Mobiles and mobility: The use of mobile phones by fishers in Kerala, India

2013-04-26 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Janaki Srinivasan

Abstract: Much has been written in the past decade about the proliferation and promise of mobile phones in low-income countries and populations. In this talk, I draw on research from a recent project I was involved in, where we studied the use of mobile phones by fishing communities in Kerala, India. An influential study a few years ago concluded that the fishing economy in Kerala had benefited greatly from the introduction of mobile phone services (Jensen 2007). The introduction of mobile phones, the study claimed, had made market price information available to fishers and thereby reduced price dispersion and wastage in the fishing economy. Based on three months of participant observation and interviews in 2012, we find that far from focusing on the phones primarily as a way to find market price information and enhance incomes, members of the fishing community were using phones in a variety of ways and for a range of ends. We examine how different members of the fishing community learned to use mobile phones, and how men and women, older and younger fishers, those who work out in the sea and those who work on the shore, focus on learning different features of the phone. We find that for many of them, using the mobile phone is as much about social mobility and learning of a world beyond the one where they lived and worked everyday.

Jensen, Robert. 2007. "The Digital Provide: Information (Technology), Market Performance and Welfare in the South Indian Fisheries Sector," Quarterly Journal of Economics, 122(3): 879 ? 924

Bio: Janaki Srinivasan is a post-doctoral research associate at the Virginia Tech Dept. of Engineering Education. Prior to this, she was at the UC Berkeley School of Information, where she completed her Ph.D. Janaki uses participant observation techniques and interviews to study information technology-based development initiatives. She focuses on the politics involved in the creation, access, and use of these technologies in government services and market processes in rural India. Janaki is currently working with Prof. Aditya Johri on two projects. One project studies how engineers design information technologies in globally distributed teams. The other examines how engineers went about designing and deploying the world's largest biometric database.

Nurturing Children's Creative Practice through Micro-Enactments

2013-04-19 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Sharon Chu, PhD candidate

Abstract: Children's declining creativity quotient that we witness nowadays is troubling in the face of increasingly complex problems in the world. Concerns about the level of creative apathy have often been raised in concert with anxieties about the effects of technology. However, the design of technology is malleable. To be able to design technology that may help to nurture children's creativity, we need an empirically grounded understanding of technology with respect to creativity support for children. We propose that the phenomenon of the 'Fourth-Grade Slump' whereby the nine-year old child experiences a sudden drop in creativity can be used as a fitting case scenario to study the effects of technologies on children's engagement in creative activities.

In this talk, I present an overview of an ongoing body of research that investigates the various kinds of affordances that virtual media-based interfaces and physically-based technologies provide for the child during creation in the domain of storytelling. Based on studies, we propose that an enactment-based approach may positively affect the child's creative process. Our research may potentially contribute to the design of educational technologies, the understanding of the child's imagination during storytelling, as well as to pedagogy and educational practices in the classroom in a technological world.

Bio: Sharon Chu is a PhD student in the Department of Computer Science at Virginia Tech. She is affiliated with the Center for Human-Computer Interaction (CHCI) and the Institute of Creativity, Arts and Technology (ICAT). She studies the technology-mediated creative process of children. Her other significant research interests include embodied interaction, creativity support environments, digital storytelling, game studies, and new media. Sharon received a Bachelor of Social Science with First Class Honors in Communication & New Media at the National University of Singapore.

Dynamic Analysis of Large Datasets with Animated and Correlated Views

2013-03-22 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Dr. Yong Cao

Abstract: "Big Data" and dynamic pattern mining have been the most dominated challenges in visual analytics. On one hand, substantial computational power and storage are required to handle massive scale datasets. On the other hand, real-time visualization and interaction are demanded to mine temporal patterns. In this talk, I will focus on the temporal information discovery from large datasets. I will introduce a GPU-accelerated visual analytics tool, Animated Visualization Toolkit (AVIST), to tackle such challenges. By taking advantages of the massive parallel computing power of the GPUs, we can analyze and visualize the large datasets, such as VAST 2012 Challenge datasets, in real-time for temporal pattern recognition. In addition, AVIST support multiple correlated data views, which includes histogram view, parallel coordinate view and dynamic view. All these three views are interactively correlated to show highlighted and excluded information for intuitive visualization. The unique features of this tool include automated animation, complex and interactive data filters, and Time-Synced Visualization of Multiple Datasets. I will show the demonstration videos of the tool includes the sessions for analyzing the data.

Bio: Assistant Professor, VT Department of Computer Science
Yong Cao is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Virginia Tech. He received his B.S. degree from University of Science and Technology of China in 1997, M.S. degree from Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2000, and Ph.D. degree in Computer Science from University of California, Los Angeles in 2005. He has worked at a leading video game company, Electronic Arts, before joined Virginia Tech in 2007. Dr. Cao is the Director of the Graphics and Visualization Lab at Virginia Tech, which focuses on the research of high performance visualization and simulation, parallel computing on many-core architecture, character animation, and video game based learning. He serves his research community by participating in several conference communities, including EuroGraphics, Siggraph Asia, Motion In Games, and IEEE Conference on Automatic Face and Gesture Recognition. He also serves in the editorial board of ACM Computer in Entertainment. Dr. Cao is also a member of the Institute of Creativity, Art and Technology (ICAT) at Virginia Tech, whose goal is to facilitate art, creative activity, and education in cutting edge technologies and their use in contemporary arts and design.

Social Effects of Video Games: Problems, Policy, and Paradigms

2013-03-08 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Prof. James Ivory

Abstract: Research on potential negative effects of video games, particularly potential negative effects of violent video games, has been as prevalent and prominent as perhaps any other research area related to media effects in recent years. Although there has been a spate of research on negative social effects of games, though, the topic remains a hotly disputed one. In this presentation, Ivory shares research conducted by himself and others dealing with the question of video games' social impact and discusses fundamental flaws in how much research has approached video games as a medium in terms of key features and functions.

Bio: Associate Professor, VT Department of Communication
His primary research interests deal with social and psychological dimensions of new media and communication technologies, particularly the content and effects of video games, virtual environments, and simulations. Dr. Ivory has served as head of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication's Communication Technology division and is currently vice chair of the International Communication Association's Game Studies interest group.

Virtual Town Square - Building a Local Information Ecosystem

2013-02-22 at 12:30:00 in Room B

Presenter: Ankit Ahuja

Abstract: In this talk, I will present my work on Virtual Town Square (http://vts.cs.vt.edu), a social software that captures dispersed information for local communities and makes it easily accessible to local citizens. We are building it as a local information ecosystem which interconnects different pieces of local information, where we encourage people to participate both on our site and the original sources of content. I will talk about some of the technical challenges of this project, how we tackled them and give a demo. If time permits, I will demo my thesis prototype, a tool to help you manage local and cloud based information around your projects (including email, todos, bookmarks, tabs and apps) inside the web browser. It addresses some of the problems faced due to the fragmentation of information in different personal information management (PIM) tools.

Bio: Ankit Ahuja is a Masters student in Computer Science working with Dr. Manuel A. Perez-Quinones and Dr. Andrea Kavanaugh. He is interested in the areas of personal information management (PIM) and user interfaces. He is currently working on Virtual Town Square, a social software that aggregates locally relevant online content and social interaction generated elsewhere by citizens and organizations. For his thesis, he is building a tool for the web browser which lets people manage the local and cloud based information around their projects, including email, todos, tabs, bookmarks and apps.

Cloud Computing and People with Disabilities

2013-02-08 at 12:45:00 in GLC Room B

Presenter: Dr. Clayton Lewis

Abstract: The rise of services supported in the cloud, on the worldwide population of interconnected computers, is revolutionizing many businesses, while providing consumers with increased convenience at lower cost. What does this revolution in technology offer to people with disabilities? This talk will describe work being done in the USA and abroad to realize the Global Public Inclusive Infrastructure (GPII.net), using the cloud to make it much easier for people to access online content and services in a way that meets their individual needs and preferences. It will also outline further implications of the cloud for improvement of services for people with disabilities, through advances in Big Data analytics, in data sharing technology, and in social software.

Bio: Clayton Lewis is Professor of Computer Science and Fellow of the Institute of Cognitive Science at the University of Colorado. He is well known for his work (with students and colleagues) on evaluation methods in user interface design, including the thinking aloud and cognitive walkthrough methods. His recent work on technology for people with cognitive disabilities has been presented to the US Access Board Technical Advisory Committee, CSUN, RESNA, ACM ASSETS, and other forums, and he has served as Scientist in Residence at the Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities. He is a member of the CHI Academy, recognizing his contributions to Human Computer Interaction. He is currently on leave from the University, serving as a consultant on cloud computing for the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.

Studying Personal Information Management under a Dual-Task Lens

2013-01-25 at 12:30:00 in Graduate LIfe Center, Room B

Presenter: Manuel A. Perez-Quinones

Abstract: Throughout the course of a typical day, we send and receive email, organize files and folders, and manage calendars. These activities are typically not the focus of our work. We engage in them in support of our real work. Yet, it is in these secondary activities where we spend a significant amount of time and where often frustration arises. In this talk, I propose that Personal Information Management activities should be studied under a dual task lens, where the users primary task is related to their work activity and the secondary tasks are the PIM activities in support of the primary task. I propose that PIM tasks require mostly short-term attentional processing and thus are error prone due to high cognitive workload. In addition, PIM tools do little to support prospective memory. My research group seeks to study the tradeoff that users face when switching from their main (primary) task over to a PIM task. We posit that at the point of transition, users face a tradeoff choice between the impact of the interruption on their primary task or the added load in prospective memory for postponing their PIM task. The talk will present some research evidence in support of this dual-task view of PIM as well as a current trend in tool design and ad-ons that address this problem in an ad-hoc fashion.

Bio: Manuel A. Perez-Quinones is Associate Head for Graduate Studies and Associate Professor of Computer Science at Virginia Tech. He is a member of the Center for HCI, and on the editorial board for ACM's ToCE. He is an active member of the Coalition to Diversify Computing. Perez-Quinones holds a D.Sc. from George Washington University, Washington, DC. His research interests include human-computer interaction, personal information management, user interface software, and educational/cultural issues in computing.

Interactive Data-Driven Search and Discovery of Temporal Behavior Patterns from Media Streams

2012-12-20 at 15:00:00 in KWII Room 1110

Presenter: Chreston Miller

Abstract: The presented thesis work addresses how social scientists may derive patterns of human behavior captured in media streams. Currently, media streams are being segmented into sequences of events describing the actions captured in the streams, such as the interactions among humans. Specifically, I am interested in multimodal data of this form. This segmentation creates a challenging data space to search characterized by non-numerical, temporal, descriptive data, e.g., Person A walks up to Person B at time T. I will present an approach that allows one to interactively search and discover temporal behavior patterns within such a data space.

Bio: This is Chreston's PhD Research Defense. You are cordially invited to attend (Thursday, 12/20 from 3-5 pm) in the Knowledge Works II Building, CS Department, 2202 Kraft Dirve in the Corporate Research Center.

The Hospital Room of the Future

2012-11-30 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Prof. Jeff Reed

Abstract: ICTAS, CAER, and VCOM proposes to leverage its extensive knowledge and experience in the areas of wireless networking, spectrum management, data mining, HCI, cyber security, and medical process in order to investigate, implement, and test novel spectrum management solutions for hospital environments. The primary goal of this work is to create an experimental medical environment to demonstrate the practical need for, and feasibility of, spectrum management solutions in this unique and increasingly cluttered spectrum environment. Secondly, this work intends to demonstrate that improved spectrum management can lead to improvements in patient quality of care, hospital operating efficiency, and reduced operating costs. This novel infrastructure will provide opportunities for a number of research areas, including HCI, to streamline medical processes.

Bio: Dr. Jeffrey H. Reed is the Willis G. Worcester Professor in the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. His area of expertise is in cognitive radios, software radios, and smart antennas. He currently serves as Director of Wireless @ Virginia Tech, one of the largest and most comprehensive university wireless research groups in the US. He is the Founding Faculty member of the Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology and served as its interim Director when founded in 2010. He is co-founder of Cognitive Radio Technologies (CRT), a company that is commercializing of the cognitive radio technologies produced at Virginia Tech for commercial and military applications, and for Power Fingerprinting, a company specializing in security for embedded systems, including Android platforms. Within the past few years Dr. Reed's recent service activities include serving on White House advisory committee on spectrum issues, and working with DoD on countering wireless initiated IEDs.

