No abstract
Emerging mixed reality (MR) technologies, such as Microsoft HoloLens, present many exciting opportunities to the heritage sector. For example, the development of immersive experiences within gallery, library, archive, and museum (GLAM) spaces. Previous work on virtual and augmented reality (AR/VR) in such spaces is often limited to meta-layers of information beyond traditional modes. However, the affordances of MR potentially offer new ways to design content beyond AR/VR that can engage users as performers upon the stage of historically resonant and artistically charged places. This work-in-progress paper examines the case of the Augmented Telegrapher under development at Porthcurno Museum. A pilot study with 30 participants examined how to situate the Augmented Telegrapher into the context of a multi-player game, with particular attention given to which interaction style is more suitable: the use of sensors and gestures to manipulate virtual objects, or a tangible user interface grounded by relevant physical objects. Experimentation reveals a statistically significant difference in time taken to complete a data entry task (d = 1.32, p < .01) and data entry errors (d = 1.24, p < .01). This highlights several challenges in the manipulation of virtual objects, most notably the difficulty of manipulating virtual objects using unnatural maps of artificial gestures to intentions. This work-in-progress paper briefly outlines future directions in response to these challenges, paving the way towards an interaction design blueprint for mixed-reality experiences in GLAM spaces.
Group projects are a common feature of undergraduate degree programmes in computing. Early and sustained collaboration helps students to strive beyond introductory programming towards professional software development. However, during their first year of study, students can find teamwork challenging. To equip learners with the foundational knowledge, skills, and experience that they need to collaborate effectively so early in their studies, a 3-day Robot Olympics using Lego Mindstorms EV3 robots can be deployed. The exercise draws upon Salas' big-five model of teamwork, making first-year students aware of coordinating mechanisms that aid in clarifying expectations and managing conflicts. These then act as lenses for reflection and feedback. Comparing a baseline cohort in 2015-16 to a cohort in 2016-17, after the introduction of the Robot Olympics, reveals a statistically significant reduction in team discord in an assessed collaborative programming project (d = 0.76). This suggests that the Robot Olympics made a positive contribution to the design of the first computing module. Notably, helping students to enact and reflect upon their group work and related employability skills.
Immersive technologies can be used to broaden the possibilities of storytelling in heritage contexts to enrich the ways in which museum collections are interpreted and to facilitate more active engagement with history. To this end, as part of the United Kingdom’s Industrial Strategy, new models, methods, and workflows are being developed to help realise the value of such technologies across the country. However, prior art shows that immersive technologies present particular challenges with respect to usability, uptake, onboarding, sustainability, and authenticity. Towards addressing these challenges, a programme of action research has been established across a series of museums in Cornwall. Focusing upon the Augmented Telegrapher at Porthcurno Telegraph Museum, a co-designed social escape room experience that utilises the Microsoft HoloLens to simulate a telegraphy training exercise from World War 2, this article addresses what partnerships with smaller, rural establishments need to effectively realise the value of immersive technologies. Using the work of Erik Champion as a critical lens, the article shows how an iterative constructivist approach leveraging game design principles can underpin success. This is distilled into a set of recommended interaction blueprints and transdisciplinary working practices that will be of interest to curators, researchers, and serious game developers.
The renewed emphasis on computing at schools in the UK sheds light on challenges with programming pedagogy; for example, poor recruitment and retention. This poster introduces the physical programming education installation at the Institute of Imagination: the iOi-Sphere. It then outlines future research into a supporting development environment and curriculum for ages 5-16. CCS CONCEPTS • Social and professional topics → K-12 education; • Humancentered computing → Interaction design theory, concepts and paradigms; • Software and its engineering → Programming teams;
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