Welcome new PhD student Seher Singh!

Seher Singh is a new PhD student at the Nottingham School of Art and Design. She has an interdisciplinary background that consists of a MSc in Human Computer Interaction from the University of Nottingham and a BSc in Psychology from the University of Bath. She enjoys designing and conducting research studies; and her current areas of interest include Mixed Reality and User Experience. Her current work is all about Blending Real and Physical Interaction in Immersive Experiences. 

This PhD will investigate the combination of immersive displays (virtual reality) and rapid manufacturing (such as 3D printing) to create blended virtual-physical environments. Usually, everything in VR is completely virtual, but she will investigate using 3D printing, laser cutting and other low-cost, rapid fabrication processes to physically manufacture parts of the environment; then track and seamlessly integrate the physical components into the virtual environment. While this approach has been tried in several domains already, such as training and games, in this project she will take a fundamental principles approach, aiming to create a toolkit for creating and integrating physical and virtual environments. The research methods will involve human-computer interaction design, co-creation with users, iterative design and prototyping, qualitative and quantitative experiential testing in labs.

Study Creative Technologies at NTU

The new Creative Technologies MSc is open for applications at the School of Art and Design, Nottingham Trent University! You will have access to cutting-edge facilities at the Design & Digital Arts building, and a strong network of academic and industry experts. Members of the Connected Experiences Lab are involved in the program both as instructors and collaborators. We hope to meet the next generation of creative technologists!

Full information on how to apply can be found here:

https://www.ntu.ac.uk/course/art-and-design/pg/msc-creative-technologies

PhD studentships in Digital, Technology and Creative

Nottingham Trent University is offering 8 funded PhD studentships aligned to the Digital, Technology and Creative Strategic Research Theme, led by Prof. Lars Erik Holmquist and Prof. Eiman Kanjo. The studentships cover digital creativity and heritage, and several will be aligned to the CXL research group and the new Design & Digital Arts building in the city centre.

Click this link for full details on how to apply.

Talk at The Collective on Irresponsible AI

The Collective is bringing together creative & digital innovators, thought leaders & industry professionals from across the East Midlands to share, learn, connect, hatch plans & collaborate through a series of regular events & talks.

Professor Lars Erik Holmquist will give a talk at the next event:

Wednesday 9 October 2024, 1700-1930 at Belgrave Postgraduate Centre, Nottingham Trent University. 

Irresponsible AI: Why artists and creatives must take control of the means of generation

Generative artificial intelligence has quickly become an important tool in the creative industries. It is now possible to create high-quality text, images, music and even videos from just a simple text prompt. However, the most accessible AI models are currently firmly in the hands of a few very large companies in the tech industry, who are wary of any controverses that can affect their stock price. While safety and ethics are important, art thrives on uniqueness and breaking boundaries, and there is a danger that when the generative models are controlled and owned by a small number of actors, this will stifle creativity. In the worst case, it can lead to bland and generic outputs, and even become a form of pre-censorship. I will discuss how users of AI, in particular artists and creatives, need to take matters of technology in their own hands – in other words, take control of this means of generation.

BOOK HERE!

AI commentary on ITV news

Professor Lars Erik Holmquist appeared in an ITV television special on artificial intelligence and on ITV News on October 3. He talked about artificial intelligence and creativity, and how generative AI is already used in many creative fields such as music and filmmaking. But his prediction is that in the workplace, AI is only taking over "low-level" tasks like writing office memos and producing diagrams. For work that requires real human quality, AI is just another new tool that will help creatives to maximise their potential.

Watch the special on ITV below. The segment on creativity and AI starts at 11:30. There are also some nice views of NTU's new Design & Digital Arts building!

Commentary on Apple's AI announcements

Today, Professor Lars Erik Holmquist comments on the new announcements from Apple in The Conversation. 

It is anyone’s guess if Apple’s approach to AI will be able to claw back some of the lost stock price, not to mention the hundreds of billions invested by them and the rest of the tech industry. After all, AI still has amazing potential, but it may be time to slow down a bit, and take a moment to consider where it will actually be the most useful.

There is little in "Apple Intelligence" at the moment that will convince anyone to get a new phone, but some features point towards realising the research vision of ubiquitous and context-aware computing, such as the Hummingbird inter-personal awareness device (right) developed by us back in 1999!

Read the full article in The Conversation here:

AI probably isn’t the big smartphone selling point that Apple and other tech giants think it is.

Welcome new PhD student Anh Pham!

Anh Pham is a PhD student at the Nottingham School of Art & Design. She is joining us from Edinburgh Napier University, with a strong academic background in Graphic and Digital Design (BA) and User Experience Design (MSc). Driven by a deep passion for research and a curiosity for the future of technology, her current work is titled Conquering Social Anxiety: Embracing Comfort through Realistic Metaverse Interactions.

This PhD thesis aims to analyse the effect of the Metaverse on the experience of people having social anxiety disorder (SAD). It demonstrates how Metaverse may assist patients with social anxiety since they will have environment and avatars to interact, thereby bolstering their self-confidence in these settings and in the real life. The study will employ a robust mixed-methods approach to explore an experimental investigation that tracks the progression of participants’ social anxiety over time. By addressing the gaps in current understanding of the therapeutic applications of virtual reality, this study aims to contribute valuable insights into parameters and principles of human body movements, facial expressions in the Metaverse context, and social presence factors associated with interactive environments.