Aesthetic potential of human-computer interaction in performing arts

Human-computer interaction (HCI) is a multidisciplinary area that studies the communication between users and computers. In this thesis, we want to examine if and how HCI when incorporated into staged performances can generate new possibilities for artistic expression on stage. We define and study four areas of technology-enhanced performance that were strongly influenced by HCI techniques: multimedia expression, body representation, body augmentation and interactive environments. We trace relevant artistic practices that contributed to the exploration of these topics and then present new forms of creative expression that emerged after the incorporation of HCI techniques. We present and discuss novel practices like: performer and the media as one responsive entity, real-time control of virtual characters, on-body projections, body augmentation through humanmachine systems and interactive stage design. The thesis concludes by showing some concrete examples of these novel practices implemented in performance pieces. We present and discuss technologyaugmented dance pieces developed during this master’s degree. We also present a software tool for aesthetic visualisation of movement data and discuss its application in video creation, staged performances and interactive installations

Encouraging girls involvement in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) careers in Uruguay

The gender gap in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is regrettably universal and generally unacceptably broad. This phenomenon refers to women's underrepresentation in those fields, with the most significant disparities occurring in the critical fields of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). The so-called pipeline problem contributes to this persisting gender gap, where women turn away from math and science at a young age due to negative stereotypes that cause them to believe they do not belong in STEM. All over the world, universities and organizations carry on initiatives to close this gap, showing varying degrees of success. Many of these programs focus on K-12 and high school girls, seeking to expose them to STEM-related activities to encourage girls' enrollment in STEM careers. Involving female teachers, and applying the role model approach, these programs offer in campus presentations, talks, or short courses aimed to break down stereotypes. In this article, we describe different sensibilization activities carried out at Facultad de Ingeniería (School of Engineering), Universidad de la República, Uruguay, to promote ICT careers in Uruguay. In particular, we present hands-on workshops for high school girls on robotics, electronic circuits, and geographic information systems on the occasion of the Girls in ICT Day

Promoviendo carreras de TICs en adolescentes de secundaria en Uruguay

La brecha de género entre la participación masculina y femenina en Ciencia, Tecnología, Ingeniería y Matemáticas (en inglés STEM por Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) es lamentablemente universal, y en general inaceptablemente amplia. Además, esta brecha es particularmente notoria en las carreras de Ingeniería Eléctrica y de Ingeniería en Computación (Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, EECS). Distintas organizaciones internacionales y universidades de Norteamérica, Europa y Latinoamérica han diseñado programas para enfrentar este importante problema, los cuales muestran diversos grados de éxito. En muchos de estos programas se encuentra la idea la de trabajar con adolescentes mujeres a nivel de su formación secundaria, buscando acercarles conocimientos clave de las disciplinas de STEM e incentivarlas a elegir carreras del área. Entre otras actividades, estos programas proponen la realización de presentaciones, charlas, o cursos cortos en un período determinado en la propia universidad, dictados por mujeres docentes del área con enfoque de role model. En este artículo se presenta la experiencia efectuada en la Facultad de Ingeniería de la Universidad de la República, Uruguay, con motivo del Día Internacional de las Niñas en las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación (TICs). En particular se dictaron talleres de robótica, circuitos y creación de mapas, para adolescentes de secundaria como forma de promover las carreras de TICs en Uruguay.Sociedad Argentina de Informática e Investigación Operativa (SADIO