Since joining Virginia Tech in 1992, Dr. Reed has been PI or co-PI of approximately 100 projects covering areas such as software radio, cognitive radio, ultra wideband, and channel modeling. Dr. Reed is a Fellow of the IEEE for contributions to software radio, communications signal processing and for leadership in engineering education, and is a past recipient of the College of Engineering Award for Excellence in Research. Dr. Reed received his BS, MS, and PhD degrees from the University of California, Davis.

ICTAS Seminar 11/15 (Thurs 9 am): What is Human-Centered Computing?

2012-11-15 at 09:00:00 in ICTAS 310

Presenter: Dr. Jeffrey Bradshaw

Abstract: The Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC) is a not-for-profit Research Institute of the State University System of Florida. Researchers at IHMC pioneer technologies aimed at leveraging and extending human capabilities. In our collaboration with Virginia Tech, IHMC is sharing its technology and expertise in the areas of building simulation, monitoring, visualization, management of security and building control policies, and human-centered performance enhancement. Among our most-acclaimed deployable modular concepts was the Small Pressurized Rover with integrated Hab, developed with NASA and Ideo as part of an IHMC Blue Sky study and later featured as the culminating vehicle in the 2009 Presidential Inaugural Parade. A current highlight of our human-centered building technologies efforts is our joint proposal with Autodesk Research to build resilient monitoring and response technologies into the Salt Lake City Public Safety Building (PSB), designed for net-zero performance. As a hub of the city critical infrastructure, the PSB will garner significant attention as a flagship for state-of-the-art building design and operations. Unlike the typical situation where comfort and energy efficiency degrade over time, the opportunity is presented to create a building whose performance continually gets better. Even more important, given the vital role of the PSB as an emergency response center, is the key requirement for resilient building response to threats and disturbances. In this talk, I will give an overview of selected areas of human-centered computing research currently underway at IHMC.

Bio: Jeffrey M. Bradshaw is a Senior Research Scientist at the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC), where he leads the research group developing the KAoS policy and domain services framework. With Marco Carvalho, he co-leads the group developing IHMC Sol Cyber Framework. Formerly, Jeff led research groups at The Boeing Company and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. He helped pioneer the research area of multi-agent systems, and his first book on the topic, Software Agents, became a classic in the field and a best-seller for The MIT Press.

Effects of Immersion and 3D Interaction on Volume Data Analysis using Virtual Reality

2012-11-09 at 12:30:00 in GLC Room B

Presenter: Bireswar Laha

Abstract: Visually analyzing and exploring data in volumetric format is a common task for researchers from various domains such as medicine, cell biology, geology, paleontology, etc. Traditionally, scientists and researchers from these domains have been using desktop computer systems with mouse and keyboard interfaces, for visualizing and analyzing volume data. Many people have suggested using virtual reality (VR) systems with higher levels of immersion, since immersive VR is designed to display spatially complex structures in a manner easier to understand and explore. But there is little empirical evidence validating these claims. There is also anecdotal evidence showing the benefits of using 3D interaction techniques like two-handed (bimanual) interaction for interacting with volume data. But very little work has been done on developing and standardizing the various tools and techniques that can be used by scientists for the different tasks they perform with volume data. My research aims at gathering evidence for the effects of immersion, and developing and evaluating the use of novel 3D interaction tools for analyzing scientific datasets. My work is based on a novel framework of abstract task taxonomy, mapping and generalizing the findings to multiple scientific domains from where volume data is generated.

Bio: Bireswar Laha (Integrated M.Sc. IIT Kharagpur, India) is a PhD student in Computer Science and Center for Human Computer Interaction, working under the supervision of Professor Doug Bowman. He interned at the IBM's T.J. Watson Research Center for the last two summers. Prior to beginning his graduate studies at Virginia Tech, he worked for more than four years as research scientist and software engineer for various companies in India and USA, including a nine month training in 3D Visualization at a research lab of NASA, USA. More on his background is available here - http://people.cs.vt.edu/blaha/.

Microcoordination: a phronesis-based lens for design

2012-09-28 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room F (note Room change) )

Presenter: Prof. Deborah Tatar

Abstract: A few years ago, Bent Flyvbjerg argued, in Making Social Science Matter, that social science could matter when it contributes to what Aristotle called phronesis, the (quote) wisdom to take counsel, to judge the goods and the evils and all the things in life that are desirable and to be avoided, to use all the available goods finely, to behave rightly in society, to observe due occasions, to employ both speech and action with sagacity, to have expert knowledge of all things that are useful (unquote) (translated by H. Rackam). Aristotle distinguished between phronesis, techne and episteme. In modern parlance, we have technological knowledge, and epistemic knowledge, but not even a word for this last kind of knowledge. Yet, as designed artifacts have come in a short amount of time to influence the most private aspects of everyday life around the world, the need is ever more apparent. I will outline a case for using the lens of microcoordination to uncover phenomena at the juncture of human coordinative behavior and system design. Then I will talk about a series of probes my lab group has created to examine the social and personal effects of the relationship between people utilizing collaborative artifacts.

Bio: Deborah Tatar (Ph.D. Stanford, Psychology) is Assoc. Prof. of Computer Science and, by courtesy, Psychology at Virginia Tech, a member of both the Center for Human-Computer Interaction, and the Women and Gender Studies Programs. After graduating from Harvard (1981) with a degree in English and American Literature and Language, she went to work at the Logo Lab at M.I.T. until she could develop into the poet she was destined to be. Eventually, having written a textbook on the LISP Programming language, she accepted a job in Educational Services at Digital Equipment Corporation, rising to the level of Senior Software Engineer. She moved to Xerox PARC to work on one of the first Computer-Supported Collaborative Work Systems. That project led to the invention of SmartBoards (not by her) and to her graduate work on interpersonal attention. At the Center for Technology in Education at SRI International, she designed and analyzed novel technologies for classrooms in California, Texas and South Carolina. Dr. Tatar currently studies microcoordination and computational thinking.

Designed Transparency: Can Information Technology Reduce Corruption in Emerging Economies?

2012-09-14 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Prof. Aditya Johri

Abstract: In their efforts to meet the UN Millennium Development goals, such as reducing poverty, improving literacy and health, and tackling environmental problems, countries are seriously hampered by a lack of accountable and transparent implementation of projects. In effect, it can be argued that corruption, which results in implementation failures, is the primary barrier to development efforts in emerging and developing economies. It is important to ask whether, and what, role design of information technology can play a role in reducing corruption and in addressing other developmental problems. Is there a place within HCI for efforts beyond the interface? Framed within the context of large government initiatives in India, I discuss two case studies that attempt to understand the role information technology can play in combating corruption. First, I present findings to show how corruption and transparency guide design decisions by engineers and designers while they develop technological artifacts for the distribution of government services. Second, I show how a visible implementation of large government projects itself becomes a model for transparency. These cases studies draw on data collected on two projects: 1) The rural employment guarantee act project (MNREGA), which guarantees employment to over 300 million rural workers, and 2) The Aadhaar or unique identity project that aims to improve accountability in public services by providing a unique identity number to every resident of India. Finally, I provide a brief overview of a design agenda and discuss the importance of making large systems and issues more central to HCI.

Bio: Aditya Johri is an assistant professor in the Department of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech with affiliated appointments in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, the Center for Human-computer Interaction, and the Center for Innovation-based Manufacturing. He received his Ph.D. in Education from Stanford University in 2007. His research examines the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) for furthering social and economic development and for facilitating globally dispersed work. He has also investigated knowledge and expertise sharing practices among participants in online communities and, with collaborators, designed large-scale cyberinfrastructure for research communities. His research is funded by several NSF grants, including a NSF Career Award, and by industry partners.

Designing Connections

2012-04-27 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room C

Presenter: Dr. Federico Casalegno

Abstract: In this talk I will discuss MIT Mobile Experience Lab research projects and will address how we can design technologies to promote civic engagement and pervasive computing in the physical space. Among these are a project called LOCAST and other mobile projects currently implemented in the US, Europe and South America. The MIT Mobile Experience Lab currently collaborates with the VT HCI Center through the NSF funded Virtual Town Square project led by Andrea Kavanaugh, Manuel Perez, John Tedesco and Naren Ramakrishnan.

MIT Mobile Experience Lab

Locast Civic Media

Bio: Federico Casalegno, Ph.D., is the Director of the MIT Mobile Experience Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, SHASS, Comparative Media Studies program. Since 2008, he is also the director of the Green Home Alliance between MIT and the Fondazione Bruno Kessler in Italy. He has been awarded an honorary professorship from the University of Glasgow, Glasgow School of Art. A social scientist with an interest in the impact of networked digital technologies in human behavior and society, Dr. Casalegno both teaches and leads advanced research at MIT, and designs interactive media to foster connections between people, information and physical places using cutting-edge information technology. Since 2004, he has also held a position as Lecturer at the MIT Media Lab Smart Cities group; from 2006 to 2011 he co-directed the MIT Design Lab with Prof. William J. Mitchell.

Balancing Entertainment and Information Content in Technical Comics

2012-04-13 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room C

Presenter: Carlos Evia and Tim Lockridge

Abstract: Using comics for technical purposes represents unique challenges that begin with achieving the proper balance of entertainment and information content: it is often too easy to create a funny comic that keeps important content hidden among jokes and character development. Additionally, a graphic genre like comics requires writing practices that might not be compatible with technical communication trends of structured authoring and searchable and archivable content. TechCommix is an XML grammar for tagging technical comics in a manner that allows technical communicators to quantify and balance out elements of content and humor. Based on elements of ComicsML (a markup language for archiving comic books) and the Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA, an international standard for structuring technical documentation), TechCommix enhances accessibility of technical comics, as users who cannot follow images will be able to listen to the content, and opportunities for archiving and searching content inside comics.

Bio: Carlos Evia is an associate professor of Professional Writing in the English Department. His research interests in human-computer interaction and information design reflect his academic and professional background in Computer Science and Technical Communication. He frequently uses Entertainment Education approaches combined with technology based-solutions to create communication materials for underrepresented populations.

Tim Lockridge received his PhD in Rhetoric and Writing from the VT English Department this semester. Next August he will join the Communication Studies department at Saint Joseph's University as assistant professor of multimedia writing. His research interests include the history of computing and copyright law.

Serious Games and ICTs for Informal STEM Learning: The GAMES and Studio STEM Projects

2012-03-23 at 12:30:00 in Graduate LIfe Center, Room C

Presenter: Professor Michael Evans

Abstract: In this presentation, Dr. Evans describes two ongoing projects currently funded by the National Science Foundation. For the Studio STEM Project, he will provide an overview of and results from early efforts of an out‐of‐school curriculum, Save the Penguins, for middle school youth in rural southwest Virginia designed to improve conceptual understanding of science while promoting greater competence in engineering design. Social media, in the form of Edmodo, is incorporated into the curriculum to enhance the informal experience. Next, he will also discuss the GAMES Project and present current work on the CandyFactory Game, an app developed for the iOS platform (prioritizing iPads), as a serious video game intended to prepare middle school students for algebra-readiness. Results from pilot tests conducted in Fall 2011 will be shared along with plans for a large-scale implementation in six middle school classrooms in south side VIrginia in Fall 2012. The presentation will conclude with a review of the implications that conducting technology-enhanced learning initiatives in formal and informal learning settings has on research, practice, and policy.

Bio: Michael A. Evans, Associate Professor in the Department of Learning Sciences and Technologies at Virginia Tech is Principal Investigator on two current NSF-sponosred projects. The GAMES Project (DR-K12, 2011-2013) proposes to develop serious mathematical games for tablets and other mobile devices, focusing on pre-algebra readiness and states of engagement. Studio STEM (ITEST, 2011-2014) proposes to engage middle school students in science and engineering in an after school setting. Guided by engineering teaching kits, participants work with undergraduate mentors to explore the science of energy as they build-test-rebuild dwellings to protect penguins from climate change. Dr. Evans teaches graduate courses in the learning sciences (Fall semester) and interactive media design and development (Spring semester). More information on projects can be found at the GAMES website and Studio STEM website .

