The semiotic perspective of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) can give you insight into values, beliefs, and reference systems of the users that often go unnoticed when using traditional HCI approaches. Cross-Cultural Human-Computer Interaction and User Experience Design: A Semiotic Perspective focuses on the semiotic approach in product, services, and system design, and emphasizes the semiotic and linguistic aspects in HCI and user experience (UX). The book shows you how to leverage these insights when creating useful, usable, and appealing user interfaces. The book covers the theoretical background of HCI semiotics with emphasis on the interaction elements present in the user interface, the methodology to work with them to achieve useful insights both for design and evaluation, and the results obtained compared to traditional UX methods. It then examines a cross-cultural study presenting a semiotic method for design and evaluation in a different cultural background, and discusses the resulting insights, which are then structured as guidelines for HCI/UX design for Chinese users. Although extensive research has been done in HCI semiotics and the cultural aspects of HCI, this book differs by exploring how these fields are informed by the linguistic perspective. It presents a novel approach to cross-cultural HCI/UX, covers the latest research in the field, and brings a set of tools and methods to benefit the design process by taking a semiotic perspective. It also supplies a set of design guidelines for developing more usable, useful, and appealing products, services, and systems.

This edited book is one of the first to describe how Autonomous Virtual Humans and Social Robots can interact with real people and be aware of the surrounding world using machine learning and AI. It includes: * Many algorithms related to the awareness of the surrounding world such as the recognition of objects, the interpretation of various sources of data provided by cameras, microphones, and wearable sensors * Deep Learning Methods to provide solutions to Visual Attention, Quality Perception, and Visual Material Recognition * How Face Recognition and Speech Synthesis will replace the traditional mouse and keyboard interfaces * Semantic modeling and rendering and shows how these domains play an important role in Virtual and Augmented Reality Applications. Intelligent Scene Modeling and Human-Computer Interaction explains how to understand the composition and build very complex scenes and emphasizes the semantic methods needed to have an intelligent interaction with them. It offers readers a unique opportunity to comprehend the rapid changes and continuous development in the fields of Intelligent Scene Modeling.

'A necessary book for our times. But also just great fun' Saul Perlmutter, Nobel Laureate The world is awash in bullshit, and we're drowning in it. Politicians are unconstrained by facts. Science is conducted by press release. Start-up culture elevates hype to high art. These days, calling bullshit is a noble act. Based on a popular course at the University of Washington, Calling Bullshit gives us the tools to see through the obfuscations, deliberate and careless, that dominate every realm of our lives. In this lively guide, biologist Carl Bergstrom and statistician Jevin West show that calling bullshit is crucial to a properly functioning social group, whether it be a circle of friends, a community of researchers, or the citizens of a nation. Through six rules of thumb, they help us recognize bullshit whenever and wherever we encounter it - even within ourselves - and explain it to a crystal-loving aunt or casually racist grandfather.

As mobile technologies grow in popularity and widespread use, more and more applications-from banking software to online education-make their way to smartphones, tablets, and other such mobile devices. To be truly effective, organizations must adapt to this changing online landscape and the paradigm of anytime, anywhere access. User Behavior in Ubiquitous Online Environments explores how users interact with mobile devices and applications in an array of contexts, providing relevant theoretical frameworks and the latest empirical research on ubiquitous computing. Within this reference, researchers and professionals in fields such as computer science, information technology, education, and library science will find a detailed discussion of implementing ubiquitous technologies in a variety of organisations and situations.

"With its accessible presentation style and its focus on 'scientifically sound' practices, this book benefits the public, students, and researchers alike." Prof Lynne Coventry, Director of PactLab, University of Northumbria, UK "This book is a valuable guide to anyone seeking to further explore current thinking in the field." Dr Rachel Harrad, Lecturer in Psychology, Swansea University, UK "This book provides an accessible and engaging introduction to a wide range of key contemporary issues in cyberpsychology." Dr Joanne Lloyd, Senior Lecturer in Cyberpsychology, University of Wolverhampton, UK This comprehensive and accessibly written book brings together in one place for the first time the wealth of debates within cyberpsychology. Is the distinction between so-called digital natives and digital immigrants meaningful in practice? What is the difference between screen time and screen use, and why has one been pathologized while the other has not? Is social media really bad for wellbeing? This book considers these issues and more, in depth, with clear, informed resolutions and conclusions no longer being mediated by jargon-filled articles or misrepresentative media headlines. Key features include: *Real World Applications boxes, signposting why each debate is pertinent and what the implications may be in practice *Take Home Messages boxes, helpfully summarising what students need to know and why Linda K. Kaye is Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Edge Hill University, UK and Chair of the BPS Cyberpsychology section. She is known online as The Cyber Doctor, where she regularly blogs for a broad audience, as well as providing public comment for outlets including The Guardian, Stylist, The Telegraph and The Independent on topics such as internet accessibility and inclusivity, zoom fatigue, and last but not least, what your favourite emoji says about you.

