CHI 97 Electronic Publications: Workshops
Interactive Systems for Supporting the Emergence of Concepts and Ideas
Ernest A. Edmonds
LUTCHI Research Centre
Department of Computer Studies
Loughborough University
Loughborough
Leicestershire LE11 3TU, UK
e.a.edmonds@lboro.ac.uk
Thomas P. Moran
Xerox Palo Alto Research Center
333 Coyote Hill Road
Palo Alto CA 94304 USA
moran@parc.xerox.com
Keywords
Emergence, discovery, sketching, interaction
GOALS AND THEME
Current computer application systems are best at dealing with
well-defined materials rather than in helping users create new concepts. For
example, it is easier to use computers to draft precise drawings than to
quickly sketch new configurations; it is easier to craft polished documents
than to jot ideas and play with them. A body of research is beginning to
accumulate that explores systems, such as pen-based sketching applications, to
support the user in dealing with ill-defined concepts and materials. The key
idea is that a person needs be able to easily create a visual
representation, even for abstract and verbal ideas, and then respond to it
perceptually to discover new arrangements and shapes representing new ideas.
The new concepts emerge from the concrete materials of the visual
representation. (This basic idea is expressed by the sociologist Donald
Schön in The Reflective Practitioner.)
The research question is how interactive systems can aid users in quickly
creating and manipulating visual representations and whether they can support
the discovery of new relationships, structures, and meanings in the materials.
This is clearly an important new direction for the development of computer
system design.
The workshop will bring together different kinds of researcher from different
fields to explore these issues from different perspectives. The goal is to
stimulate debate and research in this important area.
© 1997 Copyright on this material is held by the authors.
TOPICS
In the context of the above goals and theme, the specific topics of the
workshop will be:
- Theory and empirical studies of discovery:
- psychological studies of perception and imagery
- sociological studies of creative practices
- Thinking and practice in art and design:
- emergence and sketching
- artificial life
- emergence and interaction
- Computational support for emergent shapes and processes:
- computational modelling of emergent shapes
- support for interaction with emergent shapes
- shapes algebras and formalisms for emergence
- spatial parsing and structuring
- flexible object oriented methodology
This taxonomy of topics is preliminary; it will be revised to better fit
the actual set of accepted participants.
FORMAT AND ORGANIZATION
The workshop will be organised into 4 or 5 segments (1 hour each) based
on the topics listed above. For each topic, an appropriate participant or two
will be invited to present a challenging introduction, and this will be
followed by a discussion chaired by one of the organisers or a member of the
workshop. This will be followed by a session to develop research issues and
open questions. The workshop will conclude by discussing possible follow-up
activities.
Xerox PARC will bring their capture tools to the workshop and capture (audio
record) the discussions. The organisers will then be able to make, not only the
written notes, but also segments of the audio discussion available on the Web
as an extra contribution to dissemination and further debate.
CHI 97 Electronic Publications: Workshops
