This study is part of a worldwide debate on inclusive innovation systems in developing

countries and particularly on the co-evolutionary processes taking place, seen from the

perspective of a public university. The increasing literature that discusses how innovation

systems and development can foster more inclusive and sustainable societies has

inspired this thesis work. Thus, the main problem handled in the research concerns the

question how socially sensitive research practices and policies at a public university in

Bolivia can be stimulated within emerging innovation system dynamics. In that vein,

empirical knowledge is developed at the Universidad Mayor de San SimoÅLn (UMSS),

Cochabamba as a contribution to experience-based learning in the field. Analysis are

nourished by a dialogue with the work of prominent Latin American scholars and

practitioners around the idea of a developmental university and the democratization

of knowledge. The reader will be able to recognize a recursive transit between theory

and practice, where a number of relevant concepts are contextualized and connected

in order to enable keys of critical interpretation and paths of practices amplification

for social inclusion purposes established. The study shows how, based on a previous

experience, new competences and capacities for the Technology Transfer Unit (UTT)

at UMSS were produced, in this case transforming itself into a University Innovation

Centre. Main lessons gained in that experience came from two pilot cluster development

(food and leather sectors) and a multidisciplinary researchers network (UMSS

Innovation Team) where insights found can improve future collaborative relations between

university and society for inclusive innovation processes within the Bolivian

context.

This Bachelor Thesis examines how animation and sound design in a design process can illustrate an equal and responsible technological future, based on post-humanist theories and philosophies. During the work we have examined animation methods, participatory design, sound design and technology as well as technological developments. In this thesis, we present the processes and methods we used to create our conformation, which is an animated short film.

The theme of this bachelor thesis was Queer Games. We discussed how queerness is applied in video games for queer people. We made some observations on how LGBTQ characters were represented within a few games that had representations of Queer experiences. We explored the topic of Queer Mechanics as presented by game creator Avery Mcdaldno (2014) and we researched discussions about Queerness in games by a select number of scholars. Namely, Bonnie Ruberg (Campus Gotland GAME, 2017), Naomi Clark (2017, Chapter 1) and Edmond. Y. Chang (2017, Chapter 2).

We explained why we used Gay Memes as our anchoring topic for our Queer Game design and then we went through the methods and design process that we had while developing our Queer Game. These methods included Innovation By Boundary Shifting (Löwgren and Stolterman, 2004), Design Pillars (Max Pears, 2017) and The Crystal Clear method (New Line Technologies, 2018). Then, we broke down the design process starting with how we came up with the game concept, what design pillars we used and the programs and tools we used in the development of the game. We also explained the relation between our design process and the information we learned from the previously mentioned scholars and creators.

At the end of this bachelor thesis, we discussed the effectiveness of the chosen methods, the results we found through research which included questioning the role of empathy and fun in games, putting less focus on superficial forms of representation and creating game mechanics that are queer. We described the finished video game we made and we introduced our ideas for future research on Queer Game Design.

Syftet med denna artikel är att vi ska gå igenom användningen och skapandet av visuella metaforer. Vi applicerar detta på en videogestaltning som går ut på att skapa ett förväntat narrativ med hjälp av visuella metaforer för att sedan bryta vad åskådaren förväntar sig ska hända, en så kallad: Plot Twist. Vi går in på vikten av visuella metaforer som Brown (2016) anser vara en av filmskapares viktigast tekniker. Vi går in på hur visuella metaforer kan appliceras som designperspektiv, inte bara inom film men även annan media. Designen för gestaltningen har utförts med designprocessguiden av SVID (stiftelsen svensk industridesign). Metoder och tekniker som använts i övrigt är deltagande design, storyboards, testgrupp och visuella metaforer som designperspektiv. Vi vidareutvecklar från hur Brown (2016) använder det som en narrativ teknik. Vi har även analyserat critical design, research through design och design fiction för att komma fram till visuella metaforer som perspektiv.

Vi har inget mål att ge någon numeriska data på hur man exakt ska använda visuella metaforer eller vad det exakt genererar utan vi har som mål med resultatet att vidare möjliggöra framtida designarbeten inom området. Kanske väcker vi fler frågor än svar men det är resultatet vi är ute efter, vi tror att visuella metaforer har en större roll i media än vad den används för idag.

Experimenting is fundamental to the training process of all scientists and engineers. While experiments have been traditionally done inside laboratories, the emergence of Information and Communication Technologies added two alternatives accessible anytime, anywhere. These two alternatives are known as virtual and remote laboratories and are sometimes indistinguishably referred as online laboratories. Similarly to other instructional technologies, virtual and remote laboratories require some effort from teachers in integrating them into curricula, taking into consideration several factors that affect their adoption (i.e., cost) and their educational effectiveness (i.e., benefit). This chapter analyzes these two dimensions and sustains the case where only through international cooperation it is possible to serve the large number of teachers and students involved in engineering education. It presents an example in the area of electrical and electronics engineering, based on a remote laboratory named Virtual Instruments System in Reality, and it then describes how a number of European and Latin American institutions have been cooperating under the scope of an Erasmus+ project, for spreading its use in Brazil and Argentina.

Generating precise saliency maps from eye tracker fixation points is a challenging task influenced by environmen-tal factors and the choice of evaluation metrics. This paper presents a novel, sustainable, scale-invariant, and sampling-independent method for converting fixation points into saliency maps. Leveraging the inherent predictability of human behavior, the proposed method ensures the highest compatibility with the chosen evaluation metric. Moreover, it introduces a mechanism to calculate the maximum achievable similarity score for each conversion. In addition, it offers crucial insights for both saliency map evaluation and the training of machine learning systems dedicated to saliency map generation. Experimental results demonstrate the method's efficacy in producing saliency maps that align seamlessly with diverse evaluation metrics, showcasing its adaptability and predictive capabilities. This approach con-tributes not only to the refinement of saliency map generation but also to the broader understanding of the intricacies involved in converting eye tracker data into meaningful ground truths. © 2024 IEEE.

