scholarly journals Cognitive Factories: Modeling Situated Entropy in Physical Work Carried Out by Humans and Robots

Entropy ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (9) ◽  
pp. 659 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Fox ◽  
Adrian Kotelba ◽  
Ilkka Niskanen

Entropy in factories is situated. For example, there can be numerous different ways of picking, orientating, and placing physical components during assembly work. Physical components can be redesigned to increase the Information Gain they provide and so reduce situated entropy in assembly work. Also, situated entropy is affected by the extent of knowledge of those doing the work. For example, work can be done by knowledgeable experts or by beginners who lack knowledge about physical components, etc. The number of different ways that work can be done and the knowledge of the worker combine to affect cognitive load. Thus, situated entropy in factories relates to situated cognition within which knowledge is bound to physical contexts and knowing is inseparable from doing. In this paper, six contributions are provided for modelling situated entropy in factories. First, theoretical frameworks are brought together to provide a conceptual framework for modelling. Second, the conceptual framework is related to physical production using practical examples. Third, Information Theory mathematics is applied to the examples and a preliminary methodology in presented for modelling in practice. Fourth, physical artefacts in factory production are reframed as carriers of Information Gain and situated entropy, which may or may not combine as Net Information Gain. Fifth, situated entropy is related to different types of cognitive factories that involve different levels of uncertainty in production operations. Sixth, the need to measure Net Information Gain in the introduction of new technologies for embodied and extended cognition is discussed in relation to a taxonomy for distributed cognition situated in factory production. Overall, modelling of situated entropy is introduced as an opportunity for improving the planning and control of factories that deploy human cognition and cognitive technologies including assembly robotics.

2021 ◽  
pp. 174997552199830
Author(s):  
Antonio Ariño Villarroya ◽  
Ramon Llopis-Goig

Since the 1990s, the central references of the sociology of cultural practices have been the theoretical frameworks developed by Pierre Bourdieu and Richard A. Peterson around the concepts of distinction and omnivorousness. This article is based on these frameworks; it revises them together with those of Donnat and Lahire and postulates that the terms of cultural classification and especially those of the upper classes (distinguished and omnivorous) require revision. The article also claims that there are diverse socio-cultural profiles due to the fact that there is never a single logic of differentiation of tastes, and that the results of the present research demand a new conceptual framework capable of showing the operation of diverse logics of differentiation and hierarchy. In order to do this, an analysis of the socio-cultural profiles of the cultivated groups in Spanish society is carried out on the data obtained from the Survey of Cultural Habits and Practices in Spain 2018/19. This work proves the existence of three types of cultivated population – classical, modern and syncretic – with notable differences in their cultural interests and practices, as well as in their underlying sociodemographic features and aesthetic logics, and concludes by posing the need to delve into the latter in what it defines as the study of cultural practice regimes.


Author(s):  
Francesco Caputo ◽  
Armando Papa ◽  
Valentina Cillo ◽  
Manlio Del Giudice

The chapter aims at investigating the relationships between human resources and ICTs with the aim to underline what barriers and opportunities are emerging in digital societies. As a matter of fact, the production, through the concept of Industry 4.0, is requiring advanced training of the workforce. To address these challenges, the chapter specifically provides a wide conceptual framework for describing the relationships between human resources and ICTs in the Industry 4.0 framework. After this, the attention is focused on the construct of technology readiness as a way to clarify human resources' reaction to the introduction of new technologies and digital instruments. Finally, the proposed conceptual framework is used to trace possible guidelines for the management of educational programs.


Author(s):  
Jeffrey Mok

Technological artifacts such as computers and mobile electronic devices have dramatically increased our learning interactions with machines. Coupled with the increasingly different forms of collaborative learning situations, our contemporary learning environments have become more complex and interconnected in today’s information age. How do we understand the learning and collaborative processes in such environments? How do members receive, analyze, synthesize, and propagate information in crowded systems? How do we investigate the collaborative processes in an increasingly sophisticated learning environment? What is collaboration in the current technological age? This chapter, using the conceptual framework of distributed and social cognition, will seek to answer these questions. It will describe the current perspectives on social and distributed cognition in the context of learning, and examine how these theories can inform the processes of collaborative learning with computers. The chapter will conclude with implications to our learning environments today.


Leonardo ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 450-456 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gail Kenning

Domestic craft-based textile activities, such as knitting, crochet, hand weaving and lace making, are often viewed as being of limited creative potential. The perceived lack of creativity arises, in part, out of the extent to which these activities copy, reproduce and re-create existing pattern forms and use preexisting templates. This paper reports on the findings of an experimental research project that explored the creative potential of crochet lace making using digital media, technologies and practices. It provides critical analysis of how new technologies, practices and theoretical frameworks have implications for ongoing domestic craft-based textile activities.


