPU in order to reduce the processing time values. This is performed with help of hardware based on multi-core processors and GPU platform, using a NVIDIA R GeForce R GT640 graphic card and Matlab over a PC with Windows 10.

  3. Designing a Visual Factors-Based Screen Display Interface: The New Role of the Graphic Technologist.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Faiola, Tony; DeBloois, Michael L.

    1988-01-01

    Discusses the role of the graphic technologist in preparing computer screen displays for interactive videodisc systems, and suggests screen design guidelines. Topics discussed include the grid system; typography; visual factors research; color; course mobility through branching and software menus; and a model of course integration. (22 references)…

  4. Computer Aided Design: Instructional Manual. The North Dakota High Technology Mobile Laboratory Project.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cheng, Wan-Lee

    This instructional manual contains 12 learning activity packets for use in a workshop in computer-aided design and drafting (CADD). The lessons cover the following topics: introduction to computer graphics and computer-aided design/drafting; coordinate systems; advance space graphics hardware configuration and basic features of the IBM PC…

  5. Agreement in functional assessment: graphic approaches to displaying respondent effects.

    PubMed

    Haley, Stephen M; Ni, Pengsheng; Coster, Wendy J; Black-Schaffer, Randie; Siebens, Hilary; Tao, Wei

    2006-09-01

    The objective of this study was to examine the agreement between respondents of summary scores from items representing three functional content areas (physical and mobility, personal care and instrumental, applied cognition) within the Activity Measure for Postacute Care (AM-PAC). We compare proxy vs. patient report in both hospital and community settings as represented by intraclass correlation coefficients and two graphic approaches. The authors conducted a prospective, cohort study of a convenience sample of adults (n = 47) receiving rehabilitation services either in hospital (n = 31) or community (n = 16) settings. In addition to using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) as indices of agreement, we applied two graphic approaches to serve as complements to help interpret the direction and magnitude of respondent disagreements. We created a "mountain plot" based on a cumulative distribution curve and a "survival-agreement plot" with step functions used in the analysis of survival data. ICCs on summary scores between patient and proxy report were physical and mobility ICC = 0.92, personal care and instrumental ICC = 0.93, and applied cognition ICC = 0.77. Although combined respondent agreement was acceptable, graphic approaches helped interpret differences in separate analyses of clinician and family agreement. Graphic analyses allow for a simple interpretation of agreement data and may be useful in determining the meaningfulness of the amount and direction of interrespondent variation.

  6. A 3D character animation engine for multimodal interaction on mobile devices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sandali, Enrico; Lavagetto, Fabio; Pisano, Paolo

    2005-03-01

    Talking virtual characters are graphical simulations of real or imaginary persons that enable natural and pleasant multimodal interaction with the user, by means of voice, eye gaze, facial expression and gestures. This paper presents an implementation of a 3D virtual character animation and rendering engine, compliant with the MPEG-4 standard, running on Symbian-based SmartPhones. Real-time animation of virtual characters on mobile devices represents a challenging task, since many limitations must be taken into account with respect to processing power, graphics capabilities, disk space and execution memory size. The proposed optimization techniques allow to overcome these issues, guaranteeing a smooth and synchronous animation of facial expressions and lip movements on mobile phones such as Sony-Ericsson's P800 and Nokia's 6600. The animation engine is specifically targeted to the development of new "Over The Air" services, based on embodied conversational agents, with applications in entertainment (interactive story tellers), navigation aid (virtual guides to web sites and mobile services), news casting (virtual newscasters) and education (interactive virtual teachers).

  7. Recall of past use of mobile phone handsets.

    PubMed

    Parslow, R C; Hepworth, S J; McKinney, P A

    2003-01-01

    Previous studies investigating health effects of mobile phones have based their estimation of exposure on self-reported levels of phone use. This UK validation study assesses the accuracy of reported voice calls made from mobile handsets. Data collected by postal questionnaire from 93 volunteers was compared to records obtained prospectively over 6 months from four network operators. Agreement was measured for outgoing calls using the kappa statistic, log-linear modelling, Spearman correlation coefficient and graphical methods. Agreement for number of calls gained moderate classification (kappa = 0.39) with better agreement for duration (kappa = 0.50). Log-linear modelling produced similar results. The Spearman correlation coefficient was 0.48 for number of calls and 0.60 for duration. Graphical agreement methods demonstrated patterns of over-reporting call numbers (by a factor of 1.7) and duration (by a factor of 2.8). These results suggest that self-reported mobile phone use may not fully represent patterns of actual use. This has implications for calculating exposures from questionnaire data.

  8. Graphical analysis of power systems for mobile robotics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Raade, Justin William

    The field of mobile robotics places stringent demands on the power system. Energetic autonomy, or the ability to function for a useful operation time independent of any tether, refueling, or recharging, is a driving force in a robot designed for a field application. The focus of this dissertation is the development of two graphical analysis tools, namely Ragone plots and optimal hybridization plots, for the design of human scale mobile robotic power systems. These tools contribute to the intuitive understanding of the performance of a power system and expand the toolbox of the design engineer. Ragone plots are useful for graphically comparing the merits of different power systems for a wide range of operation times. They plot the specific power versus the specific energy of a system on logarithmic scales. The driving equations in the creation of a Ragone plot are derived in terms of several important system parameters. Trends at extreme operation times (both very short and very long) are examined. Ragone plot analysis is applied to the design of several power systems for high-power human exoskeletons. Power systems examined include a monopropellant-powered free piston hydraulic pump, a gasoline-powered internal combustion engine with hydraulic actuators, and a fuel cell with electric actuators. Hybrid power systems consist of two or more distinct energy sources that are used together to meet a single load. They can often outperform non-hybrid power systems in low duty-cycle applications or those with widely varying load profiles and long operation times. Two types of energy sources are defined: engine-like and capacitive. The hybridization rules for different combinations of energy sources are derived using graphical plots of hybrid power system mass versus the primary system power. Optimal hybridization analysis is applied to several power systems for low-power human exoskeletons. Hybrid power systems examined include a fuel cell and a solar panel coupled with lithium polymer batteries. In summary, this dissertation describes the development and application of two graphical analysis tools for the intuitive design of mobile robotic power systems. Several design examples are discussed involving human exoskeleton power systems.

  9. High-quality macromolecular graphics on mobile devices: a quick starter's guide.

    PubMed

    Yiu, Chin-Pang Benny; Chen, Yu Wai

    2014-01-01

    With the rise of tablets, truly portable molecular graphics are now available for wide use by scientists to share structural information in real time at a reasonable cost. We have surveyed the existing software available on Apple iPads and on Android tablets in order to make a recommendation to potential users, primarily based on the product features. Among 12 apps, iMolview (available on both platforms) stands out to be our choice, with PyMOL app (iOS) a close alternative and RCSB PDB Mobile viewer/NDKmol (both platforms) offering some uniquely useful functions. Finally, we include a tutorial on how to get started using iMolview to do some simple visualization in 10 min.

  10. M"Health" for Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aburas, Abdurazzag A.; Ayran, Mujgan

    2013-01-01

    Better education is required better advanced tools to be used for students. Smart phone becomes main part of our daily life. New medical design interface is introduced for medicine student based mobile. The Graphic User Interface must be easy and simple. The main interface design issue for mobile is simple and easy to use. Human Mobile…

  11. Implementation and optimization of ultrasound signal processing algorithms on mobile GPU

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kong, Woo Kyu; Lee, Wooyoul; Kim, Kyu Cheol; Yoo, Yangmo; Song, Tai-Kyong

    2014-03-01

    A general-purpose graphics processing unit (GPGPU) has been used for improving computing power in medical ultrasound imaging systems. Recently, a mobile GPU becomes powerful to deal with 3D games and videos at high frame rates on Full HD or HD resolution displays. This paper proposes the method to implement ultrasound signal processing on a mobile GPU available in the high-end smartphone (Galaxy S4, Samsung Electronics, Seoul, Korea) with programmable shaders on the OpenGL ES 2.0 platform. To maximize the performance of the mobile GPU, the optimization of shader design and load sharing between vertex and fragment shader was performed. The beamformed data were captured from a tissue mimicking phantom (Model 539 Multipurpose Phantom, ATS Laboratories, Inc., Bridgeport, CT, USA) by using a commercial ultrasound imaging system equipped with a research package (Ultrasonix Touch, Ultrasonix, Richmond, BC, Canada). The real-time performance is evaluated by frame rates while varying the range of signal processing blocks. The implementation method of ultrasound signal processing on OpenGL ES 2.0 was verified by analyzing PSNR with MATLAB gold standard that has the same signal path. CNR was also analyzed to verify the method. From the evaluations, the proposed mobile GPU-based processing method has no significant difference with the processing using MATLAB (i.e., PSNR<52.51 dB). The comparable results of CNR were obtained from both processing methods (i.e., 11.31). From the mobile GPU implementation, the frame rates of 57.6 Hz were achieved. The total execution time was 17.4 ms that was faster than the acquisition time (i.e., 34.4 ms). These results indicate that the mobile GPU-based processing method can support real-time ultrasound B-mode processing on the smartphone.

  12. Creating a Powerful Learning Environment with Networked Mobile Learning Devices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Crawford, Valerie M.

    2007-01-01

    Highly mobile devices can make important information available to teachers in real-time, anywhere in the classroom, and in the form of easy-to-read graphical displays that support classroom decision making. By supporting such important teaching activities, we can create a high-performance classroom that supports teachers and the art of teaching,…

  13. Point-Cloud Compression for Vehicle-Based Mobile Mapping Systems Using Portable Network Graphics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kohira, K.; Masuda, H.

    2017-09-01

    A mobile mapping system is effective for capturing dense point-clouds of roads and roadside objects Point-clouds of urban areas, residential areas, and arterial roads are useful for maintenance of infrastructure, map creation, and automatic driving. However, the data size of point-clouds measured in large areas is enormously large. A large storage capacity is required to store such point-clouds, and heavy loads will be taken on network if point-clouds are transferred through the network. Therefore, it is desirable to reduce data sizes of point-clouds without deterioration of quality. In this research, we propose a novel point-cloud compression method for vehicle-based mobile mapping systems. In our compression method, point-clouds are mapped onto 2D pixels using GPS time and the parameters of the laser scanner. Then, the images are encoded in the Portable Networking Graphics (PNG) format and compressed using the PNG algorithm. In our experiments, our method could efficiently compress point-clouds without deteriorating the quality.

  14. Processing Diabetes Mellitus Composite Events in MAGPIE.

    PubMed

    Brugués, Albert; Bromuri, Stefano; Barry, Michael; Del Toro, Óscar Jiménez; Mazurkiewicz, Maciej R; Kardas, Przemyslaw; Pegueroles, Josep; Schumacher, Michael

    2016-02-01

    The focus of this research is in the definition of programmable expert Personal Health Systems (PHS) to monitor patients affected by chronic diseases using agent oriented programming and mobile computing to represent the interactions happening amongst the components of the system. The paper also discusses issues of knowledge representation within the medical domain when dealing with temporal patterns concerning the physiological values of the patient. In the presented agent based PHS the doctors can personalize for each patient monitoring rules that can be defined in a graphical way. Furthermore, to achieve better scalability, the computations for monitoring the patients are distributed among their devices rather than being performed in a centralized server. The system is evaluated using data of 21 diabetic patients to detect temporal patterns according to a set of monitoring rules defined. The system's scalability is evaluated by comparing it with a centralized approach. The evaluation concerning the detection of temporal patterns highlights the system's ability to monitor chronic patients affected by diabetes. Regarding the scalability, the results show the fact that an approach exploiting the use of mobile computing is more scalable than a centralized approach. Therefore, more likely to satisfy the needs of next generation PHSs. PHSs are becoming an adopted technology to deal with the surge of patients affected by chronic illnesses. This paper discusses architectural choices to make an agent based PHS more scalable by using a distributed mobile computing approach. It also discusses how to model the medical knowledge in the PHS in such a way that it is modifiable at run time. The evaluation highlights the necessity of distributing the reasoning to the mobile part of the system and that modifiable rules are able to deal with the change in lifestyle of the patients affected by chronic illnesses.

  15. PyMOL mControl: Manipulating molecular visualization with mobile devices.

    PubMed

    Lam, Wendy W T; Siu, Shirley W I

    2017-01-02

    Viewing and manipulating three-dimensional (3D) structures in molecular graphics software are essential tasks for researchers and students to understand the functions of molecules. Currently, the way to manipulate a 3D molecular object is mainly based on mouse-and-keyboard control that is usually difficult and tedious to learn. While gesture-based and touch-based interactions are increasingly popular in interactive software systems, their suitability in handling molecular graphics has not yet been sufficiently explored. Here, we designed the gesture-based and touch-based interaction methods to manipulate virtual objects in PyMOL utilizing the motion and touch sensors in a mobile device. Three fundamental viewing controls-zooming, translation and rotation-and frequently used functions were implemented. Results from a pilot user study reveal that task performances on viewing controls using a mobile device are slightly reduced as compared to mouse-and-keyboard method. However, it is considered to be more suitable for oral presentations and equally suitable for education scenarios such as school classes. Overall, PyMOL mControl provides an alternative way to manipulate objects in molecular graphic software with new user experiences. The software is freely available at http://cbbio.cis.umac.mo/mcontrol.html. © 2016 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 45(1):76-83, 2017. © 2016 The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

  16. Graphics to H.264 video encoding for 3D scene representation and interaction on mobile devices using region of interest

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Le, Minh Tuan; Nguyen, Congdu; Yoon, Dae-Il; Jung, Eun Ku; Jia, Jie; Kim, Hae-Kwang

    2007-12-01

    In this paper, we propose a method of 3D graphics to video encoding and streaming that are embedded into a remote interactive 3D visualization system for rapidly representing a 3D scene on mobile devices without having to download it from the server. In particular, a 3D graphics to video framework is presented that increases the visual quality of regions of interest (ROI) of the video by performing more bit allocation to ROI during H.264 video encoding. The ROI are identified by projection 3D objects to a 2D plane during rasterization. The system offers users to navigate the 3D scene and interact with objects of interests for querying their descriptions. We developed an adaptive media streaming server that can provide an adaptive video stream in term of object-based quality to the client according to the user's preferences and the variation of network bandwidth. Results show that by doing ROI mode selection, PSNR of test sample slightly change while visual quality of objects increases evidently.

  17. ChemDoodle Web Components: HTML5 toolkit for chemical graphics, interfaces, and informatics.

    PubMed

    Burger, Melanie C

    2015-01-01

    ChemDoodle Web Components (abbreviated CWC, iChemLabs, LLC) is a light-weight (~340 KB) JavaScript/HTML5 toolkit for chemical graphics, structure editing, interfaces, and informatics based on the proprietary ChemDoodle desktop software. The library uses and WebGL technologies and other HTML5 features to provide solutions for creating chemistry-related applications for the web on desktop and mobile platforms. CWC can serve a broad range of scientific disciplines including crystallography, materials science, organic and inorganic chemistry, biochemistry and chemical biology. CWC is freely available for in-house use and is open source (GPL v3) for all other uses.Graphical abstractAdd interactive 2D and 3D chemical sketchers, graphics, and spectra to websites and apps with ChemDoodle Web Components.

  18. Driving a Semiautonomous Mobile Robotic Car Controlled by an SSVEP-Based BCI.

    PubMed

    Stawicki, Piotr; Gembler, Felix; Volosyak, Ivan

    2016-01-01

    Brain-computer interfaces represent a range of acknowledged technologies that translate brain activity into computer commands. The aim of our research is to develop and evaluate a BCI control application for certain assistive technologies that can be used for remote telepresence or remote driving. The communication channel to the target device is based on the steady-state visual evoked potentials. In order to test the control application, a mobile robotic car (MRC) was introduced and a four-class BCI graphical user interface (with live video feedback and stimulation boxes on the same screen) for piloting the MRC was designed. For the purpose of evaluating a potential real-life scenario for such assistive technology, we present a study where 61 subjects steered the MRC through a predetermined route. All 61 subjects were able to control the MRC and finish the experiment (mean time 207.08 s, SD 50.25) with a mean (SD) accuracy and ITR of 93.03% (5.73) and 14.07 bits/min (4.44), respectively. The results show that our proposed SSVEP-based BCI control application is suitable for mobile robots with a shared-control approach. We also did not observe any negative influence of the simultaneous live video feedback and SSVEP stimulation on the performance of the BCI system.

  19. Driving a Semiautonomous Mobile Robotic Car Controlled by an SSVEP-Based BCI

    PubMed Central

    2016-01-01

    Brain-computer interfaces represent a range of acknowledged technologies that translate brain activity into computer commands. The aim of our research is to develop and evaluate a BCI control application for certain assistive technologies that can be used for remote telepresence or remote driving. The communication channel to the target device is based on the steady-state visual evoked potentials. In order to test the control application, a mobile robotic car (MRC) was introduced and a four-class BCI graphical user interface (with live video feedback and stimulation boxes on the same screen) for piloting the MRC was designed. For the purpose of evaluating a potential real-life scenario for such assistive technology, we present a study where 61 subjects steered the MRC through a predetermined route. All 61 subjects were able to control the MRC and finish the experiment (mean time 207.08 s, SD 50.25) with a mean (SD) accuracy and ITR of 93.03% (5.73) and 14.07 bits/min (4.44), respectively. The results show that our proposed SSVEP-based BCI control application is suitable for mobile robots with a shared-control approach. We also did not observe any negative influence of the simultaneous live video feedback and SSVEP stimulation on the performance of the BCI system. PMID:27528864

  20. Graphics performance in rich Internet applications.

    PubMed

    Hoetzlein, Rama C

    2012-01-01

    Rendering performance for rich Internet applications (RIAs) has recently focused on the debate between using Flash and HTML5 for streaming video and gaming on mobile devices. A key area not widely explored, however, is the scalability of raw bitmap graphics performance for RIAs. Does Flash render animated sprites faster than HTML5? How much faster is WebGL than Flash? Answers to these questions are essential for developing large-scale data visualizations, online games, and truly dynamic websites. A new test methodology analyzes graphics performance across RIA frameworks and browsers, revealing specific performance outliers in existing frameworks. The results point toward a future in which all online experiences might be GPU accelerated.

  1. [Mobile phone-computer wireless interactive graphics transmission technology and its medical application].

    PubMed

    Huang, Shuo; Liu, Jing

    2010-05-01

    Application of clinical digital medical imaging has raised many tough issues to tackle, such as data storage, management, and information sharing. Here we investigated a mobile phone based medical image management system which is capable of achieving personal medical imaging information storage, management and comprehensive health information analysis. The technologies related to the management system spanning the wireless transmission technology, the technical capabilities of phone in mobile health care and management of mobile medical database were discussed. Taking medical infrared images transmission between phone and computer as an example, the working principle of the present system was demonstrated.

  2. Using cloud models of heartbeats as the entity identifier to secure mobile devices.

    PubMed

    Fu, Donglai; Liu, Yanhua

    2017-01-01

    Mobile devices are extensively used to store more private and often sensitive information. Therefore, it is important to protect them against unauthorised access. Authentication ensures that authorised users can use mobile devices. However, traditional authentication methods, such as numerical or graphic passwords, are vulnerable to passive attacks. For example, an adversary can steal the password by snooping from a shorter distance. To avoid these problems, this study presents a biometric approach that uses cloud models of heartbeats as the entity identifier to secure mobile devices. Here, it is identified that these concepts including cloud model or cloud have nothing to do with cloud computing. The cloud model appearing in the study is the cognitive model. In the proposed method, heartbeats are collected by two ECG electrodes that are connected to one mobile device. The backward normal cloud generator is used to generate ECG standard cloud models characterising the heartbeat template. When a user tries to have access to their mobile device, cloud models regenerated by fresh heartbeats will be compared with ECG standard cloud models to determine if the current user can use this mobile device. This authentication method was evaluated from three aspects including accuracy, authentication time and energy consumption. The proposed method gives 86.04% of true acceptance rate with 2.73% of false acceptance rate. One authentication can be done in 6s, and this processing consumes about 2000 mW of power.

  3. Global Play Evaluation TOol (GPETO) assists Mobil explorationists with play evaluation and ranking

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

    Withers, K.D.; Brown, P.J.; Clary, R.C.

    1996-01-01

    GPETO is a relational database and application containing information about over 2500 plays around the world. It also has information about approximately 30,000 fields and the related provinces. The GPETO application has been developed to assist Mobil geoscientists, planners and managers with global play evaluations and portfolio management. The, main features of GPETO allow users to: (1) view or modify play and province information, (2) composite user specified plays in a statistically valid way, (3) view threshold information for plays and provinces, including curves, (4) examine field size data, including discovered, future and ultimate field sizes for provinces and plays,more » (5) use a database browser to lookup and validate data by geographic, volumetric, technical and business criteria, (6) display ranged values and graphical displays of future and ultimate potential for plays, provinces, countries, and continents, (7) run, view and print a number of informative reports containing input and output data from the system. The GPETO application is written in c and fortran, runs on a unix based system, utilizes an Ingres database, and was implemented using a 3-tiered client/server architecture.« less

  4. Global Play Evaluation TOol (GPETO) assists Mobil explorationists with play evaluation and ranking

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

    Withers, K.D.; Brown, P.J.; Clary, R.C.

    1996-12-31

    GPETO is a relational database and application containing information about over 2500 plays around the world. It also has information about approximately 30,000 fields and the related provinces. The GPETO application has been developed to assist Mobil geoscientists, planners and managers with global play evaluations and portfolio management. The, main features of GPETO allow users to: (1) view or modify play and province information, (2) composite user specified plays in a statistically valid way, (3) view threshold information for plays and provinces, including curves, (4) examine field size data, including discovered, future and ultimate field sizes for provinces and plays,more » (5) use a database browser to lookup and validate data by geographic, volumetric, technical and business criteria, (6) display ranged values and graphical displays of future and ultimate potential for plays, provinces, countries, and continents, (7) run, view and print a number of informative reports containing input and output data from the system. The GPETO application is written in c and fortran, runs on a unix based system, utilizes an Ingres database, and was implemented using a 3-tiered client/server architecture.« less

  5. Studying Upper-Limb Kinematics Using Inertial Sensors Embedded in Mobile Phones

    PubMed Central

    Bennett, Paul

    2015-01-01

    Background In recent years, there has been a great interest in analyzing upper-limb kinematics. Inertial measurement with mobile phones is a convenient and portable analysis method for studying humerus kinematics in terms of angular mobility and linear acceleration. Objective The aim of this analysis was to study upper-limb kinematics via mobile phones through six physical properties that correspond to angular mobility and acceleration in the three axes of space. Methods This cross-sectional study recruited healthy young adult subjects. Humerus kinematics was studied in 10 young adults with the iPhone4. They performed flexion and abduction analytical tasks. Mobility angle and lineal acceleration in each of its axes (yaw, pitch, and roll) were obtained with the iPhone4. This device was placed on the right half of the body of each subject, in the middle third of the humerus, slightly posterior. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Results Descriptive graphics of analytical tasks performed were obtained. The biggest range of motion was found in pitch angle, and the biggest acceleration was found in the y-axis in both analytical tasks. Focusing on tridimensional kinematics, bigger range of motion and acceleration was found in abduction (209.69 degrees and 23.31 degrees per second respectively). Also, very strong correlation was found between angular mobility and linear acceleration in abduction (r=.845) and flexion (r=.860). Conclusions The use of an iPhone for humerus tridimensional kinematics is feasible. This supports use of the mobile phone as a device to analyze upper-limb kinematics and to facilitate the evaluation of the patient. PMID:28582241

  6. An Intuitive Graphical User Interface for Small UAS

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-05-01

    reduced from two to one . The stock displays, including video with text overlay on one and FalconView on the other, are replaced with a single, graphics...INTRODUCTION Tactical UAVs such as the Raven, Puma and Wasp are often used by dismounted warfighters on missions that require a high degree of mobility by...the operators on the ground. The current ground control stations (GCS) for the Wasp, Raven and Puma tactical UAVs require two people and two user

  7. Synthetic vision in the cockpit: 3D systems for general aviation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hansen, Andrew J.; Rybacki, Richard M.; Smith, W. Garth

    2001-08-01

    Synthetic vision has the potential to improve safety in aviation through better pilot situational awareness and enhanced navigational guidance. The technological advances enabling synthetic vision are GPS based navigation (position and attitude) systems and efficient graphical systems for rendering 3D displays in the cockpit. A benefit for military, commercial, and general aviation platforms alike is the relentless drive to miniaturize computer subsystems. Processors, data storage, graphical and digital signal processing chips, RF circuitry, and bus architectures are at or out-pacing Moore's Law with the transition to mobile computing and embedded systems. The tandem of fundamental GPS navigation services such as the US FAA's Wide Area and Local Area Augmentation Systems (WAAS) and commercially viable mobile rendering systems puts synthetic vision well with the the technological reach of general aviation. Given the appropriate navigational inputs, low cost and power efficient graphics solutions are capable of rendering a pilot's out-the-window view into visual databases with photo-specific imagery and geo-specific elevation and feature content. Looking beyond the single airframe, proposed aviation technologies such as ADS-B would provide a communication channel for bringing traffic information on-board and into the cockpit visually via the 3D display for additional pilot awareness. This paper gives a view of current 3D graphics system capability suitable for general aviation and presents a potential road map following the current trends.

  8. Integrating Conjoint Analysis with TOPSIS Algorithm to the Visual Effect of Icon Design Based on Multiple Users' Image Perceptions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tung, Ting-Chun; Chen, Hung-Yuan

    2017-01-01

    With the advance of mobile computing and wireless technology, a user's intent to interact with the interface of a mobile device is motivated not only by its intuitional operation, but also by the emotional perception induced by its aesthetic appeal. A graphical interface employing icons with suitable visual effect based on the users' emotional…

  9. SedMob: A mobile application for creating sedimentary logs in the field

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wolniewicz, Pawel

    2014-05-01

    SedMob is an open-source, mobile software package for creating sedimentary logs, targeted for use in tablets and smartphones. The user can create an unlimited number of logs, save data from each bed in the log as well as export and synchronize the data with a remote server. SedMob is designed as a mobile interface to SedLog: a free multiplatform package for drawing graphic logs that runs on PC computers. Data entered into SedMob are saved in the CSV file format, fully compatible with SedLog.

  10. Experimental evaluation of candidate graphical microburst alert displays

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wanke, Craig; Hansman, R. John

    1992-01-01

    The topics addressed are: (1) experimental evaluation of candidate graphical microburst displays; (2) microburst detection and alerting; (3) previous part-task simulator experiment-comparison of presentation modes; (4) presentation mode comparison-results; (5) advantages of graphical mode of presentation; (6) graphical microburst alert experiment-objectives; and graphical microburst alert experiment-overview; and (7) candidate display design.

  11. Micromagnetics on high-performance workstation and mobile computational platforms

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fu, S.; Chang, R.; Couture, S.; Menarini, M.; Escobar, M. A.; Kuteifan, M.; Lubarda, M.; Gabay, D.; Lomakin, V.

    2015-05-01

    The feasibility of using high-performance desktop and embedded mobile computational platforms is presented, including multi-core Intel central processing unit, Nvidia desktop graphics processing units, and Nvidia Jetson TK1 Platform. FastMag finite element method-based micromagnetic simulator is used as a testbed, showing high efficiency on all the platforms. Optimization aspects of improving the performance of the mobile systems are discussed. The high performance, low cost, low power consumption, and rapid performance increase of the embedded mobile systems make them a promising candidate for micromagnetic simulations. Such architectures can be used as standalone systems or can be built as low-power computing clusters.

  12. System for assisted mobility using eye movements based on electrooculography.

    PubMed

    Barea, Rafael; Boquete, Luciano; Mazo, Manuel; López, Elena

    2002-12-01

    This paper describes an eye-control method based on electrooculography (EOG) to develop a system for assisted mobility. One of its most important features is its modularity, making it adaptable to the particular needs of each user according to the type and degree of handicap involved. An eye model based on electroculographic signal is proposed and its validity is studied. Several human-machine interfaces (HMI) based on EOG are commented, focusing our study on guiding and controlling a wheelchair for disabled people, where the control is actually effected by eye movements within the socket. Different techniques and guidance strategies are then shown with comments on the advantages and disadvantages of each one. The system consists of a standard electric wheelchair with an on-board computer, sensors and a graphic user interface run by the computer. On the other hand, this eye-control method can be applied to handle graphical interfaces, where the eye is used as a mouse computer. Results obtained show that this control technique could be useful in multiple applications, such as mobility and communication aid for handicapped persons.

  13. Overview of the NASA Wallops Flight Facility Mobile Range Control System

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Davis, Rodney A.; Semancik, Susan K.; Smith, Donna C.; Stancil, Robert K.

    1999-01-01

    The NASA GSFC's Wallops Flight Facility (WFF) Mobile Range Control System (MRCS) is based on the functionality of the WFF Range Control Center at Wallops Island, Virginia. The MRCS provides real time instantaneous impact predictions, real time flight performance data, and other critical information needed by mission and range safety personnel in support of range operations at remote launch sites. The MRCS integrates a PC telemetry processing system (TELPro), a PC radar processing system (PCDQS), multiple Silicon Graphics display workstations (IRIS), and communication links within a mobile van for worldwide support of orbital, suborbital, and aircraft missions. This paper describes the MRCS configuration; the TELPro's capability to provide single/dual telemetry tracking and vehicle state data processing; the PCDQS' capability to provide real time positional data and instantaneous impact prediction for up to 8 data sources; and the IRIS' user interface for setup/display options. With portability, PC-based data processing, high resolution graphics, and flexible multiple source support, the MRCS system is proving to be responsive to the ever-changing needs of a variety of increasingly complex missions.

  14. It is all about the solvent: on the importance of the mobile phase for ZIC-HILIC glycopeptide enrichment.

    PubMed

    Alagesan, Kathirvel; Khilji, Sana Khan; Kolarich, Daniel

    2017-01-01

    Glycopeptide enrichment is a crucial step in glycoproteomics for which hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) has extensively been applied due to its low bias towards different glycan types. A systematic evaluation of applicable HILIC mobile phases on glycopeptide enrichment efficiency and selectivity is, to date, however, still lacking. Here, we present a novel, simplified technique for HILIC enrichment termed "Drop-HILIC", which was applied to systematically evaluate the mobile phase effect on ZIC-HILIC (zwitterionic type of hydrophilic interaction chromatography) glycopeptide enrichment. The four most commonly used MS compatible organic solvents were investigated: (i) acetonitrile, (ii) methanol, (iii) ethanol and (iv) isopropanol. Glycopeptide enrichment efficiencies were evaluated for each solvent system using samples of increasing complexity ranging from well-defined synthetic glycopeptides spiked into different concentrations of tryptic BSA peptides, followed by standard glycoproteins, and a complex sample derived from human (depleted and non-depleted) serum. ZIC-HILIC glycopeptide efficiency largely relied upon the used solvent. Different organic mobile phases enriched distinct glycopeptide subsets in a peptide backbone hydrophilicity-dependant manner. Acetonitrile provided the best compromise for the retention of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic glycopeptides, whereas methanol was confirmed to be unsuitable for this purpose. The enrichment efficiency of ethanol and isopropanol towards highly hydrophobic glycopeptides was compromised as considerable co-enrichment of unmodified peptides occurred, though for some hydrophobic glycopeptides isopropanol showed the best enrichment properties. This study shows that even minor differences in the peptide backbone and solvent do significantly influence HILIC glycopeptide enrichment and need to be carefully considered when employed for glycopeptide enrichment. Graphical Abstract The organic solvent plays a crucial role in ZIC-HILIC glycopeptide enrichment.

  15. Advanced Extravehicular Mobility Unit Informatics Software Design

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wright, Theodore

    2014-01-01

    This is a description of the software design for the 2013 edition of the Advanced Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AEMU) Informatics computer assembly. The Informatics system is an optional part of the space suit assembly. It adds a graphical interface for displaying suit status, timelines, procedures, and caution and warning information. In the future it will display maps with GPS position data, and video and still images captured by the astronaut.

  16. Real-time terrain storage generation from multiple sensors towards mobile robot operation interface.

    PubMed

    Song, Wei; Cho, Seoungjae; Xi, Yulong; Cho, Kyungeun; Um, Kyhyun

    2014-01-01

    A mobile robot mounted with multiple sensors is used to rapidly collect 3D point clouds and video images so as to allow accurate terrain modeling. In this study, we develop a real-time terrain storage generation and representation system including a nonground point database (PDB), ground mesh database (MDB), and texture database (TDB). A voxel-based flag map is proposed for incrementally registering large-scale point clouds in a terrain model in real time. We quantize the 3D point clouds into 3D grids of the flag map as a comparative table in order to remove the redundant points. We integrate the large-scale 3D point clouds into a nonground PDB and a node-based terrain mesh using the CPU. Subsequently, we program a graphics processing unit (GPU) to generate the TDB by mapping the triangles in the terrain mesh onto the captured video images. Finally, we produce a nonground voxel map and a ground textured mesh as a terrain reconstruction result. Our proposed methods were tested in an outdoor environment. Our results show that the proposed system was able to rapidly generate terrain storage and provide high resolution terrain representation for mobile mapping services and a graphical user interface between remote operators and mobile robots.

  17. A streaming-based solution for remote visualization of 3D graphics on mobile devices.

    PubMed

    Lamberti, Fabrizio; Sanna, Andrea

    2007-01-01

    Mobile devices such as Personal Digital Assistants, Tablet PCs, and cellular phones have greatly enhanced user capability to connect to remote resources. Although a large set of applications are now available bridging the gap between desktop and mobile devices, visualization of complex 3D models is still a task hard to accomplish without specialized hardware. This paper proposes a system where a cluster of PCs, equipped with accelerated graphics cards managed by the Chromium software, is able to handle remote visualization sessions based on MPEG video streaming involving complex 3D models. The proposed framework allows mobile devices such as smart phones, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), and Tablet PCs to visualize objects consisting of millions of textured polygons and voxels at a frame rate of 30 fps or more depending on hardware resources at the server side and on multimedia capabilities at the client side. The server is able to concurrently manage multiple clients computing a video stream for each one; resolution and quality of each stream is tailored according to screen resolution and bandwidth of the client. The paper investigates in depth issues related to latency time, bit rate and quality of the generated stream, screen resolutions, as well as frames per second displayed.

  18. Real-Time Terrain Storage Generation from Multiple Sensors towards Mobile Robot Operation Interface

    PubMed Central

    Cho, Seoungjae; Xi, Yulong; Cho, Kyungeun

    2014-01-01

    A mobile robot mounted with multiple sensors is used to rapidly collect 3D point clouds and video images so as to allow accurate terrain modeling. In this study, we develop a real-time terrain storage generation and representation system including a nonground point database (PDB), ground mesh database (MDB), and texture database (TDB). A voxel-based flag map is proposed for incrementally registering large-scale point clouds in a terrain model in real time. We quantize the 3D point clouds into 3D grids of the flag map as a comparative table in order to remove the redundant points. We integrate the large-scale 3D point clouds into a nonground PDB and a node-based terrain mesh using the CPU. Subsequently, we program a graphics processing unit (GPU) to generate the TDB by mapping the triangles in the terrain mesh onto the captured video images. Finally, we produce a nonground voxel map and a ground textured mesh as a terrain reconstruction result. Our proposed methods were tested in an outdoor environment. Our results show that the proposed system was able to rapidly generate terrain storage and provide high resolution terrain representation for mobile mapping services and a graphical user interface between remote operators and mobile robots. PMID:25101321

  19. Estimates of emergency operating capacity in US manufacturing and nonmanufacturing industries

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

    Belzer, D.B.; Serot, D.E.; Kellogg, M.A.

    1991-03-01

    Development of integrated mobilization preparedness policies requires planning estimates of available productive capacity during national emergency conditions. Such estimates must be developed in a manner that allows evaluation of current trends in capacity and the consideration of uncertainties in various data inputs and in engineering assumptions. This study, conducted by Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL), developed estimates of emergency operating capacity (EOC) for 446 manufacturing industries at the 4-digit Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) level of aggregation and for 24 key non-manufacturing sectors. This volume presents tabular and graphical results of the historical analysis and projections for each SIC industry. (JF)

  20. Virtual Environment Training on Mobile Devices

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-09-01

    NONFUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS .............................................. 41 G. PRODUCT FEATURES...52 E. SOFTWARE PRODUCTION .............................................................. 52 F. LIMITATIONS...on Android and iOS tablets. G. PRODUCT FEATURES 1. The final product shall include interactive 3D graphics with simulated representation of actual

  1. Effects of environmental sounds on the guessability of animated graphic symbols.

    PubMed

    Harmon, Ashley C; Schlosser, Ralf W; Gygi, Brian; Shane, Howard C; Kong, Ying-Yee; Book, Lorraine; Macduff, Kelly; Hearn, Emilia

    2014-12-01

    Graphic symbols are a necessity for pre-literate children who use aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems (including non-electronic communication boards and speech generating devices), as well as for mobile technologies using AAC applications. Recently, developers of the Autism Language Program (ALP) Animated Graphics Set have added environmental sounds to animated symbols representing verbs in an attempt to enhance their iconicity. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of environmental sounds (added to animated graphic symbols representing verbs) in terms of naming. Participants included 46 children with typical development between the ages of 3;0 to 3;11 (years;months). The participants were randomly allocated to a condition of symbols with environmental sounds or a condition without environmental sounds. Results indicated that environmental sounds significantly enhanced the naming accuracy of animated symbols for verbs. Implications in terms of symbol selection, symbol refinement, and future symbol development will be discussed.

  2. Studying Upper-Limb Kinematics Using Inertial Sensors Embedded in Mobile Phones.

    PubMed

    Roldan-Jimenez, Cristina; Cuesta-Vargas, Antonio; Bennett, Paul

    2015-05-20

    In recent years, there has been a great interest in analyzing upper-limb kinematics. Inertial measurement with mobile phones is a convenient and portable analysis method for studying humerus kinematics in terms of angular mobility and linear acceleration. The aim of this analysis was to study upper-limb kinematics via mobile phones through six physical properties that correspond to angular mobility and acceleration in the three axes of space. This cross-sectional study recruited healthy young adult subjects. Humerus kinematics was studied in 10 young adults with the iPhone4. They performed flexion and abduction analytical tasks. Mobility angle and lineal acceleration in each of its axes (yaw, pitch, and roll) were obtained with the iPhone4. This device was placed on the right half of the body of each subject, in the middle third of the humerus, slightly posterior. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Descriptive graphics of analytical tasks performed were obtained. The biggest range of motion was found in pitch angle, and the biggest acceleration was found in the y-axis in both analytical tasks. Focusing on tridimensional kinematics, bigger range of motion and acceleration was found in abduction (209.69 degrees and 23.31 degrees per second respectively). Also, very strong correlation was found between angular mobility and linear acceleration in abduction (r=.845) and flexion (r=.860). The use of an iPhone for humerus tridimensional kinematics is feasible. This supports use of the mobile phone as a device to analyze upper-limb kinematics and to facilitate the evaluation of the patient. ©Cristina Roldan-Jimenez, Antonio Cuesta-Vargas, Paul Bennett. Originally published in JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technology (http://rehab.jmir.org), 20.05.2015.

  3. Improving Situational Awareness for First Responders via Mobile Computing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Betts, Bradley J.; Mah, Robert W.; Papasin, Richard; Del Mundo, Rommel; McIntosh, Dawn M.; Jorgensen, Charles

    2005-01-01

    This project looks to improve first responder situational awareness using tools and techniques of mobile computing. The prototype system combines wireless communication, real-time location determination, digital imaging, and three-dimensional graphics. Responder locations are tracked in an outdoor environment via GPS and uploaded to a central server via GPRS or an 802.11 network. Responders can also wirelessly share digital images and text reports, both with other responders and with the incident commander. A pre-built three dimensional graphics model of a particular emergency scene is used to visualize responder and report locations. Responders have a choice of information end points, ranging from programmable cellular phones to tablet computers. The system also employs location-aware computing to make responders aware of particular hazards as they approach them. The prototype was developed in conjunction with the NASA Ames Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team and has undergone field testing during responder exercise at NASA Ames.

  4. Improving Situational Awareness for First Responders via Mobile Computing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Betts, Bradley J.; Mah, Robert W.; Papasin, Richard; Del Mundo, Rommel; McIntosh, Dawn M.; Jorgensen, Charles

    2006-01-01

    This project looks to improve first responder incident command, and an appropriately managed flow of situational awareness using mobile computing techniques. The prototype system combines wireless communication, real-time location determination, digital imaging, and three-dimensional graphics. Responder locations are tracked in an outdoor environment via GPS and uploaded to a central server via GPRS or an 802. II network. Responders can also wireless share digital images and text reports, both with other responders and with the incident commander. A pre-built three dimensional graphics model of the emergency scene is used to visualize responder and report locations. Responders have a choice of information end points, ranging from programmable cellular phones to tablet computers. The system also employs location-aware computing to make responders aware of particular hazards as they approach them. The prototype was developed in conjunction with the NASA Ames Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team and has undergone field testing during responder exercises at NASA Ames.

  5. Systems design and comparative analysis of large antenna concepts

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Garrett, L. B.; Ferebee, M. J., Jr.

    1983-01-01

    Conceptual designs are evaluated and comparative analyses conducted for several large antenna spacecraft for Land Mobile Satellite System (LMSS) communications missions. Structural configurations include trusses, hoop and column and radial rib. The study was conducted using the Interactive Design and Evaluation of Advanced Spacecraft (IDEAS) system. The current capabilities, development status, and near-term plans for the IDEAS system are reviewed. Overall capabilities are highlighted. IDEAS is an integrated system of computer-aided design and analysis software used to rapidly evaluate system concepts and technology needs for future advanced spacecraft such as large antennas, platforms, and space stations. The system was developed at Langley to meet a need for rapid, cost-effective, labor-saving approaches to the design and analysis of numerous missions and total spacecraft system options under consideration. IDEAS consists of about 40 technical modules efficient executive, data-base and file management software, and interactive graphics display capabilities.

  6. Compression of facsimile graphics for transmission over digital mobile satellite circuits

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dimolitsas, Spiros; Corcoran, Frank L.

    A technique for reducing the transmission requirements of facsimile images while maintaining high intelligibility in mobile communications environments is described. The algorithms developed are capable of achieving a compression of approximately 32 to 1. The technique focuses on the implementation of a low-cost interface unit suitable for facsimile communication between low-power mobile stations and fixed stations for both point-to-point and point-to-multipoint transmissions. This interface may be colocated with the transmitting facsimile terminals. The technique was implemented and tested by intercepting facsimile documents in a store-and-forward mode.

  7. Real-time graphics for the Space Station Freedom cupola, developed in the Systems Engineering Simulator

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Red, Michael T.; Hess, Philip W.

    1989-01-01

    Among the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center's responsibilities for Space Station Freedom is the cupola. Attached to the resource node, the cupola is a windowed structure that will serve as the space station's secondary control center. From the cupola, operations involving the mobile service center and orbital maneuvering vehicle will be conducted. The Systems Engineering Simulator (SES), located in building 16, activated a real-time man-in-the-loop cupola simulator in November 1987. The SES cupola is an engineering tool with the flexibility to evolve in both hardware and software as the final cupola design matures. Two workstations are simulated with closed-circuit television monitors, rotational and translational hand controllers, programmable display pushbuttons, and graphics display with trackball and keyboard. The displays and controls of the SES cupola are driven by a Silicon Graphics Integrated Raster Imaging System (IRIS) 4D/70 GT computer. Through the use of an interactive display builder program, SES, cupola display pages consisting of two dimensional and three dimensional graphics are constructed. These display pages interact with the SES via the IRIS real-time graphics interface. The focus is on the real-time graphics interface applications software developed on the IRIS.

  8. Heads Up

    MedlinePlus

    ... HEADS UP Resources Training Custom PDFs Mobile Apps Videos Graphics Podcasts Social Media File Formats Help: How do I view different file formats (PDF, DOC, PPT, MPEG) on this site? Adobe PDF file Microsoft PowerPoint ... file Apple Quicktime file RealPlayer file Text file ...

  9. Deaf mobile application accessibility requirements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nathan, Shelena Soosay; Hussain, Azham; Hashim, Nor Laily

    2016-08-01

    Requirement for deaf mobile applications need to be analysed to ensure the disabilities need are instilled into the mobile applications developed for them. Universal design is understandable to comply every user needs, however specific disability is argued by the authors to have different need and requirements. These differences are among the reasons for these applications being developed to target for a specific group of people, however they are less usable and later abandoned. This study focuses on deriving requirements that are needed by the deaf in their mobile applications that are meant specifically for them. Studies on previous literature was conducted it can be concluded that graphic, text, multimedia and sign language interpreter are among mostly required features to be included in their mobile application to ensure the applications are usable for this community.

  10. Isomer Information from Ion Mobility Separation of High-Mannose Glycan Fragments.

    PubMed

    Harvey, David J; Seabright, Gemma E; Vasiljevic, Snezana; Crispin, Max; Struwe, Weston B

    2018-05-01

    Extracted arrival time distributions of negative ion CID-derived fragments produced prior to traveling-wave ion mobility separation were evaluated for their ability to provide structural information on N-linked glycans. Fragmentation of high-mannose glycans released from several glycoproteins, including those from viral sources, provided over 50 fragments, many of which gave unique collisional cross-sections and provided additional information used to assign structural isomers. For example, cross-ring fragments arising from cleavage of the reducing terminal GlcNAc residue on Man 8 GlcNAc 2 isomers have unique collision cross-sections enabling isomers to be differentiated in mixtures. Specific fragment collision cross-sections enabled identification of glycans, the antennae of which terminated in the antigenic α-galactose residue, and ions defining the composition of the 6-antenna of several of the glycans were also found to have different cross-sections from isomeric ions produced in the same spectra. Potential mechanisms for the formation of the various ions are discussed and the estimated collisional cross-sections are tabulated. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  11. Evaluating Texts for Graphical Literacy Instruction: The Graphic Rating Tool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roberts, Kathryn L.; Brugar, Kristy A.; Norman, Rebecca R.

    2015-01-01

    In this article, we present the Graphical Rating Tool (GRT), which is designed to evaluate the graphical devices that are commonly found in content-area, non-fiction texts, in order to identify books that are well suited for teaching about those devices. We also present a "best of" list of science and social studies books, which includes…

  12. Development and Evaluation of a Reverse-Entry Ion Source Orbitrap Mass Spectrometer.

    PubMed

    Poltash, Michael L; McCabe, Jacob W; Patrick, John W; Laganowsky, Arthur; Russell, David H

    2018-05-23

    As a step towards development of a high-resolution ion mobility mass spectrometer using the orbitrap mass analyzer platform, we describe herein a novel reverse-entry ion source (REIS) coupled to the higher-energy C-trap dissociation (HCD) cell of an orbitrap mass spectrometer with extended mass range. Development of the REIS is a first step in the development of a drift tube ion mobility-orbitrap MS. The REIS approach retains the functionality of the commercial instrument ion source which permits the uninterrupted use of the instrument during development as well as performance comparisons between the two ion sources. Ubiquitin (8.5 kDa) and lipid binding to the ammonia transport channel (AmtB, 126 kDa) protein complex were used as model soluble and membrane proteins, respectively, to evaluate the performance of the REIS instrument. Mass resolution obtained with the REIS is comparable to that obtained using the commercial ion source. The charge state distributions for ubiquitin and AmtB obtained on the REIS are in agreement with previous studies which suggests that the REIS-orbitrap EMR retains native structure in the gas phase. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  13. The development of a tactile graphic version of IOTN for visually impaired patients.

    PubMed

    AlSarheed, M; Bedi, R; Hunt, N

    2000-05-01

    The Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN) is a visual-based index and has been widely used. This paper describes the development and evaluation of tactile graphics representing the aesthetic component (AC) of IOTN for the use of visually impaired patients (VI). Four tactile graphics were produced corresponding to IOTN photographs 1 (graphic 1, no treatment - mild need), 5 (graphic 2, moderate need), 8 (graphic 3, severe need; increased overjet) and 10 (graphic 4, severe need). Nine (30-50 years) expert consumers from the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) and 13 VI schoolchildren (11-16 years) evaluated the graphics. The evaluation was in terms of design features, complexity of information and ease of use. Each individual was asked to arrange the graphics in order of severity of malocclusion. The procedure was repeated after 30 min to test individual reliability (http://www.clinorthodres.com/cor-c-084/). The consumer group was able to identify the main features in each graphic and found them easy to use. Six had arranged the graphics correctly at the first attempt and five on their second. The children were able to distinguish the different oral features, except the overjet presentation in graphic 2. Nine children arranged the graphics correctly at the first attempt, but only six at the second. The confusion centred for both groups on presenting an increased overjet with graphic 2. A modification was undertaken to enhance the anterior-posterior nature of the image. Fifteen VI schoolchildren reassessed the modified graphics, 14 arranged them correctly at the first attempt and 13 at the second. The study concluded that IOTN tactile graphics were well accepted and showed a good reliability.

  14. The development of a tactile graphic version of IOTN for visually impaired patients.

    PubMed

    Alsarheed, M; Bedi, R; Hunt, N

    2000-05-01

    The Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN) is a visual-based index and has been widely used. This paper describes the development and evaluation of tactile graphics representing the aesthetic component (AC) of IOTN for the use of visually impaired patients (VI). Four tactile graphics were produced corresponding to IOTN photographs 1 (graphic 1, no treatment - mild need), 5 (graphic 2, moderate need), 8 (graphic 3, severe need; increased overjet) and 10 (graphic 4, severe need). Nine (30-50 years) expert consumers from the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) and 13 VI schoolchildren (11-16 years) evaluated the graphics. The evaluation was in terms of design features, complexity of information and ease of use. Each individual was asked to arrange the graphics in order of severity of malocclusion. The procedure was repeated after 30 min to test individual reliability (www.clinorthodres.com/cor-c-084/). The consumer group was able to identify the main features in each graphic and found them easy to use. Six had arranged the graphics correctly at the first attempt and five on their second. The children were able to distinguish the different oral features, except the overjet presentation in graphic 2. Nine children arranged the graphics correctly at the first attempt, but only six at the second. The confusion centred for both groups on presenting an increased overjet with graphic 2. A modification was undertaken to enhance the anterior-posterior nature of the image. Fifteen VI schoolchildren reassessed the modified graphics, 14 arranged them correctly at the first attempt and 13 at the second. The study concluded that IOTN tactile graphics were well accepted and showed a good reliability.

  15. Dual-domain mass-transfer parameters from electrical hysteresis: theory and analytical approach applied to laboratory, synthetic streambed, and groundwater experiments

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Briggs, Martin A.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Ong, John B.; Harvey, Judson W.; Lane, John W.

    2014-01-01

    Models of dual-domain mass transfer (DDMT) are used to explain anomalous aquifer transport behavior such as the slow release of contamination and solute tracer tailing. Traditional tracer experiments to characterize DDMT are performed at the flow path scale (meters), which inherently incorporates heterogeneous exchange processes; hence, estimated “effective” parameters are sensitive to experimental design (i.e., duration and injection velocity). Recently, electrical geophysical methods have been used to aid in the inference of DDMT parameters because, unlike traditional fluid sampling, electrical methods can directly sense less-mobile solute dynamics and can target specific points along subsurface flow paths. Here we propose an analytical framework for graphical parameter inference based on a simple petrophysical model explaining the hysteretic relation between measurements of bulk and fluid conductivity arising in the presence of DDMT at the local scale. Analysis is graphical and involves visual inspection of hysteresis patterns to (1) determine the size of paired mobile and less-mobile porosities and (2) identify the exchange rate coefficient through simple curve fitting. We demonstrate the approach using laboratory column experimental data, synthetic streambed experimental data, and field tracer-test data. Results from the analytical approach compare favorably with results from calibration of numerical models and also independent measurements of mobile and less-mobile porosity. We show that localized electrical hysteresis patterns resulting from diffusive exchange are independent of injection velocity, indicating that repeatable parameters can be extracted under varied experimental designs, and these parameters represent the true intrinsic properties of specific volumes of porous media of aquifers and hyporheic zones.

  16. Dual-domain mass-transfer parameters from electrical hysteresis: Theory and analytical approach applied to laboratory, synthetic streambed, and groundwater experiments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Briggs, Martin A.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Ong, John B.; Harvey, Judson W.; Lane, John W.

    2014-10-01

    Models of dual-domain mass transfer (DDMT) are used to explain anomalous aquifer transport behavior such as the slow release of contamination and solute tracer tailing. Traditional tracer experiments to characterize DDMT are performed at the flow path scale (meters), which inherently incorporates heterogeneous exchange processes; hence, estimated "effective" parameters are sensitive to experimental design (i.e., duration and injection velocity). Recently, electrical geophysical methods have been used to aid in the inference of DDMT parameters because, unlike traditional fluid sampling, electrical methods can directly sense less-mobile solute dynamics and can target specific points along subsurface flow paths. Here we propose an analytical framework for graphical parameter inference based on a simple petrophysical model explaining the hysteretic relation between measurements of bulk and fluid conductivity arising in the presence of DDMT at the local scale. Analysis is graphical and involves visual inspection of hysteresis patterns to (1) determine the size of paired mobile and less-mobile porosities and (2) identify the exchange rate coefficient through simple curve fitting. We demonstrate the approach using laboratory column experimental data, synthetic streambed experimental data, and field tracer-test data. Results from the analytical approach compare favorably with results from calibration of numerical models and also independent measurements of mobile and less-mobile porosity. We show that localized electrical hysteresis patterns resulting from diffusive exchange are independent of injection velocity, indicating that repeatable parameters can be extracted under varied experimental designs, and these parameters represent the true intrinsic properties of specific volumes of porous media of aquifers and hyporheic zones.

  17. Mobile Applications and Multi-User Virtual Reality Simulations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gordillo, Orlando Enrique

    2016-01-01

    This is my third internship with NASA and my second one at the Johnson Space Center. I work within the engineering directorate in ER7 (Software Robotics and Simulations Division) at a graphics lab called IGOAL. We are a very well-rounded lab because we have dedicated software developers and dedicated 3D artist, and when you combine the two, what you get is the ability to create many different things such as interactive simulations, 3D models, animations, and mobile applications.

  18. Evaluating Preference for Graphic Feedback on Correct versus Incorrect Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sigurdsson, Sigurdur O.; Ring, Brandon M.

    2013-01-01

    The current study evaluated preferences of undergraduate students for graphic feedback on percentage of incorrect performance versus feedback on percentage of correct performance. A total of 108 participants were enrolled in the study and received graphic feedback on performance on 12 online quizzes. One half of participants received graphic…

  19. Validation of a Mobile Device for Acoustic Coordinated Reset Neuromodulation Tinnitus Therapy.

    PubMed

    Hauptmann, Christian; Wegener, Alexander; Poppe, Hendrik; Williams, Mark; Popelka, Gerald; Tass, Peter A

    2016-10-01

    Sound-based tinnitus intervention stimuli include broad-band noise signals with subjectively adjusted bandwidths used as maskers delivered by commercial devices or hearing aids, environmental sounds broadly described and delivered by both consumer devices and hearing aids, music recordings specifically modified and delivered in a variety of different ways, and other stimuli. Acoustic coordinated reset neuromodulation therapy for tinnitus reduction has unique and more stringent requirements compared to all other sound-based tinnitus interventions. These include precise characterization of tinnitus pitch and loudness, and effective provision of patient-controlled daily therapy signals at defined frequencies, levels, and durations outside of the clinic. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an approach to accommodate these requirements including evaluation of a mobile device, validation of an automated tinnitus pitch-matching algorithm and assessment of a patient's ability to control stimuli and collect repeated outcome measures. The experimental design involved direct laboratory measurements of the sound delivery capabilities of a mobile device, comparison of an automated, adaptive pitch-matching method to a traditional manual method and measures of a patient's ability to understand and manipulate a mobile device graphic user interface to both deliver the therapy signals and collect the outcome measures. This study consisted of 5 samples of a common mobile device for the laboratory measures and a total of 30 adult participants: 15 randomly selected normal-hearing participants with simulated tinnitus for validation of a tinnitus pitch-matching algorithm and 15 sequentially selected patients already undergoing tinnitus therapy for evaluation of patient usability. No tinnitus intervention(s) were specifically studied as a component of this study. Data collection involved laboratory measures of mobile devices, comparison of manual and automated adaptive tinnitus pitch-matching psychoacoustic procedures in the same participant analyzed for absolute differences (t test), variance differences (f test), and range comparisons, and assessment of patient usability including questionnaire measures and logs of patient observations. Mobile devices are able to reliably and accurately deliver the acoustic therapy signals. There was no difference in mean pitch matches (t test, p > 0.05) between an automated adaptive method compared to a traditional manual pitch-matching method. However, the variability of the automated pitch-matching method was much less (f test, p < 0.05) with twice as many matches within the predefined error range (±5%) compared to the manual pitch-matching method (80% versus 40%). After a short initial training, all participants were able to use the mobile device effectively and to perform the required tasks without further professional assistance. American Academy of Audiology

  20. ANSO study: evaluation in an indoor environment of a mobile assistance robotic grasping arm.

    PubMed

    Coignard, P; Departe, J P; Remy Neris, O; Baillet, A; Bar, A; Drean, D; Verier, A; Leroux, C; Belletante, P; Le Guiet, J L

    2013-12-01

    To evaluate the reliability and functional acceptability of the ‘‘Synthetic Autonomous Majordomo’’ (SAM) robotic aid system (a mobile Neobotix base equipped with a semi-automatic vision interface and a Manus robotic arm). An open, multicentre, controlled study. We included 29 tetraplegic patients (23 patients with spinal cord injuries, 3 with locked-in syndrome and 4 with other disorders; mean SD age: 37.83 13.3) and 34 control participants (mean SD age: 32.44 11.2). The reliability of the user interface was evaluated in three multi-step scenarios: selection of the room in which the object to be retrieved was located (in the presence or absence of visual control by the user), selection of the object to be retrieved, the grasping of the object itself and the robot’s return to the user with the object. A questionnaire was used to assess the robot’s user acceptability. The SAM system was stable and reliable: both patients and control participants experienced few failures when completing the various stages of the scenarios. The graphic interface was effective for selecting and grasping the object – even in the absence of visual control. Users and carers were generally satisfied with SAM, although only a quarter of patients said that they would consider using the robot in their activities of daily living. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  1. Computer graphics for quality control in the INAA of geological samples

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Grossman, J.N.; Baedecker, P.A.