Diseño participativo de interacción tangible con fines educativos

Desde 2015 el proyecto CETA desarrolla actividades interdisciplinarias de investigación vinculadas al diseño de interacción, con un fuerte énfasis en la apropiación de la tecnología por parte de la comunidad. En el marco de diversos proyectos financiados se han creado los dispositivos de interacción tangible CETA e i-CETA (diseñado para niños con discapacidad visual).De estos desarrollos ha participado un nutrido equipo de investigadores/as conformaciones bien distintas y complementarias, incluyendo educadores/as, comunicadores/as, informáticos/as, psicólogos/as, diseñadores/as, ilustradores/as y músicos. Actualmente nos encontramos llevando adelante un proyecto en el paradigma del diseño participativo por el cual maestras, niños y expertos participan del proceso de diseño a través de entrevistas, talleres y otras actividades de investigación. La perspectiva analítica ganada a través de este enfoque nos ha permitido reflexionar acerca de cómo poner el diseño de interacción al servicio de las necesidades del aula, cómo rescatar los métodos de enseñanza tradicionales empleados por las maestras y cuáles son los principales obstáculos para la apropiación de la tecnología por parte de las educadoras. Finalmente también reflexionamos acerca de la situación de los investigadores latinoamericanos de nuestro campo considerando el particular contexto en el que nos encontramos.Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación - ANIIFundación Ceiba

Educación Tangible. Nuevas formas de interacción para el aprendizaje

El presente proyecto tuvo como objetivo el desarrollo de un dispositivo de interacción tangible llamado CETA (Ceibal Tangible). Esta herramienta permite a los usuarios interactuar con tablets (distribuidas por CEIBAL) por medio de la manipulación de objetos reales (fichas de plástico). Basándose en este esquema de interacción se desarrolló una aplicación. orientada a la estimulación cognitiva de las habilidades matemáticas (llamada BrUNO). Con el objetivo de poner a prueba CETA y su aplicabilidad, se desarrolló un programa de intervención en la escuela orientado a estimular las habilidades matemáticas (cardinalidad a través de tareas de composición numérica). De la misma participaron 65 escolares de 1er año de escuela. Se tomaron medidas del desempeño en matemática de los alumnos antes y después del programa. Los resultados sugieren que existió un incremento mayor en la mejora en matemáticas de los niños que jugaron a CETA en comparación con aquellos que interactuaron directamente con la pantalla (touch-screen) y quienes no realizaron ninguna actividad adicional a las previstas en el programa de estudios de ese nivel. El dispositivo desarrollado se encuentra disponible en la página web del proyecto (www.ceta.edu.uy) para ser descargado, implementado y modificado por la comunidad de educadores y desarrolladores nacionales e internacionalesAGENCIA NACIONAL DE INVESTIGACIÓN E INNOVACIÓN (ANII)- CENTRO DE ESTUDIOS FUNDACIÓN CEIBAL. FONDO SECTORIAL EDUCACIÓN DIGITA

Learning maths with a tangible user interface: Lessons learned through participatory design with children with visual impairments and their educators

Through a set of participatory design (PD) sessions with children with visual impairments and their educators, we understood current practices in maths teaching, and designed a novel system to support learning for this particular educational context. Sixteen children were engaged in 19 PD sessions to develop tangibles and auditory stimuli to represent numbers, and to explore activities to use through a tangible user interface. We describe the context and lessons learned along the PD process with children and educators, and their implications on the design. Two main outputs were derived: iCETA, a multimodal tangible user interface that allows the use of tangible blocks to represent numbers; and, Logarín, an audiogame designed for iCETA that enables mathematical training. We explored the use of iCETA and Logarín during 15 sessions with 11 children with visual impairments. Results indicate that playing Logarín is engaging and capable of promoting their mathematical abilities. This research supports evidence that PD is successful in bringing children and other stakeholders together to design a solution that fits children’s needs and promises educational impact.Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación - ANIIFundación CeibalEspacio Interdisciplinario, UDELAR, UruguayFunda¸c˜ao para a Ciˆencia e a Tecnologia (FCT), I.P., through project mIDR (AAC 02/SAICT/-860 2017, project 30347, cofunded by COMPETE/FEDER/FNR)LASIGE Research Unit ref. UIDB/00408/2020 and ref. UIDP/00408/2020, Portugal

CETA: designing mixed-reality tangible interaction to enhance mathematical learning

