Computer Studies Bldg. Room 209
Technology is playing an increasingly integral role in our everyday lives. Because of this, it is important that we understand how to design technology to embrace and enhance people's existing behaviors and routines rather than encumber or inhibit them. In this talk, I will present research that addresses this general need in two broad areas: domestic computing and gaming. First, I will outline research on digital photo ecosystems, digital family calendars, and family communication systems. These projects all deal with applications of distributed software, networking, and artificial intelligence, but I will use them to show how an understanding of human-computer interaction fundamentally shapes the design of these technologies. I will then briefly discuss my future research agenda in this space which involves focusing on communication technologies to support families with aging elderly parents. Second, I will move from the domestic realm into the virtual and describe research in the area of virtual worlds and online games. Here I will illustrate the ways in which game users develop and become a part of virtual culture. I will outline studies of Second Life aimed at understanding online social relationships, user identity and avatar construction, and the capturing and sharing of virtual memories. These studies highlight the role of human-computer interaction in investigating the application of computer graphics, distributed software, and networking. I will then briefly discuss my future research in this space aimed at continued explorations of online games, along with studies of games that occur outside of the PC and in the everyday real world. As a whole, my research will illustrate the ways in which human-computer interaction can be used to investigate various facets of computer science and the fundamental role that multidisciplinary research plays in informing our understanding and design of technology.
Refreshments will be provided at 10:45 AM