Analyzing Multiscale Spatial Relationships between the House Price and Visual Environment Factors

House price is closely associated with the development of the national economy and people’s daily life. Understanding the spatial distribution characteristics and influencing factors of the house price is of great practical significance. Although a lot of attention has been paid to modeling the house price from structure and location attributes, limited work has considered the impact of visual attributes. Intuitively, a better visual environment may raise the surrounding house price. When aggregating multiple factors that influence house price, the multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) provides a suitable solution. Specifically, the MGWR assigns each factor a bandwidth to model the spatial heterogeneity, e.g., a factor may have different influences at different places. In this paper, we introduce the visual environment factors into the MGWR method. In detail, we extract ten visual elements, e.g., sky, vegetation, road, from the Baidu street view (BSV) images, using a deep learning framework. We further define six visual environment factors to investigate their influence on house price. Based on the data from two representative Chinese cities, i.e., Beijing and Chongqing, we reveal the influence degree and spatial scale difference of six visual indexes on the house price in two cities. Results show that: (1) the influence intensity of our proposed six visual environment factors on the house price in different regions of the city can be identified, and the green view index (GVI) is the most important visual environmental factor; and (2) the influence of these view indexes changes significantly or even reversely depends on different areas.

Visual Appropriation: A Self-reflexive Qualitative Method for Visual Analysis of the International

This article introduces visual appropriation as a method in critical international political thinking and acting, contributing to the evolving repertoire of multiple, pluralist methods for visual analysis of international relations operating in a digital visual environment. We define appropriation as reuse of existing visual material—either in its entirety or in part—without substantially altering the immanent characteristics of the appropriated material. As appropriators, scholars are producers of images who capitalize on and actively participate in digital visuality (seeing–changing–sharing). Appropriators are both image-analysts and image-actors but distinct from both, contributing not only to the visual analysis, but also to the visual construction of international relations. Approaching the international through appropriation grants researchers increased agency and responsibility vis-à-vis existing visual materials “out-there.” Rather than exploring a digital space of visual images produced and appropriated by others, researchers consciously and deliberately partake in the production and dissemination of images. As a result, we highlight how we—as scholars and as citizens—are facing research-ethical problematiques linked to ways of showing and seeing inevitably emanating from appropriation.

LINE AS AN EXPRESSIVE MEANS IN DESIGNOF THE VISUAL ENVIRONMENT

The purpose. The peculiarities of the use of linear images in the visual environment are investigated. Their influence on human perception and relevance of their use in design and art is determined. Methodology. General scientific research methods are used: analytical, typological, comparative analysis are used to determine the lines and their application in advertising and design. Results.Linear images differ against the background of modern media space. The use of linear, schematic, simplified images and their assimilation appeals to the historical development of human perception, which allows such images to be perceived on a subconscious level, without requiring concentration and distraction from other activities. Trends in the development of linear images in human perception are analyzed. The use of lines in various types of fine arts is emphasized and revealed. The scientific novelty. To consider the lines as a tool for visual emphasis of facilities and distribution lines in various forms of art. Their historical development and significance for human activity are established. Practical significance. The study allows to expand knowledge about the use of lines in modern and elite areas of art. The obtained results can be used in further studies of linear visual solutions.

HOME OFFICE SURVEY IN THE SCOPE OF THE IEA SHC TASK 61, THE LIGHTING CONDITIONS FOR STUDENTS

This paper has been developed in the IEA SHC Task 61 Integrated Solutions for Daylighting and Electric Lighting scope. Task 61 aims at developing and testing strategies and solutions combining daylighting, electric lighting, and the most suitable control systems. Some of the planned activities, especially in the Subtask A: User perspective and requirements, were not possible due to the Coronavirus pandemic restrictions. On the other side, new challenges emerged, for example, the migration of workplaces to homes. It occurred both for professionals and students, and the lighting conditions in these new improvised workplaces are unknown. In this context, the article presents the part of the home office survey aiming to understand lighting conditions for students in home offices in different countries: Brazil, Italy, Japan, Columbia, Denmark, and Poland. The paper also seeks to define the current limitations of a home office in providing a resilient visual environment.

LESSONS LEARNED FROM REGISTRATION OF OCCUPANCY AND USE OF LIGHTING IN OFFICES, SCHOOLS, UNIVERSITIES AND INDUSTRY BUILDINGS, A CROSS COUNTRY STUDY

The paper presents a registration of occupancy and the use of (day)light in four buildings representing respectively offices, primary schools, universities, and industry buildings; it was done across Europe in 2020. A self-registration method was used, assisted with light technical measurements outdoors and indoors. In general, occupants consider the visual environment at the workplace when they are coming in or out of the room. It happens mainly at the beginning (adjustment of blinds and switching light on) and at the end of the working day (switching light off). In the primary school building, where users move in-out many times during the day, the adjustment happens more frequently. Also use of projector generates very low general light level; covering windows and switching off the electric light happens accordingly, but the pattern is not consistent. In general, the changes in the electrical lighting use follow the occupancy pattern, not the light levels.

RISKS IN THE VISUAL ENVIRONMENT SUCH AS GLARE, ILLUMINANCE AND LUMINANCE RATIO - RISK ASSESSMENTS MADE WITH VISUAL ERGONOMICS RISK ASSESSMENT METHOD, VERAM– A DESCRIPTIVE PAPER

The visual environment has an impact on subjective strain and headaches. A visual ergonomics risk assessment method, VERAM, was used on 217 workplaces, and consists of both of a subjective questionnaire and an objective risk assessment, the latter risks are presented in this paper. The risk for daylight was assessed to be yellow (moderate risk) or red (high risk) at 53% of the workplaces and the risk for glare was yellow or red at 66%. The assessment of the lighting design showed a yellow or red risk at 44% of the workplaces and the illuminance was assessed to be insufficient at 49% of the workplaces. Flicker or TLM (temporal light modulation) was assessed to be a problem among 33%. These results show that the design of the visual environment is in most cases not performed in a satisfying way. The visual environment is essential to increase wellbeing, health and performance.

Creation of the Simulator to Train Cosmonauts for Visual Instrumental Observations from the International Space Station Using Up-to-Date Information Technologies.

Visual Instrumental Observations (VIOs) of the Earth’s surface is a very special activity for cosmonauts that include searching, finding, and monitoring the objects with the unaided eye and their registration using optical facilities expanding capabilities of an operator’s visual analyzer. In order to impart the correct practical skills in performing VIOs from the ISS to cosmonauts in the course their ground training it is necessary to visualize the image observed by the naked eye and/or in the camera view finder taking into account an optical zoom, mutual location of a cosmonaut, a camera, a window, and the station at a certain point in orbit. For these purposes, the special simulator which simulates an external visual environment as close as possible to the flight conditions has been developed, that is the VIOs simulator designated to train cosmonauts for performing tasks in the field of geophysical studies and monitoring of the Earth.

USEFUL CONTRAST INDEX FOR ROADWAY LIGHTING STANDARDS

This article proposes a new metric for roadway lighting design that has the potential to improve visibility for drivers during nighttime. The new metric is named as Useful Contrast Index (UCI) and it relates the contrast of obstacles (targets) to the contrast threshold. We define the useful contrast index as the percentage of targets that have a contrast value greater than the contrast threshold along the length of the road. We conclude that the Useful Contrast Index has merit and could be used to provide a better visual environment for drivers.