Investigating medium effects on children

2012-02-24 at 12:30:00 in Graduate LIfe Center, Room C

Presenter: Sharon Lynn Chu

Abstract: The Fourth Grade Slump, whereby children’s creativity drops precipitously at around fourth grade, is a developmental phenomenon that begs for research to be done on ways to nurture children’s creativity. We posit that due to its form and formal features, the use of the animated medium can positively motivate the child to engage in creative activities throughout the Slump. We present a study that investigated how in the domain of storytelling animation mediates and influences the creative process of children in the third and fourth grade. Our results have implications for the understanding of how systems can be designed to motivate the creative process among elementary school children.

Bio: Sharon Chu is a PhD candidate in the Center for Human-Computer Interaction at Virginia Tech. Her research goal is to make use of computing technologies to understand the world, solve problems and augment the human. Her interests lie in human-computer interaction and human-centered computing with a focus on creativity, motivation, education, media arts, and embodiment. Her PhD research focuses on understanding how technology can be used to motivate children to engage in creative thinking in the face of everyday problems. Sharon has published at conferences such as ACM Creativity & Cognition, CHI and ISAGA. She has completed her internships at Kodak Research Labs with Dr. Elena Fedorovskaya.

Preparing Ourselves to Craft a Musical World, Co-sponsored by the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology (ICAT) and the Center for Human Computer Interaction (CHCI)

2012-02-16 at 12:30:00 in Squires Recital Salon

Presenter: Roddy Cowie

Abstract: Technology has made music a pervasive feature of life, and is currently giving people the ability to tailor musical experience to a far greater extent than ever before. The understanding of what that means remains very shallow, which limits the ability to foresee and shape the transformation. Psychological and musicological research is beginning to illuminate some of the things that music does. Intellectual and/or aesthetic satisfaction certainly deserve attention, but not to the exclusion of other functions. There is solid research that music evokes emotion. That means can be used to regulate emotion, which is increasingly recognized as an important activity. Newer research shows that music also expresses identity, and shapes social interactions. Other areas are emerging, including the ability of music to synchronize activity and feeling, which also has a social impact. Music defines the character of spaces, and empowers individuals by allowing them to set that character. It also empowers language, by heightening the emotional impact of words and making them memorable.

Bio: Professor of Psychology, Queen's University, Belfast Roddy Cowie studied philosophy and psychology at the University of Stirling and the University of California, Los Angeles, as an undergraduate, and received his Ph.D. from the University of Sussex, where he conducted research on relationships between human and machine vision. He was appointed lecturer in the psychology department at Queen's University, Belfast, in 1975, senior lecturer in 1991, and professor in 2003. His core research area is perception, particularly cases where the quality of experience is important, but hard to describe. He has developed a variety of formal techniques to capture these elusive impressions and his work has spanned several areas, including picture perception, the experience of hearing loss, and the perception of music. The most sustained theme has been the perception of emotion -- not stereotypical outbursts of emotion, but the emotional coloring that pervades everyday life.

Counting on Both Hands: From Proud Positivist to Rational Scientist

2012-02-10 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room C

Presenter: Tonya Smith-Jackson

Abstract: Human factors engineering and engineering psychology have a strong tradition that places sole or high value on positivist ontologies that focus on the reduction of experiences to direct observation and numerical representation. To know is to be able to measure and quantify; all other knowledge is not useful as we seek to conduct research to design and evaluate human-system interaction. Yet, with advances in such areas as cognitive neuroscience, we are convinced that sole reliance on positivism has, to some extent, impeded our efforts to develop ecologically valid theories and models to describe, explain, and predict the complexities of human-system interaction. One area of study that has manifested the limitations of positivism is inclusive design, which focuses on ensuring design efforts and observations utilize methods that are socially compatible and culturally competent for the target group of study. In this presentation, I will highlight two or three projects, research approaches, and analysis methods to demonstrate the necessity of applying integrated ways of knowing as we continue to advance user-centered, inclusive, and ecologically valid design and evaluation.

Bio: Tonya Smith-Jackson, PhD, CPE is a professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech. She is founder and director of the Assessment and Cognitive Ergonomics Lab (ACE) and co-director of the Safety Engineering and Human-Computer Interaction Labs. She graduated from the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in 1982, has a B.A. in Psychology from University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, and M.S. and PhD degrees in Psychology/Ergonomics (Interdisciplinary ISE) from North Carolina State University (1989 and 1998, respectively). She is certified by the Board of Certification in Professional Ergonomics. Her research has been funded by a variety of organizations and agencies, including the National Science Foundation, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Army Research Office, United Parcel Service, Toshiba Corporation of Japan, Carilion Clinic, and Carilion Biomedical Institute. She has focused her research, teaching, and service efforts on ensuring processes and technologies are equitable and inclusive across cultures, genders, abilities, and generations.

Exploring and Designing for Computing at the Margins

2012-01-27 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room G

Presenter: Susan Wyche

Abstract: Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has the potential to benefit everyones life. Yet, technology research typically focuses on a limited range of users and practices. Designers consider people with high-speed Internet access during the design process and countless examples demonstrating how ICT can support work activities exist. But what about people with inconsistent Internet access and ICT practices unrelated to productivity? My research focuses these marginalized users and uses of technology. In this talk, I will first present a project from my dissertation examining American Muslims to demonstrate how studying marginalized ICT practices results in innovative design. Next, I will discuss my current research investigating how African migrants in the U.S. use technology to communicate with family members in their countries of origin. Findings from this work reveal how studying people who are not typically considered during the design process highlights new factors to acknowledge when developing computer systems. Finally, I will describe how this work motivates a future research agenda focused on the rural poor in Africa and how to design technology based limited access to power and the Internet.

Bio: Susan Wyche is a Computing Innovation Fellow (CI Fellow) in the Virginia Tech Center for Human-Computer Interaction. Her research focuses on human-computer interaction, design and cultural studies of technology. Prior to coming to Virginia Tech, Wyche received her PhD in Human-Centered Computing from the Georgia Institute of Technology, her Masters from Cornell University and her undergraduate degree in Industrial Design from Carnegie Mellon University. In addition to her academic pursuits, Wyche has professional design experience, most notably working at Libbey Inc. designing glassware and as a design researcher for S.C. Johnson Inc. She has also worked as a research intern at Microsoft Research, Cambridge (U.K.) and Intel Labs (Berkeley).

Orchestrating Flows of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning Activities

2012-01-20 at 12:30:00 in GLC Room C

Presenter: Davinia Hernandez-Leo

Abstract: Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) are mainly used for mediating social interactions as key activators of learning. However, one of the major concerns of CSCL is that free collaborative activities do not necessarily produce fruitful learning and, that in several circumstances, coordination and structuring facilities should be provided to increase the probability of reaching successful outcomes. First I will present my research work around supporting the design of orchestrated flows of CL activities based on broadly accepted didactic techniques formulated as patterns, their computational representation using the IMS Learning Design specification, and their flexible enactment. Second I will describe some scenarios carried out in real settings where the activities involved in the orchestrated flows occur in a combination of diverse spaces (classroom, the campus, the city, home), and which use different types of technologies supporting the orchestration (mobile phones, GPS, NFC/RFID, textile and wearable devices).

Bio: Davinia Hernandez-Leo is currently visiting the VT Computer Science Department, POET Lab, as a Fulbright Scholar. She is an Assistant Professor at the Information and Communications Technologies Department of Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), the coordinator of the Educational Technologies section of the Interactive Technologies Group (GTI), Vice-Principal of the UPF Polytechnic School and the Director of its Unit for Teaching Quality and Innovation. Davinia was previously (2003-2007) a member of the GSIC/EMIC multidisciplinary group of the University of Valladolid, Spain, where she received the M.S. and the Ph.D. degrees (European mention, several awards) in telecommunications engineering in 2003 and 2007, respectively. She was also a visiting Pre-doctoral Research Fellow at the Educational Technology Centre of the OUNL in 2006. Her research area is focused on educational technologies, with an emphasis on Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, including interest from learning environments and tools to social technologies, standards and interoperability and devices for learning. Her research is being conducted as part of a number of European and national projects, and published in more than 70 journal articles, book chapters and conference papers. She has been honored with several awards, including the 2006-2007 European CSCL Award for Excellence in the field of CSCL Technology, Best Paper Award Computer Assisted Assessment Conference 2010 and Best Paper Award of the International Conference In Advanced Learning Technologies 2004.

Cognitive science applications using the Duke immersive Virtual Environment (DiVE)

2011-12-06 at 11:00:00 in KWII 1110

Presenter: Rachel Brady

Abstract: The Duke NSF-funded DiVE has been up and running for over five years. The facility was installed to enable three application areas: cognitive experiments, scientific visualization, and educational experiences. Launching projects in the field of cognitive science is challenging because the use of VR methods is new and generally unverified, so our initial work has been to test and cross correlate human behaviors in the DiVE to human behaviors on known, standard, cognitive tests. I will present our progress to date on two projects: a Fear, Memory and Context project in collaboration with Nicole Huff and Kevin LaBar and an Emotion Reactivity and Escape project in collaboration with Zach Rosenthal.

Bio: Rachael Brady is the Director of the Visualization Technology Group at Duke University and a Senior Research Scientist of Computer Science, Senior Research Scientist in the Pratt School of Engineering and Adjunct Associate Professor of Visual Studies. Professor Brady is interested in how technology can aid data exploration and analysis. She began her career by designing signal detection algorithms and creating remote instrument control systems for the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence projects at UC Berkeley and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. In 1990, Brady began work on interactive volume rendering and image analysis software for use in biological and medical data at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA). During her time at NCSA, Brady became interested in the power of virtual reality as an interface for three-dimensional data. She co-authored the Crumbs volume rendering virtual reality software that has been used by biologists, astrophysicists, geologists, architects, and dancers. Brady joined the Pratt School of Engineering at Duke in September 2001, where she provides scientific visualization expertise to colleagues at Duke. Her current research focuses on applying virtual reality technology to cognitive science and scientific visualization problems as well as applying visualization technologies to architectural history research and teaching projects. She has been actively involved in the visualization community for 18 years and is currently serving on the IEEE vgtc, the IEEE VisWeek committee, and the IEEE VisWeek Executive Committee.

From Understanding to Enabling Networks: Using Web Science to Enhance Recommender Systems

2011-11-11 at 01:00:00 in CRC 1880 Pratt Drive, Research Building XV, CRC Bus from Neuman Library to CRC stop ID 1702

Presenter: Prof. Noshir Contractor

Abstract: Recent advances in Web Science provide comprehensive digital traces of social actions, interactions, and transactions. These data provide an unprecedented exploratorium to model the socio-technical motivations for creating, maintaining, dissolving, and reconstituting multidimensional social networks. Multidimensional networks include multiple types of nodes (people, documents, datasets, tags, etc.) and multiple types of relationships (co-authorship, citation, web links, etc.). Using examples from research in team science and massively multiplayer online games, Contractor will argue that Web Science serves as the foundation for the development of social network theories and methods to help advance our ability to understand the emergence of effective multidimensional networks. More importantly, he will argue that these insights will also enable multidimensional networks by building a new generation of recommender systems that leverage our research insights on the socio-technical motivations for creating ties.

Bio: Noshir Contractor is the Jane S. & William J. White Professor of Behavioral Sciences in the McCormick School of Engineering & Applied Science, the School of Communication and the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, USA. He is the Director of the Science of Networks in Communities (SONIC) Research Group at Northwestern University. He is investigating factors that lead to the formation, maintenance, and dissolution of dynamically linked social and knowledge networks in a wide variety of contexts including communities of practice in business, translational science and engineering communities, public health networks and virtual worlds. His research program has been funded continuously for over a decade by major grants from the U.S. National Science Foundation with additional current funding from the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), Air Force Research Lab, Army Research Institute, and Army Research Laboratory. Professor Contractor has published or presented over 250 research papers dealing with communicating and organizing. His book titled Theories of Communication Networks (co-authored with Professor Peter Monge and published by Oxford University Press) received the 2003 Book of the Year award from the Organizational Communication Division of the National Communication Association. He is the lead developer of C-IKNOW (Cyberinfrastructure for Inquiring Knowledge Networks On the Web), a socio-technical environment to understand and enable networks among communities.