New Directions in Cognitive Information Retrieval presents an exciting new direction for research into cognitive oriented information retrieval (IR) research, a direction based on an analysis of the user 's problem situation and cognitive behavior when using the IR system. This contrasts with the current dominant IR research paradigm which concentrates on improving IR system matching performance.

The chapters describe the leading edge concepts and models of cognitive IR that explore the nexus between human cognition, information and the social conditions that drive humans to seek information using IR systems. Chapter topics include: Polyrepresentation, cognitive overlap and the boomerang effect, Multitasking while conducting the search, Knowledge Diagram Visualizations of the topic space to facilitate user assimilation of information, Task, relevance, selection state, knowledge need and knowledge behavior, search training built into the search, children 's collaboration for school projects, and other cognitive perspectives on IR concepts and issues.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the Third IFIP WG 5.5/SOCOLNET Doctoral Conference on Computing, Electrical and Industrial Systems, DoCEIS 2012, held in Costa de Caparica, Portugal, in February 2012. The 65 revised full papers were carefully reviewed and selected from numerous submissions. They cover a wide spectrum of topics ranging from collaborative enterprise networks to microelectronics. The papers are organized in topical sections on collaborative systems, service orientation, knowledge and content management, human interaction, Petri nets, smart systems, robotic systems, perceptional systems, signal processing, energy, renewable energy, energy smart grid, power electronics, electronics, optimization in electronics, telecommunications and electronics, and electronic materials. The book also includes papers from the Workshop on Data Anaylsis and Modeling Retina in Health and Disease.

The two-volume set IFIP AICT 363 and 364 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Engineering Applications of Neural Networks, EANN 2011, and the 7th IFIP WG 12.5 International Conference, AIAI 2011, held jointly in Corfu, Greece, in September 2011. The 52 revised full papers and 28 revised short papers presented together with 31 workshop papers were carefully reviewed and selected from 150 submissions. The first volume includes the papers that were accepted for presentation at the EANN 2011 conference. They are organized in topical sections on computer vision and robotics, self organizing maps, classification/pattern recognition, financial and management applications of AI, fuzzy systems, support vector machines, learning and novel algorithms, reinforcement and radial basis function ANN, machine learning, evolutionary genetic algorithms optimization, Web applications of ANN, spiking ANN, feature extraction minimization, medical applications of AI, environmental and earth applications of AI, multi layer ANN, and bioinformatics. The volume also contains the accepted papers from the Workshop on Applications of Soft Computing to Telecommunication (ASCOTE 2011), the Workshop on Computational Intelligence Applications in Bioinformatics (CIAB 2011), and the Second Workshop on Informatics and Intelligent Systems Applications for Quality of Life Information Services (ISQLIS 2011).

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 6th IFIP WG 11.11 International Conference, IFIPTM 2012, held in Surat, India, in May 2012. The 12 revised full papers presented together with 8 short papers and the abstracts of 4 keynote talks were carefully reviewed and selected from 51 submissions. Building on the traditions inherited from the iTrust and previous IFIPTM conferences, IFIPTM 2012 is a multi-disciplinary conference focusing on areas such as: trust models, social, economic and behavioural aspects of trust, trust in networks, mobile systems and cloud computation, privacy, reputation systems, and identity management.

This book focuses on the fundamentals and recent advances in RGB-D imaging as well as covering a range of RGB-D applications. The topics covered include: data acquisition, data quality assessment, filling holes, 3D reconstruction, SLAM, multiple depth camera systems, segmentation, object detection, salience detection, pose estimation, geometric modelling, fall detection, autonomous driving, motor rehabilitation therapy, people counting and cognitive service robots. The availability of cheap RGB-D sensors has led to an explosion over the last five years in the capture and application of colour plus depth data. The addition of depth data to regular RGB images vastly increases the range of applications, and has resulted in a demand for robust and real-time processing of RGB-D data. There remain many technical challenges, and RGB-D image processing is an ongoing research area. This book covers the full state of the art, and consists of a series of chapters by internationally renowned experts in the field. Each chapter is written so as to provide a detailed overview of that topic. RGB-D Image Analysis and Processing will enable both students and professional developers alike to quickly get up to speed with contemporary techniques, and apply RGB-D imaging in their own projects.