We address the challenge faced by service providers in monitoring Quality of Experience (QoE) related metrics for WebRTC-based audiovisual communication services. By extracting features from various application-layer performance statistics, we explore the potential of using machine learning (ML) models to estimate perceivable quality impairments and to identify root causes. We argue that such performance-related data can be valuable and informative from a QoE assessment point of view, by allowing to identify the party/parties in a call that is/are experiencing quality impairments, and to trace the origins and causes of the problem. The paper includes case studies of multi-party videoconferencing that are established in a laboratory environment and exposed to various network disturbances and CPU limitations. Our results show that perceivable quality impairments in terms of video blockiness and audio distortions may be estimated with a high level of accuracy, thus proving the potential of exploiting ML models for automated QoE-driven monitoring and estimation of WebRTC performance. © 2019 IEEE.

Virtual Reality is one of the next big things in gaming, more and more games delivering an immersive VR-experience are popping up. Words such as immersion and presence has quickly become buzzwords that’s often used to describe a VR-game or experience. This interactive simulation of reality is literally turning people’s heads. The crowd pleaser, the ability to look around in 360-degrees, is however casting a shadow on the aural aspect. This study focused on this problem in relation to audio narrative. We examined which differences we could identify between a purely diegetic audio narrative and one utilizing a mix between diegetic and non-diegetic sound. How to grab the player’s attention and guide them to places in order for them to progress in the story. By spatializing audio using HRTF, we tested this dilemma through a game comparison with the help of soundscapes by R. Murray Schafer and auditory hierarchy by David Sonnenschein, as well as inspiration from Actor Network Theory. In our game comparison we found that while the synthesized sound, non-diegetic, ensured that the sound grabs the player’s attention, the risk of breaking the player’s immersion also increases.

People in the information society are surrounded by technologies and mediums that constantly transmit information of all kinds to their users. The design of this informationbecomes a critical aspect for the everyday user. This bachelor thesis aims to challenge visual communication of information and data. The question is carried out using methods such as prototyping and the design perspective minimalism. We present relevant research and methods that create a starting point for a design process that experiments with visual designs in a design situation. Through the challenge of methods of visual communication, we want to develop experimental designs that process and convey information to a recipient. The result of the design process is a prototype that tests visualizations and possible interactivity in the chosen context. 

Syftet med detta kandidatarbete var att framställa en analysmetod för dekonstruktion av ljuddesign i film. Målet med analysmetoden var att skapa ett förhållningssätt för ljuddesigners som gör det enklare att lära sig från ljudläggningar och genom övning eventuellt kunna bidra till ett mer avancerat sätt att tänka på vad ljud kan göra i en filmproduktion.

Metoden är tänkt som ett stöd för blivande ljuddesigners som lärt sig tekniska kunskaper men kämpar med den kreativa biten där problemen inte har lika konkreta lösningar. Metoden är också tänkt som ett supplement till mer erfarna ljuddesigners för övning på sina kunskaper ellerförbättring av deras egen process.

Vi tycker metoden nådde upp till de målen, men den visade sig också vara mer flexibel än så. Genom applicering av metoden inför arbete med vår gestaltning där vi ljudlade ett filmklipp blev designprocessen mycket enklare att komma igenom. Vi tror därför att en metod som vår kan vara en viktig del i att få in ljud tidigare i en filmproduktion.

I denna undersökning tar vi upp hur en designprocess kan ses ur ett agentiellt perspektiv. Detagentiella perspektivet är framtaget av Karen Barad som i sin forskning i kvantfysik börjadeundersöka hur olika fenomen kunde ta olika former, som till exempel hur ljus kunde ta bådepartikel- och vågform (2003). Genom att applicera detta perspektiv på hur man uppfattar

verklighet och situationer utifrån olika håll ges möjlighet till en bredare bild av hur verklighets-skapande blir till. Vi ville därmed undersöka detta i relation till designprocess och hur

verkligheten formas om man ser designprocessen ur dess eget perspektiv istället för designerns,samt hur designern blir formad av processen. Vi har valt att analysera faktorerna tid,informationshantering, process, designperspektiv, Psykofysiologi och medietekniskinstallationskonst. Vi har även valt att studera Chions (1994) begrepp audiovisuella kontraktet,som har varit en grund till vår valda design, genom agentiell realism.Vår design är byggd på intra-aktion, som förklarar mötet mellan olika faktorer som påverkar ensituation (agenser), och audiovisuella kontraktet, som förklarar samspelet mellan ljud, bild ochåskådare, där vi valt att utgå ifrån medieteknisk installationskonst. Med dessa somutgångspunkt skapades en design av en interaktiv Projection mapping, som kan förklaras somen projektion i flera lager, som samspelar med en ljudbild.

Vi har under processens gång funnit fler exempel på hur vi som designers och individer harformats och förändrat olika ställningstaganden till både processen och vår verklighet, som viresonerat och diskuterat kring. Valet av vår undersökning är grundat på att ge ännu enkunskapsbas för vad som händer under en designprocess och för att medvetandegöra perspektivsom kan underlätta arbetsflödet. Vad händer egentligen med oss i en designprocess, och hurpåverkas designen?

Detta kandidatarbete är en undersökning av begreppet emergence och hur det kan användas i skapandet av digital interaktiv konst. Vi undersöker sambandet mellan designern och datorn, och hur användaren kan interagera med båda dessa för att bidra till och utforma skapandet.

För att demonstrera detta har vi skapat en simulation, som är tänkt att efterlikna tidigt mänskligt beteende på hög nivå: uppståndelsen av civilizationer, interaktion mellan folkgrupper, och utnyttjande av naturliga resurser. Vi diskuterar de etiska och politiska konsekvenserna som följer på skapandet av en sådan simulation, och vilken sorts interaktion vi främjar i vår design.

