Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Designing for play'

Thesis (Master of Architecture)--University of Cincinnati, 2006.
Title from electronic thesis title page (viewedJuly 17, 2006). Includes abstract. Keywords: children's design, architecture, cognitive development. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis: S.B., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 2015.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (page 42).
Much of children's play time has shifted from outdoor activities to human-screen interactions on smart devices. While the digital world offers many creative play outlets that would be impossible in the physical world, the physical world has a wealth of hands-on learning and cooperative play opportunities that should not be overlooked. Networked Playscapes is a project which merges electronics with physical play to re-imagine playgrounds in a way that appeals to 21st century children. There are many new forms these play structures could take; this thesis will focus on bringing one of these concepts to life. The concept for the play structure is one that no kid can easily resist: bubble wrap. A pair of large, reinflatable bubble wrap systems was designed and a proof-of-concept prototype was constructed. Each system consists of a series of "bubbles" that will pop when pressed. The systems will network over the internet so that popping a bubble in one location pops it in the other. This simple, playful interaction, completed from two geographically and culturally disparate locations, encourages collaboration and competition between both those interacting side by side and those interacting through telepresence.
by Kristin Michelle Zimmerman.
S.B.

Fantasy play is when children explore and travel through time and space, to interpret experiences into stories and to act them out. Children love this kind of play and it is really important for developing skills which will be used later in life. Today, computers are increasingly present in children's lives, and the development of technology over recent decades has changed the way children play. This thesis explores the possibility of young children (aged 3-4) enacting their fantasy play in a virtual environment. Three different games were designed and implemented on a Mitsubishi DiamondTouch (DT) multi-touch interactive tabletop. Three evaluation studies were conducted and the performance of the children's fantasy play was examined. In each study, children were recruited from a local preschool class. The first study was designed to compare fantasy play in physical and virtual settings. Children from the preschool class in a state primary school were invited to play with both a real tree house and its virtual implementation on a Mitsubishi DiamondTouch (DT) multi-touch interactive tabletop. Overall, the children played quietly and alone. The results evinced several problems in the interaction with the tabletop as children struggled to drag the objects displayed on the table surface. Therefore, the study did not provide conclusive evidence of a distinction in fantasy in physical and virtual environments. The second study was concentrated on testing solutions for the interaction difficulties evinced in the first study. A new application named The Magic House was developed and implemented on a Mitsubishi DT multi-touch interactive tabletop and tested twice with the preschool children. The results showed that most of the interaction problems from Study 1 were eliminated; evidence of more fantasy play was captured, and children played more confidently in the second evaluation session. The third study was designed to investigate and to compare children's fantasy play in physical and virtual settings. A new physical setting and the virtual implementation on the Mitsubishi DT multi-touch interactive tabletop of materials named The Farm were designed and examined with a group of preschool children. The results revealed that high occurrence of fantasy play was observed in the virtual setting and several similarities and dissimilarities between the two settings was also highlighted. Overall, this thesis produced knowledge on how the application on the multi-touch interactive tabletop environment was designed and evaluated with preschool children. The thesis results demonstrate that appropriate interaction design of virtual environments could stimulate preschool children's fantasy play and the tabletop can be operated by children as young as three. This thesis also specified requirements for designing and facilitating tabletop environments for preschool children's fantasy play.

Designing tangible objects for children’s development andlearning has been a common theme in the HCI community.However, studies involving designing of tangibles fortoddlers’ hedonic interaction and play experiences havebeen few. This paper explores how toddlers (between oneand three years old) behave when interacting with tangibleplay objects in the context of open-ended play. The aim ofthis study was to explore how the integration ofmultisensory stimuli and multimodal feedback in tangibleobjects can affect toddlers’ play, behaviors and engagementin the context of open-ended play. Furthermore, two playobjects called Sound Cubes were developed and used in aninteraction study conducted at a preschool in Stockholm.The results presented in this paper suggest that the openendedplay objects provided toddlers with opportunity formultiple manipulations that lead to interesting interactions.Moreover, multimodal feedback and multisensory stimulicreated a positive affect on toddlers’ engagement in play.

This thesis sets out to explore why people engage in, and how to design for, play in a public setting. It does this by separating design for play from design of games, describing play as a socially and mentally understood activity, and a playful approach to engaging in that activity. It emphasises that while play is voluntary, design can help shape the players’ mode of engagement. The thesis uses a qualitative and inductive approach to research, with an understanding of knowledge as being constructed in the individual. The research is grounded in human computer interaction and interaction design, and closely related to game studies and design science. The research question concerns how design can influence the player activity in order to create a desired player experience in public, by harnessing playful engagement. It’s foundation is a theory of play which describes play as a framed, or hedged-off, activity with a fragile border; where knowledge and feelings can leak both in and out of the activity, and affect the play as well as what is around it. The theory of enjoyment of play is discussed, and the problem of treating this as ‘fun’ is addressed, concluding in a presentation of how playful engagement can be harnessed through design. The theory is applied in five design cases: I’m Your Body, a locative storytelling app; Codename Heroes, a pervasive game of personal empowerment; Passing On, a slow-paced game about communication; Busking Studies, which involves observing street performers and their shows; and DigiFys, an architectural design exploration of playgrounds and play paths. Finally, three concepts, or design tools, are presented, which address: 1) a structure for understanding a design through three layers, constructs designed by the designer, inspiring play activity with the player, leading to experience; 2) an approach to designing invitations to play; and finally 3), a four faceted structure for understanding play engagement when players engage in non intended ways.

Movement-based interactive systems for play came into the spotlight over a decade ago, and were met with enthusiasm by the general public as well as the Human-Computer Interaction research community. Yet a decade of research and practice has not fully addressed the challenge of designing for the moving body and play. This thesis argues that often, the role of the technology to sustain the play activity, and to drive the design process, has been over-emphasized, and has resulted in limited design possibilities. This thesis explores an alternative design approach to address the problem through combining the design of the technology with designing aspects of the social and spatial context where the play activity takes place. The work is grounded in an embodied perspective of experience, action, and design. Methodologically, it belongs to the Research through Design tradition (RtD). A core concept and a characterization of design practices are presented as key contributions. The concept of embodied core mechanics is introduced to frame desirable and repeatable movement-based play actions, paying attention to the way these are supported by design resources including rules, physical and digital artifacts, and the physical and spatial arrangement of players and artifacts. The concept was developed during the two main design cases: the Oriboo case, targeting dance games for children, and the PhySeEar case, targeting rehabilitative therapy for the elderly. It was further substantiated in subsequent external design collaborations. To support the design process, this thesis presents embodied sketching: a set of ideation design practices that leverage the embodied experience and enable designers to scrutinize the desired embodied experience early in the design process. Three forms of embodied sketching are presented: embodied sketching for bodystorming, co-designing with users, and sensitizing designers. Through reframing the design task as one of designing and studying embodied core mechanics, this thesis establishes an alternative approach to design for movement-based play in which significant aspects of the embodied play experience, lead, drive, and shape the design process and the design of the technology.