Enterprise solutions have emerged as promising tools for integrating and extending business processes across business functions. Supplying a clear and comprehensive introduction to the field, this book provides a detailed description of enterprise information integration from the development of enterprise systems to extended enterprise information integration in supply chain environments.
Enterprise Integration and Information Architecture: A Systems Perspective on Industrial Information Integration explains how to improve industrial information integration through the application of a systems approach. Describing how systems science is impacting current research in industrial information integration, it covers enterprise architecture, information architecture for enterprises, business process/work flow modeling, and enterprise information integration.
Covering the emergence, growth, and extension of integrated enterprise systems, the book provides you with various perspectives of modern enterprise solutions. It introduces the critical concepts of ERP, industry-oriented enterprise resource planning, and entire resource planning. It also provides guidance on how to transition from extended enterprise integration in a supply chain environment to systems-based enterprise architecture, enterprise modeling, and enterprise modeling in a supply chain environment.
The book proposes a new information architecture for enterprise and supply chain management. It presents modeling and integration information flows for enterprise information integration, together with the Internet of Things (IoT). It also explores the theory and methods of industrial information integration including integration approaches and enterprise application integration.
Complete with numerous examples of extended enterprise integration in actual supply chain environments, the book illustrates the critical issues that arise in professional practice and also explores emerging trends in enterprise integration and its information architecture"

The research described in this book shows that conversation analysis can effectively model dialogue. Specifically, this work shows that the multidisciplinary field of communicative ICALL may greatly benefit from including Conversation Analysis. As a consequence, this research makes several contributions to the related research disciplines, such as conversation analysis, second-language acquisition, computer-mediated communication, artificial intelligence, and dialogue systems. The book will be of value for researchers and engineers in the areas of computational linguistics, intelligent assistants, and conversational interfaces.

This book provides to manufacturers, designers and evaluation professionals the necessary tools for balancing design and the assessment phases during the product lifecycle. It proposes an integrated model of interaction evaluation for a holistic analysis of the user experience by both discussing in details the interaction testing methods, and promoting the involvement of disabled users in human computer interaction evaluation.

Embodied conversational agents (ECA) and speech-based human-machine interfaces can together represent more advanced and more natural human-machine interaction. Fusion of both topics is a challenging agenda in research and production spheres. The important goal of human-machine interfaces is to provide content or functionality in the form of a dialog resembling face-to-face conversations. All natural interfaces strive to exploit and use different communication strategies that provide additional meaning to the content, whether they are human-machine interfaces for controlling an application or different ECA-based human-machine interfaces directly simulating face-to-face conversation. Coverbal Synchrony in Human-Machine Interaction presents state-of-the-art concepts of advanced environment-independent multimodal human-machine interfaces that can be used in different contexts, ranging from simple multimodal web-browsers (for example, multimodal content reader) to more complex multimodal human-machine interfaces for ambient intelligent environments (such as supportive environments for elderly and agent-guided household environments). They can also be used in different computing environments-from pervasive computing to desktop environments. Within these concepts, the contributors discuss several communication strategies, used to provide different aspects of human-machine interaction.

Software has become a key component of contemporary life and algorithms that rank, classify, or recommend are everywhere. Building on the philosophy of Gilbert Simondon and the cultural techniques tradition, this book examines the constructive and cumulative character of software and retraces the historical trajectories of a series of algorithmic techniques that have become the building blocks for contemporary practices of ordering. Developed in opposition to centuries of library tradition, these techniques instantiate dynamic, perspectivist, and interested forms of knowing. Embedded in technical infrastructures and economic logics, they have become engines of order that transform how we arrange information, ideas, and people.

