Sheet Music Unbound: A fluid approach to sheet music display and annotation on a multi-touch screen

In this thesis we present the design and prototype implementation of a Digital Music Stand that focuses on fluid music layout management and free-form digital ink annotation. An analysis of user constraints and available technology lead us to select a 21.5” multi-touch monitor as the preferred input and display device. This comfortably displays two A4 pages of music side by side with space for a control panel. The analysis also identified single handed input as a viable choice for musicians. Finger input was chosen to avoid the need for any additional input equipment. To support layout reflow and zooming we develop a vector based music representation, based around the bar structure. This representation supports animation of transitions, in such a way as to give responsive dynamic interaction with multi-touch gesture input. In developing the prototype, particular attention was paid to the problem of drawing small, intricate annotation accurately located on the music using a fingertip. The zoomable nature of the music structure was leveraged to accomplish this, and an evaluation carried out to establish the best level of magnification. The thesis demonstrates, in the context of music, that annotation and layout management (typically treated as two distinct tasks) can be integrated into a single task yielding fluid and natural interaction

Tangible user interfaces : past, present and future directions

In the last two decades, Tangible User Interfaces (TUIs) have emerged as a new interface type that interlinks the digital and physical worlds. Drawing upon users' knowledge and skills of interaction with the real non-digital world, TUIs show a potential to enhance the way in which people interact with and leverage digital information. However, TUI research is still in its infancy and extensive research is required in or- der to fully understand the implications of tangible user interfaces, to develop technologies that further bridge the digital and the physical, and to guide TUI design with empirical knowledge. This paper examines the existing body of work on Tangible User In- terfaces. We start by sketching the history of tangible user interfaces, examining the intellectual origins of this field. We then present TUIs in a broader context, survey application domains, and review frame- works and taxonomies. We also discuss conceptual foundations of TUIs including perspectives from cognitive sciences, phycology, and philoso- phy. Methods and technologies for designing, building, and evaluating TUIs are also addressed. Finally, we discuss the strengths and limita- tions of TUIs and chart directions for future research

ENGAGING THE VISITOR WITH DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY IN THE ARMS AND ARMOR COLLECTION

The Worcester Art Museum is seeking to incorporate the Higgins Armory collection into its galleries and simultaneously increase visitor engagement by implementing technologies appropriate to the exhibit and target audience. In addition to developing an iPad implementation, our project provided recommendations for accomplishing this in the Meyer Idea Lab and the Medieval Gallery. To accomplish our goal, we visited museums with interactive exhibit designs, interviewed museum staff, observed visitors, and surveyed visitor responses to the available media. Our project culminated with a promotional video on arms and armor, the informational iPad implementation, analysis of visitor survey data, and recommendations for future exhibits at the Worcester Art Museum

Social shaping of digital publishing: exploring the interplay between culture and technology

The processes and forms of electronic publishing have been changing since the advent of the Web. In recent years, the open access movement has been a major driver of scholarly communication, and change is also evident in other fields such as e-government and e-learning. Whilst many changes are driven by technological advances, an altered social reality is also pushing the boundaries of digital publishing. With 23 articles and 10 posters, Elpub 2012 focuses on the social shaping of digital publishing and explores the interplay between culture and technology. This book contains the proceedings of the conference, consisting of 11 accepted full articles and 12 articles accepted as extended abstracts. The articles are presented in groups, and cover the topics: digital scholarship and publishing; special archives; libraries and repositories; digital texts and readings; and future solutions and innovations. Offering an overview of the current situation and exploring the trends of the future, this book will be of interest to all those whose work involves digital publishing

Enhancing illusionism within the encased contemporary art diorama through the integration of screen-based animated film

In the late nineteen eighties artists started to create a highly illusionistic type of small scaled diorama, which I refer to as the encased contemporary art diorama. Such dioramas are typically presented encased in a box-like structure with a glazed viewing window situated at the front. Artifice such as realistically coloured and shaped miniature forms, strategically positioned mirrors and quantified atmospheric lighting are used to enhance the verisimilitude of the mimetic resemblance to life-sized reality. As a maker of animated films, I became curious about the ways in which illusionism within such dioramas might be enhanced through the integration of screen-based animated film. To pursue this line of enquiry, I first strove to understand how illusionism functions within encased contemporary art dioramas, and I travelled to Lyon, France to view an exhibition of such dioramas at the Musee Miniature et Cinema. As there is an apparent lack of text on how illusionism functions within such dioramas, I modelled my initial research on texts about illusionism in representational pictures, how artists create visual illusions and the role of the viewer in the formation and perception of illusions. I engaged the writing of Michael Fish to assist in identifying different illusion types. To fully view the interior of an encased contemporary art diorama, the viewer must alter the location of their eyes in relation to the diorama and its contents, concurrently the encasement prevents any tactile appraisal of the diorama’s contents. I refer to Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenology of embodiment to account for the ways the viewer’s embodiment can influence their perception of dioramic illusions. The outcomes of my studio practice include animated films, and dioramas both with and without screen-based animated film integrated within them. The resulting illusions achieved are appraised and discussed, limitations are identified, and future potentials contemplated.Doctor of Philosoph

