Although it is conceded (as argued by many) that distinct knowledge domains do present particular problems of coming to know, in this paper it is argued that it is possible (and useful) to construct a domain independent model of the processes of coming to know, one in which observers share understandings and do so in agreed ways. The model in question is part of the conversation theory (CT) of ...

This paper describes a strategy for the conversation system to take part in human-to-human group conversation. One big characteristic of the group conversation system is that it can choose whether to observe or to take turn in the conversation. We implement the computational model combined with speech and gaze recognizers to keep the rules in turn taking, and define an interruption decision str...

The conversation model captures interactions among the components of a composite web service. A conversation is the global sequence of messages exchanged among the components. We discuss the impact of asynchronous communication on the conversation behavior. It turns out that the conversation behavior is significantly different for synchronous and asynchronous communication and demands new techn...

In 1969, Gordon Pask published a paper that explicitly proposed a vital connection between cybernetics and architecture. “The Architectural Relevance of Cybernetics” (Pask, 1969) was one outcome of an extraordinary series of debates and presentations centred around the theme of limits to science presented at the Architectural Association School of Architecture (AA) in London. The proceedings we...

In this paper, we present a set of measures to quantify certain properties of threaded discussions, which are ubiquitous in online learning platforms. In particular, we address how to measure the redundancy of posts, the compactness of topics, and the degree of hierarchy in sub-threads. This preliminary work would very much benefit from discussion and serves as a starting point for ultimately c...

The rapid growth of the Internet, coupled with improved multimedia capabilities in computing, has expanded the options for using technology to support collaborative learning. Asynchronous electronic conferencing is commonly used to support distributed discourse-based learning. Mind Bridges is a Web-based threaded discussion forum with support for embedded multimedia content. This paper describe...