HUMAK University of Applied Sciences

About: HUMAK University of Applied Sciences is a education organization based out in Helsinki, Finland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Sign language & Ethos. The organization has 16 authors who have published 20 publications receiving 269 citations.

Beyond languages, beyond modalities: transforming the study of semiotic repertoires

Abstract: This paper presents a critical examination of key concepts in the study of (signed and spoken) language and multimodality. It shows how shifts in conceptual understandings of language use, moving from bilingualism to multilingualism and (trans)languaging, have resulted in the revitalisation of the concept of language repertoires. We discuss key assumptions and analytical developments that have shaped the sociolinguistic study of signed and spoken language multilingualism as separate from different strands of multimodality studies. In most multimodality studies, researchers focus on participants using one named spoken language within broader embodied human action. Thus while attending to multimodal communication, they do not attend to multilingual communication. In translanguaging studies the opposite has happened: scholars have attended to multilingual communication without really paying attention to multimodality and simultaneity, and hierarchies within the simultaneous combination of resources. The (socio)linguistics of sign language has paid attention to multimodality but only very recently have started to focus on multilingual contexts where multiple sign and/or multiple spoken languages are used. There is currently little transaction between these areas of research. We argue that the lens of semiotic repertoires enables synergies to be identified and provides a holistic focus on action that is both multilingual and multimodal.

The Many Faces of Life Satisfaction among Finnish Young Adults

Abstract: The aim of this study was to measure the levels of general life satisfaction among Finnish young adults, and to clarify the way in which life satisfaction is constructed. In order to explore these aims, the following research questions were specified: (1) What is the level of general life satisfaction among young Finnish adults?, (2) Which factors in young adults’ phase of life and social surroundings are related to their life satisfaction?, (3) Is it possible to find distinct groups of young adults among whom life satisfaction can be seen as differently constructed? If so, in what way are those groups different from each other? What kinds of factors are related to group members’ life satisfaction? The data for the study were gathered via a questionnaire. The subjects consisted of 192 Finnish young adults born in 1968, living throughout the country. The results showed the level of life satisfaction among Finnish young adults to be similar to that of the Finnish population in general. The two main factors underlying life satisfaction were found to be social relation-ships and factors related to working-life contexts. In addition, the study identified five distinct groups (three groups of women, two groups of men) which differed from each other, both in their levels of life satisfaction and in the factors underlying life satisfaction. The groups varied in the importance for life satisfaction that they attached to marital partnerships, friends, health, and hobbies. The results were seen as supporting the assumption that life satisfaction is a socially constructed phenomenon.

Tutorial: Road Lighting for Efficient and Safe Traffic Environments

Abstract: This article discusses various aspects of outdoor lighting energy efficiency by means of new light sources and smart lighting systems. We will also discuss visibility, traffic flow, safety, and environmental and economic aspects. The use of an optimum level of road lighting maximizes the contrast between the background and the object to be seen. This suggests that the combined effect of road lighting and car headlights should be taken into account. Solutions for future measurement need to include 3D modeling of the lighting environment and mesopic photometry. The life cycle environmental impacts of high-pressure sodium (HPS) and light emitting diode (LED) luminaires were found to be on a similar level, but it is expected that LED luminaires will surpass HPS luminaires in environmental friendliness across the whole life cycle in the future. The energy-saving potential is based on new energy-efficient technology, reduced burning hours with smart control, and new lighting dimensioning. The energy sav...

Depth camera indoor mapping for 3D virtual radio play

Abstract: By combining game engines with indoor mapping, it is possible to create interactive virtual environments that represent the real world. In this paper a virtual version of an audio installation in a historic building is produced, where the user freely explores the building and experiences a set of audio clips, creating a virtual radio play. A depth camera indoor mapping system, Matterport, captured a set of staged interiors. The aim was to evaluate the quality and usability of the indoor models and to demonstrate applying them in 3D application development. The quality

Gendering boundary work: Experiences of work–family practices among Finnish working parents during COVID-19 lockdown

Abstract: In the spring of 2020, the COVID-19 outbreak and governmental lockdowns changed the everyday lives of families with children worldwide. Due to remote work recommendations and the closing of school premises and childcare centers, work?family boundaries became blurred in many families. In this study, we examine the possibly gendered boundary work practices among Finnish parents during the COVID-19 lockdown in spring 2020 by asking, how do parents perceive the blurring of work?family boundaries? What kind of boundary work practices did families develop to manage their work and family roles, and were these practices gendered and how? Boundary practices are analyzed by combining theories of doing boundaries and gender theories in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and applying them to survey data. The results revealed that during lockdown, both spatial and temporal boundaries blurred or partly disappeared, and boundary practices developed by families were highly gendered. Especially in families where childcare practices had been gendered already before the lockdown, it was predominantly mothers, who shouldered the main responsibility of increased childcare and struggled to manage their work duties. Hence, families had varying means to cope with blurring boundaries based on their ability to switch to remote work, but also on their work?family practices before the pandemic.