This thesis deals with the design of play in public places; this can mean both pervasive games and other freer play activities. In these activities (as well as in many other game activities) the same game can spur many different ways to play it, and the same activity can be experienced differently by different players, and even differently on different occasions for the same player. An activity such as playing must be observed as a whole. The surrounding cul- ture, player preconceptions and the emergent mood within the group will affect the experience. By analysing previous frameworks, and using own design examples, a three level design framework is developed, functioning as a lens towards understanding the design of playful activities. The framework focuses on the player perspective, offering game design as an invitation and encouragement to engage in certain activities. The framework distinguishes between design at three levels: Designed construct (e.g. artefacts and rules) Activity Experiences But it remains to be understood why people engage in the activities that lead to playful experiences. What encourages playful engagement? And why do people want to play one game, and not another? This question can be split into two parts: Engagement: starting to be interested in the activity Commitment: actually caring for the experience This issue is identified in the thesis, and examples show how convoluted this problem is, in particular in pervasive game settings. Challenges are pre- sented for future work.
Mobile Life Centre
Playspaces

Parents' interaction and engagement with young children is fundamental to their healthy development. Children whose parents interact and communicate more frequently exhibit greater school readiness, better language ability, higher grades, and the ability to make friends, guarding against negative outcomes across the lifespan, such as reduced employment prospects and lower mental health. While HCI research has recently begun to address important challenges in parent-child communication, these have focused predominantly on understanding how parents use technology while parenting. However, designing technologybased interventions to support communication practices in parenting young children is largely under-explored. The research presented in this thesis investigates how technology can promote positive interaction between parents and their infant children, specifically those younger than three years old. This time of childhood is fundamental to healthy development as children progressively construct their understanding and knowledge of the world through their coordination of physical interaction with objects and their sensory experiences during this time. Play is especially crucial in this regard, being the primary method of communication between parent and child. Using three case studies, the thesis describes how I worked collaboratively with play specialists and parents to gain a rich understanding of parents' current play practices with their children, the challenges they face when seeking to engage with their children, and the barriers to this engagement; my approach to engaging parents in to a co-creative process to build an online resource to support their needs around play; and how the design of the technology builds on how parents currently play with their children, the frenetic nature of being a parent, and the need to leverage opportunities to play as they arise rather than pre-planned play experiences. This research makes four contributions. It argues for parent-infant play to be a potentially important and viable area of research in the nascent HCI literature on parenthood. It provides a rich and detailed account of how parents' play with their children, highlighting novel uses of technology among numerous examples of communicative play. However, it also illustrates that many parents find it difficult to play with their children. Finally, it provides rich insights in to the complexities and challenges of conducting design research with parents of infant children and the importance of engaging organisations in such long-term design engagements.

The application of digital elements to traditional playgrounds can enhance children’s outdoor play and counteract the growing trend of sedentary activities. This work reports the implementation and evaluation of a playground installation which looks at sound as the modality that can provide new and engaging play experiences. The design of this system follows an open-ended approach that let the children create their own emerging game goals and rules. The sound design is first tested in a lab setting and later on in a Swedish preschool, with a particular focus on the stages of play (invitation, exploration, and immersion). 38 children between 2 and 6 years old participated in a field study that lasted for three days. Children’s engagement over time was quantified and field notes were taken during the whole evaluation. None of the children between 2 and 3 years old reached the immersion stage. On the other hand, children between 4 and 6 years old created their own rules showing parallel and collaborative play and, in some occasions, solitary play. The sound modality chosen proved to be effective to encourage children’s play in a first place. In a longer engagement perspective, the soundscape partly supported an immersive play. The selection of the sounds to be integrated in the system demonstrated to be as fundamental as the physical appearance of the playground installation. The results of this study show how the visual and auditory modalities can be effective in an open-ended interactive playground and report the limitations of this design.
Additionen av digitala element till traditionella lekplatser kan förstärka barns utomhuslek och motverka den växande trenden av stillasittande aktiviteter. Detta arbete beskriver genomförandet och utvärderingen av en lekplatsinstallation med ljud i fokus som den modalitet som kan tillhandahålla nya och engagerande lekupplevelser. Utformningen av denna lekplatsinstallation skedde ur ett fri lek-perspektiv där barn skapar egna mål och regler till sin lek. Ljuddesignen är först testad i en laboratoriemiljö och senare i en svensk förskola, med särskilt fokus på lekfaserna (invit-fasen, utforskande-fasen och uppslukad-fasen). 38 barn mellan 2 och 6 år deltog in en fältstudie som varade i tre dagar. Barns engagemang över tid kvantifierades och noteringar togs under hela utvärderingen. Inga av barnen mellan 2 och 3 år nådde uppslukad-fasen. Å andra sidan skapade barn mellan 4 och 6 år egna regler som visar på parallell och samspelslek och i några fall ensamlek. Den valda ljudmodaliteten visade sig vara effektiv för att uppmuntra barns lek till en början. På längre sikt understödde ljudlandskapet delvis lek av uppslukad karaktär. Valet av ljud integrerat i systemet visade sig vara lika fundamental som den fysiska uppenbarelsen av lekplatsinstallationen. Resultaten av denna studie visar hur de visuella och auditoriska modaliteterna effektivt kan vara designade i en interaktiv lekplats för öppen lek, och begränsningarna av denna design rapporteras.

Our everyday lives are surrounded by gadgets and digital devices that help us perform our daily chores with ease and efficiency. However, these digital devices can also separate us from what we should do ourselves. Although children who are exposed to high levels of technology might become attuned to the latest and the best gadgets, they might not learn to use their physical abilities. Another implication of a child’s over dependence on technology is that parental interactions such as encouragement, tutoring and reinforcement are provided by gadgets rather than living, breathing parents. Research done by Padma Ravichandran and Brandel France de Bravo, revealed the importance of child interaction with live people and games noting that “Very young children learn best by relating to real live people, but they also learn by moving and doing. Part of the problem with screen time is that young children who watch TV and DVDs or use computer games may be substituting these activities for free play”. The aim of this project is to reduce the gap between young children and the tactile world by creating toys that are attractive for the children, but are low-tech and involve parental interaction. Thus, the primary goal that this thesis seeks to achieve is the stimulation of children toward tactile games, while the secondary goal is to allow and encourage parental involvement in the playtime of the child. The research is guided by the premise that children can absorb substantial knowledge through the tactile world and that such tactile centered play will broaden the horizon of their knowledge and experience.

I present a research based project that asks for a discussion about the role of technology in education. It is a question about how to design learning experiences and how to improve the experience of learning through interactive objects. More precisely, this project tries to explore the possibilities of an embodied learning of math using music in a playful way. Superbleeper, the name of the product, is an electronic music instrument that is played using math concepts. It invites 3-6 year old children to play with the math they have to understand according to the Swedish curriculum. This math foundation for the youngest kids is about measurement, shape, patterns, time, change, quantity, sets and order. The tests carried out with children in different contexts show that electronic music can be a way to embody and enjoy the use of math concepts in a creative way.
Pedagogical Interactive Math Visualizations

Seasoned players of free to play trading card games or players that invest large amount of money in digital or physical trading card games, end up having superfluous cards that hold no value to them. The purpose of this thesis is to create designs that would counter this problem. We analysed a selection of popular games on the market to get a better understanding about the depth of the problem and existing designs and mechanics to counter said problem. With the knowledge gained from the research, we intended design several systems that would give cards a polymorphic value. To validate those designs we decided to conduct qualitative interviews with highly experienced players of the genre. We discovered from our research and interviews that the problem with superfluous cards was larger than we had anticipated, and few games had taken steps to counter the problem. The systems we designed gave cards a polymorphic value, and the designs were proven successful through our validation. Our research and interviews suggest that by implementing polymorphic attributes to cards it could lessen or even remove the problem of superfluous cards, and at the same time increase the sales figures on booster packs.

Jerry Jonsson går speldesign och programmering och Lina Tonegran går speldesign och grafik.

