Can We Empower Attentive E-reading with a Social Robot? An Introductory Study with a Novel Multimodal Dataset and Deep Learning Approaches

Reading on digital devices has become more commonplace, while it often poses challenges to learners' attention. In this study, we hypothesized that allowing learners to reflect on their reading phases with an empathic social robot companion might enhance learners' attention in e-reading. To verify our assumption, we collected a novel dataset ...

A Plant-inspired Light Transducer for High-performance Near-infrared Light Mediated Gas Sensing

Constructing near-infrared light (NIR) light-enhanced room temperature gas sensors is becoming more promising for practical application. In this study, learning from the structure and photosynthetic process of chlorophyll thylakoid membranes in plants, the first “Thylakoid membrane” structural formaldehyde (HCHO) sensor is constructed by...

The Road Ahead: Advancing Interactions between Autonomous Vehicles, Pedestrians, and Other Road Users

While great strides have been taken in advancing the field of Human-Robot Interaction (HRI), challenges abound in understanding and improving how Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) will interact with and within society. Through this paper, the authors attempt to paint the picture of challenges unique to the study and advancement of interfaces between AVs...

Investigating the Role of Executive Intrafirm Alumni Networks in Top Management Fraud: Multilevel Study in China's Construction Industry

To explore factors that influence the likelihood of committing fraud in the construction industry, this study concentrated on senior executives and tested whether some characteristics at the individual and firm levels have impacts on the likelihood of fraud committed by top management. Based on social network theory, this study first proposes...

Machine learning in process systems engineering: Challenges and opportunities

This “white paper” is a concise perspective of the potential of machine learning in the process systems engineering (PSE) domain, based on a session during FIPSE 5, held in Crete, Greece, June 27–29, 2022. The session included two invited talks and three short contributed presentations followed by extensive discussions. This paper does not...

Effect of temperature on the healing capacity and mechanical properties of Ti₂AlC MAX phase ceramics

In this study, the self-healing capacity of Titanium Aluminum Carbide (Ti₂AlC, MAX phase) was investigated. Bulk coin samples were fabricated to evaluate the self-healing capacity at different temperatures (1000, 1200, and 1400°C). The extensive self-healing capacity of Ti₂AlC was confirmed on larger quasiplastic damage ...

Pointing Calibration of GroundBIRD Telescope Using Moon Observation Data

Understanding telescope pointing (i.e. line of sight) is important for observing the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and astronomical objects. The Moon is a candidate astronomical source for pointing calibration. Although the visible size of the Moon (30^`) is larger than that of the planets, we can frequently observe the Moon...

Reynolds-number scaling of wall-pressure–velocity correlations in wall-bounded turbulence

Wall-pressure fluctuations are a practically robust input for real-time control systems aimed at modifying wall-bounded turbulence. The scaling behaviour of the wall-pressure-velocity coupling requires investigation to properly design a controller with such input data so that it can actuate upon the desired turbulent structures. A...

Characterisation of bacterial decay effects on wooden foundation piles across various historical periods

In the historic city centre of Amsterdam (NL), the predominant foundation system is comprised of wooden piles. Due to their placement below the water table, these foundations are susceptible to bacterial decay. This study aims to investigate and compare various methods for characterizing decay patterns within the cross sections of piles...

Towards reusable building blocks for agent-based modelling and theory development

Despite the increasing use of standards for documenting and testing agent-based models (ABMs) and sharing of open access code, most ABMs are still developed from scratch. This is not only inefficient, but also leads to ad hoc and often inconsistent implementations of the same theories in computational code and delays progress in the...

Assistive Applications, Accessibility, and Disability Ethics in HRI

This full-day workshop addresses the problems of accessibility in HRI and the interplay of ethical considerations for disability-centered design and research, accessibility concerns for disabled researchers, and the design of assistive HRI technologies. We invite authors to submit extended abstracts (up to 2 pages, excluding references) and...

Conceptualising user comfort in automated driving: Findings from an expert group workshop

The driving style of an automated vehicle (AV) needs to be comfortable to encourage the broad acceptance and use of this newly emerging transport mode. However, current research provides limited knowledge about what influences comfort, how this concept is described, and how it is measured. This knowledge is especially lacking when comfort is...

How are people coping with working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic?: Experiences from the Netherlands and South Korea

COVID-19 has made working from home routine for many. People who have had to maintain their productivity, particularly in physically and/or socially unacceptable home-working situations, experienced one of the pandemic’s disadvantages. The experience can vary substantially among individuals as well as by country. This study presents the results...

Brownian Motion Paving the Way for Molecular Translocation in Nanopores

Tracing fast nanopore-translocating analytes requires a high-frequency measurement system that warrants a temporal resolution better than 1 µs. This constraint may practically shift the challenge from increasing the sampling bandwidth to dealing with the rapidly growing noise with frequencies typically above 10 kHz, potentially making it...

Interactive Intelligence: Multimodal AI for Real-Time Interaction Loop towards Attentive E-Reading

E-learning has shifted the traditional learning paradigms in higher education, offering more flexible, ubiquitous, and personalized learning experiences. The previous years COVID-19 pandemic required a re-calibration of education to accommodate virtual learning environments from the traditional classroom-based education. Widespread learning...