Science and Engineering of Co-evolving Networks: An Informatics Perspective

2011-10-28 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room C

Presenter: Prof. Madhav Marathe

Abstract: Complex Networks are pervasive in our society. The size and heterogeneity of these networks, their co-evolving nature and the technical difficulties in applying dimension reduction techniques commonly used to analyze physical systems makes the problem of reasoning, prediction and control of these networks challenging. Recent quantitative changes in high performance and pervasive computing including faster machines, distributed sensors and service-oriented software have created new opportunities for collecting, integrating, analyzing and accessing information related to such large complex networks. The advances in network and information science that build on this new capability provide entirely new ways for reasoning and controlling these networks. Together, they enhance our ability to formulate, analyze and realize novel public policies pertaining to these complex networks. The talk will describe the development of high performance computing based crises management system called Comprehensive National Incident Management System (CNIMS). As an illustrative case study we will describe how CNIMS can be used for developing a scalable computer assisted decision support system for pandemic planning and response. In addition to the fact that they serve as excellent "model organisms" for developing a computational theory of co-evolving socio-technical networks. I will conclude by discussing directions for future research.

Bio: Madhav Marathe is the deputy director of the Network Dynamics and Simulation Science Laboratory and professor in the Department of Computer Science, Virginia Tech. His research interests are in computational network and social science, public health epidemiology, design and analysis of algorithms, communication networks and high performance computing. Before coming to Virginia Tech, he was a Team Leader in the Computer and Computational Sciences division at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) where he led the basic research programs in foundations of computing and high performance simulation science for analyzing extremely large socio-technical and critical infrastructure systems.

Real-Time Crowd Support for People with Disabilities

2011-10-14 at 12:30:00 in GLC Room C

Presenter: Jeffrey P. Bigham

Abstract: The past few decades have seen the development of wonderful new intelligent technology that serves as sensors and agents onto an inaccessible world for people with disabilities, but it remains both too prone to errors and too limited in the scope to reliably address many problems faced by people with disabilities in their everyday lives. We have been developing approaches to crowdsourcing that work in real-time to overcome these problems. In this talk, I'll discuss the following recent projects that use real-time crowdsourcing: (i) VizWiz, an accessible iPhone application that blind people use to take a picture, speak a question, and receive answers from the crowd in under a minute. More than 20,000 questions have been asked so far, giving us insight into the types of questions blind people want answered. (ii) Legion, a system that lets dynamic groups control existing user interfaces using a VNC-like setup. These applications collectively inform a new model of human-computer interaction in which a dynamic group of unreliable individuals act as a single reliable user.

Bio: Jeffrey P. Bigham is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Rochester where he directs ROC HCI. His works spans Access Technology, Human Computation, and Intelligent User Interfaces. He is specifically interested in technology that engages the crowd to assist people with disabilities in their everyday lives. Professor Bigham received his Ph.D. in 2009 in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Washington working with Dr. Richard Ladner, and his B.S.E. from Princeton in 2003. Jeffrey has received a number of awards for his work, including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Award for Technology Collaboration, the MIT Technology Review Top 35 Innovators Under 35 Award, two ASSETS Best Student Paper Awards, and the UIST 2010 Best Paper Award.

Exploring the Effects of High-Fidelity Display and Interaction for Serious Virtual Reality Games

2011-09-09 at 12:30:00 in GLC Room C

Presenter: Ryan McMahon

Abstract: Despite advances in virtual reality (VR) fidelity, there have been only a limited number of successful real-world VR applications due to the perceived high cost of VR relative to its benefits. Some previous researchers had already evaluated different levels of VR fidelity in order to better understand the potential benefits of increased fidelity, but much of the prior research was limited by technology, traditional VR contexts, and the confounding of display and interaction aspects. The goal of this research was to systematically explore the effects of display fidelity and interaction fidelity for serious VR games in high-fidelity systems. Through the course of five studies designed to contribute to this goal, we have provided a number of contributions for better understanding the potential benefits of increased VR fidelity. First, we developed the Framework for Interaction Fidelity Analysis (FIFA) to provide point-by-point comparisons of interaction techniques in terms of kinematic symmetry, control symmetry, and device appropriateness. Second, we have demonstrated that increasing display fidelity usually yields a positive effect on the user experience. Third, we have demonstrated that familiarity is more important than increased interaction fidelity as mid-fidelity interaction techniques tend to hinder user performance. These last two contributions also indicate that the display-fidelity and interaction-fidelity continuums differ in terms of their expected effects on user performance.

Bio: Ryan P. McMahan is a Ph.D. candidate in Computer Science at Virginia Tech, where he is a member of the Center for Human-Computer Interaction. His dissertation research focuses on understanding the effects of the fidelity of virtual reality technology to the real world. His other research interests include applications of VR, 3D interaction techniques, and human-computer interaction in video games. McMahan has multiple research publications ranging from the International Journal of Human-Computer Studies (IJHCS) to conferences such as IEEE Virtual Reality (IEEE VR). He received his MS in Computer Science from Virginia Tech in 2007.

Family Portals: Connecting Families Through A Multifamily Media Space

2011-04-29 at 12:30:00 in GLC, Room C

Presenter: Tejinder Judge

Abstract: Video conferencing allows distance-separated family members to interact somewhat akin to being together at the same place and time. Yet most video conferencing systems are designed for phone-like calls between only two locations. Using such systems for long interactions or social gatherings with multiple families is cumbersome, if not impossible. We are interested in exploring how families would make use of a video system that permitted sharing everyday life over extended periods of time between multiple locations. In this talk, I will be presenting the design and field study of a media space called Family Portals that provides an always-on video connection between three locations, thereby creating a virtual shared space between homes. Results show that the media space increased feelings of connectedness and the focus on a triad, in contrast to a dyad, caused new styles of interaction to emerge. Despite this, families experienced new privacy challenges and non-adoption by some family members, not previously seen in dyadic family media spaces.

Bio: ejinder Judge is a PhD candidate in the Center for Human-Computer Interaction at Virginia Tech. Her research interests are in Human-Computer Interaction with a focus on domestic computing, computer mediated communication, computer-supported collaborative work, and design. Her PhD research focuses on understanding the implications of domestic media spaces on communication, connectedness and awareness between families. Tejinder has published her research at conferences such as CHI and CSCW. She has completed internships at Kodak Research Labs with Dr. Carman Neustaedter and at IBM Almaden with Dr. Tara Matthews and Dr. Steve Whittaker.

Bring back the STEAM

2011-04-22 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Professor Ico Bukvic

Abstract: We live in an era that increasingly marginalizes Arts in favor of STEM disciplines and at the same time are facing a growing number of graduates who may have perfect understanding of concepts and methodologies, yet often lack the fundamental ability to be freely creative outside preconceived boundaries and expectations. Coincidental or not, the fact is the world is in dire need of those who think outside the box and with the Higher Ed being the very last chance for a student to reconnect with their long-lost artistic side Academia is facing a great challenge of bringing Arts and Sciences back together. In the following talk I wish to share some of the ideas and connections that have inspired and arisen from the Linux Laptop Orchestra (L2Ork) project as an example of an alternative kind of interdisciplinary collaboration where arts and sciences coexist in a truly level-playing field, providing invaluable learning experience for artists and scientists alike. Likewise, I would also like to use the presentation as a catalyst to facilitate future collaborations between the CS/CHCI and DISIS.

Bio: Dr. Bukvic received his doctorate at the College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati (2005), and is currently an assistant professor in music composition & technology at Virginia Tech. He is also the founder and director of the Digital Interactive Sound and Intermedia Studio (DISIS) and Worlds first Linux Laptop Orchestra (L2Ork), and assistant co-director for the Collaborative for Creative Technologies in the Arts and Design (CCTAD) interdisciplinary program. Dr. Bukvic is a member of the Center for Human-Computer Interaction (CHCI), and is a faculty member (by courtesy) in the departments of Computer Science and Art & Art History.

Rapid and accurate 3D selection by progressive refinement

2011-04-08 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Professor Doug Bowman (Regis Kopper, Felipe Bacim)

Abstract: Issues such as hand and tracker jitter negatively affect user performance with the ray-casting selection technique in 3D environments. This makes it difficult for users to perform tasks that require them to select objects that have a small visible area, since small targets require high levels of precision. We introduce an approach to address this issue that uses progressive refinement of the set of selectable objects to reduce the required precision of the task. We present a design space of progressive refinement techniques and an exemplar technique called Sphere-casting refined by QUAD-menu (SQUAD). We explore the trade-offs between progressive refinement and immediate selection techniques in an evaluation comparing SQUAD to ray-casting. Both an analytical evaluation based on a distal pointing model and an empirical evaluation demonstrate that progressive refinement selection can be better than immediate selection. SQUAD was much more accurate than ray-casting, and SQUAD was faster than ray-casting with small targets and less cluttered environments.

Bio: Doug A. Bowman is an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Virginia Tech, where he directs the 3D Interaction Research Group and is a member of the Center for Human-Computer Interaction. He was also a visiting researcher at UC Santa Barbara in the 2008-09 academic year. His research interests include 3D user interfaces, interaction techniques for virtual environments, the benefits of immersion in VR, and large high-resolution displays. He is a co-author of the book 3D User Interfaces: Theory and Practice, and was awarded a National Science Foundation CAREER grant for his work on domain-specific 3D user interfaces. He has served as the General Chair of IEEE Virtual Reality, and was one of the founding co-chairs of the IEEE Symposium on 3D User Interfaces. Bowman received his MS and PhD in Computer Science from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Supporting Sharing in Knowledge Communities

2011-02-25 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Ben Hanrahan

Abstract: Support for the sharing and development of knowledge is still somewhat ad-hoc. Knowledge workers often revert to email as a primary channel for sharing, abandoning more specific, although cumbersome tools such as wikis. In this talk I discuss the research I am working on at Palo Alto Research Center to increase wiki adoption in the workplace. I will also discuss my research direction in unifying and supporting sharing within one's various online social communities.

Bio: Ben Hanrahan is currently pursuing his PhD at Virginia Tech under the advisement of Dr. Manuel Perez-Quinones. Ben received his BS in Computer Science from Virginia Tech in 2004. His research interests include personal information management and social computing.

The SocialOrb System: Personal Information Meets Our Social World

2011-02-11 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Conference Room B

Presenter: Blake Sawyer

Abstract: Our information world is grounded within our physical-social world. To explore this idea, we have developed a system called the SocialOrb. The goal of the SocialOrb system is to overlay two types of data: the social groups (or orbits) we have in our physical world and the information that we use within these social orbits. The SocialOrb system provides a new way to re-find and re-contexualize the information we have gathered in the past. We will discuss an implementation of this system and the results of a pilot study we conducted with a professor and students. We will then concentrate on future directions for this research.

Bio: Blake Sawyer is currently pursuing his MS/PhD at Virginia Tech under the guidance of Prof. Francis Quek. Blake received his BS in computer science from Virginia Tech in 2007. His research interests include embodiment, personal information management and context-aware computing.

Privacy in the Context of the Home

2011-01-28 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Conference Room B

Presenter: Peter Radics

Abstract: The growth of research on privacy can be attributed to the rise of social network sites and pervasive digital information. Currently, the focus of privacy research is on information privacy. Physical and psychological privacy issues receive little to no attention. However the introduction of technology into our lives can cause problems with regard to physical and psychological aspects of privacy. This is especially true when it comes to our homes, both as nodes of our social life and places for relaxation. In this talk, I will presents the results of a study intended to capture a part of the phenomenology of privacy in domestic environments.

Bio: Peter Radics is a Ph.D. Candidate at Virginia Tech Center for Human-Computer Interaction. Before coming to Virginia Tech, he received a masters equivalent in Computer Science from RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany, in 2008. His core research interest are privacy in domestic environments, context sensitive applications, as well as sustainability in design.