    1987-01-01

    A data reduction system for the routine instrumental activation analysis of samples is described, with particular emphasis on interactive graphics capabilities for evaluating analytical quality. Graphics procedures have been developed to interactively control the analysis of selected photopeaks during spectral analysis, and to evaluate detector performance during a given counting cycle. Graphics algorithms are also used to compare the data on reference samples with accepted values, to prepare quality control charts to evaluate long term precision and to search for systematic variations in data on reference samples as a function of time. ?? 1987 Akade??miai Kiado??.

  2. Real-time scalable visual analysis on mobile devices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pattath, Avin; Ebert, David S.; May, Richard A.; Collins, Timothy F.; Pike, William

    2008-02-01

    Interactive visual presentation of information can help an analyst gain faster and better insight from data. When combined with situational or context information, visualization on mobile devices is invaluable to in-field responders and investigators. However, several challenges are posed by the form-factor of mobile devices in developing such systems. In this paper, we classify these challenges into two broad categories - issues in general mobile computing and issues specific to visual analysis on mobile devices. Using NetworkVis and Infostar as example systems, we illustrate some of the techniques that we employed to overcome many of the identified challenges. NetworkVis is an OpenVG-based real-time network monitoring and visualization system developed for Windows Mobile devices. Infostar is a flash-based interactive, real-time visualization application intended to provide attendees access to conference information. Linked time-synchronous visualization, stylus/button-based interactivity, vector graphics, overview-context techniques, details-on-demand and statistical information display are some of the highlights of these applications.

  3. Real-Time Geospatial Data Viewer (RETIGO)

    EPA Science Inventory

    This is a web-based method that allows the users to upload their air monitoring data and explore the data on graphical interface. The method is optimized for mobile monitoring data sets, showing the data on a map, on a time series, and referenced to a hypothesized line and/or poi...

  4. Radar Cuts Subsoil Survey Costs

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Johnson, R.; Glaccum, R.

    1984-01-01

    Soil features located with minimum time and labor. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) system supplements manual and mechanical methods in performing subsurface soil survey. Mobile system obtains graphic profile of soil discontinuities and interfaces as function of depth. One or two test borings necessary to substantiate soil profile. GPR proves useful as reconnaissance tool.

  5. Trend Monitoring System (TMS) graphics software

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Brown, J. S.

    1979-01-01

    A prototype bus communications systems, which is being used to support the Trend Monitoring System (TMS) and to evaluate the bus concept is considered. A set of FORTRAN-callable graphics subroutines for the host MODCOMP comuter, and an approach to splitting graphics work between the host and the system's intelligent graphics terminals are described. The graphics software in the MODCOMP and the operating software package written for the graphics terminals are included.

  6. Characterization and Analysis of Paper Spray Ionization of Organic Compounds.

    PubMed

    Aliaga-Aguilar, Hugo

    2018-01-01

    Paper spray ionization has arisen relatively recently as a complement and alternative to electro- and nanospray ionization with silica capillaries. A majority of the work in the present literature focuses on the chemical aspect of paper spray. In order to study the physical and phenomenological facet of its implementation, we measured current and voltage distributions of Taylor cones. To study transport phenomena on filter paper, we addressed the behavior of large, sparingly soluble tetraalkylammonium ions, which are usually used as mobility standards, in paper spray. The variation of intensity with time of monomers and dimers of these ions was measured with a differential mobility analyzer and compared with that produced by contamination in the paper. At the same time, we evaluated the proficiency of different paper spray techniques for protein analysis using nano spray as a reference. Experiments suggest that Taylor cones in paper spray are subject to hysteresis, whereas transport phenomena in the porous substrate notably affects the ionization of the sample. Additionally, we observed that paper spray tends to favor lower charge states in proteins. Graphical Abstract.

  7. Robust multiperson tracking from a mobile platform.

    PubMed

    Ess, Andreas; Leibe, Bastian; Schindler, Konrad; van Gool, Luc

    2009-10-01

    In this paper, we address the problem of multiperson tracking in busy pedestrian zones using a stereo rig mounted on a mobile platform. The complexity of the problem calls for an integrated solution that extracts as much visual information as possible and combines it through cognitive feedback cycles. We propose such an approach, which jointly estimates camera position, stereo depth, object detection, and tracking. The interplay between those components is represented by a graphical model. Since the model has to incorporate object-object interactions and temporal links to past frames, direct inference is intractable. We, therefore, propose a two-stage procedure: for each frame, we first solve a simplified version of the model (disregarding interactions and temporal continuity) to estimate the scene geometry and an overcomplete set of object detections. Conditioned on these results, we then address object interactions, tracking, and prediction in a second step. The approach is experimentally evaluated on several long and difficult video sequences from busy inner-city locations. Our results show that the proposed integration makes it possible to deliver robust tracking performance in scenes of realistic complexity.

  8. SparkMed: a framework for dynamic integration of multimedia medical data into distributed m-Health systems.

    PubMed

    Constantinescu, Liviu; Kim, Jinman; Feng, David Dagan

    2012-01-01

    With the advent of 4G and other long-term evolution (LTE) wireless networks, the traditional boundaries of patient record propagation are diminishing as networking technologies extend the reach of hospital infrastructure and provide on-demand mobile access to medical multimedia data. However, due to legacy and proprietary software, storage and decommissioning costs, and the price of centralization and redevelopment, it remains complex, expensive, and often unfeasible for hospitals to deploy their infrastructure for online and mobile use. This paper proposes the SparkMed data integration framework for mobile healthcare (m-Health), which significantly benefits from the enhanced network capabilities of LTE wireless technologies, by enabling a wide range of heterogeneous medical software and database systems (such as the picture archiving and communication systems, hospital information system, and reporting systems) to be dynamically integrated into a cloud-like peer-to-peer multimedia data store. Our framework allows medical data applications to share data with mobile hosts over a wireless network (such as WiFi and 3G), by binding to existing software systems and deploying them as m-Health applications. SparkMed integrates techniques from multimedia streaming, rich Internet applications (RIA), and remote procedure call (RPC) frameworks to construct a Self-managing, Pervasive Automated netwoRK for Medical Enterprise Data (SparkMed). Further, it is resilient to failure, and able to use mobile and handheld devices to maintain its network, even in the absence of dedicated server devices. We have developed a prototype of the SparkMed framework for evaluation on a radiological workflow simulation, which uses SparkMed to deploy a radiological image viewer as an m-Health application for telemedical use by radiologists and stakeholders. We have evaluated our prototype using ten devices over WiFi and 3G, verifying that our framework meets its two main objectives: 1) interactive delivery of medical multimedia data to mobile devices; and 2) attaching to non-networked medical software processes without significantly impacting their performance. Consistent response times of under 500 ms and graphical frame rates of over 5 frames per second were observed under intended usage conditions. Further, overhead measurements displayed linear scalability and low resource requirements.

  9. Validation of Mobility of Pedestrians with Low Vision Using Graphic Floor Signs and Voice Guides.

    PubMed

    Omori, Kiyohiro; Yanagihara, Takao; Kitagawa, Hiroshi; Ikeda, Norihiro

    2015-01-01

    Some people with low vision or elderly persons tend to walk while watching a nearby floor, therefore, they often overlook or hard to read suspended signs. In this study, we propose two kinds of voice guides, and an experiment is conducted by participants with low vision using these voice guides and graphic floor signs in order to investigate effectiveness of these combinations. In clock position method (CP), each direction of near facilities are described in using an analogy of a 12-hour clock. Meanwhile, in numbering method (NU), near facilities are put the number in clockwise order, however, each direction are only illustrated in a crossing sign. As a result of an experiment, it is showed that both voice guides are effective for pedestrians with low vision. NU is used as a complement of graphic floor signs. Meanwhile, CP is used independently with graphic floor signs, however, there is a risk in the case of using in the environment where pedestrians are easy to mistake the reference direction defined by the sounding speaker.

  10. Cockpit weather graphics using mobile satellite communications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Seth, Shashi

    Many new companies are pushing state-of-the-art technology to bring a revolution in the cockpits of General Aviation (GA) aircraft. The vision, according to Dr. Bruce Holmes - the Assistant Director for Aeronautics at National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Langley Research Center, is to provide such an advanced flight control system that the motor and cognitive skills you use to drive a car would be very similar to the ones you would use to fly an airplane. We at ViGYAN, Inc., are currently developing a system called the Pilot Weather Advisor (PWxA), which would be a part of such an advanced technology flight management system. The PWxA provides graphical depictions of weather information in the cockpit of aircraft in near real-time, through the use of broadcast satellite communications. The purpose of this system is to improve the safety and utility of GA aircraft operations. Considerable effort is being extended for research in the design of graphical weather systems, notably the works of Scanlon and Dash. The concept of providing pilots with graphical depictions of weather conditions, overlaid on geographical and navigational maps, is extremely powerful.

  11. Cockpit weather graphics using mobile satellite communications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Seth, Shashi

    1993-01-01

    Many new companies are pushing state-of-the-art technology to bring a revolution in the cockpits of General Aviation (GA) aircraft. The vision, according to Dr. Bruce Holmes - the Assistant Director for Aeronautics at National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Langley Research Center, is to provide such an advanced flight control system that the motor and cognitive skills you use to drive a car would be very similar to the ones you would use to fly an airplane. We at ViGYAN, Inc., are currently developing a system called the Pilot Weather Advisor (PWxA), which would be a part of such an advanced technology flight management system. The PWxA provides graphical depictions of weather information in the cockpit of aircraft in near real-time, through the use of broadcast satellite communications. The purpose of this system is to improve the safety and utility of GA aircraft operations. Considerable effort is being extended for research in the design of graphical weather systems, notably the works of Scanlon and Dash. The concept of providing pilots with graphical depictions of weather conditions, overlaid on geographical and navigational maps, is extremely powerful.

  12. Advanced computer graphic techniques for laser range finder (LRF) simulation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bedkowski, Janusz; Jankowski, Stanislaw

    2008-11-01

    This paper show an advanced computer graphic techniques for laser range finder (LRF) simulation. The LRF is the common sensor for unmanned ground vehicle, autonomous mobile robot and security applications. The cost of the measurement system is extremely high, therefore the simulation tool is designed. The simulation gives an opportunity to execute algorithm such as the obstacle avoidance[1], slam for robot localization[2], detection of vegetation and water obstacles in surroundings of the robot chassis[3], LRF measurement in crowd of people[1]. The Axis Aligned Bounding Box (AABB) and alternative technique based on CUDA (NVIDIA Compute Unified Device Architecture) is presented.

  13. GPU-based Parallel Application Design for Emerging Mobile Devices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gupta, Kshitij

    A revolution is underway in the computing world that is causing a fundamental paradigm shift in device capabilities and form-factor, with a move from well-established legacy desktop/laptop computers to mobile devices in varying sizes and shapes. Amongst all the tasks these devices must support, graphics has emerged as the 'killer app' for providing a fluid user interface and high-fidelity game rendering, effectively making the graphics processor (GPU) one of the key components in (present and future) mobile systems. By utilizing the GPU as a general-purpose parallel processor, this dissertation explores the GPU computing design space from an applications standpoint, in the mobile context, by focusing on key challenges presented by these devices---limited compute, memory bandwidth, and stringent power consumption requirements---while improving the overall application efficiency of the increasingly important speech recognition workload for mobile user interaction. We broadly partition trends in GPU computing into four major categories. We analyze hardware and programming model limitations in current-generation GPUs and detail an alternate programming style called Persistent Threads, identify four use case patterns, and propose minimal modifications that would be required for extending native support. We show how by manually extracting data locality and altering the speech recognition pipeline, we are able to achieve significant savings in memory bandwidth while simultaneously reducing the compute burden on GPU-like parallel processors. As we foresee GPU computing to evolve from its current 'co-processor' model into an independent 'applications processor' that is capable of executing complex work independently, we create an alternate application framework that enables the GPU to handle all control-flow dependencies autonomously at run-time while minimizing host involvement to just issuing commands, that facilitates an efficient application implementation. Finally, as compute and communication capabilities of mobile devices improve, we analyze energy implications of processing speech recognition locally (on-chip) and offloading it to servers (in-cloud).

  14. Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) Graphics Processing Board (GPB) Radiation Test Evaluation Report

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Salazar, George A.; Steele, Glen F.

    2013-01-01

    Large round trip communications latency for deep space missions will require more onboard computational capabilities to enable the space vehicle to undertake many tasks that have traditionally been ground-based, mission control responsibilities. As a result, visual display graphics will be required to provide simpler vehicle situational awareness through graphical representations, as well as provide capabilities never before done in a space mission, such as augmented reality for in-flight maintenance or Telepresence activities. These capabilities will require graphics processors and associated support electronic components for high computational graphics processing. In an effort to understand the performance of commercial graphics card electronics operating in the expected radiation environment, a preliminary test was performed on five commercial offthe- shelf (COTS) graphics cards. This paper discusses the preliminary evaluation test results of five COTS graphics processing cards tested to the International Space Station (ISS) low earth orbit radiation environment. Three of the five graphics cards were tested to a total dose of 6000 rads (Si). The test articles, test configuration, preliminary results, and recommendations are discussed.

  15. The Importance of Visual Experience, Gender, and Emotion in the Assessment of an Assistive Tactile Mouse.

    PubMed

    Brayda, Luca; Campus, Claudio; Memeo, Mariacarla; Lucagrossi, Laura

    2015-01-01

    Tactile maps are efficient tools to improve spatial understanding and mobility skills of visually impaired people. Their limited adaptability can be compensated with haptic devices which display graphical information, but their assessment is frequently limited to performance-based metrics only which can hide potential spatial abilities in O&M protocols. We assess a low-tech tactile mouse able to deliver three-dimensional content considering how performance, mental workload, behavior, and anxiety status vary with task difficulty and gender in congenitally blind, late blind, and sighted subjects. Results show that task difficulty coherently modulates the efficiency and difficulty to build mental maps, regardless of visual experience. Although exhibiting attitudes that were similar and gender-independent, the females had lower performance and higher cognitive load, especially when congenitally blind. All groups showed a significant decrease in anxiety after using the device. Tactile graphics with our device seems therefore to be applicable with different visual experiences, with no negative emotional consequences of mentally demanding spatial tasks. Going beyond performance-based assessment, our methodology can help with better targeting technological solutions in orientation and mobility protocols.

  16. Graphical Evaluation of Hierarchical Clustering Schemes. Technical Report No. 1.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Halff, Henry M.

    Graphical methods for evaluating the fit of Johnson's hierarchical clustering schemes are presented together with an example. These evaluation methods examine the extent to which the clustering algorithm can minimize the overlap of the distributions of intracluster and intercluster distances. (Author)

  17. Development and training of a learning expert system in an autonomous mobile robot via simulation

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

    Spelt, P.F.; Lyness, E.; DeSaussure, G.

    1989-11-01

    The Center for Engineering Systems Advanced Research (CESAR) conducts basic research in the area of intelligent machines. Recently at CESAR a learning expert system was created to operate on board an autonomous robot working at a process control panel. The authors discuss two-computer simulation system used to create, evaluate and train this learning system. The simulation system has a graphics display of the current status of the process being simulated, and the same program which does the simulating also drives the actual control panel. Simulation results were validated on the actual robot. The speed and safety values of using amore » computerized simulator to train a learning computer, and future uses of the simulation system, are discussed.« less

  18. Development and validation of a low-cost mobile robotics testbed

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Johnson, Michael; Hayes, Martin J.

    2012-03-01

    This paper considers the design, construction and validation of a low-cost experimental robotic testbed, which allows for the localisation and tracking of multiple robotic agents in real time. The testbed system is suitable for research and education in a range of different mobile robotic applications, for validating theoretical as well as practical research work in the field of digital control, mobile robotics, graphical programming and video tracking systems. It provides a reconfigurable floor space for mobile robotic agents to operate within, while tracking the position of multiple agents in real-time using the overhead vision system. The overall system provides a highly cost-effective solution to the topical problem of providing students with practical robotics experience within severe budget constraints. Several problems encountered in the design and development of the mobile robotic testbed and associated tracking system, such as radial lens distortion and the selection of robot identifier templates are clearly addressed. The testbed performance is quantified and several experiments involving LEGO Mindstorm NXT and Merlin System MiaBot robots are discussed.

  19. Human Pacman: A Mobile Augmented Reality Entertainment System Based on Physical, Social, and Ubiquitous Computing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cheok, Adrian David

    This chapter details the Human Pacman system to illuminate entertainment computing which ventures to embed the natural physical world seamlessly with a fantasy virtual playground by capitalizing on infrastructure provided by mobile computing, wireless LAN, and ubiquitous computing. With Human Pacman, we have a physical role-playing computer fantasy together with real human-social and mobile-gaming that emphasizes on collaboration and competition between players in a wide outdoor physical area that allows natural wide-area human-physical movements. Pacmen and Ghosts are now real human players in the real world experiencing mixed computer graphics fantasy-reality provided by using the wearable computers on them. Virtual cookies and actual tangible physical objects are incorporated into the game play to provide novel experiences of seamless transitions between the real and virtual worlds. This is an example of a new form of gaming that anchors on physicality, mobility, social interaction, and ubiquitous computing.

  20. Investigating the Mobility of Light Autonomous Tracked Vehicles using a High Performance Computing Simulation Capability

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Negrut, Dan; Mazhar, Hammad; Melanz, Daniel; Lamb, David; Jayakumar, Paramsothy; Letherwood, Michael; Jain, Abhinandan; Quadrelli, Marco

    2012-01-01

    This paper is concerned with the physics-based simulation of light tracked vehicles operating on rough deformable terrain. The focus is on small autonomous vehicles, which weigh less than 100 lb and move on deformable and rough terrain that is feature rich and no longer representable using a continuum approach. A scenario of interest is, for instance, the simulation of a reconnaissance mission for a high mobility lightweight robot where objects such as a boulder or a ditch that could otherwise be considered small for a truck or tank, become major obstacles that can impede the mobility of the light autonomous vehicle and negatively impact the success of its mission. Analyzing and gauging the mobility and performance of these light vehicles is accomplished through a modeling and simulation capability called Chrono::Engine. Chrono::Engine relies on parallel execution on Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) cards.

  1. Quantifying functional mobility progress for chronic disease management.

    PubMed

    Boyle, Justin; Karunanithi, Mohan; Wark, Tim; Chan, Wilbur; Colavitti, Christine

    2006-01-01

    A method for quantifying improvements in functional mobility is presented based on patient-worn accelerometer devices. For patients with cardiovascular, respiratory, or other chronic disease, increasing the amount of functional mobility is a large component of rehabilitation programs. We have conducted an observational trial on the use of accelerometers for quantifying mobility improvements in a small group of chronic disease patients (n=15, 48 - 86 yrs). Cognitive impairments precluded complex instrumentation of patients, and movement data was obtained from a single 2-axis accelerometer device worn at the hip. In our trial, movement data collected from accelerometer devices was classified into Lying vs Sitting/Standing vs Walking/Activity movements. This classification enabled the amount of walking to be quantified and graphically presented to clinicians and carers for feedback on exercise efficacy. Presenting long term trends in this data to patients also provides valuable feedback for self managed care and assisting with compliance.

  2. A microfluidics-based mobility shift assay to identify new inhibitors of β-secretase for Alzheimer's disease.

    PubMed

    Liu, Rongfeng; Liu, Yu-Chih; Meng, Junwei; Zhu, Haiyan; Zhang, Xuehong

    2017-11-01

    The β-secretase (BACE1) initiates the generation of toxic amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) from amyloid-β precursor protein (APP), which was widely considered to play a key role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Here, a novel microfluidics-based mobility shift assay (MMSA) was developed, validated, and applied for the screening of BACE1 inhibitors for AD. First, the BACE1 activity assay was established with a new fluorescent peptide substrate (FAM-EVNLDAEF) derived from the Swedish mutant APP, and high-quality ratiometric data were generated in both endpoint and kinetic modes by electrophoretic separation of peptide substrate from the BACE1 cleaved product (FAM-EVNL) before fluorescence quantification. To validate the assay, the inhibition and kinetic parameter values of two known inhibitors (AZD3839 and AZD3293) were evaluated, and the results were in good agreement with those reported by other methods. Finally, the assay was applied to screen for new inhibitors from a 900-compound library in a 384-well format, and one novel hit (IC 50 = 26.5 ± 1.5 μM) was identified. Compared with the common fluorescence-based assays, the primary advantage of the direct MMSA was to discover novel BACE1 inhibitors with lower auto-fluorescence interference, and its superb capability for kinetic study. Graphical abstract Microfluidics-based mobility shift assay for BACE1.

  3. "Your Credibility Could Be Shot": Preservice Teachers' Thinking about Nonfiction Graphic Novels, Curriculum Decision Making, and Professional Acceptance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Clark, J. Spencer

    2013-01-01

    This article examined the value of using nonfiction graphic novels as historical narratives in the social studies curriculum. Preservice teachers evaluated several graphic novels and identified attributes of graphic novels that could contribute to students' development of historical thinking and understanding of multiple perspectives. Despite the…

  4. PyMOL mControl: Manipulating Molecular Visualization with Mobile Devices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lam, Wendy W. T.; Siu, Shirley W. I.

    2017-01-01

    Viewing and manipulating three-dimensional (3D) structures in molecular graphics software are essential tasks for researchers and students to understand the functions of molecules. Currently, the way to manipulate a 3D molecular object is mainly based on mouse-and-keyboard control that is usually difficult and tedious to learn. While gesture-based…

  5. How We Live: Then and Now.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Linden, Fabian; Ryscavage, Paul

    The 20th century has brought many demographic changes to the United States. This booklet briefly relates some of those changes and provides many charts and graphs to illustrate the changes graphically. The century has been one of population growth, but the rate of growth has slowed since the 1950s. The population is mobile, with more than two out…

  6. Persuasive Writing with Mobile-Based Graphic Organizers in Inclusive Classrooms across the Curriculum

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Regan, Kelley; Evmenova, Anya S.; Good, Kevin; Legget, Alicia; Ahn, Soo Y.; Gafurov, Boris; Mastropieri, Margo

    2018-01-01

    As writing instruction expands beyond the language arts classroom, students with disabilities, English language learners, and others who struggle with writing continue to need support with written expression. A timely practice to support student writing is the use of technology. This study used a quasi-experimental group design to examine the…

  7. Augmented Reality Comes to Physics

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Buesing, Mark; Cook, Michael

    2013-01-01

    Augmented reality (AR) is a technology used on computing devices where processor-generated graphics are rendered over real objects to enhance the sensory experience in real time. In other words, what you are really seeing is augmented by the computer. Many AR games already exist for systems such as Kinect and Nintendo 3DS and mobile apps, such as…

  8. Dimension scaling effects on the yield sensitivity of HEMT digital circuits

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sarker, Jogendra C.; Purviance, John E.

    1992-01-01

    In our previous works, using a graphical tool, yield factor histograms, we studied the yield sensitivity of High Electron Mobility Transistors (HEMT) and HEMT circuit performance with the variation of process parameters. This work studies the scaling effects of process parameters on yield sensitivity of HEMT digital circuits. The results from two HEMT circuits are presented.

  9. Smartphones as image processing systems for prosthetic vision.

    PubMed

    Zapf, Marc P; Matteucci, Paul B; Lovell, Nigel H; Suaning, Gregg J

    2013-01-01

    The feasibility of implants for prosthetic vision has been demonstrated by research and commercial organizations. In most devices, an essential forerunner to the internal stimulation circuit is an external electronics solution for capturing, processing and relaying image information as well as extracting useful features from the scene surrounding the patient. The capabilities and multitude of image processing algorithms that can be performed by the device in real-time plays a major part in the final quality of the prosthetic vision. It is therefore optimal to use powerful hardware yet to avoid bulky, straining solutions. Recent publications have reported of portable single-board computers fast enough for computationally intensive image processing. Following the rapid evolution of commercial, ultra-portable ARM (Advanced RISC machine) mobile devices, the authors investigated the feasibility of modern smartphones running complex face detection as external processing devices for vision implants. The role of dedicated graphics processors in speeding up computation was evaluated while performing a demanding noise reduction algorithm (image denoising). The time required for face detection was found to decrease by 95% from 2.5 year old to recent devices. In denoising, graphics acceleration played a major role, speeding up denoising by a factor of 18. These results demonstrate that the technology has matured sufficiently to be considered as a valid external electronics platform for visual prosthetic research.

  10. Color postprocessing for 3-dimensional finite element mesh quality evaluation and evolving graphical workstation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Panthaki, Malcolm J.

    1987-01-01

    Three general tasks on general-purpose, interactive color graphics postprocessing for three-dimensional computational mechanics were accomplished. First, the existing program (POSTPRO3D) is ported to a high-resolution device. In the course of this transfer, numerous enhancements are implemented in the program. The performance of the hardware was evaluated from the point of view of engineering postprocessing, and the characteristics of future hardware were discussed. Second, interactive graphical tools implemented to facilitate qualitative mesh evaluation from a single analysis. The literature was surveyed and a bibliography compiled. Qualitative mesh sensors were examined, and the use of two-dimensional plots of unaveraged responses on the surface of three-dimensional continua was emphasized in an interactive color raster graphics environment. Finally, a postprocessing environment was designed for state-of-the-art workstation technology. Modularity, personalization of the environment, integration of the engineering design processes, and the development and use of high-level graphics tools are some of the features of the intended environment.

  11. An Evaluation of the Effects of Graphic Aids in Improving Decision Accuracy in a Continuous Treatment Design

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Van Norman, Ethan R.; Nelson, Peter M.; Shin, Jae-Eun; Christ, Theodore J.

    2013-01-01

    Educators, school psychologists, and other professionals must evaluate student progress and decide to continue, modify, or terminate instructional programs to ensure student success. For this purpose, progress-monitoring data are often collected, plotted graphically, and visually analyzed. The current study evaluated the impact of three common…

  12. Interactive computer-assisted instruction in acid-base physiology for mobile computer platforms.

    PubMed

    Longmuir, Kenneth J

    2014-03-01

    In this project, the traditional lecture hall presentation of acid-base physiology in the first-year medical school curriculum was replaced by interactive, computer-assisted instruction designed primarily for the iPad and other mobile computer platforms. Three learning modules were developed, each with ∼20 screens of information, on the subjects of the CO2-bicarbonate buffer system, other body buffer systems, and acid-base disorders. Five clinical case modules were also developed. For the learning modules, the interactive, active learning activities were primarily step-by-step learner control of explanations of complex physiological concepts, usually presented graphically. For the clinical cases, the active learning activities were primarily question-and-answer exercises that related clinical findings to the relevant basic science concepts. The student response was remarkably positive, with the interactive, active learning aspect of the instruction cited as the most important feature. Also, students cited the self-paced instruction, extensive use of interactive graphics, and side-by-side presentation of text and graphics as positive features. Most students reported that it took less time to study the subject matter with this online instruction compared with subject matter presented in the lecture hall. However, the approach to learning was highly examination driven, with most students delaying the study of the subject matter until a few days before the scheduled examination. Wider implementation of active learning computer-assisted instruction will require that instructors present subject matter interactively, that students fully embrace the responsibilities of independent learning, and that institutional administrations measure instructional effort by criteria other than scheduled hours of instruction.

  13. One-dimensional barcode reading: an information theoretic approach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Houni, Karim; Sawaya, Wadih; Delignon, Yves

    2008-03-01

    In the convergence context of identification technology and information-data transmission, the barcode found its place as the simplest and the most pervasive solution for new uses, especially within mobile commerce, bringing youth to this long-lived technology. From a communication theory point of view, a barcode is a singular coding based on a graphical representation of the information to be transmitted. We present an information theoretic approach for 1D image-based barcode reading analysis. With a barcode facing the camera, distortions and acquisition are modeled as a communication channel. The performance of the system is evaluated by means of the average mutual information quantity. On the basis of this theoretical criterion for a reliable transmission, we introduce two new measures: the theoretical depth of field and the theoretical resolution. Simulations illustrate the gain of this approach.

  14. One-dimensional barcode reading: an information theoretic approach.

    PubMed

    Houni, Karim; Sawaya, Wadih; Delignon, Yves

    2008-03-10

    In the convergence context of identification technology and information-data transmission, the barcode found its place as the simplest and the most pervasive solution for new uses, especially within mobile commerce, bringing youth to this long-lived technology. From a communication theory point of view, a barcode is a singular coding based on a graphical representation of the information to be transmitted. We present an information theoretic approach for 1D image-based barcode reading analysis. With a barcode facing the camera, distortions and acquisition are modeled as a communication channel. The performance of the system is evaluated by means of the average mutual information quantity. On the basis of this theoretical criterion for a reliable transmission, we introduce two new measures: the theoretical depth of field and the theoretical resolution. Simulations illustrate the gain of this approach.

  15. Simulation of cooperating robot manipulators on a mobile platform

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Murphy, Steve H.; Wen, John T.; Saridis, George N.

    1990-01-01

    The dynamic equations of motion for two manipulators holding a common object on a freely moving mobile platform are developed. The full dynamic interactions from arms to platform and arm-tip to arm-tip are included in the formulation. The development of the closed chain dynamics allows for the use of any solution for the open topological tree of base and manipulator links. In particular, because the system has 18 degrees of freedom, recursive solutions for the dynamic simulation become more promising for efficient calculations of the motion. Simulation of the system is accomplished through a MATLAB program, and the response is visualized graphically using the SILMA Cimstation.

  16. [Temperature Measurement with Bluetooth under Android Platform].

    PubMed

    Wang, Shuai; Shen, Hao; Luo, Changze

    2015-03-01

    To realize the real-time transmission of temperature data and display using the platform of intelligent mobile phone and bluetooth. Application of Arduino Uno R3 in temperature data acquisition of digital temperature sensor DS18B20 acquisition, through the HC-05 bluetooth transmits the data to the intelligent smart phone Android system, realizes transmission of temperature data. Using Java language to write applications program under Android development environment, can achieve real-time temperature data display, storage and drawing temperature fluctuations drawn graphics. Temperature sensor is experimentally tested to meet the body temperature measurement precision and accuracy. This paper can provide a reference for other smart phone mobile medical product development.

  17. Engineering Graphics Courses in the Light of the National Qualifications Framework

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gorska, R. A.

    2012-01-01

    In recent years major changes have been introduced into the system of higher education in the common European Higher Educational Area (EHEA). On account of the Bologna Process the EHEA is leading to greater compatibility and comparability of the systems of higher education and is making it easier for learners to be mobile and for institutions to…

  18. The Need to Help Journalists with Data and Information Visualization.

    PubMed

    Reilly, Susan

    2017-01-01

    As news migrates to mobile phones, media companies are turning to data visualization to wet readers' appetites for stories they can read at length on their home or work computers. Journalists are trained to write stories, not in statistics or coding, however. The big news organizations have the funds to hire computer graphics experts, but local news organizations need help.

  19. Mapping New Mobility business, innovation, and employment opportunities in Michigan : developing a data-driven graphical platform for assessing and advancing industry cluster development and entrepreneurship opportunities in urban regions : USDOT Region V

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2016-12-15

    Across regional economic development leaders and policy makers, the concept of clustering has grown in importance as a framework for structuring economic growth and resurgence (Muro & Katz, 2010). Cluster identification is most often treated as a com...

  20. Graphic Interfaces and Online Information.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Percival, J. Mark

    1990-01-01

    Discusses the growing importance of the use of Graphic User Interfaces (GUIs) with microcomputers and online services. Highlights include the development of graphics interfacing with microcomputers; CD-ROM databases; an evaluation of HyperCard as a potential interface to electronic mail and online commercial databases; and future possibilities.…

  1. A hardware/software environment to support R D in intelligent machines and mobile robotic systems

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

    Mann, R.C.

    1990-01-01

    The Center for Engineering Systems Advanced Research (CESAR) serves as a focal point at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for basic and applied research in intelligent machines. R D at CESAR addresses issues related to autonomous systems, unstructured (i.e. incompletely known) operational environments, and multiple performing agents. Two mobile robot prototypes (HERMIES-IIB and HERMIES-III) are being used to test new developments in several robot component technologies. This paper briefly introduces the computing environment at CESAR which includes three hypercube concurrent computers (two on-board the mobile robots), a graphics workstation, VAX, and multiple VME-based systems (several on-board the mobile robots).more » The current software environment at CESAR is intended to satisfy several goals, e.g.: code portability, re-usability in different experimental scenarios, modularity, concurrent computer hardware transparent to applications programmer, future support for multiple mobile robots, support human-machine interface modules, and support for integration of software from other, geographically disparate laboratories with different hardware set-ups. 6 refs., 1 fig.« less

  2. Improvement of a device for detection and characterization of certain atmospheric pollutants. Final report. Perfectionnement d'un appareillage de detection et de caracterisation de certains pollutants atmospheriques

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

    Tesseyre, Y.

    The study allowed development of an original measuring system for mobility, involving simultaneously a repulsive electrical field and a continuous gas flow. It made it possible to define a model to calculate ionic transparency of grates, taking into account electrical fields below and above them, ion mobility, speed of gas flow and geometric transparency. Calculation of the electrical field proceeded in a plane-plane system, taking into account the space load and diffusion; a graphic method was developed to determine the field, thus avoiding numerical integration of the diffusion equation. The tracings of the mobility spectra obtained in different gases mademore » it possible to determine characteristic discrete mobility values comparable to those observed by other more sophisticated systems for measuring mobilities, such as the flight time systems. Detection of pollutants in weak concentration in dry air was shown. However, the presence of water vapor in the air forms agglomerates around the ions formed, reducing resolution of the system and making it less applicable under normal atmospheric conditions.« less

  3. Ion mobility-mass spectrometry as a tool to investigate protein-ligand interactions.

    PubMed

    Göth, Melanie; Pagel, Kevin

    2017-07-01

    Ion mobility-mass spectrometry (IM-MS) is a powerful tool for the simultaneous analysis of mass, charge, size, and shape of ionic species. It allows the characterization of even low-abundant species in complex samples and is therefore particularly suitable for the analysis of proteins and their assemblies. In the last few years even complex and intractable species have been investigated successfully with IM-MS and the number of publications in this field is steadily growing. This trend article highlights recent advances in which IM-MS was used to study protein-ligand complexes and in particular focuses on the catch and release (CaR) strategy and collision-induced unfolding (CIU). Graphical Abstract Native mass spectrometry and ion mobility-mass spectrometry are versatile tools to follow the stoichiometry, energetics, and structural impact of protein-ligand binding.

  4. The feasibility of using computer graphics in environmental evaluations : interim report, documenting historic site locations using computer graphics.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1981-01-01

    This report describes a method for locating historic site information using a computer graphics program. If adopted for use by the Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation, this method should significantly reduce the time now required to de...

  5. Advanced Visualization and Interactive Display Rapid Innovation and Discovery Evaluation Research Program task 8: Survey of WEBGL Graphics Engines

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-01-01

    1 3.0 Methods, Assumptions, and Procedures ...18 4.6.3. LineUp Web... Procedures A search of the internet looking at web sites specializing in graphics, graphics engines, web browser applications, and games was conducted to

  6. Graphic Design: A Career Guide and Education Directory.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Poggenpohl, Sharon Helmer, Ed.

    This guide aims to help students make informed decisions about careers in graphic design. The guide defines the purpose and practice of the graphic design field and identifies the strong link between effective educational programs and effective professional practices. Suggestions are given for evaluating schools and potential employers. Comments…

  7. Learning with Interactive Computer Graphics in the Undergraduate Neuroscience Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pani, John R.; Chariker, Julia H.; Naaz, Farah; Mattingly, William; Roberts, Joshua; Sephton, Sandra E.

    2014-01-01

    Instruction of neuroanatomy depends on graphical representation and extended self-study. As a consequence, computer-based learning environments that incorporate interactive graphics should facilitate instruction in this area. The present study evaluated such a system in the undergraduate neuroscience classroom. The system used the method of…

  8. Mobile Ultrasound Plane Wave Beamforming on iPhone or iPad using Metal- based GPU Processing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hewener, Holger J.; Tretbar, Steffen H.

    Mobile and cost effective ultrasound devices are being used in point of care scenarios or the drama room. To reduce the costs of such devices we already presented the possibilities of consumer devices like the Apple iPad for full signal processing of raw data for ultrasound image generation. Using technologies like plane wave imaging to generate a full image with only one excitation/reception event the acquisition times and power consumption of ultrasound imaging can be reduced for low power mobile devices based on consumer electronics realizing the transition from FPGA or ASIC based beamforming into more flexible software beamforming. The massive parallel beamforming processing can be done with the Apple framework "Metal" for advanced graphics and general purpose GPU processing for the iOS platform. We were able to integrate the beamforming reconstruction into our mobile ultrasound processing application with imaging rates up to 70 Hz on iPad Air 2 hardware.

  9. Applications of graphics to support a testbed for autonomous space vehicle operations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schmeckpeper, K. R.; Aldridge, J. P.; Benson, S.; Horner, S.; Kullman, A.; Mulder, T.; Parrott, W.; Roman, D.; Watts, G.; Bochsler, Daniel C.

    1989-01-01

    Researchers describe their experience using graphics tools and utilities while building an application, AUTOPS, that uses a graphical Machintosh (TM)-like interface for the input and display of data, and animation graphics to enhance the presentation of results of autonomous space vehicle operations simulations. AUTOPS is a test bed for evaluating decisions for intelligent control systems for autonomous vehicles. Decisions made by an intelligent control system, e.g., a revised mission plan, might be displayed to the user in textual format or he can witness the effects of those decisions via out of window graphics animations. Although a textual description conveys essentials, a graphics animation conveys the replanning results in a more convincing way. Similarily, iconic and menu-driven screen interfaces provide the user with more meaningful options and displays. Presented here are experiences with the SunView and TAE Plus graphics tools used for interface design, and the Johnson Space Center Interactive Graphics Laboratory animation graphics tools used for generating out out of the window graphics.

  10. Identification of terpenes and essential oils by means of static headspace gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Rodríguez-Maecker, Roman; Vyhmeister, Eduardo; Meisen, Stefan; Rosales Martinez, Antonio; Kuklya, Andriy; Telgheder, Ursula

    2017-11-01

    Static headspace gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (SHS GC-IMS) is a relatively new analytical technique that has considerable potential for analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In this study, SHS GC-IMS was used for the identification of the major terpene components of various essential oils (EOs). Based on the data obtained from 25 terpene standards and 50 EOs, a database for fingerprint identification of characteristic terpenes and EOs was generated utilizing SHS GC-IMS for authenticity testing of fragrances in foods, cosmetics, and personal care products. This database contains specific normalized IMS drift times and GC retention indices for 50 terpene components of EOs. Initially, the SHS GC-IMS parameters, e.g., drift gas and carrier gas flow rates, drift tube, and column temperatures, were evaluated to determine suitable operating conditions for terpene separation and identification. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used as a reference method for the identification of terpenes in EOs. The fingerprint pattern based on the normalized IMS drift times and retention indices of 50 terpenes is presented for 50 EOs. The applicability of the method was proven on examples of ten commercially available food, cosmetic, and personal care product samples. The results confirm the suitability of SHS GC-IMS as a powerful analytical technique for direct identification of terpene components in solid and liquid samples without any pretreatment. Graphical abstract Fingerprint pattern identification of terpenes and essential oils using static headspace gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry.

  11. Modeling surface-water flow and sediment mobility with the Multi-Dimensional Surface-Water Modeling System (MD_SWMS)

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    McDonald, Richard; Nelson, Jonathan; Kinzel, Paul; Conaway, Jeffrey S.

    2006-01-01

    The Multi-Dimensional Surface-Water Modeling System (MD_SWMS) is a Graphical User Interface for surface-water flow and sediment-transport models. The capabilities of MD_SWMS for developing models include: importing raw topography and other ancillary data; building the numerical grid and defining initial and boundary conditions; running simulations; visualizing results; and comparing results with measured data.

  12. Standards of Multimedia Graphic Design in Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aldalalah, Osamah Ahmad; Ababneh, Ziad Waleed Mohamed

    2015-01-01

    This study aims to determine Standards of Multimedia Graphic Design in Education through the analysis of the theoretical basis and previous studies related to this subject. This study has identified the list of standards of Multimedia, Graphic Design, each of which has a set indicator through which the quality of Multimedia can be evaluated in…

  13. Model Evaluation of Continuous Data Pharmacometric Models: Metrics and Graphics

    PubMed Central

    Nguyen, THT; Mouksassi, M‐S; Holford, N; Al‐Huniti, N; Freedman, I; Hooker, AC; John, J; Karlsson, MO; Mould, DR; Pérez Ruixo, JJ; Plan, EL; Savic, R; van Hasselt, JGC; Weber, B; Zhou, C; Comets, E

    2017-01-01

    This article represents the first in a series of tutorials on model evaluation in nonlinear mixed effect models (NLMEMs), from the International Society of Pharmacometrics (ISoP) Model Evaluation Group. Numerous tools are available for evaluation of NLMEM, with a particular emphasis on visual assessment. This first basic tutorial focuses on presenting graphical evaluation tools of NLMEM for continuous data. It illustrates graphs for correct or misspecified models, discusses their pros and cons, and recalls the definition of metrics used. PMID:27884052

  14. SpecPad: device-independent NMR data visualization and processing based on the novel DART programming language and Html5 Web technology.

    PubMed

    Guigas, Bruno

    2017-09-01

    SpecPad is a new device-independent software program for the visualization and processing of one-dimensional and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) time domain (FID) and frequency domain (spectrum) data. It is the result of a project to investigate whether the novel programming language DART, in combination with Html5 Web technology, forms a suitable base to write an NMR data evaluation software which runs on modern computing devices such as Android, iOS, and Windows tablets as well as on Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X desktop PCs and notebooks. Another topic of interest is whether this technique also effectively supports the required sophisticated graphical and computational algorithms. SpecPad is device-independent because DART's compiled executable code is JavaScript and can, therefore, be run by the browsers of PCs and tablets. Because of Html5 browser cache technology, SpecPad may be operated off-line. Network access is only required during data import or export, e.g. via a Cloud service, or for software updates. A professional and easy to use graphical user interface consistent across all hardware platforms supports touch screen features on mobile devices for zooming and panning and for NMR-related interactive operations such as phasing, integration, peak picking, or atom assignment. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  15. Web-Based Computational Chemistry Education with CHARMMing I: Lessons and Tutorial

    PubMed Central

    Miller, Benjamin T.; Singh, Rishi P.; Schalk, Vinushka; Pevzner, Yuri; Sun, Jingjun; Miller, Carrie S.; Boresch, Stefan; Ichiye, Toshiko; Brooks, Bernard R.; Woodcock, H. Lee

    2014-01-01

    This article describes the development, implementation, and use of web-based “lessons” to introduce students and other newcomers to computer simulations of biological macromolecules. These lessons, i.e., interactive step-by-step instructions for performing common molecular simulation tasks, are integrated into the collaboratively developed CHARMM INterface and Graphics (CHARMMing) web user interface (http://www.charmming.org). Several lessons have already been developed with new ones easily added via a provided Python script. In addition to CHARMMing's new lessons functionality, web-based graphical capabilities have been overhauled and are fully compatible with modern mobile web browsers (e.g., phones and tablets), allowing easy integration of these advanced simulation techniques into coursework. Finally, one of the primary objections to web-based systems like CHARMMing has been that “point and click” simulation set-up does little to teach the user about the underlying physics, biology, and computational methods being applied. In response to this criticism, we have developed a freely available tutorial to bridge the gap between graphical simulation setup and the technical knowledge necessary to perform simulations without user interface assistance. PMID:25057988

  16. Web-based computational chemistry education with CHARMMing I: Lessons and tutorial.

    PubMed

    Miller, Benjamin T; Singh, Rishi P; Schalk, Vinushka; Pevzner, Yuri; Sun, Jingjun; Miller, Carrie S; Boresch, Stefan; Ichiye, Toshiko; Brooks, Bernard R; Woodcock, H Lee

    2014-07-01

    This article describes the development, implementation, and use of web-based "lessons" to introduce students and other newcomers to computer simulations of biological macromolecules. These lessons, i.e., interactive step-by-step instructions for performing common molecular simulation tasks, are integrated into the collaboratively developed CHARMM INterface and Graphics (CHARMMing) web user interface (http://www.charmming.org). Several lessons have already been developed with new ones easily added via a provided Python script. In addition to CHARMMing's new lessons functionality, web-based graphical capabilities have been overhauled and are fully compatible with modern mobile web browsers (e.g., phones and tablets), allowing easy integration of these advanced simulation techniques into coursework. Finally, one of the primary objections to web-based systems like CHARMMing has been that "point and click" simulation set-up does little to teach the user about the underlying physics, biology, and computational methods being applied. In response to this criticism, we have developed a freely available tutorial to bridge the gap between graphical simulation setup and the technical knowledge necessary to perform simulations without user interface assistance.

  17. Employing WebGL to develop interactive stereoscopic 3D content for use in biomedical visualization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Johnston, Semay; Renambot, Luc; Sauter, Daniel

    2013-03-01

    Web Graphics Library (WebGL), the forthcoming web standard for rendering native 3D graphics in a browser, represents an important addition to the biomedical visualization toolset. It is projected to become a mainstream method of delivering 3D online content due to shrinking support for third-party plug-ins. Additionally, it provides a virtual reality (VR) experience to web users accommodated by the growing availability of stereoscopic displays (3D TV, desktop, and mobile). WebGL's value in biomedical visualization has been demonstrated by applications for interactive anatomical models, chemical and molecular visualization, and web-based volume rendering. However, a lack of instructional literature specific to the field prevents many from utilizing this technology. This project defines a WebGL design methodology for a target audience of biomedical artists with a basic understanding of web languages and 3D graphics. The methodology was informed by the development of an interactive web application depicting the anatomy and various pathologies of the human eye. The application supports several modes of stereoscopic displays for a better understanding of 3D anatomical structures.

  18. Mobility, Emotion, and Universality in Future Collaboration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chignell, Mark; Hosono, Naotsune; Fels, Deborah; Lottridge, Danielle; Waterworth, John

    The Graphical user interface has traditionally supported personal productivity, efficiency, and usability. With computer supported cooperative work, the focus has been on typical people, doing typical work in a highly rational model of interaction. Recent trends towards mobility, and emotional and universal design are extending the user interface paradigm beyond the routine. As computing moves into the hand and away from the desktop, there is a greater need for dealing with emotions and distractions. Busy and distracted people represent a new kind of disability, but one that will be increasingly prevalent. In this panel we examine the current state of the art, and prospects for future collaboration in non-normative computing requirements. This panel draws together researchers who are studying the problems of mobility, emotion and universality. The goal of the panel is to discuss how progress in these areas will change the nature of future collaboration.

  19. A RESTful image gateway for multiple medical image repositories.

    PubMed

    Valente, Frederico; Viana-Ferreira, Carlos; Costa, Carlos; Oliveira, José Luis

    2012-05-01

    Mobile technologies are increasingly important components in telemedicine systems and are becoming powerful decision support tools. Universal access to data may already be achieved by resorting to the latest generation of tablet devices and smartphones. However, the protocols employed for communicating with image repositories are not suited to exchange data with mobile devices. In this paper, we present an extensible approach to solving the problem of querying and delivering data in a format that is suitable for the bandwidth and graphic capacities of mobile devices. We describe a three-tiered component-based gateway that acts as an intermediary between medical applications and a number of Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (PACS). The interface with the gateway is accomplished using Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) requests following a Representational State Transfer (REST) methodology, which relieves developers from dealing with complex medical imaging protocols and allows the processing of data on the server side.

  20. Communication interference/jamming and propagation analysis system and its application to radio location

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kuzucu, H.

    1992-11-01

    Modern defense systems depend on comprehensive surveillance capability. The ability to detect and locate the radio signals is a major element of a surveillance system. With the increasing need for more mobile surveillance systems in conjunction with the rapid deployment of forces and the advent of technology allowing more enhanced use of small aperture systems, tactical direction finding (DF) and radiolocation systems will have to be operated in diverse operational conditions. A quick assessment of the error levels expected and the evaluation of the reliability of the fixes on the targeted areas bears crucial importance to the effectiveness of the missions relying on DF data. This paper presents a sophisticated, graphics workstation based computer tool developed for the system level analysis of radio communication systems and describes its use in radiolocation applications for realizing such accurate and realistic assessments with substantial money and time savings.

  1. A Monte Carlo software for the 1-dimensional simulation of IBIC experiments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Forneris, J.; Jakšić, M.; Pastuović, Ž.; Vittone, E.

    2014-08-01

    The ion beam induced charge (IBIC) microscopy is a valuable tool for the analysis of the electronic properties of semiconductors. In this work, a recently developed Monte Carlo approach for the simulation of IBIC experiments is presented along with a self-standing software equipped with graphical user interface. The method is based on the probabilistic interpretation of the excess charge carrier continuity equations and it offers to the end-user the full control not only of the physical properties ruling the induced charge formation mechanism (i.e., mobility, lifetime, electrostatics, device's geometry), but also of the relevant experimental conditions (ionization profiles, beam dispersion, electronic noise) affecting the measurement of the IBIC pulses. Moreover, the software implements a novel model for the quantitative evaluation of the radiation damage effects on the charge collection efficiency degradation of ion-beam-irradiated devices. The reliability of the model implementation is then validated against a benchmark IBIC experiment.

  2. Performance Evaluation of UHF RFID Technologies for Real-Time Bus Recognition in the Taipei Bus Station

    PubMed Central

    Own, Chung-Ming; Lee, Da-Sheng; Wang, Ti-Ho; Wang, De-Jun; Ting, Yu-Lun

    2013-01-01

    Transport stations such as airports, ports, and railways have adopted blocked-type pathway management to process and control travel systems in a one-directional manner. However, this excludes highway transportation where large buses have great variability and mobility; thus, an instant influx of numerous buses increases risks and complicates station management. Focusing on Taipei Bus Station, this study employed RFID technology to develop a system platform integrated with modern information technology that has numerous characteristics. This modern information technology comprised the following systems: ultra-high frequency (UHF) radio-frequency identification (RFID), ultrasound and license number identification, and backstage graphic controls. In conclusion, the system enabled management, bus companies, and passengers to experience the national bus station's new generation technology, which provides diverse information and synchronization functions. Furthermore, this technology reached a new milestone in the energy-saving and efficiency-increasing performance of Taiwan's buses. PMID:23778192

  3. Interactive Graphics Simulator: Design, Development, and Effectiveness/Cost Evaluation. Final Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pieper, William J.; And Others

    This study was initiated to design, develop, implement, and evaluate a videodisc-based simulator system, the Interactive Graphics Simulator (IGS) for 6883 Converter Flight Control Test Station training at Lowry Air Force Base, Colorado. The simulator provided a means for performing task analysis online, developing simulations from the task…

  4. Novice Interpretations of Progress Monitoring Graphs: Extreme Values and Graphical Aids

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Newell, Kirsten W.; Christ, Theodore J.

    2017-01-01

    Curriculum-Based Measurement of Reading (CBM-R) is frequently used to monitor instructional effects and evaluate response to instruction. Educators often view the data graphically on a time-series graph that might include a variety of statistical and visual aids, which are intended to facilitate the interpretation. This study evaluated the effects…

  5. Assessing Probabilistic Reasoning in Verbal-Numerical and Graphical-Pictorial Formats: An Evaluation of the Psychometric Properties of an Instrument

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Agus, Mirian; Penna, Maria Pietronilla; Peró-Cebollero, Maribel; Guàrdia-Olmos, Joan

    2016-01-01

    Research on the graphical facilitation of probabilistic reasoning has been characterised by the effort expended to identify valid assessment tools. The authors developed an assessment instrument to compare reasoning performances when problems were presented in verbal-numerical and graphical-pictorial formats. A sample of undergraduate psychology…

  6. The Use of Graphic Symbols in Infancy: How Early Can We Start?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Da Fonte, Maria Alexandra; Taber-Doughty, Teresa

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate if infants at three developmental ages could respond using graphic symbols during a choice-making task. An alternating treatment design was used to illustrate infants' response when presented with two types of graphic symbols. A total of nine items were presented to each infant and were randomly…

  7. The use of graphics in the design of the human-telerobot interface

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Stuart, Mark A.; Smith, Randy L.

    1989-01-01

    The Man-Systems Telerobotics Laboratory (MSTL) of NASA's Johnson Space Center employs computer graphics tools in their design and evaluation of the Flight Telerobotic Servicer (FTS) human/telerobot interface on the Shuttle and on the Space Station. It has been determined by the MSTL that the use of computer graphics can promote more expedient and less costly design endeavors. Several specific examples of computer graphics applied to the FTS user interface by the MSTL are described.

  8. How to Apply for Protection Time Graphic

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    We will review insect repellent products that voluntarily apply to use the repellency awareness graphic to ensure that their scientific data meet current testing protocols and standard evaluation processes.

  9. Investigating the development of less-mobile porosity in realistic hyporheic zone sediments with COMSOL Multiphysics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    MahmoodPoorDehkordy, F.; Briggs, M. A.; Day-Lewis, F. D.; Bagtzoglou, A. C.

    2017-12-01

    Although hyporheic zones are often modeled at the reach scale as homogeneous "boxes" of exchange, heterogeneity caused by variations of pore sizes and connectivity is not uncommon. This heterogeneity leads to the creation of more- and less-mobile zones of hydraulic exchange that influence reactive solute transport processes. Whereas fluid sampling is generally sensitive to more-mobile zones, geoelectrical measurement is sensitive to ionic tracer dynamics in both less- and more-mobile zones. Heterogeneity in pore connectivity leads to a lag between fluid and bulk electrical conductivity (EC) resulting in a hysteresis loop, observed during tracer breakthrough tests, that contains information about the less-mobile porosity attributes of the medium. Here, we present a macro-scale model of solute transport and electrical conduction developed using COMSOL Multiphysics. The model is used to simulate geoelectrical monitoring of ionic transport for bed sediments based on (1) a stochastic sand-and-cobble mixture and (2) a dune feature with strong permeability layering. In both of these disparate sediment types, hysteresis between fluid and bulk EC is observed, and depends in part on fluid flux rate through the model domain. Using the hysteresis loop, the ratio of less-mobile to mobile porosity and mass-transfer coefficient are estimated graphically. The results indicate the presence and significance of less-mobile porosity in the hyporheic zones and demonstrate the capability of the proposed model to detect heterogeneity in flow processes and estimate less-mobile zone parameters.

  10. Mobile, Virtual Enhancements for Rehabilitation (MOVER)

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-08-28

    The patient uses COTS input devices, such as the Microsoft Kinect and the Wii Balance Board , to perform therapeutic exercises that are mapped to...motion and balance disorder patients. We made these games highly customizable to enable therapists to tune each game to the capabilities of individual...settings. Figure 5 shows the setting for the target graphic styles. Figure 6 shows the setting for which foot the patient must balance on during the

  11. Strategic Mobility 21: ICODES Extension Technical Plan

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2006-09-30

    re-planning tasks in a dynamically changing decision- making environment (Figure 2). The internal ontology is divided into logical domains that can...another web browser window opens. This window is divided into two sections. One section displays a graphical representation of the conveyance and its...referenced objects with attributes that can be reasoned about by the TRANSWAY agents. Context is provided by an internal ontology that is divided into

  12. A graphical workstation based part-task flight simulator for preliminary rapid evaluation of advanced displays

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wanke, Craig; Kuchar, James; Hahn, Edward; Pritchett, A.; Hansman, R. John

    1994-01-01

    Advances in avionics and display technology are significantly changing the cockpit environment in current transport aircraft. The MIT Aeronautical Systems Lab (ASL) developed a part-task flight simulator specifically to study the effects of these new technologies on flight crew situational awareness and performance. The simulator is based on a commercially-available graphics workstation, and can be rapidly reconfigured to meet the varying demands of experimental studies. The simulator was successfully used to evaluate graphical microbursts alerting displays, electronic instrument approach plates, terrain awareness and alerting displays, and ATC routing amendment delivery through digital datalinks.

  13. Introducing StatHand: A Cross-Platform Mobile Application to Support Students' Statistical Decision Making.

    PubMed

    Allen, Peter J; Roberts, Lynne D; Baughman, Frank D; Loxton, Natalie J; Van Rooy, Dirk; Rock, Adam J; Finlay, James

    2016-01-01

    Although essential to professional competence in psychology, quantitative research methods are a known area of weakness for many undergraduate psychology students. Students find selecting appropriate statistical tests and procedures for different types of research questions, hypotheses and data types particularly challenging, and these skills are not often practiced in class. Decision trees (a type of graphic organizer) are known to facilitate this decision making process, but extant trees have a number of limitations. Furthermore, emerging research suggests that mobile technologies offer many possibilities for facilitating learning. It is within this context that we have developed StatHand, a free cross-platform application designed to support students' statistical decision making. Developed with the support of the Australian Government Office for Learning and Teaching, StatHand guides users through a series of simple, annotated questions to help them identify a statistical test or procedure appropriate to their circumstances. It further offers the guidance necessary to run these tests and procedures, then interpret and report their results. In this Technology Report we will overview the rationale behind StatHand, before describing the feature set of the application. We will then provide guidelines for integrating StatHand into the research methods curriculum, before concluding by outlining our road map for the ongoing development and evaluation of StatHand.

  14. Choosing between atmospheric pressure chemical ionization and electrospray ionization interfaces for the HPLC/MS analysis of pesticides

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Thurman, E.M.; Ferrer, I.; Barcelo, D.

    2001-01-01

    An evaluation of over 75 pesticides by high-performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS) clearly shows that different classes of pesticides are more sensitive using either atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) or electrospray ionization (ESI). For example, neutral and basic pesticides (phenylureas, triazines) are more sensitive using APCI (especially positive ion). While cationic and anionic herbicides (bipyridylium ions, sulfonic acids) are more sensitive using ESI (especially negative ion). These data are expressed graphically in a figure called an ionization-continuum diagram, which shows that protonation in the gas phase (proton affinity) and polarity in solution, expressed as proton addition or subtraction (pKa), is useful in selecting APCI or ESI. Furthermore, sodium adduct formation commonly occurs using positive ion ESI but not using positive ion APCI, which reflects the different mechanisms of ionization and strengthens the usefulness of the ionization-continuum diagram. The data also show that the concept of "wrong-way around" ESI (the sensitivity of acidic pesticides in an acidic mobile phase) is a useful modification of simple pKa theory for mobile-phase selection. Finally, this finding is used to enhance the chromatographic separation of oxanilic and sulfonic acid herbicides while maintaining good sensitivity in LC/MS using ESI negative.

