At the apex of the human kind and our ability to strengthen our own resources lies our ability to educate and further develop our own people. As the future development requires more and more knowledge and use of technology, new tools such as the internet must be used to further our world’s evolution. The world of video games is only one of many areas that must be explored and exploited for the best possible gain for humanity. Very little is known about how to use video games to enhance our learning and this paper means to shed some light upon the media in a more formal learning context than the living room hobby reputation it has developed over the years. In order to get a broad and diverse perspective both computer game developers and teachers were interviewed. The results show that while there are a large number of positive aspects and effects closely related to video games, they are not always suitable to be used independently and may fit better into a blended environment of both more traditional ways to study and computer game experiences. Something new and extraordinary every once in a while was shown to have great effect. A lot of opinions arose regarding strategies to utilize the media of computer games to our advantage but one thing was very clear throughout, the teachers and even to some extent, students of our world are simply not fully prepared to embrace this new form of knowledge. Thus, in order to be able to utilize its full potential, we must strive to improve our knowledge on how entertaining games and pedagogic theory blend together. This in order to create a new, creative, motivational and inspiring way to learn that will last for decades.

The work explores extending time interleaving in A/D converters, by applying a high-level of parallelism to one of the slowest and simplest types of data-converters, the counter ADC. The motivation for the work is to realise high-performance re-configurable A/D converters for use in multi-standard and multi-PHY communication receivers with signal bandwidths in the 10s to 100s of MHz. The counter ADC requires only a comparator, a ramp signal, and a digital counter, where the comparator compares the sampled input against all possible quantisation levels sequentially. This work explores arranging counter ADCs in large time-interleaved arrays, building a Time Interleaved Counter (TIC) ADC. The key to realising a TIC ADC is distributed sampling and a global multi-phase ramp generator realised with a novel figure-of-8 rotating resistor ring. Furthermore Counter ADCs allow for re-configurability between effective sampling rate and resolution due to their sequential comparison of reference levels in conversion. A prototype TIC ADC of 128-channels was fabricated and measured in 0.13μm CMOS technology, where the same block can be configured to operate as a 7-bit 1GS/s, 8-bit 500MS/s, or 9-bit 250MS/s dataconverter. The ADC achieves a sub 400fJ/step FOM in all modes of configuration.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:52:38Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ChiaraACS.pdf: 961391 bytes, checksum: d2add614bc5499de6436f5f5471a2be7 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-12-06 / A presente pesquisa objetivou estudar as rela??es entre os fatores intervenientes para a satisfa??o no processo de compras baseadas na Internet e sua influ?ncia na fidelidade online (e-loyalty), na vis?o dos consumidores de varejo virtual. Para tanto, foi utilizado como instrumento de coleta de dados um question?rio baseado em fatores de qualidade e fidelidade oriundos dos servi?os convencionais, que foi adaptado para a realidade dos servi?os digitais. A pesquisa caracteriza-se como explorat?ria, de natureza quantiqualitativa. A an?lise quantitativa descreveu e testou a rela??o de vari?veis de qualidade do site e de pre?o dos produtos do site com as vari?veis de satisfa??o. Neste caso, foram utilizadas t?cnicas estat?sticas como distribui??o de freq??ncia, m?dias e desvio-padr?o e correla??o de postos de Spearman. J? na abordagem qualitativa, foi empregada a an?lise de conte?do para uma quest?o aberta relacionada com a identifica??o dos fatores que levam a fidelidade digital. A pesquisa de campo foi feita com uma amostra de 44 alunos de p?s-gradua??o em n?vel de Especializa??o da Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte. Os resultados da an?lise quantitativa evidenciaram que a qualidade est? ligada ? satisfa??o dos clientes em v?rios fatores, mas o pre?o n?o influencia muito na satisfa??o. Na an?lise qualitativa, a seguran?a do website e os pre?os oferecidos s?o fatores que potencialmente fidelizam os clientes digitais, segundo a perspectiva dos entrevistados. O fator seguran?a e confian?a no website foi considerado o mais cr?tico para a fidelidade dos clientes que compram pela Internet