This essay does a theoretical comparison of the intricate social production in digital and real spaces, proposing a model for the non-technical exploration of the social production of spaces relating to human digital technology. The ‘social space’ proposed by Henri Lefebvre (1974) - responsible for producing material space - and the holistic model of ‘cybernetic space’ proposed by Ananda Mitra and Rae Lynn Schwartz (2001) - responsible for supporting the production of real and digital spaces - are argued as collaboratively producing cybernetic social spaces, serving as the definition of a unified model for the production of spaces in contemporary society. The digital spaces are argued as being a similar analogue to classical ‘social space’. Two native cybernetic spaces are presented and discussed, argued as being responsible for the transitive production of digital and real spaces as they survey and situate the production of cybernetic social space. Finally, two case studies exemplifying the aesthetics and politics of cybernetic space are presented, analyzed and discussed in accordance with the proposed model of cybernetic social space.

Med det här kandidatarbetet vill vi utforska hur spelvärldens ljuddesign kan användas och anpassas för att skapa ljuddesign i andrapersonsperspektivet. Eftersom andrapersonsperspektivet främst framkommer i spel vill vi bilda oss en uppfattning om hur ljudbilden kan se ut utifrån andrapersonsperspektivet för audiovisuella medier. Med hjälp av Michael Pauens kriterier för första, andra och tredjepersonsperspektivet bildar vi oss en förståelse för den filosofiska aspekten på de olika perspektiven. Pauens kriterier förandrapersonsperspektivet utgår ifrån distinktionen och förståelsen mellan ens egna medvetande och den andra personens medvetande. Andra viktiga begrepp som använts i vår undersökning är Syncresis, vår förmåga att koppla ljud till bild och Diegesis, det som avgör vilka element som finns i en films egna värld. Begreppen Diffraktion och Situerad kunskap har hjälpt oss att använda den kunskap som vi redan besitter och fokusera på alla aspekter av ljuddesignen och göra det möjligt för oss att utforska olika synvinklar på hur andrapersonsperspektivet kan gestaltas. Därefter nyttjas denna kunskap och appliceras på tekniker som ljudinspelning, sound mapping, foley och mixning. Våra experiment med inspelning och ljudläggning för olika vyer har resulterat i en audiovisuell gestaltning som visar hur andrapersonsperspektivet kan se ut och hur ljudbilden skulle kunna vara. Vad vi har kommit fram till är att skiftet mellan protagonisten och andrapersonen i den narrativa aspekten måste framgå tydligt i det audiovisuella mediet och även att det hade varit tydligare för åskådaren att se att det är andrapersonsperspektivet om det hade gestaltats i längre narrativa ark. Vi har som utforskare blivit mer medvetna om hur andrapersonsperspektivet kan gestaltas.

Konsten att berätta historier med bilder och illustrationer är något som har funnits i flera tusen år. Detta kandidatarbete undersöker ämnet illustrerad narrativ och redogör olika aspekter och principer som är avgörande för att man ska kunna förmedla ett budskap med hjälp av illustrationer. Idag förknippas illustrerad narrativ framför allt med serietidningar, bilderböcker och grafiska romaner som berättar en narration i form av en serie av bilder. Under den teoretiska delen av arbetet har jag först gått igenom illustrerat narrativs historia och sedan redovisat principer för det moderna illustrerat narrativet. Jag har också forskat kring bildens kommunikativa värde och samspelet mellan bild och text. Under produktionsdelen av detta kandidatarbete har jag skapat en illustrerad bok. Tanken har varit att tillämpa de teoretiska stöden från forskningsdelen i ett praktiskt arbete. Jag har även gått igenom den kreativa processen för att skapa illustrerade berättelser och redovisat principer som är avgörande för att man ska kunna skapa balans och harmoni i illustrationer. The art of telling stories with images and illustrations has been around for thousands of years. This bachelor thesis explores the subject of illustrated narrative, and describes various aspects and principles that are crucial in order to be able to convey a message using illustrations. Today is illustrated narrative especially associated with comic books, picture books and graphic novels that tell a story in the form of series of images. In the theoretical part of the work I first go through the history of illustrated narrative and then present its modern principles. Moreover, I report on my research on image communicative value and the interplay between image and text. In order to transform my theoretical understanding and research into practical form, in the production section of this work, I present an illustrated book. In doing so, I explain the creative process to create illustrated stories as well as the important principles in creating balance and harmony in illustrations.

Temat för detta arbete är att undersöka hur kvinnor framställs som superhjältar, om det finns några skillnader mellan de kvinnliga och manliga hjältarna. I detta arbete kommer det även att undersökas hur barn blir påverkade av media och hur barn analyserar det de ser och hur de utrycker sig i bild. I metoden används dels en workshop med elever från årskurs tre för att undersöka vilka superhjältar som spontant kom till barnen. Barnen skulle sedan måla sina egna superhjältar som sedan analyserades för att se om det blev någon skillnad på hur killar och tjejer målade sina superhjältar. Barnen målade sina teckningar olika, ett exempel var att kroppsbyggnad var olika på killar och tjejers målningar. Andra delen av metoden är att analysera fyra filmer med hjälp av Bechdeltestet för att undersöka hur och om kvinnornas roll har förändrats med tiden. Det var inte alltid självklart att en film skulle bli godkänd. Det finns idag skillnader på hur män och kvinnor gestaltas i superhjältefilmer. Detta märks dels på deras krafter och dels hur de lär sig hantera dessa. Trots att kvinnorna får mer och mer plats utgör männen största delen i filmerna, då männen oftast har huvudrollen.

Abstract

ROOTS – What Could Emerge Out of Thinking and Acting Networked ROOTS as Design?

