Metaheuristic Compared to optimization algorithms and iterative methods, metaheuristics do not guarantee that a globally optimal solution can be found on some class of problems. Many metaheuristics implement some form of stochastic optimization, so that the solution found is dependent on the set of random variables generated.[1] By searching over a large set of feasible solutions, metaheuristics can often find good solutions with less computational effort than can algorithms, iterative methods, or simple heuristics. As such, they are useful approaches for optimization problems.[1] Several books and survey papers have been published on the subject.[1][3][4] Properties and classification[edit] Different classifications of metaheuristics. These are properties that characterize most metaheuristics: There are a wide variety of metaheuristics[1] and a number of properties along which to classify them. One approach is to characterize the type of search strategy. Applications[edit] Contributions[edit]
The Gestalt Principles The Gestalt Principles Gestalt is a psychology term which means "unified whole". It refers to theories of visual perception developed by German psychologists in the 1920s. These theories attempt to describe how people tend to organize visual elements into groups or unified wholes when certain principles are applied. These principles are: Similarity Similarity occurs when objects look similar to one another. The example above (containing 11 distinct objects) appears as as single unit because all of the shapes have similarity. Unity occurs because the triangular shapes at the bottom of the eagle symbol look similar to the shapes that form the sunburst. When similarity occurs, an object can be emphasised if it is dissimilar to the others. The figure on the far right becomes a focal point because it is dissimilar to the other shapes. Continuation Continuation occurs when the eye is compelled to move through one object and continue to another object. Closure Examples Proximity Figure and Ground Figure
Heuristic Evaluation July 6, 2014 Showing users things they can recognize improves usability over needing to recall items from scratch because the extra context helps users retrieve information from memory. January 1, 1997 Discount usability engineering is our only hope. We must evangelize methods simple enough that departments can do their own usability work, fast enough that people will take the time, and cheap enough that it's still worth doing. The methods that can accomplish this are simplified user testing with one or two users per design and heuristic evaluation. June 27, 1995 Participants in a course on usability inspection methods were surveyed 7-8 months after the course. January 1, 1995 Heuristic evaluation is a good method of identifying both major and minor problems with an interface, but the lists of usability problems found by heuristic evaluation will tend to be dominated by minor problems, which is one reason severity ratings form a useful supplement to the method.
Gestalt principles of form perception by Mads Soegaard Gestalt psychology attempts to understand psychological phenomena by viewing them as organised and structured wholes rather than the sum of their constituent parts. Thus, Gestalt psychology dissociates itself from the more 'elementistic'/reductionistic/decompositional approaches to psychology like structuralism (with its tendency to analyse mental processes into elementary sensations) and it accentuates concepts like emergent properties, holism, and context. In the 30s and 40s Gestalt psychology was applied to visual perception, most notably by Max Wertheimer, Wolfgang Khler, and Kurt Koffka who founded the so-called gestalt approaches to form perception. Their aim was to investigate the global and holistic processes involved in perceiving structure in the environment (e.g. Law of proximity Figure 1.A: A real-world example of the law of proximity from MTV Music Awards 2002 Law of similarity Law of Prgnanz (figure-ground) Law of symmetry Figure 4.A.: CSC Finland's logo. Law of closure License
Heuristic A heuristic technique (/hjʉˈrɪstɨk/; Greek: "Εὑρίσκω", "find" or "discover"), sometimes called simply a heuristic, is any approach to problem solving, learning, or discovery that employs a practical methodology not guaranteed to be optimal or perfect, but sufficient for the immediate goals. Where finding an optimal solution is impossible or impractical, heuristic methods can be used to speed up the process of finding a satisfactory solution. Heuristics can be mental shortcuts that ease the cognitive load of making a decision. Examples of this method include using a rule of thumb, an educated guess, an intuitive judgment, stereotyping, profiling, or common sense. More precisely, heuristics are strategies using readily accessible, though loosely applicable, information to control problem solving in human beings and machines.[1] Example[edit] Here are a few other commonly used heuristics, from George Pólya's 1945 book, How to Solve It:[2] Psychology[edit] Well known[edit] Lesser known[edit]
Color Theory Tutorial by Worqx Why study color theory? If you are involved in the creation or design of visual documents, an understanding of color will help when incorporating it into your own designs. Choices regarding color often seem rather mystical, as many seem to base decisions on nothing other than "it looks right." Although often told I had an eye for color, the reason why some colors worked together while others did not always intrigued me and I found the study of color theory fascinating. While attending the University of Minnesota I enrolled in almost every course I could from different departments: graphic design, interior design, and fine arts. Communicating Color What is red? HTML Red Pantone® Red Pantone® Warm Red TRUEMATCH® 6-a Color Application With respect to the arts, color was part of the realistic, visual representation of form, but one group of painters abandoned the traditional practices regarding color in painting. The next several pages of this site offer a tutorial regarding color theory.
Heuristics Accessibility The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect. Tim Berners-Lee, W3C Director and inventor of the World Wide Web The Web is fundamentally designed to work for all people, whatever their hardware, software, language, culture, location, or physical or mental ability. Thus the impact of disability is radically changed on the Web because the Web removes barriers to communication and interaction that many people face in the physical world. The mission of the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) is to lead the Web to its full potential to be accessible, enabling people with disabilities to participate equally on the Web. See below for: Why: The Case for Web Accessibility It is essential that the Web be accessible in order to provide equal access and equal opportunity to people with diverse abilities. There is also a strong business case for accessibility. What: Examples of Web Accessibility Alternative Text for Images Keyboard Input
Judgemental Heuristics and Biases: Try these cases yourself. A. A cab was involved in a hit-and-run accident. Two cab companies serve the city: the Green, which operates 85% of the cabs, and the Blue, which operates the remaining 15%. A witness identifies the hit-and-run cab as Blue. When the court tests the reliability of the witness under circumstances similar to those on the night of the accident, he correctly identifies the color of the cab 80% of the time and misidentifies it 20% of the time. B. C. a. b. D. E. a. the large hospital b. the small hospital c. neither, it is equally probable F. G. a) a sure gain of $3000, and b) an 80% chance of winning $4000 and a 20% chance of winning nothing H. I. J. a) a sure loss of $3000, and b) an 80% chance of losing $4000 and a 20% chance of losing nothing Outline I. II. III. IV. V. I. A. B. II. A. III. A. IV. A. V. A.
Introduction to "How People with Disabilities Use the Web" In-Suite Navigation Introduction How do people who cannot move their arms use your website? This resource introduces how people with disabilities, including people with age-related impairments, use the Web. This resource includes the following pages: Stories of Web Users - stories of selected scenarios of people with disabilities using the Web, to highlight the effect of barriers and the broader benefits of accessible websites and web tools. Tips: There are additional supporting materials available on the Web, such as videos of how people with disabilities use the Web . [Top of Page | Next Page - Stories of Web Users]
SMART HEURISTICS What interests me is the question of how humans learn to live with uncertainty. Before the scientific revolution determinism was a strong ideal. Religion brought about a denial of uncertainty, and many people knew that their kin or their race was exactly the one that God had favored. They also thought they were entitled to get rid of competing ideas and the people that propagated them. How does a society change from this condition into one in which we understand that there is this fundamental uncertainty? Introduction "Isn’t more information always better?" Gigerenzer provides an alternative to the view of the mind as a cognitive optimizer, and also to its mirror image, the mind as a cognitive miser. Gigerenzer's work is of importance to people interested in how the human mind actually solves problems. "My work will, I hope, change the way people think about human rationality", he says. Gerd Gigernezer 's Edge Bio Page