Game AI revisited

More than a decade after the early research efforts on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in computer games and the establishment of a new AI domain the term “game AI” needs to be redefined. Traditionally, the tasks associated with game AI revolved around non player character (NPC) behavior at different levels of control, varying from navigation and pathfinding to decision making. Commercial-standard games developed over the last 15 years and current game productions, however, suggest that the traditional challenges of game AI have been well addressed via the use of sophisticated AI approaches, not necessarily following or inspired by advances in academic practices. The marginal penetration of traditional academic game AI methods in industrial productions has been mainly due to the lack of constructive communication between academia and industry in the early days of academic game AI, and the inability of academic game AI to propose methods that would significantly advance existing development processes or provide scalable solutions to real world problems. Recently, however, there has been a shift of research focus as the current plethora of AI uses in games is breaking the non-player character AI tradition. A number of those alternative AI uses have already shown a significant potential for the design of better games. This paper presents four key game AI research areas that are currently reshaping the research roadmap in the game AI field and evidently put the game AI term under a new perspective. These game AI flagship research areas include the computational modeling of player experience, the procedural generation of content, the mining of player data on massive-scale and the alternative AI research foci for enhancing NPC capabilities.peer-reviewe

An initial biomedical physics elements-of-competence inventory for first cycle physiotherapy programmes in Europe

This paper presents an initial version of a biomedical physics elements-of-competence inventory for First Cycle Physiotherapy programmes in Europe and describes the process used in its development. The research reported forms part of an ongoing project the purpose of which is to put the role of the biomedical physics educator within Faculties of Medicine / Health Science on a firm foundation. The results of this research has indicated that a strategic mission statement for the role would be that: "Biomedical physics educators will make a decisive contribution to quality healthcare professional education through the pursuit of practice-oriented curriculum research, development and delivery in the physics-engineering competences necessary for the scientific, effective, safe, ethical and efficient use of biomedical devices and the supervision of student research involving such devices" Biomedical devices are strongly underpinned by physics principles. They are crucial to modern healthcare and the subject of several EU directives, hence offering an excellent opportunity for role consolidation. In this context 'effective' means ensuring that the intended healthcare purpose for which the medical device is being utilized is achieved. 'Safe' refers to the avoidance of unnecessary risk to patients and the total elimination or reduction to acceptable levels of risks to users and others from physical agents associated with devices. 'Physical agents' refers to ionizing radiation, mechanical, electrical, acoustic, ultrasonic, magnetic, electromagnetic, high temperature, optical, ultraviolet, infrared, and laser risk sources. 'Efficient' refers to achievement of purpose with minimum device use time. A generic curriculum development model which can be used to drive curriculum development for the healthcare professions was derived from the above mission statement. The model has already been used for the construction of elements-of-competence inventories for Diagnostic Radiography, Medicine and Nursing [1-3]. This paper presents a similar inventory for physiotherapists (alternative professional titles in Europe are 'physical therapist' and 'kinesitherapeute'). Only one paper has been found in the literature which involves the teaching of physics in the physiotherapy context. It addresses teaching methodology and assessment [4]. This paper focuses on content.peer-reviewe

Towards player-driven procedural content generation

Generating immersive game content is one of the ultimate goals for a game designer. This goal can be achieved by realizing the fact that players' perception of the same game differ according to a number of factors including: players' personality, playing styles, expertise and culture background. While one player might find the game immersive, others may quit playing as a result of encountering a seemingly insoluble problem. One promising avenue towards optimizing the gameplay experience for individual game players is to tailor player experience in real-time via automatic game content generation. Specifying the aspects of the game that have the major influence on the gameplay experience, identifying the relationship between these aspect and each individual experience and defining a mechanism for tailoring the game content according to each individual needs are important steps towards player-driven content generation.peer-reviewe

Simple guidelines to minimise exposure to earthquake-triggered landslides

Reducing landslide risk in many mountainous regions is most effectively achieved by reducing exposure to landslides, because landslides cannot be predicted or stopped and engineering solutions are generally impractical or impossible. Because landslide hazard is very site-specific, available hazard maps may not be detailed enough, or contain appropriate and up-to- date information, to inform decision-making. We use our experience of studying the characteristics of landslides in recent large earthquakes to describe three simple guidelines that can be used to minimise exposure to future earthquake-triggered landslide hazard. The most effective measure is to choose a location that minimises the angle to the skyline, and to keep that angle below 25° if at all possible. It is also important to avoid steep channels (those with slopes of >15°), especially if there are many steep hillsides upstream. Finally, the slope of the ground at your location should always be minimised. These guidelines do not specify where landslides will occur, but can be used to distinguish between areas which are more or less likely to be affected by landslides in a large earthquake. They can be used to reduce risk before an earthquake occurs by helping to inform decisions on where to situate key infrastructure, such as schools or health posts. They can be used to inform decisions about the locations of houses, markets, or other areas where people are likely to spend considerable periods of time, or for deciding on appropriate types of land use. The guidelines can also be used in disaster preparedness and response planning, by identifying suitable evacuation routes and open spaces for use as evacuation sites or emergency shelters. We provide some brief guidance on what to do immediately after an earthquake in order to minimise exposure to landslides, and discuss the relevance of these guidelines for protecting against rainfall-triggered landslides which may occur more frequently

Using operations research to strengthen programmes for encouraging abandonment of female genital cutting. Report of a consultative meeting on methodological issues for FGC Research

The Population Council’s Frontiers in Reproductive Health program, with funding from USAID, organized a consultative meeting on the practice of female genital cutting (FGC) in Nairobi, Kenya in April 2002. The meeting brought together a small group of researchers and program managers who are actively undertaking operations research and systematic program evaluations to review the state of the art concerning intervention research design and measurement issues. The deliberations at this workshop should stimulate interest both in undertaking operations research more routinely when programming anti-FGC activities and in furthering the development and application of research methods appropriate for this subject. Several challenges remain: ensuring that those implementing and funding anti-FGC interventions appreciate how an operations research approach can benefit their efforts; building organizational and individual capacity to undertake operations research on anti-FGC interventions as well as to use the results from such studies; and communicating widely the findings from operations research so that future activities are evidence-based

Youth reproductive health: Investing in the future

Youth—young people aged 10–24—constitute about a quarter of the world\u27s population. Nearly three-quarters of these young people live in the developing world, and they suffer a disproportionate share of unplanned pregnancies, STIs including HIV, and other reproductive health (RH) problems. Research undertaken by FRONTIERS has shed light on numerous aspects of youth RH, including the information needs of young people, married adolescents, and parents and guardians. Findings from over 20 studies on youth RH provide important lessons about which interventions are effective, what kind of impact is possible, and what approaches have limited impact. This paper focuses on engaging all stakeholders in youth RH, addressing underserved groups, and using research to guide youth programming. This is one of eight Legacy Papers synthesizing major lessons learned in research conducted under the FRONTIERS in Reproductive Health Program. The full set of Legacy Papers includes: Capacity Building, Family Planning, Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, Gender, Integration of Services, Sustainability of Services, Utilization of Research Findings, and Youth Reproductive Health