RAST: Risk-Aware Spatio-Temporal Safety Corridors for MAV Navigation in Dynamic Uncertain Environments

Autonomous navigation of Micro Aerial Vehicles (MAVs) in dynamic and unknown environments is a complex and challenging task. Current works rely on assumptions to solve the problem. The MAV's pose is precisely known, the dynamic obstacles can be explicitly segmented from static ones, their number is known and fixed, or they can be modeled with...

Rapid change of friction causes the illusion of touching a receding surface

Shortly after touching an object, humans can tactually gauge the frictional resistance of a surface. The knowledge of surface friction is paramount to tactile perception and the motor control of grasp. While potent correlations between friction and participants' perceptual response have been found, the causal link between the friction of the...

Improving the quality of the acoustic environment in neonatal intensive care units: a review of scientific literature and technological solutions

There is an increased awareness of how the quality of the acoustic environment impacts the lives of human beings. Several studies have shown that sound pollution has adverse effects on many populations, from infants to adults, in different environments and workplaces. Hospitals are susceptible environments that require special attention since...

Disentangling Fairness Perceptions in Algorithmic Decision-Making: The Effects of Explanations, Human Oversight, and Contestability

Recent research claims that information cues and system attributes of algorithmic decision-making processes affect decision subjects' fairness perceptions. However, little is still known about how these factors interact. This paper presents a user study (N = 267) investigating the individual and combined effects of explanations, human...

Continuous Occupancy Mapping in Dynamic Environments Using Particles

Particle-based dynamic occupancy maps were proposed in recent years to model the obstacles in dynamic environments. Current particle-based maps describe the occupancy status in discrete grid form and suffer from the grid size problem, wherein a large grid size is unfavorable for motion planning while a small grid size lowers efficiency and...

Light and Spectra in the Wild - Spectral Structures of Light Fields: Measurement, Simulation and Visualisation

The study of the light field has become a valuable framework for capturing and analysing the complex distribution of light in natural environments. The directional, spatial, temporal and spectral structure of light, collectively influence the optical information available to an observer and thus impact our perception of the surrounding world....

Understanding influences on entrepreneurship educator role identity

Purpose: Despite the considerable increase in research on entrepreneurship education, few studies examine the role of entrepreneurship educators. Similarly, most frameworks from entrepreneurship education recognize the educator’s importance in facilitating instruction and assessment, but the factors influencing the educator role are not well...

Critical factors for effective resident participation in neighborhood rehabilitation in Wuhan, China: From the perspectives of diverse stakeholders

Resident participation is essential for neighborhood rehabilitation. It requires the active involvement of residents and efficient management by organizers. To improve the effectiveness of resident participation, it is necessary to understand the critical success factors (CSFs) underlying it. However, previous research has examined the critical...

Predicting willingness to pay and implement different rooftop strategies to characterize social perception of climate change mitigation and adaptation

With the latest IPCC report, dramatic global climate action must be taken immediately to limit global warming to 1.5 °C, or face more frequent and extreme weather events with catastrophic implications. Cities must invest in climate resilience development; however, government policies are only effective if they are supported by the society in...

The role of vision in sensory integration models for predicting motion perception and sickness

Users of automated vehicles will engage in other activities and take their eyes off the road, making them prone to motion sickness. To resolve this, the current paper validates models predicting sickness in response to motion and visual conditions. We validate published models of vestibular and visual sensory integration that have been used...

How well do NDVI and OpenStreetMap data capture people’s visual perceptions of urban greenspace?

The study of urban greenspaces typically relies on three types of data: people’s subjective perceptions collected via questionnaires, vegetation indices derived from satellite imagery, such as the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), and Land Use or Land Cover maps, such as OpenStreetMap (OSM). Data on people’s perceptions are...

From Global South to Underrepresented Geographies

In light of rapid urbanisation and the accelerating threats of climate change, scale and multitude are what set the Global North and South apart. Yet, as this course exposes, the issues faced by urban areas have resembling themes and characteristics, regardless of economic status or geographic location. Therefore, in the context of sustainable...

Decoding Individual and Shared Experiences of Media Perception Using CNN Architectures

The brain is an incredibly complex organ capable of perceiving and interpreting a wide range of stimuli. Depending on individual brain chemistry and wiring, different people decipher the same stimuli differently, conditioned by their life experiences and environment. This study’s objective is to decode how the CNN models capture and learn...

Reliability improvement of the dredging perception system: A sensor fault-tolerant strategy

In the dredging industry, the automation and accuracy of the Dredging Perception System (DPS) are vital for operational efficiency and environmental safety. Current DPS implementations face challenges with sensor fault tolerance, leading to system unreliability and increased false alarm rates that can disrupt dredging operations. We propose a...

Visitors’ perceptions of urban wilderness: A case study of Jiangyangfan Ecological Park in Hangzhou, China

Numerous studies show the benefits of wilderness to humans and the environment. Therefore, preserving and developing wilderness areas within urban settings are crucial to combat and mitigate challenges like biodiversity decline resulting from urbanization. According to previous studies, human-wilderness interactions can be contradictory, e.g.,...

Exploring the challenges faced by Dutch truck drivers in the era of technological advancement

Introduction: Despite their important role in the economy, truck drivers face several challenges, including adapting to advancing technology. The current study investigated the occupational experiences of Dutch truck drivers to detect common patterns.<br/><br/>Methods: A questionnaire was distributed to professional drivers in order to collect...

Role of arm reaching movement kinematics in friction perception at initial contact with smooth surfaces

Abstract: When manipulating objects, humans begin adjusting their grip force to friction within 100 ms of contact. During motor adaptation, subjects become aware of the slipperiness of touched surfaces. Previously, we have demonstrated that humans cannot perceive frictional differences when surfaces are brought in contact with an immobilised...