Designing a VR game for public speaking based on speakers features: a case study

Abstract Oratory or the art of public speaking with eloquence has been cultivated since ancient times. However, the fear of speaking in public -a disproportionate reaction to the threatening situation of facing an audience- affects a very important part of the population. This work arises from the need to help alleviate this fear through a tool where to train the ability of public speaking. To this purpose, we built a virtual reality system that offers the speaker a safe environment to practice presentations. Since the audience is the only way to receive feedback when giving a speech, our system offer s a virtual audience that reacts and gives real-time feedback based on the emotions conveyed by three parameters: voice tone, speech content and speaker’s gaze. In this paper, we detail the modelling of a behavioural-realistic audience just focusing on the speakers’ voice tone: 1) by presenting an algorithm that controls the audience’ reactions based on the emotions beamed by the speaker, and 2) by carrying out an experiment comparing the reactions generated by the agents with those of a real audience to the same speech, in order to refine the given algorithm. In this experiment, the audience subjects are asked to fill a questionnaire - level of engagement and perceived emotions - for a speech performed by professional actors representing different emotions. Afterwards, we compared the reactions of said audience with the ones generated by our algorithm, and used the results to improve it.

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Context-Aware Adaptation of Component-Based Systems: An Active Repository Approach

Journal of Computer Networks and Communications ◽

10.1155/2012/963728 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 2012 ◽

pp. 1-11 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sindolfo Miranda Filho ◽

Julio Melo ◽

Luiz Eduardo Leite ◽

Guido Lemos

Keyword(s):

Context Aware ◽

Current Configuration ◽

Fuzzy Logic Algorithm ◽

Running System ◽

Component Based Software Engineering ◽

Context Aware System ◽

The Given ◽

To Receive ◽

Component Repository

Context-aware systems are able to monitor and automatically adapt their operation accordingly to the execution context in which they are introduced. Component-based software engineering (CBSE) focuses on the development and reuse of self-contained software assets in order to achieve better productivity and quality. In order to store and retrieve components, CBSE employs component repository systems to provide components to the system developers. This paper presents an active component repository that is able to receive the current configuration from the context-aware system and compute the components and the new architecture that better fit the given context. Since the repository has a wide knowledge of available components, it can better decide which configuration is more suitable to the running system. The repository applies Fuzzy logic algorithm to evaluate the adequacy level of the components and GRASP algorithm to mount the new system architecture. In order to verify the feasibility of our approach, we use a digital TV middleware case study to achieve experimental results.

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Literary Representations of Female Identity

American Journal of Islam and Society ◽

10.35632/ajis.v19i4.1914 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 19 (4) ◽

pp. 23-41

Author(s):

Safoi Babana-Hampton

Keyword(s):

The DWQ-EMR Embedded Tool to Enhance the Family Physician-Caregiver Connection: A Pilot Case Study

Geriatrics ◽

10.3390/geriatrics6010029 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 29

Author(s):

Kristina Marie Kokorelias ◽

Einat Danieli ◽

Sheila Dunn ◽

Sid Feldman ◽

David Patrick Ryan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Family Caregivers ◽

Best Practice ◽

Data Gathering ◽

Family Physicians ◽

Efficient Manner ◽

Efficient Access ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Starting Point ◽

To Receive

The number of family caregivers to individuals with dementia is increasing. Family physicians are often the first point of access to the health care system for individuals with dementia and their caregivers. Caregivers are at an increased risk of developing negative physical, cognitive and affective health problems themselves. Caregivers also describe having unmet needs to help them sustain care in the community. Family physicians are in a unique position to help support caregivers and individuals with dementia, but often struggle with keeping up with best practice dementia service knowledge. The Dementia Wellness Questionnaire was designed to serve as a starting point for discussions between caregivers and family physicians by empowering caregivers to communicate their needs and concerns and to enhance family physicians’ access to specific dementia support information. The DWQ aims to alert physicians of caregiver and patient needs. This pilot study aimed to explore the experiences of physicians and caregivers of people using the Questionnaire in two family medicine clinics in Ontario, Canada. Interviews with physicians and caregivers collected data on their experiences using the DWQ following a 10-month data gathering period. Data was analyzed using content analysis. Results indicated that family physicians may have an improved efficacy in managing dementia by having dementia care case specific guidelines integrated within electronic medical records. By having time-efficient access to tailored supports, family physicians can better address the needs of the caregiver–patient dyad and help support family caregivers in their caregiving role. Caregivers expressed that the Questionnaire helped them remember concerns to bring up with physicians, in order to receive help in a more efficient manner.

