Is carousel interaction really usable?

In this paper a novel and significant study into the usability of carousel interaction in the context of desktop interaction is presented. Two equivalent prototypes in an e-commerce context were developed. One version had a carousel and the other version did not have a carousel. These were then compared with each other in an empirical experiment with 40 participants. The data collected were statistically analysed and overall results showed that in terms of performance the Web site version without carousel outperformed the version with carousel. Furthermore, the subjective preferences of the participants were strongly in favour of the without carousel version of the site. The results of this study make an important contribution to knowledge suggesting that in many cases implementing a carousel is not the best design decision. The results of this paper are particularly significant in relation to desktop versioned Web sites and goal-driven tasks. Serendipitous-type tasks and mobile versioned web sites used on mobile devices with touch screens were not part of the scope of this work.

Contributors to Fluxgate Magnetic Noise in Permalloy Foils Including a Potential New Copper Alloy Regime

Fluxgate magnetometers provide sensitive and stable measurements of the static and low frequency vector magnetic field. Fluxgates form a magnetic field measurement by periodically saturating a ferromagnetic core and the intrinsic magnetic noise of this material can determine the noise floor of the instrument. We present the results of an empirical experiment to understand the physical parameters that influence the intrinsic magnetic noise of fluxgate cores. We compare two permalloy alloys – the historical standard 6 % molybdenum alloy and a new 28 % copper alloy. We examine the influence of geometry using the historical standard 1” diameter spiral wound ring-core and a new stacked washer racetrack design. We evaluate the influence of material thickness by comparing 100 µm and 50 µm foils. Finally, we investigate heat treatments in terms of temperature and ramp rate and their role in both grain size and magnetic noise. The results of these experiments suggest that thinner foils, potentially comprising the copper alloy, manufactured into continuous racetrack geometry washers may provide excellent performance in fluxgate sensors.

A Platform Based on Personalized Exergames and Natural User Interfaces to Promote Remote Physical Activity and Improve Healthy Aging in Elderly People

In recent years, there has been a significant growth in the number of research works focused on improving the lifestyle and health of elderly people by means of technology. Telerehabilitation and the promotion of physical activity at home have been two of the fields that have attracted more attention, especially currently due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, elderly people are sometimes reluctant to use technology at home, mainly due to fear of technology and lack of familiarity. In this context, this article presents a low-cost platform that relies on exergames and natural user interfaces to promote physical activity at home and improve the quality of life in elderly people. The underlying system is easy to use and accessible, offering a number of interaction mechanisms that guide users through the execution of routines and exercises. A relevant feature of the proposal is the ability to customize the exergames, making it possible for the therapist to adapt them according to the user’s needs. Motivation is also addressed within the developed platform to maintain the user’s engagement level as time passes by. An empirical experiment is conducted to measure the usability and motivational aspects of the proposal, which was evaluated by 17 users between 62 and 89 years of age. The obtained results showed that the proposal was well received, considering that most of the users were not experienced at all with exergame-based systems.

Psychological Aspects as the Components of Academic Mobility of Medical Workers

The relevance of the study is conditioned by the need for mastery of “professional mobility” and “reflection” by health professionals in terms of active scientific and technological development and rapid changes in the socio-cultural space. The purpose of the study is to determine the professional mobility of a specialist in the context of the peculiarities of the professional activity of a nurse and to create a methodology for its research. In the course of the study, methods of statistical and mathematical analysis, scientific modelling, as well as testing and generalisation of data were used to conduct an empirical experiment, the essence of which was to create and substantiate the method “Professional mobility of a nurse”. The necessity of the professional mobility development of employees of medical institutions is substantiated. The key components of the study of professional mobility of nurses have been established. A method for studying professional mobility and reflection of healthcare workers in the form of a questionnaire “Professional mobility of nurses” has been developed. Statistical processing of the received data has been conducted and the statistical matrix of the specified technique is created. A sample normative scale for the questionnaire has been formed. The reliability of the questionnaire was determined due to the use of the Cronbach's alpha index. The coefficient of discrimination of the method “Professional mobility of nurses” was found. Prospects for further research are seen in the regular use of the developed questionnaire “Professional mobility of nurses” among healthcare workers to actively implement and develop professional mobility to ensure proper socioeconomic stability

Levels of formation of communicative competence of the future specialist in physical culture and sport

The impact of new socio-economic, educational and professional demands of today creates the need for study and scientific analysis of communicative competence of specialists in physical culture and sports, it will allow to effectively perform professional tasks and actively interact in their future professional activities. Aim: on the basis of psychological-experimental research to analyze the levels of development of communicative competence in future professionals in physical culture and sports. Methods and organization of research. Theoretical - analysis, synthesis, generalization, systematization. Empirical - experiment, observation, conversation, expert evaluation, questionnaire, testing. Results of research and discussion. A study of the levels of communicative competence and its structural components of future specialists in physical culture and sports depending on gender, specialty. Conclusions. Psychodiagnostics of levels of communicative competence and some of its components in students gave the following results: future specialists in physical culture and sports are characterized mostly by medium and low levels of development of communicative competence.

Determination of Process Noise for Underwater Target Tracking with Forward Looking Sonar

Target tracking is a process that provides information about targets in a specific area and is one of the key issues affecting the safety of any vehicle navigating in water. The main sensor used for underwater target tracking is sonar, with one of the most popular configurations being forward looking sonar (FLS). The target tracking state vector is usually estimated with the use of numerical filter algorithms, such as the Kalman filter (KF) and its modification, or the particle filter (PF). This requires the definition of a process model, including process noise, and a measurement model. This study focused on process noise definition. It is usually implemented as Gaussian noise, with a covariance matrix defined by the author. An analytical and empirical analysis was conducted, including a verification of the existing approaches and a survey of the published literature. Additionally, a theoretical analysis of the factors influencing process noise was conducted, which was followed by an empirical verification. The results were discussed, leading to the conclusions. The results of the theoretical analysis were confirmed by the empirical experiment and the results were compared with commonly used values of process noise in underwater target tracking processes.

Progect activity in the sphere of digital technolodies

The article considers the problems that arose in the situation when the world’s system of education has been forced to transfer into distance learning mode because of the pandemic. For the first time mankind had got an experience when it became necessary to abandon traditional training. In such situation, it was possible to continue providing education both in schools and in the universities due to the advantages that “digitalization” of education carries, though a number of shortcomings that both teachers and students faced were also revealed. Empirical experiment allowed to find out that distance education has significant shortcomings which affect both quality of knowledge and physical and mental health of people as well as socio-cultural adaptation and socialization of foreign students. Abandonment of traditional education in favor of distant one carries significant losses in the quality of education and, as a result, decreases the ability to create a harmonious and comprehensively developed personality. Authors of the article come to the conclusion that distance education should be used as an additional form of education in comparison to basic one (traditional), that is, it can provide positive results only in the complex (traditional plus distance).