This bachelor’s thesis uses ROOTS as a method designed to engage in both thinking and acting inside networks, by creating a hydroponic gardening network. As a designer one engages in many different fields of design. The most complicated design is designing networks with function, interlaced and embedded in everyday life. This is known as accountability, to be accountable to ones decisions and to act on many perspectives when designing. Accountability is designing from somewhere, and being aware of where that somewhere stems from. ROOTS visualizes accountability in a network, as accountability entails thinking and acting inside a network, and by doing so one actively engages in thinking about futures and design as a whole. When asking oneself what could emerge out of thinking and acting networked ROOTS as design, one begins to speculate in matters of vast networked complexity. From observation using methods such as ANT, the technologic extension T-ANT and also conducting a study in messiness, information is created and from the information, valuing becomes present, from valuing knowledge grows, from knowledge comes accountability and the network creates another cycle of ROOTS.

Keywords: Design, Network, Accountability, Complexity

Online instruction has become increasingly common as an alternative to face-to-face instruction (Crawford-Ferre & Wiest, 2012; Maertens et al., 2016; Ananga & Biney, 2017). One benefit with online instruction is that it is more easily accessible for students who are not able to fully access the more traditional face-to-face instruction on campus. After the Covid-19 pandemic, online instruction has gained further ground (Zhu & Liu, 2020; Kerres & Buchner, 2022; Li et al., 2022). At the same time, we have seen a rapid increase in new educational technologies, including that of virtual reality (Ding & Li, 2022; Al-Ansi et al., 2023; Zhang et al., 2022). Studies show that virtual reality (VR) can make the learning process more engaging and interactive (Jackson & Fagan, 2000; Ardiny& Khanmirza, 2018; Roopa et al., 2021) and that it can increase reception levels and train collaborative skills (Isik-Ercan et al., 2010; Petersen et al., 2023). This paper raises the question of how the use of virtual reality in online instruction affects learning experiences. While the participants in the pilot study displayed a genuine enthusiasm for using VR in an online setting, results showed a lack of knowledge in how to use VR to improve student learning. One area of investigation was concentration. Here, results were inconclusive as 50 % of the participants in group 1 (G1) were unsure of whether VR improves concentration, while 50 % of the participants in group 2 (G2) claimed that the use of VR does improve their concentration level. Another area of investigation was understanding the topic. The participants from G1 gave higher ratings than those who performed the experiment in G2, which implies that the impact was not as great as expected. In fact, the participants in G2 found that the VR equipment shifted focus from learning to other details in the visual medium. Another area was interactivity. Here, results indicated that VR technology has the didactic potential of engaging students and making them more interactive in the learning situation. The study concludes that while VR technology has the possibility of enhancing learning, a prerequisite is that both students and teachers have the skills and knowledge of how to use VR technology in a pedagogical setting; furthermore, a few technical modifications to the device itself are required.

Digitala spel är ett av dagens största digitala medier där det dagligen släpps nya spel. En av de största spel-genrerna är multiplayer First-Person Shooter (FPS) spel. Inom multiplayer FPS-spel, där kooperativt lagsamarbete spelar stor roll, har det på senare år uppkommit en trend där de flesta av dessa spel innehåller progression system som kan vara direkt skadande för spelets kooperativa upplevelse. Genom att undersöka frågeställningen “Hur kan vi med hjälp av progression system göra moderna FPS-spel mer kooperativa?” har vi försökt ta fram hur spelutvecklare istället kan öka den kooperativa upplevelsen i sina spel. Genom att ha undersökt och diskuterat områden som system, mänsklig motivation samt kooperativ spelteori har vi fått fram belöningspåverkan av en spelares beteende. Med hjälp av vår tidigare forskning har vi grundligt analyserat och brutit ner två av marknadens största titlar inom multiplayer FPS-spel, vi kom fram till att med hjälp av ett genomtänkt progression system kan bidra med ökad fokus på den kooperativa aspekten av dessa spel.

This case study is based on Research through Design (Frayling, 1993), i.e. the purpose of the study is to generate new knowledge through analysis and design of computer games. To achieve this an annotated portfolio and its underlying principles are used (Gaver, 2012; Bowers, 2012). The annotated portfolio consists of four selected computer games and one designed by the authors. This portfolio is analysed to define what design features are shared or not shared between the games. After this, arguments are presented as to why the specified features can make educational computer games more effective in the purpose of educating about or to reduce susceptibility to mis-/disinformation in the specific learning context. The danger of mis-/disinformation is illustrated through the context of the work with the designed computer game, which is based on COVID-19 mis-/disinformation and its consequences. Results are achieved after analysis of the four selected computer games has been carried out and data has been generated to enable the development of the authors own game.

Det här kandidatarbetet undersöker hur Physically based rendering kan påverkar en 3D-grafikers arbete. Målet är att skapa förståelse kring physically based rendering och hur denna tekniken kan komma att påverkar en 3D-grafikers arbete. För att undersöka problemområdet skapades en virtuell miljö i 3D med hjälp av physically based rendering. Arbetsupplevelsen jämfördes senare med det tidigare arbetssättet. Undersökningen beskriver tidigare arbetsätt och hur arbetet har ändrats med physically based rendering. Undersökningen går även igenom fördelar, nackdelar och konsekvenser med att arbeta med Physically based rendering. This bachelor thesis studies how Physically based rendering can affect a 3D artists work. The aim is to create an understanding of Physically Based Rendering and how this technique might affect a 3D artists work. To examine the problem area we created a virtual environment in 3D using Physically Based Rendering. The new workflow was then compared with the former workflow. The study describes the former workflow and how the work has changed with Physically Based Rendering. This thesis also covers the pros, cons and implications of working with Physically Based Rendering.