Exploratory and Collaborative Searches_Understanding and Supporting Users Needs

2011-01-20 at 12:30:00 in KWII 1127

Presenter: Dr. Rob Capra

Abstract: Exploratory searches are characterized by a desire to investigate and learn about a topic of interest. Such searches may span multiple sessions across days or months and may be conducted in collaboration with others. Todays search engines provide support for a range of information seeking tasks, but search systems often lack features and tools to help users interpret, organize, manage, and collaboratively utilize results found when conducting exploratory searches. In this talk, Dr. Capra will present his research to understand users needs for exploratory and collaborative searches, describe current behaviors and practices, and build and evaluate tools to support these search activities. First, he will describe his work developing a facet-based dynamic query tool called the Relation Browser for exploring document collections, and his research to evaluate faceted interfaces for library online public access catalogs (OPACs). Second, he will present results from a study in which he and his research team interviewed 30 people in three cohorts (academic researchers, corporate workers, and medical information seekers) about their current practices conducting, managing, and sharing information from on-going, exploratory searches with a collaborative component. He will report on areas of difficulty and associated coping strategies described by participants with an emphasis on how searchers use a variety of familiar tools beyond search engi! nes and Web browsers to achieve their learning and collaboration goals.

Bio: Robert Capra is a Post-Doctoral Fellow and Research Scientist at the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Virginia Tech where he completed his dissertation on information refinding. His current research interests include human-computer interaction, interactive information retrieval, digital libraries, personal information management (PIM), and social media. He regularly publishes on these topics at major conferences such as CHI, JCDL, and ASIS&T and recently won the Best Poster Award at ASIS&T 2010 for research with one of his undergraduate students. Dr. Capra has helped secure over 0,000 in research funding through grants and contracts from the National Science Foundation and IBM. He serves in leadership roles for two emerging research communities (PIM and HCIR) and has authored two book chapters on personal information management research. Dr. Capra completed M.S. an! d B.S. degrees in Computer Science from Washington University in St. Louis. Prior earning his Ph.D., he worked in corporate research and development, spending five years in the Speech and Language Technologies group at SBC Labs in Austin, TX (now merged with AT&T Labs), where he focused on voice user interfaces, speech recognition, and natural language processing.

Human Factors

2011-01-20 at 14:00:00 in 542 Whittemore

Presenter: Miranda Capra

Abstract: Miranda Capra will be speaking about how Human Factors and User Experience researchers can work closely with graphic and industrial designers to design products and services that are both easy and pleasurable to use, with many examples of HF/UX research in practice. She will also discuss HF in a consulting, as opposed to corporate, environment. Visit the HFES website at http://www.hfes.org.vt.edu

Bio: Miranda Capra is a Manager and Sr. HF Specialist at Human Centric, Cary, NC where she conducts usability testing for consumer products and does a variety of Human Factors and Ergonomics consulting. Miranda graduated with a PhD in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Virginia Tech in 2006.

TWO DEVICES FOR OLDER PEOPLE

2010-12-09 at 11:30:00 in 3100 Torgersen Hall

Presenter: William Gaver

Abstract: How can a monastery of cloistered nuns make sure that their prayers represent todayʼs needs? How can the elderly in nursing homes reach out to the sights and sounds of their families? Bill Gaverʼs research focuses on using innovative technologies and a designerʼs mentality to solve everyday problems. His innovations (including the Prayer Companion) help to connect the estranged to the emotions of society.

Bio: Bio:  Bill Gaver is Professor of Design and leads the Interaction Research Studio at Goldsmiths, University of London. With his group, he has developed approaches to design ranging from Cultural Probes to the use of documentary film to help assess peoples' experience with designs, pursued conceptual work on topics such as ambiguity and interpretation, and produced highly-finished prototypes that have been deployed for long-term field trials and exhibited in major international exhibitions. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts and a member of the SIGCHI Academy. Current projects concern designing computational devices for older people, batch production of research prototypes for large-scale field trials, and co-designing communities and devices to explore energy use. http://www.gold.ac.uk/design/staff/gaver/ http://www.designinginteractions.com/interviews/BillGaver

Couplehood as Culture: Exploring Intimate Couples through a Domestic Media Space

2010-11-12 at 12:30:00 in Conf. Room B - GLC

Presenter: Stacy Branham

Abstract: The intimate couple is the forgotten group in HCI. Preoccupied with individual users or groups in the workplace, we have neglected what is perhaps one of the most significant relationships of all. Intimate couplehood has persisted across time and geography; its roots extend as deep as prehistory and are as wide as the world. Furthermore, intimate couples are as, if not more mysterious than the canonical "user." What happens within a couple is tucked away behind many doors of physical and personal privacy. My work, configured broadly, aims to demystify the nature of intimate couple micro-cultures and promote the notion of couple-centered design. In this talk, I will present research I conducted this summer at Intel Labs in collaboration with designer and technical activist Tad Hirsch. We began by considering arguments as a theme about which to explore couples, because most domestic exploration in HCI has navigated towards Utopist views of the home or avoided family relationships altogether. However, initial probing interviews with Marriage and Family Therapists about couple relationships shifted our focus from arguments to underlying conflict to connection. We developed a design framework from our findings Re-pattern, Reflect, Re-story, Reconnect and used this framework to design A Diary Built for Two a shared digital journal towards supporting intimate couple communication and connection. We ran a two-week field study of 10 couples using a low-fidelity prototype of our design as a way to both probe couplehood and develop our design. Join me for a presentation of this work and rich examples of couplehood.

Bio: Stacy Branham is a PhD candidate at Virginia Tech's Center for Human-Computer Interaction. She graduated with her BS in Computer Science from the same university in 2007. Her core research interests are the nature of intimate couple micro-cultures and how to support couple-centered design of technologies. Some particular issues that interest her in this area are personal and mutual reflection, computer versus human agency, and feminist activism through technology. Branham is the recipient of the Claire Boothe Luce Fellowship. She has held research internship positions at FXPal and Intel Labs. She anticipates her PhD in 2012.

Embodiment

2010-10-22 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Conference Room B

Presenter: Francis Quek

Abstract: Embodied Media: Affective Touch, Social Meaning, and Multimodal Discourse Francis Quek The human mind is embodied. By this, we mean that our minds are 'designed' to function within our body that is embedded within a spatial and social world. One may think of it as a 'real-time operating system' to control a body, with its feelings and needs, that acts in a spatial-temporal world and lives within a society. Our sense of thought, meaning, information, and media must be somehow tied to this embodied mind. In this talk, we shall explore what this means in general, and what the implications are to our world of media and information in particular. We shall embark on this exploration by looking at three specific projects that relate to embodiment. First, we shall look at remote affective touch as a medium, itself, for meaningful interaction among humans. Second, we shall look at the role of social meaning as it relates to organization and use of information. Finally, we look at the role of embodiment in human language. We shall examine how embodiment awareness relates to mathematics instruction for students who are blind, and what we can learn from multimodal language interventions to help them understand. There will be 2 overarching themes: The first, of course, is embodiment, and how we translate embodied thinking into realizable interactive systems. The second is a trajectory of research that covers both building and testing of systems.

Bio: Biographical Sketch Francis Quek Ph.D. Center for Human Computer Interaction Computer Science Department Virginia Tech. email: quek@vt.edu web: http://www.hci.vt.edu; http://vislab.cs.vt.edu Francis Quek is a Professor of Computer Science at Virginia Tech. He is a key member of the Center for Human-Computer Interaction and directs the Vision Interfaces and Systems Laboratory at the CHCI. Francis received both his B.S.E. summa cum laude (1984) and M.S.E. (1984) in electrical engineering from the University of Michigan. He completed his Ph.D. in Computer Science at the same university in 1990. Francis is a member of the IEEE and ACM. He performs research in embodied interaction, embodied learning and sensemaking, multimodal verbal/non-verbal interaction, multimodal meeting analysis, interfaces to support learning, vision-based interaction, multimedia databases, medical imaging, assistive technology for the blind, human computer interaction, computer vision, and computer graphics. He leads several multiple-disciplinary research efforts to understand the communicative realities of multimodal interaction.

Technology for Learning

2010-09-24 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Meg Kurdziolek

Abstract: In my talk, I will review the case of a particular educational technology, SimCalc MathWorlds, which when used in experimental studies resulted in student learning gains in the mathematics of rate and proportionality. Then, I will describe case-studies of four classrooms using SimCalc MathWorlds with a variety of technological set-ups: traditional computer lab, mobile laptop carts, and one laptop projected on a screen at the front of the classroom. The case studies illustrate that the socio-physical classroom space, as well as the teacher perceptions of the technology, students, and classroom, deeply impact how the students ultimately interacted with SimCalc MathWorlds. Finally, I will report on recent work investigating the use of alternative design strategy, called zensign, while engaging teachers as participants in design, to facilitate the development of educational technologies that will both survive in the classroom context and facilitate student learning.

Bio: Margaret (Meg) Dickey-Kurdziolek graduated from Virginia Tech in 2005 with a major in Computer Science and minor in Mathematics. In 2006, Meg was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, which has allowed her to continue her graduate studies and pursue a PhD in Computer Science. Meg has focused her research on Human Computer Interaction, under the guidance of Dr. Deborah Tatar. Specifically, Meg has been researching the relationship between technology, students, and educators. Originally, Meg was drawn to educational technologies in hopes of making her own tools to be used in classroom, since she has always felt that technology has the promise and ability to help all students learn better and more. Now her research has focused on the interactions students and teachers have with technology and each other, and how the details of these interactions can help developers create better learning technologies. Meg received her Masters degree in May 2007 and anticipates her PhD in 2011.

Digital Government in the Blacksburg Electronic Vilalge

2010-09-17 at 11:15:00 in Torgersen 2150

Presenter: Andrea Kavanaugh

Abstract: The use of information and communication technology has been leading to foundational changes in democratic society. In the US, new forms of information distribution, citizen discussion and citizen-to-citizen exchange, including content syndication, tagging, and social software, are changing the ways that citizens access information and participate in democratic discussion with other interested citizens as well as government, especially at the local level. We are interested in how local governments and citizens act as agents of change in the community-wide use of social media and other forms of user generated content. To what extent and for whom does citizen exchange, discussion and collective decision-making supplement offline communication? What is lost in the migration from direct democracy to digital democracy? There are perils as well as opportunities to civic life with the advent of new forms of interaction. We report here on changes in civic awareness, civic and political participation, and political and community collective efficacy, among diverse citizens and groups based on longitudinal research on the use and social impact of community computer networking.

Bio: A Fulbright scholar and Cunningham Fellow, Andrea Kavanaugh is Senior Research Scientist in the Department of Computer Science at Virginia Tech. She is also the Interim Director of the university-wide interdisciplinary research center for Human Computer Interaction (HCI). Her research lies in the areas of social computing, communication behavior and effects, and development communication. For over a decade she has been leading research on the use and social impact of information and communication technology funded primarily by the National Science Foundation, most recently, the Digital Government Program. Her research is published in Interacting with Computers, Journal of Computer Supported Cooperative Work, American Behavioral Scientist, and the Journal of Computer Mediated Communication, among others. She is the author or editor of three books. Prior to joining the HCI Center in 2002, she served as Director of Research for the community computer network known as the Blacksburg Electronic Village (BEV) from its inception in 1993. She holds an MA from the Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, and a PhD in Planning (with a focus on telecommunications) from Virginia Tech. She serves on the Board of the Digital Government Society of North America, and formerly served on the Board of the International Telecommunications Society (2002-08).

Mediated Life in the Domestic Realm

2010-09-10 at 12:30:00 in GLC Room F

Presenter: Professor Steve Harrison

Abstract: Computer-mediated communication (CMC) has been a longstanding focus of study in the fields of HCI and CSCW dating back to the first incarnations of the media space at PARC in the mid 1980s. Since then, this research area has explored many different forms of technology and its impact. The early focus of this work was largely workplace-oriented where researchers focused on improving and understanding workplace communication practices, maintaining community and social awareness, and appropriation. However, over the last decade, there has been an increasing focus on studying computer-mediated communication
 in the home. Computing technologies are rapidly changing the way families can communicate, coordinate, and connect with others through readily-available (and often free) applications, such as Twitter, SMS, Facebook, e-mail, Google Talk, Skype, or iChat. The accessibility and proliferation of these applications means that family members are increasingly faced with new mechanisms to reach out and connect with their family and friends. For this reason, technology is now rapidly reconfiguring the way we think about and design for domestic spaces. As it does so, researchers now must directly confront issues of family relations and the subtle negotiations that are part of that realm. Connection can be emotionally expressive or merely informational; it can be intimate and idiosyncratic or formal and structured. Analytic frameworks as well as technologies developed to support work are probably not appropriate for understanding this setting. In my talk, I will give a brief history of media spaces beginning with my early work at PARC, discuss the mediated life we find ourselves in, and discuss current and future work, notably Tejinder Judge Family Window and Family Portal projects.