The power requirements for leading edge digital integrated circuits have become increasingly demanding. Power converter systems must be faster, more flexible, more precisely controllable and easily monitored. Meanwhile, in addition to control process, the new functions such as power sequencing, communication with other systems, voltage dynamic programming,load line specifications, phase current balance, protection, power status monitoring and system diagnosis are going into today's power supply systems. Digital controllers, compared withanalog controllers, are in a favorable position to provide basic feedback control as well as those power management functions with lower cost and great flexibility. The dissertation gives an overview of digital controlled power supply systems bycomparing with conventional analog controlled power systems in term of system architecture,modeling methods, and design approaches. In addition, digital power management, as one of the most valuable and "cheap" function, is introduced in Chapter 2. Based on a leading-edge digital controller product, Chapter 3 focuses on digital PID compensator design methodologies, design issues, and optimization and development of digital controlled single-phase point-of-load (POL)dc-dc converter. Nonlinear control is another valuable advantage of digital controllers over analogcontrollers. Based on the modeling of an isolated half-bridge dc-dc converter, a nonlinear control method is proposed in Chapter 4. Nonlinear adaptive PID compensation scheme is implemented based on digital controller Si8250. The variable PID coefficient during transients improves power system's transient response and thus output capacitance can be reduced to save cost. In Chapter 5, another nonlinear compensation algorithm is proposed for asymmetric flybackforward half bridge dc-dc converter to reduce the system loop gain's dependence on the input voltage, and improve the system's dynamic response at high input line. In Chapter 6, a unified pulse width modulation (PWM) scheme is proposed to extend the duty-cycle-shift (DCS) control, where PWM pattern is adaptively generated according to the input voltage level, such that the power converter's voltage stress are reduced and efficiency is improved. With the great flexibility of digital PWM modulation offered by the digital controller Si8250, the proposed control scheme is implemented and verified. Conclusion of the dissertation work and suggestions for future work in related directions are given in final Chapter.

A avaliação se consolidou historicamente como parte fundamental do processo de ensino e aprendizagem. Por isso deve ser mais do que uma classificação, tendo como função básica informar e orientar os professores e os alunos nas suas decisões. Partindo do princípio de que a interatividade e o envolvimento ativo dos alunos no processo e na avaliação, contribuem para promover o domínio de procedimentos e a compreensão conceitual através da resolução de problemas, do raciocínio e da argumentação, essa pesquisa desenvolveu um estudo sobre avaliação em que se utilizou de tecnologias como jogos digitais, softwares matemáticos e WebQuest, com alunos do 7º ano do Ensino Fundamental de um dos grupos que foi estimulado a ter maior controle e autonomia de suas aprendizagens. Para isso, investigamos uma sequência de ensino sobre ângulos e polígonos elaborada a partir das considerações governamentais oficiais, no que diz respeito ao uso de situações-problema e tecnologia para investigação e avaliação formativa em matemática; e analisamos as contribuições das tecnologias citadas para a avaliação do conceito de ângulo e das principais propriedades relativas a lados e ângulos de polígonos. Trata-se de uma pesquisa quanti-qualitativa que comparou o desempenho e evolução dos alunos do grupo experimental em comparação com um grupo controle, que não foi exposto à metodologia diferenciada de avaliação com apoio de tecnologias, em uma avaliação diagnóstica, num pré-teste e num pós-teste. A média das notas dos dois grupos na avaliação diagnóstica evidenciou que ambos possuíam os pré-requisitos para a aprendizagem de novos conceitos. A análise de variância mostrou que 32,4% da nota no pós-teste é explicada pela nota da avaliação diagnóstica, reforçando a importância dos conhecimentos prévios pra novas aprendizagens. Os resultados indicaram ainda benefícios do feedback e da autorregulação da aprendizagem promovidos pelas avaliações formativas apoiadas pelas tecnologias, principalmente para os alunos com mais dificuldades de aprendizagem. Consideramos que esses resultados podem oferecer subsídios para melhoria da prática avaliativa de professores de matemática. / The assessment is historically consolidated as a fundamental part of the teaching and learning process. Therefore, it should be more than classification, whose basic function is to inform and guide teachers and students in their decisions. Assuming that interactivity and active involvement of students in the process and evaluation help to promote the domain procedures and conceptual understanding through problem solving, reasoning and argumentation, this research has developed a study on evaluation in which technologies were used, such as digital games, software and mathematical WebQuest with students from the 7th grade of elementary school of one of the groups was encouraged to have greater control and autonomy in their learning. For that investigated a sequence of learning about angles and polygons, compiled from the official government considerations with regard to the use of problem situations and technology for research and formative assessment in mathematics; and analyze the contributions to the technologies mentioned evaluation angle concept and key properties for polygon sides and angles. It is a quantitative and qualitative research that compared the performance and progress of students in the experimental group compared to a control group that was not exposed to different methodology of evaluation with assistive technology in a diagnostic assessment, a pre-test and a post-test one. The average grade of the two groups in the diagnostic evaluation showed that both had the prerequisites for learning new concepts. Analysis of variance showed that 32.4% of the grade in the post-test is explained by diagnostic evaluation grade, reinforcing the importance of prior knowledge to new learning. The results indicated further benefits of feedback and learning self-regulation promoted by formative assessments supported by technologies primarily for students with learning disabilities. We believe that these results can provide insight to improve evaluation practices of mathematics teachers.