SOCIAL CLASS AND EMPLOYABILITY: EQUALIZING PERCEIVED COMPETENCE AND WARMTH TO CONTROL BIASED DECISION-MAKING DURING RESUMÉ SCREENING

Implicit bias during the resumé screening process can adversely impact the ability of an organization to achieve a competitive advantage through human capital (Coff & Kryscynski, 2011). The purpose of this study was to determine if teaching resumé screeners how to control biased decision-making during resumé screening results in equal employability ratings for upper-middle and lower-middle-class applicants. The study used a quantitative, causal, quasi-experimental, single-group pretest-post-test design. The target population was people in the United States who screen resumés as part of their current job duties (Thomas, 2018). The researcher used Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) to recruit participants. Participants received a job description for a management training program and two resumés, one representing an upper-middle-class job applicant and one representing a lower-middle-class applicant (Thomas, 2018). Participants rated each resumé on perceptions of warmth, competence, and employability using the warmth and competence scales (Fiske, 2018) and an Employment Assessment scale (Cole et al., 2009). Participants viewed four short training videos that included two tactics to reduce biased behavior (Carter et al., 2020; Devine et al., 2012). After treatment, the researcher repeated the pretest procedure, and participants received two new resumés to rate. At the pretest, employability ratings were not significantly different between upper-middle-class and lower-middle-class applicants. At the post-test, participants rated the lower-middle-class applicant higher for employability. Perceived competence mediated the effect of social class on employability at the pretest and again at the post-test. Perceived warmth mediated the effect of social class on employability only at the post-test

Software Takes Command

This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. Software has replaced a diverse array of physical, mechanical, and electronic technologies used before 21st century to create, store, distribute and interact with cultural artifacts. It has become our interface to the world, to others, to our memory and our imagination - a universal language through which the world speaks, and a universal engine on which the world runs. What electricity and combustion engine were to the early 20th century, software is to the early 21st century. Offering the the first theoretical and historical account of software for media authoring and its effects on the practice and the very concept of 'media,' the author of The Language of New Media (2001) develops his own theory for this rapidly-growing, always-changing field. What was the thinking and motivations of people who in the 1960 and 1970s created concepts and practical techniques that underlie contemporary media software such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Maya, Final Cut and After Effects? How do their interfaces and tools shape the visual aesthetics of contemporary media and design? What happens to the idea of a 'medium' after previously media-specific tools have been simulated and extended in software? Is it still meaningful to talk about different mediums at all? Lev Manovich answers these questions and supports his theoretical arguments by detailed analysis of key media applications such as Photoshop and After Effects, popular web services such as Google Earth, and the projects in motion graphics, interactive environments, graphic design and architecture. Software Takes Command is a must for all practicing designers and media artists and scholars concerned with contemporary media

Software Takes Command

This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. Software has replaced a diverse array of physical, mechanical, and electronic technologies used before 21st century to create, store, distribute and interact with cultural artifacts. It has become our interface to the world, to others, to our memory and our imagination - a universal language through which the world speaks, and a universal engine on which the world runs. What electricity and combustion engine were to the early 20th century, software is to the early 21st century. Offering the the first theoretical and historical account of software for media authoring and its effects on the practice and the very concept of 'media,' the author of The Language of New Media (2001) develops his own theory for this rapidly-growing, always-changing field. What was the thinking and motivations of people who in the 1960 and 1970s created concepts and practical techniques that underlie contemporary media software such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Maya, Final Cut and After Effects? How do their interfaces and tools shape the visual aesthetics of contemporary media and design? What happens to the idea of a 'medium' after previously media-specific tools have been simulated and extended in software? Is it still meaningful to talk about different mediums at all? Lev Manovich answers these questions and supports his theoretical arguments by detailed analysis of key media applications such as Photoshop and After Effects, popular web services such as Google Earth, and the projects in motion graphics, interactive environments, graphic design and architecture. Software Takes Command is a must for all practicing designers and media artists and scholars concerned with contemporary media