  15. Investigating the Effectiveness of Graphic Organizer Instruction on the Comprehension and Recall of Science Content by Students with Learning Disabilities.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Griffin, Cynthia C.; And Others

    1991-01-01

    The effect of graphic organizers on 14 learning-disabled students' (grades 5 and 6) recall of science content was compared with that of students taught identical content without the graphic organizer condition. Evaluation two weeks later found no statistically significant differences between the groups on production or choice response tasks. (DB)

  16. GPUs: An Emerging Platform for General-Purpose Computation

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2007-08-01

    programming; real-time cinematic quality graphics Peak stream (26) License required (limited time no- cost evaluation program) Commercially...folding.stanford.edu (accessed 30 March 2007). 2. Fan, Z.; Qiu, F.; Kaufman, A.; Yoakum-Stover, S. GPU Cluster for High Performance Computing. ACM/IEEE...accessed 30 March 2007). 8. Goodnight, N.; Wang, R.; Humphreys, G. Computation on Programmable Graphics Hardware. IEEE Computer Graphics and

  17. An Evaluation of the Interactive Query Expansion in an Online Library Catalogue with a Graphical User Interface.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hancock-Beaulieu, Micheline; And Others

    1995-01-01

    An online library catalog was used to evaluate an interactive query expansion facility based on relevance feedback for the Okapi, probabilistic, term weighting, retrieval system. A graphical user interface allowed searchers to select candidate terms extracted from relevant retrieved items to reformulate queries. Results suggested that the…

  18. Using Task Clarification, Graphic Feedback, and Verbal Feedback to Increase Closing-Task Completion in a Privately Owned Restaurant.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Austin, John; Weatherly, Nic L.; Gravina, Nicole E.

    2005-01-01

    An informant functional assessment was used to evaluate closing-task completion by servers and dishwashers at a restaurant. Based on the functional assessment results, an intervention consisting of task clarification, posted graphic feedback, and verbal feedback was implemented and evaluated with a multiple baseline design across two groups of…

  19. The Effects of Task Clarification, Visual Prompts, and Graphic Feedback on Customer Greeting and Up-Selling in a Restaurant

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Squires, James; Wilder, David A.; Fixsen, Amanda; Hess, Erica; Rost, Kristen; Curran, Ryan; Zonneveld, Kimberly

    2007-01-01

    An intervention consisting of task clarification, visual prompts, and graphic feedback was evaluated to increase customer greeting and up-selling in a restaurant. A combination multiple baseline and reversal design was used to evaluate intervention effects. Although all interventions improved performance over baseline, the delivery of graphic…

  20. Computer graphics application in the engineering design integration system

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Glatt, C. R.; Abel, R. W.; Hirsch, G. N.; Alford, G. E.; Colquitt, W. N.; Stewart, W. A.

    1975-01-01

    The computer graphics aspect of the Engineering Design Integration (EDIN) system and its application to design problems were discussed. Three basic types of computer graphics may be used with the EDIN system for the evaluation of aerospace vehicles preliminary designs: offline graphics systems using vellum-inking or photographic processes, online graphics systems characterized by direct coupled low cost storage tube terminals with limited interactive capabilities, and a minicomputer based refresh terminal offering highly interactive capabilities. The offline line systems are characterized by high quality (resolution better than 0.254 mm) and slow turnaround (one to four days). The online systems are characterized by low cost, instant visualization of the computer results, slow line speed (300 BAUD), poor hard copy, and the early limitations on vector graphic input capabilities. The recent acquisition of the Adage 330 Graphic Display system has greatly enhanced the potential for interactive computer aided design.

  1. Area-delay trade-offs of texture decompressors for a graphics processing unit

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Novoa Súñer, Emilio; Ituero, Pablo; López-Vallejo, Marisa

    2011-05-01

    Graphics Processing Units have become a booster for the microelectronics industry. However, due to intellectual property issues, there is a serious lack of information on implementation details of the hardware architecture that is behind GPUs. For instance, the way texture is handled and decompressed in a GPU to reduce bandwidth usage has never been dealt with in depth from a hardware point of view. This work addresses a comparative study on the hardware implementation of different texture decompression algorithms for both conventional (PCs and video game consoles) and mobile platforms. Circuit synthesis is performed targeting both a reconfigurable hardware platform and a 90nm standard cell library. Area-delay trade-offs have been extensively analyzed, which allows us to compare the complexity of decompressors and thus determine suitability of algorithms for systems with limited hardware resources.

  2. Visual evaluation of kinetic characteristics of PET probe for neuroreceptors using a two-phase graphic plot analysis.

    PubMed

    Ito, Hiroshi; Ikoma, Yoko; Seki, Chie; Kimura, Yasuyuki; Kawaguchi, Hiroshi; Takuwa, Hiroyuki; Ichise, Masanori; Suhara, Tetsuya; Kanno, Iwao

    2017-05-01

    Objectives In PET studies for neuroreceptors, tracer kinetics are described by the two-tissue compartment model (2-TCM), and binding parameters, including the total distribution volume (V T ), non-displaceable distribution volume (V ND ), and binding potential (BP ND ), can be determined from model parameters estimated by kinetic analysis. The stability of binding parameter estimates depends on the kinetic characteristics of radioligands. To describe these kinetic characteristics, we previously developed a two-phase graphic plot analysis in which V ND and V T can be estimated from the x-intercept of regression lines for early and delayed phases, respectively. In this study, we applied this graphic plot analysis to visual evaluation of the kinetic characteristics of radioligands for neuroreceptors, and investigated a relationship between the shape of these graphic plots and the stability of binding parameters estimated by the kinetic analysis with 2-TCM in simulated brain tissue time-activity curves (TACs) with various binding parameters. Methods 90-min TACs were generated with the arterial input function and assumed kinetic parameters according to 2-TCM. Graphic plot analysis was applied to these simulated TACs, and the curvature of the plot for each TAC was evaluated visually. TACs with several noise levels were also generated with various kinetic parameters, and the bias and variation of binding parameters estimated by kinetic analysis were calculated in each TAC. These bias and variation were compared with the shape of graphic plots. Results The graphic plots showed larger curvature for TACs with higher specific binding and slower dissociation of specific binding. The quartile deviations of V ND and BP ND determined by kinetic analysis were smaller for radioligands with slow dissociation. Conclusions The larger curvature of graphic plots for radioligands with slow dissociation might indicate a stable determination of V ND and BP ND by kinetic analysis. For investigation of the kinetics of radioligands, such kinetic characteristics should be considered.

  3. A Simple Analytical Model for Predicting the Detectable Ion Current in Ion Mobility Spectrometry Using Corona Discharge Ionization Sources.

    PubMed

    Kirk, Ansgar Thomas; Kobelt, Tim; Spehlbrink, Hauke; Zimmermann, Stefan

    2018-05-08

    Corona discharge ionization sources are often used in ion mobility spectrometers (IMS) when a non-radioactive ion source with high ion currents is required. Typically, the corona discharge is followed by a reaction region where analyte ions are formed from the reactant ions. In this work, we present a simple yet sufficiently accurate model for predicting the ion current available at the end of this reaction region when operating at reduced pressure as in High Kinetic Energy Ion Mobility Spectrometers (HiKE-IMS) or most IMS-MS instruments. It yields excellent qualitative agreement with measurement results and is even able to calculate the ion current within an error of 15%. Additional interesting findings of this model are the ion current at the end of the reaction region being independent from the ion current generated by the corona discharge and the ion current in High Kinetic Energy Ion Mobility Spectrometers (HiKE-IMS) growing quadratically when scaling down the length of the reaction region. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  4. Factors affecting mobile diabetes monitoring adoption among physicians: questionnaire study and path model.

    PubMed

    Okazaki, Shintaro; Castañeda, José Alberto; Sanz, Silvia; Henseler, Jörg

    2012-12-21

    Patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes often find it difficult to control their blood glucose level on a daily basis because of distance or physical incapacity. With the increase in Internet-enabled smartphone use, this problem can be resolved by adopting a mobile diabetes monitoring system. Most existing studies have focused on patients' usability perceptions, whereas little attention has been paid to physicians' intentions to adopt this technology. The aim of the study was to evaluate the perceptions and user acceptance of mobile diabetes monitoring among Japanese physicians. A questionnaire survey of physicians was conducted in Japan. The structured questionnaire was prepared in a context of a mobile diabetes monitoring system that controls blood glucose, weight, physical activity, diet, insulin and medication, and blood pressure. Following a thorough description of mobile diabetes monitoring with a graphical image, questions were asked relating to system quality, information quality, service quality, health improvement, ubiquitous control, privacy and security concerns, perceived value, subjective norms, and intention to use mobile diabetes monitoring. The data were analyzed by partial least squares (PLS) path modeling. In total, 471 physicians participated from 47 prefectures across Japan, of whom 134 were specialized in internal and gastrointestinal medicine. Nine hypotheses were tested with both the total sample and the specialist subsample; results were similar for both samples in terms of statistical significance and the strength of path coefficients. We found that system quality, information quality, and service quality significantly affect overall quality. Overall quality determines the extent to which physicians perceive the value of mobile health monitoring. However, in contrast to our initial predictions, overall quality does not have a significant direct effect on the intention to use mobile diabetes monitoring. With regard to net benefits, both ubiquitous control and health improvement are significant predictors. Net benefits in turn significantly motivate physicians to use mobile health monitoring, and has a strong influence on perceived value. Perceived value and subjective norms are predictors of intention to use. In our sample, concerns over privacy and security risk have no significant effects on intention to use mobile diabetes monitoring. Among the 3 control variables, only age significantly affected intention to use mobile diabetes monitoring, whereas experience and gender were not significant predictors of intention. Physicians consider perceived value and net benefits as the most important motivators to use mobile diabetes monitoring. Overall quality assessment does affect their intention to use this technology, but only indirectly through perceived value. Net benefits seem to be a strong driver in both a direct and indirect manner, implying that physicians may perceive health improvement with ubiquitous control as a true utility by enhancing cost-effective monitoring, and simultaneously recognize it as a way to create value for their clinical practices.

  5. Three varieties of realism in computer graphics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ferwerda, James A.

    2003-06-01

    This paper describes three varieties of realism that need to be considered in evaluating computer graphics images and defines the criteria that need to be met if each kind of realism is to be achieved. The paper introduces a conceptual framework for thinking about realism in images, and describes a set of research tools for measuring image realism and assessing its value in graphics applications.

  6. A Mobile Health Application to Predict Postpartum Depression Based on Machine Learning.

    PubMed

    Jiménez-Serrano, Santiago; Tortajada, Salvador; García-Gómez, Juan Miguel

    2015-07-01

    Postpartum depression (PPD) is a disorder that often goes undiagnosed. The development of a screening program requires considerable and careful effort, where evidence-based decisions have to be taken in order to obtain an effective test with a high level of sensitivity and an acceptable specificity that is quick to perform, easy to interpret, culturally sensitive, and cost-effective. The purpose of this article is twofold: first, to develop classification models for detecting the risk of PPD during the first week after childbirth, thus enabling early intervention; and second, to develop a mobile health (m-health) application (app) for the Android(®) (Google, Mountain View, CA) platform based on the model with best performance for both mothers who have just given birth and clinicians who want to monitor their patient's test. A set of predictive models for estimating the risk of PPD was trained using machine learning techniques and data about postpartum women collected from seven Spanish hospitals. An internal evaluation was carried out using a hold-out strategy. An easy flowchart and architecture for designing the graphical user interface of the m-health app was followed. Naive Bayes showed the best balance between sensitivity and specificity as a predictive model for PPD during the first week after delivery. It was integrated into the clinical decision support system for Android mobile apps. This approach can enable the early prediction and detection of PPD because it fulfills the conditions of an effective screening test with a high level of sensitivity and specificity that is quick to perform, easy to interpret, culturally sensitive, and cost-effective.

  7. Virtual- and real-world operation of mobile robotic manipulators: integrated simulation, visualization, and control environment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, ChuXin; Trivedi, Mohan M.

    1992-03-01

    This research is focused on enhancing the overall productivity of an integrated human-robot system. A simulation, animation, visualization, and interactive control (SAVIC) environment has been developed for the design and operation of an integrated robotic manipulator system. This unique system possesses the abilities for multisensor simulation, kinematics and locomotion animation, dynamic motion and manipulation animation, transformation between real and virtual modes within the same graphics system, ease in exchanging software modules and hardware devices between real and virtual world operations, and interfacing with a real robotic system. This paper describes a working system and illustrates the concepts by presenting the simulation, animation, and control methodologies for a unique mobile robot with articulated tracks, a manipulator, and sensory modules.

  8. A graphical workstation based part-task flight simulator for preliminary rapid evaluation of advanced displays

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wanke, Craig; Kuchar, James; Hahn, Edward; Pritchett, Amy; Hansman, R. J.

    1992-01-01

    Advances in avionics and display technology are significantly changing the cockpit environment in current transport aircraft. The MIT Aeronautical Systems Lab (ASL) has developed a part-task flight simulator specifically to study the effects of these new technologies on flight crew situational awareness and performance. The simulator is based on a commercially-available graphics workstation, and can be rapidly reconfigured to meet the varying demands of experimental studies. The simulator has been successfully used to evaluate graphical microburst alerting displays, electronic instrument approach plates, terrain awareness and alerting displays, and ATC routing amendment delivery through digital datalinks.

  9. Combinatorial evaluation of systems including decomposition of a system representation into fundamental cycles

    DOEpatents

    Oliveira, Joseph S [Richland, WA; Jones-Oliveira, Janet B [Richland, WA; Bailey, Colin G [Wellington, NZ; Gull, Dean W [Seattle, WA

    2008-07-01

    One embodiment of the present invention includes a computer operable to represent a physical system with a graphical data structure corresponding to a matroid. The graphical data structure corresponds to a number of vertices and a number of edges that each correspond to two of the vertices. The computer is further operable to define a closed pathway arrangement with the graphical data structure and identify each different one of a number of fundamental cycles by evaluating a different respective one of the edges with a spanning tree representation. The fundamental cycles each include three or more of the vertices.

  10. A Self-Regulation Theory–Based Asthma Management Mobile App for Adolescents: A Usability Assessment

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Background Self-regulation theory suggests people learn to influence their own behavior through self-monitoring, goal-setting, feedback, self-reward, and self-instruction, all of which smartphones are now capable of facilitating. Several mobile apps exist to manage asthma; however, little evidence exists about whether these apps employ user-centered design processes that adhere to government usability guidelines for mobile apps. Objective Building upon a previous study that documented adolescent preferences for an asthma self-management app, we employed a user-centered approach to assess the usability of a high-fidelity wireframe for an asthma self-management app intended for use by adolescents with persistent asthma. Methods Individual interviews were conducted with adolescents (ages 11-18 years) with persistent asthma who owned a smartphone (N=8). Adolescents were asked to evaluate a PDF app wireframe consisting of 76 screen shots displaying app features, including log in and home screen, profile setup, settings and info, self-management features, and graphical displays for charting asthma control and medication. Preferences, comments, and suggestions for each set of screen shots were assessed using the audio-recorded interviews. Two coders reached consensus on adolescent evaluations of the following aspects of app features: (1) usability, (2) behavioral intentions to use, (3) confusing aspects, and (4) suggestions for improvement. Results The app wireframe was generally well received, and several suggestions for improvement were recorded. Suggestions included increased customization of charts and notifications, reminders, and alerts. Participants preferred longitudinal data about asthma control and medication use to be displayed using line graphs. All participants reported that they would find an asthma management app like the one depicted in the wireframe useful for managing their asthma. Conclusions Early stage usability tests guided by government usability guidelines (usability.gov) revealed areas for improvement for an asthma self-management app for adolescents. Addressing these areas will be critical to developing an engaging and effective asthma self-management app that is capable of improving adolescent asthma outcomes. PMID:28148471

  11. Use of interactive graphics in bridge analysis and design.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1983-01-01

    This study evaluated the role of computer-aided design (CAD), including interactive graphics, in engineering design applications, especially in the design activities of the Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation. A review of the hardware ...

  12. A Comparison of Methods for Assessing Space Suit Joint Ranges of Motion

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Aitchison, Lindsay T.

    2012-01-01

    Through the Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Program, NASA is attempting to use the vast collection of space suit mobility data from 50 years worth of space suit testing to build predictive analysis tools to aid in early architecture decisions for future missions and exploration programs. However, the design engineers must first understand if and how data generated by different methodologies can be compared directly and used in an essentially interchangeable manner. To address this question, the isolated joint range of motion data from two different test series were compared. Both data sets were generated from participants wearing the Mark III Space Suit Technology Demonstrator (MK-III), Waist Entry I-suit (WEI), and minimal clothing. Additionally the two tests shared a common test subject that allowed for within subject comparisons of the methods that greatly reduced the number of variables in play. The tests varied in their methodologies: the Space Suit Comparative Technologies Evaluation used 2-D photogrammetry to analyze isolated ranges of motion while the Constellation space suit benchmarking and requirements development used 3-D motion capture to evaluate both isolated and functional joint ranges of motion. The isolated data from both test series were compared graphically, as percent differences, and by simple statistical analysis. The results indicated that while the methods generate results that are statistically the same (significance level p= 0.01), the differences are significant enough in the practical sense to make direct comparisons ill advised. The concluding recommendations propose direction for how to bridge the data gaps and address future mobility data collection to allow for backward compatibility.

  13. Nurses' perceptions and problems in the usability of a medication safety app.

    PubMed

    Ankem, Kalyani; Cho, Sookyung; Simpson, Diana

    2017-10-16

    The majority of medication apps support medication adherence. Equally, if not more important, is medication safety. Few apps report on medication safety, and fewer studies have been conducted with these apps. The usability of a medication safety app was tested with nurses to reveal their perceptions of the graphical user interface and to discover problems they encountered in using the app. Usability testing of the app was conducted with RN-BSN students and informatics students (n = 18). Perceptions of the graphical components were gathered in pretest and posttest questionnaires, and video recordings of the usability testing were transcribed. The significance of the difference in mean performance time for 8 tasks was tested, and qualitative analysis was deployed to identify problems encountered and to rate the severity of each problem. While all participants perceived the graphical user interface as easy to understand, nurses took significantly more time to complete certain tasks. More nurses found the medication app to be lacking in intuitiveness of user interface design, in capability to match real-world data, and in providing optimal information architecture. To successfully integrate mobile devices in healthcare, developers must address the problems that nurses encountered in use of the app.

  14. Human sense utilization method on real-time computer graphics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Maehara, Hideaki; Ohgashi, Hitoshi; Hirata, Takao

    1997-06-01

    We are developing an adjustment method of real-time computer graphics, to obtain effective ones which give audience various senses intended by producer, utilizing human sensibility technologically. Generally, production of real-time computer graphics needs much adjustment of various parameters, such as 3D object models/their motions/attributes/view angle/parallax etc., in order that the graphics gives audience superior effects as reality of materials, sense of experience and so on. And it is also known it costs much to adjust such various parameters by trial and error. A graphics producer often evaluates his graphics to improve it. For example, it may lack 'sense of speed' or be necessary to be given more 'sense of settle down,' to improve it. On the other hand, we can know how the parameters in computer graphics affect such senses by means of statistically analyzing several samples of computer graphics which provide different senses. We paid attention to these two facts, so that we designed an adjustment method of the parameters by inputting phases of sense into a computer. By the way of using this method, it becomes possible to adjust real-time computer graphics more effectively than by conventional way of trial and error.

  15. Use of graphics and symbols on dynamic message signs : technical report.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2009-03-01

    This project has taken a step toward defining how graphic and symbol displays can improve or assist communication with drivers. Through three human factors evaluations of alternative designs, researchers identified specific design elements that shoul...

  16. The End of the Rainbow? Color Schemes for Improved Data Graphics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Light, Adam; Bartlein, Patrick J.

    2004-10-01

    Modern computer displays and printers enable the widespread use of color in scientific communication, but the expertise for designing effective graphics has not kept pace with the technology for producing them. Historically, even the most prestigious publications have tolerated high defect rates in figures and illustrations, and technological advances that make creating and reproducing graphics easier do not appear to have decreased the frequency of errors. Flawed graphics consequently beget more flawed graphics as authors emulate published examples. Color has the potential to enhance communication, but design mistakes can result in color figures that are less effective than gray scale displays of the same data. Empirical research on human subjects can build a fundamental understanding of visual perception and scientific methods can be used to evaluate existing designs, but creating effective data graphics is a design task and not fundamentally a scientific pursuit. Like writing well, creating good data graphics requires a combination of formal knowledge and artistic sensibility tempered by experience: a combination of ``substance, statistics, and design''.

  17. Assistant Personal Robot (APR): Conception and Application of a Tele-Operated Assisted Living Robot.

    PubMed

    Clotet, Eduard; Martínez, Dani; Moreno, Javier; Tresanchez, Marcel; Palacín, Jordi

    2016-04-28

    This paper presents the technical description, mechanical design, electronic components, software implementation and possible applications of a tele-operated mobile robot designed as an assisted living tool. This robotic concept has been named Assistant Personal Robot (or APR for short) and has been designed as a remotely telecontrolled robotic platform built to provide social and assistive services to elderly people and those with impaired mobility. The APR features a fast high-mobility motion system adapted for tele-operation in plain indoor areas, which incorporates a high-priority collision avoidance procedure. This paper presents the mechanical architecture, electrical fundaments and software implementation required in order to develop the main functionalities of an assistive robot. The APR uses a tablet in order to implement the basic peer-to-peer videoconference and tele-operation control combined with a tactile graphic user interface. The paper also presents the development of some applications proposed in the framework of an assisted living robot.

  18. Collision Cross Sections and Ion Mobility Separation of Fragment Ions from Complex N-Glycans.

    PubMed

    Harvey, David J; Watanabe, Yasunori; Allen, Joel D; Rudd, Pauline; Pagel, Kevin; Crispin, Max; Struwe, Weston B

    2018-06-01

    Ion mobility mass spectrometry (IM-MS) holds great potential for structural glycobiology, in particular in its ability to resolve glycan isomers. Generally, IM-MS has largely been applied to intact glycoconjugate ions with reports focusing on the separation of different adduct types. Here, we explore IM separation and report the collision cross section (CCS) of complex type N-glycans and their fragments in negative ion mode following collision-induced dissociation (CID). CCSs of isomeric fragment ions were found, in some cases, to reveal structural details that were not present in CID spectra themselves. Many fragment ions were confirmed as possessing multiple structure, details of which could be obtained by comparing their drift time profiles to different glycans. By using fragmentation both before and after mobility separation, information was gathered on the fragmentation pathways producing some of the ions. These results help demonstrate the utility of IM and will contribute to the growing use of IM-MS for glycomics. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  19. Simulation of two-phase flow in horizontal fracture networks with numerical manifold method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ma, G. W.; Wang, H. D.; Fan, L. F.; Wang, B.

    2017-10-01

    The paper presents simulation of two-phase flow in discrete fracture networks with numerical manifold method (NMM). Each phase of fluids is considered to be confined within the assumed discrete interfaces in the present method. The homogeneous model is modified to approach the mixed fluids. A new mathematical cover formation for fracture intersection is proposed to satisfy the mass conservation. NMM simulations of two-phase flow in a single fracture, intersection, and fracture network are illustrated graphically and validated by the analytical method or the finite element method. Results show that the motion status of discrete interface significantly depends on the ratio of mobility of two fluids rather than the value of the mobility. The variation of fluid velocity in each fracture segment and the driven fluid content are also influenced by the ratio of mobility. The advantages of NMM in the simulation of two-phase flow in a fracture network are demonstrated in the present study, which can be further developed for practical engineering applications.

  20. Advanced Spacesuit Informatics Software Design for Power, Avionics and Software Version 2.0

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wright, Theodore W.

    2016-01-01

    A description of the software design for the 2016 edition of the Informatics computer assembly of the NASAs Advanced Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AEMU), also called the Advanced Spacesuit. The Informatics system is an optional part of the spacesuit assembly. It adds a graphical interface for displaying suit status, timelines, procedures, and warning information. It also provides an interface to the suit mounted camera for recording still images, video, and audio field notes.

  1. Building the Joint Battlespace Infosphere. Volume 1: Summary

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1999-12-17

    portable devices , including wearable computer technology for mobile or field application 7.1.4.4.3 The Far Term (2009) The technology will be...graphic on a 2-D map image, or change the list of weapons to be loaded on an F/A-18, or sound an audible alarm in conjunction with flashing red...information automatically through a subscribe process. (3) At the same time, published information can be automatically changed into a new representation or

  2. Developing Mobile BIM/2D Barcode-Based Automated Facility Management System

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Yen-Pei

    2014-01-01

    Facility management (FM) has become an important topic in research on the operation and maintenance phase. Managing the work of FM effectively is extremely difficult owing to the variety of environments. One of the difficulties is the performance of two-dimensional (2D) graphics when depicting facilities. Building information modeling (BIM) uses precise geometry and relevant data to support the facilities depicted in three-dimensional (3D) object-oriented computer-aided design (CAD). This paper proposes a new and practical methodology with application to FM that uses an integrated 2D barcode and the BIM approach. Using 2D barcode and BIM technologies, this study proposes a mobile automated BIM-based facility management (BIMFM) system for FM staff in the operation and maintenance phase. The mobile automated BIMFM system is then applied in a selected case study of a commercial building project in Taiwan to verify the proposed methodology and demonstrate its effectiveness in FM practice. The combined results demonstrate that a BIMFM-like system can be an effective mobile automated FM tool. The advantage of the mobile automated BIMFM system lies not only in improving FM work efficiency for the FM staff but also in facilitating FM updates and transfers in the BIM environment. PMID:25250373

  3. Developing mobile BIM/2D barcode-based automated facility management system.

    PubMed

    Lin, Yu-Cheng; Su, Yu-Chih; Chen, Yen-Pei

    2014-01-01

    Facility management (FM) has become an important topic in research on the operation and maintenance phase. Managing the work of FM effectively is extremely difficult owing to the variety of environments. One of the difficulties is the performance of two-dimensional (2D) graphics when depicting facilities. Building information modeling (BIM) uses precise geometry and relevant data to support the facilities depicted in three-dimensional (3D) object-oriented computer-aided design (CAD). This paper proposes a new and practical methodology with application to FM that uses an integrated 2D barcode and the BIM approach. Using 2D barcode and BIM technologies, this study proposes a mobile automated BIM-based facility management (BIMFM) system for FM staff in the operation and maintenance phase. The mobile automated BIMFM system is then applied in a selected case study of a commercial building project in Taiwan to verify the proposed methodology and demonstrate its effectiveness in FM practice. The combined results demonstrate that a BIMFM-like system can be an effective mobile automated FM tool. The advantage of the mobile automated BIMFM system lies not only in improving FM work efficiency for the FM staff but also in facilitating FM updates and transfers in the BIM environment.

  4. Mobile service for open data visualization on geo-based images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Kiwon; Kim, Kwangseob; Kang, Sanggoo

    2015-12-01

    Since the early 2010s, governments in most countries have adopted and promoted open data policy and open data platform. Korea are in the same situation, and government and public organizations have operated the public-accessible open data portal systems since 2011. The number of open data and data type have been increasing every year. These trends are more expandable or extensible on mobile environments. The purpose of this study is to design and implement a mobile application service to visualize various typed or formatted public open data with geo-based images on the mobile web. Open data cover downloadable data sets or open-accessible data application programming interface API. Geo-based images mean multi-sensor satellite imageries which are referred in geo-coordinates and matched with digital map sets. System components for mobile service are fully based on open sources and open development environments without any commercialized tools: PostgreSQL for database management system, OTB for remote sensing image processing, GDAL for data conversion, GeoServer for application server, OpenLayers for mobile web mapping, R for data analysis and D3.js for web-based data graphic processing. Mobile application in client side was implemented by using HTML5 for cross browser and cross platform. The result shows many advantageous points such as linking open data and geo-based data, integrating open data and open source, and demonstrating mobile applications with open data. It is expected that this approach is cost effective and process efficient implementation strategy for intelligent earth observing data.

  5. Augmented Reality 2.0

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmalstieg, Dieter; Langlotz, Tobias; Billinghurst, Mark

    Augmented Reality (AR) was first demonstrated in the 1960s, but only recently have technologies emerged that can be used to easily deploy AR applications to many users. Camera-equipped cell phones with significant processing power and graphics abilities provide an inexpensive and versatile platform for AR applications, while the social networking technology of Web 2.0 provides a large-scale infrastructure for collaboratively producing and distributing geo-referenced AR content. This combination of widely used mobile hardware and Web 2.0 software allows the development of a new type of AR platform that can be used on a global scale. In this paper we describe the Augmented Reality 2.0 concept and present existing work on mobile AR and web technologies that could be used to create AR 2.0 applications.

  6. Rule-based interface generation on mobile devices for structured documentation.

    PubMed

    Kock, Ann-Kristin; Andersen, Björn; Handels, Heinz; Ingenerf, Josef

    2014-01-01

    In many software systems to date, interactive graphical user interfaces (GUIs) are represented implicitly in the source code, together with the application logic. Hence, the re-use, development, and modification of these interfaces is often very laborious. Flexible adjustments of GUIs for various platforms and devices as well as individual user preferences are furthermore difficult to realize. These problems motivate a software-based separation of content and GUI models on the one hand, and application logic on the other. In this project, a software solution for structured reporting on mobile devices is developed. Clinical content archetypes developed in a previous project serve as the content model while the Android SDK provides the GUI model. The necessary bindings between the models are specified using the Jess Rule Language.

  7. Case Study: Audio-Guided Learning, with Computer Graphics.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koumi, Jack; Daniels, Judith

    1994-01-01

    Describes teaching packages which involve the use of audiotape recordings with personal computers in Open University (United Kingdom) mathematics courses. Topics addressed include software development; computer graphics; pedagogic principles for distance education; feedback, including course evaluations and student surveys; and future plans.…

  8. Graphical content of medicinal package inserts: an exploratory study to evaluate potential legibility issues.

    PubMed

    Pires, Carla; Vigário, Marina; Cavaco, Afonso

    2016-06-01

    The graphical content of the Medicines Package Inserts (MPIs), such as illustrations and typographic features should be legible and appropriate, as required by international pharmaceutical regulations. To study: (1) the frequency and type of MPIs' key graphic elements, (2) their compliance with regulations and (3) how educated people understand them. Descriptive study: characterisation of the graphical content of 651 MPIs. Usability study: illustrations and tables (purposively selected) were evaluated with questionnaires in three groups of humanities undergraduates (illustrations only, illustrations plus text and text only). Descriptive study: illustrations and tables were respectively identified in 6.3% and 11.8% of the MPIs. The illustrations were mainly related to how to take/use the medicine. Non-recommended graphical representations were found (e.g. italic or underline). Usability test: legibility issues were identified, especially for the group of isolated illustrations. The scarce use of illustrations and tables possibly affected the legibility of the MPIs. Compulsory legibility tests are needed to guarantee the MPIs' proper use, thus contributing to a safe use of medicines. Overall, this study highlighted the need to carefully revise/assess the MPIs' design and probably increase health information experts' awareness on this issue. © 2015 Health Libraries Group.

  9. A novel four-dimensional analytical approach for analysis of complex samples.

    PubMed

    Stephan, Susanne; Jakob, Cornelia; Hippler, Jörg; Schmitz, Oliver J

    2016-05-01

    A two-dimensional LC (2D-LC) method, based on the work of Erni and Frei in 1978, was developed and coupled to an ion mobility-high-resolution mass spectrometer (IM-MS), which enabled the separation of complex samples in four dimensions (2D-LC, ion mobility spectrometry (IMS), and mass spectrometry (MS)). This approach works as a continuous multiheart-cutting LC system, using a long modulation time of 4 min, which allows the complete transfer of most of the first - dimension peaks to the second - dimension column without fractionation, in comparison to comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography. Hence, each compound delivers only one peak in the second dimension, which simplifies the data handling even when ion mobility spectrometry as a third and mass spectrometry as a fourth dimension are introduced. The analysis of a plant extract from Ginkgo biloba shows the separation power of this four-dimensional separation method with a calculated total peak capacity of more than 8700. Furthermore, the advantage of ion mobility for characterizing unknown compounds by their collision cross section (CCS) and accurate mass in a non-target approach is shown for different matrices like plant extracts and coffee. Graphical abstract Principle of the four-dimensional separation.

  10. Mobile phone waste management and recycling: Views and trends.

    PubMed

    Sarath, P; Bonda, Sateesh; Mohanty, Smita; Nayak, Sanjay K

    2015-12-01

    There is an enormous growth in mobile phone consumption worldwide which leads to generation of a large volume of mobile phone waste every year. The aim of this review is to give an insight on the articles on mobile phone waste management and recycling, published in scientific journals, major proceedings and books from 1999 to 2015. The major areas of research have been identified and discussed based on available literature in each research topic. It was observed that most of these articles were published during the recent years, with the number of articles increasing yearly. Material recovery and review on management options of waste are found to be the leading topics in this area. Researchers have proved that economically viable refurbishing or recycling of such waste is possible in an environmentally friendly manner. However, the literatures indicate that without proper consumer awareness, a recycling system cannot perform to its maximum efficiency. The methodologies followed and analytical techniques employed by the researchers to attain their objectives have been discussed. The graphical representations of available literature on current topic with respect to year of publication, topics and location have also been explored. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Factors Affecting Mobile Diabetes Monitoring Adoption Among Physicians: Questionnaire Study and Path Model

    PubMed Central

    Castañeda, José Alberto; Sanz, Silvia; Henseler, Jörg

    2012-01-01

    Background Patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes often find it difficult to control their blood glucose level on a daily basis because of distance or physical incapacity. With the increase in Internet-enabled smartphone use, this problem can be resolved by adopting a mobile diabetes monitoring system. Most existing studies have focused on patients’ usability perceptions, whereas little attention has been paid to physicians’ intentions to adopt this technology. Objective The aim of the study was to evaluate the perceptions and user acceptance of mobile diabetes monitoring among Japanese physicians. Methods A questionnaire survey of physicians was conducted in Japan. The structured questionnaire was prepared in a context of a mobile diabetes monitoring system that controls blood glucose, weight, physical activity, diet, insulin and medication, and blood pressure. Following a thorough description of mobile diabetes monitoring with a graphical image, questions were asked relating to system quality, information quality, service quality, health improvement, ubiquitous control, privacy and security concerns, perceived value, subjective norms, and intention to use mobile diabetes monitoring. The data were analyzed by partial least squares (PLS) path modeling. Results In total, 471 physicians participated from 47 prefectures across Japan, of whom 134 were specialized in internal and gastrointestinal medicine. Nine hypotheses were tested with both the total sample and the specialist subsample; results were similar for both samples in terms of statistical significance and the strength of path coefficients. We found that system quality, information quality, and service quality significantly affect overall quality. Overall quality determines the extent to which physicians perceive the value of mobile health monitoring. However, in contrast to our initial predictions, overall quality does not have a significant direct effect on the intention to use mobile diabetes monitoring. With regard to net benefits, both ubiquitous control and health improvement are significant predictors. Net benefits in turn significantly motivate physicians to use mobile health monitoring, and has a strong influence on perceived value. Perceived value and subjective norms are predictors of intention to use. In our sample, concerns over privacy and security risk have no significant effects on intention to use mobile diabetes monitoring. Among the 3 control variables, only age significantly affected intention to use mobile diabetes monitoring, whereas experience and gender were not significant predictors of intention. Conclusions Physicians consider perceived value and net benefits as the most important motivators to use mobile diabetes monitoring. Overall quality assessment does affect their intention to use this technology, but only indirectly through perceived value. Net benefits seem to be a strong driver in both a direct and indirect manner, implying that physicians may perceive health improvement with ubiquitous control as a true utility by enhancing cost-effective monitoring, and simultaneously recognize it as a way to create value for their clinical practices. PMID:23257115

  12. Bayesian accrual prediction for interim review of clinical studies: open source R package and smartphone application.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Yu; Guarino, Peter; Ma, Shuangge; Simon, Steve; Mayo, Matthew S; Raghavan, Rama; Gajewski, Byron J

    2016-07-22

    Subject recruitment for medical research is challenging. Slow patient accrual leads to increased costs and delays in treatment advances. Researchers need reliable tools to manage and predict the accrual rate. The previously developed Bayesian method integrates researchers' experience on former trials and data from an ongoing study, providing a reliable prediction of accrual rate for clinical studies. In this paper, we present a user-friendly graphical user interface program developed in R. A closed-form solution for the total subjects that can be recruited within a fixed time is derived. We also present a built-in Android system using Java for web browsers and mobile devices. Using the accrual software, we re-evaluated the Veteran Affairs Cooperative Studies Program 558- ROBOTICS study. The application of the software in monitoring and management of recruitment is illustrated for different stages of the trial. This developed accrual software provides a more convenient platform for estimation and prediction of the accrual process.

  13. QR Codes: Outlook for Food Science and Nutrition.

    PubMed

    Sanz-Valero, Javier; Álvarez Sabucedo, Luis M; Wanden-Berghe, Carmina; Santos Gago, Juan M

    2016-01-01

    QR codes opens up the possibility to develop simple-to-use, cost-effective-cost, and functional systems based on the optical recognition of inexpensive tags attached to physical objects. These systems, combined with Web platforms, can provide us with advanced services that are already currently broadly used on many contexts of the common life. Due to its philosophy, based on the automatic recognition of messages embedded on simple graphics by means of common devices such as mobile phones, QR codes are very convenient for the average user. Regretfully, its potential has not yet been fully exploited in the domains of food science and nutrition. This paper points out some applications to make the most of this technology for these domains in a straightforward manner. For its characteristics, we are addressing systems with low barriers to entry and high scalability for its deployment. Therefore, its launching among professional and final users is quite simple. The paper also provides high-level indications for the evaluation of the technological frame required to implement the identified possibilities of use.

  14. Using graph-based assessments within socratic tutorials to reveal and refine students' analytical thinking about molecular networks.

    PubMed

    Trujillo, Caleb; Cooper, Melanie M; Klymkowsky, Michael W

    2012-01-01

    Biological systems, from the molecular to the ecological, involve dynamic interaction networks. To examine student thinking about networks we used graphical responses, since they are easier to evaluate for implied, but unarticulated assumptions. Senior college level molecular biology students were presented with simple molecular level scenarios; surprisingly, most students failed to articulate the basic assumptions needed to generate reasonable graphical representations; their graphs often contradicted their explicit assumptions. We then developed a tiered Socratic tutorial based on leading questions designed to provoke metacognitive reflection. The activity is characterized by leading questions (prompts) designed to provoke meta-cognitive reflection. When applied in a group or individual setting, there was clear improvement in targeted areas. Our results highlight the promise of using graphical responses and Socratic prompts in a tutorial context as both a formative assessment for students and an informative feedback system for instructors, in part because graphical responses are relatively easy to evaluate for implied, but unarticulated assumptions. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  15. Computer-Based Tools for Evaluating Graphical User Interfaces

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Moore, Loretta A.

    1997-01-01

    The user interface is the component of a software system that connects two very complex system: humans and computers. Each of these two systems impose certain requirements on the final product. The user is the judge of the usability and utility of the system; the computer software and hardware are the tools with which the interface is constructed. Mistakes are sometimes made in designing and developing user interfaces because the designers and developers have limited knowledge about human performance (e.g., problem solving, decision making, planning, and reasoning). Even those trained in user interface design make mistakes because they are unable to address all of the known requirements and constraints on design. Evaluation of the user inter-face is therefore a critical phase of the user interface development process. Evaluation should not be considered the final phase of design; but it should be part of an iterative design cycle with the output of evaluation being feed back into design. The goal of this research was to develop a set of computer-based tools for objectively evaluating graphical user interfaces. The research was organized into three phases. The first phase resulted in the development of an embedded evaluation tool which evaluates the usability of a graphical user interface based on a user's performance. An expert system to assist in the design and evaluation of user interfaces based upon rules and guidelines was developed during the second phase. During the final phase of the research an automatic layout tool to be used in the initial design of graphical inter- faces was developed. The research was coordinated with NASA Marshall Space Flight Center's Mission Operations Laboratory's efforts in developing onboard payload display specifications for the Space Station.

  16. Conversion of the Forces Mobilization Model (FORCEMOB) from FORTRAN to C

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-08-01

    300 K !’"vale Data 18.192 K 136 K Slack 2.560 K 84 K Mapped File 412 K 412 K Sharel!ble 5.444 K 4.440 K Managed Heap - r age Table l.klusable...the C version of FORCEMOB is ready for operational use. This page is intentionally blank. v Contents 1. Introduction...without a graphical user interface (GUI): once run, FORCEMOB reads user-created input files, performs mathematical operations upon them, and outputs text

  17. Investigating the Mobility of Light Autonoumous Tracked Vehicles Using a High Performance Computing Simulation Capability

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-08-01

    UNCLASSIFIED: Distribution Statement A. Approved for public release. DISCLAIMER: Reference herein to any specific commercial company , product...FunctionBay, S. Korea – NVIDIA – Caterpillar – MSC.Software – Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) 14-16 AUG 2012  Aaron Bartholomew  Makarand Datar...16GB DDR2 Graphics: 4x NVIDIA Tesla C1060 Power supply 1: 1000W Power supply 2: 750W Assembled Quad GPU Machine 14-16 AUG 2012 30

  18. Methodologie experimentale pour evaluer les caracteristiques des plateformes graphiques avioniques

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Legault, Vincent

    Within a context where the aviation industry intensifies the development of new visually appealing features and where time-to-market must be as short as possible, rapid graphics processing benchmarking in a certified avionics environment becomes an important issue. With this work we intend to demonstrate that it is possible to deploy a high-performance graphics application on an avionics platform that uses certified graphical COTS components. Moreover, we would like to bring to the avionics community a methodology which will allow developers to identify the needed elements for graphics system optimisation and provide them tools that can measure the complexity of this type of application and measure the amount of resources to properly scale a graphics system according to their needs. As far as we know, no graphics performance profiling tool dedicated to critical embedded architectures has been proposed. We thus had the idea of implementing a specialized benchmarking tool that would be an appropriate and effective solution to this problem. Our solution resides in the extraction of the key graphics specifications from an inherited application to use them afterwards in a 3D image generation application.

  19. Walking simulator for evaluation of ophthalmic devices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Barabas, James; Woods, Russell L.; Peli, Eli

    2005-03-01

    Simulating mobility tasks in a virtual environment reduces risk for research subjects, and allows for improved experimental control and measurement. We are currently using a simulated shopping mall environment (where subjects walk on a treadmill in front of a large projected video display) to evaluate a number of ophthalmic devices developed at the Schepens Eye Research Institute for people with vision impairment, particularly visual field defects. We have conducted experiments to study subject's perception of "safe passing distance" when walking towards stationary obstacles. The subject's binary responses about potential collisions are analyzed by fitting a psychometric function, which gives an estimate of the subject's perceived safe passing distance, and the variability of subject responses. The system also enables simulations of visual field defects using head and eye tracking, enabling better understanding of the impact of visual field loss. Technical infrastructure for our simulated walking environment includes a custom eye and head tracking system, a gait feedback system to adjust treadmill speed, and a handheld 3-D pointing device. Images are generated by a graphics workstation, which contains a model with photographs of storefronts from an actual shopping mall, where concurrent validation experiments are being conducted.

  20. Which types of anti-smoking television advertisements work better in Taiwan?

    PubMed

    Huang, Li-Ling; Friedman, Daniela B; Lin, Feng-Chang; Thrasher, James F

    2018-06-01

    Research in high income countries suggests that anti-smoking television advertisements with emotionally evocative graphic messages or personal testimonials that depict serious consequences from smoking are the most effective. Research to determine the most effective smoking cessation messages for low- and middle-income countries is needed to inform campaign development in these countries. Fifty-four male Taiwanese smokers, aged 18-34, rated advertisements and participated in a focus group to evaluate eight antismoking television advertisements with contrasting messaging strategies. Participants individually evaluated advertisements, after which they participated in a semi-structured focus group discussion (10 groups, 2-9 smokers per group). One week after this session, participants were called to assess advertisement recall. Both quantitative and qualitative data indicated that highly emotional testimonial ads that featured a graphic portrayal of personal suffering from the consequences of smoking and visceral graphic ads were more effective. The ad on tobacco industry denormalization that focuses on the responsibility of the industry for smoking-related harms was considered ineffective because smokers perceived it as having little personal relevance. Humorous advertisements were evaluated as the least effective because they lacked strong emotional content linked to smoking consequences. Qualitative results suggest that advertisement characteristics are more important than the demographic characteristics of people featured in advertisements. Study findings provide preliminary evidence that testimonial ads that involve graphic and emotionally evocative portrayals of smoking-attributed diseases and visceral graphic ads may have the greater potential to motivate Taiwanese smokers to quit smoking.

  1. Contemporary computerized methods for logging planning

    Treesearch

    Chris B. LeDoux

    1988-01-01

    Contemporary harvest planning graphic software is highlighted with practical applications. Planning results from a production study of the Clearwater Cable Yarder are summarized. Application of the planning methods to evaluation of proposed silvicultural treatments is included. Results show that 3-dimensional graphic analysis of proposed harvesting or silvicultural...

  2. QUANTITATIVE GENETIC ACTIVITY GRAPHICAL PROFILES FOR USE IN CHEMICAL EVALUATION

    EPA Science Inventory

    A graphic approach termed a Genetic Activity Profile (GAP) has been developed to display a matrix of data on the genetic and related effects of selected chemical agents. he profiles provide a visual overview of the quantitative (doses) and qualitative (test results) data for each...

  3. Flight Deck Data Link Displays: An Evaluation of Textual and Graphical Implementations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    McGann, Alison; Lozito, Sandy; Corker, Kevin; Ashford, Rose (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    In Experiment 1, 16 pilots participated in a part-task simulation study that evaluated pilot data link communication for short and long message types and for two textual formats. No differences were found between the two textual formats when evaluating data link transaction times and pilot performance on a secondary task. Pilots initiated flight changes more quickly with the T-Scan format, where location of clearance information roughly corresponded to the cockpit instrument layout. Longer messages were less problematic than two short messages sent in close succession as pilots required more verbal clarification for closely spaced messages. 24 pilots participated in a second experiment that evaluated pilot communication performance for textual data link, two implementations of graphical data link, and a combined graphical and textual information modality. The two modalities incorporating text resulted in significantly faster transaction times and better performance on the secondary task than the two graphical-only implementations. The interval between messages was also more systematically varied in Experiment 2, and a short interval between messages significantly increased the access time for the second message. This delay in access was long enough to increase significantly the total transaction time of the second message, and this effect was exaggerated for the graphical-only implementations. Time to view the message before acknowledgement and time to initiate flight changes were not affected by the interval manipulation, This suggests that pilots adopt a sequential message handling strategy, and presenting messages closely in succession may present operational problems in a data link Air Traffic Control (ATC) environment. The results of this study also indicate that the perceived importance of message content is currently a crucial element in pilot data link communication.

  4. Using Task Clarification, Graphic Feedback, And Verbal Feedback To Increase Closing-Task Completion In A Privately Owned Restaurant

    PubMed Central

    Weatherly, Nic L; Gravina, Nicole E

    2005-01-01

    An informant functional assessment was used to evaluate closing-task completion by servers and dishwashers at a restaurant. Based on the functional assessment results, an intervention consisting of task clarification, posted graphic feedback, and verbal feedback was implemented and evaluated with a multiple baseline design across two groups of employees. Results showed an increase of 15% and 38% in task completion for the two groups. PMID:15898481

  5. Graphic overlays in high-precision teleoperation: Current and future work at JPL

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Diner, Daniel B.; Venema, Steven C.

    1989-01-01

    In space teleoperation additional problems arise, including signal transmission time delays. These can greatly reduce operator performance. Recent advances in graphics open new possibilities for addressing these and other problems. Currently a multi-camera system with normal 3-D TV and video graphics capabilities is being developed. Trained and untrained operators will be tested for high precision performance using two force reflecting hand controllers and a voice recognition system to control two robot arms and up to 5 movable stereo or non-stereo TV cameras. A number of new techniques of integrating TV and video graphics displays to improve operator training and performance in teleoperation and supervised automation are evaluated.

  6. Fluorescence-spectrometer helps Mobil increase analytical output by 50%

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

    Hamm, J.C.; Peckham, M.R.; Powers, J.

    1987-09-01

    A wide range of gear-oil packages and synthetic oil bases for motor vehicle use are produced at Mobil Chemical Company's Beaumont, TX, Chemical Specialties Plant (BCSP). Also manufactured are industrial lubricants, hydraulic fluids, and a selection of specialty oils. For a number of years, Mobil used what at that time represented up-to-date X-ray fluorescence technology for analyzing its oil products. Mobil decided to search for a more efficient X-ray fluorescence spectrometer for oil analyses that would provide a number of major features such a high speed, accuracy and reproducibility, appropriate software for matrix correction, a helium atmosphere for determining lightmore » elements in liquids, and the ability to determine both high and low (ppm level) concentrations quantitatively. In the spring of 1985, Mobil installed new X-ray fluorescence equipment that gives much faster analysis of liquid samples, greater analytical sensitivity, and a much more stable system. In addition, the unit produces calibration curves, retains reference-standards data in memory, and gives numerical or graphical readouts which directly show deviations from the specified levels of Cl, S, and P components for each sample, analyzed sequentially or simultaneously. The spectrometer combines the speed and high throughput of multichannel spectrometers along with the high flexibility of sequential goniometers. The hybrid configuration incorporates a versatile goniometer with as many as 10 monochromators and operates under computer control. All benefits of the modern equipment have given Mobil better product quality, faster production approvals, and greater overall operational economics.« less

  7. A mobile app for delivering in-field soil data for precision agriculture

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Isaacs, John P.; Stojanovic, Vladeta; Falconer, Ruth E.

    2015-04-01

    In the last decade precision agriculture has grown from a concept to an emerging technology, largely due to the maturing of GPS and mobile mapping. We investigated methods for reliable delivery and display of appropriate and context aware in-field farm data on mobile devices by developing a prototype android mobile app. The 3D app was developed using OpenGL ES 2.0 and written in Java, using the Android Development Tools (ADT) SDK. The app is able to obtain GPS coordinates and automatically synchronise the view and load relevant data based on the user's location. The intended audience of the mobile app is farmers and agronomists. Apps are becoming an essential tool in an agricultural professional's arsenal however most existing apps are limited to 2D display of data even though the modern chips in mobile devices can support the display of 3D graphics at interactive rates using technologies such as webGL. This project investigated the use of games techniques in the delivery and 3D display of field data, recognising that this may be a departure from the way the field data is currently delivered and displayed to farmers and agronomists. Different interactive 3D visualisation methods presenting spatial and temporal variation in yield values were developed and tested. It is expected that this app can be used by farmers and agronomists to support decision making in the field of precision agriculture and this is a growing market in UK and Europe.

  8. A Graphical, Self-Organizing Approach to Classifying Electronic Meeting Output.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Orwig, Richard E.; Chen, Hsinchun; Nunamaker, Jay F., Jr.

    1997-01-01

    Describes research using an artificial intelligence approach in the application of a Kohonen Self-Organizing Map (SOM) to the problem of classification of electronic brainstorming output and an evaluation of the results. The graphical representation of textual data produced by the Kohonen SOM suggests many opportunities for improving information…

  9. Real-time application of advanced three-dimensional graphic techniques for research aircraft simulation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Davis, Steven B.

    1990-01-01

    Visual aids are valuable assets to engineers for design, demonstration, and evaluation. Discussed here are a variety of advanced three-dimensional graphic techniques used to enhance the displays of test aircraft dynamics. The new software's capabilities are examined and possible future uses are considered.

  10. Examining Students' Reluctance to Use Graphs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dyke, Frances Van; White, Alexander

    2004-01-01

    An evaluation designed to test basic graphical-thinking skills to students entering calculus or applied calculus at American University was given to use the assessment to discover the underlying causes for student's inability to use graphs effectively. The study indicates that graphical representation is not emphasized properly in the curriculum…

  11. World Wide Web Page Design: A Structured Approach.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gregory, Gwen; Brown, M. Marlo

    1997-01-01

    Describes how to develop a World Wide Web site based on structured programming concepts. Highlights include flowcharting, first page design, evaluation, page titles, documenting source code, text, graphics, and browsers. Includes a template for HTML writers, tips for using graphics, a sample homepage, guidelines for authoring structured HTML, and…

  12. An Evaluative and Prescriptive Look at Graphics Research.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Soderston, Candace

    Graphics research history shows that some topics have been studied heavily while others have been almost entirely neglected. Furthermore, researchers have used many different methods of defining and measuring effects such as legibility and comprehension, and this, together with vagueness in reporting, makes it difficult to compare studies and draw…

  13. Students' Preferred Learning Styles in Graphic Communications

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ernst, Jeremy V.; Clark, Aaron C.

    2008-01-01

    The objective of this study was to identify changes in dominant preferred learning styles of students based on instructional presentation of course content. This study evaluates dominant preferred learning styles of two groups of university students. The first group of students was enrolled in a course that introduces graphical representation in…

  14. Architecture for high performance stereoscopic game rendering on Android

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Flack, Julien; Sanderson, Hugh; Shetty, Sampath

    2014-03-01

    Stereoscopic gaming is a popular source of content for consumer 3D display systems. There has been a significant shift in the gaming industry towards casual games for mobile devices running on the Android™ Operating System and driven by ARM™ and other low power processors. Such systems are now being integrated directly into the next generation of 3D TVs potentially removing the requirement for an external games console. Although native stereo support has been integrated into some high profile titles on established platforms like Windows PC and PS3 there is a lack of GPU independent 3D support for the emerging Android platform. We describe a framework for enabling stereoscopic 3D gaming on Android for applications on mobile devices, set top boxes and TVs. A core component of the architecture is a 3D game driver, which is integrated into the Android OpenGL™ ES graphics stack to convert existing 2D graphics applications into stereoscopic 3D in real-time. The architecture includes a method of analyzing 2D games and using rule based Artificial Intelligence (AI) to position separate objects in 3D space. We describe an innovative stereo 3D rendering technique to separate the views in the depth domain and render directly into the display buffer. The advantages of the stereo renderer are demonstrated by characterizing the performance in comparison to more traditional render techniques, including depth based image rendering, both in terms of frame rates and impact on battery consumption.

  15. An advanced programmable/reconfigurable color graphics display system for crew station technology research

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Montoya, R. J.; England, J. N.; Hatfield, J. J.; Rajala, S. A.

    1981-01-01

    The hardware configuration, software organization, and applications software for the NASA IKONAS color graphics display system are described. The systems were created at the Langley Research Center Display Device Laboratory to develop, evaluate, and demonstrate advanced generic concepts, technology, and systems integration techniques for electronic crew station systems of future civil aircraft. A minicomputer with 64K core memory acts as a host for a raster scan graphics display generator. The architectures of the hardware system and the graphics display system are provided. The applications software features a FORTRAN-based model of an aircraft, a display system, and the utility program for real-time communications. The model accepts inputs from a two-dimensional joystick and outputs a set of aircraft states. Ongoing and planned work for image segmentation/generation, specialized graphics procedures, and higher level language user interface are discussed.

  16. Individual and population pharmacokinetic compartment analysis: a graphic procedure for quantification of predictive performance.

    PubMed

    Eksborg, Staffan

    2013-01-01

    Pharmacokinetic studies are important for optimizing of drug dosing, but requires proper validation of the used pharmacokinetic procedures. However, simple and reliable statistical methods suitable for evaluation of the predictive performance of pharmacokinetic analysis are essentially lacking. The aim of the present study was to construct and evaluate a graphic procedure for quantification of predictive performance of individual and population pharmacokinetic compartment analysis. Original data from previously published pharmacokinetic compartment analyses after intravenous, oral, and epidural administration, and digitized data, obtained from published scatter plots of observed vs predicted drug concentrations from population pharmacokinetic studies using the NPEM algorithm and NONMEM computer program and Bayesian forecasting procedures, were used for estimating the predictive performance according to the proposed graphical method and by the method of Sheiner and Beal. The graphical plot proposed in the present paper proved to be a useful tool for evaluation of predictive performance of both individual and population compartment pharmacokinetic analysis. The proposed method is simple to use and gives valuable information concerning time- and concentration-dependent inaccuracies that might occur in individual and population pharmacokinetic compartment analysis. Predictive performance can be quantified by the fraction of concentration ratios within arbitrarily specified ranges, e.g. within the range 0.8-1.2.

  17. Interactive graphics to demonstrate health risks: formative development and qualitative evaluation

    PubMed Central

    Ancker, Jessica S.; Chan, Connie; Kukafka, Rita

    2015-01-01

    Background Recent findings suggest that interactive game-like graphics might be useful in communicating probabilities. We developed a prototype for a risk communication module, focusing on eliciting users’ preferences for different interactive graphics and assessing usability and user interpretations. Methods Focus groups and iterative design methods. Results Feedback from five focus groups was used to design the graphics. The final version displayed a matrix of square buttons; clicking on any button allowed the user to see whether the stick figure underneath was affected by the health outcome. When participants used this interaction to learn about a risk, they expressed more emotional responses, both positive and negative, than when viewing any static graphic or numerical description of a risk. Their responses included relief about small risks and concern about large risks. The groups also commented on static graphics: arranging the figures affected by disease randomly throughout a group of figures made it more difficult to judge the proportion affected but was described as more realistic. Conclusions Interactive graphics appear to have potential for expressing risk magnitude as well as the affective feeling of risk. Quantitative studies are planned to assess the effect on perceived risks and estimated risk magnitudes. PMID:19657926

  18. An Evaluation of the Assessment of Graphical Education at Junior Cycle in the Irish System

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delahunty, Thomas; Seery, Niall; Lynch, Raymond

    2012-01-01

    Junior Certificate Technical Graphics was introduced in Ireland in 1991 and aimed to develop innovative problem solving aptitudes and knowledge of plane and descriptive geometry (NCCA 1991). Despite the philosophy of breadth and balance (NCCA 2004) associated with educational outcomes in the Junior Certificate curriculum, many subjects, Technical…

  19. Condensed Representation of Sentences in Graphic Displays of Text Structures.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Craven, Timothy C.