The dependence on quality software in all areas of life is what makes software engineering a key discipline for today's society. Thus, over the last few decades it has been increasingly recognized that it is particularly important to demonstrate the value of software engineering methods in real-world environments, a task which is the focus of empirical software engineering. One of the leading protagonists of this discipline worldwide is Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Dieter Rombach, who dedicated his entire career to empirical software engineering. For his many important contributions to the field he has received numerous awards and recognitions, including the U.S. National Science Foundation's Presidential Young Investigator Award and the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. He is a Fellow of both the ACM and the IEEE Computer Society. This book, published in honor of his 60th birthday, is dedicated to Dieter Rombach and his contributions to software engineering in general, as well as to empirical software engineering in particular. This book presents invited contributions from a number of the most internationally renowned software engineering researchers like Victor Basili, Barry Boehm, Manfred Broy, Carlo Ghezzi, Michael Jackson, Leon Osterweil, and, of course, by Dieter Rombach himself. Several key experts from the Fraunhofer IESE, the institute founded and led by Dieter Rombach, also contributed to the book. The contributions summarize some of the most important trends in software engineering today and outline a vision for the future of the field. The book is structured into three main parts. The first part focuses on the classical foundations of software engineering, such as notations, architecture, and processes, while the second addresses empirical software engineering in particular as the core field of Dieter Rombach's contributions. Finally, the third part discusses a broad vision for the future of software engineering.

The safety case (SC) is one of the railway industry's most important deliverables for creating confidence in their systems. This is the first book on how to write an SC, based on the standard EN 50129:2003. Experience has shown that preparing and understanding an SC is difficult and time consuming, and as such the book provides insights that enhance the training for writing an SC. The book discusses both "regular" safety cases and agile safety cases, which avoid too much documentation, improve communication between the stakeholders, allow quicker approval of the system, and which are important in the light of rapidly changing technology. In addition, it discusses the necessity of frequently updating software due to market requirements, changes in requirements and increased cyber-security threats. After a general introduction to SCs and agile thinking in chapter 1, chapter 2 describes the majority of the roles that are relevant when developing railway-signaling systems. Next, chapter 3 provides information related to the assessment of signaling systems, to certifications based on IEC 61508 and to the authorization of signaling systems. Chapter 4 then explains how an agile safety plan satisfying the requirements given in EN 50126-1:1999 can be developed, while chapter 5 provides a brief introduction to safety case patterns and notations. Lastly, chapter 6 combines all this and describes how an (agile) SC can be developed and what it should include. To ensure that infrastructure managers, suppliers, consultants and others can take full advantage of the agile mind-set, the book includes concrete examples and presents relevant agile practices. Although the scope of the book is limited to signaling systems, the basic foundations for (agile) SCs are clearly described so that they can also be applied in other cases.

Content Management Systems (CMSs) are used in almost every industry by millions of end-user organizations. In contrast to the 90s, they are no longer used as isolated applications in one organization but they support critical core operations in business ecosystems. Content management today is more interactive and more integrative: interactive because end-users are increasingly content creators themselves and integrative because content elements can be embedded into various other applications. The authors of this book investigate how Semantic Technologies can increase interactivity and integration capabilities of CMSs and discuss their business value to millions of end-user organizations. This book has therefore the objective, to reflect existing applications as well as to discuss and present new applications for CMSs that use Semantic Technologies. An evaluation of 27 CMSs concludes this book and provides a basis for IT executives that plan to adopt or replace a CMS in the near future.

The long-standing cultural imperative of augmenting human intellect continues to move ever closer to its full manifestation, described by Marshall McLuhan as an extension of the human nervous system. The escalating blending of immersive technologies with advanced computation has created an emerging domain which increasingly allows socio-technical system makers to produce not only human-computer interactions, but advanced, multi-minded human+computer (H+C) systems. The critical shift toward user immersion within systems of digital information and simulation makes the scale of immersive media's potential impact on human life, culture and well-being unlike that of any previous medium. In Designing XR, Peter (Zak) Zakrzewski presents H+C immersion as a multi-dimensional design problem - a Research Through Design (RTD) zone which addresses the question of: How can transformative design-thinking-based knowledge system complement the existing human-computer interaction (HCI) invention model to contribute to the creation of more participatory, socially viable, and humane immersive media environments? The book lays out a proposal for ushering the creation of ecologically sound augmented mind based on two essential tasks. The first involves a framework for the design, implementation, and iteration of purposeful, multi-minded, participatory immersive H+C systems. The second focuses on the extended reality experience (XRX) design practice that rhetorically invites users to actively engage with immersive systems while fully exercising their autonomy and agency based on informed choice.

The European Conference on Computer and Network Defense draws contributions and participation both from academia and industry, and addresses security from multiple perspectives, including state-of-the-art research in computer network security, intrusion detection, denial-of-service, privacy protection, security policies, and incident response & management. The conference is organized jointly by the Institute of Computer Science of the Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas (FORTH) and the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA).

