The XRDS magazine published by ACM is out now with an edition dedicated to the future of interaction. With a series of articles about tangible interfaces, brain-machine interface, physical computing and pervasive computing. The magazine even has a Hiroshi Ishii’s profile, the MIT Media Lab professor, precursor in several concepts in this area.
Concidence or not, here is a recent lecture of John Underkoffler also from MIT Media Lab. The title is ”The future of the UI”.
Finally my installation “Frozen Poetry” on an exhibition in Belo Horizonte, Brasil.
FROZEN POETRY
Marginália Lab
The individual who, bearing an ice cube, freezes syllables building imprecise signs.
In a proposal permeated by ludic characteristics, Koji Pereira invites the visitors of his interactive installation Frozen Poetry to undergo a battle of small proportions against the internal rules of his computational system of creation of quasi-random poetry. Quasi- once the individual’s lack of control is only partial. In this game, trying to overcome the evolution of syllables – which tend to overlap each other rapidly – intending to enclose them into signs, the individual is at times successful, while at other occasions finds himself subject to an everlasting flux that gives place to the unpredictable manifestation of chance.
This ephemeral interface – the ice which slowly melts responding to touch with bare hands and with the projection surface – is the tool with which one writes his écritures; the utmost place for errors, mistakes, the space inhabited by imprecision is the same where randomness is nurtured. The yet-to-be-text escaping control, advancing subtly beyond the limits of the vernacular, presenting the visitor with short dada-inspired poetry as a result of his paradoxical endeavor in which at each moment one fights against and in favor of this system.
This concept allows to you to experience immersion and effortless navigation in new ways. New types of interactions involving near-to-eye displays, gaze direction tracking, 3D audio, 3D video, gesture and touch. Through these new types of social linkages people will be connected in innovative ways between the physical and digital worlds.
A project developed by my friend Vanessa de Michelis at 6th Sound and Music Computer Conference in Casa Da Música , Portugal. Three routes within the city of porto were chosen. The GPS coordinates were traced during a soundwalk, where the audible range was recorded in 4 different layers (stereo channels): binaural, ultrasonic frequencies, electromagnetic emissions, underwater sound (for the river side) and solid vibrations with contact microphones (for the metro route).
This project was Vanessa de Michelis e foi apresentado na 6ª Conferência de “Sound and Music Computer” em Portugal.
One commom asked question is “where I can get a degree in Interaction Design”. So, I organized a little list with some (not all) courses that I really like, including some courses in Brazil (where I live today
MIT Media Lab, USA (MSc and PhD)
This course does not need a introduction, MIT is the most acclaimed technology univesity in the world. I have to mention that the Tangible Interfaces concept was created at Media Labs studies. The course is a big production studio, hands on all the time. One disadvantaged is that you have to do a MSc before get a PhD there.
Umea Universitet, Sweden (MSc)
The course is at Sweden, the native language in this course is english tough. The univesity has a very big campus. It is a course where many projects appear in the concept phase.
Domus Academy, Italy (MSc)
The classes are in Italian. It also has a lot of concepts and it is at the same time a experimentation lab. The course lasts only 11 months.
Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design, Denmark (Specialization)
It’s like MIT in Europe! It’s also a practical course, where the student learns a little bit about programming. The results are excellent projects of Physical Computing and Tangible Interfaces. Unfortunately the course is not a recognized MSc, it is an specialization course.
Technische Universiteit, Netherlands (MSc and PhD)
A good balance between practical and theorical approach. The TU/Einhover is a very diverse, there’s a lot of works about evaluation and prototyping being produced there.
PUC MG, Belo Horizonte (Specialization)
I was a student there, and I’m happy to be a teacher now. The course is focused on research and the production is very important there. Worth the portuguese studies
Faber Ludens, Curitiba (Specialization)
This couse has Frederick Van Amstel as a coordinator, his blog about usability bacame very popular in Brazil. The couse is focused on production and experimentation. There’s a sort of cool prototypes in exhibition in their site.