    1990-01-01

    Discusses ways in which sentences may be represented in a condensed form in graphic displays of a sentence dependency structure. A prototype of a text structure management system, TEXNET, is described; a quantitative evaluation of automatic abbreviation schemes is presented; full-text compression is discussed; and additional research is suggested.…

  20. Evaluation of Use of Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) Animations in Mathematics Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Altintas, Esra; Iigun, Sukru; Kucuk, Soner

    2017-01-01

    This study investigates opinions of Grade 12 students about the use of Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) animations in mathematics lessons. It explores the ways of making mathematics easier and more understandable for students by demonstrating whether or not GIF animations that emerged from the integration of technology into mathematics education…

  1. Getting the Bigger Picture: Children's Utilization of Graphics and Text

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Norman, Rebecca R.; Roberts, Kathryn L.

    2015-01-01

    This study examined 30 second graders' patterns of attention to graphics (e.g., maps, diagrams, photographs, illustrations) and their illustration extensions (e.g., captions, labels) in two informational texts, and how students processed these items (e.g., creating narrative or evaluating). Results indicate that students do tend to study different…

  2. Graphical displays for effective reporting of evidence quality tables in research syntheses.

    PubMed

    Mignini, Luciano; Champaneria, Rita; Mishanina, Ekaterina; Khan, Khalid S

    2016-03-09

    When generating guidelines, quality of the evidence is tabulated to capture its several domains, often using the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) approach. We developed a graphic display to capture deficiencies, outliers and similarities across comparisons contained in GRADE tables. Based on a systematic literature review capturing the effects of 32 different therapeutic comparisons on dysmenorrhoea, we synthesised evidence quality in tables and graphs. We evaluated time taken to accurately assess evident quality and preference for tables vs. graphs. The plots provided visually striking displays of strengths and weaknesses of the evidence across the spectrum of comparisons on a single page. Equivalent tabulated information spread over 4 pages. Participants preferred and interpreted graphs quicker and more accurately than tables. The graphic approach we developed makes interpreting evidence easier. Large tables are dry and cumbersome to read and assimilate. When guideline statements are accompanied by these plots, they have the scope for improving the credibility of the recommendations made, as the strength of the evidence used can be clearly seen. Further empirical research will establish the place for graphic displays.

  3. Methodology to assess clinical liver safety data.

    PubMed

    Merz, Michael; Lee, Kwan R; Kullak-Ublick, Gerd A; Brueckner, Andreas; Watkins, Paul B

    2014-11-01

    Analysis of liver safety data has to be multivariate by nature and needs to take into account time dependency of observations. Current standard tools for liver safety assessment such as summary tables, individual data listings, and narratives address these requirements to a limited extent only. Using graphics in the context of a systematic workflow including predefined graph templates is a valuable addition to standard instruments, helping to ensure completeness of evaluation, and supporting both hypothesis generation and testing. Employing graphical workflows interactively allows analysis in a team-based setting and facilitates identification of the most suitable graphics for publishing and regulatory reporting. Another important tool is statistical outlier detection, accounting for the fact that for assessment of Drug-Induced Liver Injury, identification and thorough evaluation of extreme values has much more relevance than measures of central tendency in the data. Taken together, systematical graphical data exploration and statistical outlier detection may have the potential to significantly improve assessment and interpretation of clinical liver safety data. A workshop was convened to discuss best practices for the assessment of drug-induced liver injury (DILI) in clinical trials.

  4. Potential Impact of Graphic Health Warnings on Cigarette Packages in Reducing Cigarette Demand and Smoking-Related Deaths in Vietnam.

    PubMed

    Minh, Hoang Van; Chung, Le Hong; Giang, Kim Bao; Duc, Duong Minh; Hinh, Nguyen Duc; Mai, Vu Quynh; Cuong, Nguyen Manh; Manh, Pham Duc; Duc, Ha Anh; Yang, Jui-Chen

    2016-01-01

    Two years after implementation of the graphic health warning intervention in Vietnam, it is very important to evaluate the intervention's potential impact. The objective of this paper was to predict effects of graphic health warnings on cigarette packages, particularly in reducing cigarette demand and smoking-associated deaths in Vietnam. In this study, a discrete choice experiment (DCE) method was used to evaluate the potential impact of graphic tobacco health warnings on smoking demand. To predict the impact of GHWs on reducing premature deaths associated with smoking, we constructed different static models. We adapted the method developed by University of Toronto, Canada and found that GHWs had statistically significant impact on reducing cigarette demand (up to 10.1% through images of lung damage), resulting in an overall decrease of smoking prevalence in Vietnam. We also found that between 428,417- 646,098 premature deaths would be prevented as a result of the GHW intervention. The potential impact of the GHW labels on reducing premature smoking-associated deaths in Vietnam were shown to be stronger among lower socio-economic groups.

  5. Computer graphics testbed to simulate and test vision systems for space applications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cheatham, John B.; Wu, Chris K.; Lin, Y. H.

    1991-01-01

    A system was developed for displaying computer graphics images of space objects and the use of the system was demonstrated as a testbed for evaluating vision systems for space applications. In order to evaluate vision systems, it is desirable to be able to control all factors involved in creating the images used for processing by the vision system. Considerable time and expense is involved in building accurate physical models of space objects. Also, precise location of the model relative to the viewer and accurate location of the light source require additional effort. As part of this project, graphics models of space objects such as the Solarmax satellite are created that the user can control the light direction and the relative position of the object and the viewer. The work is also aimed at providing control of hue, shading, noise and shadows for use in demonstrating and testing imaging processing techniques. The simulated camera data can provide XYZ coordinates, pitch, yaw, and roll for the models. A physical model is also being used to provide comparison of camera images with the graphics images.

  6. The relevance of error analysis in graphical symbols evaluation.

    PubMed

    Piamonte, D P

    1999-01-01

    In an increasing number of modern tools and devices, small graphical symbols appear simultaneously in sets as parts of the human-machine interfaces. The presence of each symbol can influence the other's recognizability and correct association to its intended referents. Thus, aside from correct associations, it is equally important to perform certain error analysis of the wrong answers, misses, confusions, and even lack of answers. This research aimed to show how such error analyses could be valuable in evaluating graphical symbols especially across potentially different user groups. The study tested 3 sets of icons representing 7 videophone functions. The methods involved parameters such as hits, confusions, missing values, and misses. The association tests showed similar hit rates of most symbols across the majority of the participant groups. However, exploring the error patterns helped detect differences in the graphical symbols' performances between participant groups, which otherwise seemed to have similar levels of recognition. These are very valuable not only in determining the symbols to be retained, replaced or re-designed, but also in formulating instructions and other aids in learning to use new products faster and more satisfactorily.

  7. Engineering visualization utilizing advanced animation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sabionski, Gunter R.; Robinson, Thomas L., Jr.

    1989-01-01

    Engineering visualization is the use of computer graphics to depict engineering analysis and simulation in visual form from project planning through documentation. Graphics displays let engineers see data represented dynamically which permits the quick evaluation of results. The current state of graphics hardware and software generally allows the creation of two types of 3D graphics. The use of animated video as an engineering visualization tool is presented. The engineering, animation, and videography aspects of animated video production are each discussed. Specific issues include the integration of staffing expertise, hardware, software, and the various production processes. A detailed explanation of the animation process reveals the capabilities of this unique engineering visualization method. Automation of animation and video production processes are covered and future directions are proposed.

  8. Chroma Shift and Gamut Shape: Going Beyond Average Color Fidelity and Gamut Area

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

    Royer, Michael P.; Houser, Kevin W.; David, Aurelien

    Though sometimes referred to as a two-measure system for evaluating color rendition, IES TM-30-15 includes key components that go beyond the two high-level average values, Fidelity Index (IES Rf) and Gamut Index (IES Rg). This article focuses on the Color Vector Graphic and Local Chroma Shift (IES Rcs,hj), discussing the calculation methods for these evaluation tools and providing context for the interpretation of the values. We illustrate why and how the Color Vector Graphic and Local Chroma Shift values capture information about color rendition that is impossible to describe with average measures (such as CIE Ra, IES Rf, or IESmore » Rg), but that is pertinent to more completely quantifying color rendition, and to understanding human evaluations of color quality in the built environment. We also present alternatives for quantifying the Color Vector Graphic and Local Chroma Shift values, which can inform the development of future measures.« less

  9. Human Machine Interface Programming and Testing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Foster, Thomas Garrison

    2013-01-01

    Human Machine Interface (HMI) Programming and Testing is about creating graphical displays to mimic mission critical ground control systems in order to provide NASA engineers with the ability to monitor the health management of these systems in real time. The Health Management System (HMS) is an online interactive human machine interface system that monitors all Kennedy Ground Control Subsystem (KGCS) hardware in the field. The Health Management System is essential to NASA engineers because it allows remote control and monitoring of the health management systems of all the Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC) and associated field devices. KGCS will have equipment installed at the launch pad, Vehicle Assembly Building, Mobile Launcher, as well as the Multi-Purpose Processing Facility. I am designing graphical displays to monitor and control new modules that will be integrated into the HMS. The design of the display screen will closely mimic the appearance and functionality of the actual modules. There are many different field devices used to monitor health management and each device has its own unique set of health management related data, therefore each display must also have its own unique way to display this data. Once the displays are created, the RSLogix5000 application is used to write software that maps all the required data read from the hardware to the graphical display. Once this data is mapped to its corresponding display item, the graphical display and hardware device will be connected through the same network in order to test all possible scenarios and types of data the graphical display was designed to receive. Test Procedures will be written to thoroughly test out the displays and ensure that they are working correctly before being deployed to the field. Additionally, the Kennedy Ground Controls Subsystem's user manual will be updated to explain to the NASA engineers how to use the new module displays.

  10. A Self-Regulation Theory-Based Asthma Management Mobile App for Adolescents: A Usability Assessment.

    PubMed

    Sage, Adam; Roberts, Courtney; Geryk, Lorie; Sleath, Betsy; Tate, Deborah; Carpenter, Delesha

    2017-02-01

    Self-regulation theory suggests people learn to influence their own behavior through self-monitoring, goal-setting, feedback, self-reward, and self-instruction, all of which smartphones are now capable of facilitating. Several mobile apps exist to manage asthma; however, little evidence exists about whether these apps employ user-centered design processes that adhere to government usability guidelines for mobile apps. Building upon a previous study that documented adolescent preferences for an asthma self-management app, we employed a user-centered approach to assess the usability of a high-fidelity wireframe for an asthma self-management app intended for use by adolescents with persistent asthma. Individual interviews were conducted with adolescents (ages 11-18 years) with persistent asthma who owned a smartphone (N=8). Adolescents were asked to evaluate a PDF app wireframe consisting of 76 screen shots displaying app features, including log in and home screen, profile setup, settings and info, self-management features, and graphical displays for charting asthma control and medication. Preferences, comments, and suggestions for each set of screen shots were assessed using the audio-recorded interviews. Two coders reached consensus on adolescent evaluations of the following aspects of app features: (1) usability, (2) behavioral intentions to use, (3) confusing aspects, and (4) suggestions for improvement. The app wireframe was generally well received, and several suggestions for improvement were recorded. Suggestions included increased customization of charts and notifications, reminders, and alerts. Participants preferred longitudinal data about asthma control and medication use to be displayed using line graphs. All participants reported that they would find an asthma management app like the one depicted in the wireframe useful for managing their asthma. Early stage usability tests guided by government usability guidelines (usability.gov) revealed areas for improvement for an asthma self-management app for adolescents. Addressing these areas will be critical to developing an engaging and effective asthma self-management app that is capable of improving adolescent asthma outcomes. ©Adam Sage, Courtney Roberts, Lorie Geryk, Betsy Sleath, Deborah Tate, Delesha Carpenter. Originally published in JMIR Human Factors (http://humanfactors.jmir.org), 01.02.2017.

  11. Examining the scope and patterns of deliberate self-injurious cutting content in popular social media.

    PubMed

    Miguel, Elizabeth M; Chou, Tommy; Golik, Alejandra; Cornacchio, Danielle; Sanchez, Amanda L; DeSerisy, Mariah; Comer, Jonathan S

    2017-09-01

    Social networking services (SNS) have rapidly become a central platform for adolescents' social interactions and media consumption patterns. The present study examined a representative sample of publicly accessible content related to deliberate self-injurious cutting across three SNS platforms: Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram. Data collection simulated searches for publicly available deliberate self-injury content on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram. Over a six-month period at randomly generated time points, data were obtained by searching "#cutting" on each SNS platform and collecting the first 10 posts generated. Independent evaluators coded posts for presence of the following: (a) graphic content, (b) negative self-evaluations, (c) references to mental health terms, (d) discouragement of deliberate self-injury, and (e) recovery-oriented resources. Differences across platforms were examined. Data collection yielded a sample of 1,155 public posts (770 of which were related to mental health). Roughly 60% of sampled posts depicted graphic content, almost half included negative self-evaluations, only 9.5% discouraged self-injury, and <1% included formal recovery resources. Instagram posts displayed the greatest proportion of graphic content and negative self-evaluations, whereas Twitter exhibited the smallest proportion of each. Findings characterize the graphic nature of online SNS deliberate self-injury content and the relative absence of SNS-posted resources for populations seeking out deliberate self-injurious cutting content. Mental health professionals must recognize the rapidly changing landscape of adolescent media consumption, influences, and social interaction as they may pertain to self-harm patterns. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  12. Quantitative characterization of colloidal assembly of graphene oxide-silver nanoparticle hybrids using aerosol differential mobility-coupled mass analyses.

    PubMed

    Nguyen, Thai Phuong; Chang, Wei-Chang; Lai, Yen-Chih; Hsiao, Ta-Chih; Tsai, De-Hao

    2017-10-01

    In this work, we develop an aerosol-based, time-resolved ion mobility-coupled mass characterization method to investigate colloidal assembly of graphene oxide (GO)-silver nanoparticle (AgNP) hybrid nanostructure on a quantitative basis. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and zeta potential (ZP) analysis were used to provide visual information and elemental-based particle size distributions, respectively. Results clearly show a successful controlled assembly of GO-AgNP by electrostatic-directed heterogeneous aggregation between GO and bovine serum albumin (BSA)-functionalized AgNP under an acidic environment. Additionally, physical size, mass, and conformation (i.e., number of AgNP per nanohybrid) of GO-AgNP were shown to be proportional to the number concentration ratio of AgNP to GO (R) and the selected electrical mobility diameter. An analysis of colloidal stability of GO-AgNP indicates that the stability increased with its absolute ZP, which was dependent on R and environmental pH. The work presented here provides a proof of concept for systematically synthesizing hybrid colloidal nanomaterials through the tuning of surface chemistry in aqueous phase with the ability in quantitative characterization. Graphical Abstract Colloidal assembly of graphene oxide-silver nanoparticle hybrids characterized by aerosol differential mobility-coupled mass analyses.

  13. A Study on AR 3D Objects Shading Method Using Electronic Compass Sensor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jung, Sungmo; Kim, Seoksoo

    More effective communications can be offered to users by applying NPR (Non-Photorealistic Rendering) methods to 3D graphics. Thus, there has been much research on how to apply NPR to mobile contents. However, previous studies only propose cartoon rendering for pre-treatment with no consideration for directions of light in the surrounding environment. In this study, therefore, ECS(Electronic Compass Sensor) is applied to AR 3D objects shading in order to define directions of light as per time slots for assimilation with the surrounding environment.

  14. Tandem Mass Spectrometry and Ion Mobility Reveals Structural Insight into Eicosanoid Product Ion Formation.

    PubMed

    Di Giovanni, James P; Barkley, Robert M; Jones, David N M; Hankin, Joseph A; Murphy, Robert C

    2018-04-23

    Ion mobility measurements of product ions were used to characterize the collisional cross section (CCS) of various complex lipid [M-H] - ions using traveling wave ion mobility mass spectrometry (TWIMS). TWIMS analysis of various product ions derived after collisional activation of mono- and dihydroxy arachidonate metabolites was found to be more complex than the analysis of intact molecular ions and provided some insight into molecular mechanisms involved in product ion formation. The CCS observed for the molecular ion [M-H] - and certain product ions were consistent with a folded ion structure, the latter predicted by the proposed mechanisms of product ion formation. Unexpectedly, product ions from [M-H-H 2 O-CO 2 ] - and [M-H-H 2 O] - displayed complex ion mobility profiles suggesting multiple mechanisms of ion formation. The [M-H-H 2 O] - ion from LTB 4 was studied in more detail using both nitrogen and helium as the drift gas in the ion mobility cell. One population of [M-H-H 2 O] - product ions from LTB 4 was consistent with formation of covalent ring structures, while the ions displaying a higher CCS were consistent with a more open-chain structure. Using molecular dynamics and theoretical CCS calculations, energy minimized structures of those product ions with the open-chain structures were found to have a higher CCS than a folded molecular ion structure. The measurement of product ion mobility can be an additional and unique signature of eicosanoids measured by LC-MS/MS techniques. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  15. Use of an Accessible iPad App and Supplemental Graphics to Build Mathematics Skills: Feasibility Study Results

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Beal, Carole R.; Rosenblum, L. Penny

    2015-01-01

    Introduction: The present study evaluated the feasibility of using an iPad application or "app" for algebra-readiness mathematics, with accompanying braille materials and accessible graphics, when used in authentic educational settings. Methods: Twenty-nine students with visual impairments in grades 4-11 used the materials under the…

  16. The Effectiveness of Electronic Text and Pictorial Graphic Organizers to Improve Comprehension Related to Functional Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Douglas, Karen H.; Ayres, Kevin M.; Langone, John; Bramlett, Virginia Bell

    2011-01-01

    This study evaluated the effects of a computer-based instructional program to assist three students with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities in using pictorial graphic organizers as aids for increasing comprehension of electronic text-based recipes. Student comprehension of recipes was measured by their ability to verbally retell recipe…

  17. Finite Element Optimization for Nondestructive Evaluation on a Graphics Processing Unit for Ground Vehicle Hull Inspection

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-08-22

    4 cores, where the code may simultaneously run on the multiple cores or the graphics processing unit (or GPU – to be more specific on an NVIDIA ...allowed to get accurate crack shapes. DISCLAIMER Reference herein to any specific commercial company , product, process, or service by trade name

  18. Effects of Wh-Question Graphic Organizers on Reading Comprehension Skills of Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bethune, Keri S.; Wood,Charles L.

    2013-01-01

    Students with autism spectrum disorders often have difficulty with reading comprehension. This study used a delayed multiple baseline across participants design to evaluate the effects of graphic organizers on the accuracy of wh-questions answered following short passage reading. Participants were three elementary-age students with autism spectrum…

  19. Effects of Multimedia-Based Graphic Novel Presentation on Critical Thinking among Students of Different Learning Approaches

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ching, Hii Sii; Fook, Fong Soon

    2013-01-01

    This study investigated the effects of graphic novels on the critical thinking skills in history learning among 291 Secondary Two students in three secondary schools in Malaysia. This research consisted of two parts, namely, development and evaluation. In the first part, the multimedia learning material entitled "Japanese Occupation of Malaya…

  20. Geospatial Authentication

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lyle, Stacey D.

    2009-01-01

    A software package that has been designed to allow authentication for determining if the rover(s) is/are within a set of boundaries or a specific area to access critical geospatial information by using GPS signal structures as a means to authenticate mobile devices into a network wirelessly and in real-time has been developed. The advantage lies in that the system only allows those with designated geospatial boundaries or areas into the server. The Geospatial Authentication software has two parts Server and Client. The server software is a virtual private network (VPN) developed in Linux operating system using Perl programming language. The server can be a stand-alone VPN server or can be combined with other applications and services. The client software is a GUI Windows CE software, or Mobile Graphical Software, that allows users to authenticate into a network. The purpose of the client software is to pass the needed satellite information to the server for authentication.

  1. A three-dimensional, time-dependent model of Mobile Bay

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pitts, F. H.; Farmer, R. C.

    1976-01-01

    A three-dimensional, time-variant mathematical model for momentum and mass transport in estuaries was developed and its solution implemented on a digital computer. The mathematical model is based on state and conservation equations applied to turbulent flow of a two-component, incompressible fluid having a free surface. Thus, bouyancy effects caused by density differences between the fresh and salt water, inertia from thare river and tidal currents, and differences in hydrostatic head are taken into account. The conservation equations, which are partial differential equations, are solved numerically by an explicit, one-step finite difference scheme and the solutions displayed numerically and graphically. To test the validity of the model, a specific estuary for which scaled model and experimental field data are available, Mobile Bay, was simulated. Comparisons of velocity, salinity and water level data show that the model is valid and a viable means of simulating the hydrodynamics and mass transport in non-idealized estuaries.

  2. The application of autostereoscopic display in smart home system based on mobile devices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Yongjun; Ling, Zhi

    2015-03-01

    Smart home is a system to control home devices which are more and more popular in our daily life. Mobile intelligent terminals based on smart homes have been developed, make remote controlling and monitoring possible with smartphones or tablets. On the other hand, 3D stereo display technology developed rapidly in recent years. Therefore, a iPad-based smart home system adopts autostereoscopic display as the control interface is proposed to improve the userfriendliness of using experiences. In consideration of iPad's limited hardware capabilities, we introduced a 3D image synthesizing method based on parallel processing with Graphic Processing Unit (GPU) implemented it with OpenGL ES Application Programming Interface (API) library on IOS platforms for real-time autostereoscopic displaying. Compared to the traditional smart home system, the proposed system applied autostereoscopic display into smart home system's control interface enhanced the reality, user-friendliness and visual comfort of interface.

  3. Cockpit design and evaluation using interactive graphics

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Evans, S. M.

    1975-01-01

    A general overview of the characteristics of an interactive graphics system which was developed to assist cockpit engineers design and evaluate work stations was presented. The manikin used in this COMputerized BIomechanical MAN-model (COMBIMAN) was described, as are provisions for generating work stations and assessing interactions between man and environment. The applications of the present system are explained, and critiques of COMBIMAN are presented. The limitations of the existing programs and the requirements of the designers necessitate future revisions and additions to the biomechanical and erogonomic properties of COMBIMAN. Some of these enhancements are discussed.

  4. Graphical Weather Information System Evaluation: Usability, Perceived Utility, and Preferences from General Aviation Pilots

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Latorella, Kara A.; Chamberlain, James P.

    2002-01-01

    Weather is a significant factor in General Aviation (GA) accidents and fatality rates. Graphical Weather Information Systems (GWISs) for the flight deck are appropriate technologies for mitigating the difficulties GA pilots have with current aviation weather information sources. This paper describes usability evaluations of a prototype GWIS by 12 GA pilots after using the system in flights towards convective weather. We provide design guidance for GWISs and discuss further research required to support weather situation awareness and in-flight decision making for GA pilots.

  5. Improving access to clinical practice guidelines with an interactive graphical interface using an iconic language

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background Clinical practice guidelines are useful for physicians, and guidelines are available on the Internet from various websites such as Vidal Recos. However, these guidelines are long and difficult to read, especially during consultation. Similar difficulties have been encountered with drug summaries of product characteristics. In a previous work, we have proposed an iconic language (called VCM, for Visualization of Concepts in Medicine) for representing patient conditions, treatments and laboratory tests, and we have used these icons to design a user interface that graphically indexes summaries of product characteristics. In the current study, our objective was to design and evaluate an iconic user interface for the consultation of clinical practice guidelines by physicians. Methods Focus groups of physicians were set up to identify the difficulties encountered when reading guidelines. Icons were integrated into Vidal Recos, taking human factors into account. The resulting interface includes a graphical summary and an iconic indexation of the guideline. The new interface was evaluated. We compared the response times and the number of errors recorded when physicians answered questions about two clinical scenarios using the interactive iconic interface or a textual interface. Users’ perceived usability was evaluated with the System Usability Scale. Results The main difficulties encountered by physicians when reading guidelines were obtaining an overview and finding recommendations for patients corresponding to “particular cases”. We designed a graphical interface for guideline consultation, using icons to identify particular cases and providing a graphical summary of the icons organized by anatomy and etiology. The evaluation showed that physicians gave clinical responses more rapidly with the iconic interface than the textual interface (25.2 seconds versus 45.6, p < 0.05). The physicians appreciated the new interface, and the System Usability Scale score value was 75 (between good and excellent). Conclusion An interactive iconic interface can provide physicians with an overview of clinical practice guidelines, and can decrease the time required to access the content of such guidelines. PMID:25158762

  6. Improving access to clinical practice guidelines with an interactive graphical interface using an iconic language.

    PubMed

    Pereira, Suzanne; Hassler, Sylvain; Hamek, Saliha; Boog, César; Leroy, Nicolas; Beuscart-Zéphir, Marie-Catherine; Favre, Madeleine; Venot, Alain; Duclos, Catherine; Lamy, Jean-Baptiste

    2014-08-26

    Clinical practice guidelines are useful for physicians, and guidelines are available on the Internet from various websites such as Vidal Recos. However, these guidelines are long and difficult to read, especially during consultation. Similar difficulties have been encountered with drug summaries of product characteristics. In a previous work, we have proposed an iconic language (called VCM, for Visualization of Concepts in Medicine) for representing patient conditions, treatments and laboratory tests, and we have used these icons to design a user interface that graphically indexes summaries of product characteristics. In the current study, our objective was to design and evaluate an iconic user interface for the consultation of clinical practice guidelines by physicians. Focus groups of physicians were set up to identify the difficulties encountered when reading guidelines. Icons were integrated into Vidal Recos, taking human factors into account. The resulting interface includes a graphical summary and an iconic indexation of the guideline. The new interface was evaluated. We compared the response times and the number of errors recorded when physicians answered questions about two clinical scenarios using the interactive iconic interface or a textual interface. Users' perceived usability was evaluated with the System Usability Scale. The main difficulties encountered by physicians when reading guidelines were obtaining an overview and finding recommendations for patients corresponding to "particular cases". We designed a graphical interface for guideline consultation, using icons to identify particular cases and providing a graphical summary of the icons organized by anatomy and etiology. The evaluation showed that physicians gave clinical responses more rapidly with the iconic interface than the textual interface (25.2 seconds versus 45.6, p < 0.05). The physicians appreciated the new interface, and the System Usability Scale score value was 75 (between good and excellent). An interactive iconic interface can provide physicians with an overview of clinical practice guidelines, and can decrease the time required to access the content of such guidelines.

  7. Interactive graphics for expressing health risks: development and qualitative evaluation.

    PubMed

    Ancker, Jessica S; Chan, Connie; Kukafka, Rita

    2009-01-01

    Recent findings suggest that interactive game-like graphics might be useful in communicating probabilities. We developed a prototype for a risk communication module, focusing on eliciting users' preferences for different interactive graphics and assessing usability and user interpretations. Feedback from five focus groups was used to design the graphics. The final version displayed a matrix of square buttons; clicking on any button allowed the user to see whether the stick figure underneath was affected by the health outcome. When participants used this interaction to learn about a risk, they expressed more emotional responses, both positive and negative, than when viewing any static graphic or numerical description of a risk. Their responses included relief about small risks and concern about large risks. The groups also commented on static graphics: arranging the figures affected by disease randomly throughout a group of figures made it more difficult to judge the proportion affected but often was described as more realistic. Interactive graphics appear to have potential for expressing risk magnitude as well as the feeling of risk. This affective impact could be useful in increasing perceived threat of high risks, calming fears about low risks, or comparing risks. Quantitative studies are planned to assess the effect on perceived risks and estimated risk magnitudes.

  8. Robotics On-Board Trainer (ROBoT)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Johnson, Genevieve; Alexander, Greg

    2013-01-01

    ROBoT is an on-orbit version of the ground-based Dynamics Skills Trainer (DST) that astronauts use for training on a frequent basis. This software consists of two primary software groups. The first series of components is responsible for displaying the graphical scenes. The remaining components are responsible for simulating the Mobile Servicing System (MSS), the Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS), and the H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) Free Flyer Robotics Operations. The MSS simulation software includes: Robotic Workstation (RWS) simulation, a simulation of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS), a simulation of the ISS Command and Control System (CCS), and a portion of the Portable Computer System (PCS) software necessary for MSS operations. These components all run under the CentOS4.5 Linux operating system. The JEMRMS simulation software includes real-time, HIL, dynamics, manipulator multi-body dynamics, and a moving object contact model with Tricks discrete time scheduling. The JEMRMS DST will be used as a functional proficiency and skills trainer for flight crews. The HTV Free Flyer Robotics Operations simulation software adds a functional simulation of HTV vehicle controllers, sensors, and data to the MSS simulation software. These components are intended to support HTV ISS visiting vehicle analysis and training. The scene generation software will use DOUG (Dynamic On-orbit Ubiquitous Graphics) to render the graphical scenes. DOUG runs on a laptop running the CentOS4.5 Linux operating system. DOUG is an Open GL-based 3D computer graphics rendering package. It uses pre-built three-dimensional models of on-orbit ISS and space shuttle systems elements, and provides realtime views of various station and shuttle configurations.

  9. Assessment of Dimeric Metal-Glycan Adducts via Isotopic Labeling and Ion Mobility-Mass Spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Morrison, Kelsey A; Bendiak, Brad K; Clowers, Brian H

    2018-05-25

    Adduction of multivalent metal ions to glycans has been shown in recent years to produce altered tandem mass spectra with collision-induced dissociation, electron transfer techniques, and photon-based fragmentation approaches. However, these approaches assume the presence of a well-characterized precursor ion population and do not fully account for the possibility of multimeric species for select glycan-metal complexes. With the use of ion mobility separations prior to mass analysis, doubly charged dimers are not necessarily problematic for tandem MS experiments given that monomer and dimer drift times are sufficiently different. However, multistage mass spectrometric experiments performed on glycans adducted to multivalent metals without mobility separation can yield chimeric fragmentation spectra that are essentially a superposition of the fragments from both the monomeric and dimeric adducts. For homodimeric adducts, where the dimer contains two of the same glycan species, this is less of a concern but if heterodimers can form, there exists the potential for erroneous and misleading fragment ions to appear if a heterodimer containing two different isomers is fragmented along with a targeted monomer. We present an assessment of heterodimer formation between a series of six tetrasaccharides, of which three are isomers, adducted with cobalt(II) and a monodeuterated tetrasaccharide. Using ion mobility separations prior to single-stage and tandem mass analysis, the data shown demonstrate that heterodimeric species can indeed form, and that ion mobility separations are highly necessary prior to using tandem techniques on metal-glycan adducts. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  10. The development of an indoor mobility course for the evaluation of electronic mobility aids for persons who are visually impaired.

    PubMed

    Roentgen, Uta R; Gelderblom, Gert Jan; de Witte, Luc P

    2012-01-01

    To develop a suitable mobility course for the assessment of mobility performance as part of a user evaluation of Electronic Mobility Aids (EMA) aimed at obstacle detection and orientation. A review of the literature led to a list of critical factors for the assessment of mobility performance of persons who are visually impaired. Based upon that list, method, test situations, and determining elements were selected and presented to Dutch orientation and mobility experts. Due to expert advice and a pilot study, minor changes were made and the final version was used for the evaluation of two EMA by eight persons who are visually impaired. The results of the literature study are summarized in an overview of critical factors for the assessment of the mobility performance of persons who are visually impaired. Applied to the requirements of the above mentioned user evaluation a replicable indoor mobility course has been described in detail and tested. Based upon evidence from literature an indoor mobility course has been developed, which was sensitive to assess differences in mobility incidents and obstacle detection when using an EMA compared to the regular mobility aid. Experts' opinion confirmed its face and content validity.

  11. An evaluation of pediatric dental patient education materials using contemporary health literacy measures.

    PubMed

    Kang, Edith; Fields, Henry W; Cornett, Sandy; Beck, F Michael

    2005-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to determine the appropriateness of nationally available dental information materials according to the suitability assessment of materials (SAM) method. Clinically related, professionally produced patient dental health education materials (N=22) provided by the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) were evaluated using the SAM method that had previously been judged valid and reliable. A rater was trained by an experienced health literacy evaluator to establish validity. The rater then rated all materials for 5 categories of assessment (content, literacy demand, graphics, layout and typography, and learning stimulation/motivation) and an overall assessment, and repeated 5 materials to establish intrarater reliability. When compared to the experienced rater, the validity was K=0.43. The reliability was established for all ratings as K=0.52. The consistently weakest categories were content, graphics, and learning stimulation, while reading level as part of literacy demand was often not suitable. The overall suitability of the AAPD materials was generally classified as superior. Reliable and valid evaluation of available dental patient information materials can be accomplished. The materials were largely superior. There is great variability within the categories of evaluation. The categories of content, graphics, and learning stimulation require attention and could raise the overall quality of the materials.

  12. Technology for communicational development and learning in psychomotor disability

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Trento, I.; Santucci, M.; Tula, S.; González, E.

    2007-11-01

    The applied investigation and experimental development project described in this paper has been carried out by Grupo Ingeniería Clínica of the Universidad Tecnológica Nacional together with two Special Education Schools dependent on the Ministry of Education of Córdoba Province. Its aim is the development of computer access assistive tools for students with mobility limitations, and with or without intellectual problems that need adaptations to access to a computer in order to learn, communicate, work, etc. On the other hand, it demonstrates the benefits that the use of a computer gives to these students. The evaluation of their performance was made trough Dr. Marianne Frostig's Developmental Test of Visual Perception and reading and writing graphic tests, comparing the results of the tests made on paper with those made on computer. Thus, an interdisciplinary team was formed by Engineering, Psychology and Special Education professionals, and 40 students were evaluated. The design of the mouse and keyboard had some adaptations. At present, the rating test stage is being achieved, and the preliminary results allow us to anticipate that pupils with psychomotor disabilities may manifest their perceptual ripeness and reach education in a more efficient way through the use of informatics tools according to their needs and possibilities.

  13. 3D Medical Collaboration Technology to Enhance Emergency Healthcare

    PubMed Central

    Welch, Greg; Sonnenwald, Diane H; Fuchs, Henry; Cairns, Bruce; Mayer-Patel, Ketan; Söderholm, Hanna M.; Yang, Ruigang; State, Andrei; Towles, Herman; Ilie, Adrian; Ampalam, Manoj; Krishnan, Srinivas; Noel, Vincent; Noland, Michael; Manning, James E.

    2009-01-01

    Two-dimensional (2D) videoconferencing has been explored widely in the past 15–20 years to support collaboration in healthcare. Two issues that arise in most evaluations of 2D videoconferencing in telemedicine are the difficulty obtaining optimal camera views and poor depth perception. To address these problems, we are exploring the use of a small array of cameras to reconstruct dynamic three-dimensional (3D) views of a remote environment and of events taking place within. The 3D views could be sent across wired or wireless networks to remote healthcare professionals equipped with fixed displays or with mobile devices such as personal digital assistants (PDAs). The remote professionals’ viewpoints could be specified manually or automatically (continuously) via user head or PDA tracking, giving the remote viewers head-slaved or hand-slaved virtual cameras for monoscopic or stereoscopic viewing of the dynamic reconstructions. We call this idea remote 3D medical collaboration. In this article we motivate and explain the vision for 3D medical collaboration technology; we describe the relevant computer vision, computer graphics, display, and networking research; we present a proof-of-concept prototype system; and we present evaluation results supporting the general hypothesis that 3D remote medical collaboration technology could offer benefits over conventional 2D videoconferencing in emergency healthcare. PMID:19521951

  14. 3D medical collaboration technology to enhance emergency healthcare.

    PubMed

    Welch, Gregory F; Sonnenwald, Diane H; Fuchs, Henry; Cairns, Bruce; Mayer-Patel, Ketan; Söderholm, Hanna M; Yang, Ruigang; State, Andrei; Towles, Herman; Ilie, Adrian; Ampalam, Manoj K; Krishnan, Srinivas; Noel, Vincent; Noland, Michael; Manning, James E

    2009-04-19

    Two-dimensional (2D) videoconferencing has been explored widely in the past 15-20 years to support collaboration in healthcare. Two issues that arise in most evaluations of 2D videoconferencing in telemedicine are the difficulty obtaining optimal camera views and poor depth perception. To address these problems, we are exploring the use of a small array of cameras to reconstruct dynamic three-dimensional (3D) views of a remote environment and of events taking place within. The 3D views could be sent across wired or wireless networks to remote healthcare professionals equipped with fixed displays or with mobile devices such as personal digital assistants (PDAs). The remote professionals' viewpoints could be specified manually or automatically (continuously) via user head or PDA tracking, giving the remote viewers head-slaved or hand-slaved virtual cameras for monoscopic or stereoscopic viewing of the dynamic reconstructions. We call this idea remote 3D medical collaboration. In this article we motivate and explain the vision for 3D medical collaboration technology; we describe the relevant computer vision, computer graphics, display, and networking research; we present a proof-of-concept prototype system; and we present evaluation results supporting the general hypothesis that 3D remote medical collaboration technology could offer benefits over conventional 2D videoconferencing in emergency healthcare.

  15. Student Use of Mobile Devices in Course Evaluation: A Longitudinal Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Champagne, Matthew V.

    2013-01-01

    A 2012 survey of higher education found that 27% of colleges and universities were "mobile ready", that is, allowing students to complete course evaluations via mobile devices, and 26% of schools planned to allow the use of mobile devices for course evaluations within the next year. The purpose of this study was to prepare for this…

  16. Transactions and Answer Judging in Multimedia Instruction: A Way to Transact with Features Appearing in Video and Graphic Images.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Casey, Carl

    1992-01-01

    Discussion of transactions in computer-based instruction for ill-structured and visual domains focuses on two transactions developed for meteorology training that provide the capability to interact with video and graphic images at a very detailed level. Potential applications for the transactions are suggested, and early evaluation reports are…

  17. Handling the Difficulties of Technical School Students in the Construction and Interpretation of Graphic Representations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marinos, Andreas

    2010-01-01

    In this work, an attempt is made to evaluate the errors that have to do with the interpretation and construction of graphic representations. Although the students are studying in the second year of technical high school (secondary education), i.e. in schools with an emphasis in technical subjects (post junior secondary), it is observed that they…

  18. Using Comic Books and Graphic Novels to Improve and Facilitate Community College Students' Literacy Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burke, Brian Patrick

    2012-01-01

    This study evaluated how comic books and graphic novels enhanced the reading comprehension of the students enrolled in the intermediate reading course at Western Pennsylvania Community College. The three research questions are: (1) How can a developmental reading course make use of comics as a learning tool? (2) What impact does reading comics…

  19. An Evaluation of the Graphic Arts/Public Relations Program of the Capitol Region Library Council.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vrecenak, Robert D.

    The Graphic Arts/Public Relations (GA/PR) program of the Capitol Region Library Council (CRLC) of Connecticut proposed to increase the public's awareness of libraries and library services in the Capitol Region, and increase public relations awareness in libraries. It was an outreach type of program that attempted to have positive effects on the…

  20. A new strategic neurosurgical planning tool for brainstem cavernous malformations using interactive computer graphics with multimodal fusion images.

    PubMed

    Kin, Taichi; Nakatomi, Hirofumi; Shojima, Masaaki; Tanaka, Minoru; Ino, Kenji; Mori, Harushi; Kunimatsu, Akira; Oyama, Hiroshi; Saito, Nobuhito

    2012-07-01

    In this study, the authors used preoperative simulation employing 3D computer graphics (interactive computer graphics) to fuse all imaging data for brainstem cavernous malformations. The authors evaluated whether interactive computer graphics or 2D imaging correlated better with the actual operative field, particularly in identifying a developmental venous anomaly (DVA). The study population consisted of 10 patients scheduled for surgical treatment of brainstem cavernous malformations. Data from preoperative imaging (MRI, CT, and 3D rotational angiography) were automatically fused using a normalized mutual information method, and then reconstructed by a hybrid method combining surface rendering and volume rendering methods. With surface rendering, multimodality and multithreshold techniques for 1 tissue were applied. The completed interactive computer graphics were used for simulation of surgical approaches and assumed surgical fields. Preoperative diagnostic rates for a DVA associated with brainstem cavernous malformation were compared between conventional 2D imaging and interactive computer graphics employing receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The time required for reconstruction of 3D images was 3-6 hours for interactive computer graphics. Observation in interactive mode required approximately 15 minutes. Detailed anatomical information for operative procedures, from the craniotomy to microsurgical operations, could be visualized and simulated three-dimensionally as 1 computer graphic using interactive computer graphics. Virtual surgical views were consistent with actual operative views. This technique was very useful for examining various surgical approaches. Mean (±SEM) area under the ROC curve for rate of DVA diagnosis was significantly better for interactive computer graphics (1.000±0.000) than for 2D imaging (0.766±0.091; p<0.001, Mann-Whitney U-test). The authors report a new method for automatic registration of preoperative imaging data from CT, MRI, and 3D rotational angiography for reconstruction into 1 computer graphic. The diagnostic rate of DVA associated with brainstem cavernous malformation was significantly better using interactive computer graphics than with 2D images. Interactive computer graphics was also useful in helping to plan the surgical access corridor.

  1. Motion compensation in digital subtraction angiography using graphics hardware.

    PubMed

    Deuerling-Zheng, Yu; Lell, Michael; Galant, Adam; Hornegger, Joachim

    2006-07-01

    An inherent disadvantage of digital subtraction angiography (DSA) is its sensitivity to patient motion which causes artifacts in the subtraction images. These artifacts could often reduce the diagnostic value of this technique. Automated, fast and accurate motion compensation is therefore required. To cope with this requirement, we first examine a method explicitly designed to detect local motions in DSA. Then, we implement a motion compensation algorithm by means of block matching on modern graphics hardware. Both methods search for maximal local similarity by evaluating a histogram-based measure. In this context, we are the first who have mapped an optimizing search strategy on graphics hardware while paralleling block matching. Moreover, we provide an innovative method for creating histograms on graphics hardware with vertex texturing and frame buffer blending. It turns out that both methods can effectively correct the artifacts in most case, as the hardware implementation of block matching performs much faster: the displacements of two 1024 x 1024 images can be calculated at 3 frames/s with integer precision or 2 frames/s with sub-pixel precision. Preliminary clinical evaluation indicates that the computation with integer precision could already be sufficient.

  2. Representation, Exemplification, and Risk: Resonance of Tobacco Graphic Health Warnings Across Diverse Populations.

    PubMed

    Bigman, Cabral A; Nagler, Rebekah H; Viswanath, K

    2016-08-01

    As countries implement Article 11 of the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, graphic warning labels that use images of people and their body parts to illustrate the consequences of smoking are being added to cigarette packs. According to exemplification theory, these case examples-exemplars-can shape perceptions about risk and may resonate differently among demographic subpopulations. Drawing on data from eight focus groups (N = 63) with smokers and nonsmokers from vulnerable populations, this qualitative study explores whether people considered exemplars in their reactions to and evaluations of U.S. graphic health warning labels initially proposed by the Food and Drug Administration. Participants made reference to prior and concurrent mass media messages and exemplars during the focus groups and used demographic cues in making sense of the images on the warning labels. Participants were particularly sensitive to age of the exemplars and how it might affect label effectiveness and beliefs about smoking. Race and socioeconomic status also were salient for some participants. We recommend that exemplars and exemplification be considered when selecting and evaluating graphic health warnings for tobacco labels and associated media campaigns.

  3. Atmospheric Pressure Ionization Using a High Voltage Target Compared to Electrospray Ionization.

    PubMed

    Lubin, Arnaud; Bajic, Steve; Cabooter, Deirdre; Augustijns, Patrick; Cuyckens, Filip

    2017-02-01

    A new atmospheric pressure ionization (API) source, viz. UniSpray, was evaluated for mass spectrometry (MS) analysis of pharmaceutical compounds by head-to-head comparison with electrospray ionization (ESI) on the same high-resolution MS system. The atmospheric pressure ionization source is composed of a grounded nebulizer spraying onto a high voltage, cylindrical stainless steel target. Molecules are ionized in a similar fashion to electrospray ionization, predominantly producing protonated or deprotonated species. Adduct formation (e.g., proton and sodium adducts) and in-source fragmentation is shown to be almost identical between the two sources. The performance of the new API source was compared with electrospray by infusion of a mix of 22 pharmaceutical compounds with a wide variety of functional groups and physico-chemical properties (molecular weight, logP, and pKa) in more than 100 different conditions (mobile phase strength, solvents, pH, and flow rate). The new API source shows an intensity gain of a factor 2.2 compared with ESI considering all conditions on all compounds tested. Finally, some hypotheses on the ionization mechanism, similarities, and differences with ESI, are discussed. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  4. DengueME: A Tool for the Modeling and Simulation of Dengue Spatiotemporal Dynamics †

    PubMed Central

    de Lima, Tiago França Melo; Lana, Raquel Martins; de Senna Carneiro, Tiago Garcia; Codeço, Cláudia Torres; Machado, Gabriel Souza; Ferreira, Lucas Saraiva; de Castro Medeiros, Líliam César; Davis Junior, Clodoveu Augusto

    2016-01-01

    The prevention and control of dengue are great public health challenges for many countries, particularly since 2015, as other arboviruses have been observed to interact significantly with dengue virus. Different approaches and methodologies have been proposed and discussed by the research community. An important tool widely used is modeling and simulation, which help us to understand epidemic dynamics and create scenarios to support planning and decision making processes. With this aim, we proposed and developed DengueME, a collaborative open source platform to simulate dengue disease and its vector’s dynamics. It supports compartmental and individual-based models, implemented over a GIS database, that represent Aedes aegypti population dynamics, human demography, human mobility, urban landscape and dengue transmission mediated by human and mosquito encounters. A user-friendly graphical interface was developed to facilitate model configuration and data input, and a library of models was developed to support teaching-learning activities. DengueME was applied in study cases and evaluated by specialists. Other improvements will be made in future work, to enhance its extensibility and usability. PMID:27649226

  5. A proposal for the measurement of graphical statistics effectiveness: Does it enhance or interfere with statistical reasoning?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Agus, M.; Penna, M. P.; Peró-Cebollero, M.; Guàrdia-Olmos, J.

    2015-02-01

    Numerous studies have examined students' difficulties in understanding some notions related to statistical problems. Some authors observed that the presentation of distinct visual representations could increase statistical reasoning, supporting the principle of graphical facilitation. But other researchers disagree with this viewpoint, emphasising the impediments related to the use of illustrations that could overcharge the cognitive system with insignificant data. In this work we aim at comparing the probabilistic statistical reasoning regarding two different formats of problem presentations: graphical and verbal-numerical. We have conceived and presented five pairs of homologous simple problems in the verbal numerical and graphical format to 311 undergraduate Psychology students (n=156 in Italy and n=155 in Spain) without statistical expertise. The purpose of our work was to evaluate the effect of graphical facilitation in probabilistic statistical reasoning. Every undergraduate has solved each pair of problems in two formats in different problem presentation orders and sequences. Data analyses have highlighted that the effect of graphical facilitation is infrequent in psychology undergraduates. This effect is related to many factors (as knowledge, abilities, attitudes, and anxiety); moreover it might be considered the resultant of interaction between individual and task characteristics.

  6. Evaluation of graphic cardiovascular display in a high-fidelity simulator.

    PubMed

    Agutter, James; Drews, Frank; Syroid, Noah; Westneskow, Dwayne; Albert, Rob; Strayer, David; Bermudez, Julio; Weinger, Matthew B

    2003-11-01

    "Human error" in anesthesia can be attributed to misleading information from patient monitors or to the physician's failure to recognize a pattern. A graphic representation of monitored data may provide better support for detection, diagnosis, and treatment. We designed a graphic display to show hemodynamic variables. Twenty anesthesiologists were asked to assume care of a simulated patient. Half the participants used the graphic cardiovascular display; the other half used a Datex As/3 monitor. One scenario was a total hip replacement with a transfusion reaction to mismatched blood. The second scenario was a radical prostatectomy with 1.5 L of blood loss and myocardial ischemia. Subjects who used the graphic display detected myocardial ischemia 2 min sooner than those who did not use the display. Treatment was initiated sooner (2.5 versus 4.9 min). There were no significant differences between groups in the hip replacement scenario. Systolic blood pressure deviated less from baseline, central venous pressure was closer to its baseline, and arterial oxygen saturation was higher at the end of the case when the graphic display was used. The study lends some support for the hypothesis that providing clinical information graphically in a display designed with emergent features and functional relationships can improve clinicians' ability to detect, diagnose, manage, and treat critical cardiovascular events in a simulated environment. A graphic representation of monitored data may provide better support for detection, diagnosis, and treatment. A user-centered design process led to a novel object-oriented graphic display of hemodynamic variables containing emergent features and functional relationships. In a simulated environment, this display appeared to support clinicians' ability to diagnose, manage, and treat a critical cardiovascular event in a simulated environment. We designed a graphic display to show hemodynamic variables. The study provides some support for the hypothesis that providing clinical information graphically in a display designed with emergent features and functional relationships can improve clinicians' ability to detect, diagnosis, mange, and treat critical cardiovascular events in a simulated environment.

  7. Graphical Tests for Power Comparison of Competing Designs.

    PubMed

    Hofmann, H; Follett, L; Majumder, M; Cook, D

    2012-12-01

    Lineups have been established as tools for visual testing similar to standard statistical inference tests, allowing us to evaluate the validity of graphical findings in an objective manner. In simulation studies lineups have been shown as being efficient: the power of visual tests is comparable to classical tests while being much less stringent in terms of distributional assumptions made. This makes lineups versatile, yet powerful, tools in situations where conditions for regular statistical tests are not or cannot be met. In this paper we introduce lineups as a tool for evaluating the power of competing graphical designs. We highlight some of the theoretical properties and then show results from two studies evaluating competing designs: both studies are designed to go to the limits of our perceptual abilities to highlight differences between designs. We use both accuracy and speed of evaluation as measures of a successful design. The first study compares the choice of coordinate system: polar versus cartesian coordinates. The results show strong support in favor of cartesian coordinates in finding fast and accurate answers to spotting patterns. The second study is aimed at finding shift differences between distributions. Both studies are motivated by data problems that we have recently encountered, and explore using simulated data to evaluate the plot designs under controlled conditions. Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) is used to conduct the studies. The lineups provide an effective mechanism for objectively evaluating plot designs.

  8. Graphical approach to assess the soil fertility evaluation model validity for rice (case study: southern area of Merapi Mountain, Indonesia)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Julianto, E. A.; Suntoro, W. A.; Dewi, W. S.; Partoyo

    2018-03-01

    Climate change has been reported to exacerbate land resources degradation including soil fertility decline. The appropriate validity use on soil fertility evaluation could reduce the risk of climate change effect on plant cultivation. This study aims to assess the validity of a Soil Fertility Evaluation Model using a graphical approach. The models evaluated were the Indonesian Soil Research Center (PPT) version model, the FAO Unesco version model, and the Kyuma version model. Each model was then correlated with rice production (dry grain weight/GKP). The goodness of fit of each model can be tested to evaluate the quality and validity of a model, as well as the regression coefficient (R2). This research used the Eviews 9 programme by a graphical approach. The results obtained three curves, namely actual, fitted, and residual curves. If the actual and fitted curves are widely apart or irregular, this means that the quality of the model is not good, or there are many other factors that are still not included in the model (large residual) and conversely. Indeed, if the actual and fitted curves show exactly the same shape, it means that all factors have already been included in the model. Modification of the standard soil fertility evaluation models can improve the quality and validity of a model.

  9. Graphic representation of data resulting from measurement comparison trials in cataract and refractive surgery.

    PubMed

    Krummenauer, Frank; Storkebaum, Kristin; Dick, H Burkhard

    2003-01-01

    The evaluation of new diagnostic measurement devices allows intraindividual comparison with an established standard method. However, reports in journal articles often omit the adequate incorporation of the intraindividual design into the graphic representation. This article illustrates the drawbacks and the possible erroneous conclusions caused by this misleading practice in terms of recent method comparison data resulting from axial length measurement in 220 consecutive patients by both applanation ultrasound and partial coherence interferometry. Graphic representation of such method comparison data should be based on boxplots for intraindividual differences or on Bland-Altman plots. Otherwise, severe deviations between the measurement devices could be erroneously ignored and false-positive conclusions on the concordance of the instruments could result. Graphic representation of method comparison data should sensitively incorporate the underlying study design for intraindividual comparison.

  10. A Mobile Asset Tracking System Architecture under Mobile-Stationary Co-Existing WSNs

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Tae Hyon; Jo, Hyeong Gon; Lee, Jae Shin; Kang, Soon Ju

    2012-01-01

    The tracking of multiple wireless mobile nodes is not easy with current legacy WSN technologies, due to their inherent technical complexity, especially when heavy traffic and frequent movement of mobile nodes are encountered. To enable mobile asset tracking under these legacy WSN systems, it is necessary to design a specific system architecture that can manage numerous mobile nodes attached to mobile assets. In this paper, we present a practical system architecture including a communication protocol, a three-tier network, and server-side middleware for mobile asset tracking in legacy WSNs consisting of mobile-stationary co-existing infrastructures, and we prove the functionality of this architecture through careful evaluation in a test bed. Evaluation was carried out in a microwave anechoic chamber as well as on a straight road near our office. We evaluated communication mobility performance between mobile and stationary nodes, location-awareness performance, system stability under numerous mobile node conditions, and the successful packet transfer rate according to the speed of the mobile nodes. The results indicate that the proposed architecture is sufficiently robust for application in realistic mobile asset tracking services that require a large number of mobile nodes. PMID:23242277

  11. Augmented reality user interface for mobile ground robots with manipulator arms

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vozar, Steven; Tilbury, Dawn M.

    2011-01-01

    Augmented Reality (AR) is a technology in which real-world visual data is combined with an overlay of computer graphics, enhancing the original feed. AR is an attractive tool for teleoperated UGV UIs as it can improve communication between robots and users via an intuitive spatial and visual dialogue, thereby increasing operator situational awareness. The successful operation of UGVs often relies upon both chassis navigation and manipulator arm control, and since existing literature usually focuses on one task or the other, there is a gap in mobile robot UIs that take advantage of AR for both applications. This work describes the development and analysis of an AR UI system for a UGV with an attached manipulator arm. The system supplements a video feed shown to an operator with information about geometric relationships within the robot task space to improve the operator's situational awareness. Previous studies on AR systems and preliminary analyses indicate that such an implementation of AR for a mobile robot with a manipulator arm is anticipated to improve operator performance. A full user-study can determine if this hypothesis is supported by performing an analysis of variance on common test metrics associated with UGV teleoperation.

  12. Comprehensive Peptide Ion Structure Studies Using Ion Mobility Techniques: Part 3. Relating Solution-Phase to Gas-Phase Structures.

    PubMed

    Kondalaji, Samaneh Ghassabi; Khakinejad, Mahdiar; Valentine, Stephen J

    2018-06-01

    Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been utilized to study peptide ion conformer establishment during the electrospray process. An explicit water model is used for nanodroplets containing a model peptide and hydronium ions. Simulations are conducted at 300 K for two different peptide ion charge configurations and for droplets containing varying numbers of hydronium ions. For all conditions, modeling has been performed until production of the gas-phase ions and the resultant conformers have been compared to proposed gas-phase structures. The latter species were obtained from previous studies in which in silico candidate structures were filtered according to ion mobility and hydrogen-deuterium exchange (HDX) reactivity matches. Results from the present study present three key findings namely (1) the evidence from ion production modeling supports previous structure refinement studies based on mobility and HDX reactivity matching, (2) the modeling of the electrospray process is significantly improved by utilizing initial droplets existing below but close to the calculated Rayleigh limit, and (3) peptide ions in the nanodroplets sample significantly different conformers than those in the bulk solution due to altered physicochemical properties of the solvent. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  13. Evaluation of accelerated iterative x-ray CT image reconstruction using floating point graphics hardware.

    PubMed

    Kole, J S; Beekman, F J

    2006-02-21

    Statistical reconstruction methods offer possibilities to improve image quality as compared with analytical methods, but current reconstruction times prohibit routine application in clinical and micro-CT. In particular, for cone-beam x-ray CT, the use of graphics hardware has been proposed to accelerate the forward and back-projection operations, in order to reduce reconstruction times. In the past, wide application of this texture hardware mapping approach was hampered owing to limited intrinsic accuracy. Recently, however, floating point precision has become available in the latest generation commodity graphics cards. In this paper, we utilize this feature to construct a graphics hardware accelerated version of the ordered subset convex reconstruction algorithm. The aims of this paper are (i) to study the impact of using graphics hardware acceleration for statistical reconstruction on the reconstructed image accuracy and (ii) to measure the speed increase one can obtain by using graphics hardware acceleration. We compare the unaccelerated algorithm with the graphics hardware accelerated version, and for the latter we consider two different interpolation techniques. A simulation study of a micro-CT scanner with a mathematical phantom shows that at almost preserved reconstructed image accuracy, speed-ups of a factor 40 to 222 can be achieved, compared with the unaccelerated algorithm, and depending on the phantom and detector sizes. Reconstruction from physical phantom data reconfirms the usability of the accelerated algorithm for practical cases.

