This investigation explores relations between 1) a theory of human cognition, called Embodied Cognition, 2) the design of interactive systems and 3) the practice of ‘creative group meetings’ (of which the so-called ‘brainstorm’ is perhaps the best-known example). The investigation is one of Research-through-Design (Overbeeke et al., 2006). This means that, together with students and external stakeholders, I designed two interactive prototypes. Both systems contain a ‘mix’ of both physical and digital forms. Both are designed to be tools in creative meeting sessions, or brainstorms. The tools are meant to form a natural, element in the physical meeting space. The function of these devices is to support the formation of shared insight: that is, the tools should support the process by which participants together, during the activity, get a better grip on the design challenge that they are faced with. Over a series of iterations I reflected on the design process and outcome, and investigated how users interacted with the prototypes.
Abstract: Embodied embedded cognition (EEC) has gained support in cognitive science as well as in human–computer interaction (HCI). EEC can be characterized both by its action-centeredness as well as its roots in phenomenology. The phenomenological aspects of EEC could be seen as support for trends in design emphasizing the user experience. Meanwhile, usability issues often are still approached using traditional methods based on cognitivist assumptions. In this paper, I argue for a renewed focus on improving usability from an EEC perspective. I draw mainly on a behavior-oriented interpretation of the theory, the key aspects of which are reviewed. A tentative sketch for an embodied embedded usability is proposed, doing justice to the embodied embedded nature of interaction while retaining the goal of developing technology that is easy to use in everyday practice.
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Methodological challenges are rarely discussed in depth among outdoor adventure tourism scholars. Despite the prevailing qualitative approaches in this field, and the recognition that the fleetingness of the human experience and the non-linearity and unpredictability of the more-than-human world have the power to influence the research process, the messy, negotiated and often contested researcher’s role has been less considered. In addressing this, the aim here is to critically discuss the methodological approach to explorations of the outdoor experiences through deconstructing the researcher’s role. Through renderings of the existentialist propositions of being in the world and a poststructuralist philosophy of fluidity and flux, the attention is granted to embodied experiences as a way of generating knowledges. Being situated in the research setting, space is created for interrogation of the processual dimensions of commodified outdoor journeys from an emic, researcher-as-tourist perspective. Research in the outdoor scenaria is by no means a linear process but rather a messy, complex and often ruptured journey, further complicated by the ethical concerns, struggles and idiosyncrasies of the researcher. I thus discuss the nuances and complexities of doing the embodied research and the haphazard ways of data collection. In shifting attention to more existential aspects of being in the outdoors through the process of post-experiential reflections, discomfort emerged as a critical quality of the outdoor experience. I thus illuminate the significance of embodied research and epiphenomenal discoveries in the production of new knowledges, to which greater attention, both in theoretical and methodological conversations, should be paid in the future.
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The climate change and depletion of the world’s raw materials are commonly acknowledged as the biggest societal challenges. Decreasing the energy use and the related use of fossil fuels and fossil based materials is imperative for the future. Currently 40% of the total European energy consumption and about 45% of the CO2 emissions are related to building construction and utilization (EC, 2015). Almost half of this energy is embodied in materials. Developing sustainable materials to find replacement for traditional building materials is therefore an increasingly important issue. Mycelium biocomposites have a high potential to replace the traditional fossil based building materials. Mycelium is the ‘root network’ of mushrooms, which acts as a natural glue to bind biomass. Mycelium grows through the biomass, which functions simultaneously as a growth substrate and a biocomposite matrix. Different organic residual streams such as straw, sawdust or other agricultural waste can be used as substrate, therefore mycelium biocomposites are totally natural, non-toxic, biological materials which can be grown locally and can be composted after usage (Jones et al., 2018). In the “Building On Mycelium” project Avans University of Applied Sciences, HZ University of Applied Sciences, University of Utrecht and the industrial partners will investigate how the locally available organic waste streams can be used to produce mycelium biocomposites with properties, which make them suitable for the building industry. In this project the focus will be on studying the use of the biocomposite as raw materials for the manufacturing of furniture or interior panels (insulation or acoustic).
On a societal scale, the ‘problem with work’ is that everyone is exhausted, job security has been replaced by ‘flex work’ and much important work had been invisibilised. While billions of people are displaced and illegalized from work, others have physical/ mental conditions caused by work. The problem with work merits scrutiny not only from medical, corporate or legal perspectives. It needs tackling without an agenda of productivity, with an open regard and embodied, intuitive research. Artistic research has this scope. It taps into knowledges that are underused/repressed, by involving the body, harnessing intuition, experience and situatedness, and activating a plurality of voices. The aim of this research is to gain a deeper understanding of what is (not) work, who we are when we perform work, and when we don’t or are not able to work. Why are certain activities or roles called work and what happens when the term is applied to activities that are not normally deemed work, but which include comparable elements? Three research questions are addressed: 1. What can be learned about work by regarding every job, or all the work, as a performance? 2. What can be learned about performance (art) by looking at it through the lens of work? 3. What are ethical practices in collaborative and participative work processes? The research is carried out through an artistic approach that contains a particular way of making, teaching and researching which is collaborative, performative and transdisciplinary. It proposes the body as a thinking apparatus, experience as a way of gathering information and doing, writing, exchanging and performing as both method and dissemination. This research aims to contribute to a better understanding of what work is in our lives. The research has social, artistic and educational targets and target groups, which are also intertwined.
The climate change and depletion of the world’s raw materials are commonly acknowledged as the biggest societal challenges. Decreasing the energy use and the related use of fossil fuels and fossil based materials is imperative for the future. Currently 40% of the total European energy consumption and about 45% of the CO2 emissions are related to building construction and utilization (EC, 2015). Almost half of this energy is embodied in materials. Developing sustainable materials to find replacement for traditional building materials is therefore an increasingly important issue. In the original RAAK-mkb project “Building On Mycelium” Avans University of Applied Sciences, HZ University of Applied Sciences, University of Utrecht, industrial partners, SME’s and branch organisation are investigating how locally available organic waste streams can be used to produce ‘mycelium biocomposites’. Mycelium biocomposites consist of two components: mycelium and biomass fibres. Mycelium is the ‘root network’ of mushrooms, which can act as a ‘natural glue’ to bind biomass. Mycelium grows through the biomass, which functions simultaneously as a growth substrate and a biocomposite matrix. Different organic residual streams such as straw, sawdust or other agricultural waste can be used as substrate, therefore mycelium biocomposites are totally natural, non-toxic, biological materials which can be grown locally and can be composted after usage. Therefore Mycelium biocomposites have a high potential to replace the traditional fossil based building materials. This Raak impuls 2020 project aims to create mycelium biocomposites with properties that make them suitable for the building industry. Specifically the use of the biocomposite as raw materials for the manufacturing of furniture or interior panels (insulation or acoustic).
