Museum techniques of presentation are reviewed for the possibility of use in contemporary botanic gardens. Supporting evidence suggests that these techniques are being successfully applied in some botanic gardens around the world. Institutions that have adopted museum techniques have been found to operate efficiently, whilst providing increased levels of enjoyment and education for visitors. Cultural differences between various countries have small influences on the most effective presentation techniques used, but further local research is required to uncover visitor preferences and use patterns in Australian botanic gardens. General principles of design that work well in the indoor environments of international musuems apply well in the outdoor environments of botanic gardens. Therefore greater use should be made of existing international museum research into visitor patterns of behaviour where it is locally appropriate.

<p>This study was undertaken among teachers in different schools of Sweden and among several teachers with experience in teaching drama during February and March 2006. The aim was to explore what the beneficial aspects of working with drama outdoors are and simultaneously to examine any problems that may appear and what kind of activities the teachers believe are more conducive to outdoor settings.</p><p>Qualitative research methods were used for this study. An open questionnaire was sent to eight drama teachers for their opinion on doing drama activities in outdoor environments. Also, activities recommended for using in outdoor settings were prepared and send to several teachers, some of whom had previous experience working outdoors. They were asked later in an open questionnaire to evaluate the relative success of the activities they managed to do and the positive aspects and problems they encountered in doing the activities in outdoor settings. Additionally, some unstructured observations of two different groups took place in two elementary schools. </p><p>The research reveals that in general terms, the teachers encountered many beneficial outcomes of using drama activities in outdoor environments and they encountered some problems as well. </p><p>This study demonstrates the relative success and benefits of drama activities in outdoor environments and addresses some common problems that may appear. It contains a variety of drama activities that can be useful to teachers who are interested in working with drama in the outdoors. The discussion includes some recommendations for teachers.</p>

This study was undertaken among teachers in different schools of Sweden and among several teachers with experience in teaching drama during February and March 2006. The aim was to explore what the beneficial aspects of working with drama outdoors are and simultaneously to examine any problems that may appear and what kind of activities the teachers believe are more conducive to outdoor settings. Qualitative research methods were used for this study. An open questionnaire was sent to eight drama teachers for their opinion on doing drama activities in outdoor environments. Also, activities recommended for using in outdoor settings were prepared and send to several teachers, some of whom had previous experience working outdoors. They were asked later in an open questionnaire to evaluate the relative success of the activities they managed to do and the positive aspects and problems they encountered in doing the activities in outdoor settings. Additionally, some unstructured observations of two different groups took place in two elementary schools. The research reveals that in general terms, the teachers encountered many beneficial outcomes of using drama activities in outdoor environments and they encountered some problems as well. This study demonstrates the relative success and benefits of drama activities in outdoor environments and addresses some common problems that may appear. It contains a variety of drama activities that can be useful to teachers who are interested in working with drama in the outdoors. The discussion includes some recommendations for teachers.

Children’s outdoor play is decreasing. One factor is children's increased use of technology. Contributing to an existing research project, Hållbara Lekmiljöer i Staden by Uppsala University and KTH, the aim of this research project is to investigate the potential role technology could play in children’s outdoor play if integrated within outdoor environments. A further aim of the project is to understand how children use and repurpose (appropriate) their surroundings for play, and whether evidence of one child's play can influence a future child’s play. After a review of relevant literature and previous work, the project conducted a workshop to understand how children conduct outdoor play. Through analysing the behaviours and activities of the children during this workshop (obtained via observations and interviews), three play patterns involving natural materials emerged. These include collecting materials, constructing structures using the materials, and destroying materials. The former two, alongside appropriation and technology, became themes for ideation and inspired the design process, which ultimately produced The Drum. The Drum is a digital-physical play artefact that allows children to create patterns based on their combination and types of touch interactions. Children used the technology to facilitate their play, successful appropriations due to three design features: a recognisable output medium, portability, and small design. However, these features were unable to influence future play and behaviour due to the lack of development of The Drum and the research setup. Therefore, further development of The Drum and a better research setup are suggested as actions for future work.

Studiens övergripande syfte var att undersöka och diskutera vilka som är de viktigaste egenskapernai en förskolas utemiljö och om dess kvalitet är mätbar. Studien har besvarat frågeställningarnagenom att applicera en analys- och bedömningsmodell från tidigare forskning (OPEC) på sexförskolors utemiljöer i Gävle kommun. Modellens bakgrund och kriterier har jämförts mednuvarande svenska styrdokument för planering av förskolor. Experter inom området har använtssom en del i att undersöka vilka egenskaper som utgör en god utemiljö. Resultatet visade att detfinns en diskrepans mellan modellens kriterier och aktuella styrdokument samt sakkunnigas åsikter.Resultatet visar också hur hög kvalitet de studerade förskolornas utemiljöer uppnår enligt OPEC. / The overall aim of this study was to explore and discuss which ones are the most importantcharacteristics of a preschools outdoor environment and if its quality is measurable. The study hasanswered the research questions by applying an analysis and assessment model from previousresearch (OPEC) on six preschools outdoor environments in the city of Gävle. The model'sbackground and criteria was compared with current Swedish policy documents for planningpreschools. Experts in the field has been used to study what characteristics that make a goodoutdoor environment for preschool children. The results showed that there is a discrepancybetween the model’s criteria and both the relevant policy documents and the experts’ opinions.The result also shows the quality of the studied preschools outdoor environments according toOPEC.

