Mark Gross
Location: (Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh)
Personal Research Web Page: http://code.arc.cmu.edu/~mdg/
Keywords: tangible embedded interaction, design, end-user programming languages, architectural robotics, DIY computing, sketching-in-hardware, pen-based interaction, sketch/diagram recognition, modular robotics, educational technologies, programming
Posted on: Thursday, May 28th, 2009
Broad Research Area: Computer Science Education / Educational Technology, Graphics / Visualization, HCI / CSCW, Mobile / Ubiquitous / Embedded Computing, Other
Research Interests:
Design Methods: Work starting in the 1960s makes a compelling case that there are commonalities in method that cross specific design domain boundaries. How does designing “work”, and how can (systematic) processes of design be articulated, elucidated, and evaluated? Rather than viewing design simply as creative expression of individuals, or optimizing an objective function, design methods research proposes ways that designers (individuals, groups, or computer programs) can describe design spaces, generate alternatives within those spaces, and evaluate those alternatives with respect to explicit criteria.
Modular robotics promises new, smart, self-reconfiguring materials made of millions of tiny robots that collaborate to shift shape and take new forms. In addition to engineering challenges of building the robots, the programming language challenges of designing ways for a robot ensemble to carry out a task, modular robotics also poses new challenges in interaction: how will people interact with a world made of computationally enabled materials, and how will designers of things made of programmable matter describe the forms and behavior that these materials are to take. How, for example, would we interact with a building that is made of many little robots?
Computationally enhanced construction kits & craft: The toys we play with as children shape the grown-ups we become. Construction kits like Lego and Tinkertoy were materials of making for past generations; now kits can embed computational behavior.
Sketch recognition & pen-based interfaces: People make freehand drawings and sketches to think, communicate, and record decisions. From the informal sketch map showing directions, to the circuit diagram sketched out on the back of an envelope, to whiteboard diagrams made in a group discussion, people find drawings valuable ways to communicate concisely. Especially in design, where early decisions are first approximations and may be contingent, sketching and diagramming provides an appropriate medium. Work on the Electronic Cocktail Napkin — a platform for sketch recognition—led to a set of experimental prototypes that investigated various aspects of freehand drawing, diagramming, and sketching.
Tangible Embedded Interaction: With the embedded/ubiquitous/invisible/pervasive computing revolution, interacting with computers, the traditional domain of “human computer interaction” now blends with the traditional domains of architecture and design, buildings, places, and things. As the physical world is increasingly imbued with computational, programmable properties, how do we design for effective interaction, and how can citizens (so-called “end users”) be empowered to program the behaviors of their physical environments for themselves?
Contact Information:
mdgross at cmu dot edu
