Exploring Human Computer Interaction (HCI) – July 19, 2012

June 3, 2012

in Events

Human Computer Interaction (HCI) is an area of technology, which, as the name implies, improves the way we communicate, use and interact with computers. Picture the world you saw in the movie “Minority Report,” and think about the new business models that could result if such technology were affordable and readily available. Touch-based consumer tablets alone opened up new market and business opportunities that did not exist even a few years ago. HCI developments, such as multi-touch screens or gesture-based communication, provide new and revolutionary ways to solve old problems.

HCI combines computer science, behavioral psychology, ergonomics, and design to make the computers we use every day more usable and receptive to our needs. Specific areas of development include multi-touch technology, gesture-based computer interaction, motion-capture, and augmented reality.

MODERATOR

Eric Renz-Whitmore
Executive Director, New Mexico Technology Council
Eric Renz-Whitmore has been involved in building communities and encouraging technology development in New Mexico for over ten years. As a founding member of UNM’s ARTS Lab, he was instrumental in organizing community building efforts as part of New Mexico’s “Media Industries Strategy Project” developing multiple communications channels, producing statewide conferences and other events, and helping launch groups like the Rio Grande Chapter of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) and the New Mexico Post Alliance (NMPA). As Executive Director for the New Mexico Technology Council, a non-profit committed to growing tech business throughout New Mexico, he continues his work in connecting communities and promoting a more active culture of innovation.

PANELISTS

Bill Anderson
Managing Partner, Interlucient Inc.
Bill Anderson is the former Vice President of Game Development at Novint Technologies Inc, with over 11 years of experience in the field of 3D haptic hardware and software development. While at Novint, he led the development, licensing, acquisitions and integration of over 100 haptic enabled video games for the Novint Falcon and managed the creation of Novint’s F-Gen drivers which allow the sense of touch to be added to any video game or application. He has worked in the field of haptics at Sandia National Laboratories, and has led a project to create haptic medical simulation tools in conjunction with the University of New Mexico Hospital. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of New Mexico to receive his BS in Electrical Engineering, and subsequently received his MS degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Washington with a focus on robotics and haptic interfaces.

Tom Anderson
Managing Partner, Interlucient Inc.
Prior to starting Novint Technologies Inc., Tom Anderson led the development of some of the first 3D haptic (touch) applications in the world at Sandia National Laboratories beginning in 1996. In 2000 he founded Novint, assembling a world class team. Tom licensed over five years of Sandia’s groundbreaking research and oversaw Novint’s $35 million dollar fundraising, strategic partnerships and business development efforts, building a significant portfolio of intellectual property and patents, and positioning the company to successfully enter the consumer market. He took Novint public as a microcap, lead two corporate mergers including Novint’s recent merger with ForceTek, oversaw some of the world’s first haptic software development and the development and release of the world’s first consumer 3D haptic device, the Novint Falcon. Tom also closed on source code licensing agreements with companies like Electronic Arts and Valve Software, and haptic development contracts with companies like Lockheed Martin, Sandia National Laboratories, Aramco, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Chrysler, and a number of Universities. Tom has a BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of New Mexico, and an MS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Washington, where he studied computer interface technology and business management.

Stephen Guerin
Founder, Simtable
Stephen is President of RedfishGroup, an R&D consultancy based in Santa Fe. His work centers on visualization, agent-based modeling, and the design ambient computing interfaces. He lectures on agent-based modeling and artificial life as a faculty member of Santa Fe Institute’s Complex Systems Summer School. Stephen is founder of the Santa Fe Complex, a non-profit research lab and inventor of the Simtable, an interactive sandtable (www.simtable.com).

Jim Spadaccini
Director, Ideum
Jim is the director of Ideum. He is currently the Principal Investigator of a major National Science Foundation (NSF) sponsored project, Open Exhibits. He is also a Principal Investigator on a NASA educational project, Space Weather Mobile, and a co-PI on a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration sponsored project, Hurricanes and Climate Change. Before founding Ideum, Jim was the Director of Interactive Media at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. While at the Exploratorium, his department was responsible for developing educational Web resources and media exhibits for the museum floor. For his work at the Exploratorium, he received a Smithsonian Computerworld Award, an Association of Science and Technology Centers Award for Innovation and three consecutive Webby Awards for “Best Science Site.” Jim taught courses on design and technology at SFSU’s Multimedia Studies Program for seven years starting in the mid-90s. More recently he taught for Technology-Enhanced Communication for Cultural Heritage (TEC-CH) program at the University of Lugano, Switzerland. He currently teaches for the Cultural Resource Management Program at University of Victoria, British Columbia. Along with his work in informal education, Jim has consulted with Apple and Adobe and has developed promotional and instructional materials for a number of professional software authoring tools.

Date: Thursday, July 19, 2012
Time: 6-8 pm (5:30 pm cocktails)
Venue: Hotel Andaluz
125 2nd St NW
Albuquerque, NM 87102
Cost: $22.50 in advance (credit card payments); $25 at the door (cash and check only).
Complimentary valet parking is provided for guests attending the event (does not apply to any overnight stays). Attendees just need to identify themselves as being there for the Coronado Ventures Forum when they arrive. 

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