In this thesis I use both Dense Clarity - Clear Density as well as qualitative interviewing as methods to guide me through this examination of sound design. Through studying other works and executing personal tests I try to find out if there is a need to use sound and silence in a creative way to evoke emotion. I examine films as well as literature from the 1960s all the way to the 2000s, to see how the use of silence has unfolded over the years. I also create a visual production that strengthens my theory that silence affects narrative more than its credited for. But the essay isn’t just about silence, it’s revolved around sound too, expanding into how sound correlates with emotion and how one can apply it to their production.  

Previous and recent studies shows that onomatopoeia is presented in fictionstories but the studies lack valid information within the subject. Moredetailed research can be found within language studies. The purpose of thisstudy is to enlighten onomatopoeia, how it is presented in fictionproductions and if people share a mutual vision of sounds imitating wordsthat might be used in these productions. The study was conducted with aqualitative method and with a phenomenological perspective. 36 individualsparticipated in a questionnaire that was conducted. A number of sounds waspresented to the participants who then had to type the sound in text. BONKand SPLOOSH showed a mutual vision and the result was presented astables. A product was created to unite the previous and recent studies withthe result from the questionnaire. This resulted in an interactive book thatwith help of digital tool create an ordiginal product.

Till skillnad från andra digitala medier som ljudböcker och filmer, bygger ljuddesign i spel på hur spelarna interagerar med spelvärlden. Medan ljud ökar inlevelsen i spel, saknas forskning om hur man kan tillämpa ljuddesign för att öka spelets upplevda svårighetsgrad. För denna studie har det skapats två versioner av ett actionspel med tredjepersonsperspektiv i Unity med Wwise integration. En version där ljudet var normalt och en annan där ljudets design baserats på teorier från bland annat kognitiv belastning och ljuddesign baserat på ”looming sounds”. Totalt deltog 12 personer i denna studie där vi undersökte om ljud kan påverka ett spels upplevda svårighetsgrad genom att låta testpersonerna spela två testomgångar med de olika spelversionerna och sedan genomföra en kvalitativ intervju med varje individ.

Majoriteten av testpersonerna märkte inte att ljuddesignen var annorlunda mellan de olika testen. Detta tyder på att ljuddesign i stort sett inte är i fokus för spelare när de spelar ett spel för första gången. Trots detta påverkade förändringarna spelupplevelsen, vilket indikerar att även om spelarna inte är medvetna om ljuddesignen, kan de ändå uppleva en skillnad. När det gäller upplevd svårighetsgrad var bilden blandad; vissa testdeltagare fann det första testet svårare medan andra fann det andra testet svårare eller lika svårt. Intressant nog upplevde de som fann båda testen lika svåra ändå det andra som mer adrenalinfyllt. Även om testpersonerna inte märkte några specifika ljudförändringar, använde några av dem ljudsignaler för att förstå spelets händelseförlopp, vilket visar att ljudet påverkade spelupplevelsen.

Identity communication is a way for a community to tell about themself and what there is to do and experience in their community. To convey identity communication for Blekinge, we created three different mascots that are connected to VisitBlekinge, which is a company that works with the hospitality industry. The purpose of the mascots is to reflect the county and its cultural heritage to tourists, with the target group being families with children, and to create participation to visit nature and try different activities. This is done by creating mascots to be used on VisitBlekinge's website, advertisements and posts on social media where they convey information or encourage participation in various events. The characters were developed by working with HIPO and by collecting information about Blekinge's cultural heritage and history, which is then categorized into different groups. The design of the characters was developed through concept work where different colors and clothes were tested, which finally led to the final result. The work was then validated by comparing the mascots with similar mascots and similar work. The end result resulted in three mascots in a simplified but realistic design. Two of the mascots have several connections to Blekinge and one of the mascots has fewer connections.

This study aims to explore and gain new insight into how one could tell a game-character's story through Environmental Storytelling. By doing this we hope to make game characters feel more real and alive, while at the same time furthering the game’s narrative. Before delving into the creation and examining of our game, we establish that it’s really important let the players come to their own conclusion regarding perceived story, even if they are inaccurate. After having created a game in an attempt to answer our question at issue we let other people play the game. We believe this is important as we, the creators of the game, already know everything there is to know about the character in question. The research uses Actor Network Theory as its methodology, as we believe it can help us understand relationships to why something works or doesn’t work. This research concludes that it’s all the small details that adds up, enriching a character's story.

Speculative fabulation is a design perspective that enables the combination of facts and history with imagination. It advocates for fables' use of fiction within a fact-based environment. In this dissertation we have explored how we can create different perspectives of a historical event with the help of speculative fabulation. This is done by applying speculative fabulation to our design process to create a feature film that examines the encounter which occurs. We will go through the design methods that were used and that made it possible for our iterative work process, as well as argue for the design choices that were made in order to achieve the end results. Then we explore the results we received. We will also go a little more in-depth into the process in the discussion section. The discussion section explains how to avoid some of the problems we encountered and how to continue investigating speculative fabulation films for future investigations.