no / The number of people visiting their local parks and countryside is increasing according to a recent survey published by Natural England [1]. An important reason given for visiting green spaces was to “relax and unwind” and these areas can be considered restorative or tranquil environments giving relief from cognitive overload and reduction of stress. Our green spaces can be a refuge from the din of city life and the green environment can provide shelter for wildlife and bird song can be heard. But are they suffi- ciently tranquil and what guidance do we have for improving such spaces if they are not?

Barns motoriska utveckling är en viktig del av arbetet i förskolan. I Läroplan för förskolan, Lpfö 18 (Skolverket 2018, s. 9) står det att förskolans uppdrag är att utmana och främja barns motoriska utveckling och lärande i varierande miljöer. Den forskning som undersökt barns motoriska utveckling i utomhusmiljöer och vid riskfylld lek är bristfällig, vilket innebär att mer forskning inom området behövs. Därav är syftet med denna studie att undersöka hur förskollärare arbetar i utomhusmiljöer och hur riskfylld lek används för att främja barns motoriska utveckling. Studien har genomförts med den kvalitativa metoden self-report, där förskollärare besvarat nio frågor via e-post. I studiens resultat framkommer det att förskollärarna anser utomhusmiljön som betydelsefull för barns motoriska utveckling. Det framgår dessutom att när barn får möta varierande miljöer och leka med olika material främjas deras motorik. Förskollärarna lyfter fram vikten av närvarande, medforskande och stöttande pedagoger när barn utvecklas motoriskt i utomhusmiljöer. Resultatet visar även att förskollärarna anser att riskfylld lek är gynnsamt för barns motoriska utveckling, då de utmanas i olika rörelseaktiviteter vilket främjar deras motorik. / Children's motor development is an important part of the work in preschool. In the Swedish Curriculum for the preschool, Lpfö 18 (Skolverket 2018, p. 9) it is stated that the preschool's mission is to challenge and promote children's motor development and learning in varying environments. Previous research that has studied children's motor development in outdoor environments and at risky play is inadequate, which means that more research in the area is needed. Hence, the purpose of this study is to investigate how preschool teachers work in outdoor environments and how risky play is used to promote children's motor development. The study has been conducted using the qualitative method self-report, where preschool teachers answered nine questions via e-mail. The results of the study show that preschool teachers consider the outdoor environment to be important for children's motor development. It also appears that when children encounter varying environments and play with different materials, their motor skills are promoted. The preschool teachers highlight the importance of present, co-researching and supportive teachers when children develop motor skills in outdoor environments. The results also show that preschool teachers consider risky play to be beneficial for children's motor development, as they are challenged in various activities which promotes their motor skills.

A navegação autônoma é um dos problemas fundamentais na área da robótica móvel. Algoritmos capazes de conduzir um robô até o seu destino de maneira segura e eficiente são um pré-requisito para que robôs móveis possam executar as mais diversas tarefas que são atribuídas a eles com sucesso. Dependendo da complexidade do ambiente e da tarefa que deve ser executada, a programação de algoritmos de navegação não é um problema de solução trivial. Esta tese trata do desenvolvimento de sistemas de navegação autônoma baseados em técnicas de aprendizado supervisionado. Mais especificamente, foram abordados dois problemas distintos: a navegação de robôs/- veículos em ambientes urbanos e a navegação de robôs em ambientes não estruturados. No primeiro caso, o robô/veículo deve evitar obstáculos e se manter na via navegável, a partir de exemplos fornecidos por um motorista humano. No segundo caso, o robô deve identificar e evitar áreas irregulares (maior vibração), reduzindo o consumo de energia. Nesse caso, o aprendizado foi realizado a partir de informações obtidas por sensores. Em ambos os casos, algoritmos de aprendizado supervisionado foram capazes de permitir que os robôs navegassem de maneira segura e eficiente durante os testes experimentais realizados / Autonomous navigation is a fundamental problem in the field of mobile robotics. Algorithms capable of driving a robot to its destination safely and efficiently are a prerequisite for mobile robots to successfully perform different tasks that may be assigned to them. Depending on the complexity of the environment and the task to be executed, programming of navigation algorithms is not a trivial problem. This thesis approaches the development of autonomous navigation systems based on supervised learning techniques. More specifically, two distinct problems have been addressed: a robot/vehicle navigation in urban environments and robot navigation in unstructured environments. In the first case, the robot/vehicle must avoid obstacles and keep itself in the road based on examples provided by a human driver. In the second case, the robot should identify and avoid unstructured areas (higher vibration), reducing energy consumption. In this case, learning was based on information obtained by sensors. In either case, supervised learning algorithms have been capable of allowing the robots to navigate in a safe and efficient manner during the experimental tests