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The ABC Concept—Value Added to the Earth Heritage Interpretation?

Geoheritage ◽

10.1007/s12371-021-00558-8 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

Author(s):

M. Pásková ◽

J. Zelenka ◽

T. Ogasawara ◽

B. Zavala ◽

I. Astete

Keyword(s):

General Education ◽

Value Added ◽

Cultural Aspects ◽

The Earth ◽

Holistic Interpretation ◽

Level Of Knowledge ◽

Internal And External Factors ◽

The Given ◽

Heritage Interpretation

AbstractHolistic interpretation of Earth heritage is one of the most important tasks of UNESCO Global geoparks. The ABC (abiotic, biotic, and cultural interconnections) concept is a potential interpretive approach used in Earth heritage popularization through geotourism. Apart of the deeper understanding of this concept, this study explores the application of this concept in selected geoparks. The Colca and Volcanoes Andagua UNESCO Global Geopark (Peru) and Muroto UNESCO Global Geopark (Japan) served as a case study in the frame of this qualitative research conducted during the summer 2019. Results show that the ABC approach is nearly perfectly understood by both geoparks, however there are both internal and external factors which influence the extent and form of how this concept is applied in practice. Except for specific geographical settings, different stages of geopark product development, and different managerial approaches, they mainly include the level of scientific knowledge and general education in the given geopark, as well as level of knowledge management and networking with another UNESCO global geoparks. The more experienced Muroto Geopark interpretation exhibits a comparatively higher level of visible ABC application, while the Colca and Volcanoes Andagua Geopark can benefit in the future from the natural inclination and ability of the local people to integrate the cultural aspects into their Earth heritage interpretation.

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The Fairness of Solidarity Bills under the Solidarity Value of Nowak and Radzik

Game Theory ◽

10.1155/2015/450208 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-12

Author(s):

Lawrence Diffo Lambo ◽

Pierre Wambo

Keyword(s):

Shapley Value ◽

Real World ◽

Side Effect ◽

Tu Games ◽

Unwanted Side Effect ◽

The Disabled ◽

Threshold Position ◽

To Receive

The solidarity value is a variant of the well-known Shapley value in which some sense of solidarity between the players is implemented allowing the disabled to receive help from the fortunate ones. We investigate on how fairly solidarity expenses are shared. We discuss the unwanted side effect of someone paying undue solidarity contributions as far as reversing his condition from a privileged to a needy person. A deeper case study is conducted for two classes of TU games that we obtain by modeling two real world business contexts. Here, we trace all player to player transfers of funds that arise when solidarity actions are processed, and we answer the question of who settles the solidarity bills. Also, we obtain the threshold position of a player below which he gets solidarity help, but above which he instead pays out donation.

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An Investigation of the Variables Predicting Faculty of Education Students’ Speaking Anxiety through Ordinal Logistic Regression Analysis

Journal of Education and Learning ◽

10.5539/jel.v6n1p27 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 27

Author(s):

Ebru Bozpolat

Keyword(s):

Logistic Regression ◽

Regression Analysis ◽

Logistic Regression Analysis ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Public Speaking ◽

