Das Prinzip des embodiment könnte autonome Roboter ermöglichen, die mit ihrer Umwelt in sinnvoller und selbstständiger Weise agieren. Dafür scheint ein kombiniertes Verhaltensmuster, bestehend aus explorativen sowie sensitiven Aktivitäten, geeignet zu sein. Ein Schwerpunkt dieser Arbeit liegt in der Zeitreihenanalyse mit der Mutual Information als ein ausgewähltes informationstheoretisches Maß bezüglich des Verhaltens selbstorganisierender autonomer Roboter. Für die verwendete Simulationsumgebung lpzrobots, welche von der Robotik-Gruppe von Prof. R. Der entwickelt wurde, erfolgt erstmalig die Erstellung einer handbuchartigen Dokumentation. Zusätzliche Erweiterungen für lpzrobots sind ebenfalls eine wichtiger Aspekt in dieser Arbeit. Die Robotik-Gruppe von Prof. R. Der entwarf für die Steuerung realer Roboter mit dem Simuationssystem lpzrobots ein Embedded-Controller-Board. Das Board ermöglicht die modulare und flexible Konstruktion von Robotern.

Embodiment is defined as a state in which one experiences one's body as an essential and loved aspect of one's lived experiences, a potential protective factor against body image and eating disturbance. While qualitative studies have been conducted to examine the nature of embodiment, a quantitative measure has not yet been created. The Physical Body Experiences Questionnaire was rationally derived as a measure of embodiment based on focus groups, literature reviews, and expert review. These qualitative methods resulted in a 32-item scale measured on a 7-point Likert scale. Based on the results of a pilot study conducted with 670 female undergraduate participants, revisions were made to the PBE to improve item wording and reduce the number of negative items in the scale. The aims of the study were to assess the psychometric properties of the revised PBE, test the convergent and predictive validity of the questionnaire, and confirm the factor structure of the questionnaire. The PBE - along with several other measures of body image, self-objectification, and disordered eating - was administered to two independent samples randomly selected from a pool of 638 female undergraduate students at least 18 years of age. In Sample 1, exploratory factor analyses indicated that 4 factors should be retained. The final PBE consisted of 18 items and 4 subscales (Mind/Body Connection, Body Acceptance, Physical Competence, and Physical Limits). The total scale and subscales demonstrated excellent internal consistency. Significant correlations were found between the PBE subscales and measures of body awareness, body responsiveness, body satisfaction, positive body image, self-objectification, disordered eating, and self-esteem. Regression analyses indicated the subscales differentially predicted disordered eating and positive body image. Results indicated the utility of the Mind/Body Connection and Body Acceptance subscales in predicting body awareness, body responsiveness, positive body image, body satisfaction, self-objectification, disordered eating, and positive body image. In Sample 2, confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the factor structure of the PBE. These findings indicate that the PBE has important utility for future investigations of positive body image, physical activity, and disordered eating. Limitations of the study are discussed.

The spatial categorisations of urban and rural are still used in academia, lay terminology and policy formation in spite of a postmodern obsession with the deconstruction of binaries. Hitherto, the urban rural dichotomy has been exposed to little scrutiny, and the critiques that have been made come from the epistemological standpoint of total urbanisation which assumes the rural will be effaced by a perennial urban sprawl. The rural urban dichotomy is a derivative of the larger ideological dualism of nature and society and it has long been postulated, particularly from the standpoint of political ecology, that in the Anthropocene, nature does not exist beyond human influence. This would, in theory, support the theory that rural space is becoming effaced. Previous studies have, however, demonstrated that this subjugation of the rural to the urban works to stigmatise rural populations and engender disenfranchisement that has led to a resurgence in far-right nationalism across much of Europe. This subjugation has been enforced through  this very urban norm in which both technocrats and academics favour the urban as a field for policy formation and research. When attempting to define the urban and the rural, it was found that the terms (a) are confused and confusing, evading any useful definition; (b) perpetuate a false neutrality that assumes a linear progression from rural to urban and (c) fail to recognise the complexities of space which resists binary distinctions. As such, I used Lefebvre’s spatial trifecta which suggests space is produced by three complimentary and contradictory processes: of perceived space (the material space of what we can actually see and touch, altered by seemingly banal everyday practices), conceived space (the (re)representations of space that are circulated by planners and technocrats) and lived space (the affectual space of emotion, memory and meanings) in order to think through the problems of the binary.  As such, this thesis aimed to explore whether the urban and the rural still function as legitimate spatial categories and, in doing so, used an emplaced, embodied and mobile exploration of five case studies within Stockholms län in order to explore the phenomena. This was appropriate as it mirrored the affectual potential believed to be induced through rural and natural landscapes. Indeed, by developing a methodology that can better account for lived space, we can attempt to dislodge perceived and conceived spaces as the more easily accessible conceptual framework for thinking through space. The findings showed that there were many different species of urban and rural spaces, many spaces that were both urban and rural and many that were neither. Indeed, an acquiescence of purportedly rural and urban features within purportedly urban spaces, and vice versa, was the most telling result in terms of disrupting the idea that the urban and rural are stable but antipodal spatial categories. I also found the rural to be a coterminous process that produces space with and against urban landscapes, and thus should not be subjugated.