  14. The Impact of Graphic Cigarette Warning Labels and Smoke-Free Law on Health Awareness and Thoughts of Quitting in Taiwan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chang, Fong-Ching; Chung, Chi-Hui; Yu, Po-Tswen; Chao, Kun-yu

    2011-01-01

    The present study evaluated the impact of Taiwan's graphic cigarette warning labels and smoke-free law on awareness of the health hazards of smoking and thoughts of quitting smoking. National representative samples of 1074 and 1094 people, respectively, were conducted successfully by telephone in July 2008 (pre-law) and March 2009 (post-law).…

  15. A Graphic Symbol Tool for the Evaluation of Communication, Satisfaction and Priorities of Individuals with Intellectual Disability Who Use a Speech Generating Device

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Valiquette, Christine; Sutton, Ann; Ska, Bernadette

    2010-01-01

    This article reports on the views of individuals with learning disability (LD) on their use of their speech generating devices (SGDs), their satisfaction about their communication, and their priorities. The development of an interview tool made of graphic symbols and entitled Communication, Satisfaction and Priorities of SGD Users (CSPU) is…

  16. Evaluation of a graphic interface to control a robotic grasping arm: a multicenter study.

    PubMed

    Laffont, Isabelle; Biard, Nicolas; Chalubert, Gérard; Delahoche, Laurent; Marhic, Bruno; Boyer, François C; Leroux, Christophe

    2009-10-01

    Laffont I, Biard N, Chalubert G, Delahoche L, Marhic B, Boyer FC, Leroux C. Evaluation of a graphic interface to control a robotic grasping arm: a multicenter study. Grasping robots are still difficult to use for persons with disabilities because of inadequate human-machine interfaces (HMIs). Our purpose was to evaluate the efficacy of a graphic interface enhanced by a panoramic camera to detect out-of-view objects and control a commercialized robotic grasping arm. Multicenter, open-label trial. Four French departments of physical and rehabilitation medicine. Control subjects (N=24; mean age, 33y) and 20 severely impaired patients (mean age, 44y; 5 with muscular dystrophies, 13 with traumatic tetraplegia, and 2 others) completed the study. None of these patients was able to grasp a 50-cL bottle without the robot. Participants were asked to grasp 6 objects scattered around their wheelchair using the robotic arm. They were able to select the desired object through the graphic interface available on their computer screen. Global success rate, time needed to select the object on the screen of the computer, number of clicks on the HMI, and satisfaction among users. We found a significantly lower success rate in patients (81.1% vs 88.7%; chi(2)P=.017). The duration of the task was significantly higher in patients (71.6s vs 39.1s; P<.001). We set a cut-off for the maximum duration at 79 seconds, representing twice the amount of time needed by the control subjects to complete the task. In these conditions, the success rate for the impaired participants was 65% versus 85.4% for control subjects. The mean number of clicks necessary to select the object with the HMI was very close in both groups: patients used (mean +/- SD) 7.99+/-6.07 clicks, whereas controls used 7.04+/-2.87 clicks. Considering the severity of patients' impairment, all these differences were considered tiny. Furthermore, a high satisfaction rate was reported for this population concerning the use of the graphic interface. The graphic interface is of interest in controlling robotic arms for disabled people, with numerous potential applications in daily life.

  17. How to Evaluate Mobile Health Applications: A Scoping Review.

    PubMed

    Fiore, Pasquale

    2017-01-01

    Evaluating mobile health applications requires specific criteria. Research suggests evaluation grids and online web sites are available to provide a quick sense of ease for the health care professional wanting to use a mobile application without worrying about the quality, efficacy, and safety of the mobile application. This article will present a scoping review and explore the available resources for health care professionals.

  18. Mobile high-performance computing (HPC) for synthetic aperture radar signal processing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Misko, Joshua; Kim, Youngsoo; Qi, Chenchen; Sirkeci, Birsen

    2018-04-01

    The importance of mobile high-performance computing has emerged in numerous battlespace applications at the tactical edge in hostile environments. Energy efficient computing power is a key enabler for diverse areas ranging from real-time big data analytics and atmospheric science to network science. However, the design of tactical mobile data centers is dominated by power, thermal, and physical constraints. Presently, it is very unlikely to achieve required computing processing power by aggregating emerging heterogeneous many-core processing platforms consisting of CPU, Field Programmable Gate Arrays and Graphic Processor cores constrained by power and performance. To address these challenges, we performed a Synthetic Aperture Radar case study for Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) using Deep Neural Networks (DNNs). However, these DNN models are typically trained using GPUs with gigabytes of external memories and massively used 32-bit floating point operations. As a result, DNNs do not run efficiently on hardware appropriate for low power or mobile applications. To address this limitation, we proposed for compressing DNN models for ATR suited to deployment on resource constrained hardware. This proposed compression framework utilizes promising DNN compression techniques including pruning and weight quantization while also focusing on processor features common to modern low-power devices. Following this methodology as a guideline produced a DNN for ATR tuned to maximize classification throughput, minimize power consumption, and minimize memory footprint on a low-power device.

  19. Development of Portable Automatic Number Plate Recognition System on Android Mobile Phone

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mutholib, Abdul; Gunawan, Teddy S.; Chebil, Jalel; Kartiwi, Mira

    2013-12-01

    The Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) System has performed as the main role in various access control and security, such as: tracking of stolen vehicles, traffic violations (speed trap) and parking management system. In this paper, the portable ANPR implemented on android mobile phone is presented. The main challenges in mobile application are including higher coding efficiency, reduced computational complexity, and improved flexibility. Significance efforts are being explored to find suitable and adaptive algorithm for implementation of ANPR on mobile phone. ANPR system for mobile phone need to be optimize due to its limited CPU and memory resources, its ability for geo-tagging image captured using GPS coordinates and its ability to access online database to store the vehicle's information. In this paper, the design of portable ANPR on android mobile phone will be described as follows. First, the graphical user interface (GUI) for capturing image using built-in camera was developed to acquire vehicle plate number in Malaysia. Second, the preprocessing of raw image was done using contrast enhancement. Next, character segmentation using fixed pitch and an optical character recognition (OCR) using neural network were utilized to extract texts and numbers. Both character segmentation and OCR were using Tesseract library from Google Inc. The proposed portable ANPR algorithm was implemented and simulated using Android SDK on a computer. Based on the experimental results, the proposed system can effectively recognize the license plate number at 90.86%. The required processing time to recognize a license plate is only 2 seconds on average. The result is consider good in comparison with the results obtained from previous system that was processed in a desktop PC with the range of result from 91.59% to 98% recognition rate and 0.284 second to 1.5 seconds recognition time.

  20. Mobile Devices and GPU Parallelism in Ionospheric Data Processing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mascharka, D.; Pankratius, V.

    2015-12-01

    Scientific data acquisition in the field is often constrained by data transfer backchannels to analysis environments. Geoscientists are therefore facing practical bottlenecks with increasing sensor density and variety. Mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, offer promising solutions to key problems in scientific data acquisition, pre-processing, and validation by providing advanced capabilities in the field. This is due to affordable network connectivity options and the increasing mobile computational power. This contribution exemplifies a scenario faced by scientists in the field and presents the "Mahali TEC Processing App" developed in the context of the NSF-funded Mahali project. Aimed at atmospheric science and the study of ionospheric Total Electron Content (TEC), this app is able to gather data from various dual-frequency GPS receivers. It demonstrates parsing of full-day RINEX files on mobile devices and on-the-fly computation of vertical TEC values based on satellite ephemeris models that are obtained from NASA. Our experiments show how parallel computing on the mobile device GPU enables fast processing and visualization of up to 2 million datapoints in real-time using OpenGL. GPS receiver bias is estimated through minimum TEC approximations that can be interactively adjusted by scientists in the graphical user interface. Scientists can also perform approximate computations for "quickviews" to reduce CPU processing time and memory consumption. In the final stage of our mobile processing pipeline, scientists can upload data to the cloud for further processing. Acknowledgements: The Mahali project (http://mahali.mit.edu) is funded by the NSF INSPIRE grant no. AGS-1343967 (PI: V. Pankratius). We would like to acknowledge our collaborators at Boston College, Virginia Tech, Johns Hopkins University, Colorado State University, as well as the support of UNAVCO for loans of dual-frequency GPS receivers for use in this project, and Intel for loans of smartphones.

  1. Augmented Reality Comes to Physics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Buesing, Mark; Cook, Michael

    2013-04-01

    Augmented reality (AR) is a technology used on computing devices where processor-generated graphics are rendered over real objects to enhance the sensory experience in real time. In other words, what you are really seeing is augmented by the computer. Many AR games already exist for systems such as Kinect and Nintendo 3DS and mobile apps, such as Tagwhat and Star Chart (a must for astronomy class). The yellow line marking first downs in a televised football game2 and the enhanced puck that makes televised hockey easier to follow3 both use augmented reality to do the job.

  2. Performance estimates of a Boeing 747-100 transport mated with an outsize cargo pod

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jernell, L. S.

    1980-01-01

    The design mission performance of a Boeing 747-100 aircraft mated with an outsize cargo pod was studied. The basic design requirement was the rapid deployment of a combat loaded mobile bridge launcher from a United States east coast staging base to Europe. Weight was minimized by stripping the aircraft of unneeded, quick removal items and by utilizing graphite-epoxy composite materials for most pod components. The mission analysis was based on wind tunnel data and full scale carrier aircraft and engine data. The results are presented in tabular and graphic form.

  3. A framework for visualization of battlefield network behavior

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Perzov, Yury; Yurcik, William

    2006-05-01

    An extensible network simulation application was developed to study wireless battlefield communications. The application monitors node mobility and depicts broadcast and unicast traffic as expanding rings and directed links. The network simulation was specially designed to support fault injection to show the impact of air strikes on disabling nodes. The application takes standard ns-2 trace files as an input and provides for performance data output in different graphical forms (histograms and x/y plots). Network visualization via animation of simulation output can be saved in AVI format that may serve as a basis for a real-time battlefield awareness system.

  4. KSC-2012-1860

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2012-02-17

    Launch Complex 39 Construction: Launch Complex 39 LC-39 was originally designed and built to launch American astronauts toward the moon. The complex stretches inland from the Atlantic Ocean across four miles of what, until 1963, was a land of intermittent marshes and sandy scrub growth. In less than four years, starting with 1963 and ending with 1966, it was transformed into an operational spaceport embodying a mobile concept: rockets and spacecraft are erected in one area and transported to a separate location for launch. A total of 153 vehicles have been launched from LC-39. Poster designed by Kennedy Space Center Graphics Department/Greg Lee. Credit: NASA

  5. STUDIES ON THE FORMATION AND IONIZATION OF THE COMPOUNDS OF CASEIN WITH ALKALI

    PubMed Central

    Greenberg, David M.; Schmidt, Carl L. A.

    1924-01-01

    1. The results of conductivity experiments with alkali caseinate solutions are given and a graphical method of extrapolation, which gives a straight line, is described. The results of the conductivity experiments are shown to be in accord with the results of the previous transference experiments. 2. The change of conductivity of the alkali caseinate solutions with temperature is shown to follow a straight line relationship. 3. The high value of the mobility which was obtained for the casein ion and the high temperature gradient are discussed in relation to McBain's theory of colloidal electrolytes. PMID:19872136

  6. DiAs User Interface: A Patient-Centric Interface for Mobile Artificial Pancreas Systems

    PubMed Central

    Keith-Hynes, Patrick; Guerlain, Stephanie; Mize, Benton; Hughes-Karvetski, Colleen; Khan, Momin; McElwee-Malloy, Molly; Kovatchev, Boris P.

    2013-01-01

    Background Recent in-hospital studies of artificial pancreas (AP) systems have shown promising results in improving glycemic control in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus. The next logical step in AP development is to conduct transitional outpatient clinical trials with a mobile system that is controlled by the patient. In this article, we present the user interface (UI) of the Diabetes Assistant (DiAs), an experimental smartphone-based mobile AP system, and describe the reactions of a round of focus groups to the UI. This work is an initial inquiry involving a relatively small number of potential users, many of whom had never seen an AP system before, and the results should be understood in that light. Methods We began by considering how the UI of an AP system could be designed to make use of the familiar touch-based graphical UI of a consumer smartphone. After developing a working prototype UI, we enlisted a human factors specialist to perform a heuristic expert analysis. Next we conducted a formative evaluation of the UI through a series of three focus groups with N = 13 potential end users as participants. The UI was modified based upon the results of these studies, and the resulting DiAs system was used in transitional outpatient AP studies of adults in the United States and Europe. Results The DiAs UI was modified based on focus group feedback from potential users. The DiAs was subsequently used in JDRF- and AP@Home-sponsored transitional outpatient AP studies in the United States and Europe by 40 subjects for 2400 h with no adverse events. Conclusions Adult patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus are able to control an AP system successfully using a patient-centric UI on a commercial smartphone in a transitional outpatient environment. PMID:24351168

  7. Mobility Models for Systems Evaluation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Musolesi, Mirco; Mascolo, Cecilia

    Mobility models are used to simulate and evaluate the performance of mobile wireless systems and the algorithms and protocols at the basis of them. The definition of realistic mobility models is one of the most critical and, at the same time, difficult aspects of the simulation of applications and systems designed for mobile environments. There are essentially two possible types of mobility patterns that can be used to evaluate mobile network protocols and algorithms by means of simulations: traces and synthetic models [130]. Traces are obtained by means of measurements of deployed systems and usually consist of logs of connectivity or location information, whereas synthetic models are mathematical models, such as sets of equations, which try to capture the movement of the devices.

  8. Usability evaluation model for mobile e-book applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Matraf, Munya Saleh Ba; Hussain, Azham

    2017-10-01

    Evaluation for mobile e-book applications are limited and did not address all the important usability measurements. Hence, this study aimed to identify the characteristics that affect user satisfaction on the usability of mobile e-book applications. Five characteristics that have a significant effect on the user satisfaction of mobile e-book applications have been identified namely readability, effectiveness, accessibility, efficiency, and navigation. A usability evaluation was conducted on three mobile e-book applications namely Adobe Acrobat Reader, Ebook Reader, and Amazon Kindle. 30 students from Universiti Utara Malaysia evaluated the mobile e-book applications and their satisfaction was measured using questionnaire. The outcomes discovered that the five characteristics have a significant positive relationship with user satisfaction. This provides insights into the main characteristics that increase user satisfaction.

  9. [Course studies of spontaneous speech and graphic achievements in 175 aphasics].

    PubMed

    Leischner, A; Mattes, K

    1982-01-01

    In 175 aphasic patients with agraphia the course of the expressive oral and graphic performances was compared. Spontaneous speech and writing and the writing of dictated words and sentences were investigated and evaluated. In addition, several peculiarities of this syndrome were examined. The investigations showed that the relationship between the expressive oral and graphic performances changes in the course of improvement depending on the type of aphasia. In the first period of testing no difference was found in the performances of patients with total aphasia and motor-amnesic aphasia; in the group of mixed aphasics and sensory-amnesic aphasics, however, the oral performance predominated the writing. Investigations at later periods showed that in the cases of total aphasia the improvement of the oral performance was better whereas in the cases of motor-amnesic and sensory-amnesic aphasia the graphic performance was more improved.

  10. Design of a 3-dimensional visual illusion speed reduction marking scheme.

    PubMed

    Liang, Guohua; Qian, Guomin; Wang, Ye; Yi, Zige; Ru, Xiaolei; Ye, Wei

    2017-03-01

    To determine which graphic and color combination for a 3-dimensional visual illusion speed reduction marking scheme presents the best visual stimulus, five parameters were designed. According to the Balanced Incomplete Blocks-Law of Comparative Judgment, three schemes, which produce strong stereoscopic impressions, were screened from the 25 initial design schemes of different combinations of graphics and colors. Three-dimensional experimental simulation scenes of the three screened schemes were created to evaluate four different effects according to a semantic analysis. The following conclusions were drawn: schemes with a red color are more effective than those without; the combination of red, yellow and blue produces the best visual stimulus; a larger area from the top surface and the front surface should be colored red; and a triangular prism should be painted as the graphic of the marking according to the stereoscopic impression and the coordination of graphics with the road.

  11. Effects of computer-based graphic organizers to solve one-step word problems for middle school students with mild intellectual disability: A preliminary study.

    PubMed

    Sheriff, Kelli A; Boon, Richard T

    2014-08-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of computer-based graphic organizers, using Kidspiration 3© software, to solve one-step word problems. Participants included three students with mild intellectual disability enrolled in a functional academic skills curriculum in a self-contained classroom. A multiple probe single-subject research design (Horner & Baer, 1978) was used to evaluate the effectiveness of computer-based graphic organizers to solving mathematical one-step word problems. During the baseline phase, the students completed a teacher-generated worksheet that consisted of nine functional word problems in a traditional format using a pencil, paper, and a calculator. In the intervention and maintenance phases, the students were instructed to complete the word problems using a computer-based graphic organizer. Results indicated that all three of the students improved in their ability to solve the one-step word problems using computer-based graphic organizers compared to traditional instructional practices. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research directions are discussed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. A space systems perspective of graphics simulation integration

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Brown, R.; Gott, C.; Sabionski, G.; Bochsler, D.

    1987-01-01

    Creation of an interactive display environment can expose issues in system design and operation not apparent from nongraphics development approaches. Large amounts of information can be presented in a short period of time. Processes can be simulated and observed before committing resources. In addition, changes in the economics of computing have enabled broader graphics usage beyond traditional engineering and design into integrated telerobotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications. The highly integrated nature of space operations often tend to rely upon visually intensive man-machine communication to ensure success. Graphics simulation activities at the Mission Planning and Analysis Division (MPAD) of NASA's Johnson Space Center are focusing on the evaluation of a wide variety of graphical analysis within the context of present and future space operations. Several telerobotics and AI applications studies utilizing graphical simulation are described. The presentation includes portions of videotape illustrating technology developments involving: (1) coordinated manned maneuvering unit and remote manipulator system operations, (2) a helmet mounted display system, and (3) an automated rendezous application utilizing expert system and voice input/output technology.

  13. Graphic products used in the evaluation of traditional and emerging remote sensing technologies for the detection of fugitive contamination at selected superfund hazardous waste sites

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Slonecker, E. Terrence; Fisher, Gary B.

    2011-01-01

    This report presents the overhead imagery and field sampling results used to prepare U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2011-1050, 'Evaluation of Traditional and Emerging Remote Sensing Technologies for the Detection of Fugitive Contamination at Selected Superfund Hazardous Waste Sites'. These graphic products were used in the evaluation of remote sensing technology in postclosure monitoring of hazardous waste sites and represent an ongoing research effort. Soil sampling results presented here were accomplished with field portable x-ray fluoresence (XRF) technology and are used as screening tools only representing the current conditions of metals and other contaminants at selected Superfund hazardous waste sites.

  14. A tracking system to calculate patient skin dose in real-time during neurointerventional procedures using a biplane x-ray imaging system.

    PubMed

    Rana, V K; Rudin, S; Bednarek, D R

    2016-09-01

    Neurovascular interventional procedures using biplane fluoroscopic imaging systems can lead to increased risk of radiation-induced skin injuries. The authors developed a biplane dose tracking system (Biplane-DTS) to calculate the cumulative skin dose distribution from the frontal and lateral x-ray tubes and display it in real-time as a color-coded map on a 3D graphic of the patient for immediate feedback to the physician. The agreement of the calculated values with the dose measured on phantoms was evaluated. The Biplane-DTS consists of multiple components including 3D graphic models of the imaging system and patient, an interactive graphical user interface, a data acquisition module to collect geometry and exposure parameters, the computer graphics processing unit, and functions for determining which parts of the patient graphic skin surface are within the beam and for calculating dose. The dose is calculated to individual points on the patient graphic using premeasured calibration files of entrance skin dose per mAs including backscatter; corrections are applied for field area, distance from the focal spot and patient table and pad attenuation when appropriate. The agreement of the calculated patient skin dose and its spatial distribution with measured values was evaluated in 2D and 3D for simulated procedure conditions using a PMMA block phantom and an SK-150 head phantom, respectively. Dose values calculated by the Biplane-DTS were compared to the measurements made on the phantom surface with radiochromic film and a calibrated ionization chamber, which was also used to calibrate the DTS. The agreement with measurements was specifically evaluated with variation in kVp, gantry angle, and field size. The dose tracking system that was developed is able to acquire data from the two x-ray gantries on a biplane imaging system and calculate the skin dose for each exposure pulse to those vertices of a patient graphic that are determined to be in the beam. The calculations are done in real-time with a typical graphic update time of 30 ms and an average vertex separation of 3 mm. With appropriate corrections applied, the Biplane-DTS was able to determine the entrance dose within 6% and the spatial distribution of the dose within 4% compared to the measurements with the ionization chamber and film for the SK150 head phantom. The cumulative dose for overlapping fields from both gantries showed similar agreement. The Biplane-DTS can provide a good estimate of the peak skin dose and cumulative skin dose distribution during biplane neurointerventional procedures. Real-time display of this information should help the physician manage patient dose to reduce the risk of radiation-induced skin injuries.

  15. A tracking system to calculate patient skin dose in real-time during neurointerventional procedures using a biplane x-ray imaging system

    PubMed Central

    Rana, V. K.; Rudin, S.; Bednarek, D. R.

    2016-01-01

    Purpose: Neurovascular interventional procedures using biplane fluoroscopic imaging systems can lead to increased risk of radiation-induced skin injuries. The authors developed a biplane dose tracking system (Biplane-DTS) to calculate the cumulative skin dose distribution from the frontal and lateral x-ray tubes and display it in real-time as a color-coded map on a 3D graphic of the patient for immediate feedback to the physician. The agreement of the calculated values with the dose measured on phantoms was evaluated. Methods: The Biplane-DTS consists of multiple components including 3D graphic models of the imaging system and patient, an interactive graphical user interface, a data acquisition module to collect geometry and exposure parameters, the computer graphics processing unit, and functions for determining which parts of the patient graphic skin surface are within the beam and for calculating dose. The dose is calculated to individual points on the patient graphic using premeasured calibration files of entrance skin dose per mAs including backscatter; corrections are applied for field area, distance from the focal spot and patient table and pad attenuation when appropriate. The agreement of the calculated patient skin dose and its spatial distribution with measured values was evaluated in 2D and 3D for simulated procedure conditions using a PMMA block phantom and an SK-150 head phantom, respectively. Dose values calculated by the Biplane-DTS were compared to the measurements made on the phantom surface with radiochromic film and a calibrated ionization chamber, which was also used to calibrate the DTS. The agreement with measurements was specifically evaluated with variation in kVp, gantry angle, and field size. Results: The dose tracking system that was developed is able to acquire data from the two x-ray gantries on a biplane imaging system and calculate the skin dose for each exposure pulse to those vertices of a patient graphic that are determined to be in the beam. The calculations are done in real-time with a typical graphic update time of 30 ms and an average vertex separation of 3 mm. With appropriate corrections applied, the Biplane-DTS was able to determine the entrance dose within 6% and the spatial distribution of the dose within 4% compared to the measurements with the ionization chamber and film for the SK150 head phantom. The cumulative dose for overlapping fields from both gantries showed similar agreement. Conclusions: The Biplane-DTS can provide a good estimate of the peak skin dose and cumulative skin dose distribution during biplane neurointerventional procedures. Real-time display of this information should help the physician manage patient dose to reduce the risk of radiation-induced skin injuries. PMID:27587043

  16. A tracking system to calculate patient skin dose in real-time during neurointerventional procedures using a biplane x-ray imaging system

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

    Rana, V. K., E-mail: vkrana@buffalo.edu

    Purpose: Neurovascular interventional procedures using biplane fluoroscopic imaging systems can lead to increased risk of radiation-induced skin injuries. The authors developed a biplane dose tracking system (Biplane-DTS) to calculate the cumulative skin dose distribution from the frontal and lateral x-ray tubes and display it in real-time as a color-coded map on a 3D graphic of the patient for immediate feedback to the physician. The agreement of the calculated values with the dose measured on phantoms was evaluated. Methods: The Biplane-DTS consists of multiple components including 3D graphic models of the imaging system and patient, an interactive graphical user interface, amore » data acquisition module to collect geometry and exposure parameters, the computer graphics processing unit, and functions for determining which parts of the patient graphic skin surface are within the beam and for calculating dose. The dose is calculated to individual points on the patient graphic using premeasured calibration files of entrance skin dose per mAs including backscatter; corrections are applied for field area, distance from the focal spot and patient table and pad attenuation when appropriate. The agreement of the calculated patient skin dose and its spatial distribution with measured values was evaluated in 2D and 3D for simulated procedure conditions using a PMMA block phantom and an SK-150 head phantom, respectively. Dose values calculated by the Biplane-DTS were compared to the measurements made on the phantom surface with radiochromic film and a calibrated ionization chamber, which was also used to calibrate the DTS. The agreement with measurements was specifically evaluated with variation in kVp, gantry angle, and field size. Results: The dose tracking system that was developed is able to acquire data from the two x-ray gantries on a biplane imaging system and calculate the skin dose for each exposure pulse to those vertices of a patient graphic that are determined to be in the beam. The calculations are done in real-time with a typical graphic update time of 30 ms and an average vertex separation of 3 mm. With appropriate corrections applied, the Biplane-DTS was able to determine the entrance dose within 6% and the spatial distribution of the dose within 4% compared to the measurements with the ionization chamber and film for the SK150 head phantom. The cumulative dose for overlapping fields from both gantries showed similar agreement. Conclusions: The Biplane-DTS can provide a good estimate of the peak skin dose and cumulative skin dose distribution during biplane neurointerventional procedures. Real-time display of this information should help the physician manage patient dose to reduce the risk of radiation-induced skin injuries.« less

  17. Ion mobility mass spectrometry for ion recovery and clean-up of MS and MS/MS spectra obtained from low abundance viral samples

    PubMed Central

    Harvey, David J.; Crispin, Max; Bonomelli, Camille; Scrivens, Jim H.

    2016-01-01

    Graphical abstract Many samples of complex mixtures of N-glycans released from small amounts of material, such as glycoproteins from viruses, present problems for mass spectrometric analysis because of the presence of contaminating material that is difficult to remove by conventional methods without involving sample loss. This paper describes the use of ion mobility for extraction of glycan profiles from such samples and for obtaining clean CID spectra when targeted m/z values capture additional ions from those of the target compound. N-Glycans were released enzymatically from within SDS-PAGE gels, from the representative glycoprotein, gp120 of the human immunodeficiency virus, and examined by direct infusion electrospray in negative mode followed by ion mobility with a Waters Synapt G2 mass spectrometer. Clean profiles of singly, doubly and triply charged N-glycans were obtained from samples in cases where the raw electrospray spectra displayed only a few glycan ions as the result of low sample concentration or the presence of contamination. Ion mobility also enabled uncontaminated CID spectra to be obtained from glycans when their molecular ions displayed coincidence with ions from fragments or multiply charged ions with similar m/z values. This technique proved to be invaluable for removing extraneous ions from many CID spectra. The presence of such ions often produces spectra that are difficult to interpret. Most CID spectra, even those from abundant glycan constituents, benefited from such clean-up showing that the extra dimension provided by ion mobility was invaluable for studies of this type. PMID:26204966

  18. GPFrontend and GPGraphics: graphical analysis tools for genetic association studies.

    PubMed

    Uebe, Steffen; Pasutto, Francesca; Krumbiegel, Mandy; Schanze, Denny; Ekici, Arif B; Reis, André

    2010-09-21

    Most software packages for whole genome association studies are non-graphical, purely text based programs originally designed to run with UNIX-like operating systems. Graphical output is often not intended or supposed to be performed with other command line tools, e.g. gnuplot. Using the Microsoft .NET 2.0 platform and Visual Studio 2005, we have created a graphical software package to analyze data from microarray whole genome association studies, both for a DNA-pooling based approach as well as regular single sample data. Part of this package was made to integrate with GenePool 0.8.2, a previously existing software suite for GNU/Linux systems, which we have modified to run in a Microsoft Windows environment. Further modifications cause it to generate some additional data. This enables GenePool to interact with the .NET parts created by us. The programs we developed are GPFrontend, a graphical user interface and frontend to use GenePool and create metadata files for it, and GPGraphics, a program to further analyze and graphically evaluate output of different WGA analysis programs, among them also GenePool. Our programs enable regular MS Windows users without much experience in bioinformatics to easily visualize whole genome data from a variety of sources.

  19. Learning with Interactive Computer Graphics in the Undergraduate Neuroscience Classroom

    PubMed Central

    Pani, John R.; Chariker, Julia H.; Naaz, Farah; Mattingly, William; Roberts, Joshua; Sephton, Sandra E.

    2014-01-01

    Instruction of neuroanatomy depends on graphical representation and extended self-study. As a consequence, computer-based learning environments that incorporate interactive graphics should facilitate instruction in this area. The present study evaluated such a system in the undergraduate neuroscience classroom. The system used the method of adaptive exploration, in which exploration in a high fidelity graphical environment is integrated with immediate testing and feedback in repeated cycles of learning. The results of this study were that students considered the graphical learning environment to be superior to typical classroom materials used for learning neuroanatomy. Students managed the frequency and duration of study, test, and feedback in an efficient and adaptive manner. For example, the number of tests taken before reaching a minimum test performance of 90% correct closely approximated the values seen in more regimented experimental studies. There was a wide range of student opinion regarding the choice between a simpler and a more graphically compelling program for learning sectional anatomy. Course outcomes were predicted by individual differences in the use of the software that reflected general work habits of the students, such as the amount of time committed to testing. The results of this introduction into the classroom are highly encouraging for development of computer-based instruction in biomedical disciplines. PMID:24449123

  20. The influence of graphic format on breast cancer risk communication.

    PubMed

    Schapira, Marilyn M; Nattinger, Ann B; McAuliffe, Timothy L

    2006-09-01

    Graphic displays can enhance quantitative risk communication. However, empiric data regarding the effect of graphic format on risk perception is lacking. We evaluate the effect of graphic format elements on perceptions of risk magnitude and perceived truth of data. Preferences for format also were assessed. Participants (254 female primary care patients) viewed a series of hypothetical risk communications regarding the lifetime risk of breast cancer. Identical numeric risk information was presented using different graphic formats. Risk was perceived to be of lower magnitude when communicated with a bar graph as compared with a pictorial display (p < 0.0001), or with consecutively versus randomly highlighted symbols in a pictorial display (p = 0.0001). Data were perceived to be more true when presented with random versus consecutive highlights in a pictorial display (p < 0.01). A pictorial display was preferred to a bar graph format for the presentation of breast cancer risk estimates alone (p = 0.001). When considering breast cancer risk in comparison to heart disease, stroke, and osteoporosis, however, bar graphs were preferred pictorial displays (p < 0.001). In conclusion, elements of graphic format used to convey quantitative risk information effects key domains of risk perception. One must be cognizant of these effects when designing risk communication strategies.

  1. Assessing the Greenness of Chemical Reactions in the Laboratory Using Updated Holistic Graphic Metrics Based on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ribeiro, M. Gabriela T. C.; Yunes, Santiago F.; Machado, Adelio A. S. C.

    2014-01-01

    Two graphic holistic metrics for assessing the greenness of synthesis, the "green star" and the "green circle", have been presented previously. These metrics assess the greenness by the degree of accomplishment of each of the 12 principles of green chemistry that apply to the case under evaluation. The criteria for assessment…

  2. Graphic analysis of resources by numerical evaluation techniques (Garnet)

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Olson, A.C.

    1977-01-01

    An interactive computer program for graphical analysis has been developed by the U.S. Geological Survey. The program embodies five goals, (1) economical use of computer resources, (2) simplicity for user applications, (3) interactive on-line use, (4) minimal core requirements, and (5) portability. It is designed to aid (1) the rapid analysis of point-located data, (2) structural mapping, and (3) estimation of area resources. ?? 1977.

  3. Regional-scale analysis of karst underground flow deduced from tracing experiments: examples from carbonate aquifers in Malaga province, southern Spain

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Barberá, J. A.; Mudarra, M.; Andreo, B.; De la Torre, B.

    2018-02-01

    Tracer concentration data from field experiments conducted in several carbonate aquifers (Malaga province, southern Spain) were analyzed following a dual approach based on the graphical evaluation method (GEM) and solute transport modeling to decipher flow mechanisms in karst systems at regional scale. The results show that conduit system geometry and flow conditions are the principal factors influencing tracer migration through the examined karst flow routes. Solute transport is mainly controlled by longitudinal advection and dispersion throughout the conduit length, but also by flow partitioning between mobile and immobile fluid phases, while the matrix diffusion process appears to be less relevant. The simulation of tracer breakthrough curves (BTCs) suggests that diffuse and concentrated flow through the unsaturated zone can have equivalent transport properties under extreme recharge, with high flow velocities and efficient mixing due to the high hydraulic gradients generated. Tracer mobilization within the saturated zone under low flow conditions mainly depends on the hydrodynamics (rather than on the karst conduit development), which promote a lower longitudinal advection and retardation in the tracer migration, resulting in a marked tailing effect of BTCs. The analytical advection-dispersion equation better approximates the effective flow velocity and longitudinal dispersion estimations provided by the GEM, while the non-equilibrium transport model achieves a better adjustment of most asymmetric and long-tailed BTCs. The assessment of karst underground flow properties from tracing tests at regional scale can aid design of groundwater management and protection strategies, particularly in large hydrogeological systems (i.e. transboundary carbonate aquifers) and/or in poorly investigated ones.

  4. Integrate Evaluation into the Planning Process.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Camp, William

    1985-01-01

    In an attempt to correct for limitations in the Program Evaluation and Review Technique-Critical Path Method (PERT-CPM), the Graphical Evaluation and Review Technique (GERT) has been developed. This management tool allows for evaluation during the facilities' development process. Two figures and two references are provided. (DCS)

  5. Orthorectification by Using Gpgpu Method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sahin, H.; Kulur, S.

    2012-07-01

    Thanks to the nature of the graphics processing, the newly released products offer highly parallel processing units with high-memory bandwidth and computational power of more than teraflops per second. The modern GPUs are not only powerful graphic engines but also they are high level parallel programmable processors with very fast computing capabilities and high-memory bandwidth speed compared to central processing units (CPU). Data-parallel computations can be shortly described as mapping data elements to parallel processing threads. The rapid development of GPUs programmability and capabilities attracted the attentions of researchers dealing with complex problems which need high level calculations. This interest has revealed the concepts of "General Purpose Computation on Graphics Processing Units (GPGPU)" and "stream processing". The graphic processors are powerful hardware which is really cheap and affordable. So the graphic processors became an alternative to computer processors. The graphic chips which were standard application hardware have been transformed into modern, powerful and programmable processors to meet the overall needs. Especially in recent years, the phenomenon of the usage of graphics processing units in general purpose computation has led the researchers and developers to this point. The biggest problem is that the graphics processing units use different programming models unlike current programming methods. Therefore, an efficient GPU programming requires re-coding of the current program algorithm by considering the limitations and the structure of the graphics hardware. Currently, multi-core processors can not be programmed by using traditional programming methods. Event procedure programming method can not be used for programming the multi-core processors. GPUs are especially effective in finding solution for repetition of the computing steps for many data elements when high accuracy is needed. Thus, it provides the computing process more quickly and accurately. Compared to the GPUs, CPUs which perform just one computing in a time according to the flow control are slower in performance. This structure can be evaluated for various applications of computer technology. In this study covers how general purpose parallel programming and computational power of the GPUs can be used in photogrammetric applications especially direct georeferencing. The direct georeferencing algorithm is coded by using GPGPU method and CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) programming language. Results provided by this method were compared with the traditional CPU programming. In the other application the projective rectification is coded by using GPGPU method and CUDA programming language. Sample images of various sizes, as compared to the results of the program were evaluated. GPGPU method can be used especially in repetition of same computations on highly dense data, thus finding the solution quickly.

  6. The Ocean Observatories Initiative: Data Access and Visualization via the Graphical User Interface

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Garzio, L. M.; Belabbassi, L.; Knuth, F.; Smith, M. J.; Crowley, M. F.; Vardaro, M.; Kerfoot, J.

    2016-02-01

    The Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI), funded by the National Science Foundation, is a broad-scale, multidisciplinary effort to transform oceanographic research by providing users with real-time access to long-term datasets from a variety of deployed physical, chemical, biological, and geological sensors. The global array component of the OOI includes four high latitude sites: Irminger Sea off Greenland, Station Papa in the Gulf of Alaska, Argentine Basin off the coast of Argentina, and Southern Ocean near coordinates 55°S and 90°W. Each site is composed of fixed moorings, hybrid profiler moorings and mobile assets, with a total of approximately 110 instruments at each site. Near real-time (telemetered) and recovered data from these instruments can be visualized and downloaded via the OOI Graphical User Interface. In this Interface, the user can visualize scientific parameters via six different plotting functions with options to specify time ranges and apply various QA/QC tests. Data streams from all instruments can also be downloaded in different formats (CSV, JSON, and NetCDF) for further data processing, visualization, and comparison to supplementary datasets. In addition, users can view alerts and alarms in the system, access relevant metadata and deployment information for specific instruments, and find infrastructure specifics for each array including location, sampling strategies, deployment schedules, and technical drawings. These datasets from the OOI provide an unprecedented opportunity to transform oceanographic research and education, and will be readily accessible to the general public via the OOI's Graphical User Interface.

  7. On-line data display

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lang, Sherman Y. T.; Brooks, Martin; Gauthier, Marc; Wein, Marceli

    1993-05-01

    A data display system for embedded realtime systems has been developed for use as an operator's user interface and debugging tool. The motivation for development of the On-Line Data Display (ODD) have come from several sources. In particular the design reflects the needs of researchers developing an experimental mobile robot within our laboratory. A proliferation of specialized user interfaces revealed a need for a flexible communications and graphical data display system. At the same time the system had to be readily extensible for arbitrary graphical display formats which would be required for data visualization needs of the researchers. The system defines a communication protocol transmitting 'datagrams' between tasks executing on the realtime system and virtual devices displaying the data in a meaningful way on a graphical workstation. The communication protocol multiplexes logical channels on a single data stream. The current implementation consists of a server for the Harmony realtime operating system and an application written for the Macintosh computer. Flexibility requirements resulted in a highly modular server design, and a layered modular object- oriented design for the Macintosh part of the system. Users assign data types to specific channels at run time. Then devices are instantiated by the user and connected to channels to receive datagrams. The current suite of device types do not provide enough functionality for most users' specialized needs. Instead the system design allows the creation of new device types with modest programming effort. The protocol, design and use of the system are discussed.

  8. Interactive SIGHT: textual access to simple bar charts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Demir, Seniz; Oliver, David; Schwartz, Edward; Elzer, Stephanie; Carberry, Sandra; Mccoy, Kathleen F.; Chester, Daniel

    2010-12-01

    Information graphics, such as bar charts and line graphs, are an important component of many articles from popular media. The majority of such graphics have an intention (a high-level message) to communicate to the graph viewer. Since the intended message of a graphic is often not repeated in the accompanying text, graphics together with the textual segments contribute to the overall purpose of an article and cannot be ignored. Unfortunately, these visual displays are provided in a format which is not readily accessible to everyone. For example, individuals with sight impairments who use screen readers to listen to documents have limited access to the graphics. This article presents a new accessibility tool, the Interactive SIGHT (Summarizing Information GrapHics Textually) system, that is intended to enable visually impaired users to access the knowledge that one would gain from viewing information graphics found on the web. The current system, which is implemented as a browser extension that works on simple bar charts, can be invoked by a user via a keystroke combination while navigating the web. Once launched, Interactive SIGHT first provides a brief summary that conveys the underlying intention of a bar chart along with the chart's most significant and salient features, and then produces history-aware follow-up responses to provide further information about the chart upon request from the user. We present two user studies that were conducted with sighted and visually impaired users to determine how effective the initial summary and follow-up responses are in conveying the informational content of bar charts, and to evaluate how easy it is to use the system interface. The evaluation results are promising and indicate that the system responses are well-structured and enable visually impaired users to answer key questions about bar charts in an easy-to-use manner. Post-experimental interviews revealed that visually impaired participants were very satisfied with the system offering different options to access the content of a chart to meet their specific needs and that they would use Interactive SIGHT if it was publicly available so as not to have to ignore graphics on the web. Being a language based assistive technology designed to compensate for the lack of sight, our work paves the road for a stronger acceptance of natural language interfaces to graph interpretation that we believe will be of great benefit to the visually impaired community.

  9. Mobile Virtual Private Networking

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pulkkis, Göran; Grahn, Kaj; Mårtens, Mathias; Mattsson, Jonny

    Mobile Virtual Private Networking (VPN) solutions based on the Internet Security Protocol (IPSec), Transport Layer Security/Secure Socket Layer (SSL/TLS), Secure Shell (SSH), 3G/GPRS cellular networks, Mobile IP, and the presently experimental Host Identity Protocol (HIP) are described, compared and evaluated. Mobile VPN solutions based on HIP are recommended for future networking because of superior processing efficiency and network capacity demand features. Mobile VPN implementation issues associated with the IP protocol versions IPv4 and IPv6 are also evaluated. Mobile VPN implementation experiences are presented and discussed.

  10. A user experience evaluation of Amazon Kindle mobile application

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hussain, Azham; Mkpojiogu, Emmanuel O. C.; Musa, Ja'afaru; Mortada, Salah

    2017-10-01

    There is a dramatic increase in the development of mobile applications in recent years. This makes the usability evaluation of these mobile applications an important aspect in the advancement and application of technology. In this paper, a laboratory-based usability evaluation was carried out on the Amazon Kindle app using 15 users who performed 5 tasks on the Kindle e-book mobile app. A post-test questionnaire was administered to elicit users' perception on the usability of the application. The results demonstrate that almost all the participants were satisfied with services provided by the Amazon Kindle e-book mobile app. On all the four user experience factors examined, namely, perceived ease-of-use, perceived visibility, perceived enjoyabilty, and perceived efficiency, the evaluation outcome shows that the participants had a good and rich mobile experience with the application.

  11. Performance evaluation of throughput computing workloads using multi-core processors and graphics processors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dave, Gaurav P.; Sureshkumar, N.; Blessy Trencia Lincy, S. S.

    2017-11-01

    Current trend in processor manufacturing focuses on multi-core architectures rather than increasing the clock speed for performance improvement. Graphic processors have become as commodity hardware for providing fast co-processing in computer systems. Developments in IoT, social networking web applications, big data created huge demand for data processing activities and such kind of throughput intensive applications inherently contains data level parallelism which is more suited for SIMD architecture based GPU. This paper reviews the architectural aspects of multi/many core processors and graphics processors. Different case studies are taken to compare performance of throughput computing applications using shared memory programming in OpenMP and CUDA API based programming.

  12. Communicating infectious disease prevalence through graphics: Results from an international survey.

    PubMed

    Fagerlin, Angela; Valley, Thomas S; Scherer, Aaron M; Knaus, Megan; Das, Enny; Zikmund-Fisher, Brian J

    2017-07-13

    Graphics are increasingly used to represent the spread of infectious diseases (e.g., influenza, Zika, Ebola); however, the impact of using graphics to adequately inform the general population is unknown. To examine whether three ways of visually presenting data (heat map, dot map, or picto-trendline)-all depicting the same information regarding the spread of a hypothetical outbreak of influenza-influence intent to vaccinate, risk perception, and knowledge. Survey with participants randomized to receive a simulated news article accompanied by one of the three graphics that communicated prevalence of influenza and number of influenza-related deaths. International online survey. 16,510 adults living in 11 countries selected using stratified random sampling based on age and gender. After reading the article and viewing the presented graphic, participants completed a survey that measured interest in vaccination, perceived risk of contracting disease, knowledge gained, interest in additional information about the disease, and perception of the graphic. Heat maps and picto-trendlines were evaluated more positively than dot maps. Heat maps were more effective than picto-trendlines and no different from dot maps at increasing interest in vaccination, perceived risk of contracting disease, and interest in additional information about the disease. Heat maps and picto-trendlines were more successful at conveying knowledge than dot maps. Overall, heat maps were the only graphic to be superior in every outcome. Results are based on a hypothetical scenario. Heat maps are a viable option to promote interest in and concern about infectious diseases. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  13. The EJES-3D tool for personalized prescription of exercise in axial spondyloarthritis through multimedia animations: pilot study.

    PubMed

    Flórez, Mariano Tomás; Almodóvar, Raquel; García Pérez, Fernando; Rodríguez Cambrón, Ana Belén; Carmona, Loreto; Pérez Manzanero, María Ángeles; Aboitiz Cantalapiedra, Juan; Urruticoechea-Arana, Ana; Rodríguez Lozano, Carlos J; Castro, Carmen; Fernández-Carballido, Cristina; de Miguel, Eugenio; Galíndez, Eva; Álvarez Vega, José Luis; Torre Alonso, Juan Carlos; Linares, Luis F; Moreno, Mireia; Navarro-Compán, Victoria; Juanola, Xavier; Zarco, Pedro

    2018-05-21

    To develop and evaluate a web application based on multimedia animations, combined with a training program, to improve the prescription of exercises in spondyloarthritis (SpA). After a review of exercises included in the main clinical trials and recommendations of international societies, a multidisciplinary team-rehabilitators, rheumatologists, physiotherapists, computer scientists and graphic designers-developed a web application for the prescription of exercises (EJES-3D). Once completed, this was presented to 12 pairs of rehabilitators-rheumatologists from the same hospital in a workshop. Knowledge about exercise was tested in rheumatologists before and 6 months after the workshop, when they also evaluated the application. The EJES-3D application includes 38 multimedia videos and allows prescribing predesigned programs or customizing them. A patient can consult the prescribed exercises at any time from a device with internet connection (mobile, tablet, or computer). The vast majority of the evaluators (89%) were satisfied or very satisfied and considered that their expectations regarding the usefulness of the web application had been met. They highlighted the ability to tailor exercises adapted to the different stages of the disease and the quality and variety of the videos. They also indicated some limitations of the application and operational problems. The EJES-3D tool was positively evaluated by experts in SpA, potentially the most demanding group of users with the most critical capacity. This allows a preliminary validation of the contents, usefulness, and ease of use. Analyzing and correcting the errors and limitations detected is allowing us to improve the EJES-3D tool.

  14. Rationale and design of a randomized trial to evaluate an evidence-based prescription drug label on actual medication use.

    PubMed

    Shrank, William H; Parker, Ruth; Davis, Terry; Pandit, Anjali U; Knox, Joann P; Moraras, Pear; Rademaker, Alfred; Wolf, Michael S

    2010-11-01

    Medication errors are an important public health concern, and poor understanding of medication labels are a root cause. Research shows that labels are variable, of poor quality, and not patient-centered. No real-world trials have evaluated whether improved medication labels can affect appropriate medication use, adherence or health outcomes. We developed an evidence-based prescription label that addresses both content and format. The enhanced label includes a universal medication schedule (UMS) that standardizes the directions for use incorporating 1) standard time periods for administration (morning, noon, evening, and bedtime), 2) numeric vs. alpha characters, 3) 'carriage returns' to separate daily dose and 4) a graphic aid to visually depict dose and frequency. We will evaluate the effect of providing this label to randomly sampled patients who receive their care from free clinics, mobile vans and federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) in Northern Virginia. We will recruit patients with diabetes or hypertension; these patients will be randomly assigned to receive all of their medications with improved labels or to receive prescriptions with standard labels. The primary outcome will be the patient's ability to correctly demonstrate dosing instructions. Other outcomes include adherence, error rates and health outcomes. To our knowledge, this trial is the first to evaluate the effect of prescription label improvement on understanding, medication use and outcomes in a clinical setting. If successful, these findings could be implemented broadly to promote safe and appropriate medication use and to support evidence-based standards in the development of labels. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. A 3D Model Based Imdoor Navigation System for Hubei Provincial Museum

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, W.; Kruminaite, M.; Onrust, B.; Liu, H.; Xiong, Q.; Zlatanova, S.

    2013-11-01

    3D models are more powerful than 2D maps for indoor navigation in a complicate space like Hubei Provincial Museum because they can provide accurate descriptions of locations of indoor objects (e.g., doors, windows, tables) and context information of these objects. In addition, the 3D model is the preferred navigation environment by the user according to the survey. Therefore a 3D model based indoor navigation system is developed for Hubei Provincial Museum to guide the visitors of museum. The system consists of three layers: application, web service and navigation, which is built to support localization, navigation and visualization functions of the system. There are three main strengths of this system: it stores all data needed in one database and processes most calculations on the webserver which make the mobile client very lightweight, the network used for navigation is extracted semi-automatically and renewable, the graphic user interface (GUI), which is based on a game engine, has high performance of visualizing 3D model on a mobile display.

  16. Very high frame rate volumetric integration of depth images on mobile devices.

    PubMed

    Kähler, Olaf; Adrian Prisacariu, Victor; Yuheng Ren, Carl; Sun, Xin; Torr, Philip; Murray, David

    2015-11-01

    Volumetric methods provide efficient, flexible and simple ways of integrating multiple depth images into a full 3D model. They provide dense and photorealistic 3D reconstructions, and parallelised implementations on GPUs achieve real-time performance on modern graphics hardware. To run such methods on mobile devices, providing users with freedom of movement and instantaneous reconstruction feedback, remains challenging however. In this paper we present a range of modifications to existing volumetric integration methods based on voxel block hashing, considerably improving their performance and making them applicable to tablet computer applications. We present (i) optimisations for the basic data structure, and its allocation and integration; (ii) a highly optimised raycasting pipeline; and (iii) extensions to the camera tracker to incorporate IMU data. In total, our system thus achieves frame rates up 47 Hz on a Nvidia Shield Tablet and 910 Hz on a Nvidia GTX Titan XGPU, or even beyond 1.1 kHz without visualisation.

  17. The graphics calculator in mathematics education: A critical review of recent research

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Penglase, Marina; Arnold, Stephen

    1996-04-01

    The graphics calculator, sometimes referred to as the "super calculator," has sparked great interest among mathematics educators. Considered by many to be a tool which has the potential to revolutionise mathematics education, a significant amount of research has been conducted into its effectiveness as a tool for instruction and learning within precalculus and calculus courses, specifically in the study of functions, graphing and modelling. Some results suggest that these devices (a) can facilitate the learning of functions and graphing concepts and the development of spatial visualisation skills; (b) promote mathematical investigation and exploration; and (c) encourage a shift in emphasis from algebraic manipulation and proof to graphical investigation and examination of the relationship between graphical, algebraic and geometric representations. Other studies, however, indicate that there is still a need for manipulative techniques in the learning of function and graphing concepts, that the use of graphics calculators may not facilitate the learning of particular precalculus topics, and that some "de-skilling" may occur, especially among males. It is the contention of this paper, however, that much of the research in this new and important field fails to provide clear guidance or even to inform debate in adequate ways regarding the role of graphics calculators in mathematics teaching and learning. By failing to distinguish the role of the tool from that of the instructional process, many studies reviewed could be more appropriately classified as "program evaluations" rather than as research on the graphics calculator per se. Further, claims regarding the effectiveness of the graphics calculator as a tool for learning frequently fail to recognise that judgments of effectiveness result directly from existing assumptions regarding both assessment practice and student "achievement."

  18. Accelerating Molecular Dynamic Simulation on Graphics Processing Units

    PubMed Central

    Friedrichs, Mark S.; Eastman, Peter; Vaidyanathan, Vishal; Houston, Mike; Legrand, Scott; Beberg, Adam L.; Ensign, Daniel L.; Bruns, Christopher M.; Pande, Vijay S.

    2009-01-01

    We describe a complete implementation of all-atom protein molecular dynamics running entirely on a graphics processing unit (GPU), including all standard force field terms, integration, constraints, and implicit solvent. We discuss the design of our algorithms and important optimizations needed to fully take advantage of a GPU. We evaluate its performance, and show that it can be more than 700 times faster than a conventional implementation running on a single CPU core. PMID:19191337

  19. A randomized controlled trial to assess the efficacy of an interactive mobile messaging intervention for underserved smokers: Project ACTION.

    PubMed

    Vidrine, Damon J; Fletcher, Faith E; Danysh, Heather E; Marani, Salma; Vidrine, Jennifer Irvin; Cantor, Scott B; Prokhorov, Alexander V

    2012-08-25

    Despite a significant decrease in smoking prevalence over the past ten years, cigarette smoking still represents the leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality in the United States. Moreover, smoking prevalence is significantly higher among those with low levels of education and those living at, or below, the poverty level. These groups tend to be confronted with significant barriers to utilizing more traditional smoking cessation intervention approaches. The purpose of the study, Project ACTION (Adult smoking Cessation Treatment through Innovative Outreach to Neighborhoods), is to utilize a mobile clinic model, a network of community sites (i.e., community centers and churches) and an interactive mobile messaging system to reach and deliver smoking cessation treatment to underserved, low-income communities. We are using a group-randomized design, with the community site as the sampling unit, to compare the efficacy of three smoking cessation interventions: 1) Standard Care--brief advice to quit smoking, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), and self-help materials; 2) Enhanced Care--standard care components plus a cell phone-delivered text/graphical messaging component; and 3) Intensive Care--enhanced care components plus a series of 11 cell phone-delivered proactive counseling sessions. An economic evaluation will also be performed to evaluate the relative cost effectiveness of the three treatment approaches. We will recruit 756 participants (252 participants in each of the 3 intervention groups). At the time of randomization, participants complete a baseline assessment, consisting of smoking history, socio-demographic, and psychosocial variables. Monthly cell phone assessments are conducted for 6 months-post enrollment, and a final 12-month follow-up is conducted at the original neighborhood site of enrollment. We will perform mixed-model logistic regression to compare the efficacy of the three smoking cessation intervention treatment groups. It is hypothesized that the intensive care approach will most successfully address the needs of the target population and result in the highest smoking cessation rates. In addition to increasing cessation rates, the intervention offers several features (including neighborhood outreach and use of mHealth technology) that are likely to reduce treatment barriers while enhancing participant engagement and retention to treatment. This randomized controlled trial is registered with clinicaltrials.gov registration number NCT00948129.

  20. Sketchy Rendering for Information Visualization.

    PubMed

    Wood, J; Isenberg, P; Isenberg, T; Dykes, J; Boukhelifa, N; Slingsby, A

    2012-12-01

    We present and evaluate a framework for constructing sketchy style information visualizations that mimic data graphics drawn by hand. We provide an alternative renderer for the Processing graphics environment that redefines core drawing primitives including line, polygon and ellipse rendering. These primitives allow higher-level graphical features such as bar charts, line charts, treemaps and node-link diagrams to be drawn in a sketchy style with a specified degree of sketchiness. The framework is designed to be easily integrated into existing visualization implementations with minimal programming modification or design effort. We show examples of use for statistical graphics, conveying spatial imprecision and for enhancing aesthetic and narrative qualities of visualization. We evaluate user perception of sketchiness of areal features through a series of stimulus-response tests in order to assess users' ability to place sketchiness on a ratio scale, and to estimate area. Results suggest relative area judgment is compromised by sketchy rendering and that its influence is dependent on the shape being rendered. They show that degree of sketchiness may be judged on an ordinal scale but that its judgement varies strongly between individuals. We evaluate higher-level impacts of sketchiness through user testing of scenarios that encourage user engagement with data visualization and willingness to critique visualization design. Results suggest that where a visualization is clearly sketchy, engagement may be increased and that attitudes to participating in visualization annotation are more positive. The results of our work have implications for effective information visualization design that go beyond the traditional role of sketching as a tool for prototyping or its use for an indication of general uncertainty.

  1. Translating glucose variability metrics into the clinic via Continuous Glucose Monitoring: a Graphical User Interface for Diabetes Evaluation (CGM-GUIDE©).

    PubMed

    Rawlings, Renata A; Shi, Hang; Yuan, Lo-Hua; Brehm, William; Pop-Busui, Rodica; Nelson, Patrick W

    2011-12-01

    Several metrics of glucose variability have been proposed to date, but an integrated approach that provides a complete and consistent assessment of glycemic variation is missing. As a consequence, and because of the tedious coding necessary during quantification, most investigators and clinicians have not yet adopted the use of multiple glucose variability metrics to evaluate glycemic variation. We compiled the most extensively used statistical techniques and glucose variability metrics, with adjustable hyper- and hypoglycemic limits and metric parameters, to create a user-friendly Continuous Glucose Monitoring Graphical User Interface for Diabetes Evaluation (CGM-GUIDE©). In addition, we introduce and demonstrate a novel transition density profile that emphasizes the dynamics of transitions between defined glucose states. Our combined dashboard of numerical statistics and graphical plots support the task of providing an integrated approach to describing glycemic variability. We integrated existing metrics, such as SD, area under the curve, and mean amplitude of glycemic excursion, with novel metrics such as the slopes across critical transitions and the transition density profile to assess the severity and frequency of glucose transitions per day as they move between critical glycemic zones. By presenting the above-mentioned metrics and graphics in a concise aggregate format, CGM-GUIDE provides an easy to use tool to compare quantitative measures of glucose variability. This tool can be used by researchers and clinicians to develop new algorithms of insulin delivery for patients with diabetes and to better explore the link between glucose variability and chronic diabetes complications.

  2. Translating Glucose Variability Metrics into the Clinic via Continuous Glucose Monitoring: A Graphical User Interface for Diabetes Evaluation (CGM-GUIDE©)

    PubMed Central

    Rawlings, Renata A.; Shi, Hang; Yuan, Lo-Hua; Brehm, William; Pop-Busui, Rodica

    2011-01-01

    Abstract Background Several metrics of glucose variability have been proposed to date, but an integrated approach that provides a complete and consistent assessment of glycemic variation is missing. As a consequence, and because of the tedious coding necessary during quantification, most investigators and clinicians have not yet adopted the use of multiple glucose variability metrics to evaluate glycemic variation. Methods We compiled the most extensively used statistical techniques and glucose variability metrics, with adjustable hyper- and hypoglycemic limits and metric parameters, to create a user-friendly Continuous Glucose Monitoring Graphical User Interface for Diabetes Evaluation (CGM-GUIDE©). In addition, we introduce and demonstrate a novel transition density profile that emphasizes the dynamics of transitions between defined glucose states. Results Our combined dashboard of numerical statistics and graphical plots support the task of providing an integrated approach to describing glycemic variability. We integrated existing metrics, such as SD, area under the curve, and mean amplitude of glycemic excursion, with novel metrics such as the slopes across critical transitions and the transition density profile to assess the severity and frequency of glucose transitions per day as they move between critical glycemic zones. Conclusions By presenting the above-mentioned metrics and graphics in a concise aggregate format, CGM-GUIDE provides an easy to use tool to compare quantitative measures of glucose variability. This tool can be used by researchers and clinicians to develop new algorithms of insulin delivery for patients with diabetes and to better explore the link between glucose variability and chronic diabetes complications. PMID:21932986

  3. Implementation and evaluation of LMS mobile application: scele mobile based on user-centered design

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Banimahendra, R. D.; Santoso, H. B.

    2018-03-01

    The development of mobile technology is now increasing rapidly, demanding all activities including learning should be done on mobile devices. It shows that the implementation of mobile application as a learning medium needs to be done. This study describes the process of developing and evaluating the Moodle-based mobile Learning Management System (LMS) application called Student Centered e-Learning Environment (SCeLE). This study discusses the process of defining features, implementing features into the application, and evaluating the application. We define the features using user research and literature study, then we implement the application with user-centered design basis, at the last phase we evaluated the application using usability testing and system usability score (SUS). The purpose of this study is to determine the extent to which this application can help the users doing their tasks and provide recommendation for the next research and development.

