The thesis examines the factors that need to be considered in order to undertake successful design of user interfaces for older users. The literature on aging is surveyed for age related changes that are of relevance to interface design. The findings from the literature review are extended and placed in a human context using observational studies of older people and their supporters as these older people attempted to learn about and use computers. These findings are then applied in three case studies of interface design and product development for older users. These case studies are reported and examined in depth. For each case study results are presented on the acceptance of the final product by older people. These results show that, for each case study, the interfaces used led to products that the older people evaluating them rated as unusually suitable to their needs as older users. The relationship between the case studies and the overall research aims is then examined in a discussion of the research methodology. In the case studies there is an evolving approach used in developing the interface designs. This approach includes intensive contribution by older people to the shaping of the interface design. This approach is analyzed and is presented as an approach to designing user interfaces for older people. It was found that a number of non-standard techniques were useful in order to maximize the benefit from the involvement of the older contributors and to ensure their ethical treatment. These techniques and the rationale behind them are described. Finally the interface design approach that emerged has strong links to the approach used by the UTOPIA team based at the university of Dundee. The extent to which the thesis provides support for the UTOPIA approach is discussed.

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Streaming media and interactive television viewing experiences are becoming more commonplace with the introduction of services such as Netflix Streaming, the Apple TV, and Google TV aided by the increase adoption of broadband internet. As these services make their way into the living room, and developers struggle to accommodate more complex interaction requirements, new input methods and interfaces need to be developed. Current interfaces for controlling interactive TV and media management have typically been designed for the desktop and laptop experience, using conventional input devices like a trackpad, mouse and keyboard. These techniques are difficult to reconcile with the typical TV viewing experience. We designed an experiment to test a representative interactive TV interface with a number of emerging input technologies like the Nintendo Wiimote, Microsoft Kinect and tablet applications. We measured user performance with these devices while encumbered by a beverage and plate of food in order to simulate a living room experience. We found that while most of these technologies are suitable for navigating an Interactive TV experience, their use challenges us to rethink the user experience, and places limitations on things like button size and placement, as well as the types of UI widgets we can use. We hope these guidelines and heuristics will help in the design of future interactive TV experiences, as well as the development of novel interaction techniques for the TV viewing experience. / Graduation date: 2012 / Access restricted to the OSU Community at author's request from June 19, 2012 - June 19, 2013

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2006. / Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 191-198). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

Thesis (M.M.S.E.)--University of Delaware, 2006. / Principal faculty advisor: Robert L. Opila, Dept. of Materials Science. Includes bibliographical references.