This study is about how eight mixed-race women, residing in urban Sweden, experience their own becoming through body and sexuality and through the way they experience that other individuals and the outer world view them. The methods used are ethnographic interviewing and autoethnographic writing.The theoretical framework is mainly located in the field of feminist and anti-racist phenomenology and includes becoming, belonging, intersubjectivity, disidentification, and affect theory. I find that the women of this study become through negotiation of circulating images, stigmas, and norms and that becoming is a corporeal process that is felt and thought. We create belongings through our becoming.

Coolness is a desired but overlooked concept in fashion. The thesis The Vincent Vega in Helmut Lang: Framing Helmut Lang’s Coolness in Relation to Cool Movie Characters sheds light on how coolness is created in Helmut Lang’s spring 2004 collection in relation to movie representations. The thesis frames coolness as a myth and gendered performance. With the method of representation studies, several movies are analysed in how they present coolness. It is discovered that movies continuously reproduce the same myth. With critical visual analysis, Lang’s collection is put in context to these movies. It is shown that Lang’s collection has many similarities to the movie costumes and although he tries to break out the gendered myth, he still reproduces it. The thesis contributes to understand coolness as a concept but also that coolness, at least in Lang’s case, is heavily dependent on the cinematic representations rather than pursuing his own unique approach.

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Habitus is a type of order that explains how an individual becomes a member of a society or a culture and can be studied to learn about that society or culture. Daniel Miller is introducing a similar approach to order of individuals’ material relationships through which one can learn about meaningful representation of the individual subjects themselves. These relationships could be interpreted as being highly subjective and be seen in the form of a practice of self-construction. In a search for an anthropology of morality authors such as Mattingly (et.al) are complementary using virtue ethics and Foucault´s notion of “a care of the self” as a moral practice to study moral subjectivity and its formation. Strathern and Stewart claim that embodiment, as a theoretical concept, can show how the mind, body, and experience come together and provide insight into personhood. This thesis focuses on tattoos as a moral practice, by studying individuals through a narrative of a moral being, with the aim to understand its formation of moral subjectivity and its embodiment of individuality. In conclusion, there will be argued that the practice of tattoos creates a negotiation between the individual mind and body, and between the practice itself and the society where it takes place.

The denial of the access to abortion has been addressed as a human rights issue. This thesis is based on a MFS- study with the aim to investigate women’s experiences of power and resistance in the movement for legalization of abortion in Argentina. The material for this thesis has been gathered by conducting semi-structured interviews with Argentinian women advocating for the right to abortion. Embodiment theory, Butler’s performative theory on assembly and theories on resistance are used in order to elicit the body’s role in the experiences of power and resistance. It is concluded that the body is not only seen as an object of submission but also understood as a tool for resistance. Power is understood as exercised over women’s bodies. However, when developing collective consciousness on patriarchal norms and structures, women gain power and are able to decide over their own bodies.

This qualitative thesis work investigates in which way an immersive,embodied and interactive computer-based simulation can lead to an easierunderstanding of programming concepts. It also presents a concept for VRprogramming learning tool that could turn learning into a fun and engagingexperience for the students. The target group is Interaction Design bachelorstudents – programming is an important tool to create innovative andinteractive artefacts and interfaces, and yet, the students have hard time tounderstand many of the programming concepts. The current research relieson concepts such as embodiment and tangibility, which reflects on theprototype developed – a highly immersive, embodied VR platform with astrong illusion of tangibility. Additionally, the prototype was inspired byfeedback from students and teachers, result of a participatory approach.Finally, the research showed through usability tests that the studentsexperienced that the application made the concepts more graspable and morefun to learn.

This paper journeys through skin and touch as a form of storytelling and ritualistic bodily expression. It investigates how these elements and actions with the body can support humans in forging deeper connections and function as a catalyst for care. This work builds on theories of slow design, ritual design and Body-Mind Centering. It studies embodied research within design and shares insights gained through experiential and explorative practices. Further it looks at the human nature bond within female bodies as a a way to strengthen women and dismantle patriarchal structures. To conclude it explores how a booklet can be a medium for guiding women into their own bodies and invoking care with the self, other humans and more than human others.