Abstract

This bachelor thesis examines the possibilities to use 2D-illustrations to create immersive experiences in virtual environments, with a centered focus on phobia treatments. Simulated experiences in virtual reality (VR) is proven to be an effective exposure method in psychological treatments (Chai et al., 2023). This technology offers a sense of presence akin to real-life experiences, which is a key component in virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET). Previous research states that 2D-graphics are less effective than the 3D counterpart when it comes to achieving immersion (Dores et al., 2014; Lindner et al., 2021). The purpose of this bachelor thesis is to reinstate the 2D-medium's relevance in VR-experiences. To modernise 2D-illustrations and thus increase its immersive capability, techniques such as 2.5D and panoramic imagery are used. 2.5D allows an illusion of depth in 2D-graphics, while panorama images, most often 360-degree photographs, offer the possibility of a three-dimensional feel. This thesis explores the potential of creating original panoramic 2D-illustrations and combining a multitude of these in the same composition. The authors are under the impression that panoramic 2.5D-illustrations are a new, previously unexplored technique.3 The thesis is undergoing an iterative design process which consists of the usage of methods like depth-, height- and normal maps in Unreal Engine 5 (EpicGames, 2019), which will allow continuous improvement and adjustments to the illustrated compositions based on the gathered feedback. Three illustrated 2.5D-scenes were presented at an exhibition where visitors could perceive the immersive 2.5D-environments in a VR-experience. The informally collected quantitative data that was obtained from the exhibition hints at the technique harboring an overwhelmingly positive response from users, which is indicative of a bright future for the usage of 2D-illustrations as an immersive VRmedium. The result of the thesis indicates that when 2D-illustrations are perceived in 360-degree compositions, their immersion, as well as their sense of presence and engagement, is heightened. The study indicates big potential for 2D-illustrations in VR and adds to the foundation for future research and development within its area, with particular emphasis on therapeutic applications.

Abstrakt I detta arbete undersöks hur konceptet lek går att applicera på digitala spel och hur man presenterar ett fiktivt universum och de regler som definierar det universumet. Syftet med denna undersökning är att öka kvaliteten på digitala spel för spelare genom att öka förståelsen för hur sådana regler introduceras. Frågeställningen som ämnas att besvaras är “hur kan man introducera realistiska, semi-realistiska och fiktiva regler i ett spel?”. Undersökningen baseras delvis på analyser kring varför vissa introduktioner av regler ofta accepteras och andra inte, dels på utvärdering av en gestaltning och dels på tidigare forskning. Denna undersökning är indelad i två delar; en researchdel och en produktionsdel. För att besvara frågan har research skett kring vad som känns till sedan tidigare och ett digitalt spel har producerats där den stora regeln som skiljer verkligheten från detta fiktiva universum är paranormal aktivitet, eller spöken. Nyckelord: regler, magisk cirkel, inlevelse och spelproduktion. Abstract In this work the concept of play and how it may be applied to digital games and how to introduce a fictional universe and the rules that define that universe is being investigated. The purpose of this work is to increase the quality of digital games by increasing our understanding of how such rules may be introduced. The question to be answered is “how may realistic, semi-realistic and fictional rules be introduced in a digital game?”. This work is based partly on analyses on why some introductions of rules are often accepted and some often not, partly on evaluation of a product created by us and partly on earlier research. This work is split into two parts; one research part and one production part. To answer the question research about what is previously known has been conducted and a digital game has been produced where the main rule that separates the fictional universe from ours is paranormal activity, or ghosts. Keywords: Rules, magical circle, immersion and game production.

Thriller is a favourite genre to many and has been around for longer than most think. Originally starting as a genre of literature, it has evolved into one of the most sought after genres within film. Early notable works such as Alfred Hitchcock's films in the mid 1900s have paved the way for the genre and solidified it’s editing and cinematography into what we have today. Despite its humbling beginnings in the mid 1900s the techniques, although somewhat repetitive, still manage to stay relevant today and have only gotten more advanced with time. In this article, we study the fundamentals within the thriller genre, the editing and cinematography techniques that are utilized; camera framing, cutting, PoV and color. In this study our main focus we intend to work towards is understanding why these techniques are used and the tendencies in which they are facilitated. Although we also intend to go in depth into the thriller genre as a whole and despite the repetitiveness of the genre, why it manages to stay relevant today and how editing and cinematography plays a big part in amplifying the emotions and feelings associated within thrillers in which these tendencies stem from.

With this bachelor thesis I aim to bring to light the role of the computer in digital creative work. This is accomplished by treating the code that make up digital objects as a form of matter, and with Karen Barad’s agential realism and other research into digital materiality as a point of reference this matter is invited to the creative process as an actor. I’ve been striving for a glimpse of how digital matter comes to life when it’s allowed an active part in the creative process, to see how it expresses itself. By engaging with the digital matter through diffraction and remix as methods I’ve been given an insight into the core of it, and through the process I’ve been working alongside digital matter in intra action.

Ultimately I can see how digital matter won’t appear alone, I myself and the computer are both entangled together with the digital matter as a result of the intra actions we’ve been engaging in. My intervention in digital matter becomes visible as glitches, traces of decay that give the digital matter, which can be so fleeting, more concrete and material characteristics. The unintelligible complexity of digital matter also comes to light when it’s allowed influence, as it appears visually. With this knowledge I’ve gained the awareness that digital matter does not have an absolute appearance, and this thesis can be seen as an investigation into how digital matter can appear.

The purpose of this thesis was to find a way to keep the human input of 2D animation and put it into 3D animation. The 3D animation should be believable and should look like 2D animation. It should also depict locomotion, walk and run cycles, and is meant for a bipedal character in a third-persongame. This character was animated by studying locomotion and the basics and techniques of animation. By using an iterative design process, and with inspiration from the director Hayao Miyazaki’s works, several 2D and 3D animations were created. The 3D animations were created insets of two – one interpolated version and a version that is stylised to look like 2D animation, which was done by using 2D animation techniques, mostly with pose-to-pose animation and timing. This was later rendered and made into two short videos that shows the differences in the interpolated and the stylised animation. The 3D animations were also compared with the created 2D animation. The results are 3D animations that keep the human input and give a feel of 2D animations.