Author(s):  
Daphne C. Watkins

Black men experience disproportionate mental health challenges due to their exposure to severe psychosocial stressors. Yet, the mental health challenges of Black men have largely been left out of national conversations. Strong theoretical frameworks are important when generating dialogue about the mental health of Black men, as it helps to validate the work on a larger scale while also grounding the work for more practical use. This paper presents the conceptual framework for a five-year initiative aimed at improving the living, learning, and thriving of young Black men through a social media intervention that improves their mental health, expands their definitions of manhood, and helps them to engage in social support. The Young, Black Men, Masculinities, and Mental Health (YBMen) project is a social media-based, health promotion program that targets mental health (e.g., depressive symptoms), masculine norms (e.g., definitions of manhood), and social support for young Black men using culturally-sensitive, age-appropriate, and gender-specific popular culture. The YBMen project has been successfully implemented with over 150+ Black men since 2014; findings demonstrate improved mental health outcomes, progressive definitions of manhood, and stronger social relationships. Reflections from the past and projections for the future are discussed.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Kyazze ◽  
Janet Wesson ◽  
Kevin Naudé

Background: Individuals with disabilities experience difficulty in using various everyday technologies such as computers and smartphones.Objectives: To propose a conceptual framework that will lead to the development of practical and user friendly assistive technology.Method: A literature review of challenges faced by individuals with physical disabilities was carried out. Interviews with adults with physical disabilities in Kampala, Uganda, and Port Elizabeth, South Africa, identified three main challenges with regard to using technology: using a mobile phone, controlling an electronic environment and using a computer.Results: The challenges identified can be solved by taking into consideration the needs of individuals with disabilities. However, the design of new technologies and interaction techniques, such as natural hand gestures and voice, as input mechanisms has able-bodied individuals in mind. Individuals with disabilities are considered as an afterthought. The main reason for this is that individuals with a disability are a minority and hence it may not make economic sense for technology innovators to cater for their unique needs. A lack of practical guidelines on how to design for individuals with disabilities is another reason why designing for individuals with disabilities is often an afterthought.Conclusion: This article proposes a conceptual framework that can be used by researchers and technology designers in order to design products that could cater for the unique needs of individuals with disabilities. The article also emphasises the importance of exploring alternative interaction techniques, as they could enable individuals with disabilities to fully utilise technologies such as smart phones, computers and smart home electronics.


2015 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-109
Author(s):  
Łukasz Afeltowicz ◽  
Witold Wachowski

Abstract The aim of this paper is to discuss the concept of distributed cognition (DCog) in the context of classic questions posed by mainstream cognitive science. We support our remarks by appealing to empirical evidence from the fields of cognitive science and ethnography. Particular attention is paid to the structure and functioning of a cognitive system, as well as its external representations. We analyze the problem of how far we can push the study of human cognition without taking into account what is underneath an individual’s skin. In light of our discussion, a distinction between DCog and the extended mind becomes important.


2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-70
Author(s):  
Petar Jandric

The aim of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework for curriculum for e-learning. The conducted research is based on two dialectically intertwined pillars. The theoretical pillar consists of the rich critical tradition of inquiry into the relationships between technologies and human beings in wide social contexts from Frankfurt School onwards. The practical pillar consists of Dahlberg’s main strands of Internet research – Uses Determination, Technological Determination and Social Determination (2004). Blending the theoretical and the practical pillar, it is shown that the discipline of e-learning consists of Habermas’s three main spheres of human interests, types of knowledge and research methods – the technical, the practical, and the emancipatory (Tinning, 1992). The conducted research does not include explorations of epistemological basis for combining various theoretical frameworks and research methodologies. For this reason, its results cannot be applied to scientific research without further elaboration. In order to expose students and practitioners to the true structure of the discipline of e-learning, however, results of this research can be confidently applied in practical fields from curriculum development to policy making. Key words: critical e-learning, e-learning curriculum development, spheres of human interest, e-learning research strands.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 626-632
Author(s):  
Nasr Al Yahyai ◽  
Aza Azalina ◽  
Kamisah Supian

Industry is at the heart of a government's plans to transform the economy from a resource-based economy to a value-added one. Economic diversification is vital to countries’ long-term economic growth, but many resource-rich countries remain heavily reliant on revenues generated by natural resources such as mineral or oil production. In Oman, the fall in price oil compelled the government to rethink about development and economic plans in order to improve the living conditions of the population. The main objective of economic diversification agenda is to increase the contribution of these sectors to the gross national product (GDP) of Oman, raise production and create more jobs for these sectors. New technologies will promote the achievement of inclusive, sustainable industrial development through its creation and absorption. New innovations allow businesses to bring new products into the market and improve production efficiency. In addition, industrial development generates new employment and profit incentives. More products and productivity of production also add to the growth of the economy. Industrial development at the same time leads to the manufacture and diffusion of emerging technology. Only by industrialization can economies, industries and businesses build and maintain the requisite technical transition capabilities. This paper presents a conceptual or research framework that identifies the mediating effect of industrial development in the relationship between economic diversification and economic growth in Oman. Two main factors are considered, i.e., the strategic drivers consisting of economic and non-economic variables, and industrial development initiatives. The paper concludes with the discussion on the formulations of hypothesis statements that describe the inter-relationships between the constructs in the conceptual framework. It is expected that the proposed framework can be further verified and tested by using empirical research work.


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