Education Students ◽

Speaking Anxiety ◽

Ordinal Logistic Regression Analysis ◽

Faculty Of Education ◽

Speech Content

The purpose of this study is to determine whether Cumhuriyet University Faculty of Education students’ levels of speaking anxiety are predicted by the variables of gender, department, grade, such sub-dimensions of “Speaking Self-Efficacy Scale for Pre-Service Teachers” as “public speaking”, “effective speaking”, “applying the speaking rules”, “organizing the speech content”, and “evaluating the speech”. Correlational survey model is employed in the study. While the dependent variable of the study is students’ “speaking anxiety”, its independent variables are gender, department, grade, and such sub-dimensions of “Speaking Self-Efficacy Scale for Pre-Service Teachers” as “public speaking”, “effective speaking”, “applying the speaking rules”, “organizing the speech content”, and “evaluating the speech”. The research population consists of 2983 students studying at seven departments of Faculty of Education of Cumhuriyet University in the 2015-2016 academic year. The research sample, on the other hand, is composed of 1057 students from seven departments of Faculty of Education of Cumhuriyet University. Data were collected via “Scale of Speaking Anxiety for Prospective Teachers”, which was developed by Kınay and Özkan (2014) to determine pre-service teachers’ speaking anxiety, and “Speaking Self-Efficacy Scale for Pre-Service Teachers”, which was developed by Katrancı and Melanlıoğlu (2013) to determine pre-service teachers’ speaking self-efficacy. Data were collected through ordinal logistic regression analysis as the dependent variable was made three-category and ordinal through cluster analysis. According to the logistic regression analysis results, gender, department, such sub-dimensions of “Speaking Self-Efficacy Scale for Pre-Service Teachers” as “public speaking” and “applying the speaking rules” have a significant influence on speaking anxiety.

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Teaching Process Skills to Pre-Engineers using Situated Learning – A Case Study

International Journal of Engineering Pedagogy (iJEP) ◽

10.3991/ijep.v8i5.9036 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 8 (5) ◽

pp. 121

Author(s):

Pamela A. Maher ◽

Janelle M. Bailey ◽

Allan M. Tucka

Keyword(s):

Undergraduate Students ◽

Situated Learning ◽

Public Speaking ◽

Oral Communication ◽

Physics Students ◽

The Public ◽

Two Year College ◽

Before And After ◽

K 12

In this case study, undergraduate students presented physics concepts to patrons at a planetarium. This created an early opportunity for these pre-professionals to practice the process skill of oral communication to a lay audience. The case study resulted from working with students participating in a grant called the da Vinci project. It reports on a situated experience pre-engineering and calculus-based physics students had working with their professor to create a brochure and present a physics concept to patrons visiting a public planetarium. Working closely with their professor, students were able to use this required professional skill in a real world (situated) context. This opportunity helped bridge the gap between these pre-professionals’ experiences in training and in their careers in STEM fields. Thirty students attending a two-year college in the Southwestern US self-selected to participate in the project. Each student participant built a kit-based model of a machine, designed an informational flyer aligned to state K-12 physical science standards, and presented informally to the public visiting a planetarium. Data were collected from the students via written reflections before and after the presentation and from email correspondence with their professor. Qualitative analyses of these reflections assessed the students’ progress toward a finished presentation. Results suggest that obstacles to public speaking fluency come from the fear of making mistakes or giving out misinformation. Opportunities to engage in informal public speaking helped overcome these obstacles. Students demonstrated increased confidence in their ability to share their knowledge with the public after undergoing guided informal speaking practice. The opportunity for students to practice public speaking during their undergraduate training can increase confidence and better prepare them for a career.

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Online Social Gambling and Its Implications for the Study of Marketing Communications

International Journal of Applied Behavioral Economics ◽

10.4018/ijabe.2015070102 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 4 (3) ◽

pp. 22-50 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Wilson Ozuem ◽

Jason Prasad

Keyword(s):

Single Case ◽

Internet Technology ◽

Marketing Communication ◽

Single Case Study ◽

New Approach ◽

Real Money ◽

Long Time ◽

Ancient Times ◽

Communication Practices

Gambling has been a part of humanity for a long time, and references to it have been found in some of the earliest dated records. Literature on the topic has been accumulating since ancient times. The advent of Internet technology along with its typical subsets provides a new approach to how gambling is conducted in postmodern times. Drawing on qualitative research and utilising a single case study strategy, this study examines online social gambling and real money gambling marketing communication practices as well as offers some insights into the development and implementation of effective marketing communication programmes. In contrast to existing studies, the paper, in part, proposes integrative and higher levels of marketing communication programmes between online social gambling and real money gambling environments.

