Awakenings - Prof. Lizbeth Goodman's Talk

Prof. Goodman is the director of a team of professional new media artists, technologists, urban planners and engineers conducting collaborative research into the transdisciplinary fields of technology development and art, e-health, e-inclusion, haptics and ‘art-sci’. Her fields of speciality are gender & representation in the digital media and the creation of learning games developed with and for people with disabilities and ‘non-standard’ gamers. Lizbeth presented a short informative DVD presentation which outlined the institute’s main areas of research. SMART labs extensive list of current projects includes:

• MINDtouch - Embodiment Theory & User Interface Design (BBC project): To work with biofeedback sensor technologies on the bodies of Tai Chi practitioners and Mediators’ in tandem with mobile phone technology to find unique and meaningful ways to work with and visualize the mind/body activity in various states of movement, stillness and meditation.

• InterFACES - The human face of assistive technologies: Testing the effectiveness of available tools for using eye movement as a control mechanism for communications by people with little or no other voluntary muscle movement.

• MAGIC and PLAYroom - The PLAYroom provides SPACE for free play: projects based in the PLAYroom will focus exclusively on gaming and play, whilst emphasising knowledge transfer, partnership with the private and public sectors, commercial development, and virtual and real world community projects. The PLAYroom is a hub of activity within UEL, drawing together researchers from across disciplines and building on UEL's existing areas of comparative.

• MAGICBOX - Accessible Tech Personal & Community Fabrication: The MAGICBOX workshop enables fabrication of computer generated design models. We are a SMARTlab research and development center located in the MAGIC room. Our goal is to develop accessible systems for desktop manufacturing, peer production and digital materialization. We are interested in the application of this technology to disadvantaged population groups.

• TRUST - The Butterfly Factory: A storytelling game with human movement interaction triggered by a haptic chair.

• HOPE: Gives chronically ill children the opportunity to escape stresses inherent in their conditions by providing distraction through gaming and comfort via peer contact.

To conclude Lizbeth stated that SMART Labs are actively looking for new communities or universities to start new partnerships.