Manolya Kavakli

Sketching as mental imagery processing

Abstract Analysis of results of design protocols of novice and expert designers, although based on a limited number of designers, has shown that there are differences in the balance of cognitive actions between them. In this paper, we investigate the possible reasons for this imbalance in cognitive activity between the novice and expert designers in the rate of information processing driven by their relative experience in drawing production and sketch recognition. We use the theory of mental imagery to explain these differences.

Structure in idea sketching behaviour

Abstract This paper describes a study designed to investigate the structure of idea sketches, here defined as the initial free-hand drawn externalisations produced by a designer of envisioned or partially envisioned entities. In the study, participants were asked to sketch freely from memory a number of chairs and to design a chair. The results obtained from analyzing the drawing process provide clear evidence for structure in idea sketching behaviour which is largely explained by reference to either volumetrical or functional cognitive models of the recalled or designed objects. This suggests that there is an intimate relationship between the cognitive and perceptual processes that are brought to bear on the recall and design tasks and idea sketching. It is concluded that the detailed study of sketching behaviour may provide a fruitful approach to understanding the relationship between cognition, the sketch, and sketching.

Live Action Role-Playing Games Control, Communication, Storytelling, and MMORPG Similarities

Live action role-playing games share a range of characteristics with massively multi-player online games (MMOGs). Because these games have existed for more than 20 years, players of these games have a substantial amount of experience in handling issues pertinent to MMOGs. Survey and review of live action role-playing games, whose participant count can be in the thousands, reveal that features such as size, theme, game master-to-player ratio, and others interact to form complex systems that require several different groups of control tools to manage. The way that these games are managed offers a variety of venues for further research into how these management techniques can be applied to MMOGs.

Strategic knowledge differences between an expert and a novice designer

In this chapter, we explore the effect of strategic knowledge in conceptual design process by examing the differences in cognitive processes and groupings between a novice and an expert. In our previous studies, we found that the expert’s cognitive activity and productivity (in terms of image generation) were three times as high as the novice’s in the overall design process (Kavakli et al. 1999). We investigated the structure of cognitive actions in the design protocols, and found that there is evidence for the coexistence of the cognitive actions (Kavakli and Gero 2001). Certain groups of cognitive actions increase and decrease in parallel with each other in the protocols of the novice and expert designers. We suggested that the differences in the performance of designers could be attributed to the differences in the structure of those concurrent cognitive actions. Investigating the concurrent cognitive actions, we found that the expert’s cognitive actions are well organized and clearly structured, while the novice’s cognitive performance has been divided into many groups of concurrent actions. (Kavakli and Gero 2002). In this chapter, we focus on explaining the difference in performance between the expert and novice in terms of their respective strategic knowledge.

A controlled study of agoraphobia and the independent effect of virtual reality exposure therapy

Objectives: Past controlled clinical trials centred on virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET) for agoraphobia mostly used multicomponent therapy with success. However, the present paper aimed to evaluate the independent effect of VRET for agoraphobia. Methods: A controlled study involving 18 agoraphobic participants assigned to two groups: VRET only and VRET with cognitive therapy. Nine specific virtual environments were developed using an affordable game level editor. Results: Questionnaires, behavioural tests and physiological measures indicated a positive effect of VRET. Correlations supported the predictive value of presence towards treatment outcome. The addition of cognitive therapy did not provide significant additional benefit. Conclusions: Overall, the isolated effects of VRET did not seem to be significantly less than the effects of VRET combined with cognitive therapy. Future research should explore the use of other components in addition to cognitive therapy and VRET for agoraphobia as well as its possible use in patients’ homes.