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Review of progress in gathering, distributing and using satellite data for activities within COST 238 (PRIME)

Annals of Geophysics ◽

10.4401/ag-4016 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 39 (4) ◽

Author(s):

I. Kutiev ◽

S. Stankov

Keyword(s):

Satellite Data ◽

Satellite Orbit ◽

Testing Procedure ◽

Satellite Orbits ◽

Neutral Atmosphere ◽

Recombination Rates ◽

F Region ◽

Field Lines ◽

The Given ◽

To Receive

Recent progress in using the satellite data for various PRIME purposes is briefly presented. The satellite data base is already in operation and contains data of local plasma and neutral atmosphere parameters taken from several ionospheric satellites. A method of tracing the locally measured parameters along the magnetic field lines down to hmF2 is developed using a theoretical F-region code. This method is applied to receive f0F2sat needed to test monthly median and instantaneous mapping methods. In order to reduce the uncertainties arising from the unknown photoionization and recombination rates, f0F2 is calibrated at one point on the satellite orbit with a Vertical Incident (VI) f0F2 and their ratio is then assumed constant along the whole satellite track over the PRIME area. The testing procedure for monthly median maps traces the measured plasma density down to a basic height of 400 km, where individual f0F2sat values are accumulated in every time/subarea bin within the given month, then their median is calibrated with the available medians from the VI ionosonde network. From all available satellite orbits over the PRIME area, 35 of them were found to pass over two VI ionosonde stations. The second station in these orbits was used to check the calculated f0F2sat with the measured VI f0F2. The standard deviation was found to be only 0.15 MHz.

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DYNAMICS OF THE SEMANTIC COMPLEX OF DOMINANT UNITS IN POETIC TEXT: INTERTEXTUAL ASPECT (a Case Study of L. Cohen’s Poem ‘Elegy’)

Вестник Пермского университета Российская и зарубежная филология ◽

10.17072/2073-6681-2020-4-33-43 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 33-43

Author(s):

Ilya V. Sergodeev ◽

Keyword(s):

Contextual Analysis ◽

Personal Pronoun ◽

Greek Mythology ◽

Unit Of Analysis ◽

Christian Culture ◽

Poetic Text ◽

Artistic Images ◽

The Given

The article deals with the dynamics of the semantic complex of dominant units in poetic text. Units of poetic text are divided into constant and dominant ones. Constant units realize the function of the context formation. They have one clear meaning. Dominant units realize the function of semantization. They are poly-interpretative. The methodology of the work is based on the theory of intertextuality which is viewed from the position of structural, interpretative and lingua-cultural approaches. The brief typology and characteristics of intertextual relations are given: auto- (self-quotations, self-allusions), in- (quotations, allusions), para- (structural and compositional units of a text such as a title, an epigraph, etc.) and arch-textuality (genre imitation; referring to well-known artistic images or cultural phenomena). The paper presents the model of analysis of dominant units in poetic text. The analysis is carried out in five steps: fragmentation, contextual analysis, search and determination of intertextual relations between the analyzed unit and units of address texts, contextual analysis of address texts, synthesis of the obtained contextual meanings. The practical material under study is the poem Elegy by the Canadian poet L. Cohen. The unit of analysis is the personal pronoun he in the given poetic text. The paper establishes intertextual relations between Elegy and texts from Greek mythology, the Holy Bible, Christian culture, and other works by L. Cohen. The conducted analysis shows that intertextual relations between the studied units initiate exchange and superimposition of their context meanings. As a result, the studied unit can have several meanings (some of which are not present in dictionaries but unique for the given author) within the same context. In this way, the dynamics of the semantic complex of the studied units and poetic text is realized.

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