Bio:

Welcome Students and Current Research by HCI Faculty (short descriptions)

2010-08-27 at 12:30:00 in Graduate Life Center, Conference Room B

Presenter: HCI Center Faculty (multiple)

Abstract:

Bio:

HCI, UCD in China and SEUC

2010-05-26 at 14:00:00 in KWII Room 1110

Presenter: Professor Zhengjie Liu

Abstract: This talk will introduce the HCI field in general and UCD practice in industry in particular in China, with a summary of some example cases. The talk will also include an overview of Sino-European Usability Center.

Bio: Professor Zhengjie Liu: Founder and Director of Sino European Usability Center (SEUC), Professor at the School of Information Science & Technology of Dalian Maritime University (DMU), Adjunct Chair for Developing Worlds of ACM SIGCHI, Expert Member of and former Chinese Representative (1999-2005) to IFIP TC.13 HCI Committee, Co-founder and Co-chair of ACM SIGCHI China. His research areas include usability/user experience, user-centered design (UCD), accessibility and human-computer interaction (HCI). He has been working in usability and HCI since 1989 and is recognized as a pioneer in this field in China. He founded SEUC in 2000 as the first research center dedicated to usability in China which has become a leader in usability research, consultancy and education in that country. He leads a team in conducting research and consultancy sponsored by many multinational companies including some Fortune 500 and funded by EU and Chinese government. He published more than 100 research papers of which some were published internationally.

Knowledge Aided Behavior Analysis through Model Modification

2010-04-30 at 02:00:00 in KWII Room 1110

Presenter: Chreston Miller

Abstract: More intelligent ways of conducting data analysis have been explored in recent years. Machine learning and data mining systems that utilize pattern classification and discovery in non-textual data promise to bring new generations of powerful crawlers for knowledge discovery, e.g., face detection and crowd surveillance. Many aspects of data can be captured by such systems, e.g., temporal information, extractable visual information - color, contrast, shape, etc. However, these captured aspects may not uncover all salient information in the data or provide adequate models of phenomena of interest. This research addresses the integration of human knowledge, reasoning and decision making into the machine learning process, which in turn aids the uncovering of salient information within behavior analysis corpus. The Petri Net modeling language and Genetic Programming techniques are integrated to provide a solution in which the human observer is a key contributor in specifying initial models of phenomena by using Petri Nets and guiding model evolution through Genetic Programming. This model evolution will refine the observers models into representations of his or her understanding and give a more informed picture of the observed.

Bio: Chreston Miller is a PhD student in Computer Science and Application at Virginia Tech. His faculty advisor is Dr. Francis Quek and his dissertation research involves combining machine learning techniques and human intervention to provide high level modeling of human behavior to support behavior analysis. Other current research includes constructing an interactive tabletop geometric manipulation system for grade-school children. His previous research pursuits include contributory storage based on coalesced networked resources and interaction with high-resolution tabletop displays. Chreston has several publications in the domains of high performance computing and tabletop systems with multimodal interaction.

Evaluating Natural Interaction Techniques in Video Games

2010-04-09 at 02:00:00 in KWII Room 1110

Presenter: Ryan McMahan

Abstract: Despite the gaming industry recent trend for using natural interaction techniques, which mimic real world actions with a high level of fidelity, it is not clear how natural interaction techniques affect the player experience. In order to obtain a better understanding, the Research In Gaming (RIG) Group designed and conducted a study using Mario Kart Wii, a commercial racing game for the Nintendo Wii. They chose this platform due to its seemingly balanced design of both natural and non-natural interaction techniques. The RIG Group's empirical study of these techniques found that the non-natural interaction techniques significantly outperform their more natural counterparts. The RIG Group offers three hypotheses to explain their finding and suggest them as important interaction design considerations.

Bio: Ryan P. McMahan is a Ph.D. candidate in Computer Science & Application at Virginia Tech. His faculty advisor is Dr. Doug A. Bowman and his dissertation research involves exploring the effects of high-fidelity display and interaction for serious virtual reality games. In addition to his dissertation research, Ryan pursues other research topics related to games and has directed the Research In Gaming (RIG) Group for the past three years. Ryan has multiple academic publications in the domains of virtual reality, 3D interaction, and games research.

Everywhere to go but where is home? Building "places of our own" for personal information.

2010-04-06 at 11:00:00 in KWII 1127

Presenter: William Jones

Abstract:

Our tools and technologies of Web access and mobile gadgetry work increasingly to remove physical place as a factor of concern in the access to digital information. But research continues to point to an importance of digital "place" and "placing" in the management of personal information. How can we build places of our own for digital information while still taking advantage of a wealth of tools and services for information storage and management? For tool developers, how to innovate without forcing people to re-organize or re-locate their information?

The talk will describe initial work in support of a personal unifying taxonomy (PUT) that might provide the means to label (or locate) all information that matters to its owner. The PUT is journaling of the past, planning of the future and living in a present increasingly dominated by digital information. A PUT affords its owner fast, "anywhere" access to personal information. A PUT affords tool-makers a means for non-disruptive innovation. Work on the PUT is an outgrowth of prototyping work in the Keeping Found Things Found (KFTF) project on an XML-based architecture in which large, integrative views are constructed from a dynamic, on-demand assembly of XML fragments.

The talk will include demonstrations of three distinct tools (supporting very different modes of information management) applied to the same structure. Time permitting, the talk will also review motivating KFTF data collected from fieldwork interviews and prototype evaluations.

Bio: William Jones is a Research Associate Professor in the Information School at the University of Washington where he manages the Keeping Found Things Found group ( http://kftf.ischool.washington.edu). He has published in the areas of personal information management (PIM), human-computer interaction, information retrieval and cognitive psychology. Prof. Jones wrote the book "Keeping Found Things Found: The Study and Practice of Personal Information Management" and also edited the book "Personal Information Management" (with co-editor Jaime Teevan). Prof. Jones received his doctorate from Carnegie-Mellon University for research into human memory.

The Family Window: The Design and Evaluation of a Domestic Media Space

2010-04-02 at 02:00:00 in KWII Room 1110

Presenter: Tejinder Judge

Abstract: Families have a real need and desire to stay connected, especially when they become separated by distance. Typically families overcome this distance barrier and connect with one another using technology such as phones, email, instant messaging, or video conferencing. Of all these, video provides a setting most similar to face-to-face situations, the preferred mode of interaction. We are interested in examining the use of video, in the form of a media space, in domestic settings. We started by conducting interviews with 21 adults to understand video conferencing routines in the home and to inform the design of future domestic communication technologies. We then designed and built a domestic media space called the Family Window. In this talk, I will be presenting the field study of the Family Window. The Family Window was used in the homes of two families for eight months and four families for five weeks. Our results show that the Family Window can lead to an increase in feelings of connectedness by providing availability awareness and opportunities for sharing everyday life.

Bio: Tejinder Judge is a Ph.D. candidate at the Center for Human-Computer Interaction at Virginia Tech. Her research focuses on creating and evaluating technology that supports communication, awareness and connectedness between distance separated families. She has on-going collaborations with Kodak Research Lab where she successfully completed an internship. Tejinder is currently the President of the Computer Science Graduate Council. She is also a member of the Association for Women in Computing where she has held the positions of Treasurer and Advertising Chair. Upon graduation, Tejinder hopes to work in academia as a professor or in industry as a research scientist.

Lets Go from the Whiteboard: Supporting Transitions in Work through Whiteboard Capture and Reuse

2010-03-26 at 01:00:00 in KWII Room 1110

Presenter: Stacy Branham

Abstract: The use of whiteboards is pervasive across a wide range of work domains. But some of the qualities that make them successful, an intuitive interface, physical working space, and easy erasure, inherently make them poor tools for archival and reuse. If whiteboard content could be made available in times and spaces beyond those supported by the whiteboard alone, how might it be appropriated? We explore this question via ReBoard, a system that automatically captures whiteboard images and makes them accessible through a novel set of user-centered access tools. Through the lens of a seven week workplace field study, we found that by enabling new workflows, ReBoard increased the value of whiteboard content for collaboration.

Bio: Stacy Branham is a 3rd year PhD candidate at the Center for Human-Computer Interaction. Her core research interest is how HCI researchers can help technology designers push the envelope while staying grounded in human concerns. In Spring 2009, she was the recipient of the Claire Boothe Luce Fellowship for women in science, mathematics, and engineering. In recent summers, she has secured research internship positions at FXPal and Intel labs. Outside academic pursuits, she participates in the Virginia Tech Association for Women in Computing and works toward filling her passport book with stamps from every continent. She hopes to someday work as an academic professor or research scientist at an industry lab.

Improving Joint Attention in Young Children with Autism through Virtual Learning Experience

2010-03-19 at 14:00:00 in KWII 1127

Presenter: Jessi Kane

Abstract: Recent statistics have shown that the prevalence of autism is now 1 in 110 children in the United States (Rice, 2009), nearing 1% of the childhood population. For this reason, this study chooses to look at ways in which modern technology might be able to assist these children and families. One of the main skills that autistic children lack is the ability to respond to joint attention (RJA; i.e. follow the eye gaze of another adult/child/etc). This not only affects the way they appear to society compared to normally developing children, it has also been found to affect social development, communication skills, and play skills later in life (Whalen & Schreibman, 2003). Therefore, early intervention of RJA might by one of the keys to successfully putting these children back on the path to a normal and healthy development. This study aims to supplement ongoing behavior modification techniques through the use of a computer game environment that was developed through a behavior analytic framework. The researchers will look to see if there are differences between the children who play a “status quo” game and the children who play the experimental game. It is expected that there will be a significant difference in gaze following and RJA between the two groups after the six-week trial period. Successful results will open the floodgates for a multitude of virtual learning experiences for young autistic children. Also, their families might be less constricted monetarily compared to expensive therapy sessions.

Bio: Jessi Kane is a first year Masters student in Industrial and Systems Engineering. She is concentrating in Human Factors and is currently the treasurer for the VT student chapter of Human Factors Ergonomic Society. She completed her undergraduate degree in Biopsychology and Spanish while attending The College of New Jersey, located in Ewing, NJ. Her main research interests lie in using technology to improve the lives of developmentally disabled persons. She has spend much of her undergraduate career doing research on and interning with this population and plans to take that experience coupled with the knowledge-base gained from her thesis to pursue a career in assistive technology.

Applying product attachment theory in the practice of experience design: a design inquiry

2010-03-05 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: John Zimmerman from CMU

Abstract: For the last several years the interaction design community has been undergoing a broadening of scope from usability to user experience; attempting to make things that improve the quality of peoples lives across a range of different contexts. One perspective that seems potentially rich in the pursuit of experience, but that has received little attention, is the theory on product attachment that describes how people come to love their things. People invest psychic energy into their possessions, developing attachment through repeated use as they engage in a process of identity construction. What the theory does not offer is any guidance on the process of making things that have the intention of becoming life companions; things people will come to love. To investigate the value of a product attachment perspective, I have taken a research through design approach, making many different things. Through a process of making and reflecting, I developed a philosophical stance, which calls for interaction designers to focus on products that help people move closer to their idealized sense of self in a specific role; to create products that help people become the person they desire to be. In this talk I will discuss how a research through design approach worked to connect product attachment theory to the design process; share a few example artifacts that have been designed as a result of this stance; and detail how other interaction designers and HCI practitioners might apply this perspective in practice.

Bio: John Zimmerman is an interaction designer and design researcher with a joint appointment as an Associate Professor with the Human-Computer Interaction Institute and the School of Design at Carnegie Mellon University. John has three main research areas: (i) design of interactive products through the application of product attachment theory; (ii) mixed-initiative interfaces that combine human and machine intelligence; and (iii) research-through-design as a design research practice in HCI. John teaches courses in interaction design, HCI methods, and the design of smart home applications. Prior to joining Carnegie Mellon, John was a senior researcher in the adaptive systems and interface group at Philips Research.