Cellulose is a linear polysaccharide, serving as reinforcement in plant cell walls.Understanding its structure and properties is of importance in the developmentof nanostructured cellulose materials. The aim of this thesis is to address thisquestion by applying the computer simulation technique Molecular Dynamics(MD) onto an atomistic model of a native crystal form of cellulose.A molecular model of crystalline cellulose Iβ was developed and simulatedwith the GROMACS simulation software package.Temperature dependence of the crystal bulk model was investigated. A gradualtransition was observed between 350 K and 500 K in concordance with experimentalresults. The high temperature structure differed from the originalstructure in terms of crystal cell parameters, hydrogen bonding network andelastic modulus.Spin-lattice relaxation times, T1, from solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonancespectroscopy were compared with values calculated from the dynamics ofthe C4-H4 vector in MD simulations. Calculated T1 compared well with experimentallyobtained, suggesting well reproduced dynamics. Moreover, a differencein T1 of about a factor 2 was found for C4 atoms at surfaces parallel to differentcrystallographic planes. This supports a proposed explanation regarding anobserved doublet for C4 atoms in the NMR spectrum.Interaction energies between crystalline cellulose and water and 6− hydroxyhexanal(CL) were determined from simulations. Water was found to interactstronger with cellulose than CL. Moreover, the effect of grafting CL onto surfacecellulose chains was examined. For both water and CL interfaces, grafting ledto increased interaction. Electrostatic interactions were dominating in all cases,however grafting increased the importance of van der Waals interactions.The experimental approach to investigate polymer desorption by pulling itfrom a surface by the use of Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) was enlightenedwith a modelling study. A single cellulose octamer was pulled from a cellulosecrystal into water and cyclohexane. Resulting pull-off energies proved a clearsolvent effect, 300 − 400 [kJ/mole] in cyclohexane and 100 − 200 [kJ/mole] inwater.In general, MD was shown to be useful when applied in combination withfeasible experimental techniques such as NMR and AFM to increase the fundamentalunderstanding of cellulose structure and properties. / Cellulosa förstärker cellväggen i växter i form av nanostrukturerade och mycketstarka fibriller. För utvecklingen av nya cellulosamaterial från dessa fibriller ären förståelse för cellulosans struktur och egenskaper viktig. Syftet med dennaavhandling är att med hjälp av en atomistisk modell och molekyldynamiskadatorsimuleringar (MD) öka kunskapen om cellulosa på atomär nivå.En atomistisk modell av kristallin cellulosa Iβ utvecklades och simuleradesmed simuleringsprogrampaketet GROMACS.Temperaturberoendet hos kristallin cellulosa i bulk undersöktes. Mellan350 K och 500 K skedde en gradvis kristallin strukturomvandling. Vid högre temperaturhade cellulosan annorlunda kristall-enhetscellsparametrar, vätebindingsmönsteroch elastisk modul jämfört med orginalstrukturen.Systemet cellulosa-vatten har stor praktisk betydelse. Spinn-gitter-relaxationstiderT1 beräknades därför från dynamiken hos C4-H4-vektorn i MD-simuleringaroch jämfördes med värden uppmätta med fastfas-NMR. De beräknadevärdena stämde väl överens med de experimentella och dynamiken vid ytan kanantas vara välreproducerad i modellen. Dessutom kunde en skillnad i T1 meden faktor 2 för C4-atomer på ytkedjor vid olika kristallografiska plan påvisas.Simuleringsresultaten stödjer därmed en tidigare föreslagen förklaring till endubblett för C4-atomer i cellulosans NMR-spektrum.Växelverkansenergier mellan cellulosa och polymeren PCL är intressant förnanokompositmaterial. Därför bestämdes växelverkansenergier mellan kristallincellulosa och vatten och cellulosa och 6-hydroxyhexanal (CL). Växelverkan mellancellulosa med vatten visade sig vara större än mellan cellulosa och CL.Ympning av CL-molekyler på cellulosaytan ledde till ökad växelverkan för såvälgränsytor mot vatten som mot CL. Elektrostatisk växelverkan dominerade vidsamtliga gränsytor, även om CL-ympning orsakade ökad andel av van der Waalskrafter.Polymerdesorption kan undersökas med hjälp av atomkraftmikroskopi (AFM).Ett simulerat experiment med MD utfördes därför genom att en cellulosaoktamerdrogs från en cellulosayta in i vatten eller cyklohexan. Det krävdes avsevärtmindre energi att dra loss oktameren i cyklohexan (300−400 kJ/mol) jämförtmed vatten (100 − 200 kJ/mol). Resultaten analyserades i termer av specifikväxelverkan mellan cellulosaoktameren och identifierbara kemiska grupper påcellulosaytan.MD har stor potential att öka förståelsen för cellulosa på molekylär nivå.MD-simuleringar kan inspirera experimentella mätningar genom upptäckter avnya fenomen. MD kan dessutom tillföra nya aspekter vid analys av experimentellaresultat. Det har i avhandlingen demonstrerats för metoder som NMR,AFM, mekanisk provning och mätning av termisk utvidgning / QC 20100621

"Affordance" is an ecological psychology which can explain the interaction between the natural environment and its physical property of material with a combination of biology. This concept is first applied on interface design by Norman. Gaver also uses this theory to provides a evaluate framework for separating affordances from the perceptual information available about them. To those traditional book readers, the interface design of e-book is one of the reasons they refuse to use it. The user experiences of traditional reading are also have a serious effect on the e-book design. Designers of e-book cannot determine they should provide more traditional way to read or they can just make a whole new user experience on electronic reading. The goal of this study is to use ¡§Affordances¡¨ to discuss the difference between electronic and traditional reading, by using common tasks of traditional and electronic reading to observe user¡¦s action and performance. The main results are the following: the performance of e-book which this study used is lower than traditional book, because 1) Information on the interface is not clear that users may confuse, or make a wrong action. 2) Some functions didn¡¦t provide any instructions or information that can help users to know how to action. 3) The hardware of e-book is too slow that cannot reflect user¡¦s action. The main discussions of e-book as affordance approach are the following. 1) When there are multiple affordances available to choose, users will pick the most efficient one they perceived. 2) If users experienced some difficulty during action, they may choose another affordance to complete task. 3) If the perceived information of icon has multiple meanings to the users, it will cause a false or hidden affordance.

Searching for resources that are related to time periods or events can be frustrating and even problematic since it is often bound to keyword matching or prior knowledge of the exact dates of occurrence. Additionally, the ordered and itemized list that is often returned as a result is unable to provide the required affordances and constraints that users need and desire to conduct scholarly research properly. The following thesis proposes the implementation of timelines and calendar-based interfaces to browse and search through the life events and artworks documented in the Online Picasso Project. The affordances, constraints and inherent visual nature of the proposed interfaces aid scholars and general users in answering questions regarding the relationship between life events and artworks of the famous Spanish artist. The temporal interfaces are used specifically in the context of the Online Picasso Project and provide several advantages over standard HTML interfaces.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Lehigh University, 2000. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-152).

Akademisk avhandling--oorganisk Kemi--Göteborgs universitet, 2002. / Bibliogr. p. 86-92.