This thesis explores new approaches to making and playing with programming materials, especially the forms provided with screen-based digital media. Designing with these media expressions can be very attractive to children, but they are usually not made available to them in the same degree as are physical materials. Inspired by children's play with physical materials, this work includes design explorations of how different resources alter, scaffold and support children in activities of making dynamic, screen-based systems. How tangibles turn the activity of programming into a more physical, social and collaborative activity is emphasised. A specific outcome concerns the importance of considering 'offline' and socially oriented action when designing tangible technologies. The work includes the design of a tangible programming system, Patcher, with which groups of children can program systems displayed on a large screen surface. The character of children's programming is conceptualised through the notion of a digital patchwork, emphasising (1) children's programming as media-sensitive design, (2) making programming more concrete by combining and reusing readily available programming constructs, and (3) the use of tangibles for social interaction.

The present work is based on the research and design of a mobile AR experiment performed in the context of the emerging interdisciplinary fields of digital heritage and experience design. In an attempt to find a method to support the justification and discovery of elements that can influence the user towards the fulfilment of an objective in a heritage experience, my experimental research reveals that a combination of play moments including elements of embodiment and sensuousness in mobile AR are most suitable to convey a story. Determining suitable gameplay and game mechanics requires an appropriate setting and context for a user’s encounter with digital heritage. My research outlines a design methodology to reveal how the aesthetics of mobile AR technology can be designed to support critical user experiences through play and discovery.
Designing Digital Heritage. Seeing Secrets

This thesis explores new approaches to making and playing with programming materials, especially the forms provided with screen-based digital media. Designing with these media expressions can be very attractive to children, but they are usually not made available to them in the same degree as are physical materials.

Inspired by children's play with physical materials, this work includes design explorations of how different resources alter, scaffold and support children in activities of making dynamic, screen-based systems. How tangibles turn the activity of programming into a more physical, social and collaborative activity is emphasised. A specific outcome concerns the importance of considering 'offline' and socially oriented action when designing tangible technologies. The work includes the design of a tangible programming system, Patcher, with which groups of children can program systems displayed on a large screen surface.

The character of children's programming is conceptualised through the notion of a digital patchwork, emphasising (1) children's programming as media-sensitive design, (2) making programming more concrete by combining and reusing readily available programming constructs, and (3) the use of tangibles for social interaction.

Rapid development of U.S. cities and towns along with changes in society and technology are dramatically affecting childhood experience. Wild places and vacant lots for kids to play in are disappearing. Parents have limited time to spend with their children and fear letting them play outside alone. Traffic is a growing safety hazard and there is an increasing desire for entertainment in the form of TV and video games over outdoor exploration. As a result, children are becoming alienated from nature. They are growing up without developing a personal attachment to their natural surroundings or an understanding of their impact on the environment. The design of outdoor play areas can help reconnect children to their surroundings and lead to a more environmentally minded generation. Ecoliteracy suggests an understanding of ecological principles as well as appreciation for the environment and an attitude of stewardship. In addition to helping kids acquire factual knowledge, outdoor play spaces should cultivate a sense of wonder and delight and an emotional appreciation of the living world. Through research, observation and application, this thesis project identifies design criteria for promoting ecoliteracy in outdoor play environments.
Master of Landscape Architecture

Many cognitive scientists agree that musical play is beneficial for preschool children. They consider music to be one of the most important means to promote preschool children’s learning potential. From an interaction design point of view, music provides opportunities to engage children in collaborative play which in return is beneficial for their cognitive and physical development.I argue that tangible interaction can facilitate such collaborative and playful musical activities among preschool children and in the scope of this thesis, I explore how this can be achieved. Through the exploration of related projects in this area and my own design experiments at a preschool, I propose a design concept of a modular musical toy for children which I created and then tested in a preschool context with children of different ages. Along the way, I reflect on the peculiarities of children’s behaviors and the aspects of conducting design research with preschool children, since acknowledging these aspects is crucial for working with children as a designer.

Abstract. Everybody plays. It is a behaviour that is common to all people and indeed most species. A person’s inclination to play is dependant, not only on his mental and emotional state, but also on his surroundings. Despite our physiological separation from the rest of the evolving natural kingdom, our brains have scarcely evolved further than those of our hunter-gatherer forefathers. So often the playful side of adults is forgotten, un-nurtured and neglected, much to the detriment of public physical and mental health. In this ever-changing and fast-paced human society, we are constantly trying to avoid or subdue our primal instincts because we believe we are somehow different... “We are not animals”. We make our primal desire to be free and rampant something to be ashamed of, afraid of and even embarrassed by. This thesis discusses the importance of play with regard to mental health and how urban environments can be and become conducive to play in adults. It poses some ideas about how designers can provide opportunities for both active and fantasy play in transitional urban spaces that we use on a regular basis. The thesis addresses the issue of ‘what is play?’ by establishing a working definition of play in terms of an individual adult player and their surroundings. This definition then serves as the basis for evaluating how contemporary urban design uses a wide array of techniques and strategies to incorporate adult play within everyday life through literature review and case studies. Moreover, it tackles the concept of humour and identifies the benefits to encouraging communication of the self through humour and freedom of expression within the urban realm. These observations provide the basic structure for developing some design parameters which an architect or urban designer might utilise in designing spaces and environments that facilitate play and designing humour for playable cities in order to attain the ‘playful’ city.

In the last decade, many studies and performances within the field of interactive dance have been made. Interactive dance means involving technology into the dance, which opens opportunities to execute a dance in another way than used to. The studies in the past have often involved manipulation of music, but not many studies seem to involve manipulating real-time music produced by a live musician. Hence, this study consisted of a musician and a dancer investigating in the co-play between the two artists through sensory technology in a project called SENSITIV. More specifically, the investigation focused on the input design, i.e. the placement and processing of the motion sensors, for an interactive system, and how the involvement of the sensory technology affects the dance. Inertia-based motion sensors were worn by the dancer, by which the real-time sound produced by the musician was manipulated through the movements of the dancer. This created in turn an interaction within the intermediate connection, where the dancer came to act as a co-musician. Two studies were conducted, where in the first study a prototype was developed and designed in a first-person perspective, and the second study tested the developed prototype on a larger group of dancers. The results showed that placement on the outer parts, such as wrist and ankles, were the most suitable. It was further found that for reaching a positive experience, in terms of feeling in control with dancing with sensors involved, it requires some time as having an understanding and knowledge of the system is needed.
Under det senaste årtiondet har många studier och projekt gjorts inom interaktiv dans. Interaktiv dans betyder att involvera teknik till dansen, vilket öppnar upp många möjligheter till att utföra dans på annat sätt än vad man vanligtvis är van vid. Många av dessa studier har ofta involverat manipulation av musik men få verkar ha involverat realtidsmusik producerat av en live-musiker. Därför har denna studie utförts tillsammans med en musiker och dansare för att undersöka samspelet mellan dessa två parter genom sensorteknik i ett utformat projekt kallat för SENSITIV. Mer specifikt så har undersökningen haft fokus på input-designen, dvs. placeringen och bearbetningen av sensorerna, för ett interaktivt system, samt hur involveringen av sensorteknik påverkar dansen. Rörelsesensorer var burna av dansaren som på så vis kunde genom sina rörelser manipulera realtidsmusiken som var producerad av musikern. Detta skapade i sin tur en interaktion i den mellanliggande förbindelsen, där dansaren kom att agera som en medmusiker. Två studier var uppförda där den första hade fokus på att utforma och utveckla en prototyp ur ett förstapersonsperspektiv, medan den andra studien hade fokus på att testa prototypen på en större grupp av dansare. Resultaten visade att placering av sensorer på de yttre kroppsdelarna, så som armar och ben, var mest lämpligt. För att nå en positiv upplevelse i termer av att känna kontroll med att dansa med sensorer, visade det sig att denna prototyp krävde mer tid att bli utforskad då en förståelse och kunskap av systemet behövdes.