Improving Privacy on Social Network Sites

2010-02-26 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Dr. Heather Lipford

Abstract: The proliferation of personal information being posted online has led to well publicized privacy concerns and issues. On one hand, users seem oblivious to their privacy, doing little to protect their personal data. For example, the founder of Facebook recently stated that privacy was no longer a social norm and that people have become comfortable sharing information more openly. On the other hand, there have been a number of privacy uproars and backlashes due to certain site features or behaviors. In this talk, I will present the results of several projects aimed at understanding and addressing the privacy needs of users on social network sites. Our research demonstrates that users do have privacy concerns and problems, and could benefit from greater awareness and control over the sharing of their information. We have designed several new mechanisms and interfaces to address these problems, aimed at maintaining the social benefits of information sharing while reducing the risks of participating on social network sites.

Bio: Dr. Heather Richter Lipford is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Software and Information Systems at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She completed her Ph.D. in 2005 from the College of Computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Her research interests include Human-Computer Interaction, usable security and privacy, visual analytics, and ubiquitous computing. She is co-directing the HCI Lab at UNC Charlotte and is a member of the Charlotte Visualization Center and the UNCC Cognitive Science Academy.

Evaluating the effects of immersion in mixed reality

2009-11-13 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Professor Doug Bowman

Abstract: Immersive virtual reality (VR), typified by technologies such as stereoscopic projected displays and 3D tracking systems, has been available for many years, but there are only a handful of examples of real-world applications of this technology, most of which are focused on providing a realistic experience to the user so that he experiences a sense of presence. We claim that immersive technologies can provide other benefits, such as increased spatial understanding or reduced information clutter. We are running a series of empirical studies to demonstrate these effects and to determine how much immersion is enough. Our results so far indicate that higher levels of immersion do lead to improved spatial understanding in complex visualizations, and that greater immersion can produce more efficient interaction in difficult task situations. Our current work is focused on the design and development of the mixed reality simulator - a highly-immersive display platform that can be used to simulate existing and proposed display hardware - for the purpose of extending our research agenda on immersion.

Bio: Professor, VT Computer Science Department

GigaPixel Displays: New Opportunities for Visual Analytics

2009-10-02 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Professor Chris North

Abstract: he onset of large high-resolution display technologies has the potential to offer new opportunities for interactive visual analytics. How can large high-resolution displays help visualization? What new interaction opportunities are afforded? How and why is interacting with such displays fundamentally different than standard desktop displays? How should we design the display systems, visualizations, and interaction techniques to maximize human performance? We will review recent empirical results of experiments on these questions, examine potential design guidelines, and discuss future directions for gigapixel interaction applications and research.

Bio: Professor, VT Computer Science Department

Presence, Fidelity & Context: Exploring Remote Touch for Affective Interaction

2009-08-21 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Rongrong Wang

Abstract: In the current communications milieu, three channels or modalities dominate: audio/voice, text, and video. Touch, as a unique and expressive modality to convey love, comfort and affect strongly supported by previous psychological and sociological research [1, 2, 3], is largely ignored in current communication technologies. We present a review of relevant psychological and sociological literature of touch and propose a model of immediacy and uniqueness of the touch channel for conveyance of affect. In order to test our hypotheses, we proceed to design and implement our haptic device which can stimulate a squeeze on the upper arm. We contextualize this low-fidelity haptic device with voice channel in a storytelling activity. Our in-lab between-subjects experiment shows that remote touch reduces subjects sadness emotion significantly and also shows a trend to reduce general negative mood and to reinforce joviality. Our experiment provides a counter-example to presence hypothesis and suggests remote affective touch is possible with context even with low-fidelity.

Bio:

A Proposed Approach for Adapting Mobile Learning Materials Based on Users Emotional State Using Brain Signals

2009-08-14 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Samah Gad

Abstract: With the huge improvements of mobile devices and handhelds, mobile learning became feasible and widely used to. This is because of the flexibility of usage and affordability of the technology. Most e‐learning systems nowadays use different ways for assessment to adapt the learning materials delivered to the user. We are proposing a new approach to adapt the learning materials based on the user learning emotional state. Challenges in this proposal will include correlating sensor data and emotions, accuracy and robustness, and differences in emotion expressions by individuals. Additional challenges are those with the mobile technology itself, such as device capabilities and communications supported.

Bio:

Investigation of Storytelling as a Requirements Elicitation Method for Medical Devices

2009-07-31 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Kim Gausepohl

Abstract: Medical device designers must understand the complex context-of-use within a healthcare environment to ensure product usability. Unfortunately, designers must overcome domain specific obstacles during user research, such as patient privacy standard that prevent designers from observing users in context. In this project, we investigate storytelling as an alternative elicitation method for medical device requirements when direct observations are limited or not possible. While gathering requirements for an infusion pump, we compare the types of information elicited by focus groups, interviews, and storytelling sessions.

Bio: Kim is a graduate student in the Grado Dept of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Her research interests include requirements elicitation, user-centered design, and the impact of medical device usability on practitioner and patient safety. This presentation represents the work of her masters thesis.

Slurp!

2009-07-17 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Sameer Ahuja (thesis defense)

Abstract: Local conversations online are an important means of building awareness and increasing participation amongst citizens. These conversations typically occur in local action groups and communities. These groups are centerpieces of local democratic activity and act as an intermediary level of organization between the individual and the government. Most local groups are restricted to using forums, listservs or collaborative blogs as the medium of conversation. In this presentation, I will discuss some of the problems with conventional local deliberation tools, and present the design of an open-source local conversation system we are developing at the Digital Government Research Lab that aims to utilize a set of social and organizational features for a more effective conversational environment.

Bio: Sameer is a second year Masters student in the Department of Computer Science at Virginia Tech. He is working in projects under Dr. Manuel A. Perez-Quinones, Dr. Andrea Kavanaugh, and Dr. Steve Edwards. He is fascinated with how the nature of communities affect the design of software built around them and vice versa; and intrigued about the existence of common growth patterns across social applications. These days, he is building two research prototypes: A conversation system for local communities, and a social assignment repository for CS instructors that is built over Facebooks social graph (CATspace). In 2008, Sameer interned at Strands Labs, Seattle; where he co-designed and developed a community display for third places (http://cocollage.com). He is scheduled to join the Social Networking team at Microsoft when he graduates this summer. He would happily discuss his life outside of the grad school, but he draws a disturbing blank whenever he tries to think about it.

Interacting with a Curved Large Display using Chair Rotation

2009-07-10 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Alex Endert

Abstract: Large, high-resolution displays are becoming more readily available for use as a personal workstation. Their inherent ability to display more information comes from not only their size, but also the tremendous increase in resolution. However, traditional mouse/keyboard interactions break down when implemented on a large, high-resolution display. The problem is twofold. First, switching from one region to another on a display with such a large resolution and size requires a physical repositioning with respect to the display. This often involves a rotation of the office chair they are sitting in. Second, the mouse cursor has to travel a great distance, causing the user to clutch the mouse to traverse the display space. Our goal is to effectively capture the rotational data generated by the physical movement of the user’s office chair and utilize it towards the mouse cursor movement. We propose this will cause the cursor to effectively follow the user as they switch between different regions of the display. In this talk, Alex will be outlining the motivation behind this study. At this point in the project, the implementation has been completed. A short pilot study has also been conducted with positive feedback. Further work has to be done both to design a study to properly measure the benefit of this novel interaction technique, as well as conduct the formal study.

Bio:

Creative Imagination facilitation through Storytelling

2009-06-26 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Ashley Robinson

Abstract: A phenomenon exists where students creative activity typically drops into a trough around the 4th grade. By exploring the works of such people as Vygotsky and Csikszentmihalyi we can begin to understand how creativity works and the factors that contribute to this 4th grade phenomenon. Our goal is to address this trough by enabling students to create media, of which statistics shows increase usage amongst adolescents. Electronic media presents the storyteller with the possibility of composing narratives that branch through multiple possible paths and end with different outcomes, which is the essence of hypernarratives. STAGES is a system that enables students to author and interact with hyper-dramas, which is a kind of hyper-narrative where each node of the narrative is presented in the form of an animated dramatic scene. We posit that new generations of authors, immersed in more visual forms of communication, may engage more constructively through a system like STAGES. Hence, STAGES is a bridge that engages embodied aspects of the student’s imagination and provides a scaffold for broader learning and creativity.

Bio: Ashley Robinson is a fourth year Ph.D. student. She has been working with the STAGES non-linear storytelling project for two years. During this time, she has conducted two pilot studies based on STAGES and creativity. These two studies, addressed in this talk, will pave the way for future studies and to the goal of creative imagination facilitation of K-12 students. Research Interest: Creativity, Storytelling, CSCL, Embodied Interaction, Multimodal Interaction, and Tangible Interaction.

Math Discourse and the Blind

2009-06-19 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Francisco Oliveira

Abstract: Mathematics instruction and discourse typically involve two modes of communication: speech and graphical presentation. For the communication to remain situated, dynamic synchrony must be maintained between the speech and dynamic focus in the graphics. In normals, vision is used for two purposes: access to graphical material and awareness of embodied behavior. This embodiment awareness keeps communication situated with visual material and speech. Our goal is to assist blind students in the access to such instruction/communication. We employ the typical approach of sensory replacement for the missing visual sense. Haptic fingertip reading can replace visual material. For the embodied portion of the communication, we want to make the blind student aware of the deictic gestures performed by the teacher over the graphic in conjunction with speech. We propose the use of haptic gloves paired with computer vision based tracking to help blind students maintain reading focus on a raised-line representation of a graphical presentation on which the instructor points while speaking.

Bio: Research interests: Computing and technologies to help persons with disabilities, Gestures and Discourse, Haptic Displays, Computer Vision, Pattern Classification, and Software Engineering.

How would you like to Interact?

2009-04-03 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Hussein M. Ahmed

Abstract: The development of user interfaces for virtual environments mostly focuses on developing new input devices and innovative interaction techniques. However, we do not allow users to freely choose what input device and what interaction technique to use. We propose an interaction interoperability framework based on a distributed, service oriented architecture. We profile the user based on the patterns of interaction. Applications are also profiled based on interaction tasks and based on these profiles an inference is made using three ontologies (input devices, interaction techniques and interaction tasks). The goal is to select among the available input devices the ones that best fit the user profile (including preferred interaction techniques) and the application tasks to maximize user satisfaction.

Bio: Hussein Ahmed is a Ph.D. student under Dr. Denis Gracanin. His area of interest is the design of distributed systems that would scale well without affecting usability. His major contribution to HCI is in designing ontologies of Input devices, interaction techniques and interaction tasks. Hussein worked for several years in the industry of software development to be a lead developer and a project manager. His side activities this year include being Microsoft Student Partner at VT, serving as the Advertising chair of the CS Grad Council and as the Webmaster of UPE. Aside from development and research, Hussein enjoys photography to the extreme, studying at NYI and photographing for the Collegiate Times.

Mental Workload in Multi-Device Personal Information Management

2009-03-27 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Manas Tungare

Abstract: Many of us use more than one device—a desktop, a laptop, a PDA, or a cellphone—to manage our personal information, such as files, calendars, contacts, emails, bookmarks, etc. In my doctoral research, I examined the issues that arise for users in this domain. First, I conducted a survey study of 220 knowledge workers, and later, a controlled experiment. I measured users' mental workload as a way to understand their perceptions and difficulties while performing PIM tasks, using subjective measures (workload assessment questionnaires) and physiological measures (eye tracking). Some systems provide support for transitioning users' work between devices, or for using multiple devices together; I explored the impact of such support on mental workload as well as task performance. In this talk, I will report and discuss my findings: for the Files task, I noted an increase in workload at sub-task boundaries when participants were required to transition from a desktop to a laptop. They were able to enter events faster into paper calendars than using an electronic calendar program. For the Contacts task, task performance was equal in both cases, but mental workload was higher when they could not sync their information between a cell phone and a laptop. I will close with a discussion of the larger implications of these findings.

Bio: Manas Tungare is a Ph.D. candidate in Human-Computer Interaction at Virginia Tech. He explores his research interests at the intersection of Personal Information Management and Multi-Device User Interfaces with his advisor, Dr. Manuel Pérez-Quiñones. He holds an M.S. in Computer Science from Georgia Tech (with a specialization in HCI), and a B.E. in Computer Engineering from the University of Mumbai, India. He interned at Google in 2005, 2006 & 2007 with the Google Desktop Search and Google Book Search teams, fusing his interests in research, design and product development. In his free time (!), he enjoys photographing his travels and writing free software. Manas's resume, publications, and software are available at his website, http://manas.tungare.name/.