A navegação autônoma é um dos problemas fundamentais na área da robótica móvel. Algoritmos capazes de conduzir um robô até o seu destino de maneira segura e eficiente são um pré-requisito para que robôs móveis possam executar as mais diversas tarefas que são atribuídas a eles com sucesso. Dependendo da complexidade do ambiente e da tarefa que deve ser executada, a programação de algoritmos de navegação não é um problema de solução trivial. Esta tese trata do desenvolvimento de sistemas de navegação autônoma baseados em técnicas de aprendizado supervisionado. Mais especificamente, foram abordados dois problemas distintos: a navegação de robôs/- veículos em ambientes urbanos e a navegação de robôs em ambientes não estruturados. No primeiro caso, o robô/veículo deve evitar obstáculos e se manter na via navegável, a partir de exemplos fornecidos por um motorista humano. No segundo caso, o robô deve identificar e evitar áreas irregulares (maior vibração), reduzindo o consumo de energia. Nesse caso, o aprendizado foi realizado a partir de informações obtidas por sensores. Em ambos os casos, algoritmos de aprendizado supervisionado foram capazes de permitir que os robôs navegassem de maneira segura e eficiente durante os testes experimentais realizados / Autonomous navigation is a fundamental problem in the field of mobile robotics. Algorithms capable of driving a robot to its destination safely and efficiently are a prerequisite for mobile robots to successfully perform different tasks that may be assigned to them. Depending on the complexity of the environment and the task to be executed, programming of navigation algorithms is not a trivial problem. This thesis approaches the development of autonomous navigation systems based on supervised learning techniques. More specifically, two distinct problems have been addressed: a robot/vehicle navigation in urban environments and robot navigation in unstructured environments. In the first case, the robot/vehicle must avoid obstacles and keep itself in the road based on examples provided by a human driver. In the second case, the robot should identify and avoid unstructured areas (higher vibration), reducing energy consumption. In this case, learning was based on information obtained by sensors. In either case, supervised learning algorithms have been capable of allowing the robots to navigate in a safe and efficient manner during the experimental tests

Barn som samhällsgrupp tenderar att vara tämligen osynliga inom ramen för den fysiska planeringen. Därmed är syftet med denna studie att bidra med en ökad förståelse för hur barnperspektivet implementeras i den fysiska planeringen, men även undersöka hur förtätning påverkar barns utemiljöer, specifikt förskole- och skolgårdar. Detta eftersom det i täta stadsdelar föreligger en problematik gällande att allmänna ytor tas i anspråk för bebyggelse. Den empiri som ligger till grund för studien har samlats in genom kvalitativa intervjuer samt granskning av dokument, vilket sedan analyserats med hjälp av en tematisk analys. Genom den tematiska analysen har två huvudteman identifierats, integreringen av barnperspektivet i planprocessen och barns plats i den kompakta staden, som belyser det rådande klimatet i den kommunala fysiska planeringen utifrån de studerade fallen. Utifrån denna tematik, med stöd av tidigare forskning, har det kunnat påvisats att barnperspektivet inte implementeras i tillräckligt stor utsträckning. Detta eftersom det finns flertalet problematiska aspekter i arbetet med stadsutveckling, varav två är resursfrågan och intressekonflikter. / To begin with children can be seen as a rather invisible group within the work of spatial planning. Thus, the aim of this thesis is to contribute with an increased understanding regarding how the child perspective is implemented in spatial planning, but also investigate how outdoor environments for children are affected by densification, specifically preschool yards, and schoolyards. Densified areas tend to be problematic regarding the fact that land often tends to be limited, which results in public areas being claimed for buildings. The empirical basis that the study consists of is a thematic analysis, which is based on qualitative interviews and reviews of documents. Two main themes have been identified through the thematic analysis, these are integration of child perspective and children’s place in the compact city. Furthermore, this illustrates the current climate regarding municipal spatial planning based on the cases that have been studied. The findings in this thesis show that the child perspective is not being implemented to a sufficient extent. Reasons for this are that there are problematic aspects, such as resources and conflicts of interests, these aspects need to be dealt with regarding the implementation of child perspective in spatial planning.