De acuerdo a los estudios sociales, la vida cotidiana ha reducido las oportunidades de que los niños puedan disfrutar del juego libre, lo cual a largo plazo, puede perjudicar su desarrollo social y físico. La investigación en Interacción Persona Ordenador, ha abordado ésta cuestión de como usar sensores y reactores para estimular el juego libre, por ejemplo interviniendo los parques infantitles u objetos de uso compartido con estas tecnologías. Esta disertación explora el proceso de diseño y evaluación the accesorios digitales para ponerse, diseñados para motivar el juego libre entre los niños de edad escolar, en contextos alternativos. Esto se ha hecho para aprovechar las oportunidades de juego libre que pueden surgir cuando los niños estan en camino a algun lugar, asi como para motivar retos corporales y experiencias socials a partir de experiencias individuales. En este contexto la tesis discute (a) tres casso de estudios de accesorios juguetones, (b) una evaluacion cuantitativa y cualitativa sobre la capacidad de los accesorios para motivar el jugo libre, (c) el proceso de diseño de las experiencias jugables con la participación de niños y personas mayores (60+). Además, esta disertación presenta un conjunto de oportunidades de diseño que pueden ser tenidas en cuenta en la investigación de futuros objetos para motivar el juego libre.
According to social studies, everyday life has reduced children’s opportunities for free-play, which, in the long term, can compromise their social and physical development. Previous HCI studies have been addressing the question of how to apply sensing and reactive technologies to encourage free-play by, for example, augmenting playgrounds and shared objects with these technologies. This dissertation explores the design process and evaluation of wearable digital accessories to encourage and facilitate free-play amongst school-aged children in alternative free-play settings. This is done in order to take advantage of free-play opportunities that arise on the move and to encourage body challenges and social experiences through individual exploration. In this context, the thesis discusses (a) three design cases of playful accessories, (b) a quantitative and qualitative evaluation to assess the ability of the accessories to encourage free-play, (c) the design process of playful experiences with the participation of children and older people (60+). This thesis also provides a set of design opportunities that can be taken into account in the research of future digitally-augmented objects to encourage free-play.

The objective of this master thesis project was to improve the existing mobile game Entanglement. This game needed better tutoring and feedback, since the players found it hard to grasp how to play the game. The gameplay of the game also needed to be adjusted as it had no clear goal and did not keep the players’ interest. Mobile games has exploded on the app market and the way they are composed differs from the more traditional games on gaming consoles and computers. This thesis has investigated what makes mobile games successful and what trends there are in the mobile gaming market. Focus has been on the tutoring, feedback and gameplay of mobile games. The thesis project resulted in improved feedback to the player as he is playing Entanglement. The tutoring of the game has also been given a real boost although it needs continued work and user testing to get it to work optimally. The gameplay was changed to a level based gameplay, which gave the game a clear goal and easily kept the players interested. Entanglement is still not ready for release, but it has come a long way.

There are a many examples of museums trying to create a playful environment for children, using Ubiquitous computing, Virtual Games and Physical Computing. However, are these cultural spaces creating a learning environment, which fosters Play?The first part of my thesis concentrates on the theoretical groundings of Play, Storytelling and Learning and examples of how technology supports the creation of a tangible interactive environment. I then interpret these findings and look at how they can be incorporated in creating a fun learning experience, incorporating cultural artefacts.The second half of the thesis shows empirical research in the area and the final design concept. The design process is formulated around a Participatory Design approach, and the final concept derived using a video scenario.

ABSTRACT Most hospitality institutions have increasingly moved classes online but are concerned about migrating classes and instructional content online. The concern is most Web-based models are designed to deliver the acquisition of knowledge but lack the ability to transform that knowledge into applied career skills for practical use in the industry. The purpose of this study was to test a new Web-based instructional model. The model supported delivering both the acquisition and application of knowledge. Educators, researchers, and practitioners can utilize the new model to enhance the application of career skills and enhance organizational objectives by providing just-in-time training. The new Web-based instructional model can be delivered through multiple platforms including computers, electronic devices, wireless devices and mobile devices. The application of knowledge was delivered through experiential role-play exercises delivered live to the comparison group and virtual, inside Second Life, to the treatment group. An Analysis of Co-Variance (ANCOVA) revealed a significant difference between groups with higher application scores for the students who received the role-play live compared to virtual. In addition, an analysis was conducted to explore factors to consider when examining the cost effectiveness of Web-based instructional content. Factors determined to be important were developmental costs, delivery costs, and reusability of the Web-based instruction.
Ph.D.
Department of Educational Research, Technology and Leadership
Education
Education PhD

To be effective, your plan must understand your utility's future water demand and water supply in order to identify problems and bring each into balance. To work, your plan must be acceptable to city council members and consumers.

There is a statistically high probability that within this generation's lifetime, the mean sea level in the south eastern coast of the United States will rise from three to six feet above what it is today. The easiest response to this scenario and its complicated and devastating repercussions is to flee, or to put up a wall. This reaction is defending current lifestyles and cultures against the liabilities and complicated problems associated with sea level rise. This thesis asks: "How can we convert the liabilities of sea level rise into assets?" Using Tybee Island of Chatham County, Georgia as a case study, this thesis will answer this question by exploring 5 topics: 1. Understanding sea level rise 2. Understanding barrier islands of coastal Georgia and Tybee Island 3. The current Sea Level Rise Adaptation Plan for Tybee Island and Where it is Lacking 4. A new urban design strategy in planning for sea level rise on Tybee Island 5. Existing instances of aquatic and amphibious architectures and a new type of amphibious architecture for Tybee Island

Within the Operational Simulation and Analysis (OS and A) branch of the U.S. Army Armament Research, Development, and Engineering Center (ARDEC) at Picatinny Arsenal, there exists no standard model for development and execution of an Analysis Project Plan. A project plan is a formal document which, when agreed upon by parties involved, guides the execution and control of a project. Having such a plan is important to the OS and A branch and ARDEC as a whole because it documents decisions, facilitates communication among stakeholders, and maintains a record of scope, cost, and schedule baselines. By instituting a standardized process, the OS and A branch would ensure that results based on the Analysis Project Plan are reusable, allow for configuration management, better management of overall resources, and better validation and verification. Through Systems Engineering principles, personal observations, team collaboration, and other considerations, the process proposed in this thesis has been developed for the Analysis Project Lead to improve his or her ability to systematically accomplish the job. Ultimately, the proposed processs intent is to establish a flexible process where communication of the problem is precise, the magnitude of the solution is relevant and reliable, and the tools and personnel to execute the analysis are employed at the right times.

Prostate cancer is the most commonly occurring cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death for men in the United States. Because early prostate cancer is frequently without symptoms and data on how to prevent prostate cancer is lacking, early detection has the greatest potential for decreasing mortality. Studies have shown Hispanics/Latinos to be less likely than whites or African-Americans to utilize prostate cancer screening exams. The purpose of this descriptive study was to design a social marketing plan which could be used as a model to promote Hispanic/Latino participation at prostate cancer screenings. Information obtained through medical and marketing literature review, the author's experiences serving on the promotion committee of a community-sponsored prostate cancer screening project, and interviews with 51 Hispanic/Latino prostate cancer screening participants is described and incorporated into a guide with recommendations for future program planners.