  4. Evaluating QR Code Case Studies Using a Mobile Learning Framework

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rikala, Jenni

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of Quick Response (QR) codes and mobile devices in the context of Finnish basic education. The feasibility was analyzed through a mobile learning framework, which includes the core characteristics of mobile learning. The study is part of a larger research where the aim is to develop a…

  5. Environmental Assessment for Employment of a Mobile Laser Evaluator System (LES-M) for the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2004-05-01

    Environmental Assessment for Employment of a Mobile Laser Evaluator System (LES-M) for the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina...Mobile Laser Evaluator System (LES-M) for the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM...a Mobile Laser Evaluator System (LES-M) for the 20’’ Fighter Wing (20 fW) at Shaw Air Force Base (AFB), South Carolir.a DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED

  6. Identifying and assessing strategies for evaluating the impact of mobile eye health units on health outcomes.

    PubMed

    Fu, Shiwan; Turner, Angus; Tan, Irene; Muir, Josephine

    2017-12-01

    To identify and assess strategies for evaluating the impact of mobile eye health units on health outcomes. Systematic literature review. Worldwide. Peer-reviewed journal articles that included the use of a mobile eye health unit. Journal articles were included if outcome measures reflected an assessment of the impact of a mobile eye health unit on health outcomes. Six studies were identified with mobile services offering diabetic retinopathy screening (three studies), optometric services (two studies) and orthoptic services (one study). This review identified and assessed strategies in existing literature used to evaluate the impact of mobile eye health units on health outcomes. Studies included in this review used patient outcomes (i.e. disease detection, vision impairment, treatment compliance) and/or service delivery outcomes (i.e. cost per attendance, hospital transport use, inappropriate referrals, time from diabetic retinopathy photography to treatment) to evaluate the impact of mobile eye health units. Limitations include difficulty proving causation of specific outcome measures and the overall shortage of impact evaluation studies. Variation in geographical location, service population and nature of eye care providers limits broad application. © 2017 National Rural Health Alliance Inc.

  7. Performance evaluation of NASA/KSC CAD/CAE graphics local area network

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Zobrist, George

    1988-01-01

    This study had as an objective the performance evaluation of the existing CAD/CAE graphics network at NASA/KSC. This evaluation will also aid in projecting planned expansions, such as the Space Station project on the existing CAD/CAE network. The objectives were achieved by collecting packet traffic on the various integrated sub-networks. This included items, such as total number of packets on the various subnetworks, source/destination of packets, percent utilization of network capacity, peak traffic rates, and packet size distribution. The NASA/KSC LAN was stressed to determine the useable bandwidth of the Ethernet network and an average design station workload was used to project the increased traffic on the existing network and the planned T1 link. This performance evaluation of the network will aid the NASA/KSC network managers in planning for the integration of future workload requirements into the existing network.

  8. [Hierarchical assessment of balance and mobility : German translation and cross-cultural adaptation].

    PubMed

    Braun, Tobias; Rieckmann, Alina; Grüneberg, Christian; Marks, Detlef; Thiel, Christian

    2016-07-01

    The hierarchical assessment of balance and mobility (HABAM) is an internationally established clinical mobility test which has good psychometric properties, allows an easy assessment of mobility and the graphical illustration of change over time in geriatric patients. The aims of this study were the translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the English original HABAM into the German language as well as a preliminary analysis of the practicability and construct validity of the HABAM. The HABAM was translated into German following international guidelines. A prefinal version was clinically tested by physiotherapists in two geriatric hospitals over a period of 5 weeks. In order to make a final revision of the German HABAM version, structured in-depth feedback was obtained from the seven therapists who had used the HABAM most often. A total of 18 physiotherapists used the HABAM for 47 elderly inpatients for the initial assessment. The translated items and instructions seemed comprehensible but problems occurred concerning the conducting and documentation of the HABAM. Modifications led to the final German HABAM version and 85 % of the HABAM assessments were performed within ≤ 10 min. There was a correlation of rs= 0.71 with the Tinetti test and of rs = 0.68 with the Barthel index. A German HABAM version is now accessible for use in clinical practice. The results of a preliminary psychometric analysis indicate a potentially good practicability and sufficient construct validity. A comprehensive analysis of psychometric properties is pending.

  9. Graphical Data Analysis on the Circle: Wrap-Around Time Series Plots for (Interrupted) Time Series Designs.

    PubMed

    Rodgers, Joseph Lee; Beasley, William Howard; Schuelke, Matthew

    2014-01-01

    Many data structures, particularly time series data, are naturally seasonal, cyclical, or otherwise circular. Past graphical methods for time series have focused on linear plots. In this article, we move graphical analysis onto the circle. We focus on 2 particular methods, one old and one new. Rose diagrams are circular histograms and can be produced in several different forms using the RRose software system. In addition, we propose, develop, illustrate, and provide software support for a new circular graphical method, called Wrap-Around Time Series Plots (WATS Plots), which is a graphical method useful to support time series analyses in general but in particular in relation to interrupted time series designs. We illustrate the use of WATS Plots with an interrupted time series design evaluating the effect of the Oklahoma City bombing on birthrates in Oklahoma County during the 10 years surrounding the bombing of the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City. We compare WATS Plots with linear time series representations and overlay them with smoothing and error bands. Each method is shown to have advantages in relation to the other; in our example, the WATS Plots more clearly show the existence and effect size of the fertility differential.

  10. Usability evaluation of mobile applications using ISO 9241 and ISO 25062 standards.

    PubMed

    Moumane, Karima; Idri, Ali; Abran, Alain

    2016-01-01

    This paper presents an empirical study based on a set of measures to evaluate the usability of mobile applications running on different mobile operating systems, including Android, iOS and Symbian. The aim is to evaluate empirically a framework that we have developed on the use of the Software Quality Standard ISO 9126 in mobile environments, especially the usability characteristic. To do that, 32 users had participated in the experiment and we have used ISO 25062 and ISO 9241 standards for objective measures by working with two widely used mobile applications: Google Apps and Google Maps. The QUIS 7.0 questionnaire have been used to collect measures assessing the users' level of satisfaction when using these two mobile applications. By analyzing the results we highlighted a set of mobile usability issues that are related to the hardware as well as to the software and that need to be taken into account by designers and developers in order to improve the usability of mobile applications.

  11. Stator and Rotor Flux Based Deadbeat Direct Torque Control of Induction Machines

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kenny, Barbara H.; Lorenz, Robert D.

    2001-01-01

    A new, deadbeat type of direct torque control is proposed, analyzed, and experimentally verified in this paper. The control is based on stator and rotor flux as state variables. This choice of state variables allows a graphical representation which is transparent and insightful. The graphical solution shows the effects of realistic considerations such as voltage and current limits. A position and speed sensorless implementation of the control, based on the self-sensing signal injection technique, is also demonstrated experimentally for low speed operation. The paper first develops the new, deadbeat DTC methodology and graphical representation of the new algorithm. It then evaluates feasibility via simulation and experimentally demonstrates performance of the new method with a laboratory prototype including the sensorless methods.

  12. Automatic programming of simulation models

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schroer, Bernard J.; Tseng, Fan T.; Zhang, Shou X.; Dwan, Wen S.

    1990-01-01

    The concepts of software engineering were used to improve the simulation modeling environment. Emphasis was placed on the application of an element of rapid prototyping, or automatic programming, to assist the modeler define the problem specification. Then, once the problem specification has been defined, an automatic code generator is used to write the simulation code. The following two domains were selected for evaluating the concepts of software engineering for discrete event simulation: manufacturing domain and a spacecraft countdown network sequence. The specific tasks were to: (1) define the software requirements for a graphical user interface to the Automatic Manufacturing Programming System (AMPS) system; (2) develop a graphical user interface for AMPS; and (3) compare the AMPS graphical interface with the AMPS interactive user interface.

  13. Exact diagonalization of quantum lattice models on coprocessors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Siro, T.; Harju, A.

    2016-10-01

    We implement the Lanczos algorithm on an Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor and compare its performance to a multi-core Intel Xeon CPU and an NVIDIA graphics processor. The Xeon and the Xeon Phi are parallelized with OpenMP and the graphics processor is programmed with CUDA. The performance is evaluated by measuring the execution time of a single step in the Lanczos algorithm. We study two quantum lattice models with different particle numbers, and conclude that for small systems, the multi-core CPU is the fastest platform, while for large systems, the graphics processor is the clear winner, reaching speedups of up to 7.6 compared to the CPU. The Xeon Phi outperforms the CPU with sufficiently large particle number, reaching a speedup of 2.5.

  14. Stator and Rotor Flux Based Deadbeat Direct Torque Control of Induction Machines

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kenny, Barbara H.; Lorenz, Robert D.

    2003-01-01

    A new, deadbeat type of direct torque control is proposed, analyzed and experimentally verified in this paper. The control is based on stator and rotor flux as state variables. This choice of state variables allows a graphical representation which is transparent and insightful. The graphical solution shows the effects of realistic considerations such as voltage and current limits. A position and speed sensorless implementation of the control, based on the self-sensing signal injection technique, is also demonstrated experimentally for low speed operation. The paper first develops the new, deadbeat DTC methodology and graphical representation of the new algorithm. It then evaluates feasibility via simulation and experimentally demonstrates performance of the new method with a laboratory prototype including the sensorless methods.

  15. Stator and Rotor Flux Based Deadbeat Direct Torque Control of Induction Machines. Revision 1

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kenny, Barbara H.; Lorenz, Robert D.

    2002-01-01

    A new, deadbeat type of direct torque control is proposed, analyzed, and experimentally verified in this paper. The control is based on stator and rotor flux as state variables. This choice of state variables allows a graphical representation which is transparent and insightful. The graphical solution shows the effects of realistic considerations such as voltage and current limits. A position and speed sensorless implementation of the control, based on the self-sensing signal injection technique, is also demonstrated experimentally for low speed operation. The paper first develops the new, deadbeat DTC methodology and graphical representation of the new algorithm. It then evaluates feasibility via simulation and experimentally demonstrates performance of the new method with a laboratory prototype including the sensorless methods.

  16. Human Factors Evaluation of Advanced Electric Power Grid Visualization Tools

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

    Greitzer, Frank L.; Dauenhauer, Peter M.; Wierks, Tamara G.

    This report describes initial human factors evaluation of four visualization tools (Graphical Contingency Analysis, Force Directed Graphs, Phasor State Estimator and Mode Meter/ Mode Shapes) developed by PNNL, and proposed test plans that may be implemented to evaluate their utility in scenario-based experiments.

  17. Choosing a CD-ROM Encyclopedia: How to Critically Evaluate the Product.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dickinson, Gail

    1990-01-01

    Offers criteria for the critical evaluation of CD-ROM encyclopedias. Differences between CD-ROM and print encyclopedias are discussed; search strategies are explained; evaluation criteria are suggested, including help messages, screen format, indexing method, and graphics and print options; future considerations are suggested, including…

  18. New virtual laboratories presenting advanced motion control concepts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goubej, Martin; Krejčí, Alois; Reitinger, Jan

    2015-11-01

    The paper deals with development of software framework for rapid generation of remote virtual laboratories. Client-server architecture is chosen in order to employ real-time simulation core which is running on a dedicated server. Ordinary web browser is used as a final renderer to achieve hardware independent solution which can be run on different target platforms including laptops, tablets or mobile phones. The provided toolchain allows automatic generation of the virtual laboratory source code from the configuration file created in the open- source Inkscape graphic editor. Three virtual laboratories presenting advanced motion control algorithms have been developed showing the applicability of the proposed approach.

  19. Design of multi-language trading system of ethnic characteristic agricultural products based on android

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huanqin, Wu; Yasheng, Jin; Yugang, Dai

    2017-06-01

    Under the current situation where Internet technology develops rapidly, mobile E-commerce technology has brought great convenience to our life. Now, the graphical user interface (GUI) of most E-commerce platforms only supports Chinese. Thus, the development of Android client of E-commerce that supports ethnic languages owns a great prospect. The principle that combines front end design and database technology is adopted in this paper to construct the Android client system of E-commerce platforms that supports ethnic languages, which realizes the displaying, browsing, querying, searching, trading and other functions of ethnic characteristic agricultural products on android platforms.

  20. Digital heritage gamification: An augmented-virtual walkthrough to learn and explore historical places

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tan, Kian Lam; Lim, Chen Kim

    2017-10-01

    In the last decade, cultural heritage including historical sites are reconstructed into digital heritage. Based on UNESCO, digital heritage defines as "cultural, educational, scientific and administrative resources, as well as technical, legal, medical and other kinds of information created digitally, or converted into digital form from existing analogue resources". In addition, the digital heritage is doubling in size every two years and expected will grow tenfold between 2013 and 2020. In order to attract and stir the interest of younger generations about digital heritage, gamification has been widely promoted. In this research, a virtual walkthrough combine with gamifications are proposed for learning and exploring historical places in Malaysia by using mobile device. In conjunction with Visit Perak 2017 Campaign, this virtual walkthrough is proposed for Kellie's Castle at Perak. The objectives of this research is two folds 1) modelling and design of innovative mobile game for virtual walkthrough application, and 2) to attract tourist to explore and learn historical places by using sophisticated graphics from Augmented Reality. The efficiency and effectiveness of the mobile virtual walkthrough will be accessed by the International and local tourists. In conclusion, this research is speculated to be pervasively improve the cultural and historical knowledge of the learners.

  1. Time-dependent electrophoresis of a dielectric spherical particle embedded in Brinkman medium

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Saad, E. I.; Faltas, M. S.

    2018-04-01

    An expression for electrophoretic apparent velocity slip in the time-dependent flow of an electrolyte solution saturated in a charged porous medium within an electric double layer adjacent to a dielectric plate under the influence of a tangential uniform electric field is derived. The velocity slip is used as a boundary condition to solve the electrophoretic motion of an impermeable dielectric spherical particle embedded in an electrolyte solution saturated in porous medium under the unsteady Darcy-Brinkman model. Throughout the system, a uniform electric field is applied and maintains with constant strength. Two cases are considered, when the electric double layer enclosing the particle is thin, but finite and when of a particle with a thick double layer. Expressions for the electrophoretic mobility of the particle as functions of the relevant parameters are found. Our results indicate that the time scale for the growth of mobility is significant and small for high permeability. Generally, the effect of the relaxation time for starting electrophoresis is negligible, irrespective of the thickness of the double layer and permeability of the medium. The effects of the elapsed time, permeability, mass density and Debye length parameters on the fluid velocity, the electrophoretic mobility and the acceleration are shown graphically.

  2. Design and evaluation of a computer tutorial on electric fields

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Morse, Jeanne Jackson

    Research has shown that students do not fully understand electric fields and their interactions with charged particles after completing traditional classroom instruction. The purpose of this project was to develop a computer tutorial to remediate some of these difficulties. Research on the effectiveness of computer-delivered instructional materials showed that students would learn better from media incorporating user-controlled interactive graphics. Two versions of the tutorial were tested. One version used interactive graphics and the other used static graphics. The two versions of the tutorial were otherwise identical. This project was done in four phases. Phases I and II were used to refine the topics covered in the tutorial and to test the usability of the tutorial. The final version of the tutorial was tested in Phases III and IV. The tutorial was tested using a pretest-posttest design with a control group. Both tests were administered in an interview setting. The tutorial using interactive graphics was more effective at remediating students' difficulties than the tutorial using static graphics for students in Phase III (p = 0.001). In Phase IV students who viewed the tutorial with static graphics did better than those viewing interactive graphics. The sample size in Phase IV was too small for this to be a statistically meaningful result. Some student reasoning errors were noted during the interviews. These include difficulty with the vector representation of electric fields, treating electric charge as if it were mass, using faulty algebraic reasoning to answer questions involving ratios and proportions, and using Coulomb's law in situations in which it is not appropriate.

  3. Communicating infectious disease prevalence through graphics: results from an international survey

    PubMed Central

    Fagerlin, Angela; Valley, Thomas S.; Scherer, Aaron M.; Knaus, Megan; Das, Enny; Zikmund-Fisher, Brian J.

    2017-01-01

    Background Graphics are increasingly used to represent the spread of infectious diseases (e.g., influenza, Zika, Ebola); however, the impact of using graphics to adequately inform the general population is unknown. Objective To examine whether three ways of visually presenting data (heat map, dot map, or picto-trendline)—all depicting the same information regarding the spread of a hypothetical outbreak of influenza—influence intent to vaccinate, risk perception, and knowledge. Design Survey with participants randomized to receive a simulated news article accompanied by one of the three graphics that communicated prevalence of influenza and number of influenza-related deaths. Setting International online survey Participants 16,510 adults living in 11 countries selected using stratified random sampling based on age and gender Measurements After reading the article and viewing the presented graphic, participants completed a survey that measured interest in vaccination, perceived risk of contracting disease, knowledge gained, interest in additional information about the disease, and perception of the graphic. Results Heat maps and picto-trendlines were evaluated more positively than dot maps. Heat maps were more effective than picto-trendlines and no different from dot maps at increasing interest in vaccination, perceived risk of contracting disease, and interest in additional information about the disease. Heat maps and picto-trendlines were more successful at conveying knowledge than dot maps. Overall, heat maps were the only graphic to be superior in every outcome. Limitations Results are based on a hypothetical scenario Conclusion Heat maps are a viable option to promote interest in and concern about infectious diseases. PMID:28647168

  4. Mobile Learning Using Mobile Phones

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vicente, Paula

    2013-01-01

    The participation in mobile learning programs is conditioned by having/using mobile communication technology. Those who do not have or use such technology cannot participate in mobile learning programs. This study evaluates who are the most likely participants of mobile learning programs by examining the demographic profile and mobile phone usage…

  5. Analyzing Robotic Kinematics Via Computed Simulations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Carnahan, Timothy M.

    1992-01-01

    Computing system assists in evaluation of kinematics of conceptual robot. Displays positions and motions of robotic manipulator within work cell. Also displays interactions between robotic manipulator and other objects. Results of simulation displayed on graphical computer workstation. System includes both off-the-shelf software originally developed for automotive industry and specially developed software. Simulation system also used to design human-equivalent hand, to model optical train in infrared system, and to develop graphical interface for teleoperator simulation system.

  6. Development of automation and robotics for space via computer graphic simulation methods

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Fernandez, Ken

    1988-01-01

    A robot simulation system, has been developed to perform automation and robotics system design studies. The system uses a procedure-oriented solid modeling language to produce a model of the robotic mechanism. The simulator generates the kinematics, inverse kinematics, dynamics, control, and real-time graphic simulations needed to evaluate the performance of the model. Simulation examples are presented, including simulation of the Space Station and the design of telerobotics for the Orbital Maneuvering Vehicle.

  7. SIMD Optimization of Linear Expressions for Programmable Graphics Hardware

    PubMed Central

    Bajaj, Chandrajit; Ihm, Insung; Min, Jungki; Oh, Jinsang

    2009-01-01

    The increased programmability of graphics hardware allows efficient graphical processing unit (GPU) implementations of a wide range of general computations on commodity PCs. An important factor in such implementations is how to fully exploit the SIMD computing capacities offered by modern graphics processors. Linear expressions in the form of ȳ = Ax̄ + b̄, where A is a matrix, and x̄, ȳ and b̄ are vectors, constitute one of the most basic operations in many scientific computations. In this paper, we propose a SIMD code optimization technique that enables efficient shader codes to be generated for evaluating linear expressions. It is shown that performance can be improved considerably by efficiently packing arithmetic operations into four-wide SIMD instructions through reordering of the operations in linear expressions. We demonstrate that the presented technique can be used effectively for programming both vertex and pixel shaders for a variety of mathematical applications, including integrating differential equations and solving a sparse linear system of equations using iterative methods. PMID:19946569

  8. A Browser-Based Multi-User Working Environment for Physicists

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Erdmann, M.; Fischer, R.; Glaser, C.; Klingebiel, D.; Komm, M.; Müller, G.; Rieger, M.; Steggemann, J.; Urban, M.; Winchen, T.

    2014-06-01

    Many programs in experimental particle physics do not yet have a graphical interface, or demand strong platform and software requirements. With the most recent development of the VISPA project, we provide graphical interfaces to existing software programs and access to multiple computing clusters through standard web browsers. The scalable clientserver system allows analyses to be performed in sizable teams, and disburdens the individual physicist from installing and maintaining a software environment. The VISPA graphical interfaces are implemented in HTML, JavaScript and extensions to the Python webserver. The webserver uses SSH and RPC to access user data, code and processes on remote sites. As example applications we present graphical interfaces for steering the reconstruction framework OFFLINE of the Pierre-Auger experiment, and the analysis development toolkit PXL. The browser based VISPA system was field-tested in biweekly homework of a third year physics course by more than 100 students. We discuss the system deployment and the evaluation by the students.

  9. Assessing the Moral Coherence and Moral Robustness of Social Systems: Proof of Concept for a Graphical Models Approach.

    PubMed

    Hoss, Frauke; London, Alex John

    2016-12-01

    This paper presents a proof of concept for a graphical models approach to assessing the moral coherence and moral robustness of systems of social interactions. "Moral coherence" refers to the degree to which the rights and duties of agents within a system are effectively respected when agents in the system comply with the rights and duties that are recognized as in force for the relevant context of interaction. "Moral robustness" refers to the degree to which a system of social interaction is configured to ensure that the interests of agents are effectively respected even in the face of noncompliance. Using the case of conscientious objection of pharmacists to filling prescriptions for emergency contraception as an example, we illustrate how a graphical models approach can help stakeholders identify structural weaknesses in systems of social interaction and evaluate the relative merits of alternate organizational structures. By illustrating the merits of a graphical models approach we hope to spur further developments in this area.

  10. Graphical method for determining the coefficient of consolidation cv from a flow-pump permeability test

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Morin, Roger H.; Olsen, Harold W.; Nelson, Karl R.; Gill, James D.

    1989-01-01

    A graphical method has been developed for determining the coefficient of consolidation from the transient phases of a flow-pump permeability test. The flow pump can be used to infuse fluid into or withdraw fluid from a laboratory sediment specimen at a constant volumetric rate in order to obtain data that can be used to calculate permeability using Darcy's law. Representative type-curve solutions to the associated forced-flow and pressure-decay models are derived. These curves provide the basis for graphically evaluating the permeability k, the coefficient of consolidation cv, and the coefficient of volume change mv. The curve-matching technique is easy and rapid. Values of k, cv and mv for a laterally confined kaolinite specimen were determined by this graphical method and appear to be in reasonably good agreement with numerically derived estimates (within 20%). Discrepancies between the two sets of results seem to be largely a function of data quality.

  11. Interactive graphical system for small-angle scattering analysis of polydisperse systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Konarev, P. V.; Volkov, V. V.; Svergun, D. I.

    2016-09-01

    A program suite for one-dimensional small-angle scattering analysis of polydisperse systems and multiple data sets is presented. The main program, POLYSAS, has a menu-driven graphical user interface calling computational modules from ATSAS package to perform data treatment and analysis. The graphical menu interface allows one to process multiple (time, concentration or temperature-dependent) data sets and interactively change the parameters for the data modelling using sliders. The graphical representation of the data is done via the Winteracter-based program SASPLOT. The package is designed for the analysis of polydisperse systems and mixtures, and permits one to obtain size distributions and evaluate the volume fractions of the components using linear and non-linear fitting algorithms as well as model-independent singular value decomposition. The use of the POLYSAS package is illustrated by the recent examples of its application to study concentration-dependent oligomeric states of proteins and time kinetics of polymer micelles for anticancer drug delivery.

  12. GapBlaster-A Graphical Gap Filler for Prokaryote Genomes.

    PubMed

    de Sá, Pablo H C G; Miranda, Fábio; Veras, Adonney; de Melo, Diego Magalhães; Soares, Siomar; Pinheiro, Kenny; Guimarães, Luis; Azevedo, Vasco; Silva, Artur; Ramos, Rommel T J

    2016-01-01

    The advent of NGS (Next Generation Sequencing) technologies has resulted in an exponential increase in the number of complete genomes available in biological databases. This advance has allowed the development of several computational tools enabling analyses of large amounts of data in each of the various steps, from processing and quality filtering to gap filling and manual curation. The tools developed for gap closure are very useful as they result in more complete genomes, which will influence downstream analyses of genomic plasticity and comparative genomics. However, the gap filling step remains a challenge for genome assembly, often requiring manual intervention. Here, we present GapBlaster, a graphical application to evaluate and close gaps. GapBlaster was developed via Java programming language. The software uses contigs obtained in the assembly of the genome to perform an alignment against a draft of the genome/scaffold, using BLAST or Mummer to close gaps. Then, all identified alignments of contigs that extend through the gaps in the draft sequence are presented to the user for further evaluation via the GapBlaster graphical interface. GapBlaster presents significant results compared to other similar software and has the advantage of offering a graphical interface for manual curation of the gaps. GapBlaster program, the user guide and the test datasets are freely available at https://sourceforge.net/projects/gapblaster2015/. It requires Sun JDK 8 and Blast or Mummer.

  13. Iterative Evaluation in a Mobile Counseling and Testing Program to Reach People of Color at Risk for HIV--New Strategies Improve Program Acceptability, Effectiveness, and Evaluation Capabilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Spielberg, Freya; Kurth, Ann; Reidy, William; McKnight, Teka; Dikobe, Wame; Wilson, Charles

    2011-01-01

    This article highlights findings from an evaluation that explored the impact of mobile versus clinic-based testing, rapid versus central-lab based testing, incentives for testing, and the use of a computer counseling program to guide counseling and automate evaluation in a mobile program reaching people of color at risk for HIV. The program's…

  14. The Evaluation of a Pulmonary Display to Detect Adverse Respiratory Events Using High Resolution Human Simulator

    PubMed Central

    Wachter, S. Blake; Johnson, Ken; Albert, Robert; Syroid, Noah; Drews, Frank; Westenskow, Dwayne

    2006-01-01

    Objective Authors developed a picture-graphics display for pulmonary function to present typical respiratory data used in perioperative and intensive care environments. The display utilizes color, shape and emergent alerting to highlight abnormal pulmonary physiology. The display serves as an adjunct to traditional operating room displays and monitors. Design To evaluate the prototype, nineteen clinician volunteers each managed four adverse respiratory events and one normal event using a high-resolution patient simulator which included the new displays (intervention subjects) and traditional displays (control subjects). Between-group comparisons included (i) time to diagnosis and treatment for each adverse respiratory event; (ii) the number of unnecessary treatments during the normal scenario; and (iii) self-reported workload estimates while managing study events. Measurements Two expert anesthesiologists reviewed video-taped transcriptions of the volunteers to determine time to treat and time to diagnosis. Time values were then compared between groups using a Mann-Whitney-U Test. Estimated workload for both groups was assessed using the NASA-TLX and compared between groups using an ANOVA. P-values < 0.05 were considered significant. Results Clinician volunteers detected and treated obstructed endotracheal tubes and intrinsic PEEP problems faster with graphical rather than conventional displays (p < 0.05). During the normal scenario simulation, 3 clinicians using the graphical display, and 5 clinicians using the conventional display gave unnecessary treatments. Clinician-volunteers reported significantly lower subjective workloads using the graphical display for the obstructed endotracheal tube scenario (p < 0.001) and the intrinsic PEEP scenario (p < 0.03). Conclusion Authors conclude that the graphical pulmonary display may serve as a useful adjunct to traditional displays in identifying adverse respiratory events. PMID:16929038

  15. LODVIEW: a computer program for the graphical evaluation of lod score results in exclusion mapping of human disease genes.

    PubMed

    Hildebrandt, F; Pohlmann, A; Omran, H

    1993-12-01

    For linkage analysis projects aimed at mapping hereditary disease genes in humans, hundreds of highly polymorphic microsatellite markers which can be typed by PCR (PCR markers) have become available. With this technical improvement, the availability of a technique allowing for transparency in the handling of rapidly generated lod score data is becoming important. We present a computer program LODVIEW for the graphical representation of lod score data. It is designed for the input of lod score data generated with the LINKAGE package or similar programs. LODVIEW consists of 24 preformatted files, one for each chromosome. Each file contains a table for the input of lod score data and a file for the graphical representation of the data, which will show automatically any entry that is made in the respective input table. The program provides the user with published PCR marker information pre-entered into a table and graph at the correct positions corresponding to the genetic distances between markers. The graphical display of LODVIEW allows for the rapid evaluation of lod score results calculated from PCR markers on each chromosome. The following information can be obtained from the graphical display at one glance: (i) Regions of exclusion (Z(theta) < -2) and nonexclusion, (ii) markers with positive lod scores, (iii) the distribution of positive and negative lod scores among the families examined (indication of genetic heterogeneity), (iv) multipoint lod scores, and (v) the availability of PCR markers in regions of interest. The program is continually updated for novel PCR marker information from the literature. The program will help to efficiently monitor and direct the progress of exclusion mapping projects.

  16. The impact of cervical cancer education for deaf women using a video educational tool employing American sign language, open captioning, and graphics.

    PubMed

    Choe, Sun; Lim, Rod Seung-Hwan; Clark, Karen; Wang, Regina; Branz, Patricia; Sadler, Georgia Robins

    2009-01-01

    Deaf women encounter barriers to accessing cancer information. In this study, we evaluated whether deaf women's knowledge could be increased by viewing a graphically enriched, American Sign Language (ASL) cervical cancer education video. A blind, randomized trial evaluated knowledge gain and retention. Deaf women (n = 130) completed questionnaires before, after, and 2 months after viewing the video. With only a single viewing of the in-depth video, the experimental group gained and retained significantly more cancer knowledge than the control group. Giving deaf women access to the ASL cervical cancer education video (http://cancer.ucsd.edu/deafinfo) significantly increased their knowledge of cervical cancer.

  17. Augmented Feedback System to Support Physical Therapy of Non-specific Low Back Pain

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Brodbeck, Dominique; Degen, Markus; Stanimirov, Michael; Kool, Jan; Scheermesser, Mandy; Oesch, Peter; Neuhaus, Cornelia

    Low back pain is an important problem in industrialized countries. Two key factors limit the effectiveness of physiotherapy: low compliance of patients with repetitive movement exercises, and inadequate awareness of patients of their own posture. The Backtrainer system addresses these problems by real-time monitoring of the spine position, by providing a framework for most common physiotherapy exercises for the low back, and by providing feedback to patients in a motivating way. A minimal sensor configuration was identified as two inertial sensors that measure the orientation of the lower back at two points with three degrees of freedom. The software was designed as a flexible platform to experiment with different hardware, and with various feedback modalities. Basic exercises for two types of movements are provided: mobilizing and stabilizing. We developed visual feedback - abstract as well as in the form of a virtual reality game - and complemented the on-screen graphics with an ambient feedback device. The system was evaluated during five weeks in a rehabilitation clinic with 26 patients and 15 physiotherapists. Subjective satisfaction of subjects was good, and we interpret the results as encouraging indication for the adoption of such a therapy support system by both patients and therapists.

  18. Descriptive and evaluative judgment processes: behavioral and electrophysiological indices of processing symmetry and aesthetics.

    PubMed

    Jacobsen, Thomas; Höfel, Lea

    2003-12-01

    Descriptive symmetry and evaluative aesthetic judgment processes were compared using identical stimuli in both judgment tasks. Electrophysiological activity was recorded while participants judged novel formal graphic patterns in a trial-by-trial cuing setting using binary responses (symmetric, not symmetric; beautiful, not beautiful). Judgment analyses of a Phase 1 test and main experiment performance resulted in individual models, as well as group models, of the participants' judgment systems. Symmetry showed a strong positive correlation with beautiful judgments and was the most important cue. Descriptive judgments were performed faster than evaluative judgments. The ERPs revealed a phasic, early frontal negativity for the not-beautiful judgments. A sustained posterior negativity was observed in the symmetric condition. All conditions showed late positive potentials (LPPs). Evaluative judgment LPPs revealed a more pronounced right lateralization. It is argued that the present aesthetic judgments engage a two-stage process consisting of early, anterior frontomedian impression formation after 300 msec and right-hemisphere evaluative categorization around 600 msec after onset of the graphic patterns.

  19. A usability evaluation of Lazada mobile application

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hussain, Azham; Mkpojiogu, Emmanuel O. C.; Jamaludin, Nur Hafiza; Moh, Somia T. L.

    2017-10-01

    This paper reports on a usability evaluation of Lazada mobile application, an online shopping app for mobile devices. The evaluation was conducted using 12 users of ages 18 to 24. Seven (7) were expert users and the other 5 were novice users. The study objectives were to evaluate the perceived effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction of the mobile application. The result provides a positive feedback and shows that the mobile shopping app is effective, efficient, and satisfying as perceived by the study participants. However, there are some observed usability issues with the main menu and the payment method that necessitates improvements to increase the application's effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction. The suggested improvements include: 1) the main menu should be capitalized and place on the left side of mobile app and 2) payment method tutorial should be included as a hyperlink in the payment method page. This observation will be helpful to the owners of the application in future version development of the app.

  20. User Experience Evaluation in the Mobile Context

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Obrist, Marianna; Meschtscherjakov, Alexander; Tscheligi, Manfred

    Multimedia services on mobile devices are becoming increasingly popular. Whereas the mobile phone is the most likely platform for mobile TV, PDAs, portable game consoles, and music players are attractive alternatives. Mobile TV consumption on mobile phones allows new kinds of user experiences, but it also puts designers and researchers in front of new challenges. On the one hand, designers have to take these novel experience potentials into account. On the other hand, the right methods to collect user feedback to further improve services for the mobile context have to be applied. In this chapter the importance of user experience research for mobile TV within the mobile context is highlighted. We present how different experience levels can be evaluated taking different mobile context categories into account. In particular, we discuss the Experience Sampling Method (ESM), which seems to be a fruitful approach for investigating user TV experiences.

  1. Automation in the graphic arts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Truszkowski, Walt

    1995-04-01

    The CHIMES (Computer-Human Interaction Models) tool was designed to help solve a simply-stated but important problem, i.e., the problem of generating a user interface to a system that complies with established human factors standards and guidelines. Though designed for use in a fairly restricted user domain, i.e., spacecraft mission operations, the CHIMES system is essentially domain independent and applicable wherever graphical user interfaces of displays are to be encountered. The CHIMES philosophy and operating strategy are quite simple. Instead of requiring a human designer to actively maintain in his or her head the now encyclopedic knowledge that human factors and user interface specialists have evolved, CHIMES incorporates this information in its knowledge bases. When directed to evaluated a design, CHIMES determines and accesses the appropriate knowledge, performs an evaluation of the design against that information, determines whether the design is compliant with the selected guidelines and suggests corrective actions if deviations from guidelines are discovered. This paper will provide an overview of the capabilities of the current CHIMES tool and discuss the potential integration of CHIMES-like technology in automated graphic arts systems.

  2. The effects of speech output technology in the learning of graphic symbols.

    PubMed Central

    Schlosser, R W; Belfiore, P J; Nigam, R; Blischak, D; Hetzroni, O

    1995-01-01

    The effects of auditory stimuli in the form of synthetic speech output on the learning of graphic symbols were evaluated. Three adults with severe to profound mental retardation and communication impairments were taught to point to lexigrams when presented with words under two conditions. In the first condition, participants used a voice output communication aid to receive synthetic speech as antecedent and consequent stimuli. In the second condition, with a nonelectronic communications board, participants did not receive synthetic speech. A parallel treatments design was used to evaluate the effects of the synthetic speech output as an added component of the augmentative and alternative communication system. The 3 participants reached criterion when not provided with the auditory stimuli. Although 2 participants also reached criterion when not provided with the auditory stimuli, the addition of auditory stimuli resulted in more efficient learning and a decreased error rate. Maintenance results, however, indicated no differences between conditions. Finding suggest that auditory stimuli in the form of synthetic speech contribute to the efficient acquisition of graphic communication symbols. PMID:14743828

  3. Graphical Evaluation of the Ridge-Type Robust Regression Estimators in Mixture Experiments

    PubMed Central

    Erkoc, Ali; Emiroglu, Esra

    2014-01-01

    In mixture experiments, estimation of the parameters is generally based on ordinary least squares (OLS). However, in the presence of multicollinearity and outliers, OLS can result in very poor estimates. In this case, effects due to the combined outlier-multicollinearity problem can be reduced to certain extent by using alternative approaches. One of these approaches is to use biased-robust regression techniques for the estimation of parameters. In this paper, we evaluate various ridge-type robust estimators in the cases where there are multicollinearity and outliers during the analysis of mixture experiments. Also, for selection of biasing parameter, we use fraction of design space plots for evaluating the effect of the ridge-type robust estimators with respect to the scaled mean squared error of prediction. The suggested graphical approach is illustrated on Hald cement data set. PMID:25202738

  4. Graphical evaluation of the ridge-type robust regression estimators in mixture experiments.

    PubMed

    Erkoc, Ali; Emiroglu, Esra; Akay, Kadri Ulas

    2014-01-01

    In mixture experiments, estimation of the parameters is generally based on ordinary least squares (OLS). However, in the presence of multicollinearity and outliers, OLS can result in very poor estimates. In this case, effects due to the combined outlier-multicollinearity problem can be reduced to certain extent by using alternative approaches. One of these approaches is to use biased-robust regression techniques for the estimation of parameters. In this paper, we evaluate various ridge-type robust estimators in the cases where there are multicollinearity and outliers during the analysis of mixture experiments. Also, for selection of biasing parameter, we use fraction of design space plots for evaluating the effect of the ridge-type robust estimators with respect to the scaled mean squared error of prediction. The suggested graphical approach is illustrated on Hald cement data set.

  5. Interactive dual-volume rendering visualization with real-time fusion and transfer function enhancement

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Macready, Hugh; Kim, Jinman; Feng, David; Cai, Weidong

    2006-03-01

    Dual-modality imaging scanners combining functional PET and anatomical CT constitute a challenge in volumetric visualization that can be limited by the high computational demand and expense. This study aims at providing physicians with multi-dimensional visualization tools, in order to navigate and manipulate the data running on a consumer PC. We have maximized the utilization of pixel-shader architecture of the low-cost graphic hardware and the texture-based volume rendering to provide visualization tools with high degree of interactivity. All the software was developed using OpenGL and Silicon Graphics Inc. Volumizer, tested on a Pentium mobile CPU on a PC notebook with 64M graphic memory. We render the individual modalities separately, and performing real-time per-voxel fusion. We designed a novel "alpha-spike" transfer function to interactively identify structure of interest from volume rendering of PET/CT. This works by assigning a non-linear opacity to the voxels, thus, allowing the physician to selectively eliminate or reveal information from the PET/CT volumes. As the PET and CT are rendered independently, manipulations can be applied to individual volumes, for instance, the application of transfer function to CT to reveal the lung boundary while adjusting the fusion ration between the CT and PET to enhance the contrast of a tumour region, with the resultant manipulated data sets fused together in real-time as the adjustments are made. In addition to conventional navigation and manipulation tools, such as scaling, LUT, volume slicing, and others, our strategy permits efficient visualization of PET/CT volume rendering which can potentially aid in interpretation and diagnosis.

  6. Toward Mixed Method Evaluations of Scientific Visualizations and Design Process as an Evaluation Tool.

    PubMed

    Jackson, Bret; Coffey, Dane; Thorson, Lauren; Schroeder, David; Ellingson, Arin M; Nuckley, David J; Keefe, Daniel F

    2012-10-01

    In this position paper we discuss successes and limitations of current evaluation strategies for scientific visualizations and argue for embracing a mixed methods strategy of evaluation. The most novel contribution of the approach that we advocate is a new emphasis on employing design processes as practiced in related fields (e.g., graphic design, illustration, architecture) as a formalized mode of evaluation for data visualizations. To motivate this position we describe a series of recent evaluations of scientific visualization interfaces and computer graphics strategies conducted within our research group. Complementing these more traditional evaluations our visualization research group also regularly employs sketching, critique, and other design methods that have been formalized over years of practice in design fields. Our experience has convinced us that these activities are invaluable, often providing much more detailed evaluative feedback about our visualization systems than that obtained via more traditional user studies and the like. We believe that if design-based evaluation methodologies (e.g., ideation, sketching, critique) can be taught and embraced within the visualization community then these may become one of the most effective future strategies for both formative and summative evaluations.

  7. Toward Mixed Method Evaluations of Scientific Visualizations and Design Process as an Evaluation Tool

    PubMed Central

    Jackson, Bret; Coffey, Dane; Thorson, Lauren; Schroeder, David; Ellingson, Arin M.; Nuckley, David J.

    2017-01-01

    In this position paper we discuss successes and limitations of current evaluation strategies for scientific visualizations and argue for embracing a mixed methods strategy of evaluation. The most novel contribution of the approach that we advocate is a new emphasis on employing design processes as practiced in related fields (e.g., graphic design, illustration, architecture) as a formalized mode of evaluation for data visualizations. To motivate this position we describe a series of recent evaluations of scientific visualization interfaces and computer graphics strategies conducted within our research group. Complementing these more traditional evaluations our visualization research group also regularly employs sketching, critique, and other design methods that have been formalized over years of practice in design fields. Our experience has convinced us that these activities are invaluable, often providing much more detailed evaluative feedback about our visualization systems than that obtained via more traditional user studies and the like. We believe that if design-based evaluation methodologies (e.g., ideation, sketching, critique) can be taught and embraced within the visualization community then these may become one of the most effective future strategies for both formative and summative evaluations. PMID:28944349

  8. Evaluation of the Aviation Weather and NOTAM System (AWANS).

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1979-06-01

    during which graphics were accessed and percent of trans- Analyses of variance were performed action time spent on graphics, are to test for the effects...of the plotted in figure 2. The percentages three independent variables. A total are plotted versus the number of of 24 analyses of variance were...STATUS ON TIME AND PAGE COUNT FOR COMBINED WX/FP BRIEFINGS Monitor Status Off On Diff. Signif . Time (Min) 4.7 4.1 0.6 .05 Page Count 8.3 7.6 0.7 .10

  9. Graphic representation of skeletal maturity determinations.

    PubMed

    Boechat, M Ines; Lee, David Choen

    2007-10-01

    Skeletal maturation determinations are usually reported as numeric data indicating accordance with chronologic age. However, significant changes in skeletal maturation can occur without falling outside two SDs. The purpose of our study was to design simple computer-generated sex-based charts to enhance the evaluation of skeletal maturation, especially when frequent assessments are made. The graphic representation of successive reports clearly depicts whether values retain their position in relation to the mean. In addition, the report includes computation of the exact SD score.

  10. Accessibility of Mobile Devices for Visually Impaired Users: An Evaluation of the Screen-Reader VoiceOver.

    PubMed

    Smaradottir, Berglind; Håland, Jarle; Martinez, Santiago

    2017-01-01

    A mobile device's touchscreen allows users to use a choreography of hand gestures to interact with the user interface. A screen reader on a mobile device is designed to support the interaction of visually disabled users while using gestures. This paper presents an evaluation of VoiceOver, a screen reader in Apple Inc. products. The evaluation was a part of the research project "Visually impaired users touching the screen - a user evaluation of assistive technology".

  11. Evaluation of a wireless audio streaming accessory to improve mobile telephone performance of cochlear implant users.

    PubMed

    Wolfe, Jace; Morais Duke, Mila; Schafer, Erin; Cire, George; Menapace, Christine; O'Neill, Lori

    2016-01-01

    The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential improvement in word recognition in quiet and in noise obtained with use of a Bluetooth-compatible wireless hearing assistance technology (HAT) relative to the acoustic mobile telephone condition (e.g. the mobile telephone receiver held to the microphone of the sound processor). A two-way repeated measures design was used to evaluate differences in telephone word recognition obtained in quiet and in competing noise in the acoustic mobile telephone condition compared to performance obtained with use of the CI sound processor and a telephone HAT. Sixteen adult users of Nucleus cochlear implants and the Nucleus 6 sound processor were included in this study. Word recognition over the mobile telephone in quiet and in noise was significantly better with use of the wireless HAT compared to performance in the acoustic mobile telephone condition. Word recognition over the mobile telephone was better in quiet when compared to performance in noise. The results of this study indicate that use of a wireless HAT improves word recognition over the mobile telephone in quiet and in noise relative to performance in the acoustic mobile telephone condition for a group of adult cochlear implant recipients.

  12. XGI: a graphical interface for XQuery creation.

    PubMed

    Li, Xiang; Gennari, John H; Brinkley, James F

    2007-10-11

    XML has become the default standard for data exchange among heterogeneous data sources, and in January 2007 XQuery (XML Query language) was recommended by the World Wide Web Consortium as the query language for XML. However, XQuery is a complex language that is difficult for non-programmers to learn. We have therefore developed XGI (XQuery Graphical Interface), a visual interface for graphically generating XQuery. In this paper we demonstrate the functionality of XGI through its application to a biomedical XML dataset. We describe the system architecture and the features of XGI in relation to several existing querying systems, we demonstrate the system's usability through a sample query construction, and we discuss a preliminary evaluation of XGI. Finally, we describe some limitations of the system, and our plans for future improvements.

  13. ITOS to EDGE "Bridge" Software for Morpheus Lunar/Martian Vehicle

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hirsh, Robert; Fuchs, Jordan

    2012-01-01

    My project Involved Improving upon existing software and writing new software for the Project Morpheus Team. Specifically, I created and updated Integrated Test and Operations Systems (ITOS) user Interfaces for on-board Interaction with the vehicle during archive playback as well as live streaming data. These Interfaces are an integral part of the testing and operations for the Morpheus vehicle providing any and all information from the vehicle to evaluate instruments and insure coherence and control of the vehicle during Morpheus missions. I also created a "bridge" program for Interfacing "live" telemetry data with the Engineering DOUG Graphics Engine (EDGE) software for a graphical (standalone or VR dome) view of live Morpheus nights or archive replays, providing graphical representation of vehicle night and movement during subsequent tests and in real missions.

  14. Examining Preservice Teachers' Criteria for Evaluating Educational Mobile Apps

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baran, Evrim; Uygun, Erdem; Altan, Tugba

    2017-01-01

    Recent interest in integrating mobile apps into teaching will continue growing. There remains, however, a pressing need to develop methods and resources to support and educate preservice teachers about the use of these technologies. This case study aimed to examine preservice teachers' criteria for evaluating educational mobile apps. Nineteen…

  15. Mobile medical apps for patient education: a graded review of available dermatology apps.

    PubMed

    Masud, Aisha; Shafi, Shahram; Rao, Babar K

    2018-02-01

    The utilization of mobile applications (apps) as educational resources for patients highlights the need for an objective method of evaluating the quality of health care-related mobile apps. In this study, a quantified rubric was developed to objectively grade publicly available dermatology mobile apps with the primary focus of patient education. The rubric included 5 criteria thought to be most important in evaluating the adequacy of these apps in relaying health information to patients: educational objectives, content, accuracy, design, and conflict of interest. A 4-point scale was applied to each criterion. The use of this objective rubric could have implications in the evaluation and recommendation of mobile health care apps as a vital educational resource for patients.

  16. A pilot study comparing mouse and mouse-emulating interface devices for graphic input.

    PubMed

    Kanny, E M; Anson, D K

    1991-01-01

    Adaptive interface devices make it possible for individuals with physical disabilities to use microcomputers and thus perform many tasks that they would otherwise be unable to accomplish. Special equipment is available that purports to allow functional access to the computer for users with disabilities. As technology moves from purely keyboard applications to include graphic input, it will be necessary for assistive interface devices to support graphics as well as text entry. Headpointing systems that emulate the mouse in combination with on-screen keyboards are of particular interest to persons with severe physical impairment such as high level quadriplegia. Two such systems currently on the market are the HeadMaster and the Free Wheel. The authors have conducted a pilot study comparing graphic input speed using the mouse and two headpointing interface systems on the Macintosh computer. The study used a single subject design with six able-bodied subjects, to establish a baseline for comparison with persons with severe disabilities. Results of these preliminary data indicated that the HeadMaster was nearly as effective as the mouse and that it was superior to the Free Wheel for graphics input. This pilot study, however, demonstrated several experimental design problems that need to be addressed to make the study more robust. It also demonstrated the need to include the evaluation of text input so that the effectiveness of the interface devices with text and graphic input could be compared.

  17. Connected Vehicle Pilot Deployment Program Independent Evaluation: Mobility, Environmental, and Public Agency Efficiency Refined Evaluation Plan - New York City

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2018-03-01

    The purpose of this report is to provide a refined evaluation plan detailing the approach to be used by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute Connected Vehicle Pilot Deployment Evaluation Team for evaluating the mobility, environmental, and public a...

  18. Slide shows vs graphic tablet live drawing for anatomy teaching.

    PubMed

    Alsaid, B

    2016-12-01

    Blackboard drawing is the traditional and still widely learned method for anatomy teachers. However, for practical reasons, more and more lessons are done using slide shows. New digital learning tools are developed to create a more attractive teaching method. The objective of this study was to compare the use of graphic tablet live drawing versus slide shows. Sixty-five second-year students of the Faculty of Medicine participated in this study during their first semester of 2013-2014 academic year. The selected lecture dealt about neuroanatomy; two brain sections were taught: median sagittal and transverse. The sagittal section was presented via a slide show. The transverse section was taught using a graphics tablet using drawing software. Students were evaluated three times: before the lecture, immediately after the lecture and 8 weeks later. Means were compared using a t-test. Scores were significantly higher immediately after the lecture and 8 weeks later tests in comparing the transverse section (using the graphics tablet) versus the sagittal section (using PowerPoint ® ). Student satisfaction regarding the use of the tablet was high. The graphics tablet is a usable and efficient drawing tool in anatomy teaching. This tool requires a specific teacher training and preparation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  19. CDROM User Interface Evaluation: The Appropriateness of GUIs.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bosch, Victoria Manglano; Hancock-Beaulieu, Micheline

    1995-01-01

    Assesses the appropriateness of GUIs (graphical user interfaces), more specifically Windows-based interfaces for CD-ROM. An evaluation model is described that was developed to carry out an expert evaluation of the interfaces of seven CD-ROM products. Results are discussed in light of HCI (human-computer interaction) usability criteria and design…

  20. An Analysis of Criteria for the Evaluation of Educational Web Sites.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bantjes, L.; Cronje, J. C.

    2000-01-01

    Proposes a set of 50 criteria in seven categories for evaluating educational Internet information sources. Compares these indicators against a number of acknowledged Internet evaluation sites and identifies the most used criteria. Finds that currency, graphic design, and browsability are the most highly rated aspects to consider when evaluating…

  1. Co-creative development of an eHealth nursing intervention: Self-management support for outpatients with cancer pain.

    PubMed

    Hochstenbach, Laura M J; Courtens, Annemie M; Zwakhalen, Sandra M G; Vermeulen, Joan; van Kleef, Maarten; de Witte, Luc P

    2017-08-01

    Co-creative methods, having an iterative character and including different perspectives, allow for the development of complex nursing interventions. Information about the development process is essential in providing justification for the ultimate intervention and crucial in interpreting the outcomes of subsequent evaluations. This paper describes a co-creative method directed towards the development of an eHealth intervention delivered by registered nurses to support self-management in outpatients with cancer pain. Intervention development was divided into three consecutive phases (exploration of context, specification of content, organisation of care). In each phase, researchers and technicians addressed five iterative steps: research, ideas, prototyping, evaluation, and documentation. Health professionals and patients were consulted during research and evaluation steps. Collaboration of researchers, health professionals, patients and technicians was positive and valuable in optimising outcomes. The intervention includes a mobile application for patients and a web application for nurses. Patients are requested to monitor pain, adverse effects and medication intake, while being provided with graphical feedback, education and contact possibilities. Nurses monitor data, advise patients, and collaborate with the treating physician. Integration of patient self-management and professional care by means of eHealth key into well-known barriers and seem promising in improving cancer pain follow-up. Nurses are able to make substantial contributions because of their expertise, focus on daily living, and their bridging function between patients and health professionals in different care settings. Insights from the intervention development as well as the intervention content give thought for applications in different patients and care settings. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. The Impact of Cervical Cancer Education for Deaf Women Using a Video Educational Tool Employing American Sign Language, Open Captioning, and Graphics

    PubMed Central

    Choe, Sun; Lim, Rod Seung-Hwan; Clark, Karen; Wang, Regina; Branz, Patricia; Sadler, Georgia Robins

    2013-01-01

    Background Deaf women encounter barriers to accessing cancer information. In this study, we evaluated whether deaf women's knowledge could be increased by viewing a graphically enriched, American Sign Language (ASL) cervical cancer education video. Methods A blind, randomized trial evaluated knowledge gain and retention. Deaf women (n = 130) completed questionnaires before, after, and 2 months after viewing the video. Results With only a single viewing of the in-depth video, the experimental group gained and retained significantly more cancer knowledge than the control group. Conclusions Giving deaf women access to the ASL cervical cancer education video (http://cancer.ucsd.edu/deafinfo) significantly increased their knowledge of cervical cancer. PMID:19259859

  3. A Robust Camera-Based Interface for Mobile Entertainment

    PubMed Central

    Roig-Maimó, Maria Francesca; Manresa-Yee, Cristina; Varona, Javier

    2016-01-01

    Camera-based interfaces in mobile devices are starting to be used in games and apps, but few works have evaluated them in terms of usability or user perception. Due to the changing nature of mobile contexts, this evaluation requires extensive studies to consider the full spectrum of potential users and contexts. However, previous works usually evaluate these interfaces in controlled environments such as laboratory conditions, therefore, the findings cannot be generalized to real users and real contexts. In this work, we present a robust camera-based interface for mobile entertainment. The interface detects and tracks the user’s head by processing the frames provided by the mobile device’s front camera, and its position is then used to interact with the mobile apps. First, we evaluate the interface as a pointing device to study its accuracy, and different factors to configure such as the gain or the device’s orientation, as well as the optimal target size for the interface. Second, we present an in the wild study to evaluate the usage and the user’s perception when playing a game controlled by head motion. Finally, the game is published in an application store to make it available to a large number of potential users and contexts and we register usage data. Results show the feasibility of using this robust camera-based interface for mobile entertainment in different contexts and by different people. PMID:26907288

  4. Metabolic Assessment of Suited Mobility Using Functional Tasks

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Norcross, J. R.; McFarland, S. M.; Ploutz-Snyder, Robert

    2016-01-01

    Existing methods for evaluating extravehicular activity (EVA) suit mobility have typically focused on isolated joint range of motion or torque, but these techniques have little to do with how well a crewmember functionally performs in an EVA suit. To evaluate suited mobility at the system level through measuring metabolic cost (MC) of functional tasks.

  5. Rural land mobile radio market assessment and satellite and terrestrial system concepts

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Stevenson, S.; Provencher, C.

    1984-01-01

    The market for satellite-based mobile radio in the rural U.S. is evaluated, summarizing the results of two NASA-funded studies reported by Anderson et al. and Hornstein. The study aims are listed, and the results are presented in tables, graphs, and maps and discussed. Space systems are found to be competitive with land-based systems, providing superior service at lower subscriber charges, but having limited compatibility with urban cellular mobile-radio systems. Of the three system concepts evaluated from a technological standpoint (direct-to-mobile, mobile-translator, and hybrid), the mobile-translator concept is considered most cost effective, at least within the constraints assumed in the study.

  6. Preplanning and Evaluating Video Documentaries and Features.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Maynard, Riley

    1997-01-01

    This article presents a ten-part pre-production outline and post-production evaluation that helps communications students more effectively improve video skills. Examines camera movement and motion, camera angle and perspective, lighting, audio, graphics, backgrounds and color, special effects, editing, transitions, and music. Provides a glossary…

  7. ACTS mobile SATCOM experiments

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Abbe, Brian S.; Frye, Robert E.; Jedrey, Thomas C.

    1993-01-01

    Over the last decade, the demand for reliable mobile satellite communications (satcom) for voice, data, and video applications has increased dramatically. As consumer demand grows, the current spectrum allocation at L-band could become saturated. For this reason, NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory are developing the Advanced Communications Technology Satellites (ACTS) mobile terminal (AMT) and are evaluating the feasibility of K/Ka-band (20/30 GHz) mobile satcom to meet these growing needs. U.S. industry and government, acting as co-partners, will evaluate K/Ka-band mobile satcom and develop new technologies by conducting a series of applications-oriented experiments. The ACTS and the AMT testbed will be used to conduct these mobile satcom experiments. The goals of the ACTS Mobile Experiments Program and the individual experiment configurations and objectives are further presented.

  8. The Personal Mobility and Manipulation Appliance (PerMMA): a robotic wheelchair with advanced mobility and manipulation.

    PubMed

    Wang, Hongwu; Grindle, Garrett G; Candiotti, Jorge; Chung, Chengshiu; Shino, Motoki; Houston, Elaine; Cooper, Rory A

    2012-01-01

    The Personal Mobility and Manipulation Appliance (PerMMA) is a recently developed personal assistance robot developed to provide people with disabilities and older adults enhanced assistance in both mobility and manipulation, which are two fundamental components for independently activities of daily life performing, community participation, and quality of life. Technologies to assist with mobility and manipulation are among the most important tools for clinicians, end users and caregivers; however, there are currently few systems that provide practical and coordinated assistance with mobility and manipulation tasks. The PerMMA was not only developed and evaluated to provide users and caregivers enhanced mobility and manipulation options, but also as a clinical tool as well as research platform. The development and evaluation of PerMMA are presented in the paper.

  9. Usability evaluation of mobile applications; where do we stand?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zahra, Fatima; Hussain, Azham; Mohd, Haslina

    2017-10-01

    The range and availability of mobile applications is expanding rapidly. With the increased processing power available on portable devices, developers are increasing the range of services by embracing smartphones in their extensive and diverse practices. While usability testing and evaluations of mobile applications have not yet touched the accuracy level of other web based applications. The existing usability models do not adequately capture the complexities of interacting with applications on a mobile platform. Therefore, this study aims to presents review on existing usability models for mobile applications. These models are in their infancy but with time and more research they may eventually be adopted. Moreover, different categories of mobile apps (medical, entertainment, education) possess different functional and non-functional requirements thus customized models are required for diverse mobile applications.

