The traveling salesman problem (TSP) is a combinatorial optimization problem that requires finding the shortest path through a set of points ("cities") that returns to the starting point. Because humans provide heuristic near-optimal solutions to Euclidean versions of the problem, it has sometimes been used to investigate human visual…

The "cyberinfrastucture" is a broad informational network that entails connections to real-time data sensors as well as tools that permit visualization and other forms of analysis, and that facilitates access to vast scientific databases. This multifaceted network, already a major boon to scientific discovery, now shows exceptional promise in…

Social and mobile technologies offer users unprecedented opportunities for communicating, interacting, sharing, meaning-making, content and context generation. And, these affordances are in constant flux driven by a powerful interplay between technological innovation and emerging cultural practices. Significantly, also, they are starting to…

The interoperability of educational systems, encouraged by the development of specifications, standards and tools related to the Semantic Web is limited to the exchange of information in domain and student models. High system interoperability requires that a common framework be defined that represents the functional essence of educational systems.…

Nowadays we need to teach students how to become flexible problem solvers in a dynamic world. The pace in which technology changes and complexity increases requires increased efficiency in learning and understanding. This requires the engineers of tomorrow to quickly gain knowledge and insight outside their prime area of expertise. To transfer…

This study investigates the relationships between the use of a zoom tool, the terms they supply to describe the image, and the type of image being viewed. Participants were assigned to two groups, one with access to the tool and one without, and were asked to supply terms to describe forty images, divided into four categories: landscape, portrait,…

The level of learners' expertise has been used as a metric and diagnostic mechanism of instruction. This metric influences mental effort directly according to the applications of cognitive load theory. Cognitive efficiency, an optimal measurement technique of expertise, was developed by Kalyuga and Sweller to replace instructional efficiency in…

Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) that employ a model-tracing methodology have consistently shown their effectiveness. However, what evidently makes these tutors effective, the cognitive model embedded within them, has traditionally been difficult to create, requiring great expertise and time, both of which come at a cost. Furthermore, an…

This summary of issues addressed at the conference identifies 10 important themes: (1) the nature of interactivity, and whether linear presentations are obsolete; (2) what can be done with all the imagery made possible with videodisks and the sounds enabled by compact disks, and whether any of this is really new; (3) whether emotional…

This report incorporates a literature review, a workshop paper, and discussion by workshop participants on the current status of research on what the users of computer systems know, and how these different forms of knowledge fit together in learning and performance. It is noted that such research is important to the problem of designing systems…

Defines cognitive computer tools as software programs that use the control capabilities of computers to amplify, extend, or enhance human cognition; suggests seven ways in which computers can aid learning; and describes the "Learning Tool," a software package for the Apple Macintosh microcomputer that is designed to aid learning of…

The use of microcomputer-assisted therapy as part of the total rehabilitation plan for brain-injured individuals with cognitive-communicative impairments is addressed. Design of effective computer-assisted remediation requires a careful decision-making process. Specific types of software are suggested for dealing with deficits in organization,…

The 4th International Conference on Educational Data Mining (EDM 2011) brings together researchers from computer science, education, psychology, psychometrics, and statistics to analyze large datasets to answer educational research questions. The conference, held in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, July 6-9, 2011, follows the three previous editions…

Reports on a research project that investigated seventh grade science students' cognitive, affective, and physical behaviors as they used the Yahooligans! search engine to find information on a specific search task. Describes measurement techniques that included software, interviews, and questionnaires, and discusses implications for user training…