The construction industry is by far the greatest consumer of resources and waste producer of all industries in the UK; being responsible for 32% of total waste generation, which equates to three times the combined waste produced by all households. Consequently, construction waste management and minimisation became a priority in the EU and UK environmental policy programmes resulting in a combined plethora of government-driven waste related legislation and guidance documents to curb construction waste production. Similarly, an ever-increasing global research on construction waste has been conducted over the last decade ranging from ‘soft' onsite waste auditing tools and methodologies to ‘hard' material and recycling technologies. However, the current state-of-research is largely dominated by endeavours to manage waste that has already been produced. Very few studies have been undertaken on how architects could go about minimising waste through a change in design practices. Hence, this research set out to construct and validate a Designing out Waste (DoW) Framework to assist architects in embedding design waste reduction strategies in each design stage.

This thesis focuses on the development of design constraints for use in analyzing the capacity of the residential units' floor areas in Open Building projects. Two cases are used to demonstrate the use of these constraints: a vacant office building (Kales Building) being converted to residential occupancy; a new multi-story building the lower floors of which are hotel rooms and the upper floors are residential condominium units.The thesis suggests that these constraints and the capacity analysis of residential floor areas associated with them can assist design teams, at the beginning of similar projects; provide important "added value" to clients, and contribute to the long term "sustainability" or adaptability of buildings.The first part of the thesis addresses the question of how to design a residential base building which can accommodate an optimal number and variety of fit-out unit layouts. The answer to the question links to the need for design constraints and points to their use in capacity analysis.The second part of the thesis focuses on the deduction of "constraint-designing" for Open Building residential layout. Plumbing systems, which are one of the most significant barriers to the application of Open Building, are specifically and more deeply studied in this part. A series of constraints are developed, which can generally assist in designing and analyzing floor plate capacity. . It is akin to learning to know the rules before starting a game.The third part of the thesis focuses on the demonstration of the uses of constraints in the design process of the conversion of an abandoned office building to residential uses.The last part of the thesis demonstrates the use of constraints and capacity analysis in a new multi-story condo project.In short, the paper is initially concerned with both the design concept and its application into detail levels in one of the many issues. It is a study of methods and technical rules of designing floor plan layouts when capacity analysis is the aim.
Department of Architecture

Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM) started a new chapter in the history of preventive maintenance strategy setting. It was now possible to develop a scientifically based, highly successful maintenance program for complex systems. It developed as a result of the reliability problems and cost of maintenance of aircraft during the late 50’s and early 60’s. The result was a methodology called MSG-1, followed by the improved MSG-2. When MSG-2 was used contractually for the United States Department of Defence, it led to the present definition of RCM. In academic circles there developed a growing dissatisfaction with the technique [Pintelon et al (1999], of which part stems from watering down its scientific basis to make RCM more marketable [Moubray (2000)], while at least part is based on perceived inherent scientific weaknesses in the methodology itself. This thesis, in setting out to solve these limitations, makes several important contributions to the RCM methodology. The first of these is a method of concentrating the RCM analysis effort on the most important failure modes encountered by the organisation. Secondly, it introduces a Quality Improvement task in the RCM task selection tree, based on a limitation identified by Harris (1985). The third contribution is the addition of a formal task packaging methodology, following Gits (1984). The thesisalso combines the use of RCM for the most important failure modes with conventional maintenance tasks for the remaining failure modes, to form a total methodology for the typical industrial concern. It furthermore introduces the application of sound management principles in the implementation of RCM and lastly, blends concepts from different RCM authors, together with the innovations listed above, into one logical whole. In summary, the proposed revised methodology can play a very important part to achieve the goal of World Class manufacturing standards, including ensuring that the organisation’s maintenance effort is as proactive as possible. D13/4/90
Thesis (PhD (Industrial Engineering))--University of Pretoria, 2002.
Industrial and Systems Engineering
unrestricted

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2007.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 140-146).
Designing cities is a complex proposition. Planners, architects and landscape architects all center their practice on aspects of this proposition. As such, their respective disciplines share the realm of urban design. This thesis attempts to understand how professionals from these three groups work as urban designers by testing the hypothesis that professional training and affiliation dictates distinct differences in how urban plans are developed by planners, architects or landscape architects. Relying on the American educational and professional associations for each discipline, the thesis proposes three spectra to contrast the disciplines: The Role of Process, Understanding of Physical Space, and Ultimate Goals. These spectra are applied to cases studies of Unified New Orleans Plan recovery plan development in three of New Orleans' 13 planning districts. The cases focus on the professional staff for each district, which include one planning firm, one architecture firm and one landscape architecture firm. The cases demonstrate predictive connections between planning training and concepts and the planning firm's performance and architecture training and concepts and the architecture firm's performance.
(cont.) There is less predictive evidence in the case of landscape architecture. The challenges of using a quasi-experimental design, coupled with the intensely complex nature of working in a post-disaster environment in New Orleans, limit the conclusive value of the findings. However, there is a strong enough apparent correlation between the initial predictions and what actually occurred in the cases to warrant further exploration of the hypothesis. As long as planners, architects and landscape architects continue to share the practice of urban design, increasing our understanding about their unique approaches to this work will support greater efficiencies in local projects and a more rigorous and fruitful tradition of city design overall.
by Jessica Berman Boatright.
M.C.P.

Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Physics, June 2011.
"June 2010." Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 113-116).
In this thesis, we designed and tested a calibration and deployment system for the MiniCLEAN dark matter detector. The deployment system uses a computer controlled winch to lower a canister containing a neutron source into the detector where the neutron source pulses to produce calibration data. The winch then pulls the neutron source back out of the detector. We found that the deployment system position is precise to under 0.05 cm, one tenth of the minimum required precision. We designed a canister that will hold the neutron source during the calibration process. The canister will contain a dielectric gel to thermally and electrically insulate the high voltage electronics and the neutron source from the rest of the detector. We calculated the equilibrium temperature change of the calibration neutron source when it is turned on and found that the temperature increases by 92.6+isi K, corresponding to a rise in the dielectric gel height of 1.501i.9 cm. This temperature change is within the service temperature range of the dielectric gel; however, a more thermally conductive gel could still be used to reduce the temperature increase. We simulate the background external neutrons in MiniCLEAN and find that the addition of an air-filled calibration tube to the basic MiniCLEAN design has little effect on the external neutron background rate. Lastly, we simulate the calibration process in order to determine how long we must calibrate MiniCLEAN in order to obtain the desired 5% statistical precision on measurements of the calibration neutron-induced recoil spectrum. We found that a minimum of 2.48x 106 neutrons are needed to measure the total counts in the region of interest in energy to 5% (corresponding to a pulse mode calibration time of 124 seconds assuming that neutrons are produced at a rate of 105 per second), and 2.02x 107 neutrons are needed to achieve 5% measurements of the energy spectrum with 2 KeVee binning in the region of interest (corresponding to a time of 1005 seconds).
by Shawn Westerdale.
S.B.