In this bachelor essay we´ve made an participant observation on a website where sexual services are for sale. This website contains a forum where sexbuyers and sexsellers discuss their thoughts about sex and purchase of sexual services. Sexbuyers often express themselves as victims because of their own extreme sexual cravings. They argue that as long as there is sexual services for sale, there is going to be a demand to buy them. We notice that there is an acceptance for sexbuyers to have an temporary sexual relation in exchange for money. We notice in our studies that these so called “intemperated horny men” tend to protect one another.We consider, in contrast to the sexbuyers, that as long as there is an existing “craving” for sexual services, the phenomenon of sexual trafficking will continue. Much because many victims of sexual trafficking are being sold as if it was by their own free will. Because of this, we will in this bachelor essay problematize sexual trafficking as a consequence of sexbuyers actions.We as mediaproducers would like to, through pictures, shed light on the consequences of sexual trafficking and at the same time emphasize this through provocative internet activism.

Abstract

The television industry is a huge industry that is governed by a few big broadcasting networks. The biggest distributer and producer of television in Sweden is Sveriges Television (SVT) and everyone working with sound will, more likely than not, work for them in a project.

In this study I’ve analyzed the results of two months of empirical work, I’ve identified the actors that make up the network “God hörbarhet” (good audibility) and the reason this is interesting is for determining a more solid definition for the term “good audibility”.

I’ve then put this more solid definition up against SVT’s loose definition, this only to expand on their current system and delivery specifications.

 Utilization is a key aspect in the management of any societal resource not only when it is scarce but in all cases to allow for optimum benefits to be accrued to everyone in the society. Internet bandwidth, which is a rare commodity especially in rural areas is hardly available where needed at the same cost and quality due to various reasons. Tanzania as a case study is among countries that have invested much in international, national and metro backbone networks, but still, there are areas without or with inadequate internet access services implying a significant utilization problem. In this paper, we present as a case study, the status of broadband connectivity in selected rural areas in Tanzania (Arusha) and the status is used to make recommendations for optimized utilization of installed capacity.

With this bachelor thesis we want to raise awareness and to convey sustainability, with a focus on consumption and plastic littering in the sea. This bachelor thesis will result in a design that will be in a physical room. The physical room is a breakroom and is located in the Naval museum in Karlskrona, which is also our external partner. We believe that it is important to write about consumption and plastic littering in the sea because it has a devastating impact on humanity and our planet. The design that this bachelor thesis will produce will be supported by the design perspective X for Change. Methods and idea generating methods that helped our work move forward are brainstorming, moodboard, mindmaps and prototypes. We chose these methods because we consider that it could provide the greatest possible potential for the work.

In the end we have a design created through many different decisions and selection. We use a technique called double exposure 3d which we placed on one of the walls of the room. Double exposure 3d is that with the help of a pair of “old” 3d glasses, which has a blue and red side, can filter out different color channels which then results in two different images, which at the same time is a whole. We made two illustrations of plastic littering where one is put on the red side and the other on the blue side. This is to represent today and how the future will look like if we continue with our unsustainable consumption and littering. The illustration is fictional and is only a representation of how the world could look in the future. The wall will also be supported by informative posters, including suggestions on what an individual can contribute with.

Abstrakt Detta arbete har ljudproducenten i fokus. Det undersöker och tar fram verktyg som du som ljudproducent kan använda dig av för att öppna upp för ett större kreativt utrymme i en produktion. Undersökningen tar också upp och bearbetar en problematik kring ljudproduktion, nämligen den att ljud, generellt sett, ofta underprioriteras och inte ägnas lika stort allvar som övriga sektioner i en produktion. Arbetet har SVT (Sveriges Television) i fokus och hur ljudproduktionen ser ut där. Undersökningen tar fram olika teorier framtagna ur tidigare forskning och tillämpar dem i olika produktioner på Sveriges SVT. Abstract The focus of this thesis is the sound producer. It examines and produces tools that you, as a sound producer, can use to open up for a larger creative space in a production. The research also discuss the problem with sound production, namely that sound, generally speaking, is often under prioritized and is not given the same seriousness as the other sections in the production. The thesis has SVT (Sweden's television) in focus and how their sound production looks like. It uses different theories taken from earlier research and practices them on different productions at SVT.

AR media or augmented reality has become increasingly prevalent in today's society, and more and more applications leverage the technology's ability to present digital 3D objects in the physical space, particularly in gaming. However, the auditory aspect, also known as audio augmented reality (AAR), has not received much attention despite its presence in various forms in our daily lives. From information systems that announce the arrival of the next train through speakers to museums that provide guided tours through buildings using headphones, AAR surrounds us almost every day. But how would a game be experienced and constructed solely using AAR? This article explores the construction of an interactive auditory gaming experience using Audio Augmented Reality (AAR). The focus is on analyzing the techniques employed to create this gaming experience entirely through AAR. Furthermore, the potential inherent in this medium as an inclusive experience for a broad audience is discussed. By exploring and analyzing the implementation of Dolby Atmos in the interactive auditory game "Ambience," this article contributes to the understanding of AAR as an innovative technology and its potential to create unique and accessible experiences for different users.

With the advent of blogs, search engines, RSS and news feeds, the role of online journalists as those who shape everyone’s social reality has decreased. . Currently because of emerging digital tools and outlets, “amateurs” have the ability to not only assemble their own news stream, but they can also publish their own material to a wide audience in only seconds. Gatekeeping is a fundamental concept of media studies and has long been a tool to determine the power of journalists over society. However, digital media requires reconsidering gatekeeping in the traditional sense, as new gatekeepers, such as Twitter-users, “gatejumpers,” new forms of digital influencers, and content aggregators also have gatekeeping power. In my research, I will review and examine the relationship of traditional journalism pratices for gatekeeping in comparison to online journalists.