Comunicació presentada a la MobileHCI 2017: 19h International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services, celebrada del 4 al 7 de setembre de 2017 a Viena, Àustria.The benefits of applying technology to education have been often questioned. Learning through digital devices might imply reducing the children’s physical interaction with the real world, when cognitive theories hold that such interaction is essential to develop abstract concepts in Mathematics or Physics. However, conflicting reports suggest that tangible interaction does not always improve engagement or learning. A central question is how cognitive theories can be successfully applied to the design of interactive systems in order to achieve enhanced learning experiences. In this paper we discuss the interaction design of a mixed-reality system for mathematics learning for school-aged children. Our design approach combines inspiration from previous frameworks with a user-centered design process with early prototype evaluations. As a result of this process we have created a mixed-reality environment for lowcost tablets and an augmented version of the Cuisenaire rods, a milestone of the manipulatives for mathematics learning.This project is funded by the National Agency for Research and Innovation of Uruguay through its Digital Inclusion Grant (Fondo Sectorial "Inclusión Digital: Educación con Nuevos Horizontes" - 2015:FSED_2_2015_1_120888)

CETA: open, affordable and portable mixed-reality environment for low-cost tablets

Comunicació presentada a: MobileHCI ’17, celebrat a Viena, Àustria, del 4 al 7 de setembre de 2017.Mixed-reality environments allow to combine tangible interaction with digital feedback, empowering interaction designers to take benefits from both real and virtual worlds. This interaction paradigm is also being applied in classrooms for learning purposes. However, most of the times the devices supporting mixed-reality interaction are neither portable nor affordable, which could be a limitation in the learning context. In this paper we propose CETA, a mixed-reality environment using low-cost Android tablets which tackles portability and costs issues. In addition, CETA is open-source, reproducible and extensible.This project is funded by the National Agency for Research and Innovation of Uruguay through its Digital Inclusion Grant (Fondo Sectorial "Inclusión Digital: Educación con Nuevos Horizontes" - 2015:FSED_2_2015_1_120888)

CETA: designing mixed-reality tangible interaction to enhance mathematical learning

Comunicació presentada a la MobileHCI 2017: 19h International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services, celebrada del 4 al 7 de setembre de 2017 a Viena, Àustria.The benefits of applying technology to education have been often questioned. Learning through digital devices might imply reducing the children’s physical interaction with the real world, when cognitive theories hold that such interaction is essential to develop abstract concepts in Mathematics or Physics. However, conflicting reports suggest that tangible interaction does not always improve engagement or learning. A central question is how cognitive theories can be successfully applied to the design of interactive systems in order to achieve enhanced learning experiences. In this paper we discuss the interaction design of a mixed-reality system for mathematics learning for school-aged children. Our design approach combines inspiration from previous frameworks with a user-centered design process with early prototype evaluations. As a result of this process we have created a mixed-reality environment for lowcost tablets and an augmented version of the Cuisenaire rods, a milestone of the manipulatives for mathematics learning.This project is funded by the National Agency for Research and Innovation of Uruguay through its Digital Inclusion Grant (Fondo Sectorial "Inclusión Digital: Educación con Nuevos Horizontes" - 2015:FSED_2_2015_1_120888)

CETA: open, affordable and portable mixed-reality environment for low-cost tablets

Comunicació presentada a: MobileHCI ’17, celebrat a Viena, Àustria, del 4 al 7 de setembre de 2017.Mixed-reality environments allow to combine tangible interaction with digital feedback, empowering interaction designers to take benefits from both real and virtual worlds. This interaction paradigm is also being applied in classrooms for learning purposes. However, most of the times the devices supporting mixed-reality interaction are neither portable nor affordable, which could be a limitation in the learning context. In this paper we propose CETA, a mixed-reality environment using low-cost Android tablets which tackles portability and costs issues. In addition, CETA is open-source, reproducible and extensible.This project is funded by the National Agency for Research and Innovation of Uruguay through its Digital Inclusion Grant (Fondo Sectorial "Inclusión Digital: Educación con Nuevos Horizontes" - 2015:FSED_2_2015_1_120888