scholarly journals Do Attention and Memory Tasks Require the Same Lighting? A Study in University Classrooms

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 8374
Author(s):  
Carmen Llinares ◽  
Nuria Castilla ◽  
Juan Luis Higuera-Trujillo

Lighting plays a fundamental role in learning spaces as it influences students’ performance. Nowadays, new technologies and new teaching methods in higher education mean that very different visual tasks are performed in the classroom, so further research is necessary to identify what lighting is best suited to these new tasks. The objective of the study is to analyse the impact that variations in levels of illuminance and Correlated Colour Temperature (CCT) of classrooms have on the cognitive functions (attention and memory) of university students. The cognitive performance of 90 participants was evaluated based on attention and memory tasks. The participants had to view nine virtual classroom configurations, with three different illuminance settings (100 lx, 300 lx and 500 lx) and three CCTs (3000 K, 4000 K and 6500 K). The results showed that attention and memory tasks require different level of illumination. While attention improves with higher light levels, memory improves with lower light levels. Higher CCTs generate better performance in both attention and memory tasks. These results highlight the link between lighting and students’ cognitive responses. This study and its methodology can be useful for architects and researchers as they establish lighting design guidelines capable of improving students’ cognitive processes.

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 471-474
Author(s):  
Elizabeth J. Parks-Stamm ◽  
Jeremy S. Pollack ◽  
Darlene R. Hill

2017 ◽  
pp. 111-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Kapeliushnikov

The paper provides a critical analysis of the idea of technological unemployment. The overview of the existing literature on the employment effects of technological change shows that on the micro-level there exists strong and positive relationship between innovations and employment growth in firms; on the sectoral level this correlation becomes ambiguous; on the macro-level the impact of new technologies seems to be positive or neutral. This implies that fears of explosive growth of technological unemployment in the foreseeable future are exaggerated. Our analysis further suggests that new technologies affect mostly the structure of employment rather than its level. Additionally we argue that automation and digitalisation would change mostly task sets within particular occupations rather than distribution of workers by occupations.


Author(s):  
Rakesh Kumar Gulati ◽  
Manveen Kaur

Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) adoption is increasing globally for human development because of its potential affect in many aspects of economic and societal activities such as GDP growth, employment, productivity, poverty alleviation, quality of life, education, clean water and sanitation, clean energy, and healthcare. Adoption of new technologies has been the main challenge in rural areas and is the main reason for the growing gap between rural and urban economy. The work related ICT use have also yielded mixed results; some studies show the individual’s perceived work-family conflict, negative cognitive responses e.g. techno stress while others show increased productivity, improved job satisfaction and work-family balance due to flexible work timings. This paper attempts to understand the role of ICT in human development areas of health, education and citizen empowerment taking into consideration of digital divide which exists in geographic area and within the communities through literature review.


Emerging technologies have always played an important role in armed conflict. From the crossbow to cyber capabilities, technology that could be weaponized to create an advantage over an adversary has inevitably found its way into military arsenals for use in armed conflict. The weaponization of emerging technologies, however, raises challenging legal issues with respect to the law of armed conflict. As States continue to develop and exploit new technologies, how will the law of armed conflict address the use of these technologies on the battlefield? Is existing law sufficient to regulate new technologies, such as cyber capabilities, autonomous weapons systems, and artificial intelligence? Have emerging technologies fundamentally altered the way we should understand concepts such as law-of-war precautions and the principle of distinction? How can we ensure compliance and accountability in light of technological advancement? This book explores these critical questions while highlighting the legal challenges—and opportunities—presented by the use of emerging technologies on the battlefield.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 106
Author(s):  
Bader A. Alyoubi

Big Data is gaining rapid popularity in e-commerce sector across the globe. There is a general consensus among experts that Saudi organisations are late in adopting new technologies. It is generally believed that the lack of research in latest technologies that are specific to Saudi Arabia that is culturally, socially, and economically different from the West, is one of the key factors for the delay in technology adoption in Saudi Arabia. Hence, to fill this gap to a certain extent and create awareness about Big Data technology, the primary goal of this research was to identify the impact of Big Data on e-commerce organisations in Saudi Arabia. Internet has changed the business environment of Saudi Arabia too. E-commerce is set for achieving new heights due to latest technological advancements. A qualitative research approach was used by conducting interviews with highly experienced professional to gather primary data. Using multiple sources of evidence, this research found out that traditional databases are not capable of handling massive data. Big Data is a promising technology that can be adopted by e-commerce companies in Saudi Arabia. Big Data’s predictive analytics will certainly help e-commerce companies to gain better insight of the consumer behaviour and thus offer customised products and services. The key finding of this research is that Big Data has a significant impact in e-commerce organisations in Saudi Arabia on various verticals like customer retention, inventory management, product customisation, and fraud detection.