Svenska städer har det senaste århundradet växt sig täta vilket medfört utmaningar både konstruktions-, planerings- och logistikmässigt. Slöseri på byggarbetsplatser är väsentligt högre än på andra arbetsplatser och undersökningen Slöseri i byggprojekt visar att det uppgår i så mycket som 30-35% av projektets produktionskostnad. Produktionsprocessen är det som tillför värde till objektet och enligt rapporten Planering i svensk byggproduktion påverkas produktionen till stor del av planering och styrning. Med hjälp av en arbetsplatsdispositionsplan (APD-plan) och ett genomtänkt system för leveranser och godsmottagning kan detta behjälpas. Syftet med denna rapport var att identifiera styrande faktorer som påverkar upprättandet av APD-planer. Detta mynnade ut i ett antal råd som ska vara till hjälp och bidra till ett kostnadseffektivt och produktivt utförande. Arbetet inleddes med litteraturstudie som följdes av intervjuundersökning. Målgruppen för intervjuerna var en konsult inom bygglogistik och yrkeserfarna från byggbranschen. En fallstudie genomfördes för att undersöka data från teori och intervjuer. Att ha en bra APD-plan genererar en rad fördelar. Den främsta av dessa är att den säkerställer att flödet på arbetsplatsen fungerar på ett tillfredställande sätt. Undersökningen visar att byggbranschens aktörer är medvetna om APD-planens roll i byggprocessen men har olika uppfattning om dess betydelse, hur den bör användas samt hur och när den tas fram. Genom att i ett tidigt skede analysera samverkan mellan arbetsplatsinrättningar med avseende på både generaliserbara och projektspecifika faktorer kan en väl fungerande arbetsplats etableras.

A team of graduate students from Brigham Young University under the supervision of the main author, Dr. Henrichsen, collaborated on creating a book with an accompanying website, Basic Training and Resources for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (BTRTESOL). The entire program consists of 10 main sections with nearly 50 units addressing topics that novice teachers can choose from to help them prepare to teach English to non-native speakers. The BTRTESOL program answers the need for material designed for novice teachers, material that will help them to be better prepared in a minimalistic, non-overwhelming way. The goal of this program is that novice teachers will be more prepared to face the challenges and responsibilities that teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) brings. Each member of the BTRTESOL team created two units of the program. Each unit summarizes the information about each topic into a few pages of text that provides the minimum amount of information novices should know. The units then direct them to other sources in order to learn more. The program is still under development and is anticipated to be completed within the next few years with other TESOL MA students and Dr. Henrichsen completing subsequent units. This selected project details the making of two units of the BTRTESOL program, one in section one, "Basic Concepts," titled "Tutoring Guidelines," and one in section two, "Designing Programs and Lessons," titled "Designing an Overall Plan for a Course." The tutoring unit describes some guidelines for novice tutors, whether or not they have taught larger classes before. The course design unit describes the basics of creating a course curriculum. Novice tutors and teachers are frequently expected to plan everything for the tutoring sessions or courses as soon as they start their assignments. These units are designed to give them a starting point. In addition to an opening scenario, explanatory text, and resource connections, both of these units provide activities (i.e., a video clip or case studies) for visualization, analysis, reflection, and practical application.

The aim of my thesis is the current look and evaluation of architecture from the period of real socialism in Brno, since liberation in 1945 to the period of normalization in the seventies of the twentieth century, till 1975 (including duration of the implementation of the buildings). Emphasis put on realizations which are important from the nationwide perspective

Гусак, Рњ. Рђ. Підвищення ефективності роботи залізничної колії РїСЂРё спеціалізації напрямків для вантажних С– пасажирських перевезень : авт. РґРёСЃ. Рє. С‚. РЅ.: 05.22.06 / Рњ. Рђ. Гусак ; Дніпропетр. нац. СѓРЅ-С‚ залізн. трансп. С–Рј. акад. Р’. Лазаряна. - Р”. : Р’РёРґ-РІРѕ Днiпропетр. нац. СѓРЅ-ту залізн. трансп. iРј. акад. Р’. Лазаряна, 2012. УДК 625.1:656.222.1 ГРНТР? 73.29.11 Захист - 27 РіСЂСѓРґРЅСЏ 2012 СЂ.
UK: АНОТАЦІЯ Дисертація присвячена розробці методу формування раціональної схеми оволодіння перевезеннями для паралельних залізничних напрямків при впрова-дженні на одному з них швидкісного руху пасажирських поїздів, дослідженню особливостей і підвищенню ефективності роботи залізничної колії у разі пере-розподілу вантажопотоків між паралельними залізничними напрямками з ви-значенням параметрів плану лінії. Для порівняння варіантів вирішення задачі розмежування вантажного й пасажирського руху був використаний новий критерій, який ґрунтується на за-стосуванні комплексного показника роботи сил взаємодії колії і рухомого скла-ду, що дає можливість оцінювати знос колійної інфраструктури від потоку по-їздів за тривалий час експлуатації залізниці. Запропоновано метод раціонального розподілу поїздопотоків між парале-льними ходами, що дає можливість обґрунтовано обирати найбільш придатний варіант за декількома критеріями одночасно і дозволяє вирішувати поставлені Укрзалізницею завдання, зменшивши при цьому витрати на реконструкцію, пробіг поїздів і утримання колії. Отримані наукові результати, запропоновані методи досліджень та кла-сифікація напрямків можуть бути використані для розробки рекомендацій з пі-двищення пропускної й провізної спроможності напрямків, економічної оцінки впливу інтенсивності вантажного та пасажирського руху на знос інфраструкту-ри залізничного транспорту, уніфікації маси та довжини поїздів на основних напрямках залізниць України
RU: РђРќРќРћРўРђР¦Р?РЇ Диссертация посвящена разработке метода формирования рациональной схемы овладения перевозками для параллельных железнодорожных линий РїСЂРё организации РЅР° РѕРґРЅРѕР№ РёР· РЅРёС… скоростного движения поездов, исследованию особенностей Рё повышению эффективности работы железнодорожного пути РїСЂРё перераспределении грузопотоков между параллельными железнодорожны-РјРё направлениями СЃ определением параметров плана линии. Анализ основных направлений международных транспортных РєРѕСЂРёРґРѕСЂРѕРІ, которые РїСЂРѕС…РѕРґСЏС‚ через территорию Украины, показал, что без отделения пас-сажирского движения РѕС‚ РіСЂСѓР·РѕРІРѕРіРѕ Рё переустройства плана линии выполнить европейские требования, прежде всего РІ РІРѕРїСЂРѕСЃРµ реализации максимальной скорости движения, затруднительно. РџСЂРё перераспределении поездопотоков необходимо учитывать техниче-СЃРєРѕРµ состояние РѕР±РѕРёС… параллельных направлений. Для этого была разработана математическая модель совместного формирования рациональной схемы этап-РЅРѕРіРѕ овладения перевозками для параллельных железнодорожных линий РїСЂРё введении РЅР° РѕРґРЅРѕР№ РёР· РЅРёС… скоростного движения. Данная модель позволяет СЂРµ-шать задачи повышения скорости пассажирских поездов РїСЂРё минимальных эксплуатационных расходах Рё рациональных капитальных вложениях РЅР° пере-устройство линии. Р’ работе предложен новый критерий для сравнения вариантов решения задачи разделения РіСЂСѓР·РѕРІРѕРіРѕ Рё пассажирского движения, основанный РЅР° РїСЂРё-менении комплексного показателя работы СЃРёР» взаимодействия пути Рё РїРѕРґРІРёР¶-РЅРѕРіРѕ состава, который дает возможность оценивать РёР·РЅРѕСЃ путевой инфраструк-туры РѕС‚ потока поездов Р·Р° продолжительное время эксплуатации железной РґРѕ-СЂРѕРіРё. Переключение движения грузовых Рё пассажирских поездов РЅР° парал-лельные направления позволяет получить дополнительную прибыль Р·Р° счет уменьшения расстройства пути. Так, РЅР° участках, исключительно СЃ пассажир-СЃРєРёРј движением поездов прогнозируется увеличение межремонтных СЃСЂРѕРєРѕРІ РІ 2…2,5 раза. Для определения экономической оценки воздействия интенсивности РіСЂСѓ-Р·РѕРІРѕРіРѕ Рё пассажирского движения РЅР° РёР·РЅРѕСЃ путевой инфраструктуры Рё распре-деления расходов РЅР° содержание пути РІ зависимости РѕС‚ структуры поездопото-РєР° была применена вышеизложенная методика Рё разработана программа расче-тов Znosinfra. Уточнена Рё детализирована классификация направлений железных РґРѕСЂРѕРі РїРѕ категориям поездов Рё структуре поездопотока. Предложено четыре РІРёРґР° РЅР°-правлений: чисто пассажирское, преимущественно пассажирское, совмещен-РЅРѕРµ, РіСЂСѓР·РѕРІРѕРµ движение Рё соответствующие классификации графики распреде-ления скоростей движения поездов разных категорий. Получила дальнейшее развитие методика вероятностного моделирования потока поездов, РЅР° РѕСЃРЅРѕРІРµ которой прогнозируются средневзвешенная СЃРєРѕ-рость, возвышение наружного рельса для перспективных условий эксплуата-ции, соотношение скоростей движения для поездов разных категорий, что дает возможность уменьшить общее воздействие подвижного состава РЅР° путь Рё СЌРєСЃ-плуатационные расходы. Результаты моделирования свидетельствуют Рѕ том, что РїСЂРё разделении РіСЂСѓР·РѕРІРѕРіРѕ Рё пассажирского движения Рё специализации направлений для пере-РІРѕР·РѕРє меняются скорости движения, параметры поездопотока, что вызвало РЅРµ-обходимость пересмотра Рё корректировки параметров кривых: возвышения РЅР°-ружного рельса, длин переходных кривых Рё величины минимально допустимо-РіРѕ радиуса. Предложен метод рационального распределения поездопотоков между параллельными ходами, который позволяет обоснованно выбирать наиболее выгодный вариант РїРѕ нескольким критериям одновременно, Рё дает РІРѕР·РјРѕР¶-ность решать поставленные Укрзализныцей задачи, уменьшив РїСЂРё этом РЅР° 12…21 % расходы РЅР° реконструкцию, пробег поездов Рё содержание пути. Теоретические Рё практические результаты использованы РїСЂРё выполнении шести научно-исследовательских работ РїРѕ заданию Укрзализныци, Приднепро-РІСЃРєРѕР№ Рё Львовской железных РґРѕСЂРѕРі.
EN: SUMMARY The dissertation is devoted to development of a method of formation of the ra-tional scheme of mastering by transportations for parallel railway lines at introduction on one of them high-speed movement of passenger trains, to research of features and increase of overall performance of a railway way at redistribution of freight traffics between parallel railway to the directions with determination of parameters of the plan of the line. For comparison of versions of the solution of a problem of differentiation of cargo and passenger traffic the new criterion which is based on application of a com-plex indicator of work of forces of interaction of a way and a rolling stock that gives the chance to estimate wear of travelling infrastructure from a stream of trains for a long time of operation of the railway was used. The method of rational trains sequence distribution between parallel courses that gives the chance to choose reasonably the most suitable option by several criteria at the same time is offered, and gives the chance to solve the problems put by Ukrzal-iznytsa, having reduced thus expenses on reconstruction, run of trains and the main-tenance of a way. The received scientific results, are offered methods of researches and the scheme of classification of the directions can be used when developing recommenda-tions about increase of throughput of the directions, an economic assessment of influ-ence of intensity of cargo and passenger traffic on wear of infrastructure of railway transport, unification of weight and length of trains on the main directions of the railways of Ukraine.

