25.02.2021, starts at 15:00
1.Lecturer
Cyntha Wieringa
Title of 1st lecture
Can Computers be Non-Binary? Studying the role of gender in the four research areas of VRVis Vienna
Abstract 1st lecture
Research has shown that incorporating sex and gender analysis into experimental design improves scientific and technological innovation and increases its social robustness. Furthermore, because scientific institutions such as funding agencies and the European Commission are increasingly bringing gender inclusivity to the foreground, the popularity of engaging in such analysis is additionally on the rise. This master thesis in the field of Science and Technology Studies aims to uncover through the means of qualitative interviews with VRVis researchers how the topic of gender plays a role within the four different research areas of the company. Utilized for the analysis are existing methodologies for uncovering potential gender aspects in computer science projects. Within the different research areas at VRVis, the topic of gender plays a very different role in the reflections in the different areas, related to how directly their work affects humans. Furthermore, within the reflections of the VRVis researchers, gender was most often conceptualized as the literal amount of men and women involved in the projects, and less often focused on the effects of sociocultural conceptions of male and female on the development of technology. Lastly, because VRVis is a research institution that is often involved in the development of prototypes and is therefore not in a position to develop all its technology to the fullest, it is a open but important question when and by whom gender should be reflected upon in the entire trajectory of the innovation process.
2nd lecturer
Bernhard Pointer, VRVis
Title 2nd lecturer
User-Centered Data Visualization Recommender System Based on Draco
Abstract 2nd lecturer
Effective information visualization is becoming crucial with today’s increasing number of data and its complexity. For a long time, only researchers and data analysts, so-called experts, have been associated with analytical tasks and the process of visualizing complex data. However, with increasing digitization, not only experts process data, but also many other people are confronted with data visualizations in their daily life. The process of finding and selecting the right visual mapping between data and its visualization is still mostly a manual specification task, because of the lack of an appropriate and broadly available automated system to create suitable visualizations. For the manual selection and creation process ofvisualization, the user must be familiar with design guidelines and principles, such as the Gestalt laws, Weber’s Law, Steven’s Law, and similar. Visualization recommendation systems like Draco try to mimic this task and to automatically select proper visualizations. The aim of this thesis is to extend Draco to a more user-centered data visualization recommendation system where it will be possible to better understand which rules lead to the suggestion of certain visualizations. In this talk we will introduce Draco and the ideas for the planned master's thesis.
The lectures will take place online. For access data please contact office(at)vrvis.at!
Registration
The lectures will take place online. For access data please contact office(at)vrvis.at!