  10. A graphical user interface for RAId, a knowledge integrated proteomics analysis suite with accurate statistics.

    PubMed

    Joyce, Brendan; Lee, Danny; Rubio, Alex; Ogurtsov, Aleksey; Alves, Gelio; Yu, Yi-Kuo

    2018-03-15

    RAId is a software package that has been actively developed for the past 10 years for computationally and visually analyzing MS/MS data. Founded on rigorous statistical methods, RAId's core program computes accurate E-values for peptides and proteins identified during database searches. Making this robust tool readily accessible for the proteomics community by developing a graphical user interface (GUI) is our main goal here. We have constructed a graphical user interface to facilitate the use of RAId on users' local machines. Written in Java, RAId_GUI not only makes easy executions of RAId but also provides tools for data/spectra visualization, MS-product analysis, molecular isotopic distribution analysis, and graphing the retrieval versus the proportion of false discoveries. The results viewer displays and allows the users to download the analyses results. Both the knowledge-integrated organismal databases and the code package (containing source code, the graphical user interface, and a user manual) are available for download at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/CBBresearch/Yu/downloads/raid.html .

  11. [Expression of the emotions in the drawing of a man by the child from 5 to 11 years of age].

    PubMed

    Brechet, Claire; Picard, Delphine; Baldy, René

    2007-06-01

    This study examines the development of children's ability to express emotions in their human figure drawing. Sixty children of 5, 8, and 11 years were asked to draw "a man," and then a "sad", "happy," "angry" and "surprised" man. Expressivity of the drawings was assessed by means of two procedures: a limited choice and a free labelling procedure. Emotionally expressive drawings were then evaluated in terms of the number and the type of graphic cues that were used to express emotion. It was found that children are able to depict happiness and sadness at 8, anger and surprise at 11. With age, children use increasingly numerous and complex graphic cues for each emotion (i.e., facial expression, body position, and contextual cues). Graphic cues for facial expression (e.g., concave mouth, curved eyebrows, wide opened eyes) share strong similarities with specific "action units" described by Ekman and Friesen (1978) in their Facial Action Coding System. Children's ability to depict emotion in their human figure drawing is discussed in relation to perceptual, conceptual, and graphic abilities.

  12. Graphic report of the results from propensity score method analyses.

    PubMed

    Shrier, Ian; Pang, Menglan; Platt, Robert W

    2017-08-01

    To increase transparency in studies reporting propensity scores by using graphical methods that clearly illustrate (1) the number of participant exclusions that occur as a consequence of the analytic strategy and (2) whether treatment effects are constant or heterogeneous across propensity scores. We applied graphical methods to a real-world pharmacoepidemiologic study that evaluated the effect of initiating statin medication on the 1-year all-cause mortality post-myocardial infarction. We propose graphical methods to show the consequences of trimming and matching on the exclusion of participants from the analysis. We also propose the use of meta-analytical forest plots to show the magnitude of effect heterogeneity. A density plot with vertical lines demonstrated the proportion of subjects excluded because of trimming. A frequency plot with horizontal lines demonstrated the proportion of subjects excluded because of matching. An augmented forest plot illustrates the amount of effect heterogeneity present in the data. Our proposed techniques present additional and useful information that helps readers understand the sample that is analyzed with propensity score methods and whether effect heterogeneity is present. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. The Geoscape Poster: Maximum Impact in Geoscience Education With Minimal Funding

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aubele, J. C.; Newsom, J.; Crumpler, L. S.

    2004-12-01

    A geologist/educator and a research curator of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science and a geologist/middle school teacher from the Albuquerque Public Schools have created an educational poster that uses the landscape around Albuquerque in order to teach fundamental geoscience concepts. "Albuquerque's Geoscape" is based on the innovative "Geoscape Vancouver" produced by the Geological Survey of Canada. The Albuquerque poster required four years of development including the creation of unique graphics and text, evaluations, and reviews by geologists and classroom educators. The poster content is aligned with state and national science standards at the middle school level and can be modified by teachers from K-12. All information that a teacher might need in order to teach a thematic unit on major geological topics is included in the poster, and linked to the local landscape. An accompanying web site for teachers includes additional materials. The initial funding for the project was an Intel Innovations in Teaching Grant, in the amount of 3K, awarded to Newsom. Museum in-house resources in science, education and graphics were utilized in the poster design and development. Funding for printing required small contributions from many local and regional organizations supporting science education. These contributors included Sandia National Lab, Rocky Mountain Section AAPG Foundation, New Mexico Academy of Science, ExxonMobile Volunteer Involvement Grant, Federal Bureau of Land Management, Albuquerque Rotary Club and Albuquerque Geological Society. Printing at-cost through a local company produced a poster on high quality paper at low cost. An initial printing of 5000 copies has enabled the Museum to offer the poster free of charge to all greater Albuquerque area K-12 teachers. In addition, the poster is on sale to the general public at the museum store. The response by classroom educators, local geologists, and the general public has been enthusiastic. The Rocky Mountain Section AAPG Foundation Board recently voted to use the poster as a model and encourage creation of other similar posters.

  14. A review of automatic patient identification options for public health care centers with restricted budgets.

    PubMed

    García-Betances, Rebeca I; Huerta, Mónica K

    2012-01-01

    A comparative review is presented of available technologies suitable for automatic reading of patient identification bracelet tags. Existing technologies' backgrounds, characteristics, advantages and disadvantages, are described in relation to their possible use by public health care centers with budgetary limitations. A comparative assessment is presented of suitable automatic identification systems based on graphic codes, both one- (1D) and two-dimensional (2D), printed on labels, as well as those based on radio frequency identification (RFID) tags. The analysis looks at the tradeoffs of these technologies to provide guidance to hospital administrator looking to deploy patient identification technology. The results suggest that affordable automatic patient identification systems can be easily and inexpensively implemented using 2D code printed on low cost bracelet labels, which can then be read and automatically decoded by ordinary mobile smart phones. Because of mobile smart phones' present versatility and ubiquity, the implantation and operation of 2D code, and especially Quick Response® (QR) Code, technology emerges as a very attractive alternative to automate the patients' identification processes in low-budget situations.

  15. A Review of Automatic Patient Identification Options for Public Health Care Centers with Restricted Budgets

    PubMed Central

    García-Betances, Rebeca I.; Huerta, Mónica K.

    2012-01-01

    A comparative review is presented of available technologies suitable for automatic reading of patient identification bracelet tags. Existing technologies’ backgrounds, characteristics, advantages and disadvantages, are described in relation to their possible use by public health care centers with budgetary limitations. A comparative assessment is presented of suitable automatic identification systems based on graphic codes, both one- (1D) and two-dimensional (2D), printed on labels, as well as those based on radio frequency identification (RFID) tags. The analysis looks at the tradeoffs of these technologies to provide guidance to hospital administrator looking to deploy patient identification technology. The results suggest that affordable automatic patient identification systems can be easily and inexpensively implemented using 2D code printed on low cost bracelet labels, which can then be read and automatically decoded by ordinary mobile smart phones. Because of mobile smart phones’ present versatility and ubiquity, the implantation and operation of 2D code, and especially Quick Response® (QR) Code, technology emerges as a very attractive alternative to automate the patients’ identification processes in low-budget situations. PMID:23569629

  16. Ideas for Use of an IPad in Introductory Physics Education

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aurora, Tarlok S.

    2014-03-01

    Mobile devices such as an IPad, tablet computers and smartphones offer an opportunity to collect information to facilitate physics teaching and learning. The data collected with built-in sensors, such as a video camera, may be analyzed on the mobile device itself or on a desktop computer. In this work, first, the circular motion of a steel ball rolling in a cereal bowl was analyzed to show that it consisted of two simple harmonic motions, in perpendicular directions. Secondly, motion of two balls-one dropped vertically down, and the other one launched as a projectile - was analyzed. Data was analyzed with Logger Pro software, and value of g was determined graphically. Details of the work, its limitations and additional examples will be described. The material so obtained may be used as a demonstration, in a classroom, to clarify physics concepts. In a school, where students are required to have such portable devices, one may assign such activities as homework, to enhance student engagement in learning physics. The author is thankful to USciences for the IPad; and Rich Cosgriff, Phyllis Blumberg and Elia Eschenazi for useful discussions.

  17. Cryogenic Vibrational Spectroscopy Provides Unique Fingerprints for Glycan Identification.

    PubMed

    Masellis, Chiara; Khanal, Neelam; Kamrath, Michael Z; Clemmer, David E; Rizzo, Thomas R

    2017-10-01

    The structural characterization of glycans by mass spectrometry is particularly challenging. This is because of the high degree of isomerism in which glycans of the same mass can differ in their stereochemistry, attachment points, and degree of branching. Here we show that the addition of cryogenic vibrational spectroscopy to mass and mobility measurements allows one to uniquely identify and characterize these complex biopolymers. We investigate six disaccharide isomers that differ in their stereochemistry, attachment point of the glycosidic bond, and monosaccharide content, and demonstrate that we can identify each one unambiguously. Even disaccharides that differ by a single stereogenic center or in the monosaccharide sequence order show distinct vibrational fingerprints that would clearly allow their identification in a mixture, which is not possible by ion mobility spectrometry/mass spectrometry alone. Moreover, this technique can be applied to larger glycans, which we demonstrate by distinguishing isomeric branched and linear pentasaccharides. The creation of a database containing mass, collision cross section, and vibrational fingerprint measurements for glycan standards should allow unambiguous identification and characterization of these biopolymers in mixtures, providing an enabling technology for all fields of glycoscience. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  18. A novel Laser Ion Mobility Spectrometer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Göbel, J.; Kessler, M.; Langmeier, A.

    2009-05-01

    IMS is a well know technology within the range of security based applications. Its main advantages lie in the simplicity of measurement, along with a fast and sensitive detection method. Contemporary technology often fails due to interference substances, in conjunction with saturation effects and a low dynamic detection range. High throughput facilities, such as airports, require the analysis of many samples at low detection limits within a very short timeframe. High detection reliability is a requirement for safe and secure operation. In our present work we developed a laser based ion-mobility-sensor which shows several advantages over known IMS sensor technology. The goal of our research was to increase the sensitivity compared to the range of 63Ni based instruments. This was achieved with an optimised geometric drift tube design and a pulsed UV laser system at an efficient intensity. In this intensity range multi-photon ionisation is possible, which leads to higher selectivity in the ion-formation process itself. After high speed capturing of detection samples, a custom designed pattern recognition software toolbox provides reliable auto-detection capability with a learning algorithm and a graphical user interface.

  19. Real-Time Radio Wave Propagation for Mobile Ad-Hoc Network Emulation and Simulation Using General Purpose Graphics Processing Units (GPGPUs)

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2014-05-01

    COST-Walfisch- Ikegami model (14) estimates the received power predominantly on the basis of frequency and distance to the transmitter. Ray-optical (15...34 # $ $ # % & ’ ( ) * + , , - . / - 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 7 6 8 9 : ; < = > ? @ A B C ? D E F A B G H ? E E I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X S Y Z O Y [ Q [ \\ W O P...a b _ c _ d _ e f ` d g h ` i j k l l m n o p k q r s t u v w w x y z

  20. Color engineering in the age of digital convergence

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    MacDonald, Lindsay W.

    1998-09-01

    Digital color imaging has developed over the past twenty years from specialized scientific applications into the mainstream of computing. In addition to the phenomenal growth of computer processing power and storage capacity, great advances have been made in the capabilities and cost-effectiveness of color imaging peripherals. The majority of imaging applications, including the graphic arts, video and film have made the transition from analogue to digital production methods. Digital convergence of computing, communications and television now heralds new possibilities for multimedia publishing and mobile lifestyles. Color engineering, the application of color science to the design of imaging products, is an emerging discipline that poses exciting challenges to the international color imaging community for training, research and standards.

  1. Effects of socioeconomic position and social mobility on linear growth from early childhood until adolescence.

    PubMed

    Muraro, Ana Paula; Souza, Rita Adriana Gomes de; Rodrigues, Paulo Rogério Melo; Ferreira, Márcia Gonçalves; Sichieri, Rosely

    2017-01-01

    To assess the effect of socioeconomic position (SEP) in childhood and social mobility on linear growth through adolescence in a population-based cohort. Children born in Cuiabá-MT, central-western Brazil, were evaluated during 1994 - 1999. They were first assessed during 1999 - 2000 (0 - 5 years) and again during 2009 - 2011 (10 - 17 years), and their height-for-age was evaluated during these two periods.Awealth index was used to classify the SEP of each child's family as low, medium, or high. Social mobility was categorized as upward mobility or no upward mobility. Linear mixed models were used. We evaluated 1,716 children (71.4% of baseline) after 10 years, and 60.6% of the families showed upward mobility, with a higher percentage among the lowest economic classes. A higher height-for-age was also observed among those from families with a high SEP both in childhood (low SEP= -0.35 z-score; high SEP= 0.15 z-score, p < 0.01) and adolescence (low SEP= -0.01 z-score; high SEP= 0.45 z-score, p < 0.01), whereas upward mobility did not affect their linear growth. Expressive social mobility was observed, but SEP in childhood and social mobility did not greatly influence linear growth through childhood in this central-western Brazilian cohort.

  2. [Mobility of a polyethylene tibial insert in a mobile total knee prosthesis].

    PubMed

    Castel, E; Roger, B; Camproux, A; Saillant, G

    1999-03-01

    We have studied the mobility of a mobile tibial implant in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) by a radiographical evaluation. We analyzed mobility of the polyethylene tibial insert of 15 "G2S" TKA implanted for one year or more. We established a dynamic radiographical evaluation. We used 3 weight-bearing radiographs: AP in extension and two lateral (one in extension and one at 90 degrees of flexion), two AP with femoral internal and external rotation, 2 strict lateral X-rays in neutral rotation in antero-posterior replacement with a 25 kilograms strength Telos, and 2 AP in varus and valgus with Telos. Wilcoxon's test and Fisher's exact test were used for statistical evaluation. Our study demonstrated preservation of the polyethylene mobility in tibial TKA implant in all movements: in rotation, in antero-posterior translation with Telos, and even in antero-posterior translation during physiological condition with flexion-extension weight-bearing radiographs. Statistical tests were very significant. We noticed that flexion induced anterior translation of tibial polyethylene when PCL was preserved. This study answered to our question whether mobility of TKA tibial implant persists after implantation. This mobility should reduce loosening forces to the tibia and stress in the polyethylene component. Now we have to determine the amplitude of mobility required to reach this objective.

  3. Mechanical evaluation of anastomotic tension and patency in arteries.

    PubMed

    Zhang, F; Lineaweaver, W C; Buntic, R; Walker, R

    1996-02-01

    This study quantified arterial anastomotic tension, evaluated subsequent patency rates, and examined the degree of tension reduction with vessel mobilization. The study was divided into two components. In part I, a mechanical analysis was undertaken to evaluate tension, based on the determination of the force required to deflect a cable (vessel) laterally, and its resulting lateral displacement. Six Sprague-Dawley rats with 12 femoral arteries were divided into two subgroups: 1) no mobilization; and 2) axial mobilization by ligation and transection of superficial epigastric and gracilis muscular branches. The tension of femoral arterial anastomoses was calculated in vessels with no segmental defect and with 1.5-, 3-, 4.5-, 6-, and 7.5-mm defects. In part II, patency was evaluated. Fifty-five rats with 110 femoral arteries were divided into two sub-groups as defined in part I: 1) no mobilization; and 2) axial mobilization by ligation and transection of superficial epigastric and gracilis muscular branches. Microvascular anastomoses were performed with no segmental defect and with 1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, 5-, 6-, 7-, 8-, 9-, and 10-mm segmental vessel defects. Patency was evaluated 24 hr postoperatively. Part I of the study revealed that anastomotic tension gradually increased along with an increase in the length of the vessel defect, from 1.9 to 11.34 g in the no-mobilization group and from 1.97 to 8.44 g in the axial-mobilization group. Comparison of tension linear regression coefficient showed a significant difference between the two groups (p < 0.05). In part II of the study, the maximum length of femoral artery defects still able to maintain 100 percent patency of anastomoses was 4 mm (tension approximately 6 g) in the no-mobilization group and 6 mm in the axial-mobilization group (tension approximately 6.48 g). Microanastomotic tension was related to the size of the vessel defect, with increasing tension leading to thrombosis. Axial mobilization significantly reduced the tension in vessels with segmental defects and decreased thrombosis rates.

  4. VQone MATLAB toolbox: A graphical experiment builder for image and video quality evaluations: VQone MATLAB toolbox.

    PubMed

    Nuutinen, Mikko; Virtanen, Toni; Rummukainen, Olli; Häkkinen, Jukka

    2016-03-01

    This article presents VQone, a graphical experiment builder, written as a MATLAB toolbox, developed for image and video quality ratings. VQone contains the main elements needed for the subjective image and video quality rating process. This includes building and conducting experiments and data analysis. All functions can be controlled through graphical user interfaces. The experiment builder includes many standardized image and video quality rating methods. Moreover, it enables the creation of new methods or modified versions from standard methods. VQone is distributed free of charge under the terms of the GNU general public license and allows code modifications to be made so that the program's functions can be adjusted according to a user's requirements. VQone is available for download from the project page (http://www.helsinki.fi/psychology/groups/visualcognition/).

  5. A Call for Considering Color Vision Deficiency When Creating Graphics for Psychology Reports.

    PubMed

    Frane, Andrew

    2015-01-01

    Although color vision deficiency (CVD) is fairly common, it is often not adequately considered when data is presented in color graphics. This study found that CVD tends to be mentioned neither in the author guidelines of psychology journals nor in the standard publication manuals of the field (e.g., the publication manuals of the American Psychological Association and the American Medical Association). To illustrate the relevance of this problem, a panel of scholars with CVD was used to evaluate the color figures in three respected psychological science journals. Results suggested that a substantial proportion of those figures were needlessly confusing for viewers with CVD and could have been easily improved through simple adjustments. Based on prior literature and on feedback from the panelists, recommendations are made for improving the accessibility of graphics in psychology reports.

  6. Location Management in Distributed Mobile Environments

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1994-09-01

    carried out to evaluate the performanceof di erent static strategies for various communica-tion and mobility patterns. Simulation results indi-cate...results ofsimulations carried out to evaluate the performanceof proposed static location management strategies forvarious call and mobility patterns...Systems, Austin, Sept. 1994. U.S. Government or Federal Rights License 14. ABSTRACT 15. SUBJECT TERMS 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17

  7. Clinical Simulation: A Protocol for Evaluation of Mobile Technology.

    PubMed

    Mather, Carey; Jensen, Sanne; Cummings, Elizabeth

    2017-01-01

    For mobile technology to be accepted at point of care in healthcare environments there is a need to demonstrate benefits whilst ameliorating the risks and challenges. To provide a standardised approach to evaluation of mobile technology a simulation protocol was developed to provide guidance for its use in healthcare environments. Simulated conditions provide the opportunity to assess intended and unintended consequences and identify potential workarounds when using technology. The protocol can also be used to demonstrate the importance of the development of digital professionalism by end-users prior to students entering the clinical practice setting. The mobile technology protocol was adapted from a health information systems protocol developed and used at the ITX Lab, Denmark for use in other simulation laboratories. Use case scenarios were developed to enable evaluation of mobile technology for mobile learning of nurses, nurse supervisors, students and patients. The scenarios can be used in a range of simulated environments including hospital bedside, outpatient clinic or community settings. A case study exemplar of a nurse and patient is included to demonstrate how the mobile technology protocol can be applied.

  8. Direct Behavior Rating: An Evaluation of Time-Series Interpretations as Consequential Validity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Christ, Theodore J.; Nelson, Peter M.; Van Norman, Ethan R.; Chafouleas, Sandra M.; Riley-Tillman, T. Chris

    2014-01-01

    Direct Behavior Rating (DBR) is a repeatable and efficient method of behavior assessment that is used to document teacher perceptions of student behavior in the classroom. Time-series data can be graphically plotted and visually analyzed to evaluate patterns of behavior or intervention effects. This study evaluated the decision accuracy of novice…

  9. Functionalities and input methods for recording food intake: a systematic review.

    PubMed

    Rusin, Miroslav; Arsand, Eirik; Hartvigsen, Gunnar

    2013-08-01

    Increasing healthcare costs related to lifestyle-related chronic diseases require new solutions. Research on self-management tools is expanding and many new tools are emerging. Recording food intake is a key functionality in many of these tools. Nutrition monitoring is a relevant method to gain an overview of factors influencing health. However, keeping a food diary often constitutes a challenge for a patient, and developing a user-friendly and useful electronic food diary is not straightforward. To gain insight into the existing approaches to recording food intake, and to analyze current functionalities and input methods. We searched digital libraries, vendor markets and social networks focusing on nutrition. Selection criteria were publications written in English, and patient-oriented tools that offered recording of food intake or nutrition. The system properties that we searched for were types of data, types of terminal, target population, and types of reports and sharing functionalities. We summarized the properties based on their frequency in the reviewed sample. 31 publications met the selection criteria. The majority of the identified food recording systems (67%) facilitated entry of food type and the consumed quantity of food; 16% of the systems were able to record more than one type of data. The three most frequent target populations were people with obesity, diabetes and overweight. Mobile phones were used as terminals in 35% of the cases, personal computers (PCs) in 29%, and personal digital assistants in 23%. Only 10% supported both PCs and mobile phones. Data sharing was provided by 71% and reports by 51% of the systems. We searched for apps in Google Play and the Apple Store and tested 45 mobile applications that stored food intake data, of which 62% supported recording of types of food, 24% recording of carbohydrate intake and 15% recording of calorie intake. The majority of the mobile applications offered some kind of reports and data sharing, mainly via All of the tested social-network-enabled applications supported access from a personal computer and a mobile phone, search in a food database, reports, graphical presentation, listing of favorite foods, overview of own meals, and entering of consumed food type and quantity. The analyzed apps reflected a variety of approaches to recording food intake and nutrition using different terminals--mostly mobile phones (35%), followed by PCs (29%) and PDAs (23%) for older studies, designed mainly for users with obesity (45%), diabetes mellitus (42%) and overweight (32%), or people who want to stay healthy (10%). The majority of the reviewed applications (67%) offered only input of food type and quantity. All approaches (n=31), except for two, relied on manual input of data, either by typing or by selecting a food type from a database. The exceptions (n=2) used a barcode scanning function. Users of mobile phone applications were not limited to data recording, but could view their data on the screen and send it via email. The tested web applications offered similar functionalities for recording food intake. The systems studied provided some degree of personalization: users can access some systems via PCs or mobile phones and they can choose among various types of data input content for recording food intake. Many functions, such as search in a food database, reports, graphical presentation, listing of favorite foods, and overview of the user's own meals, are optimized to simplify the recording process and save time. Data sharing and reports are common features of the reviewed systems. However, none use the user's recorded food history to make suggestions on new nutritional intake, during the food recording process. This may be an area for future research. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. A cross-sectional investigation of positive and negative smoker stereotypes and evaluations of cigarette warnings.

    PubMed

    Magnan, Renee E; Cameron, Linda D

    2017-05-01

    Although graphic cigarette warnings have important benefits that may aid in motivating smoking quit attempts and discouraging smoking initiation, 1 possible negative consequence might be psychological reactance to graphic warnings. Reactance to warnings might be shaped by stereotypical views of smokers. This research examined the associations of positive and negative smoker stereotypes with perceptions of the educational value of warnings as well as affective and motivational responses to them. Using a cross-sectional design, young adult smokers and nonsmokers (N = 396) completed an online questionnaire assessing positive and negative smoker stereotypes and then evaluated a series of graphic-plus-text and text-only cigarette warnings on perceived new knowledge gained from the warning, understandability of the warning, worry about the consequences of smoking elicited by the warning, and discouragement from smoking elicited by the warning. Negative smoker stereotypes were associated with all warning perceptions-more negative stereotypes were associated with higher levels of perceived new knowledge, perceived understandability, worry, and discouragement from smoking. Positive smoker stereotypes were only associated with more perceived new knowledge. Neither smoking status nor warning type moderated the relationships between smoking stereotypes and warning evaluations. Focusing on enhancing negative smoker portrayals, rather than reducing positive portrayals, may be more effective for antismoking campaigns. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  11. DISTA: a portable software solution for 3D compilation of photogrammetric image blocks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boochs, Frank; Mueller, Hartmut; Neifer, Markus

    2001-04-01

    A photogrammetric evaluation system used for the precise determination of 3D-coordinates from blocks of large metric images will be presented. First, the motivation for the development is shown, which is placed in the field of processing tools for photogrammetric evaluation tasks. As the use and availability of metric images of digital type rapidly increases corresponding equipment for the measuring process is needed. Systems which have been developed up to now are either very special ones, founded on high end graphics workstations with an according pricing or simple ones with restricted measuring functionality. A new conception will be shown, avoiding special high end graphics hardware but providing a complete processing chain for all elementary photogrammetric tasks ranging from preparatory steps over the formation of image blocks up to the automatic and interactive 3D-evaluation within digital stereo models. The presented system is based on PC-hardware equipped with off the shelf graphics boards and uses an object oriented design. The specific needs of a flexible measuring system and the corresponding requirements which have to be met by the system are shown. Important aspects as modularity and hardware independence and their value for the solution are shown. The design of the software will be presented and first results with a prototype realised on a powerful PC-hardware configuration will be featured

  12. THELMA: a mobile app for crowdsourcing environmental data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hintz, Kenneth J.; Hintz, Christopher J.; Almomen, Faris; Adounvo, Christian; D'Amato, Michael

    2014-06-01

    The collection of environmental light pollution data related to sea turtle nesting sites is a laborious and time consuming effort entailing the use of several pieces of measurement equipment, their transportation and calibration, the manual logging of results in the field, and subsequent transfer of the data to a computer for post-collection analysis. Serendipitously, the current generation of mobile smart phones (e.g., iPhone® 5) contains the requisite measurement capability, namely location data in aided GPS coordinates, magnetic compass heading, and elevation at the time an image is taken, image parameter data, and the image itself. The Turtle Habitat Environmental Light Measurement App (THELMA) is a mobile phone app whose graphical user interface (GUI) guides an untrained user through the image acquisition process in order to capture 360° of images with pointing guidance. It subsequently uploads the user-tagged images, all of the associated image parameters, and position, azimuth, elevation metadata to a central internet repository. Provision is also made for the capture of calibration images and the review of images before upload. THELMA allows for inexpensive, highly-efficient, worldwide crowdsourcing of calibratable beachfront lighting/light pollution data collected by untrained volunteers. This data can be later processed, analyzed, and used by scientists conducting sea turtle conservation in order to identify beach locations with hazardous levels of light pollution that may alter sea turtle behavior and necessitate human intervention after hatchling emergence.

  13. Integrated System for Monitoring and Prevention in Obstetrics-Gynaecology.

    PubMed

    Robu, Andreea; Gauca, Bianca; Crisan-Vida, Mihaela; Stoicu-Tivadar, Lăcrămioara

    2016-01-01

    A better monitoring of pregnant women, mainly during the third trimester of pregnancy and an easy communication between physician and patients are very important for the prevention and good health of baby and mother. The paper presents an integrated system as support for the Obstetrics - Gynaecology domain consisting in two modules: a mobile application, ObGynCare, dedicated to the pregnant women and a new component of the Obstetrics-Gynaecology Department Information System dedicated to the physicians for a better monitoring of the pregnant women. The mobile application informs the pregnant women about their status, permits them to introduce glycaemia and weight values and has as option pulse and blood pressure acquisition from a smart sensor and provides results in a graphic format. It also provides support for easy patient-doctor communication related to any health problems. ObGyn Care offers nutrition recommendations and gives the pregnant women the possibility to enter a social space of common interests using social networks (Facebook) to exchange useful and practical information. Data collected from patients and from sensor are stored on the cloud and the physician may access the information and analyse it. The extended module of the Obstetrics-Gynaecology Department Information System already developed supports the physicians to visualize weekly, monthly, or on a trimester, the patient data and to discuss with her through the chat module. The mobile application is in test by pregnant women and medical personnel.

  14. Multiple Gas-Phase Conformations of a Synthetic Linear Poly(acrylamide) Polymer Observed Using Ion Mobility-Mass Spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Haler, Jean R N; Far, Johann; Aqil, Abdelhafid; Claereboudt, Jan; Tomczyk, Nick; Giles, Kevin; Jérôme, Christine; De Pauw, Edwin

    2017-11-01

    Ion mobility-mass spectrometry (IM-MS) has emerged as a powerful separation and identification tool to characterize synthetic polymer mixtures and topologies (linear, cyclic, star-shaped,…). Electrospray coupled to IM-MS already revealed the coexistence of several charge state-dependent conformations for a single charge state of biomolecules with strong intramolecular interactions, even when limited resolving power IM-MS instruments were used. For synthetic polymers, the sample's polydispersity allows the observation of several chain lengths. A unique collision cross-section (CCS) trend is usually observed when increasing the degree of polymerization (DP) at constant charge state, allowing the deciphering of different polymer topologies. In this paper, we report multiple coexisting CCS trends when increasing the DP at constant charge state for linear poly(acrylamide) PAAm in the gas phase. This is similar to observations on peptides and proteins. Biomolecules show in addition population changes when collisionally heating the ions. In the case of synthetic PAAm, fragmentation occurred before reaching the energy for conformation conversion. These observations, which were made on two different IM-MS instruments (SYNAPT G2 HDMS and high resolution multi-pass cyclic T-Wave prototype from Waters), limit the use of ion mobility for synthetic polymer topology interpretations to polymers where unique CCS values are observed for each DP at constant charge state. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  15. Off-line robot programming and graphical verification of path planning

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tonkay, Gregory L.

    1989-01-01

    The objective of this project was to develop or specify an integrated environment for off-line programming, graphical path verification, and debugging for robotic systems. Two alternatives were compared. The first was the integration of the ASEA Off-line Programming package with ROBSIM, a robotic simulation program. The second alternative was the purchase of the commercial product IGRIP. The needs of the RADL (Robotics Applications Development Laboratory) were explored and the alternatives were evaluated based on these needs. As a result, IGRIP was proposed as the best solution to the problem.

  16. Adaptability and stability of soybean cultivars for grain yield and seed quality.

    PubMed

    Silva, K B; Bruzi, A T; Zambiazzi, E V; Soares, I O; Pereira, J L A R; Carvalho, M L M

    2017-05-10

    This study aimed at verifying the adaptability and stability of soybean cultivars, considering the grain yield and quality of seeds, adopting univariate and multivariate approaches. The experiments were conducted in two crops, three environments, in 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 crop seasons, in the county of Inconfidentes, Lavras, and Patos de Minas, in the Minas Gerais State, Brazil. We evaluated 17 commercial soybean cultivars. For adaptability and stability evaluations, the Graphic and GGE biplot methods were employed. Previously, a selection index was estimated based on the sum of the standardized variables (Z index). The data relative to grain yield, mass of one thousand grain, uniformity test (sieve retention), and germination test were standardized (Z ij ) per cultivar. With the sum of Z ij , we obtained the selection index for the four traits evaluated together. In the Graphic method evaluation, cultivars NA 7200 RR and CD 2737 RR presented the highest values for selection index Z. By the GGE biplot method, we verified that cultivar NA 7200 RR presented greater stability in both univariate evaluations, for grain yield, and for selection index Z.

  17. Dynamic mobility applications, program evaluation : national-level impacts and costs estimation : final report.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2016-07-01

    The vision of the Dynamic Mobility Applications (DMA) program is to expedite the development, testing, and deployment of innovative mobility applications that maximize system productivity and enhance mobility of individuals within the surface transpo...

  18. Impact of Graphic and Text Warnings on Cigarette Packs: Findings from Four Countries over Five Years

    PubMed Central

    Borland, Ron; Wilson, Nick; Fong, Geoffrey T.; Hammond, David; Cummings, K. Michael; Yong, Hua-Hie; Hosking, Warwick; Hastings, Gerard; Thrasher, James; McNeill, Ann

    2015-01-01

    Objectives To examine the impact of health warnings on smokers by comparing the short-term impact of new graphic (2006) Australian warnings with: (i) earlier (2003) United Kingdom (UK) larger text-based warnings; (ii) and Canadian graphic warnings (late 2000); and secondarily, to extend our understanding of warning wear-out. Methods The International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Survey (ITC Project) follows prospective cohorts (with replenishment) of adult smokers annually (5 waves: 2002–2006), in Canada, United States, UK, and Australia (around 2000 per country per wave; total n=17,773). Measures were of pack warning salience (reading and noticing); cognitive responses (thoughts of harm and quitting); and two behavioural responses: forgoing cigarettes and avoiding the warnings. Results All four indicators of impact increased markedly among Australian smokers following the introduction of graphic warnings. Controlling for date of introduction, they stimulated more cognitive responses than the UK (text-only) changes, and were avoided more, did not significantly increase forgoing cigarettes, but were read and noticed less. The findings also extend previous work showing partial wear-out of both graphic and text-only warnings, but the Canadian warnings have more sustained effects than UK ones. Conclusions Australia’s new health warnings increased reactions that are prospectively predictive of cessation activity. Warning size increases warning effectiveness and graphic warnings may be superior to text-based warnings. While there is partial wear-out in the initial impact associated with all warnings, stronger warnings tend to sustain their effects for longer. These findings support arguments for governments to exceed minimum FCTC requirements on warnings. PMID:19561362

  19. Placing Antismoking Graphic Warning Posters at Retail Point-of-Sale Locations Increases Some Adolescents' Susceptibility to Future Smoking.

    PubMed

    Shadel, William G; Martino, Steven C; Setodji, Claude; Dunbar, Michael; Kusuke, Daniela; Lanna, Serafina; Meyer, Amanda

    2017-12-13

    This experiment tested whether introducing graphic antitobacco posters at point-of-sale (POS) had any effect on adolescents' susceptibility to future cigarette smoking and whether these effects were moderated by adolescents' baseline risk of cigarette smoking. The study was conducted in the RAND StoreLab, a life-sized replica of a convenience store that was developed to experimentally evaluate how changing aspects of tobacco advertising displays in retail POS environments influence tobacco use risk and behavior during simulated shopping experiences. In this study, 441 adolescents were randomized to one of the four conditions in a 2 (graphic antismoking poster placed near the tobacco power wall: no, yes) × 2 (graphic antismoking poster placed near the cash register: no, yes) experimental design. The outcome of interest was susceptibility to future cigarette smoking. The addition of antismoking posters at POS led to a significant increase in future smoking susceptibility among those adolescents who already were at high risk for smoking in the future (p < .045). The introduction of graphic antismoking posters had no impact on committed never smokers, regardless of poster location; never smokers' susceptibility to future smoking was uniformly low across experimental conditions. Introducing graphic antismoking posters at POS may have the unintended effect of further increasing cigarette smoking susceptibility among adolescents already at risk. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  20. A methodology to emulate and evaluate a productive virtual workstation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Krubsack, David; Haberman, David

    1992-01-01

    The Advanced Display and Computer Augmented Control (ADCACS) Program at ACT is sponsored by NASA Ames to investigate the broad field of technologies which must be combined to design a 'virtual' workstation for the Space Station Freedom. This program is progressing in several areas and resulted in the definition of requirements for a workstation. A unique combination of technologies at the ACT Laboratory have been networked to effectively create an experimental environment. This experimental environment allows the integration of nonconventional input devices with a high power graphics engine within the framework of an expert system shell which coordinates the heterogeneous inputs with the 'virtual' presentation. The flexibility of the workstation is evolved as experiments are designed and conducted to evaluate the condition descriptions and rule sets of the expert system shell and its effectiveness in driving the graphics engine. Workstation productivity has been defined by the achievable performance in the emulator of the calibrated 'sensitivity' of input devices, the graphics presentation, the possible optical enhancements to achieve a wide field of view color image and the flexibility of conditional descriptions in the expert system shell in adapting to prototype problems.

  1. Multiple response optimization for higher dimensions in factors and responses

    DOE PAGES

    Lu, Lu; Chapman, Jessica L.; Anderson-Cook, Christine M.

    2016-07-19

    When optimizing a product or process with multiple responses, a two-stage Pareto front approach is a useful strategy to evaluate and balance trade-offs between different estimated responses to seek optimum input locations for achieving the best outcomes. After objectively eliminating non-contenders in the first stage by looking for a Pareto front of superior solutions, graphical tools can be used to identify a final solution in the second subjective stage to compare options and match with user priorities. Until now, there have been limitations on the number of response variables and input factors that could effectively be visualized with existing graphicalmore » summaries. We present novel graphical tools that can be more easily scaled to higher dimensions, in both the input and response spaces, to facilitate informed decision making when simultaneously optimizing multiple responses. A key aspect of these graphics is that the potential solutions can be flexibly sorted to investigate specific queries, and that multiple aspects of the solutions can be simultaneously considered. As a result, recommendations are made about how to evaluate the impact of the uncertainty associated with the estimated response surfaces on decision making with higher dimensions.« less

  2. Evaluation of electron mobility in InSb quantum wells by means of percentage-impact

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

    Mishima, T. D.; Edirisooriya, M.; Santos, M. B.

    2014-05-15

    In order to quantitatively analyze the contribution of each scattering factor toward the total carrier mobility, we use a new convenient figure-of-merit, named a percentage impact. The mobility limit due to a scattering factor, which is widely used to summarize a scattering analysis, has its own advantage. However, a mobility limit is not quite appropriate for the above purpose. A comprehensive understanding of the difference in contribution among many scattering factors toward the total carrier mobility can be obtained by evaluating percentage impacts of scattering factors, which can be straightforwardly calculated from their mobility limits and the total mobility. Ourmore » percentage impact analysis shows that threading dislocation is one of the dominant scattering factors for the electron transport in InSb quantum wells at room temperature.« less

  3. Investing in communities: evaluating the added value of community mobilization on HIV prevention outcomes among FSWs in India.

    PubMed

    Kuhlmann, Anne Sebert; Galavotti, Christine; Hastings, Philip; Narayanan, Pradeep; Saggurti, Niranjan

    2014-04-01

    Community mobilization often requires greater time and resource investments than typical interventions, yet few evaluations exist to justify these investments. We evaluated the added benefit of community mobilization on HIV prevention outcomes among female sex workers (FSWs) using a composite measure of volunteer participation in program committees by FSWs. After adjusting for treatment propensity, we used multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM) to test our program theory. We hypothesized that stronger community mobilization would be associated with increased levels of consistent condom use and with increased levels of perceived fairness, mediated by psychosocial processes. Community mobilization had an indirect effect on consistent condom use mediated through social cohesion and an indirect effect on perceived fairness mediated by collective efficacy. Our results suggest higher levels of community mobilization help improve condom use and reduce perceived discrimination beyond the effects of the core HIV intervention program. We recommend further testing of this model.

  4. Determination and representation of electric charge distributions associated with adverse weather conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rompala, John T.

    1992-01-01

    Algorithms are presented for determining the size and location of electric charges which model storm systems and lightning strikes. The analysis utilizes readings from a grid of ground level field mills and geometric constraints on parameters to arrive at a representative set of charges. This set is used to generate three dimensional graphical depictions of the set as well as contour maps of the ground level electrical environment over the grid. The composite, analytic and graphic package is demonstrated and evaluated using controlled input data and archived data from a storm system. The results demonstrate the packages utility as: an operational tool in appraising adverse weather conditions; a research tool in studies of topics such as storm structure, storm dynamics, and lightning; and a tool in designing and evaluating grid systems.

  5. Are you Scared Yet?: Evaluating Fear Appeal Messages in Tweets about the Tips Campaign.

    PubMed

    Emery, Sherry L; Szczypka, Glen; Abril, Eulàlia Puig; Kim, Yoonsang; Vera, Lisa

    2014-04-01

    In March 2012, the CDC launched "Tips from Former Smokers," a $54 million national campaign featuring individuals experiencing long-term health consequences of smoking. The campaign approach was based on strong evidence that anti-tobacco ads portraying fear, graphic images, and personal testimonials are associated with attitudinal and behavior change. Yet it was also controversial; critics cited the danger that viewers might reject such intensely graphic messages. Tasked with informing this debate, our study analyzes the corpus of Tips campaign-related tweets obtained via the Twitter Firehose. We provide a novel and rigorous method for media campaign evaluation within the framework of the Extended Parallel Process Model. Among the relevant Tweets, 87% showed evidence of message acceptance, while 7% exhibited message rejection.

  6. Design, Development, and Evaluation of a Mobile Learning Application for Computing Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oyelere, Solomon Sunday; Suhonen, Jarkko; Wajiga, Greg M.; Sutinen, Erkki

    2018-01-01

    The study focused on the application of the design science research approach in the course of developing a mobile learning application, MobileEdu, for computing education in the Nigerian higher education context. MobileEdu facilitates the learning of computer science courses on mobile devices. The application supports ubiquitous, collaborative,…

  7. A Simultaneous Mobile E-Learning Environment and Application

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Karal, Hasan; Bahcekapili, Ekrem; Yildiz, Adil

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of the present study was to design a mobile learning environment that enables the use of a teleconference application used in simultaneous e-learning with mobile devices and to evaluate this mobile learning environment based on students' views. With the mobile learning environment developed in the study, the students are able to follow…

  8. Diabetic Mario: Designing and Evaluating Mobile Games for Diabetes Education.

    PubMed

    Baghaei, Nilufar; Nandigam, David; Casey, John; Direito, Artur; Maddison, Ralph

    2016-08-01

    Traditionally, diabetes education has relied on written materials, with limited resources available for children with diabetes. Mobile games can be effective and motivating tools for the promotion of children's health. In our earlier work, we proposed a novel approach for designing computer games aimed at educating children with diabetes. In this article, we apply our game design to a mobile Android game (Mario Brothers). We also introduce four heuristics that are specifically designed for evaluating the mobile game, by adapting traditional usability heuristics. Results of a pilot study (n = 12) to evaluate gameplay over 1-week showed that the children found the game engaging and improved their knowledge of healthy diet and lifestyle.

  9. Initial Evaluation of a Mobile Scaffolding Application That Seeks to Support Novice Learners of Programming

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mbogo, Chao; Blake, Edwin; Suleman, Hussein

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this paper is to explore the use of an application that scaffolds the constructions of programs on a mobile device. The application was developed to support novice learners of programming outside the classroom. This paper reports on results of a first experiment conducted to evaluate the mobile application. The main research questions…

  10. Suitability assessment of health education brochures in Qassim province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

    PubMed

    Jahan, Saulat; Al-Saigul, Abdullah M; Alharbi, Ali M; Abdelgadir, Muzamil H

    2014-09-01

    Health education is the cornerstone of primary health care. Health education materials distributed to the community should, therefore, be suitable and effective. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the health education brochures, designed and disseminated by Ministry of Health institutions in the Qassim province. The study was a cross-sectional review of health education brochures. We used a structured evaluation form, comprising general information on the brochures and a modified Suitability Assessment of Materials (SAM) score sheet. The SAM consisting of 22 criteria in six groups, includes content, literacy demands, graphics, layout/typography, learning stimulation/motivation, and cultural appropriateness. SAM criteria categorize written material into "superior," "adequate" and "not suitable." Two qualified consultant family physicians evaluated the brochures. Data were analyzed using Epi Info version 3.4 statistical package. We evaluated 110 brochures, the majority of which addressed chronic health conditions such as mental health, diabetes mellitus and hypertension. Seventy-four (67.3%) brochures were evaluated as "adequate," 34 (30.9%) as "not suitable" and 2 (1.8%) as "superior." "Cultural appropriateness" was the highest scoring factor, with 92 (83.6%) brochures falling into either the "superior" or "adequate" category. With regard to "content," 88 (80.0%) brochures fell into either the "superior" or "adequate" category. This was the second highest scoring factor. Graphics was the factor that scored the least. Seventy-five (68.2%) brochures were rated in this factor as "not suitable." Although two-thirds of our brochures were considered "adequate," the majority needed improvement to their graphics and learning stimulation factors. We recommend that guidelines for designing health education brochures should be formulated to improve the quality of health education brochures.

  11. Mobile applications and patient education: Are currently available GERD mobile apps sufficient?

    PubMed

    Bobian, Michael; Kandinov, Aron; El-Kashlan, Nour; Svider, Peter F; Folbe, Adam J; Mayerhoff, Ross; Eloy, Jean Anderson; Raza, S Naweed

    2017-08-01

    Despite the increasing role of mobile applications (apps) in patient education, there has been little inquiry evaluating the quality of these resources. Because poor health literacy has been associated with inferior health outcomes, evaluating the quality of patient education materials takes on great importance. Our objective was to employ validated readability tools for the evaluation of gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) mobile apps. GERD-specific apps found in the Apple App Store (Apple Inc., Cupertino CA) were evaluated using the Readability Studio Professional Version 2015 for Windows (Oleander Software, Ltd, Vandalia, OH). All text was evaluated using nine validated algorithms measuring readability including Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Simple Measure of Gobbledygook grading, Gunning Fog index, Coleman-Liau, New Fog Count formula, Raygor Readability Estimate, FORCAST, Fry graph, and Flesch Reading Ease score. Average reading grade levels for individual GERD apps ranged from 9.6 to 12.9 (interquartile range 10.3-12). The average reading grade level for all apps analyzed was 11.1 ± 0.2 standard error of the mean (SEM), with an average Flesch Reading Ease score for all mobile apps analyzed of 51 ± 2.05 (SEM), falling into the "fairly difficult" category given by this measure. Raygor Readability estimates that most mobile apps have a reading grade level between 10 and 12, with the majority of this outcome due to long words. This analysis demonstrates the feasibility of assessing readability of mobile health apps. Our findings suggest significant gaps in potential comprehension between the apps analyzed and the average reader, diminishing the utility of these resources. We hope our findings influence future mobile health-related app development and thereby improve patient outcomes in GERD and other chronic diseases. NA. Laryngoscope, 127:1775-1779, 2017. © 2016 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.

  12. Reading Outside Micrometers. Courseware Evaluation for Vocational and Technical Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sommer, Sandra; And Others

    This courseware evaluation rates the Reading Outside Micrometers program developed by EMC Publishing Company. (The program--not contained in this document--uses high resolution graphics to illustrate the micrometer's components, functions, and practical applications.) Part A describes the program in terms of subject area and equipment requirements…

  13. Reading Vernier Calipers. Courseware Evaluation for Vocational and Technical Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Goldstine, James; And Others

    This courseware evaluation rates the Reading Vernier Calipers program developed by EMC Publishing Company. (The program--not contained in this document--uses high resolution graphics to illustrate the micrometer and describe its components, functions, and practical applications.) Part A describes the program in terms of subject area (technical…

  14. Exploring Rating Quality in Rater-Mediated Assessments Using Mokken Scale Analysis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wind, Stefanie A.; Engelhard, George, Jr.

    2016-01-01

    Mokken scale analysis is a probabilistic nonparametric approach that offers statistical and graphical tools for evaluating the quality of social science measurement without placing potentially inappropriate restrictions on the structure of a data set. In particular, Mokken scaling provides a useful method for evaluating important measurement…

  15. Evaluating Technology Integration in the Elementary School: A Site-Based Approach.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mowe, Richard

    This book enables educators at the elementary level to conduct formative evaluations of their technology programs in minimum time. Most of the technology is computer related, including word processing, graphics, desktop publishing, spreadsheets, databases, instructional software, programming, and telecommunications. The design of the book is aimed…

  16. Development of an advanced mobile base for personal mobility and manipulation appliance generation II robotic wheelchair.

    PubMed

    Wang, Hongwu; Candiotti, Jorge; Shino, Motoki; Chung, Cheng-Shiu; Grindle, Garrett G; Ding, Dan; Cooper, Rory A

    2013-07-01

    This paper describes the development of a mobile base for the Personal Mobility and Manipulation Appliance Generation II (PerMMA Gen II robotic wheelchair), an obstacle-climbing wheelchair able to move in structured and unstructured environments, and to climb over curbs as high as 8 inches. The mechanical, electrical, and software systems of the mobile base are presented in detail, and similar devices such as the iBOT mobility system, TopChair, and 6X6 Explorer are described. The mobile base of PerMMA Gen II has two operating modes: "advanced driving mode" on flat and uneven terrain, and "automatic climbing mode" during stair climbing. The different operating modes are triggered either by local and dynamic conditions or by external commands from users. A step-climbing sequence, up to 0.2 m, is under development and to be evaluated via simulation. The mathematical model of the mobile base is introduced. A feedback and a feed-forward controller have been developed to maintain the posture of the passenger when driving over uneven surfaces or slopes. The effectiveness of the controller has been evaluated by simulation using the open dynamics engine tool. Future work for PerMMA Gen II mobile base is implementation of the simulation and control on a real system and evaluation of the system via further experimental tests.

  17. Development of an advanced mobile base for personal mobility and manipulation appliance generation II robotic wheelchair

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Hongwu; Candiotti, Jorge; Shino, Motoki; Chung, Cheng-Shiu; Grindle, Garrett G.; Ding, Dan; Cooper, Rory A.

    2013-01-01

    Background This paper describes the development of a mobile base for the Personal Mobility and Manipulation Appliance Generation II (PerMMA Gen II robotic wheelchair), an obstacle-climbing wheelchair able to move in structured and unstructured environments, and to climb over curbs as high as 8 inches. The mechanical, electrical, and software systems of the mobile base are presented in detail, and similar devices such as the iBOT mobility system, TopChair, and 6X6 Explorer are described. Findings The mobile base of PerMMA Gen II has two operating modes: “advanced driving mode” on flat and uneven terrain, and “automatic climbing mode” during stair climbing. The different operating modes are triggered either by local and dynamic conditions or by external commands from users. A step-climbing sequence, up to 0.2 m, is under development and to be evaluated via simulation. The mathematical model of the mobile base is introduced. A feedback and a feed-forward controller have been developed to maintain the posture of the passenger when driving over uneven surfaces or slopes. The effectiveness of the controller has been evaluated by simulation using the open dynamics engine tool. Conclusion Future work for PerMMA Gen II mobile base is implementation of the simulation and control on a real system and evaluation of the system via further experimental tests. PMID:23820149

  18. [PROtocol-based MObilizaTION on intensive care units : Design of a cluster randomized pilot study].

    PubMed

    Nydahl, P; Diers, A; Günther, U; Haastert, B; Hesse, S; Kerschensteiner, C; Klarmann, S; Köpke, S

    2017-10-12

    Despite convincing evidence for early mobilization of patients on intensive care units (ICU), implementation in practice is limited. Protocols for early mobilization, including in- and exclusion criteria, assessments, safety criteria, and step schemes may increase the rate of implementation and mobilization. Patients (population) on ICUs with a protocol for early mobilization (intervention), compared to patients on ICUs without protocol (control), will be more frequently mobilized (outcome). A multicenter, stepped-wedge, cluster-randomized pilot study is presented. Five ICUs will receive an adapted, interprofessional protocol for early mobilization in randomized order. Before and after implementation, mobilization of ICU patients will be evaluated by randomized monthly one-day point prevalence surveys. Primary outcome is the percentage of patients mobilized out of bed, operationalized as a score of ≥3 on the ICU Mobility Scale. Secondary outcome parameters will be presence and/or length of mechanical ventilation, delirium, stay on ICU and in hospital, barriers to early mobilization, adverse events, and process parameters as identified barriers, used strategies, and adaptions to local conditions. Exploratory evaluation of study feasibility and estimation of effect sizes as the basis for a future explanatory study.

  19. Computer-Aided System Engineering and Analysis (CASE/A) Programmer's Manual, Version 5.0

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Knox, J. C.

    1996-01-01

    The Computer Aided System Engineering and Analysis (CASE/A) Version 5.0 Programmer's Manual provides the programmer and user with information regarding the internal structure of the CASE/A 5.0 software system. CASE/A 5.0 is a trade study tool that provides modeling/simulation capabilities for analyzing environmental control and life support systems and active thermal control systems. CASE/A has been successfully used in studies such as the evaluation of carbon dioxide removal in the space station. CASE/A modeling provides a graphical and command-driven interface for the user. This interface allows the user to construct a model by placing equipment components in a graphical layout of the system hardware, then connect the components via flow streams and define their operating parameters. Once the equipment is placed, the simulation time and other control parameters can be set to run the simulation based on the model constructed. After completion of the simulation, graphical plots or text files can be obtained for evaluation of the simulation results over time. Additionally, users have the capability to control the simulation and extract information at various times in the simulation (e.g., control equipment operating parameters over the simulation time or extract plot data) by using "User Operations (OPS) Code." This OPS code is written in FORTRAN with a canned set of utility subroutines for performing common tasks. CASE/A version 5.0 software runs under the VAX VMS(Trademark) environment. It utilizes the Tektronics 4014(Trademark) graphics display system and the VTIOO(Trademark) text manipulation/display system.

  20. Responses of young adults to graphic warning labels for cigarette packages

    PubMed Central

    Cameron, Linda D.; Pepper, Jessica K.; Brewer, Noel T.

    2013-01-01

    Background In 2010, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed a series of 36 graphic warning labels for cigarette packages. We sought to evaluate the effects of the labels on fear-related emotions about health consequences of smoking and smoking motivations of young adults. Methods We conducted an experimental study in 2010–2011 with 325 smokers and non-smokers ages 18–30 years whom we recruited through community distribution lists in North Carolina and through a national survey company. Each participant viewed 27 labels (18 of the proposed labels with graphic images and text warnings and 9 with text-only warnings) in a random order, evaluating each label on understandability and its effects on fear-related reactions and discouragement from wanting to smoke. Results Respondents found most of the proposed labels easy to understand. Of the 36 labels, 64% induced greater fear-related reactions and 58% discouraged respondents from wanting to smoke more than the corresponding text-only labels did. Labels with the greatest effects had photographs (as compared with drawings or other art graphics) or depicted diseased body parts or suffering or dead people. In almost every comparison, smokers reported lower fear-related reactions and feeling less discouraged from wanting to smoke relative to non-smokers. Conclusions Most of the proposed labels enhanced fear-related reactions about health consequences of smoking and reduced motivations to smoke relative to text-only labels, although some had larger effects than others. All but one of the nine warning labels recently adopted by the FDA enhanced fear-related reactions and reduced smoking motivations. PMID:23624558

  1. Is there a subset of patients with recurrent cancer in the vagina who are not candidates for interstitial brachytherapy that can be treated with multichannel vaginal brachytherapy using graphic optimization?

    PubMed

    Singh, Deepinder P; Bylund, Kevin C; Matloubieh, Ahmad; Mazloom, Ali; Gray, Alexander; Sidhu, Ravinder; Barrette, Lucille; Chen, Yuhchyau

    2015-04-01

    To evaluate recurrent vaginal cancer treated with vaginal brachytherapy (VBT) using graphic optimization in patients not amenable to surgery and interstitial brachytherapy (ISBT). We retrospectively reviewed the records of 5 patients with recurrent cancer in the vagina that were deemed not to be good candidates for ISBT implant because of medical reasons. All patients received computed tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (CT/MRI) based evaluation in addition to a detailed clinical examination, and were noted to have recurrent nodules in the vagina with size ranging from 10-25 mm. Four of the 5 patients had recurrent disease in the vaginal apex, whereas one patient had recurrence in the lateral vaginal wall. Subsequently, all patients were treated with external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) followed by multichannel vaginal cylinder (MVC)-based VBT using graphic optimization for shaping the isodose to improve the clinical target volume (CTV) coverage, as well as to spare the organs at risk (OAR). The dose to the bladder and rectum with regard to 0.1 cc, 1 cc, and 2 cc were recorded. Median age of the patients was 78 years (range 58-86 years). Thickness of the lesions before VBT ranged from 6-15 mm. All patients were followed up with MRI at 3 months. All patients but one demonstrated complete clinical/ radiological response of the tumor. No patient had any grade III/IV toxicity at 24 months. MVC-based VBT using graphic optimization is safe and yields favorable results if used judiciously.

  2. Longitudinal patient-reported mobility assessment in fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP).

    PubMed

    Kaplan, Frederick S; Al Mukaddam, Mona; Pignolo, Robert J

    2018-04-01

    Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP) is a rare, disabling genetic disorder characterized by episodic soft tissue swelling (flare-ups) that leads to progressive heterotopic ossification and restricted joint mobility. Here we present the first longitudinal patient-reported mobility assessment (PRMA) in FOP based on a simple evaluation tool. At initial presentation and follow-up (1-11year span; median: 6 year span), 64 patients (36 females; 28 males) with classic FOP completed a questionnaire designed to rapidly assess mobility at 15 sites (three axial; six upper limb, and six lower limb). In order to validate this instrument, twenty-one of 64 patients (33%) underwent a cumulative analogue joint involvement scale (CAJIS) evaluation by two physicians within six months of their second self-assessment. We found that: 1) mobility changes were episodic and regional, occurring first in the neck and trunk, followed by the upper limbs and finally the lower limbs; 2) interval improvements in mobility did occur, most notably in the lower limbs (18%), and less so in the upper limbs (12%) and trunk (3%), and 3) patient-reported mobility assessments correlate highly (R 2 =0.81) with physician-reported CAJIS evaluations. This is the first longitudinal PRMA in FOP and provides a simple and valid tool that can be used in the design and evaluation of clinical trials in this progressively disabling disease. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. MOBILE-izing Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Care: A Pilot Study Using A Mobile Health Unit in Chicago

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stefansson, Lilja S.; Webb, M. Elizabeth; Hebert, Luciana E.; Masinter, Lisa; Gilliam, Melissa L.

    2018-01-01

    Background: Adolescents experience numerous barriers to obtaining sexual and reproductive health care (SRHC). Mobile Health Units (MHUs) can remove some barriers by traveling to the community. This pilot study developed Mobile SRHC through an iterative process on an existing MHU and evaluated it among adolescents and providers. Methods: Mobile…

  4. Vibration Signaling in Mobile Devices for Emergency Alerting: A Study with Deaf Evaluators

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harkins, Judith; Tucker, Paula E.; Williams, Norman; Sauro, Jeff

    2010-01-01

    In the United States, a nationwide Commercial Mobile Alert Service (CMAS) is being planned to alert cellular mobile device subscribers to emergencies occurring near the location of the mobile device. The plan specifies a unique audio attention signal as well as a unique vibration attention signal (for mobile devices set to vibrate) to identify…

  5. A flexible flight display research system using a ground-based interactive graphics terminal

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hatfield, J. J.; Elkins, H. C.; Batson, V. M.; Poole, W. L.

