Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 125-127). / This thesis presents a methodology and framework for designing systems that apply real-time simulation of computational models throughout the modeling and parameter modification stages of problem solving for graph based problems. An interactive problem solving technique is presented where the lines between problem modeling and simulation are blurred, enhancing the outcome of traditional problem solving. To demonstrate the versatility of the framework and methodology, two applications not normally thought of as graph problems - a circuit design application and an airport passenger flow application - are developed and tested. Three user studies test various parts of the framework, as well as the overall concept of real-time simulation on an interactive workbench. The first study provides quantitative support for the efficacy of the interaction technique chosen for manipulating graph structures. The second provides observational results of using the circuit design application to teach physics. The third addresses whether blurred lines of modeling and analysis enhance problem solving. / by Daniel Chak. / S.M.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2011. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 75-77). / Current employment technology typically relies on the concept of a CV or resume -a highly precise and constructed document. The creation of this document requires intricate knowledge of a process that is often opaque to those living in developed nations, who rely on training and experience to write compelling CV's. For those living in developing countries, this process is more difficult, and for those that have no internet access or are illiterate, creating a first-world resume is nearly impossible. That said, when firstworld organizations in developing countries bring with them their expectations of hiring which may or may not fit with the natives of that country. We propose a system, "Konbit," that creates a cultural and technological bridge between those with skills in developing countries and those with first-world expectations of potential employees. This platform allows literate or illiterate workers to describe their skills and life experiences as story-like messages in their native language, requires no technological upgrades from these workers, and transforms and offers this data as deep, humanized characterizations of potential employees. Non-profit organizations (NGOs) and government organizations (GOs) can search this data in a technologically modern format, viewing an automatically constructed resume for each caller. While other systems attempt to create miniature CV's via SMS-based messaging, these systems are not accessible by the illiterate and impose western CV-based culture onto applicants, resulting in low-fidelity representations given that SMS text messages are by nature short and inappropriate for extensive data input. Given the focus on the most is connected workers, Konbit deployed and received data from over 10,000 people in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, where the literacy rate, at the time of writing, was around 50% and the unemployment rate was more than 80%. This system was also beta-tested with 30 Haitian-Americans in Miami, Florida. The implications of the thesis will be relevant to any area - developed or developing - that is affected by illiteracy, poor training, or cultural gaps between workers and employers, and may serve as a more effective tool for employee characterization and interviewing in all job sectors. / by Greg Elliott. / S.M.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2012. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 77-80). / This thesis aims to assess the feasibility of an updatable three-dimensional display based on the direct fringe writing of computer-generated holographic gratings into a novel photorefractive polymer. The photorefractive polymer in question has been developed by Nitto Denko Technical Corporation and has many attractive properties for the 3-D display application, including long image persistence, rapid erasure, high diffraction efficiency, and large area; however, current holographic display systems based around its use involve interference methods that complicate their optical and computational architectures. The direct fringe writing architecture under question is poised as a simplifying and enhancing alternative to previous demonstrations of updatable holographic displays in photorefractive polymeric materials based around such conventional interference-based holographic stereogram techniques. In addition to simplifying optical architectures, direct fringe writing can allow for complete control of recorded hologram characteristics; interference fringes can be computed to simulate any arbitrary reference beam geometry and wavefront curvature. The system concept - comprised of fringe pattern generation on computer, fringe pattern transfer from SLM to photorefractive polymer, and spatial multiplexing for large-image generation - reintroduces accommodation cues to the resulting holographic images and represents a reduction of system footprint, complexity, and cost relative to the current interference-based systems. The adaptation of the Diffraction Specific Coherent Panoramagram fringe computation method - originally developed to drive AOM-based holographic displays at video rates while preserving all depth cues, including accommodation - to the current display architecture is presented and methods for direct fringe transfer from SLM to photorefractive polymer are depicted. Such methods for direct fringe writing are explored in simulation and experiment. Theoretical arguments for system performance are formulated in the context of a wave optics-based system analysis. Preliminary results of horizontal parallax-only images on this display are presented and directions for performance improvements and system extensions are explored. / by Sundeep Jolly. / S.M.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2003. / Page 117 blank. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 78-79). / Homes in the future will contain many new and complex activities, becoming centers for work, commerce, learning, proactive health care, distributed energy production, etc.. The baby boomer and GenX population are demanding choice and tailored solutions in all products they buy, including homes. The combination of societal and market forces will require new ways of designing, building, and integrating technologies into places of living. The housing industry, however, is poorly prepared for this future, creating mostly generic low-grade, inflexible, disruptive-to-upgrade, and high-maintenance products. Few are tailored to the unique and changing needs of its occupants. The industry lacks a process that will lead to the customization of homes that respond to the unique values and needs of occupants, and architects/engineers play no significant role in the creation of most places of living. To address these problems, I propose that a new model for design and construction that places the consumer in the center of the design process. In this model, developers become integrators / (cont.) offering a process for customization; architects create design engines and computational critics rather than a single design; industry provides tailored product and service information directly to the consumer at the point of decision; and fabricators receive data to manufacture customized cabinetry-like components for just- in-time delivery and assembly. To demonstrate and test the viability of this approach, I have built a participative design platform for non-experts that could be used by consumers to drive informed customization of their home. Central to this process is an interface that allows consumers to access sophisticated design tools without requiring them to think like an expert designer - providing the information and visualization needed to make informed decisions about adjacencies, form, materials, appliances, etc.. This approach could be extended to include the configuration of customized technologies and services. If adopted by industry, such a strategy could create powerful incentives for innovation. / by Thomas John McLeish. / S.M.