This study has examined whether the use of an interactive 3D model of the human brain would be a more effective way of teaching it's anatomy in comparison to traditional book and paper-based techniques. The artefact created for the project was a three dimensional model of the brain made up of several anatomical structures that could be dissected to provide the user with a more accurate sense of the spatial relationships between each structure.  The study conducted did not give sufficient information to accurately answer the research question, but interviews conducted during the experiment show interest in the technology. If developed, there could be potential for the use of this type of technology in the future.

As a reaction to developments being made by indie developers in the peripherals of the video game industry, this paper has been authored with intent to contribute to an ongoing discourse on interactive media. This paper details a study of Cardboard Computers project Kentucky Route Zero, and the means by which the player in Kentucky Route Zero has their interactions enabled within the game. A number of select scenes from the games were chosen prior to the actual process of data gathering, and these scenes were then analysed using a custom method by primarily combining methods described by Michel Chion as well as Jesse Schell. The scenes were scrutinised in search of every possibility for player interaction, and then divided into smaller, more manageable chunks where instances of interaction were further isolated and then named after a number of common characteristics. The chunks containing these instances of interaction were then compared to one another in search of functional connections. The results of the study indicates that two major types of interactions, direct and indirect, work in tandem to provide players with a mode of interaction within the game. Further research into the studied field could build on the findings of this study to different types or character of interaction, as well as the functions of more complex interactive systems.

L'interface graphique de l’application numérique, soumise à l’injonction du geste de l’utilisateur, prolonge le corps de celui-ci. Quel rapport s’établit entre l’image qui émerge et celui qui la convoque ? Que reste-t-il du message du concepteur construit par un métarécit singulier ? La diversité de chaque exploration favorise-t-elle une interprétation individuelle ? Notre problématique porte sur la tension du concept de design entre sa stratégie de communication et la contingence de son émergence liée au métarécit de l’utilisateur en liberté surveillée. Pour répondre à ces interrogations, nous émettons l’hypothèse que l’interactivité génère un récit individualisé.Nous guidons notre analyse selon trois axes, celui du design tout d’abord, ensuite celui de l’individualisation, qui souligne la dimension sensible qu’apporte l’interactivité du design au moyen d’une délégation d’énonciation envers l’utilisateur, et enfin celui du récit, qui organise le lien narratif entre le message iconique et l’utilisateur. Trois variables sont retenues (esthétique, médiatique, sémantique) et croisées afin de parvenir à circonscrire la notion de design interactif.Notre recherche pratique s’appuie sur l’analyse du site web Communicate de la webagency londonienne Hi-ReS!. Cette étude de cas rend compte des intentions du concepteur et permet d’évaluer la tension entre le message polysémique émis et le message monosémique reçu. Une expérimentation d’oculométrie a été mise en place afin d’évaluer la portée de l’interactivité sur l’attitude et le ressenti des utilisateurs. Nous avançons alors la figure métaphorique du « dess@in » afin de modéliser le design interactif comme un corps malléable individualisé, système négocié entre la stratégie de communication du designer et la production singulière de l’utilisateur. / The graphic interface of the digital application, subjected to the order of the gesture of the user, prolongs the body of this one. What connection is established between the emerging picture and the one who summoned it? What else does it remain of the message of the designer built by a singular métarécit?Does the diversity of each exploration promotes an individual interpretation? Our problem concerns the design concept of tension between its communication strategy and contingency of its emergence-related metanarrative of the user on probation. To answer these questions, we hypothesize that interactivity generates a personalized narrative. We guide our analysis in three ways, the design first, then that of individualization, which emphasizes the sensitive dimension) which brings the interactivity of the design by means of a delegation of statement to the use, and finally that of the narrative, which organizes the narrative link between the iconic message and the user. Three variables are retained (aesthetic, mediatic, semantic) and to achieve cross frame the notion of interactive design.Our research practice is based on the analysis of website Communicate of the London web agency Hi-ReS!. This case study reflects the intentions of the designer and used to evaluate the tension between the message polysemic issued and the message monosemic received. An eye-tracking experiment was set up to assess the scope of interactivity on attitude and the feelings of users. Then we move the metaphorical figure of the “dess@in" to model the interaction design as a malleable body individualized, negotiated between the system's communications strategy of designer and the singular production of user.

We live in an era where interactivity is gradually becoming more available, yet our schoolsare not catching up to this trend, instead we are faced with passive learning environmentswhere active construction of knowledge is limited. In this study we looked at theconstructivist approach to learning and compared it to the objectivist approach that iscommonly used in most schools of today. We looked at other successful interactive learningenvironment and how they may look like. We developed a passive educational video and aprototype of an interactive learning environment, where the interactive environmentworked as a supplement to the educational video. We further conducted a quantitative testthrough a questionnaire on these environments to see if the learning outcome of theinteractive learning environment outperformed the learners of the educational video. Thedata we collected did not show any significant difference between passive and interactivelearning, it did, however, show some interesting trends such as younger participants ingeneral performed better than older participants in our interactive learning environment.

