Barrires and Incentives to Territory-Based Innovation Processes

The context of territory-based innovation processes includes both barriers and incentives. This chapter presents the research and findings of a study conducted with two sets of five community-led initiatives, one composed of small-sized initiatives and another composed of larger-sized initiatives, with a view to identify barriers and incentives to territory-based innovation. Following a mixed-coding approach, data was analysed to identify barriers and incentives to territory-based innovation prompted by the use of digital tools, by the interaction among actors, and by contextual factors. Results from both types initiatives show significant technology weariness, still initiatives praise the effectiveness of some digital tools, namely social media, in reaching their audience. Both types of initiatives evidence disappointment towards cultural traits and bureaucracy, being these factors experienced as a disheartening barrier. Yet, initiatives also commend the know-how and flexibility of specific actors, with whom initiatives interact with closely when performing their activities.

End-User Feedback on a Low-Cost Portable Air Quality Sensor System—Are We There Yet?

Low-cost sensors are a current trend in citizen science projects that focus on air quality. Until now, devices incorporating such sensors have been tested primarily for their technical capabilities and limitations, whereas their usability and acceptability amongst the public rarely goes beyond proof of concept, leaving user experience (UX) unstudied. The authors argue that UX should be taken into account to make sure that products and services are fit for purpose. Nineteen volunteers tested and evaluated a prototype device and provided feedback through semi-structured interviews and during focus group sessions. Their UX was then coded using mixed coding methods regarding device functionality and recommendations for future product development. The results indicate that UX can identify potentially problematic design aspects while giving deeper insights into user needs. For example, UX recognized that one of the most important aspects of user involvement and motivation was successful data harvesting, which frequently failed. This study recommends that future developers of low-cost portable air quality sensor systems prioritize reliable data transmission to minimize data loss. This will ensure an efficient and positive UX that supports user engagement in citizen science based research where collecting sensor-based data is the primary objective.

Low-dimensional and monotonic preparatory activity in mouse anterior lateral motor cortex

Neurons in multiple brain regions fire trains of action potentials anticipating specific movements, but this ‘preparatory activity’ has rarely been compared across behavioral tasks in the same brain region. We compared preparatory activity in auditory and tactile delayed-response tasks, with directional licking as the output. The anterior lateral motor cortex (ALM) is necessary for motor planning in both tasks. Multiple features of ALM preparatory activity during the delay epoch were similar across tasks. First, majority of neurons showed direction-selective activity and spatially intermingled neurons were selective for either movement direction. Second, many cells showed mixed coding of sensory stimulus and licking direction, with a bias toward licking direction. Third, delay activity was largely monotonic and low-dimensional. Fourth, pairs of neurons with similar direction selectivity showed high spike-count correlations. Our study forms the foundation to analyze the neural circuits underlying preparatory activity in a genetically tractable model organism.