A survey of speech-hand gesture recognition for the development of multimodal interfaces in computer games

Hand gestures and speech constitute one of the most important modalities in human-to-human communication. The investigation of this phenomenon has been the focus of research about multimodal interfaces for speech and hand gesture recognition in human computer interaction(HCI). Computer games, as one of the most popular application areas of HCI, are likely to make use of this technology. Integration of speech and gesture in computer games make game play more enjoyable. This article does not intend to cover exhaustively all the issues related to multimodal interface creation in computer games. We primarily discuss some of the key issues related to multimodal interfaces for speech and hand gesture recognition and present a survey of current approaches to overcome the problems faced in this area.

Learning science in a virtual reality application: The impacts of animated-virtual actors' visual complexity

As the technology in computer graphics advances, Animated-Virtual Actors (AVAs) in Virtual Reality (VR) applications become increasingly rich and complex. Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning (CTML) suggests that complex visual materials could hinder novice learners from attending to the lesson properly. On the other hand, previous studies have shown that visual complexity correlates with presence and may increase the perceived affective quality of the virtual world, towards an optimal experience or flow. Increasing these in VR applications may promote enjoyment and higher cognitive engagement for better learning outcomes. While visually complex materials could be motivating and pleasing to attend to, would they affect learning adversely? We developed a series of VR presentations to teach second-year psychology students about the navigational behaviour of Cataglyphis ants with flat, cartoon, or lifelike AVAs. To assess learning outcomes, we used Program Ratings, which measured perception of learning and perceived difficulty, and retention and transfer tests. The results from 200 students did not reveal any significant differences in presence, perceived affective quality, or learning outcomes as a function of the AVAs visual complexity. While the results showed positive correlations between presence, perceived affective quality and perception of learning, none of these correlates with perceived difficulty, retention, or transfer scores. Nevertheless, our simulation produced significant improvements on retention and transfer scores in all conditions. We discuss possible explanations and future research directions.

A robust gesture recognition algorithm based on Sparse Representation, random projections and Compressed Sensing

Compressed Sensing (CS) and Sparse Representation (SR) influenced the ways of signals are processed half a decade. The elegant solution to sparse signal recovery problem has found ground in several research fields such as machine learning and pattern recognition. The use of sparse representation and the solution of equations using ℓ1 minimization were utilized for face recognition problem under varying illumination and occlusion. Afterwards the idea was applied in biometrics to classify iris data. Similar to those studies, we use the discriminating nature of sparsity for the signals acquired in various signal domains and apply them to gesture recognition problem. The proposed algorithm in this context gives accurate recognition results over a recognition rate of 99% for user independent and 100% for user dependent gesture sets for fairly rich gesture dictionaries.

An implementation of real-time 3D interactive drama

Interactive fiction and adventure video games are narrative genres which provide the player with the option of acting as the main character of the story. However these genres do not fully match the expectations of their authors and readers because the player cannot deeply affect the storyline. This article describes a system integrating highly interactive narrative structures in a real-time 3D environment. Based on a theoretical foundation of narrative and drama, an interactive drama engine (IDE) has been implemented. It comprises an action calculus system, a text-generation system, a behavior engine, an animation engine as well as an innovative adaptive user interface. The IDE is demonstrated with two scenarios.

Designing in virtual reality (DesIRe): a gesture-based interface

In this paper, our purpose is to focus on detection of dynamic gestures and find the thresholds to detect gestures for a gesture-based system, DesIRe (DESigning In virtual REality). DesIRe treats virtual reality as a platform of virtual clay and allows realtime dynamic interaction with an object to perform a number of design operations. We developed an interface using a stereoscopic display environment and combining elements of gesture recognition and motion capture. The system architecture of DesIRe include following components: Vizard Virtual Reality Toolkit, an immersive projection system (VISOR), an optical tracking system (specifically the PPT system and the in-house gesture recognition software), and Data Input System (a data glove). In DesIRe, the user has control of a hand-shaped cursor which is guided by a single infrared LED and linked to the data glove finger states and orientation in order to provide an immediate, visual feedback. In this paper, we present an approach to represent the finger states using binary digits in gesture detection and demonstrate the thresholds. We found that thresholds are glove specific.