The Internet as a new media has two distinct and powerful advantages: interactivity and data collection. The emergence of Web2.0 has taken advantage of these characteristics to provide a powerful platform for sharing opinions and communication in virtual communities. However, successfully managing a virtual community is the same as managing a company. The most important thing is to maintain a good relationship with its customers and retain loyal customers. Much previous research has reported that maintaining a good relationship with customers can produce long-term benefits to the organization. The purpose of this research was to investigate whether customer relationship and loyalty can be affected by the perceived interactivity of a website. We developed a research model and conducted an online survey on eight representative websites to collect data. The results show that there is no direct positive influence between the interactivity of a website and customer loyalty. However, significant indirect relationships exist. That is, the perceived interactivity of a website can affect the relationship quality, which will in turn affects customer loyalty. Relationship quality has a mediating effect between website interactivity and customer loyalty.

This thesis argues that the notion of player experience in relation to computer games is intrinsically linked to the body. Taking the idea of aesthetic experience, or sensuous experience, in computer game play as its starting point, my thesis considers computer games from within an interdisciplinary cross section of phenomenology, cultural studies and visual culture. Computer games have in a reasonably short amount of time reached a stage where they are an integral part of contemporary society: historically, economically and culturally. The current field of computer games comprises a vast array of genres, styles, stories, experiments and media. Because computer games are interactive objects, I argue that an analysis should begin with a discussion of player experience, and that this experience is inherently embodied. The embodied and temporal nature of game play means it is problematic to simply transfer established frameworks of meaning making in other audiovisual media onto computer games. The thesis attempts to understand the notion of player experience through a phenomenological reading of the interactive experience, and as such I argue that the individual, temporal and iterative aspect of this experience means computer games should not necessarily be squeezed into already established categories of earlier forms of entertainment media. Through three main chapters I explore the role of the body and embodied experience from three different points of view, roughly divided into the three aspects that make up the feedback loop of game play; hardware, software and interface. Each chapter considers the unique role and importance of the body at each point in the game play process.

FLOW operates on two levels, firstly as an engaging live performance environment and secondly as a vehicle to discuss a number of philosophical ideas relating to sound as art. As a performance piece FLOW exists to provide an inclusive interactive environment for musicians and casual visitors alike. A series of sensors allow those who enter the arena to make interventions in an immersive soundscape through their movements, opening up possibilities for the exploration of sound and gestural action within the space. The piece challenges the conventional roles of performer and spectator and offers interactive technology as a means of uniting the two. The artist creates a re-imagination of the performance paradigm based on active engagement rather than passive observance through the establishment of a circular discourse between human and computer. The following paper will also examine the nature of sound as art, suggesting that the poststructural ideas of Derrida and Deleuze and Guattari can be used as a conduit to define sonic emergences and morphologies within a Human/computer discourse, both in terms of timbral nature and spatial diffusion. Central to this is the concept that suggests the relationship between man and machine in interactive sonic art is one of energy transfer from organic fluidity to digital regulation and back to energy in the form of processed sound, according to the processes put in place. This leads into a final discussion of the nature of experimental compositional process, the choice between the determinate and the stochastic and the compromises between these that may need to be made to retain artistic coherence.

This study was designed to explore the relationships between users and interactive images. Three factors were identified and provided different perspectives on how users interact with images: image utility, information-need, and images with varying levels of interactivity. The study used a mixed methodology to gain a more comprehensive understanding about the selected factors. An image survey was used to introduce the participants to the images and recorded utility values when given a specific task. The interviews allowed participants to provide details about their experiences with the interactive images and how it affected their utility values. Findings from the study showed that images offering the highest level of interactivity do not always generate the highest utility. Factors such as personal preference, specifically speed and control of the image, affect the usefulness of the image. Participant also provided a variety of uses where access to interactive images would be beneficial. Educational settings and research tools are a few examples of uses provided by participants.

This thesis is comprised of two articles, bookended an introductory chapter and a closing chapter. The first article is called “Are We Heading in the Right Direction?: An Attribute Analysis of Physical Literacy Assessment Tools” and the second one “Physical Literacy, Interactivity, and Communication: Emergent Teacher Understandings.” This is a viewpoint that analyzes what attributes of physical literacy (Whitehead, 2010; 2019), were exemplified or overlooked in three Canadian physical literacy assessment tools used by teachers, coaches, parents, and students. The analyzed tools included the Canadian Assessment of Physical Literacy (CAPL) developed by the Healthy Active Living and Obesity (HALO) Research Group, PlayTools: Play Fun developed by Sport for Life (S4L), and Passport for Life developed by Physical and Health Education (PHE) Canada. In conclusion, all three tools included assessments of Motivation, Confidence, Competence, Awareness, and Understanding. However, only Passport for Life assessed all of Whitehead’s (2019) attributes yet, not in equal amounts. The second article aimed at describing the emergent understandings of the concept of physical literacy from the perspective of new and seasoned teachers interested in PE. By means of the exploration, recollection, and description of a vivid interactive and relationally oriented pedagogical physical activity understandings of physical literacy were described. Motion-sensing phenomenological interviews with three participants were carried out to better understand what the concept of physical literacy meant in their everyday practice. Recommendations for future research were that more attention could be placed on the least developed aspects of physical literacy, bodily communication and the role it plays in forming relational connections between students and teachers.

Spreadsheets are one of the most frequently used applications. They are used because they are easy to understand and values can be updated easily. However, many people try to use spreadsheets for problems beyond their intended scope and end up with errors and miscalculations. We present a new spreadsheet system which uses complex-values and equation code reuse to overcome the limitations of spreadsheets for complex problems. We also discuss the features necessary in order to make these enhancements useful and effective.