Designing for Science Center Exhibitions - A Classification Framework for the Interaction.

While designing and discussing exhibitions in science centers, common conceptual framework is needed. This paper provides a framework based on participation, virtuality, and collaboration, and two models - a Rubik’s cube model and a Scatter plot space. They are suitable tools for analysis and overview of existing and planned exhibitions, as well as for conceptual analysis during the design process. The classification and the models for the interaction have been developed in a research by design process, where 45 prototypes have been designed, exhibited and tested. The contribution of this paper is to provide designers and planners of science centers with a framework that can support design work and evaluation. I am the single author also of this paper

Extending the Construct of Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics

The concept of Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics (CVPA) and the associated construct were introduced to measure the level of significance that product design has for certain consumers. The aim was that, after identifying consumers with high CVPA, designers and manufacturers can successfully address to them products with a remarkable design. The initial construct proposed by other researchers was composed by three factors (Value, Acumen and Response). The author of this paper aimed to amplify the construct and tested a new construct containing four additional new factors: Brand Loyalty, Product Involvement, Personality Congruence and Price indifference. After applying Exploratory Factor Analysis, it was found that practically the Value and Brand Loyalty items were part of the same factor. The same situation was encountered for Response and Personality Congruence. After removing the less significant items, a new construct resulted, validated by Confirmatory Factor Analysis. The new construct has been used successfully to test the hypothesis that people with high CVPA attach special importance to products with a high aesthetic content (in the case of loudspeakers)

A Seeing Place – Connecting Physical and Virtual Spaces

In the experience and design of spaces today, we meet both reality and virtuality. But how is the relation between real and virtual construed? How can we as researchers and designers contribute to resolving the physical-virtual divide regarding spaces? This thesis explores the relations between the physical and the virtual and investigates ways of connecting physical and virtual space, both in theory and practice.\ua0The basic concepts of the thesis are Space, Place, and Stage. The central idea is that the stage is a strong conceptual metaphor that has the capacity to work as a unifying concept relating physical and virtual spaces and forming a place for attention, agreements, and experience – A Seeing Place. The concept of seeing place comes from the Greek word theatre, meaning a “place for seeing”, both in the sense of looking at and understanding.\ua0In certain situations, the relations between physical and virtual spaces become important for users’ experience and understanding of these situations. This thesis presents seven cases of physical-virtual spaces, in the field of architectural and exhibition design. The method of these studies is research by design. The discussion then focuses on how each setting works as a stage, and how conceptual metaphors can contribute to the connection between physical and virtual spaces.\ua0Building upon the explorations and experiments in different domains, the thesis contains a collection of seven papers concerning the relations between physical and virtual space in different contexts outside the world of theatre. These papers range from more technical about Virtual Reality (design of networked collaborative spaces) to more conceptual about staging (methods in interaction design) and virtual space (using a transdisciplinary approach).\ua0The results of those studies suggest that the Stage metaphor of a physical-virtual space can contribute to the elucidating of relations between physical and virtual spaces in number of ways. Conceptually, the stage metaphor links together the semiotic and the hermeneutic views of space and place. And, from a practice-based perspective, A Seeing Place view opens up the way to creating contemporary spaces and resolving the physical-virtual divide