This study has researched the use of undisplayed heart rate data as biofeedback in the contextof a lower body VR exergame using a fitness bike, in collaboration with Ericsson Research.Most of the global population need to exercise more, but describe it as dull and monotonous.By making a VR exergame using heart rate data where the user’s bpm is not displayed, butinstead having a character tell the user when they need to speed up or slow down to reach thedesired heart rate bpm range, the authors believed that the users would be less aware that theywere exercising and be more engaged in the experience. During the study testing was used, aswell as surveys and interviews. The results affirm the authors’ hypothesis. At least half of thetesters of the final iteration were unaware of heart rate data being used during the experience,despite being told of it before the testing started, saying that they were so engaged in theexperience they did not think about much else. All testers of the final iteration preferred usinga fitness bike with the VR exergame, all were willing to use it for longer periods, and all werewilling to use it regularly, describing that they did not view the experience as exercising butas entertainment. The authors conclude from the results that there is a great demand forengaging exergames using undisplayed heart rate data, which could be used in differentsituations, e.g. healthcare.

The act of doing something that is called “breaking the fourth wall” in video games, to address the player across the games’ scope, is something that has been in our interest for a long time. To search about the fourth wall and video games on the internet have been futile, until we stumbled upon the term metalepsis. Metalepsis literally means “a jump across”, it originates from narratology and handles how the different levels in a narrative are managed. In this Bachelor Thesis we take a deep dive into the term, with the help of Karin Kukkonen’s and Sonja Klimek’s work, and how it’s used in different medias such as literature, film, music videos and video games. We discovered why metalepsis in video games is an uncharted area with the help of Astrid Ensslin’s and Huaxin Wei’s work, and why studies of narratives in video games are executed in a shallow grade. With our research question we want to contribute with more information about metalepsis in video games and to examine a conscious use of metalepsis in the development of a video game. By surveying metalepsis in video games and other media, we have created an estimate on how it has been used so far and then to applicate the observation to our video game.

This thesis lay it’s focus on a metalepsis called Möbius Strip, that consists of a narrative that restarts within itself. Using Georg Kreisler’s book Der Schattenspringer, we have made an interpretation on how Möbius Strip could work out. We have then developed a video game based on this interpretation and compared the results to the books version of the metalepsis.

What we have gathered with this thesis is more tangible examples of the use of metalepsis in video games so far. We have been able to create a discussion about how our interpretation of Möbius Strip relate to the book, with the help from Sonja Klimek’s description of the metalepsis. We have only managed to scrape the surface on the topic of metalepsis in video games and feel like there are multiple other roads to investigate.

Technology advancement increases the usage of the internet day by day. One of the most used internet services is video streaming. The major advantage of video streaming is that it allows long distance communication between people without any delay. It is known that streaming video is one of the fastest growing industries, and it has been very beneficial to the world. As the use of video streaming is increasing rapidly, it is essential to have security for video streaming. A lot of methods to secure video streaming came into existence like authentication, protocol, or some secure web hosting sites. Every method is to secure the transmission of video streaming, so these methods use either key or any other additional things to secure it. Our approach is to have a secure video streaming method without using any additional key or software. So, the method here is to encrypt the video directly and then encode it to be in the streaming format. The encryption of the video is done by a method called obscuring method. And the performance evaluation is done to the method so as to check the stability and feasibility of the system. 

This thesis examines the role of microblogging in shaping public opinion and political participation in China with particular focus on the question of what sociopolitical implications and challenges that weibo phenomenon has brought to the Chinese society. I explore some of the prominent features of weibo for the role they plays in framing public sphere. Along with an in-depth study of two weibo cases, the results show that microblogging provide a unique platform for Chinese citizens to participate in civic engagement and to organize their collective opinions. The study also demonstrates that weibo has a significant impact on spurring social change. Further, weibo discourse encourages interaction between government and ordinary citizens, and it also changes traditional Chinese politics through enabling public political participation. However, the spread of rumors and network violence are some of the disadvantages inherent to the weibo phenomenon that should be of concern. More importantly, the analysis reveals that the initial reasons behind the weibo phenomenon were the long-term social conflicts and continuous information control by the state. Weibo certainly provides a remarkable platform for the freedom of speech but it should not be considered as a panacea for the social changes in China.

In the era of Industry 4.0, fostering innovation through strong collaboration among universities, industry, and government is crucial. However, the Tanzanian economy has faced challenges due to, among others, weak links between these entities. To address this, Sida initiated the Innovation Systems and Cluster Development Program (ISCP-Tz) in partnership with the University of Dar es Salaam. This was followed by a program at COSTECH focused on fostering innovation for socio-economic development. As part of these programs, 15 clusters, including KIWANGO Leather, were selected for documentation of their experiences. KIWANGO Leather exemplifies successful collaboration between cluster firms, the university, local government, and research institutions. Operationalizing guidelines for collaboration led to cooperative innovations, knowledge exchange, internships, and long-term partnerships established through Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The cluster's experiences highlight a less-linear, inclusive innovation process with positive outcomes. Thus, this paper not only illustrates a less linear, inclusive innovation process, but also its results can motivate actors in emerging innovation ecosystems in the Global South to adopt and scale up suggested approaches for knowledge co-creation benefitting sustainable development. By adopting these approaches and fostering collaborative networks, countries can leverage their resources and expertise to drive innovation, create economic growth, and address societal challenges.

The performance of remotely rendered Virtual Reality (VR) is sensitive to temporal disturbances in communication channels. An earlier Quality of Experience (QoE) study of temporal impacts in the form of frame stalls has revealed difficulties with subjective disturbance ratings while performing a task in an interactive 6-degrees-of-freedom (DOF) VR environment. This study follows up on above observation by comparing QoE ratings in the presence and absence of a task. The exploratory findings show that the task-free subjective tests yield lower ratings compared to the subjective tests with task. This indicates that the participants became more sensitive to temporal impairments in the absence of a task. Also, the positive impact of reprojection on the QoE ratings decreased in the task-free environment. The simulator sickness results for individual symptoms were on similar low levels in both settings. The total score (TS) of sickness severity was higher after than before the subjective tests with task while the difference between the TS before and after the task-free subjective tests was insignificant, © 2023 IEEE.