Children’s understanding of space is a fusion of reality and fantasy, in which the physical environment, play, and imagination assume important roles. The boundary between the imaginative realm of the child and the physical realm of the world is blurred and penetrable, allowing for uninhibited associations and assimilations with the environment. A design for a children’s library is used to develop a method for designing potent environments for children to experience, play, and imagine. Using a palette of experiential qualities and memorable episodes to inform a set of parts, a series of spaces and activities or events are then dynamically assembled. The library, located within a forest site in Vancouver, is the testing ground for this assembly, playing with spatial and material configurations to blur perceptions of reality and fantasy, between the surrounding natural environment and the constructed one, as well as between the activities of learning and playing, in order to create a dynamic environment for childen.

A thorough reflection on the process of costume design for the theatrical production of Hedda. An adaptation of Hedda Gabler, by Henrik Ibsen, translated by Eva Le Gallienne, edited by Finn Lefevre and Directed by Christina Pellegrini. Performed at The Rand Theater, University of Massachusetts Amherst, February 24th to March 4th, 2017. Ibsen is considered “The Father of Modern Drama”, with Hedda Gabler as one of his most widely performed plays. Hedda Gabler in the 1890’s was a disruptive reflection of society, and is considered by many to be a feminist work. I disagree with this assessment of the text. There are relevant gendered issues present within Hedda Gabler, however the play presents suicide as the only solution. Hedda Gabler could become a feminist work if presented in a way to address the issues raised. A collaborative, devised process, was used to produce this play. This created an iterative process of design reacting to discoveries made throughout the process. Costume design, in concert with set design, functioned as a visual medium creating the abstracted world of Hedda. Tracking artistic and social influences on costume design for Hedda; I provide the evolution of the design from analysis to production while examining the design’s influence on show development, and role in the devising process. Our show featured a seven women ensemble, each actress alternatively portraying Hedda and each of the other characters within the play. Set in a flat, surrealistic, paper covered library, the paper costume constructs blended with the background when each was not in use. This role switching resulted in the presentation of Hedda as a widely felt feminine experience rather than a singularity. Through the abstraction of Hedda Gabler we presented a production that challenged the canonical text while reviving its feminist dialogue with our contemporary moment.

Landscape architecture is about creating a sense of place. A worthwhile investigation lies in how to reinforce and/or improve that sense of place where one already exists, be it good or bad. The purpose of this practicum is to investigate the sabotaged landscapes in and around Landi Kotal, a city that lies near the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan, and determine how the quality of the exterior environment can be enhanced to improve the already tumultuous sense of place that exists in the city. People within this disrupted landscape are optimistic about the future. This optimism is the reason why I am inspired to focus on this place and understand how current methods of design can aid to improve the futures of this distinct region. The influence of subjective beauty was taken into consideration. This can be achieved through the study of people within environments, those who ultimately contribute to the perception of particular landscapes, and eventually, societies. In this project it is pertinent to reveal the effects environments have on the children that occupy them. The approach taken to this practicum is to consider the measures to be taken in order to encourage a socially sustainable environment in the region through a designed exterior environment surrounding an orphanage.The ways in which people interact with their environments can be understood through a phenomenological interpretation. Phenomenology will be used in this practicum as a lens by which exterior environments and their individual perception are understood. The Islamic paradise garden has influenced the research and design approach used throughout this practicum; the centrifugal/centripetal qualities of symmetrically designed outdoor environments are a useful platform for this design intervention. The proposition of an orphanage situated in the city of Landi Kotal will focus on the shelter and education of the less privileged communities that reside on the borders of Pakistan and Afghanistan. As previous efforts to establish a peaceful settlement in these regions have achieved little to no results, this project proposes mechanisms for regional stability by applying design techniques to demonstrate how landscape architecture can contribute to education and experience for children of all ages, specifically in a war-torn area through the creation of appropriate environments. The research and subsequent design offer an example for future socially sustainable projects which aim to enhance individual and communal territories of regions negatively affected by war and violence.

