Reading Graphic Design in Cultural Context

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc 2019.Reading Graphic Design: •Is a much needed examination of graphic design in the expanded field •Forms an introduction to writing critically about graphic design through twelve chapters providing exemplary analyses of the semantic richness of the selected case studies •Goes beyond aesthetic judgments to explore how graphic design and illustration function as fields of industry and commerce in the West •Will inform, challenge and entertain undergraduate students of graphic design internationall

Pl\:ucker relations and spherical varieties: application to model varieties

A general framework for the reduction of the equations defining classes of spherical varieties to (maybe infinite dimensional) grassmannians is proposed. This is applied to model varieties of type A, B and C; in particular a standard monomial theory for these varieties is presented.Comment: 15 pages, accepted for publication in Transformation Group

Spontaneous blink rate as an index of attention and emotion during film clips viewing

Spontaneous blinking is a non-invasive indicator known to reflect dopaminergic influence over frontal cortex and attention allocation in perceptual tasks. 38 participants watched eighteen short film clips (2 min), designed to elicit specific affective states, and arranged in six different emotional categories, while their eye movements were recorded from the vertical electroculogram. The largest blink rate inhibition, reflecting greater attention allocation to the movie, was observed during the presentation of Erotic clips, excerpts on wilderness depicting beautiful landscapes (Scenery), as well as clips showing crying characters (Compassion). Instead, the minimum blink rate inhibition was found for Fear clips, which induced a defensive response with stimulus rejection. Blink rate across time evidenced how Compassion clips elicited early inhibition while Sadness clips induced a slower, later inhibition. Correlation analyses also revealed a negative correlation (r < -0.40) between total blink rate recorded during Erotic and Compassion clips and self-reported interest. Overall, the main variable explaining blink rate was emotional Valence. Results suggest that blink modulation is related with the motivational relevance and biological significance of the stimuli, tracking their differential recruitment of attentional resources. Furthermore, they provide a solid background for studying the emotion-attention patterns and their deficits also in clinical samples (e.g., neurological and psychiatric patients) using spontaneous blinking as a not-interfering psychophysiological measure

Pfaffians and Shuffling Relations for the Spin Module

We present explicit formulas for a set of generators of the ideal of relations among the pfaffians of the principal minors of the antisymmetric matrices of fixed dimension. These formulas have an interpretation in terms of the standard monomial theory for the spin module of orthogonal groups.Comment: 10 page

Dangerous Liaisons: Relationships between design, craft and art

The introductory essay [co-authored] examines the background and current interconnections between design, craft and the fine arts. This Special Issue was able to expand the debate by showing how attitudes to materials – from 19C sculpture to current fashion – appropriate craftsmanship to reinvigorate notions of handmaking

Research on the combination of water and membranes as a structural building material

p. 3024-3033The aim of this paper is to investigate the combination of water and membranes for temporary architectural applications. Water as a construction material, can be useful for three different purposes: first of all, thanks to its thermal mass, it can be used as a medium for cooling down or heating up buildings (Pronk et al [6]); secondly water is uncompressible and, in combination with air, can be used as part of a structural element; thirdly the mass of water could work as a sound barrier so it can be used as sound insulation material (Rodrigues and Coutinho [7]). This paper shows the result of the structural behaviour. There is another paper about sound insulation properties of water. The research in both structural and sound insulation fields was carried out in the laboratories of Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, The Netherlands. The prototype is a "waterbeam" of 2 m span. Starting from the Tensairity(R) technology principle (Luchsinger et al [8]) developed by Airlight, the purpose of this experiment is to replace the iron struts with a second membrane chamber filled with water. Water works well in compression and air prevents buckling. The result is a rigid structural element made by non-rigid material (water, air, membranes and cables) with a significant reduction of weight and cost of transportation compared to the traditional iron beam but also compared with the Tensairity(R) system. Different bending tests were carried out. In each test, the two chambers of the beam were filled with air or water to understand the material behaviour.The comparison between the results shows that water works slightly better than air (stiffness increase of a range of 8-13% in the elements filled with water). Water application in architecture showed promising results. Further investigation (pure compression tests on columns, multiple layers sound barrier) should be carried out. These results could give architects new design opportunities and solutions concerning temporary buildings and moveable architecture. Moreover the company and building construction industry could develop innovative structural elements and new insulation components.Pronk, A.; Maffei, R.; Martin, H. (2009). Research on the combination of water and membranes as a structural building material. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/670