Research
http://mediax.stanford.edu/flash/home.html
Media X is a network of interdisciplinary researchers, faculty and students at Stanford University who study and design interactive technology. Media X "influences the next generation of interactive technology relevant to commerce, learning and entertainment." Their work focuses on challenges related to people and technology, such as ease of use, natural forms of input and output, social and emotional responses, enhancement of learning, and interaction strategies in business. Numerous research projects are listed with links to additional information on each project, some with their own website. Other features of the website include a listing of upcoming and past events hosted by MediaX and a list of the researchers and industry, foundation, and government partners and their websites. [VF]
http://www.ornl.gov/sci/engineering_science_technology/roboticsenergetics/index.htm
The Robotics and Energetic Systems Group at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) conducts research in Robotics, Energy Transformation Systems, Power Transfer Devices, and Human-Amplifying Machines. A full description and related factsheets are posted for each research area. The group's work spans the spectrum from basic research to "one-of-a-kind integrated system design, development, test, and evaluation" in robotics. Other areas of research address approaches to heat storage and release systems, magnetic and fluidic engine systems, fuel cells, and hydrogen-based technologies and technologies focused on achieving high-power density systems. Their work on Human-Amplifying Machines involves developing "systems that work in smooth synergy with humans in augmenting their physical strength abilities while maintaining complete task awareness through feedback to the human." The publications lists various journal articles and books by the group's research staff covering a variety of topics. [VF]
http://www.projecthoneypot.org/
Project Honey Pot, created by Unspam, LLC, is "a distributed system for identifying spammers and the spambots they use to scrape addresses from your website." Webmasters can install the free software on their website and begin collecting information on the exact moment that spammers harvest information and the IP address that gathered it. Project Honey Pot also works with law enforcement authorities to track down and prosecute spammers. Information they gather is shared with developers and researchers in order to inform the building of the next generation of anti-spam software. Participation (and access to the software) requires completion of a short online form. Data and Statistics on the Top 25 Global Spam Harvester and Top Harvester User Agents are posted online without registration. At the time of this report, Project Honey Pot was in the early stage of its public beta and anticipate posting additional statistics on trends and other statistics in the future. Note, the website is partially supported by paid advertisements that are not necessarily endorsed by the Honey Pot Project. [VF]
The Termite Emulation of Regulatory Mound Environments by Simulation (TERMES) project at Loughborough University seeks to understand the complex architecture of termite mounds, focusing in particular on the Sandkings found in Africa. The work is intended to "serve as both the foundation for future basic research, and as inspiration for more tangible and immediate innovations in architecture, structural and environmental engineering." The termite structures are "shaped to accommodate and regulate the exchanges of respiratory gases between the nest and atmosphere" and thus provide a potential model for developing sustainable building structures for humans. The website outlines the research project, providing information on the structure and functions of the mounds, as well as a discussion of their objectives, methods and simulation techniques. [VF]
http://www.physionet.org/tutorials/epn/
PhysioNet, a cooperative project "intended to stimulate current research and new investigations in the study of complex biomedical and physiologic signals," offers this set of tutorials on Exploring Patterns in Nature. The tutorials are based upon materials developed by the Center for Polymer Studies at Boston University with support from the National Science Foundation. The tutorial is organized into seven units: The Fractal Coastline and Dimension; Measuring Randomness; Physical and Chemical Branching Structures; Biological Branching Patterns; Diffusion; Oozing and Growing: Percolation; and Motion on a Fractal. Each unit includes suggested hands-on experiments that help demonstrate key concepts (such as measurement, fractals, and distribution), as well as computer simulations to use in a analyzing data. At the end of each unit are suggestions for more involved research projects. The simulations can be used online in Java or downloaded in Mac OS or Windows formats. [VF]
http://lair.indiana.edu/research/
The Laboratory of Applied Informatics Research (LAIR ) at Indiana University, Bloomington (IUB) conducts research on information retrieval, machine learning, and human-computer interaction. The website provides links to information on various projects that address topics such as "agent-based information management, agent-user interaction, concept discovery and analysis, and information customization for effective online information delivery." Project descriptions, technical reports, and related resources are posted for each of the 10 projects currently supported through this laboratory. Some course syllabi and course materials are also posted in the Courses section of the website. [VF]
http://gssd.mit.edu/GSSD/gssden.nsf
Global System for Sustainable Development (GSSD) is a project of the Global Accords Consortium for Sustainable Development that is "dedicated to internationalization of knowledge access, provision & sharing for 'reducing the gap between knowledge & policy.'" Housed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), GSSD is "a multi-dimensional knowledge networking system" that combines public and private networks to provide a continually evolving cross-referenced knowledge base for informing decision-making and policy in the domain of "sustainable development." The Using GSSD section of the website provides information on the organizing principles used to develop the database, demonstrates the functionality and architecture of the system and other aspects of the project, such as the multiple mirror sites that are in languages other than English. Reports and working papers from the GSSD are also posted. Visitors can search the holdings of the database using a text search or based on other parameters, such as issue area or industry type, and are invited to submit websites to be considered for inclusion. [VF]
http://graphics.cs.brown.edu/games/
This website highlights research at Brown University on game technology. The Brown "Games" Group "investigates new algorithms for real-time interactive 3D environments." The group's work, which focuses on video game applications, also has implications for simulation, training, scientific visualization, and computer-assisted design. Papers discussing the group's approach to creating realistic images and other theoretical issues relating to creating 3D environments are posted online to download free along with graphic representations and video clips. [VF]
