HCI

Content: The seminar by Dr Kahol was a good follow up to the lecture on HCI where he introduced his research and very positive outlook on the future of computer simulation  in medicine.
Just as BMI is an integration of various fields, I see HCI as an amalgamation of computer science, ergonomics, industrial engineering, psychology (cognitive science), anthropology (social and cultural aspects of using computers for humans).
If you look at the Human Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Melon University you notice they have people from humanities and social sciences, industrial engineering, fine arts,software engineering, technology. Their research project list is so extensive that I was humbled by the scope of this field. This particular project on Alzhemiers Disease where they are trying to develop a memory logging device for people with recent memory loss which can probably help slower the progression of the disease. Its a really interesting idea (I think Stuart will be particularly interested) and here is a link to that project
http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~mllee/mem.html
Their other research projects can be found on this link:
http://www.hcii.cmu.edu/research/projects
(Just an an aside also do watch Randy Pausch's last lecture.....he is one of the most inspiring people I have ever read about/watched. He was a professor at this institute and died recently due to pancreatic cancer)
I definitely think that the human element of HCI is the most challenging part.
The SIGCHI document had an excellent diagram which puts this entire field in a nutshell. As defined by the document it explains "five interrelated aspects of human-computer interaction: (N) the nature of human-computer interaction, (U) the use and context of computers, (H) human characteristics, (C)computer system and interface architecture, and (D) the development process, project presentations and examinations (P)".
I definitely think that usability is the most important factor of any HCI along with the cost. If these alll development is focused around these two aspects, the results should be promising.
As stresses by Dr Kahol, I too think that universality is also an important aspect.
The use of gaming consoles and "Tangible User Interface" in medicine to design simulators was discussed in the seminar very effectively. Multitouch interfaces uses more than one touch from the user to interact with a system and I see the use of the same designing large touchscreens where the user can use both hands and all fingers to manipulate the image. I am still thinking of its uses in BMI.


Posted b: Sheetal Shetty