Horticulturae ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Athanasios Koukounaras

Greenhouse horticulture is one of the most intensive agricultural systems, with the advantages of environmental parameter control (temperature, light, etc.), higher efficiency of resource utilization (water, fertilizers, etc.) and the use of advanced technologies (hydroponics, automation, etc.) for higher productivity, earliness, stability of production and better quality. On the other hand, climate change and the application of high inputs without suitable management could have negative impacts on the expansion of the greenhouse horticulture sector. This special issue gathers twelve papers: three reviews and nine of original research. There is one review that focuses on irrigation of greenhouse crops, while a second surveys the effects of biochar on container substrate properties and plant growth. A third review examines the impact of light quality on plant–microbe interactions, especially non-phototrophic organisms. The research papers report both the use of new technologies as well as advanced cultivation practices. In particular, new technologies are presented such as dye-sensitized solar cells for the glass cover of a greenhouse, automation for water and nitrogen deficit stress detection in soilless tomato crops based on spectral indices, light-emitting diode (LED) lighting and gibberellic acid supplementation on potted ornamentals, the integration of brewery wastewater treatment through anaerobic digestion with substrate-based soilless agriculture, and application of diatomaceous earth as a silica supplement on potted ornamentals. Research studies about cultivation practices are presented comparing different systems (organic-conventional, aeroponic-nutrient film technique (NFT)-substrate culture), quantitative criteria for determining the quality of grafted seedlings, and of wild species as alternative crops for cultivation.


Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (14) ◽  
pp. 4663
Author(s):  
Janaina Cavalcanti ◽  
Victor Valls ◽  
Manuel Contero ◽  
David Fonseca

An effective warning attracts attention, elicits knowledge, and enables compliance behavior. Game mechanics, which are directly linked to human desires, stand out as training, evaluation, and improvement tools. Immersive virtual reality (VR) facilitates training without risk to participants, evaluates the impact of an incorrect action/decision, and creates a smart training environment. The present study analyzes the user experience in a gamified virtual environment of risks using the HTC Vive head-mounted display. The game was developed in the Unreal game engine and consisted of a walk-through maze composed of evident dangers and different signaling variables while user action data were recorded. To demonstrate which aspects provide better interaction, experience, perception and memory, three different warning configurations (dynamic, static and smart) and two different levels of danger (low and high) were presented. To properly assess the impact of the experience, we conducted a survey about personality and knowledge before and after using the game. We proceeded with the qualitative approach by using questions in a bipolar laddering assessment that was compared with the recorded data during the game. The findings indicate that when users are engaged in VR, they tend to test the consequences of their actions rather than maintaining safety. The results also reveal that textual signal variables are not accessed when users are faced with the stress factor of time. Progress is needed in implementing new technologies for warnings and advance notifications to improve the evaluation of human behavior in virtual environments of high-risk surroundings.


2021 ◽  
Vol 166 (3-4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. Gerst ◽  
Melissa A. Kenney ◽  
Irina Feygina

AbstractVisual climate indicators have become a popular way to communicate trends in important climate phenomena. Producing accessible visualizations for a general audience is challenging, especially when many are based on graphics designed for scientists, present complex and abstract concepts, and utilize suboptimal design choices. This study tests whether diagnostic visualization guidelines can be used to identify communication shortcomings for climate indicators and to specify effective design modifications. Design guidelines were used to diagnose problems in three hard-to-understand indicators, and to create three improved modifications per indicator. Using online surveys, the efficacy of the modifications was tested in a control versus treatment setup that measured the degree to which respondents understood, found accessible, liked, and trusted the graphics. Furthermore, we assessed whether respondents’ numeracy, climate attitudes, and political party affiliation affected the impact of design improvements. Results showed that simplifying modifications had a large positive effect on understanding, ease of understanding, and liking, but not trust. Better designs improved understanding similarly for people with different degrees of numerical capacity. Moreover, while climate skepticism was associated with less positive subjective responses and greater mistrust toward climate communication, design modification improved understanding equally for people across the climate attitude and ideological spectrum. These findings point to diagnostic design guidelines as a useful tool for creating more accessible, engaging climate graphics for the public.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document