Civic Intelligence: A Participatory Exploratory View

2008-10-31 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Douglas Schuler

Abstract: Civic intelligence is the ability of groups of people to be intelligent in ways that benefit everybody. Generally this means the ability for groups (and society as a whole) to understand and address the challenges they face effectively and equitably. Although we could argue about, for example, how adequate or inadequate it is at any time and place, or whether it makes sense to actually measure it, civic intelligence can be said to exist. Furthermore, naming the phenomenon allows us to focus on it and talk about it. Identifying the concept provides an opportunity for us to explore it collaboratively and directly. It also allows us to propose action agendas or policies or develop institutions or technology that support civic intelligence.

Bio: Doug Schuler has a masters degree in Software Engineering from Seattle University and a masters degree in Computer Science from the University of Washington. He is a former chair of Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR), a founding member of the Seattle Community Network (SCN), and a faculty member (Evening and Weekend Studies) of The Evergreen State College where he teaches and learns about technology and social implications of the network society. His new book Liberating Voices: A Pattern Language for Communication Revolution (MIT Press, 2008) contains 136 patterns written by Doug and over 80 contributors. His recent books, co-edited with Peter Day, are Shaping the Network Society: The New Role of Civil Society in Cyberspace (MIT Press) and Community Practice in the Network Society: Local Action / Global Interaction (Routledge). He also co-edited Cyberculture: The Key Concepts (Routledge) with David Bell, Brian Loader, and Nicholas Pleace. His book New Community Networks: Wired for Change (Addison-Wesley) is freely available online in both English and Spanish.

Personal Information Ecosystems: Design Concerns for Net-Enabled Devices

2008-10-24 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Manuel A. Pérez-Quiñones

Abstract: Today, with the proliferation of affordable computing, people use multiple devices to fulfill their information needs. However, designers approach each device platform individually, without accounting for the other devices that users may also use. In many cases, the applications on all the user\\'s devices are designed to be functional replicates of each other, often with an emphasis on keeping their form and function consistent with one another. We argue that this emphasis on recreating consistent clones on each platform should not be the dominant concern for designers. In this presentation, we present the idea of a personal information ecosystem, an analogy to biological ecosystems, which allows us to discuss the inter-relationships among users devices to fulfill their information needs. Using the examples of now ubiquitous web technologies on different platforms, we discuss how considering the user\\'s ecosystem of devices as a whole as a design target lends to better user experience and encourages designers to tackle the more important concern of seamless task migration across devices.

Bio: Manuel A. Perez-Quinones is Associate Dean in Residence and Director of the Office for Diversity Programs at the Graduate School, and an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Perez-Quinones holds a DSc. in Computer Science from The George Washington University. His research interests include human-computer interaction, personal information management, user interface software, digital government, and educational uses of computers. He is an NSF CAREER awardee, and for 2008-2010 has been included in the IEEE Computer Society Distinguished Visitor program. He is a member of the Coalition to Diversify Computing, where he co-directs the national program Collaborative Research Experience for Undergraduates in Computer Science and Engineering. He serves on the editorial board for the Journal on Educational Resources in Computing.

Computational Models of Creative Design

2008-10-16 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: John Gero

Abstract: For many computers and creativity are incompatible. This talk presents the results of research on computational models of creative designing processes. It commences with a model of elementary computational creativity and then describes and presents results from: 1) design creativity by combination using genetically-based interpolation, 2) design creativity by genetic engineering, and 3) design creativity by combination using genetic engineering. The talk then introduces the notion of situatedness as an approach to drive first-person based computational creativity before describing and presenting results from: 1) situated design by analogy, and 2) design using social creativity. The talk concludes with a model of creativity.

Bio: John Gero is a Research Professor at the Krasnow Institute of Advanced Study and at the Volgenau School of Information Technology and Engineering, George Mason University and a Visiting Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Formerly he was Professor of Design Science and Co-Director of the Key Centre of Design Computing and Cognition, University of Sydney. He is the author or editor of 46 books and over 550 papers in the fields of design science, design computing, artificial intelligence, computer-aided design, design cognition, design creativity and cognitive science. He has been a Visiting Professor of Architecture, Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science or Cognitive Science at MIT, UC-Berkeley, UCLA, Columbia and CMU in the USA, at Strathclyde and Loughborough in the UK, at INSA-Lyon and Provence in France and at EPFL-Lausanne in Switzerland. His website is http://mason.gmu.edu/~jgero/

Connecting the usability engineering and software engineering life cycles through a communication-fostering framework

2008-10-10 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Pardha S. Pyla

Abstract: Interactive software systems have both functional and user interface components. Because the user interface and the functional core are closely coupled, with one significantly constraining the design of the other, there should be close connections between the corresponding development processes. Unfortunately, the disciplines of usability engineering (responsible for the user interface) and software engineering (responsible for the functional core) are practiced independently with little or no communication between them. This lack of communication often results in reduced situational awareness, higher risks in managing design changes, and costly rework at the end of the overall development cycle. In response, a three-part framework was developed to foster and structure communication among developer roles within the software engineering and usability engineering life cycles. Using a systems-level evaluation with real clients in a simulated software development setting, the usefulness of the framework was demonstrated. In addition, the evaluation identified that certain aspects (negative and positive) of social dynamics of collaborative work can eclipse the effects of structured communication or its absence.

Bio: Pardha Pyla is a Postdoctoral Associate in the Department of Computer Science at Virginia Tech. Dr. Pyla is one of the pioneering researchers in the area of connecting software engineering and usability engineering life cycles. His research interests include human-computer interaction and personal information management. Dr. Pyla has a B.Tech. degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering from Nagarjuna University (India), M.S. degrees in both Computer Engineering and Computer Science from Virginia Tech, and a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Virginia Tech. While at Virginia Tech, he received numerous distinctions including the Outstanding Doctoral Student Award from the College of Engineering, Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award from the Department of Computer Science, and the Citizen Scholar Award from the Graduate School.

Multi-Scale Mouse: Optimizing Mouse Interaction for Large Personal Workspaces

2007-11-30 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Mehmet Celal Dasiyici

Abstract: As increasingly large displays are integrated into personalworkspaces, mouse-based interaction could become problematic for long distance cursor movement. Previous studies indicated that Users must repeatedly "clutch" the mouse. We test a multi-scale approach to mouse interaction, realized in the form of a Dynamic Speed and Size cursor that grows larger and faster when needed. Using Fitts' Law methods, we experimentally compare different implementations to optimize its design, and also compare them to additional techniques that integrate absolute pointing by head tracking. Results indicate the scalability of the mouse to very large displays, surpassing absolute pointing techniques for large movements while maintaining fast performance of the typical mouse configuration on small screens for small movements. The best designs maintained amount of clutching to less than one per task. Results also showed that dynamic size statistically improves pointing performance and jumps between speeds in different thresholds should not be more than 2x.

Bio: Mehmet Dasiyici is a second year Ph.D. student, currently preparing his M.S. thesis under the supervision of Chris North. He is currently working on improving ways to interact with large, high resolution displays. He has conducted two experiments to investigate how to interact with large, high resolution displays and found out that mouse can still be a viable option to interact with even a 96 million pixel display.

Can people evolve local processes?

2007-11-02 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Laurian Vega

Abstract: Knowledge workers in business settings determine what they do and how to do it. We call this kind of work local processes, which are owned by the people who are responsible. Ownership means formulating, carrying out, and maintaining the local processes. People manage their local processes by creating their own representations (such as, checklists, diagrams, charts), on which they heavily rely. Our goal is to design \"activity-based\" tools to support the ownership of local processes. In this paper we focus on how people can evolve local processes by continuously updating them to keep up with changing business conditions. We first formulate a model describing how people can evolve process representations by modifying representations in response to discrepancies encountered in using them. Then we present a lab study that demonstrates evolving processes in line with the model. The study also yields detailed data on how people evolve processes. From this we suggest design implications for a support tool; and we present an example prototype tool, Quickstep, and its critical features.

Bio: Laurian Vega is a PhD student under Dr. Scott McCrickard. She returned this summer from her internship at IBM Almaden working under Tom Moran. When not in California, Laurian can be found working on trying to design for trust in computer interfaces and websites. In her spare time Laurian is president of the Computer Science Graduate Council, Vice President of the Association of Women in Computing, TAing, being the webmaster for ADVANCE, and in general, rocking at Guitar Hero.

Embodiment Awareness, Mathematics Discourse, and the Blind

2005-03-14 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Dr. Francis Quek

Abstract: This talk will be about the work that will be done as part of a recently awarded NSF project. It deals with assisting the blind in following discourses, especially in mathematics.

Bio: Dr.Quek is the director of the Center for HCI.

ICHASM: Bridging Description and Implementation of 3D Interfaces

2005-03-04 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Chadwick A. Wingrave

Abstract: Specifying and implementing 3D interfaces is difficult and improvements have to go beyond just better diagrams or libraries with new features. We have to be willing to change our notions of programming. The CHASM (Connected Hierarchical Architecture of State Machines) project has studied the programming and design artifacts of several projects to identify the breadth of functionality required for interactive systems. It has also created a new system that addresses many of the failings with current practice, using a custom hierarchical state machine to add new assurances to the programmer for reusability and managing code complexity. It also keeps the simplicity of imperative programming and the strength of object-oriented design. The CHASM architecture has been implemented and is currently used in a research project with results reported on its design.

Bio: Chadwick Wingrave is a member of the 3D Interaction Group. His advisor is Dr. Doug A. Bowman.

Interaction techniques for multiscale virtual environments

2005-02-18 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Regis Kopper

Abstract: Virtual environments interaction research has attracted a lot of attention during the past few years and the technology improvement has given means for the humans to interact more naturally with the 3D world. However, most of the research on this field was held considering single scale virtual worlds. This means that the users can perform interaction tasks in VE where they can easily find their way throughout the entire environment. More recently some effort was put on large scale VE interaction research, specially on navigation tasks for easily wayfinding and traveling through large scale virtual worlds. These works, however, do not acknowledge multiscale environments in which each level of scale has its own semantic significance and the relationships between the different scales are also important for the application. Such virtual environments can be exemplified as the human anatomy for learning. Anatomy students are interested in knowing the relationship between each organ of the body in a top scale, but also need to understand each organ's internal structure and so forth down to the atomic level. Thus, the aim of the research project presented here is to develop and evaluate a set of interaction techniques suitable for multiscale virtual environments that fit those needs. Several considerations have to be made, such as spacial orientation and how to change between different scales keeping user's comprehension, how to make clear to the user where he can go down on scale, how to change navigation mode from normal to interscalar and how the change of scale affects user's position and orientation.

Bio:

Improving Privacy on Social Network Sites

0000-00-00 at 00:00:00 in

Presenter: Dr. Heather Lipford

Abstract: The proliferation of personal information being posted online has led to well publicized privacy concerns and issues. On one hand, users seem oblivious to their privacy, doing little to protect their personal data. For example, the founder of Facebook recently stated that privacy was no longer a social norm and that people have become comfortable sharing information more openly. On the other hand, there have been a number of privacy uproars and backlashes due to certain site features or behaviors. In this talk, I will present the results of several projects aimed at understanding and addressing the privacy needs of users on social network sites. Our research demonstrates that users do have privacy concerns and problems, and could benefit from greater awareness and control over the sharing of their information. We have designed several new mechanisms and interfaces to address these problems, aimed at maintaining the social benefits of information sharing while reducing the risks of participating on social network sites.

Bio: Dr. Heather Richter Lipford is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Software and Information Systems at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She completed her Ph.D. in 2005 from the College of Computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Her research interests include Human-Computer Interaction, usable security and privacy, visual analytics, and ubiquitous computing. She is co-directing the HCI Lab at UNC Charlotte and is a member of the Charlotte Visualization Center and the UNCC Cognitive Science Academy.

Bring back the STEAM

0000-00-00 at 00:00:00 in Graduate Life Center, Room B

Presenter: Professor Ico Bukvic

Abstract:

Bio: