October 13, 2003
Pioneer in information visualization and computing usability speaks to UW audience about ‘Leonardo’s Laptop’
WHAT:
A lecture exploring how human needs must be considered as new computing technologies emerge, followed by a book signing.
WHO:
Ben Shneiderman, professor in the Department of Computer Sciences at the University of Maryland at College Park and a pioneer in the field of information visualization and human factors as they relate to computers.
WHEN:
Thursday, Oct. 16, at 7 p.m.
WHERE:
Kane Hall, room 110 on the UW Seattle campus.
DETAILS:
The old computing was about what computers could do; the new computing is about what people can do. That’s the message that Ben Shneiderman plans to deliver Thursday as he speaks to the UW community about “Leonardo’s Laptop: Human Needs and the New Computing Technologies.” According to Shneiderman, Leonardo da Vinci could help as an inspirational muse in designing new computing technologies that emphasize empowerment, creativity and collaboration. The presentation will include examples of information visualization and personal photo interfaces; specifically, PhotoMesa (www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/photomesa) and PhotoFinder (www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/photolib).
Shneiderman is founding director of the Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory and a member of the Institute for Advanced Computer Studies and the Institute for Systems Research, all at the University of Maryland at College Park. In 1983, he pioneered the highlighted textual link, which became part of Hyperties, a precursor to the World Wide Web. He is also the author of a number of books on the human element of computing, including “Leonardo’s Laptop” and “The Craft of Information Visualization.” He will sign books after the lecture.
The UW’s Human Interface Technology Laboratory is sponsoring the lecture.
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For more information on Shneiderman’s work, see http://mitpress.mit.edu/leonardoslaptop and http://www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/newcomputing