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 183-188). / The complexity of the school, society and policy, and dominant cultural beliefs about teaching, learning, and knowledge constrain people's mindsets, paradoxically preventing the fundamental changes that can take advantage of new technologies and address the inadequacies of current educational systems. The same constraints permeate reform efforts as most often the educational establishment tests the transformation of the system one element at a time while attempting to hold all other elements constant, thereby inhibiting more profound changes. The promise of one-to-one computer infrastructure provides such a dramatic alternative to current educational systems that it forces us to think about change at a deeper level, leaving us with the challenge of where to begin. The fundamental aim of this thesis is to study the potential of the one-to-one computer infrastructure as a catalyst for change. This thesis presents a holistic model for rural school that builds on a rich body of Constructionist learning research. Key components of the holistic model are: sufficient amount of student-owned technology which can accompany them as they interact at home and in the broader community; activities that are designed with sufficient scope to encourage the appropriation of powerful ideas; and, teacher engagement in activity design with simultaneous support from a knowledge network of local and international colleagues and mentors. I introduce the concept of "whole-project" learning, which strategically integrates the elements of the model, and introduces a learning approach that is fundamentally different from the existent methodology of work. / (cont.) The thesis findings rely on data collected during the one year intervention. This longitudinal study of a one-teacher school in Costa Rica over the course of the year allows me to present stories of change as well as a more quantitative analysis of the learning activities. The results of the study suggest that in order for appropriation to occur, three conditions are salient: computational technology must be mobile and owned by the students so that learning becomes integral to the culture of the community; activities need to be of a scale and quality that children and teachers can make rich connections to powerful ideas; and, participation and voice must be inclusive. / by Claudia M. Urrea. / Ph.D.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 78-81). / This thesis discusses the design and implementation of Hyperscore, a computer-assisted composition system intended for users of all musical backgrounds. Hyperscore presents a unique graphical interface which takes input in the form of freehand drawing. The strokes in the drawing are mapped to structural and gestural elements in the music, allowing the user to describe the large scale-structure of a piece visually. Hyperscore's graphical notation also enables the depiction of musical ideas on a detailed level. Additional annotations around a main curve indicate the placement and emphasis of selected motives. These motives are short melodic fragments that are either composed by the user or selected from a set of pre-composed material. Changing qualitative aspects of the annotations such as texture and shape let the user alter different musical parameters. The ultimate goal of Hyperscore is to provide an intuitive, interactive graphical environment for creating and editing compositions. / by Mary Farbood. / S.M.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Media Arts & Sciences, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 108-112). / by Earl Rennison. / M.S.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2012. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 69-73). / If we are to learn the effects of the environment and our day-to-day actions, and choices on our physiology, we must develop systems that will label biophysiological senor data with contextual information. In this thesis I first present an architecture and implementation of FEEL: a system for the acquisition, processing and visualization of biophysiological signals and contextual information. The system comprises a mobile client application (FMC) and a backend server, The mobile client collects contextual information: phone call details, email reading details, calendar entries, and user location at a fixed interval that is transmitted to the backend server. The backend server stores the contextual information and biophysiological signal data that is uploaded by the user, processes the information and provides a novel interface for viewing the combined data. Next, I present the results of a 10-day user study in which users wore Electrodermal Activity (EDA) wrist sensors that measured their autonomic arousal levels. These users were requested to upload the sensor data and annotate it at the end of the day at first, and then after two days. One group of users had access to both the signal and the full contextual information collected by the mobile phone and the other group could only access the bio physiological signal. At the end of the study the users were asked to fill in a System Usability Scale (SUS) questionnaire, a user experience survey and a Toronto-Alexithymia (TAS-20) questionnaire. My results show that the FEEL system enables the users to annotate bio-physiological signals at a greater effectiveness than the current state of the art. Finally, I showed that there is a correlation between a person's ability to determine their own arousal level and their score on the Toronto-alexithymia test: the less alexythymic they were, the better their correlation between the EDA and their self-reported arousal. / by Yadid Ayzenberg. / S.M.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 135-148). / This dissertation introduces haptic holography, a combination of computational modeling and multimodal spatial display, as an early computationalplastic In this work, we combine various holographic displays with a force feedback device to image free-standing material surfaces with programmatically prescribed behavior. We present three implementations, Touch, Lathe, and Poke, each named for the primitive functional affordance it offers. In Touch, we present static holographic images of simple geometry, reconstructed in front of the hologram plane (in the viewer's space), and precisely co-located with a force model of the same geometry. These images can be visually inspected and haptically explored using a hand-held interface. In Lathe, we again display holo-haptic images of simple geometry, this time allowing those images to be reshaped by haptic interaction in a dynamic but constrained manner. Finally in Poke, we present a holo-haptic image that permits arbitrary reshaping of its reconstructed surface. As supporting technology, we offer a new technique for incrementally computing and locally updating interference-modeled holographic fringe patterns. This technique permits electronic holograms to be updated arbitrarily and interactively, marking a long-held goal in display holography. As a broader contribution, we offer a new behavior-based spatial framework, based on both perception and action, for informing the design of spatial interactive systems. / Wendy J. Plesniak. / Ph.D.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 120-122). / by Peter W. Rice, Jr. / S.M.