A avaliação se consolidou historicamente como parte fundamental do processo de ensino e aprendizagem. Por isso deve ser mais do que uma classificação, tendo como função básica informar e orientar os professores e os alunos nas suas decisões. Partindo do princípio de que a interatividade e o envolvimento ativo dos alunos no processo e na avaliação, contribuem para promover o domínio de procedimentos e a compreensão conceitual através da resolução de problemas, do raciocínio e da argumentação, essa pesquisa desenvolveu um estudo sobre avaliação em que se utilizou de tecnologias como jogos digitais, softwares matemáticos e WebQuest, com alunos do 7º ano do Ensino Fundamental de um dos grupos que foi estimulado a ter maior controle e autonomia de suas aprendizagens. Para isso, investigamos uma sequência de ensino sobre ângulos e polígonos elaborada a partir das considerações governamentais oficiais, no que diz respeito ao uso de situações-problema e tecnologia para investigação e avaliação formativa em matemática; e analisamos as contribuições das tecnologias citadas para a avaliação do conceito de ângulo e das principais propriedades relativas a lados e ângulos de polígonos. Trata-se de uma pesquisa quanti-qualitativa que comparou o desempenho e evolução dos alunos do grupo experimental em comparação com um grupo controle, que não foi exposto à metodologia diferenciada de avaliação com apoio de tecnologias, em uma avaliação diagnóstica, num pré-teste e num pós-teste. A média das notas dos dois grupos na avaliação diagnóstica evidenciou que ambos possuíam os pré-requisitos para a aprendizagem de novos conceitos. A análise de variância mostrou que 32,4% da nota no pós-teste é explicada pela nota da avaliação diagnóstica, reforçando a importância dos conhecimentos prévios pra novas aprendizagens. Os resultados indicaram ainda benefícios do feedback e da autorregulação da aprendizagem promovidos pelas avaliações formativas apoiadas pelas tecnologias, principalmente para os alunos com mais dificuldades de aprendizagem. Consideramos que esses resultados podem oferecer subsídios para melhoria da prática avaliativa de professores de matemática. / The assessment is historically consolidated as a fundamental part of the teaching and learning process. Therefore, it should be more than classification, whose basic function is to inform and guide teachers and students in their decisions. Assuming that interactivity and active involvement of students in the process and evaluation help to promote the domain procedures and conceptual understanding through problem solving, reasoning and argumentation, this research has developed a study on evaluation in which technologies were used, such as digital games, software and mathematical WebQuest with students from the 7th grade of elementary school of one of the groups was encouraged to have greater control and autonomy in their learning. For that investigated a sequence of learning about angles and polygons, compiled from the official government considerations with regard to the use of problem situations and technology for research and formative assessment in mathematics; and analyze the contributions to the technologies mentioned evaluation angle concept and key properties for polygon sides and angles. It is a quantitative and qualitative research that compared the performance and progress of students in the experimental group compared to a control group that was not exposed to different methodology of evaluation with assistive technology in a diagnostic assessment, a pre-test and a post-test one. The average grade of the two groups in the diagnostic evaluation showed that both had the prerequisites for learning new concepts. Analysis of variance showed that 32.4% of the grade in the post-test is explained by diagnostic evaluation grade, reinforcing the importance of prior knowledge to new learning. The results indicated further benefits of feedback and learning self-regulation promoted by formative assessments supported by technologies primarily for students with learning disabilities. We believe that these results can provide insight to improve evaluation practices of mathematics teachers.

Common thought about cinema calls to mind an audience seated in a darkened theatre watching projected moving images that unfold a narrative onto a single screen. Cinema is much more than this. There is a significant history of artists experimenting with the moving image outside of its familiar setting in a movie theatre. These investigations are often referred to as "expanded cinema". This dissertation proposes a genre of expanded cinema called haptic cinema, an approach to interactive narrative that emphasizes material object sensing, identification and management; viewer's interaction with material objects; multisequential narrative; and the presentation of visual and audio information through multiple displays to create a sensorially rich experience for viewers. The interactive digital media tabletop is identified as one platform on which to develop haptic cinema. This platform supports a subgenre of haptic cinema called tabletop cinema. Expanded cinema practices are analyzed for their contributions to haptic cinema. Based on this theoretical and artistic research, the thesis claims that haptic cinema contributes to the historical development of expanded cinema and interactive cinema practices. I have identified the core properties of a haptic cinema practice during the process of designing, developing and testing a series of haptic cinema projects. These projects build on and make use of methods and conventions from tangible interfaces, tangible narratives and tabletop computing.