    1975-01-01

    Requirements and research areas for the air transportation system of the 1980 to 1990's were reviewed briefly to establish the need for a flexible flight display generation research tool. Specific display capabilities required by aeronautical researchers are listed and a conceptual system for providing these capabilities is described. The conceptual system uses a ground-based interactive graphics terminal driven by real-time radar and telemetry data to generate dynamic, experimental flight displays. These displays are scan converted to television format, processed, and transmitted to the cockpits of evaluation aircraft. The attendant advantages of a Flight Display Research System (FDRS) designed to employ this concept are presented. The detailed implementation of an FDRS is described. The basic characteristics of the interactive graphics terminal and supporting display electronic subsystems are presented and the resulting system capability is summarized. Finally, the system status and utilization are reviewed.

  6. On an additive partial correlation operator and nonparametric estimation of graphical models.

    PubMed

    Lee, Kuang-Yao; Li, Bing; Zhao, Hongyu

    2016-09-01

    We introduce an additive partial correlation operator as an extension of partial correlation to the nonlinear setting, and use it to develop a new estimator for nonparametric graphical models. Our graphical models are based on additive conditional independence, a statistical relation that captures the spirit of conditional independence without having to resort to high-dimensional kernels for its estimation. The additive partial correlation operator completely characterizes additive conditional independence, and has the additional advantage of putting marginal variation on appropriate scales when evaluating interdependence, which leads to more accurate statistical inference. We establish the consistency of the proposed estimator. Through simulation experiments and analysis of the DREAM4 Challenge dataset, we demonstrate that our method performs better than existing methods in cases where the Gaussian or copula Gaussian assumption does not hold, and that a more appropriate scaling for our method further enhances its performance.

  7. On an additive partial correlation operator and nonparametric estimation of graphical models

    PubMed Central

    Li, Bing; Zhao, Hongyu

    2016-01-01

    Abstract We introduce an additive partial correlation operator as an extension of partial correlation to the nonlinear setting, and use it to develop a new estimator for nonparametric graphical models. Our graphical models are based on additive conditional independence, a statistical relation that captures the spirit of conditional independence without having to resort to high-dimensional kernels for its estimation. The additive partial correlation operator completely characterizes additive conditional independence, and has the additional advantage of putting marginal variation on appropriate scales when evaluating interdependence, which leads to more accurate statistical inference. We establish the consistency of the proposed estimator. Through simulation experiments and analysis of the DREAM4 Challenge dataset, we demonstrate that our method performs better than existing methods in cases where the Gaussian or copula Gaussian assumption does not hold, and that a more appropriate scaling for our method further enhances its performance. PMID:29422689

  8. Evaluation of 3-D graphics software: A case study

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lores, M. E.; Chasen, S. H.; Garner, J. M.

    1984-01-01

    An efficient 3-D geometry graphics software package which is suitable for advanced design studies was developed. The advanced design system is called GRADE--Graphics for Advanced Design. Efficiency and ease of use are gained by sacrificing flexibility in surface representation. The immediate options were either to continue development of GRADE or to acquire a commercially available system which would replace or complement GRADE. Test cases which would reveal the ability of each system to satisfy the requirements were developed. A scoring method which adequately captured the relative capabilities of the three systems was presented. While more complex multi-attribute decision methods could be used, the selected method provides all the needed information without being so complex that it is difficult to understand. If the value factors are modestly perturbed, system Z is a clear winner based on its overall capabilities. System Z is superior in two vital areas: surfacing and ease of interface with application programs.

  9. Graphic Strategies for Analyzing and Interpreting Curricular Mapping Data

    PubMed Central

    Leonard, Sean T.

    2010-01-01

    Objective To describe curricular mapping strategies used in analyzing and interpreting curricular mapping data and present findings on how these strategies were used to facilitate curricular development. Design Nova Southeastern University's doctor of pharmacy curriculum was mapped to the college's educational outcomes. The mapping process included development of educational outcomes followed by analysis of course material and semi-structured interviews with course faculty members. Data collected per course outcome included learning opportunities and assessment measures used. Assessment Nearly 1,000 variables and 10,000 discrete rows of curricular data were collected. Graphic representations of curricular data were created using bar charts and stacked area graphs relating the learning opportunities to the educational outcomes. Graphs were used in the curricular evaluation and development processes to facilitate the identification of curricular holes, sequencing misalignments, learning opportunities, and assessment measures. Conclusion Mapping strategies that use graphic representations of curricular data serve as effective diagnostic and curricular development tools. PMID:20798804

  10. Detection of text strings from mixed text/graphics images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tsai, Chien-Hua; Papachristou, Christos A.

    2000-12-01

    A robust system for text strings separation from mixed text/graphics images is presented. Based on a union-find (region growing) strategy the algorithm is thus able to classify the text from graphics and adapts to changes in document type, language category (e.g., English, Chinese and Japanese), text font style and size, and text string orientation within digital images. In addition, it allows for a document skew that usually occurs in documents, without skew correction prior to discrimination while these proposed methods such a projection profile or run length coding are not always suitable for the condition. The method has been tested with a variety of printed documents from different origins with one common set of parameters, and the experimental results of the performance of the algorithm in terms of computational efficiency are demonstrated by using several tested images from the evaluation.

  11. Graphic strategies for analyzing and interpreting curricular mapping data.

    PubMed

    Armayor, Graciela M; Leonard, Sean T

    2010-06-15

    To describe curricular mapping strategies used in analyzing and interpreting curricular mapping data and present findings on how these strategies were used to facilitate curricular development. Nova Southeastern University's doctor of pharmacy curriculum was mapped to the college's educational outcomes. The mapping process included development of educational outcomes followed by analysis of course material and semi-structured interviews with course faculty members. Data collected per course outcome included learning opportunities and assessment measures used. Nearly 1,000 variables and 10,000 discrete rows of curricular data were collected. Graphic representations of curricular data were created using bar charts and stacked area graphs relating the learning opportunities to the educational outcomes. Graphs were used in the curricular evaluation and development processes to facilitate the identification of curricular holes, sequencing misalignments, learning opportunities, and assessment measures. Mapping strategies that use graphic representations of curricular data serve as effective diagnostic and curricular development tools.

  12. A human performance evaluation of graphic symbol-design features.

    PubMed

    Samet, M G; Geiselman, R E; Landee, B M

    1982-06-01

    16 subjects learned each of two tactical display symbol sets (conventional symbols and iconic symbols) in turn and were then shown a series of graphic displays containing various symbol configurations. For each display, the subject was asked questions corresponding to different behavioral processes relating to symbol use (identification, search, comparison, pattern recognition). The results indicated that: (a) conventional symbols yielded faster pattern-recognition performance than iconic symbols, and iconic symbols did not yield faster identification than conventional symbols, and (b) the portrayal of additional feature information (through the use of perimeter density or vector projection coding) slowed processing of the core symbol information in four tasks, but certain symbol-design features created less perceptual interference and had greater correspondence with the portrayal of specific tactical concepts than others. The results were discussed in terms of the complexities involved in the selection of symbol design features for use in graphic tactical displays.

  13. Popular Mobile Phone Apps for Diet and Weight Loss: A Content Analysis.

    PubMed

    Zaidan, Sarah; Roehrer, Erin

    2016-07-11

    A review of the literature has revealed that the rates of overweight and obesity have been increasing in Australia over the last two decades and that wellness mobile phone apps play a significant role in monitoring and managing individuals' weight. Although mobile phone app markets (iTunes and Google Play) list thousands of mobile phone health apps, it is not always clear whether those apps are supported by credible sources. Likewise, despite the prevailing use of mobile phone apps to aid with weight management, the usability features of these apps are not well characterized. The research explored how usability taxonomy could inform the popularity of downloaded, socially focused wellness mobile phone apps, in particular weight loss and diet apps. The aim of the study was to investigate the Australian mobile phone app stores (iTunes and Google Play) in order to examine the usability features of the most popular (ie, most downloaded) wellness apps. The design of this study comprises 3 main stages: stage 1, identifying apps; stage 2, development of weight loss and diet evaluation framework; and stage 3, application of the evaluation framework. Each stage includes specific data collection, analysis tools, and techniques. The study has resulted in the development of a justified evaluation framework for weight loss and diet mobile phone apps. Applying the evaluation framework to the identified apps has shown that the most downloaded iTunes and Google Play apps are not necessarily the most usable or effective. In addition, the research found that search algorithms for iTunes and Google Play are biased toward apps' titles and keywords that do not accurately define the real functionality of the app. Moreover, the study has also analyzed the apps' user reviews, which served as justification for the developed evaluation framework. The analysis has shown that ease of use, reminder, bar code scanning, motivation, usable for all, and synchronization are significant attributes that should be included in weight loss and diet mobile phone apps and ultimately in potential weight loss and diet evaluation frameworks.

  14. Popular Mobile Phone Apps for Diet and Weight Loss: A Content Analysis

    PubMed Central

    Roehrer, Erin

    2016-01-01

    Background A review of the literature has revealed that the rates of overweight and obesity have been increasing in Australia over the last two decades and that wellness mobile phone apps play a significant role in monitoring and managing individuals’ weight. Although mobile phone app markets (iTunes and Google Play) list thousands of mobile phone health apps, it is not always clear whether those apps are supported by credible sources. Likewise, despite the prevailing use of mobile phone apps to aid with weight management, the usability features of these apps are not well characterized. Objective The research explored how usability taxonomy could inform the popularity of downloaded, socially focused wellness mobile phone apps, in particular weight loss and diet apps. The aim of the study was to investigate the Australian mobile phone app stores (iTunes and Google Play) in order to examine the usability features of the most popular (ie, most downloaded) wellness apps. Methods The design of this study comprises 3 main stages: stage 1, identifying apps; stage 2, development of weight loss and diet evaluation framework; and stage 3, application of the evaluation framework. Each stage includes specific data collection, analysis tools, and techniques. Results The study has resulted in the development of a justified evaluation framework for weight loss and diet mobile phone apps. Applying the evaluation framework to the identified apps has shown that the most downloaded iTunes and Google Play apps are not necessarily the most usable or effective. In addition, the research found that search algorithms for iTunes and Google Play are biased toward apps’ titles and keywords that do not accurately define the real functionality of the app. Moreover, the study has also analyzed the apps’ user reviews, which served as justification for the developed evaluation framework. Conclusions The analysis has shown that ease of use, reminder, bar code scanning, motivation, usable for all, and synchronization are significant attributes that should be included in weight loss and diet mobile phone apps and ultimately in potential weight loss and diet evaluation frameworks. PMID:27400806

  15. [Algorithms for early mobilization in intensive care units].

    PubMed

    Nydahl, P; Dubb, R; Filipovic, S; Hermes, C; Jüttner, F; Kaltwasser, A; Klarmann, S; Mende, H; Nessizius, S; Rottensteiner, C

    2017-03-01

    Immobility of patients in intensive care units (ICU) can lead to long-lasting physical and cognitive decline. During the last few years, bundles for rehabilitation were developed, including early mobilization. The German guideline for positioning therapy and mobilization, in general, recommends the development of ICU-specific protocols. The aim of this narrative review is to provide guidance when developing a best practice protocol in one's own field of work. It is recommended to a) implement early mobilization as part of a bundle, including screening and management of patient's awareness, pain, anxiety, stress, delirium and family's presence, b) develop a traffic-light system of specific in- and exclusion criteria in an interprofessional process, c) use checklists to assess risks and preparation of mobilization, d) use the ICU Mobility Scale for targeting and documentation of mobilization, e) use relative safety criteria for hemodynamic and respiratory changes, and Borg Scale for subjective evaluation, f) document and evaluate systematically mobilization levels, barriers, unwanted safety events and other parameters.

  16. Agent Based Fault Tolerance for the Mobile Environment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Park, Taesoon

    This paper presents a fault-tolerance scheme based on mobile agents for the reliable mobile computing systems. Mobility of the agent is suitable to trace the mobile hosts and the intelligence of the agent makes it efficient to support the fault tolerance services. This paper presents two approaches to implement the mobile agent based fault tolerant service and their performances are evaluated and compared with other fault-tolerant schemes.

  17. How Many Words Does a Picture Really Tell? Cross-sectional Descriptive Study of Pictogram Evaluation by Youth.

    PubMed

    Korenevsky, Artyom; Vaillancourt, Régis; Pouliot, Annie; Revol, Marine; Steed, Evan; Besançon, Luc; Wahrendorf, Marit-Saskia; Patel, Jaimisha R

    2013-07-01

    Communicating health-related instructions with pictograms is useful, but such graphics can be interpreted in different ways. It is crucial to understand which pictogram components are best for accurate communication. To catalogue pictograms used to label drugs in clinical practice; to identify the common graphic elements for defined categories of pictograms, by performing a semiotic analysis (studying how signs are perceived and how they should be designed); to identify the key graphic elements common to pictograms preferred by users; and to develop suggestions for future pictogram design on the basis of users' input. Literature and Internet searches were performed to identify pictograms and pictogram categories. A call for pictograms was also circulated through the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP). Youth at a Canadian pediatric hospital were asked to rate pictograms (including storyboards and prescription labels generated by FIP pictogram software) in terms of how best they represented their intended meanings. Pictograms for which at least 80% of participants "somewhat agreed", "agreed", or "strongly agreed" that the graphic conveyed the intended meaning were designated as "preferred" and were selected for analysis. Elements appearing in at least 50% of these preferred pictograms were highlighted as key graphic elements for design of future pictograms. In total, 21 categories were identified for pictograms used in clinical practice, and a total of 204 pictograms were analyzed. Eighty-six participants took part in the survey. For each pictogram category, certain elements were identified as "preferred" and as "key graphic elements", whereas other elements met neither designation. For all 21 pictogram categories, at least 80% of survey respondents agreed that the FIP storyboard conveyed the intended meaning. Certain key, preferred graphic elements are required for pharmaceutical pictograms to convey their intended meaning. The overlap between preferred and key pictogram elements indicates that both must be considered in development of future pictograms. Redesign of existing pictograms with consideration of the best semiotic elements is in progress.

  18. Analysis of legal and scientific issues in court challenges to graphic tobacco warnings.

    PubMed

    Kraemer, John D; Baig, Sabeeh A

    2013-09-01

    Smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., yet cigarette health warnings in the U.S. are among the weakest in the world. In 2011, the FDA issued regulations mandating that graphic warnings be displayed on every cigarette pack sold in the U.S. Almost immediately, the tobacco industry challenged the warnings on First Amendment grounds. In March 2013, the FDA withdrew the graphic warning mandate, choosing instead to pursue additional research and then issue requirements for a new set of warnings. These warnings almost certainly will be challenged by the tobacco industry. The current paper describes the legal standards that will be used to assess the warnings, and the empirical questions that must be answered in order to determine whether each standard has been met. The paper also identifies errors the FDA could make in choosing images to be evaluated that would cause the images to be unable to meet the standards, regardless of the scientific evidence the FDA can establish. To be on safest ground, the FDA should adopt images that depict factual health consequences of smoking and should avoid images that could be interpreted as opinions. The FDA will have a high likelihood of prevailing in legal challenges to the warnings if there is evidence demonstrating that graphic warnings are necessary to counter past industry deception or that graphic warnings affect smoking behavior better than textual warnings. Even without evidence of the impact of graphic warnings on behavior, strong evidence that they affect behavioral intent, and that intent predicts behavior, should be sufficient for the warnings to be upheld. Alternatively, evidence that graphic warnings lead to more accurate consumer assessment of smoking risks should also be sufficient. Copyright © 2013 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. NASA NDE Applications for Mobile MEMS Devices and Sensors

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wilson, William C.; Atkinson, Gary M.; Barclay, R. O.

    2008-01-01

    NASA would like new devices and sensors for performing nondestructive evaluation (NDE) of aerospace vehicles. These devices must be small in size/volume, mass, and power consumption. The devices must be autonomous and mobile so they can access the internal structures of aircraft and spacecraft and adequately monitor the structural health of these craft. The platforms must be mobile in order to transport NDE sensors for evaluating structural integrity and determining whether further investigations will be required. Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology is crucial to the development of the mobile platforms and sensor systems. This paper presents NASA s needs for micro mobile platforms and MEMS sensors that will enable NDE to be performed on aerospace vehicles.

  20. Pervasive mobile healthcare systems for chronic disease monitoring.

    PubMed

    Huzooree, Geshwaree; Kumar Khedo, Kavi; Joonas, Noorjehan

    2017-05-01

    Pervasive mobile healthcare system has the potential to improve healthcare and the quality of life of chronic disease patients through continuous monitoring. Recently, many articles related to pervasive mobile healthcare system focusing on health monitoring using wireless technologies have been published. The main aim of this review is to evaluate the state-of-the-art pervasive mobile healthcare systems to identify major technical requirements and design challenges associated with the realization of a pervasive mobile healthcare system. A systematic literature review was conducted over IEEE Xplore Digital Library to evaluate 20 pervasive mobile healthcare systems out of 683 articles from 2011 to 2016. The classification of the pervasive mobile healthcare systems and other important factors are discussed. Potential opportunities and challenges are pointed out for the further deployment of effective pervasive mobile healthcare systems. This article helps researchers in health informatics to have a holistic view toward understanding pervasive mobile healthcare systems and points out new technological trends and design challenges that researchers have to consider when designing such systems for better adoption, usability, and seamless integration.

  1. A multimodal interface to resolve the Midas-Touch problem in gaze controlled wheelchair.

    PubMed

    Meena, Yogesh Kumar; Cecotti, Hubert; Wong-Lin, KongFatt; Prasad, Girijesh

    2017-07-01

    Human-computer interaction (HCI) research has been playing an essential role in the field of rehabilitation. The usability of the gaze controlled powered wheelchair is limited due to Midas-Touch problem. In this work, we propose a multimodal graphical user interface (GUI) to control a powered wheelchair that aims to help upper-limb mobility impaired people in daily living activities. The GUI was designed to include a portable and low-cost eye-tracker and a soft-switch wherein the wheelchair can be controlled in three different ways: 1) with a touchpad 2) with an eye-tracker only, and 3) eye-tracker with soft-switch. The interface includes nine different commands (eight directions and stop) and integrated within a powered wheelchair system. We evaluated the performance of the multimodal interface in terms of lap-completion time, the number of commands, and the information transfer rate (ITR) with eight healthy participants. The analysis of the results showed that the eye-tracker with soft-switch provides superior performance with an ITR of 37.77 bits/min among the three different conditions (p<;0.05). Thus, the proposed system provides an effective and economical solution to the Midas-Touch problem and extended usability for the large population of disabled users.

  2. Investigation of the piezoelectric thimble tactile device operating modes.

    PubMed

    Bansevicius, Ramutis; Dragasius, Egidijus; Grigas, Vytautas; Jurenas, Vytautas; Mazeika, Darius; Zvironas, Arunas

    2014-01-01

    A multifunctional device to transfer graphical or text information for blind or visually impaired is presented. The prototype using tactile perception has been designed where information displayed on the screen of electronic device (mobile phone, PC) is transferred by oscillating needle, touching the fingertip. Having the aim to define optimal parameters of the fingertip excitation by needle, the computational analysis of different excitation modes has been carried out. A 3D solid computational finite element model of the skin segment, comprising four main fingertip skin layers (stratum corneum, epidermis, dermis and hypodermis) was built by using ANSYS Workbench FEA software. Harmonic analysis of its stress-strain state under excitation with different frequency (up to 10000 Hz) and harmonic force (0.01 N), acting outer stratum corneum layer in normal direction at one, two or three points has been performed. The influence of the mode of dynamic loading of skin was evaluated (in terms of the tactile signal level) on the basis of the normal and shear elastic strain in dermis, where mechanoreceptors are placed. It is shown that the tactile perception of information, delivered by three vibrating pins, may be influenced by configuration of excitation points (their number and phase of loading) and the frequency of excitation.

  3. The MEDIGATE graphical user interface for entry of physical findings: design principles and implementation. Medical Examination Direct Iconic and Graphic Augmented Text Entry System.

    PubMed

    Yoder, J W; Schultz, D F; Williams, B T

    1998-10-01

    The solution to many of the problems of the computer-based recording of the medical record has been elusive, largely due to difficulties in the capture of those data elements that comprise the records of the Present Illness and of the Physical Findings. Reliable input of data has proven to be more complex than originally envisioned by early work in the field. This has led to more research and development into better data collection protocols and easy to use human-computer interfaces as support tools. The Medical Examination Direct Iconic and Graphic Augmented Text Entry System (MEDIGATE System) is a computer enhanced interactive graphic and textual record of the findings from physical examinations designed to provide ease of user input and to support organization and processing of the data characterizing these findings. The primary design objective of the MEDIGATE System is to develop and evaluate different interface designs for recording observations from the physical examination in an attempt to overcome some of the deficiencies in this major component of the individual record of health and illness.

  4. Assessing the feasibility of mobile phones for follow-up of acutely unwell children presenting to village clinics in rural northern Malawi.

    PubMed

    Hardy, Victoria; Hsieh, Jenny; Chirambo, Baxter; Wu, Tsung-Shu Joseph; O'Donoghue, John; Muula, Adamson S; Thompson, Matthew

    2017-03-01

    Patient follow-up is a routine component of clinical practice and valuable for evaluating the effectiveness of interventions, but because of the broad dispersion of health facilities and lack of standardised medical reporting in Malawi, collecting patient outcome data can be challenging. Increasing accessibility and affordability of mobile technology in resource-poor settings may facilitate patient follow-up in the community. The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential utility of mobile phones for collecting follow-up clinical data from parents or caregivers of acutely unwell under-5 children, for intervention evaluation purposes. Parents' or caregivers' mobile phone numbers were obtained by health surveillance assistants (HSAs) during study enrollment. Guardians who provided a telephone number were contacted by the study team to establish re-consultations or hospitalisations of their child(ren) within 14 days of recruitment. Health records at village clinics and higher-level health facilities were hand-searched to identify or confirm presentations and abstract clinical data. 87 out of 149 (58.4%) guardians provided a mobile telephone number, of whom the study team could contact 44 (29.5%). Seven guardians stated they took their child for further treatment: three of these returned to village clinics and four presented to secondary care facilities; attendance could only be confirmed from health records for one child. With continued expansion of cellular network coverage and mobile ownership in Malawi, mobile phones may facilitate collection of patient outcomes for intervention evaluation purposes. Future consideration should also be given to integrating mobile technologies into HSA clinical practice.

  5. Computer graphics and the graphic artist

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Taylor, N. L.; Fedors, E. G.; Pinelli, T. E.

    1985-01-01

    A centralized computer graphics system is being developed at the NASA Langley Research Center. This system was required to satisfy multiuser needs, ranging from presentation quality graphics prepared by a graphic artist to 16-mm movie simulations generated by engineers and scientists. While the major thrust of the central graphics system was directed toward engineering and scientific applications, hardware and software capabilities to support the graphic artists were integrated into the design. This paper briefly discusses the importance of computer graphics in research; the central graphics system in terms of systems, software, and hardware requirements; the application of computer graphics to graphic arts, discussed in terms of the requirements for a graphic arts workstation; and the problems encountered in applying computer graphics to the graphic arts. The paper concludes by presenting the status of the central graphics system.

  6. Ion mobility and conductivity in the M{sub 0.5–x}Pb{sub x}Bi{sub 0.5}F{sub 2+x} (M=K, Rb) solid solutions with fluorite structure

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

    Kavun, V. Ya., E-mail: kavun@ich.dvo.ru; Uvarov, N.F.; Slobodyuk, A.B.

    Ionic mobility and conductivity in the K{sub 0.5–x}Pb{sub x}Bi{sub 0.5}F{sub 2+x} and Rb{sub 0.5–x}Pb{sub x}Bi{sub 0.5}F{sub 2+x} (x=0.05, 0.09) solid solutions with the fluorite structure have been investigated using the methods of {sup 19}F NMR, X-ray diffraction and impedance spectroscopy. Types of ionic motions in the fluoride sublattice of solid solutions have been established and temperature ranges of their realization have been determined (150–450 K). Diffusion of fluoride ions is a dominating type of ionic motions in the fluoride sublattice of solid solutions under study above 350 K. Due to high ionic conductivity, above 10{sup –3} S/cm at 450 K,more » these solid solutions can be used as solid electrolytes in various electrochemical devices and systems. - Graphical abstract: Temperature dependence of the concentration of mobile (2, 4) and immobile (1, 3) F ions in the K{sub 0.5–x}Pb{sub x}Bi{sub 0.5}F{sub 2+x} solid solutions. - Highlights: • Studied the ion mobility, conductivity in M{sub 0.5–x}Pb{sub x}Bi{sub 0.5}F{sub 2+x} solid solutions (M=K, Rb). • An analysis of {sup 19}F NMR spectra made it possible to identify types of ion mobility. • The main type of ion motion above 300 K in solid solutions is a diffusion of ions F{sup –}. • The ionic conductivity of the solid solutions studied more than 10{sup –3} S/cm at 450 K.« less

  7. Augmented reality application utility for aviation maintenance work instruction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pourcho, John Bryan

    Current aviation maintenance work instructions do not display information effectively enough to prevent costly errors and safety concerns. Aircraft are complex assemblies of highly interrelated components that confound troubleshooting and can make the maintenance procedure difficult (Drury & Gramopadhye, 2001). The sophisticated nature of aircraft maintenance necessitates a revolutionized training intervention for aviation maintenance technicians (United States General Accounting Office, 2003). Quite simply, the paper based job task cards fall short of offering rapid access to technical data and the system or component visualization necessary for working on complex integrated aircraft systems. Possible solutions to this problem include upgraded standards for paper based task cards and the use of integrated 3D product definition used on various mobile platforms (Ropp, Thomas, Lee, Broyles, Lewin, Andreychek, & Nicol, 2013). Previous studies have shown that incorporation of 3D graphics in work instructions allow the user to more efficiently and accurately interpret maintenance information (Jackson & Batstone, 2008). For aircraft maintenance workers, the use of mobile 3D model-based task cards could make current paper task card standards obsolete with their ability to deliver relevant, synchronized information to and from the hangar. Unlike previous versions of 3D model-based definition task cards and paper task cards, which are currently used in the maintenance industry, 3D model based definition task cards have the potential to be more mobile and accessible. Utilizing augmented reality applications on mobile devices to seamlessly deliver 3D product definition on mobile devices could increase the efficiency, accuracy, and reduce the mental workload for technicians when performing maintenance tasks (Macchiarella, 2004). This proposal will serve as a literary review of the aviation maintenance industry, the spatial ability of maintenance technicians, and benefits of modern digital hardware to educate, point out gaps in research, and observe possible foundations on which to build the future of aviation maintenance job task cards leading to a the methodology of the proposed study.

  8. Space Images for NASA JPL Android Version

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nelson, Jon D.; Gutheinz, Sandy C.; Strom, Joshua R.; Arca, Jeremy M.; Perez, Martin; Boggs, Karen; Stanboli, Alice

    2013-01-01

    This software addresses the demand for easily accessible NASA JPL images and videos by providing a user friendly and simple graphical user interface that can be run via the Android platform from any location where Internet connection is available. This app is complementary to the iPhone version of the application. A backend infrastructure stores, tracks, and retrieves space images from the JPL Photojournal and Institutional Communications Web server, and catalogs the information into a streamlined rating infrastructure. This system consists of four distinguishing components: image repository, database, server-side logic, and Android mobile application. The image repository contains images from various JPL flight projects. The database stores the image information as well as the user rating. The server-side logic retrieves the image information from the database and categorizes each image for display. The Android mobile application is an interfacing delivery system that retrieves the image information from the server for each Android mobile device user. Also created is a reporting and tracking system for charting and monitoring usage. Unlike other Android mobile image applications, this system uses the latest emerging technologies to produce image listings based directly on user input. This allows for countless combinations of images returned. The backend infrastructure uses industry-standard coding and database methods, enabling future software improvement and technology updates. The flexibility of the system design framework permits multiple levels of display possibilities and provides integration capabilities. Unique features of the software include image/video retrieval from a selected set of categories, image Web links that can be shared among e-mail users, sharing to Facebook/Twitter, marking as user's favorites, and image metadata searchable for instant results.

  9. Electronic, optical and photocatalytic behavior of Mn, N doped and co-doped TiO{sub 2}: Experiment and simulation

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

    Zhao, Ya Fei; Li, Can, E-mail: canli1983@gmail.com; Lu, Song

    2016-03-15

    The crystal phase structure, surface morphology, chemical states and optical properties of Mn, N mono-doped and co-doped TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles were investigated by X-ray powder diffractometry, Raman spectra, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. Meanwhile, geometry structures, formation energies, electronic and optical properties of all systems have been also analyzed by density functional theory. The results showed that the band gap values and the carrier mobility in the valence band, conduction band and impurity levels have a synergetic influence on the visible-light absorption and photocatalytic activity of the doped TiO{sub 2}. The number and themore » carrier mobility of impurity level jointly influence the photocatalytic activity of catalyst under visible-light. Especially, the photocatalytic activity of Mn-2N co-doped TiO{sub 2} beyond three-fold than that of pure TiO{sub 2} under visible-light. - Graphical abstract: The ILs formed by N-2p orbital in N single doped specimen lie above the VB, while the ILs formed by Mn-3d orbital in Mn single doped specimen appear below the CB. However, a large amount of ILs formed by N-2p orbital and Mn-3d orbital in N and Mn codoped specimens. The band gap values and the carrier mobility in the valence band, conduction band and impurity levels have a synergetic influence on the visible-light absorption and photocatalytic activity of the doped TiO{sub 2}. The number and the carrier mobility of impurity level jointly influence the photocatalytic activity of catalyst under visible-light.« less

  10. Graphical Calculation of Estimated Energy Expenditure in Burn Patients.

    PubMed

    Egro, Francesco M; Manders, Ernest C; Manders, Ernest K

    2018-03-01

    Historically, estimated energy expenditure (EEE) has been related to the percent of body surface area burned. Subsequent evaluations of these estimates have indicated that the earlier formulas may overestimate the amount of caloric support necessary for burn-injured patients. Ireton-Jones et al derived 2 equations for determining the EEE required to support burn patients, 1 for ventilator-dependent patients and 1 for spontaneously breathing patients. Evidence has proved their reliability, but they remain challenging to apply in a clinical setting given the difficult and cumbersome mathematics involved. This study aims to introduce a graphical calculation of EEE in burn patients that can be easily used in the clinical setting. The multivariant linear regression analysis from Ireton-Jones et al yielded equations that were rearranged into the form of a simple linear equation of the type y = mx + b. By choosing an energy expenditure and the age of the subject, the weight was calculated. The endpoints were then calculated, and a graph was mapped by means of Adobe FrameMaker. A graphical representation of Ireton-Jones et al's equations was obtained by plotting the weight (kg) on the y axis, the age (years) on the x axis, and a series of parallel lines representing the EEE in burn patients. The EEE has been displayed graphically on a grid to allow rapid determination of the EEE needed for a given patient of a designated weight and age. Two graphs were plotted: 1 for ventilator-dependent patients and 1 for spontaneously breathing patients. Correction factors for sex, the presence of additional trauma, and obesity are indicated on the graphical calculators. We propose a graphical tool to calculate caloric requirements in a fast, easy, and portable manner.

  11. Influence of graphic format on comprehension of risk information among American Indians.

    PubMed

    Sprague, Debra; LaVallie, Donna L; Wolf, Fredric M; Jacobsen, Clemma; Sayson, Kirsten; Buchwald, Dedra

    2011-01-01

    Presentation of risk information influences patients' ability to interpret health care options. Little is known about this relationship between risk presentation and interpretation among American Indians. Three hundred American Indian employees on a western American Indian reservation were invited to complete an anonymous written survey. All surveys included a vignette presenting baseline risk information about a hypothetical cancer and possible benefits of 2 prevention plans. Risk interpretation was assessed by correct answers to 3 questions evaluating the risk reduction associated with the plans. Numeric information was the same in all surveys, but framing varied; half expressed prevention benefits in terms of relative risk reduction and half in terms of absolute risk reduction. All surveys used text to describe the benefits of the 2 plans, but half included a graphic image. Surveys were distributed randomly. Responses were analyzed using binary logistic regression with the robust variance estimator to account for clustering of outcomes within participant. Use of a graphic image was associated with higher odds of correctly answering 3 risk interpretation questions (odds ratio = 2.5, 95% confidence interval = 1.5-4.0, P < 0.001) compared to the text-only format. These findings were similar to those of previous studies carried out in the general population. Neither framing information as relative compared to absolute risk nor the interaction between graphic image and relative risk presentation was associated with risk interpretation. One type of graphic image was associated with increased understanding of risk in a small sample of American Indian adults. The authors recommend further investigation of the effectiveness of other types of graphic displays for conveying health risk information to this population.

  12. Knowledge-based commodity distribution planning

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Saks, Victor; Johnson, Ivan

    1994-01-01

    This paper presents an overview of a Decision Support System (DSS) that incorporates Knowledge-Based (KB) and commercial off the shelf (COTS) technology components. The Knowledge-Based Logistics Planning Shell (KBLPS) is a state-of-the-art DSS with an interactive map-oriented graphics user interface and powerful underlying planning algorithms. KBLPS was designed and implemented to support skilled Army logisticians to prepare and evaluate logistics plans rapidly, in order to support corps-level battle scenarios. KBLPS represents a substantial advance in graphical interactive planning tools, with the inclusion of intelligent planning algorithms that provide a powerful adjunct to the planning skills of commodity distribution planners.

  13. Graphical user interface for wireless sensor networks simulator

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Paczesny, Tomasz; Paczesny, Daniel; Weremczuk, Jerzy

    2008-01-01

    Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) are currently very popular area of development. It can be suited in many applications form military through environment monitoring, healthcare, home automation and others. Those networks, when working in dynamic, ad-hoc model, need effective protocols which must differ from common computer networks algorithms. Research on those protocols would be difficult without simulation tool, because real applications often use many nodes and tests on such a big networks take much effort and costs. The paper presents Graphical User Interface (GUI) for simulator which is dedicated for WSN studies, especially in routing and data link protocols evaluation.

  14. The typography of environmental impact statements: Criteria, evaluation, and public participation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gallagher, Thomas J.; Jacobson, Wendy S.

    1993-01-01

    Guidelines for implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act state that environmental impact statements (EISs) shall use “appropriate graphics.” We examined one component of graphics, typography, identifying applicable criteria from the literature and applying them to 150 EISs prepared by seven agencies. We found that the EISs ranged widely in typographic quality. The average EIS met fewer than seven of ten criteria; 12% were considered unreadable. The results suggest that weak typography may seriously limit public review of EISs. Agencies are encouraged to make typography a serious component of their public participation programs.

  15. MOBILE ON-SITE RECYCLING OF METALWORKING FLUIDS

    EPA Science Inventory

    This evaluation addresses the product quality, waste reduction, and economic issues involved in recycling metalworking fluids through a mobile recycling unit. The specific recycling unit evaluated is based on the technology of filtration, pasteurization, and centrifugation. Metal...

  16. Automatic Assessment of 3D Modeling Exams

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sanna, A.; Lamberti, F.; Paravati, G.; Demartini, C.

    2012-01-01

    Computer-based assessment of exams provides teachers and students with two main benefits: fairness and effectiveness in the evaluation process. This paper proposes a fully automatic evaluation tool for the Graphic and Virtual Design (GVD) curriculum at the First School of Architecture of the Politecnico di Torino, Italy. In particular, the tool is…

  17. Evaluating Computer Integration in the Elementary School: A Step-by-Step Guide.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mowe, Richard

    This handbook was written to enable elementary school educators to conduct formative evaluations of their computer integrated instruction (CII) programs in minimum time. CII is defined as the use of computer software, such as word processing, database, and graphics programs, to help students solve problems or work more productively. The first…

  18. Initial assessment of hearing loss using a mobile application for audiological evaluation.

    PubMed

    Derin, S; Cam, O H; Beydilli, H; Acar, E; Elicora, S S; Sahan, M

    2016-03-01

    This study aimed to compare an Apple iOS mobile operating system application for audiological evaluation with conventional audiometry, and to determine its accuracy and reliability in the initial evaluation of hearing loss. The study comprised 32 patients (16 females) diagnosed with hearing loss. The patients were first evaluated with conventional audiometry and the degree of hearing loss was recorded. Then they underwent a smartphone-based hearing test and the data were compared using Cohen's kappa analysis. Patients' mean age was 53.59 ± 18.01 years (range, 19-85 years). The mobile phone audiometry results for 39 of the 64 ears were fully compatible with the conventional audiometry results. There was a statistically significant concordant relationship between the two sets of audiometry results (p < 0.05). Ear Trumpet version 1.0.2 is a compact and simple mobile application on the Apple iPhone 5 that can measure hearing loss with reliable results.

  19. Iterative evaluation in a mobile counseling and testing program to reach people of color at risk for HIV--new strategies improve program acceptability, effectiveness, and evaluation capabilities.

    PubMed

    Spielberg, Freya; Kurth, Ann; Reidy, William; McKnight, Teka; Dikobe, Wame; Wilson, Charles

    2011-06-01

    This article highlights findings from an evaluation that explored the impact of mobile versus clinic-based testing, rapid versus central-lab based testing, incentives for testing, and the use of a computer counseling program to guide counseling and automate evaluation in a mobile program reaching people of color at risk for HIV. The program's results show that an increased focus on mobile outreach using rapid testing, incentives and health information technology tools may improve program acceptability, quality, productivity and timeliness of reports. This article describes program design decisions based on continuous quality assessment efforts. It also examines the impact of the Computer Assessment and Risk Reduction Education computer tool on HIV testing rates, staff perception of counseling quality, program productivity, and on the timeliness of evaluation reports. The article concludes with a discussion of implications for programmatic responses to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's HIV testing recommendations.

  20. ITERATIVE EVALUATION IN A MOBILE COUNSELING AND TESTING PROGRAM TO REACH PEOPLE OF COLOR AT RISK FOR HIV—NEW STRATEGIES IMPROVE PROGRAM ACCEPTABILITY, EFFECTIVENESS, AND EVALUATION CAPABILITIES

    PubMed Central

    Spielberg, Freya; Kurth, Ann; Reidy, William; McKnight, Teka; Dikobe, Wame; Wilson, Charles

    2016-01-01

    This article highlights findings from an evaluation that explored the impact of mobile versus clinic-based testing, rapid versus central-lab based testing, incentives for testing, and the use of a computer counseling program to guide counseling and automate evaluation in a mobile program reaching people of color at risk for HIV. The program’s results show that an increased focus on mobile outreach using rapid testing, incentives and health information technology tools may improve program acceptability, quality, productivity and timeliness of reports. This article describes program design decisions based on continuous quality assessment efforts. It also examines the impact of the Computer Assessment and Risk Reduction Education computer tool on HIV testing rates, staff perception of counseling quality, program productivity, and on the timeliness of evaluation reports. The article concludes with a discussion of implications for programmatic responses to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s HIV testing recommendations. PMID:21689041

  1. Heuristic Evaluation on Mobile Interfaces: A New Checklist

    PubMed Central

    Yáñez Gómez, Rosa; Cascado Caballero, Daniel; Sevillano, José-Luis

    2014-01-01

    The rapid evolution and adoption of mobile devices raise new usability challenges, given their limitations (in screen size, battery life, etc.) as well as the specific requirements of this new interaction. Traditional evaluation techniques need to be adapted in order for these requirements to be met. Heuristic evaluation (HE), an Inspection Method based on evaluation conducted by experts over a real system or prototype, is based on checklists which are desktop-centred and do not adequately detect mobile-specific usability issues. In this paper, we propose a compilation of heuristic evaluation checklists taken from the existing bibliography but readapted to new mobile interfaces. Selecting and rearranging these heuristic guidelines offer a tool which works well not just for evaluation but also as a best-practices checklist. The result is a comprehensive checklist which is experimentally evaluated as a design tool. This experimental evaluation involved two software engineers without any specific knowledge about usability, a group of ten users who compared the usability of a first prototype designed without our heuristics, and a second one after applying the proposed checklist. The results of this experiment show the usefulness of the proposed checklist for avoiding usability gaps even with nontrained developers. PMID:25295300

  2. Impact of a Mobile Phone Intervention to Reduce Sedentary Behavior in a Community Sample of Adults: A Quasi-Experimental Evaluation.

    PubMed

    Kendzor, Darla E; Shuval, Kerem; Gabriel, Kelley Pettee; Businelle, Michael S; Ma, Ping; High, Robin R; Cuate, Erica L; Poonawalla, Insiya B; Rios, Debra M; Demark-Wahnefried, Wendy; Swartz, Michael D; Wetter, David W

    2016-01-25

    Greater time spent sedentary is linked with increased risk of breast, colorectal, ovarian, endometrial, and prostate cancers. Given steadily increasing rates of mobile phone ownership, mobile phone interventions may have the potential to broadly influence sedentary behavior across settings. The purpose of this study was to examine the short-term impact of a mobile phone intervention that targeted sedentary time in a diverse community sample. Adults participated in a quasi-experimental evaluation of a mobile phone intervention designed to reduce sedentary time through prompts to interrupt periods of sitting. Participants carried mobile phones and wore accelerometers for 7 consecutive days. Intervention participants additionally received mobile phone prompts during self-reported sitting and information about the negative health impact of prolonged sedentariness. The study was conducted from December 2012 to November 2013 in Dallas, Texas. Linear mixed model regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the influence of the intervention on daily accelerometer-determined estimates of sedentary and active time. Participants (N=215) were predominantly female (67.9%, 146/215) and nonwhite (black: 50.7%, 109/215; Latino: 12.1%, 26/215; other: 5.6%, 12/215). Analyses revealed that participants who received the mobile phone intervention had significantly fewer daily minutes of sedentary time (B=-22.09, P=.045) and more daily active minutes (B=23.01, P=.04) than control participants. A simple mobile phone intervention was associated with engaging in less sedentary time and more physical activity. Findings underscore the potential impact of mobile phone interventions to positively influence sedentary behavior and physical activity.

  3. CMMAD Usability Case Study in Support of Countermine and Hazard Sensing

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

    Victor G. Walker; David I. Gertman

    2010-04-01

    During field trials, operator usability data were collected in support of lane clearing missions and hazard sensing for two robot platforms with Robot Intelligence Kernel (RIK) software and sensor scanning payloads onboard. The tests featured autonomous and shared robot autonomy levels where tasking of the robot used a graphical interface featuring mine location and sensor readings. The goal of this work was to provide insights that could be used to further technology development. The efficacy of countermine systems in terms of mobility, search, path planning, detection, and localization were assessed. Findings from objective and subjective operator interaction measures are reviewedmore » along with commentary from soldiers having taken part in the study who strongly endorse the system.« less

  4. Information quality-control model

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vincent, D. A.

    1971-01-01

    Model serves as graphic tool for estimating complete product objectives from limited input information, and is applied to cost estimations, product-quality evaluations, and effectiveness measurements for manpower resources allocation. Six product quality levels are defined.

  5. Assessment of Effectiveness of Geologic Isolation Systems. Variable thickness transient ground-water flow model. Volume 2. Users' manual

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

    Reisenauer, A.E.

    1979-12-01

    A system of computer codes to aid in the preparation and evaluation of ground-water model input, as well as in the computer codes and auxillary programs developed and adapted for use in modeling major ground-water aquifers is described. The ground-water model is interactive, rather than a batch-type model. Interactive models have been demonstrated to be superior to batch in the ground-water field. For example, looking through reams of numerical lists can be avoided with the much superior graphical output forms or summary type numerical output. The system of computer codes permits the flexibility to develop rapidly the model-required data filesmore » from engineering data and geologic maps, as well as efficiently manipulating the voluminous data generated. Central to these codes is the Ground-water Model, which given the boundary value problem, produces either the steady-state or transient time plane solutions. A sizeable part of the codes available provide rapid evaluation of the results. Besides contouring the new water potentials, the model allows graphical review of streamlines of flow, travel times, and detailed comparisons of surfaces or points at designated wells. Use of the graphics scopes provide immediate, but temporary displays which can be used for evaluation of input and output and which can be reproduced easily on hard copy devices, such as a line printer, Calcomp plotter and image photographs.« less

  6. SPIDERplan: A tool to support decision-making in radiation therapy treatment plan assessment.

    PubMed

    Ventura, Tiago; Lopes, Maria do Carmo; Ferreira, Brigida Costa; Khouri, Leila

    2016-01-01

    In this work, a graphical method for radiotherapy treatment plan assessment and comparison, named SPIDERplan, is proposed. It aims to support plan approval allowing independent and consistent comparisons of different treatment techniques, algorithms or treatment planning systems. Optimized plans from modern radiotherapy are not easy to evaluate and compare because of their inherent multicriterial nature. The clinical decision on the best treatment plan is mostly based on subjective options. SPIDERplan combines a graphical analysis with a scoring index. Customized radar plots based on the categorization of structures into groups and on the determination of individual structures scores are generated. To each group and structure, an angular amplitude is assigned expressing the clinical importance defined by the radiation oncologist. Completing the graphical evaluation, a global plan score, based on the structures score and their clinical weights, is determined. After a necessary clinical validation of the group weights, SPIDERplan efficacy, to compare and rank different plans, was tested through a planning exercise where plans had been generated for a nasal cavity case using different treatment planning systems. SPIDERplan method was applied to the dose metrics achieved by the nasal cavity test plans. The generated diagrams and scores successfully ranked the plans according to the prescribed dose objectives and constraints and the radiation oncologist priorities, after a necessary clinical validation process. SPIDERplan enables a fast and consistent evaluation of plan quality considering all targets and organs at risk.

  7. Mobile Virtual Reality : A Solution for Big Data Visualization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Marshall, E.; Seichter, N. D.; D'sa, A.; Werner, L. A.; Yuen, D. A.

    2015-12-01

    Pursuits in geological sciences and other branches of quantitative sciences often require data visualization frameworks that are in continual need of improvement and new ideas. Virtual reality is a medium of visualization that has large audiences originally designed for gaming purposes; Virtual reality can be captured in Cave-like environment but they are unwieldy and expensive to maintain. Recent efforts by major companies such as Facebook have focussed more on a large market , The Oculus is the first of such kind of mobile devices The operating system Unity makes it possible for us to convert the data files into a mesh of isosurfaces and be rendered into 3D. A user is immersed inside of the virtual reality and is able to move within and around the data using arrow keys and other steering devices, similar to those employed in XBox.. With introductions of products like the Oculus Rift and Holo Lens combined with ever increasing mobile computing strength, mobile virtual reality data visualization can be implemented for better analysis of 3D geological and mineralogical data sets. As more new products like the Surface Pro 4 and other high power yet very mobile computers are introduced to the market, the RAM and graphics card capacity necessary to run these models is more available, opening doors to this new reality. The computing requirements needed to run these models are a mere 8 GB of RAM and 2 GHz of CPU speed, which many mobile computers are starting to exceed. Using Unity 3D software to create a virtual environment containing a visual representation of the data, any data set converted into FBX or OBJ format which can be traversed by wearing the Oculus Rift device. This new method for analysis in conjunction with 3D scanning has potential applications in many fields, including the analysis of precious stones or jewelry. Using hologram technology to capture in high-resolution the 3D shape, color, and imperfections of minerals and stones, detailed review and analysis of the stone can be done remotely without ever seeing the real thing. This strategy can be game-changer for shoppers without having to go to the store.

  8. Mobile GPU-based implementation of automatic analysis method for long-term ECG.

    PubMed

    Fan, Xiaomao; Yao, Qihang; Li, Ye; Chen, Runge; Cai, Yunpeng

    2018-05-03

    Long-term electrocardiogram (ECG) is one of the important diagnostic assistant approaches in capturing intermittent cardiac arrhythmias. Combination of miniaturized wearable holters and healthcare platforms enable people to have their cardiac condition monitored at home. The high computational burden created by concurrent processing of numerous holter data poses a serious challenge to the healthcare platform. An alternative solution is to shift the analysis tasks from healthcare platforms to the mobile computing devices. However, long-term ECG data processing is quite time consuming due to the limited computation power of the mobile central unit processor (CPU). This paper aimed to propose a novel parallel automatic ECG analysis algorithm which exploited the mobile graphics processing unit (GPU) to reduce the response time for processing long-term ECG data. By studying the architecture of the sequential automatic ECG analysis algorithm, we parallelized the time-consuming parts and reorganized the entire pipeline in the parallel algorithm to fully utilize the heterogeneous computing resources of CPU and GPU. The experimental results showed that the average executing time of the proposed algorithm on a clinical long-term ECG dataset (duration 23.0 ± 1.0 h per signal) is 1.215 ± 0.140 s, which achieved an average speedup of 5.81 ± 0.39× without compromising analysis accuracy, comparing with the sequential algorithm. Meanwhile, the battery energy consumption of the automatic ECG analysis algorithm was reduced by 64.16%. Excluding energy consumption from data loading, 79.44% of the energy consumption could be saved, which alleviated the problem of limited battery working hours for mobile devices. The reduction of response time and battery energy consumption in ECG analysis not only bring better quality of experience to holter users, but also make it possible to use mobile devices as ECG terminals for healthcare professions such as physicians and health advisers, enabling them to inspect patient ECG recordings onsite efficiently without the need of a high-quality wide-area network environment.

  9. Analysis, modeling, and simulation (AMS) testbed development and evaluation to support dynamic mobility applications (DMA) and active transportation and demand management (ATDM) programs — evaluation summary for DMA program.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-07-04

    The primary objective of this project is to develop multiple simulation testbeds/transportation models to evaluate the impacts of Dynamic Mobility Application (DMA) connected vehicle applications and Active Transportation and Demand management (ATDM)...

  10. Analysis, Modeling, and Simulation (AMS) Testbed Development and Evaluation to Support Dynamic Mobility Applications (DMA) and Active Transportation and Demand Management (ATDM) Programs : Evaluation Report for the Chicago Testbed

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-04-01

    The primary objective of this project is to develop multiple simulation testbeds and transportation models to evaluate the impacts of Connected Vehicle Dynamic Mobility Applications (DMA) and Active Transportation and Demand Management (ATDM) strateg...

  11. Analysis, modeling, and simulation (AMS) testbed development and evaluation to support dynamic mobility applications (DMA) and active transportation and demand management (ATDM) programs — evaluation report for ATDM program.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-07-16

    The primary objective of this project is to develop multiple simulation testbeds/transportation models to evaluate the impacts of Dynamic Mobility Applications (DMA) and the Active Transportation and Demand Management (ATDM) strategies. Specifically,...

  12. Analysis, modeling, and simulation (AMS) testbed development and evaluation to support dynamic mobility applications (DMA) and active transportation and demand management (ATDM) programs — evaluation summary for ATDM program.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-07-04

    The primary objective of this project is to develop multiple simulation testbeds/transportation models to evaluate the impacts of Dynamic Mobility Application (DMA) connected vehicle applications and Active Transportation and Dynamic management (ATDM...

  13. Evaluation of mobile phone addiction level and sleep quality in university students.

    PubMed

    Sahin, Sevil; Ozdemir, Kevser; Unsal, Alaattin; Temiz, Nazen

    2013-07-01

    To determine the mobile phone addiction level in university students, to examine several associated factors and to evaluate the relation between the addiction level and sleep quality. The study is a cross-sectional research conducted on the students of the Sakarya University between 01 November 2012 and 01 February 2013. The study group included 576 students. The Problematic Mobile Phone Use Scale was used for evaluating the mobile phone addiction level and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index for assessing the sleep quality. Mann-Whitney U test, Kruskal-Wallis test and Spearman's Correlation Analysis were used for analyzing the data. The study group consisted of 296 (51.4%) females and 208 (48.6%) males. The mean age was 20.83 ± 1.90 years (min:17, max:28). The addiction level was determined to be higher in the second-year students, those with poor family income, those with type A personality, those whose age for first mobile phone is 13 and below and those whose duration of daily mobile phone use is above 5 hours (p < 0.05 for each). The sleep quality worsens with increasing mobile phone addiction level (p < 0.05). The sleep quality worsens with increasing addiction level. It was concluded that referring the students with suspected addiction to advanced healthcare facilities, performing occasional scans for early diagnosis and informing the students about controlled mobile phone use would be useful.

  14. Using Mobile Device Samples to Estimate Traffic Volumes

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-12-01

    In this project, TTI worked with StreetLight Data to evaluate a beta version of its traffic volume estimates derived from global positioning system (GPS)-based mobile devices. TTI evaluated the accuracy of average annual daily traffic (AADT) volume :...

  15. Evaluating virtual hosted desktops for graphics-intensive astronomy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Meade, B. F.; Fluke, C. J.

    2018-04-01

    Visualisation of data is critical to understanding astronomical phenomena. Today, many instruments produce datasets that are too big to be downloaded to a local computer, yet many of the visualisation tools used by astronomers are deployed only on desktop computers. Cloud computing is increasingly used to provide a computation and simulation platform in astronomy, but it also offers great potential as a visualisation platform. Virtual hosted desktops, with graphics processing unit (GPU) acceleration, allow interactive, graphics-intensive desktop applications to operate co-located with astronomy datasets stored in remote data centres. By combining benchmarking and user experience testing, with a cohort of 20 astronomers, we investigate the viability of replacing physical desktop computers with virtual hosted desktops. In our work, we compare two Apple MacBook computers (one old and one new, representing hardware and opposite ends of the useful lifetime) with two virtual hosted desktops: one commercial (Amazon Web Services) and one in a private research cloud (the Australian NeCTAR Research Cloud). For two-dimensional image-based tasks and graphics-intensive three-dimensional operations - typical of astronomy visualisation workflows - we found that benchmarks do not necessarily provide the best indication of performance. When compared to typical laptop computers, virtual hosted desktops can provide a better user experience, even with lower performing graphics cards. We also found that virtual hosted desktops are equally simple to use, provide greater flexibility in choice of configuration, and may actually be a more cost-effective option for typical usage profiles.

  16. Research on Credit Evaluation of Mobile Medical APP Interactive Online Consultation Service-Take Haodaifu APP Online Payment Service as an Example

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xiong, Dandan; Zhao, Lei

    2017-10-01

    Mobile medical industry is developing rapidly, but the relevant credit evaluation system is still in the exploratory stage. Haodaifu in the interactive online consulting services more representatives and has a credit evaluation system, but the system is not perfect. There are many problems in the system, such as credits indicators cannot better reflect the results of user’s evaluation, the lack of user qualification supervision, evaluation index system and assessment channels are not perfect. On the basis of drawing on the advantages of E-commerce evaluation system and combining with the characteristics of mobile medical itself, two suggestions are put forward: Improve the credit evaluation model (Generate physician static credit index, Change the doctor 's dynamic credit index algorithm, Update the dynamic credit index), Improve the basic mechanism of credit evaluation.

  17. Architecture with GIDEON, A Program for Design in Structural DNA Nanotechnology

    PubMed Central

    Birac, Jeffrey J.; Sherman, William B.; Kopatsch, Jens; Constantinou, Pamela E.; Seeman, Nadrian C.

    2012-01-01

    We present geometry based design strategies for DNA nanostructures. The strategies have been implemented with GIDEON – a Graphical Integrated Development Environment for OligoNucleotides. GIDEON has a highly flexible graphical user interface that facilitates the development of simple yet precise models, and the evaluation of strains therein. Models are built on a simple model of undistorted B-DNA double-helical domains. Simple point and click manipulations of the model allow the minimization of strain in the phosphate-backbone linkages between these domains and the identification of any steric clashes that might occur as a result. Detailed analysis of 3D triangles yields clear predictions of the strains associated with triangles of different sizes. We have carried out experiments that confirm that 3D triangles form well only when their geometrical strain is less than 4% deviation from the estimated relaxed structure. Thus geometry-based techniques alone, without energetic considerations, can be used to explain general trends in DNA structure formation. We have used GIDEON to build detailed models of double crossover and triple crossover molecules, evaluating the non-planarity associated with base tilt and junction mis-alignments. Computer modeling using a graphical user interface overcomes the limited precision of physical models for larger systems, and the limited interaction rate associated with earlier, command-line driven software. PMID:16630733

  18. The Effect of Mobile Portfolio (M-Portfolio) Supported Mastery Learning Model on Students' Achievement and Their Attitudes towards Using Internet

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ozdemir, Oguzhan; Erdemci, Husamettin

    2017-01-01

    The term mobile portfolio refers to creating, evaluating and sharing portfolios in mobile environments. Many of the states that pose an obstacle for portfolio usage are now extinguished through mobile portfolios. The aim in this research is to determine the effect of mobile portfolio supported mastery learning model on students' success and…

  19. Real-time Identification System using Mobile Hand-held Devices: Mobile Biometrics Evaluation Framework

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2014-04-01

    must be done to determine current infrastructure and capabilities so that necessary updates and changes can be addressed up front. Mobile biometric...with existing satellite communications infrastructure . 20 PSTP 03-427BIOM 4 State of Mobile Biometric Device Market 4.1 Fingerprint...is a wireless information system highlighted by Real-time wireless data collection mobile device independence, wireless infrastructure independence

  20. Charge-transfer mobility and electrical conductivity of PANI as conjugated organic semiconductors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Yahong; Duan, Yuping; Song, Lulu; Zheng, Daoyuan; Zhang, Mingxing; Zhao, Guangjiu

    2017-09-01

    The intramolecular charge transfer properties of a phenyl-end-capped aniline tetramer (ANIH) and a chloro-substituted derivative (ANICl) as organic semiconductors were theoretically studied through the first-principles calculation based on the Marcus-Hush theory. The reorganization energies, intermolecular electronic couplings, angular resolution anisotropic mobilities, and density of states of the two crystals were evaluated. The calculated results demonstrate that both ANIH and ANICl crystals show the higher electron transfer mobilities than the hole-transfer mobilities, which means that the two crystals should prefer to function as n-type organic semiconductors. Furthermore, the angle dependence mobilities of the two crystals show remarkable anisotropic character. The maximum mobility μmax of ANIH and ANICl crystals is 1.3893 and 0.0272 cm2 V-1 s-1, which appear at the orientation angles near 176°/356° and 119°/299° of a conducting channel on the a-b reference plane. It is synthetically evaluated that the ANIH crystal possesses relatively lower reorganization energy, higher electronic coupling, and electron transfer mobility, which means that the ANIH crystal may be the more ideal candidate as a high performance n-type organic semiconductor material. The systematic theoretical studies on organic crystals should be conducive to evaluating the charge-transport properties and designing higher performance organic semiconductor materials.

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