This thesis documents the development of a video game about sustainable energy use that unites fun with learning. Many other educational games do not properly translate knowledge, facts, and lessons into the language of games: mechanics, rules, rewards, and feedback. This approach differs by using game mechanics in new ways to express lessons about energy sustainability. This design is based on the real time strategy (RTS) genre. Players of these types of games must manage economic problems such as extracting, refining, and allocating resources, as well as industrial problems such as producing buildings and military units. These games often use imaginative fantasy elements to connect with their audience, but also made-up economic numbers and fictional resources such as magic crystals which have little to do with the real world. This thesis' approach retains the fantasy elements and gameplay conventions of this popular genre, but uses numbers, resources, and situations based on research about real-world energy production. The intended result is a game in which the player learns about energy use simply by trying to overcome the game's challenges. In addition, a combined quantitative/qualitative study was performed, which shows that players of the game learned new things, enjoyed the game, and became more interested in the topic of energy use.

It is estimated that the population of the City of Nanaimo will almost double in the next 25 years. In the past, Nanaimo's urban growth has been absorbed using a typical pattern of development - stripmalls, supported by ever-expanding low-density suburban sprawl. This development seems to have occurred with little or no forethought to its environmental or social consequences. Urban sprawl is consuming our land and endangering the natural ecosystems in our region. In response to the ecological and social problems of urban sprawl the City of Nanaimo, in coordination with the Regional District of Nanaimo, has developed a Growth Management Plan. The Plan focuses on creating compact communities within the city boundary, thereby alleviating sprawl and mamtaining the ecological integrity of the hinterlands. We must now seek ways of designing neighbourhoods that not only accommodate our growing population but also enhance both the human and environmental "functioning" of the site. This project examines a sustainable growth strategy for one of Nanaimo's designated urban growth areas. The Southgate Town Centre Concept Plan is the product of an integrated planning process and is based on principles of sustainable and complete communities. The Plan addresses the basic functional elements of a community (habitat and watershed integrity, pedestrian and traffic circulation, and residential and commercial development) and explores how the application of sustainability principles can result in a functional community. The result is a comprehensive design of an urban growth area that has accommodated density while also improving the ecological, social and experiential fimctioning of the site. The design addresses the relationship of the site to its watershed context and its surrounding community. As a comprehensive document it also serves as a model for similar urban development areas.

碩士
國立臺灣科技大學
管理學院MBA
107
Every company wants their employees to perform to their full potential. There are many ways to motivate and enhance their performance and money is at the top of the list. For this reason, compensation is often considered one of the best methods to motivate employees. However, many studies have confirmed that the motivational power of money can wear off with time. This investigation is a review of the existing literature about the overall effects of different forms of compensation and which factors should be considered when designing an effective compensation plan.

Wong Wai Hung.
Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2004.
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 102-103).
Abstracts in English and Chinese.
LIST OF TABLES --- p.iii
LIST OF FIGURES --- p.v
ABSTRACT --- p.vii
Chapter Chapter 1. --- Introduction --- p.1
Chapter 1.1 --- Goals and Significance --- p.1
Chapter 1.2 --- Thesis Organization --- p.2
Chapter Chapter 2. --- Review on Air Cargo Industry --- p.3
Chapter 2.1 --- The Position of Air Cargo Logistics --- p.3
Chapter 2.2 --- General Air Cargo Practice --- p.3
Chapter 2.3 --- Hong Kong Air Cargo Practice - An Example --- p.1
Chapter Chapter 3. --- Air Cargo Cost Analysis --- p.12
Chapter 3.1 --- Shipping Costs --- p.12
Chapter 3.1.1 --- International Shipping Costs --- p.12
Chapter 3.1.2 --- Local Shipping Costs --- p.14
Chapter 3.2 --- Shipment Categorization --- p.15
Chapter 3.2.1 --- Illustrative Examples - Hong Kong --- p.18
Chapter 3.3 --- Analysis of shipping cost --- p.27
Chapter 3.4. --- Freight Forwarders' means for freight forwarders' success --- p.29
Chapter 3.4.1 --- Consolidation --- p.31
Chapter 3.4.2 --- Integration --- p.42
Chapter 3.4.3 --- Cooperation among freight forwarders to combine the cargos --- p.44
Chapter 3.5 --- Summary --- p.44
Chapter Chapter 4. --- A Mixed 0-1 LP Model of Air Cargo Logistics integration & consolidation --- p.47
Chapter 4.1 --- Statement of the Problem --- p.47
Chapter 4.2 --- Literature Review --- p.49
Chapter 4.3 --- Objective Function --- p.51
Chapter 4.4 --- Logical Constraints --- p.52
Chapter 4.5 --- Resources Constraints --- p.54
Chapter 4.6 --- The Model --- p.55
Chapter 4.7 --- Properties of the Model --- p.56
Chapter Chapter 5. --- Solution Process --- p.58
Chapter 5.1 --- Tabu Search --- p.59
Chapter 5.2 --- Tabu Search Algorithm --- p.62
Chapter 5.3 --- Illustrative Example --- p.64
Chapter 5.4 --- Implementation and Results --- p.70
Chapter Chapter 6. --- Extensions --- p.73
Chapter 6.1 --- Different approaches as the initial solution --- p.73
Chapter 6.2 --- Risk or Reliability Limit --- p.75
Chapter 6.3 --- Consolidation with inventory penalty --- p.78
Chapter 6.4 --- Two Phase Method --- p.79
Chapter Chapter 7. --- Sensitivity Analysis --- p.81
Chapter 7.1 --- Delivery time --- p.81
Chapter 7.2 --- Charging price and cost --- p.85
Chapter 7.3 --- Resources allocations --- p.92
Chapter 7.4 --- A series of good solutions --- p.95
Chapter Chapter 8. --- Conclusion --- p.98
Chapter 8.1 --- Future Work --- p.98
Chapter 8.2 --- Future Research --- p.100
LIST OF REFERENCES --- p.102
Appendix --- p.104
Simulation results --- p.104
Pseudo code --- p.107
Program Coding --- p.110

碩士
華梵大學
工業工程與經營資訊學系碩士班
100
Acceptance sampling plan concerns a quality contract on product orders between the vendor and the buyer. For the implementation of an acceptance sampling plan, a problem the quality practitioners have to treat is the determination of the critical acceptance values and inspection sample sizes that provide the desired levels of protection to both vendors and buyers. Traditionally, acceptance sampling plans focus on the percentage of defective products instead of considering the process loss, which doesn’t distinguish among the products that fall within the specification limits. In this paper, a sampling plan based on incapability index Cpp is proposed to develop an acceptance sampling plan with process loss consideration. The required sample sizes and the critical acceptance value with various combination of acceptance quality level are tabulated. In addition, the proposed method is compare with the existing Cpm sampling plan, which shows our method needs smaller sample size under the same level of protection. The proposed sampling plan provides a feasible policy, which can be applied to products requiring low process loss where classical sampling plans cannot be applied.