This journal subline serves as a forum for stimulating and disseminating innovative research ideas, theories, emerging technologies, empirical investigations, state-of-the-art methods, and tools in all different genres of edutainment, such as game-based learning and serious games, interactive storytelling, virtual learning environments, VR-based education, and related fields. It covers aspects from educational and game theories, human-computer interaction, computer graphics, artificial intelligence, and systems design. The 27 papers of this volume deal with virtual humans; graphics rendering and 3D animation; games and 2D animation; and digital media and its applications.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Interactive Digital Storytelling, ICIDS 2012, San Sebastián, Spain, November 2012. The 14 revised full papers presented together with 6 short papers were carefully reviewed and selected from 48 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on theory and aesthetics; authoring tools and applications; evaluation and user experience reports; virtual characters and agents; new storytelling modes; workshops.

This book constitutes the refereed conference proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Advances in Computer Entertainment, ACE 2013, held in Boekelo, The Netherlands, in November 2013. The 19 full paper and 16 short papers presented together 42 extended abstracts were carefully reviewed and selected from a total of 133 submissions in all categories. The papers cover topics across a wide spectrum of disciplines including new devices; evaluation and user studies; games as interface to serious applications; creating immersion; interfaces; new experiences; procedural approaches and AI; and theory. Focusing on all areas related to interactive entertainment they aim at stimulating discussion in the development of new and compelling entertainment computing and interactive art concepts and applications.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 7th International Conference on E-Learning and Games, Edutainment 2012, held in conjunction with the 3rd International Conference on Serious Games for Training, Education, Health and Sports, GameDays 2012, held in Darmstadt, Germany, in September 2012. The 21 full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected for inclusion in this book. They are organized in topical sections named: game-based training; game-based teaching and learning; emerging learning and gaming technologies; authoring tools and mechanisms; and serious games for health.

Virtual reality is a set of technologies that enables two-way communication, from computer to user and vice versa. In one direction, technologies are used to synthesize visual, auditory, tactile, and sometimes other sensory experiences in order to provide the illusion that practically non-existent things can be seen, heard, touched, or otherwise felt. In the other direction, technologies are used to adequately record human movements, sounds, or other potential input data that computers can process and use. This book contains six chapters that cover topics including definitions and principles of VR, devices, educational design principles for effective use of VR, technology education, and use of VR in technical and natural sciences.

This three-volume set LNCS 11139-11141 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 27th International Conference on Artificial Neural Networks, ICANN 2018, held in Rhodes, Greece, in October 2018. The 139 full and 28 short papers as well as 41 full poster papers and 41 short poster papers presented in these volumes was carefully reviewed and selected from total of 360 submissions. They are related to the following thematic topics: AI and Bioinformatics, Bayesian and Echo State Networks, Brain Inspired Computing, Chaotic Complex Models, Clustering, Mining, Exploratory Analysis, Coding Architectures, Complex Firing Patterns, Convolutional Neural Networks, Deep Learning (DL), DL in Real Time Systems, DL and Big Data Analytics, DL and Big Data, DL and Forensics, DL and Cybersecurity, DL and Social Networks, Evolving Systems – Optimization, Extreme Learning Machines, From Neurons to Neuromorphism, From Sensation to Perception, From Single Neurons to Networks, Fuzzy Modeling, Hierarchical ANN, Inference and Recognition, Information and Optimization, Interacting with The Brain, Machine Learning (ML), ML for Bio Medical systems, ML and Video-Image Processing, ML and Forensics, ML and Cybersecurity, ML and Social Media, ML in Engineering, Movement and Motion Detection, Multilayer Perceptrons and Kernel Networks, Natural Language, Object and Face Recognition, Recurrent Neural Networks and Reservoir Computing, Reinforcement Learning, Reservoir Computing, Self-Organizing Maps, Spiking Dynamics/Spiking ANN, Support Vector Machines, Swarm Intelligence and Decision-Making, Text Mining, Theoretical Neural Computation, Time Series and Forecasting, Training and Learning.

This book introduces the latest visual effects (VFX) techniques that can be applied to game programming. The usefulness of the physicality-based VFX techniques, such as water, fire, smoke, and wind, has been proven through active involvement and utilization in movies and images. However, they have yet to be extensively applied in the game industry, due to the high technical barriers. Readers of this book can learn not only the theories about the latest VFX techniques, but also the methodology of game programming, step by step. The practical VFX processing techniques introduced in this book will provide very helpful information to game programmers. Due to the lack of instructional books about VFX-related game programming, the demand for knowledge regarding these high-tech VFXs might be very high.