This book reports on the latest research and developments in the field of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). It introduces ten outstanding and innovative BCI projects, nominated as finalists for the BCI award 2012 by a jury of established researchers and discusses how each of the nominated projects reflects general worldwide trends in BCI development. At the core of the book, nine of these ten projects are described in detailed individual chapters. These include a focused introduction to each project, an easy to grasp description of the methods and a timely report on the most recent developments achieved since the submission to the award. Hence, this book provides a cutting-edge overview of the newest BCI research trends, from leading experts, in an easy to read format supported by explanatory pictures, graphs and figures.

Participatory design is about the direct involvement of people in the co-design of the technologies they use. Its central concern is how collaborative design processes can be driven by the participation of the people affected by the technology designed. Embracing a diverse collection of principles and practices aimed at making technologies, tools, environments, businesses, and social institutions more responsive to human needs, the International Handbook of Participatory Design is a state-of-the-art reference handbook for the subject. The Handbook brings together a multidisciplinary and international group of highly recognized and experienced experts to present an authoritative overview of the field and its history and discuss contributions and challenges of the pivotal issues in participatory design, including heritage, ethics, ethnography, methods, tools and techniques and community involvement. The book also highlights three large-scale case studies which show how participatory design has been used to bring about outstanding changes in different organizations. The book shows why participatory design is an important, highly relevant and rewarding area for research and practice. It will be an invaluable resource for students, researchers, scholars and professionals in participatory design.

This book offers a timely report on an emerging topic in the field of wearable assistive technology: the design and development of robotic extra fingers. After a concise review of the state of the art and a description of earlier prototypes, it discusses the authors' efforts to address issues such as portability and wearability of the devices, including strategies to reduce fatigue and to integrate the motion of the extra fingers with that of the human hand. The book also explores optimized control algorithms and the design of wearable sensorimotor interfaces, and presents a set of tests carried out on healthy subjects and chronic stroke patients. Merging concepts from robotics, biomechanics, human factors and control theory and offering an overview of supernumerary robotic fingers, including the challenges, this book will inspire researchers involved in the development of wearable robotic devices and interfaces based on the principles of wearability, safety, ergonomics and user comfort.

Now, more than ever, professionals can benefit from the power of location data, maps, and analytics in healthcare. Health professionals see the importance of the who, what, when, and where of data analytics. The "where" adds a crucial element because good healthcare begins locally and understanding the impacts of place leads to better health. Health professionals recognize the insights gained from visualizing and analyzing location data. Maps, dashboards, apps, and charts can serve as location analytic tools to quantify problems, make predictions, improve operations, assess infrastructure, and make better decisions overall. GIS Jump Start for Health Professionals is a concise workbook that introduces location analytics available in geographic information systems (GIS) to health professionals, medical students, residents, fellows, nursing students, medical researchers, and others interested in health IT and informatics, health-care administration, and health policy. GIS Jump Start for Health Professionals provides hands-on tutorials that introduce the ArcGIS tools and shows how to use web-based data, storytelling apps, and much more. The book includes concepts and short video lectures to improve learning outcomes. Focused lessons get health professionals up and running quickly and experiencing first hand the value of location data, maps, and analytics. Written by Kristen S. Kurland, an award-winning professor at Carnegie Mellon University and co-creator of the GIS Tutorial series, this book can be used as a short course or incorporated into another course. It is also valuable to self-learners who want location technology experience.

Forms that Work: Designing Web Forms for Usability clearly explains exactly how to design great forms for the web. The book provides proven and practical advice that will help you avoid pitfalls, and produce forms that are aesthetically pleasing, efficient and cost-effective. It features invaluable design methods, tips, and tricks to help ensure accurate data and satisfied customers. It includes dozens of examples - from nitty-gritty details (label alignment, mandatory fields) to visual designs (creating good grids, use of color). This book isn't just about colons and choosing the right widgets. It's about the whole process of making good forms, which has a lot more to do with making sure you're asking the right questions in a way that your users can answer than it does with whether you use a drop-down list or radio buttons. In an easy-to-read format with lots of examples, the authors present their three-layer model - relationship, conversation, appearance. You need all three for a successful form - a form that looks good, flows well, asks the right questions in the right way, and, most important of all, gets people to fill it out. Liberally illustrated with full-color examples, this book guides readers on how to define requirements, how to write questions that users will understand and want to answer, and how to deal with instructions, progress indicators and errors. This book is essential reading for HCI professionals, web designers, software developers, user interface designers, HCI academics and students, market research professionals, and financial professionals.