Table of Contents

Abstract: Nowadays, research on Vehicular Technology aims at automating every single mechanical element of vehicles, in order to increase passengers’ safety, reduce human driving intervention and provide entertainment services on board. Automatic trajectory tracing for vehicles under especially risky circumstances is a field of research that is currently gaining enormous attention. In this paper, we show some results on how to develop useful policies to execute maneuvers by a vehicle at high speeds with the mathematical optimization of some already established mobility conditions of the car. We also study how the presence of Gaussian noise on measurement sensors while maneuvering can disturb motion and affect the final trajectories. Different performance criteria for the optimization of such maneuvers are presented, and an analysis is shown on how path deviations can be minimized by using trajectory smoothing techniques like the Kalman Filter. We finalize the paper with a discussion on how communications can be used to implement these schemes.

Abstract: The term prosumer, first introduced by Toffler in the 1980s, has been developed by sociologists in response to Web 2.0 (the set of technologies that has transformed a predominantly static web into the collaborative medium initially envisaged by Tim Berners-Lee). The phenomena is now understood as a process involving the creation of meanings on the part of the consumer, who re-appropriates spaces that were dominated by institutionalized production, and this extends to the exploitation of consumer creativity on the production side. Recent consumption literature can be re-interpreted through the prosumer lens in order to understand whether prosumers are more creative or alienated in their activities. The peculiar typology of prosumption introduced by Web 2.0 leads us to analyze social capital as a key element in value creation, and to investigate its different online and offline forms. Our analysis then discusses the digital divide and critical consumerism as forms of empowerment impairment.

Abstract: This article speculates on the future of privacy and electronic identities on the Internet. Based on a short review of security models and the development of privacy-enhancing technology, privacy and electronic identities will be discussed as parts of a larger context—an ecosystem of personal information and electronic identities. The article argues for an ecosystem view of personal information and electronic identities, as both personal information and identity information are basic required input for many applications. Therefore, for both application owners and users, a functioning ecosystem of personal information and electronic identification is important. For the future of the Internet, high-quality information and controlled circulation of such information is therefore argued as decisive for the value of future Internet applications.

Abstract: Cyber-Physical-Human Systems (CPHS) combine sensing, communication and control to obtain desirable outcomes in physical environments for human beings, such as buildings or vehicles. A particularly important application area is emergency management. While recent work on the design and optimisation of emergency management schemes has relied essentially on discrete event simulation, which is challenged by the substantial amount of programming or reprogramming of the simulation tools and by the scalability and the computing time needed to obtain useful performance estimates, this paper proposes an approach that offers fast estimates based on graph models and probability models. We show that graph models can offer insight into the critical areas in an emergency evacuation and that they can suggest locations where sensor systems are particularly important and may require hardening. On the other hand, we also show that analytical models based on queueing theory can provide useful estimates of evacuation times and for routing optimisation. The results are illustrated with regard to the evacuation of a real-life building.

Abstract: This study examines the participation of African Americans on social networking sites (SNS), and evaluates the degree to which African Americans engage in activities in the online environment to mitigate social capital deficits. Prior literature suggests that compared with whites, African Americans have less social capital that can enhance their socio-economic mobility. As such, my research question is: do African Americans enhance their social capital through their participation on SNS? I use nationally representative data collected from the Pew Internet and American Life Project to explore the research question. The results suggest that the online environment is potentially a space in which African Americans can lessen social capital deficits.

Abstract: The locator/identifier split is an approach for a new addressing and routing architecture to make routing in the core of the Internet more scalable. Based on this principle, we developed the GLI-Split framework, which separates the functionality of current IP addresses into a stable identifier and two independent locators, one for routing in the Internet core and one for edge networks. This makes routing in the Internet more stable and provides more flexibility for edge networks. GLI-Split can be incrementally deployed and it is backward-compatible with the IPv6 Internet. We describe its architecture, compare it to other approaches, present its benefits, and finally present a proof-of-concept implementation of GLI-Split.

Abstract: In this article, learning is studied in in situ applications that involve sensors. The main questions are how to conceptualize experiential learning involving sensors and what kinds of learning applications using sensors already exist or could be designed. It is claimed that experiential learning, context information and sensor data supports twenty first century learning. The concepts of context, technology-mediated experiences, shared felt experiences and experiential learning theory will be used to describe a framework for sensor-based mobile learning environments. Several scenarios and case examples using sensors and sensor data will be presented, and they will be analyzed using the framework. Finally, the article contributes to the discussion concerning the role of technology-mediated learning experiences and collective sensor data in developing twenty first century learning by characterizing what kinds of skills and competences are supported in learning situations that involve sensors.