| NSF Org: |
IIS Division of Information & Intelligent Systems |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | August 27, 2010 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | August 27, 2010 |
| Award Number: | 1017693 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Ephraim Glinert
IIS Division of Information & Intelligent Systems CSE Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering |
| Start Date: | September 1, 2010 |
| End Date: | August 31, 2013 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $268,712.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $268,712.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
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| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
106 CENTRAL ST WELLESLEY HILLS MA US 02481-8203 (781)283-2079 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
106 CENTRAL ST WELLESLEY HILLS MA US 02481-8203 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | HCC-Human-Centered Computing |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.070 |
ABSTRACT
Over the past two decades, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research has generated a broad range of interaction styles that move beyond the desktop into new physical and social contexts. Key areas of innovation in this respect are tabletop, tangible, and embodied user interfaces. These interaction styles leverage users' existing knowledge and skills of interaction with the real non-digital world, thus we refer to them as reality-based interfaces (RBI). RBIs offer a natural, intuitive, and often collaborative form of interaction that reduces the mental effort required to learn and operate a computational system. While these advances in HCI have been successfully applied to a broad range of application domains, little research has been devoted to investigating reality-based interaction in the context of scientific discovery. However, it is particularly important to study reality-based interaction in this context where reducing users' mental workload and supporting collaborative work could lead to new scientific discoveries. The goals of this research are to design, develop, and evaluate the benefits of a tabletop reality-based interface for collaborative exploration of heterogeneous genomic information. The investigation will focus on how tabletop reality-based interaction can support collaborative research and facilitate new discoveries. Specifically, the investigator will address two questions: What is the key computational functionality required to enable an effective use of a tabletop reality-based interface for genomic research? And, can reality-based interface improve users? work flow and facilitate the development of new biological insights?
This research program addresses a number of broader impacts. First, successful results of this project will foster collaboration and improve work flow in genomic research, thus, may lead to new scientific discoveries. This investigation will contribute a design, implementation and validation of a tabletop reality-based interface that supports collaborative genomic research, and a set of design requirements for supporting collaborative scientific discovery in areas where vast amounts of heterogeneous information is explored. Second, this project will train undergraduate female researchers, making them an integral part of the research team. Finally, the project will have a significant impact on three computing and science courses in a women?s college.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
The goals of this project were to design, develop, and evaluate the benefits of a tabletop reality-based interface for collaborative exploration of genomic information.
The main research question explored focuses on how novel tabletop human-computer interaction techniques can support collaborative research and facilitate new discoveries.
The intellectual merit of this project consists of the following contributions:
1) Design requirements for supporting collaborative learning and discovery in genomics. We identified design requirements based on a comprehensive user study that included interviews and observations with genomic scientists.
2) The design, implementation and validation of a tabletop multi-touch interface, called G-nome Surfer, that supports collaborative research and improves current information workflow in genomic research. We developed two different version of G-nome Surfer for exploring prokaryotic and eukaryotic genomes. Both interfaces supports searching, annotating, organizing, and relating large amounts of heterogeneous genomic information while facilitating collaborative work.
3) An understanding of the benefits provided by tabletop reality-based interaction to collaborative learning of genomics in comparison to state-of-the-art graphical user interfaces. We conducted both experimental and deployment studies and found that G-nome Surfer was successfully integrated in the college laboratory ecology. It increased student performance in terms of accuracy and reduced mental workload compared to existing bioinformatics tools. It also facilitated various problem solving strategies that were not supported by the traditional desktop environments.
4) A set of design considerations for tabletop interfaces that facilitate collaborative exploration of large amounts of heterogeneous information. These design considerations characterize the design space of tabletop interactions and highlight novel interaction techniques for exploring large data sets using interactive surfaces. These considerations could be applied to the practical development of future bioinformatics tools.
Results from this project were published in esteemed scientific journals and conferences. Findings were presented in prestigious national and international venues.
The broader impacts of this project include:
1) This project sparked discussion among genomic scientists and gained interest from leading for- and non- profit organization in genomics regarding the benefit of multi-touch and tabletop interaction techniques. This project is like;y to inform the development of future bioinformatics tools.
2) The training and mentorship of 9 female undergraduate students in human-centered computing research. Students involved in this project are currently enrolled in leading graduate programs in Computer Science, or are working in major companies, pursuing career in computing. Since women are underrepresented group in computing, training women in computing research could lead to important societal impacts.
3) This research have had a significant curricular impact. The equipment supported by this grant was used in three courses in a leading women college: Human-Computer Interaction, Tangible User Interfaces, and Neurons, Networks, and Behavior. The courses of Human-Computer Interaction and Tangible User Interfaces provide a pipeline for students to join human-centered computing research.
The tabletop interfaces developed through this project were deployed in the intermediate college-level Neuroscience course Neurons, Networks, and Behavior, as well as used by a team of student researchers in Boston University studying tuberculosis. The use of the G-nome Surfer interface has been shown to improve learning and engagement.
4) This project also proposes a model for interdisciplinary collaboration between faculty and students from computer science, biology, and design. Considering that students graduate into a world with opportunities and challenges of ever growing complexity. Training students to work in cross disciplinary teams is of utmost importance.
Last Modified: 11/26/2013
Modified by: Orit Shaer
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